Final Fantasy Record Keeper X-2: Gems, Mithril, Salt - In Position!

[Antonok]

Speaking of which, my physical Fire team can’t beat their 5* magicite due to essentially lack of a chain. Now chain’s aren’t mandatory, but Mateus’ savage mode gives him some wild damage reduction or something. Granted I only did like one attempt, can prob get it to work, but that’s later.

Yeah, I haven't been able to find a way to take him down yet either, even with a chain (granted it's Krile's gen1). Under chain, OK BSB, Awakening with EnFire Start + 3 Infusion stacks, AND 2 stacks of imperil, Sora hits for 3500 per hit with the 5 hit fire spellblade against his savage mode. Thinking you'll need either an OSB or the 5* Fire magicite to break it.

Been also attempting Quetz and Behemoth King. Quetz I think I can get since Galuf can use Stone Press to break Savage. Behemoth I feel as if I should be able to beat but only having OK's BSB as a faithga isn't helping things.

[SuperPanda]

For the amount of mythril I spent I'm somewhat salty on the fest - that said, I got some pretty nice things and I've accomplished some impressive feeling milestones during the same pinch. I was tempted to pull once on Banner 5 despite roughly half the banner being things that would make me salty but I've decided against it. I can start saving for future lucky banners.

My Daily's haven't been anywhere as nice as Fels, but I did pull an SSB for Fran, so +10 for her. My Fran has been a big winner this fest, going from having 1 very out dated relic to having an SSB, BSB, and USB - making a strong case for her in XII dungeons.

No real progress to report here.

Plan to try the 4* Holy / Dark magi-cite fights soon ish. I think I've got a better shot at Siren so I plan to tackle her first. Still working on rounding out my existing team, have plenty of Wind, Water and Lightning 4*s that don't yet have a copy at 99 at all. I'm sure I'll need to work on inheriting my Magi-cite as well before 5*s start to fall.

[Red Fel]

Huh.

So, after Fest - and the sudden lack of mythril that tends to follow it - I didn't exactly have a lot to blow on the new III banner. But I allowed myself two 1-pulls, because why not? First pull was nothing. But second pull?

Ingus' new LMR. The one that grants a chance to use a mini Earth-flavored Healing Smite (three Earth/Non hits, heals on ally for 1500) after using KNTs. It's a fairly unique LMR, and pretty nice, actually.

So that's Banner 6, apparently. Neat.

[darkdragoon]

Last day of B5 ended up being busy and I tend to have mixed results anyway. So I'll be concentrating on the select and stumbling through magicite as usual.

[Antonok]

Second 5* Magicite down! Hecatoncheir has fallen in 24s, though I hate this fight with a passion beyond measure.

Spoiler: Party:

Show

Cloud - LS/RQS - USB1/USB2/Glint/LMR - Gathering Storm
Tyro - Wrath/Entrust - GodWall - Mako Might
Zack - LS/Ripping Blast - CSB - Ace Striker
Aerith - Hastega/Curada - USB2 - Dr Mogs
Zidane - Mug Bloodlust/ Dash N Slash - Imperil USB - Scholar's Boon

RW: Raider

Party order is very important on this fight. One of his earliest moves is Blind slots 2 and 4, then if you're not quick enough 1 and 5. He also Confuses slot 3 near the end of the fight.

Outside THAT, this guy spams moves like no tomorrow. He has a move that grants him 3 turns of instant cast, on top of removing Haste, on top of the aforementioned status effects. He may not hit hard, but he hits a lot. To the point it's going to be a huge pain to beat him 3 more times.

Edit: Nevermind. Seems that set up was a pretty consistent clear. Took 2 resets in 3 more clears but farming is done, just need to level it.

[danzibr]

Yeah, I haven't been able to find a way to take him down yet either, even with a chain (granted it's Krile's gen1). Under chain, OK BSB, Awakening with EnFire Start + 3 Infusion stacks, AND 2 stacks of imperil, Sora hits for 3500 per hit with the 5 hit fire spellblade against his savage mode. Thinking you'll need either an OSB or the 5* Fire magicite to break it.

Been also attempting Quetz and Behemoth King. Quetz I think I can get since Galuf can use Stone Press to break Savage. Behemoth I feel as if I should be able to beat but only having OK's BSB as a faithga isn't helping things.

Dang. That’s disheartening.

And yay progress! I too beat Hec. Up to 4 down. I’m certain I can beat a few more without much difficulty.

Also, Zidane AASB is insane. Insaaaaane. Dive him, his LM2 gives trance, 0ct Thief. Spam the 6* Thief Wind ability. Unlimited uses, instant cast under trance, double cast, heals himself. I was able to master the highest difficulty IX Dream, and sub 30 the mid IX Torment, all thanks to Zidane.

[darkdragoon]

Kraken is down after changing things up a bit. I'm not sure how much I can apply to the remaining ones, but it may be worth a shot.

[SuperPanda]

Congrats on Kraken, that fishy foe can be a real nasty piece of work.

On my side, Daily draw blessed me with a rainbow: Leo’s BSB. Not a bad entry but not enough to move him above bench warmer. He did finally graduate to the level 99 club.

More importantly however, Siren has fallen to the Darkening Cloud.

Team: RW: Fabula Raider (ATK/MAG boost - not ideal for reasons you will see).

Healing team (Overkill for the most part but absolutely necessary in at points) Elara and Rosa - same as my Tiamat team.

Support: Tyro, God Wall + Life Siphon/Entrust.

Damage team:
Riku (KH) Full LD. USB 1 (Chase).
Cloud (VII) USB1, BSB (KH), Heavy abilities.

Under Endark (BSB) and USB1’s effect, Cloud could deal ~ 10500 per hit on the Heavy Physical follow up abilities.

The run is very RNG dependent and likely won’t improve until I’ve bested Hades and started improving my Magicite Deck.

Riku’s damage started to fall off towards the end of the fight and I found out that his Chase attack triggers the counter Cure as well (so I’ll want to swap out his chance to double cast RM for a + Much Dark RM on future runs. Also a Dark Sword/Dagger artifact might be a good idea.

Won 3 copies of Siren (2 dropped and 1 for beating her the first time), so that will help when I go up against Hades. Like Siren my early attempts against Siren were less handicapped by Damage output than by unsuccessful mitigation. Even in this run, before I swapped Tyro’s god-wall in to replace Onion Phys USB Siren could blast through the wall RW for 9000 damage to a healer at any point.

Was unsure I’d like the Heavy Combat abilities on Cloud - now I’m fully a believer. If I had a dark Chain I’d be more so. Too bad Cloud’s combat double cast won’t trigger for Heavy abilities.

Planning to put keeper and Cloud in their KH wardrobes for future runs. Might try replacing Rosa with a Dark mage that can cast Dispel, For the most part Elara had the healing covered and her LD is begging for motes with double cast Holy.

Edit:

Went back in swapping out Rosa for Cid Raines and found the clear a lot more comfortable. Also had good RNG.

I’ve now got Riku, Cloud (KH wardrobe), Tyro (KH Wardrobe), Cid Raines, and Elarra as my Siren Clear squad. Got another copy of Siren, so I’ll be able to XP farm that one to 99.

[danzibr]

Nice progress you two!

I’ve been working on magicites as well. And some Torments. Have like half the mid difficulty Torments down. Magicite, slow going. Getting a copy of Hec to 99. Already have 99’s of physical Lightning Water Fire. Think I can do a few more without too much difficulty, but I know a few I’ll really struggle with. Taking it slow.

In other news, nearly everyone is 99. Once I’m done with my current batch, it’s just Dr Mog and the Star Wars duo.

[T.G. Oskar]

Thing to note: the Summer Sun Fun Fest will end in Friday the 12th. The IX event will end up one day later. Therefore, if you want all the Mythril there, you have until Friday or Saturday. (Also, do note that the Summer Focused Relic Draw ends on the 18th, in case you want your free USB relic).

Since I'm looking for those 50 Myth, I've been doing the Odin battles. Done all but the hardest (against Raiden), and had my revenge against Otherworldly Bahamut. See, before, Terra didn't have enough firepower to beat Bahamut, or had enough good healers to deal with Otherworldly Flare Star and Otherworldly Mega Flare. Now? Fire Goddess Terra pretty much obliterated Bahamut, while Catgirl Priestess Y'sh had the capability of using SSII (don't say old Walls aren't useful!) and put her Brave Medica USB to good use.

As for the IX event, I did the main event, but not the Revenge or the MO battles. Should do it between today and tomorrow, at most.

(Oh, and I'm roughly halfway through the required Mythril, without claiming the Daily Mythril; that should add another 15-20 Mythril in the next few days.)

[SuperPanda]

And I thought Siren was an RNG nightmare...

RW: Wall
Magicite: Unicorn
Healers: Larsa Wrath BSB (Astra) + Relm USB (Instant Cast, Stone Skin, Party Instant Cast)

Support: Ramza (Shout BSB), Curalia USB (Radiant Shield + Buffs), BSB (Debuff, Buffs).

Damage: Orlandeu USB1, OSB, BSB1

The fight ran very much down to the wire and I haven’t repeated the process yet but my last 4* Magicite is down. Excited to slam hard into the wall that is 5* Magicite.

[Antonok]

Dang. That’s disheartening.

And yay progress! I too beat Hec. Up to 4 down. I’m certain I can beat a few more without much difficulty.

Also, Zidane AASB is insane. Insaaaaane. Dive him, his LM2 gives trance, 0ct Thief. Spam the 6* Thief Wind ability. Unlimited uses, instant cast under trance, double cast, heals himself. I was able to master the highest difficulty IX Dream, and sub 30 the mid IX Torment, all thanks to Zidane.

Okay so after throwing myself at Mateus, I think I found a way to beat him chainless. I can get him to about 10-15% in 35s or so but can't get enough bars to Aerith to USB at the end. If you have Rosa or Elarra USBs, should be a lot easier.

Spoiler: Party and Set up:

Show

Ignis - Wrath/Armor Breakdown - BSB - Ace Striker
Ramza - Lifesiphon/Entrust - Shout - Dr Mog's
Aerith - Memento of Prayer/Carbuncle - USB2 - Mako Might
Locke - Lifesiphon/Heat Bite - USB2/AOSB - Ace Striker
Sora - Lifesiphon/Inferno Assault - BSB-Awakening - 30% damage RM
RW: Guardian
Magicite:
Main: Mom Bomb

Forewarning: This is a bit tricky to get the timing right.
You can replace Ramza with OK pUSB if you have it, and Elarra or Rosa's Regenga will be MUCH more useful than Aerith here. Could also potentially replace Locke with a Machinist if they can stack up imperil really quickly, and Bartz can replace Sora.

So basic strat is wrath/LS Sora, Locke, and Ignis up to 2 bars each, Aerith opens with Carbuncle>MoP>USB while Ramza uses Shout>RW>LS then goes LS>Entrust to Aerith.

Once Sora/Locke/Ignis has the bars:
Locke: USBx2 > Magicite > Heat Bite spam
Ignis: BSB > CMD2x2 to Sora > Armor BD > then CMD1 spam rotating in Armor BD when Mateus uses Barrier.
Sora: BSB >Awankening > spam Inferno Assault

Sora was juuuuust able to break Savage mode with the first Inferno Assault then he was hitting 18k+ a hit after that.

Hope my suffering helps in some way

[SuperPanda]

Haven't actually tried any 5*s yet, taking inventory before I dip my toe into those fights.

Looking at the "Recommended Relics"

Spoiler

Show

Geosgaeno - Have all but replace Shantoto USB with Awakening.
Famfrit - Have all - I'd likely swap out Orlandeu's OSB for Kain with CSB, BSB, and OSB

Belias - I have Rydia's water BSB and enWater LMR and Strago's Chain (and that's it)
Pheonix - Don't have Bartz USB, do have recomended Bartz BSB, Tidus AOSB, Chain, and USB, and Yuffie USB.

Manticore - Have the Onion USB and Terra OSB (and Enfire LMR) - also have Papalymo OSB/BSB.
Mateus - Don't have Sabin, do have Zell. Don't have Locke or Bartz. Have Auron USB and Balthier Glint, BSB2, OSB.

Typhon - Have Onion and nothing else.
Syldra - Have Laguna's Imperil - none of the other recomended tools. Do have Squall's chase USB and OSB, Ayame's BSB and OSB, and Snow's Buff USB and gen 1 CSB.

Adamantoise - I have Alphi and Onion, also have Ultemecia's Brave USB but have not been impressed yet.
Hectoncheir - Lack Bartz, have a better SB for Zack, Lack Zidane - have a pretty full Cloud (Glint, BSB2, USB1)

Behemoth King - I do have the recomended Rydia BSB, Edge USB0 and Onion BSB. Wonder why the "recomended" SBs are on the light side here...
Quetzalcoatl - I have Bartz's BSB, no USB. No Ignis, have Kelgar's chase USB. Have Orlandu USB.

Madeen - Have Cid Rainse BSB and nothing else.
Lakshmi - Lack recomended Tyro USB, have the other two.

Ark - Have Edward USB, Rem AOSB, Cid Rainse BSB, Hope USB
Deathgaze - Lack Marche but have the others.

Not planning on tackling anyone these tonight - I still have specific 4* Magicite I haven't gotten a copy of to 99 but I feel like I might have the tools for some of these.

The USB select banner isn't enticing enough for the free USB. the new VII banner doesn't push me over either even though its got a number of solid tools on it. Going to go clear out event levels, keep stockpiling the blues and start pushing some mid difficulty Torments. I have a feeling the 6* abilities will be a major help when I start taking on 5* Magicite.

[Antonok]

Haven't actually tried any 5*s yet, taking inventory before I dip my toe into those fights.

Looking at the "Recommended Relics"

Spoiler

Show

Geosgaeno - Have all but replace Shantoto USB with Awakening.
Famfrit - Have all - I'd likely swap out Orlandeu's OSB for Kain with CSB, BSB, and OSB

Belias - I have Rydia's water BSB and enWater LMR and Strago's Chain (and that's it)
Pheonix - Don't have Bartz USB, do have recomended Bartz BSB, Tidus AOSB, Chain, and USB, and Yuffie USB.

Manticore - Have the Onion USB and Terra OSB (and Enfire LMR) - also have Papalymo OSB/BSB.
Mateus - Don't have Sabin, do have Zell. Don't have Locke or Bartz. Have Auron USB and Balthier Glint, BSB2, OSB.

Typhon - Have Onion and nothing else.
Syldra - Have Laguna's Imperil - none of the other recomended tools. Do have Squall's chase USB and OSB, Ayame's BSB and OSB, and Snow's Buff USB and gen 1 CSB.

Adamantoise - I have Alphi and Onion, also have Ultemecia's Brave USB but have not been impressed yet.
Hectoncheir - Lack Bartz, have a better SB for Zack, Lack Zidane - have a pretty full Cloud (Glint, BSB2, USB1)

Behemoth King - I do have the recomended Rydia BSB, Edge USB0 and Onion BSB. Wonder why the "recomended" SBs are on the light side here...
Quetzalcoatl - I have Bartz's BSB, no USB. No Ignis, have Kelgar's chase USB. Have Orlandu USB.

Madeen - Have Cid Rainse BSB and nothing else.
Lakshmi - Lack recomended Tyro USB, have the other two.

Ark - Have Edward USB, Rem AOSB, Cid Rainse BSB, Hope USB
Deathgaze - Lack Marche but have the others.

Not planning on tackling anyone these tonight - I still have specific 4* Magicite I haven't gotten a copy of to 99 but I feel like I might have the tools for some of these.

The USB select banner isn't enticing enough for the free USB. the new VII banner doesn't push me over either even though its got a number of solid tools on it. Going to go clear out event levels, keep stockpiling the blues and start pushing some mid difficulty Torments. I have a feeling the 6* abilities will be a major help when I start taking on 5* Magicite.

In regards to Behemoth King, he actually takes more damage and moves slower in Savage mode so you don't want to break it. A lot of people use a no healer team of Edge USB0, Ingus CSB, Maria BSB, Vivi Trance w/Meltdown, and OK mUSB.

[SuperPanda]

In regards to Behemoth King, he actually takes more damage and moves slower in Savage mode so you don't want to break it. A lot of people use a no healer team of Edge USB0, Ingus CSB, Maria BSB, Vivi Trance w/Meltdown, and OK mUSB.

Huh. I have Onion mUSB, Rydia BSB, Maria BSB, and Edge SSB. I can check my other sources of Last stand because I do not have an Earth Chain. I don't think that will be enough but it is good to know.

[Antonok]

Huh. I have Onion mUSB, Rydia BSB, Maria BSB, and Edge SSB. I can check my other sources of Last stand because I do not have an Earth Chain. I don't think that will be enough but it is good to know.

That could be an issue. Without a chain I'm not sure you could put out enough damage without getting overwhelmed. Could still try it though. We are supposed to get some free Gen0 chains here soon I believe. They're nothing special, 50 hit/20% Element Field but they're better than nothing.

[danzibr]

Okay so after throwing myself at Mateus, I think I found a way to beat him chainless. I can get him to about 10-15% in 35s or so but can't get enough bars to Aerith to USB at the end. If you have Rosa or Elarra USBs, should be a lot easier.

Spoiler: Party and Set up:

Show

Ignis - Wrath/Armor Breakdown - BSB - Ace Striker
Ramza - Lifesiphon/Entrust - Shout - Dr Mog's
Aerith - Memento of Prayer/Carbuncle - USB2 - Mako Might
Locke - Lifesiphon/Heat Bite - USB2/AOSB - Ace Striker
Sora - Lifesiphon/Inferno Assault - BSB-Awakening - 30% damage RM
RW: Guardian
Magicite:
Main: Mom Bomb

Forewarning: This is a bit tricky to get the timing right.
You can replace Ramza with OK pUSB if you have it, and Elarra or Rosa's Regenga will be MUCH more useful than Aerith here. Could also potentially replace Locke with a Machinist if they can stack up imperil really quickly, and Bartz can replace Sora.

So basic strat is wrath/LS Sora, Locke, and Ignis up to 2 bars each, Aerith opens with Carbuncle>MoP>USB while Ramza uses Shout>RW>LS then goes LS>Entrust to Aerith.

Once Sora/Locke/Ignis has the bars:
Locke: USBx2 > Magicite > Heat Bite spam
Ignis: BSB > CMD2x2 to Sora > Armor BD > then CMD1 spam rotating in Armor BD when Mateus uses Barrier.
Sora: BSB >Awankening > spam Inferno Assault

Sora was juuuuust able to break Savage mode with the first Inferno Assault then he was hitting 18k+ a hit after that.

Hope my suffering helps in some way

Nice!

Yeah I’ll give Mateus another go before too long.

I just beat the VII D??? Torment. By golly that was hard. Only Zack was standing at the end. Thought for sure I’d die, but Tiamat came in with an attack. Got 36s though, going to have to beat it again at some point >.>

Probably just completing my 5* magicite decks will be enough. More damage mitigation, more damage. More health. Also 2 of my characters had no 5* dives.

[SuperPanda]

Congrats on the D??? win Danzibr!

I got the mid difficulty (D280) to 94% once and then tried to "improve" my run only to get no where close. Didn't realize I hadn't cleared the D240 sub 30 and so when into that one by mistake and got very excited and then very confused. Actually considering a pull on VII banner 1 as a result. I'm a bit weary of the Angeal relics (as I've nothing for him and don't use him - but then I've been fighting Jenova without dispell for its haste or pro-shell. My VII tech is on the old side and all three of the awakenings are for people I have who are well positioned to do well.

Actually, thinking as I write this, if I swap in Mog's healing option for Realm chain and lead with Areith's Planet Protector instead of using her first SB to heal up - that might make up some of the difference. Wish my VII team had an easy way to slot in Dispell or Banishing Strike. Could also sub Red XIII out for Onion Knight while keeping my healing in tact and then have Onion Life Siphon/Entrust Cloud.

Tifa has here BSB1 and 2 LMR (En-Earth start and Attack buildup) - Her awakening would be a win in many ways.
Zack has BSB1 and his Imperil USB - He's a stable on my physical wind team (team lacks chain)
Vincent has BSB1 and USB1 so he should be scary strong as a fire mage, I've found him disappointing in most contexts. In the torment I swapped him in for my Red XIII (who only has Lunatic High and support skills), saw no meaningful change in mitigation and a nice damage uptick overall (the loss of the hastega on someone other than my Medica hurts though).

Unlikely to actually pull on this banner, will anounce my triumphs/failures if I do. Would be nice to see the upcoming event schedule.

Daily Draw was kind to me today. I got my first Daily Draw rainbow that was a solid upgrade. Celes LMR (chance to Double cast spell blade). Celes is part of my go-to choice for VI teams. The armor is a +holy armor but I've got a few of those, probably won't wind up vaulted but unlikely to see use outside of VI content.

Torment Rubies are sitting at just over 2 new abilities. I'm deliberating on whether or not I want to boost my strongest teams or round out teams.
Top thoughts currently:
Spell Blade Water/Lightning - Almost certainly the smartest choice. Gives Lightning and Water a solid upgrade in offensive damage output and both teams have at least 1 high rank spellblader.
Spell Blade Fire/Earth - More cautious here. My current Fire team isn't running a 6* Spellblader, so this is more of an straight Earth upgrade.
Machinst, Imperil Fire- A more reliable, higher damage, imperil fire Machinst ability. My stacked Balthier + irational love of the leading man says "Yes please." Between his LD, double cast LMR, glint, BSB2, and OSB - he's a fire damaging machine and this looks to make his output more reliable.
Shooter, Water 6* - Again, this is a specific upgrade for Tidus. While Tidus lacks favortism of Balthier, his relic selection is even more impressive. With his AOSB, Chase USB, and Gen 1 CSB - he's the undisputed king of Water. I think this would be enough to sub 30 Marilith,not to mention improve his Chain building.
Witch, Lightning 6* - I'm pretty sure I don't need this. Shantoto isn't capping damage with her Awakening even at full Gen 1 chain against Kraken. I just really like the idea of spamming this into a Magicite or Torment fight with her Tripple Cast LMR kicking in.
Lastly:
Samurai, Ice 6* - Tiamat is still a bear of a fight and Ayame puts out nice numbers - this would help cement her damage output. I know I should be considering the Monk Ice ability as I have Snow's Buff USB and gen 1 CSB - but he just seems so extremely lack luster. These two are on the bottom of my thoughts right now along with the 6* Wind summon. Alphinaud's got his Brave USB which lets him recharge SMN abilties which is amazing and his BSB 1 with Instant cast spam and ether mechanics. These are solidly in the "looks nice, but further down the ranking" at the moment.

[danzibr]

Thanks, SuperPanda!

I nearly pulled on the VII banner because it has 3 awakenings, but my VII team doesn’t need it, nor Earth, nor Fire, nor Wind. So really... no reason to pull.

As for the 6* abilities, I got the Lightning/Water Spellblade ability and have 0 regrets. Super handy. However, in the longer run the Fire/Earth is a waste unless you’re packing 2 Spellblade users. I’d suggest going straight for Fire and Earth individuals.

I also got the Water Sharpshooter ability for Tidus. No regrets.

Can’t speak to the others. I was considering getting the Fire Machinist Imperil ability. Big step up from the 5*. Also considering the Celerity Lightning/Wind. Also considering like any of the Black Magic abilities, Chain Firaja in particular. My mage meta is very weak.

Oh yeah, to heat the VII Torment I brought Tornado Strike on Cloud and a full VII team. With just 1 off realm character you’re looking at a whopping 50% damage penalty. Friggin’ half! Originally I had Tyro with his ultimate slot saver and Enthrusting, but my damage output was too low.

Edit: oh yeah, regarding the 6* abilities you’re looking at, I would encourage you to think more on Snow, especially since you have a USB and CSB. And apparently he gets some *super* good relics before too long. Can’t count on pulling them of course, but worth a thought.

[SuperPanda]

Thanks for the feedback. I'm leading towards StormSpell and Burnt Offering or Lunatic Thunder right now mostly because the crystal type I'm poorest in at the moment is Ice, but those are farmable as well.

I'm going to spend some time attacking the D240 Torments that I haven't beaten (or haven't sub 30d) and trying the d280s that I have, I also have Magicite to level, Elite Dugeons to clear, and more record dungeons to experience. 5* magicite can wait.

I also did pull on the VII banner after going through it and finding maybe 3 relics that I didn't really want and finding myself thinking about everything else "That's actually really nice."

1/11 - Angeal LMR. Its a nice LMR, but on a character who has nothing else. Very disappointed. I should hold the mythril purse strings tighter in the future.

Edit (Update):

The salt is somewhat offset but a set of accomplishments. I've gone back to sub 30 the D240 and then do quite well on the d280 V and XII Torments bringing my Ruby total up 4 transmutable 6*s.

I also beat my first d280 Torment (FFT). No Sub 30 yet - but I've got wiggle room for that. Rapha, Agrias, and Ophelia are lacking their dives. Rapha's dive would be nice because her double cast would work with her BSB command (which serves to back up healing) and Agrias for her Imperil Holy spam and letting me prioritize her OSB over her BSB. I can also hone Orlandeu's Assault saber and Healing Smite a bit more.

V and XII did better than I expected in their D280 fights.

If I can farm up enough rubies to transmute 5 abilities at once I think I'll go with:
Stormspell Strike, Sapphire Bullet, Burnt Offering, Dark Valefor*, and Lunatic Thunder.

*This feels like the smallest upgrade of those above - might swap for the 5 hit Earth Spellblade or the 6* Ice monk - Snows USB is admittedly pretty nice (Hastega/Shellga/+Attack/+def/50%Crit) - its only a shame my Tiamat Clear crew uses god-wall instead of a native attack booster - I don't have a place to put Snow on it).

[Antonok]

So came to the conclusion I'm going to have to put beating any more 5* magicites on the back burner for another 3-4 weeks until I get the remaining level 3 levnses to nab OK's mUSB. His BSB just isn't cutting it, and my only healer that could help is Hilda's USB and she can't juggle 2 bard abilities and USB very well.

Could potentially beat a couple more of the physical magicites but I'm tired of min maxing every little thing trying to break savage mode.


Edit: Hmm. Just 100 gemmed Reno's bUSB... Potential replacement for Shantotto on lightning mage team...

[SuperPanda]

Daily Draw was kind again: Leena glint! Now this is a glint I can get behind - Instant cast, medica, 1 SB bar - Might have to try the V torment D280 again.

In other news I threw myself at some 5* magicites despite not having a Magicite Deck built up for them using my 4* clear teams and ... just no, not yet. I could survive a while against Behemoth King but not do any damage (and I needed a full Medica or Last stand almost every round) - Damage was better against Mateus, Famfrit, and Phoenix - but the incoming damage so completely overwhelmed me that it didn't matter.

Going to focus on all the other stuff I haven't fished yet and slowly work on my 4* Magicites.

In other news, no regrets about grabbing Lunatic Thunder - Triple proc during awakening with EnThunder against Craken for 6*4*19999 damage and a new best clear was a good feeling.

Edit: Also went ahead with getting Burnt Offering, Sapphire Bullet, and Stormspell Strike - no regrets yet and without having the Lightning crystals to hone them. Even just at Rank 1 (and with some lucky double casts) brought my Marilith clear time to sub 30.

Looking through my 4* Magicites, I still need a couple wins against Ixion to get enough copies of Magicite to make 99s and against Siren and Hades as well. After that I'll be needing to do inheritance farming. Might return to 3* magicites for that at first as I should be able to reliably sub 30 all of them while I can so far only Sub 30 Kraken and Marilith. I expect that improved Magicite decks will help me against Torments as well to get more Crystals and rubies for more abilities until I can reliably sub 30 4* fights - and then I'll be ready to poke 5*s again.

[T.G. Oskar]

Well, I managed to make two pulls on the Focused Relic Draw. (Managed to get 100 Mythril right after the pulls on the Banner 3 triple draws, after all.)

The result? Well...

Spoiler: Focused Relic Draw Results!

Show

1st Pull

• Vaan's Orochi! This is his Glint, and it has a very unique combination. As you know, most Glints grant EnElement, Enhanced Infusion for the same element, and 6 hits. This one keeps the same amount of hits, but replaces it with Wind Boost 1 and Imperil Wind. This couples very well with his Wind-based USB, since it increases the damage it deals. Could use EnWind, though.
• Fem!Cloud's Guardian Corps' Cap. This is her LMR, which grants EnLightning. This would be...fine, but I don't use Fem!Cloud at all, so...

2nd Pull

• Ramza's Platinum Armor! This is his LMR2, which grants W-Cast for Knight skills. This is pretty nice, though it'll conflict with his Supporting; it won't work with his Shout v2 (Burst Commands are Support), but it combines pretty well with his USB (which triggers with Holy Knight skills).
• Yuna's Wind Rod. Her USB, and a dupe source of 50 lv. 3 Anima Lenses.

So, as you can see, it's nice new stuff and stuff I'm not entirely happy with. So, what's the prize I claimed for this?

• Paladin!Cecil's Force Shield! If you know very well, this is the fabled Paladin Wall - the biggest source of DEF/RES boost, much like old school Sentinel's Grimoire or Stoneskin II (which are STILL useful). Of course, it's not as amazing as the Godwall, and you may be asking: but, why didn't you choose the Godwall!? (I had a fight with a friend because of it; I recommended him the Godwall, and when I asked him the same thing, he insisted on the Godwall, and then I said "nah, I'll go for the Paladin Wall", and he was furious because that was his choice.) Well, there's one good reason: I have his third USB, which happens to be his Brave USB. This USB heals everyone in the front row, while the Brave USB provides a HUGE amount of HP Stock and Last Stand. Alongside Healing Smite, Paladin!Cecil essentially becomes a healer. Of course, he won't ever exceed a real healer (like, say, his wife Rosa?), but for a front-line team, he's the best choice. Even for Team IV, he's a pretty impressive choice as a healer, and still capable of dealing very solid damage. Of course, it relies on an Entrust bot to have both USBs active at the same time. Considering I also have both of his BSBs (one granting Sentinel, the other EnHoly), Pally!Cecil DEFINITELY needs an Entrust bot. Note that this relic won't be part of the Anima Lens' relic list revision, so the best choice is either this one or Dream Relic Draws, whereas the Godwall will appear a bit more.

I'll see if I face Marilith soon enough, since I have enough 4* Water Magicite to deal with it. With that, I should be able to face Siren (having a Gen 2 Dark chain) and Hades (fortunately I have Larsa fully ready for his attacks, Edward with a Gen 2 Holy chain, and four brutal Knights between Pally!Cecil, Ramza, Marche and Agrias).

[Antonok]

MVP email was posted. The big news? We're getting the first of the Fat Chocobo events that starts handing out the free elemental chains on 8/1. First round is lightning, which should come with a lightning pick up banner of some sort.

We'll also be getting 2 Focused Relic Draws, which may be half priced. First one starts on 7/24 and is a Last Stand focused banner. The other comes next month sometime.

[danzibr]

Oooohhhh 100 gemming Reno’s bUSB was real nice. Specially cuz he gets the free Lightning chain iirc. Plus he’s cool.

Nice progress SuperPanda!

And Oskar, I’m sure Hades will get hosed.

[Antonok]

Oooohhhh 100 gemming Reno’s bUSB was real nice. Specially cuz he gets the free Lightning chain iirc. Plus he’s cool.

Nice progress SuperPanda!

And Oskar, I’m sure Hades will get hosed.

Aye he does. And more importantly, he has 6* Machinist to make use of the imperil skills

Will have to figure out a good combo tho. Have Prompto's CSB but he isn't great on a mage team.

[Red Fel]

MVP email was posted. The big news? We're getting the first of the Fat Chocobo events that starts handing out the free elemental chains on 8/1. First round is lightning, which should come with a lightning pick up banner of some sort.

We'll also be getting 2 Focused Relic Draws, which may be half priced. First one starts on 7/24 and is a Last Stand focused banner. The other comes next month sometime.

On the other hand, before you get too excited over possible banners, keep in mind that Autumn Fest is expected sometime in September - that's in two months. Yes, two months until yet another Fest. As usual, that's expected to include LotRs, LDs, and five banners featuring Awakenings and Chains. So, yeah, spend on the Lightning Pick-Up or Focused Relic if you want, otherwise get ready to save up.

[SuperPanda]

Edit Begins:

With some favorable RNG on my side and some mote, Artifact, and crystal water investments:

Geosgaeno has fallen!

The party:
RW: Wall <- I'm not sure if this is actually doing anything for me but on the off chance I wouldn't survive "Punch" without it I kept it on.

Slot 1: Shantoto.
Slot 2: Garnet
Slot 3: Ashe
Slot 4: Onion Knight
Slot 5: Elara

Spoiler: Load out:

Show

Shantoto, 99. Magica: 37 points in Magic Attack. Crystal Water: +1200 HP, 30 Def, 30 MAG, 20 RES, Full LD. Bonuses from relics: +50 (2 LMR, 3 SB relics).
Weapon: Judgement Staff (+Lighting Artifact, 30/50). Armor: Wizard's Petasos XI (6* mage hat, +Lightning). Accessory: Ultima Slayer 6* +MAG
Abilities: Sudden Thundara R3, Lunatic Thunder R4. LM: Trance LM, Tripple Cast LMR. RM: Much more damage to weakness.
Soul Breaks: Burst (for EnElement), Chain, Awakening.

Attack plan - Tanks first hit, activating Trance and High quick cast for remainder of battle. Builds up one SB use on own, gets fed another from Onion. Burst > Chain > Awakening and then pray for Tripple cast to proc (It did on my win).

Garnet, 99. Magica: 21 Points in Magic Attack. Crystal Water: 0, Full LD + 6* Bard Access. Bonus from Relics: +40 (1 SSB, 2 BSB, 1 USB)
Weapon: Zeus Mace (III) (6* staff), Armor: Kefka's Glove (VI) 6* Accessory: Bracer, Silver Pendant (Moderate Water Resist).
Abilities: Tritoch R4, Mage's Hymn R3. LM: Trance, Summon Boost. RM: Ace Striker.

Attack Plan: Garnet starts off alternating Summons and bard buffs. Once her Ultra is charged she unleashes that for the Summoning recharge and chase as well as the Radiant Lightning Shield. Her second bar fills quickly allowing her to use BSB2 for additional Mag buffing and imperil Lightning. Best yet - her Summon Ramuh (activate summon strike) counts towards her Summon chase/recharge from her Ultra - and is important to keep Elarra alive mid fight.

Ashe, 99. Magica: 31 points in Magic Attack. Crystal Water: 0. Full LD. Bonus from Relics: +10 (USB)
Weapon: Wind Rod (Artifact, + Wind 30/50). Armor: Elarra's Hat (6*+ Hat), Accessory: Ashe's Choker (Moderate Water Resist + Mag)
Abilities: Voltech R3, Chain Thundaga R3. LM: Double Cast Lightning, Lightning Boost. RM: Double Cast BLK.

Attack Plan: Ashe starts off calling the RW and calls Ixion when it is available. Chain builds very fast already and while her damage is valuable, she builds meter very fast already and has the least critical soul break to get going or refresh. Also paused to refresh Wall around 20 seconds. Considered swapping her RM to Gathering Storm to cover her "lost" time from Magicite summoning. Ixion barely did any damage but I'm pretty sure the Water Attack down effect saved my life a few times - and the single target water shield certainly did.

Onion Knight: Magica: 42 points in Physical Attack. Crystal Water: +400 HP, +10 RES, +10 DEF. 4* LD. Bonus from Relics: +30 (USB, USB, OSB).
Weapon: Iridal Staff (XI) (6*+ Staff), Armor: Yuffie's Guise (Minor Water Resist), Accessory: Lucky Dice (minor resist all elements).
Abilities: Swift Bolt R4, Entrust R2. LM: None RM: Mako Might.

Attack Plan: Opens with mUSB and then uses Swift Bolt until 1 full meter ~ 15 Seconds and feeds Shantoto, then charges again for mUSB refresh.

Elarra: 99. Magica: 20 "White" Attack, 10 "White" Defense. Full LD + 6* Bard. Bonus from Relics: +20 (LMR + USB).
Weapon: Prism Rod III (6* Staff), Armor: Healer's Circlet XIV (5*+++ Mind hat), Accessory Brinedeep Shard (Moderate Ice, Dark resist).
Abilities: Ultra Cure R4, Cruada R3. LM: Double Cast White, White Boost. RM: Dr. Mog's Teachings.

Attack Plan: Opens with some light healing, full healing as late as possible and then just prays she can keep everyone up. I can probably improve her performance by adding Protect to cushion against Punch and honing Curada - was running out of casts in some runs.

Main Magicite: 4* Ixion 80/99. Sub Magicite: 4* Garuda 93/99, 4* King Bomb 99 (IL 36/70 + Fire Boon), 3* Shadow Dragon 99 (IL 53/60 + Dark Boon), 3* Bismark 99 (IL 54/60 + Water Boon).

After many failed, but tantalizingly close runs - this team managed a win with a lucky Awakened Quad Cast Lunatic Thunder crossing the finish line at 30.84 Seconds.

I'm not sure this is a team that can do this reliably but I'm thrilled by the result. I've no idea which Magicite I might be able to take on next but, Woo!
Edit Ends.


oooh, fests come more often than I remember it seems.

Might be time to get back into the Elite Dungeon mines and hammer out some more blues. Got some time before the next fest and plenty of mining to do.

Finished Prelude record dungeons - was happily surprised by the prize at the end of the chapter and more so that it appears to actually be a pretty solid item in its own right.

Have been trying to make sure I've got at least 1 copy of all of the 4* Magicites that can get to 99 (painfully short on Arcana but that will resolve itself when I seriously get into inheritance grinding. I don't have a master plan for what boon goes with what magi-cite. I'm feeling that doubling up Elemental Boost / Defense boons is the smart play and for that I'd want second copies of 4* magi-cites at 80 or 99 (depending on when they max out that boon) - That way I've got a more or less generic deck with [Main Magicite - selected by relevant skill] [Sub1 Relevent Elemental and Mag/Phys boosts] [Sub2 Relevant Element defenses] [Sub 3 and 4 Offense or Defense boosts as needed]

Currently need 1 more copies of Hades to have 1 of every 4* Dark magicite at 99 (Hades will max out at 80 and needs one more copy for final level break) but I don't like farming him. Also need a minimum of 4 more runs against Siren (have a Siren at 80/99 currently but no copies yet of the other two).

For 4* farming I've managed so far to sub 30 Ixion, Kraken, and Marilith. I'm still working on catching up on Torments but have now beaten my second D280 (XIV) but did not sub 30 it.

I have set a limit for myself on Artifacts that I will aquire them when I am able to max-level a new one with Rainbow crystals. Almost to that number again and so debating what the next one should be:

+Wind mage item - Alphinaud now has Brave USB, BSB and Dark Valefor to throw around - He already caps against 4* magicite with Tiamat once under a Mage Shout buff - but this might help his multi-hit Brave Command boost damage.
+Lightning Mage item - Shantoto does not need this. Last time I ran Kraken I entrusted her until she could have a high gen 1 chain + EnLightning from BSB + Awakening and she damaged capped a quad cast Lunatic Thunder. This might be needed for the move to 5*
+Ice Physical - I've got a solid sword for Squall and Ayame already caps with OSB - though this might mean she's be closer to capping with Hailstorm and BSB entry.
+Earth Physical - Ixion now falls under 30 with nice RNG but Orlandeu could do much more with a proper + Earth weapon than he does now - also might be useful against 5*.
+Earth Magical - Maria BSB1 is my best earth mage relic, Behemoth king takes almost no damage from me (and I have trouble keeping the party healed through the onslaught). If I were to use lenses to aquire Ingus Earth Radiant Shield BSB + lots of Last Stand + Maria BSB + Rydia BSB - this is the only viable path I'd have without a lucky fest pull in the future.

Follow up:
Lenses - is there a reason to be stingy with these (I have been for the most part so far)?
I've got just over 5000 lvl 2 lenses and am seriously eyeing Ingus's Earth-Radiant Shield BSB and Onion Knight's LMR.

Ingus - I have 0 relics for him. The "best" I've done trying BK 5* was using Alphinaud's NE elemental shield and stacking Last stands as fast as I could (didn't last long anyway).
Onion - I have pUSB and mUSB and his LMR looks amazing, but at 3000 lvl 2 Lenses I want to be sure I'm not suppose to horde these for something.

Have tons of level 1 lens and don't have anything I really want to grab with them. Don't have enough Lvl 3 lenses to feel the temptation yet.

[Antonok]

So the 15 mithril first draw elemental banners were translated. Odd it was before the maintenance but that could mean they drop soon.

I unfortunately just whiffed on the FFX banner last night so be a bit before I can pull on them.

[SuperPanda]

Hmm, Elemental Banners.

On the plus side: Geosgeano is not at level 80/99. Swapping in Protect (though waiting till after the first Punch to ensure Garnet's Trance procs), Dropping Garnet's Bard skills entirely, and swapping Ashe to Gathering Storm along with leveling up my 4* Lightning magicites helped make the run alot more clean and less RNG intensive. I'm within arms reach of getting Geo sub 30, best time, and with limited RNG blessings 30.55.

I tried Phoenix a few times (admittedly with Geo still at 80/80) and I can just about survive its Rage mode for a while but my damage output isn't cracking the code once it gets to phase 3 (or whatever we call the very weak phase). My best attempts actually ran without "support" with a team of Yuffie (USB 40% Medica), Tidus (chase USB, CSB, AOSB), and Barts (Water BSB), Rosa (mBlink, Stock USB), Elarra (Regenga USB) - Rosa's bllink and stock gave Elarra enough room to use the attack boosting bard song for my Boost while Elara's instant cast medica gave Rosa room to wrath.

I'd love a water Radiant Shield for this fight - Garnet's Lightning Shield was great damage and very reliably chain building, against Pheonix is would be awesome.

I'm thinking once Geo is 99 and can inherit skills I'll be ready to try Pheonix again. Not sure if I'll win, but Pheonix feels within reach.

I think I'm understanding the 5* Wheel - the PHYS magicite are useful against MAG magicite while are useful against PHYS magicite.

As such my Mag Lightning team > Phys Water > Mag Fire > Phys Ice > Mag Wind > Phys Earth - This is good because of all of those teams my weakests are Phys Earth and Mag Fire - and I say Weak lightly as I have solid tools for both.

My weak attempts against Famfrit however would be short lived even if successful as:
Phys Lightning > Mag Water (Dead wend) > Phys Fire > Mag Ice (Gen 2 Chain, Edea BSB - maybe) > Phys Wind > Mag Earth (Dead end - so far.)