Generation 9 Tips (Part Three) - The War and the Time After

Now that you've gotten the bulk of the war out of the way and have stopped the (not so prevalent now) elf / giant conflict with a hand drawn picture in the previous part, it's time for the last push against the shadow bastards and put an end to their plans.

Scouting Mission (best bring party)
This mission features the return of Glas through random encounter, but this time he doesn't summon gargoyles - he summons crag cows. The alchemist method of beating him is to wind blast a cow 3 times so it gets confused and attacks Glas. The non stupid method of beating him pretty much just revolves around using trans and then Final Hit the fool. If you prefer you can lure him out with ranged attacks first. Crash shot will also hurt him badly when he's surrounded by the cows.  He still regenerates quick and will have a ton more HP this time around so you want high damage or wounding strikes.

 After he's done a named alchemist will show up and while he can also summon golems and invert your screen, if you've just beaten the big four armed monster there's not a lot this idiot can do to you.

Damsel in Distress (fastest solo)
Your first mission where you can bring a Royal Alchemist if you so choose (and if you know any that are free), but I think you should be able to handle this solo. The mission says to protect Jenna. This is BS. She can protect herself just fine against melee-ers. You keep -yourself- alive and kill any archers as soon as they show up. If you've cleared your sector -then- you can go help Jenna until the next wave arrives.

Alone in the Barri (solo based on level)
Whew, suddenly you get a normal dungeon. Makes you suddenly appreciate those goddess statues huh? Anyway this place will be geared to your level and if you are on a difficulty of advanced or below you would have already encountered everything in here in prior Generation quests. If you are on Hard, then there are a few new things but then again if you are on Hard you've prolly already fought them? :P In case you haven't,  they all multi-aggro and are:

Chon Chon
An ugly magic-using bird. Treat as a strong sprite. Weak to magic. Resistant to melee and range so big hits only if you're going that way.

Goblin Hunter/Archer
Sturdier goblins that can poison you. No passive defenses mean you can kill them however you like, though a high ranked windmill or final hit is probably the fastest way to take them out.

Spiked worm
Dangerous and highly resilient to all forms of attack. Treat as a heavily armored snake. The wiki advises fire bolt-counter. Being a non-mage I either bow them or smash-windmill.

Lost Sahagin
Are quite blind and have a small aggro range. However if you hurt him to less than half HP, he triggers his self-destruct - giving you mere moments to run away. Killing him outright also makes him explode so they are best dealt with using range or magic. The blast is strong enough to kill or seriously injure anything nearby (1/3rd dungeon room) and if there are many of them this could lead to a chain reaction.

Last Battle (full team recommended)
The allied army has now decided to attack the shadow realm in force! Your task is to make sure not a single one of them dies in the 15 minute blood bath about to follow. Strongly recommend a full team to handle the many waves of enemies that show up, as it is unlikely that you will be able to heal your compatriots between waves. Target the enemy golems first as their windmill can do a lot of damage in a wide area and try stagger your trans-times between your party so that 1 or 2 of you are beefed up at any given point. Always try pick up downed players when you are able to though.

Finale (full team recommended)
Usually the same team that helped with the Last Battle will want the XPs from this one so bring them in with you. Now that you don't have dorky NPCs to protect the fights should be a lot easier, and even the named shadow commander will suddenly be curb-stomped since there are more of you. Fight your way into town past numerous cutscenes and eventually you get to the big boss of this story arc.

Boss Fight!

OMG it's Deadpool!
Well, half of a giant version of him. He has life drain, a big stomp attack, a fast moving rush, and later giant flying swords all of which can easily kill those in range. He's got pretty high protection too so the best attacks are either from far with a high crit bow, or upclose using smash and windmill. He gets angrier at half HP, and at 1/3rd (the roof is opened) someone -has- to call Adniel for help or everything will do 1 point of damage. As usual, mana shield and many pots can keep you alive during this battle. I shouldn't need to remind you to use your trans by now. Winning gives you a groovy title, and a less groovy enchant for your shoes. :p

Pierrick's Violet Grave
A small side quest that you can do. Only dangerous part is wandering into Fiodh solo. You would have already fought everything here in previous generations though and have definitely defeated worse monsters so it should be a cake walk. A long cake walk.

Reminiscing with Andras
Another small side quest that opens after finishing the main Generation 9 arc. Two potential problem spots here, the first being Longa Emerald dungeon which (unless you are an elf) you may not have run yet before. Baddies spawn in big quantities here but they are individually weak. Things you'll encounter are:

Stone Masks - Treat like goblins that have magic.
Armored Hounds - Good old Wolf AI. They sound like a dude going "UHHH" when you knock them down though.
Pythons - Maybe big, but still just snakes.
Beetles - Similar to the Giant Dragonfly earlier. These Low HP flying bugs come in droves and some can windmill, so windmill THEM first!
Emerald Golem - Your main problem. This boss will only take big damage from Emerald Arrows that you get from running Longa normal. Still defeatable if you and your team just wail on him enough but expect to take a few hits because he won't go down so easy without a properly armed archer.

The 2nd problem spot which is an RP quest as Andras through a FULL Rabbie dungeon. She excels at magic so you may want to stick to that like you did with Tarlach during his run.

The Ending Question
If you say that today is important you'll get the Tailltean Two-hander. If you say that the past is more important you'll get Andras' Bow. Both are decent weapons so it just depends on what you want.

Generation 1 Tips (Part Two) - Everybody loves Dougal

Second part of my Generation 1 tips! You can find the first part here.

Fiodh (fastest with help)
Again, new creatures that could be troublesome for a newbie show up here - once you get to mid-level they shouldn't be a problem though. Fiodh is also a really big dungeon (more like a sprawling ruin) so it may take awhile to clear if going through solo. If you are trying that, then be sure to bring the same gear as from Ciar earlier as you'll probably need it.

Jackals and Bears
I hope you can recall your beginner battle class training sessions. Jackals behave just like wolves. :P

Snakes
Know counter and defense but tend to drop defense quickly so don't try smash them when they have it up. Normal attacks will be just fine since most have low HP but they can bite hard (especially white ones) if they catch you. Fortunately none of them in this arc are poisonous... those will come in later. :P

Werewolves
Can be very problematic for low level characters as their claws do injury (black) damage and they have heavy stander. This means there's a chance they will auto-defend any non-knockback melee attack. Simplest way around this is to stick to smash, windmill and counter. I'd suggest shooting them from far but they usually appear in locked rooms so you'll need to learn how to handle them up close.Later on  you'll be one hit killing them, but for now it's probably best to bring two stacks of bandages along.

Gorgons
Basically armored cows. Again, avoid normal attacks as they too have heavy stander and just like the werewolves they tend to spawn in locked rooms. Expect to spam your heal potions a bit the first time you meet them, and don't use smash as your opening attack. Alternatively if you want to practice fighting them, head to Iria and travel North of Qilla until you find the young short-horned gnus. They have similar AI but are just less aggressive (gnus never attack first).

Rabbie-Albey (fastest to solo as Mari)
Nice looking scary dungeon you'll get to visit in person later on. For now the fastest way through is to use an ultra speed potion and arrow revolver everything until the dark lord shows up. Once he does I recommend magnum shot to prevent him from teleporting. Like everything else that teleports, he can "bug" out and become a non-targetable statue. If this happens you'll have no choice but to change channel and go back to get another set of glasses from Tarlach to do this dungeon again.

Barri Crossing  (fastest with help)
The only thing that maybe new here for you are imps. These little fellas pack quite a punch if they zap you, but they are paper mages. One combo should be enough to kill them. If not, use defense quickly or alternatively use magic on them yourself. They are more a lesson in kill sequencing (start with isolated ones) rather than combat skill.

Tir Na Nog
Welcome to Australia! Erm I mean, Tir na Nog. Sorry, easy to mistake with all these dingoes (again wolf ai) running about. There are only two other things lurking out here.

Map of Tir Na Nog! :P

Zombie
The graveyard here hosts a large number of zombies who are pretty much immune to ranged and magic attacks, plus they have heavy stander! The safest way to deal with these slow moving scum is to windmill, and this was originally the best place to train it. These days you can travel to Tara and do the Their Method mission for more accessible zombies though. Also, if you are quick, you can open with a smash if they haven't noticed you yet. Anyway, you will need to kill one of these scum to bind your soul here (ie. enable respawn), otherwise death with no one nearby to res here or in the nearby Albey dungeon will lead you back to Bangor. Where is your goddess now ey? :P

Giant Worm
Dangerous, heavy stander and heavy hitter. Best avoided if you are low level, and like the dingoes - you never actually have to fight these ones. They behave like snakes.

Albey Green Gem (safest with help)
The first of three runs you'll need to do through Albey for Generation 1. There are no statues to revive at here so bringing backup is a good idea. Also note that if you didn't complete the soul binding quest of killing a zombie, your respawn point will be Bangor. There are also a number of new opponents waiting for you here:

Ratmen
Think of them as talkative and tricky goblins. Their windmill can do some decent damage but otherwise, just fight correctly and they'll die quick.

Gargoyles
The bane of Albey dungeon. They can easily one hit kill low-mid level players and have the same AI as gremlins (annoying). They will probably survive a standard combo or smash too if you haven't got your skills up yet, and enjoy throwing an ice bolt to stun/negate their prey's defense before attacking up close. The "heavy" version also boasts heavy stander and more HP. Shoot them from far when you are given the opportunity, but they will also spawn in enclosed rooms with you which means you and your team simply have to fight well. You'll need to get used to them as they'll show up in the next two dungeons in this story arc too.

Albey Black Orb (safest with help)
A more dangerous run through Albey as gargoyles are going to be more plentiful. Two "new" opponents you'll be facing here are:

Armored Skeletons
They're just like normal skelies except that they now have heavy stander. Avoid normal attacks if possible and remember to focus on the one "!!" aggroed on you as they only aggro one at a time. A mix of windmill, counter, magic and ranged attacks are all good ways to beat them.

Ghost Armor
You've fought them before as Mores and Mari, but now you may not have powerful magic or a strong bow. It is still advisable to shoot them from far but if you are going in close be careful of their lightning bolts and DO NOT open with smash as they have high intuition. Just attack them normally and put up defense to catch their magic or sword if they are still alive.

Albey Goddess Final (safest with help)
Five floors and no respawn points. Better also bring some firewood and a bow if this is your first time in here. A few more "new" enemies to contend with here if you haven't been done the beginner hunting quests. Don't worry, all your old friends from the spiderlings to the heavy gargoyles will also make an appearance.

Hellhound
Often found as the boss of Math dungeon, you'll be locked in with two of them and for a change it is better to be up close and personal with these instead of "middle distance" which they will dominate with their magic. Just treat them as big wolves that happen to have firebolt. :P It takes some time for them to load firebolt so pounce the minute they do.

Lycanthrope
A variation of the old werewolf, you're only going to run into one of these and the best way to beat him is to just spam windmill, as any other skill could level him up and restore his life to full.

Dark Lord
Ideally fight him after taking out his body guards. He can still teleport but if he does that ususally means he is using a normal attack making him open against counter and windmill. Hopefully you've picked up the Goddess pass to "save" your progress just incase your team dies to him or the final boss.

Glas
This giant, four-armed gold eating monster can shoot lasers from its mouth, summon gargoyles and has a really quick regeneration rate. There are three ways to beat him - first, bring a high level friend to seriously just one hit KO him. Second, setup a camp fire at the door and use burning arrows on him (does injury damage which he cannot regen), or the classic way which is to kill his summoned gargoyles until one drops a "seal scroll". Pick it up, burn it on a camp fire to gain 60 second invulnerability and 100% injury dealing rate and beat him up. All methods are equally fun. Again, don't worry too much if you die - as long as you keep picking up the Goddess pass you get to redo this and the dark lord fight over and over until you win. :)

Goddess Enchant
Hopefully you have a fully upgraded and fully repaired, favourite weapon by now as you have only 6 hours after receiving the reward to use it.