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SCNIIENANE Challenge FAQ

by Xenomic

SCNIIENANE Challenge FAQ



                                 .-----------------------------.
                                 | Copyright 2006 Steven Marr  |
                                 | By Steven Marr (aka Xenomic)|
                                 | [email protected]       |
                                 | [email protected]       |
                                 | [email protected] |
                                 | AIM: Xenomic, AnkokuRyu    |
                                 |                             |
                                 '-----------------------------'



---------------------------------------------------------
                            Legal Script
---------------------------------------------------------

Final Fantasy 7 Copyright 1997, 1998 Square Co., Ltd. Final Fantasy and
Squaresoft are registered trademarks of Square Co., Ltd. All copyrights and
trademarks are acknowledged where are not specifically mentioned. If you wish
to reproduce this document AS IS, you may do so after asking my permission, and
not for profit. If I see fit, I, however, will revoke permission and ask for it
to be taken down if necessary.

                  --------------------------------------------------
                                    Table of Contents
                  --------------------------------------------------
To navigate to a separte section, use Cntrl + F and type in the bracket and the
corresponding letter at the end of each section.




1. Welcome!                                                            [001]
2. The Basis of this Guide                                     [002]
3. The Rules                                                            [003]
4. Tips & Tricks                                                      [004]
5. The Guide                                                            [005]
  -Disc 1-                                                         
A. Midgar                                                                [006]
B. On the Way to Kalm                                         [007]
C. On the Way to Junon                                       [008]
D. Junon to North Corel                                       [009]
E. Corel Prison                                                        [010]
F. The Buggy                                                         [011]
G. On the Way to Nibeheim                                 [012]
H. On the Way to Rocket Town                          [013]
I. On the Way to the Temple of Ancients          [014]
J. The City of the Ancients                                   [015]

  -Disc 2-

A. On the Way To Icicle Inn                                [016]
B. On the Way to the Gaia's Cliff                         [017]
C. Whirlwind Maze                                                [018]
D. In Search of Cloud                                            [019]
E. Huge Materia Quest                                         [020]
F. Underwater Reactor                                          [021]
G. Diamond Weapon's Attack                             [022]
H. Raid On Midgar                                                [023]

  -Disc 3-

A. Northern Crater                                                [024]
B. The Final Battles                                              [025]

6. FAQs (Frequently Asked Questons)            [026]
7. Credits                                                                [027]







                  ------------------------------------------------------
                                        1. Welcome!   [001]
                  ------------------------------------------------------


Hello to all of you, and welcome to my second challenge faq! If
you're reading this, then I'm assumming that you're looking for
a tough challenge. Well, you've come to the right place for it! This
challenge is by far one of the most difficult challenges you can do
for Final Fantasy VII, and there are still yet those that are downright
impossible to beat. However, I myself can guarantee that this challenge
is in fact possible to do. So, without any further adieu, let us begin this
challenge!






                  ------------------------------------------------------
                              2. The Basis of this Guide   [002]
                  ------------------------------------------------------


This faq is specifically dedicated to those who want a challenge that
is extremely tough to beat, but not downright impossible. It is also
dedicated to helping those who are doing this challenge to avoid
problem areas and to overcome the various obstacles that they will
face along the way to Sephiroth.



I'm also assuming that you've played this game at least 4 times and
have familiarized yourself with the game and what to do. If not, then
I would suggest you do so. This is not a challenge that you want to
start out with.


                  ------------------------------------------------------
                                       3. The Rules   [003]
                  ------------------------------------------------------

This challenge is composed of many, smaller challenges to make this
whopping behemoth. Each part of the SCNIIENANE name is divided
into 5 parts. Here are the different parts and the rules of each part:


-Solo Character (SC)-


You may only use one character throughout the entire challenge. You must
kill off any other party member, and leave them dead. You are prohibited from
using PHS. You can only use the following characters at the designated part
of the game:


Barret: Duel vs. Dyne, Duel vs. Hundred/Heli Gunner
Yuffie: Wutai Pagoda sidequest
Tifa: Search for Cloud
Cid: Huge Materia sidequest





-No Items (NI)-


By far the hardest part of this challenge lies in this rule. You may never use
an Item. Ever. The only exceptions are the Batteries that you get from Wall
Market and the Save Crystal at the Northern Crater. 



-Initial Equipment (IE)-


You can never equip anything other than what the character comes equipped
with. For example, Cloud can only use the Buster Sword and Bronze Bangle
throughout the challenge.




-No Accessories (NA)-


You can never equip any accessories. Ever. This part also makes the challenge
tough.




-No Escape (NE)-


You cannot escape any battles. All random encounters must be fought and won.
Extremely tough early on in the game.



Here are the Materia that are banned in this challenge:


Throw
Steal
Morph
W-Item
HP Absorb*
MP Absorb*
MP Turbo*



*The last three are banned just to spice things up a bit. If you don't want to 
ban them, then don't.




                  ------------------------------------------------------
                                  4. Tips & Tricks    [004]
                  ------------------------------------------------------


1) In the beginning,  make sure to get the first All materia and pair it with 
Lightning. This will help save MP and kill enemies pretty quickly throughout 
Midgar.


2) Try and get Meteorain in the Sector 7 Train Graveyard BEFORE going to fight
Air Buster. This will help you later on in the challenge.


3) Use Inns wisely here. You don't want to walk a long ways and run out of MP to
heal with. If you have to, level up a little before moving on to the next part 
of the game.


4) Sell everything that you get, even if it sells for 1 Gil. This will help with
your funding for Materia (if you need them) and for Inns.


5) Make sure to get as many Enemy Skills as you can early on! These will help
you tremendously throughout this challenge! You will definently want to get
the following Enemy Skills:


Matra Magic
L4 Suicide
Magic Hammer
????
Big Guard
White Wind
Angel Whisper
Death Force



6) Patience is a virtue, especially against the most problematic bosses in this 
challenge. Also, it will take a while to level up a certain materia (around 
5-7 hours max), so stay calm....


7) It helps to know where everything is and what enemies you will be facing 
against. If you don't, then familiarize yourself with your opponents before 
venturing too far into the area.


                  ------------------------------------------------------
                                       5. The Guide    [005]
                  ------------------------------------------------------

And now, we come to the biggest part of this faq: The actual walkthrough! 
If you are trying this challenge and want to do it on your own, then use this 
faq as more of a guide that you can look at for certain sections, rather than 
reading through it the whole way.





-Disc 1-



A. Midgar   [006]



As soon as the game begins, set your ATB to Active (you can set it to Wait, 
but it makes the game a lot longer) and the Game Speed to Max. Now, pick up 
the 2 Potions from the guard and head on to fight the first enemies of the game.
Now note for this part, the game is currently a SCIENE challenge-type, so keep 
that in mind. Defeat the MPs, then move on to the Reactor. For all random 
encounters, just stick to attack. Only use Bolt when you fight the Sweeper 
enemy. This will kill it in one hit, and save you valuable HP that you'll need 
when fighting the boss. Don't worry about the items here, as you won't need 
them. Instead, head straight to the first save point of the game and
save. Continue onwards and go fight the first boss.



Boss Battle: Guard Scorpion
Lv: 12
HP: 800
MP: 0
Items (Win): Assault Gun
Weakness: Lightning



This fight can get rough if you were hurt too much in the previous 
battles before this fight. However, as long as you don't attack while its tail 
is up, and as long as you have Cloud use Bolt and Barret attack, you'll be fine.




After the battle, just head on out of the reactor, fighting and winning all 
of the battles along the way. Once you escape the reactor (you better know 
how to do this....), then head to the train station, picking up the Potion on 
the way. When you are given the choice to fight the Shinra guards or flee, 
fight them. You'll want the EXP and Gil early on for this challenge. After 
you get to the train, continue on with the storyline until you get to Sector 
7. Here, immediately go to the right and fight some battles here in the Train
Graveyard. When your HP drops to about 40, head back and continue the 
storyline. When you get control of Cloud again, go to the Training Area 
and pick up the All materia and Ether. You'll want to immediately equip the 
All materia on Cloud with Bolt. This will help save a lot of time and 
frustration, and some MP, though you won't have anyway to heal. If you 
want to make sure that you stay alive, then don't equip the All materia, 
and instead equip the Restore materia. Pick up an Ice and Fire materia, just 
in case you want to switch Lightning out for Ice or Fire.


Afterwards, head back to the Train Graveyard. When you get into a fight, 
kill off Tifa and Barret, and continue to kill enemies until you learn 
Meteorain. It's best to get this Limit Break here now than wait for later. If 
you run low on HP or MP, go back and use the inn, then continue to fight. 
Make sure to kill off your other two party members before attacking or 
killing enemies!

Once you're done, head on with the storyline.



--Sector 5 Reactor--


Bolt-All is your best bet to surviving this segment until the boss. You 
can jump off the train at any point, but your best bet is to jump off at 
the very end, thus saving you time and precious HP/MP. Continue on 
through the area until you get to the reactor itself. The battles here can 
be quite gruesome due to Poison, but not too much to the extent that you 
should die. Here's where you should put away All and put on Restore, just 
to be safe. Continue down to plant the bomb, then go back to the top and 
go through the elevator. Head up and open the next door by using the 3 
buttons in the upper left room. Save, then prepare for your next boss. 
Hopefully you have Cure here? You won't need Bolt for this
fight, so don't waste MP for it.




Boss Battle: Air Buster
Lv: 15
HP: 1200
MP: 0
Items (Win): Titan Bangle
Weakness: Bolt
Halves: Fire



Not a tough fight by any means. As long as you keep Cloud's HP above 
100, you'll be fine. Once Air Buster runs out of Big Bombers, you can 
really focus on hitting him with physical attacks. Use your Limit Break 
at the first chance you get when it gets filled up, and use Cure whenever 
you need it. Don't bother with any other spell. If you come into this 
fight with a full Limit guage and Meteorain, you can pretty much end 
this fight in one shot.


After the battle, continue on with the storyline.



--Sector 5 Church/Wall Market--



**MAKE SURE TO GET METEORAIN NOW IF YOU HAVE NOT DONE
SO! THIS IS YOUR LAST OPPORTUNITY TO GET IT WITHOUT HAVING
TO START A NEW GAME!!**


Once you get Aeris, switch her to the front row and give her any 
materia (preferably not Restore, as Cloud is gong to use it). Whenever 
you get the option to use a barrel or have Aeris fight, make her fight. 
You'll want the AP and Gil for later anyways. For Cloud, if you run around 
a little, you can encounter Hedgehog Pies, which can be dispatched off 
pretty easily with a physical attack or two. This is a good opportunity to 
level up a little, if you feel the need to, but don't fight too many battles 
here. Once you leave the church, head straight for Aeris' house and 
continue on with the storyline. Once you wake up and leave
Aeris' house, pick up the Cover materia in the garden to the right and 
go to any shop and sell all items/equipment that you may have. Now, 
head towards the Sector 5 Pathway and prepare to go to Wall Market. 
When you get into a random encounter, make sure to kill Aeris off. 
You can easily deal with most enemies here with a Bolt-All, but Hell 
House will take a bit more to kill off. Just put Cloud in the back row 
and spam Bolt until you kill it, and don't waste your Limit Break 
unless you absolutely have to. At Wall Market, do whatever you 
want, as it really doesn't matter too much in the end. If you end up 
with Cloud not being picked, then you can dispatch of the
enemies with Bolt-All. Scotch can also be taken care of with a single 
physical attack after a Bolt-All, so there's nothing to worry about 
here. When you head to the Don's room, go through the storyline, 
then talk to both Tifa and Aeris to start the next boss battle.



Boss Battle: Aps
Lv: 18
HP: 1800
MP: 0
Items (Win): Phoenix Down (worthless...)
Weakness: Fire


This fight is pretty simplistic. Save your MP for Cure, and just 
keep attacking Aps. Make sure that Cloud is in the front row at 
all times. If Aps uses Lick and you end up with Sadness, don't 
worry! It's a good thing, as Sadness will reduce all damage
taken by 30%. This will help when it comes to using Cure later 
on in the battle. Sewer Tsunami will be the biggest threat here, as 
it can do up to 100 HP to Cloud if it hits from the back. Still, nothing 
to worry about. If you manage to come into this fight with Meteorain, 
let Aps have it, then simply finish him off with physical attacks.



After the battle, continue on through the sewers and pick up the 
Steal materia if you want, although it's banned in this challenge. Head 
up through the sewers until you reach the Save Point, and save. 
Hopefully, you didn't use TOO much MP in that last fight, because 
you might want it for the trip through the Train Graveyard.



--Train Graveyard/Sector 7 Plate--


Here are the random encounters for this area:


-Train Graveyard-


Cripshay x2: Not that difficult to win. Simple attacks is all that's 
needed.

Deenglow x2: This can be rough, especially if you get hit by Demi. 
You might end up using a Cure or two here. Simple attacks should 
be enough. If your Limit Breaks full, and you don't want to use it, 
then use Bolt instead.

Ghost x3: This can be a pain, especially since Ghosts have Drain and 
Fire, which both do up to 90 HP. When one Ghost vanishes after 
an attack, target another Ghost immediately. Once you kill two Ghosts 
and start targeting the last, you won't have to worry about getting 
attacked again.

Deenglow x3: Pretty similar to the Deenglow x2, except there's one 
more Demi that you may have to worry about. Same tactics as before.

Deenglow x1, Ghost x2: This can be pretty nasty if you don't have 
enough MP or HP, or both. Get rid of the first Ghost quickly, then 
take out the Deenglow. The last Ghost won't be a problem after 
that. Save your MP for Cure in this fight!

Eligor x1: This is nasty, simply because Eligor casts Silence on 
you, which means you'll have to finish the battle pretty quickly. 
This is where you want to make sure that Cloud is fully healed 
outside of battle! You'll be limited to just physical attacks, but 
if you have Sadness on, then you won't take nearly as much as 
you would. If you're feeling desparate, use Meteorain.



-Sector 7 Plate-


Aero Combatant x1: This isn't hard. A couple Bolts will easily 
kill this enemy off.

Aero Combatant x2: This isn't any different from the previous 
battle. Same tactics.

Aero Combatant x3: Same as before. Bolt-All helps to deal 
damage here, but dont' bother with the All materia at this point 
of the game.



**THIS IS THE LAST TIME I WILL MENTION THIS! MAKE 
SURE TO KILL OFF ALL OTHER PARTY MEMBERS BEFORE BATTLE!**



Here, work your way through the Train Graveyard (I assume 
that you know your way?). Ignore all of the items, as they won't 
be of any use to you in this challenge now. The battles here 
can be a bit rough, especially the Ghost x3 line-up. Drain and 
Fire are powerful spells, and more than likely, you'll be forced to 
use Cure a few times for those fight, not to mention a Limit Break. 
Try to save your Limit Break, as you'll want it for the upcoming 
boss. Once you get through the Train Graveyard and get
to the Plate, sell off any items and equipment that you may have, 
then head on up. You'll be fully healed now, but if you don't 
have Meteorain, then you might as well start over...as there is 
no way to recover HP or MP at this time. The last opportunity 
for that would be at Wall Market. If you don't have a full Limit 
Break, then get it before heading up to the top. Don't worry about 
the menu, and just head into battle.



Boss Battle: Reno
Lv: 17
HP: 1000
MP: 0
Items (Win): Ether
Halves: Lightning



You HAVE to get Meteorain off BEFORE Reno's first turn. 
Otherwise, you might as well reload. Once you do this, hit him 
with Fire to end the fight. If he hits Cloud with Pyramid, reload 
now, even if Barret's alive. This is a requirement that you'll have 
to do for this challenge. If the Pyramid hits Barret, ignore him 
and focus on using Fire on Reno. This fight shouldn't be too 
tough.


[Skip storyline]


Head back to Aeris' house.


[Skip storyline]

Now, head back to Wall Market, and if you want, pick up 
the Sense materia in the playground (not that you're ever going 
to use it...). Buy 3 Batteries, then head up the wire and continue 
on with the storyline.



--Shinra HQ--


Here are the random encounters for this area:


Grenade Combatant x2: Just attack them and get it over with. 
If you want to, you can even use Bolt on them. Just don't waste 
too much MP on them.

Grenade Combatant x3: Same tactics as before.

Mighty Grunt x1: Use Bolt when he's not in his armor to kill 
him easier. When he's armor-cladded, just attack him until 
the armor shatters.

Mighty Grunt x2: Same tactics as before.

Mighty Grunt x3: Same tactics as before.

Sword Dance x1: You can use Bolt on it if you want, but if 
you want to conserve MP, then go with attack all the way, 
though using Bolt will be more cost-efficient.

Sword Dance x2: Same as before.

Sword Dance x3: Same as before

Hammer Blaster x1: A simple Bolt will take care of this foe. 
Watch out for Confusion though, as it can really put the pain 
on Cloud. When he vanishes for a while, use Defend
until he reappears.

Hammer Blaster x2: Same as before.

Warning Board x1: A Bolt will take care of this enemy. It's not 
that hard to kill with physical attacks either.

Warning Board x2: Same as before.

Moth Slasher x1: You can easily use Bolt to kill it. 

Moth Slasher x2: Bolt-All will save some MP here. If they live 
through it, then just use physical attacks.

Moth Slasher x3: Same as before.

SOLDIER: 3rd x2: This is a tough one. Sleepel is bad enough, 
but Fire2, Ice2, and Bolt2 in succession can be enough to kill 
Cloud. You'll want to save Finishing Touch for this fight, just 
in case.

SOLDIER: 3rd x3: This is even more ridiculous than the 
previous encounter. Your best bet is to save Finishing Touch 
and pray that none of the SOLDIERs use Sleepel for their 
first move.

Moth Slasher x1, SOLDIER: 3rd x2: This is bad, but not too bad. 
Use Bolt to kill the Moth Slasher, then focus on using physical 
attacks on the SOLDIERs. Use Finishing Touch if you have to.

Zenene x1: Not that hard to kill off. Neither Genghana nor Piazzo
Shower should present a threat here to you. Just attack and if your
Limit Break fills up, just use Bolt to finish the job.

Zenene x2: Genghana is hazardous here. 100 HP is just too 
much for Cloud to take. Your best bet is to use Bolts to kill them 
off quickly, or resort to a Limit Break. Regular attacks are good, 
but may not help too much, especially against Piazzo Shower. 
Still, it'll save you MP for Cure.

Brain Pod x1: An easy battle. Simply hack it to death, and 
don't worry about Resist unless your HP gets too low.

Brain Pod x2: This isn't that hard, though Resist will be a pain. 
Poison + Sleep is a bad thing, but luckily the turn you get put 
to sleep, an enemy will wake you up. You may resort to using 
Cure a bit in this fight. Use Finishing Touch if things get 
too rough; otherwise, stick to Bolt.

Vargid Police x2: Simple battle. Physical attacks is all you need
to survive this fight.

Vargid Police x3: A very simple battle. Just focus on physical
attacks, and don't worry about Suicide.

Vargid Police x1, Zenene x1: This can be a very simple battle.
Focus on eliminating the Zenene first, as he's the most dangerous
enemy on the field. After that, it's a walk in the park. Keep Cloud's
HP up though, just in case Suicide does do a lot of damage.

Zenene x1, Brain Pod x2: A very deadly combination. You'll want
to have Cloud kill off the Zenene right away, then focus on
one Brain Pod at a time. Or, take the alternative and use Finishing
Touch to kill them!





Your best option is to just sneak in. You want to conserve 
your MP for every fight here until you get to Floor 62. Once 
you hit Floor 59, you'll have to fight three Mighty Grunts.
Don't use Bolt until AFTER you've destroyed the armor on one
of the Mighty Grunts! This way, you can conserve MP for Cures
instead! After the battle, proceed on with the storyline. It's best
that you sneak by the guards on Floor 60 and NOT fight any
of the Mighty Grunts here, so that you can conserve HP and
MP for upcoming battles. Continue on up, and don't worry about
any items or the Elemental materia, as you won't be needing them
anyways. Once you get to the floor that Red XIII is on, make sure
that your HP and MP are at a good enough level for the upcoming
boss. If not, then save and go back to the inn back down on Floor
62. You'll want to have as much HP and MP for this fight as possible.
Once you're prepared, head on up and commence with the battle! It
doesn't matter who you send with Aeris.



Boss Battle: Sample: HO152, Sample: HO152-opt x3
Lv: 19; 7
HP: 1000; 300
MP: 120; 48
Items (Win): Talisman; Tranquilizer x3
Halves: Lightning
Absorbs: Poison



Hopefully, you have Cloud with just Restore, right? You won't be
needing that nifty Poison materia that you picked up earlier. The
boss will start out with Shady Breath more than likely, which will
poison your entire party. This will help make Red XIII die faster (
and anyone else who isn't dead aside from Cloud). In the meantime,
start killing off the Opts by either Meteorain or regular attacks, and
make sure to keep you HP up above 300 at all times! The Opts spells
pack quite a punch! Once you kill one of the Opts, the main boss
will use Animagic to revive what was killed, but note that he
can only do this up to 3 times. After that, he runs out of MP. This
will help tone down the damage that you would otherwise be taken
after you kill all 3 Opts. After killing all 3 of them, focus on the main
boss with just physical attacks.

If you want an alternative, just use Fire or Ice on the main boss,
while keeping an eye on your HP. Just make sure that Cloud is
in the back row if you decide to do this method, as to cut down
the damage from the Opts Rolling Attack.

After the battle, GRAB THE ENEMY SKILL MATERIA!! You don't
want to miss this, as it's one of the key materia in beating this
challenge! 

[Skip storyline]

Once you gain control of Cloud again, head on up to the top floor,
while following the trail of blood. The enemies will be different than
from what you were fighting  previously, and they're stronger too,
so take note of that. Make sure to use the save point when you get
to it, and continue on to meet Rufus. Once you gain control of Aeris,
equip Barret with the Lightning and Restore materia, and head on to
the elevator for your double boss fight!



Boss Battle: Hundred Gunner; Heli Gunner
Lv: 18; 19
HP: 1600; 1000
MP: 0; 0
Items (Win): None; Mythril Armlet
Weakness: Lightning; Lightning, Wind



You'll need to kill off Red XIII and Aeris before you can even begin
to attack Hundred Gunner. You can use Bolt if you'd like, but I'd stick
to just using regular attacks and Big Shot throughout the entire fight,
so that you have MP for Cure. After you kill Hundred Gunner, you'll
have to fight Heli Gunner, who can inflict Poison + Sleep on Barret
with AB Cannon, C Cannon, or Firing Line. This is where you have
to time your attacks and Cure; otherwise, you'll end up wasting a
turn and possibly ending up dying. 


After the battle, MAKE SURE THAT CLOUD GETS RESTORE! If not,
then you probably will end up dying in this fight, unless you have
Meteorain to start with.




Boss Battle: Rufus; Dark Nation
Lv: 21; 15
HP: 500; 140
MP: 0; 80
Items (Win): Protect Vest; Power Source



Kill off Dark Nation immediately, as it can cast Barrier and MBarrier.
After that, it's a matter of physical attacks and Meteorain to finish
off Rufus. Nothing too hard here at all, especially if Cloud's in the
back row.



After the fight, save and continue on to the oh-so-fun minigame.
Now, you'll want to have Bolt on here, just in case, and put Cloud
in the front row!



Boss Battle: Motor Ball
Lv: 16
HP: 2600
MP: 120
Items (Win): Star Pendant
Weakness: Lightning
Halves: Fire



This isn't too tough of a fight really. The only thing to worry about
is Rolling Fire and Twin Burner, and you can counter that with a simple
Cure spell. If you want to get your Limit Break up, jump to the front
row for a turn, then jump back and use Cure. In the meanwhile, you
can pound constant Bolts on Motor Ball. It'll fall in no time flat.



[Skip storyline]






B. On the Way to Kalm [007]


Now, you'll want to replace Lightning with Enemy Skill as soon as
you get a chance, and make a party of Red XIII and Aeris. You'll
want Barret and Tifa to gain levels for later on in the game (especially
Barret, for obvious reasons). Now, before you head to Kalm, you'll
want to fight the Custom Sweepers around the Midgar area. This will
get you the Matra Magic spell, which is CRUCIAL to killing off a lot
of enemies in one shot, and will help up to around Corel Prison! Once
you get this spell, you can head to Kalm and go through Cloud's
flashback. After that, buy the Heal materia, as that's also a mandatory
materia that you'll need for the final battles of the game. Don't bother
equipping it right now, as it would hurt you more than help. After
you've done all of this, head on down to the Chocobo Ranch.




C. On the Way to Junon [008]


You'll definently want to pick up L4 Suicide now if you can. Before
you try to get it, make sure that your level is not on a multiple of 4,
as this can really screw you over. Once you acquire this spell, you
can take one of two routes to the Mythril Mines:


A) Buy the Chocobo Lure materia and attempt to get a chocobo....
the HARD way, or:

B) Switch the map so that the world map is on ground level, then
run to the easternmost part of the mountains. Now, wait until you
see the Zolom head to the far west, and begin to run across the
marsh. Save quickly, then reload and keep running. This may take
up to 3 times, but it's a lot faster than waiting to catch a chocobo.



--Mythril Mines--


Here, head to the room immediately to the right and, if you want,
pick up the Long Range materia. However, your main objective in
this area is to fight an enemy called Ark Dragon, which has the
Flame-Thrower spell. Even though it costs 2 more MP than Matra
Magic and hits only one enemy, it might prove useful a bit later in
the game. After you obtain this spell, head on through the mines and
ignore the items. Skip the text with the Turks, and head to Fort Condor.
Use the inn there and save, then if you want, try and get Yuffie (not
required, but I always like getting her in my games). If you don't want
her, then just head straight for Junon. Avoid the forests, as Cappairwires
are your worst nightmare here. Formulas aren't too bad if Cloud's in
the back row, but can still dish out a lot of damage, while Neurosufferoth's
Heatwing deals up to 100 HP. Zemzeleet's Thunderbolt is also a very
powerful attack, but nothing else should bother you here as long as
you have Matra Magic. 



--Junon--


Make sure to build up Cloud's Limit Break beforehand and save.
Head straight to the beach to fight your next boss.



Boss Battle: Bottomswell
Lv: 23
HP: 2500
MP: 100
Items (Win): Power Wrist
Weakness: Wind
Halves: Gravity



This fight is simple, as you don't have to worry about Waterpolos.
Start off with Meteorain, then just use Matra Magic or Flame-Thrower
to damage the boss. Make sure to keep your HP higher than 200 at all
times, in case you run into Huge Tidal Wave or Moonstrike. A pretty
simple battle.


After the battle, it's up to you whether or not to save Priscilla.

[Skip storyline]

Once you have to jump up to the electrical tower, just press X
twice and climb up.

[Skip storyline. It doesn't matter what you do here...]

You can pick up the Heal materia here if you didn't get it earlier at
Kalm. Don't bother with anything else.






D. Junon to North Corel [009]


--Junon Boat--

[Skip storyline]

Once the alarm rings, take a party of either Aeris, Red XIII, or Yuffie
with you and head below. This is where L4 Suicide will come in use,
for the times that you fight the Marine enemies. If you need to heal
for some reason, just talk to the sailor. You don't need the Wind Slash
or All materia here, so just proceed straight to the boss.



Boss Battle: Jenova-BIRTH
Lv: 25
HP: 4000
MP: 110
Items (Win): White Cape



This fight can actually get rough. You need to hope that Stop misses;
otherwise, you'll need to use Cure right after you get un-Stopped, or
else Jenova can easily kill you with W-Laser or Tail Laser. Meteorain
helps a lot in this battle, and you might even need to use 2-3 of them
to kill Jenova-BIRTH off. Save MP for Cure and Matra Magic, but
mostly for Cure. 

After the battle, you can pick up the Ifrit materia if you want, but don't
bother using it in this challenge.



--Costa Del Sol--

[Skip storyline]

Head out immediately to Mt. Corel. If you need to, fight a few battles
around here first before heading off to increase your Level, so that
you have more HP and MP for the tougher fights ahead. Level 20
is the lowest you'll want, while Level 25 is the highest you'll want.


--Mt. Corel--

You can pretty must dispatch all of the enemies here with Matra
Magic, and for those who survive it, you can simply attack them and
kill them. The Needle Kiss and Search Crown enemies can be rough,
especially when Needle Kiss uses Lightning and Search Crown
uses Four Lasers. Bagnadrana's Vitality and HP are also going to
pester you, as Finishing Touch won't kill them. Later on, Bombs
can be bad if you can't kill them fast enough, but 2 Matra Magics
should suffice.

Proceed through the area as usual, and watch for Cokatolis, as their
Petrify Smog can end your game quickly if you don't kill them in 30
seconds. All of the other enemies can be dealt with as described
above. Ignore everything here, as they don't matter much (even
the Transform materia). Continue on to North Corel and head
straight for the Gold Saucer.

[Skip storyline]



E. Corel Prison [010]


You don't need to worry about anything getting stolen, as you don't
really need anything. The 2-Faced enemies can be hazardous due to
Suicide, but hope that they don't use it. Any other enemy is easy to
deal with by Matra Magic, but you'll want to try and learn Laser from
Death Claw if possible. You'll want to have Barret as your Solo Character
for this section, so if you get into a fight with Barret in your party, you'll
need to kill Cloud off. Equip Barret with the Restore materia and put
him in the back row, and head on to fight your next boss.



Boss Battle: Dyne
Lv: 23
HP: 1200
MP: 20
Items (Win): Silver Armlet



If you have had Barret in your party up to this point, then this fight
can be tough due to Barret's low HP and MP. You need to keep your
HP above 200 at all times to survive this fight. Focus on using Cure
and attack until Dyne starts to use S-Mine, then just use Cure and
Bigshot to beat through Dyne the rest of the battle. You should be
fine as long as you keep your HP up.


[Skip storyline]




F. The Buggy [011]


This is the fun part. You'll want Cloud back alive and at full health,
then give him Manipulate and Enemy Skill first. Head into the desert
and SAVE! Now, fight here until you encounter a Harpy, then Manipulate
it. If it doesn't use Aqualung before the Manipulate, then make it
use it on Cloud and kill it off with either Poison Storm or Aqualung.

Now, head back to Costa Del Sol and fight on the beaches to encounter
Beachplugs. Manipulate one of them and have it cast Big Guard on
Cloud, then kill off all of the Beachplugs. Now, if you haven't done
so yet, go and get L4 Suicide way back at the Chocobo Ranch! You'll
want this here later on.

If you want, you can even fight in Junon (by pulling the alarm in
the tunnel with the soldiers). These fights are pretty rough, but
winning them nets you a lot of EXP, AP, and Gil that you can use
later. This is a decent place to start leveling up your Heal materia too.

Once you have accomplished all of this, head towards Gongaga and
equip Cloud with Enemy Skill and Restore. Here, you'll want to fight
Reno and Rude for EXP ONLY. You don't have to do this if you don't
want to. You can simply beat them by spamming Meteorain and/or
Aqualung/Matra Magic. Nothing too hard there. Ignore the materia
here, but go for the Enemy Skill "Frog Song", as that can come in
use at certain points in the game.

After you're done with everything, head straight for Cosmo Canyon,
but avoid fighting any Gagighandis, as they can turn Cloud to stone.
Also, don't go near the beaches if you can help it. You can also get
Petrifired easily there.


0nce you arrive at Cosmo Canyon, go through the storyline and head
straight to the Gi Cave. Proceed through the cave, ignoring everything.
Once you reach the area with the Stingers, use Frog Song to reduce
the damage that they can do and just attack them normally. If you have
Laser, use it once, but no more than that. You should spend about 43
MP altogether within the 3 Stinger battles. 

While you're here, try and learn Death Sentence. This spell will prove
invaluable to you throughout this challenge, as it'll help save you MP
for more valuable spells.

Once you reach Gi Nattak, prepare for you first tough battle!


Boss Battle: Gi Nattak, Soul Fire x2
Lv: 29: ????
HP: 5500: ????
MP: 200: ????
Items (Win): Wizer Staff: ????
Weakness: Holy: Ice



If you really want to take a big gamble, you can try to use Life on Gi
Nattak to end this battle, but that's very risky, as Life can miss easily.
If you want to duke it out, make sure to have Restore on, and have
Enemy Skill on as well. Try going into this fight with Meteorain, so
that you can hurt Gi Nattak without targeting both Soul Fires at once.
You might want to use some Cures on Gi Nattak, as that'll do more
damage than attacking him. Have Cloud in the back row, and Cure if
his HP drops to about 500 (700 if Possessed). This'll keep him from
getting wiped out from a normal attack. Watch for Aspil! This spell is
the most dangerous thing  you can encounter, as it can take a lot of your
MP and give it back to Gi Nattak! If you have to, use a calculator to
keep track of Gi Nattak's life, so that you can determine when to use
Cure on him or when to attack him. This fight will be tough nonetheless.
I'd recommend being Level 25 at the very least.

[Skip storyline]



G. On the Way to Nibelheim [012]



There's not much to do on the way to Nibelheim. Simply cross the
river and go to Nibelheim. It's a good idea to just pass through this
town, as you don't want to fight anyone here, as they aren't really worth
it. But, if you insist, try your luck. You'll want to get Meteorain first
before heading in of course, but you may end up having to use it
in a random encounter on your way to the safe.

However, you'll want to try and learn ???? from the Jersey enemy here
on your first visit, as this will cut down the time in battle and increase
your power significally!



Boss Battle: Lost Number
Lv: 35
HP: 7000
MP: 300
Items (Win): Cosmo Memory



This is extremely tough at this point in the game, but if you come
back near the end, you can easily win this fight. If you attempt this
now, you'll find that you'll lose everytime, so don't bother with this
fight. His regular attacks can deal up to 500 damage (if he attacks twice
in a row, then yeah....), and his Bolt2 does an easy 450-600 HP, which
is probably about half of what you have to begin with. Later on,
you'll be able to beat him by utilizing ???? and spells, but by that time,
he's not worth fighting.



If you're not doing the Shinra Mansion part, then skip on through to
Mt. Nibel



H. On the Way to Rocket Town [013]



Mt. Nibel will be your biggest trial as of right now. Why? Simply put, it's
long, and you don't have much MP to work with. Add to the fact that
the battles here can be a bit tedious, and you have no place to restore
MP, and you'll see just how tough this area is. Level 30 is recommended
for this trial.


Skip on through the area and ignore EVERYTHING! This can't be stressed
enough, as you want to conserve MP here. For times that you fight
Kyuvilduns, use L4 Suicide to cripple them, and finish them with
physical attacks. Any other fight should be dealt with by using Death
Sentence. Once you reach the area with the slides, watch out for Dragons!
These enemies are extremely hard to kill off in this challenge, and do a
ton of damage with Flame-Thrower and their regular attacks. If you run
into one of these, immediately use Meteorain to kill it off. If you're 
running low on MP, get out of Mt. Nibel and rest, then level up a little
somewhere to get more MP. You'll need every bit of MP you have for
this next battle!



Boss Battle: Materia Keeper
Lv: 38
HP: 8400
MP: 300
Items (Won): Jem Ring
Absorbs: Fire



You'll want Cloud in the back row for this fight, and hopefully you
have Cure2 by now? Sadness wouldn't hurt either, so if you have too,
go find an enemy who inflicts this status and let them use the
corresponding attack on you to get it. Materia Keeper's attacks are
very powerful, and if he scores a critical on you at any given time, you
may end up dying the next turn. Watch his moves, then correspond
with a counterattack. If your HP is at least 900 or higher, attack the
boss with Meteorain or ????. If your HP is less than 900, use Cure to
counter. More often than not, your HP WILL be less than 900. However,
if you get a chance in, use Meteorain, TEHN use Cure2 to get your HP
back up to snuff. When you see Materia Keeper start using Cure2, you
know that he's about to die. However, don't kill him just yet, as you want
to learn Trine from him. This spell is crucial to finishing off enemies
faster, and it costs 14 MP less than Aqualung. A little less damage,
but the MP saving will be worth it. Once you get this spell, finish the
boss off with a Meteorain if you have.

Now SAVE! You don't want to run into another random encounter again
here after the boss battle, as you'll most likely be drained of MP.


Once you leave Mt. Nibel, you'll have a decent way to go to get to 
Rocket Town, and this can lead to many problems, as your MP level
will most likely be very low (I had about 25 MP left to use for the trip..)
You don't want to waste your MP on anything other than Cure during
this time, and if you have to, save and reload about every few steps
until you get to Rocket Town. It'll be tedious, but it'll save you the
trouble of dying too.




--Rocket Town--


Head straight to Cid's house, then to the rocket to talk to the Captain.
Return back to Cid's house and go through the storyline. Once you
get control of Cloud again, put him in the front row and prepare to fight
your next boss! Hopefully you rested up before going into this fight?



Boss Battle: Palmer
Lv: 38
HP: 6000
MP: 240
Items (Win): Edincoat



This is an easy fight. Counter with Cure if your HP drops below 800,
and use Meteorain to put Palmer out of his misery. If Palmer runs out
of MP, just attack him or use the ???? trick to kill him. Nothing hard
here.

[Skip storyline]


After you get the Tiny Bronco, head to Wutai, but DON'T go up the
hill! Instead, put on Manipulate on Cloud and run along the beach
until you fight an Adamantaimai. Manipulate it to learn Death Force,
then head to the grasslands area to the east and fight Razor Weeds. Use
Manipulate on them to learn Magic Hammer, your most crucial spell in
the game. After this, head to the Gold Saucer and proceed with the
storyline. It's not important to win the battles in the Battle Square.

After the storyline, it's time for one of the toughest parts of the game.



I. On the Way to the Temple of the Ancients [014]


After the Gold Saucer, if you have not done so yet, go back and grab the
following Enemy Skills now! You'll want them for the big trial ahead:


Frog Song (Forest around Gongaga)
L4 Suicide (Chocobo Ranch area)
Aqualung (Gold Saucer desert area)
Magic Hammer (MUST HAVE!) (Wutai grasslands area)
Big Guard (MUST HAVE) (Costa Del Sol beach area)
Death Force (Wutai beach area)
???? (Shinra Mansion)



If you didn't get Trine, then you're out of luck until you get to Gaia's
Cliff. If you don't have Frog Song, you can get that in the Temple of
the Ancients easily. Death Sentence is later afterwards, so if you don't
have it now, then you just made the Temple much harder than it needs
to be.


Now, after you get these spells, head straight for the ToA. You may
want to make another save file, just in case you want to go back and
level up outside of the Temple, or you want to get something that you
forgot. After that, enter the temple and proceed through the maze. Don't
bother following the purple guy the first time, but head straight to the
area with the rolling boulders. Ignore all treasures along the way (including
the Luck Plus matera). Once you reach the area with the boulders, save and
ignore the Morph materia, as it's banned anyways and not that useful.
Continue on to the clock room and head straight to the room marked
'VI'. If you want to catch the purple guy quickly here, jump down once 
and go to the second door. Then, when you exit out of the door, go
back in the door you came out of and you should catch him. Save and
rest up, then go through the storyline. Hopefully you put Cloud in the
back row?



Boss Battle: Red Dragon
Lv: 39
HP: 6800
MP: 300
Items (Win): Dragon Armlet
Absorbs: Fire



This can be tough, but with Cure and Meteorain, it's a breeze. Plus,
if your MP drops too low, you can always Magic Hammer the boss
to get 100 back. Piece of cake, but make sure that your HP is higher
than 1500 at all times! 


After the fight, go through the storyline, then save and rest up. You're
going to need all the MP you can muster up for one of the toughest
battles in the challenge. If you need to train now, go back to the room
with the murals and fight the Ancient Dragons. Not easy, but they
do reward nice EXP. 




Boss Battle: Demon's Gate
Lv: 45
HP: 10000
MP: 400
Items (Win): Gigas Armlet
Halves: Earth



This is a pain in the ass fight. You HAVE to have over 2000 HP to survive
this battle. You also have to hope that he doesn't use Petrif-Eye or double
attack with his rock attack, and NOT get a single Critical hit. You'll want
to enter this fight with Meteorain and use it at the first moment, and
use Cure/Cure2 for the rest of the battle until Demon Gate uses Cave-In.
When he uses this, and your HP is at full before the attack, use Meteorain
if you have it, or just simply use ???? to damage him. Big Guard helps a
little, but not by much. Just keep your HP up, and make sure that you
always have plenty of MP to use Cure with. Don't use Cure2 unless
you really need it. Avoid any other spells, so that you can always
use Cure when you need it. 


Once you get through this horrendous battle, proceed on with the
storyline, then head straight to Bone Village.



J. The City of the Ancients [015]


Get the Lunar Harp by simply diggin on the X spot on the upper level.
After that, head straight towards the City of the Ancients. If you haven't
gotten it before, you can learn Death Sentence here. Most enemies can
be dealt with Trine. For Hungry, kill them off quickly, as you don't want
to get Eaten. 

In the City of the Ancients, just head to the right and rest in the top-right
building. Skip the storyline and head back towards the center of the
city, then proceed straight to your next destination. Make sure to save
before going into your next fight, as this one can be a little tough if not
properly prepared.



Boss Battle: Jenova-LIFE
Lv: 50
HP: 10000
MP: 300
Items (Win): Wizard Bracelet
Weakness: Earth
Absorbs: Water




This fight's not hard at all! Simply use Magic Hammer to force Jenova
to use Reflect, then bounce back Cure spells 4 times off of the Reflect.
Then, continue the process until Jenova runs out of MP. You can then
either opt to attack her to death or to use the ???? trick. Either way,
it's an easy fight. Aqualung is the only real threat here.


[Skip storyline]





--Disc Two--


A. On the Way to Icicile Inn [016]


After the storyline, proceed up to the next area (the area with the bones),
and hop your way up. The encounters here are no different than in the
Corral Valley. Once you reach the Corral Cave, you shouldn't run into
but a few encounters (5 at max), so you should be able to breeze through
this area quickly. After you leave the cave (don't bother picking up
anything there), make your way up to the Icicile Inn. The encounters
here are pathetically easy, as you can simply L4 Suicide the Jumpings
and Trine the Wolves easily. Nothing too hard....yet.....you might
even be opted to level up a little here, or take the alternative route and
head to Mideel via Tiny Bronco.





B. On the Way to Gaia's Cliff [017]



This is where things heat up......err....freeze up a bit. Once you get the
snowboard and Glacier Map, head straight to Great Glacier, and, depending
on where you landed, you may or may not be able to get to Gaia's Cliff
that easily. The battles here aren't tough by any means, as Trine can
easily defeat most of the enemies here in 1 or 2 castings. Ignore the
Alexander and Added Cut materia, as they aren't needed. If you pass
out, that'll be a good thing, as you'll be fully restored. This would be
the best way to resolve this issue, as you can simply fight to level up
in the Great Glacier, and still not worry about dying too easily.

Once you get fully restored, by either passing out or visiting Holzoff,
save and proceed up Gaia's Cliff for one of the most tedious part of
the challenge.




--Gaia's Cliff--


Remember to keep an eye on your temperature throughout this entire
area, as you don't want to climb up a second time unless you absolutely
have to. Outside, Malboros are your biggest threat. Bad Breath spells
Game Over for you, while Frozen Beam deals up to 900 HP easily. Frog
Song + L4 Suicide is your best bet to winning here. Inside, watch
for Stilva! Magic Breath can easily kill you off if you're not prepared, but
it's an essential spell for later on in the game. Any other enemy can be
dealt with by Trine. Don't forget to use Magic Hammer for when your
MP gets too low. Once you reach the area where there's a Save Point
and a lake, save and proceed up to the area with the Icicles. This is one
of the hardest parts of the area, simply because of the Evilheads here
that can Silence you. If you end up getting Silenced, then you might
as well restart, as you'll most likely die. You'll need to get Finishing
Touch before the battle and hope that you get a turn in before the
enemy acts, then hope that all of the Evilheads die. If you do manage
to get that to work, the Icicle is a piece of cake. Otherwise, you may
end up having a tough time winning. Regardless, you need to kill
3 of the 4 Icicles to proceed. After you kill them, save, then head up
to the hot springs and heal up, then save again. You may need to
be Level 40 or higher to survive this next fight....




Boss Battle: Schizo
Lv: 43 
HP: 18000
MP: 350
Items (Win): None (Left): Dragon Fang (Right)
Absorbs: Fire (Left): Ice (Right)
Weakness: Ice (Left): Fire (Right)



Simply put......extremely tough! You're gonna need Regen for this fight,
so make sure that you go and learn it, if you haven't already. 3000 HP
is also a good idea, as well as Big Guard, Cure2, and Magic Hammer.
Start the battle off by using Regen, then follow up with Big Guard and
Magic Hammer, recasting Regen and Big Guard whenever possible. Use
Cure2 a lot as well, and once you finally drain both heads of all MP,
you can simply attack them to death, but make sure that their final attack
don't kill you! Other than that, it's a piece of cake after the fact, as
every attack deals up to 800-900 damage, and they attack twice in a
row.


After the battle, you may want to go back and heal and save. If you
run into a Blue Dragon, you may be in trouble, as they are very tough
to beat. Unless you have Regen, you won't win. They don't reward
you much of anything, so don't overdo it in any of those battles.
Make sure to save and heal if you need it, and head for your next
destination.




C. Whirlwind Maze [018]



This is going to be tough. Not so much the battles here, but the boss
that you'll have to face. You'll have to either level up to around Level
50-60, or get extremely lucky. Your choice here.

About all enemies here can be dealt with by a simple L4 Suicide, but
your main concern here is to not get inflicted with Sadness, as you
WANT to take damage and get your Limit Break. If you do get
Sadness, then go back to the springs in the Gaia's Cliff and heal.
If you want to try, equip the Mystify materia and try to learn White
Wind from a Wind Wing. It may or may not work for you, as it didn't
for me. The Ironites and Dragon Riders are easily beaten by Death
Sentence and Frog Song, so don't worry about them too much. Leveling
up here isn't that bad, but don't forget to get rid of Sadness before 
confronting the boss.




Boss Battle: Jenova-DEATH
Lv: 55
HP: 25000
MP: 800
Items (Win): Reflect Ring




This is possibly the toughest fight in the whole game, aside from
Hojo. Why? Because Jenova can inflict Silence at any given time
in the fight, which is your downfall in this fight. You need to try and
cast Big Guard and Regen BEFORE Jenova uses Silence to help you
win better. Use Meteorain at the first chance you get, then hope that
Silence never connects. Otherwise, you may have to resort to attacking
and using Limit Breaks for the remainder of the battle, which isn't the
easiest to do here. 3000-5000 HP is what you need to survive this nightmare,
and a lot of luck as well. If you manage to win this fight, the rest of the
challenge should be a breeze up to Hojo.



[Skip storyline]




D. In Search of Cloud [019]


[Skip storyline]


Now, before you save your game, make sure that Barret has Enemy
Skill equipped. This will help in the few battles that you'll be forced
to fight with him. After battles, make sure to use Restore and Cure to
heal up. Junon isn't that hard to get through, so proceed through the
story as normal.


After you get the Highwind, head northeast until you reach Goblin
Island. Here, go into the forest and fight Goblins to learn Goblin Punch.
This is a good way to deal damage without spending any MP, if you
so choose to use it. After you get this spell, head straight to Mideel.

[Skip storyline]


After you get control of Cid, it's time to go Huge Materia hunting!




E. Huge Materia Quest [020]


Your first goal is to head to Fort Condor. You can easily win this
simply by playing through, as you should have more than enough money
to win. After you are done here, don't bother with the Phoenix materia
and instead head straight towards North Corel. Park the Highwind outside
of North Corel and head straight to the Reactor. Don't worry about any
of the enemies here, as they aren't any threat now. Once you reach
the Reactor, give Cid the Enemy Skill and Restore materia and take care
of the Attack Squad. Once you get ahold of a train, here's what you do:
Do something else. You should just let the timer run out, as to save you
the agony of dying for something that you can't use anyways.

After the train crashes, head back to Mideel and prepare to live through
an onslaught.




Boss Battle: Ultimate Weapon
Lv: 61
HP: 100,0000
MP: 400
Items (Win): Nothing



All you simply need to do is use Cure2 to survive this battle. Don't
bother with using anything else, since it won't matter. You won't be
fighting him later on anyways.


[Skip storyline]




F. Underwater Reactor [021]


This part can be tough. Make sure that you re-equip Cloud with Restore
and Enemy Skill, and head for Junon. The monsters here won't be a
problem for you, so don't worry bout them. Those actually new here
aren't that tough either. L4 Suicide can take care of the more nastier
ones, while Frog Song nullifies the dangers of the others immune to
L4 Suicide. Continue through the area until you reach the save point.
Now, kill off all of the Shinra Soldiers here, then build up your Limit
Break and put Cloud in the back row. Save again, then proceed on to
your next boss.



Boss Battle: Carry Armor
Lv: 45
HP: 24000
MP: 200
Items (Win): Godhand
Weakness: Lightning


This battle isn't that tough at all compared to any other time. As long
as you use Meteorain first and hit all 3 targets, then you shouldn't
really have to worry about Arm Grab. Use Magic Hammer twice on the
main body to get rid of Lapis Laser. From there, just use the ???? trick
to finish him off. If your HP drops to 800, use Cure to bring it back up
and continue the onslaught.


After the battle, heal Cloud to max, then take care of the Sub Crew with
Trine. Nothing too hard here. For the Submarine minigame, you can
either choose to win it or lose it. Either way, it doesn't really matter.

Once you get the sub, head back to the Highwind and go to Rocket
Town.



--Rocket Town--


Head to the rocket (heal first, if needed) and kill off the Attack Squads.
You'll be forced to take Cid with you, but he'll be dead in the next fight
anyways. Head up to confront Rude.




Boss Battle: Rude, Attack Squad x3
Lv: 42
HP: 9000
MP: 240
Items (Win): Hi-Potion (wow....)



Finishing Touch will take care of the Attack Squad. Meanwhile, focus
on using Big Guard and Regen to reduce the damage from Rude's 
Grand Spark. You can wait until you get Meteorain while using Magic
Hammer, or you can use Regen and strike him with ????. Either way,
this fight's not that tough.


[Skip storyline]





G. Diamond Weapon's Attack [022]



After the story, head back underwater and go north until you reach
a cave that has the Ancient Key. Now, head to the City of the Ancients
and proceed with the storyline. After that, head back to the Highwind
and Diamond Weapon should appear. You can fight him now if you
want, but I'd suggest getting to Level 60 at the very least. Diamond
Flash is extremely painful, and you'll need to get as much Strength
as you can get. Not to mention now is the best time to get Resist on
your Heal materia. Don't do what I did and wait until Midgar....it takes
forever to get Resist then. Now, once you level up to around Level 60
(with hopefully 5000+ HP). Save, and prepare for a horrendous battle.




Boss Battle: Diamond Weapon
Lv: 49
HP: 30000
MP: 30000
Items (Win): None
Weakness: Lightning
Halves: Fire




This is a very tough battle. You have to get very lucky with Meteorain
getting critical hits. Three to four Meteorains will kill him, but you have
to deal over 1500 HP with EACH hit. Otherwise, he may live to use
Diamond Flash on you. If you see the Countdown, set up Big Guard
and Regen immediately, starting at 2. Diamond Flash will definently
deal around 4000 HP to you (or around there), so make sure that your
HP is higher than that before the Countdown ends. You just have to
get very lucky in order to win this fight. Hopefully, you have Regen
and Big Guard for a little while after Diamond Flash is over. Don't
bother trying to Guard against any of his attacks, as they are all
Magic based.



After the battle, if you haven't done so already, go get Resist now by
training in the forests around Mideel. You  may also want to Level up
to around 60-65, just for Hojo. About 550-700 MP is what you need
to survive this fight.


[Skip storyline]

Now comes one of the toughest boss battles. Prepare for your finest
assault!




H. Raid on Midgar [023]



You'll probably want two save files for this part. Save, then enter Midgar.
Head down to the underground passage and proceed as normal. The worst
enemies to encounter here are the Behemoths, as Flare will kill you most likely,
not to mention their ???? spell later on in the battle. The Crazy Saw enemies 
will confuse you from time to time, so watch when you use spells and the 
like.

When you reach the underground railway, head up and ignore fighting the
Turks, as they aren't worth it. The Shadow Maker enemies are easy to kill
off, but them paired with Crazy Saws can be bad. Magic Breath when you
aren't Confused. Proceed up to Sector 8 and get ready for the first boss
battle!



Boss Battle: Proud Clod
Lv: 53
HP: 60000
MP: 320
Items (Win): Ragnarok



You can leave your HP around 1500, but no less. That way, you can 
abuse ???? and not worry about having to deal too much damage. If 
Proud Clod uses Materia Jammer, use Cure on yourself until Reflect
disappears, then kill off the Jamar Armor to avoid it. You can neutralize
the Beam Cannon simply by draining all of Proud Clod's MP, so that's
easily taken care of. The rest of the attacks are easy to reduce, simply
by going into the back row.


After the battle, heal up and save. Now, head up the stairs and try to
get into a SOLDIER: 1st if possible, so that you can use Frog Song,
L4 Suicide, and Magic Hammer to get your MP back up to max. Make
sure that you're fully healed before fighting Hojo. Equip Restore and
Heal (with Cure2 and Resist) before entering the fight.



Boss Battle: Hojo
Lv: 50
HP: 13000
MP: 250
Items (Win): None



This fight is very straightforward. You should immediately use Meteorain
to inflict damage to just Hojo if possible at the start of the battle. You'll
want to use Resist before you kill Hojo, and avoid using Cure2, as you want
to save MP for later on. If your HP drops too low, then use Cure2; otherwise,
don't use it. Don't bother with Regen at all, since Resist prevents it anyways.
Ignore the Samples and focus on attacking Hojo. You can even put Cloud
in the front row at the start of the battle if you want, but you'll want to put
him in the back before you kill Hojo.




Boss Battle: Helletic-Hojo
Lv: 55
HP: 26000
MP: 200




This fight's rough, but with Resist, most of the attacks that Hellectic-Hojo
does won't matter. The only one to watch for is his normal attack, which
does 750 damage while in the back row, and he can sometimes attack twice
in a row. You should constantly cast Cure on yourself, and use Meteorain
at your first shot. If your HP drops below 1500, use Cure2 to bring it back
up. Basically, keep using Meteorain and Cure2, and attack if you see an
opening, and you should be fine.





Boss Battle: Lifeform Hojo
Lv: 58
HP: 30000
MP: 100
Items (Win): Power Source



This fight is pretty much straightforward. Cure everyturn, and counter Silence
with a Meteorain or physical attack, and don't worry about this fight. It's not
that hard, until you run out of MP. You'll want Meteorain to do criticals too,
but if not, then the battle will only take a little longer.



[Skip storyline]









--Disc Three--


A. Northern Crater [024]




This is going to be a long haul, so prepare yourself for a challenging trial.
First off, before entering the crater, go build up Enemy Skills, if you don't
have them. Next, if you want to level up outside of the cave, go to Mideel
and fight around there. You don't want to try and level up here, as you'll
end up frustrated over it. Also, you'll want to have Death Force so you
can survive any L4 and L5 Deaths, if you encounter them. 

Now, pick up the Save Crystal and head on down. You'll be using Death
Force a bit here, as you'll face Instant Death attacks quite often in this
area. Once you reach the area where your team first splits up, send 
everyone except Cloud and one other person to the left, and have Cloud 
go down the other path (the right one). Here, you'll have a bit of trouble 
living. Death Dealers love to use Roulette here, and that can kill you off 
if you can't get Death Force beforehand. Dragon Zombies are also 
nasty due to their high attack and Poison attacks, not to mention 
that their Pandora's Box can probably, if not, kill you. And Malboros 
are back again, but remain unchanged. Your target here is to use 
Manipulate and Enemy Skill to try and learn Angel Whisper from an 
enemy called Pollensalta. To get it, you'll have to first use it on 
Cloud, then on a dead ally, then have that ally attack and then have 
him die. If you want to risk it, later on, you can try and learn Shadow Flare 
from Dragon Zombies, but it's not needed really.

Once you reach the third screen (the one with the bones), you might
end up fighting a Master Tonberry. Don't fret! You can survive if you
use Death Force before it gets too close to you! This fight will just
take a while to finish. Once you reach the bottom, use the Save
Crystal before the area where your party members are and save. If
you need to go back up now, then you might have a bit of problem,
since King Behemoths, Allegmagnes, and Master Tonberries are on
the way back up. Now, take the time to re-equip Cloud with Enemy Skill
and Heal, and prepare for you final battles! On the way down, the toughest
opponent you'll fight is Iron Man, as his attacks are pretty powerful.
You can deal with him by the ???? trick if you want, but remember to
use Angel Whisper if your HP drops below 2000! Dragon Zombies
can be dealt with by Angel Whisper.





B. The Final Battles [025]




Boss Battle: Jenova-SYNTHESIS
Lv:61
HP: 65535; 8000 (Left Tentacle); 10000 (Right Tentacle)
MP: 3000; 600 (Left Tentacle); 600 (Right Tentacle)



For this fight, you'll want to use Resist at the start of the battle. Kill
of the Left Tentacle first, and leave the right one alone, as it'll cast
Stop every 3 turns, and with Resist on, it'll be negated. Add to that
Bio2 will never hit, and you can pretty much win this fight easily.
Drain MP with Magic Hammer if you need it, as Jenova has plenty
to share. The only thing to watch for is Ultima, and you can easily
reduce the damage of that with a simple Big Guard.


After the battle, fully heal Cloud with Cure2 or Cure, and then use
Heal and Enemy Skill for the final battles! Make sure that Cloud is
in the back row before the fight as well.




Boss Battle: Bizarro-Sephiroth
Lv: 61
HP: 82500; 6000 (Left Arm); 4000 (Right Arm); 2000 (Head); 10000 (Core)
MP: 3000; 600 (Left Arm); 400 (Right Arm); 400 (Head); 400 (Core)



This is a very tough fight. You'll want to use Big Guard on your first
turn, then probably have to use Angel Whisper after that. Then, set
up Resist, and use Meteorain and Aqualung, or Pandora's Box, if
you have it. Once you kill both arms, start attacking the Core non-stop,
except for when your HP falls below 1500. Once the Core is dead,
Bizarro will start with this pattern:


Heartless Angel
Skip a turn
Physical attack x3 or x4
Repeat


If you use ???? right after Heartless Angel, you can maximize the amount
of damage you do to Bizarro, BUT if you kill him with it, then you'll
be in trouble in the next fight. So, your best bet is to use Angel Whisper
when he uses Heartless Angel, THEN use Meteorain if you have it or
use something like Shadow Flare or Goblin Punch (which is more ideal)
to try and finish him off. You might want to save Meteorain for after this
fight.




Boss Battle: Safer Sephiroth
Lv: 87
HP: 150,0000 (+40000 if Cloud is Lv99)
MP: 8500 (but recovers every turn....)



This fight is pretty straightforward actually. Safer will alternate between
two patterns throughout most of the fight, until his HP drops below
20,000:


Wall (Switches with DeSpell for 2nd pattern)
Shadow Flare (Switches with Deen for 2nd pattern)
Havoc Wing
[Flies up]
Pale Horse
Super Nova
Break (Switches with Heartless Angel after HP is under 20,000)
[Flies down]
Start of 2nd pattern
Repeat



First off, use Big Guard, so that you can survive Shadow Flare. Now,
use Angel Whisper after that, then Resist immediately afterwards. If
you don't get Resist out before Pale Horse, you're done. After that,
always use Angel Whisper after Super Nova, unless Safer starts using
Heartless Angel, in which case you punish him with ???? (this is also
nice to do after a Break, when your HP is full). You might want to have
more than 6000 HP for this fight, just to survive Break too. For DeSpell,
just recast Resist, then use Big Guard again and use ???? to punish
Safter. Make sure to use Magic Hammer if you run low, and don't worry
about not having any MP, as Safer has an infinite amount to share.
Keep up the strategy, and he'll go down in no time!



After you've beaten him, feel free to Omnislash him in the final battle,
and enjoy the credits! You've certainly deserve them this time around!








                  ------------------------------------------------------
              6. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) [026]
                  ------------------------------------------------------

Q: Is this challenge really possible?
A: Very much so! You just need a ton of patience and know what
you are doing to do this challenge. As stated at the start of this faq,
you'll also need to know how to use what at the right moment.



Q: Should I start with this challenge as my first?
A: Unless you think you're very godly, then be my guest. Otherwise,
I wouldn't recommend it for a first challenge. A regular Solo Character
game is the best way to start, then work up to SCIENM, and then this
challenge.



Q: Are you sure you've done this challenge?
A: I wouldn't have made a faq if I haven't done it, now would I? It'd
be pointless for me to do that, and I don't like to mislead anyone.



Q: What if there is something wrong in your faq? You'd be misleading
people then.
A: Well, if that's the case, then please notify me on either Gamefaqs,
email, or AIM, which is at the top of the faq.



Q: Why have you played this game so many times, just to do these
challenges?
A: I hear this a lot, and I probably do play this too many times, as of
right now, this makes my 75th playthrough (no joke there either). Well,
I guess my answer is that I do what I'm best at, and this game is probably
what I'm best at out of all of the games that I play. And I like to help
people, so why not use what I know and put that into something
that'll help many people?




Q: Why do this faq at all?
A: The answer is the same as in the previous question. And yes, I've
gotten comments about how challenge faqs are useless, but to me, it's
worth helping those who actually attempt them. And once again, I feel
the need to help.



                  ------------------------------------------------------
                                   7. Credits [027]
                  ------------------------------------------------------

Thanks to GarlandG and lolo26, for having the General Challenge
Discussion Topic, which got me back into the world of FFVII.

Thanks to Thundaka, for helping me with certain strategies for bosses,
especially Hojo and Sephiroth.

Thanks to anyone else that I've missed.

Thanks to Gamefaqs, for hosting this faq.