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** SHINING FORCE II **
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Help & Hints file


This is a hints file for Shining Force II. It is meant as a supplement
for the walkthru and contains some info not included in the walkthru.

Okay, first let's talk about the cast of characters. There are 30 of them
altogether and they all have various strengths and weaknesses. Let's now
examine them one by one:

1: Bowie (Default name for the main character). He is the leader of the
Shining Force. He is handy with any sword weapon and has two spells, Bolt
and Egress. The Egress spell is used to whisk the Shining Force out of
danger if the fight is going against them. He and he alone can wield the
Achilles Sword, needed to defeat the giant guardian Taros in the Ancient
Shrine where the Caravan is located; and the Force Sword, needed to defeat
Zeon. Bowie's only real weakness is that if he's exhausted in battle, you
automatically lose the fight and half your gold.

2: Chaz. Chaz is the son of Hawel and you find him in Yeel after you play
the Yeel piano. He would be useful in the fight against Zeon- if he had a
level 4 spell. Since, by the time you find him, he has no level 4 spells,
he isn't strong enough to fight in the upcoming battles.

3: Chester. Chester is the first of three centaur knights who join you in
your adventures. He and Sarah are the first two to join you, so you have
plenty of time to build up Chester's strength. Chester can wield spear
weapons that let him attack from two spaces away or from a diagonal, so he
has more range when he's armed with a spear weapon. If you find the Pegasus
Wing before you promote him, he can be promoted to a Pegasus Knight and
gain the ability to fly. Chester's defense strength is slightly low but
he gets good hit points which helps compensate for this.

4: Claude. This golem is found in the nexus between Grans and Parmecia. If
you find the Arm of Golem and use it in front of him, he will join you.
His hit points are a bit on the low side but his defense strength (he has
more than anybody else) compensates. His real weakness is his movement
range- it's only 4. To fix this, give him a Running Pimento and make sure
it increases his movement range by 2. To make sure, save the game before he
eats the pimento and if it only gives him 1 point, reset and try again.

5: Elric. When you find Elric, he is trapped in a small pond west of the
Elven Village. If you win the battle there, you rescue him and he joins
you as an archer. Unfortunately, he's not very strong and I retired him to
the Caravan after a few battles.

6: Erik. This centaur knight is one of four characters you can get from
Mr. Creed. His powers and weaknesses are about the same as Chester's.

7: Frayja. He is found in Pacalon's castle. He travels with you to Moun
and joins you after opening the gate. Frayja is a better priest than Sarah;
he has more hit points, more magic points, and he can reach level 4 with
his Aura spell. He also receives the Attack spell which gives a boost to
the recipient's attack power. His weakness is that even at level 31,
his Heal spell is only level 2. I do not know if it goes any higher.

8: Gerhalt. He is a wolfman who joins you in Polca village after you return
from your talk with Volcanon. He is a very strong attacker and he is also
pretty quick. His hit points and his defense strength are just a tiny bit
on the low side, but overall, he is tough enough to go till the end.

9: Gyan. This dwarf gladiator is very tough and hardy. Arm him with a Rune
Axe and, with a little work, he can hold his own in the final battles.
His agility is slightly low but a Boost spell can fix that.

10: Higins. A centaur knight who you meet just after leaving Ketto. If you
defeat Geshp's first army, you save Higins and he joins you. Higins is
the weakest of the centaur knights, but he is useable up till the fight
with Odd Eye. After that, it's best to use Chester or Erik.

11: Jaha. Like Gyan, Jaha is a tough and strong warrior. If you promote
him to Baron, he can use swords, which are a touch stronger than axes
(with one exception- the strongest mithril axe [Rune Axe] is stronger
than the best mithril sword [Counter Sword]).

12: Janet. Janet is a skilled archer who joins you just before you embark
on your mission to see the Tristan storytellers. Promote her to Brass
Gunner with the Silver Tank and she becomes a reliable warrior, able to
attack from three spaces away. She doesn't get that high an attack power
rating but she is good at weakening foes from a distance so your power
fighters can then move in for the kill.

13: Jaro. He is a pegasus knight who worked for the devils but turns on
them to join your side. His overall strength is only slightly better than
Higins but since he can both fly and use spears, he can attack from a
backward angle, a power you can use in the fight against Zeon.

14: Karna. When you are offered one of four characters by Mr. Creed, it's
generally considered best to choose Karna. Promote her to master monk and
she becomes a valuable member of the Shining Force, a skilled fighter and
healer. Her weakness is that her Heal spell only goes up to level 3, and
you must work her up past level 40 to get a level 4 Aura spell.

15: Kazin. Kazin is a solid, skilled mage who becomes a powerful sorcerer
if you find the Magic Book before you promote him. At level 26, he gets the
level 2 Neptune spell, which works very well on Zeon. He is limited to a
movement range of 5- fix this with the Running Ring or a Running Pimento.

16: Kiwi. This is the default name for the tortoise character you find
in Granseal before the 7th battle. He starts out a competent fighter but
he does not gain in hit points. He starts out with 7 and by the time I
was able to promote him, he only had 11. Even his formidable defense power
does not shield him from the enemies you face starting at the 20th battle.
Retire him to the Caravan after you save Elric.

17: Lemon. The leader of the Galam army, he is later transformed into
the diabolical Red Baron. When he is brought back to his senses, he tries
to kill himself, and when this fails, he joins your forces with the hopes
of an honorable death in battle. He needs a little work if you want to
use him in the final battles- get him into shape by having him kill members
of Odd Eye's army. His weakness is that once he joins you, he loses half
the hit points he had as Red Baron, and he can no longer wield the Dark
Sword he used as Red Baron.

18: Luke: This birdman warrior from Bedoe is very useful. His defensive
strength is a bit low, but he has good hit points and a high agility,
so if he is wounded, he can usually retreat to get healed before he gets
killed by the enemy.

19: May. This centaur is actually an archer (or Ranger, as the game calls
her), and she is useful at weakening targets from a distance. Defensive
strength is not that good, so keep her out of the enemy's reach.

20: Peter. This phoenix joins you at the start of your second quest (going
to Mt. Volcano, Peter's home). Unlike any other character who travels with
you for a time before joining you, Peter will fight for you right from
the start, but until he actually joins you, he is computer controlled
in battle. With a little work, Peter becomes the strongest member of the
Shining Force. Even though he doesn't get his defense strength into the
90's, he is, overall, formidable enough to go against Zeon.

21: Rick: You meet this Centaur knight after getting the Caravan. He
has the highest defense strength of all the centaur knights, but his hit
points and attack strength are only a little better than Jaro. He does have
a good agility and movement range.

22. Randolf. He is one of the four characters offered you by Mr. Creed.
He is just as tough and hardy as Gyan (perhaps even slightly tougher) and
can be used until the end when armed with a Rune Axe.

23: Rohde: He takes you to the shrine where the Caravan is located and
becomes the driver. Later, he also joins up as a Brass Gunner. He is as
strong as Janet, making the two of them interchangeable (I like to use
Janet since she is prettier [hehe]).

24: Sarah: Sarah is your best friend for most of the game, since for half
of the game, she is the only healer on the Shining Force. Her Heal spell
reaches level 4, but she does not get many magic points. Sheela makes a better healer than Sarah becuase she
gets more magic points and, as a master monk, she can fight well too.

25: Sheela. You meet her behind the monastery. As a master monk, Sheela
can both fight and heal. She is not as strong as Karna but she does get
a level 4 Heal spell and a level 2 Boost spell.

26: Skreech. You meet him in Bedoe if you stand at just the right spot, and
he joins you after you rescue Mitula in Tristan. He is a bit stronger than
Luke (note: he still isn't one of your power fighters) but he can fly
and has pretty good hit points and a decent attack strength.

27: Slade. He is the one who started up all the trouble by stealing the
Jewels of Light and Evil from the Ancient Tower shrine. A sense of duty
drives him to join you, and he can be useful at weakening opponents for the
power fighters and finishing off an
enemy who is down to his last few hit points. Once promoted, he becomes
increasingly more powerful and before you know it, he is a power fighter
himself. Good agility too.

28: Taya. You find this Sorceress in Mitula's shrine. She is as competent
as Kazin, except that even at level 28, her Neptune spell hasn't reached
level 2. I don't know how high you have to work her to get the level 2
Neptune spell, but I do know that getting her there will be awfully
hard work.

29: Tyrin: The last of the characters you can get from Mr. Creed. With some
work, his Freeze spell gets worked up to level 4, and once this is done, he
can be used in the fight with Zeon if he stays three spaces away.

30: Zynk. A robot who accompanies you from Moun to Nazca and then joins you
in Roft. He makes a good fighter and can be used until the end with some
care and work. His weakness is a low movement range (4); fix this with a
Running Pimento or the Running Ring.


Note that when you are offered the 4 characters from Mr. Creed, you may
only select one. When you reach Roft, you may travel back to Creed's house
via the tunnel from Grans back to Parmecia, and pick up the other three
characters. Note that they will be much less powerful than the rest of
the Shining Force. If you want to make any use of them, you will need
to 'train' them. To do this, use the configuration code to control the
enemy, and have the characters kill the Prism Flowers. Push all the other
monsters to the western edge of the battlefield, and Egress when all the
Prism Flowers are killed. All members of the Shining Force can be trained
up to level 28 in this way by doing the battle over and over enough times.

Now let's look at the eleven 'boss' enemies you face in the game. Each
boss has better hit points than any other creature in that fight scene,
and may attack twice a round when in battle.

1) The Kraken Head. It can attack you from three spaces away and packs a
hefty punch. Once the Kraken head has selected a target, it will attack
only that target until the target is slain, or the Kraken head itself is
slain. You must use Peter, Luke, May, Chester, Sarah and the main character
together in a coordinated manner to defeat the Kraken Head.

2) Taros. The giant guardian of the Caravan Shrine. The main character
must battle him alone because Taros cannot be damaged by anything except
the Achilles Sword.

3) The Chessboard King. He wields a powerful attack and a hefty level 2
Blaze spell. He also has good hit points.

4) Willard the rat in Floor World. He has about 60 hit points, and a very
good attack strength.

5) Zalbard. The least powerful of the greater devils, Zalbard is still a
formidable foe, with 80 hit points, a high attack strength and a level 2
bolt spell.

6) Cameela. She wields a spiked iron ball on a long chain that can deal
out heavy damage. She also has 99 hit points and good defense strength.

7) Red Baron. This killing machine is outfitted in blood-covered armor and
he wields a Dark Sword that casts a Desoul spell on command. He has 150
hit points. Once beaten, his identity as Lemon is revealed, leading to his
attempted suicides and finally joining your forces.

8) Geshp. He sics devil after devil on you but can't bring you down. At
last he is forced by Zeon to fight you himself. Geshp has 180 hit points
and a powerful attack. He can also cast a level 4 Freeze spell.

9) Odd Eye. Strongest of the greater devils, he faces you shortly after
you defeat Geshp. He wields a Counter Sword with deadly skill and can cast
a laser beam from his eyes. He has 200 hit points.

10) King Galam. With 240 hit points, a lethal Demon Breath spell, and a
hefty physical attack with a demon rod, King Galam makes a formidable
opponent indeed. Try to surround him completely so everyone can get in an
attack on him. Be sure to separate him from the Blue Shaman or it will
begin casting level 3 Aura spells on Galam.

11) Zeon. Good old Zeon. He has 500 hit points. He has a high attacking
strength and a hefty Demon Breath spell with more range than the spell
wielded by King Galam. Be sure to take out all of Zeon's forces (most
especially the Demon Masters, the Blue Shaman and the two Zeon Guards)
before attacking him.


Now let's talk about Mithril. Mithril is a special metal that can be shaped
into powerful weapons by the Dwarven Blacksmith in the Dwarven town. There
are supposed to be 14 mithrils total in the game; I found eleven. Here is
a list showing where I found them:

1) In Galam, when you are using the secret passage to escape from prison.
Search the wall just north of where you enter the passage and you'll find
a mithril.

2) In Granseal during the earthquake, a small hole appears to the right of
the castle entrance stairs. Search the hole and you will find a mithril.

3) Go east from Ribble to the sandy beach. Cross the bridge and you will
find a mountain range pointing north and south. Search the top third of
the mountain range and you should find a mithril.

4) In Hassan, find a hole on the left side of the wall and you will find a
chest with a mithril in it.

5) In Hassan, search the barrels on the dock and you will find a mithril.

6) In the southeast corner of the Elf Village, partly hidden by the trees,
is a chest with a mithril.

7) When you reach Creed's Mansion, you will fight the 21st battle. Once
you win it, search the northeastern corner of the battlefield (facing the
mountains) and you should find a mithril.

8) In the western part of Pacalon's castle, you will find a hole in the
wall. Pass through it and go down the stairs you will find. You will emerge
in a room with a chest; the chest contains a mithril.

9) When going north from Pacalon to Tristan, stay close to the mountains
on your right. Just as the path to the right comes into view, search the
northern tip of the mountains and you should find a mithril.

10) In Mitula's Shrine, you will find a chest with a mithril.

11) The cave leading to the Ancient Shrine with the Force Sword has a
curved mountain range around three sides. Stand just south of the cave
and take a few steps west to the tip of the curved mountain range. Search
the eastern side of the mountain and you should find a mithril.

Remember that the Dwarven Blacksmith chooses one of the weapon types that
can be used by the party member you selected to receive the weapon at
random. For example, Luke can wield any sword weapon. This means that the
blacksmith can make a Critical Sword, a Battle Sword, or a Counter Sword
for him. He is 90% likely to forge a Critical Sword since it's the weakest
of the three. Do not settle for less than a Counter Sword. Gyan can wield
any axe weapon, meaning the smith can make a Heat Axe, an Atlas Axe, a
Ground Axe or a Rune Axe. He is 95% likely to make a Heat Axe because it
is the weakest of the four. Do not settle for less than a Rune Axe since
it is the strongest of the four. If the smith does not make the weapon
you want, reset the game and try again.

Now, here is a chart showing exactly how strong each mithril weapon is.

Mithril weapon + chart
======================

Atlas Axe         +35
Battle Sword      +35
Buster Shot       +37
Counter Sword     +39
Critical Sword    +32
Freeze Staff      +37
Giant Knuckles    +55
Gisarme           +42
Goddess Staff     +31
Grand Cannon      +43
Great Rod         +28
Ground Axe        +39
Halberd           +37
Heat Axe          +32
Holy Lance        +39
Holy Staff        +29
Hyper Cannon      +40
Katana            +34
Levanter *        +42
Mage Staff        +27
Mist Javelin      +42
Misty Knuckles    +48
Mystery Staff     +39
Ninja Katana      +39
Rune Axe          +42
Supply Staff      +32
Valkyrie          +33
Wish Staff        +26

*- Do not get a Levanter made. Only Fandral can equip it and he will be
getting the even stronger Force Sword soon, so when you sell the Levanter,
it's like you've wasted a mithril.


Finally, for those who have to know beforehand, here are some tips for
fighting Zeon, and a walkthru of the ending sequence.

Zeon can either strike at one party member attacking him from an adjacent
square, or he can cast a demon breath spell. The fewer the characters that
are attacking him, the more likely he is to use a regular attack, which is
weaker than his demon breath spell, especially if the target character is
under the effects of a Boost spell. So start out by attacking him only
with the main character and/or Peter.
When Zeon's black hit point meter is completely gone, begin attacking with
one or two more characters. When his blue hit point meter is completely
gone, add another character or two. Finally, once his green hit point
meter is completely gone, have every character able to attack him jump on
him at once. Use Healing Drops, Aura spells, Healing Waters (there are a
total of four of them) and Healing Rains (two of these; one in the trees
just outside Creed's mansion on the west side, and one carried by the
Blue Shaman guarding Zeon) wisely to heal injuries. This is the strategy I
used to beat Zeon. I began attacking with the main character and Peter;
when their hit points got low, I retreated them to get healed and had
Randolf or Claude move in to attack, then when the main character and
Peter were healed, I moved them in again, and pulled Randolf and Claude
back. When Zeon's black meter was gone, I moved in Janet to attack from
three spaces away. When Zeon's blue meter was half gone, I moved Kazin in
to attack with level 2 Neptun spells. When the blue meter was gone, I moved
Slade in to attack with level 3 Katon spells. Finally, when Zeon's green
meter was gone, I moved in everyone able to attack. Zeon folded quickly.


When Zeon is defeated, you see the main character, Peter, Astral, and
Lemon standing around King Galam's body. He asks if he's dying. Princess
Elis will walk up to Galam and say that Galam was possessed by a devil.
Galam will recognizes Elis's voice and ask her to lean closer so he can
see her face. When Elis does so, King Galam will suddenly jump up and grab
her by the arms. It turns out that King Galam is now possessed by Zeon
himself. Zeon reminds you that you cannot kill him by the sword; you can
only weaken him. Astral will remember that Mitula told you to weaken him,
and he will curse himself as a fool. Zeon will order Astral and Lemon to
move back, and then he orders you and Peter to approach him. When Zeon
threatens to physically strangle Elis, everyone will comply. Zeon will
order Peter to remove the Jewel of Evil from Fandral's neck and put it
on the ground beside Zeon. Peter will somehow manage to remove the jewel,
and he gives it to Zeon. Zeon will begin to rapidly recover his powers,
and he says he'll be fully recovered in a few minutes. Then he tells Elis
that she may take a rest, and a black cloud envelops her and renders her
unconscious. Then he envelops Lemon in a special fire that burns even
vampires. Astral and Peter will try
to rush at Zeon, but he will knock them clear across the battlefield to
the eastern side. You will then rush forward, and slap the Jewel of Evil
out of Zeon's hand. Zeon will knock you out and curse you. Suddenly, a
light will flash from your neck and purge the fire from Lemon. Lemon will
begin to approach Zeon, and Zeon will set him on fire again. Another light
will flash from your neck and purge the fire from Lemon. Zeon will be
flabbergasted and ask himself how it is possible. He will feel his powers
fading and try to pick up the Jewel of Evil, but Lemon will rush forward
and grab him from behind, and begin to drag him through the portal. Zeon
will scream in anguish as both he and Lemon fall through the portal into
the abyss. Astral and Peter will come to, and quickly rush to your side to
make sure you are okay. When they see you are, they move to examine Elis.
She is cold and pale, but Astral says she is breathing.

Goddess Mitula will appear, and she congratulates you for your victory.
She says that 'we' have been watching you closely. Peter will look around
and ask what she is talking about, and when she says he knows what she
means, Peter will realize that god Volcanon had been helping you. It was
he (through the Jewel of Light) that protected Lemon from the magical fire
that Zeon used on him. Peter will say that Volcanon had said that he would
forsake the people of the earth, and Mitula will say that Volcanon had
only pretended to do so in order to deceive the devils- if he had joined
you, Zeon might have come to Parmecia and destroyed the continent. She also
reminds you that if he had joined up with you, you would have relied more
on his powers than on your own.

Astral will ask Mitula about Elis, and she will say that Elis has been
poisoned by Zeon. Mitula says that if Elis is strong, and can resist the
poison, it will leave her body and her face will turn pink. If she is
still sleeping, she will need a kiss from her true love in order to awaken
her. Mitula does not know how long it will take for the poison to be purged
from Elis's body- it depends upon her constitution. Mitula will say that
she must seal Zeon before he regains any of his powers. She will take the
Jewel of Light from Fandral's neck and pick up the Jewel of Evil, and
then she will tell you to hurry out of the tower. Mitula will disappear,
and the tower will begin to shake. You will pick up Elis and Astral will
tell you to run. He and Peter will follow you out of the tower to safety.

Two years pass.

You are awakened by a voice that asks if it is true that Elis's face has
just turned pink. Go downstairs and out of your house and your mother
will tell you that she heard Elis's face has just turned pink. Granseal
has somehow been restored to its old self (maybe Volcanon and Mitula had
something to do with it?). Go to the castle where you will find about half
of the Shining Force. Talk to them, then go to the school building where
you will find Astral and some more members of the Shining Force. Astral
will take you all the to castle.

In the castle, Astral will say that Elis finally recovered from Zeon's
poison. Because she is still asleep, she must receive a kiss. Most of the
Shining Force agrees that it is you who must kiss Elis. There will be
some discussion over the matter, but in the end, Astral and the king will
agree that you are the one. Go up the stairs to Elis's room, stand on the
left side of her bed and, when asked if you want to kiss her, say Yes.


THE END