Game:

Final Fantasy XIII (2009)

Duration: 5:22

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4

This playthrough is made in celebration of Snow's addition to Dissidia Final Fantasy!

Here's the second battle against Barthandelus. Sorry this took so long. I was thinking of re-recording this fight for a more perfect run, but then I was sick for a whole week. Also, this fight seems to lag no matter what I do. I tried turning the framerate down, the bitrate, nothing worked. I was also going to re-record this for a better-looking run, but I figured this run is good enough for other reasons. And the camera goes crazy sometimes. Sorry. This took forever to strategize and it's been long enough.

Weapon: Save the Feymark ★
Accessories: Wurzite Bangle ★, Magistral Crest ★ (x2)
Crystarium Level: Stage 8 (Max)

I used a Trainer to hack in Gil and CP to minimize grinding. Hope and Sazh are at Stage 7 Crystarium (Primary) and have their Paper Tiger Weapons equipped. I also taught them Provoke so that they wouldn't rebuff me after I Summon, but Thanatosian Laughter ensured that I technically didn't need to, lol.

-- Strategy --

Barthandelus is immune to Launch, so might as well stick to magic. The only attack that needs to be Evaded is Apoptosis, and we can just Summon for that, since we're in a rush to beat him within 5 minutes anyway. So, no need for Nimbletoe Boots.

Thus, we have 2 Commando Roles and 2 Ravager Roles (to make use of the ATB Refresh), a Saboteur, and a Medic.

As usual, start in COM to use Powerchain. Then switch to SAB and apply Slow. Then, switch to RAV and build Chain until you reach about 185%. Switch to MED and heal up to max HP.

Snow knows Adrenaline, which gives him a 20% damage bonus as a Commando when his HP is above 70%. We want to keep him above 70% as often as possible, and that's why he has a Wurzite Bangle. The Magistral Crests and the Feymark make his Magic so high that healing should be very fast. This was, by far, the most effective method I developed.

Once you're at max HP, switch to COM and just keep using Ruin. You want to make sure that the Chain Gauge isn't too high, or else you can Stagger him earlier than necessary. We want to take full advantage of the high Chain and Adrenaline.

Once you see 4 faces appear, switch to MED and heal to max HP before switching to SAB and applying Slow again, sending Barthandelus into Stagger. Once you've stuck Slow (hopefully within 1 or 2 queues), switch to COM and use Ruin. Don't bother building the Chain more, and don't bother healing if your HP drops below 70%. The damage is more important, especially in this first Stagger, which may end a bit early if Barthandelus transforms.

As soon as he transforms, immediately switch to SAB and use Quake. Then, get ready to Summon. Do so right before Apoptosis hits, so that you Evade the attack. Then, apply Slow. Once you've done that, switch to COM and just keep using Ruin. Nix and Stiria will build the Chain and heal you and remove status ailments. Don't bother with Gestalt mode because there is no time. Just keep using Ruin, no matter what. Once the SP gauge runs out, your allies will come back and might get hit by Thanatosian Laughter. You may need to heal if it hits you after the Summon. If the Stagger runs out before the fight ends, stay in COM and just keep using Ruin until it's over. And obviously, use items to Dispel any debuffs that hit you. Veil will keep you safe, most of the time.

-- Notes --

This is the best strategy I could come up with. The Wurzite Bangle's extra HP helps tremendously for keeping the Adrenaline bonus active as long as possible without frequent need for healing. Scourge was useless because it hits the damage limit (twice with good timing), and I don't have a Genji Glove. I also opted for Summoning instead of the Nimletoe Boots because (1) it's easier, (2) I can abandon the Sentinel Role, and (3) I need to finish the fight within 5 minutes so that I don't lose Haste and Veil.

This is not a "perfect" run. In a "perfect" run of this fight, you block every status ailment and apply Slow within one queue, every time. Additionally, you can finish the fight during Stagger. I did this once in a practice run, off-camera. The fastest time I finished this fight was in 3 minutes and 55 seconds.

I suppose in an ideal situation, you don't achieve Stagger until after Shiva has left. This happened to me once, and the end of the fight was much easier. On the other hand, if Barthandelus still has a lot of HP after this second Stagger, you can use your 1 TP left on Quake and try for another Stagger to finish the fight.

This was a really hard fight to strategize for, but I'm pretty happy with the outcome. Like I said before, I was thinking about re-recording this for a more "perfect" run, but I figured it would be good to show off a somewhat less lucky run so that people know what to do and expect if they want to try this themselves.

Thank you for watching!

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