I'm remembering why I dislike this game.

Last night, Hilda asked us to find Mythril, which our informant, Josef, may have a lead on. We went to Salamand, and Josef told us to save his town from the Empire.

South of the town is Semitt Falls. The quick way is to go to the ocean west and follow the river back east. I went all the way around the forest, fields, and lake... Semitt Falls is a cave filled with the same mobs from the world map. This is the first dungeon in the game, so let's hope variety changes next. It's an old school maze with narrow paths taking you all over the floors. The treasure is worth getting, but I did some Arcane Labyrinth stuff last night, so some of it is of less value. Regardless, it's pretty short.

On the third floor, we'll find all the enslaved townsfolk. And also Paul. Paul says he came here on his own to find Mythril and will escort everyone back to town. He also reminds us that Borghen dragged everyone down here to mine the ore. Hilda told us about Borghen before we left. He used to work with the Wild Rose but betrayed us during Fynn for a higher ranking position in the Empire. I suspect we'll meet him soon. For now, though, head deeper into the cave behind the people, and we'll fight a mini boss. Sergeant is weak to Guy punching him, which is why I say he's a mini boss. He dropped a Mythril Plate for me. Get the Mythril Ore behind him, leave the cave, and return to Altair. Everyone in Salamand will thank us, but we get nothing for returning.

Back home, showing Hilda the Mythril will have her tell us to talk to Tokkul. Tokkul is in the weapons shop, and our shops will upgrade their wares after this. We can now buy Mythril equipment from the second shopkeepers throughout the towns we've explored. How much ore did we bring back?

Return to Hilda, and we'll begin the Dreadnought hunt. In the city of Bafsk, east of Poft, the Empire is constructing a gigantic airship. This sends fear into the rebellion, so we're asked to destroy, or at least delay, its build. Cid, the airship extraordinaire, might know how to defeat it. You can learn this before returning to Altair from Cid, which will save you a trip. Cid says Sunfire controls all airships. Too much power will cause a vessel to explode. But the only nation that knows how to use it is Kashun, which Palamecia already conquered. Gordon and Scott are from Kashun, but that's a dead lead. For now, head to Bafsk.

If you come here after Semitt Falls, everyone is too scared to talk because the Dark Knight is here. Now, though, Borghen is here, and everyone thinks he's incompetent. There's a spy in the lower left of town that'll tell us of a path through the sewers. Using it will take us to the Dreadnought.

Well...

The Dark Knight is waiting for us. He'll warn us that the Empire will conquer the world, and we should kneel before the Emperor now. He, and Borghen, will allow us to witness the launch of the Dreadnought and the rise of Palamecia. It's a wonderful scene, but there's an empty field here now. Return to the sewers, follow the path Borghen came from, and pick up the Pass. We need to return to Hilda to tell her the news.

She'll already know, though. As we return home, we witness the aftermath of the Dreadnought. Singe marks, bomb craters, and tales of the dead are all we experience. Poft, Paloom, and even Altair have been bombed. The attacks have caused the Fynn King's health to deteriorate, so Minwu will leave the team to help him. Asking the King about Sunfire will reveal that it can be controlled with the Goddess Bell to the north.

So it's back to Salamand! Speak to Josef, and he'll tell us the only way across the snow valley to the north is with a snow boat. He has one hidden on the first floor of Semitt Falls. Get it, head to the Snow Cavern. But I'll do that...

...tomorrow!

There's a lot of tedium in this game. Besides the stat growth through battle, a lot of advancement is dependent on gear. Lighter gear will help with evasion and agility, but there's no weight stat in the shop screen. It's probably sensible, but where's a decent light or mage armor? And how do you raise Mari'a's terrible HP pool? Guy has nearly 400 HP, but Maria just got over 100. And my least favorite part of the game just showed up, trap rooms! These are rooms with nothing in them except a high encounter rate, but you spawn in the middle of the room. Oh, and why are so many random battles ambushes? Why is so much stuff not explained?