. Breath of Fire
A. Overview
The original game, the original Ryuu, the original dragon transformation
spells. They're Ryuu's only spells (unlike BoF2 and 3, but like BoF4).
BoF3's dragons are partially taken from these: the bolt of lightning striking
Ryuu and the fact he remains in dragon-form until he reverts. Unlike BoF3,
there is no AP cost to maintain the form.
Ryuu is healed to full HP upon taking dragon-form (and doesn't revert to
his previous HP total when the battle ends), but he gains no extra HP (except
in Agni form), and if the dragon-form dies, so does he. On the other hand,
the SnoDr transformation is a quick and relatively cheap way to refil his HP
(since dragon transformations are done at the start of the round, no matter
what his speed - or ACT score - is, right after healing or defensive spells)
Selecting magic when in dragon form brings up only one command: Revert.
Each dragon has a single breath attack that's done by simply selecting Attack.
This attack does a constant amount of damage, even as Ryuu gains levels,
though the dragon-forms' defense improves as Ryuu gains levels.
B. Pros
All dragons are immune to status changes (except Instant Death).
Dragon-forms have improved defense scores.
Dragon transformation lasts until the end of the battle with no maintance cost
(unless you delibrately select Revert, or if Ryuu is killed in this form). You
pay the AP to transform once, then you stay in the form as long as you like.
Agni does incredible damage (999/round).
C. Cons
Since the dragons' attacks never get any more powerful, early dragons become
useless later on. Even Rudra isn't that good when Ryuu can dish out 700
damage with his normal attack.
The later dragons cost a lot of AP (up to 60), and Ryuu doesn't get much total
AP, even at high levels (he has about 180 or so at level 40). And you can't
use Masters to boost his AP, since they weren't introduced until BoF3. :)
Although dragons cannot be poisoned, cursed, etc., having those condiditions
already in effect will prevent transformation. Furthermore, having these
conditions in effect on any of the party members will prevent Agni from
working.
D. The List
And now, the noodles. Each dragon "breath" mimics the effect of one of the
game's spells, except in damage. This spell will be listed along with the AP
cost and damage. Damage is always an exact number, unless the target is
vulnerable to or resistant to the element.
Defense boosts are calculated based on Ryuu's current Defense score,
including equipped weapons and armor, and even including the Fort spell, if
it was cast before transformation. So if he had, for example, 200 Defense
before transforming, he'd have 200 x 1.2 = 240 as a Thunder Drake. If had 200
Defense, then had Fort cast on him (which adds 20 points to Defense), and
then transformed into a Thunder Drake, he'd have (200 + 20) x 1.2 = 264
Defense. Note that if it had been done the other way (transforming than
casting Fort), he'd only have 260 Defense in dragon-form. So if you're going
to cast defensive spells on Ryuu, get them in before he transforms.
(Defensive spells go before transformation spells in any event, so you can
cast them on the same round).
Attack scores listed are what's given on Ryuu's Status screen if checked while
in dragon-form in battle. What this actually affects is unknown.
Drakes
The Drakes are gained in a Dragon Temple just after the Stone Robot
scenario. Ryuu must fight the Talon (looks like the Gargoyles near the end of
the game) alone to win these dragon spells (there's a healing spring in the
temple, so heal up before you fight). There are no prerequisites for this
battle.
Snow Drake (SnoDr): 7 AP, 100 ice damage to a single target.
Attack score: 40 (!)
Defense boost: 112%
Spell mimicked: Cold
Flame Drake (FlmDr): 10 AP, 115 fire damage to a single target.
Attack Score: 140
Defense boost: 116%
Spell mimicked: Flare
Thunder Drake (ThrDr): 12 AP, 130 electric damage to a single target.
Attack Score: 160
Defense boost: 120%
Spell mimicked: Fry
Obviously, ThrDr is the best to use against bosses, unless you know they're
weak against another element (for example, the Sandworm is weak against Ice,
making the Snow Drake a better choice).
Dragons
The Dragons are acquired in a Dragon Temple found by following the path
between the Dark Dragon pyramid and Nabal Castle. You need the Rod5 (hidden
in Tunlan) to fish for the Dragon Sword (in the well northwest of Romero).
You need to have gotten the Sphere for Gobi (because otherwise, you can't
reach Tunlan). (You can also get the Dragon Helmet from a well near Arad,
and you should already have the Life Armor from the roof of Agua, thanks to
Karn. Less than halfway through the game, and Ryuu has some of his best armor
and weapons already - though the Dragon Sword is nowhere near as good as it is
in later games. It's rather low down on the Best Swords list this time
around). Once you have them, go to the temple and fight Bain, a blue phoenix.
When this "training" is complete, you receive the following abilities:
Ice Dragon (IceDgn): 20 AP, 190 ice damage to all enemies.
Attack score: 180
Defense boost: 124%
Spell mimicked: Ice
Fire Dragon (FirDgn): 27 AP, 210 fire damage to all enemies.
Attack score: 260
Defense boost: 128%
Spell mimicked: Char (creates the interesting effect of a dragon
summoning a dragon)
Bolt Dragon (BltDgn): 30 AP, 225 electric damage to all enemies.
Attack score: 280
Defense boost: 132%
Spell mimicked: Gale
Gold Dragon (GldDgn): 40 AP, 375 damage to all undead enemies only.
Attack score: 300
Defense boost: 136%
Spell mimicked: ZomX
I find the Gold Dragon useless despite its power. The Fire Dragon does extra
damage to undead enemies anyway, for a lower AP cost, and can affect
non-undead in the enemy group as well. Not that you'll be using these
transformation spells in casual combat, unless you have a lot of Acorns.
Rudra
The next Dragon Training session gives you but one dragon form, but
what a form. You should have the Dragon Armor from the town of Spring (fish
off the docks once the town is thawed) - note you just have to have it in your
inventory, not actually equipped. The Life Armor is just as good defensively,
plus it also heals HP as you walk. You should also have the Dragon Shield by
now (from the well encircled by mountains east of Gramor), but it's not
necessary for the training. Nina needs to be able to fly to get both the
Dragon Shield and to get to this training spot.
Got all that? Good. Now fly to the Dragon Temple sitting all by itself
on an island northwest of Gust. Go in, and fight the Avian (a recolored
GrimFowl - it's an ostrich, basically) for this powerful (but, unfortunately,
ultimately useless) spell.
In the Japanese version, this dragon is known as Kaiser - so this form
does appear in every game.
Rudra: 50 AP, 320 damage to all enemies.
Attack score: 400
Defense boost: 140%
Spell mimicked: None directly. Think of Bleu's Comet spell, or any of
Gobi's fish-summoning spells, and replace the rocks/fish with tiny
firebirds.
Agni
Why is Rudra "useless"? Becuase you can get Agni immediately after
getting Rudra. Once you have Rudra, go back to the cave near Romero where you
got the Cleansing Water. Go down to where you got it, and keep going. You'll
go into the water, and find a small Dragon Shrine there (apparently, this is
what is purifying the water). No fights are necessary, but you'll need the
Dragon Helmet and Rudra to qualify.
This spell is unique in that it combines all eight members of your party
into a single centaur-like dragon with recognizable parts of most of them
(Bo's face, Nina's wings, Bleu's tail, Gobi's spines, Ox's horns, and Mogu's
claws). This dragon has about 999 hit points if your party is at decent level
(I'm not quite sure how the game calculates the hit points; it may simply be
three times Ryuu's normal HP total). To use it, every member of your party
must be alive, have no status problems (i.e., not sleeping, cursed, poisoned,
rotting, etc), and not fused with Karn.
In a practical sense, you can do more damage per round with Ryuu as Rudra
(using Mrbl1 to get a critical hit each time), Karn in his Puka fusion (also
using Mrbl1), Bleu casting BoltX, and Nina healing and casting defensive
spells, but using Agni is generally easier and quicker, since Agni is so
powerful both offensively and defensively. (Though using the Rudra / Mrbl1
strategy to beat Myria's true form is a lot more satisfying).
In the Japanese version, its name is "Chikara", or "The Power".
("Ultimate Power" is the connotation)
Agni: 60 AP, 999 damage to all enemies.
Attack score: 999
Defense boost: 200%
Spell mimicked: Gale, followed by 3.5.
ii. Breath of Fire II
A. Overview
A completely different dragon system was introduced in Breath of Fire
II. Maybe the BoF1 dragons were considered too powerful (999 damage per round
indefinitely from a 60 AP initial investement), so they tried to balance them.
My own opinion is that they went too far to try to "fix" things. BoF2 has
arguably the best storyline (albeit a lifeless translation) of the three
(though I do like BoF3's Search For Identity/Who Framed The Dragon Clan?
storyline), but the worst dragon system. The Shaman system is also more
awkward than the Master system or Rei's Weretiger in 3 or Karn's Fusions in 1.
The dragons in this game are simply 'blasts', used much like Nina and
Bleu's attack spells They're single shot spells that transform Ryuu into a
dragon just long enough to dish out damage on his opponents. I say "single
shot" because it eats up all of Ryuu's remaining AP in the process. Damage
done is proportional to the number of AP remaining vs. maximum AP (Ben Siron's
excellent Breath of Fire II Handbook - also on gamefaqs.com - has exact
calculations, but it's approximately base damage times the square of the ratio
of current AP to maximum AP. Or, in English, at half maximum AP, you'll do
one-quarter damage, at one-third AP, you'll do one-ninth damage, etc). These
dragons are more akin to Breath of Fire IV's Dragon Evocations than to the
Transformations in 1, 3, and 4. (Yes, 4 has both Transformations and one-
shot 'blasts') :)
The reasoning, I believe, for Ryuu's weakened dragon spells is that
he's only half-Dragon (his father is a normal human), so his body can't hold
dragon shape for more than a few seconds. Also note that his transformation
pose was reused (though redrawn, of course) in BoF3 as (adult) Ryuu's
transformation pose, just before the lightning bolt strikes.
B. Pros
Damage! These attacks are the most powerful in the game. You're probably not
going to be able to beat K.Sludges without the G.Drgn spell.
They're quicker to use than the other three games, since you don't need to
spend one round to transform.
C. Cons
You can only use them once before needing to refill your AP. This is a huge
drawback, limiting the use of them to once-per-boss-battle-and-not-before. All
the other games in the series let you use the dragons more than that.
There's little variety. Except in one case, there's no reason to use the
Whelps once you get the Dragons, or the Dragons once you get Kaiser
(especially since the AP cost is the same no matter which you use).
Damage done goes down based on the square of the AP ratio. If you use any
AP to heal, or if the opponent uses Drain, or even if you gain a level so AP
is no longer at maximum, you're not going to get the full effect of these
spells. (And the W. Seeds of this game restore 20 AP, but also make you
lose 20 HP when you use them, so they're not the best solution to AP
problems).
D. The Big List Of Dragons
- Whelps
The game calls them 'puppies', but I like the BoF3 name. You get the Whelps
at the same time you find your first Shaman, just after the Save The Villagers
scenario in Capitan. It's part of the storyline, so you can't miss them.
FirPuppy: 256 (base) fire damage to one target
IcePuppy: 256 (base) ice damage to one target
T.Puppy: 256 (base) electric damage to one target
Dragons
When you first get Jean, before going into Simafort, why not hop in
the lake to the north and take a ride down the waterfall? Go on, the swim
will do you good.
If you don't go in when you first get Jean, you'll lose him
temporarily, and you'll have to go through the entire Simafort scenario (which
includes no fewer than four boss enemies) without these forms.
You're not actually required to get these forms, but I can't imagine
why you'd want to skip them. :)
FireDrgn, IceDrgn, and T.Drgn: These three are, for all intents and purposes,
identical. Despite their names, they do not cause elemental damage.
Base damage of 512 to all targets
Kaiser
Again, I use the BoF3 name (because this is clearly an early form of
the dragon seen in KaiserBreath)... and becuase this dragon is Kaiser in the
Japanese version. Why they changed it to the obscure name of G.Drgn
(especially since they never tell you what the G stands for) is unknown.You also get this form as part of the storyline: when a Dark Dragon
hits you with his most powerful breath attack, it'll release your most
powerful attack...
G.Drgn: 999 (base) non-elemental damage to all targets.
Infinity....
Not really a dragon form at all. You gain Anfini in the dragon town,
as part of the storyline. It costs 0 AP, and cannot be used until the final
battle, and doesn't do anything more than bringing your party back to life to
attack the boss. I only mention it at all for the sake of completeness. :)
E. Cheating!
I don't normally include Game Genie codes, but this one is directly
related to the dragon spells.
CCCA-8762 + 57CB-8762:
This code messes with Ryuu's spell list, giving him a random
assortment of dragon and other spells at the bottom of the list (so it won't
erase any spells you already have, even if you have them all). Turn the Game
Genie off when you have a selection of spells you like, and save the game -
the spells will still be there after saving, with or without the Game Genie.
If you don't like the selection of spells, get into a fight with the code on,
and your spells will change after battle, and they'll change again if you
check Ryuu's status screen. You gain, randomly, a bunch of the dragon spells
(except Anfini), often multiple copies thereof, but also the enemy spell
Zombie, and Flrmagic (Spar's "The Flower Blooms!" Ntre ability), plus one
other...
Call it Failure Kaiser. Sometimes, the G.Drgn that appears by this
method is not the normal one. Check its AP cost when you get it: if the AP
cost is the same as your current AP, then it's the normal one. If it's 0 AP,
then it's the Failure version. This version can be used indefinitely (because
of its 0 AP cost), and always does 999 damage, no matter how many AP you have.
The downside is that it *only* does damage to the first enemy on the
list; all others take 0 damage. (Hence, "Failure"). Even if you defeat that
enemy, there's still a blank space where it was (i.e., the second enemy on the
list doesn't become the "first" enemy for this calculation). It's really
useful on most bosses, and somewhat useful in random battles (since it pretty
much means you can have your party concentrate on the other enemies while the
G.Drgn utterly decimates the first one). It also makes the early portions of
the game laughably easy - I'd only suggest this code if you're the type who
plays through RPGs multiple times (like me) :)
Do, however, be careful when using it - if you're in a battle where
the object is to keep one of the opponents alive, that one is usually put
first on the attack list; using Failure Kaiser then will kill the wrong
opponent.
This code has yet to harm my game (other than filling Ryuu's spell
lists with a lot of repeated junk), but make a backup of your saved game
anyway, just in case. Sadly, BoF1 has no such dragon spell codes (at least,
none that I know of). If anyone knows a 'Start With All Dragon Spells' (or
even a 'Start With A Dragon Spell') GG code for BoF1, let me know... :)
Random thought: Is the Dragonlord/DracoLord from Dragon Warrior 1 a
dimensionally-displaced member of the Dark Dragon clan? Breath of Fire
vs. Dragon Warrior... hm.... nah. The Dragon Clan / The Brood / They Who
Endure would splatter Erdrick and his kin all over the map :)
Special Thanks to:
