The best farming method for these gems would be through the Search Ghosts. Even with a 4% drop rate, they’re much easier to farm than other methods. And the second district in Traverse Town has a good number of these ghosts, so taking them out here offers an easy farming route. More specifically, you can find Search Ghosts in these locations of the Second District: – The alley area behind the shops – On the roof of the shops (“Suits & Dresses” and “Boots & Shoes”) – Near the water fountain – In the Green Room (“Room 2”) in the Hotel Plus these heartless continually respawn. So you could run loops through the Second District Hotel to keep farming them repeatedly.
Where To Get Bright Gems (KH1 + KH1.5)
There’s only a couple of good farming options for these gems, and the Search Ghost is by far the best way to go. Bambi’s summon can also work if you’re gonna be heading to Agrabah anyways. However that can require a little more planning, since you’ll need to fill up Bambi’s charge gauge 3 times to even get a chance at a Bright Gem drop. That said, here’s every way you can get Bright Gems in the game.
Search Ghosts
These spooky nightmares can be found lurking in the shadows of Halloween Town, Monstro, Atlantica, Traverse Town, and the End of the World. With a 4% drop chance, these guys aren’t exactly throwing away gems. But they will still probably be your best bet for farming lots of them. Just head into the second district in Traverse Town and wander around near the water fountain (down the stairs in the 2nd District entering from the Synthesis Shop). There are handfuls of ghosts there – and they should net you gems at a reasonable rate. You can also farm them in the Green Room in the Hotel. This is a great spot because the ghosts will respawn if you leave the room and then go back, so it’s a very simple route.
White Mushrooms
These rare heartless are found in basically every world, but they’re not a guaranteed spawn. This makes farming White Mushrooms a little tricky. For Bright gems, you want to cast Cure magic on the mushroom three times (you’ll have to wait until it mimes for Cure commands). If you hit 3 Cure magic spells correctly in a row, you’ll have a 40% chance to get a Bright Gem. But you can also just aim to cast Cure magic as the very last spell, and this still gives you a 10% chance.
Bambi
Bambi comes with a charge gauge that drops lots of great items as you take down more Heartless. If you summon him in Agrabah and defeat many enemies to fill up the gauge x3 times, he’ll have a 30% chance to drop a Bright Gem. This process can be tedious, but it can be far easier than dealing with White Mushrooms. Just note that Bambi can only drop Bright Gems in Agrabah. Summoning Bambi in other worlds means he’ll have a different drop table. Here’s everything Bambi can drop in Agrabah, organized by how many gauges you’ll need to fill for each drop rate:
Bright Gem Uses
Bright Gems can be used in a handful of synthesis recipes, and a couple of these include items that you might want to create many times over. Here’s the full list of what you can create with Bright Gems in KH1 + KH1.5. Megalixir: Fully restores your party’s HP and MP. You can make one in the original KH1 with List IV and x5 Bright Shards, x3 Bright Gems, x1 Bright Crystal, x1 Shiny Crystal, and x2 Gale. KH1.5 Remix has a different recipe not requiring any Bright Gems. Angel Bangle: This accessory grants anyone in your party +6 HP and +2 Defense. You can craft this in KH1 with List II and x3 Spirit Shards, x3 Power Shards, and x3 Bright Gems. If you’re playing KH1.5 Remix or Final Mix, you’ll instead need List II with x3 Thunder Shards and x1 Bright Gem. Ribbon: One of the best defensive accessories in the game, granting +20% resistances to Fire, Blizzard, Thunder, and Dark, with an added bonus of +3 Defense. You can craft one together in KH1 with List IV and x5 Blaze Gems, x5 Frost Gems, x5 Thunder Gems, x5 Bright Gems, and x3 Gale. KH1.5 Remix & Final Mix has a recipe not using any Bright Gems. Defense Up: Adds +1 Defense point to any character. Synthesize it in KH1.5 Remix with List IV and x3 Lucid Shards, x3 Bright Shards, x2 Bright Gems, x1 Power Crystal, and x5 Orichalcums. The original KH1 game has a much different recipe not needing Bright Gems. Dark Ring: Fight darkness with darkness, using this accessory to get +20% dark damage resistance and +3 Defense. You can make this ring in KH1.5 Remix with List III using x2 Lucid Gems and x2 Bright Gems. Cosmic Arts: This is another incredible accessory for just about everything. It’ll add +9 HP, +2 MP, and +2 AP, as well as enhancing your magic and summon power. You can forge this only in KH1.5 Remix/Final Mix with List V using x5 Bright Shards, x3 Bright Gems, x1 Bright Crystal, and x3 Mythril.
Are Bright Gems Worth Farming?
These are used in a lot of really strong end-game level accessories in Kingdom Hearts. Plus it’s always worth having more Defense Ups. So it’s definitely worth your time to grind out enough Gems to at least synthesize items like the Ribbon, Cosmic Arts, plus a few Megalixirs. Search Ghosts are also decently easy to find & beat – especially in Traverse Town and Halloween Town.
