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When it originally launched over a decade ago and counting, some players fell in love with Final Fantasy 13, but others were torn on its linear progression system and less conventional approach to storytelling. FF13's divisive legacy gradually piqued the interests of gamers who did not experience the game in its heyday — and thanks to its arrival on Xbox Game Pass, those gamers now have a chance to see for themselves what all the fuss was about.
Whether you're just now joining Lightning and her band of fellow fal'Cie or you're a grizzled veteran familiar with the game, there's no denying the fact that obtaining the Adamant Will achievement requires, well, an adamant will. Not only will you need to fell a colossal foe called Long Gui with a whopping 16 million HP, but unlocking the opportunity to even try is nearly as arduous as the battle itself.
How to Spawn Long Gui
Touching down on the sprawling landscape of Gran Pulse for the first time in Chapter 11 is a highlight of Final Fantasy 13 for many players. Not only is the CG sequence stunning, but it symbolizes the moment FF13 transforms from a highly linear experience into something significantly less so.
No doubt one of the first things you'll notice is that Pulse is teeming with ferocious wildlife — the towering turtles known as Adamantoises most of all. Approaching an Adamantoise for battle before you're much stronger is ill-advised at best, but these giant beasts won't hold a candle to Long Gui. Spawning Long Gui will require several steps, including showing several Adamantoises that you mean business. As such, this fight is not for the faint of heart — nor, in all probability, for anyone who hasn't completed the thirteenth and last chapter of the game to unlock the final tier of Crystarium Grids.
Cie'th Stone Missions 56 through 62
Familiarize yourself with Cie'th Stone missions in Chapter 11. These are Final Fantasy 13's primary form of side quest; essentially, a Cie'th Stone will inform you of a particular creature, mark your in-game map accordingly, and you're off to slay it and report back. You'll need to complete a few Cie'th Stone missions to progress the main story at this point regardless, but it's good practice to try your luck with some of the others.
There are 64 Cie'th Stone missions in all. As logic would suggest, the higher-numbered missions frequently involve the toughest monsters. Once you've walloped the weaker fare and begin to feel like you've hit a stat-related wall with further missions, move on to Chapters 12 and 13. You'll be able to return to Pulse "afterward" (in typical JRPG fashion, you'll receive a postgame save file but the story will still treat things as though you've not reached the ending).
To spawn Long Gui for the Adamant Will achievement, you must complete Cie'th Stone Missions 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, and 62. This pack of fiends means business, so make sure that you do as well. Here's who you'll be up against:
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Mission Title |
Enemies |
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#56: A Toothy Grin |
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#57 What's Yours is Brine |
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#58 The Culler of Many |
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#59 Two-faced Fiend |
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#60 Déglà Vu |
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#61 I, Juggernaut |
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#62 Indomitable Will |
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So long as your party's progression through their primary Crystarium Grids is within striking range of being maxed-out and you're equipped with powerful weaponry, the only fight that can still give you grief is 'Two-faced Fiend.' Zirnitra hits hard and loves to reduce your party's stats to a dangerous degree, so wipe out the Ceratoraptors swiftly and then focus on keeping the team healed as you whittle away Zirnitra's HP.
Twice the Turtle Trouble
As soon as the above Cie'th Stone missions have been completed, the Adamantoises (and Adamantortoises) on Pulse will be replaced with Shalong Gui and — importantly — Long Gui.
Shaolong Gui will be well above your party's paygrade until their Crystariums are finished and their weapons are completely upgraded. (You'll want Tier 2 weapons at the very least.) Smart strategy and a little patience will eventually drop these giants.
Long Gui is a different matter. Shaolong's strength pales in comparison and you'll need to keep your wits about you at all times. If at first this feels impossible, just remember the golden rule: "Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance".
Of course, you probably didn't click on this guide for an overused quote from a former United States politician, so let's get into the nitty-gritty.
Defeating Long Gui for the Adamant Will Achievement
If you're interested in five-starring this battle, be sure to finish the Cie'th Stone missions beforehand. Vercingetorix, a swift and hard-hitting beast, will require just as much preparatory grinding as Long Gui; but the perk to fighting him first is that he'll drop the valuable Gold Watch accessory. The Gold Watch will increase battle time by 10 percent, which may not sound like much, but when you're going up against Long Gui you're almost certainly going to need that padding for the full five stars.
Regardless, the strategy is surprisingly simple. Like the Adamantoise and Adamantortoise enemies, Long Gui's legs are targetable. On the one hand, this is a bother — it means more things to smack around while tanking severe damage from attacks like Ultima, Earth Shaker, and Quake. But as luck would have it, these legs are the key to your success.
Endure Long Gui's Ultima. He always opens with it and it's always going to hurt. Heal, heal, heal and keep spamming buffs on your party because Long Gui's irritating Roar ability can strip you of preexisting buffs in a flash.
As soon as you can, summon an Eidolon to disable his legs. While they're disabled, hit Long Gui with every debuff in your arsenal. Deprotect and Deshell are obvious winners, but don't underestimate the value of Poison. Long Gui's HP being what it is, a damage-over-time spell like Poison is very appealing.
Now, drive his chain as high as you can. We're talking 900 percent or more. Finally, initiate a Paradigm Shift so that your party can dish the highest amount of damage conceivable before the big guy gets back on his feet again. COM/COM/COM (Cerberus) is the most common suggestion among Final Fantasy 13 gurus for a reason, but depending on your party's composition SAB/COM/COM (Devastator) may actually prove superior.
With Long Gui down for the count, the Adamant Will achievement is yours for the taking. Congratulations!