Blame yourself or God! Let's Play Final Fantasy Tactics!

You wouldn't need to (or be able to, much of the time) if you used Gained JP Up for the whole game! I rarely get abilities from crystals in Chapter 4 except from very advanced classes (and those stupid Summoners), or when I'm unlocking jobs for a new unique.

Update:

Switching over to my new computer hasn't been painless. I've somehow corrupted my old Windows file and currently don't have access to the files on my old computer. Moving the harddrive over is an option, but one I'm weary to do.

Now all is not completely lost; I've got a backup from near the beginning of Chapter 4 (after getting Beowulf) so it won't be a huge hassle to get back to where I was. I'm going to try one more option to get back my original files however.

Worst case, I blow through a few missions and am back on track within the week. Sorry for the delay!

- Eddie

I used to keep people based on thier names.

For example, I couldn't refuse to have a Dragoon named Cain.

Hey, I've got an LP! Who knew?

Where were we? Right, Delita has plans, we've got a Count to visit. Our route to Bethla Garrison runs through a mod-
erate sized desert, where the Church is gearing up to end the Lion War... let's do a quick recap of where our characters
stand. Since I had to restart from an old save, there might be a few differences from the character presented since the
last battle.



Ramza is still (slowly) working on Oracle. He usually ends up having the most experience of the group, but this replay
ended up boosting our other characters via random battles.

Jean has finished with Bard, and unlike the screenshot here now has Move +3. Sticking with the theme of mastering
classes, Jean goes back to Monk and start filling up on the skills. He hasn't been in this class since Aruguay Woods!



Junk is almost done Mastering Ninja. I'm not sure if I mentioned this before, but Mastering a class (getting every skill a
class has to offer) nets you a little star over their head on the class change screen. It turns out Junk had enough JP to
purchase the last skill in Thief I hadn't grabbed (Caution) so he becomes are first character to Master a class.



Sullivan has picked up a single Draw Out skill (Murasama) and Blade Grasp. I've stupidly kept an Elf Mantle on him
(remind me to change that). I'll need to dip him in Time Mage for Teleport...

Tabatha's mastering Ninja. Yup.



All for you Shivam. Two Swords, Ice Brands, and a Bracer are good times.

Jessica is basically broken now, with every Calculator class skill except "Exp." In about 200 JP, we'll ditch this 6 Speed
thing and start tearing it up in a different class.



Hey guys! We've got some top tier monsters! Petes our Dark Behemoth has absolutely atrocious Brave and Faith but we
can fix that with Junk. We'll pick up a Mindflayer and Tiamat after we finish getting (and dumping) the rest of the
special characters.



* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

(Scene: In the scathing heat of the Bed Desert, there is more than trouble spreading...)

(Espionage)

Balk: Nice Wind. Should be enough to float them around in the air for most of the
day.

(Ramza's crew enters from the south.)

Ramza: What are the Shrine Knights doing here?

Balk: I guess I can tell you because there's nothing you can do now.

Ramza: Spill it! What did you spread?

Balk: This!

Balk: Any soldier who inhales this will be too sick to fight!

Balk: If the Hokuten can't fight their best, the Nanten will open the fortress... Totally
annihilating it. Making it a good chance to kill Goltana and Orlandu. Of course, plans are
set to kill Larg in the confusion. It'll probably be easier to kill him in the confusion over the
poisoning.

Balk: From now on, we'll be the center of authority! The people want that! No more of
you aristocrats ruling the kingdom.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

There are two things you need to know about this battle:

1) Balk has a magical gun.
2) Magical guns are really good.



Balk is like Mustadio, an Engineer. If you've spent an extended time in Mustadio's base class (unlikely since it's so cheap
to master), you might have noticed that Engineers have great speed. Balk combines this, a Flash Hat (+1 Speed), and
a Blaze Gun. You might have should have picked up from the Beowulf/Reis side quest. These guns are unique, and while
having two isn't necessarily worthwhile, you might as well grab it.

To recap: Blaze Gun's hilariously do Ice damage rather than Fire damage. They have a huge range, you can't dodge
them, and they hit hard. They do semi-random damage (but always good) based on Faith (PA and MA don't factor into
its damage, just each units' Faith), and you can't purchase or poach them, so grab them while you can.



Stealing Balk's Blaze Gun is a no brainer, but make sure to take his Flash Hat too if you've got the time. They'll be
purchasable in another two battles or so, but hey. Cheap as free ain't bad!

He's immune to most of status ailments, including the ones his N-Kai Arlmet protects. Blind is useless (you can't dodge
bullets). Don't Move will work, except... range of 8 with that gun. That gun. There are two good ways to combat a
magical gun:

1) Blade Grasp. Hilariously, you can catch bullets. This won't help against Balk's Engineering skill (he seems to get either
Arm Aim or Leg Aim), but avoiding the damage is huge regardless.

2) Use Low Faith units. High Faith units are going to be taking over 150 damage minimum.




The poison your units are infected can be ignored. It works exactly like regular poison, including wearing off after a
short period of time. Light healing (Moogle, Murasame) can heal you through it if needed.

The enemy units are completely unremarkable. The Wizard is still the most threatening, followed by the Knights.
Assuming you're looking to steal Balk's Blaze Gun, take them out quickly. If you're using Blade Grasp to neuter the Blaze
Gun, you'll conveniently find that the Knights and Archers are going to have a hard time hitting you as well!

Who wants needless technical information on leveling!?

Stat Growth in Final Fantasy Tactics, Part 1: Multipliers

WARNING #1: The following contains a lot of gameplay behind-the-scenes math stuff. Viewer discretion is advised!

WARNING #2: Don’t stress out about learning this stuff! There is absolutely nothing in the original Final Fantasy
Tactics that requires abusing anything below. The most difficult encounters in the game can all be beaten with either
more levels, or smart skill selection. The PSP “War of the Lions” remake has additional battles, but to my knowledge
none of them require building super characters either. You do this for cool points (and boredom), not for practical
reasons.

Characters in FFT have several stats that change as you use a character. A refresher, since we haven't really talked
about them in a while:

Hit Points (HP): Represents how much damage a character can take before becoming unconscious.
Magic Points (MP): Represents how many spells a character can cast.
Physical Attack (PA): Represents how strong a character is with weapons and physical abilities.
Magical Attack (MA): Represents how strong a character is with spells and magical abilities.
Speed (Sp): Represents how quick your character is.



There are two ways to change a unit’s stats. The first is to change their class. Every class has strengths and
weaknesses that change the value of their stats. Knights get more HP and PA than a Wizard does, but a Wizard gets
more MP and MA. The second is to level a character. As a character levels, all of their stats will increase, some more
slowly than others (depending on the class). This second aspect will be covered next update.

To understand how changing your class affects your stats, you have to look at each character as having a base
amount of each of the five stats above. That is, they’ve got a raw amount of HP, MA, etc. Every class has a multiplier
associated with that stat. For example, a Monk has a HP multiplier of 135, while a Time Mage has a HP multiplier of 75.
If you had a character with a raw HP value of 200, that character would have 270 hit points as a Monk, and 150 as a
Time Mage. This is the biggest (and most noticeable) effect on a character’s stats.

Note: while I could post all the data as a gigantic info dump, I’m not sure it would really be all that useful, given how
difficult it would take to sort through it all. Thus, I will be simply giving the top 3 and bottom 3 for each value. The
values are expressed in percentages; as mentioned this is the effect on a character's raw stat!



HP Multiplier
1st : Mime (140%)
2nd: Monk (135%)
3rd: Knight, Lancers (120%)

3rd Last: Calculator (65%)
2nd Last: Dancer (60%)
Last: Bard (55%)


MP Multiplier
1st: Summoner (125%)
2nd: Priest, Wizard, Time Mage (120%)
3rd: Oracle (110%)

3rd Last: Mediator (70%)
2nd Last: Archer (65%)
Last: Thief, Lancer, Ninja, Bard, Dancer, Mime (50%)


Physical Attack Multiplier
1st: Monk (129%)
2nd: Samurai (128%)
3rd: Knight, Lancer, Ninja, Mime (120%)

3rd Last: Wizard (60%)
2nd Last: Time Mage, Summoner, Oracle, Calculator (50%)
Last: Bard (30%)


Magic Attack Multiplier
1st: Wizard (150%)
2nd: Time Mage (130%)
3rd: Summoner (125%)

3rd Last: Calculator (70%)
2nd Last: Thief (60%)
Last: Lancer (50%)


Speed Multiplier
1st: Ninja, Mime (120%)
2nd: Monk, Priest, Thief (110%)

2nd Last: Summoner (90%)
Last: Calculator (50%)



(If people request it, I'll post the entire class multiplier (and growth constants, which will be explained next update) in
a bonus post.)

With Balk down (and his weapon ours) it's a beeline to Bethla Garrison, and Count Orlandu. Surely there will be no
trouble between here and there! The next battle is a two-parter, so stock up before you go!

Sorry for the huge delay on this update! Life kind of got in the way (never in a bad way, just in the way). Thanks for
your patience! I've upgraded the image quality slightly. I tried messing with some new formatting (gripe: character
portraits are impractical!) and am testing this to see how it goes. Do you like it? Hate it? Prefer the old style? Let me
know!

Next time: we get God on our side (perhaps we can stop blaming him). See you then!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Bonus Money: 19,700 Gil
War Trophies: 5000 Gil

(Doubtful Atmosphere)

Nanten Knight: ... Please. Obey the orders.

Orlandu: Nonsense. Why would I be involved in a conspiracy?

Goltana: You've been secretly planning with the Church to overthrow me.

Goltana: Hearing of your betrayal, the High Priest notified me personally.

Goltana: Can you prove it?

Orlandu: I've been serving you over 20 years and you don't trust me?

Goltana: I am very disappointed, Cid... Take him away!!

Goltana: If we get an official edict, overturning Larg will be easy.

Delita: The High Priest's already decided. No need to worry.

Goltana: Thanks for your trouble. I will grant you command over the Nanten Knights. You
will become a Holy Knight.

Delita: I won't let you down.

*snort*

I vote for the formatting that doesn't steal your life away while you do it.

Look at that stare T.G. Cid gives Goltana. What a beast.

It's great to see this back, Eddie! Keep up the good work!

Welcome back!

The new formatting is great! The floating arrow in the screenshot? Mysterious!

DAMNIT.

- Eddie

Oh man, it's Cid. Please show Cid some usage. Just put him on auto-battle for a few random fights or something. I am excited for T.G. Cid times!

Nice arrow.

It's stuff like that that will eternally prevent me from ever beating a Brickroad FF1 LP.

- Eddie

All you gotta do is stick it up some sprite's nose and you win, buddy.

You could also beat a Brickroad FF1 LP by showing off a completely broken god of a character for the sake of the masses' chuckles.

Hooray! Looks awesome, Eddie!

New format is A+, keep it coming. I missed this LP.

They don't have noses!

Damn it! I forgot! Why must Eddie be twarted at every turn??

That's what makes it such an accomplishment.

Welcome back! Today we're going to try and plow through the first of two fights that you'll encounter at Bethla
Garrison. Ramza believes that Count Orlandu is the sympathetic ear he needs to stop the war, but he doesn't realize
that Goltana has already cut Orlandu out. The first Bethla Garrison fight has two stages in which you can apply a, uh,
diplomatically approach. I'll show off both, but in case you were wondering, the South Wall (shown on the left) is
easier, but the North Wall (shown on the right) offers slightly better rewards. The North Wall isn't astronomically better
in the reward department however, so choose whichever you want. After the initial cutscenes, Let's Play Final Fantasy
Tactics presents, Battle 38: presented in split screen! (This will likely be confusing!)

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

(Scene: Ramza approaches the Bethla Garrison, aware that getting
an audience with Orlandu may not be as simply as asking...)

(In Pursuit)

Ramza: Present us immediately!

Knight: Here to see Count Orlandu? So you're the ones hired to assassinate Lord Goltana?

Knight: But don't worry, you'll see him soon... in prison!!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Knight: We'll get them all at once! Attack!!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The South Wall is sort of set up like a valley, with a Thief and Ninja starring down from above. On the other end are
some Knights and Archers. Move is more important than Jump in this stage, as even a Jump of 3 can take you the top.
By now you should definitely have at least Move +2 for your units, so class shouldn't matter too much. These units are
all physical, so Golem and Protect are of course, awesome.

The North Wall however is easier to traverse with people with a bigger Jump. The Summoner is (as always) the biggest
threat, and his position makes it hard to get to him. The Monk and Lancers will both hit hard, but status ailments and
your own heavy hitters can take care of them. Blade Grasp is still amazing here, as usual.




The terrain actually hurts the South Wall combatants, with their Knights being unable to use the high edges as well as
you can. If you're not packing the better reaction abilities you can use the stage to make sure you don't get ganged up
by two Knights. One carries an Ice Brand, so be extra cautious of him. The biggest obstacle is getting around all those
damn shields! Summoners and characters like Agrais can out range the Knights pretty easily, and get around their
defenses.

Teleport is a big asset on the North Wall, easily allowing you to teleport up to the Archers who will spend the fight
sniping at you. I of course don't bring it because I work primarily in hindsight. The Lancers are unlikely to have the Jump
capabilities to pounce on you, so they'll tend to group up. Haste is a pretty effective counter against their Jump as
well, but it's hard to justify bunching up to use it with the Summoner nearby.




Just in case I haven't beaten in the whole 'PA/MA are the most important stats': exhibits.

Sissie is almost done grabbing the Geomancy skill set, and (with Shivam's permission) will be going back to master some
classes. Geomancy occupies this weird spot in my game where the damage is outright negligible compared to what
Sissie can dish out; I was mostly hoping for the 25% status effect to take place (in this case: Don't Act).

Not going to lie: I can't wait to grab these Samurai skills for Sullivan and put him back in Wizard for some Draw Out
Awesome.

Sometimes the game gives you 1500 JP worth of abilities. I should note that the North Wall will divvy out better
crystals on average (since there are more advanced jobs there). I ended up not reading up on either battle and spent
more time waiting for crystals in stuff at the South Wall, so consider it the 'canon' fight for this LP.

No matter which path you choose, you'll end up in the same cutscene and the same battle. It's a little disappointing,
but on the other hand it be REALLY disappointing if you affected the game's story not based on up front transparent
choices, but coin flips.

The next update is actually ready to go, but for bandwidth reasons I'm going to save it for next week. Next time:
Leveling with class, and getting a living god.

See you next time (and hopefully soon!)

North Wall: 23,600 Gil / 20,900 Gil
War Trophies: Circlet / Carabini Mail

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

(Scene: the poison Balk was spreading has hit the armies hard. At one outpost, one
of the leaders of the war lies... Ramza's brother Zalbag enters into the carnage...)

(Cry of a Bitter Heart!)

Hokuten Knight: I, I'm fine... just my head... hurts.

(Dycedarg falls to one knee, Zalbag rushes to his side.)

Zalbag: Brother!

Dycedarg: Don't worry, I'm alright... Where is His Excellency?

Zalbag: We don't know.

(The brothers rush to Larg's side.)

Zalbag: Your Excellency!!

Dycedarg: ... How do you feel?

Larg: My head hurts... I feel sick...

Larg: What?

Dycedarg: Quiet, Zalbag!

Larg: You... betraying me...? You killed Balbanes... not only to inherit the Beoulve estate
... But, to kill... me...

Dycedarg: Ugh... Ugh...

Dycedarg: Just put a dagger into one of their hands... He's the assassin sent by the
Nanten. Alright...?

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

You have my permission to evolve Sissie, bro.

Since I didn't see a dedicated YAY FFT gushing thread in the search, I will post here to express my bafflingly good fortune in the playthrough I just began of War of the Lions. Somehow one of my random starting generics rolled a 76 Brave/71 Faith, making Ramza look like some kind of weakling feeb at 72/70. This dude is a monster. I'm about to head to the Sand Rat Sietch and he's slaughtering dudes left and right. Normally I go with female generics since they ultimately get better equips, but this guy is worth the exception.

Also, rock on, Eddie.

here ya go, chief

also, wow, that's awesome.

This update is why I'll always consider Dycedarg one of the most despicable, loathsome villains in videogames, let alone Final Fantasy.

But his opportunism is hindered by his tunnel vision. His comeuppance is such a satisfying development (albeit tragic, for the Beoluves.)

Also, I don't think I've ever taken the South Wall of Bethla Garrison. That North Wall is just so inviting to Dragoons and Mages...!