FFXII - New Run Complete!

2013-03-10 02:12:15 pm

Let the music play!

I was looking at the Tiamat fight lately and wondering if there weren't better approaches to fighting him. Reflecting Dark is fine, which is what Youkai does, but that takes a while, especially as Tiamat takes half damage from Dark, and the casters have to pause occasionally to Charge. Chaining Quickenings would take a while too, but get a good amount of damage in - perhaps useful for taking the last 1/4 to 1/3 of his HP off if you chain up to Cataclysm. Perhaps resorting to using physical attacks might be faster, but obviously more risky. I was planning on buying a Main Gauche anyway given it's decent damage and huge evasion boost, so that's one character sorted physically (probably just for Vaan/Basch though). Perhaps the true solution is a combination of these approaches, but it would require a lot of testing I'd imagine.

AlecK47

Edit history:

AlecK47: 2013-03-10 06:13:10 pm

2013-03-10 06:12:50 pm

Get a Cypress Pole (the one with Ground element) from Dyce by Raithwall's Tomb. Give it to Basch with an attack gambit and heal manually. It makes the fight a breeze.

Edit: you shouldn't even have to recast reflect

Toothache

2013-03-13 04:00:46 pm

Let the music play!

Good call on the Cypress Pole, surprised I didn't think of that myself.

I also had a few thoughts on some refinements for the segmented run. First of all, there's a chest that can have a Phoenix Down in Lowtown that isn't out of the way to get, which will mean 1 more Dustia in the first series of kills, giving Vaan/Fran/Balthier +1 level. This should have the added effect of speeding up some of the fights before the second Dustia chaining, including being more likely to beat Firemane before he uses Bushfire a second time - and maybe even having the MP/Mag to beat Mimic Queen before she uses Shockstorm. I don't know about either of these yet, but it seems a little more likely.

Also I thought that the Shear skill might help speed up some of the fights, especially the longer ones like Ahriman or Tiamat, where the tank doesn't tend to do much at the start of the fight, so lowering MDef for the casters seems a pretty practical thing to do in the long run.

AlecK47

Edit history:

AlecK47: 2013-03-13 10:34:37 pm

2013-03-13 10:32:29 pm

That one was a Nitrodon suggestion. I later realized myself that at that point in the game you aren't underleveled yet, so the damage is quite good.

Edit: More Phoenix Downs early on isn't a big deal. I can't remember how the exp. scales per level off the top of my head, so you might want to look into that first.

I thought of Shear myself, but haven't tested it out yet.

Toothache

2013-03-24 01:11:26 pm

Let the music play!

I did some segment 1 attempts today, and I noticed how close my times were to Youkai's (for reference, he saved at 15:51 on the game timer). I started badly getting around 18 minutes but I quickly knocked it down to 16:44. From first glance it seems like the PAL cutscenes load a little slower but much of the game runs at a speed comparable to NTSC (or drops frames to make it match). Either way, while the PAL times are going to be a little slower than NTSC for sure, they aren't going to be much slower, the difference being in seconds rather than the expected 20%.

I have a few attempts recorded, so I'm going to do some comparison between Youkai's run and what I've got so far to see where the most time is lost. My cutscene skipping isn't the best atm, but I'll get more consistent as I do more practise so I'm not worried about that at the minute. It does mean I can't make direct comparisons, only estimates, but I'll be including a few different things so it'll be more down to strategy than time I think. It'll certainly give a baseline for other PAL runners in the future to work towards. If any :-p

I did some segment 1 attempts today, and I noticed how close my times were to Youkai's (for reference, he saved at 15:51 on the game timer). I started badly getting around 18 minutes but I quickly knocked it down to 16:44. From first glance it seems like the PAL cutscenes load a little slower but much of the game runs at a speed comparable to NTSC (or drops frames to make it match). Either way, while the PAL times are going to be a little slower than NTSC for sure, they aren't going to be much slower, the difference being in seconds rather than the expected 20%.

I have a few attempts recorded, so I'm going to do some comparison between Youkai's run and what I've got so far to see where the most time is lost. My cutscene skipping isn't the best atm, but I'll get more consistent as I do more practise so I'm not worried about that at the minute. It does mean I can't make direct comparisons, only estimates, but I'll be including a few different things so it'll be more down to strategy than time I think. It'll certainly give a baseline for other PAL runners in the future to work towards. If any :-p

AlecK47

Edit history:

AlecK47: 2013-03-24 02:12:56 pm

2013-03-24 02:10:53 pm

Good to know about PAL. Slim vs. fat PS2 may make a difference as well, but I can't test it because I only have a fat, and I wasn't exactly concentrating on loading times at CFL.

Regarding the route, though, I plan on redoing it over the next month or so. My main goal is to completely eliminate Ba'Gamnan grinding, and possibly cut down on other grinding (though I wouldn't count on that being as significant). Nitrodon and I discussed it a bit at CFL, and it seems doable, but certain magic values are required to beat certain bosses reliably. So I need to ascertain what those values are, and then find a way to reach them with reduced LP and possibly levels. I also need to look into a Tiamat strat (three Cypress Poles) that kuro seems to have used. I may not post much about it until it's done, but if you have any questions, let me know.

Edit: I forgot about it in my last post, but you don't want to use more than three Phoenix Downs in Dustia 1 even if you have them because you need Balthier's level to stay low enough that he can hit Fenrir with Sleep via <0.

Good to know about PAL.  Slim vs. fat PS2 may make a difference as well, but I can't test it because I only have a fat, and I wasn't exactly concentrating on loading times at CFL.

Regarding the route, though, I plan on redoing it over the next month or so.  My main goal is to completely eliminate Ba'Gamnan grinding, and possibly cut down on other grinding (though I wouldn't count on that being as significant).  Nitrodon and I discussed it a bit at CFL, and it seems doable, but certain magic values are required to beat certain bosses reliably.  So I need to ascertain what those values are, and then find a way to reach them with reduced LP and possibly levels.  I also need to look into a Tiamat strat (three Cypress Poles) that kuro seems to have used.  I may not post much about it until it's done, but if you have any questions, let me know.

Edit: I forgot about it in my last post, but you don't want to use more than three Phoenix Downs in Dustia 1 even if you have them because you need Balthier's level to stay low enough that he can hit Fenrir with Sleep via <0.

Nitrodon

2013-03-24 02:20:37 pm

Balthier can hit Fenrir with Sleep at level 12, but fails at 13. An extra Dustia might not get Balthier that high, depending on how much he's in the party when you're killing Brainpans in the Pharos.

AlecK47

Edit history:

AlecK47: 2013-03-31 08:57:30 pm

AlecK47: 2013-03-31 08:57:20 pm

AlecK47: 2013-03-31 08:57:08 pm

AlecK47: 2013-03-31 07:53:06 pm

AlecK47: 2013-03-31 07:52:45 pm

2013-03-31 06:57:08 pm

OK, so I've done a little work on the reroute, and although I'm far from done, I do have some findings to share.

First off, the 3 Cypress Pole strat for Tiamat is very doable, and should take a comparable amount of time. You would also have Larsa alive for free potions and a bit of added DPS (comparable with Ashe and Penelo). Even though Larsa is not necessary to win, his being there and doing things is obviously more optimal so ideally one should either be able to cure Disable or prevent Larsa from even becoming disabled, although it may not be worth the trouble…

In order to keep Larsa from getting disabled I see a couple strategies, each with their own downside. First, you could buy Shell (only 300 gil) and cast it on Larsa - this is obviously luck-dependent and not as SS safe. Or you could use Decoy (2500 gil, but you get it soon after regardless) and hope Larsa is in the middle of an action so you can run far enough away from him (Immobilizing Larsa seems way too problematic).

However, Basch should have Remedy Lore 1 by this point, so a Remedy or two should do the trick (no point in getting Esuna - too much LP cost, and not cheap at 2800 gil). You can get one in the Royal Palace of Rabanastre (opposite the Zodiac Spear chest that contains an Elixir), although according to the FAQ there is a 10% chance that the chest won't spawn and a 25% chance if it does that it will contain gil instead. One Remedy should really be all you'd need, though.

Both Demon Wall and Belias are doable without Spellbreaker, and it’s a very good thing, too. To get Ashe her equipment, spells and Spellbreaker before Belias, 241 LP from “non-essential” sources (including Dustia and Skeletons) are required. Using the 3+51 Dustia leveling strategy cuts this to 79. More Dustia kills the second time around would obviously be faster than more Skeletons, which would mean buying 64 Phoenix Downs after 40 Skeletons or 61 after 48 Skeletons plus one other random enemy somewhere. To also get her access to Black Belts before Tiamat would require 72 LP even beyond that - an additional 24 Dustias - which would fortunately leave Vaan just shy of level 25, but would guarantee 3 Dustia sections and still leave Ashe 20 LP shy of Fira and 40 more shy of the Flame Staff after Tiamat. Although I suppose that a segmented run could skip Black Belts and hope for the best with Shell. Tongue

Without Spellbreaker, Demon Wall requires two rounds of casting instead of one. With equipment switching, you can get three rounds of Aero on Belias before Firaja, after which a fourth should finish him off - luckily his basic Fire spells don’t pierce Reflect.

Edit: I think the best way to fight Tiamat with 3 CP's is to have Basch throw a potion early on in the battle to draw aggro away from the casters, then spread out. Basch tosses potions as needed, and the casters do nothing but attack - they do less damage, but they're squishier too, and items draw a lot of aggro. Even if Larsa gets disabled it's not that bad. Just don't heal him and if he goes down, toss a Phoenix Down on him and he should be fine for the rest of the battle. Given how much Disablega has been missing on him so far, Shell is starting to look like a pretty good strategy for the fight. Just have someone with LP to spare, like Balthier, hit him with it before entering the battle.

Edit 2: Disablega is actually a technic according to FFWiki, so I don't think Shell would work. That said I had surprisingly good results just now with Black Belts only on Basch and Penelo (Ashe is still short 61 LP for Black Belts without getting more LP elsewhere).

OK, so I've done a little work on the reroute, and although I'm far from done, I do have some findings to share.

First off, the 3 Cypress Pole strat for Tiamat is very doable, and should take a comparable amount of time.  You would also have Larsa alive for free potions and a bit of added DPS (comparable with Ashe and Penelo). Even though Larsa is not necessary to win, his being there and doing things is obviously more optimal so ideally one should either be able to cure Disable or prevent Larsa from even becoming disabled, although it may not be worth the trouble…

In order to keep Larsa from getting disabled I see a couple strategies, each with their own downside.  First, you could buy Shell (only 300 gil) and cast it on Larsa - this is obviously luck-dependent and not as SS safe.  Or you could use Decoy (2500 gil, but you get it soon after regardless) and hope Larsa is in the middle of an action so you can run far enough away from him (Immobilizing Larsa seems way too problematic).

However, Basch should have Remedy Lore 1 by this point, so a Remedy or two should do the trick (no point in getting Esuna - too much LP cost, and not cheap at 2800 gil).  You can get one in the Royal Palace of Rabanastre (opposite the Zodiac Spear chest that contains an Elixir), although according to the FAQ there is a 10% chance that the chest won't spawn and a 25% chance if it does that it will contain gil instead.  One Remedy should really be all you'd need, though.

Both Demon Wall and Belias are doable without Spellbreaker, and it’s a very good thing, too.  To get Ashe her equipment, spells and Spellbreaker before Belias, 241 LP from “non-essential” sources (including Dustia and Skeletons) are required.  Using the 3+51 Dustia leveling strategy cuts this to 79.  More Dustia kills the second time around would obviously be faster than more Skeletons, which would mean buying 64 Phoenix Downs after 40 Skeletons or 61 after 48 Skeletons plus one other random enemy somewhere.  To also get her access to Black Belts before Tiamat would require 72 LP even beyond that - an additional 24 Dustias - which would fortunately leave Vaan just shy of level 25, but would guarantee 3 Dustia sections and still leave Ashe 20 LP shy of Fira and 40 more shy of the Flame Staff after Tiamat.  Although I suppose that a segmented run could skip Black Belts and hope for the best with Shell. :P

Without Spellbreaker, Demon Wall requires two rounds of casting instead of one.  With equipment switching, you can get three rounds of Aero on Belias before Firaja, after which a fourth should finish him off - luckily his basic Fire spells don’t pierce Reflect.

Edit: I think the best way to fight Tiamat with 3 CP's is to have Basch throw a potion early on in the battle to draw aggro away from the casters, then spread out.  Basch tosses potions as needed, and the casters do nothing but attack - they do less damage, but they're squishier too, and items draw a lot of aggro.  Even if Larsa gets disabled it's not that bad.  Just don't heal him and if he goes down, toss a Phoenix Down on him and he should be fine for the rest of the battle.  Given how much Disablega has been missing on him so far, Shell is starting to look like a pretty good strategy for the fight.  Just have someone with LP to spare, like Balthier, hit him with it before entering the battle.

Edit 2: Disablega is actually a technic according to FFWiki, so I don't think Shell would work.  That said I had surprisingly good results just now with Black Belts only on Basch and Penelo (Ashe is still short 61 LP for Black Belts without getting more LP elsewhere).

AlecK47

Edit history:

AlecK47: 2013-04-06 11:42:09 pm

AlecK47: 2013-04-06 11:39:59 pm

2013-04-06 11:38:30 pm

So much for not posting much about the reroute...

After some number crunching, I've made a very bare-bones LP/LB route. It assumes the absolute minimum mob kills, 40 Skeletons, only one round of Jellies (110 assumed) and doesn't require the current 54 Dustias for LP - I still need to figure out how many Dustia kills should be cut, if any. I also still need to route it for gil (I think it would require absurd luck, if it's even possible), but at least I know that there is enough LP. From Hydro on all LP is gravy anyway. And I'm currently debating whether Vaan or Ashe should get Shemhazai - if Vaan really needs a second mist charge for the Bahamut, Shemhazai would be the most efficient way for him to acquire one, and by then he almost certainly benefits more from additional augments than Ashe - the alternative is the two quickenings in the upper right (Ashe would have enough for those after Cid 2).

There are a few relevant things that I don't see changing, so I'll write about them now. First, Ashe doesn't get a Black Belt for Tiamat, which follows the three Cypress Pole strat (I still need to time whether or not a quickening finish with Fran, Penelo and possibly Balthier is faster because of Tiamat's defense going up at critical health) - it's a bit yolo, but doable. Speaking of quickenings, Penelo gets two before Cid - she goes through one to get the Black Belt license, then gets the one above Firaga. Vaan may be the main tank for LP reasons. Fran uses underflow to hit the Chimaera Brains in the Pharos with Death - they are easier to underflow than Brainpans, and it saves LP for Ashe and Penelo. Lower magic stats can be countered by equipping Ashe and Penelo with Sorcerer's Hats (Bur Omisace after Bergan), the LP route already accounts for (so the Mystic Armor starts with Wizard's Hats and Robes, upgrades to Enchanter's Habit, then adds Sorcerer's Hat). This boost is key for beating Cid 1 with any kind of consistency, in my experience.

Edit: Basch won't have Remedy Lore 1 for Tiamat. I'm also wondering about Tyrant without Swiftness augment(s).

So much for not posting much about the reroute...

After some number crunching, I've made a very bare-bones LP/LB route.  It assumes the absolute minimum mob kills, 40 Skeletons, only one round of Jellies (110 assumed) and doesn't require the current 54 Dustias for LP - I still need to figure out how many Dustia kills should be cut, if any.  I also still need to route it for gil (I think it would require absurd luck, if it's even possible), but at least I know that there is enough LP.  From Hydro on all LP is gravy anyway.  And I'm currently debating whether Vaan or Ashe should get Shemhazai - if Vaan really needs a second mist charge for the Bahamut, Shemhazai would be the most efficient way for him to acquire one, and by then he almost certainly benefits more from additional augments than Ashe - the alternative is the two quickenings in the upper right (Ashe would have enough for those after Cid 2).

There are a few relevant things that I don't see changing, so I'll write about them now.  First, Ashe doesn't get a Black Belt for Tiamat, which follows the three Cypress Pole strat (I still need to time whether or not a quickening finish with Fran, Penelo and possibly Balthier is faster because of Tiamat's defense going up at critical health) - it's a bit yolo, but doable.  Speaking of quickenings, Penelo gets two before Cid - she goes through one to get the Black Belt license, then gets the one above Firaga.  Vaan may be the main tank for LP reasons.  Fran uses underflow to hit the Chimaera Brains in the Pharos with Death - they are easier to underflow than Brainpans, and it saves LP for Ashe and Penelo.  Lower magic stats can be countered by equipping Ashe and Penelo with Sorcerer's Hats (Bur Omisace after Bergan), the LP route already accounts for (so the Mystic Armor starts with Wizard's Hats and Robes, upgrades to Enchanter's Habit, then adds Sorcerer's Hat).  This boost is key for beating Cid 1 with any kind of consistency, in my experience.

Edit: Basch won't have Remedy Lore 1 for Tiamat.  I'm also wondering about Tyrant without Swiftness augment(s).

Nitrodon

2013-04-07 12:31:52 am

In my current route, Vaan uses the following spells on the Bahamut (ideally):

1x Firaga (42 MP)
2x Dispel (16 MP each)
2x Protect (8 MP each)

This adds up to 90 MP. Vaan has an average of 87.5 MP at level 24 (his usual level after Brainpans), so this seems doable with enough running around. Alternatively, a single Channeling would solve this.

Regarding Chimera Brains: Split Infinity's FAQ states that they have 45-47 vitality. Based on my high success rate using Ashe with Spellbreaker, this number is much more believable than FF Wiki's 72-74. Besides, at least one caster will need Arcane Magick 5 for Bubble later in the Pharos.

AlecK47

Edit history:

AlecK47: 2013-04-07 10:41:15 am

2013-04-07 10:02:55 am

I figured that I was forgetting something. The more I think about this, the more it seems like I should get at least one Golden Amulet. That's something of a problem for money when I'm trying to be as minimalistic as possible, but the extra LP would be necessary for both Penelo and Vaan - in theory they could share one, but I'd like to get some more LP on Basch and/or Ashe as well. I was going to do a route where at least two were manipulated before Tiamat anyway, so other than the money issue it's not a very big change.

I thought that number seemed a bit high for the Chimera Brains...

Edit: Doing one round of Jellies is looking segmented only without a near-suicidally drastic cutdown on purchases. It would require having 52-55k gil after Dustia 2 if you don't want to manipulate and sell the Stillshrine Megalixir (which either allows you to buy an Officer's Hat or cuts the number down by 7777 gil)... which Nitrodon and I have both done, but is very unlikely. So I'm going to make a segmented route which does Jellies once, and a SS-safe route which does it twice and gets four Golden Amulets.

I figured that I was forgetting something.  The more I think about this, the more it seems like I should get at least one Golden Amulet.  That's something of a problem for money when I'm trying to be as minimalistic as possible, but the extra LP would be necessary for both Penelo and Vaan - in theory they could share one, but I'd like to get some more LP on Basch and/or Ashe as well.  I was going to do a route where at least two were manipulated before Tiamat anyway, so other than the money issue it's not a very big change.

I thought that number seemed a bit high for the Chimera Brains...

Edit: Doing one round of Jellies is looking segmented only without a near-suicidally drastic cutdown on purchases.  It would require having 52-55k gil after Dustia 2 if you don't want to manipulate and sell the Stillshrine Megalixir (which either allows you to buy an Officer's Hat or cuts the number down by 7777 gil)... which Nitrodon and I have both done, but is [i]very[/i] unlikely.  So I'm going to make a segmented route which does Jellies once, and a SS-safe route which does it twice and gets four Golden Amulets.

Toothache

2013-04-07 12:31:32 pm

Let the music play!

I'd like to get hold of your route for the segmented run, might give me more ideas on how to refine things for the PAL version run (and using YD's run as a base).

AlecK47

2013-04-07 01:03:42 pm

Once I finish the routes I'm doing, I'll post them here. They'll probably need to be tested a bit, though.

Nitrodon

2013-04-07 04:07:41 pm

I was a bit worried about Fran's LP, but then I realized that she probably doesn't need Channelings if you have 3 elixirs. With the 864ish LP she has to work with (assuming no Ba'Gamnan and one Jelly round), it looks like she can still get three Quickenings, and possibly also one Channeling depending on which Quickenings were chosen.

(ok, I guess that makes this post kind of useless, but whatever.)

AlecK47

Edit history:

AlecK47: 2013-04-15 07:42:03 pm

AlecK47: 2013-04-13 12:07:10 pm

AlecK47: 2013-04-13 12:05:57 pm

AlecK47: 2013-04-13 11:46:48 am

AlecK47: 2013-04-13 11:45:32 am

AlecK47: 2013-04-13 12:26:54 am

AlecK47: 2013-04-13 12:26:37 am

AlecK47: 2013-04-12 11:39:09 pm

AlecK47: 2013-04-12 11:37:11 pm

AlecK47: 2013-04-12 11:32:54 pm

AlecK47: 2013-04-12 11:31:16 pm

AlecK47: 2013-04-12 11:29:20 pm

AlecK47: 2013-04-12 11:28:06 pm

2013-04-12 11:22:41 pm

OK, here's the first of the two promised routes - the SS-safe one with two rounds of Jellies. Shoutouts to Youkai and Nitrodon!

The beginning is largely the same as Youkai and CFL runs. I assume a basic understanding of at least one of these runs' routes, so please watch either of the aforementioned runs if you haven’t already.
Also note that the License Board route is very tight in places. Deviate from it with caution.
Get Elixir in Rabanastre Palace (also grab Elixirs in Raithwall's Tomb, the Stillshrine, and Ahriman fight later - only three are necessary, but another helps, especially you get the Stillshrine Megalixir)
Open money chests and buy Blizzard from Burrogh in first room of Barheim
Minimum 2 Battery Mimic kills assumed
40 Skeletons, need 50-51 Bone Fragments if Dustia 1 drops nothing, Penelo’s equipment left on and only Mythril Sword and Vaan and Basch’s armor kept
Get Dark and Self gambit, but not Charge
NO Ba’Gamnan grinding!

Licenses on Leviathan (Ashe and Penelo before Ghis, others at beginning)
Vaan: BM2, TM1, AM1, TM2, Staves 1, Light Armor 2, Daggers 2, Poles 1
Balthier: Infuse
Fran: BM2, TM1, AM1
Basch: Daggers 2, Poles 1
Ashe: BM2, TM1, AM1, TM2, Staves 1, Mystic Armor 2 and 3
Penelo: BM1, BM2, TM1, AM1, TM2, Staves 1, Light Armor 2, Shields 1 Mystic Armor 2 and 3

Buy Immobilize, Reflect and Protect on Leviathan
Progress to Raithwall’s Tomb
Buy 3 Cypress Poles, 3 Cherry Staves, 2 Wizard’s Hats and 2 Robes, Aero, Oil, Sleep, 5 Echo Herbs and 5 Gold Needles
Demon Wall and Belias require an extra round of casting each without Spellbreaker but are reliable
Buy 3 Black Belts in Eruyt
In Jahara (after Eruyt), buy Shielded Armor, Infuse and 21 Hi-Potions

Licenses before Henne Mines*
Vaan: Gambit 15, Potion Lore 1, Accessories 4, 7 and 8
Basch: Shields 3, Heavy Armor 4, Accessories 5, 7 and 8
Penelo: Daggers 2, Poles 1, BM3, Quickening, Accessories 8
*Tiamat’s defense goes up when it hits critical HP. Fran and Balthier can both get quickenings here to help finish it, but that may or may not save time. Fran would get the one below Axes and Hammers 3, and Balthier would get the one straight down from Potion Lore 1. Regardless, it’s not strictly necessary.

For Tiamat fight, leave Larsa alive and everyone at full health, have Vaan, Basch and Penelo attack with Cypress Poles, with Vaan throwing Hi Potions as needed. Quickening finish or not – runner’s choice.

After Tiamat
Basch: Accessories 1, WM 1-3
Ashe: BM3, Rods 1, Staves 2
Penelo: Rods 1, Staves 2

Buy 5 Smelling Salts, Fira and Cura back at Eruyt before Jellies
DO NOT USE VAAN FOR JELLIES!
After Jellies Pt. 1, give Ashe Accessories 5, 7 and 8; buy and equip four Golden Amulets (Vaan, Basch, Ashe and Penelo), also buy Jackboots, Decoy, Confuse, Thundara and Blizzara
Minimum 110 Jellies assumed for each round

Before Stillshrine
Vaan: Gambit 25, Battle Lore 25, Gambit 35, Headsman, Swiftness, +150 HP, Gambit 50, Swiftness 50
Basch: Gambit 15, Potion Lore 1, Gambit 25, Battle Lore 25, Remedy Lore 1, Phoenix Lore, Potion Lore 2, Spellbound, Potion Lore 3, +150 HP
Ashe: Mystic Armor 5, Gambit 15, HP+50, Gambit 20, Magic Lore 25, Spellbreaker, Gambit 40, Swiftness 30*
Penelo: Mystic Armor 5, Gambit 15, HP+50, Gambit 20, Magic Lore 25, Spellbreaker, Gambit 40, Swiftness 30, AM 2-3
*If Ashe has at least 41 LP after buying the above licenses, she and Penelo can afford Mystic Armor 6 (Sorcerer’s Hat) before Mandragoras

At Bur Omisace, buy 2 Glacial Staves, and 2 Enchanter’s Habits
Proceed through Stillshrine and Bergan fight
Note that Mateus requires two rounds of Thundara without Thunder Staves. At the start of the fight bring in Ashe and Penelo to apply Decoy and Reflect to Basch (he should also be holding the Dawn Shard). Then remove Ashe and Penelo when you run up to Mateus, and only bring them out once all the Azers have targeted Basch – this advice helps elsewhere (like Ahriman and Famfrit), likely because of line of sight or some other such thing the game struggles with.

After Bergan
Vaan and Basch: Heavy Armor 6 (Vaan: straight right from LA2)
Ashe: Spellbound, Magic Lore 40, Channeling 30, Warmage, Light Armor 6 (if she can afford it)
Penelo: Spellbound, Warmage, Magic Lore 40, Channeling 30

Buy two Sorcerer’s Hats from Bur Omisace before continuing
At Phon Coast camp, buy Diamond Armor, Officer’s Hat, Mirror Mail, Bio, Dispel, Death, 21 Phoenix Downs, 5 Remedies and more Hi Potions – you should have at least 26,000 gil after these purchases
Proceed through Sochen Cave Palace
Make sure Ashe and Penelo stay up as much as possible during the Mandragoras fight - Ashe needs LP from all but one kill, but Penelo needs it from all of them (although one extra LP above baseline allows each of them an additional miss, and each 10 LP beyond that allows another) - this shouldn't be an issue, but the fight is a massive enough troll that this is worth mentioning
If low on MP after Mandragoras, you can kill the Crystalbug with Bio (see CFL run) to recharge before Ahriman or use one Elixir (only one)
Buy Aeroga in Archades during Chops sidequest (see CFL run), and sell old equipment, but keep Jackboots – also recommend saving Mithril Sword and one crap Armor for equipment swapping

Before Ahriman
Ashe and Penelo: Light Armor 6

Before Cid
Vaan: LA9, LA8, BM4
Basch: Swiftness 50, Remedy Lore 3
Ashe: BM4
Penelo: Channeling 50, BM4

Buy 11 X Potions and grab 5040 gil chest before leaving Balfonheim
Proceed through Giruvegan

Before Rafflesia
Basch: HP +200, Belias
Ashe: Maces 2-3, Quickening, Accessories 9, Quickening (if she can afford it)
Penelo: BM5, Quickening
Fran: AM2

Before Tyrant
Vaan: AM 2-3, Remedy Lore 3, +200 HP
Ashe: WM5, Quickening
Penelo: WM5

After Tyrant
Vaan: Spellbound
Basch: if at least 8 LP ahead, +500 HP
Ashe: Channeling 50, Gambit 50
Penelo: Gambit 50, Swiftness 50

Note: only Vaan needs a Golden Amulet after Shemhazai – although Ashe and Penelo benefit, this route assumes their Golden Amulets are sold
In Balfonheim, sell Glacial Staves, Wizard’s Hats and Golden Amulets (if necessary)
Also buy 11 X Potions (or fewer – make sure to save 8200 for Firaga) and Firaga
Fly the Strahl to Nalbina, then buy Bubble on the flight to Rabanastre before proceeding to Pharos

Before Hydro
Vaan: Gambit 40, Magic Lore 40, WM5
Basch: +500 HP – Basch done
Fran: AM5, Quickenings: left of WM8, below Axes and Hammers 3, and below Greatswords 1 – Fran done
Ashe: BM5
Penelo: GM4

After Hydro
Balthier: GM3 – Balthier done
Ashe: Swiftness 50
Penelo: AM4, AM5

Before Cid
Vaan: Battle Lore 80, +500 HP, Potion Lore 3, Potion Lore 2 – Vaan done (giving him Shemhazai for the Bahamut is a good idea, though)
Ashe: Magic Lore 55, Channeling 80, ML 80
Penelo: Magic Lore 55, Channeling 80, ML 80

After Cid
Ashe: Accessories 12 or 13, Acc. 15, Quickening – Ashe done
Penelo: Quickening – Penelo done

Before heading to the Bahamut, you can sell any remaining Golden Amulets and whatever loot you picked up in the Pharos (don’t go out of your way for that loot, though) to restock on curatives if necessary. Don’t bother with Hi Potions anymore.
Beat the game Smiley

Edit: still working on one kink Nitrodon pointed out - should have it fixed soon, but not tonight.
Edit 2: fixed. should be all good now
Edit 3: Nitrodon has been testing some things out and there are some more changes coming.

OK, here's the first of the two promised routes - the SS-safe one with two rounds of Jellies.  Shoutouts to Youkai and Nitrodon!
[hidden]The beginning is largely the same as Youkai and CFL runs.  I assume a basic understanding of at least one of these runs' routes, so please watch either of the aforementioned runs if you haven’t already.
Also note that the License Board route is very tight in places.  Deviate from it with caution.
Get Elixir in Rabanastre Palace (also grab Elixirs in Raithwall's Tomb, the Stillshrine, and Ahriman fight later - only three are necessary, but another helps, especially you get the Stillshrine Megalixir)
Open money chests and buy Blizzard from Burrogh in first room of Barheim
Minimum 2 Battery Mimic kills assumed
40 Skeletons, need 50-51 Bone Fragments if Dustia 1 drops nothing, Penelo’s equipment left on and only Mythril Sword and Vaan and Basch’s armor kept
Get Dark and Self gambit, but not Charge
NO Ba’Gamnan grinding!

Licenses on Leviathan (Ashe and Penelo before Ghis, others at beginning)
Vaan: BM2, TM1, AM1, TM2, Staves 1, Light Armor 2, Daggers 2, Poles 1
Balthier: Infuse
Fran: BM2, TM1, AM1
Basch: Daggers 2, Poles 1
Ashe: BM2, TM1, AM1, TM2, Staves 1, Mystic Armor 2 and 3
Penelo: BM1, BM2, TM1, AM1, TM2, Staves 1, Light Armor 2, Shields 1 Mystic Armor 2 and 3

Buy Immobilize, Reflect and Protect on Leviathan
Progress to Raithwall’s Tomb
Buy 3 Cypress Poles, 3 Cherry Staves, 2 Wizard’s Hats and 2 Robes, Aero, Oil, Sleep, 5 Echo Herbs and 5 Gold Needles
Demon Wall and Belias require an extra round of casting each without Spellbreaker but are reliable
Buy 3 Black Belts in Eruyt
In Jahara (after Eruyt), buy Shielded Armor, Infuse and 21 Hi-Potions

Licenses before Henne Mines*
Vaan: Gambit 15, Potion Lore 1, Accessories 4, 7 and 8
Basch: Shields 3, Heavy Armor 4, Accessories 5, 7 and 8
Penelo: Daggers 2, Poles 1, BM3, Quickening, Accessories 8
*Tiamat’s defense goes up when it hits critical HP. Fran and Balthier can both get quickenings here to help finish it, but that may or may not save time.  Fran would get the one below Axes and Hammers 3, and Balthier would get the one straight down from Potion Lore 1.  Regardless, it’s not strictly necessary.

For Tiamat fight, leave Larsa alive and everyone at full health, have Vaan, Basch and Penelo attack with Cypress Poles, with Vaan throwing Hi Potions as needed.  Quickening finish or not – runner’s choice.

After Tiamat
Basch: Accessories 1, WM 1-3
Ashe: BM3, Rods 1, Staves 2
Penelo: Rods 1, Staves 2

Buy 5 Smelling Salts, Fira and Cura back at Eruyt before Jellies
DO NOT USE VAAN FOR JELLIES!
After Jellies Pt. 1, give Ashe Accessories 5, 7 and 8; buy and equip four Golden Amulets (Vaan, Basch, Ashe and Penelo), also buy Jackboots, Decoy, Confuse, Thundara and Blizzara
Minimum 110 Jellies assumed for each round

Before Stillshrine
Vaan: Gambit 25, Battle Lore 25, Gambit 35, Headsman, Swiftness, +150 HP, Gambit 50, Swiftness 50
Basch: Gambit 15, Potion Lore 1, Gambit 25, Battle Lore 25, Remedy Lore 1, Phoenix Lore, Potion Lore 2, Spellbound, Potion Lore 3, +150 HP
Ashe: Mystic Armor 5, Gambit 15, HP+50, Gambit 20, Magic Lore 25, Spellbreaker, Gambit 40, Swiftness 30*
Penelo: Mystic Armor 5, Gambit 15, HP+50, Gambit 20, Magic Lore 25, Spellbreaker, Gambit 40, Swiftness 30, AM 2-3
*If Ashe has at least 41 LP after buying the above licenses, she and Penelo can afford Mystic Armor 6 (Sorcerer’s Hat) before Mandragoras

At Bur Omisace, buy 2 Glacial Staves, and 2 Enchanter’s Habits
Proceed through Stillshrine and Bergan fight
Note that Mateus requires two rounds of Thundara without Thunder Staves.  At the start of the fight bring in Ashe and Penelo to apply Decoy and Reflect to Basch (he should also be holding the Dawn Shard).  Then remove Ashe and Penelo when you run up to Mateus, and only bring them out once all the Azers have targeted Basch – this advice helps elsewhere (like Ahriman and Famfrit), likely because of line of sight or some other such thing the game struggles with.

After Bergan
Vaan and Basch: Heavy Armor 6 (Vaan: straight right from LA2)
Ashe: Spellbound, Magic Lore 40, Channeling 30, Warmage, Light Armor 6 (if she can afford it)
Penelo: Spellbound, Warmage, Magic Lore 40, Channeling 30

Buy two Sorcerer’s Hats from Bur Omisace before continuing
At Phon Coast camp, buy Diamond Armor, Officer’s Hat, Mirror Mail, Bio, Dispel, Death, 21 Phoenix Downs, 5 Remedies and more Hi Potions – you should have at least 26,000 gil after these purchases
Proceed through Sochen Cave Palace
Make sure Ashe and Penelo stay up as much as possible during the Mandragoras fight - Ashe needs LP from all but one kill, but Penelo needs it from all of them (although one extra LP above baseline allows each of them an additional miss, and each 10 LP beyond that allows another) - this shouldn't be an issue, but the fight is a massive enough troll that this is worth mentioning
If low on MP after Mandragoras, you can kill the Crystalbug with Bio (see CFL run) to recharge before Ahriman or use one Elixir (only one)
Buy Aeroga in Archades during Chops sidequest (see CFL run), and sell old equipment, but keep Jackboots – also recommend saving Mithril Sword and one crap Armor for equipment swapping

Before Ahriman
Ashe and Penelo: Light Armor 6

Before Cid
Vaan: LA9, LA8, BM4
Basch: Swiftness 50, Remedy Lore 3
Ashe: BM4
Penelo: Channeling 50, BM4

Buy 11 X Potions and grab 5040 gil chest before leaving Balfonheim
Proceed through Giruvegan

Before Rafflesia
Basch: HP +200, Belias
Ashe: Maces 2-3, Quickening, Accessories 9, Quickening (if she can afford it)
Penelo: BM5, Quickening
Fran: AM2

Before Tyrant
Vaan: AM 2-3, Remedy Lore 3, +200 HP
Ashe: WM5, Quickening
Penelo: WM5

After Tyrant
Vaan: Spellbound
Basch: if at least 8 LP ahead, +500 HP
Ashe: Channeling 50, Gambit 50
Penelo: Gambit 50, Swiftness 50

Note: only Vaan needs a Golden Amulet after Shemhazai – although Ashe and Penelo benefit, this route assumes their Golden Amulets are sold
In Balfonheim, sell Glacial Staves, Wizard’s Hats and Golden Amulets (if necessary)
Also buy 11 X Potions (or fewer – make sure to save 8200 for Firaga) and Firaga
Fly the Strahl to Nalbina, then buy Bubble on the flight to Rabanastre before proceeding to Pharos

Before Hydro
Vaan: Gambit 40, Magic Lore 40, WM5
Basch: +500 HP – Basch done
Fran: AM5, Quickenings: left of WM8, below Axes and Hammers 3, and below Greatswords 1 – Fran done
Ashe: BM5
Penelo: GM4

After Hydro
Balthier: GM3 – Balthier done
Ashe: Swiftness 50
Penelo: AM4, AM5

Before Cid
Vaan: Battle Lore 80, +500 HP, Potion Lore 3, Potion Lore 2 – Vaan done (giving him Shemhazai for the Bahamut is a good idea, though)
Ashe: Magic Lore 55, Channeling 80, ML 80
Penelo: Magic Lore 55, Channeling 80, ML 80

After Cid
Ashe: Accessories 12 or 13, Acc. 15, Quickening – Ashe done
Penelo: Quickening – Penelo done

Before heading to the Bahamut, you can sell any remaining Golden Amulets and whatever loot you picked up in the Pharos (don’t go out of your way for that loot, though) to restock on curatives if necessary.  Don’t bother with Hi Potions anymore.
Beat the game :) [/hidden]

Edit: still working on one kink Nitrodon pointed out - should have it fixed soon, but not tonight.
Edit 2: fixed.  should be all good now
Edit 3: Nitrodon has been testing some things out and there are some more changes coming.

Toothache

2013-05-06 10:40:06 am

Let the music play!

Did you get around to finish planning the segmented route? Just to mention that I'm planning to take the Phoenix Down chest in Lowtown as I pass through for the first time, for 4 Dustias in the first visit (I plan to segment to include an item from each one, should make buying for Dustia 2 a little easier). This may cause some interesting problems later down the road, but I feel I can compensate for that, and should make the first few bosses easier with an extra level on Vaan/Fran/Balthier over the 3 PD route.

AlecK47

2013-05-06 10:59:36 am

I'm pretty sure that some of the mistakes I made in the route above were because of me making a mistake in my spreadsheet, so I'm going to redo that route with a new document. I may even have it up later today, but we'll see.

As for the segmented route, I'm not sure when I'll have it up. I just finished my degree and I need to find a job sooner rather than later. That said, hopefully within a week or two.

AlecK47

Edit history:

AlecK47: 2013-06-26 11:45:53 pm

AlecK47: 2013-06-08 12:50:12 am

AlecK47: 2013-06-08 12:45:58 am

AlecK47: 2013-06-08 12:33:29 am

AlecK47: 2013-06-01 12:29:58 pm

AlecK47: 2013-06-01 11:51:37 am

AlecK47: 2013-05-26 03:34:10 pm

AlecK47: 2013-05-07 10:41:12 am

AlecK47: 2013-05-06 09:47:09 pm

AlecK47: 2013-05-06 09:30:35 pm

AlecK47: 2013-05-06 09:25:07 pm

AlecK47: 2013-05-06 04:54:27 pm

2013-05-06 04:21:52 pm

Double post for great routing justice! I reworked the SS route and either I completely screwed it up this time (which I doubt), or the fact that it's my second go made things infinitely smoother.

The beginning is largely the same as Youkai and Crystals For Life (CFL) runs. I assume a basic understanding of at least one of these runs' routes, so please watch either of the aforementioned runs if you haven’t already.
Also note that the License Board route is very tight in places. Deviate from it with caution.
Leave Penelo’s equipment alone
Get Elixir in Rabanastre Palace (also grab Elixirs in Raithwall's Tomb, the Stillshrine, and Ahriman fight later - only three are necessary, but another helps, especially you get the Stillshrine Megalixir)
Open money chests and buy Blizzard from Burrogh in first room of Barheim
Minimum 2 Battery Mimic kills assumed
40 Skeletons assumed, need 50-51 Bone Fragments if Dustia 1 drops nothing, Penelo’s equipment left on and only Mythril Sword and Vaan and Basch’s armor kept
Get Dark and Self gambit, but not Charge
NO Ba’Gamnan grinding!

Licenses on Leviathan (Ashe and Penelo before Ghis, others at beginning)
Vaan: BM2, TM1, AM1, TM2, Staves 1, Light Armor 2, Daggers 2, Poles 1
Fran: BM2, TM1, AM1
Basch: Daggers 1-2, Poles 1
Ashe: BM 1-2, TM1, AM1, TM2, Smallswords, Staves 1, Mystic Armor 2 and 3
Penelo: BM1, BM2, TM1, AM1, TM2, Staves 1, Light Armor 2, Shields 1, Mystic Armor 2 and 3

Buy Immobilize, Reflect and Protect on Leviathan
Note: Ghis can kill himself by casting Aero on your reflected party, which robs you of his LP. If you lose his LP you need to reset, so fortunately it is highly unlikely.
Progress to Raithwall’s Tomb
Buy 3 Cypress Poles, 3 Cherry Staves, 2 Wizard’s Hats and 2 Robes, Aero, Oil, Sleep, Berserk, 5 Echo Herbs and 5 Gold Needles

Lead with Penelo for Garuda

After Garuda
Ashe: HP+50, Gambit 20, ML25
Penelo: Gambit 15, HP+50, Gambit 20, ML25, Spellbreaker

Demon Wall requires an extra round of casting without Spellbreaker but is reliable
Belias requires two extra rounds and gets to use Firaja. If Penelo enters the battle between 450 and 525 HP, Firaja should leave her in Spellbreaker range (closer to 450 is better) which makes Belias consistent as well. Ideally, potions would be used to heal her into the correct HP range after Garuda.

Buy 2 Black Belts in Eruyt
In Jahara (after Eruyt), buy Shielded Armor, Infuse and 21 Hi-Potions

Licenses before Henne Mines
Vaan: Accessories 4, 7 and 8, Gambit 15, Potion Lore 1*
Balthier: Infuse
Basch: Shields 3, Heavy Armor 4, Accessories 5, 7 and 8
Penelo: Daggers 2, Poles 1
*If Vaan dropped and lost some LP (say, during Belias), just postpone the last license until the next LB section as necessary

For Tiamat, Berserk Vaan and Penelo and Reflect the party to avoid Aero. Even though Vaan has a Potion Lore and Basch doesn’t, Basch should be the one to throw any potions in the Tiamat fight because using items draws aggro and Basch has better armor. Also feel free to toss a Phoenix Down or other item that doesn’t heal HP on Tiamat (using Basch of course) to ensure that Basch is Tiamat’s main target (opening the battle with that is a good idea). Disablega also misses surprisingly often, hence no Black Belt on Penelo. If Penelo gets disabled it’s not a big deal. If Larsa gets disabled, have Basch focus on healing and either let disable run out or let Larsa fall then revive him – the results are generally similar both ways. Recast Berserk as needed.

After Tiamat
Basch: Accessories 1, WM 1-3
Ashe: BM3, Rods 1, Staves 2
Penelo: Rods 1, Staves 2, Headsman*
*as soon as she can afford it during Jellies (needs 9 LP baseline)

Buy 5 Smelling Salts, Fira and Cura back at Eruyt before Jellies
DO NOT USE VAAN FOR JELLIES!
Minimum 110 Jellies assumed for each round
For Jellies, Ashe will likely run out of MP. Although this has little effect, you can stagger her casts by turning her gambits on and off

Between rounds of Jellies
Ashe: Accessories 5, 7 and 8
Penelo: Quickening, Accessories 8
Buy and equip four Golden Amulets (Vaan, Basch, Ashe and Penelo), also buy Jackboots, Decoy, Confuse, Thundara and Blizzara

Before Stillshrine
Vaan: Gambit 25, Battle Lore 25, Gambit 35, Headsman, Swiftness, +150 HP, Gambit 50, Swiftness 50
Basch: Gambit 15, Potion Lore 1, Gambit 25, Battle Lore 25, Remedy Lore 1, Phoenix Lore, Potion Lore 2, Spellbound, Potion Lore 3, +150 HP
Ashe: Mystic Armor 5, Spellbreaker, Gambit 40, Swiftness 30, AM 2-3
Penelo: Mystic Armor 5, Swiftness 30, Spellbound, ML40, Channeling 30, Warmage, Channeling 50

At Bur Omisace, buy 2 Glacial Staves, and 2 Enchanter’s Habits
Proceed through Stillshrine and Bergan fight
Note that Mateus requires two rounds of Thundara without Thunder Staves. At the start of the fight bring in Ashe and Penelo to apply Decoy and Reflect to Basch (he should also be holding the Dawn Shard). Then remove Ashe and Penelo when you run up to Mateus, and only bring them out once all the Azers have targeted Basch – this advice helps elsewhere (like Ahriman and Famfrit), likely because of line of sight or some other such thing the game struggles with.
Because Ashe doesn’t have Spellbound yet, leave her out after Mateus and recast Reflect while Infusing before Bergan

After Bergan
Vaan and Basch: Heavy Armor 6 (Vaan: straight right from LA2)
Ashe: Spellbound, ML40, Channeling 30, Warmage*
Penelo: Mystic Armor 6, ML55
Ashe has a decent chance of being able to afford MA6 here

Buy two Sorcerer’s Hats from Bur Omisace before continuing
At Phon Coast camp, buy Diamond Armor, Officer’s Hat, Mirror Mail, Bio, Dispel, Death, 21 Phoenix Downs, 5 Remedies and more Hi Potions – you should have at least 26,000 gil after these purchases
Proceed through Sochen Cave Palace, using Basch as tank for Mandys and Ahriman fights
The casters will likely drop during the Mandys fight. Each Mandy killed while one is down loses that character 5 LP. If because of this you cannot afford the last license in a list, simply postpone it until the next LB section
If low on MP after Mandragoras, you can kill the Crystalbug with Bio (see CFL run) to recharge before Ahriman or use one Elixir (only one)
Buy Aeroga in Archades during Chops sidequest (see CFL run), and sell old equipment, but keep Jackboots – also recommend saving Mithril Sword and one crap Armor for equipment swapping

Before Ahriman
Ashe: MA6

Before Cid
Vaan: LA9, LA8
Basch: Swiftness 50, Remedy Lore 3
Ashe: BM4, Channeling 50*
Penelo: BM4, Gambit 50, Swiftness 50
*Just short baseline

In Cid fight, use Basch (under Decoy) as tank. Recast Decoy after two rounds of Bio (remember to swap armor temporarily). Don’t waste too much MP on Bio casts that hit Cid before finishing the Rooks. Turn gambits on and off as necessary – you get a feel for it, trust me. Also have Basch toss potions like a freaking madman. Instead of trying to finish Cid before S-27 Tokamak, you can do two rounds of Bio, turn off gambits and switch to Balthier. After Balthier goes down bring in Basch, then the casters once Cid targets Basch.

Buy 11 X Potions and grab 5040 gil chest before leaving Balfonheim
Proceed through Giruvegan

Before Rafflesia
Basch: HP +200, Belias
Ashe: Channeling 50, ML55
Penelo: BM5, Quickening
Fran: AM2

Before Tyrant
Vaan: AM 2-3, Spellbound, GM 1
Ashe: WM5, Gambit 50
Penelo: WM5

After Tyrant
Vaan: Gambit 40, Magic Lore 40, WM5
Basch: if he has 235 LP get BL80 and +500 HP
Ashe: Swiftness 50

Note: only Vaan needs a Golden Amulet after Shemhazai – although Ashe benefits, this route assumes their Golden Amulets are sold
In Balfonheim, sell Glacial Staves, Wizard’s Hats and Golden Amulets (if necessary)
Also buy 11 X Potions (or fewer – make sure to save 8200 for Firaga) and Firaga
Fly the Strahl to Nalbina, then buy Bubble on the flight to Rabanastre before proceeding to Pharos

Before Hydro
Basch: BL80, +500 HP – Basch done (optional: GM1)
Ashe: BM5, Channeling 80
Penelo: GM 4-5, AM 4-5

After Hydro
Vaan: Remedy Lore 3, +200HP
Balthier: GM3 – Balthier done

After Pandaemonium:
Fran: AM5 (through GM 5-6), Quickenings: below Axes and Hammers 3, below Maces 3, and right of Acc. 9; Channelings (go down from GM6)

Before Cid
Vaan: Battle Lore 80, +500 HP, Potion Lore 3, Potion Lore 2
Ashe: GM4 (technically unnecessary, but it doesn't hurt unless Ashe is at least 28 LP above baseline, and that would only affect an unnecessary ML - runner's choice)
Penelo: Channeling 80, ML 80, Quickening

After Cid
Vaan: Shemhazai – Vaan done
Ashe: Famfrit – Ashe done
Penelo: ML 120 – Penelo done

Before heading to the Bahamut, you can sell any remaining Golden Amulets and whatever loot you picked up in the Pharos (don’t go out of your way for that loot, though) to restock on curatives if necessary. Don’t bother with Hi Potions anymore.
Beat the game Smiley

I may even get the other route done sooner than later, but that one will probably have some rough edges.

Edit: gave Ashe AM3 before Stillshrine

Double post for great routing justice!  I reworked the SS route and either I completely screwed it up this time (which I doubt), or the fact that it's my second go made things infinitely smoother.

[hidden]The beginning is largely the same as Youkai and Crystals For Life (CFL) runs.  I assume a basic understanding of at least one of these runs' routes, so please watch either of the aforementioned runs if you haven’t already.
Also note that the License Board route is very tight in places.  Deviate from it with caution.
Leave Penelo’s equipment alone
Get Elixir in Rabanastre Palace (also grab Elixirs in Raithwall's Tomb, the Stillshrine, and Ahriman fight later - only three are necessary, but another helps, especially you get the Stillshrine Megalixir)
Open money chests and buy Blizzard from Burrogh in first room of Barheim
Minimum 2 Battery Mimic kills assumed
40 Skeletons assumed, need 50-51 Bone Fragments if Dustia 1 drops nothing, Penelo’s equipment left on and only Mythril Sword and Vaan and Basch’s armor kept
Get Dark and Self gambit, but not Charge
NO Ba’Gamnan grinding!

Licenses on Leviathan (Ashe and Penelo before Ghis, others at beginning)
Vaan: BM2, TM1, AM1, TM2, Staves 1, Light Armor 2, Daggers 2, Poles 1
Fran: BM2, TM1, AM1
Basch: Daggers 1-2, Poles 1
Ashe: BM 1-2, TM1, AM1, TM2, Smallswords, Staves 1, Mystic Armor 2 and 3
Penelo: BM1, BM2, TM1, AM1, TM2, Staves 1, Light Armor 2, Shields 1, Mystic Armor 2 and 3

Buy Immobilize, Reflect and Protect on Leviathan
Note: Ghis can kill himself by casting Aero on your reflected party, which robs you of his LP.  If you lose his LP you need to reset, so fortunately it is highly unlikely.
Progress to Raithwall’s Tomb
Buy 3 Cypress Poles, 3 Cherry Staves, 2 Wizard’s Hats and 2 Robes, Aero, Oil, Sleep, Berserk, 5 Echo Herbs and 5 Gold Needles

Lead with Penelo for Garuda

After Garuda
Ashe: HP+50, Gambit 20, ML25
Penelo: Gambit 15, HP+50, Gambit 20, ML25, Spellbreaker

Demon Wall requires an extra round of casting without Spellbreaker but is reliable
Belias requires two extra rounds and gets to use Firaja.  If Penelo enters the battle between 450 and 525 HP, Firaja should leave her in Spellbreaker range (closer to 450 is better) which makes Belias consistent as well.  Ideally, potions would be used to heal her into the correct HP range after Garuda.

Buy 2 Black Belts in Eruyt
In Jahara (after Eruyt), buy Shielded Armor, Infuse and 21 Hi-Potions

Licenses before Henne Mines
Vaan: Accessories 4, 7 and 8, Gambit 15, Potion Lore 1*
Balthier: Infuse
Basch: Shields 3, Heavy Armor 4, Accessories 5, 7 and 8
Penelo: Daggers 2, Poles 1
*If Vaan dropped and lost some LP (say, during Belias), just postpone the last license until the next LB section as necessary

For Tiamat, Berserk Vaan and Penelo and Reflect the party to avoid Aero.  Even though Vaan has a Potion Lore and Basch doesn’t, Basch should be the one to throw any potions in the Tiamat fight because using items draws aggro and Basch has better armor.  Also feel free to toss a Phoenix Down or other item that doesn’t heal HP on Tiamat (using Basch of course) to ensure that Basch is Tiamat’s main target (opening the battle with that is a good idea).  Disablega also misses surprisingly often, hence no Black Belt on Penelo.  If Penelo gets disabled it’s not a big deal.  If Larsa gets disabled, have Basch focus on healing and either let disable run out or let Larsa fall then revive him – the results are generally similar both ways.  Recast Berserk as needed.

After Tiamat
Basch: Accessories 1, WM 1-3
Ashe: BM3, Rods 1, Staves 2
Penelo: Rods 1, Staves 2, Headsman*
*as soon as she can afford it during Jellies (needs 9 LP baseline)

Buy 5 Smelling Salts, Fira and Cura back at Eruyt before Jellies
DO NOT USE VAAN FOR JELLIES! 
Minimum 110 Jellies assumed for each round
For Jellies, Ashe will likely run out of MP.  Although this has little effect, you can stagger her casts by turning her gambits on and off

Between rounds of Jellies
Ashe: Accessories 5, 7 and 8
Penelo: Quickening, Accessories 8
Buy and equip four Golden Amulets (Vaan, Basch, Ashe and Penelo), also buy Jackboots, Decoy, Confuse, Thundara and Blizzara

Before Stillshrine
Vaan: Gambit 25, Battle Lore 25, Gambit 35, Headsman, Swiftness, +150 HP, Gambit 50, Swiftness 50
Basch: Gambit 15, Potion Lore 1, Gambit 25, Battle Lore 25, Remedy Lore 1, Phoenix Lore, Potion Lore 2, Spellbound, Potion Lore 3, +150 HP
Ashe: Mystic Armor 5, Spellbreaker, Gambit 40, Swiftness 30, AM 2-3
Penelo: Mystic Armor 5, Swiftness 30, Spellbound, ML40, Channeling 30, Warmage, Channeling 50

At Bur Omisace, buy 2 Glacial Staves, and 2 Enchanter’s Habits
Proceed through Stillshrine and Bergan fight
Note that Mateus requires two rounds of Thundara without Thunder Staves.  At the start of the fight bring in Ashe and Penelo to apply Decoy and Reflect to Basch (he should also be holding the Dawn Shard).  Then remove Ashe and Penelo when you run up to Mateus, and only bring them out once all the Azers have targeted Basch – this advice helps elsewhere (like Ahriman and Famfrit), likely because of line of sight or some other such thing the game struggles with.
Because Ashe doesn’t have Spellbound yet, leave her out after Mateus and recast Reflect while Infusing before Bergan

After Bergan
Vaan and Basch: Heavy Armor 6 (Vaan: straight right from LA2)
Ashe: Spellbound, ML40, Channeling 30, Warmage*
Penelo: Mystic Armor 6, ML55
Ashe has a decent chance of being able to afford MA6 here

Buy two Sorcerer’s Hats from Bur Omisace before continuing
At Phon Coast camp, buy Diamond Armor, Officer’s Hat, Mirror Mail, Bio, Dispel, Death, 21 Phoenix Downs, 5 Remedies and more Hi Potions – you should have at least 26,000 gil after these purchases
Proceed through Sochen Cave Palace, using Basch as tank for Mandys and Ahriman fights
The casters will likely drop during the Mandys fight.  Each Mandy killed while one is down loses that character 5 LP.  If because of this you cannot afford the last license in a list, simply postpone it until the next LB section
If low on MP after Mandragoras, you can kill the Crystalbug with Bio (see CFL run) to recharge before Ahriman or use one Elixir (only one)
Buy Aeroga in Archades during Chops sidequest (see CFL run), and sell old equipment, but keep Jackboots – also recommend saving Mithril Sword and one crap Armor for equipment swapping

Before Ahriman
Ashe: MA6

Before Cid
Vaan: LA9, LA8
Basch: Swiftness 50, Remedy Lore 3
Ashe:  BM4, Channeling 50*
Penelo: BM4, Gambit 50, Swiftness 50
*Just short baseline

In Cid fight, use Basch (under Decoy) as tank.  Recast Decoy after two rounds of Bio (remember to swap armor temporarily).  Don’t waste too much MP on Bio casts that hit Cid before finishing the Rooks.  Turn gambits on and off as necessary – you get a feel for it, trust me.  Also have Basch toss potions like a freaking madman.  Instead of trying to finish Cid before S-27 Tokamak, you can do two rounds of Bio, turn off gambits and switch to Balthier.  After Balthier goes down bring in Basch, then the casters once Cid targets Basch.

Buy 11 X Potions and grab 5040 gil chest before leaving Balfonheim
Proceed through Giruvegan

Before Rafflesia
Basch: HP +200, Belias
Ashe: Channeling 50, ML55
Penelo: BM5, Quickening
Fran: AM2

Before Tyrant
Vaan: AM 2-3, Spellbound, GM 1
Ashe: WM5, Gambit 50
Penelo: WM5

After Tyrant
Vaan: Gambit 40, Magic Lore 40, WM5
Basch: if he has 235 LP get BL80 and +500 HP
Ashe: Swiftness 50

Note: only Vaan needs a Golden Amulet after Shemhazai – although Ashe benefits, this route assumes their Golden Amulets are sold
In Balfonheim, sell Glacial Staves, Wizard’s Hats and Golden Amulets (if necessary)
Also buy 11 X Potions (or fewer – make sure to save 8200 for Firaga) and Firaga
Fly the Strahl to Nalbina, then buy Bubble on the flight to Rabanastre before proceeding to Pharos

Before Hydro
Basch: BL80, +500 HP – Basch done (optional: GM1)
Ashe: BM5, Channeling 80
Penelo: GM 4-5, AM 4-5

After Hydro
Vaan: Remedy Lore 3, +200HP
Balthier: GM3 – Balthier done

After Pandaemonium:
Fran: AM5 (through GM 5-6), Quickenings: below Axes and Hammers 3, below Maces 3, and right of Acc. 9; Channelings (go down from GM6)

Before Cid
Vaan: Battle Lore 80, +500 HP, Potion Lore 3, Potion Lore 2
Ashe: GM4 (technically unnecessary, but it doesn't hurt unless Ashe is at least 28 LP above baseline, and that would only affect an unnecessary ML - runner's choice)
Penelo: Channeling 80, ML 80, Quickening

After Cid
Vaan: Shemhazai – Vaan done
Ashe: Famfrit – Ashe done
Penelo: ML 120 – Penelo done

Before heading to the Bahamut, you can sell any remaining Golden Amulets and whatever loot you picked up in the Pharos (don’t go out of your way for that loot, though) to restock on curatives if necessary.  Don’t bother with Hi Potions anymore.
Beat the game :) [/hidden]

I may even get the other route done sooner than later, but that one will probably have some rough edges.

Edit: gave Ashe AM3 before Stillshrine

Nitrodon

2013-05-06 09:55:01 pm

The one major problem I see in this route is that nobody gets AM3 until Tyrant. The other two things I have to say are relatively minor.

I think I determined that Penelo doesn't need Headsman against the Jellies, as long as the casters' spells are staggered correctly.

I've never had MP problems in the Pharos (except that one time when I didn't touch a save crystal before Fenrir and then messed everything up in the battle itself), so you can safely skip Ashe's quickenings and just give her Famfrit afterward, saving 100 LP total (actually a bit less because going through accessories 11 and 14 is cheaper).

AlecK47

Edit history:

AlecK47: 2013-06-08 12:34:31 am

AlecK47: 2013-05-18 01:19:53 am

AlecK47: 2013-05-18 01:08:11 am

AlecK47: 2013-05-18 01:07:39 am

AlecK47: 2013-05-18 01:03:03 am

AlecK47: 2013-05-18 12:55:06 am

AlecK47: 2013-05-07 12:48:58 pm

2013-05-07 12:48:09 pm

Got the SS route fixed and the Segmented route done. And holy crap, I do not want to do the Segmented run Tongue

As with the previous SS route I assume a basic knowledge of running FFXII, including the genaral route up to Garuda (see SS route) except as noted. I also will not reiterate advice for certain fights included in the SS route
Two Battery Mimics, 32 Skeletons (need 48 bone fragments if no equipment sold, but more is better), 54 Dustia (more gains nothing; go for 52k+ gil after selling Dustia 2 loot, but once again more is better)
Manipulate 3 Golden Amulets as in Youkai’s run
Shopping is the same as in the SS route except as noted
Unlike the previous route, it is assumed that no LP is lost at any point
Segmenting is up to the runner’s discretion, but one important thing to note when running FFXII segmented is that the in game timer runs while you are in the save menu (and presumably when loading a file), but not while saving the file to a memory card
Random damage variance will be both your damnation and salvation (mostly the former)
Send Ashe through Accessories 4 instead of BM 1

After Garuda
No licenses

Before Henne Mines
Vaan: Accessories 4, 7 and 8, Gambit 15, Potion Lore 1
Balthier: Infuse
Basch: Shields 3, Heavy Armor 4, Accessories 5, 7 and 8
Ashe: Accessories 7, 8
Penelo: Daggers 2, Poles 1, BM3, Accessories 4, 7 and 8
Equip Golden Amulets to Vaan, Ashe and Penelo

Jellies (only one round)
98 Jellies yielding 99 Yellow Liquids assumed
Basch: Accessories 1, WM 1-3
Ashe: BM3, Rods 1, Staves 2
Penelo: Gambit 15, HP +50, Gambit 20, ML25
Penelo now needs 84 LP for headsman (42 chain) going through Spellbreaker, by staggering Fira casts this is possible
Based on these two facts, I recommend entering with the casters’ gambits off, activating Penelo’s gambits a couple seconds after queuing Cura, and activating Ashe’s after getting Staves 2 and equipping a Fire Staff. More tech could optimize this process further (caster running in circles and such), but needs testing
It is actually possible to get through Jellies without giving Penelo Headsman at all, which would allow you to go through Gambit 40 instead of Ether Lore 1 and save 10 LP. The only LB issue this would solve, however is after Cid 2, and may not be a problem at all
Buy one Golden Amulet after Jellies, equip to Basch
Also buy two Thunder Staves (unless lower magic stats prevent ORKO – needs testing)

Before Stillshrine
Vaan: HA4 (straight right from LA2)
Basch: Gambit 15, PL1, Gambit 25, BL25, Remedy Lore, Phoenix Lore, PL2, Spellbound
Ashe: +50 HP, Gambit 20, ML25, Spellbreaker
Penelo: AM 2-3

Manipulate Megalixir – used during Cid 2 or, if absolutely necessary, for cash
No Diamond Armor or Officer’s Hat from Phon Coast, 21 Hi Potions (should have at least 9 left for a total of 30+), no Phoenix Downs

Before Mandys
Basch: Shields 4, HA6
Ashe: Gambit 40, ML40, Channeling 30, Warmage, MA6
Penelo: Ether Lore 1, ML40, Channeling 30, Warmage

Before Ahriman
Penelo: MA6

I won’t lie, not having Spellbound on the casters for Sochen worries me a bit (and for Cid, in Penelo’s case), but it should be doable. If Penelo’s reflect doesn’t last through Cid, MA6 could be postponed, but the extra magic from Sorcerer’s Hats is very important in that fight. This should probably be tested

Before Cid
If Vaan can’t be tank for whole battle, switch him in after finishing Rooks to get Cid before S-27 Tokamak (but remember that equipment switching works for potions too). Magic stats are either
Vaan: Gambit 25, Shield Block 25, Remedy Lore, Phoenix Lore, Potion Lore 2, Spellbound, Shields 4, HA6, BM 3-4
Basch: PL3, +150 HP
Ashe: BM4, Swiftness 30, Spellbound
Penelo: BM4, Swiftness 30

Before Tyrant
Vaan: AM2, GM1, Swiftness 30, +150 HP, PL3, Swiftness 50
Basch: Swiftness 50, Remedy Lore 3, +200HP
Ashe: Channeling 50, ML55, WM5
Penelo: Spellbound, Channeling 50, ML55, WM5, GM4

Before Shemhazai
Vaan: AM3
Ashe: Gambit 50, Swiftness 50

Vaan will probably need to recast Immobilize mid-battle
Sell all four Golden Amulets

Before Hydro
Ashe: BM5
Penelo: BM5

After Hydro
Balthier: GM3
Fran: AM5 and quickenings
Penelo: AM 4-5

After Pandaemonium
Vaan: Remedy Lore 3, +200 HP
Fran: Channelings (probably necessary, but not tested)
Basch: BL80, +500 HP
Ashe: Channeling 80, ML80

After Slyt
Penelo: Gambit 50, Swiftness 50

Before Cid
Penelo: Quickening

After Cid
Vaan: BL80, +500 HP
Ashe: Shemhazai, Quickening, ML 120
Penelo: Channeling 80, ML80*
*She’s technically three LP short barring extra LP from somewhere (like soldiers in the Judges fight on Leviathan), but Gabranth gives LP, so at least she can have the ML for Vayne if necessary

Got the SS route fixed and the Segmented route done.  And holy crap, I do [i]not[/i] want to do the Segmented run :P

[hidden]As with the previous SS route I assume a basic knowledge of running FFXII, including the genaral route up to Garuda (see SS route) except as noted.  I also will not reiterate advice for certain fights included in the SS route
Two Battery Mimics, 32 Skeletons (need 48 bone fragments if no equipment sold, but more is better), 54 Dustia (more gains nothing; go for 52k+ gil after selling Dustia 2 loot, but once again more is better)
Manipulate 3 Golden Amulets as in Youkai’s run
Shopping is the same as in the SS route except as noted
Unlike the previous route, it is assumed that no LP is lost at any point
Segmenting is up to the runner’s discretion, but one important thing to note when running FFXII segmented is that the in game timer runs while you are in the save menu (and presumably when loading a file), but not while saving the file to a memory card
Random damage variance will be both your damnation and salvation (mostly the former)
Send Ashe through Accessories 4 instead of BM 1

After Garuda
No licenses

Before Henne Mines
Vaan: Accessories 4, 7 and 8, Gambit 15, Potion Lore 1
Balthier: Infuse
Basch: Shields 3, Heavy Armor 4, Accessories 5, 7 and 8
Ashe: Accessories 7, 8
Penelo: Daggers 2, Poles 1, BM3, Accessories 4, 7 and 8
Equip Golden Amulets to Vaan, Ashe and Penelo

Jellies (only one round)
98 Jellies yielding 99 Yellow Liquids assumed
Basch: Accessories 1, WM 1-3
Ashe: BM3, Rods 1, Staves 2
Penelo: Gambit 15, HP +50, Gambit 20, ML25
Penelo now needs 84 LP for headsman (42 chain) going through Spellbreaker, by staggering Fira casts this is possible
Based on these two facts, I recommend entering with the casters’ gambits off, activating Penelo’s gambits a couple seconds after queuing Cura, and activating Ashe’s after getting Staves 2 and equipping a Fire Staff.  More tech could optimize this process further (caster running in circles and such), but needs testing
It is actually possible to get through Jellies without giving Penelo Headsman at all, which would allow you to go through Gambit 40 instead of Ether Lore 1 and save 10 LP.  The only LB issue this would solve, however is after Cid 2, and may not be a problem at all
Buy one Golden Amulet after Jellies, equip to Basch
Also buy two Thunder Staves (unless lower magic stats prevent ORKO – needs testing)

Before Stillshrine
Vaan: HA4 (straight right from LA2)
Basch: Gambit 15, PL1, Gambit 25, BL25, Remedy Lore, Phoenix Lore, PL2, Spellbound
Ashe: +50 HP, Gambit 20, ML25, Spellbreaker
Penelo: AM 2-3

Manipulate Megalixir – used during Cid 2 or, if absolutely necessary, for cash
No Diamond Armor or Officer’s Hat from Phon Coast, 21 Hi Potions (should have at least 9 left for a total of 30+), no Phoenix Downs

Before Mandys
Basch: Shields 4, HA6
Ashe: Gambit 40, ML40, Channeling 30, Warmage, MA6
Penelo: Ether Lore 1, ML40, Channeling 30, Warmage

Before Ahriman
Penelo: MA6

I won’t lie, not having Spellbound on the casters for Sochen worries me a bit (and for Cid, in Penelo’s case), but it should be doable.  If Penelo’s reflect doesn’t last through Cid, MA6 could be postponed, but the extra magic from Sorcerer’s Hats is very important in that fight.  This should probably be tested

Before Cid
If Vaan can’t be tank for whole battle, switch him in after finishing Rooks to get Cid before S-27 Tokamak (but remember that equipment switching works for potions too).  Magic stats are either 
Vaan: Gambit 25, Shield Block 25, Remedy Lore, Phoenix Lore, Potion Lore 2, Spellbound, Shields 4, HA6, BM 3-4
Basch: PL3, +150 HP
Ashe: BM4, Swiftness 30, Spellbound
Penelo: BM4, Swiftness 30

Before Tyrant
Vaan: AM2, GM1, Swiftness 30, +150 HP, PL3, Swiftness 50
Basch: Swiftness 50, Remedy Lore 3, +200HP
Ashe: Channeling 50, ML55, WM5
Penelo: Spellbound, Channeling 50, ML55, WM5, GM4

Before Shemhazai
Vaan: AM3
Ashe: Gambit 50, Swiftness 50

Vaan will probably need to recast Immobilize mid-battle
Sell all four Golden Amulets

Before Hydro
Ashe: BM5
Penelo: BM5

After Hydro
Balthier: GM3
Fran: AM5 and quickenings
Penelo: AM 4-5

After Pandaemonium
Vaan: Remedy Lore 3, +200 HP
Fran: Channelings (probably necessary, but not tested)
Basch: BL80, +500 HP
Ashe: Channeling 80, ML80

After Slyt
Penelo: Gambit 50, Swiftness 50

Before Cid
Penelo: Quickening

After Cid
Vaan: BL80, +500 HP
Ashe: Shemhazai, Quickening, ML 120
Penelo: Channeling 80, ML80*
*She’s technically three LP short barring extra LP from somewhere (like soldiers in the Judges fight on Leviathan), but Gabranth gives LP, so at least she can have the ML for Vayne if necessary[/hidden]

Freddeh

2013-05-19 10:46:37 am

So, I'm starting to learn this run (using AlecK's new no-BaGamnan route) for some good SS run attempts, currently got my notes and saves set up and am going to stream a test/practice run through Belias soon.

Any helpful thoughts that may not be apparent from the Youkai/C4L runs?

AlecK47

2013-05-19 09:22:24 pm

Honestly the big thing is the Tiamat fight, which is why I made sure to cover it in the SS route above. I tried to mention other things that might be unclear, but feel free to ask if you have trouble.

Also, it's worth mentioning that I fixed a couple mistakes I made in the Segmented route (not in my math, I just forgot to type things in embarassed

). I also made a change for Ashe that lets her get Staves 2 before Jellies. Thanks to Nitrodon for pointing those things out.

I'm probably done with what little I've done running this game, but I'm glad that there's at least some interest. Smiley

Freddeh

Edit history:

Freddeh: 2013-05-21 03:37:44 pm

2013-05-19 09:31:47 pm

Hoping to spur someone else to try to compete with, but even if not I plan to get some solid recorded/streamed SS runs in :).

So far I have my notes down through Belias, going to stream a run to make sure my notes are in order and can get me through (and practice not getting lost on some of the longer runs XD) sometime in the next week. Then comes the real practice of learning Tiamat, Mandys, and the rest of the boss fights.

EDIT: Streamed a run through Belias, was ugly in parts, got lost in the desert, but thats why its practice ;). Here's the run: http://www.twitch.tv/freddeh/c/2315820

AlecK47

2013-05-23 12:09:21 pm

I just watched your practice run, except for running and most of Dustia, and I have a few suggestions.

You can actually skip the camera tutorial by clicking the stick, which I forgot about myself.

Sometimes I ran the other way around for the second part of the Rogue Tomato fight to avoid wolves, even though it’s a couple seconds slower.

When damaging Vaan for Dustia, remember that changing equipment cancels combos.

Against Firemane, it’s best to flank it so that knockback doesn’t push it out of the water. Also, late in the fight it hates to stay in the water, so it’s probably best to just finish it where it is.

When skeleton farming, you should pick up drops from the beginning. You’re after the common drop, so no need to up the chain level. I think the Battery Mimic only attacks when you’re particularly close to it. If you spawn the skeleton closest to the middle of the area, the one closest to the Mimic usually follows you. If it doesn’t, you could just spawn the next-to-last one and it will definitely follow you over there. Basch often decides to go after the skeleton near the Mimic when you wouldn't want him to, but you can cancel that by fleeing.

I’ve actually had Dustia kill me with battle speed 2 below max, but it should be safe 99.9% of the time.

I have Basch use Dark Motes against the judges, but I doubt it saves much time, if any.

Running that close to Garuda often makes it attack other party members, so only run forward about half the distance you did. For that matter, you can stay a bit farther from Demon Wall too, as reflected spells actually have pretty decent range.

Against Belias, if you make sure Vaan is farther away than Vossler, he should only take one hit, which all but guarantees that he will survive Firaja.

I just watched your practice run, except for running and most of Dustia, and I have a few suggestions.

You can actually skip the camera tutorial by clicking the stick, which I forgot about myself.

Sometimes I ran the other way around for the second part of the Rogue Tomato fight to avoid wolves, even though it’s a couple seconds slower.

When damaging Vaan for Dustia, remember that changing equipment cancels combos.

Against Firemane, it’s best to flank it so that knockback doesn’t push it out of the water.  Also, late in the fight it hates to stay in the water, so it’s probably best to just finish it where it is.

When skeleton farming, you should pick up drops from the beginning.  You’re after the common drop, so no need to up the chain level.  I think the Battery Mimic only attacks when you’re particularly close to it.  If you spawn the skeleton closest to the middle of the area, the one closest to the Mimic usually follows you.  If it doesn’t, you could just spawn the next-to-last one and it will definitely follow you over there.  Basch often decides to go after the skeleton near the Mimic when you wouldn't want him to, but you can cancel that by fleeing.

I’ve actually had Dustia kill me with battle speed 2 below max, but it should be safe 99.9% of the time.

I have Basch use Dark Motes against the judges, but I doubt it saves much time, if any.

Running that close to Garuda often makes it attack other party members, so only run forward about half the distance you did.  For that matter, you can stay a bit farther from Demon Wall too, as reflected spells actually have pretty decent range.

Against Belias, if you make sure Vaan is farther away than Vossler, he should only take one hit, which all but guarantees that he will survive Firaja.

Freddeh

2013-05-23 12:23:04 pm

Thanks for the suggestions! I'm about to do another test run due to my current set of saves not having quite enough money pre-henne mines at the moment (do you know off-hand how much money I should be looking at after dustia? 20000 is a bit low due to having to buy the cypress poles, so around 26000?).

Yeah I've been working on the stick click skip, I can only get it to consistently work if I go halfway around before clicking the stick though (which I believe I did in that run).

I'll have to remember that for the wolves.

Does it cancel combos if you swap before you start the attack or after the combo starts?

The problem I run into when I pick up drops from the beginning is that my chain level goes up VERY slowly, one of my first runs I only got to the first chain level over the course of 40-48 skeles, and it made it take an extra run. Also I'm just going to start killing the mimic at the start, it helps things go a bit more smoothly overall since I accidentally target it with steal half the time anyway, and then I don't have to worry about accidentally aggroing it halfway through the farm session.

I practiced the desert run+Garuda again last night, and I just need to find that sweetspot between too close to Garuda and not close enough, I think Vossler was out of range of garuda when I did it last night, because I didn't quite kill him in one cycle which killed Penelo :\.

Didn't think of that on Belias though, that will definitely help there.

Thanks for the suggestions! I'm about to do another test run due to my current set of saves not having quite enough money pre-henne mines at the moment (do you know off-hand how much money I should be looking at after dustia? 20000 is a bit low due to having to buy the cypress poles, so around 26000?).

Yeah I've been working on the stick click skip, I can only get it to consistently work if I go halfway around before clicking the stick though (which I believe I did in that run).

I'll have to remember that for the wolves.

Does it cancel combos if you swap before you start the attack or after the combo starts?

The problem I run into when I pick up drops from the beginning is that my chain level goes up VERY slowly, one of my first runs I only got to the first chain level over the course of 40-48 skeles, and it made it take an extra run. Also I'm just going to start killing the mimic at the start, it helps things go a bit more smoothly overall since I accidentally target it with steal half the time anyway, and then I don't have to worry about accidentally aggroing it halfway through the farm session.

I practiced the desert run+Garuda again last night, and I just need to find that sweetspot between too close to Garuda and not close enough, I think Vossler was out of range of garuda when I did it last night, because I didn't quite kill him in one cycle which killed Penelo :\.

Didn't think of that on Belias though, that will definitely help there.