####################################

1.1. [Balamb Garden]

Enemies: Grat, T-Rexaur (Training Center)

Draw Points: Cure, Esuna, Blizzard

G.Fs: Quezacotl, Shiva (2F Study Panel)

Magazines: Occult Fans Vol. I (Library)

######################################

Final Fantasy VIII opens with a nice FMV of Squall and Seifer squaring 

off against each other in a training match. However, Squall is scarred 

in this battle, having taken a direct hit in his face.

Squall awakens from his coma in the infirmary, where the medic there, 

Dr. Kadowaki, asks Squall if he feels all right:

- (Ok, I guess.) *

- (My forehead hurts.)

Give Squall a name; I'll stick with the default name throughout this

walkthrough for convenience's sake.

Dr. Kadowaki then leaves to inform Quistis of Squall's recovery. After 

a FMV showing her arrival, both student and mentor will walk to the 

classroom, with the latter commenting that the entrance examination 

for SeeD is today. 

After class is over, Quistis reminds Squall that he has yet to visit 

the Fire Cavern. Before going off, you might want to check out the 

Study Panel at Squall's seat. There you'll find the following options: 

1. Tutorial (New!)

2. The Basics

3. About Garden

4. A message from Garden

5. Garden Square

6. The School Festival Committee (not available yet)

You'd best be advised to read through all of them. In addition, Squall 

will receive 2 G.Fs, Shiva and Quezacotl, upon selecting the Tutorial.

G.F. Quezacotl offers 2 unique abilities: the 'Card' command  ability

and 'Card Mod.' menu ability. Make sure you learn them. A few notes

about the 'Card' command: it has a much higher chance of working on a

weakened enemy, and sometimes carding a normal enemy earns you a more

powerful boss card instead.

Quezacotl also has 'Mid. Magic Refinement' menu ability, which enables

you to gain access to the middle range spells such as Cura and Blizzara

(i.e. refine 5 Cure spells to obtain a single Cura) relatively early on

in the game.

If you can afford to live with a weak G.F Quezacotl for a while, I

suggest you learn 'Boost' 1st, followed by 'Card', and then 'Card Mod.'

These abilities will come in VERY handy in the game if you're looking

to collect everything of value.

Shiva has the unique 'Doom' command ability, which takes 60 AP to learn.

Seeing how 'Death' works on so many common enemies in ff 8, it might

just come in handy sometimes.

Once done, leave the classroom. Along the way, Squall'll bump into 

Selphie, the newly transferred student from Trabia Garden:

- Are you okay? *

- ......

Squall confirms that she just missed her class, upon which Selphie asks 

Squall for a little tour around Balamb Garden:

- Sure. *

- Don't have the time.

Head on over to the elevator, but before you do that, talk to the guy 

hanging around the lift; he'll grant Squall his first set of cards, 

and tell him to use 'Square' to initiate 'Card Battle'. Bring Selphie 

to the Garden Directory, which is the huge board right to the south 

of the 1st floor. Here's a rough lay-out of Balamb Garden's 1st floor:

                     Students' Dormitory

         Cafeteria            |            Parking Lots

                  \           |           /

                /---------------------------\

         Quad   |                           |   Training Center

             \--|                           |--/

                |          Elevators        |

             /--|             |             |--\

    Infirmary   |             |             |   Library

                \-------------+-------------/

                              |

                              |

                         Front Gates

Feel free to explore the place: you can rest and save at the Dorms, 

meet Seifer and company (Raijin, Fujin) at the Cafeteria, and watch 

Zell miss the hot dogs ^_^ Also, try chatting with the Cafeteria Lady

for a bit of info about her son.

Dr. Kadowaki will play cards with you, and the Library offers an 'Esuna'

draw point, plus the 1st volume of Occult Fans. Search the 2nd bookshelf

from left in the background (don't change the camera view); sometimes a

student may be blocking the way, so try re-entering the Library. Avoid

the Training Center for now. 

To the Front Gates once you're done. Quistis joins you here; she starts 

off at lv. 8 with zero spells in her magic list; expect the latter to 

be a constant feature in all new allies.

###########################################

1.2. [Balamb Region] (note: Junction G.Fs, and NEVER escape from battles

                           for now)

Enemies: Bite Bugs

         Glacial Eye (Fields/Mountains)

         Caterchipillar, T-Rexaur (Forests)

         Fastitcalon-F (Beaches)

##############################################

Quistis will bring Squall to the Fire Cavern, which is east of Garden 

behind the forest. Press 'Triangle' to skip through her tutorials if

you so wish (for the U.S version). I recommend you view them, though.

Make sure you have a decent stock of 'Blizzard' spells before you

enter; these can be drawn from the Glacial Eyes (blue flying jellyfish

-like creatures) near the northern cliffs on the Overworld or the

Fastitocalons-F (orange fishes) on the shores of Balamb. Btw, a single

Fastitocalon-F gives you 3 A.P; they're excellent enemies to battle

if you want to build up your G.Fs' abilities at this point in the

game. Fastitocalons appear on most beaches in the Overworld.

 Tip:

Actually, whenever you reach a new region, I suggest you check out

the enemies there. They may have some nifty spells for junctioning,

upon which you should spend some time drawing. You'll be surprised

at how much some of the more powerful spells can boost your stats.

###########################################

1.3. [Fire Cavern] (note: Keep Squall's level within 9 for this dungeon)

Enemies: Bomb, Red Bat, Buel

Draw Points: Fire

G.Fs: Ifrit

Rare Cards: Ifrit

#############################################

The Garden Faculty awaiting at the cave entrance questions Squall if

he's prepared:

- Yes...

- Still need to prepare.

I'll leave this up to you.

Squall is asked how long he would take to defeat the boss within and 

come back out (10, 20, 30 or 40 minutes). Take 30 minutes if you're

playing the Japanese version, and 10 minutes for the U.S version.

The Fire Cavern isn't particularly hard, but since random enemy 

encounters count towards the timer, you'd better finish them quickly, 

and keep heading straight into the inner regions of the cave (you can 

always re-visit the place to earn EXP, draw spells and gain Cards 

later, without the darned timer). 

There'll only be 2 times when the route splits; take the 1st one 

right for a 'Fire' Draw Point, and right again the 2nd time. You'll 

meet Ifrit at the end.

----------------------------------------------------------

BOSS G.F: Ifrit  HP: 1,068  Weak: Ice  Strong vs.: Fire

                 Draw List: Fire(Fira), Cure, Scan

                 AP: 20

Being a fire-based creature, you'll naturally want to avoid using any 

fire spells on him. Simply cast Shiva and Blizzard spells repeatedly to

make short work of him. He has a decent attack rating too, so don't

forget to heal your characters when needed.

You wouldn't know now, but you're actually being accessed by the Garden

throughout the first few events in ff 8... the Fire Cavern is one such

place where Squall is tested on his Judgment. To score well for this

scenario, you must finish the battle with Ifrit with as little time as

possible left on the clock.

Whittle down Ifrit's HP to around 100, then stall until the timer hits

15 to 20 seconds. Quickly use a barrage of Blizzard spells to bring the

battle to an end. You'll see how well you scored for this event later

on in the game.  

(note: A ( ) around a spell denotes that it's only available for higher

 level opponents. In this case, you can only draw Fira from a level 20

 or higher Ifrit. Btw, if you're playing the Japanese version, 'Libra'

 has been translated as 'Scan' in the U.S version)

-----------------------------------------------------------

You'll receive Ifrit as a G.F, and have to make your way back out again.

In the Japanese version, your 30 minutes include both getting in and

out; the U.S version only requires you defeat Ifrit within 10 minutes.

Ifrit offers abilities which boost your HP and Strength. They're very

useful early in the game, and will prove invaluable against strong foes.

Side events: Defeating Bombs sometimes nets you Bomb Fragments or Cards. 

Get either one of these; you'll want one later on for weapon upgrading.

Bombs are extremely vulnerable to Blizzard spells.

Once you're done, return to Balamb Garden. On a side note, you cannot

encounter enemies on the paved roads in ff 8; keep that in mind.

#######################################

1.4. [Balamb Garden -- Dollet Mission Briefing]

Area Info: Unchanged

#########################################

Squall is invited to try for a place in SeeD upon his return. You can 

wander around Garden if you wish, and whenever you feel you're ready, 

head back to Squall's room to change into his school uniform. Make your 

way back to the Lobby with the Garden directory board. There, Squall'll 

be assigned to his party, comprising of Seifer and Zell. Follow them

and head for the Parking Lots.

########################################

[Balamb City] (note: You cannot encounter enemies in a car)

Area Info: Unavailable (rather, not recommended you explore...)

########################################

Go for a spin or 2 in the car before moving on to Balamb City in the 

south-west (and hear Seifer's unflattering remarks about Zell). There 

isn't much you can do right now, so go on and board the ship. Don't

try to go anywhere else; your instructors won't like it! 

#####################################

1.5. [Naval Ship]

#######################################

Xu briefs the group on their mission objective, saying they are to 

liberate the city of Dollet that's under siege by Galbadia. Squad B 

(that's you) is to secure the area right up to the central square.

Seifer then orders Squall to check the situation outside:

- ... Okay. *

- No.  

###########################################

1.6. [Dollet] (note: Don't converse with Squad A or C members except

                    for Selphie, follow orders, and finish off all

                    enemies quickly. You're being assessed by your

                    instructors in this field exam, so conduct

                    yourselves properly!)

Enemies: Galbadian Soldier

         Anacondaur, Geezard, Elite Soldier (Mountain Range)

Draw Points: Blind

G.Fs: Siren (Elvoret)

Magazines: Weapons Monthly March (Elvoret)

#############################################

After the ships crash onto the shore, the loading doors open and Seifer 

leads Squall's party out. Quistis reminds you to equip your G.Fs before 

proceeding; divide your G.Fs among the 3 before following Seifer. Both 

Seifer and Zell join you here; they start off at lv. 9 and 8 

respectively. Junction your party, transferring magic from Quistis

if you have to.

Ignore conversing with any of your colleagues, and follow Seifer.

Seifer then points out 2 oncoming guards and the party encounters 

their 1st battle. Have the members attack normally (you may wish to 

stock up on 'Cure' spells at this point) and make full use of the 

Gunblade's 'R1 Trigger' feature. Note that Seifer's Hyperion also has

this feature, only that his timing is a bit faster.

As the party goes deeper into the town, another pair of Galbadian

troops jump down to ambush the party.

At the central square, Seifer orders the party to eliminate any

remaining guards; proceed to the upper-right alley and do so. Following

that, the characters wait it out as the rest of their troops hold off

the remaining Galbadians.

Finally, Seifer loses his patience (no thanks to the dog) and decides 

to check things out ahead. Zell questions this act as he thinks it's 

out of the mission parameter, but is dismissed by Seifer and Squall. 

The latter especially, seems quite eager to prove himself. Follow

Seifer.

After the party crosses the bridge, they chance upon the injured Dollet 

troops. Seifer spots another injured soldier, who is promptly dragged 

away by a serpent monster before Squall can reach him. A battle occurs.

Seifer remarks that things are starting to get fun now... btw, the

Anacondaur (Hedge Viper) is weak against Ice, so cast Shiva on it.

Follow the path to the comms tower, defeating enemies along the way.

Seifer will run off on his own (probably too eager already) and Selphie

arrives to convey a message, conveniently replacing Seifer in the

process.

Jump off the cliff:

- That's the plan.

- No way... * 

Take the longer path to your right to meet up with Selphie, who 

complains about Squall not taking the shortcut. Zell remarks that 

nobody would normally leap off cliffs:

- Yeah, I guess so.

- I don't know about that...

I'll leave this up to you to choose.

Selphie joins you here; she starts off at lv. 8. Proceed to the 

communication tower once you've junctioned her properly.

Side event: Geezards (Haurizaados) here (strange greyish creatures with

a pink under-belly) give you Screws. These are useful in upgrading your

weapons.

Once inside, run around a bit to encounter enemy troops, and make use 

of this opportunity to heal your characters as well as to stock up on 

curative items and spells. Take note of the 'Blind' Draw Point to the 

left. Once you're ready, step onto the elevator and take it to the top

(1st option). 

 Tip:

Be sure to have saved first, and ensure one of your party members has

the 'Draw' command; you'll need to draw a G.F in an upcoming battle.

The scene switches to Wedge (the blue guy) and Biggs (the guy in red). 

Biggs is trying to repair the satellite when Wedge comments about a

monster in the vicinity. The former pays no attention, much to the

chagrin of Wedge, who decides to look around first.

Before long, Squall arrives, and in the commotion, Biggs starts the 

satellite up. He is elated, but not after the party engages him in 

battle. 

--------------------------------------------------------

SUB-BOSSES: Biggs  HP: 610  Weak: Poison

                   Draw List: Fire, Thunder, Blizzard,

                              Esuna

            Wedge  HP: 608  Weak: Poison

                   Draw List: Fire, Thunder, Blizzard,

                              Cure

                   Total AP: 8

Have the party use G.Fs if you wish, but it'll be better to keep drawing 

magic out of these 2 guys first, especially Esuna. After defeating them, 

Elvoret will make his appearance; save your items and spells for him. 

BOSS: Elvoret  HP: 2,872  Weak: Wind  Strong vs.: Poison

               Draw List: Thunder(Thundara), Cure(Cura),

               Double, Siren

               AP: 10

Unleash everything (well, maybe not EVERYTHING; save a few Thunder 

spells and items) you've got on this creature. If your G.Fs are at a

decent level, he should go down easily. Just make sure to pop in the 

occasional heal spells, and use any limit breaks when they're made

available. He also has Siren, a G.F. among his list of magics, so be

sure to draw it from him. Watch out for his Storm Breath too, which 

takes off 100 plus damage from everyone. You'll receive the March

issue of Weapons Monthly from him.

---------------------------------------------------------

Siren, although not your best G.F. in terms of attacking power, has a 

wide array of menu abilities waiting to be learnt. She also has the 

Treatment (Chiryou) command ability, which cures ANY status ailment.

Her 'Move-Find' party ability enables you to see hidden save and

draw points; it's definitely a must-have.

Selphie relays new information to Squad B: they are to assemble at 

the shore at 1900 hours. Seifer notes the 30 minute deadline given 

before he leaves.

When you regain control, quickly board the lift and descend. The 

scene then cuts to Biggs, who activates a last ditch defense mechanism 

before gloating and falling over. Save before you leave the comms.

tower; 30 minutes is more than enough time to make your escape.

Outside, the X-ATM092 makes its untimely appearance, and the party 

has to fend it off. 

-------------------------------------------------

SUB-BOSS: X-ATM092  HP: 5,492  Weak: Thunder  

                    Strong vs.: Poison

                    Draw List: Fire, Blizzard, 

                    Cure, Protect

                    AP: 50 (or none)

Hit it with your Thunder spells, then attack normally. If you pull it

off fast enough, the spider should collapse before getting a chance to

use its 'Ray-Bomb'. Escape using R2 and L2. And while using Quezacotl

may seem like a good idea, it eats up the timer, so don't summon it.

You'll just have to do about 1,100 points of damage to make it go down.

You can defeat it, but only in the 2nd time you face it. The X-ATM092

is invincible the 1st time you encounter it outside the comms. tower.

The best place to take it down is on the bridge.

You'll need to have Squall and Zell at critical status (easier usage of

limit breaks) and Selphie having maximum affiliation with Quezacotl.

Keep hitting the X-ATM092 with specials and Quezacotl (use a Turbo

controller coupled with the 'Boost' G.F. Ability). After it collapses

about 5 to 6 times, it should blow up.

The X-ATM092 gives up random items upon its demise, but they're usually

excellent ones. It's not recommended you take it down though, especially

if this is your first time through the game.

Assuming if you did cause the X-ATM092 to explode on the bridge, then

you can make a clear run to the ship at the beach. You don't have to

save the dog (detailed below), btw.

-------------------------------------------------------

Retrace your steps through the city, and during this period, you have to

avoid the X-ATM092 another 3 times. The 1st is when you cross the cliff

where you met Selphie; keep the d-pad pressed all the way to the left. 

On the next screen, WALK slowly by coupling 'Triangle' (U.S) or 'X'

(Japanese) with the d-pad or you'll have to do battle again. Don't worry,

the X-ATM092 won't be able to get to you if you do this scene right.

Upon reaching the bridge, run to the 4th lamp post; the X-ATM092 

should leap over you at this point. Stall for a while (about 2 to 3

seconds), then move to the lamp post to your left. This should cause

the Black Widow to jump over you again. Turn back and head right all

the way from here.

At the next screen, dash towards the dog and tap 'X' (U.S) or 'Circle'

(Japanese) repeatedly to make it run away. In the event that you have

to fight again, use the same strategy, and try to keep your HPs above

110 as the Ray-Bomb tends to hit for around 100 plus.

After the last alleyway, the game switches to a CG movie, showing 

Squall's breathtaking escape from the X-ATM092. Strangely enough, if 

you choose, you can enter the cafe Squad C came out from; the X-ATM092 

should miss you completely, and you're free to run at your own pace and 

save on the way. The downside? You'll miss the cool FMV and lower your 

SeeD ranking.

########################################

1.7. [Exploring Balamb City]

Draw Points: Thunder, Cure

Magazines: Timber Maniacs (Balamb Hotel OR Train Station)

Blue Magic: Ultra Waves

##########################################

You're free to explore Balamb City now and take in the sights of this 

scenic port town. Gain a few levels, then proceed back to Balamb Garden. 

Side events: Caterchipillars (caterpillars in Balamb's forests) give 

you Spider Webs. It's an essential item in weapon upgrading; Spider

Webs also net you Quistis' Blue Magic, Ultra Waves. Keep one of these

in your inventory after you've used one on Quistis.

You'll also come across you first edition of 'Timber Maniacs' at 

the Balamb Hotel. These detail the adventures of Laguna Loire, a man

you'll certainly be hearing more about in times to come. You can view

all the issues of Timber Maniacs you've collected by accessing the

homepage of the 'School Festival Committee' via Squall's study panel

on the 2nd floor classroom of Balamb Garden. However, this option

won't appear until the later parts of Disc Two.

If you can't seem to find the magazine at the Hotel, then try looking

for it at the train station, right behind the red and white sign-post

there. It seems to alternate locations. 

There's also a copy of Timber Maniacs at Zell's house, but it's a fake.

#######################################

1.8. [Inauguration Ceremony at Balamb Garden]

Area Info: Unchanged

#########################################

Cid will ask how the battle went:

- Felt good. *

- Scared to death.

- ... Whatever.

Head on over to the right, where Seifer is reprimanded for ignoring 

orders. The intercom relays a message, saying that all the 

participants are to gather at the 2nd floor. Talk to everyone there, 

and when Squall tries to leave, the results are announced.

 Tip:

I've been getting mail from people saying nothing happens at the 2nd

Floor; just keep in mind this is a timed event, and that the results

will only be announced after a certain amount of time has elapsed. So

if you wanna kill time at the 2nd Floor, trying walking instead of

running, and when you've talked to everyone here, take a leisurely

stroll to the end of the corridor (it's a dead end), then stroll

back... by the time you do this, the Garden Faculty should've 

appeared.

Squall, Zell, Selphie and another person (Nida) are proclaimed 

official members of SeeD. Be sure to talk to Cid again before you 

leave; he'll grant you your 'Battle Report', which shows the number 

of steps taken, fights you fought, and times you escaped). This now

appears in your 'Tutorial' sub-menu, under 'Information'.

SeeD Ranking System:

{U.S version}

Conduct: Reach the shore at Dollet with 25:00 left on the clock to

         score 100.

Judgment: Defeat Ifrit in the Fire Cavern with at least 0:07 left on

          the clock to score 100. 

Attack: Defeat 75 enemies in total. This number does not take into

        account enemies downed by G.Fs.

Spirit: Never escape (except for the FIRST Black Widow fight) from 

        battles to score 100.

Attitude: Don't converse with anyone in Balamb City before the Dollet

          mission, ignore all Squad A and C members while in Dollet,

          leave the defeated Biggs alone, follow all of Seifer's orders,

          do not take the short-cut at the cliff, save the dog from

          the X-ATM092 and refrain from hiding in the cafe.

{Japanese version}

Conduct: Fight the X-ATM092 once, and reach the shore within 5 minutes. 

         Do not enter the cafe Squad C came out of.

Judgment: Complete the Fire Cavern using 30 minutes with Squall at

          level 7 to 9 to score 100.

Attack: Emerge victorious in combat 60 times.

Spirit: Never escape (except for the FIRST Black Widow fight) from 

        battles.

Attitude: Don't converse with Squad A or C, follow all orders, no

          short-cut at the cliff, reach the communication tower

          within 18 minutes, and save the dog at the central square

          from the X-ATM092.

Defeating the X-ATM092 on the bridge nets you a perfect score of lv.

10. In addition, a 'Bonus' segment will be added to the ranking

criteria.

You should get a decent score of rank 8 if you followed my guide. Rank 

10 is attained by defeating the X-ATM092. The SeeD Tests should also 

be made available to you now in the menu screen; Squall has to be at 

least lv. 30 to open up all 30 papers. 

Attaining full marks in a test increases your SeeD ranking by 1. You

can refer to the SeeD Ranking section in the earlier parts of this

document for the test answers. Be sure to sit for Tests occasionally

throughout the entire game.

Squall'll be paid his salary as he proceeds in his quest. The sum you

get is determined by your SeeD Rank.

Change into your slick military garb after the inauguration ceremony, 

and prepare yourself for the inauguration party.

At the dinner and dance party that night, Squall will meet Rinoa for 

the 1st time. But not before Selphie asks Squall to join the School 

Festival Committee:

- Yeah, I guess so. *

- ......

Selphie won't pose this question if you've agreed to join the Committee

when you spoke to her at the Quad during the start of the game; this

would be before the Fire Cavern section.

After the dance scene, Quistis asks of Squall to meet her at the 

training center; Squall wonders what she's up to. Change into your 

normal attire, and save your game. Head for the Training Center.

#######################################

1.9. [Balamb Garden: Training Center]

Enemies: Grat, T-Rexaur

Draw Point: Blizzard

########################################

The Training Center is a relatively short dungeon, but contains some 

of the more powerful enemies you've met so far. While the mutated 

plants are easy enough to dispose of, you'd better run when a T-Rexaur

appears. Defeating it nets you 'Dino Bones' (Quake magic is refinable

from it), but such items are useless at this point in the game. Btw,

which route you take at the start doesn't matter.

Anyway, save when you reach a Save Point, then head on towards the 

nearby door. 

Side events: The T-Rexaur is defeatable, but you'll need the 'Blind'

spell you picked up at a Draw Point in Dollet. Cast it on the

dinosaur, followed by Blizzard spells or Shiva. Dino Bones are

required for weapon upgrading much, much later. The plant-like Grats

here offer a plethora of status ailments spells, which are useful

for junctioning spells to status defense or attack.

Once done, save, then retrace your steps to the exit. The two will 

chance upon a mysterious girl being attacked by a flying creature.

-------------------------------------------------------

BOSS: Granaldo  HP: 1,538  Weak: Wind  

                Draw List: Sleep, Shell, Blind

                AP: 5

BOSSES: Raldo x3  HP: 223  Draw List: Fire, Thunder, Protect

                  Total AP: 3

This critter is accompanied by 3 flunkies, so just use a G.F. to take 

them out first right at the start of the fight. After that, draw 

'Shell' magic from Granaldo before offing it at your own leisure. It's 

pathetically weak once you get rid of its flunkies. Try putting the

Granaldo to sleep with its 'Sleep' spell.

-------------------------------------------------------

########################################

1.10. [Balamb Garden -- Timber Mission Briefing]

G.Fs: Diablos (Magical Lamp)

Magazine: Weapons Monthly April (Squall's desk)

Rare Card: Diablos

###########################################

Go back to the dormitory, where Zell informs Squall that he's been 

given a private room. Rest up, and when Selphie tells Squall to meet 

at the Main Entrance in the morning, pick up the April issue of Weapons 

Monthly from Squall's desk in his room.

Cid and a Garden Faculty will brief you on your 1st SeeD mission, 

saying an organization has sought the assistance of SeeD. Squall and 

co. are to leave immediately for Timber where they should meet up with

the organization. Cid gives Squall a 'Magical Lamp' as well (talk to

him again for this).

You're supposed to head on over to Balamb City, but since you've got 

the Lamp already, I suggest you save 1st, and making sure everyone in

your party has a decent Magic rating, use the 'Magical Lamp' in the

menu screen to collect another G.F.

--------------------------------------------------

ENEMY G.F: Diablos  HP: Variable  Weak: Wind  

                    Draw List: Cure, Demi

                    AP: 20

If you aren't careful, he'll mess up your party pretty bad, so be sure 

to have stock-piled curative items and spells. Once the battle begins,

have everyone draw and stock Demi from Diablos (note that you'll need a

decent Magic parameter for your party members in order to do so). 4 or

5 stocked Demi spells per person should be adequate.

Now draw and cast Demi on Diablos, it should hit him pretty hard

initially. Keep at this until you can do only 1 or 2 digit damage to

Diablos with a Demi spell, then finish him off with your most powerful

G.F or a Limit Break.

Diablos can either attack you with a lunge or a single Demi spell;

heal these with Cure spells. However, if he casts Gravija, don't bother

about using any Cure spells; rather, have either Squall or Zell pop

in a quick limit break, then cast your stocked Demi spells on Diablos.

He'll actually retaliate by healing your party with Curaga. Btw, he's

easier to defeat at lower levels. I managed to down him when Squall

was at level 11.

(note: 'Gravite' has been translated as 'Demi' in the U.S version)

-------------------------------------------------

When you've received Diablos as a G.F, I suggest learning these 3 

abilities first: Mug, Encounter Half and Encounter None. They will

come in handy as the game progresses. Especially Mug, although that

character ability will take quite a while to learn (200 A.Ps).

And while Diablos seems awfully weak at this point, note that his

attack is Gravity-based. At lower levels, he's only capable of

lopping off about one tenth of an enemy's total (not remaining) HP.

Side Event: Try paying a visit to the Library with Zell for a random

event involving a secret admirer. At first only her girl-friends will

drop hints, but returning here often (whenever possible) lets you view

the full set of sequences. The 1st scene you should view here will be

Zell enquiring about a book. The reward for this side quest isn't

all that great though, so you can pretty much choose to ignore this.

###########################################

[Balamb City: Train Station]

Magazines: Pet Pals Vol. 1 (Train)

###########################################

 Tip:

If you're in need of cash, run around for a while until Squall receives

his SeeD payment.

After buying a ticket for 3,000 Gil at the train station, board the 

train. Bypass the ticket machine, then follow Zell into the room. 

He'll find Vol. One of 'Pet Pals', and ask Squall if he knows about

Timber's current situation:

- I don't care.

- Not too much. *

Zell informs Squall a little more on Timber, a small country invaded

and captured by Galbadia 18 years ago.

#########################################

1.11. [Laguna Dream Sequence Part One: Eastern Forest & Deling]

Enemies: Funguar, Geezard

Draw Points: Cure, Water

###########################################

These 3 (Ward, Kiros and Laguna) inherit the status of whoever fainted, 

so bear this in mind. Well, the run through the jungle is fairly 

straight-forward. Use the fallen tree to walk over the small stream 

when you reach it, and then mount the vehicle at the end.

[Galbadia: Deling City]

Just as Laguna parks the vehicle, 2 more appear, conveniently blocking 

your way to the other parts of Deling City. Ignore them for now, and 

run to the lower-right (the upper right street leads to an arch, which 

is of no value right now). 

Transverse the city streets until you reach Galbadia Hotel. Save, then

head off to the right staircase. Converse with the waitress, who'll 

ask you to take a seat:

- (I'm walk around a bit first.)

- (Alright, I'm there!) *

- (Huh? Excuse me?) 

The 2nd option lets you hear a nice little piano piece by Julia, an 

aspiring pianist and singer. Laguna himself gets all nervous when she 

asks of him to meet her in her room upstairs. Return upstairs to the 

reception counter:

- Which is Julia's room? *

- Ahh... nothing.

(note: the darker bracketed speech bubbles you see in Laguna's

       scenarios are the reactions of Squall's party)

########################################

1.12. [Timber Tracks: Hijack Operation]

Magazines: Pet Pals Vol. 2 (Resistance Base)

Rare Card: Angelo (Watts)

##########################################

Squall, Selphie and Zell wake up at this point, and are surprised to 

find they all shared the same dream. Squall makes a note to report 

this to Principal Cid as they disembark from the train. Speak to the 

man waiting on the steps:

- But the moogles are still here.

- But the chocobos are still here.

- But the Owls are still around. *

The 3rd option is the password. Taking either the 1st or 2nd option

results in a rather amusing scene where Watts almost gets knocked down

by a train ^_^

[Resistance Base]

Once on board the train, Zone and Watts will formally introduce 

themselves as the leaders of the 'Forest Owls', and ask of Squall to 

wake their 'princess' up. Squall complies, but not without a few 

threatening remarks first.

Side event: Watts holds Angelo's card, a rare card. You can win it

from him if you so wish, or wait until later in the game.

Head into the other sections of the train (take note of the Save Point

in one of the cabins), into the nice flowery pink room. Rinoa will

recall meeting Squall at the dance party, and requests him to proceed

to the briefing room. Her dog, Angelo, will also make an appearance

here. You will be asked to name both of them; again, this walkthrough

will use the default name settings.

It seems that President Deling of Galbadia will be passing through 

Timber on a train. The trio hatch a plan to capture him, and just for 

your reference, I've included a little diagram to show the entire 

procedure.

=========================[Dummy Car]-[Resistance Base]================

==[Locomotive]-[1st Escort]-[Prez's Car]-[2nd Escort]=================

Basically, you'll have to leap from the Base onto the 2nd Escort, 

run to detach the 1st Escort from the Prez's Car, thus allowing the

Dummy Car and the Base to slip in between the 1st Escort and the

Prez's Car, then uncouple the 2nd Escort, causing the Base to break

away along with the Prez's Car, leaving the Dummy Car in place of the

latter. Relax, you don't have to memorize the procedure.

Rinoa will let Squall have a practice session at entering passwords;

press L1 to exit when you're through. Did you understand the briefing?

- Yes.

- Explain it again.

I'll leave this up to you.

The bulletin board in the upper-right of the planning room has copies

of Anarchist Monthly pinned onto. These provide information on Vinzer

Deling's ascension to power.

Save, then talk to Watts. He'll ask Squall if he's ready:

- Not yet.

- Yeah. *

Tip:

Some people have written in complaining that instead of asking Squall

if he's ready, Watts asks for a game of Card Battle instead... try

speaking to Watts with the 'X' (U.S) button and NOT the 'Square'

button... these two have different functions in ff 8.

[Hijack Operation: Timber Railway Lines]

Your 1st action is to leap across to the 2nd Escort. Do this by

hitting the 'Jump' button ('X' for the U.S. version, 'Circle' for the

Japanese version) when the 2 carriages are relatively close together.

You'll be working against a 5 minute timer, so make it quick.

Next, Squall will have to work his way across the car. Just stay put

and observe the guards... who discover that none of their sensors are

working. Scoot across to meet up with the rest, before the Galbadian

troopers repair the sensors.

Assuming you let the guards repair the sensors, and happen to be

directly above when the blinds are open, here's how you should react:

Blue guards (sound sensors): Halt.

Red guards (temperature sensors): Don't stop, and keep moving.

Time your movements accordingly.

3rd involves detachment of 1st Escort. Zell and Selphie will watch 

out for the guards, so whenever they call out, just rappel up. Here's 

the sequence:

1. Rappel down with 'down' (duh.)

2. Rinoa will give you a random password.

   For the U.S. version:

     (Triangle=4)(Square=3)(Circle=1)(Cross=2)

                               L1=Scroll screen to the left

   For the Japanese version:

     (Triangle=1)(Square=3)(Circle=2)(Cross=4) 

                               L1=Scroll screen to the left

   So if it's 1 4 2 3 in the U.S. version, you would enter O, T, X, S

   (in the space of 5 seconds, mind you).

3. Basically, you should attempt to enter 2 passwords, then rappel up. 

   Wait for the 2 guards to pass by and return before going down again.

4. You'll have to enter 3 passwords for this one.

The 4th step is the detachment of the 2nd Escort. You'll need to 

enter 5 passwords now instead of 3; this time you'll have to look out 

for guards yourself with R1. Step 3 above still works though, so the 

guards shouldn't be a problem. Do this right the 1st time and your 

SeeD ranking will be raised. The whole operation should take you less

than 3 minutes.

Well, after all that talk, junction your members (excluding Rinoa) and

save, then do yourselves a favour by returning to Rinoa's room to pick

up the 2nd volume of 'Pet Pals'. Converse with Rinoa again when you're

ready to go:

- Not yet.

- Yeah. *

Rinoa and company will finally meet up with Deling, but he turns out to

be a fake one.

------------------------------------------------------------

BOSS: Fake President  HP: 532  Draw List: Cure

Easy enough. You can stock up on 'Cure' spells if you wish.

BOSS: Gerogero  HP: 2,750  Weak: Holy, Fire, Earth, Heal  

                Strong vs.: Poison

                Draw List: Esuna, Double, Berserk, Zombie

                Total AP: 20

This guy likes to cast various status ailment spells on you, so come 

equipped with various curative items, or simply the ability to draw

Esuna from him. Attack Gerogero with Fire-junctioned Elemental Attacks,

Cure spells and G.F. Ifrit.

This tactic applies only to the Japanese version: one Phoenix Down is

all it takes to kill Utoku. Now that you know that, you might still

want to spend some time drawing Esuna and Double from him though. This

also works in the U.S version, but chances are that it has a higher

percentage of missing Gerogero.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Gerogero had a different colouration in the Japanese version; most of

the blue areas on him were actually red.

After the fight, the party'll discuss the next course of action. 

Supposedly, Deling is scheduled to make a speech at Timber TV Station 

soon, so your next plan would then be to snoop around for info into 

getting to the broadcast station. 

Make a party of 3. I suggest you bring a weaker character as the 3rd

party member; there're some opportunities to gain a few EXP here.

Talk to Watts to leave.

#########################################

1.13. [Timber] (note: Rinoa joins you here; she starts off at lv. 11)

Enemies: G-Soldier, Elite Soldier

Draw Points: Blizzaga, Cure, Scan

Magazines: Pet Pals Vol. 3 and 4 (Pet Store)

           Girl Next Door, Timber Maniacs (Timber Maniacs)

############################################

While Timber's topography isn't exactly the most confusing ever in

ff 8, I guess I'll do no harm by providing you guys with a map, right?

Here you go:

         Timber TV Station

                |                              (Desert)

                |                                  |

                --------------------------------\  |

                                               Pub-+------

                                                   |     |

                                                  Shop   |

                  Timber Maniacs   Forest Foxes          |

                     Building           HQ               |

                         |               |               |

                         ---------------------------------------

                         |                                Owl's|   |

        |       |        |                                Tears|   |

        | Local |(Resist.|                                     |---|

(Balamb)| Goods-| Train) |                                     |   |

        |       |    |   |   Junk Store  Hotel                     |

        --------+-----------------+--------+---------\         (Dollet)

                |                                    |

      Pet Store-|                                    |

                                                     |

                                                 Main Gates

*the bracketed locations mean that they're train platforms, and where

 each train is bound. After the events in Timber, the (Resistance

 Train) station becomes (Deling City).

There'll be Galbadian guards around, so take time off to draw a few 

spells from them. You might want to purchase Pet Pals Vol. 3 and 4 

from the Pet Store near the station which runs towards Balamb. All 

trains are non-operational at this time. 

There'll be a few instances when you need to combat the Galbadian 

soldiers, and resting is accomplished by heading to 'Owl's Tears', 

which is right at the outskirts of town. It's this little cabin with 3 

persons living inside. Tell the old man that you like beverages

(2nd option), and examine the tap to the left to heal up. However, if

you plunder the 500 Gil from the cupboard beneath the television (just

examine the cupboard repeatedly), you lose this service.

You might also want to check out Timber Maniacs, which Laguna worked as 

a journalist for. There's a copy of an adult magazine (Girl Next Door) 

and Timber Maniacs to be picked up here among the stacks of books in

the lobby and editing room respectively. The dark room in Timber

Maniacs hides a 'Blizzaga' draw point as well.

Btw, there's a guy clad in a grayish-green jacket outside Timber

Maniacs; be sure to encourage him to receive a mediocre item from him

later on in Disc Two.

The house next door has a lady who will speak of an alleyway behind the 

Pub which leads to the TV Station. Once you're done, head on over to 

the Pub, by taking the stairs at the juncture in the next screen. 

2 conversing Galbadian soldiers will mention about having obtained a 

Card; kick their butts to receive a lame monster card. There's an

item shop to the left, so go ahead and purchase any goods before

entering the Pub.

There's a drunk man blocking the exit to the backlane inside:

- Observe.

- Talk to him. *

Squall will have to respond to his demands for a drink:

- Buy him a drink.

- Tell him about the cards. *

- Do nothing.

He'll give you a Tonberry card, and move out of the way when you select

the 2nd option.

You can also choose to buy him a drink, but you won't receive anything

in return. Talk with the woman to the left to know the drunk's

favourite type of drink, then observe the drink the drunk's holding.

Here's a list:

                 [Red]          [Yellow]          [Green]

[Sweet]          Mimett         Curiel            Tantal

[Bitter]         Krakka         Sylkis            Reagan

Outside, save, and follow the path to the TV Station. Rinoa, upon

seeing the tight security around the place, decides to switch to a less

subtle way of getting into the TV Station... much to the displeasure of 

Squall, who's annoyed by the way she changes her mind so quickly. 

Rinoa asks him to voice his opinions:

- Yeah, I'll tell you. *

- Forget it. 

It seems that Squall will still tell Rinoa off no matter which you 

choose though. You'll have the option of continuing or stopping:

- ... Guess I'll follow up.

- Well, just leave it at that. *

Hurt, Rinoa runs off on her own, just as the programme starts.

Vinzer Deling, President of Galbadia, will commence his speech. He 

starts to introduce his ambassador, a sorceress, but before he

announces her name, his broadcast session is disrupted. Head for the

TV Station immediately.

Zell, in the midst of the commotion, unknowingly lets slip Garden has 

dispatched them to deal with the situation in Timber. Follow Quistis.

The party has to get out of Timber after things have gotten ugly. Upon 

leaving the 'Foxes of the Forest' (the house next to Timber Maniacs), 

Watts, disguised as a Galbadian soldier, tells them that a train is 

bound for Dollet at the station, and to take care of Rinoa:

- Ok (I have my orders).

- Ok (You be careful, too).

I'll leave this up to you.

Retrace your steps, meet up with Zone (dressed as an old man), who'll

pass you your tickets. Proceed right from here for the (Dollet)-bound

train.

Board the train?

- Get on. *

- Not yet.

You'll have the option of talking to Zell in the train carriage:

- (Leave him alone.) *

- (Stay put.)

Take the 1st option to advance the storyline.

Actually, while the story requires you to drop off at the East Academy 

Station, I suggest you give that a miss and alight further on at Dollet. 

############################################

1.14. [Dollet and Timber Revisited] 

Draw Points: Silence (Dollet)

Magazines: Timber Maniacs (Hotel Dollet, Dollet Pub, Timber Hotel)

           Occult Fans Vol. II (Dollet Pub)

Rare Cards: Siren (Master Card Player, 2F Dollet Pub)

#############################################

While pretty much a scenic port town, Dollet has a number of 

interesting events and items. First off, check out the hotel rooms for 

an issue of 'Timber Maniacs'. 

Further down the streets, at the Pub, a man on the 2nd floor (he's the 

one to the left) will play cards with Squall. If you manage to defeat 

him (the 'Random' rule in Dollet makes it kinda hard...), he'll lead you 

to his private room. There's also a copy of Timber Maniacs on the 2nd

floor of the Pub.

Check out the magazines on the floor (make sure you look at them from

every angle, sometimes you'll find different stuff for each of the 4

sides of each stack) for 'Occult Fans Volume II'. And if you're really

eager to complete your card collection, Siren's card is winnable from

the same guy, who's also known as the Master Card Player.

One of the houses has a painting hanging in the center... Squall has to 

look for a mutt around Dollet (each painting has a bone which gives the 

location of the dog outside the house). There's a total of 3 locations; 

you can get a free Potion, Phoenix Down and Soft (Gold Needle) for your 

efforts. If you do this in Disc Three, you'll get a Potion, Mega-Potion

and an Elixir instead.

The Dollet trooper to the left of Hotel Dollet denies Squall access to

the comms. tower; talk to him twice to bust through. I've no idea

what this is for, but you get a pretty amusing sequence at the end of

the path with the bumbling Galbadian troops.

[Timber Re-visited]

Look for a copy of Timber Maniacs at the now-open Timber Hotel.

There'll be a guy standing on the bridge near Timber Hotel; talk to 

him with a female companion (i.e. Rinoa or Quistis) in your party to

receive a free Potion. He appears randomly, and you can do this as

many times as you wish to stock up on Potions.

##########################################

1.15. [Timber Region: Obel Lake and Roshfall Forest] 

Enemies: Funguar, Geezard

         Thrustaevis (Fields)

         Wendigo, Anacondaur, Cockatrice, Ochu (Forests)

Blue Magic: Electrocute 

###########################################

Obel Lake on the world map has a strange shadow in the water who'll 

chat with you about its missing monkey when you hum (2nd option)... 

I'll detail this event later on in the walkthrough.

And as for Roshfall Forest, it's on the opposite bank of where the

water-dweller lives, that huge patch of forest. The bottom left window

in your Menu screen tells you the name of your current location. Both

Obel Lake and Roshfall Forest are to the north of Timber.

Wendigo (a headless freak which resembles a wild gorilla) roams in 

this forest, and gives up 'Steel Orbs' upon its defeat. Get at least 2

of these. When mugged, the Wendigo provides you with 'Steel Pipes',

but it's highly unlikely you've learnt the 'Mug' character ability

from Diablos at this point. Just keep this point in mind for now.

The Steel Orbs will be required later on for weapon remodeling; if

you're having trouble defeating the Wendigo, put it to sleep first

with a 'Sleep' spell, then use your G.Fs.

Also, Cockatrices (birds with yellow chests and a green belly) are 

present in the forests. You can receive Coral Fragments (lets Quistis 

learn another Blue Magic, Electrocute) when they're at levels 1 to 19.

#############################################

[East Academy Station and Eastern Forest]

Area Info: None.

#############################################

The eastern forest lies between 2 cliffs, west of the East Academy

station. Before you enter, make sure both Quistis and Selphie are

properly junctioned.

Rinoa will come to comment on the way Squall treats his comrades so

coldly.

##########################################

1.16. [Laguna Dream Sequence Part Two: Centra Excavation Site]

Enemies: Esthar Soldiers, Gesper, Elastoid

Draw Points: Sleep, Confuse, Cure

Blue Magic: Degenerator

###########################################

In typical Laguna fashion, he realises that he had brought the wrong

map for this patrol. Still, he has a bad feeling about this:

- Nah, just my imagination. *

- Yeah, a bad feeling...

The run through the mines can be very straight-forward, depending on

how you tackle it. However, I'll give you the full set of events here.

Proceed forward to battle 2 sets of Esthar soldiers. There'll be a 

fork in the road afterwards; take the right one. 

Follow the path into the mines until it splits again. There's an 

invisible 'Old Key' near the half-buried semi-circle structures, but

Laguna loses it the minute he picks it up ^_^ Anyway, head to the left

of the screen.

You'll eventually come to 3 steel hatches set in the floor. Have 

Laguna examine the switch on the center one (it's on the upper-right 

of the hatch):

- Tamper with it. *

- Leave it alone.

Head back a screen from where you came from, and laugh as the Esthar

soldiers fall for Laguna's (crude) trap. Now return and try to do the

same for the hatch on the right. However, Laguna won't be able to open

it, so just ignore it for now. It'll open by itself after the events

below, but you still must tamper with it first.

Retrace your steps back to where you initially fought the 2 sets of

Esthar soldiers. Take the left route now, and follow it until you

reach a ladder. Descend.

In the next screen, there's yet another 'Old Key' hidden among the 

debris to the left of the screen.

The path will lead to the same 3 steel hatches. Examine the left hatch,

but Laguna decides not to tamper with it after all.

Now return to where you located that 1st 'Old Key', and head upwards.

The route should split here again; take the northern path to find a

bomb detonator on the ground. 

Examine it:

- Press the blue switch.

- Press the red switch. *

- Forget it.

Choose to hit the red switch first, followed by the blue one to 

exterminate 2 batches of Esthar soldiers. Proceed onwards from here, 

but keep a lookout for another boulder to the left, in an area 2 

screens up from where you discovered the bomb detonator. Push it using

'X' (U.S) or 'Circle' (Japanese).

Making your way upwards, you'll find a save point. Save before heading 

north.

Now the trio have to combat a whole slew of miners (5 sets of battles 

if you didn't trigger all of the traps here, or just 1 if you did); the 

last one's 'Soul Crush' will drain Kiros and Ward's HP completely, so 

remember to cure your injured members when you regain control of Squall. 

Laguna makes a valiant attempt to save his friends' lives...

Btw, while the tampering of hatches may seem totally irrelevant at

this point in time, it'll enable you to pick up a few nifty items much,

much later on in the game, when Squall's party returns to this dungeon.

Trust me, the extra trip's worth it.

Side events: Gespers (over-sized blue headed creatures) and Elastoids

(flying brown stools) make their appearances here, but they're extremely 

rare. If you're lucky enough to encounter them, the former will net you 

a Black Hole (lets Quistis learn 'Degenerator') and the latter's card, 

when modified gives you a Steel Pipe. The Elastoid is known as the

Invincible in the Japanese version.

You'll face 2 types of Esthar soldiers here: the human and the cyborg.

The latter are much more dangerous, so you should make it a point to

defeat them first in combat. Cyborg soldiers appear darker compared

to human ones.

#########################################

[Eastern Forest Continued]

#########################################

Squall decides to press on... no point thinking about the events that 

just transpired. Galbadia Garden is right ahead.

######################################

1.17. [Galbadia Garden Region: Monterosa Plateau] 

Enemies: Belhelmel, Geezard, Blood Soul

Weapons: Rising Sun (Rinoa)

########################################

While in this area, you might want to encounter Belhelmels, spiky 

masked creatures dangling in mid-air. Use Diablos' 'Mug' command 

ability to steal Saw Blades from them, which are one of the items 

required to upgrade Rinoa's weapon to a 'Rising Sun'. Couple one of 

these blades with 8 Screws. Btw, Belhelmels also drop Saw Blades.

#######################################

1.18. [Galbadia Garden] (note: Irvine joins you here; he starts off at

                             lv. 13)

Draw Points: Haste, Double, Shell, Life (Raise)

Weapons: Ulysses (Irvine)

#########################################

Upon your arrival, Quistis makes a move first to contact the Headmaster 

of this Garden. The PA system soon announces the party's next 

destination: the Reception Room, which is accessed by hitting the 

north-western exit in the Main Lobby, then climbing the stairs. 

Before you do that, I suggest you explore around a bit first, and 

familiarize yourself with the surroundings; you'll be back here later. 

The glowing center of the Main Lobby hides a 'Haste' draw point; as does 

the changing rooms of the skating rink (north-eastern exit from Lobby),

which holds a 'Life' D.P. The Auditorium on the 2nd floor also 

offers a 'Double' D.P. Apart from those, you'll find an assortment of 

nice (but not rare) boss cards from the Galbadian Garden students.

Make your way to the Reception Room afterwards. Talk with everyone

inside, until Squall leaves in a fit.

Head on over to the Main Lobby, where the ever lovable duo of Raijin and

Fujin show up; they've come to deliver a message, and to find Seifer.

At the main entrance, Martine, Headmaster of Galbadia Garden, briefs the 

party on their new orders: both Balamb Garden and Galbadia Garden will 

work together on a plan to assassinate the sorceress Edea, as requested

by a certain general of the Galbadian army. Martine's known as Dodonna

in the Japanese version.

Irvine is the assigned sniper for the mission. And of course, he isn't 

gonna miss his opportunity to get close to the females:

- Yeah, whatever. (you can also take this for an amusing scene with 

                   the girls)

- ... That's no good. *

I suggest you take Irvine into your main party, especially if he's way 

too low in levels compared to yours. And if you've got a Steel Pipe, a 

Bomb Fragment (impossible to obtain now... use Quezacotl's menu ability

'Card Mod.' to refine a lv. 4 Bomb card) and 2 Screws, you can upgrade

Irvine's shotgun.

Either way, head on over to the Far East Train Station in the south

-west, making sure you've got at least 3,000 gil to spare, and board

the Deling City-bound train.

#########################################

1.19. [Galbadia: Deling City]

Draw Points: Thundara

Magazines: Timber Maniacs (Galbadia Hotel)

##########################################

Wait for a bus at the very first station you see, board it, then drop 

off by hitting 'X' at the next stop, which would be Caraway's Residence.

Talk to the guard on the extreme right: Squall and co. will have to 

prove themselves first by obtaining a password from a nearby dungeon:

- Ready to answer.

- Buy a hint for 3,000 gil. (MIGHT lower SeeD ranking)

- Buy a location displayer for 5,000 gil. *

- Talk.

- Have him escort us out of town.

Well, you really need that displayer, so go on and pay him 5,000 gil. 

Once you're done with that, it's time to explore Deling City.

                      Presidential Residence

       /-------------------------+----BUS >------------------\

       |                < BUS    |    BUS\/                  |

       |                         |                           |

       |                         |                           |

 BUS /\|                  BUS /\ |                     BUS /\|BUS \/

General| \/BUS                   |                   Shopping| 

Caraway+-------------------------|                     Arcade|

Mansion|                  Arch of Triumph                    |

       |                         |                           |

       |                  BUS /\ |                           |BUS \/

       |                         | BUS \/              BUS /\|

       |                         |                           |

       |                         |                           |-Hotel

       |                 BUS /\  | BUS >                     |

       \-------------------------+---------------------------/

          |         < BUS  Deling Train Station

          |

Car Rental|

          |

      Overworld

*the arrow sign next to the 'BUS' icon tells the direction of travel.

 3 types of buses service the streets: one circles around the perimeter 

 clockwise, and 2 anti-clockwise in the interior.

Pick up a partially hidden copy of Timber Maniacs on the 2nd Floor of

Galbadia Hotel.

###########################################

[Galbadia Region -- Gotland Peninsula]

Enemies: Thrustaevis, Geezard, Wendigo

###########################################

Draw a few 'Float' (Levitate) spells from Thrustaevis (flying blue

eagle-like creatures) before heading over to the Tomb of the Unknown

King, which is located to the north-east of Deling City on the

Overworld. Look for a forest with a rock opening, right at the tip of

the Gotland Peninsula.

#######################################

1.20. [Tomb of the Unknown King]

Enemies: Armadodo, Blobra, Forbidden, Buel

Draw Points: Protect, Float, Cura

G.Fs: Brothers

Rare Cards: Brothers

#########################################

Holding 'Select' here brings up the map or closes it, and pressing 

'Triangle' (U.S) or 'X' (Japanese) while viewing the map warps you out

of here. The latter move will bring your SeeD ranking down though.

                          Northern Flood Gate

                                  |

                         ---------+---------

                         |        |        |

                         |        |        |

                    -----+-----------------+-----

                    |    |                 |    |

                    |    |    =========    |    |

          Western   ------    | Tomb  |    ------   Eastern

          Chamber---|    |    =========    |    |---Chamber

                    |    |        #        |    |

                    -----+--------+--------+-----

                         |        |        |

                         |        |        |

                         ---------+---------

                                  |

                               Entrance

*the '#' refers to the location of a bridge which appears in the course

 of the events below.

Anyway, head up, and look for a light blue Gunblade on the floor. 

Examine it and record down the (random) password. Write it down on

paper. You can leave now if you want to.

Side events: You'll want to get G.F. 'Brothers' here. From where you 

found that Gunblade, follow the map to get to the Eastern Chamber:

-----------------------------------------------------------

BOSS G.F: Sacred  HP: 2,660  Weak: Poison, Wind  

                  Strong vs.: Earth

                  Draw List: Shell, Protect, Berserk, Life

                  AP: 20

Junction 'Aero' or 'Tornado' to Elemental Attack, then pummel away at 

him. You can also junction 'Float' to Elemental Defense. Heal when 

needed. Make sure to cast 'Float' on Sacred; this cancels his 'Regen'

status. Hit him with your G.Fs if you don't have any wind-based spells

yet. Draw a few Life spells if you can, they junction well to HP.

----------------------------------------------------------

Moving on, head to the Northern Flood Gate, and dis-engage the dam to 

allow the water to flow through via a chain to the upper-right. Make

your way to the Western Chamber; examine the water-wheel to change its 

direction of revolution.

You might want to get out and save after this. Once you're ready, 

approach the center of the Tomb from a South to North direction; a 

bridge would've been laid out, granting you access to the bosses.

--------------------------------------------------------------

BOSS G.F: Sacred  HP: 2,660  Weak: Poison, Wind  

                  Strong vs.: Earth

                  Draw List: Shell, Protect, Berserk, Life

                  AP: 20

BOSS G.F: Minotaur  HP: 3,630  Weak: Poison, Wind  

                    Strong vs.: Earth

                    Draw List: Shell, Protect, Berserk, Double

                    AP: 20

Cast Float on your party as well as the bosses -- this cancels out 

their Regen status and their combination attack (aptly called 'Mad Cow

Special'). As always, junction 'Aero' to Elemental Attack if you can,

and off the big guy first (Sacred), followed by Minotaur. They're

capable of dealing out moderate sums of damage, but shouldn't pose too

much of a threat. Summon your G.Fs too, and heal frequently.

-------------------------------------------------------------

The spirit departs for the nether world, and you'll get G.F. Brothers 

plus 2 pretty good cards. Don't lose them... they'll come in handy 

later on.

G.F Brothers offer HP-J, Str-J and Spr-J. Useful if you want to have

another party member who's adept at physical attacks, I suppose.

A rare enemy here which only appears in parts where the path curves

is the Forbidden (skeleton with 2 swords). He's capable of casting 

Death, but you might want to turn him into a card, upon which 'Card 

Mod.' nets you a 'Betrayal Blade'. Keep one of these. The Forbidden

also drops Betrayal Blades at levels 1 to 19 when defeated.

Another enemy, the shelled Armadodo (Esansuushi), offers Turtle Shells

which you'll have to steal (you should have just about learnt G.F

Diablos' 'Mug' character ability at this point; if you haven't, you

aren't combating enough enemies! Try fighting the Fastitocalon-Fs along

the coasts of Deling City for some A.P). Get 2 of these Turtle Shells.

############################################

[Galbadia Region Revisited]

Weapons: Flame Saber (Squall)

         Ulysses (Irvine)

############################################

On a side note, if you missed getting the Steel Pipes earlier on,

Wendigos wander the barren (brownish) areas near Deling City. Mug them,

then combine 1 Steel Pipe, 1 Bomb Fragment (modify a lv. 4 Bomb card)

and 2 Screws for Irvine's Ulysses if you haven't already done so.

Wendigos seem to appear more frequently in night-shrouded areas.

You'll want to obtain Squall's 'Flame Saber' now: it requires a 

'Betrayal Blade', a 'Turtle Shell' and 4 Screws. Geezards (Haurizaados)

in the same barren regions as the Wendigos drop Screws. The extra

Turtle Shell I told you to get will be for later. And if you're

wondering what on earth I'm talking about, try referring back to the

section before this for the locations of the raw materials.

########################################

1.21. [Deling City Revisited: Prelude to Edea's Parade]

Magazine: Weapons Monthly May (Sewers)

Weapons: Maverick (Zell)

         Cutting Trigger (Squall)

##########################################

Tell the guard the password, then enter General Caraway's Mansion.

Rinoa gets impatient while waiting and leaves to look for him, telling

Squall not to follow her:

- ... An order?

- Meaning...? *

The decision point does not appear in the U.S version.

The party meets up with General Caraway (Rinoa's dad) eventually. He'll

request Squall to keep Rinoa out of this mission before he starts the

briefing. Basically, you have to divide yourselves into 2 groups:

Sniper Team: Squall & Irvine

Gateway Team: Quistis, Zell & Selphie

Caraway then outlines the mission steps:

1. Sniper Team to wait outside Presidential Residence before the

   parade.

2. Gateway Team to wait inside Arch of Triumph.

3. Parade commences, Edea leaves; Sniper Team to sneak into Presidential

   Residence, and lie in ambush from atop.

4. Edea's float passes underneath Arch; Gateway Team to activate gates, 

   cutting parade movement off.

5. Commence assassination. Hand-to-hand combat if assassination fails.

You can hang around Deling City if you like, before proceeding to 

Caraway's Mansion.

On a side note, you should have 4 decent cards at hand now: Ifrit's,

Diablos' and the Brothers'. Try playing some of the locals to win Grendel

(lv. 2 cards depicting a beaked yellow monster with a blue back) and

lv. 2 Mesmerize (pink horned horse-like creatures) cards. They can be

modified via Quezacotl's 'Card Mod.' menu ability to obtain a 'Dragon 

Fin' and a 'Mesmerize Blade' respectively.

If you can't seem to find a Grendel card, you'll get your Dragon Fins

later on in Disc Two. However, you should be able to win a few 

lv. 2 Buel (ugly faces with spinning fins around them) cards. You've

encountered them before, in the Fire Caverns and Tomb of the Unknown

King. Modify 2 of these cards into 2 'Magic Stones'.

Match a 'Dragon Fin' with a 'Spider Web' to upgrade Zell's weapon. 

You can also link up a 'Mesmerize Blade' with 8 Screws for Squall's 

'Cutting Trigger', a weaker version of his 'Flame Saber'. Head for 

Caraway's Mansion when you're ready.

And no, even though the name suggests it, I doubt the 'Flame Saber'

does Fire-Elemental damage to enemies.

[Caraway's Mansion]

Rinoa suggests using a magical artefact which can supposedly curb

Edea's powers; Quistis dismisses the idea furiously, saying that 'it's

not a game'. The party then leaves, sans Rinoa. Follow Caraway.

 Tip:

After Caraway leads Quistis' party to the Gateway, he seems to

disappear into thin air. Actually, if you look hard enough, he's

walking among the crowd, towards the direction of the Presidential

Residence. Some gamers have difficulty distinguishing him, probably

attributed to the nature of his dark-coloured clothes. Follow him

with Squall's party.

[Arch of Triumph]

Quistis wonders whether she was too harsh with Rinoa, and decides to 

apologise to the latter. Return to Caraway's Mansion. (you don't have 

to junction your G.Fs yet).

[Presidential Residence] 

(note: You might want to junction Rinoa for a while)

Save as Rinoa, then look for a manhole to the right. Descend into 

the sewers using it, then head left to pick up the May issue of Weapons 

Monthly. Return to the previous save point afterwards. Climb the 

various crates to get to the top. Follow the path (there's a ladder to 

the left) to the roof-top. 

[Caraway's Mansion]

After that little twist, have Quistis examine the painting beside 

Selphie, then pick up a glass cup from the shelves on the left. Head 

into the leftmost background, and set the cup on the statue. 

Descend into the sewers, ride the waterwheel on the left of the 

screen, and keep heading upwards.

######################################

1.22. [The Parade Commences -- Presidential Residence]

Enemies: Creeps, Red Bat, Grand Mantis (Sewers)

Draw Points: Esuna, Zombie, Bio (Sewers)

G.F: Carbuncle (Iguion)

Magazines: Weapons Monthly May (Sewers)

Blue Magic: Electrocute OR LV?Death

Weapons: Slaying Tail (Quistis)

         Morning Star (Selphie)

#######################################

You'll take control of Squall from here. Follow Irvine (junction your 

G.Fs afterwards), save, then climb the crates in the same way you did 

with Rinoa. If you didn't get the May issue of Weapons Monthly from the

sewers using Rinoa, you can do it now too. Head straight for Edea's

Room to find Rinoa.

 Tip:

Be sure to have either Squall or Irvine equipped with the 'Draw'

command; you'll need to acquire a G.F soon.

---------------------------------------------------------------

BOSSES: Iguion x2  HP: 1,151  Weak: Earth, Holy  

                   Strong vs.: Fire, Poison

                   Draw List: Esuna, Cure, (Break), Carbuncle

                   AP: 10

Draw G.F. Carbuncle from these guys first (last option in draw menu), 

then quickly dispatch one of them as they can hit you with Resonance, a 

combination attack. Other offensive moves include Magma Breath (easily 

countered by drawing Esuna from them) which slowly petrifies your 

members. Use G.F. Brothers against them.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Carbuncle offers a character the ability to junction spells to Status

Attack and Defense. Try sticking a 'Sleep', 'Stop' or 'Death' spell

to Status Attack; it works pretty well against common enemies.

Retrace your steps to the corridor in the previous screen, and open the

hatch in the floor to the right. Go down and collect the rifle there.

[Deling Sewers] (note: Junction G.Fs)

The sewers may seem long and intimidating, but what you really have 

to do here is to simply follow the path (there's always only 1 or 2 

routes open to you at each point) until you loop around to get back 

to your original starting point, which is the ladder you climbed

down from previously to get to the Sewers. 

Push the ladders down on the way, and use only waterwheels that spin 

clockwise to make your way through. Some gates you'll have to open

with the 'X' (U.S) or 'Circle' (Japanese) button. I'll give you the

quickest way through:

1. Follow the 1 way trail until you reach a ladder which you can

   collapse. You can cross it to reach a 'Esuna' Draw Point, but you'll

   have to retrace your steps back to the collapsed ladder.

2. Moving on, the party will pass an unusable waterwheel, followed by a 

   ridable one. Head left first before riding it if you so wish for a 

   'Zombie' DP. There's also a 'Bio' DP south of the waterwheel.

3. The previous waterwheel will carry you over to the other side, to yet

   another wheel. Jump onto this one. Follow the path south and cross 

   the upcoming 2 waterwheels.

4. Collapse the next ladder you see... and you're back where you started 

   from. Head right from where you felled that ladder to another wheel. 

5. Ride it, follow the trail and loop around at the end to save. Climb 

   the nearby ladder to reach the upper levels of the Arch of Triumph.

Side events: Creeps (black shadows with 2 red eyes) offer 2 treasures: 

some drop Curse Spikes (at levels 20-29) which net you Quistis' 

'Level ? Death' and weaker ones drop Coral Fragments, which earns you 

'Electrocute', yet another Blue Magic. You can learn 'LV?Death' later

on in Disc Two, though.

Those who find themselves missing the Coral Fragments can obtain it 

via 'Card Mod.' Menu Ability, from Creeps' cards. 

Another creature lurks only in the stairway leading to the sewers: 

Grand Mantis, a huge scorpion-like monster. You can steal Sharp Spikes 

from it, opening access to weapon upgrades for Quistis (the Slaying

Tail; 2 Magic Stones and 2 Sharp Spikes) and Selphie (the Morning Star; 

2 Steel Orbs from the Wendigo or by modifying its card and 1 Sharp 

Spike). You can't get to a Junk Store for now, but hold on to those

items. Btw, save an extra Sharp Spike for later, too.

[The Galbadia Parade]

When Zell tells you to, control Quistis and hit the control panel to 

the left to drop the gates. However, Irvine shows his weak side at this 

crucial point, and finally Squall coaxes him into firing the decisive 

shot. Junction G.Fs to your characters now.

-----------------------------------------------------------

BOSS: Seifer  HP: 870  Weak: Poison  

              Draw List: Fire, Cure, Life  AP: 0

Steal Hero's Medicine or Holy War Medicine (it's all random) from him. 

Other than that, you may want to junction Fire to Elemental Defense for 

Squall before taking on Seifer. The latter also has Life magic, which 

I suggest you draw and stock. Other than that, hit him with G.Fs or the 

Gunblade for a quick kill.

Hero's Medicine is simply known as 'Hero' in the U.S version. Same

thing for Holy War Medicine (Holy War). One more thing: 'Raise' has

been translated as 'Life' in the U.S version.

BOSS: Edea  HP: 6,700  Draw List: Cura, Dispell, Life, Double

            AP: 20

Edea's arsenal consists of various level 3 elemental spells, so minimise 

damage with Shell magic. You can also cast Carbuncle G.F, thus resulting 

in Edea using Dispell to break your 'Reflect' status. Take this 

opportunity to attack her, or to draw Double magic from her. A bit on 

the difficult side, but she has friendly drawable spells such as Cura 

and Life, which you can exploit to your own advantage.

-----------------------------------------------------------