[PS2] Final Fantasy XII

Originally Posted by PiccoloNamek

Haha! Well, the beastiary says they're involved in criminal activity!

Yeah, when I read that I sort of realized that they were probably thieves and would steal your loot. Still surprised me when I saw them actually do it, rather than just the usual monster info that isn't really seen in action.

Oh, and Wild Snakes can be found near the Slaven in Toam Hills, in Giza Plains during the Dry.

I was speaking idiomatically.

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Wow, I still have a lot of work to do as in terms of pure side quests. I might even want to print out this guide so I can keep track! With all this, I can guess another 20 hours easily for the remaining marks. Some may take 10 minutes while others stretched out on several hours – you know who you are. The side quests will probably take another 30 hours I’m guessing.
Levelling up will take a considerable time. I’m going to budget 25 hours of PURE level grinding to hit level 99 for all my characters.

At this moment:


Vaan – 40
Balthier – 50 (It’s decided him and Fran will be the main stars of the “show”)
Fran – 47
Basch – 47
Ashe – 44
Penelo – 44

Deadbones + Embroidered Tippets = Extremely fast leveling. Head over to the Overlooking Eternity map in the Deadlands, kill them off, run through 'The Fog Mutters' to the Slumbermead, then back again to Eternity. Repeat with Tippets on for high speed leveling. No need for 25 hours. The alternative is the Negalmuur auto-leveling guide.

Once you get into the mid 80s, low 90s, head to the Pharos Subterra or Henne Mines' secret area (you need 10 Espers for this though) to wrap up the last 11-12 or so quickly.

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And of course the story element will probably last me for another 20 hours. As in terms of story, I just arrived at Balforheim port and have been doing side quests and hunts ever since. As for story wise, I’m supposed to go to the Feywood. Furthermore, I’ll budget about 5 hours to miscellaneous stuff like running around from field to field, getting into fights, shopping, etc. So that’s at least a minimum of: 20 + 30 + 25 + 20 + 5 = 100 hours from this point on. That’s pretty crazy, and I don’t even know if my estimates are accurate. Metal Sphere, you have over 250 hours? I’m sure you’ve cleaned up everything by now, no? And yes, I’m like this type of person to calculate everything as best as possible. My profession is accounting anyways, so I see things in units of time. Just to let you know I’m also having fun with this as well, right? That’s the whole point – entertainment, just incase you were worried I was losing my marbles and dreaded playing this any further.

Yes, I'm actually almost completely through with the game. All I need now are:

• A few more rare game, mainly the random ones
• Goddamn Whiteout, can't manage to get 5 Level 3 Quickenings for Gabranth in the Den.
• Bestiary needs extremely low spawn Garif, 2 more Seeq
• Need to get the above 3 for Ba'Gamman and Gabranth in order to complete the SPD and get closer to Order of Ambrosia
• Attain Order of Ambrosia rank
• Assorted sidequests (I think it's the Viera one, I'll have to check)

Yes, you read right, Spat. In order to get Ambrosia you basically have to do everything to complete all the items in the Clan Primer.

Either way, the game's winding down though I fear I won't be able to manage that 5 Level 3 quickening, 0 Level 1 or 2 requirement for Whiteout in order to get Gabranth (all Concurrences) in the Den. Ba'Gamman is only a matter of time with the rare game.

Good news is that I got the Scorpion Tail, finally, and realized that during my wanderings I have enough material to make Durandals for every character... so I did. =/

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by Spatula

Have you actually beat the game yet and just loaded a previous file, MS? Somehow, I don't feel up to the task of tracking down EVERY single enemy now for my clan primer. ;__;

Nope, I beat the game right after I did this:

- Created the Tournesol
- Defeated Yiazmat
- Went to Montblanc to get that awesome scene/praise

Then I went and finished the game, so the high I was on was absolutely incredible. Just take your time and soon you'll be where I'm at.

Oh, and a I just got the Ensanguined Shield right now. Holy Shit, I was just chilling here in the Henne Mines (actually, I was trolling for another set of Lordly Robes) and BAM. I'm going to go try out the Ribbon theory I have cooking in my head.

Edit: Nope, the Ribbon doesn't negate the negative effects on this thing. I've found that I can tame Sap with the Ring of Renewal.

Edit#2: Damn, this thing is awesome. Even with Sap, I'm taking less damage than I would normally have incurred, even with the Z. Escutcheon. Slow is a little irritating, but with 95% evasion (Durandal's 5 plus the shield's 90).

FELIPE NO

Originally Posted by Spatula

So the Ensanguined Shield curses you with sap? Also, how hard is it to get ribbons, those are like the best accessories in the game right?

It curses you with Sap, Slow and Poison, none of which can be removed. I found that this actually works very well with a healer (like Penelo). If her HP manages to drop below 60%, Curaja kicks in. I took off the Ring of Renewal and threw back on the Gauntlets I had on before, so she blocks nearly all of the attacking incoming.

From what I've seen, it definitely changes the battle flow. The enemies charge her (Abysteel in this case) with Haste and all. They focus all their attention on her, while other two ream them and take no damage until they cause the Abysteels to change their target.

With a Curaja gambit net like I have, the E. Shield person isn't going to die unless they get hard by magic. Ribbons are the best accessory in the game, no doubt. There's a chest in the Henne mines that has it in there, another in Pharos Subterra and yet another in The Northsward on a hill that appears sometimes.

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Side Quests Not Yet Attempted.

Spoiler:

1. Jovy the Hero

2. Nabreus's Medal

3. Hunt Club (tell me more about this Metal Sphere. You said something about in Archades...) This looks like the 2nd longest side quest besides that of the actually mark hunts.

4. Fishing Nebra River

5. Balfonheim Port Footrace

6. Wyrm Philosopher

7. OMEGA MARK XII WEAPON (My final quest for Final Fantasy XII – SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST!)

If you've done the whole Archadian information exchange thing (which I found pretty fun, though some of the stories are sad like the girl who misses her Mummer father or the lady who grieves for her Judge husband who died) and got the Sandalwood chop, you can access the Grand Arcade and Highgarden Terrace maps, the latter of which has the Hunt Club geezer you're looking for. If you've noticed while out and about, when you kill certain monsters after joining the club, the screen blurs and goes black/white and you get a trophy. Out of the 80 rare game, 30 of them give you trophies upon dying.

Bring these in at at certain #s (5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30) of trophies, he'll give you Zodiac gems (ex: Scorpio, Leo, Gemini).

The Wyrm Philosopher one is rather simple. Defeat the mark Vyraal, then find windmill #10 and after the cutscene, give him the scale you got from Vyraal. He'll give you the Ageworn Key. Now, whenever you want, head over to Sochen's Destiny's March map and enter it from the east. Once there, make one clockwise rotation through the map's circular path. Once you do this you'll get a prompt saying that a door's opened somewhere. Now that that's done, head to the west and open that door to go into a path unmarked on the map.

I suggest you go and save so you don't have to do this all over again if anything happens.

Ok, continue through the newly unlocked door (Ascetic's Door, IIRC) and through the unmarked passage until you reach another door. Use the Ageworn Key here and enter to fight Hell Wyrm. You need to beat this guy in order to get Montblanc to give you the Yiazmat hunt after you've taken down everything else on the hunt board.

Oh, and yes, sandstorms are incredibly rare after you take down the two monsters credited for thriving and perpetuating them, the Ring Wyrm and Earth Tyrant. Other than the sandstorm I forced to spawn by coming into the Westersand via the Tyrant's/Wyrm's Nest map, I haven't seen one (sometimes you get a fine "sand mist" that lowers bow/crossbow accuracy).

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Originally Posted by Spatula

So the main point of sandstorms is for the elementals right? I know for sure that there is a Enome Entitite or something like that in the Nam sandsea area, so wouldn't these two enemies be the same thing if I need to steal from them? I guess I'll just postpone the Earth Tyrant quest for now.

No, Gnoma Entite can only be found in the Dalmasca Westersand during a sandstorm. The Entite you mentioned out in the Ogir-Yensa is Salamand Entite, the fire one which appears on clear, sunny days.

Just kill them or steal from them to get as many Gnoma Halcyons that you think you'll need, then go do the Earth Tyrant thing.

Saga, AFAIK, the only difference between the U.S. and Japanese versions of FFXII is that Omega Mark XII has far less HP. There may be some more differences, but I haven't seen nor heard of them.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Originally Posted by Tomahawk

This is bullshit. Best weapons and armor need to be GLOWING or have some really kick-ass artwork on them. Can't agree with you more. Guessing the graphic designers were too pooped-out to think about new artwork design for those pieces.
They should have re-structured the graphics, imaging, and artwork from the Cadabolg, the Godhand, and the Spirit Lance from FFX, if they didn't want to try anything new from scratch.

PHOOOOOOEY!

Is it really that crucial an aspect to the ultimate weapons? IMO, what they did matched with how they approached the rest of the game. Thundaga/Firaga/Blizzaga were all taken down from their epic visuals of yesteryear in order to mesh with the way battles work (Thundaga still looks awesome though, I love that spell). It would increase their animation length even further to make them look grand.

Something similar applies to the weapons. Much as how the focus on this game is on the big picture, clashes between peoples and nations/empires, focusing on a weapon's look is ridiculous. Not to mention, the glowing/ornate, try-to-hard look of ultimate weapons from the past had become too predictable. Not only was the change in FFXII refreshing, it made you focus on the important things about the item, like its attack power and combat effectiveness as PN mentioned above.

Why you'd jump down to the Dragon Whisker because the Z. Spear looks plain is beyond me. Why don't you just go to the Whale Whisker as a very nice (and stronger) alternative. It combos much more frequently, has a nice evasion clip to it and seems to work well against HP critical foes.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Metal_Smith490

Just a couple questions-
1) How long did it take you to beat Yiazmat and what level were your characters at?
2) The Dragon of Doom? Is that the Hell Wyrm or a different monster?

Thanks.

1. Took me under a little under an 3 hours, in 4 stages. Everyone was level 99, so that may have had something to do with it.

2. Doom Dragon = Hell Wyrm. Just use the latter, as that's the english name. Unless you want to start confusing folks, heh.

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Well shit I haven't played for a few days now, as to how that happened is beyond me. I have some serious cathing up to do here. Really don't want to finish the Seer hunt right now, getting the black orbs is really pissing me off since it's pitch black basically and i haven't any to spare for light!! grrrrr. Well I guess it's time to do some grinding and loot hunting!

Gathering orbs? Run around on whatever floor you're on, killing monsters in each room. Don't pick up their orbs, just go from from corner, wiping them out. Then go find the massive black orb. It will have absorbed all the orbs you didn't pick up. This way you can get all the orbs you need, just make sure you know the amount each altar needs.

For example, goofing off, I was trolling down in the Subterra B3F (Abyssal) and killed so many monsters that the massive black orb is... *ahem* about the size of Penelo's upper body with an ungodly amount of swirling trails inside.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Originally Posted by SOLDIER_2825

Well I have been running around on the Subterra and its just going a little slow. Where is the altar that your talking about, right now I only have access to one floor on the subterra, the one where all the bull abadons and misthares or whatever the hell those horses are come out. It's also the place where Phoneix is, as to how i managed to find him im not sure. Do I need to do something to be able to go to lower levels on the elevator or something?

Well, think of it as easy leveling. It's supposed to be slow, given how sparsely populated the rooms on are on first and second basement levels (Penumbra and Umbra). Did you kill the Phoenix? You should if you haven't.

I'm amazed you're asking about the altars but know about the black orbs. There's an altar in every corner "room" that you can see when you throw up the map. Each of them holds a specific number of orbs. There's guides that tell you how much each individual altar on each floor takes, and if you didn't know, you'd have to put them in one-by-one. Otherwise, you waste orbs and lose them if you go over.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Originally Posted by SOLDIER_2825

Wow I'm a complete moron, well yea I realized that this does make for easy leveling. I think what happened was I saw how many orbs I needed and just thought it would take forever. Maybe next time I should actually go through it first before drawing such conclusions. As is turns out this little quest for orbs is pretty simple. I knew about the altars just not about the massive black orbs. But I have also found those too (I killed the Phoenix awhile ago, and yes I found a couple pretty large ones too but none as big as, well Penelo's "upper body" haha). I almost tried to fight the magick pot but decided against it, HA. All in all I was just being lazy before but I'm almost to the third level now and glad I figured it before just asking and asking away. I fell a little more motivation now so I won't bother you with any more nonsensical bullshit like this haha.

Nah, don't worry about it. Ask away to your heart's content, since this is a discussion thread about FFXII. Anyways, you'll be down at the Unknown level in no time fighting the Shadowseer. If you have any 1H sword users around, make sure you keep the Lifewicks that the Necrofiends drop. With a Lesacsh Halcyon (Paramina Rift entite) and 2 Emperor Scales, you can make the best 1H sword. Same thing goes for the Damascus Steel dropped by Bunes.

Oh, and the gigantic orb I described? It's just me fooling around down there, trying to get the orb bigger. Who knows when the hell this thing is going to stop growing.

Edit: Goddamn Cubus! This thing is supposed to appear near that little waterfall in the Sochen map 'Tempation Eluded' after killing everything else in that map and waiting by it for a few minutes. I'm getting nothing. =/

I was speaking idiomatically.

Originally Posted by SOLDIER_2825

hmmm I need to use a 1H sword since all of my characters have Great swords (2 Ultima blades, Excalibur), but i dont know where to find emperor sclaes.

Zertinan Caverns, Balamka Fault map, there are two Archeoaevis enemies. Those are the only two in the game, IIRC. They drop the scales, but rarely. It's really easy to chain them though, as all you have to do is have one attack gambit set to strike enemies with 10,000 HP or more. They have 12k, and if you come in and the monsters they're fighting against have loweered their HP, just input it manually.

After you kill them, exit the map to Athroza Quicksands, run over to Drybeam Cavern and back into Balamka to fight the respawned Archeoaevis pair.

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by Musharraf

What does your timer say, Metal Sphere?

273 hours (273:45:32 with 1,512,532 steps). My luck is great enough to nail me Z. Escutcheons, another Ribbon, and a Venetian Shield all in the same day but monsters like Cubus and Vorres elude me.

That and getting 5 level 3 quickenings is insane. Other than that, the game is as good as done, but I'm not quitting when I'm this close to getting Order of Ambrosia.

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Haven't played for the last couple of days, but I definitely want to get to level 99 within the next few weeks so I better start playing again

You probably know, but the Deadbones trick to the early-mid 80s and then Pharos Subterra/Henne with Tippets will get you to 99 real fast.

Saga, you're talking about Hell Wyrm. His Darkga use is a boon if you have black masks to toss on when he readies it.

Most amazing jew boots

Originally Posted by Jimmy Choo

Wassup people, I recently downloaded the game off torrentspy.com as it's not out in Europe yet and i set 2 playin it straight away, big fan of the FF series you see (Number 8 is my Fav). Anyway, im a little concerned about my progress. Ive got 52 hours of ganeplay right, im on the part wherei can go onto the bahamut and complete the game, with all my characters levelling 50 average. Anyway, i was wondering that before i do so i wanna obtain so badman weaponry and armour so i can be really prepared you know? Also i wanna get around 2 doina coupla of the sidequests and that. So first question, does aaaaaaanyone know where i can get each item that i can sell to any merchant so i can get an Ultima Blade available in the Bazaar?????

Heh, looks like you made a B-line for the end of the game. Well, for the Ultima Blade, you need a Gnoma Halcyon, two Death Powder and 2 Adamantite. The Halcyon can be had from the Entite of the same name (stolen/dropped), Death Powders are dropped by Bogeys in the Zertinan Caverns and Adamantite are the spoils you receive for killing Adamantitans. The bridged area in Cerobi Steppe has a ton of Adamantitans that you can kill for them.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Originally Posted by Jimmy Choo

Thanks for the quick reply, um another queston where can i find the gnome Entites?

During a sandstorm in the Westersand. Look around a bit, they're pretty hard to miss.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Originally Posted by Hachifusa

Would you consider a 2H sword better than a 1H sword?

How, without the use of a guide, would I know how to create some of the best weapons in the game?

The bestiary. There are a ton of monsters whose secondary entry is hints and nods towards the materials you need to make certain weapons. It's both amusing and informative to read, as they often provide a ton of extra backstory for Ivalice.

In raw (and reliable) power, 2H swords are king. 1H swords, with the Durandal being the best, are the ones you want for the perfect balance of power and defense. Seriously, seeing the Ensanguined Shield and Durandal in a fight with 95 evasion is far more godly than Msamune + Genji or Tournesol.

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by SOLDIER_2825

Ok so I think I need something that is confuse proof while wondering down in the Abyssal part of the subterra. Those damn necrofiends love to use Phatmazal glaze or whatever it is. I would normally hand them there asses but my guys just kept killing each other before I even had the chance to give them some smelling salts. So I'll take care of that I think and pick up a Durandal or two while im at it.

Yeah, pick up some Bowline Sashes if you don't have a Ribbon. Confuse, as mentioned before, is easily one of the most brutal status effects in the game. That coupled with Disease will put you in a world of hurt.

BTW, you don't even have to spend too long down there looking for Lifewicks as they drop them very often, and you only need about three of them for the Durandal.

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by SOLDIER_2825

Yea I just finished the Seer hunt, it was one of the most fun fights I've had due to all the pallings and stuff, it made it interesting. But I made it out of the subterra with a ribbon, venetian shield, another ultima blade, and a niapholoa. The lifewicks do get dropped pretty often, I had something like 20 when I left, that should be more then enough for some Durandal's!!

Wow, you made it out of there pretty well. The hardest one to get is definitely the Emperor Scale, and even that's a breeze with the method I described a few posts back.

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Now with all those hunts down I just have Yizzy, Omega, and Hellwyrm (I don't think he is a mark but still). I think I'll try to get to level 99 though first either at the deadlands or down in the Henne mines (Haven't been there yet even though I unlocked enough espers). Maybe pick up a couple rare weaons too while I'm at it. Is there any armor better then the maxmillian and megashiak or am I just wishing here?

Grand Armor and Helm are the best armor in the game, dropped by Helvinek and Tower respectively. You could also get a Ribbon from a Vishno in the Pharos while you're up there. They're marginally better than Maximillian and Magepower Shishak, but some people will still want them. I've only managed to snag 1 Grand Armor, though.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Originally Posted by Hachifusa

Maybe I am not paying enough attention, but all it seems to nod to is what kind of item it (the enemy) drops. I don't imagine how I'd know how to make a Tournesol without the guide, but if you say it pushes you in the right direction...

Of course, it doesn't tell you how to make some weapons explicitly. The game basically assumes you'll explore the world completely, including hidden areas, rare game, etc... Many ingredients are only used for one recipe, so those materials will stay there as you sell off you items.

Eventually, you'd get a Tournesol, but I agree that without any guide you'd never know how to get it. For other weapons? Pfft, references all over the place. Often times it's hearsay, and then the description mentions if you mix this and that, MAYBE you'll get something. Heck, you can get Hermes Sandals pretty early if you get the secondary entry that says how to make them.

Finally got Cubus to show up, took down Avenger in the Pharos too. That thing was fun to kill, and I had a hoot stealing a Muramasa off of it and then kiling it. One of the few non-boss monsters that actually:

• Puts up a paling (physical immunity)
• Uses Ardor

Grimalkin was also another fun one. Definitely refreshing to have a monster that isn't a pushover. Whoa, I agree with PN. You should definitely steer clear of the Deadlands and the Necrohol if you're afraid of the Antlion or are having trouble with the Headless. Though, if you've got a good gambit setup and you're daring, try reaching the gate crystal just north of the Slumbermead.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Originally Posted by PiccoloNamek

Heh, try defeating the Gate Crystal. Even when my party was in the late 60's, several of them got knocked out while fighting it.

Oh shit, I completely forgot about that thing. It's on a completely different level than the save crystal monster in the Stilshrine, that's for sure. I was in the low to mid 50s when I fought it, and had definitely had a bit of trouble. Loved that difficulty spike when compared to my trek through the Deadlands at that point.

Same thing with Avenger today. Nice way to finish off the Headless-class rare game group.

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Oh yeah, palings. I now hate those with a fiery passion. There's something wrong with getting an enemy down to almost no life, then having them put up a dual physical/magical paling and having to wait it out and survive until it dissipates. Is there any way to speed the process or end a paling?

Nope, there's no way to accelerate its dissipation, nor have I heard of any way to do so. The Behemoth King pulled that crap towards the end IIRC, Zodiark flicks them on/off so much that the combat log can't keep up, and the Shadowseer hides behind it during your fight with it. I'm not of a fan of it, to say the least.

Though, I thank God Yiazmat or Omega didn't use them. That alone would ramp their difficulty up a few notches, especially in the final stretch. Of course, things like White Breath, Curse or any Death-spell variant would do the same.

One last thing, I found out that poles attack an enemy's magic defense. That might explain why Penelo went from doing ~800-900 on Omega's critical state to ~2k per hit (7 hit combo with it ended the fight).

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Originally Posted by Jimmy Choo

I know what im doing, im on the part of the storyline where i can board the bahamut to on2 the mission to complete the game, so um yeah i guess i am towards the end of the game And by a coupla hunts i mean a coupla more than previous. So, any suggestions for fun?

No, seanne's right, Jimmy. If what I read is correct, you're around level 50-ish. The harder marks we're talking about would wipe the floor with you, and to beat them at that level would require you to have a pretty good Gambit setup.

Though, if you're adamant about this, the first rank VII mark you can fight is Carrot. I was in the 40s when I fought it and it gave me a hard time, largely due to a shitty setup, poor damage and putrid breath.

If you want a semi-challenge for your level, go find Disma over at Lhusu's Site 11 area or Avenger on the 63rd floor of the Pharos.

Mush, you can just run around a bit in a high level area and get more money from enemies than that. It's the other reason why I hate Baknamy (aside from their cloaked status, and parrying madness) as they give you terrible gil.

Edit: Damn, seanne. Chances are he would get hit with a White Breath that actually stops everyone, as happened to be a few times during that fight. Of course, it's best to stick a Bubble Belt on them and have Tear gambits all around rather than switching in a Ribbon every 5 seconds.

FELIPE NO

Originally Posted by SOLDIER_2825

Ok so as it turns out I only had 1 Leschah halcyon whereas I though I had 3 of them and now i can't mangae a blizzard in the Paramina Rift! Do blizzards stop spawning after you kill Fafnir?

That may be the case, but I've never actually read something concrete on that as I did on the sandstorms in the Westersand. What I did was go into Paramina Rift via the Feywood. Just keep going into the map until there's a blizzard. Leshach Entite spawns like clockwork there during a Blizzard, as well as the map to the left of that.

As for the Gambits thing: Even if you were playing in wait mode, not using them only makes the game unnecessarily tedious. Imagine fighting Omega or Yiazmat inputting every single command. Or even lesser things, like the monsters in Henne.

And if you're worried about your characters doing things on their own, if you actually take a good look at the game, you have more control over your character's actions than most other FFs. IMO, Matsuno succeeded in replicating that tactical feel he was aiming for (something I was extremely skeptical of when I first heard it).

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by SOLDIER_2825

I couldn't agree more here. For some of the bigger fights not having the gambit system would draw them out and it would become very very tedious and annoying. It's not like you aren't controlling your character's while using the gambit system. I don't know about evryone else either but it's not like during certain boss fights and rare games where you don't input your own commands often times as well. All in all having the gambit system was a good idea in letting you have a larger control factor on your party and allowing for less tedious fights with stronger and more time consuming monsters.

It also makes leveling, doing sidequests, and just exploring that much more fun. The elimination of random battles and the gambit system took out the two of the biggest sources of drudgery in the series, though it replaced it with crappy random chests and loot droprates that turn item creation into a timesink.

As you said, I haven't heard of anyone fully automating their characters in boss fights, or trickier monsters. There's simply too much for the enemies to throw at you, plus the gambits (while being rather thorough) don't let it get that far. I'll give you an example in a second.

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Ohhh and MS, good call on entering the Rift through the Feywood, first time through I got a blizzard. On my way to getting all those Durandal's now!

Yeah, I decided to enter via there rather than Golmore because that's where I found Leshach Entite most often and it had a very good blizzard trigger rate. It's kind of like entering the Westersand via the Wyrm's Nest after the two sandstorm causing beasts are gone.

I found something very interesting, and it may interest those who like using magic. I'm still testing this, but I found that I can make multi-target magic hit 3 times on one target, tripling the damage inflicted. Something peculiar though:

Isn't Scathe a multi-target, non-elemental magic attack? Kind of like this game's Ultima spell. The problem is, when reflected, I've only had it fire once.

Here's a scenario:

Elvoret (weak against Wind) comes up to the party.

All party members have reflect status, Balthier has Opal Ring for healing/buffing through reflect. I have Penelo and Vaan cast Aeroga (multi-target Wind magic) on themselves.

Each Aeroga spell (Vaan and Penelo's) strikes all three of the party's reflect shields, so it reflects 3 times per caster.

There's 2 instances of Aeroga, with 3 hits a piece of the poor Elvoret, making for a grand total of 6 hits. If my fuzzy math is correct, if only one person casts Aeroga/Blizzaga/Firaga/Thundaga on the party, the damage is tripled from the standard single flame. If two cast, it's 6x the regular damage and if you don't have a healer at all, it'd be 9 times.

I've had this work on Darkga on Babils as well, though it still needs more tweaking. One problem with this setup is that it reduces your number of healers, the second one being that you have to have reflect as a gambit or else you'll wind up killing yourself when it fades without warning.

Go ahead, try it, it's pretty fun seeing Aeroga firing like a machine gun.

Edit: A little tweaking is needed. You don't need to have two Reflect-Casters, just throw on an Opal Ring on the one you want to be a second healer and turn on their healing gambits.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Originally Posted by PiccoloNamek

My biggest problem with Gambits is that they're not complicated enough. I wish you could add modifiers such as IF, WHEN, ONLY, etc. For example. Foe: Any: Steal ONLY IF Foe: Stolenfrom = false. If "Stolenfrom" is true, then the next gambit down would be used. That way, I wouldn't have to switch the Steal gambit on and off. If I steal and the enemy has no more loot to steal, it will automatically go to Foe: Any: Attack, or whatever happens to be next.

Yeah, that's exactly my point above. Gambits can only automate the battle to a certain extent, there still needs to be a considerable amount of player intervention to prevent a character from stealing from an enemy that's already been stolen from, poaching certain enemies, etc...

Though if it was that intricate, it'd be slammed as overly complicated on the low end and too automated (people would liken it to a bot) on the other. BTW, has anyone tried including Stamp into a setup? That would be really nice if it actually works (though I'm not getting my hopes up).

Edit: I would've loved to have a gambit that did Expose ten times before moving on to attack or whatever was next.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Fricasseein' Rabbit

I offed the undead dragon/wyrm at the entrance to the Pharos using that method, MS. Had mirror mail on two of my guys and a ruby ring on the third. One of the mirror mails had an opal ring and kept everyone healed, faithed, and hasted, and the other two continuously cast Curaja on the team. Hit the guy for 6500-9999 damage three times each and he dropped in under two minutes.

Wow, just picturing that fight with Hydro puts a smile on my face. The trick is absolutely brutal, that's for sure. I was pretty ecstatic that it worked, after tossing the idea around in my head for a bit.

Now I have to figure out who does what permanently, though I'll likely stick with 2 heal-capable folks and one multi-caster, since most enemies won't survive a barrage like that. I'll test it out in Henne on some shellled Etems and see how it goes.

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Finished the Pharos. That was way longer than I had expected, but at the same time a lot easier. I was expecting it to really tax my abilities, but instead it just taxed my patience. :P Is there anything I really should have found in there that I might have missed? I think I only came across 3 or 4 chests with nothing of serious value, and I will be going back in to get the 2nd Ascent map.

I think that one is the Zeus Mace chest, though I know the others are some like Circlet and Dueling Mask, amongst other things. Nothing worth much, though the Subterra is another story.

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Storyline spoilers:

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I loved the interactions and the storyline for this section! I don't know why I didn't connect Reddas into everything - I guess my mind was on autopilot and I didn't stop to consider how he must have been involved in the past. His end was very impressive, though the mourning was briefer than I would have anticipated from a Final Fantasy game. No city-wide funeral service?

The conniving aspects of Doctor Cid, the Empire, Rozarria, and everything seems pretty spot-on. I'm constantly impressed by the intricacies of the political situation they created, and I can't see how everything will be worked out to a point where a sequel wouldn't be clamored for. Obviously I have yet to see the end of the game, but I anticipate them leaving plenty of room for a good sequel.

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Yeah, I really wasn't expecting that revelation. Hell, there wasn't any hint of it at all, except for maybe the NPCs in Balfonheim saying that Reddas just showed up one day and that some suspected him of having ties with the Archadian Empire. Looks like they were more than right, he was a damn judge. On top of that, he was the one that Drace/Gabranth/Zargabaath/Bergan argued about being thrown away in Nabudis.

Awesome development up there, and it had some of the best voice acting I've seen in a game. Cid's whole insane rant was right on the money, as was Fran and Balthier's little exchange. Something that bugs me though:

If the Sun-Cryst was glutted with mist, and had been absorbing the stuff, why didn't it take out the entire tower when all that was released? The shards were more destructive. Maybe you need to actually tell the stone to explode in order to achieve that effect?

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Also really looking forward to using the spells I've finally been able to pick up. <3 Still have to grab Ardor, Renew, and Scathe.

Renew = Awesome, especially set to HP Critical. Scathe is also fun to use, though a bit limited, but it still doesn't detract much from a massive beam of doom.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Fricasseein' Rabbit

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I was wondering about there still being some of the tower left, myself. Perhaps because it was cut by a sword meant to cut it, rather than just exploding? As I recall, the shards were used on purpose and ended up expelling energy in a manner...intended? That's not right, but you know what I mean. With the Sun-Cryst being forcefully destroyed, perhaps the energy didn't pool or expand quite the same way. Or there's the fact that the tower was probably built by the what's-their-faces, which could mean better construction and less likelihood to disintegrate when hit by nethicite forces, but whatever.[/spoiler]

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I just remembered something about how it was destroyed, that event having taken place a long time ago in my file. Reddas used the blades the Occuria crafted, likely the only things that could've cut that massive rock. The explosion we saw was probably just the violent destruction of the stone by the swords, rather than an actual 100% release of it's contained power.

Remember, they mentioned that it was pouring and pouring mist out into the world and threatening to explode after what Cid did. Reddas destroying it stopped that flow, but shutting that valve with no release had the expected result.

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What sometimes bothers me is the fact that some of these formerly-inhabited places are obviously not built for any sort of habitation. We can assume that the Pharos was built for the purpose of housing the Sun-Cryst, which excuses the odd layout, but the Necrohol was supposed to be a castle, and doesn't look anything like one in layout. Another oh well.

[spoiler]
The Pharos itself is a giant proving ground for those who've been given a treaty blade with which to cut the Sun-Cryst. Ridorana itself was likely the town.

After seeing what the nethicite shard aboard the Leviathan did to that entire fleet, it's no wonder what happened to Nabradia and its capital, Nabudis. In several bestiary entries it mentions that the country was completely destroyed, and the mist that spewed out and covered the area gave rise to new and sinister flora and fauna.

And the Necrohol? Remember that castle at the beginning of the game? IIRC, that's Nabudis as the staircases and overall look are very similar. Zecht was said to have used the shard in the capital, which would explain the totaled castle.

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[spoiler]
I completely agree about the voice acting. Fantastic work, and the interactions between the characters are spot on. I wonder if they had them record their lines in the same booth or if they did everything individually. Likely individual, since that's traditional, but the interplay is very smart.

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What's crazy is that they had at least 1 first timer there (IIRC, it's Fran's voice actress). There's also some interesting info that I found:

- Migelo/Gilgamesh have the same voice actor
- Old Dalan/Gran Kiltias Anastasis also have the same voice actor

There's several more, like Steve Blum doing Ba'Gamman. Hopefully we see this same attention paid to VA in future installations. I can't believe how big of a leap this is from FFX's wooden character models and conversations.

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I got the Circlet and the Dueling Mask, and I got a Zeus Mace off of an enemy at some point. (One of the...Bunes, is it?...dropped a Gungnir for me. I haven't had a spear-user yet, but I'm tempted just to try it out.)

Setting up a gambit system to utilize the little trick there would be very interesting. I had the double damage-spellcasters because it was a boss battle, but in a normal fight it would be very effective to just have the one, I would think.

That's the first time I ever actually used a spear was when I got one from a Bune. Fun, but I'll stick to the other weapons. Unless you have the Z. Spear, the Whale Whisker rocks something fierce. If only I had the Genji Gloves to let this combo beast out.

I agree, that with 2 it'd have to be in special cases, as it gets a little tedious handling it. Preferably, the leader is the multi-caster since you already have direct control over them.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Originally Posted by PiccoloNamek

What I'm wondering is

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If the Occuria are so powerful, why did they need Nethicite to control the world? We can see by the way that Venat manhandled Gabranth and powered up Vayne that they're certainly no weaklings, plus, they're immortal, so why not just move in and take over? Are they afraid? Or do they have some kind of hidden weakness? Perhaps they're really not that strong at all? For all we know, they may not even be gods at all, but posers.

Spoilers for those who haven't beat the game, that means you Fricaseein'. Don't want to spoil the end for anyone.

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That was my question... until I beat the Espers + read up on a lot of the monster info. The Occuria were challenged, threatened, disrespected countless times by nearly every kind of creature. The Espers did it, the Nu Mou did it, and now humans are the next group. The likely answer is that they are of afraid. Afraid of losing power, afraid of being judged for the wrongs they've committed, it seems to be a prime motivator. The stones were likely made so they could manipulate history from beyond time in their ivory tower, without fear of being caught or suspected. Oh, and they're probably afraid of being forgotten as a result of hiding themselves in Giruvegan.

Oh, and they do have weaknesses. If we assume they are the gods spoken of in the game, then Shemhazai's entry makes perfect sense. She knows their hidden weaknesses and was cast down after leaking this to the rebel Espers.

BTW, I think the Occuria are the source of the mist, so it'd kind of like fighting with shapeless power until they made themselves vulnerable by taking a physical form (like Venat did with Vayne, IMO, it/she was the wings/second head).

I was speaking idiomatically.