Yu-Gi-Oh! The Falsebound Kingdom All Stories New Game+ Speedrun Tutorial by freeland1787 (www.twitch.tv/freeland1787)
World Record: 3:32:34 by freeland1787, Sum of Best is 3:23:04
Gameplay: Yu-Gi-Oh! The Falsebound Kingdom is a Real-Time Strategy (RTS) game with elements of game play similar to Final Fantasy. You command and move teams in the overworld by either selecting them in their respective bases or by pressing the Z button can use an Icon Mode that allows for easier movement in specific stages. Combat in this game very simplistic. Monsters can attack (A), use a special move (Z), use an item (X), check your or the enemy team monsters info (Y ), guard (R), pass on their turn (B), or try to escape from a battle (L). Attacks you select a monster to attack (Y for left, A for middle, X for right), which we don’t do often in this run since it focuses on sweeping enemies. The X and L buttons will get a big work out in the speedrun because it’s either sweeping damage battles or running away from them.
Brief Speedrun Introduction: On the speedrun.com leaderboard, there are four categories. New Game Yugi Story, New Game Kaiba Story, New Game Joey Story, and All Stories New Game+. This run will cover the latter, the All Stories New Game+ Tutorial. The goal is to complete all 53 missions (22 Yugi, 21 Kaiba, 10 Joey) as fast as possible. The order in which you do the three stories is not important. When I do this run, I usually start with Yugi because I ran Yugi Story a few times before getting into this category, then Kaiba, then Joey.
Timer Rules: The start time is when you start the first story from the choose story menu in the main menu (where you have the 3 characters and you can choose which one). The final time is when you get past the mission rewards screen for the 53rd and final mission. In my runs, that’s usually the final mission of the Joey story, Invincible Imperial Guard. For splits, I have a split for all 53 of the missions in the run and split after the mission rewards screen for each mission.
Story Plot Explained: Yu-Gi-Oh! The Falsebound Kingdom is a non-canon game that branches off from the anime after Battle City. A former Kaiba Corporation employee, Scott Irvine, traps Yugi, Kaiba, their friends, and other big name duelists in the manga and anime into a beta multiplayer type game that involves Duel Monsters. In the Yugi Story, you’re fighting as a member of the resistance to a corrupt empire and liberating the land until Scott intervenes and decides to wreck things. In the Kaiba Story you start as a member of the Imperial Guard then escape from a death sentence before overthrowing the emperor. After Scott shows up he hypnotizes Yugi’s friends and kidnaps Seto Kaiba’s younger brother, Mokuba and tests the mettle of the main characters. Eventually they turn the tables and send Scott running to the Kingdom (named of the game) Computer block and a big encounter ensues at the game CPU. After beating Scott, you battle against Dark Nite and Nitemare, who summon Level 1 and 99 versions of the Egyptian Gods to destroy you. After beating the Dark Spirits, you are freed from the game and the building catches fire. It’s a continuation of the manga, not the anime.
Set Up: In this game, you only need 2 monster teams for 52 of the 53 missions. I’m still working on how to best set up the 53rd mission of the run, which is the 8th mission of the Joey story, Master Plan. The way the game is set up, you can use 2 teams of monsters with 3 marshals in the Yugi and Kaiba story parts of the run. In Master Plan, you need a 3rd monster team for 1 battle in the run.
1st Team: Dark Magician (Raigeki x3), Dunames Dark Witch (Raimei, Raigeki x2), Magician of Black Chaos. 2nd Team: Dark Magician #2 (Raigeki x3), Kuriboh (Multiply x3), Moisture Creature (Raimei, Raigkei x2) 3rd Team: Dark Magician Girl (Raimei, Final Flame, Hinotama), Basic Insect (Laser Cannon Armor x3), Skull Knight (Raigeki x3)
Also I recommend you clear out all the roaming monster encounters before attempting this run so you can get the fastest time possible. Best time to do it is get it done during the level grind.
Monster Locations: Dark Magician: Beat Badlands (Yugi Mission 6) if you do not already own Dark Magician Dunames Dark Witch: Beat Guidance (Kaiba Mission 15). DWW is a member of Ishizu’s team and cannot be used in the Guidance mission during the speedrun. Magician of Black Chaos: Use Black Luster Ritual on Dark Magician. Have to beat Secret Power (Yugi Mission 17) and get Black Luster Ritual in the mission reward screen. Dark Magician #2: Beat A Lost Cause (Yugi Mission 16) Kuriboh: Part of Yugi’s original team Moisture Creature: In Sever the Supply Line (Kaiba Mission 7) send Kaiba to Sweit. Build an Anti-Air Cannon and a Watch Tower. Using Team Command, move Kaiba southeast to the circle in the mountain ranges. You must complete the movement before noon otherwise you have to restart the mission. If the movement is done correctly, Moisture Creature joins your team.
Item Locations: Raigeki: Beat Secret Power (Yugi Mission 17). You can only get 1 Raigeki per Yugi Story run unfortunately. Each Raigeki equipped comes with 1 use. Raimei: Trader Union at Dhorimouth Town in Banishment (Yugi Mission 19), Saxoss in Lord of the Forest (Kaiba Mission 5), Tower Southern in Banishment (Kaiba Mission 18 ), Beyzon in Reversal (Joey Mission 7), and Shyi-Hagou in Master Plan (Joey Mission 8 ). Each Raimei equipped comes with 5 uses. Multiply: Trader Union at Tower Sirius in Badlands (Yugi Mission 6). The Yugi Story run has you picking up Multiply there, so I suggest doing the Yugi Story speedrun if you are starting from a new save file and working your way up to the All Stories run. Laser Cannon Armor: Build a trader union at Jokhan in Turbulent Waters (Yugi Mission 5).
Marshals: The game uses the term marshal as a character who can command a team of 3 monsters to fight one another. It’s just a convenient term to describe the game play mechanics. In the Yugi Story, I use Yugi (1st Team), Tristan (2nd Team 4-12), and Mai (2nd Team 13-22). In the Kaiba Story, I use Kaiba (1st Team), Mokuba (2nd Team 4-11), and Pegasus (2nd Team 12-21). Due to plot elements, you have to use Mai in For that Someone Special (Yugi Mission 13) and Pegasus in Dragon Lair (Kaiba Mission 14), so that’s why they are included in the run.
Level Grinding Tips: In order to get the best time possible, it’s ideal to level up all the marshals and monsters used in the run all the way up to Level 99. The level grind for Marshals is very slow and tedious compared to leveling up monsters, which is why I do attempts instead of grinds. Since the speedrun strategy use Raigeki and it takes 2000 Gold to replenish Raigeki, it’s both a waste of time and in game resources to do grinds all the time. Even though I could improve my time by simply getting the level grind done. The best levels to grind EXP are Strategy for Yugi and Tristan (Yugi Mission 3), A Lost Cause for Mai (Yugi Mission 16), Surprise Attack for Kaiba and Pegasus (Kaiba Mission 16), and Full Scale Offensive for Mokuba (Kaiba Mission 8 ). Each victorious battle will give a Marshal about 120-200 EXP, depending on how well the fight went. If a marshal and his monster team are all level 99, then the final 3-4 seconds of that screen are skipped. It was a trick I discovered when I got the 3:47:31 WR run back in September 2017.
Raigeki Strats: The amount of damage you can pile up with Raigeki depends on the abilities of the monster using them. Typically Raigeki will do 800-1000 damage to all 3 monsters (half that if they are guarding). Three monsters in the run (Magician of Black Chaos, both Dark Magicians) have the Magic Craft ability, which increases the power of Raigeki and does more damage. The damage range for Dark Magician is 900-1100 and Magician of Black Chaos 950-1150. The Raigeki strats involve Dunames Dark Witch or Moisture Creature using Raimei to paralyze the opponent’s monsters so Raigeki can stack damage. Here’s how the damage range should work:
Strategy 1 Raigeki 1 Raimei + 1 Raigeki 1 Raimei + 2 Raigeki 1 Raimei + 3 Raigeki 1 Raimei + 4 Raigeki Magic Craft Monster 950 1000
No Magic Craft Monster 850 900
1st Team (DM, DWW, MoBC)
1900 2800 3700 2nd Team (DM2, KRBH, MC)
1700 2600 3400
Multiple Spine Shoot: This is Kuriboh’s special attack, which can only be unlocked if you equip Kuriboh with Multiply. Kuriboh maxes out at around 7000 attack and a single attack does about 1000-1200 damage. The Spine Shoot special attack will do about 800 damage (600 against monsters with the Armor ability).
Button Pressing Strats: X, A: I hit X with the right thumb and slide it left to hit A. I put Raimei or Raigeki in the A slot for items. X, X: This one is pretty easy, mash X. Raigeki is always in the X slot. The timing to press X is when the damage numbers stop adding up. X, Y: This one is the hardest button combo due to the design of a Gamecube controller. You basically have to rapidly tap both buttons.
Speedrun Strats:
#1: Yugi Mission 1 - War Campaign This story starts off as a cutscene where Yugi and his friends enter the SiC laboratory and are connected to the Kingdom multiplayer game before getting trapped in the game. Yugi wakes up with no idea what his character’s role is. The trick for the opening cutscene is not murdering the A button, trust me I’ve done that and it’s very tiring and a potential RSI situation, but tapping A at a certain rhythm. The fastest cutscene I’ve done is 2:12.
Menu: When you get into the menu screen, select Yugi’s team (A). Press R 5 times to get the menu to sort monsters based on highest health so Dunames Dark Witch, Dark Magician, and Magician of Black Chaos are all on the same screen. Put DWW in the middle for movement, Dark Magician on the left, and Magician of Black Chaos on the right.
Mission: The mission starts with Shimon explaining how the overworld game play works. Through Icon Mode send Yugi to Makhad (Z, A, A) and Shimon to Ruthum (Down, A, Up, A). Shimon should arrive at Ruthum before Yugi gets to Makhad if done correctly. Then in Icon Mode, zoom in on Makhad (Left, R) That lures out an enemy team from the Makhad castle and frees up Yugi to take on the boss. Ideally the boss fight only takes Raimei + 2 Raigekis.
Average Split Time 4:50, Best Possible Split Time 4:38
#2: Yugi Mission 2 - Fury of the Empire
Menu: Tap through the cutscene then exit the menu screen immediately, there is no need to menu here. Start mission.
Mission: After getting through the intro cutscene, you send Yugi to Ashton (Z, A, A). Zoom in on Ashton (Left, R). That’s all you need to do. When you get to the boss, it’s a Raimei + 3 Raigeki kill although Armored Lizard and Mountain Warrior typically go down after the 2nd Raigeki. After the battle Tristan joins your team.
Average Split Time 3:20, Best Possible Time 3:17
#3: Yugi Mission 3 - Strategy
Menu: This applies only if Tristan is Level 99. Equip Tristan with the 2nd team. Select Tristan (Down, Down, A) and hit R 6 times to sort by attack. Give Tristan Kuriboh (middle), Dark Magician #2 (left), and Moisture Creature (right). Then enable Tristan to go (X) for the mission and exit the menu screen. If Tristan is not Level 99 then skip the menu here because he doesn’t save time.
Mission: If Tristan is Level 99 you send him first to Telenoes (Z, Down, A) then Yugi (A, A). Zoom in on Telenoes (Left, R). If not, just send Yugi (Z, A, A). The first fight is Raimei + 3 Raigeki, the second is Raimei + 2 Raigeki.
Average Split: 3:30, Best Possible Split Time 3:18
#4: Yugi Mission 4 - Battle for Tsughut
Menu: If you haven’t assigned Tristan’s team yet, you do so here.
Mission: As soon as the mission starts, send Yugi to Tsughut (Z, A, A). Then build an Anti Ground Cannon and Barricade at Telenoes and have Tristan defend Telenoes. For the first fight, Raimei + 2 Raigeki takes out Phantom Dewan and Zarigun, but I use Kuriboh’s basic attack for Slot Machine to guarantee Raimei + 3 attacks gets the job done 100%. The second fight should be cake as the team is softened up by the Ground Cannon (70% damage). Raigeki or Multiple Spine Shoot takes that team out in one shot. Yugi will get hit by Tsughut’s Anti Air Cannon and a cutscene where Bakura appears takes place. Afterwards, zoom in on Tsughut (Z, Left, R). Raimei + 3 Raigeki takes down the boss.
Average Split: 5:05, Best Possible Split Time 4:46
#5: Yugi Mission 5 - Turbulent Waters
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: A team of 7 monsters is en route to Tsughut. Immediately after the mission starts, send Yugi to Thor Mount (Z, A, Down, Down, A) and Bakura to Van Lova (Down, Down, A, Up, Up, A). After getting Bakura’s send done, zoom on Yugi then re-direct him to Gigan Syip (R, A, A). But we’re not mashing A, this time we’re waiting a second between the two A taps. When Bakura liberates Van Lova that should clear the path for Yugi. If Yugi accidentally liberates Jokhan then you have to improvise from there. Zoom in on Gigan Syip (Left, Down, R). The boss fight is Raimei + 3 Raigeki.
Average Split: 3:15, Best Possible Split Time 3:08
#6: Yugi Mission 6 - Badlands
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: As soon as the mission starts, send Yugi to Air Shrine (Z, A, A) and Tristan to Tower Pegasi (Down, A, Down, Down, A). Zoom in on Air Shrine (Left, R). The boss fight is Raimei + 3 Raigeki although if you can kill Reaper of the Cards and Dark King of the Abyss in 2, that would be perfect.
Average Split 3:25, Best Possible Split Time 3:15
#7: Yugi Mission 7 - Crucial Battle
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: As the mission starts, send Yugi northeast of Chitthun. North enough where he can avoid the Anti Air Cannon at Phostenn. In Icon mode, send Yugi to Enno (Z, A, A). Use Mako, since Kairyu-Shin has the largest circle in the game, and move him just east of Chitthun to block the Millenium Golem team from leaving Phostenn. Mystical Elf cannot be paralyzed by the Raimei Attack due to Status Guard Ability. Raimei + 3 Raigeki will beat Haysheen. The plot moves forward with Joey and Mai joining your team in addition to Scott Irvine showing himself.
Average Split 3:20, Best Possible Split Time 2:55
#8: Yugi Mission 8 - Refugees
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: This is all about moving Téa to Craw Valley. Immediately as the mission starts, move her straight north. Then when she gains separation, move her northwest, then west. When there is enough distance between her and the Berfomet teams chasing her, use Icon Mode to send her to Craw Valley (Z, Up, A, Up, A). When she is guaranteed to outrun the teams chasing her, zoom in on Craw Valley (Z, Left, Up, R). If Téa ends up fighting, the run is dead. Most of my resets come here.
Average Split 1:51, Best Possible Split Time 1:49
#9: Yugi Mission 9 - Break Free
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: As the mission starts use Icon Mode to send Yugi towards Ce-Reizo (Z, A, Up, A). This requires a visual cue to move Yugi towards Chelyumn (R, Z, Adjust C-Stick), which is when Yugi is in the middle of the mountain range. I use between the two craters as the visual cue although I start the input when Yugi crosses the first. Open up Icon Mode and send Yugi to Chelyumn (Z, A, A) and zoom in on Yugi (R, Adjust C-stick so Yugi is going forward from the camera angle). The last Harpie’s Pet Dragon team does cut it close a bit, if you do the input too early you can always move Yugi to the right then redo the input of sending him to the castle as a backup. Atensa’s team goes down in a Raimei + 3 Raigeki.
Average Split Time 2:20, Best Possible Split Time 2:16
#10: Yugi Mission 10 - Counterattack
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Using Icon Mode, send Téa towards Seirauna (Z, Down, Down, Down, A, Down, Down, A) and set Yugi to defend Riz-Phonn (A, Down, A). Build a barricade at Riz-Phonn. The visual cue for Tea is when her team reaches the lip of the grass where it cuts in (see video). There will be two fights for Yugi, Raimei + 3 Raigeki handles the first fight and the 2nd fight we’re running. After the 2nd fight, zoom in on Mariyah-Denn (Z, Left, R). If Tristan is Lv 99, then you send Yugi instead. When Téa/Yugi reaches Mariyah-Denn, the game play of the mission ends and a long cutscene starts. Scott captures Téa, Joey, and Bakura.
Average Split Time 3:30, Best Possible Split Time: 3:11
#11: Yugi Mission 11- Spellcaster
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: As the mission starts, use Icon Mode to send Tristan to Tower Pegasi then immediately towards Air Shrine (Z, Down, A, Down, Down, A, Down, A, A). The reason for choosing Tristan is that Téa’s team goes down in 3 attacks + Raimei with either Tristan or Yugi. Yugi’s team could potentially defeat the attacking team of monsters in 2 Raigeki + Raimei, so there’s a potential time save.
Average Split Time 3:00, Best Possible Split Time: 2:50
#12: Yugi Mission 12 - Phantom Blast
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: As the mission starts, send Shimon towards Enno and zoom in on him (Z, Up, A, A, Up, R). The Anti Ground Cannon at Phostenn will fire and start a cutscene. After the cutscene ends, zoom in on Shimon and stop him on the spot (Z, Up, R, Z, A). That is to stop a 2nd team from leaving Phostenn. Using Team Command, send Yugi northeast of Chitthun. The first team will require Raimei + 3 Special Attacks (2 Raigeki + Multiple Spine Shoot). After the battle, use Icon Mode to send Yugi to Enno (Z, A, A). Joey’s team goes down after Raimei + 3 Raigeki.
Average Split Time 4:15, Best Possible Split Time: 3:50
#13: Yugi Mission 13 - For That Someone Special
Menu: Take the monsters Tristan has and remove the first 2 (X). Replace the final monster with Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Give Tristan’s monsters to Mai since she is the only one who can beat Joey and end the mission with a victory. Then exit menu screen.
Mission: Use Icon Mode to send Yugi towards Beyzon (Z, A, Down, A). Use Team Command to send Mai southeast, past the river. Then use Icon Mode to send Mai to Vrauson (Z, Up, Up, A). Raimei + 2 Raigeki + Multiple Spine Shoot takes down Joey.
Average Split Time 3:30, Best Possible Split Time 3:15
#14: Yugi Mission 14 - Scorched
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: In Icon Mode, send Yugi to Telenoes (Z, A, Left, A) and Téa to Y-Su-Wak (Down, Down, A, Up, A). When Yugi gets close enough to the band of enemy teams, move him to the right to avoid an encounter. Then when he’s out of the way, send him to Telenoes (Z, A, Left, A). After Téa liberates Y-Su-Wak, send her back to Tsughut (Z, Down, D A, A). Strings goes down in Raimei + 3 Raigeki.
Average Split Time 3:10, Best Possible Split Time 2:54
#15: Yugi Mission 15 - Betrayal
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: In Icon, quickly send Yugi to Jakhud (Z, A, Down, A) and zoom in on Yugi’s team (R, Z). Wait for Yami Bakura’s team to leave Phedon, then intercept him before he reaches Jakhud by using the cursor to move Yugi to a specific point. Yami Bakura’s team goes down after Raimei + 3 Raigeki (possible for a 2-Raigeki kill, but requires a lot of RNG luck and enemy low health on Pumpking and Snake Hair). Espa Roba joins your team, but we don’t use him.
Average Split Time 2:30, Best Possible Split Time 2:22
#16: Yugi Mission 16 - A Lost Cause
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: In Icon Mode, send Yugi to Anker Hill (Z, A, A) and Téa to Twin Rivers (Down, Down, A, Down, A). The latter movement is to get the moving teams out of Yugi’s way. Arkana’s team goes down easily in Raimei + 3 Raigeki although his monsters can cause problems if they break the paralysis.
Average Split Time 3:00, Best Possible Split Time 2:48
#17: Yugi Mission 17 - Secret Power
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: In Icon Mode, send Yugi to Myilluno (Z, A, A). You will fight Shadi, whose team can get very trolly and have really slow attacks that burn time.
Average Split Time 2:40, Best Possible Split Time 2:18
#18: Yugi Mission 18 - Face-Off
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: As the mission starts, build an Anti-Ground cannon. After the Cannon is built, send Mai to Nonnber (Z, Up, Up, Up, A, A). Mai is faster than Yugi because it skips a 5-line dialogue. Have Yugi defend Bustonn (Z, A, Up, A) and build a barricade. The first fight is Raimei + 3 Raigeki. The Insect Queen team should hit the Anti Ground Cannon as they reach your base. That fight is Raimei + Raigeki. You can opt to gamble for a 1 Raigeki kill, but Hercules Beetle most often has too much health for Dunames Dark Witch to OHKO, which is why I do the safer strat. Kaiba’s team requires Raimei + 4 Spread Attacks (Raigeki + Multiple Spine Shoot) to kill off all 3 Blue-Eyes. The fight is tricky because if they fuse into Ultimate Dragon, it’s a major time loss (~40 seconds) if not outright RIP run. It’s also the 1st of 3 similar fights. At the end, it’s mash A to get through the dialogue between Yugi and Kaiba.
Average Split 5:10, Best Possible Split Time 4:43
#19: Yugi Mission 19 - Banishment
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Yugi to Sygh-Varths (Z, A, Left, A) and build a barricade at Pleasure Town. Have Mai defend the base. The first team goes down with Raimei + 3 spread attacks. The second team requires the same attacks, although damage ranges don’t a guarantee a 3 attack kill. After Mai is done with the enemy teams, zoom in on Yugi (Z, R). When Yugi gets to the base of the mountain range closest to Sygh-Varths, move him along the base of the mountains northeast until he’s high enough to avoid the Anti-Air Cannon at the Sygh-Varths Gate when you send him towards Scott (Z, A, Left, A). For the Scott fight, I used to always wait Cosmo Queen out, but instead have elected to attempt a quicker kill with 3 Raigeki before Cosmo Queen can use Red Medicine. It didn’t work the one time I tried it as Cosmo Queen had 5 HP left. It has the potential to save 20 seconds over the older strat.
Average Split Time 5:20, Best Possible Split Time 4:50
#20: Yugi Mission 20 - Hallowed Land of Ishtar
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: As soon as the mission starts, send Yugi to Ishtar Gate (Z, A, Down, A). Prepare the input to send Yugi to Ishtar (A). When Yugi’s team reaches Ishtar Gate, hit A twice to send him to Ishtar. Odion’s team goes down in Raimei + 3 Raigeki, although the Embodiment of Apophis can make this battle tough with Red Medicine.
Average Split Time 2:45, Best Possible Split Time 2:35
#21: Yugi Mission 21 - Dream World
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Mai (Z, Up, Up, Up, A, Down, Down, A) then Yugi (Z, A, Down, Down, A) to Memory Bank A-2. The first fight tends to be tougher, but the strat is workable with Raimei + 2 Rageki + Multiple Spine Shoot against monsters that have the armor ability. The 2nd fight is much easier with the monsters being in an easier position to kill. Raimei + 3 Raigeki takes down the team of Jinzo and 2 Cyber Saurus. Using the Team Command, you have to maneuver Yugi to the Terminal Bus. The final leg you can use Icon Mode (Z, A, A) as the Dunames Dark Witch sprite passes the corner southwest of the Terminal Bus. The boss can be taken down in Raimei + 3 Raigeki. You don’t want the three pieces of Gate Guardian fusing, otherwise it’s a major time loss of roughly 40-50 seconds.
Average Split Time 7:30, Best Possible Split Time 7:13
#22: Yugi Mission 22 - Dark Spirit
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Mai (Z, Up, Up, Up, A, A) then Yugi (A, A) to the Central Processing Unit. A cutscene plays out and the ultimate fight with Scott begins. In all playthroughs of the game, Scott’s team consists of 2 Level 45 Serpent Nite Dragons flanking a Level 50 Skull Knight regardless of the enemy level. In the past, I use to use the save all the Raigeki strats, but after accidentally using it on Scott, it proved to be much faster than the old strat. Multiple Spine Shoot, Raimei, and Raigeki takes down Scott’s team. After that, Dark Nite appears and summons Obelisk the Tormentor (I call him Obelisk the Run Killer). Kuriboh is your best attacker with 1000 damage per hit. Ideally Obelisk stays stunned throughout the fight. If Kuriboh dies early in the fight, it’s a potential major time loss. The first fight is Lv. 1 Obelisk with 9000 HP. Use all the tricks in the book to kill it, including using Raimei to paralyze him. After you beat Level 1 Obelisk, a cutscene plays and Dark Nite transforms into Nite Mare. You have to re-fight Obelisk at Level 99 with 9999 health. I go for the safe strat of having Mai damage Obelisk with Kuriboh then running to soften up the damage for Yugi. Watch out for Obelisk’s God/Omni Hand Crusher, it does massive damage (1000-1200) and hits all your monsters. Critical hits are especially bad on that attack. RNG does need to cooperate in both fights otherwise the mission can last 8-9 minutes when you want a under 7 minute split. Any critical hits by Kuriboh is a major time save in the run. After you beat Nite Mare, he fades out and everyone is freed from the game. I split at the mission rewards screen, but I also wait to reset until after the save screen.
Average Split Time 8:10, Best Possible Split Time 6:35
#23: Kaiba Mission 1 - Hand of Fire
If you are on a green pace at this point, congratulations on surviving Obelisk. You are 40% of the way done with the run. You have to go through another long intro cutscene. Tapping A at a specific rhythm is the fastest way to clear the dialogue.
Menu: In the Menu Screen, hit A to select Kaiba’s team. Replace his incumbent team with the Dark Magician, Dunames Dark Witch, and Magician of Black Chaos. After that, exit menu screen.
Mission: A long dialogue between Kaiba and Marthis starts with Marthis explaining how to move teams (we don’t care). As soon as the mission starts, use Icon Mode to send Kaiba to Riz-Phonn (Z, A, Down, A) and Marthis to Seirauna (Z, Down, A, Down, Down, A). When Marthis reaches Seirauna, that should allow for Kaiba to have a 1 on 1 boss battle. Send Marthis back to Mariyah-Denn (Z, Down, A, A) after the dialogue. Boss fight is Raimei + 3 Raigeki.
Average Split Time 5:35, Best Possible Split Time 5:23
#24: Kaiba Mission 2 - Bandits
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: At the start of the mission, send Kaiba to Phagttuon (Z, A, Left, A) and Mokuba to Dyethruo (Down, A, Down, A). After Mokuba liberates Dyethruo, a dialogue starts and Bonz leads to retake that base. That opens it up for Kaiba to take on Bandit Keith. Keith’s team goes down with Raimei + 3 Raigeki.
Average Split Time 3:00, Best Possible 2:54
#25: Kaiba Mission 3 - Surrounded
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: When you gain control, send Kaiba to Pegasus’ location (Z, A, Left, A). This mission is straightforward as well. Pegasus at times will be an annoying boss if his monsters can attack and/or you get poor damage numbers. Raimei + 3 Raigeki is enough to beat his team.
Average Split Time: 3:10, Best Possible 2:54
#26: Kaiba Mission 4 - Framed
Menu: Give Team 2 to Mokuba now that you need two Marshal teams.
Mission: When you gain control, send Kaiba to Craw Valley (Z, A, Down, A). Use the Cursor to send Mokuba southeast of Beyzon. Build a barricade at Beyzon. Every battle at Beyzon you’re running from (L). When Mokuba is out of the way of the moving teams, send him to Vrauson (Z, Down, A, A). Marthis goes down with Raimei + Multiple Spine Shoot + Raigeki + Another attack. The Craw Valley battle is Easy for Kaiba with Raimei + 3 Raigeki. If you’re lucky, you can kill that team with 2 Raigeki.
Average Split 5:05, Best Possible 4:50
#27: Kaiba Mission 5 - Lord of the Forest
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: As soon as you gain control, send Kaiba to Saxoss (Z, A, Down, Down, A). When the entire monster circle is in forest, send Kaiba towards Weevil’s location (Z, A, Left/Down, A). Raimei + 3 Raigeki beats Weevil.
Average Split 2:14, Best Possible 2:11
#28: Kaiba Mission 6 - Lord of the Plains Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: As soon as you gain control, send Kaiba towards Rex’s location (Z, A, A). Then build an Anti-Ground Cannon and Barricade at your base and have Mokuba defend. Kaiba will encounter a moving team along the way, but that’s fine because avoiding that team doesn’t save any time plus Kaiba has a shot at a 2 Raigeki kill whereas Mokuba would take one extra turn. Rex requires 4 Raigeki + Raimei to beat because 2 of his 3 monsters have over 3300 HP. This fight can be tricky since all his monsters have Super Stamina.
Average Split 4:40, Best Possible 4:25
#29: Kaiba Mission 7 - Sever the Supply Line!
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: As soon as you gain control, send Kaiba northwest of Norvey. Then send him in a line parallel between Norvey and Runinn-Zahmhud. When the 3rd team exits the castle, send Kaiba to the castle (Z, A, A). As a tip, don’t do what the WR video did, it was a terrible mission. Boss fight is Raimei + 3 Raigeki.
Average Split 2:50, Best Split 2:41
#30: Kaiba Mission 8 - Full Scale Offensive
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: As soon as you gain control send Kaiba’s team straight down (move cursor all the way down to coast line if you want to do safe strats, I go for about ¾ the vertical distance between Van Lova and Gigan-Syip). When Kaiba is about halfway down, then send him to Gigan-Syip (Z, A, Down, A). If Kaiba gets too close to the moving enemies, move him in a parallel line to their path then send him to Gigan-Syip when out of their way. Raimei + 3 Raigeki (possible 2 can get the job done but you need insanely high damage values and Judge Man to have insanely low HP value).
Average Split 2:35, Best Possible 2:22
#31: Kaiba Mission 9 - Crucial Battle
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: As soon as you gain control send Mokuba to Nonnber and have Kaiba defend Bustonn. Build a Supply Unit and Barricade. Kaiba is the better choice to defend since his fights are the fastest and there are 3 unavoidable fights. Replenish Kaiba’s Raigeki inventory after his first fight because that’s the best opportunity to do so. Haysheen is beatable, requires 3 of Raigeki + Spine Shoot and Raimei to beat. After you beat Haysheen, Scott appears for a 45-second long cutscene which you mash the crap out of the A button.
Average Split 6:25, Best Possible 5:50
#32: Kaiba Mission 10 - Aid from Afar
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Kaiba northwest of Maryah-Denn. Then build a barricade and supply unit at Maryah-Denn. The reason to send Kaiba is because Dungeon Worm’s health is too high to easily kill in 4 moves with Mokuba’s team plus it would take the same number of turns for the other teams. If executed correctly, you should have time to move Kaiba towards Riz-Phonn before the first battle (Z, A, Down, A). Use the Supply Unit after the 3rd battle because that’s the biggest break in the action and you’re likely out of Raigeki for Dark Magician #2 anyway. Boss fight is Raimei + 3 Raigeki.
Average Split 7:30, Best Possible 7:00
#33: Kaiba Mission 11 - Going the Distance
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Same strategy as Turbulent Waters: Send Kaiba towards Thor-Mount (Z, A, Down, Down, A) and Pegasus towards Van Lova (Up, A, Up, Up, A). Then send Kaiba towards Gigan-Syip (Z, A, Down, A). Send Pegasus back to Tsughut (Up, A, A). When Kaiba’s team gets close to the moving teams of monsters, send him on a parallel line to those teams until you’re out of their way. Then send Kaiba to Gigan-Syip (Z, A, Down, A). Raimei + 3 Raigeki defeats Scott.
Average Split 3:30, Best Possible 3:22
#34: Kaiba Mission 12 - Raid
Menu: Give Mokuba’s team to Pegasus, remember to replace the 3rd monster with Blue-Eyes because Mokuba will need at least one monster to start missions later in the run.
Mission: Send both Kaiba (Z, A, Down, A) and Pegasus (Up, A, Down, A) towards Beyzon. 3 Easy fights, Raimei + 3 Raigeki/Spine Shoots in all 3 cases.
Average Split 4:05, Best Possible 3:55
#35: Kaiba Mission 13 - Bandits, Again
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Kaiba towards Bandit Keith’s location (Z, A, Left, A). Build a barricade and make sure Pegasus is defending your base. Run from both battles. Keith’s team can be annoying due to all 3 monsters having Red Medicine (I’ve blasted out some swears over that before). Raimei + 3 Raigeki takes care of Keith.
Average Split 2:40, Best Possible 2:37
#36: Kaiba Mission 14 - Dragon Lair
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Pegasus towards Nest (Z, Down, A, Down, Down, A) and Kaiba towards Den (A, Down, A). They need to hit their locations in the small window between first contact and the battle screen starting otherwise the game can get glitchy. After the two battles, send Kaiba to Palace (Z, A, Up, A) and Pegasus to Hall (Down, A, Down, Down, Down, A). After Kaiba liberates Palace, build a Supply Unit to replenish Kaiba’s Raigeki totals to max. Then send Kaiba to Burrow (Z, A, Up, Up, A). Blue-Eyes takes 4 Raigeki hits to beat, so Raimei + 4 Raigeki is the strategy here.
Average Split 8:00, Best Possible 7:45
#37: Kaiba Mission 15 - Guidance
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Pegasus towards Nonnber (Z, Up, A, A). Kaiba doesn’t have Dunames Dark Witch unfortunately, which is why he’s unavailable to use for the boss fight. Maneuver around Lumis’ team. Umbra can be a tricky fight, but Raimei + 4 Raigeki/Spine Shoot should get the job done (if we’re lucky in 3).
Average Split 3:30, Best Possible 3:18
#38: Kaiba Mission 16 - Surprise Attack
Menu: Make sure to put Dunames Dark Witch back in the middle spot for Kaiba’s team. Absolutely necessary!
Mission: Send Kaiba in the general direction towards Scott. In Icon Mode, you could send him towards Twin Rivers (Z, A, Down, A). About ⅔ of the way up, send him towards Shadow Forest (Z, A, Left, A). Depending on damage ranges, Scott could be beaten in 3 Raigeki Hits, but I always expect the fight to require 4.
Average Split 3:25, Best Possible 3:14
#39: Kaiba Mission 17 - Face-Off
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Same strategy as Surrounded. Send Kaiba towards Yugi’s location (Z, A, Left, A). Yugi’s team is beatable with Raimei + 3 Raigeki, with only Dark Magician requiring the 3rd strike to be beaten.
Average Split 2:55, Best Possible 2:49
#40: Kaiba Mission 18 - Banishment
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Kaiba towards Dhornimouth Town (Z, A, Up, Up, A) and about ¾ of the way there, send him towards Sygh Varths (Z, A, Left, A). Build an Anti-Air Cannon and Barricade and have Pegasus defend the base. When Kaiba gets past the mountain range, use Cursor mode to move him northeast and away from the Anti-Air Cannon at Sygh-Varths Gate. After the battle against the Winged Eagle team (OTK), Kaiba should be out of the range of the AA cannon, so send him to Sygh-Varths (Z, A, Left, A). 3 Raigeki will defeat Scott, no Raimei since all 3 of your monsters will get to attack before Cosmo Queen gets a turn. Only way this fight goes wrong is if damage values are on the low end.
Average Split Time 4:00, Best Possible 3:45
#41: Kaiba Mission 19 - Hallowed Land of Ishtar
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Kaiba to Ishtar Gate (Z, A, Down, A). Buffer the input to send him to Ishtar (A). When Kaiba reaches Ishtar Gate, mash A (at least twice) to send him to Ishtar. Odion’s team is beatable with Raimei + 3 Raigeki.
Average Split 2:40, Best Possible 2:31
#42: Kaiba Mission 20 - Dream World
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Pegasus (Z, Down, A, Down, Down, A) and Kaiba (A, Down, Down, A) to Memory Bank A-2 in that order. First group of enemies are Machine King flanked by two Cyber Soldiers with Armor ability. Raimei + 3 Raigeki/Spine Shoots beats that team. Kaiba will face a Jinzo and 2 Cyber Saurus team, Raimei + 3 Raigeki beats them. After the battle, send Kaiba towards Terminal Bus (Z, A, A). Then use Cursor mode to maneuver Kaiba around the path towards Terminal Bus. Final battle is the pieces of Gate Guardian, Raimei + 3 Raigeki will beat them.
Average Split 7:20, Best Possible 7:05
#43: Kaiba Mission 21 - Dark Spirit
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Pegasus (Z, Down, A) and Kaiba (A, A) to the Central Processing Unit in that order. Final gauntlet of battles for Kaiba story begins. Pegasus with Raimei + Raigeki + 2 Spine Shoots will beat Scott. Dark Nite appears with Level 1 Slifer. Ideally Pegasus handles that fight so Kaiba can deal with Level 99 Slifer. A lot of luck is involved in this gauntlet of battles, so you can lose up to 2 minutes even with good execution. Paralyze and inflict as much damage as possible is the strat at play. Fastest strat is letting Kaiba do all the work against Level 99 Slifer, but you can have Pegasus do that battle for some safety. Kaiba Story is complete, just 10 more to go and the Joey missions fortunately are pretty quick.
Average Split 7:30, Best Possible 6:25
#44: Joey Mission 1 - Raid
Menu: Give the top team to Joey and the 2nd team to Malairuka.
Mission: Send Joey northwest of Sunny Plane and away from the moving monster group. Then send him to Twin Rivers (Z, A, Down, A). Run from the encounters before the boss. Raimei + 3 Raigeki beats Nephel.
Average Split 5:25, Best Possible 5:15
#45: Joey Mission 2 - Outnumbered?
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Joey towards Seirauna (Z, A, Down, Down, A). About ⅓ of the way there, then send him to Maryah-Denn (Z, A, A). Build a Barricade and have Malairuka defend. Defeat the first team and run from the 2nd. Boss fight is Raimei + 3 Raigeki. Average Split 3:55, Best Possible 3:43
#46: Joey Mission 3 - Quick Attack
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Joey southeast of Craw Valley (visual cue the far side river bank) in Cursor Mode. Then send him to Vrauson (Z, A, A). Raimei + 4 Raigeki defeats the boss, but with good damage values it’s possible in 3.
Average Split 3:05, Best Possible 2:57
#47: Joey Mission 4 - Pursuit
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Joey directly west of Chelyumn in Cursor Mode. At the right edge of the desert, send him to Odion’s location (Z, A, Left, A). Odion’s team is beatable with Raimei + 3 Raigeki.
Average Split 2:25, Best Possible 2:15
#48: Joey Mission 5 - Minion of Darkness
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Misson: Send Joey to Air Shrine (Z, A, A) and Malairuka to Tower Pegasi (Down, Down, A, Down, Down, A). Buffer the input to send Malairuka to Tower Sirius (Down, Down, A, Up, Up). When Malairuka gets to Tower Sirius, mash A to send him to Tower Sirius. After that buffer the input to send him back to Research Guild (Down, Down, A, Up). When Malairuka gets to Tower Sirius, Mash A to send him back to Research Guild. Next up is the boss fight against Marik. Raimei + 3 Raigeki beats him.
Average Split 3:20, Best Possible 3:12
#49: Joey Mission 6 - Thrashed
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Joey to Gigan-Syip (Z, A, Down, A) and use Cursor Mode to maneuver away from the Kaiser Dragon team. Reason you can do it this way is because you’re avoiding one enemy team and it’s 20 seconds faster to do it that way. Boss fight is Raimei + 3 Raigeki, but favorable enemy health and damage values for Raigeki could make it a 2 lightning kill.
Average Split 2:35, Best Possible 2:25
#50: Joey Mission 7 - Reversal
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: As soon as you gain control, move Tea just a bit west of Beyzon to block the enemies from leaving there. Then using the same strategy as Quick Attack with Joey, send him southeast of Craw Valley to the far side River Bank, then use Icon Mode to send him to Vrauson (Z, A, A). Boss fight is Raimei + 4 Raigeki, but solid damage values should take down Sengenjin in 3 hits.
Average Split 3:05, Best Possible 2:59
#51: Joey Mission 8 - Master Plan
Menu: Give Mai a team of Dark Magician Girl with Raimei, Final Flame, and Hinotama, Basic Insect with 3 Laser Cannon Armor, and Skull Knight with 3 Raigeki. It’s faster to use a 3rd team for this mission.
Mission: Send Joey to Jark (Z, A, Up, Up, A), Mai to Shyi-Hagou (Up, A, Down, Down, Down, A), and Jussell to Castle Right Arm (Down, Down, A, Down, A). Build a Barricade at Nonnber. Take out the moving team then send Malairuka to Castle Left Arm (Z, Down, A, Down, Down, A) The reason for keeping Malairuka at Nonnber is to improve Kuriboh’s attack with Spine Shoot, waiting for the battle doesn’t lose time. After capturing Castle Left Arm, build a Supply Unit to replenish Malairuka’s Raigeki stash. The 2nd moving team will change directions, so that’s why you need the Supply Unit. Malairuka gets the first 3 fights, then Joey against Ishizu. Ishizu can be beaten with Raimei + 3 Raigeki, although this fight is purely luck and RNG with Dunames Dark Witch on both sides of the battle. Mai’s fight you use Raimei, Raigeki, and Basic Insect’s Special Attack. The Final Flame is for Two-Headed King Rex, who has a crap ton of health, which is amplified by Dark Magician Girl’s Magic Craft Ability. Joey’s last battle is against Odion, who for the 1 millionth time uses a team of Embodient of Apophis bookending Mystical Beast Serket. Raimei + 3 Raigeki is that fight.
Average Split 8:15, Best Possible 7:55
#52: Joey Mission 9 - Impostor
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Joey (Z, A, Left, A) and Malairuka (Down, A, Left, A) towards Yami Marik’s location. You fight the Winged Dragon of Ra, which isn’t nearly as dangerous as Obelisk or Slifer plus it’s only 1 fight instead of 3. Same strategy to kill Ra, paralyze and stack damage. Ra has about 8700 health. Average Split 3:30, Best Possible 3:10
#53: Joey Mission 10 - Invincible Imperial Guard
Menu: Exit Menu Screen
Mission: Send Malairuka east of Ru-Ma-Pann. Then send him on a parallel line between the enemy teams’ path. The reason for using Malairuka and not Joey is Kuriboh has a much smaller circle than Dunames Dark Witch. Once Marthis’ team leaves Maryah-Denn, send Malairuka to the castle to battle Kaiba. Raimei + 4 Raigeki/Spine Shoots will defeat the Blue Eyes White Dragons. After the battle, a cutscene plays and you split after the final mission rewards screen.
Average Split 2:45, Best Possible 2:35
Final Notes
Congratulations, you’ve finished the speedrun. The route is more reset heavy in the Yugi Story, which is why I go that way first. The route is still developing as there are some places I’d like to find more reliable time saves so an average run is under 3 hours and 30 minutes. A really good time for this category is Sub 3:30, which is something I haven’t achieved yet. It took me about 3 months to develop and execute this route. In my WR run, I do have a slip up in Sever the Supply Line that cost me about a minute and 35 seconds. I’m hoping now that there’s a written guide available that more people do this speedrun. It can get a bit boring due to the repetitive and mundane nature of the speedrun itself and the length could turn away people since 3 ½ hours is probably not what most people consider a speedrun.
Category Ending Run: Sub 3:30 Really Good Run: Sub 3:35 Good Run: Sub 3:40 Average Run: Sub 3:45 Bad Run: 4 Hours+ (H:MM)
