The Derelict Factory is the largest dungeon you've encountered in Chrono Trigger to date, and will take a little while to complete. You'll start off in a laser-guarded lobby, and in order to proceed to the north you'll need to inspect the computer console by the entrance. This will deactivate the nearby laser - and drop an Acid down into the room. These things are best defeated with Techs, notaby Crono's Wind Slash. Don't bother using Robo's Laser Spin, as it will do almost no damage and trigger a counterattack.
Head into the northern half of the lobby to find three Deverminators. Again, Lightning attacks work well here. Next, check the sign on the wall. It gives some directions - namely, Factory to the left, Lab to the right. Part of the Factory is currently locked, so you'd best head to the Lab. (You can skip the Lab entirely if you know the code you need, but we'll go through anyway to collect all the items.) Step on the glowing, green elevator and hit the switch on the wall to leave the lobby.
Laboratory
- You're now on an assembly floor, with two levels and two conveyor belts. There are multiple ways to go here, and your first stop should be the doorway a little ways to the west of the elevator. It leads to a blind alley, which appears useless at first, though if you take a right a little ways up the unseen hallway you'll find a chest containing a Mid-Ether.
Your destination in this area is to the west, but there are two barrels currently blocking your way. You'll need to get rid of them first. Head south of the elevator, using the ladder on the left, and run west between the two conveyor belts. At the end is another dead end, with a chest containing a Bandit's Bow for Marle.
Head back to the elevator and take the right ladder, heading south. A doorway down here will grant you access to the lower conveyor belt. The belt is moving deactivated robots from west to east, and if you touch any of them while on the belt a crane claw will pick the party up and dump them on the upper escalator. If you can time your running correctly you can run along the lower conveyor and get at a chest containing an Ether. A bit further west is the way forward.
If at any point you touch one of the robots (which is likely) and get dumped onto the upper conveyor, you'll face three back-to-back battles. They consist of gradually-larger groups of Version 3.0s and Deverminators. You can't heal between battles, so fight carefully. Robo's Laser Spin attack, which you'll learn soon after entering the Derelict Factory, is handy for wiping out the Deverminators, as is Supersonic Spin, a Dual Tech between Crono and Robo.
Whether or not you fought the extra battles you'll wind up in the southwest of the Laboratory. Go through the door, heading south, and you'll find a group of Bugs. One Cyclone from Crono should take them out. Climb the ladder on your right and you'll find a path to the Laboratory's upper level.
Head north along the catwalk above the conveyors and proceed towards the door on the right, grabbing the Mid-Potion from the box outside the door. Inside this next room you'll find two chests, one containing a Mid-Ether and the other 400 gil. Inspect the computer console in the middle of the room to learn two codes, and to fight two Version 3.0s. The codes vary, depending on your version of Chrono Trigger:
- SNES, DS, PSX: X, A and B, B
- PC: A, B and Y, Y
Return to the catwalk and enter the door on the left. Inside are two more Version 3.0s, two chests containing a Shelter and an Ether, and a set of controls, the latter of which are to the south of the two chests. Approach the controls, then wait for a chime and a flash, then enter one of the two codes you were given in the previous room. Each code will activate the nearby crane claw, and it will remove the barrels that are blocking the path along the northern conveyor. You need to enter both codes, one-at-a-time, to proceed. (This is a bit finicky, so don't rush your button presses.)
Return to the catwalk and climb down the ladder on your left. You can now walk along the northern conveyor, either back to the entrance elevator or to the west. Going west will bring you a door, inside which you'll find a Thunder Blade in a chest. Put this on Crono if you didn't pick up the Thunder Blade in the Abandoned Sewers. The computer console in this room provides another code: X A B Y. (In the PC version this is 'decoded' as A B X Y.)
Return to the elevator in the east. You're halfway done with the Derelict Factory.
Factory
Return to the lobby and hop onto the left elevator, which will take you . Use the Save Point at the bottom of the elevator, then head to the northern room. You'll be attacked by two Alkalis and another Acid. The Alkalis are weaker versions of the Acid, and can be dispatched with strong physical attacks and / or Wind Slash. Use the computer console in the room to open a nearby hatch, pop open the box on the right for a Shelter, and climb down the ladder in the southeast corner.
This next area consists of several lengthy corridors, lined with storage compartments for inactive robots. More Alkalis and Acids will attack you as you explore, especially when you reach this floor's central room, where five of the little creatures are waiting. To reveal them you'll have to fiddle with the northern computer console, which also deactivates a security laser in front of a nearby elevator. Explore the central room to find chests containing a Hammer Arm for Robo and a Titanium Vest, then go down the ladder in the southwest corner.
There's a long northern corridor at the bottom of the ladder. Use the elevator to the right to return to the beginning and heal if necessary; otherwise, go north to find a computer console. Check the chest next to the console to find a Plasma Gun for Lucca, then inspect the console. You need to enter one of two codes once you hear a chime:
- PC: A, B, X, Y
- Everything else: X, A, B, Y
Again, this console can be a bit finicky, so take your time entering the code. Doing so successfully will open a nearby door, granting you access to the Factory's generator room. Hit the switch on the generator beyond to cut the power, then run back south and use the ladder to the left. Take the path back through the Factory to hit a cut scene. Time for some trouble.
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HP: 150
Weakness: Lightning
This fight isn't as bad as it looks, even without Robo in the party. You're facing off against six Robo clones, though the R-Series are nowhere near as powerful. The R-Series each have about as much HP as a regular enemy, and with each one you take down the fight gets a bit easier - though they do start using slightly stronger attacks when there are fewer of them. There are several ways to handle this fight:
- If you brought Marle along you can leave all of the healing to her, while Crono attacks. A few Cyclones will wipe out whole lines of the R-Series.
- If you went with Lucca you can lean more towards an offensive stance, using Fire Whirl to hit a bit harder than just Cyclone. Use Mid-Potions to heal as needed.
- Assuming you picked up the Berserker Ring earlier in the game you can also equip it on Crono and let him rip through the R-Series one-by-one, while your remaining party member heals. Armed with a Thunder Blade, Berserk Crono is a bit of a wrecking machine.
Regardless of your approach this fight shouldn't give you too much trouble. The R-Series don't hit for much more than 20 HP per attack, giving you plenty of time to heal any wounds and counterattack.
After the fight with the R-Series you'll automatically jump back to Proto Dome, where Lucca will fix up Robo. Once the team is whole again you'll discover a Gate leading to a strange location: The End of Time. Welcome to your new home away from home.
Part Eleven: The End of Time, ???
Part Eleven: The End of Time, ???