NullPointer
05-14-2009, 02:04 PM
http://www.atlus.com/classofheroes/images/blog/title.gif
There's so much to talk about for this game, the posts just get longer and longer.
Today, let's talk about basic party makeup, and some of the major abilities.
Basics
When going into the dungeon, there’re some things to be considered. Outside the normal RPG standards such as ‘tough characters in the front’, and ‘weak characters in the rear, one thing that you should think about is attack and weapon range.
Depending on your weapon’s range, you will be able to traverse forward a certain number of enemy rows. Range has 4 types: (S)hort, (M)edium, (L)ong, and (LL)llloooooonnnnggg.
Some classes have special skills that make them well suited for the rear, such as the Psychier's 'Telekinesis' skill, which allows them to attack with any weapon at any distance, or the Drake and Diablon ‘Breath’ skill, which allows them to attack from the back row as well. In the beginning, when ranged weapons are in short supply, these skills coupled with magic spells will be essential for your early success.
Let’s go over some of the other important skills that you’ll need to make it through the labyrinths:
Magic Skills
Magic is really vital, of course. Not only can you wipe out groups of enemies (http://www.atlus.com/classofheroes/images/comic/14.jpg)quickly, you can also use magic to heal your team and move around the labyrinths more efficiently. There are 4 types of magic: Black, White, Psychic, and Evoking. Each type has 7 levels, with up to 4 spells in each level, with evoking being the exception; it gets two summons per level. Remember, you Major determines how many spells you can remember at a time, so if you are changing majors to major with less spell memory, be sure to forget the spells you don’t want, or you may lose an important one.
Thievery Skills
Thievery skills are REALLY important. Thieves are good at sensing hidden passages, unlocking doors, and disarming traps. Any character can do these things, but the rate of success is generally very low. Luck and agility help with these skills. If you don't want to be vaporized or warped on top of a Deep Zone (where you’ll drown) it's recommended to have a Thief, Ranger, Ninja, or Kunoichi in your party.
Clerical Skills
You pick up lots of junk and odd objects in the dungeon, and you won't know what they are or what they are used for until you identify them. This can be performed at the Campus Store for a fee, or you can BYOC (bring your own Cleric). With a little luck, Clerics can identify many objects on the fly, but the rarer the object, the harder it is to identify. If a Cleric fails to ID an object, they may lose confidence and become 'afraid,' which will negatively affect their performance until they can shake it off.
Both Clerics and Alchemists can ID items, though Clerics are better at it.
Alchemy Skills
Alchemy is basically how you get your equipment, and synthesizing items in the Laboratory can get pricey. Only Alchemists can synthesize items on the fly, but they have a chance of failing. Don't worry though, if the synthesis fails, you get to keep the ingredients.
I’ll go into the Alchemy system in detail in a later post because it’s pretty robust.
Evoking
While technically a form of magic, it’s different enough to warrant its own section. Summoning monsters to battle is an Evoker-only skill. To summon a creature, you must first form a contract with it at special locations in the dungeon. You'll have to do battle with the creature first. These start out pretty easy, but get more difficult later.
To summon a monster, you will need to use MP and pay a summoning fee, which is based on the level of monster you are summoning. Once summoned, the monster will stay with you until it dies, or you leave the dungeon. It's basically like adding a CPU 7th member to your team.
Nunchaku Skills
Just kidding.
Affinity
Lots of questions about affinity. Affinity is simply how students get along together, and it affects a variety of things. Affinity is perspective based. For example, Humans like Sprites, but Sprites REALLY like Humans. So a Sprite will get more of a boost being in a group of Humans than a Human would get in a group of Sprites. Good characters don't like to be around Evil ones and vice versa, but Neutral characters can swing either way.
http://www.atlus.com/classofheroes/images/blog/03/affinity.gif
The two things this has a major effect on is the characters stats and the groups Tension Gauge. The stat bonuses (or penalties) are not very noticeable at low levels, but as the student levels up, the effects become more pronounced.
The tension gauge is a meter that builds when the students complete classes or defeat monsters. The more Affinity the group has, the faster the gauge builds, and the higher its limit becomes.
Having the group take classes and overcome challenges together also affects the overall affinity of the group. There are also items that can affect affinity. The system is quite textured, so it’s up to you to learn how to work out the best results.
Group Gambits
Group Gambits are special moves that your team performs in unison. They can do certain things such as creating an impenetrable barrier for a short time, or ensuring you escape battle. The types of moves available will depend on the Majors that make up your team.
http://www.atlus.com/classofheroes/images/blog/03/gambit.jpg
There's a ton of combinations for parties, and you will find yourself liking or needing various classes at different points throughout the game. Finding a balance between majors, races, affinity, skills, magic, and equipment is key to a really successful group, but the system is as flexible as you want it to be.
And with that said… Q&A time!
How do stats and levels work? Do stats increase at each level up like the jRPG norm, or do stats mostly stay the same with few exceptions? If stats don't increase, how does damage increase? Is there just supposed to be some progression of magic levels and equipment, or does level actually factor into how damage is dealt?
Good question. You do have set levels and you need a set number of experience points to reach the next level (set by major). Stat growth has a random element that is mainly based on the student's race. You can actually have a stat go down on level up, as races have a preferred balance they try to keep. HP goes up every level, and the amount of HP you get is based on your current Vitality. Equipment is very important as far as damage dealt is concerned, but stats like Agility and Strength do determine how often and how hard you hit.
This is one aspect that keeps the game kind of fresh and random, so every play- through feels a little different.
Now the question is "How high are the fail rates for revive spells?" Is there some sort of interplay between the caster's level/stats and the target's level?
It's not common, but it does happen. I've even had the hospital vaporize a character on me before, with students being a bit less reliable than that. I believe that there is a correlation between the caster's Faith and the receiver’s Vitality, but don't quote me on that.
-The screens show slots for 3 skills and 4 spells. Is that all a character can have for use at any given time? That seems like it would drastically limit options in battle.
For the skills, if you look carefully to the right of those screenshots, you'll see a scrollbar, so you have more options than just 3 skills. :) And I mentioned the magic spells in my post above.
-Is everything craftable in terms of weapons and armor and the like or are there going be some Uniques in the lot?
There are uniques that cannot be crafted.
Can you save in the dungeons or only Particus?
You can save anytime, anywhere. But the hardcore players only save in town. :devil: It’s actually possible to do a soft reset and go back to the last point the game ‘auto soft-saved.’ The game has a feature where it automatically soft-saves at various points. The frequency of this is set by the ‘difficulty’ set in the options, which can be changed at anytime. But if you turn off your PSP, your soft-save data will be lost.
-Will ammunition for projectile or throwing weaponry be infinite? If not, what are the ways to replenish depleted stock?
It's infinite.
-Are Class and Racial Skills improved by failed and successful activations, points spent upon gaining a level, certain stat modifier benchmarks, or naturally as levels rise?
Generally, they correlate to the student's level.
-Do the advanced classes largely invalidate the base classes or does each stand strong enough on unique skills/merits so as to stave off obsoletion? Like say, Thief and Ninja.
Each class has a specific thing it's good at. In the example you gave, Ninja have thievery skills, but they aren't as good at them as actual thieves. Alchemists can ID items as well as do alchemy, but they aren't as good at IDing as Clerics. Also, Majors don't fall into the base/advanced style of categorization. Some Majors just have higher / stricter stat requirements.
Thanks again everyone! Hope you’re looking forward to the game. Next time we'll actually dive into the labyrinths themselves and have a look around, so dungeon questions are welcome!
-Sam
There's so much to talk about for this game, the posts just get longer and longer.
Today, let's talk about basic party makeup, and some of the major abilities.
Basics
When going into the dungeon, there’re some things to be considered. Outside the normal RPG standards such as ‘tough characters in the front’, and ‘weak characters in the rear, one thing that you should think about is attack and weapon range.
Depending on your weapon’s range, you will be able to traverse forward a certain number of enemy rows. Range has 4 types: (S)hort, (M)edium, (L)ong, and (LL)llloooooonnnnggg.
Some classes have special skills that make them well suited for the rear, such as the Psychier's 'Telekinesis' skill, which allows them to attack with any weapon at any distance, or the Drake and Diablon ‘Breath’ skill, which allows them to attack from the back row as well. In the beginning, when ranged weapons are in short supply, these skills coupled with magic spells will be essential for your early success.
Let’s go over some of the other important skills that you’ll need to make it through the labyrinths:
Magic Skills
Magic is really vital, of course. Not only can you wipe out groups of enemies (http://www.atlus.com/classofheroes/images/comic/14.jpg)quickly, you can also use magic to heal your team and move around the labyrinths more efficiently. There are 4 types of magic: Black, White, Psychic, and Evoking. Each type has 7 levels, with up to 4 spells in each level, with evoking being the exception; it gets two summons per level. Remember, you Major determines how many spells you can remember at a time, so if you are changing majors to major with less spell memory, be sure to forget the spells you don’t want, or you may lose an important one.
Thievery Skills
Thievery skills are REALLY important. Thieves are good at sensing hidden passages, unlocking doors, and disarming traps. Any character can do these things, but the rate of success is generally very low. Luck and agility help with these skills. If you don't want to be vaporized or warped on top of a Deep Zone (where you’ll drown) it's recommended to have a Thief, Ranger, Ninja, or Kunoichi in your party.
Clerical Skills
You pick up lots of junk and odd objects in the dungeon, and you won't know what they are or what they are used for until you identify them. This can be performed at the Campus Store for a fee, or you can BYOC (bring your own Cleric). With a little luck, Clerics can identify many objects on the fly, but the rarer the object, the harder it is to identify. If a Cleric fails to ID an object, they may lose confidence and become 'afraid,' which will negatively affect their performance until they can shake it off.
Both Clerics and Alchemists can ID items, though Clerics are better at it.
Alchemy Skills
Alchemy is basically how you get your equipment, and synthesizing items in the Laboratory can get pricey. Only Alchemists can synthesize items on the fly, but they have a chance of failing. Don't worry though, if the synthesis fails, you get to keep the ingredients.
I’ll go into the Alchemy system in detail in a later post because it’s pretty robust.
Evoking
While technically a form of magic, it’s different enough to warrant its own section. Summoning monsters to battle is an Evoker-only skill. To summon a creature, you must first form a contract with it at special locations in the dungeon. You'll have to do battle with the creature first. These start out pretty easy, but get more difficult later.
To summon a monster, you will need to use MP and pay a summoning fee, which is based on the level of monster you are summoning. Once summoned, the monster will stay with you until it dies, or you leave the dungeon. It's basically like adding a CPU 7th member to your team.
Nunchaku Skills
Just kidding.
Affinity
Lots of questions about affinity. Affinity is simply how students get along together, and it affects a variety of things. Affinity is perspective based. For example, Humans like Sprites, but Sprites REALLY like Humans. So a Sprite will get more of a boost being in a group of Humans than a Human would get in a group of Sprites. Good characters don't like to be around Evil ones and vice versa, but Neutral characters can swing either way.
http://www.atlus.com/classofheroes/images/blog/03/affinity.gif
The two things this has a major effect on is the characters stats and the groups Tension Gauge. The stat bonuses (or penalties) are not very noticeable at low levels, but as the student levels up, the effects become more pronounced.
The tension gauge is a meter that builds when the students complete classes or defeat monsters. The more Affinity the group has, the faster the gauge builds, and the higher its limit becomes.
Having the group take classes and overcome challenges together also affects the overall affinity of the group. There are also items that can affect affinity. The system is quite textured, so it’s up to you to learn how to work out the best results.
Group Gambits
Group Gambits are special moves that your team performs in unison. They can do certain things such as creating an impenetrable barrier for a short time, or ensuring you escape battle. The types of moves available will depend on the Majors that make up your team.
http://www.atlus.com/classofheroes/images/blog/03/gambit.jpg
There's a ton of combinations for parties, and you will find yourself liking or needing various classes at different points throughout the game. Finding a balance between majors, races, affinity, skills, magic, and equipment is key to a really successful group, but the system is as flexible as you want it to be.
And with that said… Q&A time!
How do stats and levels work? Do stats increase at each level up like the jRPG norm, or do stats mostly stay the same with few exceptions? If stats don't increase, how does damage increase? Is there just supposed to be some progression of magic levels and equipment, or does level actually factor into how damage is dealt?
Good question. You do have set levels and you need a set number of experience points to reach the next level (set by major). Stat growth has a random element that is mainly based on the student's race. You can actually have a stat go down on level up, as races have a preferred balance they try to keep. HP goes up every level, and the amount of HP you get is based on your current Vitality. Equipment is very important as far as damage dealt is concerned, but stats like Agility and Strength do determine how often and how hard you hit.
This is one aspect that keeps the game kind of fresh and random, so every play- through feels a little different.
Now the question is "How high are the fail rates for revive spells?" Is there some sort of interplay between the caster's level/stats and the target's level?
It's not common, but it does happen. I've even had the hospital vaporize a character on me before, with students being a bit less reliable than that. I believe that there is a correlation between the caster's Faith and the receiver’s Vitality, but don't quote me on that.
-The screens show slots for 3 skills and 4 spells. Is that all a character can have for use at any given time? That seems like it would drastically limit options in battle.
For the skills, if you look carefully to the right of those screenshots, you'll see a scrollbar, so you have more options than just 3 skills. :) And I mentioned the magic spells in my post above.
-Is everything craftable in terms of weapons and armor and the like or are there going be some Uniques in the lot?
There are uniques that cannot be crafted.
Can you save in the dungeons or only Particus?
You can save anytime, anywhere. But the hardcore players only save in town. :devil: It’s actually possible to do a soft reset and go back to the last point the game ‘auto soft-saved.’ The game has a feature where it automatically soft-saves at various points. The frequency of this is set by the ‘difficulty’ set in the options, which can be changed at anytime. But if you turn off your PSP, your soft-save data will be lost.
-Will ammunition for projectile or throwing weaponry be infinite? If not, what are the ways to replenish depleted stock?
It's infinite.
-Are Class and Racial Skills improved by failed and successful activations, points spent upon gaining a level, certain stat modifier benchmarks, or naturally as levels rise?
Generally, they correlate to the student's level.
-Do the advanced classes largely invalidate the base classes or does each stand strong enough on unique skills/merits so as to stave off obsoletion? Like say, Thief and Ninja.
Each class has a specific thing it's good at. In the example you gave, Ninja have thievery skills, but they aren't as good at them as actual thieves. Alchemists can ID items as well as do alchemy, but they aren't as good at IDing as Clerics. Also, Majors don't fall into the base/advanced style of categorization. Some Majors just have higher / stricter stat requirements.
Thanks again everyone! Hope you’re looking forward to the game. Next time we'll actually dive into the labyrinths themselves and have a look around, so dungeon questions are welcome!
-Sam