Part 19: Lost Woods and Pao

Main Walkthrough

The team has finally arrived at the Black Dragon Fortress, home of the Black Dragon, just for Jessica and Mia to fall ill to a mystery disease. Alex, Nash, and Kyle will need to trek into the fortress on their own. It is highly recommended that you purchase a bunch of Healing Nuts in Pao, for each of your party members as well as Nall. The only other source of healing you'll have is Alex's Blue Dragon Healing, and it uses up too much MP to be reliable.

Black Dragon Fortress

Enemies

  • Chaos Fiend - 360 HP - Can hit everyone - Resists Thunder
  • Hell Raiser - 288 HP - Heavy melee opponent - Weak to Thunder, resists Sword
  • Nipple Yanker - 180 HP - Ranged attacker - Weak to Sword, resists Thunder
  • Slice O' Dead - 234 HP - Can hit everyone - Weak to Thunder

You'll find the entrance to the Black Dragon Fortress in the northeast of Pao, through a cave. Before you do anything else inside the fortress, head north from the entrance, then east, then south. On your left you'll see stairs to the second floor, and before you get too far on this floor you'll run into Tempest. He will join the party. Tempest has few skills and is not as useful as everyone else, but bumping your party up to four members will make the Black Dragon Fortress much easier. Note that Tempest will leave the party if you try to return to Pao, and you'll have to trek to the same point to recruit him again.

The path through the Black Dragon Fortress is pretty straightforward, so we'll just focus on pointing out treasure chests that you can grab along the way.

1F

  • Northwest of the entrance is a chest containing a Dragon Bandanna.
  • East of the exit to the second floor is a chest containing a Dream Bow.
2F
  • South of the entrance is a chest containing an Angel Ring.
  • Outside the room with the entrance is a chest that will drain everyone's MP. Avoid.
  • On the ramparts in the west is a chest containing a Silver Light.
  • On the ramparts in the east is a chest that will drain everyone's MP. Avoid.
3F
  • In the northwest is a chest that will drain everyone's MP. Avoid.
  • Next to the floor's exit stairs is a chest containing a Healing Nut.
4F
  • In the southeast is a chest containing a Silver Light.
  • In the northeast is a chest containing Dark Armor.
  • In the west, near the stairs to the final floor, you'll find a chest containing a Dark Sword.
On the fourth floor you'll run into the Black Dragon - or its spirit, anyway - and it will give you the Dragon Armor. This doesn't make Alex the Dragonmaster, but you should equip it on him anyway. Once you reach this point you're a few rooms away from the exit in the west, and on the fifth floor you'll find a Dragonfly Wing. 

A great deal will happen on the fifth floor, and in the middle of it all you'll be facing one of the nastier boss battles in the game. Prepare yourself. (Though don't worry about healing. Everyone will get a full refresh before the real fight begins.)


Black Dragon

Weakness: Sword Dance

Yikes. Yep, the final trial, as it were, is to take on the Black Dragon itself. The Black Dragon has some terrible attacks, and your current lack of a healer leaves the party at a distinct disadvantage. Still, you can win this one, if you managed to come this far. The Black Dragon uses the following attacks:
  • Fire Breath, which hits one target hard with Fire damage
  • Thunder Breath, which hits the whole party with Thunder damage (dragon is surrounded in an electrical aura)
  • Cold Breath, which hits a cluster of characters with Ice damage (wisps of cold steam come from its mouth)
In addition to the damage you'll take from these attacks, the Black Dragon will regularly blow everyone to the right edge of the screen, making it difficult for Alex and Kyle to close in and use normal attacks.

For the most part this fight is all about keeping Alex alive, as he does the most damage to the Black Dragon by far. This isn't too difficult, as Alex's equipment will soften the damage the Black Dragon dishes out. Equipping the Flame Ring and Ice Pendant on your characters will dampen some of the Black Dragon's attacks, as well. Everyone in the party has their own role to play:
  • Despite changing into the almighty Dragonmaster, Alex's part in the fight is the same as usual: Dish out tons of damage. Use Vigor and Sword Dance. If the party is in a pinch he can use Blue Dragon Healing to restore everyone, though this is not the best use of Alex's time or MP. Give Alex a Healing Ring, if you haven't already, and the Black Dragon will have a tough time beating him unless he's the only person left in the party.
  • Kyle continues to play second fiddle to Alex. Power Up and Power Slash. Kyle won't do as much damage, so you may want to stack him down with restorative items.
  • Nash will likely be your healer via items, though if you get him to level 34 before the fight he'll know Thunderbolt, which can inflict a decent amount of damage on the Black Dragon.
  • Tempest can't use items, so Flash Arrow is your only real option. He'll never do much damage, so don't bother restoring his MP if he runs out. Save your Star Lights and Silver Lights for Alex and Kyle.
The fight will take a while, but it's fairly straightforward. As long as Alex stays alive your team will emerge victorious.


Head back south after the bad guys flee the scene. You can use the Dragonfly Wing you collected before the fight with the Black Dragon to return to Pao. Check Tempest's tent and you'll find Mia, Jessica, and Fresca restored to health, and your party will form ranks again. (And kick Tempest out. He's not that great anyway.) Laike will come in to congratulate Alex on his newfound power, and you'll be off to visit Myght in his tower to check on his up-and-coming airship.

There are two things to note before you leave Pao:
  • First, now that Alex is the Dragonmaster, he has a new spell: Dragon Grief. This ability allows Alex to essentially end any normal battle on the spot, and for a relatively slim 15 MP. You don't gain any experience for using Dragon Grief, but it can still prove quite handy.
  • Second, again the result of Alex becoming the Dragonmaster, he can now equip the White Dragon Ring that you got at the beginning of Lunar: Silver Star Story. It grants Alex a hefty boost to his magical defenses, and is worth equipping.
  • Third, Tempest has a present for you. Speak to him before you leave his tent and he will give you the Master Sword. With one exception it is the best weapon Alex will get in the game, and you shouldn't miss out on acquiring the Master Sword now, as you won't get a second chance later.
Traveling to Myght's Tower and speaking to Myght will put the party on the path to the endgame, and a number of things will be blocked off from you if you proceed. Before we head to the Frontier we'll have another look around the known world and see what we can grab.

Part 21: Prepping for the Frontier (Forbidden Forest)

Main Walkthrough