Manuals are the books that teach Emma and Koo how to craft new gear in Beast of Reincarnation. Picking one up permanently adds a recipe to your workbench, whether that’s a fresh ammo type for Emma or a consumable that refills whenever you rest. If a Nushi fight keeps ending badly, grabbing the right Manual is often the difference maker.
Quick answer: Manuals appear in five zones — Ogouchi Buffer Zone, The Great Wall Terraces, Matsukawa Zone, Fuji Frontier Zone, and Giant Tree Zone. Collect them out in the world, inside strongboxes, from Keeper Golem tips, or by buying them from Merchants. Once collected, the recipe unlocks at your crafting menu.
What Manuals do and how they differ from other books
Books in this game split into three kinds, and only one of them is a Manual. Knowing the difference saves you from chasing the wrong pickups.
| Book type | What it does |
|---|---|
| Manual | Unlocks a crafting recipe for equipment, ammo, or consumables. |
| Recipe | Adds a dish to Kagura’s cooking menu. |
| Ancient Book | Sellable loot only; trade it for Amber. No crafting use. |
A Manual you have already learned refills its crafted item every time you rest at a camp. So a Fire Arrows Manual, for example, tops up your fire ammo automatically instead of forcing you to farm materials before every fight.
How to obtain Manuals
There are a few reliable ways Manuals show up as you travel from east to west:
- Found lying in the open world, sometimes tucked inside a locked strongbox.
- Handed over or pointed to by a Rusted Golem or Keeper Golem when you talk to it.
- Purchased from a Merchant if you would rather buy than hunt.
Any Keeper Golem you speak to can reveal a Manual’s location, so it is worth chatting with every one you pass. You confirm a Manual worked by opening your crafting menu — the new item appears there ready to synthesize, and it will replenish on your next rest.
Zones that contain Manuals
Manuals are spread across five regions on Emma and Koo’s route toward the Capital.
| Zone | Route position |
|---|---|
| Ogouchi Buffer Zone | Early game, first major region |
| The Great Wall Terraces | Mid-early |
| Matsukawa Zone | Mid game |
| Fuji Frontier Zone | Later region |
| Giant Tree Zone | Late game |
Ogouchi Buffer Zone Manual locations
The opening region holds three Manuals. Two more books here are cooking Recipes rather than Manuals, so keep that in mind if you are tracking crafting unlocks specifically.
| Manual | Where to find it |
|---|---|
| Recovery Tonic (S) | Talk to the Rusted Golem north of Subcity 03, at the entrance to the Nushi’s Lair. It hands you the Manual. |
| Fire Arrows | In the south-west settlement guarded by golems. Enter the house — its door is unlocked — and grab the Manual inside. |
| Acid Bolts | At the Quarry Interior campsite in the center-west. Defeat the Elite Golem at the top of the quarry, then enter the house to collect it. |
The Recovery Tonic (S) Manual teaches you to synthesize that healing item, which then refills on rest. Fire Arrows works the same way, adding fire ammo that replenishes when you camp. For the Acid Bolts Manual, a Keeper Golem south of Tailwater Village will point you toward it, but you can skip the hint and head straight to the quarry to pick it up.
Note: the Acid Bolts pickup is gated behind that Elite Golem at the top of the quarry. If the house looks empty or you cannot reach it, clear the Elite Golem first.
Manuals stack across the whole journey, so treat each new zone as a fresh checklist and speak to every golem you meet. The three in Ogouchi Buffer Zone give Emma her first real crafting options early, and the later regions — The Great Wall Terraces, Matsukawa Zone, Fuji Frontier Zone, and Giant Tree Zone — keep expanding what you can synthesize as you push toward the Capital.
