Lord of the Kings¶

The Behemoth King is another hunt that can also be found in Trial Mode, specifically at stage 90 in the optional mode. After visiting Balfonheim upon finishing Girvegan, you will be able to use the Strahl to fast travel to certain zones in areas on the map, which is when the Behemoth King hunt will unlock from Montblanc (Riskbreaker rank). You will find him in The Feywood, specifically The Edge of Reason, but he can be a little annoying to spawn. In order for the Behemoth King to appear, you need to kill the Giruveganus in The Edge of Reason, as well as all of the enemies (should be 29 in total) in Ice Field of Clearsight. When you return to Edge of Reason, Behemoth King should spawn where the Giruveganus was located. If not, then you may have to go back to Ice Field of Clearsight to see if any enemies have respawned.

As for the fight against this monstrosity, it can be particularly annoying, as the Behemoth King will be using palings throughout the battle. However, that isn’t until a bit later into the battle, as he will begin by slinging magicks at your party, which include Holy, Firaga, Blizzaga, Thundaga, Darkga and Ardor. Eventually, once he reaches a certain HP threshold, he will activate either the physical paling or the magickal one. If the latter, then the Behemoth King will use physical attacks and White Breath, the latter of which can inflict Stop. If he goes with the physical paling, then he will pelt you with the above magicks.

Once one of the two palings wears off, it will erect the other very quickly, basically cycling between the two throughout the entire battle. This means you need to pay attention as to which paling is up so you can adjust your strategy. To make matters worse, once the Behemoth King gets low on health, it will use Growing Threat to double its level, making it much stronger. The Behemoth King is around level 70 and has quite a lot of HP, so you are in for a long battle. In addition to halving all elemental magicks, it is also not vulnerable to any ailments. This essentially means you will want to use non-elemental magicks on him (Shock is an ideal choice because you are only fighting a single enemy). Don’t forget to dispel the beast when you first begin the fight, as he will spawn with various buffs.

It’s important to note that once you fell the Behemoth King and return to the petitioner, the reward might seem a little underwhelming. However, if you head to Mt. Bur-Omisace after the fact and find the wyrm statue. Since you control only Vaan in towns/cities, unequip his weapon and you should see a prompt for the “wyrm snout” when you get close enough. Strike it and some loot will fall, so pick it up for 500,000 Gil and a Rod of Faith.

Hunter Extraordinaire¶

Yiazmat is one of the toughest challenges in the game and can be found either at Trial Mode stage 98 or by finishing the majority of the other hunts, particularly the Rank VII ones (omitting Shadowseer). In addition to that, you will have to do a few other things, like reach the Knight of the Round clan rank (which will come with doing the Hunts) and defeat another creature known as Hell Wyrm. For more information on where to find that one, look no further than the next trophy. While they fight the same, the Yiazmat in Trial Mode is easier due to having a lot less HP, since the normal one has a whopping 50 million HP, compared to the ~3.7 million HP in Trial Mode.

This fight is no joke and will take a good long while to do, with Yiazmat adopting various strategies at certain HP thresholds. It should be note that he has a small chance of KOing any character with his normal attack, which will become a problem later on when he starts comboing a lot more. In addition to that, Yiazmat also has access to a skill called Death Strike, which it will always perform if his target is out of attacking range, like in the hallways of the colosseum; this skill is a 100% KO, but you can half that with Shell, so it will be important to have it on your party at all times. Otherwise, he will begin using Death Strike when he has around 60% health remaining.

One of the added perks about Yiazmat is that you can leave the arena at any time to regroup, stock up on items again and even save your game. However, it should be noted that he will cast plenty of buffs on himself, including Protect, Bravery, Faith and Regen, so remember to always dispel those when you return. Regen is the most troublesome one, especially if he manages to cast it before you leave, since it will still take effect while you’re gone. Basically, if you need to exit the arena, do it fast before he has a chance to use Regen.

In addition to the above skills/magicks, Yiazmat has a number of other ones in his arsenal. Cyclone is a wind-elemental attack that he will use at set intervals, regardless of HP; it has a chance to inflict Sap. White Breath can inflict Stop, while Stone Breath can inflict Petrify. At some point, Yiazmat will use Growing Threat on himself, making the battle even more hectic, as his damage will increase. When he gets very low on health, he will begin using Reflectga on your party, so you will want to be careful about using specific magicks on yourself, as you don’t want to accidentally reflect Renew and replenish Yiazmat back to full health. As already mentioned, too, his combo rate goes up when low on health, which will be troublesome with the added KO on his normal attacks.

The battle against Yiazmat is that of attrition for the most part, but you can do a few things to make it a lot easier. First of all, he is weak to dark and absorbs holy, while halving all other elements. If you managed to snag a Yagyu Darkblade, then a Shikari will be very useful in the battle, even moreso if they have access to the Black Robes to increase their damage. Physical weapons with a high combo rate are ideal in the battle, especially when paired with a Genji Glove. While Yiazmat ignores evasion, making shields pretty much useless, a Shell Shield could be useful to lessen the chance of Death Strike hitting. Note that Yiazmat is susceptible to Expose, Wither, Shear and Addle, so using them until they no longer work will make the fight a lot easier.

Radiant Savior¶

Hell Wyrm is an optional boss that is not actually a hunt, but it does require a bit of legwork to get to him. Before you can even get started, you need to have finished the Vyraal hunt (Get My Stuff Back), which will reward you with the Dragon Scale item. Once you get this, go to The Northsward zone of Cerobi Steppe and interact with the eastern windmill (Windmill #10) to make the Wyrm Philosopher appear, who will hand over the Age Worn Key in exchange for the Dragon Scale. With this, you are able to open the door leading to Hell Wyrm, but there is one final obstacle in your way. Make the trek back to Sochen Cave Palace, to Destiny’s March, entering the zone from the south via the eastern passage.

Here, enter the first door leading to the diamond-shaped area and go clockwise, through the doors, until you return to the first room, where you’ll get a message that a door opens in the distance. This is the door on the western side of Destiny’s March, which has a small hallway that leads to the door the Age Worn Key unlocks, which houses the Hell Wyrm. As a whole, the Hell Wyrm could be considered a prelude to the fight with Yiazmat, as he has a lot of HP and it will take a decent length of time to finally fell the beast. He halves all elemental damage, except for dark, which he absorbs, and holy, which he is weak against.

Similar to Yiazmat, Hell Wyrm’s normal attack has a very small chance to instantly KO a character. He will usually use the top tier elemental magicks, namely Aquaga, Aeroga, Firaga, Thundaga, Blizzaga and Darkga, with some Stone Breath sprinkled in for good measure, which can of course inflict Petrify. Every time the Hell Wyrm loses five bars of health, he will use Judgment, a holy-elemental attack that has a chance to inflict Stop. At around 30% or so, he will use only Rake, then switch to just Stone Breath at around 20% remaining and finally, settle on Invert and elemental magicks for the last 10%.

Despite some of the Espers being strong, Hell Wyrm has access to something called Breakart Pentagram, which triples damage against said Espers, so it might be wise to avoid them. A character with the breaks (Wither, Addle, Expose and Shear) will work wonders in reducing the damage done to your party, while maximizing the damage against Hell Wyrm. A Knight/Bushi combo will be particularly useful, especially if you managed to snag the Excalibur from The Great Crystal and have some White Robes. Despite halving fire, Hell Wyrm is susceptible to Oil, so you can actually use it against him. Similar to Yiazmat, the Hell Wyrm encountered in Trial Mode (stage 87) has less HP than the main game counterpart.

Fell Angel¶

Ultima is an optional Esper that is found in the bigger section of The Great Crystal, which means you can fight her as soon as you finish with the story events there. Despite Ultima being in Trial Mode (stage 95), you will need to procure all Espers in the main game for the High Summoner trophy, so you will have to fight her in The Great Crystal no matter what. Finding Ultima is certainly part of the hassle, as navigating The Great Crystal can be a big chore, due to the lack of an in-game map and its maze-like structure.

From where you teleport into The Great Crystal from Giruvegan, take the path leading up to the seal for Gate Scorpio, then return to the gate and pass through it, where you can find Way Stone IX to teleport to Way Stone X. Take the only path here up to another Way Stone (XX) and two more sealed gates, both locked by a Sagittarius Gate Stone. Go the only other path you can heading down and keep following it until you reach another switch. Flip it to start a timer of 71 seconds, so hurry back to the two sealed gates and touch Gate I to open it. Use Way Stone XI in the next area to travel to a platform with Way Stone XIII.

Here, take the ascending path to reach another switch, this one for the Gemini Gates. Flip it for another timer (144 seconds), then use the other path here to eventually come to a platform with Gate Gemini I, which isn’t the one you want, so use the path next to it to find your way to Gemini Gate II. You’ll know you’re in the right place, as there should be an Ash Wyrm on the platform right behind it. There will be two ways to go here (ignore the other gate), one up and one down. Down you will go to eventually come to Way Stone XV, which will lead to Way Stone XVI.

Once again, you are faced with multiple paths, two leading up and one more going down. Take the middle way first (up) to another gate switch (Libra), so hit it (72 seconds timer) and return to the previous platform, where you will sprint up the other upward path. You will find Libra Gate I here, so open it and in the next area, look for the upward path to your left from where you entered. There will be yet another gate switch here, this time for the Capricorn Gate. Hit the switch (180 seconds) and return the way you came, all the way back to Way Stone XVI, where you will take the other path to Gate Capricorn I.

There will be a Virgo Gate Stone switch here, as well as Aquarius Gate II. Hit the switch (108 seconds), double back to Way Stone XVI and take the middle path, then go down to your right of where you entered to find Virgo Gate II. The path behind that sealed gate will lead to another fork in the road, both going up. From where you entered, look to your right and use that one to find Way Stone XVII. Teleport with that and take the only path available to come to a platform with a Save Crystal (woo!). The only thing left to reach Ultima now is to take the middle of the three paths to reach her.

Ultima is one of the tougher Esper battles in the game, solely because she will constantly change magick fields throughout the fight. However, the first part of the fight is fairly simple, as Ultima will pretty much just use her normal attack (can inflict Sap) and another called Redemption, which is a holy-elemental attack to one character. If you have White Masks/Sage Rings available for your party, now’s a good time to put them on, as they both absorb holy. The fun starts a little bit into the fight, when Ultima will cast Holyja, which happens either after a set number of attacks or once she reaches 80% health.

As you can guess from the name, Holyja is Ultima’s special attack, similar to all other Espers and their -ja skill. This one comes with Reverse attached to it, which is usually a good thing, as all attacks will heal you, but Ultima has other plans for you. There is a chance that Ultima will use Renew on your characters if they are under Reverse, meaning they will have their health reduced to 1 HP. You will also want to be careful with healing gambits, since that will deal damage to your party and a powerful heal could wipe out your characters when Reversed. If you think that is bad, then you haven’t seen anything yet.

At around 70% HP, the first magick field will take effect, which is the HP draining one, similar to the Cuchulainn fight in Garamsythe Waterway. This doesn’t last too long, as it will switch to a draining field next. After that, it will seal your Attack command, then Magick, Technick, Item and finally, make your ATB gauge charge slower. This entire cycle will keep going throughout the entire battle, so you’ll need to be on your toes to adjust to the changing fields. As her health dips lower, she will begin using Holyja more often, plus she will start using Reflectga and even Curaja on your party members.

You should realize that Ultima will be weak to dark, while absorbing holy, but she also nulls all other elements. She is susceptible to only Blind and using that to your advantage can make the battle a lot easier, especially if you have the Nihopalaoa accessory. Equip that on someone and constantly toss Eye Drops at Ultima, since she will take the time to use Blindna to cure the ailment. As already mentioned, having White Masks/Sage Rings will go a long way in this battle to absorb the holy damage from Holyja. If you have access to Darkga, you can actually turn Ultima using Reflectga on your party back on her, by casting that magick on your party.

Zodiac Knight¶

Zodiark will probably be the last Esper you will get in the game, as gaining access to the hidden area of Henne Mines requires you to have 10 Espers already. Once you do, speak with Geomancer Yugelu in Jahara to unlock the secret area, where you will find Zodiark waiting for you at the end. While you don’t have to navigate a maze like with The Great Crystal and Ultima, the enemies in the secret area of Henne Mines are quite powerful, so you will want to have your party strong enough to face these challenges.

Once you step foot in the room with Zodiark, you won’t be able to leave and considering there is no Save Crystal before him, you will definitely want to be very prepared. Zodiark will always start the battle with Darkja, so it’s best to only have one character out from the beginning. The reason for this is that there is a 50% chance for Darkja to instantly kill you, plus it can also Blind the character. While it is dark-elemental and can be absorbed with the right equipment, there is nothing you can do to stop the KO effect. It’s better to not subject your entire fighting party to something like this.

Outside of that, Zodiark will begin the fight with Reflect, Protect, Shell and Haste. The only problem about dispelling those buffs is that at half health, he will erect a magick paling if Reflect has been dispelled. Otherwise, he won’t use this at all during the battle. Banish Ray is a dark-elemental attack and he won’t use it if you have everyone protected from dark. However, if your party is protected from dark, then he will use Darkja more often, meaning you have to worry about the KO effect of that skill.

Other skills Zodiark has include Scathe, Piercing Graviga, Level 2 Sleep, Level 3 Disable and Level 4 Break. The latter three are ones you should have seen if you’ve already done the second Gilgamesh battle. When his health is lower, he will use Shift to change his elemental weakness, with him being weak to holy at the beginning of the fight, so it’s best to change to non-elemental magicks when this starts to happen. At very low health, not only does Zodiark use Battle Cry to boost his own strength, but he will also put up a physical paling. This paling will be up for the remainder of the fight, since he will just erect it again after it drops.

You have two options for this battle, with the first one being to just brute strength the thing. A Knight/Bushi combo has access to both the Excalibur and White Robes, which is a lethal combination for Zodiark. Combine this with something like the Genji Gloves, low health and Berserk, and you will have a killing machine that might bring Zodiark down quickly enough to avoid stuff like Shift and the physical paling. If you don’t want to deal with the magick paling, then leave Reflect on him and use an Opal Ring to bypass the buff. When Zodiark gets low enough and he has the physical paling up, you can resort to casting Reflect on your party and using Scathe or Scourge on yourself, since they are non-elemental. Just make sure your mage isn’t wearing an Opal Ring if you adopt this strategy. As with Ultima, you can find Zodiark in Trial Mode (stage 97), but since you need all Espers at once for High Summoner, you will need to fight him in the main game anyways.

High Summoner¶

For this trophy, you will need to acquire every single Esper in the game, of which there are 13 of them. You will get some of them during the main story, five in fact, while the rest are considered optional. Every Esper will require you to fight them beforehand, though, so you won’t be getting any by doing nothing. Below is a table listing every single Esper, along with some general directions on how to get them. For detailed instructions, including how to fight them, look at the Espers Locations section.

Story-Related Trophies¶

As the title suggests above, all of the following trophies in the table below will be unlocked as you progress in the main story. There is a very, very small chance that the story trophies might not pop whenever you reach the required condition for them, so be warned that it’s very important to keep multuple saves throughout the game just in case something happens.

Trial Mode Trophies¶

There are two trophies related to Trial Mode, one for completing stage 50 and another for completing stage 100. At a high level, Trial Mode is fairly simple up until around stage 80 or so, although you will want to be careful about a few stages before then. You do have to fight the likes of Ultima and Zodiark in the 90s, but those are the same exact battles as the ones in the main game. Hell Wyrm and Yiazmat have a lot less HP than in the main game, but they are still powerful enemies.

• Stage 17 - Three Mindflayers, who can inflict Stop (equip Power Armlets)
• Stage 42 - Cuchulainn with the same annoying HP drain, so avoid using Bubble
• Stage 49 - Battle with Hashmal, who you can steal a Ribbon from (6% with Thief’s Cuffs)
• Stage 50 - Battle with Famfrit; Can steal the Wyrmhero Blade (6% with Thief’s Cuffs)
• Stage 70 - Battle with Carrot; Can steal a Nihopalaoa
• Stage 86 - Battle with Rikken and other pirates. Use Reverse at the beginning of the battle, then Warp the peons out of the way before doing anything else. Having an Opal Ring on a magick user will be ideal, since they can use Reflectga on themselves
• Stage 89 - Can instantly kill Fafnir with Niho and a Phoenix Down
• Stage 91 - Have to feed the Magick Pot an Elixir before you can do any actual damage

The biggest challenge with Trial Mode will come from Stage 100, where you’ll face off against the five Judges. This fight will not go your way without some preparation, and one of the most important things to not do is have Reverse on any party members. Ghis is potentially the most dangerous, as he can dispel your buffs and also cast ailments on your party. Inflict Disease on him and then take him out first. Drace should be your second target, as she can buff the others and also heal them with Elixirs. Bergan should be the third target, as he will pretty much just attack your party with physical attacks. Gabranth and Zargabaath will use Elixirs on each other should they have low health, meaning you’ll want to incapacitate the latter with something like Sleep, then defeat Gabranth.

One of the easier ways to do this battle will involve the Zeromus Esper, who has access to one of the biggest damage dealers in the game, if set up right. Have the summoner call Zeromus at the beginning of the battle, cast Bubble on him, then equip a Nihopalaoa and toss an Elixir on Zeromus. This will put him at 1 HP, making his Big Bang attack deal some big damage, so immediately use it after tossing the Elixir. This has the potential to instantly kill a few Judges and if you restore your Mist Charges with an Elixir/Ethers/Hi-Ethers, then doing it again will likely finish the fight if you are max level.