Final Fantasy X/Mushroom Rock

This is Mushroom Rock Road — quite a contrast from Mi'ihen Highroad, isn't it?

Getting to the Command Center
The game will go into a cut-scene where the party learns the Al Bhed are using Machina to help the Crusaders. What an outrage! Seymour doesn't seem to care. After Seymour walks off and Wakka's faith has been shaken a bit, carry on along the road until you reach the junction (Make sure you talk to every NPC you find, as many will give you items). At the junction, Clasko will direct you to the left-hand path, blocking the right. So, no direct path to Djose just yet. O'aka's right around the corner before the next section (Note that if you've lent him Gil, he will offer you a discount). You are about to enter an area with monsters that cause status effects so it may be a good idea to stock up on antidotes, eye drops, and echo screens. Some good equipment purchases are the Magic Bangle for Lulu and the Metal Shield for Tidus, although you can afford to avoid them if you don't want to pay for it.

Carry on down the road. You will encounter some more new monsters here, as well as some returning ones from Mi'ihen Highroad (especially if you took the lower path):


 * Red Elements are elements like you've encountered before, just use their opposing magic element. Red Elements are Fire-based, so use Blizzard on them.
 * Raptors are lizards, so they're quick. As before, they can inflict silence and petrification on you, so watch out, the only difference this time is that they have slightly more health. Tidus can still kill them in one hit.
 * Funguars are a new kind of enemy. The most important thing when you fight them is that you do NOT physically attack them. If you do, there's a good chance they'll use Pollen, which puts everyone to sleep. One Fire from Lulu is enough to kill them.
 * Vouivres and Lamashtus are the same species of fiend — armored dragons. The difference between them is that Lamashtus have slightly more health. One hit from Auron is enough to kill either of them. Vouivres will appear along the early parts of Mushroom Rock Road and on Mi'ihen Highroad - Oldroad.
 * Gandarewas are another new kind of monster. They're aerial, so they'll dodge most normal attacks except Wakka's ball. Lulu's magic is somewhat ineffective against them. So, just hit it with Wakka and that's job done. They'll mostly only use Thunder.
 * Garudas are exactly the same as the predetermined battles against them before — the only differences are that they have 4,000 HP as opposed to under 2,000 HP and they appear in random battles. Use Dark Attack as necessary and it should never land a hit.

Head up the platform to the long, winding road. Follow it a little ways to a chest. The chest contains 1,000 Gil and the man next to it will give you 10 Potions (Ignore the inaccessible save sphere in a lower area. It cannot be accessed until you have control of the airship). Head down the road some more to find another chest further along containing a Remedy. Lucil and Elma will be patrolling this area, talk to them when you happen upon them if you wish and continue on until you find Shelinda. Talk to her several times and she will eventually offer to heal your party. You only have to talk to her one time after her initial conversation for her to offer help again. This is a useful thing to take advantage of if you want to farm this location for AP or Items. Continue on to find a chest hidden behind a rocky pillar contains a Hi-Potion. Once you reach the end, a rock column lift will take you up to the next area.

Talk to the guy straight ahead for an X-Potion, and then go around the pillar to find a lift to a lower area that contains a chest with a Serene Armlet for Kimahri. Head back up the lift and continue further ahead to a spiral path. Follow it to the end to pick up the Al Bhed Primer X. Back track out of the spiral path and talk to the crusader wondering around. He will give you 400 Gil. Then head north to take the next lift up to the higher tier of this area. Talk with the people surrounding the large lift for some more goodies. Before taking the lift head south a little for a few important scenes with Luzzu and Gatta. After talking to them, save and then take the large lift up to the Command Center.

After exiting the lift there will be a short cut-scene showing a large amount of cannons and Wakka protesting some more. Follow the red arrow as usual. In the next area, yet another cut-scene showing more of Operation Mi'ihen. After it finishes, use the save sphere and purchase items from O'aka if you wish, then enter the command center. (O'aka for some reason just got a huge bundle of equipment that's significantly better than anything you've got at the moment, but it's also expensive. The Avenger is the only thing you should really even consider buying, but at 6075 Gil (2835, if you've lent O'aka 10,001) it's not cheap, so it doesn't particularly matter).

After a short scene with Gatta you can talk to him again he gives you a few options that will decide his and Luzzu's fate. Then head inside and speak with Maester Kinoc, another Maester of Yevon. After the scenes talk to the party and NPC's if you desire, then check the top of this area for a Serene Bracer for Auron and a Mega-Potion. As the man said during the scene; the operation's going to be dangerous, so make sure you're prepared. Save again if you need to, and hunt down O'aka if you want to buy anything else. After you've made all preparations, talk to the man to begin the operation. The Sinspawn the crusaders have collected will break out of its cage… and land right next to you.

Boss Battle: Sinspawn Gui
This looks quite menacing, doesn't it? There are four parts to Sinspawn Gui — the two arms, the main body and the head. Each arm has 800 HP, the head has 4000 HP, and the main body has 12000 HP. First things first, you'll be up against a variety of attacks. The head will use Thunder on one person for about 200-300 damage, and Venom after it "starts moving suspiciously" which does about 300-400 damage and inflicts poison on one person. The main body can use Demi which knocks 1/4 off your current HP, and a punch of sorts which does about 750 in damage.

Now, let's go on to beating it. First of all, switch Tidus in if you need to and have him cast Haste on Lulu (providing she's in the battle, otherwise switch someone in for her first). Wakka should switch in as well. Tidus' next turn should be casting Haste on Wakka. Wakka and Lulu should both keep attacking the head (which is out of range of normal attacks) until you've depleted its 4000 health. Once Tidus has done his part switch him out for Yuna — she'll need to keep Wakka, Lulu and herself healed up until the head is defeated. The head is more a pain than anything else — it makes the battle easier if you get rid of it (it doesn't regenerate like the arms).

Once the head is down, bring out Auron and Kimahri. If either have full Overdrives then use them (Kimahri should use Fire Breath if he has it, otherwise wait until the arms are destroyed then use Jump on the main body). Switch Tidus back in to cast Haste on both of them. If he gets a spare turn use Cheer, or if he has an Overdrive wait until there's no arms left and use it on the main body. The arms will regenerate — when this happens simply use Kimahri and Auron's piercing weapons to destroy them again. Bring out Yuna once more to keep everyone healed. If Kimahri does less than 300 damage to the main body and there are no arms out, switch him out for Lulu who will be able to deal damage faster (especially if she's in Haste). If you're bored feel free to bring out a summon to help deal damage. Ifrit's Hellfire by this point can do about 2000 damage to everything, including the arms. Unfortunately, in the waiting time until Ifrit gets his next turn the arms will probably regenerate. However, magic-based attacks bypass the arms, so you can use this to your advantage to hurt Sinspawn Gui whilst you destroy the arms.

After you beat it, you'll get a pretty, yet disturbing scene of Operation Mi'ihen beginning. What happens is not quite what the Crusaders had hoped. Returning to Yuna and her guardians, you'll see Seymour wrestling with a reinvigorated Sinspawn Gui.

Boss Battle: Sinspawn Gui, Round 2
Exactly the same properties as before, except the main parts of Sinspawn Gui have much less health (apart from the arms which have the same), you can't switch anybody out, and you have Seymour in your party. Wow. Seymour:


 * Has all the -ara elemental black magic spells (Fira, Blizzara, Thundara and Watera).
 * Has Cura, the next version of Yuna's Cure.
 * Can do similar damage to Tidus and Wakka with a physical hit.
 * Has 1200 HP and 999 MP.
 * Has an Overdrive, which, needless to say, is powerful.

But it's difficult to get his Overdrive meter cranked all the way up without accidentally killing Sinspawn Gui because one -ara spell to the head overkills it, since it only has 1000 HP this time. Same goes for the body, which has 6000 HP. This is the only opportunity you get to see Seymour's Overdrive, but it's not really necessary. Either way, depleting 6000 health is really no challenge in this battle.

You could easily train on Sinspawn Gui's arms since they keep on regenerating; just kill them and wait until they regenerate.

Finishing this battle will trigger the after-battle results screen, but don't get your hopes up — Seymour does not join your party as the 7th member and you can't do anything with his Sphere Levels. Luckily though if you used everyone they'll all get a large amount of AP and a few Sphere Levels along with it, accompanied by a lot of Gil and Level 1 Key Spheres.

Operation Mi'ihen Aftermath
You will see yet another cut-scene showcasing the amazing power of Sin. How will they ever be able to defeat such power? At the cut-scene's end, Tidus will wake up on a small part of the Mushroom Rock beach and you will regain temporary control of him. Search the area (Don't worry about the Save Sphere, it is another you need the Airship to access) until you come upon Gatta. Alive if you told him to stay behind at the Command Center. Dead if you told him he should be on the front lines (Luzzu's fate will be the opposite of his). Sin leaves and Tidus runs after the beast. Everyone feels so lost. After the following scenes, Tidus is on another part of the beach. Save if you wish and head up toward the slope for a short scene in which Seymour and Kinoc leave. Collect the chest to the left past Auron for a Hi-Potion, then talk with your party members - leave Auron for last. Save at the Save Sphere and head up the slope to find Shelinda and O'aka. Shelinda will heal you again if you ask, O'aka is back to selling basic supplies. Both severely depressed. When done with them, rejoin your group. Kimhari actually speaks with you. Wow! Time to move on to Djose. On the road to the temple use Kimahri's Lancet on a Basilisk to learn Stone Breath.