FF1 Pixel Walkthrough

Complete Guide - Pixel Remaster

H1: Citadel of Trials and the Class Change

Chapter stats: 23 Chests | 12 New Enemies

Fly south from Lykion Desert and land on the grass west of the desert. Walk southwest through the outer path until you reach the Citadel of Trials. Level 30 to 33 is comfortable for the full clear including the Cardia Islands.

H2: Overworld Enemies Near the Citadel

The area around the Citadel spawns tougher enemies than anything before. Basilisks can petrify -- keep Gold Needles on hand. Sand Worms hit hard physically. Wyrms have high HP and take sustained focus to bring down. None of these have elemental weaknesses except Ochu, which takes extra damage from Thunder.

H2: Citadel of Trials -- 1F

Walk to the man in the center of the entry room. He recognizes the Crown you carried since the Marsh Cave and allows you through. Head to the top-left corner of the room and step on the throne. It teleports you into the dungeon.

Enemy notes inside the Citadel:

  • Mindflayers are back with instant-kill attacks and no elemental weakness. Kill them first or run
  • Medusa can petrify party members -- Gold Needles are essential
  • King Mummies, Minotaur Zombies, and Mummies are undead -- Fire and Dia deal heavy damage
  • Nightmares are weak to Blizzard
  • Horned Devils, Rakshasas, and Clay Golems have no elemental weakness

H2: Citadel of Trials -- 2F Portal Navigation

The entire second floor is a portal maze. Follow this sequence: take the only portal in the first room, then the only portal in the second room. In the room with two portals, take the southern one. Through the next two portals, take the only exit each time. After the hallway portal, take the eastern one. Grab the Potion from the side room east of that portal. Then head south via the left path and take the southernmost portal -- skip the one on the right.

H2: Citadel of Trials -- 3F Chests and Rat's Tail

All 9 chests and the Rat's Tail are on this floor.

North section: The first room holds the Healing Staff, guarded by 2 Nightmares. Any party member can use it as an item in battle to cast Heal on the whole party -- this frees your White Mage for other actions in later fights. From there, head west to the northwest corner for 3 more chests: Ruby Armlet (equip on your Black Mage), Ice Brand, and Steel Gloves.

South section: Four chests in the southern room. The leftmost triggers a Clay Golem fight -- the reward is Gauntlets, which cast Thundara on enemies when used as an item. The other three chests hold a Cottage, 1,455 Gil, and 7,340 Gil.

Throne room: Continue east to grab the Rat's Tail from the chest beside the throne.

H2: Boss -- Dragon Zombie

Two Dragon Zombies guard the exit throne on 3F.

Boss Stats:

  • Enemies: 2 Dragon Zombies
  • HP: 268 HP each
  • Attack: Physical hits that can cause paralysis
  • Weakness: Fire, Dia

Strategy: Firaga or Diaga can end both of them in a single turn at this level. Equip the Flame Sword on your Warrior for bonus fire damage on physical hits. Haste and Temper on your Warrior if your mages do not finish the fight outright. The paralysis is dangerous but the fight ends too fast for it to matter if you press offensively from turn one.

Rewards: 2,331 EXP each, 999 Gil each

Full Dragon Zombie boss guide

After the fight, sit on the exit throne to teleport back to 1F and leave the Citadel.

H2: Cardia Islands (Dragon Caves)

Fly northwest to the cluster of five small islands. These are the Cardia Islands, holding 13 chests across multiple caves. There are no random encounters inside any of the caves.

Chest locations by island:

  • Rightmost island (2 cave rooms): X-Potion, plus 4 Gil chests totaling around 13,000 Gil in the left room; 3 more Gil chests in the right room
  • Marshlands island: Elixir, Cottage, 1,000 Gil
  • Leftmost island: Tent (upstairs), Dry Ether and Gold Needle (downstairs)

Take the eastern entrance on the northern island and follow the tunnels to Bahamut. Show him the Rat's Tail and he grants the class upgrade to your entire party.

H2: Class Changes

The class change is the biggest power spike in the game. Every class transforms into an advanced form.

Class upgrade results:

  • Warrior becomes Knight -- gains White Magic up to Level 3, can equip the best gear in the game
  • Thief becomes Ninja -- gains Black Magic up to Level 4, can equip almost any weapon or armor
  • Monk becomes Master -- remove his weapon if you have not already, bare-handed is still his strongest option
  • Red Mage becomes Red Wizard -- both magic schools up to Level 7
  • White Mage becomes White Wizard -- Level 7 and 8 White Magic including Full-Life and Holy
  • Black Mage becomes Black Wizard -- Level 7 and 8 Black Magic including Flare

After the upgrade, revisit towns to fill new spell slots. Your Knight should pick up Cure and Protect from Cornelia. Your Ninja can learn Black Magic up to Level 4 from Elfheim and Pravoka. Your Red Wizard can now buy Level 6 spells from Crescent Lake. Check armor shops too -- your Ninja gains access to heavy armor previously restricted to Warriors.

CHAPTER COMPLETE

Collectibles this chapter: 23 Chests | 12 Enemies

Navigation: Previous: Cavern of Ice | Next: Gaia