nik's Level One Ozma Challenge Thread.

[nik0tine]

I am attempting the level on Ozma challenge as of now. This will be the thread that I use to keep you all informed of my progress, and to ask for advice, etc. etc. etc.

I have just defeated Black Waltz no. 1 and the snow lion. I am currently headed towards Dali. However, I have been engaged in a battle with a python for about 20 minutes now trying to steal a goddamned phoenix pinion. It isn't working. So my first question to you all is this: Does Zidane get "better" at stealing the more he does it? How long, on average should it take for me to steal a phoenix pinion from one of those pythons? Thanks.

Mods - I don't see why you can't merge my other thread with this one. If you think it's necessary go ahead.

[Necronopticous]

Refer to my old thread for tips if you get stuck:

http://forums.eyesonff.com/showthread.php?t=54748

I posted strategies for tough parts for at least the first half of the challenge or so. Don't worry about stealing stuff for gil, you get plenty from selling stuff you pick up along the way for the most part. I don't ever remember having any problems with that.

Just make sure you steal the fork from Zaghnol during the festival of the hunt, or else you'll have to start all over like I did my first time around.

[nik0tine]

Don't worry. I've learned from your mistake and I've kept a mental note to do that since I started the game. :p

[boys from the dwarf]

Refer to my old thread for tips if you get stuck:

http://forums.eyesonff.com/showthread.php?t=54748

I posted strategies for tough parts for at least the first half of the challenge or so. Don't worry about stealing stuff for gil, you get plenty from selling stuff you pick up along the way for the most part. I don't ever remember having any problems with that.

Just make sure you steal the fork from Zaghnol during the festival of the hunt, or else you'll have to start all over like I did my first time around.
why do you need a fork to beat the game on level one.

[Necronopticous]

Because it's the only way to stone enemies that early in the game with its add status, if you don't get it you'll be forced to pick up the experience from the unavoidable battles.

[SoftReset]

I didn't see it mentioned in that thread (or in any Lv.1 FAQs I've used) so I'd like to point out that you CAN get the Coral Ring as well as the Needle Fork from the Festival of the Hunt.

Set the ATB to Wait, and have Zidane wait at the screen before the screen the Zaghnol appears in. He won't be there until 4:00 or less, and if you let that much time pass Freya will have the lead in points. After Zidane steals the Needle Fork have one of the two open the item menu and let the time run out. With the menu open the Zaghnol will be unable to act but the time will continue to pass. Freya will finish with the most points and you'll get your Coral Ring.

[Legendary Caladbolg]

And to answer your question about stealing Zidane doesn't get better at thieving the more he does it but he has a better chance of stealing the higher his spirit is.

[nik0tine]

Is there any way to raise his spirit without leveling up?

[boys from the dwarf]

equipmeant is the best thing to raise spirit but it doesnt raise it by much, but with stealing you just have to be patient becuase even with high spirit its still hard to steal.
EDIT: how far are you now nik?

[nik0tine]

I'm in Lindblum right now, preparing for the Festival of the hunt. However, I have just learned of a trick involving wrists that will net me a /xxx.gif/xxx.gif/xxx.gif/xxx.gifload of money. (All thanks to Necronopticous, of course) Luckily for me, I have a saving right outside of Dali, immediately before the fight with Black Waltz 3. I'm going to go back and buy 99 wrists and continue on. So, I have to backtrack a little, but I think it's worth it.

There haven't been any really "hard" fights yet, aside from the first blackwaltz. Black Waltz number one was a pain, and he killed me probably 6 or 7 times. I'm off to bed now. Tomorrow is Saturday so I should be able to make some significant progress.

Also, I'm toying with the idea of actually going ahead and trying to beat Necron with a level one party. I've heard it's not possible, but I'm sure a gameshark can get me past the few battles that will get me EXP.

Anyways, good night all.

[boys from the dwarf]

im sure that if you use stop or stone those unavoidable EXP battles wont get you any EXP.

[Necronopticous]

There is no way around it normally...gameshark might work but meh, I'm not interested in anything that requires a gameshark.

[Aeon]

"im sure that if you use stop or stone those unavoidable EXP battles wont get you any EXP"
Yup the other day some baddys got Stoned and i didnt gain EXP, and im pretty sure Stop works too

[Necronopticous]

They're immune to everything.

[Masamune·1600]

im sure that if you use stop or stone those unavoidable EXP battles wont get you any EXP.

The "unavoidable EXP battles" refer specifically to a sequence of battles against Amdusias, Abadon, and Shield Dragon at Pandemonium. These are the fights during which Zidane begins alone, only for other party members to show up. Amdusias, Abadon, and Shield Dragon all give EXP, and all are invulnerable to Petrify and Stop. As a result, it is impossible in a normal game to reach Necron with all Level 1 characters. However, by killing off certain characters and forcing others to take the unavoidable EXP, it's still possible to reach and defeat Necron with a Level 1 party.

Since Ozma can be battled before this, a true Level 1 Ozma game is possible.

EDIT: Necro already said it.

[Aeon]

you said cant get to the final boss level one...
Zombie status :)

[Masamune·1600]

Neither Zombie nor Virus can be present at the time of these battles.

[UWAOOOOU]

I can hardly believe its possible to do. You must really like that game. Good luck to ya.

[nik0tine]

I just got Quina. I stole the Fork from Zaghnol and I'm about to head to Gizamalukes Grotto. However, I don't have the add status ability for Quina. Where can I get equipment that teaches add status? As far as I know I can't stone enemies without the add status ability, and thusly, I cannot progress in this game.

[nik0tine]

*double posts*

Okay, so at the moment I am at Gizamalukes Grotto fighting the first set of black mages. I CANNOT, for the life of me, stone these guys. I've fought somewhere between 10-15 battles and I haven't even seen one of them get stoned yet. Exactly how rare is this?

[Masamune·1600]

The Black Mages are, unfortunately, fairly difficult to petrify under these circumstances. However, as higher Spirit will improve the likelihood of successfully adding the status effect, I would recommend equipping Quina in such a way that raises his/her Spirit as much as possible.

Also, once you've defeated the first group, save before taking on the second set of Mages.

In any case, even with higher Spirit, it's still going to be a matter of persistence and patience. If you keep at it though, you should be able to get through.

[Necronopticous]

Yeah, it's really hard. You're going to definately want to equip anything and everything you have that will raise spirit on Quina, that's the most important thing. Even then it's really difficult, heal the black mages with potions if you have to, just keep trying.

[SoftReset]

I opened the game in a hex viewer and managed to track down weapon info, and the Needle Fork's add status has an effect rate of 10. I'm not even sure what that means, if it's a 10% chance or a number used in conjuction with Quina's stats in some equation, but 10 used in any way is pretty low.

The extra 1 or 2 increase to Spirit you can get from equipment at that point probably means jack in the long run.

[nik0tine]

Well, I've made it past the first black mage battle and I've been working on the second. Damn, I can't wait 'till this part if over.

[SoftReset]

The worst is yet to come. The escape from Alexandria Dungeon and the first visit to the Iifa Tree are so much more frustrating.

[nik0tine]

Okay, so I did it. I finally fucking did it. I've won both battles with the black mages and now I'm off to kill Gizamaluke. Wish me luck, guys.

Edit: Gizamaluke went down very easily on my first try. I also managed to steal both the Magus Hat and Vivi's Ice Staff from him. I'll just pretend that is the reward I get for going through all that trouble with those Black Mages.

Double Edit: Vivi's stop is the greatest thing to ever happen to video games.

[Ultima Shadow]

Awww, crap! I can't belive I haven't seen this thread until now! Oh well... :greenie:

Just a question: Did you get "Limmit Globe" for Quina?

I'll be following your progress to the very end, so keep updating. :cool:


Man, it's been a while since I did a challange myself. But I'm currently too busy with Xenosaga 2 and SSBM. :p

I've been considering doing a Xenosaga 1 challange someday soon, though.

[Necronopticous]

Nice to see you're progressing well, just wait until you get to Cleyra. ;]

[boys from the dwarf]

good luck on burmecia. keep us updated.

[RaidenWeb17]

Ohh. Cleyra will be a major b****. You have to fight like five battles in a row and you cant run from them. That sucks. I am playing through FF9 again and after this playthrough I will attempt to give the lvl 1 Ozma challenge a go. This thread has inspired me to do so.

[nik0tine]

Disk 2, baby.

[RaidenWeb17]

SWEET!!!! Keep it up!!!!

[Jiro]

dude, you're psycho. i like you! good luck man

[boys from the dwarf]

keep us updated and so far so good.

[Ultima Shadow]

Hey, Nik! How's it going? :cool:

[nik0tine]

Not so good. I can't find disk 2! :p

[RaidenWeb17]

UH-OH!!! Dude that sucks

[Ultima Shadow]

Ouch! :yuck:

[boys from the dwarf]

WTF! :eek: eek :eek:. does onyone you know have a FF9 disk two because you may have to go and find one on the internet and buy it.

[Slothy]

You know, this has got to be the most dissapointing thing I've ever heard of. Here's hoping you find that disc.

[nik0tine]

Don't worry, I will be finding that disk two. And if I don't I'll be buying another copy of FFIX or borrowing it from a friend. I'm not gonna let this one go so easily. That would just be ridiculous.

[Nick Schovitz]

That's what's wrong with Final Fantasy back on PS1 all of those discs, my first FFOX disc is scratched so I have to get it fixed at Player's Choice.

[Randgris]

I've a teeny, tiny question: you said no single permanent character. Does that mean all the playable characters minus Blank, Beatrix and that other dude in blue? I'm gonna try this challege when I have enough time (maybe vacation, it's still X-Mas break here).

[nik0tine]

I'm not totally sure I follow you, Seikon. If you mean what I think you mean, then yes, all permanent characters must be at level one (Or, more accurately, no character above the level of one may face off with you against Ozma) Beatrix, Blank, Marcus, etc. may all level up, however. If blank gains a level, though, keep in mind that Amarant will be at level 2 when you get him. Unfortunately that happened to me, but I wasn't planning on using Amarant for the final fight with ozma anyhow.

Edit: So, I found disk two and now I'm at Treno. Is it possible to beat that Griffon? I have the blood sword with steiner and with him in the front row i can do 850-940 damage. Problem is in the front row every attack kills me in one hit. In the backrow, I can only do about 450 damage, and I can only just BARELY survive griffons tail attack. I think I need to attack griffon at LEAST three times to win from the back row. Is it possible to beat Griffon at all?

[RaidenWeb17]

yep there is a way to beat the Griffin. Have Auto-Potion equipped and sell all your Potions so that when Auto-Potion kicks in you will use a Hi-Potion. Use a Tent on the Griffin and wait for the snake to bite it so it will cause lots of status effects. Then it will be blinded and poisoned and slowed down and you should be able to kill it. You get a Tonberry Card for beating it. Its not much use to you, but whatever

[nik0tine]

I'm climbing Cleyra's trunk now.

[boys from the dwarf]

nice one.

[nik0tine]

Yeah, so cleyra is fucking hell. Thank GOD I didn't take the advice of that guide on gamefaqs and sell all of my ethers. Had I done that, I'd probably have to start over.

[RaidenWeb17]

and that would suck

[nik0tine]

No kidding.

[boys from the dwarf]

how far ar4 u now.

[Llanowar]

Also remember that if MARCUS levels up Eiko will also start at a higher level if I remember correctly.....something about stat overwrites or something.....Blank levels Amarant and Marcus levels Eiko(I think) Been a long time since I HAVE done this and I don't remember for sure.

[nik0tine]

Well, I put off playing for a few days but I got back into it tonight. I've past Cleyra now and I'm about to head into Alexandria. I would play more, but I have a psych final to worry about tomorrow.

[Slothy]

Well, I put off playing for a few days but I got back into it tonight. I've past Cleyra now and I'm about to head into Alexandria. I would play more, but I have a psych final to worry about tomorrow.

There'll be plenty of time for games after your finals so don't worry about it. I myself finished mine a few days ago and have been playing games just about all day since.

[RaidenWeb17]

Yeah I just beat Ozma for the third time. I really didnt do anything special. Zidane was lvl 60 and Freya lvl 57, Quina lvl 58, and Steiner lvl 54. I know its nothing special just thought I would tell you, maybe it will give you a little push.

[nik0tine]

haha, thanks. I've actually never beaten Ozma before, so my first time beating him will be done at level one. That makes for some good bragging rights, I think. :p

[nik0tine]

This is a double post because I desperately need help. I cannot figure out how to get past the alexandrian soldiers with steiner and marcus. They either A) Kill me or B) I kill them and get experience. The hell do I do, exactly?

Oh yeah, I don't have the mythril sword.

[RaidenWeb17]

Uh-oh...I dont know what to do....

[Necronopticous]

What you have to do is basically deal just enough damage to make them run away. The best method is the use the Mythril Sword along with Man Eater. Experiment with the equipment you do have and going in the front/back row, etc. With enough patience you should be able to make them flee, netting you 0 exp. It's a difficult part, even if you do have the right equipment if I remember right.

[Rengori]

Showoff.

EDIT: I mean, yay nik!

[Ultima Shadow]

Yeah, basically what Necro said. Try dealing somewhere around 400 dammage. Also, I may be wrong but... I think it's possible to avoid that battle somehow... I may be wrong though. But dealing about 400 dammage, or slightly more perhaps, should make them escape.

[nik0tine]

Okay. I just figured out that with the Blood sword with Steiner in the front row wihout maneater equipped I can do at lesat 406 damage. Will the soldiers run away immediately or can they still attack before running away?

Edit: Okay, so I just did it. Time for some much needed progression

Double Edit: I've just passed the six battles in Alexandria castle. I don't think I've ever had so much fun before. It wasn't overly frustrating (I only died once) but it was exhillerating. I hope there are more battles like this!

In fact, after doing this I would recommend this challenge to anyone. It's really alot of fun.

Triple Edit: What made this especially fun for me is that I ran out of phoenix downs and I only have five potions left. My heart was pounding the whole time.

[Ultima Shadow]

Congratulations on getting past that point! :cool:

Triple Edit: What made this especially fun for me is that I ran out of phoenix downs and I only have five potions left. My heart was pounding the whole time.
It's, probably more than anything else, these kind of moments that makes challanges so incredibly enjoyable and great. :cool:

The "right to brag" is almost as good, though. Mwahahaha! xD

[nik0tine]

I've beaten the snake boss right after Alexandria, and after that my game freezes. Looks like I won't be playing again until I borrow my friends copy. Hopefully I'll get it from him tomorrow.

[Ultima Shadow]

Ouch. Oh well... make sure to borrow it as soon as possible. :greenie:

[nik0tine]

Well, I couldn't borrow it but I was lucky enough to get my game working again.

I'm battling Hilgigars right now. It's tough, but it's fun. So far he's killed me three times. I'll post another update when I beat him.

Edit: That was fsking intense. Hilgigars is beat.

[RaidenWeb17]

AWESOME!!!! Keep at it!!

[Ultima Shadow]

The fact that I haven't played this game in probably over a year almost makes me want to do this challange AGAIN! xD

[nik0tine]

I'm at the Iifa Tree right now, and I'm wondering if this is even possible. I cannot reach the first save moogle. Every single time I get into a battle it's with one of those huge trees, they always attack first, and they always use sweep and wipe out my entire party in one hit. I think I must have been killed 10 times in a row by these guys.

[Ace14]

try to do something before it does like cast flee or something, I'm not very good at this.:sweat:

[nik0tine]

Well thats a given. :p
They always tend to get to attack first, though.

[KoShiatar]

Uh, and you don't have things like Auto-Haste yet, I suppose...

[crashNUMBERS]

Level one ozma?? How is that possible?? Not to win but to stay at level one...

[Necronopticous]

How is that possible?? Not to win but to stay at level one...By doing it the right way.

[crashNUMBERS]

Which is??

[Alexander]

*sighs*

Petrifying and Stopping all enemies gives you no EXP, only AP. Bosses give only AP as well. So, just Petrify and Stop all the way to get your AP.

There you go.

[crashNUMBERS]

*sighs*
Don't you sigh at me!!

[-N-]

Read the thread, you moron. Yeah, I'm calling you a moron, Crash. Report me.

nik, this thread gets my blood pumping almost as hard as the Excalibur II challenge. :D

edit: never mind, this is way more intense. Good luck. I can't believe you're that far.

[Ultima Shadow]

xD

How's it going, Nik? Got past that part yet?

[nik0tine]

Well, Christmas came and this sort of got put on hold for a few days. (Although I' say Resident Evil 4 is a good enough reason for that. :p) Anyhow, I started playing again today and I've finally got Zidane in zombie status. It took for fucking ever before I figured out that the person in character slot #2 gets attacked with zombie status far more often than any other character. I was kind of pissed when I finally got him to attack zidane and then zidane used auto potion. :mad2: I had forgotten to take it off just that one time.

I'm now about to use a tent and then I will head off to complete the Iifa tree. Wish me luck guys. I hope to have a status report by the end of the day.

Edit: I DID IT! I finally killed off the zombies AND the dracozombie without gaining any EXP. That was, hands down, the hardest and most frustrating thing I have ever had to do in any video game I have ever played. Now all that's left is for me to kill the boss. He should be fairly easy since he's undead and all.

I can't beleive it took me all fucking day to do this. I'll be happy to be done with the Iifa Tree.

[nik0tine]

This is an important update. I have, as of now, completed the second disk. I managed to defeat the mist monsters on about my 8th try, so it wasn't too frustrating. I'm all pumped up and ready for the third disk!

[Ultima Shadow]

By "the mist monster", I guess you mean that UNDEAD boss inside the Iifa Tree, right?

If that's the one you mean, then... well, you COULD have simply used a Pheonix Down on it... just in case you didn't know. It's much cooler to beat it without using Life or Pheonix Down, though. ;)

[nik0tine]

By "the mist monster", I guess you mean that UNDEAD boss inside the Iifa Tree, right?
No, I'm talking about the ones that Kuja spawns at the Iifa tree at the end of disk 2. Those grey.. things that use the mist attack.

[Ultima Shadow]

Oh... okay, those! I completely forgot about those things. :p

[Psychotic]

Just so you know, I'm rooting for Ozma.

[nik0tine]

Fuck you.

[RaidenWeb17]

They're called Mistodons

[nik0tine]

So I've dug up the vast majority (if not all) of the Chocographs that are available to you with an ocean chocobo. Some of the rather nice equipments I have at this point are the High Mage Staff, the Black Robe, the White Robe, and the Light Robe. I also have an N-kai armlet along with a few other useful items. I'll soon be heading into Kuja's palace. Althogh first I am considering powering up Thievery to an extent at least. Wish me luck.

[RaidenWeb17]

Good luck

[nik0tine]

I just picked the game up again today and I just passed Oeilvert. I managed to steal the Holy Lance within one steal and then the rest of the battle was smooth sailing from there, since nothing ark did could finish off dagger. Now I'm in the desert palace, and I'm not sure how im supposed to go about doing this. It's impossible to run from random battles. Am I seriously supposed to have Vivi use stop in every battle? How is it even possible to survive that long? Any tips would be much appreciated *looks at Ultima Shadow*

Edit: Never mind, it wasn't actually that hard. I'm heading to Esto Gaza now.

[RaidenWeb17]

keep it up

[nik0tine]

I've beaten the red dragons in mount gulug, and i've left Esto Gaza in an attempt to power up thievery. It's going to take me a while, but I have it up to 1725 damage.

I just realized I'm almost done with this challenge. Ozma is the next boss after MeltiGemini.

[Necronopticous]

Woo, I remember powering up Thievery and Dragon's Crest... Took me all day one day, getting virus on all your characters is a pain in the ass from the Yans.

[nik0tine]

Thievery is at around 3200 damage as of right now. I probably won't get it up to 9999 tonight, but my goal is to get up to 8000 by tomorrow. Then I'll finish off meltigemini. From there, I'll simultaneously level up both Dragon Crest and Thievery. I'll do this by killing dragons while I have Zidane stealing at the same time. (yeah, how the hell else would I do it?)

[Necronopticous]

Just focus on thievery, dragon's crest doesn't take long at all after that. If you do both at once you're moving into an intellectual "free-zone."

[nik0tine]

Just focus on thievery, dragon's crest doesn't take long at all after that. If you do both at once you're moving into an intellectual "free-zone."
:lol:


Well, I now have Thievery at 4080 4,400 damage. This is taking a long time.

I'll be careful to heed your advice, though, Jeremy. The last thing I need right now is brain lipo suction.

[Primus Inter Pares]

Every time I read this thread my urge to play FFIX again grows.

But it'll be some time before I attempt anything as stupid as a Level one Ozma challenge :cool:

[nik0tine]

It's fun dude! You really should try it.

...But I guess you kinda do have to be a super-nerd of sorts.

btw, thievery is now at around 4600 4,776 damage.

And also, I'd like some help. It took me roughly 17 minutes to add an additional 200 damage on thievery. With that in mind, help me develope an equation so that I can figure out how many minutes this is going to take me. I'd do it myself but one) I suck at math and two) It's 6:40 am and it's mildly difficult to succesfully do something you absolutely blow at when you are tired.

Right now all I can think of is 9999/200= like 50 or something, but that just tells me how many times I have to steal if I were adding 200 damage to thievery per succesful steal.

Edit: Now I'm thinking 200/17*9999 would work. Is that correct?

Double Edit: Thievery is now past the 6,000 mark, and I am going to bed.

[RaidenWeb17]

Just keep stealing and dont worry about the equation. I remember when I first powered up Thievery to 9999. I felt so awsome.

[nik0tine]

Does anyone know where I can get the ability Auto Haste?

[Ace14]

You get Auto-Haste from running shoes which you get from the reunion in Quan's dwelling. All you have to do is go to Quan's dwelling after alexandria is destroyed ,bring vivi and quina, and just go to the peak after the scene with quina. If you already did that you might MIGHT!!! be able to get them at the auction.

[nik0tine]

I just went to Quans dwelling, both Vivi and Quina are in my party, and I got nothing. There was no scene. I've seen it before, but nothing happened this time. Alexandia has already been destroyed, so perhaps I have to get it at a different time? I'd seriously prefer it now so I can power up thievery much faster.

Edi: I still don't have auto haste but I do have thievery powered up to 8,700 damage. I'm now going to go kill melti gemini and then I'll continue to power up thievery.

Double Edit: I took Meltigemini out on my first try.

[RaidenWeb17]

Nice!! The thing about Quan's Dwelling is weird. It should have shown if Alexandria has been destroyed, but remember you have to examine the clock to get the running shoes

[nik0tine]

No, apparently you can only do it once you have saved Eiko. I went back there after killing meltigemini and it worked just fine.

I have Thievery up to 9,200 damage. I also have th egold chocobo and I've dug up all of the chocographs, so that sidequest is done. I'm currently having everyone learn the auto life ability, then I'll get virus from the yans and I'll power up dragons crest and finish with thievery.

[raskerino]

So you'll be facing Ozma soon, congrats! I assume you're going to beat Necron with a level 1 party (not everyone, but you can get at least four characters still at level 1). As a few here have said I've been inspired to play this and am on disk 2. I'm at the point where Steiner and Marcus break out, and am figuring out the setup needed to drive Alexandrian soldiers away. The best setup I have is Steiner with man eater and a mythril sword but it seems to do irregular damage so I'm not sure if it works (it did 450 the first hit sending one away but only 400 to the other leaving me screwed). I must say this is a very enjoyable challenge!

[Ace14]

This thread has motivated alot of people to try the lvl.1 ozma challange, I might even try it.:D

[nik0tine]

So you'll be facing Ozma soon, congrats! I assume you're going to beat Necron with a level 1 party (not everyone, but you can get at least four characters still at level 1). As a few here have said I've been inspired to play this and am on disk 2. I'm at the point where Steiner and Marcus break out, and am figuring out the setup needed to drive Alexandrian soldiers away. The best setup I have is Steiner with man eater and a mythril sword but it seems to do irregular damage so I'm not sure if it works (it did 450 the first hit sending one away but only 400 to the other leaving me screwed). I must say this is a very enjoyable challenge!Actually, you are not screwed, so long as you have mastered minus strike. If the enemy doesnt run away the first time, wait for an enemy to attack you (but make sure the attack isn't blizzara) and then use minus strike. It should be enough to force them to run. Congrats though, you are about a half an hour away from the most intense (and fun) part of the challenge, escaping Alexandria.

I'd like to finish the game and take on Necron, but I'm not sure if I'm going to. I do know that as soon as I beat Ozma I am going to attempt an FF8 challenge. I may come back to FFIX and finish Necron at a later date, though.

Edit: Front row with Blood Sword and no man eater works well. There will still be times however, when you must use minus strike. Also, it is possible, albeit difficult, to run past the alexandrian gaurds.

[nik0tine]

I'm making a double post in hopes that someone will read this and help me out. I can't figure out how to get virus equipped on all of my characters. The yan uses virus and kills my character, i petrify the yan and win the battle. However, they don't have virus when the battle ends. I had Eiko get hit with virus powder (or whatever the hell the attack is called) and she didn't get virus. However, zidane got hit with it and DID get virus. So, what the hell? I can't figure this out.

Ignore this. I managed to get virus on all four of my characters. I've managed to get Thievery up to 9,999 Damage (finally!!) and Dragon Crest is around 3500 or something. I plan on having this entire challenge completed by tomorrow.

[Ultima Shadow]

Wow, i missed a lot while being on that SSBM tourney. Oh well, good luck Nik! And great progress so far! :cool:

[RaidenWeb17]

wow this is awsome

[Ace14]

Yeah great job!:D :D :D

[Ciretho]

Incredible! You're awsome man. I've never done a FF challenge before but this has really inspired me to do so. Thanks!

[nik0tine]

Sorry guys. I still haven't finished it. School started and I've been doing alot more sleeping than anything else. I plan to finish this the next time I pick this game up, which will happen when I'm not so tired that I absolutely have to go to bed first thing when I come home.

[RaidenWeb17]

Hey man take your time, we can wait

[Eiko Guy]

no we cant

[Necronopticous]

Ozma is a pushover compared to the rest of the challenge. You'll have him beat within 10 tries, the problem is that getting up the Chocobo Air Garden 10 times in a row can be annoying. My suggestion to you is to find the Air Garden's shadow somewhere and save right by it where you can see it from the place you save. If you die, keep resetting until it's there again, that saves you tons of time flying all over Gaia trying to find it again. Basically you want to be like the person who looks at a building and says, "I don't know if there is a builder."

[raskerino]

I'm having a lot of trouble with the part in Alexandria after Zorn and Thorn. I have a Coral Ring which seems helpful but don't have the reflect ring... I could have picked it up earlier but didn't think it would be important. I've got 10 phoenix downs and 8 phoenix pinions which I think is enough in the phoenix department. I can beat Beatrix without to much trouble and I usually beat the first Bandersnatch if it doesn't lick Beatrix (I hope no one makes a sex comment). But the hard part is the Black Mages. My strategy is use tents with Zidane and Steiner, Stop with Vivi and cast reflect with Dagger. However (I've tried maybe 6 times) they always wipe me out really quickly so I'm wondering if there's anything better I can do with the turns I get or if there's any helpful equipment not talked about in Hyprophant's walkthough. Anyone?

[nik0tine]

Your strategy sounds great to me. Have Dagger cast reflect on Zidane first, followed by someone who does not have a coral ring next. (I recommend you give the coral ring to vivi, unless there is something that raises his spirit significantly)

If you get a chance, have vivi focus. Also, casting silence with dagger sometimes works and it can be a good idea if you have a free turn with her.

[raskerino]

My problem is lack of free turns though... oh well. I'll try again some time today.

Edit: I beat the Black Mages and got smoked in fight #5, Freya started dead (forced), Beatrix had 375 life which was killed in one thundara. I then checked Hyprophant's walkthrough and saw I was supposed to get the initiative- so it really pissed me off that the bar started about 1/3 full.

[nik0tine]

Don't you have a coral ring? If so, equip it on Beatrix. It becomes very difficult for her to die if she has a coral ring.

[mooglebunni608]

i'm starting the challenge today (!!)
but i have a problem!!!!
in the evil forest, theres the boss, and then, when your running for the exit there are those wierd plant thingys, and i was never able to run from them..... i always level up there.......
whaddo i do??

[raskerino]

You have to restart until there are only two of them. Then you can kill them with all characters alive- everyone gets 11 exp. no one levels up.

[nik0tine]

Or you can kill everyone off except for blanc. Amarant will be at level 3, however, but it doesnt make a difference because you don't use him in the fight against ozma anyway.

[nik0tine]

I think this warrents a double post...

OZMA HAS BEEN BEATEN!

...Not only that, I beat Ozma on my first try. I thought I was screwed at first, because I forgot to equip Zidane with auto life, but I won anyway.

The battle went a little something like this. Ozma attacks, killing Eiko. Zidane uses thievery (9,500 damage) followed by Freya using dragon crest. (9999 damage) Ozma berserks freya and Eiko uses dark matter (9999 damage). Quina uses Auto-raise on Zidane. somewhere along the line, Zidane goes berserk and attacks ozma (by this point he is also in mini status) and does 23 damage. Ozma uses curaga and restores 9,500 HP. Ozma uses curse. Everyone is dead. Zidane and quina are revived using auto-life. Ozma immediately uses doomsday and takes 8,300 damage whilst Quina and Zidane take 0 damage. Quina uses Limit Glove (9999 damage) and Zidane uses thievery (9500 damage) and Ozma is dead.

Pretty good, if you ask me. Especially since this is the first time I've actually beaten Ozma. :p

The fight went quick. It was easy, but intense at the same time. Lots of fun.

Edit: Final Game time - 54 hours, 20 minutes.

[raskerino]

Let me be the first to type congratulations!

[Slothy]

And let me be the second: congratulations. You've really got me wanting to do this, but I know I don't have the kind of time to commit to a challenge like this at the moment. Perhaps in a few months.

[Alexander]

Third to say "Congratulations" ^^

And I've decided to do this challenge, as well! xD~ The only FF "challenge" that I actually finished was the FFVIII's No Level Up Game, and THAT is not a challenge. T_T

I just wanted to know if I really need to impress 100 nobles. I've NEVER EVER done that T_T

[raskerino]

It hasn't hurt me so far (I've always had enough money and I have 8 unsold Phoenix Pinions) and I'm at Alexandria (Disk 2) having only gotten 93 or about 880 gil.

Edit: I beat the black mages and the bandersnatches YAY!

[nik0tine]

You do not need to impress 100 nobles, unless you want an extra moonstone.

Buying 99 wrists in dali, and 99 steepled hats in lindblum, and then synthesizing them into 99 cottons robes and selling them will make you enough money to last the majority of the game, especially if you do it again in the second disk, which you will get the opportunity to do. (Just make sure you buy 99 steepled hats in lindblum AGAIN after you have synthed 99 cotton robes.)

Late in the game you'll be able to do this as much as you like.

Also, I have decided to continue the game and beat the final boss at level one. I'm at Ipsens castle right now, and I found a room that I did not know existed. I've played through this game enough to know, off the top of my head, what is in many of the treasure boxes, and I can sometimes predict the dialogue with 100% accuracy. However, this just goes to show you that there is something new to discover every time you play through this game.

What I'm talking about is the hidden door right before the bossfight in ipsens castle. You have to push it, pound it, think about it, "do something drastic" and then rest, and it opens up a secret passage. Has anybody else seen this before? If so, what do I do with the old bottles? The ones in the room with what looks like a giant electrified sword.

Edit: Never mind, I figured it out.

[nik0tine]

This, too, deserves a double post. I am in Terra now, fighting the three unavoidable battles. I must say, this is the most intense thing I have ever done. I didnt look at the guide, and now I am ill equipped for these battles. I did, however, manage to get to the third battle after about 5 tries. I haven't started that battle up yet. I'm going to now. I just need to take a deep breath and hope I can pull this off. I do NOT want to start all over. Wish me luck, because I know this is doable.

Edit: God damnit.

[raskerino]

That was a good buildup for sucha concise finish.

I past the black mages and bandersnatches (fun adrenaline rush) and got smashed by Lani, as water obliterated my party- especially 1HP Quina. She seems easy though as all I have to do is pound her with Limit Glove. Is anything fun or challenging coming up?

[nik0tine]

Two words. Iifa Tree.

Try to steal from Lani. That makes the battle fun. Also, have Quina use auto life and Dagger should use reflect. That way, water won't kill you. If you have a coral ring, equip it on someone. I'd say equip it on Zidane, but that's just me. (Just DON'T equip it on Dagger)

Oh yeah, You'll be fighting Hilgigars relatively soon. That battle is freaking fun.

[RaidenWeb17]

Hey Congrats on killing Ozma!!! I might do this challenge whenever I play FF9 again, but not right now...

[Ace14]

Yeah congrats on killing Ozma especially on your first time.:D :D I'm going to try the challange, but I broke my disk 4:cry: so I can't fight the last boss on lvl.1.

[Ultima Shadow]

*is late because of lack of activity*

Hey, congratulations on beating Ozma, Nik!:cool:

[boys from the dwarf]

wow. i could never do all of that.

[Dragoon Kain]

i want to do this challenge but i need to know this first. is the only move u can use for quina limit glove or is there a way to learn frog drop without leveling up?

[-N-]

I suppose technically you have completed the challenge, but best of luck to finish the rest of the game at level 1 as well. What level will you be at after the 3 battles?

[nik0tine]

I'll have three characters around level 25. My other five will remain at level one.

[Alexander]

About Quina - well, you can Eat the frog thing to learn Frog Drop. The catch is that Frog Drop will NEVER do enough damage in this challenge - since it is Quina's Lv multiplied by the number of frogs, you have to catch the grand total of 9999 frogs. o_o

And since I have some forced Lv Up at Disc 3, I will try to get the best equipment possible, so the LvUp won't be... "in vain" XD

[nik0tine]

You'll already have killed Ozma before that happens.

[raskerino]

I have a question, I've gotten to the Black Mage village and am pretty sure that I'll need to get the reflect ring at this point, but I don't have an anklet- is there anyway I can get this?

I got lucky when coming there, as I found the friendly butterfly thing which gave me 20 AP. Oh yeah, one other question, I want to get the Phoenix Pinions from the chocobo treasure near here but I can't find chocobo footsteps, where are the nearest ones?

[nik0tine]

There are chocobo tracks very close to black mage village, if i remember correctly.

Also, do you need an anklet at all? I don't remember needing an anklet.

[raskerino]

To synth a reflect ring you need a Madain Ring (which I've synthed) and an Anklet (which I'm lacking).

[Dragoon Kain]

About Quina - well, you can Eat the frog thing to learn Frog Drop. The catch is that Frog Drop will NEVER do enough damage in this challenge - since it is Quina's Lv multiplied by the number of frogs, you have to catch the grand total of 9999 frogs. o_o

And since I have some forced Lv Up at Disc 3, I will try to get the best equipment possible, so the LvUp won't be... "in vain" XD


oh yea i forgot about the level thing :( i dont like limit glove. is it possible to catch 9999 frogs? lol and how do you level up amarants no mercy? does that involve level too?

[Alexander]

You'll already have killed Ozma before that happens.

But, like you, I'll try to beat NEcron at Lv1. And I don't want to be at Lv25 with Lv1 stats (RIGHT, normal-game-Eiko? >_>) >_<

And Amarant's No Mercy doesn't use Lv in the equation. Or, at least, it is not as important as it is in Frog Drop. @_@

[nik0tine]

This is a long overdue update.

I didn't play at all this week until today. I used a saving before terra and prepared myself for the battles in pandmonium. I have finally killed those stupid beasts, and I can now progress with the game with Vivi, Freya, Eiko, Quina, and Zidane all at level one. I'm glad this part is over.

Edit: Silver Dragon: Owned.

Edit: Garland: Owned.

Edit: Kuja: Owned.

Disk Three: Complete. Necron, here I come.

[Zeromus_X]

oh cool! well good luck! (i could never try such a challenge so i commend all of you!)

but i have a question...why would you need to buy 99 steepled hats and get 99 cotton robes? to sell em all? just curious. :cat: :choc2:

i thought the pandaemonium enemies always gave exp in that succesive battle...did you stone them or something? (probably a stupid question, but i do want to know.)

[nik0tine]

i thought the pandaemonium enemies always gave exp in that succesive battle...did you stone them or something? (probably a stupid question, but i do want to know.)They do give exp. and you cannot stone them. You are forced to make one character level up. You have to weaken the enemy, and then, kill off two of your characters at the last second and then have the designated character attack. It's very difficult, and very annoying, because if you die, you have to go through a good five minute cutscene before you can try again.

Edit: I'm in memoria now. Nova Dragon was a pushover, and after dealing with a minor setback (I had forgotten to make sure that one person was in auto life status) Maliris is dead.

I just went out and got virus on all of my characters, because I have every intention of fighting Hades.

[RaidenWeb17]

Sweet!!
I started my Lv1 challenge today and I am about to fight Black Waltz No.3. This is a really good challenge and I feel so exhilarated when I beat a boss. This brings me back to day when I first played FF9 and all my people would die because I sucked at it, but now my people die because they are on Lv1. I will have to do this every time I play FF9 from now, because this is definitly the only way to play FF9

[nik0tine]

Hades is a total pushover. I beat him on my first try, too. I've synthed the Save the Queen and now I'm about to go after Kraken. I predict Necron being dead by the end of today.

[Ace14]

Good luck:D

[nik0tine]

Kraken is dead. Lich is dead. The only thing left now is for me to face Deathguise, Kuja, and then Necron. It's hard to believe this challenge is almost over.

Deathguise was difficult. It took me three tries to beat him. His Meteor/Spin combo is a freaking bitch.

Kuja is going down, and Necron is going down. This challenge will be completed within the hour.

Trance Kuja is dead. Another pushover who went down on the first try. Now, only Necron remains. Hopefully I won't die, so that I don't have to do the Trance Kuja battle again.

[nik0tine]

Your final update warrants a double post, I think.

In other words: I win. I beat Ozma, Hades, Trance Kuja, and Necron on my first try.

The battle with Necron was difficult, but I perservered. The battle started out with Freya using Dragons Crest, and Zidane using Thievery. Then Necron used Blue Shockwave, reducing Quinas HP to one, allowing me to use Limit Glove. Unfortunately, Necron used Thundaga before I had the chance to use it, and my party was wiped out. Everyone was brought back to life with Auto Raise. Zidane used Thievery again, and then Necron used Grand Cross which zombified everyone but Zidane. I had Quina immediately cast Auto-Life on Zidane (Instead of using limit glove) and I tried, once again, to have vivi use Dark Matter, but Necron wiped everyone out again, although with what I do not remember. Zidane uses Thievery. Necron uses Blue Shockwave. Zidane uses Thievery. At this point, I was certain that I was dead. Necron uses blue shockwave. Zidane's turn is up, and I'm out of MP, I no longer have Auto-Life, and everyone is dead, and not revivable due to the zombie status. I sat with the game paused, for a while, wondering if I should attack him with a physical attack and hope he dies, or if I should use an Ether and hope he uses another blue shockwave (not likely). But wait! At that moment I remembered that Vivi had not yet used the Dark Matter! I quickly selected the item button and selected Dark Matter. Necron takes 9999 damage, and perishes. That's all folks. This challenge is officially over.

[RaidenWeb17]

Awsome GREAT JOB!!!!

I am about to go into Burmecia and cant wait

[Alexander]

Yay~~~~ I hope I'll have the same luck XD

Oh, nik, I forgot to ask... to power up Thievery, Dragon's Crest, and to fight Ozma and Hades, did you use Zombie Method or Virus Method to don't get Exp. I want to know which one is easier. XD

[nik0tine]

I used Virus method. It's not easy, though.

I figure virus is better since in zombie status there is no healing, and you can't revive dead party members. In fact, it would be impossible to defeat Ozma in zombie status unless you got impossibly lucky.

[Ace14]

GOOD JOB in beating Necron!!!:D

[RaidenWeb17]

I used Virus method. It's not easy, though.

I figure virus is better since in zombie status there is no healing, and you can't revive dead party members. In fact, it would be impossible to defeat Ozma in zombie status unless you got impossibly lucky.
You can revive the dead party members, you just have to use a Magic Tag on them first while they're dead, then a phoenix down, but I would go with Virus anyways

[Ultima Shadow]

Heh, the way the Necron battle turned out was awesomel. :p Congratulations, Nik! :cool:

[Zeromus_X]

hey nik0tine, would it be possible to make videos of you beating ozma (and the game)? i dont really know how recording them works, i was just wondering. ( ive always wanted to see ozma die...just not in russian.) :cat:

[nik0tine]

I've been asked that before and I don't exactly know how to do it. I'd love to, but I'm not sure if I have the resources.

[Butz]

You'll need Demon's Mail and for some reason they are not buyable on Disc4 so don't miss them ;)

[Shauna]

Wow. That's awesome. I haven't been following this at all. But still. Wow.

[Dignified Pauper]

This is simply unimpressive.


j/k LOL!

[Alexander]

Since no one ws interested in my topic I'll ask here

I am currently very near Ozma now (Escape from Alexandria, Iifa Tree, AND Meltigemini on the bag in my first try <3) and I am stealing to power up Thievery (so boring ~_~). I was wondering if I can use someone else instead of Eiko to fight Ozma o_o

[RaidenWeb17]

Day-um Alex has been busy!!

P.S. Nik has awsome hair

[abel]

holy shizzle.....ozma AND necron. nik that rules.