Do you have to clear the Ultimate Lair to get the secret ending or just unlock the final day?

[Taka]

That is to say, the 14th day.

[KarmaTheAlligator]

I don't think you need to clear the lair, but I could be wrong. I always do it anyway, so I never had to worry.

[Stitch]

No, you don't have to. You need to collect as much Eradia as possible to unlock it.

[NuhUh]

I heard it's not a requirement. The lair is optional and gives useful item drops and a lot of Gil.

From what I understand, completing all 5 MAIN QUESTS, unlocking the LAIR, and completing at least 45-50 SIDE QUESTS will unlock the after-credits secret ending. This works on all modes (Easy, Normal, Hard).

Canvas of Prayers quests are not needed to open the secret ending.

Ideally, to unlock the secret ending, you'll need to unlock the "Extra Day" So focus on unlocking the extra day in order to unlock the secret ending.

http://www.ign.com/wikis/lightning-returns-final-fantasy-xiii/Ultimate_Dungeon_-_The_Extra_Day



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NOTE: Some might say you only need 40 side quests to unlock the ending, but from my experience 40 is sometimes not enough. So my general 'rule of thumb' is to do as many quests as possible and surpass 45 completed side quest in order to guarantee the ending.

[Stitch]

To make my statement more accurate. You only need to unlock the 14th day to get the secret ending. Conquering the Ultimate Lair is not neccessary.

By doing side quests you earn hidden Eradia points.

One star side quests give you 2 points.
Two star side quests give you 4 points.
Three star side quests give you 8 points.

To unlock the extra day you need to collect 100 of these points. As the guy above me said, Canvas of Prayers quests do not count into this pool.

[Taka]

I've already completed 60 side quests :)

Plus I just finished the last main quest.

I'm also only on Day 7 so I have a bunch of extra time here...

Do I need max level abilities to beat the game on normal? All my stuff is level 2-3. Can I just sleep the rest of the days away until the end, or should I grind for malistones and gil?

Speaking of which, is there a good way to grind for malistones other than hunting down Last Ones?

[KarmaTheAlligator]

Originally posted by Not A Bear:

Do I need max level abilities to beat the game on normal? All my stuff is level 2-3. Can I just sleep the rest of the days away until the end, or should I grind for malistones and gil?

Speaking of which, is there a good way to grind for malistones other than hunting down Last Ones?

You don't need max level abilities, level 2-3 is fine (although you might want to farm level 3 Heavy Slash on the last day).

As for getting more Malistones, Hard Mode. You'll be able to buy some from the Adventurer Essentials shops, and most monsters drop them, not just Last Ones.

[Taka]

Originally posted by KarmaTheAlligator:

Originally posted by Not A Bear:

Do I need max level abilities to beat the game on normal? All my stuff is level 2-3. Can I just sleep the rest of the days away until the end, or should I grind for malistones and gil?

Speaking of which, is there a good way to grind for malistones other than hunting down Last Ones?

You don't need max level abilities, level 2-3 is fine (although you might want to farm level 3 Heavy Slash on the last day).

As for getting more Malistones, Hard Mode. You'll be able to buy some from the Adventurer Essentials shops, and most monsters drop them, not just Last Ones.

Oh, so basically just use what I've got for now and not worry about it on Nornal Mode?

Also I have the garb that gives level 3 Heavy Slash. I've been using that and the Yuna costume on offense.

[KarmaTheAlligator]

Originally posted by Not A Bear:

Originally posted by KarmaTheAlligator:

You don't need max level abilities, level 2-3 is fine (although you might want to farm level 3 Heavy Slash on the last day).

As for getting more Malistones, Hard Mode. You'll be able to buy some from the Adventurer Essentials shops, and most monsters drop them, not just Last Ones.

Oh, so basically just use what I've got for now and not worry about it on Nornal Mode?

Also I have the garb that gives level 3 Heavy Slash. I've been using that and the Yuna costume on offense.

Well, the problem with locked abilities is you can't upgrade them. If you farm them on the last day, you can then synth them on Hard when you get the right Malistones and get stronger abilities.

[NuhUh]

And remember, if you synth (upgrade) skills from level 1, they'll usually be much stronger and have a lower ATB cost than skills that drop from monsters.

For example, a lvl 3 Heavy Slash you've upgraded from lvl 1 will likely be stronger and have a lower ATB cost than a lvl 3 Heavy Slash obtained from a monster drop.

[SinguLaurity]

tagging on to this thread, i have a few questions.

I'm on my first playthrough day 10 on normal now, and i've completed all 83 canvas quests and 63 side quests only missing killing all monsters quest and killing Aeronite quest. I will tackle Aeronite tomorrow.
My question is; does killing the Last Ones on the final day arena thingy allow me to complete the kill all monsters quest (from the dude near the light house) or do i need to hunt down all 130 spawns of all monsters in the game before the final day?

second question; what does hard mode add to the game? Are all the quests and monsters the same? is it even worth it to start over since i completed all quests already in my first playthrough?

[KarmaTheAlligator]

Originally posted by Singularity:

tagging on to this thread, i have a few questions.

I'm on my first playthrough day 10 on normal now, and i've completed all 83 canvas quests and 63 side quests only missing killing all monsters quest and killing Aeronite quest. I will tackle Aeronite tomorrow.
My question is; does killing the Last Ones on the final day arena thingy allow me to complete the kill all monsters quest (from the dude near the light house) or do i need to hunt down all 130 spawns of all monsters in the game before the final day?

second question; what does hard mode add to the game? Are all the quests and monsters the same? is it even worth it to start over since i completed all quests already in my first playthrough?

Yes, killing the Last Ones from the Ultimate Lair does count for the quest. The important thing for that quest is that you kill the Last Ones so they appear in your bestiary, not how you got them to spawn. Also, in case you don't know, you cannot complete that quest on your first playthrough.

Hard Mode allows you to max out abilities, allows you to upgrade your gear, you get extra garbs unavailable in other Modes, and all the monster drops are available (on Normal and Easy you'll see they have ones that are greyed out). Yes, the game and all the quests are the same, just more difficult. The last boss is different, though.