items in FFs

[Kyros]

Does anyone else find themselves in most/all FFs completely ignoring items partway into (or even from the start) of a game? I know in FFVIII I'm not sure if I ever even bothering junctioning the item ability. I would use them in the field for convenience, but in battle I ignored them completely. I'm pretty sure in FVII the only items I ever used in battle were pheonix downs and xpotions/elixirs, and only used the latter b/c I had 99 of them and figured I might as well not let them go to waste though a simple cure3 woulda done. In FFIX they make the items' effects better during battle, which encourage their usage a lot more, but by the end I wasn't using them. I could go into detail with the other games, but it would get repetitive saying the same things over and over. Anyone else view items like this in FFs or is it just me?

[Vermachtnis]

It's really a time restraint thing for me. In battle when I need a lot of health quickly I use magic or an elixer. But outside of battle when I can take my time I use my Potions and ethers on everyone.

[FFIX Choco Boy]

It's really a time restraint thing for me. In battle when I need a lot of health quickly I use magic or an elixer. But outside of battle when I can take my time I use my Potions and ethers on everyone.

This.

[Raistlin]

Outside of certain, usually common, healing items (and then mostly outside of battle), items really do become fairly useless in a lot of RPGs, not just Final Fantasy. In most games you will gain access to magic which does everything items do (and some things they can't), only better (e.g., area-of-effect or full-party healing spells).

[blackmage_nuke]

I usually use items to heal outside battle (Potions and what not) to save my mp for in battle healing where I'll need it.

Items also become useful if you dont have a whitemage in the party (in the games with set classes, ffx, ix)

[Natashina]

Most of the special curatives(like Gold Needle and Mallet) don't get used much. I generally use Esuna/Remedy for most of my stuff.

[Wolf Kanno]

It really depends on the game and what I'm doing. I tend to grind so I will use them occasionally since I do this ridiculously early in a title when healing magic isn't available or MP is better served slaying monsters.

In early titles I found some items useful if you want to count equipment with spell effects. They are a godsend in FFI where MP is hardly plentiful even by endgame.

About the only game where I genuinely prefer items over magic is FFTactics. I'll use a white mage to get the job levels and unlock useful classes but in cases where I need quick healing my Chemist is always there to support me. Especially when you get access to guns :cool:

I think FFXII is the other title where I use items more freely than usual just to counter the slow cast time. V-X I hardly use the items unless dealing with a Magic Pot.

[Jiro]

It's not that items were useless for me, it's just that I didn't like using them because they're consumable. But I'm over that so now I spam items like a mofo. I even put on the Auto Potion ability in IX for the first time :o

Usually items are used out of battle though, to cure effects and whatnot. If ethers (or other MP healing items) are readily available then I will just hoard them, and leave status healing items and health healing items as a backup.

[Kyros]

About the only game where I genuinely prefer items over magic is FFTactics. I'll use a white mage to get the job levels and unlock useful classes but in cases where I need quick healing my Chemist is always there to support me. Especially when you get access to guns :cool: .

I didnt bother with them in tictacs b/c I only used chemist to get to other classes. I used magic over them even in that game =/ I guess items were more useful back in the earlier titles, but it seems like now I wouldnt miss them after an hour or two into a game.

[Wolf Kanno]

You missed out in Tactics cause the Chemist is easily the best healer unless you want to deal with cast times or building overly complicated party set-ups to allow Calculator/Mathematician do the healing. They were also great for getting rid of the obnoxious undead enemies.

I would usually make Mustadio a Chemist with his Machinist support skills so I can keep my long range sniping. :cool:

[Kyros]

I didn't use Mustadio (on ps version used ramza, beowulf, meliadul, cloud, orlandu), and my healers had 1-2 turn casts for heals so I wasnt really spending time for heals =/

[Wolf Kanno]

I never had such luck with my white mages so I never really used them. Besides, X-Potions are ridiculously cheap and you don't have to worry about accidentally healing an enemy.

[Kyros]

dont accidentally heal enemies if you have a 1 turn cast plus you can heal more than one person with magic =/

[Wolf Kanno]

If you're good you don't need to heal more than one person ;)

In all seriousness, I just could never get my healing magic to go to one turn and two turns is too long in most situations. Of course, I don't need to heal very often once Mustadio joins and snipes everything (not even going to mention Balthier in the port) or get Cid to come in and kill everything...

[MJN SEIFER]

In my current playthorugh of FFVIII I have at least one party member have the item command junctioned, just in case the member with the most "cure" spells gets silenced. This wasn't much of a problem in FFVII because I usually had something that would prottect me from scilence (and it rarely worked anyway).

[Kyros]

I think a lot of people used item in FFVIII by the end but normally only b/c of holy war trials or hero potions. I never had items junctioned by anyone ever and just used Rinoa for invincibility. All of my characters were maxxed out on every cure the first battle it would appear on an enemy so I never worried about that, and with recover or w/e the gf ability was that healed for a lot I never had to worry about heals again.

[Depression Moon]

In every Final Fantasy except IX I use them often. Only certain characters can revive others so I use phoenix downs a lot in all of them and tents if they're there. It's also hard for some characters to heal others so potions are a desperate source for my attack heavy characters. In most FFs I try and assign types of jobs for all my characters. To me it would seem weird for Vincent, Cloud, or Red XIII to be healers so I don't give them the cure materia at all and if I have a party with those three well I have to rely on items. Also in that game I remember there were flying enemies that only long range weapons and magic could hit it, so I used bombs in those situations because I didn't teach everyone good offensive magic at the time.

I guess it's the same for me with VIII too.

In X Rikku's Al Bhed potions were really handy when tyou first got access to them and still in some situations. Plus in order for her to deal good damage she needs to use her special items to attack. I love Hi-Potions in that game.

XII I can't really remember. I think I used ethers a lot but outside of battle if I could, and I had auto phoenix down useage for my non white mage/sage characters. Speaking of jobs. XII would've been a even cooler if they had a convenient job system.
In IV and VI, it's mostly elixirs, ethers, and phoenix downs.

[Kyros]

At the beginning of IX I bet you rely on items like your life depends on it. At least I do since there's not much healing available, and I draw out battles 10x longer than they should be stealing for forever. Also items are a lot better in battle than on the field in IX so I try to use them there a lot at the beginning of the game to get more use from them.