Tips for the end of disc 4? Warning: this is long as hell.

[sequence]

First off, I'm playing this on my PSP. Once I pass it on there, I'll play through the Steam version for the achievements. I've been playing this game properly for about 5 or 6 years (I've been watching my brother play it since I was 7 or 8, I'm almost 8 now). I've started this game so many damn times (at least 10) but never finished it. I am so incredibly sick of the first disc but the 3rd and 4th discs I've never been up to before. I've probably bought it about 4 or 5 times at least (twice on PSN, shared my account with my bro, one physical copy, and again on Steam).

But anyway, I did it. I'm up to Ultimecia's castle. I've never gotten this far in FF8 before, hell I've never almost passed any Final Fantasy, which makes me feel like a douchebag for saying I like the series considering I've never passed ANY of them. I want to pass it without using a walkthrough or anything, as I've gotten this far without being stuck (except finding that frigging white SeeD ship, I mean really? "An inlet on Centra". THAT'S SPECIFIC!). So I'm more seeking general advice than an actual walkthrough. You will probably laugh at my current stats but hey, this is pretty big for me.

Squall is at Level 42, Irvine at 25, Rinoa at 23 (seriously when do you ever get to level her up?!), Zell and Quistis at Level 25, and Selphie at 26. The first three are my main party for Ultimecia's castle, I'm just using the other three to activate switches and the like, not actually to battle. I've got Enc-None so they don't get destroyed by random encounters. I understand this puts me at a disadvantage with the whole "monsters levelling up" thing. But like I said, I want this to be my sort of playthrough, where I can just enjoy the story. Generally I'm a completionist but I find it ruins the game a lot because I'm not paying attention to the story and just worrying if I've missed something.

I've missed a few GFs, but I have Quezacotl, Shiva, Ifrit, Siren, Brothers, Diablos, Carbuncle, Leviathan, Pandemona, Cerberus, Alexander, Cactuar, and I've drawn Eden from one of the bosses at Ultimecia's castle. I know I've missed Tonberry, I've definitely missed the UFO sidequest (not sure if you gain a GF from that), haven't done any of the Chocobo sidequests except after leaving Ultimecia's castle, and that was just so I could get to Ragnarok faster, which took AGES to find. Doesn't really count as a quest anyway considering the kid just gives it to you. Wouldn't the kid be like an adult though with the whole time distortion thing? Anyway I digress.

So far I've defeated about 4 or 5 of the bosses in Ultimecia's castle. I've got the Draw, Magic, GF, Resuscitate (or revitalise or whatever, the one where you can bring people back) abilities back, and I'm going to unlock Item next so I can use all these cheap GF enhancement items I keep getting.

What I'm currently doing is just grinding around the south-east area of the map (the huge island opposite the Cactuar island). I'm levelling up Irvine and Rinoa more as from what I understand, enemies only level up with Squall, not others (please correct me if this is wrong though). This is going to take ages though as I live in Australia and thus have the PAL PS1 version of the game, which means 50fps, which is hideously slow for RPGs and Survival-horror games compared to their US/JP and PC counterparts. Seriously, playing the PC version feels like I'm using speedhacks in comparison. THEY RUN SO DAMN FAST!

What my real questions are, to experienced players of this game, is do I have a hope in hell at all of passing the game in my current state? Would grinding just be a waste of time? Should I be using my other party (Quistis, Zell and Selphie) as much as I use my primary party? Is there a better place to grind (I'm only grinding here because that's where I found Ragnarok)? Am I utterly screwed or can I actually defeat Ultimecia with these stats? Like I said before, I'm not looking for "go here, get this GF, unlock this ability, et cetera) as I kinda wanna work that out myself. I just want to know if there's any point continuing from here.

If you're wondering, I do understand most of the game. Well, I think so. I've gotten this far with only 2 game overs. I've defeated about half of the Ultimecia bosses, Tiamat was a ♥♥♥♥♥ but once I actually put defensive magic and Meltdown to use it was far easier. I'm pretty knowledgable of the Junction system. I managed to find most of the GFs considering I'm not using a guide. I know how most items work (beats me what the hell Gysahl Greens do, but I've skipped Chocobos entirely so that's probably why). I did skip (or miss) a few sidequests, I still don't really understand the purpose of cards (I mean... I have a complete first 5 or 6 pages, a few boss and GF ones..., and I think the Quistis card, but I don't really see the point other than refining items from them), and I don't have the best weapons, but they're definitely upgraded form the base ones. I realise that I'm pretty much stuck at this point if I'm not strong enough, as I can't visit any cities anymore. But any help would be appreciated!

[Danbarrett92]

Leveling the other characters up to squall's level is a must. just dont level squall up any more. Your main goal is to get good magic junctioned for the final fights. there are a few guides on the island closest to hell/heaven draw points as well as what monsters are useful to draw from. your problem with ultimecia is that her 4 forms dont let up, they are relentless and will deplete your health with very strong attacks if you dont know whats coming and i realise you dont want to be spoiled on what they are. You are capable at any level of defeating her, its just the magic you have junctioned that will be vital. You need high health, strength and both vitality and spirit. Just spam the hell out of limit breaks of your strongest characters (zell, squall) and use the third character keeping everyone alive. remember, its the final battle so use all your items that youve held back on like megalixers. Without spoiling the battle all I will say is that you want to preferably have holy & quake junctioned to elemental defence as they are popular attacks.


P.S Your magic is also DESTROYED in the final battle, they can draw from you and completely wipe off a spell, it could be useless like cure or it could be vital like ultima or meltdown. Just remember the battle can be trial and error. If you can beat adel you can beat ultimecia :)

[Luftwaffle]

Just to answer when you get to level her up: http://cloud-3.steampowered.com/ugc/504701093427477318/D7070C4E407B8EC4B5C425EA98D96FAAAED0BC07/ and only on disc 3, right after getting the Ragnarok.

[Neurometry]

You're only 8 Years Old? Impressive. Get the Ragnarok, and level up at the Island Closest to Hell. Junction 100 Ultima to your strength and 100 Full-Life to your HP and victory is assured.

[sequence]

Oh ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ I meant 18! Thanks for all your tips guys. Currently I'm just grinding in Ultimecia's castle seeing as I get like 1,500 exp and can choose not to have Squall in my party. It's hard as though, I basically have to recover after each battle. I knew of the Heaven and Hell islands but without at guide it was kind of hard to find them, so I just gave up looking. This was more to see if I'm absolutely screwed or not. Cheers!

[Danbarrett92]

If you can defeat her minions in the castle then you can beat her! you can do it! keep us updated

[Yuki Senoue]

There's no need to level up, the game is easier the less you level. You need good magic to junction. Junction drain to your Status Attack, get high level magics like Full Life, and, most of all, GET AURA MAGICS! Limit breaks are the way to go in FFVIII. Renzokuken is obscene, and End of Heart, the ultimate finishing move, is even more obscene.

[Luftwaffle]

Renzokuken and lionheart are nothing compared to 12 seconds of Zell. It's easy to get off 5-8 of his moves every second since there's a repeatable pattern that's easily abusable putting you at a minimum of 42 attacks for near 9999 damage on a vit-0 enemy. Even renzo with lionheart is something like 30 attacks maybe. Maybe closer. Zell's is far more reliable though since you have to hope that a finishing blow triggers with Squall and that it's lionheart.

[sequence]

Took me like an hour to work out the damn picture puzzle, and then I got destroyed by Trauma as I forgot to switch my junctions... oh boy. But I've since beaten Trauma, Vysage and Krysta, and now have Limit Breaks, Item, and Save so I don't have to keep leaving the freaking castle. Eden certainly is a game changer haha. Boost is so easy to max out considering the lengthy animation (which is even longer due to 50fps) and has pretty much one-hitted every boss so far. My poor square button though... I can't help but get a Resident Evil vibe from Ultimecia's castle. Huge mansion, annoying puzzles, backtracking. I say this all with fondness of course. I've done the armory, used the water key thingo to get the treasure room key, which I'm on my way to now. I've only got Command Ability to unlock now, but I don't know what to expect other than Omega Weapon (which I've heard is hard as). I know how to get to Ultimecia but I thought it wise to unlock all the abilities first. Thanks for the help and support guys!

[sequence]

@Yuki, I'm only levelling up my other characters because as far as I know, level scaling only depends on Squall's level. So I've got him as the passive "press this switch" party, while Irvine, Zell and Rinoa are my levelling up party (who are at 33, 35, and 32 now respectively). Once they get to 40 or so, which is Squall's level, I'll stop grinding. The grinding is quite fun anyway, because I'm not just going back and forth. I'm still going to and from the areas I need to go to. Plus it's so easy to farm AP, especially when there's 2 or more enemies. Wendigoes are stupidly strong though, and hardly give any AP or EXP, so I just run from them.

[sequence]

I PASSED IT! YES, YES, YES, YES! ♥♥♥♥ YOU ULTIMECIA!
Thank you all so much! I've yet to view the ending (put my PSP on sleep mode, if I lose my progress I don't even care, because I've just passed it. I can view the ending online if I really want to) but yeah. I defeated all of her four forms. When she said "Reflect on your childhood..." it really stuck with me. Does that mean she was present at the time when Squall and the rest were children? Which would mean she not only exists as a sorceress in the future, but in the past and present as well? I mean I don't believe in those stupid "Rinoa = Ultimecia" theories, but the idea of an omnipresent Ultimecia doesn't seem far-fetched.

But tips for those having trouble:
-Have someone using Item instead of Draw. Just in case. Megaelixers especially help. In fact, if you have better commands such as Treatment or Mad Rush, use them in place of Draw. I didn't Draw at all for the entire battle.
-Abuse GFs as much as you can in the first two forms, as they're pretty much a waste in the 3rd and 4th.
-USE MELTDOWN. MELT THEM ALL. Seriously I don't think any boss in this game is immune to Meltdown. It reduces their Vitality (Defence) to 0 in case you don't know.
-USE AURA MY GOD IT IS THE BEST SPELL IN THE ENTIRE GAME AND I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW ABOUT IT UNTIL LIKE AN HOUR AGO. For those who don't know, it makes you activate Limit Break regardless of health. And considering GFs become pretty much useless unless you're super lucky, it's a lifesaver.
-Use Triple or Double, obviously Triple is preferable though.
-Use Triple to Protect, Shell, Haste, Regen, Cura/Curaga, Life/Full Life and Aura your party. If this is all done, spam non elemental magic such as Meteor, Flare, Ultima, et cetera.
-Be vigilant and keep trying. A lot of the final battle is luck if you're just playing for fun like me and not mega-maxed out. Third time's the charm is my general rule of thumb, and I knew I'd get it third try. First try, second form owned me. Second try, third form owned me. Third try, Squall, Zell and Irvine OWNED ULTMECIA WOOOO.

THANK ALL YOU LOVELY PEOPLE ONCE AGAIN FOR HELPING ME FINISH THIS AMAZING GAME FINALLY
THE VICTORY FANFARE IS PLAYING ON INFINTE REPEAT IN MY HEAD RIGHT NOW

[TaggthemageTTV]

I'd have offer to help............... but A. it has been years since I played this game(Trying to clear FF7 before restarting this) and B. when I had the discs for FF8 .... I cleared each in a day before reaching the 4th and having it lock up at the 'falling from the school' fight phase/scene/event ... x-x never.. saw... the end...
and C. You beat it!! GRATZ YOU LUCKY BSTARD!
gratz on the win btw xD

[Danbarrett92]

Well done :) nothing quite like watching her explode as shes trying to finish a sentence. What I got from when she says "reflect on your childhood" is that she is basically telling them to remember their childhood while they still can as she is about to swallow all of time. The coolest part about ultimecia is she is her own downfall when it comes to SEED. If she didnt go back to give her powers to Edea then SEED would never have been formed to take her down. Very cool time plot!

[pleasedelete]

Refuse to post because your thread is too long to read.

[「Sh1k1」]

I haven't really got time to read through the other replies, but here's a couple of things to keep in mind if you're doing a second playthrough (which I believe you intend to do with the Steam version of the game):

- Screw Rinoa. Seriously, ♥♥♥♥ her sideways with a chainsaw. Make your main party the three males, and make sure you have LOTS of crap to refine into Fast Ammo and Normal Ammo (screw Pulse Ammo!) at ANY given time. Abuse Squall's natural abilities, boost Zell's and Irvine's STR stat to 255, learn to use Zell's Armageddon Fist (which, if properly done, can pack up even MORE damage than a 9999-spamming Lionheart), and abuse the fact that with the proper STR and a REALLY powerful trigger finger, you can go through an ENTIRE STACK of Fast Ammo in a single Limit Break with Irvine -- with 255 STR, the damage gets to pile up FAST. Fast Ammo and Normal Ammo are best for this because their delay between shots is the shortest between all the available ammo types.

- Complaining about Rinoa's Invincible Moon Limit Break? Don't be a sissy and refine that ♥♥♥♥♥♥n Gilgamesh Card into 10 Holy Wars (invincibility to the whole party for 3 turns). If you know how to (literally) play your cards right, you can keep winning back the card and refining it over and over to stock up on Holy Wars again until you have a full stack.

- Abuse your abilities. Drawing from Ultimecia is just a gimmick to obtain the last magic spell in the game, Apocalypse. Use Revive, Recover and Treatment.

- DOOMTRAIN. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DOOMTRAIN. Dude's easily your most useful GF IN THE ENTIRE GAME, regardless of whether he inflicts damage or not. Being able to inflict EVERY STATUS EFFECT IN THE GAME with 100% accuracy unless the enemy's immune to it is one of the biggest lifesavers you'll ever have.

- In the same vein, MAX OUT CACTUAR'S LEVEL ASAP. The ability to deal 10,000 undiluted, non-elemental, non-avoidable damage every turn WILL save your ass from time to time. Cactuar always deals fixed damage according to the following formula: [Floor(Cactuar's level / 10)] * 1000 (i.e. at lv17 it deals 1000, at lv32 it deals 3000, at lv88 it deals 8000, and so on). Keep that in mind.

- If you want to train and/or get an almost infinite supply of high-power high-level spells, go to the Island Closest to Hell -- it's the very last island on the leftmost edge of the map. It's filled to the brim with perma-lv100 enemies, and has amazing draw points up the wazoo all over it. Junction Enc-None and go nuts if you want to draw; if you want XP, best place to train. I'd mention the Island Closest to Heaven too, but it's harder to explain where that one is in comparison to the Hell Island.

Those are just a few of the most general pointers I can think of at the moment. I know this game pretty much backwards having purchased it on launch day when it first came out (1999/09/09) and have never really stopped playing it. If you need something else, poke me.

[sequence]

Thanks again everyone for your help! The ending was awesome and wow, I can't wait to go back armed with a walkthrough and getting all the things I missed.

@DanBarrett, Sh1k, NueroSephiroth, A Thoughtful Guy, Yuki and Taggme, thank you for your help and tips! They'll be invaluable for my next play through. Now onto FF7! Which I've only started and not finished 3 times...

@MegaNuke not only are you contradicting yourself by posting anyway, but I did say the post was long and you were under no obligation to reply. Your post is effectively a pest in that it establishes itself and accomplishes nothing but to be a nuisance to everyone else.