Crater Item Duplication Trick (The Three Mystile Trick)
WARNING: This page contains SPOILERS for Final Fantasy VII.
Due to a small glitch in some editions of FFVII, you can obtain multiple copies of some items in the Crater. This glitch might or might not be fixed in the PC version, and it might or might not be fixed in the International version.
First, a few important things about the Crater:
Where is the Point of No Return?
The Point of No Return is a small circular goldish colored room with a colorful steamy center. There is a treasure chest in the bottom-right area of this room. Walking clockwise around the room will make your party members collect. Collecting your party members prematurely will ruin the Duplication Trick, and going past the screen where they collect is the Point of No Return.
Can I leave the Crater?
Yes, you can. Near the very top of the Crater is an exit hole. Use it, and then take a few steps to the right. Face up and press Confirm. Cloud will climb the cliff. You can then proceed to the Highwind.
Where should I use the Save Crystal?
Two places not to use it: The room where your party splits. This can cause the game to glitch and not let you leave the Crater. The second place is anywhere past the Point of No Return. Obviously, saving anywhere past it will result in you being unable to return to the overworld.
Two good places to use it: The swamp rooms on the Left-Upper path. This is the best area in the game for earning Experience and AP. The other good place to use it is in the circular goldish room at the bottom of the Crater, just before your party collects.
What are the best items that can be duplicated?
The only ones that are really worth duplicating are the Mystile, the Command Counter materia, and the Shield materia. You'll get duplicates of some other items too, but those items are not rare, so it's hardly worth mentioning them.
How do I do the trick?
Start down the crater like usual. When you climb down a pair of rock formations and see all of your party members, you will be asked one by one which way you wish to send them. Send everyone but Tifa to the left.
Now you will find yourself in another split area. Again you will be asked one by one which way to send your characters. Send Cloud, Cait Sith, and Vincent down. Send Cid, Red XIII, Yuffie, and Barret to the right (called up for some reason).
Once you have control of your group, head down. You shouldn’t have any problems in the first room. The second room has one well-hidden item. Go down the rock formation. Head right, go up, and you will have to head left across a thin strip of land that goes behind the pillar you climbed down from earlier. The path will start to head downward, past what looks like a Mako-fall. Climb down the next part of rock. Now, turn around and climb back up it. Run directly up and press circle when you hit the ledge near the Mako-fall. You should receive a Magic Counter materia. If not, just walk back and forth along that part of the ledge hitting circle repeatedly. Once you’ve got it, head down and to the right to exit this area. This next room should be easy. To get the materia that Cloud jumps past, just jam the circle button a bunch of times as he jumps past it. If you don’t get it, just try again. When you’re ready, leave this area through the exit at the bottom-left. You will find your self in a room with goldish-colored walls and a colored circular center. Immediately leave this area and go back through the three rooms you just came out of (DON’T collect your party members).
When you get back to the small room that goes up, down, and to the right, head right. This is the swamp-like area. The first two rooms should be easy as far as locating items. The third room is a large area with a shiny spot in the middle of the bottom and some vegetation across the top. Near the top of the shiny spot is the Command Counter materia. In the Vegetation is a pink spot. This is the W-Magic materia. Exit this area to the left. You will be in the goldish colored room from before. Immediately take the other exit to this room like before (DON’T collect your party members).
When you get back to the small room that goes up, down, and to the right, head up. Now go down the right path here, which is where you sent Tifa earlier. This area is fairly easy to go through. Just make sure you pick up the Mystile from the chest by the pillar you climbed down, seeing as that’s probably the main reason you wanted to do this trick. Proceed all the way through these screens until you reach the goldish colored room again. This time you can walk clockwise around the center and make your party members gather. Talk to each one and you should get duplicates of some of the best items. A Mystile, an extra Command Counter materia, and an extra Shield materia are the most worthwhile.
You can now either save and proceed down to the final battles, or you can climb back out of the crater and do whatever you want.