Final Fantasy XIII guide

FINAL FANTASY XIII HINTS

Xbox 360 | Submitted by RadiantKeybladeFantasy

Most Effective Eidolon Tactics

All Eidolon Battles

Okay, for any whom don't know this yet, there is actually a very easy way to figure out what each character's Eidolon is most affected by - remember their three primary roles:

Snow (Shiva) - Sentinel, Commando, Ravager

Lightning (Odin) - Commando, Ravager, Medic

Sazh (Brynhildr) - Synergist, Ravager, Commando

Fang (Bahamut) - Sentinel, Saboteur, Commando

Hope (Alexander) - Synergist, Ravager, Medic

Vanille (Hecatoncheir) - Saboteur, Ravager, Medic

Not all are necessarily in that order, but those are the most affective ways to "hit" the Eidolons. It doesn't actually guarantee an easier fight, but at least you don't have to struggle to find the best ways to beat them.

*Note* Since the chain gauge is key in EVERY Eidolon battle, Ravagers are your main focus and are THE most effective. The other roles really only need be used when prompted.

PS3 | Submitted by Jcuzzen

Staggering Enemies

If you want to stagger your enemy's quickly use this little trick: Always hit them with relentless assault first till you get the stagger meter up to about 30 % after that the chain gauge will fall slower.

Then switch to dualcasting which drives the chain gauge up must faster. When you need to heal use a paradine like War and Peace to keep one member attacking keeping the chain gauge up. Once you have staggered your enemy switch back to relentless assault this drains the HP much quicker than dualcasting.

On stronger enemies it's a good idea to cast libra or use a librascope on them so your AI characters use the most effective attacks. Using this method will take out just about any enemy. The exception is on enemy's that are immune to physical attacks, use the same method to drive up the chain gauge just don't switch back to relentless assault after stagger just keep casting away.

Xbox 360 | Submitted by darkeye45

Pefect Defenses

To get the perfect defense for physical damage only 2 people get the ability Hope and Fang

Hope: you need the weapon that gives him no magic at all then fully upgrade the power gloves to the kaiser knuckles

x4

Fang: give her the dragoons lance and the four kaiser knuckles

The perfect magical defense can only be obtained by 2 people Snow and Fang again

Snow: give him the weapon that gives him no strength at all and fully upgrade 4 sorcerers marks to magisteel crests

Fang: give her the shamanic spear and the four magisteel crests

Xbox 360 | Submitted by G4m3rk1dd

CP Farming Guide (Post Game)

Items Needed: Growth Eggs (only recomended)

Locale: Taijins Tower Second and Third Teir (All Teirs must be connected for this to work properly. This can be done at the Apex.)

If you are up to it you should fight the mobs out side that are en-route to the tower. Its a nice bump in CP

Once inside the tower go the the Second Teir. Go the the first opening on your left and clear the mobs in all of the rooms. Once that is done go out the way you came in (pretend you are going to the elevator) but instead of turning to the elevator make a left. There is another opening with a mob of five inside that you should kill. Go up the stairs at which time you will be faced with two choices.

A: Go BACK downstairs to see if the add of five has respawned. If so kill them again for an extra 16000 CP (8000 w/o Growth Egg). Once done go back upstairs and kill the other two sets of adds.

B: Just continue and kill the two sets of adds.

Keep in mind that the mob of five doesnt always respawn and that regardless of what you do you should always kill the two sets of mobs upstairs (that is the third teir and that is why all the teirs need to be attached to each other).

after killing those mobs go back downstairs and clear all of the Second Teir again. Once you are finished take the elevator back down to the Ground Teir and then back up to the Second Teir. Rinse and repeat.

CP gained (with Growth Egg) -> 118800

CP gained (w/o Growth Egg) -> 59400

CP gained (Growth Egg and extra mob) -> 134800

CP gained (w/o Growth Egg or extra mob -> 75400

Xbox 360 | Submitted by RadiantKeybladeFantasy

Obtain BOTH Treasure Spheres In Eden

Leviathan Plaza

For those of you (myself included) whom previously fell for the "fact" that incorrectly states only ONE treasure sphere in the Leviathan Plaza in Eden is obtainable, the truth is...they BOTH are, but only under one condition:

The towering Adamantortoise MUST be defeated for this to work. Simply position Vanille as your party leader and make sure you have her "Death" ability (unless you'd rather fight like no tomorrow with VERY slim chances of winning). Now, enter the battle and summon Hecatoncheir. This will, as stated by many, in fact make it fall to the ground. Once it's down, inflict a few status ailments on it (or at least "Imperil") and then go for it with "Death" until it succumbs. Don't worry about staggering it, because I found out it's NOT necessary to achieve this. If all goes well, the Adamantortoise could very well stumble within the first three attempts (the very first time, I got it in one shot!XD)

Now, after it's defeated, run over onto the glass bottom and you can obtain both treasure spheres, since the Adamantortoise that would have shattered the glass (thus preventing access to the second sphere) is no longer there.

*Note* If you fail to do this and try to obtain the treasure spheres, you will only get one and the other will be removed by said enemy.

PS3 | Submitted by Crazy B

Destero

When facing "Bart"

When facing "Bart" and he uses his Destero power, all out attack him until he staggers during the "power-up" phase. The Destero power will only hit for half, and not leave your party close the death.

PS3 | Submitted by russell7ps3

Easy Stagger Fill

Battle

To get the enemy's stagger bar up easily, have your battle formations as... commando/ravager/ravager. Summons also set the stagger bar up fast, however when the summon exits the battle the stagger bar resets.

Xbox 360 | Submitted by Xbox Gametag - LEWarchangel

Easy CP And Weapon Grinding

Leviathan Plaza - Eden

Firstly, this is better tried once the final boss has been defeated.

Pick Vanille as your party leader with Fang and Hope at your side. Equip Vanille with Debuff enhancing equipment (Belladonna Wand is a must!) Make sure Vanille has the Death ability unlocked before attempting this.

Select your default Paradigm as Espionage (SAB+SAB+SYN) with Vanille and Fang as Saboteurs and be sure to have a TP of 3 or more.

Now find the Adamantoise walking around (this shouldn't take too long) and commence battle. Immediately initiate Vanille's Eidolon, doing so will knock this mighty creature to its knees. Immediately after the Eidolon is summoned activate Gestalt mode and hit it with Gaian Salvo (Y Button).

Once the cutscene is over, enter in to the abilities menu and continuously cast Death until the creature succumbs.

This may take a few tries but eventually you will be successful and for a few minutes work you will be rewarded with 40,000 CP and if you are lucky a Platinum Ingot worth 150,000 GIL. Now, fight the enemies around this area to build your TP back to 3 and save your game. Quit your game and reload your save file and hey presto - another Adamantoise has appeared for you to slaughter. Repeat this process as much as possible to improve your characters and to really make the most of the CP points offered, equip one character with the "Growth Egg" to receive a whopping 80,000 CP points a kill!

A rare drop for this creature is a Trapezohedron which is a component used to create ultimate weapons for all characters. In the R&D shop these cost a staggering 2,000,000 GIL, and seeing as you need 6 of these for the Treasure Hunter achievement, you may want to pay attention to my next tip!

Once you have obtained a Trapezohedron DO NOT USE IT! - yet. Instead of using this to create an ultimate weapon for your favourite Commando, you will benefit greatly to use this on a weapon for Vanille or Fang. The reason behind this is simple - grind one of their weapons to level 100 (Kain's Lance or Nirvana) and dismantle. I know this sounds crazy but for your 1,500,000 GIL investment into creating this full upgraded weapon, you will be rewarded with 3 Trapezohedrons! with a value of 6,000,000 GIL - more than trebling your original investment.

As an added bonus you will also receive some other components worth 216,000 GIL - NICE!

PS3 | Submitted by OneWhoDoesntLikeFF7

CP Farming

Large Areas with at least 3 Different battles

This is a self explanatory. All you have to do is kill the first set of enemies and run to the second. After killing the second set obviously kill the third. After that the first should be back on the map.

*Note : The way i learned of this method was with Lightning and Hope just before the battle with Odin.

Xbox 360 | Submitted by The Panda Man

Cp Farming (Advanced)

Archylte Steppe Northern Highplain

First of all you need a reasonable amount of strength and magic, then as you are about to leave the Archylte Ateppe you should see two monsters having a little fight approach these two monster and attack you will always get a pre-emptive strike then quickly kill the behemoth king and the the big dog thing if you have reasonable strength this fight should only take 10-15 seconds. Afterwards you will receive 6,600 cp points then run back to the nearby save point (maybe a bit further beyond the save point) then run back and fight again for a quick way to gain cp.

If you own the growth egg obtained after completing mission 55 then you will gain double Cp and receive 13,200 Cp points.

Hope this helps you all struggling for Cp.

PS3 | Submitted by peter&peter

Forging Ultima Weapon Lightning

when get the Lionheart weapon for Lightning, level it up to maximum. Used 20 fragrant oil for minor xp boost, and 1 Ultimate Reactor (which you can buy for 50000 gil at the R&D shop section later in the game) to instantly level it from 1 to max level. The reactor gives a standard 44000 xp. Next use a Scarletite to transform the Lionheart, into a level 15 Ultima weapon.

PS3, Xbox 360 | Submitted by SonMarIkeShad

Make Your Character Dizzy

Whenever you have control of your character outside of battle, move the analog stick left and right quickly. Do this enough (6 or so times) and your character will come to an abrupt stop and emote -- expressing anger or fatigue.

PS3, Xbox 360 | Submitted by CMC1988

Eidolon Battles

Eidolon: SHIVA

Character: SNOW

Chapter: 03

Strategy: In order to impress Shiva, switch the Paradigm Shift to Sentinel. Have Snow use Steel Guard all the time and wait for the Gestalt Meter to fill up. Don’t worry about your health because Striria (Sister of Nix) will heal you.

Eidolon - ODIN

Character: LIGHTNING

Chapter: 04

Strategy: This is one of the hardest fights you will encounter so far as Odin is fast and deadly. Before entering the battle, make sure that you changed your Battle Speed under Settings to Slow. The key to fill up the Gestalt Meter fast is when Odin sees a lot of healing and chaining up your attacks. Start off with Hope casting Protect and Shell then change the Paradigm Shift to Dual Casting allowing both Lightning and Hope cast magics. When you see one of your characters HP is low, switch to Yin & Yang Paradigm to allow Hope heal Lightning while she’s still attacking with a magic.

Eidolon: BRYNHILDR

Character: SAHZ

Chapter: 08

Strategy: Start off by having the characters switch their Paradigm to Saboteur and Synergiest. Have either of the two cast Vigilance and Haste. If the HP runs low on either of the characters, change the Paradigm to War & Peace to have one of the characters use Cura or Cure. The main key to this battle is to chain up the Chain Gauge. Do it by always focusing on Dual Casting Paradigm to have both characters attack with magic (Ravager).

Eidolan: BAHAMUT

Character: Fang

Chapter: 10

Strategy: Making a pact with Bahamut is a very challenging one as it attacks rampantly. Focus on the health of your party. I suggest to have someone in your party cast Shell and Protect to lessen the damage that you get from Bahamut. Start off by debuffing Bahamut. Have one of your party be a Sentinel (preferably Fang) and the two becomes a Ravager. Keep on attacking Bahamut until the Gestalt Gault fills up

Eidolon: ALEXANDER

Character: Hope

Chapter: 11

Strategy: Make sure Hope has a lot of HP by this time as he will be the Party leader. Start off the battle with Alexander by shifting to Delta Attack Paradigm. Have Fang be the Sentinel while Hope and Lightning do the attack. When you see the party’s HP drop significantly, switch to Combat Clinic Paradigm to do the healing. Keep on doing it this until the Gestalt Meter fills up.

Eidolon: HECATONCHEIR

Character: Vanille

Chapter: 11

Strategy: With only Vanille and Fang fighting this Eidolon Battle, it can be tough. Start off the fight by having Vanille be the Ravanger and Fang be the Sentinel. Keep attacking Hecatoncheir with Vanille’s Magic and watch his Chain Gauge goes up. When the HP runs low, change to a Medic Paradigm and have Vanille heal and switch back to the first strategy. Keep on doing this and the Gestalt Meter will go up

Xbox 360 | Submitted by Thisguyrighthere

Enemy Circle

Enemy Circle

Once Snow is instructed to take Hope's father into the back room, an enemy assault takes place. You are in the circular portion of Hope's house, and there are enemies to your left and right. The safe door containing Hope's father and Snow is in front of you. DO NOT ENTER IT!! Instead, defeat the enemies on your right, then your left, save, upgrade and take care of whatever else is necessary. Once both squads of enemies are dead, head to the right along the longest hallway. Once you reach the end and take the left corner, the original left group of enemies will re-spawn. This is a continuous cycle (I am doing it right now, and have been for an hour). Keep Lightning and Fang as Commandos and Hope as a Ravager. If you get 5 star ratings on the enemy groups, you often receive Incentive Credits (sold for 2,500 gil a piece). This makes for a great way to make fast money, as well as level up character's paradigm roles and weapons/accessories.

PS3 | Submitted by GamesRadar

Final Fantasy XIII

Check back for user-submitted Final Fantasy XIII strategy, hints, cheats, or submit your own by clicking here.

FINAL FANTASY XIII CHEATS

PS3, Xbox 360 | Submitted by Kittan Bachika

Lightning Gamer Pic

Get the Super Star achievement.

PS3, Xbox 360 | Submitted by Kittan Bachika

Hope Gamer Pic

Complete the game then get it at the extras in the main menu.

PS3, Xbox 360 | Submitted by Kittan Bachika

Snow Gamerpic

Get the L'Cie Paragon achievement to have it unlocked in the extras menu.

PS3, Xbox 360 | Submitted by kittan Bachika

Fang Gamerpic

Get the Treasure Hunter achievement.

Xbox 360 | Submitted by Minus15T

Final Fantasy XIII Combat Tip

Battle

This is confirmed to work with at least two commands in the game, but may work with others.

For Lightning's 'Army Of One' which is a Ravager command, as such is great for raising stagger gauge, but does little damage. When using the command, watch for the text appearing on screen to signify the start of the combo.

When this happens, quickly switch to a paradigm where Lightning is in the Commando role. This will not interrupt the combo, and will increase the attack power, for me, the increase is from around 2000 per hit, to around 16000 per hit.

This same strategy works with Vanilles 'Death' move, which, when equipped with a Genji glove can cause up to 999,999 damage to a staggered enemy.

PS3 | Submitted by Sahil Singh

Tips On How To Keep Chain (Stagger) Gauge From Resetting, How To Achieve And Use Stagger

Often, when fighting big enemies with a huge HP bar, Stagger is indispensable. But a lot of times, it's hard to get the chain gauge started, especially on weaker enemies, because their Stagger goes back down to 100% very fast. The way to keep it going up takes a little practice, but will be very handy in finishing fights fast. First, it is necessary to make all of your party members go into commando or ravager (this is usually labeled Relentless Attack or something of the likes in the Paragdim menu). Then, go to auto-attack, and attack your desired enemy. Then, go auto-attack again, but instead of attacking right away, highlight the enemy, but do not push X. Wait until your other party members finish their attacks, and then launch yours. After that, keep attacking as fast as you can. This times your party's attacks so that there is a continuous stream of attacks as opposed to a lot of attacks at once. So whenever the chain starts to go down, another attack forces it to go up, thus stopping it from resetting to 100%. As the Chain Gauge gets higher, it takes longer to reset, so you can afford taking a bit of damage from other enemies. In Stagger, the enemy will often not move, but bigger foes will. What Stagger really does is knocks down all of the enemies defenses and makes them very vulnerable to any attack. The instant you get to the Stagger percentage, a big flash will announce Stagger, and your enemy will glow yellow. Any enemy that is Staggered will also have their name appear in a yellow capsule when you have to select a target for an attack as opposed to a blue one. When Stagger is activated, the Chain Gauge bar doubles as a timer. The bar is filled to start, and slowly depletes. When the bar is completely gone, Stagger has reset. And if the enemy survives until a Stagger reset, then that enemy must be strong, so take advantage of your Medic here (it is advantageous to have both Vanille and Hope as Medics) until your party's health is back up. Then go into Relentless Attack mode again, and achieve Stagger as soon as possible.

PS3, Xbox 360 | Submitted by RadiantKeybladeFantasy

Easy Way To Beat Eidolons Shiva Sisters And Odin

The Eidolons are probably one of the hardest opponents you'll come across, but the good news is, if you beat them, they'll join you as FF13's new summons. Here's how to beat the first two you'll come across.

*note* Each Eidolon fight is set to a certain amount of time portrayed above the character's head. You MUST complete the challenge in that time or you'll have to retry.

Shiva Sisters:

To beat the Shiva sisters, you should have the role "Sentinel" by now. When the Shiva sister leaves herself open, strike while you can. This won't raise her gestalt gauge much, but it will help a little at least.

Then, when you see her throw her hands out and her weapon spins above her head, active Sentinel now. Then, right when she goes to strike, use Guard (or whatever the ability is) to defend from her attack. This will cause the gauge to rise VERY noticeably. Continue this process with good timing, and you'll have the sisters as a your first summon.

Don't worry about the other sister watching the battle. She won't strike, but she will continuously heal you so you can't lose unless you fail to fill the gauge.

*note* Only Snow can summon the sisters, as each character has one summon specific to them.

Odin:

Odin was much easier than the Shiva sisters. All you have to do is make sure you have a paradigm with "Commando" and "Ravager", as he's weak against magic, which the Ravager uses. It wouldn't hurt to occasionally active a paradigm with "Medic" in it, but always make sure you switch back to Ravager as soon as necessary.

In this particular fight, it's okay to attack head on with the Commando, mostly due to your Ravager inflicting great damage with their magical attacks. Synchronize your attacks witht the Ravager just right, and you will claim victory of this Eidolon in just a few minutes at most.

*note* Odin can only be summoned by Lightning.

PS3, Xbox 360 | Submitted by wutsuphomey

Fast Full ATB

In battle

While in battle you can get a quick full ATB bar by switching paradigms. You may utilize this for a quick combo while switching to a healing or support paradigm. But remember, it only works on the first switch. Don't keep switching hoping for full ATB gauges.

Xbox 360 | Submitted by RadiantKeybladeFantasy

Quick Access To Weaknesses In Battle

If you have a hard time inflicting physical damage on an enemy, chances are it's weakened by elemental attacks. Thus, be sure you have a Ravager on the field for one.

Now, to easily access an enemy's elemental weakness in-battle, all you have to do is press RB, and the screen revealing information on the currently targeted opponent will appear. This is most helpful in fights like the one against the mini-boss at the start of Disc 2.

*note* You'll need to use the techniqe "Libra" in order to uncover the aforementioned information.

FINAL FANTASY XIII UNLOCKABLES

Xbox 360 | Submitted by kittan bachika

Sazh Gamer Pic

Get the Lore master achievement to unlock the pic in the extras in the main menu.

Xbox 360 | Submitted by BlAcK WiDoW 629

Achievements

*** 35 Achievements for 1000G ***

Treasure Hunter - Held every weapon and accessory - 80G

Loremaster - Discerned the full attributes of 100 enemies - 80G

Limit Breaker - Dealt 100,000+ damage with a single attack - 30G

Adamant Will - Felled a heavyweight of the lowerworld wilds - 30G

Master's Seal - Fully developed all characters - 30G

Commando's Seal - Mastered the Commando role - 15G

Ravager's Seal - Mastered the Ravanger role - 15G

Sentinel's Seal - Mastered the Sentinel role - 15G

Saboteur's Seal - Mastered the Saboteur's role - 15G

Synergist's Seal - Mastered the Synergist role - 15G

Medic's Seal - Mastered the Medic role - 15G

*** Secret Achievements ***

Instrument of Change - Witnessed the dawn of a new crystal legend - 95G

L'Cie Paragon - Earned a 5-star ranking for all Cie'th Stone missions - 80G

Superstar - Earned a 5-star ranking in the battle to determine the world's fate - 80G

Instrument of Faith - Defied destiny's charge and embarked on a different path - 30G

Dorgann's Trophy - Completed all high-level Cie'th Stone missions - 30G

Galuf's Grail - Completed all Cie'th Stone missions - 30G

Exorcist - Triumphed over undying lowerworld souls in seven fierce battles - 30G

Floraphobe - Toppled a green terror and cut an oversized succulent down to size - 30G

Natural Selector - Passed Titan's trails - 30G

Instrument of Fate - Took the first steps toward challenging an unjust fate - 15G

Instrument of Dissent - Survived the Purge to confront a greater peril - 15G

Instrument of Tragedy - Strode into danger's den and paid the consequences - 15G

Instrument of Flight - Slipped through the net and lived to fight the day - 15G

Instrument of Vengeance - Resolved to be more than a victim of circumstance - 15G

Instrument of Survival - Evaded pursuers, through memories of the past gave chase - 15G

Instrument of Rebellion - Made plans to infiltrate enemy-occupied territory - 15G

Instrument of Shame - Carried the burden of guilt to the end of the line - 15G

Instrument of Wrath - Took the fight to the enemy's door - 15G

Instrument of Truth - Recognized the true threat to the world's fate - 15G

Instrument of Hope - Traveled to the world below, seeking a way to alternate fate - 15G

Pulsian Pioneer - Took over 10,000 steps on the lowerworld surface - 15G

Gysahl Wreath - Discovered buried treasure with a little help from a chocobo - 15G

Kelger's Cup - Completed all low-level Cie'th Stone Missions - 15G

Xezat's Chalice - Completed all mid-level Cie'th Stone missions - 15G

Xbox 360 | Submitted by BlAcK WiDoW 629

Achievement Hints

Limit Breaker - Dealt 100,000+ damage with a single attack - 30G

* You have to equip the Genji Gauntlet which allows you to break the damage limit of 99,999 *

Commando's Seal - Mastered the Commando Role - 15G

* You have to upgrade Commando to Role Level 5 (Everything filled); This goes for the other Mastered achievements *

PS3 | Submitted by GamesRadar

Trophies

Commando's Seal (Bronze): Mastered the Commando role.

Ravager's Seal (Bronze): Mastered the Ravager role.

Sentinel’s Seal (Bronze): Mastered the Sentinel role.

Saboteur's Seal (Bronze): Mastered the Saboteur role.

Synergist's Seal (Bronze): Mastered the Synergist role.

Medic's Seal (Bronze): Mastered the Medic role.

Limit Breaker(Silver): Dealt 100,000+ damage with a single attack.

Adamant Will (Silver): Felled a heavyweight of the lowerworld wilds.

Master's Seal (Silver): Fully developed all characters.

Treasure Hunter (Gold): Held every weapon and accesory.

Instrument of Fate (Bronze): Took the first steps toward challenging an unjust fate.

Instrument of Dissent (Bronze): Survived the Purge to confront a greater peril.

Instrument of Tragedy (Bronze): Strode into danger's den and paid the consequences.

Instrument of Flight (Bronze): Slipped through the net and lived to fight another day.

Instrument of Vengeance (Bronze): Resolved to be more than a victim of circumstance.

Instrument of Survival (Bronze): Evaded pursuers, though memories of the past still gave chase.

Instrument of Rebellion (Bronze): Made plans to infiltrate enemy-occupied territory.

Loremaster (Gold): Discerned the full attributes of 100 enemies.

Secret Trophies: 25 (24 Including Platinum trophy)

FINAL FANTASY XIII GLITCHES

PS3, Xbox 360 | Submitted by mcbeanie117

CP Farming

nautilus park

When playing as Sazh and Vanille after being attacked by those PSICOM soldiers, fight everyone but don't go past the save that leads to the mission marker. There will be 5 or 6 little blue enemies fight them and you will get 650 CP's, then run back to the little blue enemy next to a item container, fight him and then go back to the 6 enemies at the top and repeat.

Iain Wilson
Guides Editor

Iain originally joined Future in 2012 to write guides for CVG, PSM3, and Xbox World, before moving on to join GamesRadar in 2013 as Guides Editor. His words have also appeared in OPM, OXM, PC Gamer, GamesMaster, and SFX. He is better known to many as ‘Mr Trophy’, due to his slightly unhealthy obsession with amassing intangible PlayStation silverware, and he now has over 500 Platinum pots weighing down the shelves of his virtual award cabinet. He does not care for Xbox Achievements.