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Final Fantasy Explorers |OT| Lightning Returns Online

I know this game can be played solo, but is it any fun to do so? Does playing with bots (summoned monsters, I guess?) water down the experience at all?

I played the entire thing solo and it held my interest all the way till the end. I'm sure I'd have more fun if I had friends to play with, however this was good enough. The monsters don't water anything down, but they are very basic with no customization. Just pick the ones you want to roll with and go.
 

redcrayon

Member
Unless you can't dual-wield, like the Time Mage.
Fair point.

I know this game can be played solo, but is it any fun to do so? Does playing with bots (summoned monsters, I guess?) water down the experience at all?
I've been playing solo for 20 hours so far and having a great time. To be honest I leave the monsters at home when trying to capture eidolons anyway. I'll try online at some point but it's certainly viable to play the campaign solo.

Just beaten the 5* story boss, that was a bit disappointing, he went down fast compared to my initial encounters with the eidolons. Still, I'm pleased to see fresh bosses in 6*.
 

jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
I played the entire thing solo and it held my interest all the way till the end. I'm sure I'd have more fun if I had friends to play with, however this was good enough. The monsters don't water anything down, but they are very basic with no customization. Just pick the ones you want to roll with and go.

Awesome, thanks. I might have to give this a try then. Cheers!
 

Umibozu

Member
I completed the whole game including post game offline, played some online but only quests that I already completed. Magic pot monster is OP, even at 10 star quests it was mopping the floor with the bosses.

Frankly just get a cactuar and magic pot monsters on your team and you're golden.

Just made an endgame scythe, fully upgraded it but can't see why I would stick with it over my 2 unupgraded midtier axes. It's unfortunate I spent so much upgrading it.

Only thing left to do is make an endgame armour set.
 

akileese

Member
So uhh I finally got a chance to bust this open and play this morning. I did the tutorials and tried to redeem my CE codes and was meant with "serial already in use" on all 4 items. Anyone else run into this? I imagine I'll have to just contact Squeenix support.
 

Dipship31

Member
I completed the whole game including post game offline, played some online but only quests that I already completed. Magic pot monster is OP, even at 10 star quests it was mopping the floor with the bosses.

Frankly just get a cactuar and magic pot monsters on your team and you're golden.

Just made an endgame scythe, fully upgraded it but can't see why I would stick with it over my 2 unupgraded midtier axes. It's unfortunate I spent so much upgrading it.

Only thing left to do is make an endgame armour set.

How long was your playthrough roughly?
 

Umibozu

Member
Made one of the post-endgame armour sets and maxed it, wasn't really better than my dark knight armour. Post-Endgame armours glow though
How long was your playthrough roughly?
59:47
Take into consideration that I didn't do all the sub quests and haven't done all the class specific quests. I did a fair amount of grinding though.

I'm going to focus on making some post-endgame weapons and I'm basically done.
 

danwu

Banned
The boss battles are some of the best, on the 3DS !

If only heros of ruin boss battles had the same intensity !
 

mstevens

Member
I don't get the progression in the game. There's no levels right? Also what's the point of classes? I'm a black Mage but I can use cure and more other class spells too.
 

Umibozu

Member
I don't get the progression in the game. There's no levels right? Also what's the point of classes? I'm a black Mage but I can use cure and more other class spells too.
Mastering a class will make your stats get higher.
The cost of skills is lower to equip (black magic costs less to equip if you're a black magician).
It's on your equipment and skill mutations to make up for the lack of levels
 

redcrayon

Member
I don't get the progression in the game. There's no levels right? Also what's the point of classes? I'm a black Mage but I can use cure and more other class spells too.
Like Monster Hunter, making better equipment is what raises your stats. That's why you have a huge amount of health at the start, your base HP won't go up much but the defence value of the better armour you'll be able to make as you progress will, and the attack value of the weapons you make will too.

Each class has a different max. Loadout value, and finds their own specialities much lighter to equip (plus they have a unique zero-weight ability). Every class can easily take the lower White and black magic spells if they choose, but if you aren't a White Mage etc, spending 55 points on Curaga isn't really an option and is a bit odd compared to taking your own high-level abilities that you are playing that class for.

There are loads of ways to heal, most classes have ways of regaining health (including draining it from the enemy!) outside of white magic, and items are always a possibility too.
 

redcrayon

Member
Does anyone have any tips for fighting Omega? He just takes SO LONG to beat.
I'm soloing that a lot at the moment. Any abilities that reduce enemy defence seem to work. Break guard (sword skill) is what I rely on, mine is mutated with various other debuffs (including reducing enemy defence further) too. I then back it up with Bahamut as my trance surge.
 
Speaking of Bahamut, what are you all's favorite Trance Surges? Bahamut is pretty boss, but I've begun taking a liking to Amaterasu's. They both do about the same dmg, but the latter is a bit easier to aim.
 

Korezo

Member
Got tired of running around like a idiot so tried a range class since melee is a joke solo vs bosses. 100 times better, constant dps from a safe distance and you can just target and aim at body parts better. All I have to figure out is how to dodge fenrir when he does that charge move 5 times consecutively which seems unfair because when hes charging the move and you running to avoid the rush he is still tracking you.
 

BooJoh

Member
Speaking of Bahamut, what are you all's favorite Trance Surges? Bahamut is pretty boss, but I've begun taking a liking to Amaterasu's. They both do about the same dmg, but the latter is a bit easier to aim.

I haven't really tried any of the Eidolon Magicite yet. I've been running with Lightning because Gestalt Drive does decent damage, starts from range, then moves in close, making it easy to aim compared to Cloud or Squall for example.

Plus I get awesome music during Trance.
 
I've played for a few more hours and am now clearing the 3 star levels. I just fought a wolf thing that was a pretty neat fight.

My question is, which job should I be playing with? I've played mostly with the Black Mage and some Time Mage. I have the -a spells with decent mutations. But I read that you only need to beat 10 quests with a class to qualify it for Mastering once you can start Mastering jobs. It's getting to the point where I don't have the CP to continue learning mutations on my spells though. I tried out the Dark Knight and he seems fun but his Axe Abilities don't work well with the spell Abilities I already have trained up.

I looked up Red Mage and thought that it would be a fun end game Job. Does this mean I should play as a Knight to start getting mutations on Sword skills that will translate over to my Red Mage class? And how/when do I learn Curaga, Firaga, and Graviga, which are needed to unlock the Red Mage job?

Are the other Jobs useless to me if I want my final job to be Red Mage? I mean, Dark Knight was fun, Machinist seems interesting, but since I won't use Axe or Gun skills in as a Red Mage would it just be wasted time?

Isn't continuing playing as a Black Mage wasted time? Thoughts?
 

BooJoh

Member
I've played for a few more hours and am now clearing the 3 star levels. I just fought a wolf thing that was a pretty neat fight.

My question is, which job should I be playing with? I've played mostly with the Black Mage and some Time Mage. I have the -a spells with decent mutations. But I read that you only need to beat 10 quests with a class to qualify it for Mastering once you can start Mastering jobs. It's getting to the point where I don't have the CP to continue learning mutations on my spells though. I tried out the Dark Knight and he seems fun but his Axe Abilities don't work well with the spell Abilities I already have trained up.

I looked up Red Mage and thought that it would be a fun end game Job. Does this mean I should play as a Knight to start getting mutations on Sword skills that will translate over to my Red Mage class? And how/when do I learn Curaga, Firaga, and Graviga, which are needed to unlock the Red Mage job?

Are the other Jobs useless to me if I want my final job to be Red Mage? I mean, Dark Knight was fun, Machinist seems interesting, but since I won't use Axe or Gun skills in as a Red Mage would it just be wasted time?

Isn't continuing playing as a Black Mage wasted time? Thoughts?

You're right in that playing a class that supports the weapon type you'll use later will allow you to work on mutations before getting the job. I worked on Lance moves on Thief before getting Dragoon. Otherwise there's no reason to lock yourself into one job except for the grind. With the loadout system you can change things up whenever you want to play a little differently.

Black and White magic unlocks as you progress in the story, it'll just suddenly say "New Abilities Available." Just make sure you buy the prerequisites to those, so you need to buy Cure, Fire, and Slow to get Cura, Fira, and Gravity, and work your way up the spell trees.
 
You're right in that playing a class that supports the weapon type you'll use later will allow you to work on mutations before getting the job. I worked on Lance moves on Thief before getting Dragoon. Otherwise there's no reason to lock yourself into one job except for the grind. With the loadout system you can change things up whenever you want to play a little differently.

Black and White magic unlocks as you progress in the story, it'll just suddenly say "New Abilities Available." Just make sure you buy the prerequisites to those, so you need to buy Cure, Fire, and Slow to get Cura, Fira, and Gravity, and work your way up the spell trees.

Thanks for the advice! I didn't realize you needed Slow to get Gravity, so I'll be sure get that. I guess I should try Knight then to work on my Sword skills since my spell progression is going slowly. And yeah, I know you can switch loadouts and technically keep improving different Jobs, but I kind of want to laser focus on making an endgame Job really good before spreading out.
 

Chorazin

Member
I'm definitely miffed that you don't unlock Scythes when you unlock Dark Knight. The way I'm upgrading my Sword skills pretty much means I'm not gonna put in the time for Scythe. :(
 

Umibozu

Member
Mastered dragoon and made post-endgame weapons, the extra speed compared to dark knight doesn't make up for the lack of damage. Btw made partisan and Gungnir.
What's the best way to kill the magic pot monster? They always run away!
Tonberry hits can stall and take the magic pots out of their animations.

I'm definitely miffed that you don't unlock Scythes when you unlock Dark Knight. The way I'm upgrading my Sword skills pretty much means I'm not gonna put in the time for Scythe. :(
Scythes aren't worth it. They are two handed so you can't equip a second weapon or a shield, don't output as much damage as holding two weapons, and don't have their own skill tree/use the axe skills.
 

VandalD

Member
Thanks for the advice! I didn't realize you needed Slow to get Gravity, so I'll be sure get that. I guess I should try Knight then to work on my Sword skills since my spell progression is going slowly. And yeah, I know you can switch loadouts and technically keep improving different Jobs, but I kind of want to laser focus on making an endgame Job really good before spreading out.
If you know what class you want to focus on, there's no reason not to play as that class, unless you just haven't unlocked it yet. You don't gain any cross class benefits from learning sword skills as a Knight, or magic as a mage, etc. And, of course, you don't level up, so there's no stat growth manipulation. The game just lets you more easily swap between classes through them sharing weapon abilities and all magic.

I do wish there were things in this game that you could learn from a class, and only from that class, that could be transferred over to other classes. Kind of like how FF5 or FFT works with its support abilities.
 

Korezo

Member
Scythes aren't worth it. They are two handed so you can't equip a second weapon or a shield, don't output as much damage as holding two weapons, and don't have their own skill tree/use the axe skills.

Hope this isn't true, even though I see that a one handed axe has the same p-attack stat value as a two handed weapon scythe which makes no sense. Scythe has to have something more to it, Im trying to get the damn tail drop from fenrir to make a scythe.
 

Umibozu

Member
I have a fully upgraded reaper's scythe. It has a natural +30 critical power. The attack animation is slow on the scythe and only has two swings. My non upgraded warlock axe and phantom breaker dual wielded still outputs more damage. I also can swing the axes 4 times in what the scythe would swing 2.
Trust me, I would like to be wrong but I wasted some time farming and maxing for the scythe.
It certainly isn't weak but I think time would been better spent making and maxing some post-endgame axes.
 

Wagram

Member
I'm a bit indifferent on my experience with this so far. I don't love it nor hate it. I strongly dislike the monster hunter like focus. That's fairly boring, but I do like the job system and running around. Just outside the first boss at this point.
 

redcrayon

Member
Hmm, finally found a tough spot for me in single player!

I'm on the 7* quest where you have to beat two eidolons where they are both on x3 strength and hp. They are killing me in a couple of hits with their skills, and unlike in multiplayer where you can revive each other, I lose 5 mins off the timer for every KO. Even taking a monster with revive doesn't help, as they die very quickly.

Any advice? I'm a paladin, and have tried using both dual wield with two decent weapons (max. Upgraded defenders) and sword and shield (using holy shield for +500hp). I've beaten the others easily enough. Maybe I should skip it and move on?
 
Hmm, finally found a tough spot for me in single player!

I'm on the 7* quest where you have to beat two eidolons where they are both on x3 strength and hp. They are killing me in a couple of hits with their skills, and unlike in multiplayer where you can revive each other, I lose 5 mins off the timer for every KO. Even taking a monster with revive doesn't help, as they die very quickly.

Any advice? I'm a paladin, and have tried using both dual wield with two decent weapons (max. Upgraded defenders) and sword and shield (using holy shield for +500hp). I've beaten the others easily enough. Maybe I should skip it and move on?

Man, I'm stuck at 7* too. Those are some tough bosses. Would love to hear some tips.
 

rsniper59

Neo Member
I hit my first rough patch in the game yesterday in my first encounter with Diablos (3* quest). Went in with a ranger and I feel like I was just really unprepared. Can't figure out a way to dodge his ultimate attack, so I was getting drained down to 1 HP every time he used it, and aiming in the dark was harder with Ranger when making out the enemy was more difficult.

Probably going to switch back to Monk, as I'm most comfortable with that class of all the ones I've unlocked thus far. I was also toying around with lower level monster companions because I didn't want them to knock him out before I could Encase. Might just go with my two heavy-hitters.

Enjoying the game so far though! It's kind of the perfect game to pick up and play in short bursts, but also has enough to hold my attention for a longer play session.
 

redcrayon

Member
I hit my first rough patch in the game yesterday in my first encounter with Diablos (3* quest). Went in with a ranger and I feel like I was just really unprepared. Can't figure out a way to dodge his ultimate attack, so I was getting drained down to 1 HP every time he used it, and aiming in the dark was harder with Ranger when making out the enemy was more difficult.

Probably going to switch back to Monk, as I'm most comfortable with that class of all the ones I've unlocked thus far. I was also toying around with lower level monster companions because I didn't want them to knock him out before I could Encase. Might just go with my two heavy-hitters.

Enjoying the game so far though! It's kind of the perfect game to pick up and play in short bursts, but also has enough to hold my attention for a longer play session.
If you can't dodge Diablos's gravity attacks, block them with Knight or Paladin- Deflect and Cover make you immune to the damage caused by them while you are in the blocking stance (although it drains resonance while you maintain it). You can then counter with blood sword to regain health.

Blood sword and deflect are basic knight abilities so you can give it a go immediately :)
 

redcrayon

Member
Man, I'm stuck at 7* too. Those are some tough bosses. Would love to hear some tips.
Yeah, even grinding out better armour for a measly +20 defence isn't going to help much vs their massive attack power. Maybe it's just a case of trying them all to see which ones I can handle, some must be easier than others. Ive been starting with Odin as he's the only one you can warp to almost immediately (taking the airship to the cavern in front of the crystal puts you right next to the entrance to his lair), maybe that's the wrong choice.
 

rsniper59

Neo Member
If you can't dodge Diablos's gravity attacks, block them with Knight or Paladin- Deflect and Cover make you immune to the damage caused by them while you are in the blocking stance (although it drains resonance while you maintain it). You can then counter with blood sword to regain health.

Blood sword and deflect are basic knight abilities so you can give it a go immediately :)

Thank you for the tip! I'll look at that loadout in my next attempt. I have a feeling that will trivialize the fight for sure.
 

MagiusNecros

Gilgamesh Fan Annoyance
Scythes really shine in abilities like a Berserk Annihilator. At maximum optimization 2 Axes maxed out will be slightly better then a Scythe plus you have 4 Auto Attacks. And 2 weapons means more skills you can tack on.

Scythes mainly just provide an immediate power boost and I believe their auto attacks have better chance at staggering weak enemies.
 

hutna

Member
Gonna add myself to the spreadsheet when I get home. Just picked this up with the SO. We just defeated Ramuh and Ifrit.

Now grinding out Stiltskin Diaries... Fun game but I am already tiring of killing Ramuh over and over lol.
 

redcrayon

Member
Man, I'm stuck at 7* too. Those are some tough bosses. Would love to hear some tips.
Ok, figured it out. If you do every other 7* quest, it unlocks 8* and some sweet new equipment that is way better than what is available before, Ive pretty much increased my armour's defence by 50% just be making some new kit (hades armour).

Although it's black, monstrous look makes my paladin look like a dark knight. And the big chainsaw he's holding in one hand really isn't helping :D
 
I was going to go Red Mage but after completing a few quests as a Knight and then as a Ninja, I think I find physical attacks more satisfying. I now think my endgame job will be Ninja until I unlock Samurai (if I am still playing at this point), then I'll check that out and decide then.

Technically this means I wasted a lot of time mutating Spells and Sword skills, but I guess that's the nature of this game. There's no way to efficiently spend your time focusing on just one Job/set of Abilities.

Though the one area where I see constant, useful progression is my squad of monsters. They're pretty awesome when they're not blocking the camera or killing an eidolon before I can encase it.
 

redcrayon

Member
I was going to go Red Mage but after completing a few quests as a Knight and then as a Ninja, I think I find physical attacks more satisfying. I now think my endgame job will be Ninja until I unlock Samurai (if I am still playing at this point), then I'll check that out and decide then.

Technically this means I wasted a lot of time mutating Spells and Sword skills, but I guess that's the nature of this game. There's no way to efficiently spend your time focusing on just one Job/set of Abilities.

Though the one area where I see constant, useful progression is my squad of monsters. They're pretty awesome when they're not blocking the camera or killing an eidolon before I can encase it.
I was also getting annoyed with larger or multiple monsters blocking the camera. Black Knight is bro knight as far as I'm concerned, takes up three slots and fights hard while staying out of the way :D
 
I was going to go Red Mage but after completing a few quests as a Knight and then as a Ninja, I think I find physical attacks more satisfying. I now think my endgame job will be Ninja until I unlock Samurai (if I am still playing at this point), then I'll check that out and decide then.

Technically this means I wasted a lot of time mutating Spells and Sword skills, but I guess that's the nature of this game. There's no way to efficiently spend your time focusing on just one Job/set of Abilities.

Though the one area where I see constant, useful progression is my squad of monsters. They're pretty awesome when they're not blocking the camera or killing an eidolon before I can encase it.

Ninja rules. I run one sometimes. His attack that deals damage based on how high your evasion is and how low your AP is does monstrous damage. If you pair it with the guaranteed crit move, it's almost a 9999 dmg ability.
 

Korezo

Member
so is ninja invincible with utsusemi and a bunch of instant cool down transmutations? I'm about to try ninja now.
 
Finishing up 9* quests with my buddy. I ended up switching to Monk from Alchemist. It's a lot of fun. We just beat 3x strength Ramuh with increased AP costs and it went rather smoothly. Being able to time Counter well makes a lot of bosses trivial. I've also found myself doing 9999 crits at times. So I guess my mutations/stats are on point. I haven't been min/maxing at all.

Just beat the first boss. Are they all that boring? It was a joke lol
It's the first boss....... People keep making this post, lol.
 

redcrayon

Member
Just beat the first boss. Are they all that boring? It was a joke lol
Wait till you're trying to beat two eidolons with x3 strength and hp, they are on opposite sides of the map, and every KO costs you 5 minutes.

The game doesn't really get tough until 6* or so.
 
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