FAQ - Guide for Mystic Heroes

				Battle Houshin (GameCube FAQ)

				(A.K.A. "Mystic Heroes" in the U.S.)

				Produced By Koei



	By Paul Fidika (e-mail: [email protected])
	Copyright 2002 by Paul Fidika. 


		If you want to contribute to this FAQ or make a copy of it in
		whole or in part, e-mail me and ask! Thanks, and enjoy!

		Note: If anyone has this game and knows Japanese, e-mail me!
		Because I really need someone who knows Japanese to help me
		translate parts of this game!


			Outline

	I. 	Characters
	II. 	The Stuff on the Screen
	III.	Basic Controls
	IV.	Enemies
	V.	Sub-Bosses
	VI.	BIG-Bosses
	VII.	The Magic System
	VIII.	Weapons
	IX.	Super-high Combo Tips
	X.	Menu Translations
	XI.	Game Background Info
	XII.	FAQ Credits


			I. Characters

			Shiga
Gender: Male
Weapon: Sword
Magic Type: Wind
Description: 	Shiga is basically the main characer in this game, and his 
partner is Reiran.
		Also, he is the most well-rounded character in the game 
statistically, so he's
		a good choice for beginners.

Attack:		3/4
Magic:		3/4
Jump / Speed:	2/4


			Reiran
Gender: Female
Weapon: 
Magic Type: Ice
Description:	Innocent litle Reiran hangs around with Shiga for most of the 
storyline, and
		specializes in ice-type moves. She's not particularly powerful in 
physical
		attacks, but she makes up for that with her powerful magic.

Attack:		1/4
Magic:		4/4
Jump / Speed:	3/4


			Nata
Gender: Female
Weapon: Glaive
Magic Type: Fire
Description:	Nata is Taikobou's partner, and she specializes in fire attacks. 
Apparantly,
		Nata once was a little boy who died as was later reincarnated 
using lotus
		segments. S/he's my favorite character, don't you think s/he's 
just so kawaii
		^_- !! She has the best physical attacks in the game, and is a 
great jumper, but
		her magic is quite weak.

Attack:		4/4
Magic:		1/4
Jump / Speed:	3/4


			Taikobou
Gender: Male
Weapon: Bamboo Stick
Magic Type: Thunder
Description:	Taikobou is Nata's partner, and specializes in Thunder, so he has 
some pretty
		sweet magic attacks. Comes highly recomended! Unfortunetly he's 
god-awful slow
		and couldn't jump his way out of a paper bag...

Attack:		3/4
Magic:		4/4
Jump / Speed:	1/4



			II. The Stuff on the screen

-Red Meter:	This is your remaining HP, once it is completely depleted, you 
will die.

-Green Meter:	This is your remaining MP, it will be depleted when you use magic 
attacks, but
		you will refill it every time you hit an enemy or if you charge 
up.

-4 Spheres:	You'll notice 4 spheres by your Magic and Life meters, these show 
what magic
		attacks you have equiped. Green - Wind, Red - Fire, Blue - Ice, 
Yellow - Thunder
		The spheres will flash when you use them as well, each of the 4 
spheres
		corresponds to a different magic attack.

-Area Meter:	Look in the top right-hand corner of the screen, you'll see a 
meter which turns
		from red to blue. As you defeat more enemies, the red part will 
start to take
		over, and the blue part will come back as more enemies appear. 
This is basically
		an indicator as to how many enemies are in the area as in 
comparison to the
		number of friends you have in the area (you're red, enemies are 
blue).



			III. Basic Controls

Basic Attacks: 	Mash the A button to use your weapon's basic attacks. Try 
pressing the A button
		with the control stick in different directions or while jumping 
to perform
		different attacks. Go easy on the GC controller, especially when 
I own it!!!

Jumping: 	Press the B button to jump up, which is useful if you're climbing 
up a mountain
		or trying to avoid an enemy's attack. To do a long jump (which 
you will need to
		cross large gaps in later levels) release the control stick and 
all buttons,
		then press the B button and the control stick forward at the same 
time. Your
		character should then jump forward, easily clearing most gaps 
between platforms.

Blocking:	Hit the R Button to make your character block. Physical attacks 
will not harm
		you while you're blocking (well, MOST of them anyway), although 
it will not
		block attacks from the side or back.

Rolling:	Hit the R Button while pushing the control stick in any 
direction. Your
		character will then roll in that direction. While you're rolling, 
you cannot be
		harmed, so it is an excellent evasionary tactic. Or if you're 
trying to escape
		a horde of enemies this does wonders.

Normal Magic:	Press the Y Button to perform a normal magic attack. A blast will 
shoot out in
		front of you, dealing a little damage. Not that great of an 
attack if you ask
		me. It also only works in closer range.

Lock-on Magic:	Hold down the Y Button to enter first-person mode, where you'll 
get to target
		several enemies at once. Then release the button to shoot out 
several magic
		blasts at them (thunder is my favorite, since unlike the other 3, 
it teleports
		above them, and doesn't need to travel through the air, meaning 
it can't be
		obstructed by other things like trees or houses). First person 
mode will always
		appear whichever way the CAMERA is facing, not the way your 
character was
		facing, oddly enough.

Weapon Magic:	Press the X Button and your character will begin to twirl their 
staff around
		while it is "lit-up" with magic. You are invincible while you are 
doing this,
		and it will work until you run out of magic (if you have infinite 
magic, you
		can do this forever!). It's quite powerful and great for mowing 
down hordes of
		enemies at once. If your magic meter is full, press the X Button 
and your
		character will do a special "dancing move", in which you will 
lose control of
		your character as they spin around hitting everything in sight. 
This is a very
		powerful attack!

Bombing Magic:	Jump up in the air by pressing B, and then hit the X Button to 
perform a bombing
		magic attack. Magic will shoot down dealing damage to everyone in 
the area below
		you. It consumes lots of MP usually, but it is the most powerful 
and impressive
		magic attack in the game!

Camera Control:	You can rotate the camera around your character using the C-
stick, and you can
		center the camera behind your character at anytime by mashing the 
L-button.



			IV. Enemies

Blue Samurai: 	These are probably the weakest of all the enemies you will face. 
They bear
		swords, are rather slow, and have little HP.

Black Samurai: 	You can usually tell them apart from their Blue Samurai 
counterparts by their 
		darker armor color and plummed helmets. They usually bear swords, 
although I've
		seen them use Glaive's a few times as well. They have more HP 
than their Blue
		counterparts, and also attack faster. Their slightly more 
dangerous, but still,
		not to much to worry about.

Archer:		Archer's are basically the Blue and Black Samurai, only equiped 
with a Bow
		instead. They can attack from a distance, hurting you while 
you're fighting the
		other samurai with swords. Generally, you should take the Archers 
out first to
		save yourself a headache or two.

Silver Wolf: 	Wolves are fast, but aren't particularly dangerous. They usually 
just jump at
		you once, whereas the Samurai will take a few swipes at you. You 
won't be
		attacked by more than 5 or 6 wolves at a time though, unlike the 
Samurai who
		attack in massive hordes.

Black Wolf: 	Basically the same as the Silver Wolves, only they have a bit 
more HP, and look
		cooler too. Black wolves are fairly rare compared to their Silver 
counterparts
		though.

Undead Samurai:	You won't see these guys until a bit later in the game, but when 
you do, you'll
		learn to hate them. They have one evil red eye, and only have 1 
arm, which
		carries a katana. When you hit them though, they won't get 
knocked back or around
		usually like the Samurai or wolves will. You hit them and hit 
them, but they
		still stand and slash their swords at you! Not only do they have 
lots of HP
		compared to normal Samurai, but they also have a really annoying 
spinning slash
		attack (sort of like Link's from Legend of Zelda). Even worse, 
after they die,
		they can be revived by Sorcerers!

Undead Archer:	These are basically the Undead Samurai, only they are equiped 
with bows instead.
		Also, if you get too close, they may attack you close range. 
Again, you should
		usually take these guys out first.

Mongol Sorcerer: These sorcerers dress mostly in gray, and have the ability to 
shoot projectile
		magic at you as well as hit you with their rapier blades. 
However, I don't think
		they're as dangerous as the normal kind of sorcerer, just keep 
attacking them
		in close range, and they'll go down fast enough.

Sorcerer:	The sorcerers carry staffs, and shoot projectile magic (which 
isn't particularly
		dangerous). They will attack with their staffs physically every 
now and then,
		but they mostly just block your attacks. Use your magic attacks 
to rip right
		through their defenses though. They have quite a bit of HP, but 
they're weak
		against physical attacks. Also, watch out for their most 
dangerous power: they
		can revive Undead Samurais which you've already killed! How 
annoying is that?
		(Note: I've also seen Sorcerers be revived, but only in level 6-
3, I don't think
		it can be done in any other level.)

Plant:		The Plants are stuck in the ground, so they won't chase after 
you. However, they
		will shoot little bombs filled with purple, poisonous gas at you. 
They aren't
		that big of a threat, more an annoyance than anything.

Bore:		The Bore's are large, and cannot attack in close range, however, 
if you give
		them a little time, they'll charge themselves up and run at you 
(which knocks
		you down, does plenty of damage, and is pretty annoying). Don't 
give them the
		chance to charge at you, and take them out at close range.

Canons:		The canons are large, automatic firing, and mounted, so they can 
only shoot in
		one direction. However, they are usually placed strategically, so 
they get
		VERY annoying. For example, you might be fighting on one side of 
a valley, while
		they're on the other side, firing away at you! Their explosions 
are large, and
		knock you down if they hit. I'd recomend running ahead in a level 
and taking
		out the canons before you go on to take out the rest of the 
enemies.

Specters:	Specters always hang out in groups of 4, and they have the 
ability to teleport
		once they've been agitated. They usually just teleport around you 
and attack
		you, disappearing and reapparing. They're pretty easy to beat 
though, just hit
		the X Button to do a weapon-spinning magic attack, and that is 
that.

Fighter:	These are one of the most annoying and tenacious enemies you'll 
have to face.
		They don't have any weapons, they only attack with their fists. 
However, they're
		VERY fast, and love to dodge around a lot (making them hard to 
hit). 
		Furthermore, they can be a real threat if they attack you in a 
large pack. I'd
		recomend avoiding close combat with them (unless you're using 
magic) and just
		hit them from long range using your magic projectile attacks.

Jellyfish:	Once these little guys get excited, they light themselves up with 
electricity
		and zap you. If you get surrounded by a few of them at once, they 
can really
		trap you and deal some damage. Either take them out long-range, 
or if they're
		not electrically charged yet, rush them and keep hitting them 
until they're
		dead. They aren't to common, and you'll usually only see them in 
groups of up
		to 4 or 5 at once, so don't worry about them (although they can 
really trap
		your friends if you aren't keeping watch over them).



			V. Sub-Bosses


Bear:		Well these guys are certainly stronger than the average bear! 
These evil Chinese
		bears are large, and have a powerful swiping attack, as well as a 
powerful
		charging attack (like the Bore's). They can also jump up into the 
air and come
		crashing down, dealing damage to a wide area. They'll be a boss 
in the first few
		levels, but in the later levels, you'll have to fight several of 
them at once.
		When facing them, keep hitting them quickly with your weapon so 
they don't have
		a chance to recover. When they get knocked down, hit them with 
your weapon using
		magic and continue to juggle them. If you can't juggle them 
anymore, be sure to
		jump or roll away from them while they're getting, because, like 
most 
		sub-bosses, they like to swipe at you when they get up.

Iron Giant:	The Iron Giants, are well, Giant! They have plenty of armor, HP, 
and a very
		large sword to boot. They can also use an annoying tornado 
attack, where they
		spin around, hitting anything around them. You'll have to face up 
to 4 of them
		in certain levels. Sometimes they'll be invincible (protected by 
a force field)
		in which case you'll have to hit them with long range attacks or 
go after
		another Iron Giant who isn't invincible until their invincibility 
wears off
		(normal attacks will just bounce off). They have 3 sort of "eyes" 
on their
		chest, if they're red, that means you can hurt them, but if 
they're a dull
		purple, that means they're probably invincible. When you fight 
them, I'd
		recomend using the same strategy as the bear (only with a little 
more caution,
		because they're more dangerous).

Golemn:		The Golemns can be pretty tough at times. Their primary move is 
to tunnel under
		ground and then pop back up underneath you. When you see them 
doing this, run
		around so that they miss you. They also have the Iron Giant's 
tornado attack,
		and they can use a really cool-looking blaster attack where they 
shoot magic
		beams out of their chests. They don't have as much HP as the Iron 
Giants though.
		Block or roll around (dodge) until they're vulnerable to attack 
(such as when
		they're powering up their magic attacks or they've just finished 
with a tornado
		attack). Then attack them unmercifully, much like the Iron Giant 
or Bear before
		them.

Demon Beast:	These guys look sort of like a skinny Bear, but they have a more 
precise punch
		attack, unlike the Bears who just wildely swing their arms back 
and forth.
		These "Demon Beasts" can also use a thunder attack, where they 
surround
		themselves with beams of thunder (you can see them charging it 
up). When they're
		vulnerable, keep hitting them, unmercifully juggling them  in the 
air (if you 
		can get them up against a wall, it'll be a lot easier to juggle 
them). Also,
		when they get back up again, they'll take a swing at you, so be 
sure to stand
		your ground when they're getting up agian. Also, when you kill 
them, they don't
		just die, first they'll get up again and take a swing or two at 
you BEFORE
		finally dieing. And finally, they have a "body slam" attack, 
where the jump up
		in the air and come crashing down ontop of you if you're not 
careful!



			VI. BIG-Bosses

Pheonix (3-3):	The Pheonix will only appear in level 3-3 for Shiga and Reiran, 
Nata and
		Taikobou will have some other enemies at the end of this level 
instead. He's
		very large and frightening, but don't worry, he's pretty weak 
really. When you
		make it to him, hide behind something solid and target him with 
your projectile
		magic. When you run low on magic, just charge up again! He'll 
fire away at you
		with his fire-balls or fire-breath, but he won't be able to touch 
you. This
		won't work for all targeting projectile magic though, so I'd 
recomend equipping
		some lightning magic at the beginning of the level.

Pheonix (8-1):	This will be Nata and Taikobou's first time facing the Pheonix, 
but it will be
		Shiga and Reiran's second. The Pheonix has now become 
the "flaming Pheonix",
		and he certainly looks a lot cooler! Use the same tactics here as 
the first time
		you fought him. However, he's learned a new move this time which 
I call the
		"Apocolypse". After a while, he'll fly up into the sky, changing 
his location,
		and rain down hundreds of flaming meteors on top of you! Even 
with this new
		complication, the old strategy should do just fine. If you want 
to have a little
		fun with him though, run up under his feet and hack away!

Chimera (1-3):	Nata and Taikobou will have to fight this guy right off the bat, 
but Shiga and
		Reiran won't have to worry about this guy for a while. This enemy 
isn't
		particularly intelligent, the big undead tiger basically just 
runs around in
		circles. Stay in the middle of his circles, and he won't even 
touch you. Once
		there, charge up your magic and blast at him when he comes by. Or 
if you want,
		stand in front of his path, and when he comes by, he'll charge at 
you. At which
		time you should activate your magic weapon attack, which will 
make you
		temporarily invincible, and give you a few good shots at him 
while he's down.
		You'll get the hang of it eventually, don't worry about it.

Chimera (8-2):	All characters will have to face this guy, who is basically a 
souped-up version
		of the Chimera in level 1-3. He's larger, cooler-looking, and he 
now sports
		several new attacks. First you'll notice that he's a bit faster, 
and he has
		some new magical projectile attacks (most notebly his magic 
beam). The same old
		startegies apply here, even if he is a bit harder this time, 
you've become
		much more stronger and skilled as well, haven't you? Take him 
down!

Shenlong:	The Shenlong is the LARGEST and COOLEST looking boss in the whole 
game, but it
		is also the EASIEST boss of all, unfortunetly. The Shenlong is 
basically an
		enormous dragon which (obviously) breaths fire. The Shenlong only 
appears in
		Shiga and Reiran's storylines, so Nata and Taikobou don't need to 
worry about
		fighting him. You can shoot at him from a distance using your 
projectile
		magic, but I'd generally recomend spending most of your spare 
time charging up
		your magic meter. His first attack will be to stick his tail up 
through the
		ground at you (sort of like a Golemn). Dodge it, and then wack 
the heck out of
		his tail (you can deal 1/3 damage to him pretty fast this way), 
use your magic
		attacks on his tail if you want. His other attack is to bring his 
head down and
		strike at you. When he does this, use your physical magic so that 
you're
		invincible, and so that you hit him. He'll then be stunned for a 
few seconds,
		allowing you to deal enormous amounts of damage to him. Pretty 
easy, right?

Final Boss (1):	I'm going to call this guy "Final Boss", since he IS the final 
boss, after all.
		That's right, that one little demon child who transformed in 7-3, 
now transforms
		again using the magic orb in level 8-3. And as most final bosses 
are prone to
		do, he has multiple forms! Oddly enough, I think his first form 
is his hardest
		and they get easier from there!

		Rush in towards this scary fella', jump up in the air and wack 
him in the head.
		If you're not that great of a jumper, you can hit his brown stem. 
His head and
		the brown stem coming out if it are the most vulnerable parts. 
His "DNA Strand"
		thingy cannot be hurt, nor can his arms. When in close range, 
he'll usually
		just swing his arm around at you, which is easily dodged by 
rolling or jumping.
		Keep coming at him and hitting him close-up. He'll probably spin 
around,
		swinging his tail at you, which you can roll over or jump over. 
LONG RANGE
		ATTACKS DO NOT WORK, DON'T BOTHER! If you're going to use any 
magic at all,
		use it to power-up your weapon or use a bombing magic attack (the 
one where you
		jump up in the air) against him. Get his HP down to 3/4ths, and 
he'll transform.
		As far as his long-range attacks go, he can rush at you, dealing 
a little
		damage, or he can shoot some magic blasts at you, or he can do 
this weak water-
		sucking move... or at least that's what it looks like... Bah 
don't worry about
		those, if you keep in close range, he'll never even use them!

Final Boss (2):	In his second form, he's lost that really annoying spining tail-
attack I'm sure
		you've all come to hate, and in it's place he has another 
annoying magic attack.
		First, he'll sit there and power up for a few seconds, and then 
he'll release
		it, shooting a bunch of little magical carrots (?!) your way. 
Just roll around
		these, jump over them, or hack your way through them. While he's 
powering up,
		if you get to close to him you'll be blown back (so wait close to 
him, but not
		TOO close to him while he's powering up). Once he's released his 
attack, he'll
		be VERY vulnerable to attacks. I beat him using Nata, and mostly 
what I did
		was jump up on his back or on top of his head (where he can't hit 
you) and
		wacked the CRAP OUT OF HIM. Not all characters are able to do 
this as well as
		Nata though (since Nata is an EXCELLENT jumper). Meanwhile, he'll 
also swing his
		arm around at you (like last time, just roll). Another one of his 
new attacks
		allows him to go underneath the platform you're on, then shoot up 
at you. Again,
		roll and run to evade this. Finally, he'll go under the platform 
and shoot ice
		up at you! Now, what do you think you do? Duh! Run and roll 
around like a maniac,
		as always! Beat him down until he has about 1/3 HP left, and 
he'll transform
		once again.

Final Boss (3):	His third form is a lot like his second form. His new magic-power 
up attack
		shoots out blades of energy across the ground. Keep a good 
distance away from
		him when he's using this attack. To evade it roll and.... ok, 
I've said THAT
		about a hundred times already, so I shouldn't have to say it 
again! Same weak
		points, and a lot of his attacks are the same as well. Finally, 
he has a new
		attack which lets him shoot blue blasts out his left-arm (which 
are homing).
		These are pretty annoying when you're in close range, but they 
fade quickly
		enough (you probably shouldn't attack him while he's using thse). 
Beat him to
		within an inch of his life to make him transform AGAIN.

Final Boss (4):	The Boss will now release his little DNA-ball things, which block 
your path
		to him and cast magic against you (although they aren't 
particularly dangerous).
		Light up your weapon using some of your magic to cut through his 
defenses then
		bludgeon is head a few times to take him down. Congratulations, 
you've beaten
		the game!


			VII. The Magic System

All right, first off you should realize that every time you hit a character with 
a magic attack,
you gain experience points for that type of magic attack. The higher the combo 
you get, the more
experience points you'll receive, and the faster you'll level up that magic-
attack. Every
character starts out at level 1, and the maximum level is level 4. Different 
weapons have
different level magic attacks, so if your bombing magic level is on at 3, and you 
try to equip
a level 4 bombing magic attack, you won't be able to use it! However, when your 
character gets
a level bonus for magic attacks which are in alignment with them. For example, if 
you're using
Nata, and your bombing magic level is 3, and you try to equip a level 4 FIRE 
bombing attack,
then you CAN USE IT! That is because Nata's element is fire! Get it?

Now, when you're playing story mode, go to the middle of the the top 3 blue-
selections. Here
you can equip two different weapons. Select weapon 1 or 2, then a large menu of 
all the weapons
which you've unlocked thus far will appear. To see what a move looks like, go to 
that weapon
and the attack and press the Y Button. You'll get to see a demonstration of that 
move. Keep in
mind that higher-level magic attacks will consume more MP, but will usually be a 
lot more
powerful. Go to the move you want, and press A, so that the symbol is next to 
that move, so it
will be selected when you combine your two weapons together. If both weapons have 
an empty slot
in the same magic attack, you'll just get your character's default element's 
level 1 attack
there.

Once you've selected the weapons and magic attacks you want, press START to 
combine the two
weapons, and the game will ask you to confirm your selections. Note that weapons 
will also alter
your attributes, such as give you more HP, MP, Attack power, etc. Go to the TOP 
most blue option
before you start any level (in expert or in storyline) to view your character's 
stats. You can
see how much experience you have with each of the 4 magic attacks, what level 
your character is
at, and all of your stats (Red is HP, Green is MP. The other 4 are Physical 
Attack, Physical
Defense, Magic Attack, and Magic Defense).

That concludes today's lesson on magic!


			VIII. Weapons

			Normal Weapons

There are 66 Normal Weapons, which are unlocked after you beat an area in 
storyline mode with
a character (each character has 8 areas). Try to beat storyline mode on medium or 
hard with 
different characters to unlock all of them.


			M-Class Weapons

I've played this game for hours and hours, and I haven't unlocked one of the 10 M-
class weapons
yet! My guess is that you can unlock them by linking your GBA version of Magical 
Houshin to the
Gamecube. Although since I don't have the GBA version of the game, I can't 
prove / disprove this
theory. If anyone could help me out here, I'd really appreciate it!


			S-Class Weapons

S-Class Weapons are some of the most powerful weapons available in the game, and 
they can all be
unlocked by playing survival mode. Earning them can be a bit tricky, so I'd 
recomend going
though the storyline mode at least once before you try out survival mode (so that 
you'll have
all the game-playing-experience and weapons which you'll need).

-S1:		Beat Part 1 of Survival mode. Makes your magic meter regenerate 
when equipped.
-S2:		Beat Part 2 of Survival mode. Makes you run and move twice as 
fast when
		equipped.
-S3:		Beat Part 3 of Survival mode. makes your health meter regenerate 
slowly while
		equipped.
-S4:		?
-S5:		?
-S6:		Beat Bart 3 of Expert Survival mode. Gives you INFINITE MAGIC 
while equipped!!!
	

			IX. Super-high Combo Tips

	Getting Combos are very important in Battle Houshin. The higher the combo 
you get, the
	more experience you will recieve (so you'll level-up faster). Also, 
they're essential
	if you're trying to get a high-score. The combo meter will appear after 
you've made
	4 hits consecutively. I've gotten a combo of over 300, and I've heard 
people can get it
	up to over 600. You'll need to be using some of the higher-level magic 
attacks if you
	want to get much further beyond the 100 combo mark.

	If you want a super-high combo, run through the entire level, so that all 
of the enemies
	see you (so they chase after you), or generate near you. Let them all 
chase after you,
	and then get into a nice wide-open space, so that they can all surround 
you. Then
	perform a magic attack, such as the magic-twirling stick move, the magic 
dancing-move,
	or a magic bombing move. As you get higher combos and kill more enemies, 
more items
	will be generated. Hopefully someone will leave behind for you a nut-item 
(which gives
	you a full magic meter), allowing you to continue with your magic-
madness. One of my
	favorite methods is to first acquire the S6 weapon (beat the third part 
of Expert
	Survival mode), which will give you infinite magic, and then equip it. 
Also, equip the
	level-4 Lightning Bombing attack (when you jump up in the air). Get a 
bunch of guys
	around you, then use the move. The lightning-balls will keep hitting the 
enemies,
	while you can jump up in the air and use the attack again to keep the 
combo going. I
	can easily break the 150 mark with this technique!



			X. Menu Translations


-Continue Game:	This one is easy to find, because every time you turn on the game 
(after the
		first time) your cursor will start here. Pick it and you'll be 
able to continue
		one of 5 saved games.

-Survival Mode:	You'll get to select from 1 of 3 different sets of 4 stages in 
this mode. The
		stages are basically the same ones from the storyline mode, only 
with extra
		bosses added in and loads more enemies. Also, you cannot save in 
between stages,
		so you'll have to go all the way through all 4 levels at once. 
After you beat
		all 3 Survival mode areas, you'll be able to select "Expert 
Survival Mode".
		Just pick Survival mode from the menu, and then choose the lower 
of the two
		options for Expert mode (the top option will give you the regular 
survival
		stages). All your characters start out with maxed out levels, so 
you can use any
		weapon which you've picked up in storyline mode. However, your 
character's stats
		will start out pretty low (you'll have to raise them by 
collecting items on
		your way, or equiping special weapons). It takes about 30 minutes 
to an hour to
		beat an entire area, so get ready to be playing for a while. 
Expert Survival
		mode is pretty easily really once you your hands on some of those 
S-class
		weapons though!

-Extras:	Here you can view your high-scores, character biographies, and 
see everything
		which you've unlocked! If anyone can help me translate the 
character biographies
		I'd really appreciate it!

	-Highscores:	Here you can view various highscores throughout the 
survival and
			storyline stages. The game records the top 5 scores, and 
what character
			earned that score.

			-Time:	See the best records for time!

			-Points: See the best records for points!

			-Kills:	See the highest number of kills.
			
			-Combo:	See the highest number of combos in any given 
level.

	-Character Bio:	You can view the various character's biographies here. 
It's interesting
			if you're into trivial little things like this, it sort 
of reminds me of
			a DVD extra! Again, can anyone help me translate these?!

	-Weapons:	Here you can view a gallery of all the weapons which 
you've unlocked thus
			far. There are 66 normal weapons, 10 M-class weapons, and 
6 S-class
			weapons. More about these in the "weapons" section of 
this FAQ.

	-GBA Link Up:	I've never used this screen, but it lets you hook up to 
Magical Houshin
			through a GBA to Gamecube connector. If anyone has any 
more information
			on this, please forward it to me!

	-Secrets:	Here you can view all of the secrets that you've unlocked 
thus far.
			Hmm... I seem to have a lot of empty slots... maybe 
there's much more
			yet to do?

	-EX Secrets:	This shows another table just like the secrets option, 
only mine is
			COMPLETELY blank this time. I'm guessing it might have 
something to do
			with the GBA link again... or maybe secret characters 
that you've
			unlocked?

-Options menu:	Here you can mess around with Battle Houshin's various settings.

	-Brightness:	Lets you view a screen where you can adjust your TV's 
brightness settings
			so that the image is visible.

	-Sound:		Stereo or Mono, default at Stero.

	-Sound FX:	You can change how loud the sound effects are in the game.

	-BGM:		You can adjust how loud the background-music is in the 
game.

	-Rumble:	Turn the controller's rumble feature on / off.

	-??????:	Actually, I don't know what this last option does, does 
anyone know?


-New Game:	You can start a new storyline game here. The cursor will default 
itself over the
		"New Game" option if you don't have a saved game on your memory 
card. You'll be
		able to pick from Easy, Medium, and Hard versions of storyline 
mode (easy is the
		top, medium is the middle, and hard is the bottom). If you're 
like me, you'll
		start out at hard right away, but if you're not so adept, try 
medium or easy
		first to get a good feel for the game first. After a short intro, 
you'll be able
		select from 1 of 4 character. Have fun!



Storyline Menus:	Here are the translations for the menus when you're in 
storyline mode
			or survival mode.

-Stats:		View your character's stats, experience, etc. here.

-Equip Weapon:	You can equip different weapons here (see the Magic System 
section for more).

-Save:		Save your game in one of 5 slots here (not in survival mode).

-Start Mission:	Begin the next level! Press Y to see a map of the level you're 
about to enter.



Pause Screen Menu:	Not much, but I thought I should at least mention it.

-Friends:	You can see how your friends are doing here!

-Quit:		Yes / No, takes you back to the main menu.



			XI. Game Background Info

In case you're wondering, Battle Houshin's storyline isn't really connected to 
the Japanese
anime "Houshin Engi" at all (the series is currently being released in the U.S. 
by ADV on DVD
under the name "Soul Hunter".). However, it is loosely based on the novel 
titled "Houshin Engi",
a famous and ancient novel written during the era of the Ming Dynastry in China.

Battle Houshin is also coming to the U.S. for Gamecube under the title "Mystic 
Heroes". Also,
the game is being ported over to the Playstation 2. I've heard that Koei will 
also be adding
multi-player elements to the game in these new re-releases of the game (a feature 
which should
have definetly been included in the original), as well as several new secret 
characters.

Also, Koei released in "Magical Houshin" for the GameBoy Advance in Japan in the 
Sring of 2002.
This RPG can also be linked to the Gamecube version to unlock things in both 
games (I'll let
you know what once I get the game. If anyone knows where I can find a ROM of the 
game, e-mail
me!).

"Battle Houshin" can also be translated as "Battle Fengshen", so if you see 
something like
"Magical Fengshen" or "Battle Fengshen", know that it is the same as "Magical 
Houshin" and
"Battle Houshin".

Note: Houshin Engi 2 was just released in Japan for the PS2 on June 27th, 2002.


			Chinese History Lesson and Houshin Engi 2 Information

The Shang Dynasty enjoyed a reign of over 500 years before it fell into 
disrepair. The last 
ruler of the Shang, Di Xin, tortured his people, murdered officials who opposed 
his views, 
and wrecked the legacy he inherited. The Zhou Dynasty eventually rose to replace 
the Shang, 
capped by a coordinated attack which forced Xin to set fire to his castle and die 
within it's
confines. The novel "Fengshen Yanyi" takes the late history of the Shang Dynasty 
and reworks 
events by enhancing them with magic, gods, and superhuman alter-egos. Koei's 
Houshin Engi 2 
follows Yanyi's lead by re-painting historic events with a magical brush.

Basically in the game a dead diety and his followers seek to return to power and 
summon his
mighty army once more. Man, while over in Europe we're doing unimportant things 
like "fighting
the crusades" in the middle ages, those Chinese are fighting off hordes of demons 
and 
demi-gods! Why don't they ever teach you this stuff in school?!


If any information on the U.S. / PS2 version of the game, the novel, or the 
anime, please feel
free to contribute it to me at: [email protected]  !



			XII. FAQ Credits


-Written by: 		Paul Fidika 	([email protected])

-Special Thanks to:	National Console Support (NCSX.com)
			aCidMoUSe
			c1l1t
			rongz
			GreatSage
			Koei,	 for making such a great game!

			And thanks to GameFAQs.com for posting the FAQ!