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You’ll already have cleared a handful of early-game dungeons beforeMetaphor: ReFantaziostraps you in for the first “proper” one. Regalith Grand Cathedral is explored in several steps, on multiple days, and you’ll only have a bit over a week to get it all done. It can be accessed numerous times until completed. In other words, yes, it’s a lot like a modern Persona dungeon.
In this guide, we’ll cover every step of your journey, from the quick rescue efforts to the mausoleum and beyond. Keep a tab open, and you’ll locate all the Grand Cathedral’s treasure chests while flattening your powerful foes along the way.
Cathedral Foyer And Catacombs
The Grand Cathedral is a long dungeon in more ways than one. Prior to the dungeon proper,events will occur on June 11th, which include battling through a small zone.
Inciting Events
While prep work is far less important here than further on, we’ll still cover the basics. Begin the mission byheading to the designated main story zone at the Grand Cathedral. You’ll be fightingundead creatures called Malmortaupon the conclusion of somemajorevents.
Warrior
Front
You’ll be thrust into combat whileStrohl is suffering from the anxiety ailment. You can cure this if you’ve purchased aSoothing Sweetbunfromone of the vendors at the market, but it’s frankly not a huge deal in this situation.
The Malmorta ambush you, so they act first - but they largely waste that advantage byraising their Hit Rate to 100 percent. By setting theprotagonist’s class to Healer, you can utilize theHamaspell todeal light damage to them, likely killing the target every time.
Into The Foyer
Start by crossing the completely linear path into the Grand Cathedral. Naturally, your arrival in the foyer occurs right beforerubble falls upon the front staircases,so we’ll be going the long way.
Head through the hall between the staircases, and you’ll soon discoveranother pair of staircases. Start byheading up the right set of stairs. At the top, you’ll find a treasure chest with aBreeze Igniter.
This accessory enables the equipped characters tocast Mage Wind, granting access to a Wind-elemental spell without necessitating a swap to the Seeker class.
Start byascending the left flight of stairs. You’ll find some poor folks are about to be slain, sodefeat the Malmorta in this scripted battle. Afterward,descend the staircase ahead of youso that you cansnag a few items.
Double back to the room where you rescued the folks. This time,ascend the staircase to your right. Keep along this path up a few more stairs andinto the room with bookshelves everywhere. Crawl through the space to rescue a child.
Don’t just grab theBalm of Lifefrom the treasure chest. Make sure to pick up the blue orbs nearby. While they tend to include common fare,one of these has a Health Incense, which raises a character’s HP!
From here, it’s a simple case ofexiting through the other door and following the path up to Hulkenberg.
Although Maria’s disappearance prompts some storytelling urgency,you needn’t rush things. Don’t head to your next destination, theMausoleum, until you’ve replenished your healing items and made any desired adjustments to your gear.
When you’re sufficiently prepared,make your way to the Mausoleum as instructed. You canchat with Morehere if you’d like to switch up your Archetypes.
Both the left and right doors on the way in here are locked, and nope, you can’t get in some other way just yet. Don’t worry - you’ll get that treasure later on.
Knight
When her turn is up, use Synthesis with Strohl for Jump Thrust to lower Grius’s defenses while hitting his weakness.
After the harrowing cutscene, battle will commence, andyou’ll be introduced to Metaphor: ReFantazio’s Synthesis system.
Grius has only two attacks:a regular physical attack and Phantom Dance,which isa party-wide dark-elemental skill. His defense is pretty paltry, so you’ll be cutting into his HP relatively rapidly. He’ll likelyfall within a handful of rounds, so this isn’t a big-deal fight.
If you need to heal (you’ll likely need to do so once or twice),either use items or - if you happen to already have it - the Healer’s Medi spell.
Medi’s description is “weak HP recovery for all allies”, but at this point in the game, “weak” is still pretty nice. But again, there’s a good chance you’ll not have unlocked this yet!
Full Dungeon Preparations
Afterward, you’ll unlock theKnight ArchetypeandHulkenberg will officially join the team!We kept her as the party’s Knight for now - she’s quite good at it, after all.
You’re given a firm deadline often days to complete the Grand Cathedral dungeon. So long as you set at least a couple of days aside, you canspend the rest of your time on city activities.
Right off the bat,talk to the NPC to your right, who introduces himself as an informant. He’ll sell you some information on a few enemies' weaknesses in the Grand Cathedral. At a mere150 reeve, you might as well buy it, but for the record, the info is as follows:
Regardless of when you decide to infiltrate the Mausoleum (this time for real),visit the shops. Sell off all your loot, and prepare to spend a good deal of reeve.
Armor Recommendations
Purchase the following armorif you don’t have them in your possession.
These choices are basedpurely on the Healer/Warrior/Knight setup that we used. If you’re rolling with something else, you’ll need to choose different attire!
Iron Gauntlets or Silver Greaves
Visiting Gloamhall
You’ll also want to hit upGloamhall, a shop that’sonly open at nighttime. Here, you’ll findconsumable items capable of dealing elemental damage to your enemies.
Once you can afford to do so,purchase several Flammabottles, Ice Chunks, and Luminous Spheres.
MP preservation is a huge part of major dungeons in Metaphor: ReFantazio, so these items - which don’t require MP - can be a lifesaver.
Purification
One last thing. It wouldn’t be a bad idea toraise your Wisdom to Informedprior to entering the dungeon. It will takea few time-passing actions, but it’s not too bad. All you need to do ishead to Sunlumeo Street during the daytime and/or nighttime and gaze upon the vista.
You should do this as long as you haveat least one weaponcapable of purificationin your inventory, but doubly so if youdefeated Fire Dragon Mauna in the Nord Mineand acquired Dragon’s Indignation.
Notes
Blue Elmenta
High evasion. Weak to fire. Don’t fret if you can’t beat them at first and they manage to flee.
Mad Watchdog Hundo
Uses Distant Howl to raise enemy party’s attack power. Weak to fire.
Louisian Spear Soldier
Uses Mage Mistral to deal party-wide wind damage. Weak to fire.
Louisian Mage Soldier
Casts Mage Flames for party-wide fire damage. Resists most elemental spells. Low defense; hit with physicals.
War Wulhas
Weak to fire. Essentially a slightly beefed-up Mad Watchdog Hundo.
We’ll be heading in through the Mausoleum again, specifically theCatacombs. Just run back to where you fought Grius, and you’ll meetCatherina. After the scene, you’llreceive a request. It will be taken care of as part of the main story, so no worries there.
Keep going; you’ll encounter a few weak wolf enemies.Through the door, you’ll enter thePrayer Chamber, the first of several large zones within the Grand Cathedral.
In this first room,grab the blue orb treasurefrom behind the statue to your rightfor a Rusted Polearmwhich can be appraised into a stronger weapon.
The right side of this room isblocked by debris, sohead through the door on the left side. Just ahead in this next room is your firstMagla Hollow; go through that sparkling door to discover a nicesave point and fast travel spot. You’ll find more of these throughout the dungeon.
Hostage Rescue And Brawler Unlock
When you’re finished with the Magla Room,keep along the pathuntil you reach the door withhostages trapped inside. The team promises to locate thekey to the locked door, so let’s hop to it.
Descend the staircasesahead of you until you’re in a hallway with several Hundos. There’s adoorway along the right-side wall;go through it to stumble upon asleeping guard with the key. You can eithersnatch it without a fight or purposefully wake him up afterward.
The choice is yours, but we went ahead andwoke him up. It’s decent EXP, and you’ll earn aCourier Anklet, which raises the wearer’s Agility by three points.
Before heading back to the door,proceed further down the hall. The blue item is aGreat Fairy Dust, a heal-all item that’s excellent for this point in the game. Inside thetreasure chestis theGambler’s Jewel, which raises the Luck stat by three points.
Return to the locked door. It’s tough luck for Catherina’s friend, butshe’s a new follower, and her addition to the roster unlocks the Brawler class.
As it happens, thetreasure chest in this room contains the purifiable Exorcist Knuckles, a Brawler weapon. There’s evenPlateau, the cat, who from this point forward can send you on trips to Akademia (and save your game for you).
Lots of signs here that the developers are hoping you might go ahead and check out the Brawler class. In fact, we did.We started Strohl along the way of the Brawlerposthaste. Its skills useHP rather than MP, so keeping them healthy is important, but they’requite powerful.
Set out from the room anddescend the staircase down to the main hall. Fight theWar Wulhas directly to your left, as they’re blocking the way forward.
Before moving past where they were slain, however,head to the hall’s southern wall for some Rusted Armourthat can be appraised. Now, you cancontinue north past the War Wulhas.
It’s a short hike further until you reach aninoperative lift, a stairway to climb,and the end of this zone.
Weak to light and fire.
Soldier Morneto
Weak to light and fire. Mostly just attacks physically, rather weakly.
Homo Oppo
Lower its defenses via skills and/or use strike-based physicals as it’s weak to them. Get rid of the adds first so the damage doesn’t pile up. Wind Breath is a party-wind wind attack.
No sooner does the party reach theServants' Chamberthan trouble erupts for the local Louisians. From your starting position, move ahead a bit, and then make for thesecond Magla Hollow through the first door to your right.
From the magla chamber, head to thearea where the soldiers were attacked.Interestingly enough, there’s alocked treasure chest dead-center here. We’ll work on finding the key for it later.
You can interact with the paintings along the wall in this room for a bit of lore.
Take thewest exitout of this room to trigger a quick scene and a tussle with a fewMorbid Mornetos.
There’s aroom with an exclamation mark notenearby, but much like that treasure chest,we can’t access it just yet. Movesouth, around the bend, and up to a raised corridor.
Getting The Sanctified Amulet
Gallica will notice adoor below the corridor with magla seeping out of it. Once you’ve descended via the opposite side staircase, and after you deal with theTrance Crystalspawning enemies, you can go check out the door, butit’ll be inaccessible right now.
In order to acquire the key,check each of the Servants' Chambers side rooms(the small ones you’ve been exploring along the halls). One of them has acrawlspace on its wall.
We missed recording this tidbit, but we promise it’s one of them! We’ll update this with the specifics as soon as we can, but note that it might be one of the rooms the guide’s not yet sent you to.
Upon opening the door,you’ll deal with several Mornetos.Frankly, it’s not the powerful fight you might have anticipated. A dying monk entrusts you withthe key to the treasure chest in the central area. Open it to obtain theSanctified Amulet.
The amulet’s akey item, so not terribly useful at first blush. However, it’s used tounlock something better in a future zone here in the dungeon.
The Altar Chamber Key
Continue exploring the small rooms on thewest side of the Servants' Chamber. You’ll find aGilded Cutlery and a Magla Pillwhile you’re at it.
By now, the zone’s map should belargely filled in, with the exceptions of the northwest and northeast portions. We started with thenortheast side, so make your way there, checking the small rooms along this wing (both the two to the south and the one at the northeast corner).
On to thenorthwest side, then, which is where thequest marker is. SomeRusted Bracerswill be pilfered as a blue item on the statue here.
Thesouth room on this winghas atraumatized soldierwhom you can speak with. He’ll hand you theAltar Chamber Key. Finally, we can move on!
Sword Captain Malmorta
Uses physical attacks and hits somewhat hard. Weak to strike, fire, and light.
Cursewight Magileto
Weak to strike; resists pierce.
Use theAltar Chamber Keyon the door just across from the soldier.Plateauis here to help you out with saving and Akademia visits again. Good cat.
Clear the Malmortas and move on. Beginascending the staircase(the one that isn’t blocked, obviously). At the highest point, there’s a valuableGrand Iron. Once you have it,jump down to all those crates.
There are heaps of blue items here for the taking. Zigzag around the area; be prepared totangle with another Homo Oppobefore you can open that southerntreasure chest for a Silver Spatha, and someCaptain Malmortasfor apurifiable Moonlight Mace.
Speaking of the Moonlight Mace treasure,to continue on past the crates, reach their top-left point. Follow the staircases upward. There’s another quick crate area most of the way up, but past that, there’sPlateau and a magla-drenched door.
Strongly considerhealing before opening that door. This next encounter is kind of a doozy.
Mage
Back
Use the Mage’s skill slot to carry over Medi from the Healer. Heal when necessary. Otherwise, use Bot on the non-mage Malmortas.
Brawler
Use elemental spell items on the non-mage Malmortas to help the Protagonist maintain damage.
Use Knight’s Proclamation every turn until the Malmortas are all dead.
The Whiteclad Soldier is aLouisian Mage Captain accompanied by four Malmortas of assorted classes.What makes this fight a challenge is thatthe Louisian Mage Captain will frequently cast the following:
Mage Captain Strength, as it buffs the Malmortas, will also increase the deadliness of their main attacks:
What ever are we to do, then?Have Hulkenberg use Knight’s Proclamation every rounduntil the Malmortas are gone. This willdramatically increase the likelihood that most of them will simply attack her individually, and physically.
Meanwhile,have Strohl and the Protagonist wail away at the Malmortas, one at a time using the strategies we outlined in the table,until they’re done and dusted.
As soon as theMage Captain is the sole combatant, switch tousing Strohl and Hulkenberg’s Jump Thrusttolower his defense, followed byHammer of Justice to deal heavy pierce damage. He’ll go down in short order.
Past here is a thirdMagla Hollowand just a sliver more linear hallway, and then theAltar Chamber is finished.
Lifewrought Gargoz
Impervious to slash. Weak to wind. Takes decent damage from most other spells.
Spekio
Uses Last Resort when it’s low on HP, which damages the entire party, so defeat these one at a time. Can inflict hex. Summons an add when only one remains. Weak to fire; repels strike.
Corpses litter theReception Chamber- a grim reception. Furthermore, someof thegargoyle statues are enemieswhich will begin to move as you approach them, sohave Gallica scan your surroundingswhenever you’re nearby.
A deliciousMagla Pillis the prize for scooping up the blue item past the first Lifewrought Gargoz.
By now, there’s every possibility that the Magla Pill will be the only MP restoration item you’ve got. If you’ve not already done so, and unless you’re in solid shape, call it a day once its aid runs out, and return later on.
The first door on yourlefthas aChipped White Porcelainloot item.Climb either staircaseto your right. The door just past the staircases has a few easy foes and nothing more.
The Blocked Lift
Wrap around the hall, descending this upcoming staircase; enter the door at the end.The door to your immediate rightafterward is barred, sogo left instead. You’ll learn that thelift is blocked by magic, because of course it is.
Loop around the back of the barrier if you, like me, feel the intense urge to fill in every detail of every map - there’s nothing here but the feeling of self-satisfaction.Go southeast from the barrierafterward for someSuperior Mundane Threadsto appraise later.
Climb the ladderfor a scene.Down the stairs past the Gargozis aBlessed Waterto purify with. Investigate the barrier before moving on.
Return to the previous area,go east into a larger room with easy soldiers, and head to thesmall room at its northeast endfor a treasure chest withPurity Gloves. The room due south of here has anAriadne’s Thread.
Sanctified Amulet’s Awakening
From the room with the Ariadne’s Thread mentioned above,continue south and west around the bend. Maintain course, defeating a pair of Gargoz beforepassing through the next doorway. You canhop down on to the giant statue to cross.
Upon reaching the other side, follow along the path downstairs. The fourthMagla Hollowis upon you, so save your game!Climb the short stairs past the Magla Hollow, and you’ll find alocked door.
TheSpekioshere cantarget you with their magic and deal loads of damage before the battle even starts, so take care around them.
Past the first room’s worth of Spekios is another. This room, however, is an important one.You’re at the base of the giant statue now, andif you have the Sanctified Amulet, you’ll be able to interact with the altar.
The result?The statue lowers. This time, when you cross it to the right side again,a treasure chest will appear containing the Exorcist’s Cassock, armor with DEF 100, Magic +3,and increased evasion againstDark. Sweet!
Moving On
Further exploration will send you to afifth Magla Hollowas you round out the fullness of the Reception Chamber’s map. Our goal, however, isthe door opposite the altar in the room with the giant statue. Headpast the pewsto thequest indicator.
Opening the door triggers afight with five Spekios. 525 EXP is rewarded for the fight, which should help you considerably on the road to the next batch of level-ups. The protagonist destroys the crystal, andthe barrier is removed on the lift.
Save withPlateaubefore continuing!
Your arrival at the lift prompts an ambush by three Whiteclad soldiers:a Louisian Mage Captain, and two Lousian Sword Captains.Our recommendation is that youeliminate the Mage Captain firstso that he does less tostrengthen those Sword Captains.
Louisian Sword Captain
Weak to ice. Maintain Knight’s Proclamation to keep them from doing much.
Azure Homo Tenta
Casts Gablizz to deal party-wide ice damage. Weak to fire. Resists strike.
Homo Fulquilo
Since it was previously a full-fledged boss,check our guide!
This time, wrapping around the back of the lift actually does something - sort of -there’s a lone Blue Elmenta back here.
Take the single path from the lift, fighting the Sword Captains. In thenext room,there aretwo paintings with green markersthatseemto suggest there’s something that can be done with them. Thus far, we’veonly been able to get a bit of lore out of them. In any case, we’ll come back later.
Now,head west from the portrait room. Past the room with some War Wuthas, head through a somewhat larger room andup these stairs. Through the upcoming door,the party encounters Zorba.
The conversation that follows once the team realizes they can’t progress has a dialogue choice. If you want to sound particularly smart, say"We could use a shield.“Then, tell the teamyou’ll use the painting of Louis.
Nothing for it, then, but to go andfetch the portrait. Cross the hall once Zorba’s gone, entering a room with someAzure Homo Tentasto deal with. Afterward, fight theHomo Fulquilos; if you’re struggling,consult our guidefor a refresher course on how you beat the boss version.
Up thelong staircase is the sixth Magla Hollow in the Grand Cathedral. Save your game as always, thenclimb the remaining stairsto theSceptre Chamber.
Sceptre Chamber And Heavenly Staircase
All that remains is a two-roomSceptre Chamberand a whole lot of climbing. We’ve used the word “staircase” a remarkable fifteen times already in this guide, but we’ll use it once more: you’ll be ascending theHeavenly Staircaseen route to theZorba boss fight.
Speaking of which,we’ve written full guidesfor the back-to-back boss fights that await you: the necromancer Zorba, followed by the imposing Homo Avades. When all is said and doneRegalith Grand Cathedral will be complete. Pat yourself on the back for averting the Day of Calamity.
Bear in mind,you’ll be fully healed between fights, so if you think you’ve got enough energy left for Zorba, don’t worry about having withered away prior to Homo Avades!
