Final Fantasy Record Keeper IV: Tellah Friend to Play Today!

[DiscipleofBob]

Welcome to the FOURTH thread of Final Fantasy Record Keeper!

For those of you just joining us, Final Fantasy Record Keeper is a free-to-play freemium game for mobile devices. Like many similar games, the main point of the game is to collect 16-bit versions of characters from every major Final Fantasy game from Final Fantasy I to Final Fantasy XIV (we even have some Final Fantasy Tactics characters coming in the future!) You then train up your party, get equipment for them, form a party of five, and go through dungeons that retell the plot of various Final Fantasy games.

If you've only started recently, or are thinking about starting, it's a game that requires patience but rewards it. A lot of the characters are event-exclusive, but the game's really good at giving additional opportunities to recruit them. There are Daily Dungeons which let you farm resources, upgrade materials, and on Sundays, sweet, sweet valuable experience. Probably the most difficult aspect to acquire is the equipment, which is based off a lottery you can pay in-game currency that you either earn in game (Mythril) or spend real world money on (Gems). Fortunately, the game is very playable without spending a cent, and you can at least get all the characters without paying, though getting the equipment to really live up to their potential that can be difficult, even with disposable cash. Some of the character customization can be limited too, with only two abilities allowed per character (but that can be switched out as needed for different dungeons.)

The good news if you ARE a new player, that while you may have missed out on previous events, the rewards from those events repeat often. And you're actually at an advantage over long-time players as you have more opportunities to get better gear from later events.

Still, it's a game that's simple enough to pick up and enjoy, but with a lot of additional content and challenges to keep you playing, and there's Final Fantasy nostalgia packed into every bit, from the characters to the monsters to the music, all imported from games of Final Fantasy's history. And if you couldn't tell from the fact that this is on its fourth thread, it comes highly recommended by the forum too.

Happy hunting!

Final Fantasy Record Keeper I (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?415439-Final-Fantasy-Record-Keeper)
Final Fantasy Record Keeper II: Also FFRKIV in Japan (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?453065-Final-Fantasy-Record-Keeper-II-Also-FFRK-IV-in-Japan)
Final Fantasy Record Keeper III: Cloud of Darkness... or FF7 (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?473229-Final-Fantasy-Record-Keeper-III-Cloud-of-Darkness-or-FF7)

Upcoming Events (http://ffrk.kongbakpao.com/events/)

* = Memory Crystal available
** = Memory Crystal II available

Core Classes:
Tyro**
Warrior
Knight
Red Mage*
Black Mage*
White Mage*
Devout
Summoner*
Samurai*
Dragoon*
Dark Knight*
Spellblade*
Viking*
Ranger*
Bard*
Ninja*
Gladiator*
Thief
Berserker
Final Fantasy I
Warrior of Light**

Final Fantasy II
Firion
Maria*
Leon*
Gordon*
Ricard*
Josef*

Final Fantasy III
Luneth*
Arc*
Refia*
Ingus

Final Fantasy IV
Cecil (Dark Knight)*
Cecil (Paladin)**
Kain*
Rydia*
Edward
Tellah*
FuSoYa*
Golbez*
Rosa*
Edge*

Final Fantasy V
Lenna**
Galuf**
Gilgamesh*
Bartz*
Krile*
Faris*
Exdeath*

Final Fantasy VI
Terra*
Locke*
Celes*
Mog*
Edgar*
Sabin*
Shadow*
Cyan*
Gau
Setzer*
Strago*
Kefka*

Final Fantasy VII
Cloud**
Barret*
Tifa*
Aerith*
Red XIII**
Yuffie*
Zack*
Sephiroth**
Cid*
Reno*

Final Fantasy VIII
Squall**
Rinoa**
Quistis*
Selphie**
Irvine*
Zell*
Seifer*
Laguna*

Final Fantasy IX
Zidane*
Garnet**
Vivi*
Steiner**
Eiko*
Amarant*
Quina*
Freya*
Beatrix*

Final Fantasy X
Tidus**
Yuna**
Wakka**
Lulu*
Kimahri*
Rikku*
Auron*
Jecht*

Final Fantasy XII
Vaan*
Balthier*
Fran**
Ashe*
Penelo*

Final Fantasy XIII
Lightning**
Snow*
Vanille*
Sazh*
Hope*
Fang*

Final Fantasy XIV
Yshtola*
Thancred*


Upcoming Characters
Bold are new characters, others are unlockable in case you haven't gotten a chance to yet.
Minwu, Leila, Firion, Maria, Gordon, Josef, Leon
Ramza, Agrias
Yuna's Gunner Yuna Dress, Rikku, Wakka, Kimahri
Relm, Shadow, Celes, Strago
Vincent, Zack, Yuffie, Reno
Basch, Vaan, Ashe, Balthier, Fran, Penelo
Squall's SeeD Uniform Dress, Edea, Zell, Rinoa, Laguna
Porom, Palom, D-Cecil, Rydia, Rosa, Tellah
Desch, Luneth, Arc, Refia, Ingus
Kuja, Beatrix, Vivi, Zidane, Amarant, Garnet
Cait Sith, Aerith, Barret, Tifa, Yuffie
Lightning's Knight of the Goddess Dress, Serah, Snow, Sazh, Fang
Edgar, Sabin, Cyan, Gau
Young Auron Dress, Braska, Jecht
Yda, Papalymo, Yshtola, Thancred
Shirtless Sephiroth, Cloud, Aerith, Cait Sith, Cid
Adult Rydia, Yang, Kain, Rosa, Edge, Edward
Seifer, Squall, Rinoa, Laguna, Quistis, Irvine
Lenna, Faris, Bartz, Galuf
Shantotto, Bartz, Luneth, Firion, Yshtola (Dissidia Event)
Short-Haired Garnet, Zidane, Freya, Beatrix
Gabranth, Basch, Vaan, Ashe, Penelo
Garland (hopefully), Kefka, Golbez, Exdeath, Sephiroth (Dissidia Event)
Delita, Ovelia, Mustadio


Upcoming MC2s
Some of these characters won't get specific MC2's, but rather you get the capability to use a Memory Crystal II Shard to level break them beyond 65. Bolded entries get a specific MC2. For clarification, Bolded entries get their specific MC2's, while non-bolded entries can be level broken by an MC2 shard at this time.

Bartz, Gilgamesh, Locke, Aerith, Vivi, Lulu, Vanille, Hope, Tifa (Unconfirmed when these will unlock for Global, but it should be soon)
Firion
Ramza, Agrias
Auron
Relm, Celes, Shadow
Vincent, Zack, Reno
Vaan, Balthier, Penelo
Edea, Zell
Porom, Palom, Rydia
Luneth, Arc, Refia, Ingus
Kuja, Zidane, Beatrix
Yuffie
Serah, Snow, Sazh, Fang
Edgar, Sabin, Cyan, Gau, Setzer
Braska, Jecht, Kimahri, Rikku
Yda, Papalymo. Yshtola, Thancred
Barret, Cait Sith, Cid
Kain, Rosa, Edge, Yang, Edward
Seifer, Irvine
Krile, Exdeath
Shantotto
Freya, Amarant, Quina
Gabranth, Basch, Ashe
Golbez, Kefka


Abyss Levels
Abyss levels are special dungeons where your synergy is not determined by the characters' realm of origin, but there ability to use abilities, encourage a "single class" party. The reward is the ability to craft 6-star abilities. These come once per month. Here's what's coming up soon so you can prepare your teams...

Abyss 1: Black Magic. Nightmare Boss: Ultima Buster. Reward: Ultima
Abyss 2: Combat. Nightmare Boss: Demon Wall. Reward: Crashdown
Abyss 3: White Magic. Nightmare Boss: Evrae Altana. Reward: Reraise
Abyss 4: Summoning. Nightmare Boss: Neo Bahamut. Reward: Neo Bahamut
Abyss 5: Support. Nightmare Boss: CPU. Reward: Triple Foul
Abyss 6: Celerity. Nightmare Boss: Tonberry King. Reward: Northern Cross





1) Cloud's Organics, teaches Blade Beam, +10 attack. 3 ranged physical AoE's, ? multiplier, non-elemental. Debuted in lost Memories. Reappeared in VoM phase 2. Will reappear in The Lone Wolf's Lament banner 2.
2) Squall's Cutting Trigger, teaches Blasting Zone, +10 attack. 4 ranged physical single-target attacks, ? multiplier, non-elemental. Debuted in Gunblade of the Sorceress. Reappeared in VoM phase 5. Will reappear in Orbfest 3 phase 3.
3) Sephiroth's Yoshiyuki, teaches Black Materia, +10 attack. 4 ranged physical single-target attacks, 7.8 multiplier, non-elemental, chance for Sap. Debuted in Blood Madness. Reappeared in Hidden Resolve. Will reappear in Orbfest 3 phase 5.
4) Rinoa's Cardinal, teaches Wishing Star, +10 magic. 5 random magic single-target attacks, 15 multiplier, non-elemental. Debuted in VoM phase 1. Will reappear in Orbfest 3 phase 2, and A Meeting Beyond Time banner 2.
5) Tidus's Force Sabre, teaches Jecht Shot, +10 attack. 3 (ranged?) physical single-target attacks, 7.89 multiplier, water. Debuted in VoM phase 3. Will reappear in Orbfest 3 phase 4.
6) Tyro's Last Judgment Grimoire, teaches Last Judgment Grimoire, +10 attack. 3 (ranged?) physical AoE's, 6 multiplier, earth. Debuted in VoM phase 4.
7) Pally Cecil's Lustrous Sword, teaches Saint's Fall, +300 hp. 3 (ranged?) physical single-target attacks, 7.89 multiplier, holy. Debuted in VoM phase 5. Will reappear in Orbfest 3 phase 5.
8) Lightning's Peacemaker, teaches Crushing Blow, +10 attack. 5 (ranged?) physical AoE's, 6.5 multiplier, lightning. Debuted in Fang's Oath. Will reappear in Orbfest 3 phase 1.
Then we have 2 events with no SSB's at all.
9) Terra's Maduin's Horn, teaches Magitek Missile, +10 magic. 10 (ranged?) magical single-target attacks, 18 multiplier, non-elemental. Will debut in Forgotten Bond. Will reappear in Orbfest 3 phase 3.
10) Bartz's Excalibur, teaches ???, +10 attack. 5 (ranged?) physical single-target attacks, 7.9 multiplier, non-elemental, all allies def + 50%. Will debut in Orbfest 3 phase 1.
11) Aerith's Wizard Rod, teaches ???, +10 mind. All allies heal & Reraise (40% hp). Will debut in Orbfest 3 phase 1.
12) Lulu's Run Mog (?), teaches ???, +10 magic. 8 (ranged?) random magic single-target attacks, 17.92 multiplier, ice. Will debut in Orbfest 3 phase 2.
13) Vivi's Mace of Zeus (?), teaches ???, +10 magic. 4 (ranged?) magic AoE's, 14.24 multiplier, dark. Will debut in Orbfest 3 phase 2. Will reappear in A Summoner Reborn banner 2.
14) Locke's Valiant Knife, teaches ???, +10 attack. 8 (ranged?) physical single-target attacks, 8 multiplier (up to 14.4 when low on health), non-elemental. Will debut in Orbfest 3 phase 3.
15) Vanille's Medic Staff, teaches ???, +10 mind. All allies heal & restore 1 ability use at random. Will debut in Orbfest 3 phase 4.
16) Hope's Hawkeye, teaches ???, +10 magic. 8 (ranged?) magic single-target attacks, 17.92 multiplier, holy. Will debut in Orbfest 3 phase 4.
17) The Mighty Gilgamesh's ???, teaches ???, +10 defense. 3 (ranged?) physical AoE's, 6 multiplier, non-elemental, all allies heavy Regen. Will debut in Orbfest 3 phase 5.
18) Red XIII's Magic Comb, teaches Stardust Ray, +10 attack. 10 (ranged?) random physical single-target attacks, 7.8 multiplier, non-elemental, Shellga. Will debut in The Lone Wolf's lament banner 1.
19) Tifa's Master Fist, teaches Dolphin Blow, +10 attack. 4 (ranged?) physical single-target attacks, 8 multiplier, self attack + 50%. Will debut in The Lone Wolf's Lament banner 2.
20) Laguna's Machine Gun, teaches Desperado, +10 attack. 6 ranged physical AoE's, 6 multiplier, non-elemental, Slow (100%). Will debut in A Meeting Beyond Time banner 1.
21) Selphie's Crescent Wish, teaches Dreamstage, +10 mind. All allies heal + magic blink. Will debut in A Meeting Beyond Time banner 1.
22) Quistis's Red Scorpion, teaches Mighty Guard, +10 magic. Hastega + Shellga + heavy Regenga (UNNNGHHHHHHAAAA). Will debut in A Meeting Beyond Time banner 2.
23) Zidane's Orichalcum, teaches Shift Break, +10 attack. 4 (ranged?) physical AoE's, 6 multiplier, non-elemental, -50% attack, +50% self attack. Will debut in A Summoner Reborn banner 1.
24) Eiko's Fairy Flute, teaches Flames of Rebirth, +10 mind. All allies, heal + Reraise (40% hp). Will debut in A Summoner Reborn banner 1.
25) Garnet's Wizard Rod, teaches Divine Guardian, +10 magic. Hastega + heavy Regenga + res + 50% (it's like a not as good Mighty Guard). Will debut in A Summoner Reborn banner 2.
26) Firion's Rod of Arms (?), teaches ???, attack + 10. 5 (ranged?) physical single-target attacks, 7.8 multiplier, non-elemental, Blind (100%). Will debut in The Prophet banner 1.
27) Minwu's ???, teaches ???, mind + 10. All allies heal, no cast time (wtf Minwu). Will debut in The Prophet banner 1.
28) Maria's Sander 16 (?), teaches ???, magic +10. 4 magic AoE's, 14.4 multiplier, lightning, all allies magic + 20%. Will debut in The Prophet banner 2. It's a bow, btw.
29) Leon's ???, teaches ???, defense + 10. 3 (ranged?) physical AoE's, 6 multiplier, dark, self-sentinel (whatever that means, maybe Protect + Shell). Will debut in The Prophet banner 2. It's not a bow, damnit, on like the only knight who can use bows.

1) Cloud's 1st Fusion Sword, teaches Fenrir Overdrive, +10 attack. 8 (ranged?) random physical single-target attacks, 8 multiplier, non-elemental, self-haste + burst mode. In burst mode, attack does 2x AoE's, defend does 4x single-target attacks. Debuts in The Lone Wolf's Lament banner 1(after 17 for SSB).

[Red Fel]

Ahh, fresh thread scent.

I hope everyone's enjoying the Sundaily today. My leveling team is currently Cloud, Strago, Exdeath, but I'm about to cycle Exy out. Still working on my "cap every caster" objective.

[DiscipleofBob]

Ahh, fresh thread scent.

I hope everyone's enjoying the Sundaily today. My leveling team is currently Cloud, Strago, Exdeath, but I'm about to cycle Exy out. Still working on my "cap every caster" objective.

I'm not in a rush to cap every caster. In fact, I'd rather draw them out more than anyone else.

Reason being is my BM4+ casters are the key to maximizing these Sundailies. One BM4+ character, level 50+, can solo Heroic+, but if they bring one or two pals along who would otherwise be useless, it's the best way for those guys to get XP.

Now if all my casters were maxed, I'd be forced to bring one anyway, and that's an entire share of Sundaily XP that's completely wasted.

I'm not spending any Mythril for XP until at least after the SSB-fest. Then we'll see. In the meantime, focus is on the II characters for leveling since the Minwu event should be coming soon. Maria and Leon are 61 and I just started on Gordon as well (hadn't realized he was the token otherwise useless character that can use Breakdowns).

[Forbiddenwar]

Nice work on the new thread.

Looking at the abyss dungeons, is there any way to see who can use 5* abilities? Short of crafting them of course.

[DiscipleofBob]

Nice work on the new thread.

Looking at the abyss dungeons, is there any way to see who can use 5* abilities? Short of crafting them of course.

If you go to the Upcoming Events link, each section on an Abyss level has a list of who get the synergy bonus.

Though that's something I could easily add to the OP as well.

[Jurai]

So, I was doing some idle math because I like that sort of thing, this time on experience totals. It made me a little sad, because I've realized that I need to keep pouring mythril into Sunday dailies literally forever if I want to be a completionist.

So, the following is generally true:

#1 - Events release roughly once a week
#2 - Each event offers a new character, who can be raised to Lv 65, and unlocks an MC2, letting you raise an existing character from L65 to L80.

It costs about 3 million XP to get to L65, and 3 million XP to get from L65 to L80. So each new event requires 6 million XP to master the new characters.

The Sunday XP+ dungeon gives out 99,000 XP per fight, +50,000 for completion, plus a few eggs each time. Generally, I've found that this works out to about 120,000 XP per hour of stamina. Therefore, it requires about 50 runs to get the XP that you need (probably actually 51, since dungeon completion is a huge deal.)

Now, assuming you've reached the 148-158 range, you've got seven dungeon runs first thing in the morning on Sunday, and then another fifteen or sixteen throughout the day, for a total of 22-23 basic runs. Each mythril adds another 7-8 runs. So, to get the 50 runs that you would need just to break even, you need to spend 4-5 mythril every Sunday. But that was the past. Going forward...

#1 - The FFII event adds two new characters, level breaks Firion, and MC2 breaks Firion. That's a total of 10 million XP needed instead of 6 that week.
#2 - The FFTactics event adds two new characters and their MC and MC2 crystals, which is a total of 12 million XP.
#3 - Hard to say what's going to happen in the Yuna event; it might be catch-up time, or it might be a new MC2.
#4 - The Relm event gives us a break by only adding Relm rather than adding an MC2 as well, which is great, because...
#5 - Oh god the Vincent event. New Vincent, MC2 for Vincent, Reno, and Zack, for a total of 12 million XP again. And then...
#6 - Whimper. Basch appears, along with his MC and MC2, and we get MC2s for Vaan, Balthier, and Penelo, for a total of 15 million XP.

And after that, it looks like new characters and multiple MC2s all the way, so 9-12 million XP per week. It will actually be impossible to keep up just using the mythril that we get, even if we abandon gear entirely.

Specific numbers for you.

1,129,108
2,990,307
5,964,907

That much XP gets you to 50, 65, and 80, respectively, and that's for non-Tyro characters.

Minwu/Leila event: You need 5,980,614 to get Minwu and Leila to 65 and 5,964,907 to get Firion to 80.
Tactics: You need 11,929,814 to get Ramza and Agrias to 80.
Relm: You need 2,990,307 to get Relm to 65.
Vincent: You need 17,894,721 to get Vincent, Reno, and Zack to 80.
Basch: You need 2,990,307 to get Basch to 65 and 17,894,721 to get Vaan, Balthier, and Penelo to 80.
Logres (Unlikely, but an MC2 is there nonetheless): You need 5,964,907 to get Faris to 80.
Edea: You need 11,929,814 to get Edea and Zell to 80.
Mysidian Twins: You need 17,894,721 to get Palom, Porom, and Relm to 80.
and finally, Desch: You need 2,990,307 to get Desch to 65 and 23,859,628 to get Luneth, Arc, Refia, and Ingus to 80.

Therefore, to keep up with leveling all the new characters up to the Desch event, you need 128,284,768 TOTAL XP. Assuming that you can solo Sundaily+ with each character, you need to run Sundaily+ 459.80203584229390681003584229391, or 460, times total, ignoring the value of any Growth Eggs acquired.

[Friv]

Specific numbers for you.

1,129,108
2,990,307
5,964,907

That much XP gets you to 50, 65, and 80, respectively, and that's for non-Tyro characters.

Minwu/Leila event: You need 5,980,614 to get Minwu and Leila to 65 and 5,964,907 to get Firion to 80.
Tactics: You need 11,929,814 to get Ramza and Agrias to 80.
Relm: You need 2,990,307 to get Relm to 65.
Vincent: You need 17,894,721 to get Vincent, Reno, and Zack to 80.
Basch: You need 2,990,307 to get Basch to 65 and 17,894,721 to get Vaan, Balthier, and Penelo to 80.
Logres (Unlikely, but an MC2 is there nonetheless): You need 5,964,907 to get Faris to 80.
Edea: You need 11,929,814 to get Edea and Zell to 80.
Mysidian Twins: You need 17,894,721 to get Palom, Porom, and Relm to 80.
and finally, Desch: You need 2,990,307 to get Desch to 65 and 23,859,628 to get Luneth, Arc, Refia, and Ingus to 80.

Therefore, to keep up with leveling all the new characters up to the Desch event, you need 128,284,768 TOTAL XP. Assuming that you can solo Sundaily+ with each character, you need to run Sundaily+ 459.80203584229390681003584229391, or 460, times total, ignoring the value of any Growth Eggs acquired.

Well, ForbiddenWear pointed out that I neglected to consider the eggs within those events, which you're getting as a matter of course.
So, taking your numbers, and including Greater and Major Growth Eggs:

(Note: I'm including Growth Eggs from converting hero records and memory crystals, on the assumption that anyone worrying about getting everyone to max level has already gotten to the point where all recruitable characters have been recruited and their crystals have been acquired.)

*) Minwu/Leila event: 11,945,521 base. 2 Major Eggs, 14 Greater Eggs. [1.2 million XP]. XP Needed: 10,745,521.
*) Tactics: 11,929,814 base. 2 Major Eggs, 10 Greater Eggs. [1 million XP]. XP Needed: 10,929,814.
*) Gunner Yuna: 14 Greater Growth Eggs, 5 Major Growth Eggs, no characters. Provides bonus 3.2 million XP.
*) Relm: 2,990,307 base. 3.15 million from eggs [5 Major, 14 Greater]. Net bonus 159,693 XP.
*) Vincent: 17,894,721 base. 3.35 mill from eggs [5 Major, 17 Greater]. Net cost 14,544,721 XP.
*) Basch: 20,885,028 base. 3.5 mill from eggs [5 Major, 20 Greater]. Net cost 17,385,028 XP.
*) Edea: 11,929,814 base. 2.7 mill from eggs [5 Major, 4 Greater]. Net cost 9,229,814 XP.
*) Mysidian Twins: 17,894,721 base. 3.3 mill from eggs [16 Greater, 5 Major]. Net cost 14,594,721 XP.
*) Desch: 26,849,935 base (!). 3.4 mill from eggs [18 Greater, 5 Major]. Net cost 23,449,935 XP.

(Leaving Logres alone for now, since we don't know how we'll see Faris's crystal. Or if, for that matter. Looking at you, Tifa.)

So, the revised total XP required from Sundaily runs and eggs is 97,519,861 XP. At a rough rate of 120,000 per dungeon level, that is about 812 runs, or 271 total dungeon runs.

With nine weeks to run those dungeons in, that requires about 90 levels or 30 full runs per week, at an expenditure of 7 mythril/week if you have around 150 stamina.

That is so much worse than I'd originally calculated.

[Chen]

For a completionist yes that's fairly difficult to manage. To beat all the events though that type of dedication to leveling everyone to max is completely unnecessary. Especially since 65-80 only gains you stats and no new RMs or anything (yet anyways).

[danzibr]

Thanks for the new thread, Disciple! And all the info. I'd better update that SSB stuff again, given the order's different and there are more translations.

And Jurai, those numbers are handy.

[DiscipleofBob]

My best guess on Tifa's lack of MC2 is that she, along with possibly Auron at this rate, are going to join Bartz, Gilgamesh, and the other characters that need to be level-broken with a blank MC2.

But that's just guesswork at this point.

[Chen]

My best guess on Tifa's lack of MC2 is that she, along with possibly Auron at this rate, are going to join Bartz, Gilgamesh, and the other characters that need to be level-broken with a blank MC2.

But that's just guesswork at this point.

Tifa was level broken in Japan with a blank MC2. That blank MC2 was a reward in the FFVII event we just had, in the japan version. Since our Hall isnt open yet they replaced it in our event. Whether we'll get an extra blank MC2 for it or not is unclear though.

[Jurai]

U Silver Dragon party



Character
Level
Weapon
Armor
Accessory
Ability 1
Ability 2
Record Materia


Cloud
80
Butterfly Sword (IX)
Holiday Mittens (VII)
Black Belt (IX)
Blizzaga Strike (R3)
Aerora Strike (R5)
Dragoon's Determination


Terra
80
Magus Rod (VI)+
Estharian Helmet (VIII)
Terra's Pendant (VI)
Blizzaja (R3)
Blizzaga (R5)
Blood of Espers


Lenna
80
Healing Staff (V)
Oath Veil (VI)
Sand Pearl (IV)
Curaja (R5)
Shellga (R3)
Oath of Tycoon


Gilgamesh
65
Gauntlets (VIII)
Dragon Armlet (VII)
Black Belt (IX)
Wind Jump (R3)
Ice Jump (R3)
Fist of Dawn


Wakka
80
All-Rounder (X)
Shinra Beta (VII)++
Power Belt (IX)
Armor Breakdown (R1)
Power Breakdown (R2)
Dr. Mog's Teachings



I don't know how this fight is going to turn out, but hopefully it makes Garland look easy. That was pathetically easy for an Ultimate.

[danzibr]

Looking at the above math, it does indeed seem futile to try to get everyone to cap. The best I'm hoping for is LBing everyone and getting useful people to 65 or 80.

One nice thing though. At this point we're getting a huge influx of new characters and MC2's, but in the distant future it switches to unlocking Record Dive for people. We will still get new characters and MC2's, but not as many (with some exceptions, like a recent FFT event which debuted 3 new characters).

[Mr.Sandman]

All the XP stuff won't be as bad with the double XP RM''s, and I think we are getting the ++ dailies soon enough.

[Red Fel]

And the latest anniversary gift is in! ... sort of.

First, the quiz (http://anniversary.finalfantasyrecordkeeper.com/quiz/) has been updated with the next batch of questions! You can also look back over the previous questions and their answers. Good news, big shock, the community got them all right, on average.

Second, the new gift, viewable on the anniversary main page (http://anniversary.finalfantasyrecordkeeper.com/), is apparently some kind of personality test. I say apparently because, as of this writing, the link is non-functional.

There does not appear to be anything in-game at this time. Sorry, no free mythril for you.

[danzibr]

All the XP stuff won't be as bad with the double XP RM''s, and I think we are getting the ++ dailies soon enough.
True! 3 people each with a 20% chance to get double exp. Nice. I suppose it would optimize exp gain by just running 3 people with those. In fact, I think I'll do that.

Sorry, no free mythril for you.
Boo.

[Starwulf]

Is anyone else having issues getting FFRK to load up right now? I was playing it earlier, like around midnight, and the game froze, which in turn froze my entire tablet. Forced it to restart, and ever since I get an error when I try to load FFRK up ><

Edit: Nevermind, I cleared the cache and it worked fine after that.

[Hunter Noventa]

Only drained my stamina once on sunday while I was grilling. I have so much other stuff to do. Grabbed a couple levels for Steiner and Zidane for the current event.

[Red Fel]

Boo.

Well, some good news!

First, an explanation of the Fortune Egg event. It's accessible only on your mobile device - so don't bother trying to access it on your computer, you'll just get a "No, use your mobile, doofus," message. It's not a personality test - it generates a random character for you to set as wallpaper or share on social media.

I tried it twice, and got:
A Spoony Thief, looking for a Ninja
A Nanny Knight, looking for a Bard
So I thought I'd do two more, and fill out a four-person party:
A Brassy Black Mage, looking for a Ranger
A Baudy Berserker, looking for a Summoner
Huh. How 'bout that. Offensive damage, offensive casting, defense, and utility. Not bad. Could use more healing.

Anyway, here's the good news part: There are community rewards based on how many of these little things are generated. At 1,000, everyone gets 10,000 gil. At 2,000, 10,000 gil and 1 Major Egg. At 3,000, 10,000 gil and 1 Mythril. At 5,000, 10,000 gil and 1 Mythril. And at 10,000, 10,000 gil, 1 Major Egg, and 1 Mythril. That's a total of 50,000 gil, 2 Major Eggs, and 3 Mythril.

We've already hit 114,722. You're getting everything. That's the good news.

Also, enjoy today's jukebox of Aerith's Theme.

[danzibr]

Well, some good news!

First, an explanation of the Fortune Egg event. It's accessible only on your mobile device - so don't bother trying to access it on your computer, you'll just get a "No, use your mobile, doofus," message. It's not a personality test - it generates a random character for you to set as wallpaper or share on social media.

I tried it twice, and got:
A Spoony Thief, looking for a Ninja
A Nanny Knight, looking for a Bard
So I thought I'd do two more, and fill out a four-person party:
A Brassy Black Mage, looking for a Ranger
A Baudy Berserker, looking for a Summoner
Huh. How 'bout that. Offensive damage, offensive casting, defense, and utility. Not bad. Could use more healing.

Anyway, here's the good news part: There are community rewards based on how many of these little things are generated. At 1,000, everyone gets 10,000 gil. At 2,000, 10,000 gil and 1 Major Egg. At 3,000, 10,000 gil and 1 Mythril. At 5,000, 10,000 gil and 1 Mythril. And at 10,000, 10,000 gil, 1 Major Egg, and 1 Mythril. That's a total of 50,000 gil, 2 Major Eggs, and 3 Mythril.

We've already hit 114,722. You're getting everything. That's the good news.

Also, enjoy today's jukebox of Aerith's Theme.
Haha, wow, they set the bar low.

I'll do that during my lunch break.

Also, yesterday was devoted to exp, today to getting Scarletite, tomorrow to PO's. Won't attempt Garland or the rest of the IX event until Wednesday.

I also find it odd that we're getting Minwu before Orbfest. Such a difference between global and JP now.

[Calemyr]

Vimless Viking...

[danzibr]

I'm really liking these Mondailies. Extra Giant Scarletite every run. Nice. I'll (hopefully) be needing those around Orbfest.

[Jurai]

Sorry to draw attention away from current topic, but who is everybody going to bring to Ultima Buster?

I'm looking at Terra, Vivi, Hope, Krile, and Kefka. And a table. Why? Because I love tables.



Character
Level
Weapon
Armor
Accessory
Ability 1
Ability 2
Record Materia


Terra
80
Magus Rod (VI)+
Esthar Helmet (VIII)
Terra's Pendant (VI)
Firaja (R4)
Firaga (R5)
Blood of Espers


Vivi
65
Telescopic Baton (VII)
Oath Veil (VI)
Crystal Orb (VI)
Thundaja (R4)
Thundaga (R5)
Rod Master


Kefka
65
Lamia's Flute (VI)
Dragon Armlet (VII)
Pearl Rouge (IX)
Blizzaja (R3)
Blizzaga (R5)
Devotion


Krile
65
Healing Staff (V)
Witch's Hat (XIII)
Rune Armlet (IV)
Ruinga (R5)
Carbuncle (R3)
Vow of Vengeance


Hope
65
Rising Sun (VIII)
Wizard Armlet (X)
Circlet (VIII)
Waterja (R4)
Waterga (R5)
Ascendance (Extra MAG when equipping a Thrown)



Question is, where am I going to find single target non-elemental damage that isn't Atk-based or Ninja? Also, depending on whether I can do Ult Silver Dragon, that Circlet (VIII) will be replaced with the accessory for completing it, which is +30 MAG. Also, if I get Rinoa's MC/MC2, she'll replace Hope.

[danzibr]

Sorry to draw attention away from current topic, but who is everybody going to bring to Ultima Buster?

I'm looking at Terra, Vivi, Hope, Krile, and Kefka. And a table. Why? Because I love tables.



Character
Level
Weapon
Armor
Accessory
Ability 1
Ability 2
Record Materia


Terra
80
Magus Rod (VI)+
Esthar Helmet (VIII)
Terra's Pendant (VI)
Firaja (R4)
Firaga (R5)
Blood of Espers


Vivi
65
Telescopic Baton (VII)
Oath Veil (VI)
Crystal Orb (VI)
Thundaja (R4)
Thundaga (R5)
Rod Master


Kefka
65
Lamia's Flute (VI)
Dragon Armlet (VII)
Pearl Rouge (IX)
Blizzaja (R3)
Blizzaga (R5)
Devotion


Krile
65
Healing Staff (V)
Witch's Hat (XIII)
Rune Armlet (IV)
Ruinga (R5)
Carbuncle (R1)
Vow of Vengeance


Hope
65
Rising Sun (VIII)
Wizard Armlet (X)
Circlet (VIII)
Waterja (R4)
Waterga (R5)
Ascendance (Extra MAG when equipping a Thrown)



Question is, where am I going to find single target non-elemental damage that isn't Atk-based or Ninja? Also, depending on whether I can do Ult Silver Dragon, that Circlet (VIII) will be replaced with the accessory for completing it, which is +30 MAG. Also, if I get Rinoa's MC/MC2, she'll replace Hope.
I like your tables ;)

I don't have the exact details. I'll probably bring 80 Rinoa, 80 Terra, hopefully 80 Tyro, and depending on how the timing works out, maybe 80 Lulu or Vivi or Hope. Mmmmm that'd be nice.

EDIT: Gosh dangit. My first empty MC2 is going to Gilgamesh, fer shizzle. Little hope for Lulu/Vivi/Hope.

[Jurai]

I ask single target non-elemental damage so that way I can pack another damaging spell in place of Carbuncle. But yeah, those would be nice. I'm not spending eggs on them, though.

[danzibr]

I ask single target non-elemental damage so that way I can pack another damaging spell in place of Carbuncle. But yeah, those would be nice. I'm not spending eggs on them, though.
Ya know, taking a closer look, doesn't each element have its special shtick? Like, Fire and Lightning deal damage to Ultima, Water heals your party, I forget what Blizzawhatever does. I'm not sure you need a healer. Or Carbuncle. The couple videos I watched were *super* offensive (not that kind of offensive). But it's been a while since I looked into it.

Another thing... I don't know how many -ja's you need. Like, hitting the orb with a strong -ga results in damage cap on Ultima, and in fact it might be a good idea to take those.

And Tyro might be good. Don't need high mag to hit damage cap against Ultima.

[Jurai]

I wonder. Could I get away with packing Fira instead of Firaga (and the other elements as well), and use those to pound down the Mana Sphere? My other concern is, should I bring Blood of Espers, or something increase Terra's already ridiculous MAG? Blood has me worrying about destroying the Sphere early. Hmm...

[danzibr]

I wonder. Could I get away with packing Fira instead of Firaga (and the other elements as well), and use those to pound down the Mana Sphere? My other concern is, should I bring Blood of Espers, or something increase Terra's already ridiculous MAG? Blood has me worrying about destroying the Sphere early. Hmm...
It seems to noobish me that Blood of Espers would be better, assuming it triggers the sphere's thingy twice.

[Chen]

I believe the spheres return 10X the damage dealt to them. So really you probably want to be hitting the sphere for around 1k damage to not kill the sphere and deal the most damage to Ultima. Assuming Blood of Espers allows two of the sphere retaliations I think it would be better than any other RM. I think one of the keys here will be multi-hit elemental SBs like Lightning's SSB or some of those other fire multi-hit ones (don't recall who has that).

[danzibr]

I believe the spheres return 10X the damage dealt to them. So really you probably want to be hitting the sphere for around 1k damage to not kill the sphere and deal the most damage to Ultima. Assuming Blood of Espers allows two of the sphere retaliations I think it would be better than any other RM. I think one of the keys here will be multi-hit elemental SBs like Lightning's SSB or some of those other fire multi-hit ones (don't recall who has that).
Oh yeah, Lulu's. That'd rock hard.

*PLUS* we're getting (?) SSB fest soon. Hopefully multi-hit Fire or Lightning SSB's. Never know.

But then again... man, Orfest doesn't begin until 3/27, no? That leaves a whopping (nearly) 2 weeks. Lot can happen in that time.

EDIT: It looks like we get Hall of Rites in 3 days, on 3/17. And we're probably getting the II event or our first Abyss challenge in a few days. Next DU probably won't be for another 3 events. Apparently Hall of Rites give 4 (!!!!) MC2's. Maybe I can get Vivi, Lulu, and Hope to 80 and break Gilgamesh as well.

But man, I don't like Hope at all. Probably use it on Aerith or Bartz instead.

Oh wait. I just read somewhere the banners might start 3/17. That's exciting.

I need information >.>

[Jurai]

I've been watching some videos, and I've noticed that it's eating -jas for 1K each or so, so that's not a concern anymore, and that Boon seems to be the common RW for it.

[T.G. Oskar]

Well, can't say I didn't try FFVIII's +++ battle again to attempt mastering it. After about 8 tries, only got about 3 extra medals, but not enough for Champion - got Terra and Faris killed on the last attempt by concentrated firepower, and both SSII and Exhausting Polka were...well, exhausted out.

That said - right now, I'm taking it easy and doing Core quests to raise my Stamina and get more Mythril. I'm pretty close to 150 Mythril, and with some effort actually get to 200 Mythril (difficult, though). At least 50 of those are saved for an 11-pull on the Tactics gacha, and the rest most likely for the SSB banner with Terra's SSB. If I achieve 200, I might likely save 50 for the Beginner Banner, in order to get Balthier's gun (since I plan to use Balthier even more now, as he has Machinist and Spellblade skills now, and he's capped so once he gets his MCII he'll be ready to reach 80 in a heartbeat).

As for the Abyss Dungeon? Most likely Terra (only double-broken character I have...well, except from the Keeper), Ashe (Northswain's Glow), most likely Golbez (in case I need to Minus Strike Ultima Buster), Exdeath (best Sage so far) and...dunno, the Keeper (Celebration Grimoire, Healing Grimoire) or Kefka (Bard & Dancer skills)? Should be an unusual party, that's for sure, and if I manage to land good Mage gear, it should work fine. No true "hard-hitter" like Vivi or Lulu, though.

Got Firaja R2, Waterja R3, Ruinga R2, Comet R3 and Meteor R1 as my go-to BLM spells, with R4 Blizzaga, R4 Thundaga, R2 Bioga and R2 Quake as other options. Hopefully there'll be more Orbfests soon, since I'm lacking on MPOs really badly.

[Forbiddenwar]

I plan on using Terra, Rinoa, and Keeper all at level 80. I'm not sure about the other 2 slots. I have a lot of max level 65 5* black magic users I can use. Rydia probably, then Exdeath as a healer.

The keeper opens the door for spellblade abilities with synergy, although Cloud without synergy may still be better. Hmm.

[Starwulf]

What's the difficulty fight of the Abyss Ultima fight anyways? That is honestly a huge factor in whether or not I'll even try as I clearly don't have the strength to handle real Ultimates yet.

Beyond that, I have 3 that are nicely leveled and decent gear for each: Terra(80, Enhancer), Lulu(61, Mog Doll and her funky hat), Vivi(65, just decent gear in general). Beyond that...maybe Rydia and...I have no idea.

Edit: Well, current event is done for now, back to doing classic/elite dungeons to up my stamina some. After having burned out for a while, I'm back to doing the core content, up to 111 stamina, would like to hit 120 before I burn out again ^^

[SuperPanda]

Looking at my mages. I'm pretty sure I know what my team will be.

Rinoa (currently at 68) Cardinal + (Oddly lucky single pull on VIII banner 2 + the last celebration banner). - pure powerhouse
Rydia (currently at 61) Ice Whip + - Healer. Ice damage causes orb to heal us. If Carbuncle is needed that too.
Terra (currently at 66) Enhancer - If support is needed, otherwise good solid damage.
Ashe (currently at 58) Rune Blade - Non-Elemental covered by SB with some healing, good damage - not great.
Tellah (currently at 65) Poly-morph Rod - Recharge -jas and more powerful summons / shellga / damage.

Would consider replacing Tellah with Tyro and running him as a Ninja too.

[Jurai]

What's the difficulty fight of the Abyss Ultima fight anyways? That is honestly a huge factor in whether or not I'll even try as I clearly don't have the strength to handle real Ultimates yet.

Difficulty ???, Stamina 1.

And don't use Physical attacks. UBuster counters them with Death.

[danzibr]

Question: I'm looking at this spreadsheet with dates and stuff (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1azHSTIrUrIwHEF01QOHfjCia89-NKTqskPrxcntNxA0/edit#gid=0), and I see two things of interest: first, we get Hall of Rites on 3/17; second, it says that comes with empty MC x4 and empty MC2 x4. Does that mean we just get free empty MC's and MC2's? Or do we have to beat some bosses to get them? I don't know of any event associated with it (or maybe... is this referring back to VoM?).

I also read on reddit that Orbfest 3 might begin with Hall of Rites and go until/through our anniversary. Any word there?

[Slayn82]

Well, we have the content of the celebration banners now.

http://ffrk.kongbakpao.com/sssb-fest-the-moment-youve-been-waiting-for/

I'm still keeping my eyes on Banner 5. Shield Grimoire will be along with a bunch of items that I was wishing , fair trade for Sephiroth SSB, and Galuf Fist of Dawn in place of Quina's Mighty Shield is fair too. Got Lucky there.

Banners 1 and 4 aren't bad either. And Yuna's event will run along with the celebration, so if you aren't pulling for X, you got that extra mythril to spend.

[Red Fel]

A few updates today.

First, some character balancing:
Rosa can now equip rods. Because she's a caster and rods have caster stats and, come on, seriously, you guys.
Rinoa can now use 5-star SMN abilities, and has had her Mag increased. Because she wasn't absurdly powerful already.
Squall's Spellblade has been increased from 4-star to 5-star. Because you really wanted to use that Flare Strike, I know you did.
Next, bonus battles in the IX event are expected to drop tonight. So let's get right into it!
+: Boss rush. It's weed-whacker day! Two fights, both plants. Bring a source of fire damage and a source of holy damage. Victory gets you the 4-star Dragoon ability Leeching Leap.
Plaint Brain: Medals for not getting KO'd and exploiting its Fire weakness. Its attacks are either single-target physical, single-target Lightning, or AoE Blind, so being able to purge Blind (Esuna/Blindna) or bringing Mage Meta is recommended. Keep in mind that it has a lot of status vulnerabilities, including Blind, so feel free to exploit those.
Soulcage: Medals for not getting KO'd and exploiting its Holy weakness. Remember that if you use Fire, it will catch on fire and murder you all. It is also susceptible to Blind, but uses a lot of magic attacks.
++: Taharka. Medals for not getting KO'd, exploiting its Wind weakness, and exploiting its Fire weakness. This looks like a job for Steiner. In its normal state, it uses magic and physical attacks, but when defending, it uses only physical attacks. Mitigate, neutralize its defenses (e.g. Armor Breakdown), and murder it. Victory gets you Garnet's MC2.
+++: Ark. Medals for not getting KO'd, exploiting its Wind weakness, and Slowing it. It's susceptible to Slow, Blind, Silence, and Sleep, so it's not too hard to lock it down. Blind alone neutralizes a lot of its power. Victory gets you the 5-star Dragoon ability Sky Grinder.
U: Silver Dragon. Medals for not getting KO'd, exploiting its Ice weakness, and exploiting its Wind weakness. And before you say "This looks like a job for Steiner," keep in mind that Wind Jump and Ice Jump are Dragoon abilities (why, hello, Freya). In fact, Freya will be very valuable in this fight. The Silver Dragon has an airborne mechanic; periodically, it goes airborne, taking it outside of melee range and increasing its Res. It has some powerful attacks during this time. However, hitting it with a Jump attack will take it out of its airborne state and remove the bonus Res and special attacks, leaving it open to murder. Note, however, that all of its attacks are ranged, so being in the back row provides no defensive advantage to your casters. Keep in mind that, while not airborne, almost all of its attacks count as physical (including Shockwave, which does Wind physical damage), but while airborne, it gains a magical attack (Twister). Mitigate, keep it from remaining airborne, and plan accordingly; Tauntaliate should serve you well in this fight. Victory gets you the 5-star accessory Silver Pinion, and I still don't know what that does!
Remember also that Garnet's MC2 is the new game-breaking, because her new RM gives a 13% chance to doublecast SMN abilities.

[SuperPanda]

SSB fest seems to be dropping within 48 hours, would love to hear others feelings on the relics. For me:

Banner 1:
SSB Bartz - Want. Don't have a good V sword yet (did get a shared SB spear last V event though). Also I'm a sucker for anything Excalibur.
SSB Sephiroth - Its a very nice katana but I don't need anymore VII weapons for a long while.
SSB Zidane - Could use another good IX weapon and Zidane is awesome.
SSB Quistis - Want. Have no haste so it would be awesome!
SSB Yuna - Have no good X items and still don't really want this, though it is great, just not interested.
SB Squall (Revolver) - Rosseta Stone!
SB Sabin (Dragon Claw) - Meh
SB ViVi (Oak Staff) - Would be nice to have a IX mage item.
SB Sazh (Deneb Duellers) - Not interested.

2 items I want, a few I'd like to have ... not sure I'll spend mythril. Maybe a 3 pull, probably a one pull.

Banner 2:
SSB Hope - Looks awesome, but I don't have any feeling for the character.
SSB Red XIII - Would make Red better to use, but I don't really like the character.
SSB Tyro - Celebration Grimore is better.
SSB Eiko - Want.
SB Beatrix - Would be nice/
SB Locke - Would be nice, probably pulling for better.
SB Lulu - Looks very useful for Abyss - don't have a strong desire for it.
SB Faris - (See above)
SB Mog - Would love this, but won't get it.

2 items I want, only 1 I'd rather not get (and even then its still a good item). Smart pull but not gonna, maybe 1 or 3 pull.

Banner 3:
SSB Vanille - Supper Tellah (Polymorph rod was my MVP SB for so long, might be again as I start getting 5* abilities - this would be pink tellah)
SSB Cloud - Don't need it, would be okay getting one but would rather not.
SSB Laguna - VIII is not synergy I need anymore, would like a gun for it, loved the character in VIII and Dissidia
SSB Terra - Make a great make better!
SB Tidus (Brotherhood) - A X weapon anyone can use, also Tidus is suppose to be very good if I use him right.
SB Lightning (Uniform) - A nice SB on an armor. Don't care about Lightning though.
SB Gilgamesh (Zantesuken) - The real hero of V deserves a sword at last.
SB Thancred (knives) - I've got his armor, might as well.
SB Fang - who was that agian?

3 I'd really like. a couple I don't really want. Tempted to pull but unsure.

Banner 4:
SSB Arieth - Basically the same as Eiko's but on my second most used healer already (Planet Protector). Would like, wouldn't pull for it alone.
SSB Locke - one of my 2 favorite VI characters from when I was a kid, reason enough.
SSB ViVi - Need a mage weapon for IX - one of the best casters - pull pull.
SSB Pencil - I've chased ever P.Cecil relic that's come up wanting one - no matter how badly. I don't need IV synergy but. I. Want. This.
SB ExDeath - Really awesome SB on a character I don't really like - but boy oh boy would it be handy. Swallow pride and pull.
SB Kefka - Meh, not really after villain SBs, not as awesome as the evil trees.
SB Penelo - Don't remember what it does... don't care. I actually have very little XII synergy and its a game I love.
SB Garnet - See ViVi... SB weaker but still good.
SB Edgar - Oh look... the other favorite from when I was young.

1 relic I don't really want. Lots I do really want. Lots really useful. 1x11 pull at least.

Banner 5:
SSB Gilgamesh: See above. He deserves a sword. I wouldn't pull just for this, but it would be very nice.
SSB Rinoa: I will laugh very hard if I get it.
SSB Lightning: No real desire for it.
SSB Garnet: would be nice, but once I've got her MC2 I'm not likely to use Garnet again.
SB Tyro (SG): I've chased Thyrus to the abyss and back... I want this so badly but don't know if its worth pulling on this banner.
SB Steienr: Would be nice, but not sure.
SB Yuffie: Neat SB - have tons of synergy.
SB Golbez: Would likely never get used.
SB Galuf: Would likely never get used by Galuf. Gilgamesh will be singing "hammer time"

Really unsure if I want to pull on this banner beyond a 3 pull... Having a Wall would be so very nice, but the rest of the banner is just okay for me.


I've got 250+ mythril now and want a minimum of 100 for tactics. a handful of single/tripple pulls plus 1x11 pull (maybe 2) seems like what I'll be doing.

How about all of you?

[Hunter Noventa]

Well, we have the content of the celebration banners now.

http://ffrk.kongbakpao.com/sssb-fest-the-moment-youve-been-waiting-for/

I'm still keeping my eyes on Banner 5. Shield Grimoire will be along with a bunch of items that I was wishing , fair trade for Sephiroth SSB, and Galuf Fist of Dawn in place of Quina's Mighty Shield is fair too. Got Lucky there.

Banners 1 and 4 aren't bad either. And Yuna's event will run along with the celebration, so if you aren't pulling for X, you got that extra mythril to spend.

Phase 3 and 5 look good to me. Mostly because I still kinda want Maduin's Horn because it's a Magitek Missile Massacre. I just hope I don't get another Organics....though if they were combined that would be a 6* relic weapon with 7 synergy. So not all bad. Most of phase 5 looks good, except for the non-SSB relics, save the Grimoire, because I don't like any of those characters, except Yuffie.

I also have 300 Mythril to spend now. I'll probably do a 10-pull for phase 3, then two for phase 5, saving the rest for FFT. Also need to sell a few more useless pieces of equipment to have room to do said pulls. If I happen to gather 15 Mythril between now and then, I'll probably do a 3-pull somewhere.

[Jurai]

SSB fest seems to be dropping within 48 hours, would love to hear others feelings on the relics. For me:

Banner 1:
SSB Bartz - Want. Don't have a good V sword yet (did get a shared SB spear last V event though). Also I'm a sucker for anything Excalibur.
SSB Sephiroth - Its a very nice katana but I don't need anymore VII weapons for a long while.
SSB Zidane - Could use another good IX weapon and Zidane is awesome.
SSB Quistis - Want. Have no haste so it would be awesome!
SSB Yuna - Have no good X items and still don't really want this, though it is great, just not interested.
SB Squall (Revolver) - Rosseta Stone!
SB Sabin (Dragon Claw) - Meh
SB ViVi (Oak Staff) - Would be nice to have a IX mage item.
SB Sazh (Deneb Duellers) - Not interested.

2 items I want, a few I'd like to have ... not sure I'll spend mythril. Maybe a 3 pull, probably a one pull.

Banner 2:
SSB Hope - Looks awesome, but I don't have any feeling for the character.
SSB Red XIII - Would make Red better to use, but I don't really like the character.
SSB Tyro - Celebration Grimore is better.
SSB Eiko - Want.
SB Beatrix - Would be nice/
SB Locke - Would be nice, probably pulling for better.
SB Lulu - Looks very useful for Abyss - don't have a strong desire for it.
SB Faris - (See above)
SB Mog - Would love this, but won't get it.

2 items I want, only 1 I'd rather not get (and even then its still a good item). Smart pull but not gonna, maybe 1 or 3 pull.

Banner 3:
SSB Vanille - Supper Tellah (Polymorph rod was my MVP SB for so long, might be again as I start getting 5* abilities - this would be pink tellah)
SSB Cloud - Don't need it, would be okay getting one but would rather not.
SSB Laguna - VIII is not synergy I need anymore, would like a gun for it, loved the character in VIII and Dissidia
SSB Terra - Make a great make better!
SB Tidus (Brotherhood) - A X weapon anyone can use, also Tidus is suppose to be very good if I use him right.
SB Lightning (Uniform) - A nice SB on an armor. Don't care about Lightning though.
SB Gilgamesh (Zantesuken) - The real hero of V deserves a sword at last.
SB Thancred (knives) - I've got his armor, might as well.
SB Fang - who was that agian?

3 I'd really like. a couple I don't really want. Tempted to pull but unsure.

Banner 4:
SSB Arieth - Basically the same as Eiko's but on my second most used healer already (Planet Protector). Would like, wouldn't pull for it alone.
SSB Locke - one of my 2 favorite VI characters from when I was a kid, reason enough.
SSB ViVi - Need a mage weapon for IX - one of the best casters - pull pull.
SSB Pencil - I've chased ever P.Cecil relic that's come up wanting one - no matter how badly. I don't need IV synergy but. I. Want. This.
SB ExDeath - Really awesome SB on a character I don't really like - but boy oh boy would it be handy. Swallow pride and pull.
SB Kefka - Meh, not really after villain SBs, not as awesome as the evil trees.
SB Penelo - Don't remember what it does... don't care. I actually have very little XII synergy and its a game I love.
SB Garnet - See ViVi... SB weaker but still good.
SB Edgar - Oh look... the other favorite from when I was young.

1 relic I don't really want. Lots I do really want. Lots really useful. 1x11 pull at least.

Banner 5:
SSB Gilgamesh: See above. He deserves a sword. I wouldn't pull just for this, but it would be very nice.
SSB Rinoa: I will laugh very hard if I get it.
SSB Lightning: No real desire for it.
SSB Garnet: would be nice, but once I've got her MC2 I'm not likely to use Garnet again.
SB Tyro (SG): I've chased Thyrus to the abyss and back... I want this so badly but don't know if its worth pulling on this banner.
SB Steienr: Would be nice, but not sure.
SB Yuffie: Neat SB - have tons of synergy.
SB Golbez: Would likely never get used.
SB Galuf: Would likely never get used by Galuf. Gilgamesh will be singing "hammer time"

Really unsure if I want to pull on this banner beyond a 3 pull... Having a Wall would be so very nice, but the rest of the banner is just okay for me.


I've got 250+ mythril now and want a minimum of 100 for tactics. a handful of single/tripple pulls plus 1x11 pull (maybe 2) seems like what I'll be doing.

How about all of you?

I'm at 25, spent a Mythril for Stamina refresh to pass time until Price is Right, and I might actually skip Tactics for this. If we're given Mythril for lucky pulls, I'll be all over banners 5, 4, 1. Dream Items are SG, Genji Katana (Gilgamesh' SSB), Peacemaker (Need a more recent gun than the Running Fire, since I'm not counting Goddess' Tribute), Excalibur (V), and Hope's SSB.

[Calemyr]

I've got 85 at the moment, and I'm a big fan of FFT (no Mustadio, though...), so I have to ask: any advice for a guy with pretty crap luck? Is there any of these worth a 50-pull? I'll probably pull the 100-gem on each, just because I can, because it's cheap enough that I only hate myself a little for doing it, and because I've never gotten a SSB or a BSSB relic at all. At this rate, I'll pretty easily have 100 by FFT. Should I save it all for then? Or is there one of these banners that is good enough to split my meager horde?

(By the way, I'm up to date on all the characters and crystals available through events, including MC2s. The only character I'm missing is Gau, and I'm at a measly 124 stamina.)

[danzibr]

Hey, what the hell? Each phase is only 2 days?

Eh well. I'm delighted it's coming really soon. Going to spend 100 mythril on every phase.

Also, I'm delighted at the expanded list of SSB relics.

EDIT: Wait, no. No... no...

There's no Thyrus.

EDIT EDIT: Hey wait. SuperPanda, you said something about within 48 hours. What's this phase 1 3/25 business?

[Red Fel]

I've got 250+ mythril now and want a minimum of 100 for tactics. a handful of single/tripple pulls plus 1x11 pull (maybe 2) seems like what I'll be doing.

How about all of you?

I'm sitting on an excess of 300 Mythril, which means that even if they're not doing a Lucky Draw for each banner, I could do a 10-pull on each and still have enough for a 10-pull on FFT. Which is basically how I'm saving up.

That said, let's look at specifics. Bold font means do want, italics means maybe, regular typeface means not really interested.
Bartz, Sephiroth, Zidane, Quistis, Yuna, Squall, Sabin, Vivi, Sazh.
Hope, Red XIII, Tyro, Eiko, Beatrix, Locke, Lulu, Faris, Mog.
Vanille, Cloud, Laguna, Terra, Tidus, Lightning, Gilgamesh, Thancred, Fang.
Aerith, Locke, Vivi, Pencil, Exdeath, Kefka, Penelo, Garnet, Edgar.
Gilgamesh, Rinoa, Lightning, Garnet, Tyro, Steiner, Yuffie, Golbez, Galuf.
Basically, I'm gunning for trinity relics (except for SG), and multi-hit AoEs, ideally with riders. Of course, I wouldn't say no to SSBs, so they're all maybe by default.

One way or another, if I get something with 5 stars, I'm probably going to be happy.

[SuperPanda]

Had the same reaction to thyrus as you Danzibar. Banner 5 does have SG though.

[DiscipleofBob]

Last time we had one of these I spent all my Mythril trying to get Rinoa's Cardinal if only so I could have one character with all their SBs. All I got to show for it was Vanille's staff.

This time, I'm not hoping for anything, spending 50 Mythril per banner, and letting the shards fall where they may.

If I get some SSB relics I want, great!

If I get some SSB relics I don't want, still great! I'll learn to use them!

If I get some SB relics, still great!

If I get absolutely nothing, I can assure myself that it would have been just as wasted on any other banner.

[danzibr]

I did have a thought. If I get either Thyrus (who knows when that could happen) or SG, that means I'll probably bring Y'Shtola or Tyro to like every future hard boss ever. Don't like that pigeonholing.

[Red Fel]

I did have a thought. If I get either Thyrus (who knows when that could happen) or SG, that means I'll probably bring Y'Shtola or Tyro to like every future hard boss ever. Don't like that pigeonholing.

Pretty much the same if you get any must-have SB. They only work for their designated characters.

That said, aside from his sub-par stats, being forced to use Tyro is kind of the opposite of pigeonholing, given that he can occupy any slot on a team. Need a buff-bot? Done. Need somebody to attack your Retaliatemans? Done. Need somebody who can use Reflect, Esuna, or Dispel? Done. Need to deal damage? ... I'll be over here now.

Really, my only frustration with Y'shtola is that when I'm using her, I'm not using a better healer. And even then, she's a pretty darn good healer.

[Hunter Noventa]

Pretty much the same if you get any must-have SB. They only work for their designated characters.

That said, aside from his sub-par stats, being forced to use Tyro is kind of the opposite of pigeonholing, given that he can occupy any slot on a team. Need a buff-bot? Done. Need somebody to attack your Retaliatemans? Done. Need somebody who can use Reflect, Esuna, or Dispel? Done. Need to deal damage? ... I'll be over here now.

Really, my only frustration with Y'shtola is that when I'm using her, I'm not using a better healer. And even then, she's a pretty darn good healer.

At least Y'shtola also has Support 4 so she can bring breakdowns. Though since Freya also has it she might become more of a go-to for them, since she can bring a lot more pain than Fran can, but I do have Fran's MC2. Hmmm.

And stuffing eggs into Freya got me through Ipsen's castle, though the first run was mostly bad luck with Flamethrowers. After that the silver Dragon was a cakewalk. I doubt I'll hit the ultimate, but Garnet's MC2 is 99% likely to be mine.

[danzibr]

Pretty much the same if you get any must-have SB. They only work for their designated characters.

That said, aside from his sub-par stats, being forced to use Tyro is kind of the opposite of pigeonholing, given that he can occupy any slot on a team. Need a buff-bot? Done. Need somebody to attack your Retaliatemans? Done. Need somebody who can use Reflect, Esuna, or Dispel? Done. Need to deal damage? ... I'll be over here now.

Really, my only frustration with Y'shtola is that when I'm using her, I'm not using a better healer. And even then, she's a pretty darn good healer.
Oh. Ha, yes, I was really thinking any single awesome item. Like for Y'shtola, I'd rather bring Lenna, *especially* if we're talking V. Et cetera, et cetera. But right, good point(s). I'm really very tempted to do as you said earlier and do all my Record Diving with Tyro.

Oh. And question. WAIT WHAT THE HECK. The banners say phase I begins 3/25, yet on the event page it says ETA 3/16. Or are they separating the banners from the phases?

EDIT: Derrrrrrrrr that's exactly what it says on KBP, that they don't overlap.

Whoa, that's nice. Really nice. The Orbfest part of it is spread out. I like it.

[Slayn82]

Thinking a bit more about the Banners, Banner 1 seems to be a pretty good alternative if you are trying to raise a Physical Meta Team, and you have the chance to get Quistis SSB as a replacement for Scream, in case you don't have hastega yet.

Quistis may have her issues, not having support 5 or BM 5, but her SSB is excellent, although not boosting Atk, it gives a lot of staying power. Those other physical SSBs are VERY good, and the magical ones are perfectly functional.

And since its pretty pointless to run physical meta without those hard hitting SBs/SSBs, but there are alternatives to Boostga, including self buffs, or Garnet default SB, or Aerith Planet Protector SB.

Edit: What? The Orbfest and the Celebration Banners are uncoordinated? Then I won't have the Mythril I was expecting for Banner 5. Ugh

[danzibr]

I'll make a post commenting on SSB's later. Or maybe I'll edit it back in here. For the time being, I'm going to detail my character's levels.


I: WoL 65
II: Firion 45, Maria 64, Leon 45, Gordon 50, Ricard 50, Josef 50
III: Luneth 51, Arc 31, Refia 31, Ingus 26
IV: DK Cecil 65, Pally Cecil 75, Kain 58, Rydia 65, Rosa 52, Edward 34, Tellah 65, Edge 51, Fusoya 52, Golbez 50
V: Lenna 80, Galuf 65, Gilgamesh 65, Bartz 65, Faris 65, Exdeath 65, Krile 65
VI: Terra 80, Locke 50, Celes 56, Mog 51, Edgar 50, Sabin 50, Shadow 50, Cyan 50, Gau 1, Setzer 50, Strago 50, Kefka 50
VII: Cloud 80, Barret 65, Tifa 50, Aerith 65, Red XIII 66, Yuffie 58, Zack 65, Sephiroth 70, Cid 51, Reno 65
VIII: Squall 80, Rinoa 80, Quistis 54, Zell 50, Selphie 60, Irvine 55, Seifer 50, Laguna 50
IX: Zidane 50, Garnet 56, Vivi 65, Steiner 65, Freya 37, Quina 50, Eiko 65, Amarant 50, Beatrix 50
X: Tidus 80, Yuna 68, Wakka 80, Lulu 65, Kimahri 26, Rikku 51, Auron 65, Jecht 25
XII: Vaan 65, Balthier 50, Fran 65, Ashe 65, Penelo 65
XIII: Lightning 67, Snow 35, Vanille 65, Sazh 50, Hope 50, Fang 50
XIV: Y'shtola 10, Thancred 10
Core: Tyro 71, Warrior 1, Knight 13, RM 13, BM 50, WM 50, Devout 27, Summoner 50, Samurai 37, Dragoon 27, DK 23, Spellblade 27, Viking 27, Berserker 1, Ranger 50, Thief 1, Bard 50, Ninja 1, Gladiator 1


1: Gau, Warrior, Berserker, Thief, Ninja, Gladiator
10: Y'shtola, Thancred
13: Knight, RM
22: Kefka
23: DK
25: Jecht
26: Ingus, Kimahri
27: Devout, Dragoon, Spellblade, Viking
31: Arc, Refia
34: Edward
35: Snow
37: Freya, Samurai
45: Firion, Leon
50: Gordon, Ricard, Josef, Golbez, Locke, Edgar, Sabin, Shadow, Cyan, Setzer, Strago, Tifa, Zell, Seifer, Laguna, Zidane, Quina, Amarant, Beatrix, Balthier, Sazh, Hope, Fang, BM, WM, Summoner, Ranger, Bard
51: Luneth, Edge, Mog, Cid, Rikku
52: Rosa, FuSoYa
54: Quistis
55: Irvine
56: Celes, Garnet
58: Kain, Yuffie
60: Selphie
64: Maria
65: WoL, DK Cecil, Rydia, Tellah, Galu, Gilgamesh, Bartz, Faris, Exdeath, Krile, Barret, Aerith, Zack, Reno, Vivi, Steiner, Eiko, Lulu, Auron, Vaan, Fran, Ashe, Penelo, Vanille
66: Red XIII
67: Lightning
68: Yuna
70: Sephiroth
71: Tyro
75: Pally Cecil
80: Lenna, Terra, Cloud, Squall, Rinoa, Tidus, Wakka

[Jurai]

Since Danzibr's doing that, I'm going to do the same. Second column is sorted by realm order, and the asterisk after the Level 50 characters means they're level broken and just sitting at 50.



Level
Characters


1
Firion, Leon, Gordon, Refia, Ingus, Rosa, Edward, Edge, Locke, Sabin, Shadow, Gau, Setzer, Tifa, Aerith, Red XIII, Yuffie, Quistis, Selphie, Seifer, Freya, Amarant, Beatrix, Rikku, Auron, Jecht, Fran, Penelo, Y'shtola, Warrior, Knight, Devout, Samurai, Dragoon, Dark Knight, Viking, Berserker, Thief, Bard, Ninja, Gladiator


30
Zack


50
Warrior of Light*, Ricard*, Josef*, Dark Knight Cecil*, Paladin Cecil, Kain*, Edgar*, Cid*, Squall*, Rinoa (Rising Sun (VIII)), Zell (Gauntlet (VIII))*, Irvine*, Laguna*, Sazh*, Red Mage*, White Mage*, Summoner*, Spellblade*


51
Cyan, Quina, Snow, Fang (Glaive (XIII))


53
Zidane (Butterfly Sword (IX))


56
Barret


57
Balthier (Ras Algethi (XII))


59
Luneth


60
Ranger


65
Maria, Arc, Rydia, Tellah, FuSoYa, Golbez, Gilgamesh (Kotetsu (V)), Bartz, Faris, Exdeath, Krile, Celes, Mog (Holy Lance (VI)), Strago, Kefka (Lamia's Flute (VI)), Reno (Telescopic Baton (VII)), Garnet, Vivi, Eiko, Lulu, Kimahri (Dusk Lance (X)), Vaan, Ashe, Vanille, Hope, Thancred, Black Mage


66
Lightning (Blazefire Sabre (XIII))


67
Steiner, Tidus, Tyro (Celebration Grimoire (Core))


68
Yuna


80
Lenna (Healing Staff (V)), Galuf (Kaiser Knuckles (V)), Terra, Cloud, Sephiroth (Yoshiyuki (VII)), Wakka (All-Rounder (X))



Because Calemyr also had a brilliant idea.

[danzibr]

Good call, Jurai. I'll have to go back and do a second list, one organized by level. It might be more telling (namely, the size of the 65 and 80 list).

I'll also throw in what SSB's I want. Some look suuuuuuuupah nice.

Any idea on how long the phases last? 3 days?

[Jurai]

http://i433.photobucket.com/albums/qq60/Jurai_Madman/18271-good-news-everyone-i-was-just-kidding-professor-farnsworth-wallpaper-1280x1280-1-750x410.jpg

Each phase lasts three days or so.

[danzibr]

http://i433.photobucket.com/albums/qq60/Jurai_Madman/18271-good-news-everyone-i-was-just-kidding-professor-farnsworth-wallpaper-1280x1280-1-750x410.jpg

Each phase lasts three days or so.
Hurrah!

I have real hope that I'll be able to accomplish my goals.

[Jurai]

My goal right now: Get Moony's RM2. I don't mind farming Power and Black Orbs, but I want to put a GOOD MAGE in.

[danzibr]

My goal right now: Get Moony's RM2. I don't mind farming Power and Black Orbs, but I want to put a GOOD MAGE in.
I did a whole Tuesday of grinding and didn't get it. Didn't take too long in Mist Cave.

As for my goals,
Primary: get a competentish team of 65+'s in every realm (except obvious ones like I and XIV)
Secondary: get the worthwhile people with MC2's up to 80.
Tertiary: get everyone with an upcoming MC or MC2 (or current, for that matter) to their current cap.
Quaternary: get everyone else not at 50 to 50.
Quinary: get everyone else not at cap to cap.

I know there's a 0% chance of my last goal happening. I doubt my penultimate goal with happen, too. I do believe I can attain my antepenultimate goal.

EDIT: For the upcoming unlockable MC2's, who's top priority? Gilgamesh and Bartz are rated very highly. It probably depends on whose relics you have.

[Jurai]

Yeah... Well, I still need the Power and Black Orbs.

[Calemyr]

Heck, why not?



Level
Characters


1
Warrior, Samurai, Dragoon, Dark Knight, Viking, Gladiator


3
Arc, Ignus


11
Knight (Diamond Helm), Red Mage (Feathered Hat), Ninja


12
Summoner+ (Gaia Vest)


14
Spellblade+


15
Fusoya


21
Freya+


30
Mog+, Ashe+, Penelo+


33
Ranger (Killer Bow)+


36
Kefka+, Snow+, Sazh+, Hope+, Fang+


37
Gordon+, Ricard+


39
Shadow+, Zidane+, Amarant+


40
Strago+


47
Edward


48
Firion


50
Leon, Refia, Maria*, Luneth*, Kain*, Rydia*, Rosa*, Tellah*, Edge* (Murasame), Exdeath*, Krille*, Locke*, Celes*, Cyan*, Setzer*, Reno*, Quistis*, Zell*, Quina*, Beatrix*, Kimahri*, Ject*, Vaan*, Vanille*, Y'stola*, Black Mage* (Light Rod), White Mage* (Light Staff), Bard* (Madhura Harp)


51
Josef, Faris, Seifer (Hyperion), Laguna, Rikku, Thancred (Ninja Chainmail)


52
Irvine (Valiant, Ulysses)


54
Cid, Lulu


55
Auron


56
Yuffie


58
Eiko


59
Edgar (Partisan), Sabin (Kaiser Knuckles)


62
Tifa


64
Warrior of Light+, Garnet


65
Golbez (Rune Axe), Gilgamesh (Kotetsu), Bartz, Barret, Aerith, Zack, Vivi, Balthier (Ras Algethi), Dark Knight Cecil*, Selphie*, Yuna*


66
Paladin Cecil, Terra (Minerva Bustier), Wakka, Fran


67
Galuf


68
Red XIII, Steiner, Tidus


71
Sephiroth, Lightning, Tyro (Healing Grimoire, Celebration Grimoire)


79
Lenna


80
Cloud (Hardedge), Squall, Rinoa (Valkyrie)



+ Has the memory crystal but not the levels
* Level broke, but hasn't gained a level since.
() Has a unique SB item.

[danzibr]

Time to plan the first primary goal.

Need to get my IX team up to snuff for the current event, and my II team for the upcoming event (oh man, whom to choose?). Need to get some key players up to 65, namely Selphie, Garnet, Firion, Locke, Hope, Tifa, Celes, Shadow. Man, that's a lot. Ya know, that alone might be all I do for phase 1. Yeah, IX team, II team, MC2 people. Yeah, good goal.

But urgh, that still leaves the II team. Maria and Minwu are no-brainers. I guess Firion because I have his axe and he's getting a MC2. Gordon for Support. I guess Leon 'cause he's cool. But crap, I don't have his MC. Oh wait, we get it with the event. Ergh, I'll get it beforehand.
For IX I already have a 65 Vivi, Steiner, and Eiko. Guess I'll level Quina for Support, Garnet for the MC2, and Zidane.

One last thing. The coolest thing about Tyro is he can use Ninja abilities and equip mage gear. Cool.

[Red Fel]

Alright, alright, I'm in. Let's do this.


Level 80: Cloud, Tyro**
Level 70-79: Pally!Cecil
Level 66-69: Lenna, Tidus, Wakka, Rinoa*, Terra, DK!Cecil*, Squall, Steiner*, Lightning
Level 60-65: Zidane, Strago, Refia, Luneth, Yuffie, Celes, Faris, Ashe, Tifa, Kefka, Locke, Exdeath, Golbez, Maria, Hope, Vanille, Penelo, Fran, Auron*, Yuna, Eiko, Vivi, Garnet*, Selphie, Sephiroth, Red XIII, Aerith, Krile, Bartz, Gilgamesh*, Galuf, Rosa, Rydia, Arc, Y'shtola*, Lulu, Warrior of Light
Level 51-59: Dark Knight, Fang, Snow, Vaan, Amarant, Quina, Leon, Gladiator, Balthier, Reno, Cyan, Shadow, Mog, Dragoon, Sazh, Irvine, Zack, Setzer, Zell, Barret, Tellah, Sabin*, Edge, Kain, Josef, Fusoya, Edgar*
Level 50: Everybody else (includes Firion*)
Below 50: Nobody

* Indicates SB item owned.

And while we're at it, progress update!


All cleared.
All cleared.
All cleared.
Lunar Subterrane, Parts 2 & 5.
Castle Exdeath, Part 41, Pyramid, Island Shrine.
Cultists' Tower, Part 1.
Gaea's Cliff, Whirlwind Maze, Ultima Weapon, Shinra No. 26.
All cleared.
All cleared.
Airship, Part 31.
There is no FFXI zone yet.
All cleared.
All cleared.
All cleared.
Total outstanding: 11.
Total stamina: 156 0/5.

1 Completed, not mastered.

Bonus battles are coming soon! Be ready!

[Jurai]

Time to plan the first primary goal.

Need to get my IX team up to snuff for the current event, and my II team for the upcoming event (oh man, whom to choose?). Need to get some key players up to 65, namely Selphie, Garnet, Firion, Locke, Hope, Tifa, Celes, Shadow. Man, that's a lot. Ya know, that alone might be all I do for phase 1. Yeah, IX team, II team, MC2 people. Yeah, good goal.

But urgh, that still leaves the II team. Maria and Minwu are no-brainers. I guess Firion because I have his axe and he's getting a MC2. Gordon for Support. I guess Leon 'cause he's cool. But crap, I don't have his MC. Oh wait, we get it with the event. Ergh, I'll get it beforehand.
For IX I already have a 65 Vivi, Steiner, and Eiko. Guess I'll level Quina for Support, Garnet for the MC2, and Zidane.

One last thing. The coolest thing about Tyro is he can use Ninja abilities and equip mage gear. Cool.

My II team will be my A-team, though once I've mastered the event, Josef and Ricard are going into the first stage and they're going to be farming the Chaos out of that stage, because I'm getting me that doggone Double Hit.

[spectralphoenix]

This looks kind of interesting, I might give it a try. Two questions before I download, though:

1) Does this have a bunch of video ads or otherwise eat up my data plan?
2) Does it have real time combat, timed events, or other stuff that goes sour if I have to put my phone down for a bit while I'm playing?

[Simkin]

dkd a 100 pull on the 2 ND banner tonight and got a 5*! Just Zidane's Butterfly Sword, but I was still plenty happy.

[SuperPanda]

Well I've been stagnate for a good time, but I did recently open up the egg clearing house (had almost 50 Major, and 200 greater and normal each... now I have less but still plenty).


80 = No one.
75-79 = Cloud
70-74= None
65-69= Squall*, Rinoa*, Terra, Wakka, Steiner, D.Cecil, P.Cecil*, Lenna, Garnet, Fran, Tellah, Tifa, Tidus, Tyro*
60-65= Rydia*, Vaan*, Arieth*,
55-59= Ashe*, Zack, Edge*, Gilgamesh*, Lulu,
50-54= Bartz*, Selphie, Zidane, Penello, Kain, Faris, Krylie, Celes, Setzer, Vivi, Eiko, Auron, Balthier*, Lightning*, Rosa, Edgar*, Yuffie, Amarant, Sazh, Arc, Seifer, Snow, Vanille, Hope, Thancred, WoL, Maria, Ricard, Joseph, Luneth, Reifa, FuSoYa*, Golbez, Exdeath, Lock, Mog, Sabin, Barret, Red, Seph, Shadow, Cyan, Strago, Cid, Reno, Quistis, Irvine, Zell, Laguna, Freya, beatrix, Yuna, Rikku, Jecht, Fang, Y'Sholta, Black Mage, White Mage, Summoner, Ranger, Bard
under 50= Ninja, Kimahri, Leon, Edward, Galuf, Firion, Knight, Red Mage
Level 1 = Gordon, Ingus, Kefka, Quina, Warrior, Devout, Samurai, Dragoon, Dark Knight, Spell Blade, Viking, Thief, Gladiator

* means I plan to try to get them up to the next tier with sundailies and orbfest XP.



I have 260 mythril now.
Orbfest will include ~ 25 mythril itself.
FF II event and FFT event is another ~20 myhtril + log in bonuses of ??? nythril. So 300-315 by end of Tactics is a safe bet.

JP had 3 lucky draws as part of the aniversery - 75 mythril to keep in reserve.
Banner 4 and 5 are worth 50 pulls - 100 myhtril
100 myhtril reserved for Tactics
Would like 50 mythril for next XII for Balthier's new gun. (but not too focused on that).
Can 3 pull on banner 1, skip 2 and 3, 11 pull on 4 and 5, luck draw (if any) and 22 pull on tactics.

[Forbiddenwar]

This looks kind of interesting, I might give it a try. Two questions before I download, though:

1) Does this have a bunch of video ads or otherwise eat up my data plan?
2) Does it have real time combat, timed events, or other stuff that goes sour if I have to put my phone down for a bit while I'm playing?

No video ads. No ads at all. Unless you count the "look how cool the whole history of Final Fantasy is" as an ad.

As for eating data, I think I discovered an interesting thing. The game used to be downloading levels every time I opened it. This would mean I could only play near WiFi. On an unrelated task, I cleared 1gig of memory from my phone to stop it from warning me about running and now when levels download, they seem to stay downloaded.

In short, how much data is uses might be related to how much free space you have on your device.

[Slayn82]

1) Sometimes it has some small scenes from the games, at the beggining of some events, but you have to start an specific weekly event for those to download. So, very rarely, and those scenes are rarely more than 5 seconds. And only one per event.

2) Data caps. Well, i play this game quite a lot while going to and coming from work. And i have a daily data cap of 65 MB. Just make sure to use Wifi to do your major updates, that are very rare.

3)You can always pause, it auto pauses when you go to another aplication, and you can turn off the app and restart from the beggining of the last round of the battle. It's interface is quite friendly to the needs of someone using a smartphone, instead of being designed for someone using a dedicated gaming plataform.

Hope it helps, and please feel welcome to post your doubts.

EDIT: FORBBIDENWARDENED.

ALSO: 100 Gem pull: Mace of Zeus. Yeah, Vivi got his SSB, and joins Rinoa as another awesome Mage in my team capped at lvl 50, waiting for his Memory Crystal. Meanwhile, Rydia, Tyro and Red XIII carry on the work.

Current List of Natural 5*s

Character Relics Owned:
Tyro - Last Judgement Grimoire, Celebration Grimoire
Wakka - Official Ball
Zidane - Butterfly Sword
Rydia - Dragon Whisker
Rinoa - Valkyrie
Irvine - Ulysses
Rikku - Targe
Vivi - Mace of Zeus
Red XIII - Magic Comb

Shared SBs
2x Chain Flail VI (Saintly Beam)
Rune Rod X (Poison Mist)
Healing Staff IV (Heal)
Treeblade VII (Christmas Miracle)

Natural 5*s Realm Synergy Weapons and Armors of note:

Genji Helm V
Burning Fist VI
SOLDIER sword VII
Gold Sword VII
Shinra Helmet VII
Blitz Sword VIII
Balamb Garden Uniform VIII
Al Bhed Jumper X
Feral Pride XIII
Kaiser Knuckles XIII

[SuperPanda]

Ultimate Garland is down - making him my second Ultimate to take down (Him and Rubicant) (also my fourth to attempt - Yunalesca, Rubi, GoDaddy, and Garland).


Rinoa [Wishing Star] Comet / Thundaga (Blood of Espers) - Has still never seen it happen.
Ashe [Northwain's Glow] Blizzaga / Thundaja (Witch of Succession)
Cloud [Blade Beam] Retaliate / Life Siphon (Ace Striker)
Tyro [Celebration Grimorie] Protectga / Renewing Cure (Dr. Mog's Teachings)
Wakka [1st SB, armor/mental Break one] Magic Breakdown / Full Break (double hit)
RW: Wall

Opened with protectga, Magic Breakdown, and attacks followed by Full break in not too long.
When Garland 75% life bar Wall charge 1. Continue piling on attacks, save all SBs.
At ~ 50% life chained Celebration > Northwain > Celebration with a helping of Blade beam and ball break.
At around 30% life bar reapplied Wall and Full Break - started burning (-Ja, wishing Star, Blade Beam).

Expert Rating (I forgot to bring Holy).
Retaliate wasn't needed and Wakka double hit without going through retaliate was very very weak - could have used WoL's holy attack RM in place of that and gotten mastery (I think).

[Simkin]

Mastered through +++ on the current event. Time to turn in and catch up on some sleep I lost while traveling yesterday.

[Friv]

I'm curious. My levels are currently as follows:

Level 80: Lenna, Terra, Red XIII, Sephiroth, Rinoa, Steiner, Tidus, Wakka
Levels 75-79: Pencil, Garnet, Yuna
Levels 70-74: Lightning, WoL
Levels 66-69: Decal, Selphie, Galuf, Fran, Tyro
Level 65: Rydia, Gilgamesh, Bartz, Faris, Krile, Celes, Mog, Cyan, Cloud, Tifa, Reno, Irvine, Vivi, Amarant, Beatrix, Auron, Vaan, Snow, Vanille, Fang
Levels 60-64: Yuffie, Lulu, Laguna, Ashe
Levels 56-59: Rikku, Rosa
Levels 51-55: Squall, Hope, Kain, Edge, Sabin, Barret
Level 50: Gordon, Josef, Luneth, Golbez, Exdeath, Locke, Edgar, Strago, Kefka, Aerith, Zack, Cid, Zidane, Freya, Kimahri, Jecht, Balthier, Penelo, Sazh, Thancred, Black Mage
Level 30-49: Seifer
Level 20-29: Quistis, T'sholta, White Mage, Firion, Tellah
Level 2-19: n/a
Level 1: Maria, Leon, Ricard, Arc, Refia, Ingus, Edward, Fusoya, Shadow, Gau, Setzer, Zell, Quina, Eiko, Warrior, Knight, Red Mage, Devout, Summoner, Samurai, Dragoon, Dark Knight, Spellblade, Viking, Berserker, Ranger, Thief, Bard, Ninja, Gladiator

[Jurai]

Ark +++ was RNG-y as all get out, but I mastered it. I'll be trying to do the Ultimate tomorrow.

[Forbiddenwar]

Want to get garnets second crystal but don't know if you have the levels or synergy?

Try sleep.
Easiest ++ boss by far. (I took the keeper to poke with a wind sword and nuked him down with fire.)

Edit
My first attempt at the ultimate dragon was very unsuccessful. By I did learn of few things that should make the second attempt much easier.

1. Dragon starts in flying mode. Use jump immediately.

2. Dragon seems to take flight after four actions, making timing your jumps easy. (I only got him to 50%, I don't know if he speeds up.

3. Retaliate blocks and counters all physical damage, including AOEs.

4. As mentioned above, dragon only uses physical damage on the ground.

That's right, an ultimate boss you can take zero damage from. Full reta team activate.

[SuperPanda]

Managed to clear through the +++ today.

Ark was alot of trouble until blind landed (Zidane has Machinist **** so Blind Shell worked great). Once Blind was on it the rest of the battle went very smoothly.

Didn't sleep the ++ - just straight up pounded it. Got Garnet's RM2 (same battle I got her MC2), so now can farm her RM3. I liked Garnet better than Eiko in IX but I haven't made enough summon abilities to justify bringing her just as a summoner yet (also don't have Summoner's RM2 yet - will be farming it).

[Starwulf]

+ ++ & +++ are all done and mastered now. Have to say, I thought bringing silence to the ++ would be a good idea due to two if it's attacks while not curled up were magic based, but it didn't attempt to cast even once the entire fight. It was all claw while in normal mode, and then whatever in his curled up mode. Still, it went just fine, I took Venom Buster for the extra damage and it landed first hit which was nice.

+++ fight was one of the more easier fights, Blind landed on my first attempt, then I just mitigated the crap out of his attacks that did land via Protectga, Full Break & Power Breakdown.

Only complain was the whole "wind" thing, I really truly hate having that as a requirement, Aero and Aerora strike(2&3 *) suck quite a bit. I'd kill for an Aero spell, I really don't understand why there isn't one(I've complained about this before, I know), it's not like there isn't precedence for it in at least one or two games, and it would be nice to have a bit more coverage for it besides spellblade and Dragoon.

As usual, don't think I'll be going after the Ultimate. On the plus side, with the SSB fest coming up, I'm praying that I finally have some luck and snag a trinity item from it, and if I get lucky early on, maybe I can come back to this Ultimate.

[danzibr]

That's right, an ultimate boss you can take zero damage from. Full reta team activate.
Oooooooh. I've been wanting to bust out the full Reta team again.

I'm pretty sure I can handle the +, ++, and +++ battles with the ol' A team. Yeah, this should be doable.

[Slayn82]

Bonus Battles up to +++ also mastered here. Went with Vivi in my team for those, because my IX synergy is very weak, and a lvl 50 Vivi with RS and his relic looked really strong. Also Eiko (Curaja/Protectga), Zidane (Steal Power/Wind Slash) , Rikku (Steal Defense/Tempo Flurry) and Tyro(Spellblades/Draw Fire).



Only complain was the whole "wind" thing, I really truly hate having that as a requirement, Aero and Aerora strike(2&3 *) suck quite a bit. I'd kill for an Aero spell, I really don't understand why there isn't one(I've complained about this before, I know), it's not like there isn't precedence for it in at least one or two games, and it would be nice to have a bit more coverage for it besides spellblade and Dragoon.

Wind Slash, that 2* Celerity ability? Easily hitting for close to 8K, after Steal Power/Defense, who were resisted by the Boss, and charging Zidane's SB pretty fast. Also, it's a ranged ability, and since its a 2*, very trivial to hone. Zidane was using a RS 4* Gladius with 115 atk. It's niche, but it's been fantastic at filling it.

Meanwhile, Vivi's SSB seems significantly weaker than Red XIII, doing about 3.5 K per hit (4 total) on the +++ Boss, but since it's AOE it's expected, specially not benefiting from Steal Defense and Boostga. Red XIII SSB without buffs deals average 1.8 to 2.1K per hit (10 total), on the last batch of elite bosses I used him, but with those buffs listed above it can increase damage by quite a lot. I've used Advance on him once too, it works, meaning it's possible to incorporate him on a Retaliate Strategy as a backup finisher.

22 dungeons between me and Vivi's MC. I'm at 118 stamina.

EDIT: I'm eyeballing it, but seems that Vivi's SSB is about 3 Ruinga worth of Dark elemental damage.

[danzibr]

22 dungeons between me and Vivi's MC. I'm at 118 stamina.
I recall reading we get 3 free heroes' souls, empty MC's, and empty MC2's tonight. Or maybe in a couple days.

[Friv]

Ark +++ was RNG-y as all get out, but I mastered it. I'll be trying to do the Ultimate tomorrow.

Yeah - I beat him, but didn't master, because his first action was to Photon the guy with Aerora Sword down to 1 HP, and while my WM was about 85% charged with a Curaja he used his second attack, a Propeller Wind that successfully Confused all five party members.

[Hunter Noventa]

I was doing pretty well against Ark until my Protect slipped and he walloped everyone with Whirlwind.

It's vulnerable to Silence but does that actually DO anything? I'd love to not bring Silencega for obvious reasons.

Also Esuna just isn't enough coverage to deal with mass Confusion, you're better off having your mages whack someone than wasting a spot on it, I feel.

[DiscipleofBob]

After skipping out on Bahamut SIN and Adel, Garland helped me get my Ultimate Groove back.

I don't recall anyone having much trouble with him, but just in case here's the party:

65 Auron: Retaliate, Draw Fire, Pride of Red Wings
80 Squall: Thundara Strike, Blizzara Strike, Knights Charge, Blasting Zone SSB
80 P-Cecil: Double Cut, Renewing Cure, Dr Mogs Teachings
65 Quina: Power Breakdown, Magic Breakdown, Mighty Guard SB
74 Lenna: Curaga, Diaga, Auto-Haste, Mystic Prayers Shared SB
RW: Advance

Auron used Drawtaliate, Squall uses Spellblade abilities for mastery conditions (otherwise would've brought Lifesiphon and Temp Flurry), and waits for his SB gauge to fill up. Only got to use Blasting Zone once in the fight though and it was the killing blow. Possibly saved me the trouble of the 'very weak' phase. Cecil and Quina were on mitigation duty. After that was taken care of they fed into reta-meta though Quina spent the majority of her turns reapplying Breakdowns, just in case. Lenna, as usual, is on healing duty with the occasional Diaga when everyone's in the green.

P-Cecil would like to remind anyone who doesn't have Sentinel Grimoire or Stoneskin, that his default SB Rampart may be the poor man's version, but it's a perfectly acceptable substitute for when you need absolutely maximum mitigation.

Also cleared enough Elites that I have ALL the available Memory Crystals, and to boot I'm sitting at 149 4/5 stamina so when the next event drops, careful rationing should maximize that stamina refill.

[danzibr]

Yeah, Drawtaliate trivialized Garland (basically). Soul of Chaos, whiff whiff whiff whiff whiff whiff whiff whiff.

Also, have 221 stam worth of stuff to do in the IX event excluding the U. Dangit, going to bite into Orbfest stam.

[Forbiddenwar]

I didn't have trouble with the ark. Mastered it with no damage, because sleep works on him too.

The full reta team worked, it was just difficult to keep track of the counting. You need at least 6 uses of retaliate on everyone. And make sure to refresh it every turn. After after the third attack que up a jump so it hits right after the dragon takes off.

Made me wish there was a speed slower than 1.

Team:
Cloud: reta main
Seph: reta, double
Auron reta double
Gil: reta jump ice
Keeper: reta jump wind.

RW: Fenrir. But if I did it again, ID bring a heal all regen. Very difficult to do without damage.

[Hunter Noventa]

I didn't have trouble with the ark. Mastered it with no damage, because sleep works on him too.

I tried repeatedly to hit him with Sleep and it just never landed. I was close enough without it that I think I can do it with more damage abilities in tow, since I had some people running out.

[Chen]

I didn't have trouble with the ark. Mastered it with no damage, because sleep works on him too.

The full reta team worked, it was just difficult to keep track of the counting. You need at least 6 uses of retaliate on everyone. And make sure to refresh it every turn. After after the third attack que up a jump so it hits right after the dragon takes off.

Made me wish there was a speed slower than 1.

Team:
Cloud: reta main
Seph: reta, double
Auron reta double
Gil: reta jump ice
Keeper: reta jump wind.

RW: Fenrir. But if I did it again, ID bring a heal all regen. Very difficult to do without damage.

Do you really need 6 uses of retaliate for everyone? If you use advance and double-cut on everyone (except the jumper and give them double-hit RM) it should go pretty darn quick no?

[Red Fel]

Do you really need 6 uses of retaliate for everyone? If you use advance and double-cut on everyone (except the jumper and give them double-hit RM) it should go pretty darn quick no?

R3 is pretty standard on Retaliate, and not hard to do either - since they're all 2-star orbs, you can easily break down a couple of 3-stars and have more than enough.

Also, if you're willing to take some risks, Planet Protector is an amazing RW for this one. While Advance or Fenrir is great for one person, Planet Protector gives everybody a solid damage boost, which makes those AoEs deliciously suicidal for the boss.

I'm still tweaking my timing, but I've gotten the guy to near-death a few times. It's just hard to keep track of when Reta wears off.

[danzibr]

Whelp, my leveling plans changed. Now I need to get up Cyan, Tyro, and Sephiroth for my Reta team. I mean, I wanted to do it anyway, this just changed the timing.

Also, I'm up to just under 530 mythril. Super happy that Orbfest is spaced out. Gives time to gather more mythril for stam refreshes.

[Hunter Noventa]

Yessssss, I beat the Ark! Didn't master it, but only because of relatively low damage output. I suppose if I'd replaced Beatrix or Zidane with Cloud it might have gone a little faster in that department, but I could care less because I got my first 5* ability! Bringing Blind Shell, Wind Slash, Wind Jump, Slowga and Armor Break made a huge difference.

[danzibr]

Yessssss, I beat the Ark! Didn't master it, but only because of relatively low damage output. I suppose if I'd replaced Beatrix or Zidane with Cloud it might have gone a little faster in that department, but I could care less because I got my first 5* ability! Bringing Blind Shell, Wind Slash, Wind Jump, Slowga and Armor Break made a huge difference.
Grats on the win!

[Calemyr]

Well, I didn't Master the Ark, but I beat it and that's all I really care about. It sucks that moves like photon count against damage taken for medals, because that's about the only thing he hit me with thanks to the Blind spell. Unfortunately, I just couldn't do much damage, so by the time he was halfway down all my abilities were spent and I was left to auto-attack him (blind and cure being the only abilities I had left). Not what I'd call an elegant win, but I'm still the one left with a Sky Grinder and a trio of MPOs.

[Red Fel]

And Silver Dragon is down! Here's how I did it.
Cloud: Retaliate, Tempo Flurry; auto-Haste RM.
Sephiroth: Retaliate, Double Cut; auto-haste RM.
Auron: Retaliate, Draw Fire; Pride of the Red Wings.
Gilgamesh: Retaliate, Ice Jump; Heroic Stance.
Tyro: Retaliate, Wind Jump; Double Hit.
RW: Aerith (Planet Protector).
Here's how the fight ran. First round, whichever of my two jumpers (Gil or Tyro) is up first uses his Jump; everyone else slams Reta. That jumper uses Reta on his next turn. The next person up after everyone has Reta puts up Planet Protector; Auron uses Draw Fire. Why Draw Fire? On the off chance that somebody doesn't have Reta up in time, it makes it more likely that it will hit Auron, who will always have Reta up.

Count the boss' actions after he lands. After he attacks three times, hold one of my jumpers; as soon as the taking flight dialogue appears, slam jump. Every second turn, reapply Reta. There were a few hits taken; one in the first round, before Reta was up; one or two later on, when a jumper didn't reapply Reta in time. Overall, though, it was a timing test - once I got the timing down, it was manageable.

Lost only one medal, for actions taken. Battle mastered!

And I learned what the accessory does - it's a +30 Mag accessory. So that's going to come in super handy very soon.

Very soon.

[danzibr]

And Silver Dragon is down! Here's how I did it.
Cloud: Retaliate, Tempo Flurry; auto-Haste RM.
Sephiroth: Retaliate, Double Cut; auto-haste RM.
Auron: Retaliate, Draw Fire; Pride of the Red Wings.
Gilgamesh: Retaliate, Ice Jump; Heroic Stance.
Tyro: Retaliate, Wind Jump; Double Hit.
RW: Aerith (Planet Protector).
Here's how the fight ran. First round, whichever of my two jumpers (Gil or Tyro) is up first uses his Jump; everyone else slams Reta. That jumper uses Reta on his next turn. The next person up after everyone has Reta puts up Planet Protector; Auron uses Draw Fire. Why Draw Fire? On the off chance that somebody doesn't have Reta up in time, it makes it more likely that it will hit Auron, who will always have Reta up.

Count the boss' actions after he lands. After he attacks three times, hold one of my jumpers; as soon as the taking flight dialogue appears, slam jump. Every second turn, reapply Reta. There were a few hits taken; one in the first round, before Reta was up; one or two later on, when a jumper didn't reapply Reta in time. Overall, though, it was a timing test - once I got the timing down, it was manageable.

Lost only one medal, for actions taken. Battle mastered!

And I learned what the accessory does - it's a +30 Mag accessory. So that's going to come in super handy very soon.

Very soon.
I was wondering what it did!

And thanks for the strat. I'm glad the event is up until after the current phase of Orbfest. Gives me time to level some key players (oooooohhhhhhh imagine if we get the ability to lb Gilgamesh tonight, along with an empty MC2 (which I think I read might come on 3/17)).

[Jurai]

Well, got mad at Silver Dragon Ultimate, did a one-pull (Hundred Gems) and got a Platinum Sword (XII). Did a three pull on banner two, knocking me down to 12 Mythril, and I got Garnet's Wizard Rod. Sorry, Lenna. You're cute, but I have an SSB for a White Mage. You've definitely earned yourself a break though.Terra, but you're getting a new stick for now.Garnet, come on down! You're on the PRICE IS RIGHT!

[danzibr]

Well, got mad at Silver Dragon Ultimate, did a one-pull (Hundred Gems) and got a Platinum Sword (XII). Did a three pull on banner two, knocking me down to 12 Mythril, and I got Garnet's Wizard Rod. Sorry, Lenna. You're cute, but I have an SSB for a White Mage. You've definitely earned yourself a break though.Terra, but you're getting a new stick for now.Garnet, come on down! You're on the PRICE IS RIGHT!
Nice!

Quick question for peeps. Of the party-wide attack boosting RW's, which should I take to Silver Dragon? Aerith's Planet Protector, Lenna's Flames of War, Mog's Sunbath, or what? Is there even another?

Speaking of which, still not up to the bonus battles. Grrrrrrrr lost stam.

[Jurai]

Wall. Unless you have it native, Wall. Even with Power Breakdown and Protectga, SD hits like a truck. With, I'd recommend Sunbath for the heavy regen.

U SILVER DRAGON IS DEAD! Lost Garnet at the end, or I would have Mastered it.

[Red Fel]

Wall. Unless you have it native, Wall. Even with Power Breakdown and Protectga, SD hits like a truck. With, I'd recommend Sunbath for the heavy regen.

Wall is mandatory if you're going for non-Reta strategy. Reta neutralizes everything he throws at you unless he's airborne, but if you're not simply putting up a wall of swords, you definitely want SG/SSII. As Jurai mentions, if you have a wall, bring a medica.

If you are going Reta, a party-wide Atk boost is mandatory. Advance is an option, but Planet Protector will help everybody, not just your designated counter-er.

[Jurai]

Character
Level
Weapon
Armor
Accessory
Ability 1
Ability 2
Record Materia


Terra
80
Magus Rod (VI)+
Estharian Helmet (VIII)
Terra’s Pendant (VI)
Firaja (R4)
Firaga (R5)
Blood of Espers


Vivi
65
Telescopic Baton (VII)
Oath Veil (VI)
Silver Pinion (IX)
Thundaja (R4)
Thundaga (R5)
Rod Master


Kefka
65
Lamia’s Flute (VI)
Dragon Armlet (VII)
Crystal Orb (VI)
Blizzaja (R3)
Blizzaga (R5)
Devotion


Krile
65
Wizard Rod (IX)
Witch’s Hat (XIII)
Rune Armlet (IV)
Ruinga
Carbuncle
Vow of Vengeance


Hope
65
Rising Sun (VIII)
Wizard Armlet (X)
Circlet (VIII)
Waterja (R4)
Waterga (R5)
Ascendance (Extra MAG when Thrown is equipped)



Updated Ultima Buster party, to account for new pull items and new accessory. This makes three Ultimates in a row, and the only reason I lost Mastery was because Garnet died. I sort of wished the conditions were 'Knock Silver Dragon out of flight with Jump-type ability' instead of 'Don't get KO'd'.

[Red Fel]

Hey, folks. Thought you might appreciate this. There's this list on the FFRK Reddit of upcoming abilities from events. It shows 4-, 5-, and 6-star abilities, the events that drop them, their effects, job categories, and honing costs. The list is here (https://www.reddit.com/r/FFRecordKeeper/wiki/index/abilities/estimated_release).

Some of these lead to some really amazing combinations. For example, Faultsiphon (Celerity 5) is a physical attack that makes your next ability instant-cast. Full Charge (Combat 5) is a massive 4-hit physical attack with a long casting time. Unless you use Faultsiphon first. They drop from the same event. It's probably not accidental.

Some of these abilities are just awesome. There's the highly anticipated Knight 5 ability Saint Cross, a 2-hit Holy physical attack that grants the user Esuna and Regen. There's the Support 6 ability Tetra Foul, a 2-hit AoE that procs Blind, Sleep, Poison and Silence. There's the Dancer 5 ability Break Fever, that's basically AoE Full Break without the damage. And there's the Spellblade 5 ability Tornado Strike, which justifies the existence of Spellblade 5 by giving a 2-hit Wind-element AoE.

I'm psyched.

[DiscipleofBob]

+, ++, and +++ battles are all done.

Going to do some research before trying the Ultimate. If possible I'd like to avoid 5 Retas if possible. I'm already running out of ability slots, and 4 extra Retaliates is just going to take up space for everything but the extremely specific boss battle.

[danzibr]

Hey, folks. Thought you might appreciate this. There's this list on the FFRK Reddit of upcoming abilities from events. It shows 4-, 5-, and 6-star abilities, the events that drop them, their effects, job categories, and honing costs. The list is here (https://www.reddit.com/r/FFRecordKeeper/wiki/index/abilities/estimated_release).

Some of these lead to some really amazing combinations. For example, Faultsiphon (Celerity 5) is a physical attack that makes your next ability instant-cast. Full Charge (Combat 5) is a massive 4-hit physical attack with a long casting time. Unless you use Faultsiphon first. They drop from the same event. It's probably not accidental.

Some of these abilities are just awesome. There's the highly anticipated Knight 5 ability Saint Cross, a 2-hit Holy physical attack that grants the user Esuna and Regen. There's the Support 6 ability Tetra Foul, a 2-hit AoE that procs Blind, Sleep, Poison and Silence. There's the Dancer 5 ability Break Fever, that's basically AoE Full Break without the damage. And there's the Spellblade 5 ability Tornado Strike, which justifies the existence of Spellblade 5 by giving a 2-hit Wind-element AoE.

I'm psyched.
Whoa. Just whoa.

I need to save some major orbs.

[Jurai]

So, yeah... Now I know what Spidey feels like at his desk.

[Chen]

Mastered all the bonus battles. + and ++ were just destroyed using Fenrir Rush as RW with my A team. +++ was advantaliated. Lotsa RNG. First time first action was an AoE confuse that confused all 5 people. That was an S/L. Second time no confuse landed at all so he died horribly. Retaliate cheesed the ultimate. Got hit once on the first round and then one more time later when retaliate fell off Tyro. Those were the only two damage I took. Used Advance as RW and armed everyone with double cut except Tyro with armor breakdown (and double hit), Gilgamesh with Wind jump and Cloud with blizarra strike.

[Jurai]

Mastered all the bonus battles. + and ++ were just destroyed using Fenrir Rush as RW with my A team. +++ was advantaliated. Lotsa RNG. First time first action was an AoE confuse that confused all 5 people. That was an S/L. Second time no confuse landed at all so he died horribly. Retaliate cheesed the ultimate. Got hit once on the first round and then one more time later when retaliate fell off Tyro. Those were the only two damage I took. Used Advance as RW and armed everyone with double cut except Tyro with armor breakdown (and double hit), Gilgamesh with Wind jump and Cloud with blizarra strike.

Yeah, this was more annoying than difficult for me.



Character
Level
Weapon
Armor
Accessory
Ability 1
Ability 2
Record Materia


Gilgamesh
65
Gauntlet (VIII)+
Dragon Armlet (VII)
Black Belt (IX)
Ice Jump (R5)
Wind Jump (R4)
Fist of Dawn


Terra
80
Magus Rod (VI)+
Estharian Helmet (VIII)
Terra's Pendant (VI)
Blizzaja (R3)
Thundaja (R4)
Devotion


Garnet
65
Wizard Rod (IX)
Oath Veil (VI)
Sand Pearl (IV)
Curaja (R5)
Protectga (R3)
Mako Might


Cloud
80
Butterfly Sword (IX)
Holiday Mittens (VII)
Black Belt (IX)
Blizzaga Strike (R3)
Aerora Strike (R5)
Dragoon's Determination


Wakka
80
All-Rounder (X)
Shinra Beta (VII)
Power Belt (IX)
Full Break (R1)
Power Breakdown (R2)
Dr. Mog's Teachings



Now I'm working on my Nightmare Demon Wall party. Looking at Gilgamesh, Cloud, Sephiroth, Steiner, and Lightning.

[Forbiddenwar]

I'm up to XIII elite Cid Raines and his description looks intimidating. Any tips?

Should I blind and poison him? Magic breakdown and shellga him? Both?

[danzibr]

:O

Edward's on the list for MC's.

[DiscipleofBob]

I'm up to XIII elite Cid Raines and his description looks intimidating. Any tips?

Should I blind and poison him? Magic breakdown and shellga him? Both?

Drawtaliate. Suddenly his multi-hit combos become "Stop hitting yourself! Stop hitting yourself!"

[Red Fel]

Drawtaliate. Suddenly his multi-hit combos become "Stop hitting yourself! Stop hitting yourself!"

This.


:O

Edward's on the list for MC's.

Yep. Slew of new ones.

Also, click the spoiler for rage bait. Or don't, and keep your blood pressure even.


You know how the Vale of Memories event told us, "Don't bother saving your empty Hero Souls / MCs / MC2s, they won't be saved?"

Turns out that the handful of people who ignored that advice may still have their whatevers, and are now able to use them in the new Hall of Rites.

So... yeah.

If, like me, you acted on that (false) information, don't be too mad. You're not the only one to miss out, and you'll have the chance to grab these goodies in due course.

If, on the other hand, you saved yours, I HATE YOU WITH THE UNQUENCHABLE RAGE OF A THOUSAND BURNING SUNS.

[T.G. Oskar]

Well, someone's gonna hate me a lot. Had one spare Hero's Soul and still have 3 spare MC1 Lodes, so I can grab 3 MC1s that I want. And which, aside from maybe Reno and Yuffie (for completion purposes), might exchange for Eggs.

On the other hand, once I snatch MC2 Lodes, they'll most definitely go for Gilgamesh, Lenna and Rinoa, respectively. That'll give me one solid White Mage (two, if I count Selphie), maxed Gil for shenanigans, and Witch of Succession for when I need a proper BLM damage boost. Alongside Tyro, Terra (who's now around lv. 75) and now Pally!Cecil, they can make a decent party. Steiner is also lv. 60, so he's close to capping again, and with his MC, that means an effective character for the FFIX event.

160 Mythril, and waiting for the Banners to come in - certainly an 11-pull for Terra's SSB will be secured, though with my luck I might end up with Lightning's SB weapon ("...erm...so I have a XIII sword now?"). Will see if I can get to 200 Mythril by then, though that might be difficult.

Also also - when will Power orbs come around? Could use those and...I think Ice orbs for Full Break.

[Starwulf]

I'm wondering whether or not I should continue farming the + for the chance of more Major Black Orbs, or just go back to completing the regular dungeons for more stamina. I've already gotten 2 Major orbs, one from the Hard and one from the + difficulty, which means my luck is likely already exhausted, but at the same time, it would be nice to have more Major Black orbs so I can hone Meteor to r2.

@T.G.: I do believe the power orbs are the next part of the celebration event ^^

[Jurai]

So yeah, the next Ultimate seems interesting enough: Three targets, each with varying weaknesses, kind of like the Nereid/Triton/Phobos brawl from the last V event.

Also, spent my Hero's Souls on Growth Eggs. Excellllent...

[Hunter Noventa]

Spring Celebration/Orbfest is live!

I have no idea who to level at this point, beyond getting Vivi to 65, and leveling up the Keeper. Rinoa kind of gets in by default being my highest level black mage to Ruinga everything forever.

[Red Fel]

Spring Celebration/Orbfest is live!

I have no idea who to level at this point, beyond getting Vivi to 65, and leveling up the Keeper. Rinoa kind of gets in by default being my highest level black mage to Ruinga everything forever.

I go with a spread. In a given three-person Orbfest party, I try to have one WHM, one BLM or SMN, and one melee-type. If you're going with a two-person party - and at some levels you can - you can narrow it further.

At this point, I have most of my casters at 64+, which means I can basically take one of my 66 BLMs as the staple AoE murderbot while two melees tag along for power-leveling.

I am focusing on some particular ability combinations, though. For example, I want to make sure Pencil and Bea are leveled, because when the Combat Abyss event hits, I want to have characters who can Combat AND WHM, as opposed to having a WHM just sitting in the back row while everyone else does the thing. Similarly, I'm working on other combos that could be useful. For example, did you know that Zack is the only (non-Tyro) character who can use Combat 5 and Celerity 5? Remember that Faultsiphon + Full Charge combo I mentioned upthread? He does that.

Also, I'm less furious about missing out on the Hero Soul and MC lodes, having realized that (1) I already have all of the characters, so the Hero Souls would have been useless anyway, and (2) we're getting three MC lodes as a free daily, and there are only 3 new MCs available (Firion, Ingus, Edward), so I don't have to choose.

And I used all of my MC2 lodes in the previous event anyhow, so it's not like I'm missing out.

[Hunter Noventa]

I go with a spread. In a given three-person Orbfest party, I try to have one WHM, one BLM or SMN, and one melee-type. If you're going with a two-person party - and at some levels you can - you can narrow it further.

At this point, I have most of my casters at 64+, which means I can basically take one of my 66 BLMs as the staple AoE murderbot while two melees tag along for power-leveling.

I am focusing on some particular ability combinations, though. For example, I want to make sure Pencil and Bea are leveled, because when the Combat Abyss event hits, I want to have characters who can Combat AND WHM, as opposed to having a WHM just sitting in the back row while everyone else does the thing. Similarly, I'm working on other combos that could be useful. For example, did you know that Zack is the only (non-Tyro) character who can use Combat 5 and Celerity 5? Remember that Faultsiphon + Full Charge combo I mentioned upthread? He does that.

Also, I'm less furious about missing out on the Hero Soul and MC lodes, having realized that (1) I already have all of the characters, so the Hero Souls would have been useless anyway, and (2) we're getting three MC lodes as a free daily, and there are only 3 new MCs available (Firion, Ingus, Edward), so I don't have to choose.

And I used all of my MC2 lodes in the previous event anyhow, so it's not like I'm missing out.

Interesting. I've already got PLD!Cecil and Beatrix at 50ish. Tyro is going in because he can do combos that almost no one else can, and I might as well master his SBs. (ALmost done with the Celebration one, I also have the Healing Grimoire one).

I pumped some eggs into Cid, but not enough to max him, so I'm taking him in to eventually get the Ace Pilot RM.

I looked at the Hall of Rites after picking up those hero Souls, the only characters I'm missing are Devout, Samurai, Dragoon, Dark Knight, Spellblade, Viking, Berserker, Thief, and Gau. Is anyone on that list worth bothering with?

[SuperPanda]

I just got my luckiest free daily pull to date: Cyan's Kotestsu - his old old 4 hit katana. really surprised to see a 5 star on a free pull instead of a 1 star and pretty happy.

[danzibr]

we're getting three MC lodes as a free daily, and there are only 3 new MCs available (Firion, Ingus, Edward), so I don't have to choose.
Dang. I was really hoping to use one on Y'shtola.

Actually... we're probably getting Firion's in the II event, right? It means I won't be able to level Firion, but yeah, spending one on Y'shtola.

[Jurai]

Interesting. I've already got PLD!Cecil and Beatrix at 50ish. Tyro is going in because he can do combos that almost no one else can, and I might as well master his SBs. (ALmost done with the Celebration one, I also have the Healing Grimoire one).

I pumped some eggs into Cid, but not enough to max him, so I'm taking him in to eventually get the Ace Pilot RM.

I looked at the Hall of Rites after picking up those hero Souls, the only characters I'm missing are Devout, Samurai, Dragoon, Dark Knight, Spellblade, Viking, Berserker, Thief, and Gau. Is anyone on that list worth bothering with?

All of them can be gotten in Story dungeons.

[Calemyr]

All of them can be gotten in Story dungeons.

This is true, but I'm betting your alternative is a greater egg, which you'll get when you hit that dungeon anyway. So it's just a question of which you'd rather have right now: an egg or a character.

Personally, I wouldn't spend a hero soul on a core character (unless they had an awesome materia), but I snapped up Gau. I figure the game will always add new characters that are out of my reach at the time (like Gau and Fusoya), so I'll save the souls for those.

[Jurai]

True. I wonder what Magus (Devout, but for Black Magic) has for RM?

[Red Fel]

Actually... we're probably getting Firion's in the II event, right? It means I won't be able to level Firion, but yeah, spending one on Y'shtola.

This is so. The II event is scheduled to drop in a couple of days, and will include Firion's MC and MC2.

That said, we're not going to get the free MC lodes in the daily for another couple of days, either. So you might just get Firion's MC from the event before you get it as a free daily.

[Slayn82]

@Superpanda: Congrats on the pull. Cyan's Katana was one of the Relics I considered in the Beginner's Banner.

I'm doing core dungeons, already finished the Celebration Dungeons, and I will keep pushing for some time. I'm have a good amount of Black and Dark orbs.

[Hunter Noventa]

Fuh, you mean I'm going to have to bring myself to USE those losers from FF2? Granted I still don't have Josef's Double HIT RM but man...

Does it come with Ricard's MC? I would like to get Dragoon's Determination.

EDIT: MUAHAHAHAA! I had some stamina leftover after clearing the last celebration dungeon for the mythril, and took Cid to the first FF7 dungeon and got the Ace Pilot RM!

[danzibr]

Fuh, you mean I'm going to have to bring myself to USE those losers from FF2? Granted I still don't have Josef's Double HIT RM but man...

Does it come with Ricard's MC? I would like to get Dragoon's Determination.

EDIT: MUAHAHAHAA! I had some stamina leftover after clearing the last celebration dungeon for the mythril, and took Cid to the first FF7 dungeon and got the Ace Pilot RM!
Sucky as they may be (and oh man are they sucky), I happen to be a fan of them.

And yup, comes with Ricard's.

And grats!

[Friv]

Fuh, you mean I'm going to have to bring myself to USE those losers from FF2? Granted I still don't have Josef's Double HIT RM but man...

I mean, you don't have to. If you have some good Level 70+ people, you won't be losing much by using them instead.

P.S. As far as MC2s go, I'm leaning towards Gilgamesh and one of the FFXIII people, but I'm definitely saving one for Celes.

[Jurai]

This is so. The II event is scheduled to drop in a couple of days, and will include Firion's MC and MC2.

That said, we're not going to get the free MC lodes in the daily for another couple of days, either. So you might just get Firion's MC from the event before you get it as a free daily.

I'm spending mine on Paladin Cecil, Rinoa, and Aerith. My MC2 lodes are going to Gilgamesh, Vivi, and Hope. Then I can work on them and alter my Nightmare Demon Wall team a little.

[danzibr]

I mean, you don't have to. If you have some good Level 70+ people, you won't be losing much by using them instead.

P.S. As far as MC2s go, I'm leaning towards Gilgamesh and one of the FFXIII people, but I'm definitely saving one for Celes.
Oh yeah. I was wondering if we should save any MC2's, or if we'll get enough as new ones come. For example, in the event when Relm, Celes, and Shadow, we get all their MC2's. No need to save.

EDIT: Oh yeah. I'm spending my 3 on Gilgamesh, and... I dunno. Probably Aerith. But my VII team is already really solid. And I have an 80 Lenna. I might go Vivi and Lulu. 'Cause more BM's ftw. And Hope is a tool.

[DiscipleofBob]

You may wish to consider saving MC2's for Auron, Shadow, Celes, or Relm who should also be coming up relatively soon. I think they're the last ones for a while who get the capability to be level broken without an MC2 in their respective events.

[Forbiddenwar]

Who is better at tauntilate? Auron or Gil? I know Auron has better attack, but Gil has more weapon options and metamorphosis boosting his attack naturally.

So who wins? Who should I level up to 80 first?

[Red Fel]

Who is better at tauntilate? Auron or Gil? I know Auron has better attack, but Gil has more weapon options and metamorphosis boosting his attack naturally.

So who wins? Who should I level up to 80 first?

Well, first thing: Auron doesn't have an MC2 yet. Gil does. So if that's the only consideration, Gil wins.

But here's a quick comparison.




Auron
Gilgamesh


Weapons
Daggers, Swords, Katanas
Daggers, Swords, Katanas, Axes, Spears, Hammers, Fists, Rods


Armor
Hats, Helms, Light Armor, Heavy Armor, Bracers
Hats, Helms, Light Armor, Heavy Armor, Bracers, Shields


Abilities
Combat 5, Support 3, Knight 3, Samurai 5
Combat 5, Dragoon 4, Knight 5, Samurai 5


Soul Breaks
Threaten: Damage and chance to Stop
Dragon Fang: AoE and Power Break
Shooting Star:3-hit, chance to Paralyze
Morphing Time: Self-Boost
Death Claw: 3-hit, chance to Paralyze
Repentance: 3-hit, self Protect/Shell/Haste


Record Materia
Bushido: +damage with Katana

Warrior's Burden: +Defense with Heavy Armor
Captain's Protection: Restore 1 Knight use


Italics indicate a strict advantage. In terms of gear, Gil wins hands-down (pun intended) - shields aren't much of an advantage, but his weapon selection is huge. In terms of abilities, Knight 5 is technically better than Knight 3, but Support 3 is probably better than Dragoon 4 unless you need to target a weakness - so it's almost a wash there.

In terms of SBs, Gil's is amazing for a tauntaliator, because it's a self-Boost. If you don't have Advance available, this is a quick and dirty way to juice your Retaliatemans. Shooting Star and Death Claw are identical. Dragon Fang is nice, but Repentance is amazing for the one-man-show tank. I'd give SBs to Gil.

Finally, you have the RMs. I'd actually give this one to Auron, because a +damage RM is useful. That said, Heroic Stance does it better, and Dragoon's Determination better still. A +Def RM isn't all that amazing, and Knight abilities don't really need a Spring RM.

[danzibr]

You may wish to consider saving MC2's for Auron, Shadow, Celes, or Relm who should also be coming up relatively soon. I think they're the last ones for a while who get the capability to be level broken without an MC2 in their respective events.
Man, I dunno. In the next VI event we get specific MC2's for Shadow, Celes, and Relm.

Who is better at tauntilate? Auron or Gil? I know Auron has better attack, but Gil has more weapon options and metamorphosis boosting his attack naturally.

So who wins? Who should I level up to 80 first?
I'd think Gilgamesh. Actually, for sure Gilgamesh. Auron has just a little more attack, but Gilgamesh is better in hp, def, and res. Gilgamesh has better weapon selection (a *lot* better), and has a better skill spread. Yeah, Gilgamesh.

Oh, and he's way cooler.

[DiscipleofBob]

Man, I dunno. In the next VI event we get specific MC2's for Shadow, Celes, and Relm.

My bad. The Upcomig Events page wasn't as clear on the reward highlights so I had to double check the bonus battles themselves. Fixed in the OP now.


I'd think Gilgamesh. Actually, for sure Gilgamesh. Auron has just a little more attack, but Gilgamesh is better in hp, def, and res. Gilgamesh has better weapon selection (a *lot* better), and has a better skill spread. Yeah, Gilgamesh.

Gilgamesh is definitely better from a mechanical standpoint, but both characters are perfectly fine in the role of Tauntaliator. I'm probably going to try to get Auron first just because he's my favorite FF character ever.


Oh, and he's way cooler.

...

Oh THEM is FIGHTIN' words!

[danzibr]

Oh THEM is FIGHTIN' words!
Oh, don't get me wrong. I love Auron. He's my favorite character in all of FFX.

But c'mon, *Gilgamesh*.

[SuperPanda]

Lets see, Hall of Rites stuff:

I've got 2 hero records I haven't acquired yet: Berserker and Gau - still I feel like banking the souls for now. I can get both through classic dungeons before long and neither of them are good to use, have neat relics, or have useful record materia (to my knowledge) (assuming I also grabbed their MCs). So no rush there.

MC1s I'm missing more. Debating grabbing FuSoYa here rather than claw through the elite.
Currently missing: Firion, Ingus, Edward, FuSoYa, Samurai, Dragoon, Spellblade, Ninja. Viking

Firion I'll get in the II event. The cores I don't care about. that leavs me with 3 nice choices.

MCs will be hard: Gil, Bartz, Locke, Tifa, Arieth, Vivi, Lulu, Vanille, Hope


Gilgamesh: Better stats on my go-to Drawtaliater would be awesome. New RM isn't that great looking but doesn't need to be. Solid choice but unsure.

Bartz: Great character stats and abilities. Great new RM. Very solid choice depending on how pulls go.

Locke: Solid thief though I'll already be leveling Vaan and Balthier. Love the character but no relics (yet) for him.

Tifa: Good/okay RM for monks. Have her Crystal Glove, already at 65. Still unsure.

Arieth: Currently have Lenna at 69 Arieth at 58. Have Planet Protector (which is awesome). Okay RM. Considering.

Vivi: Have Rinnoa, Ashe, Terra, and Rydia's relics and nothing for Vivi. Unlikely to grab this one even though Vivi is awesome.

Lulu: See Vivi.

Vanille: See Arieth but without the relic there is little reason to grab Vanilles.

Hope: See Vivi.

Not counting Lucky Draw - assuming we do get them - the banners I'll be pulling on in SSB fest have relics for: Arieth, Gil, Locke, and Vivi - this could affect choices.

[danzibr]

I just realized each phase butts up to the next one. Like, in the announcement it says phase 1 goes until 3/20, and phase 2 starts on 3/20. Et cetera.

[Starwulf]

Oh, don't get me wrong. I love Auron. He's my favorite character in all of FFX.

But c'mon, *Gilgamesh*.

Out of curiosity, what is yours(and everyone elses) obsession over Gilgamesh? I mean, he was alright comic relief in FFXII, but was pretty idiotic in Dissidia, and I honestly don't even remember him from the one game everyone seems to love him in(FFV, and it wasn't that long ago that I played it, a few years ago max). I just really don't understand the fandom he seems to have.

[Simkin]

U. Silver Dragon down. Gave me some trouble, and didn't master in the end. He got in a lucky hit and took down my healer right at the end. Annoying, but I don't think I'll redo it. I have the Pinion, which is all I really cared about. The other orbs would be nice, but aren't worth it to me. Happy it's done.

[T.G. Oskar]

Alright, alright, I know - he's supposed to be a joke, but I still can feel proud of it.

I just mastered Ultimate Garland. Yeah, no wonder you guys call it the easiest Ultimate - he was tough, but by all means a pushover. Not like facing father-in-law Maduin at all.

Just so you know, party was:
Terra (lv. 75) - Runeblade, Crystal Helm 6*, Crystal Orb; Blizzaga R4, Thundaga R4; Blood of Espers
Balthier (lv. 65) - Goddess' Tribute, Power Sash, Muscle Belt (FFX); Thundara Strike R3, Blizzara Strike R3; Master Sniper
Gilgamesh (lv. 62) - Defender (FFI), Crystal Mail 7* (FFVI), Muscle Belt (FFX); Retaliate, Draw Fire; Freedom's Wish
Selphie (lv. 50) - Morning Star, Dark Gloves, Protect Ring (FFVII); Curaga R5, Protectga R2; Oath of Tycoon
Pally!Cecil (lv. 65) - Blitz Sword, Golden Armor (FFXII), Black Belt (FFIX); Banishing Strike R2, Shellga R2; Hunger of the Qu
RW: Luneth (Advance)

In the end, it was mostly Terra using her spells for 3.8k damage (sometimes even doubling it; she did it twice or thrice), Gil being set up for basic Advauntaliate, Selphie and Pally!Cecil going for basic mitigation, and Balthier alternating between Spellblading for 3.6k and hitting Gil. Once Gil was set-up, I just did basic Advauntaliate, with Selphie doing some healing (used her Medica exactly once, which I believe helped surviving; that, and Selphie healing for 2.5k with Curaga). Lost 2 Medals for damage and 1 for turns, but since I hit all weaknesses, I mastered the battle.

...Which means I get more Major Power Orbs. Only need 1 MPO and one Major Ice Orb to make Full Break at last. Plus, I get the Crystal Ring, which while not exactly formidable (just Def 10), it's still nice. Feel happy that at least I can handle one Ultimate, even if it's the easiest of them all, and so easy it's a veritable joke. I've had bigger problems with +++ battles in other places, to be honest.

On the other hand - Pally!Cecil got level broken twice, Quina got level broken once, and...right now, just leveling Garnet (though I got Eiko at lv. 50) and Gordon while maxing Gil and adding a few levels to Pally!Cecil (and Terra, too). Gonna alternate between doing FFIX levels and spending the rest on Spring Fest for more XP.

Come to think about it, should be working on Ricard as well. Y'know, for Dragoon's Determination and spamming Sky Grinder if I manage to get it (after all, I got a nice FFIX team now, what with Quina, Beatrix, Steiner and either Eiko or Garnet as WHM).

[Friv]

Oh yeah. I was wondering if we should save any MC2's, or if we'll get enough as new ones come. For example, in the event when Relm, Celes, and Shadow, we get all their MC2's. No need to save.

EDIT: Oh yeah. I'm spending my 3 on Gilgamesh, and... I dunno. Probably Aerith. But my VII team is already really solid. And I have an 80 Lenna. I might go Vivi and Lulu. 'Cause more BM's ftw. And Hope is a tool.

Oh, I misread the event. Now I have to decide who my third will be.

Hrm.

[Starwulf]

Woot! Glad I stuck with doing more of the celebration fest, I just got my 3rd Major orb, and it was a Major Black orb!!! Just need 1 more and I can finally hone Meteor to r2. 4 casts of Meteor...mmm how wonderful. Sadly I imagine it will be a loooooonnnnnggggg time before I get enough orbs to hone it to r3, but once I do it will finally make it into my permanent line-up of spells for everything and not just dailies.

Edit: Wow, pretty lucky on this event, two more Major orbs, one a Dark, and the other the last Black I needed!!! Finally have Meteor at r2 :)

[Slayn82]

Ultimate Garland: I, too, knocked him down.

Party of Tyro with Advantaliator setup and Pride of Red Wings RM, Warrior of Light with Banishing Strike and Double Cut, Zidane with Steal Power and Double Cut (Haste RM), Lulu with Blizzaja/Thundaja (both R2 and RM Attunement 2) and , and Eiko with Curaja and Protectga (Dr. Mog Teachings).

On retrospective, I should have used Gilgamesh or Auron instead of Tyro as Advantaliator. His Last Judgement Grimoire wasn't useful in this fight, and I didn't use Irvine's shotgun as I considered doing at first.

The annoying part of the fight was the Tsunamis, those forced a few S/L. I didn't bring magic mitigation this fight except for Eiko's SB, and she was the only healer, so recovering from 2 Tsunamis in a row was difficult. Steal Power and Protectga gave us enough time early while Tyro set up. If I had Double Hit RM, I would have used Red XIII instead.

Also, done over 10 core dungeons yesterday, and I'm halfway to my Goal of Vivi's MC2. Lulu was my go to Black Mage to nuke everything, now I have to switch over. Now to beat the Sand worm again. Nostalgic. But this time he is weaker and it won't be with a bunch of 2* -ra spells.

[danzibr]

Whelp, mastered the ++ and +++ battles. Want to do the U before the next phase rolls around. Save that stam for PO's.

Almost had to S/L on the +++ battle. Should've reapplied Slow.

EDIT: I didn't realize how good Beatrix was. Boo ya.

Also, the idea of a party of full 80's with synergy against Ultima is nice. I think I just might get the MC2's for Lulu and Vivi.

The next one is Combat, right? Already have full 80's for that (or maybe I'm one short, dunno).

Then WM? I'm short there. I have Lenna at 80. Need to level Garnet and Selphie. And uhh, Tyro of course. Should get another by the time that event rolls around. Yeah, Aerith.

Summon, I'll be set on.

Support, currently only have Wakka (and Tyro). Need to level Fran and Red XIII.

Lookin' good, lookin' good.

And I'm down to 525 mythril. Already did like 15 stam refills on this phase. Probably another 5, then 20 stam refills on the next phase. Slow down after that. We have another full week (and a few hours) before the banners roll in.

[Jurai]

Steiner is level 80! Now I'm working on Lightning, then Tyro.

[danzibr]

Steiner is level 80! Now I'm working on Lightning, then Tyro.
Yeah... I'm not sure whom to get to 80. Right now I'm working on Yuna. I think I have Cloud, Squall, Rinoa, Terra, Wakka, Tyro, Sephiroth, Pally Cecil, Lenna, Tidus. I think. Lightning is high 60's, probably do her next.

[Jurai]

Well, my party for Nightmare Demon Wall uses Tyro as my White Mage to keep folks alive and Lightning's my Spellblade since I have her Blazefire Sabre. Bartz is in because I have a 6* thrower (Moonring Blade (VI)++), Gilgamesh is in because I have NO EXCUSES, Sephiroth is in because my Nodachi (X)++ is 6*, and Galuf is in because he can use fists (like my Gauntlet (VIII)+). Steiner was just acting as Bard's babysitter so I could level break the most useless of all cores.

[Hunter Noventa]

Yeah... I'm not sure whom to get to 80. Right now I'm working on Yuna. I think I have Cloud, Squall, Rinoa, Terra, Wakka, Tyro, Sephiroth, Pally Cecil, Lenna, Tidus. I think. Lightning is high 60's, probably do her next.

I'm working on Rinoa and Selphie, or at least they're in my current party for orbfest. A few more levels on Ricard and I'll probably switch Cloud in. The probably PLD!Cecil once Tyro is doing a bit better. Gotta saves eggs for when we need to use a fresh character in an event dungeon after all.

[SuperPanda]

Level wise I've boosted p.cecil, Rinoa, and squall to 70 and Rydia to 65. Got balthier and Ashe to 60+ Working on getting them to 65 and Steiner to 70.

65 and 70'are my new target numbers for A listers and 75+ if I have any extra chances.

[Jurai]

I'm working on Rinoa and Selphie, or at least they're in my current party for orbfest. A few more levels on Ricard and I'll probably switch Cloud in. The probably PLD!Cecil once Tyro is doing a bit better. Gotta saves eggs for when we need to use a fresh character in an event dungeon after all.

I'm saving my Growth Eggs for Ramza and Agrias, depending on how pulls go on Tactics.

Also, finally honed the 3* Elemental Jumps to R5, and now I'm working on Leeching LeapDrain Jump. Aaaand it's done.

[Calemyr]

Ha! Garland is knocked down! And Mastered! Never even tried an ultimate before now. I know he's infamously weak, but I'll still take it.

[danzibr]

Level wise I've boosted p.cecil, Rinoa, and squall to 70 and Rydia to 65. Got balthier and Ashe to 60+ Working on getting them to 65 and Steiner to 70.

65 and 70'are my new target numbers for A listers and 75+ if I have any extra chances.
Baltheir to 65 is on my to-do list.

75 is a good goal. Maybe I'll shoot for that rather than 80. 80 takes so long, doesn't seem worth it >.>

I'm saving my Growth Eggs for Ramza and Agrias, depending on how pulls go on Tactics.

Also, finally honed the 3* Elemental Jumps to R5, and now I'm working on Leeching LeapDrain Jump. Aaaand it's done.
I seriously need to level some jumps. The few I've used have been highly beneficial... just haven't done anything after that.

Ha! Garland is knocked down! And Mastered! Never even tried an ultimate before now. I know he's infamously weak, but I'll still take it.
Grats! A victory is a victory ;)

As for me, going to assemble the pure Reta team and face Silver Dragon.

[Jurai]

I seriously need to level some jumps. The few I've used have been highly beneficial... just haven't done anything after that.

Only problem, really, is I'm now broke. So, if there's ever a Dragoon Nightmare, I'm prepared. Assuming the Nightmare Boss doesn't absorb Ice, Wind, Lightning, and (potentially) Dark.

[danzibr]

Alright, I'm about to attempt U Silver Dragon with a variation of what Red posted.

65 Gilgamesh, Ice Jump, Retaliate, Auto-Haste
80 Tyro, Full Break, Retaliate, Double Hit
65 Auron, Draw Fire, Retaliate, Dragoon's Determination
80 Sephiroth, Armor Break, Retaliate, Heroic Stance
80 Cloud, Aerora Strike, Retaliate, Attunement II
RW Planet Protector

Will edit in the results.

EDIT: Grrrrrrrrrrrrr came so close to beating it. And I would've mastered it, I reckon. But I lost track. The boss had so little health I couldn't see the bar, did the wrong action with my jumper, everyone died. Rats.

[Jurai]

Alright, I'm about to attempt U Silver Dragon with a variation of what Red posted.

65 Gilgamesh, Ice Jump, Retaliate, Auto-Haste
80 Tyro, Full Break, Retaliate, Double Hit
65 Auron, Draw Fire, Retaliate, Dragoon's Determination
80 Sephiroth, Armor Break, Retaliate, Heroic Stance
80 Cloud, Aerora Strike, Retaliate, Attunement II
RW Planet Protector

Will edit in the results.

EDIT: Grrrrrrrrrrrrr came so close to beating it. And I would've mastered it, I reckon. But I lost track. The boss had so little health I couldn't see the bar, did the wrong action with my jumper, everyone died. Rats.

That's why I didn't do Retaliate stratagem. Since my Gilgamesh was constantly jumping, he was in good shape. I lost Mastery because Garnet died. I may retry after leveling her some more.

[Red Fel]

Alright, folks. Somebody on the FFRK Reddit pointed out the upcoming schedule of empty MC2s and how that balances against the introduction of MC2s. The post is here (https://www.reddit.com/r/FFRecordKeeper/comments/4axber/future_blank_mc2_rewards_schedule/). A summary follows.

I'm going to assume that, up to this point, you have every MC2. If you don't, obviously, these numbers will be off. So here's the timeline.
Right now: You have no empty MC2s. Nine have been added to the Hall of Rites. So there are 9 MC2s to choose.
Roughly 3/27: We will receive 3 blank MC2s. Assuming you use all three, there will still be 6 MC2s remaining.
Also around that time: The Abyss (Nightmare) event drops 1 blank MC2. So there will be 5 MC2s remaining.
FFX event: A later event will drop 1 MC2. However, Auron's MC2 will also be added to the Hall of Rites. So that's a wash at 5 MC2s remaining.
Nightmare: Another Nightmare event drops another blank MC2, which leaves us with 4 MC2s remaining.
Nightmare: Another Nightmare, another blank, 3 MC2s remaining.
And so on, until around July, at which point we should roughly break even, give or take one or two.
True, not everyone will be able to get all of these. But the point is, it is possible to catch up. So don't despair.

Now, as long as I have your attention, let's talk about the upcoming II event! Seer of Destiny is expected to drop tomorrow night. This event features the debuts of Minwu and Leila, the returns of Firion, Maria, Josef, Gordon, and Leon, MCs for all seven, and an MC2 for Firion. Yes, Firion gets his MC and MC2 in the same event.

The event also drops the 4-star accessory Protect Ring, which gives moderate resistance to Death effects (that includes Gravity, by the way), the 5-star Thief ability Thief's Revenge, which hits multiple times based on the user's Speed, and the 5-star WHM ability Arise, which revives a KO'd target to full health. The Ultimate boss, the three Gigas, drops the 5-star accessory Gigas Armlet, which reduces Water resist but increases Fire/Ice/Lightning resist.

New characters! Minwu is the long-awaited II-cast WHM. And he is a bog-standard straight-up WHM; he uses daggers, rods, and staves, and hats, robes, and bracers, and his exclusive ability set is WHM 5. Stat-wise, at level 65, he has 150 Mind, tied with Penelo and second only to Lenna; 3839 HP, same as Penelo; and 67 Def, same as most WHMs. He is a very strong healer, if nothing else, and he is most certainly nothing else.

Leila is a pirate! She uses daggers, swords, and bows, and hats, light armor, and bracers. She also uses Combat 4, Celerity 5, and Thief 5. At 65, she enjoys an Atk of 133, which is a very respectable number for a speedster; 95 Def, comparable with Zidane and Thancred; 158 Spd, which is shockingly excellent; and 4253 HP, same as Josef, which is at least respectable.

Okay, okay, let's talk banners. The first banner features:
Masamune: Firion's SSB sword (not katana). Pure Attack. 5-hit single-target 1.58x ranged physical damage, auto-Blind.
Healing Staff: Minwu's SSB staff. Attack, Magic, and Mind. Instant-cast Curaga-level party heal.
Flame Shield: Gordon's SB shield. Attack, Defense, and Resistance. 3-hit AoE 1.4x physical damage, reduces enemy Atk/Mag. Item increases Fire resist.
Dragon Claw: Josef's SB fist. Pure Attack. 3-hit AoE 1.37x ranged physical Ice damage, boosts party Atk.
Golden Armor: Leon's SB heavy armor. Defense and Resistance. Boosts party Atk/Def.
The second banner features:
Artemis Bow: Maria's SSB bow. Attack, Magic, and Mind. 4-hit AoE 3.6x magic Lightning damage, boosts party Mag.
Defender: Leon's SSB sword. Pure Attack. 3-hit AoE 2x ranged physical Dark damage, taunts all physical and magical attacks, triples user's Def.
Dancing Dagger: Leila's SB dagger. Pure Attack. Hastega + Shellga.
White Robe: Minwu's SB robe. Mind, Defense, and Resistance. 3-hit AoE 3.16x Mind-based magic Non-Elemental damage, auto-Stun. Item increases Death resist.
Demon Axe: Firion's SB axe. Pure Attack. 5-hit single-target 1.02x physical damage.
Both banners also feature the Werebuster (shared-SB rod, medica) and Ice Gloves (stat-stick bracer with Ice resist).

So, should you pull? Well, these are actually some pretty good items. Minwu's SSB, an instant-cast Curaga-level AoE heal, is incredibly potent on an already potent healer, and his SB is Mind-based, which is great too. Leon's SB is a staple of melee parties, and his new SSB is incredibly potent when paired with Armor Strike (which deals damage based on the user's Def), particularly when you realize that mastering it adds Def. Maria's SSB bow is a solid caster bow, with an excellent damage ability and a party-wide Mag boost, great for mage meta.

Problem is, all of these abilities are on traditionally sub-par II-cast characters. The gear itself is decent, but without the SBs or SSBs it's just good gear, and if you're not using the II-cast you're probably not using II synergy, which means something else will probably have better stats. So if you don't love members of the II-cast, these items lose a lot of their luster.

Also, some of you might be saving up for a certain something later in the month. So there's that.

[danzibr]

Turns out altering Red's setup was a baaaad idea. I didn't realize he had a counter. Went back to pure Reta, had to S/L just once.

Out of curiosity, what is yours(and everyone elses) obsession over Gilgamesh? I mean, he was alright comic relief in FFXII, but was pretty idiotic in Dissidia, and I honestly don't even remember him from the one game everyone seems to love him in(FFV, and it wasn't that long ago that I played it, a few years ago max). I just really don't understand the fandom he seems to have.
Oh yeah! I meant to respond to this. I'll try to do this from memory.

We first see the mighty Gilgamesh in V. He has an awesome character: comical but not annoyingly so, but he can get serious, and at the end of the game we see his true character, which is pure gold.
He didn't appear in VI. Or if he did it was in the coliseum. Or maybe that was a remake.
Absent in VII.
His appearance in VIII is freaking baddonkey. I had a rough time beating Odin, then this mystery dude comes around and one-shots him? Whoa. And his abilities are sweet.
I didn't care for IX. I know he's in some place, and my memory is super fuzzy.
In X... absent, right? At first I thought Yojimbo was Gilgamesh.
In XII we get another baddonkey appearance. One of my favorite side quests.
He was sweet in XIII-2. Cool boss. I never managed to recruit him though.
I never played Dissidia.

The single coolest thing about all this is that they're all the same Gilgamesh. In a game of alternate universes, he's the same. Hopping through dimensions, searching for legendary swords. What a stud.

[T.G. Oskar]

If you need to understand why Gilgamesh is so awesome, just ask Deadpool.

It's pretty simple - Gilgamesh is a break-out character, much like Cid (there's one Cid in pretty much every FF game; even FFI had a Cid added retroactively just to play with the idea), Biggs & Wedge (either as poor soldiers, slain members of AVALANCHE, comic-relief Galbadian soldiers, or even Blitzball Coliseum guards!), Ultros & Typhon (the former transcending to various worlds; the latter not so much but has turned into a Summon once or twice), amongst others. The difference between all of them is that, as danzibr says, he's the same character in every game after FFVIII (he was added retroactively as a Summon in FFVI for GBA/mobile, and didn't get popularity in FFVII so he might appear in the remake just for the heck of it), and he knows it.

Why Deadpool is so popular? Well, he has Fourth Wall Awareness; he knows he's on a comic book, and he delightfully toys with the idea. Gilgamesh is somewhat the same, except he tries to be more serious, and if you consider it, much like Deadpool, he has the skills to match it - he might be comedy gold, but when he gets serious ("It's Morphing Time!"), he can be pretty tough to beat.

Now, consider just how good he is on FFRK - the first official Tauntaliator, with added Dragoon skills to compensate for lack of Spellblade, and pretty high HP and Defense to make him a member of any A-team; in fact, there's a reason why he's considered God tier, alongside Ramza (and once she gets her MAG boost and Summon 5*, Terra as well). That's mostly a reason why even people who prefer other characters acknowledge the inherent worth of maxing Gilgamesh and placing him in any A-team, whenever you need to beat an Ultimate.

Now, that doesn't mean Auron isn't awesome - he's just not a break-out character. He IS awesome - an Unsent (yeah, that's as much a spoiler as "Darth Vader is Luke's father", but not as much as the Episode VII spoiler which was revealed as Episode VIII was greenlighted) with awesome fighting skills coupled with an awesome look. He makes Zanmato look awesome, something Mama's Boy and his oversized Katanas can't work, and he's older than most of the party, which is a plus because YA overload needs to be trimmed down a bit. His skill set and traits are good, but are only one step behind Gil's Dragoon skills. Auron had to be given Knight 3 to become a Tauntaliator, something they still haven't given Cyan, who most likely could make good use of it since he's the game's fraggin' Knight! ...Aside from Edgar, of course, but then again, he's a king, and one of the game's two Dragoons (alongside Mog).

Tangent aside, it's a combination of Fourth Wall Awareness, Breakout Character and solid good translation upon the game. Then again, if THE Thunder God appears in game, he might most likely lose his top spot...depending on how DeNA, if they add him, set his skills. He was the most broken physical character in the entire FFT game, after all.

[danzibr]

For a split second at the very end of your post I thought Gilgamesh was in some version of FFT. Now that, I would play.

Well said, Oskar.

[DiscipleofBob]

I already knew Gilgamesh was Deadpool, but given the dynamic introduced by FFRK, I just thought of something...

What if Gilgamesh is to Deadpool what Auron is to Cable?

[Starwulf]

Mmmmm, I like deadpool, quite a bit actually. Sadly what makes Deadpool awesome, seems to be lacking in Gilgamesh for me. But at least I understand a bit better now :) Still not going to get me to level him anytime soon though, lol ^^

So, what are peoples plans for ability creation and honing for the next little while? Now that I've gotten Meteor and Full Break to r2, I've decided to break down all Major Black and Power Orbs for a while and in turn start maxing out certain abilities, ie: Life Siphon, Tempo Flurry, Dismissal(both of them), and also honing to at least r3 all the elemental Ja's(I have Waterja at r4, Thundaja at r3), Ruinga to r4, and then working on the three useful breakdowns(Power/Armor/Magic) to r3, maybe r4 depending on how long it's taken me to get the other stuff done by this point.

Basically, unless I get really lucky during the SSB-Fest and finally get a trifecta item, I figure the only way I stand a chance in hell(without abusing retaliate) against an Ultimate is honing all my important offensive abilities to max, and honing the almost as important abilities to r4. Basically, just focus on straight beatdown since mitigation is never going to happen ><. Curious to see what other peoples priorities are.

[T.G. Oskar]

What if Gilgamesh is to Deadpool what Auron is to Cable?

Nah, Auron:/:Cable.

Now, Noel::Cable, and Serah::Hope. No, not that Hope (http://finalfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/Hope_Estheim)! This one (http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Hope_Summers_%28Earth-616%29)! (And Caius could be Bishop or Stryfe, whichever one fits better, though I believe Stryfe > Bishop to keep with the idea of Noel::Cable).

[SuperPanda]

I haven't really looked at my orb counts lately, it will really depend on my character levels and draw pulls most likely. I do want to get full break to R2, and I'll likely craft either bahamut or meteor to R 1 at the end- I sort of don't want to craft them until they can hit R2.

fornmost things I'm finding R 3 is a good target- j haven't needed my breakdowns to r4 on any fight I could have won. My gas are R4 and I use those up but Ruinga and the jas I have are R3 and R 2 respectfully and have been enough so far. Jas to R3 would be awesome.

[danzibr]

So, what are peoples plans for ability creation and honing for the next little while? Now that I've gotten Meteor and Full Break to r2, I've decided to break down all Major Black and Power Orbs for a while and in turn start maxing out certain abilities, ie: Life Siphon, Tempo Flurry, Dismissal(both of them), and also honing to at least r3 all the elemental Ja's(I have Waterja at r4, Thundaja at r3), Ruinga to r4, and then working on the three useful breakdowns(Power/Armor/Magic) to r3, maybe r4 depending on how long it's taken me to get the other stuff done by this point.

Basically, unless I get really lucky during the SSB-Fest and finally get a trifecta item, I figure the only way I stand a chance in hell(without abusing retaliate) against an Ultimate is honing all my important offensive abilities to max, and honing the almost as important abilities to r4. Basically, just focus on straight beatdown since mitigation is never going to happen ><. Curious to see what other peoples priorities are.

I haven't really looked at my orb counts lately, it will really depend on my character levels and draw pulls most likely. I do want to get full break to R2, and I'll likely craft either bahamut or meteor to R 1 at the end- I sort of don't want to craft them until they can hit R2.

fornmost things I'm finding R 3 is a good target- j haven't needed my breakdowns to r4 on any fight I could have won. My gas are R4 and I use those up but Ruinga and the jas I have are R3 and R 2 respectfully and have been enough so far. Jas to R3 would be awesome.
Oooh. Yeah. Now there's an interesting one. Abilities, huh? At the moment I'm just hoarding. I usually just make them as I need them, like making a r3 Blizzaja and 2 r4 Blizzaga's for Rubicante. A mess of Retaliates for that dragon I beat an hour ago.

I'm really quite set for AoE's. r4 Ruinga, r2 Meteor, r2 Quake, also have Kick, some Samurai stuff. My break(downs) are good. Spellblade stuff is good. Yeah, the more I think about it, I have no goals atm. Just save, hopefully get enough orbs to do that Zack combo Red was talking about. Love me some Zack.

[Slayn82]

I'm also considering to break my Major Power Orbs to Hone my 4* skills. And instead of creating Full Break, I'm trying to collect enough Major Orbs to get the upcoming free Full Break Dance to R2 once we get it, as it don't needs MPOs - and have Mog in the party as off healer.

How much the Mind Stat will increase the Debuff duration? And someone knows when well have another try at his debut Relic?

[danzibr]

I'm also considering to break my Major Power Orbs to Hone my 4* skills. And instead of creating Full Break, I'm trying to collect enough Major Orbs to get the upcoming free Full Break Dance to R2 once we get it, as it don't needs MPOs - and have Mog in the party as off healer.

How much the Mind Stat will increase the Debuff duration? And someone knows when well have another try at his debut Relic?
There's a Mog relic in banner 2. I assume it's the one.

Also, saving orbs for Break Fever (or whatever it's called) is a great idea. Those boss battles with 2+ enemies? Ahhhhh yeah.

I wonder how the durations compare. I'll have to look that up.

EDIT: 2 things. First, I'm very excited about the II event tonight; I'd totally pull if it weren't for SSBfest in 6 days (it's a pity Minwu's SSB relic isn't on the banners). And there's not another II event for the foreseeable future (JP hasn't had one since this). Okay, maybe that was like 4 itself.

Second, what's everyone's favorite ability? Flashing Blade and Sky Grinder are functionally almost identical, but to me Sky Grinder is friggin' awesome. I dunno, something about it. I'm such a Timmy.

[Chen]

Mmmmm, I like deadpool, quite a bit actually. Sadly what makes Deadpool awesome, seems to be lacking in Gilgamesh for me. But at least I understand a bit better now :) Still not going to get me to level him anytime soon though, lol ^^

So, what are peoples plans for ability creation and honing for the next little while? Now that I've gotten Meteor and Full Break to r2, I've decided to break down all Major Black and Power Orbs for a while and in turn start maxing out certain abilities, ie: Life Siphon, Tempo Flurry, Dismissal(both of them), and also honing to at least r3 all the elemental Ja's(I have Waterja at r4, Thundaja at r3), Ruinga to r4, and then working on the three useful breakdowns(Power/Armor/Magic) to r3, maybe r4 depending on how long it's taken me to get the other stuff done by this point.

Basically, unless I get really lucky during the SSB-Fest and finally get a trifecta item, I figure the only way I stand a chance in hell(without abusing retaliate) against an Ultimate is honing all my important offensive abilities to max, and honing the almost as important abilities to r4. Basically, just focus on straight beatdown since mitigation is never going to happen ><. Curious to see what other peoples priorities are.

At R3 most abilities will last you through boss fights, especially if you have SBs to use for the chars. I find significant diminishing returns on honing things past R3, especially if you're going to be breaking down valuable major orbs for it. The only things I've not regreted honing that high are curaja (currently at R4 and it pretty much JUST lasts for a whole tough fight) and Lifesiphon at R4 (7 uses of lifesiphon without getting hit will fill your entire SB gauge, good for levels with trash and then just blowing 3 SBs on the boss).

[Jurai]

There's a Mog relic in banner 2. I assume it's the one.

Also, saving orbs for Break Fever (or whatever it's called) is a great idea. Those boss battles with 2+ enemies? Ahhhhh yeah.

I wonder how the durations compare. I'll have to look that up.

EDIT: 2 things. First, I'm very excited about the II event tonight; I'd totally pull if it weren't for SSBfest in 6 days (it's a pity Minwu's SSB relic isn't on the banners). And there's not another II event for the foreseeable future (JP hasn't had one since this). Okay, maybe that was like 4 itself.

Second, what's everyone's favorite ability? Flashing Blade and Sky Grinder are functionally almost identical, but to me Sky Grinder is friggin' awesome. I dunno, something about it. I'm such a Timmy.

That's Mog's Holy Lance with Sunbath, not the one with Heroic Harmony.

[Slayn82]

Yeah, the autocorrect changed debuff to debut.

And these FF2 characters look like a whole team of Red XIIIs. Awesome SBs, but not much going for them out of their relics. I'd say Banner 1 is the real deal here. Joseph's claws are the only bad item (but Joseph is the best character of this cast).

Gordon's Shield SB is pretty much Heroic Harmony + damage? Decent. (And his default SB is usable). And, Gordon is an Sword Using Support 5*, like Ramza and Tyro. Still, his stats are very all over the place, his Magic and Mind are much better than his attack, but he only has black and white Magic 3.

[Simkin]

I've been making some good progress exping with the orbfest:

- Selfie just hit 80.
- Garnet and WoL are 76 and 75 respectively and should be 80 by the end of the weekend (bringing all my 80s back to max).
- People that hit 50 and got unlocked include: Gordon, Quistis, Freya, Quina (and I think one or two more I can't remember.
- Spellblade will be 50 and broken by the end of the day. Leon should be at 50, (just getting him there). And I just swapped in Ricard. I have two or three more MCs just sitting there that should finish up by the end of the weekend too I believe.

Let's see, as to the honing question:

- All the primary elements I have up to a R4 -ja and 2x R4 or R5 -gas. So that is pretty much set.
- I upped Quake to R3 recently and made another Ruinga bringing me up to 2x R4 Ruinga.
- Brought both Protectga and Shellga to R3 recently.
- I've been working a good bit on my summons as follows: R2 Leviathan, R4 Maduin, R2 Valefor, R4 Shiva/Ramuh/Ifrit, etc. These combined with the spells noted above have really increased the foundations of both my elemental and non-elemental burn parties.
- One of my next big areas to work on is shoring up my spellblades, (I only have Blizzaga/Thundaga Strikes at R3. I did take Drain Strike to R5 recently.
- My breakdowns are all at R2 except Power BD which I just took to R3. Full Break I'm one MPO from R2.
- I'm also continuing to work on my fun dragoon party. Leaps are at: R4 Wind/Lightning/Ice/Leeching Jump/Leap, R2 Soaring Jump, R1 Sky Grinder.

Nothing else I'm really dying for, though there's plenty of stuff I need to slowly level up.

[Jurai]

Good stuff. I'm working on getting Lightning to 80 and Balthier to 65, then I'm getting Warrior of Light up to 65 to LB2 him, then I'm putting in Leon to bring him to 50 and get him LB1d.

[danzibr]

I'm thinking Maria, Minwu, Gordon, Ricard, Firion for my II team. Thoughts? Maybe swap Ricard for Leila or Josef or Leon?

[Jurai]

Finally got Double Hit AND Dragoon's Pride. Huzzah. Probably going to drop an eleven pull on Banner 2 for Maria's Bow, because I'd just love a 5* Bow, and it'd give me reason to drop Vivi, since I'm getting Rinoa's MC2 eventually.

[danzibr]

Finally got Double Hit AND Dragoon's Pride. Huzzah. Probably going to drop an eleven pull on Banner 2 for Maria's Bow, because I'd just love a 5* Bow, and it'd give me reason to drop Vivi, since I'm getting Rinoa's MC2 eventually.
Grats on the Double Hit! It's served me well.

[Slayn82]

Decided to spend my hard earned Mythril on pulls in the new Banner. Didn't get any character relic. Got instead another 5* mage hat, a IV Gold Hairpin. Finished my second 3++ Thunder Rod. I may be able to Mage Meta soon.

I'm resigned to just 100 gem and 3 pull my way through the Celebration Banners.

[Red Fel]

I'm thinking Maria, Minwu, Gordon, Ricard, Firion for my II team. Thoughts? Maybe swap Ricard for Leila or Josef or Leon?

Now that I've got the full assortment from the event, I'm going with Firion, Ricard, Gordon, Minwu, and Maria. Firion and Ricard for DPS, Gordon for Support, Minwu for WHM and Maria for BLM.

I don't want to use Firion, frankly. He sucks hard. He has what is essentially the worst ability selection in the II cast, and he's the main character. A quick comparison:
Firion: Combat 5, Support 3, Celerity 3, BLM 1. So, basically Combat 5.
Leon: Combat 5, Knight 5, BLM 3. And he'll get Darkness 5 as well. So, already better than Firion.
Josef: Combat 5, Monk 5. Fewer categories, but Monk 5 means Kick, Punishing Palm, Piercing Strike, and Exploding Fist. So, basically better than Firion.
Ricard: Combat 4, Dragoon 5, BLM 2. Dragoon 5 gives him Sky Grinder and the closest thing II has to Spellblade, so better than Firion.
Leila: Combat 4, Celerity 5, Thief 5. Pretty much strictly better than Firion.
Gordon, Minwu, and Maria are the only ones who fit their respective roles, so there's no competition there.

I use Firion because he's the main character and because his is one of the few character-specific relics I have. But holy crap, this guy is worthless, even with an MC2 coming down the road.

Jeeze, this cast sucks.

[danzibr]

Decided to spend my hard earned Mythril on pulls in the new Banner. Didn't get any character relic. Got instead another 5* mage hat, a IV Gold Hairpin. Finished my second 3++ Thunder Rod. I may be able to Mage Meta soon.

I'm resigned to just 100 gem and 3 pull my way through the Celebration Banners.
Aww. Gold Hairpin is mighty nice, but still, sorry 'bout the luck.

Now that I've got the full assortment from the event, I'm going with Firion, Ricard, Gordon, Minwu, and Maria. Firion and Ricard for DPS, Gordon for Support, Minwu for WHM and Maria for BLM.

I don't want to use Firion, frankly. He sucks hard. He has what is essentially the worst ability selection in the II cast, and he's the main character. A quick comparison:
Firion: Combat 5, Support 3, Celerity 3, BLM 1. So, basically Combat 5.
Leon: Combat 5, Knight 5, BLM 3. And he'll get Darkness 5 as well. So, already better than Firion.
Josef: Combat 5, Monk 5. Fewer categories, but Monk 5 means Kick, Punishing Palm, Piercing Strike, and Exploding Fist. So, basically better than Firion.
Ricard: Combat 4, Dragoon 5, BLM 2. Dragoon 5 gives him Sky Grinder and the closest thing II has to Spellblade, so better than Firion.
Leila: Combat 4, Celerity 5, Thief 5. Pretty much strictly better than Firion.
Gordon, Minwu, and Maria are the only ones who fit their respective roles, so there's no competition there.

I use Firion because he's the main character and because his is one of the few character-specific relics I have. But holy crap, this guy is worthless, even with an MC2 coming down the road.

Jeeze, this cast sucks.
Hahaha, we're in the same boat! Like, exactly the same boat. Were it not for the fact that I have Firion's axe and he's getting a MC2, I'd give him the boot so hard. Probably for Leon.

[Starwulf]

Loving the celebration orbfest right now, have gained a ton of levels thus far, which is wonderful considering I almost never get to run the Sundaily exp dungeons. LuLu is now capped out at 65, working on Rydia now in preparation for the first Abyss dungeon. Yuna is now 71(from 67 when I started), Squall is at 64 from 58, Wakka is 71 from 68 and Tidus is 78 from 75 I believe.

Not to mention the multitude of orbs which is a great benefit. Speaking of orbs, I wonder if they will ever allow an "Orb Trading" function. Obviously it couldn't work on a 1:1 basis as that would make the game waaaaaayyy to easy(for example: I'm over 40 Major Summon orbs now(don't ask me how, I just have 'em), if I could 1:1 trade them for power orbs I'd be able to break those down and at the least r3 every 3 and 4* ability in the game that I want to use or think I'd want to use, or I could immediately make and r2 any of the current 5* abilities that use them and still have some leftover. Then there are all the other Major orbs that don't have quite as much of a use right now, such as Major Fire Orbs(15), Major Dark Orbs(17) and Major Holy Orbs(13). Some of those I have enough Regular and Greater orbs to craft an additional 5-10 Majors(306/79 Regular/Greater Fire orbs, 364/271/43 Lesser/Regular/Greater Dark orbs).

So, maybe like a 5:1 orb swap to keep things from getting to incredibly out of hand. That would still be well worth it for a lot of people, I mean who couldn't use 8 extra Major Power orbs(or 80 Greater/800 Regular)?? Or Black Orbs for that matter? Of course not just major orbs, allow a person to swap all levels of orbs at a 5:1 rate. Would be a great addition without entirely breaking the game I think.

[Jurai]

I hope the bonus battles hit within living memory. AC event took way too long with its bonus battles.

[SuperPanda]

FFII team:

I'm currently running Firion, Leon, Gordon, Leila, and Minwu (all egg'd to their mid 30s) in the early elites of the event. I looked ahead and the only one required for mastery conditions is Firion in ++. I'll likely drop everyone else later on and bring in my "heavy hitters" like Rinoa, Squall, Cloud, Wakka, and Aerith for later content.

XP:

My personal goal for orbfest was to take all my most loved characters up "a tier" (meaning 1-5 levels each) and that's gone very well.

I'm thinking I might be able to change my goal to: already ** peeps to 70 (or better), * peeps with an MC2 to 65, peeps with character relics or upcoming MC2s to 65.

Other peeps that I expect to use alot to 60+ (like Ashe went to 63 and stopped because her MC2 is a loooong way off and those two levels aren't needed now).


Status
80:
75-79: Cloud,
70-74: P.Cecil, Rinoa, Steiner
65-69: Squall, Lenna, D.Cecil, Terra, Wakka, Rydia*, Tellah*, Tifa*, Garnet, Tidus, Balthier*, Fran, Tyro,
60-64: Ashe, Vaan, Aerith, Selphie
55-59: Bartz, Zack, Edge, Gil, Lulu, Lightning,
51-54: Zidane, Penelo, Kain, Faris, Krile, Celes, Setzer, Vivi, Eiko, Auron, Rosa, Edgar, Yuffie, Amarant, Sazh, Arc, Seifer, Snow, Vanille, Hope, Thancred
50: WoL, Maria, Ricard, Josef, Luneth, Reifa, FuSoYa*, Golbez, Exdeath, Locke, Mog, Sabin, Shadow, Cyan, Strago, Barret, Red, Sephiroth, Cid, Reno, Quistis, Zell, Irvine, Laguna, Freya, Beatrix, Yuna, Rikku, Jecht, Fang, Y'Sholta, Cores.
2-49: Cores, Rest of FFII cast, Kimarhi, Edward, Galuf,
1:Cores, Kefka, Quina, Ingus


* Means currently at Level cap w/o MC either because I haven't gotten it yet or it hasn't been released yet.
Bold means I intend to get them up a tier (or more) by the end of orbfest regardless of relic pulls.
I also may adjust goals based on relic pulls but I'm currently only planning to pull on banner 4 and 5 (maybe single pulls or (even less likely) three pulls on the others). I'm even considering skipping Banner 5 to pull on 4 again.

Banner 1: 0 Wabbits. 2 Quest Items, 2 Pleasant Surprises, 2 Acceptable, 2 Display Pieces and 1 Rossetta Stone.
Verdict: Not a bad banner, but not a good one either. The banner is equally balanced between stuff I want and stuff that would disappoint - I try to avoid that whenever possible.

Banner 2: 8 pleasant surprises, 1 Display Piece.
balance on the banner is exactly what I like - a rainbow ball almost certainly means a happy panda - but none of these items are ones I want enough to pull for.

Banner 3: 1 Quest Item, 7 Pleasant surprises, 1 acceptable.
Balance is even better but still unsure I'd want to pull on this banner. This one might get a single or a three pull. 1 and 2 are unlikely to get any.

Banner 4: 2 wabbits, 5 Quest Items, 1 Pleasant surprise, 1 display piece
The one item I don't actually want on this banner would still be my first 5* instrument and therefore not bad.

Banner 5: 1 wabbit, 2 Quest item, 3 pleasant surprise, 1 Acceptable, 2 Rossetta Stones.
I'm pretty much only pulling on this for Sentinel Grimoire (Yes, Gil and Garnet's SSBs would be amazing but not worth the pulls I don't want).


Panda's banner ratings:
Kill da Wabbit: Means I'm likely to chase like an idiot if I don't look at the whole banner.
Quest Item: means this item worth spending mythril for a chance at
Pleasant Surprise: means I wouldn't spend mythril for this but I'd be very pleased to get it.
Acceptable: Means I wouldn't spend mythril for it and I'm not going to be excited for it but I wouldn't feel that I wasted Mythril either.
Display Piece: Means something I'll feel disappointed at having wasted mythril on but could still put to good use.
Rossetta Stone: Means something I'd likely feel upset at having pulled.



Orbs / hones:
I'm 5 MPOs from Full break R2 and I have more than enough POs and GPOs to do it right now with orb conversion. I'll wait till that phase to do it though.

I'm trying to decide between Meteor and Bahamut which have some overlap. The advantages I see are -
Meteor has more uses but damage wise is a stronger Ruinga when Ruinga is just about always more than strong enough already. No buff (that I know of) to Meteor in the future.
Bahamut will have half the uses but is getting buffed to split damage over 2 hits eventually - so will break the damage cap (higher damage density).

If I pull Tellah off the bench and let him warm up his polymorph rod as part of a mage team then Bahamut looks more viable.

Currently I have the orbs to craft and then hone Meteor (so Meteor R2 right away). I'm missing only MSO for Bahamut R2 (haven't looked at Orb conversion - seriously thinking of making me some R4 summons this orbfest).

On 4* abilities - seriously looking at -Jas, Armor Strike, Life Siphon from R2-R4, and many others. Considering honing up the 4* Dancer abilities.


So far my team has usually been: Heavy Hitter + Black Mage + (choose one) Ninja/Theif/Spellblade/Knight + White Mage + Support As such I tend to have abilities like Dismissal, Tempo Flurry, Steal Power, Magic Breakdown, Full Break, Protectga, Renewing Cure, Ruinga, X-Ga, and either Retaliate or X-strike as my default team.
IV: P. Cecil, Rydia, Kain, Tella, Edge (missing support but with so much RS it still works)
V: Gil, Krylie, Bartz, Lenna, Farris
VI: Edgar, Terra, Setzer, Mog, Celes/Locke
VII: Cloud, Tifa, Zack, Arieth, Yuffie - No support and No mage - but it works - often sub Vaan for Yuffie because of synergy)
VIII: Squall, Rinoa, Irvine, Sephie, Seifer
IX: Zidane, Vivi, Steiner, Eiko, Freya
X: Tidus, Lulu, Yuna, Auron, Wakka
XII: Balthier, Ashe, Vaan, Penello, (eventually Basch)

I might start playing around with those set ups more because I'm not utilizing Dancer at all and it looks really good for mutli-enemy bosses.

[T.G. Oskar]

Now that I've got the full assortment from the event, I'm going with Firion, Ricard, Gordon, Minwu, and Maria. Firion and Ricard for DPS, Gordon for Support, Minwu for WHM and Maria for BLM.

I don't want to use Firion, frankly. He sucks hard. He has what is essentially the worst ability selection in the II cast, and he's the main character. A quick comparison:
Firion: Combat 5, Support 3, Celerity 3, BLM 1. So, basically Combat 5.
Leon: Combat 5, Knight 5, BLM 3. And he'll get Darkness 5 as well. So, already better than Firion.
Josef: Combat 5, Monk 5. Fewer categories, but Monk 5 means Kick, Punishing Palm, Piercing Strike, and Exploding Fist. So, basically better than Firion.
Ricard: Combat 4, Dragoon 5, BLM 2. Dragoon 5 gives him Sky Grinder and the closest thing II has to Spellblade, so better than Firion.
Leila: Combat 4, Celerity 5, Thief 5. Pretty much strictly better than Firion.
Gordon, Minwu, and Maria are the only ones who fit their respective roles, so there's no competition there.

I use Firion because he's the main character and because his is one of the few character-specific relics I have. But holy crap, this guy is worthless, even with an MC2 coming down the road.

Jeeze, this cast sucks.

Well, do consider that some characters are done...well, in a bizarre way (to use non-insulting terms).

Take Cyan and Edgar. In their respective games, they fit more the idea of a Samurai/Knight and Machinist/Dragoon, respectively - since the "Support" abilities are gained through Relics, it's pretty obvious that you can't define certain "key" abilities that easily. Sure, Locke definitely falls into the Thief Adventurer class theme, and Sabin is a dead-set for Monk, but people like Cyan and Edgar fit more than a role. That said, Edgar lacks any ranks in Dragoon, and Cyan lacks any ranks in Knight, whereas Edgar has full ranks in Knight, despite being more of a Machinist/Dragoon. Just setting Dragoon 4/5 on Edgar and maybe Knight 3/4 on Cyan would make them a bit more interesting (and maybe boost Edgar up a tier, as Machinist, Dragoon AND Knight make for a pretty interesting skill set, and his SBs are pretty good).

Peretual bottom-tier Kimahri is another. He suffers from the problem of the Red Mage on FFX - once you sorta finish his side of the Sphere Grid, you realize he lacks any other skill, so you have to specialize him in one of the other skillsets (most likely Rikku as her side of the Sphere Grid is empty until she arrives). You may notice that some characters sorta "bleed" into others once the Sphere Grid is complete - Yuna's grid kinda fits neatly into Tidus' one, which is good as he has around 15% of her remaining skill set with Haste/Hastega and the delay skills (in FFRK terms, textbook Celerity), Wakka's grid kinda dovetails nicely into Auron's, and so on. Kimahri, by being smacked in the center of the grid and given so few stat boosts, kinda ends up being a jack of all trades - even his weapon only shares some traits with Auron, so he's a replacement for Auron when he's missing or you need someone else. He has no unique traits other than Lancet being necessary to learn Blue Magic, which is his unique skillset. He suffers from having no Blue Magic spells (as Quistis, Strago and Quina do), but since most of his "Blue Magic" skills are based from Dragoon skills, he fits nicely into Dragoon, so he was given Dragoon abilities...and Black Magic because, well, his Sphere Grid has Ultima locked in. *sigh* Working him differently (exchanging his Black Magic for Celerity 4, and maybe give him Thief 4, while Rikku gets Celerity/Thief maxed out as she already does) would give him some much-needed boost (Steal Power + Sky Grinder suddenly seems like a nice combo) and set him apart from his peers. A stat boost also makes him stand out, but without a skill reconsideration, he'll suffer his fate of being a perpetual bottomer.

Firion...suffers the same fate, as well as DK!Cecil. At least Firion has more skills, but his Celerity rating plummets down, and the cast lacks a true Spellblade specialist - something that Firion could work nicely. That actually makes me dread what they'll do to Guy, of all people - his only claim to fame is "wield an axe, talk to animals". Maybe he ends up being full Support while having a pretty decent Strength? Then again, he may end up being worse than Firion, worse than perpetual bottomer Kimahri, and sharing a spot with fellow wild man Gau...which also starts with the letter G and has 3 letters...

*mind blown*

[danzibr]

It's interesting to read people's progress. Nice!

I plan on not checking my progress until the whole thing is over. Another 15 days or so. I've spent maybe 20 mythril on refills in phase 1, going to do just as much if not more in phase 2, 'dem PO's.

It's cool we get an item upgrade phase. Maybe in the distant future we'll get an egg phase. Probably not since the buffed exp, but hey, you never know.

Oh yeah. Currently leveling my II team. Golbez 'cause Maria's already at 65, then Minwu, Gordon, Ricard, Firion.

[DiscipleofBob]

I was going to wait until after Orbfest was done before posting my results, but I'm making so much progress that I fear I may lose track.

So far...
Balthier, Shadow, Zack, Gordon, and Penelo are 65.
I started working on Zell, Beatrix, and Arc before the II event started. Now Firion gets top priority so I can use his MC2 right away.
Are Minwu and Leila worth leveling? They seem at least slightly more useful than the rest of the II cast. Otherwise after Zell and Beatrix I'm going to get to work on the III cast so they're ready for MC2's in time for their event.
I've also been using the non-Orbrush Event levels to break in some Core characters and get their RMs. Only Samurai so far and now I'm working on Spellblade.

I've actually been avoiding leveling my Black Mages this Orbrush ever since I discovered that both Bladeblitz and Kick could clear any Orbrush level except for the Gigantuar who just eats a Diaga from the resident WHM. So as long as I bring someone capable of using either Bladeblitz or Kick, which leaves very few people on my roster who actually need XP, I can keep farming the Orbrush, and once that ends if I have BMs left over, they can still farm Sundailies (of which Bladeblitz or Kick is not enough to clear them).

[KillianHawkeye]

Well, I hadn't done an 11-relic grab in a while, but I was seriously lacking in FF2 gear. Ended up getting Healing Staff, Dragon Claws, and that Werebuster, as well as a bunch of unremarkable 4-star items from other series. Looks like my good luck came back!

[Simkin]

Well, I hadn't done an 11-relic grab in a while, but I was seriously lacking in FF2 gear. Ended up getting Healing Staff, Dragon Claws, and that Werebuster, as well as a bunch of unremarkable 4-star items from other series. Looks like my good luck came back!

I did an 11-pull as well and came up with Leon's armor. Not what I wanted but I'll take it. Hand of The Emporor is nice to have in my toolbox.

[Jurai]

Brought Firion to 50 for the ++, so that won't be too troublesome. Balthier is at 65, Lightning's at 80, Warrior of Light's on his way to 65, and I'm working on getting Y'shtola (of all people) to 50 for when I get her MC.

Tomorrow, when I get those MC Lodes, Y'shtola, Rinoa, and Pretty Cecil are all going to be level broken. Then Rinoa's leading the charge to 65, followed by Pretty Cecil and Dark Cecil.

[danzibr]

Brought Firion to 50 for the ++, so that won't be too troublesome. Balthier is at 65, Lightning's at 80, Warrior of Light's on his way to 65, and I'm working on getting Y'shtola (of all people) to 50 for when I get her MC.

Tomorrow, when I get those MC Lodes, Y'shtola, Rinoa, and Pretty Cecil are all going to be level broken. Then Rinoa's leading the charge to 65, followed by Pretty Cecil and Dark Cecil.
Balthier's one of the last people on my list to get to 65. For MC2's, anyway.

I was in a similar spot with Y'shtola. Got her to 50 recently.

Tomorrow I'm going to get MC's for Edward, Y'shtola, and Ingus. Haven't leveled Ingus though.

I was also thinking last night, I'm pretty darn close to having decent parties full of 65+'s for every realm. III is my worst. I need to level more Supports, namely Gordon, Edward, Setzer, Irvine, Quina, and Sazh. III still has no 5* Support users. Egad, that's a lot.

PO count: 443 3*, 58 4*, 22 5*

[Jurai]

Pulled Leon's Golden Armor on Banner 1. Working on Orbfest with him and Warrior of Light doing the early stages of Phase 2. Still waiting for Maria's Artemis Bow before I commit to a ridiculous draw.

[Mr.Sandman]

I was sick of having no synergy, so I decided to do a 3 draw. Managed to snag the Will of the Wizard, which is nice because he was one of the few 2 characters I liked.

[SuperPanda]

Got through orb phase 1 with very good drops - didn't count but got lots of stuff including 1 MBO, 1 MDO, and 3 MLO drops.

Finished the II event so far and going to mop up mythril from new phase.

Working on Bartz, Lightning, and Selphie to 65 right now. Selphie is the closest and may get replaced with Areith, Eiko, or Garnet. Bartz is second and I might just go ahead and put Firion there and get him done with though I'd rather bring up Kain, Edgar, Edge and Vaan (three b/c of having relics, Vaan because I actually use him alot).

I'm really eager for the SSB banners to start even though I'm not pulliing on banners 1-3 and I'm hopeful that the rumors I've heard of Lucky Draws are true. (that there will be 3 of them possibly at the end of this week).

[Jurai]

I was sick of having no synergy, so I decided to do a 3 draw. Managed to snag the Will of the Wizard, which is nice because he was one of the few 2 characters I liked.

Congratulations! I'd have loved that pull. Working on Leon, right now, actually.

[Starwulf]

I'm really eager for the SSB banners to start even though I'm not pulliing on banners 1-3 and I'm hopeful that the rumors I've heard of Lucky Draws are true. (that there will be 3 of them possibly at the end of this week).

I'm really hoping that they do have 3 lucky pulls, if they do I will be able to do an 11 pull on every single banner which would be nice. Though I might skip one of them and do two 11 pulls on the last banner in the hope of snagging Sentinel Grimoire. I'm not a fan of Tyro, but if I got SG I'd have a LOT more survivability in fights and probably be able to start handling Ultimates(probably not all of them, but at least some of them).

Edit: Btw, I noticed something very, very odd that I was unaware of before tonight, wondering if anyone else was unaware, or if it was just me. Tyro has a higher level of exp required to hit 50(and as such I would imagine more exp required to hit 65 and 80). Usually it takes 4 Major Growth Eggs, 2 Greater, and then so on and so forth to have a character hit 50, but Tyro took either 5 or 6 Major's, 3 Greater, and then a handful of the others. What's the deal with that?

[Jurai]

I'm really hoping that they do have 3 lucky pulls, if they do I will be able to do an 11 pull on every single banner which would be nice. Though I might skip one of them and do two 11 pulls on the last banner in the hope of snagging Sentinel Grimoire. I'm not a fan of Tyro, but if I got SG I'd have a LOT more survivability in fights and probably be able to start handling Ultimates(probably not all of them, but at least some of them).

Edit: Btw, I noticed something very, very odd that I was unaware of before tonight, wondering if anyone else was unaware, or if it was just me. Tyro has a higher level of exp required to hit 50(and as such I would imagine more exp required to hit 65 and 80). Usually it takes 4 Major Growth Eggs, 2 Greater, and then so on and so forth to have a character hit 50, but Tyro took either 5 or 6 Major's, 3 Greater, and then a handful of the others. What's the deal with that?

I'd still RW a Wall, even if got SG Mastered. There are only 2 SB Materia, and only one Ace Striker sp far. That means that I have to choose between Lifesiphon, Ace Striker, or Mako Might/Teachings.

That's how they balance the Keeper, make it hard to level the little snot.

[danzibr]

Edit: Btw, I noticed something very, very odd that I was unaware of before tonight, wondering if anyone else was unaware, or if it was just me. Tyro has a higher level of exp required to hit 50(and as such I would imagine more exp required to hit 65 and 80). Usually it takes 4 Major Growth Eggs, 2 Greater, and then so on and so forth to have a character hit 50, but Tyro took either 5 or 6 Major's, 3 Greater, and then a handful of the others. What's the deal with that?
The only reason I was aware of that is because I was looking at an exp calculator and it had an option for Tyro and not Tyro >.>

Oooh, and Lucky Pulls. 3. That'd save 75 mythril, damn. What I'm looking forward to most is those empty MC2's. Use 65+ Lulu and Vivi to level a bunch of scrubs from 1 to 50.

[Hunter Noventa]

Ugh, having to stop Orbfesting for FF2 is terrible.

On the plus side, I finally picked up Double Hit. I don't know how much I wasted trying to farm it before this, but there you go.

[danzibr]

Ugh, having to stop Orbfesting for FF2 is terrible.

On the plus side, I finally picked up Double Hit. I don't know how much I wasted trying to farm it before this, but there you go.
Seconded. In fact, having to stop Orbfesting for any reason is terrible. Feels like a waste of stam (but then again, mythril!).

And grats on the RM.

[Chen]

I'd still RW a Wall, even if got SG Mastered. There are only 2 SB Materia, and only one Ace Striker sp far. That means that I have to choose between Lifesiphon, Ace Striker, or Mako Might/Teachings.

That's how they balance the Keeper, make it hard to level the little snot.

I've only needed to use a wall RW once up until now on Ultimates and it was because I couldn't ensure the second cast would be timed right otherwise due to dispel. In all other cases I tend to be able to spam enough heals on Tyro to charge up the SB and re-apply as necessary. For the most part a native wall opens up a bunch of other options so is definitely worth it. Probably the most strategy changing relic you can draw.

[Hunter Noventa]

Seconded. In fact, having to stop Orbfesting for any reason is terrible. Feels like a waste of stam (but then again, mythril!).

And grats on the RM.

Yeah, I'm using some Mythril to get through FF2 asap, just not going to let myself go below 315.

Also, all this FF2 crap...AND NO MC FOR RICARD, THE ONE FF2 CHARACTER I WANT TO LEVEL BREAK.

[Red Fel]

Ugh, having to stop Orbfesting for FF2 is terrible.


Seconded. In fact, having to stop Orbfesting for any reason is terrible. Feels like a waste of stam (but then again, mythril!).

Agreed.


Also, all this FF2 crap...AND NO MC FOR RICARD, THE ONE FF2 CHARACTER I WANT TO LEVEL BREAK.

Well, then, good news - you should have received your MC lodes today! If you don't have Ricard's MC, and can't bring yourself to beat Belias in Tomb of Raithwall 4, you can blow one of your lodes on technically-not-the-worst-Dragoon, Ricard! Heh, phrasing.

As for me, I've managed to grind Firion to 64, and am now working on Minwu, Ingus, and Quistis, and later Edward. Good feeling, good feeling.

Furthermore! Bonus battles don't drop until tomorrow night, and the current phase of Orbfest lasts until Thursday night, so there's plenty of time to grab those POs.

Speaking of POs, keep in mind that newer abilities, particularly 5-star ones, are coming out that do not require MPOs. Abilities such as Sky Grinsder and Thief's Revenge, as well as upcoming abilities like Saint Cross and Dragoon Jump, don't use MPOs - they tend to use MWOs or MLOs. Fortunately, the current phase also drops WOs, so keep that in mind while you farm - there's a lot of competition for MWOs among 5-star abilities. (Quick list: Tornado Strike, Chain Starter, Arise, Saint Cross, Barrage, Full Charge, Thief's Revenge, Mug Time, and Quick Hit, as well as the 4-star Valefor summon.)

Keep in mind also that this Friday is a very big day. Anniversary gifts are expected to drop Friday morning, and Friday evening we're expecting [Nightmare] Ultima and the first SSB banner. So be ready!

[Hunter Noventa]

Well, then, good news - you should have received your MC lodes today! If you don't have Ricard's MC, and can't bring yourself to beat Belias in Tomb of Raithwall 4, you can blow one of your lodes on technically-not-the-worst-Dragoon, Ricard!

Yep, I went ahead and did that, while I probably could beat Belia, i have to get there first and I have a lot of dungeons to slog through first that i'll never reach with all these events going on. Grabbed FuSoYa as well.

Making you use Firion to get his MC2 is cruel and unusual. Guess all those eggs are good for something, that and I'll swap him into my Orbfest party later.

[Slayn82]

Rinoa finally got her MC, yeah. Almost on the dungeon where I can get Vivi's MC too. Those two have waited long enough.

I'm leveling Krile, and I'm impressed by her default SB. Not so much by its -30% power, as for the 25s duration, with id 603 - the same as Power Break and Breakdown. Paired with Eiko, who is also a very sturdy little girl in light armor who can use Summons, you get a decent set up for many boss fights specially, if you don't have relics. This also means instead of using Protectga/Shellga, you use a Summon in Each to burn down the boss.

Meanwhile, Minwu default SB doesn't cast in all Allies, but it is a NAT spell, meaning it works even if you are silenced. And Esuna is very handy to have.

[danzibr]

Keep in mind also that this Friday is a very big day. Anniversary gifts are expected to drop Friday morning, and Friday evening we're expecting [Nightmare] Ultima and the first SSB banner. So be ready!
Any idea how long the Nightmare events last? I'm hoping to get some peeps to 80 before taking on Ultima.

Current party plan: 80 Terra, 80 Rinoa, 80 Tyro, 80 Lulu, 80 Vivi. Ahhhh yeah.

Oh, and also I didn't realize until recently Gilgamesh got Dragoon 4, not Dragoon 5. Blast.

And is it just me, or does Dragoon have the crappiest people? I'm a big fan of Kain, but man...

[Red Fel]

Any idea how long the Nightmare events last? I'm hoping to get some peeps to 80 before taking on Ultima.

The Nightmare events recur. Regularly, in fact. And any bosses you've cleared remain cleared. So even if you can't clear Ultima when the event drops, you'll definitely have another shot at it.


And is it just me, or does Dragoon have the crappiest people? I'm a big fan of Kain, but man...

Well, here's the thing. Let's look at who gets Dragoon. Tyro, Ricard, Kain, Cid, Freya, Kimahri, and Fang get Dragoon 5; Gil and Dragoon get Dragoon 4. Mog's also there, but barely (Dragoon 2).

Ignoring Tyro, because he sacrifices quality for quantity, Dragoon, because he's core and therefore rubbish, and Gil, because he has other niches, what do we have left?
Ricard: Nonexistent ability spread, good weapon selection, excellent armor selection. Adequate stats. Desirable RM. Garbage SB.
Kain: Moderate ability spread, good weapon selection, excellent armor selection. Adequate stats. Sub-par RMs. Garbage SB.
Cid: Excellent ability spread, nonexistent weapon selection, good armor selection. Adequate stats. Desirable RM. Decent SBs.
Freya: Good ability spread, nonexistent weapon selection, excellent armor selection. Adequate stats. Rubbish RM. Decent SBs.
Kimahri: Moderate ability spread, nonexistent weapon selection, excellent armor selection. Adequate stats. Rubbish RM. Desirable relic SB.
Fang: Excellent ability spread, poor weapon selection, good armor selection. Exceptional Atk, otherwise adequate stats. Rubbish RM. Decent SBs.
So, what's our takeaway? Basically, sacrifices. As with most characters, strengths in one area lead to deficiencies in others. (Look for example at the straight-up BLM 5s and WHM 5s, with max casting stats but utterly finite ability and gear selection.) In this case, it seems a general rule that most of them have, at best, so-so SBs, and that they balance their abilities, weapons, and armor. That is, between those three areas, most of them tend to have one rubbish area (e.g. nonexistent weapon selection), one decent area (e.g. good armor selection), and one excellent area (e.g. excellent ability spread).

Kain seems to be an outlier in this respect - he has two reasonably decent areas (ability spread and weapon selection) and one excellent area (armor selection). That said, armor seems to be the name of the game - no Dragoon appears to have poor armor selection. So that's that.

Point is, stat-wise, Dragoons don't tend to shine. With the exception of Fang's top-three rank Atk stat, Dragoons are not as tanky as Knights, as brutal as Samurai or Spellblades, or as quick as Thieves. They're average. And when you're specializing for a role, you don't want average. You want exceptional.

And GILGAMESH.

[Forbiddenwar]

Well I got the following characters to 80:

Tyro
Cloud
Squall
Sephiroth
Rinoa
Terra
Lightning
DK Cecil
P Cecil
Fran
Tidus
Wakka
Lenna
Red
Steiner
Yuna

Working on Garnet and Selphie now. And Zack and Firion.

I think I'm going to do all I can to get Tyro's SG. Having a natural wall for every single ultimate battle would be a serious game changer.

[danzibr]

Well, here's the thing. Let's look at who gets Dragoon. Tyro, Ricard, Kain, Cid, Freya, Kimahri, and Fang get Dragoon 5; Gil and Dragoon get Dragoon 4. Mog's also there, but barely (Dragoon 2).

Ignoring Tyro, because he sacrifices quality for quantity, Dragoon, because he's core and therefore rubbish, and Gil, because he has other niches, what do we have left?
Ricard: Nonexistent ability spread, good weapon selection, excellent armor selection. Adequate stats. Desirable RM. Garbage SB.
Kain: Moderate ability spread, good weapon selection, excellent armor selection. Adequate stats. Sub-par RMs. Garbage SB.
Cid: Excellent ability spread, nonexistent weapon selection, good armor selection. Adequate stats. Desirable RM. Decent SBs.
Freya: Good ability spread, nonexistent weapon selection, excellent armor selection. Adequate stats. Rubbish RM. Decent SBs.
Kimahri: Moderate ability spread, nonexistent weapon selection, excellent armor selection. Adequate stats. Rubbish RM. Desirable relic SB.
Fang: Excellent ability spread, poor weapon selection, good armor selection. Exceptional Atk, otherwise adequate stats. Rubbish RM. Decent SBs.
So, what's our takeaway? Basically, sacrifices. As with most characters, strengths in one area lead to deficiencies in others. (Look for example at the straight-up BLM 5s and WHM 5s, with max casting stats but utterly finite ability and gear selection.) In this case, it seems a general rule that most of them have, at best, so-so SBs, and that they balance their abilities, weapons, and armor. That is, between those three areas, most of them tend to have one rubbish area (e.g. nonexistent weapon selection), one decent area (e.g. good armor selection), and one excellent area (e.g. excellent ability spread).

Kain seems to be an outlier in this respect - he has two reasonably decent areas (ability spread and weapon selection) and one excellent area (armor selection). That said, armor seems to be the name of the game - no Dragoon appears to have poor armor selection. So that's that.

Point is, stat-wise, Dragoons don't tend to shine. With the exception of Fang's top-three rank Atk stat, Dragoons are not as tanky as Knights, as brutal as Samurai or Spellblades, or as quick as Thieves. They're average. And when you're specializing for a role, you don't want average. You want exceptional.

And GILGAMESH.
Well said, well said.

Well I got the following characters to 80:

Tyro
Cloud
Squall
Sephiroth
Rinoa
Terra
Lightning
DK Cecil
P Cecil
Fran
Tidus
Wakka
Lenna
Red
Steiner
Yuna

Working on Garnet and Selphie now.

I think I'm going to do all I can to get Tyro's SG. Having a natural wall for every single ultimate battle would be a serious game changer.
Wow, that's quite a list. For me, I don't have Lightning, DK Cecil, Fran, Red XIII, or Steiner at 80 yet. Nor Garnet. Nor Selphie.

Glad we still have 3.25 phases left. Gotta get 'dem levels.

[Hunter Noventa]

You know, they should give the Dragoon abilities bonus damage when used with a Spear. That would be a little helpful and thematic.

[danzibr]

You know, they should give the Dragoon abilities bonus damage when used with a Spear. That would be a little helpful and thematic.
I had that same thought. I had someone (Tyro?) using Dragoon abilities with a fist weapon. lulz

[Slayn82]

Point is, stat-wise, Dragoons don't tend to shine. With the exception of Fang's top-three rank Atk stat, Dragoons are not as tanky as Knights, as brutal as Samurai or Spellblades, or as quick as Thieves. They're average. And when you're specializing for a role, you don't want average. You want exceptional.

And GILGAMESH.

They are great in battles against AOE happy bosses, specially now that Leeching Leap allows them to self - heal, meaning the Dragoons are the guys your healer probably won't have to worry as much through the fight. If you are giving them only jumps, you can put them on back row for bosses, and add the extra mitigation against physical damage, because all Jumps are Ranged Attacks, so you don't lose damage. Plus, they have good armor.

Beyond avoiding damage, their 3* elemental abilities deal damage on par with 4* spellblades, and I touched on it before, but some Dragoon´s SBs/SSBs have self Buffs that are very valuable, because when the Dragoons are jumping around, they can miss the timing when the healer casts those buffs - Gilgamesh does this with his second SB (Repentance), Kimahri will also get something like it on his SSB.

Cid has Hyper Jump, that hastes him and increases his attack and defense, plus the Machinist abilities that also are Ranged - Meaning you can keep using his Machinist skills and can use Leeching Leap for heals from the back row.

Kain has/will have his SSB, that make following uses of Jumps instant. He sacrifices the time of invulnerability for higher DPS and by keeping with the party, he gets those buffs.

The issue is that, if you are using them at the back row, Skills from Celerity and Combat will lose lots of their damage. But notice that only those Dragoons that have these Skills are considered Good currently. Meaning they are dealing fine with front row, and also they are the ones with better weapon selection. The other Dragoons, can as well use the mitigation, because the best they offer to the party are their Dragoon skills and Breaks.

[Red Fel]

I think my next batch of characters for leveling may well be my ninjas.

I will explain. You know how Nightmare Ultima is coming up? You know how [N] Ultima is straight-up immune to Breaks, and counters physical attacks with instant death? You know how the main mechanic of the combat is dealing enough damage to put him into Phase 2, where the Manasphere appears, then using the Manasphere to indirectly damage Ultima until the Manasphere dies, then to nuke Ultima through Phase 3?

You know how if you manage the damage to Manasphere correctly, you can completely bypass Phase 3?

Have you heard about the Naked Ninjas?

Basically, it works like this. Using certain elements on Manasphere will either:
Cause it to deal massive damage to Ultima
Cause it to deal massive damage to itself, and reduced damage to Ultima
Cause it to heal your party
Do nothing
But here's the thing. Ultima doesn't go into Phase 3 until the Manasphere dies. And Ninja elemental abilities, you may recall, don't deal a lot of damage. Which means that so long as you focus on abilities that cause it to deal massive damage to Ultima or cause it to heal your party, the Manasphere won't die before Ultima does. And if Ultima never goes into Phase 3, he never breaks out the really nasty fireworks.

Ninja spells are those abilities. They're not physical, so they don't trigger Ultima's counter. They're elemental, so they count for Manasphere's purposes. They're weak, so they don't risk killing the Manasphere. And they come in all sorts of exciting varieties.

So, short version? I'm going to start leveling ninjas next.

[danzibr]

So, short version? I'm going to start leveling ninjas next.
I've had this very same thought. I want to get 5 BM's to 80, but I also want to level all my ninja.

One thing, though. I've found their damage is absolutely dreadful without a decent weapon, and it happens I have non ninja weapons. Best would be Tyro with an Enhancer or something.

In other news, I think I just might be able to meet my goals.

EDIT: Looking back at Jurai's numbers from the first page, namely
1,129,108
2,990,307
5,964,907,
this is going to be better than I thought. I have a whole mess of people at or near 1. So far a huge majority of my leveling has been for people 50+. For some reason I thought it was about the same to get someone from 1 to 50 as it was from 50 to 65. But now I see that it's almost 3 times as fast. Wowza.

[Red Fel]

I've had this very same thought. I want to get 5 BM's to 80, but I also want to level all my ninja.

One thing, though. I've found their damage is absolutely dreadful without a decent weapon, and it happens I have non ninja weapons. Best would be Tyro with an Enhancer or something.

Oh, but that's the beauty of it. Against Ultima, you don't want your ninja to be dealing lots of damage. You want dreadful damage. You want their damage to be absolute weaksauce, so that you don't accidentally kill the Manasphere. Let the Manasphere do the hard work of actually killing the boss - let your Ninja just apply trace amounts of elemental damage. Mostly Fire and Lightning.

[Jurai]

Man, fo'git dat malarky. Real men BLOW THINGS UP!

[danzibr]

Oh, but that's the beauty of it. Against Ultima, you don't want your ninja to be dealing lots of damage. You want dreadful damage. You want their damage to be absolute weaksauce, so that you don't accidentally kill the Manasphere. Let the Manasphere do the hard work of actually killing the boss - let your Ninja just apply trace amounts of elemental damage. Mostly Fire and Lightning.
My concern is that with such abysmal magic, they simply won't be dealing enough damage. I mean, my best +mag weapon which Edge can use is a 3+* dagger which gives like 15 magic.

[T.G. Oskar]

Can't believe I have to grind for Sky Grinder. Darn Ark and its funky-smelling muffler Propeller Wind, making me waste my time...

That said, I've been doing Orbfest as well, and so far, I'm at 1 level to cap Terra again (first level 80, yay!), level-broke Steiner for the second time, and at 1 level to level-break Gordon for the first time (thus having two FFII characters at high levels). Freya is also leeching some levels in order to fight against Ark, as I plan to use Wind Jump and Wind Slash on it, while Terra wails with Waterja R3 and provides Armor Breakdown, Balthier steals speed and Blinds the pseudo-airship, and Steiner blows things away with Aerora Strike.

Now - should I go with Garnet and have her set Protectga in case Ark gets to avoid Blind, but delaying the Attack boost until later, or should I get Eiko and thus Rallying Etude? I'm currently with the idea of switching, but if done correctly, Eiko could still stand, use Rallying Etude to buff Steiner's and Freya's damage, and have another character set up Protectga later on the battle. With Blind, I don't need that much mitigation, to be honest - thus, I should have a good multi-hit RW rather than Stoneskin II/Sentinel Grimoire, as my party just with Protectga could handle Ark's attacks anyways.

[Calemyr]

My concern is that with such abysmal magic, they simply won't be dealing enough damage. I mean, my best +mag weapon which Edge can use is a 3+* dagger which gives like 15 magic.

I'm not exactly up on this stuff (bleeding edge is too sharp for me), but the point is that they aren't the ones doing the damage. There's a second enemy on the battlefield (the manasphere) that reacts to getting hit with magic, and the reactions are to your benefit - such as big damage to the boss or healing. The main problem in a normal fight is that your spells do too much damage to the sphere, and it dies before the boss. And when it dies you lose the massive help the sphere was providing and the boss goes into genocide mode to boot.

Ninja, with their pathetic veils, don't do a lot of damage, but it's still elemental and it's still magic. You don't need to be powerful at that point. You just need to be able to weather the bosses attacks and have enough honed veils to just keep peeling them off. Boom, boss dead.

I don't know if the sphere dies with it, if it can be destroyed conventionally, or if you need a third veil handy to wipe it out once the boss bites it, but the key thing here is that the sphere is handy the entire battle and boss doesn't get to use its best moves at all.

[Jurai]

I'm not exactly up on this stuff (bleeding edge is too sharp for me), but the point is that they aren't the ones doing the damage. There's a second enemy on the battlefield (the manasphere) that reacts to getting hit with magic, and the reactions are to your benefit - such as big damage to the boss or healing. The main problem in a normal fight is that your spells do too much damage to the sphere, and it dies before the boss. And when it dies you lose the massive help the sphere was providing and the boss goes into genocide mode to boot.

Ninja, with their pathetic veils, don't do a lot of damage, but it's still elemental and it's still magic. You don't need to be powerful at that point. You just need to be able to weather the bosses attacks and have enough honed veils to just keep peeling them off. Boom, boss dead.

I don't know if the sphere dies with it, if it can be destroyed conventionally, or if you need a third veil handy to wipe it out once the boss bites it, but the key thing here is that the sphere is handy the entire battle and boss doesn't get to use its best moves at all.

Sphere DOES die with Ultima Buster. I watched Keytsang's Naked Ninja Mastery (which is not as NSFW as it sounds. And it sounds so VERY, VERY, VERY NSFW).

[Calemyr]

Sphere DOES die with Ultima Buster. I watched Keytsang's Naked Ninja Mastery (which is not as NSFW as it sounds. And it sounds so VERY, VERY, VERY NSFW).

Heh. Does it look straightforward (assuming your ninjas are decently geared and north of 50)?

[Forbiddenwar]

I watched the video, and he used 3 level 80 ninjas and one 65, plus level 80 tyro.

I didn't really see why you couldn't just use mages with one star element spells. Unless you need to bypass resistance? But I thought you don't need to do high damage.
While you are at it, cast shell and cure on the sphere. Synergy items boost their key stat, so just equip high resistance items with low or no magic.

Ninjas are cool though.

[danzibr]

I'm not exactly up on this stuff (bleeding edge is too sharp for me), but the point is that they aren't the ones doing the damage. There's a second enemy on the battlefield (the manasphere) that reacts to getting hit with magic, and the reactions are to your benefit - such as big damage to the boss or healing. The main problem in a normal fight is that your spells do too much damage to the sphere, and it dies before the boss. And when it dies you lose the massive help the sphere was providing and the boss goes into genocide mode to boot.

Ninja, with their pathetic veils, don't do a lot of damage, but it's still elemental and it's still magic. You don't need to be powerful at that point. You just need to be able to weather the bosses attacks and have enough honed veils to just keep peeling them off. Boom, boss dead.

I don't know if the sphere dies with it, if it can be destroyed conventionally, or if you need a third veil handy to wipe it out once the boss bites it, but the key thing here is that the sphere is handy the entire battle and boss doesn't get to use its best moves at all.
I read that manasphere returns like 10x damage. If you're only doing like 400 damage, that's not good.

[SuperPanda]

I remember the gimmick of ninja magic being that it casts like a celerity ability (fast cast) hits aoe, and bypasses resistance - but gear doesn't help much.

So it should be hitting ultima and sphere followed by sphere hitting ultima again and should deal respectable damage ~ 1000 without too much trouble.

I am planning to get a ninja team ready if my mates can't handle it but will try it mate fighting first.

[Jurai]

I remember the gimmick of ninja magic being that it casts like a celerity ability (fast cast) hits aoe, and bypasses resistance - but gear doesn't help much.

So it should be hitting ultima and sphere followed by sphere hitting ultima again and should deal respectable damage ~ 1000 without too much trouble.

I am planning to get a ninja team ready if my mates can't handle it but will try it mate fighting first.

So am I. When in doubt, do it fair. If you can't, BLOW IT TO SMITHEREENS!

[Red Fel]

Sphere DOES die with Ultima Buster. I watched Keytsang's Naked Ninja Mastery (which is not as NSFW as it sounds. And it sounds so VERY, VERY, VERY NSFW).


Heh. Does it look straightforward (assuming your ninjas are decently geared and north of 50)?

That's why Keytsang did a Naked Ninja Mastery. To demonstrate how the entire combat was based on your use of the mechanic, not your gear or SBs. (Exception: It does presume the use of Carbuncle, as well as Aerith's SSB on a RW.)


I watched the video, and he used 3 level 80 ninjas and one 65, plus level 80 tyro.

I didn't really see why you couldn't just use mages with one star element spells. Unless you need to bypass resistance? But I thought you don't need to do high damage.

Simplest reason? Ability uses and lower damage. Veils are 3-star abilities that deal low damage (due to traditionally low Mag). They also have 2 more uses at each rank than an equivalent-ranked BLM ability.

This is a fight where low hones are lethal. If you hit this guy with anything but magic, the outcome will be bad. Now, there are some RMs that replace your Attack command with magic damage, so in theory that could help in a pinch, but if you're reduced to using attacks, you've lost. So having 4 extra ability uses (one from each of your two NIN abilities) means you have more utility.

This is also a fight where you don't want to kill the target. If you kill the Manasphere, Ultima goes into a berserk fury and repeatedly nukes the party. Unless you have an exceptional party, that's not a fight you're prepared to win. If you don't kill the Manasphere, but merely damage it, it will kill Ultima for you.

Ultima has roughly 190,000 HP. Assuming that using Fire or Lightning abilities deals 10x the damage dealt to Manasphere to Ultima, and that you deal 400 damage with a Veil, that's 4,000 damage per hit. That requires about 48 ability uses. If each character has at least one max-ranked NIN ability (12 uses), you can easily cover that spread with your team. In the Naked Ninja video (link), they're doing 800+ a hit, which means significantly more damage. They repeatedly punch the damage cap.

It's also worth noting that Ninja have access to Phantasm, which we got in a previous event, which deals Non-Elemental magic damage. Meaning that it's safe to use in the Ultima fight and satisfies a medal requirement.

So, that's why Ninja.

[Forbiddenwar]

Elite Leviathan and Ogopogo down. Just 9 more to go.

[SuperPanda]

Lucky draw confirmed and the first one is now out:


5* = 1
4* = 3
3* = 7
Items of note:
5* Lulu's hairpin (Guess whose added to my mage meta).
4* Trident XII (already had one, Vaan's got a new synergy weapon).
3 x 3* Viking Helm III - making it my first 5* helm (well 3++ but previously my best as a 4* V helm.


I've heard this is a much sought after relic even if it wasn't one I was chasing. I wish everyone on the forums better luck than me and will be eagerly watching my next two.

Penelo, Bartz, and Lightning have hit 65 now - working on Penelo, Edge, and Thancred. Lulu will be switching in for Penelo soon.

[Starwulf]

Lucky draw confirmed and the first one is now out:


5* = 1
4* = 3
3* = 7
Items of note:
5* Lulu's hairpin (Guess whose added to my mage meta).
4* Trident XII (already had one, Vaan's got a new synergy weapon).
3 x 3* Viking Helm III - making it my first 5* helm (well 3++ but previously my best as a 4* V helm.


I've heard this is a much sought after relic even if it wasn't one I was chasing. I wish everyone on the forums better luck than me and will be eagerly watching my next two.

Penelo, Bartz, and Lightning have hit 65 now - working on Penelo, Edge, and Thancred. Lulu will be switching in for Penelo soon.

We were quite similar in pull, just one difference. I got 1 5*, 2 4* and 8 3*. Sadly all the 3* were junk I already had maxed out at 5* already and didn't need another copy of. The two 4* were Crystal Armor and Ten Gallon Hat, allowing me to upgrade both to 5*. The 5* was a piece of crap, Reno's wand thingie that does magic lightning damage to all enemies and has a moderate chance of paralyzing them. Should have known >< I guess I'll have to level Reno to 65 now though, that way with his relic he SHOULD have higher mag stat then Terra at 80 when in a VII fight.

Doesn't seem like these Lucky Draws are going to be related to the SSB banners though, just Lucky Draws that have all the pre-existing relics in them with no upped chance of getting anything, whereas the SSB banners have a higher chance at getting one of the featured items of the banner.

Now I'm not sure I'm going to do the Lucky Draws, as if I do, It's going to stop me from being able to pull on all but 2 of the SSB banners(I was going to have just enough for 4, though I was likely going to skip 2 of the banners and do a double pull on the 5th banner in the hopes of getting Tyro's Sentinel Grimoire). I mean, my luck is abysmal 99.99% of the time, so I doubt I'll get anything good out of the lucky draws anyways ><

Edit: Also, congrats on the LuLu Hairpin, I got that as a daily relic pull about a week or so again(my first 5* from the daily pull in nearly a full year of playing). Combined with her Mog Doll it makes her a wrecking ball that also has the ability to up the resistance of everyone in the group, great for magic-centric bosses.

[DiscipleofBob]

I agonized over whether to pull for the Lucky Draw since I have just enough Mythril for all five phases of the SSB fest. Went for it anyway...

Got 3 4* and 8 3*. Only thing worth keeping was a IX dagger that upgrades an existing one to a 6* weapon.

To be fair, I could've gotten a pull that bad on any SSB phase as well. Still sucks though.

[danzibr]

I agonized over whether to pull for the Lucky Draw since I have just enough Mythril for all five phases of the SSB fest. Went for it anyway...

Got 3 4* and 7 3*. Only thing worth keeping was a IX dagger that upgrades an existing one to a 6* weapon.

To be fair, I could've gotten a pull that bad on any SSB phase as well. Still sucks though.
I too got no 5*'s. Drat.

Still, I'll spent 25 per Lucky Draw. Just cut my spending elsewhere.

EDIT: Ya know, isn't it a 12% chance to get a 5*? There's only a 25% chance of getting no 5*'s in an 11-draw. The last 3 of 4 11-draws have been no 5*'s. Seems fishy.

[Hunter Noventa]

Oh, Lucky Draw huh...
3*- Gold Hairpin, Flame Shield, Flame Staff, Falchion
4*- Royal Crown, Crystal Shield, Sledgehammer, Giant's Axe (nice i already had one), Defender, Gladius
5*- Crescent Wish (Selphie's SSB Rod).

Wasn't expecting an SSB, worth the 25 Mythril I guess.

Of course now I'm overloaded on items, I need to figure out which accessories I can get rid of.

[danzibr]

Oh, Lucky Draw huh...
3*- Gold Hairpin, Flame Shield, Flame Staff, Falchion
4*- Royal Crown, Crystal Shield, Sledgehammer, Giant's Axe (nice i already had one), Defender, Gladius
5*- Crescent Wish (Selphie's SSB Rod).

Wasn't expecting an SSB, worth the 25 Mythril I guess.

Of course now I'm overloaded on items, I need to figure out which accessories I can get rid of.
Grats on the SSB relic!

I'm hoping that by the time SSBfest is over, I'll have at least one SSB relic.

Something occurred to me. I recall reading that JP got 3 Lucky Draws. Is it these 3, or did 3 of their SSBfest banners get a Lucky Draw (so our current 3 are just extra)? If the latter, that'd be delightful, 'cause I could still do my original spending plan. If not, I'll probably make 2 less 11-pulls.

[SuperPanda]

Congrats Hunter, that's suppose to be a very nice SSB to have.

Grats-ish on Reno's rod Starwulf.

Also our luck is even more alike that you may have thought. I think I started around the same time as you and I got a 5* on a daily pull last week (first time ever too though I never thought it would happen) - Cyan's (really old) Katana.

So within the last week we got a free 5* which is nice to have but kinda meh compared to what we want - and a Lulu Hairpin.

Bob and Danzibr: I hope that dry spell ends with 5+ rainbow orbs tomorrow (I'll even wish them all SSBs for you guys - may you been burried in good loot).

I'm not an expert - so I'm sure Red Fel will answer with authority, but: I'm pretty sure JP got 3 lucky draws one after another counting down the days to the 1 year anniversary. I think that these are those. They might have been tied to SSB banners too - but I don't think they were.

[DiscipleofBob]

It's probably trying to get players to spend their Mythril now so that when SSB fest happens those players have to spend more real world money on Gems.

[Hunter Noventa]

It's probably trying to get players to spend their Mythril now so that when SSB fest happens those players have to spend more real world money on Gems.

Yeah pretty much. I have enough mythril that it basically means one less 11x during SSBfest and that's about it.

And yeah, medica + Magic Evasion isn't bad at all for an SSB. Moreso for the medica, I'm sure there are cases where the magic evasion is useful, but not nearly as many as a good Medica.

[T.G. Oskar]

I tried 1st Lucky Draw early on, since I haven't been able to catch some Zzz (issues I don't wish to speak about).

Positive: got two 5* relics, which should be good. Also got a bunch of 4* items (more than 3* and 5* combined), which allowed me to get at least 2 items to enhanced 5* and one to enhanced 6* (IV's Dancing Dagger), plus a lot of repeated stuff (one Diamond Mace? When I already have one at enhanced 5*?).

Negative: the two 5* aren't really anything to speak about - Yuna's Magistral Rod (erm...yay, I can do The Sending now...! Except that I don't use Yuna as my main WHM, anyways) and Krile's Magus Rod.

Counter-Positive: Krile's Magus Rod isn't that bad, even at lv. 1. Taken to 20th level, it should be my item of choice when facing Elites. Wind Drake's Roar also interrupts actions, so it can be a life-saver when I need a heal (not so) desperately.

Counter-Negative: It's still kind of a bummer. I mean, I can't ask for Terra's SSB rod or the Bustier (that would be lovely, BTW), but at least an item for a character I use a lot (like Lenna, or Gil, or Steiner, or Pally!Cecil, or Rosa), or a proper Wall/Medica/Boostga for goodness sakes.

There's still two more Lucky Draws and I have at least 158 Mythril in store, which means I can do an 11-pull on the SSB banner that has Terra's rod, and another 11-pull on the FFT banner in hopes of getting a relic for Ramza or Agrias.

[danzibr]

Bob and Danzibr: I hope that dry spell ends with 5+ rainbow orbs tomorrow (I'll even wish them all SSBs for you guys - may you been burried in good loot).

I'm not an expert - so I'm sure Red Fel will answer with authority, but: I'm pretty sure JP got 3 lucky draws one after another counting down the days to the 1 year anniversary. I think that these are those. They might have been tied to SSB banners too - but I don't think they were.
Heh, thanks. And thanks for the info.

Really, overall I consider myself very lucky. It's just the last 4 have been kind of crappy.

Also, why not, I'm sure these numbers exist somewhere, but the probability of getting whatever # of 5*'s on an 11-pull
0: .245
1: .368
2: .251
3: .103
4: .028
5+: tiny

It's probably trying to get players to spend their Mythril now so that when SSB fest happens those players have to spend more real world money on Gems.
Yup, I had the same thought.

In a way, it's a cool countdown. Tuesday Lucky Draw, Wednesday Lucky Draw, Thursday Lucky Draw, Friday SSBfest. Importantly, the Lucky Draws have several SSB relics.

Positive: got two 5* relics, which should be good. Also got a bunch of 4* items (more than 3* and 5* combined), which allowed me to get at least 2 items to enhanced 5* and one to enhanced 6* (IV's Dancing Dagger), plus a lot of repeated stuff (one Diamond Mace? When I already have one at enhanced 5*?).

[...]

There's still two more Lucky Draws and I have at least 158 Mythril in store, which means I can do an 11-pull on the SSB banner that has Terra's rod, and another 11-pull on the FFT banner in hopes of getting a relic for Ramza or Agrias.
Whelps, grats on the 5*'s, though they may not be great.

Me, I'm sitting at 488 mythril. Next 2 days will bring me down to 440 or so. So... if I rein in the stam refreshes, I can still do 9 of them by the end of Orbfest. Need to figure out which banner to only do 1 on.

Hrm, what else? We might be a Lucky Draw in the Ultima event. Poooooooooossibly.

Oh, also. I'm down to a very few BM's for my leveling. 54 FuSoYa, 50 Strago, 54 Quistis, and that's it actually. I also have a 65 Garnet I could use as a Summoner. Beyond that I might bring in good ol' Black Mage and Summoner. Fortunately when we get the empty MC2's I'll have a 65 Lulu and Vivi to get to 80, that'll take a while.

[Hunter Noventa]

In a way, it's a cool countdown. Tuesday Lucky Draw, Wednesday Lucky Draw, Thursday Lucky Draw, Friday SSBfest. Importantly, the Lucky Draws have several SSB relics.


Yeah, here's hoping some of get extra lucky and get what we want from the SSB Fest in the lucky draw, basically. At least I have a little time, since I only want to pull on Phase 3 and 5 of the SSB Fest. Then after FFT it's time to save for the BSSB Fest.

[Red Fel]

Yep, Lucky Draw was... actually kind of lucky. I only got one 5-star, and it was Lenna's Healing Staff - the Royal Devotion SB (revive and fully heal one ally). Not the best SB, but a great Mind-staff.

I also got several 4-stars, and out of the entire batch, almost half of my 3- and 4-stars were duplicates, which meant I could combine a lot of things up to 5-star level, and one thing - Moonring Blade (VI) - up to 6-star. So this was actually a pretty great Lucky Draw.

Doubleplus good when you consider the free 25 mythril we all got today.

Y'know. In case you didn't notice that.

[Slayn82]

Just did the lucky draw with the 25 mythril received. No 5*s, four 4*, two of them repeating from ones I already have 4++, the other two being a XII Trident (now 4+), and a VI Man eater (now 4++, rock on Cyan). 3* weren't useful.

Waiting for stamina to fight Gilgamesh at the Big Bridge for Vivi's MC.

[Hunter Noventa]

Yep, Lucky Draw was... actually kind of lucky. I only got one 5-star, and it was Lenna's Healing Staff - the Royal Devotion SB (revive and fully heal one ally). Not the best SB, but a great Mind-staff.

I also got several 4-stars, and out of the entire batch, almost half of my 3- and 4-stars were duplicates, which meant I could combine a lot of things up to 5-star level, and one thing - Moonring Blade (VI) - up to 6-star. So this was actually a pretty great Lucky Draw.

Doubleplus good when you consider the free 25 mythril we all got today.

Y'know. In case you didn't notice that.

Grats on the combines at least.

And between the free mythril, and my login bonuses and combining an armor at least, I'm back up to 330 mythril. I'll still end up shy of 300 when SSB Fest starts, but I'll live.

[DiscipleofBob]

Something that just came to me, but could the Lucky Draws be even more of a trap?

Pulling on any of the banners gives those banner relics a greater chance to appear. For those of you more knowledgeable about the game's inner mechanics, is it possible that getting a 5* relic on the Lucky Draw is more difficult because while they're guaranteed to be SB relics, they don't get the banner boost to probability of being drawn in the first place?

[Forbiddenwar]

Reno's rod is a great pull. It's been in permanent use since I pulled it because it has the highest magic stat out of all my rods. But then I don't have many magic stat items. I just drown in swords.

Which was my one 5* I got. P Cecil's Mythgraver (3 holy attacks SB). Not bad, especially with a lvl 80 P Cecil. I need to do some SB learning.

Does exp points given in a level correlate to SB learning points?

[SuperPanda]

Something that just came to me, but could the Lucky Draws be even more of a trap?

Pulling on any of the banners gives those banner relics a greater chance to appear. For those of you more knowledgeable about the game's inner mechanics, is it possible that getting a 5* relic on the Lucky Draw is more difficult because while they're guaranteed to be SB relics, they don't get the banner boost to probability of being drawn in the first place?

If you are chasing specific relics then yes, Lucky Draw is a trap. From what I understand all banners have a ~ 12% chance to drop a 5* relic per pull. Within those 12% there are significant boosts to featured relics and near 0 chance to draw anything else (though I'm pretty sure stat-stick and shared SB 5*s are still much more likely than character relics).

Lucky Draw takes that 12% and splits it (more or less evenly) across every single character relic in the "general pool" up to this point. As I understand it that means anything from before the IX event that is a character relic is possible to pull (but every individual relic is very unlikely).

Is it a trap? Well, they gave us 25 myhtril free today - I'd call that the opposite of a trap. Now the next 2 Lucky Draws? well, 1 banner on SSB fest vs 2 lucky draw banners - I'd personally take the two pulls over the one - but then apart from banner 4 there isn't a single SSBfest banner that I really love and I've saved enough to budget for that.

[DiscipleofBob]

Does exp points given in a level correlate to SB learning points?

Yes. Take a new SB relic into a Sundaily or an Orbrush level and it will be mastered in no time at all.

[Calemyr]

Ah, yeah. The Lucky draw was certainly lucky for me. Bunch of random crap, but 4 5* items!
* Golbez's Rune Axe (My second one. How long until Golbie gets his MC2 so I can use him again?)
* Galuf's Kaiser Knuckles (Making 3 Kaiser Knuckles from 3 realms...)
* Fran's Killer Bow (Another MC2 relic? I'll take it!)
* Quistis's Red Scorpion (My first SSB.)

[danzibr]

Ah, yeah. The Lucky draw was certainly lucky for me. Bunch of random crap, but 4 5* items!
* Golbez's Rune Axe (My second one. How long until Golbie gets his MC2 so I can use him again?)
* Galuf's Kaiser Knuckles (Making 3 Kaiser Knuckles from 3 realms...)
* Fran's Killer Bow (Another MC2 relic? I'll take it!)
* Quistis's Red Scorpion (My first SSB.)
Oooooooooooooh 'das nice. Color me jelly. 3 of those are high on my want list. Quistis's Red Scorption is #1 on my want list, I have no 5* bows, and Golbez is one of my favorite BM's. Dayum.

[Red Fel]

In unrelated news, tonight marks the end of the IX event, so try your hand at the Ultimate if you haven't already.

Also, bonus battles in the II event drop tonight. Let's get on with it!
+: Boss Rush. It's a Gigas of Ice and Fire. Victory gets you orbs and eggs.
Fire Gigas. Medals for not getting KO'd and for using Ice. He deals single-target physical damage or AoE magic Fire damage. Mitigate and murder. Tauntaliate works.
Ice Gigas. Medals for not getting KO'd and for using Fire. Second verse, same as the first.
++: Chimera x4. Yay, four bosses at once. Medals for Firion not getting KO'd (anybody else can), for applying Slow or Stop, and for applying Blind. They do single-target physical attacks or AoE magic Fire. Mitigate and murder. Victory gets you Firion's MC2, the Arise ability, and an excuse to never use Firion again (except to get his RM).
+++: Emperor. Medals for using Magic Breakdown, applying Slow, and for winning before he uses Starfall five times. He uses a Slowga which you can break with a Hastega SB. He uses buffs which you can dispel with Banishing Strike. Mitigate his magic damage. Remember that he uses Elixir once after he hits 50% HP. Victory gets you the Thief's Revenge ability.
U: Gigas Triplets. Three at once. Medals for afflicting the Ice Gigas with Slow, hitting the Fire Gigas with Ice damage, and afflicting the Thunder Gigas with Blind. Got all that? In their normal states, they use single-target attacks, but when weakened they also break out AoEs. Their damage output is massive, so plenty of mitigation is a must. For an easier fight, take down Fire and Ice first, as they have less HP and their weaknesses are more easily exploited. Victory gets you the Gigas Armlet, which increases Fire/Ice/Lightning resist in exchange for reducing Water resist, and isn't frankly amazing. But it also gets you MPOs, MBOs, and MHOs, which are pretty decent.
Remember also that we have more than a week left on this event, so putting off the bonus battles until after this phase isn't such a rotten idea.


Ah, yeah. The Lucky draw was certainly lucky for me. Bunch of random crap, but 4 5* items!
* Golbez's Rune Axe (My second one. How long until Golbie gets his MC2 so I can use him again?)
* Galuf's Kaiser Knuckles (Making 3 Kaiser Knuckles from 3 realms...)
* Fran's Killer Bow (Another MC2 relic? I'll take it!)
* Quistis's Red Scorpion (My first SSB.)

Grats! Mighty nice!

[danzibr]

U: Gigas Triplets. Three at once. Medals for afflicting the Ice Gigas with Slow, hitting the Fire Gigas with Ice damage, and afflicting the Thunder Gigas with Blind. Got all that? In their normal states, they use single-target attacks, but when weakened they also break out AoEs. Their damage output is massive, so plenty of mitigation is a must. For an easier fight, take down Fire and Ice first, as they have less HP and their weaknesses are more easily exploited. Victory gets you the Gigas Armlet, which increases Fire/Ice/Lightning resist in exchange for reducing Water resist, and isn't frankly amazing. But it also gets you MPOs, MBOs, and MHOs, which are pretty decent.[/list]
Remember also that we have more than a week left on this event, so putting off the bonus battles until after this phase isn't such a rotten idea.
Ya know, depending on Lucky Draws, I just might try this.

[Hunter Noventa]

++: Chimera x4. Yay, four bosses at once. Medals for Firion not getting KO'd (anybody else can), for applying Slow or Stop, and for applying Blind. They do single-target physical attacks or AoE magic Fire. Mitigate and murder. Victory gets you Firion's MC2, the Arise ability, and an excuse to never use Firion again (except to get his RM).


I had a ton of trouble with the Emperor during the normal run, I won't be toughing that, but this is something to think on.

We have an option for AoE Stop in Halting Rumba at a high chance, We have AoE blind in Yukikaze but at a low chance. I don't see anything for an AoE Slow.

Granted, with all the physical damage, you'll be better off with Tauntaliate and Shellga+Stoneskin 2 than trying to keep blind up, but you need the blind for the medals. Ironically enough, Firion can handle both medals, since he can bring Tempo Flurry and Dark Buster, leaving the rest of your party to focus on actually being effective.

[Slayn82]

Congrats on the pull Calemyr. That's an impressive haul you got there. All these characters really become impressive by the strength of their relics. And Remember that Kain can use Axes, so it's nice to have two for IV synergy.

Edit: yeah, the Emperor is a pain. Went with my A team at the 99 battle, got just Expert. Will redo once the current orbfest phase is over.

Edit 2: well, apparently, at Japan's celebration, there was another 50 mythril, conceded along with of the Celebration Banners. So probably I won't have Mythril for tomorrow lucky draw. If currency wasn't so unfavorable now, I would Whale the lucky draws. Oh, well.

[danzibr]

Congrats on the pull Calemyr. That's an impressive haul you got there. All these characters really become impressive by the strength of their relics. And Remember that Kain can use Axes, so it's nice to have two for IV synergy.

Edit: yeah, the Emperor is a pain. Went with my A team at the 99 battle, got just Expert. Will redo once the current orbfest phase is over.

Edit 2: well, apparently, at Japan's celebration, there was another 50 mythril, conceded along with of the Celebration Banners. So probably I won't have Mythril for tomorrow lucky draw. If currency wasn't so unfavorable now, I would Whale the lucky draws. Oh, well.
As nice as that would be, I suspect we won't get 50 more. But man would that be nice.

And time to do some math. I have 514 mythril. I plan to spent 550 on Lucky Draws and the banners. So I need to scrounge up 36 mythril. Egad, not sure I can do it. From the X event I should get another 10, then the banners end in like 13 days, so another 17ish there. Then... is that it? No other sources of mythril? Oh wait, phases. 5 per phase. Phase 3 starts... tomorrow? Day after? 4 days each. So +5 mythril in 2 days, then in 4 more, then in 4 more. Yeah, should get 15 from there. Holy smokes, I think I can still do it. It'll be close. Need to get 36, should get ~42. Oh wait, that's not too close. I can still do some more stam refills. Phew.

[Jurai]

I got a Kogarasumaru (XII). Yay!

[Red Fel]

As nice as that would be, I suspect we won't get 50 more. But man would that be nice.

And time to do some math. I have 514 mythril. I plan to spent 550 on Lucky Draws and the banners. So I need to scrounge up 36 mythril. Egad, not sure I can do it. From the X event I should get another 10, then the banners end in like 13 days, so another 17ish there. Then... is that it? No other sources of mythril? Oh wait, phases. 5 per phase. Phase 3 starts... tomorrow? Day after? 4 days each. So +5 mythril in 2 days, then in 4 more, then in 4 more. Yeah, should get 15 from there. Holy smokes, I think I can still do it. It'll be close. Need to get 36, should get ~42. Oh wait, that's not too close. I can still do some more stam refills. Phew.

Let me do some math briefly. I have +/- 330. I intend to do one 11-pull on each SSB banner, plus one pull on each remaining Lucky Draw. So that's 5x50 + 2x25 = 300. That leaves me with 30.

FFT is expected to land on April 4th, in roughly 13 days. That's 13 daily mythril, plus one or two daily mythril from the daily that switches up, so let's say 15. Additionally, there will be an intervening X event, so that's another +10 mythril. So that's 30+15+10 = 55. That means that, by the FFT banner, I should have 55 mythril (not counting any mystery gifts), which is enough for an 11-pull on that one. That also leaves me a few mythril wiggle room for stam refresh or a 1-pull on a given banner (unlikely).

Close, but workable. At least until I take into account having to expand my inventory...

[Hunter Noventa]

Let me do some math briefly. I have +/- 330. I intend to do one 11-pull on each SSB banner, plus one pull on each remaining Lucky Draw. So that's 5x50 + 2x25 = 300. That leaves me with 30.

FFT is expected to land on April 4th, in roughly 13 days. That's 13 daily mythril, plus one or two daily mythril from the daily that switches up, so let's say 15. Additionally, there will be an intervening X event, so that's another +10 mythril. So that's 30+15+10 = 55. That means that, by the FFT banner, I should have 55 mythril (not counting any mystery gifts), which is enough for an 11-pull on that one. That also leaves me a few mythril wiggle room for stam refresh or a 1-pull on a given banner (unlikely).

Close, but workable. At least until I take into account having to expand my inventory...

We're matched for Mythril, but I don't plan to hit every SSB Banner, getting the good stuff for FFT is more important tome (it is my absolute favorite) So...2x Lucky Draw, 2x SSB = 100, leaving me with 200 for FFT. And if I get what I want early in FFT, if have leftovers to save for BSSB.

[danzibr]

Let me do some math briefly. I have +/- 330. I intend to do one 11-pull on each SSB banner, plus one pull on each remaining Lucky Draw. So that's 5x50 + 2x25 = 300. That leaves me with 30.

FFT is expected to land on April 4th, in roughly 13 days. That's 13 daily mythril, plus one or two daily mythril from the daily that switches up, so let's say 15. Additionally, there will be an intervening X event, so that's another +10 mythril. So that's 30+15+10 = 55. That means that, by the FFT banner, I should have 55 mythril (not counting any mystery gifts), which is enough for an 11-pull on that one. That also leaves me a few mythril wiggle room for stam refresh or a 1-pull on a given banner (unlikely).

Close, but workable. At least until I take into account having to expand my inventory...
Alright alright. I'm going to do some more math.

3/22: have 515 mythril (I actually have 514 but can get 1 more from the II event)
3/23: +1 from daily login bonus, -25 from Lucky Draw, leaving me with 491
3/24: +1 from daily login bonus, -25 from Lucky Draw, +5 from phase 3, leaving me with 472
3/25: +2 from daily login bonus, -100 from 2x 11-pulls, leaving me with 374
3/26: +1 from daily login bonus, +10 from Yuna event, leaving me with 385
3/27: +1 from daily login bonus, -100 from 2x 11-pulls, leaving me with 286
3/28: +2 from daily login bonus, +5 from phase 4, leaving me with 292
3/29: +1 from daily login bonus, -100 from 2x 11-pulls, leaving me with 191
3/30: +1 from daily login bonus, leaving me with 192
3/31: +2 from daily login bonus, -100 from 2x 11-pulls, leaving me with 94
4/1: +1 from daily login bonus, +5 from phase 5, leaving me with 100
4/2: +1 from daily login bonus, -100 from 2x 11-pulls, leaving me with 1

Phew. Damn, that's close. The dungeon update also hits 4/2, could squeeze out a few mythril there. Looks like no more stam refreshes for the time being. Probably good, been playing too much.

EDIT: Actually, screw it. 50 mythril on stam refreshes is most likely far more valuable than an 11-pull. I'm only spending 50 mythril on banner 2.