Yakuza: Like a Dragon

This becomes available in chapter 12 once you are prompted to take a taxi to a new area which fans of the series will recognize. A scripted event will introduce you to a robot who acts as the entry point for the arena which has 30 floors. You unlock checkpoints after every 5 floors so you can return as you level up. This arena is arguably the most effective way to level up to finish the bosses of Chapter 12 which are the games first real difficulty spike.

In relation to the levels themselves make sure you read the modifiers before each level and the criteria to unlock the hidden reward for each level as some are unique equipment and weapons. Personally I didn’t find any of the levels too difficult due to the constant leveling but would sometimes quit out and eat at the nearby restaurant to replenish health and mp.

Not exactly a guide for the achievement itself but I thought I could share some advice to acquire all the additional rewards that you get for winning each fight according to certain challenges. Some of these rewards are invaluable crafting items that you can only get here or in the Kamurocho dungeons (ex : raw ores and pearls as well as golden bugs). This is also the only place to get Empty Cough Drop Tin and the Dragon Set, arguably the best armor in the game without crafting.

Before we begin, the team I used was Kasuga (Hero), Han (Hitman), Eri (Clerk) and Saeko (Idol). ALL BOYS had reached Fortuneteller Lvl 18 for the Fulminating Forecast skill AKA one of the best Electric attacks you can get + Host Lvl 10 for Ice Spreader : a good Ice attack. Eri had reached Clerk Lvl 28 for Essence of Telephone Nunchaku : a powerful attack that targets all enemies and had a chance to inflict Fear and Silence. Bring the girls to Night Queen Lvl 16 for Candle Rush : a Heavy Fire damage skill that should come in handy for a couple of fights. The order of attacks was usually Han > Eri > Kasuga > Saeko.

As CrimsonGhostUK mentionned in his guide, you unlock checkpoints every 5 floors so instead of thinking of the arena as one big tower, think in terms of 5 fights after 5 fights. Once you've reached a threshold floor, go to a restaurant and come back at the most useful checkpoint.

TLDR : my basic strategy in fights that asked me to win within a certain amount of turns was : Han's Fulminating Forecast > Eri's Essence of Telephone Nunchaku > Kasuga's Fulminating Forecast > Saeko's Candle Rush > repeat (except if I feel absolutely confident that I can finish the fight with "cheaper" skills or even regular attacks)

I should mention that some fights have special conditions (like everyone is poisoned, switching characters is disabled by default, etc). I will not mention them if I don't think they are relevant and if you can just win the fight without even worrying about it.

1) Win within 10 turns [Golden Moth]: surprisingly hard during your first visits compared to the next floors because the 2 Pier Reviewers are absolute sponges. Use the Fulminating Forecast (that I will now refer to as FF) with Han and Kasuga + Eri's Shadow Stitch for their Blade weakness and use Saeko to attack the 2 other enemies if the double FF didn't already take care of them.

2) No KO [Golden Butterfly]: get the Chomp-and-charger first as every enemy in their Glutton class has a special attack that deals massive damage. Aside from the Invulnera-billboard who's more annoying than really dangerous, the rest of the fight should be a breeze.

3) No switching characters mid-fight [Golden Rhinoceros Beetle]: easy stipulation. You can use Eri's Telephone Nunchaku to get rid of the small fries so you can focus on the big guys like Battering Batter.

4) No skills or poundmates [Golden Mantis]: make sure you do not forget that one and just attack with . Use your enemies' weaknesses (like Eri's Blade) and you should not have a hard time.

5) Win within 10 turns [Viking Helmet]: this is where the "5 fights per 5 fights" mentality comes into play = just throw big skills like the good ol' FF. You should still have plenty of MP anyway so you can go wild for this fight since you will be taking a restaurant break afterwards knowing that you can go back to the 6th floor anytime.

6) No Recovery skills [Golden Spider]: just like fight 4, make sure you keep that rule in mind and don't fail it just because you didn't pay attention. You'll face another Pier Reviewer but use FF as an opener with him as the designated target and the rest of the fight should be fine. You can heal between floors if you need.

7) No KO [Golden Scorpion]: no special tips for this one. The enemies are all somewhat slippery (especially King Joe) and I personnally suggest you take care of the Trickmaster first since he's the heavy hitter of the team (imo)

8) No switching characters [Golden Dragonfly]: another easy fight. Kill the Host first since he's the healer and the Batter shouldn't be an issue.

9) Win within 7 turns (+everyone is poisoned) [Golden Stag Beetle]: open with FF and keep an eye out for weaknesses from regular attacks. Since the threshold is just after the next fight, you can afford to use some skills to finish this quick but be sure to keep some MP for the 10th floor.

10) Win within 7 turns [Damascus Ladle (Chef Weapon) ]: once again, start with FF and go wild on skills. Go take a break afterwards at a restaurant. Also, the reward here is just a Damascus Ladle so after you've acquired it once, it's not really a priority in the following runs.

11) No KO [High-density Metal]: Master and Commando goes first, he has a powerful grenade attack that can set your character on fire. Keep Big Payback last, as his name suggests he will use counterattacks so maybe have Saeko use an attack skill on him for the end so she can recharge her MP during the next fights.

12) No Recovery skills [Silver Ingot]: 2 robots, you know what that means...that's right, throw a couple of FF their way and hopefully they won't give you much trouble when they're not stunned.

13) No revive [Gold Ingot]: you can have teammates getting downed, you just have to let them be if they do get KO'd. Lots of enemies, including one pesky Mister Six. Focus on him first and when Eri gets her turn, use the Essence of Tele-nunchaku to clear up some space (or even wipe the whole enemy team).

14) No KO (+frequent Ice damage) [Pearl]: get rid of the Prizedfighter and the 2 kung-fu guys to get rid of the critical damage punch and the annoying AoE dragon kicks. The Ultimate Champion is not really a threat and he's weak to Eri's blade. Keep an eye on your HP and don't let the Ice damage catch you by surprise.

15) Win within 7 turns [The Prestige (Host weapon) ]: you fight a tiger who's only weak to Bullet and Fire. This is a tough one. Spam Han's Rapid Shot every turn he gets, use Candle Rush with Eri (or Shadow Stitch) and Saeko + any Extreme damage skill from Kasuga. Remember, you can exit afterwards so go wild.

16) Win within 7 turns [Raw Platinum Ore]: kill the Heavenly Host first, you don't want to lose a turn or two because you forgot to get rid of the healer first. The Biker Boss is the most resilient but he's weak to Blade, Ice and Electric so use group attack skills like the Essence of Tele-Nunchaku to clear the room and have the boys use Ice Spreader.

17) No Recovery skills [Raw Ruby Ore]: 2 out of 3 enemies are weak to Electric, use FF with the boys for their first turns and regular attacks with the girls. You can get a KO if you can't avoid it, just make sure you heal once the fight is over.

18) Win within 7 turns (+all hits are Critical) [Raw Sapphire Ore]: guaranteed Critical is the best opportunity for Eri's Essence of Tele-nunchaku. You can finish the survivors with regular attacks if you feel that you have more than enough turns to fulfill the objective.

19) No revive (+frequent Electricity damage) [Raw Diamond Ore]: focus on their individual weaknesses. The Twister is weak to Electric > Han's FF or even Stun Smash if you want to save MP. The Bohemian is weak to Blunt, Blade and Fire > have Eri (with her innate Blade damage or Candle Rush along with Saeko) focus him. Metal Headsman should be the most resilient but he's weak to Ice so the boys' Ice Spreader will be useful.

20) Win within 5 turns [Violence Guitar (Musician weapon) ]: Only 1 enemy and he's weak to Blade, Ice and Electric but I've found he was especially weak to Electric so focus on FF and Essence of Tele-nunchaku (seriously, this skill is just so strong) and you should be able to barely beat him in time. One thing to watch out for is that his moveset is similar to Mabuchi and that his health is "divided". What I mean is that roughly every third (especially the last one) of health, an attack that reaches the "third limit" will not go further. Basically, you'll need at least 3 turns so don't waste any action. Then again, this is just a weapon linked to a Job that will not be your main focus anyway so only fight hard to get it once and you can take your time in the following runs.

21) No KO [Empty Cough Drop Tin]: the Massacre Mascot should be your ABSOLUTE PRIORITY. He has a special explosive skill that has the potential to be a one shot if you're not on full health. Afterward kill the Noblesse Obesity to get rid of his special heavy strike. The rest will be easier with these two gone.

22) Win within 5 turns [Beat Anklet (Breaker weapon) ]: all weak to Electric. You'll kill all three with just 2 FF (or even just one and some regular attacks if you think their health is low enough to afford it). Once again, a Job weapon that you should not work actively for if you've already acquired it.

23) Win within 5 turns [Empty Cough Drop Tin]: you might want to leave Han's MP untouched on this one. Essence of Tele-nunchaku and some powerful single-target skills from Saeko and Kasuga (or maybe have Kasuga use FF instead of Han for this one) should be enough.

24) No switching characters (+everyone bleeds) [Revival Microphone (Idol Weapon) ]: don't let the fact that you're facing a guy called Jack the Ripper intimidate you, he's actually surprisingly weak. The real threat is the Scarred Yakuza who is the most resilient of the bunch. You can take your time on that one as long as you properly manage your HP and you'll actually win the Microphone without even trying.

25) Win within 5 turns [Empty Cough Drop Tin] : this is the only fight that had me change from my go-to team. Instead you'll want to have an all-male line-up with your boys that have learned FF and make sure you pick the 4 highest ranked Magic-wise. You face the Excavator and just like in the main story, its only weakness is Electric. The only way to beat it within 5 turns is to use FF every turn. As you get stronger and come back to the Battle Arena after chapter 12, you will find that your stats have risen so much that you'll go from needing all 5 of those turns to 4 or even just 3.

26) No revive [Electric Whip (Night Queen weapon) ]: beat the Crotchedy Geezers first : they have a habit of working in tandem so that the first one makes you more vulnerable to status effects and the second one might use a skill that can potentially leave your whole team stunned for a few turns. With them out of the way, the Shadow Divers are next. Keep the Pornogra-pharaoh for last, he's not a real threat and as one of the oiled-up, inflatable mattress-wielding enemies, he may waste his turn with a special attack that has a low chance of connecting.

27) No Recovery skills [Empty Cough Drop Tin]: Captain Cruncher will be the most troublesome. Open the festivities with FF and in the best case scenario, you'll oneshot the Weltraiser, severely weaken the Forsaken Samurai and stun the Captain. If that annoying giant is stunned, you pretty much have this one in the bag and you can just finish him with regular attacks. Obviously, if he snaps out of it, watch your health and maybe use some Blade and Ice skills (his weaknesses).

28) No KO [Dragon Boots]: Eri's Essence of Tele-nunchaku should be able to oneshot all the small fries. If the Fishy Founder or the Shady Ministers are still standing, focus on them to prevent them from calling reinforcements. Once you only have the Munanugget Messiah to deal with, it's a breeze. Just keep in mind that he has a passive skill similar to Kasuga's Peerless Resolve that will allow him to survive being KO'd once so don't be surprised when it happens.

29) Win within 5 turns (+frequent Fire damage) [Dragon Kinagashi]: Arminator is your first target because of his powerful attacks. FF and Tele-nunchaku should only leave the Death Knuckle alive so finish him off with some cheap Ice and Electric skills.

30) Win within 7 turns [Dragonhelm]: after using FF and Tele-nunchaku, the Slaughter King will still be standing. Use the most powerful skills you have. HOWEVER, once you reach Kasuga's turn, summon Poundmate Megumi (available through substory 23) for a nice 4 Million Yen instantly. After that, go back to using big skills.

As a final word, let me summarize that the golden bugs are found in floors 1-10, the Raw Ores for the weapon upgrades in floors 11-20 and the floors 21-30 are dedicated to the rare items like the Empty Cough Drop Tin and the Dragon Set that you should give to all your party members before even attempting the Millenium Towers dungeons. This was all of my personal observations and trials to obtain every special reward in the best conditions. If you have your own notes that you'd like to share, feel free to write them below and I'll update this guide. Thank you for your time and happy farming.