Card Club Side Quest - FF8 Guide
The Card Club quest first becomes available early on during Disc 2 when you return to Balamb Garden with Squall but it can't be completed until the Balamb Garden is mobile. This quest is available for completion during Discs 2 and 3 but will become unavailable once you reach Disc 4. If you complete this quest during Disc 2 or 3, on Disc 4 the Card Club (CC) group will be onboard the Ragnarok with you.
Also, on Disc 4 you can win any rare card in the game from them that is not created by the Queen of Cards Side Quest! An unlimited amount of rare cards are available from them during this period so it's highly recommended you complete this quest before then.
To begin this quest you will need to win 15 Triple Triad games in Balamb Garden. Games played in the Library, Cafeteria or 2F Classroom do not count towards the total. I'd recommend playing against the guy right next to the elevator that goes up to the deck where you take control and pilot the Balamb Garden.
He has a chance of playing Level 7 Boss Cards which are hard to come by at this time in the game and most guides say you can only get from the CC Group at this time... Guess not ;) .. If you're confused as to what guy I am talking about, he's in the above screenshot.
For those of you out there who like the succinct run downs for each quest, below is each step of the CC Quest with little additional info. Scroll down if you're having trouble locating any of the card members mentioned.
1. Jack in the main hall of Balamb Garden
2. Joker in the Training Center
3. Club near the Dormitory entrance
4. Diamond where you played Jack in the main hall
5. Spade 2F hallway, same guy who gives you cards at start of game
6. Heart; 3F on the bridge (Xu)
7. First time in the Dormitory; otherwise in the bridge
The first opponent that you will challenge for the CC Group is Jack. He's found in the lobby of Balamb Garden, wait a little bit and he will walk up along with two girls who are involved later in this quest. If you don't stop him he'll walk off the screen too so it's not recommended you use turbo speed.
Also if you're unsure how many card games you still have to win in Balamb Garden in order for Jack to challenge you, speak to him at any time. He'll tell you if he's ready to play you. After you beat Jack the next card player on the list is Joker (pictured below). You can find him inside of the Training Center; just go right immedaitely after entering and use Enc-None if you have it.
Much like with Jack there's a chance you enter this area and Joker isn't here. If this is the case exit and enter again, in my experience more often than not he is here. Joker will upgrade your Battle Meter the first time you win against him with GF Report which gives the stats on all of your GFs. Additionally, Joker has the Leviathan Card which he sometimes plays that you can win from him.
Before you leave the Training Center area where you found Joker you can also pick up Weapons Monthly July Issue. It appears at the start of Disc 3, so if you're on Disc 3 and haven't collected it yet you can do so now!
After Joker there's Club who you can find outside the Dormitory in the northern portion of Balamb Garden. He doesn't always walk through this area and you will have to enter and exit a few times to get him to appear.
Next up is Diamond, who is in the same location as Jack in the entrance of Balamb Garden (pictured below). Diamond is a pair, it's the two girls who walk up with Jack and stand near the board. This is the last person you can defeat in the CC Quest until you've beaten NORG and completed the Balamb Garden arc on Disc 2 with Squall.
With Diamond defeated the next person you have to beat in Triple Triads is Spade. If you remember the guy who gave you cards at the start of the game, that was Spade. He's pictured above too if you've forgot who you're looking for.
After finishing Fisherman's Horizon and gaining full control of the Balamb Garden you'll be able to challenge the next opponent, Heart (pictured below). She also has a chance of playing the Carbuncle Card - another rare card which I highly recommend grabbing while doing this quest.
Now all that's left is challenging and defeating King, the final member of the Card Club. To challenge King you'll first need to go to the infirmary and challenge Dr. Kadowaki to a game of cards. She will tell you that she used to be King but has handed it off to some other girl. Once you've gotten this line of dialogue you'll want to return to your dormitory and rest there.
Keep resting until you're automatically entered into a Triple Triad game against King.
After beating King in the dormitory you can face her in the bridge after (where you pilot the ship). King has the Gilgamesh Card which you will want to grab from her before officially saying you've completed this quest.
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CC Group onboard the Ragnarok
This section of the guide covers the Card Club Group onboard the Ragnarok during Disc 4. In addition to the information below there is a ton more on my Getting the Ragnarok Back (Disc 4) Walkthrough page. Such as Card Mods and Item Refinements that you can do with the Rare Cards you win.
Keep in mind that you can only hold ONE Rare Card of a type at a time - so if you have a Quistis Card you won't be able to win another one. You have to Card Mod the one you're carrying first. For this reason what I would recommend you do is keep a solid hand of cards that you basically always play with and Card Mod any new ones that you get right when you get them.
Before I get into all of the Card Mods and Item Refinements you can do, first let's go over how the CC Group works onboard the Ragnarok. First, every single member of the CC Group uses a different set of rules onboard the Ragnarok. One set of rules per member of the CC group.
Technically there is no reason to ever play more than one member of the CC Group so if you didn't change all the rules to something easy prior to Disc 4, just choose the person with the least terrible rules. As far as Rare Cards go, you can win any Rare Card in the game except the Rare Cards that were involved in the Queen of Cards Side Quest. These can only be won from the Queen of Cards who is at the Crash Site (where you got the Alexander Card).
When one of the CC Group members plays a Rare Card they will not play a different Rare Card until you win that one from them. From what I have seen the Rare Card they choose to play is completely random, I have seen them play the same card multiple times in a row and other cards, like Angelo Card, I have rarely seen played at all or ever.
Return to Balamb Town (Disc 2) Walkthrough
Return to The Beginning of the End (Disc 3) Walkthrough
Return to Getting the Ragnarok Back (Disc 4) Walkthrough
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