Sword Dancer 2

After defeating the Sword Dancer for the first time at Choral Castle, it will rematerialize in the Rugnica Plains near the ruins of the Rotelro Bridge. You might have accidentally stumbled across the search point at the beginning of the game. If you had, then you might have noticed a strange message about "an evil presence."

Yes, it's back.

Remember:
The Sword Dancer's strength and skills are proportional to your party's level, so unless you would rather spend time mining for the best equipment and spells to take it on, now's as good a time as any.

The earliest opportunity to find it again is after having the Tartarus repaired in Keterburg. Sail east from the snow country toward the eastern continent and hug the coastline until you reach an embarkable spot on Rotelro Bridge. Once you're on land, walk north, then northeast following the road. You will cut through some forest area; the road splits the woods. When the road curves west toward the next destination, swing east instead and walk to the source point. The battle activates immediately upon examining the source point.

Warning:
You will need to prepare your troops in advance. The battle starts immediately. Thankfully, if you're not ready or you're about to be defeated, you can run away from the battle and regroup.

Rest:
It is good to sleep at an inn to replenish your health. Engeve charges 100 Gald and Saint Binah charges 200. Save your game. Worst case scenario, you lose and then you can quickly load your game from nearby.

Preparation:
I used Guy, Tear, Jade, and Anise. Guy was the speedy quick hitter and a decoy to draw Sword Dancer's attention. Tear provided healing and offensive magic, and Jade and Anise provided offensive magic.

Map an Arcane arte to one of the circle commands in order to use Mystic Artes, which will be explained in the next section.

Go for the gusto. Set TP use to 100% for everyone else except Tear; set hers to 75% usage in case if you have to "force" her to heal or resurrect someone. Also, set Jade, Tear, and Anise's attack mode to Artes only. Although the description reads "will use Strike Artes and Fonic Artes only," you can disable the Strike Artes to turn them into spell spammers. This is a must!

You can get away with disabling all but the most powerful moves. I kept Tear's First Aid, Healing Circle, Resurrection, and Nightmare activated. (Yes, there's a good chance that Sword Dancer will kill one or two of your people.) I kept Jade's Flame Burst, Turbulence, Splash, and Stalagmite since the Dancer has no particular weakness. Anise does best with only Negative Gate since the spell hits multiple times. These spells will summon forth water- and dark-elemental (water and earth) Fields of Fonons that Guy can capitalize upon.

Crescent Strike + Water FOF = Frigid Moon
Void Tempest + Wind FOF = Dragon Tempest
Tiger Blade + Earth FOF = Wyrm Wrath

Reposition Carmine Chambers to your most frequently used spells and attacks in order to build their strength.

Set everyone in the back except for Guy. He should stand in the third row for the cautionary player, but he is quick enough elsewhere.

Finally, get focused! To be safe, map those FOF-able base artes to the circle commands and one arcane arte to the right analog stick for each player, so that you can better respond to the demands on making combination attacks.

Overlimit:
Level 30 -- Your characters will have the AD Skills "Overlimit" and "Special," which enables Mystic Artes to be pulled off.

To use a Mystic Arte, let the Overlimit meter charge to full. Press R2. Approach the Dancer and use an Arcane arte (e.g. the moves usually composed of two base artes put together). Hold the X button throughout the whole Arcane arte move, and then the Mystic arte will be activated. This works for the fighters in the group: Luke, Guy, Anise, and Natalia.

For spellcasters that have used certain magic artes enough, simply cast a High level spell to deploy their moves.

Battle:
Sword Dancer modifies its tactics a bit. It can use Overlimit multiple times. While in Overlimit, it is harder to stun and it can quickly counterattack, and it isn't afraid to do so if your team members are close together. Your best bet is to hope that your other party members cast spells in succession. Also, turn on AD Skills that increase combo nature; those should be "on" by default.

The truth is, Guy will probably spend more time running around the battlefield and drawing the Dancer's attention. String together a couple of standard attacks at the most then run away! If an FOF appears on the ground, use it! These moves will cause decent damage but primarily gives your characters a few more seconds to reposition themselves and recast spells automatically.

You should give up control of Guy only if Anise or Luke has an Overlimit ready. Other than that, don't waste your time. Stick to chaining together attacks and entrusting Tear to heal as needed. Stay persistent.

Playing keep-a-way with the Dancer is vital to success. Let the team members pick up the slack. As long as Tear isn't focused on healing, they will hammer the Sword Dancer with spells. Guy can rush in to take advantage of the FOFs, but he should focus more on distracting.

The Spoils:
If you defeat the second Sword Dancer, you will get a Treat item, which heals the party for 30% of its HP. You will also get the coveted Genius Staff, which provides an incredible boost to F. ATK, some 450 points or so. I gave the staff to Tear.

Good luck! And save often! :)