Wizardry The: Five Ordeals Walkthrough
Final Tips and Strategies
Conclusion
Wizardry: The Five Ordeals is a challenging and rewarding game that requires strategic thinking and character management. By following this walkthrough, you'll be well on your way to completing the game's five ordeal challenges and saving the world from the dark sorcerer, Malyster. Good luck, brave wizard!
Wizardry: The Five Ordeals Review Wizardry: The Five Ordeals less a single game and more a robust "Wizardry Construction Set"
that includes five main scenarios and one extensive tutorial scenario
. Originally released in 2006 for the PS2 and later brought to Steam and Nintendo Switch, it captures the hardcore, uncompromising spirit of early dungeon crawlers Wizardry: The Five Ordeals Part 1
Wizardry: The Five Ordeals is a "scenario-based" dungeon crawler. Because it includes multiple official scenarios and thousands of user-made ones, there isn't one single walkthrough. However, for the base game (The Five Ordeals), 🛡️ Party Composition Essentials
You need a balanced front and back row to survive the early "difficulty spikes."
Front Row: 2 Warriors, 1 Thief (Essential for disarming chest traps).
Back Row: 1 Priest (Healing/Buffs), 1 Mage (Crowd Control), 1 Bishop (Identifying items for free).
Tip: Don't start with "Elite" classes (Lord/Ninja/Samurai). Their XP requirements are too high for level 1. 🗺️ Early Game Survival (Floor 1)
The "Elevator" Method: Fight near the stairs. If you take damage or run out of MP, go back to town immediately.
Mapping: If playing the Steam version, use the Auto-Map feature. If playing classic/hardcore, always keep the DUMAPIC (Mage Level 1) spell ready to find your coordinates.
Identify Traps: Never open a chest without a Thief or the CALFO (Priest) spell. Exploding chests kill entire parties. 🪄 Key Spells to Master Spell Name KATINO Mage Lvl 1 Puts enemies to sleep. Essential for large groups. DIOS Priest Lvl 1 Basic heal. Always keep 2-3 casts in reserve. MONTINO Priest Lvl 2
Silences enemy casters. Stops them from wiping you with fireballs. MAHALBA Mage Lvl 3 First major AOE damage spell. Use for "level grinding." 🗝️ Common "Ordeal" Progression Most scenarios follow a specific loop:
Level 1-3: Grind near the entrance until you have enough gold for better armor.
The Key Item: Every floor has a "Key" or "Pass" (often guarded by a fixed encounter/boss).
The Elevator: Once you find the elevator or shortcut, use it to bypass easy floors to reach your current objective. 💡 Pro-Tips for "The Five Ordeals" wizardry the five ordeals walkthrough
Permadeath is Real: If a character dies and you fail the resurrection at the Temple, they are GONE (Ash > Lost). Save often if you aren't playing Iron Man.
Bishop Identifying: Put a Bishop in your party (or keep one at the Tavern). Identify items yourself to save thousands of Gold.
The "Reset" Button: If a combat turn goes horribly wrong, you can often "Quit to Title" before the turn ends to reload your last save.
Which specific scenario within the game are you currently stuck on? I can give you the exact coordinates for keys or bosses if I know the name.
Mastering Wizardry: The Five Ordeals requires more than just high stats; it demands tactical patience and a deep understanding of classic dungeon-crawling mechanics. This walkthrough provides the essential strategies for party creation, early-game survival, and navigating the default scenarios included in the Steam and Switch versions. 1. Essential Character Creation and Party Composition
For a balanced start, the "standard" party remains the most effective for beginners and veterans alike.
Front Row: 3 High-HP melee fighters (Fighters, Samurai, or Lords).
Back Row: 1 Thief (for chest traps), 1 Priest (for healing and buffs), and 1 Mage (for crowd control). Pro Tips:
Avoid Early Bishops: While great for identifying items, Bishops level up and learn spells significantly slower than pure Mages or Priests. It is better to use a dedicated Mage/Priest and class-change them later or keep a "town Bishop" for free identification.
Bonus Points: Do not obsess over rolling 20+ bonus points. Tactical use of spells like Sleep is far more vital for survival than a few extra points in Strength or Agility. 2. General Gameplay Strategy
Aggressive Spellcasting: In early levels, use your Mage’s Sleep and the Priest’s Charm spells liberally. If you encounter a monster you don't recognize, it can likely kill you quickly—neutralize it immediately.
Short Excursions: Do not push deep into a dungeon on your first trip. Return to town frequently to rest, level up, and identify gear.
Saving Throws and Accuracy: Character level is a hidden modifier for nearly every important roll, including saving throws against instant death and your chance to hit. If you are missing often, you simply 3. Walkthrough: The Five Ordeals Default Scenarios
The game features five distinct scenarios, each with its own flavor and difficulty curve. Wizardry: The Five Ordeals Part 1
Finding a comprehensive walkthrough for Wizardry: The Five Ordeals
(originally Wizardry Gaiden: Itsuwari no Seirei) can be a bit like navigating the dungeons themselves, as much of the community knowledge is spread across Steam guides and legacy fan sites.
The most "solid" and centralized resources for navigating the game's five core scenarios are: 1. Steam Community Guides Final Tips and Strategies
This is the most active hub for the 2021 remake. You will find detailed breakdowns for specific scenarios:
The Price of Deception: Look for guides covering the first scenario's floor layouts and key item locations (like the Copper and Silver Keys).
Detailed Maps: Several users have uploaded hand-drawn or digitalized maps which are essential since the game relies heavily on "Old School" navigation rules. 2. Wizardry Renaissance Wiki
The Wizardry Renaissance Wiki (often listed under its original Japanese subtitle) provides a high-level overview of: Scenario Progression: What order to tackle the quests.
Key Items: Descriptions of items needed to bypass magical barriers.
Enemy Data: Resistance tables for the game's notoriously difficult bosses. 3. Japanese Wiki (Wizardry Wiki JP)
Because this game was a Japanese exclusive for years, the most exhaustive walkthroughs are on Japanese sites. Using a browser translator on the Five Ordeals Japanese Wiki is often the only way to find:
Event Flags: Specific coordinates you must step on to trigger story progression.
Drop Tables: Which monsters on which floors drop the best gear (like the Muramasa Blade). Key Tips for Any Scenario
The "CAMP" Trick: Always check your status in camp to see if you've missed a "Mark" or "Title" required to pass certain doors.
Safety First: In the early game of any ordeal, do not venture past Floor 1 until your Priest has access to Level 2 spells (specifically for healing and poison neutralization).
Save Frequently: Since the Steam version allows for more flexible saving than the original, use it before interacting with any mysterious statues or fountains.
Surviving the Maze: A Guide to Wizardry: The Five Ordeals Wizardry: The Five Ordeals
requires a blend of old-school grit and modern tactical planning. Unlike modern RPGs, this "Wizardry construction set" doesn't hold your hand—it’s a hardcore experience where character death can be permanent and mapping is your only lifeline. ⚔️ Essential Survival Strategies
For those entering the "Ordeals," success depends on your first few hours of gameplay. Aggressive Spellcasting
: In the early game, if you don't recognize a monster, assume it can kill you instantly. Use status spells like
(Cleric Level 2) aggressively; they make early encounters significantly easier. The "Short Excursion" Method Conclusion Wizardry: The Five Ordeals is a challenging
: Don't overextend. Perform quick trips into the dungeon to gain XP and gold, then return to town to recover. Most fights are fixed (behind doors), so your route back is often safer once cleared. Class Planning Avoid the Bishop early
: They identify items well but level up too slowly for combat. It's better to start with a Mage and re-class them into a Bishop later. Stat Requirements
: Be mindful of alignment; Priests cannot be Neutral, and Samurai cannot be Evil. Changing your settings can allow for custom class creation, though starting stats may be lower. The Identification Grind Official Online Manual
to understand how selling unidentified items to the shop works—doing so can actually increase the shop's stock of those items. Steam Community 🗺️ Walking Through the Scenarios
The game includes five default scenarios, each with distinct challenges. Wizardry: The Five Ordeals Part 1
Unlike modern RPGs, The Five Ordeals does not hold your hand. If you enter with a poorly balanced party, you will not pass the first floor.
The Golden Rule: Always have a full party of 6 characters. Solo runs are for challenge streamers only.
Recommended Starting Party:
Alternate: Swap a Fighter for a Bishop to identify items automatically, but beware – Bishops level slower.
Stat Priority:
Ultimately, an essay on the Wizardry: The Five Ordeals walkthrough is an essay on mortality. The game is punishing because it was designed at a time when beating a video game was considered a genuine achievement, not a foregone conclusion. The walkthrough preserves that ethos. It is a document written by survivors for future victims.
To read such a walkthrough is to understand that every successful party standing at the final altar is a statistical anomaly. The guide does not cheapen the victory; it provides the blueprint for a miracle. In the cold, grid-based dungeons of The Five Ordeals, the walkthrough is not a cheat. It is the only thing standing between the player and the abyss of a corrupted save file. It is, in the most literal sense, a lifeline thrown into a digital labyrinth.
Dungeon floors 4 and 5 are in total darkness. Without the Ligtt spell (Priest Lv.1) or Lamplight (torches), your hit chance drops by 80%.
| Problem | Solution | | :--- | :--- | | Low on HP | Priest: Dialko (Lv. 3 Group Heal). Never waste single-target heals. | | Petrified ally | Latumapic (Priest Lv. 4) or Stone to Flesh item. | | Cursed equipment | Latumofis doesn't work. Only a Bishop in town can remove curses. | | No map | Mage: Dumapic every 10 steps. | | Boss reflects magic | Use melee weapons with +Hit modifier. Fighters use Power Swing. | | Character dies permanently | Reload. Or use a Resurrection spell (Priest Lv. 7 – Di) which can fail. |
The most critical feature of The Five Ordeals is the absence of conventional save-scumming. In the original Wizardry titles, if your party wiped in the dungeon, they did not simply respawn at the last bonfire. You had to create a second party of adventurers to rescue the petrified corpses of the first. Failure cascades.
Consequently, a competent walkthrough transcends basic navigation. It becomes a treatise on risk calculus. For example, a walkthrough entry might read:
"Before entering the third floor of the 'Ordeal of the Labyrinth,' ensure you have at least three 'KATINO' (heal) spells and one 'MONTINO' (teleport) scroll. Do not engage the Ninja Masters on this floor; their critical hit rate (20%) guarantees instant death. Instead, use 'SOPIC' (sleep) and flee."
Here, the walkthrough is teaching a philosophy: discretion is the better part of valor. It redirects the player away from completionist pride (killing every enemy) toward the singular goal of survival. In this context, the walkthrough acts as a cognitive prosthetic, offloading the mental burden of remembering trap locations and monster stats so the player can focus on the terrifying math of HP and spell points.