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Radiata Stories Mage Guide
Version 1.0
Serenitys_Cat, Resident Feline on the Firefly-Class Transport Serenity
First Posted 05/07/2015
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* TABLE OF CONTENTS *
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1.0 Version History
2.0 Introduction
3.0 The Mages
3.01 Human Mages
3.02 Non-human Mages
4.0 Stat Comparisons
5.0 Recruitment Order
6.0 Credits and Disclaimers
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SECTION 1.0 VERSION HISTORY
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Version History:
- Version 1.0 (05/07/15)
Initial release. WOOT!
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SECTION 2.0 INTRODUCTION
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Greetings and salutations to you all. I am Serenitys_Cat, follower of fantasy
and fiction, and this is my fourth FAQ on GameFAQs. Yay!
I have a... strange relationship with this game. Radiata Stories was a game I
was very excited for, knowing that it was created by Tri-Ace, and the guide
only fired my excitement higher as I observed the game's nigh-inexhaustible
cast of varied characters.
Then I played it, hated it, and sold it back to Gamestop within the week.
It was literally years later before I touched the game again, and it was then
only on the tenuous recommendation of a friend of a friend whom I barely knew.
This person entreated me to give the game another chance, and I did... and, to
my surprise, actually enjoyed it a great deal more the second time around,
perhaps because I was able this time to play it with my significant other, who
riffed on the game unmercifully and made it a highly enjoyable experience.
But there is an unusual phenomenon about this game. For all that it has well
over a hundred playable characters, the vast majority of people who play it
will only USE a number small enough to be counted on two hands. And if the
majority of that majority had their way, never once would that number include
a mage.
I did not play this game using a number of characters that could be counted on
two hands. I have played through both paths of this game to the end and used
at least half the cast at one time or another, and I have to tell you that
there are a LOT of underrated gems in the Radiata world - wonderful, engaging,
hilarious, beautiful, genuinely useful characters who for many players are
nothing more than a filled-in name on the Friends List.
It was once my ambition to create a guide detailing all of the characters in
Radiata Stories. Honestly, I do not think this ambition will ever be completed
(at least not by me). While there are many characters in Radiata Stories I
love, there are certainly many others that are just not my cup of tea. I don't
feel I could do the entire cast justice. It's quite a task to undertake.
But the mages of Radiata? That I could do, and gladly. And so I have, for they
need a champion. The mages of Radiata Stories are derided as slow, useless,
nigh-unusable wastes of space, and with only a few glaring exceptions, this is
simply not true.
I challenge you, dear reader: the next time you play Radiata Stories, take a
chance. Use a party of three characters that you believe are inferior to the
Guild leaders but that you feel some kind of connection to - perhaps you like
their hair, or their personality, or even just their name. Put them into your
party for an hour or two, and just... forget about Elwen and Kain for a bit.
Just play with a party of people you like, and enjoy them for who they are.
And if you come out of that hour wanting to bring Sonata or Lulu or Gareth or
Adele or Claudia or Mikey or Shin or Martinez or Eon or Gobrey or Elmo or Iris
or Keane or Naom or Danny or Marco to the next dungeon instead of Nyx... then
this guide will have done its job.
I sincerely hope it will prove of use to you during your journey to attain
something approaching adulthood in the land of Radiata.
-Serenitys_Cat
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SECTION 3.0 THE MAGES
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Hello, everyone! Let's just plunge right into it, then, shall we?
Here's the scoop. I'm going to be telling you everything you could possibly
need to know about every single mage on both the Human and Nonhuman Paths of
Radiata Stories. Among quite a lot of self-explanatory information, I'm going
to have the parameters of each mage, with an attendant letter grade to show
how good that stat is in comparison to the other mages. Here is how that
ranking works:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
A 3500-3900 370-400 370-400 290-320 290-350
B 3100-3500 340-370 340-370 260-290 230-290
C 2700-3100 310-340 310-340 230-260 170-230
D 2300-2700 280-310 280-310 200-230 110-170
E 1900-2300 250-280 250-280 170-200 50-110
I will also be including a numerical rating out of ten to demonstrate how
good the described mage is in comparison to all of the other mages. My ranking
system might be a bit different from what you'd expect, so here's what those
numbers mean:
HOW MY RANKING SYSTEM WORKS
10/10: True God Tier
9/10: Limited God Tier
8/10: Master of One Tier
7/10: Solidly Average Tier
6/10: Slightly Inferior Tier
5/10: Selectively Brilliant Tier
4/10: Almost-But-Not-Quite-Good Tier
3/10: Reliably Pretty Poor Tier
2/10: Really Terrible Tier
1/10: Nigh-Unusable Tier
In other words:
Anybody 6 and up is perfectly usable ingame.
5s are usable and effective, but only with some creativity or micromanaging.
4s will take some serious effort to make worthwhile.
Anybody 3 and below should only be used for a challenge.
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3.01 HUMAN MAGES
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AIDAN
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Aidan is the son of Cecil, vice president of the Vareth Magic Institute,
and his wife, Mira. Aidan entered the guild to follow in the footsteps of
his father. He is a spoiled child and quickly becomes angry when he doesn't
get his way. He hates being alone, and always wants someone close by to
pamper him.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 5
Weapon: Arshaja (Earth)
Armor: Vareth Uniform (Earth)
Accessory: Training Device (EXP +25%)
Skill: Sharp Edge LV 1 (Increases chance of critical hits)
Resists Poison
Thought Process: Brave -> Brave -> Timid
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 5 113 44 46 45 32
LV 25 524 94 96 98 58
LV 50 1034 158 158 166 92
LV 75 1553 221 221 233 125
LV MAX 2047 282 281 298 157
Rating E D D A D
Items:
Weapon: Arshaja
"Aidan's staff. He can cast Stone Javelin, a spell that produces earth
element stone spears."
Armor: Vareth Uniform
"Uniform of the Vareth Magic Institute. It is the envy of all mage trainees.
Uniform enthusiasts are extremely fond of the design."
Accessory: Training Device
"A training tool made from powerful springs. Equip it to pump your body up
fast!"
Attacks:
Stone Javelin Lv.1
"Dust is collected from the air and molded into a spear of rock."
Element: Earth Range: Long Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.6
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 150.4 LV 50: 252.8 LV 75: 353.6 LV MAX: 451.2
Stone Javelin Lv.2
Element: Earth Range: Long Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.8
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 169.2 LV 50: 284.4 LV 75: 397.8 LV MAX: 507.6
Stone Javelin Effect:
Aidan points his wand at the enemy and shoots out a rock like a missile. The
javelin travels quite far at a reasonable speed in a straight line in the
direction it was initially pointed. When it hits the target, it explodes and
knocks the enemy down. The explosion can affect more than one enemy if they
are VERY close together and the missile hits correctly.
How to Recruit:
Just talk to him at the Vareth Institute any time after unlocking the Friends
List and agree to be his friend. Poor kid.
Pros:
-Only recruitable character with a Training Device
-High EVA
-Resists Poison
Cons:
-Awful stats other than EVA
-Stone Javelin causes knockdown
Analysis:
Aidan is pretty terrible as a fighter, as his stats are collectively low and
Stone Javelin is one of the less useful spells a mage can have in this game.
However, he's also the only recruitable character in the entire game, on
either story path, to be equipped with a Training Device, which means that
bringing him along during power-leveling really speeds up the process.
Furthermore, you'll have to level him to level 32 or higher in order to
recruit his father, Cecil, so most people will ignore his terribad stats and
throw him in their party anyway. Once you've gotten Cecil, however, it's
usually best to leave Aidan behind unless you're going for a leveling trip.
Strategies:
Despite appearances, Stone Javelin can actually deal a nice chunk of damage
to single targets and can be used to disable large, difficult enemies while
you get weaker opponents out of the way. Use the "Attack Enemy" command to
keep Aidan focused on targets other than your own to turn his knockdown from
an inconvenience into a valuable crowd-control tool. Stone Javelin's
knockdown also makes Aidan well suited to "Backup" your main healer if he
or she is being attacked too often to heal the party.
Since Aidan has low ATK and Stone Javelin causes knockdown, Aidan is ill-
suited for many of the more common Links, such as Attack Link and Line Link.
The best Link to use with Aidan is Wave Link; put him in the last position
and let him follow up your team's combo with the disable from Stone Javelin.
This can be particularly effective with the "Power Injection" command to
increase his otherwise low damage.
Survivability is a problem for Aidan, what with his low HP and DEF. Use
Guard Link to help him defend against particularly powerful boss attacks;
you can also bolster him with the DEF boost of the "Endurance" command. It's
also not a bad idea to use the "Play Dead" command on him if he's being
cornered by multiple enemies at the same time.
Rating: 4/10
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ARDOPH
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He showed up suddenly at the Vareth Magic Institute and soon became an
assistant professor. No one knows much about his past, but he is in fact
of the same race as Nyx. He has no conscience and feels no compunction
about betraying or lying to others. He is a self-centered man who thinks
only of his own career.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 15
Weapon: Anviteo (None)
Armor: Mage's Robe (None)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Status Cure LV 1 (Cures status effects after a short time has passed)
Strongly Resists Instant Death
Thought Process: Brave -> Brave -> Timid
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 15 550 73 104 32 45
LV 25 921 103 136 51 68
LV 50 1850 178 216 101 128
LV 75 2780 253 297 150 187
LV MAX 3672 325 375 198 244
Rating A C A E B
Items:
Weapon: Anviteo
"Ardoph's staff. He can cast Demon Spirit, a spell that gives birth to
revengeful spirits."
Armor: Mage's Robe
"A robe worn by mages of the Vareth Magic Institute. Made from magical
thread, it is light and fairly high in defense."
Attacks:
Demon Spirit
"Demon spirits appear temporarily. Used improperly, it can endanger the
user."
Element: None Range: Long Effect: Curse 1.3
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.8
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: 185.4 LV 50: 320.4 LV 75: 455.4 LV MAX: 585.0
Demon Spirit Effect:
Ardoph shoots a black skull trailing a smoky haze in a straight line in
front of him. The skull travels quite far at a reasonable speed in a
straight line in the direction it was initially pointed. When it hits the
target, it vanishes and knocks the enemy down.
How to Recruit:
Talk to him after getting back from Castle Algandars.
Pros:
-Surprisingly tanky for a mage. High HP, DEF, and LUK
-Decent attack spell that causes Curse
-Has Status Cure, furthering his performance as a tank
-Strongly resists Instant Death
Cons:
-Low EVA
-Causes knockdown
Analysis:
Ardoph is, in my opinion, a lot better than he seems to get credit for. He's
got great HP and DEF, passable ATK, and a strong spell that causes Curse,
stopping enemies from attacking. He dishes out and soaks up a lot of damage
and even has Status Cure to help him throw off status ailments as if they
were nothing, making him a pretty nasty tank with a lot of battlefield
control; yet most people don't even seem to remember he exists. Possibly
it's because he's a rather unpleasant person with a rather unpleasant
appearance. However, if you can get past those flaws, you'll find him a
surprisingly potent ally and one well worth your time.
Strategies:
You don't really need much of a strategy with Ardoph. He's a Cursing
juggernaut that you just want to point in the right direction with "Attack
Enemy," "Backup," and "Be Bait." Remember that Demon Spirit knocks down,
though, so when you pull out your Links for bosses, try Wave Link instead
of Attack Link and put him in the last position on the party train.
Rating: 7/10
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CECIL
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Cecil is the son of Lord Henryde, a famous analyst of ancient texts. He
suffers from comparisons with his father, but hard work has made him vice
president of Vareth. He speaks in a soft and polite manner but there is a
roughness behind the words, and he tends to smile warmly while making
unreasonable demands.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 30
Weapon: Asteka (Earth)
Armor: Great Mage Robe (None)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Earth Defense LV 2 (Decreases damage of earth attacks)
Strongly Resists All Ailments
Thought Process: Standard -> Standard -> Timid
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 30 906 181 132 148 27
LV 50 1258 206 164 161 34
LV 75 2141 269 244 193 51
LV MAX 2987 331 321 224 68
Rating C C C D E
Items:
Weapon: Asteka
"Cecil's staff. He can cast Megaton Quake, a spell that causes an
earthquake in the surrounding area."
Armor: Great Mage Robe
"A robe allowed only to professors or those of higher rank at the Vareth
Magic Institute. Nullifies all afflictions."
Attacks:
Megaton Quake
"Earth spirits are summoned to cause an earthquake."
Element: Earth Range: Enormous AOE Effect: Knocks Upward
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.5 Power: 1.0
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Long
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 206.0 LV 75: 269.0 LV MAX: 331.0
Megaton Quake Effect:
Cecil brings his wand down in a grand sweep and causes an invisible force to
fling targets high into the air. It's hard to tell the range and shape of
the AOE of this spell as it doesn't have much of an animation, but it easily
covers about a screen's-worth of the battlefield and seems to take effect
in a circle.
How to Recruit:
Talk to him when Aidan is in your party and at level 32 or higher.
Pros:
-Uses the widest AOE spell in the game
-Knocks enemies into the air, working well with air-comboers such as Dennis
-Resists ailments despite his low LUK
Cons:
-His parameters are disappointingly low
-No burst damage for boss battles
Analysis:
Cecil can be obtained very early in the game at a very high level for the
time and will be a great asset if you do so. His Megaton Quake affects
enemies in a wide area and knocks them into the air, allowing for air
juggling and greatly impeding their ability to attack. However, as Cecil
levels, his low stat growth and the low damage ratio on his Quake will
combine to greatly hamper his total damage output. He's certainly an
excellent party member for at least the first half of the game, but when
you hit the end- and post-game, Cecil just can't keep up.
Strategies:
Cecil is possibly the easiest-to-use mage in the game - in fact, possibly
one of the easiest-to-use characters in general. The tremendous AOE of his
spell makes Commands unnecessary and the knockup makes the use of most Links
unattractive. Just sit back and let him decimate the field one Quake at a
time. Use "Power Injection" to make this go faster. If he's not casting fast
enough for you, trigger a Line Link and just spam the O button to make him
attack at rapid-speed. (Due to the long charge time on Megaton Quake, you
can actually hit enemies with the Line Link shockwave before the Quake's
knockup happens if you're close enough to them. This can also greatly
increase your damage.)
Rating: 6/10
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CHRISTOPH
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Born into a family of book lovers, he has been reading books since he can
remember. At sixteen, he entered Vareth to put his knowledge to use, where
he made many successful inventions. He is easygoing and amiable, but when he
starts to research something, he shuts everyone out.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 21
Weapon: Villhe (Wind)
Armor: Mage's Robe (Wind)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Prevent Curse LV 1 (Protects from Curse ailment)
Does not resist ailments
Thought Process: Passive -> Passive -> Passive
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 21 298 103 114 53 64
LV 25 414 112 124 61 69
LV 50 1144 173 190 115 106
LV 75 1975 234 255 170 142
LV MAX 2575 292 318 222 177
Rating D D C D C
Items:
Weapon: Villhe
"Christoph's staff. He can cast Thunderstorm, a spell that creates a
tornado of lightning."
Armor: Mage's Robe
"A robe worn by mages of the Vareth Magic Institute. Made from magical
thread, it is light and fairly high in defense."
Attacks:
Thunderstorm Lv.1
"A tornado of lightning appears from air attrition."
Element: Wind Range: Circular AOE Effect: N/A
Hits: 1-3 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.4
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 156.8 LV 50: 242.2 LV 75: 327.6 LV MAX: 408.8
Thunderstorm Lv.2
Element: Wind Range: Circular AOE Effect: N/A
Hits: 1-3 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.5
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: 168.0 LV 50: 259.5 LV 75: 351.0 LV MAX: 438.0
Thunderstorm Lv.3
Element: Wind Range: Circular AOE Effect: N/A
Hits: 1-3 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.6
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Long
Effective Power:
LV 25: 179.2 LV 50: 276.8 LV 75: 374.4 LV MAX: 467.2
Thunderstorm Effect:
Christoph hurls a small ball of purple flame from the end of his staff. The
ball travels to the targeted location on the field, lands on the ground, and
erupts into a small, electrified tornado that lasts for several seconds.
Enemies that touch the cone are sent flying away from it. Thunderstorm Lv.2
and Lv.3 have wider areas of effect, but take more time to charge.
How to Recruit:
Talk to him between 10:30 AM and 14:10 PM until he asks for five Gobpakken
Seeds and five Pointura Threads. Bring him these materials and he joins.
Pros:
-AOE damage
Cons:
-Overall low stats
-Thunderstorm travels VERY slowly, so enemies often move out of its range
-Thunderstorm never gets its full hits off because of its high knockback
Analysis:
You'd expect a professor of magic to be a good mage. Christoph is determined
to prove you wrong: Thunderstorm is my least favorite spell in the game; his
stats are nothing to write home about; his thought process is pure-Passive;
and his Skill is substandard. Now, to give him credit: Thunderstorm can
actually be quite nasty against bosses that can't be knocked down; his stats
aren't impressive but neither are they bottom-of-the-barrel; and his thought
process can be countered with the appropriate use of Commands and Links.
However, the other character who uses Thunderstorm - Johan - has higher
stats and a much better Skill than Christoph, which really leaves poor
Christoph out in the cold. There are rare situations in which Christoph can
actually perform well, but for the most part, he's best left doing research
in Vareth.
Strategies:
Thunderstorm is an annoying spell due to its slow travel time and high
knockback. You can, however, help it work better by inflicting movement-
impairing status ailments such as Freeze, Bind, or Petrify on your targets.
This makes it much easier for Thunderstorm to hit and even negates the
knockdown problem, making Christoph much more useful. (I don't recommend
Paralyze; it will still help Thunderstorm hit, but it makes the knockdown
problem much worse by slowing the speed at which the enemies get back on
their feet afterward.)
If you don't have an appropriate weapon or ally to help Christoph out with
these status effects, just get on the other side of the enemy closest to the
Thunderstorm and push that enemy into the storm with your physical attacks.
They'll still be sent flying, but at least Christoph will be contributing to
the battle this way.
The one thing Christoph is pretty good at (besides "Be Bait," since DEF and
LUK are his best stats) is "Backup." Because Thunderstorm lasts for a long
time and knocks enemies away from its area, it's a great spell to give your
healer - or your more important mages - some breathing room.
Rating: 3/10
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CLAUDIA
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The love of her life died in an accident, but in the midst of her despair
she learned of a way to bring back the dead. Soon thereafter, she entered
the Vareth Magic Institute and became an assistant professor. She speaks
very quietly with a soft voice. Though she shows little outward emotion,
she is actually very moody.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 23
Weapon: Curozide (None)
Armor: Witch Cloak (None)
Accessory: Power Stone (Constant HP regen in battle)
Skill: Nine Lives LV 2 (May survive a killing blow)
Strongly Resists Instant Death
Thought Process: Standard -> Standard -> Standard
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 23 329 119 99 99 9
LV 25 385 125 104 104 9
LV 50 1089 200 170 175 9
LV 75 1793 276 235 246 9
LV MAX 2468 348 298 314 9
Rating D B D A F
Items:
Weapon: Curozide
"Claudia's staff. She can cast Energy Drain, a spell of darkness that
absorbs HP from the enemy."
Armor: Witch Cloak
"Ritual clothing for female mages. It heightens the magic powers of
darkness."
Accessory: Power Stone
"A necklace made from a pink celestial stone. It provides healing power
when equipped."
Attacks:
Energy Drain
"Absorbs HP from the foe. An advanced form of magic."
Element: None Range: Infinite Effect: HP Drain, Ignores Guard
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0 Power: 1.0
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Long
Effective Power:
LV 25: 125.0 LV 50: 200.0 LV 75: 276.0 LV MAX: 348.0
Energy Drain Effect:
Claudia raises her wand into the air, charging energy to it. The energy
leaps from the tip of the wand as a glowing ball, which enters a dimension
portal and vanishes. A second portal opens up near the targeted enemy, and
the ball floats out of it and homes unerringly onto its target. The ball
dissolves into the enemy, then recoalesces, causing damage at this point in
time. The ball then flies into the air and into another portal, which brings
it back to Claudia. Finally, the orb dissolves into Claudia, restoring her
HP by an amount equal to the damage dealt by the attack. (Yes, it's a very
long animation.)
How to Recruit:
Talk to her between 5:10 and 7 PM and bring her a Blood Orc's Horn. She will
take the horn to begin her experiment. Come back and talk to her at the same
time over the next three days, and finally she will join you.
Pros:
-Equipped with a Power Stone; always a plus
-Has Nine Lives, which can save her from certain death
-High ATK and fantastic EVA
-Homing, infinite-range, guard-ignoring, non-elemental spell that heals her!
-Strong resistance to Instant Death
Cons:
-Energy Drain is very slow and has a very long animation
-Very fragile (although her entire design is about countering this weakness)
-Never gains a single point of LUK, making her vulnerable to status effects
Analysis:
Claudia is a weird and intriguingly different character. She tends to stay
at full health at all time due to Energy Drain and her Power Stone, but if
she catches a boss's attention, her minimal defenses make it hard for her to
survive regardless of how much health she has. However, when she does fall,
Nine Lives has a good chance of bringing her back to life, allowing her to
get right back into the fray as though nothing ever happened. When it comes
down to it, Claudia is really just average, but her playstyle is interesting
and can be a lot of fun. When it hits the post-game, she'll usually get one-
shot, but again, Nine Lives can actually keep her alive more than other
characters with far more HP than she has. So in the end... you're not
missing anything if you don't use her, but you might really enjoy her if
you give her a chance.
Plus, have you SEEN those boots? Totes fierce.
Strategies:
Claudia is generally off in a remote corner of the battlefield doing her own
thing, and generally "her own thing" is a fine thing for her to be doing.
However, you can make her even more useful to you by having her "Attack
Enemy" on whatever you're focusing on. Due to the guard-breaking properties
of Energy Drain, Claudia's attacks can help you deal more damage as well if
the enemy tries to guard against you.
"Power Injection" is better for Claudia than it is for almost anybody else,
since more damage equates to more HP draining, causing "Power Injection" to
double as both attack and defense for her. She's also fairly comfortable
with the "Last Resort" Command, as she relies on HP draining more than DEF
to keep her alive anyway. I wouldn't advise using her for "Be Bait," though,
as her survivability is dependent on constant Energy Draining and she can't
do that if her casting keeps getting interrupted.
Claudia performs well in any Link, as Energy Drain doesn't cause knockdown,
but keep in mind that the prolonged animation time can delay her damage from
taking effect for a while. While she can have multiple Energy Drains working
at once, the delay can cause interruptions in Wave Link, so I recommend
sticking with Attack Link and Line Link for her instead. Also, pay attention
to the Skill you're using when she's in the party. Her low LUK leaves her
vulnerable to status effects, so it's wise to equip a maxed-out status-proof
Skill or utilize the "Heaven's Gate" Command if you know you're going into
battle against foes that cause particularly irritating ailments.
Rating: 7/10
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CORNELIA/ RACHEL
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Cornelia is a girl with a great talent for magic. Born in a farming town far
from Radiata, she entered Vareth at the age of twelve. Ray and Cecil
immediately noticed her potential. However, she lacks the control needed to
perform great magic. She is very curious and precocious. Each night, she
transforms into an adult and sings the night away.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 10
Weapon: Wellness (Wind)
Armor: Magical Dress (Wind as Cornelia; None as Rachel)
Accessory: Power Stone (Constant HP regen in battle)
Skill: Prevent Freeze LV 1 (Protects from Freeze ailment)
Resists Instant Death
Thought Process: Brave -> Brave -> Timid
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 10 155 69 55 47 3
LV 25 466 111 98 89 13
LV 50 984 182 171 160 32
LV 75 1503 253 244 231 50
LV MAX 2001 322 314 300 67
Rating E C C A E
Items:
Weapon: Wellness
"Cornelia's staff. Despite the pretty visuals, her spell is very powerful.
Maybe it has special powers..."
Armor: Magical Dress
"Nothing is known of this dress except that it is imbued with magic power.
It is fairly high in defense."
Accessory: Power Stone
"A necklace made from a pink celestial stone. It provides healing power
when equipped."
Attacks:
Barrier Tornado
"A gust of wind forms to create a barrier for a short duration."
Element: Wind Range: Self Effect: N/A
Hits: 1-6 Knockback: 1.3 Power: 1.4
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 155.4 LV 50: 254.8 LV 75: 354.2 LV MAX: 450.8
Barrier Tornado Effect:
Cornelia/ Rachel waves her wand and creates a sparkling cylinder of swirling
pink wind around herself. The barrier will last for several seconds, during
which Cornelia/ Rachel can move around the battlefield as desired. Any enemy
who touches the wind surrounding Cornelia/ Rachel takes damage and is
knocked away from her.
How to Recruit:
Talk to her at EXACTLY 7:05 PM.
Pros:
-High EVA
-Equipped with a Power Stone, which is always good
-Surprisingly good at protecting herself using Barrier Tornado
-Resists Instant Death
Cons:
-Low stats other than EVA
-Causes knockdown
Analysis:
Left to her own devices, Cornelia is a disappointing character. She spends
most of her time running around the battlefield, not really affecting
anything and not really being affected by anything, casting her spell
repeatedly but never doing anything with it. That is because the game is
relying on YOU to tell Cornelia what to do. You must, MUST use Commands and
Links if Cornelia is to be any use at all... but if you do, you might be
surprised at just how useful she becomes. Cornelia excels at crowd control,
battlefield positioning, and protecting her friends, and unlike most other
characters of which this is true, Cornelia does it all based on her OWN
positioning. Since you can control her location with Commands and Links,
Cornelia, when used properly, functions as an extension of the player's
controls, giving you the ability to push and pull enemies with greater
precision than you could ever accomplish alone. On top of this, she's ace at
protecting healers and other mages and she can actually do a lot of damage
against large bosses that can't be knocked down. She's a strange and tricky
creature, Cornelia is, but if you put some imagination into using her, she's
all kinds of fun.
One rather important thing to keep in mind is that Cornelia's shift from
Cornelia to Rachel is actually more than purely cosmetic. When night falls,
Cornelia transforms into Rachel, just as she does when walking around
Radiata City, and she turns back again when the sun rises. As Cornelia, the
Magical Dress is considered Wind-element, meaning Cornelia takes more damage
from Earth and less damage from Wind. As Rachel, however, the Magical Dress
is non-elemental, meaning she takes equal damage from both. This can be a
crucial difference in, say, the post-game battle with Baade; both Cornelia
and Rachel will do full damage to Baade, but Cornelia will take far more
damage in return due to her Earth weakness. Rachel does not suffer this
drawback. It should be stated, however, that this is the only thing that
changes between Rachel and Cornelia; their stats and attacks remain the
same otherwise.
Strategies:
Buckle up, my friends, this may take some time.
When focusing on the offensive, take into account if the enemy can be
knocked down or not. If they can, use Wave Link and put Cornelia in the
last position on the team, allowing her to use her knockdown as the combo
finisher. If they CANNOT, use Attack Link and watch Cornelia go to town with
all six hits of her Tornado. Don't forget about "Power Injection"! Six hits
of 1.4 damage with a 40-STR boost tacked on is a beautiful, beautiful thing.
You can even use "Last Resort," seeing as Barrier Tornado generally prevents
Cornelia from being targeted by melee monsters, although you'll need to be
careful around ranged breath attacks and such.
When using Cornelia more defensively, make extensive use of the "Backup" and
"Attack Enemy" Commands. Remember that for Cornelia, attacking enemies is
attack and defense in one, and by sending her to attack something, you're
really telling her to punch it across the field. I love having her
"Backup" my healer in battles with lots of enemies, since nothing gets by
Cornelia and it allows Flora or Elena to pray for your team in peace.
When you're going for the crowd-control and positioning stance is when
things get really fun. You can order Cornelia to "Backup" Jack and then
just run into the middle of things - she'll follow you and send everything
flying everywhere. However, for more precise manipulations, activate any
Link (I like Wave and Line, myself) and drag her along behind you exactly
where you want her to go, hurtling everything into the air in your wake.
(On the subject of Line Link, Cornelia makes an excellent sideguard in this
formation. Put her on either end and any enemy that sneaks around the front
shockwave will still get knocked away from you before it can interfere.) My
particular favorite is getting an enemy between myself and Cornelia, then
punting it straight into her with a regular attack and seeing how far it
flies. It's like playing baseball.
These are just some of the fun tricks you pull off with Cornelia at your
side. What others can you think of?
Rating: 5/10
*******************************************************************************
CURTIS
*******************************************************************************
Curtis is the eldest member of the Vareth Magic Institute. He's a genius
who has made many contributions to the world of magic. He established the
current magic system. He looks intimidating and strict but is actually very
easy to talk to. His mustache is one of his best features.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 49
Weapon: Ares Salute (Fire)
Armor: Great Mage Robe (None)
Accessory: Magic Mirror (Increases chance of finding Tsuchinokos)
Skill: Save Volty LV 3 (Decreases amount of VP used for Volty Blast)
Strongly Resists All Ailments
Thought Process: Standard -> Standard -> Standard
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 49 2010 214 135 195 178
LV 50 2046 217 137 196 181
LV 75 2953 303 209 244 260
LV MAX 3824 386 279 290 336
Rating A A E A A
Items:
Weapon: Ares Salute
"Curtis' original staff. He can cast Explosion, an explosive spell that
sets the enemy on fire."
Armor: Great Mage Robe
"A robe allowed only to professors or those of higher rank at Vareth Magic
Institute. Nullifies all afflictions."
Accessory: Magic Mirror
"A legendary mirror from the east. It catches the vibrations of tsuchinokos
from the ground. Increases chance of running into tsuchinokos when
equipped."
Attacks:
Explosion Lv.1
"Fire elements in the air are gathered and released using magic."
Element: Fire Range: Circular AOE Effect: Blaze 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.9
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 412.3 LV 75: 575.7 LV MAX: 733.4
Explosion Lv.2
"Fire elements in the air are gathered and released using magic."
Element: Fire Range: Circular AOE Effect: Blaze 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.9
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Long
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 412.3 LV 75: 575.7 LV MAX: 733.4
Explosion Lv.3
"Fire elements in the air are gathered and released using magic."
Element: Fire Range: Circular AOE Effect: Blaze 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.9
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Very Long
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 412.3 LV 75: 575.7 LV MAX: 733.4
VOLTY BLAST: Ancient Fire
"Curtis' volty blast. An ancient flame destroys everything in sight."
Element: N/A Range: Volty Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.3 Power: 4.7
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 1019.9 LV 75: 1424.1 LV MAX: 1814.2
Explosion Effect:
Curtis charges energy to the end of his staff for a time, then shoots a
ball of fire out of the end of it. The fireball hits the ground and erupts
into a giant dome of raging flames that persists for a long period of time,
damaging and knocking back anything that touches it. Explosion Lv.2 and Lv.3
have wider areas of effect, but correspondingly longer charge times.
Ancient Fire Effect:
Curtis gathers flames in a sphere at the tip of his staff and then fires it
like a cannon. The flames erupt in a supernova of heat that fries foes.
How to Recruit:
Talk to him between 11:40 AM and 8 PM after recruiting all of the other
Vareth Institute members.
Pros:
-Extremely high stats
-Attacks in an AOE
-Possession of a Volty Blast
-The Save Volty skill
-Strongly resists all ailments
Cons:
-Low DEF, as you might expect
-Explosion knocks down
-Long cast time
Analysis:
Let us speak plainly here. Curtis, despite being a Guild Master, a world-
renowned magician, and the owner of a swanky pointed hat, is really not
very good.
I think a lot of the prejudice against mages in this game stems from two
sources. One is Aidan; the other is Curtis. People go out of their way to
use Aidan, who is honestly quite bad, in order to recruit Cecil. Then they
ditch mages as a whole until Curtis comes along, expecting him to be the
best... only Curtis is also quite bad. And their perception never recovers.
Don't get me wrong; Curtis isn't as bad as Aidan, and he does have a few
uses. For one thing, he is really good at destroying wide areas of enemies.
Explosion has a very wide AOE, second only to Cecil's Megaton Quake, and
has a very high damage ratio. Coupled with his insane ATK stat, Curtis does
AOE damage very well indeed. His stats are uniformly awesome (other than
DEF,) he resists all ailments, and he has a very useful Skill in Save Volty,
which will allow you to Volty Blast much more often. Speaking of which, he
also has a Volty Blast - a very strong one, and it looks pretty cool, too.
All of this looks great on paper, but in execution, Curtis is fatally held
back by an incredibly slow rate of attack. Explosion is slow to cast, slower
than any spell except Energy Drain and possibly Thunderstorm. It hits once,
lasts forever, and knocks down, probably only casting once in the span of
time any fighter can finish their entire combo. And it knocks down. Energy
Drain can get away with a long, slow animation because Energy Drain does
not knock down. Stone Javelin can get away with knocking down because Stone
Javelin has a very fast animation. Explosion suffers from the worst of both
worlds and that dramatically gates Curtis' damage. Remember all the reasons
Christoph was bad? Curtis has all the same problems except for low stats.
His Volty Blast can't even save him, considering that you can only use your
Volty Gauge on one character at a time and the Blast is not as strong as
Elwen's or Valkyrie's.
Curtis' only use is to deal damage to multiple enemies at the same time.
However, the spread-out nature of Radiata's battlefields makes this a
generally unnecessary skill to possess, and his complete lack of bossing
talent makes him a liability in most of the battles you'd want to use him
in. If you're looking for a master mage, look elsewhere; Curtis ain't it.
Strategies:
Curtis will hit most of the field regardless of where he's aiming, so using
Commands isn't too important for him unless you want to specifically direct
him away from your side of the battlefield to avoid his knockdown.
Explosion's hideous slowness makes him incompetent in almost any Link, so
there's not much you can do for him there either, although you can at least
use Line Link and add his outstanding ATK to the shockwave's damage. He
probably does best in Arrow Link, where he can use his high ATK without
utilizing Explosion at all, but Arrow Link is clunky to use and can backfire
on you quite seriously, so use at your own risk.
If you're really set on using Curtis - maybe you like his Volty Blast, or
maybe his magnificent moustache - my best advice is to use "Power Injection"
or "Last Resort" (his DEF sucks anyway) to buff up his damage to the maximum
level. Curtis is all about that one, strong, single hit, so he needs all the
ATK he can get his hands on to make that one hit count.
Rating: 6/10
*******************************************************************************
DEREK
*******************************************************************************
Derek is an assistant professor at the Vareth Magic Institute. His specialty
is spiritual arts of the fire attribute. He is built like his father, but
instead of martial arts, he became fascinated with magic and decided to
enter Vareth. Although hot-tempered, he does think carefully before taking
any action.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 32
Weapon: Aldore (Fire)
Armor: Mage's Robe (Fire)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Sharp Edge LV 2 (Increases chance of critical hits)
Strongly Resists Blaze
Thought Process: Brave -> Brave -> Brave
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 32 699 158 165 82 110
LV 50 1221 206 209 109 132
LV 75 1946 272 271 148 163
LV MAX 2652 337 331 186 194
Rating D C C E C
Items:
Weapon: Aldore
"Derek's staff. He can cast Fireball, a spell that hurls several balls of
fire in different directions."
Armor: Mage's Robe
"A robe worn by mages of the Vareth Magic Institute. Made from magical
thread, it is light and fairly high in defense."
Attacks:
Fireball Lv.1
"Fireballs rush the foe. Quantity and charge time are proportional."
Element: Fire Range: Average Effect: Blaze 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.7
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 350.2 LV 75: 462.4 LV MAX: 572.9
Fireball Lv.2
Element: Fire Range: Average Effect: Blaze 1.1/ Blaze 1.0
Hits: 3 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.9/ 1.7
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 391.4 LV 75: 516.8 LV MAX: 640.3
Fireball Lv.3
Element: Fire Range: Average Effect: Blaze 1.1
Hits: 5 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.9
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Long
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 391.4 LV 75: 391.4 LV MAX: 640.3
Fireball Effect:
Derek charges energy to the end of his staff for a time, then shoots flames
out of the end of it. Fireball Lv.1 shoots a single fireball in a straight
line and takes the least time to charge. Fireball Lv.2 three fireballs out
in a fan pattern; Fireball Lv.3 shoots five. The fireballs do NOT knockdown
their targets.
How to Recruit:
Talk to Ray C Ross after the storyline splits, then talk to Derek.
Pros:
-Multi-hitting spells that cause Blaze with high ATK for added punch
-Very high potential damage if multiple Fireballs land
-Doesn't cause knockdown!
-Resists Blaze
Cons:
-Higher level spells take correspondingly longer casting times
-Joins late in the game and right before a fire dungeon
Analysis:
Derek is a good character who joins at the worst possible time to make any
use of him. With his Blaze-inflicting Fireball magic, Derek can pile the
damage on pretty quickly when luck is on his side. The different varieties
of Fireball can cover a wide fan in front of him, giving him good AOE
coverage, and if multiple fireballs can land on the same target, his single-
target burst is amazing.
No, Derek's only crime is that he joins very late in the game, at the same
time as Felix (who outperforms Derek in all areas,) right before the Fire
Mountain dungeon, where all of Derek's magic will be resisted and all of
Felix's will be super-effective. This tends to leave Derek completely in the
dust, as Felix will provide better results in the Mountain and then get
ahead in levels, making the power difference even greater.
Despite this, Derek really is a pretty good character. If you like him
(or perhaps just his crazy hairdo,) you should definitely give his damage-
dealing potential a shot.
Strategies:
Derek's damage, while potentially very high, tends to be a bit unreliable;
higher levels of Fireball take dramatically longer to charge, making it very
easy for him to get hit out of those castings, but also do exponentially
more damage, so he has to get those spells off to maximize his potential.
Because the higher level Fireballs shoot out in a fan pattern, though, it
can be pretty hard to land multiple hits on the same target, which is where
Derek's real potential lies. Because of this, Derek really shines most
against large enemies. Against smaller opponents, his effectiveness drops.
Derek doesn't do particularly well or badly with any particular Commands,
but because he doesn't knock down, he performs outrageously well in Attack
Link, where he can spam Fireballs at point-blank range into his target's
face.
Rating: 8/10
*******************************************************************************
DIMITRI
*******************************************************************************
Dimitri is an assisant professor at the Vareth Magic Institute. He was born
with weak eyesight that was later corrected by a sight-strengthening machine
developed by a Vareth technician. He subsequently entered the guild and
became an assistant professor. He is a perfectionist who becomes enraged
when people stand between him and his goals.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 14
Weapon: Windmill (None)
Armor: Mage's Robe (None)
Accessory: Magic Mirror (Increases chance of finding Tsuchinokos)
Skill: Bad Carrier LV 1 (Causes random ailments to foes when attacking)
Strongly Resists Instant Death
Thought Process: Timid -> Passive -> Brave
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 14 428 81 98 41 12
LV 25 764 111 138 64 17
LV 50 1527 181 229 117 28
LV 75 2291 251 320 170 40
LV MAX 3024 317 407 221 51
Rating C C S D E
Items:
Weapon: Windmill
"Dimitri's staff. He can cast Dark Meteor, a spell that summons meteors
aflame with the fire of darkness."
Armor: Mage's Robe
"A robe worn by mages of the Vareth Magic Institute. Made from magical
thread, it is light and fairly high in defense."
Accessory: Magic Mirror
"A legendary mirror from the east. It catches the vibrations of tsuchinokos
from the ground. Increases chance of running into tsuchinokos when
equipped."
Attacks:
Dark Meteor
"Magic is released into the air, unleashing meteors at the foe."
Element: None Range: Infinite Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.7
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Long
Effective Power:
LV 25: 188.7 LV 50: 307.7 LV 75: 426.7 LV MAX: 538.9
Dark Meteor Effect:
Dimitri charges energy to his wand, then waves it through the air. After a
short delay, a giant flaming meteor plummets from the sky and crashes onto
the target, creating an explosion that knocks the target and nearby enemies
down. While the charge time for this spell is long, the meteor itself falls
quickly and is targeted when the meteor appears, not when Dimitri begins
casting. This means that, despite the long charge time, this spell almost
never misses once cast.
How to Recruit:
Talk to him after returning from Wind Valley.
Pros:
-Fairly tanky
-AOE damage
-Has Bad Carrier, which is always good, particularly with AOE damage
-Strongly resists Instant Death
Cons:
-Really low LUK, so very vulnerable to status effects
-Mediocre stats in all areas that are not DEF
-Causes knockdown
-Awkward thought process, but also bad in Links
Analysis:
Dimitri is essentially a status effect mage. Dark Meteor is cool and fairly
powerful, but due to its long casting time and knockdown effects, it's not a
great spell to rely upon for damage; its real purpose in Dimitri's hands is
to apply status effects via Bad Carrier. This puts him in an interesting
position somewhat similar to Ardoph, where he soaks up damage due to high
DEF, then disables enemies to allow your other allies time to mop them up.
However, Dimitri has one important disadvantage that Ardoph does not, and
this puts him below Ardoph on the totem pole: Dimitri does not tend to work
well in Links, as Dark Meteor not only has a long delay (bad for Wave Link)
but causes knockdown (bad for many other Links). This is particularly
unfortunate due to his peculiar AI, which prioritizes running away at high
HP, doing nothing at mid HP, and attacking only at low HP. You can get
around this by using Commands, but his shaky Link performance still puts
him a bit below the more reliable party members like Claudia and Jill.
Strategies:
While Dimitri's not great with most Links, there are still some he can do
well in. Of course he's fine in Square and Arrow Link, where he doesn't use
his own spell, and he also does all right in Line Link due to the Meteor's
long delay. This allows you to hit your target with your other party members
and the Link shockwave before the Meteor hits, knocking everything down as a
kind of finishing touch.
The best way to get what you want out of Dimitri, though, is with Commands.
Try to focus his attention with "Attack Enemy" either on large groups of
weak foes or on the opposite side of the field from you so his knockdown
won't interfere with your fighting, and consider bringing your other allies
away from Dimitri's work with further use of "Attack Enemy" or "Backup."
Dimitri also makes a great decoy with "Be Bait" due to his high DEF, so
don't hesitate to use him that way if things are getting a little dicey.
"Power Injection" doesn't help Dimitri as much as you might like, due to the
long delays inherent in his AI and casting time. He won't get as many casts
off during the buff as many other characters would, so you'll probably want
to save your Volty for other things instead.
Rating: 5/10
*******************************************************************************
ERNEST
*******************************************************************************
Ernest is a mysterious person who no one really knows. Cecil claims he was
drawn to the cursed sound of his voice and welcomed him to the Vareth Magic
Institute. Nobody has ever had a decent conversation with him because he
just spits out odd words and phrases that make little sense. This is all
fine with him - he doesn't like talking to people anyway.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 14
Weapon: Vipole (None)
Armor: Vareth Uniform (None)
Accessory: Protect Shell (DEF +2)
Skill: Prevent Blind LV 1 (Protects from Blind ailment)
Does not resist ailments
Thought Process: Brave -> Brave -> Brave
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 14 223 75 73 45 27
LV 25 533 102 104 64 31
LV 50 1238 163 177 109 43
LV 75 1943 224 249 154 54
LV MAX 2620 283 318 197 64
Rating D D C E E
Items:
Weapon: Vipole
"Ernest's staff. He can cast Dark Meteor, a spell that summons meteors
aflame with the fire of darkness."
Armor: Vareth Uniform
"Uniform of the Vareth Magic Institute. It is the envy of all mage trainees.
Uniform enthusiasts are extremely fond of the design."
Accessory: Protect Shell
"A magical bangle made at the Vareth Magic Institute. Increases defense
when equipped."
Attacks:
Dark Meteor
"Dark meteors appear summoned by twisted magic. They fly straight at the
foe."
Element: None Range: Infinite Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.6
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Long
Effective Power:
LV 25: 163.2 LV 50: 260.8 LV 75: 358.4 LV MAX: 452.8
Dark Meteor Effect:
Ernest charges energy to his wand, then waves it through the air. After a
short delay, a giant flaming meteor plummets from the sky and crashes onto
the target, creating an explosion that knocks the target and nearby enemies
down. While the charge time for this spell is long, the meteor itself falls
quickly and is targeted when the meteor appears, not when Ernest begins
casting. This means that, despite the long charge time, this spell almost
never misses once cast.
How to Recruit:
Lend him a record and talk to him the next day.
Pros:
-AOE damage
-Active thought process
Cons:
-Pretty awful stats
-Causes knockdown
-A weaker version of Dimitri's Dark Meteor without Bad Carrier... not good
Analysis:
Ernest is better than Christoph, but unfortunately, Christoph is pretty much
the only mage he'll ever outperform. He has bad stats, a poor accessory, an
insignificant Skill, no status or element resistances, and a Dark Meteor
spell that not only prevents him from doing well in most Links but that is
weaker, both by damage multiplier and by innate ATK, than Dimitri's. His AI
is very active, which is good, and he is the first mage you can recruit with
AOE damage (and the second one is probably Christoph,) so that's also good.
Sadly, neither of these things negate his overall poor performance.
Strategies:
Due to Ernest's perma-Brave AI, you don't generally need to do much with
him. He'll attack just fine without your input and he's not very good in
Links, so the most you'll usually want to do is point him in a direction
away from your current target with "Attack Enemy" so his knockdown doesn't
interfere with your assault.
Ernest can perform decently in any Link Dimitri can, i.e. Square, Arrow, or
Line, but also performs badly in any Link Dimitri would, i.e. Attack, Wave,
or Box. Be careful with your Linking when Ernest is in the party.
Rating: 3/10
*******************************************************************************
FARAUS
*******************************************************************************
Faraus was born into a family of doctors. He studied medicine at the Olacion
Order until he realized the imprecision of the art. He entered the mage
guild to try to make medical treatment available to the general public.
Though he is basically a gentleman, he can become arrogant towards those he
regards as inferior.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 9
Weapon: Atmis (Water)
Armor: Vareth Uniform (Water)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Prevent Poison LV 1 (Protects from Poison ailment)
Strongly Resists Poison and Freeze
Thought Process: Brave -> Brave -> Passive
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 14 165 58 70 38 41
LV 25 587 92 117 70 66
LV 50 1248 146 191 121 106
LV 75 1909 200 265 172 145
LV MAX 2543 251 337 222 183
Rating D E C D C
Items:
Weapon: Atmis
"Faraus's staff. He can cast Frozen Sword, a spell that produces swords of
ice."
Armor: Vareth Uniform
"Uniform of the Vareth Magic Institute. It is the envy of all mage trainees.
Uniform enthusiasts are extremely fond of the design."
Attacks:
Frozen Sword Lv.1
"The temperature of the air drops to create an ice sword."
Element: Water Range: Long Effect: Freeze 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.7
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 156.4 LV 50: 248.2 LV 75: 340.0 LV MAX: 426.7
Frozen Sword Lv.2
Element: Water Range: Long Effect: Freeze 1.0
Hits: 3 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.7
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 156.4 LV 50: 248.2 LV 75: 340.0 LV MAX: 426.7
Frozen Sword Lv.3
Element: Water Range: Long Effect: Freeze 1.0
Hits: 5 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.7
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 156.4 LV 50: 248.2 LV 75: 340.0 LV MAX: 426.7
Frozen Sword Effect:
Faraus shoots a small chunk of ice from his wand. The ice travels quite far
at a reasonable speed in a straight line in the direction it was initially
pointed. When it hits the enemy, it deals damage but does not knock the
target down.
How to Recruit:
Talk to him between 4 AM and 2 PM or 7:05 and 10:05 PM, then talk to Kain,
then talk to Faraus again.
Pros:
-Can cause Freeze
-Pretty good DEF
-Multi-hitting spells for Volty building
-Strongly resists Poison and Freeze
Cons:
-Terrible stats everywhere except DEF
-Redundant Skill, since he already strongly resists Poison
Analysis:
Faraus is another character, like Ardoph, who is a lot better than people
give him credit for. His stats are not impressive, but his respectable DEF
keeps him going longer than his low HP might have you believing, and his
battle prowess is impressive. Frozen Sword is a quick, long-ranged spell
with decent damage that causes Freeze and does NOT knock its target down,
making Faraus one of the few mages really well-suited for Links. The
battlefield control offered by Faraus' quick, spammable Freezing spell is
considerable and makes Faraus possibly one of the best mages to use in the
early game. By all means Faraus falls off in the endgame when his low stats
start to show through and Felix is available to replace him, but he remains
a viable option and one I recommend giving a try. (Besides, you could always
use him and Felix together!)
It's just a pity that, despite his training at the Olacion Order, he doesn't
have any healing or status-curing magic in addition to his Frozen Sword.
That would have really pushed him over the edge into awesome.
Strategies:
You don't really need much strategy for using Faraus, just because he meshes
with pretty much any strategy so beautifully. Frozen Sword doesn't interfere
with or perform particularly well in any specific Links, Faraus' AI is
active and doesn't need to be Commanded around, and there's no particular
party buff or debuff Faraus needs in order to do his job. Toss "Power
Injection" and "Endurance" around just to jack up his low stats and let him
go to town.
Rating: 7/10
*******************************************************************************
FELIX
*******************************************************************************
Felix was raised in an orphanage. Lord Ostracon insisted on having Felix
enter the Vareth Magic Institute when his photographic memory became
apparent. He is often mistaken for a woman because of his high voice. He is
troubled by the fact that he has many male fans. He can be very brusque.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 27
Weapon: Vathao (Water)
Armor: Mage's Robe (Water)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Prevent Blaze LV 1 (Protects from Blaze ailment)
Strongly Resists Freeze
Thought Process: Standard -> Timid -> Timid
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 27 438 130 122 85 106
LV 50 1037 193 182 131 150
LV 75 1688 262 248 183 199
LV MAX 2313 328 311 232 245
Rating D C C C B
Items:
Weapon: Vathao
"Felix's staff. He can cast Cold Arrow, a spell that fires frozen arrows."
Armor: Mage's Robe
"A robe worn by mages of the Vareth Magic Institute. Made from magical
thread, it is light and fairly high in defense."
Attacks:
Cold Arrow Lv.1
"The air is frozen to create an arrow of ice that chases the foe."
Element: Water Range: Long Effect: Freeze 1.0
Hits: 4 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.7
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 328.1 LV 75: 445.4 LV MAX: 557.6
Cold Arrow Lv.2
Element: Water Range: Long Effect: Freeze 1.0
Hits: 8 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.9
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 366.7 LV 75: 497.8 LV MAX: 623.2
Cold Arrow Lv.3
Element: Water Range: Long Effect: Freeze 1.1
Hits: 8 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.9
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 366.7 LV 75: 497.8 LV MAX: 623.2
Cold Arrow Effect:
Felix points his wand at the enemy and shoots four large icicles out of it.
The icicles will fan out a short distance, then begin converging on Felix's
target. They move very quickly, have pretty decent homing capability, and
they do NOT knock down.
How to Recruit:
Talk to Ray C Ross after the storyline splits, then talk to Felix.
Pros:
-Can cause Freeze
-Multi-hitting spells for Volty building
-Ideal thought process for a multi-hitting, Freezing, ranged mage
-High EVA and LUK
-Functions equally well in a single-target or AOE capacity
-INSANE damage potential
-Does not knock down
-Strongly resists Freeze
Cons:
-Fragile
Analysis:
I'm not sure how else to put it other than this: Felix is a god. Everything
Curtis isn't and should be, Felix is. Cold Arrow homes, hits a truckload
of times, has a killer damage ratio, causes Freeze, can hit one target or
several, casts quickly, and DOES NOT KNOCK DOWN. Felix himself has good
stats, an ideal thought process, and resistance to both Blaze (Skill) and
Freeze (armor). Used correctly, Felix can outdamage ANY OTHER CHARACTER IN
THE GAME, INCLUDING VALKYRIE (though not including Volty Blasts,) and he
can do it from the other side of the battlefield without even being touched
in return. If he had a Volty Blast, it would simply be called "You beat the
game," because nothing else could make Felix's base performance any
stronger.
Strategies:
Left to his own devices, Felix will tear up the battlefield just fine with
no input from you, but a little handholding turns him from "very strong"
into "gamebreaking" in no time flat. "Power Injection" multiplies his damage
like it does to nobody else, working as it does through a 1.9 base ratio
eight times, and "Last Resort" will make your head spin (although further
lowering his already low defenses may backfire on you in boss fights). Spam
one or the other, depending on how risky you feel like being, and watch
those numbers skyrocket.
Since Felix does not cause knockdown, using him in Attack Link is just
about the most unfair situation imaginable. At close range, all of his Cold
Arrows will always hit the target, accumulating damage and Volty at a neck-
snapping speed, and there's a good chance one of them will Freeze your
hapless victim, further crippling their chances of survival. He performs
equally insanely in a Line Link, racking up more than enough Volty with Cold
Arrow to keep the shockwaves going forever and able to contribute from any
position on the line due to Cold Arrow's surprisingly decent homing.
Is there even anything else to say about this rude, brilliant, feminine,
completely overpowered ice mage? If you want to be persuaded that Radiata
mages can be useful, look no further. Forget Curtis: Felix will show you
the true power of the Vareth Institute.
Rating: 10/10
*******************************************************************************
FRANKLIN
*******************************************************************************
Franklin entered the Vareth Magic Institute to try to discover a way to
preserve his beauty forever. He will do anything to achieve his goal. He
cares only about himself, and quickly disappears when he feels he won't
profit from an activity. He spends most of his research time trying out
different poses in front of a mirror.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 13
Weapon: Naruth (Fire)
Armor: Vareth Uniform (Fire)
Accessory: Lucky Charm (LUK +15)
Skill: Complete Defense LV 1 (Chance of nullifying damage while guarding)
Strongly Resists Blaze
Thought Process: Brave -> Timid -> Timid
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 13 185 77 68 46 62
LV 25 486 109 95 69 80
LV 50 1143 178 152 116 118
LV 75 1791 247 209 164 157
LV MAX 2413 313 263 210 194
Rating D C E D C
Items:
Weapon: Naruth
"Franklin's staff. He can cast Snake Fire, a spell that radiates coiling
strands of fire."
Armor: Vareth Uniform
"Uniform of the Vareth Magic Institute. It is the envy of all mage trainees.
Uniform enthusiasts are extremely fond of the design."
Accessory: Lucky Charm
"A more powerful version of the Luck Bracelet. Increases luck greatly when
equipped."
Attacks:
Snake Fire Lv.1
"Magic is used to hurl a flaming sword at the foe."
Element: Fire Range: Medium cone Effect: Blaze 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.7
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 185.3 LV 50: 302.6 LV 75: 419.9 LV MAX: 532.1
Snake Fire Lv.2
Element: Fire Range: Short cone Effect: Blaze 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.7
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 185.3 LV 50: 302.6 LV 75: 419.9 LV MAX: 532.1
Snake Fire Effect:
Franklin swings his wand, unleashing a torrent of fire from it. Enemies
hit by his wand or the flames take damage and are knocked down.
How to Recruit:
Talk to him after Jack's promotion with any female character - human or non-
human - in the party.
Pros:
-Causes Blaze
-Strongly resists Blaze
-Good thought processes for his role in a fight
Cons:
-Much more fragile than a melee mage ought to be
Analysis:
Franklin is an interesting character, but unfortunately not a very good
one. His design is that of a melee mage who runs in, knocks his target down,
and runs out before his low defenses can catch up with him, but he doesn't
do enough damage to justify protecting him in such situations. Don't get me
wrong, his damage isn't bad, especially if he can cause Blaze; however, with
only one hit, that 1.7 damage ratio isn't as good as it might sound. He'll
contribute more than Ernest or Christoph, but not as much as a character
like Claudia or Ursula.
Strategies:
Treat Franklin as you would a melee version of Aidan or Marietta: fragile,
in need of protection, and only good in specific Links. Franklin really
needs "Endurance" to bump up his low DEF; "Power Injection" is good but
won't have much effect with his average ratios, and "Last Resort" is just
suicidal.
Despite his poor performance when left to his own devices, Franklin can be
somewhat effective in Links with the right creativity. Obviously he can't
function in Attack Link, and equally obviously he can only function in Wave
Link if placed at the end of the line. However, due to a respectable base
ATK score, he's pretty good at working with a Line, Wide, or Square Link.
Since Snake Fire is melee, you can position yourself at a distance from your
target and spam Line Link shockwaves to abuse Franklin's ATK score without
worrying about him knocking down enemies.
Rating: 4/10
*******************************************************************************
GENIUS
*******************************************************************************
A hard-working genius and the second son of the Weissheit family of
technicians. When he was seven, he broke the record for the youngest child
to enter Vareth Magic Institute. He cannot help but continuously correct
other people's misapprehensions. His hover disk transporation device is
called a Rouquiche.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 17
Weapon: Abyss (None)
Armor: Enchanted Robe (None)
Accessory: Magic Boost (Reduces cast time for magic)
Skill: Auto Cure LV 1 (Constantly regenerates HP)
Strongly Resists Blaze and Confuse
Thought Process: Standard -> Standard -> Aggressive
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 17 223 90 75 83 12
LV 25 443 115 99 97 25
LV 50 1133 193 176 142 68
LV 75 1822 272 253 186 111
LV MAX 2484 348 326 229 153
Rating D B C D D
Items:
Weapon: Abyss
"Genius' original staff. Unlike others, he can cast several spells with his
staff."
Armor: Enchanted Robe
"A robe made from magical thread. It is quite thick and fairly high in
defense."
Accessory: Magic Boost
"A tool needed to invoke magic. It is similar to the elemental stone
reactor. Invokes magic quickly when equipped."
Attacks:
Wind Cutter
"Unleashes three magical blades."
Element: Wind Range: Average Effect: N/A
Hits: 3 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 0.8
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 92.0 LV 50: 154.4 LV 75: 217.6 LV MAX: 278.4
Ice Missile
"Heaves big blocks of ice at high speed, dealing fair damage."
Element: Water Range: Long Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.4
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 161.0 LV 50: 270.2 LV 75: 380.8 LV MAX: 487.2
Healing
"Throws a mysterious stone in the air to heal himself and only himself."
Element: Curative Range: Self only Effect: Heals 30% max HP
Hits: 1 Knockback: N/A Power: N/A
Knockdown? N/A Charge Time: Short
Wind Cutter Effect:
Genius points his wand forward and shoots three purple blade projectiles
out in a fan pattern.
Ice Missile Effect:
Genius points his wand forward and shoots a large blue chunk of ice out in
a straight line.
Healing Effect:
Genius surrounds himself in a green aura and recovers some of his HP.
How to Recruit:
Talk to him after your meeting with him in the Path of the Spider.
Pros:
-Casts very quickly due to his Magic Boost
-Access to two different elements: Wind and Water
-Builds Volty pretty quickly with rapidfire Wind Cutter casts
-Doesn't knock down
-Strongly resists Blaze and Confuse
-The Auto Cure skill
-Can heal himself
Cons:
-Low burst damage
-Fragile, despite his copious self-heals
-Vulnerable to status effects
Analysis:
Genius is, interestingly, more like a non-human mage than a human one. He
has a healing spell, although he can only cast it on himself, and not one
elemental spell - like most of the human mages - but two: one wind and one
water. His Magic Boost accessory lets him cast all three of these spells
with great speed, which is the reasoning behind his surprisingly low damage
ratios: he gets off more casts, but each does less damage, resulting in a
net equality with most other mages. Unlike you might expect, Ice Missile
does not cause Freeze, so Genius comes out to being a pure damage mage with
surprising survivability from his healing spell and Auto Cure. He's pretty
good, but not as great as you might expect from the "great genius mage."
Strategies:
Being a loner by nature, it's no surprise that Genius is entirely self-
sufficient on the battlefield. Between his rapid rate of casting and his
innate Auto Cure skill, Genius is one of those characters you can easily
ignore completely and let take care of himself. His damage potential lags
behind the god-mages like Felix or Leona, and even behind some of the less
typically powerful mages like Faraus or a well-timed Cornelia, but he's
still strong enough to make his presence felt.
Because Genius can have some problems with status effects due to low EVA
and LUK, it can sometimes be worthwhile to activate the "Heaven's Gate"
command to keep him safe long enough to make something else dead. He also
appreciates "Endurance," to shore up his healing with added DEF. However,
due to high base ATK and low damage ratios, "Power Injection" doesn't avail
Genius as much as it does many other mages.
As you might expect, however, that high ATK also makes him a strong addition
to the Line or Wide Links, and the multiple hits of his Wind Cutter help
keep him supplied with Volty to keep such Links going.
Rating: 8/10
*******************************************************************************
JILL
*******************************************************************************
Jill is an assistant professor at the Vareth Magic Institute. Her specialty
is item creation, and she creates things that are useful to the general
public. When she was little, she would watch her father work at the armory.
Before she knew it, her hobby was taking things apart and putting them back
together again. She is a hearty, loud young woman.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 25
Weapon: Agroth (Earth)
Armor: Mage Armor (None)
Accessory: Saint's Trophy (Cures party's status ailments after a battle)
Skill: 100t Body LV 1 (Chance to resist knockdown and counterattacks)
Weak to Instant Death
Thought Process: Brave -> Brave -> Timid
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 25 447 122 107 77 69
LV 50 1142 181 173 122 131
LV 75 1838 241 240 168 194
LV MAX 2506 299 303 212 255
Rating D D D D B
Items:
Weapon: Agroth
"Jill's staff. She can cast Earth Glaive, a spell that creates a huge fog."
Armor: Mage Armor
"Sleeveless armor made by Jill for herself. Made of the same material as the
mage's robe, it is fairly high in defense."
Accessory: Saint's Trophy
"A celestial figure that protects the owner from misfortune. However, it
does not react as fast as one would hope."
Attacks:
Bomb Blast
"Throws a bomb at the foe. An original creation."
Element: Fire Range: Average Effect: Blaze 1.5
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.0
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: 122.0 LV 50: 181.0 LV 75: 241.0 LV MAX: 299.0
Earth Glaive Lv.1
"A powerful impact causes the earth to surge upwards."
Element: Earth Range: Long Effect: Break Parry, Knockup
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.6
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 195.2 LV 50: 289.6 LV 75: 385.6 LV MAX: 478.4
Earth Glaive Lv.2
Element: Earth Range: Long Effect: Break Parry, Knockup
Hits: 1-3 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.6
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: 195.2 LV 50: 289.6 LV 75: 385.6 LV MAX: 478.4
Earth Glaive Lv.3
Element: Earth Range: Long Effect: Break Parry, Knockup
Hits: 1-3 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.6
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Long
Effective Power:
LV 25: 195.2 LV 50: 289.6 LV 75: 385.6 LV MAX: 478.4
Bomb Blast Effect:
Jill produces a bomb from nowhere and chucks it forward in an arc. When it
hits the ground, it explodes in a puff of orange flames.
Earth Glaive Effect:
Jill charges green magic onto her wand, then hurls it forward. Green fire
flies toward the ground, touches the earth, and creates a massive earthern
spike that impales the foe and sends them flying. Earth Glaive Lv.2 and
Earth Glaive Lv.3 create three stone spikes in a straight line, rather than
conjuring just one. The spikes make a great sound effect as they pop out of
the ground, too.
How to Recruit:
Recruit Christoph, then talk to her between 10:30 AM and 2 PM.
Pros:
-Good stats early on
-Access to two different elements: Earth and Fire
-Can cause Blaze
-Earth Glaive knocks into the air for synergy with air comboers, i.e. Dennis
-The 100t Body Skill, which is very useful
Cons:
-Low spell damage ratios
-Stat growth falls off hard late game
Analysis:
Her stats may be crap, but Jill is actually a surprisingly strong mage for
most of the early- and mid-game. For one thing, while her stats end up being
rather disappointing post-game, she has quite high base stats when she joins
you. Her endgame performance is due to poor stat growth rather than poor
stat bases. She's got fairly strong multi-hitting magic in Earth Glaive and
can cause Blaze using Bomb Blast, which gives her great versatility and a
strong offensive punch. Even late in the game she can still contribute due
to this strong utility, but be warned that her damage won't keep up with her
early-game performance and she's awfully fragile once big boss attacks start
flying around.
Strategies:
Like Faraus, Jill greatly appreciates having her stats pumped up with "Power
Injection" and "Endurance" Commands whenever you have the Volty to spare.
Her ratios aren't that good, but her spells are valuable to spam regardless
due to their Blaze-causing and guard-breaking qualities, so adding some more
damage onto them isn't a bad idea.
It's best to think of Jill as two separate characters, as she transitions
from a powerful DPS mage in the early game into a utility-focused support
mage in the endgame. Early game, she's great for adding her high base stats
to Line or Square Links, and like all knockdown mages, she's ideal for
finishing off the line of a Wave Link. Late game, she's actually better off
running around by herself than she is being pulled into a Link formation.
Watch for the targets she's just left vulnerable with Earth Glaive and dart
in to take advantage of her hard work.
Jill can contribute to any team at any point in the game, but due to her
lesser talent at Linking, you may want to structure your team with other
Link-independent characters like Genius or Caesar if you're planning to
use her. However, it's also good to remember that Jill brings the highly
valuable 100t Body Skill to the party when Linked, immunizing your team to
knockdown without having to use Jack's Skill slot to do it. This alone can
make it worth Linking with her, especially against bosses that can't be
knocked down, where she can function quite nicely in an Attack Link while
stopping it from being broken via knockdown.
Rating: 6/10
*******************************************************************************
JOHAN
*******************************************************************************
Johan is a student of the Vareth Magic Institute. His father made him join
the institute, but he must have had potential, as he has absorbed much
during his time there. However, he has too much confidence and is always
convinced he's correct, leading him to clash with colleagues. He has no
friends.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 6
Weapon: Vatirork (Wind)
Armor: Vareth Uniform (Wind)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Bad Carrier LV 1 (Causes random ailments to foes when attacking)
Does not resist ailments
Thought Process: Passive -> Timid -> Timid
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 6 120 50 65 23 72
LV 25 524 102 114 51 113
LV 50 1056 172 179 89 168
LV 75 1588 242 244 127 224
LV MAX 2098 308 306 163 277
Rating E D D F B
Items:
Weapon: Vatirork
"Johan's staff. He can cast Thunderstorm, a spell that creates a tornado of
lightning."
Armor: Vareth Uniform
"Uniform of the Vareth Magic Institute. It is the envy of all mage trainees.
Uniform enthusiasts are extremely fond of the design."
Attacks:
Thunderstorm Lv.1
"A tornado is created with vortical magic. It calls forth lightning."
Element: Wind Range: AOE Effect: N/A
Hits: 1-3 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.4
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 142.8 LV 50: 240.8 LV 75: 338.8 LV MAX: 431.2
Thunderstorm Lv.2
Element: Wind Range: AOE Effect: N/A
Hits: 1-3 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.5
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: 153.0 LV 50: 258.0 LV 75: 363.0 LV MAX: 462.0
Thunderstorm Lv.3
Element: Wind Range: AOE Effect: N/A
Hits: 1-3 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.6
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Long
Effective Power:
LV 25: 163.2 LV 50: 275.2 LV 75: 387.2 LV MAX: 492.8
Thunderstorm Effect:
Johan hurls a small ball of purple flame from the end of his wand. The ball
travels to the targeted location on the field, lands on the ground, and
erupts into a small, electrified tornado that lasts for several seconds.
Enemies that touch the cone are sent flying away from it. Thunderstorm Lv.2
and Lv.3 have wider areas of effect, but take more time to charge.
How to Recruit:
Talk to him on five different days.
Pros:
-Bad Carrier, which is a great skill to have
-Thunderstorm applies Bad Carrier in a wide area, making it even better
Cons:
-Fragile
-Thunderstorm travels VERY slowly, so enemies often move out of its range
-Thunderstorm never gets its full hits off because of its high knockback
Analysis:
Johan has all of the disadvantages Christoph does, but he is saved from
being quite as useless as his teacher due to slightly better stats and a
much better Skill. Bad Carrier is a pretty good Skill in any circumstance,
but when you have a multi-hitting AOE spell to apply it with, it really
shines. The ability to apply debilitating status to multiple foes in an
area all at once is pretty cool and almost worth forgiving Thunderstorm's
other flaws for.
Of course, I say "almost." Bad Carrier does a lot to redeem Thunderstorm
as a spell, but it's still one of the worst spells you can have (in my
opinion THE worst, even below Stone Javelin or Explosion). The slow cast
time and dramatic knockback make Johan completely useless for anything
besides ailment infliction, and the only way to get decent damage out of it
is to use it on enemies that cannot be knocked down.
On top of that, I hate the kid. He tortures frogs.
Strategies:
If you're set on using Johan for some reason, the only thing you're going
to be using him FOR is Bad Carrier, so his damage output is entirely
beside the point. At least the long range of Thunderstorm tends to keep
Johan out of danger, so you don't have to worry too much about protecting
him, but in case monsters start moving in his direction, make sure you're
prompt with that "Play Dead" or "Circle Song" Command. Johan has the
sturdiness of wet tissue paper and will die in an instant if focused, so
be sure never to let that happen.
Johan is pretty incompatible with Links, just like Christoph, but at least
Thunderstorm does have good knockback, so he's capable of guarding a healer
with "Backup." Especially in a fight where enemies are status-immune or
where Bad Carrier just isn't proccing, defending your healer is a good
fallback for Johan's use.
Rating: 5/10
*******************************************************************************
LEONA
*******************************************************************************
Leona is a student of the Vareth Magic Institute and Genius' younger sister.
While working hard under Cecil, she managed to decipher some magic documents
left by the original president of the institute. She is the only one who can
read the manuscript. A very shy and timid girl, she always has a worried
look on her face.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 3
Weapon: Ancient Magic Book (None)
Armor: Vareth Uniform (None)
Accessory: Lucky Charm (LUK +15)
Skill: Fierce Defense LV 1 (Chance to resist Guard Break)
Strongly Resists Poison, Curse, and Instant Death
Weak to Paralyze, Blind, Bind, Freeze, Blaze, Confuse, and Petrify
Thought Process: Brave -> Timid -> Timid
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 3 102 49 25 33 45
LV 25 738 129 74 92 104
LV 50 1461 220 130 160 172
LV 75 2183 311 187 227 239
LV MAX 2877 398 241 292 304
Rating C A F A A
Items:
Weapon: Ancient Magic Book
"A magic book stored in Vareth, filled with words and theories not
comprehensible to laymen. The metal-plated edges can deliver a fair amount
of damage."
Armor: Vareth Uniform
"Uniform of the Vareth Magic Institute. It is the envy of all mage trainees.
Uniform enthusiasts are extremely fond of the design."
Accessory: Lucky Charm
"A more powerful version of the Luck Bracelet. Increases luck greatly when
equipped."
Attacks:
Khar-fu
"Rune magic is used to unleash lasers from triangular gimlets created by
runes."
Element: None Range: Long Effect: Ignore DEF/ Guard
Hits: 1-2 Knockback: N/A Power: 1.3
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Very Long
Effective Power:
LV 25: 167.7 LV 50: 286.0 LV 75: 404.3 LV MAX: 517.4
Na Rhubi
"Rune magic is used to create a magic spot where an unknown force attacks
the foe."
Element: None Range: Long Effect: Ignore DEF/ Guard
Hits: 1 Knockback: N/A Power: 0.8
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Very Long
Effective Power:
LV 25: 103.2 LV 50: 176.0 LV 75: 248.8 LV MAX: 318.4
Read Book
"Reads a book of rune magic. Only she can understand the language."
Does nothing
Khar Fu Effect:
Mystic runes swirl out of Leona's book as she prepares her spell. Once
finished, she waves her hand and conjures two strange triangular devices
that each shoot a small, multicolored laser blast at her target.
Na Rhubi Effect:
Mystic runes swirl out of Leona's book as she prepares her spell. Once
finished, she waves her hand and conjures streams of translucent green light
around her target. The light condenses and forms a strange, multicolored,
hexagonal symbol that shrinks, then explodes, dealing damage.
Read Book Effect:
Leona reads her book for a time, doing nothing otherwise.
How to Recruit:
Talk to her to learn she wants the Voynich Manuscript, which Aldo has. Bring
it to her and she'll ask for the Book of Angels, which is in the part of the
Septem Caves accessible through Castle Algandars. Bring her this and she
joins.
Pros:
-Sky-high ATK, EVA, and LUK
-Her Parry cannot be broken due to Fierce Defense
-Spells ignore defense, dealing crazy damage!
-Spells do not knock down, allowing for even crazier damage!
Cons:
-Extremely fragile
-Cast times are HORRENDOUSLY long
-Sometimes gets distracted by reading instead of fighting
Analysis:
Leona is a freaking beast, but you'd never know it by looking at her on
paper. With the DEF of talcum powder, cast time that could be measured in
decades, unimpressive damage ratios, the useless Read Book action, and the
misfortune of joining you after Castle Algandars on level THREE, Leona
sounds like a mage who would make Christoph look good.
You must believe me, then, when I inform you that Leona can chew up the
bonus dungeon and spit it out like tobacco. This is all due to two singular
properties. Firstly, her spells IGNORE DEFENSE, dealing as much damage to
the Ethereal Queen as she would to the Goblin Trio. Secondly, she powers
these DEF-ignoring spells with one of the highest ATK stats in the game.
For reference, Leona's max ATK is 398. Elwen's? 438. And Elwen doesn't
ignore DEF.
If you can work around Leona's glacial casting speed and extreme level
disadvantage, no power in heaven or earth can resist you. I strongly
recommend it.
Strategies:
It is almost necessary to use Links in order to get any kind of use out of
Leona. She is so slow to move and cast that if you leave her functioning on
her own, you may never see her act. The trick to using her is understanding
what Links she works with and what Links she does not.
Leona cannot function in Attack Link due to knockdown, and she breaks Wave
Link's brain because her spellcasting takes so long that it freezes up the
entire party train. (It won't crash the game, though. Probably.) Her high
ATK gives her great use in Square or Arrow Link. But it is in Line and Wide
Link that Leona really excels. Leona's killer ATK jacks up the shockwaves
of Line and Wide Link to an insane degree, her slow casting time doesn't
glitch the game out with either, and triggering her attacks with the Link
both minimizes the time in between her attacks AND prevents her from using
Read Book to waste more time, as Leona will never use Read Book in a Link.
Once you start spamming shockwave-spawning Links with Leona in the party,
you will see this shy young girl's disadvantages melt away, to be replaced
only by an avenging angel of death and destruction. Cover her fragility
with a shot of "Endurance," prevent her casting from interruption with a
Linked 100t Body Skill, and enjoy the rampant, rainbowy carnage.
Rating: 9/10
*******************************************************************************
MARIETTA
*******************************************************************************
Marietta entered the Vareth Magic Institute at the age of thirteen. She is
always working hard to overcome her own tough luck. Everyone thought she
would rise rapidly through the ranks, but she has been held back by her one
major flaw: her chronic clumsiness. Someday, she'll make it big...
- Friends List
Initial Level: 12
Weapon: Suolo (Earth)
Armor: Vareth Uniform (Earth)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Water Defense LV 1 (Decreases damage of water attacks)
Resists Poison
Thought Process: Passive -> Passive -> Timid
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 12 202 75 81 33 14
LV 25 550 113 116 58 29
LV 50 1221 186 183 108 59
LV 75 1892 260 251 157 89
LV MAX 2537 330 316 204 117
Rating D C C D D
Items:
Weapon: Suolo
"Marietta's staff. She can cast Stone Javelin, a spell that produces earth
element stone spears."
Armor: Vareth Uniform
"Uniform of the Vareth Magic Institute. It is the envy of all mage trainees.
Uniform enthusiasts are extremely fond of the design."
Attacks:
Stone Javelin Lv.1
"Dust is collected from the air and molded into a spear of rock."
Element: Earth Range: Long Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.7
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 192.1 LV 50: 316.2 LV 75: 442.0 LV MAX: 561.0
Stone Javelin Lv.2
Element: Earth Range: Long Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.8
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 203.4 LV 50: 334.8 LV 75: 468.0 LV MAX: 594.0
Stumble
"A stumble after some flurried actions. Her fans come from afar to see this
cute act."
Does nothing
Stone Javelin Effect:
Marietta points her wand at the enemy and shoots out a rock like a missile.
The javelin travels quite far at a reasonable speed in a straight line in
the direction it was initially pointed. When it hits the target, it explodes
and knocks the enemy down. The explosion can affect more than one enemy if
they are VERY close together and the missile hits correctly.
Stumble Effect:
Marietta trips and falls down, rendering her unable to act for a short time.
How to Recruit:
Talk to her at the Vareth Institute after unlocking the Friends List.
Pros:
-Surprisingly high ATK
-Stronger Stone Javelin than Aidan's (not that that's saying much)
-Resists two elements: Earth (armor) and Water (Skill)
-Resists Poison
Cons:
-Stone Javelin causes knockdown
-Sometimes Stumbles
Analysis:
I think Marietta gets a bit more hate than she actually deserves. Much like
Derek is a decent character who gets overshadowed by joining at the same
time as Felix, Marietta gets overshadowed by Aidan, who most people use for
the first portion of the game in order to get Cecil and because of his
Training Device. Now, other than his Training Device, Aidan is a pretty bad
character, so anyone who can get overshadowed by him has to be pretty damn
worthless, right?
Well... yes and no. Marietta's not "good," by any stretch of the word, but
she's actually markedly better than Aidan, at least where fighting is
concerned. She has notably higher HP, STR, and DEF than Aidan and a slightly
more powerful Stone Javelin; 0.1 additional power ratio may not look like
much, but especially with her higher ATK, it actually makes quite a big
difference. Generally people are turned off by her Passive thought process
and the fact that, on her own, she tends to Stumble rather than attack, but
both of these problems are easily fixed with Links, which do for her the
same thing they do for Leona, albeit with less apocalyptic results. Harder
to account for are the problems inherent with Stone Javelin, which is still
not a very good spell even in Marietta's hands, but at least the extra
damage makes it more attractive than Aidan's.
In the end, Marietta is still clearly outclassed by a host of other mages,
and if you're only going to use one of the two, Aidan's need to be leveled
to recruit Cecil and the team benefit granted by his Training Device will
still likely give him the spot in your team. However, if you're going to
kick Marietta to the curb without giving her a chance... think twice about
it. She's not as bad as you might think. Heck, you may even end up liking
her more than you expected.
Strategies:
Wave Link, Wave Link, Wave Link. Marietta was made for Wave Link. You can't
rely on her doing anything on her own, between her Passive thought process
and her Stumbling, so she HAS to be in a Link in order to pull her weight,
and Stone Javelin's knockdown bars her from Attack Link and all but the
most careful uses of Line Link. However, Wave Link fits her like a charm.
Place her at the end of the Link and let her knock the enemy down with her
powerful Stone Javelin cast, then reposition and rush in again.
This isn't all Marietta is good for, though. Her respectable ATK stat can
easily be turned to the field-clearing of Square Link or even the risks of
Arrow Link, and all of the tricks Aidan can do - crowd control on targets
you're not attacking, "Backup" to protect a healer, Javelin-spam on bosses
that can't be knocked down - Marietta can do better. She doesn't even need
"Power Injection" to make her damage worthwhile (although it doesn't hurt!)
Marietta is a lot more survivable than Aidan, having 500 more HP and 30
more DEF, but she's still on the delicate side, so a shot of "Endurance"
every so often or the dedicated attentions of a healer wouldn't go amiss.
Her terrible LUK (probably the source of her abundant klutziness) also
leaves her vulnerable to status effects, so keeping "Heaven's Gate" on hand
to protect her from more virulent ailments isn't a bad idea either.
Rating: 4/10
*******************************************************************************
MORGAN
*******************************************************************************
Morgan is a professor at the Vareth Magic Institute. Her major interest is
black magic, which includes the study of spirits and curses. She is one of
the few people researching beneficial applications of the magic, which most
consider to be cruel and wicked. Despite her appearance, she has something
of a meek and accommodating personality.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 37
Weapon: Adventia (None)
Armor: Witch Cloak (None)
Accessory: Skill Upper (EVA +2)
Skill: Fighting Spirit LV 1 (Increased rate of Volty generation from attacks)
Does not resist ailments
Thought Process: Standard -> Brave -> Brave
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 37 740 170 127 135 43
LV 50 1105 206 159 160 48
LV 75 1807 276 223 210 59
LV MAX 2480 342 283 258 69
Rating D B D C E
Items:
Weapon: Adventia
"Morgan's staff. She can cast Energy Drain, a spell of darkness that absorbs
HP from the enemy."
Armor: Witch Cloak
"Ritual clothing for female mages. It heightens the magic powers of
darkness."
Accessory: Skill Upper
"A magical bangle made at the Vareth Magic Institute. Increases evasion
when equipped."
Attacks:
Energy Drain
"A magical ball absorbs HP from the foe."
Element: None Range: Long Effect: HP Drain, Ignores Guard
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0 Power: 1.0
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Long
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 206.0 LV 75: 276.0 LV MAX: 342.0
Energy Drain Effect:
Morgan raises her wand into the air, charging energy to it. The energy
leaps from the tip of the wand as a glowing ball, which enters a dimension
portal and vanishes. A second portal opens up near the targeted enemy, and
the ball floats out of it and homes unerringly onto its target. The ball
dissolves into the enemy, then recoalesces, causing damage at this point in
time. The ball then flies into the air and into another portal, which brings
it back to Morgan. Finally, the orb dissolves into Morgan, restoring her
HP by an amount equal to the damage dealt by the attack. (Yes, it's STILL a
very long animation.)
How to Recruit:
Talk to her between 11:15 AM and 5:45 PM on four different days. She will
ask for donations each time; donate first 1000, then 3000, then 9000, then
30,000 Dagols (43,000 total) to earn her services.
Pros:
-Fighting Spirit lets her gain Volty twice as fast
-High ATK
-Homing, infinite-range, guard-ignoring, non-elemental spell that heals her!
Cons:
-Very fragile (countered somewhat by Energy Drain)
-Energy Drain is very slow and has a very long animation
-Low LUK; she's vulnerable to status effects (not as low as Claudia, though)
Analysis:
Morgan can be recruited very early on if you grind money for long enough and
is quite strong if you get her when she's first available. She stays alive
pretty well between Energy Drain and her high EVA, and the fact that Energy
Drain ignores guard just makes things even better. She's very similar to
Claudia in the most obvious way - they share the same spell - but other than
that, they're actually rather different characters. Morgan is a bit weaker
statistically, but her real draw is her Fighting Spirit Skill, which doubles
the Volty she gathers by attacking. When Linked, Morgan grants this skill to
your entire team, filling your Volty Gauge at a startling rate.
So, now, then, for the question you're all wondering: which witch is better,
Morgan or Claudia? Well, as a general rule it doesn't matter, but if you're
really torn between the two: Claudia will become stronger and a bit more
survivable than Morgan, but not until very high levels. Morgan is stronger
early on with less work put into her and Fighting Spirit is a more team-
friendly skill than Nine Lives, which gives her an added dimension of
utility that Claudia lacks. If you want self-sufficiency, go for Claudia.
If you want a more team-supporty mage, go for Morgan.
Strategies:
Unlike Claudia, who you can and probably will leave to her own devices
most of the time, Morgan should be Linked with as much as possible to take
advantage of her outstanding Fighting Spirit Skill. Like Claudia, Morgan
fits seamlessly into any position of any Link due to the unobtrusiveness
of the guard-breaking, non-knockdown Energy Drain, so doing this is no
hardship. You do need to be careful with Morgan, though; she's less evasive
than Claudia and doesn't have the safety net of Nine Lives to fall back on,
so if you bring her into the melee with Attack or Box Link, you might find
her dying more often than you'd like. She's really better off being kept
back in a Line or Wave Link instead.
Rating: 7/10
*******************************************************************************
URSULA
*******************************************************************************
Ursula is an assistant professor at the Vareth Magic Institute. Her
specialty is golem creation. The dwarves excel in the creation of golems,
but Ursula surpasses even them. She looks polite and mature, but is actually
short-tempered and very frank. When she gets mad, she has a tendency to
resort to physical violence.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 34
Weapon: Entier (Water)
Armor: Blue Robe (Water)
Accessory: Magic Boost (Reduces cast time for magic)
Skill: Bad Carrier LV 2 (Causes random ailments to foes when attacking)
Resists Freeze
Thought Process: Standard -> Standard -> Aggressive
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 34 611 155 135 105 25
LV 50 1089 199 172 105 36
LV 75 1837 268 231 105 53
LV MAX 2554 335 287 105 70
Rating D C D F E
Items:
Weapon: Entier
"Ursula's staff. A more powerful version of Neredoe. She can cast Water
Blast, a spell that releases a giant water snake."
Armor: Blue Robe
"A mage's robe made from fibers containing water elements. It boasts
remarkably high defense and is resistant to freeze."
Accessory: Magic Boost
"A tool needed to invoke magic. It is similar to the elemental stone
reactor. Invokes magic quickly when equipped."
Attacks:
Water Blast
"A water serpent appears to knock down nearby foes.
Element: Water Range: Average Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.6
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 318.4 LV 75: 428.8 LV MAX: 536.0
Water Blast Effect:
Ursula points her wand straight ahead and fires a long waterspout out of
the end that assumes the form of a snake. The water snake writhes about
for a short time, then dissolves into bubbles and vanishes.
How to Recruit:
Talk to her after clearing both of her Challenges against Melissa.
Pros:
-Bad Carrier (and a much better spell than Thunderstorm to use it with)
-Decent ATK
-Resists Freeze
Cons:
-All stats except ATK are pretty pathetic
-Her magic is melee, which is unfortunate combined with her low defenses
Analysis:
Ursula is closer to what Franklin should have been, but unfortunately, she
continues to prove that the paradigm of a defensively weak mage with melee
magic is not the easiest thing in the world to make work. (Cornelia gets
away with it because her magic protects her; Ursula isn't quite so lucky.)
This doesn't mean Ursula is bad, though. Water Blast casts very quickly
and knocks enemies away from Ursula, and unlike Franklin, she has a reason
to dart in and use this spell: she has Bad Carrier and thus often leaves
nasty status effects in her wake. Water Blast has pretty decent reach and
can hit multiple enemies; when Bad Carrier procs on multiple targets
simultaneously is when you'll be the most pleased that you chose to take
this bitingly intelligent golem-maker along.
Strategies:
Like Marietta, Ursula really functions best in Wave Link, adopting a hit-
and-run playstyle. The dash-away of Wave Link cuts short the frankly
ridiculous cooldown animation of Water Blast, which is the time Ursula is
most vulnerable, and because she'll be Linked to the rest of your team,
everyone will share in her Bad Carrier Skill to deliciously evil results.
Another perfect fit is Line Link; Ursula has enough ATK to make the Line
shockwaves hurt and Water Blast will knock away any enemy that gets too
close to your formation.
Ursula doesn't exactly need Command buffs to function (as opposed to, say,
Aidan,) but with defenses as bad as hers, one "Endurance" or "Heaven's
Gate" buff can mean the difference between life and death. She can be a
bit of a Volty drain in this regard if she keeps getting in trouble and
needing your help to stay alive; if this is becoming problematic, try using
Guard Link to pull her out of the way of incoming attacks, staying farther
back with Line Link, or bringing the Fighting Spirit skill along to increase
your rate of Volty gathering.
Rating: 6/10
******************************************
******************************************
******************************************
3.02 NON-HUMAN MAGES
******************************************
******************************************
******************************************
*******************************************************************************
ALAN
*******************************************************************************
Alan is a light elf biologist who assists Few in her research. He is now
starting to conduct his own research into light elves. His dazed expression
hides a serious and hard-working character. He works diligently to find the
answers to the questions that constantly come to him.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 12
Armor: Grass Clothes (Wind)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Earth Defense LV 1 (Decreases damage of earth attacks)
Resists Death
Strongly Resists Poison, Freeze, Blaze, and Confuse
Thought Process: Passive -> Passive -> Passive
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 12 296 72 76 61 52
LV 25 673 108 105 94 68
LV 50 1400 179 163 157 101
LV 75 2127 249 220 221 133
LV MAX 2825 379 275 281 164
Rating C A E B D
Items:
Armor: Grass Clothes
"Made from cross plant seedlings. So light, you'll forget you're wearing
them."
Attacks:
Earth Needles
"Elf magic summons barbed ivy from beneath the ground."
Element: Earth Range: Long Effect: Break Parry, Knockup
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.3
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: 140.4 LV 50: 232.7 LV 75: 286.0 LV MAX: 492.7
Leaf Barrier
"Elf magic forms a barrier of leaves to attack the foe."
Element: Wind Range: Around self Effect: N/A
Hits: 1-2 Knockback: 1.5 Power: 0.9
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 64.8 LV 50: 143.2 LV 75: 224.1 LV MAX: 341.1
Light Bow
"Elf magic creates an arrow of light. An attack that is impossible to
evade."
Element: None Range: Long Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.4
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: 151.2 LV 50: 250.6 LV 75: 348.6 LV MAX: 530.6
Earth Needles Effect:
Golden light shines from Alan's hands, and a huge spike made of twisted
vines erupts from the ground under one target, knocking them into the air.
Leaf Barrier Effect:
Alan spins around once and creates a huge green sphere of wind and flying
leaves around himself. Enemies that touch the barrier are knocked away and
take damage.
Light Bow Effect:
Alan creates a bow of sizzling golden energy in his hands and shoots it at
the target, damaging them.
How to Recruit:
Bring him five Matango Larvae (ewww).
Pros:
-Surprisingly high ATK at MAX level
-Uses the rare and useful Earth Needles spell, which breaks Parry
-Has Earth Defense to counter the Earth weakness of his Grass Clothes
Cons:
-ATK growth is backloaded into the endgame
-Fragile
-Completely Passive thought processes
Analysis:
The best way to describe Alan is "the polar opposite of Jill." While Jill
starts out strong but dwindles to a pure utility role by endgame due to
poor stat growth, Alan starts out forced into a utility role by his low base
stats but will eventually grow into a monster. For some reason, Alan gains
a whopping 130 ATK between levels 75 and 100, putting him only nine points
of ATK behind Gil, who is the strongest light elf caster. When combined
with his parry-breaking Earth Needles and multi-hitting Leaf Barrier, that
379 ATK at max level is an awfully tempting goal to shoot for. But can you
last through sixty-three levels of mediocrity to reach that orbital growth
period?
Strategies:
Until Alan hits the level where he will begin to blossom into the harbinger
of doom he is meant to be, he's not going to contribute much to your party.
He lacks Jill's ability to cause Blaze and most light elves' ability to
heal, so the only thing he'll really be good for at first is breaking enemy
guard with Earth Needles. Light elf spells don't have very good damage
ratios, and Earth Needles is no exception, so "Power Injection" doesn't
help Alan as much as it helps human mages like Franklin or Marietta.
"Endurance" can still be useful, though, as Alan is quite fragile.
Once Alan catches up to the rest of your party in levels, his damage will
at least become noticeable, at which point you can start taking advantage
of his Leaf Barrier. All light elves except for Few and Gil have the Leaf
Barrier spell, which functions as a shorter, weaker version of Cornelia's
Barrier Tornado, and all of the tricks you can accomplish with Barrier
Tornado can be pulled off - to a lesser degree - with Leaf Barrier. (It's
quite fun to have a party of three light elves, activate Line Link and
their Leaf Barriers, and rush across the battlefield like a runaway train,
knocking over everything in your path.)
If you put in the time to grind Alan all the way up to max level, you
won't need to worry about any strategy for him anymore. He'll just ride
roughshod over anything that gets in his way from then on out. Just point
him in the right direction and watch out, world!
Rating: 5/10
*******************************************************************************
COCO
*******************************************************************************
A young dark elf who always wears a blank expression on his face. Some
people worry about him, but it's just his natural expression. He walks away
when people begin talking to him, but that is because he is shy and not used
to conversing with others. Once he opens up to you, he is willing to talk -
sometimes.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 26
Armor: Leaf Clothes (None)
Accessory: Luck Bracelet (LUK +5)
Skill: Fire Defense LV 1 (Decreases damage of fire attacks)
Does not resist ailments
Thought Process: Passive -> Brave -> Brave
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 26 515 121 110 99 74
LV 50 1401 182 169 171 81
LV 75 2324 247 231 246 90
LV MAX 3211 308 291 318 98
Rating B D D A E
Items:
Armor: Leaf Clothes
"Made from the fallen leaves of the Nowem region. Very light and well-made."
Accessory: Luck Bracelet
"A magical bangle made at the Vareth Magic Institute. Increases luck when
equipped."
Attacks:
Fireball
"Elf magic unleashes fireballs, sometimes igniting the foe."
Element: Fire Range: Long Effect: Blaze 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.3
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 236.6 LV 75: 321.1 LV MAX: 400.4
Lightning Bolt
"Elf magic is used to unleash bolts of lightning."
Element: Wind Range: Long Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.6
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 291.2 LV 75: 395.2 LV MAX: 492.8
Fireball Effect:
A shining light in Coco's hand conjures a fireball that flies at the foe.
Lightning Bolt Effect:
Coco raises his hands into the air and calls down a lightning bolt that
electrocutes the target. The bolt can hit more than one enemy if they are
standing VERY close together.
How to Recruit:
Talk to him alone, with nobody else in your party, after escorting Gawain to
Fort Helencia.
Pros:
-Causes Blaze
Cons:
-Generally the lowest stats of the dark elves
Analysis:
I want to like Coco more than I can really justify. His stats are low, his
spells are just the dark elf regulars Fireball and Lightning, his accessory
is bad, and his Skill is boring; however, I feel bad for his awkward, lonely
nature. His damage is better than you'd expect, due to Lightning Bolt's high
damage ratio and Fireball's Blaze infliction, so he can contribute just fine
if you bring him along; it's just that almost any other dark elf can
contribute more. Poor Coco.
Strategies:
Other than high EVA, Coco's stats are pretty uniformly mediocre, but he
does at least get points for having Lightning Bolt, which is the highest
damage ratio spell on the non-human side. Because of this, jacking up his
ATK with "Power Injection" can be a good way to maximize his performance in
battle. His atrocious LUK can be covered with "Heaven's Gate," too, which
is a helpful thing to remember when status ailments rear their ugly heads.
Like the other dark elf mages, Coco doesn't have any particular synergy or
lack thereof with any of the various Links. Use them and him as you please.
Rating: 6/10
*******************************************************************************
FAN
*******************************************************************************
Fan is a light elf who can charm non-elves into doing her bidding. She looks
down on other races and often uses her cutesy tricks for no other purpose
than her own amusement. She is always perky and cute around others, but it
is all an act. She is actually quite rough and ill-mannered.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 30
Armor: Grass Clothes (Wind)
Accessory: Skill Upper (EVA +2)
Skill: Evasion Plus LV 2 (Increases evasion)
Resists Death
Strongly Resists Poison, Freeze, Blaze, and Confuse
Thought Process: Passive -> Passive -> Passive
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 30 602 150 145 118 48
LV 50 1317 206 193 171 91
LV 75 2210 277 253 239 145
LV MAX 3069 345 310 304 197
Rating C B C A C
Items:
Armor: Grass Clothes
"Made from cross plant seedlings. So light, you'll forget you're wearing
them."
Accessory: Skill Upper
"A magical bangle made at the Vareth Magic Institute. Increases evasion
when equipped."
Attacks:
Leaf Barrier
"Elf magic is used to form a protective wind barrier."
Element: Wind Range: Around self Effect: N/A
Hits: 1-2 Knockback: 1.5 Power: 0.9
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 185.4 LV 75: 249.3 LV MAX: 310.5
Light Bow
"Elf magic is used to unleash a dazzling arrow of light that can paralyze
the foe."
Element: None Range: Long Effect: Paralyze 1.5
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.4
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 288.4 LV 75: 387.8 LV MAX: 483.0
Forest Blessing
"Elf magic summons the forest dew. Heals HP and afflictions of party
members."
Element: Curative Range: Ally Effect: Heals 20% maximum HP;
Hits: 1 Knockback: N/A cures all ailments
Knockdown? N/A Charge Time: Average
Leaf Barrier Effect:
Fan spins around once and creates a huge green sphere of wind and flying
leaves around herself. Enemies that touch the barrier are knocked away and
take damage.
Light Bow Effect:
Fan creates a bow of sizzling golden energy in her hands and shoots it at
the target, damaging them.
Forest Blessing Effect:
Golden energy radiates from Fan's hands, and she releases it, causing green
light to heal one ally.
How to Recruit:
Talk to her between 9 PM and 2 AM after Gawain visits Fort Helencia and win
her race. (Tip: equip the Feather Earring.)
Pros:
-Good stats all around; very high EVA
-Forest Blessing, a healing spell that also cures all ailments
-Can cause Paralysis with her unique version of Light Bow
Cons:
-Completely Passive thought process
Analysis:
Fan is a brat, but she's a very talented brat. Her stats are high across the
board and she has the unique spell Forest Blessing, which restores HP and
cures all ailments from one target. With the dearth of healers on the non-
human side, this is a valuable spell to have around. While her damage output
isn't too high due to low ratios, she protects herself with Leaf Barrier and
can paralyze enemies using Light Bow. If you don't mind some micromanaging,
Fan does a great job as a control mage and support character throughout the
entire game.
Strategies:
Light elves are almost all pure Passive in their thought processes, so it's
important to direct them to action when you notice them standing around
doing nothing. As a healer, you want Fan to be particularly proactive, so
make sure to Command her to "Cure Friend" as soon as you notice somebody's
HP dropping. Light elf healing cast time is about half that of human healer
cast time (except for Keane, who is a special case,) so Fan can afford to
be a bit slow starting up her healing; still, it's best not to tempt fate.
Most people swear by including either Fan or Romaria in their non-human
path parties due to their ability to cure status effects with their healing
spell. This is a valid reason for doing so, but don't forget that Fan can
also contribute rather effectively to damage. Her Light Bow skill causes
Paralysis and has a pretty good damage ratio, and her ATK is surprisingly
high for a light elf, which really makes it smart. Plus, there's always
Leaf Barrier and all the fun Linking havoc you can create with it.
Rating: 9/10
*******************************************************************************
FEW
*******************************************************************************
A light elf scholar who began her research after realizing the light elves
had not progressed in any way since her birth. Perhaps it is because she is
a scholar, but she is unusual among light elves in that she does not look
down upon other races. She is absorbed in her work, devoting herself to it
as if there was no tomorrow.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 20
Armor: Grass Clothes (Wind)
Accessory: Power Stone (The party restores HP as you walk around the map)
Skill: Luck Plus LV 1 (Increases LUK)
Resists Death
Strongly Resists Poison, Freeze, Blaze, and Confuse
Thought Process: Brave -> Brave -> Timid
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 20 395 100 99 78 45
LV 25 567 115 111 87 53
LV 50 1427 193 173 135 94
LV 75 2287 270 234 183 135
LV MAX 3113 345 294 230 174
Rating B B D C C
Items:
Armor: Grass Clothes
"Made from cross plant seedlings. So light, you'll forget you're wearing
them."
Accessory: Power Stone
"A necklace made from a pink celestial stone. It provides healing power when
equipped."
Attacks:
Sword of Ice
"Elf magic is used to create a sword of ice which freezes the foe."
Element: Water Range: Long Effect: Freeze 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.4
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 161.0 LV 50: 270.2 LV 75: 378.0 LV MAX: 483.0
Projection Bash
"Elf magic is used to create a vacuum by swinging a sword of ice."
Element: Wind Range: Long Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.0
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 115.0 LV 50: 193.0 LV 75: 270.0 LV MAX: 345.0
Sword of Ice Effect:
Few creates a long, slim saber of ice and slashes her target once with it.
Projection Bash Effect:
Few spins once, conjuring her ice saber in her hand, and hurls a purple
crescent-shaped projectile at her target.
How to Recruit:
Talk to her after Gawain's visit to Fort Helencia with a party consisting of
one green goblin, one black goblin, and one dark elf.
Pros:
-One of the few non-human mages with a useful accessory: a Power Stone
-One of only TWO light elves with a non-Passive thought process!
-Can cause Freeze
-High stats everywhere except DEF
-Doesn't knock down
Cons:
-DEF is a little low
-Inferior to Gil in every way except accessory, yet joins after him
Analysis:
Few's closest human path analogue is Derek. Like Derek, she is a strong
and useful character in her own right who has the misfortune of being
completely overshadowed by one of her contemporaries, who is also the most
powerful mage on their respective paths. Derek has Felix; Few has Gil. Few
is very much a "Gil-lite," having attacks with identical names but fewer
hits than his, and possessed of worse stats in all areas. Gil is a very
powerful character, though, so even being an inferior version of him means
Few is pretty strong; and besides, there's no law saying you can't use both
of them together!
Strategies:
Few is very aggressive, being the only light elf with a Brave thought
process, and will dart into the thick of the action to lay about fiercely
with her freezing saber of doom. In pretty much all occasions, this is
exactly where you want her. Few does a lot of damage in a very short time,
so chances are good that you won't need to advise her for anything other
than protecting your healers on occasion.
"Power Injection" and "Endurance" help make up the stat difference between
Few and Gil, but Few does enough damage on her own that she doesn't need
Commands to be good at what she does. Save your Volty for Volty Blasts or
other, more valuable Commands instead.
Rating: 8/10
*******************************************************************************
GIL
*******************************************************************************
Gil is a light elf poet who serves as Zane's right-hand man. He is also a
daydreamer who sometimes has a hard time differentiating between reality
and fantasy. His poems are fantastic and wonderful. They are in much demand
by other races. He is also the leading light elf assassin.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 34
Armor: Grass Clothes (Wind)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Fire Defense LV 2 (Decreases damage of fire attacks)
Resists Death
Strongly Resists Poison, Freeze, Blaze, and Confuse
Thought Process: Standard -> Standard -> Standard
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 34 883 205 157 160 143
LV 50 1547 250 195 185 184
LV 75 2584 320 256 224 248
LV MAX 3580 388 314 262 311
Rating A A C B A
Items:
Armor: Grass Clothes
"Made from cross plant seedlings. So light, you'll forget you're wearing
them."
Attacks:
Sword of Ice
"A sword of ice is created to slice the foe. It sometimes freezes the foe."
Element: Water Range: Long Effect: Freeze 1.0
Hits: 1-3 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 0.8
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 200.0 LV 75: 256.0 LV MAX: 310.4
Projection Bash
"Elf magic is used to create a sword of ice which unleashes three blades of
ice."
Element: Wind Range: Long Effect: N/A
Hits: 1-3 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.0
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 250.0 LV 75: 320.0 LV MAX: 388.0
Sword of Ice Effect:
Gil creates a long blade of ice and rushes his target with it, dealing
multiple hits with a single slash.
Projection Bash Effect:
Gil summons his ice sword and swings it, hurling three purple wind beams
out in a fan pattern.
How to Recruit:
Talk to and defeat him after the story path splits.
Pros:
-One of only TWO light elves with a non-Passive thought process!
-Can cause Freeze
-Great stats
-Doesn't knock down
Cons:
-Um...
Analysis:
Gil is the closest thing to Felix the non-human side gets. His attacks are
quick, multi-hitting, and very strong, especially backed by his crazy ATK
score, and his defensive fragility is somewhat compensated by high EVA and
the sheer speed at which he kills things. There's really not much to say
about Gil: he's fantastic in every regard.
Strategies:
Due to his flat Standard thought processes, Gil doesn't require much
intervention or direction from Jack to be effective. He is the leading
light elf assassin, after all; it shouldn't be a surprise that's he's well
adept at slaying his enemies. As always, turn his attention to other
targets with "Attack Enemy" if he's getting in your way; other than that,
you can safely let Gil do whatever Gil wants to do. It'll usually turn out
all right.
Rating: 10/10
*******************************************************************************
HYANN
*******************************************************************************
A dark elf who loves to gamble, sing, dance, and have a good time. If he
hears of a new kind of entertainment, he will travel even to the human
villages to find out about it. His one and only policy is to have fun; he
always makes sure he enjoys himself to the max.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 16
Armor: Leaf Clothes (None)
Accessory: Lucky Charm (LUK +15)
Skill: Wind Defense LV 2 (Decreases damage of wind attacks)
Does not resist ailments
Thought Process: Passive -> Brave -> Brave
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 16 329 85 90 55 66
LV 25 640 112 117 72 77
LV 50 1505 190 194 119 108
LV 75 2370 268 271 167 139
LV MAX 3200 342 345 213 168
Rating B B B D D
Items:
Armor: Leaf Clothes
"Made from the fallen leaves of the Nowem region. Very light and well-made."
Accessory: Lucky Charm
"A more powerful version of the Luck Bracelet. Increases luck greatly when
equipped."
Attacks:
Fireball
"Elf magic is used to unleash fireballs from the palms of her [sic] hands."
Element: Fire Range: Long Effect: Blaze 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.3
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: 145.6 LV 50: 247.0 LV 75: 348.4 LV MAX: 444.6
Lightning Bolt
"Elf magic is used to unleash lightning bolts to attack the foe."
Element: Wind Range: Long Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.6
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: 179.2 LV 50: 304.0 LV 75: 428.8 LV MAX: 547.2
Fireball Effect:
A shining light in Hyann's hand conjures a fireball that flies at the foe.
Lightning Bolt Effect:
Hyann raises his hands into the air and calls down a lightning bolt that
electrocutes the target. The bolt can hit more than one enemy if they are
standing VERY close together.
How to Recruit:
Win four consecutive rounds of his dice game.
Pros:
-High stats
-Causes Blaze
Cons:
-Irritating to try and recruit
-Low EVA and LUK
Analysis:
Hyann is something of an unnoticed powerhouse on the dark elf side. He
does slightly less damage than Marsha, who is the strongest dark elf mage,
but he makes up for it by having a lot more DEF and therefore sticking
around longer in a fight. His spells have a lot of ATK to work with and
the typically high dark elf power ratios to multiply them by, so Hyann's
damage is pretty noticeable, and if he manages to make Blaze stick on a
Fireball or two, he'll contribute even more. Probably the biggest downside
to Hyann is trying to recruit him; his dice game is pretty annoying and
luck-based and drives me crazy trying to win at it.
Strategies:
Hyann's one weakness is his low EVA and LUK, which leave him particularly
vulnerable to status ailments. The "Heaven's Gate" Command is good for
covering this weakness of his and helping him barrel right through targets
with impeding status ailment attacks.
Now's as good a time as any to remind you that characters with high ATK,
like Hyann, are great at clearing random encounters rapidly through abuse
of Square Link. Dark elf mages not named Romaria are especially fond of
Square Link, as they have no AOE damage themselves unless enemies stand on
top of each other and get hit by Lightning Bolt, so keep this in mind when
speeding through areas for questing and recruitment.
Rating: 8/10
*******************************************************************************
KEANE
*******************************************************************************
Keane is the light elf owner of the accessory store in the light elf
village. She opened her store to advertise the excellent quality of elf-
made items. Though she feels that elves are superior, she harbors no
particular prejudices toward other races. She is always happy to get her
customers' opinions to improve her shop and its merchandise.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 18
Armor: Grass Clothes (Wind)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Prevent Bind LV 1 (Protects from Bind ailment)
Resists Death
Strongly Resists Poison, Freeze, Blaze, and Confuse
Thought Process: Passive -> Passive -> Passive
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 18 364 90 93 67 65
LV 25 578 109 111 86 75
LV 50 1346 177 178 154 112
LV 75 2113 245 245 223 148
LV MAX 2850 310 309 289 183
Rating C C D B C
Items:
Armor: Grass Clothes
"Made from cross plant seedlings. So light, you'll forget you're wearing
them."
Attacks:
Leaf Barrier
"Elf magic creates a tornado of leaves that sends foes flying."
Element: Wind Range: Around self Effect: N/A
Hits: 1-2 Knockback: 1.5 Power: 0.9
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 98.1 LV 50: 159.3 LV 75: 220.5 LV MAX: 279.0
Light Bow
"Elf magic is used to create an arrow of light that is shot at the foe."
Element: None Range: Long Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.5 Power: 1.4
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: 152.6 LV 50: 247.8 LV 75: 343.0 LV MAX: 434.0
Forest Drop
"Elf magic heals party members with the help of the forest. Short cast
time."
Element: Curative Range: Ally Effect: Heals 20% maximum HP
Hits: 1 Knockback: N/A Power: N/A
Knockdown? N/A Charge Time: Short
Leaf Barrier Effect:
Keane spins around once and creates a huge green sphere of wind and flying
leaves around herself. Enemies that touch the barrier are knocked away and
take damage.
Light Bow Effect:
Keane creates a bow of sizzling golden energy in her hands and shoots it at
the target, damaging them.
Forest Drop Effect:
Golden energy radiates from Keane's hands. She raises her hands into the
air, and green light plays over one ally, healing them.
How to Recruit:
Spend 10,000 Dagols at her store, then talk to her after the story split.
Pros:
-Her Light Bow has increased knockback
-She has the fastest healing spell in the game: 1.5 second charge time!
Cons:
-A little on the fragile side
-Completely Passive thought process (although this can be an advantage)
Analysis:
I mentioned earlier that most people swear by having either Fan or Romaria
in their non-human parties to act as their healer. The few people who don't
swear by Fan or Romaria instead swear by Keane. This is because Keane has,
bar none, the FASTEST healing spell in the game. Once Keane starts casting,
it takes approximately 1.5 seconds for her to finish and heal her target.
Compared to the 7 seconds of charge time it takes all human healers except
Kain, that is ridiculous. Keane can heal four times in the time it takes
Flora to heal once, and she can heal twice in the time it takes Romaria or
Fan to heal once.
Keane is a less common pick than Fan or Romaria for valid reasons; she
can't cure status effects like they can, her stats aren't as good, and she
takes a lot more micromanaging to make the most of her healing spell. If
you stay on top of the "Cure Friend" Command with her, she can heal the
entire party back to full in literally seconds, but on her own, her Passive
thought process does her no favors. (On the plus side, though, being Passive
keeps her available for your Command spam, so those who DO plan to micro-
manage her healing tableau will find her Passive mindset more of a blessing
than a curse.) Despite her flaws, though, Keane has an advantage no other
character on either game path can match, and she's got all the right stuff
to turn that advantage into unparalleled victory for those who use her.
Strategies:
"Cure Friend" is the must-have Command to take full advantage of Keane's
Forest Drop magic. Keane can be a bit slow to heal on her own (although
"slow" for Keane is still faster than most characters react, due to her low
cast time,) but with you directing her via "Cure Friend," she slings heals
around the battlefield like a boss. If you just need her to heal one ally,
assign her to "Cure Friend" once and watch that ally's HP leap back to full
within seconds (I've seen Keane heal allies through multi-hitting attacks
that otherwise would have killed them in this manner). If the whole team
needs a pick-me-up, keep an eye on each person's health bar until she's
filled it up, then "Cure Friend" onto the next person in line. It works
like a charm.
Keane's low ATK prevents her from doing a whole lot of damage, but she has
a few subtle tricks in her repertoire that make her better than you might
think. Her Light Bow attack has stronger knockback than that of her fellow
light elves, which helps keep enemies out of her face so she can continue
healing, and of course there's always Leaf Barrier and the Linking fun you
can have with it.
If you've always been a firm proponent of Team Fan or Team Romaria in your
playthroughs up until now, the next time you play, consider giving Team
Keane a try. You may be surprised in the very best way by her performance.
Rating: 8/10
*******************************************************************************
LUFA
*******************************************************************************
Lufa is the dark elf cook. The elder placed her in charge of meals for the
dark elf village. Instead of normal dishes, she insists on making original
recipes, most of which turn out to be inedible because she does not bother
to taste-test them when she's cooking. She is always looking to try out new
recipes.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 23
Armor: Leaf Clothes (None)
Accessory: Pluto's Trophy (Increases Dagols won from battle by 25%)
Skill: Wind Defense LV 1 (Decreases damage of wind attacks)
Does not resist ailments
Thought Process: Passive -> Brave -> Brave
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 23 447 109 110 70 53
LV 25 515 114 117 73 55
LV 50 1373 188 205 123 90
LV 75 2231 262 293 172 124
LV MAX 3054 333 377 220 157
Rating C C A D D
Items:
Armor: Leaf Clothes
"Made from the fallen leaves of the Nowem region. Very light and well-made."
Accessory: Pluto's Trophy
"A figure of Pluto, god of wealth. When equipped, increases amount of dagols
won after battle."
Attacks:
Fireball
"Elf magic is used to create and unleash fireballs."
Element: Fire Range: Long Effect: Blaze 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.3
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: 148.2 LV 50: 244.4 LV 75: 340.6 LV MAX: 432.9
Healing
Element: Curative Range: Ally Effect: Heals 20% maximum HP
Hits: 1 Knockback: N/A Power: N/A
Knockdown? N/A Charge Time: Average
Fireball Effect:
A shining light in Lufa's hand conjures a fireball that flies at the foe.
Healing Effect:
Lufa raises her hands into the air; they shine with energy, and one ally
becomes bathed in healing green light.
How to Recruit:
Bring her Polpo's Soup. Can be done before the path split on a New Game +,
as Polpo's Soup carries over between games; otherwise, must be done after
the split and after recruiting Polpo.
Pros:
-High DEF
-She can heal
-Causes Blaze
-Only non-human side character to have a Pluto's Trophy
Cons:
-Underwhelming damage output
Analysis:
There are three dark elves whose move list consists of Fireball and Healing:
Lufa, Rika, and Zida. Of them, Lufa has the lowest stats (by a VERY narrow
margin) but more than makes up for it with her accessory: a Pluto's Trophy,
the only one on the non-human side. On top of being your go-to girl when
you need extra Dagols, Lufa also boasts high DEF, especially for a mage, and
reliable Healing to lighten the burden on Fan, Keane, or Romaria. Her damage
is a little wanting, between her only average ATK and damage ratios, but she
pulls her weight well enough to make up this difference.
Strategies:
Lufa doesn't take much to make work in a fight. The dark elf Fireball isn't
a great spell to be stuck with, as it takes a while to charge and moves
slowly, but you can supplement it with the shockwaves from Line or Wide
Link or forego it completely with Square Link. Lufa's ATK isn't going to
break any damage records, but it's high enough that enemies will notice when
she hits them, and it doesn't hinder her Healing or the damage caused when
she applies Blaze.
One thing Lufa is quite good at is "Be Bait," as her high DEF and healing
capabilities make her very good at stonewalling enemies, especially in lieu
of a fragile light elf or green goblin. Watch out for her low LUK if the
enemies cause status effects, though. If you don't have Fan or Romaria in
your party, you may want to dose the party with "Heaven's Gate" before
having Lufa act in such a capacity.
Rating: 7/10
*******************************************************************************
MARSHA
*******************************************************************************
Marsha is the owner of the general store in the dark elf village. The little
products lined up in her store are things she bought from merchants and
travelers. Although she seems to listen to other people's stories, her
noncommittal responses suggest she doesn't really pay any attention. She is
only nice to others because she wants to be liked.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 9
Armor: Leaf Clothes (None)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Prevent Bind LV 1 (Protects from Bind ailment)
Does not resist ailments
Thought Process: Passive -> Brave -> Brave
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 9 255 70 69 55 47
LV 25 772 122 116 86 89
LV 50 1581 204 191 136 155
LV 75 2390 287 265 186 221
LV MAX 3167 366 336 233 285
Rating B B C C B
Items:
Armor: Leaf Clothes
"Made from the fallen leaves of the Nowem region. Very light and well-made."
Attacks:
Fireball
"Elf magic is used to unleash fireballs from the palm of her hands."
Element: Fire Range: Long Effect: Blaze 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.3
Knockback? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: 158.6 LV 50: 265.2 LV 75: 373.1 LV MAX: 475.8
Lightning Bolt
"Elf magic unleashes bolts of lightning, binding the foe."
Element: Wind Range: Long Effect: Bind 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.6
Knockback? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: 195.2 LV 50: 326.4 LV 75: 459.2 LV MAX: 585.6
Fireball Effect:
A shining light in Marsha's hand conjures a fireball that flies at the foe.
Lightning Bolt Effect:
Marsha raises her hands into the air and calls down a lightning bolt that
electrocutes the target. The bolt can hit more than one enemy if they are
standing VERY close together.
How to Recruit:
Spend 10,000 Dagols at her store, then talk to her after the story split.
Pros:
-Possibly the best stats out of all of the dark elf mages
-Causes Blaze
-Her Lightning Bolt causes Bind
Cons:
-She's a terrible person (albeit really good in a fight)
Analysis:
This may come as a shock, but Marsha is actually astoundingly good. None of
her parameters fall below 200, her AI is active, she's got Fireball for
Blaze, and her Lightning Bolt is unique in that it causes Bind, unlike that
of all the other dark elves. Bind and Freeze are, in my opinion, the best
status effects in the game because they hold the enemy still and stop it
from being knocked down; if Marsha can apply Bind, you can trigger Attack
Link and Leaf Barrier your victim from all sides with dramatic results.
Both in terms of pure damage and additional status utility, Marsha is the
out-of-left-field best dark elf mage you can recruit. Who knew, huh?
Strategies:
I confess I rarely use Marsha, as I find her personality distasteful, but
when she joins the fight, she functions virtually identically to Mikey,
Coco, or Hyann, just... better. She's not quite as defensive as Hyann or
Mikey, but that random application of Bind protects her better than any
defense could, to say nothing of that "Kill everything before it kills you
first" strategy she must have picked up from Gil. Just turn her loose and
follow in her Binding wake. Things will work out somehow.
Rating: 9/10
*******************************************************************************
MIKEY
*******************************************************************************
A dark elf who loves to read and spend most of his time with books. He
reads about elves and other races and has become very knowledgeable. He
particularly likes original works, especially those by human authors. He
is pretty laid-back most of the time, but if something catches his interest
he can get quite excited.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 27
Armor: Leaf Clothes (None)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Wind Defense LV 1 (Decreases damage of wind attacks)
Does not resist ailments
Thought Process: Passive -> Brave -> Brave
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 27 810 117 125 85 54
LV 50 1563 188 199 152 87
LV 75 2381 264 280 225 124
LV MAX 3166 337 357 295 160
Rating B C B A D
Items:
Armor: Leaf Clothes
"Made from the fallen leaves of the Nowem region. Very light and well-made."
Attacks:
Fireball
"Elf magic is used to unleash fireballs from both hands."
Element: Fire Range: Long Effect: Blaze 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.3
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 244.4 LV 75: 343.2 LV MAX: 438.1
Lightning Bolt
"Elf magic creates a storm that unleashes bolts of lightning."
Element: Wind Range: Long Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 1.0 Power: 1.6
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 300.8 LV 75: 422.4 LV MAX: 539.2
Fireball Effect:
A shining light in Mikey's hand conjures a fireball that flies at the foe.
Lightning Bolt Effect:
Mikey raises his hands into the air and calls down a lightning bolt that
electrocutes the target. The bolt can hit more than one enemy if they are
standing VERY close together.
How to Recruit:
Talk to him between 10:05 PM and 1:55 AM on three separate days and offer to
tell him stories.
Pros:
-Can really take a hit with his high HP, DEF, and EVA
-Causes Blaze
-If you don't like him, you have no soul
Cons:
-Low LUK
Analysis:
In addition to being the Iron Woobie to end all Woobies, Mikey brings
surprising prowess to the battlefield. He makes up for his unimpressive
ATK with the high damage ratio of Lightning Bolt and has a sturdy array
of defenses, registering high scores in HP, DEF, and EVA to boot. Hyann
and Marsha are probably slightly better than he is due to their ATK stat
advantages, but Mikey leaves them both in the dust in EVA and may be
considered to beat them both in total damage when his defenses keep him
alive the longest. He doesn't have any unique quirks or interesting added
effects like Marsha's Bind, but if you bring him along, Mikey won't let you
down.
Strategies:
Like Lufa, Mikey is very good at defending other allies with "Be Bait" or
"Backup," but he'll do more damage than Lufa when he gets there, making
him perhaps even more effective at the job. Like most dark elves, Mikey
does have a problem with LUK, so watch out for status ailments and bring
either Fan, Romaria, Cleansing Stones, or "Heaven's Gate" along to counter
them. Beyond that, Mikey is pretty much as self-sufficient as Hyann and
Marsha and doesn't need much attention to do well.
Rating: 8/10
*******************************************************************************
PITT
*******************************************************************************
Pitt is the youngest of the light elves. He does not know much about the
world and harbors no ill will toward any other species. He leads a carefree
life, talking to anyone he meets in his wanderings around the village. He is
curious, like any child, and finds enjoyment in the simplest of activities.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 28
Armor: Grass Clothes (Wind)
Accessory: Beckoning Cat (Increases drop rate of items by 50%)
Skill: Water Defense LV 1 (Decreases damage of water attacks)
Strongly Resists Poison, Freeze, Blaze, Confuse, and Instant Death
Thought Process: Passive -> Passive -> Passive
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 28 722 121 121 80 58
LV 50 1445 189 178 125 95
LV 75 2267 265 243 176 138
LV MAX 3055 339 305 225 178
Rating C C D D C
Items:
Armor: Grass Clothes
"Made from cross plant seedlings. So light, you'll forget you're wearing
them."
Accessory: Beckoning Cat
"A magical, beckoning cat figure. Increases chance of obtaining items when
equipped."
Attacks:
Leaf Barrier
"Elf magic is used to create a barrier of wind to attack the foe."
Element: Wind Range: Around self Effect: N/A
Hits: 1-2 Knockback: 1.5 Power: 0.9
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 170.1 LV 75: 238.5 LV MAX: 305.1
Light Bow
"Elf magic creates arrows of light. The arrows travel a fair distance."
Element: None Range: Long Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.4
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 264.6 LV 75: 371.0 LV MAX: 474.6
Forest Drop
"A drop of miracle dew found in the depths of the forest heals party
members."
Element: Curative Range: Ally Effect: Heals 20% maximum HP
Hits: 1 Knockback: N/A Power: N/A
Knockdown? N/A Charge Time: Average
Leaf Barrier Effect:
Pitt spins around once and creates a huge green sphere of wind and flying
leaves around himself. Enemies that touch the barrier are knocked away and
take damage.
Light Bow Effect:
Pitt creates a bow of sizzling golden energy in his hands and shoots it at
the target, damaging them.
Forest Drop Effect:
White-gold energy shines from Pitt's hands; he swings them wildly, causing
green light to materialize and heal one ally.
How to Recruit:
Talk to him after defeating Gawain.
Pros:
-His Leaf Barrier has extra hits, like Keane's
-He can heal
-Has a Beckoning Cat accessory
Cons:
-Stats are uniformly below average, leaving him pretty fragile
-Completely Passive thought process
Analysis:
Pitt is saved from complete uselessness only due to having the ability to
heal and the foresight to equip a Beckoning Cat, which nobody else on the
non-human side has as their accessory. His damage is actually not that bad,
as he has just barely enough ratio on Light Bow and potential hits on Leaf
Barrier to give him bigger numbers than Lufa or Rika, but his max level
parameters are so terrible that his marginal damage advantage is completely
invalidated. He loses out to Keane in healing and Fan in both damage and
healing, and his glasslike delicacy leaves him behind all of the dark elves.
But to give credit where credit is due, his low stats don't stop him from
being a serviceable healer, and the Beckoning Cat is quite useful when
hunting for weapons like the Binding Spear, so Pitt, much like Aidan, does
have his niche. It is a small niche, but only he can fill it, and he does
so with good cheer.
Strategies:
Pitt isn't cut out to be a primary healer, lacking the superior healing
spells of his colleagues Fan, Keane, and Romaria, but he can fill the role
of assistant healer with some skill as long as you can keep him alive. To
continue giving Pitt his due, his two attacks are - like Keane's - designed
to help keep enemies away from him, which goes a long way toward keeping
him alive, but his Passive thought process sometimes causes him to sit there
doing absolutely nothing instead of defending himself. For this reason,
bringing along a "decoy" character that can intervene on Pitt's behalf - a
more defensive mage, like Mikey or Lufa, or a strong fighter, like JJ or
Ricky - with "Backup" or "Be Bait" is a wise precaution when you take Pitt
out item-hunting.
Rating: 4/10
*******************************************************************************
RIKA
*******************************************************************************
Rika is a member of the dark elf band. She was originally a biological
researcher, but after discovering the effect music had on living things,
she joined the band. She has learned that music has a soothing effect, and
is now trying to use it to rid the world of war. She is very quiet and
usually keeps to herself.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 19
Armor: Leaf Clothes (None)
Accessory: Toughness Bangle (HP +100)
Skill: Status Cure LV 1 (Cures status effects after a short time has passed)
Does not resist ailments
Thought Process: Passive -> Brave -> Brave
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 19 367 97 91 68 48
LV 25 580 115 111 78 55
LV 50 1472 191 198 124 87
LV 75 2364 267 285 169 120
LV MAX 3219 339 368 213 151
Rating B C B D D
Items:
Armor: Leaf Clothes
"Made from the fallen leaves of the Nowem region. Very light and well-made."
Accessory: Toughness Bangle
"A magical bangle made at the Vareth Magic Institute. Increases maximum HP
when equipped."
Attacks:
Fireball
"Elf magic is used to create fireballs to burn the foe."
Element: Fire Range: Long Effect: Blaze 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.3
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: 149.5 LV 50: 248.3 LV 75: 347.1 LV MAX: 440.7
Healing
"Elf magic is used to heal party members with the help of earth spirits."
Element: Curative Range: Ally Effect: Heals 20% maximum HP
Hits: 1 Knockback: N/A Power: N/A
Knockdown? N/A Charge Time: Average
Fireball Effect:
A shining light in Rika's hand conjures a fireball that flies at the foe.
Healing Effect:
Rika raises her hands into the air; they shine with energy, and one ally
becomes bathed in healing green light.
How to Recruit:
Answer three of her questions correctly in a row. You can only try this once
per day.
Pros:
-She can heal
-Causes Blaze
-Has an actually useful skill: Status Cure!
Cons:
-Low LUK (mostly countered by her Status Cure skill)
Analysis:
Rika is very similar to Lufa. Her DEF is slightly lower and she doesn't
have a Pluto's Trophy, but she does instead possess the useful Status
Cure Skill, which helps keep her in action against ailment-happy enemies
despite her low LUK. Other than Status Cure, though, Rika doesn't have a
whole lot to recommend her, especially over the Holy Trinity of Fan, Keane,
and Romaria. Like Lufa, her damage is nothing to write home about, but Lufa
has a Pluto's Trophy to make her stand out above the competition, and Zida -
the other character Rika resembles - has a far superior Fireball to make
him look appealing. If you could share Status Cure through a Link, Rika
would be a lot more useful than she is, but since status effects break and
prevent Links, this doesn't work the way you'd like it to. This isn't to say
Rika is bad, mind you; she still has enough HP and DEF to stick it out for
a while in the tough fights, offering her healing power the entire time.
However, unless you specifically want to use her out of personal fondness,
Lufa or Zida are probably better choices.
Strategies:
Rika plays exactly the same as Lufa does, having the same spells with the
same ratios, effects, and animations. You'll never need to pull out
"Heaven's Gate" for her, though, due to Status Cure, so in this regard
Rika is better for "Be Bait" against status-slinging targets.
Rating: 6/10
*******************************************************************************
ROMARIA
*******************************************************************************
A dark elf who likes to think of herself as a freedom fighter when she
storms in to rescue people in trouble. Her mission in life is to rid the
world of evil, although her sense of who is bad and who is good depends on
whether she likes a person or not, rather than universal principles of right
or wrong. She is a real nuisance to the people around her.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 15
Armor: Leaf Clothes (None)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Wind Defense LV 1 (Decreases damage of wind attacks)
Does not resist ailments
Thought Process: Passive -> Brave -> Brave
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 15 305 91 87 67 53
LV 25 623 123 118 87 68
LV 50 1420 203 198 137 108
LV 75 2217 284 277 188 148
LV MAX 2982 362 354 236 187
Rating C B B C C
Items:
Armor: Leaf Clothes
"Made from the fallen leaves of the Nowem region. Very light and well-made."
Attacks:
Fireball
"Advanced elf magic is used to unleash three fireballs at the foe."
Element: Fire Range: Long Effect: Blaze 1.0
Hits: 1-3 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.3
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 159.9 LV 50: 263.9 LV 75: 369.2 LV MAX: 470.6
High Healing
"The power of the earth heals and cures all party member afflictions."
Element: Curative Range: Ally Effect: Heals 20% maximum HP
Hits: 1 Knockback: N/A to one target, then
Knockdown? N/A Charge Time: Average cures the party of
all status ailments
Fireball Effect:
Romaria unleashes a battle cry and three fireballs in a fan pattern
directly in front of her.
High Healing Effect:
Romaria raises her hands into the air; they shine with energy, and one ally
becomes bathed in healing green light. For some reason, this also cures all
status effects on the entire party, despite only healing one ally's HP.
How to Recruit:
Kick her and defeat her.
Pros:
-Can heal (only one person at a time, contrary to some expectation)
-Can cure status effects (on the entire team at once)
-Has a triple-Fireball spell rather than the usual single-Fireball
-Causes Blaze
Cons:
-Her voice is pretty obnoxious
Analysis:
Romaria is popularly regarded as the best healer on the non-human path,
although some would vote for Fan and a rare few prefer Keane. Romaria has
a unique triple Fireball spell, giving her three times the damage potential
of most dark elves if she can land all of the hits, and an equally unique
High Healing spell, which heals one target and then cures all status effects
on the party. When you take her uniformly dependable parameters into
consideration, you have a pretty flawless character prepared to do battle
for justice.
Strategies:
Romaria can absolutely slaughter enemies that can't be knocked down. Put
her into Attack Link and spam her triple Fireball at close range for quick,
enormous heaps of charbroiled damage. Preempt this with a "Power Injection"
for even nastier results. Given Romaria's Fireball hits three times with
quite a substantial damage ratio, "Power Injection" can result in a gain of
up to 120 extra damage pre-defense - certainly nothing to sneeze at.
Romaria tends to be very good about attacking promptly and aggressively,
but she's not too good with falling back and healing on her own. Abuse the
"Cure Friend" Command as required to keep Romaria focused on healing, which
is where her true strength lies anyway: lots of non-humans can do damage,
but none of them can cure your team's ailments with one spell.
Rating: 10/10
*******************************************************************************
ROW
*******************************************************************************
Row is a light elf who likes to collect beautiful things and is always
quick to find out if visitors have such objects. If they do, she is very
good at cheating them out of their possessions. When she finds a treasure
more beautiful than her own, she quickly becomes obsessed with making it
her own.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 29
Armor: Grass Clothes (Wind)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Water Defense LV 1 (Decreases damage of water attacks)
Resists Death
Strongly Resists Poison, Freeze, Blaze, and Confuse
Thought Process: Passive -> Passive -> Passive
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 29 577 130 125 110 41
LV 50 1296 187 176 146 84
LV 75 2154 256 238 190 135
LV MAX 2976 322 298 233 185
Rating C C D C C
Items:
Armor: Grass Clothes
"Made from cross plant seedlings. So light, you'll forget you're wearing
them."
Attacks:
Earth Needles
"Elf magic summons barbed ivy from beneath the ground."
Element: Earth Range: Long Effect: Break Parry, Knockup
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.3
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 243.1 LV 75: 332.8 LV MAX: 418.6
Leaf Barrier
"Elf magic is used to create a barrier around himself [sic]."
Element: Wind Range: Around self Effect: N/A
Hits: 1-2 Knockback: 1.5 Power: 0.9
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 168.3 LV 75: 230.4 LV MAX: 289.8
Light Bow
"Elf magic instantaneously creates and unleashes an arrow of light."
Element: None Range: Long Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.4
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: N/A LV 50: 261.8 LV 75: 358.4 LV MAX: 450.8
Earth Needles Effect:
Golden light shines from Row's hands, and a huge spike made of twisted
vines erupts from the ground under one target, knocking them into the air.
Leaf Barrier Effect:
Row spins around once and creates a huge green sphere of wind and flying
leaves around herself. Enemies that touch the barrier are knocked away and
take damage.
Light Bow Effect:
Row creates a bow of sizzling golden energy in her hands and shoots it at
the target, damaging them.
How to Recruit:
Bring her the Rainbow Crystal from the Dorse Region.
Pros:
-Uses the rare and useful Earth Needles spell, which breaks Parry
Cons:
-Pretty awful stats all around
-Completely Passive thought processes
-A truly loathsome personality
Analysis:
Row stands out as the worst possible non-human mage. Her parameters are
uniformly underwhelming, she has no accessory, her Skill is only Water
Defense, her thought process is typical light elf pure-Passive, and her
ratios are typical light elf low. If she was able to heal, she could at
least pull herself to a rung just below Pitt for usefulness, but she can't;
instead she has Earth Needles, which Alan already has, and she doesn't have
his killer max level ATK to look forward to. She doesn't even have a
charming personality to give her a little sentimental value, the way
Marietta does; she is a greedy, selfish, lying, cheating, stealing,
materialistic little brat. If you bring her along, the one thing she can do
for you is break an enemy's guard with Earth Needles, and if you're that
desperate for Earth Needles, you might as well use Alan and prepare for his
god-moding at max level. Christoph I could at least say one or two nice
things about. For Row I have nothing nice to say at all.
Strategies:
If, for some reason, I haven't turned you off Row completely with that
diatribe and you decide to give her a shot, treat her as you do an early-
game Alan or a late-game Jill; try to keep up some "Endurance" so she won't
die quite so easily and rely on her to Earth Needles a defending foe to
knock it down so you can attack once it gets back up. That's pretty much
her best usage case, so take advantage of it whenever you can.
Rating: 3/10
*******************************************************************************
SHIN
*******************************************************************************
Shin is a light elf who is kind and warm-hearted to everyone except humans,
whom he cannot stand. He tries to avoid all contact with them. Some say that
he became this way because of a certain incident that occured when he
visited a human village.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 14
Armor: Grass Clothes (Wind)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Earth Defense LV 1 (Decreases damage of earth attacks)
Resists Instant Death
Strongly Resists Poison, Freeze, Blaze, and Confuse
Thought Process: Passive -> Passive -> Passive
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 14 296 78 81 56 43
LV 25 631 110 107 87 61
LV 50 1392 183 169 158 102
LV 75 2153 257 230 228 144
LV MAX 2885 327 289 296 183
Rating C C D A C
Items:
Armor: Grass Clothes
"Made from cross plant seedlings. So light, you'll forget you're wearing
them."
Attacks:
Leaf Barrier
"Elf magic creates a wall of wind with the help of the forest."
Element: Wind Range: Around self Effect: N/A
Hits: 1-2 Knockback: 1.5 Power: 0.9
Knockdown? Yes Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 99.0 LV 50: 164.7 LV 75: 231.3 LV MAX: 294.3
Light Bow
"Elf magic is used to unleash an arrow of light when the bow is pulled
back."
Element: None Range: Long Effect: N/A
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.4
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Average
Effective Power:
LV 25: 154.0 LV 50: 256.2 LV 75: 359.8 LV MAX: 457.8
Forest Drop
"Elf magic is used to slightly heal party members with dew that is pure."
Element: Curative Range: Ally Effect: Heals 20% maximum HP
Hits: 1 Knockback: N/A Power: N/A
Knockdown? N/A Charge Time: Average
Leaf Barrier Effect:
Shin spins around once and creates a huge green sphere of wind and flying
leaves around himself. Enemies that touch the barrier are knocked away and
take damage.
Light Bow Effect:
Shin creates a bow of sizzling golden energy in his hands and shoots it at
the target, damaging them.
Forest Drop Effect:
White-gold light shimmers around Shin's hands as he prays and lifts his
hands skyward. Green light then plays over one ally, healing them.
How to Recruit:
Talk to him after defeating Gawain.
Pros:
-High EVA
-He can heal
-His Earth Defense skill cancels out his Grass Clothes' Earth weakness
Cons:
-Poor stats other than EVA
-Completely Passive thought process
Analysis:
Poor Shin. I feel bad for the guy, considering that unlike most of the
light elves it appears he hates humans for something they actually did to
him, but his subpar combat skills leave me with few good things to say about
him. At least he can heal using Forest Drop and covers the Earth weakness
from his Grass Clothes with his Earth Defense Skill, though. He may not have
Pitt's Beckoning Cat, but his sky-high EVA may be more useful in the long
run anyway. If nothing else, with a healing spell in his repertoire, you
can at least guarantee he'll never be a waste of space in your party (as
opposed to, say, Row).
Strategies:
Shin is virtually identical to Pitt with the exception of his much higher
EVA and lack of a Beckoning Cat. Like Pitt, he functions best when
considered an ancillary healer; his skills do a good job of keeping enemies
away from him and, while his damage may disappoint, his healing is always
appreciated. He's less fragile than Pitt, so you don't need to keep quite
as close an eye on him when the fighting gets hectic, but if his HP starts
dropping, it's still a good idea to whisk him out of whatever's going on
with a quick Guard Link or assign your healer to top him off again as soon
as he or she can.
Rating: 4/10
*******************************************************************************
ZIDA
*******************************************************************************
Zida is a spoiled young dark elf. Everything he does is motivated by his
selfishness. He hates it when others don't let him get his own way, but is
intrigued at the same time. If he likes you, he agrees to let you into
"his" gang and starts treating you as his own underling.
- Friends List
Initial Level: 13
Armor: Leaf Clothes (None)
Accessory: N/A
Skill: Fire Defense LV 1 (Decreases damage of fire attacks)
Does not resist ailments
Thought Process: Passive -> Brave -> Brave
Parameter Chart:
HP ATK DEF EVA LUK
LV 13 284 78 74 49 53
LV 25 694 114 117 71 67
LV 50 1551 191 207 119 96
LV 75 2407 267 298 166 125
LV MAX 3229 341 385 211 153
Rating B B A D D
Items:
Armor: Leaf Clothes
"Made from the fallen leaves of the Nowem region. Very light and well-made."
Attacks:
Fireball
"Elf magic unleashes fireballs from his hand. This fast attack is not easy
to evade."
Element: Fire Range: Long Effect: Blaze 1.0
Hits: 1 Knockback: 0.5 Power: 1.3
Knockdown? No Charge Time: Short
Effective Power:
LV 25: 148.2 LV 50: 248.3 LV 75: 347.1 LV MAX: 443.3
Healing
"Elf magic is used to restore a little HP to party members with the help of
the earth."
Element: Curative Range: Ally Effect: Heals 20% maximum HP
Hits: 1 Knockback: N/A Power: N/A
Knockdown? N/A Charge Time: Average
Fireball Effect:
A shining light in Zida's hand conjures a fireball that flies at the foe.
Zida's fireball flies faster and farther than the other dark elves'.
Healing Effect:
Zida raises his hands into the air; they shine with energy, and one ally
becomes bathed in healing green light.
How to Recruit:
Bring him a Gobpakken Seed between 1:45 and 3:55 PM. Then bring him a Blood
Orc's Horn at the same time (you won't have to give it to him, he just wants
to see it). Then talk to him again.
Pros:
-He can heal
-His Fireball is superior to all other dark elves' (except Romaria's)
-Causes Blaze
-Good stats, particularly defensively
Cons:
-Low LUK
Analysis:
Zida's defining characteristic over Lufa and Rika, whose archetype he shares
(dark elf with Fireball and Healing,) is the nature of his Fireball, which
charges faster and travels farther and more quickly than any of his dark
elf compatriot's. While it doesn't do extra damage and is, like all the
dark elves', inferior to Romaria's triple-Fireball-spread, it's a lot more
difficult for enemies to dodge it and his faster rate of casting can add up
to a lot more damage over time. Even aside from that, he has Healing - a
definite plus in all situations - and pretty strong stats, boasting good
HP, ATK, and DEF.
Strategies:
When up against an enemy that can't be knocked down, Zida does some very
good damage simply through the speed of his Fireball spamming. If you can
dig in deep against such an opponent with Attack Link, "Power Injection,"
and a linked 100t Body Skill, Zida's damage output - especially compared to
Lufa and Rika, his closest comparisons - may surprise you. Zida's one real
weakness is his low LUK, which can interrupt your Links if he gets tagged
with a status effect as you're about to start Link-spamming; if you have
the Volty to spare, using "Heaven's Gate" to prevent this from happening
can be a wise precaution.
Rating: 8/10
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
SECTION 4.0 STAT COMPARISONS
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
Who's got the best HP? Who's got the best ATK, or DEF, or EVA? Who's got the
worst of these things? Let's take a look and find out!
-----------------------------
STAT COMPARISON CHART
-----------------------------
NAME HP ATK DEF EVA LUK RATING
Aidan 2047 282 281 298 157 4/10
Ardoph 3672 325 375 198 244 7/10
Cecil 2987 331 321 224 68 6/10
Christoph 2575 292 318 222 177 2/10
Claudia 2468 348 298 314 9 7/10
Cornelia 2001 322 314 300 67 5/10
Curtis 3824 386 279 290 336 6/10
Derek 2652 337 331 186 194 8/10
Dimitri 3024 317 407 221 51 5/10
Ernest 2620 283 318 197 64 3/10
Faraus 2543 251 337 222 183 7/10
Felix 2313 328 311 232 245 10/10
Franklin 2413 313 263 210 194 4/10
Genius 2484 348 326 229 153 8/10
Jill 2506 299 303 212 255 6/10
Johan 2098 308 306 163 277 5/10
Leona 2877 398 241 292 304 9/10
Marietta 2537 330 316 204 117 4/10
Morgan 2480 342 283 258 69 7/10
Ursula 2554 335 287 105 70 6/10
Alan 2825 379 275 281 164 5/10
Coco 3211 308 291 318 98 6/10
Fan 3069 345 310 304 197 9/10
Few 3113 345 294 230 174 8/10
Gil 3580 388 314 262 311 10/10
Hyann 3200 342 345 213 168 8/10
Keane 2850 310 309 289 183 8/10
Lufa 3054 333 377 220 157 7/10
Marsha 3167 366 336 233 285 9/10
Mikey 3166 337 357 295 160 8/10
Pitt 3055 339 305 225 178 4/10
Rika 3219 339 368 213 151 6/10
Romaria 2982 362 354 236 187 10/10
Row 2976 322 298 233 185 3/10
Shin 2885 327 289 296 183 4/10
Zida 3229 341 385 211 153 8/10
To start us off, here's a list of all the characters' stats arranged close
together for easy comparison. Now, let's look at some specifics.
----------
HP
----------
HUMAN NON-HUMAN TOP FIVE
1) Curtis (3824) 1) Gil (3580) 1) Curtis
2) Ardoph (3672) 2) Zida (3229) 2) Ardoph
3) Dimitri (3024) 3) Rika (3219) 3) Gil
4) Cecil (2987) 4) Coco (3211) 4) Zida
5) Leona (2877) 5) Hyann (3200) 5) Rika
----- -----
6) Derek (2652) 6) Marsha (3166)
7) Ernest (2620) 7) Mikey (3166)
8) Christoph (2575) 8) Few (3113) BOTTOM FIVE
9) Ursula (2554) 9) Fan (3069)
10) Faraus (2543) 10) Pitt (3055) 1) Cornelia
----- ----- 2) Aidan
11) Marietta (2537) 11) Lufa (3054) 3) Johan
12) Jill (2506) 12) Romaria (2982) 4) Felix
13) Genius (2484) 13) Row (2976) 5) Franklin
14) Morgan (2480) 14) Shin (2885)
15) Claudia (2468) 15) Keane (2850)
----- -----
16) Franklin (2413) 16) Alan (2825)
17) Felix (2313)
18) Johan (2098)
19) Aidan (2047)
20) Cornelia (2001)
You'll notice that Curtis, Ardoph, and Gil are head and shoulders above the
other mages, all with over 3500 HP at max level, and that poor Cornelia is the
lowest, barely breaking 2000. You'll also notice that the non-humans tend to be
a lot sturdier than the humans, probably to make up for their side's lack of
strong healing capability.
-----------
ATK
-----------
HUMAN NON-HUMAN TOP FIVE
1) Leona (398) 1) Gil (388) 1) Leona
2) Curtis (386) 2) Alan (379) 2) Gil
3) Claudia (348) 3) Marsha (366) 3) Curtis
Genius (348) 4) Romaria (362) 4) Alan
5) Morgan (342) 5) Fan (345) 5) Marsha
----- Few (345)
6) Derek (337) -----
7) Ursula (335) 7) Hyann (342)
8) Cecil (331) 8) Zida (341) BOTTOM FIVE
9) Marietta (330) 9) Pitt (339)
10) Ardoph (325) Rika (339) 1) Faraus
----- ----- 2) Aidan
11) Cornelia (322) 11) Mikey (337) 3) Ernest
12) Dimitri (317) 12) Lufa (333) 4) Christoph
13) Felix (313) 13) Shin (327) 5) Jill
Franklin (313) 14) Row (322)
15) Johan (308) 15) Keane (310)
----- -----
16) Jill (299) 16) Coco (308)
17) Christoph (292)
18) Ernest (283)
19) Aidan (282)
20) Faraus (251)
Astoundingly, Leona beats out both the ancient master of magic and the light
elf assassin for the position of "Highest ATK-er," leaving them both in the
dust with ten ATK to spare. Claudia places surprisingly high on the human side
as number 3, tied with Genius; Marietta is also a surprise, making it to number
9 just one point behind Cecil. On the non-human side, though, nobody is a
bigger surprise than Alan, who has the fourth highest ATK out of all mages on
BOTH sides (and gains about a third of it in his last twenty-five levels).
-----------
DEF
-----------
HUMAN NON-HUMAN TOP FIVE
1) Dimitri (407) 1) Zida (385) 1) Dimitri
2) Ardoph (375) 2) Lufa (377) 2) Zida
3) Faraus (337) 3) Rika (368) 3) Lufa
4) Derek (331) 4) Mikey (357) 4) Ardoph
5) Genius (326) 5) Romaria (354) 5) Rika
----- -----
6) Cecil (321) 6) Hyann (345)
7) Christoph (318) 7) Marsha (336)
Ernest (318) 8) Gil (314) BOTTOM FIVE
9) Marietta (316) 9) Fan (310)
10) Cornelia (314) 10) Keane (309) 1) Leona
----- ----- 2) Franklin
11) Felix (311) 11) Pitt (305) 3) Alan
12) Johan (306) 12) Row (298) 4) Curtis
13) Jill (303) 13) Few (294) 5) Aidan
14) Claudia (298) 14) Coco (291)
15) Ursula (287) 15) Shin (289)
----- -----
16) Morgan (283) 16) Alan (275)
17) Aidan (281)
18) Curtis (279)
19) Franklin (263)
20) Leona (241)
Zida, Rika, and Lufa have the best DEF out of the non-humans, while Dimitri
stands supreme as the only mage to break 400. Everyone else just kind of trails
in somewhere behind. Surprise highs include Mikey, Faraus, and Christoph; rock
bottom belongs to poor Leona. Good thing she usually stays back out of the
action.
-----------
EVA
-----------
HUMAN NON-HUMAN TOP FIVE
1) Claudia (314) 1) Coco (318) 1) Coco
2) Cornelia (300) 2) Fan (304) 2) Claudia
3) Aidan (298) 3) Shin (296) 3) Fan
4) Leona (292) 4) Mikey (295) 4) Cornelia
5) Curtis (290) 5) Keane (289) 5) Aidan
----- -----
6) Morgan (258) 6) Alan (281)
7) Felix (232) 7) Gil (262)
8) Genius (229) 8) Romaria (236) BOTTOM FIVE
9) Cecil (224) 9) Marsha (233)
10) Christoph (222) Row (233) 1) Ursula
Faraus (222) ----- 2) Johan
----- 11) Few (230) 3) Derek
12) Dimitri (221) 12) Pitt (225) 4) Ernest
13) Jill (212) 13) Lufa (220) 5) Ardoph
14) Franklin (210) 14) Hyann (213)
15) Marietta (204) Rika (213)
----- -----
16) Ardoph (198) 16) Zida (211)
17) Ernest (197)
18) Derek (186)
19) Johan (163)
20) Ursula (105)
Evasion is the place where several otherwise low-ranking characters get a
chance to shine; Coco, Cornelia, and Aidan all make their only Top Five List
appearances in this stat. As with health, there are more higher-ranking non-
humans than humans here, possibly to counterbalance the dearth of status heals
on the non-human side. Of all the humans, though, Ursula - who never gains EVA
as she levels - takes the resounding bottom-most place.
-----------
LUK
-----------
HUMAN NON-HUMAN TOP FIVE
1) Curtis (336) 1) Gil (311) 1) Curtis
2) Leona (304) 2) Marsha (285) 2) Gil
3) Johan (277) 3) Fan (197) 3) Leona
4) Jill (255) 4) Romaria (187) 4) Marsha
5) Felix (245) 5) Row (185) 5) Johan
----- -----
6) Ardoph (244) 6) Keane (183)
7) Derek (194) Shin (183)
Franklin (194) 8) Pitt (178) BOTTOM FIVE
9) Faraus (183) 9) Few (174)
10) Christoph (177) 10) Hyann (168) 1) Claudia
----- ----- 2) Dimitri
11) Aidan (157) 11) Alan (164) 3) Ernest
12) Genius (153) 12) Mikey (160) 4) Cornelia
13) Marietta (117) 13) Lufa (157) 5) Cecil
14) Ursula (70) 14) Zida (153)
15) Morgan (69) 15) Rika (151)
----- -----
16) Cecil (68) 16) Coco (98)
17) Cornelia (67)
18) Ernest (64)
19) Dimitri (51)
20) Claudia (9)
Claudia is apparently the unluckiest person in the world, starting with only 9
LUK and never gaining a single point more. Cities may rise and empires may
fall, but Claudia remains unlucky. The other characters drizzle in after her
at various numerals; LUK seems to be the most wildly fluctuating stat in the
game, going from Curtis up at 336 down to Claudia's legendary 9. Keep an
ailment healer on hand if going into battle with too many of the below-100s,
or you may regret it.
-----------
EFFECTIVE SPELL DAMAGE FROM STRONGEST SPELL
-----------
HUMAN NON-HUMAN TOP FIVE
1) Curtis (733.4) 1) Marsha (585.6) 1) Curtis
2) Derek (640.3) 2) Hyann (547.2) 2) Derek
3) Felix (623.2) 3) Mikey (539.2) 3) Felix
4) Marietta (594.0) 4) Alan (530.6) 4) Marietta
5) Ardoph (585.0) 5) Coco (492.8) 5) Marsha
----- -----
6) Dimitri (538.9) 6) Fan (483.0)
7) Ursula (536.0) Few (483.0)
8) Franklin (532.1) 8) Pitt (474.6) BOTTOM FIVE
9) Leona (517.4) 9) Romaria (470.6)
10) Aidan (507.6) 10) Shin (457.8) 1) Cecil
----- ----- 2) Morgan
11) Johan (492.8) 11) Row (450.8) 3) Claudia
12) Genius (487.2) 12) Zida (443.3) 4) Gil
13) Jill (478.4) 13) Rika (440.7) 5) Faraus
14) Christoph (467.2) 14) Keane (434.0)
15) Ernest (452.8) 15) Lufa (432.9)
----- -----
16) Cornelia (450.8) 16) Gil (388.0)
17) Faraus (426.7)
18) Claudia (348.0)
19) Morgan (342.0)
20) Cecil (331.0)
Keep in mind that "Effective Spell Damage" can be offset by many different
factors, so this definitely isn't a rating of who does the most damage in
battle. Regardless, the findings are interesting. Curtis unsurprisingly tops
the list, but Gil's low placement and especially Marietta's high placement are
quite unexpected. It just goes to show that having a high ATK isn't enough to
produce a high damage output (yes, I'm looking at you, Cecil!)
-----------------
KNOCKDOWN
-----------------
DOES *NOT* KNOCK DOWN DOES KNOCK DOWN
Claudia Aidan
Derek Ardoph
Faraus Cecil
Felix Christoph
Genius Cornelia
Leona Curtis
Morgan Dimitri
-----------
ORDER OF MY PERSONAL RATINGS
-----------
HUMAN
-----
10/10 9/10 8/10 7/10 6/10
Felix Leona Derek Ardoph Cecil
Genius Claudia Curtis
Faraus Jill
Morgan Ursula
5/10 4/10 3/10 2/10 1/10
Cornelia Aidan Ernest Christoph N/A
Dimitri Franklin
Johan Marietta
NON-HUMAN
---------
10/10 9/10 8/10 7/10 6/10
Gil Fan Few Lufa Coco
Romaria Marsha Hyann Rika
Keane
Mikey
Zida
5/10 4/10 3/10 2/10 1/10
Alan Pitt Row N/A N/A
Shin
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
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SECTION 5.0 RECRUITMENT ORDER
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
It's important to know what order you'll be getting these characters in order
to plan out your parties. So here's the list of mages in order of recruitment.
The humans are listed in the left column; the non-humans, on the right. They
are divided up in sections based on what event must occur before the named
characters become available for recruitment.
FRIENDS LIST BECOMES UNLOCKED
Aidan Hyann
Cecil Lufa (only on New Game +)
Christoph Rika
Claudia Romaria
Cornelia
Ernest
Faraus
Jill
Johan
Marietta
Morgan
JACK GETS PROMOTED
Franklin N/A
RIDLEY'S BIRTHDAY PARTY
N/A Zida
***********
PATH SPLITS
***********
HUMAN PATH - MEETING AT THE CASTLE NON-HUMAN PATH - MEET WITH PARSEC
* Lose all non-humans * * Lose all humans *
Derek Gil
Felix Keane
Marsha
HUMAN PATH - BEFORE WIND VALLEY
Ursula NON-HUMAN PATH - AFTER GAWAIN FIGHT
Alan
HUMAN PATH - AFTER WIND VALLEY Lufa
Ardoph Pitt
Dimitri Row
Leona Shin
HUMAN PATH - AFTER MEETING GENIUS NON-HUMAN PATH - ESCORT TO HELENCIA
Genius Coco
Curtis Fan
Few
Mikey
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
SECTION 6.0 CREDITS AND DISCLAIMERS
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
Thank you to...
.All of my cats and dogs, most of all my special shiba and jaguar. It's a
group effort keeping me sane and on task. Thanks to the whole household :)
.Ultimecia, Dahlia Hawthorne, and Princess Peach: my video game idols.
.The following human units and everyone involved in making them: Alicia, Alvin,
Claudia, Cornelia/ Rachel, Elmo, Eon, Flora, Gareth, Gene, Iris, Jill, Keaton,
Leona, Lulu, Marietta, Miranda, Rynka and Cody, Sonata, Tarkin, and Thanos.
.The following non-human units and everyone involved in making them: Chatt,
Clarence, Coco, Danny, Few, Franz, Gil, Gobrey, Gonn, Keane, Niko, Ricky and
Happy, Serva, and Shin.
.Special thanks to Felix, my favorite human character, and Mikey, my favorite
non-human character.
.Bradygames and their Radiata Stories guide, which provided me with quite a
lot of quoted information as well as considerable impetus to play this game.
.ASCII art courtesy of http://www.network-science.de/ascii/
This guide was written in 2015 by me, Ian Sentelik. All of it is my
intellectual property: found by me, experienced by me, and written by me. The
information itself is property of Square-Enix, so ripping this document off is
actually to rip a video game company of monumental proportions off. Good luck.
You are not permitted to copy this document, in part or in whole, without
attributing the proper credit to me. This guide belongs NOWHERE except for
GameFAQs, under the account of Serenitys_Cat.
All rights, including the one to compress time upon anyone who dares to copy
this document, reserved.