Omega: Hidden Darkside Holy Ground FAQ & Guide (DONE)

[The Slate Scholar]

Apparently, very few people in this guild have actually attempted/beaten the sidequest Omega: HIdden Darkside Holy Ground. This is absolutely the MOST DIFFICULT sidequest of the entire .hack// original gaming series.

Also, because I view .hack//G.U. as about 10 times easier than .hack//INFECTION-QUARANTINE, this is the most difficult sidequest in the entire .hack// series.

To help with your trials and tribulations throughout this immensly hard quest, I've set up this FAQ & Guide. Though not particularly the most extensive guide, I hope it will help you relinquish Elk of his perpetual emoness during Mia's absence.

[Introduction] [Frequently Asked Questions] [Guide] [Party] [Dungeon] [Tips & Hints]

 

[The Slate Scholar]

<-=-=-F.requently A.sked Q.uestions-=-=->

Q: So what exactly is Omega: Hidden Darkside Holy Ground?

A: This is an extremely difficult quest that takes part after .hack//QUARATINE ends. Aura sends you an e-mail that (for once) is actually readable. Enclosed are the keywords Omega: Hidden Darkside Holy Ground. Upon entering The World in the Omega Sever: Lia Fail, Elk informs you that he received the same e-mail and would like you to bring him along.

The dungeon itself is 15 levels deep, the longest in The World, and riddled with Data Bugs. The quest may last anywhere from 2-3 hours to completion. It is extremely common for you to get a Game Over.

Q: So why would I want to do this quest if it is so hard?

A: Being a quest given to you by Aura herself, you know that it is going to have something interesting about it. In this quest, you gain access once again to Mia, the Wandering AI that Elk had devoted himself to. You had defeated her when she became Macha, and as a result Elk refuses to party with you for the rest of the game. However, the real perk of this is to once against gain access to the Wavemaster, Elk, and the Blademaster, Mia.

Another perk to finishing this quest is that FINALLY Elk and Mia will end you friendship letters. One of my main frustrations throughout the entire series was that Elk nor Mia would ever send me letters, regardless of their affection levels. However, after this quest is over, they both will send you the missing letters.

The final perk: you see the "True" Ending to .hack//QUARATINE. Yes, it officially ended after defeating Moganna Mode Gone, but this gives another ending, one that shows Mia and Elk as major characters. The credits will roll, and you will gain access to several items (serveral Backgrounds and a few Movies).

Q: What kind of monsters am I to expect?

A: DATA BUGS. Most of the monster portals in both the field an in the dungeon are Data Bugs. Very seldom will there be an actualy non-infected monster, even though there are many. In my opinions, you have about a 90% chance of Data Bugs and a 6% chance of a Normal Monster and a 4% chance of a Treasure Box. In fact, the only normal monsters I have seen are Madam Niagra and Dark Lord. Here are some of the monsters:

DATA BUGS:
A:ro*a Fe/th&r
$nder^mo
San=Hi/
De[th I$p^a&t
^u[G/&)
MONSTERS
Dark Lord
Madam Niagra
Mu Guardian
Psyche Vision
Astro King
Sand Mountain
Armor General
VlitraMaster

BOSSES:
Dawn Wanderer
Temptress Lover

Q: So...any Level Recommendations?

A: I suggest level 90-99. Not particularly because of the difficulty of the monsters (Data Draining simplifies most battles), but because you will survive MUCH longer with Red/Danger! Infection Levels. Apparently, being Level 99 allows Kite to attain much more Infection than he would at Level 80.

[Introduction] [Frequently Asked Questions] [Guide] [Party] [Dungeon] [Tips & Hints]

 

[The Slate Scholar]

<-=-=-THE GUIDE-=-=->

Alright the most difficult part. how exactly are you going to make it through the dungeon without dying? LUCK and LEVEL. If you are EXTREMELY lucky, there is a chance that almost every other portal is either a regular monster (usually come in packs of three to reduce the Infection Level) or a Treasure Chest (which reduce Infection level by a miniscule amount). By being at Max Level (99) Kite will be able to stay in Red/Danger! Infection Levels much longer.

[Introduction] [Frequently Asked Questions] [Guide] [Party] [Dungeon] [Tips & Hints]

 

[The Slate Scholar]

<-=-Party-=->

Regardless of who you want, you MUST choose Kite and Elk. They are both required because, well, Kite is the main character, and Elk wants Mia back. The third choice is up to you.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
MAGIC:

Kite (Twin Blade)
Elk (Wavemaster)

Tsukasa/Helba/Mistral/Wiseman (Wavemaster)

Pros:
By choosing the above party, you almost assure that you will receive the Final Blow in battles, and thus increase chances to reduce Infection level. Wavemasters always stay behind in battle and cast magic, usually preventing major damage. By quickly choosing Operation Recover! They will stop the spell and start healing HP and MP.

Cons:
MP will QUICKLY run out, causing you to pause in rooms to Recover MP. After running out, Wavemasters resort to Items or standing still. If a monster comes to them, they will beat it mercilessly, causing very minimal damage. The death rate with them is also high, seeing as Wavemasters usually have less HP than other classes.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
SKILLS:

Kite (Twin Blade)
Elk (Wavemaster)

Rachel/Balmung/Orca/Marlo (Blademaster)
Nuke Usagimaru/Gardenia (Long Arm)

Pros:
By using skills, it doesn't give many monsters time to react and attack. Blademasters use skills particularly quickly, and Long Arms have the advantage of Rapid Strike Skills and distance. Monsters will flinch/grunt more, and won't be able to use abilities to their greatst abilities, giving you an opportunity for a quick kill.

Cons:
As with Wavemasters, these two groups use Skills which consume a lot of MP. You will need to rest a lot. Also, you may have to play the healer every now and then, wasting valuable time. Also, these groups take hits frequently. If a skill misses, a monster can strike back and keep attacking until they regain their stance.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
SPEED:

Kite (Twin Blade)
Elk (Wavemaster)

Moonstone/Natsume/Sora (Twin Blade)

Pros:
Plety of Speed and Evasion. Monster's attack will hit less often. Twin Blades hit with quick and rapid strikes, and move around the arena well. The monster will be turning a lot throughout the fights, and will give you a chance for more skills.

Cons:
Twin Blades takes hits HARD. Having a very weak defense and a small amount of HP, they are very useless and die very often. Being rapid hitters, their attack strengths are divided amongst the hits. If their attack streams are interrupted, they can't well recover. You will more often have to be the healer while they fight, slowing battle down.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
POWER:

Kite (Twin Blade)
Elk (Wavemaster)

BlackRose/Sanjuro (Heavy Blade)
Piros the 3rd/Subaru/Terajima Ryoka (Heavy Axeman)

Pros:
Highest Attacks and Defense of the classes. They can take a hit and have strong Single Blows. Their skills are so broad that they hardly miss and deal massive damage.

Cons:
Very low Speed and very slow attacks. Their feet stay panted in one place through the duration of the battles, making it hard for them to dodge attacks. Their skills require a lot of MP, but they prefer regular attacks (unless given other instructions). Your wavemaster will have to spend a lot of MP on healing.

[Introduction] [Frequently Asked Questions] [Guide] [Party] [Dungeon] [Tips & Hints]

 

[The Slate Scholar]

<-=-Dungeon-=->

B1 North, North, West, North, North, East, North
B2 North, West, North, East, North, North, East
B3 East, East, North, North, West, North, East, East
B4 East, East, North, North, North
B5 North, North, North, North
B6 North, North, East, North, North
B7 North, North, West, North, North, East
B8 East, North, North, West, West, South, South
B9 South, East, North, East, South, East, North
B10 North, North, North, West, North
B11 North, North, North, North, North, East, East, South, South, South, South
B12 South, South, South, West, West, North, North, North
B13 North, West, North, North
B14 North, East, South
B15 South, East, North, North ---> Final Battle

NOTE: Bolded directions include battles. You will most likely get a Game Over on B 11, and if you manage to survive that, you will probably die on B 12. Hopefully, you can survive through all of this if you takes the tips below.

Boss Battles: Dawn Wanderer/Temptress Lover

To the contrary of this entire dungeon, these boss battles are actually quite easy. Just keep attacking until it transforms, and then rinse and repeat until dead. Make sure to have Elk be the Healer of the group while your other companion attacks/skills/heals/casts magic. It is up to you.  

[The Slate Scholar]

<-=-Tips And Hints-=->

<-->Whatever you do, never, NEVER, go into this quest with any amount of Infection level. Fight off the Infection level with normal monsters until Kite is completely Cyan. If you see a little flash of green, keep fighting. Go to Delta Server and attack mosnters their for easy wins.

<-->My winning party was Kite, Elk, and Helba. Solely because I like wavemasters and Helba was the strongest Wavemaster of them all. Your pary may vary. Some say to include Balmung instead.

<-->AVOID ALL FIELD BATTLES. Head straight for the dungeon. Regardless of if you start a battle, use a Speed Charm or simply run around to get out of the battle. Most monsters on the field are Data Bugs as well. Also, avoiding battles up here will save MP and HP for the dungeon.

<-->Some monsters may have a physical tolerance. In cases such as these, use Kite's Diablo Blades, which have the skill Dek Vorv. This skill allows you to physically attack the monster, thus saving MP.

<-->Always get the last hit in battles, both Data Bugs and Regular mosnters. This can be attained by immediately switching to "Operation Recover!" once the monster gets weak. Having the last hit lowers Infection Level.

<-->ONLY USE DATA DRAIN. Using Drain Arc, Heart, etc. cost more MP and cause the Infection level to raise VERY quickly. Even in cases of multiple Data Bugs, use only Data Drain.

<-->In cases of Multiple Data Bugs, only focus on one at a time. This will help in diverting attention from the other monsters while they wail on your friends. It will also help in getting the final blow in some cases.

<-->Your Infection Level throughout most of the dungeon will be Red and flashing the Danger! sign. However, do not give up. Kite can take a lot more Data Drains before Game Over. You would be surprised. Also, leveling up Kite to level 99 raises the tolerance to the max level. He will be able to take a lot more Data Drains at this level. However, some of the negative side effect of being in the Red Danger zone are:
Minus EXP: Destroys thousands of EXP, probably leveling you down to 96 by the end of the dungeon.
HP/MP 1: Reduces HP and MP to 1.
HP/MP 1/2: Cuts HP and MP in half.
HP/MP Full Heal: Restores all HP/MP.

<-->If you get frustrated, TAKE A BREAK. I got to level 11 on the dungeon before my first and second game over. I just rested for a day or so and came back. It took several times, but I finally did beat the dungeon. And trust me, you will feel AWESOME after beating it.
 

[The Slate Scholar]

RESERVED  

[The Slate Scholar]

RESERVED  

[SaiyanKev4]

i dont remember it being those keywords but i do remember beating it...  

[The Slate Scholar]

OMG ILU PPN.  

[The Ultimate Teddybear]

thanks for the guide=Dand Pink Plastic Ninja can you pm me the Azure Kite thing in your Sign?if not its cool i just really like it  

[vengeful retribution]

This quest was so hard, it was 16 floors right?
16 or 18 or something, i know it was a really really deep dungeon, and i remember fighting that bracelet thing from .hack//Sign (i forget its name, sorry sweatdrop )  

[The Slate Scholar]

It was called Guardian (the monster).
Data Drained it was called The Ring.

Bosses that were similar:
Dawn Wanderer
Temptress Lover

And it was 15 floors.