Final Fantasy IX Boss FAQ Version 2.0 By LightRanma@aol.com --- Disclaimer: You may not use this FAQ on your website or distribute it ANYWHERE without my written permission first. I usually say yes, but you have to ask me first! If I find anyone has done otherwise, I'll bring the law into it. And yes, this FAQ is copyrighted. Thanks for cooperating! *THE NEWEST VERSIONS OF ALL MY FAQS CAN ALWAYS BE FOUND AT WWW.GAMEFAQS.COM!* ----------------- TABLE OF CONTENTS ----------------- I. Introduction II. Version History III. Legend IV. Boss Walkthrough V. Conclusion VI. Thanks ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------- I. Introduction ---------------- Yo, everyone - Ranma here, with his latest (and hopefully greatest) FAQ on Square's newest masterpiece, Final Fantasy IX! Some of you may know me by my past works, especially my highly-acclaimed Boss FAQs for Chrono Cross, Final Fantasy VIII, and Xenogears. To my past readers, welcome back! For those of you who are new to my FAQs, you've come to the right place if you want all the truthful, best strategies on the toughest Bosses. As usual, this Boss FAQ will be presented in the same layout as all my others; however, there's one thing I'm doing differently this time. This FAQ is a work in progress; so, unlike my other Boss FAQs, which were uploaded with one version only and had all the game's Bosses, this Boss FAQ will be uploaded numerous times as I get the time to add more strategies. In any case, enjoy, and E-mail me at LightRanma@aol.com if you have any RPG questions. Keep in mind, though, that the response won't be immediate, and if you type "lazy style" ("u" instead of "you," etc.), can't spell, and/or otherwise muck up your letter to where it's not understandable, your mail will simply be ignored and deleted. Sorry, but I get way too many idiotic letters, and I only want to respond to people who have at least half a brain. And one more thing - ***THERE ARE SPOILERS IN THIS FAQ***, so read at your own risk. Anyway, on to the FAQ! ^_^ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------- II. Version History -------------------- Version 1.0: 11.23.00, 12:43 PM PST: The initial version of my Final Fantasy IX Boss FAQ. Added Boss strategies up to Black Waltz Number 2, around halfway through Disc 1. Version 2.0: 5.15.01, 12:21 AM PST: Finally, I'm able to get back to work on this FAQ. It's been a long time in coming; unfortunately, I actually finished Final Fantasy IX a quite a few months ago (December, actually!), so I've had to make some changes to the FAQ. There is no longer any "My Party" or "Attacks" data; I simply can't even make a guess as to what Levels my characters were at at every Boss in the game, or as to what attacks were used on my party in every battle. (There will be, however, exceptions made in the final boss strategies.) Also, I'm writing all of the strategies up from memory, not immediate, day-after firsthand experience as usual, so this FAQ may not turn out to be QUITE as wonderfully accurate as my other ones. Nonetheless, I'm going to try my best, so bear with me, and if you have any corrections or additions, please E-mail me at LightRanma@aol.com. Thanks! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------ III. Legend ------------ Here, you'll get a general look at the layout of my Boss strategies. Boss' Name: Boss' HP: Boss' Location: Boss' Elemental Weakness: Spoils (common, then rare) Stealable Items (common, then rare) AP for Winning Difficulty (1, easiest; 5, hardest) Boss Strategy ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --------------------- IV. Boss Walkthrough --------------------- - DISC 1 - Boss Fight #1 Name: Steiner HP: 169 Location: Prima Vista (Disc 1) Elemental Weakness: None Spoils: None Stealable Items: Leather Hat, Silk Shirt AP: None Difficulty: 1 This battle with Steiner, and the two that follow, are extremely easy, but things only get tougher after that, so enjoy the easiness while you can. Have Zidane and Blank attack, but make sure you have Cinna steal; Cinna seems to be the best thief out of the whole gang, even Zidane. Besides, you don't want to miss the chance to pick up some nice stuff this early in the game! If you really need to, use a Potion to heal, but you really shouldn't since Steiner's physical attacks are dismal. Boss Fight #2 Name: Steiner HP: 162 Location: Alexandria Theater (Disc 1) Elemental Weakness: None Spoils: None Stealable Items: Leather Hat, Silk Shirt AP: None Difficulty: 1 Now that you have a true party of four members, things will be even easier. If you didn't get both of Steiner's items with Cinna in the last battle, try to steal what you missed using Zidane. Otherwise, have Zidane and Marcus attack, have Vivi cast Fire, and have Garnet act as the party's healer if it ever becomes necessary. It probably won't be, though, and so you can have her attack too, although her physical attacks are too weak to be of much help. Brace yourself - noble knight Steiner isn't done yet! Boss Fight #3 Name: Steiner HP: 167 Location: Alexandria Theater (Disc 1) Elemental Weakness: None Spoils: None Stealable Items: Leather Hat, Silk Shirt AP: None Difficulty: 1 You really should have jacked all of Steiner's stuff by now, but if you haven't, try once again to do so with Zidane. You can't do anything about the Bomb that absentminded Steiner is completely oblivious to, so just whack that stupid head of his over and over until the battle ends. Have Garnet heal if you need it, but otherwise, Steiner will fall quickly to the combined power of Zidane's and Marcus' physical attacks and Vivi's Fire spell. Boss Fight #4 Name: Prison Cage HP: 513 Location: Evil Forest (Disc 1) Elemental Weakness: Fire Spoils: None Stealable Items: Leather Wrist, Broadsword AP: None Difficulty: 3 This Boss' difficulty lies not within its actual strength, but the fact that Garnet is being held prisoner by this thing, and if the Prison Cage is able to drain all of her HP, it's Game Over. This is very reminiscent of Final Fantasy VIII's Adel battle - you have to be sure to keep Garnet's (in FF VIII's case, Rinoa's) HP up at all times, and make sure that you do NOT hit her for any reason. All-hitting attacks are a big no-no, but you don't have any of those anyway except for Zidane's Trance ability Tidal Flame, and an all-hitting Fire spell. Hit the Prison Cage fast and hard, but always keep one party member on standby (hit Triangle to switch turns) to use a Potion on Garnet if her HP reaches critical range (and it probably will). I recommend using Steiner as Garnet's healer, because he'll be doing the least damage in this battle (he'll be Level 1 compared to Zidane's Level... well, something higher, and Vivi will be doing high damage with Fire). Whatever you do, just make sure you don't accidentally target Garnet and kill her - especially when Zidane goes into Trance. Hold off on stealing for now - you'll get your chance in the next battle. Boss Fight #5 Name: Prison Cage HP: 533 Location: Evil Forest (Disc 1) Elemental Weakness: Fire Spoils: Phoenix Down, Eye Drop, Goblin Card Stealable Items: Leather Wrist, Broadsword AP: 3 Difficulty: 2 Immediately after releasing Garnet and disappearing, the ever-persistent Prison Cage captures Vivi by surprise, and another battle ensues - this time, for Vivi's life! I'm not quite sure if it's Game Over if Vivi dies or not, but I'm willing to bet that it is, so keep Vivi's HP up with Potions if the Prison Cage decides to use Absorb. In any case, this battle is a litte less urgent than the last, because Vivi will automatically cast Fire on the Prison Cage every turn (even while inside it?!) and do 90+ damage each turn. This means it won't take longer than six turns for the Prison Cage to die no matter what happens as long as Vivi doesn't die, so use this battle to have Zidane plunder the Prison Cage's items, especially making sure to get the Leather Wrist (an awesome accessory for this point in the game). Once again, the Prison Cage's physical attacks are dismal, and the real danger comes in Vivi's imprisonment. Have a party member at the ready to heal Vivi if he needs it, and make absolutely sure not to target Vivi! Boss Fight #6 Name: Baku HP: 150 Location: Prima Vista/Evil Forest (Disc 1) Elemental Weakness: None Spoils: None Stealable Items: Hi Potion, Iron Sword AP: None Difficulty: 3 Zidane fights this battle against his leader alone, and if you're not prepared, Baku will make short work of Zidane. Even at Level 5, Baku's attacks are pretty damaging (when he doesn't miss, anyway), and it'll be extremely tough to manage a Steal in this battle. However, if you're confident you can survive and you've got some Potions, try to get Baku's Iron Sword, because it will come in handy when you get Steiner in your party. Otherwise, all you can do is trade physical blows with Baku. Zidane will most likely be the one doing more damage, but Baku's 20-30 damage hits will add up quickly, so make sure you have some Potions at the ready. Oh, and if you're tired of these "mini" boss battles, you'll get your chance to test your mettle against a real Boss next! Boss Fight #7 Name: Plant Brain HP: 916 Location: Evil Forest (Disc 1) Elemental Weakness: Fire Spoils: Phoenix Down Stealable Items: Iron Helmet, Eye Drop AP: 20 Difficulty: 3 Here it is - your first real Boss fight, with the authentic Boss theme and everything! And this fight is no cakewalk, either; you've got to be alert in this battle, or the Plant Brain will make short work of your party. It shares many similarities with its smaller counterpart, the Prison Cage; it has dismal physical attacks, and it was a weakness to Fire, which Vivi can exploit. However, its physical attacks are nontheless a bit stronger than the Prison Cage's, it's faster, and it has the devastating Pollen attack, which not only does around 100 damage to your entire party, but also Blinds them, making it tougher for anyone to hit much of anything. However, the Darkness ailment isn't as much of a problem as you'd think in this battle; the only character it really affects is Zidane, but you'll want to have him Steal for the first few turns anyway, to make sure you get the Iron Helmet that the Plant Brain has. Otherwise, you'll want to use Steiner's Fire Sword ability (which consumes Steiner's MP, not Vivi's), which not only is not hindered by Darkness, but will also cause big damage to the Plant Brain. Of course, have Vivi cast Fire relentlessly for more big damage, and always, ALWAYS keep Garnet on standby as the party's medic, and they'll need a medic in this battle. Never attack physically with Garnet no matter how good a condition your party's in, because her physical attacks are literally useless, and the Plant Brain may use Pollen right after you've wasted her turn. If Garnet is killed, use a Phoenix Down immediately on her and use Potions to take care of the healing until she's back. But otherwise, Steiner's Fire Sword and Vivi's Fire will take care of the Plant Brain pretty quickly - just have Garnet ready to cast Cure on the whole party after it uses Pollen! Boss Fight #8 Name: Black Waltz Number 1 and Sealion HP: 229, 472 Location: Ice Cavern (Disc 1) Elemental Weakness: Fire, Fire Spoils: Hi Potion, Phoenix Down, Fang Card Stealable Items: Silk Shirt, Remedy; Mythril Dagger, Ether AP: 5 Difficulty: 3 This battle is tough, because you have to fight it with Zidane alone. With your other party members, this would be a cinch... but unfotunately, you don't have that leisure, so let's try to make do with what you have, shall we? First off, keep an eye on Zidane's HP at all times, and use Potions consantly to heal. If you feel Zidane's Level is high enough to survive, try to steal the Silk Shirt from Black Waltz Number 1 (the wizard) and the Mythril Dagger (from Sealion). Both are great items, especially the latter. Other than that, though, focus your physical attacks on Black Waltz Number 1 first, becausetthe Sealion just can't be killed without killing BW first (he casts Blizzard on the Sealion to heal it, as it's Ice Elemental). BW Number 1 will fall quickly to Zidane's powerful physical attacks, as it has only 229 HP; the Sealion, however, is a bit of a different story. It has more HP, and it'll take awhile to whittle down its 472 HP with only Zidane. Hopefully, Zidane will go into Trance at some point in the battle, at which point you can use Tidal Flame to decimate the Sealion. As far as their attacks go, BW Number 1's Fire and Blizzard spells are kind of damaging, but Sealion's physical attacks and Blizzard spells are more dismal. However, be careful! When Sealion is near death, it will use its awesome Tidal Wave attack on Zidane, causing around 100 damage, so keep your HP above the amount with Potions. But other than that, this battle isn't too bad. Boss Fight #9 Name: Black Waltz Number 2 HP: 1030 Location: Dali (Disc 1) Elemental Weakness: Fire Spoils: Ether, Zaghnol Card Stealable Items: Steepled Hat, Leather Plate AP: 5 Difficulty: 4 This guy is nasty, and will give you your first real challenge in Final Fantasy IX. The first thing you should know about this guy is that this menacing-looking demon witch has orders to return Dagger to Alexandria ALIVE, so that means that he won't try to hurt Dagger. At least, he didn't in my game. It's now more important than ever to keep Dagger on standby at all times to be ready with a full-party Cure, because this guy has powerful attacks. All three of its basic spells - Fire, Blizzard, and Thunder, can do big damage, and he tends to use them on the whole party at times, too. He used Fira on my party once as well, and it nailed me badly at 100+ damage to the whole party. He even went as far as to kill Vivi, so make sure you've got Phoenix Downs to spare for this battle! If everyone is in good condition during any particular round, have Dagger cast Protect on one of the other party members, Vivi first. Otherwise, your battle strategies should be as follows: have Zidane steal the Steepled Hat and Leather Plate from the Boss if possible; have Vivi cast Blizzard on the Boss; and have Steiner use Blizzard Sword on the Boss. Yes, BW Number 2's weakness is Fire, but using any other spell besides Blizzard will provoke it to counterattack with a spell of its own, and you want to keep BW's powerful spellcasting to a minimum if you can. As long as your Levels are high enough, you're alert and you revive and heal any fallen characters IMMEDIATELY with Phoenix Downs, you should be able to outlast BW Number 2. Just hit fast and hard, and make sure to keep those all-party Cure spells coming! Boss Fight #10 Name: Black Waltz Number 3 HP: 1128 Location: Cargo Airship (Disc 1) Elemental Weakness: Lightning Spoils: None Stealable Items: Steepled Hat, Linen Cuirass, Silver Gloves AP: ? Difficulty: 2 ANOTHER one of these freakin' guys?! Well, no worries - this guy's a pushover compared to his predecessor. He has no spells that can really level your party, although you'll need to have someone use items consistently to remain healthy. This someone should be Zidane, who is actually your least effective fighter in this battle. You need to have Vivi cast Thunder on the Boss, and Steiner can cause a very yummy (read: high) amount of damage with Thunder Sword. Basically, unless everyone is somehow healthy in a given round (in which case Zidane should attempt a Steal), always have Zidane heal your wounded members with items. You should make it through with no problem. Boss Fight #11 Name: Gizamaluke HP: 3175 Location: Gizamaluke's Grotto (Disc 1) Elemental Weakness: Lightning Spoils: Tent Stealable Items: Ice Staff, Magus Hat, Elixir AP: 5 Difficulty: 3 The battle with the master of the grotto can be either easy or hard; it really depends on how well you've been raising your Levels. This is your classic RPG boss battle; there are no real tide-turning attacks here, and whether you win or not depends on what you do and when you do it. Well, let's see here... first off, if you feel it necessary, you can use Zidane's Soul Blade ability with The Ogre equipped to Blind the guy. Otherwise, I recommend you Steal; Gizamaluke's got some nice stuff for the, uh, jacking. Vivi should cast Thunder relentlessly, while Freya should Jump. Quina should serve as the party's healer (either with items or with any healing Blue Magic it's learned), as its attacks are too random to be really effective on Gizamaluke. As usual, as long as you heal consistently, you should be fine. Boss Fight #12 Name: Beatrix HP: 3630 Location: Burmecia (Disc 1) Elemental Weakness: None Spoils: None Stealable Items: Chain Plate, Mythril Sword, Phoenix Down AP: - Difficulty: 4 Beatrix is one nasty fighter, and so goes the battle. This chick is seriously strong. She employs quick, powerful physical attacks and has plenty of special techniques that will eventually make your party lose no matter what you do (yes, this is FF IX's first, classic unwinnable battle). But until you "deplete" her HP, you'll have to stay alive the old-fashioned way. If you can manage it (but you probably won't be able to), have Zidane do some Stealing; otherwise, have him attack or use healing items as necessary. Vivi should throw some Fira, Thundara, and/or Blizzara spells Beatrix's way, and Freya should, as usual, Jump. Her Reis's Wind ability can be helpful, too. Quina should once again serve as the party's main healer, but if it's learned Mighty Guard, be sure to use it - it's one awesome spell. Sooner or later, however, Beatrix will level Zidane and company with one of her instant-critical techniques, like Climhazzard, Stock Break, or Shock, and that'll be that. Yup, sucks, I know. But you gotta admit, Disc 1's closing was hella cool... oh, and Kuja IS a man. Not a woman. Yes, I promise. - DISC 2 - Boss Fight #13 Name: Black Waltz Number 3 HP: 1292 Location: Summit Station (Disc 2) Elemental Weakness: None Spoils: None Stealable Items: Lightning Staff, Steepled Hat AP: 5 Difficulty: 1 Yup. Again. ;) He's a cinch this time around, though, since you've got not only Dagger and Steiner, but Tantalus' strongest member (behind Zidane), Marcus, in your ranks. Anyway, simply have Steiner attack and Dagger heal when needed. Casting Protect can also help, although it's not necessary. Have Marcus do some classic Stealing, and once you get all of the Boss' stuff, have him attack. This guy'll go down very quickly, even if Steiner's the only one attacking. Boss Fight #14 Name: Ralvurahva HP: 2296 Location: Gargan Roo (Disc 2) Elemental Weakness: None Spoils: None Stealable Items: Bone Wrist, Mythril Fork AP: 0 Difficulty: 3 Ralvu-whatta? Don't ask me what the name means, but it really doesn't matter anyway since this thing'll be dead by the time you figure it out. This guy's not that tough - he's only got one threatening attack in his arsenal, and it's one that can shrink a character down to Mini size. This isn't really a problem except when it happens to Dagger - since she's your party's primary medic, having her Mini'd is bad because it makes her Magic abilities drop to almost nothing. So, if this happens, make sure you get rid of the condition with an item immediately, or else you could be in some serious trouble. Otherwise, the effect will wear off of Steiner and Marcus soon enough, and as always, you should have them focus on attacking the snake-like beast while Dagger keeps everyone kickin'. Boss Fight #15 Name: Antlion HP: 2938 Location: Cleyra (Disc 2) Elemental Weakness: Wind Spoils: Ether, Annoyntment Stealable Items: Gold Helm, Mythril Vest, Annoyntment AP: 5 Difficulty: 4 This blast from the past (for you new-age-only RPGamers out there, he's from Final Fantasy IV) is, to put it bluntly, nasty as always. He starts the battle with an attack called Sand Storm that puts all your characters' HP into the lovely yellow area (specifically, around 3 HP each), so the first order of business is to heal everyone with items. This is something you'll be doing frequently in this battle, so make sure you have a lot of them. The Antlion's other attacks, though, are standard fare, and you should retaliate with physical attacks (or Stealing, if you wanna play it dangerously) from Zidane, Blizzaras galore from Vivi, and Jumps from Freya (Reis's Wind is also nice). Just as long as you heal up quickly after each Sand Storm, you can make it. Boss Fight #16 Name: Beatrix HP: 4736 Location: Cleyra (Disc 2) Elemental Weakness: Ice Spoils: None Stealable Items: Ice Brand, Thunder Gloves, Phoenix Down AP: - Difficulty: 4 It's time for a rematch with Beatrix again, and this one's just as hard as the last one; fortunately, the same tactics that worked before will also work again here. Try to take Beatrix's attacks long enough for Zidane to do some Stealing, though; Beatrix has some sweet equipment. Anyway, like I said, everything I said before applies for this battle as well. Having Vivi cast Slow on Beatrix helps a little, but not enough to be pivotal. Remember, you do have to actually stay alive until you "deplete" her HP once again and she resorts to using her automatic-ass-kicking attacks... Boss Fight #17 Name: Zorn and Thorn HP: 4896, 2984 Location: Alexandria Castle (Disc 2) Elemental Weakness: Ice, Ice Spoils: None Stealable Items: Stardust Rod, Partisan; Mythril Armlet, Mythril Armor AP: 0 Difficulty: 2 Zorn and Thorn, as you might expect, aren't much of a threat. Not much of a threat are they! ... okay, that was incredibly lame. ANYWAY! Speed counts in this battle, because you've got only 30 minutes before Dagger is sacrificed and stripped of her Eidolons by good ol' mom. The first order of business is to take care of Thorn, since (a) he has less HP than Zorn and (b) just offing one of the twins will nullify their powerful combination attacks. (Think of them as an evil FF IV Palom/Porom combination.) To actually do this, you'll want to have Vivi cast Blizzara, while Steiner uses Blizzara Sword and Freya Jumps. If things get dire, have Zidane use some healing items... but otherwise, he should be attacking the twin you're trying to off. You shouldn't have him Steal because of the obvious time limit... and even though it's pretty lenient, you don't want to take any chances. Boss Fight #18 Name: Beatrix HP: 5709 Location: Alexandria Castle (Disc 2) Elemental Weakness: Ice Spoils: None Stealable Items: Survival Vest, Ice Brand, Phoenix Down AP: 0 Difficulty: 4 Don't worry, this is the last time you'll fight the lady general. Promise. Fortunately, the strategies here are pretty obvious - Zidane should try to Steal some of Beatrix's nice equipment, Vivi should cast Blizzara and Slow, Steiner should use Blizzara Sword, and Freya should both Jump and use her nice Dragoon Skills like Reis's Wind and Lancer, if she's been able to learn it at this point (I can't remember if she can yet). When the need for healing arises (and trust me, it will), have Zidane or Freya do the honors - they'll probably be doing the least damage in this battle. Otherwise, Beatrix is the same as before with more HP, and you STILL can't truly defeat her... Boss Fight #19 Name: Ralvuimago HP: 3352 Location: Gargan Roo (Disc 2) Elemental Weakness: Ice Spoils: Ether Stealable Items: Oak Staff, Adaman Vest, Phoenix Down AP: 7 Difficulty: 3 Not this guy again! Yup, and he seems to have evolved or something. Oh well, no matter - this battle's actually a bit easier than the last because you have a more solid party to fight with. In any case, as you might have guessed, Vivi should cast Blizzara, and Zidane should attack - except when (a) the Boss is coiled up or (b) Dagger is Mini'd. In case A, you want him to stick to Stealing, and in case B, you want to (obviously) return Dagger to normal so she can resume her healing duties without a problem. Other than that, there's not really anything special about this guy, so just whack 'im until he's dead. **Note: Fossil Roo, where you're going next, is a great place to level Steiner, and possibly Quina up, who are no doubt very low-leveled compared to your other party members (especially Steiner).** Boss Fight #20 Name: Lani HP: 5708 Location: Fossil Roo Elemental Weakness: None Spoils: None Stealable Items: Coral Sword, Gladius, Ether AP: 0 Difficulty: 2 This is the easiest Boss fight in quite awhile; four beefy heroes against one less-than-beefy villain? Please! Really the only thing you need to watch out for here is Dagger's HP; Lani can knock Dagger out somewhat easily, so you'll want to have her cast Protect and Shell on herself at the onset of the battle. After that, you can have her summon Ramuh for extra damage, or you can have her stick to healing duties - I personally recommend a little bit of both. Zidane should definitely Steal Lani's equipment - she's got some very nice weapons. Vivi should, as usual, cast level two Elemental spells (Fira, Blizzara, Thundara), and Quina can attack or cast an appropriate Blue Magic for the situation; Mighty Guard always helps. Otherwise, this fight shouldn't last too long. Boss Fight #21 Name: Hilgigars HP: 8106 Location: Mountain Path (Disc 2) Elemental Weakness: Lightning Spoils: Elixir, Tent Stealable Items: Fairy Flute, Mythril Fork, Phoenix Down AP: 9 Difficulty: 1 Aw, this guy's even easier than Lani! None of his attacks are particulary damaging, even his nasty-looking Earthquake attack. Just make sure you've at least let new recruit Eiko learn Cure and Cura so she can do the healing honors in this battle. Why? Because you'll want Dagger to summon Ramuh (which'll do big damage to Hilgigars, his weakness being Lightning). Zidane doesn't need to worry about Stealing unless you really, really think Eiko is the best thing since sliced bread (this Boss has a new Flute for her use)... but honestly, I never used her more than the game forced me to. She's like a watered-down Dagger; less HP, weaker attacks, weaker healing capabilities, and much weaker and less-effective Eidolons (not to mention that she has only four Eidolons max compared to Dagger's 12). She does learn Holy while Dagger doesn't, but that hardly makes up for all her shortcomings, so I recommend sticking with Dagger. Okay, ramble over. Like I said, unless you're gonna use Eiko, just have Zidane attack, and have Vivi cast Bio and then Thundara after Thundara. You can have Eiko summon Fenrir for a little extra damage if you want, but it's hardly necessary; just have her stick to healing. This won't last long, although this pitiful excuse for a strategy did. ;P Boss Fight #22 Name: Soulcage HP: 9765 Location: Iifa Tree Interior (Disc 2) Elemental Weakness: None Spoils: Elixir, Phoenix Pinion Stealable Items: Brigandine, Magician Cloak, Oak Staff AP: 9 Difficulty: 4 Is it just me, or does this thing look an awful lot like FF VII's Jenova? Well, whatever it is, it's nasty and it's out for blood. First and foremost: DO NOT cast Fire spells (Fire, Fira) on the Soulcage. And, of course, you don't want Eiko to summon Phoenix either, but that's just common sense. It'll start burning, and that means frequent, hard-hitting, all-party counterattacks for you, and three or four of these can easily lay your party flat. If you can avoid this attack, the fight becomes easier, but it's still not a walk in the park. The Soulcage is still tough, and you may need both Dagger and Eiko to take on the healing duties here. Zidane should attack and Steal if it can be managed (an extra Brigandine never hurt anyone); Vivi should cast Bio; and, providing everyone's healthy, Dagger should summon Ramuh and Eiko should summon Fenrir. Otherwise, as long as the Soulcage doesn't start burning, the fight's pretty winnable. Boss Fight #23 Name: Amarant HP: 8985 Location: Madain Sari (Disc 2) Elemental Weakness: None Spoils: Tent Stealable Items: Poison Knuckles, Ether AP: 9 Difficulty: 2 Ooh... a yummy, dramatic, one-on-one duel between Zidane and newcomer Amarant! You don't want Zidane to lose in front of Dagger, so let's make sure to win this one, eh? Well, actually, it's not all that hard. Zidane's strong physical attacks'll decimate Amarant pretty quickly, and more than likely, he'll Trance at some point during the battle, pretty much granting him a one-hit win through his strongest Dyne ability. Defense-wise, Amarant's physical attacks are actually weaker than you'd expect, and none of his Flair abilities are particularly dangerous. You will need to use healing items to keep Zidane's HP at a safe level, but as long as you play smart you'll do just fine in this battle. Oh yeah, and this is the last Boss fight in Disc 2, so enjoy the awesome, AWESOME conclusion from here on out. - DISC 3 - More to come in following revisions of this FAQ! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------- V. Conclusion -------------- I hope this FAQ has been of use to you while playing Final Fantasy IX! As I mentioned before, feel free to E-mail me at LightRanma@aol.com if you have further questions on any RPG. Constructive criticism, corrections, suggestions, and compliments are always welcome, but insults, flames, and otherwise useless mails will be ignored and deleted. And, of course, always be sure to E-mail me before you use my FAQ on your website. If I find that you've done otherwise, there will be legal problems for you, especially if you've altered my FAQ in any way. Thanks for reading this FAQ, and I'll see you next time! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- VI. Thanks ----------- I'd like to thank the following people/things/entities for their help in making this FAQ possible: - Square Soft, for making such a magnificent game. Your accomplishments on the PlayStation have been many and varied, but most of them are truly spectacular. Keep up the awesome, awesome work on the PlayStation 2, you guys - you're easily the best game company out there. Let's see a Chrono 3 soon! - Nobuo Uematsu, for creating yet another awesome Final Fantasy soundtrack. FF IX's battle theme is your best yet. Keep up the great work! - BradyGAMES, for their Official Final Fantasy IX Players Guide. It was invaluable in collecting HP amounts, spoils, and stealable items for all the Bosses. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The following sites have permission to use this FAQ without my written consent: - GameFAQs (www.gamefaqs.com) - The Gaming Intelligence Agency (www.thegia.com) - RPGamer (www.rpgamer.com) - GameSages (www.gamesages.com) - IGN PSX (www.ign.com) - GameShark.com (www.gameshark.com) --- Copyright 2000