Official Xenoblade thread- Opinions, thoughts and questions inside! Can it hit 1mil in sales next year? Sequel coming for Wii U???

[Mr Khan]

So, a couple of questions

1) Where's prime grinding grounds for the pre-Zanza run? Is the Bionis Core populated with good stuff that i can use for a while, until i can start grappling with all of the mid-80s enemies that are all over the place? Before the point of no return?

2) You can't control the weather, therefore you're screwed on getting the Light Rain Element to build the gathering hall for Colony 6. And why does Juju need Hode Planks specifically? There's all sorts of wood all over the damn place, then the nigh-nonexistant Fossil Monkey. Grrr

3) How do you get to La Luz Castle in Valak Mountain? Or is this something that specifically opens up after the point of the game that i'm at? I haven't gone to Valak Mountain yet, been puttering around looking for 70s-level enemies and looking for those damned nonexistent items