The Level # Lore Guide Version 1.4 Djibriel, Januari 2006 "Why did it take so long for us to learn, that the measurements of the great pyramid in numbers are the same as the Earth's circumference? Number symbols. Numbers tell all. Numbers from Nibiru. From Pleiadians." - 4Hero, Creating Patterns (Twelve Tribes) Contents 1.0 Version History 2.0 The Intro 3.0 The Attacks 4.0 The Casters 5.0 The Targets 5.1 The Targets by Lore 5.2 The Targets by Monster 5.3 The effects of Dischord 5.4 The Targets by Area 6.0 The Verdict 7.0 The Thanks No number: Disclaimer ********************************** 1.0 Version History ********************************** - Version 1.4 (06/15/2011) An e-mail sent by an enlightened soul known only as DiscoGodOfThe2ndAge reminded me about Dischord's ability to alter a target's effective level, which opens up a slew of targets that are vulnerable to a combo of Dischord and L.5 Doom. I added a section talking about it, because this document obviously wasn't lengthy enough. - Version 1.3 (05/30/2010) A minor revision by all accounts. - Version 1.2 (11/30/2009) Assassin17 is awesome. It's even better now. I still see no use for it in any "relevant" sense of the word, but it kept me off the streets for an entire night, a night I may well have spent tripping over cows in a clown suit had I not figured I might just as well update this thing. - Version 1.1 (1/8/2006) GameFAQs style! Fit everything within the 80-character limit, made the lay-out consistent with my other documents and just kinda cleaned up the entire document. The most noticeable change would be an entirely new Intro; the previous one was boring but good enough for the backwater location at the time; this one is a lot more interesting and should be better suited to the crowds that have come to expect a gem since the release of the Sketch Guide. - Version 1.0 (??/??/2005) Initial Release. Or upload, anyway. Wrote it, dumped it on Collapse of Heaven and Earth, and kinda forgot about it. ********************************** 2.0 The Intro ********************************** Imagine this. You're walking through a forest, right? No, wait, let's change a minor detail there: you're walking through a grotesquely oversized tomb for your long-since deceased friend that may or may not have been your lover. Yeah, okay, there's a tomb and you're walking through it. Lamenting the good times and gallons of Mountain Dew you had together, you are forcefully pulled from Memory Lane when an oversized plant attacks you. Think 'venus fly trap', only 8'0" high, with a very very very big mouth with sharp teeth and the kind of breath that makes children cry. This isn't an ideal scenario, as you would probably die. But let's assume that you've been fighting off bothers like this for a while now, and that you're covered in colorful robes that embody the very nature of Taoism. In this case, you might quickly resort to LOGIC. It's a plant! It will most likely absorb Water-elemental attacks, but it will quickly succumb to the powers of Fire. Yes, by appearance, most opponents can quickly be recognized as being desert dwellers, thus weak to Water. Or living in a volcano, thus weak to Ice. And whatever, you're like a divine being with Quick and Ultima and all that, so even your vague grasp of monsters and their elemental properties isn't even all THAT useful. Now, switch back to the tomb, the Mad Oscar attacking you. You may think about its Fire-elemental weakness if you've grasped the tendencies of abstract thought. If you're a long-time player, you may recognize the foe as one lacking Death protection. But how likely is it that "Darn, this Dionaea gargantua is level 30, it will be vulnerable to my trusted L.5 Doom attack!" will be the first thought shooting through your head? Not very, I say. So here's the guide to satisfy that very aspect of the game. This Guide includes all monsters susceptible to L.3 Muddle, L.4 Flare and L.5 Doom. I have not included L? Pearl as its hit-or-miss nature depends entirely on your amount of GP, which I can't predict. Sonny, if I could, I'd be spending the time I'm writing this intro betting on winning horses, and you'd better believe it. Obviously I haven't only checked for levels but also for Muddle and Death protection where applicable. Bosses who are vulnerable to a move yet could never have been targeted with it (you can't use L.4 Flare when fighting Vargas) have not been listed. ********************************** 3.0 The Attacks ********************************** L.5 Doom Hits all enemies, both sides MP cost: 22 Causes instant death Hits those with a level that is a multiple of 5 (Will miss targets invulnerable to instant death) Differences with the Doom spell: Multi-target, Not vulnerable to Runic, not Reflectable, unblockable, doesn't check for Stamina, doesn't restore undead. L.4 Flare Hits all enemies, both sides MP cost: 42 Bat. Pwr: 66 Hits those with a level that is a multiple of 4 Ignores defense, no split damage. Differences with the Flare spell: Multi-target, not vulnerable to Runic, not Reflectable, unblockable, is stronger (Flare has a Battle Power of 60). L.3 Muddle Hits all enemies, both sides MP cost: 28 Causes Muddled Hits those with a level that is a multiple of 3 Differences with the Muddle spell: Multi-target, not vulnerable to Runic, not Reflectable, unblockable. ********************************** 4.0 The Casters ********************************** Gau can cast L.3 Muddle when performing the Rages of either Apokryphos, Trapper or Dante. The wild child can cast L. 4 Flare when performing the Rage of Mag Roader (brown). Strago can learn all three Lores from Trapper, who all normally cast it. If you haven't met Trapper when you had the chance, and thus have ruined your chances of seeing them on the Veldt, Strago can learn L.5 Doom from Setzer's Joker Doom due to a quirk in the game data and learn all three Lores on the Floating Continent from Apokryphos who will cast any of the three Lores as a counter- attack when it's alone. Relm can perform all three Lores when Sketching or Controlling certain enemies: For L.3 Muddle, she can Sketch: Apokryphos, Trapper and Dante. For L.5 Doom, she can Sketch: Dark Force and Trapper. For L.3 Muddle, she can Control: Apokryphos, Trapper and Dante. For L.4 Flare, she can Control: Apokryphos and Trapper. For L.5 Doom, she can Control: Dark Force and Trapper. Note that while Sketching or Controlling, the only move that will have an effect on the targets will be casting L.5 Doom in a battle against a Dark Force opponent. All other monsters are immune to the Lores and travel with other monsters who are also immune to them. Gogo can either Mimic the attacks or simply add the Rage, Sketch and Lore options to his array of commands. Control is also an option; set Sketch as a command and equip the FakeMustache on Gogo. ********************************** 5.0 The Targets ********************************** This is what you're reading the document for, right? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5.1 The Targets by Lore ********************************** L.3 Muddle Orog, Hazer, Rain Man, Brawler, Whisper, Osteosaur, Steroidite, Doberman, Pterodon, Vulture, Harpy, Hornet, Trilium, Trilobiter, ChickenLip, Pipsqueak, Sky Armor, Ing, Humpty, Boxed Set, Figaliz, Crawler, Sand Ray, Areneid, Mad Oscar, Iron Fist, Wild Cat, Wyvern, Zombone, Mind Candy, Uroburos, Geckorex, PlutoArmor, Tomb Thumb, Scullion, Pan Dora, Mag Roader (red), Parasite, Latimeria, StillGoing, Commando, Poppers, Vindr, Kiwok, Mantodea, Gabbldegak, Fortis, Abolisher, Wild Rat, Veteran, Mega Armor Total: 51 L.4 Flare Samurai, Hazer, Whisper, Were-Rat, Rhinotaur, Doberman, Suriander, Behemoth, Pterodon, FossilFang, Trilobiter, Reach Frog, M-TekArmor, Sky Armor, Cruller, Harvester, Bomb, HadesGigas, Aspik, Actaneon, Marshal, Covert, Ogor, Apparite, Wild Cat, Wart Puck, Rhyos, Toe Cutter, Crusher, Uroburos, Sky Cap, Test Rider, Deep Eye, GreaseMonk, NeckHunter, Critic, Coelecite, StillGoing, Hemophyte, Wizard, Vindr, Nastidon, Vermin, Adamanchyt, Dante, Psychot, Muus, Chaos Drgn, Lich, Mag Roader (yellow), Bug, Abolisher, Necromancr, Mag Roader (brown), Wild Rat, Innoc, Red Wolf, Sky Base, IronHitman, Prometheus, Doom Gaze, Goddess, Laser Gun, Magic, Naughty Total: 65 L.5 Doom Guard, Orog, Dark Force, Osteosaur, Commander, Leafer, Stray Cat, Lobo, FossilFang, Dark Wind, Vulture, TumbleWeed, Vaporite, Brainpan, Repo Man, Boxed Set, SlamDancer, Figaliz, Ghost, Mad Oscar, Iron Fist, Apparite, Rhobite, Tusker, Cirpius, Mind Candy, Over Grunk, Sky Cap, Critic, Gigantos, Coelecite, Punisher, Gabbldegak, Spit Fire, Lich Total: 35 A few conclusions can already be drawn! It's funny how the L.3 Lore has less viable targets than the L.4 Lore. The reason is that L.3 Muddle, even on a normally viable will still always miss due to Muddle immunity. Since there is no such thing as Flare immunity, it beats L.3 Muddle in a fight of quantity. Also, only a small 29% of the targets vulnerable to L.5 Doom appears in the WoR; it loses a lot of steam there due to ID protection running rampant there. Memorized it yet? You have not? Allow me to lay the info out in such a fashion that it does look presentable: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5.2 The Targets by Monster ********************************** Guard Doom Lobo Doom Were-Rat Flare Repo Man Doom Vaporite Doom Marshal Flare Leafer Doom Dark Wind Doom Sand Ray Muddle Areneid Muddle M-TekArmor Flare Hornet Muddle Rhinotaur Flare GreaseMonk Flare Brawler Muddle Trilium Muddle Tusker Doom Cirpius Doom Pterodon Muddle, Flare Commander Doom Trilobiter Muddle, Flare Wild Rat Muddle, Flare Stray Cat Doom Rhobite Doom Doberman Muddle, Flare Ghost Doom Whisper Muddle, Flare Bomb Flare StillGoing Muddle, Flare Hazer Muddle, Flare Aspik Flare Actaneon Flare FossilFang Flare, Doom Vulture Muddle, Doom Iron Fist Muddle, Doom Over Grunk Doom Mind Candy Muddle, Doom Harvester Flare HadesGigas Flare SlamDancer Doom Gabbldegak Muddle, Doom Vermin Flare Bug Flare ChickenLip Muddle Wyvern Muddle Mega Armor Muddle Commando Muddle Pipsqueak Muddle Mag Roader Muddle (red) Coelecite Flare, Doom Apparite Flare, Doom Lich Flare, Doom Ing Muddle Zombone Muddle Adamanchyt Flare Abolisher Muddle, Flare Sky Armor Muddle, Flare Spit Fire Doom Laser Gun Flare (Air force) Gigantos Doom Behemoth Flare Brainpan Doom Naughty Flare Latimeria Muddle Dante Flare Cruller Flare NeckHunter Flare Humpty Muddle Deep Eye Flare Muus Flare Osteosaur Muddle, Doom Mad Oscar Muddle, Doom Orog Muddle, Doom Crawler Muddle Mantodea Muddle Reach Frog Flare Geckorex Muddle Tumbleweed Doom Doom Gaze Flare Punisher Doom Rhyos Flare Toe Cutter Flare Vindr Muddle, Flare Wild Cat Muddle, Flare Crusher Flare Red Wolf Flare Nastidon Flare Test Rider Flare Mag Roader Flare (yellow) Mag Roader Flare (brown) Wizard Flare Psychot Flare Kiwok Muddle Tomb Thumb Muddle Poppers Muddle Chaos Drgn Flare Necromancr Muddle, Flare Uroburos Muddle, Flare Covert Flare Ogor Flare Wart Puck Flare Critic Flare, Doom Pan Dora Muddle, Doom Parasite Muddle Samurai Flare Suriander Flare Rain Man Muddle PlutoArmor Muddle Sky Cap Flare, Doom Figaliz Muddle, Doom Boxed Set Muddle, Doom Harpy Muddle Hemophyte Flare Steroidite Muddle Evil Oscar Flare IronHitman Flare Veteran Muddle Dark Force Doom Fortis Muddle Scullion Muddle Sky Base Flare Innoc Flare Prometheus Flare Goddess Flare Magic Flare (final battle) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5.3 The effects of Dischord ********************************** Dischord is a wonderful little Lore that halves a target's effective level for the duration of a fight. Some interesting points must be made at this juncture: - Any Level # Lore will hit or miss based on a target's effective level, and will recognize a target's post-Dischord level rather than its 'actual' level. - When faced with an odd level, Dischord will round up. A Trapper's level is normally 19; when struck with Dischord once, its new effective level will be 10. - Dischord does not normally work on targets that are immune to Instant Death attacks, though a combination of Vanish and Dischord will (due to a bug) work. Though fun to employ, the Dischord Lore in tandem with a Level # Lore is not very useful in most scenarios. The trick works only when the target is already vulnerable to Instant Death attacks, and Dischord alone is heavier on your MP than a Doom spell. However, Instant Death attacks may miss where neither Dischord (on a target with no MBlock%) nor the successive Level # Lore will ever miss. Like bringing a girl to your bachelor pad and watching Joss Whedon films together, it's a two-step strategy that never fails. For the curious, here is a list of targets that, after a Dischord Lore, are vulnerable to a L.5 Doom attack where they previously were not: Brawler, Trilium, Trapper, Flan, General, Gobbler, Chaser, Allo Ver, Garm, ProtoArmor, Presenter (Shell), PowerDemon, Exoray, Bogy, Rain Man, PlutoArmor, Pan Dora, Parasite, Io, Hoover, SrBehemoth (undead), Land Worm and Didalos Of those, Allo Ver, Presenter (Shell), Io, Hoover, SrBehemoth, Land Worm and Didalos are the ones that may outlast a few attacks. Allo Ver, Hoover and SrBehemoth will only use their frightful counterattacks when damaged, so the Dischord Lore will not provoke them. L.5 Doom cannot be made to kill the other part of the Presenter creature, so you cannot obtain two Dragon Claws with this strategy, sadly. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5.4 The Targets by Area ********************************** So how does this apply to normal in-game usage? The Level # Lores are multi- target, so instead of just giving the info, a true dedicated Guide should point out groups of monsters and locations where a certain Lore is useful. Here we go: Everything in WoB Narshe and in the grasslands around it can be killed using L.5 Doom. The only exception to this rule is Were-Rat, which is level 4, hence you should pick L.4 Flare. 22 MP to kill a group of the weakest monsters in the game is overkill, but it will work. Marshal can be destroyed with L.4 Flare, which is a fun yet useless fact should you encounter it on the Veldt. It lives there now, in shame. The WoB desert around Figaro Castle is a good place to use L.3 Muddle against level 6 Sand Ray and Areneid. M-Tek Armor falls against L.4 Flare. Rhinotaur and GreaseMonk fall to L.4 Flare. Tusker and Cirpius are vulnerable to the L.5 Doom spell. This comes in remotely handy against that Cirpius x3, Tusker monster formation. L.4 Flare kills anything on the Phantom Train once its name isn't Ghost (who falls to L.5 Doom). The Doberman enemies guarding a chest in the Imperial Camp are vulnerable to both L.3 Muddle and L.4 Flare. Though it is impossible to bring Strago to this location, the Doberman dog will HOUND the Veldt afterwards. Oh, the wit. Actaneon and Aspik fall to L.4 Flare, but it might not even be a good idea to cast it as Aspik will rarely counter anything which isn't the Fight command with Giga Volt, even if the attack is fatal. Wild Rats can be killed with L.4 Flare or confused by L.3 Muddle. The grasslands between Kohlingen, Jidoor and Zozo are inhabited with monsters who shouldn't be laughing at L.5 Doom. Red Fang is immune, but all others will perish. Where's Strago when you need him? Vermin enemies are vulnerable to L.4 Flare, which is good 'cause they suck. Chickenlip and Wyvern are vulnerable to L.3 Muddle, though you may want to watch out with confusing Chickenlips; they'll start casting Quake, and they don't care who they hit. Mega Armor, Commando and Pipsqueak fall to L.3 Muddle. The monsters in the first two "rooms" of the Cave to the Sealed Gate all suffer from both L.4 Flare and L.5 Doom. Take your pick, at these levels the L.4 Flare spell means death anyway. L.3 Muddle can be used to keep both Ing and Zombone enemies at bay. This location may be off-limits as soon as Strago joins your team, but they'll still appear on the Veldt. Adamanchyt and Abolisher fall to L.4 Flare, and with Strago in your party you finally have means to cast it with. Or you would have, could you have taught Strago these spells by now. Which you can't. Finally, this is when Strago is able to learn the L.# Lores on the Veldt, or learn L.5 Doom from Setzer. Trappers are where it's at. Sky Armor falls to L.4 Flare (and L.3 Muddle) and Spit Fire falls to L.5 Doom. L.4 Flare kills the Spit Fire, so you can pick your opponents here. If your party is otherwise ill-prepared to take on the Imperial Air Force, these attacks can really help out. On the Floating Continent, you can once again easily learn all three Lores here described, this time from Apokryphos. Gigantos falls to L.5 Doom. If Strago isn't dead when his triple !Throat Jab has inflicted suffering upon your party, cast it to win. Behemoth falls to Flare. Especially a monster formation of two Behemoth monsters is a good time to cast this spell; not only do two Behemoths have enough power to actually kill a well-prepared, suitably leveled party, they can even catch you in a Pincer. L.4 Flare will hit both targets regardless for very respectable damage. Naughty falls to L.4 Flare, although a simple Imp spell will work faster and is cheaper. The WoR houses a whole lot of NO vulnerable monsters of any kind until you meet Latimeria (Muddle) and then enter the Cave of Figaro WoR style. Everything but Humpty here will feel the effects of L.4 Flare. Deep Eye and Muus, sometimes appearing together or in groups all fall to L.4 Flare. Especially Deep Eye x6 can be a nice formation to be the receiving end of the spell. Osteosaur, Orog and Mad Oscar all die from L.5 Doom. Orog is a monster you will be taking out ASAP, and since bringing Strago here as soon as you get him is a good idea (Sour Mouth), this is a very respectable option. The Crawler are everywhere in the WoR, so knowing that L.3 Muddle equals a NoiseBlaster against them is a good thing to know. Mantodea also feels the effects of this spell. Hoovers in the desert near Maranda can be safely hunted and killed with Dischord/L.5 Doom; Hoovers will not use Sand Storm when struck with Dischord, so no worries. Toe Cutter can be annoying with their Death protection and respectable amounts of HP, so L.4 Flare will be nice to cast against them. Note that the elusive Rhyos is also vulnerable. It's likely that it's not Strago that will be taking advantage of this weakness, but Gau (the brown Mag Roader Rage casts it). Allo Ver, the monster in the box, may be taken out with a combination of Dischord and L.5 Doom, and since Allo Ver only counters when damaged Strago (or Gogo) need not fear any extra Doom spells cast. The undead SrBehemoth may also be defeated with that Lore combo. Vindr, Wild Cat and Crusher, often appearing in groups (especially the Vindr x2, Crusher x2, Wild Cat monster formation), all fall to L.4 Flare. Only Gogo and Gau can cast it here, but it'll be a good option (it's a better version of GrandTrain before you even have Strago!). Finally a simply GREAT place to cast one of the Lores: Everything in Narshe, including both mines, is vulnerable to L.4 Flare. Once you step into Umaro's Cave L.4 Flare will fail miserably, but L.3 Muddle will take care of Kiwok, Tomb Thumb and Poppers alike. Chaos Drgn, Necromancr and Uroburos all fall to Flare. Uroburos' massive Magic Defense won't help against the barrier-piercing nature of the spell, so even in a LLG this move will take care of one right away. In Cyan's dream, most enemies are vulnerable to at least one of the three Lores: Critic, Samurai, Suriander and Sky Cap are vulnerable to L.4 Flare, Critic, Pan Dora and Sky Cap fall to L.5 Doom and Pan Dora, Parasite, Rain Man and PlutoArmor are susceptible to L.3 Muddle. Io can be destroyed by a combination of Dischord and L.5 Doom, if you're so inclined. Figaliz and Boxed Set both fall to L.3 Muddle and L.5 Doom. The latter is great way of abusing the lack of Death protection if you don't have access to anything but the normal Doom spell. The Final dungeon houses quite a few enemies, and some of them are vulnerable to one of the Lores. Checking the monster-specific section will help you there. The least unimportant one here is Goddess, who falls to L.4 Flare. Since her inherent Shell makes her resistant to most magical attacks, those of you who brought a Strago without GrandTrain to the fight (i.e. nobody) will be pleased to find this option possibly present. In the Final battle, the only part vulnerable to any of these spells is Magic, who'll suffer from L.4 Flare. Hardly worth the cast in this fight, especially once you consider that GrandTrain should be in your arsenal already, but if you want to exploit the knowledge you gained by reading this Guide, be my guest. ********************************** 6.0 The Verdict: ********************************** L.3 Muddle (51 possible targets) L.3 Muddle, among Pep Up, Spiraler, Exploder and Roulette, can be thrown on the heap of Lores which aren't worth your time and/or attention in this game. While I'm sure there are several places where this spell can come in handy in a Strago SCC where you prohibited using Magic, Stray's Cat Rain is equally expensive on your MP (both cost 28 MP) and will not check for levels. And it goes without mentioning that NoiseBlaster blows either of them away, so while L.3 Muddle can be annoying when targeted against you, and is in fact an interesting concept, the attack can be completely ignored without running in ANY situation where you wished you would've had it. L.4 Flare (65 possible targets) L.4 Flare is the strongest Lore you have when talking multiple targets and ignoring elemental attributes. It's a good bet against a double Behemoth, it will make a good Doom Gaze slayer, can clean out large parts of Owzer's Mansion, the Phoenix Cave and WoR Narshe and can create some havoc among other enemies. The heavy toll it takes on your MP might not be nice, especially in the WoB, but note that you'll have a powerful attack on your hands when you manage to land it on a suitably leveled target. An interesting note is that L.4 Flare is not as powerful as GrandTrain versus a single target, but IS more powerful versus multiple targets. L.5 Doom (35 possible targets) L.5 Doom has the smallest crowd of possible targets, and among them is an embarrassing amount of low-level WoB critters you might as well take out with your Bio Blaster. There are some situations where it's nice to have L.5 Doom, though: While you can't have Strago in the Cave of the Sealed Gate, its inhabitants will haunt the Veldt later on and especially Lich can be a formidable threat when you're scouting for Rages and Lores of the Veldt once you do have Strago. L.5 Doom is not at all expensive once looking at its nature, so using it against Spit Fire will be wise. Gigantos will be the last good target to use L.5 Doom on; it'll kill him once you cast it, no questions asked. In the WoR the amount of monsters with Death protection will be stellar in comparison, so you can kiss L.5 Doom goodbye (especially considering Cleave, Blaster, X-Zone and other multi-target instant-death attacks). ********************************** 7.0 The Thanks ********************************** Master ZED for the attack descriptions. Assassin17 for inspiring the creation of the Guide. And, according to assassin's own words: Contemptus, for inspiring assassin to mention the post which led to the document. DiscoGodOfThe2ndAge is my Boogie Man, hailing from Funkytown. His notes on Dischord made it even more troublesome for monsters to be Stayin' Alive in the face of Strago's mighty Lores. A real Daddy Cool, this DiscoGodOfThe2ndAge, and That's The Way (I Like it). ********************************** Disclaimer and legal necessities ********************************** This was written in 2005/2006, by Djibriel and is copyrighted by me. You can contact me at djibriel at gmail dot com if you desire to lay praise on me, or wish for my real-life contact information so you can send me money or your children. You are unauthorized to present this document, partly or whole, as written by somebody else as the authors of the respective bodies of text. You are unauthorized to change anything in this document for any other purpose then personal use without my explicit permission. You are unauthorized to throw me into a volcano after an epic struggle between good and evil without my explicit permission. All rights reserved.