Ancient Forest

The Ancient Forest is a hidden location in Final Fantasy VII located on a plateau just south east of Cosmo Canyon. The only way to get there is by a green, black, or gold chocobo. When the Ultimate Weapon is defeated, it leaves a crater that allows the player to reach the forest by foot.

The Ancient Forest is a large logic puzzle involving the use of plant pods and the placement of frogs and flies to progress. It contains many rare items and enemies. An unusual feature to the forest is that if the player gets stuck or lost, they can press to instantly return to the entrance. The enemies around have an annoyingly high evade, so using weapons with 255% accuracy helps. If the player brings Vincent, they can find one such weapon for him in the forest.

First Area
By walking cautiously towards the carnivorous flower while pressing OK the player gets the Supershot ST for Vincent. If the player gets too close, the flower snaps and reduces the party's HP, although it cannot kill them.

The best way to get across the hanging plants is to grab two flies and leave them somewhere nearby, and then get another fly. The player can then set the flies in the plants in a row to get across. On the other side there is a Spring Gun Clip behind the tree for Red XIII.

Second Area
In order to get the Slash-All Materia from the carnivorous flower the player must put the beehive into it. The flowers with pink "tongues" can be used to jump across, and a fly is needed to shut the hanging plant. Up on a little ledge the player should find a frog and two hanging plants, one on each side.

The player should take the frog and put it in the left plant and jump on top of it. The plant will spit out the frog sending the player on a higher ledge where they can get the beehive. Using the frog again in the plant on the right side lets the player proceed to the next area. The treasure on the tree trunk cannot be reached yet.

Third Area
After putting flies in the two hanging plants and using the "tongue" flower, the player can reach the treetops. Up in the treetops the player can find a way back to the Second Area by going left, so they can get the Minerva Band, an armor only female party members can use. After going back up to the treetops the player can find the Typhon Materia on the right side, going across using the "tongue" flowers. The player should then backtrack along the "tongue" flowers and find another way back down, by going around down the tree trunk. This exit can be easier to spot when using the game's feature that marks all exits with a red triangle.

Climbing down the tree on the left part of the area, the player should grab a fly, and put it into the first of the two hanging plants on the right. Because one of them is already closed, the player can go across and reach the beehive, which can be used to close the carnivorous flower nearby. The player should then take the remaining fly and use it on the hanging plant on the left side of the carnivorous flower to get across. There is one more fly on the left, and putting it into the tree hole lures out a frog who comes out to eat the fly.

The player should take the frog and cross the gap again to the right. If the plant has already digested the fly used to cross the gap the last time, the frog can be used in the plant. The last move is to put the frog in the plant on the right used to reach the beehive, and hop on it. If the player is facing right when the plant spits the frog out, and they will be sent flying near the exit to the fourth area.

Fourth Area
There is an Elixir and the Apocalypse weapon for Cloud on the way out.

Items Found

 * Supershot ST (Vincent's weapon)
 * Spring Gun Clip (Red's weapon)
 * Slash All Materia
 * Minerva Band (armor)
 * Elixir
 * Typhon Materia
 * Apocalypse (Cloud's weapon)

1st area and Treetops

 * 3x Rilfsak
 * 2x Epiolnis
 * 2x Diablo
 * 1x Diablo, 2x Rilfsak

2nd and 3rd areas

 * 3x Rilfsak
 * 2x Epiolnis
 * 2x Diablo
 * 1x Diablo, 2x Rilfsak
 * 2x Rilfsak (Back-attack only)

Cave

 * 2x Diablo
 * 2x Rilfsak, 1x Epiolnis
 * 1x Diablo

Musical Themes
The background music for the Ancient Forest is "In Search of the Man in Black". The first in game appearance of this composition is in the Mithril Mine.