Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age Guide Walkthrough Part 3

Sochen Cave Palace

OBJECTIVE

Use the Sochen Cave Palace to Sneak into Archades

Action Checklist

1. Use the Soul Ward Key to enter the boss chamber.

2. Defeat the five bosses.

3. Optional! Return to the wayfarers in the Tchita Uplands for a reward.

4. Defeat the Crystalbug.

	Pop odds	If pop, Gil odds & Amt		Normal Loot		w/Diamond Armlet
#	App. %	Gil %	Amt. if Gil	50%	50%	90%	10%
1	70%	45%	~400	Hi-Potion	Dispel Mote	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
2	70%	45%	~400	Hi-Potion	Ether	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
3	70%	45%	~400	Hi-Potion	Ether	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (B)
4	70%	45%	~400	Hi-Potion	Handkerchief	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
5	70%	45%	~400	Hi-Potion	Dispel Mote	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
6	70%	45%	~400	Hi-Potion	Prince’s Kiss	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
7	70%	45%	~400	Hi-Potion	Ether	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
8	70%	45%	~400	Hi-Potion	Ether	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
9	70%	45%	~400	Hi-Potion	Handkerchief	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (C)
10	75%	45%	~400	Hi-Potion	Ether	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
11	75%	45%	~400	Hi-Potion	Dispel Mote	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (B)
12	75%	45%	~400	Hi-Potion	Ether	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
13	75%	45%	~400	Hi-Potion	Balance Mote	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
14	100%	100%	4936	—	—	Hi-Potion	—
15	100%	0%	—	Hastega Mote	Hastega Mote	Hastega Mote	Hastega Mote
16	70%	50%	~450	Hi-Potion	Ether	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (B)
17	70%	50%	~450	Hi-Potion	Dispel Mote	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
18	70%	50%	~450	Hi-Potion	Ether	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
19	100%	0%	—	Shock Mote	Shock Mote	Shock Mote	Shock Mote
20	70%	50%	~450	Hi-Potion	Chronos Tear	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
21	70%	50%	~450	Hi-Potion	Aero Mote	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
22	70%	50%	~450	Hi-Potion	Ether	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
23	100%	0%	—	Megalixir	Megalixir	Megalixir	Megalixir
24	70%	45%	~480	Hi-Potion	Hi-Potion	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
25	70%	45%	~480	Hi-Potion	Nu Khai Sand	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
26	70%	45%	~480	Hi-Potion	Nu Khai Sand	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
27	70%	45%	~480	Hi-Potion	Phoenix Down	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (C)
28	100%	0%	—	Sakura-saezuri	Sakura-saezuri	Sakura-saezuri	Sakura-saezuri
29	100%	0%	—	1000 Needles	1001 Needles	1002 Needles	1003 Needles
30	70%	45%	~480	Hi-Potion	Hi-Potion	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (B)
31	70%	45%	~480	Hi-Potion	Chronos Tear	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
32	70%	45%	~460	Hi-Potion	Antidote	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (B)
33	70%	45%	~460	Hi-Potion	Antidote	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
34	70%	45%	~460	Hi-Potion	Chronos Tear	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
35	70%	45%	~460	Hi-Potion	Antidote	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
36	70%	45%	~460	Hi-Potion	Hi-Potion	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
37	70%	45%	~460	Hi-Potion	Chronos Tear	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
38	70%	45%	~460	Hi-Potion	Hi-Potion	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
39	100%	0%	—	Phoenix Down	Phoenix Down	Phoenix Down	Phoenix Down
40	100%	0%	—	Cura Mote	Cura Mote	Cura Mote	Cura Mote
41	100%	0%	—	Elixir	Elixir	Elixir	Elixir
42	100%	0%	—	Bubble Mote	Bubble Mote	Bubble Mote	Bubble Mote
43	100%	0%	—	X-Potion	X-Potion	X-Potion	X-Potion
44	70%	45%	~420	Hi-Potion	Remedy	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (B)
45	75%	45%	~420	Hi-Potion	Phoenix Down	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
46	75%	45%	~420	Hi-Potion	Antidote	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
47	75%	45%	~420	Hi-Potion	Ether	Knot of Rust	Meteorite (A)
48	100%	0%	—	Reverse Mote	Reverse Mote	Reverse Mote	Reverse Mote
49	100%	0%	—	Hastega Mote	Hastega Mote	Hastega Mote	Hastega Mote
50	100%	0%	—	Bubble Mote	Bubble Mote	Bubble Mote	Bubble Mote
51	1%	0%	—	Zodiac Escutcheon	Zodiac Escutcheon	Zodiac Escutcheon	Zodiac Escutcheon

Reach the Palace Gate

The cave antechamber, called Doubt Abandoned, isn’t actually part of the palace. Fight past the Zombie Warriors and floating Imps while descending the slope. Upon reaching the Gate of the Soul Ward at the north end of the cavern, use the Soul Ward Key to open it. (This is the key you received from the Archadian wayfarer back at the Save Crystal.) Now prepare for a wild boss fight!

The Mandragoras

Here’s what you’re looking for—all five Mandragoras in a row giving chase. This is the best time to nail them with a long Quickening chain if possible, triggering an area attack in the process.

When the fight begins, the little bosses scatter in all directions. They have Haste cast on themselves, making them very speedy and difficult to target and counter. If you have active characters without Quickening spells available, use them to cast Dispel on the five foes. Otherwise, hold the R2 button and run around until the Mandragoras re-gather and start chasing the party.

The bosses will form a tight line as they give chase, so this is the moment to trigger a Quickening, targeting the centermost member of the enemy party. As always, try to string together a good Mist chain so you trigger the follow-up Concurrence attack that can damage the entire enemy party.

As the fight continues, the Mandragoras follow a pattern. They all attack at once, then when they take damage, they all scatter in multiple directions to regenerate and heal. If your Quickenings didn’t wipe them out, cast Dispel on any survivors and wipe them out one by one. You may need to chase the targets a bit, especially when they run off to heal. When this occurs, stay close to them until you can hit them with a series of physical hits.

Overall, the key is to avoid fighting all five Mandragoras at once. Their combined attacks can decimate your party quickly.

Remember, the Mandragora bosses were a mark for a hunt you agreed to do. Return to the Archadian Wayfarer in the Chosen Path of the Tchita Uplands to receive a reward: 1000 gil and three Remedies! Heal and save at the crystal, then return to the Hall of Lambent Darkness (where you fought the Mandragora bosses) in the Sochen Cave Palace.

Defeat the Crystalbug

Exit the Hall of Lambent Darkness via either side door (east or west) into the Acolyte’s Burden area. Follow the corridors north to the Save Crystal… except, it isn’t a Save Crystal! Yes, another sneaky Crystalbug starts slinging Water attacks at the party. If you came here directly from the boss battle, your party may be depleted, so fight carefully. You may want to return to the hall and run around to rebuild MP levels before you battle the bug.

Actually, you can skip the Crystalbug fight if you want and proceed directly east into the main part of the palace. However, this is the last Save Crystal you’ll see for a long time, so it’s best that you hammer the bug into submission.