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

Welcome back! Sweegy Woods is the site of our next battle, and like Mandalia Plains, is yet another battle to ease us
into the game before the gloves come off for the next fight.



We're bringing in Jean (Thief), Tabatha (Archer) and Jessica (Wizard) to this skirmish, less because people asked, and
more because I felt like playing when I should have been sleeping. I think that means I'm becoming a real LPer!

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

Sweegy Woods

(Scene: while on route to Dorter Trade City, the Hadouken
Knights are waylaid by a group of monsters as they try
and pass through the Sweegy Woods.)

Algus: What rotten luck. Meeting monsters in a place like
this.



(The monsters advance as the two quarrel.)



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

This encounter is, as mentioned, a small diversion to give you a bit more experience (both tactically and otherwise).
The monsters in this fight (and in all fights that monsters appear) will be roughly the same level as your highest level
character, which means that it's a good idea to spread the love around with the characters you use. My first time
through the game, I overused Ramza, and ended up having a hell of a time with random battles, because the enemy
units were always about ten levels higher than everyone but Ramza!

Joining us as Guests are Delita and newcomer Algus. They'll be traveling head first into trouble, but like all guests, them
hitting 0 hit points is an annoyance rather than a serious problem, since Guests cannot be turned into crystals/treasure
chests.



We're introduced to Goblins (well, at least the LP is. You can fight them quite commonly on the Mandalia Plains). Goblins
are possibly the weakest of monsters you face; their attack (Tackle) is accurate, but not particularly strong.

Black Goblins are slightly better, with a Spin Punch move that can hit multiple units occasionally. Still, neither is very
fearsome and when given the choice, should be taken out last. They're weak against Ice.

Bombs are, like their Final Fantasy namesakes (usually), creatures which can absorb fire and blow up for massive
damage when they're low on hit points. They're weak against Water, but there are few spells or abilities in the game
that use the Water element, so if you have to hit them with one of the three basic elements (fire, ice, lightning), use
lightning. They take half damage from ice attacks, and absorb fire (as mentioned).



Now is as good a time as any to start explaining how magic works in this game. Most spells in this game are not
instant; to cast them, a character must "charge" the spell until it is ready to cast. This is similar to how magic works in
Final Fantasy IV. the Final Fantasy Tactics Advance games would eschew this, simply making all their spells insta-cast.

You can choose to either cast a spell on a target, or a panel. Targeting a unit will cause the spell to move with the
unit, even if they move outside the initial 'range' for the spell. Casting on a panel focuses the spell on an area
independent of units.

Charging spells can be dangerous; for one, while you're in the "Charge" state (symbolized by a "C" over your head) you
take additional damage if you're attacked. In addition, whoever you're targeting might move before you cast, either
ruining the spell entirely (if cast on a panel) or potentially harming you as well with your own spell!

Luckily, the game allows you to see well ahead of time when and who a spell will effect.



Before you cast a spell, the game will tell you three things. First, it'll tell you if a spell if Reflectable ("Ref."). This isn't
particularly important to us at this moment, but it's still handy to know. Secondly, it'll say how much MP the spell costs
(Haste costs eight MP in this case). The last number, "Turn" is how many units are going to get to move before the
spell goes off; Turn "01" is when the spell will be cast. In this case, we can tell before casting it that three units are
going to get to move first.

Luckily, we can gleen even more information! If we push right on the controller...



...we get an action list! We see here that the three people who will go before us are all out guys (marked in black).
Enemy units are marked as red.



Since we know that all our other units are going to move before Ramza gets that Haste spell off, We're going to cast it
on the panel Ramza is standing on. Casting it directly on Ramza would have the same effect, but hey, maybe you'll
accidentally move him. Note that the spell has a 91% chance of success at hitting Ramza; this is a function of Ramza's
Faith score being so high (70). Tabatha's low Faith (49) means she only has a 63% chance of getting the haste buff.





We keep Jessica and Ramza where they are, and move Tabatha and Jean to flank Ramza. The resulting spell hastes
everyone it hits except Delita (but who cares, he's just a Guest character)!



Jessica gets an opportunity to blast two units with Black Magic. Any attack that can hit more than one unit, particu-
larly at range, are powerful abilities. We can see that this Goblin is potentially going to lose over half his hit points,
while the Bomb (ironically, or perhaps, unfortunately named "Lightning bolt") will be killed outright, likely do to its high
faith, and perhaps a lucky Zodiac compatibility. Black magic, unlike status magic from an Oracle or Time Mage, will hit
regardless of faith. Higher values will increase the damage it deals.

Now seems as good a time as any to look into our next class: The Wizard!

Wizard

Better known as Black Mages in Final Fantasy lore, Wizards are powerful magical attackers who utilize the three basic
elements (Fire, Ice, and Lightning) to tear up the battlefield.

They have the highest Magic Attack multiplier in the game, making them potentially the most powerful caster in the
game. Enemy wizards are SCARY enemies to face, because no matter what their level, if they can find an opportunity
to hit multiple characters, they will, and for heavy damage. Seeing an enemy mage cast a level 3 magic spell is like, the
worst thing ever.

There's a lot of different magic spells for them to learn, but don't feel the need to grab 'everything' unless you're going
to master the class. Bolt is the natural first pick; it's your best bet against bombs, and a lot of the early areas (Man-
dalia Plains, for example) rain a lot, which increases the damage Bolt deals. Ice magic becomes more useful later in the
game, when more powerful monsters start showing up, a fair number of them weak to Ice magic. Fire should always be
your third choice, but it'll work best against the troublesome Undead monsters.

Remember: abilities that hit more than one enemy, ESPECIALLY at range, are extremely useful, and Wizards are loaded
with such abilities!

Magic Skill Guide:
Some magical spells can be reflected, and some can be used with a calculator. Reflectable spells will be noted after the
description with "R" and Calculatable spells as "C", with R/C when both is possible.

Remember that under Effects, the first number indicates how many square it effects, and the second indicates the
maximum height difference between the center and adjacent panels. "Effect: 2,1" indicates that a spell effects a five
panel "plus" shaped area, of which each panel aside from the middle one must not have a difference in height greater
than one.

"CTR" measures Clockticks until Resolution, which is a fancy way of saying how long it'll take to go off. Higher numbers indicate a spell that takes longer to cast.



Wizard Traits

Prerequisite: Lv. 2 Chemist
Weapon: Rod
Helmet: Hat
Armor: Clothes, Robe

Move: 3
Jump: 3
Physical Evasion Rate: 5%

Abilities to get: Bolt, Ice 2, Magic AttackUP

Class Skill: Black Magic
Fire: Black magic erupts in a blazing inferno [Fire elemental, R/C].
MP: 6, Range: 4. Effect: 2,1. CTR: 4. JP Cost: 50
(The least useful of the three basic elements.)

Fire 2: Black magic erupts in a blazing inferno [Fire elemental, R/C].
MP: 12, Range: 4. Effect: 2,2. CTR: 5. JP Cost: 200
(The undead are weak against it, but they're also weak against holy magic too.)

Fire 3: Black magic erupts in a blazing inferno [Fire elemental, R/C].
MP: 24, Range: 4. Effect: 2,3. CTR: 7. JP Cost: 480
(It's still great to have if you're going to have some with the Black Magic skill set however.)

Fire 4: Black magic erupts in a blazing inferno [Fire elemental].
MP: 48, Range: 4. Effect: 3,3. CTR: 10. JP Cost: 850
(But unless you're grinding in an area with a lot of undead, you're best off learning the Ice and Bolt spells instead.)

Bolt: Black magic strikes down in a flash [Lightning elemental, R/C].
MP: 6, Range: 4. Effect: 2,1. CTR: 4. JP Cost: 50
(The most useful of basic black magic abilities early in the game.)

Bolt 2: Black magic strikes down in a flash [Lightning elemental, R/C].
MP: 10, Range: 4. Effect: 2,2. CTR: 5. JP Cost: 200
(It works well against Bombs, and Pisco Demons are weak against it, and it does extra damage during rain)

Bolt 3: Black magic strikes down in a flash [Lightning elemental, R/C].
MP: 24, Range: 4. Effect: 2,3. CTR: 7. JP Cost: 480
(The "Three" and "Four" level spells are expensive, and hard to use due to their large casting times.)

Bolt 4: Black magic strikes down in a flash [Lightning elemental].
MP: 48, Range: 4. Effect: 3,3. CTR: 10. JP Cost: 850
(So skip them and grab Flare. Note that the level 4 spells are neither reflectable OR calculator friendly!)



Ice: Black magic releases falling ice [Ice elemental, R/C].
MP: 6, Range: 4. Effect: 2,1. CTR: 4. JP Cost: 50
(Ice is the most useful element in the game.)

Ice 2: Black magic releases falling ice [Ice elemental, R/C].
MP: 12, Range: 4. Effect: 2,2. CTR: 5. JP Cost: 200
(but it doesn't start to shine until you start running into some of the tougher monsters.)

Ice 3: Black magic releases falling ice [Ice elemental, R/C].
MP: 24, Range: 4. Effect: 2,3. CTR: 7. JP Cost: 480
(Goblins, Flotiballs, and Morbols are all weak to it.)

Ice 4: Black magic releases falling ice [Ice elemental].
MP: 48, Range: 4. Effect: 3,3. CTR: 10. JP Cost: 850
(Again, skip Ice 4 unless you're mastering the class; its casting time is simply too long.)

Poison: Black magic creates poison inside one's body, gradually lowering HP as the body is consumed from inside [Add:
Poison, R/C].
MP: 6, Range: 4. Effect: 2,2. CTR: 3. JP Cost: 150
(Poison is very weak in this game. Skip it.)

Frog: Black magic turns target into a frog. Can also be used to reverse the effects of this spell [Add: Frog, R/C].
MP: 12, Range: 3. Effect: 1. CTR: 5. JP Cost: 500
(While you can usually nuke a monster, Frog effectively takes an enemy out of the battle entirely. Situationally good.)

Death: Black magic slays target instantly by removing its soul [Add: Dead. R/C].
MP: 24, Range: 4. Effect: 1. CTR: 10. JP Cost: 600
(Slow, and likely unnecessary. Get Flare instead.)

Flare: Black magic burns an entire area by converting ultra-energy to heat [R/C].
MP: 60, Range: 5. Effect: 1. CTR: 7. JP Cost: 900
(The ultimate Black Magic, it has a large range, reasonable casting time, and since it only targets one unit you can
safely cast and run for the hills away from enemies.)

Reaction Ability:
Counter Magic: When attacked by magic, counter with same.
JP Cost: 800
(Good, but you'll be hit with physical attacks more than magical.)

Support Ability:
Magic AttackUP: Can cause great damage with magic attack.
JP Cost: 400
(A great support ability that's fairly cheap. With smart tactics, this can shine.)



The next time Jessica gets a chance to smite some foes with lightning from the heavens, we can see that she can
potentially hit the Red Panther and Black Goblin. She'll hit Algus too, but he's just a lowly guest character. Who needs
him?



Checking the turn order list (again, press "right" on the controller next the spell you would like to cast), we see that all
three remaining enemies will get a chance to move before Jessica's Bolt goes off!

If Jessica targeted the enemy, it would likely move next to one of our units, potentially hitting one or two of our units
with our own magic! If we targeted the panel, the enemies would take the chance to move out, roasting only Algus
with searing electricity. While that still would be pretty awesome (and we'd still get experience and job points for it),
it's not particularly helpful.



So we punch Ramza in the face instead.

Now it's back to her turn, and we've still got a chance to shock the Panther and Black Goblin. Checking the turn order
and...




Yes! Dance Jessica, DANCE!



Kanous the goblin takes out Algus before we can. Darnit.

Before we finish this battle, notice the difference between casting Haste on the panel behind Tabatha, our Archer, and
the panel Jessica is standing on:



The Haste spell (that Ramza is trying to figure out where to target) has a really strict height requirement of 0; each
panel it targets MUST be on the same height! Even the 0.5 difference prevents the spell from affecting more than a
few panels. This will often apply to your black magic too; this is one of the reasons to get the higher level magic, you'll
get more opportunities to hit multiple enemies.

Take er away Jessica.

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

Bonus Money: 2,400 gil.

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

As you can see, this post was story lite, a nice change of pace from the last post, which was pretty story heavy! Once
again, I remind people that if there's any character you wish to see used in the next battle, speak up! Otherwise, I'll be
picking characters with the lowest experience.

Class changes/suggestions are still, as always, welcome! See you next time, in the slums of Dorter Trade City!

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

... to be continued

Zodiac compatibility is something I've never quite understood, and I've played the game at least seven times. An explanation of it in the next update would be super!

Your demonstration of Haste hitting the group is beautiful. Hell, the whole LP is very pretty. I'm glad you spent so much time planning it in the stickied thread.

Like nearly everyone else, reading this makes me want to play through FFT again. For now I have enough other games to play that I'm still passing my Will save.

I've read some Zodiac guide on Gamefaqs every time I start a new game and I still don't really get it. Luckily that guide gives an easy summary of "make Ramza this for an easy game; make Ramza this for a hard game".

I always make Ramza a Sagittarius, but I imagine it's pretty common to give Ramza a birthday that just happens to fall on the same day as the player.

Since you asked for it, I'll talk about Zodiac compatibility next update!

- Eddie

I make him a Scorpio because we all know he's such a bastard. Also because I am Scorpio but shh.

Bolt 2 only costs 10 MP, 2 less than the Fire 2 and Ice 2. Wierd!

Also, hydras are weak to ice... nailing Balk's hydras with Ice 4 is satisfying beyond belief. "Effortless water, break your silence, attack! Ice4!"

that explaination of magic charge time was very useful. At first, I thought CT was a big pain, but I didn't know you could see the turn order like that either. All of a sudden, what seems like it could be a pain, just becomes another part of the strategy.

I always gave Ramza the same birthday as mine, the last day of Aquarius (Feb 18)

My favorite part of the last update!

I just wanted to apologize for the lack of update, it's in the works! I've just been caught up with real life

- Eddie

Ah yes, Real Life, the scourge of Let's Players everywhere.

I totally got destroyed in that Sweegy Woods battle in the LFT patch because the Gosh Dang Goblins kept confusing my party members and the Bombs have auto-Reraise and can heal themselves thanks to innate Monster Skill. Urgh.

Real Life sucks and Ivalice is awesome.

That's the lesson I learned from FFTA.

You seemed to have missed the point then.

Yeah, but Marche was a total douche, so I figured that any life lessons he taught should have been taken in the opposite.

Like how you're supposed to follow Gallants example, and not Goofus's.

He really wasn't! Three kids are happy, but the rest of the people in the world were forced to undergo horrifying transformations (Please see: Horrifying Fanart Thunderdome for examples) against their wills.

Just because you don't like the bullies from school does not give you the right to turn them into undead monsters.

Well, "deadbeat dad" to "supreme commander of the most powerful military force in the world" is a pretty nice upgrade too. And I don't think it was stated that all of the worlds people turned into monsters either (unless I missed it).

Plus the kid UNMADE REALITY and murdered the Anthropomorphic Personification of dreams and hope because one of his friends was pretending too hard.

I didn't find much to redeem Marche in the context of the story, but, in fairness, the plot was supposed to have not been rendered the way it was supposed to be.

so i OHKO'd weigraf and belial today. ramza as ninja with brawler, power vest and bracer, and a brave of 82. I ran up to him as soon as he finished talking and punched him in the face for 422. I didn't even get my second punch.

belial was even easier. Ran next to him, punched twice at 312 a pop, and then immediately got another turn for some reason, and punched twice again. bitch.

You run into monsters that have the same names as the kids you have the snow ball fight against.

He didn't any more so than the other kids did by going to Ivalice in the first place.

But this isn't the place to talk about it, I guess.

Ramza starts the second part of that battle with 100CT. Everybody else starts with 0, like usual. He gets a double turn if he's the fastest on on the field.

Hey, has anyone else ever bothered to recruit a bad guy just because they had a different color palette?

Don't they just change color to match your team when you do that?

No but I have Gameshark'd my characters a palette swap!

Nope. They stay that color until you change their class. I kept a thief a thief the entire game to keep him the same color before.

I should have done this!

I'm in the final stages of editing, and I expect to have the next part uploaded tomorrow.

In sadder news, if you haven't, please take a moment of silence for the recent death of Viki, and pump Stiv up! His LP of Angband is solid gold, and, if I may risk offending everyone who is enjoying Ebony and Ivory, my favorite LP on the site!

- Eddie

No this is not a sorry attempt to cajole some posts out before I update. Okay, maybe it is, but I don't WANT to make you guys load 89 images at once!

Ok, so i'm in chapter 4, and it seems that this playthrough i've criminally under-jp'd my party, as agrias is still a knight and musty is still a chemist.

What are good classes to have at the beginning of act 4, and how do these mythic powerleveling tricks work?

Agrias should shoot for Ninja so she can pick up Two Swords. You may want her to also pick up Draw Out from the Samurai class, so she can have that as her secondary when she's a Holy Knight.

For "power leveling":
Throughout the game, you may have triggered Level Down traps. There's one in the first desert. Anyway, these traps knock you down a level, removing the stat gains of your current class. So, if you level up from 1 to 30 as a Geomancer, then switch to Bard or Dancer and level back down to 1, your stats will be significantly higher than if what they originally were at level 1. Now you can switch over to Geomancer again and level back up to 30, further increasing your stats.

Note that the classes generally used for this are Bards and Dancers for leveling down, and Mimes and Ninjas for leveling up

I forget --does the damage from Holy Sword draw from her right or left hand sword when she's dual-wielding?

Mustadio is a very weird character to pick Jobs for. Since he's mostly useful with Guns, he's either an Engineer, a Chemist, or a Mediator. His base skills make him the ideal Chemist/Mediator, naturally, but I never get the urge to make him anything else. Just a quick run through Knight so he can break equipment, but after that, there's no impetus for him to switch out from Chemist.

personally i intend to stop using him the second i get balthier, so it's just a stopgap for now.

But i really dont understand that explanation. Going down as one class is better than going up as another?

I want to say that your sword skill activates twice. If that's not the case, than its most assuredly whichever one is in the highest equipment slot.

Ok:
Let's say you start out at level one with 50 HP/20 MP/2 PA/2 MA. Then you swap to Geomancer and level up to 99, where you have 500 HP/500 MP/12 PA/11 MA.
By swapping to Bard and level back down to level one, you'll have 200 HP/130 MP/7 PA/5 MA. This is obviously a lot more than what you had when you first started out!
So by leveling up to 99 as a Geomancer again, you'll get 650 HP/610 MP/17 PA/14 MA.
(I am pulling these numbers out of my ass)

I also want to stress that this is completely unnecessary, and is generally only used by the folks that play on the Super Tact board.