The Temple of Trials is a temple in Ni No Kuni that contains several Wizardly tests for you to pass. The temple is located in the Northeast of The Shimmering Sands, close to Al Mamoon. It is accessed through a bridge requiring you to have the bridge spell.
When you enter the temple, you’ll face three tests: Test of Wits, Test of Friendship, and Test of Strength. In this guide, we’ll go over how you can solve each one of the tests in Ni No Kuni.
Temple of Trials: Test of Wits
Test of Wits is a series of puzzles you must solve using magic. The first is the four statues puzzle, followed by the Frog Face puzzle. The final puzzle in the Test of Wits is the Star, Sun, and Moon Puzzle.
Four Statues Puzzle (Room 1)
Talk to the monitor bird and get the hint about the puzzle.
Use the Puppet String spell to manipulate the statues.
- Place the warrior, the first one from the left, onto the third block from the left.
- Pick up the dragon, the last from the left, and place it on the second block from the left.
- Pick up and place the bird statue on the last block from the left.
- Pick and place the beast statue on the first block.
This will complete this puzzle, and you can move to the next room.
Frog Face Puzzle (Room 2)
Once you have entered the room, talk to the mechanical bird again to get a clue about the puzzle. It is a puzzle consisting of 7×7 blocks.
Use the Puppet String spell to manipulate the blocks.
- Pick the block placed on the 5×4 block and place it on the 7×6 block.
- Pick the block placed on the 2×7 block and place it on the 6×2 block.
- Pick the block placed on the 1×2 block and place it on the 5×4 block.
- Pick the block placed on the 7×3 block and place it on the 2×5 block.
- Pick the block placed on the 4×6 block and place it on the 3×3 block.
This will complete the second puzzle of the Test of Wits, and you can move to the next room.
Star, Sun, and Moon Puzzle (Room 3)
The third and final puzzle in the Test of Wits series. The bird should be on a star and connected to a dragon and an empty moon tile in this puzzle. The beast is linked to the warrior mite, an empty moon, and empty star tiles.
Use the Puppet String spell to manipulate the statues.
- Pick up the dragon and place it on the sun in the top right corner of the puzzle.
- Pick up the warrior and put it on the sun in the top left corner of the puzzle.
- Pick the bird statue and put it on the star in the 3×3 block.
- Pick the beast statue and place it on the moon next to the warrior.
This will complete the third and final puzzle of the Test of Wits.
Temple of Trials: Test of Friendship
The Test of Friendship is the second test of the Temple of Trials. Moving two joysticks to switches before the floors fall is the goal of Test of Friendship. The left joystick will move Oliver, while the right joystick will move Esther.
The first section is quite simple. Oliver and Esther must step on switches in the second section to let their companion pass before the collapse catches them.
The characters will cross over in the third segment, so your left and right joysticks will control characters on the other side of the screen. Switch the switches to complete the trial and receive the Proof of Friendship.
Temple of Trials: Test of Strength
The Temple of Trials’ third and final test is the Test of Strength. In this test, you must fight Bashura, Ni No Kuni’s mini-boss.
Bashura has 4 attacks in total that it can use on you:
- Basic Attack
- Mind Over Matter
- Devastation
- Soul Steal
Esther’s Ice Age is the most powerful strike here. Get those out of the way first, and then return to Oliver. Bashura will be drawn to someone you are not in charge of. Therefore, if Oliver is in charge, Bashura will be drawn to Esther.
Step back and shoot Frostbite or Pulse at it, or summon your most powerful familiar to help you. Because its back is covered, you’ll want to hit its back from the side or front because its back is covered.
Switching between a melee familiar and Oliver regularly is a good strategy. After putting your melee familiar on Bashura and assaulting its side, press L1 to swap back to Oliver whenever it starts charging a skill. Send your familiar back into the combat as soon as the attack is done.
Use Defend every time Bashura executes Soul Steal or Devastation. If you don’t, this move will be exceedingly powerful, and you will pay the price.
When Bashura strikes, keep utilizing your best basic attack and fleeing. You might also try to fend off his strikes.
Temple of Trials Rewards
Defeating Bashura and completing the Temple of Trials will earn you:
- 435 Exp
- 360 G
- Spirit of the Temple
- Proof of Strength
- Broom Broom spell
- Heart Winning Harp
You’ll also be granted access to one more familiar. There will be three to choose from; Shonky Honker, Boggly Boo, and Naiad. The best familiar out of all three depends on the players’ requirements. Shonky Honker and Boggly Boo work best if you want aggressive and high damage-dealing Familiars, while Naiad works better as a support Familiar.
