Final Fantasy XII introduces us to the new gambit system, which, in simple terms, is programmable artificial intelligence for your characters. The gambit system allows you customize each character's behaviour, making them automatically perform a certain action when faced with the appropriate circumstance.
Each gambit consists of a condition and a reaction. The condition, as the name implies, states when the character will perform the reaction to which it is attached. Conditions can focus on practically any foe or any ally, including the acting character him/herself. The reaction, as stated above, is the command that the character will perform when the appropriate condition is met. Reactions can be in the form of attacking any foe (or even ally), using any item, casting any Magick, or performing any Technick. All conditions can be purchased from any gambit shop, and many can be found in various treasure chests scattered throughout Ivalice. Reactions can be learned with the acquisition of the appropriate item or spell.
When building gambits, there are several things to take into consideration:
- Each character can be programmed with up to 12 gambits. You must acquire the appropriate licenses from the Licence Board before additional slots become available.
- Once a character has acquired a gambit, the entire party has access to it. While hunting for gambits in the field will save you some gil, they're relatively cheap in stores, making them a worthwhile investment.
- Order does matter. A character will perform the actions in the order they are listed on his gambit page. He will even switch to a different command when the conditions for a higher-priority gambit are met, even if there's a tenth of a second left on the charge bar. Thus, it is a good idea to place gambits that assist your party higher on the list than those that attack enemies. "Vitality before violence," as Balthier so eloquently puts it.
- Item or Magick? The choice is up to you. Using items is generally instantaneous, but you have to make sure you have a good stock of that particular item, because it is easy to burn through your entire stock. While Magick takes longer to charge up, it is much easier to acquire MP than it is to acquire a stock of items.
- While the gambit system isn't foolproof, it is still fairly user-friendly. Characters won't cast status effects on something that already has that particular status.
- Keep in mind that you may have to alter your gambits when faced with certain foes, particularly bosses. Many bosses are immune to several status effects, so if your character is consistently casting a spell to which a foe is invulnerable, he will drain his MP down to nothing. Don't be afraid to turn off a gambit that isn't working for you.
Now, onto the gambits themselves. The list of available gambits starts off relatively small, but will grow as you progress through the game.
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