Final Fantasy X Community Playthrough

[Jason Tandro]

^ I counter this argument with, again, the rock-paper-scissors argument. What is hard about putting a round peg in a round hole? There are moments where it shines but 90% of the game is like that. But that 's the way it's designed to be. It's designed to be easy for newcomers to the series but offer enough challenge in the endgame to please hardcore fans.

FFX-2 meanwhile tried to improve on an old formula and succeeded. Job management, even with the free switching, was solid and again the ATB charge time made you consider each movement. Thief is weak but it's attacks and chains are lightning fast. Meanwhile Dark Knights and Samurai are slow but powerful. Songstress doesn't deal direct damage of any kind but is great for buffs and debuffs making some fights way easier. Lady Luck is great when you are level grinding. There's a job for every scenario and the various Garment Grids also add an extra layer of strategy. Admittedly you can use Unerring Path to cheese your super moves but even those have some limitations and weaknesses (and besides every FF game has cheesability).

You know Kimble, and anybody else listening, this might be a good editorial or debate article of some kind. Perhaps we can get two people to dish it out. Really I'd like to start a series of these "deadlock" style debates on the front-page some how. I feel it'd be good content I'm just not sure how to go about it. But I digress.

[Omega]

"super moves" and "x-2" are not things that go together

but we could talk all day about how much I hate x-2

I might try streaming chapter 3 tomorrow

[ChipNoir]

Whoo boy. All caught up to chapter 2 now. @_@

Mega post incoming!

Chapter one

{ What version of the game are you playing: the original or one of the remasters?}
PS3 version. My PS2 is far away in another land. That aside, I'm pretty happy with the PS3 version, give or take some of Tidus's funkier models.

[ If you are playing a remaster, which version of the Sphere Grid are you using? How are you finding its progression? If you are playing the original, what do you think about the Sphere Grid in general as a leveling system?]
The Expert Grid terrifies me, so I'm going with the classic. It's kind of mindless at the begining; There's no reason to give it any other thought than plugging in every node as appropriate. I remember being a little frustrated early on that a lack of ability spheres could freeze you in your tracks if you're not careful. I find it baffling that a lot of people get confused by it.

I find it nice though, a very visual way of understanding how your characters are growing, even if it becomes something of an automatic process after a while.

[ What do you think about the Cloister of Trial puzzles as a recurring puzzle? Are they too tricky? Too Easy? Just plain annoying?]
I've played this game so many times that it's pretty much route by now. I remember as a kid having no idea about the destruction spheres till I got the BradyGames guide. I also got stuck for a long time in Djose's puzzle for some reason, and nearly quitting the game in frustration. But again, that's old me. It's a little clunky, but I bare with it.


[ What do you think about the drastic shift from the ATB to the CTB system for battles? What about the ability to switch party members on the fly?]
This is what I've always wanted. It always irked me when some of the FF games would put so much emphasis on learning a bunch of skills and jobs, and only allow you a tiny fraction of that arsenal per battle. Especially when you go into a new area having no idea what to expect from enemies. It does become a little 1-2-3 pat at times, but it's great busy work for the hands while listening to a podcast. I find that I also dearly miss how epic the battles feel, with every skill, spell, and finishing strike having it's own special moment. Compared to the static feel of XII, or the helterskelter everything-at-once style of XIII, I feel like the FF franchise has lost something recently.

Chapter 2

[ What did you think of the Sending sequence? How does it hold up today?]
Fucking gorgeous man. I still get teary eyed. This was also the first time I noticed that the caskets all float towards her, which gives it a kind of creepy element I never considered. The special effects for the pyreflies were ahead of their time.

[ Did you face the optional boss Lord Ochu? How did you handle him?]
I did, because I'm a glutton for loot as early as possible. Haste+Lulu: BBQ'd Ochu salad with a side of ranch dressing.

[How was Blitzball for you this time around? Do you plan on playing it regularly? Were you able to beat the Luca Goers?]
I can't stand blitzball. It isn't fun, it isn't rewarding, and the Luca Goers are unfair as fuck. I'm going to attempt to go through it all for the loot, but I ain't gonna be happy about it for one second.

[ Now that you've got some levels on you, what are your plans for Kimahri?]
I usually teach Kimahri Steal/Use later on, and use him alongside similarly for Yuna as a big old steal raid to maximize my item horde. Otherwise he's useless as anything except a becan for other characters to get around the grid faster.

Chapter 3

[ Given the major revelation we get about Tidus's relationship with Sin, what are your thoughts? How do you think it works as a story element?]
I find it interesting, if a little on the melodramatic side. Mind you the entire game is one big marshmelllodrama dessert. I don't quite get Tidus's reaction to it initially. If anything, with as angry as he is, I'd expect him to be gung fo for killing Sin even more, but there seems to be some part of him the loves the stupid old drunk.

[Dear god we're bringing it up again: What did you think about the laughing scene? You a hater or defender?]
It is what it is: A little moment of insanity to break the bigger insanity. It's awkward as fuck, and its meant to be. The cast even calls them out on it right after. It makes it hurt even more after a certain revalation later on.

[ Question from ChipNoir that I wanted to add: What do you think about the lack of a water-based Aeon in a game surrounded by water? Why no Leviathan, Bismarck etc?]
Already said it before, but I find it weird as fuck that a game that has such a huge emphasis on a balanced elemental system skips right over the water aeon. Especially when it would have been so freaking usefull for the Thunderplanes. I'm toying with coming up with a what-if concept, since Aeon's are very systemic in how they're built (One special strength, one special attack, and an overdrive that comes in two specific parts. )

[Were you able to beat the Chocobo Eater or did you have to walk the Old Road of Shame?]
I had to reset and grind so many times because I wasn't able to push him over faster than he could right himself. I wasn't in any danger of being pushed off, but it was basically a stalemate that could only have ended in killing him, and losing out on the loot.

[Knowing what we know about Yevon, do you think Operation Mi'ihen was worth doing still or was is it a mistake? Not in terms of confirmation bias, do you think the plan itself was foolish or still admirable?]
It was completely foolish. 1,000 years of no change, and this idea was going to be the thing that killed Sin, something known for coming back for some reason nobody could explain? This was doomed to failure on so many levels, and the atmosphere leading up to it made it clear this was a suicide mission based on misguided intentions. I really wanted to bitch slap Kinnoc for being so smug about it.

[What do you think about the use of Ixion instead of the traditional Ramuh for our lightning themed summon this time around?]
Ixion is interesting, especially as a speed-type monster. His special abiity is really handy lader on when enemies start loading themselves down with buffs. He's certainly better than Quetzal-whatsitsface, a thing that I still can't identify as anything more than a blob of electric waggliness. I feel like he's been cemented into the FF summon hall of fame, now that his head is part of Ramuh's staff in FFXV.

Pheeeew! All caught up indeed!

[Clement Rage]

Sup guys. I didn't join the LP because I'd be grumbling too much, but just while you're talking about the battle system, I found it extremely boring up until Macalania, (which is what, 2/3 of the game?) because it's mostly about the same four enemies (Flan, Flying one, Armour, and Dog) and tagging in the appropriate character. It starts to shine thereafter, though.

[Joe]

All caught up to the end of Chapter 3. Even went ahead and got Attack Reels for good measure. VICTORY.

Chapter 1

{ What version of the game are you playing: the original or one of the remasters?}
PS4 remaster. This is more or less because I wanted to play in eternal comfort and the PS4 and TV are at the end of my bed

[ If you are playing a remaster, which version of the Sphere Grid are you using? How are you finding its progression? If you are playing the original, what do you think about the Sphere Grid in general as a leveling system?]
This will be my first time doing a full play through with the Expert grid. I wanted at least one thing to be a new experience for me. I've no interest in min/maxing and just want to play the characters a different way than usual. I currently have both Lulu & Yuna with basic White and Black magic. Tidus is more or less the same but I took a detour to get Steal & Use for him too, for some early game thievery.

Along with the license board of XII, the sphere grid is my favourite levelling device in FF.

[ What do you think about the Cloister of Trial puzzles as a recurring puzzle? Are they too tricky? Too Easy? Just plain annoying?]
So far there's nothing I can't do by memory. Tbh I just get a little excited when I'm ready to do a cloister. I know that the great destruction sphere will lead me to sick loot. The puzzles are just trial and error really. Combined with the finicky nature of pushing pedestals, I guess it can be annoying sometimes.


[ What do you think about the drastic shift from the ATB to the CTB system for battles? What about the ability to switch party members on the fly?]
It's turned-based combat, with a little variation in that you can affect the turn order constantly with various moves and stat buffs. I like it. It's solid. It's not overly exciting but it does allow you to take your time for those fights where strategy is important. That's what I want from any turn-based game.

Switching characters freely is totally necessary for the dull rock-paper-scissors combat present in the early stages of the game.


Chapter 2

[ What did you think of the Sending sequence? How does it hold up today?]
Man I just love pyreflies and what they represent in this game. Any of the FMV sequences with pyreflies is loved by me. The FF series needs more pyreflies.

[ Did you face the optional boss Lord Ochu? How did you handle him?]
I ignored it at Kimble's behest.

[How was Blitzball for you this time around? Do you plan on playing it regularly? Were you able to beat the Luca Goers?]
Yeah walked all over the goers. Just got some decent levels in the first half and dominated the second. Kept posession when Wakka came on. I love playing Blitzball. As previously mentioned, I already have the Attack Reels for Wakka.

[ Now that you've got some levels on you, what are your plans for Kimahri?]
I'm planning on taking him down Tidus' path. Though he'll be further along since I took a detour for Tidus.

Chapter 3

[ Given the major revelation we get about Tidus's relationship with Sin, what are your thoughts? How do you think it works as a story element?]
I love the revelation but I hate Auron. The long and short of it is that Auron holds all the cards but doesn't share them all with his teammates cos he's an arsehole. He even laughs like a maniac at Tidus' very genuine frustration in Luca. I'd love these story revelations more if they came from somewhere other than 'Auron decided to reveal this information'

[Dear god we're bringing it up again: What did you think about the laughing scene? You a hater or defender?]
Love it. It makes you cringe because yeah Tidus is acting like a lunatic. He's essential shouting/screaming in frustration while forcing out this fake laughter. He tells Yuna he doesn't think screaming will help, but once he starts this feigned laughter he just can't stop until he's out of breath.
This scene is everything it needs to be after Tidus' gets his none-too-pleasant revelations about Sin, Jecht and Zanarkand.

[ Question from ChipNoir that I wanted to add: What do you think about the lack of a water-based Aeon in a game surrounded by water? Why no Leviathan, Bismarck etc?]
Yeah tbh it's pretty strange. Both because of the big elemental system and because of the theme of the game being water. I feel like a water aeon would have fit nicely in either Besaid or Kilika instead of what we got. That said I love all the aeons.

[Were you able to beat the Chocobo Eater or did you have to walk the Old Road of Shame?]
Killed him dead. Walked the old road anyhow to go lend Oaka the last bit of dough.

[Knowing what we know about Yevon, do you think Operation Mi'ihen was worth doing still or was is it a mistake? Not in terms of confirmation bias, do you think the plan itself was foolish or still admirable?]
It was an admirable plan. Imagine living in a world tormented by some great power that kills your family and destroys homes. Not everyone can sit back and wait for the chosen summoner to have their pilgrimage and bring the calm. Sin kills many without opposition. At least those of operation mi'hen willingly put their life on the line to see if they were capable of doing something too.

[What do you think about the use of Ixion instead of the traditional Ramuh for our lightning themed summon this time around?]
FF needs its staples but it needs to inject new stuff in amongst that too. FFXs mix of summons new and old is the perfect balance for me.

[Teioh]

Chapter Three

Given the major revelation we get about Tidus's relationship with Sin, what are your thoughts? How do you think it works as a story element?

I remember not being surprised by it back when I first played the game. I do like it as story elements go as I’m a sucker for (SPOILER) dysfunctional family drama. Tidus needed a little something to have him tag along with the rest of them anyway as up to that point he was really just being directed to Luca (by both Rikku and Wakka). I guess he could have just tagged along to see Zanarkand anyway but this is a more interesting goal. It did take Auron a long time to tell Tidus not to share the info with Yuna though. That's the kind of thing you'd warn him about right away.

Dear god we're bringing it up again: What did you think about the laughing scene? You a hater or defender?

Until I joined this forum I didn’t even know that people had a problem with it. I never really gave the scene much thought. Seeing as we’ve just got the previous question’s major revelation I think it was a pretty normal scene to occur. Cute even, how Yuna tries to cheer him up.

Question from ChipNoir that I wanted to add: What do you think about the lack of a water-based Aeon in a game surrounded by water? Why no Leviathan, Bismarck etc?

I always did want there to be more Aeons in this game. I did expect to come across a water Aeon once you reach that part in Mt. Gagazet where you do a little swimming. Too many of the Aeons are non-elemental so it would have been nice to have another elemental to complete the set.

(Also why no Earth or Wind, I mean as an elemental weakness/resistance thing? It wouldn’t have made the game any harder but it would have been nice to maybe have Valefor as Wind or something to cut down on all those non-elementals. Don't mind me and my non-elemental grumbling)

Were you able to beat the Chocobo Eater or did you have to walk the Old Road of Shame?

I beat him and then read ChipNoir’s post. Didn’t know you could push the Chocobo Eater off the ledge and be rewarded with Lv. 1 Key Spheres! Luckily I had a save file at the beginning of the Mi’ihen Highroad which I loaded up and took him on again. Chucked him over with the help of Lulu and Yuna (to keep his health up, he’d have died again if I didn’t heal him).

Knowing what we know about Yevon, do you think Operation Mi'ihen was worth doing still or was is it a mistake? Not in terms of confirmation bias, do you think the plan itself was foolish or still admirable?

After 1000 years of fighting Sin and knowing that Sin was responsible for the destruction of the Machina cities, it does kinda come across as foolish. The Al Bhed are only using what they’ve scavenged and not anything new that they may have created themselves. So I don’t really see how they thought they could do any better by using the same weaponry as the cities of old seeing as they were ultimately destroyed by Sin.

What do you think about the use of Ixion instead of the traditional Ramuh for our lightning themed summon this time around?

I have no strong opinion for either. I rarely summon Ixion but I do like the design. When I first played X I had only played from VII onwards where Ramuh appears in two of the games and Quetzalcoatl in the other, so I wasn’t really expecting to see Ramuh anyway. If they had replaced Shiva or Ifrit with something else I would have been shocked

Extras

• I friggin’ love Auron. Just everything about him, but mainly because he is an arsehole my Kimarhi is stronger than him at this stage but I think that’s down to what weapons I have equipped. Have yet to find a nice one for Auron
• I usually always keep Auron, Wakka and Tidus in my start up line so that my weaker characters are protected from ambush attacks. But this playthrough I’ve not swapped the formation after battle. As a result I’m hearing little bits of dialogue I’ve never heard before which is really nice
• Restarted my fight with the boss you fight during the Operation Mi’ihen just because I didn’t get an overkill. I really want those key spheres lol
• Tried to save Luzzu this time but because of the above, I forgot to talk to Gatta again. Have never had Luzzu be the one to survive but since it doesn’t really impact anything much I decided to carry on as is
• Heh. Only just noticed that Seymour gets AP from the fight too, like the game is teasing you with the possibility that he’ll become a permanent member of your team
• I don't like Djose's Cloister of Trials. It's too damn dark and I can never see the sphere slots in the walls and two of the pedestals are hidden because of the camera angle, sigh
• I did want Kimarhi to learn Yuna’s nul-element abilities but there’s a lv. 2 key sphere in the way. Going to grab Tidus’s Haste, Rikku’s Steal etc. and then just take him down Auron’s path. Curse you standard grid!

[Ami]

Given the major revelation we get about Tidus's relationship with Sin, what are your thoughts? How do you think it works as a story element?

It's still shocking to hear the revelation that Sin is Jecht, but the hints have always been there right from the beginning. I hink it's a very unique story element when compared to other Final Fantasies, even other games.

Dear god we're bringing it up again: What did you think about the laughing scene? You a hater or defender?

Mostly a hater, but I can see why the scene is so important now that I'm older. You can see how much the party needs moments of relief when they're on such an important and emotional journey.

Question from ChipNoir that I wanted to add: What do you think about the lack of a water-based Aeon in a game surrounded by water? Why no Leviathan, Bismarck etc?

Probably backtracking to another post here, but I agree that Sin's the water aeon itself. And if there was one, then maybe Sin just... destroyed it once upon a time?

Were you able to beat the Chocobo Eater or did you have to walk the Old Road of Shame?

Can proudly say I owned and overkilled that mothertrucker.

Knowing what we know about Yevon, do you think Operation Mi'ihen was worth doing still or was is it a mistake? Not in terms of confirmation bias, do you think the plan itself was foolish or still admirable?

It was really admirable. It takes me back to the scene where Tidus and Yuna are looking at the sunset, where Yuna says she never questioned stuff. With the Operation, it's almost as if the Crusaders were questioning everything and trying something new to see if Sin could be beaten without the need for summoners. In the end, it was a huge loss and even though it may have looked foolish at the time, it was incredibly brave to even just try.

What do you think about the use of Ixion instead of the traditional Ramuh for our lightning themed summon this time around?

It's a unicorn with a lightning horn. Say no more...

[Jason Tandro]

Chaper 2

Jason Tandro wrote:

What did you think of the Sending sequence? How does it hold up today?

The Sending is actually awesome even to this day. It remains one of those iconic cutscenes in the franchise and no matter how many times I've played this game I always get really invested in watching this scene. There's so much emotion packed into a minute long scene.

Did you face the optional boss Lord Ochu? How did you handle him?

Heh, by accident. I was levelling in Kilika and backtracked the wrong way and ran into him. Didn't even trigger the first Crusader warning. Well, in for a penny, in for a pound - I slaughtered him using Valefor to trigger the overkill. Also used Wakka's Extract Ability and walked away with a whopping 4 Ability Spheres.

How was Blitzball for you this time around? Do you plan on playing it regularly? Were you able to beat the Luca Goers?

I fuckin' love Blitzball as I've said before now. I used to keep excel sheets loaded with player stats and being able to play again is the most exciting thing for me at this point (though I've dropped most of my gil onto O'aka so I'm going to have to spam some monster hunting to get gil before I recruit my star players Jumal and Wedge.

As far as the Luca Goers battle it was tough, I mean shit this is a trial by fire for Blitzball and if you can beat it you can venom tackle any challenge up ahead. I think this starting fight is what turned off a lot of new players. I personally remembered a longstanding vendetta I had against fucking Balgerda. Ignore her stats. If she is within 2 points of any check she will win it. She is a dirty rotten RNG whore. She got so tubby sucking off Satan.

But I managed to win anyways. Went into halftime 0-1 to the Goers, Halftime came and I was able to break out a 1-1 with the Jecht Shot but it was looking like I was gonna lose the match (and of course restart the game because mama didn't raise a god damned quitter). The shit went to Overtime and I employed my Tidus Midfielder strategy - except it was Wakka instead of Tidus. He didn't get the ball first but was positioned out of the way so that after Bickson's blocked shot I was able to daisy chain the ball back to him. Now here's where shit gets interesting. Wakka is inches from the goal. Balgerda is on Defense. Her block is so high that I know I will never make the goal if I try to pass her. So I rolled that die - I broke to her. She uses Drain Tackle but against all odds she does NOT steal the ball. Wakka's Venom Shot goes in and lands us the win 2-1. What a fucking way to go man, I can't imagine a better ending.

Pics or it didn't happen

Now that you've got some levels on you, what are your plans for Kimahri? How will you be developing him.

I have been taking him around his own sphere for now but will eventually follow my usual tactics of making him a substitute Rikku. It's really handy in Bevelle when the party is split in two among other things, plus having two Al Bhed Potion users are great.

[Jason Tandro]

Chapter 4: Memories Are Nice, But That's All They Are.
(aka "RIDE ZE SHOOPUF?")
(aka aka "Macarena Temple... Uaaahahh?")

Time: Sunday July 16th to Friday July 21st

Target: After this touching cutscene in Maclania Woods.

Oh boy there is a lot of meat on this one too. A lot of story content but only two bosses if you can believe it. First we travel down the road to the Moonflow where we RIDE ZE SHOOPUF. To those inclined you can find some decent Blitzballers on the north bank, but during the crossing we have another machina to disassemble.

We then meet up with Rikku, the last member of our team and we should be spending the remainder of the trip getting her some Sphere levels so she can catch up with us. Her Steal and Use abilities are going to come in especially handy now as she also teaches us Customization in Guadosalam. In Guadosalam we visit the Farplane, have an audience with Maester Seymour - and a proposal! There's also an opportunity to lean your interest towards Yuna, Rikku or Lulu. Regardless the choice the answer is hilarious but I think Lulu's is the funniest.

Then a trek across the destroyer of thumbs the Thunder Plains where we help Rikku overcome a fear of hers and then through the deceptively short Macalania Woods - just don't faff about with the butterflies it's not worth it unless you really want to get Kimahri's ultimate weapon. Death to the butterflies. And finally a Hein-esque boss who likes to change his elemental resistances who can be a bit of a challenge to an underleveled party.

Phew, sounds daunting no? Well I think you're up to the task and I think 5 days is a good choice for time limit here. And here are your questions.

Discussion:

• On the Moonflow we can benefit from O'aka's charity if we've been donating to him. So... have you been funding our friend O'aka?
• Now that Rikku is in the party, do you have any plans for special Customizations you've been looking forward to?
• The Farplane is a bit iffy in the lore - the Al Bhed state that the pyreflies just create the vision of the dead, whereas the Yevonites believe it's truly the souls. It'd be easy to dismiss this if it weren't for other events later in the game and in FFX-2. What do you think?
• Do the Thunder Plains annoy the ever-loving shit out of you or do you not mind them so much?
• Did you go against my advice and face the butterflies? Do you enjoy that sidequest?
• Given the last cutscene we see this chapter it's time to open up the Jecht can of worms. Do you think his feelings being expressed later make up for how he treated Tidus as a kid? Do you think there is more for him to repent for?

Good luck everybody!

[f a n c y]

LEEEE-EEEEEY-YUUUUUU-EEEEEEEEE aka the hymn of the faith is the sounds my stomach makes when I'm HELLA HUNGRY FOR SOME DELICIOUS FIXINS'

Sad Panda-ing that I've missed this playthrough! and I'm sure I won't be able to catch up because of life n' shit but I'mma be creepin' over everyone's shoulder so to speak and watching everyone play and SPEAKING UP AT MY FAVOURITE MOMENTS if that's cool

[Omega]

It's worth noting that you CANNOT get Kimahri's celestial weapon here yet. You're going to have to wait a while on this one.

[Mr. Ite]

@Fancy: I haven't posted anything yet, but when I do it'll be loooong. I'm mid Chapter 3 now, but haven't posted anything.

[Flare]

Finished chapter 2 this morning! Uggggaaaaa so fun

Chapter 2
Discussion:

What did you think of the Sending sequence? How does it hold up today?

I've always loved the Sending sequence and think it very much holds up today. It's absolutely gorgeous, sad, mysterious, mesmerizing... I remember being blown away by X's graphics when I first played it. The CG movie scenes still look amazing today, and I'm still playing the PS2 version.
I like how Tidus says it's also somehow horrifying. I think that's a word that one wouldn't immediately think of to describe it, but I like that he feels it is a bit horrifying in a way, and how he never wants to see Yuna dance like that again. The meaning behind it is sad.

Did you face the optional boss Lord Ochu? How did you handle him?

I usually do and I almost did this time, but upon learning that you can bribe him later, I want to give that a go. Never done that before and I love trying things differently!

How was Blitzball for you this time around? Do you plan on playing it regularly? Were you able to beat the Luca Goers?

I FUCKING BEAT THEM IN OVERTIME OH MY GODDDDD
I was laughing to myself and was so happy It was pretty damn amazing. Double pressure because I didn't save it right before the match! Forgot that talking to Wakka started it.

I did browse the tutorials for a quick refresher on some things, but that was it. I do plan on playing more, I've come to love Blitzball. The only annoying thing about it sometimes is how things can be randomized. So just because your EN is 11 and the opponent's AT is 10 doesn't mean you're going to withstand it every time. Harumph. :|
I remember not playing Blitzball until a few years ago during my last playthrough. As a kid I found it to be too complex and couldn't grasp the rules, and indeed, didn't delve into it. o.o

Now that you've got some levels on you, what are your plans for Kimahri?
How will you be developing him.

I'm not positive yet... I usually take him down Tidus's path so this time I want to be different. Auron is another likely option because Kimahri has piercing weapons too, but ehh I think I want to subvert that.
I'm thinking Yuna, Lulu, or Rikku's path for him!

[Kionae]

Wooo!

Chapter 4

On the Moonflow we can benefit from O'aka's charity if we've been donating to him. So... have you been funding our friend O'aka?

I always donate to O'oka. Poor guy needs a hand competing with all those other merchants.

Now that Rikku is in the party, do you have any plans for special Customizations you've been looking forward to?

I think I probably under-utilize Rikku when I play this game. Mostly I just use her Steal and Use abilities (Al-Bhed potions FTW!), and otherwise ignore her because her physical attacks are shit, and I never manage to get her HP real high. But yeah... the customizations are a nice touch with her. I'm working collecting enough Purifying Salts to get the No Encounters ability on my armor. Getting hit by a random encounter every 5 seconds when you're trying to do a sidequest is a pain in the ass. Especially catching those goddamn butterflies.

The Farplane is a bit iffy in the lore - the Al Bhed state that the pyreflies just create the vision of the dead, whereas the Yevonites believe it's truly the souls. It'd be easy to dismiss this if it weren't for other events later in the game and in FFX-2. What do you think?

I don't think that pyreflies are individual souls (particularly since people and creatures seems to be made up of multiple pyreflies. I think they're more a physical manifestation of memory created by a soul.

Do the Thunder Plains annoy the ever-loving shit out of you or do you not mind them so much?

I'm terrible at dodging lightning. Thunder Plains suck. They are kind of a nice place to grind before Macalania, though, if you stick close to the exit..

Did you go against my advice and face the butterflies? Do you enjoy that sidequest?

Not yet. Doing it without No Encounters is just an exercise in frustration.

Given the last cutscene we see this chapter it's time to open up the Jecht can of worms. Do you think his feelings being expressed later make up for how he treated Tidus as a kid? Do you think there is more for him to repent for?

I think Jecht was a douche when Tidus was a kid, plain and simple. He grew up a lot in his time in Spira, but... he was kind of a shit father, overall.

[Omega]

Kionae wrote:

I never manage to get her HP real high

her grid is essentially nothing but speed and HP