Final Fantasy XIII-2 End-Game Walkthrough Part 6: The Archlyte Steppe Part 1

The Archlyte Steppe is home to dozens of unique monster types, many of which can be found nowhere else, and tons of unique items to boot. Upon finishing the story of Final Fantasy XIII-2, this destination may just be the one that eats up the most of your time. Prospective monster hunters should keep in mind that the four different weather conditions, changed using the weather machine in the Nomad Camp area, each spawn different types of monsters on the battlefield.

When you change both levers on the machine to up, the weather will change to cloudy and new types of enemies will appear in the Grave Ridge and Stonestump Wastelands areas. When the left lever is down and the right one remains up, the weather will be stormy and the area will be overrun by powerful Cie’th. When the left lever is up and the right one is down, the weather will be merely rainy, and new enemies will appear in the Clearwater Marshes area. Finally, when both levers are down the sun will shine, and new enemy types will appear in the Plains of Eternity area. Additionally, Long Gui will guard the Sanctorium when it is sunny.

The Cie’th who patrol the Stonestump Wastelands, Grave Ridge, and Clearwater Marshes areas when it’s storming are actually quite rare, so those of you attempting to fill out the entire bestiary will want to spend some significant time in that area. Overall there are six types of Cie’th that you should focus on here, as they can’t be found anywhere else. Each of these enemies also drops exclusive items that can’t be obtained anywhere else. The first of these six Cie’th is Vampire. Vampire can be found in any of the above mentioned areas. Despite their relative rarity, they often attack in groups. They will cast Woundga and Curse against you before pelting you with physical attacks. At this point in your party’s development, killing them shouldn’t be too difficult. If you are tackling these enemies before beating the game, however, they may give you some difficulty, in which case you should use the Strike Team  Paradigm, consisting of two Commandos and a Synergist, to buff yourself before beginning the battle in earnest. Then switch to the Cerberus Paradigm to wear them down. Vampires will drop Impeder’s Opal, which boosts the Saboteur Paradigm. They may also drop Potent Generators, which are very hard to find.

Another type of Cie’th in the area is the Varcolaci. Again, they prefer to battle in packs. They will use Miasma to poison your party near the beginning of the battle before attacking you to further decrease your health. Don’t bother using Deprotect on them, either, as they are immune. Instead, just focus on taking them down quickly with an offensive-minded Paradigm. Something like Cerberus or Devastation (two Commandos and a Saboteur) will work nicely. Varcolaci have a chance of dropping the Healer’s Emerald after defeat. This item enhances the Medic Paradigm.

The third type of Cie’th roaming the area is the Malebranche. These creatures are powerful, so watch out. Try to focus on increasing your Chain Bonus rather than buffing, debuffing, or inflicting raw damage. This battle has three stages. The second is Unrelenting Blade, in which the Malebranche will begin upping its attacks, using stronger techniques to take you down faster. Use a Paradigm containing a Sentinel to mitigate the effects of the Malebranche’s increased attacking. Upon entering the third phase of the battle, Peerless Blade, the Malebranche will begin attacking more fiercely still. Be sure that you have a Sentinel to draw aggro from the creature while your other party members pelt it with attacks. You should be able to take the Malebranche out with relatively little trouble. Occasionally the creature will drop a rare Berserker’s Ruby, which can be used to enhance the Commando Paradigm.

The fourth of the six Cie’th in the area is the Wladislaus. Again, these creatures often like to travel in groups. If you are lucky enough to find a lone Wladislaus, the kill should be an incredibly easy one at this point. If you run into a group, it may be a little more troublesome but ultimately no big deal either. Just be sure to watch everyone’s health meters, as the creatures will attack in quick succession and you can find yourself getting lower on health faster than you would expect. If things get rough, you may even wish to include a Sentinel in your party, just to distract them from attacking your other party members. Using Deprotect on the enemies can be effective, as you can take an individual Wladislaus out pretty quickly as long as it is weakened a little bit. After debuffing the enemies, switching from the Commando Paradigm to the Combat Clinic Paradigm (two Medics and one Sentinel) if or when you need to heal should be enough to end the battle quickly. Upon beating the enemies, you have a chance of receiving Supporter’s Amethyst, a material used to boost the Synergist Paradigm.

The fifth enemy wandering around the area is the Fomoire. This battle will consist of multiple targets, all of which need to be taken out in order to win. Use Deshell on the Giant Fist before switching to the Malevolence Paradigm (two Ravagers and a Commando) to stagger it quickly. Switch to the Commando Paradigm upon staggering the Giant Fist and attack with everything you’ve got to get it off the battlefield quickly. Now it’s just you and the Fomoire, although the monster will summon another Giant Fist to the battlefield if you’re not careful. In order to make the battle go by more quickly, use the Guerilla Paradigm to cast Deshell and Poison on the Fomoire. Continuously switch between the Guerilla Paradigm and the Malevolence Paradigm to keep your ATB Gauge constantly refreshed. Use the two Ravagers in the Malevolence loadout to build the Fomoire’s Chain Gauge efficiently while the Commando maintains it when it starts to go down. Stagger the enemy. Switch to the Commando Paradigm. Another Giant Fist may be appearing soon, but if so pay it no mind. Instead, Launch the Fomoire if you have the move in your arsenal, and use Ruin to keep it airborne and defenseless. After the Fomoire is defeated, you can mop up additional enemies as needed. Fomoire will drop the Defender’s Topaz item, which will boost the Sentinel Paradigm.

Finally, the last monster in the area is the Ispusteke. These creatures appear either by themselves or in a pair, but never more than that. This battle is dangerous for all but highly-leveled parties, as the Ispusteke has the Multicast ability that allows it to sling magic at you frequently. Every time you see this move coming, switch to the Tortoise Paradigm. The creature is very resistant to having its Chain Gauge filled, so simply try to hold out against its magic while you build the Gauge. Upon staggering the enemy, attack with everything you’ve got. Ispusteke will drop the Blaster’s Sapphire, which enhances the Ravager Paradigm.

Now you’ve beaten all six of the rare Cie’th that roam the Archlyte Steppe. There are still many more monsters out there that deserve your attention, though, so get moving to the next quest sets.