Getting started.

If you've already read the instructions booklet that came with the game (or you already know how to play) then you don't need this; you can just go straight to the walkthrough instead. But wait, what's that you say? If someone has the game, then won't they naturally have the instructions booklet? Well, not always. In some cases, if you've rented the game or bought the cartridge used or (*gasp*) are playing it on an emulator, it might not have come with instructions. So that's what this is here for. Ok, on to the info.

Press start when the title screen tells you to. (Duh) To start a new game, choose an empty (blank) record. To continue a previously saved game, just pick the record that it's saved in. In the example screenshot, you'd use Record #2 (the only empty one) to start a new game.

I want to start NOW! As you can see, I couldn't think of any good original names

You'll start out in the Grass Valley Shrine, one of the Master's Shrines. Give your character a name, so that the other characters will have something to call you. Use the B button to select letters and/or numbers, and the Y button to undo selections. The two choices at the lower right are BackSpace ("BS" the same as pressing Y button) and End ("ED" confirm selection of name)

Now I know my ABC's, won't you come and sing with me? I didn't think it was all that interesting...

Great, now that you've got a name, you're ready to go out and save the world! Here in the Shrine, there are four tiles, although two of them will blocked off at first. The yellow tile is for saving the game, and later on also for moving to other areas once you have the appropriate colored stones. The three blue tiles will take you to places within the current area. In the example screenshot above (Grass Valley Shrine) the only one open is on the left; it leads to the Trial room. The Trial room (shown below) is your first experience with fighting monsters and freeing the captured souls. The treasure chest contains the Sword of Life, your first weapon; just walk up and take it. Don't forget to equip it, or else you won't be able to attack!

they spelled the word received wrong.. press the select or X button to get to the equipment screen

This screenshot shows a battle between the hero and a boss creature, and explains what most things on the screen are.

This is self explanitory...

Now for the controls:

So now that you've equipped the Sword of Life from the subscreen, you can attack by either pressing the B button to swing the sword or holding down the L/R buttons to "crabwalk" with the sword held out in front of you. The difference between the two methods is that the swing is more powerful because your strength is added to the attack power of the sword, while only the attack power of the sword will be counted against things hit while crabwalking. In the example status screen shown below, your strength and defense are circled in a blueish color, while that of your equipment is circled in a greenish color. Also, swinging the sword can hit things that are not directly in front of you, but you must be at the required level to swing a particular sword, while you may always crabwalk. You can check the levels needed by selecting the weapon on the equipment screen. You gain EXP from defeating monsters, and sometimes as gifts from blue jewel spirits. When you have gained enough EXP, your character's level will increase. HP will be restored at level up as well as receiving stat increases.

this shot of the status screen was taken at a point later in the game

There are two types of monsters: those that have captured creatures, and those that have not. The monsters who have captured creatures will either come out of monster lairs when you get close enough, or they will already be present when you enter the location that the lair they belong to is at. There are a fixed number of these and once you have defeated all of them, they will be gone for good. Monsters who have not captured creatures will regenerate, however, so you can never completely wipe them all out.

examples of monsters that have captured creatures
Isn't he precious?! [image of one of those bug-like monsters in underground castle, perhaps] [image of another monster which comes out of a lair] (maybe add more examples if you want)
examples of monsters who have not captured creatures
Ewww..I think I stepped in something! [image of one of those fireball-shooting flame monsters that look like they're on tripods] [image of another monster that's not from a lair, just to keep the number of examples the same for both types]

Defeating all of the monsters of a particular lair will cause a small explosion and the lair will change to the cleared form, which is green in the center. Step on the cleared lair to free the creature held captive or reveal other secrets; once you have done this, the lair will then become a gold-colored tile with a cross-shaped pattern, which is completely inactive. A small amount of your HP will be restored when a creature is released. Other things which could occur when you step on a cleared lair include the following: blocked-off paths opening up as obstructions are removed, passages and/or stairways appearing, hidden objects (such as treasure chests, blue jewels, and monster lairs) being revealed. Some of your HP will also be restored when you free a captured soul from a lair.

Monster lairs
[image of an active monster lair] Monster lair go BOOM Nothing more to do here

Blue jewel spirit
Shiny! I've heard of genies in bottles, but THIS is ridiculous!
The spirits that appear from within blue jewels may give you things, such as EXP, magic, or hints/advice. But the main thing is that they all will ofer to send you back to town from where ever you're at.

After you have cleared the monster lair in the Trial room, you will be able to free the Soul of Magician, who will join you as a ball of light circling around you, as will any other souls who later join. Note that it is possible to send the ball of light away from you if you press up against a wall or other obstacle, as your character will stop when he runs into the wall, but the ball of light will continue moving until it reaches the edge of the screen. This may not be very useful at the beginning, but later on can be used as a way of extending the effective radius of your magic and/or souls' effects. The Soul of Magician will also give you the Flame Ball magic, your first magic spell. Once you have equipped the magic spell, press the Y button to cast it. A certain amount of GEMs are consumed each time you use magic. Sometimes, small gold-colored spheres will be left behind when a monster is defeated. These are the GEMs that you need for using magic, so make sure to collect some. GEMs will disappear after a while if not collected soon after the monster has left them, so if the GEMs are out of reach, use the L/R buttons to draw them towards you.

all kinds of magic includes fire not for sale

GEMs
Teeny weeny! Just the right size... OOOH! MINE!
Small gems are worth 1, mid-sized gems are worth 5, and large gems are worth 10! Also, the large GEMs move more slowly when you try to draw them towards you with the L/R buttons because they're heavier.

Returning to the Master's Shrines will allow you to recover HP and move to other locations. After clearing the Trial Room, you can now go to the Grass Valley highlands, the first town. At first, the town will be empty; everyone has been captured by monsters except for a single solitary tulip. As you clear monster lairs and free the people, the town will be rebuilt, and people who may help you will return to their homes. Some of them will give you hints and advice, others may give you items. An item must be equipped before it can be used, but you will not need to press any buttons; the equipped item will automatically take effect when it is needed.

Is there anything else I forgot to mention?

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