FINAL FANTASY X SIDEQUESTS FAQ

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FINAL FANTASY X SIDEQUESTS FAQ
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Version: 0.75
Date: January 25th, 2001
Author: Morelock (Darrel Michaud)
Contact: [email protected]
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LEGAL INFORMATION
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This guide is copyright Darrel Michaud (aka Morelock) 2002. Any unauthorized
distribution can and will result in legal action.

This FAQ may only be found at:
http://gamefaqs.com
http://www.gv-vault.com/
Any webspace owned/controlled by Darrel Michaud (i.e., me)
Any webspace owned/controlled by Christine Bromke (aka CB!)

Do not eMail me about hosting my FAQ on your page, please.

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VERSION HISTORY
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:: 0.75: 02/02/2002 ::

Added the Butterfly catching guide.

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INTRODUCTION
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This guide is to guide you through all the sidequests/mini-games that appear
in Final Fantasy X. I may or may not cover certain things, depending if
there are already in-depth guides covering a certain issue or not, or if I
get begged by the masses. So far I only cover a few things, but more things
are sure to come in the near future.

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PROPER EMAIL ETIQUETTE
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So you want to eMail, me, huh? That's great...! Just make sure you're not
asking a question that I've already answered in my FAQs, or that you're not
sending me an eMail laden with profanity and the like. Using terms referring
to homosexuality as an insult will result in a deletion of the eMail and a
blocking of your address. Other profanity is fine, if used once in a while.
Also, be kind! If you're sending me an eMail, be sure to suck up to me, I
mean be nice to me. I'll answer your eMail a lot quicker :)

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GETTING AROUND
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By going to "Edit," then "Find", you can go directly to the part you want.
For the best results, type in the decimal code for that section, or the
title in all CAPS, choosing to Match the Case.

Ex1: If you wanted to find out about getting 0.00 on the Chocobo Race..
_______________________________________________
|__(e) Find_____________________________________|
| _________________ |
| Find what: |4.10_____________| [Find Next] |
| [Cancel] |
| [ ]Match whole word only |
| [ ]Match case |
| |
|_______________________________________________|

Or you could input:
_______________________________________________
|__(e) Find_____________________________________|
| _________________ |
| Find what: |GETTING 0:0.0____| [Find Next] |
| [Cancel] |
| [ ]Match whole word only |
| [x]Match case |
| |
|_______________________________________________|

You check "Match case" that way no other mention of "getting 0:0.0"
besides the title and table of contents (and the demonstration above)
is "found."

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CONTENTS 'R US
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1.00 NO ENCOUNTERS
1.10 EQUIPMENT DROPS
1.11 GEOSGAENO (BAAJ TEMPLE)
1.12 DEMONOLITHS (OMEGA RUINS)
1.13 GHOSTS (CAVERN OF THE STOLEN FAYTH)
1.20 CUSTOMIZE (PURIFYING SALT)
1.21 DRAGONS (RACE CONQUEST)
1.22 ABADON (COMMON STEAL)
1.23 FALLEN MONK (RARE STEAL)
2.00 LUCA THEATER
2.10 MUSIC SPHERES
2.20 MOVIE SPHERES
3.00. LIGHTNING DODGER
3.10 PREPARING TO DODGE
3.20 TIPS FOR DODGING
3.30 PRIZES
3.31 DODGING
3.32 FAILING TO DODGE
4.00 CHOCOBO TRAINER
4.10 GETTING 0:0.0
4.11 PREPARING FOR BATTLE
4.12 FREEBIE BALLOONS
4.13 THE RACE
5.00 BUTTERFLY CATCHER
5.10 TIPS
5.20 MAPS
5.30 PRIZES

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1.00 : NO ENCOUNTERS
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Q: What is No Encounters?
A: No Encounters is a very useful ability that can be added, or
comes on a piece of armor. The Armor will usually be called
"Peaceful <Insert armor piece>". There is one exception, as you
can get a weapon with No Encounters. No Encounters will let you
roam the free world without a battle (except event battles such
as in Omega Ruins or in the antilon pits in Sanubia Desert).

Q: Why is it so useful?
A: No Encounters greatly reduces time spent on mini-games, and
makes dodging lightning bolts MUCH easier. Going through Omega
Ruins is much easier, too, when you don't have to worry about
getting Ambushed by Great Malboros. Do whatever it takes to get
this ability.. it's well worth all time you put in.

Q: How can I get this great ability?
A: There are a few ways. I'll outline them below.

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1.10 EQUIPMENT DROPS
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Q: What types of Equipment hold the No Encounters ability?
A: Most of the time, the ability will only appear on armor.

Tidus - Peaceful Shield
Yuna - Peaceful Ring
Wakka - Off-Season
Lulu - Peaceful Bangle
Kimahri - Peaceful Armlet
Auron - Peaceful Bracer
Rikku - Peaceful Targe

Q: Will the No Encounter Ability ever come on a weapon?
A: Yes, it is outlined in 1.11

Q: Where can I get Peaceful equipment off of monsters?
A: They are outlined below.

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1.11 GEOSGAENO
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NOTE: If you're going for the secret Aeons first, this method
is for you, because you'll end up killing this overgrown
fish anyway.

Q: Just what is Geosgaeno?
A: Geosgaeno was that ugly looking thing you fought in the
underwater ruins. Y'know, the one that smacked you three
times before Tidus ran (swam) off so he didn't become lunch?
"Payback time."

Q: Where is Geosgaeno?
A: Geosgaeno is in the same place you found him, the underwater
ruins. This will now be referred to as Baaj Temple.

Q: Baaj Temple? That's not on my map! Help!!!
A: On the Airship, enter the search Command. Look for these
coordinates.

X | 11-16
Y | 57-63

And mash on X while staying in that general area. Before long,
you should have a new location on your list, called Baaj
Temple. Go here and save your game. Cross the bridge and dive
into the water. Then, swim towards the green dot on your map to
encounter Geosgaeno. Beating him should yield a No Encounters
weapon.

Boss: Geosgaeno
HP: 32, 767
AP: None
Weaknesses: All Elements
Strategy: Use your head here, you shouldn't have a lot of trouble
unless Wakka or Rikku are horribly weak. Having Rikku's overdrive
helps, if you can shave off two-thirds of his HP with Sunburst
(many mixes will get this for you, so check a Mix List. If you
cannot find it, it's also commonly called Supernova in various
Mix Lists), this battle is a cakewalk. He uses Stone Punch,
which will shatter a party member, and KO punch, which might
hit for instant death. Also, when he sucks up a party member,
do not attack him! Doing so will make him spit out the trapee
and nearly wipe out the whole party. Instead, defend/heal until
the trapped character's turn, and use the trigger "Struggle."
Also, to inflict maximum damage, use an elemental weapon like
Tidus's Brotherhood (Waterstrike). After defeating the fish,
check your newly acquired weapon* and reset if you don't have
the No Encounters ability (I sure hope you saved..).

*Important Note: This weapon will not be called 'peaceful', but
a regular weapon name. For me, it was the Baroque sword for
Tidus, so be very careful you check exactly which one he gave
you. The name of the weapon you get will correspond to the name
of the weapon of that character when it only has 2 or 3 empty
slots, or Strength+ abilities. They are:

Tidus - Baroque Sword
Yuna - Ductile Rod
Wakka - Switch Hitter
Lulu - Variable Mog
Kimahri - Halberd
Auron - Shimmering Blade
Rikku - Devastator

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1.12 DEMONOLITHS (OMEGA RUINS)
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Demonoliths are tough, but if you can capture one and fight it
in the Monster Arena, you can get a No Encounters armor easily.

Monster: Demonolith
HP: 45,000
Weaknesses: None
Strategy: You can hit these things hard, as they have low defense,
but, hitting one will incur its wrath with "Pharaoh’s Curse," a
nasty attack that inflicts multiple status ailments. It's nothing
Esuna can't cure (well, except for Curse), so don't particularly
worry about it. They also have curse-laced physical attacks.

They seem to inflict Poison, Curse, and Blindness.
<If someone could send me all the status ailments they inflict, I
would be grateful.>

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1.13 GHOSTS (CAVERN OF THE STOLEN FAYTH)
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Ghosts have low magic defense, but high physical defense.
Catching one and fighting it over and over will snag you No
Encounters in no time.

Monster: Ghost
HP: 9999
Weaknesses: Varies
Strategy: Flare, Ultima, or Holy. Seriously, this thing is a
joke. It likes to use Doom, which gives the character five
turns to get out of battle. They don't usually last 5 turns
anyway, so ignore it and just cast your magic.

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1.20 CUSTOMIZE (PURIFYING SALT)
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If battle's not your thing, you can always customize armor with
the ability No Encounters with Purifying Salt x30.

Q: How do I get Purifying Salts?
A: Methods are outlined below :)

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1.21 RACE CONQUEST (DRAGONS)
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NOTE: If you're going for ultimate weapons as soon as you get
the airship, this method is for you, as you'll end up
getting 1 out of the 10 special conditions for the Mars
Sigil and get No Encounters in one pop!

You can get 99 purifying salts by capturing four of each four
legged dragon. They are:

Vou'ivre [Mi'hen Highroad]
Lamashtu [Mushroom Rock Road]
Kusariqqu [Thunder Plains]
Mushussu [Bikanel Island]
Nidhogg [Cavern of the Stolen Fayth or Mt. Gagazet]

(Special thanks to CB! for the info)

Capturing all four and talking to the Monster Trainer will
unlock Fafnir and 99 Purifying Salts.

You do not have to _fight_ Fafnir, however, but rather just
unlock him.

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1.22 ABADON (COMMON STEAL)
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NOTE: This will probably be the most time consuming way,
especially if you're going to try and actually beat the
Abadon after pocketing your Purifying Salts.

You can pick up a common steal of purifying salts from an Abadon,
which is a special battle once you Area Conquest Inside Sin.
Monsters required are:

Exoray
Behemoth King
Barbatos
Gemini A*
Gemini B*
(You need to capture both colors)
Adamantoise*
Wraith*
Great Marlboro*
Demonolith*

The starred ones can be captured at Omega Ruins and still count
towards your Inside Sin total. You might want to capture Great
Marlboros Inside Sin, though, as they ambush and kill you with
a fury of status ailments inside Omega Ruins.

Also, Barbatos can only be captured in the area past where you
fight Seymour. It is called the Sea of Sorrow.

Boss: Abadon
HP: 380000
Strategy: Any action on this thing will incur Pharaoh’s Curse,
so it's obvious these things have roots with Demonoliths.
Steal to get your purifying salts and then try and actually
beat this thing or just die... you don't have to beat it, and
dying in Monster Arena battles doesn't result in a Game Over.

(CB gets props here too :P)

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1.23 FALLEN MONKS (RARE STEAL)
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Fallen Monks in Zanarkand Dome (both kinds) will give you a
rare steal of 1 Purifying Salt. In order to get Rare Steals 100%
of the time, grab 30 pendulums. You can get 99 of these by
bribing Ultima Weapons for 1.4 million gil, or 30 of them by
getting 4 chests in the chocobo race in Remiem temple. For now,
refer to Kotetsu's guide on Chocobo Racing for info on Remiem
temple.

Now that you have 30 pendulums, make a customized armor for
someone who can steal with the Master Thief ability to get a
Buccaneer. Steal from 30 Fallen Monks (it doesn't matter if they
have the flamethrower or the bayonet) and then dispatch them.
This should take you upwards to an hour or two.

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Now, that should get your No Encounters! Be proud and walk around without
getting into any random battles :)

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2.00 LUCA THEATER
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Q: What is the Luca Theater?
A: The Luca Theater is possibly one of the coolest creations in
any FF games. For a pretty penny (erm, Gil), you can by
"Spheres" of movies you've already watched, or music you've
already listened to.

Q: Where is Luca Theater?
A: Luca, silly. Here's how to get there: From the Stadium, go south
one screen. In the next screen, go straight and then head north
along the narrow path. Enter the building. The man on the left
sells music spheres, the man on the right sells movie spheres.

Q: How many are there?
A: There are 71 Music Spheres, and 50 Movie Spheres.

Q: How do I listen/watch?
A: Go to the Reception Desk and talk to the lady, she'll ask you if
you want to go to the main hall.

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2.10 MUSIC SPHERES
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#M01: Zanarkand
#M02: Prelude
#M03: Tidus's Theme
#M04: Run!!
#M05: Creep
#M06: Battle Theme
#M07: Enemy Attack
#M08: Game Over
#M09: Out Of The Frying Pan
#M10: Victory Fanfare
#M11: Leap In The Dark
#M12: Underwater Ruins
#M13: The Blitzers
#M14: Wandering
#M15: Besaid
#M16: Spira Unplugged
#M17: Phantoms
#M18: The Trials
#M19: The Summoning
#M20: Braska's Daughter
#M21: Yuna's Theme
#M22: Good Night
#M23: Decision On The Dock
#M24: Movement In Green
#M25: A Fleeting Dream
#M26: Calm Before The Storm
#M27: Face Off
#M28: Grand Maester Mika
#M29: Luca
#M30: The Splendid Performance
#M31: Auron's Theme
#M32: Blitz Off!
#M33: Mi'hen Highroad
#M34: Chocobo Jam
#M35: The Travel Agency
#M36: Seymour's Theme
#M37: Moment of Truth
#M38: Djose Temple
#M39: Ridess The Shoopuf?
#M40: Rikku's Theme
#M41: Oui Are Al Bhed
#M42: Guadosalam
#M43: Thunder Plains
#M44: Jecht's Theme
#M45: The Burning Sands
#M46: The Wedding
#M47: Assault
#M48: Tragedy
#M49: Believe
#M50: Servants of the Mountain
#M51: Macalania Woods
#M52: Via Purifico
#M53: Bravely Forward
#M54: The Unsent Laugh
#M55: Seymour's Ambition
#M56: Illusion
#M57: Yuna's Decision
#M58: Nostalgia
#M59: Peril
#M60: Launch
#M61: Challenge
#M62: Beyond The Darkness
#M63: The Void
#M64: The Truth Revealed
#M65: Pursuit
#M66: Gloom
#M67: Patricide
#M68: The Temple Prayers
#M69: Hum Of The Fayth*
#M70: Lulu's Theme*
#M71: Wakka's Theme*

*These 3 spheres can only be obtained after buying the first 68 and
talking to the vendor again.

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2.20 MOVIE SPHERES
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#01: Zanarkand
-Opening CG of the game where Sin attacks Zanarkand
#02: We Called It "Sin"
-Auron motions toward Sin and Tidus sees it for the first time
#03: Sinspawn
-Hundreds of tiny Sinspawn flying of the tentacled sinspawn monster
#04: This Is It!
-Tidus and Auron get sucked into Sin!
#05: Blitzball!
-Tidus wows the Aurochs with his moves
#06: A Summoner is Born
-Yuna Steps out the Chamber of the Fayth
#07: Lulu's Contempt
-Lulu speaking to Wakka about Tidus
#08: Kimahri's Challenge
-Kimahri flies towards Tidus and challenges him
#09: Fear On The Sea
-The SS Liki gets tossed around by Sin
#10: Sin Arises
-Sin comes up from underwater
#11: Sin's Threat
-Sin moves alongside the SS Liki
#12: Futile Resistance
-The SS Liki spears Sin only to get toss around some more
#13: Failure
-Sin tosses around the SS Liki
#14: Kilika Dusk
-Kilika gets attacked by a monstrous wave
#15: The Dance
-Yuna sends the fallen of Kilika
#16: Luca Harbor
-A view of Luca
#17: Let The Games Begin!
-The sphere pool fills up
#18: The Legend Lives
-Auron stands down a Vou'ivre
#19: The Dark Aeon
-Anima exterminates the fiends in Luca
#20: No Better Plan
-Sin battles the Crusaders and Al Bhed at Mushroom Rock
#21: Judgement
-Sin atomizes the forces with an attack
#22: Ex Machina
-Sin battles an Al Bhed machina.. and wins
#23: Sin's Wake
-Sin turns and swims away
#24: Reunion
-Rikku undresses
#25: Metropolis
-Shot of Zanarkand from Seymour's mansion
#26: Otherworld
-Shot of the farplane
#27: Sin Sleeps
-Sin sleeping underwater
#28: Homecoming
-Shot of Home being attacked
#29: Dry Dock
-The airship powering up
#30: Nayto Du Ku!
-Translation: Ready To Go!.. Airship taking off
#31: Leaving Home
-Destruction of Home
#32: The Gloy Of Yevon
-The airship races toward Bevelle as Seymour and Yuna walk the aisle
#33: The Red Carpet
-Tidus and Company crashes a wedding and defies physics
#34: False Vows
-Yuna's first kiss
#35: Believe
-Yuna flying
#36: The Spring
-Yuna's second kiss
#37: The Summit
-View of the fayth at Mt. Gagazet
#38: The Last Chapter
-View of Zanarkand Ruins
#39: Sinrise
-Sin showing up at Zanarkand Ruins
#40: Departure
-Sin leaving Zanarkand Ruins, airship arriving
#41: The Approach
-The airship focusing on Sin
#42: Terra Graviton
-Sin doing an attack
#43: Gravity Sucks
-Sin messing with the universe
#44: Heaven's Fall
-Time stops... and starts again
#45: Vena!
-Translation: Fire!... The airship takes off Sin's fin
#46: Machina Redux
-The airship takes off Sin's other fin
#47: Sinfall
-Sin crashes into Bevelle
#48: Evenfall
-Sin transforms into Overdrive Sin
#49: Face Off
-Overdrive Sin stares you down
#50: Breaking Through
-The airship gets sucked into Sin

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3.00 LIGHTNING DODGER
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Q: What is Lightning Dodger?
A: Lightning Dodger is one of the banes of my existence. The other
is Hyper Dodger Chocobo, but we'll get to that later. In the
Thunder Plains, lightning strikes continuously at you, unless
you're near a lightning tower.

Q: How do I dodge Lightning?
A: Periodically the screen will flash quickly. Once this happens,
hitting X will cause Tidus to jump back a few steps to dodge
the bolt.

Q: Help! Why doesn't it work whenever I use my turbo controller!?!?
A: Square thought of that, silly. Mashing X (or auto-fire) will get
you nowhere. You'll have to do it the old way, chap.

Q: How long should this take me?
A: Anywhere from 15 minutes (if you're lucky) to 10 hours or more
(if you're unlucky).

Q: Prizes?
A: Outside of the Travel Agency is a treasure chest, depending on
how many times you've dodged in a row or been hit, you'll get
different prizes.

Q: Why am I doing this?
A: Dodging 200 consecutively will nab you the Venus Sigil, which
will unlock the power of Lulu's Onion Knight. Trust me, It's
worth it.

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3.10 PREPARING TO DODGE
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First off, you should have the No Encounters ability. If you do
have a piece of equipment with it, put it on! This will save you
hours while dodging, since lightning can strike you coming right
out of battle and mess you up.

Secondly, pick the right spot to dodge. The perfect place is to
go down the hill north of the Travel Agency. You'll know it's the
right spot if lightning strikes every 3-8 seconds. This place is
ideal for getting it quickly.

Remember that leaving the screen will cause the count to reset.
So make sure you have a lot of free time prior to attempting this.

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3.20 TIPS FOR DODGING
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1] Watch the Screen, not Tidus. If you watch the screen for the
flash, you'll be more alert.

2] Turn off the lights in your room. This is so you can see the
flash better.

3] Leave the sound on. The sound will keep you awake.

4] Dodge about 50 More bolts or 3 minutes after you feel you've
reached 200. This is insurance against actually only have 199,
going to collect your Venus Sigil, and it not being there.

5] Rhythm is your enemy. When you start anticipating when the bolt
will hit, you're gonna mess up and have to start over again.

6] Here are some methods for dodging:

A: The all or nothing approach. Find the right spot and just dodge
for twenty minutes or until you count until 200 without pausing.
Some people can't stand to pause for a few minutes. This is good
for people who can't be bothered to stop and want to get it over
with.

B: The time+pause approach. This is where you dodge for a certain
amount of time, pause, and repeat. An ideal total time is 20
minutes, as you should have more than enough by then. Personally,
this worked for me. I did:

5 minutes
3 minutes
3 minutes
3 minutes
3 minutes
3 minutes

And ended up with 246 bolts dodged.

This works for people who do crack under pressure of doing more
than 20 at any given time.

C: The count+pause approach. Find the right spot, and dodge about
50, pause, and repeat until 200. It's not a good idea to do this
if you can't dodge around 50 every time without fail. If you can,
this will be pretty quick.

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3.30 PRIZES
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Depending on your record of consecutive dodges, or how many
times you've gotten hit, you can get prizes from the treasure
chest outside of the Agency.

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3.31 PRIZES FOR DODGING
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TIMES PRIZE
5 X-Potion x2
10 Mega-Potion x2
20 MP Sphere x2
50 Strength Sphere x3
100 HP Sphere x3
150 Megalixir x4
200 Venus Sigil

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3.32 PRIZES FOR UNDODGING (THAT A WORD?)
-------------------------------------------------------------

TIMES PRIZE
5 X-Potion x2
10 Mega-Potion x2

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4.00 CHOCOBO TRAINER
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Q: What is Chocobo Trainer?
A: In the Calm Lands, you can find a chocobo trainer who will give
you the option to train a chocobo to ride. Passing the first
test will let you ride, passing the next two tests will let your
race her. Beating her in the race will open up the path for
Tidus's Caladbolg, and getting a time of 0:0.0* will snag you
the Sun Sigil to pwoer the weapon. I'll outline how to get the
Sigil for now.

*NOTE* You need a time better than 0:0.0 (that is, the math
works out so you have a better time).

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4.10 GETTING 0:0.0
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This section is put together in order to help you get a time of
0:0.0 and the Sun Sigil.

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4.11 PREPARING FOR BATTLE
-------------------------------------------------------------

This is a general section of things you should know before
racing.

1] Realize that this is not based solely on luck. People who
are saying it's pure luck are either lying to themselves
because they can't get it, or were one of the few who
really got it on luck their first time through. Trust
me, luck is not getting it 5 times in an hour and a half.
Luck is getting it on the first time and then never
being able to get it again.

2] Realize that this does require SOME luck. If the balloons
aren't in a good place, you're kinda screwed. It's not
as bad as it sounds, though, so don't fret.

3] Never, EVER, throw a fit over this sidequest. You'll
not be able to think, and at worst, you'll break a
controller or PS2 and end up costing you from 30 to
300 bucks. Not worth it, really. You'll want to be calm
the whole time through. The first time I got 0:0.0 I was
pretty surprised, that came after 45 minutes of studying
patterns and developing my way of doing it.

4] Use the D-Pad, and not the Analog stick. This, and the Jecht
Shot Challenge, is really the only parts of the game where
it helps out. Also, never hold the direction, but slightly
tap.

5] There are invisible boundaries on the track. These are your
enemy, as bumping into one will cause you to slightly head
in the other direction, and probably hit those one or three
birds you were trying to avoid and cause you to get a time
of 10.0 instead of 00.0. If this happens, it's best to refer
to Rule number 3. It's a good idea to do a few run throughs
to see your boundaries.

6] Getting hit by a bird not only adds 3 seconds to your overall
time, but costs you approximately 1.8 seconds of recovery
time. Never sacrifice a bird hit for a balloon, the balloon
isn't worth it as you'll lose 1.8 seconds. Two balloons ARE
though, as you'll gain .2 seconds.

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4.12 FREEBIE BALLOONS
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There are anywhere from 0-9 freebie balloons in every race.
These are balloons you can pick up without worrying about
birds.

*NOTE* I tend to break up the actual race into A few parts.
The straightaway, the first turn, the first stretch,
the second turn, the second stretch, and the ending.

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First set of Freebie Balloons
Amount: Five (5)
Location: Straightaway
Importance: Very

When you first start, you'll be on what I call the straight-
away. You should see 3-5 balloons. If you can't reasonably get
3 of the first five on the straightaway, go grab a beer or
take a piss, you won't be getting a Sun Sigil this run. Yeah,
this is where the "SOME luck" comes into play.

TIPS: Try not to move as much as possible. Don't go after the
first balloon if you have to swerve to the left to get
it, you'll only screw yourself over. If you go after
the second balloon, the trainer will swerve for it and
screw herself over. Now just grab the other three and
you're good to go.
-------------------------------------------------------------

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Second Set of Freebie Balloons
Amount: One to Two (1-2)
Location: First turn
Importance: Minimal

After the straightaway, there's the first turn, if you dig
in a hard turn, and then immediately tap left a time or two,
you have a shot at getting these balloons. No tips for this
section, but don't worry if you don't get them, these are
largely based on luck, of minimal importance, and usually do
not affect the outcome. If you really want this set of one
or two, you'll have to get used to the turn.
-------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------
Third Set of Freebie Balloons
Amount: One to Four (1-4)
Location: Second turn, beginning of Second Stretch
Importance: Pretty Important

After the second set of heat seeking birds that come your way,
look for a shadow cast by the mountain on the right side.
Head towards there, as there is a major turn (camera swing)
coming up soon. You should be able to snag one balloon in the
turn if you know the boundaries and how to adjust to the turn.
You also may be able to grab a few in your path right at the
beginning of the second stretch.
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4.13 THE RACE
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Here's how you actually race! If you've read the first two
sections, it's important to keep them in mind while racing.

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Part 1: Straightaway/first turn.

Follow the tips I outlined in Section 2 and you should be set
to go. This is probably the most important Area of the whole
ce, as these first 5 balloons are very important. As for the
turn, you'll want to get inside, but hit left early so you
don't go too far to the right and have no chance of the
second set of freebie balloons.
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Part 2: First Stretch

Your goal here is DO NOT GET HIT! You'll want to bring your
total of balloons to around 7, since it's a nice number, but
DO NOT GET HIT!

After the first big turn, try and get a bit behind to trainer
for the first few birds. After she gets smacked once or twice,
swing around to the right of her and jump out in front. Stay
near the right side of the stretch, as you won't get many
birds coming your way.. Dodge to the right when you need to,
making sure to pick up anywhere from two to four balloons.
At around 25 seconds, you should see a balloon in the shadow
of a mountain (or just a huge shadow), head for a good bit
behind it and prepare for the next turn.
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Part 3: Second Turn/Second Stretch

Your goal here is DO NOT GET HIT! Well, it's less of that
than in the first stretch, but DO NOT GET HIT! If you can
manage not to get hit, you can scrounge by with 12 balloons,
which, if you're lucky, will be nothing to get. Getting hit
once is okay, but be sure to collect around 14 balloons.

After the major camera swing/turn, try and quickly align
yourself for a balloon or two. If you're lucky, there will b
a few more close up before you have to worry about birds. Stay
in the middle of the path until you see birds. Once you see
birds coming after you, wait until you're comfortable, and then
start heading to the left. A few quick taps will let you dodge
these homing pigeons most of the time. Try and grab a few more
and the camera will start to zoom in. You are now at the ending.
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Part 4: Ending

Keep going straight until you see a bird fly out from the left.
IMMEDIATELY head to the left, and try to dodge 3 of these birds.
Near the finish line, you'll see a little dip to the left
before you cross. Go down there, as it's safe from those evil birds.
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Part 5: Trying again.

If you don't manage to get 0.00, sigh, refer to Rule number 3,
and then try over. Remember that people have been doing this
for 3+ hours, 30-90 minutes is lucky. Enjoy :)
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5.00 BUTTERFLY CATCHER
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Q: What is Butterfly Catcher?
A: In Macalania - North and Macalnia - Central, if you touch
the multi-colored butterfly, a timer starts. Seven blue
butterflies and a multitude of red ones pop up. You must catch
all seven blue butterflies without touching any red ones
in order to get a prize.

Q: Why am I doing this?
A: If you successfully complete both of the butterfly mini-games
after you get the airship, you get the Saturn Sigil, which
is used to power-up Kimahri's Spirit Lance.

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5.10 TIPS
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1] Run through a few times to see where the blue butterflies
are and where the red ones hang around.

2] Avoiding the red ones is more important than getting the
blue ones, since, if you touch a red one, you won't get a
prize.

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5.20 MAPS
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To view a map of the forest, copy and paste this URL:

http://home.san.rr.com/circe/ultimania_butterfly.html

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5.30 PRIZES
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There are 3 sets of prizes:

1] First time through the Woods. You'll have 40 seconds, and
not many red butterflies.

PRIZES: MP Sphere x1, Ether x1

2] After defeating Spherimorph, before getting airship. You'll
have 30 seconds, same amount of reds.

PRIZES: Megalixer x2, Elixer x2

3] After obtaining Airship. You'll have 30 seconds, and an
infestation of reds to worry about.

PRIZES: Teleport Sphere x1, Saturn Sigil

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THANKS
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Special thanks to:

SQUARESOFT (http://playonline.com)
For making a great game and giving out good info on the game's
sidequests

SONY (http://sony.com)
For making a great system

CEEBS (http://home.san.rr.com/circe/)
For making great guides and helping me along the way.
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