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The Meteorites
- Head to the Tycoon Meteorite, the first area you ever visited in the game. You’ll find the black chocobo sitting outside the Meteorite, and inside Cid and Mid are waiting. This will trigger a cut scene that’ll send you off to the next Meteorite. (As far as I know you can do these in any order you like.)
- Second is the Karnak Meteorite, located just west of Tule. This one is now full of monsters, and you’ll have to fight them off… or, rather, you’ll have to fight one off.
Titan
This fight is short but brutal. Titan has very little HP, but its Earth Shaker attack will hit everyone for between 400 and 500 HP. This can end your fight really quickly - especially since Titan will also use this as its death attack. Add in the fact that you have only three team members and you’re in a bit of trouble. You can avoid Earth Shaker with float status, but you can’t learn the spell Float yet, so you’ll need an alternative method of getting around Titan’s attacks. There are three ways to do this:
- Catch a Gaelicat from North Mountain with a Beast Master. You can use these to cast Float on your party members.
- Using the Chemist command Mix, combine an Antidote and a Maiden’s Kiss. The result will cast Float.
- Alternatively, turn everyone into Dragoons. They can then use the Jump command and completely avoid Earth Shaker.
Regardless of the method you use, Titan is a much easier boss once you get Esrth Shaker out of the way. You’ll get a Hi-Potion for winning - yay? - and Titan will be available as a summon from now on.
- Third is the Gohn Meteorite, back in the desert area where you started after exiting the Ronka Ruins. There’s another boss waiting inside.
Manticore
Though it takes a bit longer, Manticore’s the easier of these two bosses without preparation. Besides physical attacks, Manticore will use all-hitting spells - namely Aqua Rake and Frost - which deal water and ice damage, respectively. Frost will also add a temporary draining effect to your team. Painful, certainly, but as long as one character is on healing duty you can keep up with the damage and dish out plenty yourself. Avoid water and ice attacks, both of which are of no help, and Manticore shouldn’t take too long to defeat.
- The last Meteorite is the Walse Meteorite, north of Walse. Once Cid and Mid emerge from the Meteorite you’ll come under attack by one final boss.
Purobolos
This battle isn’t difficult, it’s just annoying. The six Purobolos spend most of their time doing little to nothing, and when they do attack it’s typically a weak strike or Self-Destruct, which still isn’t that bad. The irritating part is when you kill one, because it will immediately cast Arise before dying. This is fine when you take down the first Purobolos, because it will do nothing… but once you kill your second, the first will be brought back by Arise. Worse, Arise can bring back multiple Purobolos at once. What a pain. They’ll run out of MP eventually if you keep killing for long enough, but the easiest way to win is to hit all of them for roughly the same amount of damage each round, thus killing them all simultaneously. The Ninja Throw command and any Scroll you like will do the job after two or three rounds. You’ll get a Potion for beating the Purobolos, which is just fantastic.
- Once all four Meteorites are activated, or whatever, a warp point will appear on a stretch of land just west of the Pirate’s Hideout. Step onto it only when you’ve done everything you wish on this world map, because you won’t be back here for a while. (Or, uh, technically never. You’ll understand eventually.)
Castle Exdeath
- You’ll wind up on a tiny island in the middle of nowhere, with no immediately-obvious way to escape. If you sit around long enough, however, your team will suggest settling down for the night in a Tent. Do so and you’ll hit a situation you can’t possibly win, resulting in capture. If you don’t have a Tent, just get into a fight - this island is populated by a weak enemy that will always drop Tents. (If you’re super cheap you can use this to stockpile Tents for free, but Tents are inexpensive, so…)
- After a few cut scenes you’ll wind up with a team consisting of only Galuf. He’s a bit vulnerable right now, so either give him a physically-imposing class or stick him in the back row. There’s a save point in the starting room’s north door, and in the west are stairs. The other doors here are locked, so don’t bother.
- Down two floors is a larger room. You’ll find stairs in the northwest. On the next floor is a boss Galuf will have to fight alone, so make sure he’s prepped.
Gilgamesh
This battle isn’t too bad. Gilgamesh is basically a glorified normal enemy with more health than normal. Still, he’s capable of hitting decently hard, and he’s faster than you’d probably like. Use boosting items or magic to Haste Galuf (and, if possible, Slow Gilgamesh), then beat on him until he falls. The Dragoon class is especially good for this fight since you can just Jump, avoid Gilgamesh’s attacks, and do lots of damage yourself. Winning shouldn’t take too long.
(If you have trouble here, turn the game speed waaaay down. It’s not that easy to level around here with only Galuf, especially if he has a bad combination of abilities for solo combat.)
- Beat Gilgamesh and the team will be restored to four members. Return to the first room, then head out the now-unlocked south door to exit Castle Exdeath. Now that you’re on the world map, head south and west. You’ll find a bridge on the west coast.
- You’re now on the Big Bridge. It’s a straight flight across the Bridge… but there are compulsory enemy battles along the way. These foes are generally weak to lightning attacks (except for the Neo Garula, which absorbs lightning), making this a fairly easy escape. Be careful in the first indoor area, however, as a surprise boss will show up to ruin your day.
Gilgamesh
Yep, he’s back, and he’s a fair bit tougher this time. The beginning of this fight starts out roughly the same as the last, with Gilgamesh relying on physical attacks. Nothing huge. (You might see Goblin Punch, Aera, or Wind Slash, but the chances are a bit small, and none of them are too painful.) Do enough damage, though, and he’ll cast Haste, Protect, and Shell on himself, then start Jumping on your team. Jump can be painful, and depending on the timing it can muck up your attacks. Use Slow to stall him out and get rid of Haste, heal away damage from Jump, and beat him to death. If you want to avoid the buffing you can also cast Silence on him before he hits the halfway point of his health, negating the advantages he would otherwise get.
- Beat Gilgamesh and you only have a few more battles to fight before you reach the far end of the Big Bridge… though, uh, you immediately get launched to another continent once all is said and done. (How the hell did they survive such a massive leap? Just saying.)