Golmore Jungle
(4) You need to reach Eruyt Village
but the jungle doesn't let you throughYour next destination takes you through the Golmore Jungle, which you can access from the NE section of Ozmone Plain. In case you haven't been there yet, you'll soon realize that the enemies like to inflict a lot of statuses, in particular Petrify by the Panthers and several at once, including Sleep and Slow, by Malboros, so make sure you have either plenty of items to help you cure these statuses, or all the white spells available at this stage. Otherwise, they aren't too tough, with the exception of the Hellhound which is potentially letal for you at this stage, in particular when it attacks in packs of two or more. Take either the left or right way after you enter Golmore, then take the steps on the side: both lead to an urn containing a map. Most of the area is not accessible for now though. Progress all the way NE until you come before a blue magical screen shutting the way - you'll trigger a scene at the end of which you'll find yourself in Eruyt Village. Two moogles will show up which you may recognize from your first visit to the Leviathan. One sells the map of the village, while the other sells plenty of useful spells and items. Check his stocks, in particular the spells. Soon enough, he will be the first to sell you the much useful lv 2 elemental spells Fira, Thundara and Blizzara. Once you're done, follow Fran's instruction and cross the village until you reach the very end of The Fane of the Path; a couple of scenes will follow, at the end of which you'll hae a new goal, the Henne Mines, that you must access from the Ozmone Plain
(5) Unexpected help from Imperials helps you
reach the Henne MinesSince the Viera haven't been so kind as to let you go through their forest at this point, you can really only go one direction at this point, which is west. Back to Ozmone Plain, in front of the sae crystal lie two soldiers who seem to be hurt. If you approach you'll realize that you can talk to one of them, who informs you his comrad is badly wounded and would need a potion. It's the occasion or never to go the good deed: give him the potion which will trigger a conversation. If you address him again, he'll propose to lend you his chocobo, which you'd do well to accept: going to the Henne Mines is but a short stroll from there. Only two recommendations before you go your merry way: there will be no save crystals in there until just before the boss, so saving now wouldn't be a bad idea. The other brilliant idea would be to stock some smelling salts, because not having any could cost you dearly....Once you're ready, hop on that chocobo and exit for the next area. Immediately on the left, you'll spot that yellow chocobo resting on the slope, seemingly out of reach; if you look at the floor, you should spot chocobo tracks heading further left: follow them. You'll end up outside the area as delimited on the map. Press ahead and you'll soon arrive at this part of the Shred you could spot but never reach before. Continue SW and you'll eventually end up in front of the entrance to the Henne Mines. A short cutscene sets a rather somber mood before you get a chance to enter....
Henne Mines
(6) Don't let the Jellys overrun you
at gate switchboardsHenne Mines aren't a very tricky area as long as you've leveled up enough - I would suggest the high 20s as a pretty sure ticket to success. Your main adversary throughout the area are of the bats type, Seekers and Redmaws mostly; apart from a couple of places where they'll attack in packs of 5 or more, they should represent no threat at all. Actually, it would be a good idea to chain bats between the North Entrance and the first part of Phase 1 dig - Redmaws may drop a few Ice Shields, which is an item that will come in handy in the next chapter; it's a very rare drop though, so chaining can increase your chances significantly. But let's take things one after the other. Soon after you enter the mines through the North Entrance, a field mark will appear above the head of the leader; it would have been easy to miss otherwise, but there's actually a gate switchboard on the left that you need to activate in order to progress further ahead. Continue to the next area where another gate switchboard is. Now you should know that you don't have to touch it: the open way on your right is the one you need to take to progress inside the mines. However, if you choose to activate the switch, you'll open two other doors - it doesn't matter which one you'll take as they lead to the same area, where you'll notably find an urn with the map of the place. But know that activating the switch will also unleash Jellys. It can be a good thing because you'll be able to steal useful Water Magicite and Yellow Liquid, both of which are necessary alongside Bat Fangs to exchange for a Loxley Bow and Bamboo Arrows. However, depending on your level, you may find their number overwhelming; be also aware that they love to cast Confuse on your team members, so keep those Smelling Salts ready for use. If you are in any danger, don't hesitate to escape. Once you'll switch back to open the main passageway again, they won't make another appearance. Progress through Phase 1 Shaft and Phase 1 Dig, where you'll encounter a new enemy, the Nightmares, but again they shouldn't be too much of a worry for you. Next place is Crossover A, where you'll soon realize that the way on the right is shut, with no switch in sight. Continue ahead then through Crossover B: you won't have many choices as several doors shut the way, and you'll eventually reach another junction with a gate switchboard. This time you have to activate it, and the Jellys attack (sounds like a bad horror movie, doesn't it?) in greater number this time around, so don't hesitate to flee if you're having trouble defeating them. The only door now open to you leads you back to Crossover A; don't worry, you'll almost there. Just press ahead then re-enter Crossover B. The exit lies all the way north: take it, and a short cutscene will occur before you discover the new area you're in has a save crystal - at last! Save your game and get prepare yourself for a big welcoming committee. When ready continue north....
(7) You must defeat Tiamat before you can
hope to progress towards ParaminaRight, so while the archadian team of workers and researchers left warning notes all over the place, they forgot to mention the most important thing if you want to get out of the mines alive: cave canem. Because franckly, what you behold just as you enter the Ore Separation area is probably best defined a mix between a big dog (think Cerberus) and a dragon....or something like that. Anyway, while it looks strange, it's name should ring very familiar to any lover of the FF series, or to people interested in mythology. Tiamat isn't as tough as, say, the first Demon Wall back in the Tomb of Raithwall, but it has as much HPs (49,993) as its size suggests, so be ready to face a long battle with plenty of healing to do. As with much boss and hunts battles, keep your team as spread out as you can to limit the impact of your opponent's attacks. If you've got any Black Belt, now would be a judicious time to put them to some use as Tiamat likes to inflict disable. Otherwise, it will mostly deal physical damages and cast Aero. It's very important to keep focus on healing as it has a tendency to keep attacking one ally until they are KO'ed - if you keep that member healed though, Tiamat will give up eventually and focus on someone else instead. As always it is a good idea to equip both short and long-range weapons, but note that it could be a real asset if your members with short-range weapons are wielding a one-handed weapon so that they could equip a shield as well to deflect Tiamat's powerful physical attacks. Finally, unless you're really overwhelmed from the start, you would be well inspired to keep your mist knacks for the moment when Tiamat becomes critical, as its stats raise significantly, in particular in defense. Hopefully you'll finish it off, which begins a series of cutscenes at the end of which you'll receive the Lente's Tear: the eastern part of Golmore Jungle - and what lies beyond - is finally open to you!
Coming next: Golmore Jungle (East) - Paramina Rift and Bur Ormisace - The Stilshrine of Mirian
