Final Fantasy Hacktics

Quote from: cntrdctn86 on May 28, 2023, 01:28:55 amUsing SwanStation through retroarch, getting a freeze in the 2nd map of main character's classic mini game as soon as I try to attack an enemy. Might be because swanstation isn't on the approved list.

I will investigate this! Let me know if you have crashes anywhere else on Swanstation as well

EDIT: It looks like this is a problem for everything! I am working on a fix

Quote from: tales on May 27, 2023, 08:32:55 pmHey,
Dont know if this is a bug or an emulator problem (i'm using pSX v1.13) but when i start a triple triads game controls stop working and game freezes waiting for me to do something.

Hey! I cannot reproduce this problem with pSX v1.13, as that's what I did all the development and testing of Triple Triad with. Any other circumstances that lead up to this? Using an external controller maybe? It should continue reading inputs as normal.

I'm like 50% sure I don't make mistakes, so if you find a bug please report it here! I will address things as they come up.

And thank you for bearing with me! If you've been playing you know this is a complicated mod, there are bound to be errors here and there!

RTF CHAPTER 1 is OUT NOW!
Most up to date version: v1.06 (released June 5th)


I hope you all enjoy playing it as much as I did making it! Download link at the bottom of this post!

EMULATOR COMPATIBILITY

Duckstation - Fully tested and compatible!

pSXv1.13 - Fully tested and compatible!

ePSXe - PC versions of this emulator do not run certain instructions as expected resulting in some strange behaviour sometimes. I do not recommend using this emulator to play this mod. Mobile versions of ePSXe, while not yet tested, may fare better in this regard.

An actual PS1 Console - I haven't managed to get this working yet, but it's on the to do list!

Other - Your preferred emulator not on the list? Try playing the mod and report back to me so I can update it!

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For applying the PPF I recommend using the online tool found here https://www.marcrobledo.com/RomPatcher.js/ as I have found that PPF-O-Matic takes quite a while to apply this particular PPF, whereas this site takes a few seconds.

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Previous Version Download Counts:

• v1.0 - 171
• v1.01 (hotfix) - 12
• v1.02 (hotfix) - 38
• v1.03 (hotfix) - 23
• v1.04 (hotfix) - 77
• v1.05 (hotfix) - 83
• TOTAL - 404

Quote from: aroon on March 18, 2023, 11:57:03 pmI don't understand. If Monster Skill isn't broken what am I doing wrong?

You've got all the info! It has only ever worked on adjacent units, the description is worded a little misleadingly (by 3 tiles it means adjacent and up to a height difference of 3).

From the FFT Battle Mechanics Guide

"[Monster Skill] - 200 JP, Squire
Monsters standing on squares adjacent to you will have access to a new
skill (vertical tolerance 3).  This will have no effect if you are
Berserk, Confused, or Unable to Fight."

There is a thread about that on the TLW board specifically pertaining to Duckstation if you want to give that emulator another go. https://ffhacktics.com/smf/index.php?topic=12946.0
pSXfin should also very easily play TLW out of the box with no issues

The general rule is that any sprite on this site is fair game for use in mods as long as all artists involved are credited properly. If you want you may also reach out to the creators and ask for their permission. Generally sprites that people don't want others to use are not posted here!

The CUE file just points to the bin. If you patch the bin and don't change the name of it, the original associated CUE file should work with it.

Quote from: Pandemoniu on December 20, 2022, 10:31:43 pmLooking forward to this!

Will we be able to learn about Guy next? He intrigues me the most alongside Maine.

I think a few character and story updates are definitely going to be on the way! Slightly slowed by the holidays, but they're coming!!

Not sure exactly why this would happen so here are a few things:

Using Duckstation? Duckstation has a setting where it loads up an old savestate it made rather than restarting the whole game. If you've patched text to some files then that would be loaded up by the game when needed, but skillset data is always loaded in (in SCUS) and you would not see anything changed until you did a hard reset. You can prevent this by unchecking "Save State on Exit" in the Duckstation settings under General.

Another possibility is that you are patching to the wrong place, maybe you have a backup that you are accidentally patching to? Though if you are successfully patching other things then this seems less likely (though not impossible )

Classic Mode

Select your fighter and take on 3 challenges to win great rewards! Think you're up to the task?

An exclusive video preview!

How does it work?
As you gain new unique units throughout the story you will be able to take on their Classic Mode challenges! They will take on 3 fights unique to them, they are difficult but rewarding.

I did it once, but it was fun and I want to complete it again!!
You're in luck! You can absolutely repeat these challenges, beating Classic Mode with a character more than once will award them with some bonus JP to every job in the job wheel. This offers an alternate path to grinding new abilities for these characters.

What about my Generics?
Unfortunately generic units cannot participate in Classic Mode right now. This is a feature I may add in the future though, and if it's one you want be sure to let me know!

I'm an FFT modder and I don't understand how you did this
The implementation of Classic Mode is really only possible because of Xifanie's Event Instruction Upgrade Hack and the ability to capture controller input in events and react to it. Once you know that is possible, crafting a little menu like this one isn't too difficult. All of the text elements that appear outside of text boxes ("Character Select" and "Press Start") are EVTCHR images, which means they are actually units disguised as text 

You can also find this information and these updates on Twitter!

It was shared with me but thanks for sharing it here! I can't believe how many people are talking about it!

Quote from: Bonesy on December 11, 2022, 11:16:57 pmGrats on the trailer. Do you have any plans to make more information available besides the Update Posts and whatever's on the Discord?

I think I will likely also be posting the updates as Twitter threads in the future, as well having some updates that are in video form on the youtube channel. I'm open to hearing suggestions though! I really did not know the project would have so many eyes on it and so I'm a smidge underprepared haha

There is definitely a crossing of wires happening when you patch your attack.out and tactext stuff if you're getting entries like Kthgt! I would recommend keeping your TacText changes saved in a separate .tactext file and always opening that rather than ever opening from a patched image. You will also have to repatch your text every time you make attack.out changes since it contains some text like job names and the like (and I have a feeling you aren't re-ripping your attack.out to make edits to it every time you do text modifications)

I've never heard of a bug like this before! What I would recommend is patching your story modifications on to a fresh image to see if the problem persists (then you know that stuff is the culprit).

Though, I find this very unlikely. I assume you've also made changes with FFTacText and/or the Attack.Out editor, either of these is more likely in my mind. In those cases I'd recommend doing the same as I said above but for those, then you can isolate the problem and work from there

TACTICS COMBO

Tactics Combo is the name of the skillset of the Hero job class, unique to the main character, Maine. Tactics Combo allows you to perform multiple actions in a single turn by working your way up Combo Levels. A combo can be a maximum of 3 actions, but can be stopped early when you need them to. Being able to choose from and use multiple skills in one turn by following certain conditions makes Maine a very interesting character to play from a strategic standpoint.


The description for the ability Light Spear, a level 1 combo skill

How does it work?
At each stage of the combo you can only select learned skills from the Tactics Combo set that are available at the level of combo you are currently in. Light Spear, Sonic Thrust, and Nova are the 3 skills available at Combo Level 1. You are at Combo Level 1 when you begin your turn, and any skill used in the Tactics Combo skillset will advance that level by 1. At combo level 2 and 3, the abilities available to you in the selection menu will change to the appropriate skills. Your combo will end after level 3 or if another Act selection outside of Tactics Combo is made.


The abilities you have available to you at Combo Level 2

What if I want to perform actions outside of the Tactics Combo skillset?
You can Move before, during, or after your combo begins. Using Attack or an ability from another skillset will end your combo and your turn will continue as normal. Using Wait will end your turn as normal. Wait-ing in the middle of a combo allows you to conserve your CT as if you had taken no action! This can be a great way to move up in the turn order while still making a difference on the battlefield.

Will Maine be like 3 times the level of his teammates if he's taking like 3 times as many actions?
No! Skills from Tactics Combo at combo levels 1 and 2 will not cause Maine to gain EXP or JP. This can be used to your advantage and disadvantage, low level challenge runs are common in this game and this is a way to maintain a lower level while still making meaningful actions in battle. Be careful not to end up with a Maine who is a significantly lower level than your party though!


The description for the ability Light Spear Cannon, a level 3 combo skill

So how many skills are we working with here?
In the chapter 1 release there will be 9 skills in the Tactics Combo skillset! But Maine is the main character of our story, and like Ramza I anticipate that he will gain more skills as the story moves forward.

I'm a FFT modder as well and I don't understand how you did this
I'm taking the opportunity to speak a little on how this was implemented, and I will for all updates where there is something of note to say about it! If you want to get into the real nitty gritty, feel free to chat with me in this topic here or on the Discord channel.
There is an ASM that I built that repurposes some flags from the FFTPatcher that allow me to note what level of combo the skill is. There is an extra check that was added to the decision of what abilities are shown in the skillset menu in battle, and in some very specific moments the game is overwriting key battle stats for the unit after combo skill uses that allow them to continue performing actions after using one (particularly 0x0186/0187/0188, Currently Units Turn, Movement Taken, and Action Taken respectively). A little deviation is taken for these abilities results as well, seeing an action as "missed" rather than "successful" or "successful and killed" prevents EXP/JP gain effectively (even if the action did succeed in hitting or scoring a KO!)

Thank you for joining me for Update 1! Next week I will be doing an update about Classic Mode as voted on by the FFH Discord!

Bug Fixes
When I fix some major bugs, I'll report them here! I hope you get a kick out of seeing the peek behind the curtain (and help motivate me to fix bugs pls)
Chapter 1 Bugs / Adjustments INDEX:
Naked Serensward Squire
Blood Suck is Tinker
Revert New Poison / Regen
Leviathan Map Fix

Old - Pre Chapter 1 release
Until the release of chapter 1 of the mod, I will be trying to post weekly updates about the project and its progress.

This first post will link to the various replies that I will make in this topic concerning each of the updates. Feel free to respond to them and discuss them here, or on the FFH Discord channel in #reach-the-future!

INDEX:
Update 1: Tactics Combo In-Depth Explanation
Update 2: Classic Mode Sneak Peek

    

Quote from: kerryrhema on November 30, 2022, 10:56:30 pmPerhaps there is a behind the scenes different game ID for FFT TLW and as such a different text file name is required?

I believe it is TLW2 instead of SCUS at the beginning of the name!

Hey Eldrethor, I tried recreating your issue to the best of my ability (though I was not building on a TLW base) but was unable to! Setting 0Cf's animation to 07 00 00 and then having the settings I have in the picture I've attached made my unit do a weapon strike. Maybe try matching some of these flags one at a time on yours until you see what makes the change? Or maybe double check everything you have set, it's possible that you thought you made a change that you didn't actually patch.