.____ . _____ _ _ _ / | ( / ___ ___/ ___/ ___ ` |__. | `--. |,---. / ` / | / | / ` | | | | |' ` | | ,' | ,' | | | | /----/ /\__ \___.' / | `.__/| `___,' `___,' `.__/| / -----------------Ascension of the Metatron----------------------- ============================== 1...Introduction...(1TI) ============================== Use control+F to navigate. 1. Introduction..........................(1TI) 2. Controls..............................(2CT) 3. Gameplay..............................(3GP) 4. Main Guide............................(4GD) Chapter 01............................(11Z) Chapter 02............................(22Z) Chapter 03............................(33Z) Chapter 04............................(44Z) Chapter 05............................(55Z) Chapter 06............................(66Z) Chapter 07............................(77Z) Chapter 08............................(88Z) Chapter 09............................(99Z) Chapter 10............................(00Z) Chapter 11............................(XIZ) 5. Closing/Contact.......................(5CC) ==================== Introduction ==================== Hello, and welcome to my guide for El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron. The purpose of this guide is to provide a general guidelines guide for how to play the game along with some tips to get through the game's main campaign. The guideis organized in to five sections: you're in the introduction, the controls section lists the game?s controls, and The Gameplay section provides tips for generalcombat and how stuff works, and the Campaign guide details the main path through the game. The introduction and the closing section have contact information as well as some other information about the guide. This guide does not currently contain information on the locations of optional content though I do plan to include them in a future update. If you have any questions, you can contact me at wcrobars@hotmail.com ==================== 2. Controls...(2CT) ==================== Standard controls- can be customized and changed. L.Stick..........Move L Bumper.........Purify/Steal Weapon R Bumper.........Guard Y/Triangle.......Attack X/Square.........Attack A/X..............Jump B/Circle.........Jump Start............Pause Back/Select......Game Menu ============================== 3. Gameplay...(3GP) ============================== El Shaddai is an action game, similar to Devil May Cry or God of War. The thing that makes El Shaddai different from other action games is that all the combat makes use of only one button: there are no light or heavy attacks, just proper button timing. Each of the game's three weapons has its own rhythm and move set, and each is wildly different. As a rule, the fast you press the attack button the faster the attacks will be. They will also be weaker and easier for enemies to block. Varying your attack speed can allow you to break the guards of enemies and dodge behind them to strike. Purification ---------- Purification is a key part of combat in El Shaddai. As you fight enemies, their evil taint will wear off on your weapons. Over time your pristine white implements of death will turn black and red with corruption, greatly reducing the damage you deal to enemies. When this happens, you need to purify your weapon. Pressing the left bumper will purge the weapon of its evil taint and restore it to prime condition, but it will also force you to sit still and leaves you vulnerable to enemy attacks. Learning the timing for when to purify is an important part of learning how to fight in El Shaddai. Acquiring Weapons ---------- There are three ways to acquire weapons in El Shaddai. The first, and most common, is to steal them from enemies. After an enemy has been beaten enough, they will be rendered unconscious and a light will appear around them. Approach them and press the purify button to steal their weapon and gain it for yourself. Whatever weapon you're currently using will be abandoned, so make sure it's something you actually want. You can also pick up weapons from orbs, of which there are two kinds. Colored weapon orbs appear during boss fights, and shattering them will give you a weapon of the appropriate color. Normal orbs are found randomly throughout the game. Press purify near them to pick the current weapon- they rotate between all three options. Weapons ---------- The following section details the weapons, and general strategies for how you should use each one. The color refers to the color of weapon orb, and the strong/weak notations refer to how they stack up against other weapons. These weaknesses aren't set in stone, but more so a general guide. The Arch --- Color: Blue Strong Against: Veil Weak Against: Gale The Arch is the first weapon you come across, and is the most user friendly. The arch is a close range weapon with a good deal of speed and a good amount of power behind it. The main strength of the arch is its ability to juggle enemies and the fast movement speed of its attacks. It's easy to button mash with the Arch, but it's best played as a very mobile weapon used to dodge around enemy attacks and juggle them one at a time until they're dead. If you wait a moment between arch strikes, you can leap over and dodge around enemies to attack them from behind. When using the arch you should constantly be shifting between different states: fast strikes, air juggles, dodging behind enemies and slashing them, etc. The only real problem with the arch is that it needs to focus on one enemy at a time- it doesn't have a wide enough arc to damage multiple enemies at once unless they're right next to each other, and the dash move is fairly weak. You need to make sure to keep an eye out for other enemies as long as you're using the arch, as intervention from another foe can really mess up your combos. You'll want to be especially wary of enemies using the Gale- they're faster than you and have a lot more range. The Gale --- Color: Green Strong Against: Arch Weak Against: Veil The Gale is a long range weapon, giving you the ability to attack enemies from a safe distance. It's also a difficult weapon to master. The Gale is the weakest of the three weapons, and the most dependent on the placing of enemies on the battlefield. This is going to be your main concern when using it: the weak attacks will not stagger most enemies, and the more powerful attacks need distance in order to set up. While that might sound a bit intimidating, when used well the Gale is probably the best weapon in the game. The ability of the Gale is dependent on your skill of reading the battlefield and realizing what needs to happen- it's a rapid fire weapon that can deal a lot of damage, but it needs a lot of set up to work properly. The Veil --- Color: Yellow Strong Against: Gale Weak Against: Arch The Veil is the third and final weapon of the game. It's a slow and powerful weapon compared to the other two, and doesn't need to hit very many times in order to deal a lot of damage. It's also a remarkable defensive weapon: the Veil can guard against almost every attack in the game, including boss attacks that would break either of the other two weapons. But the Veil makes up for that by being a very slow weapon- it has a long start up time for swings, and the time between attacks can leave you open. Using the Veil is all about opportunity. It might be instinct to jump in and start bashing heads, but the true strength of the Veil lies in waiting for your enemies to move first and then unleashing a string of attacks on them once they're helpless. Hyper Mode --- A universal ability granted to you during the climax of chapter 04, this lets you enter a state in which you are invincible and deal more damage. At any time during hyper mode you can press both guard and purify in order to unleash a hyper attack. These attacks vary by each weapon, but are all extremely powerful. However, using them will instantly end hyper mode. You should try and get 15-20 seconds out of hyper mode before using one of these attacks to end it. If you can, try to save hyper mode for fights against bosses and other tough battles. Collectible items ---------- There are several collectible items throughout the game. Below details them: Red orbs: increases the level of hyper mode you have Hearts: Increase health Freemen: give you bits of story information Ishtar Shards: unlock a secret if you collect them all ==================== 4. Campaign Guide...(4GD) ==================== 00. The Journey Begins ------------------- This is the tutorial chapter. As such, there's really nothing to worry about. Just follow Lucifel's directions and learn the controls of the game. 01. At World's End...(11Z) ------------------- This is the first grealh level, but it's still largely a tutorial on the game's mechanics. Break the locks on each hand, then fight the minor enemies that spawn and try to get a handle on how the arch works. Experiment with taking brief pauses during your swing and then resume attacking to see the different combo possibilities. Once the platform you're on lands, head forward and deal with a couple groups of similarly weak enemies before heading on to the new area. After killing some more enemies, you'll be prompted to purify your weapon. Purification is very important, and ti will keep your weapon in top shape. Always make sure to carry a glowing blue weapon- anything else means decreased damage and effectiveness. Head through this are to find Lucifel, who will act as a save point throughout your journey. Beyond him is a forked path- take the right path and jump down to the lower area and cross it, heading into a cave under a waterfall. From here you'll be transported to a side scrolling section with some enemies. You don't actually have to kill anything, but it's a great time to get some combos down and work on using the arch a bit. Past this portion you'll run into your first watcher fight. These battles are not truly mandatory- you don't actually need to win them to continue, and it's going to be pretty challenging the first few times. Azazel only has two attacks- a ball of insects that slowly tracks you across the arena, and a charge attack. Dodge the charge attack, then retaliate with a combo to damage him. Past him you'll find the first of the gfree menh, a group of people that will deliver you notes throughout the game whenever you find them. Grab his note then continue forward for a tutorial on stealing weapons from enemies. This is an important factor in battle, and it grants you a purified weapon without having the actually purify anything. You're also invincible during the animation for the attack, another nice bonus. Anyway, grab the item then continue forward into the next area. This area is just a long path with a few weak enemies (which you don't even need to fight). Get to the end of the path to complete the chapter. 02. The Tower...(22Z) -------------------- This level is broken up into several floors. On the first floor, head forward and take out the weak enemies. At the circular platform you'll run into a few arch using foes. Defeat them and continue down the path. Activate the switch, then kill the enemies that appear in front of the lower platforms. Jump up and take the portal to the next floor. Take the right path and deal with the basic enemies, then circle around past lucifel and hit the switch. This will lower the platforms on the left fork of the path by the entrance. Move back and jump up to the next level, then take out the enemies that spawn on the circular platform. Jump up to the elevator and transport to the next area. Move forward and hit the switch to lower some platforms. Do the same on the next level and hop up. Head left at the fork for a freeman, and then continue forward. You'll have a battle with some basic enemies on the circular platform, then have to hop up some more stairs for the third elevator. Hop up the platforms and head forward to find Lucifel. Take the left path to find a freeman, then the right path to find a sort of miniboss: Goldsarge and Silversarge. These enemies use long range attacks, and are out of your reach for now. Ignore the containers flowing in the air and run through the area, jumping to avoid their attacks. Take the elevator up again at the end of the path. After another Lucifel conversation, you'll have to to take on both Goldsarge and Silversarge. They're mobile, but pretty weak. At long range they like to stay safe and toss off just a couple projectiles at a time. Wait for them to send one out, then close the distance and deliver a combo. They have a nasty little rocket dash move that can take off a good chunk of your if it hits, so jump up the air and float down if they start to fly around the arena. Halfway through the fight you can steal a Gale from them, the second weapon in the game. The Gale is weaker than the Arch, but allows you to strike at a much greater range. Take out the Other Sarge, then head up the elevator. Head forward past Lucifel and use your Gale to take out the enemies on the platform. Your first instinct might be to button mash, but that will soon prove useless. Proper use of the Gale means that you can stand still- start trying to mix between quick strikes using taps of the attack button and medium length holds between hits. With a little work you can even mix the charge attack into the mix, which does a ton of damage. Take the elevator after the fight to go up a floor. Take the left path. Double jump across the gap, then use the Gale's dash ability to reach the other side. Circle around to the opposite path and make your way through the enemies and the rotating platforms. Hit a switch to activate the stationary platform, then look off to the right. There's a platform out to the side with a special area on it. Double jump from the rotating platform, then use a dash to access it. Enter the portal to find a 2.5D platforming sequence. There are several of these throughout the game, and completing them all gets you an awesome bonus at the end. Grab the crystal at the start, then hop up the platforms to avoid the darkness seeping up from below. Reach the top to exit the area back to the rotating platform section. Make your way to the elevator and head up once more. Press forward through a few more simple floors and you will eventually come to an arena where you face Watcher Sariel. Sariel is focused more on long range than the other watchers. He has three different ranged attacks: a slow moving projectile, a beam that appears underneath you, and a beam he fires from his hands. He also makes use of the typical watcher attacks- a charge and some physical combos. This is a pretty hard fight to win, so don't be afraid to lose here. After the fight is done- whether you win or not- head to the next chapter through the eye. 03. The Mercy of Ezekiel...(33Z) ------------------- Head forward to encounter a new enemy. These ghosts will paralyze you if they touch you. It's annoying, but as long as there aren't any other enemies around it's not that big of a deal. They're best taken out with a Gale, as approaching them makes it easier for them to hit you. Battle through the two fights, then head up the stairs. Up top there will be another fight, this time with some enemies using arches. At about this time in the game, enemies are going to start getting harder. You really need to get to work on learning your combos with the various weapons, otherwise things could get ugly. Take care of the enemies, then jump across the platforms that rise from below. Fight the Gale using foes, then hop over to Lucifel. Beyond him is a fight with Watcher Azazel. The watchers don't change their attacks when you fight them again, so try and learn how he moves more this time around. Continue past him to the other side of the gap. Instead of going forward, jump up to the pathway above the tunnel to find a freeman. Continue forward and head up the stairs at the end of the path for the next area. You'll have to fight a few arch using enemies along the way- all the more time to get used to your weapons. Next up is a 2D section, introducing weapon orbs. You'll need to hop along the top of the pink waves/clouds to move across the level. Along the way you can find a freeman in the middle of the path. On the other side you'll counter a large enemy that wields the third and final holy weapon. This weapon is the Veil, a combination Shield/gauntlet that is very powerful (and slow). The enemy using it is soon to become common. These brutes will only ever use the veil, but their size serves them well: they're big and hard to stagger. Your best bet for taking them down is to get them caught in a series of Gale attacks, or to use some clever counter blows and power strikes with the veil/arch. Once you have a Veil in hand, bash through the large sphere nearby and keep going. Head down the path beyond that to try out your new gauntlets. The Veil is a slow and defense oriented weapon. Unlike the Gale and the Arch, the Veil's block can absorb just about any attack that can hit it short of boss moves. It's charging ability is a guarded rush, which further works to increase defense. Using the Veil takes less practice than the Gale, but if you use it improperly it can leave you wide open. The best thing to do is to keep a heavy defensive layer up and only attack when you have a clear opening. After killing the enemies, head forward into the 2D section. In here you have to destroy some stalactites and jump across a few moving platforms- all fairly typical challenges. Past this is another arena style fight against a few mixed enemies where you can try out your Veil some more. Continue on out onto another walkway style area. Advance forward a ways and you will eventually encounter Watcher Seriel. After the fight with Seriel, jump another gap in the pathway and then hop up on the roof of the tunnel like you did before. Up here you'll find another passage into the darkness and the second bone of Ishtar. Continue forward along the path, which you should now be pretty familiar with. At the end you'll meet a small girl, Nanna. To safely get through the final area, only jump on the same platforms that she does. Follow her up the path at the end and into a cutscene. This will drop you out into a tunnel. Jump through the center of the flaming walls to pass unharmed. At the end of the tunnel take the exit to fight a boss. Well, two bosses... Foola and Woola These armored pigs really only have one attack: charging. Like with most video game bosses that charge at you, you will need to get them to run into something. In this instance it's each other. Stand in the middle of the arena and wait for the two pigs to begin charging. Dodge out of the way at the last second and they'll hit each other and get stunned, allowing you a few seconds to hit them. The pigs are weak to the arch, which can be found in the blue weapon orbs that are in this area. Break them open for a new weapon if you need one. All you really need to do is repeat this over and over again- two don't really change during the fight, making this a pretty easy battle. After you win, it's on to chapter 04. 04. Sariel's Deception...(44Z) -------------------- This chapter is a bit different compared to the others. Almost the entire chapter is made up of 2d platforming segments. After each segment you'll come back to this main area again and have to fight a decently sized group of enemies. Head onto the central platform, then into the little swirly thing for the first platforming section. In the first section, things are pretty simple- just some falling blocks and some of Sariel's Beloved (those enemies that paralyze you and make platforming difficult. Keep advancing towards the right and watch out for some of the random Nephilim that could trip you up. At the end of the path you'll be eaten and then have an encounter with Watcher Sariel. Any health you take away gets knocked off the boss fight at the end of the level, so smash away. After he's dead you'll need to fight another group of enemies in the main area, then have access to a second portal to a 2D section. This portion is a little more complex, forcing you to jump between very small platforms that dip down when you step on them. This section also presents one of the game's only real puzzles: about halfway through there's a large rotating structure. Strike one of the little nodes and the whole thing will rotate clockwise by 90 degrees. You'll need to position the sphere so that you can hit the switch next to the open gap when the gap is facing upwards. Work backwards from there (there's about ten ways to do this) and you'll figure it out.) Beyond that point you can find a freeman in a section where Nephilim are pushing blocks around, and beyond that is the exit to the 2D portion across a few more gaps. Once back in the main area you'll need to fight some enemies, then take on Ezekiel before the next section of the game. The final 2D section in this world offers little surprise, but the most difficult platforming of the three areas. Grab a Gale when you start and use it to take out the many phantoms that will spawn in this level. The only real gimmick this time around is that you'll have to ride on balloons pulled by the Nephilim a few times in order to clear some vertical spaces. When you hear Gabriel mention that you should search the area, look around to the right for a freeman. Continue up and the the left to find the exit. This time you have to jump directly into its mouth. Once back at the central area, defeat the last group of enemies. Before you gather any of the items, head back to the starting point of the level (towards the camera) to find the third darkness portal. Once you have the third bone of Ishtar, head up the stairs for a boss fight Sariel This time you're fighting Sariel for real- no illusions, and you need to actually win. He uses the same attacks as before, only with some slightly modified moves once his health gets lower (tossing out three bats instead of two, fast physical moves), but it's pretty much the same battle as earlier. He's weak the Veil, and the strong weapon can absolutely crush him. Grab one from an item orb and guard against his attacks, then counter with a barrage of strikes. Continue hitting him when he's down- his knockback attack upon standing up doesn't do any damage, but he will take damage as long as he's on the ground. This fight shouldn't take too long, but Sariel is only the first phase. Damage him enough and you get Nether Sariel Nether Sariel transforms into a giant bat. In this form he only has a few attacks in his arsenal. He will summon up a cloud of bats from down below you, up to five times in a row. This can be avoided if you just keep running away. His second attack is a dive bomb where he sweeps across the arena, and his third attack is swoop in close and deliver a series of devastatingly powerful kicks. If you're using a veil- ans you should be, that's still his weakness- you can block all but the bat attack. Your first point of business in this fight is get your ass kicked. Yep, you need to lose. This triggers the introduction of Uriel. Uriel is sort of like your hyper mode in this game- deal enough damage and purify enough weapons, and Uriel will show up to help you. He will add on to the ends of your attacks with firey punches and kicks that do a lot of extra damage. Activate hyper mode and go to town on Sariel. Once around 20 seconds have passed, press both bumpers in to perform a super move and deal a lot of extra damage. This super move is unique to each weapon, and completely drains your hyper mode. The trick is to use it when you only have a few seconds of hyper mode left, which is something you'll need to work on the timing for in the next couple of levels. Anyway, back Sariel. After you've knocked off a third of his health he'll start using an electrical barrier along the edges of the field. This barrier damages on contact, but other than that it's pretty mundane. Hound Sariel across the battlefield with your veil, and unleash the fury of heaven upon him whenever you get a charged saved up. He'll go down soon enough. 05. The Tragedy of Baraqel...(55Z) -------------------- This chapter is based around the Fire Nephilim you see in the background. It's the boss of the level, and it will make your life hell as long as its alive. It will rain down meteors on you and destroy the path. Head forward for a gang of three enemies and steal a Gale or an Arch for the upcoming platforming challenge. Hop across the platforms as they get destroyed under and kill the enemies as they spawn in your path. You'll eventually move to higher ground, where you'll run into Lucifel. Head forward across the crumbling bridges, and be careful about where you stop. Many of the platforms here fall away once you put weight on them. A bit down the path you'll run into a fight with Watcher Ezekiel. This could be hard depending on your weapon, but it's not like you have to win. Anyway, jump the gap after her. Scale up to the third level of the structure, then take the looping path around to the right side to find another portal into the darkness. These are going to start getting pretty hard, so feel free to skip them for now and come back later when you're more prepared. Either way, hop up to the top of the structure and head forth into the next area. Take care of the enemies that spawn on the circular platform, then take the lift to a 2d area. This time around you'll have to contend with moving platforms, spikes, and lots of falling platforms. An arch works wonders here, and will save you a lot of trouble. At the top of the area you'll come out to another circular platform with a Watcher Azazel fight. Watcher fights are now rather easy thanks to hyper mode. One use of hyper is typically enough to take off around 75% of a Watcher's health on normal mode, so it's a great time to use it. After the fight with Azazel take the lift up again for another platforming sequence. This is harder than the last, but uses all of the same elements. There are a few extra items towards the end behind breakable walls, but they're not worth going through the trouble of bringing along a veil through all the jumping. You'll come out to a curved platform. Follow it around and take out the enemies, then save at Lucifel if necessary. The elevator beyond him leads to a boss fight with Fire Nephilim The Fire Nephilim is a massive boss, and most of his attacks are based around that. His primary move is to slam his arms into the stage, which can easily be avoided. He will also sweep his arms across the platform in a high-low pattern, forcing you to dodge above/below them. He also has a few projectile moves: a series of fireballs from his mouth that explode on contact with the ground, and a laser attack from his eyes that does quite a bit of damage. For this fight you're going to want the Gale. It lets you constantly attack the boss, even when he's not on the stage. Your primary chances to attack are when he slams his arms down and misses you, and when he takes enough damage and falls over onto the stage. Hit his arms with a charged Gale combo to do the most damage, and pepper his body with constant shots from the Gale. When his head bows down onto the platform, hit it with your overdrive attack to deal the most damage possible before he gets back up. This boss is big, but he's a bit of a push over. 06. Azazel's Zeal...(66Z) -------------------- This level is a lot different- you ride a motorcycle in future land. How's that for a change of pace? The motorcycle controls similarly to Enoch in the main game, with the corresponding buttons performing similar actions. The weapons in this level are the same, but slightly modified for mobile combat- the Veil is a one hit kill, the Arch needs to do a couple hits, and the Gale is long range. Attcking really doesn't matter all that much during the main stage here, so choose whatever feels right. (You can always change along the path.) The main obstacle while riding the bike is to avoid hitting things and being hit yourself. Killing enemies kind of takes a back seat, at least at first. About halfway through the level you'll be accosted by a large transforming mecha like beast. You'll need to fight him in three stages. The first two are no different from the basic enemies, just a couple different attacks and a little beefier. For the third form you'll need to attack enemies in the tunnel so that they get knocked into the boss and stun him, leaving enough time for you to attack. Finally, after beating the three forms, the ride will end. The level isn't over yet though: now you need to take out the boss on foot. Battorile The way the game sets this fight up makes it seem pretty difficult. Battorile has three forms, and each form is weak to a specific weapon. The game tells you to switch between each weapon, but that's a bit daft. Grab a Gale, and use it throughout the entire fight. Using the spaced out combo attack by slowly pressing the attack button absolutely shreds this boss to pieces. He has three forms total: a slow walking tank like version that fires missiles, a wheeled version that occasionally fires missiles but mostly just likes to try and punch you, and a four wheeled version that spins around on the ground and launches missiles. I'd like to be able to say that there's some secret strategy to winning, but the same thing works for the whole boss: keep out of range and tear him apart with the Gale 07. The Cry of Armaros -------------------- You'll soon see the little girl from earlier hopping across some platforms. Follow her for a fight with Azazel, then head up the ramp to the next area. This area is a sidescrolling portion of sorts, and your first battle is against a group of brawler type enemies and their cronies. Steal a Gale and they shouldn't pose a threat. Past that group you'll find a Freemen, and past him a short fight with Ezekiel. Head forward after that to find a 2D platforming sequence. This sequence is simple, but introduces a new element- sliding down the waterfalls. Your goal is the lower right corner of the map, a passage that will take you to a new 3D area. If you can stay at the top of the level you'll find a lot of orbs, but otherwise nothing notable. At the bottom of the area you'll come out to a sort of wide lake (aren't we under the ocean?). You need to jump across the platforms to get to the other side- Enoch might be God's chosen, but that doesn't mean he can swim. On the opposite side you'll fight a large group of enemies. Try to end up with a Gale at the end of the fight, it will make the next area easier. Head through the nearby door and down the hall to run into this chapter's boss fight: Armaros: Armaros has two phases. The first phase has you fighting his back up dancers. These dancers will spawn endlessly, but they have no weapons and and pretty weak. Just don't let them get close and overwhelm you. Armaros will by gyrating around in the foreground the entire time trying to obscure your view. He's invincible here, but he won't attack you in any way. After you've survived the dancing ensemble, Armaros will challenge you in a traditional watcher style fight. He has two main forms of attack: short combo where he punches you a few times before spinning, and a move where he spins around and shoots explosive water globes. Both are easier to avoid, and you'll get the chance to grab a new weapon shortly after the fight starts. The veil can defend against his physical attacks and provides a good counter, so I'd go with that. After you've dealt enough damage, there will be a cutscene leading into the next chapter. 08. Belial's Temptation...(88Z) -------------------- Now for something completely different. In this chapter you'll play as Armaros who is trying to rescue Enoch who is trying to rescue Nanna. Combat has a lesser focus here- it's more about the platforming. Armaros controls similarly to Enoch, with a few different combos in place of Enoch's typical abilities. A new enemy type makes its lack of face known after the chapter starts. These bird-like enemies are most harmless, and exist mostly to screw up your platforming in the middle of jumps. Take them out when it's convenient to, but otherwise ignore them. Head across the rocks and descend down the stone spiral. You'll need to do some sliding and avoid some birds, but nothing too out of the ordinary. The next area is more of a platforming gauntlet. It's very straightforward, but you need to place your jumps carefully. The round objects in the stage will explode if you stand next to them for too long, but none of the objects function in any way that should be surprising. Towards the end of the area you'll have to hop along some slanted platforms- always make sure you hit as high up on the next one as you can. Past that is a series of destructible platforms sectiond off by large spinning blades. Time your first jump correctly, then rush through the rest of the jumps to time the whole thing right. Eventually you will find Nanna. From there you have to move up a large tower of blades. The timing is a little strict for some of the higher blades- it's best to jump when they're about a quarter of a rotation away from you. At the top of that you'll jump down to a large spiked sphere. There are a few small fights here with the most basic of enemies that shouldn't be a problem for Armaros to fight unarmed. After each fight you'll need to hit an orb and move across the sphere tot he next one. After three fights, you'll hop off to another platforming area. This one lets you choose your path, but all of them are about the same in terms of difficulty- simple combat one way, simple platforming the other way. At the end of the path jump down into the vortex for a boss fight. Dark Enoch: Dark Enoch has a lot of health, but is a bit of a pushover. He has four basic attacks, and he'll change which ones he likes to use based off of how the horns on his helmet are positioned. The first, and most common attack, is a series of basic punches and kicks. This is easily avoidable, but Enoch will change it up a bit throughout the fit and add more attacks. You best chance to attack is to hit him after this attack. Enoch also makes use of two projectile attacks. In the first he sends out a shockwave of purple energy, and in the second he summons several spikes of darkness that blast out after a moment. The shockwave is easy to avoid by loving to the side, but to avoid the dark spikes you'll need to be in the air when they shoot out. Watch for Enoch to move his arm, then jump. Land next to him after they shoot and attack him. His final attack is a bull charge using his his horns. This is his most dangerous attack, and if he hits you with it once he can do it repeatedly for a lot of damage. Jump and hover in the air to avoid it. In addition to the above abilities, Enoch will also summon fireballs throughout the fight. These are more of an annoyance than a threat, but they can send you off balance while you're in the air. As for fighting Enoch, he's actually pretty simple. Just think of him like another watcher fight, only in a more defensive game. Use the same hit and run tactics on the Enoch as you would the watcher. You don't have weapons, so it's going to take a while to chip away at his health. He'll get a little more frantic with his movements as his health gets lower, but you can always avoid his moves by jumping on the air. After Dark Enoch is defeated, it's on the next chapter. 09. Enoch's Indecision...(99Z) -------------------- This chapter is mostly just dialogue. In fact, there's nothing new at all- all of the fights in the chapter are just retreads of previous fights in the game with minor differences. There's three that might give you trouble- Watcher Sariel, Watcher Amaros, and Dark Enoch. Both of the watchers fight exactly as they did in the previous chapters, only you'll be fighing them unarmed. Same strategy as before, just play slightly more on the defensive side of things. Dark Enoch is the opposite- he's actually EASIER this time around, as you get access to weapons. He's weak to Gale at first, but his weakness will change as the fight goes on. Even so, just about any weapon will be enough to beat the crap out of him After that fight is done there's some more cut scenes, but the chapter is over 10. The Grave of Arakiel -------------------- Finally, back to a normal chapter. (Well, at least as normal as El Shaddai gets...) Head up the stairacse made of cubes, then take care of the new enemies at the top. Steal an arch along the way, then create a path by stepping on the nearby square switch. Head across the path of 2.5D area and head right. Just ignore the enemies here, you don't need to kill them. The next portion of the level is a puzzle. Each of the large blocks has a glowing plate embedded into it. These plates move to the blocks nearest to them (so stepping on the northern side of block would get you a platform that would get you to the block north of the one you're on). You need to approach the back platform from the right side- the other paths are dead ends. Take the platform north, then north again, then east, then north, then east, then north, then west twice. You should end up at the final platform. Take the springboard platforms up to the next level. The timing for these can be a bit tricky- you want to jump just before the platform is at its lowest point. Head up the the gaps in the platforms, timing your jumps to make it through the rotating tiles. At the very top you'll fight a group of enemies, then need to hit a switch to raise a staircase. Take the staircase up and watch the scene play out in the background. Get all the way to the top, then strike the two stones on either side of the shrine for an elevator to the next area. Continue up even more staircases to find Boola, Ezekiel's third pig. Grab an Arch and get to fighting her the same way you fought the two pigs early on. Get to crash into the wall and stun herself, then go to town. After the fight you'll need to jump across some blocks. Use the switches to align the blocks in a pattern you can jump across, then move ahead. On the opposite you'll need to quickly jump up some weird falling blocks to access another switch. Align the blocks correctly, then time your jumps between the pendulums. In the next section you'll need to do the same thing, only alter the path of the blocks in the middle of the jumping section. Past that you'll find an area leading up to the next level. Up here you have an option: you can jump across the swinging blocks using careful timing, or head to the left and take out a few enemies so you can access a switch that raises some blocks and makes the jumping much easier. Either way, once you get to the other side you'll have to deal with one last jumping puzzle. Cross the gap on the moving chains of blocks, making sure to always stay on the middle block. It seems imposing, but once you have the right pace down it isn't bad. On the other side climb up the jump platforms, then head forward to encounter the boss. Ezekiel You've fought Ezekiel plenty of times before in watcher battles, and she isn't any different here. She has four main attacks: a long range lightening strike, a close range cloud of lightening, a tracking jump attack, and a couple variations of hand to hand combos. Ezekiel is weak to the Gale, and this fight should be pretty fast given how used to fighting these guys you should be by now. Once Ezekiel goes down, she'll transform into a second form: Nether Ezekiel. Nether Ezekiel is an octopus-like beast. There are two distinct phases that the boss will alternate between throughout the fight. In the first she sits in the middle of the arena and uses various elemental moves to attack and defend: fireballs that strike from above, electricity columns that move around the arena, and ice blocks to prevent her from getting hit. She can also strike you with a sort of tail slap if you get too close to her. After damaging her enough she will split her body in two, and her upper half will fly around the level . During this phase she only has two attacks: slamming her upper body into the ground on top of you, and swinging her tail at you. This battle is a war of attrition. This boss has a lot of health, but her attacks really don't do too much damage and are pretty easy to avoid. Your best chances to damage her are during the electricity attack and during the ice barrier attack. You can attack during the fireball move and the split section portion of the fight, but you'll need to be dodging just as much as attacking. Keep hammering away at her and dodging out of the way when she winds up for one of her physical attacks and you'll come out on top. 11. Semyaza'a Dream...(XIZ) -------------------- Ah, the final chapter. Hop u the platforms and save as needed. There is not a lot of content in this chapter, save for the boss fights... Azazel This the final showdown with Azazel. It would be more climactic if you haven't been fighting this guy the entire game, but whatever. You should be pretty familiar with this form by now, so use whatever you feel the most comfortable with and let him have it. After you take him down, he'll move to his second form. Nether Azazel This giant insect only has two attacks, but that's all he needs. He will teleport around the arena at will, appearing only for a brief second before running away. If he appears close you he'll try and kick you (and will often teleport circles around you whilst trying to land one). If he teleports further away from you, he'll shoot some very fast fireballs in your direction. The speed of his fireballs, teleport, and kick will all increase as the fight goes on. You're going to want a Gale for this battle. Don't bother trying to attack up close. Azazel's Sparta kick does too much damage to contend with, and he moves to fast to retaliate easily. The Gale can be used to dash away from his attacks and to float in the air and attack him while he casts his fireballs at you. Towards the end of the fight you really need to get defensive, as he gets very fast. Focus on charging up hyper mode and damaging him with that, and the rest of the time focus on staying alive. After you take down Azazel there will be a cutscene leading in to... Dark Armaros The final battle of the game, Dark Armaros. Armaros has the ability to dive through the surface of the arena you're in. When he's underneath, he'll try to jump out and land on top of you, Avoid that, and he'll stand up and begin firing some projectile attacks out of his arms. There's a red laser beam and a series of exploding orbs, both of which are pretty easy to dodge. This is where you can get the most damage in on him, but finding out HOW to damage him is a bit of challenge. He is only weak to one weapon at a time, and the other two will be useless. It's going to take some trail and error to find out which one will damage him. After he's taken some Damage, Armaros will go back underneath the stage. He'll pop up out of your range and begin to charge a massive laser. This is your cue to get defensive: wait for the beam to sweep across the level and jump over it. It's not too hard to avoid, but it's basically a one hit kill if it connects. After this Armaros will attempt to fire beams of energy from underneath you. Just keep running and you should avoid them. After this phase he'll jump out of the water again, and you'll need to repeat the process of finding his weakness and damaging him again. Repeat this once for each weapon type, and you've defeated Armaros. Congratulations. ============================== 5. Closing...(6CL) ============================== This guide is my property, and you are only being allowed to use it. As such, I must insist that you not use this guide for any personal gain or profit off of it in any way. You are free to use this guide as you see fit as long as it comes within those confines: you may print it, make a hat out of the pages, or create some pleasant origami. I don't care as long as I maintain ownership of this guide. Do not distribute it without my permission, but if you would like it on your website feel free to contact me at wcrobars@hotmail.com and I will more than likely allow it. I hope this guide has been useful, and I thank you for reading it. This guide, like all of my guides, is dedicated to cats.