FINAL FANTASY TACTICS
T h e W a r o f t h e L i o n s
FINAL FANTASY TACTICS: THE WAR OF THE LIONS FAQ
Version 2.27
by Fritz Fraundorf
qumarsh@gmail.com
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%%%%TABLE OF CONTENTS%%%%
To jump to any section of this FAQ, press Ctrl+F to Find and type in the code
(beginning with 00) next to the section title.
I. Revision History 00rev
II. Frequently Asked Questions 00faq
III. Walkthrough - Main Quest
Chapter I: The Meager 00walk1
Chapter II: The Manipulative & The Subservient 00walk2
Chapter III: The Valiant 00walk3
Chapter IV: In the Name of Love 00walk4
IV. Walkthrough - Subquests 00sub
Agrias’s Birthday 00agr
Gollund Colliery 00col
Recruiting Balthier 00balt
Nelveska Temple 00nel
Recruiting Cloud 00cloud
Disorder in the Order 00dis
Lionel’s New Liege Lord 00lio
Midlight’s Deep 00md
V. Battle Strategies
Chapter I: The Meager 00bs1
Chapter II: The Manipulative & The Subservient 00bs2
Chapter III: The Valiant 00bs3
Chapter IV: In the Name of Love 00bs4
Subquests 00bssub
Midlight’s Deep 00bsmd
VI. Multiplayer Modes
Melee Mode - General Information 00melee0
Melee Mode - Treasures 00melee1
Rendezvous Mode - General Information 00ren0
Rendezvous Mode - Treasures and Ranking 00ren1
Rendezvous Mission Strategies 00ren2
VII. Jobs and Abilities
Job Requirements (Quick Reference) 00req
General Information about Jobs 00job0
Standard Jobs 00job1
Special Jobs 00job2
Job Statistics Comparison 00jobstat
Monsters 00mon
Enemy-Only Jobs 00job3
VIII. Ability Strategies
Ability Combos 00abil
Character Strategies 00char
Party Strategies 00par
IX. Statistics and Leveling
Bravery and Faith 00brave
EXP, JP, and Gil 00exp
Quickly Raising EXP and JP 00quick
Automated Leveling 00auto
Level-Downs and Stat Grinding 00down
X. Equipment and Items 00equip
Weapons 00weap
Shields 00shield
Headgear 00head
Armor 00armor
Accessories 00acc
Items 00item
XI. Finding Items
Poached Items 00poach
Shop Chart 00shop
Rare Item Locations 00rare
Missable Items and Events 00miss
XII. Errands
General Information About Errands 00err0
Errand Types & Preferred Jobs 00err1
Errand List 00err2
XIII. Random Battles
Overworld Random Battles 00over
Midlight’s Deep Random Battles 00mdrb
Special Random Battles 00special
Guest Characters in Random Battles 00guest
XIV. Other Game Information
Basic Mechanics and Tactics 00basic
Advanced Tactics and Secrets 00adv
Ivalician Calendar 00calendar
Zodiac Compatibility 00zodiac
Party & Boss Zodiac Signs 00boss
Status Changes (Quick Reference) 00status1
Status Changes (Detail) 00status2
Elemental Affinities 00elem
Arithmeticks Chart 00arith
Traps & Treasure Hunter 00traps
XV. Miscellaneous Reference
Zodiac Stone Locations 00stones
FMV Movie List 00fmv
FF References 00ffr
XVI. PSone -> PSP Changes
Game Changes 00psone
Name Conversion Chart 00names
XVII. Credits / Disclaimer 00cred
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I. REVISION HISTORY 00rev
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---Version 2.27 (5/13/08)---
- More random battle-themed updates...
> Since the types of enemies you can encounter in random battles varies by
chapter, I’ve expanded the random battle list to include separate
sections by chapter.
> On a related note, the special random battles don’t appear until Chapter
IV, so I’ve made a note of this in the section too.
> Guest characters in random battles can’t be recruited to your team, with
the exception of the Swine at Dorvauldar Marsh. I’ve corrected this in
the Guest Characters section.
> I also updated the Rare Items Locations list with some places to find
some of the monsters earlier in the game, when the locations I’d
previously listed were only available in Chapter IV.
> Thanks to Geomancer8 for the heads-up on some of the changes between
chapters.
- Clarified the FAQ about Luso (he’s not missable, but you can’t get him before
his appropriate story event), since it was pretty unclear before.
- So far, I’ve gotten mixed feedback on whether to merge the walkthrough and
battle strategy sections. It would eliminate some scrolling back & forth, but
some people may prefer the sections separate. Let me know what you think as I
can go either way on this :). Thanks to all those who have provided feedback!
---Version 2.26 (5/4/08)---
- By popular request, I’ve added specific details on the enemy parties to the
Midlight’s Deep battle strategies. I hope this doesn’t take up too much extra
space, but people wanted it in there, so I added it :) . Thanks, as always,
to Joe Davidson’s lioneditor (link below) for letting me pull this data from
the game and to Jason Corbett for formatting suggestions.
- Updated the Random Battles section to note another important difference
between story battles and random battles: in random battles, the enemies’
experience level is based on your own.
- Reader Don Jon suggests a tactic for learning the magicks that can be acquired
by being hit with them: if you equip something that absorbs the element in
question, you don’t have to worry about being killed the magick as you’re
trying to learn it.
- Made a few small tweaks / corrections to the Midlight’s Deep enemy frequency
charts (in the Random Battles section).
- The Catacombs is also a good place to find Greater Malboros; I’ve added this
to the Rare Item Locations list.
- I’m thinking about merging the Walkthrough and Battle Strategies sections.
This would reduce the amount of scrolling up & down needed, and also reduce
the FAQ file size by eliminating some redundant information. Anyone have any
comments for or against this change? Please drop me an e-mail if you do --
I’m definitely interested in feedback on this :)
---Version 2.25 (4/27/08)---
- In the previous update, I forgot to give my usual link to Joe Davidson’s
lioneditor save editor, so here it is now!:
http://code.google.com/p/lioneditor/
It’s a great program and keeps getting better and better.
- Further revised the random battles section...
> Added estimates of how *frequently* the monsters occur at each location, in
addition to just listing which monsters can appear
> Fixed a goof in the list of guests in Random Battles -- the guest Knight
at Zeklaus Desert comes when you enter from Dorter, not Gariland ... there
isn’t even an entrance from Gariland! :P
> Since the Random Battles section had gotten to be fairly large, I moved it
into its own division of the guide.
- Redid the Poaching List and Rare Items List with improved recommendations
about where to find most of the monsters for poaching.
- Updated the Zodiark sections with The Catacombs, The Switchback, and The
Interstice as suggested places to find enemy Summoners (for purposes of
teaching the spell additional party members). I also updated some old text
that referred to Terminus as being the *only* place to learn Zodiark, since
you can also learn it in one of the multiplayer missions.
- Finally got around to addressing the most important part of any FAQ: ASCII
art! I replaced the ASCII logo at the top with a new one that’s hopefully
less ugly ;) Thanks to Ascgen dotNET - http://ascgendotnet.jmsoftware.co.uk/
- Added a FAQ for "How do I learn new abilities?" since I know this can be a
sticking point for people just starting the game.
- Fixed the date of the last update ;P
(Older updates not listed.)
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II. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS 00faq
*******************************************************************************
Q. Is Cloud still in this version of the game, like he was in the PSone
release?
A. Yes. In fact, you can actually recruit him earlier than you could before.
Q. How do I get Cloud to join my party? And where do I find his sword?
A. See the "Walkthrough - Subquests" section of the FAQ. You need to complete
the Gollund Colliery, Nelveska Temple, and Recruiting Cloud quests in
sequence.
Q. I didn’t buy the flower when I had the chance. Can I still get Cloud?
A. Unfortunately, it seems that you have only one chance to buy the flower. If
you declined to buy it, you are not able to get Cloud, or complete the other
sidequests that depend on the flower. Sorry :(
Q. What’s new in the PSP version of the game?
A. Check out the PSP Version Changes section - just hit Ctrl+F and type
in 00psone to jump to that section of the FAQ.
Q. How do I beat Wiegraf?
A. Equip the Auto-Potion ability on Ramza. Run from Wiegraf and keep using the
Tailwind ability to boost your speed. Repeat until you are getting seven or
eight turns in a row, then start using Focus to raise your attack power.
When you have high attack power, just attack and KO Wiegraf. Against
Belias, run up and attack him repeatedly. (If you don’t have these
abilities, check out the Chapter III Battle Strategies for a slew of
alternate strategies.)
Q. I just started the game; how do I learn new abilities?
A. New abilities are "purchased" using JP, which you earn from any succesful
action in battle. You earn JP separately for each job, so earning JP as an
Archer only lets you buy Archer abilities. (Gaining JP also eventually
unlocks new jobs for you to use.) To buy abilities, on the map screen, open
the menu (with Triangle) and enter the Formation screen. Then point to a
character, press Triangle to open the menu, and choose Abilities. The in-
game tutorial, available from the title screen, can walk you through this
step-by-step. If you check out the "EXP, JP, and Gil" section of this FAQ,
you’ll also find tips on maximizing your JP haul, though you don’t *need*
them at the start of the game.
Q. Where is Midlight’s Deep?
A. After you beat Mullonde Holy Place, go to the Port City of Warjilis. You
will see a scene at the bar, then the way to Midlight’s Deep will appear.
Q. How do I beat / find items in Midlight’s Deep?
A. See the cleverly-titled Midlight’s Deep section of the walkthrough ;) .
Just hit Ctrl+F and type in 00md to jump to that section of the FAQ.
Q. OK, I think I understand the idea of finding the items, but how do I rotate
the camera to get the correct perspective?
A. Use the analog stick (in the lower left of the PSP). Every time you tap it
left or right, the perspective changes.
Q. How do I use items like Potions or Phoenix Downs?
A. Items are used with the Items command, which belongs to the Chemist job, so
switch one of your characters to a Chemist -- or assign Items as a secondary
Action Ability.
To learn how to use each type of item, the character must also learn the
ability that goes along with it. For instance, to use Phoenix Downs, you
must first learn the Chemist’s "Phoenix Down" ability. These abilities can
be bought on your status screen using JP (Job Points) earned by using the
Chemist job.
Q. How do I get the new equipment in the PSP version?
A. The Tynar Rouge comes from the Agrias’s Birthday quest, and the Mirage Vest
and Ras Algethi come with Balthier. All the other new items can only be
obtained as prizes in one of the multiplayer mods. Some items can only be
found in Melee Mode and some only in Rendezvous Mode; see the respective
sections or the Rare Items List for a complete list.
Q. How do I get good items / more items in multiplayer?
A. You’ll get better items the higher your character level and (in Rendezvous
Mode) the more difficult the mission you complete; most of the new items can
only be obtained at a pretty high level. Winning Melee Mode battles and
completing Rendezvous Mode missions with fewer characters deployed and more
enemies KOed increases the NUMBER of items you get, but doesn’t change their
quality.
Q. Are there items or events in this game that I can permanently miss? What do
I need to do to see them?
A. I’ve put together a Missable Items and Events list -- just press Ctrl+F and
enter 00miss to jump to that section.
Q. How do I use the Samurai’s ability Iaido?
A. First learn the ability you want to use. Then buy several of the
corresponding Samurai sword. During battle, you can use the ability if you
have the appropriate type of sword in your inventory (NOT equipped). Note
that this may break the sword, so I’d buy several copies.
Q. How do I learn Ultima?
A. Only Ramza and Luso can learn Ultima. Ramza or Luso must be in their base
job; then, if someone casts the spell on him, he will learn it. (As long as
just one of the two characters learns it, you can have him cast it on the
other to learn it later.) The best time to learn the spell is from the
assassins outside Limberry Castle in Chapter IV, but you can also have Luso
learn it on the Riovanes Castle Roof in Chapter III or from another player
in the multiplayer mode. (There’s also a guest character who can learn
Ultima during the final battle if Ramza or Luso casts it on her.)
Q. How do I get the lipstick accessory?
A. First, you need to keep Agrias, Alicia, Lavian, and Mustadio on your roster
until Chapter IV. Once Chapter IV begins, travel back and forth between
Gollund and Lesalia until the calendar says 1 Cancer. If you have at least
500,000 gil and are standing on a town (NOT a castle) when the calendar
turns 1 Cancer, you should get the scene where you acquire the Tynar Rouge
accessory.
Q. How can I revive a dead character?
A. If the character is simply KOed (lying down with a red counter over his/her
head), you can use a Phoenix Down, the White Mage’s Raise/Arise spells, or
the Monk’s Revive. Or, finish the battle before the counter expires and the
character will also be restored.
If the counter counts down past 0, the character will turn into a treasure
chest or crystal. Once this happens, the character is gone for good and
there is unfortunately NO way to revive him or her, ever. (You can recruit
replacement generic characters from the Warriors’ Guild in any town; special
story characters are irreplaceable if killed.)
Q. Help! I beat the last boss and the game said it was saving afterwards, but
when I load up my last save, I’m just at the last boss fight again. Can I
go anywhere else?
A. Unfortunately, no :(. The game clear save is just to unlock some of the
multiplayer missions. If you want to continue roving the world map, you
need to keep a separate save from before you began the final sequence of
battles.
Q. How do I beat the Lionel Castle Gate?
A. There are two main methods: One is to give Ramza the Chakra ability and have
him use it every turn. The other is to use Teleport to warp outside the
gate. Either way, don’t open the gate until the fight outside is finished.
For more tips, see the Battle Strategies for Chapter II. Press Ctrl+F and
type in 00bs2 to jump there.
Q. How do I learn Zodiark?
A. You can only learn Zodiark from Elidibus, the boss of Midlight’s Deep, by
having him cast it on one of your Summoners. Equip the Mana Shield ability
to survive it. (You only have a random chance to learn the spell when
you’re hit with it, so you might not learn it the first time you’re hit with
it, but the odds are definitely in your favor!) If you don’t get the spell
in Midlight’s Deep, the only other place to find Elidibus is in the Brave
Story multiplayer mission.
Q. How do I recruit monsters?
A. Use the Orator’s Entice or Tame abilities on the monsters. If you switch to
another non-Orator job, you’ll need to also equip the Beast Tongue support
skill to use Entice on monsters. (For more information, see "Recruiting
Monsters" in the Monsters section.)
Q. How do I poach enemies?
A. Equip the Thief ability Poach and kill a monster with a regular attack.
Then go to a Poachers’ Den in a trade city and you can purchase what
you’ve poached. Note that Poachers’ Dens are NOT available in all cities;
only Dorter, Warjilis, and Sal Ghidos have them, and they don’t appear until
the start of Chapter III.
Q. How do I get the Genji equipment? Can I steal it from the boss who has it?
A. Unfortunately, you can never steal from that boss in the PSP version, so he
gets to keep his Genji gear to himself. Alas! However, you CAN get the
Genji Armor and Masamune from the new "Lionel’s New Liege Lord" subquest.
Press Ctrl+F and enter 00lio to jump to the guide for that quest.
Q. Aren’t there some new jobs added to the PSP version that weren’t in the
PSone version? How do I unlock them?
A. The PSP version of FF Tactics has two new jobs. To make a character into an
Onion Knight, simply get their Squire and Chemist jobs up to level 6. To
make a character into a Dark Knight, you first Master (learn all the
abilities for) Knight and Black Mage, have Dragoon, Geomancer, Samurai,
and Ninja at level 8, AND kill 20 enemies (not just KO--they must turn to
chests or crystals) with the character. Yikes! :)
Q. How do I unlock the _______ job?
A. I’ve put together a Quick Reference chart with all the job requirements;
press Ctrl+F and enter 00req to get there.
Q. What are the new subquests in the PSP version? How do I access them?
A. There are three new subquests in Chapter IV, one revolving around Beowulf
and the others revolving around Agrias. Beowulf’s subquest is available
after returning Reis to human form at Nelveska Temple and after completing
Mullonde Cathedral in the main storyline. (Press Ctrl+F and enter 00lio to
jump to the section with all the details on the Lionel’s New Liege Lord
quest.)
Agrias has a couple of different subquests. First, if you still have Alicia
and Lavian, the Tynar Rouge event can be accessed on 1 Cancer. Second,
after Mullonde, travel to Zeltennia to open up another battle accessed via
the Tavern at Gariland. For details on these events, press Ctrl+F and
enter 00agr to jump to Agrias’s Birthday or 00dis for Disorder in the
Order, respectively.
Q. How do I recruit Luso and Balthier?
A. Luso is recruited automatically in Chapter III; you can’t miss him. You’ll
encounter him in a story event midway through the chapter, as you head
through the Zeklaus Desert after revisiting Orbonne Monastery. You won’t be
able to recruit him any earlier.
Balthier isn’t available until you’ve completed the battle at the Free City
of Bervenia in Chapter IV. Any time after that, read the "Rash of Thefts"
rumor at the Gariland tavern, then go to the Dorter tavern and read the
"Call for Guards" rumor. Win the battle that ensues when you try to leave
town and Balthier joins.
Q. What do the Bravery and Faith statistics mean? Do I want high or low
Bravery and Faith?
A. A high Bravery is almost always good. It increases your chance of using
Reaction Abilities, and makes certain weapon types (fists, knight’s swords,
and katanas) stronger. The only advantage of low Bravery is that helps you
find rare items with the Treasure Hunter ability, but you can just keep a
single low-Bravery character for that purpose.
Faith makes a character’s magick more effective, but also makes enemy magick
more effective when used against that character. So, generally, you’ll want
your magick users to have high Faith (to make their magick stronger) and
characters not using magick to have low Faith (to defend them from enemy
magick).
See the Bravery and Faith section for more specific details, as well as tips
on raising/lowering Bravery and Faith.
Q. What job should I use for the best HP? The best attack power?
A. I’ve added a Job Statistics Comparison chart to the FAQ to quickly compare
each job’s stats. Ctrl+F and 00jobstat will get you there.
Q. Is there a way I can quickly gain levels?
A. Sure, see the Quickly Raising EXP & JP (00quick) for strategies for this.
With the right magicks, it’s even possible to make this process completely
automatic! But keep in mind you never *need* to do this to finish the game.
Usually, a change of strategy should be enough to get you past the next
battle and you don’t need to spend time leveling if you don’t want to.
Q. Why don’t my Reaction Abilities always work?
A. For almost all Reaction Abilities, the chance of using the ability is equal
to your Bravery stat. Use Ramza’s skills or an Orator to raise the
character’s Bravery and your Reaction Abilities will activate more.
Q. How do I ride a Chocobo?
A. Move the character onto the same square as the Chocobo.
Q. What’s the deal with Onion Knights? They seem horrible. Is there any way
to make them stronger?
A. Actually, yes. The Onion Knight’s job level goes up as you master other
jobs, and if you can get the Onion Knight up to job level 8, they’ll become
more powerful. Also, if you play the game’s multiplayer missions, you can
earn some powerful "Onion" equipment that only Onion Knights can equip.
Q. One of my characters is threatening to leave the team. What do I do?
A. This is happening because your character has either a very low Bravery or
a very high Faith. Use Orator skills to increase his/her Bravery or lower
his/her Faith a little.
Q. Is there any kind of New Game+ mode, so that I can start from the beginning
but keep all my levels and items?
A. Unfortunately, no. FF Tactics dates back to a time before this feature
started becoming common in RPGs. Whenever you start a new game, you always
have to start from scratch.
Q. I got into a random battle and was facing a weird set of enemies. Is this
some special event? What’s going on?
A. Each wilderness location has a "special" random battle that you can randomly
encounter at low odds in Chapter IV. These special battles pit you against
unusual enemy parties -- mostly collections of human enemies. You don’t get
anything special for winning these battles and they have no relation to the
story, but they can be an interesting extra challenge! For a list of all
these special battles, see the Random Battles section.
Q. Where do I get all the Zodiac Stones?
A. Look in the Zodiac Stones list near the end of the file. Be warned that
this list contains some spoilers.
Q. Why don’t any of the characters have noses?
A. Your guess is as good as mine. Some genetic defect or something, I suppose.
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III. WALKTHROUGH - MAIN QUEST
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You’ll begin by entering your name and birthdate. If you want Ramza (the
protagonist) to end up with a certain Zodiac sign, see the Ivalician Calendar
section to match up the sign you want with what birthdate you should enter. In
a regular game, it’s not *too* important to give him a particular Zodiac sign,
so you can enter your own birthday or whatever else you want if you’d like.
But, if you want to maximize the damage he can do to enemy bosses, Capricorn is
probably your best bet; you’ll get this sign if you enter a birthdate between
December 23rd and January 19th. (Or, if you want as wide a range of Zodiac
signs as possible, you could make him a Taurus, Virgo, or Sagittarius, as no
other story characters have these signs.)
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