SO3 : For the love of cheese help!

[Captain Maxx Power]

Zeromus_X! Ultima Shadow! Anybody! I need help!

OK, I've almost completed the game (sans Battle Trophies thanks to a faulty disc/memory card), but I'm basically getting my touche handed to me regularly. I heard talk of Orchialum or somesuch that'll help a lot, but I haven't the foggiest idea how to go about it. I'm using Fayt, Cliff and Albel as my main party (don't tell me I should use someone else, the other characters are severely underlevelled). I'm doing the second visit to the Shrine of Kadaan.

Basically, what can I do to power myself up at this point? SO3 distinctly lacks any side-quests for uber-gear. I'm currently Level 60ish.

[Mirage]

Just buff Maria and you won't need Orichalcum for the last boss. Maria's easy to level because you can solo enemies with her at 40, that you have problems with on level 70 with almost any other character.

[LunarWeaver]

Wow, I used this same exact team and when I got to the end boss I couldn't win. We have similar problems it seems.

I got so frustrated I just YouTubed the ending..Er, one of them.

I don't have much advice for you because I suck goatnuts at this game...Other then level up I guess. Good luck Maxx! :cat:

[Zeromus_X]

Orichalcum ruin the main game. I suggest waiting until you beat the game to even begin manufacturing them, they get expensive (as well as their superior, the Boots of Prowess), and IC is just tedious in this game in general. If you absolutely need them, use an Item Creation faq on Gamefaqs.

You do not have to fight every encounter. Some encounters are just made to simply hand your ass to you on a silver platter (I assume you had trouble with the spider robots earlier? Machine gun robots? Yeah.) If you're having a hard time, just ignore the encounters.

As for leveling up. The very best way (though costly) is to create five Rings of Erudition. Refine them fully, then Synthesize them to a Laser Weapon. Now anyone can equip a weapon that increases gained experience by 100%. (Five 10%s refined to five 20%s which means 100% experience gain).

But that too is tedious (considering many other trinkets overlap the Ring of Erudition's price), and also costs money. So...that leaves the stupendous, fantastic, wonderful Bonus Battle Guage! :cat:

However, you may have a problem keeping the BBG from shattering, let alone getting the '300% Experience Bonus'. To get the 300% Exp bonus, the last blow to fill the guage must be a minor attack. Since Albel is on your team, this shouldn't be a problem.

Now, for keeping it from shattering. The BBG will only shatter if you get hit by a critical hit (ciw), even if you're defense is at the point where all attacks do 0 damage. When in doubt, switch to a character that stays out of the way (though your party is mainly melee oriented, still, switch to another character and back off while the enemy is in a frenzy).

Your party. It's awesome! I used that party before. However, I switched Fate for Mirage for some hot Klausian action!

*ahem* :cat:

But anyway, Albel is best controlled manually by the player. I'd suggest disabling Fate's crappy spells so his AI doesn't just spam some worthless magic. Cliff is good enough, he just needs to hit things. Albel however, doesn't have very good AI. You just need to control him and use his wonderful short minor attack. You know the one. Later on, you can use better close range attacks like Hand of Doom (great damage), Aura Wall (incomparable stunlocking capabilities), and Vampiric Flash (costs alot of MP, but can refill your HP and MP. Best combined with a freezing weapon).

As for the best monster to gain experience from, the Blood Monster in the Shrine of Kaddan gives very good exp. With the BBG on, you can get about 10,000 exp a battle with him! He usually comes alone, so that's even better. Just slash at him while switching to another character away so the BBG won't break.

But you wanna know what's even better, Captain? :cat: Freezing! You may have been frozen before. Wanna know how you can obtain this wonderful ability?

You need Star Sapphire. This also comes from Item Creation. It may be hard to produce, but when synthed to a weapon, that weapon has the Freezing factor! Now you can "shatter-kill" enemies with ease! :cat: Combine it with things like Vampiric Flash, and Albel truly becomes wicked.

But, I understand you like Cliff better. Fists of Fury is a great skill for him, especially chained! Of course, he's just as good at smacking the enemy. Later on, you get the powerful Max Shockwave, which charges for awhile, but does supreme HP damage. Crescent Locus and Infinity Kick are great skills too (although one of those is in the bonus dungeons, I think).

Anyway, I hope I can help. SO3 can get pretty difficult near the end of the game, but don't give up hope! Unfortunately, Galaxy mode is way too easy for me, I don't even need to use IC. Why can't I share your guys' pain. :(

VP2 is almost here...more tri-Ace goodness...:cat: *salivates*

Edit: Maxx, most uber-gear comes from Item Creation (explaining why nobody ever acquires it) and the post-game dungeons. But the final equipment you can buy from Ruddle and Rumina's shop in Aquios should be fine for the end of the game. It's the northwestern-most house in Aquios, if I recall. Buy your Mythril Sword now! :cat:

[Ultima Shadow]

Zeromus_X pretty much summed it all up.

Avoid those "ball" enemies, as they can be a royal pain in the ass, especially in large numbers. The Shirine of Kaddan usually have some pretty nasty encounters so your main goal should be to make it to, and beat, the bosses in there only. Not fighting every singel enemy you encounter. If you ever get into a battle with an enemy you don't like to face, just escape.

Is there any specefic part that you find hard?

That Beholder-boss (big eye + tentacles) is really easy, so that shouldn't be a problem. If it uses that "circle-something" attack that absorbs HP and MP, just move out of the way (if the AI keeps attacking when you don't want it to, you can just temporary switch to "manual" and move away, then switch to another character etc) or use a dammaging item to interrupt the attack.

[ValkyrieWing]

...

You know, i didn't even have a problem with this part.

Of course, that could be because I went to the underground of the Ruins of Mosel really early, just to level up...and I HAD Orichalcum.

[Lynx]

woah woah woah you shouldnt have trouble in the shrine of kaddan on your 2nd visit at levels around 60 mine were in the high 40's. and i never needed orichlacam or anything infact i still dont undertsand the item creating things crafting writeing synthing any of them and ive beaten the game on level 55 and i played the hardest mode i could. im not bragging im jsut saying its all stratagy. since your on level 60 use air blade its like the greatest ability. wtach for attacks. i noticed a lot what id have to do is accept that everyone else was dead and fight solo because they werent any help so maybe just focusing on useing your strongest character will work? look out for only him. also i used sophia instead of albel in your case she helped a lot in keeping me alive so that might be why it was easier for me i had 2 fighters and 1 healer while you have 3 attackers? idk but good luck.

[Reine]

I had this exact same party in my first playthrough, it was awesome.

As for EXP, I had the rings of Erudition for most of the game after I could make them, and the 100% stacks with the 300% bonus battle, and you can get some incredible EXP with this

When playing it safe with this party, I always used Fayt to either cast Deep Freeze, or had him use a long range Dimension Door (Although I am not an expert player like Ultima Shadow and Zeromus X *yet*)

A word of advice, keep AWAY from the Polyhedra, the ballish enemies that have a permanent No Guard like effect, in general, sphere shaped enemies always give me a hard time (Like the ball of light enemies in dark places)

By using Item Creation, you can get stuff generally better than the stuff sold in Aquios, like the Veinslay for Fayt that I attached the five EXP+20% on, the Veinslay is his third most powerful weapon, the other two are found post game.

For battle skills, well, I generally use Side Kick + Air Raid cancel combos for Fayt, or a Charge + Air Raid, I used the latter so I could level Charge up to Level 10. Double Slash + Hand of Doom is my skill of choice for Albel, while Cliff, I cannot stress the importance of this, AERIAL ASSAULT, AERIAL ASSAULT, AERIAL ASSAULT. This move can be abused so badly, with its rather huge HP/MP damage, I often just link it to itself and go to town (Mirage and Cliff both with Aerial Assault = pwnage) Fists of Fury is great for stunlocking, but I found Aerial Assault to be the most effective move he has, until getting his secret skills post game.

If your chjaracters are getting MP killed to much or your spending a lot of items healing MP, I suggest equipping Regeneration Symbols or ven better, Rings of Mental Power, they regenerate your MP by 3% at set intervals, and the Ring when refined does it at 6%. It was a must have item for Cliff, as he has the lowest MP in the game, I think, either him or Roger..

Hmm, cant think of more info right this moment..

Seems SO3 is a game for the PRMs :D

[Mirage]

I like Hammer of Might (Cliff/Mirage) a lot myself. For Fayt I usually go for Sidekick frenzies, and for Maria i just cancel Scatter Beam forever, until I get Energy Burst, which is easily the most imba move in the game.

[Pharoh Amon Khan III]

I have a problem... I got UGH! Adray... How do I get Nel back and also how do I get Abel back too?

Adray is like Cloud in Final Fantasy Tactics... I don't know if he's a good characters, even though they talk about him like a legend in the game, (which is why I made the mistake of getting him and loosing my precious Nel), but I just don't have the desire to level him up...

NEL!!! Come back Nel!!! Oohohohohoooooo:( I'm sorry Nel! I'm sorry! Come back!!!!:( :cry:

[Mirage]

Adray is inevitable. No matter what you do, you get him.
The optional characters in the game are: Nel, Albel, Peppita and Roger.
To get Albel, you have to talk to him in the Kirlsa inn while he is still in your party, and for Nel, I don't remember, cause I always got her by default. I don't think it's possible to get Nel if she didn't come at the top of the training facility, right before you left the planet or whatever.

[Ultima Shadow]

Adray is inevitable. No matter what you do, you get him.
The optional characters in the game are: Nel, Albel, Peppita and Roger.
To get Albel, you have to talk to him in the Kirlsa inn while he is still in your party, and for Nel, I don't remember, cause I always got her by default. I don't think it's possible to get Nel if she didn't come at the top of the training facility, right before you left the planet or whatever.Actually... it's possible to get both Albel and Nel afterwards (if you didn't get Roger and Peppita already, that is). For Nel, I think you just need to talk to her after returning to Elicor II. For Albel, you need to speak to that old guy (can't remember his name) in the mansion in Kirsla, and then go to the Lava Caves... or something like that.

[Pharoh Amon Khan III]

Adray is inevitable. No matter what you do, you get him.
The optional characters in the game are: Nel, Albel, Peppita and Roger.
To get Albel, you have to talk to him in the Kirlsa inn while he is still in your party, and for Nel, I don't remember, cause I always got her by default. I don't think it's possible to get Nel if she didn't come at the top of the training facility, right before you left the planet or whatever.

"Where oh where, are you tonight? Why did you leave me here all alone? I searched the world over and thought I found true love, you met another and pfft! you were gone..."

So these optional characters... Can you get 'em all like Pokemon, or is there a limit to your roster of active members?

[Ultima Shadow]

So these optional characters... Can you get 'em all like Pokemon, or is there a limit to your roster of active members?

Out of Nel, Albel, Peppita and Roger, you can only choose 2. So if you go for Albel and Nel, you can't get Roger and Peppita etc.

[Pharoh Amon Khan III]

So these optional characters... Can you get 'em all like Pokemon, or is there a limit to your roster of active members?

Out of Nel, Albel, Peppita and Roger, you can only choose 2. So if you go for Albel and Nel, you can't get Roger and Peppita etc.

I have
Fayt,
Sophia,
Cliff,
Maria,
Mirage,
Roger,
Peppita,
Adray

So is there a way at all to get Abel or Nel... Any at all?:cry:

[Mirage]

Only if you start a new game.

[Pharoh Amon Khan III]

Only if you start a new game.

Dray-mat!

[Mirage]

Fear not, you need to have gotten all the optional characters to get all the battle trophies anyway. Because there are a few battle trophies that involve fighting the optional characters that you did not get.

[Zeromus_X]

A minimum of playing...uh...

once on every difficulty, Galaxy to even get BTs to unlock the higher difficulties, twice for the optional character to fight in that secret color dungeon, two times for every optional superboss on every difficulty, and that's being generous. If you ever plan on doing the low level stuff for Universe/Fourth-Dimension difficulties, you'd have to play an additional two times, well, assuming your brain didn't melt yet.

Still, you like SO3 enough to play it multiple times in succession. This is not a question...:cat:

To clarify recruiting characters:

You must deny Peppita if you wish to recruit a second Elicooran. If you do not undertake the steps to recruit Albel or Roger as your first optional character (the seventh total recruitable character, after everything), then Nel is the default seventh character (and we can't complain about that!). If you did recruit Albel or Roger, you must deny Peppita and re-recruit Nel or Albel/Roger after you gain access to Elicoor again. The second optional character is referred to as the eighth character, after everything.

Albel:

To recruit Albel as you seventh character, sleep at the inn in Peterny before facing Crosell. Then reply, 'Not really' when he asks if you hate him (you can't hate him! :love: ). Albel will warm up to you and save you filthy maggots at the Kirlsa Training Facility.

For the eighth character, talk to Walter in Kirlsa. He'll mention how Albel's been training since you last met him. Meet up with Albel in Crosell's chamber in the Urssa Lava Caves. Beat him one-on-one with Fate and you can have Albel rejoin the party. I think you can deny him as many times as you want and you can keep re-defeating him to ask him again, but I'm not sure.

Roger:

To recruit Roger as your seventh character, visit the house in Suferio (well, I think it's the house across from the grocer...) before facing Crosell (but it's still after Roger joins you temporarily twice, for Duggus Forest and for the Secret Books sidequest). Fate will give him new confidence, and he'll save you at the Kirlsa Training Facility.

For the eighth character, just visit Roger in his house in Suferio having not recruited another eighth character. He'll have to keep his boys in charge, and watch over his 'crew' as your eighth permanent party member.

Nel:

To recruit Nel as your seventh party member, simply don't recruit Albel or Roger. Nel will rescue. your behinds at the Kirlsa Training Facility.

For the eighth party member, talk to Nel in her room in Castle Aquaria after you can revisit Elicoor. Reply 'Not right now' when she asks if you want to talk. She'll want to know what's up and decide to join your party again.

Peppita (Souffle):

You can only recruit Peppita as your eighth party member, at Moonbase, before the party returns to the Battleship Aquaelie. You only get one chance to recruit her. If you deny her, on the other hand, you can recruit a second Elicooran, so yeah, you can kick ass with Nel AND Albel! That's pretty hot. :cat: :love:

...um, anyway, although Peppy only starts at level 1, she unusually has higher attack power than your standard party in the 30s at that point, especially with the Spiked Shoes. That's 500 ATK power at level one. So naturally, she's a real powerhouse at even higher levels, with even more Battle Skills. Come! Introduce yourself to the circus master! :cat:


But believe us...we'd recruit 'em all if we could. :cat:

[Pharoh Amon Khan III]

Fear not, you need to have gotten all the optional characters to get all the battle trophies anyway. Because there are a few battle trophies that involve fighting the optional characters that you did not get.

... ... ... ... Um... ... ... Okay WHAT?!!!! Care to give me a little more clarity on that? I don't mean to be rude, but I like this game for it's almost Star Trekkie/Star Wars Jedi Fan details, but I'm a fan of Star Wars and pseudo fan of Star Trek, but I've never been an "UBER-FAN", if you get what I'm sayin'....

So, in lesser words, don't talk to me like I automatically know what you're saying... I really don't mean to sound rude, but I just don't know any other words to say it out-right. Believe me, I really want to 'unlock' this game and finally, FINALLY beat it... But, y'know... I'm like, stuck....

[Zeromus_X]

To collect all the battle trophies, one must recruit all the optional characters over the course of different games. The reason for this is that you fight the optional characters you didn't get (well, 'dark' versions of them) in the bonus dungeon Urssa Cave Temple after you beat the game.

[Mirage]

Zeromus said it better.

[Pharoh Amon Khan III]

I have a new problem here... I cannot find this "Izak" inventor... I have Dejison, Meryl, as stated on Gamefaqs, but he does not appear in the designated place next to the 'Chief's House' in Seferio.

Help me... I've just started to get a grasp on Item Creation and it's driving me crazy.

Also, what are the uber or best custom weapons and armour that I can create to beat this game. The monsters in the Irisa Fields (outside of Aquios) are kicking my keester, and that makes me think I'm nowhere near ready to face the monsters Mosel Desert, Mosel Ancient Temple and the final stages... Help me...

[ValkyrieWing]

Izak can only be found (built) with the Blueprints, which you get from finishing the Ruddle and Rumina quest, and the AI program, which you get in one of the dungeons, I think. THEN take the stuff to Surferio and watch the show!

[Zeromus_X]

If you didn't do the Ruddle and Rumina sidequest earlier in the game, then there is no way to recruit Izak (you get the Blueprints from that sidequest, like Valkyrie said). The AI Disc is obtained (in a set of items) by one of the Eternal Sphere Programmers in the Sphere Company Building before you fight Belial and Beelzebub, so I'm not completely sure if it's missable or not.

However, contrary to what you may have heard (read in the Brady guide or from elsewhere), you do not need to to the sidequest to unlock R and R's shop in Aquios later in the game. You just need to go to the upperleft-most house in Aquios, and the best purchasable main-game weapons and armor are there. I find those adequate, as the equipment in the post-game dungeons are much tougher than the ultimate IC equipment anyway, but if you must stay on top of the game, then that's fine as well.

[Pharoh Amon Khan III]

If you didn't do the Ruddle and Rumina sidequest earlier in the game, then there is no way to recruit Izak (you get the Blueprints from that sidequest, like Valkyrie said). The AI Disc is obtained (in a set of items) by one of the Eternal Sphere Programmers in the Sphere Company Building before you fight Belial and Beelzebub, so I'm not completely sure if it's missable or not.

However, contrary to what you may have heard (read in the Brady guide or from elsewhere), you do not need to to the sidequest to unlock R and R's shop in Aquios later in the game. You just need to go to the upperleft-most house in Aquios, and the best purchasable main-game weapons and armor are there. I find those adequate, as the equipment in the post-game dungeons are much tougher than the ultimate IC equipment anyway, but if you must stay on top of the game, then that's fine as well.

Wadda ya mean by upper most left house? Are you talking about the armoury across the main street from the hotel? And what's the R & R Shop? Dude, I never read the Official Guide... You're gonna have to go elemetary school on me here. I have pretty much to no idea to what you're referring to.

[Zeromus_X]

I apologize, I'm just clarifying a few general confusions that people generally have regarding that sidequest.

After the incident the first time at the Sphere Building, you can return to the Eternal Sphere. Ruddle and Rumina (I mentioned them earlier in my post, so I thought 'R & R' was an appropriate abbreviation for 'Ruddle and Rumina') open up a shop in the very upperleft-most house of Aquios (well, when the map is facing north anyway). They sell equipment that is more than likely better than what you'll have until you get better equipment in the post-game dungeons.

[Pharoh Amon Khan III]

I apologize, I'm just clarifying a few general confusions that people generally have regarding that sidequest.

After the incident the first time at the Sphere Building, you can return to the Eternal Sphere. Ruddle and Rumina (I mentioned them earlier in my post, so I thought 'R & R' was an appropriate abbreviation for 'Ruddle and Rumina') open up a shop in the very upperleft-most house of Aquios (well, when the map is facing north anyway). They sell equipment that is more than likely better than what you'll have until you get better equipment in the post-game dungeons.


Okay, I found Ruddle and Rumina, but is that it for now? Just level up and face my destiny?

What's the quickest way to level up and what's the Rumina Quest I've been seeing in the FAQs. I don't like the Faqs because they just go right into the subject instead of what the prerequistes are or how to get there from what point in the game much less what area.

[Zeromus_X]

I gave some great leveling tips earlier in the thread.

The extra equipment should help alot, though.

The Ruddle in Rumina quest is available much earlier in the game, when you're still trying to leave Elicoor. You have to guide the two travelers to their destinations, and after you successfuly lead them to Kirlsa, you can buy the Blueprints item from Rumina. This is the only way to get them to recruit Izak (your original question), but by now, the sidequest's availability is long gone.

Don't worry though, it isn't exactly necessary...I've never really been fond of Engineering, and have never once recruited Izak over the course of the six or so+ games I've played of this game.