Final Fantasy IV for Nintendo DS "Boss FAQ" By Mykas0 version 1.3 26-7-2009 BE SURE TO READ THIS FIRST PART! You can read this faq as long as you don't change ANY part of it (including this small introduction). Also, you can print it but only for use at your home, you may NEVER sell this stuff or else you will make me really mad and maybe I won't work anymore! Finally, if you want to use this faq on your site (or use any part of it for other things, like writing your own faq or something) you have to mail me and ask me for it, I will almost surely grant it to you! Finally, this guide may NEVER be published in CheatCC. Also, I must warn you that this faq is full of small spoilers, so if you don't want the game spoiled for you, just don't read it! 0~. Version History 1~. Introduction and important tips --------------------------------------------------- >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Normal Bosses 2~. Mist Dragon 3~. General + 3x Soldier 4~. Octomammoth 5~. Antlion 6~. Mom Bomb 7~. Scarmiglione + 4x Milon 8~. Scarmiglione Zombie 9~. Dark Knight 10~. Guard x2 11~. Yang 12~. Baigan 13~. Cagnazzo 14~. Dark Elf 15~. Sandy + Cindy + Mindy 16~. Barbariccia 17~. 3x Cal + 3x Brina (or Calbrina) 18~. Golbez 19~. Dr. Lugae + Barnabas (or Barnabas-Z) 20~. Lugaborg 21~. King Eblan + Queen Eblan 22~. Rubicant 23~. Evil Wall 24~. Elements (Milon Zombie, Cagnazzo, Barbariccia or Rubicant) 25~. Attacker + Cpu + Defender 26~. Zeromus >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Optional Bosses OP1~. Asura OP2~. Leviathan OP3~. Odin OP4~. Bahamut OP5~. White Dragon OP6~. Dark Bahamut OP7~. Lunasaur OP8~. Plague OP9~. Ogopogo OP10~. Thumbingway OP11~. Geryon OP12~. Proto Babil --------------------------------------------------- FAQ. Frequently Asked Questions B_END. Special Thanks END. Contacts 0~. Version History -> version 1.3 <- -> Added new strategies for several battles; -- Fixed some typos. -> version 1.21 <- - Added an improved strategy for the "Rubicant" battle. -> version 1.2 <- - Added new strategies to several boss battles; -- Updated the "Frequently Asked Questions" section. -> version 1.1 <- - Added lots of new strategies to several different boss battles. -> version 1.06 <- - Added a new strategy for the "Proto Babil" battle. -> version 1.05 <- - Added some new strategies for "Geryon" and "Proto Babil". -> version 1.0 <- - Now contains strategies for all boss battles; -- Updated the "Frequently Asked Questions" section; --- Improved the information given in many boss battles. -> version 0.99 <- - This guide now covers all the bosses; -- Added a new question to "Frequently Asked Questions". -> version 0.95 <- - Improved strategies for all the bosses. -> version 0.9 <- - Covered all the storyline bosses, along with (possibly) all the optional ones. 1~. Introduction and important tips Another Final Fantasy remake, and fortunately this one comes with a few interesting aditions, unlike most of the previous ones . Let's skip this kind of unimportant blabber and advance to the initial notes, which you should give a look to before even trying to read specific boss strategies, as they may help you. - Like in most RPGs, your current level is quite important, allowing you to easily increase your stats and even have an easier time with the battles that you will face later on. In case you really can't seem to defeat a particular boss, ALWAYS consider gaining a couple more levels before trying again. - Apart from levels, your armor and equipment is also important. Every time you visit a new town, try to get the best weapons and armor that it sells for each of your characters, even if that means selling some of your items and equipment, or even getting into more battles just to win some extra cash. - Every time an Inn crosses your path, take your time to decide if you should rest there or not. Most of the times, you'll be wanting to rest in there, to restore the HP and MP of your characters. - "Tent" and "Cottage" are items which can be used at save points (or in the world map). They both fully heal the HP of your characters, but only the second one reposes all their MP. As you can easily understand, these are amazing items, and you should try to keep more than three in your inventory at every point in time. Doing so will allow you to quickly heal your members without relying on Inns or curative magic/items, which you may eventually run out of. - The white magic spell "Slow" is a good friend of yours. Unlike what happens in other games, here such a spell works in plenty of bosses and normal enemies, and it is a good help when it comes to having more time to defeat a particular enemy. Having all these tips and informations in mind, you can now continue reading, for more information on each of the bosses you can fight in this game. 2~. Mist Dragon Unless you're new to this genre, I doubt you'll even need any help in your fight against this first boss. However, be sure to take a few healing items, possibly four Potions, with you, or else you may find yourself in a tigh spot, even with your characters at level 12. Strike physically with both Cecil and Kain, and feel free to use Cecil's "Dark Wave", which will allow him to cause more damage to this enemy, at the price of his own HP. If the health of any of your two characters drops below 70 HP, use one of your Potions (you brought some, right?) to quickly heal him. Later, this monster will turn into a white cloud, a form which, if attacked, heavily damages all your characters. So, when that happens, you should simply defend (press right, at the command prompt, and select the first option), skip turns (press Y) or simply wait (doing nothing) until he reverts back to its normal form, an opportunity which you should take to inflict some more damage. If this beast ever reverts back to its cloudy form, simply repeat this same strategy and you'll be fine. You just have to strike (and heal) as necessary until your enemy goes down, which is easy to do, if you brought the previously-mentioned healing items with you. 3~. General + 3x Soldier Appears there are several ways to beat this battle, and you're free to use any you like. Personally, I took the three soldiers down and the last enemy simply retreated, but you may also take the General down first, in order to gain significantly more experience - there's no other benefict in doing so, since that enemy usually just hangs around, without even attacking you. In fact, the best strategy is eliminating two soldiers, then taking care of the General and finally killing off the last soldier, as that will also add an entry on the General to the in-game "Bestiary". Bear in mind that if you actually managed to lose this battle, I'm not really sure you should be playing this game... 4~. Octomammoth For some reason, when fighting this enemy I recalled a certain monster from Final Fantasy VI, if you know what I am talking about. Anyway, it is easy to figure out the weakness of this monster, and you should take fully advantage of it. Also, I strongly suggest you repose everyone's HP and MP before heading to this battle, since you'll be needing those extra points. When you get to the battle, Tellah should either use his "Recall" command (remember, this uses his MP, but also allows him to cast a random, high level offensive spell) or cast "Thunder". Rydia should be mostly used to heal your characters, and you should be careful with that, since she plays a very important role here. Concerning Cecil, he should activate his dark aura as soon as possible (remember, this depletes your HP with each hit you land, and its effect eventually vanishes), since such an action heavily raises the damage he can cause to this specific boss. Also, be aware that after the in-battle dialogue your enemy will be throwing more powerful attacks, which means that you should heal your party members members more often, but provided Rydia has enough MP to keep all your party members alive and kicking, this won't be an hard battle. It may take you a while to finally get the enemy down, but sooner or later you'll manage to do it. 5~. Antlion As soon as you notice this monster's weak point, he becomes a stable and fable opponent - he tends to counter all your attacks with a strong move, and the only way to avoid that is by casting Rydia's "Chocobo". So, have her constantly cast such a summon spell, while Cecil simply defends every turn. As for Edward, he can't cause much damage and he is mostly useless here, so you should simply use his forth option of the "Sing" menu, which regens the HP of all your members. When he stops singing, just re-choose that command, until he is finally down. Provided you avoid his powerful counterattack, he won't be much of a problem, and you can beat him easily. Strategy by P. Odsey: " You can beat this one just by watching its eyes. Whenever its eyes are red, simply use the "Attack" command with both of the male characters, while using Rydia's "Cure" when necessary. When its eyes are white, use Rydia's "Blizzard", have Cecil ready his Darkness state, and defend while Edward uses his "Life's Anthem" song. The Antlion is weak to ice and dark element attacks, so Rydia's "Blizzard" and Cecil's darkness-enhanced attack should do decent damage, and if those two are used at the right times you'll never have to see the Antlion use its damaging counters. " 6~. Mom Bomb This is probably the toughest battle so far, mostly because it requires a very specific strategy which, if not followed, may lead you to a very simple, and extremely painful, game over sequence. Since you're facing a fire-based creature, your basic strategy is indeed too set, you should simply attack with "Blizzard" (Rydia can cast it) and have everyone else strike with their best physical attacks, while Rosa heals those who need it. So far so good, this wouldn't seem a hard battle at all, but things seem to change once you've caused enough damage to your enemy. It's easy to realise when you've reached such a point, since the monster will morph into a bigger, and a lot more menacing, form. A few seconds later, your enemy will start a small countdown, following which he will blow up. There's no way to avoid this from happening, unless you're using patch codes (and no, I don't know any that you could use), and so you should be specially careful when it comes to this part of the battle. Stop attacking and have EVERYONE on your party defend, which should prevent the opponent from instantly killing all your members with a single explosion. If done correctly, all your friends (or close) will survive, and the monster will split into six smaller bombs, three of each kind. By then, you can easily figure out that they are as weak as the monsters found in random battles nearby. Proceed in accordance, feel free to use Yang's "Kick" (it hits all enemies for high damage) and in a few turns this battle will be over. It isn't hard at all, that's easy to figure out, but the main issue is surviving the boss' explosion, and once you manage to do so the battle is virtually over. 7~. Scarmiglione + 4x Milon Even though this turns out being an easy battle, I strongly suggest you gain a few levels before attempting it, since you'll be needing all the help you can get real soon. Here, you should start by using Palom and Porom's combined move, which can be unleashed by picking the second command with both those characters and wait until their command bars are sincronized. When that happens, they'll either perform a powerful magic spell or simply miss it all - if they actually hit it, which tends to happen often, they'll probably kill all the enemies at once, instantly ending this battle. However, if that doesn't really work, it probably means they made a weak attack OR their levels are just too low. If that's your case, continue follow that pattern with the twins, striking physically with Cecil (be aware not to attack Milon, or he will counter with a "Thunder" spell) and using Tellah's fire magic, either with his normal command or via the "Recall" option. Even though this second option may randomly perform stronger attacks, I advise you against it, since Tellah may just cast an ice spell, healing your main enemy. As you may understand, this battle isn't hard at all, and one (or, at most, two) strikes from Palom and Porom's combined moved is more than enough to vanquish all enemies. Once you defeat them, be sure to head back to the save point on the right before crossing the bridge, since a tough battle is fought just ahead. 8~. Scarmiglione Zombie Fought a bridge away from the previous boss, this enemy is a lot stronger than his former self. Apart from simple (and yet, very strong) physical strikes, he is also able to counter some of your attacks with two stat-inducing moves, which may affect your entire party - the first blinds (not literally...) your characters, making them unable to strike physically, and the second one makes it impossible for them to cast any kind of magic. Since this monster is weak against fire, it could seem like a good idea to cast Palom's "Fire" and Tellah's "Fira", along with physical strikes from Cecil, but any of those options lead to a powerful counter from your enemy. Instead, heal the enemy. No, I'm not kidding, but it is easy to realise that this enemy is a zombie, a creature weak against "Holy" magic, and you should use such a weakness to your advantage. Have Tellah and Porom use their "Cura" spell ON THE ENEMY, which will heavily damage him, and your two other characters should use "Potion", "Hi-Potion" or "Phoenix Down" items at the enemy. Even if this strategy heavily damages the enemy, you can't forget to heal your own characters, since they'll still suffer the powerful physical hits that the enemy throws at you, once in a while. Following this strategy you can avoid all kinds of status effects that the enemy may want to cause (he only uses those as counters for physical attacks and "Fire" magic), which is a good idea and will spare you a lot of trouble, but it sure won't grant you an instant win, and provided you keep on healing your own members you won't have much trouble. 9~. Dark Knight Easiest battle ever - constantly defend, by pressing right and then picking the first option. Keep on doing it and eventually a dialogue will pop up, ending the battle with an unexpected victory from Cecil. 10~. Guard x2 Provided you take these enemies seriously, instead of some sort of random battle, you will have an easy time defeating them. Even thought they generally strike with physical attacks, they can also counter your attacks with a "Mini" spell, which reduces the physical damage caused by your allies to 1. Now, if you realise Cecil is the only physical striker that your party currently has, you could think that you should only get rid of his own status changes (the other members will be striking with magic spells, which aren't affected by the aforementioned status change), but that's not really true - you should also be aware that such status change also increases the physical damage they suffer, which is obviously problematic. Now, as soon asthe battle starts, Porom (or Tellah) should use their "Slow" magic on both enemies, which gives you some more time to strike them. Then, Cecil should strike with physical attacks, Palom and Tellah should use their best special attacks (be sure to aim them at all enemies, which you can do by pressing left when you're selecting targets) and Porom should be used to heal your party, if anyone's health gets below 150HP. If you follow these tips, you'll be just fine! Strategy by T. Jeurissen: " Just have Tellah and Palom use "Break" on the Guards, and they�ll be dead before the end of the first turn. " 11~. Yang Oddly, Yang strikes with his "Kick" all the time, and as you probably know this is a powerful move that damages your entire party. There's no way to prevent it or anything, so you should use one of your characters (probably Porom) to heal your party EVERY round. Once more, as soon as the battle starts you should cast "Slow", with either Palom or Tellah. Next, they should stick to the best fire spells they have available, and Cecil should strike physically, with his normal attack. Very soon, your enemy will be down, and you won't even gain any experience points for this battle. 12~. Baigan If you're not properly equipped, this battle may appear to be a lot harder than it actually is, and I gotta admit that everyone becomes extremely easy when your three magic caster are actually able to perform their roles, i.e. they have full (or just "enough") MP. Cecil's task should be mostly the one of striking physically, but he should also use his healing spells, if required. Yang should stick to "Power" (his second command), which increases the damage of his next physical attack. Your three other characters should stick to healing, and even if you realise that Palom's "Bio" spell causes a lot of damage, you should be careful using it, since this enemy can cast "Reflect" in his main body as soon as the battle begins, and that's also the reason on why you should avoid using multi-hit spells against him. Such information leads to something that you should have in mind: even though this enemy has three points that you can attack (a main body and two arms), he tends to revive his two arms often. Therefore, I suggest you skip attacking those and focus all your attacks in the main body, until it goes down. When that happens, you should try to dispose of the two arms as quickly as possible, since they'll soon explode, causing a fair amount of damage to one of your characters. This explosion isn't as powerful as Mom Bomb's one, but it may actually knock one of your characters out. The enemy attacks, which tend to induce a few status changes, aren't that powerful, and so you should stick to healing and attacking in the most effective way, following the strategy stated above. Strategy by Flame Paladin: " Twincast's "Pyroblast" and "Comet" will not be reflected, so you can nuke Baigan with two "Pyroblast"/"Comets" and he'll die. First shot takes out the arms, he'll waste time regenerating them, second kills him. " 13~. Cagnazzo Set up is an important part of this battle, and I strongly suggest you rest in Cecil's room (placed in the upper level of the upper left tower) before confronting the King, an action which leads here. This enemy isn't very strong, but one of his most powerful attacks, one where a huge tide washes the battlefield, may cause you a lot of trouble, and you may regret ever seeing it. Fortunately, there's a set-up time, and it becomes easy to see when he is about to unleash it, since a small stream of water is seen circling the enemy, and when that happens you should cast an electrical spell (either "Thunder", "Thundara" or even "Thundaga") as soon as possible, which will allow you to stop the enemy from actually lauching his powerful attack. As soon as he battle begins, have someone cast "Slow" on your enemy. Then, if the enemy uses "Slow" on your party, have Tellah cast "Haste" on all your members (you'll have to repose his MP by using an "Ether"), and continue by casing "Thundaga", which should be complemented it with Palom's "Thundara". Both Cecil and Yang (be sure to equip him with claws that have an electrical effect, before the battle takes place) should stick to physical attacks, while Porom should be your party's healer, in every sense of the word, as he should be the one getting rid of all status effects and increasing everyone's HP, when the need to such an action arises. If you follow these actions, and provided your characters are strong enough to cause a lot of damage easily, your enemy will be down in no time, and you'll spare yourself a lot of trouble. 14~. Dark Elf When you first see this boss, he is totally invencible - no, there's absolutely no way you're going to beat him, and you should have everyone simply strike with their physical attacks, until the battle ends. There is no need to use magic or special techniques, since they're virtually useless and you just can't seriously harm your enemy. However, after this first dummy battle you'll get to see a small cutscene, where Edward starts playing his harp, weakening the enemy. Once that cutscene is over, the real battle begins. If you equipped all your characters with their best weapons (unlike before, they can now use metalic ones), you should simply strike physically with them, using Cecil as a healer, when needed. As for Tellah, he should use "Thundaga", which appears to be a rather damaging spell here. Casting "Slow" as soon as the battle begins may also be a good idea, since the enemy may eventually cast "Poison", or some other annoying spells, on your characters. After your party has caused enough damage, this enemy will morph into a more powerful, dragon-like, creature, and this is where things start getting harder. Apart from some less important skills, this monster can use an attack that heavily damages everyone in your party, possibly even killing two or three members on the process, and he uses it more often than you should be expecting. The best way to dodge such a technique is by keeping everyone's health as high as possible, and when you reach this part of the battle you should adopt a slightly different strategy. Start, as usual, by casting "Slow", and then proceed with Yang, striking with his physical attack, along with Cid. As for Cecil, he should assume the role of a healer, instantly healing members whose health drops below 300 HP. If everyone's HP is dangerously low, you should also use Tellah as a healer, but his preferred role should be the one of an offensive magic caster, throwing "Thundaga" at the enemy as many times as possible. You could also try to have him cast "Tornado", which was a 1-hit kill in the past few games, but I'm not sure if it still works by now. If you just can't beat this enemy, feel free to head back to the cave you just came from and get a few more levels on your characters. Eventually, you'll find it easier to beat this battle, and sooner or later you'll manage to do it. Strategy by "Chris1001 the Sequel": " First thing, his weakness is "Fire". Give Yang double "Fire Claw". For the first form, immediately cast "Silence" on him, and then "Slow". During this process he should get off the only damaging attack he'll perform across both forms. Silencing him will take away almost all his attack ability, pretty much all he'll do from that point on is cast "Hex" every so often, turning one character into a pig. Easily manageable. With that done, start buffing everyone. Specifically, make sure Yang and Tellah are under the effect of "Haste". Instead of attacking with them, keep Tellah ready, boost Yang's "Focus" to max (3), and keep ready. Attack the enemy with Cecil and Cid. Use Cid's "Upgrade" ability to give his attacks a fire element, to make things go a little faster. Once the enemy ransforms into the dragon, immediately attack with Yang, and cast "Firaga" with Tellah (which is why keeping them ready, instead of using them for the first form, helps). This will either completely obliterate him (as it did for me), or leave him very close to the edge. " 15~. Sandy + Cindy + Mindy You probably already heard of a little thing called 'teamwork', am I right? Well, that's exactly what the three sisters throw at you in this boss battle, and even if they barely pose you a trouble alone, combined they can perform a powerful attack that can heavily damage all the characters in your party. In general, each of the sisters has a very particular task that, when combined, improves the damage, and that's why you may want to get rid of one of them as soon as possible. Sandy, the leftmost girls, tends to cast "Reflect" on the middle sister. Then, Mindy casts some magical spell on that very same sister, which is reflected onto one of your characters, heavily damaging him. Besides, Cindy, the middle sister, is also capable of striking with a powerful physical attack. Another important thing to have in mind about Cindy, the middle sister, is that she is able to revive her siblings. This looks like a reason for you to kill her as soon as possible, right? Well, WRONG! Instead of following such a strategy, start by taking down Mindy, the smaller sister, and the three siblings will lose their main attacker, an important part of their strategy. Then, you'll see that Sandy (the taller sister) is constantly casting "Reflect", eventually hitting one of your characters with such an effect. When that happens, simply have Tellah cast "Blizzaga" on that character, which will be bounced back to one of the sisters, causing her a lot of damage. When only two sisters are up, you should have Tellah constantly follow that strategy, while your other three members strike the leftmost sister, Sandy, physically. After two or three of Tellah's spells hit Cindy, she will go down. Even though there are tons of different strategies that you can follow when you're fighting this boss battle, there are plenty of reasons on why you should follow mine. First, you could obviously cast "Reflect" on one of your characters by yourself, but doing so would spend Tellah's MP, and you may want to spend those only on stuff that is really worth your time, such as the "Blizzaga" strategy I told you about. Also, even though Cindy looks like the most threatening of the three sisters, trying to strike her physically causes her to counter with a powerful physical attack, one which you should try to avoid at all costs, as it really causes a lot of damage and may even kill your characters with one hit. However, by striking her with magic spells, she won't be able to counter your attacks, which is rather useful. If she later revives her other sisters, you can simply repeat the whole strategy and they will be going down, yet again, without much effort. You're obviously free to use any other order strategy, but personally I find this one to be rather useful, and very easy to follow. Strategy by Flame Paladin: " Since they aren't immune to silence, you can drop Silence on them and blow their teamwork to pieces. There's a problem here, Cindy's "Reflect". That's not a problem: songs are not reflected. We don't have Edward, but he gave us the "Bardsong" Augment, did he not? Just plop it on a character and use "Silencing Song". At least one should be silenced, more likely that both Sandy and Mindy will be. All that's left is to have Tellah use "Dispel" on Cindy and beat them down. The battle's pretty much over once Cindy falls, since only Cindy has a physical attack. " 16~. Barbariccia Kain and Rosa join your party just before this battle, and such a fact becomes a big problem if you realise that they are probably weaker than the rest of your current party. Concerning Rosa, for example, she may be easily knocked out by a single of Barbariccia's attacks, which is an obvious problem, as you may need to revive her quite often. You should also be aware that this boss has two different forms. In the first one, she is easily damaged but tends to counter with a powerful electrical attack, while in the second one she turns into a hurricane-like foe, which can only be stopped by hitting her with Kain's "Jump" move. The best way to defeat her would be by casting magic, which would make it impossible for her to counter your moves, but the problem is that you currently have absolutely no characters that can use offensive magic. As soon as the battle starts, have Rosa cast her "Slow" spell. Now, when she is in her first form, you should have Rosa for your healing tasks (with support from Cecil's healing and revival spells), have Kain always use his "Jump" technique. As for Yang, have him use his "Power" command multiple times, since it doubles the damage caused by your next physical attack, allowing you to cause a lot of damage easily. In fact, it works even better if this character is equipped with his "Hell Claw", which you can gather in this very same dungeon, and which may randomly induce the "Poison" status on the boss, which helps you cause some more damage without much effort. Whatever you do, just DON'T strike the boss physically with the other characters, or else she will counter with her powerful electrical attack, which damages everyone. When she turns to her second form, feel free to heal everyone (by then, she only has a single powerful attack skill, the previously-mentioned eletrical one) and stack more damage using Yang's "Power". Using Rosa's "Pray" is a good idea, since it reposes some HP and also some MP. When you're ready to proceed, simply have Kain use his "Jump" ability, and apart from causing some damage he will also revert the enemy to her normal form, mentioned above. The biggest problem here, as you can probably notice, is the enemy's powerful electrical spells, which heavily damages everyone. If they just can't stand such an attack, feel free to head to the last dungeon and gain a few more level ups in your characters, you'll be needing them in the uture, and they may also end up being useful against this same boss. 17~. 3x Cal + 3x Brina (or Calbrina) This battle starts with six enemies on the screen, three Cal and three Brina. Those are very easy to defeat, but later, depending on your strategy, they may (or not) form Calbrina, a strong enemy that may cause you a few trouble. However, there's something you should realise - unlike what happened in the original version of this game, it appears that it is harder (or less usual) for those six enemies to form Calbrina, a fact that you should use to your advantage. Personally, out of seven battles I've tested, Calbrina was formed only twice, and only if you're caught up unprepared will you lose that battle. One of the best ways to approach this battle is by starting with Yang's "Kick", who will damage all enemies. Then, proceed with everyone else's physical attacks, and if you manage to kill the last Cal alongside with the last Brina, they will never get to form the real boss. Even if you fail to meet such a condition, it is only a matter of luck, and it is actually possible to end this battle without ever seeing the real boss. Now, I know that plenty of players dislike relying on luck, and one may not feel like restarting the battle for several times, in hopes of avoiding the main enemy. If that's your case, you should actually face Calbrina. She tends to strike (and counter your physical attacks) with physical attacks, causing high damage to a single of your characters, but she can also confuse or paralyze your characters, status effects that you should try to get rid of as soon as possible. In terms of an offensive strategy, simply have Rosa heal your characters, probably backed up by Cecil himself, and strike physically with everyone else - healing is a major detail here, since the enemy can harshly hurt your friends with a simple physical attack, and you should also use healing items, if Rosa is in no condition of continue casting spells. From the two strategies stated here, I strongly suggest you skip Calbrina, since you'll be facing a stronger enemy in just a few minutes. However, be aware that defeating the real form of this boss can give you a good amount of experience points, an adition that some may like. This choice is really up to you, since the formation of Calbrina appears to be really random, and one might just want to skip it (or not), but be aware that skipping her won't give you the "Calbrina" entry to the Bestiary. Strategy by grangerbm: " Have Rosa cast "Hold" on Calbrina and there is not much of a problem with counter-attacks. I have used it so many times and it has hit just every time. However, be sure to recast this spell whenever its effect wears off. " 18~. Golbez This may be one of the most difficult battles so far, perhaps because you fought another boss a few seconds ago. Golbez first freezes your characters and quickly gets rid of all of them, with Cecil being the only survivor. You may try to time Kain's "Jump" in order to dodge the freezing attack, but you should be told that it is an hard thing to do. However, I strongly suggest you cast Rosa's "Slow" in her very first turn, which will make you have an easier time later in the battle. After a small cutscene, Rydia will be back, Golbez will cast a magic shield and the real battle begins. One of your biggest problems is the lack of party members - out of five, three of them are probably dead by now, and you may obviously want to revive them as soon as possible. The problem is... how? You only have two characters and Golbez is constantly casting multi-hit spells, which may easily kill any revived characters. Well, I have no magical answer to give you, so you should just rely on luck. Have Cecil and Rydia use a simple combo - Rydia uses a "Phoenix Down" and Cecil quickly heals that same character - and hopefully you'll manage to revive them in a short time. When everyone is finally up, and hopefully with more than 500 HP each, it is time to start attacking. Have Cecil wield a sword that has no elemental effects (you can change his equipment by pressing up while using the "Items" command) and striking physically, apart from healing those who need it, a task that he should share with Rosa, who can also use her "Pray" to help you. Yang and Kain (feel free to use his "Jump") should also strike physically. Rydia should summon her "Pochika", if you've already improved that beast's stats in the mini-games. Stick to physical attacks - those don't cause much damage, but they are better than nothing - and completly ignoring elemental spells and summons, since those appear to heal your enemy. Be aware that he can switch his own elemental weaknesses, but it may take you a while to figure out which one he currently has, and you may want to pass such a problem by simply striking physically or using the "Bio" magic. If you're healing everyone in a proper way, this may turn out into a long battle but Golbez will eventually go down, just don't let ANY of your characters die, or else you may be put in trouble. Strategy by Duminas: " An alternate way to beat Golbeza, that has likely been mentioned at least on the Boards already, is to use any number of characters (though bringing Rosa up makes this a load easier, at the very least). Cecil and Rydia are the key players here, though. Once you've revived other characters (or just Rosa, or no one, depending on how brave you feel), simply have Cecil use "Libra", and then have Rydia sit on "Attack", or "Black Magic". Once "Libra" connects, take an action (i.e. put the "Attack" cursor on Golbeza, or select whatever spell you want and target him) - though don't attack with it. Take a look at his weakness in the Help window at the bottom (the first line of two across from his HP indicator), and use the appropriate summon - Black Magic is something I'd not recommend, since you don't have ~ga-level spells yet. Once he's hit with his weakness, you'll need to "Libra" him again, and have Rydia use the appropriate summon. Two or three of these end it easily; I got him in a "Shiva" and "Ifrit", personally. I'd also personally relegate Cecil to entirely support here, regardless of strategy used; his melee attacks are too weak, when compared to a "Charge" x3 attack from Yang. Have him "Shell" your party, and keep using Curaga to take some of the weight off Rosa's shoulders. And as an aside... using "Hermes Sandals" with Yang can make the pounding go a lot easier, if you're going the direct damage route, and ignoring Golbeza's "Elemental Shift". " 19~. Dr. Lugae + Barnabas (or Barnabas-Z) Unless you're underlevelled, this ends up being an easy battle. You first start with two opponents on the field (Dr. Lugae and his robot, Barnabas), and even if none of them is very strong, the most important thing here is the order in which you defeat them. If you defeat Dr. Lugae first, his robot will later self-destruct, an action which will probably kill one of your characters. However, if you kill Barnabas first, Dr. Lugae will summon his Barnabas-Z, a more powerful unit which he controls himself. Obviously, you should aim at killing them at exactly the same time (or close) to nullify these problems, but that's not as simple as it sounds. In order to attempt such a strategy, your best bet is splitting the attacks of your team, i.e. while some of your characters target Dr. Lugae, others should aim at Barnabas. Follow this strategy with Cecil, Yang and Kain, while Rydia should always cast her "Ramuh" summon. Rosa must, as usual, be the party's healer, not that you'll need one. Also, try to have everyone at full health when this battle ends, for reasons that you'll soon understand. (Be aware that not fighting "Barnabas-Z" won't add such entry to the "Bestiary", or not killing "Barnabas", won't add their entries - in the first playthrough you should face "Barnabas-Z", while you should kill the other two fellows in your second one, just to add all the entries to such an option) 20~. Lugaborg If you don't know what you're doing, this may end up being an extremely difficult battle. As soon as it begins, the Lugaborg uses "Reverse", a spell that changes many battle effects. Striking your enemy, for example, appears to heal him, and using healing magic (or items) actually damage your characters. Your enemy isn't that strong, but since this effect makes it harder to heal your characters (actually, you can heal them by casting black magic spells on your party), you can't really follow the usual strategies. Instead, I advise you to simply disregard the enemy strategies and, as soon as the battle begins, start throwing healing items at the enemy, which will damage him. "Elixir" and "X-Potion" work fine, but so do Rosa's healing spells. Use them all and your enemy will be down in no time at all, but you should also be aware that throwing an "Elixir" at the enemy may instantly kill him. 21~. King Eblan + Queen Eblan This battle is really easy. Your two enemies just strike with weak fire magic, which you can easily withstand. Use Rosa's "Pray" every turn, strike physically with everyone else (this way, you won't be spending any MPs) and, eventually, the battle will end. 22~. Rubicant This boss isn't very strong either, but one of his best features is that he tends to counter every attack you throw at him. If you hit him physically, he will cast a weak fire spell that hits your entire party, but throwing some magic at him will allow him to unleash a more powerful magic attack, which may knock out some of your friends. Even though your most powerful ice magic can actually deal a lot of damage, there are easier ways to beat this battle. Instead of striking physically, constantly use Rydia's "Dragon" summon, which heavily damages your opponent. If he has his cape open, he will counter with "Blizarra" on himself, which is rather amusing. However, if you use it when his cape is covering his body, he will do the very same thing BUT he will cure himself for a very small amount of HP. Just ignore that part, it's not really significant, and keep on using the stated Rydia summon until he goes down. As odd as it may sound, everyone else should stick to healing, don't attack the enemy physically or he will counter your attack with his "Fira" spell, targetted at your entire party. If you can withstand his "Blaze", which causes a lot of damage, you should quickly revive the members he killed, using "Phoenix Down" items (those are faster than using "Rise" or "Arise") and then quickly heal them using Rosa' best healing technique. If nobody survives such an attack, I'd have to suggest that you go back to the previous dungeon and raises a couple more levels in your entire party. Keep on striking with the stated summon spell, healing everyone and in a few turns this enemy will be down. Strategy by Duminas: " This one, instead of being a simple derivative of yours, is moreso an "addon" that people can use if "Blaze" knocks a lot of people down. At any point, casting "Fire" on Rubicante will result in him using "Raise" on your entire party - quite a time-saver, and lets me keep Rosa busy with "Pray" or "Curaga" spam. Beyond that, your Dragon tactic works nice. I'm not sure if "Bomb Fragments" or "Bomb Right Arms" will cause the same effect, as they cast "Fire" and "Fira" respectively, but they might be worth a shot as well. " Strategy by Kaider: " Remove all ice type weapons first of all before the battle. Keep edge on standby, and when your opponent opens his cape to cast inferno, have edge use steal. This, for some reason, makes him close his cape, and you can resume just casting dragon, occasionally attacking when necessary. " 23~. Evil Wall Before heading to this battle, be sure to buy as many "Phoenix Down" items as possible. They play an important role in the next battle, and even though you can attempt this same strategy by using the "Life" spell, following such an approach may things significantely harder (or maybe even impossible) for your party. As soon as the battle begins, have Rosa cast "Slow" on the enemy, and then start casting "Haste" in all your characters. Cecil strike physically and Kain use his very own "Jump". Edge should throw unimportant weapons (or items) at the enemy, while Rydia should summon "Leviathan" or cast her best elemental spells. Finally, Rosa should use her "Aim" command, when she resumes all the tasks I mentioned above. You should follow this strategy until the Evil Wall gets dangerously next to your characters, a time where it will start casting instantl kill spells. When that point is reached, don't bother using spells, since they take a while to be casted, and stick to use "Phoenix Down". Each time someone dies, have one of your characters (I'd suggest Rosa or Rydia, but it's really up to you) use a "Phoenix Down" and strike physically with all other characters. Provided you have enough "Phoenix Down" items to continue this strategy for a while, this boss will sooner or later be defeat. This isn't a hard battle, but if you forgot to get some "Phoenix Down" items before, it may end up being much harder, since spells such as "Life" take a while to be casted. If that's your case, and even if such a request may sound harsh, you'd better head back to the last town (possibly the Dwarven Castle) and buy at least 20 of those items - you'll be needing them, either now or in the future. 24~. Elements (Milon Zombie, Cagnazzo, Barbariccia or Rubicant) Unless you know what you're doing (and if you're following this guide, you'll know it), this battle may turn out being incredibly hard, since you will be facing four tough enemies, one after the other. Even though there are several possible strategies for this one, I strongly suggest you equip everyone with armor that can resist (or absorb) fire-based damage, it will make this confrontation a lot easier. As a general strategy, I suggest that you use the white spell "Slow" as soon as each boss appears in the screen, since doing so will spare you a lot of trouble, and allow you to place some more extra damage before they get to attack you. First, you'll be facing the earth-based enemy. This one isn't that powerful, but he tends to counter most of your attacks with a move that slows all your characters. Wouldn't it be wonderful if you could just avoid such a nasty move? Well, actually you can, you just need to HEAL the enemy, and no, I'm not joking. Instead, you should recall that, as I previously mentioned, this boss was weak against "holy", which means that healing items and spells will damage him. Have Rosa throw him two or three "Curajas" and he will be down in no time, and without even requiring much effort from your own characters. When this enemy goes down, he will be substituted by Cagnazzo. Feel free to use the "Slow" spell, and be sure to cast "Haste" in ALL your characters, which is a big help. Strike physically with Edge and Cecil, while Fusoya and Rydia should cast their best electrical spell - it won't cause any extra damage, unless the enemy has a small wave surrouding him, but it sure causes a lot of pain. If he retreats to the inside of its shell, merely ignore that action and keep on striking with this same strategy - eventually, he will also go down without much trouble. The third enemy, Barbariccia, isn't very strong, either. As usual, cast the "Slow" spell as soon as possible, and then strike normally until she reaches her hurricane-like form. When that happens, she'll start using two powerful spells - one reduces the HP of some of your characters to less than 10HP, while the other is simply an electrical-based spell. If you properly heal everyone (i.e. use Rosa or Fusoya's best healing spell in your entire party), that combo won't kill anyone, and you'll be sparing yourself some trouble. In terms of battle strategy, when she is in her hurricane-like form you should use Cecil as a healer (there's not much he can do, is there?), Fusoya should cast his best electrical spell and Edge should be casting his electrical spell. Also, Rydia should use her "Ramuh" summon for a lot of damage. As for Rosa, well, you should either use her as a backup healer or stick to her "Pray" command, which not only cures a bit of your character's HP but also reposes a bit of their MP. Keep on following this strategy and, eventually, you'll face the last enemy that this battle has to offer. Rubicant, the fire-based element, is the last and most powerful foe that this battle has to offer. Unless you equipped everyone with armor that halves the damage caused by fire-based magic, you'll be in deep trouble, and it may become impossible for you to actually win this battle. Start by casting "Slow" AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. Then, have Rydia use her best water summon (possibly "Dragon" or "Leviathan"), but only when the enemy has its cape open - doing so will not only cause a lot of damage but also make it so that the enemy counters the attack by hitting himself with a powerful "Blizzara". Fusoya should obviously cast his "Blizzaga", but also only when the cape is open. Rosa should be used as a healer and Cecil, alongside with Edge, should be defending every turn - striking with them will make it so that Rubicant counters you with powerful magical spells, probably damaging everyone and maybe even kill all of your characters. Be aware that even though you can use Rosa to heal the weaker fire spells that the enemy throws at you when he counters your attacks, Rubicant will sooner or later use his most powerful spell, "Blaze", which is the biggest problem here. Hopefully, and if you've been following my suggestions, this attack won't kill your entire party, and you should quickly use Rosa (or the other living characters) to quickly restore everyone back to full health. However, if he indeed killed everyone, well, you're in a lot of trouble. Try getting a few more level ups, REALLY equipping armor and items that decrease fire damage and constantly healing your party when you're facing Rubicant, since there's not much else you can do. 25~. Attacker + Cpu + Defender When you know what you're doing, this battle becomes so easy that you shouldn't even consider it to be a boss. As soon as the battle begins, be sure to cast "Slow" in both the Attacker and the Defender, i.e. the smaller orbs on the left and right side of the screen. Next, have everyone strike physically the left orb ("Attacker"), until it goes down. From there on, the enemy has no means of attacking your party, which is rather amusing. So, have Edge use his electrical spell, Rydia constantly cast her best summon (either "Bahamut", "Leviathan" or "Dragon", depending on what spells she has) and everyone strike THE CPU (ignore the Defender!) until that part of the boss is defeated. After that happens, have everyone strike the Defender physically, and that part will also be down in no time at all. If you've done it all correctly, and you followed my strategy, it is even possible to complete this battle without suffering any damage at all. 26~. Zeromus This battle is a lot easier than you could be expecting, mainly if you really know what you're doing. Your enemy has tons of different attacks, but you can cut them down to the most important three. First, he is able to use "Black Hole", which nullifies all the status effects that you (and him) have. BOTH of you suffer the effect of this attack, and that's a keyword here. Second, his "Big Bang" causes enormous amounts of damage to your entire party, and may end up easily killing your members, if you're not fully prepared for it. Besides, those who manage to survive will be affected by "Virus", a status effect that magically drops the HP of your members. Third, and last, he will cast a weak version of "Meteor" when he is running low on HP, and even if such a spell is not really troublesome by itself, it may kill your party if they're already weak by then. By thinking for a bit, you can easily realise that this boss' "Big Bang" is the biggest threat here, and since there is no way to decrease the damage that it causes to your characters (you can steal "Dark Matter", a very important key item, from him, but that no longer decreases his attack power), you'd better avoid its usage at all costs, trying to kill him as quickly as possible. As soon as the battle starts, have Cecil use the "Crystal" item, which turns Zeromus into his real form. By the way, it is impossible to defeat the blue version of Zeromus, and trying to do so is a simple expense of your time. While he is shaking and turning into his real form, quickly switch to Rosa (you can do so by pressing Y until she is selected) and cast her "Slow" spell. From there on, Rosa should be focused on healing your party (always use her best healing spells) and recasting "Slow", every time your enemy uses his "Black Hole". You may also use her to cast "Haste" in all your characters, but that's up to you - I didn't. Cecil should be used as a backup healer, if you need one, but mainly he should stick to striking physically. As for Kain, he should always use his "Jump" command, which not only causes good damage but may also make it harder for him to be hit with the powerful "Big Bang" attack. If, when he is back from his jump, everyone's down, you should also use him to quickly revive Rosa (by means of a "Phoenix Down"), before taking him to the usual strategy. Edge should throw his best items at the enemy, don't be regretful about any of them, it's not like you'll need them in the future. Concerning Rydia, she should switch between casting "Asura" or "Bahamut", depending on your needs, but remember that the results of the "Asura" summon are usually unrealiable. Hopefully this part won't be need, but if you're ever hit by the effects of "Big Bang", simply drop all other strategies and concentrate all your characters in reposing the dead members of your party. When they're all up, use Rosa to cast "Curaja" in your entire party, before resuming the strategy mentioned above. Sooner or later, and provided you manage to avoid (or solve) the problems caused by the powerful "Big Bang" attack, the enemy will be going down sooner than later. When that happens, feel free to enjoy the ending sequences and rest for a while (you deserve it!), since the credits also take a long time. Hope you liked the game, but there is still some fun to take place - save the game at the end of the credits and be sure to enjoy the "New Game +" option. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Below this line are several bosses that you don't have to fight in order to complete the storyline. You can face them whenever you want, provided you have access to the areas they are included in, and even thought I strongly suggest you fight them at the highest possible level, such a choice is really up to you. If you're facing one of these bosses and you just can't seem to win the battle, don't get upset - instead, go get a few more levels and return here later on, I'm sure you'll have an easier time fighting all of them. OP1~. Asura Found in the Land of Summoned Monsters, west of the Dwarven Castle. This enemy isn't very strong, but heading to this battle unprepared may become your demise. Apart from curing itself, this boss is also able to counter your attacks with powerful physical attacks, which may even kill a single of your members in one hit. However, you should bear in mind that this enemy never attacks your party, she just counters whatever attacks you throw at her, apart from healing her, once in a while. Everything becomes extremely easy if you have someone (probably Rosa) cast "Reflect" on the boss as soon as the battle begins, which will make it so that the boss' healing spells are reflected towards your members. Then, instead of striking physically, have Rydia cast her "Dragon" summon, which is probably the best means of attack that she currently has. After doing so, the boss will counter you with a powerful physical attack, which may even knock one of your characters out. If that happens, have someone else (NOT Rydia!) bring that character back to life, using a "Phoenix Down", but don't bother healing them - they're just supposed to be sittings ducks, which Asura will hit when she is countering. Keep on summoning "Dragon" with Rydia, recasting Asura's "Reflect" when its previous effect vanishes and, sooner or later, this enemy will go down. When that happens, Rydia will become able to summon "Asura", a beast whose final effect is slightly random. Strategy by P. Udo: " Simply have rosa cast "Blink" on every character, and then "Reflect" on Asura. As long as Rosa keeps everyone covered with "Blink", you should pretty much have free reign on her, which works great if your characters are at lower levels. " OP2~. Leviathan Also found in the Land of Summoned Monsters, west of the Dwarven Castle, you get to fight him in the very same room where you fought Asura. Oddly, he is even weaker than the previous boss, and provided your party can withstand Leviathan's "Big Wave", you'll have an easy time defeating this monster. Rydia should constantly cast her "Ramuh" summon, while other characters should strike physically. Edge's electrical spell, if you have him while you're facing this boss, also works great, and you should have both those characters constantly casting those attacks. If you follow this strategy, I'm sure that the enemy will be down in less than a couple turns, without causing any trouble, and when that happens Rydia becomes able to summon "Leviathan", the water-based creature that you just defeated. OP3~. Odin After you've defeated both Asura and Leviathan, you can fight this enemy by heading to the basement of the the tower in the right side of Baron Castle. Just like the other monsters, he isn't very strong, but he has a single attack that may quickly decimate your entire party. Obviously, you may want to get rid of him before he even manages to unleash it, making this a battle of speed, not skill or power. As soon as the battle begins, have someone cast "Slow". This will allow you to have some more time to strike him before he unleashes his most powerful attack. Then, have everyone strike physically, while magic casters should use their best electrical spell. If done correctly (i.e. if you're strong enough to kill him quickly), he will be down before being able to use his famous move, which is a good thing. Also, you may want to use Edge to steal the "Darkness" key item from this boss, since it appears there is no other way to get it. When you defeat him, Rydia becomes able to summon "Odin", a summon which instantly kills weaker enemies (i.e. most of the ones found in random battles). OP4~. Bahamut After you've defeated Asura and Leviathan, you can fight this monster. In order to find him, head to the moon and look for a cave in the middle of some circle-shaped mountains. After entering it, you go across a small dungeon until you find this monster in the middle of some complex that looks like a temple. As soon as you enter this battle, you'll see a timer counting down, and when it reaches 0 your enemy will cast his most powerful attack, kinda like a more predictable version of Odin's special attack. Now, as I told you in the previous boss, the best way to prevent your party against such an attack is actually defeating him before he is ever able to use it, something that you should try to do as quickly as possible. Bearing such statement in mind, the battle strategy becomes slightly more predictable, and the final result depends only on the stats of your characters. As soon as the battle begins, have one of your characters cast "Slow" in the boss. This will give you more time to think before he decreases a number in his countdown. Now, strike physically with some of your characters, cast Rydia's best summon (probably "Leviathan") and, if you want to make it even easier, have Rosa cast "Haste" on your other four characters (you don't have to cast it on her, since she won't be playing an important role here). Provided you can cause physical damage quickly, and bearing in mind that Bahamut has no elemental weaknesses, your victory depends on how quickly you can take this beast down. Be aware that in the last few versions of the game you could cast "Reflect" in your party members in order to bounce back this monster's special attack, but now he has a way to avoid it (he simply puts a "Reflect" spell on himself, and later uses it to bounce back the attack at you). Therefore, I strongly suggest you rely on my own technique, since it makes it easier to beat him overall. Sure, you may need to face him when your characters are stronger (I fought him around level 75), but it is one of the easiest ways to beat him, no matter how you see it, and once you kick his ass Rydia becomes finally able to summon "Bahamut", the final summon magic she can acquire in this game. OP5~. White Dragon Found in one of the special weapon stands that you can find in the Lunar Subterrain, this enemy is slightly weaker than its former version. Before, heading to this battle, be sure to cast "Float" (Rosa has that spell) in all your characters, since this monster's most (or "only") powerful spell is "Quake", which gives severe damage to all characters who are standing on the ground. As soon as the battle begins, cast "Slow" on the monster. Then, he will counter your attacks by casting that very same spell on your allies, but you shouldn't take your time to repose their normal status (which can be done by casting "Haste"), since he will just recast that spell. Instead, have everyone strike with their best moves and he will go down fairly quick. Be aware that his physical moves are quite strong, but if you keep on healing everyone who is damaged, probably with Rosa, I doubt you'll be put into any trouble at all. Rydia, if possible, should strike with her "Bahamut" summon, but everyone else should strike the enemy physically, and in a very short period of time this enemy will be down. Once you defeat him, you'll be awarded the "Murasame", a powerful blade that only Edge can equip. OP6~. Dark Bahamut Found in another weapon stand that you find in the Lunar Subterrain, this beast is a lot tougher than you may suppose. He takes a while to powerfully strike your characters, but he is able to counter everything you throw at him, which is an obvious problem - if you use more powerful attacks, he will also answer to your move with a powerful move, which may heavily damage your entire party. As soon as the battle starts, have Rosa cast her "Slow" spell. Then, she should only focus on healing all her partners. Kain should constantly use his "Jump", while Cecil strikes physically and Edge throws some unneeded equipment at the enemy. Rydia should cast her best summon, "Bahamut", but you should be aware that doing so leads to a powerful counterattack from your opponent, after which you may want Rosa to use "Curaja" in your entire party. Keep on healing with this same character, using Cecil as a backup healer and, provided you keep everyone's health high enough, this monster will go down after a while. Once you defeat him, you'll be awarded the "Ragnarok", a very powerful sword that only Cecil can equip. OP7~. Lunasaur Found in one of the caves next to Lunar Subterrain's second save point, he simply pops up when you advance further in a cave that contains two chests. He isn't very strong, unlike some of the other optional bosses, but one of his attacks is extremely annoying. When he uses it, your entire party will suffer tons of different status effects, the only common ones being "Toad" and "Confusion". When that happens, there's not much you can do, apart from standing back and waiting for one of your characters to drop out of his confusion, in one way or another. Fortunately, it appears that he only uses such a move when he is running out of MP, which is the opportunity that you should take to beat him. Bearing in mind that such a monster is weak against fire and holy magic, you should start the battle by casting "Slow" on your opponent. By itself, this action won't magically save you, but you can use its effect to allow you to land a few more hits. Then, Edge should strike with his fire magic, Rosa should use either "Holy" or "Curaja" in the opponent, Cecil should strike physically (be sure to equip him with her "Crystal Sword" or "Excalibur", since those cause holy damage). Kain should constantly use his "Jump" ability (which may also prevent the previously-mentioned move from hitting him) and Ridya should cast either "Firaga" or summon "Ifrit". Later in this battle, when the monster start using his horrible attack (and be aware that it doesn't cause any damage at all!), the best thing you can do is throw healing items at him. NOT MAGIC, since that takes some time to be casted, nor physically hit (they often miss), but pure healing items, such as "X-Potion" or, if you want to beat him quickly, "Elixir", since all of those appear to harm him. By the way, in case you were considering to use a "Phoenix Down", those will only damage him for less than 1000 HP, they don't instantly kill him, unlike what happens in other games. This monster isn't very strong, as you can easily realise, but his special attack may put you across a lot of trouble. I found myself laughing at how many times my party was turned from frogs to humans and the opposite, in something that looked like an endless cycle. When he starts using those ugly moves, simply follow the strategy above (i.e. throw healing items at him) and he will be down fairly quickly, just don't get caught in the middle of the endless cycle, where poison will do more damage than the enemy himself. You've been warned! Once you've defeated him, be sure to grab the two chests in the back, since they both contain "Ribbon", one of the best pieces of equipment that your party can acquire. OP8~. Plague This is yet another of those monsters found in the Lunar Subterrain, which you get to fight when you touch the weapon stand containing a lance. He is a lot weaker than the other monsters, the only problem is that as soon as the battle starts he will cast "Doom" in your characters, an effect that kills them once 10 seconds have passed. Ugly, hum? You can obviously dodge that effect by killing off one of your members and later revive them (the enemy will probably recast "Doom", but the counter will be back to 10), which is a good idea, but the overall strategy is a lot more straight than that. As soon as the battle begins, have Rosa cast "Slow". In the next few rounds, she should cast "Haste" in all your other characters, starting with herself and advancing to Cecil, Kain, Edge (in that very same order), all of which should strike physically. As for Rydia, you should have her either strike physically or cast some basic spells, since the most powerful ones (or even summon) may take too long to cast. Hopefully, this will enable you to kill the enemy before your characters run out of time, but it is also a matter of luck. If you want another strategy, you can use Rydia and Rosa as supporters, which should kill each other off and later use a "Phoenix Down" on each other, apart from bringing all the other characters back to life. That should be their ONLY task, while the other three members of the party simply strike the enemy physically. If the enemy is under the effect of the "Slow" spell, he may take a while to recast "Doom", and you can use those small limits of time to increase the damage you're causing him, just don't let both Rydia and Rosa die at the same time, or you may get into trouble. The basic idea is having Rydia kill Rosa when her counter is lower than three, and then using a "Phoenix Down" to bring her back to life, following which you should use her to kill Rydia when she reaches the same condition, before also using one of the famous items on her fallen comrade. During those tasks, they should also use those items to bring the other characters back to life. Easier than it sounds, hum? There's a rule you should keep in mind - unless everyone is down, you won't lose this battle - and provided you avoid that condition from ever being met, you'll be just fine. Once you've defeated him, you'll acquire the Spear of Longinus, coff coff, I mean, the "Holy Lance". OP9~. Ogopogo The last of the monsters found in the Lunar Subterrain, you fight him after touching the weapon stand containing a blade. Not only he looks like a palette swap of Leviathan but he also behaves like such a beast, and that makes it easier for you to defeat him. Just like the famous summon beast, this monster has a few weaker attacks and one that may heavily damage your party, where some huge waves pass across the battlefield. If your stats and armor is good enough, the damage caused by such an attack will be just fair, and you should instantly use Rosa to heal all your characters, using her best healing skill in your entire party. As soon as the battle starts, have Rosa use her "Slow" magic, as usual. Then, Rydia should use her "Bahamut" or "Ramuh" summons, Edge should cast his electrical spell, and Kain should strike physically, along with Cecil. Rosa should always be healing your party, either with her best healing spell (whenever this boss uses his most powerful attack) or simply with "Pray", which has the interesting effect of also regenerating everyone's MP. Once you've defeated him, you'll acquire the "Masamune", another blade that only Edge can equip. OP10~. Thumbingway Even though this is an optional boss, he is an extremely fable foe. You can easily beat him in less than a turn, but your problem is actually finding him. For those of you who played the original game and some of its remakes, you probably remember Namingway - he is back in this game, and he brings with him an entirely new quest. Follow the the next few steps in order to fight him: Enter the west (as in, left one) tower seen on Baron's castle, and talk to Namingway. Next, when you enter the Mist Cave (i.e. the first cave that you face in this game), this character will show up and change his name. When you reach the town of Kaipo (i.e. the one where Rosa is sleeping), be sure to visit her house. You'll find this character there, and be sure to talk to him in order to continue the quest. Later, when you reach Fabul, talk to him in the inn. In order to continue, simply visit any chocobo forest, talk to this character and give him all your "Tent" items for a small reward. After accomplishing such a requirement, head back to the city of Baron, open the weapon shop (Yang had its key, and you can now open it) and talk to this character. In order to continue, look around the city of Troia and, eventually, you'll see this character. Talk to him, then head to the (unmarked) pub available in that town and talk to the bartender. Proceed to the city of Agarth and you'll see this character blocking the entrance to one of the houses. He'll ask you for a "Rainbow Pudding", which is a super rare item that flan-like enemies drop. As you may imagine, this is the most difficult point of the entire quest, since you will probably go across a lot of trouble in order to find one of those rare items. I strongly suggest you gather the "Treasure Hunt" Decant Ability (acquired by getting 100% in EVERY map of this game), give it to one of your characters and head to the Antlion Cave. In the room placed just before the place where you fought Antlion, you can fight turtles and yellow flans - those may drop the "Rainbow Pudding", and even if you can try to get one without using the previously mentioned Decant Ability, be aware that it is EXTREMELY hard to get them. Personally, it took me around two days in order to get one. Now, when you finally manage to get such an item, give it to the character (he will still be in Agarth) and you will be able to continue your quest. Finally, in order to fight him, head to the Dwarf Castle (it is placed underground, as you may know) and look for the area with the Weapon and Armor shops. In the middle of those two, there's a door - enter it and you'll be taken to the bar. Look around and you'll easily see this character, you just have to talk to him twice and you'll fight him. Now, be aware that this quest doesn't end here. There is still a lot more to do if you want to complete everything that pertains to this character, but the rest of the quest is out of the scope of this guide. Really, I can't even help you with it. Concerning a boss strategy, well... just have your strongest character give him a physical blow and he will go down. It's not hard at all, I doubt he'll put you in any trouble, but once you defeat him you'll receive the "Thumbing" Decant Ability, which makes all enemies that you are facing in a battle instantly suffer from the "blind" status effect. OP11~. Geryon After you fought the four "Elements", you can check the central area of the place where you fought them (it's a darker tile, which you're not allowed to step into) and you'll be prompted for a selection. Picking "yes" allows you to fight this boss, composed by small parts of each of the bosses you just fought, and which can also use all their attacks and techniques. If you've already passed across that part of the game, be aware that you can head back to Mount Ordeals (east of Mysidia), to the exact place where Cecil turned from Dark Knight to Paladin, and interacting with the tombstone will allow you to make the same selection I stated above, which makes it possible for you to fight this same boss, after exiting the Babil Giant. Also, be aware that you can only find this boss if you're playing across the storyline after completing the game once, or else he won't be there, but provided that condition is met you can fight him as many times as you want, each giving some experience and a lot of money. Not that you'll need those, as I strongly suggest that you face this battle only when all your party members are at level 99. It is usually hard to defeat him, and you may want to do the best you can to stop the enemy from causing so much damage to all characters. I suggest you equip all your party members with a "Cursed Ring" (which is dropped by spirit-like creatures or the "Saurus Zombie" enemies from the final dungeon), since it drops the damage caused by elemental attacks. Also, you MUST equip both Kain and Cecil with an "Onion Sword" and an "Onion Shield". Having everyone wear "Adamant Armor" is probably a good idea, but it may take you a quite while to get five of those, and they're really useful here, as they also prevent several status effects, including "Slow" and "Silence". When you complete all these preparations (and yes, I'm aware that getting those items may take you quite a while, but it is worth it), head to the top of Mount Ordeals, save your game in the point to the right, and be sure to fully heal your characters (you will need them with full HP and MP) before heading to the stated battle point. As soon as the battle begins, have Rosa use "Slow" in the boss, which is a very important action, since it will make him attack less often. From there, have Cecil, Kain and Edge strike physically every turn, while Rydia should always cast her "Bahamut" summon. Rosa should only work as a healer, casting "Curaja" on your entire party every time they get damaged by one of the enemy's poweful attacks, or casting "Life 2" when someone goes down. Unless you have all the gear stated above, you'll soon see that the enemy counters most of your attacks with a spell which makes your party members slower. Don't worry about it, simply keep on striking as stated above, and be very careful with the enemy's powerful physical attacks, since those may easily knock out one of your party members with a single hit. Provided you keep on healing all your members each time they are hit by one of the enemy's spells, this battle won't be that hard, and you will manage to complete it without much effort. Strategy by Eyedunno1: " Equip as many characters as possible with armor that resists elemental attacks, and also "Cursed Rings". At the VERY least, Cecil and Rosa should be thus protected. "Blink" everybody with Rosa. Throw your most powerful non-elemental attacks at him, keep "Blink" up, and he'll go down. " Strategy by captainj_: " Teach 2 people "Phoenix". I chose Cecil and Rydia (see below for reasons). Teach Edge "Psychic Wave" and "Hide". At the start of battle, Edge uses "Psychic Wave" and then "Hide" quickly. As long as Edge is alive, "Psychic Wave" still has effect. When all other people die, it will trigger one of the "Phoenix", e.g. Cecil dies and all others revive. If they all die again, it will trigger another "Phoenix", Rydia dies and others revive. Then Cecil's MP will be recovered by "Psychic Wave". Repeat. Cecils' and Rydia's MP will be recovered right after they revived so the team is unbeatable. Just use this unbeatable strategy and keep attacking. It is easy. Anyone can do it. " OP12~. Proto Babil If you thought that the previous optional boss wasn't strong enough, this one is here to give you a run for your money. You can only face him after finishing the game once, and you'll need the "Dark Matter" key item, which can only be stolen from Zeromus, the final boss. When you're feel like you are ready to fight this enemy, head to the moon and look for a face in the moon, found in the upper section of the map. Land the Lunar Whale nearby, SAVE YOUR GAME, head to that face-like mountain and interact with it. You will be prompted to select an item, pick the "Dark Matter" and you'll get to fight this enemy. I strongly suggest you try to face him only when all your characters are at level 99, and with the best stats you can get. Also, you will need to equip all your characters with "Adamant" and "Onion" equipment, or you won't even stand much of a chance against this enemy. There aren't any real options here, you WILL have to get that equipment, and if you are having trouble finding those any of those items, you should give a look to the "Frequently Asked Questions" section of this very same guide. When it comes to the strategy, it is hard to devise one. As soon as the battle begins, have Rosa use "Slow" in the enemy, which is an extremely important action. Then, it is up to you, since this battle heavily depends on your play style. Personally, I gave both "Phoenix" and the "Break Damage Limit" Decant Abilities to Kain, and had him constantly use his "Jump" ability, which not only causes a lot of damage but also prevents the enemy from damaging him, while he is in the air. By giving him the "Phoenix" ability, you'll decrease the number number of times he revives the other characters, while causing even more damage to the enemy. While you are doing that, Cecil should strike physically, Edge should throw all he can at the enemy and Rydia should be constantly summoning her "Bahamut" spell, while Rosa should focus on using her "Pray" ability or reviving those characters who manage to get killed. When all your characters are killed, and the "Phoenix" ability is used, your strategy should change for a short bit of time - instead of attacking, try to revive Kain (or whoever you gave "Phoenix" to) as quickly as possible, and use any kind of MP healing item on him. You don't have to fully repose his MP, just give him some MP (more than 1 MP is enough for this strategy) before continuing to follow the offensive strategy stated above. It is very important to revive that character (in my particular case, he was Kain) as quickly as possible, but don't forget to repose his MP, or else this strategy just won't work. Eventually, you'll reach a point where the enemy starts to repose his very own HP, around 22000HP at each time - when that happens, simply disregard his action and continue following the strategy stated above. If you, like myself, gave "Break Damage Limit" to Kain, he will be able to cause that very same amount of damage in two turns, and causing some damage with your other characters will make it even easier to retake his HP. Following this strategy, you'll eventually manage to kill this powerful enemy, provided you can keep up with his attacks. Just don't forget to equip ALL your characters with "Adamant" and "Onion" gear, since those pieces of equipment may not save your team from all of the opponent's attacks, but they really help when it comes to halve some of the damage caused by particular attacks (more information on that kind of gear is mentioned in the next section of this guide). This enemy is the strongest boss that this game has to offer, and this ends up being the ultimate challenge this game offers. Bearing that in mind, don't get frustrated if you just can't seem to defeat him. Instead, try facing him later on, when you achieve all the requisites stated in the first two paragraphs of this section. If you do that, you'll have the easiest possible time when it comes to facing this extremely strong foe. Strategy by Eyedunno1: " This boss probably can't be beaten without decants. Also, the higher the level, the better. Equip Cecil with either "Adamant Armor" or the "Aegis Shield", and also the "Attract" Decant. Equip Rydia with the "Hide" Decant. Equip Kain with "Darkness", "Reverse", and "Break Damage Limit" Decants, the best weapon you've got, and kill him off, then revive him with "Life" or a "Phoenix Down", as you want his HP numbers to be yellow in this fight. An "Onion Sword" will also help. Equip Rosa with "White Magic" and the "Doublecast" Decant. Equip Edge with the "Phoenix" Decant. Come into this battle with some "Spiderwebs", plus a BUNCH of "Ethers" (REGULAR "Ethers" are better than dry ones or "Elixirs"!), "Phoenix Downs", and "Hi-Potions". 1. Use "Darkness" with Kain, "Spiderweb" on Proto Babil with Edge or Rydia, "Phoenix Down" on Cecil (who's probably dead) with Edge or Rydia (whoever didn't use the "Spiderweb"), and Doublecast "Haste" and "Berserk" on Kain (but only AFTER he has Darkness up; if Rosa comes first, use her for an item). 2. Hide Rydia some of the time (though this is the least vital part of this strategy). 3. If Cecil goes down, use a "Phoenix Down" as soon as possible. 4. After Kain attacks, use a "Hi-potion" as soon as possible (though Cecil is your defense against single-character strikes, so reviving him still takes priority). 5. If Proto Babil wipes out your whole party (which might just happen a LOT), Edge should use "Phoenix" automatically. Revive Edge as soon as possible with a "Phoenix Down", then use ONE "Ether" (low MP is GOOD, as long as it's non-zero) on him with someone else. After that, go back to keeping Cecil alive and getting "Darkness", "Haste" and "Berserk" on Kain. Keep repeating these strategies, and the enemy should go down fairly quickly. Remember that only Kain is attacking (hopefully for BIG damage if you've done everything right), and everybody else is serving different support roles to keep Kain chugging away. " Strategy by captainj_: " Kain: "Charge", "Reversal", "Darkness", "Break Damage Limit", Jump (auto command). Cecil: "Attack", "Cry", "Attract", "Phoenix". Edge: "Psychic Wave", "Throw", "Hide", "Break Damage Limit". Rosa: "Aim" (equip a bow), "Upgrade", "Hide", "Reversal", "Slow (auto command) Rydia: "Doublecast", "Twister", "Phoenix", "Item Knowledge" (use Stardust Rod). Teach 2 people "Phoenix". I chose Cecil and Rydia (see below for reasons). At the start of battle, Edge uses "Psychic Wave" and then "Hide" quickly. As long as Edge is alive, "Psychic Wave" still has effect. When all other people die, it will trigger one of the "Phoenix", e.g. Cecil dies and all others revive. If they all die again, it will trigger another "Phoenix", Rydia dies and others revive. Then Cecil's MP will be recovered by "Psychic Wave". Repeat. Cecils' and Rydia's MP will be recovered right after they revived so the team is unbeatable. Before attacking, use "Slow" and "Cry" to lower its defense first and use "Twister" to make it weak to fire. Rosa uses "Upgrade" (add fire element). The effect lasts for the entire battle. When Rosa's HP is yellow (e.g. attack the boss to make it counter and kill all people and revive), uses "Hide". When hiding, you can attack using "Aim" or "Throw" command. Proto Babil has 400,000 HP. When you did ~280,000 damage, its attack pattern will change: "Restore" (+28571 HP), multi-Holy Judgement., etc. At this point, it is impossible to beat it because you keep dying/revived and cannot attack. If it uses "Restore" (become less than 280,000 damage), its attack pattern will resume normal. Your aim is to do 280,000- damage right before it uses "Restore"/"Holy Judgement". Then quickly do another 120,000+ damage at a time. Now when you did 280,000- damage, Kain uses "Charge" x3, "Darkness" and at low HP (trigger "Reversal"). Keep using "Phoenix Down" on Cecil if he dies. Then Kain uses "Jump". If successful, he should deal 90000 damage. Proto Babil will start using "Holy Judgement" for a while. At this time, Edge and Rosa should attack quickly. Edge throws "Knife" (20000-40000 damage) and "Fuma Shuriken". Rosa uses "Aim" (6000 damage) 1 or 2 times. Proto Babil will die soon. " Strategy by Smith J.: " Here's the basics: Break Damage Limit and Twin on Cecil and Rosa (or maybe just one; I'm not sure). Hide on someone other than Cecil or Rosa (Edge in this case). Attract on someone else other than Cecil or Rosa (Rydia in this case). Doublecast and White Magic on someone (Fusuya in this case). Cry on someone. Use "Cry". Slow Proto Babil (and maybe Haste your guys as well). Use "Twin" twice, with Cecil and Rosa. Doublecast "Curaja" ON PROTO BABIL. "Twin" once more, with Cecil and Rosa. At this point, the damage done should be below the critical 280,000. Now, hide whoever's assigned to that task, and use Twin again with Cecil and Rosa. Before this, you might want to spend some time trying to steal a Megalixir though, since once Proto's below 120,000, he starts to hit hard. Restore your guys (especially Cecil and Rosa) if it's necessary. Get "Twin" off again, and he should go down. I forgot to mention it when I told you my strategy, but "Cry" should be used no matter what with this guy. It increases the damage you do, and that's always a good thing. " FAQ. Frequently Asked Questions Some of the questions you, readers, may have... in case you mail me an interesting question and I think that other readers should also hear the answer, your question will be added here and your name will be credited. Q: [Insert something here], where should I go next? A: Did you noticed that this was a Boss FAQ, not a FAQ/Walkthrough? Be sure to read one of those instead, since I have no idea on what to tell you about that kind of question. Q: Hey, my strategy is better than yours! What should I do? A: First of all, if your strategy is indeed better than mine, just use yours instead of mine. Also, you can mail me that strategy and in case I find it interesting, I will also add it to this guide and credit you. Q: I'm in the first battle against the Dark Elf, and whenever he defeats all my characters, I see the usual "Game Over" screen, instead of the storyline sequence I was supposed to. What am I doing wrong? A: Possibly, you didn't talked to Edward, back at the castle. Go back to the last castle you've seen, locate him and you'll be given an important Key Item, which allows you to proceed as you're supposed to. Q: How do I customize the stats of my characters? A: When someone reaches level 70, you'll be able to do. From there on, your characters gain stats bonus depending on the skills that they have equipped, and that's the way to do it. What bonus each skill gives is beyond the scope of this guide, but I can tell you that the more unique a skill is, the more points it will give to your characters. Q: How do I steal items from a particular monster? A: First, you should be aware that Edge is the only character that can steal items. Next, when you're in the middle of a battle, simply use his "Steal" command. If successful, and provided that monster has some sort of item, the product of such move will be added to your inventory. Q: Where do I get a "Cursed Ring"? A: There are plenty of enemies who drop those, but the "Soul" enemies found in the lower section of Mt. Ordeals seem to drop them more often than the other enemies. Q: Where do I get an "Onion Sword"? A: First, head to the moon and buy some "Alert" items, in the secret cave filled with Moggles. Then, head to the Lunar Subterrane B8, use those items and you'll fight a "Red Dragon", which may eventually drop a "Red Tail". Take that item to the secret cave east of "Mithril Town", and you'll be able to trade it for an "Onion Sword". However, be aware that the stated drop is REALLY rare, and it may take you quite a while until your enemy drops it, but it is slightly easier to do if you equip one of your characters with the "Treasure Hunt" Decant Ability. Q: Where do I get an "Onion Armor"? A: First, head to the moon and buy some "Alert" items, in the secret cave filled with Moggles. Then, head to Bahamut's Cave B2, use those items and you'll fight a "Evil Warrior", which may eventually drop a "Black Tail". Take that item to the secret cave east of "Mithril Town", and you'll be able to trade it for an "Onion Armor". However, be aware that the stated drop is REALLY rare, and it may take you quite a while until your enemy drops it, but it is slightly easier to do if you equip one of your characters with the "Treasure Hunt" Decant Ability. Q: Where do I get an "Onion Shield"? A: First, head to the moon and buy some "Alert" items, in the secret cave filled with Moggles. Then, head to the Cave of Summons B2, use those items and you'll fight a "Rairyuu", which may eventually drop a "Blue Tail". Take that item to the secret cave east of "Mithril Town", and you'll be able to trade it for an "Onion Shield". However, be aware that the stated drop is REALLY rare, and it may take you quite a while until your enemy drops it, but it is slightly easier to do if you equip one of your characters with the "Treasure Hunt" Decant Ability. Q: Where do I get an "Onion Helm"? A: First, head to the moon and buy some "Alert" items, in the secret cave filled with Moggles. Then, head to the area outside the Sealed Cave, use those items and you'll fight a "Green Dragon", which may eventually drop a "Green Tail". Take that item to the secret cave east of "Mithril Town", and you'll be able to trade it for an "Onion Helm". However, be aware that the stated drop is REALLY rare, and it may take you quite a while until your enemy drops it, but it is slightly easier to do if you equip one of your characters with the "Treasure Hunt" Decant Ability. Q: Where do I get an "Onionlet"? A: First, head to the moon and buy some "Alert" items, in the secret cave filled with Moggles. Then, head to area outside of the Cave of Summons, use those items and you'll fight a "Yellow Dragon", which may eventually drop a "Yellow Tail". Take that item to the secret cave east of "Mithril Town", and you'll be able to trade it for an "Onionlet". However, be aware that the stated drop is REALLY rare, and it may take you quite a while until your enemy drops it, but it is slightly easier to do if you equip one of your characters with the "Treasure Hunt" Decant Ability. Q: Where do I get the "Adamant Armor"? A: First, head to the moon and buy some "Alert" items, in the secret cave filled with Moggles. Then, head to Lunar Subterrane B5, to a cave in the lower right corner, where you first got a "Red Fang" from a chest, use those items and you'll fight a "Pudding Princess", which may eventually drop a "Pink Tail". Take that item to the secret cave east of "Mithril Town", and you'll be able to trade it for an "Adamant Armor". However, be aware that the stated drop is REALLY rare, and it may take you quite a while until your enemy drops it, but it is slightly easier to do if you equip one of your characters with the "Treasure Hunt" Decant Ability. Q: Where do I get the "Phoenix", "Break Damage Limit" and "Treasure Hunt" Decant Abilities? A: To get the "Phoenix" one, give two Decant Abilities (doesn't matter which ones) to Fusoya. After he leaves your party, head to the place where you first see him and you'll see three sparkling areas - one of them has the stated item. "Break Damage Limit" can be acquired by completing the game once, and saving after the credits. As for the important "Treasure Hunt" one, you automatically receive it by exploring 100% of all the dungeons available in the game. Q: What's the english name for the Japanese "Decant Abilities"? A: According to some readers, the correct name is "Augments". Q: Are there any other bosses, ones not mentioned in this guide? A: No. Q: Why do you display the bosses in that order? I fought them in a different one! A: The order given here is exactly the one I've faced in my game, yours may be slightly different, specially for the optional bosses. That's all... B_END. Special Thanks I want to thank the following people: - Everyone who made this game; - Christopher A., for an improved Milon Zombie strategy; - RevenantThings, for some help with the Lugaborg strategy; - roido_medasu, for some important help with the Elements strategy; - A. Couvert, for an important correction on a boss' name; - Lots of readers, but specially Eyedunno1, for tips on my previous strategies and information on where to get all the "Onion" equipment; - Flame Paladin, for information on several problems; - Everyone who contributed strategies for this guide (they were credited along with their very own strategies and tips); - Everyone who likes my works, it's for those people that I like to work in this type of project. End. Contacts If you want, you may see my web page, just check it at the HTML address www.geocities.com/Mykas0/ . My e-mail is Mykas0 [at] gmail.com , you can send me some questions you may have or contributions to this guide, but please try not to ask any questions that aren't about this guide or Boss battles, as I am not the best person to reply to those. Also, se the following subject or I will NEVER reply. Subject: "FF4 BOSS FAQ" for posing questions or giving contributions Thanks and until the next version!!!!!!