Strategic games, as reductive as they may seem in battle-driven action that give the mere sensation of movement in the vast world of Ivalice, also need strategic guidance; especially when it comes to games that have Final Fantasy as their name. Below you will find the complete strategy guide to the game divided into chapters and battles, just like the game. The guide features some spoilers, meaning revelations about the plot, so reading it ahead of schedule is only at your own risk.
After the introductory video that will introduce you to a knight on a Chocobo and after the speech in the presence of Princess Ovelia, you will immediately find yourself in a battle at the entrance to the monastery where your whole story begins.
Orbonne Monastery - Introductory battle
Enemies: Lezales (Knight), 1 Chemist, 3 Archer
Party Members: Ramza
Conditions for victory: None
Recommended Level: Nobody
The first battle of the game has no requirements or excessive difficulty: you will need it more as a tutorial. You can only use Ramza and watch your party mates defeat the other opponents: if you have no experience with this genre of video game it is good to start with this first battle, otherwise you will already know how to move. By clicking on the member to whom the turn is assigned, in this battle always and only Ramza, you can move him in the boxes that will light up and once you arrive at your destination you can decide who to attack, whether it is by magic or by weapon. After the attack you will have to choose where to turn your gaze to wait for the next turn. Work together with your companions to defeat the opponents and once everything is finished enjoy a new movie in which you see Princess Ovelia and the knight on the Chocobo seen at the beginning of the game.
Chapter one centers on a Ramza flashback recalling when he was knighted into the Northern Sky Academy alongside Delita in Gariland. You will be assigned as a team 4 Squires and 2 Chemists with the task of killing some criminals who have arrived in the city: get ready to take the field.
Battle 1 - Gariland Magic City
Enemies: 4 Squire, 1 Chemist
Recommended Party Members: Ramza, 3 Squire, 1 Chemist; Delita
Conditions for victory: Kill all enemies
Recommended Level: 1
To decide your party, a screen will appear with boxes on which to place your pawns: you will already find Ramza lined up and through the backbones you can scroll through the profiles of the other usable characters. It is advisable to deploy 3 Squires and 1 Chemist but you are certainly not required to respect this advice. Delita will be the guest on duty and don't worry if he dies: he'll team up and you'll find him alive again in the next battle. Deploy your team, for a maximum of five members, press Start and you will find yourself fighting against 4 Squire and 1 Chemist, a team equal to yours. Immediately focus on the opposing Chemist in order to prevent him from healing his allies. Once you kill the Chemist go and worry about finishing the work started by Delita with the Squires so that you can have a not too tiring victory.
Battle Trophy: 2000 gil - Mythril Knife
Once the battle is over you will find yourself in the wolrd map where you can advance to the next location: before doing so, however, you should take a look at what the city of Garland and its three areas to visit offers you. The first area, the tavern, will offer you the possibility of accessing the multiplayer modes, which we are not interested in for now, in addition to the possibility of listening to the rumors regarding the topics that you will propose to the tavernkeeper. The other two places are certainly more interesting, in fact the second is the shop where you can buy weapons, armor, various equipment and objects and, obviously, also sell what seems too much in your inventory; in the last area, the Guild of Warriors, you can instead hire new companions for your team: for now it is advisable only in case you find party members with a courage value greater than 70, a value that your members will have current, while in the continuation of the game you might need to hire some female soldiers, which cost 100 gil less, therefore 1400, and have more possibilities of equipment than male soldiers. You may also need a new member when you have finished assigning various jobs to party members, jobs that can be assigned by entering the game menu from the world map by pressing triangle. You will find yourself with various possibilities, from data management to equipping party members. Here you will find your team lined up in various files where pressing on one of the members will open a small menu with the general characteristics of these in which to choose the equipment and change jobs if necessary: currently you will only find the possibility to switch from Squire, base, in Chemist, useless choice for now since you already have two available and it is a job that is not recommended to develop. As soon as you have finished any changes to be made, return to the world map and proceed to the left on your path.
Press on Mandalia Plain and you will start an intermission scene: Ramza's father is dying and just as he is about to expire to see his blond-haired son arrive. As his last wish he will ask his son to take care of his sister and become a good knight to teach his brothers the value necessary to become such: he will also speak of his friend Delita saying that Ramza is clearly superior and will have to prove it during the period of probation at the Academy. When Ramza's father takes his last breath you will return to the world map and be free to press back to Mandalia Plain where a new battle will start.
Battle 2 - Mandalia Plains
Enemies: 4 Squire, 1 Thief, Red Panther
Recommended Party Members: Ramza, 2 Squire, 1 Chemist; Delita and Argath
Conditions for victory: Kill all enemies or save Argath
Recommended Level: 1
At the beginning of the battle, speaking with Delita you will have a double choice to make: the first will make you confess that you want to punish the brigands first, while the second will make you decide to save the prisoner, or Argath. It is recommended to choose the first one as it will be the easiest and will also provide you with a bonus in courage: Argarth's death is fictitious and has no implications on the plot or even on the reward you will receive at the end of the battle, in fact the soldier will come back to life in battle over. As with the first battle, it is advisable to kill the Chemist immediately and then move on to the Squires leaving the Thief for last since it will not give you more problems than the other opponents can give you. But don't forget the Red Panther near the rock on the right: it will also fortunately give you few problems.
Battle Trophy: 2 potion
After the battle, Argath will join you as a guest along with Delita. As surely some of your party members will be leveled up maybe it's time to make some job changes: it is advisable to advance Ramza to Knight's job and also another Squire, leaving the Chemist to his job and keeping two more Squires. Remember, however, the Knights cannot equip the Mythril Knife that you could have equipped in Ramza, so you'll have to go to the shop to buy something new.
First of all, however, continue north to Eagros Castle: here there will be a long dialogue between Ramza, the two companions Delita and Argath and some important characters in the course of the plot. After the last dialogue between Ramza and his sister you will return to the world map where you can decide what to do, and the most useful thing at the moment is to stop at the Eagros shop. Buy the Longsword, Bronze Helm and Linen Cuirass, which increase your HP by 20 for the Knights, and of course if you have decided to bring some of your Squires to Archer's job buy a bow. If you have any money left over, buy Battle Boots for your Chemist as well, increasing your movement by 1. If you want to get some experience go up and down from Mandalia to Eagros until you find a random battle in which Delita and Argath will not take part but only your team. If you are not planning to expare, continue on to your next stop.
Go to the right of Gariland to get to Sweegy Woods where the third battle of the story will take place, so prepare your side.
Battle 3 - Sweegy Woods
Enemies: 2 Bomb, 2 Goblins, Red Panther
Recommended Party Members: Ramza, 1 Squire, 1 Chemist, 1 Black Mage (or 1 Knight); Delita and Argath
Conditions for victory: Kill all enemies
Recommended Level: 3
Use the Squire's Stone attack and attack the enemies with Ramza when your enemies have arrived over the bridge: if you have teamed up a Black Mage use Blizzard on the Bomb, otherwise hit everyone without pardoning anyone: if you have not yet unlocked the Phoenix Down abilities for the Chemist don't worry, this time Argath will take care of raising the dead in battle. Focus immediately on the Bombs and then on the Goblins, leaving the Red Panther for last.
Battle Trophy: no
If you have not already done so, you should do it now: choose one of your party members and have him change jobs by switching to Black Mage: let him learn the three basic spells, Blizzard, Fire and Thunder, and equip him with a Rod that you will find at the Gariland shop. Then teach the Phoenix Down skill to your Chemist. Finally, let Ramza learn the Focus and Counter Tackle skills that belong to the Squire job. Move on to Dorter where you will find yourself in the fourth battle of the first chapter of the game.
Battle 4 - Slums of Dorter
Enemies: 3 Archer, 2 Black Mages, 1 Knight
Recommended Party Members: Ramza, 1 Squire (or 1 Knight), 1 Chemist, 1 Black Mage; Delita and Argath
Conditions for victory: Kill all enemies
Recommended Level: 4-5
Watch out for the Black Mages and go immediately to attack them with your Black Mage or Knights, as they have very little HP available. Don't worry about the archer at the top of the building: Delita and Argath will take care of him to distract him and eventually kill him. Keep the Chemist handy for any healing and not to leave any party members on the ground as the battle will be quite difficult. However, do not rely too much on the two guests of the group who, once the Archer is killed, will not come to help you in your battle: therefore arm the two knights, the members with the most HP ever and, with a little patience, kill the remaining opponents. Once the battle is over, you can enter the city of Dorter and there will be another cutscene dialogue.
Battle Trophy: Iron sword
Argath will repeatedly beat the newly defeated bosses of the enemies to obtain information: in the end you will discover that your next destination is north of Dorter, beyond the desert, but before going there it is better to stop in the city to do some 'shopping. Buy shields for your knights and stock up on Potions, which in this city are cheaper than the others. Equip the Iron Sword in Ramza and upgrade the upgradeable with the help of leather armor.
You should try to raise your level a bit so as not to find yourself in serious difficulty in the next battle, so travel a little backward waiting for a random battle: during the random battles, Delita and Argath will not fight with you and you will not be forced to field Ramza. Once all is done proceed to Zeklaus Desert.
Battle 5 - The Sand Rat's Sietch
Enemies: 3 Knights, 2 Monks, 1 Archer
Recommended Party Members: Ramza, 1 Squire (or 1 Knight), 1 Chemist, 1 Black Mage; Delita and Argath
Conditions for victory: Kill all enemies
Recommended Level: 4-5
Your team will be divided into two parts, each of which is made up of two party members: therefore, be homogeneous in your positions. After a brief dialogue that once again has the wanted Gustave as its fulcrum, you will begin the battle outside the building. Try to block the enemies that will come out of the left door with the Black Mage and hit them when they are joined in a few boxes to be able to damage them all in one blow: Fire and Blizzard are recommended. With Ramza and the Squire go and hit the opponents from the other door helped by Delita: as usual, don't rely heavily on the two comrades in arms who will often and willingly withdraw from the action. The battle will be very long if you don't have any fighters around the fifth level.
Battle Trophy: 200 Gil, Hi-Potion, Blind Knife
After the battle, you will witness the assassination of Gustave by a man, Wiegraf, who also killed the Marquis Elmdore. Delita will prevent Argath from chasing the killer and invite the group to return to Eagros. Equip your Chemist with the newly acquired Blind Knife, a weapon that doesn't have much greater power than the others but has the potential to inflict Blind status on the enemy. Head to Eagros where you will meet Lord Dycedarg Beoulve along with Duke Larg and both of you will feel it is appropriate to send you to debar the Corpse Brigade. Once the scene is over, visit the Eagros shop: buy another Iron Sword to assign to the other Knight, two Iron Helms and two Bronze Armors, both for the Knight, some Phoenix Downs if you don't have any more and some just now unlocked. Hi-Potions that recover 70 HP instead of the 30 of the Potion. Then also unlock the corresponding ability of the Chemist to allow him to use them. In Gariland the shop has a new wardrobe waiting for you and the most interesting piece is the Leather Plate that you will have to buy for your Chemist along with the Red Hood. Once you feel complete, head south to the Mandalia Plants at Brigant's Den.
Battle 6 - Brigant's Den
Enemies: 3 Thief, 2 White Mage, Milleuda (Knight)
Recommended Party Members: Ramza, 1 Knight, 1 Chemist, 1 Black Mage; Delita, Argath
Conditions for victory: Kill all enemies
Recommended Level: 6
Focus now on the Withe Mage who can heal all members of the opposing party and cast dangerous black spells: don't move too much and wait for them to get close, after which go and give the Thief well served, leaving Milleuda for last, paying attention to his dangerous attacks: all gone Milleuda will decide not to fight and will establish a conversation with you. For the umpteenth time I remind you not to rely on useless, if not to make numbers, guests of the battle.
Battle Trophy: 700 Gil, IronSword, Bronze Shield
After the dialogue with Milleuda you will see the intervention of Zalbaag in aid of Alma at the entrance of the castle of Eagros, in front of a Dycedarg hit very hard. Equip Ramza with the Bronze Shield and make the necessary changes with the skills using the JPs obtained: if you want to change even some jobs I suggest you bring a Knight to Monk, but preferably if you have already unlocked the ability of the Knight Heavy Armor which will facilitate the condition of your Monk, who remains a great hitter, but if you prefer class over toughness, leave the Knight. Head back to Eagros where you will have a heated exchange of ideas with your friend Delita who is in a nervous breakdown after learning that her sister, Tietra, was kidnapped during the fight that saw Dycegrard, Ramza's brother, injured. After this scene Argath will leave the party and you will end up with a new destination north of Gariland. Before going there, however, it is necessary to do some 'order in your party: it is no longer time to have Squire in the team, so bring one of these to Archer's job and go to the Eagros shop to buy the equipment for your new member of the party that will need a bow. There are two types of bows, one is the Bowgun, a crossbow to put it briefly, which can be equipped in one hand, the other is a bow that goes in two hands: the first, therefore, can make you also equip a shield , the second one does not, but the latter does more damage than the crossbow, so the choice is yours, the only thing to know is that the archer hits from a distance and rarely looks for melee, so he would rarely use a shield, therefore it would be better to opt for a two handed bow. Then head over to Gariland to buy more equipment for your archer so you can unlock a cute cutscene at Mandalia Plans between Ramza and Delita in front of the sunset as they discuss the second's sister. Once in Gariland, buy a Red Hood and a Leather Plate for your archer. Stock up on items, Hi-Potion and Phoenix Down in particular, so head north to Gariland if you don't feel you need to earn a few more levels through random battles.
Battle 7 - Lenalia Plateau
Enemies: 2 Knight, 2 Black Mage, 1 Time Mage, Milleuda (Knight)
Recommended Party Members: Ramza, 1 Knight, 1 Chemist, 1 Black Mage, 1 Archer; Delita
Conditions for victory: Kill Milleuda
Recommended Level: 7
The best strategy is the same as in the previous battle: focus on the wizards, especially on the Time Mage who can speed up the actions of your enemies and slow down yours, then on the two Knights, leaving Milleuda alone: this time you will have only one guest in the party, Delita , who will get busy out of anger at the kidnapping of his sister. Instantly cast Fire spells with your Black Mage when opponents are concentrated in four nearby squares for a quadruple magic attack and then finish them off with Ramza. Milleuda's attacks have all the skills of the Knight, so she can break any of your equipment, from armor to helmet, thus making you vulnerable to her attacks: beware of her counterattack too, so attack her with characters with high defense and HP values , characters like Ramza or a Knight. By apologizing to his brother Milleuda he will fall to the ground and you will emerge victorious from the Lenalian Plateau.
Battle Trophy: 1000 gil, Silken Robe, Battle Boots
Equip the Silken Robe to your Black Mage to give him a bonus of 16 MP, after which you go shopping for shops to upgrade your fighters and replace any items Milleuda has broken: in Gariland they sell the Ringmail, which can be equipped to your Chemist and Archer. Go to Eagros for more substantial purchases: buy two Mythril Swords and two Chainmails for the Knights, a Silver Bow for the Archer. Teach your Black Mage the second level spells and to the Archer, if you have not already done so, the skills Aim + 1 and Aim + 2 which serve to increase the strength of your arrows. Once you have finished shopping and upgrading your equipment, retrace your steps to the place of the fight with Milleuda and continue north.
Battle 8 - Windflat Mill
Enemies: 2 Monk, 2 Knight, 1 Yellow Chocobo, Wiegraf (White Knight)
Recommended Party Members: Ramza, 1 Knight (or 1 Archer), 1 Chemist, 1 Black Mage; Delita
Conditions for victory: Kill Wiegraf
Recommended Level: 8
Wiegraf has no plans to let the murder of his sister Milleuda go unpunished and will attack with powerful ranged hits, such as the Judgment Blade. Kill the Monks and the Knights immediately, leaving, if you want, the Chocobo that immediately the first hit will only begin to heal by hiding behind the tower. Focus on Wiegraf who after a few turns will start a debate with Ramza and Delita who will invite him to surrender without having to kill him: obviously he will not accept and will disappear after a few more attacks to escape death.
Battle Trophy: Hi-Potion
There are no new items in the shops, so you just have to continue your journey in search of Tietra in Ziekden Fortress - this will be the last battle of the first chapter.
Battle 9 - Ziekden Fortress
Enemies: 3 Knights, 2 Black Mage, Argath (Knight)
Recommended Party Members: Ramza, 1 Knight (or 1 Chemist), 1 Archer, 1 Black Mage; Delita
Conditions for victory: Kill Argath
Recommended Level: 9
The teams will be divided for the second time in the first chapter: then form two homogeneous teams with a Knight and a Black Mage on one side and a Knight and an Archer on the other side. When you arrive at the snowy battlefield, you'll see an exchange of compliments between Zalbaarg and Gragoroth, the latter with Tietra nearby. Argath, your old acquaintance, on the orders of Zalbaarg will first strike Tietra and then his captor and then launch an attack against you on the orders of Zalbaarg. The fight between Delita and your old party mate will begin right away. Try to immediately get rid of the Black Mages that strike from afar and then of the Knights leaving Argath alone and helpless. If you have raised Ramza to a good level, around 30th, it shouldn't be a problem for you to engage in a duel with Argath who has, yes, his auto-potion ability that recovers 60 HP at times, but they hit in the back or from the side with an attack of at least 30 damage you will be able to snatch XNUMX HP per hit. Once the battle is over Argath will fall to the ground and an animated scene will start.
Battle Trophy: Nobody
At the end of the scene you will be asked if you want to save the game: do so and another scene will start with Gaffgarion, Ramza, Agrias and Elder Simon, at the end of which you can have some new members join your group. Ladd is a level 8 Squire, Alicia and Lavian are level 8 Knights: Get them all, especially the two knights you will need later in one of the subquests. Thus ends the first chapter of Final Fantasy Tactics: The Lion War.
