Final Fantasy Tactics Community Playthrough

[ForceStealer]

PPSSPP is a really nice emulator, and the keys for WoL are set up quite nicely. Yay!

I have to admit though, that I haven't gotten very far.

Spoiler: Some initial thoughts

I spent the entirety of the second battle being annoyed over 1) why it's impossible to set the map in such a way that the houses aren't blocking the view (is this done on purpose? Battle fields are hard to map out? Only it's only like three houses and a river) and 2) why are you showing certain squares as blue on the 'move' command, only to tell me 'you can't move to here' when I pick one of them?

And then, lol, even for how I knew that battle is a flashback, my brain failed to connect that 'this guy is on YOUR team at this point' and so I killed Delita

I'll give it a go later to see if I'll get the hang of it

That's hilarious (about Delita), hahaha. Also, I'm not sure what you mean about the blue movement squares. They should only be blue squares where you can actually move. Were you thinking the water was a blue square perhaps?

So... I'm getting my arse handed to me by this game.

The Bomb's kept self destructing and wiping me out. I figured out not to surround them unless I can kill it that turn, but this game is much harder than I remember.

Any tips for the battle against a knight, 3 archers and two mages?
Because fire is OP.

I werned ye! Yeah, Dorter's tough. I definitely recommend having a black mage of your own and using thunder. It's storming and so that will power up thunder attacks. Have a knight and your black mage charge the knight and black mage straight ahead. Let Argath/Algus and Delita go after the archer on the roof. A thunder spell should be enough to kill each black mage and severely weaken any archers. (I overleveled a little bit and had Thundara, which is great.

And keep up those potions every time that archer on the roof shoots your chemist. I actually died twice on this playthrough because I tried to power through it without grinding at all. But what really made the difference was gear. Building up enough gil to get everyone armor was key. Armor in this game doesn't decrease the damage you take, it straight up boosts your HP.

Force, why don't you pick a platform and a time that you might be able to make, and if it turns out that you can't, I'll get it started. Same thing goes for streaming; I'll do it if nobody else wants to.

I don't think I'll have any chance this weekend, unfortunately :/ Next weekend might be more open, though.

 

[Cthulhu]

I've got the PSP-with-a-stutter emulator set up; probably the easiest experience with an emulator to date, . Only meh thing is that there's a frequent stutter in the sound/music.

 

[Flintlock]

There are patches for the PSP version that fix the stutter and slowdown. Look 'em up.

 

[AvecAloes]

Chapter 1

Discussion:

• What are your first gameplay impressions?
  This is the second time I've played the game, the first time being either late 2015 or early 2016, I think, so I'm pretty familiar with the game. I was on a real SRPG kick for a while there. I'm really happy to be playing again, and I'm hoping I'll have an easier time with following all of the names (as mentioned below) this time around.
• And what about your early impressions of the characters? They spit a lot of names at you and that doesn’t get much easier, but I’m sure that will be no trouble to you Game of Thrones types.
  Yeah, the first time I played this game, I was overwhelmed by the sheer number of names and characters that are referenced. I had a really hard time keeping track of who was who, and honestly probably just smiled and nodded when Force would ask me about certain characters or reference them in a way that I should have understood but didn't >.> Like I said, hopefully I'll be better this time.
  It's even more frustrating to watch
  Spoiler

  Argath's interactions with everyone right now, knowing just how horrible he becomes. In the battle where you first run into him, I just wanted to let him die and be done with it
• Did you read any Rumors at a Tavern?
  I did. I read all of the Rumors at Gariland, including the incredibly lengthy scene-setting one. Well, admittedly, I ended up skimming through it towards the end, as I wanted to get back to playing the game. I'm a really bad RPGer, haha.
• Did you struggle with Dorter? What’s your primary party makeup looking like after this first chapter?
  I surprisingly did not struggle. I did do a few random battles in preparation, knowing how hard Dorter can be, so I guess I was in a pretty good spot.
  Ramza - Knight
  Rando Lady 1 - Knight
  Rando Guy - Black Mage
  Rando Lady 2 - Chemist
  
  I let Delita and Argath take care of the archer on the roof of the building closest to you, and then had my knights and my black mage go forth and take everyone else out in relatively short order. My Lady Knight did go down, but not permanently, so smeh.
  
  Once I finished Dorter, Force asked me if I had seen the cutscene. I said yes, and he informed me that that was the end of Chapter 1...and I was sorely disappointed, because I was ready to keep going Maybe I can just do some grinding while I wait for Chapter 2 to be posted

 

[Russell]

So... I'm getting my arse handed to me by this game.

The Bomb's kept self destructing and wiping me out. I figured out not to surround them unless I can kill it that turn, but this game is much harder than I remember.

Any tips for the battle against a knight, 3 archers and two mages?
Because fire is OP.

I werned ye! Yeah, Dorter's tough. I definitely recommend having a black mage of your own and using thunder. It's storming and so that will power up thunder attacks. Have a knight and your black mage charge the knight and black mage straight ahead. Let Argath/Algus and Delita go after the archer on the roof. A thunder spell should be enough to kill each black mage and severely weaken any archers. (I overleveled a little bit and had Thundara, which is great.

And keep up those potions every time that archer on the roof shoots your chemist. I actually died twice on this playthrough because I tried to power through it without grinding at all. But what really made the difference was gear. Building up enough gil to get everyone armor was key. Armor in this game doesn't decrease the damage you take, it straight up boosts your HP.

This is why I struggle with this game; I have no idea which jobs to which my team to and when. I haven't changed anyone's job yet. I want to get JP Boost, counter tackle, Move +1 and Phoenix down on all my characters before I change jobs or go any further. As per your advise I'm also fitting my whole team with the best armour available right now.

Battle boots are 1000G each. Thieving merchant pricks.

 

[Roger]

This is why I struggle with this game; I have no idea which jobs to which my team to and when. I haven't changed anyone's job yet. I want to get JP Boost, counter tackle, Move +1 and Phoenix down on all my characters before I change jobs or go any further. As per your advise I'm also fitting my whole team with the best armour available right now.

Battle boots are 1000G each. Thieving merchant pricks.

I definitely suggest picking good classes for the big story fights and grind later. restricting yourself from Mages and Knights for Dorter is asking for a beating.

 

[Jason Tandro]

Discussion:

• What are your first gameplay impressions?

• 
  
  I've played this before and got a decent way into it. Knowing tricks now to spam JP is making it a much simpler task than it was before, but the game can still be unforgiving at times. I really enjoy the tactics, the job system, the troop management. I loathe the camera. The biggest fault in this entire game is the camera. Why wasn't there an overhead view or a bevel? Damn isometric nonsense...
  
  [*]And what about your early impressions of the characters? They spit a lot of names at you and that doesn’t get much easier, but I’m sure that will be no trouble to you Game of Thrones types.
  
  It's not too complicated compared to even your average Tolkien. The Bar stories help fill in the gaps.
  
  [*]Did you read any Rumors at a Tavern?
  
  See above.
  
  [*]Did you struggle with Dorter? What’s your primary party makeup looking like after this first chapter?

I've been trying to equally level my units so I have an A team and a B team (Which is basically my guys and my gals). However in story missions I've been sticking to my female squad. To simplify roles I've had everyone learn Item and run them through the essential Squire skills and have been branching them off into jobs based on their skill sets and Brave /Faith.
I plan to run my entire squad through Thief too for the Move and Jump bonuses.

I found the magic bullet for Dorter it seems because while that fight used to absolutely tear me apart I handled it thus:

Ramza and Delita are Knight, Algus is a Squire. Armed to the teeth.
I had my ladies set up like this: Two Wizards with Item and an Archer with White Magic (though I didn't need it). One Wizard was basically a decoy as the archers all aimed for her but she kept healing herself with Potions. the other Wizard was by fay my best damage dealer striking for anywhere between 40-60 HP damage with her Bolt / Fire magic. And I almost always was able to hit two at once (luck more than skill). My archer even got to take down a few guys on their last legs and I sent Ramza charging right at the enemy Knight. Delita and Algus were both running for that rooftop archer and took him down.

When in doubt, magic it out!

 

[Kai Schulen]

HELLO WHAT A FFTACTICS PLAYTHROUGH (maybe doing a community Tactics playthrough will get me out of this video game depression funk I have been suffering through the past year or so.)

...I wonder if it's too late for me to join. <_<;;;;

 

[Russell]

HELLO WHAT A FFTACTICS PLAYTHROUGH (maybe doing a community Tactics playthrough will get me out of this video game depression funk I have been suffering through the past year or so.)

...I wonder if it's too late for me to join. <_<;;;;

It's not; join immediately.


So I got to the first milestone.

What are your first gameplay impressions?
You have to grind & level up after each storyline battle. This is going to be a big time sink.

And what about your early impressions of the characters? They spit a lot of names at you and that doesn’t get much easier, but I’m sure that will be no trouble to you Game of Thrones types.
It's none to complex yet but I feel the game is about to start throwing new characters at you like there's no tomorrow.

Did you read any Rumors at a Tavern?
The 50 years war comes up alot but who was it against? How did it end? Who won? Does it matter?

Did you struggle with Dorter?



But I just beat it with 4 Squires.

Spoiler

Because fuck your job system!

What’s your primary party makeup looking like after this first chapter?
Still haven't switched jobs for anyone yet. I was hoping the game would give you a clue or something but I don't know where to take my party. I think the game has to many jobs.

I remember my last playthrough that later in the game when you get the jobs 'grand master toe picker', 'underwater magic basket maker' and 'Dark Wizard Chimney Sweep' I quickly lost interest and stuck with what I knew. I would have preferred fewer jobs that you stuck with longer.

 

[ForceStealer]

This is why I struggle with this game; I have no idea which jobs to which my team to and when. I haven't changed anyone's job yet. I want to get JP Boost, counter tackle, Move +1 and Phoenix down on all my characters before I change jobs or go any further. As per your advise I'm also fitting my whole team with the best armour available right now.

Keep in mind that as long as even one character on your party is a certain job, everyone else will earn some JP in that job. It's slower of course, but eventually you can kind of forget about it and be pleasantly surprised when you have a whole bunch of points in a certain job.

Why wasn't there an overhead view or a bevel? Damn isometric nonsense...

There IS a bevel, as a point of note. It's not very extreme so it doesn't help tremendously, but it is there. I don't remember which button does it on PS1.

HELLO WHAT A FFTACTICS PLAYTHROUGH (maybe doing a community Tactics playthrough will get me out of this video game depression funk I have been suffering through the past year or so.)

...I wonder if it's too late for me to join. <_<;;;;

Certainly not, please join! The first chapter is a bit of a doozy, the next one is shorter (at least it didn't take me as long).

What are your first gameplay impressions?
You have to grind & level up after each storyline battle. This is going to be a big time sink.

You don't, actually. There are certain story missions where you definitely will have to. After grinding for Dorter in chapter 1, I didn't have to grind at all in the second one. Of course, I'm not rocking a team of Squires,

The 50 years war comes up alot but who was it against? How did it end? Who won? Does it matter?

It was against another country called Ordallia, a place you never go. (In FFXII's time, Ivalice is the name of the world, rather than just a country.) Nobody really ended up winning as it ended in truce, but Ivalice effectively lost as they were trying to conquer it. The soldiers being more or less abandoned after the war is what has lead to all the unrest with the Corpse Brigade/Death Corps and such. Outside of this setup, no I suppose it doesn't matter

I remember my last playthrough that later in the game when you get the jobs 'grand master toe picker', 'underwater magic basket maker' and 'Dark Wizard Chimney Sweep' I quickly lost interest and stuck with what I knew. I would have preferred fewer jobs that you stuck with longer.

But this will likely make for a lot of unique party setups amongst the participants though

I've been trying to equally level my units so I have an A team and a B team (Which is basically my guys and my gals). However in story missions I've been sticking to my female squad.

Just beware when you start running into Thieves that can use Steal Heart against the opposite gender

 

[Claymore]

What are your first gameplay impressions?

I have previously attempted playthroughs of this game before (where I believe I got somewhere in the end region) but my first gameplay impressions from years ago still remain even now. I love the tactical strategy of selecting the right jobs for your units, outfitting them, deploying them, and analysing not only your opposing enemy, but also how best to use and manipulate the terrain. It's a really cool combat system, though it can definitely be unforgiving if you are unprepared.

And what about your early impressions of the characters? They spit a lot of names at you and that doesn&#8217;t get much easier, but I&#8217;m sure that will be no trouble to you Game of Thrones types.

It does feel like a lot gets thrown at you at once, but it's a heck of a lot easier than throwing out lots of terms like la'cie, fal'cie, etc... which always just left my head aching trying to figure out what was what. There are constant names, but you begin to build a picture of their place within the game and what is going on.

Did you read any Rumors at a Tavern?

I did.

Did you struggle with Dorter? What&#8217;s your primary party makeup looking like after this first chapter?

I managed to get through the Dorter battle mostly in one piece - though my Archer did take a fall and needed a Phoenix Down. I went in making sure that everyone had a least JP Boost and the additional Move skill from being a Squire.

My current team is:

Knight, Knight, Black Mage, Archer, Squire

 

[ForceStealer]

Spoiler: Chapter 1: 'Tis your birth and faith that wrong you, not I

What are your first gameplay impressions?

Obviously not my first time through, but I originally played this when I was 12 or 13. After having really enjoyed Final Fantasy VII, I picked it up in the Game Stop purely because it had the same name as that other game. It is, of course, strikingly different from FF7. So that was pretty unexpected, but I did love the battle system from the off, as well as the job system.

And what about your early impressions of the characters? They spit a lot of names at you and that doesn’t get much easier, but I’m sure that will be no trouble to you Game of Thrones types.

The names was definitely something that gave me trouble as a kid, especially if I didn't play it for a couple weeks. Knowing what I do of the story now, I'm surprised I liked it then. I struggled a bit to determine if Ramza was a boy or a girl, I remember, haha. Despite Arazlam calling him a man in the opening.

Did you read any Rumors at a Tavern?

I don't know if I did this back then. But I have since very much enjoyed them, this may have been the most closely I ever read the Fifty Years' War rumor, definitely more to it than I recalled, I enjoy the world-building.

Did you struggle with Dorter? What’s your primary party makeup looking like after this first chapter?

I absolutely struggled with Dorter the first time. In subsequent playthroughs I've always over-prepared. However, this time, since I wanted to play the chapter first, and confident in my Tactics skills, tried to rush it, and still died twice. Granted the second loss was some bad luck. So I went and got the gil to upgrade everyone's gear and rolled it.

As with most others, Ramza and one other person (with 70 brave) are Knights, as well as a Black Mage and a Chemist. I also have an archer, but no room for her in the Dorter fight, of course.

 

[Flintlock]

I'm going to play this tonight.

 

[ForceStealer]

Chapter 2: But when the pillars of that life came crashing down, I did not watch them fall

Time: Monday Feb 6 to Friday Feb 10

Target: When you reach the start of (the in-game) Chapter 2, after the battle in Ziekden Fortress

This chapter is a little shorter, it only took me 2.25 hours. So those of you who haven't finished the first chapter, don't worry, you still won't be too far behind. If you could beat Dorter, you should be okay with most of these fights, the final one can be a little tricky because your team is split up.

At the start of the next Chapter, you will be offered to let Agrias' group (Lavian, Alicia, and Ladd/Rad) join the team. Right now there's no reason not to let them join, though they will likely be inferior to your main guys. Note that if you are playing The War of the Lions version, you're going to want to keep Alicia and Lavian on your party for the whole game, even if you don't use them (for sidequest reasons).

Discussion:

• How did you feel about the rest of the "flashback" chapter?
• Spoiler

  How much do you hate Argath/Algus?
• Did any of the fights in this chapter give you trouble?

Again, feel free to post any questions you have while playing. Good luck!

 

[Ite]

Spoiler: Mr. Ite's Chapter 1 Thoughts

What are your first gameplay impressions?

I played and beat this game in the mid-aughts, so my strategy is a decade-or-so rusty, but I still remember the basics. I'm playing the PS1 version and unlike FFVII there is no way to change the controls, so CIRCLE is the confirmation button, don't like it? Don't play. I'm constantly accidentally changing jobs and going to the previous menu, and since FFT has about a thousand sub-menus, my only consolation is that (with a few exceptions) the transitions are instantaneous. The only place I run into trouble here is during battles. I've put myself at a disadvantage several times by attacking nothing and forfeiting my action. Blah.

But since I'm playing the original NA release, I can name my main character Pants.

worth it

And what about your early impressions of the characters? They spit a lot of names at you and that doesn&#8217;t get much easier, but I&#8217;m sure that will be no trouble to you Game of Thrones types.

Despite the long loading time, the "Brave Story" section of the menu is very useful, and the music is soothing Much like ASoIaF, diving into the rich lore and getting to know who the movers and shakers are (even if they aren't present in the narrative) adds stakes and immersion to the story.

The Beoulves in particular are a great bunch of characters. The dynamics between the brothers is great. I love Zalbag.

Spoiler

I seem to remember Algus's dickery to be more subtle than it is, but perhaps my first time I gave him more leeway because he's being beaten when you met him and upon I replay I know the full extent of his douchebaggery.

Did you read any Rumors at a Tavern?

Every time. I'm pretty sure I re-read the rumors at every tavern I went to, because there's SO MUCH information that my brain forgets most of it during the random encounters. The 50 Years War is something I kind of glossed over my first playthrough, but Pants spent a lot of time hanging around in bars talking to barkeeps about the state of the world, and you get this sense that the present (and upcoming) troubles were a direct result of what came before it, and what came before that, and that. Ivalice is kind of like that, ruins upon ruins upon ruins. Stories upon stories upon stories. You might be the great hero Pants, but you're just passing through.

Did you struggle with Dorter? What&#8217;s your primary party makeup looking like after this first chapter?

I died in Dorter! I kind of homogenized my team, because early on I wanted everyone to have item and to be able to throw them. Because of that, my archers couldn't jump, my knights couldn't run, and my white mage was redundant. So I made a more diverse group and put 'em through some random battles in Mandalia and Sweegy Woods. Then, Dorter was a cakewalk.

I forgot to write down what my party was before I quit. That's for next time!

edit: spoilered the spoilers

Spoiler: Mr. Ite's Chapter 2 Thoughts

How did you feel about the rest of the "flashback" chapter?
Awesome. Delita's story is so tragic. Not much to say other than I love this game!

How much do you hate Algus?

DIE YOU PRICK

Did any of the fights in this chapter give you trouble?
The fight against Weigraf at the windmill killed my thief, Victor, and I decided not to reset. Rest in peace, Victor.

 

[Flintlock]

Didn't get to play for as long as I wanted tonight so I'll have to finish chapter 1 tomorrow or Wednesday. Quick questions:

Does this game have interdimensional pockets? If I have two chemists in battle and one uses a potion, does the other's supply decrease as well?

Say an enemy crystallises, I move a chemist into the crystal and select "learn abilities" – if the only ability shown is antidote, does that mean that's the only ability that particular chemist can learn from the crystal, or the only ability anyone can learn from it? If it's the former, what's a good strategy for getting the best abilities from crystals? Can they be put down after being examined without learning anything so that someone else can try learning something instead?

 

[ForceStealer]

They cannot, I'm afraid. But if they show a list of abilities, you will learn ALL of those abilities, not just one, which took me a little while to figure out.

As for the potion question, I'm pretty sure it does, lol

 

[Flintlock]

It caught me out in the first battle – or at least the first real one, not the one outside the church. I thought "it's the first battle, one chemist will be enough". It wasn't. And then it turned out that that chemist couldn't use phoenix downs, so one of my characters crystallised. I restarted the battle. (I won't always do that, but it was my first one, I wasn't going to accept losing characters!)

So then I try again with two chemists, thinking "I'd better use more potions to make sure nobody dies because I won't be able to revive them if they do". Except then I noticed that the second chemist could use phoenix downs. So I thought "they must have separate inventories, then". But when I used potions it seemed like both chemists' supplies were decreasing as if they had a shared inventory, though I wasn't keeping track on it closely enough to be 100% sure. Very confusing.

I guess it must be possible to check characters' abilities on the pre-battle formation screen, but I didn't know that at the time. I know how to check them between battles but there wasn't an opportunity to check that menu before the first one.

 

[Jason Tandro]

I guess at some point I'll have to stop JP spamming and move onto the rat cellar lol... my team is getting beefy though.

 

[Ite]

Yes chemists take a lot of work just for basic functionality. Much like FFXII you have to learn how to put on a hat, so to speak. But your item supply is still in the grand old FF tradition: "We can have 99 of fucking everything in a big invisible sack, and everyone participating in this battle has instant access to it!"

 

[Fangu]

Much like FFXII you have to learn how to put on a hat, so to speak.

This comment is grand

 

[Jason Tandro]

Flint: Run everybody through Squire and Chemist, and when in doubt make your second ability for your characters Item. Unlike White Magic which is based on Faith, Items will work the same regardless who uses it (but only Chemists have that insane range, everybody else just has the standard cross range). Early on, just focus on teaching the basics - Potion, Eye Drops, Phoenix Down. Then go into the extra stuff (and yes, get Eye Drops because a lot of the monsters early on can blind your team - though it's somewhat rare, it can cripple your stabbies and punchies).

 

[ForceStealer]

It's not really necessary to run everyone completely through squire and chemist. You need JP Boost from Squire, and Move +1 is very good. Counter Tackle is useful, but not crucial.

Chemist doesn't need much either. At this point, Potion, Phoenix Down, Hi Potion, and maybe antidote are all you NEED. After that you're better off saving up for Remedy then getting all the status-healing items. Auto Potion is of course very good, but I tend to just let points accrue for that naturally rather than grind for 400. They are better than White Mage though, so you'll probably leave your chemist as a chemist for awhile. Once they learn Throw Item they can be a formidable healer, but I am always hesitant about abilities that take the same slot as JP Boost.

And yeah, that "having to learn how to wear a hat" thing always bugged me about the license board, lol.

Squires are just not very good, and the added damage you get from being a Knight, or especially a Monk, outweighs any detriment from skipping some of their abilities. Ramza has some unique Squire skills that are important, but they don't unlock until Chapter 2 anyway.

 

[Flintlock]

Much like FFXII you have to learn how to put on a hat, so to speak.

And yeah, that "having to learn how to wear a hat" thing always bugged me about the license board, lol.

Perhaps this is what Ite meant by "so to speak", but you don't actually have to learn how to put on a hat in Final Fantasy XII. Licenses don't teach you anything; they give you permission to do something. That's why it's called the License Board and not the Ability Board. It's also why, apart from Quickenings, licenses are "obtained" or "acquired", not "learnt". I'm not sure why the party never says "screw it" and starts wearing whatever hats they want (those rebels) &#8211; especially while they're in jagd, which are supposed to be lawless zones &#8211; but I guess the obvious answer is that it would break one of the game's core mechanics.

The idea of needing permission to do things in battle is present in other Ivalice games, like Tactics Advance and A2. (Not sure about Tactics yet.) In TA, the laws change each day, and you can break the laws if you want, but unless you're in jagd, a judge will give you a penalty afterwards. It can be frustrating to break the law accidentally but also fun to break it deliberately if you think it's worth the penalty. And I like how it makes you change up your play-style from battle to battle rather than relying on the same abilities every time.

 

[ForceStealer]

Well, yeah, but same difference. I was mostly annoyed that I had to buy every item (or every fourth item) twice: once with gil, once with LP.

I have not played much of the Advance games, but laws are interesting mechanic. Though I would rather a game make you use different abilities by varying the situations, terrain, etc. over arbitrarily assigning bans.