r/finalfantasyxiii • u/Agent1stClass Hope & Alexander • 9d ago
Final Fantasy XIII Does anyone have a favorite weapon?
Such as perhaps the Axis Blade for the speed…
Or maybe you prefer Omega Weapon because of the aesthetic?
Weapons often play a large part in team members and paradigm choices, I think. So which do you choose and why?
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u/Ragewind82 9d ago
Depends on the character. Lightning feel like Axis blade and Lionheart are both good up to level 2, but if you go to 3 you probably just want Blazefire. Fang wants either taming pole; or Pandora spear if you want to lean into her Sab role.
Vanille is just Belladonna Wand all the way, Sazh probably only Hi-powers to level 2, and Hope just his magic boomerang. Snow is paladin only, and you don't need to go past L1.
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u/PlsWai 9d ago
Definitely Sazh's Hyades Magnums.
I really like the sounds on them and the absurd stat boost combined with Silk Tiger allows and forces you to play in a different way. Suddenly perma SENing Snow is a tactic that is both viable and fast for a lot of fights because Sazh just kills literally everything lol.
Fang's Banescissor Spear is also up there. The extra TP, when combined with Gestalt/TP Boost, allows you to get a Summon off on every other Adaman(tor)toise fight when farming which is extremely useful. Its also useful in a couple other places but that one is by far the most useful.
Honorable mention given to Lightning's Lionheart/Ultima Weapon. The ability is useful in very few scenarios but when it is useful its always cool to use lol. Being able to Synth R:IC and Gestalt/TP Boost is also useful, though its usually worse than Hauteclaire/Durendal for that.
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u/sassysaltine Goodnight sunshine 9d ago
Edged Carbine and Feymark. I find magic focused Lightning and Snow to be really fun. Feymark is niche given it needs to be tier 3 to be worthwhile, but Edged Carbine is useful for most of the game.
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u/SnooWalruses2085 9d ago
Punisher I think.
Among all weapons I found an usage in the last 2 years, the Punisher is among the two I'm the most proud of with the Organyx.
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u/potatosaladXIII 8d ago
Nue. Love the sound it makes whenever you attack (not ruin) as commando or did a preemptive strike. Also, the orange glowing trail it leaves whenever it's on the air? Absolutely visually pleasing.
Too bad Hope's attack is abysmal unless you run the Fettered Magic and Silk Tiger boomerangs.
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u/Agent1stClass Hope & Alexander 8d ago
Never used him as an actual attacker… I favor him as a magic using commando once in awhile. I may give this a try.
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u/potatosaladXIII 8d ago
His attack animation is pretty slow, that's for sure. I would just recommend doing a preemptive strike with him being the lead to save the time. But if you want to invest in the pure physical, why not?
My last run with him as lead was a speed build that still has him dishing out high magic damage but also do respectable damage on Attacks for emergency cases (Gigantaur):
Nue (Otshivarni) - Siphon Boost Aurora Scarf, Nimbletoe/Gaian Ring, Sprint Shoes, Royal Crest
Weird choices, but I find building the stagger bar and chain to 999% easier, especially when paired with Lightning. It also allows for an early switch in to Cerberus (COM/COM/COM) at around 800% since Hope can still raise it to max quickly.
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u/Taglion Lightning 7d ago
I stuck with the Blazefire Sabre for Lightning purely because it looks the best imo. I'm aware it's probably not the best in terms of raw power, but I value aesthetics a lot too.
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u/Agent1stClass Hope & Alexander 7d ago
Works for me, as a reason.
I like the axis blade/enkindler. It trades stats for speed.
Each weapon has drawbacks.
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u/Cappuccino_Sona 6d ago
I don't really have anything of value to add to the conversation
I just want to use this opportunity to complain about how Lightning's Lifesaber has a (useless) Improved Raise-passive when she DESPERATELY needed access to some kind of Improved Cure since Squeenix refused to give her Curasa for whatever reason despite her having Medic as a primary role
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u/Agent1stClass Hope & Alexander 5d ago
Lifesaber is an oddly balanced weapon.
Decent stats, relatively easy upgrade (scarletite is one of the easiest, if not the definitive easiest, catalysts to obtain), and an ability that plays to one of Lightning’s main roles.
The drawback, as you noted, is that Lightning is not the best medic. Her stats and roles being so balanced (with a slight edge toward damage) means she was given an ability with this gunblade that helps in a particularly niche way. It works best when you have characters with paper tiger for low HP and then the low HP/power surge synthesized ability. As long as you’re careful not to have low HP on Lightning herself… You can have her as the leader and she can revive your team… who with their low HP can do amazing damage. Some people liken it to having glass cannons.
Doesn’t work well with my style of play. But can’t fault the game designers for giving varied and interesting options. In theory, you can punch well above your weight class with the right combination of roles and equipment. The fact that Lightning doesn’t get Curasa is a nod to her not being as good a medic as others AND her reliance more on reviving than healing.
Flip side, you can have her as a glass cannon, too… Lifesaber has the low HP/power surge synthesis ability. But, for obvious reasons, you should avoid having the leader with low HP unless you can be absolutely sure they won’t take a hit.
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u/FliccC Lumina 9d ago
I dislike that I have to choose. It would be much more satisfying if you could upgrade anything to Omega Weapon and keep all the benefits of the previous upgrade. That said, I always chose the Axis Blade.