How to Beat Deathgaze & Hades

Deathgaze & Hades

Final Fantasy IX offers a wealth of optional challenges for those seeking to truly master the game. Among the most formidable are Deathgaze, a recurring aerial menace, and Hades, the enigmatic master of the deepest reaches of Memoria. Conquering these foes requires careful preparation, strategic party composition, and a deep understanding of their unique abilities. This guide will provide comprehensive strategies to help you emerge victorious.

Deathgaze: The Sky Terror

Deathgaze is a unique optional boss that you will encounter multiple times while flying the Hilda Garde 3 airship across the world map. Each encounter is a separate battle, and its HP carries over between fights. The key to defeating Deathgaze is persistence and proper status effect management.

Location & Trigger

• Location: Random encounters while flying the Hilda Garde 3 airship over the world map.
• Trigger: Simply fly around the world map after obtaining the Hilda Garde 3. Deathgaze will randomly initiate battle.

Recommended Party & Abilities

Deathgaze has no elemental weaknesses, so focus on high damage output and robust status protection. A balanced party is ideal.

• Zidane: Essential for stealing rare items. Focus on physical attacks with Soul Blade if you have a status-inflicting weapon, or Thievery for consistent damage.
• Steiner: High physical damage with Minus Strike (if his HP is low) or Shock. Combine with Vivi for Sword Magic for elemental damage (though Deathgaze has no weakness, it's still good damage).
• Vivi: Focus on high-level black magic like Firaga, Blizzaga, Thundaga, or Doomsday (if you have it and are prepared for Dark absorption). Focus before casting.
• Dagger/Eiko: Crucial for healing and support. Curaga, Full-Life, and Protect/Shell are vital. Eiko's Madeen summon is powerful. Dagger's Bahamut or Ark can also deal significant damage.
• Freya: Dragon's Crest can deal massive damage if you've defeated enough dragons. Otherwise, Jump to avoid attacks or regular physical attacks.
• Amarant: Aura for Regen/Auto-Life, No Mercy for damage.
• Quina: Mighty Guard for Protect/Shell/Haste, White Wind for healing, Auto-Life if learned.

Deathgaze's Abilities & Counters

Deathgaze primarily uses physical attacks and several debilitating status effects.

• Physical Attack: Deals moderate to heavy damage to a single target.
• Level 5 Death: Instantly KOs any character whose level is a multiple of 5.
  • Counter: Equip Auto-Life or Jelly (if available, though rare). Be mindful of character levels.
• Level 4 Holy: Deals Holy damage to any character whose level is a multiple of 4.
  • Counter: Equip Auto-Life or Reflect Ring (reflects Holy).
• Death: Inflicts instant KO.
  • Counter: Equip Auto-Life or Rebirth Flame (Auto-Life ability).
• Freeze: Inflicts Freeze.
  • Counter: Equip Clear Headed or Ribbon.
• Silence: Inflicts Silence.
  • Counter: Equip Loudmouth or Ribbon.
• Blind: Inflicts Blind.
  • Counter: Equip Bright Eyes or Ribbon.
• Poison: Inflicts Poison.
  • Counter: Equip Antibody or Ribbon.
• Trouble: Inflicts Trouble.
  • Counter: Equip Clear Headed or Ribbon.

Strategy

1. Preparation: Before flying, ensure your party has Auto-Life equipped on healers, and Ribbons on as many characters as possible to protect against multiple status effects. Clear Headed, Loudmouth, Bright Eyes, and Antibody are good alternatives.
2. Initial Encounter: The first time you encounter Deathgaze, focus on stealing. Zidane should attempt to steal a Robe of Lords (rare) and a Phoenix Down (common).
3. Damage & Persistence: Deathgaze's HP carries over. Don't feel pressured to defeat it in one go. Deal as much damage as possible, heal, and revive fallen allies. When the battle becomes too risky, use Escape or Flee to disengage.
4. Repeat Encounters: Continue flying the Hilda Garde 3. Deathgaze will reappear. Its HP will be whatever you left it at. Repeat the process of dealing damage and managing status effects.
5. Final Blow: Once its HP is low, Deathgaze will eventually fall.

Rewards

Upon its final defeat, Deathgaze drops valuable items.

Hades: The Lord of Darkness

Hades is one of the most challenging optional bosses in Final Fantasy IX, residing in the deepest, most hidden part of Memoria. He commands powerful Dark magic and can inflict the dreaded Doom status. Defeating him unlocks the ability to synthesize some of the game's most powerful equipment.

Location & Trigger

• Location: Memoria, in the "Recollection" area. After defeating the Deathguise boss, proceed to the next screen. Instead of going up the stairs, walk to the right, behind the pillar. There's a hidden path leading to a small, dark room. Interact with the glowing spot to challenge Hades.
• Trigger: Must have reached Memoria and defeated Deathguise.

Recommended Party & Abilities

Hades has no elemental weaknesses, but he absorbs Dark. Focus on non-Dark magic and physical attacks, and equip Dark-absorbing gear.

• Zidane: Crucial for stealing. His Thievery can deal immense damage. Equip Dark-absorbing gear.
• Steiner: Shock or Minus Strike for high physical damage. Sword Magic with Vivi is also effective. Equip Dark-absorbing gear.
• Vivi: Focus on Firaga, Blizzaga, Thundaga, or Flare. Avoid Doomsday as Hades absorbs Dark. Focus is essential. Equip Dark-absorbing gear.
• Dagger/Eiko: Absolutely vital for healing and support. Curaga, Full-Life, Protect/Shell, and Auto-Life are a must. Eiko's Madeen summon is powerful. Dagger's Bahamut or Ark are also strong. Equip Dark-absorbing gear.
• Freya: Dragon's Crest (if maxed) is devastating. Otherwise, Jump to avoid attacks or regular physical attacks. Equip Dark-absorbing gear.
• Amarant: Aura for Regen/Auto-Life, No Mercy for damage. Equip Dark-absorbing gear.
• Quina: Mighty Guard for buffs, White Wind for healing, Auto-Life if learned. Equip Dark-absorbing gear.

Hades's Abilities & Counters

Hades relies heavily on powerful Dark magic and status effects, particularly Doom.

• Curse: Deals non-elemental damage to all party members and inflicts multiple status effects: Poison, Blind, Silence, Slow, Mini, Trouble, Confuse.
  • Counter: Equip Ribbon on as many characters as possible. Clear Headed, Loudmouth, Bright Eyes, Antibody, Auto-Regen (for Poison), Auto-Haste (for Slow) are also useful. Use Panacea or Remedy to clear multiple statuses.
• Doom: Inflicts the Doom status, which causes instant KO after a countdown.
  • Counter: Equip Auto-Life on all characters if possible. This is the most critical counter. Alternatively, use Full-Life or Phoenix Down after a character falls.
• Judgment Sword: Deals heavy Dark-elemental damage to all party members.
  • Counter: Equip Dark-absorbing gear (e.g., Demon's Mail, Ninja Gear, Black Robe, Reflect Ring if you want to reflect it). This attack can heal your party if properly equipped.
• Bio: Deals Poison-elemental damage to a single target and inflicts Poison.
  • Counter: Equip Antibody or Ribbon.
• Flare: Deals heavy non-elemental magic damage to a single target.
  • Counter: Shell or Auto-Shell can mitigate damage.
• Shock: Deals heavy non-elemental physical damage to a single target.
  • Counter: Protect or Auto-Protect can mitigate damage.

Strategy

1. Equipment is Key: Prioritize equipping Dark-absorbing gear on all party members. This will turn Hades's powerful Judgment Sword into a healing spell for your team, significantly reducing incoming damage. Examples include Demon's Mail (Steiner), Ninja Gear (Zidane), Black Robe (Vivi/Dagger/Eiko), and Reflect Ring (any).
2. Status Protection: Equip Ribbons on your healers and main damage dealers. Auto-Life is paramount for surviving Doom.
3. Stealing: Zidane should immediately attempt to steal a Reflect Ring (rare) and Running Shoes (common). The Reflect Ring can be useful if you lack other Dark-absorbing gear.
4. Buffs: Start the battle by casting Mighty Guard (Quina) or individual Protect and Shell spells. Haste is also beneficial.
5. Healing & Revival: Your healers (Dagger/Eiko) should focus on keeping HP high, dispelling status effects with Panacea/Remedy, and casting Full-Life on anyone hit by Doom who isn't protected by Auto-Life.
6. Damage Output: Once buffs are up and steals are complete, unleash your strongest non-Dark attacks. Thievery, Dragon's Crest, Shock, Firaga/Blizzaga/Thundaga/Flare, and powerful summons are your best bet.
7. Maintain Focus: Hades can be relentless with his status effects. Don't panic if multiple characters are afflicted. Prioritize healing and reviving.

Rewards

Defeating Hades does not yield direct item drops, but it unlocks the ability to synthesize powerful equipment at the Hades Synthesis Shop, located in the same room.

The Hades Synthesis Shop is crucial for obtaining some of the best equipment in the game, making the challenging fight well worth the effort.