View difference between Paste ID: BxEKaTg3 and AwvGgpi3

-LAST UPDATED: 06/2/2016
+LAST UPDATED: 08/10/2016
 
 Strategy website & Event information: http://ffrk.kongbakpao.com/
 Elite Dungeon Data and game statistics: http://happypluto.com/~misterp/r/ffrk.pdf
 /ffg/'s Friend Codes List: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1yjUI0AwTAoBxuZlGQQZfaEQMnNt2bUdzm0gMZHXq4Cs/edit#gid=0
 Upcoming event banners: http://bantha.org/~dscotton/ffrk.html
 
 >What's FFRK?
 Final Fantasy Record Keeper is a mobile spin-off of the Final Fantasy series. Like all shitty mobage games, it has a fairly simple plot: for some reason we have a kingdom that gets its power from magical artworks that depict the story of mainline FF games, and some jackass is corrupting them, so you go into the world of paintings and fix everything. Cue battles in these realms using the old Active Time Battle system simplified for the attention-deficit generation.
 
 >mobile
 Yes, I know, microtransactions, et cetera, et cetera, good goy. FFRK's mythril / gems system is set up in such a way that you can literally, with time, some strategy, and maybe some luck, beat even the hardest content level without spending so much as a shekel and sucking Jewgle's dick. Don't be fooled.
 
 Anyway, you might ask: what's the appeal? Waifu/husbando collection. Nostalgia. Whatever. The old ATB system is >fun. Also, All the Bravest was a horrible game and Square probably wanted to make up for that. Are you the kind of guy who enjoys collecting characters like Pokemon? Theoretically, you could collect an entire party of your waifus, or villains (seriously, Exdeath and Kefka are actual released characters), or whatever you like. Live out your ideal party.
 
 >Okay, I guess this is interesting.
-Great! Welcome to the circlejerk. If you haven't downloaded the game yet, though, keep in mind there's a Friend Invite system like all those shitty browser games on Facebook have -- if you want some bonuses before starting, you could leave a post in the general asking for a reference and maybe gift someone a free mythril while you're at it.
+Great! Welcome to the circlejerk. See below for the actual reason you may be reading this guide.
 
-For RK players on the other end: REMEMBER THAT YOU DON'T NEED TO USE FACEBOOK FOR THAT SHITTY INVITE FUNCTION. YOU CAN USE A THROWAWAY EMAIL, TOO!
+
 
 >Okay, so what important things should I know?
 
 Don't worry about having to understand all of this stuff now -- you can come back to it later when you specifically need a reference.
 
 Of particular interest for beginners, however, are sections 1-4, 7, 9, and 11.
 
-Of particular interest for beginners, however, are sections 1-4, 7, 9, and 11. More advanced players may want to check 5, 6 and 8.
+
 >>contents:
 ***********/
 
 [1] RECORD SYNERGY AND EQUIPMENT IN GENERAL
     [1.1] Record Synergy
     [1.2] Upgrading, Combining, and Weapon Types
 	[1.3] Augment Rank
 [2] UPGRADING YOUR PARTY
 	[2.1] Essential Skills
-[2] SKILLS, HONING, AND COMBINING
+	[2.2] Honing
 	[2.3] Record Spheres
 [3] SOUL BREAKS
 	[3.1] Super and Burst Soul Breaks
 	[3.2] Elemental Attach and Imperil
 [4] RELIC DRAWS
     [4.1] Rare Relic Draw methods
     [4.2] Special Relic Draws
     [4.3] Which banners should I draw on?
     [4.4] Some notes
 [5] ROAMING WARRIORS
 [6] COMMON STRATEGIES
     [6.1] Retaliate-based strategies
-	[6.4] VIT0 [historical note]
+
     [6.3] Lifesiphon
 [7] PROGRESSION AND EVENTS
     [7.1] Core Dungeons
     [7.2] Event Dungeons
     [7.3] Special Events
 	[7.4] Nightmare Dungeons
 [8] RECORD MATERIA
 [9] DAILY DUNGEONS
 [10] CID'S MISSIONS
 [11] TIPS AND TRICKS
-     [11.2] The airplane mode trick
+
-     [11.3] RW List Shuffling
+     [11.2] Good and bad ways to spend your Mythril
-     [11.4] Good and bad ways to spend your Mythril
+     [11.3] Differences between Global and JP
-     [11.5] Differences between Global and JP
+
 /*****************************************************************************************************************************
 *****************************************************************************************************************************/
 
 [1] RECORD SYNERGY AND EQUIPMENT IN GENERAL ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 [1.1] Record Synergy -------------------------------------------------------
 
 Whether you are lucky with rare relic pulls or not, PAY ATTENTION TO THE RECORD SYNERGY SYSTEM. I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH. Basically, Record Synergy assigns a "realm" to pretty much any weapon, armor, or accessory. When you use that piece of equipment in said realm (e.g., use Cloud's Buster Sword [VII] in the Midgar Highway [VII] dungeon), all of its stats will get a proportional multiplier. The same goes for characters, who will get a Synergy boost in their realm approximately the equivalent of a 10-level boost.
 
 VISUAL REFERENCES, PULLED FROM THE PDF AT THE TOP:
 
 WEAPON COMPARISONS BY SYNERGY: http://i.imgur.com/iBxE6ey.jpg
 ARMOR COMPARISONS BY SYNERGY [1]: http://i.imgur.com/JzwDlFh.jpg
 ARMOR COMPARISONS BY SYNERGY [2]: http://i.imgur.com/c10zSI6.jpg
 
 A piece of equipment that is a 3* base combined twice (5*, or 3*++) with Synergy beats an equivalent natural 5* with no Synergy by a mile. Learn to use Synergy well and it'll make your life easier.
 
 [1.2] Upgrading, Combining, and Weapon Types --------------------------------
 
 While we're on the subject of upgrading and combining, let's have an overview.
 
 All equipment have a level cap, which you've probably noticed -- each piece of equipment will also have a different level cap depending on its rank: for example, 5*s have a base cap of 20, 4*s 15, and so on. Naturally, all equips start at level 1 and are upgraded by feeding upgrade materials to level up the piece. While you can use pretty much anything in your inventory barring accessories as upgrade materials, dedicated materials called Scarletite (for weapons) and Adamantite (for armor) exist. (You can use Adamantite for weapons and Scarletite for armor, of course, but the effect is drastically reduced.)
 
 Once a piece of equipment reaches its cap, you can no longer upgrade it except to increase its Augment Rank (more on this below). This is where combining comes in: if you have a second piece of that equip, you can combine them together to increase its level cap and continue upgrading it. Combined equipment is denoted by a + beside its name, such as Mythgraven Sword +. You can only combine equipment up to two times, however, so keep this in mind -- furthermore, combined equipment doesn't have the same base stats as "natural" equipment of that rank, and are therefore weaker as a result.
 
 So far, natural equipment only exists up to 5* (while there are 6* natural accessories in store, you can't upgrade them anyway), which can be combined twice to create a 7* with a level cap of 30. Be careful about combining your natural 4* and 5* equipment, though, since these pretty much only come from Rare Relic Draws and you want to be able to outfit entire parties, not just one character.
 
 In general, weapons have more ATK if they are melee-range and a melee-type weapon, like a sword or katana. Exceptions are, for example, swords that are the unique weapons of a mage, like Ashe and Terra's Runeblade and Enhancer. Daggers, since they can be equipped by pretty much anyone, usually have lower ATK.
 
 [1.3] Augment Rank -------------------------------------------------------
 
 A minor feature worth noting: each weapon has an "Augment Rank". Augment Ranks increase the highest stat point given by a piece of equipment by one per level; in case of a stat point tie, the stat to which the Augment is linked to is arbitrary.
 
 To increase the Augment Rank of a piece of equipment, simply upgrade it by using another piece of equipment with at least an Augment Rank of 1 as material. Combining natural 5*s also increases its Augment Rank, so a 7*++ has a Rank of 3, for example.
 
 However, the problem is that most equipment starts at an Augment Rank of 0. The exception is natural 5* equipment, which starts at a base Rank of 1, which is why this is a rather minor feature -- why the fuck would you use natural 5*s as material?
 
 Now, this wouldn't have been a problem if Giant Scarletite and Adamantite were given an Augment Rank, but unfortunately for us DeNA decided instead to make a new upgrade material specifically to increase Augments: the 5* Rosetta Stone, usually given out as the reward for a +++ Bonus Battle in an event, or as part of a special login bonus.
 
 Generally, the few points don't make the difference, but it's recommended that you augment the equipment of characters you expect to use often, especially their unique SB relic if you have it.
 
 [2] UPGRADING YOUR PARTY ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-[2] SKILLS AND HONING ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
 [2.1] SKILLS
 
 Skills aren't created equal. Some find more use due to their relevance in a strategy, and some are just plain shit or are too niche.
 
 So let's narrow it down: you want these specific skills, listed in about the general priority you want to craft them:
 
 ESSENTIAL SKILLS:
 - Double Cut + Retaliate [6.1] (for starting out)
 - Protectga / Shellga / Cure/a/ga/ja
-- Full Break and Multi Break (these are 5* skills -- leave them until you have the orbs)
+
 - Full Break (these are 5* skills -- leave them until you have the orbs)
 - Lifesiphon [6.3] (craft more than one)
 - Banishing Strike
 - Saint Cross (5* - reliant on Major Holy Orbs instead of Power Orbs)
 - Powerchain + Full Charge (both of them at the same time, they form a combo)
 - Spellblades (Fire / Blizzard / Thunder / Water / Aero / Drain, rest are not as important)
 - Dismissal
 - Fire / Blizzard / Thunder / Comet / Bio / Water / Dia -> their higher-level equivalents
 - Ruinga / Quake / Valefor / Maduin
 - Dispel
 
 OPTIONAL SKILLS:
 - Multi Break (5* dancer skill -- basically Full Break but hits all targets)
 - Thief's Revenge (5* - similar to SC; reliant on Major Wind Orbs)
 - Dragoon Jump (5* -- reliant on Major Fire, best used with abilities that reduce air time)
 - Dark Zone + Memento Mori (5* - for Darkness mages, especially if you have EnDark; Memento Mori (4*) boosts Dark Zone)
 - Bahamut (warning: limited charges, either hone all the way or not at all)
 
 SITUATIONAL SKILLS:
 - Entrust / Wrath (SB charger skills, like Lifesiphon)
 - Elemental Ninja scroll abilities (Fire / Water Veil, Swift Bolt)
 - Death / Raise / Berserk / Break
 - Reflect
-- Intimidate
+
 - Kirin / Memento of Prayer
 - Haste
 - Faith / Boost
 - Carbuncle
 - Elemental Jump attacks (Wind Jump, etc.)
 - Dark / Venom / Sleep / Silence Buster OR Poison / Blind / Silence Shell
 - Silencega
 - Slowga
 
 Some other skills are useful, but if you don't already have them (e.g. Pressure Point, Pound), don't be in a rush to craft them.
 
 Magic is now generally towards the bottom of the list for endgame purposes, as DeNA has gotten into the habit of jacking Ultimate bosses's RES sky-high. Most parties set up to defeat them will often be physically reliant.
 
 Summons hit twice, but are limited by their low total charges. Consider having them crafted for stuff like the Summon Nightmare dungeon, however.
 
 Five-star abilities are, for the beginner, trophy skills because: a.) you won't be honing them for a long while b.) they start with two charges, and c.) you can generally rely on a 3* or 4* skill to deal 9999 damage anyway, especially if you're making use of elemental weaknesses. If you're one of those anons who spams mythril refreshes on the Orb Dungeons (and this isn't necessarily a bad idea) and got lucky, though, this might not apply to you.
 
 It's generally a good idea to keep up with events, because these often give out free skills and a lot of orbs so that you won't need to craft them. Saint Cross, Dark Zone, Multi Break, and Thief's Revenge, for example, were all rewards from events.
 
 [2.2] HONING ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 Honing skills takes a lot of orbs, which means you should be hitting the Daily Dungeons, because you will want to put serious hones into a lot of these skills. However, not many skills need to be honed to rank 5, because: a.) R3 / R4 can usually last you all the way, and b.) the orbs required for that can easily hone a second same skill to rank 3 -- sometimes, you'll need two of a skill on more than one character to take down bosses faster. You'll only need about one or two of a skill, unless it's an excellent utility like Lifesiphon.
 
 Orb conversion is a lifesaver in most cases. Don't be afraid to break down Major Power Orbs to hone essential 4* skills or anything similar. Shatter duplicate abilities or those you know won't be fulfilling a niche or usable in some degree for orbs, every one counts.
 
 [2.3] RECORD SPHERES
 
 Basically augmenting but for characters, Record Spheres grant permanent boosts to a character's stats provided you have the Mote materials to unlock the boosts. Some of the end-level boosts can be fairly significant, from allowing characters to use new weapon types or skillsets (e.g., Rinoa can get to use Staves; Ingus gets 3* Samurai). Bear in mind characters need to be at least Level 65 to make use of this.
 
 General tips:
 
 - Save your motes for Onion Knight in an upcoming III event. No, seriously. His Spheres cost less motes for even more stat improvement than most heroes.
 - If you have to, you may as well improve Tyro's shit stats, I guess.
 - Hold on to your 4* motes. They do not drop easy.
 
 [3] SOUL BREAKS --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 Soul Breaks are special attacks characters can use by filling up their Soul Break gauge, which goes up with actions or damage taken.
 
 There's three types of Soul Breaks: Default, Shared, and Unique.
 
 Default SBs come with the character and are generally sub-par.
 
 Shared SBs come with 5* equipment from Relic Draws, can be used by the character that equips the piece, and are kind of a mixed bag.
 
 Unique SBs come with 5* equipment, similar to shared SBs, but the difference is that they can only be used by the SPECIFIC CHARACTER who the weapon is meant for. While the piece can be equipped by other characters, they won't be able to use the SB. Uniques can be deal-makers or deal-breakers for a lot of characters, and sometimes their effects are so good that people will do mass Rare Relic Draws on banners that feature them, blowing upwards of hundreds of mythril.
 
 While most of these weapons have been featured already and are unlikely to return all too quickly, it's good to get an idea of the kind of relics people will usually draw for:
 
-1st Fusion Sword
+
-Character: Cloud
+
-Soul Break: Fenrir Overdrive
+
-Deals eight physical attacks to random targets. The user of this SB is then granted Haste, a boost to all stats, and the following Burst Mode commands replacing Attack and Defend:
+
-- Whirl Slash: Deal two physical attacks to all targets.
+
-- Quad Cut: Deal four physical attacks to one target.
+Fire Lash
 Character: Krile
-Moore Branch
+Soul Break: Sheepsong
-Character: Exdeath
+Grants major Regen, Haste, and a 30% Magic boost to the entire party.
-Soul Break: Grand Cross
+
-Casts a 4-hit non-elemental magic attack on all targets. Then, single-target casts of Black and White Magic are drawn to caster; caster gains immunity and converts them to an ability charge. Party-wide attacks will still affect the entire party, but the caster will enjoy Grand Cross's effects.
+
 Character: Ramza
-Tyrfing
+
-Character: Luneth
+
-Soul Break: Advance
+
-User's Attack becomes 250%; loses Defense.
+
 Character: Minwu
-Noticing a pattern? Good Soul Breaks tend to be support effects and not heavy damage dealers, due to the existence of the Roaming Warrior system. There's nothing wrong with drawing for the relic of your favorite characters, but if you have no idea what to use your mythril on or just want to have a relic considered "good", look into relics like these.
+
 Instantly restores a large amount of HP to the entire party.
 
 Red Scorpion
-There's plenty of other Soul Breaks that aren't on this list and may have subjective usefulness for you, so don't take this list as 100% fact.
+
 Soul Break: Mighty Guard (VIII)
 Casts party-wide Shell, Haste, and major Regen.
 
 Excalibur
 Character: Cecil (Paladin)
 Soul Break: Paladin Force
 Deals five physical Holy-element attacks to all targets. The user of this SB is then granted Haste, a boost to all stats, Holy elemental attachment, and the following Burst Mode commands replacing Attack and Defend:
 - Blessed Weapon: Deal one physical holy attack to one target and restore user's HP.
 - Sacred Circle: Deal two physical holy attacks to all targets.
 
 Noticing a pattern? Most good Soul Breaks tend to be support effects and not heavy damage dealers, due to the existence of the Roaming Warrior system. There's nothing wrong with drawing for the relic of your favorite characters, but if you have no idea what to use your mythril on or just want to have a relic considered "good", look into relics like these.
-As a rule of thumb, BSBs are good, but SSBs can be hit-or-miss.
+
 In particular, there are three types of relics commonly thought to compose a "trinity":
 
 - Wall-type SBs (DEF / RES buffs stackable with Protect and Shell)
 - Medicas (group heals)
 - Hastega SBs
 
 Relic drawing specifically to chase these kinds of relics as a beginner is a common recommendation -- acquire all three and you're usually set for life, ability hones aside.
 
 Damage-dealing SBs are considered good when they deal truly absurd damage or have the potential to do so. They're best used not as RWs, but as your own SBs.
 
 Plenty of other Soul Breaks have subjective usefulness, especially during Cid Missions where your choice of characters becomes severely limited. For non-Cid Mission clears, look to relics like these first.
-Now, Rare Relic Draws can pull any equipment piece rated 3* to 5*, and they are where you will draw most of your mid- to end-difficulty equipment. The problem is, RNG is a bitch and will pretty much never give you what you want: cue despair as highly anticipated Relic Draw banners give out no 5*s and /ffg/ anons commit sudoku by the hundreds, killing the general for real this time.
+
 [3.1] SUPER AND BURST SOUL BREAKS -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 Also known as concrete proof of power creep™, Super and Burst Soul Breaks grant a permanent +10 boost to a certain stat once a character masters the associated SB. Usually, SSBs and BSBs are a cut above regular Soul Breaks, but tend to be damage-dealing.
 
 Burst Soul Breaks are a whole other level: not only do they give the +10 stat boost associated with a SSB, but they also grant a character "Burst Mode" status: a temporary increase to all stats, plus Haste -- and change the character's Attack and Defend commands to special abilities.
 
 For example, Cloud's 1st Fusion Sword Burst Soul Break changes his Attack and Defend to a two-hit AoE and a four-hit single-target attack.
 
 RWs using Burst Soul Breaks grant these commands to the user.
-Crediting this to anon who first wondered about Relic Pull probability: https://warosu.org/sci/thread/S7389586#p7401007;
+
 As a rule of thumb, BSBs are, apart from rare exceptions (Tiny Bee, Iga Blade) really good, but SSBs can be hit-or-miss.
 
 [3.2] ELEMENTAL ATTACHMENTS AND IMPERILS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
-The obvious advantage also being that you don't really have to save your Mythril too much -- every event gives out 10 Mythril, giving you a guaranteed two draws in this system too.
+Several Soul Breaks such as Paladin Cecil's Paladin Force, Cloud's Climhazzard, and Exdeath's Dark Earth Shaker, to name a few, are capable of granting elemental affinity to their users, which manifests as an elemental aura in battle; others such as Balthier's Strahl Strafe are capable of lowering a specific elemental resistance.
 
 The former, known as En-[element] or elemental attach, attaches the specified element to the Attack command (usually not useful) and adds a significant multiplier to the power of abilities of that element (incredibly useful). Elemental attachment SBs, especially those attached to BSBs like Hope's Divine Judgment, Cecil's Paladin Force, or Garland's Dark Rebirth therefore usually end up as high-end Soul Breaks because of their ability to shit out DPS -- when in doubt and looking for SBs to improve your DPS, look no further.
 
-The former argument, however, can be similarly applied to the 11x draw. I still don't have the time or mental capacity or authority to tell you which one to do, so choose wisely, whichever strategy you go for. They both have their strengths.
+The latter, better referred to as Imperil SBs, reduce a specified elemental resistance by 20% -- which can similarly end up as useful as their EnElement counterparts, but are not as common, as far as I know.
 
 [4] RELIC DRAWS -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 Here we fucking go.
 
 Relic Draws are your main way of getting equipment, from weapons to armor (accessories, however, can only be won in events).
 
 Every day, you get one free Common Relic Draw, which usually isn't worth anything since it can pull any item from 1* to 5* and the odds of getting anything good are pretty much zero.
 
 The real monster is the Rare Relic Draw. The game offers three different methods of doing these: 1x Draws, 3x Draws, and 11x Draws, for 5, 15, and 50 mythril respectively -- which you get for clearing dungeons in the core content and events. The thing about Mythril is that it's non-renewable, and free mythril hand-outs, like the daily Mythril login bonus, are slow. If you're a NEET with disposable income, though, Rare Relic Draws go for 100 Gems on your first 1x pull, 300 subsequently, 900 for a 3x, and 3000 for an 11x.
 
--- THE BEGINNER'S BANNER --
+Now, Rare Relic Draws can pull any equipment piece rated 3* to 5*, and they are where you will draw most of your mid- to end-game equipment. The problem is, RNG is a bitch and will pretty much never give you what you want: cue despair as highly anticipated Relic Draw banners give out no 5*s and /ffg/ anons commit sudoku by the hundreds, killing the general for real this time.
 
-Similar to the Lucky Relic Draw, the Beginner's Banner was introduced at around the same time, and goes like this: for an 11x draw at full price, you then get to pick one extra Unique SB Relic in addition to what you got from the draw (or didn't get).
+As of time of writing, a feature known as guaranteed 5* with every 11x is confirmed for the Global version of RK and slated to arrive by the next VII event. Save your mythril.
 
-The items featured on the Global banner are fairly lacklustre: Tyro's Healing Grimoire, Rydia's Ice Whip, Wakka's Official Ball, and Kain's Blood Lance. I won't cover them here since they're all pretty basic and low-tier effects -- what you really need to look into is the extra Unique SB relic that comes afterward.
+
 
-There's one piece of equipment available from each realm, for a total of 14 items (Core synergy and I - XIV sans XI):
+
 
-Stormlance Grimoire
+
 
-Soul Break: Stormlance Grimoire
+With guaranteed 5*s on the way, though, 11x draws will end up superseding literally any other method of Relic Draws. Soon.
-Deal four physical lightning-elemental attacks to one target.
+
 b.) Continuous 1x draws.
 
-+ It's Global-exclusive, meaning you might want to get this for the sake of collection
+Poorfag drawing method. Once guaranteed 5*s come around, only do this if you're desperate and short on Mythril.
-+ Multi-hit SBs are generally good among damage-dealing SBs
+
-+ Its damage multipler is similar to that of Super SBs
+Anon who first wondered about Relic Pull probability: https://warosu.org/sci/thread/S7389586#p7401007;
-- Tyro, who has lower base stats than most non-Core characters, is using it
+
 
-The multiplier on these attacks is on the level of Squall's SSB Blasting Zone, which would be nice if it weren't Tyro using it. Regardless, it's comparable damage to Tyro's Last Judgment Grimoire SSB and is a good option to consider. It's also apparently meant to be a Global-exclusive relic. For now, at least. Expect not to see it in a Relic Draw for quite some time, if ever.
+
 
-Sun Blade
+
-Character: Warrior of Light
+
-Soul Break: Shining Wave
+
-Deal one physical holy-elemental attack to one target.
+
 -- LUCKY RELIC DRAW --
 
-+ I synergy is rare
+
-- I dungeons are similarly rare
+
-- One-hit one-target SBs are awful
+
 
-One attack on one target is a pretty awful SB -- this should go without saying. FF I synergy is rare, I guess.
+
 
-Giant's Gloves
+-- THE KEEPER'S CHOICE BANNER --
-Character: Josef
+
-Soul Break: Noble Sacrifice
+Succeeding the now-outdated Beginner's Choice Banner is the Keeper's Choice Banner, which goes like this: for a full-price 11x draw, you then get to pick one extra Unique SB Relic in addition to what you got from the draw (or didn't get).
-All allies gain +50% ATK. User is KO'd.
+
 The items featured on the Global banner can be somewhat dated: they're SSBs for Cloud, Lightning, Leon, Eiko, Terra, and Gilgamesh, all of which were released fairly early into the introduction of Super Soul Breaks. Really, though, there's not much arguing with the permanent +10 stat boost or that the SSBs still end up being decent beatsticks at this point in time. Unlike the Beginner's Choice banner, you have five chances to draw on this banner and therefore five opportunities to pick from the bonus relics, but realistically you won't be using all five tries.
 
-+ Attack-boosting effects are really good
+13 SBs are available as the Bonus Relic, each from a different realm and excluding I and XI.
-+ II synergy is rare
+
-- Its stats are awful for its weapon type
+Ratings are written with the assumption that you are also interested in gearing for Cid Mission synergy, because functionally several of these relics are basically the same.
-- It's outclassed by a similar SB
+
-- KO as a negative effect is awful in a game where Raise effects are rare and KOs affect medals
+Dancing Dagger
 Character: Leila
-If you were one of the unlucky souls who got this when they were trying to draw for Sentinel's Grimoire, you should know the deal with this weapon. For a melee weapon, it's pretty awful: 101 ATK at Level 20 is beyond shit for a fist when stuff like Zell's Maverick has about 116. Furthermore, it's outclassed: with the release of Aerith's Keepsake Ribbon, which does the same thing minus the KO effect, there's no reason to have this, even with II synergy being scarce.
+Soul Break: Captain's Command
 Casts Shell and Haste on the party.
-Tyrfing
+
-Character: Luneth
+
-Soul Break: Advance
++ II synergy is rare, as are II relic banners, making this a good choice purely for synergy
-Caster's Attack becomes 250%; loses Defense.
++ Shellga & Hastega is a dated albeit useful effect
 - Who the fuck uses Leila?
 
-+ Advance is a god-tier RW
+The original Shellga + Hastega combo, Sazh's Boon, was highly prized when it was first released -- but those were simpler days, and now Boon-type effects are relegated to garden-variety with stuff like Divine Guardian and Mighty Guard (VIII) running around. Still, this is a Hastega relic, and II synergy is difficult to stock up on. Again, though, who the fuck unironically uses a character who still doesn't have her MC2 and is literally who from literally II?
-+ III synergy is really rare, and later difficult dungeons tend to be in the III realm
+
-- It's not as good a SB as it is a RW
+Holy Wand
-- It's everywhere because it was overhyped as fuck, get in line with all my other Advance RWs
+Character: Arc
 Soul Break: Soothing Light
-Ahh, here we go.
+Casts Cura on the party and raises their Resistance a moderate amount.
 
-I'm not going to go into detail right now about what makes Advance such a good RW. For now, let's just say that this was a fairly rare and popular SB to look for, especially right after the VIT0 bug had been patched.
+
 + Same as Dancing Dagger -- III synergy is rare and III events are rare
-Or, at least it used to be, until this banner came up. Most people were probably expecting Luneth's second relic, King's Sword, to appear -- so Tyrfing showing up came as a shock. In the aftermath, a lot of people decided to take this relic -- immediately regretting it once its market value as a RW decreased and they realized it wasn't all that good being used on its own.
++ It's a medica, and holy fuck it's a III medica
 + Resistance buff as opposed to Shellga is actually fairly useful since it's stackable
-Advance is a good RW, but not a good SB on its own, most of the time. Thanks to this banner, it's no longer hard to find an Advance RW, so there should be no trouble finding one if you need it to clear a high-level dungeon. It's also been outclassed by Shout as of late.
+- Other than that, it's still Cura-level and rarely gets synergy
 
-However, if you like Luneth for some reason, or want to be helpful to others, feel free to take this relic. III synergy is also rare, and a lot of high-level dungeon updates later on have III synergy.
+Stackable buffs are useful stuff, as are group heals, but the problem with this particular one is that it will rarely get synergy. It's definitely on the level of, say, Oerba's Boon (see below), albeit from a less common realm. If you're short on medicas, this isn't particularly a bad one to have.
 
-Dark Sword
+White Dress
-Character: Cecil, Dark Knight
+Character: Rosa
-Soul Break: Darkness
+Soul Break: Miracle
-Deal one dark-elemental physical attack to all targets. Caster loses 1/8th of max HP.
+Casts Shellga and Protectga.
 
 Breakdown:
-+ Area-of-effect damage is nice
++ Frees up ability space when planning set-ups for Cid Missions
-+ Dark-elemental damage is rare
+- It's a bad effect otherwise
-- It doesn't really stand out
+- It's not a weapon
-- HP loss is an annoying side-effect
+
-- One-hit SBs aren't usually worth it
+If you aren't using this for a CM don't bother, since Wall-type SBs exist. Rosa has better SBs she could be using, two of them being Medicas -- one of them a Curaga + Magic Blink, an extremely valuable effect.
 
-Similar to Sun Blade in that one-hit attacks are generally sub-par SBs, because they're generally meant to be used on bosses, moreso if they're multi-targeting. If you have these kinds of SBs, that's nice, but don't aim to get them as a rule.
+Aevis Killer
 Character: Faris
 Soul Break: Kindred Spirit
-Character: Lenna
+Deal one ranged physical attack to all targets and lower their DEF / RES by a large amount.
-Soul Break: Royal Devotion
+
-Fully revive one KO'd ally.
+
-User also gains +20% to holy-elemental damage in general.
++ It's a stackable Breakdown effect
 - Do not expect to use this for DPS
 - It's not an ATK/MAG debuff
-+ Having a White Mage staff is nice
+
-+ V synergy is common and useful
+The thing about Soul Breaks with combined debuffs is that they stack with normal effects such as Full Break and Armor Breakdown simply because they have a different effect ID, and this SB is no exception. Unfortunately, this is neither Sea Lord's Broadside or Beryl Serpent, both of which are Faris's and happen to provide more important ATK/MAG debuffs for the sake of mitigating enemy damage.
-+ Lenna is a good White Mage, especially since she has her MC2
+
-+ Bonus effect is actually relevant
+As a ranged weapon, don't expect this to do much in the way of being a synergy beatstick, either.
-- SB borders on useless
+
 Rising Sun
-V synergy is nice to have, and being able to have a White Mage who can heal at full potency for your team should be a primary aim for a beginner. Later on, this staff also amps the potency of your Dia attacks, which can be useful.
+Character: Locke
 Soul Break: Mirage Dive
-However, Royal Devotion is useless. In RK, strategies are often built with the assumption that no one can be KO'd at all. Probably the only time you'll be able to use this is ,say, if a high-end boss has no KO condition and has KO'd someone when you're really close to beating them. In other words, it's incredibly situational.
+Deal one physical attack to all targets; guaranteed to Slow them if they are not immune.
 
-Kiku-ichimonji
+
-Character: Cyan
++ Slow, I guess
-Soul Break: Bushido Flurry
+- It's super old
-Deal four physical attacks to random targets.
+- One-hit physical SBs suck
 
 Basically, don't. If you're looking to pad your VI synergy or get something for Locke, this isn't the place -- it's a relic that predates the Roaming Warrior system, and as a result has an incredibly dated effect and damage multiplier.
-+ Katanas are nice. They're usually the weapon of choice for Retaliators.
+
-+ VI synergy is common.
+Diamond Pin
-- Cyan isn't the best character, and this SB is fairly lacklustre.
+Character: Red XIII
 Soul Break: Lunatic High
-Nothing much to say here. Katanas are a good weapon type to have, but the SB and character aren't of particular note, mainly because multi-hit physical is often inferior to multi-hit magical. If you're looking for a 5* weapon though, this is easily more solid than most of the other choices.
+Casts Protect and Haste on the party.
 
-Buster Sword
+
-Character: Cloud
++ Like Dancing Dagger, it's a double buff effect
-Soul Break: Braver
++ It's on a Support character and offers extra versatility to their role
-Deal one physical attack to one target.
++ Unlike Leila, Red XIII is a lot more viable
 - Dated effect, although useful for CM stuff
 
-+ SB damage multiplier is high.
+The original Hastega effect, and unironically still Red XIII's best Soul Break to date, because Stardust Ray is shit. There's not much to say, really -- it's a good relic for a good character in their realm, but its age can show at times.
-+ VII synergy is common.
+
-- Even worse than Shining Wave.
+Rising Sun
-- First ever Soul Break relic released, meaning that it has a lower base attack due to power creep.
+
-- Cloud has way too many relics -- if you actually want one of his relics, might as well go for another one in a Rare Relic Draw instead of settling for this.
+Soul Break: Angel Wing Quake
 Deal two black magic Earth attacks to all targets with a high chance to Slow.
-It makes sense that the first-ever released relic is Cloud's iconic Buster Sword, but as a direct result, it's shit. You want to be doing attacks that repeatedly, consistently do high damage, not attacks that are one-hit but cap at 9999. Braver is a prime example of this.
+
 Breakdown:
-Cloud's a character you will probably be using often, though, since he's one of the first you get and also one of the best. If you're set on getting him a relic, try not to make it this one.
++ Earth magic is rare
 - Not about to deal a ton of damage except when hitting weakness; it's a synergy stick
-Valkyrie
+- Black mages that use thrown weapons are few and far between
 
-Soul Break: Angel Wing Bolt
+Hope, Edea, and Rinoa are the only mages to use thrown weapons, and they all have better relics, to be completely honest. If you're planning to use any one of those three, Ninurta, Shooting Star, and Sorceress's Crown, for example, are much better relics to have than what basically amounts to a stat stick with a rare elemental abuse.
-Deal three magical lightning-elemental attacks to random targets.
+
 Asura's Rod
 Character: Garnet
-+ 5* Black Mage relics are nice to have; Rinoa is a high-tier BM.
+Soul Break: Leviathan
-+ Multi-hit magical SBs are usually better damage-dealers than their physical counterparts.
+Deal two summonming magic Water attacks to all targets and boost party's MAG a small amount.
-- Most Black Mages can't equip thrown weapons, making your selection fairly limited.
+
 Breakdown:
-One of the better SBs you can pick from this lot, mainly because it provides you with a solid Black Mage going forward. The SB is average -- it's pretty good if you're just starting out as well.
++ MAG buff
 - From experience, the damage is shit
-VIII synergy is so-so. Thrown weapons are not very common to Black Mage equipment useability, though, so keep that in mind.
+- Plenty of better MAG buffs out there, don't chase this one
 
-Storm Staff
+It has its uses, like being the designated MAG buff for your Summon Nightmare party, but as far as I'm concerned this is an IX stat stick when stuff like Song of Swiftness and Sheepsong exist.
 
-Soul Break: Ramuh
+Lullaby Rod
-Deal one magical lightning-elemental attack to all targets.
+Character: Yuna
 Soul Break: Hymn of the Fayth
 Casts Cura on the party and grants high Regen.
-+ Has high MAG and MND, making this useful for both WMs and BMs.
+
-+ IX synergy is one of the rarer ones.
+
-- See above for synergy.
++ Major Regen ticks really pay off
-- SB is average.
++ Medica for a common realm
 + Dated, but still good
-Probably the best pick, in general. It benefits both Black Mages due to its MAG being higher than MND (strange for a WM's relic), and White Mages since this is a White Mage's relic. Stick this on one of your mages and you'll be good to go on spells for a while. IX dungeons don't come until a fair bit into the dungeons, though, so synergy will have to wait.
+
 If I'm not mistaken, there's actually a shortage of X-based medicas, but that doesn't particularly matter when Hymn of the Fayth has been out a long while and is still pretty good despite its age. Major Regen is huge -- basically doubling as a second Cura over time. A solid pick from a common realm.
-Ramuh is decent on Garnet if she has it, but it's nothing special.
+
 Demonsbane
-Dusk Lance
+Character: Ashe
-Character: Kimahri
+Soul Break: Heaven's Wrath
-Soul Break: Mighty Guard (X)
+Deal three black magic Holy attacks to one target, with a moderate chance to Confuse and Sleep.
-All party members are granted immunity to one magic attack.
+
 Breakdown:
 + Holy damage that uses MAG is rare
-+ SB has situational use against dangerous attacks.
+- Basic compared to other SBs in the selection
-+ X synergy is common in events and dungeons.
+- Side effects are not too useful
-- Kimahri has stats rivaling Core characters, which is to say he's shit.
+
-- Spears are not as commonly equippable as one would like.
+Fairly basic effect. As always, XII Soul Breaks are A E S T H E T I C when they're based off characters' Quickenings, and this is no exception. Unfortunately, the only real thing this has going for it is that it provides a MAG-based source of Holy damage, which is fairly rare.
 
-There's a few AoE attacks later on that you can use this to repel: stuff like Bahamut's Megaflare. X synergy is fairly common, too.
+Wyrmfang
 Character: Vanille
-The character using this relic, however, is consistently low-tier and spears don't see much use. Pity. Not a weapon I'd recommend among other choices here.
+Soul Break: Oerba's Boon
 Casts Cura and Protect on the party.
-Ras Algethi
+
-Character: Balthier
+
-Soul Break: Tides of Fate
++ Protectga is a nice bonus effect, can save you a slot in teambuilding
-Deal one water-elemental physical attack to all targets.
++ A Medica for a common realm is never a bad thing
 - Miracle Prayer exists -- if you have it, this is probably not a good idea
 
-+ Guns are nice to have, especially against ranged bosses where you might want to use physical attacks.
+While Vanille does have a Curaga-level medica, Miracle Prayer's bonus effect (+1 party-wide ability refresh) can be somewhat iffy, but Protectga is always solid, speaking from experience. XIII is a common enough realm, but the added Protectga can be useful enough to justify taking this on your A-team everywhere in the absence of a Curaga-level heal, much like Lullaby Rod.
-+ The SB animation is amazing.
+
-- SB isn't much to talk about.
+Yoshimitsu
-- XII synergy is possibly the least used in events and core dungeons.
+
 Soul Break: Dancing Edge
-Since the XII SBs are all based on the characters' Quickenings, expect their SB animations to generally be on a higher level than that of most others. Guns are useful for physical characters who need to attack out-of-range targets, as well as for attacking from the back row.
+Deal four physical attacks to one target and lower its DEF by a large amount.
 
-However, XII synergy is one of the least relevant and the SB is fairly ordinary as they come. Might be worth the pick if you enjoy the use of this leading man.
+
 + It's Armor Breakdown
-Wild Bear
++ It's decent XIV synergy
-Character: Snow
+- It's literally Armor Breakdown, meaning it doesn't stack
-Soul Break: Froststrike
+- It's not an ATK/MAG debuff
-Deal one physical ice-elemental attack to one target.
+- The Air Knives exist
 
 Also an old relic. Strictly better than Ninja Chainmail from the Beginner's Choice banner by virtue of being a weapon and being an XIV weapon with an Armor Breakdown effect to boot. While Thancred's Air Knives do exist and have a nice SB by virtue of being a Hastega, this is also an acceptable substitute if you're straight-up looking for XIV synergy.
-+ XIII synergy is common enough.
+
-- One-hit one-target SBs are awful.
+Grand Armor
-- It's not even a fucking weapon.
+
 Soul Break: Tailwind
-Same as Shining Wave and Braver, except this one is even worse by virtue of being Light Armor instead of being an actual weapon.
+Casts Protect on the party, as well as a Cura based on maximum health and not the user's MND.
 
-Please don't pick this.
+
 + It's on a top-tier character
-Ninja Chainmail
++ Not being MND-based saves you the trouble of having to gear to make it useful
 + Protectga is a nice bonus effect, can save you a slot in teambuilding
-Soul Break: Death Blossom
+- Not a weapon
-Deal one physical attack to all targets with a chance of inflicting Slow.
+- You're using this SB over Shout
 
 For plenty of reasons, Shout chief among them, Ramza sees plenty of use: a Support 5* / Combat + Knight 4* lets him use an excellent variety of useful moves. Tailwind is simply another feather in Ramza's cap of versatility, at times relieving you of the need for a dedicated White Mage for healing or even casting Protectga.
-+ Slow is a target condition on many bosses, making this useful for those.
+
-+ XIV relics are rare collectibles since they usually only come out in SB Celebration, Lucky Draw, and rare XIV eventws
+While Tailwind is a good SB, the problem is that Ramza also has Shout -- and if you have both, by definition you're giving up Shout to use Tailwind. Nonetheless, easily one of the best picks you can make from the selection.
-- XIV basically has no synergy in Global save for its precious few dungeons.
+
-- It's armor, not a weapon.
+
 
-If you don't have Thancred, don't bother. Pretty much the only way to get him or Y'shtola right now is to use Hero Souls, and Empty Memory Crystals for their SBs. This isn't even his other relic, Yoshimitsu, which is a fairly decent dagger for having no synergy, and has an Armor Breakdown-like effect.
+Best to worst: Grand Armor > Holy Wand = Wyrmfang = Lullaby Rod > Dancing Dagger > Diamond Pin > White Dress > Aevis Killer > Yoshimitsu > Asura's Rod > Rising Sun (VIII) = Demonsbane >>>> Rising Sun (VI)
 
-It's nice to collect, I guess.
+An extra closing note: the banner's available until the end of July next year, which is a pretty long time from now. There's no rush; draw from it during a dry spell of good RWs or anything you're not really interested in, which is fairly unlikely.
 
 [4.3] Which banners should I draw on? ----------------------------------------------------------------------
 
-(Relics sorted by order of relative value when chosen.)
+
 
-Interesting in general: Storm Staff, Valkyrie, Stormlance Grimoire, Healing Staff, Tyrfing, Kiku-ichimonji,
+
 
-Situational: Ras Algethi, Dusk Lance, Dark Sword, Ninja Chainmail
+
 
-Please don't pick these: Sun Blade, Giant's Gloves, Buster Sword, Wild Bear
+
 
-An extra closing note: the banner's available until the end of September, which is a pretty long time from now. There's no rush; draw from it during a dry spell of good RWs or anything you're not really interested in.
+Reiterating the advice concerning the "trinity", these types of SBs are top priority:
 
 - A Wall-type SB (Sentinel's Grimoire, Stoneskin II)
 - A Medica (Will of the White Mage, Miracle Prayer, Pulse of Life, Sync, etc.)
 - A Hastega (Emerald Light, Divine Guardian, Shout, Sheepsong, etc.)
 
 When looking to improve your DPS, look into BSBs, especially those with an EnElement, such as Paladin Cecil's or Alphinaud's. BSBs such as Vaan's Ark Blast are also good simply because of their low or even instant cast times for attacks, as well as the secondary effects they offer.
 
 Other interesting types of SBs are:
 
 - Runics (Grand Cross, Indomitable Blade)
 - SSBs and BSBs in general (Fenrir Overdrive, Trueblade of Legend, and so on)
-Three types of SBs are essential to making the RK experience a lot less difficult:
+
 Damage-dealing SBs, while also useful, take a backseat to the aforementioned. Having these is a good way to start building up a Lifesiphon-based team, however [6.3].
 
 In short, the following rules apply:
-- A Hastega (Emerald Light, Divine Guardian, Shout, Flames of War, etc.)
+
 - Get a Wall-type SB (Thyrus or Sentinel's Grimoire).
 - Get a party-healing SB of some sort.
 - A Hastega is optional but incredibly helpful.
 
 If you can get these, you're set for a really good while and can feel a bit more free to draw for the relics of the characters you want.
 
 As always, it's still a good idea to grab really good upcoming SBs, the thread will usually know about them. Or you could listen to that guy who ranks banners by how many waifus there are in them, fuck if I care.
 
 In terms of synergy:
 
 Look at your equips and see which ones you think you're lacking in or consider which realms you're having difficulty in.
 
 [4.4] Some notes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 In closing, remember this: A RARE RELIC PULL IS A GAMBLE. Don't go over what you can afford, and never let bad luck cause you to make bad decisions -- remember the sunk cost fallacy! Give yourself a Mythril budget for banners you want to draw from and STICK TO IT. More importantly, don't be those whales on Reddit who apparently spend like thousands until they draw what they want. When they quit or the game's service ends, they'll lose all of it, but DeNA still has their shekels, and at the end of the day that's what counts to them.
 
 [5] ROAMING WARRIORS --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 Building on that, let's look into the Roaming Warrior (RW) system.
 
 Roaming Warriors are the game's call-a-friend system: at the start of every dungeon, you're given a list of Roaming Warriors, each with their set Soul Break, and if you want to check, their equipment, stats, and comment. Pick one, and you can use the Soul Break's effect in that dungeon - two charges total.
 
 The second main feature of Roaming Warriors is that you can follow them.
 
 There are three ways, in total, to follow players: at the end of every dungeon that you have a non-followed RW, through the Friend Search function, or going through your Followers in the Friend List and following them back.
 
 Since the list of RWs generated is random and picked from the global playerbase, you're essentially guaranteed to miss a Roaming Warrior once the RW list refreshes. Follow an RW to pin it to your followed players list, so that you have a better chance of drawing the SB you need to clear a dungeon. Bear in mind that once you follow enough people, you'll basically have two lists of RWs: ones you've followed, and random RWs; which is to say that you may have to re-roll RWs to find a SB amongst several players you're following.
 
 That being said, looking for a good SB by surfing the RW list is a crapshoot. Most people will use the Friend Code system: each player is assigned a four-character case-sensitive code which you plug into the Find Friends option in Menu -> Friends -> Find Friends. Inputting a valid code brings up the stats of that player's RW and an option that lets you follow them.
 
 There's a gil reward for every time someone else uses your SB to the tune of 200 gil each, calculated during 24-hour periods. It's usually a non-issue and is mostly useful for giving you a baseline indicator of how good your RW is.
 
 Now, the Followers system works like this: two lists govern the system: people you follow, and people who follow you -- both cap at 100. Your following list is a hard cap: if you follow 100 people, you won't be able to follow any more unless you unfollow at least one person. The followers list is a soft cap: once you reach 100 followers, you can still gain new followers, but older followers will then be bumped off the list in First In, First Out order. It doesn't matter how often you use their RW --  if you're out, you're out.
 
 To avoid this, players will often mutually follow one another, because the system does not bump off mutual followers. This creates a problem: RWs can be filled if the player has mutually followed all 100 people on their list -- that is, no more players are allowed to follow this RW through the search function, though it still shows up on random lists. This is mostly a problem for good SBs such as Shout or Divine Guardian, especially if it's someone from Reddit who gets into the habit of mutually following pretty much everyone whose profile message is PLS FOLLOW /r/FFRecordKeeper 99/100 :)
 
 As of the latest update you can also remove followers from your list. If you have to, though, try to limit yourself to nuking either redditors who wear their site on their shoutout or people who haven't played for like a month or so. Don't be that guy.
 
 Balance-wise, RWs are fairly important, because people with horrible Relic Draw pulls can and should be making good use of it -- and since some RWs are basically paramount to clearing a good number of high-level content, it's important to know good RWs to pick and set for other people. Help someone help you, help someone else too.
 
 Good SBs, as in the list above, generally translate into good RWs, especially because ANY character can activate a Roaming Warrior's Soul Break -- hence the ubiquity and effectiveness of Advance as a RW but not as a normal Soul Break, due to Luneth's lack of 2* Samurai. While damage SBs have a lot more use as non-RW Soul Breaks, they're shunted to the side for trickier or more difficult bosses in favor of support SBs as RWs.
 
-Now, the Followers system is kind of wonky and I don't understand how it works myself, but here's my best approximation. Two lists govern the system: people you follow, and people who follow you -- both cap at 100. Your following list is a hard cap: if you follow 100 people, you won't be able to follow any more unless you unfollow at least one person. The followers list is a soft cap: once you reach 100 followers, you can still gain new followers, but older followers will then be bumped off the list in First In, First Out order. It doesn't matter how often you use their RW --  if you're out, you're out.
+
 
 And for the love of Etro, if you draw a really good SB, like Shout, post it to the thread. /ffg/ always needs some help clearing high-level content.
 
 [6] COMMON STRATEGIES --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 Higher-level content can't be brute-forced by that really good sword you got when you started the game, so you'll have to start planning your parties, sometimes very specifically and carefully.
 
 Not an exhaustive list.
 
 General tips:
 
 >Learn the concept of damage mitigation. Without any protection or stat debuffs against bosses, they can easily pop 2k+ damage against you with an AOE attack, instantly losing you a medal and making it a lot more difficult due to the rarity of group healing abilities. Pay attention to the boss's main method of dealing damage when you have limited slots so you can decide whether to bring Shellga or Protectga and Magic or Power Break/down, and stack all these things with Sentinel's Grimoire or Stoneskin II if possible.
 
 >Whenever possible, HONE YOUR SKILLS REALLY HIGH. The longer the battle, the more mitigation / DPS you want to be consistently maintaining. An Ultimate ++ boss in Japan, for example, can go up to 400K HP, which is several levels above our current level and needs a serious amount of R4 / R5 hones.
 
 >Prepare to overprepare, Monster Hunter-style. A standard party should consist of at least one White Mage, a Support character or two, and the rest being pure offense, magical or physical as needed.
 
 >Not sure if your party is going to cut it? Struggling with this one boss? Post your set-up in thread, along with relevant information such as your hones, the SBs you have, and what other characters you have at a good level. Someone's bound to help, after they call you a filthy redditor who needs to git gud and stop using Redditaliate and other such strategies, of course.
 
 [6.1] Retaliate-based Strategies --------------------------------------
 
->Whenever possible, HONE YOUR SKILLS REALLY HIGH. The longer the battle, the more mitigation / DPS you want to be consistently maintaining. An Ultimate ++ boss in Japan, for example, can go up to 400K HP, which is several levels above our ability and needs a serious amount of R4 / R5 hones.
+
 
->Prepare to overprepare, Monster Hunter-style. A standard party should consist of at least one White Mage, only as many physical attackers as is necessary, and Black Mages for nuclear options. Don't stack up on too many of a kind unless the boss of a dungeon is especially weak to it. PAY ATTENTION TO WEAKNESSES AND RECORD SYNERGY.
+
 
 Retaliate is often combined with a 2* Combat skill named Double Cut, which attacks a target twice for 0.9x the power of a normal attack each. Attack the Retaliate user with Double Cut? Two hits at 1.0x power each. For this reason, Retaliate is one of the few skills you want to hone as much as is possible, while Double Cut is a skill you want to have multiples of.
 
 Tauntaliate relies on either Paladin Cecil's first SB, Sentinel, or the 3* Knight Skill Draw Fire -- what these abilities do is draw all single-target physical attacks to the user while simultaneously increasing DEF. Combine this with Retaliate and you will get bosses who can do nothing as all their attacks are funneled into a Retaliate user who avoids every blow. As of the time of writing, Gilgamesh and Tyro are the only characters who possess this combination of skills. Basch will get it when he arrives, and Auron will receive an ability pool update in the future.
 
 Advantaliate is basically Retaliate, but combined with the Advance RW to maximize damage (extended even further by Boost and Armor Breakdown, among other things) -- and it's stupidly good, to the point that it can mindlessly destroy 90+ difficulty bosses, and it is for this reason that the SB is so prized. Bear in mind that due to Advance's DEF drop, you'll have to pay even closer attention to when Retaliate's effect stops if you don't want to KO the user from damage.
 
 Now, the thing with Retaliate is that it's an excellent skill for carrying players with sub-par gear and hones, but at some point you'll have to consider branching out.
 
 [6.2] Magic-based Parties -----
 
 Fairly simple concept: a party focused on nuking bosses with magic.
 
 Some bosses are out of melee or physical range altogether, or greatly discourage physical strategies (some Ultimate bosses, then others with absurdly high DEF such as Seifer's gang or Proud Clod), making this another viable strategy.
 
 The one problem with mage-focused parties is how severely limiting the concept of ability charges is to spell-casting, so to conserve charges this is paired frequently with a Retaliate user to clear mobs. You'll need to go into dailies as often as possible to achieve the ability hones needed to outfit a full party of mages, so bear this in mind if you want to construct a consistent mage-focused party.
 
 Bear in mind that one of these days you'll want to build at least one of these parties if you want to clear quite a bit of content: for example, VII's Bottomswell, XIII's Havoc Skytank (and all of XIII's hundred other out-of-range bosses). Retaliate can only get you so far.
 
 Just as a note, though: while magic-based parties are still viable in end-game content, DeNA hates them and jacks Ultimate-level bosses's RES sky-high, forcing you to rely heavily on elemental exploits, plenty of buffing (Sheepsong, most commonly), and plenty of hones. If you are tackling Ultimate bosses for the first time, physically-biased parties are the easy way out.
 
-Some bosses are out of melee or physical range altogether, or greatly discourage physical strategies (some Ultimate bosses, then others with absurdly high DEF such as Seifer's gang or Proud Clod), making this another viable end-game strategy.
+
 
-The one problem with mage-focused parties is how severely limiting the concept of ability charges is to spell-casting, so to conserve charges this is paired frequently with a Retaliate user to clear mobs.
+Lifesiphon was introduced in Fang's event, where Lightning also got her 2nd Memory Crystal. It's a 4* Combat skill which attacks and greatly charges the Soul Break gauge.
 
-You'll need to go into dailies as often as possible to achieve the ability hones needed to outfit a full party of mages, so bear this in mind if you want to construct a consistent mage-focused party.
+The conclusion is obvious: several honed Lifesiphons are enough to be able to simply charge down a boss with repeated casts of powerful SBs. Once you build up your team and collect offensive SBs, you will start relying on SBs for better DPS, which is why Lifesiphon becomes incredibly useful later on.
 
 It's a 4* skill, requiring Greater Power, Ice, and Wind Orbs. Get grinding.
 
 [7] PROGRESSION AND EVENTS -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
-Lifesiphon was introduced in Fang's event, where Lightning also gets her 2nd Memory Crystal. It's a 4* Combat skill which attacks and greatly charges the Soul Break gauge.
+
 
-The conclusion is obvious: several honed Lifesiphons are enough to be able to simply charge down a boss with repeated casts of powerful SBs. Naturally, not for those unlucky in that department, but it's solid enough for those who have the SBs and the characters.
+You'll want to go through these first to build up your maximum stamina, but as a general note prioritize Event Dungeons if only to get the featured characters.
 
-It's a 4* skill, requiring Greater Power, Ice, and Wind Orbs. Get grinding, anon.
+
 
-[6.4] VIT0 [historical note] --------------------------------------
+
 
-DeNA can't code. Consider any skill with an Armor Breakdown-like effect (that is, -50% DEF), such as Vanille's Deprotega, Wakka's Status Reels, or Fran's Whip Kick.
+
 
-Take any boss whatsoever. Let's say, for example, that the Proud Clod (VII) has 300-something DEF -- no, the exact number doesn't matter.
+
 
-Cast Protect on that boss and double its DEF. Now, use any Breakdown ability, and after that cast Protect again.
+
 
-Any character at a certain baseline attack (somewhere in the low 220s) will now deal 9999 damage to that target with the Attack command. This was known as the VIT0 bug, which occurred because:
+
 
-1. [DEF <- Protect] --> DEF * 2
+Some of the early Elite dungeons are notable for having 4* equipment as rewards, which might be useful starting out. These are the Soul Break relics of the Core characters. The SBs are shit, obviously.
-2. [DEF * 2 <- Breakdown] --> DEF
+
-3. [DEF - DEF <- Breakdown] *2
+Sudden drops in Elite difficulty between dungeons are indicative of a split between dungeon updates, of which there are 23 as of time of writing.
 
-To clarify: the crucial step here is #3, which is the second time you cast Protect: it "refreshed" the original Protect, removing the stats of the original buff before re-applying it and multiplying 2. Breakdown, however, was continuous -- it called priority to debuff before the Protect was refreshed, and subtracted itself instead of acting as a multiplier. This meant that
+
 
-- Protect being lost meant that it returned to base DEF
+
-- Breakdown's debuff effect, however, still remains at the value of [DEF * 2] / 2, which is subtracted from the DEF before Protect is re-applied
+
-- DEF becomes 0, which is rounded to 1 by the game. 1 * 2 = 2 DEF.
+
 
-Why is it named VIT0 and not DEF0? Probably because of the FF VIII status that does the exact thing.
+
 
-If I recall correctly, the bug was first discovered in JP during the closing stages of Selphie's event, right around the time of the EX+ battle with Edea -- coincidentially, the same event in Global where it was patched out. Since they didn't know how to fix it directly back then, they settled for nerfing Breakdowns to 40% and applying Break Resistance to a ton of EX and EX+ bosses, or in some cases making the boss immune to Protect buffs. Usually combined with Retaliate.
+
 
-This bug was the reason Vanille's Deprotega SB was popular -- it had the longest effect duration of all Breakdown skills available. However, it never quite reached Advance's popularity due to the fact that it was an exploit, and therefore frowned upon.
+
 
 ++ battles - One battle on a level higher than the boss rush.
 
 +++ battles - A tier higher than ++, obviously, but on some occasions the power difference is negligible.
 
-You'll want to go through these first to build up your stamina, obviously.
+
 
 A note: with the advent of realm-based Cid Missions for Ultimate-level bosses, their damage output has become significantly more manageable to cope with the likely loss of Wall in Cid Mission builds, making non-CM clears all the easier. The challenge, of course, usually stems from whether you have enough characters in a realm leveled enough to form a full party, and whether you have enough realm synergy or Medicas to pull through, meaning that once you have one or two of SG / Shout, it starts to become a good idea to do relic draws for realm-specific Medicas or pure synergy to clear CMs.
 
 Just note that not all Ultimate bosses are created equal. Some are notoriously difficult (Vossler, Beatrix, Bahamut-SIN, Cagnazzo, Caius) while some are, relatively speaking, jokes (Garland, Maduin, Cuchulaínn). Trying them out never hurts.
 
 [7.3] Special Events
 
 Events that are marked as giving out tons of orbs, EXP, upgrade materials, and the like. Often accompanied by special login bonuses and SB Celebration banners, as well as other generous gifts like Mythril straight from the Jewgle.
 
 You want to be running these dungeons as often as possible when they are active for as long as they are active. Most other things can wait unless some other event runs entirely within the special event's range. Do only as much of it as you need, in that case, then go back to the special event ASAP. EXP and Orbs are the main draw here, because they are given out much more freely than in the Daily Dungeons, and for more than one day at a time. Personally, during the Orb Dungeon alone I was able to take at least 30 characters to the 65 cap, along with a haul of quite a few Major and Greater Orbs, as well as 3* orbs in the hundreds.
 
 Don't miss out. More than anything, these events are also the best time to attract new players. Login bonuses during these times often have 5* weapons, skills, or accessories being handed out for free as well.
 
-Some of the early Elite dungeons are notable for having 4* equipment as rewards, which might be useful starting out. These are the Soul Break relics of the Core characters.
+
 
-Sudden drops in Elite difficulty between dungeons are indicative of a split between Dungeon Updates. For reference, here's the breakpoints:
+
 
-DU #1: Mako Reactor No. 1 (VII) to South Figaro Cave (VI)
+
-DU #2: Phantom Train (VI) to Darill's Tomb (VI)
+
-DU #3: Fire Cavern (VIII) to Library of the Ancients (V)
+
-DU #4: Gapra Whitewood (XIII) to Shinra Cargo Ship (VII) / Palumpolum, Part 2 (XIII)
+
-DU #5: Corel Prison (VII) to Cave on the Veldt (VI)
+
-DU #6: Mushroom Rock Road (X) to Giant of Babil, Part 2 (IV)
+
-DU #7: Mysidian Tower, Part 1 (II) to Alexandria Castle, Part 3 (IX)
+
-DU #8: Dragon Spire (III) to Ronka Ruins, Part 2 (V)
+
-DU #9: Sanubia Sands (X) to Big Bridge (V)
+
-DU #10: Via Purifico Sewer (X) to Galbadia Garden, Part 3 (VIII)
+
-DU #11: Underground Waterway (V) to Cultists' Tower, Part 1 (VI)
+
-DU #12: Xezat's Fleet (V) to Lunar Subterrane, Part 5 (IV) / Mt. Gagazet - Cavern (X)
+
-DU #13: Fossil Roo (IX) to Ultima Weapon (VII)
+
-DU #14: Trabia Ravine (VIII) to Fifth Ark, Part 3 (XIII)
+
-DU #15: Alexandria Castle, Part 4 (IX) to Lake Dohr (III)
+
-DU #16: Narshe, Part I (VI) to Mt. Gulug, Part 2 (IX)
+
-DU #17: Light Cruiser Shiva (XII) to Castle Exdeath, Part 4 (V)
+
-DU #18: Ipsen's Castle (IX) to Dreamscape, Part 2 (IV)
+
-DU #19: Dome, Part 1 (X) to Airship, Part 3 (X) + Sastasha Seagrot (XIV) to Tam-Tara Deepcroft (XIV)
+
-DU #20: Ebot's Rock (VI) to Kefka's Tower, Part 2 (VI) / Stilshrine of Miriam (XII)
+
-DU #21: Vallis Media (XIII) to Sister Ray (VII) + Copperbell Mines (XIV) to The Bowl of Embers (XIV)
+
 
 This one is a bit more direct than Ultima Buster.
 
 Demon Wall's attacks can hurt, especially Eviscerator, which can force resets if you get unlucky enough. Protectga and Wall-type effects (on, say, Tyro) can be helpful.
 
 Like Ultima Buster, Phase 1 consists of dealing enough damage. You will need to do about 85000 HP of damage in FOUR turns, or Demon Wall will trigger Gravija and cost you mastery. Either way, once you deal enough damage or Gravija triggers, light will appear in the arms, they'll become targetable, and you move to Phase 2. Use Shout or Fenrir Overdrive if you can't muster the damage to force him quickly.
 
 Phase 2 is simply a matter of mastering Dynast-King's Curse's mechanic, which is simple: those marked by the cone should attack Demon Wall; those outside attack the arms. Note that those outside attacking Demon Wall will trigger Nightmare Gravity on marked targets, which is basically Gravija but worse, since it inflicts Sap. A character marked inside the cone attacking an arm triggers Counter Annul, which osmoses skill charges from you. The latter is salvageable; the former is often not. Multi-target SBs are not generally a good idea; the one in the center is free to attack Demon Wall all the time, which makes positioning in your formation crucial.
 
 You'll need to deal at least some damage to both arms and Demon Wall for every time it uses Dynast-King's Curse to avoid Nightmare Gravity.
 
 It's possible, preferable, and a common occurence to kill Demon Wall in this phase. Do note that he will only use Dynast-King's Curse a limited number of times before moving to Nightmare Crushdown, which is a TPK.
 
 Phase 3 begins when both arms have been killed. At this point, simply finish off the rest of his HP before he decides to use Nightmare Crushdown and you should be golden.
 
 -- WHITE MAGE NIGHTMARE #1: Evrae Altana
 
 This one hurts.
 
-Just note that not all Ultimate bosses are created equal. Some are notoriously difficult (Vossler, Beatrix, Bahamut-SIN, Cagnazzo) while some are, relatively speaking, jokes (Garland, Yunalesca, Maduin). Trying them out never hurts.
+
 
 Note that you'll need to be careful and have a White Mage on standby in case he decides to charge Nightmare Poison Breath, which you will immediately have to dispel with Esuna, because this fucker moves fast.
 
 In Phase 2, he'll revive and summon four Lenses with him. He'll attack using only Photon Spray in this phase and the Poison Breath mechanic will be gone, but the lenses are frustrating. A light will point from Evrae to a lens at any given time -- the lens it points at affects Photon Spray's effect:
 
 1st lens: Photon Spray can inflict Poison
 2nd lens: Photon Spray becomes more powerful
-Don't miss out. More than anything, these events are also the best time to attract new players. Login bonuses during these times often have 5* weapons, 4* skills, or accessories being handed out for free as well.
+
 4th lens: Photon Spray can inflict Silence
 
 It takes about three Diagas to destroy a lens so that when the light points to it, Photon Spray won't have an added effect. Try to destroy the 3rd and 4th first, for obvious reasons, then the 2nd and 1st before dealing with Evrae again. It's possible to destroy the 2nd through 4th before he gets to any of them, but move fast.
 
 You can actually use Raise or Arise (but not Curaise) to destroy a lens immediately, but it'll counter with Explosion to hit you for a good chunk of your HP, so heal up.
 
 Phase 2 ends once you kill Evrae again. He'll use Explosion like the lenses do, but for about less damage. You will want to shatter all four lenses beforehand too, because if you kill Evrae before shattering them, they'll all explode at the same time too and probably kill you.
 
 In Phase 3, Evrae will summon a Guado Guardian which will spend all of its time attempting to buff Evrae. You can ignore it, dispel its buffs, or kill it, which will spawn a new one several times over and probably isn't a good idea.
 
 The Poison Breath mechanic returns, but apart from the Guado Guardian this is exactly the same as Phase 1. Use everything you have left and finish him off.
 
 Note that you'll be taking a lot of damage throughout this Nightmare, but that's what White Mages are for. Good luck!
 
 -- SUMMONER NIGHTMARE #1: Neo Bahamut
 
 From here on out Dr. Mog's descriptions become totally and entirely useless, not that they weren't already.
 
 It's worth noting that in Phase 1 you're allowed to hit Neo Bahamut with White Magic and Ninja skills like Swift Bolt and Diaga in case you want to preserve your Summon magic uses. Otherwise, simply damage him enough and he'll enter Phase 2.
 
 It's fairly easy to tell when he enters Phase 2, because at that point the background will change, which is Neo Bahamut's gimmick: he resists the element of the background and is weak to a corresponding element. Every two turns, the background will change, and the order is predetermined: it goes Fire -> Ice -> Thunder -> Fire; he's weak to Ice, Fire, and Water in that order as a result.
 
 The trick, however, doesn't stop there: you'll have to do the counter-intuitive thing and hit him with the element he RESISTS. For every 1000 damage from a resisted element, Neo Bahamut will create or enlarge an energy sphere, one for every different resisted element. Attempt to enlarge two spheres at least once before moving on to Phase 3.
 
 Phase 3 begins when Neo Bahamut goes under 50% and is marked by a Megaflare you may need to heal up from. At this point, the Energy Spheres you've created will become targetable -- when destroyed, they will attack Neo Bahamut for 9999, plus an extra 9999 for every time the sphere was enlarged. At this point, Neo Bahamut loses any resistances or weaknesses, making the Spheres the best way to damage him as opposed to simply exploiting his weaknesses in Phase 2.
 
 Spheres aside, at this point it's a race to the finish line -- kill him before he kills you.
 
 -- SUPPORT NIGHTMARE #1: CPU
 
 In an interesting departure from the preceding Nightmares, the CPU and its nodes are only resistant rather than immune to Break effects.
 
 Phase 1 starts with a five-turn countdown to Nightmare Quadruple Foul. Set up your buffs and hammer on the Nodes -- once you kill both of them, Phase 2 begins as the CPU revives both, and the Quadruple Foul counter will reset to ten.
 
 The two Nodes will, at this point, begin to deploy barriers and fields around the CPU. Barriers are removed by attacking the Attack Node with Power and Magic Breakdown, while fields are removed by attacking the Defense Node with Armor and Mental Breakdown. The physical ones will be deployed first, followed by the magical ones -- remove physical ones with Power / Armor; remove magic ones with Magic / Mental. It should go without saying that you shouldn't allow the Nodes to stack barriers or fields -- leave them long enough, and the CPU will go batshit insane and hit your party for 9999s, which will fuck your shit up.
 
 If there are no barriers or fields around the CPU and the Nodes are hit with a total breakdown effect like Full Break or Multi Break, they will go haywire and turn against the CPU for two turns -- the Defense Node will start healing your party, and the Attack Node will hit the CPU for 9999 each turn. Really, the only efficient way to do this is with Multi Break.
 
 Once the Nodes are haywire, wail on the CPU -- without either Node supporting it, it basically becomes helpless, since its attacks will get healed off by the Defense Node. Time a second Multi Break as the Nodes recover from haywire state and they'll immediately go berserk again before they even have a chance to deploy another barrier, which is usually enough time to bludgeon the CPU to death.
 
 -- CELERITY NIGHTMARE #1: Tonberries
 
 You'll start out with one Tonberry, and it's vulnerable to every paralyzing ailment there is, be it Slow, Stop, Interrupt, or Paralyze. It's to your benefit to do so, seeing as the less the Tonberries inch towards you, the less damage you'll take.
 
 Once the first Tonberry dies, three will show up, as do nine colored circles. The gimmick here is that a Tonberry standing on a colored circle is twice as likely to be affected by a status effect: red being Stop, white being Slow, and blue being Interrupt -- they become immune to Paralyze from this point onwards.
 
 The best way to control all three Tonberries is Halting Rumba to stop all three of them while you try to kill them. Also useful, if you have it, is Zack's Air Strike SB. Other than that, you'll need to bring Tempo Flurry and Dismissal as well to hit the target conditions.
 
 If all three Tonberries move so that they're aligned in a column, they'll trigger Nightmare Chef's Knife, which will probably sting enough to force a restart -- kill or interrupt them one by one and this shouldn't happen.
 
 Once you kill the second wave, a third wave spawns, along with a new arrangement of circles which isn't as kind as the first and basically boils down to hoping Halting Rumba can stop two or three of them in one go. Repeat what you did for the second wave -- once they're all dead, the Tonberry King spawns. It's only vulnerable to Interrupt, is gimmick-less, and basically boils down to whichever one of you can kill the other first. Unlike the normal Tonberries, however, Tonberry King's attacks do not ignore DEF, which might come in handy if you don't want to be murdered by his occasional fits of spamming Junk.
 
 Probably a test of hones more than anything, since killing seven Tonberries comes up to about 460k HP + the Tonberry King's 160k. Hone plenty, and good luck.
 
 [8] RECORD MATERIA -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 The base level cap for characters is 50, but once you start clearing content in dungeons both core and events, you'll start to pick up Memory Crystals that break this cap and put a character at 65. Furthermore, clearing bonus battles and other high-level content in event dungeons give out 2nd Memory Crystals that raise the cap further to 80. With breaking the cap comes a neat little bonus called a Record Materia: an equipped bit that gives an extra boost to its user -- think VII's Materia or VI's Magicite. These can range from a boost to stats (with a penalty / condition such as weapon type equipped), abilities, or even a free buff granted at the start of every battle.
 
 Breaking the level cap grants a character's first Record Materia and a slot to equip RMs. Some characters have two or more RMs, which can be obtained by meeting conditions, usually a random drop with the character in your party.
 
-Phase 2 ends once you kill Evrae again. He'll use Explosion like the lenses do, but for about less damage. You will want to shatter all four lenses beforehand too, because if you kill Evrae before shattering them, they'll explode as well.
+
 
 Ramza #2: Battleforged
 User actions greatly charge the Soul Break gauge.
-The Poison Breath mechanic returns, but apart from the Guado Guardian this is exactly the same as Phase 1. Use all that you still have left and finish him off.
+[Condition: Break Ramza's second level cap. Randomly obtained in dungeons with Ramza in your party.]
 
 Gau #2: Feral Might
 User begins battle with Haste and an Attack boost.
 [Condition: Break Gau's second level cap. Randomly obtained in dungeons with Gau in your party.]
 
 Tidus #3: Ace Striker
 User actions greatly charge the Soul Break gauge.
 [Condition: Randomly obtained with Tidus in your party; must have Tidus's RM #2 and broken his second level cap.]
 
 Cloud #3: Mako Might
 Begin each dungeon (not each stage of each dungeon) with one full charge to the Soul Break gauge.
-Terra #2: Blood of Espers
+[Condition: Randomly obtained with Cloud in your party; must have Cloud's RM2 and broken his 2nd level cap.]
-Chance to doublecast Black Magic.
+
-[Condition: Break Terra's second level cap. Randomly obtained in dungeons with Terra in your party; must have Terra's RM #1.]
+
 
-Dark Knight Cecil #3: Pride of the Red Wings
+
-Significantly increase damage when user is equipping a sword.
+
-[Condition: Randomly obtained with DK Cecil in your party; must have DK Cecil's RM #2 and broken his 2nd level cap.]
+
 
-Zidane #1: Thief's Code
+
-User begins battle with Haste.
+
-[Condition: Break Zidane's level cap.]
+
 
 REWARDS:
 Arena of Steel: Scarletite and Adamantite
 Brimstone Caldera: Fire and Earth Orbs
 
-Fusoya #2: Moon's Grace II
+
-Restores one White Magic and Black Magic ability charge at the start of every battle.
+
-[Condition: Randomly obtained in IV dungeons with Fusoya in your party; must have Fusoya's RM #2.]
+
 
-Vivi #2: Devotion
+
-Increases MAG at the cost of DEF and RES.
+
-[Condition: Randomly obtained with Vivi in your party; must have Vivi's RM #1.]
+
 Base ability orbs are always useful to have. If you're building a mage-focused party you want to stock on as many Black Orbs as your filthy hands can carry, while Lesser Power Orbs are useful for crafting and honing things such as Retaliate and Double Cut. Power Orbs are useful for crafting 3* and 4* physical skills like Breaks and Breakdowns.
 
 [9.3] WEDNESDAY: GIL GREENWOOD and FLASHWIND PLAINS (VI)
-[Condition: Randomly obtained with Cloud in your party. Must have Cloud's RM2 and broken his 2nd level cap.]
+
 REWARDS:
 Gil Greenwood: Gil
 Flashwind Plains: Wind and Lightning Orbs
 
 If you've missed out on all these events where they give out shittons of gil like Festival of Gold and Forbidden Treasure, you might need to make a quick stop at the Gil daily to finance the escalating costs of your equipment upgrades and ability hones. As always, elemental orb dailies are strictly situational.
 
 Wind Orbs are used in Thief's Revenge; Lightning Orbs are used by Full Break.
 
 [9.4] THURSDAY: SHRINE OF IVORY MIGHT (III)
 
 REWARDS:
 Shrine of Ivory Might: White and Power Orbs
 
 Similar to the Tuesday daily, except with White Magic. Healing and damage mitigation skills do tend to be useful, so you'll want to make good use of this one.
 
 [9.5] FRIDAY: MAZE OF DARK DIVINITY and DREAMFORGE VILLAGE (X)
 
 REWARDS:
 Maze of Dark Divinity: Dark and Holy Orbs
 Dreamforge Village: Adamantite and Scarletite
 
 Similar to the Monday daily. Holy orbs tend to see a lot of use, especially with White Magic skills and the excellent Saint Cross, while Dark Orbs supplement Black Magic skills like Bio, Drain, and a select few others, as well as Darkness abilities.
 
 [9.6] SATURDAY: GIL GHOST SHIP and ICENOUGHT SHRINE (VII)
 
 REWARDS:
 Gil Ghost Ship: Gil
 Icenought Shrine: Ice and Non-Elemental Orbs
 
 Similar to the Wednesday daily.
 
 Full Break uses Ice Orbs.
 
 [9.7] SUNDAY: SHORES OF WISDOM
 
 REWARDS:
 Shores of Wisdom: Growth Eggs
 
 Drop whatever the fuck you are doing and grind the hell out of the Sunday dungeon. No exceptions -- /ffg/ calls it Sunday Funday for a reason. The enemies here will give absurd tons of EXP for relatively low stamina cost.
 
 On + / ++, maximizing the use of your stamina and Growth Eggs can level a party of 50s straight to 65 -- once you really get going, you can cap characters faster than this game can shit them out for you.
 
 Note that this dungeon has no synergy because it'd be even more ridiculous if it did.
 
 Incidentally, if the EXP dungeon and an Orb Dungeon are running at the same time, the Orb Dungeon more likely takes priority, but it's up to you.
 
 [10] CID'S MISSIONS ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 For anyone joining us at this point in time, Cid's Missions are the successor to the old Quest system.
 
 Mind, most of these quests aren't typical RPG fare in that the objectives aren't things that you need to go out of your way to do -- in fact, if you're a new player, they'll be things that you'll end up doing one way or another, like leveling a character to 50, honing an ability, or doing a Rare Relic Draw, in one case.
 
 Unlike the old Quests, you won't have to accept the Mission to complete it: as long as you accomplish the task, it'll mark as cleared and you can collect the reward. As a result, leveling quests no longer auto-complete, which means that the next time the Raise a Character to 80 mission clears is the next time you get a Memory Crystal II to break a cap.
 
 In general, don't be in a rush to complete Wayfarer and Normal Missions, much less actively go out of your way to complete them, especially the honing quests -- just do them as they come.
 
 Special Missions are for event quests and end when the event does. These, on the other hand, are restrictive challenge conditions, ranging from soloing a dungeon with a character, bringing a certain skill to an event dungeon, or most commonly, defeating an Ultimate / Ultimate + boss with only characters from the event's realm. They're mostly bragging rights and a few extra Major Orbs, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try to complete them if you can. Be warned, as they actually pose a decent amount of difficulty.
 
 [11] TIPS AND TRICKS --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 [11.1] S/L -- or, the quit and reload trick
 If the battle isn't going well for you (suppose your ATB gauges started empty and all five of the mobs acted before you did) tab out of the game and force close the app. Then restart the app -- when you hit Play, you'll be prompted to either continue the battle from the beginning of the current round, or quit the battle and restore your status pre-battle (but not your stamina used). Starting the battle from the beginning of the current round gives you your status at the start of the round, complete with ability charges and so on.
 
 This is pretty fucking important to know, since beating a good number of bosses will rely on your first turn -- whether you can apply a debuff that isn't 100% guaranteed to land, whether you can hit it with Power / Magic Break and cast Protectga / Shellga before it attacks, and so on. ATB gauges are not set in stone when you restart rounds, which is what makes the trick work.
 
 S/L is not just for bosses, as mentioned above in the example concerning mobs -- you want to stay as healthy as possible before you get there. It's perfectly possible to stay at 100% HP, for example, if there are two mobs each round that require two hits to kill, but if they have annoying skills or damage output a few S/Ls may be necessary.
 
 [11.2] Good and bad ways to spend your Mythril
 Ranked from best to worst:
 - Relic Draws
 - Inventory expansion
 - Stamina refreshes
 - In-dungeon revives when you lose a battle
 - In-dungeon heals at camp
 
 Heals at camp rank lower than in-battle revives and stamina refreshes mainly because there is no incentive to do so, not when you get a random stat bonus for using the in-battle revive option along with all the normal effects of a party heal. Party wipes do not have any bearing on medals, either, but only for the current round of battle.
 
 Keep in mind that it's still generally a bad idea to use Mythril for anything below inventory expansion. Only do so if:
 
 a.) You really, really need to beat the boss. Is it high-level enough that this becomes important? Is it within your reasonable range so long as you get something like a stat boost? More importantly, is it a battle on a timer, like an event? DON'T USE REVIVES FOR CORE DUNGEONS. Just quit, git gud, and try again. It'll be there next time.
-In general, don't be in a rush to complete quests or actively go out of your way to complete them, especially the honing quests -- just do them as they come.
+
 b.) Is it a timed event that you want to farm? Festival events such as Break of Dawn come to mind here, since they provide tons of EXP for your characters and plenty of orbs for honing.
 
 On the topic of inventory expansion, you definitely want to expand your equipment inventory a bit (personally, I had to expand to 210 slots), because 100 slots will not hold all your equipment once you start doing tons of 11x draws. You don't need to expand your abilities list too much, but it may be an issue in the future.
 
-If the battle isn't going well for you (suppose your ATB gauges started empty and all five of the mobs acted before you did) tab out of the game and close the app. Then restart the app -- when you hit Play, you'll be prompted to either continue the battle from the beginning of the current round, or quit the battle and restore your status pre-battle (but not your stamina used). Starting the battle from the beginning of the current round gives you your status at the start of the round, complete with ability charges and so on.
+[11.3] Differences between Global and JP
 
 JP is ahead in characters, relics, power creep, and has plenty of cross-over events, which sometimes contain skills that aren't always included in the global client. As of time of writing we're still missing some skills from the SaGa even and they'll probably never show up in Global.
 
 As of the release of Overflow Soul Breaks in Japan, they now have guaranteed 5* relics with every 11x draw -- confirmed to be showing up in the Global client too, thanks dataminers.
 
-[11.2]  The airplane mode trick
+Generally, if there's a feature in JP that Global doesn't have, it tends to show up in Global eventually, and if it merits explanation it'll show up in the guide -- which means that if it's not here then I haven't updated this and you can feel free to call me a faggot if you even read this far.
-The daily isn't really the most efficient way to grind Greater Orbs. Plenty of bosses will have excellent Greater Orb drop rates, but the problem is that they are at the end of long Elite Dungeons that cost a lot of stamina, and what if it doesn't drop the orb at the end anyway?
+
 In terms of characters missed in previous events, this isn't much of a problem: later JP events will often give out pretty much all the missed characters as rewards, along with their Memory Crystals -- even if they're not even remotely close to being the featured characters for the event.
-The trick goes like this: once you enter the battle round containing the boss, set your phone to airplane mode.
+
 If you want to start over from Global to JP, catching up shouldn't be too much of an issue with the ridiculous metric fucktons of experience and orbs they hand out on a regular basis. The requirement to access the JP client is fairly simple, as far as I know: you just need to download the app for the JP version of RK through a third-party site. Try it out if it's your kind of thing.
-This works because once a battle starts, the game does not need to access the Internet for information until it resolves (which is why drops are set once you enter the battle), so even without Internet connection you could complete all the rounds of a battle before the battle results prompted you to reconnect. See where I'm going with this?
+
 The global client, while behind for obvious reasons, often gets plenty of JP's quality-of-life updates early, such as the Roaming Warrior system, the Lucky Relic Draw, and several Memory Crystals (Vivi's MC was not originally available with Garnet's original event, for example).
-If the orb doesn't drop at the end of the boss round, quit the game, just like you would do when trying to S/L, then turn off airplane mode so the game can connect. Once you restart the game, choose the option to EXIT OUT OF THE BATTLE, and then restart the battle, turning airplane mode on again. Repeat until the orb drops, in which case you can turn off airplane mode to bring you to the Battle Results screen and clear the dungeon. Granted, it costs stamina, but it sure beats having to go through the dungeon again and wasting even more.
+
 Also, unless you speak moonrune, it's pretty easy to access and deal with.
-[11.3] RW List Shuffling
+
-If you need to shuffle your list of RWs, that requires you to enter at least one battle and expend at least 1 stamina, no exceptions. Fortunately, Fabul Castle (IV) on Classic has battles that only cost 1 stamina. Fairly simple: enter the dungeon, clear the easy single round, and flee the dungeon.
+
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-Note that once you use an RW on your list once it disappears from the list for a day, so you can also whittle down the search pool by picking an RW that you don't really need to clear the next dungeon at hand. Just remember to use them, though, because it is still nice to be appreciated.
+
 Okay, that got a bit long-winded. Most of this stuff is based on my personal knowledge from playing the game (I started near the end of Terra's original event) so feel free to correct me whenever there's some info that could be improved or is just plain wrong.
-[11.4] Good and bad ways to spend your Mythril
+
 I'll update this in the future when the need arises; until then, as the FFRK announcements always say, we hope you continue to enjoy Final Fantasy Record Keeper!