In some RPGs, each party member has their own unique quest for an ultimate weapon. Think, for example, of the sigils in Final Fantasy 10 or the various trials described in Tales of Symphonia. Others, such as Legend of Mana and Dragon Age: Inquisition, eschew the idea of singular ultimates to allow players to craft increasingly all-powerful pieces.
Paths of Zero falls somewhere in the middle of both extremes. Each of the four main characters has a special weapon, but they are so scarce that you can only get one per playthrough. With that (significant) caveat behind us, here’s how to get the best weapons in the game.
Obtaining the Zemuria Stone
Here’s the kicker – you’ll need four Zemuria stones to forge the ultimate weapons of all four party members, but you can only acquire one Zemuria Stone per playthrough. Those are rough tides. Of course, it means that if you want all four ultimate weapons, you’ll have to replay Trails from Zero three times. If you are committed enough, be our guest. If not, we can’t blame you.
With the big asterisk out of the way, how exactly are you going to get that one Zemuria Stone per run? A word: Imelda. Or rather: collect all chapters of ‘Back Alley Doctor Glenn’, pass them on to Imelda and then give them to Imelda.’ But that’s 20 words, which isn’t nearly as catchy.
If you’ve been playing Trails from Zero for at least a few hours, chances are you’ve played at least one chapter of Back Alley Doctor Glenn. With 14 parts scattered throughout the game, you’re sure to find a few in stores.
Instead of writing things down here, we invite you to consult our guide on find any book in Trails from Zero so you know where to go for all 14.
This is more of a pat on the back than a real one tip, but if you find out by clicking the link above that you’ve already missed at least one chapter of ‘Back Alley Glenn’, please don’t lose heart. Trails games are notorious for their extremely slim odds regarding missables of all kinds, and this sprawling set of volumes is one of the most egregious examples.
Take comfort in the knowledge that the characters’ penultimate weapons are still powerful enough, if you will. If you jump into New Game Plus, go ahead and try again.
With the Zemuria Stone in your inventory, go to Imelda’s antique shop during the last chapter of the story. You can do this from the moment you take control of the team, so it’s best not to put it off or you’ll forget about it later on.
Swap the stone for an ultimate weapon
Continue through the last chapter until you reach the point where the story sends you to the IBC for a series of events, including the big bonding scene with one of Lloyd’s co-workers.
Once you are able to take the elevator to the first floor you will see Guillame from the Downtown District has taken up his position here. Not only does Guillame offer multiple standard Crossbell services, including Genten’s Quartz options; but if you bought a Zemuria stone from Imelda, he can forge one ultimate weapon for you.
Choose your weapon receiver
Choosing just one ultimate weapon is a tough decision to make. All four have great stats, with Lloyd’s and and Elie’s sacrificing the chance of bonus status in favor of stats even higher than Tio and Randy’s.
While they may seem attractive because of that, keep in mind that the strength bonus between Lloyd’s second best weapon, the Defender in the Sun Fort, is only 15 points lower than his ultimate. Plus, Elie’s is also only 15 points, with the biggest drawback being that the second best weapon lacks the incredible +100 percent improvement in accuracy.
Randy’s is also a 15 point increase, but he has a one in five chance of burning the enemy. If you’ve equipped it with Quartz like, well, Burn, you can boost that so enemies regularly undergo this awesome debuff.
However, Tio is the best choice. Not only is her power increased by 25, but the power of her art gains another 20 points, and her already great reach has been improved by two. Most importantly, she has a one in five chance of killing the enemy instantly.
While most bosses are immune to the Deathblow effect, this is still incredible for wiping out regular battles. In our estimation, then we would rank Tio’s first, Randy’s second, and then Lloyd’s and Elie last. If you plan on playing the game often enough to get them all, here’s our formal recommendation. Feel free to do whatever you want of course!
0 Comments