The Chocobo Hot and Cold Game

Requirements
You must have obtained the maps for the Bastok, San d'Oria and Windurst regions and have a chocobo registered on your chocobo whistle.

Starting the game
Talk to one of these NPCs:

The NPC will talk to you at length about the game. Eventually, you should receive a Tandjana Wildgrass item and some Key Items.
 * Key Items: A Prairie Chocograph and a Bush Chocograph.

After receiving these items, take a look at your Key Items to determine what area you would like to search for treasure in. Go to that area and use your Tandjana Wildgrass. After using it, you will be placed on your chocobo and you will be shown a map with a ??? marker. You can review the location of the ??? marker on your area map (/map) by switching to the green marker tab. Proceed to that general vicinity and proceed to dig. You do not need any Gysahl Greens to dig.


 * Note: You cannot change area with your chocobo while doing the Hot and Cold game.
 * Note: Be careful not to dismount while digging for treasure.
 * You can not continue digging by using your Chocobo Whistle to remount.
 * Note: You can only receive the Tandjana Wildgrass once per day.
 * "After your chocobo rests long enough" -- which is past JP midnight (10 AM EST)(11 AM EDT) (3 PM GMT).
 * You can dig twice in one day if you do not use your Tandjana grass on the day you receive it.

Digging Messages
You will receive one of five messages when digging:

Note: Kweh? message only appears if chocobo has Treasure Finder trait. It means you are getting cold in the direction you're going. If you see this message, either turn around or make a left or right turn from that spot.

Within 1 to 6 dig attempts of the fifth message you will receive the following message: A "VCS Crate" will spawn where you dug. You need to dismount from your chocobo to open the chest. The items obtained will fall into the Treasure Pool if you are in a party and/or alliance. Following the Final Fantasy XI update that occurred on January 14, 2007, it became possible to obtain more than one item from a VCS Crate after completing the Chocobo Hot & Cold game. Notes: After 13-14 dig attempts, you may receive the following message: After 19 dig attempts, you may receive the following message:
 * Kweh! Kweh! Kwehhh! (You've found a treasure chest!)
 * Your chocobo seems a little fatigued. (Was able to dig at least 5 more times after receiving said message)
 * Your chocobo refuses to dig any more. Perhaps you should try another day.

Tactics
There is a system to this sub game which works well.

The point on your map which is marked ??? is pretty much where the treasure is. Zoom you map in as far as it goes to get a better idea where the ??? really is. The best idea is to dig on that spot first, then if you still get the very cold message, try about four steps in each direction around that point.

E.g:

If you try digging on the ??? spot and get either the very cold message or the cold message try four steps north of the ???, then if you have no luck there try four steps east of the ???, then try the same with four steps south and west around the ???. By digging in these five locations you should have a good idea which direction the treasure is, as it does not seem to be more than about nine or ten steps away from the ??? point on your map. Frequently, the crate will be on or near a distinguishing feature on the landscape, such as in a puddle, in an out-of-place patch of grass, at the base of a tree, or in an indentation in a wall of rock.