Final Fantasy Hacktics

I can tell from the posts right now some of those ideas cannot be implemented.  Cover, like from FF7, would not work.  However, we cannot just negate the sentiment.  I'd have it work like Monster Skill, in that a friendly adjacent character within a respectable height difference (2) acquires the Knight's Evasion stats.  It would have to be a Support Ability and can be augmented with Abandon or Weapon Guard, etc.; whatever the Knight's stats are, they are transmitted to the ally.  That's how far my imagination goes and I'm also very sure it would be difficult to figure out how that would work in the program.

As for everything else, this is a balancing patch.  Any of the ideas mentioned might constitute a change in how everything goes.  A Samurai Hara-Kiri, a Critical-Triggered Reactive ability, would be a liability if the enemy deal the damage from afar.  Archers would walk all over Samurai as a result.  Then again, a Tonberry-esque ability similar to Damage Split, where you react with the amount of damage you have suffered overall (call it Karma Retort), might be doable since it would have the range aspect.  Yet, it would not be consistent with the Samurai idiom.

Weapons that deal specific effects 100% of the time are, however, the most doable thing around.  Mage Mashers have been modified to that degree.  Poison Rods have been made 100% successful, which is pretty slick even if you think lowly of Black Mages.  Poison has been rendered permanent until cured, so you cannot discount it as an offensive weapon anymore.  If an enemy with hidden stats is susceptible, it may be possible to determine the creature's maximum health by multiplying its poison damage by eight.

Auto-Ether would not fly.  To be honest, there is a class called Performer that has Angel Song.  Use that instead, or use the Monk's Chakra ability.  Air Blades enhance their Wave and Spin Fist techniques.

The Classic Black Mage has Lightning on-demand, and there are a couple nasty monsters weak to it.  Geomancers lack that ability, but have wind, earth, and water.  Summoners have all but holy, but they are pure damage and lack a true supportive element anymore.  Holy is no longer a one-hit kill, which is good if you're up against enemy white mages and palm-to-head material for every other instance.

If I wanted to make a suggestion, I'd recommend changing the emphasis of the Summoner to one where you can deal status effects across the field.  It'd be expensive and tricky to pull off, but that's where Precision or Half MP come into play.

It's doing good so far.  Still wondering what the finished product will look like, and whether or not we'll need to see another patch after that.

Thousands of HP can still be wilted away with the proper ability.  However, we're looking at a total face-melting experience if monsters like Skeletons--with oppressive health stats as they are now--suddenly get over thousands of health with which to trigger their favorite reaction ability or cast their favorite magic.

One of the buggy things I find problematic is how monsters cast specific spells, yet don't require magic to do so.  Minotaurs and Skeletons are notorious for this crap.  Now, Ahrimans, I get.  They have Counter Magic and require a reservoir of magic for it.  But everybody else?  They should have a morale stat over one point and require it for casting--only make it reasonably high so they can do so for a while.

It's absolute bullshit watching skeletons group together and cast gravity on themselves free of charge.  Further reason why I don't mind Mustadio getting balanced out and useful.

P.S. I went through the Goland shafts.  That was impressive, but I still think a well-prepared and savvy player will find it simple.

The battle with Velius opens up another can of worms: practically every instance of Zodiac Demon, minions in particular, is unique.  The first three bozos are no pushovers.  Other instances make them sincerely tricky.  However, it seems as though they cannot shrug off status effects.  Break Skills and Yin Yang Magic turn them into jelly.  Without those useful abilities, these guys will use their signature moves to humiliate you into submission.  Fortunately, it is rare that these villains have any degree of speed, and slowing them down puts the pressure off your party.

Yeah, just don't be ridden ragged and be forced to use one or two just to finish the battle.

I never encountered that in Vanilla Tactics.  Suppose Dome came up with it?  Then again, it would make sense a little bit.  I wonder if you could attack all kinds of elemental weaknesses upon otherwise beneficial conditions.

Anyway, I discovered the following bugs and observations, having started to go through Chapter Four:

When I fought six bulls, two of each phenotype, at Doguola Pass, I came prepared with Berserk resistance courtesy of Finger Guard or Ribbons, Floatation via Time Magic, and some magic defense and tanks.  In other words, I was ready for instances where Bulls would appear, but it shocked me the first time when I saw six.  Anyway, I noticed the Bull Demons kept using Gather Power even if an opportunity to strike was present.  I suppose there is something wrong with the AI settings because they are far from active.  At least with AI in Vanilla, they would lurch forward and actually attempt to attack, and they're the harshest hits if they continue to use Gather Power!

Hydras will spam Dark Whisper thanks to it dealing six bolts instead of three like their typical abilities.  I mean it: this is retarded.  There are few defenses against Darkness--the N-Kai Armlet and Accursed Ring being the exceptions--and the odds of getting hit multiple times is excruciating.  Either reduce its strength or alter the number of times it hits, because the sheer wait for it to resolve is what kills people.  Dark Whisper always deals six blows and takes forever to resolve.  The other two known techniques, the Triple attacks, are rarely used because Dark Whisper is so readily available.  I would tone down the power, or rearrange their command sets entirely, unless you want to encourage hunting and killing off Revenants for their Accursed Rings.  Fortunate, then, that they only start to appear in Chapter Four, but what a pain in the neck!

In an instance at Bethla Garrison (southern rampart), a Mediator is addressed as a Nanten Knight by the dialog prompt.  It's like changing specific characters in Chapter Two without addressing the prompts themselves.  Just another one of those instances.  Then again, substituting a title that is neither Knight nor Mediator should clear confusion in one deft stroke.

Noticed a bug where Threaten works against monsters no matter if the caster has Monster Talk.  The caster was Orlandeau against a Juravis at Baraiaus Hill.  Either he has innate Monster Talk (doubtful) or the ability needs to be flagged.  Altered Talk Skill Abilities  are still not flagged to disregard sleeping opponents.

MP Switch Glitch: when you deal a mortal blow but it registers as MP Switch, the creature is poached anyway.  This is seen in the Bed Desert against a Dark Behemoth (Female Knight Guest battle).

I was a little amused then, but I'm more perplexed now that, considering Behemoths use MP Switch, they only have 1 MP and no Move-MP UP Ability.  It's useless beyond means, since it only repels one physical blow.  For challenge's sake, they should have a great deal more MP than that, or have Manafont in conjunction with--like the only Unit that is allowed to have that advantage.  That could theoretically double their health against a typical attacker, and in the case of trying to deal a heavy blow, just a little MP in the way can negate the effect entirely, making for a reasonably powerful combatant who can withstand all manner of injustices.  The Behemoth could be considered an attractive Tank unit.  Getting MP Switch just once between full and zero health does not sound like a good reaction ability, I hate to tell you.  You could get around it with Angel Song, Ethers or Chakra, but that makes the creature high-maintenance.  There are creatures with better defenses than that anyway!

Is it just my imagination, or does Concentrate somehow also prevent Sleep Condition?  I never encountered this in Vanilla, so I'm wondering if it's something unique to Plus.  Enountered in Germinas Peak, fighting two ninjas who were immune to the Deep Night Skeleton ability without visible equipment to prevent it.  The only common factors were their use of Concentrate, the fact that they are Ninjas, and that they had speaking roles during the opening cinema.  Other conditions seemed to work against them, also.

Note: Everything riding on striking power is subverted with the Zorlin Shape's effect on the character.  Weapon power is taken into account for MP Steal, for instance.  At Full Health, a character cannot deal any MP siphon against an opponent.  Thus, Zorlin Shape daggers are very touch-and-go.  They can be highly destructive when a character is on the cusp of death....

Incident report: a poaching run at Poeskas Lake revealed a different death cry for the Dark Behemoth found there (while working with a Guest Male Priest).  It was a human male death cry and the creature did not get poached as normal.  Major bug that needs addressing!

In Germinas Peak, during the fight between five black mages and five white mages, I caught one of the white mages with "Equip Axe" as a Support Ability.  This probably happens from time to time, but if this is a set fight (probably is), then it needs addressing.   There are no more Axes as they have been dummied out.

Could have sworn a Thunder Rod, when targeting one of my units (during aforementioned white mage/black mage free-for-all), was able to deal Faith 20% of the time.  I might have been seeing things as it was rather fast and I didn't care to repeat the instance.  I might have been seeing Bolt instead.  It prompted me to steal the Thunder Rod and double-check my inventory.  I'm pretty sure this is an isolated case of being too tired and checking out way too many bugs.

These are noted occurrences and glitches and bugs seen thus far.  Not all are bugs, but observations about current game balance and other weird things that come to mind after hours of playing.

From my understanding, in Vanilla Tactics, as you progress through the chapters, enemy formations mature and become diverse.  Mandalia Plains features Black Chocobos, Vampire Kitties, and Gabbledegacks in Chapter Four, for example, even after the initial formations consisted of Red Caps, Yellows, and Red Panthers.

In Plus Edition, Encounters are fixed and only change according to point of entry.  Beginning in Chapter Four, there are also instances featuring hard-as-nails enemies.



If you manage to pull off the impossible and show off your unit at its best, you get acquainted with an Elixir or two.  That compensates for all those times beforehand, when human enemy units would stumble upon and collect them right before your eyes.  If you're really spot-on, you might be able to drag a few of the monster carcasses with you.  However, Dome's modified monsters (ones with hidden stats) cannot be poached, just so you know.  These are nowhere near the fights where a single opponent is twenty levels superior to your unit.  No, they're much further down the spiral, and yet they are appropriate practice before delving into the Deep Dungeon.  Thankfully, thematic as they are, figuring out the gimmick puts you that much closer to victory.

The question is: are these fights relegated exclusively to battlefields available only to Chapter Four, or...



...do we have to pour through prior battlefields from every angle until the new formations are found?  The phenomenon seems centered on Chapter Four, when new tough formations arrive, so I figured I'd ask before I go hiking across the world again looking for something to kill.  Is this phenomenon widespread or not?

Thank God you tinkered with a more palatable version.  Overemphasis on difficulty just to be difficult is the mark of a sadist and not a game designer.

Shouldn't you post that chart in the Master's Guide?

Continuing on:

Funny you mentioned Meteor, Dome.  When I checked an Ochu's command list, it had Meteorain on there, but its description is consistent with what it had previously: Tentacle.  Seems Tentacle is abolished until further notice.  Anyway, I have no clue what Meteorain does at this time on a Marlborough-type creature.  Still looking into it.

UPDATE: Marlboroughs now use their original Vanilla version Tentacle Whip technique to attack.  It deals roughly the same amount of damage, so Brave might be involved.  It's just mislabeled.  Looking into it....

Yeah, It's Brave-based.  24*24 is 572, with Brave 45 is around 280.  I like that to a point.  Though nothing permanent is necessary, I am still a proponent of adjusting Morale on grand scale for creatures to land Brave-Based hits.  Ramza's Encourage ability is under-powered for what it's worth.

Remember: Marlboroughs can kill off a party with Petrify so they don't need a damaging hit to win, hence they always go for Bad Breath if it's possible to deal.

Maybe this was already covered in the Mechanics Guide, but when you deal a Charged Dual-Wield attack, Shirahadori/Blade Grasp will apply to both strikes, while a normal dual strike circumvents the Reaction Ability on the second hit (as usual).  Repeated encounters with Ghosts while poaching for Reflection Mail and Accursed Rings seem to confirm this.

Another thing about Ghost-Type enemies.  I noticed the typical damage for a Wind Soul (Bone Snatch) is 250 (50*5) at Lv99, where my roster is now, but it deals 330, or 25% extra, against a Gust.  I'm not sure how to take this.  Either the Ghost series of monsters has hidden elemental weaknesses or Wind Soul deals extra damage.  I recall Thunder, Aqua, and Ice Soul abilities had 3 for damage, while Wind Soul had something like 4 (consult the Battle Mechanics Guide to conform).  If this transitioned to Plus, then Wind Soul is stronger than it should be.  Either that, or Zodiac compatibility was messing with me big time, and seeing two instances of it probably just threw me off.

EDIT: Yeah, it's not me.  The latest blow was from a Taurus and my Ghost is a Pisces.  Neutral Compatibility.  Something not right with the Zodiac Chart, or Wind Soul is somehow stronger than it should be; Bone Snatches must be popular among monster aficionados.

EDIT II: I pinpointed the problem: while casting Blasphemy Power to gain the Shell Status, a Bone Snatch marched in and dealt what should have been a 165 Damage attack with Wind Soul.  It is 330 instead, indicating an affinity weakness.  Other Soul hits deal normal damage, but the Gust appears to have a weakness to wind.  This may be extended to all Ghost Types.  It's undocumented in the Master Guide, online help, and in many other instances where it should be noted.

If your roster is too full, generic, untouched characters will say, "Believers will be saved.  I've realized my fate is to wander and seek out others to help." (something to that effect; I get sickened by the shoddy translation that I just write it out the way I'd deliver its intentions).  It's a statement spoken by high-faith characters, often as a prelude or declaration to quitting the unit over holy beliefs.  Turns out EVERY generic, untouched character will say this.  Rad, Alicia, and Lavian say nothing but an ellipsis, while special characters as Mustadio and Agrias say their standard protests.  Thought this is worth adding to known bugs, if it hasn't been addressed.

Detected instance where Death Sentence cures but is not fatal: when cast upon one of the Ghost creatures (Gust in particular).  This can go either way: it should be natural for an Undead character to shrug it off, or to succumb merely to rise again after three turns.

Typo: "Gun that shoots fire elemental bullets."  This in reference to the Glacier Gun after it states in its details that it is, in fact, Ice Elemental.  (The Blaze Gun is fine--it provides the same exact statement).  Will need to revise.

While dealing maximum range arrows with the 8 Panel-Ranged Yoichi Bow, I noticed some shots will fail simply by having the arrow polygon fall short of striking the target, thanks to how the arc is calculated.  It doesn't happen a great deal often to worry about; I found this to be the case while firing atop of Bervenia Volcano with Mustadio, capitalizing on his Sniper specialty.

I'll continue to post more as I catch them.

Got him in Round Two.

Expecting more HP?  Just how difficult was 1.3 anyway?  I seem to have missed that one.  This one is proving to be pretty good so far, but what was 1.3 about?

I upgraded to the new C Beta version and have started rummaging through again.

First off, it appears as though the trick to change random enemies' Support Abilities to something random, rather than just Maintenance all the time, has failed in Sweegy Woods.  That's right: from what I can tell, the random field encounters retain the same annoying Support Ability Maintenance.  However, the equipment is on par with the chapter/store level, so hip-hip-hooray for at least one part of it working.

You probably already know this, but the Double Shot effect of Crossbows exists independently of the Damage Split effect; Damage split records the first hit only.  Another reason to enjoy Double Shot, unless you're on the receiving end.

Instead of being infallible, Dash now has a Direct Evasion property attached.  It also delivers a knock-back half of the time.  It has the same damage as Bulls-Eye but they're used differently.  That's pretty good.

No more Tentacle while Berserk or Frog, or both!  That's a major development that will go very far.  Instances like those should be avoided.  If that is the case, what do Marlboroughs use for a standard attack (if they EVER use one)?

Mustadio is now awesome at long last.  Give him Precision to crank his Snipe ability to over 80% even on a bad sign.  However, it does not apply with Power Break and Mind Break to any palpable degree.  Like previous Break Skills, they are subject to evasion while Sniping is not.  Status immunity applies as normal.  I have even applied his talents in major fights with a Yoichi Bow and gave him Steal as a secondary.  I'm pretty sure either Class--Engineer or Thief--can work out, but stick to Engineer when up against Break Skills or Thieves.  Switch to Thief for infallible hits and speed.  You can't lose with this kind of setup.

I haven't noticed bugs beyond the ones mentioned, but I'll let you know when I find one.  It's looking good so far!

The original breakage rate was 15%.  Across 100 Draw Out attempts, Breakage should happen fifteen times on average.

To test and legitimately conclude Dome's sales pitch requires someone who can speed up his emulator (or not, just be quick with menus), purchase 100 of a sword, Mind Break the caster to 1 Magic, Draw Out one hundred times and see if it breaks even once.  If it doesn't and the breakage rate was not changed, then there should be between ten to twenty lost swords.

Also keep a tally of how many times you draw out (like on a paper) and then check the inventory after the battle to see if it isn't a display thing going on.  It is possible that Dome took out the script that says to display the effect of Broken but not prevent the Draw Out effect itself.  In other words, you could have a major problem if it turns out they are being lost to an effect that isn't reported by the system.

The other explanation is simple: breakage or theft from an opponent.

I'm surprised that Dome sought to be rid of Draw Out/Iaido and while I'm inclined to agree, it's tricky to figure out what he would replace it with.  The Samurai is slow to a fault and lacks (according to 1.01B) a double-grip power to trade-off the lack of a shield.  The magic and speed of other classes means Draw Out is better served as an optional ability, especially with Geomancers and Black Mages, but it takes forever to learn each ability.  Perform Abilities work well; give them Damage Split or Counter, then a defense booster, Concentrate, or double grip (if 1.01B or latter versions that don't fix that little annoyance) and have them exposed to enemies in the front.  The Samurai can buff up Health or stats and offer occasional ripostes with one model or simply survive the other.  MP Switch with a female dancing Samurai produces self-sustaining defense; give her a ribbon for added insurance and bring in some casters.  One less thing.

I'll download and test out the differences in 1.01C ASAP.  Will a saved file work out after a change in version?  Nothing removed permanently or altered horribly?

Dome, did you actually give him a functioning Zorlin Shape that can be wielded by enemies?  If the data believes it is a non-functional placeholder, the AI will consider the wielder unarmed, yet also unable to deal unarmed blows.  Take it away and he goes fisticuff style.  However, I doubt Dome has the lack of foresight to make that happen.

So, did Malak receive damage?  I understand Zorlin Shape deals Dark Damage based on caster Health Loss.  I guess you didn't actually HIT Malak, so he didn't give a shit and just waited for a moment when he actually DID get hit.  Thus, the AI simply went "screw this" and just waited.  Then you stole it.  >.<

That's probably what happened: the AI, in failing to cast magic, resorts to physical strikes, but if Zorlin Shapes cannot deal damage without damage dealt to their wielders, you can cheat the system by keeping them healthy, negate their other combat options, and extract the blades.  Pretty much a slick steal.  However, Zorlin Shapes can get nasty if they are wielded by a high-health combatant with Concentrate who just took a licking.  I hope you treasure the Zorlin Shape you ripped from Malak, but remember how narrow a scope it has.  It's also Dark Affinity, so don't expect it to run through every target you meet.

Boosting accuracy of Mustadio's limited but hopeful abilities should give him a breather.  I recall the original Seal Evil was like 70% Base but now it's 65 or 60% Base.  Combined with the difficulty of leveling up speed with equipment, it becomes a total crap-shoot.  But because the Undead have undergone such a horrifying renaissance, his Snipe ability can break the monopoly of those wretched skeletons.  Unfortunately, Ghosts are another matter.  They can get downright annoying.

I used to believe Rafa and Malak were useless.  Despite the lack of cost, their abilities were unreliable thanks to exposing them to damage and being slow to cast.  These days, they almost look playable, so Mustadio is getting the shaft without intervention.

Also, the Red Mage isn't THE best Command Ability for magic.  It covers a random assortment, but none of the hard specific spells that other casters provide, such as Esuna.  The Red Mage would be better served with Esuna instead of Cura.

Onion Knights don't need to double-grip a Dragon Rod; they're better off with a Shield and Harp.  Spend some time poaching in Chapter 3; poach every monster type at least once and you'll be far better off.  This includes hatching and poaching, since not all creatures will appear unless you do, at least for that point in the game.

Point is: weigh your options and think of what will work in the end game against high-level suckers; Dragon Rods go the wayside by then, having no magic boost and just raw striking power unmatched by other weapon types (still fun to play with though).  Make sure you have those options, or some of them, by the time you're closing in on the Deep Dungeon, because 4 unique battles per floor sounds like we're gonna pop a shitload of popcorn.

It shouldn't.  It's a 1 in 4 chance.  Still, it will slowly kill off a unit in case it happens, forcing you to wait and revive after death becomes the unit.  It's a little aggravating since antidotes were dummied into "Stuff".

I found out that Mimes are immune to all kinds of status effects.  However, for its risky drawback when faced with mages, "Faith" really shouldn't be one of them.  I tried to cast it on my Onmyoshi/Oracle, and then watch as it's "Guarded" by the Mime.  Either this was deliberate or just an oversight.  The fact that Mimes have different abilities than in Vanilla Tactics is probably a nod to keep Squires viable compared to a low-cost Mime (they used to have Martial Arts and Monster Skill if I remember correctly, whereas these days they retain Concentrate and acquire the Defense Boosts, MP Switch and status immunity).

It's interesting to note that, unless you have "Always Float", being turned into a Frog will dispel the Float effect and send you into the water.  I haven't seen any bugs or glitches that erupt from this so far.

I also discovered that the Monk's grappling techniques are also subject to the Ghosts' Blade Grasp.  It wasn't always the case, though it's probably part of the demand to make these creatures incorporeal and not subject to said hits.  Wave Fist, on the other hand, is supposed to be mystical, historically.  At least change the term used to Incorporeal so as never to hint at the existence of the officially dummied-out Blade Grasp.

About Samurai:

Talk about being severed of its prior glory without compensation.  It's a broken class.  It was like that in Vanilla, but here, it's just frustrating.  The JP to learn each ability is offensive; sword-drawing should not be that expensive to figure out.  Just how different is drawing the spirits from one blade to the next?  The abilities are trickier since they hit everybody instead of singling out one party or the next, while a few have elemental hits as well, and supportive ones only cast one or the other, which makes that 15% Break Value a seriously painful gamble.  It alters the Samurai's original glory as one who makes a tight formation sing.  Overall power of each skill is reduced, as are the prices to learn each--but they're not proportionate to one another; there are better tricks to learn, and at faster rates.  Mastering Samurai takes more JP than any other class, and there is no virtual mastery since each sword does a different effect, not just in terms of power, either (so the simple stuff remains as useful as the later ones--small compensation when you think of it).

Iaido can be imported to various Classes with better Speed or Magic, but what's the deal?  Shouldn't the Samurai be a better choice for using his own skills?  It's the case with Geomancers and Dragoons--they got the power or the proper speed to stay ahead of a few creatures.  Trying to level up or otherwise learn Iaido is better done with Perform as a secondary (ironically, Performers require Level 2 Samurai) than waiting for the sucker's turn to come up.  After you got all you need, you make the character a mage and then never look back; the Samurai's Health rating is similar to that of a Mage, and the Mage can choose Equip Armor and have better Health!  Pretty lackluster, these guys.

Now, if you can't figure out how to fix Blade Grasp so to be fair and melee-oriented, that's okay, I can live with Hamedo.  If Hamedo was flagged for monsters as well as humans and demons.  It was stupid before, and it's still stupid here: I have not met an instance where monsters' revamped melee attacks trigger Hamedo.  Counter still wins that one; just defend and wait for the bugger to approach.  Yeah, but isn't Hamedo super-expensive for some other reason?  It's nothing but a Niche-Use Ability and enemies will pass those characters up and go for someone weaker.

Next, there's this odd thing about being able to learn "Two Hands" and, according to Master Guide, that should be an Innate Ability--the one saving grace considering Katanas still function on Brave and have inferior strength to standard swords as a result--but somehow, it isn't.  In this game, where getting power up to three nines is difficult as is, Two-Hands is a powerful equalizer.  It's just the thing we need to blow through an enemy in a single hit if you're lucky enough.  It should be an Innate for the Samurai, the appropriate offensive kick that compensates for lack of speed and Health compared to the other armored Classes.  Unfortunately, that was removed alongside the Monk's Unarmed Strike ability.

After fixing any glaring bugs, reconsider the treatment that the Samurai has been given.  Iaido should be reduced in cost even more if it has been reduced in effectiveness, while the Class itself should get a reprieve from the sort of shit that plagued it the first time.  It doesn't need to be faster than the Dragoon, but it could use extra Magic and an Innate Ability like Double-Grip to keep itself above water.

Quote from: pipe on March 12, 2012, 03:04:42 am
I am only on the first battle in Chapter 1 and notice some weird things:

- Delita and the generic squires have starting skills such as Potion / Weapon Guard learned and equipped. Why not Ramza?
- In Vanilla, everybody had Equip Change learned. ie, skills that cost 0 JP should be learned by default.
- Delita has Counter Tackle equipped even though he hasn't learned it. After first battle, it changes to Weapon Guard.
- Delita's skills goes weird in between battles. When the first battle is over, unlearns Heal. After the next battle, his skillset gets renamed to "Guts".
- Algus has Concentrate equipped even though he hasn't learned it. Like Delita, it changes to Weapon Guard after his first battle.
- Algus's skills also goes weird. Head Break and Armor Break are duplicated and displayed as Squire skills. He learns the Squire version and not the Knight version.
- Delita and Algus can learn Equip Axe and Monster Skill
- Some starting generics had Ether learned instead of Hi Potion. Was that intentional?
- Poison daggars before a cure is available? Only Delita has Heal.
- Self destruct ability says it "blinds and slows" but effect only says Slow. Is it blind too?

The Generics and Guest Delita, 1st Battle, were given some specifics instead of the typical random stuff.  Ramza, on the other hand, is random during the very first battle, and in the next he's got nothing.  He's stripped bare.  Just like the original game.  This is a nod to keep the experience of Tactics as close to the original as possible, so it's all game thing, not Dome.  It's not the fairest thing ever, but you're supposed to let these guys take the heat in the first place.  I certainly like how he made the Squires a viable Class, though.

Just because Equip Change costs nothing doesn't mean the random ability selector mechanism is going to pick it.  Weapon Guard used to cost 200 JP and now it's free because, let's face it, we suddenly need something, especially with swords.  It's probably not on the list to be selected as easily; other things may be given higher priority.

Okay, now this one's simple: Dome got rid of access to Guest Units.  I suppose it eradicated the bull-work of re-selecting their abilities, because yes, it can happen that Delita can equip axes (or have the ability in place) or use Heal, or cast Wish, or not have either one for the next fight and have something completely different.  It's because Dome made several different instances to accommodate new equipment over time but switched everything to randomly selected, meaning a Guest's tactics differ each and every time they appear.  The same happens with Rafa and it likely happens with Beowulf and other such instances.  Since we cannot access the Guest Unit, we cannot patch up the loose ends and spots that might occur.  The randomness is responsible for the inconsistency in all examples where guests are mentioned.  Concealing the access to Guest Units may prevent access to view those abilities in-game and have them learned for whatever reason, but really, it's because Dome didn't want to be bothered.  I suppose it's good to mention the holes in the plan, though!

Ether and other abilities are randomly learned.  However, it used to be Level 1 could not get past 200 JP and would be between 100-199.  "ETHER" and "HI-POTION" were 300 and 200 before, but now they are 100 apiece.  Yes, it's intentional.  Hi-Potion is accessible earlier, including the store, and I suggest you switch to them ASAP because you're gonna need them!

Poisoned daggers are evil if they add poison, especially during the first battle.  Remedies and Heal are the only way out.  Poison is also permanent until cured.  It puts teeth in whoever decides to use the "weakest" weapon in the game, though the chance is still 1 in 4.

Yes, it blinds and slows.  Self-Destruct does both.  However, if the former effect didn't happen, it may be attributable to the changes made to the Blind Knife.  It may also be the formula, adding one or the other or having mutually exclusive chances of success.  Are you totally sure this was one and not the other and that you didn't have anything that could have protected against one?



To be honest, there are all sorts of strange things that need checking, not the least of which includes the online prompts.  That's a horrific elephant in the living room, but there are other things that need addressing first.  Anyway, thanks for your feedback.  The whole Equip Axe thing and making Delita and Algus into unique Cadets with unique ability sets is another thing to look into if the CPU still picks Equip Axe (did we mention Axes were dummied out entirely?).

They're fine the way they are.  Squires used to be a poor Class after the first Chapter and their Basic Skill never quite achieved the usefulness of other Class Abilities.  Here, Squires are versed in First-Aid, handle beasts, and put up a decent fight.  They don't have any glaring weaknesses and have good mobility and defenses this time around.

Their First-Aid is impressive: Heal restores Berserk and Stop as well, so they can handle Coeurls and Minotaurs' new tricks.  Revive, originally from the Monk, grants a low-cost chance to resuscitate a downed ally with more Health than a Phoenix Down (Phoenix Downs, conversely, can be thrown).  Cheer Up adds Regen on the Unit's Turn, providing an alternative to Potions since, if cast on oneself, takes immediate effect at your turn's end.  If you're wondering where Accumulate went, the Monk traded Revive for it; it is ironically well-paired with the other class abilities.

Squires also know how to handle Shields and Crossbows, which more than compensates for the loss of the Ax.  Axes are gone for good it seems, but Hammers are still around; they deal damage with the Firearm Formula, so they hit all the time.  In the beginning, it works to your advantage to set up Equip Change on Squires so to switch out Bow Guns for any kind of Sword because of its 25% Weapon Evasion (assuming Weapon Guard, a literal freebie Reaction Ability now, is set up).  The wide-ranged effect of having Defend as an Innate Ability across the board is first and best felt with the Squire.  Everybody can defend themselves without losing out on an ability.

Monster Skill is great as an Innate Ability because it means a Monster Ally can stay next to the Squire, deal new abilities and receive some basic medical support nearby.  It's in your best interest to use Cheer Up well before you get hit, so this is the best chance to demonstrate it.  Squires are at their peak when you suck in your gut and tame a few monsters with the Train ability.  The last good advantage is that Basic Skill can be transferred to any Class and it improves, and it doesn't take much to master the Class in the first place.  There are plenty of other Abilities to be found in other Classes, but if they reciprocate then you have yourself a Super-Squire.  Keep one non-story generic character around just to access the original Squire.

The one thing I do miss, however, is the lack of ability to knock back foes with Dash.  That was far more precise.  Throw Stone, on the other hand, should suffice, assuming the chance is truly 100%, so anytime a Knock-Back is possible, you send the bastard off a cliff.

The Squire redesign accommodates an End Game environment (Level 99); if their Vanilla abilities remained untouched, everyone else would outclass them.  In short, Squires are viable at any point in the game, not just the beginning.  It isn't the best Class, but it's no longer the worst.  None of the Classes outright suck or take the crown, which is what Dome wanted to do from the start.

QuoteSeriously, you should learn to read
"Bugfixes" is the first thing on the list

Kay Thanks.  I vomited up a few more bug/glitch discoveries for you, just now in fact.

It might be possible to drown the little rodent in Gravity Magic, provided of course there are no elemental nixing or absorption, because that would force you into thirty-five unit turns minimum just to ax her.  Just thinking about that makes me sick to my stomach.

@Elric: I purchased Arc the Lad recently, but offered it to my brother, who hasn't returned it yet, before I had a chance to play it.  Would it kill you to use a Spoiler tag?

I have a few extra bugs and glitches:

The human unit encounter at Fovoham Plains battlefield features a Guest Priest capable of casting Aquabreak (a Squid-exclusive power to my knowledge) even though nothing in his equipment or ability list accounts for the discrepancy.  He might still be considered a Squid/Illithid according to original game data, so the original battle setup is bleeding into any changes made.  His optional Command Ability is Black Magic and he often casts Death when able, even though the listing does not say he actually has the spell learned!

Carbuncle's MP Cost is the same as before, though the Time Mage's Reflect Spell affects one person at a time.  If you're going to cast Reflect, you might as well do it to everybody, right?  By cost alone, Carbuncle has the edge over the original.  Consider altering the costs of each ability to improve upon the seeming fairness, like when Wall's cost was halved.

I spotted Gafgarion in the corner of the Dorter Trade City battlefield in Chapter 2 just as it opens up.  It's a byproduct of having it pan across the field from your entry point to the conversation.  Was this intentional or a glitch?  Maybe I'm over-thinking it.

Speed Ruin is a gimped version of the Time Mage's Slow Spell.  Consider adding to or switching with a CT 0 effect instead, to make it resemble a Delay Buster.  If both effects are applied in tandem, adjust the MP cost.

One of the Squires on Grog Hill's story battle has Move in Water as a Movement Ability (i.e. the original).  I'm sure this was meant to be dummied out or replaced, since Move in Water is worthless on Grog Hill.

When changes were made to Talk Skill Abilities, they lost the stipulation that the Target must is cognizant (i.e. not sleeping), meaning the new Threaten can cast Don't Act on a sleeping character, as can Warn, Preach and Refute.  Persuade, Negotiate, Insult, and Mimic Daravon work as normal.  Finger Guard does not prevent Don't Act, but either the online help should indicate this (if it was deliberate) or edit the ability so it does cover Don't Act.

Lavian's Zodiac is claimed to be Leo, but while dallying with Mustadio and Lavian, they appeared to have excellent compatibility as though she was still an Aries (like in Vanilla Tactics).  I figured you changed her to Leo to avoid the classic exploit of three Libras (Mustadio, Beowulf, T.G. Cid), but failed to make the change.  The Leo sign appeared cosmetic.  Then again, it might have been a glitch on my part.  I was toying with Geomancy in Zeklaus Desert and noticed Sandstorm dealt extra healing power far beyond the standard projected amount while equipped with a Magic Ring.  It could have been something to do with the Magic Ring, but I cannot be sure.

Diminish doesn't have Dark Affinity attached--it's just a weak variation of Life Drain that doesn't suck HP and is pretty much gimped.  If Life Drain is such an exploit that it requires changing up to prevent abuse against Zodiac Bosses, then flag it for Magic Evasion and give the Zodiac Bosses 50% Character Evasion (Magical).  I don't get why that can't be done in the first place.  If Diminish stays, revise the claims made in Online Help or actually adjust its Affinity so it heals Undead instead of damaging them.

Cheer Up and (I'm pretty sure about this one) all the Sage's Planar Magics not indigenous to other playable generic Classes are not flagged for mimicry despite the abilities' availability to Generic classes.  Not like Mimes need anymore help, but they aren't as advertised until those abilities are flagged for mimicry.

Does this female supportive unit possess peculiar traits, such as inherent (i.e. always) Undead status?

Does she appear in Dolbodar Swamp (considering I scoured the poaching and monster location info in the Master's Guide and saw no mention of that location, period)?

Does she appear in Bervenia Volcano?

Will she possess horrifying new techniques that cause indiscriminate party wipes or otherwise wreck your day/life in the attempt to kill her?

Will the character possess abilities that are exclusive to enemies (e.g. Blade Grasp, either Teleport Ability, Blood Suck Job Command, All Magic Job Command, etc.)?

Is the character from the original story in some capacity?

If so, is it Valmifra?

If not, is it the unusual flower merchant from Zarghidas who resembles Aerith?

If not, is it an enemy fought previously seeking a rematch (e.g. Celia or Lede)?

Is this enemy devised completely from scratch?

Will it be a recurring adversary featured in various random encounters across the board?

Is it truly that necessary to feature a new goon without first addressing some of the other bugs and glitches discovered over the course of the current version?