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Surgate Castle
- There’s a small island to the northwest of the Castle of Bal, just off the coast of the continent. Land there and try to enter the obvious location in the forest. This will trigger a cut scene and sink the island. Dang.
- There’s surprisingly little new that you can do with your wind drake, as most unknown locations are blocked by mountains, so you only have one choice. Head north from Drakenvale (west of where the island sank) and you’ll find a new place, Surgate Castle, on the coastline. Pop inside, then touch the switch beside the front door to get inside.
- There are three doorways off of the throne room. The eastern doorway leads to several shops with new, better equipment, as well as an inn. The western doorway leads to the king’s room; check the book in here to learn the Swift Song for your Bards.
- Through the northern passage from the throne room you can find several libraries. In the last library there are several books laid out on a table, and you can put them away, one-at-a-time, on the shelves. The first book from the left, the Forbidden Book, goes on the D-F Shelf, in the north; the second book, the Register of Monsters, goes on the R-S Shelf, in the east; the last book, the Weird Ronka, goes on the W-X Shelf, in the south. Speak to the librarian here after shelving the books and she’ll open a secret passage. Go through and in the second room beyond you’ll find 5,000 gil. Exit this room and you’ll be outside. Travel to the west, behind the castle, to find a small room with a chest that will teach you the Float spell.
- (While walking around in these libraries you’ll also find several philosophers quibbling over a half-completed tome. This serves a purpose, but not just yet.)
The Fleet
- After visiting Surgate Castle, fly to the southeast corner of the central continent, where Exdeath Castle is located. There’s a fleet of ships sitting in the waters. Land your wind drake on the rear of the largest ship to trigger a cut scene.
- You can wander around the ship after the cut scene, though there’s not a whole lot to see. Head belowdecks and you’ll find a room to sleep in on the bottom floor. Rest here and you’ll be awakened by a monster attack. Run back to the deck, speak to Xezat, and prepare to fight, as the ship will be invaded. Run around and slaughter the monster NPCs on deck, then check the bow of the ship to the south to find a familiar face waiting.
Gilgamesh
Yep, here we go again. Gilgamesh simplifies his approach this time around, and will either physically attack your characters or use Death Claw, which reduces them to single digits and paralyzes. Annoying, yes, but not that horribly painful. The real problem here is Enkidu, Gilgamesh’s buddy, who shows up after you deal the main man enough damage. Enkidu has two primary moves. The first is White Wind, which restores both characters for an amount of health equalling Enkidu’s current HP count. This sucks, obviously, because he’ll keep both of them alive for a long time. The second is Vampire, which will absorb a potentially massive amount of health from one character, usually killing them immediately and restoring Enkidu to full.
Enkidu’s your primary target, and you need to use a slew of incredibly powerful attacks in short order to take him down. Jump, Shuriken (via Throw), Focus, and strong magic spells are all good ideas. You can also Control Enkidu, which if nothing else will allow you to waste his attacks. Once Enkidu is gone - which doesn’t take long, since he has 4,000 HP - Gilgamesh is a pushover. You’ll receive a Golden Shield and a Trident for beating the pair.
- Head belowdecks after taking down Gilgamesh, rest if you need, and check the left room on the bottom floor. Xezat is inside. Stand on the opposite side of the box he’s holding and you’ll wind up in a new form of transportation, the submarine.
Barrier Tower
- Before you can explore you’ll wind up in a small cave. Follow Xezat and you’ll get your next mission, as well as a dose of Whisperweed. Huzzah. If you ever need to heal, head back to the sub and go downstairs to rest. In the west is a save point; don’t use it unless you’re confident you can complete this area.
- 2F. There are two chests in here containing 9,000 gil and, in the left chest, a monster attack that will earn you a Blood Sword. The Tower from this point on is pretty straightforward, so meh. Just keep climbing.
- 6F. There’s a chest containing 18,000 gil to the left of the entrance to this floor. Keep on going.
- 9F. The path splits when you’re outside. The stairs to the left lead to a monster chest and a Gold Hairpin; the stairs to the right lead to a save point. Use it, because you’re going to run into trouble when you reach the tip-top of the Barrier Tower.
Atomos
This is a strange, strange battle. While your team is alive, Atomos will cast Comet on your team members, either once or twice in a single turn, until at least one character dies. When they do Atomos will stop using Comet and begin pulling their dead corpse towards it. Once the character reaches Atomos they’ll disappear, and won’t be available for the rest of the battle. The best way to fight is to let one character die, then hit Atomos as hard as possible for a few turns. Once the dead character starts to get a bit too close, revive them and let someone else die. So long as you can consistently inflict around 3,000 HP a round it’s not a difficult battle. You’ll get Dark Matter for beating Atomos.
- After some dramatic cut scenes you’ll wind up back by the sub. Wait a few moments for Galuf to collect himself, then pop back into the sub. It’s now yours to do with as you wish.