In Romancing SaGa: Minstrel Song, every individual starting character has a different start to the game. They vary not only in the company they keep, but the locations they start in. This can make the game's opening hours easier or harder, depending on what you're comfortable with.
Barbara is easily the most 'open' of the starting characters. You get your freedom just minutes into the game, and she starts with a great deal of the map unlocked right from the off. From this very open start, she can go anywhere and take on the game's challenges in whatever order she wants.
Overview: Barbara
One thing you'll notice right off the bat is that Barbara comes with a wagon - you can use this in many areas to travel in safety. Rolling over monsters will not trigger fights or increase your Event Rank. You can dismount from the wagon at any time.
Barbara doesn't start the game alone - she has Herman along for the ride.
|
Barbara |
Herman |
|
|---|---|---|
|
Class |
Entertainer |
Trader |
|
Skills |
Martial Arts, Long Sword, Demonology, Covert |
Survival, Strategy, Trading |
- Barbara is geared up to be a hybrid attacker, being trained in Demonology as well as her trusty Long Sword. From here, it's possible to pivot her anywhere - her build options are as flexible as her goals are at the start of the game. We do recommend getting out of the Entertainer class as soon as you have a plan in mind, as its bonus isn't that useful.
- Herman is a Trader, and thus isn't very useful at all. That said, he's even more of a blank slate than Barbara and him coming with levels in three Proficiency skills is pretty useful. Either dump him when you come across someone more immediately useful or put some effort into making him the ideal warrior/mage/hybrid.
Amethyst Of Visions
Barbara has precisely one thing to do before she gets full, unrestricted access to the world. Go to the pub in Weston and talk to the Minstrel there. You'll witness a short scene and the Minstrel will gift you the Amethyst, which can be worn as a necklace.
The Amethyst is a very nice accessory and should be equipped asap. Barbara comes equipped with when you recruit her in other characters' scenarios, so be sure to pick it up in every playthrough!
The Next Steps
With that tiny 'quest' out of the way, where to from here? Well, opening up the rest of the world is a good idea, and the best way to get large swathes of the world open is by recruiting certain characters. Before that, though, talk to the woman in the east of Weston to open up Yassi and the most time-restricted quest in the game, Unsettling Settlements.
In addition, having possession of the Amethyst is what unlocks the Faerie Grove. This is a magical location that travels around the map randomly. When you see it, head there and talk to every Faerie inside to trigger a long-term, highly rewarding quest.
The following characters should be recruited once even if you don't plan on using them long-term, as they unlocks lots of locations.
- Sif can be found in Crystal City and Altours.
- Gray can also be found at Altours.
- Hawke can be found in Uso.
If these characters are not in their respective locations, leave and return a little later to try again.
Those three will give you a good few locations to explore - in addition, talk to every NPC and take every ferry you can. You should accrue quite a few quests to take on, and you can go from there. With so many locations unlocked, it'll also be quite easy to gather up a full party, making the early hours a little easier for you.