Tower of Trials

Removed Content / Feature

This article contains information no longer in-game, and are thus historical records of MapleStory.

The Tower of Trials (JP:試験の塔 romaji: Shiken no tō) was an area dedicated to an alternate version of the Honor / Inner Ability system, and tied to the Cross Brigade, the JapanMS-original version of the Silent Crusade / Cross Hunter. Similar to the original Fight for Azwan, players would be able to fight various bosses in a Boss Rush-style dungeon, receiving Honor EXP for each floor cleared per day. It also served as a hub for players to fight Hilla due to Azwan not being available.

It was available in JapanMS and TaiwanMS, but it has been removed from the game. TaiwanMS removed the boss along with all Cross Brigade-related content (Cross Brigade Headquarters, the Tower of Trials, the Demon-Hunting Cross Brigade Epic, and the Cross Boss Battle) in its v.234 Patch, replacing it with the KoreaMS version of the Silent Crusade. JapanMS initially kept the first 4 floors / bosses for the Silent Crusade questline, after which they could no longer be accessed; these maps were later removed along with all Cross Brigade-related content in the NEXT Update's v.435 Patch in favor of the KoreaMS version.

Story

Note: Depending on the player's gender, they will either encounter Sheryl (if the player is male) or Crow (if the player is female). For the purposes of convenience, this article will assume that the player encounters Sheryl, and it will include specific reference notes in the event that there are any significant deviations in the storyline if the player encounters Crow instead.

Meeting the Captains

The Crusader was contacted by Vice Captain Hartmann of the Fifth Division, who explained that repairs on the Tower of Trials had finished, and that the tower was now open. Hartmann teleported the Crusader to the Tower of Trials, where he explained that as they were in the Fifth Division, he was their Vice Captain. He also noted that he was constantly under stress because of Captain Maia, though he put his personal problems aside and explained that they could step through the obelisk and enter the underground training center. He told the Crusader that it was somewhat strange for a tower to be underground and explained that it had once been a passage to the underground city of Azwan, and that the Cross Brigade drove out the monsters in the city while training. He then told the Crusader that they didn't have time for idle chatter, adding that he would soon grow bald because of Captain Maia's antics. The Crusader then paid the admission fee of Crusader Coins and entered the tower, where they encountered Captain Sofia of the Second Division. She explained that she had come to punish the woman who had betrayed the Cross Brigade and told the Crusader to report her on sight. The Crusader asked who she was talking about, to which Sofia told them that whether or not they played dumb, she would still find and punish the traitor with her own hands, noting with disgust how the traitor had left the Cross Brigade after falling in love with a man. Sofia added that the rules of the Second Division were to be given top priority over all others before noting the arrival of a man, Almei. Almei asked Sofia what she wanted in such a rugged tower and noted that her beauty was dazzling. However, Sofia merely dismissed his words and teleported away. Almei then introduced himself to the Crusader as the shopkeeper of the store that sold all the information and items needed to climb the Tower of Trials in exchange for Crusader Coins.

The Crusader asked him who Sofia was, to which Almei expressed his surprise that a member of the Cross Brigade wouldn't know. He noted that it was also surprising that Wence hadn't told them and added that the Cross Brigade had gotten much bigger than its name suggested. He explained that the Cross Brigade now consisted of a combat group under Captain Reheater, a development group that created equipment for the Crusaders, agents who issued combat orders to the members of the combat group, and a group of sponsors who funded the organization, such as Gerector. Almei told the Crusader that the combat group was comprised of seven divisions, and that the woman they had just seen was Captain Sofia of the Second Division, also known as the Dancing Whip. He added that the Crusader was part of the Fifth Division under Captain Maia, and that the man outside who constantly lamented his life was Vice Captain Hartmann. As Hartmann was constantly under stress, Almei asked the Crusader to make sure to be nice to him. After learning as much as they could, the Crusader entered the tower and cleared the first stage by defeating Mystic Mushmom. They then ascended to the next level, where they found Sofia confronting Sheryl. Sofia told Sheryl that the punishment for betraying the Cross Brigade was her life, to which Sheryl replied that she hadn't betrayed the Cross Brigade, but rather, she was looking for traitors in the organization. However, Sofia told her that she didn't care about the reason, as a member of the dignified Second Division falling in love with a man from the Fifth Division was bad enough to the point that she should pay for it with her life.

Though Sheryl protested, Sofia told her to save her excuses for the next world and launched an attack. To her surprise, Almei appeared between them and took the blow in Sheryl's place. As Sofia angrily demanded to know what Almei was doing, Sheryl apologized and explained that it wasn't the right time yet, as she would discover the traitor's identity before asking for her forgiveness. Sheryl then teleported away, much to Sofia's anger. Almei then noted that her whip stung incredibly and apologized for getting in her way. Sofia angrily told him that there wouldn't be a second chance before teleporting away. The Crusader then continued on and soon encountered Sofia and another man. Sofia greeted the man as Captain Schnizer and asked what he was doing at the tower. Schnizer greeted her back and noted that it had been a long time since they had seen each other. Sofia then noted that she didn't need to ask why he had come, as it was likely to find Crow, the traitor of the First Division. She added that it was a pity that three captains had been forced to come because of their irrational subordinates. Schnizer replied that he couldn't help that Crow was his brother, though he noted that unlike his situation, Sheryl was merely Sofia's subordinate. Sofia explained that it was the duty of a captain to punish their subordinate when they made mistakes, to which Schnizer noted that her personality was as stubborn as ever. Sofia retorted that he was the same as well, as he always had poor judgement when it came to his brother. Schnizer then told Sofia not to force the rules of her division onto him, adding that hers was the only one that was so unnecessarily harsh. Just then, he realized that Sofia had mentioned that three captains were being forced to track down their subordinates and asked who else had arrived, to which Sofia asked who else it could be besides the playboy captain of the Fifth Division. Schnizer shook his head and replied that he didn't want to get involved, adding that she and Maia should settle the matter together before teleporting away, much to Sofia's annoyance. After Sofia teleported away herself, Almei arrived and noted in fear that two captains had gathered in one place, and that one of them was Captain Schnizer, known as the Dark Revolver. The Crusader was surprised that Almei knew that they were hiding and observing the captains' conversation, to which Almei laughed and told them that they should try harder in the future.

Ascending the Tower

The Crusader then noticed a woman nearby and walked up to her. The woman jumped, as she hadn't expected them to sneak up behind her, and introduced herself as Raina, a member of the Second Division. Raina explained that though she had been recommended to participate in the Tower of Trials, she admitted that she was quite afraid, and that the trials were difficult for her. However, as she was afraid of losing face with her fellow Crusaders, she had committed herself to making it through. She then asked the Crusader if they could help her reach the top of the tower, though she apologized for making such a request to someone whom she had just met. The Crusader agreed to help her and led her through the next stage, which was to defeat Mystic Black Bean. After the Crusader cleared the stage, they climbed to the next floor, where Almei eagerly congratulated them on their victory, though he noted that it was strange that Black Bean seemed unusually weak for someone who had once been a warlord of the Black Mage. He added that even when the Crusaders had first defeated Hilla, it had been too easy, even with Phantom's help. He wondered whether it was because the monsters had been weakened as a result of being stuck in the tower for so long. The Crusader then continued ahead and soon encountered Schnizer calling out for Crow to turn himself in. However, Crow refused, claiming that there was a traitor in the Cross Brigade, and that they had something to do with the Gerector incident.

Schnizer asked Crow why he was concerning himself with it, as he should be leaving it to the captains to handle. Crow replied that Schnizer didn't have the perspective to handle it from within the Cross Brigade, as it was something that could only be solved from the outside. As Schnizer remained silent, Crow quietly apologized to his brother. Schnizer then asked if he had any colleagues helping him, as he believed that Crow would need someone who would wholeheartedly fight alongside him in the tough road ahead. After a pause, Crow told him that he had a foolish person who nevertheless fully believed in him. However, he explained that he didn't want them to fight alongside him before teleporting away. Schnizer then wondered to himself what kind of person could make Crow say such a thing before disappearing himself. The Crusader returned to Almei, who told them that he had important news. He asked if they remembered how he had mentioned that Hilla had been unusually weak and explained that his hunch had been right, as he had learned that the Hilla whom they had fought had been a fake before clarifying that it would be better to say that she was somehow incomplete. He told the Crusader that there seemed to be some kind of movement to revive Hilla into perfect condition and wondered what kind of group they could be. Raina, who had been overhearing the conversation, grew terrified by the thought and asked the Crusader if they would protect her. The Crusader then entered the next trial and managed to defeat Mystic Lyka.

Facing Hilla

Upon climbing to the next floor with Raina, the Crusader encountered Sheryl, who noted Raina standing besides them. The Crusader silently noted to themselves that it seemed like even Sheryl got jealous sometimes, but Sheryl then explained that Proserpin had infiltrated the tower by transforming into someone else. She told the Crusader that even after searching the entire tower, she hadn't encountered anyone who seemed like Proserpin transformed, aside from Raina. As she approached Raina, the Crusader asked Sheryl what she was doing, to which she explained that she was checking for traces of Proserpin's black wings concealed on Raina's back. Upon checking, however, Sheryl was surprised to find no trace of succubus wings on Raina's back as the Crusader demanded to know what Sheryl was doing to such a weak girl as Raina. Sheryl immediately teleported away, after which the Crusader continued with the trials and fought Mystic Papulatus. Upon leading Raina to the next floor, they encountered a horde of skeleton monsters attacking Raina and Sofia. The Crusader rushed to help, but Sofia held them back, declaring that she alone was enough to defeat them. Suddenly, Raina's eyes glowed purple as she unleashed a spell of black lightning upon Sofia, who immediately collapsed in pain. The confused Crusader then watched as Raina walked over to side with the monsters. She declared that she was a vessel in which Lady Hilla's power was sealed, and that Hilla's resurrection was imminent. Sofia then cursed the Crusader for their stupidity in allowing Raina to trick them into helping her climb the tower. Raina then teleported away, leaving the Crusader to face the skeletons. Before they could fight, however, Almei appeared and destroyed them all before noting that Sofia had done well, adding that it was difficult to compete with a young woman like herself. Sofia then angrily demanded to know whether he was playing tricks on her before calling him out as Captain Maia. Almei then shed his merchant disguise, revealing a man in a military uniform wielding a large sword.

Maia then apologized to the Crusader for deceiving them before formally introducing himself as Captain Maia of the Fifth Division. Sofia then added that he was also known as Pervy Maia, who loved women all over the world. Maia laughed off her comment before explained that he had disguised himself in order to determine whether the stories about the Crusader were true. However, he noted that it wasn't the time to discuss such matters before telling the Crusader to chase after Raina on the next floor while he took Sofia to a safe place and treat her wounds. The Crusader proceeded ahead and soon encountered Crow and an injured Schnizer facing Raina. The Crusader asked what was happening, to which Crow explained that Schnizer had protected him from Raina's attack. The Crusader then turned to face Raina and demanded to know what she was doing. Raina replied that all those who stood against Hilla's resurrection needed to be destroyed. The Crusader then attempted to help Raina overcome her possession by telling her not to give up, reminding her that they had promised to protect her. Raina suddenly turned and walked away before teleporting away. The Crusader then heard Raina's spirit asking them if they had meant it when they had promised to protect her. Crow then noted that the situation was dangerous and asked if it was true that Hilla was going to be resurrected soon. He explained that there was still time, and that they needed to defeat her before her resurrection. The Crusader told him that they would go in alone while he protected Captain Schnizer. Though Crow was against letting them go alone, the Crusader told him not to worry, as Reina would help them if she was really conscious. The Crusader then entered and defeated Hilla after a fierce battle. They then returned to find Maia, Crow, Sheryl, Sofia, and Schnizer. Maia congratulated them on their victory, adding that he wouldn't expect anything less from a member of the Fifth Division. Schnizer noted that it seemed like someone with some talent had appeared, and that they were wasted on Maia. Maia then told them that things had gotten back to normal, and that Sofia had even decided to forgive Sheryl, while Schnizer had always been crazy about his brother, much to Schnizer's annoyance. He then noted that Crow had seemed to be especially worried about them, to which Crow told him to shut up before telling the Crusader that he hated them.

Gallery

Maps

• 
  試験の塔入口
  (Tower of Trials Entrance)
• 
  1階
  (1st Floor)
• 
  ミスティックママシュの塔
  (Mystic Mushmom's Tower)
• 
  2階
  (2nd Floor)
• 
  ミスティックブラックビーンの部屋
  (Mystic Black Bean's Tower)
• 
  3階
  (3rd Floor)
• 
  ミスティックライカの門
  (Mystic Papulatus's Tower)
• 
  4階
  (4th Floor)
• 
  ミスティックビシャスプラントの部屋
  (Mystic Lyka's Tower)
• 
  5階
  (5th Floor)
• 
  ミスティックブラックビーンの部屋
  (Mystic Lilynouch's Tower)
• 
  6階
  (6th Floor)
• 
  ミスティックバルログの封印
  (Mystic Balrog's Tower)
• 
  7階
  (7th Floor)
• 
  ミスティックジャクムの祭壇
  (Mystic Zakum's Tower)
• 
  8階
  (8th Floor)
• 
  ミスティックヒルラの塔
  (Mystic Hilla's Tower)
• 
  9階
  (9th Floor)
• 
  ミスティックモリランマルの秘密祭壇
  (Mystic Mori Ranmaru's Tower)
• 
  10階
  (10th Floor)
• 
  ミスティックヴァンレオンの謁見室
  (Mystic Von Leon's Throne)
• 
  11階
  (11th Floor)
• 
  ミスティックホーンテイルの神殿
  (Mystic Horntail's Cave)
• 
  12階
  (12th Floor)
• 
  ミスティックノウ姫の祭壇
  (Mystic Princess No's Altar)
• 
  13階
  (13th Floor)
• 
  ミスティックノウ姫の祭壇
  (Mystic Arkarium's Altar)

Monsters

• 
  ミスティックママシュ
  (Mystic Mushmom)
• 
  ミスティックブラックビーン
  (Mystic Black Bean)
• 
  ミスティック爆弾
  (Mystic Water Bomb)
• 
  ミスティックライカ
  (Mystic Lyka)
• 
  ミスティックビシャスプラント
  (Mystic Papulatus)
• 
  ミスティックリーリノフ
  (Mystic Lilynouch)
• 
  ミスティックバルログ
  (Mystic Balrog)
• 
  ミスティックバルログ
  (Mystic Balrog)
• 
  ミスティックバルログ
  (Mystic Balrog)
• 
  ミスティックバルログ
  (Mystic Crimson Balrog)
• 
  ミスティックバルログ
  (Mystic Geist Balrog)
• 
  ミスティックジャクム
  (Mystic Zakum)
• 
  ミスティックジャクム
  (Mystic Zakum)
• 
  ミスティックジャクム
  (Mystic Zakum)
• 
  ミスティックジャクム
  (Mystic Zakum)
• 
  ミスティッククスコ
  (Mystic Cuzco)
• 
  ミスティックパーツ
  (Mystic Pachu)
• 
  ミスティックオーパーツ
  (Mystic Opachu)
• 
  ミスティックヒルラ
  (Mystic Hilla)
• 
  ミスティックブラッドトゥース
  (Mystic Bloodfang)
• 
  ミスティックブラッドトゥース
  (Mystic Bloodfang)
• 
  ミスティックデッドリーアルター
  (Deadly Altar)
• 
  ミスティックスケルトンナイト
  (Pikeman Skeleknight)
• 
  ミスティックモリランマル
  (Mystic Mori Ranmaru)
• 
  ミスティックヴァンレオン
  (Mystic Von Leon)
• 
  ミスティック看守ボア
  (Mystic Prison Guard Boar)
• 
  ミスティック看守ライノ
  (Mystic Prison Guard Rhino)
• 
  ミスティックミニキャッスルゴーレム
  (Mystic Mini Castle Golem)
• 
  ミスティックホーンテイル
  (Mystic Horntail)
• 
  ミスティックノウ姫
  (Mystic Princess No)
• 
  ミスティック水鏡
  (Mystic Mikagami)
• 
  ミスティック翁羅将軍
  (Mystic Oura Shogun)
• 
  ミスティック蓮華
  (Mystic Renka)
• 
  彌弄矩
  (Mystic Miroku)
• 
  ミスティックアカイラム
  (Mystic Arkarium)
• 
  ミスティック異形の師弟
  (Mystic Netherworld Monk)

NPCs

• 
  ハートマン
  (Hartmann)
• 
  アルメイ
  (Almei)
• 
  シェリル
  (Sheryl)
• 
  クロウ
  (Crow)
• 
  ソフィア
  (Sofia)
• 
  シュナイザー
  (Schnizer)
• 
  ライナ
  (Raina)
• 
  ライナ
  (Raina)
• 
  マイア
  (Maia)
• 
  ヒルラ
  (Hilla)
• 
  スカス
  (Scarrs)
• 
  ブラックビーン
  (Black Bean)
• 
  チンルン
  (Longorias)
• 
  イアソン
  (Iason)
• 
  トリスタン
  (Tristan)
• 
  アーモン
  (Amon)
• 
  モリランマル
  (Mori Ranmaru)
• 
  ヴァンレオン
  (Von Leon)
• 
  モイラ
  (Moira)
• 
  ノウ姫
  (Princess No)
• 
  ルィンヌ
  (Rhinne)
• 
  試験の塔魔法石
  (Tower of Trials Magic Rock)