RISING FALLS - THINGS GO UPHILL FROM HERE

Aw, You're Just Hungry: Welcome to Hollow Bastion, where the story really starts to run towards the climax. That said, this is your only SPOILER ALERT. From here on in, the story is revealed even more and if you haven't gotten this far in the game yet then I suggest you stop reading and go play it. That said, on with the show. This world consists on a huge castle of several levels that may start to get confusing, but in order to keep track of this we'll use a system of floors. So there will be 0F, which is Base Level. It will go up to 4F which is the highest part of the castle. Each area does have a name, but Hollow Bastion is a virtual maze to some extent, but not as confusing as say, Monstro or Wonderland are.

Go Forth and Conquer!: First, don't hop onto the ice platforms yet. You'll discover that not only does the water flow uphill here, but you can walk on it. Around the largest rock is a treasure chest that holds Dalmation puppies.

My Bubbles: In order to get at the chests underneath the water that you see, you must jump into the bubbles. These bubbles take you underneath the water for a short time, which will allow you to explore around for a few seconds. Don't forget to get the chests you see in this area, which will give you equipable items. Right now, it is very important you equip a Keyblade that you want to use! Don't ask why yet.

In 30 Hours or Less, or Your Keyblade is Free: Once you make your way up, you'll get an important story turnpoint scene where Riku takes away the very thing that makes Sora special. He takes the Keyblade! Not only that, but Donald and Goofy desert you and follow the Keyblade. Regardless, you will have the monstrous Beast in your party. Use him well, because he is the only guardian you have right now. The only weapon you have is a toy wooden sword, which is only going to do as much good as when it did back on Destiny Islands... which isn't much. At this point, Sora will have to rely on Beast, his magic, and a lot of running around to avoid attacks. Also don't forget that without Donald and Goofy, you won't be able to get into your Gummi Ship to run off.

CASTLE GATES - SEALED AWAY

Ooh, Shiny: First thing you will notice when you get to the Castle Gates are the shimmering crystals on a pedestal next to you. Examining them will operate the lifts (elevators) that bring you to various levels of the castle. Some of these crystals glow red or blue, and when activated they glow yellow temporarily. Red glowing crystals will activate a ledge or flip lift turning point around. Blue glowing crystals will operate lifts. This will be a staple for the next things to come.

Locked Away: If you happen to go towards the giant double doors you see in front of you, you'll be confronted with Heartless. Press the Triangle button to send Beast after them, even though that doesn't mean you can't use your own magic to attack them or defend yourself with. You could also use your Abilities, but given that you're sans Keyblade, those attacks will just be a waste of magic. "The gates are shut," is what the entrance label there will proclaim. So go back to where you started from, and instead take the stairs on your right down to where there are two more crystals. Activate the red shimmering one to start up a lift above you which will come in later, and then use the blue shimmering crystal on your right to go down to the Base Level of the castle.

New Enemies: Since Hollow Bastion is a Star Lvl 9 rated world, the enemies here will get undoubtedly difficult. Not only are they harder to kill, but also they appear in large groups and in waves of groups. So, more appear when you think the battle is just about over. Be patient, and run if you need space. Don't forget that you can use High Jump and Glide as well. Aside from the usual Shadows, there are some new enemies to face.

Darkball: These Heartless are going to be the staple of the enemies from now on. They're like the blow-up versions of Shadows, except without the limbs. These Heartless though can really destroy your HP meter by the way they appear in large groups with stronger Heartless. Darkballs have three various attacks: 1. they'll charge forward with an odd squishy kind of sound, hitting anyone in their way, 2. they have a rather devastating, Ars Arcanum-ish air attack where they kind of spasm in mid-air and hit anything around them, 3. they'll dissolve into dark cloud, move around and then reappear in a burst that hurts. Overall, though these Heartless are kind of low on the HP side and can get taken out with a combo or two, when there's suddenly a mass of them swarming Sora, it would be wise to Dodge Roll out and face them a few at a time.

Defender: The Defender Heartless is one of the enemies with the most HP. Like Large Bodies or Fat Bandits, these guys are almost never vulnerable from the front, and it's not exactly smart to attack them from the front. Luckily, Defenders are slow and don't jump. Unluckily, when they do damage with their shields, they Really Do Damage. Be careful you don't ignore Defenders while trying to take care of the other Heartless that they commonly appear with. Defenders have a series of attacks: 1. A Fireball comes out of the shield which you can deflect with a well-timed hit for Tech Points and send it back at them for damage, 2. A Blizzard ice cone comes out of the shield that is unblockable, 3. A devastating spin around attack which will do a Lot of damage if you don't jump or Dodge Roll to avoid it, 4. A forward lunge where the shield's face bites at you. The first attack of a Defender when you get too close is usually to use the forward lunge attack. Afer that it is simply a matter of whether you are long or short range from it to determine what sort of attack it will use. You can usually jump over this Heartless and whack in a good combo while you're in the air behind it before getting away. These enemies also drop a Very Rare weapon, their Defender Shield. If you manage to get this, you are one lucky player and Goofy is a lucky minion.

BASE LEVEL - UNDER THE HQ

Ice Crystals: As a note, if you fall off from the lowest level (Castle Gates) around here, you'll end up at the Base Level. Once you're on the Base Level, send Beast after the Darkballs. Once you've taken care of the Darkballs, you'll notice that there's two bubbles. Take the left, higher bubble which will take you underneath the ice wall to the other side. You'll need to jump onto the ledges in order to return back where you were. There is one ice crystal on your left as you walk forward. Release that one to move the stone ledge so that you can jump onto the ice platforms. There are two other ice crystals to Release, which will push out the ledges in the wall that you can. Note that you could just activate one and Glide over, but for sake of being thorough we'll just do it this way. Once you're over the platforms, head on into the dark hallway that leads into the Waterway. Once you're in the Waterway, on your left will be another set of bars that Beast can break down. That shows you a treasure chest which gives a rare Esuna-G. After that, go back to the bubbles. Note that you don't necessarily have to get that gummi, but this walkthrough's just going to explore some aspects of the nooks and crannies in Hollow Bastion as well.

WATERWAY - FROM STREETRAT TO SEWER RAT

More Bubbles: Take the right bubble which will take you into the underground Waterway. There will be a Save Point, as well as a series of bars on the left which you can Call on Beast to destroy. If you're wondering what is behind that set of bars, there's a bubble. Freeze the bubble with Blizzara and then jump to your right. Sora will grab onto the wall, and then you can flip up to get the chest for a Flare-G. Once you have that, take the bubble you just froze, which will bring you to a new section of the waterway.

Dungeons & Heartless: After you Call on Beast to break down the stone wall on your left, it leads into the Dungeon. You'll have to come back in order to get the Blue Trinity on the floor. Otherwise all you have are Float-G. Go back out into the Waterway, then hang a left and go towards the gates. Gateways: Once in this underwater sewerway, you'll discover that there are moveable gates. How to move them? Go up to the little crystals and release them, just like the ice crystals outside.

Crystal 1: As you reach the gates, on your immediate left on the wall is the first crystal. Release this and it will turn a pair of gates left to open up the way.

Crystal 2: Head towards those gates that just turned, and there will be the second crystal. This pulls the gate behind you out of the wall, shutting you off from the path you came from, and the one behind that pulls in the opposite direction. Don't worry about that yet.

Crystal 3: From here, turn right and you'll see crystal 3 on the wall. Release this crystal and it will slide the gate open to Crystal 4.

Crystal 4: This crystal is on the floor, and releasing this on open the gate to your right to the bubble. Jump into the bubble and that will take you to a new area beneath the gate to the other side.

Crystal 5: This fifth crystal operates a lift that takes you to an upper section of the waterway.

Crystal 6: This last crystal is guarded by a Defender. Take him out with Beast and then activate the crystal. That will open the doors that were shut before at the Castle Gates.

To get back out and back to the upper levels, release Crystal 3, then Crystal 2. This will open the path back to the bubbles that will take you back outside. Examine the blue crystal and take the lift back up to the Castle Gates. Then head towards the large double doors that were shut before and go into the castle's Entrance Hall.

ENTRANCE HALL - REAP WHAT YOU SOW

You Get What You Give: Once you go into the castle, Beast is distracted away by a Shadow. You're left alone... until you meet with Riku. Or, someone who looks and sounds like Riku. Either way, Riku is sporting some new duds and he's got your Keyblade. But, luckily, important lesson learned and you get your Keyblade back! Remember why I said not to equip the Kingdom Key earlier? It's because you get it back here. Not only that, but Donald and Goofy return to your side once the Keyblade is back in your hands. Unfortunately, Riku doesn't look too happy about that.

Boss Battle - Riku: HP: 500, EXP: 2000. Riku fights much like he did back in Destiny Islands at this point, but there are a few attacks that he can really get you with. The first is a downward slash and side slash with a slide combo. It looks much like Sonic Blade in that it'll hit anything in its path. The second attack is a basic spin around and down slash that is rather powerful. These two attacks combined with a few other basic slashes make up Riku's repetoire so far, but the more important fact is that he is pretty fast and dodgy. If you need to heal or recast Aerora, do so in a safe section of the arena and do it fast, because Riku doesn't let you be for long. Also if you need HP, break the various vases around the lower level of the Entrance Hall and green HP balls will pop out. Riku is immune to most magic so physical attacks with the Keyblade are best. Use Dodge Roll, and cast Aerora on yourself (you should have remembered to go back and get the Yellow Trinities, particularly in Neverland in order to get the first Aero upgrade). You can also use Strike Raid or Ars Arcanum for a strong and easy finish, but watch your MP meter and make sure you don't run out of enough MP to cure yourself. Also equip Counterattack, which will make your life a bit easier. After this, you learn the White Trinity. Retreat?: Now you can also go back to the other worlds and get those White Trinities, or you can continue on because now you also have access to your Gummi Ship. Don't forget the blue trinity down in the Dungeon in the Waterway.

New Enemies 2: After you defeat Riku, more Heartless of Hollow Bastion appear. Along with Darkballs, Defenders and shadows, now you will have to deal with a couple more varieties.

Wyvern: These dragon Heartless can be quite a pain to be rid of, especially when you are on a ledge and don't want to fall off. Generally you will have to jump to attack them, but don't get too caught up in the attack or you'll attack yourself right off the ledge. Wyverns have a trio of attacks: 1. A bicycle kick with their claws, 2. A Downward lunge with body accompanied with a mid-air flip, 3. A forward spiraling charge that might knock you off whereever you're standing. Wyverns tend to fly way up into the air and then lunge down with their second attack. when they're far off, they'll do their spiral forward charge. All in all, they are like Darkballs and appear in groups. Take them on one at a time and work your way around, though it's easiest to get into a corner and wait for them to come to you.

Wizard: Oy. If there was any replacement for the little flying Heartless, here they are. Wizards aren't very quick, but they have the tendency to disappear and reappear elsewhere before shooting magic at you. Wizards have four different types of magic. They wield Fire, Blizzard, Thunder and a Dark magic attack like Cerberus' breath attack. When the Wizards go into their Thunder attack, they are invulnerable and lightning bolts come down around them. If you're good with Counterattack, you can Counter until the Wizard stops its lightning attack and then you can knock it off with one hefty blow. Wizards are the other Heartless that drop an equipable item - the Wizard's Relic. This staff is equipable to Donald, and it's a pretty good deal as it increases Max MP by 2.

What's the Symbology of That?: Note that you can't go further in through the Entrance Hall, as it's locked up by a wall with a Heartless symbol on it. This will come into play later. For now, head to the left and go into the Libary.

LIBRARY - QUALITY AND QUANTITY

Mix and Match: In the Library you will notice that there are missing books in the volume series in the shelves, or there are wrong volumes mixed with the other volumes. This puzzle involves completing the sets.

Khama Vol. 8: Go into the Library, turn left and there will be a red book on the floor. this is Khama vol. 8. On your right is the shelf which it goes into.
Khama Shelf: This slides the bookcase and opens the way into the rest of the library. Look, stairs! Remember the scene with young Kairi and the Grandmother? Interesting, eh? Anyway go up the stairs to the upper level of the Library.

Theon Vol. 6: This brown book is on the desk on the upper level of the library.
Theon Shelf: This shelf slides open to reveal a red button. Push the button and it will unlock the door to your right that leads to the upper level of the Entrance Hall. Note that from here, you can proceed on into the Entrance Hall move on to the next section, or you can find the rest of the books.

Azal Vol. 3: The Green Trinity on the upper level of the Library will push this yellow volume down.
Azal Shelf: When you enter the Library from the first level of the Entrance hall, directly in front of you is the Azal Shelf. Once you set this book in place, it slides the case open to reveal a large section of the Library.

Nahara Vol. 5: This volume is on the other side of the Azal Shelf. You'll have to work your way around back to the base of the stairs.
Nahara Shelf: Located on the Upper level, this shelf slides open to reveal a Mava Vol. 3 and the Hafet Shelf.

Salegg Vol. 6: This blue volume is in place of Mava Vol. 6. You can get this after you open the Azal Shelf.
Salegg Shelf: This blue series is on your left of the Mava Shelf.

Mava Vol. 6: This green book is located in place of Theon Vol. 6.
Mava Shelf: Mava shelf is located on the lower level, and it opens to reveal a desk where the purple Hafet Vol. 4 is.

Hafet Vol. 4: Get the Hafet Vol. 4 after you open the Mava Shelf.
Hafet Shelf: Once you put Hafet vol. 4 in the shelf, it opens to reveal the way to the Lift Stop.

Pillars of Support: Going around the library you will notice there are pillars with little sections in them. Turning the sections in these pillars will show that there are treasure chests inside them. It may take several turns to get the treasure chests. Be patient and you will be rewarded with some useful items.

Lift Stop (from library upper level): If you decide to go to this route, you'll be rewarded with a rare Gummi (Ultima-G) as well as a Tornado-G.

ENTRANCE HALL - OH YEAH, IT'S ALL COMIN' TOGETHER

Crushing Power: Go back to the upper library door which leads back to the Entrance Hall's upper level. Immediate your right, you will see a boar headed statue that requests you to show it your crushing power. Break the two pots. This lowers the statue and activates the fountain on the lower level, which reveals a red piece of something. Go get that later. First work your way around the ring of the upper level.

Pushing Power: Continue to the right until you see a statue with a horse head on it. Beneath this is a Red Trinity, which you activate with Donald and Goofy. This statue gets pushed down and breaks, revealing a light green piece.

Pushing Power 2: A boar headed statue further left of the Stone Etching will want you to show your strength by pushing it. Push it left until it slides into place, revealing a treasure chest on the lower level of the Entrance Hall.

Thunder Power: On your left (if Sora is facing the Entrance Hall from the upper library door) will be a stone with an etching of a thunderbolt on it. Cast Thunder on this stone and it will lower and activate the two platforms on which you can jump on to get to the piece suspended in the middle of the Entrance Hall.

Fire Power: The candles on the upper floor are out and you are to light them up. When they're all lit, 8 in total, the middle column of smokey blue gas will dissolve and reveal another dark green piece of the puzzle.

Pick Up the Pieces: Once you have the pieces all revealed, go pick them up. There are four Emblem Pieces in total. Remember the wall with the Heartless symbol on it? Now go back to it and fill in the holes. It will open the way and the next cutscene will show more of the story to come.

LIFT STOP - RISING IN ELEVATION

Nexus: From the Entrance Hall, You'll come to a grand nexus where the lifts of Hollow Bastion all pretty much are powered from. There are 4 Floors to this lift stop, so we'll do this by the numbers. It may get pretty confusing, but each area is distinct. In order to get the platforms with the treasure chests down that you'll see, you'll have to cast Gravity on them. Remember that technique, as it will come in later.

Lift Stop 1F, Entrance Hall: On this level there are two crystals, a red and a blue one. The red one will switch the lift of the blue crystal to go to the upper or lower levels. Either one will lead you to some items you may want to get. Once you've finished getting the items you want, go back to this area and head to the left on into the other side of the Castle Gates.

Castle Gates, Outside: Once you've gotten outside, you'll fight off a few Wyverns. Make sure you don't drop off from here or else you'll have to start from the Base Level and work your way back up again. Head to your right around the corner, and go to the red crystal which will activate the lift platform that cycles around. You can ride this to the platform further on, where you can get the chest of puppies. Otherwise, get back onto the stoney platform and activate the blue crystal, which takes you up to Great Crest.

Great Crest 2F, Back: Head left and on up the stairs to the giant lift. Activate the red crystal to get on the lift. This lift will take you around the outside of the castle through the Great Crest section at the front of the castle. This whole outer section is called Great Crest because you can see the front crest of the castle, aka the Heartless symbol. Halfway through riding this rotating platform, enemies will appear and in order to continue on you need to fight them off. Once you arrive on the other side of Great Crest, get the Blue Trinity. Head down the stairs back into the Lift Stop.

Lift Stop 2F, Great Crest: There's just a blue crystal here, and take this lift up to the level above, to Lift Stop 3F. From here, proceed on back out into Great Crest.

Great Crest 3F, Front: On your left is a chest with an Orichalcum, and on the right will be the blue crystal that takes you yet another level up to High Tower.

High Tower 3F, middle level: From here, head towards the ledge. On your left, there will be a crystal that glows red as you approach it. Activate this crystal only once, and it will lower the ledge closest to you to the High Tower's upper ledge level. From here go back into the Lift Stop.

Lift Stop 3F, High Tower: Defeat the Heartless around here and go back out to High Tower's upper ledge.

High Tower 3F, lower level: Here there are more Heartless to beat, as well as a chest of puppies floating up in the air. Once you've taken care of the Heartless, get the chest. After you get the chest, go to the corner where there is another red crystal. Activate this crystal to lower the ledge closest to you so you can jump on it. Go back to the middle level where Wyverns will appear and try to knock you off the ledge. Don't fall off again, after you've worked so hard to get up this far.

High Tower 3F, upper level: Then, activate the now yellow shining crystal which will raise the ledge you'd used to get up here. Get up onto the uppermost ledge of High Tower. This place is even narrower, so don't fall off. At the end of this ledge there's a red crystal. Activate this and it will turn the points outside of the lift path from the library's upper level. After that, just head back down the oversized ledges and around the corner into the Lift Stop.

Lift Stop 4F, High Tower: This is the uppermost level of the Nexus, which will take you into the Castle Chapel. Congratulations! You've made it up to the highest part of Hollow Bastion. Now, get ready for the fight of your lives. Mwahahahaha! Well actually, just make sure you use a Tent or Cottage before you go in, because you're going to be facing Disney's Greatest Villain yet.

CASTLE CHAPEL - THE MISTRESS OF ALL EVIL

Boss Battle - Maleficent: HP: 900, EXP: 6000. - The moment you go further into the Castle Chapel, you'll be confronted with the Really Bad Faerie, Maleficent herself. She and her platform form two targets. You'll have to cast Gravity on the platform to bring it down to a level where you can hit her physically. Maleficent is powerful enough that she summons the Heartless to help her in the forms of Darkballs and Defenders. Don't worry about these but watch your health level. Make sure also that you have enough MP to cast Aerora and Cura when necessary. Maleficent has another attack, where she will summon meteors saying "Meteors of Heaven, unleash thy fury!" and send huge blue asteroids flying towards you. You can Dodge Roll out of the way if you run into the little hall, but don't get caught inside and give yourself room to manuever. You can canvel this attack by keeping that platform down with Gravira. However, as you are whacking away at her, she'll disappear in a plume of green smoke, float away and reappear much like Jafar could. Overall, this battle isn't difficult if you keep on your toes about casting a shield of Aerora and using Cura. You receive Ansem's Report 5 as well as Donald's Cheer ability for beating her this time.

Save Tonight: Once you have beat Maleficent and she runs off, a Save Point appears. Use it! Also make sure you have all your equipment and abilities up to par. I also recommend setting the Cheer ability.

Boss Battle - Maleficent Dragon: HP: 1200, EXP: 6000. - First, jump! The dragon will send a huge wave coming down after she stomps on the floor. Then get to the very edge of the arena and summon up Tinkerbell. She will be your lifesaver and give you the curing you might not have time or MP to do. Don't forget to cast Aerora to help you. As a dragon, Maleficent has a virtual plethora of attacks. Aside from the usual biting and clawing, all she has to do is stomp and send waves of hurt coming after you. Also, watch out for her tail swipe attack, which is nigh unavoidable if you're in the wrong spot and it will take a ton of HP off if you don't have Aerora cast. When she starts to get lower in HP, green flames start to form around her maw. A whole field of flame will encircle the front of Maleficent, making it virtually impossible to run up to her directly. Jump and Glide over to her, with your target lock on her head, and whack away as soon as you come in range. No doubt you will get hurt, but if you have MP Rage or MP Haste you will be replenishing your MP to recast Aerora and Cura. If you have an abundance of MP or feel you can spare the MP, you can use Strike Raid on Maleficent's head and combo for a great deal of damage. There are three safe spots pretty much in this arena, and that's at the very edge of the arena, up on Maleficent's back, and at times around her feet beneath her. Be careful about the stomping though, or else you'll end up getting really hurt and without an escape route. Once you manage to beat her, you'll gain the Fireglow summon gem.

Save Again: Once you are victorious, save your game. Then, go to the new door that opens up, which leads to the Lift Stop 4F, Castle Chapel. Don't fall off the ledge here, but proceed on to the Grand Hall.

GRAND HALL - THE TRUE VILLAIN

Before You Battle: For this next fight, you'll want to have your Cure and Aero shortcuts in place, your items with Elixirs or whatever you feel you need to heal/replenish magic with, and equip Strike Raid and Ars Arcanum in your Abilities. Dodge Roll of course, and Guard if you are handy with that will also aid you in the next fight.

Boss Battle - Riku II (Ansem-Riku): HP: 900, EXP: 8500. - Riku is not himself here. Still, you have to fight against your former best buddy, and he is really fast and powerful this time around. Do your best to keep target locked on him, because you will need it to keep track of Riku. He's fast. Too fast for offensive magic, which is pretty useless in this fight anyway. Not only that, but Riku has a Keyblade of his own as well and attacks with it at an incredibly quick pace. The first and most important thing is to cast Aerora on yourself to limit the damage taken. Then as if you were confronting Captain Hook, go meet Riku blade to blade.
Riku has a variety of attacks. The first few are basic slashes that mimic the ones you saw when you fought him the first time in the Entrance Hall. Next, he has a Strike Raid ability as well, which he follows by charging up and slashing anything in his path a la Sonic Blade. At most he will do this twice in a row. If you are lucky, you'll be able to Guard the blade and it will deflect back to hit Riku. If you're not good with timing, then Dodge Roll out of the way and then hit Riku a couple of times. Riku's downward strike has two variations: one sends two short impact waves flying out on either side, and the other more devastating one sends a large encircling wave and sends up columns of energy to prevent you from a jump attack. Riku's final attack is a powered up attack where he rapidly teleports and shoots in straight lines all over the arena. You can avoid this attack by jumping and gliding around until he stops, but be wary because he often follows that with the downward strike attacks. It's easiest to beat him if you can use Strike Raid combos for far attacks, and Ars Arcanum in close range. Make sure you don't run out of MP though. Riku gets even faster as his HP gets lower, giving you less chances of curing or casting Aerora. For beating this you get the Ragnarok ability, which is a really nice and special air attack.

HOLLOW BASTION - RESCUING KAIRI

Falling Into Darkness: After you beat Ansem-Riku, you see Ansem's 'true' form and Kairi awakens. However, this is by Sora's sacrifice. In giving up his heart to restore Kairi's, he loses his body and becomes of the Heartless Shadows. This little Shadow is Sora, and yours to control. Once you turn into a Heartless, you can't really do anything except run around. There are no more enemies to fight since you're one of them. Make your way back to the Entrance Hall, where Kairi, Donald and Goofy are running off. You don't remain a Shadow for long, as Kairi brings Sora back to his original self.

Traverse Back to Town: Once you are restored, Sora, Kairi and the minions return to Traverse Town. You will have some restocking to do, or perhaps get new, better weapons for Donald and Goofy if you haven't already. Get the Mushu summon from the Fairy Godmother, and then head to First District to talk to Cid. Cid will tell you about his secret Navi-G that is stored in the Secret Waterway. Go get that Navi-G in order to get back to Hollow Bastion. Also, Kairi will give you the Oathkeeper. Just remember to give the lucky charm back to her when you're done. Promise. And get those White Trinities.

Coliseum and Trinity Notes: Although you should have taken care of it before coming to Hollow Bastion, now is as good as any to go finish the Cups. If you have both Yellow and White trinities, now you can go to the various worlds (as Goofy suggests) and explore the rest of the areas to find the rest of the Trinities. You also have access to the treasure chests you couldn't get at before. Move on back to Hollow Bastion whenever you're ready again.

End: Hollow Bastion - Part I.