Protorelic Trail
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth

The Protorelic Trail

Chadley’s Phenomenon Intel — the purple “?” markers — is one long quest chain spread across every region, and each region runs it as a completely different minigame. Here’s the shape of all seven, plus the payoff.

Spoiler level: names the minigame and reward structure of each Protorelic chain, the Gilgamesh Gardens finale, and the full completion rewards (Gilgamesh summon, Genji accessories, purchasable Materia). No story spoilers. None of it is missable — the chain can be finished in Chapter 13 with the whole map open.

How the trail works

Grasslands Junon Corel Gongaga Cosmo Canyon Nibel Gilgamesh Gardens

Grasslands

Chapter 2 · Bandit hunt · combat

Track Beck’s Badasses, a bandit crew, across the northeast of the region. Almost pure combat — the friendliest chain in the game and a good one to learn the format on.

  1. The tower. Enter through the hole in the fence to the east and clear the bandits inside.
  2. The encampment. Sneak past the patrols (or don’t), climb to the rooftop, and fight the crew.
  3. The line-up. Pick which bandit is holding the relic — it’s Burke, on the left — then ride your chocobo to dig up the key he mentions.
  4. The Businessmen’s Hideout (north of the Kalm fast-travel point). Drop the crate with the lever, then either talk the bandits down or fight, and buy the Protorelic for 2,000 gil.
Runs onRegular combat RewardGrasslands Protorelic
Tip: node 3’s “guess” has no penalty for a wrong answer — but it’s Burke every time.

Junon

Chapter 4 · Fort Condor · strategy minigame

Four rounds of Fort Condor, the lane-defence strategy game — deploy Vanguard / Ranged / Defensive units and hero units down three lanes to crack the enemy base before they crack yours.

  1. The first board, near the region entrance. Win inside the time limit to learn the ropes.
  2. Second board. A tougher layout built around bringing down an Archfiend wolf unit — counter it with Ranged.
  3. Third board, south of Crow’s Nest. Gated behind the “When Words Won’t Do” side quest; lean on Assault units to break the Gilgacannon tower.
  4. Final board. A full match with Barret and Tifa as your hero units.
Runs onFort Condor RewardJunon Protorelic
Tip: match unit type to what you’re facing (Vanguard beats Ranged beats Defensive beats Vanguard), keep a Cleric alive at the back, and if a board is fighting you, drop its difficulty — lower difficulty just means faster ATB, same reward.

Corel

Chapter 6 · Cactuar Crush · score attack

Cactuar Crush — four solo score-attack fights against waves of Cactuars, one party member at a time. Rack up points before the timer runs out.

  1. Bout 1 — a straightforward warm-up to learn the scoring.
  2. Bout 2 — a different character; adapt to their kit.
  3. Bout 3 — tighter timer, more Cactuars.
  4. Bout 4 — the point threshold jumps; you need clean, uninterrupted combos.
Runs onCactuar Crush RewardCorel Protorelic
Tip: hunt the rainbow Cactuar — killing it adds time. Play to each character’s strength: Yuffie’s element toggle, Aerith’s wards, Tifa’s chain.

Gongaga

Chapter 9 · Hidden simulators · wave combat

Find hidden Shinra combat simulators tucked around the jungle and ruins, then clear a three-wave training battle in each.

  1. First hidden terminal — near the reactor approach.
  2. Second — reached via the mushroom bounce-pads.
  3. Third — deeper in the ruins; you’ll backtrack for it.
  4. Fourth — the last terminal opens the final wave fight.
Runs onWave combat RewardGongaga Protorelic + loot
Tip: this chain also hands out real consumables and a Prayer Materia along the way — the movement puzzle to reach each terminal is the hard part, not the fights.

Cosmo Canyon

Chapter 10 · Gears & Gambits · auto-battler

Gears & Gambits — program little robots with condition–action “gambit” rules, deploy them, and watch them fight Flans on their own. Four escalating deployments.

  1. Deployment 1 — single enemy type; set one elemental shot to its weakness.
  2. Deployment 2 — mixed Flans; you need two gambit profiles.
  3. Deployment 3 — more units, tighter resource budget.
  4. Deployment 4 — a boss Flan that swaps its elemental affinity repeatedly.
Runs onGears & Gambits RewardCosmo Canyon Protorelic
Tip: spam the cheapest units to hold the line, and for the affinity-swapping boss set a gambit that reads its current element rather than committing to one.

Nibel

Chapter 11 · Escort · herding puzzle

Guide slow-walking Black Robes to their destinations, keeping fiends off them and solving the environmental puzzle blocking each route.

  1. First escort — short route, teaches the herding pace.
  2. Second — a water crossing; use the mountain chocobo.
  3. Third — a valve/mechanism puzzle to open the path.
  4. Fourth — the longest walk, the most interruptions.
Runs onEscort + puzzle RewardNibel Protorelic
Tip: the Robes stop if you get too far ahead — stay just behind them, clear threats early, and line valve mechanisms up carefully before committing.

Gilgamesh Gardens & the payoff

The seventh chain sits on a tiny island in the Meridian Ocean. It unlocks only after every other region’s Phenomenon Intel and all Divine Intel are complete — so it’s genuinely the last thing you do.

It’s four double-summon battles — two summons on the field at once, using everything the Combat Simulator taught you — and then a solo duel with Gilgamesh. He absorbs damage behind a shield, buffs himself (dispel them), and folds to Fire and Poison once you get through the guard. Perfect blocks and counters carry the fight.

Gilgamesh Summon MateriaTop-tier medium summon. Can’t be upgraded — but starts strong.
Genji GlovesBreak the 9,999 damage cap.
Genji Earrings+15% damage dealt — and +15% taken.
Genji Ring−15% damage taken.
Swiftcast MateriaNow purchasable — big cast-time cut.
Reraise MateriaNow purchasable — auto-revive on death.
Spare Change / Limit SupportAlso unlocked for purchase.
Brutal & Legendary VRThe top Combat Simulator tiers open.

The Genji pieces are blueprints — craft them at the vendor. The full set (Gloves + Ring, skipping the double-edged Earrings for most builds) is the endgame damage backbone. See the Equipment Bench for where the crafting materials come from.