The Pharos at Ridorana.
Pharos First Ascent
Pharos Third Ascent
Lo, seeker in days unborn. God-blade bearer. Know you: this tower challenges the sky. Ware the watcher; the ward of the Three Waits, soul-hungry, unsated. He without power, want it not. He with power, trust it not. He with sight, heed it not. Rend illusion, cut the true path. In blood, Raithwall.
King Raithwall, engraved at the entrance to the Pharos
The Pharos at Ridorana (リドルアナ大灯台 Ridoruana Daitoudai) is a location in the land of Ivalice in Final Fantasy XII. It is located on a floating island atop the Ridorana Cataract.
Location
The Pharos at Ridorana is located in the far east of Ivalice, in the Jagd Naldoa region. Since it is located in Jagd territory, it is normally impossible to reach by airship, and the tides surrounding it make it impossible for normal ships to approach. Access can only be had via the Ridorana Cataract. The Pharos at Ridorana is an area of three ascents, that are filled with creatures.
The expansive tower consists of three upper and three lower levels where various puzzles and challenges need to be completed before access to the next level is granted.
Sage Knowledge
- For the Sage Knowledge on the Pharos at Ridorana, you may also see Sage Knowledge piece 68.
"Giant tower standing on an island near the Ridorana Cataract. Though not actually a lighthouse, a curious light emits from its upper reaches, piercing the darkest night, so earning it the name of the Pharos. Similarities can be seen between the architectural style of the tower and that of the ruins about it, but there are none who know the details of its creation."
Treasures
The Pharos doesn't have too many treasures, but the few treasures it does have, are usually good items. With the Diamond Armlet equipped, usually the item treasures are either Knot of Rust (common) or Elixir.
In the first floor there is a treasure in each western corner of the map. The northern treasures can be a White Mask and Crystal Shield, and the southern treasures can be Gold Hairpin and Giant's Helm.
In the areas above the player must build bridges by killing Brainpans. Afterward they can kill Deidars to build red blocks to build additional bridges to lead to treasures. Holy Rod can be found in the northwest of a map behind a red bridge. Behind the last red bridge the player may find two treasures. The other is a Duelling Mask no matter what, but the other one is Zeus Mace without the Diamond Armlet and Murasama with Diamond Armlet equipped.
In the first map of the Third Ascent, the player can open a fool's façade in the southeast to find Rubber Suit and Dragon Whisker. In the north and middle of the first map of the Third Ascent, also behind a fool's façade, there is a treasure that is a Circlet without the Diamond Armlet, but has a 90% chance of being the Ring of Renewal with the Diamond Armlet equipped. The treasure in the northeast of the first map, in the corner of a large off-the-map hidden area, is always an Elixir if it is an item, but contains 9,999 gil with the Diamond Armlet as opposed to only 999 gil without it.
Story
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History
The Pharos at Ridorana was built by the Occuria to house the power of all nethicite, the Occuria's creation, the Sun-Cryst. The Occuria gave the Sword of Kings to King Raithwall and told him to go to the Pharos and cut shards off the Cryst. During his visit, Raithwall engraved a message to the tower's entrance, warning all the future 'Dynast Kings' of the three guardians the Occuria had placed to guard the tower.
Reaching Pharos
Seven centuries later Princess Ashe is chosen as the new Dynast King and given the Treaty Blade so she, too, could go the Pharos and cut shards off the Sun-Cryst. The 'tower of the distant shore' is known, but no human has set his foot on the land after Raithwall, as the Ridorana Cataract the Pharos is located on is situated by a waterfall making access by sea impossible, and the Pharos is located on the jagd, forbidding travel by air - until skystones that can travel on jagd were invented by the Draklor Laboratory in Archades. Reddas, who accompanies Ashe and the party to the Pharos, has stolen such skystones from the labs, and so the party can reach the Pharos.
The Sun-Cryst
Ashe holds the Sword of Kings and the Treaty Blade to destroy the Sun-Cryst with them.
The party make their way to the top of the Pharos where they find the Sun-Cryst. Ashe intends to go against the Occuria's wishes and destroy the Sun-Cryst with the blade, but is met by a ghostly vision of her dead husband Lord Rasler, who urges Ashe to follow the Occuria's wishes to destroy the Empire. Ashe is shocked, and yells out she can't follow through with the plan, and is interrupted by Judge Gabranth. He urges Ashe to use the power she has to destroy the Empire that has stolen everything from her, and announces himself as the murderer of Ashe's father King Raminas.
Reddas rushes to block Gabranth's attack and reveals himself to be Judge Zecht who destroyed Nabudis with the Midlight Shard two years previously under Dr. Cid's orders. He wishes such power would never be wielded again.
Ashe realises the Rasler she used to know would never ask her to mindlessly destroy the Empire, and that the ghostly vision is nothing but the Occuria's mind-games. With the Treaty Blade she strikes the ghostly vision. Having been revealed as nothing but an Occurian vision the ghost speaks with an Occurian voice and urges Ashe to follow her path as the next Dynast King, but Ashe yells out she is no false saint for them to use. She decides to destroy the Sun-Cryst.
The Sun-Cryst exudes mist that flows out of the tower.
Gabranth, embittered by the Princess's choice, strikes the party, but is defeated.
Dr. Cid enters the picture and dismisses Gabranth telling him he is no longer any use for the Empire. Enraged, Gabranth tries to strike Cid down, but is blocked by Venat. Cid takes out the shards of deifacted nethicite he had in his possession and integrates them back into the Sun-Cryst, which starts to exude powerful mist. The party then fight Cid and defeat him.
After Cid dies he turns into mist that is absorbed into the Sun-Cryst. The reaction is becoming ever the more violent and the Sun-Cryst is about to burst. Vaan and Ashe try to destroy the Cryst together with the Occurian swords, but Reddas stops them, grabs the Sword of Kings from Ashe, launches at the Sun-Cryst, destroying it, sacrificing himself in the process.
The Sun-Cryst explodes, destroying the upper levels of the Pharos, while the rest of the party escape on the Strahl.
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Monsters
- Abaddon
- Bune
- Crusader
- Dragon Lich
- Brainpan
- Deidar
- Mimeo
- Undin Entite
- Chimera Brain
- Reaver
- Aeronite
- Cataract Aevis
- Purobolos
- Mistmare
- Avenger (Rare)
- Vishno (Rare)
- Tower (Rare)
- Hydro (Boss)
- Pandaemonium (Boss)
- Slyt (Boss)
- Fenrir (Boss)
- Phoenix (Boss)
- Hashmal (Esper)
- Judge Gabranth (Boss)
- Dr. Cid (Boss)
- Famfrit (Esper)
Subterra
Subterra is the underground area of the Pharos which is available to explore after the upper levels have been completed.
Map
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