Gambit / Skills, please help

[Kayderim]

Can you guys tell me what gambits i should be using and are worth using? I have all the jobs that are available on game because i want to be able to use all weapons.

I'm more curious about the breaks, how do they work? And is it worth using them on marks / bosses instead of attacking?

My classes are:

Vaan: Monk / Blackmage

Balthier: Uhlan / Shikari

Fran: Mechanist / Breaker

Basch: White Mage / Archer

Ashe: Knight / Bushi

Penelo: Red Mage / Time Mage


Any interesting gambits i should put on these class combinations?

[Hinnyuu]

Originally posted by Kayderim:

I'm more curious about the breaks, how do they work? And is it worth using them on marks / bosses instead of attacking?

Wither: STR * 0.5 (66% base chance of success)
Addle: MAG * 0.5 (66% base chance of success)
Expose: DEF * 0.9 (33% base chance of success)
Shear: MDEF * 0.9 (33% base chance of success)

They always go by the current value, i.e. stacking with previous applications. They stack infinitely (until rounding makes them 0) and last until you leave the current zone (they reset on a zone switch but cannot be removed in any way otherwise).

The VAST majority of enemy abilities are affected by STR only, the exception being obvious spells (i.e. ones that you can also use, like Firaga or whatever). Most enemy special abilities or super attacks are STR-based, much like your Quickenings (also purely STR-based).

Due to the values and success chances, only Wither and Addle are worth using in most fights, and since almost everything enemies do is based on STR, Wither is by far the most useful break. Addle is useful on one superboss (Zodiark) but for most other enemies is basically irrelevant.

Expose and Shear are almost never worth using over regular attacks, because the low value and low success chance make it really hard to actually get a net positive out of them. The exception are fights that are uncharacteristically long, like e.g. Yiazmat and Hellwyrm because the extra length means you have more time to grind out a net positive. They're still not super effective even in those fights.

Wither is ABSURDLY powerful, so much so that it basically trivializes even the most challenging superbosses. Use it at your own discretion. Personally, I just pretend all superbosses are immune to it (they used to be in the original game) and don't use it at all. But that's my subjective preference.

Originally posted by Kayderim:

Any interesting gambits i should put on these class combinations?

Some useful gambits are:

Foe:HP>90% -> Steal

This will let you automate stealing to some degree, but it's not perfect. There isn't a way to perfectly gambit Steal because it won't automatically stop stealing even if there's nothing left to steal.

Foe:Lowest HP -> Attack

My favored attack gambit, which makes sure weak enemies are focused down first and everyone always goes for the same enemy rather than haphazardly spreading damage around and leaving enemies alive longer to damage you.

Self:MP<10% -> Charge

A caster staple, making sure you never completely run out of MP. Might need to disable this when operating in a 0-MP environment (like global MP drain field effect).

For elemental attack spells, it's a good idea to go down the list of weaknesses; i.e., have a gambit in the form of:

Foe:<element> weak -> <element spell>

Below that, have a default spell that's usually your strongest element, ideally with a boost (e.g. Firaga if you're using Flame Staff) but check for immunity (example here for fire):

Foe:fire vulnerable -> Firaga

Below THAT you can have a fallback non-elemental spell (Black Mage only) for enemies that are immune to all the elements, like e.g.:

Foe:Lowest HP -> Scathe

Feel free to dynamically change the order or turn gambits on and off based on what area you are in or what enemies you are fighting. Gambits are not a one-setup-fits-all solution. For superbosses especially you might want to use completely different gambit setups.

[Kayderim]

Originally posted by Hinnyuu:

Originally posted by Kayderim:

I'm more curious about the breaks, how do they work? And is it worth using them on marks / bosses instead of attacking?

Wither: STR * 0.5 (66% base chance of success)
Addle: MAG * 0.5 (66% base chance of success)
Expose: DEF * 0.9 (33% base chance of success)
Shear: MDEF * 0.9 (33% base chance of success)

They always go by the current value, i.e. stacking with previous applications. They stack infinitely (until rounding makes them 0) and last until you leave the current zone (they reset on a zone switch but cannot be removed in any way otherwise).

The VAST majority of enemy abilities are affected by STR only, the exception being obvious spells (i.e. ones that you can also use, like Firaga or whatever). Most enemy special abilities or super attacks are STR-based, much like your Quickenings (also purely STR-based).

Due to the values and success chances, only Wither and Addle are worth using in most fights, and since almost everything enemies do is based on STR, Wither is by far the most useful break. Addle is useful on one superboss (Zodiark) but for most other enemies is basically irrelevant.

Expose and Shear are almost never worth using over regular attacks, because the low value and low success chance make it really hard to actually get a net positive out of them. The exception are fights that are uncharacteristically long, like e.g. Yiazmat and Hellwyrm because the extra length means you have more time to grind out a net positive. They're still not super effective even in those fights.

Wither is ABSURDLY powerful, so much so that it basically trivializes even the most challenging superbosses. Use it at your own discretion. Personally, I just pretend all superbosses are immune to it (they used to be in the original game) and don't use it at all. But that's my subjective preference.

Originally posted by Kayderim:

Any interesting gambits i should put on these class combinations?

Some useful gambits are:

Foe:HP>90% -> Steal

This will let you automate stealing to some degree, but it's not perfect. There isn't a way to perfectly gambit Steal because it won't automatically stop stealing even if there's nothing left to steal.

Foe:Lowest HP -> Attack

My favored attack gambit, which makes sure weak enemies are focused down first and everyone always goes for the same enemy rather than haphazardly spreading damage around and leaving enemies alive longer to damage you.

Self:MP<10% -> Charge

A caster staple, making sure you never completely run out of MP. Might need to disable this when operating in a 0-MP environment (like global MP drain field effect).

For elemental attack spells, it's a good idea to go down the list of weaknesses; i.e., have a gambit in the form of:

Foe:<element> weak -> <element spell>

Below that, have a default spell that's usually your strongest element, ideally with a boost (e.g. Firaga if you're using Flame Staff) but check for immunity (example here for fire):

Foe:fire vulnerable -> Firaga

Below THAT you can have a fallback non-elemental spell (Black Mage only) for enemies that are immune to all the elements, like e.g.:

Foe:Lowest HP -> Scathe

Feel free to dynamically change the order or turn gambits on and off based on what area you are in or what enemies you are fighting. Gambits are not a one-setup-fits-all solution. For superbosses especially you might want to use completely different gambit setups.

Many thanks.

[Casurin]

Also most gambits are self-explanatory when you should use them.

For a healer you want them to raise the dead, heal the nearly dead, remove bad status effects before doing anything else, so you set up your gambits in that order.
(Make sure to NOT have "Partymember < 100%HP => Vigra" as your first gambit )

They are instructions for your characters after all - so just think: What do you want a particular person to do? Should he always just buff the group? Or debuff the enemy? Or attack the weak monsters first?

And testing out the gambits is part of the fun imo.
(and as always - the detailed explanations of Hinnyuu are great)

[JD]

It’s always useful to have a foe: flying gambit for your melee attackers if their standard weapon won’t hit flyers. Shades of black is a great alternative action, telekinesis is best if available. Self->berserk or bacchus wine is good for melee attackers during tougher fights and areas, as long as the enemy doesn’t use palings.

For casters, unless you have an Opal Ring equipped, always have a foe status = reflect gambit set to a non magick action (or dispel) and ranked higher than your offensive magicks so you don’t get blasted with your own spells.

For any fights where the enemy can use reverse (ie death gaze, ultima, trial mode 84) make sure to set an ally:any esuna/esunaga gambit ahead of your curative gambits so you don’t kill your self, and set foe status = reverse -> esuna ahead of any offensive gambits so you don’t heal them.

Self or ally:any gambits with buffs are always a good addition to round out extra slots. Unless they are essential for the fight you are in, set them below your attacks so they are just filler actions when you’re not engaged in combat.

[Kayderim]

Thanks guys