Episode 1 Challenge 2 guide

[Lionheart]

Mods/Admins feel free to move this or sticky it whereever its necessarily and, yes, im finally doing it!

Challenge 2...the start of the Caves Challenges. Arguably the toughest of the Caves Challenges (because youre the lowest level). A small note before you begin, DO NOT drop any extra weapons or shields you find throughout the challenge. You will need every extra shield and weapon you can get for certain puzzles. Ok now we begin

Non TA

Challenge 2: Areas 4-8, Difficulty-Moderate, Recommended Team-3HUs (at least 1 cast) and a FO (no RAs because they just wont deal enough damagae and oftentimes you get noob RAs who shoot the nano dragons while theyre flying and no one else can hit them so it takes forever to be killed). Estimated time-35-40 minutes.

Area 4:
1)Begin by running out of the starting room and killing all the monsters in the room. Once theyre all dead, run through the South door
2) Have your weakest HU (or your RA if you have one for some reason) get ready to run to the South door when all the enemies are killed. Kill everything until the South door opens, weak HU or RA goes in alone and hits the rock to access a switch, everyone else, go back to room 1.
3) The person who went alone is hitting a switch to open the locked door in Room 1. When the door unlocks, run straight through the hall (dont take the North exit). Switch hitter, pull up your start menu and run like mad to catch up.
4) After getting throught the fun hallway with all the dropping pillars, youll end up in this room. Simple goal, kill everything.
5) Have your switch hitter from before and your next weakest person be ready to split up briefly. Theres a huge switch on the ground, 1 of the 2 weak people, stand on it. This lowers the blue laser fence in front of you, 2nd weak person, run in and touch the other floor switch (once weak person number 2 is through the fence, weak person 1 doesnt have to stand on their switch anymore and can catch up to the party). Weak person 2, head over and grab the items from the 7 or so boxes (there will always be a saber+10 in there for your HUs), then run out and catch up to the party.
6) A big room, kill everything, nothing special.
7) In this hallway, there is a pillar that is always down and switch on the floor which shoots out a funny symbol chat when you get near it. Memorize this kind of symbol chat, it appears often in cmode and its a sign that you should put down how ever many of whatever it is the switch is telling you to put down (in this case its one weapon, you can tell by the numbers and the little symbols, but the sword means any type of weapon, not just swords lol). If you choose to put down the weapon, the pillar rises giving you access to 4 boxes. Not necessary but hey, just be sure to pick up your weap when youre done looting boxes.
8) kill everything again, so far, so basic huh? Once the door opens, follow the only path you can take until you arrive in a room with a laser fence with two large rock walls on either side of it.
9) start attacking the rocks to the left of the laser fence, theyll break away revealing a switch to deactivate the lasers and gain access to the health ring within o_O. You exit out of the right side door (the east way, and its to your left if youre coming from the health ring). Take the warp.
10) Kill everything here, proceed through the unlocked door and warp to Area 5.

Area 5: Current time, around 9 minutes
1) youll warp into a big circular room, kill everything here again and the door will open.
2) IMPORTANT NOTE: Do not fight anything in this room, bring up your start menu and run to the north end of the room and through the wall there. Youll pass through and a warp will be there, take it.
3) Im gonna assign people letters now to make this easier ok? Have someone with a gun they can equip be Letter A, everyone else is just B-D. Have A stand on the first switch you see and shoot at the boxes, B-D run to the right of A and have B stand on that switch. Once C and D are through the purple laser fence, B can get off the switch and run around to the left side of A. C runs into the laser fence circle (which A is holding open for him) to collect the items from the boxes, once hes out, A can join B at the purple laser fence to the left of himself. D, while all this is goin on, hits the switch near the locked door to open it,then continues toward A and B to stand on a switch to let them through. Phew, no that thats done, proceed to the newly opened door and what awaits you? None other than the warp to Area 6 dont you love shortcuts!?

Area 6: Current time about 12 minutes

1) Kill everything, by now you may need to start sharing monomates if your team is having trouble
2) keep killing everything and exit
3) kill all, exit south (shoot the switch above the north door to open it and get boxes)
4) Ignore all the switches in this room and just run straight through.
5) Ok this is where those extra weapons come in handy. Kill everything, and the south door opens. Have one person go in with 4 extra weapons (if you dont have 4 extra weapons, your FO needs to drop their weap too) and place them on the switch. This opens the east door, go through it.
6) Kill everything here and go straight
7) straight through the hallway, dont go off to the sides
8) this room has 4 traps in it and 3 big rocks, hit the middle rock and go through
9) kill everything, exit
10) kill everything, exit
11) kill everything, warp to area 7

Area 7: current time around 22 minutes

1) Ok, this walkthrough has been very basic so far, but honestly there is just a lot of killing in this challenge. Area 7 is the epitome of simple, you just run straight through. Every room, just kill everything and exit opposite of where you entered, until you warp, then theres some minor details.
2) right after you warp, youll enter a dark room, the right way to go is straight but if you go north (with a gun or magic), hit the rock and open the path,there are boxes there.
3) This room is just like the health ring room in Area 4 (except with 2 traps in your way). Shoot the rocks on the left side of the laser fence and activate the switch to get into the warp to Area 8. Note: If you go through the wall behind the warp to area 8, there are items there.

Area 8: current time around 27 minutes

1) Kill everything and exit the only way you can go
2) Kill everything and exit through the newly unlocked door.
3) This next room is fun! There are 6 switches on the floor, and 6 laser fences. The fence on your right when you enter is fence #1, the one behind it is #2, and so til 6. the switches are set up like this < > 3 switches forming each triangle. The southeastern most one releases fence 1, the eastern most one releases fence 2, the northwestern most one releases fence 3, southwest is 4, northeast is 5, and west is 6. Send only one person through while the other 3 get the switches. Once the one person gets through, that person needs to touch the floor switch to release gates 7 and 8 permenantely and let the others through. Remember, just touch the switch, no need to stand on it. Exit west.
4) Kill, Continue
5) Remember those shields you were saving? Good, kill everything and have one person place 4 of them on the switch in the east door to release the north door.
6) Kill, continue
7) Kill and go through the unlocked door.
8) Kill, exit north
9) Hey alright, some thinking finally. Step on the floor switch and a prettly little blue flame will appear. ATTACK IT!!!! and keep attacking each new one that comes. After 3 red flames appear and get killed, the door will open.
10) Kill and continue north
11) kill and exit east
12) kill and, AND YOURE DONE

Estimated completion time: 36 minutes.
Oh and forgive me if my directions of exiting are wrong, im doing this out of memory . In almost all the circumstances i told you, doors unlock so just go that way lol.

[GOLDIE]

Once you have finnished the guide I'll submit it under your name

[Junon]

We already have a EP1 C2 Guide... with maps too...

http://www.ragol.co.uk/guides/EpyVpFFllAXcXBBSXZ.shtml

Thats not to say your guide isnt welcome

[Lionheart]

yeah i knew that Junon But Cmode is a matter of opinion so its good to have variety, plus people can use my guides in connection with the sites maps. Im also putting TA guides in my guides so thats definitely new info.

[Lionheart]

had to split it into two posts

TA time...

TA
Ok people, C2 can be quite the interesting.
Recommended Team: 4 FOs (yes, 4FOs, however that is quite difficult to get and i prefer TAing with my HUmar so obviously you dont HAVE to do 4FOs but the best times ive ever heard of have been attained by using 4 FOs. Since 4 FOs is so uncommon, ill write the basic walkthrough for that team here and a more detailed one for a more practical team after. The only thing you do is, know your elemental weaknesses for each monster, never use magic on the same monster as another FO, time it so your tp runs out right before the health ring on area 4, then you should be close to leveling, use your tp until you level in area 5 or 6, then start using fluids around area 6, die in area 7 and level in area8- the death and leveling can be interchanged depending on how your exp is looking. If each FO does this, you should get through in about 18-19 minutes!) Phew, ok thats done. Now for the more detailed guide

Recommended Practical Team: 2 or 3 FOnls, 1 or 2 HUcts
Good TA time: 22 minutes or less, my personal best: 21:38, best ive seen: 17:58

Area 4
to save me time, im not going to retype the killing and directions you exit, only specfic TAesque things you do in each area. Oh, and HUs, only heal when youre below half life (i know ive said this before but better to have it in more than one place), if youre really good at guaging your character and know exactly how many hits he/she can take, then wait til youre down to 1/4 of your life (however a critical may still catch you off guard and kill you).And anyone not being used in puzzles or getting boxes must wait by the door to the next room as to not waste time (thats why FOs never get switches, so they can be at the door and ready to kill the next rooms monsters).

1) immediately have the HUs give their scape dolls to the FOs. DO NOT have a FO hit the switch that opens the door in the first one! In TA FOs are automatically considered the strongest, most efficient killing machines your team has, thus, they should NEVER waste precious seconds hitting switches.
Make sure you get the shield from the boxes behind the laser fence. Other than that, FOs time you TP loss so you run out just as youre getting to the health ring at the end of Area4.

Area 5
1) By this time, your team should be close to leveling, if so, use no mates or fluids until you level. FOs, after you level, use your magic but sparringly enough to last you until the middle of area 6 so you can die for you TP. After going through the fake wall, break the boxes and get the shield. Continue to Area 6

Area 6
Now youre team should be feeling the stress, FOs drop your mates for the HUs, and feel free to die around halfway through this area for TP if you need it (if you still have fluids or are somehow about to level, good for you, youre good at conserving while still killing efficiently). HUs can start using mates a little less sparringly. Nothing really different about this area, just get through it quick!

Area 7
Ok this area only has one special thing about it, get the boxes behind the wall behind the warp to area 8, theres at least 2 shields there. And remember, unless it requires 2, only 1 person gets boxes while others go ahead.

Area 8
In the flame room, have people positioned where the flames appear (near the switch, near the door you entered from, opposite where you entered from and near the exit). In the room with the 6 switches, have 1 person be responsible for 2 switches only (like one person does 1/4, another does 2/5 and another does 3/6) that way you dont waste time by having more than one person getting on the same switch. Call out the numbers of the switches youre gonna hit, JP players will know what you mean. Other than that, just kill quickly and run.

With any luck on getting a good map and following my guide well you should get around 24 or less. Hone your skills and try again if you arent satisfied with you time. Hope this helps. TA may not seem very hard based on this guide but dont underestimate it, you need to know how to fight each monster a certain way which is something that is only developed over time.