Fight it out! Let's play Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together

For many people, Final Fantasy Tactics was their first introduction to the strategy genre. This was mine, and it remains a favorite of mine. My Lets Play won't be for another month, but what I'd like to do is explain a bit of the story line, and perhaps a take a bit of suggestions on names of characters and storyline branches.

The story so far.

Valeria has been an island long troubled by ethnic strife. Its divided into three ethnicities. For awhile, a King named Dolgare unifed the island and there was peace. But King Dolgare died without an heir, and the squabbling restarted.

70% of the island is Gargastan, and is currently led by Cardinal Barbatos. He is currently oppressing the Walstanians and some of his own people, many of whom disagree with his radical policies.

10% of the island are Walstanian, who are an oppressed minority and live in southern Valeria. They are lead by Duke Ronway

20% of the island is Bacrumese, led by Bishop Branta. Despite not having a straight-up military advantage, he is backed by the Lodis Empire, who have sent the Roslolian Order of Knights(more commonly refered to as the Dark Knights(no relation to Batman, honest)) to back him up.

The hero, Denim, and his sister Kachua, were living in an orphanage run by their father. A year prior to the story happening, the Dark Knights had attacked their hometown of Griate, and had captured, and taken away their father. The story begins with their friend Vice having heard a rumor that the Dark Knights are back in town, and the three of them figuring that this is their chance for revenge...


Now there are a few things I'd like from you, gentle readers. We can remain the main character, Denim, and his brigade, and this we shall do. If no one offers any better suggestions, I'll rename him Corduroy, and his brigade Trousers, but if anyone has any better suggestions, I'd love to hear them.

Secondly while the game throws a number of characters at you to fill up your roster of people. I will likely recruit the following, and I'd like suggestions for names.
1 human female who I will eventually class-change into a witch, but will probably spend most of her time as an Archer.
1 or 2 Lizardmen
1 human female who'll eventually become an Angel Knight, but will probably spend most of her time before that as a either a Valkyrie, or Archer
1 Fairy

Thirdly, there are mulitiple routes through the game. If anyone has preferences..
There is the Lawful Route, where you'll have to kill a bunch of innocent people, which I never really liked. But it is the only path you can recruit Vice on.
There is the Neutral Route. Its sort've wishy-washy story-wise, but it does take the storyline in a unique direction. You fight a bunch of undead, which are pretty rare on the other two routes.
There is the Chaotic Route, which I like from a story-point of view, and the one I most often take. Contrasting it with the other routes, its the most 'good' of the three.

If anyone has any other suggestions or questions, I'll take those into account as well. Once I get a good bunch of suggestions, I'll have the thread locked, and start playing in earnest. Once my turn in the queue comes up a month from now, I'll have the thread unlocked, and post the results.

One more thing, there's a very good site here, which contains a whole bunch of info on the game, for those who are curious.

YES YES YES

Keeping with the Ogre Battle 64 LP, you should go with the Chaotic route, just 'cause.

Also: Name the to-be Angel Knight Angela. Yes, I know that's lame. DON'T JUDGE ME.

You're friggin' crazy for doing this. Let the record show that I have tried warning you multiple times. This is going to drive you insane.

Also, the Chaotic Route sounds like a winner. And the lizardman will be named Blizzardman, naturally.

I'm looking forward to this. I've always been interested in Tactics Ogre, but the gameplay never really clicked for me. I played the hell out of Knights of Lodis, though.

Oh, and something I realized far too late into OB64: try to include as many Queen references as possible.

You poor, poor fool. You have no idea what you're in for.

Tactics Ogre lets you recruit Octopi, right? Get an Octopus!

Also. I second the Queen references.

I'm in the mood for sweets, so here's a pool of names you must use:

Mint
Chocolat
Vanilla
Coco(nut)
Nutmeg
Waffles

The one time I tried to play this game, characters dropped like flies and the ones named after people I knew had double-digit numbers after their names by the time I gave up. I don't know if that will happen in an "expert" playthrough but a big pool sounds good to me right now. At least name the fairy one of them.

Psh, I am already insane. That said, I've beaten this game multiple times, so I pretty much know what I am doing.

I like it, just that whole 8 character limit for names.

Blizzard the Lizzzard(man)? That's fine.

How about Blzzdman?

Meh. Getting too close to Buzzman.

My suggestion was going to be to get two lizardmen, and then name them Koopa and Troopa.

I second this idea.

I request you keep all your party members two levels behind the main character, all the time.

Right, and make sure I fight plenty of random encounters?

Okay, a non-asshole request then: a Pumpkin Head, named Jack (oooh I'm so original, just like my last post...feel free to name him something more reasonable)

I love Pumpkinheads. But the only way you can get them early on is via gameshark. I can do this if everyone else is cool with it. The alternative waiting til chapter 4, and recruiting a Pumpkinhead from Deneb.

As an aside, Pumpkinheads aren't what you'd call overpowered, and like undead, are a magnet for enemy attacks, so tend to die a lot.

Gamesharking a Ogre Battle game is the beginning of the slippery slope towards playability. We can't have that.

So I think I've got what I need. Unless someone objects, I'll be going with.

Main Char - Corduroy
Battalion - Trousers

Lizardman - Koopa
Lizardman - Troopa
Witch - Nutmeg
Angel Knight - Angela
Fairy - Mint
Octopi - Chocolat
Pumpkin - Jack(Chapter 4)

Chaos Route

If no one responds in a couple of hours, I'll ask that the thread be locked.

Ok, I going to put in a request to lock thread for now. If anyone wants to add anything, feel free to IM me.

TO BE CONTINUED...

AND SO IT BEGINS.

After entering your names, you'll be asked some weird questions by the four goddesses. This determines your starting stats, but no matter how you answer, you can't permanently screw your stats, as it will tend to even out as you gain levels. The way I answered was to maximize Agility, but its not that important.



And so it begins..



Vice: Corduroy! Damn it! Lans is here! Just as we had heard.

Corduroy: Gotcha. Well, I guess this is it, sis...

Kachua: ...This isn't a very good idea...we can't possibly win!

Vice: What are you talking about, Kachua? Isn't this what we've been waiting for?!

Kachua: But...three of us...against the Dark Knights...

Corduroy: Don't worry, Kachua. They're not expecting us.

Vice: Are you chicken, Kachua? I'm still going to do it, even if you guys wimp out!

Corduroy: Relax, Vice. Don't say such things. Let's go.



Kachua: We won't succeed. Besides, what good is it to kill these guys?

Vice: Lans is the leader of the Dark Knights. They're the source of Bacrum's power. By killing Lans, we can weaken the Bacrum forces here for a while. Then the Gargastan forces will make their move and invade Bacrum. Then we can launch our counterattack!

Kachua: ...We're still recovering from the last war. Are you trying to start another one?

Vice: What do you mean we're still recovering, Kachua?! The Walstanians are being treated like shit!! Gargastan is trying to wipe us out!

Kachua: But...to start a war over reasons such as these...we'll just end up losing...

Corduroy: ...Shhh! They're here...

(Several knights appear)

Vice: We will attack from both sides. Corduroy, you attack from the rear!

Corduroy: Alright...





We are so hosed...





(As soon as Vice gets to attack, he runs at Canopus and attacks. Canopus blocks the attack.)

Knight: ...Who are you?

Vice: We are warriors of the Walsta Liberation Army! We will avenge our people's suffering!

Knight: Avenge?

Winged Man: What a polite way to welcome people... Look at them, they're just kids!

Knight: Wait. Are you sure you're talking to the right person?

Vice: If your name is Lans, then you're our enemy!

Knight: Indeed, my name is Lans. How did you know?

Vice: You and the Dark Knights burned down this town a year ago!

Knight: Dark Knights? But we are from the eastern kingdom of Zenobia.

Kachua: ...I remember now, the Dark Knight Lans has only one eye.

Knight: Hmm, a one-eyed Dark Knight who happened to share the same name. I see...

Winged Man: We came to this island looking for work as mercenaries.

Knight: My name is Lans...Lans Hamilton. A knight from the Kingdom of Zenobia.

Winged Man: I'm Canopus. People call me the "Wind Rider." And the old fart...his name is...

Magician: Warren...Warren Moons...

Knight: My name is Mildain Walhorn. A Zenobian Knight.

Knight: And my name is Guildus, also from Zenobia. So stop looking at us like that.

Vice: ...But I thought...I guess they're not the Dark Knights...

Kachua: Please forgive us, but I must ask for your help.

Lans Hamilton: We're new to this island. Tell us what is going on.

Vice: My name...is Vice... Damn it, we're wasting time! We must find the real Lans!

Kachua: I am Kachua, a Priestess. And this is my brother, Corduroy.

Corduroy:

1. Forgive us.
2. They're lying.

Corduroy: I'm Corduroy. Forgive us.

Lans Hamilton: ...We sure were surprised. But never mind that...it's very hot here. Why don't you take us somewhere cool and tell us your story?

Kachua: Let's go to our hideout. We can't offer you much, but at least it's cool.

(They enter the hideout)



Kachua: ...We just don't have the manpower to fight against the country of Gargastan. That's why Bacrum asked for support from the Kingdom of Lodis. Their problem was similar to ours.

Canopus: I see... That's why the Kingdom of Lodis sent the Dark Knights to Bacrum.

Warren: ...The "Roslolian Knights" are the knights that work directly under King Saldian. King Saldian commands 16 divisions. Their duties consist mainly of espionage... Collecting information from the other countries, carrying out conspiracies... That is why they're the Dark Knights.

Guildus: But why are the Ros...something supporting Bacrum?

Vice: Let me ask you something. Why did you come to our island? I bet you guys just came here to take over Valeria, starting with us, isn't that right?! The Kingdoms of Zenobia and Lodis are going to trigger the war from this island!!

Kachua: Stop it, Vice. I've had enough of your conspiracy theories...

Lans Hamilton: ...I understand the situation now, Vice. Let me answer your question. It is true that we are Zenobians. But we no longer work for the king. We were banished from the kingdom.

Guildus: In other words, we're fugitives. We can never go back.

Canopus: Therefore, we're looking for employment. With decent pay, of course.

Vice: I'm not buying into this! This is our war!

Kachua: I said that's enough, Vice. (To the Zenobians) You have to excuse him, he's a bit...

Lans Hamilton: Don't worry about it, there's no need to apologize. What are you planning to do now?

Corduroy: ...We have to rescue Duke Ronway. He's imprisoned in Amorika Castle...

Lans Hamilton: Who's Duke Ronway? Is that your leader?

Vice: Yeah. He's the leader of the Walstanian... He was caught by the Gargastans. We heard that he's going to be executed soon. We have to do something...

Canopus: Hmm...I hear the sound of money... Hey Lans, why don't we help them out?

Vice: I'm sorry that I doubted you guys. Kachua is right. We don't have the manpower. We need your help.

Guildus: If it's a deal, then let's not waste time. Off to Amorika Castle!

Kachua: ...W-wait a minute. There are a lot of soldiers at Amorika Castle... We can't...I mean, even with Knights, we can't win. We'll all die. I don't want to be a part of this.

Lans Hamilton: Corduroy, it's your call.

Corduroy:

1. Help us.
2. Don't interfere.


Lans channels Superman

Corduroy: This is our war. Please don't interfere.

Lans Hamilton: I see... We are going to Amorika anyway... Not to help you, but to fight for truth, justice, and the Amer... Umm, we're just going in the same direction. Our ideals may be different but we share a common goal. So why don't we form an alliance?

Vice: Give them a break, Corduroy. They're going to come with us whether we like it or not.

Lans Hamilton: Deal. Let's go!



You'd think Corduroy and Kachua were married..

(Everyone but Kachua and Corduroy leaves)

Kachua: ...You never listen to me, do you. (Kachua looks away from Corduroy) ...I know what you're thinking. But I just don't want to lose you. You're the only family I have left. It's just that...you're my only brother. I don't want you to die... I-I'm sorry. I know that I can't stop you. But promise me one thing, don't leave me...

(Vice enters the room)

Vice: What are you guys doing? Everybody's waiting for you.

(Corduroy leaves)

Vice: You are so over-protective, Kachua. He's a big boy now, he can take care of himself...

Kachua: Don't you ever shut up?! My brother is not blood-thirsty like you.

Vice: Look, I'm not fighting because I want to. I just don't want to go down without a fight.

Kachua: Oh, don't talk like such a tough guy. You were counting on those Knights!

Vice: You were the one who invited them! Don't tell me...

Kachua: I'm being nice to them so that we can take advantage of them. Maybe if you had half a brain, you would have figured that out already. You should be thankful.

Vice: A priestess taking advantage of people. What a bitch!!

(Vice leaves)

Kachua: I just...don't want to lose anyone...


Our starting group.

The Zenobians

Corduroy, Vice, Kachua, and the Zenobians arrive at the entrance of Amorika Castle. A group of Gargastan soldiers awaits their arrival.

Bapalu: You are the guerillas from Griate. Are you trying to rescue Ronway? Okay guys. These kids have a price on their heads! These guys are worth 2,000 Goth. They fell into our trap. Kill 'em all! (Bapalu swings his sword)







Guildus: If the river is one cube width, you can jump over it. Watch! (he jumps across the river) But the other side has to be at the same height or lower.



Canopus: A winged creature can move anywhere. The type of terrain and height of the land does not hinder our movement. (flies toward the enemy) But you cannot let me attack alone. It is critical to work as a team.



Mildain: Be alert, always check to see who will move next. (moves) If you want to move quickly, don't carry heavy weapons and unnecessary items.



Lans Hamilton: Check the guardian element of the enemy you are about to face. (moves) If you fight with an opposite element, like Wind vs. Earth or Fire vs. Water, you may give them good damage. But the possibility of the damage you get from them will be greater. In other words, you are taking a risk. To avoid this situation, you should check the type of terrain you're fighting on.



Warren: Since your MP will be 0 at the beginning of the stage, magic is unavailable. (moves) MP will accumulate as WT counts down. The more powerful the magic, the more MP will be consumed.




Bapalu: I see...you heard the rumor of the Duke's execution... Stupid fools! Didn't you realize that it was bait to lure you here?!




Bapalu: (to the Zenobians) You guys are not from the island. Are you from Lodis?!




Lans Hamilton: Okay, we'll just go straight through. Be cautious.

Canopus: Corduroy, don't push yourself too hard. Just stay behind us!

(Corduroy and the others enter Amorika Castle. They encounter another group of enemy soldiers in the castle's main hall.)

Agres: What a disaster, Lord Nybbas is on vacation... Okay guys, these scum bags killed Bapalu! Don't underestimate them. We cannot allow them to take over Amorika Castle. Let's show them what we've got!!!



Agres: (to the Zenobians) Where are you from, strangers? Why are you involving yourselves in the war? This is a war between the Gargastans and Walstanians. It has been fought for centuries. Or are you also trying to get Valeria? Do you have the same ambition as Lodis? Answer me!!

Lans Hamilton: We have been banished from our country. We are fighting with these youths for the cause of justice.

Canopus: We're looking for a job. Are you hiring?

Agres: We don't need the help of foreigners. We have our own army...

Canopus: If that's the case then...let's get Duke Wrongway...I mean Ronway back and get paid...

Agres: Arrogant fools, fighting for money! Your end is near!









(Corduroy and his comrades rescue Duke Ronway. They meet in Amorika Castle's meeting room.)

Ronway: Thank you for rescuing me. I'm finally out of that cursed prison. Especially Corduroy. I am extremely encouraged to know that I was saved by righteous Walstanian youths. You were definitely sent by the Gods to help us in our darkest hour.

Corduroy: Our comrades are gathering at the castle upon hearing the news of your rescue.

Ronway: There will be little time before the Gargastans decide to attack us. We have to reestablish our army first... (to the Zenobians) By the way, I heard that you were exiled. Is that correct?

Lans Hamilton: It is the truth, sir. We have been exiled from our own country.

Ronway: I wonder... (to Warren) How about you, wise man? Two years ago, when the Kingdom of Zenobia was established, there was always a wizard under the King. (to Lans Hamilton) And you, Lans. How can a king abandon such an intelligent warrior like you?

Warren: I did hear about the wizard. But it was not me.

Ronway: Are you Knights anything like the Roslolian Knights, a dark envoy of Lodis? Didn't the Kingdom of Zenobia want to rule over Valeria? If so...

Kachua: Duke Ronway. These Knights put their lives on the line to rescue you.

Lans Hamilton: A knight will become a knight when he has a master worth pledging his allegiance to. We don't have one.

Ronway: I see... Your word is taken as a token of your honesty. I may give you a reward. I trust you will train my troops and guard my castle.

Lans Hamilton: As you wish...

(the Zenobians get up and leave the room)

Ronway: Now Corduroy, your father was a pastor of Griate, was he not? I remember meeting him once. He was a very bright man.

Kachua: Duke Ronway, please avenge my father...and all the people who were killed in Griate.

Ronway: I understand. But our first and closest enemy is Gargastan. I shall not only accept you as part of the Liberation Army, but I will welcome you as official Knights of Amorika.

Corduroy: A Knight...

Ronway: The people of Walsta will be encouraged and our unity will be strengthened by having you as Knights. And you shall work directly under me. Are you willing to accept this?

Vice: Of course, as you say, sir. (to Corduroy) Don't you think so, Corduroy?

Ronway: Good. Then let's make a name for your battalion.

(At this point, you will have the option of naming your battalion. The default name for your battalion is the name of the month of the birthday that you gave Corduroy - in this walkthrough, we'll refer to it as Trousers.

Corduroy: How about the name Trousers?

Ronway: Trousers... That is a nice name. I expect much from you. Now, I want you to go to a town called Krizar. My trusted Knight, Leonard, is after Nybbas. But it seems that he is stronger than we thought. I want you to go to Krizar and help Leonard. Now, before you leave this castle, you'd better recruit more soldiers and buy good equipment. For that, I shall give you 20,000 Goth. As soon as you are ready, go to Krizar. I will have my other knights accompany you.

Vice: You can count on us. We will finish what we have started for Walsta's future.

Ronway: I pray for your success and Walsta's future.

(At this point, we have the opportunity to recruit 4 soldiers and 4 amazons, but we don't. We'll do that separately as we've got the chance to choose the names.)

(Out in the main hallway, Corduroy, Vice, and Kachua run into the Zenobians)

Lans Hamilton: (to Corduroy) Thanks to you, we found a lord to serve. Thank you.

Corduroy: We should be the ones to thank you.

Lans Hamilton: ...I heard that you're going to support Ronway's army. We can't go with you, but let me give you one piece of advice before you go off into battle. If you do not want to die, train before you go into battle. To have the entire unit on the same strength level will make a difference. Don't overdo it, though. Just concentrate on your training. Never forget that.

Corduroy: I understand. Training...

Lans Hamilton: That's right. Good luck.


Now we recruit. The octopus..um..doesn't last long.

I level them up in training battles. As both Kachua and Vice are Guest characters, I can't train them. Everyone is now level 3.





(On the way to Krizar, Corduroy and his comrades encounter a Gargastan unit on Tanmas Hill. The unit is lead by a Wizard named Oruba)

Oruba: I never expected to see the Walstanian Rebels in this area. I bet you guys came here to help the fools that preceded you. Well, it's not going to happen.

(out of nowhere, Canopus appears)



Canopus: I don't feel right leaving you guys. I will stay with you. (to enemies) Whoever wants to end up as a dead carcass can challenge me!!



I don't have a screenshot of it, but Chocolat dies to a random Firebolt spell.







Canopus joins. He's pretty awesome.

I think I'll stop here for the night, and continue updating tomorrow.

Superman.

My bad. Yeah.

You're still crazy for doing this.

Something I learned far too late into my OB64 LP was that writing out all of the dialogue can make for some extremely lengthy posts. If the game is always this talk-y, I would recommend summarizing conversations and using screenshots to illustrate the more important plot points. Selective editing is your friend. Also, some more explanation regarding the actual battles would be nice. I saw that you had a massive screenshot compilation of the battle with the wizard, but having never played the game before, I had no idea what was going on. I wouldn't explain every single move or anything, though. That's another thing I learned too late in my OB64 LP. Haha. Still, keep it up. Don't get discouraged.

I screenshotted a lot of my dialogue, but I am grabbing the actual script here. It'd just be too tedious otherwise.


You can take 10 units into battle, and will face off against the enemies 10 units. You can selectively take 1 or 2 large(Dragons, Golems, Griffons, etc) size units, instead of 1 or 2 of the smaller(humans, hawkmen, lizardmen, fairies, etc.)units. Your on a grid, with different terrain, and basically you and the enemy whack at each until one side wins. This is generally by either taking out the other sides leader, or if there isn't a leader, but killing all opposing enemies.

You've got you basic melee weapons(swords, etc), ranged(bows, x-bows) and magic. If you attack with melee you'll always be countered, but depending on whether your attacking the enemy from the sides or front, the enemy may miss. If you attack with ranged weapons, the enemy won't counter, even if your right next them. Same with magic.

I said you can take up to of the Larger units in battle, but as a general rule, its not a very good idea to do so. Large size units generally have horrible Agility, and thats the probably the single most important stat in the game. Agility affects a number of things. It, along with Dexterity(to a much lesser extent), affect you hit ratio and evasion. Also, Agility direct affects a stat called Weight. What is weight? During battle, each unit has their own weight counter which counts down to 0. When it hits 0, the unit is allowed to take a move, which depending on how much action was taken(moved? moved and attacked? just attacked?) may either fill completely, or partially, and then starts counting down again. Every point of agility, directly removes one point from your maximum weight, allowing for your units turns to come more rapidly. So your large size monsters don't move as much, and don't tend to hit as much, but generally hit much harder. Its a trade-off I generally don't care for.

Weight is affected by other things. Wearing heavy equipment increases maximum weight. Some spells and special abilities also affect them, either positively or negatively.

I'll go more deeply into the combat system as we go along, but feel free to ask questions.