Alexandria Castle (Disc 2)

FINAL FANTASY IX guide · The rescue mission for Dagger

Zidane, Vivi, and Freya infiltrate Alexandria Castle to rescue Princess Garnet from Queen Brahne, Zorn, and Thorn. After meeting up with Steiner and Marcus, the party must navigate the castle interior, descend into the underground chamber within a strict 30-minute time limit, and defeat the jesters to save Garnet. Escaping the castle leads into the basement, an encounter with Beatrix, and a frantic retreat through the dungeon gargoyles.

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Ice Brand: In the underground ritual chamber where Dagger is held, inside a chest on the left sideTent: In the underground ritual chamber where Dagger is held, inside a chest on the right sidePhoenix Pinion: Chest in the guardhouse/dungeon area

Secrets

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Running Blood Sword: While Marcus and Steiner navigate down to the lower floors to break out, Marcus can earn Steiner immense amounts of bonus EXP through the Marcus/Eiko stat bug if players choose to grind before proceeding.

Enemies

Zorn

Steal / drop Partisan, Stardust Rod

Absorbs light; casts magic only after receiving power from Thorn, which can be interrupted by hitting him.

Thorn

Steal / drop Mythril Armor, Mythril Vest

Absorbs dark; passes power to Zorn to set up high-tier magic attacks; attack him when he receives power to disrupt the combo.

Beatrix

Steal / drop Survival Vest, Ice Brand, Phoenix Down

Climhazzard reduces everyone to 1 HP to end the battle once her HP is drained or after a set number of turns.

Bandersnatch

Weak to Fire

Can cast Sleep and inflict physical damage during the castle escape sequences.

Type C

Weak to Thunder

Mechanical mages encountered in the hallways and spiral stairs.

Tips

You have exactly 30 minutes from the moment Steiner and Marcus join up until you reach Dagger in the basement altar room; avoid getting lost and skip unnecessary random encounters to save time.
During the boss fight against Zorn and Thorn, damage whichever jester has just been empowered by the other to prevent them from casting Flare or Meteor.
Equip Zidane with the Bandit ability before fighting Beatrix to make stealing her Ice Brand and Survival Vest significantly easier before she ends the fight.
You do not need to defeat both Zorn and Thorn to end the battle; focus all single-target attacks on just one of them until it falls.

Not listed for this area: shops and people.

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Alexandria (Disc 2)

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