Homecoming of a Miserable Daughter

Homecoming of a Miserable Daughter^[1] is an optional chapter in Final Fantasy VII, the twenty-first chapter of the game, and the twelfth of act 2, Pursuit. The party arrives in Wutai, where Yuffie Kisaragi, who until then had joined the party with unclear intent, steals their Materia and runs off to her village. The party chases her to return their Materia. Thereafter, Yuffie returns to fight the Pagoda.

The chapter is first available when the party acquires the Tiny Bronco in "A Sleeping Village Dreaming of Outer Space". If in the party at the end of the chapter, Yuffie will advise going there for "no reason at all".^[2] The first quest of the chapter can actually be completed later in the game up until after "Mako Cannon Rampage" (and if completed while Tifa or Cid are party leader, they will have different dialogue from Cloud), but it is advantageous to complete it earlier for the rewards. Completing this quest also affects allows the player to avoid a battle with the Turks in "Mako Cannon Rampage".

The second quest of the chapter, the Pagoda battles, is for Yuffie's ultimate Limit, All Creation, and the Leviathan Materia. It can be done any time after completing the first quest, or if the player held off until the quest is no longer available. As before, there are benefits to doing it as soon as it is available for rewards.

Walkthrough[]

Landing at Wutai Area[]

After obtaining the Tiny Bronco at the end of "A Sleeping Village Dreaming of Outer Space", the party will appear next to Wutai Area, the island on the western part of the world map. Here, if Yuffie was recruited, the player can stop at the beach and head up through the island to begin the quest; alternatively, the player can come back later.

Shortly after landing on the continent and heading up the mountains further in, the party is ambushed by Shinra soldiers, and during the ruckus Yuffie escapes with the Materia. After this the player can no longer leave the island before having recovered their lost Materia; the party leader simply refuses to board the Tiny Bronco (or Highwind). Yuffie can carry 48 Materia at most (not counting materia she has equipped), so if the player has more, they will not lose all of their Materia, however, Yuffie prioritizes stealing high level and rare Materia first. A possible strategy would therefore be to obtain more than 48 Materia before beginning this chapter.

The priority is as follows:

On the way to the village, if all Materia have been stolen, the player will be unable to cast spells, and will be dependent on items and regular attacks. Aeris' Limit Breaks can also be used, but are only usable in battle. In the absence of spellcasters, it is best to bring party members with high Strength, such as Barret, Tifa, and Cid. Barret and Tifa in particular are useful for their Limit Breaks. Aeris can contribute Limit Breaks such as Healing Wind, but she has limited damage to contribute as her main stat is Magic. If the player has some Materia remaining, these limitations will be reduced and high Magic characters such as Aeris will be more useful.

Retrieving stolen Materia[]

Wutai village2 — Looking for Yuffie in Godo's house.

Once the party enters the village of Wutai, they must locate Yuffie, and the weapon shops do not agree to sell to the player before she has been found.

First, the player must enter the Turtle's Paradise bar on the west of the village, and talk to the Turks, who are on vacation. After this, the shop north can be entered where an MP Absorb Materia can be taken from the chest (the chest is blocked by a girl until the player talks to the Turks at the bar), and Yuffie will steal it after.

During the chase, northwest of the village toward the pagoda, the player can enter a big house where the village elder, Godo Kisaragi, resides. Talking to him four times will allow the player to witness a scene with Yuffie.

Yuffie is next found in the house southeast of the entrance (with an old man and a young girl inside), where she is hiding behind changing curtains. Finally, after this she is found hiding in the pot outside Turtle's Paradise bar, where she can be caught. After inspecting the pot, the two other party members will block the exits, and the player must hit the OK button to hit the pot until Yuffie runs out and is caught.

Once she is caught, after a cutscene in the pub with the Turks, Yuffie leads the player to a base of a house where she promises to give back their Materia. Regardless of which lever the player flips, the party will be trapped under a cage and Yuffie will escape. Cloud must free them by hitting the lever again. While here, the player can take advantage reading the sixth flyer in front of the room and then leaving the house, to then read the notice outside the bar, and get all 7 items from the manager behind the counter from the Turtle's Paradise sidequest (assuming the player previously read the other five flyers).

After this, north of the village the player can play the gong opposite of the house to open a secret passage way, where they find Don Corneo and a cutscene commences. An Elixir and a Swift Bolt are found in the room, and after this, the player must talk with the Turk Reno and must team up with him and Rude to search Da-chao Statue.

On the mountains of Da-chao Statue, Rude is found in front of a cave, in which the Dragoon Lance, a powerful weapon for Cid with eight Materia slots, is found. Don Corneo is found just south of the cave, and here, a cutscene commences, after which a battle with Rapps begins.

Because Materia cannot be equipped, Limit Breaks are the main source of damage here, and items the main source of healing (unless Aeris was in the party). If Barret was in the party, his Mindblow can be effective at removing its source of damage. Cloud's Meteorain Limit Break, if unlocked, can kill or at least deal immense damage to Rapps in one hit, as can Tifa's level 3 Limit Break, especially with multiple "Yeah!" hits. T/S Bombs are also effective.

After the battle, a cutscene leads to the Materia being returned, as well as the MP Absorb Materia she stole earlier. The player can then buy stock from the weapon shop, visit the "Cat House" to obtain the HP Absorb Materia located upstairs, and visit the pagoda with Yuffie in the party to do another sidequest. The weapon shop provides upgrades on all weapons available at this point but normal AP growth, which are the best available for the next few chapters.

Outside Wutai, after the quest, the Razor Weed can be fought, and the enemy skill Magic Hammer can be learned from it. Adamantaimai can be fought also to learn Death Force enemy skill, and steal the Adaman Bangle, which provides tremendous defense but only two Materia slots.

Pagoda battles[]

The Pagoda battles can be completed at any point in the game (either after completing the stolen Materia quest, or holding off until no longer available). Only Yuffie is playable, meaning some players may choose to complete it later in the game. However, there are benefits to completing it earlier for quicker rewards.

The quest entails battling five bosses one on one with Yuffie — one on each floor. After completing the quest the player earns the Leviathan Summon Materia, and Godo will drop the All Creation item.

Dying in these battles does not constitute a Game Over as long as at least one other party member is alive. Depending on how early the player attempts these battles, they can be difficult, but there is a resting place near the tower where the party can stay for free between battles. All bosses are susceptible to Poison, meaning Poison should be equipped. Buying Razor Ring for Yuffie can also be beneficial.

At all levels, for the first four fights, Elemental Materia should be paired with Earth on armor, and if possible, HP Absorb should be used with any Materia, paired either with Enemy Skill, Poison, or another Materia dealing damage. Counter Attack is also a good Materia to equip. A suggested low level strategy is to have Yuffie afflicted with Sadness, which reduces damage by 30%, have Enemy Skill Materia equipped with Big Guard, a healing ability, and to poison each enemy.

Floor 1: Gorkii. Using two Magic Hammers on Gorkii will prevent him from healing, allowing Yuffie to focus on damage.
Floor 2: Shake. Big Guard provides good protection against all attacks, making the fight otherwise straightforward.
Floor 3: Chekhov. Mostly uses Stare Down, which Jem Ring protects against. Otherwise, mostly has limited damage potential, meaning healing and using normal attacks is sufficient.
Floor 4: Staniv. Primarily uses physical attacks, against which Big Guard provides good protection and Counter Attack provides good damage efficiency. Poisoning is also very effective at dealing damage in what will be an extended fight.
Floor 5: Godo. Godo inflicts a number of statuses, including Sleep and Mini. A Bolt Ring should be equipped, and Gravity can be paired to Elemental, along with Transform and Added Effect, for further protection. Gogo can be fought with Bio2 (or Laser from Enemy Skill Materia) and Demi2 spells, as well as physical attacks when not under Mini, while Big Guard provides good protection. Near the end of the battle, Godo will heal himself, but if poisoned, this can be overcome with Limit Breaks and stronger attacks.

Godo uses the missable Enemy Skill Trine; to get Trine to all four Enemy Skill Materia in the game, the player will need to wait to challenge him until after they have the Highwind.

Citations[]

[1] Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Omega, p. 142

[2] Final Fantasy VII script § "A Sleeping Village Dreaming of Outer Space"

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