Ipsen ' s Castle Ipsen ' s Castle is a location on the Forgotten Continent in " Final Fantasy IX " . It is located in a natural depression , well below sea level . The building itself , inside and outside , is an architectural marvel , much like . Many rooms are upside down and in one room the visitor has to slide " up " a pole . While in Ipsen ' s Castle , weapons will do more damage the lower their attack power is . Weak weapons are sold by a local moogle , and the characters ' default weapons can be found in many of the treasure chests . The unusual set - up does not extend to armor , Add - on s or magic . The reduced weapon damage while in Ipsen ' s Castle weaker is due an alteration in the base damage formula : formula _ 1 Due to steep , canyon - like walls that surround the castle , it can only be accessed with a chocobo or by airship . It is possible to develop Choco as far as dark blue ( ocean / mountain crossing ) by the time the party first visits the Forgotten Continent , so it is possible to visit Ipsen ' s Castle before it is mentioned in the story . If the party does so , however , the castle appears on the map as simply " ? " , and although it can be entered the front door is closed . Story . According to the " Final Fantasy IX Ultimania " , Ipsen ' s Castle is one of the locations from Terra that ended up on Gaia 5000 years ago due to Garland ' s failed attempt to merge the two planets into one . The origin from Terra is made clear by the unusual - looking treasure chests , as Terran treasures are always blue , whereas Gaian chests are wooden . The castle is named after the explorer Ipsen , who was thought to be the first to discover the castle . Another etymological origin derives from Latin where " ipse " mean it / her / himself , so as Lady Hilda decides on the castle ' s name , she means it will be called the " no name castle " — the " ipsen " castle ( literally translated : the castle itself ) . When the party is sent to Ipsen ' s Castle to retrieve the four elemental mirrors Amarant challenges Zidane to a race , saying that he " works alone " . The party ventures through the maze - like interior , made all the more confusing due to the castle ' s mirrored structure . Amarant wins and vacates the premises after declaring his disbandment from the party . Zidane and his friends collect the mirrors , but are interrupted by the monster , Taharka , the mirrors ' guardian . Upon exiting the castle , the party discovers Amarant hasn ' t come out yet . Zidane scours the castle and finds and rescues him . When the two return , Zidane formulates a plan to raid the four elemental shrines , whose locations are marked by the mirrors ' placement on the mural they were found in . Quests . Mognet . Kumool at Ipsen ' s Castle receives a letter from Mogki from Lindblum Castle : After the party returns from Terra they can start a side quest to fix Mognet Central by talking to Kupo in Alexandria . As part of this chain of correspondence Mogryo from Black Mage Village sends a letter to Kumool : Kumool in response sends a letter to Mois at the entrance to Fossil Roo at Qu ' s Marsh : Ancient Aroma . Ancient Aroma is an Add - on found within the castle . It teaches Dagger the ability " Odin ' s Sword " , which , when equipped , allows Odin to deal damage to enemies that survived the Instant Death . To obtain Ancient Aroma the player must solve the puzzle of the rotating tablet near the elevator to the mirror room . When prompted , Zidane is required to examine , push , pound , think , push , think , try something drastic , and rest to flip the wall and gain access to a new area . This opens up a door in the dungeon ' s entry foyer , directly to the left of the first door the party entered . The new passage leads to a large glowing sword with three ledges and two pots . A voice within the room whispers , " Fight the flow of time " , implying the pots must be picked up and placed on the next ledge counterclockwise from its present location . After both pots are rotated thrice each , the electricity within the blade will fill one pot , from which the Ancient Aroma may be collected . Blu Mag . Quina can eat Cerberus to learn Auto - Life , Gargoyle to learn Mighty Guard , and Veteran to learn Doom . Shops . All items purchased from Kumool ' s Mogshop . Musical themes . The theme that plays in Ipsen ' s Castle is known as " Ipsen ' s Heritage " . It is a rearranged version of " A Place to Call Home " , a theme associated with Terra and Zidane . An arrangement of this theme appears in " Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy " as Zidane ' s dungeon theme .