Children of Mana

	Kevin --"Just a bit more! Nearly done here!"
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Children of Mana
Developer	Square Enix Nex Entertainment
Publisher	Square Enix (Japan) Nintendo (worldwide)
Platforms	Nintendo DS
Release date	March 2, 2006 October 30, 2006 December 7, 2006 January 12, 2007
Genre	Action RPG
Rating(s)	ESRB: - Everyone 10+
Mode(s)	Single player
Media	Cartridge

Children of Mana is a Nintendo DS game and the first installment of the World of Mana compilation. The game was co-developed by Square Enix and Nex Entertainment, and it was published by Square Enix in Japan and by Nintendo in other countries. Children of Mana was released in 2006 in Japan, North America, and Australia and in 2007 in Europe.

Story

Further information: Children of Mana script

Title screen

'Tis a tale of long ago, when the Mana Tree was newly born. Illusia Isle floated the middle of a sea in the center of the world. Above it towered the great Mana Tree. I'm sure you've heard many stories about the Mana Tree and the Sword of Mana. The story you're about to hear tells of the only time the holy sword ever dared to defy Mana. This is how it all began…

Ten years ago, a Great Cataclysm swept the land of Fa’Diel, summoning countless hordes of monsters who decimated the global population. Amidst the chaos, a small group of people led by Moti managed to survive by launching an expedition to Illusia Isle. The global turmoil was eventually stopped by the Mana Goddess, who sealed the evil beyond the gate to Mavolia. Once the world was again at peace, the settlement grew into a village and attracted more people with the four main characters, Ferrik, Tamber, Wanderer, and Poppen, coming to stay there.

One day, King Watts comes to visit his friend Moti and shows him a peculiar gem. Shortly after, the central stone in the village is cracked by a tremor causing panic in the community. One of the Mana [Nana|maidens]] runs back from the Mana Tower in a frazzle, claiming the tower was swallowed by a white light with Tess still inside. The protagonist volunteers to rescue her and Watts gives them the Gem Frame as a way to increase their power.

The main character finds the Mana Tower surrouned by an eerie glow and discovers it swarming with monsters inside. With the help of a Mana spirit, the warrior reaches the top of the structure and find Tess. However, a giant ball of light coalesces in front of them, with a large flaming beast emerging from it. Despite their best efforts, no weapon seems to damage it. A mysterious sword falls from the heavens out of the blue, breaking the magical barrier surrounding the foul creature. The protagonist manages to defeat it, but a strange man appears before the duo. The darkly-clad individual tries to reach for the sword, but a peculiar force field prevents him to grab it. He then claims the birth of a new era with those gone soon returning and the current world ceasing to exist, and vanishes in a black vortex. Moments later, giant pillars of light appear on the horizon.

The protagonist takes the holy blade and escorts Tess back to the Mana Village. As they tell them what’s happened, Moti fears that the Mana Lord’s speech would harbor another cataclysm. He entrusts the main character to look into the three columns of light that appeared around Fa’Diel, starting with Topple. He also gives the Spin Drum to call the guardian spirit Flammie. The protagonist thanks Moti and heads to Star Lake.

There, they face off with Galem in the deepest part of the area, where the monstrous creature comes out of a green light. Despite being protected with a force field like the other Malevodon atop the Mana Tower, the hold blade starts ringing at their command and dispels the barrier. After defeating the threat, a vision of an old tree deity manifests before the main character. He reveals himself to be Treant, an ancient tree spirit who lived on Illusia ten years ago. He tells the protagonist that Mana power is surging out of control and may indeed destroy the world. He then assigns the protagonist the mission of quelling each column of light and gives them the Branch of Treant. Back to the village, the hero discloses what they’ve learned and are asked by Moti to head for the Fiery Sands in Jadd.

The hero calls the Guardian Beast and to toward their next destination. On Jadd continent, a powerful sandstorm rages on, but is dispelled by the branch Treant gave to the protagonist. After roaming for several hours, the main character comes face to face with a gigantic Malevodon called Thaydol. They successfully slay the beast by disarming it with the Mana Sword like they did with the previous ones. A ghostly rock face appears after the monster’s been defeated, calling himself Gaia. He explains that violent forces made Benevodons transform into Malevodon, but now that the hero has defeated the creatures, they were reborn as their original state. Gaia adds the main character must stop the Mana Lord even if it defies the will of the planet. He then gives the Stone of Gaia to the protagonist, and then disappears the hero can ask more questions. They ride Flammie to Illusia Isle and report on the situation. Tess reveals that monsters have been terrifying the Lorimar population and asks the main character to investigate.

The Ice Citadel is protected by a thick magical barrier, but the hero manages to break it with the help of Treant’s branch and Gaia’s stone. Inside the fortress, they meet with the Mana Lord who is shocked to find they’ve been able to break in by neutralizing the barrier. He explains that dwellers of Fa’Diel once wrought vessels to harness the power of Mana, using them as channeling orbs. As the cataclysm raged on, the spheres went buried underground. The overlord confides in the hero he wants to release those orbs all at once and scorch the world anew. The hero confronts him by telling how insane his plans are, but the Mana Lord retaliates by summoning Landmund. The protagonist tries to break the barrier surrounding the Malevodon, but the blade remains silent. Tess’s voice can be heard, allowing the holy weapon to shine through the protection around the beast. The hero defeats the creature, with the villain assessing the eight Benevodons now born from the ensuing battles. The main character tries to swing the Mana Sword at the overlord, but the blade simply moves on its own and stabs them instead. The Mana Lord states the blade to be forged by the Goddess herself and thus mortals cannot control it. The blade heeds its master’s call and returns to the Mana Lord. Watts and Tess rush back to the main character before they are stricken by another blow, but a powerful earthquake starts, revealing all channelings orbs unleashing their power in unison. This creates a gigantic storm in the sky as the Mana Lord escapes in one of his black vortexes.

The party returns to Illusia Isle, with Watts lamenting the fact the Mana Lord now wields the holy blade. Shortly after, Treant’s branch and Gaia’s stone start levitating, revealing the two guardian spirits. The two deities warns the protagonist that a massive surge of Mana is coming near Wendel. The hero must subdue the Mana tempest by combining the energies of the eight Mana elementals. The main character accepts his daunting task despite their wounds and heads to Brightwood.

They manage to reach the epicenter of the storm in the lush forest, with the hero commenting on how quiet the eye of the storm is. As they try to summon the guardian deities with the two artifacts, the Mana Lord emerges from his black holes and taunts them with the sword. He declares the world would cease to exisit should the protagonist fail to stop him, which he’s delighted to test out by summoning the Mana Storm. The hero defeats the threat, making the storm subside, but the Mana Lord mocks them by saying they cannot truly eradicate the tempest without the Mana Sword. Gaia and Treant’s spirits appear along with the eight elementals, foiling the villain’s plans for now. Enraged, the Mana Lord casts several bolts of lightning toward all the spirits, making them disappear. He then wounds the protagonist, but as he is about to strike them down, gems start sprouting out and clinging to the holy blade. The annoyed overlord brushes them away, but remembers Tess’s powers as a Mana Maiden and manages to warp to her location to steal her away.

The large stone of at the Mana Village starts glowing eerily, which draws the hero in. They are teleported into a desolate place. They find the captured Mana Maiden with the Mana Lord deep within the ruins. He orders her to lend him her powers, but she doesn’t understand what he wants from her. According to the villain, the Seed of Mana lies dormant somewhere in these ruins. Should he use its powers, the Mana surge would grow out of control and engulf the whole world. Tess still refuses to answer his commands, pleading him to give the sword back instead. As the protagonist rushes to her side, the Mana Lord reveals the ruins to be the Mana Sanctuary several thousand years yet to come. A bright ball of light comes swallowing the protagonist, filling the void with illusions of their former relatives. As they reach for them, they hear Tess’s voice calling for them, snapping them back to reality. The Mana Lord reveals he’s a collection of the lost, a bridge between the world and the hereafter. Millions of souls who have died during the Great Cataclysm have returned due to the recent surge of Mana. The villain tells the main character they’ll some become part of them if they let Mana consume them. The shadows merge into a grotesque monster that the hero must slay. After the fight, the shadowy creature splits up to the deceased relatives and one of them gives the hero a memento. The Mana Lord returns and knocks the hero back with the holy blade. A surge of gems comes out of the ground and start to pummel the overlord. He wipes them away, then casts a huge ball of light toward the protagonist and the Mana Maiden. However, another sphere absorbs his magic, revealed to be the Seed of Mana. The Mana Lord boldly grabs it then escapes through his vortex.

Back to the present times, Tess and the hero explains how the Mana Sanctuary will be reduced to ruins in the future as the Mana Tree slowly withers. Tess believes the Goddess to have a plan in mind and Treant and Gaia disclose the Mana Lord’s location being the Path of Life, where the source of Mana lies deep under the roots of the holy tree. As the villain is close to swallowing the world with Mana, the protagonist hurries at the base of the Mana Tree. The memento they got back at Illusia Ruins stats glowing, creating a portal.

As the main character reaches the lowest floor of the dungeon, they find the overlord about to strike the Seed of Mana with the holy sword. However, gems emerge near him and create a force field around the seed, preventing its destruction. Realizing the crystals are memories of former people refusing to let their world go to waste, he tries to hit the seed again to no avail. Meanwhile, a cutscene shows Tess praying before the Mana Tree. Outraged by his inability to usher in his new world filled with Mana, the villain engages the hero in battle but ultimately loses. He then speaks of the Goddess just now being born into this world and taking the form of the Scion of Mana. He gives the Mana Sword back to the protagonist, revealing he knew the Goddess has chosen them to stop the chaos. He then jumps into a pool of Mana, making a portal appear atop the Mana Tree.

The protagonist returns safely back to the village, but the holy sword is now covered in black vines. Moti wonders is defying the Goddess is a wise idea, but Watts and the hero won’t let the surge destroy their world. The hero is ready to face its last opponent and soar toward the portal above the Mana Tree.

Now in the Cosmic Rift, the hero meets with the Scion of Mana as the Mana Maiden prays in front the holy tree. The hero brandishes the Mana Sword and successfully turns it back to normal. With it, they plunges the blade into the ground and defeats the forsaken child. Back on the surface, the Mana Tower vanishes and the hero is warped back to Illusia. Treant and Gaia explains to Tess and the hero about the newborn Child of Progeny, produced by the fusion of the Mana Seed and Mana’s child. With Illusia Isle becoming unstable, Moti has informed the population to board ships and quit the island. Illusia is slowly getting sealed off as it becomes the start of the Mana Sanctuary guarded by the eight Benevodons. Tess has decided to remain there to stay with the Mana Tree. As the player sorrowfully looks at the fading island, the Benevodons merge into one blast of light, making the Illusia Isle disappear for good.

Gameplay

Controls

Overworld

Action	Function	Nintendo DS
Move	Move the character in four cardinal directions. Pressing two directions close to each other at once will make the player character move in diagonals.	+Control Pad
Use Weapon	Tap the A or the X Button to do a normal attack.	A or X Button
Use Weapon/Interact	Tap the A Button to do a normal attack. Also makes your character interact with an NPC or an object if in range, such as a Treasure Chest or a Gleamdrop.	A Button
Summon Spirit	"Hold down the B Button and release to summon your spirit. If you touch the spirit, it will provide support magic for you and nearby allies. If you leave the spriit alone, it will unleash an area attack on surrounding enemies. Press B Button after summoning the spirits to shoot the spirit towards a target."	B Button
Use Recovery Item	Tap the Y Button to use a recovery item set in the Y hot key.	Y Button
Open/Close Command Ring (Items)	Tap the L Button to open or close the item command ring.	L Button
Open/Close Command Ring (Weapons)	Tap the L Button to open or close the weapon command ring.	R Button
Pause Game	Tap the Start Button to pause the game.	Start Button
Unleash Fury	"When all ten [crystals] are glowing blue, press SELECT to unleash Fury. Fury boosts attack speed and allows you to use special attacks. But the energy in the crystal diminishes over time. Once it's gone, you return to normal."	Select Button

Menus

Action	Function	SNES
Select Items	Move the cursor to select items.	+Control Pad
Confirm	Tap the A Button to confirm your selection in menus and advance dialogue.	A Button
Cancel	Tap the B Button to cancel your selection.	B Button
Turn Pages/Move Scroll Bar	Tap the L Button in menus to turn pages and move the scroll bar.	L Button
Turn Pages/Move Scroll Bar	Tap the L Button in menus to turn pages and move the scroll bar.	R Button
Open Main Menu/Skip Movie	Tap the Start Button to open the main menu and to skip movie cutscenes.	Start Button
Toggle Screen	Tap the Select Button to toggle the upper-screen display in the items screen.	Select Button

Like previous games in the Mana series, Children of Mana features a top-down perspective in which characters navigate terrain and fight off hostile creatures. At the start, the player is given the choice of playing as one of four playable characters at the start: Ferrik, Tamber, Poppen, and Wanderer. Each character has ratings: the damage they do with magic, how fast they can attack, and the amount of health and mana they have. The game plays out nearly identically regardless which character is chosen, except for a few quests specific to one character. Unlike previous games in the series, the main character typically has no companions.

Children of Mana is unique from earlier Mana titles in that it is a dungeon crawler, so a majority of the gameplay takes place in select locations rather than on an open world map. The world map is used to select those locations. The primary objective in each location is to defeat all of the monsters. Each dungeon is divided into different randomly generated floors, and to progress between each zone, the player must find an item called a Gleamdrop, then carry it to a pillar of light called a Gleamwell. The player must repeat this process on each floor of the dungeon until the last floor is reached, where the area's boss is fought. The player can not return to previous floors unless they die or leave the dungeon; upon returning, they start the dungeon over at the beginning. When not clearing dungeons, the player stays in the Mana Village, which contains shops to purchase equipment. Dungeons can be returned to later by accepting quests from townsfolk in the Dudbear shop. During these quests, the dungeon itself is slightly altered: the player's starting position may be different, the number of floors can change, and the monsters and boss monster contained may change. Like the main quests, Dudbear quests involve clearing the dungeon of monsters, sometimes to acquire an item at the end.

The game retains the real-time battle mechanics of previous games in the Mana series. There are four weapons with their own unique abilities: sword, flail, bow and arrow, and hammer. Once the first boss, Xangar, has been defeated, the player character can equip two weapons at once. The four characters can use any weapon type, although each of them retain their own abilities and weapon of choice. The player can change which weapons their character has at any time. Each weapon has standard normal attacks, special attacks, and fury attacks. The fury attacks are the strongest and require a full Fury Gauge to use, which is filled by striking enemies with standard attacks and taking damage from enemies. Different weapons can have different effects on the environment, such as the hammer's ability to smash pots. In addition to weapons, the player can select from one of eight Elementals, which provide different magical attacks and magical enhancements to weapon attacks. The player can switch between Elementals in the Mana Village. Elemental attacks can be made stronger by equipping Gems, which can also boost the player's attributes.

Multiplayer

Children of Mana features a cooperative local wireless mode that can support up to 4 players at once. The multiplayer mode does not allow the players to save their progress in the game while playing in it, although experience and items received can be saved later after leaving the multiplayer party. The player hosting the session is able to keep the progress data after multiplayer is finished and can continue the story onward; however, the other players will find themselves back where they started in their own games, with only the additional stats and items gained while playing multiplayer. Items directly related to the story, such as weapons like the flail and hammer, cannot be obtained by anyone but the host. There are a few items that can only be obtained as bonuses by playing through stages using this mode.

Controls

• D-Pad: Move
• A button: Confirm / use weapon
• B button: Cancel
• X button: Use weapon (after defeating Xangar)
• R button: Change weapon

Characters

Playable

• Ferrik is a fifteen-year-old boy, a knight who is said to be brave, bright and cheerful. He lost his parents and sister in the great disaster. After his life was saved by a knight, he has been honing his skills with the sword, his weapon of choice.
• Tamber is a sixteen-year-old girl, a dancer with a sense of truth and justice, and an air of maturity about her. She lost her parents and little brother due to the great disaster. Her weapon of choice is the bow.
• Poppen is a stubborn and fearless nine-year-old boy. He lost his mother at birth and his father in the great disaster. Poppen's weapon of choice is the flail.
• Wanderer is a traveling merchant, a tradition kept throughout the series. He is a member of the Niccolo tribe of rabbit/cat people who lost his family due to the king of Lorimar during the great disaster. His weapon of choice is the hammer.

Supporting

• Moti - The mayor of Mana Village. He teaches the player character how to use weapons and even provides them.
• Tess - The player's best friend and a priestess.
• Watts - A commander who is one of Moti's friends.

Gallery

For this subject's image gallery, see Gallery:Children of Mana.

• 

  Logo

• 

  Ferrik

• 

  Tamber

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning
Japanese	聖剣伝説DS チルドレンオブマナ Seiken Densetsu Dī Esu: Chirudoren obu Mana	The Legend of the Sacred Sword DS: Children of Mana

	Randi --"Whoa! What's a Rabite doing in a place like this?"
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