For a healer, should I get a chemist or a priest? This is my second go through the game - I struggled the first time beating it.
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For a healer, should I get a chemist or a priest? This is my second go through the game - I struggled the first time beating it.
Priest. Chemist you have to buy things and it can only be used on one panel.
But at the same time, a chemist is more reliable (a potion heals 30 HP no matter what), doesn't require charge time or MP, and can equip guns. I say a chemist with white magic.Quote:
Originally Posted by Del Murder
What can I say, I'm cheap.
I tend to prefer Priests since I usually get a Mediator to raise everyone's Faith to fairly high levels (but not to the point where they will leave, of course) while I'm saving JP for "Equip Gun". Chemists aren't that great on the healing end, since the most they can get is 150, but they are more reliable because they always hit, especially with Phoenix Downs, and have no charge time. So it depends on your play style, if you want stronger, slower healing get a priest with high Faith. If you want quicker, weaker healing, then a Chemist is for you. Frankly, I think Math Skills with White Magic mastered is the best way to go. Calculate Cure 4 or Raise 2 or Holy to great effect.
Also, for my second go, I am thinking of having this:
2 Samurai (Ramza/Generic)
1 Ninja
1 Mediator
1 Summoner/Time Mage
Is this alright? Or should I make it a Summoner/Black Mage instead of a Summoner/Time Mage? I actually think its the time mage that I should use because I already have offensive spells with the summoner.
You should take chemist IMO, Late in the game, when chemists start getting useless, a white magic costs more time to use, making it also less effective. As above I think a calculating white magic is best
As far as the party you think adding. Summoner with Time Magic is better since summon is almost strictly superior to black magic. (black mages have the highes magic power though)
I'd take the Priest (White Mage). You can target areas and that way heal many people at the same time, you can heal for more than 150 HP and you don't have to restock your healing items in the shops. Casting times weren't a problem for I since I had my healer learn Time Mage's Short Charge ability as soon as I could (very useful!). I also had my Priest learn summoning, so Moogle and Faerie were also pretty good for healing purposes.
I use Chemists until I master the Calculator class. Then I equip Math Skill as a secondary skill. Anytime I need to heal I simply calculate a Priest spell so it hits my party. Although Mustadio makes an excellent Chemist throughout the game.
reverted back to chemist late in the game when they get guns.
Perhaps i am a bit overboard, but i just used auto-potion on all my characters so i didn't have to worry about healing. Well that is the game i was worried more about just obliterating everything in my path instead of enjoying the game.
If you have a plentiful amount of Elixers (which, at the beginning of the game, I highly doubt), I'd go with Chemist. HP and MP +100% :D.
I would say use a Priest with Chemist abilities
I found Chemists to be quite useful, actually. As a Chemist, you can Throw Item too. I had Mustadio as an Engineer with Item as a secondary, to round him out as a status attacker and mild healer. Stealing Belk's gun was key. I personally would spread healing abilities out between two people though.
My beginning game setup looks a bit like this.
Ramza - Guts and whatever else
Rad - White/Black Magic
Guy #3 - Time/Summon Magic
Guy #4 - Attacker/thieving dude
Guy #5 - Item/Attacker dude
It's been a while since I've played, but this was pretty effective. Ramza as a Samurai with Guts worked well, Thieving dude turned into a Ninja with Steal, Item guy had Snipe (Mustadio) or Throw when Snipe became obsolete. Rad and Guy #3 eventually both learned Summon and Math abilities, became Summoners with Math Skill, and lived happily ever after with those +2 Speed hats and other +Speed accessories. Or Priests with Math Skill - you know, whatever.
dont u always change ur people when they master trout?
isnt that the point?
i usually have them all equip item and have a chemist or at least have something they can do that gives them automatic jp no matter what (so if they only have attacks like knights i would give them basic skills so they can always accumulate)
by teh way....best combo for defense in teh game is feather mantle and blade grasp (samurai skill)
also always equip teleport so u can attack like a fast son of abitch
It depends on how you play the game. I find it utterly pointless to keep changing jobs whenever I master one job. I map out what I want my characters to do, and take the necessary steps so that they become what I want. For example, take what I did with Ramza:
I wanted a fighter who could equip Two-Swords, so Ninja. I didn't want any other Ninja skills, so I only learned the Two-Swords ability before abandoning the job.
I decided that I wanted Ramza to specialize in his class, i.e. Squire. Therefore I mastered squire (even though that was probably unnecessary, just so long as I had Gain JP up, Move +1, and all the abilities). I also wanted Ramza to have good firepower, so I chose to master Oracle, Time Mage, Wizard and Priest, then Calculator.
Finally, I spent some time with the Bard class for Move+3, and I aquired Auto-Potion with the Chemist class. It took a long time to build up because of all the Calculator preparation, but it was worth it in the end.
i use chemists cuz i equip every character with teleport, blade grasp and a feather mantle so i very rarely get touched and if i do--im dead and i just use a PD to bring back--i dont need a lot of life cuz i gamble with the low life goin on the offensive--personally i think its a lot mroe useful to do this--choosing good primary classes that have the attacks u want--and always equipping items so u can have five people killing who can pick up the wounded--than it is to waste a spot on ur team wtih a priest who is usualy completely uselesss unless their healign someone--ofcourse u can always give them offensive spells but a priest magic isnt that high
I've never had much of a need for either. I usually equip all of my characters with Auto-Potion for their Reaction Skill and I never think much about healing.
Auto-Potion reaction skill is pretty helpful, especially if you only have (and use) X-Potions. However, stronger monsters can give you trouble if they're doing too much damage for you to heal.
Forget Priests, they're unrelaible and have gotten some of my best people turned to crystal. Chemists are much better, though weak attackers. But your best bet is to get a Monk and use Chakra. Or equip everybody with Earth Clothes and use Earth Slash.
Chesmist with Priest sub would be better because they can use guns. In terms of healing and fighting undead, Chemists are infinitely more useful and reliable due to the charge time.
And gun! remember the guns!
Monks are unreliable in that Chakra and Revive MUST be executed on the same height level as their target, and Revive doesn't always work. Chemists are good if your priest doesn't have high enough Faith to have near or at 100% with Raise, but if their faith is high enough, Priests all the way. The charge time for the more basic spells really isn't that much, and if they're Hasted it won't be very detrimental, if at all.
And guns are all right, but certainly not necessary.
If you have guns, it all comes down to faith. If you have a mage with really good faith, priest might be the best option.
However, with guns, a Chemist might be the way to go. Then you could have another secondary skill that could drain your MP(time magic, anyone?), since it won't be used up in your primary skill. Also, guns rule.
Guns are only good if you have the stronger ones though. In the beginning of the game you don't even have access to the Ramada Gun, so if you have a high Faith character Priest would probably be the better choice.
Then again, I don't have Priests and Chemists in my party, not even a Black Mage or Calculator.
My healer is a Monk with Items and high Movement.
phenix downs are pretty badass against undead enemies
But you don't fight enough undead to justify their use. Plus healing spells work just as well.
Still, a chemist with a bad-ass gun and Time Magic secondary skill is pretty bad-ass.
Of course, that's dependent on the assumption that you have a bad-ass gun. Or you could use Mustadio with Item secondary skill and Item Throw(or whatever it's called).
Why waste slots on Items, though, when you can just as easily have Math Skills. It doesn't take up an extra slot for the Item Throw ability.
Yeah, but Math Skill can sometimes force you to choose to either heal the enemy, or sacrifice a unit.
Sometimes. I'd say it's a small price to pay for the power it grants you. Much more reliable than items in my opinion.
My theory was always, don't bother healing. Just make sure you don't have to. Reaction abilities like Dragon Spirit, Blade Grasp, Hamedo, and Abandon kept me from ever doing things the "right" way. I never healed people. Just don't let them die. Or, equip Angel Ring or Chantage so, if they do, who cares? Besides, even if someone dies, with classes like Ninjas and Calculators...you could easily just wipe out all the other enemies in the three turns you're allowed before your homie crystalizes. So, I guess my answer to the Chemist or Priest question is: neither. Just get Blade Grasp as soon as you can and use Cheer Up alot. Most of my characters have a Brave rating of 97, the highest the game allows you to retain outside of battle. That's my theory, anyway.
When you start out you almost have to have some sort of healer in your group, and by the end of it I don't believe it to be any less important. Also, many of the skills you mentioned aren't 100% effective or are exclusive to certain things. Hamendo doesn't do much against Fire 3 or any monster's attack, for example.
Angel Rings are usually a good thing to have, but they only cast Reraise once and when they do you are VERY weak. Dragon Spirit, while effective once, leaves you very weak. You aren't too likely to get hit less than 10 so that you can survive and cast Dragon Spirit again.
I think the ONLY skill that could POSSIBLY invalidate the need for a healer is Auto-Potion with only X-Potions in your inventory. However, near the end enemies do far more damage than that, so I don't see it as an effective strategy.