Arena of Ages
The Arena of Ages is a monster-raising mini-game where you train creatures and battle CPU opponents. Your monster trains in real time; evolution depends on which era you send it to and what items you equip. You don't need it to beat the game - it's just a fun way to farm items.
Getting Started
Access. Reach the End of Time during the main story. A new gate appears near the lamppost. You can also access it from the title screen if you have a save file. The Arena becomes inaccessible between Crono's death and regaining the Epoch.
Choosing your monster. Talk to the stable master. He'll let you choose one of four Smidges - the others disappear. Orange = Fire, Blue = Water, Yellow = Lightning, Purple = Shadow. Each element is strong against its opposite but also weak to it.
You also receive the Monster Trainer's Starter Kit: Slops, Flameclaw, Duskeye, Seafang, Luxwing, Hawk Talon, Shield Cloak, and Feral Wrath.
Monster stats: HP (health), Speed (turn order/dodge), Strength (physical damage), Stamina (damage reduction), Accuracy (hit/crit chance), Trust (item use reliability), and Techs (special abilities). Trust only increases by winning battles - never during training.
Training
Select "Train Monster," choose an item, pick an era, and your monster leaves. Training takes about 10 minutes real time; it won't return until you leave and come back. Send your monster to train before tackling a dungeon - it'll be done when you finish.
| Era | Primary Stat | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Prehistory (65M B.C.) | Speed | Attack first, dodge often |
| Antiquity (12,000 B.C.) | Techs | Best for learning abilities |
| Middle Ages (600 A.D.) | Strength | Physical damage builds |
| Present (1000 A.D.) | Max HP | Tank builds |
| Future (2300 A.D.) | Accuracy, Stamina | Decreases Magic and Trust |
Your monster may return with items: Ambrosia, Bronze Bowgun, Strength Capsule, and others.
Nu Shop. A Nu sells monster items: Slops (100G), Flameclaw/Seafang/Duskeye/Luxwing (200G each), Hawk Talon/Shield Cloak (400G each), Feral Wrath (500G). Feral Wrath gives 4x critical damage and boosts evolution chance.
Evolution
Monsters progress through four classes. The era you train in determines which monster family you evolve into; your element creates variations within that family.
- Class 1 (Smidge): Starting form
- Class 2: First evolution
- Class 3: Second evolution
- Class 4 (Final): Loses element, gains status effects
To evolve: Equip Feral Wrath before training. Higher Trust increases evolution chances - build to 30+ before attempting. Feral Wrath decreases Trust, so win battles to rebuild it.
| Era | Class 2 → Class 3 → Class 4 |
|---|---|
| Prehistory | Crested Sprinter → Racer → Parasaur; Bao Bao → Gokuu → Cave Ape |
| Antiquity | Pink Imp → Stone Imp → Slate Imp; Chaos Mage → Zealot Mage → Archmage |
| Middle Ages | Fiendillo → Roundillo → Roundillo Bomber; Ogan → Ogan Youth → Deep Ogan |
| Present | Hercules Beetle → Rhino Weevil → Aecyto Weevil; Naga → Gorgon → Medusa |
| Future | Version 2.0 → Version 4.0 → Prototype; Flesh Reaper → Macabre → Deathscythe |
Battling
Battles run automatically. You can give your monster an item during combat, but once given, it's gone. Whether the monster uses it depends on its Trust stat. If you lose, you get a Potion as consolation.
Tiers. Six tiers exist, but only three are available at a time. As your monster evolves, higher tiers unlock and lower ones disappear.
| Tier | Fee | Unlocks | Boss Enemies |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 | 100 G | Start | Ouroboros |
| Tier 2 | 500 G | Start | R-70Y, Deathguard |
| Tier 3 | 1,000 G | Start | Dokra, Uberhulk |
| Tier 4 | 3,000 G | Class 2 (replaces T1) | - |
| Tier 5 | 5,000 G | Class 3 (replaces T2) | - |
| Tier 6 | 10,000 G | Class 4 (replaces T3) | - |
Tier 1-3 prizes. Defeating bosses gives a chance at rare items (Workman's Wallet, Capsules, Mirrors) or junk like Mop. Common prizes include potions, ethers, early-game equipment, Berserker Ring, Speed Belt, Third Eye, and stat capsules.
Tier 5 notable prizes: Aeonian Helm, Demon Slayer, Gold Stud, Rainbow Helm.
Arena-exclusive items (can't be found anywhere else): Hadean Mirror, Pontic Mirror, Aresian Mirror, Promethean Mirror, Uranian Mirror, Nu Arcana. These drop from boss battles - save before fighting, reload if you don't get what you want.
Tips
- Speed build: Train in Prehistory. Attack first, dodge often.
- Power build: Train in Middle Ages. High damage, slower.
- Tank build: Train in Present for HP. Add Future for Stamina.
- Magic build: Train in Antiquity for Techs.
- Build Trust to 30+ before using Feral Wrath for evolution
- Match your element against weak opponents when possible
- Save before boss battles to retry for rare drops
- All monsters can eventually max stats; type mainly affects Class 4 status effects
- Arena prizes transfer to your main inventory - useful for endgame