Final Fantasy VIII Disc 2
Liberating Balam
Going up to Balam
Equip your party to include Zell and Quistis, then land the Garden near the city of Balam and set your junctions.
Optional: Obel Lake - Part 2
If you did the first piece of the quest back near Timber, you can search the area along the short to complete part 2 of the Obel Lake Side Quest.
When you’re ready to advance the story, head down toward the city. When you arrive, you realize that there are guards everywhere, and that Galbadia has taken over the town. Talk to the two old people out front, then talk to the soldier. You may have to walk around a little bit before he finally gets suspicious. I just had my guys leave and then come back. Eventually, you should be able to convince him to let you into the city.
Use the dog route to find the captain:
| Step | Action |
|---|---|
| 1 | Talk to the soldiers in front of the inn. |
| 2 | Talk to the soldiers down at the dock. Both guys and the dog. |
| 3 | Go talk to Zell’s mother. Wander around his house. (If you have Quistis in your party, head upstairs for a laugh.) |
| 4 | Talk to the guys by the train. |
| 5 | Go talk to Zell’s mother again. |
| 6 | Go talk to the sick men at the train station, and the engineer. |
| 7 | Go back and talk to the dog. Yes, the dog. Follow him to the train station. |
| 8 | SECURE YOUR JUNCTION, consult the Boss Fight Prep notes below, then follow Raijin back to the inn. |
Boss Fight Prep
You are prepping for two back-to-back battles. Give one character GF AbilityReplaces Attack with a stealing attack. Learned by Diablos and Bahamut. and another Draw, and turn GF AbilityCounterattacks after being hit by a physical attack. Learned by Carbuncle. off so you do not accidentally end the second battle before drawing Guardian ForceWind-element Guardian Force drawn from Fujin in Balamb. Pandemona is an early source of speed junctions and Initiative.. Protip: For battles where I’m using GF AbilityReplaces Attack with a stealing attack. Learned by Diablos and Bahamut., I try not to junction any magic to Strength, Elem-Atk, or Status-Atk on that character. That way I don’t have to spend as much time curing my enemy while mugging, or worse accidentally kill them off (yes - that’s the voice of SO MUCH experience) without getting the cool items I’m looking for.
Boss Fight Prep
Fujin joins immediately after the first fight, so keep the party healthy and leave Draw and GF AbilityReplaces Attack with a stealing attack. Learned by Diablos and Bahamut. equipped.
This is a standard battle. Try not to kill them while you try to get good stuff from them. You can go stay at the hotel and read an old issue of Magazine SeriesMagazine series that unlocks Laguna stories on the Garden computer..
Optimizing GF Distribution with Pandemona
Group 1: Siren, Carbuncle, Leviathan
Group 2: Quetz, Ifrit, Brothers, Tonberry
Group 3: Shiva, Diablos, Pandemona
Strategy: Adds speed and wind tools without crowding the Abilityx3 characters.
Ability Priority: Initiative, Spd-J, Elem-Defx2-J, Spd+20%, Spd+40%, Str+20%. Full list.
Optional Queen of Cards
If you’re doing the Queen of Cards side quest and she told you she was going to Balam, you can go back to her now and actually find her.
Optional: Obel Lake - Parts 3 and 4
If you did the first two pieces of the quest, you can return to Obel Lake and participate in parts 3 and 4 of the Obel Lake side quest.