Visions of Mana Walkthrough

Visions of Mana marks the series’ long-awaited return, blending classic RPG elements with challenging twists. Released on August 29, 2024, players will be able to take on the role of five different characters as they journey towards the Mana Tree.

While you enjoy switching between Val, Careena, Morley, Palamena, and Julei, you'll be able to explore vibrant lands, encounter fascinating NPCs, and face tough decisions that shape the fate of the world. If you need a little advice along the way, check out this Visions of Mana walkthrough or our additional guides linked at the bottom of the page.

Side Quest list

There is no main quest list in Visions of Mana because the game directs you toward your goal quite linearly. However, there are plenty of side quests dotted around each area for you to enjoy. During your journey, you should find each of these quests:

Puzzle solutions

This section is still in progress and will be updated soon.

Tricky quests in Visions of Mana and their solutions

This section is a guide to the side quests that require you to find items out in the wild, as well as other quests that are a little harder to complete.

Words on the Wind

After speaking to Keshi in Longren, you'll be tasked with finding a letter he let blow out of his hand. He lost it somewhere in the Aery Vale, but only has a vague idea of where.

There's a small, light blue circle on the map which gives you the area to search.

You'll find the letter between some pine trees.

Lost and Found quest

This quest is given to you in Rhata Harbor by Nikoko the Town Beauty, who has lost their hairpin. She's located opposite the docks.

Finding the lost hairpin is one of the more annoying side quests; only because Fallow Steppe is HUGE. Go to the tower in Fallow Steppe (the one on the large hilltop that has three different Elementite crystals around it), and you'll find the hairpin on the left side of the building.

Mushroom Mania

This quest is given to you by a man on the right side of the exit that takes you from Ledgas Bay to Pritta Ridge (you'll find him near the armor seller across from the fountain). Gastronomist Nostimo, the man in question, wants you to find a rare variety of mushroom that grows on the beaches of Pritta Ridge.

The red glowing spot that indicates the mushrooms' location can be found near the back left corner of the beach (where the shore starts on the left side of the map). The spot is in the first thicket of trees, and it's easy to run past. I did so twice because I misread the quest and thought I was looking for the mushroom enemies again like a past quest in the Vale.

There's a light blue circle on the map to indicate the area, just go towards that and find the edge where the trees begin.

This section is still in progress and will be updated soon.

All controls and keybinds (PC)

All controls and keybinds (console)

All characters

Val - How to recruit, best Vessel, & best build

How to recruit Val

There's no special trick to recruiting Val. Once you start up a new game on Visions of Mana, Val is the first playable character after the prologue. You start your story as him, and you'll be on your quest in a few minutes.

Best Vessel for Val

It took me a while to find a Vessel that I liked for Val. I thought that the Moon Vessel was going to work well for him, considering he's made to be a tank character, but the Aegis class is SO SLOW. Until you pick up the Fire or Darkness Elemental Vessels, I'd advise keeping Val classless or equipping him with the Wind Vessel.

Val's playstyle is supposed to be both strong and protective. You'll want to focus on giving him the ability to attack and defend.

The Darkness Vessel is certainly the best Elemental Vessel for Val. It combines the power of Gravity with Val's typical hard hits, making it a great choice for his playstyle. If you also equip Val with some attack-based seeds, you'll find that you've got the makings of a great build for our favorite Soul Guard. I'd suggest the Strength Sigil ability seed and either the Fireball or Explode ability seeds. If you're still playing early on in the game, the Fireball ability seed is one of the first ones you get.

Best Val build

This section is still in progress and will be updated soon.

Careena - How to recruit, best Vessel, & best build

How to recruit Careena

Careena isn't difficult to recruit, but she is stubborn and has a bit of a bad attitude - you'll find out why as the story evolves.

She has a duty to fulfill for her village, but isn't very keen on fulfilling it because the village is downright awful to her. She'll send you on a quick quest to find her friend, Shiriu, who you'll find studying a windmill outside of the village (back out the way you came, immediately turn left and walk up to the windmill).

However, even when you retrieve him, she still won't cooperate. It takes you (as Val) trying to fulfill her duty for her and failing, badly, for her to step in.

The faerie is summoned, and Careena fights for her right to become the Alm of Wind. You'll need to journey with her to visit the Wind Elemental to have her officially approved. It's at the start of this journey that she becomes a part of your team.

Best Vessel for Careena

The best Elemental Vessel for Careena is, undoubtedly, the Sylphid Boomerang. This is the Wind Vessel, and it works perfectly with her character.

When Careena has the Wind Vessel equipped, her class changes to the Dancer, and she gains a new skill set alongside an outfit change. Her stats rise significantly when she has this Vessel - in comparison to Val, whose stats both rise and fall when he has the Vessel equipped.

What you need to understand about Careena is that she is supposed to be a support class character. If you give her a Vessel that can help her unlease wider attacks, you'll see great improvements in your battles. The Wind Vessel gives Careena a pair of powerful fans to work with, and she can use the binding gusts of the Vessel against every enemy in the area.

However, Careena also works well with the Water Vessel, the Undine Flask. Both have good effects on her stats, without lowering anything too severely for the stat boosts.

Best Careena build

This section is still in progress and will be updated soon.

Morley - How to recruit, best Vessel, & best build

How to recruit Morley

Morley's backstory is incredibly sad, and it takes a little longer to recruit him than it does to get Careena on board.

You'll meet him at the gates of what used to be Etaern, but you'll soon find out how the Parish fell to disarray - and it's not as Morley remembers it.

After you find the Luna Globe in the Lefeya Drifts, you'll need to head back to Morley's camp with him. Shortly after, you'll find yourself in Etaern, watching the events of the past.

Morley reverts to his younger self and runs out of the Parish into the Lefeya Drifts.

Follow him back to where you found the Luna Globe and listen while he deals with his trauma.

When you go back to Etaern once more, Morley will be named the Alm of the Moon.

Best vessel for Morley

You would think that the Moon Vessel would be the best one for Morley, considering he's from Etaern, but it actually butchers his stats.

Instead, try equipping Morley with the Water Vessel. Morley is very much a rogue-type character; they need to be able to fight fast and then get out of the way just as quickly.

The Water Vessel gives Morley two weapons - a cane and a set of cards. Using these, Morley is able to attack directly and from a slight distance, all while harnessing the power of the Water Vessel to blast enemies off of their feet.

Best Morley build

This section is still in progress and will be updated soon.

Palamena - How to recruit, best Vessel, & best build

How to recruit Palamena

Palamena will quite literally run into you while you're in Ledgas Bay. In disguise, she is caught by Morley, who offers to stay with her until she feels up to walking around by herself - she hurts her ankle when she crashes into Val.

After a little bit of exploring, you'll return to another cutscene where Palamena's identity is confirmed and she reveals why she's running around in disguise.

When night falls and the ceremony has begun, Palamena will accept her fate as the Alm of Water in front of Val, his companions, and the rather dispicable Passar.

You'll meet Palamena's younger brother after the ceremony, and find out that Morley's adoptive father has been falsely imprisoned.

The story continues to unfold as you find out more about Passar's plot to become King instead of Palamena's brother. You must journey to the Luka Ruins in Pitta Ridge to find out more and stop Passar.

It isn't easy. Passar has control of a large crab-like beast. He sets this on you and you must defeat it before you can go back to the palace and finish righting Passar's wrongs.

When the battle is finished, water begins flowing freely in Illystana again. The Faerie and Undine both appear, and Palamena is named Alm of Water publicly.

She will now join you on your quest to the Mana Tree.

Best Vessel for Palamena

The Wind Vessel works incredibly well with Palamena. When I discovered this, I immediately changed Careena from the Wind Vessel to the Moon Vessel, and had Palamena take on the Sylphid Boomerang instead.

Palamena specializes in long-range magic attacks, and this is something that you should keep in mind when deciding which Elemental Vessel to equip to her. The Wind Vessel controls the air currents, allowing the user to suspend an enemy in the air and deal damage at the same time - an excellent long-range attack, if I do say so, myself.

Best Palamena build

This section is still in progress and will be updated soon.

Julei - How to recruit, best Vessel, & best build

How to recruit Julei

This section is still in progress and will be updated soon.

Best Vessel for Julei

This section is still in progress and will be updated soon.

Best Julei build

This section is still in progress and will be updated soon.

All classes

Val's classes

• Rune Knight (Wind)
• Aegis (Moon)
• Duelist (Water)
• Liege (Fire)
• Edelfrei (Wood)
• Weapon Master (Earth)
• Paladin (Light)
• Berserker (Darkness)

Careena's classes

• Dancer (Wind)
• Moon Charterer (Moon)
• Dragon Master (Water)
• Divine Fist (Fire)
• Conjurer (Wood)
• Warrior Monk (Earth)
• Starlancer (Light)
• Maverick (Darkness)

Morley's classes

• Nomad (Wind)
• Nightblade (Moon)
• Ascetic (Water)
• Rogue (Fire)
• Samurai (Wood)
• Ninja Master (Earth)
• Sovereign (Light)
• Soothsayer (Darkness)

Palamena's classes

• Rune Seer (Wind)
• Majesty (Moon)
• Grand Diviner (Water)
• Masquer (Fire)
• Beastleader (Wood)
• Magus (Earth)
• Archmage (Light)
• Reaper (Darkness)

Julei's classes

• Piper (Wind)
• Occultist (Moon)
• Scholar (Water)
• Gatekeeper (Fire)
• Sage (Wood)
• Hunter (Earth)
• High Cleric (Light)
• Necromancer (Darkness)

Best classes for each character

Best team compositions

Here are my top five team compositions for Visions of Mana, including a couple of compositions that you can use earlier in the game when you're lacking Vessels/Alms:

1. Knight Val (no Vessel), Moon Charterer Careena (Moon), Ascetic Morley (Water), Rune Seer Palamena (Wind), Sage Julei (Wood).
2. Knight Val (no Vessel), Dancer Careena (Wind), Ascetic Morley (Water), Magus Palamena (Earth), Sage Julei (Wood).
3. Rune Knight Val (Wind), Moon Charterer Careena (Moon), Rogue Morley (Fire), Grand Diviner Palamena (Water), High Cleric Julei (Light).
4. Liege Val (Fire), Conjurer Careena (Wood), Soothsayer Morley (Darkness), Magus Palamena (Earth), Scholar Julei (Water).
5. Berserker Val (Darkness), Conjurer Careena (Wood), Rogue Morley (Fire), Magus Palamena (Earth), High Cleric Julei (Light).

Best skills

Best early skills (Ability Seeds)

These are the best Ability Seeds that you will come across early on in the game. You'll find these or be able to buy them before you exit Illystana, so you should be able to benefit from them in the first three chapters of Visions of Mana.

• Fireball - Unleashes a Fireball on your enemy when used, may Burn enemy.
• Strength Sigil - Raises STR stat by 10%.
• Move Damage - Increases Move damage by 15%.
• Class Strike Damage - Increases Class Strike damage by 20%.
• Resist Poison - Decreases the chance of being poisoned by 30%.

Best magic skills (Ability Seeds)

These are the best Ability Seeds that you can equip to cast magic.

• Explode - Unleashes a Fireball that detonates when it hits an enemy. Deals Fire damage, may Burn an enemy.
• Healing Light - Uses the power of Light to recover an ally's HP.
• Thunderbolt - Creates a ball of lightning that deals Wind damage. May Paralyze an enemy.
• Ice Smash - Throws an ice shard, dealing Water damage. May Freeze an enemy.

Best stat buffs (Ability Seeds)

• Strength Sigil - Raises STR stat by 10%.
• Critical Rate Boost - Raises Critial Hit Rate by 20%.
• Move Damage - Increases Move damage by 15%.
• Class Strike Damage - Increases Class Strike damage by 20%.
• Resist Poison - Decreases the chance of being poisoned by 30%.
• Life Sigil - Raises max HP by 10%.
• Magic Sigil - Raises max MP by 10%.
• Purger of Evil - Shortens the duration of status effects by 50%.

Tips and tricks

1. Check your damage. When you attack an enemy, you can see if the enemy is weak (yellow damage), resistant (blue damage), or immune (gray damage) to your attack. The colors appear on the numbers telling you how much damage you're doing to each enemy.
2. Make sure you check enemy levels. Some higher-level enemies will be hidden amongst the other enemies in that area. That can mean having a couple of groups of level 31 enemies in the same area as the level 3 enemies. The text is small, so if you aren't making a dent in their health, you need to run.
3. Activate every glowing spot. These are fast travel points, and you'll be glad you did this when you need to come back and collect Elementite crystals.
4. Ensure you try out every Elemental Vessel on each playable character. Not only does this help you figure out which Vessel would be best for them to use, but it also unlocks new abilities and outfits for them. Some Achievements on Steam are linked to this, too, so it's better to spend a few minutes having everyone in your party enjoy their transformation sequence than not.
5. Explore every corner of the map. There are items, chests, and Elementites hidden everywhere in Visions of Mana. If you want to speedrun your way through, you could, but you won't get anywhere near the same amount of money or items as players that take their time.
6. Remember that you can run at the barrier during a fight to escape. This just shuts down the fight with no penalty to your health or EXP.
7. Check towns and villages for quests. Most side quests are in the towns and villages, rather than on the road. You're looking for a tiny circle with an exclamation point inside of it, which can be difficult to see. There's a list of all available side quests at the top of this walkthrough.
8. Fight using the character you're comfortable with. There's no point switching between characters if you aren't used to the other play styles. My advice is to stick to your main character during boss fights, and practice with the other characters when you're just exploring an area.
9. Collect Grizzly Syrups to exchange them for various healing items from the Dudbears you meet.
10. Add items to your ring menus. You can add consumables and spells to the two different ring menus available in Visions of Mana. This will help you avoid constantly going into your main menu or struggling during fights when you need to cast a spell instead of using your normal or special attacks.

All voice actors

Additional Guides

• Where to find all Elemental Vessels
• All Elementite locations in Visions of Mana

Want to read more about Visions of Mana at Pro Game Guides? Check out our Visions of Mana Review or learn about All Elemental Vessels in Visions of Mana.