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ITEMS IN THIS AREA: Luck Source x2, Elixir x2, Platinum Fist, Turbo Ether
Silver M-phone, Twin Viper, Enemy Launcher, Magic
Source, Destruct materia, Rune Blade, Platinum
Barrette, Powersoul, All Materia, Elemental Materia,
Sniper CR, Jem Ring, Counter materia (if you open up
the safe in the mansion, you can get the Cosmo Memory
manual and the 'Summon Odin' materia, not to mention
a Key Item (the gold key).
Get in the buggy and continue past Cosmo Canyon. Head north to find a
river with a shallow ford you can cross. Past it, the mountains are
of a different type than what you usually see. Near them is a small
town, Nivelheim. Look familiar? It's the same one Sephiroth and Cloud
went to in Cloud's flashback.
First, go into the inn. Talk to the black creature in the back to get
a Luck Source. You can get an Elixir from another one of the creatures
in the Item Shop, and a second Luck Source if you talk to the small
creatures in the upper floor of the southeastern house. The large house
to the east is Tifa's home, and you'll be given a Platinum Fist and an
Turbo Ether if you talk to the creatures here. There's a piano in
Tifa's room that you can fool around with (see section 14 for details).
This next section is optional--you can just continue on through the
mountains if you want. However, Sephiroth won't show up in the
mansion after you reach Disc 2, meaning you can't nab the Destruct
materia unless you get it from him during the first disc (read below
for details).
Now, go into the large mansion at the edge of town. Left of the
entrance is a piece of paper written by the Turks (?). It has
several hints on it that clue you in to the combination of the safe on
the upper floor (but it's useless if you don't know Japanese :)).
You can get the 4th number by chosing the blank space beneath the
first three tips (look at the paper, choose the top option, then move
the cursor down to the blank space and press O).
Head right and look for the sliver of light near the stairway, it's
very hard to see. It's an opening that leads to the lower section of
another room. There's a chest here, with a Silver M-phone inside.
Go back out and go into the northern door beneath the staircase. In
the adjoining hall, head right and and up to find a chest with a
Twin Viper in it. To the left is a room with a broken piano (which
you could have also reached by looking for the opening near the left
staircase in the main room).
Go up the stairs and head left. In the circular room is a chest that
has an Enemy Launcher inside. There's nothing in the northern room
except for a locked safe--you'll need the right combination in order
to open it (see section 14 if you don't know how). If you want to
try your luck, examine it with the O button and choose the top option
to enter the combination or the bottom option to quit.
Open the safe (or not), then go right and into the right wing of the
manor house. If you go up, you'll find a chest with a Magic Source
inside. Then go into the lower room and examine the curved wall to
open a secret passage. Go down the spiralling walkway, and then head
right. If you got the gold key from the safe, you can open the
northern door (refer to section 14 for details). Continue to the
right to find a libarary. Then go north and you'll run into none
other than Sephiroth, who will pelt you with a green materia before
flying away. Be sure to get the materia (Destruct) before
leaving the mansion.
Once you're back outside, leave Nivelheim from the northern entrace
and contine along until you see a passage leading into the mountains.
In the next area, follow the path until it splits, and take the north
path, which wraps around the back of a spire and leads to a chest
with a Rune Blade inside of it. Now go back and follow the original
path. You'll notice that just before the bridge, there's a path that
curves away to the north. Follow it up into the mountains and when
it curves south, take that path instead of continuing in the same
direction. The path curves several times, but eventually you'll make
it to the top of the mountain, where you can find a chest with a
Plus Barrette. It may help if you press SELECT so that you can see
yourself when a mountain is blocking your view, and if you can't seem
to get any further, press in other directions (like down) to scale the
back of the mountain.
Go back down to the main path and head up the bridge. Inside the
cavern, take the ladder down instead of the tubes, or you won't be
able to get all the treasure in this area. You don't have to worry
about the large boss near the door just yet. Feel free to make use
of the Save Point, then climb back to the top of the area. Enter the
pipe labled '2' to end up on a rocky ledge. There's an item bag here
with an Powersoul inside; get it and then press down to jump down
to a lower ledge, then press down again to reach the floor. Climb back
up one last time and go into the pipe labled '4' in order to reach the
treasure chest on the bottom ledge below; there's an All materia
lying within. Walk against the right edge of the ledge to drop down
to the floor.
See the path heading south, just below the path that the boss is
blocking? Follow it to go outside, then try to keep walking and you'll
drop down to the lower ledge. Following the path here leads to a dead
end, so enter the cave instead and take the righthand path once you're
inside. Ignore the exit at the other end of the cave and work your way
southwest, then go through the small hole. Walk up, then left, then
down in order to reach the treasure chest you could see when you first
came in here. Inside it is an Elixir. Now go through the exit to
arrive at a wooded area. On the ground, to the left of the mass of
crystalized Materia is an Elemental materia. Take it and proceed north,
going through the opening to go back into the caves.
Inside, head to the right, then go up as far as you can and walk left
past the stone walls to reach a chest containing a Sniper CR. Then
go back and take the rightmost passage. It goes south and leads you
back to the outside. From here, head left (going right leads you to
a dead end). You'll eventually end up at the Jenova Plant you visited
in Cloud's flashback. There's nothing to do inside the plant, so
continue beyond it to the door set in the rock wall. Enter it and
you'll end up back in the chamber with the pipes again.
It's true that you could have taken the door and done this entire
sequence in reverse, but then you couldn't have scaled the ledge and
you would have to go all the way back, instead of taking the express
route like you just did :) Now climb down and examine the boss, and
it will attack you.
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BOSS TIPS: MATERIAKIIPAA LV: 38 HP: 8400 MP: 300
Don't use Honou-related attacks; it'll only heal him. Red 13's Limit
Break B1/1 works well, as does Cloud's B2/1 Limit Break. I'd also
suggest using the 'Choco/Mog' materia as much as you can--it's
ability to stun this boss is very useful. Physical attacks should do the
trick if you have good weapons; save your MPs for healing yourselves.
Kealra and All Materia are a good combination (remember to link
them when selecting holders) if you want to stay alive, since the boss
can inflict 300-800 points of damage with its stabbing/mauling attacks.
Also, he can heal himself (around 1000 hp's worth), and use the damaging
Tryne skill, which causes about 500 points of damage to all those still
alive. If Red's learned his B1/2 break or someone knows Haste, it would
be a wise idea to use it at the start of the round. Since the Materia
Keeper is one of the few enemies that can use Tryne, it comes highly
recommended that you have a Enemy Skill materia equipped so
that you can learn this enemy technqiue. You'll get a Jem Ring should
you be victorious.
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After the battle is over, examine the purple materia that is left behind
in order to take it (Counter Attack). Then follow the path outside--it
leads back to the World Map.
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t h e i n v e n t o r
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ITEMS IN THIS AREA: Power Source, Yoshiyuki, Drill Arm, Edincoat.
Head southwest, then turn north (you're making a big C around the
mountains). Keep walking and you'll see Rocket Town up ahead. In
the Accessory Shop, you'll recieve a message if you go to the left end
of the counter and examine it (anyone know what it means?) If you go
into the house farthest to the right, you can find a chest with a
Power Source inside of it in next to the stove. Then talk to the old man
standing near the house that's just left of the rocket's launch pad.
Talk to him again, and he'll ask you a question. Pick the top answer
and the view will pan up to show the rocket. Then the old geezer will
give you the Yoshiyuki; it's a weapon for Cloud.
Go into the house to the right of the old man. This is the home of
Shiera and Cid, although neither of them are around at the moment.
There's a chest here with a Drill Arm inside it. If you go out the
back entrance, you'll find a light airplane in the backyard--it's one
of Cid's inventions, the 'Tiny Bronco'. After looking at the airplane,
Shiera will show up. When she leaves, go outside and head north to
arrive at the rocket--climb inside it to find Cid. After chatting with
him, name him. You can then ask him several questions; you have to at
least ask the first one (top choice) in order to proceed with the game.
Then leave the rocket and return to Cid's house. Shiera will show up,
then Cid, too. After Cid goes out back, Shiera will explain how Cid
was going to pilot his rocket into outer space some time ago, but
aborted the launch when he discovered that Shiera was still making last-
minute checks and hadn't left the launch pad yet; she would be burned
to ashes since the launch could only be aborted, not delayed. By saving
her life, Cid's dreams were shattered, since he did not have the
resources to repair the rocket, which tipped over after falling back
onto the lauch pad.
Cid comes back into the house, then Palmer shows up--an employee of
Shinra. Go outside and you'll run into Rufus and a Shinra guard, who
have come to 'borrow' the Tiny Bronco. After Shiera brings you back
inside the house, go out the back entrance to find Palmer standing
atop the Tiny Bronco. Talk to him and he'll attack you.
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BOSS TIPS: Palmer LV: 38 HP: 6000 MP: 240
His gun causes a fair amount of damage since it has the effects of Fire 2,
Ice 2, and Bolt 2, so make sure Aeris is in your party or that you
have some Restore Materia. Use Haste and All on your party as
well as Slow magic and/or Summon Chocobo on him to even the odds a bit.
You'll want to have Cloud's B2/2 by now--it comes in handy. Your prize
for beating Palmer is an Edincoat.
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After the boss gets wasted (heh, heh), your party and Cid will escape
on the Tiny Bronco. Although it gets damaged during your escape it
can still be used to skim across shallow water and traverse rivers
(although you can't go up or down waterfalls). Here are the airplane
controls:
X Exit airplane
O Enter airplane
Select/Start World Map (press repeatedly to enlarge/hide map)
L1/R1 Rotate view (or return to side view if in overhead view)
L2/R2 Change view
You now have several options that are available to you: you can get
Aeris's Level 4 Limit Break manual (see section 14 for details) or
go on Yuffie's sub-quest (if you have her in your party, see section
6 for further information). Even if you don't have Yuffie, you can
purchase some pretty good weapons and find some treasure chests
lying around in Uutai, so you may want to stop there anyways. You
can even go back and kill the big snake you had to flee from in
section 3k, if you've been itching to do so (you'll now have enough
HPs to learn the enemy skill 'Beta' from it without dying). In any
case, it would be a good idea to explore other areas and pick up items
you missed/buy stuff you couldn't afford before instead of continuing
on your quest just yet. I would suggest checking out the excavators'
site to the north, since you can pick up the powerful 'Summon Kjata'
materia there as well as buy some useful bracelets and items (see
section 3u for details).
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ITEMS IN THIS AREA: Protect Vest, Choco Feather, Elixir.
Pilot the Tiny Bronco back to the Gold Saucer area. Go to the
weaponsmith's house on the penninsula near the dirt pit and talk to
him--he'll explain that you need the Kiiston (Keystone), which he no
longer has. Get back in Cid's airplane, and leave it on the shore by
the dirt pit. You need to get to the Golden Saucer, so either walk or
find a wild Chocobo and ride it back to North Corel. Then take the
sky lift up to the Gold Saucer. Go to the Battle Square and look for
an opening on the right side of the room labled 'Dio's Show Room'.
Inside, examine the glittering object on top of the large stand; it's
the Kiiston. Dio, the big lug who threw you out of the Gold Saucer
before, will show up and offer you a challenge: fight in the Battle
Square and he'll give you the Kiiston. When you have a choice, pick
the top option to accept or the bottom option to temporarily decline.
You'll now have to fight in the Battle Square using only Cloud. Keep
in mind that even if you lose the very first battle, Dio will still
give you the Kiiston.
If you want to try and see if you can win all the battles, then keep
fighting. After each battle, the message 'GREAT!' will appear,
followed by two options. Choose the right option to stop fighting,
or the left option to continue fighting. If you choose to continue,
a jackpot-like device will appear. You can stop it from spinning
by pressing the O button, and whatever comes up when you press O will
take affect prior to the start of the next battle. Depening on what
you get, different things will happen to you, although certain
accessories can render you immune to some of the more debiliating
effects.
Furthermore, the status ailments that you are afflicted with as a
result of the jackpot stay with you from battle to battle, and you're
forced to stop the jackpot after each battle, so you could end up
being a poisoned, petrified frog in a few rounds, if you're not
careful. If you last through seven battles, then the fighting ends.
Refer to the 'Having Fun' section for a complete explanation of how the
Battle Square works, but keep in mind that although you will earn
Battle Points during the battle, they are reset to zero when the battle
ends since you end up in the Show Room (and the way things work you lose
all the Battle Points you earn if you leave the main room at any time).
Should you make it through all the battles, Dio will give you a Boudan
Chokki and a Choco Feather, in addition to the Kiiston.
There's nothing else you need to do at the Gold Saucer now, but when
you try to leave, you'll discover that the ropeway that the sky lift
travels up and down is broken, leaving you stranded in the Saucer.
Cait Sith will either show up (or leave your party, if he's already
with you guys) and suggest that you all meet him at the Ghost Hotel.
At the Hotel, you and your allies will chat for awhile. In the next
scence, you'll find yourself in your room.
At this point in the game, a character will come into your room and ask
to go on a date with you. While it's usually Aeris, it's been
confirmed that you can go on a date with Tifa instead, if you were nice
to her and mean to Aeris throughout the course of the game. It's much
harder to do, but if you have had Yuffie in your party for a while, she
may wish to date Cloud as well. If you're really mean to all the women
in your party, Barret will date you (so be nice!) It's not what you
think--just a friendly outing (he had a wife, so what are you thinking.
Both times that I've played through this part, it's always been Aeris
who comes to ask Cloud to go on a date, so I'll write the next section
with her in mind, although you may end up with someone else.
First, you'll go to the Event Square. Since you're the 100th person
to come here that day, you and Aeris will be offered a role in the
upcoming play. What you do here doesn't affect the game in any way,
so just pick whatever options you'd like and watch one of the many
humorous endings. If I wrote it out, it would ruin the fun, so....
Next, you'll ride the gondola in the Round Square. When Aeris looks
out the window, you can press left to look out, too, and see various
FMV sequences showcasing the events at the Gold Saucer.
After the date is over, Cloud and Aeris will return to the Station
Square only to find Cait Sith sneaking around with the Kiiston. He'll
run away when Cloud yells at him, and you have to chase him around
various sections of the Gold Saucer. (If you don't want to waste time
doing that, then go to the Chocobo Square, enter it, and chase Cait
Sith back outside). Eventually, Cait will stop at the steps outside
of the Chocobo Square. The Shinra helicopter shows up, and Cait will
toss the Kiiston up to Tseng. When confronted by Cloud and Aeris, Cait
reveals that he is in fact a spy for the Shinra. He insists that he
continues to travel with Cloud and his friends because he has taken
Marlene as a hostage back in Midgar (Right? That's what he seems to say).
Once Cait Sith leaves, you'll find yourself back in the Ghost Hotel.
Check the iron maiden for an Elixir (notice the sound it makes; it
sounds just like Norstein Bekkler's laugh [the guy from Chrono
Trigger!]). Leave the room to meet up with your allies again. After
a brief talk, Aeris will join your party, becoming a permanent member.
Pick another ally and then leave the Saucer, since the ropeway is now
repaired.
Now that you're back at North Corel, leave and return where you parked
the Tiny Bronco. Look at the World Map. See the tiny chain of islands
near the bottom of the map? Just to the right of them and to the left
of Mideel and the Fort Condor is a large island. If you go there, you'll
see a large temple surrounded by a forest. This is your next
destination, so land the Tiny Bronco at the shore and head to the temple.