Final Fantasy 1 Walkthrough With Dagger

[Dagger Dias]

RETURN TO EARTH CAVE
My Level: 18

Make your way back to the Earth Cave and go to where the Vampire was. Now you can get past the creepy plate on the floor thanks to the Rod that Sarda gave you. You'll end up in the next chamber of the cave. It is another maze-like area. From the stairway go left, up, up, down, left to get to a room. It has chests with 11825 gil, a Wooden Staff. Watch out for the monsters guarding some of the spots in the room. From that room go down, up, down, left, down, up (left portion), left, down, down, up (left portion), down, down, right to get to another room. It has chests with a Cabin, 1250 gil, and a Silver Shield. From that room go left, then keep going up to get to the next stairway.

You're in the final chamber now. From the stairs proceed north a bit, then left, then south to get to the chamber where a boss awaits. This is no ordinary battle, when you inspect the orb you will get attacked by Lich the elemental fiend of Earth!

 

[Dagger Dias]

BOSS BATTLE: Lich

Nope, no boss music. Not even for the Elemental Fiends. The original NES version still had the regular random encounter music. This is not a big deal but worth noting. Anyway, this intimidating 8 bit villain is one of the toughest bosses in the game. Some regard him as the most difficult of the four Fiends. You'll want your Red Mage and Black Mage casting Fire 2. White Mage MUST be healing those who get weak. Your Fighter, Black Belt, and Thief should be attacking. Have the Black Mage power them up with Temper and Haste if you can, for even more damage. If you do not have a Black Mage then a Red Mage could be doing this. Lich has higher defense than would be expected and he also likes to cast many spells including Ice 2, Thunder 2, Fire 2, Slow, and Sleep. If you lose then, you may just want to level up in the Hall Of Giants then try again. This is a VERY hard boss so do not feel bad if you lose.

After the battle approach the altar north of you. Now check the menu. One of the four orbs (crystals) is lit up. You know what this means. There's three other Fiends guarding three more crystals who you must now defeat. Step on the warp tile north of the altar to be warped out of this awful cave. Unless you want to walk ALL the way back, but why would anyone want to do that? SAVE once you're outside!!!!
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[Dagger Dias]

CRESCENT LAKE
My Level: 19

Sail back to Crescent Lake. In the town go talk to the old men, known as the Circle Of Sages. One gives you a Canoe and the Sages try to push you into going to the Volcano to face the Fire fiend. Not so fast. There's some other stuff that you CAN and SHOULD do first. If you go after the Fire fiend now, it will be the toughest quest in the whole game. Let's get the airship first. We'll be taking the canoe to the Ice Cave so get it now anyhow. Oh, and there are level 6 spells so you can get those now if you did not earlier.


LUKAHN LOOKS THE SAME AS THE OTHERS!

Even though he is the leader of the Circle Of Sages and the most important of them, Lukahn does not get his own sprite until the PSX remake. In the original he looks exactly the same as the other sages. For one of the game's more important NPC's this is surprising.


TWO DIFFERENT PATHS?

So, now the game branches a bit. As I mentioned earlier, there are two different paths you can take now. The game, through the Sages, encourages you to go to the Volcano right away. Don't. You can, by all means, if you want the challenge. The second path available now is to get the presige classes as early as possible. I recommend this very highly. You'll go through the Ice Cave, get an airship, go through an Ordeal in a Castle, and meet Bahamut. All before even going anywhere near that Volcano. That's up to you. For the purposes of this walkthrough we're doing the Ice Cave first.

 

[Dagger Dias]

SPELL SPOTLIGHT: Lit3

Spellbook: Black Magic
Level: 6

You are likely more familiar with this spell's other name, Thundaga, from other Final Fantasy titles. This is the only level 6 Black Magic spell that the Red Mage can learn and he only has access to it after he becomes a Red Wizard. Get it for both the Red Mage and Black Mage. It's just like Firaga only it is thunder elemental and a little bit stronger. Very good for the Sunken Shrine quest.​

 

[Dagger Dias]

SPELL SPOTLIGHT: Rub

Spellbook: Black Magic
Level: 6

This spell is an attempt to instantly defeat an enemy. It does not work on undead at all. Only the Black Mage can learn it. Skip this spell. It's the worst level 6 spell.​

 

[Dagger Dias]

SPELL SPOTLIGHT: Qake

Spellbook: Black Magic
Level: 6

The full name for this spell is "Quake". The limitations only allowing room for 4 characters in a spell name makes this one look very funny. There's really no way to spell "Quake" with only 4 letters without it looking weird. Unfortunately it's not the cool earth elemental spell from most of the other Final Fantasy games. No, in the original it is merely another instant death attempt. It hits multiple targets which renders Rub useless due to them being on the same spell level. Only the Black Mage can learn it. Get it if you want, I never use it.​

 

[Dagger Dias]

SPELL SPOTLIGHT: Stun

Spellbook: Black Magic
Level: 6

This spell attempts to inflict Paralysis on an enemy. It can even work on some bosses. Only the Black Mage can learn it. While it's not the greatest spell, when the only other competition in level 6 are Thundaga and a couple of instant death attempts, that puts this as one of the better spells of its level. I often just skip it since you don't truly need it.​

 

[Dagger Dias]

SPELL SPOTLIGHT: Soft

Spellbook: White Magic
Level: 6

This spell can nullify Petrification. It has no casting animation because it does not work in battles. Get it for your White Mage since only she can learn it. You'll save money on not having to buy as many Soft Potions.​

 

[Dagger Dias]

SPELL SPOTLIGHT: Exit

Spellbook: White Magic
Level: 6

This is an important spell at the end of the game. During the last couple of quests it could be a life saver. It lets you warp out of a monster lair. Only the White Wizard and Red Wizard can learn it. Make sure that at least one proficient member of the party knows it. I recommend the White Wizard over the Red Wizard unless you want to teach it to both. She has more spell slots than he does. Not even the regular White Mage can learn it. All the more reason to get to those prestige classes as quickly as you can.... Also, no casting animation. It only works outside of battle.

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[Dagger Dias]

SPELL SPOTLIGHT: Fog2

Spellbook: White Magic
Level: 6

This is just like "Fog" only stronger. It works on the whole party. There's better options available for the White Mage so skip it for her. If you want to get it for the Red Mage then go ahead. He can use it when he becomes a Red Wizard and he's reaching the point where he can't learn many spells anymore. I never use this one.​

 

[Dagger Dias]

SPELL SPOTLIGHT: Inv2

Spellbook: White Magic
Level: 6

This is a stronger version of "Invs" and hits the whole party. It can potentially increase their rate of evading enemy attacks. The Red Mage can use it when he becomes a Red Wizard so get it for him if you want. The White Mage can learn it as well although I rarely use it. It's a step up from the basic "Invs" spell and better than "Fog2" at least.
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[Dagger Dias]

WORLD MAP (CANOE TO THE ICE CAVE)
My Level: 19

Getting to the Ice Cave is a quest in of itself. You have to go through a maze of rivers in between the mountains in your new canoe. From Crescent go back to your ship. Sale to the port just north of the port you disembarked at to get to Crescent. From this port (the one north of Crescent) go left to enter a river in the canoe. There's lots of forks in the rivers here so keep going in the same direction until you hit a fork. Go left, down, left, up (rightmost of the two paths), right, up, right, up, left (ignore the up path here and keep going left), down, left (northern path of the two), down, left, down, left, right, down. Now you're there! Use a Tent or a House if you have any to spare. Then head inside. It has the awesome music from Matoya's Cave, making it the first monster lair to play that theme.


ICE CAVE
My Level: 19

You start off in a huge hall. Just go right and follow the path, turning left and you get to a stairway. Watch out for the Wizard enemies. Remember them from the Marsh Cave? Yeah, they are random encounters here. And they aren't even the worst enemies in this cave. Sorcerors, the stronger version of the Wizards, are. They are extremely dangerous. Head down the stairway at the end of that first hall. The second room is another hall, this one goes around a square large shaped wall. You are in the northeast corner and want to get to the southwest corner which has the next stairway. Now you're in a room surrounded by stalagmites with a chamber in the middle. Enter the chamber to find three chests. The left one has a Flame Sword. Give that to your Red Mage or to your Fighter if you have no Red Mage. The right has a Cloth guarded by dangerous Mage enemies. Not worth it! The middle one cannot be reached just yet. Jump down one of the holes. They all go to the same chamber on the floor below.

To your left, cross the icy floors (which damage you for some reason as lava would) to get to a chest with an Ice Armor which is guarded by a Frost Dragon. Give it to your Fighter. The one on the other side has a Silver Gauntlet but you do not need that and getting it would mean having to fight the Frost Dragon again so ignore that chest. Go back out through the "ice". Seriously, it looks like silver lava and not ice at all. Oh well. It was technology from 30 years ago. Limitations and what not. Now go down and right through more "ice" and continue south to the end of the path. You'll see stairs to your right, but let's get some treasure first. Go through the door in the southwest corner of the room to find a treasure chamber. In here you find 40780 gil. Now go to the stairs to your right.

You're back on the first floor again, but in a room you couldn't get to before. The chest south of you has a Heal potion. The small chamber further south has a chest with 10000 gil. Enter the room to your right. There's three chests and a hole. Do not jump down the hole yet. The three chests in here have 9500 gil, a Tent, and an Ice Shield. Give the Ice Shield to your Fighter. Now drop down the hole. You end up in the room from before with all the other holes in it, you are able to get to the middle chest now. Do NOT fall down any of the holes or else you have to work your way back through that area with the "ice" in it. Make sure you are at maximum Health before approaching the chest because it is guarded by the Eye boss. Unlike all the other bosses, he respawns. You can fight him again and again for lots of EXP.

 

[Dagger Dias]

BOSS BATTLE: Eye

Unlike most bosses, this guy respawns. You can come back to fight him as many times as you want for lots of gil and lots of EXP. Luckily his Health is rather low for this point in the game. You will want to end the battle as quickly as possible before the Eye boss has a chance to use any of his instant death abilities. Fighters, Thieves, and Black Belts should all attack. Cast Haste on Fighers/Thieves as well if you have it. Black Mages can cast the most powerful spells available such as Firaga or Thundaga. White Mages need to be ready to heal as needed. Red Mages can assist any of the other classes in whatever area they are needed the most, likely in offensive casting.
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[Dagger Dias]

GETTING THE AIRSHIP
My Level: 19

This is long enough to justify its own section. Let’s get out of the Ice Cave first. After beating the Eye boss make sure to open the chest for the Floater. After this you can fall down any of the holes, work your way back the way you came through the room with the "ice” and go like you were going the way you came only instead of going into the room with the chests and the hole, approach the stairs northeast of that room. It takes you outside. Save and heal once outside! Using a House would be best if you have one, or a Tent.

Now backtrack the way you came, from the Ice Cave to the port where your ship is waiting. When you get back to the river maze go left, up, left, up, right, up, right, up, right, up, right, down, left, down, right, then go to the port to find your ship. Now sail to the port south of you (the Crescent one). Go towards Crescent but cross the river south of you in the canoe to find a desert. Enter the desert and use the Floater. An airship comes up from the sand! You now have an airship that can fly you anywhere in the world. It moves faster than your walking speed was, the only downside is it can only land in grassy areas.

Fly back to Coneria if you want. Resting there is the cheapest plus with all that gil from the Ice Cave (if you got all those chests) should be enough to ensure you are fully maxed out on Heal potions and Pure potions.

 

[Dagger Dias]

CLASS CHANGE SIDEQUEST (CASTLE OF ORDEALS)
My Level: 20

It's time for this game's most famous sidequest, the class change! You can fly north to the Castle Of Ordeals in the airship. Land the airship on the one square of grass northwest of the Castle Of Ordeals (on the continent north of the Temple Fiends). Now walk around the continent east, then south, then back west to get to the castle. You'll use the canoe to get through the river. The monsters on this continent are pretty tough so it is recommended to be at full Health with all your spell charges. You can use a House to restore outside the castle once you get to it.

Inside the castle is an old man who says you have to have the Crown and take it to the throne. You would already have it from back when you battled Astos. Then the old man disappears for some odd reason. Head to the northwest corner and enter the door. Stand on the throne to trigger a warp. Now you are in a puzzle. You will seem stuck at first but if you approach the pillar in the room you are in, it warps you.... to another room with yet another pillar. Welcome to the strange puzzle of this castle. Pillar warping. Watch out for Red Gargoyles, a large party of them could destroy you if you're not careful. Anti-Fire and healing should be a White Mage's top priority if you get this encounter. Black Mage and Red Mage should try to take a number of them out with Blizzara.

At first you only have one pillar per room to warp with. You will end up in a room that has a north and south pillar, take the southern one because the northern one takes you back to the first room. Keep going until you get another room with two pillars, here take the southern one since the north one goes into a room that then takes you right back into this room again. You eventually reach a room with a left and right pillar, here take the right one because the left takes you back to the first two pillar room. Head toward the room in the northeast corner to get to a chest guarded by a MudGol. I cannot help but wander if the two Golem bosses in Final Fantasy Mystic Quest were inspired (in appearance at least) by this guy. He's not too tough. The chest has a Zeus Gauntlet in it. You will be able to use it in a moment, none of the basic classes can equip it. Have your Fighter hold onto it for now in his inventory. Ignore the pillar just south of the MudGol room, it takes you back to a previous two pillar room. Ignore the next pillar as well since it takes you back to one of the first rooms of the puzzle. You will want to ignore the pillar at the far end of the path for the same reason. Take the third one to get to a stairway, go upstairs.

On this floor you will find a door at the end of the path. As soon as you enter you will get attacked by a Nitemare. He's easy to defeat with regular attacks. The chest north of you has a Heal Staff. Give it to your White Mage in her weapon inventory though the Silver Hammer should still be equipped. This staff can be used in battle for curing purposes! Nice. To your left you eventually find three chests in a corner. They have an Ice Sword, a Gold Ring, and an Iron Gauntlet. Give the Gold Ring to your White Mage, the Iron Gauntlet to your Thief to hold onto in his inventory, and the Ice Sword to your Fighter for now. South are four more chests. They have 8795 gil, a House, and one is empty oddly enough. Not sure which is weirder, how I am supposed to believe a whole house got stuffed into one little chest or why they would leave one empty. Oh well. Go to the right. This chest has the Tail. It is what you needed here in this castle. Heal up to full health here before going any further. Approach the throne and you will be attacked by what is considered a boss of this area since he guards the exit, a Zombie Dragon! After you defeat him simply exit to be back outside. Use that House you got to save.

 

[Dagger Dias]

BOSS BATTLE: Zombie Dragon

Some consider this guy a boss, some don't. He counts as one for me. The Zombie Dragon guards the exit at the Castle Of Ordeals as well as being encountered right after getting the Tail needed for the class change. He's easier than most of the true bosses. Just cast Firaga with your Red Mage or Black Mage if you have either of these classes in your party. Any White Mages should cast Harm 2 if they do not need to heal. Any Fighters, Thieves, or Black Belts present should be attacking regularly.
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[Dagger Dias]

CLASS CHANGE SIDEQUEST (CARDIA ISLES)
My Level: 20

Ok we have the Tail. Now we have to find the Dragon King, Bahamut in order to make the upgrade to the prestige classes. Fly just south of the Castle Of Ordeals to find the Cardia Isles. They are made up six caves on five different islands. Each cave on the Cardia Isles has that great song from Matoya's Cave!

The cave on the easternmost Cardia Isle (a long island with a forest) has a room with skulls and chests filled with gil. These chests have 6205 gil total. The room to your left has more chests inside and a dragon. You can talk to him, he is friendly. As are all the dragons on these islands. However, you would not be the first to do so if you healed to maximum Health expecting a boss encounter when talking to the dragon. The chests in the dragon's room have a total of 13930 gil. You're done with this cave. On to the next one.

The small island next to the one you were just at has another cave. In here you meet another friendly dragon. He asks if you have met Bahamut and hints at meeting him being important. That's.... it for this cave. Next!

West of the island you were just on is an island with a swamp and another cave. In that cave is another friendly dragon with yet another hint. He talks about going to the Castle Of Ordeals with a proof of courage to bring back. Hmmm, yeah we did this already. That dragon is there with the intent to show people who have not done this sidequest yet what purpose the Tail and the Castle Of Ordeals serve. Two more dragons are in the room south of the stairway. There's some chests in here too. They have 510 gil and a House. So dragons can somehow get a house into a chest. Nitpicking, I know. The well at the south wall does nothing, I find it odd that it is even there. It blocks the path in between two doors. You're done here now. Now for the next cave.

North of you is an island with a forest and two caves. The cave on the right side is the most important of all the Cardia Isle caverns, Bahamut is inside! Talk to him if you have the Tail to get upgraded to the prestige classes. Your graphics for your characters have all changed to signify the class change. Take a look and see. I will share more detailed information on the new prestige classes in a moment. For now let's keep exploring once you have spoken to Bahamut. Before you forget, give the Ice Sword to your Ninja (formerly Thief) as well as the Iron Gauntlets. Give the Zeus Gauntlets to your Knight (formely Fighter). Exit the cave and go enter the one on the left side of the island. Three more friendly dragons are inside, you can talk to them but there's nothing else to do here. One left to go.

The last cave on the Cardia Isles is to the left of the island Bahamut was at. This cave has a chest in the northern room with a Cabin. The southern room has chests with 575 gil and a Soft Potion. There's also a dragon walking around at the northernmost part of the cave who talks more about the Tail and its purpose without specifying the Tail itself. Now you're done. Next we will go upgrade the equipment of our Ninja (formerly Thief) and to a lesser extent, our Knight (formerly Fighter). Oh, and go gain a level by fighting random encounters. You'll see why. Hey! The Knight and Ninja now have spell slots! You know what that means? Yep, they can cast magic now.

 

[Dagger Dias]

CHARACTER CLASS SPOTLIGHT: Knight

This is the upgraded prestige class for the Fighter. He can now equip the game's best weapons and armor, some of which were not available to the Fighter. The Knight can cast some White Magic spells as high as level 3. Knights are among the classes that benefit the most from the class change.

 

[Dagger Dias]

CHARACTER CLASS SPOTLIGHT: Ninja

This is the upgraded prestige class for the Thief. His weapon and armor proficiency increases significantly to where he has access to almost as much equipment as the Knight. He can now also cast Black Magic up to level 4. Last but not least, look at that awesome new graphic. The Ninja benefits more from the class change than any other class.

 

[Dagger Dias]

CHARACTER CLASS SPOTLIGHT: Red Wizard

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This is the prestige class upgrade for the Red Mage. He gets access to a few more spells and that's mostly it. Previously his highest casting level was 5 but now he can cast a couple of spells in the 6th and 7th levels of both Black and White magic. Still not quite the best in anything, although the Red Wizard benefits from the class change in that he still fits into most parties at the end of the game thanks to having access to a few advanced spells whereas the regular Red Mage becomes a lot less useful this far into the game.

 

[Dagger Dias]

CHARACTER CLASS SPOTLIGHT: White Wizard

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This is the prestige class upgrade for the White Mage. She now has her hood off in battle as well as in the field maps. The big change for the White Wizard is similar to the Red Wizard, only better. She can now cast every single White Magic spell including level 8 spells! The Life2 and Fade spells are very much worth the effort to get your White Mage upgraded to a White Wizard. She benefits more from the class change than any of the three caster classes. We already knew her importance in the supportive casting role. Now the powerful Fade spell makes her outclass the Red Wizard and Black Wizard.

 

[Dagger Dias]

CHARACTER CLASS SPOTLIGHT: Black Wizard

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This is the prestige class upgrade for the Black Mage. Similar to the White Wizard, he now has his hood off and gains access to level 8 spells. Although the Black Wizard can cast every single Black Magic spell in the game including Nuke, he's still the weakest class in every category other than casting. His Health, defense, and offense all still suck. Fade is almost as powerful as Nuke so you're truly not missing out on much if you didn't have a Black Mage to upgrade into one of these guys. They do have a cool casting animation at least.

 

[Dagger Dias]

CHARACTER CLASS SPOTLIGHT: Master

This is the prestige class for the Black Belt. I do not call it an upgrade unlike the other 5 because it's not an upgrade. I feel bad for the Black Belts. What do they get out of the class change quest? A shiny new graphic which looks just like the old one only taller. That's it. No enhanced abilities, no new proficiencies, not a single thing that makes any relevant difference. If your party is 4 Black Belts go ahead and just skip the class change quest. You literally get nothing out of it in such a scenario. Poor Black Belts.... At least they still have good Health and offense.

 

[Dagger Dias]

SHOPPING AFTER CLASS UPGRADE (OPTIONAL)
My Level: 21

Go to Melmond to buy another Steel Armor for your Knight since he will be giving your Ninja his Ice Armor. Next head to Crescent and buy a Silver Shield, a Silver Gauntlet, and a Silver Helmet for your Ninja. Buy a Silver Gauntlet for your Red Wizard. Notice that your Ninja now has nearly as good of a defense as the Knight. Awesome. Move him up beyond the Red Wizard in the formation. It should now go as follows: Knights, Ninjas, Red Wizards, Masters, White Wizards, Black Wizards. In that order from top to bottom depending on what your party is.

Now for magic. Your Knights have learned basic White Magic proficiency up to level 3. Your Ninjas have learned basic Black Magic proficiency up to level 4. They can only use some spells so here are some recommendations. In Coneria go buy your Knight the first level White Magic spells Cure, Fog, and Ruse. At the Black Magic shop in Coneria buy your Ninja the first level spells Fire, Lit, and Sleep. He can use Lock too but I do not recommend it. Head to Pravoka. Your Knight can use all four level 2 spells although the only one you'd need is Anti-Lit. If you want you can get Lamp and Invis too. Mute is the least useful of the bunch to me. Buy your Ninja Ice, Dark, and Temper. He can use Slow if you want that instead of Dark, though you really want Ice and Temper for sure. Lastly we will go to Elfland. Buy the Knight his two ultimate spells the third level White Magic spells Cure 2 and Anti-Fire. Buy your Ninja the third level Black Magic spells Fire 2 and Lit 2. Skip Hold and Lok2 since they suck. He can go up to level 4. Buy him his ultimate spells Fast and Ice 2. He can learn Sleep 2 and Confuse so get Sleep 2 if you want, but skip Confuse. That's all for spells! Your Knight and Ninja never get further than this but it was nice to see them finally cast.

Return to Crescent. There are level 6 spells at the shops there that you may want to grab if you had not yet. At the Black Magic Shop buy Lit3 for your Black Wizard and Red Wizard. Buy Soft and Exit for your White Wizard.

 

[Dagger Dias]

GAIA (OPTIONAL FOR NOW)
My Level: 21

Now that you have the airship you can go to the town of Gaia. It is in the northeast corner of the map and you will have to fly there on the airship. You're mainly here to shop for better gear. Buy a Catclaw for your Black Wizard at the weapon shop. At the Armor Shop buy a Gold Ring for anyone who does not currently have one since all classes can equip it. Your Knight and Ninja might not need it, but odds are any other class will. Buy a Pro Ring for all classes as well.

If you have the prestige classes then there are some new spells available to you at this point. At the Black Magic Shop by the entrance, buy Ice 3 for your Red Wizard and Black Wizard. At the White Magic Shop by the entrance, buy Cure 4 for your White Wizard. If you can afford these, that is. We will be back here later so you do not have to get these spells now though Ice3 could be handy during the next quest.... You could always go through the Hall Of Giants a couple of times.