FFX Torment sub30ed thanks to Rikku's USB1. Only FF8 and FF0 left. 8 I'm 99% I have a sub30, but I really fucking hate dealing with the status shit and especially not knowing which phases I'm going to be able to push fast enough or the like. I'm also overburdened by choices. Ice with Laguna CSB/USB1/Glint, Squall USB2/AOSB, and Rinoa USB1 seems probably the best, and let me use the RW medica, but not using Rinoa's synchro feels like I'm almost certainly giving up on damage. I have nothing past a BSB for Edea, Ultimecia, or Quistis, and even that's only Quistis's poison one, let alone anybody else in earth. I could also field a fire team with Squall's fire glint, Irvine's USB, and Zell's USB/AOSB... or Zell can provide an non-elemental party crit fix with his BSB and just rock Ironfist Ice instead of Rinoa in a pure physical ice team. I just remember that last time I did this (sub50), the status effects were obnoxious as shit. I guess Quistis has White 5 now so she can just be on full time "deal with that crap" duty.
Type-0 I feel like I should have a sub30, but again, a bunch of obnoxious status shit and my top DPS is Cinque, who I'm exceptionally unimpressed by her damage numbers for, even comboing her USB and AASB for max damage Quake Strikes with imperil every turn. Kind of honestly feeling like using her is sort of a trap (Machina also brings earth, so there's some realm synergy) and I should be building a lightning team around Queen/King and their USBs instead. Someone posted a pretty poverty sub30 on the Reddits using just Jack and Eight USBs, but I lack Jack's, and that 2x cast is potent. Might be enough to simulate it with King though. A second instant guts would probably smooth things out a bit too.
...Except once they're done, it's back to Ramuh. Fucking Ramuh.
I might post the team later but...I think the insight is more useful. In the end, I dropped the Glint+ and slotted in USB2 for Cloud. Also, I didn't even get to use his AOSB. I just took it slow and steady with Zidane's USB2 and Cloud's USB1+USB2. Dropped Walls with Zidane's OSB (the third wall I did use Fabula Mage) and only unleashed my ASBs (Cloud and Zidane's) on phase 3.
First FF8 try (using a pure ice team with Rinoa USB1 and Quistis as pure healer) ruined by misclicking Squall's OSB instead of his AOSB.
Second try ruined by the slow/blind at the end coming at the worst time.
Third try, skipped every status except the sleep to ridiculously easily sub30 it. Not even sure how. Probably Rinoa 2x casting luck since even with Laguna's phys chain, she was easily capping. Even capping on her chases late in the chain. Could've used Quistis as an attack mage instead to push damage even harder and make status skipping easier in the future.
Type-0 is the only one that's left. Still genuinely not sure the best way to approach that.
I only gave Ramuh one shot this weekend, but I think the OSBs are indeed the answer. I have a few more turns than I originally thought that I can fuck around in phase 1 with. Not so much because I'm doing anything useful like building meter, so much as just holding onto Rinoa's Sync for closer to around 60% HP to make sure that she's at full stacks the rest of the way, and reserving both Titans until at least phase 2 also helps to keep the rage under control, and I absolutely want one for all of phase 3. I'm more or less okay with using her AASB towards the end since it comes with a mini-AOSB finisher about 8 seconds later, and has no problem breaking cap with full stacks from post-Sync (but does at low chain on Meltdown if only one stack, even in phase 1/2), but having her Sync up going into the final phase to blunt the nuke and if I'm super lucky, avoid proccing guts at all, would be massive. Just stripping rage and keeping rage low from phase 2 on seems to be the key though.
And because that video makes zero sense if you don't know what it is
once upon a time there was a game released in Japan named OSU! Takate! Ouendan!
It was a rhythm game where you tap the screen in time with music, causing a make cheerleading squad to dance and cheer on some random person who asked for help in a random task. It was well designed, and (in no small part due to the final level being Ready, Steady, Go, a song with high popularity from being an OP in FMA at the time, it was pretty easily the most imported game on the system, maybe on any system for some time.
This led NoA to make an English version where the dancers were inexplicably a government agency, with the same trappings. It was a MASSIVE flop stateside.
And that's a wrap. Turns out the answer was abusing Rem's now half-SB cost OSB with the help of the fastcast from her lens-bought USB, and abandoning all elemental synergy. Both Rem and King were self-sufficient enough, and Eight did respectable damage, but his main contribution was laying down fucking three instant party guts, plus a couple more from Deuce's USB1. Ace, uh... called RWs and brought a party Atk buff. Thanks, Ace.
Each realm Torment MVP/key relic
FF1: Meia AASB
FF2: Maria AASB
FF3: Ingus AASB
FF4: Golbez USB2
FF5: Bartz AASB
FF6: Terra, Locke, and Edgar AOSBs
FF7: Cloud USB/Zack CSB
FF8: Laguna CSB
FF9: Zidane AASB
FF10: Tidus AASB
FF11: Toto AASB
FF12: Ashe AASB/AOSB, Penelo AASB
FF13: Snow AASB
FF14: Y'shtola BUSB
FF15: Prompto CSB
FF0: Eight USB
FFT: Ramza CSB/TGCid USB
Can you tell how many I put off until the AASB era? Technically, it's all but FFT, FF7, and FF4, even though I didn't use any AASBs for 8 (Rinoa's terrible one is my only FF8 one), FF14 (have none), FF15 (had none at the time), T0 (Cinque's terrible one is only option), FF6 (still have none), or FFT (had none at the time).
Back to Ramuh then. Luckily, I've seen at least one Ifrit clear I can perfectly replicate that seems not bad at all, but Shiva, Valefor, and Diabolos are 100% non-starters until next fest. Ice I should be okay if I take Squall's freebie AASB. It's all in on the Noct/Locke fire banner in the fest though, and... some holy banner somewhere. They all look super mediocre and focused on bad characters until the TGCid Sync one though.
Heh. Titan went from a fight I dreaded to one of the most fun encounters in FFRK. The thing is... Once you have the magicite and Fábula Mage, walls and phase 3 rages are a non issue. Also... with that Crit Damage Boost from Elarra's USB and a high enough chain count, that defense boost from Rages isn't an issue. Also, Titan doesn't hit that hard at all. Regenga ticks are enough to keep you nice and healthy. I can freefrom the encounter and just react with no problem. I feel kinda bad that I never learned the right timing to use Glint+ but I'd rather take it slow and steady than SL until I get it right.
silence1186Character shields down!As a wingmanRegistered Userregular
edited January 2020
I Lensed Ingus USB, and then messed around with Ramuh some more. Made it to phase 3, but being unprepared I just sort of flopped around and he killed me with what felt like back to back Thunderous Judgment Bolt into Thunder Summon. Also Tyro's crit buff must've fallen off since even Awoken with EnEarth refreshed Tifa/Ingus couldn't break Rage 3. Going to have to delay going into USB4 I guess.
It might help to Lens Tyro's Godwall and have Fabula Mage for the phase 2 and 3 transitions, to help ol' Titan out. Too many things to juggle. Remembering to USB2 for Elarra late in the fight so Crit Damage stays up will take some work.
There's an Earth banner coming up with G25 featuring Leo/Kelger/Gladio AASBs, the first two of which have stacking EnEarth glints on the banner, as well as AOSBs, and a stacking EnEarth Glint for Galuf. It might be worth looking at it, if Tifa/Ingus can't get the job done. Might just need more practice and a more solid plan in place.
E: I'm actually wondering since I'm running Ingus, who is self sufficient compared to Bartz BSB/USB/AASB demanding so much meter, if another DPS would help more than Tyro? I don't have anymore Earth AASBs though.
E2: Since the lion's share of damage is from commands, and the SB entries are typically to refresh EnEarth, I'm wondering if +40% School is better than +30% Damage for RMs?
How well is Ingus working for you? I have a fair number of good things for him, but I’m always kind of put off by his inability to dualcast outside of Awakening.
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silence1186Character shields down!As a wingmanRegistered Userregular
How well is Ingus working for you? I have a fair number of good things for him, but I’m always kind of put off by his inability to dualcast outside of Awakening.
Ingus has been reasonably good absent any other options. He's not going to hit the highs Bartz does, but he doesn't take nearly the work Bartz does to get running. In phase 1 he relies on his USB, so he attacks for 50k and chases for ~8k x 6 once at ~4 stacks of Imperil, 100% crit with Elarra's Crit Damage buff. He refreshes his USB towards the end of phase 1 for ~100k damage, then enters AASB after P2 Earth Diffusion, so he has Awoken and chase modes at the same time. Earth Radiant Shield isn't great, since the boss damage reduction mitigates it severely, but every extra bit helps. Mostly it helps ramp the Chain count back up in phase 3.
Also, forgot to mention, Ramuh's Staff of Oldum counters for 4500 in phase 3, which seems excessive.
I Lensed Ingus USB, and then messed around with Ramuh some more. Made it to phase 3, but being unprepared I just sort of flopped around and he killed me with what felt like back to back Thunderous Judgment Bolt into Thunder Summon. Also Tyro's crit buff must've fallen off since even Awoken with EnEarth refreshed Tifa/Ingus couldn't break Rage 3. Going to have to delay going into USB4 I guess.
It might help to Lens Tyro's Godwall and have Fabula Mage for the phase 2 and 3 transitions, to help ol' Titan out. Too many things to juggle. Remembering to USB2 for Elarra late in the fight so Crit Damage stays up will take some work.
There's an Earth banner coming up with G25 featuring Leo/Kelger/Gladio AASBs, the first two of which have stacking EnEarth glints on the banner, as well as AOSBs, and a stacking EnEarth Glint for Galuf. It might be worth looking at it, if Tifa/Ingus can't get the job done. Might just need more practice and a more solid plan in place.
E: I'm actually wondering since I'm running Ingus, who is self sufficient compared to Bartz BSB/USB/AASB demanding so much meter, if another DPS would help more than Tyro? I don't have anymore Earth AASBs though.
E2: Since the lion's share of damage is from commands, and the SB entries are typically to refresh EnEarth, I'm wondering if +40% School is better than +30% Damage for RMs?
More insights:
- phase 1 rage is whatever, just ignore it. Phase 2, keeping him off Rage 3 is handy to keep the damage to sane levels, otherwise no big deal. Phase 3, you absolutely cannot let him get to rage 3 or you're going to lose, and his first several actions are all +1 rage level. In addition to having Titan active, it's handy to have Tyro and/or Galuf on standby with Fabula Mage.
- yeah, if you aren't stacking earth auras, much (school) damage RM will probably work out better for you. The clear that was largely my blueprint actually dropped Bartz's chance-for-triplecast LM for his spellblade/sword-damage LM, for consistency in timing and rage breaking.
- how many Tier 3 lenses do you have? Just bite the bullet and get Godwall, probably.
- I had Tyro start with Godwall, put up USB-crits around 15s (shortly after first chain started), refresh wall around 32s, refresh USB-crits when paralyse wore off (around 40-45s).
- I didn't have a +crit damage SB, and mostly didn't miss it. No real problems breaking rage, Bartz got to 9999 pretty quickly in phase 1, and Tifa/Bartz were pretty consistent at 19999 after breaking all the rages later.
Tyro does have his legend dive for longer-lasting buffs. He also will eventually have Sentinel’s Grimoire cost only half a bar. When that happens, someone with a WHM Glint for Proshellga and Haste will likely find Sentinel’s Grimoire better than DVG, just so that Tyro can Entrust more meter...
Is it necessary to refresh wall in this infinite protect and shell world?
My Ramuh clear is almost a minute. Stormlance in particular cares very much about your DEF stat, if you let wall go down it will blow you up for 5-digit damage.
edit: though looking at the script now, it seems that the only non-piercing attacks that would come after the initial wall wears off would be p2t8 Stormlance and maybe p3t9 Stormlance (which is right before the soft enrage). If you have Last Stands to burn, maybe you can get away with not refreshing wall.
Heh. Looking at these strategies for Titan and Ramuh, they all suggest taking your time. So of course I managed to stick myself to the one that demands you go fast.
Enlong on
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silence1186Character shields down!As a wingmanRegistered Userregular
Ugh. Had a good run going, but completely neglected to put Guts up and died stupidly in phase 3.
Goddamn 10 minute phase 1 attempts are draining, just to get to the point where I can start figuring out what to do beyond there. And then die to a stupid mistake that isn't muscle memory because I haven't practiced enough due to 10 minute lead in time to get to the point where I can start building new muscle memory.
WTB save state, so I can just start after the P2 transition.
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silence1186Character shields down!As a wingmanRegistered Userregular
edited January 2020
Okay, made it to phase 3 Infinity Bind. Which also puts him at Rage 3 instantly, meaning his followup Judgement Bolt is faster than I can act, for more HP than anyone could possibly have. Fuck you, Ramuh. That's a sneaky Dead End.
My big mistake was thinking Ingus had enough SB meter to USB into AASB, but he was a tad short. By the time I realized it, it was too late to fix. Ramuh phase 3 could've gone a bit quicker with a 2nd AASB. Maybe it wouldn't have mattered? I got him sub 11%, when he interrupts with Staff of Olduum.
E: Hmm. Even with no possible W-casts, getting out of phase 1 isn't consistent because of minor fluctuations in damage before Tyro's buff caps at 100% Crit.
Also, 100% Crit is falling off during phase 3, and I don't have the damage to deal 1.4 million damage in ~14-16 seconds before Ramuh Dead Ends me. Not sure what to change. Hrmm.
Posts
Took down Borghen and Gottos. No gimmicks, just damage. Bring a -ATK dance and Passion Salsa, and your favorite flavor of DPS.
Type-0 I feel like I should have a sub30, but again, a bunch of obnoxious status shit and my top DPS is Cinque, who I'm exceptionally unimpressed by her damage numbers for, even comboing her USB and AASB for max damage Quake Strikes with imperil every turn. Kind of honestly feeling like using her is sort of a trap (Machina also brings earth, so there's some realm synergy) and I should be building a lightning team around Queen/King and their USBs instead. Someone posted a pretty poverty sub30 on the Reddits using just Jack and Eight USBs, but I lack Jack's, and that 2x cast is potent. Might be enough to simulate it with King though. A second instant guts would probably smooth things out a bit too.
...Except once they're done, it's back to Ramuh. Fucking Ramuh.
I might post the team later but...I think the insight is more useful. In the end, I dropped the Glint+ and slotted in USB2 for Cloud. Also, I didn't even get to use his AOSB. I just took it slow and steady with Zidane's USB2 and Cloud's USB1+USB2. Dropped Walls with Zidane's OSB (the third wall I did use Fabula Mage) and only unleashed my ASBs (Cloud and Zidane's) on phase 3.
Second try ruined by the slow/blind at the end coming at the worst time.
Third try, skipped every status except the sleep to ridiculously easily sub30 it. Not even sure how. Probably Rinoa 2x casting luck since even with Laguna's phys chain, she was easily capping. Even capping on her chases late in the chain. Could've used Quistis as an attack mage instead to push damage even harder and make status skipping easier in the future.
Type-0 is the only one that's left. Still genuinely not sure the best way to approach that.
Today daily hit: Fang Awakening, holy crap best daily I've ever had!
I'm currently doing an EBA dance for you, so I get credit if you succeed.
Gratz Jragghen on taking down Ramuh!
(what's an EBA dance?)
And EBA as in Elite Beat Agents, perhaps the greatest DS game ever
It was a rhythm game where you tap the screen in time with music, causing a make cheerleading squad to dance and cheer on some random person who asked for help in a random task. It was well designed, and (in no small part due to the final level being Ready, Steady, Go, a song with high popularity from being an OP in FMA at the time, it was pretty easily the most imported game on the system, maybe on any system for some time.
This led NoA to make an English version where the dancers were inexplicably a government agency, with the same trappings. It was a MASSIVE flop stateside.
It's still a fun as hell game
what a truly fantastic game.
And that's a wrap. Turns out the answer was abusing Rem's now half-SB cost OSB with the help of the fastcast from her lens-bought USB, and abandoning all elemental synergy. Both Rem and King were self-sufficient enough, and Eight did respectable damage, but his main contribution was laying down fucking three instant party guts, plus a couple more from Deuce's USB1. Ace, uh... called RWs and brought a party Atk buff. Thanks, Ace.
Each realm Torment MVP/key relic
FF1: Meia AASB
FF2: Maria AASB
FF3: Ingus AASB
FF4: Golbez USB2
FF5: Bartz AASB
FF6: Terra, Locke, and Edgar AOSBs
FF7: Cloud USB/Zack CSB
FF8: Laguna CSB
FF9: Zidane AASB
FF10: Tidus AASB
FF11: Toto AASB
FF12: Ashe AASB/AOSB, Penelo AASB
FF13: Snow AASB
FF14: Y'shtola BUSB
FF15: Prompto CSB
FF0: Eight USB
FFT: Ramza CSB/TGCid USB
Can you tell how many I put off until the AASB era? Technically, it's all but FFT, FF7, and FF4, even though I didn't use any AASBs for 8 (Rinoa's terrible one is my only FF8 one), FF14 (have none), FF15 (had none at the time), T0 (Cinque's terrible one is only option), FF6 (still have none), or FFT (had none at the time).
Back to Ramuh then. Luckily, I've seen at least one Ifrit clear I can perfectly replicate that seems not bad at all, but Shiva, Valefor, and Diabolos are 100% non-starters until next fest. Ice I should be okay if I take Squall's freebie AASB. It's all in on the Noct/Locke fire banner in the fest though, and... some holy banner somewhere. They all look super mediocre and focused on bad characters until the TGCid Sync one though.
You don't necessarily need to Break Damage Limit in phase one, so long as you can beat the timer (which is the Earth Diffusion->Staff combo)
Popping Rage with Titan or Mage after p2t1 makes life a lot better
There's time to squeeze in Elarra BSB while Savage Trine is going on, which can make your life better
Getting all these things done in b rains I don't have awakenings in is a pain. :P
It might help to Lens Tyro's Godwall and have Fabula Mage for the phase 2 and 3 transitions, to help ol' Titan out. Too many things to juggle. Remembering to USB2 for Elarra late in the fight so Crit Damage stays up will take some work.
There's an Earth banner coming up with G25 featuring Leo/Kelger/Gladio AASBs, the first two of which have stacking EnEarth glints on the banner, as well as AOSBs, and a stacking EnEarth Glint for Galuf. It might be worth looking at it, if Tifa/Ingus can't get the job done. Might just need more practice and a more solid plan in place.
E: I'm actually wondering since I'm running Ingus, who is self sufficient compared to Bartz BSB/USB/AASB demanding so much meter, if another DPS would help more than Tyro? I don't have anymore Earth AASBs though.
E2: Since the lion's share of damage is from commands, and the SB entries are typically to refresh EnEarth, I'm wondering if +40% School is better than +30% Damage for RMs?
It also has Galuf Chain. It's one stop shopping for Ramuh.
Ingus has been reasonably good absent any other options. He's not going to hit the highs Bartz does, but he doesn't take nearly the work Bartz does to get running. In phase 1 he relies on his USB, so he attacks for 50k and chases for ~8k x 6 once at ~4 stacks of Imperil, 100% crit with Elarra's Crit Damage buff. He refreshes his USB towards the end of phase 1 for ~100k damage, then enters AASB after P2 Earth Diffusion, so he has Awoken and chase modes at the same time. Earth Radiant Shield isn't great, since the boss damage reduction mitigates it severely, but every extra bit helps. Mostly it helps ramp the Chain count back up in phase 3.
Also, forgot to mention, Ramuh's Staff of Oldum counters for 4500 in phase 3, which seems excessive.
More insights:
- phase 1 rage is whatever, just ignore it. Phase 2, keeping him off Rage 3 is handy to keep the damage to sane levels, otherwise no big deal. Phase 3, you absolutely cannot let him get to rage 3 or you're going to lose, and his first several actions are all +1 rage level. In addition to having Titan active, it's handy to have Tyro and/or Galuf on standby with Fabula Mage.
- yeah, if you aren't stacking earth auras, much (school) damage RM will probably work out better for you. The clear that was largely my blueprint actually dropped Bartz's chance-for-triplecast LM for his spellblade/sword-damage LM, for consistency in timing and rage breaking.
- how many Tier 3 lenses do you have? Just bite the bullet and get Godwall, probably.
- I had Tyro start with Godwall, put up USB-crits around 15s (shortly after first chain started), refresh wall around 32s, refresh USB-crits when paralyse wore off (around 40-45s).
- I didn't have a +crit damage SB, and mostly didn't miss it. No real problems breaking rage, Bartz got to 9999 pretty quickly in phase 1, and Tifa/Bartz were pretty consistent at 19999 after breaking all the rages later.
Tyro does have his legend dive for longer-lasting buffs. He also will eventually have Sentinel’s Grimoire cost only half a bar. When that happens, someone with a WHM Glint for Proshellga and Haste will likely find Sentinel’s Grimoire better than DVG, just so that Tyro can Entrust more meter...
...
I should use Dr Mog for his Glint.
My Ramuh clear is almost a minute. Stormlance in particular cares very much about your DEF stat, if you let wall go down it will blow you up for 5-digit damage.
edit: though looking at the script now, it seems that the only non-piercing attacks that would come after the initial wall wears off would be p2t8 Stormlance and maybe p3t9 Stormlance (which is right before the soft enrage). If you have Last Stands to burn, maybe you can get away with not refreshing wall.
Goddamn 10 minute phase 1 attempts are draining, just to get to the point where I can start figuring out what to do beyond there. And then die to a stupid mistake that isn't muscle memory because I haven't practiced enough due to 10 minute lead in time to get to the point where I can start building new muscle memory.
WTB save state, so I can just start after the P2 transition.
My big mistake was thinking Ingus had enough SB meter to USB into AASB, but he was a tad short. By the time I realized it, it was too late to fix. Ramuh phase 3 could've gone a bit quicker with a 2nd AASB. Maybe it wouldn't have mattered? I got him sub 11%, when he interrupts with Staff of Olduum.
E: Hmm. Even with no possible W-casts, getting out of phase 1 isn't consistent because of minor fluctuations in damage before Tyro's buff caps at 100% Crit.
Also, 100% Crit is falling off during phase 3, and I don't have the damage to deal 1.4 million damage in ~14-16 seconds before Ramuh Dead Ends me. Not sure what to change. Hrmm.
Decided not to bother with zidane and friends. Turns out powercreep is pretty good.
E: ff6 is next, decided to lens relm USB because the BSB is probably not enough to heal by itself.
Halfway considering grabbing one or two things to just make a fire team.
E2: woof, relm feels like not enough healing solo. Probably still need to bring mog.
FWIW I did it with Relm BSB, Terra USB1/AOSB, Celes BSB1, Locke USB2/USB1/AOSB, Edgar USB.
So it's definitely possible even in an pre-AASB world, but your DPS has to be good to burst the last few phases.