Saiyuki Journey West FAQ Guide

 

The game is based on a popular Ming novel where a chinese monk travels to India.  Anyway, start a new game and choose either the male or the female.  It matters little in terms of the actual story.  

 

The main character Genjo will be encountered by Lady Kannon.  After this it will have seemed like it was a dream as a Priest comes in and tells you to go to the main hall.  A sword appears in front of Genjo.  

 

You are now at the Gold Temple main hall.  Some more scenes with the elder as they don't believe Genjo's dream.  Genjo will have a chat and later appear in his monk's journeying outfit. 

 

 

Some enemies will show up.  Your guards will attack some enemies but eventually be overcome themselves.  A voice from a rock is trapped.  

 

This is your first battle with just Sanzo.  You are to make your way across the bridge to the northeast and search the charm being protected by the Imp.  When you cross the wood bridge, choose the Use option to destroy it.  Look towards the treasures and use to get a Healing Potion.  

 

Go up to the Imp now.  Three hits and it should be dead.  You can press Use in front of the charm to end the battle but instead go back a space and face away so that the coming monsters have to attack you from lower elevation.  By doing this and casting Heal, Sanzo should be able to take a few of these enemies down and gain a level or two.  The Centipedes have a ton of HP and high defense though so it may be time to get the charm when they hit the front line.  

 

The rock will explode and you release your new friend - the battle is now over.  After the battle your buddy turns small, it is Sun Goku.  Another visit from Kannon occurs as she puts the initially unwilling Sun Goku under his control.  You can look at his stats and then you'll gain control on the world map.

 

 

Some more talking between Sanzo and Goku and then thieves ambush them.  This battle may seem intimidating but you'll learn about Were Change.  WereChange allows a character to change forms until the Were Gauge in the northwest is 0.  

 

Anyway, when you gain control have Sun Goku go in between the three green thieves and use the Were Change for area damage on all.  Most of the enemies will damage Sanzo so be prepared to heal when the time comes.  Outside of that, just keep attacking with Sun Goku until his Were Gauge reaches 0 and he turns back into a human.  He's a little weaker but the enemy's advantage in numbers should be negated at this point.  Try to get some EXP for Sanzo at the end.

 

 

You'll see a scene as you enter with Hakkai.  Sanzo feels bad for him so he follows him and the two go in the river.  Some enemies then ambush Sanzo, Hakkai and Goku.  Hakkai morphs like Goku and turns into a big, killing the three enemies behind your characters.  He can't last for long and returns to human form, and you gain control.

 

Fight like you normally would but you'll notice you cannot control Hakkai because he is a guest.  He'll just go around and use Rockdrop so he's pretty useful.   This battle can be a little difficult at first actually, because the enemy will gang up on a character.   Son Goku and Hakkai are too powerful for the enemies to stay alive for too long, just make sure to heal with Sanzo and get the Leather Jerkin behind the Magic Potion.  

 

You get Cho Hakkai forever after the battle.  Might want to equip the Leather Jerkin to Son Goku and maybe buy another one for Hakkai at the shop. 

 

 

As you enter you'll see Ryorin, and she quickly doesn't trust you.  She morphs into a dragon like creature and then the battle begins - you also get to position your characters here. 

 

Ryorin can fly and has huge range so she can hit whomever she likes, but she chose Sanzo to start off with.  Her attacks are pretty rough, taking off about 80 (half of Sanzo's HP).  Have one of your characters WereChange (yes, only one can Werechange at once).  I'd choose Hakkai as the Raging Boar can handle the dragon on it's own.  Sanzo should just heal and Sun Goku can use the Fire Dart or attack.

 

Shu Ryorin introduces herself as the daughter of the Dragon King afterwards.  She was forced into marriage so she fled.  And now she asks to join and Sanzo can't refuse.  

 

Save and head to Chin Lodge.  It's very quiet here and the party sees lots of sleeping people and a young one crying.  He tells you of a spring that has water to wake the villagers but the hermit who put them to sleep dwells there.   

 

 

This is where the hermit is.   Actually when you get here, Gojo will be getting water.  He gets ambushed by four enemies and he kills two off only to find two more.  The party gets here so position them.  

 

In the middle is a rock (Healing Scroll) and tree (Monk's Cap).  You'll notice a lightning symbol over them, so Ryorin can use her second ability to reveal the chests (might want to clear some enemies out with her first though).  The enemies aren't too tough here although the Lizards can attack from a distance.  Make sure your new friend Gojo gets backup although it seems the enemies will get distracted with one of your other characters.  

 

After Gojo is able to flee, he'll call you all monsters and can't believe he was helped by you.  Sanzo and the party head back to the village while the Hermit Nyoi confronts the enemies who let you take water. 

 

 

Chin Lodge

Back at the village you get a Healing and Cure Potion.  The elder then takes you to a new area and Sanzo's staff reacts and Mother appears.   Her name is Sei Obo or the Guardian, Mother.  Sanzo then has a dream about another guardian in trouble.

 

Sun Goku wakes him up as a battle is ensuing in the middle of town.  Old Man Nyoi is attacking the villagers and they start with the little girl who is crying.  A Sahagin type Were is here to help her but he gets beat down and has to revert to human form - it's Gojo.  

 

This battle is tricky but there are no treasures to distract you.  Old Man Nyoi can be difficult with his drain attacks (Life Steal) and may paralyze you.  You will learn about summons here (Mother is a summon).  Basically they can be called upon for a few turns to provide some sort of effect for those close to Sanzo.  

 

I tend to use the Raging Boar Hakkai in this one but Shu Ryorin is very weak as a human here so you may wish to have her WereChange.   GroundWave can pummel the wolves though.  There is no sense fighting the frontliners right away so you'll want to take the Flyman out right away or they'll keep healing.  Do note that you can just defeat Nyoi right away to end the battle, but defeating the lesser enemies will make this easier and you'll gain more EXP.  Surround Nyoi at the end to defeat him and he'll retreat.

 

The village is scared of your party now.  You're a bunch of monsters (Wereism).  Gojo runs up to say that's how it is, and that's why he pretends to be human.   Sanzo says something smart and Gojo will eventually joined - incase you didn't notice Sa Gojo is the Water Were so to speak (like Ryorin being lightning based and Hakkai being earth-based).  

 

Save and leave for Mire River.

 

 

As the party laughs through the water, Sanzo gets too far ahead and some imps capture him.  They take him to Rhinon who is a scary sight, and is far from the rest of the party.

 

As you begin the battle, Sanzo will absorb some hits and then you'll want to retreat back to the party with him.  The other members should charge up as fast as they should.  Sa Gojo is a beast in this battle since he's water-based and his HP goes up each turn.  

 

Even when you reach your party this battle is tough because basically the entire enemy force is there with you.  You'll definitely want to summon Mother to act as Regen once a turn.  Still, the fact that Rhinon the boss is at the front lines immediately means you may lose a character or two.  Take out the Flymen and careful of the Centipede, if it gets to the battle.  

 

Go into Mire River as you can buy lots of stuff.  Go to the Smith to get your weapons forged (Sanzo is already at level 2).  

 

The party heads to Moon Hill and camps, but Sanzo has a dream.  There is a female in danger and the party decides to go north just as the girl in Sanzo's dream directed. 

 

 

You'll meet P. Ivy and some enemies.  Your party sticks up for the little Driad kids and a battle begins.

 

Position your characters like you normally would, sticking Cho Hakkai and Goku up front.  The objective is to defeat Madame P. Ivy.  Fortunately she is a measly bow and arrow wielder and on top of that she spends most of her time putting up Rock Shields for her cohorts.  She can use RockGuard, an earth-based area attack, but she's pretty weak besides that.

 

This is a good battle to cast Howl with your Great Ape Goku. This attack goes after a large range of characters near Goku and can stone them or take off high damage.  Continue with the other characters and you should have P Ivy surrounded.  Kill all the enemies and complete the stage.  

 

Afterwards the girl from Sanzo's dream shows up.   The party decides that maybe she'll up if they sleep there.  As they fall asleep, they'll wake up in Dream World.

 

 

Sanzo is disturbed about waking up here.  A boss is here unfortunately, named Mahoraga.  He is the dream master.  Kikka the dryad is being held captive here by Mahoraga.  He beats Kikka but the party doesn't back down.

 

You are preset here with an enemy on one side and the stairs and a bunch of enemies on the other.  The battle starts off slow, so just let the Wolfman come to you and kill him.  

 

Careful if you go after the Imp and the Chest.  You'll get shot by some weaker enemies and by Mahoraga.  The Emperor Helmet is worth it though.  Having Goku go might be best since he can just use Cloud to get out of there whereas the others will get stuck because of the elevator.

 

Making your way up the elevators can be brutal with the plethora of archers raining down on you.  Because of this, this will be a slow methodical stage.  A fast yet powerful character like Goku can really work his magic on this level.  Because of this, you should probably WereChange Ryorin or Hakkai to allow human-Goku to dominate.  Use his Cloud to maneuver through the elevators but the damage will still take it's toll here.  

 

 

After the battle, you get Hei Reiko the Guardian, Warrior.  After you are teleported back to the real world you also get another new character, Kikka, who turns into a WereButterfly.  Finally another healer to pair with Sanzo.  

 

A scene with the enemy as you meet a boss of the last few bosses you've been fighting and he sends his men to capture you.  

 

 

 

Chapter 2 - Western Overlord 

 

The road splits here, either through a creepy water area or a hot volcano area, and some characters express their concerns.  Ryorin will hide as Reikan is here looking for her.  When you get the chance, blow all your money on new defensive equipment and spells. 

 

Now outside of town you see both paths.  Each have 3 stops, and if you have the time you should probably do all six.  Head south first.

 

 

After some talking with the villagers, the party goes into an open area and imposters show up.  This battle can be difficult because you're fighting 2 duplicates of each character so you're outnumbered badly like usual.  There are some items in the trees but I doubt you'll have time to mess around with Ryorin's Were over there.

 

Send your party away from the duplicates by the trees and just try to clear out the ones near you.  The Goku and Ryorin from the other side will creep up on you quick so beware.  While the enemy basically has the same ability's, they seem a bit slower and less apt to use ability's on you (they generally just attack).  Another good battle for Goku's Howl to clear out several enemies.  Don't both with Warrior since you'll need Mother to recover from all the damage you're bound to give up in the first few turns.  

 

Afterwards the impostor Goku shows himself as a baboon named Jiko.  The party tries to figure out who is after them and in the meantime Taurus is shown.  His wife goes after you instead now.

 

 

Some strange things are happening here.  The party learns that children are being killed to save the king's illness.  This is too crazy so the party confronts the king.  Turns out there is some master who is controlling the king and Goku gets him to reveal his true identity.  It is Tigra and he flees.

 

You begin battle in a weird area that is gated and blocked by trees.  You'll have to waste some Tail Whip's from Ryorin to get by the trees.  Or you could have Son Goku use Cloud to get to the red switch to open the gate.  This is more efficient and better for your party to attack through the center.

 

Master Tigra gets to you quick and this is a bad thing because he'll abuse ThunderStrike.  You need to get behind him for some treasures. Before this though you'll want to make sure only Tigra is alive and preferably without magic.  He'll cast Thunderstrike until he runs out so just have Mother out and heal (might be wise to have Kikka as another healer). 

 

If you use a WereAttack on the throne it'll reveal a Noble Hat.  Have Goku use Cloud over to the treasures in the opposite corner of the throne.  One of them is an Emperor Armor and the other is Magic Potion.  There are two trees that reveal chests.  If you look at the middle dirt path, there are a bunch of trees to the right and three trees to the left.  The tree closest to the gate on the right is a Chain Mail chest and the tree on the farthest away in the left corner almost is a Strength Scroll. 

 

Now that you have all the treasures, beat Tigra down.  He's still tough with his physical attacks but it's nothing like the danger of ThunderStrike.  

 

The king rewards Sanzo with a Wind Crystal and then you can go on to Helmet Peak.

 

 

The party finds a crystal and the staff reveals the Guardian Luna.  They ask about Mahoraga of the Dream World and she knows him.   However this guardian gets shot by Apsara. 

 

Apsara and her husband Vala then begin a battle against you.  You can use all six of your characters actually.  There are no treasures to sidetrack you.

 

Start going up the hill towards the Lizardman side so you can take the archers out quick.  Vala will provide some tough resistance with his SoulSlash and physical attacks that are brutal.  Take him out as fast as you can because you'll be getting sniped and charmed during this (use Cure to cure charm).  

 

Now rush up to defeat the Operators and Lizardmen.  Apsara should be your last target.  Afterwards Luna will go into your staff and you will have her to call upon (for a bow attack or to restore MP) as a summon. 

 

You are at the end of the south path now.  I advise you take the north for the experience, but if you want to continue just control f Mt. Cloud.  

 

North Path - Turfan - Lucky Temple

The party will hear about a dead little girl.  

 

This is a strange battle.  There are five blood spots and five Bugs to deal with, but even with four characters the bugs should be easy.   Have someone use a WereChange right in front of that rock (which is right in front of where you start).  It is a Steel Cap.  Also the rock in the northeast corner (sandwiched by the pillar) yields a Luck Stone.  Meanwhile, you can only use Sanzo to clean the blood spots, which you have to go next to and then select Use.  No sense killing all the Bugs since they'll return, just get the treasures and clean the blood.  After the battle, Hakkai finds a Spring Comb.  

 

 

Yaksa ambushes your party here, looking for the staff.  Your party is separated, with Sanzo on an island with a treasure, Ryorin / Cho / Kikka on another island and the other two where the enemies are.  Your party will take 10 damage every turn but if you have Mother out this shouldn't be an issue.   

Use the WereChange to get Ryorin across and then WereChange back.  Next, do the same for Kikka.  Watch the moving platform.  You can use it with Sanzo (get the Fireball Scroll first) and Cho to get them back on land.  Meanwhile, kill the lower enemies and use a WereAttack on the molten rock by where you start for a Speed Potion. 

 

By the time you clear out the Wolfmen, Lizardmen and Birdmen, the rest of the enemies will probably rush you.  However there is still one item to get so send a fast character like Ryorin or Sun Goku to where the enemies started off and destroy the nearby rock with a WereAttack and get the Charm of Defense.  

 

Yaksa isn't really difficult especially if Cho is at the front line.  Yaksa just uses Rockdrop and the Conjurer's go around and heal.  Sanzo gets the Guardian Summon Fool after the battle, who raises attack power temporarily (a nice summon).  

 

 

All monks here are being seized.  Goku has a plan.

 

At the Executioner's Block, Sanzo is ready to get executed but Goku confronts King Kobi.  Goku gets stoned unfortunately.  

 

Hopefully you have a Destone Potion, if not you'll have to do this without Goku.  Plus, King Kobi has a stonebell attack that can stone another character.  This isn't too big of a deal but the treasure in the far corner is a Destone Potion.  Two more treasures are in this area in trees.  One is the tree on the lower area that is near the Destone Potion treasure.  There are two trees here but again it's the lower one that you need to use a WereAttack on for a Scale Mail.  Now on the very opposite end is a tree against the far wall and using a WereAttack on it reveals a Ring of Speed, an ideal weapon for a slower character or middle of the road agility character.   

 

If you have multiple characters stoned this battle can be a problem.  You'll probably want to then work your party to the Destone Potion in the far corner and hope the enemy just beats up your stoned characters (they like doing that).

 

The party is about to take a break at Mt Cloud when Lady Tessen ambushes them.  

 

Position your characters however you like but get someone fast in the spot in front of the boulder so it doesn't get dropped on you.   Move your characters all to the top path as most of the enemies will stream through this way.  

 

Watch out for Tessen's FireFang attack.  It can silence a character.  She'll do it constantly and she rushes you from the start, which is why this battle can be difficult early on.  I like using a powerful area-based attack like JumpQuake to fight off all these oncoming enemies.  The Operators will stay where they are but make sure you don't go by a boulder.  

 

After Tessen is beat, some scenes with her and Taurus.

 

As you enter Kucha, you are asked to go save two ten year old sisters.   Before going, check the store.  There is some really good stuff, like Major Heal in the specials and pretty much everything in the regular menu.  Exhaust all the money you have on new spells and defensive gear, it's worth it here.  

 

You'll see someone here, Kinkaku.  Might be wise to summon Fool at first and then Mother once you've taken some damage while you slowly work up the map.  Or just summon mother right away since Kinkaku will use Hornet on your entire party pretty much.  Later he will use Star Throw that takes off a bundle but to less characters.  Major Heal will be a major asset here.  

 

Lots of rocks on this level especially in the middle.  Consider your team in the south-center of the area.  The southeast area has a few rocks and the second one from southeast has a Silver Necklace.  Against the far right wall there are two rocks next to eachother - the farthest one from you is a Golden Comb.  Finally, there is a Healing + Potion up the center road near the back of the enemies.  

 

Kinkaku is tough but once the other enemies are done for you can surround her and Kinkaku turns into Kinrei.  So Kinrei is one of the little girls from the village.  She has a sister named Ginrei that needs help also. 

 

 

Ginkaku is here, who is obviously Ginrei.  She poses a similar threat but isn't quite as good as her sister as Laser doesn't hit your entire party.  ArrowBomb hits only a few characters but is deadly.  

 

This battle is tricky because of the gourd.  The operator next to it will suck your characters into the gourd.  So, rush over there with your fastest characters and use Son Goku's Cloud to get over there and kill the operator.  One character will still likely get sucked in.  

 

No treasures to get, so kill the enemies with your surviving allies and surround the Were Ginkaku.   

 

So Kinrei and So Ginrei say hi to their parents.   They ask to join and for some reason their parents are okay with it. 

 

You'll see some scenes with those who are trying to get the staff from Sanzo.  Go back to Mt. Cloud now though.

 

 

Mt. Cloud

At Mt. Cloud, Reikan will catch your party off guard and see Ryorin.  A battle ensues as he thinks your party has deceived Ryorin.

 

This battle is pretty easy although Reikan packs a punch.  Try out your new sisters here if you like although they are probably ahead of the rest of your character's levels.  There really isn't a whole lot of strategy in this battle besides killing the weaklings and ganging up on Ryorin's stalker, Reikan.  

 

At the end of the battle, choose no with Sanzo if you want to recruit Reikan later.  If you say yes you won't be able to recruit Reikan.  

 

The path has split into two to advance.  Like before, I'll do both but list the south path first.

 

 

Some weak bandits ambush the party but are quickly trounced.  Ko Horo, a friend of Lord Taurus, comes to congratulate you.   He then turns Sanzo into a tiger.  Throughout this battle Sanzo may attack you but make sure you don't attack him because you still need him alive to win.

 

Use a Were to destroy the trees as one of them hides a Noble Hat. On the other side of the bridge, destroy the closest Water Jug to get to the Emperor Band.  Or have Son Goku use Cloud to get over there easily.  

 

This can be pretty tough without Sanzo's summons backing you up (and him attacking you for lots of damage).  To minimize the damage Tiger Sanzo puts up, always position yourself so you have a chance to evade - you'll get a lot more dodges than you'd think.  Also, once you get to the other side fo the bridge you can just isolate him over there and get positioning every time.  Ko is a lot less annoying when you can get near him and rough him up, because he'll get worse positioning and will miss shots.  His Needlemist can be harmful though.  

 

Not much to do in Cherchen but do equip the Emperor Band (Speed + 12!!) on someone.  Again, it's most useful on a really slow character like Hakkai or a medium speed like Sanzo.  

 

 

Sanzo will see a guardian shimmer here.  Ryorin takes Sanzo to it and Cavalier, Jiro Shingun is the guardian.  He informs you about the devils chasing you for the staff, but you are soon under attack by Lady Nagini.  She tries to get Ryorin to betray you, but she won't.  No treasures in this battle by the way.

 

Sanzo and Ryorin are separated from the group so work those two back.  Cavalier as you can see increases movement but you'll probably want Mother out.  Watch out for Blazedart as it'll take off about 100.  That's why you have Major Heal with Sanzo though. 

 

Hurry as fast as you can through the other enemies so that your party can help Sanzo and Ryorin.  It doesn't help that Cho, Gojo and Kikka have pathetic movement.   Using each of their Were's just as a means of travel will be helpful.  

 

Once it becomes time to confront Nagini make sure to take out her henchmen so he's not healing the entire time.  Even her physical attacks are harsh so watch out.

 

You are now done with the South path.  If you wish to continue on, control f Tokhara.  If you want to take the north path too (you should) then go to Windy Peak.

 

 

Windy is here to intercept you.  She has some powerful and stun-able attacks.  This is a good battle to get the twins in. 

 

Beginning the battle, use a Were on the rock by the six special spots.  This will reveal a Magic Potion.  There is another treasure at the other end by the two rocks that are by eachother - destroy them and get the Charm of Magic.  

 

For the first few turns you may wish to position a few characters on the spot that makes walls come up.  This way the bandits can come to you and once they are scattered, you can continue on.  Otherwise you'll be getting StunWind attacks while fighting bandits.  

 

Unleash everything once you get to Windy and again, don't forget the Charm of Magic in the pit with two rocks.   

 

Old Man Nyoi confronts the group and you'll learn about So Gojo's past.  

 

Head to Inns Town now.  At the Inn, Kikka will pass out.  

 

 

 

Stop Goku from taking things from the tree here.   Genshi then shows up, Hakkai's master.  He challenges you to a fight for the fruit.

 

To win you need to defeat Chin Genshi.  His underlings aren't too much of an issue besides those annoying Conjuror's.  The only treasure to get is hidden by a rock on the left side of the screen, against the edge of the map.  Get the Charm of Health and mop up the enemies besides Genshi.

 

Genshi recovers MP wherever he goes and can drain your MP.  Worse, he can cast Major Heal to get about 250 HP back.  Just surround him after the rest of the enemies are gone and you should be able to take him out.  

 

Genshi then turns into a tree and will use Autumn Blades, an absolutely deadly spell.  LeafBlade is even worse, but to one character only.  Hopefully you saved your Were attacks because now is when to use them.  

 

Now at the Inns Town Inn you'll restore Kikka back to health with the fruit.  You'll learn that Genshi is Kikka's grandfather.  Now if you stopped Goku from taking the fruit, say "they're my friends" when you get the chance.  Chin Genshi will join you on your travels now.  Just looking at his stats you'll see he's a brilliant magician that has most of your characters beat in every magical element including the ones they are strong in.

 

Lots of nice armor to buy.  There is even more magic you can buy too.  Things may be getting a little expensive with all these characters but do your best to keep them up to speed - now that you have Chin Genshi though you'll want to get some spells for him like FireDart to utilize his ridiculous magican talent.  Check the specials before leaving.  The smith can upgrade your weapons but you probably can't afford much.

 

 

You'll see Mahoraga and a want-to-be devil.  Meanwhile, Ryorin is spooked by a ghost and it's actually the king who turned into a monster, meaning the king in place now is a fake.  

 

As Goku and friends go to visit the minister, they pull their weapons out and prepare to fight.  However Ryorin and Kikka fall through some holes and they cannot be chosen for this battle.  More holes appear throughout the battle by Master Baa.  

 

There are no real tricks besides casting Cavalier to get your troops to cover more ground so they don't fall in the traps.  There are three treasures once you get to the north side by Baa.  The throne reveals a Magic+ Potion.  There are two more treasures in addition to this, with each being in the corner of the top area.  The railing type decoration can be destroyed revealing an Iron Helmet in one corner and a Strength Potion in another. 

 

Destroy Baa now.  He's not that tough despite his magic like Meteor and Rockguard.  Not to mention his guards are totally generic.  Again, you'll want Cavalier throughout this battle so your characters can move farther and chars like Hakkai won't fall through the pits.  You get a White Gold Armlet from the real king.  

 

Baa reports to Taurus.  Taurus is finally getting mad as you get close to Storm Mountain.  A scene with Deva when you get here.  

 

Pyric will be here, the want-to-be devil.  Kid Pyric actually has some talent although his ranks are split and weak in general.  His FireBomb should have you scattering but if you have Chin Genshi and Son Goku you should be strong vs. fire.  Have your entire party go after the three enemies that are isolated.  The tree farthest from you in this area has a Charm of Health.  On the other side of the bridge, again destroy the farthest tree for a Charm of Defense this time.  Finally, destroy that rock over there for a King's Helmet.

 

After you clear that area out the enemies from the other side should be nearing or across the bridge.  Head back that way and start taking them out, using Son Goku to Cloud to the other side (you could fly Ryorin or Kikka over there too).   Pyric isn't too difficult when he's surrounded, like most bosses.

 

As you enter, a Conjuror will stun Ryorin and Reikan will take her away.  He then flees and the party is set to go after him to get Ryorin back.  Before you leave, be sure to go to the Pine City store and buy some armor for Sanzo and some spells if you can afford them, although you're probably broke from the last village with spells and the smith.

 

 

Reikan turns into Mad Turtle Were and a battle ensues for custody of Ryorin.  You are given the default characters - Goku, Sanzo, Hakkai, Gojo and Kikka.  

 

Like the last battle here, clear out the side you're on.  Destroy the rock right by you for a Magic Armor.  While you're clearing this side out of the Conjuror and Bug, have Hakkai hold up the bridge by himself.  He should be okay for a while.

 

Once all of those enemies are done for, Cloud over to the other side and take a few other characters over there too.  Ryorin should soon be cured of her Numb status naturally.  At this point, all hell will break loose on that side and the Mad Turtle will probably be casting a lot of IceBreath on you.  Grab the Beads of Bravery just across the bridge hiding under the tree.  Once you thin out his Lizard Man and Bug ranks you should be able to pummel him.  You can "Use" the bridge to drop the Mad Turtle for some large damage.  After the battle, Prince Reikan will join your party.

 

Lady Tessen turns into Scorpio.  This battle can be a pain because of the elevation and the Lizard Men / Conjuror that can attack from a distance.  

 

To start off, Were a character up to the ledge to the right of you with the two Lizard Men.  Also have Goku Cloud up there and Sanzo use Cavalier to get up there.  Now you can take these two out and the Operator's that come up there too.  The tree closest to you on that ledge yields a Magic + Potion.  Meanwhile, on the other high elevation side in the opposite corner from where you start is a tree against the wall that yieldsa Charm of Defense+.    

 

Scorpio has some dangerous attacks so try to leave one character there who can heal himself / herself.   This can be tricky and I lost Hakkai doing this as the archers will rain down on whoever she chooses to attack with her Toxic Attacks.  Because of all the poison-based attacks you'll likely have to Cure poison a few times.  She's really not that hard once her support is gone as you can attack from height and position advantages.  

 

After this she convinces you to come with her to get Taurus' help.  It's really an ambush though and the party falls for it and soon a battle occurs.

 

 

Okay, you have to fight all of these bosses - Baa, Tigra, Rhinon, Jizo (Fake Sanzo), Windy, and Nyoi.  On top of this you have to dodge the balls coming your way.  Good luck determining it's path.  

 

Rhinon will spam Iron Ring likely.  Baa uses Meteor, Tigra uses Thunderstrike, Windy uses StunWind, Nyoi uses Lifesteal, and Jizo will heal.   The rolling ball will hit you and is devastating. 

 

Surely these enemies aren't as hard as they were when you fought them as solo bosses, and you could argue the biggest threat is the rolling balls.  Just watch where the head is and figure out where the ball might turn, that's the best you can do.  

 

Try to hunt down Jizo first so he's not healing anyone.  ThunderStrike doesn't seem to be as powerful as it once was and StunWind is only rough if someone is Numbed from it.  Nyoi's Lifesteal is annoying but he hangs out in the back.  Go one character at a time (or split your party in 2 and go after 2 at a time).  Best of luck, have lots of healers and preferably the all might Chin Genshi.  

 

Afterwards the party finally reaches Taurus.  Don't fret, it's only his human form.  Still, he'll probably have his attack up thanks to his sorcerers and will be a physical beast.

 

There are two cannons on the higher elevation.  You can destroy them with WereAttacks for Healing+ Potion and Magic+ Potion.  The throne in the back holds an Emperor Soul.  

 

Of course you need to defeat the Ghouls in front of you fast.  Try to use Rose Whip to numb some of the lizard men or ghouls.  The Sorcerers will soon be casting attack up and spells on you so they should be of prime concern.  If you stay from the edges you should be able to avoid the Operator's by the cannons.  Again, use a were on the cannons to reveal treasures.  Taurus himself really isn't that hard and just does physical attacks, which can be dodged.  Stay healed and surround him after you get all the items (especially Emperor Soul).  

 

After defeating him he turns into his Were form.  Great Bull Taurus has BullRush that does decent damage but really isn't any different than Cho's Were.  Just surround him since you probably had him surrounded in human form anyway.  After the battle, Lord Taurus and Lady Tessen join as Sanzo's Staff is stolen by the boy Pyric.  

 

 

You don't have your staff anymore.  Meanwhile Kannon and Deva have a scene and then your party does in Frontier Village.  Buy some things if you like and continue on, make sure to equip that Emperor Soul from the previous battle. 

 

Simple battle here although the Firebomb's at the end by Pyric are still pretty devastating. 

 

You'll want to get to the Dinomen across the chasm.  The other enemies before them aren't too difficult at this stage.  Having a Were or Son Goku Cloud would be helpful early.  Also have Son Goku use a cloud over to the treasure chest against the wall for a White Gold Armlet.

 

Gang up on the kid and the bugs and ghouls down by him.  The only thing that sucks is that you have to wait a turn to move your character off the elevator.

 

Afterwards Taurus puts Pyric into a gem for the time being as the party continues. 

 

 

Mahoraga will show his real form.  He has Icicle Breath which should do a boatload of damage.  His henchman are pretty weak other than the Dinoman.  There is only one treasure in this level and it is on the side that you start off on but in the other corner.  Attack the huge piece of debris near that corner for an Emperor's Crown.  

 

Mahoraga may seem harder in the first fight but once you kill all the henchmen you'll see how difficult Mahoraga is.  If you saved up the MP to do a Cavalier summon you may be able to avoid this, but basically Mahoraga will shoot you with Icicle Breath and then move so far away that you can't counterattack him.  Because of this, when he comes in to attack spread your characters out to prepare for his retreat so at least someone is near him.  It can be really frustrating for characters like Cho Hakkai who will rarely get a shot in.  Rely on your long range attackers and your magicians (who are likely out of MP and may need Magic Potions).  It's a grueling fight but you're fighting a devil in real form.

 

Afterwards Mahoraga rejuvenates himself and teleports but is really injured.  His devil mates find him and vow not to tell Asura about his defeat.  

 

There are some really nice things to buy here as usual.  And as usual you likely won't be able to afford it all, but I especially like the group strength fire magic spell in the specials.  Don't forget you can sharpen your weapons again this time to level 5.   

 

 

Deva is here, lying in ambush.  He has some new enemies with him, the high-movement Crowman.  A Sorcerer is in the back too.   There are no items in this battle.

 

Be patient in this battle as the enemies will go straight towards you right away.  Deva has an area based attack called WinterBreath that can numb you, a DemonBlade attack directly in front of him, and do good damage with both so stay a distance from him until you can get rid of his associates.  The fast Crowmen will get to you on the first turn pretty much.  

 

At this point you should be finding a good 6 or 7 characters to be using and should definitely include Chin Genshi if you have him.  His magical ability's in general will aid you and Rose Whip is great for numbing enemies. 

 

When Deva and his Sorcerer's get close, obviously take the Sorcerer's out and then worry about Deva.   He is easy to surround and tear apart when alone.

 

Afterwards he retreats back to the Devil base and you get to see Asura.  All the devils are sent out to go after you.

 

At the campfire some emotions flare up.  Asha runs in and asks for help as some Crowmen are chasing her.  Goku kills them easily and then the party offers to take her to the Thunder Temple.  

 

As you walk in, Vala and Apsara are here to try to get the staff.  They shoot Sanzo but their cronies are unable to pull him away before they're killed by Goku and Gojo.  

 

More great armor for everyone and some of the best spells for each element that you'll find.  Also, a post here if you need ways to make money, and surely you do.   

 

 

As you get here, only Vala is here.  He turns into a Rat and a battle begins.  You are at a big height disadvantage as you can see from the beginning.  This really only affects the Dinoman as the Rat Vala will just jump down and start mauling you with ShadowCut and RatRace.  ShadowCut by far takes off more but RatRace can poison you.  

 

There are two items to get here.  the first is a tree on the right side of the map, right by the operator.  It is a Sage Armor.   The rock by the Operator on the other side hides another treasure, this time the Winged Crown.  

 

By the time you defeat all the enemies on ground level you're probably not even going to want to mess with the Dinomen all the way up top.  Just tolerate their 50 damage shots to you and take out Vala the Rat.  Again, ShadowCut is by far the biggest issue here so have Group Heal, Mother, Major Heal and whatever else ready to use.   The first few turns are mayhem so you may have some trouble but Vala's allies aren't potent enough to last long.  

 

After Vala is finished, he doesn't return to human form but instead perishes it seems.   The party has to go back to town to find another path however, as the one ahead has been blocked by the Devil's.

 

 

Back in town the party can't find any news about a new path to the Thunder Temple.  Eventually they go out again but Sanzo and a lady of his choosing get to stay back and watch the kid.   I chose Ryorin but I doubt it matters much besides the dialogue, so pick whoever you like.

 

The party comes back and Sanzo hears about Puppet's Peak.  Aspara is probably here but you just defeated Vala so why worry.  

 

Surely enough Apsara is waiting here.  She is with nothing but melee fighters as Wolf Men, Ghouls and Bugs come at you.  Your party is split in three so having Cavalier to traverse this area would expediate things but having the Fool summon out to kill them faster is just as good.  

 

Apsara the spider will take a bit to get to you and then will begin unleashing attacks on you.  She likes SpiderKiss which does great damage but to one ally.  She had a DarkNet attack that missed.  

 

Getting to Apsara is hard because it's all uphill and narrow passages.  It'd help to have characters that can fly with their Were (like Kikka and Ryorin) to get to the other routes.  Goku's Cloud and Sanzo's Cavalier can do this also.   The Wolfmen here can heal and use high level magic so beware, they are more than just brutes.  Really though, just maneuving around the tree is the hardest part of this level.

 

Garda intercepts you here.  She is a white haired flying devil.  No were change for her.  She likes to hit you with Blazeballs and her Sorcerer friends will drop Comets on you.  She can attack regularly but tends to save this toward the end when you probably runs out of MP. 

 

Have one of your characters WereChange in the middle of the area with the trees - one of them reveals a SnakeShield Scroll.   The cannon up above can be destroy with a WereAttack also, and you can get the Armor of Shiyu.  Finally, a rock in the opposite corner of where you appear hides a Wisdom Potion. 

 

This is another one of those battles where every enemy is on top of you right from the start, and it's especially troublesome when every character is being hit by Blazeball.   There's also the matter of finding time to user your Were's and collect the treasure, most notably the Armor of Shiyu under the cannon.  Hopefully you have a few characters with Group Heal and Major Heal - this is why I like using Kikka and Chin Genshi so that I have three healers (in addition to Sanzo).  

 

Before continuing onward, return to spend some money.  Surely there is defensive equipment and spells to upgrade, maybe weapons.   

 

 

As you make your way to the temple, the party is still optimistic about meeting Kannon.   As you get there, the temple appears to be there and Kannon says hello.  She acts shady though and asks for the staff, but the party grows suspicious.  Eventually another enemy gets upset with how things are going and summons Kannon, who is actually and fake and really is Nagini.  This is no temple either, it's destroyed.  

 

Before you can leave, you realize Asha is gone.  Then Yaksa comes in and turns into a purple were devil.  This is a unique looking area - there is one chest visible in the far northeast corner from where you are.  - this is a Soul of Magic.  In front of your party just to the left is a rock that opens up a Magic+ Potion.  

 

Kill the Dinoman right by you and head towards that rock in the corner so you can go through towards the corner.   Pick up the Pure Land Robe and then prepare your party for Yaksa, some Sorcerer's and the three Ghouls.  Rose Whip / Briar Patch is great for Numbing a lot of these lesser enemies.  

 

Yaksa likes DarkBlade and that takes off a ton.   His Evil Eye will take off even more on one character and will likely stone them too.  Also beware of an area based Death Howl that will numb.  He really is pretty tough and with his Dinoman in the corner and three Ghouls in front he has decent backup.  Fortunately you've fought all sorts of Weres like this so you should be okay although Yaksa is a tougher one.

 

You finally meet Asura and he offers you a trip to heaven.  

 

 

You see some scenes with Asura and Deva and their plans for Heaven.  

 

As your party recovers and moves on, Nagini stops them.  She then turns into a dragon similar to Ryorin and a battle ensues.  

 

Left of where your three groups of two start off, and you'll see a pole of some sort that you can destroy for a Cap of Wisdom.  Now if you go to the northeast part of the screen (the side that isn't destroyed) you can use a WereAttack on another pole for a Magic+ Potion.

 

Nagini has FlameBreath and ThunderClap.  ThunderClap hits a lot of your allies and FlameBreath hits a more narrow yet far reaching crowd.  So she's going to be your typcial Were using high level magic on your entire party.  Her subordinates aren't that tricky as Harpy's are basically Operator's and the Dinomen are easily reachable and defeatable.  Make sure you get the Cap of Wisdom and then just surround the dragon Nagini to defeat her.   

 

The party hears some disturbing things from Nagini.   

 

 

Deva is here, the murderer of Sanzo's Mother.  He turns into his Were form and starts whipping out NightBlades against you, which can poison anyone it hits.  His Flare attack might be the most powerful attack you've seen yet. 

 

The two treasures are hidden in the poles just as you start.  Grab them for Magic+ Potion and Life Potion.  

 

The battle is a cluster right from the start.  There are two Ghouls coming from your backside but otherwise you'll have Harpy's, Bugs and Deva coming at you from the other.  For the messy area near Deva you may wish to throw some Rose Whip's and other numb attacks in hopes of scoring some hits.  It's the usual surround job at the end but Deva has a ton of HP so beware of Flare if you surround him with everyone.  

 

With Deva finished the party will be ready to finish him off.  Kannon intervenes as she was being protected by Deva and shows Deva's memories.  Sanzo sees the truth and freaks out.  The party eventually continues on though.

 

Of course the last remaining devil is here, Garda.  She transforms into her bird Were form and will begin her assault.  Thankfully there are no items as this battle is hard as hell.

 

Garda's FireBird attack will burn through a line of allies.  Her DiamondPeck takes off nearly 200 on a character.  

 

The worst part is her supporting cast isn't incompetent.  The two Dinomen on the sides will shoot and heal eachother and their friends, and are complete nuisances to reach in this battle.  The Sorcerer's will throw out Swordmist and other top spells so they should be killed fast.  The Harpy's are even capable of dodging several attacks but little else.   Overall it's a tough battle and you shouldn't be shamed if you lose a few characters.  

 

 

This is it.  Asura is ahead of you.  Son Goku absolutely has to be in this battle (not like you wouldn't use him) but for his Cloud so he can destroy the crystal barriers around Asura. 

 

The Sorcerer's here are deadly with their magic like Lightning - they really are the X Factor because Asura's attacks are already destructive enough.  UltraPoison might be even more annoying.   Don't even bother with the crystals at first.  Your first objective should be to defeat the enemies around you not named Asura and keep as many characters of yours alive in the process.  

 

Asura himself is something else.  At the end of each turn he gets 1000 HP (basically, life cast on him so long as his barriers are there). He'll use Inferno on an area-based group or DivineLightning on an endless row.  There is also a crazy looking attack called Chaos that steals your MP and silences you. 

 

Once you clear out the top area of enemies you'll have the ground enemies and then Asura casting stuff on you.  Have one member using the elevators (this step is sort of useless) and then Son Goku using Cloud to go to the crystals and "Use" them and kill or skip the enemy.  Meanwhile, hopefully Asura is just using the Lightning attack on one character.   Do damage control as best as you can but two enemies will keep coming (likely a Harpy and Crowman) if you kill them.  Still, once the crystals are gone and the top is clear, you should be able to handle Asura.  Leave the curing to Chin Genshi since he can just Magic Sink to get MP back anyway. 

 

 

After you win, the illusion will be destroyed but you are thrown into the darkness pit by Asura. This battle is weird to say the least.

 

There is the center enemy, which you can attack from all sorts of angles (but not the back).  Attacking from the side is where you'll get the best bonuses.  Then there are six arms that attack you.  If you get cute and try to clear them out you'll get killed.  Their assault is endless so it's best to focus on the center enemy so that those 2800 HP can be taken down.  

 

This is why you spent all that money forging your weapons, for those extra damage points.  This battle of attrition will slowly go against you so you have to get your hacks in efficiently and heal when necessary.  Group Heal is best but you'll need Major Heal or Life at times.  Keeping your heavy hitters like Goku and especially Cho alive is a must.   This battle is pretty ridiculous in general considering the attacks you have to withstand.  

 

After the battle the ending begins.