Final Fantasy IX Community Playthrough

Lex

Administrator
You can use a tent on Gizamaluke to inflict darkness and silence. I tend to do this so I don't have to bother healing as much when I'm stealing.
 

Sprites

Waiting for something
AKA
Gems
Yup, they're pretty handy to have, as long as you don't use them on your own party in the early stages. You could use them later in the game to heal your members as long as they have Bright Eyes, Antibody and Loudmouth equipped I guess :monster:

I've always found them really handy to at least try in the beginning of a boss battle but if they don't work the first time I usually don't bother with them again.

@Hito, some of the Gem items i.e Ore, Peridots, Opals which you can get later can heal your party members depending on the amount you have, but obviously the healing amount is no where near as effective as Elixirs and decreases with use. Dead Peppers (item that can be dug up once your chocobo becomes a mountain/red chocobo and helps find some hidden treasures on the map) can inflict damage too, at tops if you have 99 in your inventory they can do around 3000 HP worth of damage that can't be blocked, so again handy in a pinch.

Gonna spoiler tag the next little bit as it contains info on a character not met yet, for any first timers to the game.

Eiko's summons also change effect depending on the gemstones later she has equipped i.e. Carbuncle's ability changes effect when summoned from Reflect to Protect if Eiko has an emerald equipped, to Shell if she equips a moonstone and to Vanish if she has a diamond equipped. The colour of Carbuncle's horn changes too, to the colour of the gemstone equipped which is kinda cute and nice for continuity purposes. Fenrir changes to wind rather than earth damage if Eiko equips the Maiden Prayer and the possiblity of Phoenix reviving the group from KO increases with the more Phoenix Pinions you have equipped. The Gem items will also have an effect on the amount of damage a summon attack does based on how many there are, i.e the more opals you have will be a factor in the increase in damage that Shiva can do
 

Fangu

Great Old One
This game is kinda long, isn't it? I've been playing a bit to get ahead before I'm leaving, and I thought I must have played at least a few chapters, turns out I was 25% into the second. Keep in mind I don't use guides though (for my first playthrough).
 

Lex

Administrator
It's weird, because if you speedrun it your target speedrun times are similar to those in FFVII. But it definitely feels like a longer game. Taking your time, doing as much as possible and not using a guide it's much, much longer than VII and VIII.

Also Fangu, I might be extending the next chapter to include the second Alexandria visit :monster:

The chapters were all designed to be around 1-3 hours in length if you do pretty much everything, because if they were any shorter the playthrough would just take all year. Cleyra is quite long but if I rejig the chapters a bit we might be able to finish slightly earlier.

There's a chapter coming up (currently it's chapter 13) in which the world opens up a bit and there are a ton of side quests available. At that point the actual story content is about 20 minutes if you do it slow, so people should be able to catch up then :)
 

AvecAloes

Donator
Chapter 5!

You have the optional choice to revisit an old place and visit a new little place where you can pick up a few things. Did you go to either of these places?

Yes, we went back to Dali and found Quan's Dwelling. Three ethers what what? :P

Have you run into any of the friendly creatures or the ragtime mouse yet?

Ran into the little squirrel thing that asks for ore. 10 AP ftw. I remember when I last played through IX, every time I ran into the ragtime mouse, I looked up the answers :X

Did you pick up the latest Kupo nut? Note: it's only available if you backtracked to Gizamaluke's Grotto after speaking to the moogle in Burmecia!

We went back to the Grotto and gave the moogle another nut, and only got a tent for it, which we were a little disappointed about :P

So; Treno. What d'you think of it? Lots of nice optional things to do here; the fight club, the auction house, visiting the Stellazio queen. What did you do?

Oh man. Talk about all the optional things to do. We did the auction house to get Une's Mirror and the Reflect Ring (sold the Mirror to some guy in the streets for a profit :P ). We visited the queen and gave her 4 coins, I believe, and received the Blood Sword, which was awesome for the fight against that griffon. As soon as Steiner learns the ability from the Mythril sword, we'll be switching him to the Blood Sword. Also, got the Power Belt by watching the ATEs in the right order.

Good old bosses. Steal anything new?

Stole all of the possible items from the bosses that we ran into, with a pretty good success rate, surprisingly. Every time we run into a boss, I am reminded how much I love the boss theme from this game!
 

Captain Jack Harkness

not a out-of-bounds guy
AKA
4nn4-chan, Loras Tyrell, Loki
You have the optional choice to revisit an old place and visit a new little place where you can pick up a few things. Did you go to either of these places?
i didn't went to Dali, but when i had the chance i went back to the chocobo forest for a little of Hot&Cold (damn i love that game, i can spend hours digging with my chocobo
Have you run into any of the friendly creatures or the ragtime mouse yet?
i met a ghost but i kicked his has before he asked me the Ore. the reasons: i can't stand 'fairy battle'! i not even sure why, but i hate the Tchaikovsky+ battle theme style. it's strange since i love Tchaikovsky.
Did you pick up the latest Kupo nut? Note: it's only available if you backtracked to Gizamaluke's Grotto after speaking to the moogle in Burmecia!
not yet, but since i'm in the chocobo forest i'll have the chance.
So; Treno. What d'you think of it? Lots of nice optional things to do here; the fight club, the auction house, visiting the Stellazio queen. What did you do?
Dark City Treno. it sound really badass. especially when you know what is a 'treno' XD
i finally got how tetra master works, so i tried the Arena but....they are monster =_=
i went to the auction house but i hadn't enough money (900 more or less) so i didn't buoght nothing.
Good old bosses. Steal anything new?
i stole the hat and a rode (the thunder one, i think) from the poor Black Waltz 3 but i didn't stole nothing from the last boss (don't remember the name) because i wanted to end fastly and the first two time i tried to stole something i got nothing.

other things:
i love the Gargan Roo music, it's funny to hear, i wanr to hug the poor little Black Waltz 3 :no: i know he's evil and only want to kill and destroy but it's sooo cute, especially the second time you meet him :glomp: (me and black waltz XD)
 

Carlie

CltrAltDelicious
AKA
Chloe Frazer
Carlie's late again. :monster:

You have the optional choice to revisit an old place and visit a new little place where you can pick up a few things. Did you go to either of these places?

I went to Dali and picked up the ether in the chest and the mayor is still too busy to talk to me. Went to Quan's Dwelling too.

Have you run into any of the friendly creatures or the ragtime mouse yet?

I ran into the cute squirrel, ghost and someone else I can't remember. I gave them all ore, so cute. I haven't run into the ragtime mouse yet.

Did you pick up the latest Kupo nut? Note: it's only available if you backtracked to Gizamaluke's Grotto after speaking to the moogle in Burmecia!

Oh crap I forgot about that, dammit. -_-

So; Treno. What d'you think of it? Lots of nice optional things to do here; the fight club, the auction house, visiting the Stellazio queen. What did you do?

I love Treno, is one of the places I still remember vividly from when I was a kind. I love that it's always night, all the things you can, I do not however the thieve that stole 500 gil from Garnet, give me back my money you fucker. I went to the auction house and got two items that I can't remember atm. I went to the Stellazio queen and exchange one coin and I went to the fight club and got instant kiled, some thing never change.

Good old bosses. Steal anything new?

I surprisingly remembered to steal from all the bosses, can't remember what though.
 

Sprites

Waiting for something
AKA
Gems
Is there a skype session tonight, I think i'll be joining you guys properly, my parents are going to my aunts house for drinks tonight so I can speak freely woooo
 

Lex

Administrator
Yes my dear there will be! Looking forward to speaking to you!

Note everybody: I haven't had the chance to write the chapter update yet but I've decided to include Alexandria and Pinnacle Rock.

Cleyra itself is long, but it's not really as long as other chapters when you factor in optional stuff etc. It leads nicely into Alexandria, which isn't too long. Normally I'd just stop there, but there's no real good place to end the chapter and save after leaving Alexandria (it kinda goes straight into Pinnacle Rocks) which is a really short sequence - the moogle here is halfway through it. So the save point for the end of this chapter is the first available moogle in Lindblum shortly afterward. Proper chapter post coming soon.
 

Lex

Administrator
Chapter Six: A Tree Worth Hugging

chapter6_zpsd148abe0.jpg


This chapter is quite long - originally it was just Cleyra, but that itself was a bit short compared to the other chapters we've been doing so it was extended. The good news is: there isn't too much optional stuff to do so getting lost etc shouldn't happen too much.

It now takes in Cleyra - Alexandria Revisited, and Pinnacle Rocks. The first save point you come to after Pinnacle Rocks is in Linblum - one we've ended a chapter on before - the one in the Inn in the business district.

Also, apologies for how late I am in posting this, uni has been absolutely crazy.

  • The climb up to Cleyra can be a pain in the hoop - how did you find it?
  • What did you think of Cleyra village proper? What about the story events that unfold there? Did you meet Stiltzkin? I'm a huge fan of the Riverdance scene (Also Sir Fratley could possibly be a Michael Flatley reference, which is lulz).
  • If you have Quina in the party, you can get two chests after watching ATE's and he/she jumps in the pit. Did you?
  • Steal anything interesting from the bosses? (Antlion, Beatrix, Zorn and Thorn, Beatrix again, Ralvuimago)
  • There's an optional boss in Alexandria castle's library - it's difficult at this point in the game due to the timer and general outlevelled-ness, did anyone try to fight it?
  • Did you obtain the Eidolon at Pinnacle Rocks?
 

Carlie

CltrAltDelicious
AKA
Chloe Frazer
No one wrote their chapter progress? Let us change that then.

The climb up to Cleyra can be a pain in the hoop - how did you find it?

I was ok with until I ran into the sand monsters and I realized far later then I should've that I was suppose to hit the red thing in the center instead of the sand, yay 7 minutes of frustration. -_- I got all the chests though.

What did you think of Cleyra village proper? What about the story events that unfold there? Did you meet Stiltzkin? I'm a huge fan of the Riverdance scene (Also Sir Fratley could possibly be a Michael Flatley reference, which is lulz).

I though the village was very nice, it reminds me of the village Fran is from which I also liked, I loved that Riverdance scene, everything about it was beautiful. Now after Burmecia things got serious but Cleyra is the first heartbreaking moment of the game. Seeing people get killed, possibly people you're trying to save and then if you got people inside. When you leave you feel a little good cause you at least saved a few people and then you watch Bhrane destroy Cleyra and I got hit right in the feels especially when I thought about the mom and her kids that I had saved before. :'( You gotta feel really bad for Freya, in succession she finally reunited with the love of her life only to find out he doesn't remember her and then has to watch Cleyra get blown up, I just wanted to give the poor girl a hug. The chapter is were you get to see the extent of Bhrane's madness, forcefully extracting the eidolons from Garnett, then destroying Cleyra and then trying to kill Garnett, she moved into complete monster after that.

If you have Quina in the party, you can get two chests after watching ATE's and he/she jumps in the pit. Did you?

What? When? Quina was in my party the whole time.

Steal anything interesting from the bosses? (Antlion, Beatrix, Zorn and Thorn, Beatrix again, Ralvuimago)

I did except for Beatrix, I was too busy trying to stay alive, still got a game over once.

There's an optional boss in Alexandria castle's library - it's difficult at this point in the game due to the timer and general outlevelled-ness, did anyone try to fight it?

I did not which is good because it would've mopped the floor with me, also timer so hell no.

Did you obtain the Eidolon at Pinnacle Rocks?

Yes I did. I got the story right and everything

I would like to add to things: One fuck yeah Beatrix and Freya teaming up, taking control of Beatrix, the whole thing was fucking awesome. Number I'm officially passed were my pirated copy stopped working when I was 10 which is the furthest I've ever gotten in the game. :headbang:
 

Sprites

Waiting for something
AKA
Gems
Apologies that I won't be here tonight for the playthrough and for not having my chapter write up posted, been a very busy week and my time is limited, i'll probably do a double post during the week, most likely on my next day off work...that's Tuesday :monster:
 

Lex

Administrator
I had actually written up a huge account of what I did in my chapter and didn't want to triple post, so I had the window waiting to click the "post" button. It's odd, because I usually write up my chapters in a word document since they can get long.

I won't make that mistake again.

1. The internet crapped out and I lost it all about 2 hours later and
2. Apparently, I would have been waiting a week :monster:

What's happening with the playthrough guys? Where is everyone? Let's keep this going, don't lose steam!!!!
 

Fangu

Great Old One
I went to type up this chapter earlier this week, then I saw it said "the climb up to Cleyra can be a pain in the hoop" and I was like "was it? I can't remember! Guess I'm gonna have to go see a pt on YouTube to see what that is" and it sorta came to a halt. Today I saw Carlies write up and I remembered how it goes. RAM, mine is only 128 MB :smashedmonster:

Chapter Six: A Tree Worth Hugging

The climb up to Cleyra can be a pain in the hoop - how did you find it?
I didn't have any problems because I decided to just go with it and see where I ended up. I have this thing for always going left first. That worked out fine here since you end up going down later anyway.
What did you think of Cleyra village proper? What about the story events that unfold there? Did you meet Stiltzkin? I'm a huge fan of the Riverdance scene (Also Sir Fratley could possibly be a Michael Flatley reference, which is lulz).
* I liked Cleyra a lot, it's definitely one of my favorite locations so far..
* I did meet Stiltzkin.
* It is always nice when you get stuff that describes the culture of a society in FF, but I found the Riverdance scene to be a little lulzy to be honest.
If you have Quina in the party, you can get two chests after watching ATE's and he/she jumps in the pit. Did you?
I heard about that stuff. No, I didn't do it.
Steal anything interesting from the bosses? (Antlion, Beatrix, Zorn and Thorn, Beatrix again, Ralvuimago)
I can't be remember. Generally now I try to steal as much as I can be arsed from the bosses, so I think I got some nice items. However if the fight turns out to be hard and I have to use up all my Phoenix Downs and Ethers, I'm more likely to not bother.
There's an optional boss in Alexandria castle's library - it's difficult at this point in the game due to the timer and general outlevelled-ness, did anyone try to fight it?
No, I didn't encounter it/ know about it. Guess I'll go back and do that later.
Did you obtain the Eidolon at Pinnacle Rocks?
I did, and I got the story right on the first try. That was a nice little easy minigame.


Okay so I played _a lot_, or, at least I thought I did, to be ahead for when I'm leaving in March. But now I'm only like halfway in tonights chapter. Oh well, I'll do my best and play when I cba. There is a chance I'll have 3 chapters to do when I get home though, because next week is going to be aaaaaaa schoolwork aaaaaaaa packing aaaaaaa but I swear I'll try to catch up. Going on holiday is stressful :loopy:
 

Flintlock

Pro Adventurer
Sorry Lex, once you added Alexandria and Pinnacle Rocks to chapter 6, it felt too long and heavy for me to take on, especially in an exam week. Cleyra is already my least favourite part of the game. And since my exams finished, I've been playing other games instead, like XII :)

I should have more time next week, so I'll try to catch up then.
 

Lex

Administrator
Chapter Seven: Rally Ho!

chapter7_zps72f99b9f.jpg


The image above is slightly misleading - you should save here AFTER you've been to the Black Mage Village, meaning you've already popped in here once then gone to the Black Mage Village, then came back :)

  • What do you think of the story so far?
  • There are quite a few changes in setting in this chapter. What do you think about the places? How did you do against Armodulluhan in Fossil Roo?
  • Catch any more frogs on your latest visit to Qu's Marsh?
  • Conde Petie somehow has Scottish people in it. The accents are actually quite well done. What do you think about the village?
  • DAT BLACK MAGE VILLAGE MUSIC <3 How much do you love this place?
 

The Twilight Mexican

Ex-SeeD-ingly good
AKA
TresDias
Now after Burmecia things got serious but Cleyra is the first heartbreaking moment of the game. Seeing people get killed, possibly people you're trying to save and then if you got people inside. When you leave you feel a little good cause you at least saved a few people and then you watch Bhrane destroy Cleyra and I got hit right in the feels especially when I thought about the mom and her kids that I had saved before. :'(

On the brighter side of things, though, there is that one Burmecian family who you saved and meet up with in Lindblum later on.
 

Captain Jack Harkness

not a out-of-bounds guy
AKA
4nn4-chan, Loras Tyrell, Loki
The climb up to Cleyra can be a pain in the hoop - how did you find it?
not so difficult (as a dungeon) but i hate those monsters. i just fought the sand golem once end then never again (that battle was endless and i used to much magic)
What did you think of Cleyra village proper? What about the story events that unfold there? Did you meet Stiltzkin? I'm a huge fan of the Riverdance scene (Also Sir Fratley could possibly be a Michael Flatley reference, which is lulz).
Cleyra is a really nice place, calm and quiet and all, but still my fav place is Lindblum.
i met Stiltzkin and bought his stuff as always.
about the riverdance....ok, this may sound funny but... my relationship with Eternal Harvest will never been the same. i downloaded the whole soundtrack long time before i started playing the game so i know every song and i like a lot Eternal Harvest. everytime i hear the song i see in my mind Zidane and Garnet run through a plain, avoinding something dangerous and with a light-hearted and of the sequence.it sound very fantasy-esque. when i heard that music in the game what i get? riverdance. don't get me wrong, i like riverdance but i hope you can understand that it's a bit different from what i expected.
i was like "what? riverdance? wait, riverdance is ok but.. no fantasy-esque situation? ok, it's lol but...no plain, no wind, no Zidane and Garnet...."
If you have Quina in the party, you can get two chests after watching ATE's and he/she jumps in the pit. Did you?
yes i did
Steal anything interesting from the bosses? (Antlion, Beatrix, Zorn and Thorn, Beatrix again, Ralvuimago)
i don't remember right now, i just remeber i stole the mythril armlet (or armor?) from Thorn. yeah, i spent the whole fight kicking Thorn's ass.
There's an optional boss in Alexandria castle's library - it's difficult at this point in the game due to the timer and general outlevelled-ness, did anyone try to fight it?
nay
Did you obtain the Eidolon at Pinnacle Rocks?
of course! i love summons and Ramuh as a chinese hippy was such i funny idea i couldn't don't get him.
 

AvecAloes

Donator
Ok, chapter reports ho!

Chapter 6

The climb up to Cleyra can be a pain in the hoop - how did you find it?

Not particularly dreadful this time around. I remember during my first playthrough, I did have some trouble (mostly with the sand golem things), but this time wasn't all that bad.

What did you think of Cleyra village proper? What about the story events that unfold there? Did you meet Stiltzkin? I'm a huge fan of the Riverdance scene

I like Cleyra. It's such a pretty village. I always feel really bad for Vivi, I mean, kid can't catch a break. Every time he shows up somewhere new, he's treated terribly by the locals, which I understand, but it still tugs at my heartstrings.
I have to admit, when they did the dance and the harp broke, my first (sarcastic) thoughts were "alright, who missed a step?"
Sir Fratley not knowing Freya makes me cry every time. Every. Damn. Time.
It really is heartbreaking, once you go through all the trouble of escorting people to the chapel, to watch the whole village be incinerated by Odin. That is a bitchin' scene, by the way - Odin galloping straight down towards Cleyra. But it really does leave you with a sense of gravity. The evil powers in this story aren't messing around. At all.
I did meet Stiltzkin.

If you have Quina in the party, you can get two chests after watching ATE's and he/she jumps in the pit. Did you?

Yes.

Steal anything interesting from the bosses? (Antlion, Beatrix, Zorn and Thorn, Beatrix again, Ralvuimago)

Had a bit of trouble stealing things during this Chapter, especially from Beatrix. Damned timed battles.

There's an optional boss in Alexandria castle's library - it's difficult at this point in the game due to the timer and general outlevelled-ness, did anyone try to fight it?

Nope.

Did you obtain the Eidolon at Pinnacle Rocks?

Yes :) I chose the "Hero" ending for my story.


Chapter 7

What do you think of the story so far?

Things are really heating up here. Brahne's thirst for power knows no bounds, and this must be stopped. Kuja's influence over her must be broken, but honestly, I have never had any sympathy for Brahne. I'd take her out in a heartbeat, no problem. I guess that's one thing the game never really did for me - make me sympathetic towards her for the sake of Garnet, who I guess understandably sees beyond the present evil within Brahne. Maybe it's because we never see her being anything other than a dreadful person/parent/ruler/etc.

There are quite a few changes in setting in this chapter. What do you think about the places? How did you do against Armodulluhan in Fossil Roo?

Ugh. Fossil Roo. I hated it during my first playthrough. Treasure hunting/figuring out the switches for the Gargant...no. It took me freaking forever to get through it. Luckily with Force at the helm (and maybe a walkthrough *cough*) it wasn't so bad.
Didn't really have any issues with the Armodulluhan. Lani, on the other hand, was annoying as hell, and after killing Garnet several times while we tried to steal again and again, we finally just gave up and went to town on her.

Catch any more frogs on your latest visit to Qu's Marsh?

Before coming to the Outer Continent? Yeah, but not at the new marsh. I don't think we even entered it yet.

Conde Petie somehow has Scottish people in it. The accents are actually quite well done. What do you think about the village?

DO YOU KEN THE PYNTIE HETS? I quote that all the freaking time.
Anyway, love that Vivi finally doesn't get accosted upon arrival at a new village, although Quina gets him/herself into some trouble due to his/her lack of communication abilities.

DAT BLACK MAGE VILLAGE MUSIC <3 How much do you love this place?

I really really love the Black Mage Village. It's just so adorable, and I love the dialogue of the simple Black Mages who have yet to figure out the workings of the world, themselves, and people. The cemetery scene, though... :'( but I absolutely love that Vivi is finally learning anything at all about who or what or why he is. The first hints that we get here leave you wanting more information.

Also, I already put this in my art thread, but it seems appropriate to throw it in here as well:

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