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Welcome to Final Fantasy VI! A turn-based JRPG that helped revolutionize the genre - as well as solidify its place in the west - Final Fantasy VI begins in epic fashion, with your party attacking a town called Narshe. You have three party members:
- Biggs, a soldier
- Wedge, also a soldier
- A mystery girl who can use limited amounts of magic
All three characters ride around in Magitek Armor, war machines fueled by mystic energies. The two soldiers can use a variety of beam-based Magitek attacks, as well as a healing ability. The girl has a few more abilities, though for the most part you can stick to the beam attacks to get through battles. Nothing in Narshe can survive this invasion. Use the girl's Cure spell if you find yourself a bit weak outside fights.
Make your way north through the town. You’ll get attacked by a slew of weak enemies, none of which can do much more than put small dents in your party. For now you can't explore Narshe, because the Magitek armor suits are too large, though later on you'll get a chance to explore and look in each of the houses. For the moment, just cut a path of destruction to the north.
Soon enough you’ll be inside the Narshe Mines. Just inside the entrance and on your left is a sparkliing, blue glint of light. This is a save point. Whenever you step on a save point you can use it to save your game. You'll want to use it now, as a cut scene - and the first boss battle - get in your way when you reach the gate in the north.
Ymir
HP:
- 1,600 (head)
- 10,000 (shell)
Well, isn't that lovely. Ymir is a reasonably tough first boss, and can wipe your party if you aren't paying attention to Biggs and Wedge's dialogue. Ymir uses the following attacks:
- Normal physical attacks
- Slime, which inflicts Slow on a single target
- Megavolt, which hits the whole party for heavy Lightning damage
The chat before the fight says it all. Ymir is a tough beast, but it’s only really bad if you try to attack its shell. Doing so will trigger Megavolt, which can demolish your team. Barring that, Ymir can only inflict small amounts of damage and slow your characters down. Use your strongest attacks on Ymir's head, heal with Healing Force whenever the head slips into the shell, and pick up the offensive when it appears again. If you use the girl's Magitek Missile ability you'll rip through Ymir's HP in no time.
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Head north once Ymir bites the dust. You’ll find the Frozen Esper, target of the Imperials, and a lot happens, removing Biggs and Wedge from the party. You'll wind up in the home of a sympathetic old man named Arvis, and get the chance to name the girl. Her default name is Terra, and we'll stick with that.
Shortly after you name Terra she'll be hounded out of Arvis's house by Narshe soldiers. Check the clock in the front hall of the house for an Elixir, then run out the rear of the house and into the mines.
Narshe Mines - Enemies
With Biggs and Wedge gone - as well as everyone's Magitek Armor - Terra has to fight solo for a while. The enemies in the mines are pretty weak, fortunately, and Terra is no wilting flower. Use her weapon attacks or Fire magic to defeat any random encounters you cross. Make sure you use the nearby save point before heading too deep into the mines.
Head north. Across the bridge from the save point and on the right you’ll find a chest. Inside is a Phoenix Down. West of here is a Sleeping Bag. These items are handy now, but if you leave them in their chests and come back later you'll find much better items. More on that in another section of the guide.
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Terra gets cornered when you move far enough north, and after a quick cut scene she'll get knocked out of the party for a short time Terra is removed from your party. She's replaced by a new guy, by the name of Locke. Locke is a thi... er, treasure hunter... who can use his Steal command to pilfer items from enemies. Occasionally useful, but not as often as you might like. The guide will note when Stealing is worth your time. (It's usually while fighting bosses.)
Locke's mission is simple: Protect Terra. When Locke finds her she’s unconscious, and the guards of Narshe want to take her captive. Fortunately, Locke receives help in the form of a big group of Moogles. To defend Terra you must swap between three parties of Moogles, one of which contains Locke, and kill off the creatures that advance to the north. Watch the tutorial to determine how to swap from party to party, as it varies between systems. Keep one group in the north at all times, as you'll get a Game Over if any of the enemy guards reach Terra.
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This next part is easy, as the Moogles are fierce little fighters. The main problem here is attrition. Though they’re fairly weak, the Megalodoths in this area will always use their Snowstorm attacks to hit the whole party before you can do anything. Use Locke’s group, as well as a group headed by a Moogle named Mog, to sweep through the enemies until there are none left. You can also choose to bypass all the incoming enemies and skip right to the boss, who is waiting in the south.
Mog joins your party much later in the game, and he’ll learn a Dance during these introductory fights - Twilight Requiem - that'll ravage your foes quite nicely. Mog's group is the best candidate for taking on the boss in the south thanks to Twilight Requiem. Mog is also the only Moogle whose equipment you can remove in the menu, and you can steal his Mythril Spear and Mythril Shield for the next party member in line. You can buy replacements for Mog once he joins up more permanently, later in the game.
Done fighting baddies? Then go for their leader. He's the only one who doesn't move up the field.
Guard Leader
HP: 420
Steal: Mythril Knife
Accompanied by two Lobos, the Guard Leader is tougher than he looks. He can do a fair amount of damage per attack, and he attacks quite often. He and his two Silver Lobos use one of three attacks:
- Normal melee strikes
- Charge, which hits for twice normal damage
- Net, which inflicts Stop on a single target
Wipe out the Silver Lobos, then gang up on the Guard Leader. Use any Potions you've received from random battles up to this ponit to keep your party healthy. Mog’s Dance will make this part a great deal easier, especially if you luck out and he uses an instant-killing move. If you came into the fight with Locke's team instead you can Steal a Mythril Knife from the Guard Leader, bumping up Locke's attack power for the next few hours of the game.
Defeat the Guard Leader and his retinue to officially save Terra - and get the boot from the Narshe Mines. Terra and Locke join forces for a while, and you'll have a new destination - the castle of Figaro - waiting in the south. For the time being, Figaro is blocked off by guards at the gates...
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... though you can still enter the city limits, and if you check near the main entrance you'll find the Adventuring School. This building is meant for newcomers to Final Fantasy VI, and if you step inside you'll receive lessons on every subject imaginable. Even if you aren't interested in a lesson, you can find a few things of tangible interest inside the Adventuring School:
- By the front door is a bucket. Inspect it to fully restore your party's health.
- A chest in the eastern-most room contains a battle against a Silver Lobo. Every now and then you'll find monsters hiding inside chests, so always be ready for a fight. The yellow pot in this room contains an Ether.
- The chest in the middle room contains a Sleeping Bag.
- The chest in the far-west room contains a Potion.
That's all for Narshe. Head south of the front gates of Narshe to enter the world map.