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                               GETTING STARTED

Hokay, so we've chosen our difficulty, and we're IMMEDIATELY treated to a 
cutscene, wherein an aged lady (apparently speaking to a child at a campfire)
creates the setting for a tale she is to tell of Conan - the barbarian 
warrior of legend, who (in this particular adventure) finds his way to the
lost island of Balmoria, in the Western Sea.

Conan ascends to the highest peak on the island, there to find a long-
forgotten tomb, which he seems bent on exploring.

........................................................... and we're off !!

As soon as you gain control of your character, a spectral warrior (which I
am going to refer to from here on in as a Wraith) manifests itself before
you, telling you that you don't belong here.

WhatEVER dude ... I kinda like it here !!  In fact I think we'll move in.

Wraiths are spiritual warriors which are thankfully colour-coded in this
title.  The colour of a Wraith determines what type of weaponry it has at
its disposal, as follows :-

     - PURPLE Wraiths are armed with a single weapon and shield;
     - BLUE Wraiths wield two, single-handed weapons; and
     - BROWN Wraiths are equipped with a two-handed weapon.

Move Conan over to the purple Wraith, and attack it with any combination of
moves you wish.  Once it has been destroyed, another purple Wraith will come
to life and attack you, and the game will pause to give you the first of a 
large number of hints which you cannot turn off, but which are there to help
you (at least for your FIRST run through the game) - this time it's telling
you that X is for your light attacks, and that light attacks are fast but
do less damage than heavy attacks.

There are a number of wraiths for you to despatch in this first section, 
which is very obviously a training level designed to help get you into the 
swing (no pun intended) of playing the legendary warrior himself.

Slay all the Wraiths in the area, and (if you wish to change the weapon you
have to hand, or adopt a different fighting style), walk up to whatever 
weapon you want to pick up, and press the RB (right shoulder button - the one
immediately in front of RT - the right trigger) button, and you Conan will
pick up the weapon.  Note that he might drop whatever weapon he currently has
equipped to do so, depending on what you're after and what's already in your
hands.

Once you are ready, head to the back of the room, stand by the door in the 
little white ring which is flashing, and the game will give you another hint.
This time it tells you to press RB to open doors, and that some doors need 
you to enter a series of commands to open them, which are displayed on-screen.

Press RB to open the door, and then tap the B button repeatedly to force it
open.

In the next room, observe the number of suits of armour lying on the floor.
These are all going to be possessed by Wraiths in the very near future, so
bear that in mind when you wade into the room.

Move forward and onto the red circle, and despatch all the Wraiths that are
created.

Once you are done, head to left of the room and either press RB near one of 
the two urns (the ones with the green energy pouring out of the top), or 
destroy some of the duller-looking urns, to release little green runes which
will hover about for a second or two, and then enter Conan's body.

The game will confirm that green runes restore Conan's health.

Exit this room via the right (RB by the door, and then tap B repeatedly to
open it).

In the next chamber, destroy the vases (if you need to replenish any health),
and head to the right and back into the chamber - HOWEVER, take care when
you walk past the statues, as energy from the brown Wraiths causes them to
crumble and fall down about your ears.

It is at this point that the game will explain that pressing RB near a fallen
enemy's weapon will cause you to pick it up, and that you can carry different
weapon combinations on this basis ... which YOU already knew 'coz I already
told you ;)

Defeat the Wraiths in the area and, as you reach the steps at the back of
the chamber, one of the giant statues set into the wall by the doorway comes
to life and steps down to attack you !!

"Crom ... the statues live !!" exclaims Conan (which is a bit more tame than
what I said the first time I saw it to be honest, but hey !).

The best technique for defeating these enemies is to focus on hit-and-run,
so I would suggest a strong attack, and then rolling away or blocking.  They
do have an unblockable attack which is when they swing at you and the blur
of their blades is RED, but to be honest this is just the training level,
so even that won't do you too much damage.

Kill the Statues and the Wraiths, and then head through the door (RB, tap B).

This next chamber is the final room in this training level.  You will see a
green urn and a two-handed weapon just inside the door on the level you enter
and thereafter a drop down to the room below.

Heal up, take the weapon IF you like, and then drop into the room and head
to the centre.

Take out the two giant statues (you don't need to worry about keeping any 
health for the next level as this is your last fight here), and a cutscene 
will ensue.

                              --- CUTSCENE ---

Conan destroys the statue in the centre of the room, and the narrator 
explains that, whilst Conan had come to the island seeking a jewel, what he
found (and unleashed) was a monster.

Something happens to Conan, and the next thing you know, you awaken adrift
on the open seas, apparently bereft of your armour.  There is an island close
by, so Conan swims toward it.

                            --- END CUTSCENE ---

Congratulations - you have survived the training level !

At the end of each level you are presented with a statistics screen which
shows you a number of pieces of information including :-

   - Total Score for the level and the game
   - Total Time Played for the level and the game
   - Kills for the level and the game

... and also how many objects you destroyed, bodyparts you severed, your
favourite combo and so on and so forth - it's a handy way of keeping tabs
on your performance and to reflect on all the enemies you've despatched to
meet Crom ;)

*shakes his head and chuckles* this game ROCKS !! =)