Hollow Bastion (First Visit)

1. Rising Falls and Castle Approach

After Cid installs the Navi-Gummi in Traverse Town to open the final warp gate, land at Rising Falls where Riku seizes your Keyblade and Donald and Goofy depart, leaving you with a Wooden Sword alongside your new ally Beast. Cast Blizzara or Blizzaga on the floating water bubble near the save point to reach a high ledge holding puppies 91, 92, and 93, check underwater for Gummi Pieces and a White Trinity mark, and open the floating platform chest at the Castle Gates for puppies 94, 95, and 96. Ascend the lift to the outer gates and then ride the far right elevator down into the Base Level.

Tip: Beast easily dispatches Heartless while you are limited to the Wooden Sword.

2. Waterway Drainage

Traverse the flooded passages with Beast, directing him to shatter cracked iron grates while you maneuver through water bubbles to find additional Flare-G, Meteor-G, and Gummi Pieces. Activate all four colored gem switches scattered through the corridors to divert the water flow and energize the central elevator. Ride this lift mechanism up to finally remove the lock on the fortress front entrance.

Tip: Keep Beast in your active party to break through obstacles and handle enemy encounters.

3. Entrance Hall Confrontation

Walk through the main castle doors into the Entrance Hall Lower Floor to confront Riku and regain both your companions and the Keyblade. Stand your ground against Riku by utilizing Dodge Roll to evade his fast slashes and jumping thrusts, punishing him from behind during his post-attack recovery frames while ignoring offensive magic. Shatter surrounding pots for emergency health orbs, and defeat him to claim the White Trinity ability.

Tip: Restock Donald and Goofy with restorative items before initiating the battle.

4. Library Archive Puzzle

Head into the Library to resolve the missing tome puzzle by searching the floor and tables for out-of-place volumes, including Khama, Theon, Mava, Salvia, Nahara, Ghias, and Hafet. Slot each recovered book into its matching shelf to unlock the upper exit along with a secondary shortcut.

Tip: Examine book titles carefully to match each one to the proper bookshelf gap.

5. Unlocking the Emblem Gate

Explore the Entrance Hall Upper Floor to gather four Heartless Emblem Pieces and fit them into the large relief. Extinguish the central torch cradle by casting Fire on every wall candle for the first piece, cast Thunder on the lightning plate and shove the upper stone statue into position for the second, execute a Red Trinity mark in front of the second-floor statue for the third, and smash the pair of pots flanking the library doorway statue to wash the final piece into the lower fountain.

Tip: Prepare both Fire and Thunder magic on your shortcuts to solve the chamber mechanisms quickly.

6. Lift Stop and High Tower Ascent

Pass through the unsealed gate into the Lift Stop, Great Crest, and High Tower to navigate exterior elevators and shifting platforms. Trigger red and blue crystals alongside gravity switches to alter routes, grabbing puppies 97, 98, and 99 from the floating High Tower chest before reaching the upper sanctum.

Tip: Manipulate every exterior crystal trigger you encounter to reveal hidden paths and transport chests.

7. Castle Chapel Sorcery

Confront Maleficent in the Castle Chapel by casting Gravira or landing melee combos to drop her hovering platform to the floor, rolling away along the room perimeter whenever she begins her meteor chant, defeating her to gain Ansem's Report 5 and Donald's Cheer ability. Follow her into the dark rift to battle Dragon Maleficent, immediately summoning Tinker Bell and maintaining Aero to protect against shockwaves and fiery breath. Climb onto the dragon's neck or back to strike her horns safely, defeating her to claim the Fireglow summon gem.

Tip: Leap onto Dragon Maleficent's upper body to stay clear of lingering green fire patches on the floor.

8. Grand Hall Climax

Enter the Grand Hall where the captured Princesses of Heart—Alice, Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, Jasmine, and Belle—are gathered alongside Kairi, and use High Jump or Glide to snag an AP Up from a high pillar ledge. Duel Riku-Ansem alone, keeping Aerora up, parrying his lunges, and either chaining Dodge Rolls or using Glide along the perimeter walls to survive his screen-clearing desperation attack. After victory grants you Ragnarok, Superglide, and Ansem's Report 11, Sora uses the Keyblade of Heart to liberate Kairi's heart, sacrificing his own in the process.

Tip: Counter-parry his normal strikes with basic Keyblade swings to reliably stagger him.

The short version

What matters

• Defeating the bosses yields vital rewards: Ansem's Reports 5 and 11, the White Trinity, the Fireglow summon gem for Mushu, Donald's Cheer, and both Ragnarok and Superglide.
• Collecting the library books and emblem pieces is required to unseal the fortress paths and proceed toward the Grand Hall.

Common mistakes

• Engaging Dragon Maleficent on the ground where her breath leaves lingering flames; jump onto her back or neck to safely strike her head.
• Attempting to tank Riku-Ansem's screen-spanning desperation attack instead of utilizing Dodge Roll invincibility frames or gliding high around the arena walls.
• Forgetting to loot the Wonderland Rabbit Hole chest prior to defeating Riku-Ansem if you want its pre-Bastion contents before it permanently converts.

What you can skip

• You do not need to stress over missing chests or Trinity marks in the castle, as all skipped items can be retrieved on your second visit with full traversal abilities.