You’ve finally fully explored the Junon Region, snuck into Junon itself, and escaped from the failed assassination attempt on Rufus Shinra. The next stop is Costa del Sol, but in order to get there, you sneak aboard the Shinra-8, a boat heading there. This page will explore the Shinra-8, give tips on winning the Queen’s Blood Tournament, as well as how to deal with the unwanted passengers.

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Chapter 5 will take place on the Shinra-8 cruise ship.

Aboard Shinra-8¶

The party gets situated on the boat and you will be free to explore, so take the nearby stairs to get to the 2nd Class Cabins. There’s not much to do here, though, but you can check the large rooms off to the side for some materials and two chests that contains 2x Antidotes in each of them. One is right by the door to the side room, so it can be a little easy to miss. That’s all you’ll find here, so head for the main lounge of the boat, where you’ll have a very brief encounter with someone.

Speak to your party members here, who are all going to join the Queen’s Blood Tournament, although Red XIII will have to be left out. On the outside portion where Barret is located, you’ll find a Fortification Materia sitting on the ground. You can now head to the main counter in the lounge and talk to the NPC with a marker over his head, who will sign you up for the Queen’s Blood Tournament.

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(1 of 3) There are two chests in the 2nd Class Cabins.

Queen’s Blood Invitational¶

The Queen’s Blood Tournament is fairly straightforward, as you will be playing through various rounds of the card game here. It is completely optional, but there is a trophy for winning it all, and you can also get some nice cards from participating. The structure is that the tournament will take place across various rounds, with you selecting an opponent in each round. If you win, then you can report to the same NPC who signed you up for the tournament, which moves you onto the next round.

Should you lose, though, you can rematch against that opponent, or try another person to match against (if there is another one). There’s really no penalty for this tournament, as you can keep retrying until you win. It’s a good idea to have done some Queen’s Blood prior to this, as there are a few cards that make it easier. However, it isn’t strictly needed to have those cards, as you can win without them. The list of your opponents for each round can be found below, with Regina being the last match of the actual tournament. There will be an extra exhibition match after Regina, if you wish to play/win that, too.

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(1 of 4) Speak to the guy behind the counter to start the tournament.

For more information, including a Queen’s Blood deck and strategies on how to use it, visit the Card Royalty Trophy Guide page. After winning the matches, return to your room, only to get woken up during the middle of the night.

Maritime Emergency¶

When you have control, exit your room and head to the upper floor, where you will find Captain Titov waiting for you. He mentions the whole ship is crawling with fiends, so you’ll be enlisted to help. For this first part, you’ll be locked with a party of Cloud, Aerith and Red XIII. Once you have outfitted your characters, head to the outside portion to find some of the fiends you need to defeat. You’ll be fighting two Scrutineyes at first, followed by two Experimental Varghidpolis enemies.

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(1 of 3) Try to quickly stagger the Varghidpolis enemies before the countdown ends.

The former is weak to lightning and shouldn’t be much trouble, but the latter can be a little annoying. As you’re fighting them, you will see the Varghidpolis count down from three. Once the countdown is finished, they will use Deafening Screech, so try to stagger them before that happens. Three more Varghidpolis will show up after the initial two, so things might be a little more challenging there. When you’ve defeated them all, a scene will take place and Cloud will go back into the ship on his own.

Here, you will be fighting two more Scrutineyes, so take them out and then pass through the nearby door to get below deck. You’ll meet up with Tifa here, in the middle of a battle against two Varghidpolis. Run down the hallway to witness another scene, where you’ll encounter a new enemy, the Necrotic Entity. There are a few ways to pressure them, like using powerful offensive abilities while they’re casting a spell. You can also evade their Onslaught skill or attack them during Subastral Fury to do the same.

Cargo Hold¶

Continue on after the battle, until you reach the Cargo Hold. You’ll face another Necrotic Entity here, as well as a Daemonic Entity. The latter flinches when attacked from behind and is also weak to ice (use this to pressure them). The camera will pan to some stairs leading out of the cargo hold but ignore those for now. You likely saw a purple chest when you first arrived here, or during the fight itself. It’s in a little alcove to the left of where you need to go, with that chest yielding the Kaiser Knuckles for Tifa.

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(1 of 2) Look in this alcove for a new Tifa weapon in the cargo hold.

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Look in this alcove for a new Tifa weapon in the cargo hold. (left), There is a chest up some stairs not too long after the weapon chest. (right)

You can now take the path laid out for you prior to opening the chest to get to another portion of the cargo hold, where you’ll fight two Daemonic Entities. Follow the only path possible, ducking under some debris, then go up the stairs just past that point to find a chest (Mega-Potion). Just beyond will be another battle, with one more Necrotic Entity and a Shrieker. This enemy is like the Screamer you fought in Chapter 1, but it can teleport around the arena.

In the next room, you’ll find a resting bench, as well as a vending machine and Maghnata Automat. Heal up and save your game, as there will be a cutscene in the following room, with a boss fight immediately after, against Jenova Emergent!