====================================================================== .hack Grunty Racing FAQ by Halibut v. 0.5 ====================================================================== [Insert crappy ASCII art here. >P] ====================================================================== [TOC] Table of Contents ====================================================================== [TOC] Table of Contents [COP] Copyright Information [INT] Introduction [HIS] Revision History [FAQ] Frequently Asked Questions [GRU] About Grunties [PRI] Prizes [BEF] Before the Race [TIP] Tips for Running the Race [RUN] Running the Race [CRE] Credits Press Ctrl+F and do a search on the [***] to zip to a particular section. ====================================================================== [COP] Copyright Information ====================================================================== Copyright 2004 Halibut (HalibutATGameFAQs@hotmail.com) This document may only be reproduced for personal, private use in its original, whole and unaltered form. It may not be placed or distributed on any public or commercial forum, such as a web site or magazine without the expressed written permission of the author. At this time, only the website GameFAQs (www.gamefaqs.com) is permitted to host this document publicly. Any other use of this document is strictly prohibited by copyright law. All trademarks and copyrights in this document are the property of their individual owners. ====================================================================== [INT] Introduction ====================================================================== This FAQ was created when someone asked for some advice on how to win the Grunty Races, and after giving some hints, I found that there were no guides at GameFAQs on how to win at the Races. I thought this odd, and decided to remedy this by writing a FAQ, not to mention that this was my first FAQ I posted on GameFAQS. So here it is, if you need some help getting 1st place in the Grunty Races and showing that jerk Balmung a thing or two, here's where it all begins. HalibutATGameFAQs@hotmail.com ====================================================================== [HIS] Revision History ====================================================================== ver 0.5: Complete data entered for Sigma server. ver 0.4: Complete data entered for Theta server. ver 0.3: Complete data entered for Lambda server. ver 0.2: Most data entered for .hack//Mutation. ver 0.1: Started this FAQ and laid out the topics. ====================================================================== [FUT] Future Updates ====================================================================== * I will add info on the last server when I play .hack//Quarantine. ====================================================================== [FAQ] Frequently Asked Questions ====================================================================== Q1. How do I get to race? The races open when you raise each of the three Grunties available in each server. The Theta Server has Iron, Poison and Noble Grunties; the Lambda Server has Bony, Snakey and Noble Grunties; the Signma Server has Aqua, Milky and Noble Grunties; but the Delta server has no Grunties. When all three are raised, go to the Grunty ranch and the man there will let you race. You could have raised the Theta Grunties back in .hack//Infection, but the races weren't available until .hack//Mutation. Q2. How do I raise Grunties? Go to the ranches found in the Theta, Lambda and Sigma servers and talk to the man there. He's got a baby Grunty who's hungry for the various kinds of food you've found, like Golden Eggs, Piney Apples, and Twilight Onions. You can find these items in your inventory under "Key Items". As you feed the baby Grunty, its stats will change, especially it's size; when it's size reaches 40, it matures into an adult. What kind of adult depends on the other stats. I'm not going into the details of exactly what stats are needs for each Grunty, or what you should feed it; you'll find all that in the Extras FAQ here at GameFAQs. ====================================================================== [GRU] About Grunties ====================================================================== Grunties are a strange breed of animal found in The World, a variety of these horse/hippopotamus mutates exist. In .hack//Mutation, a mini-game was added where you could race these beasts around town and capture flags for prizes. ====================================================================== [PRI] Prizes ====================================================================== There are 9 prizes to get from each of the races. First, you get prizes for finishing 1st, 2nd, or 3rd; these can be collected as many as three times each. After that, they are replaced with other less valuable but still rather rare items for the 4th time you get that rank and on. There are also consolation prizes you get if you finish less than a second out of place, and a booby prize if you finish well out of place or quit the race. Finally, each race has an unlockable prize on your desktop, a special Grunty Race picture that you get when you beat Balmung for the first time. Note: you have to beat a time to place, a tie isn't enough. Also, if you are exactly 1 second behind 3rd, you get the booby prize. Here are the prizes available: Theta Server Race: | First 3 times | Fourth time on ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Place: | Golden Grunty | Ivory Barette 2nd Place: | Silver Grunty | Silver Scarab 3rd Place: | Divine Cross | Yellow Ribbon Consolation: | Speed Charm Booby: | Fortune Wire ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Lambda Server Race: | First 3 times | Fourth time on ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Place: | Golden Grunty | Stonecall 2nd Place: | Silver Grunty | Summon Water 3rd Place: | Emperor's Soul | Light Cross Consolation: | Fairy Orb Booby: | Fortune Wire ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Sigma Server Race: | First 3 times | Fourth time on ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Place: | Golden Grunty | Infernocall 2nd Place: | Silver Grunty | Summon Wood 3rd Place: | Divine Cross | Hale Cross Consolation: | Health Charm Booby: | Fortune Wire ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The 3rd place prizes are some nice rare items, but you really want the 1st and 2nd place prizes, those will net you some Grunty Trophies that permanently boost your stats when you use them. Golden Grunties give you 30HP while the Silver Grunties give you 15SP. There are three races available in .hack//Outbreak, that's 9 of each you can get for an extra 270HP and 135SP. You can also trade with the Snakey, Bony, Milky and Aqua Grunties for more Grunty Trophies; and you could have traded with the Snakey and Bony Grunties back in .hack//Mutation for another Silver and Golden Grunty. That's 12 of each for an extra 360HP and 180SP. Now your puny little Twin Blade has the HP of a Heavy Axeman and the SP of a Wavemaster. It can be really hard to snag 1st place in a race three times, but it should be easy enough with some practice to take 2nd. Frankly, I like the Silver Grunties since I use Special Attacks a lot, and hate running out of SP. ====================================================================== [BEF] Before the Race ====================================================================== Here are some things to do to ready yourself before running any race. 1) Come Alone! One of the main reasons people fail to get first in a race is that they keep running into people on the track. Since you are running around in the server hubs, you have to contend with the normal pedestrian traffic, not to mention other Grunties in the way. Grunties are usually gentle creatures, so when they run into someone they stop instead of just bowling them over. This is why you should disband your party before starting a race; if you have any party members when you start, that's two more people that'll be wandering around town that you might run into. 2) Who's on top Each town gives you the choice of three Grunties; the Noble Grunty is of average skill, the Poison/Snakey/Aqua Grunty has increased acceleration and turning in exchange for lousy max speed, and the Iron/Bony/Milky Grunty has maximum velocity but handles like a three-legged mule. The best Grunty to take on all three servers is the one on top of the list, those are the Iron, Bony and Aqua Grunties. Controlling the Iron/Bony Grunty may be the hardest, but it's the only one who has any chance of taking 1st place on the Theta and Lambda Servers. When you get the hang of taking turns using the Iron/Bony Grunty, you'll be easily taking 2nd place, and with some practice and luck can snatch 1st place too. The Sigma Server is a whole other kettle of fish; there are no good long stretches to build up speed, and the best path has you running around the Recorder's booth. Although the Milky Grunty has the advantage going for the 1st and 3rd flags, and can beat Balmung's time if you have a perfect run; getting the second flag is very difficult with the very tight turns you'll need to make. To get the best time, you'll need the tight cornering ability of the Aqua Grunty. ====================================================================== [TIP] Tips for Running the Race ====================================================================== 1) Slide to victory!!! This is easily the biggest trick you'll need and is crucial for finishing in top spot, especially on the Theta and Lambda Servers. Grunties, like many things in the real world--even though they are not real--have something called momentum; this means that they can't turn or stop on a dime. When taking a sharp turn, you have to start turning before you actually get to the turn; the Grunty's momentum will keep it going in the same direction for a little bit before they are able to change direction completely. On the Theta and Lambda Servers, the paths you follow will have you capturing a flag, and then turning 180 degrees to go back where you came to get the next one. If you turn AFTER grabbing the flag, it takes you half a second to stop and get going back in the other direction, a whole half-second you just wasted. What you have to do is turn around BEFORE grabbing the flag. If you time it right, the Grunty's momentum will carry it right to the flag and stop there. This manoeuvre is the key to beating these races. For the Sigma server, there are no 180 degree turns, but you have to turn while taking each flag; so start turning early and clip the flag while passing it. You will also be using the Aqua Grunty as opposed to the faster Milky Grunty; since the Aqua Grunty has tighter turning ability, you don't have to worry so much about sliding, but it'll still shave of a few precious hundredths of a second. Obviously, you don't do this for the last flag, since that's the end of the line. 2) Keep it straight Try to avoid obstacles as best you can and go as straight as possible, you'll waste a lot of time if you're zigzagging around obstacles, especially when using the Iron/Bony Grunties. 3) For maximum prize potential You can win the same prize for each place three times, so you could net 3 Golden Grunties and 3 Silver Grunties if you take 1st and 2nd place 3 times. The problem is that when you place, your time becomes the new time to beat; so if you post a stellar 1st place time, you may find it impossible to beat the next time. What you want to do it try to get progressively better times, shaving a few hundredths of a second each time; that way it's not too difficult to keep beating your time and score what ever position you want over and over again. 4) Analog vs. Digital You can run the race using either, but my personal choice is the analog stick, it's much more natural than the digital pad. 5) I can't see!!! You always want to be able to see what's ahead to avoid running into obstacles that can slow you down. So use the right analog stick to zoom away and the L1 and R1 buttons to pan the camera around to see what's ahead. This is very difficult to get down on the Sigma Server, but it'll be a big help. ====================================================================== [RUN] Running the Race ====================================================================== Theta Server Race: Just to reiterate, use the Iron Grunty for this race. Getting to the first flag without any slip-ups is crucial, since there's a trap there that can really mess you up. Run as fast as you can and make the sharp turn. Try to turn a little early so you don't hit the (invisible) walls and slow down. When you get around the bend and reach the island with the Elf's Haven on it, run for the flag. DON'T hug the cliffside, try to stay in the middle of the shop and the cliff. Although there might be someone running past that you have to avoid; if you go for the cliff, there's a rock in the way that'll stop you cold. Just past the rock, pull the control stick in the opposite direction, and the Grunty's momentum will carry it right to the flag. Your time at this point should be a bit over 6 seconds. Race back to the wooden planks while avoiding that rock, and head for the Chaos Gate for flag two. There are some tricky spots here; usually there's some people in the bridge, the worst place being right at the sharp turn. Worse than that, there are Grunties that hang around in this area, so be careful when you pass the bridge in front of the Recorder's shop; there's one rather annoying Grunty hanging out right there! Get to the Chaos Gate, and like the first flag, turn the control stick back to slide into the flag and get going in the opposite direction. The clock should be at 14 seconds for this one. Finally, run back past the first bridge and turn at the second towards the magic shop, the last flag is way in back. Be careful as there's usually a Grunty prancing about in front of the weapon shop and a person running around the flag. If you can avoid both and maintain a fairly straight path to the flag, you should nab 1st place. Lambda Server Race: Use the Boney Grunty for this race. The first flag is right in front of you in the door of the Grunty Pen. Since you should be using the Bony Grunty, the Noble Grunty will be in there, but it won't be in the way. Run at it at top speed, and just before you reach the door to the pen, pull the control stick back; the Bony Grunty will slide into the flag and come back in the other direction. Your time should be around 4.2 – 4.3 seconds, any less than that and you likely charged at it and overshot the thing. When you come back and reach the point where the path widens, start turning here; the Bony Grunty's momentum will carry you right into the next path. You should also swing the camera around so that you can see where you're going. Run right down the lane, making small adjustments to avoid people and head for the flag in front of the magic shop. If you look on the ground, you'll notice some dark spots before and after the flag, turn around between the brown spot and the flag, and you should slide into it, just like the flag above. Your time should be a bit over 13 seconds here. Rotate the camera around because the last flag is in front of the weapon shop. After making the turn to the last path, you'll find that it can be quite congested; especially with the Snakey Grunty standing in the middle of the path. The Bony Grunty's bad turning means you'll have to aim left. Keep an eye out when you go for the flag, most of the time there's someone standing in front of it and running towards you. Avoid them and grab the flag. Sigma Server Race: This race is different for a number of reasons. First of all you don't have to perform the 180-slide because you never have to double back. Also the Sigma Server has lots of connecting paths, so there are multiple paths to get all three flags, but only one really works well. Finally, there are no good straight paths, and the fastest route has a lot of turns in it; so the tight turning Aqua Grunty is better than the speedy Milky Grunty. Using the Aqua Grunty all but eliminates the need for sliding, plus the Aqua Grunty doesn't have a psychotic smile over it's face. At the start, you don't go straight, instead take the left path to get to the first flag. Press left on the controller, but don't shift the camera yet; when you see the cannon, press up to turn into the path. Stay right of the line as you make the slight bend in the path, there's often someone walking along the left side of the path; then inch towards the center line. You don't actually have to touch the flag, if you just whiff by it, that should be good enough. Your time should be about 5 seconds even. Turn right towards the center of the Server, where the Recorder is. When you aim for the short path between Elf's Haven and the Recorder, try to line yourself up so that you enter right of the line, and exit left of the line. You have two ways to go to get around the Recorder's, but the Noble Grunty is waiting in back and will prevent you from going tight to the wall, so head for the left and get as tight to the wall as you can without brushing up against it. When you get around the Recorder's and can see the path leading to the Magic Shop and the purple flag, aim for the left side of the line, and head straight for the next flag. Your time should be no more than 12 seconds. When heading for the path to the third flag, aim for the left corner and creep towards the right while following the path down. Like the first, there's probably someone walking down the left side; you should already be far enough to the right to avoid them, then it's smooth sailing to the flag. ====================================================================== [CRE] Credits ====================================================================== Bandai, creators of the .hack// video games and anime. GameFAQs and all who run it, for their great work in creating an awesome video game help site.