Final Fantasy Tactics Rant

[PontiusPilate]

EDIT

Okay this game is good, but it only takes a few flaws for it to take a divebomb into the ground.

1. I thought the "charge" idea for spells is incredibly stupid. Making abilities like "jump" completely pointless. By the time uve actually intiated the attack, your opponent has moved.

2. Spells like Fire, ice, etc. do WAY to much damage for having no charge. I had a level 10 guy and some level 6 mage killed him in 1 hit with Bolt 1. its bull[img]/xxx.gif[/img][img]/xxx.gif[/img][img]/xxx.gif[/img][img]/xxx.gif[/img]. Why should i get Melee units when mages attacks do more dmg in mult squares

3. Your Guest AI is as dumb as dirt, while your opponents are smart. You cant even argue with that. Deltia runs out in the way begining, dealing no dmg to anyone, he then gets absolutely [U]RAPED[U] by your opponents, then he runs away in the corner. I mean, at least be my smurfing matyr and do SOME damage. Don't hide like the giant vagina you are and help my team in no way

4. Sometimes the game is not just hard, its just plain cheap. when its 3v2, all my opponents just "happen" to all have a critical attack or when i attack someone, they just happen to guard it and then counter with a critical. Lame.

For the first 6 levels i was excited about training up so I can win the next battle, but now because im forced to do it so much and lvl 6 guys have higher health and attack than my level 10 guys (same classes even), it lost all appeal making the game boring.

People tell me all these "strategies" on how to be the best at the game. When I used them (even with higher level characters) I was easily man raped by some basic Knights and 2 black mages

This is the reason why FFT will never beat Tactics Ogre

If they fixed these flaws i would give this game a 10/10, but i am forced to give it an 8.5/10

[BG-57]

1. I thought the "charge" idea for spells is incredibly stupid. Making abilities like "jump" completely pointless. By the time uve actually intiated the attack, your opponent has moved.

You do know that anytime during the battle, you can check the order that attacks are going to take place? It's called the Active Turn (AT) list. So you can pick an attack, hit left or right on the D pad, and check AT, and see if the target gets a turn before or after it hits.

Granted that this doesn't work for Jump, making it unpredictable.

2. Spells like Fire, ice, etc. do WAY to much damage for having no charge

Actually, I'm sure that elemental spells have a charge time, but it's short for low level spells and increases in length for higher level spells. So, say Ice4 takes longer to cast than Ice. You can work around Charge two ways:

1) Equip Short Charge, which halves charge time.

2) Use Calculator which use many Wizard, White Mage, Time Mage and Oracle spells, but can be cast instantly with no MP cost.

3. Your Guest AI is as dumb as dirt, while your opponents are smart.

Guests are ultimately uncontrollable, but they act in predictable ways, so you can strategize around them. It can be frustrating though. I think of it as paying dues so some of them can join the party later.

4. Sometimes the game is not just hard, its just plain cheap. when its 3v2, all my opponents just "happen" to all have a critical attack. Lame.

A lot of factors can influence damage, some of which you can control. Especially Zodiac alignments and Brave.

This is the reason why FFT will never beat Tactics Ogre

Tactics Ogre seemed like a nice enough game, but I prefer Tactics myself.

[feioncastor]

Okay this game is good, but it only takes a few flaws for it to take a divebomb into the ground.

1. I thought the "charge" idea for spells is incredibly stupid. Making abilities like "jump" completely pointless. By the time uve actually intiated the attack, your opponent has moved.

BG is right. You can check the turn order on the spell select menu by pushing either left or right on the d-pad. You should only cast a spell if your target is not going to have a turn before the spell is cast. Later on in the game, you'll learn how to use this system more proficiently, but for now, just do not cast a spell on a guy if they will have a turn before the spell or ability (like charge or whatever) is used.

2. Spells like Fire, ice, etc. do WAY to much damage for having no charge. I had a level 10 guy and some level 6 mage killed him in 1 hit with Bolt 1. its bull[img]/xxx.gif[/img][img]/xxx.gif[/img][img]/xxx.gif[/img][img]/xxx.gif[/img].

They do have charge time, and a lot of things influence the amount of damage a guy does. Trying bringing a knight into battle with you and try using mind break on the mages right off the bat, and then see how much damage their spells will do.

3. Your Guest AI is as dumb as dirt, while your opponents are smart. You cant even argue with that. Deltia runs out in the way begining, dealing no dmg to anyone, he then gets absolutely [U]RAPED[U] by your opponents, then he runs away in the corner. I mean, at least be my smurfing matyr and do SOME damage. Don't hide like the giant vagina you are and help my team in no way

Well, different things influence this. For example, in the fight on Mandalia Plains where you have to save Algus, if you choose "Destroy the Death Corps", Delita will be worthless. He will save Algus, then hide in the corner with him for the remainder of the fight. If you choose "Saving him is our priority", Delita will get in there and fight a little more rather than hiding away. Furthermore, guests aren't there to win fights for you, except in the first fight at Orbonne. Other than that, do NOT rely on your guests. I only rely on units that I control. Guests will help every now and then by knocking a few HP off of an enemy, but generally, I don't care what they do because I strategize such that if I could win the fight with them, I could just as easily do it without them.

4. Sometimes the game is not just hard, its just plain cheap. when its 3v2, all my opponents just "happen" to all have a critical attack or when i attack someone, they just happen to guard it and then counter with a critical. Lame.

Sometimes, sure. That's true of any game with random things like Critical hit. It's like this: If you flip a coin 100 times and get "Heads" every time, the chances of getting heads again is still 50-50.

The critical hit system can get annoying in any game, not just FFT. But you've got to accept that as a challenge, and plan accordingly. Let's say you know there's a guy who will do 28 damage to Ramza with a plain attack, because you've seen him do it in this fight. So you always make sure that Ramza has more than 30 HP so that the guy can't kill him in one hit. But then, uh-oh, the guy gets a critical, and Ramza dies. Well, that's why you have a back-up for your back-up, if you know what I mean. I always have a few people with the ability to bring others back to life, whether is the Chemist's "Phoenix Down" ability, the Priest's "Raise" ability or the Monk's "Revive" ability. I have a designated healer (usually a chemist because I don't like Priests) and I have a few people that can heal him or bring him back to life, if need be.

For the first 6 levels i was excited about training up so I can win the next battle, but now because im forced to do it so much and lvl 6 guys have higher health and attack than my level 10 guys (same classes even), it lost all appeal making the game boring.

Well, I've gone up against level 90 guys with level 68 guys and still won because I used the right skill and stuff. Like Monks. Around Chapter 2, monks become ridiculously powerful and they stay that way for the rest of the game. Seriously, train a monk and focus on raising their attack power. Give them "Basic Skill" as a second ability, and make sure they know "Accumulate". At the beginning of each fight, have you monk accumulate once or twice while you're waiting to attack the bad guys, and then when you see your monk attack, you'll see your enemies die. Also, the monk has the skill "Chakra" which heals HP and MP for the caster (the monk) and anyone standing next to him. It gets stronger the higher your attack power is, so if you accumulate, it makes him able to heal better too.

But I digress... Are you sure that you're using the right equipment? I can guarantee that a level 10 knight will have more HP than a level 6 knight, if they both have the same equipment. Remember that your max HP is mostly determined by your helmet and armor. Always buy the newest stuff, and if you need a few bucks at the beginning of the game, I'd recommend selling any Holy Water that you have because you won't need them till much later, and you get 1000 gil for them.

Also, do you know how to learn skills and equip them on a character? You do know that you can have a wizard who has "Item" as a secondary ability, thus making him able to heal himself and others, right? The way that I play the game, the right combinations of skills are what decide whether or not I will win.


At any rate, you're certainly entitled to your opinion, and TO is an excellent game, so there is nothing wrong with liking it. I personally like FFT more than any game ever, but meh, that's just me I guess.


PS - BG, if he's working with level 10 guys, and fighting level 6 guys, I doubt he's discovered calculators. But they suck anyway. I mean, their innate speed is just way too low.

[BG-57]

PS - BG, if he's working with level 10 guys, and fighting level 6 guys, I doubt he's discovered calculators. But they suck anyway. I mean, their innate speed is just way too low.

True, but PontiusPilate didn't say that in the original unedited post. Anyways Calculators are only worth playing long enough to get Math Skills. It's the ultimate secondary ability.

[PontiusPilate]

Feoin, I don't think i have the exact equipment, but that would onlt be because its not available to me. Im at the fight with algus and i dont have as good of equipment as they do. Do stores update their items or do i have to wait for another store to appear?

Whats a good lineup of units for chapter 1

[BG-57]

Generally every new city you open up has progressively better equipment for sale, although some cities specialize in specific types of equipment. In addition opening new cities make the older cities update their stock as well.

By the battle with Algus do you mean Fort Zeakden?

[feioncastor]

For example, if you're looking for heavy equipment like heavy armor, helmets, swords, shields, etc... head for a castle (Like Igros), but when it comes to light armor and other assorted weapons, Trade Cities are excellent (Like Dorter).

Yes, the shops upgrade their available stuff. You have to check back every now and then. And if you're in a trade city and you notice they have new equipment, try heading up to the castle and seeing what they have. Usually when one place gets new stuff, the others do too.

[PontiusPilate]

Generally every new city you open up has progressively better equipment for sale, although some cities specialize in specific types of equipment. In addition opening new cities make the older cities update their stock as well.

By the battle with Algus do you mean Fort Zeakden?

Yeah, that battle. Nvm though i went back and saw that all the armor and weapons had been upgraded since last time i checked

[Despotus]

For the first 6 levels i was excited about training up so I can win the next battle, but now because im forced to do it so much and lvl 6 guys have higher health and attack than my level 10 guys (same classes even), it lost all appeal making the game boring.

If you spend a good amount of time leveling up in random battles (Like I do), you will find that the equipment available in the stores will become obsolete as your and your opponents' levels increase. If this becomes the case, your best strategy is to steal your opponents' better equipment. Switch a couple of your characters over to thief. When "Yell" becomes available to Ramza, use it to boost their speed levels. Silencing any enemy mages is a must, and use Speed Break (Knight), Frog (Wizard), or Sleep (Oracle) to make enemies easier to steal from. Just in case you didn't know, you can see what enemy equipment you might like to steal by placing the cursor over an enemy on the board and pressing 'circle'.

1. I thought the "charge" idea for spells is incredibly stupid. Making abilities like "jump" completely pointless. By the time uve actually intiated the attack, your opponent has moved.

When timing my Lancers' Jumps, I've always found that they are guaranteed to hit an opponent whose CT is under 50 when you jump. Jumps are not that unpredictable at all, I.M.H.O., if you always check your potential targets' CT bars.

[Gilthanes]

I'm guessing the OP hasn't gotten very far in the game, if hes complaining about black magic spells 1 shotting people (especially the rank 1 spells). Further in the game it becomes more about knowing which class to send vs which opponent, which one to keep back to support your team, effective ways to keep the enemies from your "quickest to die" units. In the beginning, you don't have many of those options. You just charge in, and when the dust settles, you make sure you dont have any serious casualties and you move on

Tactics Ogre is great, dont get me wrong. It does rank as one of my favorite games of all time, also my #2 favorite strategy game, right behind Tactics. But the problem with TO is its lack of customization of units. You can make a dragoon, yes. He fights dragons well and has some weak support magic (if I remember correct). But, can you make a Dragoon with the ability to steal, as well as jump an infinite height and use a healing potion every time he gets hit? or maybe give him the ability to block all incoming melee attacks, or even cast Reraise on himself when he takes dmg? Not in TO

Edit: On the other hand, I do wish FFT had used TOs style of game progression, in that you pick a side of a conflict, and the game changes its course depending on what you choose, ending with several different paths through the game...


Anyways, back on topic. Ending Chapter 1, I always like to have a summoner, huge help in the battle against Algus. If you are still having trouble getting past him, equip Ramza and Delita with Auto Potion and your problems should be solved. Personally, if you have a team of Ramza (as squire, monk or knight even), a Monk, Summoner, and a Mage of any type, as long as they have some White Magic primary or seconday skill so they can heal, you should be ok. Put the monk and healer-mage away from Ramza, to take out the knight+black mage that are close to them at start. The two of them should have no trouble taking care of themselves.

On the other side of the battle, keep your summoner back until the knights+algus+mages bunch up in some way, by using an auto-potion'd Ramza as bait. Once they are grouped up on him, bring in Summoner with a spell of Titan or better. Should take out the mages and severely weaken the knights at least.

[PontiusPilate]

I'm guessing the OP hasn't gotten very far in the game, if hes complaining about black magic spells 1 shotting people (especially the rank 1 spells). Further in the game it becomes more about knowing which class to send vs which opponent, which one to keep back to support your team, effective ways to keep the enemies from your "quickest to die" units. In the beginning, you don't have many of those options. You just charge in, and when the dust settles, you make sure you dont have any serious casualties and you move on

Tactics Ogre is great, dont get me wrong. It does rank as one of my favorite games of all time, also my #2 favorite strategy game, right behind Tactics. But the problem with TO is its lack of customization of units. You can make a dragoon, yes. He fights dragons well and has some weak support magic (if I remember correct). But, can you make a Dragoon with the ability to steal, as well as jump an infinite height and use a healing potion every time he gets hit? or maybe give him the ability to block all incoming melee attacks, or even cast Reraise on himself when he takes dmg? Not in TO

Edit: On the other hand, I do wish FFT had used TOs style of game progression, in that you pick a side of a conflict, and the game changes its course depending on what you choose, ending with several different paths through the game...


Anyways, back on topic. Ending Chapter 1, I always like to have a summoner, huge help in the battle against Algus. If you are still having trouble getting past him, equip Ramza and Delita with Auto Potion and your problems should be solved. Personally, if you have a team of Ramza (as squire, monk or knight even), a Monk, Summoner, and a Mage of any type, as long as they have some White Magic primary or seconday skill so they can heal, you should be ok. Put the monk and healer-mage away from Ramza, to take out the knight+black mage that are close to them at start. The two of them should have no trouble taking care of themselves.

On the other side of the battle, keep your summoner back until the knights+algus+mages bunch up in some way, by using an auto-potion'd Ramza as bait. Once they are grouped up on him, bring in Summoner with a spell of Titan or better. Should take out the mages and severely weaken the knights at least.

Thanks, the next time i fought him i kille dhim in 2 hits on my second turn.

Question. I keep getting these guest heroes (DK WK). do i ever get to keep any of them to train. And please answer this question, while still not ruining the plot for me or telling any spoilers. Just a yes or a no and names.

[BG-57]

These individuals fight on your side at least once:

Algus: no

Delita: no

Agrias: yes

Gafgarion: no

Boco: yes

Mustadio: yes

Ovelia: no

Alma: no

Olan: no

Rafa: yes

Malak: yes

Meliadoul: yes

Beowulf: yes

Reis: yes

Cloud: yes

Byblos: yes

Worker 8: yes

Orlandu: yes

[conan]

BG - 57's info is correct, however don't even bother training them or leveling them up while they are guests, because all the job points you get for them will disappear. Only when they actually join your party (when they're NOT guests), should you begin training them.

[PontiusPilate]

Wow, thanks both of you. Are any of them a dark knight?

[Kuroshima]

Orlandu Can use some dark knight abilities