RPG Insanity

It doesn't take much to Synthesize weps & armor by the time we arrive in Elmania, or shortly after our arrival. After taking care of all the business in & around Elmania & Sanga, and before heading to the Water Temple for the Informant's errand, I took a little time to Synthesize some equipment.

The Synthesizing Shop is reached on the World Map just west of Elmania. Go around the mountain from the northern side, and you cannot miss the shop. It's still very early in the game for me, so I know better gear will come along soon enough.  Regardless, I wanted to do synthesizing since all the items needed for it were easy to obtain by that stage of the game. Happily, Synthesizing is free!

This is what I was able to Synthesize so far:

For Hero: Knight's Rapier & Thunder Armor
Stacia: Death Match (wep) & Demon Fur
Yuni: Sleep Dagger (which is needed a little later as a component for Assassin Dagger) & Demon Fur
Will: Lead Outfit
Niecks: Thunder Armor
Damia: Thunder Armor

The only two items I needed that are not readily available for all this gear were the Hemp Outfit (that I stole from Rick during a mini-boss battle) and the Gladius sword. The Gladius sword is in the Water Temple on the small snowy island a little northeast of Aristo. Once the party is around mid-teens in level, we can get in & out of the Water Temple with the Gladius.

When you enter the Water Temple, go through the doorway that's on the immediate right. It's a real small room, so you can grab Gladius from the treasure chest and then skedaddle.

It didn't take much time at all to earn 75 CRP from ordinary in-game play. I used the 75 CRP to make an IAP of the Millionaire's Crest which doubles Gold from battle loots. (Don't forget to equip it as an Accessory.) The Gold was necessary to purchase all the needed items to Synthesize the above listed gear. Some of the items were silly expensive for that stage of play, so the extra Gold was required.

Once I arrived in the Water Temple for the Informant's Main Story Quest, I was quite surprised at how Stacia's Death Match could one-shot a mob every single time. The Death Match turned out to be an invaluable investment.

This is my second time starting the game, so I knew the Water Temple was going to be a struggle. Although, with all the Synthesized gear, the battles in the Water Temple were very much manageable. At the very least, the temple is a frustrating and anxious Quest since the mons are a bit more difficult to slay than I expected for my chars' levels of late-teens. It takes quite a bit of time to explore the Water Temple, so be prepared with extra Herbs & such to make sure you survive all the way through it. Especially if you challenge the temple without Synthesized gear.

When I reached the Synthesizing Shop the first time I played, I was disappointed in myself that I sold all the stuff I needed to Synthesize gear simply because I had no idea what I would need for synthesizing. Some of the needed gear was no improvement to what the party already had, so, of course, I just sold it for the Gold to purchase better stuff. Don't make that same mistake.

Even though I read about synthesizing in the Forums before starting Crytareino, I did not expect for synthesizing to come up so early in the game; and I figured there may be a chance to get that same missing equipment. I was totally unprepared for it. I wanted to spare you guys that same pain. I'm not sure if the Hemp Outfit and Gladius sword do become available again. I didn't want to chance it; and I wanted that Synthesized gear now. It seemed my only choice was to restart the game. An easy choice, since I didn't have too much time invested in the game by then.

Outside of the Hemp Outfit and Gladius sword, the following is a list of what you'll need to save for with Gold and items. With these items, you can Synthesize the same gear as I did. These equipment items are the best we're able to Synthesize at this stage of the game & a tremendous help- especially for that dreadful Water Temple.

Rapier (Aristo, Elmania)
Battle Dagger (Elmania, Sanga)
(2) Fang Accessory (Aristo, Sanga)
(5) Hypnotic Drug (Elmania)
Waves (treasure in Sanga)
Golden Light Talisman (Elmania)
(7) Golden Light Stone (Elmania, Sanga)
(2) Fur Robe (Elmania)
(2) Fruit of Sorcery (game play)
(3) Plate Mail (Elmania, Sanga)
(4) Softener (Elmania)
(2) Necklace of Thunder (Synthesized) which needs:
       (2) Ring of Thunder (Elmania)
       (2) Golden Light Talisman (Elmania)
       (6) Golden Light Stone (Elmania, Sanga)

For kicks & giggles, I'll include the Classes I used. I'm not sure if Yuni's chosen Class is the best for her. However, we lose her (maybe temporary? I dunno yet) in Syngaya, so I thought developing her to a Samurai wouldn't be a terrible thing to do.  Besides, I think Samurais and Assassins are cool Classes and I wanted to check them out to see how they do. Yuni is a strong party member, so having her starting off to become a Samurai didn't give me any regrets. Of course, you can choose any Class you want and do not need to do what I did with Classes. I did find the team to be harmonized when I didn't have the same Classes leveling up simultaneously. By using the following choices in the order given, the battles were fluid since the party's attacks could be well-coordinated. Enemy mobs were killed in 1-2 rounds.

I'm a noob in the game, so my theory of Classes for early gameplay may not be ideal. If it's not, I appreciate any input from the Crystareino veterans.

This is how I wanted my party members to end up, and what it took to get there. I did them in this exact order, so that starting off, I wouldn't have two chars as the same Class:

Hero & Niecks: God Hand

Hero: Knight, then Thaumaturgist, then Holy Knight. Then Fighter, followed by Sorcerer, then Magic Fighter.

Niecks: Fighter, then Sorcerer, then Magic Fighter. Followed by Knight, Thaumaturgist, and Holy Knight.

Yuni & Damia: Samurai

Yuni & Damia: Traveler, then Bandit, then Assassin.

These two ladies' Classes can be done in the same order if you desire, since Damia joins the party when you lose Yuni.

Stacia & Will: Sage

Stacia: Thaumaturgist, then Advanced Thaumaturgist. Followed by Sorcerer then Advanced Sorcerer.

Will: Sorcerer, then Advanced Sorcerer. Followed by Thaumaturgist then Advanced Thaumaturgist.

 

Hope this little guide helps you guys.

I am mostly an item Hoarder xd If I can hold on to anything (even the worst item) in any game (Like Final Fantasy games) I keep at least 1 of the Item/Equipment just for it to be there. And I only use items that I know I can get in other ways.. And I end up not using them at all. ?

That made me giggle.  I can imagine someone doing it the way you do. I'm the exact opposite, and that's why I found what you wrote to be funny- being able to realize different perspectives.  So many times we need Gold for upgrades and purchases. I get bored with grinding and end up selling bits & pieces of my inventory.  It must be habit by now. Also, I get aggravated scrolling through long lists.  It's educational to see a different point-of-view, even though we both end up in some sort of dilemma because of how we manage our inventory. Haha.

What do you do when storage space reaches capacity? Do you prefer to add slots (if that option is available) or do you bite the bullet and start selling your mementos, maybe only one or two at a time?

If anything, I'm a hoarder with herbs and potions.  When my party's magic and skills reach the point where healing and curing aren't worrisome about draining MP to dangerous levels, then I stop using herbs & potions. I accumulate so many herbs and potions, but I never want to get rid of any them. From that perspective, I'm no different than you with the hoarding mentality. I sure learned a lesson about my way of thinking regarding inventory in this game!

I used Commander's Walkthrough for some pointers in the game. I'm not one to look ahead and get a preview of what's about to happen. For this game, if I had done that, I could have spared myself the pouting I did when I restarted the game. ?

I meant that if the game allows to have as much things as I'd want to I only sell things that I can get normally. I don't increase capacities by IAP if it has the normal limit I have to live with it.

But I never sold any Weapon or Ring in Fernz Gate where Weapons are better used for Upgrades and Rings are.. Rings.

If you'd see how much things I had in Dragon Lapis you'd be shocked by fact that the Screen can't hold that many Pages (Squares at the bottom of the list) when visiting shop. Had literally everything IAP and non IAP at inventory before I deleted the game.  :) 

And if there's a limit on what I can have I only keep the stuff that is the most important (like things that change the appearance).

I love Synthesizing gear and games that offer it. I "try' to save as many non-consumables as possible. Like you wrote, "Rings are..Rings."  Sometimes, though... I just can't get Gold fast enough.  Sad, but true. Revenant Dogma drove me insane with the snail-like pace on the world map. Dialogue was meh, too.  But that wep synthesizing gave me an unshakable addiction to the game.

I usually stock every item I come across regardless of how relevant they are because... Managing inventory takes time. Lots of it.

On some games with evil interfaces, I need to sell stuff because otherwise it gets too difficult to use the important ones (on hindsight, I rarely to never use items...). Can be harder than a boss fight on many games: Arranging and managing your inventory (specially if you have a limit. It takes quite some time to decide what are important items and what are not. I consider using free IAP to expand limit if I am always hugging it, but otherwise (paid IAP or I rarely reach the limit), or more important things to do with IAP, I don't.)

 

Ugh, you made me play again Crystareino >.<

I really don't like the interface and the mechanics of this game... So much, that last time I tried to do so, I was following a tutorial and even so gave up shortly after finishing the Water Temple quest. (Which I didn't found hard at all, because every time the hero gauge was filled in early game, I went there and used the skill to gain 300 EXP against the monsters - so I was level 15 and hadn't even accepted the ship quest... not the smartest thing to do on games which lower EXP/CP for excessive grinding, but meh.)

 

Well, don't want to go too much in off-topic. I imagine that you went further in the game, was synthesizing worth it on the medium-term? Or did it only gave you an edge to finish the Water Temple and then become outdated?

(I *think* I'm sorry for getting you to play the game again.  Lol)

The Death Match wep was used for a real long time. An amazing wep for Stacia's level. Took her a good portion of the game to outgrow it. At one point, a treasure had an attractively higher attack on a whip for her. I gave it a shot, but by the end of two battles, I switched her back to the Death Match. It was SO hard to remove that weapon from her! I wouldn't give up her Death Match because it uses Thunder on an entire mob. And it still proved to be better than the next upgraded wep I found for her. At the time, Thunder was a super attack for the mons the party had to face. So it behooved us to keep the Death Match. You'll see. ?

(Watch out for the Needle Whip. It's a whole lot stronger than what Stacia has at the time you get it, so it looks very, very, tempting.  BUT, it only attacks a single enemy instead of a mob. I did not like that at all since I developed a synchronized team attack method that depended on her mob-attack whip. So again, I ended up down-grading Stacia's wep to Death Match ... If you can really call it down-grading. Maybe down-grading in theory, but not in practice. That could just be my style of play, tho.  Wanted to throw it out there anyway.)

The armors (Demon Fur and Thunder Armor) were also used for a real long time. IIRC, I think til Dodracka- maybe even Iglu. I'm not too certain about Iglu since there's great gear in the shops there.  Some party members kept the synthesized stuff a lot longer than others. I think Damia, for one.  It wasn't til Crystal World when I got the real good stuff that drastically changed everybody's stats. Of course, all the gear will be gradually replaced either through awesome treasure finds, more synthesizing, or gear available in shops. No regrets, tho.  The early-game synthesizing made things much easier for a surprisingly long time.

I added Damia to the party as soon as I was able.  She entered into my life shortly after I did the synthesizing. Damia has good starting stats, and Niecks became stronger and more reliable by then.  As a result, Yuni and Will were in my party less and less- if at all.  In all honesty, I can't speak for how long any early-game synthesized gear would last for them. Even in final dungeons when I scored good weps for them, I still didn't try them on for size for Yuni and Will. I was too dependent on Niecks' strength and Stacia's magic abilities. Then Pegoo came along, and Will and Yuni got further and further behind the pack. So I left them. But I will say, Yuni was awesome for the time I had her.  She brought much-needed strength to the party.

Damia and Pegoo are primarily physical attackers.  That became problematic later in the game when all the enemies were Holy and Dark, or apparition-type enemies.  So if you can squeeze in Will to level him up and keep him somewhat up-to-snuff with your party, I'm guessing he'd be invaluable later in the game. He'd probably need good defense and lots of HP tho.  You know how magic users are sappy that way.  Will was sappy early game, but he didn't die.  Just needed frequent heavy healing. I have no clue how he fares late game, especially against bosses. I'm only assuming he stays a glass cannon. We need to figure out a way to keep him alive. Betcha he'd rock!

I turned Stacia into a Sage, too.  That ended up being a good idea.  But I know each char gets abilities that are unique to them even when they share the same Class.  It would be interesting to know what dirty tricks Will has up his cloak sleeves by the time he becomes a 100% Sage.

For tough battles, I always started off using Hero's "Guard All" and Stacia's "Force Veil." They give physical and magical protection, respectively, for the whole team.  When necessary, I used Niecks' "Blessings of the Godly Light" which increases MDF. Maybe all those barriers could help weak-ole Will stay alive some of the time.

 

(Ya know, when I wrote "Crystal World" I kinda got shivers.  I mean, can you imagine?? That was a trippy revelation!)

 

@uninvented, true. Whenever I see a weapon (in any ATB game) a weapon that hits all enemies is my preferred one over much stronger weapons that hit one enemy. Like in Dragon Quest Series (most notably DQ VIII) where Boomerangs (less damage on each successful enemy but it's better than nothing) are always the weapons of my choice with a few exceptions. Because of the Skill System, any weapon that normally hits only one enemy (is preferred for Boss fights.. Cough Dholmagus...)   is best at Early Grinding which is a total must due to slow level ups (although I didn't see any trouble until the famous First Sceptre Holder). But when you realize that the Girl That Uses Whips also has weapons that hit everyone.. Oh, oh.

Conclusion : A weapon that hits all enemies is best at Groups but a weapon which strikes a single enemy is best for Bosses or for the Strongest Characters because usually later in game when enemies get stronger and your stats aren't super strong you will prefer killing one enemy at the time until you can 1-shot the group.. 

I agree with that strategy.  There are times I can recall when I alternated between standard and aoe weps. I did it in Crystareino. I only did it when I suspected or knew of an incoming boss fight and could prepare that way for them. I wasn't able to do it for all of them.  Still worked out, though. You're right about the trade off: aoe or stronger hits.

What is cool about this game, is it is rare to have more than three enemies at a time. If a larger mob did appear, usually panchos, they were definitely easier than some of the baddies in the game. To only have up to three enemies, Stacia's whip was excellent for lowering enough HP so the rest of the team could each one-shot an enemy.  Or, if Stacia didn't act first, she was a good finisher.  Maybe I get too over-confident and proud when I tear up the battlefields by having battle-after-battle that's only one round.  Can't help it.  Power feels good! ? Maybe some people like to duke it out in battle and don't care one way or the other if you're that OP or not. I've always been a fan of high Crit. If I'm able to divvy up status points, I always add a bunch to Crit and Spd- probably a lot more than most ppl would. I dunno.  Maybe something is wrong or evil with me since I like to mangle and destroy enemies so fiercely.