| ############################################## 3s. [Invasion -- Balamb Garden] Enemies: G-Soldier, Elite Soldier, Paratrooper, GIM52A Blue Magic: Micro Missile ####################################################################### You'll have to swap your G.Fs around quite a few times here, or simply use Diablos' 'Encounter None' party ability to save yourself the trouble. Be sure to save beforehand. Squall is informed of Galbadia Garden's presence in the vicinity. You have to give a set of orders to the students, before Squall is ordered downstairs. Here're the available commands: - (No orders/End.) - (My feelings on this.) - (The Garden's course.) - (Prepare for the attack.) - (Prepare our defense.) - (Call my comrades.) - (What to do with the hot dogs.) - (Take care of the junior classmen.) Give out your commands in this order: 'The Garden's course', 'Prepare for the attack', 'Prepare our defense', 'Call my comrades', 'Take care of the junior classmen' and 'No orders/End'. Add a few more if you like... Nida won't like it, though ^_^ Meet up with your companions, and after directing everyone to their positions on the 2nd Floor, head for the Quad. Zell'll be assembling the troops. Return to the 3rd floor, where both Gardens will mount a massive attack on each other. You'll be controlling Zell's party now. Head back to the western wing of the Quad, where a collision will throw Rinoa off the platform. Leave her for now, and make your way to the Front Gate to meet up with Squall. If you haven't already done so, the GIM52As in the vicinity carry Missiles, which allow Quistis to learn her 'Micro Missile'. You'll have to form a party of 3: - Selphie, Quistis - Quistis, Irvine - Irvine, Selphie Squall is a compulsory character here, whereas Zell is assigned to rescue Rinoa. When you're done, head back to the Garden and take a left to reach a save point. Junction your members before moving to the 2F classrooms via the elevator. You'll have to combat 4 green Galbadian paratroopers here. They're pretty quick (and nasty) on the offensive, and have 'Demi' magic available for casting. You should be able to take them out with a G.F or 'Death' spells, but if you get low on health, using your limit breaks is a good idea. Talk to everyone in the classroom before leaving. Nida requires Squall's presence on the 3rd floor bridge. Squall predicts that Balamb Garden will not be able to hold off the enemy for long; he decides to carry out a last-ditch attack on Edea's army. Proceed to the 2nd floor when you're done. Squall is asked to look for a missing child -- you can find him towards the end of the corridor on the 2F, but in the resulting melee Squall gets knocked down by a trooper. He'll pin Squall against the wall. Hit 'X' (U.S) or 'Circle' (Japanese) to reveal 3 choices, and take the 3rd one for Squall to notice the emergency hatchet. Press the same button again, then select the 2nd option to unlock the door. You'll get involved in a mini-game. Controls: X: Punch Triangle: Kick Square: Block Circle: Deathblow (appears later) Circle: Punch X: Kick Square: Block Triangle: Deathblow (appears later) Squall'll start off at a disadvantage with lesser health (check the red bar at the lower-left corner for his HP), and the 1st time you experience this mini-game it'll prove to be a little tricky to win. Basically, there're 2 methods to get past this. Method 1: Mash away at the 'Punch' button straight from the start. If you're fast enough, Squall should cut off every single attempt to retaliate from the trooper. If the opponent starts to block repeatedly, kick him. Method 2: Hold 'Block' until the 'Deathblow' command appears. Press the specified button to knock off two-thirds of the trooper's health, and finish him off with a flurry of punches and kicks. You can choose to reverse the order here (meaning, smack him with a few punches, then hold 'Block' until 'Deathblow' appears). ####################################################################### 3t. [Invasion -- Galbadia Garden] Enemies: G-Soldier, Elite Soldier, Creeps, Jelleye, Death Claw, Blitz, Tri-Face Slapper (Ice hockey rink) Draw Points: Aura, Protect, Life, Shell, Haste G.Fs: Cerberus, Alexander (Edea) Rare Cards: Cerberus ####################################################################### Once Rinoa is rescued, you should begin by heading left. Both Squall and Rinoa share a moment outside the Garden's compound, and the latter thanks Squall for saving her life, with a slight hint of her feelings towards her savior ^_^ Name your ring (Griever), then select the 2nd option to enter Galbadia Garden together with Rinoa. Take note of the hidden Aura draw point in the background; use Siren's 'Move-Find' party ability to locate it. Inside, save and re-organize your party (junction everyone accordingly). Take a right, then another right in the next screen to reach the stairs. Going upstairs, you'll come across Raijin and Fujin, who'll choose to leave Seifer in the hands of Squall. Go left from there and enter a door on the right to get your 1st Card Key (talk to the male student). Side events: The Death Claws (furry monsters carrying 4 blades) have a useful spell at levels 30 and above -- Reflect. This works well junctioned to the Spirit parameter. The Slappers here (demi-human ice hockey players) are probably the best sources of EXP you've encountered so far. Return to the save point, then take a left, and enter the left door. Run across the ice hockey rink and exit through the door on the right (the left door holds a 'Life' draw point, btw). The next area has an entrance opposite to where Squall is. Enter and converse with the student inside to get your Lv. 2 Card Key. Retrace your steps back to the save point. Proceed right to the stairs (where you met Raijin and Fujin), and climb it to the rooftop (3F). Leap down onto the tennis court, and head left. The next region should be familiar to you -- just keeping moving down (ignore the stairs on your way) until you reach the Main Hall of Galbadia Garden. A G.F. boss will be waiting for you in the center. There's a save point to the east side of the Hall, btw. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ BOSS G.F: Cerberus HP: 10,000 Strong vs.: Wind, Thunder Draw List: Quake, Double, Triple AP: 30 This puppy likes to cast 'Triple' on itself (undo this by using 'Dispell' on it), 'Tornado' and 'Quake' on your members (junction Quake to Elemental Defense or cast Float). Beat it around with a few 'Demi' spells and anything else non-wind nor thunder elemental related. Draw a few 'Triple' spells from it if you can; they act as pretty good spells for junctioning to any parameter. Cerberus carries a 'Spd-J Scroll'; be sure to mug it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Cerberus boasts of the Spd-J ability, in addition to its ST-Atk-J, ST-Def-J and Auto Haste. Once you've received Cerberus as a G.F, make your way to the south-west exit. Take a left in the next screen and converse with a female student to get a Lv. 3 Card Key. Retrace your steps back to the stairs you passed earlier on, and ascend from there to the 2nd Floor. Move left from there to reach an elevator. Use it to get to a save point... and your awaiting adversaries. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ BOSS: Seifer HP: 10,000 Weak: Poison Draw List: Fira, Thundara, Dispell, Haste AP: 20 He's a bit tougher this time around. You'll want to counter his high attack power by casting 'Protect' on your allies (Seifer seems to concentrate all his attacks on Squall, btw), but generally, his magical prowess can be ignored. Once Seifer gets down to half of his total HP he'll start using his 'Demon Slice', which deals out a pretty hefty sum of damage to a single member. Keep two (or one) allies as healers, and attack Seifer using Squall, or whoever has the highest offensive rating. I generally take Squall since his Gunblade offers critical hits. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Return to the 2F, then head right from the stairs. Proceed anti -clockwise to find an invisible save point (use Siren's 'Move-Find' party ability to see it) a bit further down. Enter the Auditorium to your right. Tip: The upcoming battle sees another drawable G.F up for grabs; make sure someone's carrying the 'Draw' command. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ BOSS: Seifer HP: 7,400 Weak: Poison Draw List: Fira, Thundara, Dispell, Haste He's weakened in this confrontation, but take time to steal from him before finishing him off. You'll have to fight him and Edea consecutively, so don't dawdle too much. BOSS: Edea HP: 15,000 Draw List: Blizzara, Demi, Esuna, Alexander Total AP: 50 Draw G.F. Alexander from her before anything else, and follow up with Shell on your members. Edea's capable of a few pretty nasty spells, and has 'Death' at her disposal. Attack her with Diablos, and be sure to leave a character on standby to revive those hit by Edea's 'Death' spell. Defeat her quickly, or you'll run yourselves into trouble. Edea's 'Maelstrom' is a gravity-based attack which takes off half of each member's current HP, in addition to causing status ailments. Also, take note that summoning G.F. Carbuncle doesn't work anymore; Edea will simply endow herself with a 'Reflect' status as well and bounce spells off herself. Break that with 'Dispell'. Cheap Alternative: You should have picked up a few 'Meltdown' spells from the Gaylas in the Trabia region, and 'Aura' spells from a draw point in Trabia Garden. Cast Meltdown on Edea and Aura on Squall -- one Renzokuken should be all that's needed to down the sorceress. Press the 'Circle' (U.S) or 'Triangle' (Japanese) button repeatedly to have Squall's limit break icon appear if he's in critical or Aura condition, and has a full time bar. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ G.F. Alexander holds 'High Magic Refinement' menu ability; you can refine 5 middle class spells to a single upper class spell, i.e. five Cura spells to one Curaga. Its 'Revive' command ability works like a regular Phoenix Down, but without the added costs. END OF DISC TWO ======================================================================== ++++++++++++++ 4. E s t h a r ++++++++++++++ =================== Sections appearing: =================== 4a. Balamb Garden: Infirmary 4b. Edea's Orphanage 4c. Laguna Dream Sequence Part Four: Trabia Canyon 4d. Transition: Balamb Garden and Edea's Orphanage 4e. Finding the White SeeD 4f. Centra Ruins Revisited (optional) 4g. Chocobo Forests (optional) 4h. CC Group (optional) 4i. Miscellaneous Updates Part Two (optional) 4j. F.H. Bridge 4k. Esthar Region 4l. Great Salt Lake 4m. Final Laguna Dream Sequence: Lunatic Pandora Laboratory 4n. Esthar City 4o. Tears' Point (optional) 4p. Lunar Gate 4q. Lunatic Pandora Invasion: Esthar City 4r. Lunatic Pandora (with Zell) ######################################################################## 4a. [Balamb Garden: Infirmary] Magazines: Weapons Monthly July (Training Center) Combat King 003 (Balamb Hotel) ######################################################################## Squall is contemplating his next move at the infirmary when Quistis asks of him to head to the 3F Bridge. Oblige her, form your party of 3 (sans Rinoa) and pilot Balamb Garden south-west towards the Orphanage. Check your map. Side events: Pick up the July issue of Weapons Monthly from Balamb Garden's Training Center. This one won't be so easy to spot; it appears as a little brown package surrounded by a yellow band on the ground. Another one involves Zell. If you've been a frequent visitor at the Library with Zell, visit Balamb City; a random event might transpire -- Zell has a guest, and she's waiting for him at the Hotel. Spend the night there, and you should receive a copy of 'Combat King 003' in the morning. Visits to the Library may *sometimes* throw up special events. For instance, the first event has Zell enquiring about a book when he meets a girl with a pig-tail, the 2nd has a 'Conceited SeeD' asking about the same girl... etc. Eventually when you do make a trip to Balamb City, you'll be able to get the magazine. And even if you do not do this side quest, 'Combat King 003' can still be purchased at a later time in the game. ####################################################################### 4b. [Edea's Orphanage] Draw Points: Curaga Magazines: Timber Maniacs Rare Cards: Edea (Edea), Seifer (Cid) Blue Magic: Fire Breath Weapons: Bismarck (Irvine), Crescent Wish (Selphie) ####################################################################### *spoiler here... skip this paragraph if you wish* Edea apologises for all the trouble, and explains that she was under the control of Ultimecia, a witch from the future. Ultimecia requires Ellone's powers in order to achieve her ultimate goal of ruling the world in different time periods; Edea's body is but a tool for her. She warns of the danger of Ultimecia awaking Adel, the original witch, as well. Squall then asks about Rinoa's condition, but Edea says that it is beyond her powers to help. Squall has no interest in continuing the conversation with Edea and Cid; he decides to return to Balamb Garden to inform the rest of the current situation. Side events: The Orphanage has a copy of Timber Maniacs lying on the ground. You can also win Edea's and Seifer's card from Edea and Cid respectively. The forests outside are also home to a variety of interesting creatures, which include Grand Mantis (steal Sharp Spikes), Blitz (they drop Betrayal Blades or Dynamo Stones) and Geezards (Screws). Ruby Dragons can also be found, but they're extremely rare. If you're lucky enough to meet one, mug it for Inferno Fangs. Assuming you did get those Inferno Fangs, you can remodel Selphie's weapon now: 1 Inferno Fang, 1 Life Ring (stealable from Lefty in the Winhill region) and 4 Sharp Spikes. If you didn't, there's another opportunity later on. Inferno Fangs can also be used to enable Quistis to learn her 'Fire Breath' Blue magic. If you've had trouble acquiring Irvine's 'Bismarck' in Disc Two, you can do it easily now; 1 Steel Pipe, 4 Dynamo Stones and 8 Screws. Blitzs tend to drop Dynamo Stones at levels 30 and above. [Balamb Garden] Having reported to the rest, Squall returns to the infirmary. ####################################################################### 4c. [Laguna Dream Sequence Part Four: Trabia Canyon] Enemies: Ochu, Mesmerize, Bite Bug, Gayla, Ruby Dragon Blue Magic: Fire Breath Weapons: Red Scorpion (Quistis) ####################################################################### Whether Ward appears or not in this event is totally random. I think it has something to do with how frequently you read copies of Timber Maniacs, though. Laguna, having exhausted almost all finances during his travels, has taken up a job as an actor. He plays a knight, and in this scene he has to protect a maiden in distress from a dragon, which is played by Kiros and Ward. However, the dragon seems rather authentic in this take... Controls: Square: Defend! Triangle: Attack! Square: Defend! X: Attack! There're two methods to get past this mini-game: Method 1: Tap the 'Attack!' button once to have Laguna swing his blade, then immediately assume a defensive stance to block the dragon's swipe. After Laguna parries the blow, have him attack again. Just keep on repeating this pattern of attacking and defending and Laguna should emerge victorious. Method 2: Mash away at the 'Attack!' button rapidly. Laguna should keep slashing at the Ruby Dragon, and cut off any attempt to retaliate. You may have to block occasionally, but it isn't much trouble if you've got quick fingers. When Laguna is re-united with his companions, take the 2nd option to retreat left to a save point. Junction your party and save before returning to confront the dragon. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ENEMY: Ruby Dragon HP: Variable Weak: Ice, Holy Strong vs.: Fire, Wind Draw List: Aero, Firaga, Demi AP: 14 Just summon Shiva or Alexander, and have the remaining one character attack (have him junction 'Blizzaga' to Elemental Attack if you want) or heal. This creature isn't too hard to take down. Remember to plunder an 'Inferno Fang' from it! This item allows Quistis to learn her 'Fire Breath' Blue Magic or acts as one of the raw materials for Selphie's 3rd weapon, the Crescent Wish. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Side events: You can encounter Mesmerizes (steal their Mesmerize Blades) and Ochus (gigantic green plants with flailing tentacles -- get their Ochu tentacles) here if you haven't already encountered them. The Ochu has a tendency to rob you of your magic spells, so be careful. Ochus are found on the same screen as the Ruby Dragon... it's a pretty small space, so make sure you don't go running into the Ruby Dragon by accident, if you want some Ochu Tentacles first. Combine 2 Ochu Tentacles with 2 Dragon Skins (dropped by high level Anacondaurs) for Quistis' 'Red Scorpion'. [Edea's Orphanage] Laguna comes to the orphanage looking for Ellone, but resigns himself to the fact that she's been taken away by the Estharians. ####################################################################### 4d. [Transition -- Balamb Garden and Edea's Orphanage] ####################################################################### Squall ponders the possibility of going back in time to rescue Rinoa when he wakes up... Edea might know something, so off you go. [Edea's Orphanage] Edea locates Ellone's ship, the 'White SeeD', and presents Squall with a letter introducing him and his intentions. Try selling Edea's letter at a shop for 125 Gil, then returning to Edea's Orphanage; Edea will simply hand you another letter, which you can sell again. Kinda like an infinite Gil trick, but it's pretty worthless if you ask me. Just thought you might like to know ^_^ ####################################################################### 4e. [Finding the White SeeD: Centra Region] Draw Points: Holy Magazines: Timber Maniacs Rare Cards: Shiva (Zone), Angelo (Watts) ####################################################################### North of the orphanage will be a group of islands. If you ignore the one to the west (the continent with 3 cliffs sticking out into the open sea) you'll find that the remaining islands form a broken ring around a patch of water. The 'White SeeD' is located somewhere near the south-western shoreline cliffs which encircle this patch of water. You need to do a bit of camera work to actually spot the ship, though. [White SeeD] Squall explains his intentions, but the crew refuses to grant him an audience with the leader of the ship. Well, you don't really have to leave, so just explore the White SeeD. Along the way, you'll find Watts (remember him from Rinoa's 'Forest Owls'?). He holds Angelo's card and some extra bits of information for the inquisitive gamer. If you follow Zone up to the ship's bridge, you can pick up Shiva's card by exchanging an adult magazine (Girl Next Door from Timber Maniacs building) with Zone after speaking to him a few times. Take the 1st option to give it to him for free. There's also a copy of Timber Maniacs to be found on the ship's bridge. You should have collected all of them by this time. Here's a recap of their locations: 1. At Balamb Hotel/Train Station 7. At the Repair Shop in F.H 2. At Timber Maniacs Building 8. At F.H Hotel 2F 3. At Timber Hotel 2F 9. At the Inn/Artisan's house in 4. At Hotel Dollet 2F the Shumi Tribe Village 5. At Dollet Pub 10. At Trabia Garden's cemetery 6. At Galbadia Hotel 2F 11. At Edea's Orphanage 12. On the White SeeD They're viewable using the Study Panel at the 2F classroom of Balamb Garden, on the 'School Festival Committee' site. The Leader awaiting in his cabin tells Squall that when they were caught in a conflict between the Galbadian army and the Estharian troops, Ellone took the liberty of leaving on an Esthar rescue boat. She's now somewhere within the Esthar territory, which is only accessible via the bridge at Fishermans Horizon. Proceeding on into Esthar means you won't be able to visit the other places on the map for quite a while. I've outlined a few *optional* events below which you might want to tackle before moving the story any further. ####################################################################### 4f. [Centra Ruins Revisited] (note: It's to the north-east of Edea's Orphanage) G.Fs: Tonberry ####################################################################### This should be where you fought Odin. Take both Squall and Quistis along, and have them both at critical status with the ability to use their limit breaks. Head for the 3rd screen (the one with the Tonberry statue in the center of a circular platform), where you'll have to combat Tonberries. Quistis should have a high Speed parameter -- have her unleash her 'Micro Missile' Blue Magic on the Tonberry a few times before Squall (with a high Strength rating) steps in to finish off the Tonberry with his Renzokuken. Both of them should be in critical status for this tactic to work smoothly. You'll gain 0 EXP (and Chef's Knives) for your efforts, but after the 20th Tonberry you kill, there's a chance of meeting a Tonberry King when you defeat another one of those adorable green little creatures. However, this guy seems to appear randomly, so you might have to rack up quite a few dead Tonberries before actually meeting him. You don't really have to take down 20 of them in one shot; there's always time to head outside to save before continuing. You can use Ifrit's 'Refine Ammo' menu ability to receive 20 Armour Piercing (AP) Ammo for Irvine's limit break, from a single Chef's Knife. Tip: Carding 20 Tonberries doesn't work; only killing them will summon the Tonberry King. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ BOSS: Tonberry King HP: 90,000+ Draw List: Death, Curaga, Full-life AP: 20 Draw a few 'Full-life' spells, cast a Meltdown spell on him and unleash Squall's Renzokuken. He should be dead by then. Just watch out for his magics. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ You'll get your Tonberry G.F. -- you should learn its 'Familiar' menu ability on top of everything else. Its 'Level Up' and 'Level Down' command abilities are also useful for tweaking the enemies' levels -- some of them drop different items at different levels, remember? Keep this in mind the next time you want to collect raw materials for your weapon remodeling events. And if in future battles, should you find your opponents too difficult for you, just use 'Level Down' on them to halve their levels. Take note that this doesn't work on bosses. ####################################################################### 4g. [Chocobo Forests] G.Fs: Boko the Chocobo (Gysahl Greens) Rare Cards: Chicobo ####################################################################### Chocobo Forests are dome-shaped forests you'll find on the Trabia and Centra continents. Another one is located among the forests in the north-eastern cliffs on the Overworld -- you'll have to ride a chocobo from the Trabia region, and across the shallow waters to get to this one (the Chocobo Sanctuary) in Grandidi Forest. It's pretty well camouflaged. Side events: The forests in which the Chocobo Sanctuary is hidden in houses 2 powerful enemies: the Malboro and the Hexadragon. You don't need to trouble yourselves with them now, so run when you see them. Fortunately, they appear rarely. If you're feeling daring, mug some Red Fangs from the Hexadragon and Malboro Tentacles from the Malboro. You'll need to get a 'ChocoSonar' and 'ChocoZiner' from the kid within a Chocobo Forest. Next, hit the 'Square' button to get a menu: 1. To detect: [ChocoSonar]. 2. To catch: [ChocoZiner]. 3. Help me. 4. No way, I'm not doing this. Equip the ChocoSonar. At specified spots, the ChocoSonar will respond (watch the red bar) when you tap the 'X' button. Equip the ChocoZiner, and blow it for a small chocobo to fall down. Blow again for it to return. You'll have to do this until there's only a single small chocobo on the screen (there may be multiple chicobos in each forest). Talk to it to get a big Chocobo to appear. If you happen to activate the ChocoZiner where the sonar shows no response, you'll get your equipment snitched by a chicobo. Buy it back from the Chocoboy for 700 gil. Alternatively, you can ask the kid to summon a big Chocobo for you for 1,200 gil. Also, note that everytime you get the big Chocobo to appear by *yourself*, you'll receive a 'Pledge of Affection' (usually just a bunch of stones hidden in the ground which you'll have to find using the 'ChocoZiner'). Collect all 6 of them (one from each forest) and present these to the chocobos in the Chocobo Sanctuary (the one located in the north -eastern cliffs mentioned above) for a 'Chicobo' card. Below are the locations of the 6 chocobo forests: 1. West of Trabia Garden 2. North-east of Trabia Garden (here's where you should ride a chocobo to get to the Chocobo Sanctuary) 3. North-west of the Shumi Tribe Village 4. North-east of the Centra Ruins 5. East of Edea's Orphanage 6. South of Kashkabald Desert I'll give a general example of how the whole procedure works. Let's take the Chocobo Forest north-west of the Shumi Tribe Village: 1. Purchase equipment from Chocoboy. You need to do this only once. 2. Press 'Square' to open up the menu and equip 'ChocoSonar'. 3. There're a total of 4 spots where the 'ChocoSonar' goes crazy (press 'X' to use it) for this particular forest. 4. The spot you're looking for is the one nearest to the Chocokid, a few steps north-east from him. 5. Switch over to the 'ChocoZiner', and blow it at the exact spot using the 'X' button. 6. A single chicobo should fall down. Talk to it, and the big Chocobo should appear. 7. The hidden stones in this forest are somewhere in the upper-right regions of the screen. Keep using the 'ChocoZiner' in this area. 8. The Chocobo should dig up the stones for you, and you're done. 9. Of course, it isn't as easy for the other Chocobo forests. The Chocoboy will provide a small hint for a price, though. And here's another example, this time from the Chocobo Forest north -east of the Centra Ruins. I've had a lot of e-mails on this: 1. You'll need to be very careful in this area, because there's only one spot in the entire forest where the 'ChocoSonar' reacts. 2. And this spot is extremely small, hence much harder to find. 3. Starting from the left of the Chocoboy (or the Chocoboy's right side), keep walking north. 4. Repeatedly use the 'ChocoSonar' for every single small step Squall takes. You'll eventually find the spot. 5. Blow the 'ChocoZiner' to get the Chicobo. Talk to it to get the Chocobo to appear. 6. The Chocoboy's standing over the spot where the stones are hidden. Challenge him to Card Battle using 'Square', but instead of playing a game, tell him to move (3rd option). 7. Search the spot using the 'ChocoZiner' for the hidden stones, and you're done. If you don't feel like doing this event now, you can leave it until you've acquired the air-ship Ragnarok, which will be later on in the game. I'll remind you. Some people have written in requesting for full guides to each forest; well, half the fun is figuring out the puzzles and trying to decipher the Chocoboy's cryptic clues, so... I'm afraid I won't be providing them anytime soon. Still, you can refer to Part II of Scott Ong's 'Final Fantasy VIII FAQ' at www.gamefaqs.com for help. D-pad/Left Analog Stick: Gets the chocobo moving. Btw, all chocobos have the ability to cross shallow waters. Such areas are identified as having a lighter shade of blue compared to the deeper dark -blue regions of the oceans Start: Brings up the bar that toggles the rumble feature on/off and pauses the game Select: Toggles the World Sphere/Map on/off X (U.S): Dismount from the Chocobo. When you do that, the chocobo will scoot off on its own; you'll need to re-capture it again at a Chocobo Forest if you want to ride one later, assuming you have yet to solve the puzzle there. In the Japanese version of ff 8, press 'Circle' to dismount. These adorable creatures are pretty fast on their feet. Also, you can't encounter enemies while riding on a chocobo. Incidentally, the Gysahl Greens you can purchase from the chocoboy allow you to summon Boko in battle. They're kinda useless though, seeing how their 'Choco Fire' damages a single opponent for only a measly 500+. The chocobo can power up its attacks in battle, but you'll need a Pocket Station peripheral, which is sold separately. Unfortunately, I don't own the latter ^_^ ####################################################################### 4h. [CC Group] Rare Cards: MiniMog, Carbuncle, Leviathan, Gilgamesh ####################################################################### After Squall emerges victorious in about 15 to 20 Card Battles in Balamb Garden, the Card Club Quest becomes available. By this I mean you can do Card Battle with the various members of the CC Group in Balamb Garden. Here're their locations, and the order in which you should challenge them: (note: Some of them appear randomly. If they're not where I said they should be, try leaving and re-entering the same area again.) Jack: He can be spotted wandering around the Garden Directory Board on the 1F. Club: He wanders the northern regions of the 1F. Diamond: 2 girls will be walking up to the Garden Directory Board on the 1F; challenge them only when they both stop to chat at the Directory Board. Spade: A man near the lift on the 2F. He doesn't appear too often. Heart: Xu on the 3F Command Center. King: Speak with Nida after defeating Xu, then converse with Dr. Kadowaki at the infirmary using 'Square'. Head for Squall's cabin, and ask your companions to leave you alone. Choose to rest, and during the night, King will appear randomly. If you fail to win, you can have a re-match on the 3F Bridge. Joker: In the Training Center (appears at random). He'll also sell you items. Plus, if you manage to beat him, he'll upgrade your 'Battle Report' to include a 'G.F Report'. This guy appears randomly near the 'Blizzard' draw point after you defeat Jack. The CC Group members hold excellent (and rare) cards among themselves. Below are the 3 G.F. cards you should be able to pick up from them: Heart: Carbuncle King: Gilgamesh Joker: Leviathan If you haven't done so already, the kid in blue circling the 1st Floor of Balamb Garden holds the MiniMog card. ######################################################################## 4i. [Miscellaneous Updates Part Two] Weapons: Punishment (Squall), Gauntlet (Zell), Red Scorpion (Quistis) ######################################################################## {Preparations} Have Alexander learn its 'Medicine Data' character ability, followed by 'Medicine Level Up' menu ability. It helps if you're combating Cactuars at the Kashkabald Desert, to the east of the Centra Ruins. One more thing: learn Pandemona's 'Initiative' (Saigeke) character ability, which allows a character to always start a battle with a full time bar. Before you go into Esthar, you'll want to have the following -- 6 Steel Pipes (refine the lv. 5 Elastoid's card or steal from Wendigos - use Tonberry's 'Level Down' ability on them if their levels are too high - in Roshfall Forest) and 60 Remedies. Use G.F. Alexander's 'Medicine Level Up' Menu Ability to refine these 60 Remedies into 6 Remedy Pluses. The above items are essential for acquiring a G.F. later on. Tip: Roshfall Forest is north of Timber. Use the menu screen's location displayer feature (the window to the lower left in the main menu) to confirm that you're in the right place. You might also want to learn Tonberry's 'Call Shop' Menu Ability. It'll come in handy on your future journeys. {Weapons} Weapon remodeling is optional here though, so you can pretty ignore the following section (which basically serves as a reminder): Squall: His 'Punishment' requires a Chef's Knife, 2 Star Fragments, 1 Turtle Shell and 8 Screws. You can either modify 3 Iron Giant lv. 5 cards to 1 Star Fragment, or combat T-Rexaurs at Balamb Garden's Training Center, and hope they drop Star Fragments when defeated. Zell/Quistis: Acquiring Dragon Skins should prove easier now; use Tonberry's 'Level Up' command on Anacondaurs in Roshfall Forest, then defeat them to make them drop the items. The Gauntlet requires 1 Dragon Skin and 1 Fury Fragment; Quistis' Red Scorpion requires 2 Ochu Tentacles and 2 Dragon Skins. Like I said, weapon remodeling at this point in the game is not essential. I'll guide you towards obtaining each character's ultimate weapon later on in the walkthrough. ####################################################################### 4j. [Fishermans Horizon Bridge] ####################################################################### Pilot Balamb Garden over to F.H and the scene will switch to Squall. Pick up Rinoa from the infirmary. [Horizon Bridge] You'll meet up with the rest of your party at the end of the bridge. Quistis teases Squall about Rinoa, before Edea tells Squall to meet up with Professor Odine in Esthar. Zell remarks that Squall should have a rough idea of who he is: - Yeah, I remember. - I can't remember... tell me more. * - Whatever. Head off into the background. ######################################################################## 4k. [Esthar Region] Enemies: Mesmerize, Malboro ######################################################################## Edea will be playable, and starts off at lv. 26. Don't bother to raise her levels as she'll only be with you temporarily. Edea has a rather good affiliation with your G.Fs however, so make her your primary summoner if you wish. Head towards the lake (remember to junction Edea if you're gonna use her; she has zero spells available when she joins you). I didn't detail Edea's limit break in the 'Cast' section in case I ruin the plot for some of you... here it is: Limit Break: Ice Strike Edea conjures up a gigantic ice javelin, and hurls it towards her opponents. It's similar to the spell she used on Squall towards the end of Disc One, during the Galbadian Parade. ######################################################################## 4l. [Great Salt Lake] Enemies: Vysage, Lefty, Righty Draw Points: Meteor, Thundaga ######################################################################## Set your party and proceed one screen upwards. While not immediately obvious in the next area, there's actually a fork here. Have Squall run up the head of the fossil, and follow the path to a cliff (you'll pass a 'Meteor' and 'Thundaga' Draw Point on the way). Hit 'X' (U.S) or 'Circle' (Japanese) at the edge of the cliff to leap off it, and follow the snowy path to the north. Side events: Vysages roam this area. Summon Siren to silence their efforts (and laugh sadistically when they attempt to cast Esuna), and steal a 'Life Ring' from Lefty if you haven't done so already. An alternate way to mute them would be to junction 'Silence' to Status Attack, and smack them with a weapon. Take a right in the next screen for a save point. At 2 more screens left from the previous save point, you'll meet up with another fossil... only this time it's very much alive. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ BOSS: Abadon HP: 17,010 Weak: Fire, Holy, Heal Draw List: Cura, Esuna, Dispell AP: 40 Have 2 characters summon Ifrit and Alexander while the remaining one attacks (junction Fira to Elemental Attack) or heals. If you've learnt Leviathan's 'Recover' command ability, use it to inflict 9,999 worth of damage on Abadon. Sometimes Abadon will assume a standing posture (as opposed to its earlier hunched posture) in the duration of the fight. In this mode both physical and magical attacks are practically useless against it; cast Cure spells or the 'Recover' command on Abadon at this time to actually damage it. A 'Phoenix Down' on it also works, but it tends to miss most of the time. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Head to the north-east when you're done. Have Squall examine the strange looking background to uncover an opening in mid-air. Climb up to it. [Esthar City] Proceed to the right (it's a one-way path actually), screw around with the panel on the left if you want (it gives you a bit of info on Esthar), then enter the door to the north-east. Step through the door in front of you after the elevator stops for a nice FMV sequence introducing the capital city of Esthar. ####################################################################### 4m. [Final Laguna Dream Sequence: Lunatic Pandora Laboratory] Enemies: Esthar Soldiers, Elastoid, Gesper Draw Points: Death, Double, Flare Magazines: Weapons Monthly First Issue (Lunatic Pandora Lab.) Blue Magic: Homing Laser ####################################################################### Laguna complains about the lack of meals to the soldiers; talk to both Esthar soldiers twice to get things moving. They tell Laguna to help with some work upstairs. Alternate your conversations between the Moomba and another man here to trigger a fight with an Esthar soldier. Kiros and Ward will arrive now -- junction them first (1st option) before engaging more enemies in combat. You'll combat a Gesper and 2 Esthar soldiers. Get rid of the Gesper first; it has the annoying ability to remove a character from the battle fray via its Degenerator. The darker Esthar soldier knows 'Death', so you might want to be protected from that. Enter the right elevator to reach the ground floor. You can eavesdrop on Dr. Odine's conversation with his assistants if you want, or just head right to exit. Save outside, and Laguna will be informed that Dr. Odine knows Ellone's whereabouts. Return to the Laboratory. Pick up the final (or First, deciding how you look at it) issue of Weapons Monthly on the floor upon entering the complex. Head back to the basements to find Dr. Odine. You'll have to combat his cronies before chasing after him -- be sure to plunder a 'Laser Cannon' from the Elastoid! This allows Quistis to learn her 'Homing Laser'. Btw, the Elastoid has to be at levels 30 and above first. Laguna manages to squeeze some information out of him -- Ellone is located at Odine's Laboratory. [Doctor Odine's Laboratory] More enemies await you here, but Laguna can easily dispatch them. Check the circular object in the center; it's actually an elevator. Enter the door in front when you reach the 2nd floor. Obliterate those pesky Estharians and look through the blue glass in the background to see Ellone. Examine the control panel to the right, then descend back to the 1st floor. Step through the door in the background (it should be openable now) to rescue Ellone. Laguna apologizes for coming late. ####################################################################### 4n. [Esthar City] Draw Points: Double, Flare, Blizzard, Quake, Tornado, Curaga Magazines: Pet Pals Vol. 5 and 6 (Esthar Pet Store) Combat King 004 (Esthar Soldier) Occult Fans Vol. IV (Presidential Palace) ... plus almost any magazine, in fact Rare Cards: Ward (Dr. Odine) ####################################################################### Board the car to meet up with Odine at the Presidential Palace. He agrees to help, but on condition that Rinoa be left behind to be kept under observation. Doctor Odine holds Ward's card, btw. You can exit the Palace by heading down and taking a right to reach an elevator pod. Esthar is probably the largest city you'll ever come across in the whole of ff 8; below is a map I've constructed for your own reference: (actually, I think the topography is *still* baffling...) Presidential Palace | /-----------------------------------------------------------\ | | | | | | E | | | |------------------------|------------------| | | X| | | | CK | (dead end)| |------------------------------------ | \-| | Y| | | | | | -----| | | | | Esthar| | | | Shopping| Air | | | Mall| Station-| | | | | | | | | |(Left Side) (Right Side)| | \---------------+------------------------+------------------/ | | Odine's Laboratory Car Rental | Overworld *at point X the straight path goes over the horizontal path; at point Y the horizontal path goes over the straight path. You'll find a save -cum-heal point south-east from the Air Station. The points E and CK have no meaning now, but take note of their positions; you'll be needing them later. Some of the shops are open for business at this time, but those like 'Cheryl's Shop' stay closed permanently. However, repeated visits to the same shop can sometimes throw up special gifts for the party; I managed to get a Rosetta Stone (lets a G.F. learn Ability x4 junction ability) from Cheryl's Shop. Also, make sure you've learnt Tonberry's 'Familiar' menu ability; that should allow you to purchase all the remaining issues of Pet Pals and Combat King for Rinoa and Zell respectively. Purchase a 'Force Armlet' from the shopping mall as well. You'll need one of these for Rinoa's final weapon. Power Wrists are sold at the same Pet Store as well. You can use G.F Siren's 'Tools RF' menu ability to obtain 10 Aura Stones from a single Power Wrist. Tip: Aura (Stones) is a spell which dramatically increases the chances of a character activating his or her limit break, even though their HP may not be at critical status. Another store which seems to be closed (but isn't) is Johnny's. You might have to visit it repeatedly to get it to open; he sells rare recovery items such as X-Potions, Mega Phoenixes and Elixirs. You can also pick up the final volume of Occult Fans here. Speak with the Presidential Aide near the Air Station, then return to the Presidential Palace. Talk to the Presidential Secretary there, and he'll drop the magazine when he leaves. If you don't feel like purchasing a copy of Combat King 004, try finding a lone Esthar soldier in the city. I've marked his position with a 'CK' in the map above; speak to him once. He won't give you the magazine yet, but just remember his location. You'll be returning to him soon. When you're done shopping, you can exit Esthar. I advise you rent a car on your way out if you want to explore the region; it's huge. |