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

[danzibr]

For those of you doing 5* magicites, what deck/farming guide are you using, if any?

I'm using this: https://www.reddit.com/r/FFRecordKee...nce_guide_and/

Currently only have Phoenix, Famfrit, Hecacthulhu, and Quetz farmed up. Granted it calls for a lotta copies of Phoenix and Famf at 99. I took a stab at Belias last night, hoping to have a better deck to break into Ice, but couldn't quite beat him. The main problem is... I'm hesitating on buying Lunar Leviathan and Chain Waterja. Might as well take the plunge, but man, that's a lotta currency to buy and hone those. Think I also stand a good chance against Dark Phy (chain but no AASB), Holy Phy (AASB but no chain), Fire Mag (AASB but no chain), Wind Mag (chain and off-element AASB). I mean, not that they require chain obviously, just gotta take the time and "effort" to do it.

[darkdragoon]

Isgebind is down. Ended up switching to Noctis as between the fire samurai counter and OSB he could absorb enough attacks for Terra to do her thing.


Don't think I'll hit on all element banners at once but definitely a chance for cheap upgrades and/or lens fodder.

[danzibr]

Isgebind is down. Ended up switching to Noctis as between the fire samurai counter and OSB he could absorb enough attacks for Terra to do her thing.


Don't think I'll hit on all element banners at once but definitely a chance for cheap upgrades and/or lens fodder.

Grats on the victory!

I’ll do the a pull on each, assuming they’re 15 each on the first pull like the realm banners.

[SuperPanda]

For those of you doing 5* magicites, what deck/farming guide are you using, if any?

I'm using this: https://www.reddit.com/r/FFRecordKee...nce_guide_and/

Currently only have Phoenix, Famfrit, Hecacthulhu, and Quetz farmed up. Granted it calls for a lotta copies of Phoenix and Famf at 99. I took a stab at Belias last night, hoping to have a better deck to break into Ice, but couldn't quite beat him. The main problem is... I'm hesitating on buying Lunar Leviathan and Chain Waterja. Might as well take the plunge, but man, that's a lotta currency to buy and hone those. Think I also stand a good chance against Dark Phy (chain but no AASB), Holy Phy (AASB but no chain), Fire Mag (AASB but no chain), Wind Mag (chain and off-element AASB). I mean, not that they require chain obviously, just gotta take the time and "effort" to do it.

Huh, that's an interesting thread - especially as it helps with theory crafting. I can't help you much as I just cracked 5*s and am going to need to really think about my decks.

It looks like there are 20 Magicite ability slots in total (4 on Main, 16 on Sub) so I'm currently thinking that I'll want:

3 Element Boon, 2 Phys/Mag boon, 2 Dampen, 1 each of Spell Ward, Blade Ward, Def Boon*, Res Boon*, 2 Crit Boon, 2 HP Boon, 2 "Surging Power boon, and that would leave 2 slots to be flexible with such as extra Wards, Extra Crits, or Fast Act.

The problem is that means farming Siren and I hate the Siren battle, even more than Hades (still I need to do that anyway as I'm still missing any copies of Seraph, so the problem might resolve itself).

Looking at my Water Physical team and the Magicite I have available to me:
Geo Main [Water+] [Blade Ward] [???] [???] > [Water+] [HP+]
Gizamluke [Fire-] [Res+] [Spell Ward] [Res +] > Damp Fire
Kraken [Water+] [Phys+] [Blade Ward] [???] > [Fast Act]
Marilith [Fire+] [Phys+] [Crit Damage+] [Attack+] > [HP Boon]
Evare [Holy+] [Attack+] [Surging Power] [...] > [Surging Power]

That is alot of 4* farming and even more arcana farming to do - but I think that with a deck like that I could take on Pheonix. Not excited about fighting Siren though - too much RNG up front and not enough firepower to burst her down sub 30.

[Antonok]

Elemental Luckies are up! And according to reports, they include recent fest relics so they're very much up to date. I'm definitely pulling on Dark and Water as I'm still missing chains for them, but that won't be until tomorrow.

[danzibr]

Well, I pulled on all of them except Lightning. Got a couple discos (no chains or awakenings), but mostly 1/11. Bit of a bummer. Least it wasn’t that expensive.

[SuperPanda]

As I'm just dipping my foot into 5* Magicites and haven't cleared any D??? torments yet, I was excited for these Elemental banners.

I pulled on 4 today: Earth, Water, Holy, Ice.


Earth: I've got a good physical team now but really need magical help. Outside of the grand prizes (Awakenings) what I wanted most was: Rydia Brave USB, a Maria upgrade, or Bartz USB1.

Disco/11 - Thancred Brave USB. 6* +Earth dagger - so pretty nice in that regard, Brave command is multi-hit and stat breaking. Should be very nice in Torment but doesn't look that useful for Magicites.

Water: I really need magical help for water. My only noteworth relics are Rydia BSB2 and Strago chain. Of course I was hoping for another bite at Rydia's awakening.

Disco/11 - A whip! Rydia, USB1. Enwater, 10 hit and buffs. I call this a win even though I don't see it really improving my chances against Torment or Magicite.

Holy: Don't know what I wanted here - I've got a good array of relics but also have lots of Holy users I quite like...
Disco/11 - Yuna exUSB. Offensive USB with a recharge finisher and chaser, might be useful in the rare times I use her as an offesive caster (Magic Holy then?) - Not sure how to feel about this.

Ice: My magic team is running rather out dated tech and my physical team doesn't feel up for a 5* challenge yet. High but unspecific hopes:
Rainbow/11 - Squall Glint (EnIce + 2 turns fast cast). Compliments his chase USB and OSB - but not sure I'd use it as an enIce source over his USB. It is a +ice Armor though - effectively doubling my stock of those.


So, 4 relics, no dupes, some new Rainbow Crystals. 1 Relic for a current A-lister. 1 Relic for a Husbando/Waifu. 2 +element relics in elements I'm lacking. A reason to finally break Thancred's level cap.

Torment thoughts
IV - didn't get measurably stronger but can now really soak in magic buffs. Most of cast is physical though, so it is mostly for self-buffing. Probably okay to go ahead an LD Rydia now (2 BSBs, 2 LMR, 1 USB).
VIII - Didn't get measurably stronger but can get its chill on a little faster.
X - This new relic is unlikely to improve torments - my recent access to a 5* X summon on the other hand is.
XIV - Thancred will likely get elevated to the 5th spot now - his brave USB looks promising, rewards me for already having honed Earth Ninja skills, and helps Minfillia lay on the breakdowns letting her have room to get her Last Stand buff up or her Echo BSB rolling.

Elemental thoughts:
Little in here makes a real difference but at least I have to think about my Earth Ninja in the future (Edge w/ USB0, Kelgar with Chase USB, Thancred with Brave USB).

[T.G. Oskar]

Ice: My magic team is running rather out dated tech and my physical team doesn't feel up for a 5* challenge yet. High but unspecific hopes:
Rainbow/11 - Squall Glint (EnIce + 2 turns fast cast). Compliments his chase USB and OSB - but not sure I'd use it as an enIce source over his USB. It is a +ice Armor though - effectively doubling my stock of those.

Note that most Glints grant "Empowered Infusion", which allows you to stack your EnElements. Squall's, IIRC, is no exception.

Sure, what it means is that you'll probably need to work one extra SB Gauge, but when you fire up your USB, what it means is that the EnIce you get from the USB will stack with the one from the Glint, thus empowering your damage. Sure, that won't do much for your Ability uses (such as Snowspell Strike or Freezing Quadstrike), but it'll increase the damage from the Chase; if you have his USB2 (the one that has an iterative Chase that improves the more you use it), it'll end up as a huge attack multiplier. I wouldn't say it's a bad gain.

I mean...compare it to what I got. I pulled on the Ice banner because, while I got a pretty solid Physical (Squall, Ayame, Xezat) and Magical (Rinoa, Ysayle) team set-up, I don't have a Chain for it. Thus, a Chain would be nice. There's also more people that could do nicely with a specific relic (say, Laguna?). That said, there's a few people I don't wanna get anything from (more Noel or Serah stuff, because I can't stomach them), so it's a gamble. The result?

1/11, no Disco, no dupe.

• Seven's Gauntlet! This is her LMR, which works mostly like Balthier's LM2 or Agrias' LM2 - chance of Imperil Ice after using some moves. That said, Seven is mostly focused on Black Magic and Support, so the only sources of Ice she can use are...Black Magic spells. Without any other SBs, there's no real incentive to use her, so...

Compared to this, Squall's Glint relic is actually better. On one hand, it's a source of Imperil Ice on a Magic team, whereas most sources of Imperil Ice I have access to (Xezat, Fran) are Physical, and the better ones (Laguna's Ragnarok Buster) are also Physical. On the other hand, I got nothing else for Seven, therefore i don't have an incentive to raise to lv. 99. At least Squall has his USB in your case, and it works as a power multiplier for the Chaser.

On other topics: won't pull on the Focused Last Stand Draw, since I already got enough relics that grant that (and on healers that I use a lot). Most likely I'll only pull on the Elemental Radiant Shield one, hoping I can get stuff like Seifer's Dark Shield as a power multiplier.

[Antonok]

Water Draw: 2/11 - Both Discos!

Strago OSB - Meh. I have nothing else for him. More +water armor I suppose.
Meia AOSB - Not too bad, I have her BSB/OSB but I don't hardly ever get to use AOSBs in a fight. Still, a +water rod I now don't need to waste an artifact stone on.

Still no chain though so both are basically worthless atm.

[SuperPanda]

Note that most Glints grant "Empowered Infusion", which allows you to stack your EnElements. Squall's, IIRC, is no exception.

Sure, what it means is that you'll probably need to work one extra SB Gauge, but when you fire up your USB, what it means is that the EnIce you get from the USB will stack with the one from the Glint, thus empowering your damage. Sure, that won't do much for your Ability uses (such as Snowspell Strike or Freezing Quadstrike), but it'll increase the damage from the Chase; if you have his USB2 (the one that has an iterative Chase that improves the more you use it), it'll end up as a huge attack multiplier. I wouldn't say it's a bad gain.

That's a pretty good point. I'd been thinking about fighting Tiamat and that Snowspell was already capping damage easily under EnIce normal but I hadn't thought about the chase (and yes, it does appear to be USB2 from the description, I wasn't sure though).

I also pulled on Fire and Wind mostly hoping to luck into Bartz USB1 or similar. Instead I pulled:
Fire 2/11. Irvine BSB dupe, Rubicant BSB.
Wind 1/11. Fang EnWind LMR.

Rubicant is a dud - I mean, he could team with Rydia to form a magic focused IV team but I have much, much better physical options.
Fang - This one is okay - I have her EnWind SSb, BSB and her OSB - this basically puts her on equal footing with Luneth when considering a third physical wind member.

Waffling on pulling on Dark and Lightning. I don't really need any more Lightning and am not sure what else I'd want for Dark.

Been grinding out Dungeons and Magicite for Arcana. Once I've leveled and inherited the deck I have in mind I think I can take out Pheonix and get this 5* wheel moving. I might also be able to take Famfrit once my lightning Magicites are leveled. I can currently sub 30 Ixion, Kraken, and Marilith making them ideal for faming arcana on.

[Red Fel]

Argh... I am so tempted by some of the elemental banners. Especially since they're pretty current, and therefore include (some) Awakenings.

But by the same token, I'm trying so hard to save for Fall Fest.

My current plan is just to wait until Fest, blow what I can, and then see what I have and blow that on LotRs and these elemental draws. They'll be there for awhile, I think.

But damn if it isn't tempting.

[Antonok]

Argh... I am so tempted by some of the elemental banners. Especially since they're pretty current, and therefore include (some) Awakenings.

Very current. Some people seem to have pulled Khimari's AASB from the water draw.

[danzibr]

Very current. Some people seem to have pulled Khimari's AASB from the water draw.

Oh wow.

I’m done saving for fests. My thought is I’ll pull if there’s a banner with 3 awakenings/chains. Like 3 total between them. And provided I “need” them.

Take the VII banner. Had 3 awakenings, but my VII team is rock solid, as are the teams that I would put Tifa, Zack, Vincent on. 0 need to pull.

But you look at the XIII banner around the corner, yeah I could really use that stuff. Going to pull.

[darkdragoon]

Did the 260 for VII with a few minutes remaining, nearly had it the other day but went with a safer RW (good old godwall)


Elementals- FFX is looking better and a +10 for Tifa so far.

Full Throttle-nothing of note from the draw, but picked II.

[SuperPanda]

Woo! Its not pretty (and I can certainly improve my Magicite deck to make it better) but Famfrit has fallen (once - not planning on fighting that again until I've beefed up my 4* magicites, that was too close for comfort).

Didn't master it, finished with only Lightning and TG Cid standing, but I now have 1 copy of Famfrit and the knowledge that I could (if I wanted to punish myself) farm more of them.

Spoiler: The team

Show

Lightning alternated between USB1, BSB2, 5* Spellblade and 5* Celerity. Need to check if I can raise her Spellblade use to 6*.
TG Cid was mostly on Life Siphon > OSB to break rage mode as soon as Famfrit entered it, but he took a break to use Banishing Strike to drop Protect on the run that won.

Kain was mostly running my Gen 1 chain - and made it clear that I need to hone up my Dragoon abilities. He also has BSB1 and OSB, but the BSB only got used once his hones were out to keep him useful.

Onion Knight was an odd duck in this run - but it worked. He ran with pUSB, Magic Breakdown, and Entrust. Also covered refreshing wall at 22 Seconds and summoning Magicite.

Elarra was pretty much what you'd expect, USB1 + Curada + Shellga.

Inhereting up my 4*s and honing some abilities will likely be what makes this a more stable clear. Onion and Kain are the only 2 missing 5* LD right now (Onion because I never use him as pure offense, Kain because I hadn't had a reason till now).

I other news, I'm about 30 Level 3 lenses from getting to select a USB. Top thoughts right now are: Penelo (Physical Rosa, no wrath), Ovelia (Pairs well with Elarra), Bartz (He's on 2 4* magicite teams, likely still there on the 5* and his USB is something I wanted for a while), or Marche (if available, and only because it is so highly recommended).

I'm also strongly considering grabbing Stago BSB (Have his CSB but apart from that all my water magic relics are on Rydia - also the Res ignoring command might be useful against Belias), Ingus BSB (I tried, and I simply cannot crack Behemoth King with my current magic team, Earth radiant shield, even without a chain, would do alot of damage and I could run Ingus as a backup healer), and Onion LMR - Makes his role as a supporter / entruster that much better(also eyed Gogo BSB as I lack water magic and "mimic" might help me extend both healing and 6* attacks). Won't be getting anything from lens shop until after the next event - I'll likely need to farm Ixion for a while to get my team up to where I can comfortably farm Famfrit so that I can go after Pheonix and Belias.

[danzibr]

Grats SuperPanda! I really struggled with Famf.

Still haven’t beaten any others. Just lacking the time, prob won’t be able to for the next couple weeks. I’m feeling confident about starting on Adamantoise and working my way around the magic ring.

[SuperPanda]

Grats SuperPanda! I really struggled with Famf.

Still haven’t beaten any others. Just lacking the time, prob won’t be able to for the next couple weeks. I’m feeling confident about starting on Adamantoise and working my way around the magic ring.

Thanks, and best of luck on Adamantoise.

Famf is a big ole jerk. His late match damage + Silence combo pretty much ensures a do or die rush to the finish line for me. I think Rosa would be able to blink that but I need Elarra's Regenga and fast actions to keep pressure up earlier in the fight (I mean, I haven't actually tried swapping in Rosa, so maybe it would work too).

My Lightning does solid damage from the word go and with Ace Striker is able to ramp up to her USB and Imperil BSBs pretty quickly. TG Cid starts off doing ~ 40k with his OSB and can cap damage with it once the chain is up. I'm thinking that swapping Onion out for Ramza might be smart. I loose the crit boost from Onion pUSB but gain Ramza'a wrath command so that I'm charging SB guages better throughout the fight as Famf only uses Faith twice most runs. Also Ramza USB1 could provide an extra push to damage if I let him build 2 meters instead of feeding someone else.

Those will be things to test once I've further fortified my 4* Lightning Magicites. Where Geo was a 30+ clear with the hope of a sub 30 tantalizingly close, Famf was a 40+ clear with the hope of a second clear about the same as lightning striking twice (and no, not a reference to her double cast LMR).

Edit: PSA in case others didn't know this (probably they did) - Evare's Surging Power boon cannot be inhereted to any magicite. On one side, I now have 2 Evare, on the negative side - I don't plan to field 2 Evare and essentially used wasted a bunch of Arcana. Now I just need to get my Siren to 99 so that I can feed it the extra Holy Boon. (I also need to beat Siren more times as I still haven't got a single copy of Seraph. Eventually I'll feed Evare a Magic Boon 15 so that it slots nicely into either Physical or Magical teams and just leave it at 1 Surging Power.

Currently rethinking my inheretence strategy with this revelation:

I'm going to need a spreadsheet.

[danzibr]

Huh. I field 2 Evrae on all of my teams. Plenty of leftover slots for good stuff.

[SuperPanda]

Huh. I field 2 Evrae on all of my teams. Plenty of leftover slots for good stuff.

I did see that recommended on Reddit. It feels like I'd be fielding 2-4 useless boons depending on if I'm running a magical/physical team, but then I did say I'm still trying to figure out what my actual end-goal with my Magicite decks is. (Holy Boon x2 wouldn't be used on non-holy teams of both sorts, Physical Boon would be useless for Mages).

What boons do you inherit onto your Evrae? Health Boon, Defensive Wards, Speed up, Critical boons, or maybe a Magic Boon so that it fits which ever team you put it on?

I'll think about it and of course, test it out later on.

While he's still a pain, Famf is now 53/80 and got mastered. I know the flow of his fight now but he's still a pain in the rear.

[T.G. Oskar]

Speaking of Magicite? Been doing them slowly, but since I want that juicy Mythril before EoM, and because of the QoL change that allows you to break the level cap of Magicite before they reach Max Level, I took the plunge and went for the Marilith Maliris, aka Ms. Challenge 16 Fiend of Flame, with my Water team. Now, this team has no Chain, but it has Rikku (and her OG RikkUltra) and Bartz, who has his Awakening, so it should be smooth sailing for a sub-30, right?

Did you know that I only got sub-30 ONCE, and that was because of what's essentially a stroke of luck?

Spoiler: Party Compo

Show

Tidus, lv. 99; Blitz Ace, Orlandeau's Cloak, Carnelian Signet; Sapphire Bullet R4 (previously Sapphire Shot R4), Lifesiphon R4; LM2, LM1, Prey on the Weak RM
Bartz, lv. 99; Apocalypse, Grand Helm, Bartz' Earring; Stormspell Strike R4, Engulfing Quadstrike R3; LM2, LMR2; Scholar's Boon RM
Edge, lv. 95; Conformer, Onion Knight's Guise, Shinra Luxe Shampoo; Raging Waters R5, Reflecting Pool R3; LM2, LM1, Ace Striker RM
Rikku, lv. 99; Tidal Knuckles, Keeper's Frock Coat, Locke's Bandanna; Rallying Etude R3, Sapphire Shot R4 (previously Blue Deep R4); LM2, LM1; Dr. Mog's Teachings RM
Arc, lv. 99; Mimic's Rod, Selphie's Bracelet, Aria's Ribbon; Curada R5, Ogopogo R2; LM2, LM1, Battleforged RM
RW: Elarra (Fabula Guardian)
Magicite: Gizamaluke lv. 99 (Fire Res 10, RES 10, Spell Ward 5)/Octomammoth Lv. 99 (+Water 15, MAG 15, HP 5)/Kraken lv. 99 (+Water 15, ATK 15, Blade Ward 5)/Earth Guardian lv. 99(Lightning Res 10, DEF 15, HP 5)/Sylph lv. 99 (Earth Res 10, MND 15, Fast Act 8, MAG 10)

The battle is relatively easy, provided Maliris doesn't go trigger happy with Savage Firaga. Battle starts with Edge using Wall, Rikku using her Ultra, and both Tidus and Bartz trying to build their SB Gauge ASAP. Somewhere in between, Edge uses the Magicite. Tidus goes Glint --> USB, while Bartz goes straight to his Awakening (mostly because his Glint doesn't really do anything for him, because the Ability Boost for Spellblade is redundant with the Awakening).

Now, Maliris can be a pain, but she scarcely uses Physical Attacks (mostly everything is Magic based), so the combination of Arc's SSB Medica and Edge's USB0 (yeah, I snatched that Red Jacket, in case you forgot) keeps me relatively safe. Relatively, of course, because that reduces the potential damage I can do. Edge has his Burst (which grants EnWater), and Arc can use his USB to chase Curadas with Dia Splash, which does negligible damage (seriously, it deals somewhere between 600 to 900 per hit!), but it's basically a freebie source of damage for heals. Rikku proceeds to continue with her USB2, which is Imperil Water, allowing Bartz to break damage cap and deal nearly 11k per hit; since his Awakening grants him Double Cast, that means he does the major amount of damage, followed closely by Tidus with his Chaser.

Now, as you can notice, this is a huge amount of damage I can field on, and to be honest, the first attempt was almost a sub-30. What's the problem, then? For one, Imperil Water comes too little, too late - even with Rikku using Sapphire Shot for a solid amount of damage AND SP Gauge generation, it's nowhere near fast enough to ensure Bartz does maximum damage. Then there's the issue with Edge: even with two sources of +Water, and with a way to gain max hits on Raging Waters, he does roughtly 3.5k per hit, with a nice chance of doublecasting - and with his Last Stand USB0, that means I either go for the safe choice, or risk it and go for his BSB, which appears slightly late. With that, damage increases to a decent 5k per hit, which is nice.

As for the final blow? It's PHY, so PBlink eats it easily. And with Edge using Reflecting Pool, he's set for life: as long as he survives the magical assault, he'll survive the death throes.

Now, there ARE options I can field. For one, there's Rydia: between her USB and her BSB, she can both Imperil Water and go EnWater, but she doesn't generate enough SB Gauge fast enough for both to appear at the same time (and while the RikkUltra has a Faithga, most of her damage really comes from her USB). Then there's Yuffie - she has her Glint, a LMR that grants a chance to generate Mirror Image with NIN skills, her BSB for EnWater, and her AOSB for mondo damage, but that leaves Arc to brave the fiend's Savage Firaga (which, from what I've seen, fires off at certain moments based on HP%): I mean, she's the most likely choice for extra damage, but... And then there's Meia, who ALSO has a USB with a Chaser, plus her OSB for a solid amount of damage, but...same thing as with Rydia, except no Imperil Water. Would it be fair to replace Edge with any of these? I mean, it's not like I can't achieve sub-30, but it's not a certainty like against Ixion, or Kraken, or...well, Isgebind.

Speaking of Isgebind, that leads me to an issue. I got three Awakenings, and I've noticed something unusual. For all his flexibility, Bartz isn't as powerful with his Awakening. Kain needs a LOT of buildup for his, but between his Glint+ and that, he's pretty solid - the problem is, there's very little places where he can show off. (My Team Lightning is predominantly Magic). That leaves Terra, of course, which is the complete opposite - once she fires off her Awakening, she's utterly devastating. As in, she's capable of reaching nearly 20k per hit with little effort. However, that's most likely because I've focused so much on her (nearly all her relics other than her AOSB and her Wind relics), and have Chain Firaja, Lunar Ifrit and the Flame Blade (Fire MAG sword Artifact), that reaching max damage with her is nothing. It's not the same for, say, Bartz, who lacks a source of EnElement other than his BSB, meaning you need four SB Gauges and the right BSB in order to make ends meet. EnElement is a huge boon for Awakening users, particularly if you can gain it through a Glint: with 3 bars, you can go EnElement lv. 2 and eviscerate everyone. That said, it can ALSO be because Terra's Awakening leads her to Trance mode, meaning she gets ALL the stacking benefits PLUS SPD bonus and quickened casting, which is what leads her to be so devastating in terms of damage potential. (That, and having two sources of Chains + Balthier being so brutally efficient at Imperiling). So...for the most part, skill-based Awakenings aren't as efficient as Element-based Awakenings, if only because Element meta is (still) so prevalent.

Anyways: that leaves me with Siren and Hades to work with. Hades will be interesting, since Ramza has Turn 1 Buffing (LMR + MM/DMT = Battle Cry at 0.00.35s; plus, he has his LM2, meaning that boost will probably last the entirety of the battle!), Agrias is brutally efficient as an Imperiler, Marche has his USB, Eddie has both Imperil, Chain AND Bard skillz, and well...as I said, I recently got Paladin Cecil's Wall which can replace Elarra's version of the Wall, AND also provide some secondary healing. Siren, on the other hand...that'll be a challenge, unless I hit the jackpot on the upcoming Focused Radiant Shield Banner and somehow get Seifer's BSB2, for Dark Radiant Shield. Still: I'll build up my Fire Magicite before attempting any of the two.

Oh, and...attempted the Wind Elemental Draw. 1/11, ONE DISCO, and no dupes! Will it be a Chain? I definitely need a Wind Chain...

• Bartz' Zwill Crossblade! This is his USB2. Unlike his USB1, which is a Chaser, this one is a Finisher. It hits all 4 elements Bartz focuses upon (Fire, Water, Wind, Earth), and grants a huge boost to Spellblade abilities on an iterative scale (the more you use Spellblade, the higher the damage gets). The Finisher, like most others, breaks damage cap, so it's a solid one. That said - I got his Awakening, which is a more solid amount of damage overall.

[danzibr]

I put fast act and health boon on my Evrae.

[SuperPanda]

I put fast act and health boon on my Evrae.

Thanks, That sounds like it could work for my needs too. I might not run both most/every fight, but since I already have 2 it makes sense. Still need so much more Arcana.

Speaking of Magicite? Been doing them slowly, but since I want that juicy Mythril before EoM, and because of the QoL change that allows you to break the level cap of Magicite before they reach Max Level, I took the plunge and went for the Marilith Maliris, aka Ms. Challenge 16 Fiend of Flame, with my Water team. Now, this team has no Chain, but it has Rikku (and her OG RikkUltra) and Bartz, who has his Awakening, so it should be smooth sailing for a sub-30, right?

Did you know that I only got sub-30 ONCE, and that was because of what's essentially a stroke of luck?

Spoiler: Party Compo

Show

Tidus, lv. 99; Blitz Ace, Orlandeau's Cloak, Carnelian Signet; Sapphire Bullet R4 (previously Sapphire Shot R4), Lifesiphon R4; LM2, LM1, Prey on the Weak RM
Bartz, lv. 99; Apocalypse, Grand Helm, Bartz' Earring; Stormspell Strike R4, Engulfing Quadstrike R3; LM2, LMR2; Scholar's Boon RM
Edge, lv. 95; Conformer, Onion Knight's Guise, Shinra Luxe Shampoo; Raging Waters R5, Reflecting Pool R3; LM2, LM1, Ace Striker RM
Rikku, lv. 99; Tidal Knuckles, Keeper's Frock Coat, Locke's Bandanna; Rallying Etude R3, Sapphire Shot R4 (previously Blue Deep R4); LM2, LM1; Dr. Mog's Teachings RM
Arc, lv. 99; Mimic's Rod, Selphie's Bracelet, Aria's Ribbon; Curada R5, Ogopogo R2; LM2, LM1, Battleforged RM
RW: Elarra (Fabula Guardian)
Magicite: Gizamaluke lv. 99 (Fire Res 10, RES 10, Spell Ward 5)/Octomammoth Lv. 99 (+Water 15, MAG 15, HP 5)/Kraken lv. 99 (+Water 15, ATK 15, Blade Ward 5)/Earth Guardian lv. 99(Lightning Res 10, DEF 15, HP 5)/Sylph lv. 99 (Earth Res 10, MND 15, Fast Act 8, MAG 10)

The battle is relatively easy, provided Maliris doesn't go trigger happy with Savage Firaga. Battle starts with Edge using Wall, Rikku using her Ultra, and both Tidus and Bartz trying to build their SB Gauge ASAP. Somewhere in between, Edge uses the Magicite. Tidus goes Glint --> USB, while Bartz goes straight to his Awakening (mostly because his Glint doesn't really do anything for him, because the Ability Boost for Spellblade is redundant with the Awakening).

Now, Maliris can be a pain, but she scarcely uses Physical Attacks (mostly everything is Magic based), so the combination of Arc's SSB Medica and Edge's USB0 (yeah, I snatched that Red Jacket, in case you forgot) keeps me relatively safe. Relatively, of course, because that reduces the potential damage I can do. Edge has his Burst (which grants EnWater), and Arc can use his USB to chase Curadas with Dia Splash, which does negligible damage (seriously, it deals somewhere between 600 to 900 per hit!), but it's basically a freebie source of damage for heals. Rikku proceeds to continue with her USB2, which is Imperil Water, allowing Bartz to break damage cap and deal nearly 11k per hit; since his Awakening grants him Double Cast, that means he does the major amount of damage, followed closely by Tidus with his Chaser.

Now, as you can notice, this is a huge amount of damage I can field on, and to be honest, the first attempt was almost a sub-30. What's the problem, then? For one, Imperil Water comes too little, too late - even with Rikku using Sapphire Shot for a solid amount of damage AND SP Gauge generation, it's nowhere near fast enough to ensure Bartz does maximum damage. Then there's the issue with Edge: even with two sources of +Water, and with a way to gain max hits on Raging Waters, he does roughtly 3.5k per hit, with a nice chance of doublecasting - and with his Last Stand USB0, that means I either go for the safe choice, or risk it and go for his BSB, which appears slightly late. With that, damage increases to a decent 5k per hit, which is nice.

As for the final blow? It's PHY, so PBlink eats it easily. And with Edge using Reflecting Pool, he's set for life: as long as he survives the magical assault, he'll survive the death throes.

Now, there ARE options I can field. For one, there's Rydia: between her USB and her BSB, she can both Imperil Water and go EnWater, but she doesn't generate enough SB Gauge fast enough for both to appear at the same time (and while the RikkUltra has a Faithga, most of her damage really comes from her USB). Then there's Yuffie - she has her Glint, a LMR that grants a chance to generate Mirror Image with NIN skills, her BSB for EnWater, and her AOSB for mondo damage, but that leaves Arc to brave the fiend's Savage Firaga (which, from what I've seen, fires off at certain moments based on HP%): I mean, she's the most likely choice for extra damage, but... And then there's Meia, who ALSO has a USB with a Chaser, plus her OSB for a solid amount of damage, but...same thing as with Rydia, except no Imperil Water. Would it be fair to replace Edge with any of these? I mean, it's not like I can't achieve sub-30, but it's not a certainty like against Ixion, or Kraken, or...well, Isgebind.

Speaking of Isgebind, that leads me to an issue. I got three Awakenings, and I've noticed something unusual. For all his flexibility, Bartz isn't as powerful with his Awakening. Kain needs a LOT of buildup for his, but between his Glint+ and that, he's pretty solid - the problem is, there's very little places where he can show off. (My Team Lightning is predominantly Magic). That leaves Terra, of course, which is the complete opposite - once she fires off her Awakening, she's utterly devastating. As in, she's capable of reaching nearly 20k per hit with little effort. However, that's most likely because I've focused so much on her (nearly all her relics other than her AOSB and her Wind relics), and have Chain Firaja, Lunar Ifrit and the Flame Blade (Fire MAG sword Artifact), that reaching max damage with her is nothing. It's not the same for, say, Bartz, who lacks a source of EnElement other than his BSB, meaning you need four SB Gauges and the right BSB in order to make ends meet. EnElement is a huge boon for Awakening users, particularly if you can gain it through a Glint: with 3 bars, you can go EnElement lv. 2 and eviscerate everyone. That said, it can ALSO be because Terra's Awakening leads her to Trance mode, meaning she gets ALL the stacking benefits PLUS SPD bonus and quickened casting, which is what leads her to be so devastating in terms of damage potential. (That, and having two sources of Chains + Balthier being so brutally efficient at Imperiling). So...for the most part, skill-based Awakenings aren't as efficient as Element-based Awakenings, if only because Element meta is (still) so prevalent.

Anyways: that leaves me with Siren and Hades to work with. Hades will be interesting, since Ramza has Turn 1 Buffing (LMR + MM/DMT = Battle Cry at 0.00.35s; plus, he has his LM2, meaning that boost will probably last the entirety of the battle!), Agrias is brutally efficient as an Imperiler, Marche has his USB, Eddie has both Imperil, Chain AND Bard skillz, and well...as I said, I recently got Paladin Cecil's Wall which can replace Elarra's version of the Wall, AND also provide some secondary healing. Siren, on the other hand...that'll be a challenge, unless I hit the jackpot on the upcoming Focused Radiant Shield Banner and somehow get Seifer's BSB2, for Dark Radiant Shield. Still: I'll build up my Fire Magicite before attempting any of the two.

Oh, and...attempted the Wind Elemental Draw. 1/11, ONE DISCO, and no dupes! Will it be a Chain? I definitely need a Wind Chain...

• Bartz' Zwill Crossblade! This is his USB2. Unlike his USB1, which is a Chaser, this one is a Finisher. It hits all 4 elements Bartz focuses upon (Fire, Water, Wind, Earth), and grants a huge boost to Spellblade abilities on an iterative scale (the more you use Spellblade, the higher the damage gets). The Finisher, like most others, breaks damage cap, so it's a solid one. That said - I got his Awakening, which is a more solid amount of damage overall.

Congrats on downing Maralis TG. She can be quite the fiend. Ixion and Kraken are the only 4*s I'm consistently sub 30ing so far but Maralis is my next big hope (especially once I finishing upgrading my Lightning and Water magi-cite decks).

I'm surprised Bartz's Awakening isn't doing insane damage. My Bartz consistently puts out high damage versus Ixion and Maralis (the only battles he's in at the moment). I haven't given him any crystal waters, and he's not in my current Magica farming party, but he does have an SSB, BSB1, BSBwet, BSBstone, and LMR (tripple cast). So between his Double cast LM2, his Tripple cast LMR, and my tendendcy to put a double cast RM on him when I should use a SpellBlade+ instead - he regularly hits Ixion for 5x 7000 before en-element and without Chain (but after Onion pUSB - its 3.5-4k per hit before) and double/tripple/and even Quad casts are common.

I am still heavily considering his USB1 from the Lens shop as the chaser on top of his high spell blade damage and enElement USB feels like it would help a great deal for Pheonix (who attacks fast enough I shouldn't have trouble with SB generation). I would be pleased as can be with his awakening.

My only awakening is a Skill based one (witch) and I have to say I'm extremely pleased and absolutely blown away by it. Shantoto doesn't have the easiest time building SB meter but with a ninja entruster in Onion and lots of fast cast from Elarra, Onion, and herself - she has little trouble building 4-6 bars in short order. I've got her capping damage with Lunatic thunder against both Geo and Kraken (Against Geo she needs Burst > Chain > Awakening, against Kraken she skips and so caps without Lightning Infusion). Like Terra, her Chain gives her trance which makes her casts extra fast (very important for her Witch skills). Seeing her tripple cast LMR proc against Geo or Kraken is extremely satisfying.

I use Rosa as my healer (as I lack Arc's Chase USB - which sounds like a lot of fun), and I find her mBlink and HP stock extremely helpful. I don't have her heal at all between casts and instead just wrath into the next heal. I do have Yuffie's %medica USB to handle opening salvo while she wraths up and have been running Bismark to ensure Rosa has the cover she needs to get into her rhythm, but once she is in it, dodging the imperil fire makes all of Maralith's other attacks much more survivable. I should also confess that I more or less ignored element resist armor/accessories until I hit 5* fights as most 4* fights were something I could handle with powerful enough healing.

New Magicite plan:

Spoiler: Not sure it is smart, but this is what I think I'm going for now

Show

5* Magicite - Specialize in a given role with emphasis on non element boons (as they'll adapt into any team).
4* Magicte - Double element boon or damp element - keeps this simple for my Inheritance strategy.

So in the far future when I've leveled them all that means going against Pheonix I'd have:
Geo [+Water] [Block] [+Health] [Block]
Famf [-Fire] [Damp] [+Health] [Quick]
Gizmaluke [-Fire] [Damp] [+Resistance] [-Fire]
Kraken [+Water] [+Attack] [+Crit] [+Water]
Evrae [+Holy] [+Attack] [Surge] [Quick]

For: 3+Water, 3-Fire, 2 Blade Ward, 2 Spell Ward, 2 Health, 2 Quick, 2 Attack, 1 Surging Power, and only 1 wasted boon.
Against Belias I'd swap in Octo Mammoth with Double +water which swaps Kraken's Attack and Crit for +Magic and +Health - leaving me with 2 wasted boons and only 1 +Magic (but I have Rydia USB, Strago Chain, and Onion mUSB to make up the difference). - Also, with only Rydia USB/BSB2 and Strago chain - I seriously doubt I can fell Belias even after this very ambitious project is complete.

[T.G. Oskar]

Congrats on downing Maralis TG. She can be quite the fiend. Ixion and Kraken are the only 4*s I'm consistently sub 30ing so far but Maralis is my next big hope (especially once I finishing upgrading my Lightning and Water magi-cite decks).

I'm surprised Bartz's Awakening isn't doing insane damage. My Bartz consistently puts out high damage versus Ixion and Maralis (the only battles he's in at the moment). I haven't given him any crystal waters, and he's not in my current Magica farming party, but he does have an SSB, BSB1, BSBwet, BSBstone, and LMR (tripple cast). So between his Double cast LM2, his Tripple cast LMR, and my tendendcy to put a double cast RM on him when I should use a SpellBlade+ instead - he regularly hits Ixion for 5x 7000 before en-element and without Chain (but after Onion pUSB - its 3.5-4k per hit before) and double/tripple/and even Quad casts are common.

After making some changes, I found the reason why Bartz isn't doing that much damage, and that's because Terra's setup is just devastating.

To boot: Terra and Bartz are basically built identically. Both are lv. 99, both have max Crystal Waters, and essentially the same amount of relics granting them boosts to their main offensive stat. (Terra has her SSB1 and SSB2, BSB1 and BSB2, USB and Brave USB, OSB, Glint, Awakening, LMR1 and LMR2 for 11 relics; Bartz has one of his SSBs, BSB1, Water!BSB, Wind!BSB, OSB, Glint, Awakening, LMR1 and LMR2 for 9 relics, plus an unmastered Earth!BSB and USB2.) Their setup is mostly identical: Terra has her EnFire LMR, while Bartz has ++SPB damage with Swords as his LMR, therefore covering most of their damage, and both have their W-Cast LM(R)s. Therefore, the differences in that case are minimal: Terra has +20 MAG over Bartz and starts with EnFire.

However, when I say the "setup" of Terra beats that of Bartz, it's for one good reason. First, Terra has an Artifact +Fire MAG sword, meaning she already has a massive boost in damage from that. Second, Terra's Glint has Empowered Infusion, meaning she can take her EnFire to lv. 2, which is approximately 1.65x more damage from Fire attacks. Third, her Awakening grants EnFire, meaning she only needs about 3 SB bars to be at max power. Bartz, on the other hand, lacks a related Artifact (or rather, lacked; I'll mention why later), requires using one of his BSBs to gain EnElement to the desired element, and his Awakening works by boosting Elemental Damage, rather than granting EnElement. Thus, Bartz needs about 4 SB bars to deal just as much, if probably slightly more damage, than Terra can, provided he also has an Artifact +Water ATK sword. In that regard, Terra is simply better equipped than Bartz is, so her damage is superior.

That said: I switched some things around, and I've gotten to reliably get Maliris under 30s. Specifically, I spent one of the relics for the Apocalypse, which is the Artifact +Water ATK sword that Bartz needed. That took his damage from nearly 10k to a reliable 11.5k per hit when using his Awakening. Second, and probably most important, I switched Edge for Rydia, who has an Imperil Water BSB. Even if she doesn't do as much damage as Edge could do with a fully-powered Raging Waters, she can fire off her BSB right at the same time Rikku can fire her USB2, meaning there's 4 levels of Imperil Water. That takes Bartz to 16.5k damage per hit, which is nearly a 50% damage increase just by those two changes. Since Arc still has his SSB, that means he can forget about using his USB and simply wait until Maliris uses Savage Firaga, therefore healing damage dealt and providing the needed PBlink to avoid her death throes. Achieved sub30 twice.

Speaking of Anima Lenses: I'm close to 1k Lv. 3 Lenses, meaning I can cash them for a USB. Right now, I'm swinging between 3 options:

• Bartz' Chicken Knife. This is his USB1 (as Panda mentioned), with the original Chaser that can, at small chance, deal tons of damage. However, Bartz' Awakening is way superior in that regard, and has Barrage Master as a 2-turn Chaser anyways, so it's mostly for purposes of completion.
• Relm's Da Vinci Brush. This is her IC Medica, which has the benefit of Stoneskin 30% and IC to all allies. While the Medica is no longer as needed, it could work decently if I wanted to redo the D??? Torment. It's also a way to make Relm reliable, since the poor Pictomancer just can't compare to other healers. That said, her Last Stand BSB and IC-providing USB means she could replace Aphmau on future events.
• Curilla's ??? (don't remember the name). This USB grants a Boostga/Faithga with +DEF, but most importantly, it's another source of Radiant Shield. Curilla doesn't have many relics to her name (I bought her SSB with Anima Lenses just because it's a %-based heal + Esuna, coupled with damage; something neither Ramza nor Marche possess). Basic Radiant Shield is basic, but it's a way to make her more palatable to various teams, since it provides a sweet boost. It'd also do wonders for Team XI, considering she could fire it and grant everyone a much-needed boost.

Of course, there's others, and getting enough Lv. 3 Anima Lenses can be a pain, but these are the ones I'm aiming for. Getting a BSB with Lv. 2 Lenses is tempting (particularly to get Basch's BSB), but those are reserved to get Orlandeau's BSB soon enough. Maybe later I'll save 1k Lv. 3 Lenses and 3k Lv. 2 Lenses to make Laguna the ultimate Ice Imperiler ever (with Ragnarok Buster + his LMR, which is basically Balthier's but Ice elemental).

[SuperPanda]

Speaking of Anima Lenses: I'm close to 1k Lv. 3 Lenses, meaning I can cash them for a USB. Right now, I'm swinging between 3 options:

• Bartz' Chicken Knife. This is his USB1 (as Panda mentioned), with the original Chaser that can, at small chance, deal tons of damage. However, Bartz' Awakening is way superior in that regard, and has Barrage Master as a 2-turn Chaser anyways, so it's mostly for purposes of completion.
• Relm's Da Vinci Brush. This is her IC Medica, which has the benefit of Stoneskin 30% and IC to all allies. While the Medica is no longer as needed, it could work decently if I wanted to redo the D??? Torment. It's also a way to make Relm reliable, since the poor Pictomancer just can't compare to other healers. That said, her Last Stand BSB and IC-providing USB means she could replace Aphmau on future events.
• Curilla's ??? (don't remember the name). This USB grants a Boostga/Faithga with +DEF, but most importantly, it's another source of Radiant Shield. Curilla doesn't have many relics to her name (I bought her SSB with Anima Lenses just because it's a %-based heal + Esuna, coupled with damage; something neither Ramza nor Marche possess). Basic Radiant Shield is basic, but it's a way to make her more palatable to various teams, since it provides a sweet boost. It'd also do wonders for Team XI, considering she could fire it and grant everyone a much-needed boost.

Of course, there's others, and getting enough Lv. 3 Anima Lenses can be a pain, but these are the ones I'm aiming for. Getting a BSB with Lv. 2 Lenses is tempting (particularly to get Basch's BSB), but those are reserved to get Orlandeau's BSB soon enough. Maybe later I'll save 1k Lv. 3 Lenses and 3k Lv. 2 Lenses to make Laguna the ultimate Ice Imperiler ever (with Ragnarok Buster + his LMR, which is basically Balthier's but Ice elemental).

I can speak to Relm and Curilla's Lens USBs as I got them from draws some time ago.

Relm: A solid healer USB, superior to Aphmau in that you are likely bringing another source of Haste and recasting this often. This relic was key to me surviving Hades as her Instant cast spreading allowed me to bring Larsa BSB (my only Astra source other than Unicorn) and ensure that it was instant castable. I use her in my VI team and in two Magicite teams currently (and one of those I could likely make winnable without two healers if I tweak a bit more). I've not won any D??? torments and still haven't beaten most D280 torments. While stoneskin > Haste - you have a close parallel to this USB.

Curilla: I bring her as well on my Hades team as her boosts keep Orlandeu in top form and Radiant shield is always nice to have. She's a solid knight and its a solid USB. It doesn't crack my top teams often but its a solid tool. I already have her BSB so she can alternate between them for some seriously powerful buffing against Hades.


My deliberation currently:
* Bartz USB - Often chased, never won - solid boost to V, PhysEarth and PhysWater, makes potentially viable addition to PhysWind (competes with Fang for a spot).
* Penelo USB - Upgrades her old offensive BSB (damage + Medica entry, dancer medica command 2, attack command 1) with Instant Medica, Stock, and Phys Blink (Physical Rosa) - cannot Wrath, but can't have everything.
* Ovelia USB - upgrades her mBlink SSB to Instant Medcia, Last Stand, and Resistance Boost - plays nice with Elarra and Radiant shield.
* Selphie USB - Current medica for VIII is her mBlink SSB. This grants Last Stand and Regen+ - conflicts with Elarra USB.
* Marche USB - Don't really want it but keep hearing how good it is, and my Agrias and Orlandeu would pair well with it.

All three of the medica's above would be great for Torments but aren't yet needed (FFT is one of 2-3 realms so far able to take on the D??? without being laughed off the battle field even without it). Bartz and Penelo feel like they'd be the most impactful. I've loved Rosa's mBlink + Stock, but without Wrath it would still be situational versus beyond amazing. Bartz feels like the winner and will likely be my choice - but still thinking it over.

I also have 7000+ level 2 Lenses.
Strongly considering: Onion LMR (Looks like a great LMR that makes him even better at his job), Ramza LMR (Same), Strago BSB (Need Water Magic, have Chain), Gogo V BSB (Need water magic, saves hones), Ingus Earth Shield BSB (elemental radiant shields are beautiful). I'm sure there will be more to come. Penelos other BSB would also offer better healing (and last stand) if I decide I needed it but don't take her USB.

[Red Fel]

So, I know I said I was saving for September, but on a whim, I decided to do my 15-mythril pull on the Lightning element banner.

Three disco balls! I'm clicking past the silver, the gold, and then...

The game crashes.

I reopen, and my loot:

• Dragon Mail: Kain's OSB armor, and a dupe.
• Etro's Shelter: Lightning's Brave USB armor, and a dupe.
• Cloud Staff: Vivi's USB. Ice/Water/Lightning/Non damage, incrementing +MAG, chase and finisher. It's a total package, although sadly it doesn't have his other USB's W-Cast.

... I think my original plan of saving was the good one. Gonna do that for awhile longer.

[danzibr]

I’m a huge fan of the LMRs that speed up the start of battle. Quick/instant cast.

Sorry bout the pull Red Fel.

I was looking at the bonus sets from the full throttle draw. A surprising number of realms I have 0/3 for. II, III, XIII, XIV, 0. I’ll prob buy some gems at some point, unsure what to get.

Edit: XIII and XIV looks like big moles cause the healer USB is suboptimal (was originally going to say “trash” but that seems a little harsh).

Edit edit: if you haven’t done so, you can get 3 5* swords and 3 5* daggers (+Lightning) from the event, combine them, and reforge them. They’re better than my previous top 2 +Lightning physical weapons.

[darkdragoon]

L3
Laguna- ice team is still pretty lacking
Penelo- maybe not crucial but definitely strong in certain fights
Locke- fire imperil, this has slightly more options for fire, including from Locke himself so it's lower
Kimahri/Rikku- buffs for X
Yuna- healing for X
OK Phys- have Magic
Vaan- probably wouldn't use much but I have most of his other stuff
Meliadoul- debuff/personal preference

L2
LMR
Maria-enearth
Iris- need DC
Cecil/WoL- enholy
Emperor- don't die

BSB
Guy
Garnet2
Refia
Garland2

OSB
Strago
Aranea
Vayne
Raines

[danzibr]

L3
Laguna- ice team is still pretty lacking
Penelo- maybe not crucial but definitely strong in certain fights
Locke- fire imperil, this has slightly more options for fire, including from Locke himself so it's lower
Kimahri/Rikku- buffs for X
Yuna- healing for X
OK Phys- have Magic
Vaan- probably wouldn't use much but I have most of his other stuff
Meliadoul- debuff/personal preference

L2
LMR
Maria-enearth
Iris- need DC
Cecil/WoL- enholy
Emperor- don't die

BSB
Guy
Garnet2
Refia
Garland2

OSB
Strago
Aranea
Vayne
Raines

This is what you're considering spending lenses on?

[darkdragoon]

Updated after the past few draws, yes.


For the thunder event I've mostly ignored the featured characters in lieu of having Kain do most of the dirty work. It kind of makes me wistful for his awakening (especially the time I had it as an RW) but yeah.

[danzibr]

Was all excited for this banner. Tons of good stuff. 1/11, Raines Glint.