Rabanastre
After some scenes you'll gain control of Vaan. He'll be fighting three Dire Rats, easy prey for you. They are sneakily fast and Vaan is weak and low leveled so stay aware. More scenes will occur and you'll be outside in town with control of Vaan.
You can't go in any stores but you can talk to all the townspeople. Penelo is in the north part, so talk to her and then go to Migelo in the very bottom. He wants you to go to the
You'll find Kytes here and Tomaj. Tomaj will give you a Clan Report so that you can track monsters that you hunt. In addition he has an Orrachea Armlet for you, and he'll show you how to acquire licenses for abilities and equipment. Last, he'll give you a Writ of Transit that will allow you to leave.
Go to the north part of town and then go west to get to the Clan HQ. Talk to Montblanc and he'll enlist you in their clan. You can talk some more and continue west to the Bazaar where you can shop. Unfortunately you can only get things based on your rank, and since yours is low at the moment means that there won't be much.
Directly in the middle (southwest of the weapon shop) and you'll meet a banga that has a special package for his friend. He can't get by the east gate though, so take his package and go east and the guard will let you through. Talk to the bangaa merchant by the save point and this will be the one you were supposed to deliver to. He'll gladly take the package and you can continue on.
Dalmasca Estersand
Your first real freedom with Vaan (or anyone for that matter). Fight the Wolves and the Cactites, but the Wild Saurian's are probably too much for you to handle at this point. Wander around and get the treasures that hold either Gil or a Potion. In the north part is an exit, which leads to a rest area with some travelers. You can spend 100 gil to rest but you're better off just using Potions to restore yourself. If you search around here you'll find more Potions and small amounts of Gil. At this stage in the game it's probably worth your time.
Back outside, head to the middle area where you will see the Rogue Tomato. He's not too difficult at first, and you'll knock him down a level once you get his HP to about half. Run after him but take care as he'll soon ready Flame Breath. Shouldn't be too much for you to overcome as long as you keep up with the Potions. Galbana Lilies are your reward for defeating him, along with a message that you've vanquished him.
Rabanastre
Back in Rabanstre, Vaan will be stopped from entering as some Chocobos get to go in first. Migelo eventually gets you in and you'll see some scenes and have some free time. Return to the Sand Sea Restaurant to see Tomaj, who will reward you with 300 gil, 2 Potions and a Teleport Stone for your efforts against the Tomato. You can check the board on the other side of the bar to see that Thextera (Mutant Wolf) is now available. Agree to this mark and you can talk to Gatsly (he's waiting right by the board). Thextera is on the other side of Rabanastre (Westersand) near Galtea Downs. He'll give you more specific directions also.
At this point, I bought the Broad Sword and Cure Magic, and I got both from their respective shops in town. The coming battles against Thextera and his wolf friends will prove difficult. You'll first want to clear out the area and get the Potions, Gil and other treasures (you get a water-based item also). I had Vaan up to level four, and then I returned to the Save Point at the Rabanastre gate to rest.
Back in Westersand, if you take that left right away like Gatsly says, you'll come to several wolves gathering around one big one. This is why you want to clear as many wolves out as possible, making this fight as easy as possible. It will be hard though and you'll have to keep your wits about you. Remember, you can run to the save point to recharge if need be. Thextera and his wolf friends (usually 2 or 3) are at the top of that mountain on the left and they'll charge you when you get close (and they will follow you all the way back if you try to run). They're fast and do multiple attacks.
Thextera gets more difficult as his HP lessens (like most monsters). He uses Fang which'll take off around 110 on you. He'll also cry for help, and a wolf will come to help him (especially rough if you already have a lot on you). So basically, keep yourself rested until he gets to the half way mark, where you'll want to be even more careful. Once he is dispatched remember that the other wolves won't disappear so deal with them and then go back to Gatsly. He'll reward you with a Headguard, Teleport Stone and 500 Gil.
You can go to Lowtown now, via the east. Once down there you should talk to everyone and go south. Old Dalan lives in the southmost house, and Vaan will have a talk with him. Rest up and go south toward the Giza Plains (hopefully you bought a map in the center of Rabanastre).
Giza Plains
The monsters here are decidely easier than what you encounted during your hunt of Thextera. The Hyena's are much easier than the Wolves and the Giza Rabbits are a joke. Grab the treasures (Potions and maybe some Gil) and then go to the south area.
You'll meet a bunch of nomad's. In the southern part of the area you'll meet Masyua. Masyua will explain the situation to you regarding the sunstones that you need. First, you have to save Jinn, a boy who helps collect them. After this talk is over, Vaan will spot Penelo, and she'll invite herself along. When you're ready, head out via the south exit. Before you are allowed to leave, Penelo will bring up some group fighting basics along with gambits. Basically now that you have two characters, you can switch between them and you can also set plans for the character(s) that you aren't controlling(otherwise they'll just act normally, attacking usually). It's not too complicated and you'll get plenty of practice against monsters you were doing okay against by yourself. However there will be some tougher monsters, notably in the left and west side (like the Urstrix, Wild Snake, Alpha Hyena and Slaven).
You can reach Dalmasca Estersand if you go east, but there is no reason for that. Instead, clear out the east route (with the help of a bangaa warrior) and then go south, where you will meet an injured Jinn. He'll tell you how to make a sunstone with a shadestone (use the Dark Crystals until the energy is sufficient). Save at the save point and go out and get the energy up and return to Jinn. Use select to see the four Black Crystal locations. You'll get a Sunstone after you visit the fourth one, and then Jinn will give his approval.
Masyua will give you 50 gil, 2 Potions and 2 Teleport Stones afterwards. Back to the lowertown and to Dalan's house. Penelo will leave you and then you'll talk to Dalan alone. He gives you the scoop on how to enter - first go to the Storehouse 5 (where you fought the Dire Rats). It's directly north in Lowtown. Then talk to Kytes inside, who will open the door and give you 2 Potions and 4 Phials of Eye Drops. You are to use the Crescent Stone that was given to you by Dalan to light your way. By the way, buying black magic (especially Blizzard) might not be a bad idea for Vaan.
Garamsythe Waterway
Mostly you'll encounter Dire Rats and Steeling down here. Take a right first although it is a dead end, it is worth fighting Rats to level up. Shortly after entering I had Vaan up to level 6, just for reference. Save and go the other way now (left from the entrance). You'll be at the bottom left level of a huge area. Work your way to the other side, killing the Rats and the Steeling present. There are a few Potions in some of the dead end alley-type areas, so get them if need be.
You'll get to a narrower area with an Ether and a Steeling. Careful here, the monsters behind you will tend to re-appear so you can't retreat too far or else you'll be screwed. This is why having Fire Magic (or some kind of magic) is good for long-range purposes. Continue to the northeast part of the floor to get another Potion and the exit.
There are Razorfin's and Ichthon's on this next floor. They're a bit more difficult than what you've been dealing with in the first area. Be patient and deal with them one at a time and you shouldn't have any issue. Continue to check the dead ends for petty treasures (Potions / Gil) and then continue along. You'll get to an area where your navigate is basically worthless as there are enemies below you but it looks like they're right next to you on the navigator. Careful though, some of these enemies are Steeling's which can fly at you at any point, so as soon as you seen yourself become targetted, target them. You'll make your way to another water-filled area with a few Ichthon's waiting your arrival. Kill them off and then take the passage leading south (eventually winding towards the northwest corner of the map) and to a Mage Masher. This is a better weapon than you probably have, so use some License Points to get Daggers 1 and you can use it. Work your way back to the initial fork and go north, eventually to the palace stairs. Cure yourself and head up the stairs. You'll be asked twice if you want to go - just making sure you're ready.
The
You finally made it. Okay it wasn't that long. Save your game (in a new slot, like the game suggests). Search the urn for a map of the palace. The passage to Garamsythe is there but Vaan won't use it.
In the next room, talk to everyone and get the treasures. An Antidote, Remedy and a decent amount of gil. To the north, the imperial guards will tell you that you cannot go upstairs. Go up and talk to the guard personally. Return to the Seeq nearby and he'll help you. He tells you to yell at the guard, so press square to do so. Vaan calls the guard a bucket head, and then the guard runs over to you and the Seeq. Now run to the right wall and hug that wall as you wrap around and up the stairs. Time it so that he won't see you (ie make your break just as he's getting to the Seeq). Shouldn't be too hard.
Next floor, Vaan will recall Dalan mentioning to stand on a signet and use the sunstone (now the Crescent Stone). This area is a little tricky but you're going to use the same concept you used to get up the stairs. Press square to call the guards over to a certain area. Press select first. You'll see four horizontal lines in this room. The one you start off on has the Hawk signet in the middle. This is useless, but the one north of that (second-northmost one) has the Lion signet. Here's how I got there.
Go to the very south and hug the north-part of the wall there. Wrap around and go north a little and you'll have south guards on both sides of you, but not close enough to catch you (the guards in the southeast corner and the ones directly north (on par with the Hawk signet route) that you need to call over. Press square to do so, and then circle back to the area where you entered and go down the Hawk signet route. The guards who were at the end of this should now be further south since you called them down there. This should give you the opportunity to run along the east side and then go west along the Lion signet route. Use that Crescent Stone and a switch will light. You're not out of trouble yet though, you have to call a few more sets of soldiers to get to the northwest corner. Return back to the initial part of this stage to call the soldiers on the left further south. Now run up to the Lion signet path and that should be open as you go west. Call the soldiers to the north of you, and then go east and up and west and it should be open. Continue straight and you'll see the green flame that lit up. Search that door and you'll go through.
Hit the switch and go through the door. You'll see a goddess magicite and Vaan will take it, but two others will bust in on him. Continue along and watch the scenes, going north when you have a chance to continue the scenes. Eventually Balthier and Fran will join you and you'll go over Gambits again. For now I just keep it on attack the leader's foe and heal at my own discretion, as I think healing when the HP goes below 70% is a little overuse.
Garamsythe Waterway
Time to make your way back through the Waterway. Check the soldiers and go to the next room. Hang a left and get the Garamsythe Waterway Map. Press select and you'll see it's a pretty linear path from this point forward.
Continue along and take the stairs to your right when you have a choice, for a Potion. Further along and you shouldn't have any problem mowing through Rats and Bats with three characters. Soon you'll be in the next room, where you should take the dead end path first (up the stairs) so that you can get an Ether. Take the next path and you'll see a Gigantoad. These suckers have a ton of HP so be smart. Along the way you'll get a Longsword, equal in power to the Mage Masher.
You'll get to a section with two Steeling's and two Gigantoads. The Gigantoads are likely to run up the stairs after you if you go that way and the Steelings will follow you wherever, so it's likely that you're going to get swamped. Still though, hold your ground and you'll clear up the area. Grab the rest of the treasures in the dead end and continue on until you see a Save Point. Save and be ready.
A mysterious woman will be fighting imperial soldiers, but she gets backed into a corner. She jumps into Vaan's hands and a battle ensues (but she's not in it). There are four Imperial Soldiers, they aren't difficult. After the battle, she'll introduce herself as Amalia. Unlike the other two, she won't take orders from you and fights on her own accord. Return back and save, and then go to the next room.
Circle around the left corner for a Leather Shield and then go forward to initiate a battle against four Flan. Tough, slime-like creatures. They are weak against fire, so you are well served to cast it with Vaan or whomever, but try to cast Fire once on each and have the others attack it to it's death. This should create good flow as you can go one by one. After the battle, go straight to get the Dagger and then take the right path to go downstairs to the next area. Grab the Tuft of a Phoenix Down but watch out, monsters will come after you if you go a little further.
The Gigantoad is around these parts, as is a Ghost and a Garchimacera. Veterans of FF5 remember "Garkimasra" in the Walse dungeon. Fortunately you have four members fighting total. A good strategy is to run ahead and hit someone quick without them seeing (with Vaan) and then retreat, allowing the others to peg away at the monster chasing you. This allows for more efficient battle for your party, taking less damage long term. Check the corners for treasure and continue to the next room.
The second left passage has a Cotton Shirt here. Take the lower end to kill the Gigantoad and the Ghost and then go back upstairs to continue along to the Garchimacera's. There are several of them (3 or 4 I think) and they'll rush you at the same time, so be prepared. Continue further and lean towards the right and you'll come across The Gambit Foe: Targeting Self. In the next room, you can save and look at four rusted devices. Not much you can do, go through the door.
A fire-based boss appears, the Firemane. That's why you should have bought Blizzard for Vaan. Use it exclusively, healing when necessary. Attacking is fine too. Careful of Bush Fire, it'll poison you and take off 100 each likely. Heal up and watch for the Kicks he uses often. After the battle, you are caught by the imperials.
The townspeople think the commotion was all over you. You are locked up and Vaan has a dream of sorts. You'll wake up in Nalbina Dungeons.
Nalbina Dungeon
Walk about, and Save if you want. You'll find four Knots of Rust down here. Talk to everyone and Save, and continue along. You'll see two Bangaa prisoners get killed by two vicious Seeq's. These seeq's aren't the friendly ones you saw laughing outside. A third one will jump Vaan and he'll wake up being drug around a sand area.
Save when you regain control and go north. You'll be right by where the imperials keep all of the prisoners equipment. That means yours. You can also search around for a Tourmaline Ring and Gambit Foe: Targeting Leader. Save again and continue on, and you'll get to a part where the door closes behind you. Your party makes it through, but there are plenty of imperials on your side of the wall unfortunately.
You can fight them all if you wish. I run up the stairs that you are near and clear that area out, getting the Chromed Leathers. Imperial Hoplite, Imperial Magus, Imperial Swordsmen and Imperial Marksmen are scattered about. Kill them all, get the treasures (Knot of Rust mostly) and follow the Judge through the door that he and his friends went through.
You'll see some scenes with the Judge and Bash. The Judge and friends will leave and you'll have a chance to talk to Basch. Your party will cut his cell down and you'll all fall down. After the event, Basch joins as a guest.
Barheim Passage
Again, you have Basch as a guest. Go straight (down the stairs) and then east for a bunch of Gil, and then west to Save. Talk to Burrogh, he has a really nice shop. I bought some Leather Shields and Bronze Armor here for as many as I could, not to mention BlindA, PoisonA and any other spells I could afford. Last but certainly not least is the Ally:HP <>
Hit the switch next to him and then go upstairs and try to use the Power Relay. It won't work, so return to the Bangaa to get a Tube Fuse. Go back up and use this and everything will light up. Now go downstairs and press the switch to open the door. The charge lowers. The bangaa will tell you to make sure you have a charge otherwise tough monsters will come about.
As you continue along, you'll see Battery Mimics. They suck your charge down, and you'll want to kill them right away. There is also a Little Mimic and Zombie in this room. Clear it out and get the Quiver of Onion Arrows. The next room is a little easier, and then you'll be in a room with a Battery Mimic and a Steeling.
This new area has much more narrow pathways, just watch for the Battery Mimics. You might get pulled into combat with other monsters, like Little Mimics and Steelings. Again, just worry about the Battery Mimics should this happen. For some reason, Fran killed Basch and then stopped attacking. Strange.
You'll find the map (you can actually see it through the wall of where a Battery Mimic is, but can't get it until you circle around) shortly after entering the narrower area. This should open things up a bit and allow you to see the dead ends so you can search them first, although most of the treasures are Gil, Potions, Remedy or an Ether.
When you get the chance, take the dead end path that heads to the west (instead of south, the fork after getting the map). Clear this out (2 Battery Mimics in here) but you'll see you cannot continue. Return and take the path south, and you'll see a Battery Mimic in the next room. It'll scamper south, so follow it as no other enemies are down there. Back west and you'll fight a pair of Flan, and then you'll see the charge going down. Continue westward as a Battery Mimic will be over here as well, and a Flan will drop down and ambush you on top of that. Ignore the Flan and kill the Battery Mimic. Grab the Potion and Onion Arrow Quiver and go further west.
This is the last room, and there is a switch at the end. You're going to want to take the west (upper) path first, as this leads to a few Flan and a Buckler (great shield, although L2 Shields take a while to get to). Return downstairs and you'll see a Battery Mimic through the narrow path. Kill him immediately, and then the switch and a few more Flan are in the last room. Hit that switch to hear a door open to the south. Take that path south to a small area where there will be a flashback regarding Reks, Vaan's brother who you controlled with Basch early in the game. Finally though there is a Save Crystal here, so use it.
Not much left from this point on. You'll see on your map that there is a Battery Mimic just south of you, so rush it with your party. A few of the treasures around here are Mimic enemies. One of them is the Gambit Foe: HP greater than / equal to 50% though, so make sure you get that.
In the next room, there will be two Battery Mimics right by you. One of them will fight you while the other runs further south. Kill them both, there are only two other Little Mimics around. Return to the beginning of the area and get the Gil treasures along with the Light Woven Shirt. You'll notice the charge is still going down, that's because this is a large area and there is a Battery Mimic at the other end of the area that you want to sprint after. Careful, a new monster, the Suriander, is around. Kill the first one and go up the hill area to find two Tiny Mimics and a Battery Mimic. Kill that Battery Mimic first of course. There is a Gil treasure and the exit here, but first go the other way you skipped before, by the Suriander. There are two more Surianders and a dead end. Okay, so that wasn't really worth it.
Back to where you fought the last Battery Mimic, and exit out. Save your game and continue on. You'll be fighting four Tiny Battery's and a Mimic Queen. Just attack the Mimic Queen (Steal of Knot of Rust if you'd like) and use Blizzard (and not Thunder). This battle will be very tough, and there's also the factor of the Tiny Battery's sucking the energy out on the sides. The energy got pretty low so I assume it's likely to go to 0 if you completely ignore them. That said the Mother will use Earthshaker and a powerful thunder storm attack that will likely kill a few characters. I won by sneaking in a Blizzard at the last minute with both Fran and Balthier having less than 50 HP (the other two being dead). Some scenes happen and eventually you're out!
Dalmasca Estersand
Save, and then you can explore a bit. Go north first, and then east for a door which is locked. Then go north for a camp area, where you can buy things (like items, accessories and a map of Estersand). A ferry normally runs here but not right now. There is also a Gate Crystal here.
Go south now into the center area, where you will see an unknown exit to the northeast. Go here and you'll see an FMV, this is Nalbina Fortress. There are plenty of shops here, the Gambit one has some especially nice choices. You can get better weapons and armor than you've been accustomed to, so use all those License Points you earned fighting recently. I don't know where I came across it, must have been from an enemy, but I had a Mage's Habit, great armor for this early in the game. Return back to Rabanastre now.
Rabanastre
The party splits up when you enter. Save and notice the moogle attendant. He can transport you around Rabanastre. Use this to go into Migelo's Sundries. Kytes will talk to you, and then you are to go to the slums, wait I mean Old Dalan's house.
He has you deliver a sword, the Sword of the Old Order. Deliver this to the red area on the map and you'll see a scene with Basch. He'll join as he needs Balthier's wings. Go to the second floor of the
That Flowering Cactoid (Rare Cactoid) is still there. You are to meet Dantro in Estersand for this one. Talk to Dantro in the middle section and he'll explain the Flowering Cactoid, and it resides in Yardang Labyrinth. Go to the upper-center area and you'll find it (that's where mine was at least). He was incredibly easy for me, as were the weak monsters around him. He has a 1000 Needles move that he uses when he's low and you get a Cactus Flower for defeating him. Return to Dantro to receive 500 Gil and 10 Potions.
Talk to Dantro again and he'll ask you take the flower to his wife in a camp north of here. So, go north and talk to her (in the middle area of her camp by a house). She gives you a bundle of needles and asks for some Semclam Shells. Go in the nearby water and search the shiny objects to get them. Then she asks for Nebralim.
Back in Dantro's camp, search behind the Chocobo to find a Phial of Nebralim. Take this back to his wife and then she'll ask for the Valeblossom Dew. You can't get this now, so just return to the board at the
The Wraith (Ghost) is also available. Accept it and talk to Milha in the north part of Lowtown to get the details. Enter Storehouse 5 and take a right into Garamsythe. Stand around in the center and a Wraith will appear. He is not easy, much more difficult than the Cactoid you just fought. He'll cast Blizzard on you and Doom, not to mention some other more annoying, status-based attacks (like Dark). He is weak against Thunder so utilize that. I had all three characters casting that (or Cure). He has a ton of HP but as long as you have a Phoenix Down or two (to survive Doom) you should be okay.
Back at Lowtown, talk to Milha to see the "person" scared was actually a baby Seeq. You get 500 Gil, Ether and a pair of Gauntlets. Go inside the house to get a very important Dusty Note. You'll need this later.
Time to visit Montblanc at the Clan Hall. He gave me 2 Warp Motes and 2 Teleport Stones for going up one class and then 3 Remedies and 2 Teleport Stones. Finally, for defeating Flan, the Rabanastre Common Council will give you 150 gil. The Rabanastre Healers Covent will give you 200 Gil for defeating the Firemane and a lady will give you 300 for killing the Mimic Queen.
Now Montblanc has some choices for hunts. Choose Cluckatrice in the Giza Plains. Go to the Nomad Settlement which is just a screen south, and go to the Cockatrice area and talk to Dania there. Accept the hunt and go to the Giza North Bank. It's probably too hard for you so I'll touch on this later. To continue the story, speak with Fran at the Aerodrome and then go inside and talk to Balthier. He'll have things set up to go to Bhujerba. Watch the flying scenes and the Penelo scenes and you'll be there.
The Skycity of Bhujerba
Lhusu Mines
You're going to want to take the first path going south all the way down for a Quiver of Onion Arrows. Then, go north a little, west a little, and then southwest for the exit. Now you'll be on the exterior area, and this is a bit more difficult. The center is filled with enemies but it is pretty empty on the outsides. Still though, you'll want to build up so head through the center. Keep in mind though that there are traps in the middle of areas that you are walking in, so be cautious about where you are walking (hug the walls).
In this next room you can take the right path and go through to continue north. Just a little longer and Lamont will find the Nethicite that he needed to see. The bangaa hunters were following you (remember them from Rabanastre, the green one especially). Not sure if you can kill them but they certainly were on pace to kill me fast, so just run back to Bhujerba.
The Skycity of Bhujerba
Back in town, go through the scenes and you'll have to raise the rate to 100% to get Basch's identity through to the citizens. Finding larger groups helps as does the guides, they're the biggest boosts. Once it gets to 100%, you'll be brought in front of a group that wants you to see Omdore. Before you do this though, you'll gain control and can do some things.
Go to the board and sign up for Nidhogg. Talk to Aekom in the northeast part to initiate the hunt. Now Nidhogg is very tough, was for me at level 13 at least. He is in the third room at the Lhusu Mines, so you'll probably want to clear that room out before going after Nidhogg. Get everyone to have Gambits that use Fire magic on him, that's what he's weak against. I ran into the problem of running out of MP too early, as in right before Nidhogg was about to die. He moves much faster and attacks consecutivelty often not to mention uses Tail Slash which will kill a character fast. Because of this it might be wise to save some MP for later (or save one of the four characters for later) for one last push. When he is done, you get 600 Gil, The Rose Corsage, and the
Time to go to the Marquis house in the north. Look at the map for the big red X. Once you go here, you'll go inside and see a bunch of scenes. The judge wants the stone Vaan stole and he gets it. Your party is locked up but catches a break as an imperial soldier is caught off guard. Vossler joins and then you should save.
Dreadnought Leviathan
Vossler is of high level, he'll be a big help. After the save room, you'll be in a much larger room. You'll get taught about the lasers protecting certain passages. It's not the end if you hit one of them but you will have enemies directed towards you for a while. Regardless, make your way south for some Gil and then far east for The Gambit Ally : Status = HP Critical. Now go south and you'll be in the south-most room with an opportunity to go into the room northeast of this one, or the one to the far east. Take the one that has two exits (the one directly east that leads north).
You'll find Gil and Blue Fangs around here. Just continue through to the top, where you should activate the switch and then continue on. In this room, go to the west and you can go further west than the map suggests. You'll find an Ancient Sword and the Assassin's Dagger over here, brilliant weapons for your immediate use likely. Hit the switch and continue on to get to the far east room.
Rest up and head through the door straight in the center. This will prompt a battle against two Judges and some henchmen. Three Swordsman and an Imperial Magus to be exact. Take out the Magus right away and then the Swordsmen. The Judges have the most HP so naturally they are to be dealt with last. By the time those are the only two left, you should have no problem surrounding the Judges. They stick to physical attacks so just heal and you'll be a fine. They've got a Tri-Attack they use at the end, and like any boss they're toughest right before they die. A No. 1 Brig Key is your reward, and then you can use that to continue onward.
You'll see four cells. The one immediately to your right has a Systems Access Key, and a Save Crystal. Across from this is a moogle shop, worth your time to visit incase you can fill in some holes. The cell next to this is empty and the one across from this is Ashe. You now have 5 party members and a guest.
The alarms will set as you leave the area. Just continue to run through and don't fight anyone, it's not worth your time. At the end, Lamont and Vossler will go off on their own but Lamont will give you a piece of Manufactured Nethicite. A few more areas to the left and you'll encounter Judge Ghis at the port, along with three Imperial Swordsmen. Ghis is slow to get to you so clear out the Swordsmen before he can get to you. Ghis has some powerful physical attacks and seems to go after Ashe if she's in the party. He's really not that difficult, he has Aero that he'll use on you but that's just 150 or so. You can heal after it and be fine.
Afterwards you'll have found a way out and you'll be at Bhujerba before you know it.
The Skycity of Bhujerba
Back in town, go to the Marquis. He'll have a plan ready. Afterwards your party escapes and decides to follow Lady Ashe. This gets you to Dalmasca Westersand, where you should make your way back to Rabanastre
Rabanastre
First of all, there are new things at the shops. Check them out and upgrade what you can. Berserk is a must, as are Round Shields and Ancient Swords.
I went for the Cluckatrice another time now. It was too difficult prior to going to the Skycity of Bhujerba, but I was finally able to defeat him at level 13, with physical attacks. I'd concentrate on the main one, as the chicks just attacked Vaan for 0 damage. Watch out for the status ailments, they can cripple your chances if you don't have the necessary items. Afterwards, the Little Love on the Big Plains rewards you with 1000 Gil, Rainbow Egg and Jackboots.
Now if you waited to fight the Rocktoise (talk to Montblanc to apply), then this might be a good time to try. Do remember it'll cost you 200 to fly to Bhujerba again. And do remember Rocktoise will probably destroy you if you don't know what you're doing. I couldn't beat him, I'm sure some Mist Links could do him in though. For now I'll skip him and sign up for the Wyvern, and then continue on to Westersand.
Dalmasca Westersand
If you didn't explore this area when you returned from Bhujera, then look at it now. You can uncover a path to Giza Plains, as well as one to the Zertinan Caverns. Directly to the north is an area you can't get to now, so continue on westward. Past the camp and you'll be at Ogir-Yensa Sandsea.
Ogir - Yensa Sandsea
Vaan will have a scene with the sand as you walk in. Walk up the ramp and follow your way to the southwest. Pretty easy screen. Continue further and Vossler will join you. I like to use Berserk on Vossler and watch him tank through hundreds of Urutan-Yensa's.
Take the west path for a map of the Ogir-Yensa Sandsea. You'll see that this place is downright huge. Take the south passages first for some treasures (mostly just Gil and Potions but there is the Gambit Ally: Status = Confuse. Further along to the southwest is an exit that leads to a Gate Crystal and a merchant. He has some really nice spells you should buy, Raise and Cura (expensive of course). Further west is an entrance to the Nam-Yensa Sandsea.
Return back and head north, and then check the center if you want. One of the southern "circles" has a Gambit Ally: MP <>
You'll notice that nearly all of your enemies are Urutan-Yensa. Use this to your advantage, as if you get a 50 chain (otherwise known as killing 50 Urutan-Yensa's without killing a different monster or going to a save point) you'll get a Montblanc picture at the Sky Pirate's Den.
So as you work your way north and then south again, in the middle you'll see another exit. This, like the northeast one, leads to a different area of the Zertinan Caverns. Not where you want to go through, so you might as well head west. You'll make your way to the Nam-Yensa Sandsea. Before this though, you'll speak with a moogle, and listen carefully to what he says.
Nam-Yensa Sandsea
Save as you get here and then continue west. Note that I took the upper Nam-Yensa path as opposed to the one that comes out from the merchant's area farther south. Regardless, Save and continue west and then south, but stick to the east wall as you go south to see a forested path. I found a Lambent Hat, good for this point.
Soon you will come to the Urutan Eater. This is a gigantic creature that loves Urutan-Yensa's. You can try to kill it, it has pretty good defense and a ton of HP though. Fortunately you can get huge combos and Vossler will downright slaughter this creature as a Guest. You'll get a message saying you killed it, should you do so. Return to the moogle and talk to him. Then go back to Ogir-Yensa and up the ramp to see a scene. Return back to where the moogle is to see another scene. Now you can take the Eksir Berries. Afterwards, I went back east through the southern route to the gate crystal to go back to Rabanastre (and spend money on Armor).
Back at the Ogir-Yensa Gate Crystal, go west and take the skinny bridge going southwest. There is a treasure and a Nam-Yensa map. Another big (yet smaller than the last) desert. Take the south route now and you'll fight a bunch of Bagoly's. If you take the southern path you'll come across the Gambit Fore: HP > 1000. New enemies (Axebeaks) are here as well. The exit in this area leads to another Zertinan Caverns entrance. Not worth going to of course, so return back and make your way west.
You'll get to a large desert area that combines the upper and lower paths. In the northwest part of this area is The Gambit Foe > 500. The north part is really nothing of note, so continue westward. The bridge going north has explosives at the start of it, and it leads to nothing. So, it's probably not worth your time to go down there to fight Yensa's.
Do go further west, and then take the northeast path first as that is a dead end (the west continues). There will be a few explosives you'll trigger, hopefully you bought Raise. If you go directly east in this area (up the ramp) you'll come to two treasures (and no enemies along the way). The treasures were just an Antidote and some Gil though.
If you take the western path that leads north, you'll come to some minor treasures along with the Wyvern Lord. Needless to say, he is not an easy Hunt. He flies so that makes things even that much more difficult. I wasn't able to defeat him so I continued westward. You'll come to the merchant again, who has some words of advice.
The Tomb of Raithwall
The Tomb of Raithwall is just before you as you work west. A Garuda will meet you, and if you paid attention to the moogle and the merchant you'll know that those Eksir Berries could help you a lot. If you use them on him, he'll become much more tame and the battle will be extremely easier. Magic or Bows are your best bet to bring this creature down.
Inside you'll see a Gate Crystal, where you should obviously save. Take the teleport and continue on until a Demon Wall bars your path. Run from this one and then in the next room another appears! Run towards this one and start attacking it. I was best off Berserking 3 of my characters and using one to Heal or cure status (like Blind, Sleep, or characters in the Void). He'll go down rather fast and you have a lot more time than the first fight. Now you can retreat afterwards and Save and come back, in which case that first Demon Wall will fight you again. You still probably can't kill it but it'd be wise to do so later.
Continue along, and I chose the left path. This will take you to the lower section, where you should work towards the middle to a glowing switch. Hit it, and then hit the teleport switch in the middle to go back to the center room (where you chose to go left). This time, go right. You'll be on the upper part where you can make your way to another glowing switch that will open up a new area completely that isn't on the map.
Continue to the lower part, grabbing the treasures on the side. In the center leads even lower, to a boss named Belias. This guy killed me the first time I fought him. He has an Oil-based attack that takes off around 400 and leaves characters in the Oil status. The second time I went to fight him, I had Shell and Protect on before I started the fight and then Berserked a few characters and kept a conservative plan (not using Water the entire time). With Shell and Protect (along with Hankerchief's to cure the Oil status) you should be able to take down Belias regardless of his barrier he puts up towards the end of the battle.
Continue past the door and you'll get the Dawn Shard after a scene or two. Take the teleport behind you when you regain control for a quick leave. Now, you're about to go through a bunch of scenes.
Eventually, Vossler and three Imperial Soldiers attempt to stop you. Fran will be in Berserk mode so that helps things greatly. Try killing the soldiers as fast as you can, allowing you to focus completely on Vossler afterwards. Berserking your other characters might be a good idea, as is using Protect on them. Vossler will get violent and will attack several times consecutively as he is nearing death.
More scenes and eventually you'll be back in Rabanastre.
Rabanastre
You have some more freedom. After buying equipment / spells, I suggest catching yourself up on the hunts. Return to Montblanc and go after the Rocktoise if you haven't defeated him already (which is the case for me). He'll likely give you some additional small rewards for certain feats (getting an esper, defeating certain enemies, etc). Rocktoise at level 19 or 20 should be easy, although it'd be even easier if you fought it with Vossler. Have someone with a powerful bow, like the Longbow, and then two others that you can Berserk and have melee attack. Be sure to cast Protect right before you walk into his area. Afterwards return to Pilika in Bhujerba to get 1200 Gil, a Hi-Potion and a Heavy Coat. Talk to him again and he'll give you the Merchant's Armband and ask for you to get his diary. Go get it for him at the technicks shop and you can read it if you like. Return it to Pilika and say yes or no, although you get better armor if you choose no (Shepherd's Bolero as opposed to Kilimweave Shirt).
Another hunt I was unable to complete earlier was that against the Wyvern Lord. The signup for that is at the Sandsea, and then the Rabanastre Weapon Shop for details. The Wyvern Lord isn't that difficult but you need a powerful long range weapon (the recently available Elfin Bow is ideal) to consistently hit him. Take three Elfin Bows to the Gate Crystal and warp to Raithwall Tomb. Backtrack a screen and then you'll be right by the Wyvern Lord's screen. Take the northeast instead of south path and you'll reach the Wyvern Lord's area. When you see it's large red dot, don't approach it right away, but rather rid the area of Bagoly's and other enemies. When it is clear, use Protect on everyone and Berserk at least one of your Elfin Bow users. The Wyvern Lord likes to use Aero, and also will use a powerful tactic towards the end of it's line that puts a character in sap mode (the opposite of Regen). With strong bows and Protect to minimize the physical attacks, you should be able to put the Wyvern Lord away without worry. Your rewards are 1000 Gil, Longbow and the Shell Shield.
Rabanastre
Still in Rabanastre, the party is to go to Giza Plains (and then south) to the Ozmone Plains. Before heading through there, I set up a hunt with the Croakadile as he is in Giza Plains anyway. You'll notice plenty of others including some level 5 hunts. I was unable to beat any of the other ones however.
Giza Plains
The season has changed and there is water everywhere. This affects where you can go, and also there seems to be more water-based creatures (like frogs). The Hyena's and other enemies you fought earlier have been beefed up.
Before walking completely past the bridge in the middle of the southwest area, apply Protect and Shell to your entire party, and then Berserk two characters. Keep walking and eventually the Croakadile will pop out. Have your third character (who isn't berserked) heal and attack accordingly (with a Bow, or something from long distance). The Croakadile will attack, and will use Growing Threat (increases his level) and Aqua Bubbles (aqua attack). He's really not too hard to bring down, and a Ring of the Toad is your reward.
Back to the guy in the middle of Giza Plains, who gives you 1200 Gil, the Serpent Rod and a Teleport Stone for your efforts. It might be a good idea to sign up for the hunt in Jahara against the Slaven before you continue onward.
Ozmone Plain
This area has a lot of larger monsters and it may seem difficult especially at first. There is a bit to explore so take your time. The large amount of Zu will probably mean you'll want the Elfin Bow on for easy kills. You'll see Vipers, Black and Red Chocobo's (which are sometimes sleeping), Mesmenir, Wu, Hybrid Gators, and the extremely tough Zaghols.
One screen south and in the middle of this area will be an entrance to the Zertinan Caverns. Two screens south and then west is Jahara, Land of the Garif. In the northeast part is an entrance to the Golmore Jungle, a Save Crystal, and a Game Hunter.
The eastern screens have more monsters and harder monsters. The left screens are filled with Vipers and Mesmenir, easier creatures. When you are ready, take that southwest exit towards Jahara.
Jahara, Land of the Garif
As you enter
You are to go back to the Ozmone Plains and to the shred area. Clear out the Bull Croc and the Aeros, both considered Rare Game. Finally, kill all of the Wu and then you should leave and re-enter. Enkelados will now be here, but before you rush him, cast Protect on everyone and Berserk your tanks. Larsa will be a big help with healing so keep him un-berserked. Control your tank while your others attack with bows preferably, and run around as Enkelados is slow. This will allow your berserked bow using characters to annihilate Enkelados as he's running around. I had no problem with this fight, although he used Restore a few times to get about 25% of his HP back each time. After the fight, he dropped an Errmonea Leaf and the Low Chief Sugumu will give you 1100 Gil, an Ether and a Golden Amulet.
Golmore Jungle
Go to the Golmore Jungle and you'll see a scene with the party and one with the Imperials. There are plenty of Panthers in this area, along with a section of Malboro. If you take the west path you'll come across a dangerous Hellhound, careful of them (they regenerate). To the northeast is an area with Gargoyles, and if you go east you'll come to one of several barriers. In the center of the northwest area is the map of Golmore Jungle by the way. Fortunately, if you go in the east / southeast area, Fran will show the party a secret way so that you can meet the Veira. It's by the passive monster (the huge Treant). You just have to speak to the wood to go to the
Fran will tell you to look for Myrn and to bring her to Fran. Moogles will run up, one of them has some wares. Good Accessories, and the ever-important Curaga spell. He has some other unique ones too, like Float.
Go inside and talk to everyone, even though they aren't very welcoming. Eventually you'll run into Jote and the story will progress. Myrn actually isn't here, and Fran can sense that. You are to leave and head for the Henne Mines south of the Ozmone Plains.
Actually just as you enter, talk to the Imperials. Give them a Potion, and talk to them again to use their Chocobo. Go to the next screen west in the Ozmone Plain and then go south where the yellow chocobo is. Actually, you can walk through this area, and you'll see another Chocobo. Keep going southeast and you'll be in the next area, previously unaccessible. Get off the Chocobo at the end and go in the Henne Mines.
Henne Mines
There are plenty of bat creatures in the mines, Redmaw and Seekers.
As you enter, take a right and go down the stairs and continue that way, hitting the blue switch along the way to open the gate. Continue along the same way until you get to a new area. Here you will have two gates open and two closed. Talk to the Imperial and hit the switch, but a bunch of Jelly drops down. These things are difficult and they continue to split, I wasn't able to kill them all. Instead, go the new way that you just opened to find the Map (along with several bats).
Get the map and return to the room with the second switch and the four way fork. Hit the switch again and take the way going west on the map (the way you haven't taken yet). Continue to the next room where you will be going down plenty of stairs and fighting many Redmaw's. You'll be at a more cavern looking place next, and go east on the map to the dead end to get a treasure and fight a Nightmare. Now go back and go straight, taking the long path around. You'll find some more treasures in the southern dead end, but then go south and east to continue along (look at the map for further detail).
If you take the dead end going north right before the next screen, you'll come across a Thunderbug (they look like treasures, but are enemies). In the next screen, go north and take the east fork to fight the Tyranorox. He's pretty difficult, but not impossible, just attacks strong. The passage will be blocked, so go north through another Tyranorox and several other Redmaw's and you'll be in the next area.
Two more Thunderbugs south of you here. It's closed to your left, so go north and east and south until you can hit the switch (note that if you try to enter this area from the other door, it'll be blocked. Now in this room, you have to hit the switch to open up the path to the north (allowing you to continue on). As you hit the switch, the door that was previously blocked (by the Tyranorox) will open, so go out that way. You'll have to head back west and then north to exit. Now go north, the door will finally be open.
A scene will happen with Myrn possibly, but she detests humes and responds as such. When you regain control, Save and continue onward. The Tiamat will bar your progress. Expect a tough fight, and with Disablega, there is a chance you won't be able to use a character (for a short period of time). Protect is your best bet, Shell might be worth the time to put up also. Berserking your tanks and keeping Larsa alive to heal is of prime importance. He'll use Aero and attack physically, but as long as he doesn't disable your non-berserked character, you should have total control of the fight. Stay clear of him when he uses powerful attacks like Breath. Towards the end, he'll melee attack like nuts, so prepare to Raise if necessary.
After the battle the halo around the Tiamat falls off and the beast is destroyed. Myrn will be unconscious and she'll drop a shiny, nethicite looking possession that destroys. She then passes out, and afterwards talks to your party. Turns out the mist the Veira feel is a closeness to Nethicite. Larsa takes Penelo's nethicite and after a bit more you'll be back with some scenes at
Golmore Jungle
Instead, go through the barrier passage through the east part of Golmore Jungle. You'll fight the same creatures as the first part of the Golmore Jungle (Malboro's and Gargoyles) but you will also encounter the Great Malboro. Not too much more different than the normal Malboro though. Make your way to the save crystal and save.
Through the next area and you'll be at an Elder Wyrm and two Treants. Cast Protect quick, and then Berserk a few characters (preferably not the High-Potion monster Larsa). Take the two Treants out fast, and then you can work on the Elder Wyrm. He casts Fireball which will likely kill a character. He also has status ailment attacks that'll mean you'll need all the Remedy's and Esuna spells that you can get. The Elder Wyrm also likes to melee attack several times, hence the Protect.
Return back to Save after you defeat him, and then continue through a few passes eastward until you get to the Paramina Rift.
Paramina Rift
Talk to the people and Save your game again. In the screen past the save crystal, take the south exit and then go southwest. You'll make your way to the Feywood, but you don't want to be here yet. Instead, go east into the next area (leads to a dead end ultimately), and then go north from the Feywood entrance and then east. You'll be in Frozen Brook now, where you should take the southwest exit for a Save Crystal and then resume a long path to the Stilshrine of Miriam. the Stil Shrine of Miriam is a long bridge and then a door you can't open, saying you need to go north to Mt Bur Omisace.
If you go to the far northeast, you'll get to Mt. Bur-Omisace. You'll also have explored most of Paramina Rift.
After this I didn't advance the story but went back to go after some hunts (I like to do that after I get new equipment / spells). I went for the Ring Wyrm, so talk to Balzac in Lowtown and go to the Windtrace Dunes in Westersand. You'll find it in the southwestern area. Before you go up to it, make sure everyone is in Protect mode and Haste mode. Then, berserk a tank or two (I had Balthier and Vaan using the new Kogarasumaru Katana and Fran using the Loxley Bow) and watch them go at it. The problem is, The Ring Wyrm will still get kills with powerful moves like Breath and Fireball. He will also use Immobilizega so you will need Smelling Salts for that (although they don't seem to work often). Fortunately Larsa can help with Hi Potions, and you'll need a lot yourself. He will use Restore at least once to get his already astronomical HP back up even higher. If you can get the two katana users with Haste Protect and Berserk you should be able to deal enough damage to make this fight go fast enough. Back to Balzac for 200 gil, a Moon Ring and an Icebrand for completing For Whom the Wyrm Tolls.
Bur Omisace
To continue the story, go back to Bur Omisace and go to the north part of town. Talk to everyone and they'll think you're a refuge. Go to the top to the
Stilshrine of Miriam
If you've explored Paramina Rift you'll have seen this to the far south. When you get here, save and equip the Dawn Shard. This will take your magic down to 0, but don't worry, you need to equip this now. Go through the main doors and go to the center area, and search. You'll teleport near a treasure and a Miriam Guardian, so kill it. If you have Libra you can see there is an explosive near the treasure, but it was a Megalixir so it was worth it.
Continuing on, you'll run into three Dragon Aevis'. These are difficult creatures, especially when there is three of them. Be sure to use Protect if they're mowing you down. The wall will then come out and fight you and as you continue along your way (They are actually called Miriam Facer). Work your way to the green Life Crystal, which is actually a Crystalbug. It is fast and has some difficult spells that hit the entire party. Take care of it as fast as possible, and you'll get a real
Further along you will get to another 3 way fork, with the right path being a door and the left being the right route. You'll come to a purple horse, the Darkmare. These are not easy and if you attack it while it's in the middle of teleporting, it won't hurt it at all. Some more Gigas' and you'll come to a massive sword. Check it and the door that was previously sealed will open. Go through here and touch the device to teleport to the beginning.
Take the side part now to go downstairs and continue on. You'll fight some monsters along the way but it's pretty linear. The middle area has several paths, but work your way through the middle and eventually to the northeast to get to a boss.
Vinuskar is a scary looking creature that is easier to kill than you'd think. It's far away at first, so get Protect / Shell / Haste on your characters, and then Berserk on a tank or two. The screen will show a warning on the top about metallic equipment being heavy, but I had no issue with it and I thought I had some metallic equipment on. Anyway, Vinuskar's HP goes down really fast and he'll try to use status ailments and the ever dangerous Sword Dance to whittle you down. Sword Dance is his most powerful move so if you can sustain that attack and stay over 500 HP you should be able to take him down fast.
One screen east is the Stilshrine of Miriam map. There is a statue that you can rotate, so rotate it clockwise so that it is facing west (towards the middle of the screen). Now go back to the other statues (the one in the middle part of the south area, and the one directly west of the east one) and make them face the middle. After you get them to do it, return to the first part and you'll see the colossus lift his sword up, revealing an area previously inaccessible.
Back in the first area, go to the switch that will teleport you near the south area. As you continue towards the recently opened Sword door, a Negalmuur will ambush you. Negal Muur is rare game and is a difficult fight, but Berserk is extremely helpful to mow down the undead weaklings Negalmuur summons.
Before you enter the door that the sword opened, make sure you Saved and are rested up. Protect and Shell are a must, as is Haste. You'll want a few characters berserked with katanas (or that's what I did) with one to stay back and heal and use a bow from long distance.
Mateus The Corrupt is the battle. She is an Esper, one that uses Blizzaja. This will take off a lot, hence the Shell. Other than that the rest of the attacks are pretty standard, keep your HP up and continue with the Berserk onslaught and it'll go down.
Into the next room and you'll see the Nethicite destroying sword. This is The Sword of Kings. You can equip it if you'd like, otherwise just head out.
This upcoming battle is tough. There are three judges behind you, and then Judge Bergan far in front of you. Quickly cast Haste, and then Protect on everyone. Bergan is fast and still does a ridiculous amount of damage with Protect on (and is fast to boot). I had katana users in this battle but quickly switched to Swords so that they could wield a Shield. The added defense is a must. Anyway, I had to go through all six characters just to get rid of all the spare judges (do this first), but you're not out of the water just by doing that. Bergan gets really tough as his hit points go down, with some instant kill attacks. Take advantage of the long area, in the event that you have a bowman that can attract his attention and then run from, allowing your other characters to get free hacks in on him from behind.
Go through the scenes and then you are to work your way north to Archadia. First there are tons of new side hunts you can do both through Montblanc and the Sandsea.
Rabanastre
With all the hunts available, sign up for the level 2 one against Ixtab. Teleport to Jahara and then talk to the high chief Zayalu. Grab a chocobo at the entrance and take it to the Henne Mines. Within, hit the switch and then go through to the south room (Phase 1 Shaft). Hit the switch here and talk either path. Ixtab will appear in this corner that joins both paths.
Ixtab is not difficult despite his Doom and Death Sentence. Protect and Shell might be worth using but having Haste and Berserk on your tanks is your best option. Ixtab won't last long with his amount of hit points. Return to Jahara and you will get 1300 Gil, an Ether and Soul Powder for The Dead Ought Sleep Forever.
The White Mousse was available for a long time but is a very hard fight, even now. Sign up at the Sandsea and talk to Sorbet (the Westersand Rabanastre teleport moogle). He'll get you ready for the White Mousse. Before you go, get three Viking Coats (equip them when you fight the Mousse though).
Go to the Garamsythe Waterway, West Sluice Control. Clear the area of enemies and don't go down the stairs that lead to the water area just yet. The White Mousse will appear when you step down there. First, make sure you have the Viking Coats on so you can be immune to his constant Waterga attacks. Then, get Protect and Haste on everyone, and then Berserk your fighters. Without Waterga, The White Mousse can't really do much damage save for a decent physical attack. White Mousse will cast several ailments, Blind being the most annoying but also Slow and Poison. He also has a ton of HP and will go into a Waterga rage when he starts flashing red (probably the 10% mark of his HP left). Also careful of other monsters popping up, this is why you should clear the area first though. You get a Broken Key after the fight and report back to Sorbet and you'll get 2800 Gil and a Yoichi Bow for Lost in the Pudding. The Yoichi Bow will almost certainly be very useful for you right now. Even better, Sorbet gives you the repaired Brokey Key, which is now The Sluice Gate Key.
You can use the Sluice Gate Key to fight Queklain, but that's hard so we'll do that later. Instead, back at the Sandsea, sign up for Feral Retriever (Coeurl) which is in Bur Omisace (talk to Hymms). Hymms is right at the beginning of Bur Omisace so talk to him and then go south to Paramina Rift. Go south to the area with a Save Crystal and then west as the Feral Retriever will be right out here. It looks just like a Coeurl and should be the first enemy you see. Quickly get Protect and Haste up, along with Berserk for a character or two. He has a Mind Lash and Blaster attack, otherwise you'll likely get physical attacks out of him and that's about it. His HP is very slim compared to the White Mousse above and really will go down fast, just make sure he doesn't get someone too low with his better attacks. Back to Hymms to get 1500 Gil, Recurve Crossbow and two Teleport Stones for Befoulment of the Beast.
In Rabanastre, sign up for the Vorpal Bunny and teleport out to
At the Sandsea you'll want to sign up for the Marilith. Talk to the bartender behind you and he'll tell you to go to Westersand and then to the Zertinan Caves. Go here and go south until you get to an area with a Speartongue and trap to your west (east on the map but you're traveling south). Clear the area out and then cast Protect, Haste, Berserk (on 2 characters). Go by the light area and the Marilith will pop out. It just uses regular attacks along with a tail spear which will cause Slow. It has a ton of HP and is quick but you should be able to overpower it and it doesn't have any very powerful attacks. A cask of Serpentwyne Must is your war spoils. The bartender will give you 2200 Gil, 3 Teleport Stones and a Serpent Eye for A Tingling Toast.
Rabanastre
First sign up for Atomos at the Sandsea, and then go to the Aerodrome and make your way to Nalbina. Probably will want to buy new weapons and armor here. I've settled into a two sword users and one bow user party. The bow user is of course the recently won Yoichi Bow, very useful of course, while the sword users have Icebrands from Nalbina. Talk to Burrogh for more information on the Atomos hunt.
Mosphoran Wasteland
First of all, there are plenty of traps around here. Have a Libra on and be careful, it'll still take some work to get your other two characters to avoid them. In the middle area are some supplies and a save crystal at camp. There are some new weapons and armor here so check them out if you wish. Otherwise, rest up and save and head north. You'll get to an area where you walk down a hill and there are several Vultures. The northeast part of this area has Atomos (Mosphoran Highwaste / Northern Skirts), and I'd clear it out of the Vultures first and then walk around to replenish MP. Anyway, get Berserk up for your Tanks and Haste and Protect for everyone. Atomos isn't too tricky, he just uses physical attacks and does Spin Kicks as he nears death. He does have Regen Protect and Shell on though, not to mention lots of HP. Take advantage of your speed advantage and use your bow wielder to get Atomos' attention and run away, while your Berserk characters destroy Atomos. Continue this strategy until Atomos starts flashing and eventually keels over. Burrogh at Nalbina Fortress will hook you up with 1800 Gil, the Gaia Rod and the Diamond Shield for your efforts.
Back at Rabanastre, talk to Montblanc for any rewards and then go sign up for Braegh now that you have access to the Mosphoran Wasteland. Talk to Va'Kansa in the center area with the caravaners and Vakansa will tell you that Braegh is in the northwest part of the Salikawood, near the Necrohol of Nabudis.
Salikawood
Rest up and head on in, going to the east side. If you were to try to go northwest, a Bomb King would bar your way. It's possible to defeat him with efficient use of your Mist attacks, but this is not the way you are to go and it's a very tough fight for that reason. Instead go east and talk to the Moogle Boss at the gate and then look on your map. You'll see a bunch of markings and you'll need to bring back all 9 moogles to the moogle boss to continue. When you do, they open the gate for you and if you talk to the moogle boss afterwards you get a pair of Quasimodo Boots.
Phon Coast
This is a scenic area to say the least. Work your way southeast, hopefully you have a good bow like the Yoichi Bow to deal with the Pyrolisk flyers. At camp you can get some better weapons and armor, and talk to everyone to learn the way to Tchita Uplands. You're getting closer to Archadia, but more dangerous monsters are along the way.
Tchita Upplands
Head south to the next area and then east to the next. You'll be by an Archadian Wayfarer and a Save Crystal. The wayfarer will put up an impromptu bill against ??? so accept it and you'll get the Soul Ward Key. This is by Sochen so we'll deal with it in a bit. Go north of here to meet a kid wayfarer and a Gate Crystal. Save and then go to the northeast like they've said and you'll get to the
Go north and shortly thereafter you'll get to a door. Before you use the Soul Ward Key from the Archadian Wayfarer, put Protect / Haste up for everyone and Berserk your physical attackers and enter. 5 little fellas will fight you, they are Topstalk, Onion Queen, Mandragora Prince, Alraune King and the Pumpkin Star. Whew. However don't underestimate them as their status attacks can put you in a bind, with Sleep, Blind and Poison. Their attacks aren't that good but their sheer volume of them warrants use of Protect probably. Try to surround one at a time with the non-berserked character doing traffic control ensuring that the Berserked characters gang up on one at a time to make things easier. Remember this was a hunt from that Wayfarer in Tchita Upplands (by the Save Crystal) so return for 1000 Gil and 3 Remedies.
Anyway, back at
In this area will be several paths leading north, some blocked by waterfalls. Work your way north and you'll find a map in the center of the area with all the doors. The Wendigo's and Striker's can wear you down physically so Protect would be useful. You'll get a lot of Element Enemy Gambit treasures around here, from Ice to Bolt to Fire.
Eventually you make it to a square room towards the end of your journey north, and an Ahriman appears. This character will split up at various points in the fight, with more Ahriman's as his HP gets lower. There are 4 or 5 towards the end of Ahriman's hit points. Careful of his Doom and other status ailments, his physical attacks shouldn't do you too much trouble but when there are 5 of them it is worth keeping an eye on (Protect and Cura are most useful). After the fight you can continue on to a lift and then to the Gate Crystal.
Old Archades
You will be here now. Check out the shop and make your way to the Save Crystal and the imperial guards. They won't let you through, but give the guy the money the Jule guy the money he asks for to help you out. Go talk to everyone now, specifically the northeast area with the bag of loot guy. Return to Jules and talk to him, and then return to the bag of loot guy. Now return to Jules and he'll have moved to the middle area. A scene occurs, the imperials run away and you can get up to Archadia.
Head to the northwest to the Magic and Technicks area. The Technicks shop has a map shop which you should buy the Archadia Map to make travel more simple. Get some new armor and weapons if you'd like and talk to the Cab Driver in the southwest. He won't take you yet, since you need Chops. Jules shows up to tell you about Chops if you give him money.
This is kind of annoying (really annoying actually) but you have to go to each area of Archadia (there is four in your immediate area) and talk to certain people to memorize a comment. Now you must tell this comment to someone else in the same area to get a chop. It matches only one person, the others will be disinterested in the comment. Get 9 of them to use the Cab Driver, but at some point get all 28 for a prize.
With 9 chops, he'll take you to Tsenoble. Continue north for a short scene and then back to the Cab Driver. Balthier will talk with Jules, and tell the Cab Driver what Jules tells you to tell him.
Draklor Laboratory
Within this, you are to head north and choose to go to 67 instead of 68. Go to the northeast of this to enter a room (an imperial is just outside) and you'll get a scene in Cid's room and you'll get the Lab Access Card and a map of Draklor Laboratories.
In control again, take the two doors next to you for a Save Point and a Panel that you should switch (turning the room red). Make your way to the elevator (you'll have to fight some Imperial Hoplites and stuff) and go to 68F.
Upon entering 68F go west (east on the map) until you get to 6803. Enter and flip the panel so the room is blue. Leave and go north and then west and south to 6804 to flip the switch yet again. Now you are to work your way south a little, west a little, south some more, west and south (basically the southwest corner) until you get to room 6811. Flip the switch for a third time and then work your way to the middle south area for an elevator that can take you to 70F.
A scene happens when you get here, but Save first before rushing up the stairs. Might want to set up Shell / Protect / Haste on everyone and Berserk on your tanks, a tough battle awaits you. It is Cid, and like Bergan mist can be smelled. This means Cid with Nethicite aid. He has four Rooks around him that must be killed first, there is no way around it. Having Berserked characters means the sword users will be hacking at anyone even Cid which would be useless but more often than not they'll work on the Rooks. Each have about 10,000 each but can go down rather easily. When they are all gone Cid busts out a new attack that does around 600-700 on each character, still easy to keep up on though. Cid will eventually go down and will flee saying he's going to Giruvegan. Bunch of scenes and you'll end up at
More Hunts
I still hadn't gone through the Bomb King to get to Braegh, so I figured it was time to do so. Bomb King is in the center (toward the northwest area) of the Salikawood, right after the Save Crystal. Get your status effects like Haste and Protect up and then use the crystal to restore your MP, and go towards the Bomb King. He'll constantly get little bomb reinforcements to trouble you, will do oil based attacks and then follow up with Fire. That's his MO more or less, but the hardest part about the Bomg King is that he does a Renew ability that fills his HP. This is very very annoying and happens any time after about 30% of his HP is left. Mist Combos are obviously a way to get him done quick once he's close or you can just pummel him and hope he doesn't get it in. This was the case for me as I went through about 6 or 7 lines of HP for him. Afterwards a new path opens that allows you to get to the northwest.
As you continue northwest in the Salikawood, go for the western exit as opposed to the northwestern. Near the western exit you can see a unicorn-type creature along the way, this is Braegh. Have your protective stuff up and go in, he's not too hard at this juncture (about level 36 for me). I did have to switch out the Yoichi Bow as it healed him unfortunately. Back at the Mosphoran Wasteland, your rewards are 1700 Gil, 1 Hi Ether and 1 Obelisk for the Rodeo to the Death hunt against Braegh.
Mind Flayer was another hunt (started at Jahara) that I couldn't finish previously but could now. He does Soul Etude which restores his HP and that was fatal in the prior meeting but with stronger weapons he was easier. Also Mindflayer does Hero's March which gives him lots of positive status affects like Faith and Haste and such, so you should use Dispel as soon as he does that. His attacks aren't that great but Invert will turn your HP into your MP amount, meaning you'll be near death. He can do Blizzara and Thundara but that shouldn't be an issue and his physical attacks are meager. Anyway, return to Warrior Gurumu in Jahara to get your gifts for The Mine Flayer, which include 220 Gil and the Carmagnole. After this talk to Geomancer Yugelu to hear about a section even farther in Henne Mines, but he won't tell you about it quite yet.
Bloodwing was next for me, but to do this the sidequest with Dantro's Wife has to be advanced past where you left it Dantro Barheim Passage Sidequest . Agree to sail over and see what's wrong on the other end. The cactoids have taken over evidently, so return back, talk around and search behind Dantro's Wife's house to find a cactoid bud which turns into a baby cactoid. This will follow you so take it back to the other side and the cactoids will leave the village. The little one even gives you 1000 gil and a Wyrmfire Shot. Return back to Dantro's Wife and she asks for some Valeblossom Dew, which is where we were stuck at last time. Vale Blossom Dew is in the Broken Sands. Go back across the river and north a few screens until you get to the Broken Sands, where you should go north (sticking to the right side). You'll see a beautiful pink tree, search near this (an action icon will pop up) and you'll get a phial of ValeBlossom Dew. Return to Dantro's Wife and give it to her, and then she'll ask for the Great Serpentskin, which you should also give to her. Now you'll have to waste a little bit of time until the journeyman recovers. Leave somewhere and walk around for 10 minutes and return to talk to Dantro's Wife, and then the Bangaa in the back. He will give you the Barheim Key and a Balance Mote. You can also get Sassan the Cockatrice across the river, by first bringing the dog and boy over first. For this you acquire a Koga Blade. Before leaving this area, talking to No. 381 and Number 381 will tell you about his friend who got attacked in Barheim Passage, West Annex area specifically. Remember this and head on out.
Barheim Passage
Now of course you can enter Barheim Passage in the Estersand, just southeast of camp in the Murmuring Defile section. This is not where you came out of Barheim Passage before (that's south a bit more). Use the key to enter and go north a few screens to save at the Gate Crystal.
Now go a bit south and west. Take the northmost exit and continue west and take the northwestern exit again. You will now be in The Zeviah Span where you will work your way south by taking the left path and then when you get to a dead end near the south, search the prevarious boat to push it over and open up a path further south. Soon you'll be at the West Annex. The long bridge on the south is dangerous as the Bloodwing (the hunt you hopefully signed up for) will appear. Run past it for now to the next area, it's fairly linear at this point and you'll get to a Save Crystal, and you should use all your support spells and then Save / Rest and go back for Bloodwing. The large amount of enemies nearby means you'll have to clear the area out first. Bloodwing isn't too difficult, just uses Eerie Soundwave and leechs your HP from you occassionally. He is very hard to hit, but he doesn't have a lot of HP and damage is easy to do to him. Take him out with the Yoichi Bow and any other weapon that connects at a decent clip. No. 381 back at the Estersand Camp will give you 2400 Gil, Stun Bombs and a Vampyr Fang for The Deserter's Revenge.
Back to the Save Point, where you should Save and cast a bunch of support magic. Zalera the Death Seraph is here to disturb you. He'll have henchmen spawn that you will have to kill before you can harm him, which can be a detriment when you have Berserked characters attacking anyone. Zalera himself really won't threaten you so much with his attacks and he's easy to hurt when you are able to. However while he is vulnerable he also casts instant kill attacks constantly so you'll have to raise immediately. He can also put you to sleep and disable you, which are even worse hassles for you. The time limit is there and it's 5 minutes, but really that shouldn't be too much of an issue. Might want to try a mist attack at the end to ensure that you aren't wiped out by his more powerful abilities. I was at roughly level 39 for reference and it was pretty simple.
Continue westward and you'll be at the Garamsythe Waterway. Make your way towards the crystal and get the Garamsythe Candle, showing you the hidden parts of the Garamsythe Waterway. At this point I decided to go after Orthros, a hunt through Montblanc. Talk to the contrite thief in the lowtown of Rabanastre and then go to where you fought the White Mousse in the Garamsythe Sewers. This is the southwestern corner, but before you go to the south central area, put in the 3 females and cast the supportive magic on them. Orthros will appear and it'll be time for battle. He doesn't have too hard of attacks, you'll want Protect and Shell up incase. Watch the status ailments like Sap, but he really doesn't have anything that makes him too deadly. You get a pack of Stolen Articles and return back to the Contrite Thief in Lowtown for 3800 Gil, a Horakhty's Flame, and an Unpurified Ether for Crime and Punishment. You will also get a Blackened Fragment.
Nalbina Fortress is near so I went and talked to Morgen about the Roblon hunt. Roblon is within a hidden area in the Overlooking Eternity part of Nabreus Deadlands (northwest part). To get there, head to the middle where the Gate Crystal is, and go to the screen south of that. Go to the northwest part of this screen and you'll be able to head north and west, and then through some more areas. The hardest part of this hunt is that there are so many Dead Bones that you'll have to go slowly so that they don't kill you. It may seem like there is an endless amount but there is not. The key is to run up the hill and then retreat when you encounter new Dead Bones. If you don't there is a chance your berserked character will go and attack Roblon, a bad idea. If you can bait all the Dead Bones down until they're all gone this battle is far easier. Roblon itself doesn't have too many powerful attacks other than -ara level black magic. He does have a ton of HP and good defense when he's near death. Keep your support magic like Haste Shell and Berserk up and you should be able to defeat him assuming the Dead Bone issue has been dealt with. Back at Nalbina Fortress, Morgen will give you 3100 Gil, Giant's Helmet and Mythril for Adding Insult to Injury.
Finally I stumbled across a raining Giza so I went after the Gil Snapper. Talk to Nanau near the south-most crystal to start it and you'll receive the Silence Urn. Before you can access Tracks of the Beast you'll have to go around and cut all the dead wood trees. There are six of them, including one in the area where you start off in, Crystal Glade. The other areas are Starfall Field, Toam Hills, Nomad Village, Throne Room, and Gizas North Bank (in that order preferably). After you cut them all down, a new path in the southeast part of Gizas South bank will open up. Bansat will tell you whether the Gil Snapper is in the screen or not at that particular time. If not, clear the area out of the Silicon Tortoise's and get the Feather of the Flock in the southeast corner. Return back until the Gil Snapper is there. Get Bravery / Protect / Haste / Berserk up. You should be far ahead of where you'd normally fight Gil Snapper, but he can prove difficult nonetheless especially towards the end. Be sure to Dispel him and treat him like the other Tortoise's, using a Bow character to distract him while the tanks destroy him as Gil Snapper attempts to go after bow wielder. When Gil Snapper dies it'll be drawn into the Urn and if you return to where Nanau was you'll see a note. It says to come back during dry season, so do so and you'll see a scene and get 3000 Gil and the Phobos Glaze for Paradise Risen.
It was Adrammelech the Wroth time for me. He had been a little too difficult for me with his status ailments until I was around level 40. Remember, he is in the middle of the Zertinan Caverns, the Athroza Quicksands to be exact. Adrammelech is a flying monster and will absorb lightning so make sure you don't use the Lightning Arrows. His HP isn't that high and his cronies aren't that tough, although the Sleep / Stop ailments can be fatal. The Adrammelech Esper is yours to use from now on.
Antlion in Bhujerba was the next destination. Talk to the petitioner in the middle of Bhujerba and then head towards the save crystal by the Lhusu Mines. You will see some scenes with a boy as you walk through, but get to the point where you fought Rocktoise and use the Site 3 key you acquired at the beginning of the hunt. This will open a new area with Dullahan's and Headless and other tougher monsters. Continue along and you'll get to the Gate Crystal for Lhusu where you should obviously save. Just a bit further and you'll see Antlion's bright red dot along with about 5 other red dots. These are Mantis' that are with him, making this fight very difficult. You can't draw them out like the Roblon fight because the Antlion will charge right after you! Scary, well you can Warp the Mantis' evidently but I have just put up Protect and took them out with one tank and two others casting Cura. The Antlion will probably feed on a few of the Mantis', very bad news for you as this helps his abilities. Still, once the Mantis' are gone Antlion is pretty simple to defeat despite his Flattening maneuver. A scene afterwards and back to get 4300 Gil, Bubble Belt and the Sickle-Blade for the Antlion Infestation.
Go to the top of Mt. Bur Omisace to get the Stone of Condemner and then talk to Gurdy at the bottom of Mt Bur Omisace (Chocobo moogle) to start the Trickster hunt in the Frozen Brook part of Paramina Rift. You'll know you're in the right area when Monid (clan member) the bangaa comes out and tells you about the trick. Trickster will just show up, a giant white chocobo. This battle is tough, even at this point. At first it'll be easy to whittle down Tricker's HP, but soon he'll use a technique to make him invulnerable to physical attacks. If you had berserked characters up you'll have to wait until they get unberserked to use them efficiently again. He also changes his status so you're better off with Bio or Drain or some other non elemental spell, Bio is probably the best though. He uses Chocobo Comet and can do several physical attacks in a row when near death, so putting him away fast at that point would be pretty smart. Back to Gurdy in Mt Bur Omisace to get 4800 Gil and Deimos Clay for the Paramina Run against the Trickster.
Since Archadia has been unlocked there are a bunch of new hunts at the
Vyraal is next on the hunt list. He is in the Cerobi Steppe and you'll have to talk to the Viera Wayfarer to start the hunt. Vyraal is in the center area, The Northsward. You have the help of the Viera Wayfarer but she doesn't do much except low level healing and status help. The Vyraal has some powerful attacks and is immune to magic towards the end (along with Haste / Protect). Dispel it and continue tanking it with your Bravery / Haste / Berserk / Protect / Diamond Sword tankers. A Viera Rucksack drops after the battle and the viera will leave you. Go back to
The Feywood
Teleport to either Golmore Jungle or Eruyt to get near the Feywood. Go torwards the south exit and you'll be there soon enough. The monsters aren't too tough around here, even the best ones like Cerberus or Golem. So head east (don't take the Paramina Rift exit of course) and in the second screen you'll find a map in the northeast corner. If you go to the far west you'll find an exit to Henne Mines where you can fight three Abysteels that will probably kill you (but are really good EXP). Anyway, go directly south into the small area for a Save Crystal. If you try to go south you'll see a dense mist, but it'll disappear mysteriously. Cast all of your status spells like Bravery / Haste / Berserk and then Save again.
You are in a new area, one that your map doesn't cover. There is a new map for this area, in the southeast part of the first screen. You are to head southwest and in the large part with four pillar buildings. Try to exit via the far southwest, but it'll just loop back. Instead, go to one of the buildings and it'll riddle you with illusion. Don't move though, just spin the analog around and see between which pillars is there a forest illusion on the other end? Follow this path and you'll end up in another building, and so on and so forth. You'll make your way to the southwest but it won't loop this time.
Same thing for this area, but you'll get to a gate and it'll mention something about summoning a gigas. So naturally you are to summon Belias and then touch the gate, and Belias will open the gate.
The
Continue along to the Gate Crystal and save. Further along and hit the panel to go to a new area. You'll see a boss ahead, Daedalus in fact, so prepare yourself with Protect / Berserk / Brave / Haste and whatever else you normally use. Of course he'll cast Haste right away so Dispel that when he gets it up. He'll use Ice Break and Tremor but with Shell / Protect these should do minimal damage. Really, nothing too tough here, and he doesn't exactly surprise you - you can go up to him when you want.
After the defeat another panel appears, so use it. You'll be in an underground area with plenty of Behemoth's. Go down the ramp and search the Avrio Gate Stone. Now go all the way south to where the two Mythril Golems are and defeat them. Examine the Chthes Gate Stone now. Go back north for a decent amount until you can go west a little and then north. This will take you to a White Fang, and then double back and go south (sticking west). This path is fairly linear and leads to two Mithril Golems and after you kill them a path opens up with large green holographs to walk on.
In this new area, go down the ramp and kill the Mythril Golems and hit the Paron Gate Stone. Down more more ramps and then hit the Parelthon Gate Stone. Down yet some more ramps and you'll see a green gate, the Tychi gate. Remember where this is and then work your way southwest (using the map's direction's). This path will go up some ramps and down some, leading to two more Mithril Golems and the Tychi Gate Stone. Press that switch and then you can either backtrack or continue the way you're going (it'll circle around). If you continue the way you're going you'll get a White Fang, otherwise take the Tychi Gate out of here.
You get to a dead end with a Mythril Golem, so kill it and a green hologram path will appear again. Walk on it for a while and you'll get to a new screen, and Save when you can. This upcoming area may seem like a dead end, but if you walk up the west ramp and then northeast (sticking to the wall) a path will open up where the guard rail isn't. Put your barriers up as once you get to the circular green area you'll fight a boss, Tyrant.
Tyrant locks Techniques, but really, does that matter? Dispel him and unleash your Berserk / Bravery / Haste tanks on him. He'll use Sonic Fangs and Piercing Graviga, it's toughest attack spell. He likes to follow up the Piercing Graviga with Firaga so have a Curaja to get in there immediately. Other than that the high HP is the only thing barring your victory, so once he's done hit the warp.
You are in a new area now, and if you check the map you'll probably be confused. The Great
Take the path leading south and down. Continue along (two more bridges to make appear) and you'll get to another way path panel. Take this and then take the middle path (going directly up). You'll eventually get to the Cancer Gate Stone. Examine this and then take the other path going up, and this will bring you back to the three way path (you took the middle path going up, and now you take the far right path that is going down).
Continue past a few screens and you should be at Dha Vikaari Trahk with another Way Stone. Another new area (very southeast part of map) with three exits. One is gate Pisces which is blocked currently. Take the path just left of this, leading down. You will soon be at Aries Gate and the Pisce Gate Stone. Hit the Pisces Gate Stone and return to that previously inaccessible area, where the Pisces Gate was. Go down and hit the Way Stone, and you'll see a scene (incidentally, if you take the other path you have a chance at getting a Holy Lance).
A scene will occur after hitting the way path and you'll get to a new area, where you should head south and Save. Put your protective stuff up and hit the Way Path. You'll get to Shemhazai, a difficult boss indeed. It will use Mana Spring, Shock, and Flare just to name a few. It also starts off with Haste, so Dispel should be used ASAP. It'll use Enrage at the end to make itself more powerful, and then will use Chain Magick. It's defense gets high at the end so keep up the pressure to put him away. Shemhazai the Whisperer is now your latest Esper.
Continue along to the Way Stone and you'll go through some scenes. Ashe will be alone and there will be lots of scenes. At the end, the Treaty-Blade is yours. After getting the Treaty Blade touch the Way Stone and then go to the Save Crystal and teleport out to the
Before moving on with the story (you'd go to the red dot), buy Shellga, Protectga, Esunaga and all the other good spells that popped up here. Also check out the weapon and armor store for new and improved goods, the best money can buy.
I went on a bunch of hunts before returning to the story. If you want to continue on the story (the red dot in
While in Nalbina go to the Aerodrome and talk to Zammadria to set up the Carrot hunt. Carrot is in the Salikawood, so teleport there and then use the Flee option as you run a screen west and then south. From here you'll meet the Viera who said she'd join you at the scene back at the Rabanastre Clan. Anyway, continue to flee south and you'll soon see a huge Malboro, this is Carrot. Quickly cast Dispel and be ready to cast it again if it uses Hero's March. Otherwise, back up and watch out for Bad Breath. It might be wise to attack from a distance so that it only gets one character per attempt if it works. Carrot has low HP for this point in the game though and that helps, but she gets violent towards the end with physical attacks. Keep on her and when she goes down, return to the Aerodrome in Nalbina to get 5200 gil, Stink Bombs and Putrid Liquid for the Carrot Stalk hunt.
Lindwyrm was much too hard for me until this point, and even now he pushed me to the edge. This huge dragon is only around during the cloudy weater in Tchita Upplands. This does not mean rain and this does not mean sunny weather - there are three different types and it needs to be cloudy. You get a Rusted Scrap of Armor at the end of the battle. Back in Old Archades you get 4200 Gil, Barrel Coat and a Hi Ether for Old Legends, Decaying Bonds from Fermon.
Teleport to Mosphoran Wasteland and talk to the Craftsmoogles. Then go to the far south part of this camp screen and turn the south Wind Shrine on. Go through the northeast into Rays of Ashen Light and towards the marking on the map. You'll eventually get to some grass you otherwise wouldn't be able to pass and you'll go to another screen, Skyreach Ridge. Continue along until you get to the West Wind Shrine, which of course you should turn on and then use your map to see another marking has appeared to your northwest. For now though you'll be stuck unless you push the boulder down near the West Wind Shrine. Do this, and then go down and just north of the shop is the North West Wind Shrine which you should also touch. Now get a chocobo and head towards those two marks.
The chocobo won't go any further, so get your Berserk / Haste / Protectga / Shellga / Brave and anything else you use up. Exodus is ahead, and you should Dispel him immediately. He'll use Flare and Unleash and the devastating Scathe. Still, with Bubble Belts this shouldn't be too hard to survive, just have Curaja available. He is obsessed with having Reflect status up and when he gets near death he'll use a Physical Paling ability so you have to use magic (or wait until it runs out). You will be using Dispel and Bio / Flare / whatever else you have on him if you are to use magic. Still, Exdeath's HP is easy to trim down but he gets a bit difficult at the end.
Go to Nalbina Fortress and talk to Popol in the middle area. He is the petitioner for the Deathscythes hunt. You are to go to the Necrohol of Nabudis, might as well from the Nabreus Deadlands side. Work your way east a few screens to the cloister of the highborn and clear out the area of most of the monsters. Now the ones that are left, quickly switch in your two worst characters and dont equip them with anything. Let them get demolished by the enemies and if you are near the stairway that you entered (through the hall of the ivory covenant) the Deathscythe will appear. Once they are dead or able to switch out, do so and get your regular party in. Deathscythe is no easy fight. Getting most of his HP gone is easy but then he does the physical paling that my party of tanks just loves. You can try to use magic like Curaga whatever you feel is most efficient or you can wait until the paling wears off. Either way, once he starts getting low he starts casting Annul and Death like crazy on your party so Phoenix Down's or Raise's need to be ready fast. It is imperative to kill him fast as he gets low on HP as he will also do melee attacks that will cut through even Bubble Belt characters. Back in Nalbina Fortress Popol will give you 2800 Gil, a Hi Ether and a Soul of Thamasa for Dead City Watch and the Deathscythes.
Overlord is a pretty easy hunt. Go to the Technicks shop in Archades and talk to the Seeq, who will actually help you. Teleport to Tchita Upplands and enter the
Sign up for Belito with Montblanc. He will tell you of the bangaa hunting down clan members, and Monid the bangaa seems to be acting suspicious. Either way, rest up and teleport to Ogir Yensa Sandsea and enter the Zertinan Caverns through the Central Junction in Ogir-Yensa. You will have an exit to the northwest of you to the
You get jumped by Ba'Gamnon, and that bastard has a friend up here with him. Monid is up here too to help you and he seems to migrate towards Ba Gamnon. After a few seconds BaGamnon's friends will run out so it's four on four! What fun. If you have Berserked characters this can be kind of difficult as it's better off if you can gang up on certain characters, as the faster his friends fall the faster you'll have Ba Gamnon to yourself. He'll start to throw out Shining Ray and other powerful attacks but as long as you don't have his other three friends with you should be able to withstand his attacks, especially with Bubble Belts. Monid explains this was all phony to get Ba Gamnon and the clan hunters out in the open, but you still get a reward of 5100 Gil and a Megalixir for A Dark Rumor. And Ba'Gamnon ends up in the quicksand.
There is one last available hunt, the Mystery Man. Montblanc is the petitioner of course and you are to go to Lhusu Mines (teleport) and Gilgamesh is at the bridge. Now he has Enkidou with him, which isn't like the Enkidou in Final Fantasy 5 , but instead is a dog. Focus on that first (dispel it right away and if it uses status things on itself) and then you can get to Gilgamesh. If you remember from FF5 you can steal Genji equipment from him. In this particular battle, you can Steal from him at certain HP intervals. For example you only get worthless Potions from 40% to 100% of his health, but if you Steal from him in the 20% - 40% range you get the Genji Shield and in the 0%- 20% range you get the Genji Gloves. Now, the Genji Gloves allow multiple hits to be scored more often, something that is very valuable. You definitely want to get this. In this 0% to 20% range he puts up a physical and magical paling so you'll have to withstand that until he uses two Ultimate Illusions. After that, finish him off and Gilgamesh will run off with Enkidou.
This hunt isn't finished, so get to the Teleport Stone and use it to
If you go north you can walk through a wall and fight some Pandora's and get an Aegis Shield treasure at the end. South of here is a Save Crystal and another room after that. Be sure to save, the second form of Gilgamesh and Enkidou is very difficult. Gilgamesh takes off 1500 a swipe and Enkidou is very dangerous especially near his death, as he uses instant kill tactics. This kind of limits the effectiveness of Bubble as Enkidou will cut through any amount at rapid rates. Always Dispel him when he puts up protective statuses. If you can finish him off the battle is a lot easier, allowing you to Steal the Genji Helmet and Armor from him at the 20-40% and 0-20% intervals. The Nihopalaoa trick can help to Blind and Oil up the Enkidou dog and Firaga will destroy him afterwards. Gilgamesh by himself is a lot easier but even with the best armor and Protect he'll kill you with combos. Back to Montblanc for 10,000 Gil and Masamune Katana for Battle on the Big Bridge.
Port of Balfonheim
Continuing on with the story, you ended up at Balfonheim after the Giruvegan. You are to talk to Reddas in the southwest part, the port area. Reddas will tell you about the Sun Cryst and some other things, and then he'll join you as a guest. You will now be able to use the Strahl so head out to the Aerodrome and fly it to the Ridorana Cataract.
The Ridorana Cataract
A really nice looking place, to say the least. Can't complain about the FF12 graphics so far. Save your game when you get there, and you can return to the anchor to leave when you want. Past the Save Point and then take the southern exit to the Colisseum area. There are a bunch of traps in the central area so have Libra ready, but head north and then a quick west leading to the Ridorana Cataract map. Return east and head north to the new screen and northeast a bit more for a Save Point. There is a dangerous trap near it so careful.
The Pharos at Ridorana
As you enter this also gorgeous area you will come upon a sleeping dragon, the Hydro. He's a pushover for a prepared party, and he likes to use Darkra and Sonic Fangs so Shellga and Protectga are useful. If you have Brave Berserk and Haste up on your tanks (including guest Reddas) you should absolutely maul this boss. Should he disease you make sure your Remedy Lore is of level 3 and you can cure it simply.
Head inside and Fran will read an inscription. When you regain control head further inside to a Gate Crystal and a Way Stone. Save and take the north stair above the Way Stone. You'll notice Black Orb's floating after defeating a monster. Should you see one, pick it up, you're looking for three of them. Work your way to the northeast, and then south, and then west to get the map of the Pharos First Ascent. Fight up until you get three Black Orbs, and then once you do, you have to place them on the alters in The Wellspring area. Two of the altars are only accessible through paths that come from the Wellspring Labyrinth.
After all three have been placed the Seal of Night is removed and you can enter the far east door. Do so and you'll be transported to a dark, desert area. Hmm...there is no mini map for you to use, so just head up the sand hill and you'll see a dark grey ball in the background. Head toward this, it is the tortoise boss Pandaemonium. Dispel his Protect / Shell immediately and get to work. He's slow and if you can get him to chase one of your characters while your Berserk / Brave / Haste tanks go at him, he should have no shot. He'll use a Power Spin to attack but it's not too problematic. Stone Gaze is also a favorite of his, Flatten too. Still, none of these should kill you and with a Bubble Belt he'll have no shot to kill you. You'll have to withstand his Perfect Defense for a while but it's not too hard to run around for a while until it fades.
Return back to The Wellspring and take the Way Stone to a new area now that the seal is gone. In this new area you will notice dead ends, but you can form green bridges by killing the Brainpans sitting around. Brainpain has a Self Destruct function so don't let them sit when they get low. Their presence basically means you have to search every nook and cranny of this place, not that that's really out of your way. In some of the rooms you will have to go in circles as the Brainpan's and Deidar's re spawn. Basically, kill a certain amount of those two in each section and continue your way up to Horizon's Break, which has a Save Crystal.
Save and go south toward the triangle and to the stairs. Following this path you'll get to Slyt, a fish. Dispel it right away but you'll see it keeps casting Regen back on itself. Other than that it likes to use physical attacks which get stronger as the battle progresses (as does his defense) but really he has little to offer besides melee attacks. Continue past after the battle is over and you'll come to a way stone that you should use.
Second Ascent - Reach of Diamond Law
To start off, go to the other side of the waterfall to save. Now this room has four rooms, each with an altar. Each area will nullify certain commands, like Item or Magic or Attack or Mini Map. The southeast one is Mini Map and since that isn't an issue, let's go there. Touch the altar and enter.
Use the big map to guide you around here. The first area is simple, the other, not so much. You can find an exit in the northeast corner going downstairs into the Station of Suffering. If you want the map, go to the northwest part of the floor. In this area though, go to the southeast corner to find another set of stairs going up. Work your way to the northeast corner of this room and then go west to the northwest corner to find the exit. Tough Bune monsters roam these areas in great abundance so be careful. After this floor you'll be near another waterfall area which has a Save Point to the right as you walk in. South now and up the stairs in the triangle area.
Walk halfway into this large room and then get your barriers up. You'll soon be teleported to another boss battle, this time against Fenrir. He has some fast physical attacks so Dispel him to eliminate his bonuses and then Protectga your party. If he tries Bravery Dispel it. Again, Dispelling him and keeping your good statuses up is paramount in success, although the last few "bosses" are more like regular monsters that are a little beefed up.
Continue along after the fight to a waterfall area with lots of altars to touch. Of course if you took the Knowledge one (Mini Map) like I had suggested, you go to that altar and touch it and the door will lose power. Go to the left side of the circular room and use the Dais of Ascendance to get to floor 67F.
Use the Save Point and then the Way Stone to get to the Reach of the Occult.
Third Ascent
Read the note ahead of you and take the Black Sigil to 81F. Go along to the east in this area to what would seem to be a deadend for you but get close and you'll see it says Fool's Facade so strike the wall and go through, getting the treasure for a Dragon Whisker and the Green Sigil.
Careful of traps in this area, and when you get out go east and touch the Red Sigil Way Stone quick before the flying Aeronite hurts you. Grab the Circlet here and touch the Purple Sigil Way Stone to get out of there. Check the wall immediately north of you and hit through it to get to a regular way stone that you should take.
You are at the Dais elevator again and you can take it to 90f. This is what you want to do, but first use Protectga, Haste, Brave and whatever else as a boss fight looms.
It is Hashmal in fact. Dispel his Protect right off the bat and get started on him. He will use Roxxor which can take off a bit, and Quakeja as he gets close to death. This could slow you, and in combination with his rapid melee attacks you could be in trouble. Bubble Belts are perfect for this situation, and his HP is easy to whittle down if you can stay alive. Hashmal is now your newest Esper.
Go along the path now until you get to the Save Crystal on floor 98f. Save and continue to the way stone, but use some protective magic before you get there as a battle against yet another boss is on the horizon. You'll actually go through a bunch of screens first, but Gabranth will then battle you.
This battle is really very easy especially if you did some of the status' before you hit the elevator. Anyway, Dispel him right away of course and get Protectga up to protect against his Guilt attack and anything else he throws at you. After a quick defeat (likely) from his likely due to his low HP, Cid will berate him and a new battle starts.
Now a battle against Cid and his summon Famfrit the Darkening Cloud. Famfrit will join Cid halfway through, but that's pretty fast as going through Cid by himself is pretty simple. Before you get him to half HP though make sure Protectga and Shellga are up as Cid + Famfrit are a tough duo. Dispelga them but Cid will continue to use Protect and Haste and other positive spells on Famfrit. However Cid can't be hurt during all this so you have to focus all of your attacks on Famfrit, which can be tricky if you have Berserked characters. Famfrit is most known for his Waterga spell which can do about 1000 each whether Shellga is up or not. His HP is also pretty deep so withstanding the middle part of the battle until Famfrit is defeated is the key. Cid gets much more vicious after Famfrit goes down, using Gatling Gun and other gun attacks to hurt the entire party. The hard part of the battle is done though, and it may have taken a lot out of you in terms of HP and MP so rotating characters could help. You then get Famfrit the Darkening Cloud, and some scenes go by and you'll be able to save (you're in Balfonheim).
At this point in the game you can go to Bahamut, but there are plenty of things to do. New spells and items are everywhere and several hunts have popped up. Buy all the new spells / weapons / armor from Balfonheim that you can, then teleport to Dalmasca Estersand for Hastega from the Unlucky Merchant. With the new weapons and armor at Balfonheim you should be able to finish off most of the hunts and espers that you haven't defeated yet. If not, go to the Baknamy Merchant in the Necrohol of Nabudis for the best armor in Maximillian, one of the best technicks in Telekinesis and the Scathe black magic spell. To get to the Baknamy Merchant, head to the Necrohol of Nabudis from the Salikawood extrance (near Bomb King and Braegh). Go to the northwest of the first room (Hall of Effugent Light) and go into the secret room, and to the left of the Pandora treasure you see, will be a ??? prompt. This is the Baknamy Merchant.
Catoblepas is one of the easier hunts, go to Jahara and the War-chief Supinelu. You are to meet him in the Zertinan Caverns, in the
Piscodaemon can be found in Giruvegan but go to Ivaness in Mt. Bur Omisace to sign up. Piscodaemon is in the Gate of Fire at Giruvegan, an annoying walk to say the least. Remember, paths appear at the dead end of these large stairway rooms in the Giruvegan so look for them. At the Gate of Fire, go to the west part of it and you'll see his large red dot. He'll have some Vivian or Gargoyle's near him so eliminate those if you can, but if they are too close to him you'll just have to deal with them. Piscodaemon only has Shell up and has a ridiculously low amount of HP. I tore through him in a matter of seconds and he only got Invert off on one character. The walk back is just as fun as the walk to Piscodaemon. Back at Mt Bur-Omisace you will get 3800 Gil, Dark Shot and Scathe Mote for The Black Sorcerer from Ivaness.
The Wild Malboro petitioner is Rena in the far northwest of
Diabolos is a bit more difficult than the last few hunts. Miclio is in the southern part of Bhujerba and after talking to him teleport to the Lhusu Mines. From here you are to go west on the map until you get to Site 11, and then it's the southwest cape of Site 11. Diablos is by himself so get your barriers up and Dispel his Haste. His HP is low but he has some things that can be an issue. Bubble is as vital as ever here and Esunaga for Curse on your allies. Towards the end he gets downright nasty casting bad effects like Confuse Disease Sap Poison and Curse so Esunaga will be your best friend. Again, physical paling comes into effect but if you have fast and powerful enough tanks you can kill him before he gets up it due to his low HP (or with a Quickening). If you can't pull this off you'll just have to withstand him through his Paling or use magic. Miclio will give you 2600 Gil, Zeus Mace and the Demon Shield for The Child Snatcher.
Sign up for Deathgaze and go in any Aerodrome to find the kid traveler who sets up the battle against the Doomgaze Wyrm. You'll have to fly to a few different Aerodromes and talk to the kid, he's in a different area each time but as you continue to talk to him Death Gaze will get closer. This is a very difficult boss so when the kid says Deathgaze is near, Save and then go talk a flight somewhere and you'll have the option of fighting it. Go up a few stairs until you get on the deck. Just put up Protectga and Shellga and then Dispel the Death Gaze Wyrm. It will put up a physical paling right away so you'll have to withstand that. He'll use Fireball and Crushing Fangs, and instant kill attack. He can also Disease, Confuse, Sap, Poison and do other status effects that require a Remedy or Esuna. Worse yet, even when you can attack him he will use Restore to get a little bit of HP back and then Renew to get it all back. You can probably avoid these by killing him off before he does it, but it can sap your MP / items the longer the battle goes. His HP really isn't that high though but he will get a Paling up right before he dies again. In addition watch out for Reverse, as he will cast this on himself just as he is about to die so if you have some Berserked tanks up there, those attacks will begin to heal him. Maybe try to time Dispel so that right when he Reverse's himself you have Dispel to get rid of that. With all these tricks up his sleeve it's easy to die or have a really drawn out battle. Talk to the little kid traveler to get 3400 Gil and two Elixir for the Visitor on Deck. Kind of bullshit that you didn't get more loot.
Ixion is to be signed up for with the Whitecap Wench in Port Balfonheim. Teleport to Pharos at Ridorana and use the elevator to go to Penumbra. You will now be in Subterra - Origin of Darkness. If there are monsters around the circle you are at then Ixion won't appear. If so, use the elevator back up to the 1st floor and then back down to Subterra until there are no monsters. When this happens just get your Protect / Shell / Haste / Bravery / Berserk combo up and run around until it appears. Dispel him and notice that Ixion is especially prone to tankers as it'll put a magic barrier up at the halfway point. He'll also use Fearga which will deplete everyone's MP. Most of his attacks are physical ones like Kick that take off 1000-2000 so Curaja should be ready at all times. Towards the end his defense gets a huge boost and he'll start using Thundaga and Aeroga. Your reward is 3000 Gil, Sapping Bolts and the Ragnarok Great Sword!
With Holy and Hastega and other powerful spells you can probably now handle Cuchulainn in Garamsythe. Via Lowtown, go to the central area of Garamsythe where you should close the 3rd and 10th Sluice Gates (light up the two pedestals to the right basically). Go to the No. 3 Cloaca Spur area and find the 1st south sluice gate to close that. Return to the center area and open the 3rd and 10th Sluice Gates, the ones you just closed. Go to the other side now to close the 4th and 11th Sluice Gates. Now go to the southeast exit to the No. 4 Cloaca Spur and close the 1st North Sluice Gate. Back to the central area once more to open the 11th sluice gate and close the 3rd, leaving the middle two (4th and 3rd) lit up.
Save and go to the southmost area, No. 1 Cloaca, to fight the Esper Cuchulainn the Impure. This battle is extremely tough and even though it's accessible early you will get destroyed until later on in the game. There is a permanent Sap on your entire group that you can't get rid of, so don't bother trying. He can also cast Sap in conjunction to this so have Curaja and Regen ready. Black Belts are absolutely essential as Disablega can be fatal otherwise. If he Immobilizes you, hopefully you have a long ranged weapon to suffice while you're waiting for that to wear off. Foobar's drop from the sky during this battle, not huge hazards as your Berserked characters should be able to take them out. Holy works well on Cuchulainn but so does the usual Tank strategy. Bubble is nice but you're better off with the Black Belt to prevent Disable so you'd have to cast Bubble instead. As long as you don't let the battlefield Sap drain you down too far, the Impure King should be much easier to defeat at this juncture in the game.
Return to Lowtown and go to Old Dalan's house, where you should talk to Roh'Kenmou. He'll tell you about a medallion split into four, you are to recover the four parts and get a secret. You should be able to give him the Blackened Fragment for now, from the Orthros Bounty. You may have already received the Dusty Letter in the north residence in Lowtown but if not go and get it now and talk to Deeg the seeq. You must have completed the Wraith hunt, but please, that's been done over a 100 hours ago. Go to Garamsythe Waterway, by the four sluice gate switches and the Save Crystal. The middle two were still lit up for me from the Cuchulainn fight so I opened both of them so all four lights were dim and then left and returned, just in case. Now back at the Save crystal, do the following: Close No. 11 sluice gate, close No. 4 sluice gate, open No. 11 sluice gate, close No. 3 sluice gate, and open No. 4 sluice gate. You should hear a noise, so go to the south part of the room to find a Dull Fragment. Bring this back to RohKenmou and then talk to Filo in the east part of the same section. He'll inform you about a part of the medallion, and then go up the stairs and talk to the Curious Woman in the Southern Plaza and listen to her story about how she is an amnesiac. Do the moogling to the Bazaar and talk to the orange bangaa. He'll know of who he sold it to so go to Yugri's Magicks and talk to the Sotted Imperial who wants you to bring the Curious Woman to him. She's not at the fountain in the Southern Plaza anymore, so go talk to Filo in Lowtown again and agree to go to Yugri's Magicks. At the end of the scene there, you'll get the Grimy Fragment. Congratulations, you don't have to fetch any more crap for a while. RohKenmou will go off to Nabudis with the four pieces of medallion and will invite you with.
Teleport to Archadia and go to
You can now open these doors in the Necrohol of Nabudis anytime you'd like. Save at the Gate in Nabreus and then enter Necrohol. In the second room there will be the Door of Loathing on the southeast side.
Use the Medallion of Love to open the door and you'll see a giant green monster...but Fury the bunny kills it. Fury can do some fast and powerful damage to you, so Dispel it right away and prepare to do it again when Hero's March comes up. His HP is really low at this point so despite Bunny Slam and his other attacks, he shouldn't be able to kill a character with the Bubble Belt on. Continue to Dispel the little jerk and he uses Bacchus Wine and Hero's March some more. Once he's done, continue on.
The third area (right after this one) will be the door of Despair. Unfortunately this is the Medallion of Might and it hasn't been powered up yet, so go to the next screen and continue west through a few Babil's to the Door of Horrors where you will use the Medallion of Bravery to open it. You will encounter Humbaba Mistant who has Bravery and Haste up. Quickly Dispel that and get to work. He has a ton of HP but the Berserk idea works well especially with a Genji Glove tank. Humbaba casts Protect so Dispel that and his Darkness attack can be absorbed. Temblor is a powerful attack of his that causes Disable and Immobilize. This is all to watch out for though. After the battle the guy shrinks and his sword falls on top of him, crushing Hambaba Mistant to death. Your reward is a map of the Necrohol of Nabudis, and if you already beat Fury you'll receive the Medallion of Might. You can now open the door of Despair, but please be ready for this, it's a tough battle. It is against the Esper Chaos and you cannot use the fight option so your magic gambits have to be ready. You cannot run from this battle.
Chaos has Haste and Regen up so get rid of those immediately. You cannot attack so you are limited to Technicks and Magicks. Good luck. There is an Air, Flame, Water and Earth crystal that you should kill before working on Chaos. They can be an annoyance especially with the weird elementals (you can use Blizzara on the fire one and it is immune?) Quickenings might be your best bet to get rid of those things right away as they don't have a lot of HP. Chaos will annoy you until he is dead. Aeroga and Whirlwind are favorites with Aeroga doing around 1000-2000 depending on Shellga being up while Whirlwind does around 5000. Worse yet you will be getting Silenced all the time so keep up with Vox or Echo Screens or Remedies, although I ran out of the two latter items and got lucky. Towards the end of the line for Chaos he'll start pulling off Aeroja's, doing around 3000-4000 on each with Confuse sometimes coming along with. Ouch. A little bit of luck is involved as is fast recovery on your part; it will look like defeat in many cases, it is your duty to keep yourself in it. This is especially true at first but as you start using Bio and Flare you should be able to wear Chaos down. There are only a few espers left at this point.
Speaking of, maybe you received the Stone of Condemner at Mt. Bur Omisace at some point. If not go to the top and talk to the acolyte to acquire it. You are to take it to the Stilshrine of Miriam, and when you get to the Way Stone in the south of the first room, you'll be prompted to use it and go to a previously inaccessible area. Right before you open this door, put up all the protective and other status enhancers you want. The battle inside will not allow you to use magic.
The opposite of the Chaos battle, this time against Zeromus the Condemner from Final Fantasy 4 (Final Fantasy 2 stateside). As stated above you cannot use magic so make the most of your statuses by rushing Zeromus immediately and hacking away. His HP is not that much so hopefully you can do a good amount on him. The Dark Lord's will soon swarm you but the battle will continue to be like that. The chains you build up will help but eventually you'll have to focus on Zeromus as he gets more violent. He likes using Stop so Power Armlet's might be useful to equip. If you get Slow - ed though, that could be a problem. Your X Potions and Phoenix Downs will get used often. Assuming you don't run out, you should be able to outlast Zeromus' generally weak attacks. Remember, since you can't use magic you might as well use Quickenings to do damage on Zeromus. After the battle Zeromus the Condemner will be available on your license board.
Since you have defeated 10 Espers (if you followed this walkthrough) you will have the option of talking to Geomancer Yugeli in Jahara to unlock Zodiark Esper. Teleport to Henne Mines and go north and east to enter the new area. Continue all the way east through a bunch of extremely tough Abysteel's and you'll get to a dead end, and south is the Henne Mines Candle. You are now to go south through some more Abysteel's but new monsters join the fold. Abysteel's are the hardest around here in my opinion though. As you can see with the Henne Mines Candle that you are to work your way to the east through some secret passages not on the map. If you entered from the Feywood you'll see that area as well although it's still separate from where you are now.
Some of the tougher hunts remain before it's time to do the end game with Bahamut. Fafnir has the petitioner Relf in Mt. Bur Omisace and she'll give you the details (talking to her makes the snowstorm appear). Get a chocobo and go into Paramina Rift. You are to go one screen west, one south, and then take the southeast exit. From here take a quick south and if it is snowing Fafnir will be in this secluded area. He has a tremendous amount of HP. Having Ice Shield's to halve his White Breath is a necessity. His combos will eventually get you with Rake and Shock will probably kill you outright unless you are a full health Bubble Belt character. You can Slow and Sap him, the Slow being worth it but you have to constantly apply it. Continue the tanking and after half an hour probably you'll have depleted his 1 million HP. After the battle you get a Ring of the Light. Back to Relj you get 7000 Gil, Teleport Stone and Assassin's Arrows for Wyrm Wrath's Renewal.
Pylraster should be one of your final hunts. Talk to Rikken a few times at Port Balfonheim and you'll race him. Afterwards he wants you to go on a hunt for him to see who is the strongest. Pylraster is no fun that's for sure. You are to teleport to Pharos at Ridorana and then go west into the large area. Down the stairs you'll see a huge dinosaur running around They Who Thirst Not. This is Pylraster. His attack is ridiculous so please have Protect up. Unlike most later hunts, this guy doesn't ignore evade (meaning equipping a high level shield plus Decoy on that characters means lots of blocked attacks). You can also Slow him with the Nihopalaoa trick. He is most dangerous near death of course as his defense is seemingly tripled, his speed is up and his strength is even higher (all from Growing Threat increasing his level). If you lose a character near death it's likely he'll kill your entire party off or you'll have to run out of the room to rest up, as his speed truly is much faster even with Slow. If you can manage to keep all your characters alive just spam Curaja near the end to replenish any attacks that aren't blocked by your shield. Return to the Port at Balfonheim to get 8000 Gil, two Scathe Mote and a Grand Mace for Who's The Strongest!?
Sky Fortress Bahamut
Go to any Aerodrome and you'll have the option of going to the Bahamut (just northeast of Rabanastre). You'll be reminded that you have no way of returning if you go to Bahamut. I suggest making a separate save and going here. Lots of scenes will take place. The imperial enemies in here are unlimited and of many different types. Fortunately if you've done most of the hunts and espers and other sidequests you should maul through them. When you gain control take either path and you'll get to a T. Take the path going up the stairs. A cutscene will occur and enemies will be around you. Continue along and in the next area go east a little and north to get on the circular part. Pass the first exit on your left and instead look for an exit on your right that leads to the interior area with a lift.
Take this lift and you'll be in a battle against Judge Magister Gabranth. Seems he didn't die. Again, if you've done most of the hunts and espers you'll destroy this fellow. If not, Dispel his Haste initially and get your usual status buffs up like Berserk for your tanks and Haste / Protect / Bravery for everyone. Towards the end he'll Renew and gets more dangerous with an ability that takes off 1000-1500 on each member and high combo rate skyrockets with Enrage.
After the battle, put up Protectga / Shellga / Hastega / Brave / Berserk on whoever you wish, then hit the lift. A battle with Vayne occurs and you have Larsa's aid throughout. This battle should be even easier than Gabranth as although Vayne's moves look cool and hurt the entire party, it should only do about 500-1000 with a party that has Shell / Protect. Even then, nothing Curaja or a Bubble Belt couldn't absorb.
Another battle with Vayne ensues, this time against Vayne + manufactured nethicite. Vayne Novus has 5 Sephira flying around. Your Berserked characters will eventually wipe out all the Sephira, and notice you have Gabranth in this battle. He's not much help but he attacks and will distract someone. Dispel Vayne Novus immediately and work him down to halfway to get a scene. He will use Inviolable Will, another cool looking move but one that only did around 1000 to each character. Vayne Novus puts up a Magic Shield as he nears death but since you're probably tanking him to death you shouldn't worry.
Gabranth tries to kill Vayne at the end but Vayne knocks Gabranth back and his mask comes off. Larsa comes back as Vayne tries to kill Gabranth and destroys the nethicite. More scenes with Venat and Vayne blowing things up. When battle begins put your buffs back up and prepare for battle versus The Undying. Dispel Undying's Haste and get to work using the same stuff that got you to this point. At a certain point he'll use Chain Magic and he starts going faster obviously. He likes Piercing Thundaga / Blizzaga / Firaga (1000-1500), Megaflare (1500-2000) and will use Faith on himself. Dispel that immediately if it happens. You'll never see his HP but you can tell when he starts getting desperate at the Magick Barrier gets put up. Piercing Holy will come out and so will Ascension, the later taking off 2000 each and Holy takes off about 3000 on one. You may also see Gigaflare Sword, taking off 2500-3000 on each. The Undying will use Enrage and Force Barrier to be immune to physical attacks. Eventually Perfect Defense will come out and he'll beat you down for a while and use Teraflare, a devastating maneuver that takes off 4000 on each roughly. Surely you should have a Bubble Belt or two on for that one. Afterwards his barriers drop and he truly won't have much longer to live. Continue and victory will be yours. Enjoy the scenes afterwards, it's the end of Final Fantasy XII and you earned it.
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