This FAQ is copyright me, and not you. Please don't rip off my work. I own this,
and you need to ask me permission before posting, copying, or modifying this FAQ
for any use other than personal. If you have any questions, comments, or
corrections, please direct them to me at (koiulpoi@gm|nospam|ail.com).
Versions:
1.2
Thanks to TSAdmiral, I have added information about the location of all
three ultimate gems to the end of this guide.
1.1
Thanks to Maktaka, I added information about the Demon Sword, the second
level of artifact sword.
1.0
Initial writeup.
!!SPOILER ALERT!!
Do note that this guide contains SPOILERS! I make no effort to hide them,
either. If you haven't played the game before, you probably don't need this
guide to tell you what's new - it's all new to you, anyways.
!!SPOILER ALERT!!
Being a lover of this great game on the Xbox, I couldn't help myself but pick
it up for PC. And, having had it two days and beaten it twice already, I felt
it was still just as good a game, made a bit better by some of the additions and
tweaks, and a bit worse as well. Having beaten the game seven times now, I felt
qualified to document the changed from the Xbox to the PC versions. Here they
are, to the best of my knowledge:
Aesthetic/Interface/System Changes:
-Tweaked Bloom lighting
-Focus mode in town now has transparent copies of yourself following you,
further accenting the "speed" illusion.
-New blur effect for all focus modes
-When using Dire Flame or Ice Shard, Fire or Ice will appear on the character's
body. This also allows for quick identification of what styles your enemies are
using.
-The entire interface can now be used with the mouse, allowing for quicker
access
-Up to ten styles can be assigned to the numbers, as opposed to the Xbox's four
on the D-Pad
-Saves the last 100 autosaves, as opposed to the Xbox's 5
-Ability to play the game in High-Res (up to 1600x1200), and with filtering
-A reverberation effect for certain rooms
-A new world map interface - although, this amounts to little, as you should
have no reason to go back to Tien's landing once you've reached the Imperial
City.
-Monk Zheng selectable for everyone, even those without the preorder.
-Removal of the Monk Staff "Tien's Justace"
-Removal of the bonus audio played during the credits, along with the "punch a
mountain in space" line by Master Li. Perhaps these are unlocked by beating
the game on Jade Master mode.
-Jade Master Mode - a type of "New Game+" option, allowing the player to start a
new game, keeping all the styles, points put into them, techniques, and stat
points. The character's alignment is reset to zero, the level is reset to one,
and all essence gems are removed. The game's difficulty is also much higher as
well, being locked on "Jade Master" mode, and the minigame difficulty being set
on "Grand Master". To unlock Jade Master mode, beat the game on any difficulty,
and then at the character creation screen, click "Master" and choose the Master
Save.
New Enemies:
Rhino Demon:
The rhino demon is big, slow, and does heavy damage, but overall not a very
tough enemy, due to the fact that it is easily interrupted. The rhino usually
replaces horse demons, the notable locations being the Pirate Workshop, the Fox
Spirit Heaven, and the "demon path" in Dirge. Those who preordered the game get
this as a style. In my optinion, since the style suffers the same problems the
enemy does, it is not a very good style. It is outclassed by the Horse Demon
style (damage shield, high damage output, fast), which is gained about the time
when you have enough Chi for transformation styles to be useful. However, it is
very useful for escaping some effects that demons are immune to - switch in and
out of the style quickly.
Ghost Lord:
A ghost much more resembling the western idea of ghosts, the ghost lord is a foe
to be reconed with. While it lacks the ranged ability of the Lost Spirit, its
high damage, quick strikes, and plentiful health make it much more of a nuisance
than its weaker counterparts. The ghost lord replaces lost spirits in a few
areas such as the Great Southern Forest, the Necropolis, and the "madness"
before Dirge.
New Styles:
The player is given a heads-up on the existance of new martial styles almost as
soon as they start the game. Right outside the door to Master Li's room is a new
chest, with a plot item entitled "Martial Styles" inside. It is a scroll that
details that there are two new styles, Viper and Iron Palm, that these styles
are mutually exclusive, and that three scrolls must be found before either can
be used.
Viper:
You've seen plenty of human enemies use this style before, mostly high-level
Lotus Assassins and Imperial Soldiers. When using Viper, your hands have green
rings around them. Overall, Viper is a rather good style. It is quick, does
decent damage (especially with Chi strikes), and poisons your enemies. In the
"Student" and "Master" difficulties especially, the poison is especially
helpful. The only enemies immune to the poison are those immune to martial
styles (which this is, btw - it can complete harmonic combos), meaning you can
poison anything but golems. No more wasting Chi on switching to Toad Demon to
poison your enemies! Another great feature of the Viper style is the incredible
speed of its power attack. It is one of, if not the fastest power attack in the
game. You also move forward a decent amount, making this a great finisher to
harmonic combos. Its area attack, while quick, unfortunatly does not poison
enemies. Obtaining Viper, however, is no easy task. You must make some closed
fist choices along the way to find it, and you won't even be able to enjoy it
fully until the end of the game. You must obtain the three scrolls detailing
its use, and you will then gain the style.
Eye of the Viper - found in a chest in the cave where you defeated Gao the
Lesser, right next to his dead body.
Fang of the Viper - given for choosing the Closed Fist option for the "rescue
Fuyao from the slavers" sidequest.
Scale of the Viper - rewarded for defeating Grand Inquisitor Jia.
Iron Palm:
The opposite of Viper, this martial style is somewhat mediocre in comparison.
Your character assumes a low, crouching stance, and flails his arms at his
opponents. The strikes themselves are a medium speed, faster than those of White
Demon but slower than Legendary Strike. The damage is also medium - neither good
nor overly bad. For playing on the harder difficulties you will need Chi strikes
to make up for this style's flaws. In some areas, due to elevation, you may have
trouble hitting floating ghosts if they are too far above you due to this
style's low stance. Iron Palm's heavy attack may be considered either a blessing
or a curse, depending on your play style. Your character runs forward a good
distance and then thrusts his chest out, a bit reminiscient of the Toad Demon
form. This allows you to cover distance in combat quickly, but not many enemies
will keep blocking long enough for this to be fully effective. Playing on
Student difficulty, however, you can use this attack all day without worry.
Iron Palm's area attack moves the player forward both before and after the blast
is released. This may be viewed as an advantage by some, but I consider it a
disadvantage - it's harder to gague what enemies will be within your area attack
this way. Like Viper, Iron Palm requires that you find three scrolls before you
can use it. These scrolls are usually the Open Palm path, as opposed to Viper's.
I personally find that a bit strange as Gao the Lesser uses this style, as he's
about as Closed Fist as you can get.
Iron Palm - the Anvil: found in the Spirit Cave, in a chest in the final room.
Iron Palm - the Forge: rewarded for choosing he Open Palm option in the "rescue
Fuyao from the slavers" sidequest.
Iron Palm - (can't remember): rewarded for defeating Kai Lan the Serpent at the
end of the Arena.
Additional Weapon Styles:
Demon Staff:
A second level artifact weapon for the staff tree, this is found in bones
outside the Unfinished Tomb in the Necropolis - very close to Fading Moon.
The Demon Staff looks very similar to the one Sagacious Zu wields. The staff
offers 50% damage over the basic staff skills (25% over the Flawless). The
downside Is even greater focus cost over the Flawless. If the Staff is your main
weapon, you may want to obtain this. Regardless, there's no way to go back if
you pick this up. However, if you have enough focus to go around, you can skip
buying the flawless, rush straight to the Necropolis, and save yourself 7500
silver.
Demon Sword:
A second level artifact weapon for the sword tree. You can find this in the
"Madness" section of the spirit realm. From the cannon near your starting
position, head straight north until you find other broken cannons and dead
bodies. It is found on some "bones" in this area. This sword looks identical
to the one wielded by Prince Kin, and the large one wielded by Death's Hand.
Like the Demon Staff, it offers 50% extra damage over the base sword skill,
(25% over the Dragon Sword). Likewise, it also drains more focus. If you are
using the sword as your main weapon, I still recommend you buy the Dragon
Sword as soon as you can - it will greatly help you through your other
encounters in the imperial city.
Balance Changes:
-Human ghosts are now immune to support styles.
-Lost Spirits "green" shots now home in less than they used to.
-Enemies are now a bit smarter, and will block more.
Ultimate Gems:
New to the PC version are "Ultimate" versions of the basic gems. All of these
gems give you +12 to its related stat.
Ultimate Scholar Gem:
Found in a bamboo cask near the stove of the pilgrims rest inn.
Ultimate Monk Gem:
Found in the Necropolis, north of the tomb of Ji Xin, just outside the gates
to the 'tomb of the dignified collector' courtyard. Facing the gates, search
to the left in the bushes. The +12 gem is found on bones.
Ultimate Warrior Gem:
Found during the escape from the Lotus Assassin fortress. After killing Grand
Inquisitor Jia and the first wave of Lotus Assassins, face the doorway that
leads to the upstairs area. Head into the first room on your left, and you
will find that you can now smash the jar in this room. A final +12 gem is
yours.
