_______ __ __ _ _ | | | | | \ | | /\ | | | ----- | | | \ | | / \ | | | | | | | \| | / /\ \ | | | -- | | | | / /__\ \ | | | __| | | | |\ | / \ | |____ | | | | | | \ | / ______ \ | | |_| |__| |_| \__| /__/ \__\ |______| _______ __ _ ____________ _______ __ __ | | /\ | \ | | | | /\ | _____| \ \ / / | ----- / \ | \ | | ---- ---- / \ | | \ \ / / | | / /\ \ | \| | | | / /\ \ | |_____ \ \/ / | -- / /__\ \ | | | | / /__\ \ |_____ | | | | __| / \ | |\ | | | / \ | | | | | | / ______ \ | | \ | | | / ______ \ _____| | | | |_| /__/ \__\ |_| \__| |__| /__/ \__\ |_______| |__| __ ___ ___ | | \ \ / / | | \ \ / / | | \ \ / / | | \ v / | | / . \ | | / / \ \ | | / / \ \ |__| /__/ \__\ Final Fantasy IX for the PlayStation FAQ by Masvega (masvega@hotmail.com) Version 1.0 6/5/05 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Table of Contents ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Table of Contents 2. Version History 3. Game Mechanics 4. Characters 5. Status Effects 6. Walkthrough 7. Sub-Quests 8. Mini-Games 9. Items 10. Weapons 11. Helmets 12. Gauntlets 13. Armors 14. Accessories 15. Syntheses 16. Cards 17. Letters 18. Bestiary 19. Bosses 20. Shop Lists 21. Contact Information 22. Disclaimer 23. Credits ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Version History ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1.0 (6/5/05) -Initial release. -Walkthrough done. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3. Game Mechanics ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- ============== Map Controls ============== Circle...........................Exit vehicle Square...........................Call save moogle Triangle.........................Bring up menu X................................Enter vehicle/city Select...........................Switch between map levels Start............................Pause Control Pad/Analog Stick.........Move L1...............................Rotate map clockwise R1...............................Rotate map counterclockwise L2...............................Fix or unfix camera rotation R2...............................Spin camera to behind you R1+L1+R2+L2+Select+Start.........Soft reset =============== Area Controls =============== Circle...........................Run; cancel Square...........................Call save moogle Triangle.........................Bring up menu X................................Talk; confirm; examine Select...........................Toggles indicator on and off; views ATE Start............................Pause Control Pad......................Move Left Analog Stick................Move (running) R1+L1+R2+L2+Select+Start.........Soft reset ================= Battle Controls ================= Circle...........................Cancels a decision Square...........................Makes the menu transparent Triangle.........................Switch characters X................................Select an option/select a target Select...........................Brings up a help screen for the options Start............................Pause Control Pad/Analog Stick.........Move to different options/targets R1+L1............................Attempt to run R1+L1+R2+L2+Select+Start.........Soft reset ================== Vehicle Controls ================== Note: Chocobos do not apply in this category. Circle...........................Exit vehicle Square...........................Make vehicle move backwards Triangle.........................Go to hull of vehicle X................................Enter vehicle; move vehicle forward Select...........................Switches between map levels Start............................Pause Control Pad/Analog Stick.........Steer; change altitude R1+L1+R2+L2+Select+Start.........Soft reset ================== Chocobo Controls ================== Circle...........................Jump off chocobo Square...........................Dig (with Chocograph) Triangle.........................Bring up chocograph/dead pepper menu X................................Jump on chocobo Select...........................Switches between map levels Start............................Pause Control Pad/Analog Stick.........Move R1+L1+R2+L2+Select+Start.........Soft reset ======== Trance ======== Trance is this game's version of the limit break system. Essentially, as damage is received in battle, the character's trance gauge increases. When it fills up completely, the character becomes Tranced, generally providing them with greater strength than they had before. The effects of the trance range from providing all new abilities to increasing physical strength to allowing the casting of two spells per turn. Once tranced, as actions are taken, the trance gauge is depleted. When the gauge is empty, the character returns to their normal state. The gauge is also emptied if the character should be turned into a zombie. As trance arises from combat instinct, having one party member attack another party member will not raise their trance gauges. Also, being attacked in group attacks doesn't seem to raise the gauge as much as being attacked one at a time does. Furthermore, there is an ability, High Tide, which increases the speed at which the Trance meter fills. It does not, however, affect the speed at which it empties when the character becomes tranced. Note that there are a few battles in which characters start out tranced due to the story. ==================== Active Time Events ==================== Over the course of the game, you will be introduced to, and then witness a good number of Active Time Events (ATEs). ATEs are brought up by pressing Select once the message that an ATE is available is put on the screen. Watching one of these events allows you to watch what's happening in another nearby area at the same time. Some of the ATEs are important in order to get a better grasp of the story, some are merely meant to be funny, others aid in getting you some items. You can choose to watch as many or as few of them as you wish. Keep in mind there are a few ATEs that are mandatory and cannot be skipped. ================== Battle Mechanics ================== Battles consist of your party of 1-4 members facing off against any number of enemies. Turns are decided by the ATB gauge, which are filled at a rate based on the character's speed. When the gauge is full, you can issue a command to the character, such as attack, defend, item, or some sort of skill attack. Once anyone on the screen has their HP depleted, they die and are unable to participate in the rest of the fight unless revived. When any sort of attack is issued, the amount of damage dealt will be written out next to the character in white numbers. If the damage numbers are green, that means it healed the character. As the characters receive damage from enemies, their Trance Gauge will be increased. If they keep receiving damage, they'll eventually trance. Don't forget that you can switch character's turns with the triangle button. However, for this to work, you must have at least two characters with full ATB gauges. Thus, if you have a tranced character that you don't want to act, you can switch to another character instead. The battles are influenced by eight stats: Speed: Determines the rate at which the ATB is filled. Strength: Determines the potency of physical attacks. Magic: Determines the potency of magical attacks. Spirit: Goes into the character's attack and defense. Determines the successfulness of skills such as Steal and Counter. Determines how long status effects last. Attack: Determines the amount of damage dealt with physical attacks. Defense: Determines the amount of damage reduced from physical attacks. Magic Defense: Determines the amount of damage reduced from magical attacks. Magic Evade: Determines the rate at which characters can dodge magical attacks. ====================== Skills and Abilities ====================== As you equip a weapon, you'll notice that it has some abilities associated with it. These abilities are grouped into two categories: active and passive. For active abilities, you can actually choose them from a menu in battle (or if they're healing, you can choose them out of battle) and use their effects. Examples of this are Cure, Flee, and Shock. These generally use some amount of MP. Passive abilities, on the other hand, are equipped out of battle and their effects carry over to battle. These effects requires some amount of magic stones in order to be equipped. Both magic stones and MP increase as your characters gain levels, and the status of both is displayed on the first menu screen. In order to actually learn these skills and abilities, you must have some equipment equipped that teaches the appropriate ability. As you fight and win battles, you'll gain AP, which goes into the learning meter. Each skill has stated the amount of AP necessary to learn the skill. Once the meter is full, the skill is learned, and you can de-equip the equipment without losing the skill. If you switch equipment before learning the skill, you'll lose the ability to use the skill. Thus, there is more to fielding a good team than just have the strongest equipment. It's necessary to keep in mind the skills and abilities innate in the equipment as well as their elemental properties, if applicable. ======= Shops ======= There are four main types of shops in the game: inns, medicine shops, armor shops and synthesis shops. Inns allow you to heal everyone's HP and MP for a price. Medicine shops and armor shops predictably sell medicine and armor, respectively. Synthesis shops, however, take two items and then forge a new, (generally) more powerful item out of the union. Not all of the syntheses are worth the money, so make sure to be careful when you look at your options. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4. Characters ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- I. Zidane Tribal (Virtue) "You don't need a reason to help people." ************** Description: ************** As a member of Tantalus, Zidane is a premiere thief. However, his stealing abilities pale in comparison to his abilities with the ladies, even with his ugly countenance. In facing the task of the greatest heist of his life, kidnapping Princess Garnet, he finds a good deal more than he bargained for. As he has no memory of his birth, will this new quest bring any light to his origin, or will he continue to remain ignorant and blindly go about his life. As a character that's in your party for most of the game, Zidane is actually pretty useful. He is near guaranteed to have the highest level in your party and will hit harder than just about anyone else for the entirety of the game (although Amarant can rival him toward the end). In addition, his special skill, Steal, allows you to get items you wouldn't otherwise have for a good deal of time, especially in the early game. Stealing equipment and items from bosses and other enemies will also save you quite a bit of money in the long run. The majority of his special abilities will go unused, but the ones that will be used (Flee, Soul Blade, Thievery) are quite important to your team. Zidane also has the second most powerful trance as well as the second most versatile one (with Steiner's being most powerful and Amarant's being most versatile). His already damaging attack improves dramatically, plus all his skills turn into powerful attacks, which, especially in the early and late parts of the game, can greatly help you win battles. The problem with it, however, is twofold. First, these beefed up Dyne attacks take lots of MP, which limit their repeated usefulness unless you have Amarant backing you or Ethers. Also, the Dyne attacks actually replace your skills, so if you were hoping to use Flee to escape a battle you didn't want to fight, or use Soul Blade to give an opponent a certain status effect, etc, you're stuck. Usefulness: Disc 1: High Disc 2: High Disc 3: High Disc 4: High ********* Skills: ********* 1. Flee (40 AP; 0 MP) -Allows the party to run away from a non-mandatory battle at the cost of some GP. -Gotten from: Dagger, Germinas Boots, Mage Masher, Ultima Weapon, Zorlin Shape 2. Detect (40 AP; 0 MP) -Allows you to see what items the enemy is carrying. -Gotten from: Mage Masher, Orichalcon 3. What's That!? (40 AP; 2 MP) -Allows you to make a back attack. -Gotten from: Butterfly Sword 4. Soul Blade (35 AP; 6 MP) -Automatically gives the opponent whatever status effect is within the dagger Zidane has equipped. -Gotten from: The Ogre 5. Annoy (50 AP; 4 MP) -Gives one target trouble. -Gotten from: Gladius, Sargatanas 6. Sacrifice (55 AP; 32 MP) -Sacrifices Zidane's life to restore HP and MP to other party members. -Gotten from: Exploda, Masamune 7. Lucky Seven (85 AP; 6 MP) -Deals physical damage when all digits of Zidane's HP are 7. -Gotten from: Exploda, Gladius, Rune Tooth, The Tower, Thief Hat 8. Thievery (100 AP; 8 MP) -Deals physical damage to the target based on the number of items Zidane has stolen. -Gotten from: Angel Bless, The Tower ************ Abilities: ************ 1. Auto-Reflect (95 AP; 15 magic stones) -Automatically casts Reflect on Zidane in battle. -Gotten from: Reflect Ring 2. Auto-Float (20 AP; 6 magic stones) -Automatically casts Float on Zidane in battle. -Gotten from: Feather Boots 3. Auto-Haste (55 AP; 9 magic stones) -Automatically casts Haste on Zidane in battle. -Gotten from: Running Shoes 4. Auto-Regen (25 AP; 10 magic stones) -Automatically casts Regen on Zidane in battle. -Gotten from: Brave Suit, Golden Hairpin 5. Auto-Life (130 AP; 12 magic stones) -Automatically casts Life on Zidane when he is knocked out. -Gotten from: Rebirth Ring 6. HP +20% (40 AP; 8 magic stones) -Increases max HP by 20%. -Gotten from: Adaman Hat, Battle Boots, Black Belt, Mantra Band 7. Accuracy+ (30 AP; 2 magic stones) -Raises physical attack accuracy. -Gotten from: Black Hood, Lapis Lazuli, Power Wrist 8. Distract (30 AP; 5 magic stones) -Lowers the enemy's accuracy with physical attacks. -Gotten from: Diamond, Judo Uniform, Reflect Ring 9. Long Reach (170 AP; 16 magic stones) -Zidane can attack opponents while in the back row with the same potency as if he were in the front row. -Gotten from: Protect Ring, Thief Hat 10. MP Attack (45 AP; 5 magic stones) -Uses your MP to increase attack power. -Gotten from: Battle Boots, Power Belt, Red Hat 11. Bird Killer (20 AP; 3 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to aerial enemies. -Gotten from: Adaman Vest, Yellow Scarf 12. Bug Killer (35 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to insects. -Gotten from: Mythril Armlet 13. Stone Killer (30 AP; 4 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to stone enemies. -Gotten from: Adaman Vest, Power Vest 14. Undead Killer (45 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to the undead. -Gotten from: Headgear, N-Kai Armlet, Ritual Hat 15. Devil Killer (25 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to demons. -Gotten from: Chain Plate, Demon's Vest 16. Beast Killer (50 AP; 4 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to beasts. -Gotten from: Black Belt, Egoist's Armlet, Flash Hat, Leather Wrist, Moonstone 17. Man Eater (25 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to humans. -Gotten from: Bandana, Coral Ring, Coronet 18. Master Thief (50 AP; 5 magic stones) -Zidane steals better items. -Gotten from: Thief Gloves 19. Steal Gil (40 AP; 5 magic stones) -You steal gil along with items. -Gotten from: Glass Armlet, Yellow Scarf 20. Add Status (35 AP; 3 magic stones) -Adds the weapon's status effect when you attack. -Gotten from: Bone Wrist, Bracer, Chimera Armlet, Feather Hat, Glass Buckle, Twist Headband 21. Gamble Defense (20 AP; 1 magic stone) -Occassionally raises Zidane's defense. -Gotten from: Adaman Hat, Power Vest, Twist Headband 22. High Tide (35 AP; 8 magic stones) -The trance meter is filled up faster. -Gotten from: Dark Hat, Gaia Gear, Jade Armlet, Sapphire 23. Counter (70 AP; 8 magic stones) -Zidane counterattacks when physically attacked. -Gotten from: Power Belt, Power Vest, Ritual Hat 24. Protect Girls (35 AP; 4 magic stones) -Zidane receives damage meant for one of the girls. -Gotten from: Butterfly Sword, Leather Shirt 25. Eye 4 Eye (60 AP; 5 magic stones) -Increases the rate in which Zidane counterattacks. -Gotten from: Flash Hat, Ninja Gear 26. Body Temp (25 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against freeze and heat. -Gotten from: Diamond, Fairy Earrings, Jade Armlet, Madain's Ring 27. Alert (40 AP; 4 magic stones) -Prevents back attacks. -Gotten from: Germinas Boots, Ninja Gear 28. Level Up (75 AP; 7 magic stones) -Multiplies the character's gained experience by 150%. -Gotten from: Egoist's Armlet, Fairy Earrings, Rosetta Ring 29. Ability Up (95 AP; 3 magic stones) -Doubles the amount of AP received for winning battles. -Gotten from: Brigadine, Green Beret, Lapis Lazuli, Ribbon 30. Flee-Gil (45 AP; 3 magic stones) -You receive gil even when you flee from a battle. -Gotten from: Desert Boots, Gold Choker, Wrist 31. Insomniac (30 AP; 5 magic stones) -Protects against sleep. -Gotten from: Bandana, Coral Ring, Gaia Gear 32. Antibody (20 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against venom and poison. -Gotten from: Glass Armlet, Glass Buckle, Mantra Band, Survival Vest 33. Bright Eyes (35 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against darkness. -Gotten from: Feather Hat, Ritual Hat 34. Restore HP (85 AP; 8 magic stones) -Restores HP automatically when near death. -Gotten from: Brave Suit, Promist Ring 35. Jelly (35 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against petrify and gradual petrify. -Gotten from: Bronze Vest, Circlet, Dark Gear, Dark Hat 36. Auto-Potion (30 AP; 5 magic stones) -Zidane automatically uses a Potion after being hit physically. -Gotten from: Demon's Vest, Gold Choker, Mythril Vest, Running Shoes 37. Locomotion (30 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against stop. -Gotten from: Black Hood, Demon's Vest, Golden Skullcap, Ninja Gear, Survival Vest 38. Clear Headed (25 AP; 5 magic stones) -Protects against confusion. -Gotten from: Circlet, Dark Gear, Green Beret, Magician Shoes 39. Mug (65 AP; 3 magic stones) -Zidane attacks the enemy while he steals. -Gotten from: Chimera Armlet, Survival Vest, Thief Hat 40. Bandit (40 AP; 5 magic stones) -Increases the success rate of steal attempts. -Gotten from: Mythril Dagger, N-Kai Armlet ********* Trance: ********* 1. Free Energy (10 MP) -Deals a large amount of physical damage to one enemy. -Derived from: Flee 2. Tidal Flame (12 MP) -Deals a large amount of fire damage to all enemies. -Derived from: Detect 3. Scoop Art (14 MP) -Deals a large amount of physical damage to one enemy. -Derived from: What's That!? 4. Shift Break (16 MP) -Deals a large amount of physical damage to all enemies. -Derived from: Soul Blade 5. Stellar Circle 5 (24 MP) -Deals a large amount of physical damage to one enemy. -Derived from: Annoy 6. Meo Twister (32 MP) -Deals a large amount of physical damage to all enemies. -Derived from: Sacrifice 7. Solution 9 (48 MP) -Deals a large amount of physical damage to one enemy. -Derived from: Lucky Seven 8. Grand Lethal (60 MP) -Deals close to 9999 physical damage to all enemies. -Derived from: Thievery ************* Key Skills: ************* Flee and Soul Blade are two must-learn skills. Flee allows you to run away from any random battle in the game, which especially helps if you run up against a fight against a strong opponent or if you want to beat the game in record time. Soul Blade is also extremely useful as it automatically gives the opponent the innate status effect of whatever weapon Zidane has equipped. As most of Zidane's weapons carry useful effects, using this on occasion helps your cause greatly. What's That!?, on the other hand, is worthless on its own, but its usefulness is increased if any of the big physical attackers are in the party. You can use it, then have either of them attack for increased damage. Sacrifice is pretty much worthless, although it's nice for the Dyne ability you'll get. Annoy is good when fighting a group of enemies, but you won't use it much. Lucky Seven is great to use when the criteria is met, but that's not often. It's worth learning just in case though. Detect is good if you want to find out what items an enemy is carrying, but with this FAQ, you don't need it for that purpose. However, Tidal Flame, the Dyne attack gained with Detect, is key, especially in the early game. Finally, Thievery, is one of the better abilities in the game, provided you steal continually. Eventually, you'll be dealing 9999 damage with every use. On the abilities side, Level Up and Ability Up are necessary, as they are with everyone. Bandit is also key as it greatly increases the chances that steal attempts are successful. And if you're trying to steal items from bosses, you need all the beneficial changes to steal percentage that you can find. Master Thief adds onto that, and is nice, but not absolutely necessary, especially for the cost of Thief Gloves. Mug and Counter are good against just regular enemies and against bosses if you don't care about stealing their items. Be aware that Zidane will do nowhere near as much damage mugging as he would just attacking. The various Killer abilities are also very useful, but you have to be mindful of the monsters in various areas so you can equip the proper ones. Bright Eyes and Insomniac take care of the major status effects you have worry about with Zidane, although learning and equipping Body Temp in areas where freeze and heat attacks are prevalent helps. Clear Headed is also key, as a confused Zidane spells trouble. Auto-Haste is also extremely helpful, as Zidane will get to attack and steal more often, which is always useful. ============================================================================ II. Vivi Oruntia (Sorrow) "How do you prove that you exist? Maybe we don't exist..." ************** Description: ************** A black mage, lost and on his own, Vivi faces questions about his existence and his survival. What is his purpose? His reason for being? Is he even really alive? And through his travels, Vivi will overcome his fears, but will he overcome his feelings of self-doubt and achieve happiness? Vivi deserves special mention as he is the only black mage in the game, and thus, has the easiest ability to exploit enemies' elemental weaknesses. In the early part of the game, where no one can deal a lot of physical damage, he is key in order to win battles in short order. The problem with that is that he will often run out of MP, at which point he can be made to heal with Potions and the like. The problem with Vivi is that toward the middle of the game, other characters become more useful than he is, and thus, he more than likely won't be seeing as much use. His Focus ability increases the strength of his magic attacks for the remainder of the battle and is very useful, and the increase of damage on the next turn reduces the downside. His biggest weakness is his low attack strength. None of his weapons have all that high of an attack rating, and his strength isn't great. Also, if Vivi is in the party while Steiner is in the party, it allows Steiner to use the Sword Magic attacks that deal quite a bit of damage and give Steiner more versatility. Tranced, Vivi improves quite a bit. His physical attack does a decent amount of damage now, but the real plus to this state is his Dbl Blk option. Selecting this choice allows Vivi to cast two black magic spells sequentially. However, it does cost the same amount of MP from both, so it's easy to run out of MP using this. It is very useful to deal more damage to an enemy weak to a certain element, which most of the enemies in the game are, plus the sequential nature of the attacks allows you to ensure that the two attacks are going to get off without the opponent killing you in the interim, unless they have a counter spell attack. Usefulness: Disc 1: High Disc 2: High Disc 3: Medium Disc 4: Medium ************** Black Magic: ************** 1. Fire (25 AP; 6 MP) -Deals fire damage to one or more targets. -Gotten from: Leather Hat, Mage Staff 2. Fira (50 AP; 12 MP) -Deals fire damage to one or more targets. Stronger than Fire. -Gotten from: Flame Staff, Mage's Hat, Power Belt, Topaz 3. Firaga (75 AP; 24 MP) -Deals fire damage to one or more targets. Stronger than Fira. -Gotten from: Octagon Rod 4. Sleep (20 AP; 12 MP) -Puts one or more targets to sleep. -Gotten from: Flame Staff 5. Blizzard (25 AP; 6 MP) -Deals ice damage to one or more targets. -Gotten from: Leather Wrist 6. Blizzara (50 AP; 12 MP) -Deals ice damage to one or more targets. Stronger than Blizzard. -Gotten from: Ice Staff, Opal 7. Blizzaga (85 AP; 24 MP) -Deals ice damage to one or more targets. Stronger than Blizzara. -Gotten from: Octagon Rod 8. Slow (20 AP; 6 MP) -Slows the ATB gauge of an enemy. -Gotten from: Ice Staff, Magus Hat 9. Thunder (25 AP; 6 MP) -Deals thunder damage to one or more targets. -Gotten from: Glass Buckle, Silk Shirt 10. Thundara (50 AP; 12 MP) -Deals thunder damage to one or more targets. Stronger than Thunder. -Gotten from: Lightning Staff, Peridot 11. Thundaga (80 AP; 24 MP) -Deals thunder damage to one or more targets. Stronger than Thundara. -Gotten from: Octagon Rod 12. Stop (25 AP; 8 MP) -Stops one or more targets from taking any action. -Gotten from: Oak Staff 13. Poison (35 AP; 8 MP) -Inflicts poison on one or more targets. -Gotten from: Lightning Staff 14. Bio (40 AP; 18 MP) -Deals non-elemental damage and inflicts poison on one or more targets. -Gotten from: Oak Staff 15. Osmose (70 AP; 2 MP) -Drains MP from the target and gives it to Vivi. -Gotten from: Gaia Gear, High Mage Staff 16. Drain (60 AP; 14 MP) -Drains HP from the target and gives it to Vivi. -Gotten from: Oak Staff 17. Demi (30 AP; 18 MP) -Deals an amount of damage dependent on the target's current HP. -Gotten from: Amethyst, Black Belt, Cypress Pile 18. Comet (55 AP; 16 MP) -Deals non-elemental damage to one target. -Gotten from: Cypress Pile 19. Death (45 AP; 20 MP) -Kills the target. -Gotten from: Black Hood 20. Break (30 AP; 18 MP) -Petrifies one target. -Gotten from: Cypress Pile 21. Water (55 AP; 22 MP) -Deals water damage to one or more targets. -Gotten from: N-Kai Armlet 22. Meteor (95 AP; 42 MP) -Deals non-elemental damage to all enemies. -Gotten from: High Mage Staff 23. Flare (95 AP; 40 MP) -Deals non-elemental damage to one target. -Gotten from: Black Robe 24. Doomsday (150 AP; 72 MP) -Deals shadow damage to everyone on the screen, including allies. -Gotten from: Mace of Zeus ************ Abilities: ************ 1. Auto-Reflect (70 AP; 15 magic stones) -Automatically casts Reflect on Vivi in battle. -Gotten from: Reflect Ring 2. Auto-Float (20 AP; 6 magic stones) -Automatically casts Float on Vivi in battle. -Gotten from: Feather Boots 3. Auto-Haste (55 AP; 9 magic stones) -Automatically casts Haste on Vivi in battle. -Gotten from: Running Shoes 4. Auto-Regen (30 AP; 10 magic stones) -Automatically casts Regen on Vivi in battle. -Gotten from: Golden Hairpin, Light Robe 5. Auto-Life (70 AP; 12 magic stones) -Automatically casts Life on Vivi when he is knocked out. -Gotten from: Rebirth Ring 6. MP +20% (30 AP; 8 magic stones) -Increases max MP by 20%. -Gotten from: Black Robe 7. Healer (20 AP; 2 magic stones) -Vivi's attack restores the target's HP. -Gotten from: Garnet 8. Add Status (25 AP; 3 magic stones) -Adds your weapon's status effect to your attack. -Gotten from: Bone Wrist, Bracer, Chimera Armlet, Feather Hat, Glass Buckle, Twist Headband 9. Reflect-Null (30 AP; 7 magic stones) -The effect of reflect is nullified in attacks. -Gotten from: Robe of Lords 10. Reflectx2 (110 AP; 17 magic stones) -Doubles the strength of reflected spells. -Gotten from: Black Robe, Rosetta Ring 11. Mag Elem Null (115 AP; 13 magic stones) -Nullifies a magic element. -Gotten from: Promist Ring, Protect Ring 12. Half MP (140 AP; 11 magic stones) -Halves the MP cost of spells in battle. -Gotten from: Light Robe, Protect Ring 13. High Tide (25 AP; 8 magic stones) -The trance meter is filled up faster. -Gotten from: Dark Hat, Gaia Gear, Jade Armlet, Sapphire 14. Body Temp (15 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against freeze and heat. -Gotten from: Diamond, Fairy Earrings, Holy Miter, Jade Armlet, Madain's Ring 15. Level Up (30 AP; 7 magic stones) -Multiplies the character's gained experience by 150%. -Gotten from: Egoist's Armlet, Fairy Earrings, Rosetta Ring 16. Ability Up (55 AP; 3 magic stones) -Increases the rate at which Vivi learns abilities. -Gotten from: Green Beret, Lapis Lazuli, Ribbon, Silk Robe 17. Insomniac (25 AP; 5 magic stones) -Protects against sleep. -Gotten from: Bandana, Coral Ring, Gaia Gear, Holy Miter, Magician Cloak 18. Antibody (30 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against venom and poison. -Gotten from: Glass Armlet, Glass Buckle, Mantra Band, Survival Vest 19. Loudmouth (40 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against silence. -Gotten from: Golden Hairpin, Mage's Hat, Silk Robe 20. Jelly (25 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against petrify and gradual petrify. -Gotten from: Bronze Vest, Circlet, Dark Gear, Dark Hat, Dragon Wrist 21. Return Magic (90 AP; 9 magic stones) -Returns magic cast on Vivi by the enemy. -Gotten from: Coronet 22. Auto-Potion (10 AP; 3 magic stones) -Vivi automatically uses a Potion after being hit physically. -Gotten from: Demon's Vest, Gold Choker, Magician Robe, Mythril Vest, Running Shoes 23. Locomotion (35 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against stop. -Gotten from: Black Hood, Demon's Vest, Golden Skullcap, Survival Vest 24. Clear Headed (15 AP; 5 magic stones) -Protects against confusion. -Gotten from: Circlet, Dark Gear, Green Beret, Magic Armlet, Magician Shoes ************* Key Skills: ************* All of the elemental spells are useful and should be learned. Their usefulness generally lasts until the next strength spell is available to be learned. Of the non-elemental spells, Sleep and Slow are definitely worth getting. Both work frequently on all types of enemies, including several bosses, and can greatly help Zidane's stealing chances. Stop is an iffy spell. On the one hand, it will stop opponents from moving and can win battles for you. But on the other hand, should you win battles with stopped opponents, you only receive AP. Thus, it is not absolutely necessary. Poison is nearly useless, but Bio is a much better spell as it deals damage along with poisoning enemies. However, the increased MP cost decreases its usefulness a bit. Osmose is key whenever you get to learn it, as the top level spells require a lot of MP. With this spell, you can recover some of the MP you've lost. Demi and Death are both iffy, as they tend not to work on enemies at your level, and don't work on bosses. You can go out of your way to learn them if you wish. Comet and Meteor are both nice, but hardly necessary. Flare is extremely necessary if you're using Vivi in Disc 4, while Doomsday is a tossup. If you have a party with armor that shields against shadow attacks, go for it. Otherwise, it can wipe out the party if you cast it. Loudmouth is a must-learn ability for Vivi. Unlike nearly all the other characters, once Vivi loses his ability to cast magic, his attack ability is greatly hampered, especially with the first few weapons. With Loudmouth, all silence attacks to Vivi fail, allowing him to cast magic all the time. Auto-Potion is also very useful with Vivi, although this is more of a judgment call. Vivi takes quite a bit of damage with each hit and Auto-Potion can relieve that somewhat. However, this does use your potions rapidly. Along with the standard Level Up and Ability Up, MP +20% is nice, as it gives you an extra cushion for your spells. Return Magic, Half MP, Mag Elem Null and Reflectx2 are all nice and help beef up Vivi's offensive and defensive capabilities, but aren't really necessary. Auto-Regen can help counter his low defense, while Auto-Reflect can be combined with Reflectx2 to deal a good amount of damage to opponents. ============================================================================ Adelbert Steiner (Dilemma) "Having sworn fealty, must I spend my life in servitude?" ************** Description: ************** As captain of the Pluto Knights, Steiner's principal duty is to ensure the safety of Princess Garnet. However, after she is kidnapped, Steiner finds himself in a new situation. Should he follow his liege's wishes, or should he take her back to Alexandria, where she would be safe? Or is it even his decision to question the wishes of his princess? Along the way, he will continue to fight with honor to protect Garnet, but will he do it because he wishes to or because it is his duty? Steiner is not all that useful for the first two discs. As his physical attack doesn't do all that much more damage than other characters, he's not outstanding as a fighter. The majority of the Break skills are worthless and by the time Minus Strike is a useful attack, his physical attack will do more damage than it. However, if you stick with him, he becomes unbelievably good in the final two discs. All the skills you learn from the knight swords are incredibly useful and do much damage, while his attack gets better and better. In addition, Steiner will become a wall with the later armors, which will better allow him to take damage. Unfortunately, due to his leaving your party for a long time, it will take a significant investment of time to build him up to the remainder of your characters. With Vivi also in your party, Steiner can use the Sword Magic attacks to exploit weaknesses in your opponents defense's. These attacks take away Steiner's MP, but not Vivi's. However, they can only be used when Vivi has learned them. Tranced, Steiner's main improvement is that his attacks do more damage. Initially, this isn't much, but toward the end of the game, this means his attacks deal 9999 damage. Thus, just attacking is as effective as any of his skills and with no MP cost. There is no point to using his skills when tranced. Usefulness: Disc 1: Medium Disc 2: Medium Disc 3: High Disc 4: High ************ Sword Art: ************ 1. Darkside (30 AP; 0 MP) -Takes away some of Steiner's HP to deal shadow damage on an enemy. -Gotten from: Blood Sword 2. Minus Strike (35 AP; 8 MP) -Deals damage equal to (max HP - current HP). -Gotten from: Iron Sword, Rubber Helm 3. Iai Strike (40 AP; 16 MP) -Knocks out the target. -Gotten from: Rune Blade 4. Power Break (40 AP; 8 MP) -Reduces the attack power of one opponent. -Gotten from: Diamond Sword 5. Armor Break (30 AP; 4 MP) -Reduces the defense of one opponent. -Gotten from: Mythril Sword 6. Mental Break (45 AP; 8 MP) -Reduces the magic defense of one opponent. -Gotten from: Gold Helm, Ice Brand 7. Magic Break (25 AP; 4 MP) -Reduces the magic power of one opponent. -Gotten from: Flame Saber 8. Charge! (30 AP; 10 MP) -All party members that are near death attack. -Gotten from: Aegis Gloves, Coral Sword 9. Thunder Slash (30 AP; 24 MP) -Deals thunder damage to an enemy. -Gotten from: Defender, Ragnarok 10. Stock Break (35 AP; 26 MP) -Deals non-elemental damage to all enemies. -Gotten from: Ultima Sword 11. Climhazzard (70 AP; 32 MP) -Deals non-elemental damage to all enemies. -Gotten from: Excalibur 12. Shock (60 AP; 46 MP) -Deals a large amount of physical damage to an enemy. -Gotten from: Ragnarok ************** Sword Magic: ************** 1. Fire (6 MP) -Deals a devastating fire attack. 2. Fira (12 MP) -Deals fire damage greater than the one for the Fire Sword. 3. Firaga (30 MP) -Deals fire damage greater than the one for the Fira Sword. 4. Blizzard (6 MP) -Deals a devastating ice attack. 5. Blizzara (12 MP) -Deals ice damage greater than the one for the Blizzard Sword. 6. Blizzaga (30 MP) -Deals ice damage greater than the one for the Blizzara Sword. 7. Thunder (6 MP) -Deals a devastating lightning attack. 8. Thundara (12 MP) -Deals lightning damage greater than the one for the Thunder Sword. 9. Thundaga (30 MP) -Deals lightning damage greater than the one for the Thundara Sword. 10. Bio (20 MP) -Deals damage to an enemy as well as poisoning them. 11. Water (26 MP) -Deals water damage to an enemy. 12. Flare (60 MP) -Unleashes a devastating Flare attack. ************ Abilities: ************ 1. Auto-Reflect (95 AP; 15 magic stones) -Automatically casts Reflect on Steiner in battle. -Gotten from: Reflect Ring 2. Auto-Float (20 AP; 6 magic stones) -Automatically casts Float on Steiner in battle. -Gotten from: Feather Boots, Venetia Shield 3. Auto-Haste (65 AP; 9 magic stones) -Automatically casts Haste on Steiner in battle. -Gotten from: Running Shoes 4. Auto-Regen (75 AP; 10 magic stones) -Automatically casts Regen on Steiner in battle. -Gotten from: Carabini Mail 5. Auto-Life (155 AP; 12 magic stones) -Automatically casts Life on Steiner when he is knocked out. -Gotten from: Rebirth Ring 6. HP +10% (20 AP; 4 magic stones) -Increases max HP by 10%. -Gotten from: Aquamarine, Chain Mail, Germinas Boots 7. HP +20% (60 AP; 8 magic stones) -Increases max HP by 20%. -Gotten from: Battle Boots, Black Belt, Defense Gloves, Genji Helmet, Maximillian 8. Accuracy+ (40 AP; 2 magic stones) -Raises physical attack accuracy. -Gotten from: Diamond Helm, Genji Armor, Lapis Lazuli 9. Distract (30 AP; 5 magic stones) -Lowers the enemy's accuracy with physical attacks. -Gotten from: Diamond, Reflect Ring, Shield Armor 10. Long Reach (200 AP; 16 magic stones) -Steiner can attack opponents while in the back row with the same potency as if he were in the front row. -Gotten from: Protect Ring 11. MP Attack (50 AP; 5 magic stones) -Uses your MP to increase attack power. -Gotten from: Battle Boots, Cross Helm, Power Belt 12. Bird Killer (25 AP; 3 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to aerial enemies. -Gotten from: Bronze Armor, Chain Mail, Yellow Scarf 13. Bug Killer (50 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to insects. -Gotten from: Bronze Helm 14. Stone Killer (20 AP; 4 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to stone enemies. -Gotten from: Gold Armor, Platinum Helm 15. Undead Killer (30 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to the undead. -Gotten from: Silver Gloves 16. Devil Killer (30 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to demons. -Gotten from: Cross Helm, Thunder Gloves 17. Beast Killer (55 AP; 4 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to beasts. -Gotten from: Black Belt, Broadsword, Moonstone, Platina Armor 18. Man Eater (20 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to humans. -Gotten from: Coral Ring, Mythril Gloves 19. Add Status (50 AP; 3 magic stones) -Adds your weapon's status effect to your attack. -Gotten from: Glass Buckle, Thunder Gloves 20. Chemist (20 AP; 4 magic stones) -Doubles the effectiveness of medicine. -Gotten from: Grand Armor, Madain's Ring 21. High Tide (35 AP; 8 magic stones) -Increases the rate at which the trance meter fills. -Gotten from: Demon's Mail, Genji Gloves, Grand Helm, Sapphire 22. Counter (100 AP; 8 magic stones) -Steiner counterattacks when physically attacked. -Gotten from: Power Belt, Venetia Shield 23. Cover (20 AP; 6 magic stones) -Steiner takes damage meant for another party member. -Gotten from: Gauntlets, Linen Cuirass, Mythril Armor 24. Eye 4 Eye (35 AP; 5 magic stones) -Increases the rate in which Steiner counterattacks. -Gotten from: Kaiser Helm 25. Body Temp (35 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against freeze and heat. -Gotten from: Diamond, Fairy Earrings, Genji Armor, Madain's Ring 26. Alert (60 AP; 4 magic stones) -Prevents back attacks. -Gotten from: Barbut, Germinas Boots 27. Level Up (50 AP; 7 magic stones) -Multiplies the character's gained experience by 150%. -Gotten from: Fairy Earrings, Iron Helm, Rosetta Ring 28. Ability Up (70 AP; 3 magic stones) -Doubles the amount of AP received for winning battles. -Gotten from: Diamond Armor, Diamond Gloves, Lapis Lazuli, Ribbon 29. Insomniac (25 AP; 5 magic stones) -Protects against sleep. -Gotten from: Coral Ring, Diamond Helm, Mythril Helm 30. Antibody (35 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against poison and venom. -Gotten from: Bronze Gloves, Glass Buckle, Mythril Helm 31. Bright Eyes (25 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against darkness. -Gotten from: Iron Helm 32. Restore HP (100 AP; 8 magic stones) -Restores HP automatically when near death. -Gotten from: Grand Armor, Platinum Helm, Promist Ring 33. Jelly (30 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against petrify and gradual petrify. -Gotten from: Diamond Gloves, Mythril Armor 34. Auto-Potion (20 AP; 3 magic stones) -Steiner automatically uses a Potion when hit physically. -Gotten from: Gold Choker, Running Shoes 35. Locomotion (35 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against stop. -Gotten from: Plate Mail 36. Clear Headed (30 AP; 5 magic stones) -Protects against confusion. -Gotten from: Gold Helm, Magician Shoes ************* Key Skills: ************* Of the Sword Arts, Darkside, Iai Strike, Thunder Sword, Climhazzard, Stock Break, and Shock are worth learning over the others. Darkside is a very useful attack that for no MP, decreases your HP slightly and deals a good amount of shadow damage to an opponent. It's even better while using the Blood Sword as the next attack will get the HP back, and makes for Steiner's best attack in the first disc. Iai Strike can kill an enemy with one hit, but it doesn't work against bosses. It is, however, good to take care of annoying random enemies that you don't want to take too much time fighting. Climhazzard and Stock Break both deal a high amount of damage to everyone, with Climhazzard doing more than Stock Break. Both are worth getting though as the differences in MP cost allows you to have more options with your attack. Shock generally deals 9999 physical damage to any target and is Steiner's strongest untranced attack. It's high MP cost limits its usefulness though. The various Break attacks are near useless except for in the early game where you might actually want to lower people's attributes. Charge! is only useful against a handful of opponents, but it does give a free attack to anyone who is at critical. The Killer attacks are great for Steiner especially in the beginning, as he's too weak to do a good deal of damage. Unfortunately, you'll have to do a little more research to find out what enemies are in the area so you can equip the proper Killer abilities. Of the remaining abilities, the HP increases are always useful, as is Cover, especially toward the end as Steiner gains the ability to take incredible amounts of abuse. Level Up and Ability Up are standard, and Auto-Haste is very useful with Steiner, as it allows you to attack with him faster. Counter and Bright Eyes increase Steiner's defensive capabilities, especially since a blinded Steiner is near worthless. Counter allows you to turn the tables on physical attackers by hitting them with an attack of your own. ============================================================================ Garnet Til Alexandros 17th (Dagger) (Devotion) "Someday I will be queen, but I will always be myself." ************** Description: ************** As Princess of Alexandria, Garnet lives a sheltered life. However, this life cannot prevent her from having mysterious nightmares about being trapped at sea, or from noticing the change in behavior of her mother. So, in order to attempt to help everyone, she journeys with other people to get the help that she feels is necessary. However, complications begin to arise and the people she has depended on in the past are not always around her, leaving her to fend for herself. Will she succeed and return everything to as it was, or will events forever change her life? Dagger is extremely useful during the first disc, especially once Chemist is learned. That ability makes all healing items heal twice their normal amount, which, in the early game when you don't have MP to spare, is spectacular. It becomes less and less useful as the game goes on, but it will get you through the early parts. As for Dagger overall, there are a few brief moments when you wouldn't want to have her in your party, but she should be a mainstay. She is the premiere white mage in the game as well as the pure offensive summoner, which outside of Vivi's Black Magic and Steiner and Vivi's Sword Magic, is the only way you'll be able to consistently exploit enemy defenses. In addition, with the rackets, Dagger can deal a decent amount of damage from the back row. Thus, she is useful for nearly every function. However, for the first part of the third disc, Dagger is almost completely useless, so keep that in mind. Tranced, Dagger doesn't improve all that much. The greatest improvement comes from the Eidolon command, which alows her to summon an Eidolon on every turn. However, this isn't all that great as it prevents her from healing. Attack and magic power are also increased slightly, but nothing notable. You'll want to just have her keep healing in this mode. Usefulness: Disc 1: High Disc 2: Medium Disc 3: Low/High (depending on the part of the disc) Disc 4: High ********* Summon: ********* 1. Shiva (20 AP; 24 MP) -Deals ice damage to all enemies. -Gotten from: Opal 2. Ifrit (35 AP; 26 MP) -Deals fire damage to all enemies. -Gotten from: Topaz 3. Ramuh (30 AP; 22 MP) -Deals thunder damage to all enemies. -Gotten from: Peridot 4. Atomos (30 AP; 32 MP) -Reduces the HP of all enemies. The amount of damage depends on the target's HP. -Gotten from: Amethyst 5. Odin (30 AP; 28 MP) -Kills all non-boss enemies. -Gotten from: Dark Matter 6. Leviathan (40 AP; 42 MP) -Deals water damage to all enemies. -Gotten from: Aquamarine 7. Bahamut (80 AP; 56 MP) -Deals non-elemental damage to all enemies. -Gotten from: Garnet 8. Ark (100 AP; 80 MP) -Deals shadow damage to all enemies. -Gotten from: Pumice ************** White Magic: ************** 1. Cure (30 AP; 6 MP) -Restores the health of one or more targets. -Gotten from: Magic Racket, Rod, Silk Shirt 2. Cura (50 AP; 10 MP) -Restores the health of one or more targets. Stronger than Cure. -Gotten from: Barette, Healing Rod 3. Curaga (110 AP; 22 MP) -Restores the health of one or more targets. Stronger than Cura. -Gotten from: Whale Whisker, Wizard Rod 4. Life (30 AP; 8 MP) -Restores one party member from a KO. -Gotten from: Cachusha, Healing Rod, Mythril Rod, Rebirth Ring, Whale Whisker 5. Scan (25 AP; 4 MP) -Tells you the enemy's stats. -Gotten from: Air Racket, Desert Boots 6. Panacea (15 AP; 4 MP) -Cures venom and poison. -Gotten from: Air Racket, Rod 7. Stona (25 AP; 8 MP) -Cures petrify and gradual petrify. -Gotten from: Multina Racket 8. Shell (35 AP; 6 MP) -Lessens the impact of magical attacks on a target. -Gotten from: Cotton Robe, Gold Choker, Moonstone, Multina Racket, Mythril Racket, Mythril Rod, Wizard Rod 9. Protect (30 AP; 6 MP) -Lessens the impact of physical attacks on a target. -Gotten from: Desert Boots, Mythril Racket, Rod, Steepled Hat, Wizard Rod 10. Silence (30 AP; 8 MP) -Inflicts silence on one or more enemies. -Gotten from: Asura's Rod, Magic Armlet, Mythril Rod, Priest's Racket 11. Mini (40 AP; 8 MP) -Miniaturizes one or more targets. Also cures miniaturized targets of their state. -Gotten from: Asura's Rod, Feather Boots, Magic Racket 12. Reflect (20 AP; 6 MP) -Reflects magic attacks back to the caster. -Gotten from: Mythril Racket, Reflect Ring, Ruby, Stardust Rod 13. Confuse (35 AP; 8 MP) -Inflicts confusion on one or more enemies. -Gotten from: Asura's Rod, Lamia's Tiara 14. Berserk (40 AP; 6 MP) -Makes one or more enemies berserk. -Gotten from: Magic Racket 15. Blind (40 AP; 6 MP) -Inflicts darkness on one or more enemies. -Gotten from: Magician Shoes, Multina Racket 16. Float (20 AP; 6 MP) -Allows one or more targets to float in the air. -Gotten from: Feather Boots, Lamia's Tiara, Stardust Rod ************ Abilities: ************ 1. Auto-Reflect (75 AP; 15 magic stones) -Automatically casts Reflect on Dagger in battle. -Gotten from: Reflect Ring 2. Auto-Float (20 AP; 6 magic stones) -Automatically casts Float on Dagger in battle. -Gotten from: Feather Boots 3. Auto-Haste (55 AP; 9 magic stones) -Automatically casts Haste on Dagger in battle. -Gotten from: Running Shoes 4. Auto-Regen (35 AP; 10 magic stones) -Automatically casts Regen on Dagger in battle. -Gotten from: Angel Earrings, Golden Hairpin, Light Robe, Maiden Prayer 5. Auto-Life (105 AP; 12 magic stones) -Automatically casts Life on Dagger when she is knocked out. -Gotten from: Rebirth Ring 6. MP +20% (45 AP; 8 magic stones) -Increases max MP by 20%. -Gotten from: Angel Earrings 7. Healer (30 AP; 2 magic stones) -Dagger's attack restores the target's HP. -Gotten from: Anklet, Garnet, Healing Rod 8. Chemist (15 AP; 4 magic stones) -Doubles the effectiveness of medicine. -Gotten from: Barette, Cotton Robe, Madain's Ring 9. Reflect-Null (45 AP; 7 magic stones) -The effect of reflect is nullified in attacks. -Gotten from: Pearl Rouge, Robe of Lords 10. Concentrate (80 AP; 10 magic stones) -Increases the strength of spells. -Gotten from: Rosetta Ring, Robe of Lords 11. Half MP (125 AP; 11 magic stones) -Halves the MP cost of spells in battle. -Gotten from: Light Robe, Protect Ring 12. High Tide (30 AP; 8 magic stones) -The trance meter is filled up faster. -Gotten from: Dark Hat, Gaia Gear, Jade Armlet, Minerva's Plate, Sapphire 13. Body Temp (25 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against freeze and heat. -Gotten from: Diamond, Fairy Earrings, Holy Miter, Jade Armlet, Madain's Ring 14. Level Up (50 AP; 7 magic stones) -Multiplies the character's gained experience by 150%. -Gotten from: Egoist's Armlet, Extension, Fairy Earrings, Pearl Rouge, Rosetta Ring 15. Ability Up (60 AP; 3 magic stones) -Increases the speed at which abilities are learned. -Gotten from: Cachusha, Green Beret, Lapis Lazuli, Ribbon, Silk Robe, Stardust Rod 16. Insomniac (25 AP; 5 magic stones) -Protects against sleep. -Gotten from: Bandana, Coral Ring, Gaia Gear, Holy Miter, Magician Cloak 17. Antibody (15 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against poison and venom. -Gotten from: Glass Armlet, Glass Buckle, Mantra Band, Survival Vest 18. Loudmouth (20 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against silence. -Gotten from: Golden Hairpin, Mage's Hat, Pearl Rouge, Silk Robe 19. Jelly (40 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against petrify and gradual petrify. -Gotten from: Bronze Vest, Circlet, Dark Gear, Dark Hat, Dragon Wrist 20. Auto-Potion (20 AP; 3 magic stones) -Dagger automatically uses a Potion when hit physically. -Gotten from: Demon's Vest, Extension, Gold Choker, Magician Robe, Mythril Vest, Running Shoes 21. Locomotion (30 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against stop. -Gotten from: Anklet, Black Hood, Demon's Vest, Golden Skullcap, Survival Vest 22. Clear Headed (25 AP; 5 magic stones) -Protects against confusion. -Gotten from: Circlet, Dark Gear, Green Beret, Lamia's Tiara, Magic Armlet, Magician Shoes 23. Boost (190 AP; 12 magic stones) -Increases the strength of eidolons. -Gotten from: Pumice Piece 24. Odin's Sword (50 AP; 5 magic stones) -Attacks with the Odin eidolon. -Gotten from: Ancient Aroma ************* Key Skills: ************* Of the summons, Ramuh, Ifrit, Shiva, and Bahamut are the ones you should put emphasis on learning. Ramuh will get you through the battles in the second disc until you get more summons, while Ifrit and Shiva come in handy in certain areas, plus their relatively low MP cost makes them a more viable option. Bahamut is the biggest bang for the MP, and should be the summon you use against bosses toward the end of the game. Odin and Atomos's usefulness are limited. Odin can kill regular enemies and Odin's Sword allows him to deal some damage, but generally it's a waste of MP. Atomos's ability to reduce the HP of everyone by a fixed percentage is also unpractical in regular battle and unreliable in boss fights. Leviathan would be good except it's not enough of an improvement over Ramuh, Shiva, and Ifrit to justify the added MP cost. Use it only when fighting bosses who are weak to solely water. Ark has its usefulness, but it's probably the longest summon I've ever seen in a Final Fantasy game (it might even beat Eden), but anyone who has Regen cast on them while it's going will more than likely have full HP by the time it ends. As for white magic, the three Cure spells are obviously necessary, as they're the basis of her whole healing structure. You'll generally need each one around the time you find items that you can learn them from. Life can also be incredibly useful, especially when fighting against people that can kill your party members easily, as the fallen ally would be revived with a significant amount of HP. Scan is nice to find the weaknesses of regular enemies, but it's not necessary. Panacea, Stona, and Mini are all great as they cure various side effects, plus Mini inflicts mini on a non-miniaturized target. Confuse, Berserk, Blind, and Silence will most likely get less use because they don't have a healing nature. Shell, Protect, and Reflect all have their uses. Of those, Reflect will more than likely get the most use, although Shell and Protect can help strengthen the defenses of an ally weak in either defensive area. Chemist and Loudmouth are the two big abilities that Dagger must learn. Chemist doubles the effectiveness of healing items, allowing her to better heal the party and also greatly increases the usefulness of potions. With this ability, you shouldn't have to use Dagger's spells to heal for the first disc or so. Loudmouth is just as important as it prevents Dagger from being silenced. If she gets silenced, then her usefulness goes down quite a bit, as she becomes unable to use her spells. As usual, Level Up and Ability Up are key, as are Boost and Odin's Sword, although the latter one is much less so. Boost greatly increases the strength of eidolons, which will allow you to cast some of the weaker ones to deal more damage, which is always a good thing. Odin's Sword allows the Odin summon to become an attack, which extends his usefulness beyond enemies that are fairly weak compared to the party. MP +20% is also nice, as more MP to cure and summon with is good, as is Half MP, as it allows Dagger to cast twice as many spells for the same MP cost while in battle. Of the rest of the abilities, the defensive ones are nice for specific situations, and Healer's nice at times when she has a racket equipped as her attack will restore HP instead of take it away. When she has a racket equipped, that's a pretty good amount, and the attack has fairly good accuracy when aimed at a party member, which is more than most of the other characters can say. ============================================================================ Freya Crescent (Despair) "To be forgotten is worse than death." ************** Description: ************** As one of the Dragon Knights of Burmecia, Freya stands as one of the strongest ones of her people. However, she has spent the last few years merely wandering around the world in order to find herself as well as to find her lost love. After meeting with Zidane and company, she finds that her home is being attacked. In returning to Burmecia, she must find something to fight for, even if all that she loves may be changed forever. Freya is one of the more dynamic characters for battle. You can have her attack, you can have her Jump, you can use the Dragon abilities, and you can use items to heal with her. Because of her support abilities, all of these are worthwhile endeavors. Freya's physical attack will most likely be the basis of your strategy using her. It does a decent amount of damage from the back row and considerably more from the front. Jump's nice as it takes her out of the battle for a couple turns in order to deal an undodgeable attack on a target. The only downside to this is that the party will be down to three people until she returns. As for the Dragon abilities, some are completely useless, but others are actually very useful and should be used in a pinch. Reis's Wind is actually very effective as it gives all party members Regen for a long enough period of time for you not to have to worry about healing as much. Dragon's Crest is also one of the better attacks in the game if you kill enough dragons. Thus, her effectiveness is relatively high throughout the entire game, but it shoots up if you steal the Holy Lance when you fight the boss holding it, as it is easily the strongest weapon in the game at that point. Tranced, Freya's big improvement comes with the Jump comand. When you jump, Freya will stay in the air longer and rain down spears on all enemies during every turn until the trance goes away. This makes for an incredibly strong attack toward the end of the game. In addition, Freya's already strong physical attack becomes stronger, but there's no reason why you would use it instead of the jump unless you want to be able to heal with her. Usefulness: Disc 1: High Disc 2: Medium Disc 3: High if you steal Holy Lance from Ark, Medium otherwise Disc 4: Medium ********* Dragon: ********* 1. Lancer (20 AP; 10 MP) -Deals physical damage and takes away some MP of a target. -Gotten from: Coral Ring, Dragon Wrist, Partisan 2. Reis's Wind (40 AP; 12 MP) -Casts Regen on all party members. -Gotten from: Angel Earrings, Gold Helm, Holy Lance, Mythril Spear 3. Dragon Breath (205 AP; 78 MP) -Decreases the HP of all enemies. -Gotten from: Dragon's Hair 4. White Draw (90 AP; 36 MP) -Restores the MP of all party members. -Gotten from: Emerald, Ice Lance, Kain's Lance 5. Luna (30 AP; 12 MP) -Inflicts berserk on everyone on the battlefield. -Gotten from: Trident 6. Six Dragons (25 AP; 28 MP) -Either restores an ally's HP and MP to maximum, sets them to 1, or does nothing. -Gotten from: Heavy Lance 7. Cherry Blossom (40 AP; 46 MP) -Deals non-elemental damage to all enemies. -Gotten from: Kain's Lance, Obelisk 8. Dragon's Crest (45 AP; 16 MP) -Deals physical damage to the target based on the number of dragons Freya has killed. -Gotten from: Holy Lance, Kain's Lance ************ Abilities: ************ 1. Auto-Reflect (95 AP; 15 magic stones) -Automatically casts Reflect on Freya in battle. -Gotten from: Reflect Ring 2. Auto-Float (20 AP; 6 magic stones) -Automatically casts Float on Freya in battle. -Gotten from: Feather Boots, Venetia Shield 3. Auto-Haste (75 AP; 9 magic stones) -Automatically casts Haste on Freya in battle. -Gotten from: Running Shoes 4. Auto-Regen (25 AP; 10 magic stones) -Automatically casts Regen on Freya in battle. -Gotten from: Angel Earrings, Carabini Mail, Maiden Prayer 5. Auto-Life (125 AP; 12 magic stones) -Automatically casts Life on Freya when she is knocked out. -Gotten from: Rebirth Ring 6. HP +10% (30 AP; 4 magic stones) -Increases max HP by 10%. -Gotten from: Aquamarine, Chain Mail, Germinas Boots 7. HP +20% (75 AP; 8 magic stones) -Increases max HP by 20%. -Gotten from: Battle Boots, Black Belt, Defense Gloves, Genji Helmet 8. MP +10% (35 AP; 4 magic stones) -Increases max MP by 10%. -Gotten from: Emerald, Extension, Magician Shoes 9. Accuracy+ (30 AP; 2 magic stones) -Raises physical accuracy. -Gotten from: Diamond Helm, Lapis Lazuli 10. Distract (25 AP; 5 magic stones) -Lowers the enemy's accuracy with physical attacks. -Gotten from: Diamond, Reflect Ring, Shield Armor 11. Long Reach (210 AP; 16 magic stones) -Freya can attack opponents while in the back row with the same potency as if she were in the front row. -Gotten from: Protect Ring 12. MP Attack (20 AP; 5 magic stones) -Uses your MP to increase attack power. -Gotten from: Battle Boots, Cross Helm, Power Belt 13. Bird Killer (30 AP; 3 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to aerial enemies. -Gotten from: Bronze Armor, Yellow Scarf 14. Bug Killer (25 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to insects. -Gotten from: Bronze Helm, Mythril Gloves 15. Stone Killer (20 AP; 4 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to stone enemies. -Gotten from: Gold Armor, Platinum Helm 16. Undead Killer (20 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to undead. -Gotten from: Plate Mail, Silver Gloves 17. Dragon Killer (70 AP; 3 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to dragons. -Gotten from: Barbut, Javelin 18. Devil Killer (30 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to demons. -Gotten from: Cross Helm, Thunder Gloves 19. Beast Killer (25 AP; 4 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to beasts. -Gotten from: Black Belt, Moonstone, Platina Armor 20. Man Eater (20 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to humans. -Gotten from: Coral Ring, Mythril Gloves 21. High Jump (75 AP; 4 magic stones) -Freya jumps higher in order to deal more damage on jumping attacks. -Gotten from: Dragon Mail 22. Add Status (25 AP; 3 magic stones) -Adds the weapon's status effect to your attack. -Gotten from: Glass Buckle, Thunder Gloves 23. Gamble Defense (20 AP; 1 magic stone) -Occasionally raises defense. -Gotten from: Barette 24. Chemist (35 AP; 4 magic stones) -Doubles the effectiveness of medicine. -Gotten from: Barette, Grand Armor, Madain's Ring 25. High Tide (20 AP; 8 magic stones) -The trance meter is filled up faster. -Gotten from: Demon's Mail, Genji Gloves, Grand Helm, Minerva's Plate, Partisan, Sapphire 26. Counter (85 AP; 8 magic stones) -Freya counterattacks when attacked physically. -Gotten from: Anklet, Power Belt, Venetia Shield 27. Cover (30 AP; 6 magic stones) -Freya takes the damage meant for an ally. -Gotten from: Gauntlets, Linen Cuirass, Mythril Armor 28. Eye 4 Eye (35 AP; 5 magic stones) -Increases the rate in which Freya counterattacks. -Gotten from: Kaiser Helm, Rubber Suit 29. Body Temp (20 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against freeze and heat. -Gotten from: Diamond, Fairy Earrings, Genji Armor, Madain's Ring 30. Initiative (95 AP; 5 magic stones) -Increases the chances of getting the first strike. -Gotten from: Battle Boots, Obelisk 31. Level Up (40 AP; 7 magic stones) -Multiplies the character's gained experience by 150%. -Gotten from: Extension, Fairy Earrings, Iron Helm, Pearl Rouge, Rosetta Ring 32. Ability Up (65 AP; 3 magic stones) -Doubles the amount of AP Freya gains after battles. -Gotten from: Cachusha, Diamond Armor, Diamond Gloves, Ribbon, Lapis Lazuli 33. Insomniac (30 AP; 5 magic stones) -Protects against sleep. -Gotten from: Coral Ring, Diamond Helm, Mythril Helm 34. Antibody (15 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against venom and poison. -Gotten from: Bronze Gloves, Glass Buckle, Mythril Helm 35. Bright Eyes (20 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against darkness. -Gotten from: Iron Helm 36. Restore HP (85 AP; 8 magic stones) -Restores HP automatically when near death. -Gotten from: Grand Armor, Minerva's Plate, Platinum Helm, Promist Ring 37. Jelly (30 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against petrify and gradual petrify. -Gotten from: Diamond Gloves, Dragon Wrist, Mythril Armor 38. Auto-Potion (30 AP; 3 magic stones) -Freya automatically uses a Potion when hit physically. -Gotten from: Extension, Gold Choker, Running Shoes 39. Locomotion (25 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against stop. -Gotten from: Anklet, Plate Mail 40. Clear Headed (35 AP; 5 magic stones) -Prevents confusion. -Gotten from: Gold Helm, Lamia's Tiara, Magician Shoes ************* Key Skills: ************* Reis's Wind and Dragon's Crest are the two key Dragon skills Freya should learn. Reis's Wind will help mightily as it casts Regen on everyone, thus allowing you to not have to worry as much about healing, which is very important in areas with strong monsters that you need to kill as quickly as possible. Dragon's Crest deals more damage as Freya kills more dragons, so eventually Freya has a 9999 damage attack for a very low MP cost. Thus, it is in your best interest to go around killing dragons (hunting Burmecia for Ironites is always good) with her, but keep in mind this attack does physical damage, so it won't always work well, but it's still a good option for the majority of opponents. Lancer, meanwhile, is a decent attack, but your physical attack should do around the same amount of damage and the MP loss it enduces is insignificant. Dragon Breath is a good attack, but it requires a lot of MP and you don't get it until late in the game. It's not necessary at all. White Draw is worthless as the amount of MP recovered is pathetic compared to the 36 MP to cast it. Six Dragons is too unpredictable to be of any real use, and while Luna is nice, it most likely won't see a lot of use. Cherry Blossom is a good attack, but its steep cost means it's not as useful as Dragon's Crest. It is non-elemental, so it's guaranteed to do damage, and it attacks all enemies, so those are two plusses. Level Up and Ability Up, as always, are a must. Bright Eyes is nice, but not absolutely necessary, as if Freya jumps, she'll hit her target even if blinded. The other immunity abilities are also useful as Freya's defenses are not all that strong regardless of the armor she wears, so you want to have to worry about secondary ailments as well. Chemist is also useful, as it allows you to have Freya heal using items with double the potency, which is absolutely necessary if you're healing with potions. Initiative is also useful, especially toward the end as you really don't want to go into repeated random battles without something going in your favor. The HP and MP bonuses are both nice, although the HP ones are more useful. High Jump is a near necessity once you get it, as it greatly adds to the power of the jump attacks. It is thus a worthwhile ability at the end, where every added bit of power helps. Counter isn't all that great with Freya as her attack doesn't do as much damage as most of the other characters that can counter. Long Reach is good since allows you to keep Freya on the back row with no negative power deductions, but the sheer amount of magic stones it requires makes it less of an option. ============================================================================ Quina Quen (Indulgence) "I do what I want! You have problem!?" ************** Description: ************** A member of the Qu tribe, Quina has spent all of his life eating frogs in his native marsh. However, one day, Zidane and party arrive there and meet him. Upon being given leave by his elder, Quina accompanies the rest of the party on their travels, eating everything in sight along the way. But what, if anything, will he learn from this journey? Will he learn that there is more than food, or will he merely be content to satisfy his gluttonous appetite? As you first get Quina, you'll notice that his weapons give him a substantially greater attack power than the rest of the party. And you'll also notice the low spirit that makes Quina nearly useless a fighter. Attacking physically, Quina is too unreliable to be a part of any strategies. At times he'll hit to the maximum of his strength (which also seems to max out well below the rest of the fighter characters), and at other times he'll do negligible damage. Thus, your focus with him should be to get the various Blue Magic abilities as quickly as possible to boost up his versatility. This is done by eating the opponents when they have low health. This process can present its own problems, as you'll have to keep track of how much health everyone has as well as the amount of damage your attacks inflict. I've found that Quina will generally eat enemies when their HP is 15-25% of their maximum. However, even with Blue Magic, Quina isn't all that strong and certainly isn't a better option than the rest of the cast. As a result of being able to do a little bit of everything, Quina does nothing well, and as such, his usefulness plummets when there are other people to choose from. He's a great help in the first couple discs (at least until you get the last two characters), but after that, he's simply outclassed by everyone. Tranced, Quina doesn't change a whole lot. The maximum damage his physical attack can deal is raised, but the minimum stays the same and the rate at which you'll get the minimum also stays similar. The big change is that Eat becomes Cook and you'll be able to eat enemies far earlier than you would be able to eat them with just the normal command. However, you still can't eat anything you couldn't eat before. Usefulness: Disc 1: Medium Disc 2: Medium Disc 3: Medium if a variety of Blue Magics are eaten, Low otherwise Disc 4: Low ************* Blue Magic: ************* 1. Goblin Punch (4 MP) -Deals non-elemental damage to one enemy. -Learned from: Goblin, Goblin Mage 2. LV5 Death (20 MP) -Kills enemies whose levels are multiples of 5. -Learned from: Dracozombie, Lich [crystal], Stroper, Whale Zombie 3. LV4 Holy (22 MP) -Deals holy damage to enemies whose levels are multiples of 4. -Learned from: Amdusias, Feather Circle, Torama 4. LV3 Def-less (12 MP) -Reduces the defense of enemies whose levels are multiples of 3. -Learned from: Carve Spider, Grand Dragon, Lamia, Lizard Man, Ochu, Sand Scorpion 5. Doom (12 MP) -Gives the target a Death Sentence. -Learned from: Ash, Veteran 6. Roulette (18 MP) -Randomly kills someone on the battlefield. -Learned from: Ghost, Hecteyes, Zombie 7. Aqua Breath (14 MP) -Deals water damage to all enemies. -Learned from: Axolotl, Clipper, Sahagin, Vepal [Green] 8. Mighty Guard (64 MP) -Casts Shell and Protect on all party members. -Learned from: Antlion, Gargoyle, Gigan Octopus, Myconid, Serpion 9. Matra Magic (8 MP) -Lowers the target's HP to 1. -Learned from: Armstrong, Dragonfly, Land Worm, Ogre, Trick Sparrow, Zaghnol 10. Bad Breath (16 MP) -Inflicts the enemy with confuse, darkness, poison, slow and mini. -Learned from: Amenome, Malboro, Worm Hydra 11. Limit Glove (10 MP) -Deals 9999 non-elemental damage to a target when Quina's HP is 1. -Learned from: Axe Beak, Blazer Beetle, Catoblepas, Jabberwock, Mandragora, Mu 12. 1,000 Needles (8 MP) -Deals 1,000 damage to one target. -Learned from: Cactuar 13. Pumpkin Head (12 MP) -Deals an amount of damage equal to (max HP - current HP). -Learned from: Bandersnatch, Basilisk, Hedgehog Pie, Ladybug, Python, Skeleton, Yeti 14. Night (14 MP) -Causes everyone on the battlefield to go to sleep. -Learned from: Abomination, Grimlock, Nymph, Seeker Bat 15. Twister (22 MP) -Deals a considerable amount of wind damage to all enemies. -Learned from: Abadon, Red Dragon, Tiamat [crystal] 16. Earth Shake (20 MP) -Deals earth damage to all enemies. -Learned from: Adamantoise, Earth Guardian (boss), Shell Dragon 17. Angel's Snack (4 MP) -Throws Remedies on all party members. You must have the necessary amount of Remedies in order to use this. -Learned from: Behemoth, Epitaph, Ironite, Mistodon 18. Frog Drop (10 MP) -Deals an amount of damage dependent on the number of frogs you have caught. -Learned from: Gigan Toad 19. White Wind (14 MP) -Restores the HP of all party members. -Learned from: Garuda, Griffin, Zemzelett, Zuu 20. Vanish (8 MP) -Makes a target disappear. -Learned from: Drakan, Gnoll, Hornet, Troll, Vice 21. Frost (8 MP) -Freezes the enemy. -Learned from: Chimera, Kraken [crystal], Wraith [Blue Flame] 22. Mustard Bomb (10 MP) -Gives the target heat. -Learned from: Bomb, Grenade, Maliris [crystal], Vepal [Red], Wraith [Red Flame] 23. Magic Hammer (2 MP) -Reduces the MP of one target. -Learned from: Magic Vice, Ring Leader 24. Auto-Life (14 MP) -Casts Life on the target after they have been knocked out. -Learned from: Carrion Worm, Cerberus, Gimme Cat, Stilva, Yan ************ Abilities: ************ 1. Auto-Reflect (75 AP; 15 magic stones) -Automatically casts Reflect on Quina in battle. -Gotten from: Reflect Ring 2. Auto-Float (40 AP; 6 magic stones) -Automatically casts Float on Quina in battle. -Gotten from: Feather Boots 3. Auto-Haste (70 AP; 9 magic stones) -Automatically casts Haste on Quina in battle. -Gotten from: Running Shoes 4. Auto-Regen (30 AP; 10 magic stones) -Automatically casts Regen on Quina in battle. -Gotten from: Glutton's Robe, Golden Hairpin, Light Robe 5. Auto-Life (165 AP; 12 magic stones) -Automatically casts Life on Quina when he is knocked out. -Gotten from: Rebirth Ring 6. MP +10% (50 AP; 4 magic stones) -Increases max MP by 10%. -Gotten from: Emerald, Magician Cloak, Magician Robe, Magician Shoes 7. Healer (60 AP; 2 magic stones) -Quina's attack restores the target's HP. -Gotten from: Garnet 8. Add Status (35 AP; 3 magic stones) -Adds the weapon's status effect when you attack. -Gotten from: Bone Wrist, Bracer, Chimera Armlet, Feather Hat, Glass Buckle, Twist Headband 9. Gamble Defense (40 AP; 1 magic stone) -Occasionally raises defense. -Gotten from: Adaman Hat, Power Vest, Twist Headband 10. Half MP (90 AP; 11 magic stones) -Halves the MP cost of spells in battle. -Gotten from: Light Robe, Protect Ring 11. High Tide (250 AP; 8 magic stones) -Your trance bar is filled up more quickly. -Gotten from: Bistro Fork, Dark Hat, Fork, Gaia Gear, Gastro Fork, Jade Armlet, Mythril Fork, Needle Fork, Sapphire, Silver Fork 12. Counter (55 AP; 8 magic stones) -Quina counterattacks when attacked physically. -Gotten from: Power Belt, Power Vest, Ritual Hat 13. Body Temp (20 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against freeze and heat. -Gotten from: Diamond, Fairy Earrings, Glutton's Robe, Holy Miter, Jade Armlet, Madain's Ring 14. Level Up (60 AP; 7 magic stones) -Multiplies the character's gained experience by 150%. -Gotten from: Egoist's Armlet, Fairy Earrings, Rosetta Ring 15. Ability Up (40 AP; 3 magic stones) -Increases the rate at which Quina learns abilities. -Gotten from: Green Beret, Lapis Lazuli, Ribbon, Silk Robe 16. Millionaire (100 AP; 5 magic stones) -Increases the amount of gil received after battle by 150%. -Gotten from: Yellow Scarf 17. Insomniac (40 AP; 5 magic stones) -Protects against sleep. -Gotten from: Bandana, Coral Ring, Gaia Gear, Holy Miter, Magician Cloak 18. Antibody (20 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against poison and venom. -Gotten from: Glass Armlet, Glass Buckle, Glutton's Robe, Mantra Band, Survival Vest 19. Loudmouth (40 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against silence. -Gotten from: Golden Hairpin, Mage's Hat, Silk Robe 20. Jelly (35 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against petrify and gradual petrify. -Gotten from: Bronze Vest, Circlet, Dark Gear, Dark Hat, Dragon Wrist 21. Absorb MP (80 AP; 6 magic stones) -Absorbs the MP used by enemies. -Gotten from: Promist Ring 22. Auto-Potion (30 AP; 3 magic stones) -Quina automatically uses a Potion when hit physically. -Gotten from: Demon's Vest, Gold Choker, Magician Robe, Mythril Vest, Running Shoes 23. Locomotion (20 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against stop. -Gotten from: Black Hood, Demon's Vest, Golden Skullcap, Survival Vest 24. Clear Headed (25 AP; 5 magic stones) -Protects against confusion. -Gotten from: Circlet, Dark Gear, Green Beret, Lamia's Tiara, Magic Armlet, Magician Shoes ************* Key Skills: ************* Aqua Breath is a relatively good attack to use early, but Quina's low MP counts keep it from being an attack you can use again and again. Goblin Punch is a decent attack to use, but by the time you get it, Quina's attack will do more damage than it 9 out of 10 times. The level-dependent attacks are useful, but you have to make sure of the levels of your opponents so they don't just miss. Matra Magic is useful to get the blue magic abilities of enemies much weaker than you are, but otherwise will most likely miss against enemies on your level or stronger. It is somewhat useful to cast Matra Magic on Quina, which enables him to use Limit Glove, which is a decent attack although it leaves Quina vulnerable to sudden death. Night is also useful if you have some party members with Insomniac equipped. Otherwise, it's just wasted. Auto-Life and Vanish are good spells, and the former one in particular is incredibly useful throughout the game. Frog Drop, however, is Quina's best attack. There is a catch, in that you have to catch frogs and build Quina's levels up in order to get its maximum effect. But when you do, you'll have an attack that will deal 9999 damage for 8 MP, and you won't risk certain death like with the Matra Magic/Limit Glove combo. Magic Hammer is useful at times and can be a great attack to use against some of the later magic heavy bosses. White Wind is decent, but is only even somewhat useful if no white mages are in the party. Angel's Snack wastes Remedies generally, especially once the white mages learn healing spells. Frost, Mustard Bomb, and Doom are nice to have, but they don't come in handy often. Bad Breath is again nice to have, and there are times when it comes in handy, but it's not one of his best attacks. Mighty Guard would be good if it wasn't for the astronomical MP cost. Also, with Quina's magic, the effect doesn't last long anyway. Twister and Earth Shake are good attacks that depend on the opponent's HP. They and Aqua Breath are rather useful, so use which ever one you find most useful against the defenses of a particular enemy. 1,000 Needles is a consistent attack, but the cost adds up over time. If you can replenish Quina's MP every once in a while and don't mind doing so, it's a good substitute for his physical attack in the midgame. Auto-Haste and Auto-Regen are necessary for Quina, especially toward the end. His lack of any damaging attack (save one) requires that you have him able to attack more often, or have him to heal if you need to. And if you have a fully powered Frog Drop, you can use it more often. As for Auto-Regen, the amount of damage Quina takes toward the end needs to be offset somehow. And by using this ability, the load on the white mages is lessened. MP +10% is good too, as Quina needs all the boosts in MP that you can get. It allows you to cast more Blue Magic spells without running into trouble. Half MP works along the same vein, and greatly increases the usefulness of Mighty Guard, as its steep MP cost is not nearly as steep. Level Up and Ability Up are always useful for obvious reasons. Millionaire is also pretty useful as your GP will increase at a far greater rate than without it. And at the end, when you'll be buying several weapons and armors in order to learn all their abilities, gil is a premium. Loudmouth is also a good ability, as without it, Quina can be silenced, and a silenced Quina is a worthless Quina. With protection against that one status ailment, Quina can at least use Blue Magic and doesn't have to fall back on the iffy physical attack. Absorb MP has its uses and can make it so you have to restore Quina's MP less. It's certainly a better use of stones than Counter is due to his variant physical attack. ============================================================================ Eiko Carol (Solitude) "I don't wanna be alone anymore." ************** Description: ************** A little summoner girl, Eiko lives with moogles in the remains of Madain Sari and steals food from the local town in order to get by. However, one day, she runs into Zidane and the rest of the party and develops a little crush. This crush gives her a new purpose in her life: to follow Zidane to the ends of the earth. And through her summoner heritage, she allows Dagger to learn more about her past. However, Eiko seems to have a larger role in the proceedings. In traveling with the party, will she find the friendship she's always wanted, or will she merely be an annoyingly cute fixture? Eiko's main advantage is healing. However, you'll have to equip her with one of the weaker armors in the game for a while for her to learn Cure, which is more useful for the first part of the game you have her in. Eiko is weaker than Dagger in every regard, but she is another healer, which is always nice. Eiko rarely should be selected in a party over Dagger though. Eiko's summons, however, are actually rather good, especially for their cost. Phoenix is extremely useful against opponents who can kill one or more allies with a single attack, plus it deals a considerable amount of damage. Carbunkle is nice as well against opponents that cast large amounts of magic as it will cast Reflect on all party members. Fenrir and Madeen simply do damage, although Fenrir's rather useless and Madeen's cost prevents it from being a great attack. Eiko's physical attacks are rather weak, but using one of the rackets allows her to attack quite effectively from the back row. Tranced, Eiko gains the Dbl Wht Magic option. Selecting this allows Eiko to cast two white magic spells in one turn. This is generally useful, although there are times in which you'll only have one person you want to heal, in which case two spells is overkill. However, the litany of non-healing white magic Eiko has can also be put to use. Eiko's attacking ability and the strength of her summons increases a negligible amount. Usefulness: Disc 1: n/a Disc 2: High Disc 3: Medium Disc 4: Medium ********* Summon: ********* 1. Carbuncle (35 AP; 24 MP) -Casts Reflect on all party members. -Gotten from: Ruby 2. Fenrir (55 AP; 30 MP) -Deals earth damage to all enemies. -Gotten from: Sapphire 3. Phoenix (40 AP; 32 MP) -Deals fire damage to all enemies and revives all allies from KO. -Gotten from: Phoenix Pinion 4. Madeen (120 AP; 54 MP) -Deals holy damage to all enemies. -Gotten from: Ribbon ************** White Magic: ************** 1. Cure (20 AP; 6 MP) -Restores the health of one or more targets. -Gotten from: Magic Racket, Silk Shirt 2. Cura (40 AP; 10 MP) -Restores the health of one or more targets. Stronger than Cure. -Gotten from: Barette, Golem's Flute 3. Curaga (80 AP; 22 MP) -Restores the health of one or more targets. Stronger than Cura. -Gotten from: Angel Flute, Hamelin 4. Regen (25 AP; 14 MP) -Gradually restores the HP of the target. -Gotten from: Fairy Earrings, Fairy's Flute 5. Life (35 AP; 8 MP) -Restores one party member from a KO. -Gotten from: Cachusha, Golem's Flute, Rebirth Ring 6. Full-Life (90 AP; 24 MP) -Restores one party member from a KO with full HP. -Gotten from: Light Robe, Siren's Flute 7. Panacea (15 AP; 4 MP) -Cures venom and poison. -Gotten from: Air Racket 8. Stona (25 AP; 8 MP) -Cures petrify and gradual petrify. -Gotten from: Lamia's Flute, Multina Racket 9. Shell (20 AP; 6 MP) -Lessens the impact of magical attacks on a target. -Gotten from: Cotton Robe, Gold Choker, Moonstone, Multina Racket, Mythril Racket 10. Esuna (80 AP; 20 MP) -Cures all abnormal status effects. -Gotten from: Angel Flute, Fairy's Flute, Rubber Suit, Siren's Flute 11. Protect (30 AP; 6 MP) -Lessens the impact of physical attacks on a target. -Gotten from: Desert Boots, Mythril Racket, Steepled Hat 12. Haste (30 AP; 8 MP) -Hastens the speed of the target's ATB gauge. -Gotten from: Emerald, Fairy's Flute, Running Shoes 13. Silence (30 AP; 8 MP) -Inflicts silence on one or more enemies. -Gotten from: Lamia's Flute, Magic Armlet, Priest's Racket 14. Mini (35 AP; 8 MP) -Miniaturizes one or more targets. Also cures miniaturized targets of their state. -Gotten from: Feather Boots, Magic Racket 15. Reflect (25 AP; 6 MP) -Reflects magic attacks back to the caster. -Gotten from: Mythril Racket, Reflect Ring, Ruby 16. Float (20 AP; 6 MP) -Allows one or more targets to float in the air. -Gotten from: Feather Boots, Lamia's Flute, Lamia's Tiara 17. Dispel (35 AP; 16 MP) -Removes any abnormal status caused by magic attacks. -Gotten from: Siren's Flute, Tiger Racket 18. Might (25 AP; 14 MP) -Increases the physical attack power of the target. -Gotten from: Hamelin, Priest's Racket 19. Jewel (50 AP; 4 MP) -Extracts an Ore from the target. -Gotten from: Hamelin 20. Holy (110 AP; 36 MP) -Deals holy damage to a target. -Gotten from: Angel Flute, White Robe ************ Abilities: ************ 1. Auto-Reflect (70 AP; 15 magic stones) -Automatically casts Reflect on Eiko in battle. -Gotten from: Reflect Ring 2. Auto-Float (25 AP; 6 magic stones) -Automatically casts Float on Eiko in battle. -Gotten from: Feather Boots 3. Auto-Haste (65 AP; 9 magic stones) -Automatically casts Haste on Eiko in battle. -Gotten from: Running Shoes 4. Auto-Regen (35 AP; 10 magic stones) -Automatically casts Regen on Eiko in battle. -Gotten from: Angel Earrings, Golden Hairpin, Golem's Flute, Light Robe, Maiden Prayer 5. Auto-Life (100 AP; 12 magic stones) -Automatically casts Life on Eiko when she is knocked out. -Gotten from: Rebirth Ring 6. MP +10% (15 AP; 4 magic stones) -Increases max MP by 10%. -Gotten from: Emerald, Extension, Magician Cloak, Magician Robe, Magician Shoes 7. MP +20% (50 AP; 8 magic stones) -Increases max MP by 20%. -Gotten from: Angel Earrings 8. Healer (20 AP; 2 magic stones) -Restores the target's HP. -Gotten from: Anklet, Garnet 9. Reflect-Null (55 AP; 7 magic stones) -The effect of reflect is nullified in attacks. -Gotten from: Pearl Rouge, Robe of Lords 10. Concentrate (90 AP; 10 magic stones) -Increases the strength of spells. -Gotten from: Robe of Lords, Rosetta Ring 11. Half MP (120 AP; 11 magic stones) -Halves the MP cost of spells in battle. -Gotten from: Light Robe, Protect Ring 12. High Tide (30 AP; 8 magic stones) -Your trance bar is filled up more quickly. -Gotten from: Dark Hat, Gaia Gear, Jade Armlet, Minerva's Plate, Sapphire 13. Body Temp (20 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against freeze and heat. -Gotten from: Diamond, Fairy Earrings, Holy Miter, Jade Armlet, Madain's Ring 14. Level Up (65 AP; 7 magic stones) -Multiplies the character's gained experience by 150%. -Gotten from: Egoist's Armlet, Extension, Fairy Earrings, Pearl Rouge, Rosetta Ring 15. Ability Up (55 AP; 3 magic stones) -Doubles the amount of AP received for winning battles. -Gotten from: Cachusha, Green Beret, Lapis Lazuli, Ribbon, Silk Robe 16. Guardian Mog (30 AP; 3 magic stones) -Mog protects Eiko with unseen assistance. -Gotten from: Madain's Ring, Ribbon 17. Insomniac (25 AP; 5 magic stones) -Protects against sleep. -Gotten from: Bandana, Coral Ring, Gaia Gear, Holy Miter, Magician Cloak 18. Antibody (20 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against poison and venom. -Gotten from: Glass Armlet, Glass Buckle, Mantra Band, Survival Vest 19. Loudmouth (15 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against silence. -Gotten from: Golden Hairpin, Mage's Hat, Pearl Rouge, Silk Robe, White Robe 20. Jelly (35 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against petrify and gradual petrify. -Gotten from: Bronze Vest, Circlet, Dark Gear, Dark Hat, Dragon Wrist 21. Auto-Potion (30 AP; 3 magic stones) -Eiko automatically uses a Potion when hit physically. -Gotten from: Demon's Vest, Extension, Gold Choker, Magician Robe, Mythril Vest, Running Shoes, White Robe 22. Locomotion (15 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against stop. -Gotten from: Anklet, Black Hood, Demon's Vest, Golden Skullcap, Survival Vest 23. Clear Headed (15 AP; 5 magic stones) -Protects against confusion. -Gotten from: Circlet, Dark Gear, Green Beret, Lamia's Tiara, Magic Armlet, Magician Shoes 24. Boost (150 AP; 12 magic stones) -Increases the strength of eidolons. -Gotten from: Pumice Piece ************* Key Skills: ************* All of the summons Eiko has are useful and should be learned. Phoenix is by far the best of the four, but the others aren't that much far behind. You should definitely learn Phoenix first, then Fenrir, then Carbunkle and Madeen whenever you get a Ribbon. Madeen might not see much use because of the cost, but it's very powerful. Carbunkle can be a lifesaver as it gives everyone Reflect. Fenrir just deals earth damage, but it's still a good attack. The three Cure spells and the two Life spells are essential for obvious reasons. Cure is actually worth the hassle to get when you first obtain Eiko as you shouldn't need her Cura at that point. Full-Life is a great spell toward the end, where there are plenty of bosses and enemies with instant death attacks. Regen is nice, but not exactly necessary. Often the effects run out too quickly to be of any real use, especially if you're fighting a boss. Panacea and Stona are good when you first get Eiko and are good alternatives to Esuna when dealing with the appropriate ailment. On the whole though, Esuna is extremely useful as it can get rid of any status ailment. Dispel is kind of nice, and it's biggest use is getting rid of Stop. Most of the other effects that Dispel dispels can just be suffered through. Haste is the best non-healing spell that Eiko has. It's also one of the few reasons you should consider taking Eiko over Dagger. Just cast on whomever needs to be hasted and watch their speed increase by about 50%. Shell, Protect, and Reflect are all nice defensive spells, but they won't see much use except against bosses. However, they will be essential in certain battles. Carbunkle is usually a better alternative to Reflect though. Silence has few uses, but can be nice in a pinch. Jewel is worthless. You'll rarely need it to get some Ore by the time you get the spell. Mini is more effective for countering its status ailment than for actually inflicting it. There are a few instances in which Float is a good spell (such as fighting bosses with Earth attacks). Thus, it's nice to have when necessary, and it can be cast on everyone, lessening the total cost and improving its usefulness. Might seems nice, but by the time you get it, anyone who actually needs a boost in attack power won't benefit that much from it. Finally, Holy gives Eiko another attack, but the high cost limits its usefulness. On the plus side, by the time this becomes available, plenty of the enemies you'll fight will be undead, so the damage will be greater. Of the skills, Auto-Regen and Loudmouth are the most key. Auto-Regen will allow Eiko to regain HP as the battle commences and as some of the longer spell animations go through. Due to her relatively low defense, any help recovering HP is welcome. Loudmouth prevents silence, which would strip her of her spellcasting ability and therefore render her pretty much useless. However, with Loudmouth, the only thing you have to worry about is running out of MP. And in that vein, the MP upgrades can be useful, although the 20% one requires entirely too many magic stones. Ability Up and Level Up are good as always and are in fact almost necessary. If you're having Eiko as your primary healer, you'll want Jelly and Clear Headed so that she can't be incapacitated by being petrified or confused. Half MP isn't really worth it, but it can be nice to have and certainly makes a few spells more useful. Auto-Haste and Auto-Life are optional, but they greatly help the durability of Eiko, and of the party if you choose Eiko to be the main healer. ============================================================================ Amarant Coral (Arrogance) "The only dependable thing about the future is uncertainty." ************** Description: ************** A longtime loner, Amarant's rather peaceful life was changed one day when a thief gave him an unexpected amount of trouble. Since then, he has lived as a bounty hunter, searching for some greater purpose or power. Upon meeting with Zidane and the party, and after failing to defeat Zidane in a fight, Amarant joins the party and travels along with them for reasons which are never fully stated. But will he find the source of Zidane's power? Will his heart soften to the people around him? Or will he just continue to search for answers alone? For some reason, Amarant's been written off by a lot of people as worthless. However, he deserves a spot on all parties if only for one of his Flare skills: Chakra. Chakra combined with one of the white mages makes your party more or less invincible. The downside of this is that Amarant starts out pathetically weak and he takes damage horribly. Putting him in the back row takes care of the damage problem, but makes his attacks less powerful. His later weapons make him hit as hard as Zidane should he be in the front row, but he'll take more damage. As it is, you'll most likely be better off using Chakra to give your party members back their MP and have Amarant in the back so he doesn't die as often. Throw also has its useful points as the later shurikens deal insane amounts of damage. Don't bother throwing weapons as the payoff isn't so great, plus you lose the weapon permanently. Amarant tranced gives him even more of an upside. All his Flair skills target either all allies or all enemies, which makes Chakra and Aura your best friends. Aura will give everyone Auto-Life as well as a temporary Regen, which puts you in much better shape against bosses, especially the ones that have some sort of Death spell. Amarant's attack goes up slightly, but not enough to take away from the upside of using his Flairs. Usefulness: Disc 1: n/a Disc 2: Low Disc 3: Medium Disc 4: High ******** Flair: ******** 1. Chakra (30 AP; 4 MP) -Restores the HP and MP of one party member. -Gotten from: Cat's Claws, Leather Plate 2. Spare Change (90 AP; 0 MP) -Deals non-elemental damage to the enemy by using Gil. -Gotten from: Poison Knuckles, Rune Claws 3. No Mercy (25 AP; 12 MP) -Deals non-elemental damage to the enemy. -Gotten from: Dragon's Claws, Dual Claws 4. Aura (25 AP; 12 MP) -Casts Auto-Life and Regen on one party member. -Gotten from: Dual Claws, Scissor Fangs 5. Curse (20 AP; 12 MP) -Makes the enemy weak against some element. -Gotten from: Kaiser Knuckles, Mythril Claws 6. Revive (35 AP; 20 MP) -Revives one party member from KO. -Gotten from: Rebirth Ring, Rune Claws, Tiger Fangs 7. Demi Shock (50 AP; 20 MP) -Deals an amount of damage to all enemies dependent on the enemy's HP. -Gotten from: Avenger, Rune Claws 8. Countdown (40 AP; 16 MP) -Casts Doom on one enemy. -Gotten from: Kaiser Knuckles ************ Abilities: ************ 1. Auto-Reflect (85 AP; 15 magic stones) -Automatically casts Reflect on Amarant in battle. -Gotten from: Reflect Ring 2. Auto-Float (35 AP; 6 magic stones) -Automatically casts Float on Amarant in battle. -Gotten from: Feather Boots 3. Auto-Haste (70 AP; 9 magic stones) -Automatically casts Haste on Amarant in battle. -Gotten from: Running Shoes 4. Auto-Regen (35 AP; 10 magic stones) -Automatically casts Regen on Amarant in battle. -Gotten from: Brave Suit, Golden Hairpin 5. Auto-Life (140 AP; 12 magic stones) -Automatically casts Life on Amarant when he is knocked out. -Gotten from: Rebirth Ring 6. HP +10% (10 AP; 4 magic stones) -Increases max HP by 10%. -Gotten from: Aquamarine, Judo Uniform, Germinas Boots 7. HP +20% (40 AP; 8 magic stones) -Increases max HP by 20%. -Gotten from: Adaman Hat, Battle Boots, Black Belt, Mantra Band 8. Accuracy+ (30 AP; 2 magic stones) -Raises physical accuracy. -Gotten from: Lapis Lazuli, Power Wrist 9. Long Reach (210 AP; 16 magic stones) -Amarant can attack opponents while in the back row with the same potency as if he were in the front row. -Gotten from: Protect Ring 10. MP Attack (60 AP; 5 magic stones) -Uses your MP to increase attack power. -Gotten from: Battle Boots, Power Belt, Red Hat 11. Bird Killer (10 AP; 3 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to aerial enemies. -Gotten from: Adaman Vest, Yellow Scarf 12. Bug Killer (10 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to insects. -Gotten from: Mythril Armlet 13. Stone Killer (10 AP; 4 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to stone enemies. -Gotten from: Adaman Vest, Power Vest 14. Undead Killer (10 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to the undead. -Gotten from: Headgear, N-Kai Armlet, Ritual Hat 15. Devil Killer (10 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to demons. -Gotten from: Chain Plate, Demon's Vest 16. Beast Killer (10 AP; 4 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to beasts. -Gotten from: Black Belt, Egoist's Armlet, Flash Hat, Leather Wrist, Moonstone 17. Man Eater (10 AP; 2 magic stones) -Deals lethal damage to humans. -Gotten from: Bandana, Coral Ring, Coronet 18. Healer (30 AP; 2 magic stones) -Amarant's attack restores the target's HP. -Gotten from: Anklet, Garnet 19. Add Status (20 AP; 3 magic stones) -Adds Amarant's weapon's status effect to his attack. -Gotten from: Bone Wrist, Bracer, Chimera Armlet, Glass Buckle, Twist Headband 20. Gamble Defense (35 AP; 1 magic stone) -Occasionally raises defense. -Gotten from: Adaman Hat, Power Vest, Twist Headband 21. Power Throw (125 AP; 19 magic stones) -Increases the potency of thrown items. -Gotten from: Bracer 22. Power Up (30 AP; 3 magic stones) -Increases the potency of Chakra. -Gotten from: Golden Skullcap 23. High Tide (60 AP; 8 magic stones) -Increases the rate at which the Trance meter fills. -Gotten from: Dark Hat, Gaia Gear, Jade Armlet, Sapphire 24. Counter (240 AP; 8 magic stones) -Amarant counterattacks when attacked physically. -Gotten from: Anklet, Avenger, Cat's Claws, Dragon's Claws, Dual Claws, Kaiser Knuckles, Mythril Claws, Poison Knuckles, Power Belt, Power Vest, Ritual Hat, Scissor Fangs, Tiger Fangs 25. Cover (90 AP; 6 magic stones) -Amarant takes the damage meant for an ally. -Gotten from: Red Hat 26. Eye 4 Eye (50 AP; 5 magic stones) -Increases the rate in which Amarant counterattacks. -Gotten from: Flash Hat, Ninja Gear 27. Body Temp (30 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against freeze and heat. -Gotten from: Diamond, Fairy Earrings, Jade Armlet, Madain's Ring 28. Alert (30 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against back attacks. -Gotten from: Germinas Boots, Ninja Gear 29. Level Up (50 AP; 7 magic stones) -Multiplies the character's gained experience by 150%. -Gotten from: Egoist's Armlet, Fairy Earrings, Rosetta Ring 30. Ability Up (80 AP; 3 magic stones) -Doubles the amount of AP earned by winning battles. -Gotten from: Brigandine, Green Beret, Lapis Lazuli, Ribbon 31. Flee-Gil (30 AP; 3 magic stones) -The party receives Gil even after running from battle. -Gotten from: Desert Boots, Gold Choker, Wrist 32. Insomniac (20 AP; 5 magic stones) -Protects against sleep. -Gotten from: Bandana, Coral Ring 33. Antibody (25 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against poison and venom. -Gotten from: Glass Armlet, Glass Buckle, Mantra Band, Survival Vest 34. Bright Eyes (25 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against darkness. -Gotten from: Ritual Hat 35. Restore HP (75 AP; 8 magic stones) -Restores HP automatically when near death. -Gotten from: Brave Suit, Promist Ring 36. Jelly (15 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against petrify and gradual petrify. -Gotten from: Bronze Vest, Circlet, Dark Gear, Dark Hat, Dragon Wrist 37. Return Magic (170 AP; 9 magic stones) -Returns magic used by enemies on Amarant. -Gotten from: Brigandine, Coronet 38. Auto-Potion (30 AP; 3 magic stones) -Amarant automatically uses a Potion when hit. -Gotten from: Demon's Vest, Gold Choker, Mythril Vest, Running Shoes 39. Locomotion (20 AP; 4 magic stones) -Protects against stop. -Gotten from: Anklet, Demon's Vest, Golden Skullcap, Ninja Gear, Survival Vest 40. Clear Headed (30 AP; 5 magic stones) -Protects against confusion. -Gotten from: Circlet, Dark Gear, Green Beret, Magician Shoes ************* Key Skills: ************* Chakra is one of the better skills in the game, as it restores a small amount of HP as well as some MP. If you use it on one of the magic-users, there will be a near-infinite amount of MP for you to attack or heal with. Revive and Aura are also useful, although Revive's usefulness ends when you get Full Life with Eiko. Aura is highly useful, especially once Amarant becomes Tranced. Of the others, No Mercy deals a lot of damage and definitely has its uses, but shouldn't be an attack you keep going to due to its high MP cost. Spare Change doesn't do all that much damage until you have large sums of money, so you'll probably want to go with something else. Curse, Demi Shock, and Countdown all have their uses, but you most likely won't be using them much. Auto-Haste does wonders for Amarant. He can get his attacks off more quickly, thus better allowing him to heal the party or attack, whichever you choose. The HP bonuses are always useful, although the 20% one requires entirely too many magic stones. The Killer techniques are useful, but Amarant's attack is strong enough with his later weapons that you won't need them. Healer is a very good skill to use, as his attacks will heal much more HP and he has better accuracy against party members than the other people who are able to have Healer equipped. If equipped with Accuracy+, then the chances of actually hitting one of your party increase enough to be consistent. However, by doing that, Amarant would only be able to attack using his three attacking Flair techniques to deal damage to enemies. Counter's kind of nice, especially if Amarant's in the front row, but it should definitely not be used in tandem with Healer. Auto-Regen and Auto-Life help offset Amarant's horrible defense in the front row, although Auto-Regen stops helping in this regard at a certain point late in the game. If you use Healer, you should also equip Bright Eyes in order to prevent rather bad accuracy hitting teammates from getting worse. Return Magic is also nice for dealing a little counterattack, but don't expect too much from it. Level Up and Ability Up are still useful with Amarant, and Alert is good if no one else has it. Power Up is one of the more useful skills that Amarant has. It increases the strength of Chakra by 50% for a very good amount of magic stones, thereby increasing the usefulness of already the best skill in the game. Compared to Power Throw, which increases the power of thrown items at an obscene amount of magic stones, Power Up is definitely one of the skills that should be selected. Long Reach can help Amarant greatly, as it allows him to attack effectively from the back row, thereby making him able to deal damage and not take inordinate amount of damage in return. You have to be willing to spare the large amount of magic stones though. ============================================================================ Beatrix ********* Seiken: ********* Thunder Slash (24 MP) -Deals thunder damage to one enemy. Stock Break (26 MP) -Deals non-elemental damage to all enemies. Climhazzard (32 MP) -Deals non-elemental damage to all enemies. Shock (46 MP) -Deals physical damage to one enemy. ************** White Magic: ************** Cura (10 MP) -Restores a good deal of health for one or more targets. Life (8 MP) -Brings one character back to life with a small amount of HP. Full-Life (24 MP) -Brings one character back to life with all HP restored. Esuna (20 MP) -Cures all status effects for one target. Silence (8 MP) -Inflicts silence on one or more targets. Reflect (6 MP) -Casts a reflective shield which reflects all magic attacks back on the caster on one target. Blind (6 MP) -Inflicts darkness on one or more enemies. Holy (36 MP) -Deals a lot of holy damage to a target. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5. Status Effects ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- ========================= Positive Status Effects ========================= 1. Auto-Life -Effect: Target will automatically recover from KO. -Cancelled by: Dispel, target recovers from KO 2. Float -Effect: The target floats in the air and avoids earth attacks. -Cancelled by: Dispel, effect expires 3. Haste -Effect: The target's ATB gauge is sped up. -Cancelled by: Dispel, effect expires 4. Protect -Effect: Reduces the amount of damage the target receives from physical attacks. -Cancelled by: Dispel, effect expires 5. Reflect -Effect: Reflects most magic back to the caster at increased potency. -Cancelled by: Dispel, effect expires 6. Regen -Effect: The target's HP gradually increases with each turn. -Cancelled by: Dispel, effect expires 7. Shell -Effect: Reduces the amount of damage the target receives from magic attacks. -Cancelled by: Dispel, effect expires 8. Vanish -Effect: Target is invisible and avoids physical attacks. -Cancelled by: Dispel, effect expires, target is hit by magic ========================= Negative Status Effects ========================= 1. Berserk -Effect: Target cannot be controlled and attacks enemies continuously. Attack power increases. -Cancelled by: Gysahl Greens, Trance -Negated by: Nothing 2. Confuse -Effect: Target cannot be controlled and randomly attacks allies as well as enemies. -Cancelled by: Esuna, physical attack, Trance -Negated by: Clear Headed 3. Darkness * -Effect: The target is blinded, thus lowering the accuracy of physical attacks. -Cancelled by: Esuna, Eye Drops, Remedy, Trance -Negated by: Bright Eyes 4. Death Sentence -Effect: The target is KO'd when the counter reaches 0. -Cancelled by: Trance -Negated by: Nothing 5. Freeze -Effect: The target is frozen and cannot be controlled. The target is KO'd if physically attacked. -Cancelled by: Esuna, effect expires, Trance -Negated by: Body Temp 6. Gradual Petrify -Effect: The target is petrified when the counter reaches 0. -Cancelled by: Stona, Esuna, Trance -Negated by: Jelly 7. Heat -Effect: The target is KO'd if it takes an action. -Cancelled by: Esuna, effect expires, Trance -Negated by: Body Temp 8. KO * -Effect: The target is knocked out and cannot participate in battle. -Cancelled by: Life, Auto-Life, Phoenix Down, Phoenix Pinion -Negated by: Nothing 9. Mini -Effect: The target shrinks, reducing its attack and defense. -Cancelled by: Mini, Esuna, Remedy, Trance -Negated by: Nothing 10. Petrify * -Effect: The target turns to stone and cannot be controlled. -Cancelled by: Stona, Remedy, Soft -Negated by: Jelly 11. Poison -Effect: The target's HP gradually decreases with each passing turn. -Cancelled by: Antidote, Remedy, Esuna, Panacea, Trance, effect expires -Negated by: Antibody 12. Silence * -Effect: The target is incapable of using magic. -Cancelled by: Esuna, Echo Screen, Remedy, Trance -Negated by: Loudmouth 13. Sleep -Effect: Target falls asleep and cannot be controlled. -Cancelled by: Esuna, physical attack, effect expires, Trance -Negated by: Insomniac 14. Slow -Effect: The target's ATB meter fills up more slowly. -Cancelled by: Dispel, effect expires, Trance -Negated by: Nothing 15. Stop -Effect: Target stops and cannot be controlled. -Cancelled by: Dispel, Remedy, Trance -Negated by: Locomotion 16. Trouble * -Effect: The target's allies receive half of the damage dealt to the target from an attack. -Cancelled by: Annoyntment, Trance -Negated by: Nothing 17. Venom * -Effect: The target gradually loses HP and MP with each passing turn and cannot be controlled. -Cancelled by: Remedy, Trance -Negated by: Antibody 18. Virus * -Effect: The target stops receiving EXP and AP for winning battles. -Cancelled by: Vaccine -Negated by: Nothing 19. Zombie * -Effect: The target is harmed by recovery items and spells. -Cancelled by: Magic Tag -Negated by: Nothing ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6. Walkthrough ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------- The Beginning --------------- After the long opening FMV, go straight up and light the candle. A voice will ask who's there. At this point, enter the name you want for Zidane. Blank, Cinna and Marcus will come out. Following their conservation, a man in a dragon mask saunters down the stairs, initiating a fight. In the fight, have Zidane steal the potion the opponent has and have the rest keep stealing until you get the Mage Masher and the Wrist. Following that, have everyone attack. After a few hits, the man's mask breaks open to reveal Baku, the chief. After that, pay attention to the plan for the upcoming mission. Once Cinna and Baku stop talking, another FMV will play. ------------ Alexandria ------------ Following the FMV, you'll control a black mage that is being trampled by the villagers rushing to see the play. Get the ticket back then head up. A rat kid should run into you, but don't worry about him. When you reach the next screen, you'll see a cutscene of a page leading the nobles to Alexandria Castle. Follow them and then go up after you reach the next screen. Following this, you'll be in a marketplace. Go straight up to find the ticket office. Peek into it and talk to the ticketmaster. Show him the ticket and he'll tell you it's a fake. He'll then give you some cards and send you on your way. Next, go to the southwestern part of the screen and go in that passage. Keep going down until you fall over. Dante the Signmaker will talk to you a bit, then the rat kid from earlier will run up to you. He'll ask you if the ticket is fake. Tell him it is and he'll offer to help you see the play if you become his slave. Accept the offer then stake out the area. Say the coast is clear and the rat kid will take the ladder and dash off. Follow him. And as a sidenote, if you run into a four-armed man, you've met Alleyway Jack. There is a brief window of opportunity when you meet him to press X and talk to him. Otherwise, he mugs you and runs away. Follow the rat kid into the steeple and start to climb up the ladder. A moogle will fall on your head and explain the process of saving your game. Eventually, you'll get control of your character again. When you do, talk to the moogle and have him explain Mognet to you. Agree to carry the letter to Monty, and then save the game if you want. Following that, climb up the ladder. Follow the rat kid and eventually he'll ask your name. Enter your name then continue on. Soon, you'll reach the castle. -------------------------- I Want To Be Your Canary -------------------------- Watch the opening FMV that introduces the play, then advance the dialog until Zidane, Marcus, Blank and Cinna face off against Baku and two underlings. This battle is different than the others because the skills have been replaced with SFX on all characters. These attacks do no damage but are flashy. Attack the underlings first (who should die in one hit from anyone except Cinna), then attack Baku. Eventually, the camera will fade, indicating the fight is over. Continue with the play and you'll reach the swordfight. With the swordfight, you have to enter the correct commands that flash up on the screen a few seconds before they're executed. The better you do, the more money you'll get from the spectators following the fight. You can perform the fight scene as many times as you wish. When you feel you've impressed a suitable number of spectators, stop and get the Gil thrown in by the onlookers. ----------- The Heist ----------- Following the swordfight, Zidane and Blank will have knocked out a couple guards and taken their uniforms. Go straight and then up the stairs. From there, you'll see a hooded girl. Ask to see her face, then Zidane and Blank will chase after her when she runs. Watch the cutscene of Zorn and Thorn running around. Eventually Queen Brahne will learn of Princess Garnet's disappearance with the Royal Pendant and send Beatrix and Steiner to find her. The game will prompt you for Steiner's name. Following that, Steiner will round up the remaining Pluto Knights and have them search for the princess. ------------ The Search ------------ Now that you're controlling Steiner, you can go back to the room where Zidane and Blank took out the knights to find a Moogle to save your game. Leave the room and then go to the bottom of the stairs. From there, go right and run toward the painting. Run down the staircase in front of the painting and keep straight until you leave the castle. Continue moving down until you reach the bell and the fountain. Cheers will be heard from the audience, at which point you should head left and enter the building. Go down the long hall and then up the winding stairs until you reach the top. Steiner will then see Zidane chasing Garnet on the other rook. Watch the FMV of Garnet escaping, while Zidane and Steiner follow her, and you'll be in the ship. Follow Garnet into the next room, where she will run into Ruby, who takes offense to that. When you enter the room, talk to Ruby and Garnet will get away. Chase her into the next room and she'll reveal herself, and then ask to be kidnapped. Run into the next room when Cinna comes in and jump in the escape chute. After the scene with Steiner ends and you gain control back, turn the wheel on the engine to the left and the right to make treasure chests drop down that contain a Phoenix Down and Phoenix Pinion, respectively. From there, run into the next room, where Steiner will meet you. Zidane, Blank and Cinna will get into a battle with him. Keep stealing until you get the Leather Hat and the Silk Shirt, and then just attack repeatedly until he stops. Following the fight, Steiner will break Blank's armor to unleash the oglops on the floor. Escape while this is happening. Following that, Cinna will enter the next room and tell you to go on the lift. Steiner will also ride one up. When all of you are on the top, advance the dialogue and go through the ending of the play. Next, the screen will cut to Vivi and Puck being chased by some knights. Vivi will get onstage, and in the process of trying to lose the guards, burn off Garnet's hood. Following that, a battle with Steiner and two Pluto Knights will begin. You can't steal, so don't worry about that. Just take out the two Pluto Knights first, then concentrate on Steiner. Have Vivi use Fire and Garnet attack for the most part. You can have her heal if you need to. Following the battle, the ship will leave, prompting Queen Brahme to fire many anchors at it followed by a Bomb. Steiner will then try to start another fight. All you have to do for this one is stay alive long enough for the Bomb to grow large enough to explode. After the fight, the Bomb explodes and greatly damages the ship. The crew still manages to flee Alexandria, but crashes farther on. Following Queen Brahne's discussion with Zorn and Thorn, advance the dialogue until you regain control of Zidane. View the Active Time Event, then save the game. From there, enter the log in the southeast part of the screen to enter the Evil Forest. ----------------- The Evil Forest ----------------- Go through the first section of the Evil Forest and just attack whatever enemies you come across. As you only have one party member, it's not wise to try and steal. At the end of the first screen, enter the dark passageway to find Vivi. Go up and you'll find Steiner ordering a monster to let go of Garnet. A fight then begins. ------------------------- Boss Fight: Prison Cage ------------------------- Zidane will begin this battle in Trance mode. You'll notice when his turn comes up that his skills option has been replaced by Dyne. Select Dyne and hit the Prison Cage with Free Energy. Have Steiner attack and give Garnet the occasional potion so she doesn't die due to the Prison Cage absorbing her. The Prison Cage attacks with its left and right stems, which do very little damage. The main thing in this battle is to just ensure that Garnet stays alive. Don't bother stealing as the Prison Cage has nothing. Following the battle, the Prison Cage will fly off with Garnet. After a little banter, another Prison Cage will come down and ensnare Vivi. ------------------------- Boss Fight: Prison Cage ------------------------- This fight is different from the first for two reasons. One, Zidane is not in Trance mode. And two, Vivi will cast spells on the Prison Cage that do damage to it during each turn. Have Steiner and Zidane attack, but have Zidane heal Vivi every once in a while to make sure he doesn't die. Otherwise, the fight should go much like the first one did. The Prison Cage has a Leather Wrist and a Broadsword you can steal. After the fight, the Prison Cage will release Vivi, but blow a mist that knocks out Vivi and Steiner. Following that, you'll be back in the airship. Eventually, you'll be put in control of Zidane. Following the argument with Baku, find the treasure chest next to Baku's perch and open it for Bronze Gloves. Following that, leave the room and watch the ATEs. Go down the stairs and talk to Blank at your right. Enter the room behind him and talk to Vivi. Following that, open the treasure chest for an Ether, then climb the ladder on the bunk beds. Search the top bed for 116 gil, then leave the room. Following the flashback, make your decision and talk to Blank. Open up the treasure chest behind him for a Wrist and go through the crack in the wall. Open the treasure chest to your left as you enter for an Ether, then go down the stairs in front of Marcus. In the next room, go down the stairs, then go to the northwest part of this section to find a treasure chest with a Rubber Helm in it. Then go through the door on the east wall. Talk to Baku and get the treasure chest south of you after he leaves. Then go back through the door. You can go to the passageway south of Baku and then follow the path outside and save your game if you want. After that, go back to the cargo room and tell Baku you're ready, then a fight will start. Steal the Hi-Potion and Iron Sword he has if you want to, then just keep attacking him. Three hits should beat him. Following that, go back to the room that Steiner was put in and recruit him for your team. After you leave the room, go back in and open the treasure chest for an Ether. Following that, go back to the room Vivi is in and recruit him to join your party. After all that, go to the cargo room and then go down. Talk to Blank after you enter the next room and get his medicine. You can reenter that room afterward to open the treasure chest with a Leather Hat in it. Following that, go outside and make a left to start. Run to the tree and hit X when the exclamation point appears to find a Phoenix Down. Now, you'll probably want to start equipping your troops. Give Steiner the best stuff you have, and have Zidane equip the Mage Masher if he has it and hasn't had it equipped yet. Give Vivi the Leather Wrist and the Silk Shirt if you got them. Otherwise, don't worry about it. From there, you can talk to Cinna for items. You may want to buy several Eye Drops. Then, go to the moogle to save your game. ------------------------- Back in the Evil Forest ------------------------- Go back in the log to reach the Evil Forest. Be aware that Steiner now has the ability Sword Magic, in which 6 MP is taken from Steiner and Vivi empowers Steiner's sword with a magic aura. Frankly, you're better off just having him attack against normal enemies, but the option is there if you want to use it. From there, run across the pond and go to the next area of the forest. This is where you fought the Prison Cages earlier. Go up to reach the next area, then run up the log and run along the path. You'll find a Moogle (Monty) and a spring in this area. If you drink from the spring where it trickles down, your HP and MP will be restored. From there, talk to Monty and give him the letter from Kupo. You can save the game if you want. With the spring, you can level up and just return to the spring to heal. Level up as much as you want, then continue right past the spring. Run through the corridor and you'll see a cutscene showing that the trees are alive. In the next area, enter the cave to find Garnet and a large plant. You'll then, predictably, fight it in order to save Garnet. ------------------------- Boss Fight: Plant Brain ------------------------- Have Vivi use Focus to begin the fight and have Steiner use Fire Sword until he runs out of MP. Once he does, just attack normally. The enemy carries an Iron Helm along with some Eye Drops, so have Zidane steal both of these from it. Have Vivi continually cast Fire throughout the fight. One of Plant Brain's more annoying attacks is Pollen, which does no damage, but gives darkness to everyone. Plant Brain will also lash out with its left and right tentacles, which do considerable damage. It will also cast Thunder on everyone on occasion. Just keep plugging away and heal anyone that needs to be healed. Eventually, the Plant Brain will die. Following the fight, you'll tend to Garnet, then be surrounded by a group of insect-like plants. Flee and run down the corridor as cleanly as possible (without hitting any walls). At the next stage, you'll have to face off against three of them. However, they're pretty weak and should go down after a hit from one of the fighters. Following that, just advance the dialogue in the next section and watch the FMV. After that, Garnet will regain consciousness and start talking again. Advance the dialogue then wait for the night to pass. Zidane will then say that they're going to the cavern in the south. Afterward, pay attention to the moogle's lecture, then receive the Moogle's flute. You'll then be taken to the World Map. ------------ On a Plain ------------ First, equip Garnet with whatever extra supplies you have. If you got the Iron Helm, equip it on Steiner and give him the Level Up and Bright Eyes abilities. From there, look on the map and direct yourself so that the yellow light points to the south. Keep running in that direction until you reach a cave opening. When you walk up to it, it should say "Ice Cavern". Hit X to enter it and the party will talk about the cavern, then go inside. ---------------- The Ice Cavern ---------------- As would be imagined, fire attacks are extremely useful against all of the enemies here. At the start, walk up the ledge with the treasure chest on it and you'll find a spot to jump up to the ledge. Do so, then open the chest for a Tent. From there, jump up to the next ledge. If you touch the mist, a battle will start, so go right and wait for the mist to disappear. Run past the area quickly, then jump to the ledge at the end. Keep jumping up until you reach the next cavern. In this area, wait for the mist to your right to recede, then run up the ledge and examine the wall. Vivi will break through the wall with a fire spell, enabling you to open the chest inside for an Ether. Go back to the main path and follow the path just to the right of the path leading to the next entryway. Beware of the mist midway along and open the chest with a Potion in it at the end. Go back to the main path and then follow it up until you reach the next entryway. In the next area, go right and follow the path until you climb over the log to reach the chest. Open it for a Potion, then go back over and examine it to have Vivi hit it with a fire spell and knock it down. Run down and open the chest for a Mage Masher. Go back up the log, then go up. Take the left fork and wait for the mist to dissipate. Have Vivi burn down the wall, then open the chest for an Elixir. Next, go past the mist again and run to the exit of the room. In this room, wait at the start for the mist to go away, then run right and open the chest for a Phoenix Down. Go all the way to the left and wait for the mist to disappear, then examine the wall. After Vivi burns it down, follow the passage to the end in order to get a Leather Wrist. Equip it on whomever you'd like. Go back to the main path and make your way through the mist to get the end of the path and enter the next room. In the next room, go straight up to enter a room with a frozen Moogle in it. Have Vivi thaw him, then watch the second moogle lesson. Following that, agree to take Mois's letter and save the game. Following that, run out of the room and make your way up the windy passageway to the right. You'll see a cutscene of your characters falling asleep one-by-one. Eventually, Zidane will wake up. Follow the path to meet Black Waltz No. 1. He'll reveal that he is causing the blizzard and ring a bell to start the fight. ------------------------------------------- Boss Fight: Black Waltz No. 1 and Sealion ------------------------------------------- This fight is easier than it appears to be. Black Waltz No. 1 will call forth Sealion to start the battle. Your main problem here is Sealion, who normally just hits you with his wing for negligible damage, but occasionally casts Tsunami, which does a great deal of damage. Black Waltz No. 1 will cast Fire or Blizzard on you every turn, which doesn't do much damage. He carries a Silk Shirt and a Remedy, so if you don't mind not getting either of those, just kill him off quickly. Sealion, on the other hand, carries a Mythril Dagger and an Ether, so make sure you get the weapon. Essentially, this fight boils down to hitting Sealion repeatedly and healing when you get low on life. Eventually, you'll reach your Trance, at which point you should attack with Tidal Flame, especially if Black Waltz No. 1 is still alive. Sealion will respond to the Tidal Flame with Tsunami though, so make sure you have more than 100 HP, just to be safe. Sealion will also cast Blizzard and Blizzara on you, neither of which are major concerns, but again, try to keep your HP above 100 as much as possible. Just keep attacking Sealion and it'll die eventually. Following the fight, the blizzard will be gone and Zorn and Thorn will make a threat about upcoming battles. Zidane will check on the others, who have recovered. After that, follow the path back to the waterfall and then follow the path to the exit at the top. ------------ A New Name ------------ Once you leave the Ice Cavern and escape the mist, Zid