FF3 has several one-time dungeons, story-locked NPCs, and sea monsters that vanish permanently as the plot advances. Miss them and you can't 100% the game. This guide covers every missable in story order so you can platinum in a single playthrough.
What isn't missable
Jobs can't be missed, though Ninja and Sage are optional (found in Eureka). All magic is available from shops; even if you sell Odin, Leviathan, and Bahamut summons, you can rebuy them from a hidden shop in Eureka. Lake Dohr, which was missable in older versions, can be revisited freely in the Pixel Remaster.
Living Woods
The Living Woods is a small forest clearing southwest of the Elder Tree. No enemies spawn here and there's nothing to collect, but stepping inside registers it for the Adventurous Wayfarer location trophy. The game sends you here automatically after completing Castle Hein, but that scripted visit doesn't count for the achievement.
Castle Hein
After acquiring the Fire Crystal, you'll be prompted to travel to Tokkul. Entering the town triggers an arrest scene that takes you to Castle Hein. This is a one-time dungeon; defeating Hein locks it permanently.
There are 11 treasure chests and 1 hidden item (a Mini spell from the NPC soldier in your starting cell) to grab before the boss. Talk to the soldier first, then sweep every floor for chests. The Castle Hein walkthrough covers the full chest route.
These 5 bestiary entries are exclusive to Castle Hein. Fight enough random encounters on each floor to register all of them before reaching the boss.
Wrecked Ship
The Wrecked Ship is your first stop after leaving the Floating Continent. You'll meet Aria here, who accompanies you to the Cave of Tides. There are 2 treasure chests inside that count toward the Legendary Treasure Hunter trophy. The Wrecked Ship locks permanently once you acquire the Water Crystal, so grab both chests on your first visit.
Sea monsters before Saronia
When you fly the Enterprise over Saronia, you'll be shot down and lose the ship. You never sail the ocean again after this point. Several sea monsters can only be fought from a boat, and while some appear on rivers, not all of them do. Fight these before heading to Saronia to be safe.
Floating Continent seas
Surface World seas
Sail around both regions until you've registered all 10 entries. The bestiary page can help you track which ones you're missing.
Saronia NPC items
After being shot down over Saronia, you'll pick up Prince Alus as a temporary party member. Two old men in SW Saronia hand you equipment that counts toward the Item Detector hidden items trophy, but only while Alus is traveling with you. Once you defeat Garuda atop Saronia Castle, Alus leaves and these NPCs stop giving items.
| Item | NPC Location | Cutoff |
|---|---|---|
| Dragon Mail | Old man on central island, SW Saronia | Defeating Garuda |
| Wind Spear | Old man in bottom-left area, SW Saronia | Defeating Garuda |
Doga's Grotto
After completing the Cave of Shadows, you'll be prompted to return to Doga's Manor. Entering teleports you to Doga's Grotto, a dungeon you can freely enter and exit until you defeat the pair of bosses at the end. Once those bosses fall, the area locks permanently.
There are 6 treasure chests inside. These 5 bestiary entries are found here (Peryton can also be fought as a monster-in-a-box in the Sunken Cave). Sweep the dungeon thoroughly before triggering the boss fight.
Crystal Tower point of no return
At the top of the Crystal Tower, there's a room with a mirror and five wyrms. Touching the mirror triggers a cutscene that moves you past Xande and into the endgame. You can't teleport out from this point forward.
Beating Xande sends you to the World of Darkness, which contains four mandatory bosses, four optional bosses, and the final boss. After the credits roll, you're placed back outside the Ancients' Maze next to the Invincible and can re-enter if needed. But everything before the mirror should be finished first.
World of Darkness
The final area contains 4 treasure chests (each guarded by an optional boss) and bestiary entries #182-183, #189-190, #192-195, and bosses #220-225. You can revisit after the credits, so nothing here is permanently missable. But it's easier to handle everything in one clean run through the Crystal Tower.
Full missables checklist
- Visit Living Woods southwest of Elder Tree before the Hein events
- Grab the Mini spell from the soldier in your starting cell (Castle Hein hidden item)
- Clear all 11 Castle Hein chests before defeating Hein
- Fight all 5 Castle Hein enemies (Pharaoh, Lemur, Lamia, Demon, Dullahan) before defeating Hein
- Open both Wrecked Ship chests before acquiring the Water Crystal
- Fight all 10 sea monsters before flying over Saronia
- Get Dragon Mail from old man in SW Saronia while Alus is in party
- Get Wind Spear from old man in SW Saronia while Alus is in party
- Clear all 6 Doga's Grotto chests and fight all 5 enemies before the bosses
- Complete everything above before touching the Crystal Tower mirror
Follow this list in order and you'll have a clean path to the platinum. FF3 has fewer missables than most Final Fantasy games; the real danger is forgetting the Living Woods visit, since it's a location with nothing in it that the game never explicitly points you toward.