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March 28, 2024, 10:08:21 am

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Use of ePSXe before 2.0 is highly discouraged. Mednafen, RetroArch, and Duckstation are recommended for playing/testing, pSX is recommended for debugging.


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Messages - Neophyte Ronin

1
Midas and the golden touch over here!   :cool:

I know you have a human-side Terra and she looks pretty cool, while the Boss Trance Terra is starting to look horrifying.  That inspires my own mod.

While you don't do requests, take it as a compliment that I at least try.  How about either a Genjuu Trance Terra in Type 2 sprite format (so she can use equipment) or, barring that, a Tina with blonde hair, like the initial Amano renditions?

Post-Script: Terra's eyes, while sleepy even in Trance form, is yellow.  Like, a contrast to what was originally supposed to be violet or lavender glowing form, her eyes are almost golden in color, furthering the seeming loss of humanity as a result of her transformation.
2
If the FFT instrument set is insufficient, would porting another set from another similar game be feasible, for instance from Vagrant Story or even the PSX Doom games?

The MIDI converter sounds interesting.  I looked up some software (https://www.lunaverus.com/) called AnthemScore a free-30-day-trial-or-pay-$35 program designed to extrapolate sheet music from a recording.  Said sheet music can then be turned into a MIDI thanks to the simplicity of the format, allowing you to do your own scoring.  You can even make requests from a musician (such as Jon Babb, who has been on www.newgrounds.com since the mid-2000's) to provide tracks you can then turn into MIDI and finally to an SMD.

Just be sure that you have a good ear or vision of your preferred soundtrack so that it doesn't interfere with the experience of playing a mod that sounds uniquely you.
3
Nice work.  Snatched.

I love how the core formula scales with the player.  You can substitute the traditional Faith-Based Magic Formula of Y*MA with the Y+MA*(MA/2).  Every Health/Morale-altering Spell should apply such an effect.
4
Help! / Excising FMV to Save Space (PSX Version)
July 25, 2019, 04:22:27 pm


I understand there are several locations in the PSX's FFT Data (I imagine Event.BIN but I'm likely wrong) that summons seven full-motion videos:

#1: Four that loop in: Opening Cinema, Lion's War Explanation, Cinematic Promotion as seen at Trade Expos, and the bombastic Class Overview.  The first always plays because it resets to the start of said code, while it also checks for what time-delay cinema played last.

#2: Three In-Game Cinemas (one after stating Name and Birth Date and after the Funeral Cinema, one for the Ending and another for Credits unless both of those are combined).

Seven in all.  In contrast, Vagrant Story has two--Title Cinema and Credits--and has far more game from a certain point of view.

If a mod altered the story, classes, or even sported a custom title screen, the FMV sequences interfere due to their specificity.  Stopping playback may involve changing or just "NOP'ing" code pointers; FFT Arena doesn't need to see the opening cinema.  It must be more complicated to ensure the Title Menu appears, but doing this prevents a custom title screen from clashing with an antiquated FMV.

After that, the FMVs take up space.  Question is: would nixing FMVs provide more space for other data if the registers got expanded, just like nixing text data for Kanji and non-translated Magi-Fiction books, or are they some other kind of data that cannot be applied elsewhere without a massive overhaul?

EDIT: Answered--excising FMVs do not expand upon the 700MB writable space as it's a PSX disc hardware issue.

Then again, cinemas can be nixed to display pertinent FMVs or audio data; I assumed the existent data hogged all the space so nothing else could happen without excising existent code and content.  That isn't the case, it seems.

Thanks for replying!
5
Thank you.  I was wondering what the deal was with the duplication.  So, in future reference, 0x38 points to an existent routine and changing the pointer elsewhere.  I'll be sure to set this thread as a favorite!   :D
6
Perusing the Wiki's Formula lists, I noticed Formula 38 (100% Set Status) is claimed to be a duplicate of "Apply Status (to Action)" code, which implies it exists elsewhere in the program code.  Abilities that utilize 38 have balance issues (e.g. Boss Status checks are "either you're immune or you die") and I seek to amend them by tying the Abilities with other more suitable Formulas.

So, if I outsource all Abilities, can Formula 38 be pruned, or will it spell doom to "Apply Status (to Action)" also?

EDIT: Solved
(see Glain's first post below for specifics).  0x38 points to an existent formula; to change what 0x38 does (i.e. Set Status 100%), the pointer must be changed to another region in the "Free/Kanji" data space.
7
Quote from: Magic Gladii on June 01, 2018, 08:54:46 am
I've avoided using 'Aquilor' and 'Austeron' because they are not really a direct translation of 'Hokuten' and 'Nanten.' I've stuck with the original names here as well.

There definitely is no mention of any Knights of the Western Skies, but I don't recall any mention of the Knights of the Eastern Skies either... Or maybe there is in Rumours? I never really paid too much attention to them because some are... difficult... to read


The profile for Gafgarion claims he used to serve in the "Touten" Knights, which is Japanese.  Translating that means he served in the "Order of the Eastern Sky" before getting kicked out for rough play.  If we consider Aquilor/North Sky and Austeron/South Sky as literal compass directions since medieval maps always posited North as the left-most point and South was at the right (the climates are radically different as a result--look up the rumor about bad harvests and their causes, or carefully examine the terrain featured in either region), then Gafgarion hails from Fovoham, renowned for mercenaries and adventurers by proxy of Archduke Barrington, who hired them to represent him in the previous war.  This also explains why Ramza knows anything about the Archduke without being told and can even reason out his ambitions while conversing with Rafa--he initially fled to Fovoham, joined Gafgarion's service, and learned the ropes over the span of a year before the events of the game proper.  That also tells you why you don't get to dispatch units to jobs in Chapter 1--not only is it a flashback, but he wasn't doing anything of the sort back then.

As for Western Sky Knights, they could be termed as either the Zephyrs (west wind, yo) or as the Gryphons because Beowulf used to be in charge of a unit in Lionel before getting branded.
8
Celdia's Complete Patch / Brand-New Master's Guide
March 25, 2017, 10:27:09 pm
Since I'm currently picking through the Complete Patch right now, I can't help but notice all the old information displayed in the pinned topics such as the Master's Guide.  I remember when Warriors used Charge/Aim for their chief ability, but those tricks were subsumed by other Abilities and a new listing called Maneuvers (featuring the almost game-breaking Rally Performance Skill) replaces it.  That's just one example.  Is it possible for someone to independently author a Master's Guide, or is this something Celdia will do once the Stats-Revert-After-Level-Up bug gets fixed?  I suppose I could try my hand at covering all the Items and Generic Classes....
9
The Vanquisher is most likely the Ninja from Vanilla Tactics in terms of Job/Class replacements and the Ambidexterity Trait is also called Two Swords.  In the original Vanilla Tactics, Ninja cannot Set Two Swords because their Class already has them technically speaking; the programmers actually got rid of the ability for Ninjas to set something that was already Innate for them.  A workaround for that is likely something that doesn't even exist because FFTPatcher doesn't have the ASM that accommodates that (I doubt anybody has figured out a hack that does).
10
Been going between Celdia's and this patch.

Since my Rad got Invitation from the start, I stubbornly recruited as many saps as possible.  He was basically my MVP despite being on a lower level than everybody else.

The Ramza progression fascinates me.  His Guts/Mettle gets a fresh coat of paint every few chapters, and it's nice to know Basic Skill's Dash and Throw Stone are weighted a little fairer.  Still, Levels might get out of whack; my initial cadets in Chapter 1 had to run over the Zeklaus Degenerator many times before reasserting themselves.

Virtually everything about this patch kicks lots of ass and it's just the faintest touches.

The last encounter was the initial Zalmo confrontation.  The guy is a beast, I swear.  I literally invited virtually every cohort of his and cornered him against the wall just aside the staircase with Agrias.

At that point, I started to really get tired and decided to see how Celdia's Patch had fared.  I remember when the Warrior still had the Charge/Aim Command Ability--not a bad idea, since the Squire Basic Skill used to suck, but the new version has things like Rallying and Provoking that sort of breaks things from day one--two Rallying Units spells hesitation on part of most monster parties.  Then again, that's Celdia's charm--not everything is meant to be balanced or fair, considering her style.  That's one of the drawbacks of the Kind Of patch: it's a general improvement over the original game but it doesn't appear to offer anything that is astoundingly new or innovative.  That's going to wreck its appeal for some.  Even so, I had fun with the time I had and I bet I'll go back to it later after Celdia's patch.
11
[highlight=yellow]Cannoneers (and those with the secondary) take so long to calculate an action because of the gigantic AoE of the skills.

It takes the AI a moment to plot out what it wants to do because it has a lot to consider.
[/highlight]
I've noticed that too.  Combined with the Stat-Reset-@-LV-Up bug, it made my fight in the Sand Rat cellar unwinnable because the Demogogues and Hawknights preferred to spam-heal with potions and my first instinct was to buff the three heroes (with playable guests--I was so amazed and relieved) ad infinitum until they could slaughter their competitors in single hits.  But I was using daggers and longbows for range and poison.  Once I discovered the overflow/bug/whatever, I wanted to pitch my T60 laptop (old but serviceable) out the window.  Not a pleasant experience.

And, you know... that would probably have been averted if there weren't any leveling-up at all.  Since every item was remade into a snowflake, it pretty much means you outgrow some interesting things that ironically help out the team.

But that's not to say I'm not enjoying the experience.  I figured Xif's Stat caps would have been employed and was employed, but I didn't think there would be an overflow glitch attached to it.  Instead, it's not implemented and this thing has been going on for a while, despite the main characters getting a Vigor-Up option.  It's not easy being the tester or the designer.
12
PSX FFT Hacking / Re: ASM Requests
February 25, 2017, 03:30:54 pm
Thanks for replying Emmy!  I wasn't aware they got the XP = 0.

Calculators are broken, but I don't necessarily care.  Their abilities aren't really the problem--their spell selection is.

Okay, so making the ASM might be dumb if every single Growth Rate was changed to zero itself, but I had this in mind: turn LV into INT (since LV is a determinant for JP accrual).  Then, turn XP into "Prestige".  It's basically what the game would use to determine A) what equipment is in use, as if the low, low "XP" guys have the great gear as if they had a high Level, and B) determine cash yields.

Probably write a code, where we can say 100 minus XP equals the "Level" the game uses to determine how much cash is gleaned from the enemy.  This means the guys with high XP with 90 or 85 are like 100 - 90 and 100 - 85 (10 or 15), which means 100*10 and 100*15 (1000 and 1500).  The ability for Thieves that let you swipe gil or the Negotiate/Beg trick reduces XP, thereby heightening the cash yield (theoretically--unless it only decides it before the battle and not after it).

I'll have to look up a guide on all the functions and the locations of everything in the code.  That'll be painful, but maybe it's for the best....
13
PSX FFT Hacking / Re: ASM Requests
February 25, 2017, 03:54:42 am
I'm nervous to ask.  I'm talking, really, really nervous.  Having researched the BMG, I believe the proposed work-around isn't going to run into anything hard-coded.  It might, though.  Feel free to counter-argue.

Request #1: An ASM which multiplies Experience gains by 0, including rounding down to zero in case a formula delivers a minimum of 1.  Either way, ZERO EXP GAIN!  (The remaining EXP, randomly generated at run-time, can remain.  It may be useful somewhere else).  Maybe a second ASM if the Killing Blow EXP causes screw-ups.

Request #2: Another ASM which removes LV from Growth calculations (original formula: bonus = [current_RX/(C+LV)]).

Ergo, Current Raw Stat only--Character Level does not influence adjustable Stats, making Growth numbers irrelevant.  Level and Exp affect Job Point accrual and Calculator Math Skills.  Ramza at LV01, assuming no adjustments in Class data or starting growth rates as expressed in the BMG, gets between 37..39 HP.  For life.  End of story.  Everyone is dealt likewise.

Vanilla Tactics' Level System has issues like a Level-Up-and-Down trick.  With these two theoretical ASMs, parameters associated with LV & EXP (Steal EXP, Level Blast, Degenerator, Gained EXP Up, Move EXP Up, Please Eat) are freed for editing, like that Weapon Guard hack that lets Classes gain Weapon Evasion without needing the ability--what happens to the ability is up to the patch's author.

The implications reach further.

Level and Experience are not just the Calculator's domain, though being rendered immutable means they are more reliable than CT and Height.  See, for JP ([(8+(JobLV*2)+[LV / 4])*M] (M = 3/2, i.e. Gained JP Up), a non-level system may call LV "INT" instead, like D&D3.X--affecting Skill accrual and Calculator susceptibility.  High Levels learn quicker (nice if high-INT Humans appear near end-game to play catch-up if Invited), while Ramza and like company with LV 01 EXP 00 eternally duck two Calculator Abilities.

The second implication might warrant another request, because getting the AI to equip things based on a "progression" besides Story Progress or Shop Availability is another step in my envisioned patch.

Request #3: ASM which has game consider all available equipment options when outfitting AI humans.

The engine chooses equipment based on one of two things: pre-set (like Agrias and Gafgarion always getting their respective fare) or a linear numerical progression which never looks back; once Gold Armor is on the menu, it ditches Mithril and Plate Mail.  This is standard practice for a leveled system, not a non-leveled one seeking to make everything incomparable in some fashion.  Consequently, Leather Armor never gets used because it technically sucks, although most of the medieval fare that fuels a war economy is rejected after ten character levels and not even halfway through the Chapters themselves.  See the problem, right?

Adjustable stats being made static allows for greater equipment options and flavor without worrying about climbing a ladder as a hermit-crab.  The extremes of 1 & 99 still an issue?  Xifanie's min/max hack stabilizes adjustable stats further, so Speed Break doesn't need to add Slow.  Converting the economy from hermit-crab to snowflake-tonguing while maintaining balance is a chore.  Characters might get weird equipment combinations like Leather Armor and Cross Helmet, but each item has perks (Leather is cheap, flexible, and non-conductive, so no issues with Lightning, unlike metal armor), so each is stress-tested for long-term use.

Maybe the deciding factor is Character EXP instead of LV, so someone with Low EXP get stuff like Chain Mail and the upper echelons get Carabineer Plate, turning EXP into a "Prestige/Lineage" Stat that tells us they're loaded or connected.  Hell, I might even ask if this gets remade into the source of end-battle money and see if a Gil-Taking "Attack" can add EXP to the Target and thus make them cough up more cash after the battle is over!

But I'm getting ahead of myself (wouldn't adding EXP make the Enemy Level Up?  Maybe if the Money Bonus was based on 100 - EXP then Gil Taking would be remade into Steal EXP with coins flying around; Negotiate/Beg too....)

Plenty of Patches might benefit from these hacks.  Take Celdia's.  Her equipment does all kinds of things, but they must be replaced over time like every Final Fantasy Game ever, simply due to Leveling up.  Getting Equipment to upgrade with players might solve some of the problem, but not all of it.  Applying this theoretical hack and reworking every item means Celdia can turn them into snowflakes that don't melt in players' hands.  Celdia's patch is already centered on exploration, which is best when optional and never mandatory.

"TOO LONG I DIDN'T READ": two ASM hacks to nix Level and Level-Ups from stat-adjustment equations, rendering first level stats the definitive static levels for all classes and creatures and freeing several Level-associated Abilities.  It would allow a non-Leveling (i.e. "incomparable") campaign, which would necessitate revisions in the game economy and a possible third to let the AI perform extreme mix-and-match with equipment from the beginning to the end-game.

I only assume these ASMs can, in fact, happen.  I'm ready for rebuttals and public outcry.
14
FFT+ / Re: Revised Script, First Draft
April 22, 2013, 02:09:14 am
Login 4/22/13, 2:05 am.

Still soliciting feedback, though I might just post portions in entries and ask for suggestions on specific sections in the coming few days.
15
Final Fantasy Tactics / Re: FFT's on Android now too
March 06, 2013, 01:07:05 am
Did they change the glaring bugs the first two iterations have?

Anyone want to place bets...?

(It does look good though, almost Flash Vector-smooth).
16
Idiotic Bug Report ('cause yeah, I saw something screwy just now):

I noticed you can commit seppuku with Armor Break.

When I Charmed a red-capped Goblin, the guy damn-near killed himself using Armor Break on himself.  I guess it's flagged so you can target yourself, as the original parameters must be set to a formula wherein you can target yourself.

But that doesn't make sense and makes my brain hurt like fuck.

That... just isn't supposed to happen.  I guess it's different when no-one's around, you can Armor Break yourself to death?

Lost the Charm; figured he'd go after that damned Chocobo....
17
The Lounge / Re: Elric's Proposal
February 15, 2013, 07:52:38 am
 :shock:
Put a smile on my face.
:D
Congratulations, if it's not too late!
18
FFT+ / Re: Revised Script, First Draft
February 15, 2013, 07:43:59 am
I followed the original translation; Delita's phrase "Blame Yourself or God" is verbatim.  (Nowadays, it's along the lines of "'Tis your misguided faith that wrongs ye, not I," which is still in the spirit of what is implied).  The "Tough shit" bit is also original blind-idiot translation again.  He didn't say 'shit', though.  Yet, when you're abducting someone and their guardian shouts at you right before you succeed, you tend to get a little cocky, don't you?  I would.

This is the furthest thing from Disneyfying you'll ever read, Luc.  It gets worse.  Far worse.
19
Spriting / Re: Kaedre's sprites
January 30, 2013, 05:48:39 pm
The order of knights that Delita is (officially) affiliated with during the story.  Figured they'd be an order of black-cloaked knights.  He's working for the Templar, however.  The dark priest is definitely in line for what I had in mind for the Blackram in my patch.
20
Spriting / Re: Atma's Sprites
January 30, 2013, 01:53:42 pm
The other day I was thinking about a mod that replaces the Beowulf side-quest with one that features the BLACK MAGE THAT CASTS THE SPELLS THAT MAKE THE PEOPLE FALL DOWN from 8-Bit Theater.  Finish this sprite and you will have made my Type B mod version's day.