[PS2] Final Fantasy XII

Originally Posted by Saga

I didnt have a problem I found it alot easier and cool :/ - is like playing any other FF ....but the diference in this one is that you have this extra "help" which is the gambit. ( when I destroyed Yamaizt I didnt need any gambit I found it alot easier to kill him cos I knew who was he attacking and what he was gonna do in the other hand if you activate gambit you know what are you doing but you dont actually know what is he going to do or how to scape from it cos youve got something already plan that doesnt apply to everthing . I can see people changing their gambit over and over again for soem of this bosses - I didnt need to do that )

The combat log tells you want he's going to do, so it doesn't matter whether you're in wait or active mode. You're also missing the point of gambits in general. They're not one-size-fits-all deals, they simply remove the tedium that would seriously detract from the game. With those little things taking care of themselves, you can go about your business without being on top of everything.

Like I said before, this system gives you more control over your characters than just about every FF before it. An example of this being setting a character to attack enemies within a certain MP range, or when certain item is low. Manual alone doesn't approach that, so if it's control you're looking for this the stuff for you.

Quote:

let me tell you wait mode /active mode whatever is NOT hard at all playing it without gambits - I think is more of a challenge is just like playing any other ff but without this extra help. give it a go is fun!

Im on lushu mines killing "calaberas" lol

And I say it's needless work that borders on crazy. There's nothing fun about Aeronites pounding on you while you dig through menus for a spell (even when customized). Putting yourself through that extra work is like saying you actually like trolling monsters for rare loot, rather than earning it from a strong monster or something.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Originally Posted by Tomahawk

Forgot to mention something.
Some of the technicks in this game I have not bothered to use cause I don't understand them.
Traveler, Horology, Numerology, and Infuse = WTF?

List these spells uses please. I used Infuse before, but it just took an ally down to almost death before. Figured it was a crap spell.

Additional Spam:


Deathbringer late game = crap.
If you're about level 30 or so, with weapons that have 60-70 attack (or if you're in worse condition that that), the Deathbringers will be exceptionally helpful. They KO some creatures, and if they don't kill them with one hit, they'll do substantial damage anyway (90 attack).

Just be careful trying to snatch Deathbringers from Ithuno. The creatures there can be too powerful for you to handle, so you have to hold down R2 to just flee in and out.

NP Cyan - happy hunting!

Yes, the main issue with the last Necrohol boss is that he locks out physical attacks, so the battle tends to drag on. This means it'll give him tons of opportunities to do things like Aeroja (wind damage + confuse), and other spells.

If you want, try using the multi-cast trick posted on the page before.

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by PiccoloNamek

I wish I had known about that before I went and beat him the hard way.

Tell me about it. It would've made taking down bosses a breeze. I've noticed something that's very peculiar about this trick:

You don't lose MP.

I'm not kidding. If you have the license that restores MP everytime you damage an enemy with magic, you won't lose MP. The reason why is pretty easy to see. Let's say you gain a certain amount of MP back for doing 8k with Aeroga. Eventually, you'll start to decrease your MP with the spell casting + buffing going on.

However, if you're casting a spell and it's hitting three times, with each hit at around 8,000 points of damage, the gain exceeds the loss and you have tons of MP.

I wish I had followed through on my idea sooner, but this wouldn't have helped for the part of the game that takes place before you get Reflect Mail and Opal Rings. It would've rocked something fierce though, and it'd let low leveled parties get through tough areas.

Good luck with Chaos, Drex. I'm the same way. Even in exploratory dashes through places, I try to avoid getting killed (by bosses or regular enemies) for that very reason.

Question (PS2's off, so I can't check): Does Death bounce off of reflect?

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by SOLDIER_2825

So I'm about to go do the Hell Wyrm fight. I'm at level 79 right now so I don't know if that is too low or not but we'll see. I think i read somewhere that the only bad things about the fight are the fact that his HP is really high and that he often casts reverse? Is all that true and should I grind a bit before fighting?

That's about it. The fight with him is really boring, because of that too. Here's what he does:

Hell Wyrm moveset:

• Judgement (Special Attack, Element?)
• Darkga
• Physical Attack
• Elemental-Aga magic
• Inverse

IIRC, he has a random OHKO effect on his physical attacks, though it's much lower than Yiazmat's standard rate. Throw on Black Masks (Balfonheim) when he readies Darkga to heal from it.

Make sure you have Curaja, Arise and stuff to cure petrify and stop, as he uses Stone Breath and his special can inflict stop.

It's been a long time, so I'm probably missing something. Well, make sure you try out the little reflect thing to maximize spell damage if you're going to hit him that way.

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by Drex

Went off and got Exodus. Easy battle. Fought the Humbaba Mistant with no trouble whatsoever, too, but I'm so dead tired right now that I was literally falling asleep while roaming the Necrohol. Needless to say, I'm done gaming for the night and will have to take it up with Chaos again in the morning. Didn't think to try Reflect>Death on anyone, but I might have to try it if no one confirms it before then.

Oh, what is the best way to get rid of Stop, Immobilize, or Disable? Are Remedies the only way?

Remedy Lore 3, IIRC, gets rid of Doom, Stop and Disease. While Remedy Lore 1 adds Immobilize to things Remedies can heal, along with Disable.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Drex

So no spells. Drat. (I guess that's what I really wanted to know)

Give me a second I'll try it out, but I don't think Esunaga/Esuna will take those off (it might work on Immobilize).

Edit: Damn, Esuna/Esunaga doesn't work on Stop or Disease. It might work on Immobilize if that cheers you up any. Having trouble with a monster and status effects?

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by Drex

Not really, I just hate using consumables on status effects in general. It took me 30 hours of gameplay having Cleanse to realize that that's the way to rid myself of Disease, but I'm kinda peeved that I haven't found a spell to get rid of Stop, especially. You'd think that if Esuna didn't work that Haste would, but 'tisn't true. Oh well.

Well, Haste works on Slow because it's "speeding up the clock". If there was a time spell that could cure Stop, it'd probably called "Restart" or something.

Oh, and I just tried it now, Death spells get reflected. And there's nothing more sinister or filthy looking than a triple cast Scourge. For those who hate the Baknamy, you'll love seeing Blizzaga tear them apart.

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

Originally Posted by SOLDIER_2825

Hahaha, here's a fun thing to try with MS's new magic technique. I went to the deadlands and to the Overlooking Eternity. Run around there until a whole ton of dead bones come out (I think they only come out like 5-6 at a time but still...) and then cast your magic off of yourselves and watch them all fall. Your chain level will jump. Very Very amusing, I just laugh everytime I do it!!! Enjoy.

Yeah, if only there was a way to get the characters to cast the magic onto themselves without having to do it manually, though I guess it's best this way. Oh, for added security, make the person you could switch the caster/healer role so your character is the healer/reflectga refresher. Otherwise, you might wipe yourselves out if you're not in the buffer's range.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Just kill them. Poaching Emeralditans in the Deadlands is a waste of time. Kill all of them on the map, run through the save map to the Leynir (Sleipnir-like horses) map and back again. The Emeralditans will have respawned and you can try again.

Oh and poaching is easy to automate:

Foe status: HP Critical > Poach
Foe: nearest > Attack

Your characters will attack until the enemy reaches HP critical (blinking red) at which time they'll start poaching. Some enemies are immune, so make sure to turn it off when you're done. If you've already got 10 Espers speak with Geomancer Yugelu (sp?) just across from the shop in Jahara so he can open the way to the eastern section of the Henne Mines.

Go along until you start seeing reaper type enemies called Etem. Kill them until you get your soul powder.

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by SOLDIER_2825

Yea I had been zoning like that but just with no luck. But I would imagine as with most other rare loot in the game it just takes time and sometimes luck so i'll just keep at it for now.

I have ten Espers but I have been weary to go down there yet since I have read in earlier posts about the gang rapes that take place down there. But I'm thinking that with my characters at lvl 80 now they shouldn't be all that bad.

Set you Curaja gambits to something high, set KO status to Arise, keep Protect/Shell/Haste up constantly as well as Bravery/Faith. Exploit weaknesses as much as possible and avoid casting spells too much (have only one multi-caster). With that, you should do fine. Of course, make sure you have disable and confuse gambits and plenty of healing items.

Originally Posted by PiccoloNamek

Wow, this reflect trick makes black magic actually useful. I triple-Scathed a Ring Wyrm for 30,000 HP! If I ever play through the game again, I'll be sure to use this on all of the bosses.

Whoa, how'd you make it work? Did you have all three cast Scathe on themselves, or did you have one person cast Scathe on the team? I've tried doing that and all that happens is that it acts like a regular scathe.

Did it have consecutive damage figures, like 9999, 9999, 9999, etc?

FELIPE NO

Originally Posted by PiccoloNamek

Yes, 9999, 9999, 9999. I just had Basch use Scathe on himself and it hit three times all at once.

Awesome, I guess the reason I wasn't getting the same results was because I was testing this in the Necrohol (while looking for Vorres) on some Baknamy. Due to their low HP, it probably only took one stream's worth of max damage to waste it.

Fuck, you know how awesome that would've been against Yiazmat? Now the only thing I can actually test this on is Luxolid/Vagrant Souls/Shield Wyrms/Henne monsters (Gizamalukes)/folks in the Bahamut.

Sucks that you need to be all the way at the Phon Coast to get the necessary gear.

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by Lionking-Cyan

Woa, i got 3 deathbringers. It took me forever for the mob to spawn the first time, but the second and third succeded after little.
Are you saying that this weapon is not really useful in the endgame? 'Cause i really wanted to get it, as some people told me it's an endgame sword, and i found it as a weapon suggested in some of the hardest extra bosses strategies.

That sword's not worth the trouble for the added effect. Eventually you'll be doing damage that OHKOs anyway, and the times that the effect kicks in, you won't be gaining MP back from the damage inflicted. If you're going for OHKO, go with Assassin's Arrows. Death from a distance, and far more frequent than the Deathbringer.

And those bosses it was recommended for? They're immune to death spells or effects, so that advantage was never there in the first place. Heck, a ton of monsters are immune to that.

Most amazing jew boots

Originally Posted by Lionking-Cyan

So, what are the best 3 weapons in the game?

What weapon classes do you use and I'll tell you the best weapons for them.

Saga, I made a Scorpion Tail a few days ago. Ok damage, hate the random aspect of it, though.

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by Drex

Fury was a cinch. Chaos wasn't too bad. I forgot to steal from him, so I hope I didn't miss anything crucial. I used our little trick, and it would have been more effective to have had two Opal Rings with two healer/buffers, but I only had the one, so I made do. The most frustrating things were getting rid of silence and the time it took for Scathe to hit. Did wonders against Chaos once I took out his elemental buddies, though. Also wasn't ready for Fearga, and ended up having to use a Hi-Ether to get my healer's MP back up to an effective level.

Nah, AFAIK, all the Espers can have their corresponding gem stolen from them along with a High Arcana. The latter is very important to those trying to make a Tournesol. Fearga's definitely a bitch, but it's nothing a charge + a hi-ether can't fix.

Some folks are literally struck dumb after I tell them about this little trick, since magic is so damn weak in the single bursts they allow you normally.

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

Originally Posted by Drex

For that reason I haven't let it slip to the idiots at one of the other forums I check up on. All they talk about in an entire FFXII forum is what their favorite character is, and every other person asks why guns have such low attack power. Every fourth post is someone explaining that it cuts through defense, but no one listens. They don't deserve triple-casting.

Damn. You basically described what the FFXII thread over on the other places I check on are like, and I only mentioned it to one guy over IM. Bah, it doesn't matter. I've got another spell to test with it, one that should work due to it being multi-target in nature (Warp).

Most amazing jew boots

Originally Posted by Drex

Oh, here's a question. The Mandragora royalty that you take out shows up in the Bestiary saying that you still need 14 of each, or something like that. Do we know where to find them again so we can unlock that part of the Bestiary?

The Feywood. Even then, those bastards are hard to coax out. I managed to get them to appear by clearing the map and zoning a few times. If you don't kill them fast enough, they'll start leveling themselves above and beyond the levels of Henne Mine enemies. It's not fun fighting a level 99 enemy, I'll tell you that much.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Originally Posted by SOLDIER_2825

Is there any other way to enter the new section of the Henne Mines? (...Feywood?) Or do you always have to go in through the Ozmone Plains?

After searching for awhile the only enemy that pissed me off was the Hectytes and that's because of the mytrill bubbles. I wish all of my member HP was higher so I could just stop using the Bubble Belt. I know I can just cast bubble and all but sometimes when doing that and it wears off in the middle of the fight it ends up killing me. But down here I might do it anyways and keep casting it so I can actually utilize my other accessories.

You don't need bubble down there. Just have your healing gambits set high, and keep all your buffs refreshed and ready. The Hecteyes can be dealt with easily, just make sure you don't run into a whole lot of them with Abysteel. They'll freeze the battle with all their spells, while the bats tear you to ribbons.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Originally Posted by SOLDIER_2825

I learned that one the hard way on my first run through but it's not all that bad now. But yea I'll just rearrange the gambits like you said and go a little deeper. I didn't want to push my luck there for a bit so I turned around right before the Phase 2 shaft without running into any Etem's. I'm guessing that they are probably in the special charter shaft so I'll have to make another run down there to get that last Soul Powder (finally got that last damn Scarletite). My goal is to have the Tournsol by the nights end, and with so little left to do, I'm pretty sure it wont take that long

Yeah, they're in the Special Charter Dig map. Make sure you have your gambits set to take care of Diable, Confuse and Disease. The Etems are already enough, but the Necrofiends that they turn into love status effects and warping to avoid damage. Oh, and the spell casting advice up there? Heed it, two of these things will completely lock you up if you attempt to use too much magic.

FELIPE NO

The fishing game is unbelievably easy. The only part that's irritating is when fishing in the Upper Reaches after having obtained the Matamune fishing rod. You have 10% chance of getting the Cactoid Compact that allows you to fish in Hidden Shoal.

After that, it's a breeze, since over in HS, all you have to do is fish perfectly once which makes the Cactoid family gather on the boat. There, they present you with the Cactoid Commendation and you're off to the Master Den. There, the first fish you ever see is the King of Nebra. Simply enter the combination every time the fish swims by (it stays the same, don't worry) and by the 9th time, you'll have caught it.

Ruksel examines the fish's stomach/mouth and gives you what was inside, Lu Shang's Badge.

I'm taking down the last few rare game (the annoying ones) and doing very well. Just looking at the bestiary's progress bar with only a sliver of black left makes me anxious to get this game over and done with. A crappy surprise waited for me when I started though: Apparently, when I had been trying for a Grand Helm, I never saved after I encountered Tower, so I have to lure it out all over again.

Anyone have any tips on how to make doing that easier?

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

Originally Posted by PiccoloNamek

Tell me, is there any kind of special prize for beating all of the marks? I have yet to defeat the Seer and have no desire to do so, ever. I'd rather fight Omega MKXII again than walk around in Subterra for even a minute.

Motivate me, people.

Looks like I'm the un-motivator, heh. No, you don't get any reward for beating all the marks. Montblanc simply congratulates you on defeating Yiazmat, the whole clan is filled with nothing but high praise for you and that's about it. The only time you actually get a reward after everything else is finished is the Clan Centurio Badge thing and the rank of Order of Ambrosia. In order to get that you need to:

• Fill the Sky Pirate's Den
• Complete the Bestiary

This will complete everything under the Clan Primer menu, prompting the reward. As I said before, I'm on the cusp of this and the only thing really driving me forward is my perfectionist/completion-freak habits. Why else would a level 99 team go to Raithwall's tomb and smack a Lich while waiting for it to divide into Cultsworn Lich?

The good news is, I only need 3 rare game. The bad news is that the Garif Adventurer has a horrifyingly low spawn rate and the Mandragoras are not only rare but semi-dangerous.

As for the Shadowseer? I did all of that before fighting Omega, because I know I'd feel the same way you do, Piccolo. Well, you do get a little star on the end of the Hunt progress bar.

How ya doing, buddy?

Getting down to him is rather easy, it's the battle that's a pain. He hides behind palings most of the time and spams Fearga when he finally takes it down, among other things.
One thing that really irritated me, was that Pandemonium did that Perfect Defense crap that drug that first part even longer (especially when he had maybe 1/32ns of this health left).

Edit: Whoa, just finished the Seeq entry. A very strange tale on the creation of the land of Ivalice. Only 2 more rare game to go, some more mandragora, 1 Garif and the Whiteout concurrence.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Spatula

God damn, I don't even know if I'll be able to fill the beastiary, I'm about 50% full. I think now that I've taken down all the regular hunts, and mainly level VI and VII hunts remain. I'm thinking of taking down that fat chlululuwhatever esper. How's he like? Actually before that, I want to continue my Medal quest.

Take on Cuchulainn before you fight Chaos. Even with the HP drain effect on the field and the danger of being disabled in said environment, you can get him at a much lower level with ease. The fight with the Walker of the Wheel will drag on quite a bit, though because Attack is sealed. This will give him plenty of opportunity to thrash you with Quakeja and his other attacks.

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

Originally Posted by SOLDIER_2825

Haha So Drex is there anyway you could tell me some more detailed information about the weapons, or even possibly play the game for me? haha just kidding.

I'm thinking of devoting some serious time to leveling up my secondary party since they are only at 50 while my main is at 86. I wanted to have them equal before the Yizmat/Omega fights. Well definetley for the Yizmat fight but did you guys have to use your second party for the Omega fight?

Edit: Does anyone know where I can find a good Great Crystal map, or just give me GOOD directions to Ultima?

Axes//Handbombs are all based on W.Attk/Str/Vit + enemy W. Def. Hammers are the same way, except as Drex said, they attack M. Defense. Equipping something like the Cat-Ear Hood that boosts Vit+Spd, causes them to reduce their potential damage range. In other words, it makes you more likely to hit high, and less likely to hit low.

Poles aren't tricky at all. They're just a regular weapon that strike M. Def instead of W. Def. They're the only 2H weapon that actually combos better than the Masamune (which is why I would give the Genji Gloves to a pole user, if I had them).

Spears, I don't use because the Gungnir is actually rather weak, and slower than swords, bows. They've got slightly longer range, but in a team with a bow, that's not a good thing (as they're stuck in the middle).

The Grand Crystal? While seanne's advice is correct, the basic gist of what you have to do is open Virgo II, Capricorn II, Libra II and Taurus I.
Open the first 3 before going to the Aquarius switch to trigger it.

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

Originally Posted by Spatula

That would be more appropriate for this thread. Also, why bother playing it on the PS2. It's like playing Rainbow Six Vegas on PS2.

Can someone tell me what I should do with the red crystal bug in the Deadlands. I don't have invert.

Kill it. That's all it takes. Remember when I said, some brave souls could try to trek through the Deadlands at low levels and reach the crystal to save, and Piccolo reminded me about the bug? Yeah.

So yeah, just approach it like you would an optional boss or something.

Most amazing jew boots

Holy shit... why did they have to make Tower so damn hard to spawn? Here's what I'm doing:

Killing everything on the 80th floor then using the Black Sigil to get to the next floor. I kill everything there, and then use the hidden Green Sigil to move on. In the next area, I take down the Aeronite and use the red Sigil which takes me to a platform with 2 more of the ghoulish looking dragons. After those are taken care of, I touch the purple sigil and wind up on the level with the hidden white waystone. Of course, everything is dead before I go on up, and Tower is supposed to be there on the 88th floor.

Nothing

I must be doing something wrong, or it has a lower spawn rate than when I saw it before, because it hasn't appeared in about an hour and a half's worth of up and down.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?