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Fullmetal Alchemist and the Broken Angel
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by: glennkcl
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Table of Contents
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1. Version History
2. Introduction
3. Essential Tips
4. Boss S-Rank Guide
5. Contact
6. Thanks/Credits
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1. Version History
=======================
02/16/05 Version 1.0: (Complete) I started writing it a while ago, but
was too lazy to upload it on to GameFaqs.com. I
simply added to it over time, until it has become
what you see before you today. While I can't
guarantee that I'll be returning to it to add new
content (gots me a job...), I welcome feedback
nonetheless.
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2. Introduction
====================
The purpose of this guide is to help you get S-Rank on all the bosses in this
game. It is NOT an end-all-be-all strategy that will work for every player; it
is simply my own advice and thoughts gained from my own experience with the
game. By the way, getting S-Rank on the bosses don't give you anything extra
other than the satisfaction of having done it. =)
It is important to note that getting S-Rank on all the bosses the first time
thru is nearly impossible. I don't doubt that it can be done, but unless you've
devoted some time to some SERIOUS leveling up and items acquisition, don't
count on defeating some of the later bosses during your first go around.
S-Ranking on all the bosses is a feat in and of itself, but not all of them are
as difficult as you would think. Getting S-Rank on some bosses, like the Giant
Crab, isn't much of a stretch from beating him regularly. However, some battles
really push you to play as perfect a match as you can against these bosses and
you'll barely scrape by above the requirements. S-Rank requires you to score at
least 9 points on each boss which is based on how fast you can kill the boss
and the highest combo string you can connect with. Refer to the charts to see
how you're scored for each boss. I have included a target goal for you to shoot
for, which is IMHO the easiest way to get S-Rank. Time is in seconds.
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3. Essential Tips
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While there are unique strategies to each boss, some fundamentals never change.
- The dodge button can be your best friend.
- Don't forget about the rockblocker. It's particularly useful for bosses whose
primary attacks are fireball volleys.
- Make it a point to save your bonus points for subsequent playthroughs. Your
alchemy stat is the one that goes up the fastest, and your vitality stat tops
out at 200, so think about the type of player you want to be and adjust
accordingly. Speaking of subsequent playthroughs, don't forget to save your
items as well (ahem... reloaders...)
- Al is a much better shot than you are. When you put him in a mountable weapon,
he almost never misses his target. The con of him using a mountable weapon,
however, is that he doesn't do as much damage as you do.
- Elements for weapons are plentiful in the game. Don't forget to add elements
to your weapons for extra damage on bosses.
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4. Boss S-Rank Guide
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Military Man
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points | +5 | +4 | +3 | +2 | +1 | 0
combo | 50 | 30 | 20 | 30 | 5 | 4
time | 30 | 45 | 60 | 75 | 75+ |
Suggested Target: 30 hits 30 sec.
Put Al in a gatling gun and let him run up a few hits. He'll most likely miss a
few times, and since there's only 30 shots in this turret, you'll have to
continue the combo on one of the enemies before he finishes. Concentrate on the
Military Man in order to achieve the time.
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Genz 1
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points | +5 | +4 | +3 | +2 | +1 | 0
combo | 12 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 2
time | 45 | 60 | 75 | 90 | 90+ |
Suggested Target: 9 hits 45 sec.
This is a little trickier. Transmute traps and lure Genz onto one. This will
prevent him from jumping around and escaping your combo. Allow Al do a 3 hit
combo (note: Al cannot have a lance equipped) and follow up with Ed's lance
combo. While you perform your combo, Al *should* be close enough to Genz to
attack again, giving you at least 9 hits if everything goes well. This one will
get frustrating and will probably require a few resets.
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Giant Lobster
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points | +5 | +4 | +3 | +2 | +1 | 0
combo | 100 | 50 | 20 | 10 | 5 | 4
time | 60 | 90 | 120 | 150 | 150+ |
Suggested Target: 50 hits 60 sec.
Before you go into battle, equip a wind dagger from the area right before it
with the elevator and save point. Create stonespikes in his face the first
chance you get. While the lobster is flipped over, combo with the dagger until
you reach your target. You should reach 50 hits right before the lobster flips
itself over. After you reach your target combo, transmute some hand grenades
from a steel drum in the area, stonespike his face to flip him over, and bomb
the hell out of him.
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Masked Chimera
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points | +5 | +4 | +3 | +2 | +1 | 0
combo | 60 | 40 | 20 | 10 | 5 | 4
time | 120 | 180 | 240 | 360 | 360+ |
Suggested Target: 40 hits 120 sec.
You should begin the battle by transmuting the two benches in the center of the
lower level into crossbows. After you do that, quickly run back up the steps to
the upper balcony and transmute a cannon from one of the statues. Bring the
chimera to the floor with the cannon and quickly run back down with Al to engage
it. Put Al in one of the crossbows while you mount the other. With both of you
taking shots at the Masked Chimera, you'll be able to reach your target combo
fairly quickly. Finish it quickly when its mask is off as you will maximize the
damage you inflict. If he jumps back up to the chandalier, go back up to the
upper balcony and reload the cannons to repeat the process.
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Alchemy Brothers 1
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points | +5 | +4 | +3 | +2 | +1 | 0
combo | 90 | 45 | 30 | 20 | 10 | 9
time | 60 | 90 | 120 | 180 | 180+ |
Suggested Target: 90 hits 90 sec.
Save time during this boss fight by transmuting all the objects into turret
weapons during the pre-battle with the purple hooded enemies. They'll remain as
weapons when your fight with the brothers begin, and you won't have to run
around transmuting something before you can mount it. When your battle starts,
put Al in the closest gatling gun while you run and activate one of the suction
devices. While Al attacks the group, hop into the closest crossbow and target
the same group and you should get the target combo in no time. Use this strategy
again with the other suction device and you should be able to get rid of Gelb
and Rot fairly quickly. Finish off the Blau with a quick combination of turret
weapons and hand to hand combat. This is another boss battle that may take a few
reloads in order to get the target combo. And don't forget to pick up the items
dropped by the first two brothers you defeat.
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Alchemy Brothers 2
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points | +5 | +4 | +3 | +2 | +1 | 0
combo | 160 | 80 | 40 | 20 | 10 | 9
time | 60 | 90 | 120 | 180 | 180+ |
Suggested Target: 80 hits 60 sec.
You can use the same strategy as the first time you fought the three brothers,
only now it might be a little more difficult to get the combo since there are
now five living armors getting in the way of your shots. If you happen to have
a Wind Dagger, you could get the combo by attacking Blau while Al concentrates
his fire in the group that has been trapped with the suction device. Try not
to let the brother you defeated LAST in the previous encounter be the last
brother you defeat this time. He will be the only remaining brother who has
yet to drop an item for you.
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Combat Chimera
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points | +5 | +4 | +3 | +2 | +1 | 0
combo | 50 | 20 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 4
time | 60 | 120 | 180 | 300 | 300+ |
Suggested Target: 20 hits 60 sec.
Bringing a flamethrower into this battle is an absolute necessity for getting
S-Rank. The only warning, however, is that you *should NOT* use up the flame-
thrower completely during this fight. Since this is a back-to-back boss fight
with Genz 2 squaring off against you during the next round, you'll need to keep
a little gas leftover in the flamethrower to get S-Rank on that fight as well.
This is why our target combo is 20 hits instead of 50 hits. Begin by running
right up to the Combat Chimera and getting your 20 hits right off the bat. Try
to get to him before he sends his first volley of fireballs your way. Being
exact isn't important as long as you get at least 20 hits before you use up
half your flamethrower. After that, run away as he lobs his fireballs at you,
and transmute two cannons from one corner of the map when you get a chance. This
will be your insurance. When the Combat Chimera ejects those shells from his
body, your goal is to transmute THREE shells into bombs and get them into his
mouth. Do NOT transmute the flamethrower and use that as one of your bombs.
Getting three bombs into his mouth during one pass requires a combination of
both luck and skill. Three bombs should kill or nearly kill him after they go
off inside him. If he's not dead, mount one of the cannons and finish him off
that way. You may need to reset a few times to get this one right.
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Genz 2
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points | +5 | +4 | +3 | +2 | +1 | 0
combo | 22 | 15 | 10 | 7 | 4 | 3
time | 150 | 210 | 300 | 420 | 420+ |
Suggested Target: 22 hits 210 sec.
22 hits on THIS guy!?!? Now that you're bringing the flamethrower into this
fight, getting your target combo is now infinitely easier than if you had to
fight him with anything else. Begin by transmuting a dummy from one of the
objects in the garden. While Genz is distracted with the dummy, find the
platform that has a statue for another dummy and create one more dummy on the
platform. Genz will have destroyed the first dummy and will now be gunning for
the 2nd one. Genz will usually not run up to the platform but instead run into
the bushes below in an attempt to reach the dummy. While his attention is
focused this way, use the rest of the flamethrower on him to hit your target
combo. After that, defeat him as quickly as you can using the cannons. Fire,
reload, repeat.
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Flying Chimera
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points | +5 | +4 | +3 | +2 | +1 | 0
combo | 120 | 80 | 40 | 20 | 10 | 9
time | 120 | 180 | 300 | 420 | 420+ |
Suggested Target: 80 hits 120 sec.
Getting S-Rank on this boss is pretty easy. As soon as the fight begins,
transmute a lv 2 cannon from one of the objects in front of you and put Al in
it. The Flying Chimera will begin his attack with a barrage of fireballs. As he
hovers to do this, Al should be able to shoot him down pretty easily. Once he's
down, you have two options of hitting your target combo. Transmute a gatling gun
from a nearby object and make sure you connect with EVERY BULLET to reach the 80
hit combo target. Finish him of as quickly as you can afterwards. Alternatively,
if you think you'll need more time to defeat it, make sure you bring a hammer
into this fight. When the Flying Chimera drops, do not use the gatling gun and
instead run up to it with your hammer and get a 120 hit combo that way. Getting
120 hits will give you an extra minute to defeat him to reach your target goal,
which should be plenty of time.
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Water Chimera
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points | +5 | +4 | +3 | +2 | +1 | 0
combo | 120 | 30 | 20 | 10 | 5 | 4
time | 120 | 180 | 300 | 420 | 420+ |
Suggested Target: 30 hits 120 sec.
Bring in a Wind Dagger for this fight. Put Al in a steamroller to prevent the
smaller chimeras from getting you. Find the cannon and use it on the Water
Chimera to stun it. As it is stunned, use the Wind Dagger over and over again to
get the 30 hit combo. After you get your target combo, defeat the Chimera with
whichever weapon that works fastest for you.
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Genz 3
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points | +5 | +4 | +3 | +2 | +1 | 0
combo | 40 | 25 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 4
time | 180 | 240 | 300 | 420 | 420+ |
Suggested Target: 40 hits 240 sec.
This is probably the hardest battle on which to get S-Rank. You'll need to bring
a flamethrower into the battle for the target combo, and have at least (AT
LEAST) 2 frenzy potions in your inventory. It was difficult for me to do it with
6 frenzy potions (which you'll only be able to get by saving them during
additional play thrus), so you're really giving yourself a challenge if you want
to get S-Rank on Genz 3 your first time through.
Before you begin the battle; that is, before you even go through the doors into
the Castle Foyer, try to activate a frenzy from the enemies that appear in the
Castle Square. The easiest way is to transmute a Wind Dagger and use it on those
enemies. As soon as you activate your frenzy, heal Al to full health with
Elixirs and do NOT save your game as you head straight into the Castle Foyer. If
you enter the save spot, you'll regain all your health, but you'll lose your
frenzy. Hopefully you saved before this fight anyway.
The reason you healed Al to full health is because you're going to use the
flamethrower on him to get your 40 hit combo. Turn to face Al as soon as this
fight starts (and before Al walks out of your way) and get your target combo off
of Al (poor Al...). Once you reach your target combo, heal Al again and use your
first frenzy on Genz. Use your frenzy potions in your inventory to reactivate
your frenzy specials and continue to frenzy Genz until you run out. You'll want
to be careful not to be too hasty during this fight and be sure Genz is within
range of a frenzy attack because he is prone to jump around the room,
occasionally escaping your frenzy attack.
As soon as your frenzy potions run out, transmute the statues near the door into
cannons and attack until you run out of ammo. Reload, attack, and repeat until
you get another frenzy attack. Make your frenzy attack count, and if he's not
dead by now, repeat your work on the cannon until he is. Your time is 4 minutes,
and you can't waste a second during this fight. It is also important to note
that you probably won't have enough reloaders or frenzy potions during your
first playthrough, so save them for your second time thru the game.
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Chimera Bosses x3
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points | +5 | +4 | +3 | +2 | +1 | 0
combo | 140 | 80 | 40 | 20 | 10 | 9
time | 240 | 300 | 420 | 540 | 540+ |
Suggested Target: 80 hits 240 sec.
With all the large weapons you can transmute in this stage, it shouldn't be too
difficult to get your target combo. The gatling gun has an 80 round clip, so
making all your shots count on any one of the three chimeras will already give
you your target combo. If you're having trouble and do miss occasionally, put Al
in a crossbow while you man the gatling gun and stack your combo hits that way.
The most important strategy here is ALWAYS KEEP MOVING. Before you begin, use an
AGL-Caps on Ed so he can escape the volley of fireballs quicker. In my opinion,
the Water Chimera is the easiest to kill first because unlike the Flying
Chimera, he's a stationary target when he appears and unlike the Ground Chimera,
his defense isn't as high. Hop into the cannon closest to where the Water
Chimera appears, and let loose on him. Once he's stunned, you can either go up
behind him and wail away with your sword, or reload the cannon and continue your
attack.
The next boss I attack is the Flying Chimera. Again, since this boss has a much
lower defense than the Ground Chimera, he is more susceptible to attacks and
therefore will die much faster than the Ground Chimera. Again, reload the
cannons and wait for an opportunity to get off a clean shot. Once you hit him
with the cannon, he should fall from the sky, stunned, and you will get a chance
to reload and hit him some more or go up to him and attack him until he falls.
Now that you don't have to watch out for raining fireballs or flying water
crystals, continue to reload the cannon and attack Mr. Ground until either you
run out of reloaders or until he stops to eject his shells. If you do see him
eject his shells, quickly run towards the shells nearest to his mouth, transmute
one or two, and push them into the path of his vacuum attack. Like the first
time you fought him, four bombs should do the trick, but with the help of the
cannon this time, you might be able to kill him the first time you see him eject
those shells.
Of course, while you're fighting these bosses, remember that improvisation is
oftentimes a necessary skill to have. You might come into this boss fight with a
battle strategy and a specific order in which to kill the chimeras, but don't
miss opportunities to hit each one as they present themselves. In other words,
if you're near some shells before you see the Ground Chimera do his vacuum
attack, transmute a bomb! If the Flying Chimera pauses for you to hit him with
the cannon, hit him! Put these bosses out of their misery for good.
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Ultimate Chimera and Camilla
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points | +5 | +4 | +3 | +2 | +1 | 0
combo | 80 | 40 | 30 | 20 | 10 | 9
time | 180 | 360 | 480 | 600 | 600+ |
Suggested Target: 40 hits 180 sec.
This is another battle where you'll have no time to waste. Getting the 40 hit
target combo isn't difficult, but defeating Camilla in the target time can be
quite a challenge. There is an item in the area that can be transmuted into a
dagger, and as usual you'll want to put a Wind Element on it. Use a Magic-Caps
on Ed as well.
Attack the Ultimate Chimera until you reach 40 hits (or, if you're feeling
ambitious and/or lucky, go all the way to 80). You'll want to get your target
combo off the Ultimate Chimera as soon as you can, because its not like Camilla
stands around the stage and hums a tune while you do it. Finish off the Ultimate
Chimera using one of the cannons in the area so you don't have to deal with its
attacks while you focus on Camilla.
Beating Camilla can be quick and relatively painless if you find the crossbow in
this arena. Once you do, make sure you have an open shot (such as when Camilla
lands after her vortex attack) and unload all your ammo into her. This will
greatly lower her HP if it doesn't kill her altogether, which depends on your
attack and alchemy stats anyway. If she doesn't die, you can elect to reload the
crossbow or finish her off with the weapon on hand.
This is also where you get the rare Grindstone item. It is randomly dropped by
the Ultimate Chimera after you defeat the pair. Look for it before you collect
all the feathers. If its not there, you'll have to play it again!
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Armstrong and Roy
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points | +5 | +4 | +3 | +2 | +1 | 0
combo | 60 | 30 | 20 | 10 | 5 | 4
time | 900 | 1200 | 1800 | 2400 | 2400+ |
Suggested Target: 60 hits 1200 sec. OR 30 hits 900 sec. (Hell, however you can
defeat them is pretty damn worthy of S-Rank in my opinion.)
You may think that 15-20 minutes is a lot of time to defeat these two, but
because they have so much HP (Armstrong has 9999, Mustang has 6999), it really
takes patience as well as luck to get S-Rank here. Don't expect to have any
chance in this battle unless you're well stocked with items and at a fairly
high (80+) level. There is a way to defeat them without using the Glass
Samurai or Demon Fist accessories (haha, having either would imply that you've
already defeated at least one of them before, so why are you reading
this!?!?). Start by giving Ed a Magic-Caps, which raises all your stats, and
distribute ALL of your saved bonus points between Alchemy and Attack.
The Wind Dagger is your friend while you try to get your target combo. Finding
the right time to combo Armstrong (FORGET about even trying to combo Mustang) is
outrageously difficult. One of the few times he stands still is when he does his
special rock attack when he says "This is Alchemy at its finest!" When you see
him do this move, get behind him and combo him as much as he'll allow with the
wind dagger. Al ABSOLUTELY must be involved in this fight to reach the target
combo. The other time he stands still is when he flexes to himself, but you
won't be able to damage him during this anyway so dOn't bother. After you get
the combo, you'll want to redirect your efforts with the tank. Again, you'll
probably want to concentrate on Armstrong since he'll actually let you hit him.
Fire as many shots as you can get off on Armstrong before he gets close, exit
the tank (because the tank can take damage and be destroyed so long as you're in
it), run to the other side (all the while avoiding Mustang), and repeat with the
second tank on the opposite side of the stage.
Once Armstrong falls, your only challenge in defeating Mustang is the time you
have left to do it in. By now you should have very few reloader items left, so
use up what you have on Mustang. The tank will probably take the most amount of
damage off of him compared to anything else in your arsenal, but unlike
Armstrong, one hit from the tank will knock Mustang into the air. If you're good
enough, you can get up to a 5 hit combo by juggling him with the tank rounds.
When he does his special meteor shower attack, IF you're close to him, you can
get a melee weapon combo on him because he pauses for a moment before the
meteors fall. I also discovered that you won't get hit if you stand RIGHT next
to him while he does this attack, so if you can roll into the center of the
meteor shower, you could hit him and cause his special attack to stop. Attack
until he (or you) is pulp.
If it's not your first time through the game and you managed to get the rare
Cologne item from Camilla, equip that on Al and it'll make your fight with these
two a little easier. Remember, both Armstrong and Mustang will drop items after
you defeat them, but you can only get one item at a time. Remember which one you
defeated first the next time you fight them to get the other item. Armstrong
will drop the Demon Fist while Mustang will drop the Glass Samurai.
===============
5. Contact
===============
Feel free to email me at:
[email protected] (and be nice...)
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6. Thanks/Credits
======================
Author: Dat be me, yo.
Thanks to: Square-Enix for being groovy
GameFaqs.com for being the bee's knees
the reader for being peachy keen
Copyright (c) 2005 Glenn Lee. All Rights Reserved.
This document may not be reproduced under any circumstances except for
personal, or private use. This document may not be placed on any web site or
otherwise distributed publicly without expressed written concent of it's
respective owner. Use of this FAQ on any other web site or as a part of any
public display is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright.
