Ys: The Vanished Omens Walkthrough
Version 1.0 (August 27, 2016)
Written by and Copyright (c) 2016 John Engelman
john [at] mybrainongames [dot] com

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.      INTRODUCTION
2.      MINEA
3.      ZEPIK
4.      THE PALACE
5.      THE MINES
6.      THE TOWER OF THE DOOMED
7.      CONCLUSION

1.      INTRODUCTION

Welcome to my walkthrough for Ys: The Vanished Omens! This is actually
the first walkthrough I've written, so I hope it's as rewarding or
helpful for you as it was for me. Any feedback or comments you may
have are appreciated and can be directed to the email address listed
above. In fact, I recorded a "let's play" for the game so if you'd
like to watch me discover this game for the first time, I'll provide
that information at the end of this walkthrough.

Back on task, this game was developed by Nihon Falcom and was the
first entry in the still active Ys series. Fittingly, this is the
first entry in the series I've played, despite a lengthy interest in
the games. If I'm not mistaken, each game stars a red-haired wanderer
named Adol Christin who picks up a sword to defend humanity from a
great evil. This version is no different, although Sega's localization
resulted in the character being renamed Aron Christian. This version
was released in North America in 1988, courtesy of Sega. Originally,
the game released in Japan on June 21, 1987 for the NEC PC-8801, a
home computer.

To paraphrase from the game's box, Aron has wandered into the Kingdom
of Ys just as Dark Dekt, an evil sorcerer, is planning diabolical
magic. This, 1,000 years after the Goddesses of Ys saved the Kingdom
from a similar threat. Their feats were written in six magical books
and hidden away until they were needed again. Sara, a local seer
realizes it's time to call upon the Goddesses once more. Knowing the
journey will be long and difficult, she's seeking a strong swordsman.
Aron's destiny may as well be sealed...

2.      MINEA

Aron begins his quest just inside the town gates of Minea. It's a
large settlement with many citizens wandering about. Conversations are
had by simply walking into them. Save for the poetess Reah in the
northeast corner of town, their conversations aren't crucial to
advancing the game. That being said, I'd advise talking to everyone as
they do disburse information useful in understanding previous events
and their fellow neighbors.

While Minea is a large settlement Aron can only enter a few of the
buildings. Starting in the northwest corner and working clockwise, he
has access to: the village market, the Ohman Bar and Kraze Hospital in
the center of town, the conjoined weapon and armor shop in the
southeast, and the seer Sara's house in the southwest. It's ultimately
Sara who will provide Aron with the information to begin his quest,
but first he must arm himself.

So, while mingling with the townsfolk make a point to buy the Sapphire
Ring from the village market in the northwest corner of town. I can
hear you questioning this decision, after all, weaponry and armor
usually makes up the first purchase in an RPG, but trust me on this.
Donis, the one-eyed man in the Ohman Bar, is drowning his sorrows
after losing the Sapphire Ring he bought his mother. When he notices
it in your inventory, he'll ask to acquire it and in return, will give
you 1,500 gold; in other words, easy money! Use those funds to buy a
small sword and small shield from the weapon/armor shop in the
southeast corner of town.

After equipping those, exit the town through the northern (and only)
gates. You'll travel the fields in search of a "hidden" golden
pedestal. I say hidden loosely as it was detailed in Sega's
newsletters at the time of release. Enemies will be encountered on the
way and this should be your first attempt at combat. With the sword
and shield equipped, all you have to do is walk into an enemy. It's
advantageous to attack from the side or behind them but this can be
tricky at times. Instead, I carefully walked into the enemies,
retreating when necessary to regenerate health. Make sure to save
often, too. If there's anything that will prevent headaches while
playing, it'll be learning when to save, using multiple save slots,
and saving often.

Following the eastern coastline to the north, you'll eventually reach
a bridge leading to the eastern section of the fields. Cross it and
continue heading east, navigating the pockets of trees until you reach
an impassable wall of them, serving as an eastern border. One word of
caution: you should come across a cave's entrance in the far
northeastern forest of the field. DO NOT ENTER THIS! You're not strong
enough yet and won't be for a good while. You'll also come across an
opening in the eastern border of trees in the fields. Don't worry
about entering this yet, either. From here, head south until you reach
a lake. There's an indentation almost dead-center on the lake's
eastern coast. When you walk into it, Aron will notice something
sparkling in the water and pull out the golden pedestal. Take this
back to the village market in Minea and sell it. Using the new funds,
purchase chain mail from the armor shop.

With a weapon, shield, and piece of armor now equipped speak to Sara.
Now that you're fully armed, she'll brief you on the history of Ys,
the six books of Ys, and the impending calamity, asking for your help.
She'll give you the Crystal which allows Aron to locate the books.
This conversation also yields enough experience to reach level 2; if
you're not there already from battling enemies. That's well and good
but I suggest grinding to level 3 against the enemies in the field
before progressing too much further. While grinding, also pay
attention to your wallet. It's important to acquire the best weapons
and armor as soon as possible.

For reference, the weapon shop sells the long sword for 2,000 gold and
the talwarl for 5,000 gold while the armor shop sells the plate mail
for 2,000 gold, the reflex armor for 5,000 gold, the middle shield for
2,000 gold and the large shield for 6,000 gold. The village market
also has a Wing (transports to back to a nearby town) for 2,000 gold
and the Mirror (protects against enemies for 1,000 gold. I didn't
bother acquiring these until all weapons and armor had been purchased
and even then, I never used them.

3.      ZEPIK

Grinding can get repetitive but it's a necessary and frequent task for
completing this game. Once level 3 is reached, there's no better time
to explore Zepik, the other town Aron comes across in his quest. The
town's western entrance will be found in the easternmost section of
the field. It's the opening in the trees, serving as the eastern
border of the fields, just a little north of the lake you found the
golden pedestal at and a little south of that cave that you still
shouldn't enter!

Zepik is considerably smaller than Minea although they have a proper
mayor (which begs the question, who's "running" Minea?). When speaking
to him, he'll weave a short story about the town's stolen Silver Bell
and ask for assistance. The cursor doesn't line up properly here but
if you choose the bottom option, you'll agree to assist, not that this
choice really matters. You can say no and still retrieve the Silver
Bell for him...

The only other house Aron can enter is Jeba's. When conversing without
Sara's Crystal, she comes off quite crotchety. However, with it in
your possession, she's willing to aid in Aron's quest, knowing that
Sara trusts him enough. She'll provide the Temple Key. Besides these
two, there are also plenty of locals to speak to in Zepik. Again, no
conversations are so crucial that they're required to progress the
story, but they do dole out beneficial information.

Unlike Minea, Zepik has two entrances and you'll now take the
northeastern one towards the Palace. Along the way is a thief who
speaks of his comrade Dogi. He became separated in the Tower of Doomed
and if he perished, the recovery of his body would put the thieves'
minds at ease. Keep that in mind for later on. Speaking of thieves,
you may as well stop by the thieves' den before entering the Palace.
After coming upon the Palace (you won't mistake it), continue east
along the mountain path. Eventually, you'll find the thieves' den and
they'll claim they haven't been behind the recent events and in fact,
they're also victims.

You can enter the Palace, but little progress will be made until
you're level 4, or preferably level 5, which means... more grinding!
Beforehand, I'll counter myself and say enter the Palace! The entrance
hallway contains many statues, the easternmost of which appears
different than the rest. Touching it transports Aron onto the Palace's
first floor. Navigating to the northwestern corner of the floor,
you'll come across a treasure which has a Ruby inside. The merchant in
Minea will purchase this for 1,200 gold. There's another treasure
chest on this floor, just to the east of Aron's beginning location,
but it's locked. And, all the way in the northeastern section is a
door which leads to your first boss fight.

The enemies in front of the Palace and in the hills to the east yield
a little more experience and gold than the enemies in the field, but
it'll still be a lengthy process reaching level 5. Make sure to watch
your gold, as each time you accrue enough gold to buy better weapons
and armor, you'll want to return to Minea and do so. Don't forget
about the 1,200 gold for selling the Ruby.

4.      THE PALACE

Now level 5 and with the best weapons and armor money can buy at this
point, Aron can enter the Palace and make progress. After teleporting
to the first floor, head to the northeastern section and unlock the
door. Make sure to save before entering as this is the first boss
fight. Touching the inscribed wall will cause Ankharat to appear.
He'll appear and promptly disappear while poles extend from the
eastern and western walls. Line yourself up just beyond the northern
or southern poles and wait for Ankharat to appear then run through him
to the other side. You're almost sure to take damage but at level 5,
this fight shouldn't be too tough. My best efforts occurred when I
waited for Ankharat to spawn in the center of the room. Once the
wizard is defeated, a section of the wall crumbles, revealing an
entrance to the second floor of the Palace. Health doesn't regenerate
in the Palace (at this point) so retreat to the outside when needed to
recover health from here on out.

The second floor is relatively complicated, at least compared to the
first floor, but for now, you'll want to head to the northeastern
section of the floor again, aiming for the stairway leading to the
third floor. Enemies populate the following floors and they can be
dealt with, carefully. I advise avoiding Looters, the ones with blue
Super Saiyan hair, and the Bolo Spiders, which I took to calling green
Paras. Again, make sure to save often and retreat to recover health
when needed. It's worth saving across multiple save slots at this
point, in case you save with too little health and get yourself into a
tough-to-correct bind.

On the third floor, you'll come across three treasure chests. In the
northeast section of the floor you'll find the Necklace, the Prison
Key in the north, and the Chest Key in the southwest. Like the Ruby,
the Necklace can be sold in Minea, only for 500 gold, however. With
the Prison Key and Chest Key in your possession, return to the second
floor.

There are three prison cells in the northwest section; the westernmost
contains a treasure chest with the Silver Bell (what the mayor of
Zepik was looking for) while the center cell has a prisoner named
Feena. Before regrouping with her in Zepik, navigate to the
southwestern section of the floor. There, you'll come across a
treasure chest with the Mask of Eyes. This will be used to unveil a
secret later on. Finally, in the south central section of the floor is
a Potion, which regenerates your health when used.

Continue backtracking and open the previously inaccessible treasure
chest on the first floor. It contains the Ring Mail, which when
equipped halves the damage dealt to Aron. Definitely equip this.
Return to Zepik and give the mayor the stolen Silver Bell. In
exchange, he'll give the Power Ring which when equipped doubles the
damage dealt to enemies. So, all of a sudden you've got two awesome
rings. Personally, I swayed towards the Power Ring, although there
were certain instances when I'd use the Ring Mail. Regardless, both
are very helpful and practically necessary for beating the game.

Feena has taken up residence in Jeba's house but when spoken to, she
reveals little. Alternatively, with the Mask of Eyes now in your
possession, the thief in the thieves' den will briefly describe its
use.

Getting back to the Palace, I'd advise ascending to the fourth floor.
Things will be tough and you should grind to level 8 on this and the
previous floors. Don't delve too far into the fourth floor.
Essentially, don't use the teleporting statues. Again, make sure to
watch your gold and return to Minea when enough has been accrued for
better gear.

Once you're level 8, it's safe to use the statues and explore the rest
of the fourth floor. In the north central section of the floor are two
teleporting statues. Take the eastern one first. It transports Aron to
a linear hallway containing a treasure chest with the Ivory Key.
Teleport back and take the western statue. In the northeastern section
of this floor is another teleporting statue. Using it will lead Aron
to a linear hallway and a treasure chest with the Silver Shield.
Definitely equip this! Teleport back and in the northwestern section
you'll find a stairwell leading to the fifth floor.

On the fifth floor, work your way towards the northwest, teleporting
to find the Marble Key. Return to the stairwell leading to the fourth
floor and travel a little bit northeast until you come across a normal
blue statue. Equip the Mask of Eyes and voila! A hidden doorway is
revealed. After passing through, unequip the Mask of Eyes and be sure
to save as the final boss of the Palace is about to be taken down!
Don't fret though, Wyrm shouldn't pose a challenge. I was level 9 when
I took him down and honestly, I was over-leveled. After his defeat,
retrieve the first Book of Ys: the Book of Hadal! With five more left
to collect and Dark Dekt still kicking, there's little time to
rejoice.

As you obtain the Books of Ys, you can take them to Jeba, who will
translate them.

5.      THE MINES

With the Palace conquered, your next destination should be the Mines.
In case you forgot, these are located just to the northwest of Zepik.
Inside, visibility is incredibly limited and enemies will be a
challenge.

For starters, make your way along the southern wall to the west. In
the southwest section of this floor is a treasure chest with the Timer
Ring. When equipped, this ring slows the movement speed of enemies.
This doesn't sound especially useful compared to the Power Ring or
Ring Mail, but it really is helpful. Proceeding north, you'll
encounter two more treasure chests. The first will contain Silver
Armor (be sure to equip it) and the second holds a Potion. If you
still have a Potion in your inventory, Aron's health will instead
regenerate. Continuing to the east, a set of stairs leading down will
be found.

Now on the first basement floor, immediately head southwest. Down a
passageway is a treasure chest with the Roda Seed. If you spoke to all
the citizens of Minea you may have a clue what to do with this but you
should continue exploring for the time being. Make your way to the
northwest to find a treasure chest containing a Harmonica. If you
spoke to the poetess Reah in Minea, you know she's looking for this.
Before diving deeper in the Mines, retreat back to the field.

Using the Roda Seed, you can now speak to the Roda trees. There are
only two in the field and they stand out; they're the large conical
trees, east of the river. Talk to the north and it'll direct you to
the south one. When you attempt to speak with it, lined up with its
trunk, Aron will instead find the Silver Sword! That's that and you'll
now deliver the harmonica to Reah. She'll reward you with a song... and
nothing else. But, don't write her off just yet. She plays a critical
role later on. While in Minea, return to Sara's house. You'll find
that she's been murdered, but has left a Book of Ys for Aron. You'll
receive the Book of Tovah.

Back to the Mines you go! Navigate back to the first basement floor
and travel south. Following the southern wall you'll find a Nubbrow
guarding a doorway. Defeat, or attack and lure him out of the way so
you can enter and obtain the Heal Ring. When equipped, this ring will
generate Aron's health no matter where he is (except during boss
fights). Head to the northwest and then east towards the treasure
chest that held the Harmonica; just beyond it is the stairway leading
to the second basement floor.

Explore in a northwesterly direction and you'll come across a hallway
leading to the north. In its eastern section you'll find a treasure
chest with the Key to the Doomed. Back out and continue exploring in a
west-southwest direction. One more treasure chest awaits you, this one
holding another Potion. Finally, in the farthest southern reaches of
this floor is a door leading to the boss of the Mines, Birdo. Make
sure to save beforehand. I had reached level 10 (the max level) before
fighting him and this still proved to be a challenging fight.

Birdo has two forms: in his first form, he breaks apart into sixteen
bats. They'll start in four sections of four and this is when you need
to run away, preferably towards one corner of the room. After a moment
they'll begin attacking Aron at which point you should run to the
other end of the room. They'll momentarily rejoin and complete Birdo's
other form. This is the only form that's susceptible to your attacks
and he doesn't remain complete for long. My best efforts occurred when
I attacked his corners. This seemed to be the best way to stave off
his counterattacks. When his health is fully depleted, obtain the
third Book of Ys from the treasure chest: the Book of Dabby.

6.      THE TOWER OF THE DOOMED

With the Palace and the Mines conquered, it's time to head for the
final challenge: the Tower of the Doomed. First, speak to Jeba in
Zepik. After she translates all three books, she'll recommend seeking
out her son Goban, the thief in the thieves' den. He's already
received the word by the time Aron arrives and he opens up the
entrance to the Tower of the Doomed. Make sure to create an additional
save before entering. Once the Tower of the Doomed has been entered,
you can't leave.

With twenty-plus floors, this place is massive. So, starting out on
the ground floor, head all the way to the east and climb the stairs to
the north. These will take you to the outside wall of the Tower which
will become a common sight. These outside sections contain only two
doorways. One leads up and the other leads down. If you keep walking
in one direction, they repeat, specifically after passing by eight
pillars. This will hold true throughout the rest of your time in the
Tower. I always went west so I'll always direct you to the west. After
entering the doorway leading up, you'll find four treasure chests. One
has already been opened but the other three contain the Evil Ring, a
Potion, and a Mirror. Like the Mask of Eyes, the Evil Ring will be
used in a very specific manner, later on. With those in your
possession, return to the ground floor and take the other stairway
leading up.

You'll be on a fairly linear path for a while, passing through a
hallway lined with statues, another with an empty treasure chest, and
lastly one that has two stairways leading up. Don't bother exploring
the middle one, just take the western stairway. Beyond here is a room
containing three statues and as soon as Aron enters, he'll be
transported to a prison cell on the ground floor. In the process, Aron
loses his Silver equipment, which you'll definitely retrieve on your
next ascent. A man named Luther Jemma is also imprisoned and he gives
a clue regarding the hallway lined with statues. Soon, Dogi springs
Aron from the prison cell and asks him to give a man named Rauba some
statues.

Once back in the hallway lined with statues, equip the Mask of Eyes. A
hidden doorway between some of the statues will be revealed and beyond
it is Rauba. He'll thank Aron for the delivery and deliver a Blue
Necklace for the trouble. Be sure to equip this. When it's equipped,
Aron won't be transported when passing through the room with the three
statues. Once beyond this obstacle and in the next proper room, head
to the southwest. You'll find Dogi and he'll provide a tip for
progressing further in the Tower. Heading northwest leads to a
treasure chest with the Silver Sword. Finally, take the stairway in
the eastern section of this floor.

On the next floor, follow the southern wall all the way around. Be
sure to save as you're about to do battle with Insecta. This fight
shouldn't be too difficult. Insecta is a large praying mantis beast
that throws three blades in Aron's direction. They're slow moving and
easy to avoid, as long as you keep a good distance from Insecta when
he throws them. Goad Insecta into throwing his blades and then strike
his corners. After his defeat, you can collect the Hammer and another
Book of Ys, the Book of Messa. Follow your footsteps all the way back
and take the stairway leading up, just to the west of the one Aron
emerged from.

On this floor Aron can retrieve the Silver Shield, Heading south,
there's a small room with a treasure chest surrounded by statues. As
soon as you open the treasure chest the statues come to life and
attack Aron. Before opening it, equip the Timer Ring. This slows them
down enough for you to quickly pocket the Silver Shield and retreat.
Since you should be level 10 by now, the experience gained from
defeating these tough enemies isn't worth the fight. Continue heading
south to find the stairway leading up. It takes you through a linear
hallway with another stairway leading up.

This floor has two stairways leading up, a fork in the road if you
will. First off, take the stairway to the northwest. While in the
outside section, equip the hammer and hit the fifth pillar to the
east. You'll know it's the correct one if it breaks. This is crucial
for progressing past a hallway up ahead. Now, go back the way you came
and in the room where you took the northwest stairway, take the
southeast stairway. The next room is a long, linear hallway that
would've previously damaged Aron's health, had you not broke open that
pillar. Rauba can also be found here and provides information on how
to make the hallway more amenable while restoring Aron's health.
Beyond this hallway is another, shorter, linear hallway with a single
stairway leading up.

This floor contains a tricky transporting mirror puzzle that you'll
get to in due time. First, you can head to the west and speak to an
old man. Then, head to the east and prepare for another boss fight,
this time against I-Ball. It's a floating orb that shoots smaller orbs
at Aron. I found the key was to stick close to him and run around in
circles, striking his edges. This should allow safety from his attacks
while quickly reducing his health. Afterwards, obtain the Rod and
another Book of Ys, the Book of Jemma. Now you can begin the mirror
puzzle!

So, walk into the only mirror you can at this point, at the south end
of this room. Then, walk all the way to the south and enter the mirror
to the east. Travel southwest into a room that leads to a linear
mirror hallway, eventually to a room that contains a treasure chest
with Silver Armor. With that, all of the Silver equipment has been
reobtained! Walk back into the mirrors and you should be teleported
back to the beginning of the maze. Reenter the first mirror and
instead of walking all the way to the south, enter the mirror to the
southwest. Between the two new mirrors, take the eastern one and
immediately walk back into it. Head north and take the stairway
leading up.

Traverse this linear floor, taking the stairway leading up. You'll be
on a floor with another fork in the road, but before making a
decision, head all the way south and open the treasure chest
containing the Battle Shield. Walk back the way you came, taking the
stairway to your east. This route contains a linear pathway that takes
Aron to the poetess Reah. The Evil Ring must be equipped to open the
door she's behind. She gives Aron the Monocle, which allows him to
read the Books of Ys. She also recommends using Silver equipment when
battling Dark Dekt. With the Monocle, you can read the unread Books of
Ys, realizing now Luther Jemma must be sought out; time to backtrack a
long ways!

Backtrack to the outside section where you busted a pillar with the
hammer. This is just before the long hallway that potentially damaged
Aron. Whereas you were only instructed to break the pillar in the
outside section and retreat then, now you must travel up. The rooms
you pass through are somewhat large but ultimately, linear.
Eventually, you'll reach Luther Jemma who gives Aron an Amulet. This
will open the door to Dark Dekt. Now, backtrack all the way to the
second mentioned fork in the road, just before you spoke to Reah; it
was the stairway northwest of the Battle Shield treasure chest.

Follow this hallway, opening the treasure chest with a potion to the
north if you so desire. The next room will have two options and you'll
start by taking the eastern stairway up. This leads to a room with
Battle Armor. Afterwards, come back and take the western stairway up.
In the next hallway, a section of the wall will blow open and enemies
will filter out. The Flame Sword is inside and you definitely want it
for what little remains of the Tower. Continue on until you reach
another mirror transportation puzzle. Take the farthest southwestern
mirror available and you should be fine. Be sure to save as another
boss fight is coming up, this time with Heady.

Heady consists of two heads that float around, protected by damaging
orbs that circulate around each head. He's only susceptible to damage
when the heads overlap. My best attempts happened whenever I kept Aron
within the outline of one of the heads at all times. I was able to
strike a time or two when they unified and avoid the orbs of one of
the heads, guaranteed. Afterwards, there's nothing else but the final
confrontation: the fight against Dark Dekt! Take the long hallway
leading northwest of Heady's room and you'll soon reach Dark Dekt's
chamber. It goes without saying but I'll say it anyways, make sure
you're fully healed and you've saved. Also, equip all your Silver
equipment. Although you'd think the Flame Sword, Battle Shield, and
Battle Armor would be stronger, and they are, the Silver equipment is
more effective against Dark Dekt.

Dark Dekt is a tough boss, but I had a lot of fun trying to best him.
After a brief monologue, he'll begin flying around the platform Aron's
landlocked onto, shooting fireballs all the while. What's more, when
you successfully damage him, a piece of the platform directly
underneath him disappears, causing Aron to fall if he's on that
section. Dark Dekt takes a lot of damage and on my best attempts, I
damaged him as close to the edges as possible. If pieces fell off at
the edges, it was no big deal. I ran into trouble when I'd attack him
willy-nilly, causing random pieces of the platform to vanish. This
made it tough for me to line back up with him and sometimes, boxed me
in so I couldn't move at all! It's definitely a challenging boss
fight, but not terribly difficult. After his defeat, witness the
ending and take solace in returning peace to the Kingdom of Ys.
Congratulations!

7.      CONCLUSION

In conclusion, I'd like to thank the following individuals, websites,
and companies:

*       My family and friends, for everything.

*       Nihon Falcom and Sega for developing and publishing a damn fine
action-RPG.

*       GameFAQs for hosting this walkthrough, and countless others that
have been useful in my gaming adventures.

*       Clint Dyer for publishing the only other walkthrough on GameFAQs
for this game and aiding me on my journey in the Kingdom of Ys.

*       www.smspower.org for hosting an invaluable set of maps for this
game, and for being a great resource regarding the Sega Master
System in general.

*       www.segaretro.org for hosting scans of the manual and the
original newsletter detailing the location of the Golden
Pedestal. The former was something I found particularly useful
considering my copy of the game lacked a manual.

*       You, for reading all the way to this point!

And finally, a bit of self-promotion: you can read my video game
reviews, previews, and any other related material I publish at
www.mybrainongames.com. I've also taken to recording let's plays for
video games and these can be found by searching John Engelman on
YouTube. As mentioned, I recorded one of this very game! You can reach
me through all manner of social media or gaming platform as well. If
you have trouble locating me, just drop me an email. Once again,
thanks for reading!

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