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Breath Of Fire IV - Combo Guide

By Tricrokra   tricrokra@hotmail.com
Version 1.0001

Copyright stuff
You're free to distribute this FAQ to everybody you know BUT
- It must be non-profitable
- This FAQ may not be modified (Mistakes or corrections must be mailed and I'll
  update the FAQ myself if you don't mind. And if you mind, then it's bad luck
  for you) }:) 
- If you want to upload it to a site, always permitted, but I would like to
  gimme not about it if you do.

Update News:
1.0001 04/29/2001 Added "How to perform a 70 hit combo"
                  Corrected a few typos
                  Fixed a few mistakes in the spellist.

Okay...

Now for the Combo's. They are a bit freaky to master if you play BOF4 for
the first time. PLUS BOF4 is the only RPG of which I know they use them.

*** First of all, what IS a combo?
A combo MAY be generated if two or three party members casts a spell. By
picking the right spell with the first person the second person may do a better
version of his spell in this combination.
Difficult to get, but let's have an example.

Let's say that Nina and Ursula will both cast "Cyclone"
Nina first and Ursula second. If they manage to get both spells in the combo
Ursula's Cyclone will hit all the enemies twice. 
But Combo's can do more. For example when you start with fire and continue
with wind you will get an explosion move. So the elements can be combined.

*** To get combo's there are a few things you must know.
1 - The first person will always do the first attack followed by the second
    then the third. It will NEVER happen that the person on the second
    position will be faster that the first position.
    When playing the game you'll discover soon what I mean.
2 - When a monster is faster than the second but slower than the first so
    that the handling will be 1st player -> monster -> 2nd player, it won't
    be a combo. 
3 - Sometimes combos aren't formed without any particular reason. Don't know
    why, but it's super frustrating.
4 - When combining elements the order is VERY important. The order to combine
    elements works like this:

             ->  Fire -> Wind -> Water -> Earth -> Fire ... etc.

*** Why using combos?

In some situations, combos can provide very powerfull moves which can never
be achieved without combos. 
There are also some Masters which will help you if you manage to make the
combos they want you to make. For example a combo with at least 10 hits.
You can see when you ask the status of any other party member then Fou-Lu or
Ryu how many hits your greatest combo had and how much damage your greatest
combo dealt, so you can always see if you made the combos the master wants
you to make.


*** Spells created from combos
I'm absolutly sure that I didn't cover all combo spells made. If you find some
I didn't find, lemme know about them, then I'll add them to this list and I'll
even credit you for it. "honor to whom honor is due", is my motto. But be sure
to check the latest version of this FAQ first. Everything I discover about this
topic will be added IMMEDIATLY you see.

    Fire + Wind ----> Explosion.
  
           Burn + Sever -------> Firewind
           Burn + Cyclone -----> Simoon
           Inferno + Typhoon --> Gigaflame

    Wind + Water ----> Electricity

           Cyclone + Frost ----> Jolt
           Cyclone + Iceblast -> Lightning
           Typhoon + Blizzard -> Thunderstorm

    Water + Earth ---> Weather Disasters
   
           Frost + Rock Blast   ----> Storm
           Frost + Stone Pillar ----> Storm
           IceBlast + Stone Pillar -> Tempest
           Blizzard + Quake        -> Disaster

    Earth + Fire ----> Volcannic
 
           Rockblast + Burn --------> Eruption
           Stone Pillar + Burn -----> Eruption
           Stone Pillar + Inferno --> Magma Blast
           Quake + Inferno ---------> Ragnarok
           Quake + Flame Pillar ----> Ragnarok
           Quake + Hwajeh ----------> Ragnarok

So far the most important combinations. I'll be keeping researching this topic
to many updates of this guide will be there.

Some nice things to know are that sometimes Dragon Breath attacks and evocations
can also become part of a combo. This is especially nice when you need much
hits for some masters. Because there is a master who asks 25 hits in a combo
before you can even become his pupil (wow). Another nice thing is that when
the breath or the evocation is second or third in the combo it will do even more
hits then it already did. Problem is, that these things do not combo easily.
You can also use healing spells and assist magic in combo. Not that it gave
very great results, they were so tiny that I don't recall it clearly anymore
but as soon as I can provide more information it'll be in this guide!

*** How to perform a 70 hit combo
Want to get rid of all the master trouble who ask much hits per combo? Here's
the way to perform a 70 hit combo. Before I tell you I want to thank marshall
lovell, for telling me about this possibility. I checked it and it works....

First of all you need the spell "Celerity" which can be learned from master
Abbess in the city of Chek. She'll teach it to you after you've met 100 or
more diffrent kind of enemies. This spell must be given to any other party 
member than Scias or Nina. Now you must handle carefully because if you mess
up it will take 3 hours before you can cast "Celerity" again. To perform this
combo I prefer to go to the old Chek village (the place where Rasso slaugters
everybody and where Ryu went berserk). Why? Because the enemies there will
hardly fight and are there to pratise combos. When you get a fight, handle
this way. Put the one who has Celerity in the first position and Scias and
Nina in the 2nd and 3rd position. Let the first position character cast
"Celerity" and Nina and Scias should cast "Vitalize", if all the three 
spells get combined in the combo it'll become a 70 hit combo.


Other guides by Tricrokra
Wild Arms              Boss guide
Grandia                Boss and spell guide
Breath Of Fire III     Fishing list
Breath Of Fire III     Manillo list
Breath Of Fire III     Walktrough with ultimate playing hints (coming soon)
Breath Of Fire IV      Boss guide
 