Final Fantasy III (J) (NES) - RetroAchievements/guides GitHub Wiki

Final Fantasy III (J)

Guide written by bdjeffyp

Version History

  • v2.0.0 (11/4/2024): A lot of changes occurred thanks to a set revision! The revision removed some arduous achievements, added new boss challenge achievements, and added regional treasure collection benchmark achievements to make getting No Stone Unturned a bit easier (or knowing what caused you to miss it). Here is a breakdown of the guide changes:
    • General grammar fixes
    • Update the About section with better formatting and a bit about why I went with the Chaos Rush localization and updated the link
    • Updated the Supported Game Files link
    • Changed the achievement categories
    • Added the Potential Order section
    • Added strategies for the new achievements and deleted the removed achievements
  • v1.1.0 (4/2/2024): Moved box art, spoiler discussion, and naming convention details into the About section. Found and fixed minor spelling errors. Updated the header sectioning to be more consistent, using a level two header for the category breakdowns then making the categories themselves a level three header.
  • v1.0.2 (9/23/2023): Updated Compatibility section and specified dates of relevancy for when I state "currently" in the guide.
  • v1.0.1 (9/4/2021): Formatting cleanup (thanks to FluffyEmmy for that!)
  • v1.0.0 (12/24/2020): Initial release

About

Box art for the Famicom version of Final Fantasy III

⛔ ** MAY CONTAIN MINOR SPOILERS ** ⛔

This is not an official manual, walkthrough, or critical review. This document is a simple guide for the current achievement set available on RetroAchievements. This guide will give the player tips on earning the achievements, hash compatibility, and any other necessary or useful information.

Note that the names of characters, places, etc. used in this guide are based off of the Chaos Rush localization, which is closest to the official Square Enix localization for Final Fantasy III on the Nintendo DS and the Pixel Remaster. Since the achievement descriptions seem to use the early localization effort's names, I figure that using the Chaos Rush localization here can help those who prefer using the more modern naming conventions know how they relate to the achievements with the older names.

When possible, I will try to use both names with the Chaos Rush name first followed by the early localization in parentheses.
It will appear like this, as an example:
Gysahl(Gisahl)

Introduction

Final Fantasy III is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the Family Computer. Released in Japan in 1990, it was the third installment in the Final Fantasy series. It is the first numbered Final Fantasy game to feature the job-change system. The story revolves around four orphaned youths drawn to a crystal of light. The crystal grants them some of its power, and instructs them to go forth and restore balance to the world. Not knowing what to make of the crystal's pronouncements, but nonetheless recognizing the importance of its words, the four inform their adoptive families of their mission and set out to explore and bring back the balance.

This game further establishes many of the Final Fantasy series norms that were set in Final Fantasy II, such as chocobos, expanded character classes, and familiar spells, while also bringing back the experience point system of the first game. Additionally, certain features of Final Fantasy IV, such as Fat Chocobo and summon spells, started in this game.

Trivia

  • Final Fantasy III was first officially released outside of Japan with the Nintendo DS 3D remake in 2006. The Famicom version was released on Wii and Wii U Virtual Consoles, but only in Japan. Therefore, the Famicom version with translation hacks is the only way to play the original game. A 2D remake was finally made available worldwide with the Pixel Remaster releases of the first six Final Fantasy games.
  • A 2D remake was initially in the works for the WonderSwan Color. However, due to cartridge storage sizes for the system and programming complications, Square was only able to produce remakes for Final Fantasy I and II for the system.
  • The game earned the third highest score in Famitsu the year of its release, scoring a 36 out of 40, which was one point less than F-Zero and Dragon Quest IV.
  • The overworld theme, Eternal Wind, has appeared in several other Final Fantasy games, such as during the opening movie of the Shadowbringers expansion of Final Fantasy XIV and a bard in the Dead Dunes town of Ruffian sings a version with lyrics in Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII.

Save Support

The game uses a battery to save game data across three slots. Players can save the game at any time while on the overworld map to any one of the three slots.

There are a couple of spots in the game where it is to your advantage to make use of the multiple save slots, especially before Saronia(Salonia). Make a save before flying over Saronia(Salonia) so that if your party is not prepared, you can explore other parts of the world before you are stuck there.

Compatibility

Currently (as of 9/23/2023) this game has 10 unique ROM(s) registered for it. View the latest Supported Game Files page to ensure that you have a valid game for your achievements.

I used the Final Fantasy III (Japan) (En) (v1.3) (Chaos Rush) version when making this guide and earning my mastery.

Leaderboards

There are no leaderboards currently associated with the game.

Achievement Categories

There are a total of 90 achievements (as of 11/4/2024), which can be broken down into the following categories:

  • Story/Progression: 27 achievements earned naturally through the course of gameplay (there are a couple that are considered progression but not marked as such in the set)
  • Side Quest: 20 achievements earned by going to out-of-the-way locations and talking to various NPCs
  • Treasure: 19 achievements, 6 of which are missable, that unlock as all chests in a region are opened, with a final achievement for opening all of them.
  • Challenge: 16 achievements, 15 of which are missable, that require specific actions and party configuration for specific boss fights and dungeons.
  • Post-Game: 8 achievements that are ideal to get after completing the game. Note that there is no post-game save. Going for these achievements are such a grind that can adversely impact your enjoyment of the final dungeon so I recommend completing the game first before doing these.

Out of all of the achievements, a total of 21 are missable.

Potential Order

The following is a breakdown of the order of achievements based on my personal playthrough. Note that this is only a potential order for you to follow and not a strict timing on when achievements should be unlocked, especially when grind achievements are considered.

Each section is grouped under story achievements and hidden under a dropdown to avoid spoilers. If you want to see the achievements, click on the arrow next to each section to reveal the table. The dropdown names have the number of achievements in the section so that you can see at a glance about how many achievements you should have by the end of a section, if you were to follow my guide to the letter.

⛔ MINOR SPOILER SECTION ⛔
The tables only reveal when achievements can be earned and possibly missed. No strategies on earning the achievements are provided here, just the approximate order I earned them in.

You Have Been Chosen ➡ Diminishing Returns (8/90)
Category Badge Title Missable?
Story/Progression A blue crystal surrounded by five characters You Have Been Chosen No
Side Quest An old man Painkiller No
Side Quest Golden brown griffon Monster-in-a-Box! No
Challenge Crying Onion Knight We Fear Change Yes
Story/Progression White outline of a man fading into view Filling in the Blanks No
Side Quest A man with a beard and hat that covers his eyes The Best Medicine No
Treasure A treasure chest in an earthy cavern Homeland Haul No
Story/Progression A miniaturized person Diminishing Returns No
Diminishing Returns ➡ Jump in the Fire (16/90)
Category Badge Title Missable?
Story/Progression A tiny house The Doctor's Doctor No
Challenge A warrior fallen face first on the ground Why Are You Even Here?! Yes
Story/Progression A blue sea serpent Pest Control No
Side Quest A chocobo Breadwinner No
Story/Progression A man wearing a green outfit and has a face without eyes Meet the Gurgans No
Treasure Open chests surround a closed chest Interior Acquisition No
Challenge A large red medusa head with a small warrior Protégé of Perseus Yes
Story/Progression A large red medusa head Jump in the Fire No
Jump in the Fire ➡ It's a Square World After All (28/90)
Category Badge Title Missable?
Side Quest A sheep The Grass is Greener Here No
Side Quest A piano Culture for the Countryside No
Side Quest A large chocobo sleeping You're Gonna Carry That Weight No
Challenge Gutsco getting hit with Blizzaga Chill Out Yes
Story/Progression A green horn Stone-Cold Robbed No
Challenge A dragon breathing fire on a warrior and monk Pyro Punching Power Yes
Story/Progression A blue crystal surrounded by four characters I Dub Thee Sir Hotpants No
Treasure A dwarf and some treasure chests Peripheral Pilfering Yes
Challenge A scholar with a NO symbol over them Illiterate Warriors Yes
Story/Progression A skeleton with fancy duds The Root of the Problem No
Side Quest A white mage reading a book on a desk Is This Safe to Drink...? No
Story/Progression A floating island over an ocean It's a Square World After All No
It's a Square World After All ➡ The Midas Touch (37/90)
Category Badge Title Missable?
Story/Progression A door in a blue cave wall The Password is Not Swordfish No
Challenge Kraken facing off against a knight, ranger, thief, and scholar Seafood Soup Yes
Story/Progression A blue crystal surrounded by seven characters Wave of Success No
Side Quest A group of villagers Pianoman No
Story/Progression A pair of shoes Respect Your Elders No
Treasure A gold room with gold treasure chests Floodborne Finds Yes
Challenge A gold knight with purple cape faces off against a ranger, thief, and bard Robin Hood and His Merry Men Yes
Challenge A thief with the NO symbol over them The Honest Approach Yes
Story/Progression A gold roofed mansion The Midas Touch No
The Midas Touch ➡ You're Going to Be Submerged (44/90)
Category Badge Title Missable?
Side Quest A conjurer character Welcome to Summoning 101 No
Side Quest A bard character The Musical Kingdom No
Side Quest A dragoon character We're Gonna Have to Jump No
Challenge Garuda, a bird man Or Maybe We Won't Yes
Story/Progression An airship that can also be a submarine Ludicrous Speed No
Story/Progression A moogle: a creature that looks like a stuffed bear with wings Kupo... I Mean, Uh... Nyaah! No
Story/Progression An old man wearing a red cloak holding a staff You're Going to Be Submerged No
You're Going to Be Submerged ➡ Beyond the Walls (66/90)

NOTE: This section is wide open and allows you to complete the majority of these events in any order, up to and even including the end of the game. This is just the order that I obtained most of these achievements. Feel free to explore and earn what you want in the order you want.

Category Badge Title Missable?
Treasure Two rows of four chests From the Rich and Poor Alike No
Side Quest A knight on the back of a horse The Allfather No
Side Quest A black mage character In Case You Missed Anything No
Treasure Four treasure chests under water Sunken Treasure No
Treasure A chest in sunken ruins Nautical Necessities No
Story/Progression A lute Rocking Out No
Story/Progression A massive airship The Flying Fortress No
Treasure A shinobi enemy The Power of the Dark Side No
Side Quest Leviathan The Sea Serpent No
Challenge A player character taking a knee with red skin Oops, Forgot My Sunscreen Yes
Side Quest Bahamut The King of Dragons No
Side Quest A summoner character Supreme Summoner No
Treasure A couple of treasure chests and a bridge Mighty Terrors, Mighty Treasure Yes
Challenge A dark knight character Divided They Fall Yes
Challenge A giant stands before seven characters The Weight of Water Yes
Story/Progression A giant Into the Depths of Despair No
Treasure A lone treasure chest among dark ruins Invincible Itemising Yes
Challenge A giant Blast Apart the Earth Yes
Story/Progression An old woman hunched over a walking cane With Friends Like These... No
Challenge Two creatures face off with a devout, magus, and summoner Teaching the Masters Yes
Story/Progression A blue crystal surrounded by three characters Master of Magic No
Story/Progression A massive crystal tower surrounded by walls Beyond the Walls No
Beyond the Walls ➡ Bringer of Hope (82/90)
Category Badge Title Missable?
Treasure A treasure chest surrounded by walls I Am Protected No
Treasure A circular weapon Keep Away from Werewolves No
Treasure A katana and sheathe A True Samurai No
Treasure A sword in stone The Holy Sword No
Treasure A sword surrounded by bones Post-Apocalyptic No
Treasure A staff, ninja, and sage surrounded by bones Employees of the Month No
Side Quest A shuriken Need Some Ammo? No
Side Quest A magus character Supreme Warlock No
Side Quest A devout character Supreme Shaman No
Story/Progression A bright light surrounded by darkness Walk in the Shadows No
Treasure A shirtless wizard standing with arms outstretched Attack of the Clones No
Treasure A treasure chest among the stars Forbidden Pleasures No
Treasure A boulder surrounded by smaller rocks No Stone Unturned Yes
Story/Progression A knight in red armor Dark World Tour No
Challenge A humanoid silhouette glowing green in a swirling void The Gauntlet No
Story/Progression The Cloud of Darkness, an entity that appears feminine with green skin and hair on red tendrils Bringer of Hope No
Bringer of Hope ➡ Post-Game Cleanup (90/90)
Category Badge Title Missable?
Post-Game A green scaled dragon Dragon Hunter No
Post-Game A yellow scaled dragon Dragon Slayer No
Post-Game A red scaled dragon Dragon Dominator No
Post-Game A sword with a red glow The Irresistible Force No
Post-Game A shield with a purple glow The Immovable Object No
Post-Game A helmet with a yellow glow The Hardest Head No
Post-Game Body armor with a blue glow The Sturdiest Body No
Post-Game A gauntlet with a green glow The Strongest Hands No

Category Breakdowns

The category sections below contain each achievement in the section with tips or suggestions on how to unlock them. Not every achievement may warrant an in-depth discussion and the tips/suggestions I provide may not be the the most ideal. I'm open to feedback on how better to meet an achievement's requirements, as I have done with my previous guides. Feel free to message me via RetroAchievements DM to discuss better strategies and I'll update them here with credit given.

Good luck in your achievement hunting!

Story/Progression

No discussion on the story achievements here as you simply need to play through the game to earn them. You can't miss them!

Back to Achievement Categories

Side Quest

Badge Title Hint/Strategy
An old man Painkiller This is considered a side quest since you aren't required to speak to this old man in the village of Ur at the beginning of the game. If you talk to all NPCs though, you shouldn't have a problem with getting this and all other side quest achievements.
Golden brown griffin Monster-in-a-Box! If you are doing your due diligence in opening chests, you will find a griffin in a treasure chest with the Wightslayer sword in the top floor of the west tower of Sasune(Sassoon) Castle.
A man with a beard and hat that covers his eyes The Best Medicine Another side quest which should be easily achieved if you are diligent in talking to everyone. In Canaan, Cid's wife is ill. Give her an elixir to heal her and get the achievement. You will find the elixir you need in the grass in town.
A chocobo Breadwinner You can meet the requirements for the side quest immediately upon finding your first chocobo in the Chocobo Forest outside of the Village of the Ancients(Ancients' Village). Simply run around the outside ring of the continent and then enter the Village and speak to a child in town to get your prize and the achievement. You don't even have to talk to the kid before hand.
A sheep The Grass is Greener Here After saving the Floating Continent from falling, you can sail to this town. You aren't required to come here, but you may want to if you don't want to use a Thief during your game. You will want to come here for treasure collection though...
A piano Culture for the Countryside In Gysahl(Gisahl), go to the Inn and play the piano on the left side to the dismay of the patrons.
A large chocobo sleeping You're Gonna Carry That Weight Use a Gysahl Green(Carrot) at a spot that smells like chocobos to make the Fat Chocobo appear. While this is optional, you will probably unlock this achievement as a result of managing your items during the course of the game.
A white mage reading a book on a desk Is This Safe to Drink...? After saving the Elder(Eldest) Tree, don't forget to go back to Castle Argus(Argass) to the locked room on the top-left side of the castle's rampart. A white mage will be there to give you a gift.
A group of villagers Pianoman Simply play the piano in Amur's Inn to get this achievement.
A conjurer character Welcome to Summoning 101 As soon as the Enterprise is freed from it's chain, you can visit the town of summoners and conjurers(evokers), Replito(Leprit). Be wary of flying near the castle of Saronia(Salonia), however, or you will have to remember to find one or both of these towns after that storyline is concluded.
A bard character The Musical Kingdom As soon as the Enterprise is freed from it's chain, you can visit the village of geomancers and bards, Duster(Dastar). Be wary of flying near the castle of Saronia(Salonia), however, or you will have to remember to find one or both of these towns after that storyline is concluded.
A dragoon character We're Gonna Have to Jump While you don't have to do this as part of the story, it'll definitely make your battles in Saronia(Salonia) and beyond that much easier with all the loot you get here. You'll find the Dragon Spire(Tower) in the southeastern section of the city.
A black mage character In Case You Missed Anything This achievement can be accomplished as soon as you get the ability to submerge the Nautilus. Doga's(Dorga's) Village is a great place to fill out needed spells you haven't purchased earlier in your journey.
A knight on the back of a horse The Allfather You can attempt to battle Odin once you have a submergible Nautilus. Sail to the Saronia(Salonia) Catacombs underwater just south of the city.
Leviathan The Sea Serpent You can attempt to battle Leviathan within Lake Dor on the Floating Continent once you have the Invincible. Cross the mountain with the airship, get out, and enter the lake in your canoe to reach the pacing shadow.
Bahamut The King of Dragons You can attempt to battle Bahamut once you have the Invincible. Their cave is an excellent spot to grind levels in preparation for doing the Oops, Forgot My Sunscreen challenge, among others.
A shuriken Need Some Ammo? Reaching the bottom of Eureka, you find two sages with the level 8 spells and Odin, Leviathan, and Bahamut summons. A hidden switch can be found on the wall behind them by walking up between the two.
A magus character Supreme Warlock If you focus one character on black magic throughout the entire game, this should be easy to achieve when you buy the level 8 spells in Eureka. Otherwise, you will need to get all of the spells onto one character, purchase duplicates at Doga(Dorga)'s Village, and probably use a Fat Chocobo to juggle things.
A devout character Supreme Shaman If you focus one character on white magic throughout the entire game, this should be easy to achieve when you buy the level 8 spells in Eureka. Otherwise, you will need to get all of the spells onto one character, purchase duplicates at Doga(Dorga)'s Village, and probably use a Fat Chocobo to juggle things.
A summoner character Supreme Summoner I never used a summoner in my game, so I threw all of the summon spells onto my second character, who evolved from Monk to Black Belt(Karateka) to Magic Knight throughout the course of the game. Once I got Bahamut, I unlocked this achievement, and then put Bahamut on my Magus(Warlock) turned Sage during my post-game Onion equipment grind. Your mileage may vary but the point at which you unlock it remains the same. Don't forget to purchase the level 1-5 summon spells in Replito(Leprit)!

Back to Achievement Categories

Treasure

NOTE: The following achievements in this category, except for No Stone Unturned, are missable due to their listed location being locked out after completion:

  • Interior Acquisition: Nepto Temple (Shrine of Nepto)
  • Peripheral Pilfering: Hein's Castle(Castle Hyne)
  • Floodborne Finds: Wrecked Ship(Shipwreck)
  • Mighty Terrors, Mighty Treasure: Lake Dohr(Dol)
  • Invincible Itemising: Doga's(Dorga's) Cave
Badge Title Hint/Strategy
A treasure chest in an earthy cavern Homeland Haul This achievement encompasses the following areas: Altar Cave, Ur, Kazus, Sasune(Sassoon) Castle, Sealed Cave(Cave of the Seal), Mithril Mine, Canaan, and Dragon's Peak(Road to the Summit). There are 71 treasures to find.
Open chests surround a closed chest Interior Acquisition MISSABLE
This is for the following locations: Tozus(Tozas), Viking Base, Nepto Temple (Shrine of Nepto), Gulgan Gulch(Gurgan Valley), Village of the Ancients, Tokkul(Tokkle), Tower of Owen, and Argus(Argass) Castle. There are 56 treasures to find.
A dwarf and some treasure chests Peripheral Pilfering MISSABLE
The following areas are associated with this achievement: Subterranean(Underground) Lake, Flame Cave, Hein's Castle(Castle Hyne), Dwarven Hollow(Dwarf Cave), and Gysahl(Gisahl). There are 47 treasures to find.
A gold room with gold treasure chests Floodborne Finds MISSABLE
The locations: Wrecked Ship(Shipwreck), Amur (the town and the sewers), and Goldor's Mansion. There are 26 treasures to find.
Two rows of four chests From the Rich and Poor Alike The locations: Duster(Dastar), Replito(Leprit), and Saronia(Salonia) city areas, castle, and catacombs. There are 64 treasures to find.
Four treasure chests under water Sunken Treasure You can get this as soon as you get the ability to submerge the Nautilus. The hidden treasures also go toward Nautical Necessities but these four are significant for the monster-in-a-box battles.
A chest in sunken ruins Nautical Necessities The locations: Doga's(Dorga's) Manor, Sunken(Undersea) Cave, and Temple of Time. There are 30 treasures to find.
A shinobi enemy The Power of the Dark Side You can go to Falgabard(Fargabaad) after getting the Invincible. Going through the cave in the back of town will be a great chance to prepare for the Divided They Fall challenge!
A couple of treasure chests and a bridge Mighty Terrors, Mighty Treasure MISSABLE
The locations: Lake Dohr(Dol), Bahamut's Lair(Cave of Bahamut). There are 32 treasures to find.
A lone treasure chest among dark ruins Invincible Itemising MISSABLE
The locations: Ancient Ruins, Falgabard(Fargabaad) town and cave, Cave of Shadows(Darkness), and Doga's(Dorga's) Cave. There are 27 treasures to find.
A treasure chest surrounded by walls I Am Protected The only Ribbon you can find before the point of no return! As you explore the second floor of Eureka, look for a wall you can walk through. Be ready to fight for the item!
A circular weapon Keep Away from Werewolves You'll naturally come across this weapon during your Eureka descent. The Moonring(Full Moon) is defended, as with all of the Eureka weapons.
A katana and sheathe A True Samurai Another weapon out in the open as you dive Eureka and is well defended.
A sword in stone The Holy Sword Yet another weapon out in the open as you descend further into Eureka. Also defended by a monster.
A sword surrounded by bones Post-Apocalyptic Yes. Another weapon waiting for you to grab it. It's also in Eureka. It's also guarded by a beast most foul.
A staff, ninja, and sage surrounded by bones Employees of the Month Lying opposite from Ragnarok. This weapon comes with two jobs as well!
A shirtless wizard standing with arms outstretched Attack of the Clones After passing the point of no return, you'll find one treasure chest on each path to a Dark Crystal that contains a Ribbon. Don't worry: they are also guarded!
A treasure chest among the stars Forbidden Pleasures The locations: Ancients' Labyrinth, Eureka (including the forbidden weapons), Syrcus(Sylx) Tower, and the World of Darkness. There are 66 treasures to find.
A boulder surrounded by smaller rocks No Stone Unturned MISSABLE
As shown above, there are five locations that can result in making this achievement missable because completing the dungeon prevents re-entry. I played with the maps from RPGClassics to ensure that I found every chest in these dungeons in particular.

The other main issue is the hidden items in towns. There are some discussions on the achievement page concerning various maps that don't show all of the hidden items, especially in towns. The RPGClassics maps also don't have every location mapped, such as Gulgan Gulch(Gurgan Valley) which has a hidden path to three chests. Another strategy brought up is the use of the RALibretro achievement editor to see if an area has had all of its chests opened, but that requires leaving Hardcore Mode so I won't go into details on that here.

Back to Achievement Categories

Challenge

All of these achievements are MISSABLE, with the exception of The Gauntlet because they are tied to completing dungeons or boss battles under specific conditions! Prior to attempting any challenge, I highly recommend saving just outside the applicable dungeon. If the achievement doesn't pop upon completing the requirements, reset and try again. You should be safe if you set up the party's Jobs prior to entering the dungeon associated with the challenge.
Make sure you have at least ONE MAGIC KEY from Gysahl(Gisahl) prior to leaving the Floating Continent for the first time (or get four or more to be safe)!

Badge Title Hint/Strategy
Crying Onion Knight We Fear Change Before entering the Sealed Cave(Cave of the Seal), ensure your party is turned back into Onion Knights(Kids), if you ever changed into another job prior to that point. The achievement will be completed if you defeat the Djinn(Jinn) without changing jobs. In my playthrough, I used other jobs so I made sure to change my party back to Onion Knights(Kids) before entering the cave.
Overall, the challenge isn't too difficult to complete with Onion Knights(Kids) if you have been persistent in fighting and gaining levels. The Onion Knight(Kid) job level should be inconsequential to success but it can't hurt to grind if you are concerned.
A warrior fallen face first on the ground Why Are You Even Here?! This challenge is interesting since your entire party is Mini and physical attacks are severely reduced. You must have your first character as a Warrior(Fighter) or other non-magic using class. Ensure your party is set up prior to entering the temple from the world map! Changing it while in the temple but before going Mini and into the statue will not work!
Put all four characters in the back row so that your Warrior can participate by drawing attacks away from your casters without dying outright.
A large red medusa head with a small warrior Protégé of Perseus I used a Warrior in the top party slot and three back rowed White Mages in the other three slots. I used White Mages because I was concerned about supporting with healing. Maybe I was fortunate, but Medusa only physically attacked twice through the whole battle, attempting to cast Break the rest of the time (and never landing the spell). I could just have easily had any party jobs provide healing and status ailment support with items. My back row party members just used Run unless I needed to throw a potion to heal when I did take a physical attack from Medusa. If Medusa did happen to attack one of the White Mages who were running, they probably would have been one-shot from the "defenseless" state that occurs though, so that is a risk you may have to consider and just use healing items and spells instead, even when not needed.
Gutsco getting hit with Blizzaga Chill Out Gutsco(Guzco) has 1400 HP, so it is a good idea to keep track of how much damage you have done so that you can ensure your final hit is with an ice spell. If you have a Blizzara or Blizzaga to spare, give it a cast during the fight to have an idea of how much damage you will do, given your character's stats. If you have been hording South Winds, this is a great opportunity to use them too. Just make sure your high Intelligence characters use the items to maximize damage.
A dragon breathing fire on a warrior and monk Pyro Punching Power Feel free to use your primary jobs through the Molten(Flame) Cave until just before the Salamander fight. Just before the battle, change any mages into jobs that you have defensive equipment for and put them into the back row so that they could guard or provide healing items for support while your primary fighters do the brunt of the damage dealing. If you have room for equipment, perhaps actually getting better weapons and armor could be helpful, but this fight isn't terribly difficult to complete with just two physical attackers. You'll find a Ice Blade here, which will be a big benefit on a Warrior, so you could pass the Salamand Sword from Tower of Owen to a backup Warrior as well. Also, South Winds may be used but they won't deal as much damage with your lower Intelligence party so it is better to save them for a later challenge.
A scholar with a NO symbol over them Illiterate Warriors Before entering Tokkul(Tokkle), make sure you don't have a Scholar in your party.
Honestly, this isn't that bad. If you have been persistent in leveling up your White and Black Mages, your spell damage with Aero and Poison should be enough to override Hein's(Hyne's) barrier. Another strategy is to test your Fire/Blizzard/Thunder spells to see which is functional. Once you find the right one, if you are quick, you can keep casting the spell before Hein(Hyne) shifts the barrier.
Kraken facing off against a knight, ranger, thief, and scholar Seafood Soup It's good to prepare for this one ahead of time by getting your job levels up in the four Fire Crystal jobs. Raw character levels can also be useful. Make sure you have equipment for each of the jobs. A lot of equipment for these jobs are available right after you get them, such as in Argus(Argass) Castle's unlockable rooms and in Hein's(Hyne's) Castle. You will probably still need armor for the Thief and Ranger(Hunter) though so do some shopping before leaving the Floating Continent. Kraken has no elemental weaknesses or defenses, so physical damage is preferable. Scholar is a great candidate to use your spell item consumables for the most damage though it is best to save for later challenges.
A gold knight with purple cape faces off against a ranger, thief, and bard Robin Hood and His Merry Men Only Ranger(Hunter), Thief, and Bard jobs! If you are attempting to get The Honest Approach at the same time, that further limits your available jobs. With the lack of good equipment for the Ranger(Hunter) and Bard, my recommendation would be to do these achievements separately by saving before entering the dungeon, making a rush at getting this one first with thieves as your DPS, then resetting and doing it again to get The Honest Approach. Definitely get armor for Thieves in Amur as well as the Orichalcum dagger and Main Gauche in the Amur Sewers. Let your Bard and Ranger take the back row and provide healing with items. One reason to actually have a Bard is their Cheer ability, which helps to buff the thieves damage output over the course of the battle. So, have the Ranger(Hunter) applying healing, the Bard cheering, and the thieves attacking!
A thief with the NO symbol over them The Honest Approach Before entering Goldor Manor(Mansion), you must not have a Thief in your party. To complete the dungeon, then, you must have at least one magic key! If you only have one key, be sure to only open the door to the top-right room of the first floor of the Manor to progress. The three other locked doors don't have anything anyway but if you use your only key on one of them, you are stuck.
Since Gysahl(Gisahl) is the only place you can buy magic keys and you are landlocked at this point in the game, it behooves you to make sure that you have at least one magic key prior to entering the Cave of Tides(Water Cave).
Garuda, a bird man Or Maybe We Won't This is arguably the hardest challenge of the newly added achievements from the revision because of the preparation required. Before entering Saronia(Salonia) airspace, make a separate save file, just in case. If you have issues with the fight, this gives you opportunity to grind character and job levels elsewhere. I highly recommend your two strongest damage dealing classes and two White Mages. White Mages provided healing while the other two attack or use spells/items. White Mage can support with Aero as well since Garuda is weak to the wind element, but the damage is not nearly as good as keeping your damage dealers healthy. Also unfortunate: there isn't any available armor to resist lightning elemental damage. With 5000 HP and high evasion, character and job levels are going to carry you a long way in this fight.
For character levels, you can make attempts at fighting a Pyralis in the first floor of the Ancient Ruins. They give 1200 XP per character and don't divide so you have a shot at gaining levels quickly if you can encounter and kill one. You can force encounters with Pyralis by saving outside of the Ancient Ruins, hard resetting the game (close and reopen the game), and loading your save. The first encounter inside the Ancient Ruins will always be Pyralis. Another possibility is to farm Raven's(Imp's) Yawns from the Needle Monkeys in and around Saronia(Salonia), an item that casts Aeroga(Aero2). I was not able to get a good manipulation for getting Needle Monkeys to appear but when they do, stealing the Raven's(Imp's) Yawn is the most effective means of obtaining the item from them.
A player character taking a knee with red skin Oops, Forgot My Sunscreen Bahamut's cave is an excellent spot to grind for character and job levels to prepare for this challenge. Character levels will help get the HP needed to tank Mega Flares. Sometimes, you'll get lucky and Bahamut won't use the skill that much. Other times, they'll use it every single round! So, by building characters to around level 50-ish, I was able to survive just fine and take him out quickly. I used dual-wielding Knight and Magic Knight with a White Mage to heal and Black Mage to cast Bio. If your team is getting wiped by Mega Flare, you will just need to get more levels.
I didn't try this, but I believe using the Curtain(Barrier) item will also prevent getting this achievement, since the item has the same effect as Reflect(Wall).
A dark knight character Divided They Fall This is the challenge achievement that took me the longest to complete. The Cave of Shadows(Darkness) is 11 floors deep, full of dividing enemies that will split with any physical attack from a non-Magic Knight weapon. Since Magic Knights are prohibited, using magic/summons are a good alternative. If you don't have characters with magic or summons built up, I suggest grinding to build up the job skills and levels for your characters. Since the Evoker(Conjurer) is unpredictable, I recommend sticking with a White Mage for healing/Aero/Confuse and a Black Mage for dealing damage. The ideal location for grinding is in the first floor of the Cave of Bahamut as the monsters there are low risk with a lot of experience points. Raising levels will increase your cast count for each spell level. It is okay to keep physical combatants as well for tanking damage and providing killing blows that won't cause splitting. I used the Knight and Black Belt(Karateka), but you can change it up based on your primary role for these characters.
Once you feel ready, begin your descent into the Cave of Shadows! I recommend taking this over multiple dives, gathering items from a floor, climbing back out, recovering in the Invincible, and saving your game once you clear a floor. This will allow you to determine your capabilities to go further and make subsequent dives in previously cleared floors quicker.
A key strategy that I used was casting the White Mage's Confuse spell. Confused enemies will not split when hit with a physical attack! Use this to your advantage on encounters with three or four monsters to the greatest effect. Let enemies hit each other or themselves and follow up with a strong physical to take them out without dividing. Concentrate black magic spells on single targets to do more damage to get them within one-shot physical attack range. As you get further, you will get stronger and then be able to complete the dive, fight the boss, and get the achievement.
One other possibility is to simply ignore the items until after completing the challenge, and then dive back in with a party of Magic Knights to clear out the treasure. My luck with running from encounters in this dungeon (and pretty much the entirety of the late game) was non-existent so a Thief could aid with this approach as well.
A giant stands before seven characters The Weight of Water You have a lot of choices with the Water Crystal jobs and plenty of equipment to scavenge from the Saronia(Salonia) region, the Sunken(Undersea) Cave, Temple of Time, Falgabard(Fargabaad), and more. Going on this equipment hunt also gives the opportunity to improve the job levels for the jobs you choose to use for the fight with Hecatoncheir(Hekaton). My lineup was a Dragoon, Viking, Black Belt(Karateka) and Magic Knight. Note that you MUST use a different job for each character! Big issue: Hecatoncheir(Hekaton) is in the Cave of Shadows(Darkness) so you will have to deal with dividing enemies. If you are going for Divided They Fall at the same time, substitute the Magic Knight with another Viking or other class while you slowly gain your job levels and work your way down a little at a time. If you do opt to do Divided They Fall separately from this one (save before and do separate attempts at each achievement), the Genji Gear in the Cave of Shadows(Darkness) is available for the Magic Knight so a trip to Falgabard(Fargabaad) is not required.
A giant Blast Apart the Earth You have to get this achievement before getting Teaching the Masters because that achievement requires the Earth Crystal jobs you'll get from this achievement! The only legal jobs are: White Mage, Black Mage, Red Wizard, Scholar, Geomancer, Evoker(Conjurer), and Bard. I went with Black and White Mages and an Evoker(Conjurer). There is no restriction with the same job on multiple characters for this challenge. I like the idea of this challenge because the Earth Crystal jobs are only magical jobs so it is like showing proof of mastery of magic to the crystal guardian.
The major problem here is that Titan resists all elements! Using the Hyper spell (which can bring out the Titan summon) is quite effective, no matter if it was the White or Black version. If you have the levels and got Leviathan and Bahamut, perhaps those may be even better though Titan has more consistent damage output. For black magic, Bio was fairly effective. The White Mage is most effective at healing the party, of course. Titan (the boss) like to use Flare and physical attacks so keep on healing with the White Mage. It may be wise to have two White Mages to keep up the healing if the party's character and job levels are lower and just have one Black Mage and one Evoker(Conjurer).
Two creatures face off with a devout, magus, and summoner Teaching the Masters After getting the Earth Crystal jobs, set up your party to have all four characters with the three jobs. As the achievement description says, one party member can share a job that another has. I went with two Magus(Warlock) as the shared job. For Doga(Dorga), Bio is very effective. Unei(Unne) can cast Reflect so be sure to heal if any spells get fired back! Summon damage will penetrate Reflect though so have your Summoner unleash their strongest available spells.
A humanoid silhouette glowing green in a swirling void The Gauntlet Since the best jobs in the game are excluded from use in the final dungeons, go back to the Cave of Bahamut to grind character and job levels with the party you want to use in the final stretch. Diving into Eureka is also beneficial to get the best weapons, spells, and armor for your team, on top of the experience you'll earn from the battles. I do NOT recommend grinding in Syrcus(Sylx) Tower because of the Kum Kum(QumQum) packs that will wipe you out if not prepared. By reaching level 65 with all of your characters, you will easily be able to finish this achievement with a well-balanced party. Eureka's weapons really push you toward using Knight with Ragnarok/Excalibur, Magic Knight with Masamune/Chrysanthemum(Kiku), Devout(Shaman) with two Elder(Eldest) staffs, and Magus(Warlock) with Omnirod(Ultimate). This is the party that I completed the game with but feel free to experiment and work with what is best for you. Enjoy the finale!

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Post-Game

     A dragon with green scales          A dragon with yellow scales          A dragon with red scales
Dragon Hunter, Dragon Slayer, Dragon Dominator

Glowing sword icon Glowing shield icon Glowing helmet icon Glowing armor icon Glowing gauntlet icon
...and The Onion Knight Equipment Achievements

This guide is based on the work written in this GameFAQs strategy: The Fully Equipped Onion Knight FAQ by OnionKid/SirBahamut. Make sure you are using an emulator that supports Fast Forward. I use RALibretro or plain RetroArch while in Hardcore mode so that I can toggle fast forward and configure my controls to make things easier.

  1. Beat the game! Seriously. Play through the game and enjoy it first without attempting the Onion Equipment grind. Definitely work on the other achievements listed above as they will set you up for success here as they will make the grind in the Syrcus(Sylx) Tower that much easier.

  2. Setup your party. Since you beat the game and probably got The Gauntlet, you should be just outside the Syrcus(Sylx) Tower when you restart your game. Time to put those Ninja and Sage jobs to work! You can accomplish this grind with two Ninjas and two Sages, or feel free to use three Ninjas if you want to make your climb up the tower just a bit easier. If you do opt to use one Sage, ensure that they have a good spread of high level healing and attack/summon spells. Curaja(Cure4) and Arise(Life2) are a must, Bahamut and Meteor(Meteo) can make some encounters go faster, and Breakga(Brak2) can work on the Dragons. Feel free to mix things up as you wish. However, know that the area of the Tower that we grind in only really needs two Ninjas, so two Sages can make things easier as far as spell distribution goes, especially if your party already has two spell casters set up for the Supreme Warlock and Supreme Shaman achievements.

  3. Climb up to the sixth or seventh floor. The encounters at this location are easy to grind on, since all you'll see are single or a pair of DarkGenerals(D.General), Glasya Labolas(Grashara), or Thor lizards. No Kum Kum(QumQum) here to cast Death/Breakga(Brak2) on you! These floors will have the Yellow or Green Dragon respectively.

  4. Get comfortable! You are about to do a TON of encounters in a row before the first Dragon appears. 128 of them to be exact! So, how can you get comfortable? First, set up your controls for your comfort. You can make it one handed by putting confirm/cancel on the L1/L2 (LB/LT) buttons if you are using a modern controller. If you are using an NES or SNES style controller, you'll need to use two hands. Second, add a shortcut for holding Fast Forward. Third, turn Fast Forward on. Now, your Fast Forward button on your controller can turn it off while you hold it down. This will make the game move quickly through battles while slowing down only when you need to menu or navigate the Tower accurately.

  5. Pace and grind! Walk back and forth and fight battles. As stated before, the first Dragon encounter will take 128 fights to reach. Now that you are comfortable while grinding, feel free to turn on some YouTube/TV/Twitch/etc. while you pace and fight. Your Ninjas will make short work of the enemies you face here by simply holding down the A button. Each fight should only take one round at this point. With Fast Forward on, you should be able to get to your first Dragon in about 5-10 minutes. Make sure to heal with your Sages or your Elixirs as necessary (hold Fast Forward off). With one Ninja holding the Moonring(Full Moon), getting a back attack is not an issue. Do note that pacing left or right on Fast Forward while not paying full attention can result in a party member changing rows. You can try pacing up and down on these floors if you wish or just make sure to occasionally check on the state of your party, which you should do anyway to ensure no one has died.

  6. Fighting Dragons. Your first Dragon has (finally) appeared. Thankfully, this should be a non-issue at this point with your levels, equipment, and job classes. Continue to just attack! You could mix things up here as well by having one of your Sages use Bahamut or Breakga(Brak2). Feel free to slow the battle down here if you'd like. After it is killed, slow down to see the treasure drop. An Onion Equipment achievement will pop as soon as the Gil earned appears, if you got a new piece of equipment.

  7. Continue fighting the Dragons. The second dragon encounter will be in another 64-68 battles. Get comfortable with the grind again, but know that it isn't as far off. After that, yet another dragon will appear in approximately 9 battles, and then the last dragon will arrive in about 6 battles. Feel free to go up to the seventh floor or down to the fifth floor if you want to mix things up. As I understand it though, all three dragons have the same drops, so changing floors is up to you as different dragons do not change your chances of getting Onion equipment.

  8. Reset the game! You completed four dragon fights. The next dragon won't appear for approximately 171 battles! This is because the encounter lookup table holds 256 entries and goes through each battle in the table consecutively. With that knowledge, it is faster to simply reset the game and start over at 128 battles to the next fight. This is also a good chance to take a break! There is no need to do this grind all at once. You'll go crazy! Play a different game and come back later after one or two loops of this grind. If you'd rather save the drops and progress, feel free to climb back down and save outside of the tower. Thankfully, there isn't an achievement to have a Fully Equipped Onion Knight, so saving isn't necessary.

In conclusion, the Onion equipment grind isn't fun, but hopefully this process makes it a little more bearable.

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