__,---------.__ _,--' __,-------.__ `--._ _,-' _,-',----._ `-._ `-. ,-' ,-'_,-' `-._ `-. `-. ,' _,---' `-._ `-. `. ,' ,'/ `. `. \ / / | \ \ \ / / | __ `. \ \ / / | ,' \ \ \ \ | / \ /`. / `. \ \ | | | | \ | \ `. `._ | | | | ,-' |,' | | \ | | | | / || \_ | \ / | | | | /`. \ \ |/ | | | \ / \ / `-. | .--------------------------------------------------------. | _____ _ _ _____ ______ __ | | / ____| | | | /\ | __ \ / __ \ \ / / | | | (___ | |__| | / \ | | | | | | \ \ /\ / / | | \___ \| __ | / /\ \ | | | | | | |\ \/ \/ / | | ____) | | | |/ ____ \| |__| | |__| | \ /\ / | | |_____/|_| |_/_/ \_\_____/ \____/ \/ \/ | | ________________ ________________ | | ---------------- O F T H E ---------------- | | _____ ____ _ ____ _____ _____ _ _ _____ | | / ____/ __ \| | / __ \ / ____/ ____| | | |/ ____| | | | | | | | | | | | | | (___| (___ | | | | (___ | | | | | | | | | | | | |\___ \\___ \| | | |\___ \ | | | |___| |__| | |___| |__| |____) |___) | |__| |____) | | | \_____\____/|______\____/|_____/_____/ \____/|_____/ | | | '--------------------------------------------------------' ============================================================================== SHADOW OF THE COLOSSUS FAQ/Walkthrough Copyright (c)2005-2011 DomZ Ninja ============================================================================== Author: DomZ Ninja E-mail: domzninja[at]hotmail[dot]com Updated: 07/11/11 Version: 1.4 NOTE: This guide does contain spoilers! ______________________________________________________________________________ TABLE OF CONTENTS ______________________________________________________________________________ See that series of numbers to the right of each section? If you want to find a specific section in the FAQ, press CTRL + F to open a search box. Type in the series of numbers for the desired section that you're trying to find and press Enter. Whabam! The search function will take you there in an instant. [1] VERSION HISTORY.................................................. [0100] [2] CONTROLS......................................................... [0200] [3] THE BASICS....................................................... [0300] [4] WALKTHROUGH...................................................... [0400] The Beginning - Colossus 1...................................... [0401] Seaside - Colossus 2............................................ [0402] Atop the World - Colossus 3..................................... [0403] Solitude - Colossus 4........................................... [0404] Airborne Duel - Colossus 5...................................... [0405] Enter the Ruins - Colossus 6.................................... [0406] Time For a Swim - Colossus 7.................................... [0407] The Arena - Colossus 8.......................................... [0408] Barren Wasteland - Colossus 9................................... [0409] The Shifting Sands - Colossus 10................................ [0410] A Fiery Battle - Colossus 11.................................... [0411] Into the Water - Colossus 12.................................... [0412] Serpentine - Colossus 13........................................ [0413] Coming to an End - Colossus 14.................................. [0414] Desolation - Colossus 15........................................ [0415] The End - Colossus 16........................................... [0416] [5] TIME ATTACK...................................................... [0500] [6] ITEMS............................................................ [0600] [7] SECRETS.......................................................... [0700] [8] THANKS/CREDITS................................................... [0800] ______________________________________________________________________________ [1] VERSION HISTORY [0100] ______________________________________________________________________________ FAQ/Walkthrough #9 ------------------ Version 1.0 (11/05/05) - FAQ/Walkthrough complete and submitted. Version 1.1 (01/27/06) - Added some alternate strategies. Version 1.2 (04/22/06) - Added stuff for Time Attack and Hard mode. Version 1.3 (11/23/06) - Happy Thanksgiving folks! I updated the guide and added in some reader-submitted strategies for a handful of the Colossi. Version 1.4 (04/11/07) - Super format change! ______________________________________________________________________________ [2] CONTROLS [0200] ______________________________________________________________________________ - BASIC CONTROLS - .-----------------------------.----------------------------------------------. | D-Pad | Switch Weapons (Left and Right) | |-----------------------------|----------------------------------------------| | Left Analog Stick | Move | |-----------------------------|----------------------------------------------| | Right Analog Stick | Move Camera | |-----------------------------|----------------------------------------------| | Start | Pause, Open Map | |-----------------------------|----------------------------------------------| | Select | N/A | |-----------------------------|----------------------------------------------| | X Button | Whistle | |-----------------------------|----------------------------------------------| | Square Button | Attack | |-----------------------------|----------------------------------------------| | Triangle Button | Jump, Forward Roll (R1 + Triangle) | |-----------------------------|----------------------------------------------| | O Button | Raise Sword | |-----------------------------|----------------------------------------------| | R1 Button | Sneak, Grab, Dive Roll (R1 + Triange) | |-----------------------------|----------------------------------------------| | R2 Button | Zoom | |-----------------------------|----------------------------------------------| | L1 Button | Face Colossus | |-----------------------------|----------------------------------------------| | L2 Button | Center Camera | '-----------------------------'----------------------------------------------' - HORSEBACK - - SWIMMING - .-----------------.-----------------. .-----------------.-----------------. | D-Pad | Switch Weapons | | Left Analog | Move | |-----------------|-----------------| |-----------------|-----------------| | Left Analog | Move | | Right Analog | Move Camera | |-----------------|-----------------| |-----------------|-----------------| | Right Analog | Move Camera | | Triangle Button | Jump | |-----------------|-----------------| |-----------------|-----------------| | Start | Pause/Open Map | | R1 | Dive | |-----------------|-----------------| |-----------------|-----------------| | X Button | Kick | | L1 | Face Colossus | |-----------------|-----------------| '-----------------'-----------------' | Square Button | Attack | |-----------------|-----------------| | Triangle Button | Mount Horse | |-----------------|-----------------| | O Button | Raise Sword | |-----------------|-----------------| | R1 | Duck | |-----------------|-----------------| | R2 | Center Camera | |-----------------|-----------------| | L1 | Face Colossus | |-----------------|-----------------| | L2 | Zoom | '-----------------'-----------------' - ADVANCED CONTROLS - * While holding Triangle and R1, you can leap from one edge to another. You can jump to any direction just by moving the left analog. If you don't press any direction, then you will leap upwards. * The longer you hold Triangle, the higher you jump. * Press down on the left analog and hit X while riding Agro to make it come to a full stop. * If Agro is not moving, press down on the left analog and hit X to send it into a full gallop. * Press down on the left analog stick twice and hit X two times in a row to send Agro into a 180-degree turn. Very useful. * To stand on horseback, press R1 and X while riding. * Press R1 and X while moving the left analog left or right to ride your horse sidesaddle. * To pet Agro, unequip a weapon and press Circle. * When on a colossus, press Square to pull back your weapon. When the controller rumbles, hit it again to stab the beast with a stronger stab. ______________________________________________________________________________ [3] THE BASICS [0300] ______________________________________________________________________________ Like I started to explain in my introduction, your task is to find and hunt down these colossi. In order to do that, you must use your sword as a guide. When in a sunlit area, press Circle to raise your sword and let it hit the light. Move around the sword and you will see beams of sunlight point in areas. If the beams of light are spread apart, then you're going the wrong way. Rotate your sword until all the beams of light come together and pointto one location. The controller will also rumble when this happens. Follow that direction to get to the colossus. It's not always a straight line; sometimes you'll have to trek across mountains or swim across lakes. Once you find the colossus, you will have to find a way on it. Each colossi have weak points that must be attacked in order to hurt the beast. Raise your sword and shine the light on their body. When you feel the controller rumble, then you have found a weak point. When the light crosses it, a symbol will appear showing you the vital point. There's always a strategy to first climb on the colossus. Use your surroundings to your advantage. Always look for fur patches on them so you can use it to climb on them. You can jump from part to part, such as leap from their arm to their stomach. The colossus will try to shake you off, and your stamina meter (the pink circle) will decrease. Rest points are sometimes located on colossi. These points are spots where you can take a rest. Let go of R1 in this spot and you will be safe as your stamina replenishes. When you reach a weak point, press Square to rear your sword back. When you feel the controller rumble, it means you have fully charged up the attack. Now press Square to stab on the weak spot. Keep doing this to take out the weak point and decrease the colossus's health. Sometimes they have more than one weak point, so you'll have to take them all out in order to kill the colossus. Save altars can be found around the land as you locate different colossi. If you happen to find one, press Circle next to it to save your game. You also get a chance to save your game after you kill a colossus. Press Start to open your map. It pinpoints your location on it as well as the colossi you've defeated. A dotted line shows you the path that you have taken to reach the colossus as well as a dot that shows the location of it. Remember, these only show the location for colossi that you've already killed. Also remember that I use the map frequently and so should you. If I say "head north", I mean head north on the map. I'll be using these references a lot, so I don't want you to get confused. You can increase your stats in this game. You will find many trees on your journey. Some hold delicious fruit. Use your bow to shoot them down and pick them up. Once eaten, your health will not only be replenished, but your health bar will get bigger. Lizards can also be found all over the place. Shoot them with your bow and pick up their tail. When you eat these, you will regain stamina as well as increase the stamina circle. Tigress sends in: ----------------- Only the white-tailed lizards increase your stamina meter. They can usually be found around save points and sometimes near fruit trees. A big group of lizards (like in the desert) will also have one or two. There is also an abusable glitch in the game: If you save at some of the save points after killing the lizard and then turn the game off, you will find a new lizard lurking around the save point when you fire it up again. After you kill a colossus, you can return to the battle area to find its dead body. If you walk up to the body, you will be asked if you'd like to enter Reminiscent Mode. This mode lets you fight the colossus again (as many times as you like). ______________________________________________________________________________ [4] WALKTHROUGH [0400] ______________________________________________________________________________ NOTE: This walkthrough is based on the Normal difficulty. Remember, I use the map frequently and so should you. If I say "head north", I mean head north on the map. I'll be using these references a lot, so I don't want you to get confused. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Beginning - Colossus 1 [0401] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ You will first start off in the temple with your horse and the girl on the altar. A mysterious voice now known as Dormin will tell you the basics of controlling the boy. Follow its directions and get used to the feel of the game. When you're done practicing, press Triangle to get on your horse, Agro, and head down the stairs to the left or right of the altar. Repeatedly press X to kick Agro and get it to gallop faster. Take note of the save altar right in front of the temple. You can save now if you like. Raise your sword by pressing Circle once you get outside. When the beams of light come together at a point, follow that way. Head south while holding down Circle and you will come to a canyon. This is where you'll be testing some of your platforming skills. Get off of Agro and walk towards the right wall, the one with the vines on it. Press Triangle to jump and hold R1 to grab the vines. Now climb up the wall and press Triangle again once you're at the edge to get up. First off, let's talk about stamina. When you're grabbing and holding on to something, your energy will slowly drain. The stamina meter is the pink circle, and the pink will start to decrease and get smaller as you hold onto something. If the pink runs out, then you will lose your grip, usually meaning falling off of something. Now it's important to rest and let your stamina fill. You can do this just by letting go of R1. It's important to do this on a colossus, beacuse losing your grip 500 feet off the ground isn't good. Walk along the ledge to the left until you find a gap. Run and press Triangle to leap across it to the other side. Grab the ledge ahead and hoist yourself up. Proceed this time to the right. You'll find a stone lying across your path. The only way to get around it is to dive roll. Press R1 and Triangle at the same time to roll. Dive roll under the stone and to the other side. The path comes to a dead end, but there's a way around it. Grab the next ledge and you will see a pillar next to you. Jump next to it and grab the edge of it. Use the left analog to shimmy to the left around it. Now since you're on the other side of the pillar, aim the left analog to the left and press Triangle to leap across to the ledge. Now you can continue up the pathway to meet up with the first colossus. Woo! o------------o | COLOSSUS 1 | o------------o Weak Points: Left calf, head Rest Spots: Lower/mid back (platforms), shoulders Here we are; the first colossus of the game. After you are done gawking at its size, it's time to find a way to take this giant thing out. First off, shine your sword on the colossus to check out its weak points. Symbols will appear on the colossus' head and leg. When it sees you, the beast will lumber over towards you. The colossus is not that dangerous when you're on the ground. It will walk around, so do make sure that the colossus doesn't step on you. It will also use the club in its hand as a weapon. The colossus will slowly rear it behind its head and smash it down on the ground. Stay out of the way or else you're done for. If at any time you die during the battle, you will start off at the beginning of the battle. The first weak spot is its left calf. Run over to its leg and try not to get crushed. Now you can jump up to the colossus' hairy leg. The calf will be glowing red. Stab the calf to not only damage the colossus, but to bring it down on one knee. This is your signal to jump off of the calf onto the ground. Run over to the fallen knee and quickly jump onto the back of the knee so you can climb up the back of the colossus' leg. If the colossus stands up before you can reach the leg, then you will have to stab the calf a second time. Continue climbing up its leg up to the back. There are a series of platforms on the colossus' back where you can rest. Climb up onto a platform and let your stamina replenish. Of course, the colossus will try to shake you off, so grab on if you start to fall. An easy way to regain your composure is to hold R1 when not near the colossus's fur. You will duck and help to gain your balance without using any stamina whatsoever. Once you're ready, start to climb up the back of the colossus. Trek up the back hair of the colossus until you reach the shoulders. You can freely walk around on the shoulders and upper back of the beast; you most likely won't fall off. So once again, wait until the stamina regains, then make it towards the head. When you reach the weak point on the head, grab onto the hair and press Square. Charge up a stab (the controller rumbles when it's fully charged) and stab it. The colossus will panic more when you've arrived on its head and will violently shake its head in order to fling you off. Hold on for dear life with R1 and continue to stab the head. Three or four stabs to the colossus's head should take it down for good. Hard Mode The only difference between Hard Mode and Normal Mode is that the colossus gains another weak point; it is located on its right bicep. If you're on top of its head, then drop down to the shoulders and climb down the arm. If not, then you can crawl up the arm by attacking the calf. Attack the weak spot until the colossus is dead. You will watch a cutscene showing the death of the towering colossus. As it collapses to the ground, snakey black tendrils will slip into your body. You fall to the ground and black out. Now the game asks you to save. Of course, do so and you will return to the temple. The idol breaks apart and Dormin gives you the clue for the next colossus' location. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Seaside - Colossus 2 [0402] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ From now on, you will always return to the temple once you beat a colossus. Exit the temple with Agro and shine your sword. The light shines to the temple, but you must head around it to the next destination. Head due north of the temple towards a large bridge. Keep riding through the plains towards a stone arch. Head down the hill towards the crumblind stone bridge. Don't worry, it won't collapse under you. Ride across the old bridge overlooking a seaside cove. That's your destination and the location of the second colossus. Once across the bridge, there will be a fork in the road. The upper pathway leads to the third colossus, so don't go that way just yet. The lower path will lead you down a steep rocky road. Proceed down the path to the sandy cove. Head through the beach to the back wall where you should see a stone door. Head up to it to reveal the location of the second colossus. o------------o | COLOSSUS 2 | o------------o Weak Points: Bottom of hooves, tailbone, head Rest Spots: Protrusions on shoulders/hind legs The big difference in this battle is that you are facing a four-legged colossus. Even though, it's still a long way up to the top. The presence of your horse will also help out in this battle such as dodging attacks and reaching the colossus. The colossus's main attack involves it slamming its front legs down on the ground, creating a somewhat small earthquake around it. Of course, it just walking can and will hurt you if too close. First, get its attention by riding in front of the beast. Once it sees you, it will slowly walk towards you in attempt to crush you beneth its massive feet. Run around it to the side or back. When the colossus walks, you may notice glowing spots on the bottom of its feet. When it picks up its foot to walk, shoot an arrow at the glowing spot to injure the colossus and have it fall to the ground. When the opportunity arises, run to the injured leg and grab the fur on it. Climb up the base of the leg and up to the body. If you took out a hind leg, head for the tail to take out the weak point there. If you injured a front leg, then proceed to the head and destroy that point. Let's go with where you took out a hind leg. Climb up the leg to the back and take a rest on the bone protruding from the legs in order to regain stamina. When ready, drop down to the tail and grab onto the fur. Stab the weak point on the tail several times. Each time you do so, blood will spew from the weak spot. Once the symbol disappears, you can't damage that spot any more. The next part can be a bit tricky. You must now travel to the head. You can go two ways; the first way is traveling up the spine. If you do this way, you will get there faster but will have a better chance of being flown off of the colossus. The other way is to climb on the fur and head sideways along the beasts side to the head. I recommend the spine way, just because you have a chance of running out of stamina with the colossus thrashing about. Rest one more time on the protrusions and head off on the spine. You will have to climb over each bone on the spine to get over it. You can jump over each, but with the colossus shaking you off, that may be harder. Continue past the shoulders and to the neck. If you went with the climbing way, then use the shoulders for a resting point. Continue up the neck and onto the colossus' head. By now, the thing is trying its hardest to chuck you off, but keep sticking onto the neck and crawl towards the weak point on the head. When you reach the weak point, continue to use charged stabs on the vital weak point. Remember that you can retreat back to the shoulders if you feel that you are going to lose your grip. It takes around five hits to take out this weak point, so with that one gone, the colossus is done for. Hard Mode This colossus also has a new weak point. After you finally bring the colossus to the ground, climb up to its body. The weak point is located on the left side of its body. It's easy to find and eliminate. Once again, the black tendrils chase after you. It's fun to try to run away from them, but the outcome is inevitable. You will now return to the temple as the second idol crumbles. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Atop the World - Colossus 3 [0403] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ If you want, save at the bottom of the temple and raise your sword to find the next location. The light will form behind the temple again, so start to head towards the spot where you found the second colossus. After you cross the stone bridge, you'll be at the fork in the road. Instead of taking the lower path, climb the hill where you'll be in a shadowy canyon. You can find some lizards here, so get off of Agro and shoot them with arrows. Walk over to their body and press Circle to pick up the tail and eat it. You will gain a stamina boost; enlarging the stamina meter. Exit the canyone on Agro and you will watch a little scene. Head over to the edge of the water and get off of your horse, Drop into the water and swim towards the stone ramp jutting out of the lake. Use the left analog to swim and you can press and hold R1 to dive underwater. When underwater, your stamina meter becomes your oxygen, so get back to the surface if it's almost gone. Once you reach the ramp, walk up it to find yourself in front of a chasm. Jump to the pillar next to it and hold down R1 to grab the edge. Shimmy to the right and jump to the giant platform. Run forward until you come to a stairway leading to a giant arena in the sky. Here is where the battle against the third colossus will take place. Step in the arena to start the fight. o------------o | COLOSSUS 3 | o------------o Weak Points: Stomach, head Rest Spots: Right wrist (once broken), shoulders, torso (platform) This colossus is much larger than the others and now actually has a weapon of some sort. The colossus carries around a large stone slab which is used as a sword. It not only destroys the floor with its massive feet, but also swings around the stone sword. Its main use of the sword actually will help you out in this battle, but we'll get tothat a little later. The colossus will jab the sword into the ground vertically, which is easy to dodge. The second attack is where it swings it down at you. Your main priority for the first part of this battle is to somehow destroy the stone armbands on the colossus's right hand. You should see a large round platform in the midle of the arena. Head over, stand on it, and use arrows to lure the colossus over. When it tries to smash you with the sword, wait until the last minute to move and it'll hit the platform. This causes its armband to break around its right arm. Now you must find a way to get on the colossus, but I bet you figured how to by now. When the colossus tries to hit you with the stone sword, wait until it hits the ground and jump on it. Run up the sword to its hand before the sword is raised up. Even if you don't get there in time, you can climb up the rest of the sword. Now you can climb past the broken armband to the first weak point: the head. Climb up the rest of the colossus's arm and up to the shoulders. You can make a pit stop and rest up on the huge shoulders. When your grip is full, make your way up to the head and the symbol will appear. Start to stab at the head to injure the behemoth. The colossus will be flailing its head back and forth, so you might want to keep things safe and return to the shoulders before the weak point is taken out. The weak point will be taken out when you've dealt half of its health. Now you can return to the shoulders and replenish your grip. Travel back down the shoulders to the back. Climb down most of the colossus's back and you should find a platform around the beast's hip. Walk around it to the front to find the the last weak point. Stab it several times to take out the colossus for good. Another way to fight this battle is to target the stomach first. When you first climb up the arm, you can make a leap of faith to the large platform on the torso. There you can climb up to the stomach and take out that weak point first. Once that's done, climb up the chest until you make it to the head. I can't really recommend this method, because you'll most likely end up falling to your doom when jumping from the colossus's arm to its stomach. Still, use whichever strategy you prefer. Hard Mode A new weak point is now located on the colossus's left arm. If you attack the stomach first, then you can go for the head and leave the arm for last. The weak point is easy to locate; just climb down the shoulders and onto its arm, then stab the weak point to defeat the colossus. Another one bites the dust! Get attacked by the black tendrils as you fall unconscious yet again. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Solitude - Colossus 4 [0404] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Your destination will be southeast, in a peaceful wooded area. To get there, you'll have to shine your sword. On the screen you'll be travelling to the left. As you approach the foothills, you should see a small ravine cut down the mountain. Slip through to find yourself in a forest. You'll see a cutscene when you enter. Head down the hill to the clearing and pass the hills with the doors in them (remember where they are for the battle ahead). Proceed to the far end of the clearing to start up the battle with the fourth colossus. o------------o | COLOSSUS 4 | o------------o Weak Points: Neck, head Rest Spots: Protrusions on shoulders The fourth colossus also walks on four legs, but is different than the second one you fought. This colossus resembles a giraffe or a horse and is a lot bigger than the other quadruped. The colossus's calm and regal look should be taken seriously. This guy barely does anything offensively. All the beast does it walk around, but you may get hit by its needle-like feet. Remember those hills that I kinda, well, told you to remember? Yeah, head back to those and lure the colossus over as well. The easiest way to lure it over is simply by whistling. When the monster comes over and has its eyes on you, slip in one of the doors of the bunker and wait inside. When you hear loud crashes and banging, you know that the colossus is attacking your impromptu hiding spot. When the shaking and crashing stops, then it's your cue to exit the bunker. First off, don't go through the entrance. Head down the path and you should find back doors. Exit through one of them and you will be behind the big colossus. By now, the colossus should be lying on the ground (not sure why, but it helps you with getting on it). Run over to the colossus's tail which has two ledges on it. Stand next to the tail and jump up to grab the first ledge. Pull yourself up to the second one and finally to the beast. The colossus will realize where you are and starts shaking. Hurry and grab the fur and slowly make your way up the back. Head up the back of the colossus as it thrashes about. You can rest on the bones sticking out of the shoulders. You should be safe standing on them. Drop down to the shoulders and climb to the neck. There will be a "minor" weak point here, like the first colossus's calf. Stab the neck once the send the beast in a state of tremendous pain. It will lower its neck, giving you access to the head and the final weak point. The head is where the only main weak point is located on the beast. As you hold onto the furry head in an attempt to plunger your sword in, the colossus will still be flailing around. The head is a pretty safe spot to let go of the fur and crouch. Now you don't have to retreat back to the shoulders to regain grip. When the colossus gets ready to shake again, grab the fur to avoid falling. Keep using strong stabs against the colossus. It takes around seven charged stabs with your sword to take down the behemoth. Hard Mode The fourth colossus has two new weak points; both located on its front legs. Climb up onto the colossus using the normal strategy, then find and locate the two symbols. Destroy them first and attack the head last to kill it. o--------------------o | ALTERNATE STRATEGY | o--------------------o I have recieved some mail from Outlaw_JT regarding another way to get on the colossus. He writes: "Instead of jumping on its tail, run up underneath it while it is still perched over the hole, run up to the edge of the mound and jump onto one of the stone dreadlocks dangling from its head. Using this and the ridges on its head you can climb straight to the top of its head without having to navigate the back or stab the neck to move its head into position." - Thanks Outlaw_JT! You know what comes next. As you black out from the ghastly tendrils, the fourth idol collapses to the temple floor. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Airborne Duel - Colossus 5 [0405] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ What are we, a quarter done with the game now? It's been a blast so far, hasn't it? Alright, things are going to pick up a lot more with this colossus. Exit the temple with Agro and raise your sword when you enter the sunlight. Head east once again to the next location. Pass the ravine in which you went through to find the last colossus and continue through the plains. Proceed down the canyon and on the cliff walls. You will end up finding an opening in the cliff wall. There's a save altar here. Do what you wish with it and continue along. You will find yourself in a very misty area with an eroded tower in front of you. Jump into the lake surrounding the tower and swim towards it. A gate surrounds the area, so press R1 to dive down into the water. Swim through the opening in the wall and come up on the other side. Jump up onto dry land and climb up the large pillar beside you. When you reach the top, you will find a bridge. Head through and up the stairs. Doing this activates a cutscene; the battle with the fifth colossus begins now! o------------o | COLOSSUS 5 | o------------o Weak Points: Tail, left wing, right wing Rest Spots: Tail/shoulders/back (when upright) The battle starts off pretty calm. The bird-like colossus is perched on some rubble far into the lake. There should be a hole in the side of the platform that you're standing on; drop down and plop into the lake. Start swimming east through the misty lake. It's a pretty large area, so it's easy to get lost. Look for two structures sticking out of the water in the center of the lake. Swim to those and you should find three platforms on the water's surface. When standing on the central platform, you can see the colossus right in front of you on the rubble. Pull out your bow and fire away at the monster. Of course, it doesn't take kindly to you firing arrows at it, so the beast will get pissed. The colossus will swoop down and fly straight at you. Don't worry, you should be fine if you do this right. Stay on the platform and wait until the colossus draws near, then jump at it. If done correctly, press R1 to grab on the fur on the colossus' wings and you'll be picked up. The colossus will start to fly high in the air. Don't worry; still hold on and don't start moving until it stops swirling and spinning around. When you can move, then slowly crawl to the closest wing. There is a period of time where the colossus will fly in a straight line. When it does this, then it is safe to walk on it without going flying off of it. If it starts to dive or move, then grab its fur again. When upright, quickly run across the wing to the tip. Grab on the patch of fur and start to stab at the weak point. Two or three stabs will take out the weak point. When this happens, the colossus will freak out and begin to fly around in a haze. Hold on for dear life as it dives like a roller coaster. It's actually okay if you end up falling off of the colossus at any time while in the air. You will most likely land in the water and won't take any damage. If this happens, return to the platforms and shoot the colossus with arrows again. This time, it will still be in the air flying, so it will be a bit harder to hit it. Now it's time to take out the second weak point on the wing. Wait until the colossus is calmly flying again and make a mad dash to the neck and back region. Then you can start to run to the tip of the next wing. If it starts to spin around, grab the fur below you. Stab the second weak point on the wing two or three times to eliminate it. Now only the weak point on the tail remains. The fun way to reach the tail quickly is hard, but you can do it if you're lucky. If the colossus starts to fly faster, let go of the fur and you will be most likely fall backwards off of the colossus. If you hit and hold R1 while in the air, there's a chance that you will grab one of the spikes on the tail or the tail itself. Like I said, it's pretty hard to do this; you're better off just crawling down the furry back. Either way, the last weak point will appear when you have arrived. The weak point on the tail is a tad stronger than the other ones. Use strong charged stabs on the tail. Once you've stabbed it around four times, the colossus will plummet into the lake as the last bit of its energy is swept away. Hard Mode There is nothing new about this colossus in Hard Mode. As the carcass of the fifth colossus lay in the depths of the misty lake, you are swarmed by the black things and knocked out. When you come to, idol number five crumbles. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Enter the Ruins - Colossus 6 [0406] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ So far five idols have been destroyed and eleven more remain. Let's get to work. When you pinpoint the location of the next colossus with your sword, it will be in a different direction than the others. Now you will have to go southwest to reach it. Ride through the plains and you should see two very tall columns in the distance. You must get to those, but it's not that easy. You will come to a dark forest sooner or later. It is heavily dense and easy to get lost in it. You can't shine your sword here, so just follow my directions. Hug the right wall and right through, looking for openings on the side. Go through the second opening on the right. You will come to a large clearing on the other side. Follow the light and ride towards the save altar. Save and while you're at it, hunt the lizards that roam the area. Continue down the hill towards the large temple in the distance. Once you reach it, dismount Agro and go down the staircase near the front of the ruins. Once inside, climb over the fallen pillars and rocks. Head through the tunnel to come to a very large room inside. There is a long way down to the bottom floor, and falling isn't an option. Walk straight ahead to the edge of the cliff and hold R1. Walk off the cliff while holding R1 and you will grab a ledge. Now let go of R1 and press it again immediately to grab the ledge below. Keep doing this, navigating either left or right, to the bottom. Once you reach the bottom of the ruins, the sixth colossus will appear. o------------o | COLOSSUS 6 | o------------o Weak Points: Head, left deltoid Rest Spots: Shoulders The giant colossus will appear behind you and start plodding towards you. This hulking beast has a number of attacks which are all very deadly. Its primary attack is where the giant will slam its fist into the ground, leaving a big impression in the ground. The colossus will also try to crush you under its large foot. Jump to avoid the large shockwave. You can't hurt it right now, so take the pansy way and run! Run to the wall ahead and climb up it. Drop down to the floor and head near the next wall. Climb this one as well and drop down. Through all of this, the colossus will be slowly following you, crashing through wach wall that you previously climbed over. After one more wall, a dead end appears. Hide under the balcony until the colossus catches up to you. You will be safe here, so play it safe and hide out for a while. Wait in the shadows as the colossus draws near. The colossus will get pretty impatient trying to find you, and eventually it will stick its head down and try to look under the balcony. See its long, wooly beard? That is how you get on the guy. When its head lowers to the ground, run out of hiding and grab onto its scruffy beard. Climb up as the shocked thing stands there motionless. By the time you reach the head, the colossus will be flipping out; whipping its head around practically nonstop. Keep holding on and try to get in a few stabs on the weak point. I suggest going over to the shoulder and recovering your grip before you take out the weak point on the head for good. Once you take out the weak spot on the colossus's head, one more will appear. It is on the colossus's left deltoid. By the way, the deltoid is on the back, just so you're not left clueless. So get back to the shoulders and recover your grip. Slowly climb down as the beast still thrashes about. Lower yourself to the left and the weak point will appear. Continue to use strong stabs on the deltoid. By now, it won't wiggle around as much, so you shouldn't need to retreat back to the shoulders. Once you stab the last weak point a good five times, the giant is taken down for good. Hard Mode There is a weak point on the left hand of the colossus. As you hide under the structure like normally, you can either proceed like usual and grab on its beard. From there, take out the weak points on its head and deltoid. Or you can also target the hand first by running out from the structure and grabbing onto the fur on the colossus's hand. The spirits will come out of the colossus and envelop you. Time for the next hunting mission. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time For a Swim - Colossus 7 [0407] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Exit the temple once again and use your sword to pinpoint the location of the next colossus. Your sword will shine behind the temple again, so head out. Head to the old stone bridge and ride across it. At the fork, proceed up the hill towards the misty lake where you found the third colossus. Instead of swimming to the stone platform, stay on Agro and ride down the coast until you get to a canyon. Continue riding in the canyon and when you come to an intersection, go right. Most of the area that you're riding through is very dark, so you can't use your sword as a guide. You will find a save altar in the opening here, so if you wish to save, then do so. Follow the light of the sword when you enter the sunlight towards the stone columns in the distance. As you follow the light, you will come to a stone archway with an opening in the middle. Dismount your horse and proceed through the opening. Go across the bridge to the spiral pillar. Instead of going to the top, just jump into the swampy waters to start the battle. o------------o | COLOSSUS 7 | o------------o Weak Points: Base of spikes, head Rest Spots: Body (when above water) You know this will be an interesting battle, because you know, you have to fight an electric eel while swimming around in a swamp! How cool is that? The colossus will most likely not even notice you at first and continue to swim around. Swim over to it (press R1 to dive, you swim faster than when above water) and right past its head. The colossus will notice you and start to swim to the surface. When it comes up to the surface, the spikes will stick out of the water. The spikes are electrically charged and creates a ring of electricity when above the water. When you see the first one come out of the water, then swim away to avoid it. When you dodge the first one, turn around and swim back towards the tail, keeping your distance from the spikes. When the third spikes submerges again, the colossus will rear its tail out of the water. There is a very minimal amount of time, so when the tail sticks out of the water, quickly grab onto the fur and you will go underwater with the colossus. The colossus will furiously swim around, but keep holding onto the tail. After a little bit, the colossus will start to stick out of the water a bit, giving you a chance to freely walk on the its back. Once you're above water, run over to the base of the first spike. The fur around each spike is brown. That's almost like the boundary of how far the electricity will go. When underwater, the colossus's spikes will also shoot out electricity. If you are outside the brown ring, then you'll be fine. Once above water again, begin to stab the base of the spike; the area should glow dark red. One or two stabs will take out the weak point. You should have enough time to get a start on moving to the second one before you go back under. When you reach the second base, take it out the same way. If you ever fall off of the colossus at any time, you'll have to repeat the strategy of getting its attention and grabbing the tail again. By now, the colossus will have to resort to a new tactic. The beast will dive down underwater, way farther than expected. When it starts to go down very deep, then just let go and swim back to the surface. It will try to dive down and drown you, so don't stay on it for too long or you will run out of air. Once back at the surface, you will have to repeat the first strategy again. Get its attention and grab onto the tail. Unfortunately, you will now have to make your way past the other spikes again. When you reach the third, take it out with one or two stabs. Once the third spike is destroyed, the weak point on the colossus's head will appear. The behemoth will thrash about and start to dip its head underwater and back above a lot. This doesn't give you a lot of time to attack, so resort to quick, weaker stabs so you can actually get a hit in. If you use weaker stabs, it should take maybe ten or twelve. Strong stabs take five or six to take the colossus down. Either way, this reptilian colossus won't go down with a fight. Hard Mode There is nothing new about this colossus in Hard Mode. As the giant colossus slowly sinks to the bottom of the lake, you will be enveloped by the black spirits. You'll be transported to the temple as usual. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Arena - Colossus 8 [0408] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ It's time to set off again to fight the eighth colossus. Exit the temple and head southeast, where the light shines. Ride across the plains until you reach a small opening in the mountain. Pass through the canyon to another open area. Proceed across to the other side where you will find a cave. Ride through the cave to a very narrow cliff path. It's really small here and is littered with rocks and trees. You're better off getting off of Agro and walking. When you're at the end, just whistle to get it over. Get on Agro again and enter the second cave. You will exit to a scenic area complete with a beautiful lake and lush trees. Well, once you're done sightseeing, head to the stone structure to the left. You can either swim to it or ride to the right. Make the turn to the center of the lake and go across the rocks. Once you reach the stone structure (whether you swim across or ride Agro), enter the building and dismount your horse if you haven't already. You will now be inside some ruins. Walk over to the left pillar and jump to it. Grab the edge of it and shimmy around it to the other side. Jump to the platform and walk to the far wall. Drop down to the floor and head through to enter a large colosseum. Once you reach the window ahead, the battle starts. o------------o | COLOSSUS 8 | o------------o Weak Points: Legs, belly, chest Rest Spots: None This battle is another interesting one. Also, this battle marks where the colossi can really pack a punch and start to damage you. In the earlier battles, you kinda just get knocked off of the colossus and get back on. Well, they are tougher now and will resort to killing you rather than just shaking you off. The colossus has a few attacks, but they are very powerful and annoying to boot. It walking can hurt you like the other colossi, but this colossus has a deadly attack. It can shoot out energy shots at you. Of course, you will take damage if you're hit. But after the shots hit something, they release poison gas in the vicinity. Back away, or the gas will seep your health so quick, you won't even realize you're losing health until you're dead. Well the lobster-like colossus is at the bottom of the arena and you are way up top. There are sets of stairs that you can go down, but lets not. Run to the right to see a large portion of the area broken off, giving you access to the lower floors. Drop down while holding R1 to grab the lower ledge. Take out your bow and aim at the legs of the colossus. Shoot one of the legs to get its attention. When it has its sights set on you, the colossus will scale the walls of the arena in order to reach you. This is where you can drop down to the bottom floor, then head down the stairs to the center of the arena. With you out in the open, the colossus has a much better chance of hitting you with poison blasts. If you see the mouth of the colossus start to glow, then put down your bow and get ready to run away, for it will shoot poison blasts in your location. Ready your bow and aim for the legs of the colossus again. This time, hit the glowing part on the leg to hurt it. Hit two legs for the colossus to lose its balance and fall off of the wall. The colossus falls to the ground, on its back fortunately. It will writhe on the ground. This is your cue for attack. Run up its tail to its stomach. Here is where the first weak point lies. Equip the sword and stab the weak point on the stomach. You'll need to stab it about five times to take it out. You will surely have enough time to take out one, but the colossus flips over after one goes away. Now return to the interior of the arena and go up the flight of stairs to where you first started the battle. You'll have to attract the colossus and get it to climb the walls again. When you do that, hurry down to the bottom and damage two of its legs. This time, the weak point will appear on its chest. Sure, you will have to walk farther up its body, but its more or less the same. Once you take out the second weak point, the colossus is done for. Hard Mode There are no new weak points located on the colossus, but the previous weak points take more hits to be eliminated. o--------------------o | ALTERNATE STRATEGY | o--------------------o Here's another alternate strategy from Ardes. Here's what he says: "Start on the top floor and head to the edge of the broken-off area. Shoot at the Colossi to get it's attention. As it's scaling the walls, drop down one floor below. Look through the barred windows and you'll see that you can shoot at it's belly. Shoot it with about 3 or 4 arrows, and the beast will fall. Jump down (grabbing the ledge right before the ground, then falling again so you only take a bit of damage.) and climb onto the colossi, stabbing at the weakpoints. Once it starts moving, get out of there and run up the stairs to the top floor (or any floor past the first, I guess, I hadn't tried it that way) and repeat the strategy. This way was quicker and easier (again, for me) with a huge decrease in the chance of getting hit with poison gas!" - Thanks for the alternate strategy Ardes! o--------------------o | ALTERNATE STRATEGY | o--------------------o I got another strategy from vanshomieg: "Hey, nice work with the strategy guide, but the strategies for the eighth colossus are just too much, and I have one of the fastest strategies for defeating him. If done right, and I have actually accomplished this, you can defeat it in under a minute in time attack mode. At the very beginning, as the cutscene ends, immediately whistle and run to the right. Jump down the stairs and pull your bow out, then run to the opening in the wall. If done right, the colossus should be exactly to your left, legs easily hit with arrows. Two legs gone, as it starts to fall, jump, leap of faith, straight down. The colossus falls faster, so you should hit the ground about the same time. Then, jump on to its stomach and do the jumping stabs on the two weak points to finish it off." - Thanks vanshomieg! You will be swept into darkness again and return to the temple. Wow, half of the colossi are killed! It's been fun, hasn't it? ^_~ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Barren Wasteland - Colossus 9 [0409] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Once you wake up, you will be looking a lot more rugged and scruffy. Hmm, a sign maybe? Or maybe you just look like a hobo. Eh. Ride Agro out of the temple and out into the open light. Shine your sword to have it point to the northwest. Continue behind the temple and instead of going across the bridge to the second/third/seventh colossus, go left a little bit to find yet another bridge next to it. Proceed across this one and you will be in an open plain again. Simply shine your sword and ride across the vast plains. You can find lizards and fruit trees along the way, so I recommend picking some up to boost your stats. There are save altars in this wide area, so save if you happen to pass one. Follow the light from your sword and you will start to notice that the green plains start to get dry and barren. You will soon enter a dark valley. Head left along the cliff edge to find a cluster of dead trees. Cross the stone bridge to the other side. Here you will be in a barren wasteland with noting but several active geysers thrown around. Ride towards the opening in the mountainside and enter the darkness to awaken the next colossus. o------------o | COLOSSUS 9 | o------------o Weak Points: Bottom of feet, head Rest Spots: Shoulders, head This guy just plain sucks. It is by far the hardest so far and is probably the only one so far that will give you trouble. This guy is yet another quadruped, but unlike the others, its friggin' huge. It will plod around in the cave at first, raising its head to reveal some sort of symbol on its chin. The colossus's main attack is where it'll shoot lasers from the symbol on its chin. It is really hard to dodge without Agro. If you're not on the horse, then jumping is your best bet. It wil also raise its front legs in an attempt to smash you with them. The strategy for this battle is very unique. Lure the colossus out of the cave and out into the open. Try to stay on Agro to make it follow you faster. Head over to one of the geysers (they aren't very hard to spot) and make sure it is following you. Once you reach one, get off of Agro and start to whistle to get the beasts attention. Now this is a lot harder to actually do, but you will have to lure the colossus so it is standing over a geyser. Do this by whistling constantly and dodging its lasers. Once you get it over one, just stop and wait for the geyser to shoot up. Once it is hit by the water, it will stumble. Getting hit by the geyser causes the colossus to fall on one side. It will reveal the bottom of two of its feet, which glow green. Shoot both of the green spots with your bow to make it fall over on its back, giving you an opportunity to get onto the beast. With the colossus laying on the ground, quickly run over to it and go around it to the stomach. There will be small platforms that reach the ground in the middle of its stomach. Climb up them to its furry underside. Climb up the stomach and go up top and try to get on its back now. Wait for it to flip over, while waiting at the top of the stomach so you can get up on the back of the turtle-like colossus. Once it is up on all fours again, you can walk around the bony shelf alongside its back. Walk around to the tail of the beast and head up the shell of the colossus. Now continue up the spine of the colossus towards the head. There is no fur on the back, so do your best to get onto the colossus's head without getting thrown off. Once you reach its head, you can attack the weak point. The colossus actually doesn't move around all that much, so stay on the attack. If you do run out of stamina, then drop down the head to the ledge- like upper jaw of the colossus. It serves as a nice resting place that's conveniently close to the weak point. Once you take out the weak point, which takes eight or so hits, the colossus falls to the ground dead. Hard Mode There is nothing new about this colossus in Hard Mode. Get attacked by the weird black things again and you will return to the temple. The ninth idol will be reduced to pebbles once you come to and Dormin will give you your next hint. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Shifting Sands - Colossus 10 [0410] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Just to tell you now, this trip will be a long one. Shine your sword once you get out of the temple to have it point west. Travel the same way as you did to get to the sixth colossus; through the forest. After entering the dark forest towards the west, stay to the right and make the first right. It's a bit hard to spot, so go slow. You will have to go through a series of trenches and tunnels until you can reach open land again. Once out in the plains, you can find a crapload of lizards and fruit trees around, as well as a save altar. Save and stock up on the many stat-boosting items in the vicinity. Your main priority is to go to the left once you reach the plains. Proceed to the left towards the mountain in the distance. Once you reach it, go to the right into the small alcove. You will come so a small area home to another save altar. Save and enter the cave to find yourself in an underground sand-filled area. Once you ride Agro to the center, you will trigger a cutscene. o-------------o | COLOSSUS 10 | o-------------o Weak Points: Eyes, lower back, mid back Rest Spots: None This battle is such a pain in the ass, it's just plain mind boggling. The overall task is simple on paper, but is very frustrating to do due to your little "sidekick" Agro, whom you must use in order to fight this thing. First off, the colossus is a giant sand worm whom "swims" through the sand and will occasionally pop up to attack. Its primary attack is it will simply charge into you, which will probably take out close to half of your health. The colossus will also lunge into the air, mouth open, in an attempt to get you in its jaws. Don't get pissed if you die a lot in this battle. The only reason why this battle is hard and frustrating is because you pretty much have to ride your horse Agro the whole battle. Get used to the advanced horse controls. Press Down and X once to stop on a dime. Press Down and X twice to do a 180-degree spin, making the fight a little easier. Your main priority is to first get the beasts attention. Ride around on Agro and run in front of the thing to get it to follow you. Keep pressing X to make Agro gallop faster while it chases around. Agro should automatically steer along so you don't go right into a wall or anything. When the creature is following you for some time now, it will pop its head above the surface, revealing its two beady eyes. Switch to your bow and press L1 to focus on the colossus. When L1 is held down, your arrow will focus right on the middle of the head, making aiming that much easier. Shoot either eye to have the colossus burrow its head into the ground, revealing its back as well as a weak point. Dismount off of Agro and climb up the back of the colossus. Its head will be underground for a very long time and doesn't try to shake you off, so you don't really need a resting point for this fight. Once you reach the first weak point located on its lower back, start to attack it. Five stabs will do the trick. Now the colossus will resume moving around through the sand. Get back on Agro and repeat the process once more. The next time, the weak point will be located higher up on its back. Believe me, I made this sound so much easier, but its probably not. If you're like me and have a hard time controlling Agro, then you're in for one tough fight. Hard Mode There are no new weak points located on the colossus, but the previous weak points take more hits to be eliminated. Watch as the black tendrils take you down, resulting in you fainting again. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ A Fiery Battle - Colossus 11 [0411] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Your next destination is a ruined temple, which lies in a chasm. To get there, you will have to go north. Cross the stone bridge leading to the second colossus and take the left path. Here, follow the insanely tall bridge in the opening cutscene. You pretty much have to follow it to the far end of the desert. Soon enough, you will reach a chasm. Head along to the right and you will see a small broken pillar on the edge of the cliff. Dismount Agro and drop down to a platform right below the pillar. Now you can walk down the side of the cliff wall until you reach the bottom. Swim across the pond towards the ramp. You can enter two entrances here; the first leads to the bottom of the ruins, and the entrance farther up leads you to the top. Get familiar with both entrances because you'll have to use both in the upcoming battle. Continue through either entrance and jump over the hole to the temple epicenter to start the battle. o-------------o | COLOSSUS 11 | o-------------o WEAK POINTS: Back (once armor is broken off) REST SPOTS: Torches The initial start of this battle was pretty funny for me. My brother, who has never seen the game before says, "that puny little thing is a colossus?" It's true; this colossus is the smallest in the game and is only maybe twice or three times the size of you. Then again, don't be fooled by its size. This colossus carries an attribute that most others so far haven't had: speed. This little punk will start the fight by charging at you full speed. When it roars, dodge it and quickly enter one of the crevices where the big torches lie. There are four torches around the temple, and the crevices in between them and the wall serve as a hiding/rest spot. Climb one of the torches and stay on the top. The colossus will charge at the torch, resuling it the beast getting stunned as well as a stick to fall to the ground. That stick will be very useful for the fight. Drop down while the beast is stunned and grab the stick by pressing Circle. Hurry back up to the top of the torch and press Circle next to it to light the stick on fire. Luckily, the colossus is afraid of fire, which renders the beast practically defenseless with the flaming stick in your hand. Drop down to the ground and start to move towards the colossus. It will back up in fear, so keep pursuing it with your flaming stick. Move so that its back is facing the back of the temple. The ledge at the back of the temple leads down to the entrance of it. Drive the beast back towards the ledge, but don't get too close. The colossus can still swipe at you with its claws. Once you drive the colossus back far enough, it will back up too far and fall off of the ledge to the ground below. When the colossus fall off of the ledge to the ground below, the bony armor on its back will shatter, revealing its only weak point (on its back). Carefully jump down to the ledge, then finally onto the beast's back. It will start to buck and rear up, giving you practically no time to attack. Your only way to hurt it is to use very quick stabs, which don't deal much damage at all. It will run all the way back to the temple with you still on its back. The colossus moves very fast, which prevents you from getting an attack off. Sometimes the colossus will stop for one second, so try to get at least one stab off before you reach the top of the hill. When you return to the temple, return to one of the torches. Since its armor is off, the battle is much easier. Climb to the top of a torch and wait for the dumb thing to charge at it. When it hits it and gets stunned, jump onto its back and repeat the same process again. Of course, this time you will stay in the temple and the colossus doesn't rear up as much. Keep repeating this process until the colossus's health is depleted. Hard Mode There is nothing new about this colossus in Hard Mode. More snakey black tentacles will flow from the dead body of the colossus. When you faint and return to the temple, the eleventh idol will be rubble. Only five more stand as your quest draws nearer to completion. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Into the Water - Colossus 12 [0412] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This is another lengthy journey, but at least the scenery is a bit nicer than the past few. Head behind the temple again and this time go to the right. You should find another bridge which is to the right of the other two bridges that you have been going across numerous times. Head across this new bridge to enter another large savannah. You will come across a save altar. Save and pass it to find anothe bridge not too far away. It is situated between two tall pillars, so you shouldn't have trouble finding it. Cross it to enter a forest. Turn to the right immediately after you enter to exit it to the other side. Follow the mountain wall to the left as it twists and turns in all different direction. There's a nice waterfall right next to you, so at least the scenery is more beautiful than rocky ruins and underground caves. Follow the mountain path until you reach the side of the waterfall. Climb up the steps and jump up to the large pillar. Shimmy behind it and drop down on the platform. Jump into the shimmering water and swim under the arches up ahead. You will be in a closed area with three structures at the far end. Swim to one of the platforms to start a very neat battle. o-------------o | COLOSSUS 12 | o-------------o Weak Points: Teeth, chest Rest Spots: Head This is a pretty fun battle right here. This is the first time you're fighting a very large colossus in the water. This is no eel though; this guy somewhat resembles a gorilla. The colossus only has one attack. It has two tusk-like protrusions on its face. When these glow orange, then it will shoot out bolts of electricity. If you are above the water, then you will get hit. Stay underwater at all times (well, unless you're out of breath of course) to avoid getting shocked. If you are in one of the structures scattered in the lake, then take cover. Your main task right now is to steer the colossus over to one of the three structures. It is somewhat complicated to do so, though. First off, swim to its back (remember, press R1 to dive; you swim faster). Of course, to make things harder, the colossus will swim with you. Try to swim in the opposite direction and swim under its armpits to cut off some time and distance. When you reach the back of the beast, climb up the moss. The monster will start to shake you off, but hold on for dear life. Its back is almost stair-like, so you can just jump up its back without holding on and wasting stamina. Once you reach the head, you will notice three protrustions sticking out of the top of the colossus' head. The three bony things are on the left, right, and middle of the head of the creatures. Hit a bone to have the colossus move in that direction. For instance, use your sword and whack the middle bone to have it move forwards. So use the bones to direct the colossus over to one of the structures. When you are close enough, jump off the creature's head to the top of the stone structure. The beast will now shoot lightning at you. Hide behind the circular rock in the middle. Soon after it attacks you several times, the colossus will stretch its front legs out of the water and place them on top of the stone structure. Doing this makes more of its body stick out of the water. Its one and only weak point on its chest will now be revealed. Jump onto its moss-covered chest and stab the weak point several times. You may only get off two or three stabs before its chest submerges again. When the colossus puts its feet underwater, the structure will most likely break, leaving only two left. Repeat the entire strategy over again until you take out the point on the beasts chest. With the colossus's lone weak point gone, the battle will end. Hard Mode There are no new weak points located on the colossus, but the previous weak points take more hits to be eliminated. o--------------------o | ALTERNATE STRATEGY | o--------------------o Here's an alternate strategy for the 12th Colossus from gonleo: "When fighting the colossus #12, it takes some time swimming to reach its back and climb it. So I noticed that its "helmet" has a strange design, and wondered if our hero could grab and climb it. And indeed, it could be done! So here goes the strategy: As soon as the battle begins, swim (underwater in order to avoid damage) towards the platform that you should be on the top to reach the chest of the colossus. When you reach it, stay just behind one of the pillars to get cover from the colossus' attack. Keeping an eye on the creature, wait when it stops to attack and its head is close to the stone path that is between the pillar and the colossus. Quickly run above it, and jump towards the colossus' head, holding R1 to grab it. If you fail, you will just fall on the water. If you grab it, you only need to jump twice and you will be over its head; even better, quite close to the platform. Recommendations: 1. If the colossus doesn't get close to you, try switching to another pillar near it. Running and rolling also works sometimes. 2. Careful! As it always happens, it will try to shake you off it. Just keep holding R1 and you'll be fine. This is it! I hope it helps many people specially in the Time Attack mode." - Thanks for the strategy gonleo! As the hulking colossus plummets to the bottom of the beautiful lake, you are taken down by the black spirits. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Serpentine - Colossus 13 [0413] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ After the unexpected cutscene, you gain control of the young lad again. Exit the temple again and shine your sword. You will once again have to go west. Like colossus six and ten, you will have to enter the forest again. Head west to get to the dark forest and take the second opening like you did to reach the sixth colossus. Once you're out in the open again, head to the left to reach a large desert. If you follow the light, you will spot some stone pillars similar to something like stonehenge. Ride to the stones and stand in the center to start the next colossal fight (pun very much intended). o-------------o | COLOSSUS 13 | o-------------o Weak Points: Sacks, sections underneath top/middle/rear flaps Rest Spots: Back (when upright) This menacing dragon colossus will erupt out of a sandy dune and begin to fly around above you. Luckily for you, this battle is very simple for one reason; the colossus doesn't really attack you at all. Then again, this battle is most definitely one of my favorites. The battle will begin with the colossus flying high up in the air. It has three sets of gas sacks that enable it to fly high up in the sky. In order to get it down closer to the ground, you will have to pierce the sacks. Pull out your bow and stay on your horse. Chase after it and aim for the patch of gas sacks. Since you're far away, you will basically have to guess where the the arrows will go. Instead of aiming directly at the sacks and shooting, aim ahead of them so you can anticipate that when the arrow is shot, the colossus will meet up with it. Hit one patch of gas sacks to have them shrivel up. Hit all three of the sets to have the colossus lower to the ground. Its front wings will lower and drag in the sand. Mount Agro if you haven't already and give chase to the serpent. Once you reach the front wings, ride alongside them and jump off of Agro to grab the ridges on a wing. The colossus will start to fly higher up, so climb up the wing to its back. When the beast is upright, you can safely walk around. If a any chance that the colossus will spin around (it does a lot), then grab the fur-lined back. The first flap is located right next to your location. Under the flap is its first weak point. Stab it three times to make it disappear. The flap will close, so get out of the way. You can actually run down its back to the second flap before it seals up. If you're quick enough, get in one stab. The colossus will start to dive down to the ground. Once it starts to go into the sand, jump off to the ground to avoid taking damage. The creature will stay underground for some time, giving you time to regain lost health and stamina. Once it comes back up, it will have repaired the gas sacks on its underside. Yet again, shoot the sacks on the beast to lower it to the ground and get on the wing. The second and third flap are located farther down its back. You will only be able to take out one at a time, but if you're quick enough, you can get a free hit in. Once the third weak point is eliminated, the colossus goes down once and for all. Hard Mode There are no new weak points located on the colossus, but the previous weak points take more hits to be eliminated. o--------------------o | ALTERNATE STRATEGY | o--------------------o I have a new strategy from Tigress: "The way I defeated this one was to run towards its head and follow along under its body to get right under its sacs. Then all I had to do was shoot straight up to get a mostly reliable hit. I saved the one near its head for last so I would be right behind the wings when they started dragging in the ground. Then it was merely a game of catch up and jumping at the right moment to grab on. It's still a tad tricky, but once you get it down, you'll defeat it rather quickly." - Thanks Tigress! The serpentine colossus will crash into the sand, this time for good. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Coming to an End - Colossus 14 [0414] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This is another long journey, which will require you to go the same way as you did with the ninth colossus. I'll refresh your memory if you forgot where to go; I'm nice like that. :) Turn around and go behind the temple again and ride across the small bridge to the left. Once in the plains, save at the save altar ahead and head left. You will find yourself in a barren wasteland. Find the patch of dead trees and go across the rock walkway here. You will enter in the dried lake with the geysers in it. Instead of approaching the cave where you found the colossus, just go straight and you'll come up to another rock walkway. Cross it and head towards the opening in the mountain wall, which is to the right. Once in the canyon, go left at the intersection to come across a cliff path. Ride down it, past the many pillars and enter the deep dark cavern at the bottom. Here, you'll have to dismount Agro. Jump into the cave lake and swim across to dry land. Continue moving through the cavern and you will come across a tunnel, which leads to the lost city. A cutscene is triggered once you exit the cave. You will come out on a platform (remember this spot) and go left. Drop down the ledges to the ground and you should see a large wall ahead. Squeeze through the crack in the wall to enter a grassy courtyard. Approach the staircase ahead to trigger the battle! o-------------o | COLOSSUS 14 | o-------------o Weak Points: Back (once armor is broken off) Rest Spots: None Just like the eleventh colossus, this guy is pretty puny. They also share two other qualities. This guy is also very quick and likes to ram you as an attack. Second, this colossus also has protective armor and needs to be broken off before you can get to the weak point. You will spend most of the fight just trying to get off its armor before you actually take it down. Like I said, its only attack is a charg and ram, so always stay off of the ground to avoid getting smashed. What you must do is to get on top of the many vertical pillars in the battle area. The first one is close to you. First, jump up on the fallen pillar right next to where you start off. Walk to the end and jump to the broken wall. Walk across it and grab the walkway. Hoist yourself to the top and drop down to the wall right below you. Across from the wall you're standing on is a tall pillar. Jump to it and grab one of the many ridges on it. Climb to the top and whip out your bow. If the monster hasn't been following you, then get its attention by shooting it with an arrow. It will get ready to ram the pillar, so press R1 to crouch and regain your position. Once the colossus rams the pillar twice, the pillar will crash to the ground. You will stay on the crashed pillar once it hits the ground. That now opens a new path. Once on the column, jump across to the wall and get up. Continue across the wall to find yet another pillar. Jump to it and climb up. Once at the top, shoot the colossus with arrows and get its attention. When it rams the stone pillar twice, it will fall to the ground. There is a column right next to the one that just fell over. Jump to it and climb to the top. Get the beast's attention and wait for it the charge the pillar. Once this one crashes down to the ground, leap to a wall and get to the next column ahead. Repeat this process one more time with the next column. There is one more column to knock down, so get hopping. Climb up the final walkway and you will come to a large stone structure. Leap to the ledge and climb up it. When you can no longer go up, shimmey to the left to find another series of ledges to climb up. Once at the top, hoist yourself up to the platform jutting out of the side. From here, look to the left and you should see the last pillar. Make a leap of faith off of the platform and onto the side of the pillar. Have the colossus ram it two more times and this time, it will crash through a wall, which conveniently leads to the front entrance to the lost city. Remember I told you to take note of the platform at the entrance to this place? Yeah, well now you must head back there. Jump up the ledges on the wall and run to the platform. The colossus may not be following you right now, so whistle repeatedly to get its attention. Shoot some arrows at it until it rams a support beam under the platform. It will break, sending the whole platform, as well as you, on top of the creature. That platform was the last straw, and now the armor on the beast shatters. Now your opening for an offensive maneuver is here. Use the rubble as a ledge to jump on top of the colossus and hold one. This thing will run around and buck so much, you barely have a chance to get an attack in. Wait for the colossus to run back to where the battle started. Once here, get off and jump on one of the many fallen columns. Now the best way to attack the colossus is to do a more advanced move; the diving stab. To do this, press Triangle to jump and while in midair, press R1 and Square to land on the beast and plunge your sword into it. It deals a lot of damage, so repeat this strategy to finally kill the colossus. Hard Mode There are no new weak points located on the colossus, but the previous weak points take more hits to be eliminated. o--------------------o | ALTERNATE STRATEGY | o--------------------o Here's some neat info from Ben S. He writes: "I was just using your guide on GameFAQs (great guide by the way) for help on how to beat the 14th one, the one like a bull. After it knocked down the very last pillar, the one that takes it's armour off, I noticed I was able to beat it in a lot easier way than what you had listed. First, after you break it's armour off, you should notice two pillars left like the one it rammed into to break it's armour. Jump on either one and have it run into to stun itself. After it hits the pillar, the pillar will break apart, but you'll have a chance to easily jump on it's back. I was able to get two really strong hits in before itgot up and shook me off. Then I just went to the other pillar left and got on top of that, had it ram into it and stun itself again and got two more strong hits off it. Course I got it's health down a tiny bit by shooting arrows at it for fun, but I thought you might wanna add the two pillar thing in there since I see you said just to Dive Stab it. This might be easier for those who can't pull it off so great. Who knows." - Thanks Ben! o--------------------o | ALTERNATE STRATEGY | o--------------------o Yep, another strategy from Tigress. Here's what he has: "I used a hybrid of your and Ben S.'s strategy for this one. If you get on one of the broken pillars and whistle at it, the dumb thing will headbutt the pillar and knock itself out. Then you just have to jump on top of it and stab it like normal. (Dive Stab isn't necessary, since I was able to get one or two good hits off.) Once it wakes up, you jump off and have just enough time to get on the pillar again to repeat the process." - Thanks again Tigress! The colossus will fall down, staying in the lost city for good. The black tendrils will go after you once again. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Desolation - Colossus 15 [0415] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Wow, we're almost done! This is getting intense. Leave the temple and shine your sword. Once you find the path to go, head northeast behind the temple. Go across the bridge between two large pillars. Once you cross, head over to the arched bridge that you crossed in the opening cinema. Follow the bridge north until you come across a large rock. It lies right next to the bridge, so you shouldn't miss it. Once you reach that, head right towards the mountain wall. Ride around the mountain and you should see a large castle in the distance. First off, save at the save altar, then proceed to the entrance. The entrance to this place is a little tricky to find. Proceed towards the two archways, but don't pass through. You should find a hill near them. Ride up it and you will see a small opening. Ride Agro through to enter the ruined castle. Dismount your horse once you get inside. There is a column blocking your path, so grab the ledge on either wall and climb up. Walk across past the column and drop down. Go up the stone stairs to enter a large open area with two bridges above. Walk to the opposite side towards the cliff to start the battle with the fifteenth colossus. o-------------o | COLOSSUS 15 | o-------------o Weak Points: Head, right arm, right palm Rest Spots: Shoulders A hulking giant of a colossus will come right over the cliffside and stand up in the arena. This guy is equipped with a stone dagger in which it uses to pummel you. The colossus can also stomp at you with its massive feet. The trick to this battle is to get onto its head at first. There are many ledges on the sides of the arena, but they all seem a little too high for you to jump up and grab. I guess we need this guy to help us out here a bit, hm? There are two low ledges on each side of the arena, in the middle. Go to one of them and stand on the raised tiles under it. You can't reach it, so just whistle or shoot the colossus with arrows to get it to come on over. Stay on the tiles and wait for the hulking beast to try and stomp on you. When it raises its foot up, get ready to roll out of the way. When its foot hits the tile, it will tilt up. Jump on the tilted tile and use it as a boost to get up to the ledge. Once up at the ledge, run under the roofed area with the support beams. Again, get the colossus's attention. This time, it will try to swing its big daggar at you. When swung, the daggar will hit one of the support beams, causing some rocks to fall from the ceiling. Use these rocks as stepping stones and jump to the ridges on the wall. Now climb up to the next story. Up on the next floor there will be a walkway. The walkway connects to the two bridges. Walk over to either bridge but don't head to the middle of the bridge. Shoot arrows at the colossus and it will break the bridge. If you stood in the middle, you'd fall to the ground and have to start the whole process over. The creature will start to walk past the broken bridge. When it is right under you, drop down on its massive head. As the colossus thrashes about, try to get in some stabs. You will have to attack the head a lot; the weak point won't go away until you have depleted well over 3/4 of its health. Once the weak point is gone, retreat to the shoulders to regain lost stamina. The next vital point is on the behemoth's right arm. Climb down its furry back towards the arm. Descend down its arm towards the red glowing weak point. Hit it once to hurt the creature, making it drop its dagger. There's only one weak point left now, and its on the colossus's right palm. You can't get to it by climbing the rest of the way down, so just drop to the ground. If you want to regain any lost health, just run away from it and wait before it catches up to you. The main priority here is to make the colossus expose its palm. Stay near the left side of its body is (near its right arm) and walk around. Shoot it with arrows to try to get it to attack; you want it to attack with its right arm. When it does, dodge its arm and quickly run over to the palm. Grab onto the fur on the palm and hang on. It will raise its arm with you on it. Wait for the colossus to stop moving its hand and attack it. One strong stab is all that's needed to bring the big lug down for good. Hard Mode A new weak point is situated on the chest of the colossus. After getting onto the colossus and eliminating the weak point on its head, climb down to the chest and attack the weak point. Once it's gone, target the one on the palm to kill the colossus. o--------------------o | ALTERNATE STRATEGY | o--------------------o Here's an alternate strategy from Jason G: "I just wanted to send this alternate strategy in for that big hulking bastard, Colossus 15. I tried over and over to grab the palm hair on its right hand, but for some reason my timing or placement just wasn't getting it. It was frustrating. But then I realized that the wrist and hand guard on its hand made a great grip spot. By running around to the BACK side of its right hand during an open hand attack, you can jump up and grab the top (now horizontal) ridge on its hand guard and make your way fairly easily to the wrist band as it raises its arm up. From there, shimmy your way along the wrist band from the outside of the hand to the inside, and just drop a couple feet to its palm. Then stabbity stabbity. The one big warning is that if you do not grab on HIGH and NEAR THE WRIST, it will be almost impossible to work your way to the wrist when its hand goes back up, as you will otherwise dangle from the end of the hand guard ridges in a vertical orientation, which keeps you from climbing or moving from side to side. Your FAQ is awesome, by the way." - Thanks for the strategy Jason G! o--------------------o | ALTERNATE STRATEGY | o--------------------o Guess what? I've received another tip by REFAN11: "My info is a very easy method of how to get to colossus 15's palm. I tried your method of getting to the ground and getting it to attack me with its right hand, but i just couldn't get the hang of it. I then figured out that it is possible to get to the palm from the arm. After you get the colossus to drop the weapon get on the other side of the arm. From this point all you have to do is drop down and grab onto the next ledge on it's arm just below you. Then drop down again and again until you get to the last ledge jut above it' palm. Then just let go of the R1 button and quickly press it again. You should have grabbed onto the fur on it's palm. From there just attack it until it dies. Thanks for writing the FAQ, I couldn't have gotten past a few parts without it." - Thanks a lot REFAN11! The fifteenth colossus flails its body as the last bit of life is drained away. You will once again be attacked by the black entity sealed inside the colossus. Only one idol stands, which means there is only one colossus left. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The End - Colossus 16 [0416] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The final colossus is located pretty much on the edge of the world, to the south. The light from your sword will point to the canyon where you fought the first colossus, but don't go that way. There is a second canyon to the left of that in which you must enter. At the fork, head right to yet another open plain. You must continue on through the plains towards the large, dark fortress in the horizon. Once you reach there, save at the save point. Ride Agro up the steps towards a narrow bridge. Gallop towards it to jump to it. The bridge will start to collapse, to quickly run over it. Once you reach the end, a sad cutscene will start. After the scene, head to the left and jump up on the ridges of the wall. Climb to the top and jump up the debris. There will be a grassy wall right ahead of you that you can climb up. So go ahead and climb up the wall until you can drop down on the high ledge. Continue up until you reach a dark corridor. Take the set of stairs and you will see two columns on either side of the entrance. Climb up one of them to start the final battle. o-------------o | COLOSSUS 16 | o-------------o Weak Points: Back, left bicep, right hand, left shoulder, head Rest Spots: Back of hands, shoulders Dayum, that's a lot of weak points! You'll have to wait a bit before you can take them out though, because it's a chore just to get to the damn colossus! This monolith of a creature will shoot laser beams at you from a distance. You must do your best to avoid these and reach the feet of the beast. When the battle starts, immediately run to the right and duck behind the stone debris. Wait until the colossus makes a shot. There is a hole to the right of you. Once it shoots, quickly dash and jump down the hole. There is an underground tunnel that leads you closer to the colossus. Pass through and jump up out of the hole at the end. There will be a series of stone shields that can protect you from the lasers. Quickly run to the right, diving towards each shield, until you find another bunker. Proceed through the next bunker to come out far away at the side of the colossus. Jump up to the rock ledge and shimmey around. Now jump to the walkway beyond and enter the next bunker carved into the rock wall. Follow it until it exits at another set of stone shields. Of course, things must be harder here, and they aren't in a straight line. Once a shot rings out, quickly run to the right towards the next stone shield. Keep rolling and running until you reach the last bunker. Move on through to have it take you right between the feet of the colossus. Here is where the fun really begins. Continue straight ahead towards the wall and climb up the ledges. At the top, head to the right and jump up the ledges. The whole lower body of the colossus is almost like a staircase. You go up a couple of ledges, climb up a wall, then go the other way. It's not hard to get lost and there are a couple of ways to reach the back. Continue to climb up the ledges and walls until you reach the furry back of the beast. Stab the glowing red point once to have the beast rear back in pain. The colossus will bring its left arm back to the wound. When it's right across from you, jump to the fur on its palm. The colossus will shake and raise up its hand. While it's doing this, try to climb to the back of its hand. When the arm finally stops moving, run up the arm towards the bicep. There isn't any fur on the arm, so just make a run for it and jump onto the bicep. Stab the bicep once to have it move its right hand towards its injury. Just like last time, jump from the weak point to the palm of its hand and climb up to the back of the hand. The colossus will not pause and stop shaking, so quickly stab the back of its hand to stop it. When the colossus stops moving its hand, stand up and switch to your bow and arrow. Aim and shoot its left shoulder. The behemoth will grab its shoulder in pain, giving you the perfect opportunity to jump on. Head up to the stone platform on its shoulders to replenish your lost stamina. The final weak point lies on the colossus' head. When you're ready, jump on the head and continue your assault. Once you stab it a good nine or ten times, the sixteenth and final colossus will be no more. Your quest is finally done; you have killed all of the colossi. How does it feel to have wiped out a dying species? Ya' jerk. Hard Mode There are no new weak points located on the colossus, but the previous weak points take more hits to be eliminated. The long ass cinema up ahead is totally riddled with spoilers, and I'm not the guy to even mention it. Enjoy the beautiful and captivating end to a remarkable game. I hope you enjoyed reading this FAQ as much as you did playing the game. ______________________________________________________________________________ [5] TIME ATTACK [0500] ______________________________________________________________________________ NOTE: These aren't actually my "best" times, but these are just the times that I got when I first beat them. They can probably be beaten with relative ease if you're good at the game. ReverendTed sends in: -------------------- Normal Time Attack Mode is unlocked along with Hard Mode after beating the game once. Hard Time Attack Mode is unlocked after beating Hard Mode once. After beating Normal or Hard mode, you save the game and the game will place you at the temple as if to begin the game again. (Your save will have a "2" by it on the save screen.) You can go up to any of the statues and press O to kneel and be given the option to challenge the time attack for that colossus. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 2:30 Hard: 2:50 From the start of the battle, immediately whistle to get the colossus's attention. Don't bother trying to shoot it with arrows. Run over to its legs and jump on the furry calf. Stab the weak point twice to bring it to its knees. You may have to do this twice. Afterwards, run over to the colossus's head and grab its beard. When it gets up, drop off and immediately grab the chest to avoid falling off of the best. Climb to the head and regain lost stamina. Once on the head, stab the weak point until the colossus is defeated. My best time - 1:43:15 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 4:00 Hard: 4:30 Here's another very easy colossus to beat on Time Attack. When the battle starts, equip your bow and shoot the beast to get its attention. It should immediately raise its feet in order to stomp the ground. Quickly shoot the soles of its feet to knock it over. Climb up one of the front legs and onto its side. I was able to do this in 30 seconds. Crawl to the tail and begin to attack the marker there. The colossus won't shake that much, so try dive stabs to deal more damage with each it. Once the weak point is gone, climb up the spine to reach its head. Attack the weak point on the colossus's head until it is defeated. My best time - 3:07:42 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 6:00 Hard: 5:00 The hardest part is to have the colossus hit the stone panel on the ground. I found an easy way to do this; run towards the colossus. Immediately run towards the colossus, which should be standing on the stone panel. It will begin to back up. Continue to draw near until you're on top of the panel. It'll then attack you; dodge and it will hit the panel. Once the bracelet is broken, climb up the colossus's arm towards its head. Attack the weak point on its head until it is gone. Instead of climbing down to the stomach, simply jump off of the head onto the platform around its waist. Now climb onto the stomach and attack its weak point until dead. My best time - 4:42:71 o--------------------o | ALTERNATE STRATEGY | o--------------------o Here's an alternate strategy for the 3rd Colossus from LuckyRedFox: "I was reading your guide on SotC time attack, and I happened to notice that your strategy for defeating the third colossus involved waiting for the colossus to hit the stone panel in the middle of the platform. However, I have found a way to get onto it's arm without destroying the armlet (it may or may not be quicker, but it is definitely easier), so here goes: Once the loading finishes, skip the movie, and run directly away from the colossus. It should attack you with it's sword-arm almost right away. Dodge the attack, and climb onto the arm, making sure not to fall off prematurely. In it's walking motion, the colossus should move its arm back and forth, switching between a strong forward motion and a strong backward motion. Stay relatively close to the colossus' elbow, and when it's arm makes the strong backwards motion, jump towards the colossus' upper arm. Due to the extra force of motion of the colossus' arm, your jump should place you right at or right above the breakable armlet, which allows you to climb over it and up to the head. Just make sure that after you make the jump, hold R1 to grab on the colossus' fur or the top of the armlet, whichever you reach first. From there, proceed in stabbing it's head and stomach until dead." - Thanks LuckyRedFox! o--------------------o | ALTERNATE STRATEGY | o--------------------o Here's an alternate strategy for the 3rd Colossus from Alan G: "Immediately charge the stone circle but stop about twenty feet before reaching it. There is a slightly lighter patch of grass in front of and slightly to the left of the stone circle as you charge it. If you can see this, you want to be about half-way between the patch and the circle. If done right, the colossus shouldn't have to re-adjust its footing before attacking. Dodge the strike as normal and run up onto its "sword". You need the arm band intact for the next part of this strategy. If you are lucky, you will be able to bounce off the sword and onto the armband within the next twenty seconds or so. Once there, head to the lowest ring of the armband and wait for it to get reasonably close to its belt and make your jump. Your first target is the belly "vitals". It should be safe to charge up your stamina to 75% or even 100% before striking. Once finished, jump back to the intact armband (should be an easy jump once again), and make your way to the rear of its arm to make your ascent. When attacking the head, don't risk charging up past 50%, same for the arm. Try to get the head done with no more than one rest. The intact necklace should help you stay on." - Thanks Alan! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 4 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 5:30 Hard: 5:00 The fourth colossus can be a real pain in the rear end when it comes to Time Attack. Whistle at it and run towards the bunker in the far end. Stand on top of it and shoot arrows to get the colossus's attention. When it's about to attack, drop down into the bunker and run to the right. Go up the stairs and hide behind the bunker while looking at the colossus. Wait for it to bend down (it could take up to 2 minutes for all of this to happen, don't worry). As opposed to grabbing its tail like normally, instead run over to its head and grab the long hairy protrusions. You can successfully climb up them and reach the head without having to trek across its body. Once on the head, attack the weak point. If the weak point disappears before the colossus dies, then drop to the neck and stab it one or two times. My best time - 4:26:48 o--------------------o | ALTERNATE STRATEGY | o--------------------o Here's an alternate strategy for the 4th Colossus from Alan G: "This battle has four distinct phases. Phase 1: getting its slow ass to a bunker. Use a whistle and a arrow to try to get it to pick up its pace. Run directly towards the geometric center of the four bunkers. Try to hit its soft tissue with an arrow in order to get it to turn directly towards you. The fundamental problem is that it needs to be square on to the bunker before attempting to attack it. Use your best judgment and run to the top of the bunker on the left as you now face the colossus. (the one facing the trees, I think this is the northernmost bunker). Again, hit the thing with an arrow until it turns, drop down and run through the tunnel to the right and up the stairs. Go left and wait behind the bunker. Adjust the camera until you can see it. It should be *slowly* aligning its position for its attack. Phase 2: getting on it. Use your best judgment and make your run. Your target is to wait directly under the thing. It will signal its attack with three ground-stabs, two light ones and a heavy one. You may want to jump just before the last one to make sure you don't lose your balance. Once it finally bends over, charge the earring, beware of it's jowl (it will knock you down before you grab on). As quickly as possible climb to its head, (if you're slow you'll waste time as it shakes...). Phase 3: slowing it down. It is impossible to attack its head at this point, don't even try. He'll just waste all your time shaking. Jump over the necklace and immediately attack the back of its neck. Two blows should wound him (this is one of the only colossi that you can appreciably wound... -- not counting the three colossi that you can de-armor in some way and the one you need to disarm). It is critically important that you do this now before going after its true vitals... Phase 4: finishing it off. Go after its shoulders in whichever order fate dictates is the easiest, and then back to the head." - I was always looking for a good strategy for this guy. Great job and thanks a bunch Alan. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 5:30 Hard: 5:30 While all of the standards for this battle are the same, it is still surprisingly challenging. Swimming over to the platforms cut off a little over 30 seconds (remember to hold R1 to dive; you swim faster that way). Shoot the colossus and jump on its wing when it dives towards you. Make your way to the closest wing and stab it twice to eliminate it. Try to do it quickly so you won't have to stop to regain stamina. You can regain stamina while walking to the other wing. Once both wings are down, you CAN run down to the tail. A risky, but much quicker strategy is to stand near its head and jump. The wind will take you off of the colossus, but you can indeed grab its tail as you fall backwards. If you do, crawl to the weak point and stab it until the colossus is defeated. My best time - 3:24:52 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 6 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 3:30 Hard: 6:30 The time limit is very short, so work VERY fast. Jump over the walls and hide under the large structure. Whistle numerous times and even shoot arrows at the colossus's legs to get its attention. As it lowers its head, jump out and grab the beard. Make a beeline for the head and climb right up the side of the face. Once on top, take out the weak point on the head. Regain some stamina on its shoulders, then jump right off of its shoulders. Make sure to grab the fur on the left side of its back while falling down; if you miss and fall off of the colossus, just retry. Once on the back, eliminate the last weak point. My best time - 3:14:11 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 7 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 12:00 Hard: 8:00 The first stage of this battle is the hardest as it can consume a lot of time. Either dive or jump to get the colossus's attention. Swim away from it as it rises to the surface, then latch onto the wet fur on its tail. Hold on as it swims around. When the colossus resurfaces and you are above water, run to the first spike. It's easiest to do a diving stab to take out the spike with one hit. Repeat the process with the other two spikes. Now as the colossus swims deeper in an attempt to drown you, let go. Now you'll have to repeat the process of getting on the best. This time, run down its whole body towards the head. As it thrashes about, deliver the final blows to the weak point on the colossus's head. Battle over. My best time - 7:44:75 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 8 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 8:00 Hard: 7:30 This colossus can be pretty challenging. Walk to the right until you reach the opening in the wall. Don't walk to the bottom of the arena; jump and grab the ledges along your way down. Once close to the bottom, shoot the colossus to make it climb up the wall. Run the rest of the way down to the bottom of the arena. Shoot two of its legs and make sure to avoid the poison blast the colossus fires. As it falls to the ground, jump on its stomach and eliminate the first weak point. Simply repeat the process over again for the second and last weak point. The only hard part about this fight is the poison blasts the colossus fires. I could have beaten this guy in three minutes if it wasn't for me having to constantly regain health. My best time - 6:00:41 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 9 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 7:30 Hard: 5:30 The most challenging part of this battle is simply getting onto the colossus. Quickly mount Agro and shoot the beast with arrows. Avoid the laser beams that it shoots from its face and run to the nearest geyser. Lure the colossus over the geyser until it shoots up and hits it. After getting hit by the geyser and collapsing, shoot the colossus's weak points on its two feet. Once it completely lands on its side, climb the fur on its underbelly. As you reach the back, it will most likely stand upright again. Travel across the back until you reach the head. You'll have a great time if you can get on the back in two minutes. Reach the head and take out its only weak point. My best time - 4:50:53 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 10 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 6:00 Hard: 5:00 I found it very easy to get a nice time on this colossus. Right when the battle starts, the colossus will turn and charge at you. Dash over to Agro and get on. If you're able to dodge the colossus in time, you'll be in good hands. As it chases you, turn and shoot its exposed eyes. As it crashes headfirst into a wall, dismount your horse and run up its furry back. Eliminate the first weak point by initiating diving stabs. If you're quick, you can take out the first of its two weak points in less than a minute. When the first weak point is destroyed and the colossus regains its composure, get on Agro and repeat the process over again. Keep its attention on you and don't lose it at any time (look for the moving sand to find the colossus). Repeat the process over again to take out the last weak point, which is located farther on its back. My best time - 2:13:06 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 11 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 5:30 Hard: 5:30 Right after the cinema ends and the battle begins, dash behind the stone structure before the colossus can ram you off of the temple floor and into the canyon. If it happens, restart. Don't bother climbing up the statue and let the colossus ram it until the torch falls. Unequip everything and dive roll over to the stick. Pick up the torch and go over to the structure. Climb up and light the torch, then drop down. Scare it with the torch and push it back to the cliff edge until it falls off. I was able to actually jump off of the cliff and successfully perform a dive stab right on its weak point. As the colossus runs and bucks back to the temple, continue to stab it. I was lucky; I killed the colossus before it even reached the temple. My best time - 1:29:98 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 12 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 9:30 Hard: 10:00 Another simple Time Attack battle; start the fight with this colossus by swimming to its back. I found it easiest to dive under and swim under its arm to save some time. Once on the back, jump up to its head. Guide it towards one of the structures by hitting its teeth with your sword and jump off when you're close enough. Once on a platform, whistle to make it expose its stomach. Jump onto the fur on the stomach and attack the weak point. You should be able to take out half of the colossus's health before it destroys the structure and dives underwater. Let go of the stomach and repeat the process over again. It's not much different from the normal battle. My best time - 4:08:20 o--------------------o | ALTERNATE STRATEGY | o--------------------o Here's an alternate strategy for the 12th Colossus from gonleo: "When fighting the colossus #12, it takes some time swimming to reach its back and climb it. So I noticed that its "helmet" has a strange design, and wondered if our hero could grab and climb it. And indeed, it could be done! So here goes the strategy: As soon as the battle begins, swim (underwater in order to avoid damage) towards the platform that you should be on the top to reach the chest of the colossus. When you reach it, stay just behind one of the pillars to get cover from the colossus' attack. Keeping an eye on the creature, wait when it stops to attack and its head is close to the stone path that is between the pillar and the colossus. Quickly run above it, and jump towards the colossus' head, holding R1 to grab it. If you fail, you will just fall on the water. If you grab it, you only need to jump twice and you will be over its head; even better, quite close to the platform. Recommendations: 1. If the colossus doesn't get close to you, try switching to another pillar near it. Running and rolling also works sometimes. 2. Careful! As it always happens, it will try to shake you off it. Just keep holding R1 and you'll be fine. This is it! I hope it helps many people specially in the Time Attack mode." - Thanks for the strategy gonleo! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 13 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 12:00 Hard: 13:00 This is easily the hardest colossus to beat in Time Attack mode. Shooting the gas sacks on its underside is tricky to do. If you're able to take them out within a minute, then you're golden. Once the colossus dips its wings into the sand, jump on Agro and ride over to the wings. Jump onto them and climb onto the back of the colossus. I found it easiest to actually skip over the first weak point and target (and hopefully) eliminate the two targets on its middle and rear before it dives into the sand. The colossus will always dive into the sand after a while; you're lucky if you're able to take out two weak points. Once it is in thesand, wait for it to come out again. Once it does, repeat the process ofshooting the sacks and getting on it again. When you're on its back, eliminatethe remaining weak points to kill the colossus for good. My best time - 10:52:11 o--------------------o | ALTERNATE STRATEGY | o--------------------o Here's an alternate strategy for fighting Colossus #13 in Time Attack Mode. It's sent in by elfolampo. "Hello. Since you seem to have some problems with the 13th colossus on time attack, I wanted to contribute with an alternative strategy. First of all, immediately after the battle starts, you have a golden chance to take out at least two of the gas sacks of the colossus, since it's near enough to hit them with an arrow from where you are (you might want to take 2 steps forward to get closer, anyway). So, take out your bow and shoot away. If you don't manage to hit two of them, restart. I actually managed to get all 3 of them, doing so in less than 20 seconds. Then, call Agro and chase the colossus for its remaining gas sack, if any is (it should be the head one), shoot it, grab a wing as usual, and get on thecolossus. Once you're there, take out the head weak point (you can use dive stabs, the flap will shield you from the wind) and then immediately jump down. This will cause the gas sacks to regenerate immediately, and the colossus will NOT dive under the sand. Also, you will be right under the colossus, so take out your bow again, and shoot to the gas sacks from where you are. Again, you should be able to take out two of them with ease (it's above you, and you're on the ground). Agro should have reached you by then, so mount, shoot at any remaining sack, grab a wing, and get on the colossus again. This time, try to take out the 2 remaining weak spots before it dives in the sand, and you're done with the battle, with no time-consuming dive in the sand, and minimal mounted archery. A safer strategy might be to take out the second weak spot, and intentionally fall off again to shoot the sacks from under the colossus, which is still faster than letting it dive, but if you're going for a good time, you should try to finish on the second run. If it does dive in the sand (which is very likely, sadly), constantly track it with L1 until it comes out, dismount, and try to shoot at the sacks while he's not yet flying, then grab Agro, and finish the remaining sacks/weak points." - Wow, thanks a lot elfolampo! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 14 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 9:00 Hard: 9:00 The battle is completely identical to the battle in the walkthrough. There aren't really any special tactics to use in order to save time during the fight. Start the battle by having the colossus knock over all of the pillars. Once that's over with, lure the colossus to the entrance in order to destroy the armored plating on its back. You could jump on its back and continue to stab the weak point on the colossus. A faster way it to jump and initiate a dive stab on the back to deplete more of its health faster. Repeat several dive stabs to slay the colossus. My best time - 8:01:63 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 15 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 11:00 Hard: 11:30 This colossus can be a pain if you waste a lot of time trying to get on it. Once you lure it over to the raised platform, it should step on it in an attempt to crush you. Jump up to the second level of the arena and shoot it with arrows. This part may take a while if the colossus will not coopearate. I must have wasted a good 3 minutes shooting arrows and trying to get it to knock some rubble from the wall (its chest looked like a pin cushion, it was funny). Once you get it to hit the wall and knock some rocks to the ground, use them as platforms to reach the final level of the arena and run to the bridge. Once it destroys the bridge, jump on its head and attack the weak point. Once it's gone, stab its right arm to make it drop its weapon, then fall to the ground. Getting it to punch you is also pretty tough. Stay far away and on the left (near the right side of the colossus's body) and it should punch you sooner or later. Once it does, dive roll out of the way and jump on its palm, where you can stab the last weak point to kill the colossus. My best time - 7:02:39 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Time Attack - Colossus 16 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal: 9:30 Hard: 13:00 The final colossus is still tough, and the time limit is tricky. In order to get to the colossus, keep running (dive rolling is better actually) until you reach the bunker. Never stop, even if you're being shot at, and try to dive roll into a bunker or behind a wall. Once you reach the colossus (it took me a little over 2 minutes), the rest is the same. Climb up to the lower back and stab it to make the colossus grab its back in agony. Jump to its hand and climb to the back of its hand. When it pulls its hand back to the front, run up the forearm and grab the fur on the colossus's bicep. Attack the weak spot on the bicep. When the colossus moves its other hand, jump on it and stab the marker on the back of its hand. Equip your bow and start to shoot its shoulder. When the colossus grabs its shoulder, jump on it and make your way across its upper body. When you reach the head, continue to stab the weak point on the head with your sword to finally defeat the colossus. My best time - 8:09:33 o--------------------o | ALTERNATE STRATEGY | o--------------------o Here's an alternate strategy for the final Colossus from Alan G: "Use the fallen column as a block, as usual, jump in the hole. Follow the tunnel and climb out to reach the first barricade (should be about 20 seconds). Wait for the impact and then make your run. As you approach the second barricade DO NOT SLOW DOWN. The next shot is almost sure not to injure you. Instead turn left, straight south, as you pass the second barricade. (if you hesitate, you die) You should see a hole in the ground directly in front of you. Dodge roll into it. The only thing that matters is that you end up in the hole. It does not matter if you get hit or not. Once you regain your feet, go due west (to the right), you should find yourself in the pit behind the second row of barricades. Proceed as normal. When I reached the head, I had time to get thrown twice, once to the right arm-pad and once even to the lower levels of the skirt and still had time to beat the time attack. =P" - Thanks a lot Alan! ______________________________________________________________________________ [6] ITEMS [0600] ______________________________________________________________________________ These special items are obtained from Time Attack mode. You recieve one item for every two colossi defeated, and they give you special powers. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Normal Time Attack Mode ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1. Whistling Arrow: Distracts colossi when shot 2. Cloak of Force: Inflicts more damage against colossi, stronger when with Mask of Strength 3. Mask of Strength: Inflicts deeper wounds on colossi 4. Lizard Detection Stone: Shows lizards' locations on map 5. Fruit Tree Map: Shows fruit trees' locations on map 6. Mask of Power: Inflicts deeper wounds on colossi 7. Cloak of Deception: Makes you invisible to a colossus 8. Flash Arrow: Detonated tip deals more damage to colossi ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Hard Time Attack Mode ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1. Harpoon of Thunder: Long-range projectile; injures colossi 2. Sword of the Sun: Reflects light in dark areas 3. Fruit Tree Map: Shows fruit trees' locations on map 4. Shaman's Cloak: Sustains less damage 5. Lizard Detection Stone: Shows lizards' locations on map 6. Shaman's Mask: Sustains even less damage when used with Shaman's Cloak 7. Cloth of Desperation: Used as a parachute; slows down fall if you fall from a colossus 8. Queen's Sword: Sword from Ico, can kill a colossi in one hit ______________________________________________________________________________ [7] SECRETS [0700] ______________________________________________________________________________ Hard Mode: Beat the game once Time Attack Mode: Beat the game on Hard mode Reminiscense Mode: Once you defeat a colossus, approach its dead body and press Circle to fight it again. Brown Agro: Defeat all 16 colossi and get all items. At the title screen, hold Square and load/start a game to make Agro brown. White Agro: Defeat all 16 colossi and get all items. At the title screen, hold Circle and load/start a game to make Agro white. Ico Symbol: Use a memory card with an Ico file saved on it and when you load/start a game, the Ico symbol will be on Agro's forehead. ______________________________________________________________________________ [8] THANKS/CREDITS [0800] ______________________________________________________________________________ Of course, this guide couldn't have been made without some extra help. Here is a shoutout to everyone who made this FAQ possible: CJayC: For being an awesome host of an awesome site. Eternal Czar Smapdi: For being the best co-author anyone could have, and for being yourself. Alan G: For an alternate strategy on Colossus #3, #4, and #16. LuckyRedFox: For an alternate strategy on Colossus #3 for Time Attack. Outlaw_JT: For an alternate strategy on Colossus #4. Ardes: For an alternate strategy on Colossus #8. vanshomieg: For an alternate strategy on Colossus #8. gonleo: For an alternate strategy on Colossus #12 for Time Attack. Tigress: For an alternate strategy on Colossus #13 and #14, as well as some info on lizards. Ben S: For an alternate strategy on Colossus #14. Jason G: For an alternate strategy on Colossus #15. REFAN11: For an alternate strategy on Colossus #15. ReverendTed: For some info on Time Attack. elfolampo: For an alternate strategy on Colossus #13 for Time Attack. FESBians: Because you're cool. You: For reading this FAQ. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ LEGAL ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This document is copyright (c) DomZ Ninja 2005-2011. This document may be found on the following sites: * GameFAQs - http://www.gamefaqs.com * GameSpot - http://www.gamespot.com * IGN - http://faqs.ign.com * Super Cheats - http://www.supercheats.com * Neoseeker - http://www.neoseeker.com * HonestGamers - http://www.honestgamers.com The latest update of this document can always be found on GameFAQs. Other sites may use this document, but only with my permission. If you see this document on a website not listed above, please email me. Do not edit or alter this document in any way. Do not steal anything from this document. Do not host or distribute this document for profit. That is plagiarism, and it is against the law. If you have any questions, comments, or anything that you would like to add to this guide, then feel free to email me. My email address is found at the top of this guide. However, if you do email me, please include the name of the game in the title. Lastly, thanks for reading and using this FAQ. If you like this FAQ, then please recommend it to others by clicking the "recommend" button at the top of the guide. :] http://www.gamefaqs.com/features/recognition/52173.html "In these words that crash my ears, I'll now stomach this in fear" - Coheed and Cambria ______________________________________________________________________________ END OF DOCUMENT