Final Fantasy IV SFC Any% NoCW Guide

Jason Lynch <jason@aexoden.com> (Aexoden)

Introduction

These are my notes for the Final Fantasy IV SFC Any% NoCW speedrun. While I am very familiar with the game and the speedrun, I am nonetheless nowhere near being the world record holder in this category or any other, so there are almost certainly faster ways to do things. That said, I do periodically update this document as new techniques and strategies are discovered, so if you follow them, you're probably not doomed to be perilously slow.

Do note, however, that this guide is much less updated than some of my others. You may wish to view the top runs at speedrun.comas they use slightly newer routing, though the inventory warps should be the same.

General Concepts

While these are largely my personal notes used when I actually run the game, a number of people have been using them to learn the run, so I will briefly go over some of the more general concepts that apply to the run. However, the notes will almost certainly still assume you are generally familiar with some of the techniques used speedrunning the game (such as item duplication and run buffering). If you are unfamiliar with these, there are other resources on this site that you may wish to examine.

Experience Path

Unfortunately, as it turns out, levels matter a lot in this run. As such, there is a lot of research into the best ways to allocate experience throughout the run. Experience is primarily manipulated using the following facts:

1. Dead characters do not gain experience. Total experience from the fight is divided amongst living party members. Therefore, the fewer characters that are alive, the more experience the living ones collect.
2. Characters in the so-called shadow party gain the same amount of experience as living party members. These are characters who have left the party and will later return.

The "perfect" path is a matter of personal preference and is always up for debate. I make my recommendations throughout this guide, but there are many ways to skin a cat, and you're welcome to develop your own path that suits your playing style better. You'll still want to keep in mind the following point:

• Kain should reach level 19 by the time you reach Valvalis. Experience is slightly harder to come by in this version, so the route used for the SNES version will not be sufficient.

Inventory Management

Another important aspect of any NoCW run is inventory management. You end up with a very full inventory and the exact locations of some of the items will be important by the end of the run. This guide makes some recommendations, but ultimately, you will need to come up with an inventory management scheme you're comfortable with.

Mimic Glitch

You have the option of using the Mimic Glitch (AKA Carrot/TrashCan) to defeat Milon and/or Milon Z. Learning these is beyond the scope of this guide, but it may be useful to know that you only need to pick up the Carrot or move the TrashCan to the top of the inventory if you intend to utilize these strategies.

Assumptions

This guide makes the assumption that you are following along from start to finish. Menuing instructions assume that your characters are already equipped as per the guide, and won't list equipment that is staying the same. If you attempt to join in the middle, you may miss this or similar points.

Conventions

This guide uses the following conventions:

• Names are given in both the original Japanese and translated into English, using the FF2US name if it exists, otherwise using a literal translation.
• Item names are italicized.
• Each battle lists the recommended party formation. The slots are listed from top to bottom. Characters in the front row are prefixed with an asterisk (*). In addition, their level and current experience is listed (assuming you follow this guide's experience path).
• The battle strategies occasionally list multiple actions separated by slashes (/). In such cases, you should take the first option that applies to your situation. That is, don't use a Cure2 potion on your party if all your characters are fully healed.
• In contrast, occasionally multiple commands are listed on separate lines. In this case, you should execute each command in order.
• Battle summaries list the experience earned through the battle. This assumes you kill the same enemies as the guide. (For example, killing the General at Fabul or having to fight Calbrena will result in different experience gains.)
• Starting at Milon, battles each list an inventory reminder, to help you set up the item warps. This simply lists the item counts in order that you can use as a reminder of which items to place where, as long as you know the correct locations already. To learn them, refer to the complete list at the bottom.

Acknowledgements

This route was heavily inspired by the inventory warps devised by Myself086 for the SNES Any% NoCW route. Following that template (and after exhaustively searching all the SFC rooms), I devised a comparable item route for the SFC version, based on the superior 12-item route.

The remainder of the route, including the SFC-specific battle strategies and buying route, was initially put together by catastrophic4. Some modifications have been made since his work, but much of it still remains.

Of course, I must thank the entire FF4 speedrunning community for their unending helpfulness and drive toward improving all categories.

Resources

The following resources should prove invaluable to either help during a run or to help you learn the run in the first place:

• SFC Any% NoCW Step Routes
• Seed Finder Tool
• Yellow Chocobo Image (by Myself086)
• Any% NoCW GP Calculator
• Any% NoCW In-Game Timer Calculator (AKA Bacon Chart)

Differences from SNES

The following is a short, non-comprehensive list of major differences between the SFC and SNES releases, targeted toward speedrunners of the game:

• Japanese RTA timing is traditionally from power on to "The End". In FF4, this adds approximately 18 minutes to the total time and prevents seed 92 manipulation.
• Bosses (and enemies in general) have more HP and are often stronger, so some strategies are different to compensate.
• The SFC release has access to active ATB mode, while the SNES release is locked in wait mode.
• The primary room used in the SNES release for item warps does not exist in the SFC release, so an alternate route has been developed.
• The SFC release has additional abilities and items, so some battle strategies have been altered to take advantage of this.
• The walking paths are different, so the step routes are different as well. (For example, there are six additional optional steps in Fabul.) In addition, there are still multiple routes. If I pick up this category again, I will likely update this guide to reflect the world record route, but until then, there will be two sets of step routes.

Walkthrough

Prologue

Begin the game. During the introduction, you may wish to hold down B+Right+Down immediately before the battle with the Raven, in an attempt to avoid the Raven's attack. This is known as the BRD or BIRD skip. It may or may not work for you, depending on the awesomeness of your mashing. Finish the introduction and gain control.

Pick up the Ether1 (エーテル) and Tent (テント) on Castle Baron 1F (the middle and rightmost chests) and then head to Cecil's room in the left tower to finish the introduction.

Walk to the chocobo forest, optinally pick up the Carrot (ギサールのやさい), capture a yellow chocobo, and ride to the Misty Cave (ミストのどうくつ).

Misty Cave (ミストのどうくつ)

Walk through the cave until you reach the boss.

Mist Clip

After the battle, exit the cave and head toward Mist. When you approach the last tile before the town, hold left, and then hold X. When the menu opens, release the keys, and then use the Tent (テント). After the night is over, and Cecil lowers his arm, begin to hold right, and almost immediately after, begin to hold X (while continuing to hold right). Once the menu is open, you can release the keys.

Walk past the village tiles, and then enter Mist (ミストのむら) from the right side. Head to the weapon shop.

Head to the northeast grass field and pick up the Bomb Fragment (ボムのかけら).

Head to the northwest house, enter the fireplace, and pick up the Tiara (きんのかみかざり) from the first chest and Change (rod) (へんげのロッド) from the chest at the end of the long passage. Exit the house and trigger the cut scene.

Kaipo (オアシスのむらカイポ)

Continue to Kaipo (オアシスのむらカイポ) in the middle of the desert. Enter the town and trigger the cut scene.

Visit Rosa in the northeast house. Mash with B to avoid talking to Rosa repeatedly. Afterward, leave the house.

On the way out of town, pick up the Ether1 (エーテル) in the top pot next to the house to the south of the house Rosa is in.

Just before exiting the town (immediately after emerging from the door in the wall), take one step to the right, and then go down.

Head north to the cave and enter the Watery Pass (ちかすいみゃくみなみぐち).

Watery Pass (ちかすいみゃくみなみぐち)

Walk through the first part of the cave, recruit Tellah, and then continue to the end of the cave. In the last room, pick up the Copper Hourglass (どうのすなどけい) and Darkness (sword) (シャドーブレイド), and exit the cave.

Enter the other cave and proceed until you meet Octomamm (オクトマンモス).

Immediately after the battle, open the menu.

Exit the cave and enter Damcyan (ダムシアンじょう). Head to the top of the castle, watch the scene, and then take the hovercraft to the Antlion cave (アントリオン　ちか１かい).

Antlion (アントリオン)

Follow the path to the second room. You may take either the left or right path, but the right path feels better to me. Your mileage may vary. Once in the second room, pick up the chest on the right side with an Antarctic Wind (なんきょくのかぜ).

Head to the save room and pick up the three chests: Life (フェニックスのお), Ether1 (エーテル), and Emergency Exit (ひじょうぐち).

On the way to Antlion's Nest (アントリオンのす), pick up the Spider Web (くものいと) in the chest in the upper left corner. Head to Antlion.

Immediately use the Emergency Exit (ひじょうぐち) to exit the cave. Board the hovercraft and return to Kaipo (オアシスのむらカイポ), making sure to park directly to the left of the town.

Kaipo (オアシスのむらカイポ) Revisited

Head to the house in the northeast corner of town and use the SandRuby (さばくのひかり) on Rosa.

During the night, Edward will loudly play his harp and an angry monster will attack.

After waking up, leave the town, making sure to take a step to the left immediately before exiting.

Take the hovercraft to the entrance of Mt.Hobs-West (ホブスのやま　にしぐち), parking directly to the left of the entrance.

Mt.Hobs (ホブスのやま)

Climb the mountain and meet Yang at the top.

During Yang's solo battle, you can potentially manipulate yourself out of a longer battle by checking the damage rolls against this chart and pausing for a short while if you get a bad first kick.

Continue to the other side of the mountain, continue downward, and then head east to Fabul.

Fabul (ファブール)

Head to the King's Room and offer to help. (Do not mash the B button during this dialogue.)

Walk to the Inn and watch the scenes.

Head down the stairs and in the next room, pick up the Bacchus Wine (バッカスのさけ) in the bottom right pot.

Leave Fabul and head for the ship to the east.

Mysidia (ミシディア)

Walk east into Mysidia (ミシディア). Go to the armor shop on the left.

Head to the House of Wishes (いのりのやかた) and talk to the elder. After the scene, head to the item shop on the right side of town.

Exit the town and head east to Mt.Ordeals (しれんのやま).

Mt.Ordeals (しれんのやま)

Climb the mountain until you reach the summit.

Once on the summit, continue until you are even with the final bridge.

Walk across the bridge and engage Milon Z. (スカルミリョーネ).

After the battle, enter the tomb and watch the scene.

After the scenes, descend the mountain and head to the chocobo forest. Catch a yellow chocobo and travel back to Mysidia.

Talk to the elder, and then head to Baron via the Serpent Road (デビルロード).

Return to Baron (バロン)

Go to the back of the Inn and talk to Yang.

After the scenes, head to the Baron weapon and armor shop.

Enter the Old Water-way (むかしのすいる) and continue until just before the Baigan battle on Castle Baron 1F (１かい).

Move on to challenge Baigan.

Head to the throne room to fight Kainazzo (カイナッツォ).

After the scenes, fly to Toroia (トロいアじょう) and enter the castle. Visit Edward on the left side of the castle, use an Ether1 (エーテル) on Tellah and then cast Exit (テレポ).

Head north to the Chocobo Village (チョコボのむら), catch a black chocobo, and fly to Cave Magnes (じりょくのどうくつ).

Cave Magnes (じりょくのどうくつ)

Head through the cave until you reach the crystal room (クリスタルルーム).

Talk to the Dark Elf. After the scene, talk to him again.

After the battle, get the crystal, leave the room, and cast Exit (テレポ).

Take the black chocobo back to the Chocobo Village. While landing, hold the down button and walk back to Toroia.

Talk to the clerics, cast Exit (テレポ) and board your airship.

Tower of Zot

After Golbez is done taunting you, go up a floor and head to the chest with Fire (フレイムソード).

Continue to the top of the tower.

Enter the door, watch the scene, talk to Kain and then finally watch the next scene.

The Underworld

After the scenes, leave the castle and take the airship to Agart (アガルトのむら).

Use Magma (マグマのいし) on the well. Afterward, pick up the Arctic Wind (ほっきょくのかぜ) in the grass patch to the west of the well, and then fly to the Underworld.

Golbez (ゴルベーザ)

Glitch Navigation

After the scenes, open the menu, finish setting your inventory to match the above, and use Rydia to cast Warp (デジョン). Get the crystal, and then walk down out of the crystal room.

Go left until you see the red room with the chocobo music. After that room, there will be two black rooms that you automatically exit. The next room will either be an underground town or a room that sort of flashes red. If you are pushed through this room automatically, continue to the next step. Otherwise, leave the room by pressing up.

From here, go up, left, up, and then left until you reach the Stone Room.

Go down one tile, then right to the trigger tile. (second tile from top)

Again, go down one tile, and then right to the trigger. (third tile from top)

Trigger the cut scene to eliminate Kain.

Exit the Sealed Cave, and then go left and right to hit the same trigger tile. Go down to recruit FuSoYa.

Leave the room and return to the Stone Room.

Go straight up to leave the area, then proceed to the room with chocobo music, following the same path as when you initially went to the Stone Room.

Save, and then go up.

After passing through those three floors, you're in the clear. Go left until you reach the Castle of Dwarves.

Head down the stairs, open FuSoYa's magic, move "upt Co" (ひずみ　つめ) to the top, then cast Exit (テレポ). Upon arriving at the Stone Room, a dialog box will appear. There's nothing special about it, other than that if you were forced to reload from your safety save, it will likely be 84 pages of text you must scroll through. Consider this an incentive to not use your safety save.

Go to the second tile from top (left, up, right) and then go face Zeromus.