Final Fantasy XII – Speed Run Guide

Final Fantasy 12 - Overpowered in under 6 hours FAQ

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Main Index

0001 - Introduction

The purpose of this FAQ is to become as Over-powered in the game as quickly as possible. Version 2.0 will include a speed run through the entire game as well as this method for starting up a new file quickly. This allows a user to play through the rest of the game with sweet weapons and armor and leaves every side quest uncompleted in the process. This mini-FAQ came from the idea of a challenge run to get the Zodiac Spear as quickly as possible. The first 3:49:26 will get you the Zodiac Spear as quickly as possible, forsaking everything else. At this point you will actually have no weapons or armor except for the Zodiac Spear. But then again, who needs that low level garbage anyways now that you have a ZS?

This FAQ also leaves 1 character at level 2 (either Fran or Baltheir - you're pick but, if you choose Fran, then reverse their names in this guide). This is so that, later on in the game, you can easily use the under flow glitch. This glitch works because, if you have a chance of less than 0% to inflict a status effect it will "under flow" and wrap back around to 255. Meaning, against really tough bosses, a level 2 character will have a 100% chance to inflict any status effect that the boss is not outright immune to.

I will provide direction for all plot triggers, so that new players or returning players on non-first play-throughs who don't have perfect memories can follow along without the need of a supplemental FAQ.

0002 - Quickening Chains

Quickening chains are a vital part of the strategy used in this guide. If you are unfamiliar with them, have never been good at them or are just rusty, then take a minute to review this section. It contains the strategy to use for big chains as well as the way to maximize the utilize of each character's MP pool while chaining.

First off, it is necessary to know this method for getting long Mist chains. Basically, at the end of every Quickening attack, each eligible character (those with Quickenings activated), will get a roll to see if they can Mist Charge. The timer on the bottom of the screen counts down from 4 to 0 (at the start) and you have until then to activate another Quickening attack or the chain will end. The timer goes down as the number of attacks in the chain goes up, and the timer goes down less if you activate the Quickening attack faster (when there is more time left on the timer).

The player can Re-roll the Mist charge roll by pressing R2. The key thing to do is to press R2 in rhythm so that you are refreshing your Mist charge rolls as quickly as possible. At the same time, double-tap either Triangle, Triangle + Square, or Triangle + Square + X. If done right, you will refresh the Mist charge roll and immediately press the correct button to both Mist charge and immediately activate a new Quickening attack. If done correctly, the attack will be selected before you can even visually see that it is available. Being able to do this will allow for 9+ Mist chains with relative ease. This guide does not expect this kind of mastery of this tactic; however, plus Mist chains revolve around the RNG, so its unrealistic to expect 9+ chains on command. Note that after a Mist charge has been activated this will re-roll the other characters so if you have lightning-fast reflexes you can get double Mist charges.

The second tactic is efficiently using each character's MP bar for Quickening chains. Like I said before, each eligible character will receive a chance to get Mist charges in a Quickening chain, even if they have 0 MP. The thing is, if your character has a full MP bar they are ineligible to do Mist charges. They can still activate their Quickening attack in a chain; however, it will use their entire MP bar in doing so. Sometimes its aright to manually do this on purpose, (usually with the 2nd character to save a chain from being less than 3) but usually you want to do the exact opposite.

Lets say you have Vaan and Fran, who both have full MP and have Quickenings unlocked. Start with a party of only Vaan and use Red Spiral. Its more difficult to get a large chain because you only have one chance at a Mist charge per roll; however, its actually a bit easier to pull off the rhythmic button mashing method with 1 character, so sometimes this can actually help. Anyways, once Vaan's chain is done, immediately add Fran to the party and activate Feral Strike. Now, Fran will use her Quickening attack and then both her and Vaan will be eligible to get Mist charges.

In the FAQ I will assume the player is using this method. The Mist chain values that I post are to give you an idea of how well you have to pull them off to defeat the boss instantly. Or, in some cases, how weak of a chain will kill whatever sub-boss or enemy so that you can save time and not bust out that 16 chain. So, for instance, if you have Vaan, Fran and Basch that all have Quickenings against a boss, the FAQ will say something like...

2 chain >

+4 chain > Inferno >

+6 chain > Inferno = WIN!

This means, start with Vaan only, do a 2 chain and then add Fran, do a 4 or more chain with Vaan and Fran, and then add Basch and do a 6 or more hit Mist chain. Any combination of chains that results in the boss being depleted to 0 HP will work. In most cases you just want to go as big as you can with your chains.

Getting a chain of 3+ will activate Inferno which is an AoE attack

Getting a chain of 7+ will activate Cataclysm which is a stronger AoE attack

Other ones may be possible with huge chains, but I have not seen it. Its not even necessary to be able to activate Cataclysm, but its cool to see and does more damage.

0003 - Speed Running

In order to gauge the efficiency of the guide, I used the game clock, and its entirely possible to follow this guide without caring about this. If you want to closely match, or beat the times though, there are some tactics borrowed from competitive speed running that will help. The times are mostly provided as a reference and a useful indexing method, as well as for people using this for any type of speed run.

Firstly, Skip all cut-scenes and mash X through the unskippable tutorials. Secondly, pausing the game will stop the game clock so, you can always do that to read stuff or just take a break without affecting the time on the game clock.

When running through areas, always hold R2 to Flee from enemies, and set the Battle Speed to Slowest and Wait. This will make it really easy to just run past most enemies without getting hit. Its also really useful to use an external map, like from a strategy guide or FF12maps.com. This way, you can check the map all you want by just hitting Pause and you still end with a good time on the game clock. However, since version 1.1, I have added detailed path-finding instructions so you may not require this at all. Just remember to hit Pause if you get lost.

Also, there is room for as much resetting to get a better time as you want, to a certain extent. In a traditional speed run, players will often use tactics that require a lot of resets in order to save time. Lightning13 mentions that in Giza Plains, a player can charge the Shadestone with only 2 Crystals, which saves time. This takes many resets though, so this guide suggests a 3-stone method that works at least 90% of the time. While using tactics from speed running, this is not a competitive speed run in this form because this method uses absolute minimal resets and Saves regularly to prevent future frustration. The idea is to create the smoothest run to the Zodiac Spear, while still achieving a time that is good. Lightning has also mentioned some alternate tactics for parts of the game which I will include, since they are quite viable alternatives.

Also, the game clock keeps ticking away after you Save, so close that menu right away and Pause while you figure out what to do next. There is a time penalty every time that you Save so keeping it to a minimum will help times. True speed runs Save as little as possible, but this guide assumes that after a Save you will simply close the menu and hit Pause, or Re-load that save from the memory card and then close the menu and hit Pause as soon as possible.

During sections where you farm chests, make the Save file close to that point and then hit Pause, hit Square to Exit to the Title and then load the Save file you just made. Run to the chest, if its not there or, you don't get the right item just hit Select immediately and then exit to Title again. If it *is* the item don't do anything besides turn around and immediately Save again. After this, exit to the Title and Re-load that Save file.

0004 - Glitches and Tactics

The Immobilize Glitch, also know as the Teleport Trick, or other things is used as the end of this guide. It will be explained in detail during that section as well as an accompanying video. There are many other references for this tactic and I definitely did not find this glitch myself. If you discovered this first and want a credit in this FAQ, message me on GameFAQs. There are also a variety of other tactics used from other Guides or sources which will all be in the References section at the end of the FAQ.

Also, for those who are opposed to glitches, it is entirely possible to get the Zodiac Spear and the Defenders without it. It is; however, a face-melting challenge that will require tons of resets. Anybody who wants to go that route, feel free to and do post a sweet video of the successful run if you do.

Also, Lightning13 mentioned the Dead Character Glitch which is extremely interesting. This can potentially be used to defeat the Bomb King instead of the massive Quickening chain method. For this method, one needs to buy the spell Break and have one character learn the Belias Esper. There is a chest in Trunkwall Road in the Salikawood that has a Holy Mote in it which you need to grab. Its the chest right near the Bone Mail at a dead end in the North-Eastern section of the zone.

For this method, have Penelo (or whoever) know Belias and Vaan (or whoever) know Break. Enter the Bomb King room and then leave right away to set them back.

Vaan casts Break on Penelo

Penelo summons Belias

When the Petrify timer hits 4, enter the zone

Penelo back-steps away from the enemies who attack Belias, stay close but out of range of Fira

When the number 2 disappears from the screen, you want to time buffer by hitting X then Circle

Just as 1 appears, open the menu and select Dismiss

Press X immediately again, and have Penelo use a Holy Mote on herself

When 1 disappears, time buffer and this time open and close the menu with Triangle

When 0 appears, change Penelo's equipment

If timed right, Penelo turns to Stone in the same frame as Belias' Dismiss animation occurs

After the scene, Penelo is stone but still on the screen, and is constantly using a Holy Mote

Now, the unfortunate thing is that Belias will be delayed from Dismising if he is being attacked, during most frames of the attack animations. Because of this, I had difficulty performing this glitch against the Bomb King. If done right, it should prevent the Bomb King or any of the little bombs from using any attacks that have a Name. They can still use normal attacks; however, the idea is that as soon as the Bomb King tries to cast Fira he will glitch out and then do nothing as his Fira can never hit the stack thanks to Penelo's Holy Mote.

The idea behind this would be to first kill the little bombs with a Quickening chain, then back out and perform the Dead Character Glitch to render the Bomb King useless and just defeat him with normal Attacks. Anybody who is really good as using the DCG might want to consider this method. There is also a method of defeating the Bomb King which uses a single character with Belias. The problem with this method, and the DCG method, is that they put way more time on the game clock. So, its up to the player to decide what they wish to do. On any level, there are many bosses later on where the DCG is an awesome method and I recommend that everybody learn it.

Lastly a note on time buffering, this refers to Pausing and un-Pausing the game by hitting X or Triangle to bring up their respective menus. This allows you to advance the game frame by frame to perfectly time actions. It can also be used to delay actions of enemies to a certain extent and is used in Dustia chaining.

Also, a note on the Equipment Change Trick or whatever it is most popularly called. There are several ways a player can gain an advantage by opening the menu with Triangle and changing a character's equipment while other things are happening. This will remove the delay that occurs after casting a spell, and can be used to manually end melee Attack combos. It will also interact strangely with items such as Holy Mote, where changing equipment will cause the item's animation to reset and it has to play again before the item takes effect. This can be used to extend an item such as Holy Mote indefinitely.

Dustia chaining - This method is quite old, and I did not personally discover it.

Dustia is a rare monster that spawns in the Corridor of Sand zone in the Dalmasca Westersand. He will spawn if anybody in the party has less than 10% of their max HP left. He is Undead type and he can be killed instantly with a Phoenix Down to quickly gain EXP and LP.

To start Dustia chaining, make sure you have a Save file at West Gate with a stock of Phoenix Downs. Travel to the zone line between Galtea Downs and the Corridor of Sand. Make sure that Battle Speed is set to Wait and Slow and that Phoenix Down is the first item in your inventory. Have a character (in this guide use Penelo) damage themselves to under 10% HP. Thankfully, you will have the Zodiac Spear, so have Penelo kill herself in one hit and then revive her. Remove the ZS and have Penelo Attack herself once more. Open the menu right away and change her equipment so that she does not combo and kill herself again.

Now, enter the zone. Dustia will appear right away. As soon as his HP bar appears, hit X to open the menu and use a Phoenix Down on Dustia. He will be destroyed and immediately after this hit X again to Pause the action. This allows any items he has dropped to fall to the ground while time is stopped. Now, if he dropped something hit X to close the menu and bump into the item bag. Immediately hit X again one last time, then close the menu. Either way, leave the zone as fast as possible. You must leave the zone before the LP and EXP appears on the screen, otherwise Dustia will not respawn.

If you did it right, enter the zone again and Dustia will appear so that you can destroy him once again and adds to your chain too. What a nice ghost.

0:00:00 - Game Beginning

Note: The general strategy for this section is to do absolutely nothing besides plot events, up to the point where Fran and Balty join.

First, Skip 3 scenes and then mash X through some text. In the tutorial section, spin the camera around quickly (yes, you need to do this), then approach Basch and talk to the Dalmascan just past him. Open the Iron Gate and exit to trigger an un-skippable scene.

As soon as you can, set Battle Speed to Fastest and Active and hold R2 to run Straight past the lone Imperial. Skip 1 scene before the boss battle with Air Cutter Remora. Run behind Remora and use Thunder as many times as you can, then Attack it. Skip 1 scene and Flee past the three Imperials into the next zone.

Skip 1 scene then Flee forwards, curve to the Left around the wall. Turn Right and go up the stairs into the next zone.

Approach the Save Crystal, then mash X through some text and turn Right, exiting up the stairs.

Skip 1 scene and then, there is a fight with Rex alone against 3 Imperials, you must kill them to open the door. Each one goes down with 2 normal attacks unless you are extremely unlucky, so don't use any Magic. After the battle, go back up the stairs and turn Left to open the Passage Door. Turn Right twice and approach the door. Skip 3 scenes and...

You start and there are three Dire Rats. Defeat them as quickly as possible. Sometimes they die in 2 hits and other times it takes 3 hits. After this, Skip 3 scenes.

In Rabanastre, go Straight ahead and then turn Right. Skip 1 scene, head North, curving around the shops and then turn Right into to the Sandsea Bar at the North end of this zone.

Skip 1 scene and then select No, I think I got it. Vaan is forced to get Accessories 1 during the un-skippable tutorial and you must mash Square at the right time. Finally, the Rogue Tomato hunt starts.

Exit the Sandsea and turn Left, leaving the zone through to the South.

Take a sharp Left and go down the stairs into the next zone.

Touch the Save Crystal to heal and exit this zone Straight ahead.

Skip 1 scene, as you exit to the Estersand where the Rogue Tomato is Straight, ahead down the hill. Try not to use more than one Potion or aggro the wolves here. After squishing the Tomato, Skip 1 scene and then Flee back the way you came back to Rabanastre.

Talk to Kytes at Eastgate and Skip 2 scenes.

Back in town just go Straight ahead and the entrance to Lowtown is slightly Left as you hit the wall, open the gate.

Take the first Right and then turn Left and go Straight through the zone.

Keep going Straight and then take a Right at the person icon on the mini-map which is Old Dalan's place. Enter, Skip 1 scene and then mash X through the dialogue, immediately leave and exit Right through the zone.

In South Gate, touch the Save Crystal and then turn Left and Skip 1 scene as you exit through to the South. Make sure to set Battle Speed to Slowest and Wait.

Flee past any enemies going Straight ahead through this zone.

Once inside Giza Village, walk Forward along the Right wall, towards a small box in the alcove. Seconds later, an NPC named Nomad will appear, who is really Masyua. She is by herself near a box for some reason. Its easy to pass her up the first time because, if you are fast enough, you reach her before she properly loads into existence. Talk to her and tell her Sure, Penelo will join the party. Exit to the South-East, mash X through some text as Penelo explains things you almost surely know.

Hug the Right wall into the next zone.

Curve slightly Left, cross the bridge and curve Right, following the Southern wall along to the Crystal Glade zone.

Forwards and slightly to the Right is Jinn, Explain the Situation and then mash X through his dialogue then Save!

0:19:07 - Crystal Glade

Exit West to Starfall Field and use that Sun Crystal, turn around and go back through the zone we started from to...

Giza South Bank: Curve to the Left across the bridge, turn Left again to see the next Sun Crystal. Now, exit to the North to...

Giza North Bank: Turn Left and keep going forwards to the West and then turn Right to the Sun Crystal here.

If you don't have 100% Energy, then Re-load your game. If it is 100% Energy then mash X through the un-skippable scene. You end up back in Giza Village so go to the Save Crystal and Save your game.

0:22:33 - Giza Village

There is a chest in Toam Hills (Just West of Giza Village) which can give us Ethers. It spawns on top of the little bridge that is just South of the entrance when you are coming from the village. Get 2 of these by Re-loading the file. After that, remove all of Penelo's equipment to sell later on, but don't sell it just yet. Exit to the North.

0:24:36 - Giza Village (2 Ethers)

Flee past the enemies and re-enter Rabanastre

Back in Southgate, re-enter Lowtown through the Eastern entrance the head back to Old Dalan's house in Lowtown. Approaching will trigger 1 scene to Skip and then Penelo will leave the party. Talk to Old Dalan to give him the Sunstone.Skip 1 scene and obtain the Crescent Stone then immediately leave the zone which triggers 1 scene to Skip.

NOTE: if you don't care about clock time or having an under-flower now is the time to chain Dustia to level 20+

Outside, go North and then turn Left, cross the bridge and exit to the zone to the North.

Keep going North and then turn slightly Leftopen the gate called Storehouse 5. Mash X through some text and enter the Garamsythe Waterway which, predictably at this point, triggers another 1 scene to Skip.

Make sure Battle Speed still set on Slowest and Wait and turn Left past the Save Crystal and exit the zone.

Flee past all enemies, take an immediate Left and turn Right at the wall. Keep going Straight ahead, and then curve Right to keep going East. Hug the Left wall through some curves and exit North out of the zone.

Keep going Straight up the stairs and take the last Right approaching some stairs that lead out of the zone. Indicate that it is Now or Never to continue forwards.

Skip 2 scenes, open the door. Turn Left and go Straight, mash X through these scenes. Approach the Imperial and then talk to the Palace Servant just left of you now. Press Square to Shout, run around the Imperial and open the door.

Go Straight ahead to half-way down the hallway just in front of you and Shout. Turn around and turn Left, cut down the lowest hallway and turn Left again.

Pass the first hallway and turn Left down the second one. Activate the Lion Signet here. Turn around and then turn Left towards the North-most hallway.

Go half-way down and Shout to the Imperial. Pull all three groups to the East this way, as you travel South.

Cut around using the Southern-most hallway and then head North. Turn Left at the last path and touch the Faint Light then Approach the Wall.

Mash X though the scene, then head Straight ahead. Just before the dead end, turn Left and there is a Switch to press. Open the Suspicious-looking wall behind you and to the Left, then leave the zone.

Skip 2 scenes, run Straight up the stairs and around the corner, Skip 2 scenes and end up at...

0:35:12 - East Spur Stairs

Fran and Balty join here. Just keep going, and there is an un-skippable tutorial so mash X, hit Circle twice and then mash X.

Flee straight, going Left and passing the stairs. Circle around the path and take the first Left, heading Left again at the fork. Exit the zone to the South.

Keep going Straight, avoiding the right turn and take a Left, following the path all the way around. Take a Right down the stairs and into the next zone.

Keep going Straight and curve around the zone, passing the Save Crystal to the Right. Set Battle Speed to Fastest and Wait and then head down the stairs and Skip 1 scene to trigger the battle.

Just have Fran use Fire on one of the Imperials while Balty and Vaan just use normal Attacks. Focus your attacks and go for the one with Protect status last. Control Vaan primarily and use Potions as necessary. After the battle, Skip 1 scene.

Approach 'Amalia' to trigger an un-skippable scene where you can't mash X. After this, Save!

0:41:52 - East Sluice Control

Battle Speed: Fastest, Active

Party: Fran, Vaan, Amalia (guest)

Gambits: Enemy: Nearest visible>Attack on Fran who leads, Enemy: Party Leader's Target>Attack on Vaan

Amalia will assist you with combat and keep everybody healed with her infinite stock of Potions, which she likes to use. She is very nice. Now, go back and forth between the Stairs and Sluice Control rooms, killing the enemies as you go as quickly as possible. When you need to re-spawn the enemies just Re-load your Save file.

Use Fire on the Gigantoads, although if you are using Baltheir instead, I recommend skipping the battle with 2 of them in No. 11 Channel since it takes too long to clear most of the time. The goal is to get enough LP for a Quickening on Vaan and Fran here. Fran is further away and she needs 110 LP to the closest one.

If you go back and forth fast enough, you might end up in the same place as I did. If not, the time will just be slightly different. Its highly unlikely that anybody would get a time that exactly matched the times I list here.