Fort Condor

[BG-57]

I'm trying to play through the game while trying to get at least one of each item (obviously some items are either/or types). I'm following an FAQ that suggests that I lose the first three Fort Condor battles to get the Vagrisk Claws the boss carry. I did that but I discovered that I didn't need to deploy any soldiers at all! I could just let the enemy troops march up the hill and storm the fort, then take on the boss each time.

So in a sense, it's better to lose than win the mini-game because you can still win against the boss and you don't have to spend money on troops. Can you fight all the Fort Condor battles this way? Even the last one for the huge materia?

[Kawaii Ryûkishi]

Absolutely. There's no penalty at all, as I recall, except that you miss out on actually playing the fun minigame.

[PhoenixAsh]

Don't you get bonus items for winning the battles the normal way? I remember there being a good reason to go back and check regularly for new battles, and I vaguely remember a weapon for Nanaki.

[BG-57]

You get a Magic Comb the first battle you win. However, it's sold in Junon by Disc 2. Vagrisk claws are much harder to get.

[Del Murder]

The game is fun, even though losing nets you better items. I think you can steal an Imperial Guard from the guy during the fight for the Huge Materia. If that's true you should certainly 'lose' that one.

[Mr. Graves]

It's better to lose for the fact that Kishi pointed out. It sucks.

[Jolts]

Not to mention the EXP and AP gained (may be small amounts, but it's still something).

[Sefie1999AD]

Aww... I always try to beat the mini-game because it's so fun. What can I say, I like strategy games. It's quite easy to win, really, even with the basic troops like Attackers, Defenders and Archers. Maybe I should lose it sometimes if the rewards are better that way.

How many different battles can there be in Fort Condor before the (SPOILER)Huge Materia battle? Has anyone found out the events when you have to return to Fort Condor to participate in all the defence battles?

[Kawaii Ryûkishi]

How many different battles can there be in Fort Condor before the (SPOILER)Huge Materia battle? Has anyone found out the events when you have to return to Fort Condor to participate in all the defence battles?

There are six battles that can be waged prior to the final climactic one. I don't know exactly when you need to return to the Fort to participate in each one, though.

[DocFrance]

There's a nice guide that gives you all the details at gamefaqs.com. Apparently there are some weapons and armor that can only be found by winning particular battles at Ft. Condor.

[Kawaii Ryûkishi]

Particularly Yuffie's joke weapon, the Super Ball.

[Rainecloud]

I saved my game before the Fort Condor section, simply because I wanted to go back and play the minigame again and again. As 'Kishi said, you don't have to win the first few battles, but it sure is a lot of fun.

[BG-57]

The FAQ fails to mention that fighting some of the battles requires you to travel between Junon and Fort Condor with *just* Cloud.

BTW, another FAQ mentions the only other source of Vagrisk claws are monsters in Cosmo Canyon called Bagrisks. Anyone know where to encounter them? I haven't bumped into them in the Cave of the Gi or the area around Cosmo Canyon.

Edit: Found them. They're a random encounter on the brown soil away from the Canyon walls but not quite on the beach. Softs are all they drop or can be stolen from them. At least I got those Vagrisk claws from Command Grand Horn.

[Ragnar[PT]]

Can u shed some light with me? I have a question?
Do u have to win the mini game to get the Huge materia and the Phoenix materia?

[BG-57]

The consensus seems to be that you can still win those items if you defeat the Command Grand Horn. It's definitely worth trying, especially if you can steal an Imperial Guard from him, as Del Murder suggested.