Legend of Mana

Legend of Mana

Legend of Mana released on the Playstation, is the 4th game in the Seiken Densetsu series. This was only the 3rd game released in the US (Seiken Densetsu 3 was not released stateside).

Game Introduction

Unlike other games in the Seiken series, Legend of Mana was not a straight forward game. The game has a few missions available from the start, and upon completing them you can receive Artifacts (AFs) that can create new lands, thus allowing you to complete new missions. However while completing some missions allow you to access new missions, they can also prevent you from completing others.

Legend of Mana has 3 major storylines, of which one must be completed (at minimum) to be able to complete the game. While it's easy to get to the end of the game, getting there FAST requires a lot of strategy and planning.

Storylines

Dragon Storyline

The Dragon storyline is the shortest. Unlike the other two storylines, it requires the least number of missions to get through the storyline, and you receive the AF you need to do the next mission from the one you just completed. The only AF you need to do any mission from the storyline is AF Trembling Spoon, acquired from doing Faeries' Light.

Missions in the storyline include:

• The Fallen Emperor
• The Guardian of Winds
• The Ghost of Nemesis
• The Dragon Princess
• The Crimson Dragon

While these are part of the storyline itself, other missions are required to fulfill other requirements. These include:

• Niccolo's Business Unusual & The Lost Princess

(These two missions are needed to do Monster Corral)

• Monster Corral

(An alternate selection listing could include The Infernal Doll, Professor Bomb's Lab, and Golem-Go-Make'm, however this is MUCH longer)

• Faeries' Light

(This is the only place to get AF Trembling Spoon.)

• Field Trip

(Required to do The Ghost of Nemesis)

Even despite all this, you need 2 more AFs to get the minimum needed to do Cage of Dreams. With the available locations, doing Summer Lovin' is presently the fastest mission to get the necessary AF count.

Presently the fastest time on this storyline is 1 hour 58 minutes 11 seconds by Nicholas 'Sir VG' Hoppe.

Faerie Storyline

This storyline features a lot of missions needed to clear the way for the secondary missions of the lands which happen to be part of the storyline. It also features a glitch in the final mission of the storyline which a runner must be careful to avoid, as it offers no benefit (unfortunately).

Missions in the storyline include:

• The Murmuring Forest
• Two Torches
• In Search of Faeries
• Pokiehl: Dream Teller
• Star-Crossed Lovers
• Heaven's Gate

As stated earlier, a lot of the missions in the list are not the primary mission of a land. The first must be completed for the secondary missions to be available to the player. These include:

• Huntin' Du'Cate

(To do The Murmuring Forest)

• The Flame of Hope

(To do Two Torches)

• The Gorgon Eye

(To do In Search of Faeries)

• Mine Your Own Business

(To do Pokiehl: Dream Teller)

• Teatime of Danger

(To do Star-Crossed Lovers)

Presently the fastest time on this storyline is 2 hours 20 minutes 9 seconds by Nicholas 'Sir VG' Hoppe.

Jumi Storyline

Undoubtable the longest storyline of the three, both in number of missions as well as mission time (Teardrop Crystal, the last mission takes nearly 30 minutes!) However it is considered a fan favorite due to the characters, including Sandra and Pearl.

Missions in the storyline include:

• The Lost Princess
• The Flame of Hope
• The Looking-Glass Tower
• Drowned Dreams
• The Lucky Clover
• Cosmo
• Two Pearls
• Alexandrite
• Flourite
• Teardrop Crystal

One of the disappointments of this storyline is that one boss, Jewel Beast, is repeated SEVEN times (The Looking-Glass Tower, The Lucky Clover, Cosmo, Flourite, and 3 in Teardrop Crystal). To make up for the last 3, there is one ultra powerful weapon that can be acquired, SwordOfFate. This can be received by choosing to take Pearl to the Bejeweled City and talking to Elazul immediately after.

Presently the fastest time on this storyline is 2 hours 49 minutes 9 seconds by Nicholas 'Sir VG' Hoppe.

Full Game

It is presently possible to do all 68 missions without failing a single one and doing it in one run through the game. Though no run has be submitted at this time, the present announced record time is 9 hours 59 minutes 10 seconds by Nicholas 'Sir VG' Hoppe.