Posted: 3/11/2024 2:08 AM
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juef
He/Him
Player (155)
Joined: 1/29/2007
Posts: 208
Location: Québec, Canada
Hey all! I've been experimenting with various manipulations for Lufia: The Legend Returns on GBC. As you can see, it's going pretty well: Link to video But there's a LOT that does not seem to have been ever explored. I would appreciate any help at all, notably:
  • Is there a list of enemy drops or enemy zones?
  • What's the earliest / non-detoury place to find a Zombie?
  • Would getting the Alum Blade be actually worth it, considering the Ear Cleaners that will come soon after that?
  • Would winning the first two Gades battles be worth it? I'm enclined to think the first one might be, if only for the added attack power, especially if eventually coupled with the Alum Blade.
Thoughts welcome! Thank you.
Posted: 3/23/2024 10:15 PM
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samurai_goroh
Editor, Player (54)
Joined: 12/25/2004
Posts: 634
Location: Aguascalientes, Mexico
I played this game long ago. There wasn't much information in GameFAQs back then (and thus I made 2 guides: Blue chest items & Gameshark codes). Seems it hasn't really changed nowadays... Only remember that the Zombie can appear on the first continent and seems I was right: http://shrines.rpgclassics.com/gb/lufia3/monster.shtml I don't really know much about the game, so I would check out what a speedrun does and plan from there. https://www.speedrun.com/lufia3 If I had to guess, the Alum Blade should be worth since is going to be equipped for long. But Gades' drops may not be as useful but IIRC, it wasn't that hard to win if you came prepared. So again, would base on the speedruns available to see what strats are currently used.
I'm the best in the Universe! Remember that!
Posted: 3/23/2024 10:20 PM
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juef
He/Him
Player (155)
Joined: 1/29/2007
Posts: 208
Location: Québec, Canada
Thank you for your reply! Yes, I did read the FAQs (thanks for making and sharing them!), and carefully watched the speedrun. The zombies are indeed on the first continent: I have found them in a cave that is a significant detour and available late-ish, as well as in the Tower of Death before the first intended-to-be-won fight with Gades (not on the first few floors, unfortunately). Since this is on the path and Hi Bombs are easy to get before then, that's where I'll try and get the drop. And indeed, the first fight with Gades will probably take 20-30 seconds to prepare so I think it is worth it in the long run.
Posted: 3/26/2024 1:32 AM
Post subject: RAM addresses
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samurai_goroh
Editor, Player (54)
Joined: 12/25/2004
Posts: 634
Location: Aguascalientes, Mexico
I forgot that at some point I went back for a little trying to see if the RAM was more stable with a more recent emulator (but it wasn't that much): http://erick.guillen.com.mx/Codes/GBC%20Lufia%203%20-%20The%20Legend%20Returns.txt Is not much, but at least is something...
I'm the best in the Universe! Remember that!
Posted: 3/26/2024 2:01 AM
(Edited: 3/26/2024 11:51 AM)
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juef
He/Him
Player (155)
Joined: 1/29/2007
Posts: 208
Location: Québec, Canada
What do you mean by "more stable"? That is a pretty cool document, thank you! I did figure out most of the stuff relevant to the TAS, but one thing I may have to look into more is the enemy item drops. I'm pretty sure a non-zero 0x32A9 means there will be a drop at the end of the battle, and that value is changed during battle, but I'm not sure what triggers it and how. I did look into a bit of disassembly but it seems like the value seems endlessly juggled between registers and RAM and I could never find the end of it. As can be seen above, I have successfully manipulated an Alum Blade drop once, but now that I've found an earlier zombie (Garlang Gang cave), I can't seem to make it happen again. Maybe it depends on enemy formations, maybe it depends on the enemy position... Heck, maybe there's a drop address for each monster and I just got lucky in my initial manipulation. I'm gonna look into it a bit more later. [EDIT] Never mind, I got it! For some reason I thought drop RNG changed only every two frames, but it does not. What a relief! That means we'll have the blade from the Garland Gang bosses until the end. I can't wait to see how much it helps but I'm very confident it'll be saving more than the time spent manipulating it by the end of that cave. Thanks for sharing the document, by the way 🙂 I'll keep it nearby for sure!