Jade Passage
Leon joins permanently. Pick up Excalibur from Castle Deist before descending into Jade Passage, the last stop before Pandaemonium. This chapter covers Castle Fynn, Castle Deist, and Jade Passage for 14 chests, 14 new bestiary entries, 1 new keyword, and 3 boss fights.
Castle Fynn
Equip Leon with the Blood Sword and your best spare armor. Firion walks out of the throne room automatically; walk back in and talk to Hilda. She teaches you Jade Passage, the final Key Term. Ask her and Gordon about it to confirm the passage leads underground to Pandaemonium.
Excalibur from Castle Deist
Before flying to the Jade Passage, take the Airship northeast to Castle Deist. Inside, find the Dragoon’s wife on 2F and ask her about Dragoons. She hands over Excalibur, one of the strongest swords in the game (second only to Masamune).
Equip Excalibur on whoever has the highest Sword proficiency; it’s wasted on a low-level wielder. The Blood Sword stays on your other physical attacker for the Pandaemonium boss roster.
Last Chance Bestiary
Now is your last reliable window to airship-sweep for any post-Cyclone overworld bestiary entries you’ve been putting off.
Last Chance Enemies (*Missable)
These two are the most commonly missed post-Cyclone overworld spawns. Mantis King roams outside Mysidia; Sand Worm spawns in the forest tiles around the Coliseum. A short airship sweep over each region usually turns up at least one fight per spot.
Levelling Up the Trophy Skills
Both Weapon Tactics and Magic Tactics trophies require Lv16 in the respective skill. Castle Fynn or any pre-Pandaemonium safe spot is the comfortable place to grind them.
- Weapon Tactics. Give one party member two weak swords (any low-tier sword works) and have everyone else Defend. Have whoever’s leveling Cure heal between rounds. Auto-battle with Boost mode for fast farming.
- Magic Tactics. Have three party members Defend while your healer casts Cure on the group repeatedly. Stock Ethers and use Boost mode.
- Legendary Warrior. 500 battles total to pop the silver trophy. Most players sit around 350-450 by the time they reach Jade Passage; auto-battle a few floors of Pandaemonium with encounters on to top up.
- Moneybags. 100,000 Gil cumulative, not current balance. The trophy tracks lifetime earnings, so spend freely. With 4x Gil enabled it pops naturally during the endgame grind; otherwise any Pandaemonium farm spot gets you there fast.
Endgame Prep
The Jade Passage starts the endgame. Prepare before stepping in:
- Stock Ethers (99 if you can afford it), Hi-Potions, Phoenix Downs, and Cottages.
- Save on a separate file before entering.
- Equip the Blood Sword on your strongest physical attacker; pair with the best shield.
- Equip Excalibur on whoever has highest Sword proficiency.
- Cure should be at Lv10+ on whoever’s leading white magic (Lv16 if you’re trophy hunting).
Board the Airship and fly southwest. The Jade Passage entrance is near some mountains on the edge of a large landmass. The hole below the mountains on the left side is the entrance.
Jade Passage
Six floors, fourteen chests, three chest-trigger boss fights, and a hidden mage behind a waterfall on B3 selling endgame tomes. The waterfalls deal 1 HP per step to each character, so heal between segments.
New Enemies
Abyss Worms (1290 HP) hit 8 times per turn and cast Cyclone Lv13 for party-wide damage. Salamanders (1290 HP, weak Ice) hit 8 times and cast Blaze Lv16; Ice ends them fast. Ice Lizards (1000 HP, weak Fire) are the cold counterpart and fall to multi-target Fire. Great Malboros (1290 HP) carry the same Bad Breath stunlock as earlier dungeons. Chimera Sphinxes (1140 HP) cast Blaze 16, Bad Breath 10, and Dispel to strip your buffs. Hecteyes (1140 HP) is a heavy caster (Drain, Osmose, Confuse, Stone Gaze, Slow, Stun in rotation) and resists most elements. Mega Parasites (750 HP, weak Ice) and Pit Fiends (750 HP) round out the floors; the former drains HP, the latter casts Fire 16 and Stun 16. Scissorjaws (870 HP) wander B5 and B6 and hit hard, but die quickly to magic.
B1. From the teleporter, walk south into the passage. Loop around to the southwest corner first for Hellfire, then east and south for the Diamond Mace. Push east and through the door to B2.
B2. Top-left for another Hellfire, then follow the water path right and around the bend. A small passage branches right for the Antarctic Wind. South of it sits the Cat Claws chest, but opening it triggers a boss fight.
From the Cat Claws chest, go east until you hit a wall, then up through a narrow passage between vines. Door to B3 is at the top.
B3. Follow the path and take the first set of stairs down. Walk up the steps when you see the Rune Axe chest, the second monster ambush.
Three doors lie ahead. Take the rightmost for B4.
B4. North to the Betrayal Fang near a spiky rock. Go around the left side of the rock and continue north to a door. Inside are three chests: Aegis Shield, Dragon Armor, and Holy Lance. Exit and go east to the top-right corner for the Yoichi Bow, which triggers the third boss fight.
From the chest, head south to the bottom-right corner and through the door to B5.
B5. Follow the path and grab the Hi-Potion as it curves left, then the Protect Ring straight ahead. Skip the door. The Elixir is tucked into the eastern wall before the path bends down toward the exit. Don’t rush past random encounters here; several bestiary entries on this floor only show up in this dungeon.
B6. Follow the path to the purple telepad at the end. Stepping on it warps you straight into Pandaemonium, the final dungeon. Save before you step on it.
The next chapter covers Pandaemonium and the final boss. The remaining bestiary entries are all inside, and there’s no way back once you commit.