FF Walkthrough

Altar Cave

Final Fantasy 3 begins with your party of four orphans falling through a hole after an earthquake. You land in Altar Cave and are immediately thrust into your first battle against 3 Goblins. This fight is simple - just attack to win.

B3 - Starting Floor

After the battle, you gain control on B3 of Altar Cave. Head immediately north to find two chests containing a Leather Shield and a Potion. Continue north and interact with the suspicious boulder - this causes a wall blocking your path to disappear. Head up and right toward the stairs to find another chest with a second Leather Shield. Ascend to B2.

Enemies on B3 and B2:

  • Goblin (Entry 001) - Basic enemy, attacks only
  • Carbuncle (Entry 002) - Slightly stronger than Goblins
  • Eye Fang (Entry 003) - Can inflict status effects
  • Blue Wisp (Entry 004) - Magical creature, low HP

B2 - Path to the Crystal

From the stairs, take an immediate left to reach a chest with an Antarctic Wind. Then head right past the stairs and down a hall for another chest with a Potion. Go directly north through a thin hallway and open the chest at the fork junction for a third Potion.

From the fork, go right to find a healing spring - use it to restore HP and MP before the boss. Directly north of the spring is a chest with another Antarctic Wind. Save these for the boss fight.

Return to the fork and proceed left through a door. This leads directly to the Wind Crystal chamber.

Boss: Land Turtle

Approach the Wind Crystal to trigger a boss battle.

Land Turtle
Entry 196

The first boss of FF3. Without access to jobs yet, your strategy is limited but effective.

Strategy

  • Use the Antarctic Winds you collected - they deal 150+ ice damage each
  • Have all characters attack physically between item uses
  • Use Potions when HP drops below 30
  • The boss has no dangerous special attacks at this stage

Rewards: Access to the Wind Crystal

The Job System

After defeating the Land Turtle, the Wind Crystal grants you your first set of jobs:

  • Warrior - Excels with swords and deals good physical damage; bulkier than the Monk
  • Monk - Best damage with bare fists, but lower defense
  • White Mage - Healing and curing status effects; highly recommended to have at least one
  • Black Mage - Damaging elemental spells; effective against bosses with weaknesses
  • Red Mage - Jack of all trades with access to both healing and offensive magic plus some warrior equipment

Recommended Setup: A balanced party works well for the early game. Consider 2 Warriors (or 1 Warrior, 1 Monk) for damage, 1 White Mage for healing, and 1 Black Mage for elemental damage. The Red Mage is versatile if you prefer flexibility over specialization.

Use the teleporter at the north end of the crystal room to exit the cave. Save your game immediately.

Altar Cave Cleanup

After saving, turn around and re-enter Altar Cave to collect the remaining 7 chests that are now accessible.

B1 - Hidden Path

From the cave entrance on B1, head down and then right into what appears to be a dead end. If you continue pressing right, you'll discover a hidden path leading to two chests, each containing 1000 Gil. This early money boost is significant for buying equipment in Ur.

B2 - Equipment Room

Head back through the hidden path and walk south to reach B2. Continue into a large room with five chests arranged around a central hole:

  • Sleep (top chest) - Spell tome
  • Longsword (bottom right chest) - Weapon upgrade
  • Bronze Bracers (bottom chest) - Armor piece
  • Nunchaku (bottom left chest) - Monk weapon
  • Longsword (far left chest) - Second weapon

Equip the Longswords on your Warriors and the Nunchaku on your Monk if you have one. The Bronze Bracers provide a defense boost for any character.

Treasure Chests

Altar Cave contains 14 treasure chests total - 7 before the boss and 7 after obtaining jobs. None are missable.

B3 (Before Boss)

Leather Shield
B3, immediately north from start
Potion
B3, north from start (second chest)
Leather Shield
B3, near stairs to B2

B2 (Before Boss)

Antarctic Wind
B2, left from stairs
Potion
B2, right from stairs down a hall
Potion
B2, at the fork junction
Antarctic Wind
B2, north of healing spring

Cleanup (After Jobs)

1000 Gil
B1, hidden path to the right from entrance
1000 Gil
B1, hidden path (second chest)
Sleep
B2 cleanup room, top chest
Longsword
B2 cleanup room, bottom right chest
Bronze Bracers
B2 cleanup room, bottom chest
Nunchaku
B2 cleanup room, bottom left chest
Longsword
B2 cleanup room, far left chest