Southwest Alefgard

Cross the western bridge from Tantegel to reach southwest Alefgard. The north is manageable; the south will kill you. The Mountain Cave holds optional treasure, while the ruined town of Hauksness hides Erdrick's Armor — the best armor in the game.

Enemies

Northern area (near Tantegel): Ghosts, Magidrakees, Scorpions, Skeletons, Magicians. You've seen these before. By the time you're here regularly, they'll start running from you.

Middle area (below Mountain Cave): Metal Scorpions, Wolflords, Wraiths, Goldmen, Wyverns. Same as south Rimuldar. Farm Goldmen for cash.

Southern area (Hauksness region): Knights, Wraith Knights, Demon Knights, Magiwyverns, Metal Slimes. Brutal. Don't come here until level 15+ with Flame Sword and Magic Armor.

Mountain Cave

Optional dungeon in the eastern mountains. Two floors. Bring Radiant and Stopspell — Warlocks and Drakeemas cast magic on floor 2. Have Outside (level 12) ready.

Floor 1: Ghosts, Scorpions, Druins, Magicians. Three staircases down. Only the center staircase reaches all the treasure. Corner stairs lead to dead ends.

Floor 2: Drakeemas, Poltergeists, Drolls, Skeletons, Warlocks. Northwest corner has the Fighter's Ring. The southwest path leads to a chest that may contain gold or the Death Necklace. Don't equip the necklace — it's cursed. Sells for 1,200G.

The Second Bridge

Cross the bridge southwest of the Mountain Cave and enemies spike hard. Wyverns, Knights, and Wraith Knights can kill you in 3-4 turns if you're underleveled. Knights know Stopspell. Wraith Knights heal themselves.

Wait until level 15 minimum before spending time here. Level 17 gives you Healmore, which makes the area much safer. South of the bridge is Demon Knight territory — they hit for 40+ damage. Run unless you're level 17+.

Hauksness

A ruined town in the desert, southwest of the Mountain Cave. It looks abandoned but crawls with Werewolves, Starwyverns, Green Dragons, and Wizards. You can enter early, but you'll die. Come back at level 17+ with Flame Sword and Silver Shield.

Why bother? Erdrick's Armor is buried here. NPCs in Cantlin mention the old armor shop and a tree. In Hauksness, find the ruined shop (covered in swamp tiles) and step on the tree tile to its right.

Erdrick's Armor is incredible: +28 defense, heals 1 HP per step, blocks poison/barrier damage, and reduces fire breath and Hurt damage by ⅓. It's the best armor in the game by far. Worth multiple attempts if you die.