Quote Originally Posted by Black Mage FF1

BTW any party is better without a thief. Fi/Fi/Fi/Rm > Fi/Fi/Fi/Th. Thieves suck. Rm = better.

Lets see.

Throughout half the game the Rm does more damage then the Thief.
The Rm actually has magic.
The Rm has more Hp then the Thief
The Rm Mage as better defense

After Class change
The Ninja is still weaker until you get the Katana. Then he gets A LITTLE stronger then the Rm.
The Ninja has magic but the Rm still has more.
The Ninja gets some better armor. But so what? He gets it so late that it doesnt even matter.
Your "which party is better" contrast is inadequate because the RM is a wizard. Clearly, a party with magic capabilities is better.

You have to ask:
F/?/WM/BM
Is it better to have an intermediary character that can assist everybody in their efforts, or is it better to have a Thief that can run away (Instead of fight, when things are getting nasty), and can be a better fighter later on in the game.

Also, the Ninja can get the Ice Shield and Flame Armor before class change (That is, those items are available and immediately accessible as soon as class change takes pace). Both him and the RW can carry the defense, and by the time the RW can carry the Sun Sword (Which the Ninja can also use), you may as well have the Katana as well.

The way I see it, the RM is superior before class change. That's because it's better to prepare for fighting instead of preparing to run away. But the Ninja is better afterward. Because, despite the fact that it's afterward, the Ninja is stronger on the attack and defense. And the defense is stronger soon, like, the moment class change takes place.

After that, all RM has on the Ninja is Life, Exit, and Ice3, Fire3, and Lit3.

So, in a party with two mages, the RM becomes less useful. Most of the time, the Ninja and RW are washed out simply because of magic items and the fact that a Fighter is just too good.

Hey! There's the answer. The RW simply answers for magic if you want it. That means that it's reaching maximum usefulness in a party with 3 fighters, but isn't very important in a party with 2 white mages (Or something like that)

I think, Black Mage FF1, that you like the RM so much because you seem to loathe BMs. I can see how Ice3 without a black mage would seem infinitely better than Fast and lv. 3 black magic (Which can be found in items anyway).

Note: Ninja, of course, can still run like Hell when he has to. That and fight and assist!

But I felt I had to respond again. Even though it's getting to be closing time. I just didn't like the way you compared the two with 3 fighters instead of adding variety to the parties in consideration.