Balamb Garden Crisis

Return to Garden

Squall’s team reaches Balamb Garden and for the moment there are no signs of the Missiles. Before going through the gate, and making sure everyone evacuates, it’s possible to step outside onto the world map to save. After going through the gate, you won’t be able to exit Garden for a while and the Save Point in the main hall will not be there.

Once you enter, you’ll see the Garden in chaos. Students are running around and monsters from the Training Center are roaming the halls. Random encounters with Bite Bugs, Grats, and Caterchipillars are the most likely; however, there are T-Rexaurs and Bombs here as well. Equipping Blind or Sleep to your Status-Atk-J and Ice to your Elem-Atk-J will help against the T-Rexaurs and Bombs.

In two upcoming battles, a Grendel and a Granaldo, will both be weak against Wind. If you have enough Aero, you may want to equip that to your Elem-Atk-J instead.

Enter the Garden and head up the stairs. Once inside, Squall is stopped by Garden Faculty who demands to know his allegiance. Respond (…I don’t get it) and the Faculty will summon monsters to attack. This battle is easy: only a Grat and a Caterchipillar.

Once you’ve defeated them, head inside and find the student sitting by the entrance turnstiles. Speak with him to receive a Mega-Potion. If you sided with the Garden Master, he won’t be there.

The First Floor

When you enter the lobby, you’ll see Fujin and Raijin by the Garden Directory. Speak with them to get the word out about evacuation. There is a Faculty Member guarding the Elevator, so you can only access the First Floor. If you’d like all the items in this section, you’ll want to enter each hallway and challenge the Garden Faculty there. The story will progress as long as you visit the Library, the Training Center, and the Infirmary—and receive the item in that area.

Enter the Library and confront the Faculty Member. After defeating the Grat, speak with the Librarian with a Pigtail. She will give you a Mega-Phoenix if Zell is in the party and a Remedy if he isn’t.

Next door to the Library is the Training Center. Follow the Garden Faculty inside. If you choose Help Them, you’ll face a T-Rexaur. Afterward, the SeeD will give you a Remedy.

Head down the next hallway to the Parking Lot and fight the Grendel. After defeating it, the students with the hologram of Cid will give you a Tent.

The battle in the Dormitory hallway is only a Caterchipillar. You can take a nap to heal and use the Save Point in Squall’s room.

The Cafeteria is guarded by a Faculty Member who will summon a Bomb. Enter the Cafeteria after defeating it to grab the Gysahl Greens from the Student with the ponytail as well as a hidden Demi Draw Point that is visible if you have Move-Find equipped.

In the Quad, a Faculty Member runs by you. You can let him pass or confront him by speaking with him. If you do, he will summon a Grat and a Glacial Eye. Either way, the Student in the Quad will give you an X-Potion.

The Headmaster

The last hallway leads to the Infirmary. Enter the hallway to see Nida and another SeeD facing off against a Faculty Member and two traitorous Students. Choose to Help Them and the Faculty will summon a Granaldo. Though this bug was a Boss on Disc 1, it doesn’t put up much of a fight now. After defeating it, Dr. Kadowaki will ask for your help in bringing one of the traitor Students in to have his wounds tended. Speak with Dr. Kadowaki to acquire an Elixir. She’ll tell you to look for Xu in order to find Cid.

Exit the Infirmary and run towards the Elevator. You’ll see Xu heading up that way, so follow her. When you get to the Second Floor, run past the Classroom and give Xu the bad news about the Missiles. She’ll run up to Cid’s Office. Take the Elevator up after her and you’ll be able to report to the Headmaster. He seems to have a plan, but he’s in no shape to execute it. Squall will volunteer to attempt Cid’s plan. Speak with Cid again and he’ll take you to the menu and allow you to save as if he was a Save Point.

Return to the Elevator and the power will go out. Interact with the Elevator Panel first, and then the Hatch on the Floor. Take the Ladder all the way down to the inner workings of the Garden.

The MD Level

At the bottom of the ladder, a heavy door on the floor is visible. Squall will struggle, but can open it himself. Climb down the ladder inside. Squall will give you a heads-up about switching your Elem-Atk-J to Fire magic. Run to the right through the tunnel and take the next ladder all the way to the bottom.

Enter the door and approach the Valve. You’ll have 10 seconds to mash the Square button. Mash it 100 times within the time limit to open the valve as Squall. With a second party member, you’ll need to manage 50 inputs. All three can open the valve with 20 inputs, and a fourth attempt will only require pressing the button once. Return back out the door. Opening the valve has revealed even more ladders going down.

At the bottom of the ladder and the staircase is a large round room with a Full-Life Draw Point and a ladder going up. No matter what option you choose here, Squall goes up the ladder by himself.

After Squall crashes through the glass, mess with the control panel on the right. In the round room below, parts of the floor will retract. The door on the left side of the room is not useable now, so there’s only one way back down. Return using the ladder and speak with the party. Interact with the latch by the blinking green light in order to take yet another ladder down.

If you didn’t follow Squall’s advice on switching junctions to Fire, do so now before facing the upcoming Boss Fight. Interact with the lever on the right side and head towards the bridge.

Boss: Oilboyles

Level Range: 9-29
HP Range: 3120-5480 (each)
Draw: Esuna, Blind, Cure (or Cura if over lvl 20), Confuse
Drops: Wizard Stone x8
Mug: Fuel x4
Scan: This creature lives underground. Its slimy body is full of oil. Attacks by spitting oil.
AP: 10 (each)

These guys are weak to Fire, so using Fire Magic and summoning Ifrit should make the fight go pretty quickly. Their Oil Shot attack can inflict Blind on one Character, but don’t waste your time healing it. You can still use Magic, GFs, and attack as Squall while Blind without missing. The Oilboyles have a Sonic Wave attack that inflicts Curse and can hit the whole party at once. Luckily, the Oilboyles have Esuna in their Draw List which will cure it if you are in need of your Limit Break. When they are down to 1/3 of their health, they will begin to Counterattack with another attack called Oil Blast.

Once you’ve defeated the Oilboyles, climb down the last ladder. Step forward to the console and interact with it until Squall breaks down.

Garden Master NORG

At Cid’s suggestion, go downstairs to the second-floor Balcony to see Balamb Garden in motion. If you brought Rinoa for this mission, you’ll get an additional cutscene of her looking over the side of the balcony.

Back inside the Garden, Xu will come to get you. The Garden is about to crash and Headmaster Cid can’t turn it. Squall steps up and saves the day, again. After a few cutscenes and some of Squall’s inner monologue, he’ll finally fall asleep. If you brought Rinoa, she’ll wake Squall and ask him for a tour.

Escort Rinoa around the Garden. Make sure to show her to the Library; not only is she impressed, but in the back of the Library you’ll spot a familiar girl with short hair and a green shawl. Speak with her and she’ll tell Squall she knows him, and she’ll ask if he can try and remember her.

When leaving the Library, a Garden Faculty Member will approach Squall and tell him he’s expected by Garden Master NORG. Make sure you’ve got Draw and Mug equipped and take the Elevator down to B1. After Cid and NORG exchange words, Squall is brought into the room to report to NORG. However, the Garden Master doesn’t exactly like what Squall has to say.

Boss: NORG

Level Range: 9-27
HP Range: 2000 (NORG Pod) 7000-12200 (NORG)
Draw: Cure (NORG Pod), Thunder, Life (Left Orb) Dispel, Confuse, Slow (Right Orb) Shell, Protect, Esuna (NORG)
Drops: Wizard Stone x8
Mug: Mag Up (Left Orb), Spr Up (Right Orb), Circlet (NORG)
Scan: A defensive shelter that protects Master NORG. The shelter must be destroyed in order to attack who is inside. (NORG Pod) NORG’s support system with auto-recover functions that restore any damage. Uses attack magic. (Left & Right Orbs) Master of Balamb Garden. Opposes Headmaster Cid in trying to control Balamb Garden. (NORG)
AP: 20

NORG enters his Pod at the beginning of the battle. In order to fight the Garden Master himself, you’ll need to do 2000 damage to the Pod before it breaks. It has no attacks so just go all out attacking the Pod itself and ignore the Left and Right Orbs for now.

Once the Pod is broken and NORG is targetable, Draw Leviathan from him, stopping him from casting Water magic and getting yourself a cool new GF. NORG fights by casting Blizzara as well as Slow and Silence. His unique attack Psycho Blast doesn’t do all that much damage.

The Left and Right Orbs can’t be killed, but keep attacking them. If they turn red, they can attack the party using the magic in their Draw Lists. Both the Orbs have between 1 and 4 rare Stat Up items to Mug. The Left Orb has Mag Up, and the Right has Spr Up.

If NORG’s Protect and Shell are preventing you from doing enough damage, the Right Orb has Dispel in its Draw List to counter his buffs. You can alternately Summon Carbuncle to cast reflect, but be careful not to heal NORG accidentally and always use items to heal when Reflect is active.

The White SeeD Ship

After the battle, NORG’s Pod will close. Squall will decide that enough is enough and he has to report to Cid. Before you return upstairs, interact with the front of NORG’s pod to access the Bio Draw Point that is now there. Take the Elevator back to the First Floor and look for the Headmaster in the Infirmary.

Dr. Kadowaki will hesitate, but you’ll be allowed to go into the cubicle and speak with Cid. Once you’ve covered everything, leave the Infirmary and walk towards the Directory and the Elevator. Xu will come down the stairs with more responsibility for Squall. Return to the second-floor Balcony and greet the White SeeD Ship.

After a brief conversation with Edea’s SeeD, Squall is tasked with finding Ellone. Return to the Library and head to the back area with the desks where you found her earlier. After Xu shows up and Ellone leaves aboard the White SeeD Ship, things are calm for the first time since Squall graduated.