GUIDE TO "SHINING FORCE" FOR SEGA GENESIS
Col. G. L. Sicherman (gls@hrcms.att.com).
Version 0.5 - 1995-02-06.

Additions and corrections are welcome.

CONTENTS
A) Chapters
B) Ranks
C) Members of the Shining Force
D) Weapons
E) Spells and Ranges
F) Spells, Members, and Levels
G) Potions
H) Rings
I) Monsters
J) Action
K) Strategy
L) Answers
M) Obscurities
N) Useless Items
O) Cheats

A) CHAPTERS
1. Runefaust Invasion
2. Spirit of the Holy Spring
3. Secret Weapon of Runefaust
4. The Great Fortress of Balbazak
5. Gateway to the Hidden Shrine
6. Descendant of the Sacred Dragons
7. The Lost Civilization
8. Rise of the Ancient Castle

B) RANKS - symbols, names, and moves
unpromoted              promoted               move
ACHR  archer            BWMS  bowmaster         5
ASKT  assault knight    SKNT  strike knight     7
BDMN  birdman           SKYW  sky warrior       7
DRGN  dragon            GRDR  great dragon      5
HEAL  healer            VICR  vicar             5
KNT   knight            PLDN  paladin           7
MAGE  mage              WIZD  wizard            5
MGCR  magic creature                            5
MONK  monk              MSMK  master monk       5
NINJ  ninja                                     7
RBT   robot             CYBG  cyborg            4
SDMN  swordsman         HERO  hero              6
SKNT  steam knight      SBRN  steam baron       4
SMR   samurai                                   5
WARR  warrior           GLDR  gladiator         6
WKNT  winged knight     SKYL  sky lord          6
WRWF  warwolf           WFBN  wolf baron        7
YGRT  yogurt                                    7

C) MEMBERS OF THE SHINING FORCE
Name      Sex   Race            Rank    StartLevel
--------------------------------------------------
leader     M    human           SDMN         1
Adam       M    robot           RBT         10
Alef       F    half-wolf       MAGE        15
Amon       F    half-falcon     BDMN         5
Anri       F    human           MAGE         3
Arthur     M    centaur         KNT          4
Balbaroy   M    half-falcon     BDMN         5
Bleu       M    dragon          DRGN         9
Diane      F    elf             ACHR         6
Domingo    M    jellyfish       MGCR         1
Earnest    M    centaur         KNT          8 
Gong       M    half-giant      MONK         1
Gort       M    dwarf           WARR         2
Guntz      M    half-armadillo  SKNT         8
Hans       M    elf             ACHR         1
Hanzou     M    human           NINJ        10
Jogurt     M    dog             YGRT         1
Ken        M    centaur         KNT          1
Khris      F    elf             HEAL         2
Kokichi    M    dwarf           WKNT         7
Lowe       M    halfling        HEAL         1
Luke       M    dwarf           WARR         1
Lyle       M    centaur         ASKT         8
Mae        F    centaur         KNT          2
Musashi    M    human           SMR         10
Pelle      M    centaur         KNT          8
Tao        F    elf             MAGE         1
Torasu     M    dwarf           HEAL        16
Vankar     M    centaur         KNT          8
Zylo       M    half-wolf       WRWF         9

D) WEAPONS - name, range, damage, ranks, magic power
Asterisk (*) denotes Strike Knight rather than Steam Knight.
Swords
  Short Sword        1   5      BDMN, SDMN, WARR
  Middle Sword       1   8      BDMN, SDMN, WARR
  Long Sword         1  12      BDMN, SDMN
  Steel Sword        1  18      HERO, NINJ, SKYW, SMR
  Broad Sword        1  20      HERO, NINJ, SKYW, SMR
  Doom Blade         1  25      HERO, NINJ, SKYW, SMR
  Katana             1  30      HERO, NINJ, SKYW, SMR
  Sword of Light     1  36      HERO                    BOLT II
  Sword of Darkness  1  40      HERO, SKYW              DESOUL I
  Chaos Breaker      1  40      HERO                    FREEZE III
Missiles
  Wooden Arrow       2   8      ACHR, ASKT
  Steel Arrow        2  13      ACHR, ASKT
  Elven Arrow       2-3 18      ASKT, BWMS
  Assault Shell     2-3 27      BWMS, SKNT*
  Buster Shot       2-3 35      BWMS, SKNT*
Spears
  Spear             1-2  8      KNT,  SKNT, WKNT
  Power Spear       1-2 15      KNT,  SKNT, WKNT
  Valkyrie          1-2 35      PLDN, SBRN, SKYL
Lances
  Bronze Lance       1   9      KNT,  SKNT, WKNT
  Steel Lance        1  18      PLDN, SBRN, SKYL
  Chrome Lance       1  22      PLDN, SBRN, SKYL
  Halberd            1  25      PLDN, SBRN, SKYL        BOLT I
 #Devil Lance        1  35      PLDN, SBRN, SKYL
Axes
  Hand Axe           1   7      WARR
  Middle Axe         1  11      WARR
  Battle Axe         1  16      WARR
  Heat Axe           1  22      GLDR                    BLAZE II
  Great Axe          1  26      GLDR
  Atlas              1  33      GLDR                    BLAZE III
Staves
  Wooden Staff       1   4      HEAL, MAGE
  Power Staff        1  12      HEAL, MAGE
  Guardian Staff     1  18      VICR, WIZD
  Holy Staff         1  26      VICR
 #Demon Rod          1  35      WIZD                    steal M.P.

E) SPELLS - Magic Points, distance, and range of effect

Name      I        II        III       IV
 
AURA      7,0-3,1  11,0-3,2  15,0-3,2  18,0,0        beige
BLAZE     2,1-2,0   5,1-2,1   8,1-2,1   8,1-2,0      scarlet
BOLT      8,1-2,1  15,1-3,2  20,1-3,2  20,1-3,0      yellow
BOOST    15,0-3,0                                    rose
DESOUL    8,1-2,0   @,1-2,1                          mauve
DETOX     3,0-1,0                                    salmon
DISPEL    5,1-2,0                                    light gray
EGRESS    8                                          @
FREEZE    3,1-2,0   7,1-2,1  10,2-3,1  10,2-3,0      light blue
HEAL      3,0-1,0   5,0-2,0  10,0-3,0  20,0-1,0      flesh
MUDDLE    6,1-2,0                                    emerald
QUICK     5,0-1,0  16,0-2,1                          royal blue
SHIELD    5,0-2,0                                    green
SLEEP     6,1-2,0                                    purple
SLOW      5,1-2,0  20,1-2,1                          slate

F) SPELLS, MEMBERS, AND LEVELS
Level:    I        II       III      IV
<leader>
 EGRESS  <>
Alef
 BLAZE   <>        <>
 BOLT    <>        L+2      L+7     L+15
 DESOUL  L+11
 FREEZE  <>        <>
Anri
 BLAZE   <>        L8
 BOLT    L+9       L+16
 FREEZE  L5        L+3      L+6     L+13
 MUDDLE  L10
Arthur
 BLAZE   L+5
 BOLT    L+15
 FREEZE  L+10
Domingo
 BOOST   L20
 DESOUL  L17
 FREEZE  <>        L4       L13     L26
 MUDDLE  L7
Gong
 AURA    L+20
 HEAL    <>        L8       L+6     L+14
Hanzou
 DESOUL  L25
 DISPEL  <>
 SHIELD  L15
 SLEEP   <>
Khris   
 AURA    L+10      L+18
 HEAL    <>        L5       L+6      L+11
 QUICK   L+2
 SLOW    L8
Lowe
 DETOX   L4 
 HEAL    <>        L7       L+6      L+12
 QUICK   L+3       L+15
 SLOW    L10       L+9
Tao
 BLAZE   <>        L4       L+2      L+10
 BOOST   L+17
 DISPEL  L+6
 SLEEP   L8
Torasu
 AURA    <>        L+4      L+8      L+12
 DETOX   <>
 HEAL    <>        <>
 SHIELD  <>

G) POTIONS
Power Potion    Attack +2
Defense Potion  Defense +2
Bread of Life   Maximum H.P. +1d2
Legs of Haste   Agility +2
Turbo Pepper	Mobility +2

H) RINGS        Use             Equip
 Power Ring     BOOST I         Attack +4
 Shield Ring    none            Defense +4
 Mobility Ring  none            Move +2
 Speed Ring     EGRESS          Agility +4
 White Ring     AURA I          Defense +6
#Black Ring	BLAZE III	Attack +6          HERO, PLDN
#Evil Ring      BOLT III        Attack +8
 Jogurt Ring    Make somebody   Look like Jogurt
                look like Jogurt

I) MONSTERS     H.P. M.P.  Atk. Def. Move Agil. (Atk. does not include weapon)
Armed Skeleton   36   --    36   33    5   32
Artillery        14   --    24   15    4   14
Balbazak         65   --    16   18    5   20
Belial           21   35    26   20    6   22   BOLT I; MUDDLE I; demon smile
Blue Dragon      50   --    63   32    5   42   cold breath
Bowrider         18   --    13   11    7   14
Cain - see Kane
Cerberus         27   --    42   26    7   38   fire breath
Chaos            65   --    50   35    6   32   laser
Chimaera         56   --    65   30    6   40   fire breath
Colossus         65   ??    50   40    4   37   BLAZE, FREEZE, or BOLT III
Conch            21   --    20   15    6   16   poison
Dark Dragon   240-280 ??    65   40    0   60   BLAZE II; FREEZE II; BOLT IV;
                                                DESOUL II; demon blaze
Dark Dwarf       12   --     5    8    4    5
Dark Elf         16   --    13    9    6   10
Dark Mage        13   26     6    6    5    9   BLAZE II
Dark Priest      16   25     9    9    5   10   HEAL I
Darksol         150   ??    40   35    6   54   demon blaze
Demon Master     27   46    17   24    6   50   FREEZE III
Dire Clown       15   --    18   11    5    7
Durahan          22   --    19   28   5-6  13   sleep
Elliott          60   --    20   17    5   16
Evil Puppet      14   15    14   10    5    7   FREEZE I; HEAL I;
                                                ominous incantation
Gargoyle         18   20    26   15    6   20   MUDDLE I; sleep
Ghoul            25   --    23   14    6    9   sleep
Giant Bat        14   --    11    6    7    9   sleep
Goblin           12   --     4    6    5    5
Golem            17   --    28   28    4   16
Hellhound        19   --    10   13    7   13   fire breath
High Priest      20   33    13   14    6   13   HEAL IV
Horseman         24   --    18   16    7   17
Ice Worm         30   12    40   25    5   26   cold breath; sleep
Jet              28   --    45   32    7   33
Kane             70   24    25   30    6   29
Laser Eye        30   --    14   19    0   27   laser blast
Lizardman        20   --    13   12    6   12
Mannequin        16   --    16   10    5    8   poison
Marionette       35   ??    25   13    6   13   FREEZE III
Master Mage      22   32     7   13    5   26   FREEZE II; sleep
Minotaur         31   --    46   30    5   31
Mishaela         65   ??    42   30    6   35   BOLT II
Pegasus Knight   18   --    12   16    7   12
Ramladu          99   ??    67   40    6   49   AURA III
Rune Knight      14   --     7    7    7    7  
Seabat           22   --    20   14    7   14
Shellfish        25   --    23   16    6   23   poison
Silver Knight    16   --     9   12    7   11
Skeleton         15   --    13   16    6    7
Sniper           13   --     7    5    5    7
Steel Claw       25   --    43   31    5   31   laser
Torch Eye        28   --    42   32    6   27   laser
Worm             17   --    20   16    4   16   sleep
Wyvern           32   --    39   30    7   31   fire breath
Zombie           15   --    18   13    5    7   poison

J) ACTION

1. Runefaust Invasion.

Guardiana.  Meet Lowe.  Meet Gort.
Guardiana Castle.  Meet Mae.
Guardiana.  Luke, Ken, Tao, and Hans JOIN.  Lowe JOINS.
Guardiana Castle.  100 coins.
Gate of the Ancients.  BATTLE 1.  1 Rune Knight, 2 Dark Dwarf, 5 Goblin.
Village.  Meet Jogurt.  Meet Gong.  Gong JOINS.
Return to Guardiana.  BATTLE 2.  2 Rune Knight, 3 Dark Dwarf, 6 Goblin.
Guardiana.  Gort JOINS.
Guardiana Castle.  Mae JOINS.  50 coins, 1 power potion, 1 defense potion,
        1 angel wing, 1 antidote.
Guardiana to Alterone.  BATTLE 3.  5 Rune Knight, 5 Dark Dwarf, 5 Giant Bat.
Alterone.  50 coins, 50 coins, 70 coins, 1 medical herb, 2 healing seed,
        1 power potion, 1 middle sword, 1 bronze lance.
Alterone Castle.  Meet Khris.  100 coins, 1 healing seed, 1 bread of life,
        1 defense potion, 1 wooden staff, 1 wooden arrow, 1 middle sword.
        Khris JOINS.
Alterone.  BATTLE 4.  1 Dark Mage, 2 Sniper, 4 Rune Knight, 4 Dark Dwarf,
        4 Giant Bat.
Alterone Castle.  50 coins, 1 healing seed.

2. Spirit of the Holy Spring.

Rindo.  Meet Guntz.  1 Speed Ring.
Rindo to Manarina.  BATTLE 5.  3 Dark Mage, 4 Zombie, 2 Sniper, 3 Dark
        Dwarf, 4 Giant Bat.
Manarina.  Meet Anri.  Meet Arthur.  1 Domingo egg.  Anri JOINS.
Cavern of Darkness.  BATTLE 6.  1 Skeleton, 4 Dark Mage, 3 Zombie,
        2 Sniper, 5 Giant Bat.  1 wooden staff, 1 power ring, 1 power
        staff, 1 medical herb, 1 orb of light.
Manarina.  Arthur JOINS.
Rindo.
Circus Tent.  BATTLE 7. 1 Marionette, 2 Dire Clown, 3 Mannequin, 3 Evil
        Puppet, 3 Giant Bat.  50 coins, 1 steel arrow, 1 defense potion.
Rindo.
Shade Abbey.  Meet Amon.
Chapel.  Meet Balbaroy.  BATTLE 8.  1 Ghoul, 3 Skeleton, 6 Zombie.
Shade Abbey.  Balbaroy JOINS.  Amon JOINS.

3. Secret Weapon of Runefaust.

Bustoke.  Meet Diane.  Diane JOINS.
Quarry.  BATTLE 9.  1 Master Mage, 1 Lizardman, 4 Dark Priest, 2 Dark
        Elf, 2 Dark Mage, 6 Skeleton.  1 Moon Stone.
Bustoke.  1 Lunar Dew.  Meet Kokichi.  Meet Zylo.  Zylo JOINS.
Bustoke to Bridge.  BATTLE 10.  2 Lizardman, 4 Pegasus Knight, 2 Dark
        Priest, 2 Dark Mage, 5 Skeleton.
Stone Bridge.  Meet Pelle.  BATTLE 11.  2 Silver Knight, Laser Eye,
        3 Pegasus Knight, 5 Lizardman, 3 Dark Elf, 2 Dark Priest.
        Pelle JOINS.

4. The Great Fortress of Balbazak.

Pao.  Jogurt JOINS.  1 long sword, 1 bread of life, 1 legs of haste.
        Meet Earnest.  Kokichi JOINS.  Meet Vankar.  Vankar JOINS.
Pao Prairie.  BATTLE 12.  Elliott, 1 Artillery, 4 Silver Knight,
        4 Pegasus Knight, 5 Lizardman, 3 Dark Priest.
Pao.  Guntz JOINS.  Meet Domingo.  Domingo JOINS.  1 Steel Sword.
        1 Elven Arrow.
Fortress.  BATTLE 13.  2 Hellhound, 1 Artillery, 6 Silver Knight,
        3 Pegasus Knight, 3 Dark Priest.
Uranbatol.  Earnest JOINS.
Harbor.  BATTLE 14.  Balbazak, 2 Hellhound, 5 Seabat, 3 Artillery,
        2 Silver Knight, 1 Evil Puppet, 1 Dark Priest.

5. Gateway to the Hidden Shrine.

Shipboard.  BATTLE 15.  2 Shellfish, 3 Conch, 4 Seabat, 3 Pegasus Knight.
Waral.  1 mobility ring.  1 bread of life.  1 defense potion.  1 shower
        of cure.  1 medical herb.
Ring Reef.  BATTLE 16.  1 Master Mage, 3 Worm, 5 Hellhound, 4 Seabat,
        5 Skeleton.
Shipboard.  BATTLE 17.  1 Gargoyle, 6 Conch, 4 Shellfish, 5 Seabat,
        2 Pegasus Knight.

6. Descendant of the Sacred Dragons.

Rudo.  Meet Lyle.  Lyle JOINS.  1 healing seed.  1 holy staff.
Rudo to Dragonia.  BATTLE 18.  1 Durahan, 1 High Priest, 5 Golem, 3 Worm,
        4 Master Mage, 5 Artillery.
Dragonia.  1 healing seed.  2 shower of cure.  Meet Bleu.  Bleu JOINS.
        BATTLE 19.  Kane, 2 Durahan, 4 Golem, 3 Gargoyle, 2 High Priest,
        3 Master Mage.  1 halberd.  1 broad sword.
Rudo.
Rudo to Demon Castle.  BATTLE 20.  2 Bowrider, 3 Belial, 4 Golem,
        2 High Priest, 4 Master Mage, 2 Gargoyle.
Demon Castle.  BATTLE 21.  Mishaela, 3 Bowrider, 3 Belial, 2 Durahan,
        1 High Priest, 4 Master Mage, 3 Gargoyle.  Sword of light,
        1 white ring, 1 black ring, 1 evil ring, 1 power potion,
	1 shower of cure, 1 healing seed.

7. The Lost Civilization.

Prompt.  Musashi JOINS.
Prompt to Tower of the Ancients.  BATTLE 22.  1 Minotaur, 2 Wyvern,
        2 Torch Eye, 2 Jet, 4 Durahan, 2 Belial.
Tower of the Ancients.  1 devil lance.  1 turbo pepper.  BATTLE 23.
        1 Demon Master, 5 Ice Worm, 2 Wyvern, 3 Torch Eye, 4 Steel
        Claw, 3 Jet.  1 valkyrie, 1 demon rod.  Meet Alef and Torasu.
        Alef and Torasu JOIN.
Prompt.  Sword of darkness.
Metapha.  Meet Adam.  BATTLE 24.  Chaos, 2 Minotaur, 3 Demon Master,
        4 Torch Eye, 4 Ice Worm, 4 Jet.  Chaos breaker.  Adam JOINS.
Prompt.
Prompt to Runefaust.  BATTLE 25.  5 Armed Skeleton, 3 Horseman,
        4 Cerberus, 2 Demon Master, 3 Minotaur, 1 High Priest.

8. Rise of the Ancient Castle.

Runefaust.  Hanzou JOINS.
Runefaust Castle.  BATTLE 26.  3 Blue Dragon, 5 Chimera, 3 Armed Skeleton,
        3 Cerberus, 3 Horseman, 2 High Priest.  1 atlas.  1 halberd.
        1 atlas from Armed Skeleton.  BATTLE 27.  Ramladu, 6 Torch Eye,
        6 Steel Claw.
Runefaust.
Castle of the Ancients.  BATTLE 28.  3 Colossus, 6 Chimaera, 3 Blue
        Dragon, 3 Jet, 2 Horseman, 3 Armed Skeleton.  BATTLE 29.
        Phase 1:  Darksol, 8 Torch Eye, 5 Steel Claw, 2 Blue Dragon,
        2 High Priest.  Phase 2:  3 Dark Dragon, 2+ Armed Skeleton.

K) STRATEGY

 1. Concentrate your forces on a few enemies at a time so as to kill
    them quickly.

 2. Use healers freely for healing and other spells.

 3. Use medical herbs and healing seeds.

 4. Combine attackers whose combined damage just suffices to kill their
    enemy.

 5. When fighting indoors, consider circling around rather than charging
    directly at the leader.

 6. It is seldom useful to withdraw from a won battle and fight it again
    for the sake of experience points.  It may be helpful to do so to get
    more coins and weapons from the enemy.

 7. A member with the Mobility Ring and the Power Ring can equip the
    Mobility Ring to advance far, then equip the Power Ring in the same
    move to attack hard.

 8. If you must have a Jogurt Ring, set Jogurt to fight the Artillery
    units in Pao Prairie and outside Balbazak's fortress.

L) ANSWERS

 1. The members' initial statistics are somewhat random.  So are their
    gains.
 2. You usually cannot gain an enemy's possessions after defeating him.
 3. Jogurt appears to be worthless.  He cannot rise above Experience
    Level 1.

M) OBSCURITIES

 1. After Guardiana is overrun you can visit the castle's treasury
    and help yourself.
 2. Search in Manarina to find the Domingo Egg.
 3. Arthur joins only after you win Battle 6.
 4. Search Kokichi's apparatus in Bustoke and he will give you a
    demonstration.
 5. Boken, whom you meet in Rindo, Bustoke, and Waral, is useless,
    except for releasing you from your cell in Prompt.  So is
    the husband's offer to join after the battle in the quarry.
 6. Jogurt joins tacitly when you first enter the chapel in Pao I.
 7. Vankar is left behind when Pao I departs; you can enlist him
    only then.
 8. You can hatch the Domingo Egg only in the Item Shop in Pao II.
 9. Step on the big fish in Waral to meet Boken.
10. When you visit the King of Waral after the battle in Ring Reef,
    you will leave Waral at once without visiting any more shops.
11. Find Bleu in Dragonia before you talk with Kane and visit
    Headquarters.
12. The chests in Dragonia can be looted both during battle and
    before or after battle.
13. Musashi joins only when you read a sign on a wall in Prompt.
14. If you find the Sword of Light before defeating Mishaela, the
    chapter ends when you defeat her, whether or not you have searched
    any other chests.
15. Hanzou hides in a bush in Runefaust.  Look for a throwing star.

N) USELESS ITEMS

 1. A chest hidden in a wall of the Moon Stone Cave contains the
    Sugoi Mizugi (Awesome Swimsuit).  Give it to Tao and she will
    wear it.

 2. A chest hidden at a corner of the archers' butte near Pao Bridge
    contains the Kitsui Fuku (Daring Dress).  Give it to Anri and
    she will wear it.

 3. A chest hidden in an alley outside Balbazak's Fortress contains
    the Kenji (Public Prosecutor), who has no known use.

 4. A chest hidden in the port bow of the ship on the second voyage
    contains the Teppo (Gun), which has no known use.

 5. There are said to be a pair of sunglasses and a Kakuchan (papa
    doll) hidden somewhere on battlefields.

O) CHEATS

1. Name all characters.  Start a new game and go to the "Name Your
Character" screen.  Press and hold Start, A, B, and C on controller 2
and press Start, A, and C on controller 1.  Another character appears.
Now you can cycle through and name every character in the game.

2. Battle Test.  Hold Up and Start on controller 2, then press Reset.
Let go of the buttons as soon as the Sega logo begins to appear, then
hold down the A and C buttons on controller 2.  Select Continue and
skip through until Simone's message begins with "Good Luck."  Hold
the A button on controller 1 (while still holding A and C on pad 2).
This takes you to the Battle Test mode, where you can fight in any of
the game's 30 battles.  (DISABLED.)

3. Message Test.  You can also access a special "Message Test" simply
by holding the B button at Simone's "Good Luck" message.  Now you can
read all of the game's dialogue.  (DISABLED.)
