Final Fantasy VIII Disc 3
Edea’s House
Back to Edea’s House
Now that you have control again, don’t forget to junction Guardian ForceHoly-element Guardian Force drawn from Edea in Galbadia Garden. Alexander brings Revive, Med Data, Med LV Up, and high magic refinement.:
Optimizing GF Distribution with Alexander
Group 1: Siren, Carbuncle, Leviathan, Ifrit
Group 2: Quetz, Brothers, Alexander, Tonberry, Cerberus
Group 3: Shiva, Diablos, Pandemona
Strategy: Adds Med LV Up and holy support while moving Ifrit's Str Bonus into the stat-building group.
Ability Priority: Med Data, Med LV Up, High Mag-RF, Elem-Defx4, Elem-Atk-J, Boost. Full list.
Leave the infirmary and head to the bridge. If you like, you can also talk at Rinoa if you head to the infirmary. (Here we go again - all these FF7 trigger memories.)
Head to the Training Center and go to the left branch, there’s a MagazineWeapons Monthly issue: Disc 2; for Squall; found at Garden Training Center after Garden Battle; can be bought at Esthar Book Store; unlocks Twin Lance, Rising Sun, Bismarck, Crescent Wish. magazine laying on the ground there.
If you haven’t already, this is your last real chance to take on the Balamb Garden Card Club (hopefully you haven’t spread Random and you’ve been winning lots of great cards throughout the first two discs).
Head up to the bridge and talk to Nida to go to Edea’s house. Exit the Garden and approach on foot. If you walk along the shoreline due west of the house and keep pressing X, you should eventually find a Holy draw point. When you get to Edea’s house, the first screen up has an old issue of Magazine SeriesMagazine series that unlocks Laguna stories on the Garden computer., and the next screen to the left has a Curaga draw point. Cid will appear from the right, and talking with him will allow you to go on to the next screen. As soon as you do, you’re able to play cards against Edea and win the Edea Card from her.
When you’re ready to advance the story, talk to Edea a few times. You’ll learn all sorts of things. If you seem lost at Edea’s house, just try to leave and everything should work itself out.
Prep Work
You probably think you should be searching for a ship right now, but hold that thought for a moment. What you should actually do is check that Squall has junctioned his SystemGuardian Forces are FF8's summons and the source of most junction, command, support, refine, and stat-growth abilities. and at least one other character has too; make sure you remember which character it is. If Squall and this character already know Flare or Meteor, consider transferring their magic to someone else, as you’ll be able to draw these from an enemy soon. Obviously be sure you’ve freed up the requisite magic space on these characters as well. When you’re ready, go talk to Rinoa in the infirmary and the scene will switch to Laguna.
Laguna the Actor
Remember I said to check Squall and another character’s junction earlier? Here’s why. Now we see Laguna’s acting career. Watch the scene play out. I’m not sure if this is the Marx Brothers or the Three Stooges. Soon you’ll enter a battle with a dragon. If you get knocked down and select “I’m done for…” the game will actually end, which feels like punishing the player for suspecting an anachronism. Just tell the game you want another try. The best way I’ve found to get through this is to never defend and just use triangle as fast as possible to keep attacking, thereby preventing him from attacking. When you knock down the dragon, Laguna will call for Kiros.
Area Enemies: Vienne Mountains
| Enemy | Location | Card / Rare Card | Useful Draws |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bite Bug | Laguna's Dream: Vienne Mountains | Bug-Bite Card / Elvoret Card | Scan, Fire |
| Mesmerize | Laguna's Dream: Vienne Mountains | Mesmerize Card / Propagator Card | Lv 1-19: Cure, Esuna; Lv 20-29: Cura, Esuna, Life; Lv 30+: Curaga, Esuna, Dispel, Life |
| Ruby Dragon | Laguna's Dream: Vienne Mountains | Ruby Dragon Card / - | Lv 1-34: Aero, Fira; Lv 35-44: Aero, Firaga, Demi; Lv 45-100: Firaga, Reflect, Flare, Meteor |
Boss Fight Prep
Select “Wait a minute” so you can save and junction some SystemGuardian Forces are FF8's summons and the source of most junction, command, support, refine, and stat-growth abilities. to Kiros; the previous junction was only for magic. If you use auto-junction, double-check that it has not put Fire or Wind on Elem-Atk. Both are fine on Elem-Def. Be sure you can draw and GF AbilityReplaces Attack with a stealing attack. Learned by Diablos and Bahamut., and if you’re playing the low-level route, make sure you can use Guardian ForceGuardian Force earned by defeating enough Tonberries in the Centra Ruins. Tonberry brings LV Up, LV Down, shop abilities, and useful economy tricks. GF AbilityRaises an enemy's level during battle, improving available draws/drops but increasing danger. Learned by Tonberry. and GF AbilityLowers an enemy's level during battle, useful for reducing danger or XP. Learned by Tonberry.. BTW: If you run around on these screens, you can find Bite Bugs and Mesmerize enemies if you need them.
If you head left after selecting “Wait a minute,” you can save your game, which I kind of recommend since Guardian ForceOptional Centra Ruins summon that randomly appears at battle start. Odin does not junction like a normal GF. can show up and spoil your plan for drawing Meteor and Flare. If you can’t draw Meteor and/or Flare, raise the Ruby Dragon to level 45 with Guardian ForceGuardian Force earned by defeating enough Tonberries in the Centra Ruins. Tonberry brings LV Up, LV Down, shop abilities, and useful economy tricks. GF AbilityRaises an enemy's level during battle, improving available draws/drops but increasing danger. Learned by Tonberry.; use GF AbilityLowers an enemy's level during battle, useful for reducing danger or XP. Learned by Tonberry. afterward if you want to keep the fight manageable, but consider only using GF AbilityReplaces Attack with a stealing attack. Learned by Diablos and Bahamut. when its level is high, which will net you more ItemQuistis can learn Blue Magic, Fire Breath.
After defeating the dragon, you will be held captive by Ellone’s “charm.”
Back to Edea’s
Eventually Squall gets the bright idea to talk to Edea. (Hey wasn’t Squall just talking to…) So despite the fact that now ALSO seems like a perfectly logical time to go after the SystemBalamb Garden's mercenary rank system. Higher SeeD levels mean higher salary payments. ship, you’re going to go talk to Edea. Along the way, you can stop off in the classroom read Selphie’s diary logs of Laguna’s articles.
When you talk to Edea you will get a piece of paper that allows you to board the white ship. You can spend a lot of time trying to find this ship, so try this instead:
- Take the Garden to Edea’s house.
- Head north until you see some forest.
- Go forward and float above the island in front of you.
- That orange thing that just showed up north and slightly east is the ship.