This is a guide regarding my experience and advice for those trying to create the final form of the Daurdabla. This is a work in progress and I have only completed Step 1 so far. This guide will ONLY feature my actual progress as I can't provide advice or info on the routes I DIDN'T take.
Iron Plates - Need 50
Having THF with any TH gear is SOOOO helpful. It took me from 15 min per plate to ~7.5 min per plate (and may also have been a factor in receiving more than one plate per Iron Giant kill). I chose Aby-Grauberg. Conflux 8. Used AAHM, Ulmia, Joachim, King of Hearts, Apururu. Atmas: Razed Ruins, Stronghold, Mounted Champ I think. Kill bombs NE of 8, get Darkflame Arm. Head North to the Pots. Flee brought me to the nearest Pot within 2 seconds of it wearing off. Kill Pots to get Bubbling Oil. Use Bubbling Oil on the ??? to the west in front of a tree that is split into a V (or W?) shape. This NM does decent -ga IV spell damage, but was generally no problem for Ambu+1 geared THF. Shock Spikes WILL be an issue though, and will kill a multi-hit player if they're not looking out for it. So pay attention. You want a Teek. Fragment from this NM. Head SE and check for a ??? halfway between the Pots and Bombs. Use the Fragment and Arm to spawn the Giant. I like to run South a bit to get on even ground before engaging. The Giant isn't a hard fight.
Colorless Soul - Need 75
Brand new to this step and Abbysite in general. Learning it all on the fly. I'm finished with RoV so my Abbysite gets upgraded for sure. Just spawned and killed Air Elemental @ I-12 (NE of #2) in Abby Grauberg. The page for Gamayun indicated the Pot area is a potential spot. Popped Gamayun @ K-5. Very easy kill. Got upgraded Abbysite. Popped Maere @ J-5 (tough pop, apparently very fast, took several /heals). Nightmare is annoying but only took 30% HP after full duration. Did Nightmare again before fight was over. TA and SA Eviscerations were great. Got 2 Colorless Souls on first kill. Overall time, ~15 mins? Got a new Clear Abbysite. Found Air Elemental again NE of #2. Once again getting a hit North of #8. Popped @ J-5. Not getting a hit right away this time on T3. Maere FFXIclopedia page says North of 1 all the way to 6, then East to the Monitor area NE of 8. How do you farm something that's INVISIBLE and has a path THAT LONG?! Guess I'm just going to check in @ 8 and to the north everyone once in awhile? This part seems much more annoying because it's so...luck based? As I was typing that I went back to North of 8 and I'm getting a hit. It's in the Monitor area. I think Maere travels so fast it's best to try to meet again in Monitor/Pot area. 2 Colorless Souls on 2nd kill. This will be my farming strat from now on. If I stray, I'll document it. Otherwise, just assume this is the method I found to be most effective. :) I've been getting Dark Elemental more than Wind...and it seems to spawn closer to the G-11 area. Pretty sure Gamayun spawns in the farthest NE corner of Abby Grauberg. L-10 area. Still on THF. Changed to /DNC to avoid Monitor, Pugil, Goblin, Crab, Bomb aggro. Got 2 Colorless Souls 5 times, 1 on the most recent kill.