PrinceWatercress plays Chrono Trigger (Super NES) - Part 18 of 70

Our quest to repair the Masamune takes us to prehistoric times...but when we get there, we have trouble.

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World Map (600 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

Denadoro Mountains Map (by Rick Bruns)

Truce Canyon Map (by Rick Bruns)

The End of Time Map (by Rick Bruns)

Just before the cave that leads to the Masamune and just before the half-ladder you have to drop down from to reach it, there is a chest with a Gold Suit hidden behind a tree branch that is barely visible. Up until I made this guide, I never even knew it was there.

From there, I head back to the End of Time, then head back to Medina Village in 1000 AD and Melchior's Hut.

World Map (1000 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

Once you're back in Medina Village, head west to Melchior's Hut and talk to Melchior to ask him about the Masamune. He will tell you that it is a long story regarding his involvement in the creation of the Masamune, then tells you that you will need the Dreamstone to fully forge it, as it is the material that the sword is made of. Unfortunately, the Dreamstone is long gone and was only widely available a long time ago, and the only way to get one is to go back to prehistoric times. At long last, we have a reason to go back to prehistoric times.

Head back to The End of Time and head back to 65,000,000 B.C.

Mystic Mountains Map (by Rick Bruns)

When you drop down from the portal in the Mystic Mountains this time, you'll be surrounded by green, reptilian humanoids known as the Reptites. As long as you use strong multi-target spells, they're not hard to beat up. Just remember that they can throw dirt clods at you in an attempt to put you to sleep.

Eventually, you'll have more Reptites than you can find. Suddenly, a strong cavewoman with blonde hair will show up and lower the numbers a bit, then you'll have another wave of Reptites to fight. Once you take them down, you'll soon meet the cavewoman herself: Ayla, the chief of the nearby Ioka Village. After your party gets to know her better, she'll ask you to follow her down the mountains to the nearby village.

From here, the rest of the area is the same as it was the first time we were here, since we've been here before. It should be noted that if you fight all the enemies before you reach the exit, Ayla will show up and complain that you're too slow.

World Map (65,000,000 B.C.) (by Rick Burns)

From here, you'll want to go to the chief's hut. You'll be able to talk to Ayla, who will throw a party in your honor.

At the party, you'll be able to talk to your allies as well as Ayla. Obviously, you want to talk to Ayla to advance the plot, but if you have Marle in your party, you can do some optional dancing, and if you have Lucca in your party, you'll be able to drink some soup out of a large stone bowl. If Robo is in your party, he will be laying there, unable to do anything because of all the flies buzzing about.

If you talk to Kino - the other caveman with the blonde hair and grey hides like Ayla's - he will be confused as to why Kino is throwing a party for you, as you are not from the village. Keep this in mind for later if you talk to him.

Keep talking to Ayla. You'll find out that she is currently part of the war between the humans and the Reptites to see who will survive, and that she will fight until her last breath on the humans' side, and if she were to die, Kino would take her place as chief due to him being a man. She will eventually produce a Dreamstone. In order to get it, you'll need to beat Ayla in a soup eating contest. Accept the contest, then press the A button rapidly in order to easily beat Ayla. If you lose, you'll get the chance to try again. (It should be noted that in the original Super Famicom version, the soup was actually alcohol.)

After the soup eating contest, you'll get the Dreamstone, and you'll party into the night. You'll wake up in the morning, but when you do, you'll notice that there are strange footprints everywhere and that the Gate Key is missing. Your party will immediately head to the Chief's Hut. Talk to Ayla, and you'll wake her up and tell here what is going on. Ayla will join your party and take residence in your party's second slot for as long as you're looking for the Gate Key, and you'll get a chance to put who you need to put in the third slot.

Before you head anywhere, you'll want to go to the hut to the east of the Chief's Hut in order to trade for weapons and armor, now that the chief knows you. You'll be able to trade with the Petals, Horns, Fangs and Feathers that you get from winning battles, with certain monsters giving you certain trading items. You'll need three of one trading item combine with three of another to get different items. Here's what you can get at the trading hut:

Petal + Horn = Ruby Gun (Lucca)

Petal + Fang = Sage Bow (Marle)

Petal + Feather = Stone Arm (Robo)

Horn + Fang = Flint Edge (Crono)

Horn + Feather = Rock Helm (everyone) 

Fang + Feather = Ruby Vest (everyone)

You'll want to get all of the weapons, and you'll also want to get Ruby Vests and Rock Helms for everyone not named Ayla (unless you have the Meso Mail, in that case, don't give it to whoever has it equipped). Not only is this the best armor you can get in the game right now (unless you want to go into the Dactyl Nest for the Meso Mail at this rate, in that case, be my guest), but the Ruby Vest will cut all fire damage by 50%.

You'll also want to not get them for Ayla, who will come equipped with both of these armors as well as a Magic Scarf for an accessory (even though she cannot learn magic, being born before the age of magic). She also fights with her fist and does not need any weapons to equip, and she is one of the more powerful party members in the game alongside Crono and Robo.

If you need to sell your old stuff off, one of the people in the trading hut will be able to buy it off you, as he will also sell you healing items in exchange for your money.

Hunting Range Map (by Rick Bruns)

If you need to get any trading items for whatever reason, go ahead and go to the hunting range north of the village and fight enemies until you have what you need. It's also good for getting tech points for Ayla, as she starts with no techs.

By talking to the people in the other huts, you'll find out that the Reptites can be tough and hard to beat. You'll also find out that they went to their lair in the Forest Maze in the south after they came to the meeting site and stole the Gate Key. You'll need to head there.

Forest Maze Map (by Rick Bruns)

When you enter the Forest Maze, you'll find Kino. When you approach him, you will find out that he stole the Gate Key because Ayla likes Crono - who he does not like - even though Ayla likes Kino best. Ayla tells Kino that this is wrong and demands Kino apologize - which he does - and return the Gate Key, which he can't because the Reptites took it from him. From here, you'll have to follow the footsteps into the maze, which the game allows you to go through now.

PrinceWatercress plays Chrono Trigger (Super NES) - Part 17 of 70

In this entry, we head into the Denadoro Mountains to find the Masamune. Along the way, we see the so-called hero whom everyone has been talking about.

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World Map (600 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

There's nothing else to do and nowhere else to go, so let's head to the Denadoro Mountains to the north.

Denadoro Mountains Map (by Rick Bruns)

The Bellbirds will inflict Chaos on a single party member if you don't kill them in one hit, making them a bit of a threat even though you can most likely easily take them at this point.

The main enemies to watch out for are the Ogans and the Goblins. While the Goblins are pretty weak, the Ogans have increased offense and defense with their hammers. However, if you hit an Ogan with a fire spell, you'll burn their hammer down and turn them into a Goblin.

When you go up the ladder at the start, you'll see a boy with a shield running away from the mountain. You'll fight a Goblin, then you'll have to fight an Ogan.

The Free Lancers will hit a single party with a shuriken or with a sword, the latter occurring as a counter attack if you don't kill it in one hit.

Along the way, you'll have a Free Lancer throwing rocks at you. Be sure to run so you don't get hit by them.

Some of the enemy encounters on the cliff edges where you can see the horizon can only be triggered if you move into a very specific spot. These encounters are one-time only, but will net you some extra experience and tech points.

When you reach the large riverbank before the bridge, go down the waterfall from the left side so you can get the Silver Stud along with the Silver Earring. The Silver Stud will cut your MP usage by 25%, while the Silver Earring will increase your max HP by 50%.

After the bridge, you'll find a guy looking at the mountains across the horizon. If you keep talking to him, you'll get a Magic Tab.

Near the end, a Free Lancer keeps trying to stop from you reaching the cave. If you go after him, you can get an extra battle.

Inside the cave, you'll meet Masa and his brother Mune, who are really monsters disguised as humans. You'll have two battles against them as soon as you approach the Masamune. The first one are against Masa and Mune separately, who will encircle you with a whirlwind attack and will also attack with X Strike. If you focus all your attacks on one of them and use your most powerful attacks, you'll end this battle rather quickly.

After this battle, Masa and Mune will combine to become one giant, fearsome creature. Aside from a powerful chop and a tornado attack that will throw one of your party members up into the air and crashing into the ground, he also has an attack that involves storing energy and unleashing it on your entire party for a large amount of damage. If you use Crono's Slash when you get the message that Masa & Mune are storing energy, you will negate the attack. Keep using your most powerful attacks such as Antipode and keep your party healed up to get through this.

Once you beat Masa and Mune a second time, you'll get the Masamune...sort of. You'll get the Bent Sword, which is the blade of the Masamune. You'll also be able to step into the light and ride the wind to the base of the mountain, which allows you to easily leave.

Head to Tata's House in Porre Village and talk to the boy. You'll find out that the boy is Tata and the one that everyone is calling the hero. He will tell you that Frog dropped it in a cafe, and when he picked it up, everyone started calling him the hero and he could not bear to get rid of it. After telling you that he is no hero, he hands the Hero Medal to you.

From here, head back to the Cursed Woods.

Cursed Woods Map (by Rick Bruns)

At this point in the game, Nu can appear in the Cursed Woods. To fight him, you'll need to run into the T'Pole just before the bush that leads to Frog's House. If you can do that before Nu flees into the trees, Nu will be in the next battle, and you can beat him up like you did in the Hunting Range in prehistoric times for a ton of experience and tech points.

When you head back to Frog's House and talk to Frog, Frog will be surprised that you have the Hero Medal. He will then tell you that he cannot do anything against Magus and that while the Masamune is required to fight him, he has no right to wield it. He will then walk away from the basket that he has been standing in front of, and if you walk up to it and open it, you'll get the Bent Hilt. When you do, you'll notice that Melchior's name is on the Masamune. It seems it is time to head back to Medina Village to have a chat with Melchior.

If you talk to Frog again, he will tell you that there is not a single person who can repair the Masamune, but if there is one thing to know about this game, is that if there is a will, there is a way...

PrinceWatercress plays Chrono Trigger (Super NES) - Part 16 of 70

Our exploration of the southern continent in the Middle Ages shows us an old town that doesn't exist in the present day and reunites us with Frog.

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World Map (600 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

In the southern continent, there are a ton of places you can go to.

At the residence on the north end of Dorino Village, you can talk to the old man more than once if you have the Naga-ette Bromide from the Cathedral (which you can still get if you haven't already). He will notice the Bromide, and if you give it to him, you can open the dresser to get a Magic Tab.

At the Dorino Inn, you'll find out that the enemies with hammers in the nearby Denadoro Mountains can be disarmed if you use Fire magic on them to burn their hammers. You'll also find out that the hero that everyone is talking about is in Porre Village to the south.

If you go to the Elder's House in Dorino, the town chief will be talking to Toma, telling him to find the mythical Rainbow Shell. Toma will head to the Inn, and if you talk to him there and pay his tab, you'll find out that some creepy, dangerous frogs have taken over the forest to the south.

Talking to the chief afterwards will lead to learning that the Rainbow Shell allows for the creation of some reflective armor.

On the north end of the southern continent is the Denadoro Mountain, which we'll head to later. At the eastern peninsula is the Magic Cave, and while we can go there, we can't do anything there yet. Between Dorino, the mountains and the cave is Fiona's Villa, where Fiona is waiting for her husband Marcos to come back from the war so she can work on saving the forest around her home. You can find two Mid Ethers in the nearby chests.

The market in Dorino has the usual healing items, but the market in Porre to the south has Gold Suit and Berets, so be ready to buy those for whoever needs them and sell off your old armor.

At the Elder's House in Porre, the woman at the counter will be wanting some Jerky. Keep her in mind for later. You'll also find out from the village chief that the Magic Cave lies under a mountain east of Denadoro, but you won't be able to go in there for a little while.

Tata's House is at the south end, and you'll find out that some kid is in possession of the Hero's Medal there.

If you head to the Cafe, you'll find Toma again. Pay his tab, and you'll find out that he has found out the Rainbow Shell is on an island, but he has no idea which island. Meanwhile, he has spent all of the money that the chief of Dorino Village has given him. Meanwhile, the old man at the far right will tell you that Frog has been here.

Cursed Woods Map (by Rick Bruns)

Northwest of Porre is the Cursed Woods. The Gnawers are more powerful versions of the Gnashers from the Cathedral, while the T'Poles are frog enemies that can hit you with a rain attack and counterattack by trying to flatten you if your attack doesn't kill them.

Interestingly, counterattacks cannot trigger counterattacks, so if anyone is equipped with the Rage Band, they won't get a free strike in if they're hit with the T'Pole counterattack.

Along the way to the green bush to the north, you can find a Mid Tonic and a Shelter. You'll eventually see the green bush at the north end shaking, and if you walk into it from the north end, you'll find Frog's house. Frog will show up happy to see you, but when you talk to him, he will find out that the king has been injured. Frog, once again having confidence issues much like he did after he left your party the first time, will start having confidence issues again, feeling that he can do nothing for the king and that he is no hero. You're done here...for now.

PrinceWatercress plays Chrono Trigger (Super NES) - Part 15 of 70

In this entry, we have to help the Kingdom of Guardia hold back the Mystics if we want to continue our adventure.

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The End of Time Map (by Rick Bruns)

Now that we have four more portals to access at The End of Time, we need to head to go back to 600 A.D. The pillar of light in the upper-left will take you back to Truce Canyon.

World Map (600 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

Truce Canyon Map (by Rick Bruns)

On the way down the canyon, you'll fight the Imp Ace. They just fly into you to do damage and they're not that special, especially given the level you're probably at now.

In town, everyone will mention that the hero has come and will help defeat Magus' fortresses at Zenan Bridge.

If you go to Zenan Bridge, you'll find out that Guardia's knights are lying in wait to fight Magus' fortress should they approach Guardia. Talking to the Knight Captain will reveal that the troops are running out of rations and are awaiting more from the castle. You'll want to head there.

Guardia Forest (600 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

In the forest, there will be fewer battles you can run into compared to your previous visit to 600 A.D. You can still get the Shelter out of the bush, though.

Guardia Castle (600 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

When you return to the castle in the Middle Ages, the soldiers won't almost recognize you at first.

If you try to rest downstairs in the west wing, the beds will all be taken. You also won't be able to get a bite to eat in the kitchen, either.

Speaking of the kitchen, you'll want to talk to the chef. When you do, he will find out that the troops need more food, and it will also be obvious that he is a bit frazzled and rather frustrated. You don't have to do this, but if you talk to the people around the chef, you'll find out that the chef and the Knight Captain are trying to make up with each other. Leave the kitchen and dining area and head towards the entrance to the castle, and the chef will eventually catch up to you. He will give you some Jerky to hand to the Knight Captain as well as a Power Tab for your party. He also tells you to tell the Knight Captain to come back alive.

If you talk to the people around the throne room, you'll find out that the King has been injured in battle and is recuperating in bed in his quarters. If you talk to him, you will find out he believes Guardia's sole hope rests on the boy who has "the hero medal" and is searching the southern continent for the sword that can defeat Magus.

Head back to Zenan Bridge. Talk to the Knight Captain. When he asks if the Jerky is for him and his troops, say yes. The Knight Captain will thank you, and will tell you to thank his brother - the chef - in case he does not come back alive. Afterwards, you'll find out that Magus' troops are approaching Guardia right now. Once you have control of your party, talk to the Knight Captain again. When he asks if you will help, say yes. You'll get a Gold Helm, which is better than any headgear any of your characters have right now. You might as well take it.

When you advance across the bridge, you'll meet Ozzie, one of Magus' henchmen. He will summon some skeletal enemies known as the Deceased to attack you. Hit them with Fire or Ice magic to kill them. Don't use Shadow magic like Laser Spin or Antipode, as it will heal them. Physical attacks will not work on the Deceased, only magic.

You can also attack Ozzie multiple times, and if you do that, the spell on the Deceased will be broken and you can get rid of them instantly. You'll get the same amount of experience and tech points either way. You'll have to fight the Deceased a few times before you can reach the end of the bridge.

When you make it to the southern continent, Ozzie will summon Zombor, a giant skeleton. Zombor is a boss of two halfs - a top half and a bottom half - and you'll need to deal with both to defeat Zombor. The top half is subsceptible to Ice, while the bottom half is weak to fire. Keep that in mind as you do damage to Zombor, and don't mix them up or else you'll be healing Zombor. Zombor has a few attacks, such as the ability to spit a laser beam at the entire party and suck in one party member to shred them from within its body, but if you're hitting both parts of Zombor with the appropriate Dual Techs (Ice Sword for the top, Fire Sword for the bottom) and keeping your party's health high, you should be able to beat it. Just watch out for the MP Buster that Zombor does as a last-ditch maneuver upon death, as it will absorb all the MP of one party member and force you to replenish it. Thankfully, you can use a Shelter once you make it to the southern continent. At this point, you'll be able to cross the bridge at your leisure.

PrinceWatercress plays Chrono Trigger (Super NES) - Part 14 of 70

With nothing else, it's time to head back to our own time. Here, we find out what we need to do next in order to change history.

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The End of Time Map (by Rick Bruns)

World Map (1000 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

It's time to head back to our own time, so let's use the top center pillar of light, which takes us to Medina Village in 1000 A.D. It's not exactly home, but it's pretty close to it.

When you go through the Gate, you'll come out of a closet of a residence where two friendly Imps - a Blue Imp and a Mud Imp - live. If you talk to them for the first time, you'll get some Woolseyisms that refer to coming out of closets that have not aged well since the game's initial release (and were changed in the DS and all subsequent versions, ).

There is also a cake on the corner of the table the Imps are sitting that. You can press A on it and eat it after being given a prompt from the Imps as to whether or not you want to it, but once you say "Yes," you can't do it again. It's a one-shot deal.

When you leave the residence, the two Imps will tell you that the people in this village used to worship Magus and used to be part of a cult known as the Mystics, and that while some of the citizens have moved on, some still hold a generations-old grudge towards humans. You'll also be told that there is someone near the cave to the west that you'll want to meet.

If you go to the Inn, you'll have to fight the Hench innkeeper and the two Diablos before you can stay for a 200G fee. If you go to the Market, you'll have to fight the Hench shopkeep and his Omnicrone assistant in order to do business there. While the armor and weapons here are stronger than what anyone in your party has, you won't be able to afford any of it. You can still sell stuff, though.

If you go to the Medina Square, you'll see some people chanting and dancing around a statue of Magus, all of them wanting Lavos to kill the humans while also wanting to know why Magus created Lavos yet failed to kill humanity off.

If you go to the Elder's House, you'll meet Ozzie VIII, who has Imps working like slaves keeping the place clean. The countertop on the bottom floor will have a Speed Tab on the empty space, while the desk at the upstairs bedroom will have a Magic Tab between the houseplant and the book. Also, if you press X or Y to go to the respective buttons' menus and then leave while Ozzie VIII is on screen, he briefly turns Green before becoming blue again. There's a spoiler right there.

The Forest Ruins north of the village has a chest containing a Mid Ether, but you won't be able to do much else there.

There's nothing else to do here, so head west and enter the house. This is Melchior's Hut. Here, you can talk to Melchior - yes, the same Melchior who wanted to buy Marle's pendant - and buy the Red Katana for Crono and the Robin Bow for Marle. If you didn't get them for whatever reason, you can get the Plasma Gun and Hammer Arm for Lucca and Robo respectively, and if you need any, you can buy a Titan Vest. When you try to leave after talking to Melchior, Melchior will tell you that you will have to go through the nearby Heckran Cave to get back home to Truce Village...which is what we're going to do.

Heckran Cave

Heckran Cave Map (by Rick Bruns)

When you enter the area, you'll face two Henches. They're pretty easy, and they are the first of many battles that will happen one time only in this cave.

The Jinn Bottles will always spit out fire-blasting Octoblushes when you face them. The Jinn Bottles can Blind a single target, while the Octoblushes spit fire at a single target. Hit the Jinn Bottles with magic like Lightning, Ice and Fire, as it is the only way to do major damage to them.

You'll also meet the Tempurites as you go through the area with all the streams running through it. They only attack you with their snouts, and only magic can truly damage them.

The Rolypolys are purple Rolys that never come out of their ball form, and they can be easily taken out with Cyclone and Dual Techs that require it. The Cave Bats are new bat enemies that can only be taken down with magic attacks.

The MagicScarf is an accessory that increases any party member's Magic stat by two.

Near the end of the cave is a sealed box you won't be able to open until later.

You'll eventually face Heckran. Heckran can only be hurt by magic, and Heckran can hit single targets with Water, Lightning and the water-based Whirlpool. If you see the "Go ahead! Try and attack..." message, wait until you see "Brief counterattack break" before attacking him again, or else the whole party will get hit by Water2. Near the end of the battle, Heckran can hit a single target with "Yes indeed!" This physical attack will do quite a bit of damage to a single party members, so be ready to heal.

When you beat Heckran, Heckran will rue the Mystics' inability to destroy the humans 400 years ago, then Crono and company will go over what they know so far - that Magus created Lavos 400 years ago to defeat the humans - before realizing that they can use the Gate at Leene Square where the Telepod incident happened to go back to 600 A.D.

North of where you battled Heckran is a pool of water. If you jump in, you'll be carried back to the island where Lucca's house is, and if you stand where the two trees that are side by side on that island, you'll be able to jump back into the vortex in the water to go back to Heckran Cave if you want to return to Medina for any reason.

Guardia Forest Map (1000 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

While you can go to Leene Square and use the Gate there to return back to The End of Time and unlock 600 A.D. again - which we do - you can also go back to the dead end in Guardia Forest to open that Gate and the one leading to Bangor Dome in 2300 A.D. back up. Thankfully, The Chancellor and the soldiers won't come back. If you head back to the castle, you'll just automatically leave.

If you go back to Lucca's House and go upstairs to talk to Lara, Taban will show up and hand Lara some money, then go back downstairs. If you talk to him there, you'll get the Taban Vest, which is better than the Titan Vest but increases Speed by 2 and protects against Fire damage. Only Lucca can equip it.

If you enter the market in Truce Village, you'll be able to talk to Fritz, who - along with Elaine - will thank Crono for saving him while in prison, and you'll get ten Mid Ethers. Fritz and Elaine's father will show up and check on things before also thanking Crono. 

If you talk to Crono's mom, Crono's mom will be shocked that Crono returned after hearing talk that he was about to be executed,, and tells Crono not to scare her like that ever again. You can also introduce Lucca and Robo to her, if you want.

PrinceWatercress plays Chrono Trigger (Super NES) - Part 13 of 70

Well, I had the best of intentions here, even if they didn't exactly work out. Still, what I do here now is going to help out later.

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The End of Time

The End of Time Map (by Rick Bruns)

If you bring Robo to Spekkio, Spekkio will tell you that Robo cannot learn any magic, due to being a man-made creation from after the age of magic, although his Laser Spin does do Shadow damage. Keep that in mind.

We're supposed to head to Medina Village in 1000 A.D. and make our way home at this point. Before I do that, though, I have the bright idea of heading to the prehistoric era and getting some things ahead of time. It doesn't work out as well as I would like, but I do get a few things and level up a little bit nevertheless.

From here, we'll be going through the pillar of light in the bottom center position. 

Mystic Mountains Map (by Rick Bruns)

When you arrive in prehistoric times, you'll fall down a gap for a little while before you land near the stream below. As you make your way south, you'll be facing Runners and Kilwalas. Lightning will do a lot of damage to the Runners and can lower their defense, while the Kilwalas will attack your party members one a ta time by running at them. If you need to take out multiple enemies at once, Fire Whirl and Laser Spin help. You may have more luck having Marle in your party rather than Robo, as Aura Whirl will help with healing the whole party.

As you fight enemies in 65,000,000 B.C., you'll be collecting four new times: Petals, Fangs, Feathers and Horns. You'll need to use these in the trading hut.

World Map (65,000,000 B.C.) (by Rick Burns)

Once you make it down the Mystic Mountains, you'll be able to explore the overworld. There are some huts, including the Chief's huts, but only one of them will be of use to you, as one of the villagers in them will allow you to drink "sweet water" that replenishes your HP and MP. One of the villagers in another hut will tell you that thunder stuns all dinosaurs, which is how you're supposed to find out that hitting dinosaurs with lightning spells will work wonders for you by lowering their defense. 

In the Meeting Site, you can meet more people, and you'll also see Kino for the first time. Kino looks obviously different from everyone else, and he will not want anything to do with you.

One of the huts is the trading hut, but to my surprise, you won't be able to trade your Fangs, Horns, Feathers and Petals for anything this early in the game and you won't be able to do it until the storyline demands you head here.

There are two places we can head to: the Hunting Range and the Dactyl Nest. I head to the Dactyl Nest first because I'm absolutely nuts.

Dactyl Nest

Dactyl Nest Map (by Rick Bruns)

When you head here, you'll have to face a Cave Ape and a Shist immediately. Take out the Cave Ape first, as he is quite powerful and can attack you one of two ways: throwing a Shist at you (or you at another person or a wall) or swinging his arms at you. Both hurt at this point in the game. Crono's sword will do the most damage at this point. The Shist will not do anything unless you attack it, at which point it will turn into a Pahoehoe and spit rocks at one party member for a little bit of damage.

The Avian Rexes attack in pairs. Lightning will do a lot of damage to them, but don't be afraid to use other magic or a multi-target attack like Cyclone or Fire Whirl on them as well. 

If you ever need to heal, use a Mid Tonic or Aura Whirl. If Marle learns Cure at this point, use that, too. This is especially true if the Cave Ape gives you a hard time. 

There are two screens to explore here before you reach the final screen all the way up, which has absolutely nothing. I avoid that final screen because it makes it easier to get the heck out of here. You'll know you're near the top when you open the chest that contains the Meso Mail, which is the most powerful armor for men that you can get at this point in the game (if you're bold enough). If you get it, stick it on Crono.

After getting the heck out of the Dactyl Nest area (which I obviously should not have been in at this point in the game), I head to the Hunting Range.

Hunting Range

Hunting Range Map (by Rick Bruns)

When you enter this area, you'll be able to move around and fight some enemies for more Petals, Fangs, Feathers and Horns. The Croakers, Amphibites and Rain Frogs can hit you with rain spells and with their cheeks for an up-close attack, but you can easily wipe them out with Cyclone. The Ions and Anions - much like the frog enemies - always show up together - and they will hit you with a close-up physical attack if they get close enough. Once again, use Cyclone.

Every once in a while, it will rain, and when that happens, Nu will show up. Nu will show up in one of three locations: the northwest corner of the map, the northeast corner of the map and the southeast corner of the map. I stick to the east side because I've always had more luck finding him on the east side of the hunting range in the many years that I've played this game. If you talk to him before the rain stops, you can fight him. Nu has one attack, and it's a headbutt. It is programmed to take your HP all the way down to zero, and if you don't heal, it will take a few more hits before the weakened party member loses that one last hit point and goes down. Nu has exactly 1,234 hit points, and if you can hit him hard, you can take him down pretty quickly...so use Double Techs if you can and Aura Whirl if you absolutely have to! When you beat him, you'll get three more of all four of the trading items, and if you've beaten him for the very first time, you'll get the Third Eye, which doubles the Evade of whoever equips it.

There's nothing else to do in 65,000,000 B.C., so I head back to the End of Time.

PrinceWatercress plays Chrono Trigger (Super NES) - Part 12 of 70

In this entry, we get the path to the Gate open, but we have some complications not only getting to the Gate, but also after we enter it.

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Factory Map (by Rick Bruns)

Proto Dome Map (by Rick Bruns)

There's not much else to do here, so head to the bottom floor and head to the computer. The "ZABIE" lock will be operational, so press X, A, B and then Y at the tone to open the final door. There will also be a chest inside containing the Plasma Gun for Lucca, so don't forget to get that.

When you do that, go inside and hit the switch to power the generator for Proto Dome. You'll set off the alarm, and you'll need to get out of there before the security doors close on you. Thankfully, the game doesn't force you on a strict timer, and the crazy escape from the closing security doors is scripted and is trigger once you get close enough to them. Seeing Robo hold down that second pair of doors and narrowly escape being crushed is awesome.

You won't be able to use the elevators due to the security system going haywire (despite me saying you can), so you'll be forced to climb the ladder to get back up a floor. As you escape, you'll meet blue clones of Robo who happen to be Robo's friends...or so everyone things, as they all tell him that he is defective and chew him out for not destroying "the humans" that happen to be everyone else in the party. They then attack Robo by tackling him over and over before throwing him into a chute. From there, it's war.

To easily beat the R-Series, use Crono's Cyclone against one group of R-Series until they are gone, then do the same to the other. You'll want the other person in the party to heal regardless of whether it is Marle or Lucca. If you have the Rage Band on Crono like I do, you can make the battle a little bit easier with the counter hits that Crono will perform. In that case, you can use Marle or Lucca against any stragglers. Do not use Fire Whirl or Flame Toss, as the R-Series are invulnerable to them.

Once you beat the R-Series, Robo will be rescued from the chute. After a long journey from the Factory back to Proto Dome that involves dragging Robo back, Lucca will fix Robo up again. As she does, she asks Robo abut his plans for the future, for which Robo does not have any as nobody has ever asked him before. At this point, the door leading to the gate is open.

The End of Time

The End of Time Map (by Rick Bruns)

Robo is eventually fixed, and the four-strong party enters the Gate to the north after Robo says that there is nothing for him in the ruined future. Unfortunately, the Gate goes haywire for some reason, and the team ends up in a place in the middle of nowhere surrounded by virtually nothing else. There are pillars of light where they land, as well as a gate, some fencing, a streetlamp, a door and a bridge. There is also a barrel of flowers that replenishes the party's HP and MP, as well as a save point. The only person here is an old man in a brown suit and Trilby hat with a cane, and by talking to him, they find out they are at the End of Time and that parties of more than three always end up here. From here, you'll find out that you can re-organize your party and switch people in and out at any time with the Y button. Robo is the best person to leave behind (for now; as a matter of face, Lucca and Marle get mad at you if you choose them). Don't forget that party members can still gain experience while at the end of time, but they cannot earn Tech Points or learn new Techniques unless they are in the active party.

After this, the old man will tell you that the light pillars to the west will take you to different time periods, and to beware of the gate that leads from the bucket. You can't use it yet, and you definitely don't want to. If you head out to another time period, the old man will get your attention suddenly. Talk to him again, and he will tell you to to go through the door behind him. 

When you do, you'll meet Spekkio. After he asks if you think he is weak or strong, he will then have you perform the simple task of walking around the room clockwise three times from the door. That means you have to walk left from the door and walk around the room from there, not to the right.) If you did it right - which isn't too hard - teach you magic. You'll want Crono, Lucca and Marle in your party for this, as he will teach Crono Lightning magic (renamed Light magic in future versions of the game), Lucca Fire magic and Marle Water Magic (although Marle will get Ice, not Water).

From here, you can fight him if you want. If you do, however, Spekkio will be pretty strong. You cannot harm him with physical attacks; only magic. There is a way to win at this point, however. You'll want to keep Aura Whirl ready whenever more than one party member is under 100 HP at the same time so you can keep everyone's health high. The rest of the time, you'll want to use Crono's Lightning, Marle's Ice and Lucca's Fire against Spekkio if you have no reason to use a Tonic or Mid Tonic to heal anyone. It will take a little while, but you will eventually beat him. If you beat him between Levels 10 and 19 in his Kilwala form (which we do here), you'll get a Magic Tab and five Ethers.

There is a frog form for Spekkio that you can meet and face if you're between Levels 1 and 9 which considerably less HP and weaker spells, although it can still destroy you in that form if you're careless. If you beat that form (which you'll be almost unlikely to see unless you rush through the game), you'll just get a Magic Tab.

Regardless of whether you win or lose (or don't fight at all), the old man will get your attention again as soon as you leave the room after learning magic. He will tell you that while you may be itching to rip and back and forth through time, it is best to return to your era through the pillars of light to the west. One will take you back to Proto Dome, another will take you to Medina Village in 1000 A.D., while the third will take you to prehistoric times in 65,000,000 B.C. Obviously, you'll want to go to Medina Village, but I'm itching to head to prehistoric times for some stuff...

In the meantime, go back to Proto Dome. Walk away from the Gate, then go all the way back to the gate, then gently tap Down as soon as you are walking in place south of the Gate and press A. If you're in the right spot, you'll get a Power Tab.

PrinceWatercress plays Chrono Trigger (Super NES) - Part 11 of 70

In order to use the Gate at Proto Dome, we'll need to head to the Factory and power up the generator to power the door. Thankfully, we find a new friend who will help us do just that.

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World Map (2300 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

Lab 32

Lab 32 Map (by Rick Bruns)

Now that you have the Bike Key, you can use the jetbike that is in Lab 32. When you go up to the jet bike and press A to get the jetbike started, a bunch of Proto 2's will show up, but Johnny will show up before a fight can occur. From here, you'll have to race Johnny to the end of Lab 32 in a side-scrolling Mode 7 duel instead. Up and Down will steer the jet-bike, while B uses one of your three turbo boosts.

As you race, both you and Johnny will move back and forth. There will be a map at the bottom showing how far you are from the finish line, and at the lower-right corner, you'll see how many turbo boosts you have left. When you use a boost to get ahead briefly, you won't be able to use another one until the red gauge feels back up. At the upper-left corner, there is Rest - which shows how far you are from the finish line - and W.P., which is your score for the race. As you move back and forth, you'll gain points while in the lead and lose points while behind Johnny. If you can keep bouncing into Johnny repeatedly as you move backwards, you can keep the lead and keep gaining points.

Near the end of the race, you'll want to use a turbo boost just in time to get to the finish line just before Johnny does. If you can do that, you can win the race every single time. Also, you must win the race this one time in order to reach the end of Lab 32, or else you're starting all over.

Once you make it to the other end, you could leave, but you can also go back and cross by foot. There are Shadows and Mutants that you can fight here, but the Mutants aren't worth the gold and experience even in groups, and the only chest in the area contains the Race Log. If you talk to Johnny with the Race Log in your inventory, a Proto 3 will show up and keep record of your three highest race scores.

There's nothing more to do in Lab 32, so go ahead and head south on the east end to leave.

Proto Dome

Proto Dome Map (by Rick Bruns)

When you enter this place for the first time, you'll have to face a bunch of Buggers. Once you beat them all, you'll find a robot near the door. Interact with it with A, and Lucca will take a look at the robot and realize that she can repair it. As Lucca goes to work, Marle will find out that the door at the north end of the dome will not budge.

Eventually, the robot will be repaired. After some formalities between the robot and Crono's party, it becomes very apparent that the robot - serial number R-66Y - is a very friendly robot, and that he knows how to open the door to the north: enter the factory north of Proto Dome and power up the generator to get the door open. Unfortunately, the generator will run for only a brief time, and the door needs to opened before it stops. Because of this, one party member - Lucca or Marle - will have to stay behind, and you'll have to pick who gets left behind. If you change your mind on who you want to leave behind, talk to the person you left behind and you can make the switch easily.

During this conversation, R-66Y gets the less stuffier and more affectionate name of Robo, which he goes by for the rest of the game.

Factory

Factory Map (by Rick Bruns)

When you enter the factory, go up to the computer and press A. With Robo as a forced member of the party, you'll be able to go up the conveyor belt to the right and explore the factory. You'll also fight a new enemy: Acid. Use Crono's Slash against it, as it has high defense, so you don't have to deal with the Acid's flamethrower attack.

If you fight one battle with both Marle and Robo in the party, you'll get the Cure Beam double tech, which works much like Aura Whirl except it doesn't require Crono.

The Debuggers are much stronger versions of the Buggers. If you can get Robo to learn it here, use Laser Beam against them to damage multiples of them at once. Slash works well against them, too.

You'll have two teleporters that you can take. The west one leads to the generator, but the east one leads to the factory proper. Take the east one first.

In the factory area, you'll want to head south and enter the doorway to the east. You'll be on the conveyor belt, and you'll need to cross the conveyor belt while avoiding touching the robots to get to the treasure chest with the Ether as well as the doorway in the southeast corner. If you touch any robots, you'll be carried off to the conveyor belt on the other end, where you'll have to face some Proto 3's as well as some Debuggers for three battles. The Proto 3's have flamethrowers, so be ready to heal. Once you're done with the three battles, you can then get to the room in the southeast corner.

If you take the stairs west of the ones leading to the conveyor belt you're supposed to cross, you can get the Robin Bow, which is a more powerful weapon for Marle.

In the next room, you'll have to face some Bugs in order to get to the upstairs area. Enter the door on the right first when you go all the way north and use the computer. You'll get two crane control codes: X-A and B-B. Two Proto 3's will run amok, so stay away from them as you get the 400G and the Mid Ether in the chests (unless you want to battle them, in which case, be my guest). After you leave that room, enter the room on the left and get the 400G and the Mid Ether in the two chests while avoiding the Proto 3's (unless you want to battle them, again, be my guest) and get to the crane controls on the other end. Press Down and you'll be asked for a code. Press X then A the first time to move the first of two metal drums, then press Down again and press B twice on the code prompt to move the other metal drum. This will open the way to a doorway where you can get another Bolt Sword for Crono as well as a computer where you can get the last defense lock code named "Zabie," translated XABY. You'll need this later.

If you're playing the PS1 version of the game, you'll need to press the equivalent face buttons for the codes. The crane control codes would be Triangle and Circle followed by X and X, and XABY would be Triangle, Circle, X, Square.

From here, go back to the entry area and take the west teleporter. This will lead to the security area. Head north to the computer to open the hatch, then get ready to fight Acids as well as Alkalines, which are much like the Acids but have an acid bubble attack instead of a flamethrower. Slash works best against both of these enemies. Make sure you finish them off, because if you don't do enough damage to kill and an Acid and an Alkaline are next to each other, they will perform a double tech chemical explosion attack that damages all party members. Don't forget to open the nearby chest containing the Shelter when you're done.

Once you go down the hatch, you'll need to make your way to a door. The path is pretty linear, and you'll have no choice but to enter the door due to a red laser barrier blocking your path to the teleporter. Go inside and use the computer tu turn off the security lasers, then fight the five Acids that drop in. Afterwards, you can either go down the hatch or go down the formerly blocked teleporter to go down to the last defense lock and the generator. Don't forget to open the chests in this area, as you go down. One contains a Hammer Arm for Robo, which is more powerful than the Tin Arm that he starts with, and a Titan Vest for Crono so he can match Robo in defense.

If you need to save before hitting the generator, you can take the teleporter up instead of down. This will take you to the save point in the factory where you can save your progress so you don't have to do all of this again.

PrinceWatercress plays Chrono Trigger (Super NES) - Part 10 of 70

It's time to head into Arris Dome. When we do, we have to help the people get some food from underneath the building, but when we do, we get more than we expected.

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World Map (2300 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

Arris Dome

Arris Dome Map (by Rick Bruns)

Now that we're done with the optional areas, it's time to head into Arris Dome.

When you make your way to the northern end, the people there will be wondering who you are and what you're doing in Arris Dome. You'll also be introduced to Doan, the descendent of the director of the dome's info center. By talking to people, you'll find out that they are hungry and that one of the people in the dome went down to the food storage area to find some food and has not returned.

There is also a store to the west end of the dome, so if you still need to buy any of the weapons and armor from Trann Dome, you can still get them here.

When you climb down the ladder, Doan will be surprised that you are going down there, then tells you to be careful and to come back alive.

Once you go down the ladder, you'll only be able to head left. You won't be able to go right until you find out how to work the console on the right end. Once you climb up the left ladder, you'll have to move across the walkways to get to the north end. Along the way, you'll find a rat, although it's really a statue.

At the north end, if you press X to get your party ready and leave the menu, you'll face two Proto 2's and two Buggers. These enemies will fire lasers at you and can also perform some shocking close-range attacks, but if you hit them hard, they won't give you much trouble. Once you head towards the opening to the north, however, crap hits the fan.

You'll be fighting the Guardian and the Bits. You'll need to destroy the two Bits first, and if you attack the Guardian before then, the Bits and the Guardian will counter-attack. If both Bits are out, your whole party will be hit with Delta Force, which does a ton of damage. If you have just one Bit out, they will just use the Amplifier attack where the Bit fires a laser to the Guardian to amplify it on one party member.

Once you take out the two Bits, wail on the Guardian. Do not use fire-based attacks on it such as Flame Toss or Fire Whirl, as they will do exactly zero damage. As you do this, the Guardian will count down from five, and when it reaches zero, the Bits will revive, and you'll have to destroy them all over again if you want to do more damage to the Guardian.

Once you defeat the Guardian, you'll be able to enter the food storage facility to the north. Unfortunately, the refrigeration system has failed quite some time ago, and the man that you find is as expired as the food. Marle, however, finds a seed, which proves to be the only available source of food. You'll also be able to find a Mid-Ether in the chest inside. If you press A on the man, you'll find a note stating that the statue that looks like a rat is not really a statue and knows the secret of the dome, and that you'll need to catch it.

Head back to the walkways to the south. The rat will be waiting for you, and you'll need to run after it by holding the B button and running perfectly across the walkways. When you get close, press A. You'll find out that by pressing A while holding the L and R buttons at the consoles near the underground ladder, you can open up the path to the right. From here, go back to the consoles, and press A while holding L and R at the right console. You'll be able to explore more of the area.

Here, you'll be fighting enemies and opening chests while making your way to the information center. The Bugs have a flying tackle, but they can also put you to sleep with their sonar attacks. The Rats will leap at you and bite you, but if any Buggers are in the battle, they will fire lasers at the Rats and have a chance of killing them. You'll find another door that will not seem to open, much like in Bangor Dome, Trann Dome and Keeper's Dome in this area.

You'll eventually reach the information center. Lucca will use her computer smarts to find out that there is a Gate in Proto Dome to the east. (How the people of this era know about Gates is anyone's guess and is never explained.) Marle presses a button, however, that reveals information about "The Day of Lavos" in 1999 A.D., when the world is wiped out. Crono, Marle and Lucca soon find out that they are in the far future where the majority of humanity has been wiped out and the world itself has been destroyed, and the three of them agree that they must change history again, this time by preventing The Day of Lavos from ever occurring.

From here, head back to the entry level of Arris Dome where all the people are. You'll hand the Seed over to Doan, and it soon becomes apparent to Doan that you are from the past and not from this time period. Doan thanks you for proving him and his people with a future and a glimmer of hope as far as food is concerned, then hands you the Bike Key, which you can use to ride the jet bike in Lab 32. From here, it's time to head on out and travel towards Lab 32.

PrinceWatercress plays Chrono Trigger (Super NES) - Part 9 of 70

There's nothing else to do in the area where we showed up, so it's time to start exploring this miserable looking world.

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World Map (2300 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

There's nothing left to do in this part of the world map, so it's time to head north to Lab 16. (Why it's a lab, I have no idea.)

Lab 16 Map (by Rick Bruns)

Watch out for the rats. If you move into them, you'll lose a Tonic. Some of the enemies you'll be facing will drop some, though.

The Meat Eaters will heal the entire enemy party and can also shoot a dust attack at you that can confuse you, and the Octopods can also absorb a little bit of your HP into their own.

The Craters perform a volcanic rock attack that drops down rocks and attacks the entire party. They're pretty slow, and you can easily attack multiple Craters at once.

The Shadows cannot be hit with physical attacks; you must use magic. The only attacks you can use at this point are Crono's Slash and Lucca's Flame Toss.

The Mutants have 300 HP. Not only can they pack a bit of a punch, but they can also absorb a little bit of your HP into their own.

The Berserker allows anyone who has it equipped to attack with stronger physical attacks, but their skin will turn red and they will always perform a physical attack when their battle gauge fills up.

Not only can you find another Lode Sword, but you'll also find a Lode Bow, which you'll want to equip on Marle.

Once you reach the other end of Lab 16, you can head to Arris Dome to continue the game's plot, or you can head to the Sewer Access. While you're supposed to go through the Sewer Access area later in the game, the game sort of expects you to explore it now, with one of its items reflecting that.

Sewer Access

Sewer Access Map (by Rick Bruns)

When you drop down, a guard will show up and relay your presence to Lord Krawlie. From here, head east and fight the Egders and the Nereid. The Nereids can hit you with Water and Lightning attacks, while the Egders will smack you and also eat you to absorb some of one party member's HP. Cyclone and Fire Whirl will help against taking down multiple enemies. After this battle, you'll be able to get the 600G out of the nearby chest and head to the west.

When you head towards the ladder leading down, you'll see two frogs: the Boss and the Underling. They will talk about some of the bridges in the area disappearing, then run away when they see you. You'll also get some dialogue from your other party members before you finally head down to the next area.

In the next area, go west for a diary entry you can read. The diary entry will tell you that if you make any noise, you'll have to fight monsters, and they will all be Nereids. You'll have to press A to interact with the cat, the soda can near the trash bin and the piece of cheese to get the first three battles, but if you walk into the save point, you'll trigger the fourth and final battle automatically.

At the end, you'll be back in the main area. After the battle you see automatically, go north. There are two hidden passageways that you can easily find in the wall to the east. One leads to the switch, which you'll need to press A in front of to open the door, and the other that leads to the door itself. When you open the door, you'll meet the Boss and the Underling again, trying to reach a switch near the exit before seeing you and fleeing again. The chest before you meet Krawlie contains the Rage Band, which gives whoever has it equipped a 50% counterattack rate upon being hit by an enemy attack.

When you reach Krawlie, Krawlie and his guard friend will boast about what Krawlie is going to do to you before the guard flies away (and never comes back) and Krawlie fights you. Krawlie will alternate between a multi-slam attack that takes the HP of whoever he uses it on to 1 and a clap attack that can do a lot of damage. If anyone gets slammed, heal them with a Mid Tonic; if anyone gets clapped on, use Marle's Aura to heal them. Be sure to use powerful attacks, such as Fire Whirl, and put the Rage Band on Crono in case Krawlie hits him for the chance at some free damage.

Eventually, Krawlie will go down, and you'll be able to head south to leave. As you do, head east of the ladder to find the Bolt Sword, which is more powerful that Crono's Lode Sword. (This sword is known as the Thunder Blade in all the post-Super Nintendo versions.) Also, hit the switch that the Boss and the Underling were trying to reach to open the bridge leading back to the Nereid maze. This will make getting around easier on your return trip. From here, take the nearby ladder up to leave.

There are two places to head to when you exit the other side of the Sewer Access.

At Death Peak, run north, then go to the west at the first tree to find a Power Tab. You'll be forced down the mountain by the wind and you won't be able to do anything here yet, but you can at least get this early on in the game.

There is also Keeper's Dome. You'll see a man in a trilby hat and a suit putting instructions into a creature, and the stuff that he makes says doesn't make any sense until later in the game. This part is completely optional.

From here, it's time to go back through the Sewer Access area. This time, you'll have the shortcut leading back to the end of the Nereid maze, which will make it quicker and easier to get back to Arris Dome, where you'll need to head next.

PrinceWatercress plays Chrono Trigger (Super NES) - Part 8 of 70

In this entry, we have to break out of prison. Once we do that, we end up going into what seems like a whole other world once we're cornered in the forest.

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Guardia Castle Jail (by Rick Bruns)

Guardia Castle (1000 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

Guardia Forest (1000 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

If you got four or five "not guilty" jurors, you only get one Ether. If you get six or seven, you'll get three Ethers as soon as you wake up in your cell. This was changed in subsequent versions where the more "not guilty" jurors you got, the more Ethers you got.

There are two ways to escape from prison. You can either wait three days for the execution (which doesn't take long) so that Lucca can save you from getting your head lopped off, or you can walk into the cell bars three times and get the guard to open it. From there, you can either run out faster than the guard can leave or kill the guard. If you kill the guard, you'll only have to face the other guard; if you run, you'll have to face both of them. From there, if you make your way to the exit, you'll meet Lucca then.

While you can fight the Guards, you don't necessarily have to. While all they can do is slash at you with their swords, you can get behind them and press A like you would with the guard if you tried to escape the quick way and kill them then and there. You won't get experience or money, but if you press A to search them, you'll get a Mid-Tonic, which replenishes 200 HP easily. Be sure to get as many of these as you can.

The other enemies you can meet are the Blue Shields, who are just men hiding behind shields. If you wait long enough, they will move their shields to the side to look around and become Yodu De, which looks a bit like "Yo Dude," now that I think about it. Neither form attacks, and while the Blue Shields have high defense and move around, Yodu De stays put and is completely vulnerable.

If you can find the store room, you'll find some healing items, but you'll have to fight the Omnicrone - some guy with a mace - on the way back. He is pretty strong and is easier to face with two people and Fire Whirl, but you can still take him down with just Crono.

You'll come across a larger corridor that leads to the execution room. Along the way, you'll find a guy underneath a guillotine. Free him. You'll find out that this is Fritz, who has been mentioned by Elaine as well as the store clerk in Truce Village. 

The Decedent, should you run into it, can be pretty powerful, being able to attack you with its spear. Thankfully, Crono can easily beat it up.

One of the bridges has a battle with two guards, but you'll only see that battle once.

Some of the cell doors only open halfway, and you'll have to find a way to get into those cells and get the items inside them. One of the cells has a hole in the wall that can let you climb down two levels to enter the cell below, but that's not all. If you can press A at the hole in the floor, you'll be in another cell that you can't normally enter. From there, you can just press A while walking into the north wall from where you came in from to climb back up. You'll want to go down to that cell with the shortcut in the floor, as you'll find 1500G and a Lode Sword.

Eventually, you'll find the area where you entered the jail from. If Lucca hasn't rescued you yet, you'll have to fight the guards. You'll also have to deal with the Supervisor, but Lucca will take him out as he runs. Searching the Supervisor will net you five Mid-Tonics. You'll also be able to read the Dragon Tank Owner's Manual, which states that the head provides shielding from fire and lighting attacks, which renders the tank unstoppable.

When you try to escape, the Chancellor will sic the Dragon Tank on you. There are three parts to the Dragon Tank: the Tank Head, the Dragon Tank (which is the body), and the Grinder (which is the well at the bottom). The Grinder allows the tank to charge at you and damage both Crono and Lucca. The tank head will heal the tank and spit fire at one of your party members. The Dragon Tank will fire lasers (which can damage both party members) and missiles (which only damage one). The Grinder has the least amount of HP and easily be taken out first, but you can also focus on the Tank Head first if you're daring and you don't want to deal with all the healing. Once you destroy the Grinder, the charging attacks will cease, and when you destroy the Tank Head, you'll stop the tank from healing itself. From there, you can destroy the Dragon Tank itself, and if you destroy the body, the rest of the tank goes down no matter what.

After beating the Dragon Tank, Crono will destroy the Dragon Tank once and for all. The Chancellor and the two guards who show up will end up being a makeshift bridge, and you can walk across them to get back into the castle. Get the Shelter in the chest as you make your way downstairs. You'll be spotted by the guards, but they can't do anything to you. When you make it to the entrance, Marle shows up and stops all the guards, and when King Guardia XXXIII confronts her for her actions, she ends up leaving and running away with Crono and Lucca.

From here, the soldiers and the Chancellor will continue to chase after you, and you'll be forced to go into the clearing to the east. Here, you'll find a Gate, and with the soldiers and the Chancellor trapping you with nowhere else to go, you'll have to do both the inevitable as well as the illogical: jumping into the Gate without a clue as to where it will take you.

World Map (2300 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

Bangor Dome (by Rick Bruns)

Trann Dome (by Rick Bruns)

When you come out of the gate, you'll be in a strange dome-like structure. There is a door to the north, but you won't be able to open it. There's nothing else to do but to go south to leave, and when you do, you'll find out that you are in a desolate wasteland of a world.

Trann Dome is to the south, and if you talk to the people there, you'll find out that world that you know does not exist in this era. You'll also find out that the people here are starving and that there is another dome to the east, but only if you can get past the ruins. You can heal your HP and MP with the Enertron, but you'll still be left hungry.

If you talk to the man near the entrance, you'll find a shop. You'll definitely want to get the Auto Gun for Lucca and you'll want to get Iron Helms and Iron Suits for everyone. You can also buy Mid-Tonics here for 100G each if you feel the need.

PrinceWatercress plays Chrono Trigger (Super NES) - Part 7 of 70

Now that's THAT's all over, it's time to take Marle home. What could go wrong?

Everything. Everything could go wrong.

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World Map (1000 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

Guardia Forest (1000 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

With Lucca gone and it's just you and Marle that's left, it's time to take Marle home. Once you head through Guardia Forest and get back to the castle, the Chancellor will accuse of kidnapping Marle, brand you a terrorist and order the soldiers to seize you.

After this, you'll be in a courtroom where Crono is put on trial. When asked who started this whole mess, say you did it; saying Marle started it will be used against you. (I messed this part up, and I'll be correcting this when I go for the "all innocent" run again on New Game Plus.) When asked if you were tempted by Marle's wealth, say no both times. (Saying yes either time is used against you.)

If you brought the cat back to the little girl, the girl will thank you...if you talked to her. If you talk to the little girl, but you don't bring back the cat, the little girl testifies against you. If you bring the cat back to the little girl without talking to the little girl, the little girl never shows up.

If you ate the old man's lunch, the old man will testify against you.

If you tried to run away while Marle is buying candy before heading north to see Lucca's invention, someone will testify against you and call you a kidnapper.

If you picked up the pendant without talking to Marle first, this is used against you.

If you try to sell the pendant to Melchior, this is used against you.

If you lie at any point in the trial, this is used against you. Even if you did something you should not have, always tell the truth.

After the arguments of the trial, you'll get seven members of the jury who will find you guilty or not guilty depending on your actions at the Millennial Fair as well as during the trial. Here is the breakdown, courtesy of StrategyWiki:

Juror 1: Finds you guilty if you claim the fortune tempted you either time, or if you try to sell the pendant. Doing neither will lead to a "not guilty."

Juror 2: Finds you guilty if you talked to the little girl and didn't bring her cat back. This one can be tough to get the "not guilty" from.

• If you never talk to the little girl and never return the cat, they will find you not guilty, as the little girl never shows up in the trial. (Do this for best results.)
• If you rescue the cat before you talk to the little girl, the little girl will testify in your favor, and the juror will find you not guilty.
• If you talk to the little girl but fail to return the cat, the little girl testifies against you and the juror will find you guilty.

Juror 3: If you moved away from the candy booth with Down on the D-Pad as Marle was picking out candy, this juror will find you guilty; otherwise, they will find you not guilty. 

Juror 4: If you admit that the fortune tempted you either time, or if you picked up the pendant before talking to Marle, this juror will find you guilty. Talking to Marle first after bumping into her rectifies this, as well as not being tempted by wealth.

Juror 5: If you admit that the fortune tempted you either time, this juror finds you guilty. Thankfully, admitting it didn't gives you a "not guilty."

Juror 6: Finds you guilty if you stole the old man's lunch...so don't steal the old man's lunch.

Juror 7: If you either lie at any point in the trial, say that Marle started everything, or clam you never stole something when you really did, this juror finds you guilty. If you state that you were not tempted by her wealth, but still try to sell Marle's pendant, this juror will somehow find you not guilty. Also, if you lie twice, this juror finds you guilty, but no other juror does.

For the best results, rescue the little girl's cat without talking to the little girl, don't eat the old man's lunch, don't press Down to drag Marle away from the candy booth, don't try to sell Marle's pendant, talk to Marle first before picking up the pendant when you bump into her, tell the truth by stating that you started the whole thing and admit to always stealing anything if you did, and mention that you were not tempted by Marle's fortune at all both times.

If you want all guilty, do the exact opposite, and talk to the little girl without returning her cat.

Even if you are found innocent, you are still found guilty of running off with the princess and you are still sent to prison anyway. As you're being processed, the Chancellor makes it clear that he wants you executed. You'll then be knocked out and put in a cell.

In the cell, you can save your game and also restore your HP and MP. If four or more jurors find you not guilty, there will be a pink sack on the bed, and if you press A next to it, you'll get an Ether. You'll get more Ethers if six or seven jurors find you not guilty as opposed to four or five.

PrinceWatercress plays Chrono Trigger (Super NES) - Part 6 of 70

We go deeper into the cathedral in our quest to save Queen Leene in this entry.

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Cathedral Map (by Rick Bruns)

In the second section of the cathedral, you can save your game. From here, you'll have to go around in a circle and hit a skull switch to lower the spikes in the central chamber. The switch on the west end will just release more monsters, while the one on the east end will lower the spikes.

The Mad Bats will bite at you and also try to hit you with a sonar attack from a distance. If you can hit them with Fire Whirl in groups, so much the better.

You'll have to talk to the sleeping Hench in order to fight him.

One of the side stairways you'll go down on the way to pressing switches and exploring will turn into a slide and force you downwards, forcing you to go the long way around just to get back to the beginning and to the central chamber. Once you're here, you'll be facing some Henches and Diablos, but you should be able to take care of them. After that, open the nearby chest to get an Iron Sword for Frog, which is stronger than the sword that he starts with, and play the organ to open the doorway to the far north.

This doorway leads to some more fights and contains a path to the final chamber. You'll also get one more chance to save your game, so make sure you take advantage of it. Once you go through the door to the north, you'll find Queen Leene and the Chancellor. Head to the north end of the room to save Queen Leene and face the Chancellor, who is really the evil monster Yakra.

Yakra is your first boss battle and can attack your party in several ways: running through all of them with a charge attack, shooting a spike attack at one person for a good amount of damage, spitting a ball at them for minimal damage and also trying to put one person to sleep with a ball of dirt. Lucca will more likely be healing people unless you can somehow do it with Frog (which can help), and if you need her to attack, have it be with Flame Toss or Fire Whirl, as her gun is useless early in the game. As far as Crono and Frog go, have them attack with X Strike multiple times, as you'll need to deal some damage to get rid of this guy. Eventually, you'll take Yakra down.

Once Queen Leene thanks you for saving her, you can then open the chests to the north. One of them will contain a Mid Ether, which replenishes 30 MP compared to 10 MP from the Ether. The other will contain the real Chancellor, who will thank you for saving him. If you leave with Queen Leene without the real Chancellor, he will pop out of the chest on his own and try to catch up with you in hilarious fashion.

[url=https://vgmaps.com/Atlas/SuperNES/ChronoTrigger-600AD-GuardiaCastle.png]Guardia Castle (600 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

You'll then be back at the castle throne room. The King will thank you, as will Queen Leene, but Frog will be hard on himself, blaming himself for everything that has just happened before leaving. 

You can follow him now, but Queen Leene will also ask about Marle, and Lucca will mention going back to where Marle disappeared to see if she is still there. Take the right stairway up to the Queen's bedroom and enter the bedroom, and you'll finally meet Marle, who suddenly pops right back into existence. After Marle talks about what it is like being in what seems to be the limbo of time and space from being wiped out of history, Lucca will call Marle "Princess Nadia," and Marle will reveal that she is indeed Princess Nadia of Guardia. After some conversation, which involves a question where it doesn't matter what answer you choose, Marle will join the party.

If you want, you can talk to Queen Leene with Marle in your party at this point for some humorous optional dialogue in which Leene states that Marle could pass for her twin and Marle tells the King and Queen to get alone or else she'll be in big trouble, much to the King and Queen's confusion. 

From here, it's time to leave the castle and head back, but you'll run into Frog on the way out. Frog will blame himself for what has happened once again, then look at Marle and call her resemblance to Queen Leene uncanny. He will then leave, and Lucca will mention that Frog wasn't really such a bad guy. From here, you can leave.

World Map (600 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

Guardia Forest (600 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

Truce Canyon Map (by Rick Bruns)

It's now time to head back through Guardia Forest and then through Truce Canyon. You'll face some different enemies, such as some Green Imps as well as a Poly, who can run into you and stomp on you. The Poly is a little more powerful than the Roly, so hit it hard.

Once you head back to where you came into the canyon from, you'll find a portal. Lucca will produce an item known as the Gate Key, and mention that while there is some logic as to how these portals, or Gates, exist, she does not know how exactly they have been formed. From here, you'll enter the gate and head back to Leene Square. Lucca leaves, and Marle will ask you to take her back home to Guardia Castle.

Leene Square Map (by Rick Bruns)

From here, some of the merchants from the south part of the square will be gone and back in their stores in the towns, especially the merchant from Truce Village. You can still talk to Melchior, and at this point, you should have enough money to buy the Lode Sword for Crono, which you'll be needing. (Just make sure to say "no" when he asks you to sell him the pendant.)

PrinceWatercress plays Chrono Trigger (Super NES) - Part 5 of 70

It's time to head to the Cathedral to find Queen Leene...and something sinister is afoot.

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World Map (600 A.D.) (by Rick Bruns)

There's no other place to head to other than the cathedral, so head there.

Cathedral Map (by Rick Bruns)

When you enter the cathedral, talk to all four of the nuns. You'll notice that they act rather odd. You'll then see a twinkle on the floor at the front of the cathedral. If you press A while moving towards it, Lucca will notice it is Queen Leene's hairpin, which has Guardia's royal crest. The nuns will then approach you and turn into Naga-ettes.

The Naga-ettes will scratch at you and try to hit you with a Slow spell to slow your battle speed down. Coming into this battle with Fire Whirl is well-advised, as you can hit as many as three Naga-ettes with once with it and make the battle much easier.

Once you beat the Naga-ettes, another one will suddenly show up, but a mystery swordsman shows up and kills it. Crono and Lucca then notice that the swordsman looks like an anthropomorphic frog. Lucca admits she is not a fan of frogs, but agrees to the frog swordsman - who goes by the name Frog for now - helping them.

From here, you'll need to get deeper into the cathedral. To do that, walk into the organ in the upper-left corner and press A to play the organ and reveal a door.

While going through the first half of the cathedral, you'll find some armor and weapons for your party, such as the SteelSaber for Crono and the MaidenSuit for Lucca. Make sure you equip these because you're going to need them.

When you go through the door, you'll be in a chamber where you'll face a few new enemies. The Diablos will kick at you either from up close or from far away, and the Gnashers will try to, well, gnash and bite at you.

Further to the north of the more narrow passage, you'll meet the Gnasher, but you'll also see two doors to the wet, two more to the east and another door up ahead to the north. North leads to the next area, but if you check the doors to the sides, you'll find some things.

The upper-left door will lead to two soldiers who are trying to rescue Queen Leene, and you can find a Power Tab in the pot to the left. As for the lower-left door, you can find the MaidenSuit for Lucca, and if you press A at the desk drawers, you'll find the Naga-ette Bromide. Yep, it's a sexy picture of a Naga-ette (or something). If you do this after you rescue Queen Leene, you won't fight any monsters, but if you do it now, you'll fight three Henches. Use Fire Whirl if you can to absolutely destroy them, as a Hench can smack your around and even hit you so hard that you physically get moved back because of it.

The lower-right door is the first door you should enter on the east side. Here, you can talk to the monsters here without having to fight them, as they think you are monsters still in human disguise. When you talk to everyone, the Diablos in the room will head to the upper-right door. The upper-right door has a soldier, King Guardia XXI and Queen Leene, and if you talk to all of them and then try to leave the area, they'll turn into three Gnashers. Meanwhile, there is a passage to the east in this room, and it leads to a shrine to Magus. After the three Diablos and two Naga-ettes in the room pay tribute to Magus, you can open the chests to find a Speed Belt (which increases Speed by two) and a Defender (increases Stamina by two) before talking to the Diablos who is now in the middle to start a fight with all the monsters inside. It's an optional battle, but the experience and money are worth it.