-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= -=- Kingdom Hearts II -=- Sephiroth Guide Version 1.00 BY Masamune167 Name of Game: Kingdom Hearts II (NTSC-JPN) Platform: PlayStation2 Entertainment System Began: 27th February 2006 Last Update: 27th March 2006 Created With: VIM[Cream], Metapad Specifics: Courier New, Font Size 10, 79 Characters/Line Encoding: Western European (ISO)/(American) Author: <{masamune167[at]yahoo[dot]com}> -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ i. Table of Contents SXXXX ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 01. Version Updates --------------------------------------------------- S0001 02. Legal Disclaimer -------------------------------------------------- S0002 03. Introduction ------------------------------------------------------ S0003 04. Frequently Asked Questions ---------------------------------------- S0004 05. The Guide --------------------------------------------------------- S1000 05.a) Skills & Arms ----------------------------------------------- S1100 05.b) The Phases of Sephiroth ------------------------------------- S1200 05.c) Enemy Maneuvers --------------------------------------------- S1300 05.d) General Tactics --------------------------------------------- S1400 05.e) The Flow of Battle ------------------------------------------ S1500 05.f) Aftermath --------------------------------------------------- S1600 06. Credits ----------------------------------------------------------- S9999 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 01. Version Updates S0001 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ MM/DD/YY - /*Description*/ 02/27/06 - Guide started. 03/15/06 - Guide 50% completed. 03/27/06 - Guide finalized. Version 1.00 - First release done. Version 0.80 - Nearly done. Version 0.01 - Began guide and preliminary work for it. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 02. Legal Disclaimer S0002 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This disclaimer is to be regarded as part of the Internet publication which you are currently viewing. If sections or individual terms of this statement are not legal or correct, the content or validity of the other parts remain uninfluenced by this fact. This game, Kingdom Hearts II, is copyrighted (c) by Square-Enix and Disney. Licensed by Sony Corporation of Japan for use with the PlayStation2 game console. PlayStation2 is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Neither Sony nor Sammy Studios endorses this guide in any way or by any means. Liability claims regarding damage caused by the use of any information provided, including any kind of information which is incomplete or incorrect, will therefore be rejected. All offers are non-binding and without obligation. Parts of the pages or the complete publication including all offers and information might be extended, changed or partly or completely deleted by the author without separate announcement. The document before you is property of "Masamune167." This document aims to aid one in his or her understanding and general competency of the game Kingdom Hearts II. Reproduction of this document without my explicit consent is prohibited. Webmasters of a site that wishes to use this document may do so pending my authorization via email. If permission is granted, the document must be posted verbatim with no changes made to the document itself. Fan-based websites will also require similar authorization. The following websites have the authorization to post this document: - http://www.gameFAQs.com - http://www.gamespot.com - http://deepu.eroding.com - http://www.neoseeker.com - http://www.1up.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 03. Introduction S0003 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This document is meant to be used as a guide for the game Kingdom Hearts II for the Sony PlayStation2. Specifically, the optional battle against Sephiroth will be covered and the remainder of the game ignored when deemed necessary. Only the Japanese version of Kingdom Hearts II is covered as the North American version has yet to be released at the time of writing. If there are no significant changes made to the gameplay or mechanics then this document will still be accurate. Expect some of the skills to be named differently due to translational choices, yet the overall guide will retain integrity. I will not accept email concerning methods of operating the game with a Playstation2(this is something you can figure out), nor will I entertain questions asking for translation of scenes or events in the game. For emphasis: this is NOT a general FAQ/Walkthrough, and it is NOT a translation of the game into any language. I will transliterate skill and item names when needed, however do not expect line-by-line translations of dialogues or events. This document aims to provide aid to those who seek it. Questions and comments, with regard to the above conditions, can be emailed to the address at the top of the document. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 04. Frequently Asked Questions S0004 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 001) Will this game work on my U.S. Playstation2? A: No. The NTSC-JPN version will only play on Japanese or modified Playstation2 consoles. Legally, I cannot expand on this question further. 002) Is Kingdom Hearts II available in the __________ language? A: Thus far, only a Japanese and English version have been confirmed for release. The Japanese version has been released, and the English version is scheduled for a March 28th, 2006 release date. 003) Is Sephiroth difficult to defeat? A: No, not if you know what to expect and know what you are doing, but that is why you are here, right? 004) When am I able to challenge Sephiroth? A: Anytime after defeating the MCP in Space Paranoids wherein the Hollow Bastion becomes the Radiant Garden. After the name change you may challenge Sephiroth. 005) Where may I challenge Sephiroth? A: Go to the Radiant Garden. Sephiroth is in an area in the Radiant Garden known as "The Dark Depths." If you remember the area where the battle against the 1000 Heartless took place, it is one screen past that. Simply go to the area known as "The Great Maw" and go one screen further to reach Sephiroth. 006) What level should I be in order to fight Sephiroth? A: It depends. On Proud mode, the level will matter less than the abilities equipped, but at the very least you should be level 35. This is a bare minimum and doing it at this level or lower is cumbersome. Higher levels will grant some additional skills (usually as a result of raising Drives) and increased offense and defense stats. A good level is around 65-75, anything higher will make it laughably easy. 007) I reduced Sephiroth to a sliver of HP and hit him but he didn't die! What the hell is going on?! A: Sephiroth must be defeated, that is the finishing blow, by a "finisher" move that occurs at the end of a air or ground combo. 009) How many times may I fight Sephiroth? A: As many as it takes you to defeat him. Once beaten, he will not be available to fight again. 010) What spoils do I receive for defeating Sephiroth? A: After defeating Sephiroth, you will immediately gain +1 to your Drive gauge. Once he is defeated, go speak with Cloud at the market area in the Radiant Garden and then go back and speak to Sephiroth for a cutscene. After that cutscene, Tifa will give you Fenrir, the physically strongest Keyblade in the game. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 05. The Guide S1000 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This guide will cover the fight against Sephiroth specifically on the "Proud" mode difficulty. The below tactics and information will still apply to the normal difficulty, however you may be more liberal and forgiving in its application. Any attack names given in this guide are named by me if an official name is not given. They are simply used as a convention. Sephiroth can be challenged at any point after the Hollow Bastion changes its name to the "Radiant Garden." This occurs after the MPC is defeated at Space Paranoids. He is located at "The Dark Depths" which is one screen past "The Great Maw" where the 1000 Heartless battle took place. Simply walk up to Sephiroth at the Dark Depths and after a short scene, the battle will commence. You will not be able to escape from the battle once it begins, however if defeated, you may choose to "Continue" whereupon you will return to the Dark Depths with all your items intact. The battle will take place without your allies. The Drive skill is unavailable even if you speak to Sephiroth in a Driven form. Keep in mind that your offensive magic will be nigh useless in this battle. When you defeat Sephiroth, you will gain +1 to your Drive gauge and will be able to obtain the strongest Keyblade, Fenrir, from Tifa shortly after. The amount of time taken during the fight does not matter for anything in the game. Below are 5 sections explaining the skills needed, Sephiroth's phases, attacks, general tactics to use, and the overall flow of the battle that you can expect typically. +----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ 05.a) Skills & Arms S1100 +----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ In order to defeat Sephiroth, Sora will need to be equipped with a variety of skills. Not all of these skills are required, however the most essential ones will be marked with an asterisk. The more of these skills and at higher levels (where applicable) you have equipped, the easier it will be to survive the battle. ---- Action --------------------- Reflect Guard 2 Slash Upper 4 Air Sideslash 2 Revenge Slash 3 Slap Shot 2 Slide Dash* 2 Stride Break 3 Explosion 3 Aerial Sweep 2 Air Spiral 2 Aerial Finish 3 Total: 28 AP ---- Grow ----------------------- High Jump* [Level 3] 2 Air Slide [Level 3] 2 Air Dodge [Level 3] 3 Glide [Level 3] 3 Total: 10 AP ---- Support -------------------- Libra* 2 Air Recovery* 2 Combo Plus 1 Air Combo Plus 1 Combo Up 3 Air Combo Up 3 Finisher Plus 5 Charge Berserk 5 Leaf Veil* 1 Damage Aspir 3 MP Haste* 3 Defender 3 Last Life* 4 Combo Live* 4 Total: 40 AP Grand total: 78 AP (*) This skill is essential. High Jump, Air Dodge, Glide, and Air Dash are obtained by leveling Drive Forms until they obtain the level ABOVE the desired level for regular Sora. In other words, if you level all Drive Forms to maximum (level 7) then each Drive will have a level MAX of High Jump or Air Dodge or Air Dash. In this case, Sora will have level 3 of ALL of those abilities. The best weapon to use for this battle is, not surprisingly, the best Keyblade available at that time: the Ultima Weapon. This is not only for its high attack power but for its "MP Hasteaga" ability. With it, Sora's MP will charge back to full much, much more rapidly than without this ability. If you cannot, or do not wish to, use the Ultima Weapon, any Keyblade with an "MP Haste" ability will work but not as well. Alternatively, you may simply use the strongest Keyblade you have and hope that it works. Because you cannot use Sora's "Drive" ability in this battle, don't bother using a weapon for that property. As for magic, the only useful spells to use are defensive ones. You will want to equip Reflectaga and Curaga. These are the only two that will help in any fashion against Sephiroth. Curative items such as Hi-Potions and Elixirs will be necessary since Heartless Angel will usually drain Sora's MP to 0 and HP 1. It is not necessary to have Elixirs as Hi-Potions will suffice, but it is slightly easier to have them. +----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ 05.b) The Phases of Sephiroth S1200 +----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ During the battle with Sephiroth, you will notice that he seems to have three Phases, or forms, that he will use sequentially. He will evolve from Phase 1 to Phase 2 to Phase 3. Each change will grant him additional attacks , speed, and ferocity. The following are the aforementioned Phases and their triggers. O=== Phase 1: The Wanderer ==============================================O Trigger: Begins in this form. Characteristics: Sephiroth is slow and calculating in this form. He will walk around the arena cautiously, attack powerfully, and can teleport at will. He is still very capable of quickly closing distance between the Sora and himself. Attacks: Sin Angel, Grounded Omnislash, Air Omnislash, Teleport Launch O=== Phase 2: Feral Destroyer ===========================================O Trigger: Incurs approximately 4.5 bars of damage. Characteristics: Sephiroth is now able to run around the arena and launch attacks with greater speed. He will still teleport, and indeed, will do so more frequently. He is still fairly predictable, however, he does gain three new attacks in this form while retaining all the old ones. His Omnislash attacks now have much greater range as well. Attacks: Sin Angel, Grounded Omnislash, Air Omnislash, Teleport Launch, Orbs of Destruction, Heartless Angel, Pillars of Flame O=== Phase 3: Onslaught Incarnate =======================================O Trigger: Incurs approximately 9.5 bars of damage (has 5.5 remaining.) Characteristics: Sephiroth will sprint across the arena, glide across the ground, teleport more than ever, and unleash a new attack: Supernova. All the while he is still able to use his previous attacks with greater speed. Attacks: Sin Angel, Grounded Omnislash, Air Omnislash, Teleport Launch, Orbs of Destruction, Heartless Angel, Pillars of Flame, Supernova. +----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ 05.c) Enemy Maneuvers S1300 +----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ This section will strive to explain in detail the attacks used by Sephiroth, when and how they are used, how they can effect Sora and how you may counter them. Each Phase introduces new attacks, so this section is subdivided into Phase groups. O=== Phase 1: The Wanderer ==============================================O ____________________________________ ___/ 01 | Sin Angel S1301 \_____________________________________ ============================================================================== Preconditions: Generally only occurs when Sephiroth has freshly teleported to a new location. During the first phase, he tends to not do this attack when near Sora, however during later phases this will not be such a concern. Sephiroth will mumble something just before the attack. He may do this attack even if you are in the air and there is little you can do to avoid it unless your glide is far enough to dodge it. Appearance: Just before the attack proper, the sky will darken to a dark orange color. If you see the sky darken, immediately target Sephiroth and keep hitting triangle. The attack looks like a very fast forward dash and swipe. This covers as much distance as is necessary to put Sephiroth behind Sora. Damage: High. At low levels, without Last Life, this attack will completely kill Sora. However, it hits multiple times, so if you have Combo Live equipped, unless the FIRST hit kills you, you will survive the attack. The first hit deals the most damage, the remaining 9 hits deal smaller but consistent damage. Area of effect: Roughly a large cone emanating from Sephiroth. It is possible to dodge this attack if you move to the side very quickly and slightly towards Sephiroth. Since the area of effect decreases as you approach him, there is a higher probability of dodging the attack. It is also possible to only suffer a fraction of the attacks rather than all of them. You may, for example, only be hit three or four times if your dodge is caught. Jumping straight up will not dodge the attack and you will be unable to use your "reaction" command in the air. Counters: Just press Triangle when prompted or when the sky darkens. This will parry all his attacks and leave him defenseless for a moment. You need to be on or very close to the ground in order to counter it. After countering the attack, target Sephiroth and attack him while he is defenseless. ______________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________ ___/ 02 | Grounded Omnislash S1302 \_____________________________________ ============================================================================== Preconditions: Sora must be near Sephiroth. During the first phase, he will usually often use this attack after suffering an attack unless Sora uses a finisher. If a finisher is used, Sephiroth will teleport away. Appearance: A series of 6 slashes, some hitting multiple times, all utilising Sephiroth's large range. Damage: Very high. Again, since this hits multiple times, with Last Life, if the first hit doesn't kill you then you will survive the attack. The exception is if a large pause is taken between hits in which case the next hit may be fatal. Area of effect: Anything Sephiroth's sword touches, and that is essentially a ten or twelve foot radius in front of him. He will follow Sora and can turn in the middle of the attack. Counters: The easiest answer is to simply dodge the attack by flying or dodging away. However, if he is too close or you feel brave, you can using the "Guard" skill. Press square while NOT moving to use it. If you successfully guard the first one or two hits, then you will automatically guard the remaining attacks. You can also attack him mid-attack and interrupt the attack, but this does not work 100% of the time. ______________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________ ___/ 03 | Teleport Launch S1303 \_____________________________________ ============================================================================== Preconditions: Sora must not be close to Sephiroth. This is very frequent during the first phase and becomes less and less so in Phases 2 and 3. Appearance: Sephiroth will teleport right next to Sora and slash vertically upwards launching Sora into the air. Damage: Very low. The damage from this attack is minimal. Area of effect: His entire sword length, however the slash is very narrow and vertical. Counters: Dodging is easiest in this case since it is often very fast, it is possible to guard against it as well. However, it is beneficial to instead perform a mid-air recovery or Revenge Slash against Sephiroth's Air Omnislash. ______________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________ ___/ 04 | Air Omnislash S1304 \_____________________________________ ============================================================================== Preconditions: Sora must be in the air as a result of Sephiroth's Teleport Launch. He will not perform this attack if you jump normally into the air. This attack CAN be sequentially executed by Sephiroth a number of times. This occurs if Sora is knocked into the air, attacked, and remains in the for a long enough time to warrant another Air Omnislash. Typically this only occurs if you try to recover AFTER being hit and remain in the air or were very high in the air initially. Appearance: It is simply an Omnislash in the air, a series of 6 sword slashes with some hitting multiple times. Damage: High. The damage here is comparable to the Grounded Omnislash. Area of effect: The length of the sword, however, unlike the Grounded Omnislash, Sephiroth is not able to follow Sora in the air. Counters: Flying away is probably the most natural reaction, however, recovering and attacking or simply using Revenge Slash and beginning an aerial combo is much more effective. This is a tactic that we will use often throughout the battle because allowing Sephiroth to take the advantage in the air may be fatal. ______________________________________________________________________________ O=== Phase 2: Feral Destroyer ===========================================O Three new attacks have been added in this Phase. ____________________________________ ___/ 05 | Orbs of Destruction S1305 \_____________________________________ ============================================================================== Preconditions: Sora must not currently have orbs orbiting him. It generally only occurs when Sephiroth is left alone for more than a few seconds. His transition into Phase 2 is signaled with the materialization of these orbs. Appearance: A number of large, dark, blueish-purple diffuse orbs materialize around Sora. They orbit him slowly but eventually begin to close in on him and are capable of following him linearly. Damage: Moderate. Damage from the orbs is minimal, however each orb is considered a separate hit. Therefore, if any of the orbs deals fatal damage, the next orb will kill Sora if Last Life is equipped. Area of effect: Any contact with any part of the volume of the ball will trigger its combustion. Counters: Attacking the orbs will destroy them in one hit. You can use magic to affect them as well. Reflect and Magnet work well for this purpose, however Reflect will also protect Sora temporarily and requires less mana per cast. It is always a good idea to destroy the orbs as soon as possible because they will mislead the targeting system and you may lose track of Sephiroth. ______________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________ ___/ 06 | Pillars of Flame S1306 \_____________________________________ ============================================================================== Preconditions: Sora must be near Sephiroth and have recently attacked him. This attack occurs most frequently after Sora attacks Sephiroth on the ground without using a finishing move. Immediately after five or six rounds (using Berserk), Sephiroth will use this attack. Appearance: Sephiroth will mutter something and throw his arm into the air. Pillars of flames will thrust forth from the ground high into the sky. There are three pillars, all of which have a magnetic vortex affect meaning that Sora will be sucked toward the pillars. Damage: High. The pillars, while individually devastating, will toss Sora amidst them such that the collateral damage from bouncing between the pillars will be quite high. Area of effect: The entire vicinity occupied by the pillars of flame will harm Sora, but the magnetic effect ebbs throughout the entire area. Counters: You cannot interrupt Sephiroth during this attack, so just run away from the pillars until they dissipate. Flying works very well because the magnetic effect will not be nearly as effective in the air, however you can also Air Dodge away easily. Purely running away is not very effective. ______________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________ ___/ 07 | Heartless Angel S1307 \_____________________________________ ============================================================================== Preconditions: Used seemingly at random, but never in situations where another attack would clearly take place (such as Pillars of Flame after a non-finisher attack volley.) Appearance: Sephiroth will float upwards into the sky as it darkens. He will mutter a phrase and a halo will appear over Sora's head. At this point, there is no way to avoid the attack. After the attack hits, Sephiroth will return to the ground. Sephiroth will always follow this attack with a Sin Angel strike so be sure to "react" to that. Damage: Complete. This attack will always reduce Sora's HP to 1 and his MP to 0. **NOTE** However, there is one major exception to his rule that is most likely a glitch in the game logic. If Sora's HP is at 1 BEFORE the attack occurs, then the attack will FAIL to take Sora's MP to 0. In fact, it will not affect his MP at all! Area of effect: The attack only hits Sora and cannot miss. Counters: As Sephiroth is rising into the air or shortly before the attack is summoned, Sora CAN interrupt the procedure by attacking Sephiroth. If the halo appears then you cannot dodge or block the attack further. Once hit, prepare for the oncoming Sin Angel and take advantage of Sephiroth's lag from that attack. ______________________________________________________________________________ O=== Phase 3: Onslaught Incarnate =======================================O Sephiroth's third Phase grants one new attack. ____________________________________ ___/ 08 | Supernova S1308 \_____________________________________ ============================================================================== Preconditions: Occurs when Sephiroth is near defeat, at less than 3 bars of health. Appearance: Sephiroth will appear in the air in the far center of the field. Soon thereafter, meteors will rain towards Sora. The meteors will actually follow Sora's position, they don't fall randomly or spread over the entire field. Damage: Moderate. Each meteor hurts moderately, but being hit by one will usually mean that Sora will be bounced around by a few meteors. Area of effect: A large area directly around Sora, however the meteors come from the direction of Sephiroth. The AOE of a given meteor is the meteor itself, in other words, Sora must touch the meteor to be hurt by it. Counters: This attack will actually follow Sora around the arena, therefore the fastest way to dodge the attack is to fly around the edge of the arena. An anticlockwise direction seems to work more easily, but it should not make much of a difference. The alternative method is to jump up to Sephiroth and hit him repeatedly (take advantage of Charge Berserk here if possible) until the attack is over. Be careful to not be hit by the meteors with either method. ______________________________________________________________________________ +----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ 05.d) General Tactics S1400 +----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ This section is simply general advice when fighting Sephiroth. A more detailed account is found in the "flow of battle" section below. On with the tactics: + Never lose sight of Sephiroth. This means you should know where he is at all times. Keep a lock on him whenever he teleports since it will break with each teleport. + Sephiroth's first attack can be "react"ed against. I've named this attack "Sin Angel" for this guide. It hits multiple times, however the reaction command will parry all of them. He will always open with this attack. + Be defensive and attack at vital moments. That is very vague so I shall expand on it. Sephiroth is an offensive brute however his defense is really quite weak. He soaks damage like a sponge and that is something you must take advantage of throughout the fight. For example, it is often better to let Sephiroth launch Sora into the air so that you can execute a vicious air combo to interrupt his Air Omnislash. Further still, Sephiroth is open to attack just after a Grounded Omnislash and after a Sin Angel. Both generate some recovery time, and if you were able to guard or dodge the attack, you can use that oppurtunity to strike. + Offensive magic is useless. Thunder, Fire, Blizzard, and Magnet of all forms are rather useless. The only useful magic spells are defensive or curative: Reflectaga and Curaga. Reflect can be used to dispel the destruction orbs, while Cure can entirely heal Sora. + Conserve MP if playing defensively. You will need MP in order to use Reflect to counter Sephiroth's Orbs in his second and third phases, for this reason it is important to have MP at those critical times. + Charge Berserk is abusable. Yes, this skill is a huge boon when used correctly. While it does prevent finishers from occurring while MP is charging, it allows infinite normal combos. This will result in higher damage overall if 6 or 7 iterations of a combo are unleashed upon Sephiroth. You can easily deplete Sora's MP with a simple Curaga spell, so an infinite chain is always at your disposal. Sephiroth will generally break out of the chain after 7 iterations, however, so don't be overzealous. + Sephiroth can only be defeated with a finishing blow. This means that the final hit to defeat Sephiroth must be classified as a "finisher" by the game. If not, Sephiroth will remain with one sliver of health until a finisher is used. Remember that finishers do NOT occur if Charge Berserk is equipped and Sora's MP is charging. Simply continue a combo attack and a finisher will end it. +----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ 05.e) The Flow of Battle S1500 +----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ This section will cover in detail the typical flow of battle one can expect in the battle against Sephiroth. The events may not occur in the order given precisely, but they are general enough to be useful. Sephiroth's first attack will be his Sin Angel (a dashing slash) to which you must press TRIANGLE to react to it. Your reaction command will guard all the attacks and allow you to attack Sephiroth. Your goal at this point is to defend against Sephiroth's attacks and counterattack when he leaves himself open. The best time to do this is just after he uses a Grounded Omnislash or Sin Angel. The other useful tactic to use is to allow Sephiroth to use his Teleport Launch to send Sora air-borne. Now, quickly launch a Reversal Strike (with Square) or recover and attack (press X to recover) as soon as you are in the air. Timed correctly, you will begin to assault Sephiroth in the air. Another useful but not necessary tactic is to equip Charge Berserk on Sora and use your MP entirely so that Sora is charging his MP. At this point, Sora's main attack will become "Berserk" which will string attacks together without finishers. This will allow you to chain several more rounds of attacks on Sephiroth at a time. However, he CAN break out of this after 6 or 7 iterations, so be careful and don't be overzealous. Here is the general flow you can expect, the arrows indicate how you ought to react to the numbered situation: O=== Phase 1: The Wanderer ==============================================O 01) Sephiroth uses Sin Angel. > Press Triangle to parry the attack. > Attack Sephiroth after the attack expires. Distance yourself from Sephiroth. 02) Sephiroth uses Grounded Omnislash. > Either Guard the attack or dodge it and retaliate. > Dodge and keep your distance. 03) Sephiroth uses Teleport Launch. > Recover/Revenge Slash immediately and attack Sephiroth mid-air. > After landing, distance yourself from Sephiroth. 04) Sephiroth launches Sora and uses Air Omnislash. > Try to recover and retaliate, otherwise just grin and bear it. O=== Phase 2: Feral Destroyer ===========================================O Phase 2: Reached after Sephiroth incurs 4.5 bars of damage. Sephiroth will mutter something and teleport away to summon Orbs of Destruction. This is the transition into Phase 2. The basic tactics you've used in the first Phase will still hold true in this phase. Keep in mind that Sephiroth is now faster and his Omnislash has much greater range. He will also teleport more frequently, thus it will be more difficult to attack him after defending against his blows. Anytime Sephiroth summons orbs in a circle around Sora, cast Reflect to ward them off. Sephiroth will now also use his infamous Heartless Angel and Pillars of Flame attacks in this and the next phase. Here is the general flow for the second Phase (include the attacks from Phase 1): 05) Sephiroth summons the Orbs of Destruction. > Cast Reflect to dispel the orbs. If this does not work or is not possible then simply attack the orbs to dispel them. 06) Sephiroth casts Pillars of Flame. > Fly away as quickly as possible. Sephiroth will only do this attack when near Sora. 07) Sephiroth rises into the air in order to use Heartless Angel. > Jump up and strike Sephiroth as quickly as possible to interrupt the attack. > If a halo appears above Sora, the attack will always hit him. > If he is too far, you can try to time a healing item or Curaga such that Sora will be healed JUST after the attack strikes him. 08) Sephiroth strikes Sora with Heartless Angel. > Right after a successful Heartless Angel, Sephiroth will almost always use Sin Angel. Be prepared to "react" to it and attack Sephiroth right after the attack. > Heal with a Hi-Potion or Elixir (since your magic will most likely be depleted; if not then use a Curaga Spell.) O=== Phase 3: Onslaught Incarnate =======================================O Phase 3: Reached after Sephiroth has roughly 5.5 bars of health remaining. Sephiroth will teleport to a fixed location and charge until his upper torso begins to emit a pink aura. This is the transition into Phase 3. All of the tactics you've applied in the previous forms still apply, however Sephiroth is much, much faster and more ferocious than he was previously. As such, you will need to react to his actions more quickly. He also has a new attack in his arsenal: Supernova (a rain of meteors.) Here is the final flow, include the attacks from Phases 1 and 2: 09) Sephiroth rises into the air and uses Supernova. > Counter the meteor rain by flying around the edge of the arena. > Wait for him to descend from the attack and keep a distance from him. The flow in the final form is difficult due to his high speed. Sephiroth is most vulnerable after Supernova and Sin Angel. These are the best times in which to attack him. Be patient and avoid his attacks as much as possible. A good idea is to bring Sephiroth to about 6 bars of health, just before the transformation into Phase 3, and take advantage of Charge Berserk to shave off 3 or 4 life bars. This will reduce the time he has in his third Phase and you may be able to defeat him before he is able to use Supernova. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 05.f) Aftermath S1600 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ When you finally manage to defeat Sephiroth, some words are exchanged and you will regain control in the Dark Depths once more. You cannot fight Sephiroth again once he is defeated. In order to obtain the Keyblade Fenrir and view the "Showdown of Fate 2" cutscene, head back to the Radiant Garden shopping area. Speak with Cloud and tell him that you know where Sephiroth is and he will leave to find him. Go back to the Dark Depths. Here you will witness the "Showdown of Fate 2." After this cutscene, Tifa will give Sora powerful Keyblade, Fenrir. Sora will also gain +1 to his Drive Gauge immediately after the battle. Fenrir is the most powerful Keyblade with 7 attack power, 1 magic attack power and a Combo Minus ability. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 06. Credits S9999 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Thanks to CJayC for hosting GameFAQs and this document. Credit goes to my fellow FAQ authors as they are a constant source of inspiration. Likewise, credit goes to any and all authors, especially those with whom I am familiar, for they have also influenced my writing. Thanks to Square-Enix for producing this game. And of course, a thank you to all my friends who do or do not support me: you know who are. Copyright (c) 2006. All rights reserved. This document is property of "Masamune167" and may not be used without explicit permission.