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SeanRobertCook In reply to ??? [2017-03-02 23:08:16 +0000 UTC]

My apologies for the massive delay in responding to you.
I haven't been online much of late. I recently lost my Mother and my Brother, so it's been a long stretch of isolation.
ANYWAY, please pardon my depressing opening there...about Griever?

Griever is a GF, you are exactly right. He is Ultimecia's GF, basically. She summons him at will, but for obviously much longer periods.
The second phase of that fight is extremely difficult, yes indeed. I hate to say this, but after doing this once, I found this fact out the hard way: if you aren't at a high enough level upon reaching Ultimecia's castle,
it is very difficult to level up your party members once the castle is cleared of enemies. Nothing to fight of any substance, so you end up stuck attempting that last battle at too low a level.
Proper levels for this fight, imo would be your characters in the 50-70 LVL range.

What are your character's levels, if I may ask? Do you have proper defensive GF's equipped (Carbuncle!)?
The first phase is basically learning her attack patterns, and rotating between blasting her, and healing, back and forth. (Curaga is your friend!)
Also, repeatedly recasting haste on your entire party, or at least the one attacking member, and one healing.

Another good summon is the GF, Doomtrain. Does moderate damage, and puts meltdown on her.
And a third very helpful GF is Cerberus for the Triple on your entire party.

The first phase is, as I said, a balance between hitting hard and healing. People will die, but having a dedicated healer, and focusing on your defense will get you through...

Phase two? Haha, it's pretty rough. You fight Griever head on.
Third phase Ultimecia and Griever merge.
The fourth phase is...well, you'll just have to get to it and see. It's pretty sweet!

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Arthas972 In reply to SeanRobertCook [2017-03-02 23:23:15 +0000 UTC]

Isn't it better to fight her at a lower level, tho?  The higher your level is, the more powerful the enemies and bosses, except in the Castle before the big fight.  I had to learn that the hard way with Diabolos.

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SeanRobertCook In reply to jacobscheyder [2014-07-21 23:20:23 +0000 UTC]

Wow! That's quite the compliment, and I very much appreciate it! Still, I'm even more pumped that you dig the piece itself, as Ultimecia, and really Final Fantasy baddies as a whole are some of my favorite subjects to attempt to portray.
Eventually I would like to go back and make a few changes, including repainting this at a higher resolution, as well as replacing the mathematical calculations around her spell with better shaped formula's. When time permits.
Thanks again for commenting!

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SeanRobertCook In reply to Meteora731 [2014-07-21 23:21:22 +0000 UTC]

Lol, no time like the present...or in my case, the past, considering how long it takes me to go back and reply. I'm so slooooow. Pardon me on that note, but thanks a million for the +fav!

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SeanRobertCook In reply to Blue-December-Sky [2014-07-21 23:25:07 +0000 UTC]

Well, thank YOU so very much for all of the kind words! I'm overjoyed that you like this piece so much. It really was a blast to work on, even though I was still using ol' Corel Photopaint and a mouse (no tablet! *vomits*) at the time.
Also, I'm so, so, SO extremely sorry for how long it took me to reply to your post. I'm terribly slow in far too many cases.
Cheers my friend!

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SeanRobertCook In reply to Of-Darkest-Fantasy [2014-07-21 23:27:38 +0000 UTC]

Thanks a mil! Yes indeed, Ultimecia was always extremely underrated in my opinion, although, she did make it into Dissidia! So she must've been doing something right, that sly, sultry minx! *eye-roll-chuckle*
Best to you!

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SeanRobertCook In reply to deathandrebirth [2014-07-21 23:31:30 +0000 UTC]

Thank you SO much for your great comment, and PLEASE forgive me for taking so damned long to reply! Arg!! I be far too slow at times!
I really appreciate your insightful words, as I certainly share just as intense a perspective on this amazingly powerful femme!
She has always been one of my favorite Final Fantasy "villains", not only for how wickedly original her style is, but for the primary power she chose to target and master: time. She's a slick one, Ultee!

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SeanRobertCook In reply to Eriin84 [2014-07-21 23:31:45 +0000 UTC]

Many thanks!

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Eriin84 In reply to SeanRobertCook [2014-07-23 10:10:44 +0000 UTC]

you're welcome

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SeanRobertCook In reply to Hybrid-Dragoness [2014-07-21 23:33:06 +0000 UTC]

*blush* Why thank you so very much! I praise you for your kind and generous praise!

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SeanRobertCook In reply to Free-Squall [2014-07-21 23:34:00 +0000 UTC]

Many thanks! I'm glad you're digging this piece!

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SeanRobertCook In reply to Finalfo [2014-07-21 23:35:26 +0000 UTC]

Muchas gracias!

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SeanRobertCook In reply to Exirc [2014-07-21 23:34:11 +0000 UTC]

Danke!

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SeanRobertCook In reply to Kujamaru [2008-08-20 13:37:00 +0000 UTC]

Not at all! Go for it, and thanks for the comment too. Really glad you like the depiction of ol' girl.

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Kujamaru In reply to SeanRobertCook [2008-08-20 22:34:59 +0000 UTC]

Haha, this is really freakin' sweet. You shall be worshipped for long for this...

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SeanRobertCook In reply to anasazidarkmoon [2008-07-08 18:16:26 +0000 UTC]

THANK YOU! Yes, most definitely for the complement! Mucho appreciated there, but also for being the first person i've ever heard mention the obvious connection between the Ronso and Griever species!
*Showers you with thuper-good shtuff!* Ever since i first saw the character in FFX, i started pondering all of the possible connections that could be explored between the two characters, but alas, it seemed a very overlooked thing. Anything from a direct genealogical link, to Griever being a sort of Deity or Demigod to the Ronso people, as many of the Summons/Espers/Guardian Forces have been. Other than those possibilities, it seems the only other option (that my feeble mind can recall anyway) is the general likeness of carryovers that is a common facet of all FF games.
I spose that's where the player/fan's imagination comes in, as it's simply so much more fun to try and find or make up those deeper links!

Thanks again, and best to ya!

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anasazidarkmoon In reply to SeanRobertCook [2008-07-10 04:24:52 +0000 UTC]

Woo, thanks for the "good shtuff" When I first started playing FFX and I first saw Kimahri, my first thought was "Holy crap, that thing looks like Griever!" And the idea that Griever was the original deity of the Ronso (before they converted to Yevon) is actually quite an interesting idea!

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SeanRobertCook In reply to Dark-Fenrir [2008-01-25 06:40:02 +0000 UTC]

lol, thanks a ton! Glad you dig this so much.

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Dark-Fenrir In reply to SeanRobertCook [2008-01-26 05:23:02 +0000 UTC]

No thankyou for creating such a masterful piece of artwork for me to enjoy!

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SeanRobertCook In reply to shizuka-coldfire [2007-12-08 06:20:56 +0000 UTC]

Eek! Are you alright there? hehe
Well, thank you very, very much. I must say, first time somebody has fainted around me.
Glad you enjoyed this piece though!

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SeanRobertCook In reply to tessra [2007-12-08 06:22:02 +0000 UTC]

Thanks SO much for taking the time to comment on this, and i'm very glad that you were able to enjoy it, as well as really look into the construction of it, if you will.

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SeanRobertCook In reply to aflowerchild [2007-12-08 06:27:30 +0000 UTC]

I couldn't agree more. While not my singular favorite, VIII has always been at the very top of my Final Fantasy favs list.

It did get a bad wrap, and i really don't see why. The most common argument i heard was that 1, Square deviated from the more classic anime art style, and 2, the game was too Sci-fi, or futuristic.

Both points made absolutely no sense to me, as compared to other, previously released FF's, it had no more Technology in it than, say, FF7.
And i really thought the art and style/look of the characters was unique at that time, and very, very cool.

Wow, a lot of late blabbing here on my part, but better late than never, eh? Thanks a million for taking the time to comment, and thanks so much for taking a sec to look over this piece.

I'm glad to hear that you dig Ultimecia just as much as i do. She is a definitive example of just how badass a Final Fantasy boss is supposed to be.

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SeanRobertCook In reply to TgirlValentine [2007-12-08 06:36:57 +0000 UTC]

Thanks muchly!
Griever IS a very interesting character. And just to mention a slight similarity (one of the sort that SquareEnix has become renowned for), you might take notice of Kimahri from Final Fantasy X, and his particularly strange similarities to the said FF8 summon, Griever.

Horn likeness (though a different amount), wings (though a different style of), half-lion race, facial and body hair, hmmm? Different, yes, but only in terms of being somewhat of a younger, far less matured version of the demonic giant that Ultimecia's summon was.

I've always thought of that as a nifty tribute to Griever. Anyway, cheers to you, and many belated thanks for commenting on this piece!!

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