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[TheSeks]

Put him as close to the wall as possible when you're setting up your units before the battle.

Did that. Still takes about three turns to get him to where he can get in bow range to damage the necromancer. Fourth turn go in and swing the axe. But then the minions of his start eating the rest of my parties health and the mend leafs only repair 25HP so they aren't the good healing option here.

And... there is no AOE heal spell here like there is FFT apparently. FFFFFF. :/

I can probably do it. But without anyone falling/dying? Impossible. :/

 

[Yaweee]

Did that. Still takes about three turns to get him to where he can get in bow range to damage the necromancer. Forth turn go in and swing the axe. But then the minions of his start eating the rest of my parties health and the mend leafs only repair 25HP so they aren't the good healing option here.

And... there is no AOE heal spell here like there is FFT apparently. FFFFFF. :/

I can probably do it. But without anyone falling/dying? Impossible. :/

There is an AOE heal in Chapter 2. It's Mega Heal, or something like that.

Get a lobber to throw healing items.

 

[TheSeks]

Get a lobber to throw healing items.

There's a class that can throw items like the Alchemist in FFT?

 

[Yaweee]

There's a class that can throw items like the Alchemist in FFT?

There's a weapon you can equip that lets almost anybody do it.

 

[TheSeks]

There's a weapon you can equip that lets almost anybody do it.

I'm guessing this is later in Chapter 1? I'm doing the battle just after the Necromancer's apprentice.

 

[Joule]

Did that. Still takes about three turns to get him to where he can get in bow range to damage the necromancer. Fourth turn go in and swing the axe. But then the minions of his start eating the rest of my parties health and the mend leafs only repair 25HP so they aren't the good healing option here.

And... there is no AOE heal spell here like there is FFT apparently. FFFFFF. :/

I can probably do it. But without anyone falling/dying? Impossible. :/

It's probably a better idea to just let Canopus build up 100 TP before trying for the kill. At level 4/5 he'll just need one attack and one finisher to kill Nybeth. I don't recommend going in with the axe as Canopus will get blown up by all the spells.

On Valkyries/Rune Fencers: I think they're okay. They serve a fairly versatile role and they can cast the Touched spells which is a nice little bonus as well as healing.

 

[ixix]

Did that. Still takes about three turns to get him to where he can get in bow range to damage the necromancer. Fourth turn go in and swing the axe. But then the minions of his start eating the rest of my parties health and the mend leafs only repair 25HP so they aren't the good healing option here.

And... there is no AOE heal spell here like there is FFT apparently. FFFFFF. :/

I can probably do it. But without anyone falling/dying? Impossible. :/

When I did that mission I played super defensively. Two Clerics, two Knights with Heal, and Catiua for a total of five characters who could restore HP. Two Warriors (one of which was Denam) and Canopus rounded out the team.

Everybody stood in the starting area except Canopus, who flew up on the wall on the right side of the stage and started shooting the bow-wielding skeleton up there. Then my mass of units just took out the enemy undead as they trickled down out of the fort to my combat line. When I didn't need to do any healing one of the Clerics would use an Exorcism scroll to take a fallen enemy out of the fight permanently.

Eventually it got to a point where only Nybeth and the two ghosts were left, and Canopus had enough TP stored to use Dark Weight. When that happened my Warriors and Knights rushed into the fort toward Nybeth while Canopus flew near him and started shooting him with arrows. When my fighters were getting close to Nybeth I had Canopus use Dark Weight to knock him down to 40 or so HP, then one of my Knights hit him and took him down to 1 HP. Denam got close enough to throw a rock and that was all she wrote.

Nobody died but Vyce. Slow but steady wins the race.

 

[Fimbulvetr]

I'm guessing this is later in Chapter 1? I'm doing the battle just after the Necromancer's apprentice.

You can just skip it if it's frustrating you.




An Octopus throwing boulders will never get old.

 

[Totakeke]

Ninjas in this game can't avoid attacks like they do in other srpgs with ninjas. They're a prime target for enemy units too. So while they're fast, you don't want to send them right into the enemy lines. Also their ninjutsu damage skills depend on int so you can't exactly have best of both physical and magical damage because you have to equip your ninja one way or another.

That said, they're my only class right now that can reasonably kill enemy units in one single attack. They also build TP like crazy. But the downside is that your finishing moves will be weaker than your normal attacks so why bother?


I wonder if there's a point to keep leveling up knights since now I have

Spoiler

White Knights, but it seems Knights have some specific skills like Tactician that white knights doesn't have.

 

[TheSeks]

I thought the Necromancer just reraises more enemies? Doesn't that make exorcising the enemies... pointless?

 

[Fimbulvetr]

I thought the Necromancer just reraises more enemies? Doesn't that make exorcising the enemies... pointless?

It'll get them off you back and give you time to recover.

Also loot.

 

[TheSeks]

I guess I'll level up some more. Could use more skill slots...

Is there any extra skills that unlock the higher you level the classes, or is it WYSIWYG?

 

[Krispy Killa v3]

So if my arrow misses... I can just Chariot the shot over until it hits, or I hit another target. Soooo I can effectively never miss.

 

[ixix]

I thought the Necromancer just reraises more enemies? Doesn't that make exorcising the enemies... pointless?

He can't raise 'em as fast as you're droppin' 'em. When I did it he raised three more dudes during the final rush. I basically just ignored them. You're aiming to clear the path long enough for your melee fighters to charge, not to clear it long enough to run a parade through.

Besides which, there's the fact that if you don't exorcise them, they'll stand right back up. Do you want to fight the new undead he summons, or do you want to fight the new undead he summons while also fighting all the undead you already killed?

I think the answer is clear.

 

[TurnipFritters]

I guess I'll level up some more. Could use more skill slots...

Is there any extra skills that unlock the higher you level the classes, or is it WYSIWYG?

New skills are added to the list as you level up.

 

[TheSeks]

So if my arrow misses... I can just Chariot the shot over until it hits, or I hit another target. Soooo I can effectively never miss.

"Note: Chariot does not effect outcomes."

Reading the tutorials is fun and awesome!

New skills are added to the list as you level up.

So I guess the main character/Ramza is stuck with Warrior forever then. :/

I think the answer is clear.

Wait... he raises more even if I don't exorcise the others? I guess that makes exorcising important, but I figured "well, the dumb AI won't raise if I leave the others alone/3 turns."

 

[Krispy Killa v3]

"Note: Chariot does not effect outcomes."

Reading the tutorials is fun and awesome!

Incorrect. Yea, it doesn't effect individual outcomes if you do it the same. But if I'm an archer and I have 3 units in range, and I shot one and miss, I can rewind and shoot one of the others. Or go from a different square. And repeat. Chances are significantly higher I'll hit 1 of them. Even as a melee, just pick another target. You could play in a way where you target groups and you'll virtually never miss. If you choose.

Speaking of choosing, wtf, that's a big decision you have to make in Balmammosa. I imagine this is what determines the rest of the game? How big of a decision is it?

 

[Yaweee]

"Note: Chariot does not effect outcomes."

Reading the tutorials is fun and awesome!

And the tutorials are wrong, or not explicate enough. You could always attack from a different position to fidget with the RNG mechanics. Not sure how it works for regular attacks, but failing a RECRUIT attempt, Charioting, moving to another side, and trying to re-recruit, can sometimes work even if the listed success percent is the same.

So I guess the main character/Ramza is stuck with Warrior forever then. :/

That makes no sense. Why?

 

[Basileus777]

"Note: Chariot does not effect outcomes."

Reading the tutorials is fun and awesome!

It doesn't really work that way though. Simply moving to a different spot and attacking from a different direction gives you a different outcome.

 

[Machine]

So I guess the main character/Ramza is stuck with Warrior forever then. :/

No, Ramza is stuck as a squire. Get your facts right!

 

[TheSeks]

That makes no sense. Why?

Because if there is unlocks for the class later, why would I change the classes when I can get those things faster having nearly everyone be that one class?

 

[JKTrix]

That sounds boring.

 

[Unknown One]

Because if there is unlocks for the class later, why would I change the classes when I can get those things faster having nearly everyone be that one class?

That's kind of what I did. Archer level 50, Knight 32, and Warrior 31. Kind of wish I did only archers though. Oh well the other characters aren't missing out much on the extra 15 bonus base stats. There is always cards for them.

 

[Basileus777]

I imagine this is what determines the rest of the game? How big of a decision is it?

It shapes the next two chapters of the game and even has effects on sidequests into Chapter 4.

 

[Unknown One]

Spoiler

Has anybody unlocked Lancelot yet? and How if so?

 

[Basileus777]

Spoiler

Has anybody unlocked Lancelot yet? and How if so?

Spoiler

I'm pretty sure you have to complete the DLC/post-game content in sequence, so you have to finish the Julia and Warren quests first.

 

[Jerk]

So

Spoiler

Raviness

dies during the

Spoiler

chaos

path? That blows, I really wanted to keep her.

Still, I simply cannot justify the decision. Even if it makes for a better story (or so I hear).

 

[Unknown One]

Spoiler

Julia? Do you mean Luria Canopus's sister?

 

[Basileus777]

Spoiler

Julia? Do you mean Luria Canopus's sister?

Yeah, if that's how they translated the name.

 

[careful]

Awesome game so far (I'm at the start of chapter 2).

Not liking the menu navigation too much though. You can't easily see how much of an item you already have in your inventory until you click to buy and you can't compare with your equipped gear so it's a bit painful to shop.

How do you unlock more classes? Is it like FFT where you need a combination of specific classes to reach certain levels before new classes unlock?

The base classes all seem kinda weak to me. My warrior Denam is so damn slow. I feel like I'm just not doing anything on most of his turns. He doesn't have any self-buff skills like squire Ramza. Are there any skills I can give him so that he has stuff to do on turns where there's no one around to melee? He's only level 7 though so I guess I still have to wait a bit more to unlock the hot shit.

And what do the 'touched' statuses do? I had no clue so didn't bother learning those.

 

[Jerk]

I am really having hard time deciding which path to take.

I am thinking Chaos->Neutral right now...

 

[duckroll]

Awesome game so far (I'm at the start of chapter 2).

Not liking the menu navigation too much though. You can't easily see how much of an item you already have in your inventory until you click to buy and you can't compare with your equipped gear so it's a bit painful to shop.

The UI is really slick, and everything feels really smooth when you're navigating the menus. Unfortunately, the usability is kinda lulz. The shop menu is the worst by far. I'm not a big fan of the party menu either. Instead of the way it is arranged where you have to pick a character first before getting into the sub-menu, where you have stuff like learning of skills and the inventory, I feel it would be better to have a general party menu sorted by uses first (inventory, equipment, skills and spells, status, etc) which then go into character selection if that part requires it. The current design feels rather backwards.

 

[ferr]

The UI is really slick, and everything feels really smooth when you're navigating the menus. Unfortunately, the usability is kinda lulz. The shop menu is the worst by far. I'm not a big fan of the party menu either. Instead of the way it is arranged where you have to pick a character first before getting into the sub-menu, where you have stuff like learning of skills and the inventory, I feel it would be better to have a general party menu sorted by uses first (inventory, equipment, skills and spells, status, etc) which then go into character selection if that part requires it. The current design feels rather backwards.

The lack of fitting room in the shop does suck, but I have found it's not too horrible. If my classes are just now hitting level 7, I can be certain that none of my characters have any level 7 gear from the shop.

 

[duckroll]

The lack of fitting room in the shop does suck, but I have found it's not too horrible. If my classes are just now hitting level 7, I can be certain that none of my characters have any level 7 gear from the shop.

It doesn't matter if none of them have level 7 gear. As the game opens up, equipment gets more diverse, and once you get access to crafting you also have options of improving existing equipment over buying new equipment. Not being able to compare stats with existing equipment is really moronic, because it makes it much harder to get info at a glance to make fast and effective decisions in the store itself. Noe being able to instantly jump to the party menu while in the shop makes it even dumber because then you have to leave the shop to check stuff before going back into it again.

Awful.

 

[TheSeks]

That's kind of what I did. Archer level 50, Knight 32, and Warrior 31. Kind of wish I did only archers though. Oh well the other characters aren't missing out much on the extra 15 bonus base stats. There is always cards for them.

Why? Is Archer the best class in the game or something?

 

[duckroll]

I just did the first map on the new optional Wildwoods area. I had fun charming the enemies with a witch while my archers shot every up from a distance. I sent a knight down to recruit as many people as I could while using this strategy. Ended up with a beastmaster, a berserker, and a flying warrior. Not bad since now I have another flying unit, and I don't have a beastmaster or berserker before this. Now I don't have to waste a classmark! It was my first time trying out recruiting too.

Spoiler

I did all this while I was taking a massive dump.

 

[Fimbulvetr]

I am really having hard time deciding which path to take.

I am thinking Chaos->Neutral right now...

Took law.

Spoiler

I did all this while I was taking a massive dump.

Feels good man.

 

[Freyjadour]

The base decision that splits the path is pretty easy to make. I mean Law gets better but damn.

Went Chaos even though it does some shitty things with characters.

 

[Pinko Marx]

I'm out of town for the week. Left PSP at home and kinda regretting it now. Decided to bring my DS instead because I've been neglecting it. I'll be reading this thread, you guys are playing vicariously for me now.
Also, Terror Knight is my favorite class so far.

 

[duckroll]

The base decision that splits the path is pretty easy to make. I mean Law gets better but damn.

Went Chaos even though it does some shitty things with characters.

Sometimes you have to do what is necessary, even if it's wrong.

Spoiler

At least that's what I tell myself when I wake up screaming to the cries of the women and children burning to death.

 

[Yaweee]

It doesn't matter if none of them have level 7 gear. As the game opens up, equipment gets more diverse, and once you get access to crafting you also have options of improving existing equipment over buying new equipment. Not being able to compare stats with existing equipment is really moronic, because it makes it much harder to get info at a glance to make fast and effective decisions in the store itself. Noe being able to instantly jump to the party menu while in the shop makes it even dumber because then you have to leave the shop to check stuff before going back into it again.

Awful.

Even inside the party menus it is difficult to figure out what the hell is going on. Why does it show all of the equipment, even if the class can't use at all? This leads to pages and pages of shit to scroll through every time you want to change equipment.

Similar complains with the skill system. All of the Augments, Resists, etc. use up pages at the top of the Support tab. Why not break these off in to their own tabs?

And the crafting system... wow. This is very likely one of the worst and most tedious that I've seen.

I'm genuinely shocked that they shipped the game with the interface the way it is. How the hell did none of the testers complain, or the developers not fix things? It kind of makes me lose faith in Matsuno and pals =(

 

[Pinko Marx]

It kind of makes me lose faith in Matsuno and pals =(

This type of thing is not new to Matsuno games. I mean, have you ever played Vagrant Story?
Not that I'm saying this is ok. Its not. But its kinda par for the course.

 

[Yaweee]

This type of thing is not new to Matsuno games. I mean, have you ever played Vagrant Story?
Not that I'm saying this is ok. Its not. But its kinda par for the course.

I know that they've never been good with the interfaces, but this is worse. Far, far worse.

 

[duckroll]

Even inside the party menus it is difficult to figure out what the hell is going on. Why does it show all of the equipment, even if the class can't use at all? This leads to pages and pages of shit to scroll through every time you want to change equipment.

Similar complains with the skill system. All of the Augments, Resists, etc. use up pages at the top of the Support tab. Why not break these off in to their own tabs?

And the crafting system... wow. This is very likely one of the worst and most tedious that I've seen.

I'm genuinely shocked that they shipped the game with the interface the way it is. How the hell did none of the testers complain, or the developers not fix things? It kind of makes me lose faith in Matsuno and pals =(

There are other terrible things about the interface too which I've noticed. Because L/R are mapped to switch between characters, they cannot be mapped to page scroll. This means when you're going through the list of 4563954 skills for a character to learn, and you decide to learn a skill right at the bottom, you have to scroll all the way back up MANUALLY to get to the first one again (increase skill slot). Technically you can fake a page up by pressing L or R to switch to another character and then hitting the other button to go back, but that's really lame. Scrolling down from the last skill doesn't cycle the list back to the top either. Grrrrr....

 

[Pinko Marx]

Can't you use Square+Up/Down to page scroll?

 

[Yaweee]

With regards to game balance, it seems to be better in random battles than story levels. Too many "Kill the Soft Human Leader" in story levels is part of what makes Archers so goddamn ridiculous. Fortunately, there's Hell Gate to worry about.

How hard are all of the new extra bosses?

There are other terrible things about the interface too which I've noticed. Because L/R are mapped to switch between characters, they cannot be mapped to page scroll. This means when you're going through the list of 4563954 skills for a character to learn, and you decide to learn a skill right at the bottom, you have to scroll all the way back up MANUALLY to get to the first one again (increase skill slot). Technically you can fake a page up by pressing L or R to switch to another character and then hitting the other button to go back, but that's really lame. Scrolling down from the last skill doesn't cycle the list back to the top either. Grrrrr....

Uh, are you sure about a lot of those things?

Left and Right (D-pad) toggles between categories in menus

Things scroll from top to bottom cycles back to the top, but you have to press again (it stops for a moment, so you have to re-press down)

Hold down Square to enable alternate functions, like flying down pages at a time.

 

[duckroll]

Can't you use Square+Up/Down to page scroll?

Lemme try.

 

[Y2Kev]

I wish I could tell who is equipped with what in the shop interface

 

[duckroll]

Okay, I'm wrong about most of those things. Argh!

 

[Curufinwe]

I'm glad you were wrong, cause otherwise that would be a nightmare.

My copy arrived from Amazon yesterday (I got FSSS) but I'm waiting for my new 4GB memory stick to arrive before diving in. I have tomorrow off work but the mail won't be running.