The Desert Prison

The Desert Prison is the sixteenth chapter in Final Fantasy VII, and the seventh chapter of the second act, "Pursuit". After seeing several bodies at the Gold Saucer, shot by a man with a gun-arm, Cloud Strife and companions fear that Barret Wallace is the perpetrator. Dio blames Cloud, Tifa Lockhart, Aerith Gainsborough, Red XIII, and Cait Sith for the massacre, who are subsequently tossed into Corel Prison below, where they must find Barret and learn more. To win their freedom, they are forced to confront the boss of the prison, Dyne.
== Walkthrough ==
=== Corel Prison ===
Upon arriving in Corel Prison, dialogue will take place as Cloud finds Barret, who then runs south to another area. The objective is to follow him there and talk to him. In this area, random encounters initiate against 2-Faced or Bandits. These enemies must be defeated quickly, as they can steal items from the party's inventory, but likewise, it is possible to steal rare X-Potions from them.
A save point is located in the main prison area. It is important to use this quickly before a Bandit steals valuable items. Aside from this, a few non-player characters can be spoken to, and in the bottom-left of the screen, an inn is located in the truck. Barret is found in the Old Mayor's House located on the bottom-right. Entering his house will begin a scene, following which, a new party must be formed. Barret is a required party member, and the third can have an impact on date mechanics; choosing to bring Aeris gives a +10 boost, choosing Tifa gives a +3 boost, and choosing Yuffie gives a +2 boost.
Update the equipment and Materia of the party, then head north to the desert. On these screens, Land Worms appear, a powerful enemy that should only be fought for level grinding. If the party is lost, a Chocobo carriage appears to return the player to the start. The fastest route is heading northwest to a screen that is divided into west and east halves by a fence, and the east half is further divided by a canyon. Use a gate in the fence to enter the northeast quarter and continue heading east to a junkyard. Another way to proceed is heading north through the series of repeating desert screens. Continuing north through the desert without straying from the path will lead to the objective. Eventually, they will reach a screen divided by a canyon, and heading east will lead to the same junkyard.
In the junkyard, Bullmotors and Death Claws appear, both valuable for the Enemy Skill Materia. Bullmotors can teach Matra Magic if it was not already learned, while Death Claws can teach Laser, a powerful attack that deals damage equivalent to half an enemy's HP at a relatively low MP cost. Using the Manipulate Materia provided by Cait Sith, it is possible to force them to teach the skill. In addition, Platinum Bangles, a worthwhile piece of armor with double AP growth, can also be stolen from Death Claw.
From the junkyard, heading north will begin a boss battle, fought only by Barret. Prepare Materia for him, as below:
=== Dyne boss battle ===
As Barret fights the battle alone, he should be given Restore Materia to heal himself. Poison Materia is also extremely useful, as Dyne is not immune to the Poison status, meaning it can deal damage to him over time. If Barret is using the Atomic Scissors, he should also be given the Long Range Materia so he can remain in the back row and take less damage.
Dyne's attacks are all physical, and are mostly variations on the same effect. Barret should play defensively, curing himself often, using normal attacks when possible, and using Limit Breaks against Dyne when they are available. Casting Bio is effective to deal damage over time.
=== Chocobo race for freedom ===
After defeating Dyne, a short scene takes place following which Cloud travels by elevator with Ester up to the Chocobo Square in the Gold Saucer. Make sure to pick up the Ramuh Materia at the jockeys' dressing room, as the party can't ever return to this area. After a short while, Cloud will enter a Chocobo race.
When controlling the Chocobo, the player can switch between Auto and Manual control. Manual control is superior, giving full control over the Chocobo. The player can speed the Chocobo up, slow down, or sprint, but must manage the stamina gauge. If a Chocobo loses stamina, they will walk slowly for the rest of the race, making it near-unwinnable.
The optimum strategy for winning is to sprint a little at the start, keep a steady pace for most of the track, and then sprint in the last third up to the finish line. The first Chocobo given will be fairly weak, though Esther will give a better Chocobo with more stamina if the first race is lost. This gives more room to sprint at the start, while still conserving stamina for the final sprint at the halfway point.
After finishing, Cloud is awarded a buggy, and can reform the party.
=== World map ===
Cloud will return to the world map on the buggy that grants access to some impassable terrain. While driving it, random encounters still trigger, allowing access to the desert monsters in the middle of the Gold Saucer Area in case some Enemy Skills were missed while in the prison; the town portion of the prison is permanently inaccessible, however.
Before traveling to the next destination, this is a good opportunity to learn some valuable abilities for the Enemy Skill Materia. Big Guard and Aqualung, two of the best abilities in the game, can both be learned at the Gold Saucer Area: Big Guard on the beaches from Beachplugs, and is an extremely useful defensive ability that provides Haste, Barrier, and MBarrier to the party; and Aqualung from Harpy when driving the buggy across the desert on the world map, a Water-elemental attack that serves as a more powerful version of Matra Magic. For Big Guard, the Manipulate Materia is required to learn it, as one must manipulate the Beachplug to get it to use Big Guard on the party.
In addition to these skills, two more can be learned on the eastern continent. Through Costa del Sol, Cloud can stowaway on the cargo ship to Junon for 100 gil, bringing the buggy along by driving it into the town. From here, a Zemzelett can be fought in Junon Area, and using Manipulate allows the party to learn White Wind, an enemy skill that restores health and cures all status abnormalities from the party.
Driving north of Junon past a river to a cave leads to the old man's house; talking to the old man here when the tens and ones digits of the number of fights the player has fought match earns the Bolt Ring accessory, or the Mythril item (which is necessary for Aeris's ultimate Limit Break manual later). Getting the Bolt Ring is also useful against the tough Materia Keeper boss later on.
Further on the eastern continent, traveling back through the Mythril Mine finds the Midgar Zolom who is now a much less considerable threat, especially when casting Big Guard and equipping Fire Ring, and the devastatingly powerful Enemy Skill Beta can be learned from it. Fort Condor also has new Condor War battles. If the party fought all previous battles, the reward now is a Megalixir.
To proceed to the next chapters, traveling south from the Gold Saucer to Gongaga begins the optional chapter "Gongaga, the Village of Sadness", where a number of powerful Materia and some valuable equipment can be obtained. The mandatory objective is to travel to Cosmo Canyon for "In the Land of the Study of Planet Life", located southwest.
== Citations ==
Category:Chapters in Final Fantasy VII