Same team to play all 3 games in the Trilogy

[Marcycle]

OK, I'm going to want a little spoiler-free help here. My goal is to play through the entire Trilogy with the same team of 6. No substitutions. I want to set things up in the beginning for that to happen, but don't want spoilers to tell me explicitly what will happen that I'll need to deal with.

I originally started playing BT1 with the following set-up
- Paladin
- Monk
- Bard
- Rogue
- Conjurer
- Magician

When I was reading through the F1 help, it seemed like it would be nice to eventually turn my Paladin or Monk into a Geomancer, both of my magic-users into Archmages, and eventually turn one of the Archmages into a Chronomancer.

But, then I was reading some tips for new players: https://steamcommunity.com/app/843260/discussions/0/1734336452551706720/?ctp=3 and I learned that I'll probably want 3 mages.
- 1 to be an Archmage
- 1 to be a Chronomancer
- 1 to be an Archmage that is "sacrificed"...whatever that means.

I'd like to be able to cast any spell in the game, so it seems like I'll need 2 archmages to retain that ability--one that is "sacrificed" and another that is just a regular ol' Archmage.

So, to that end, I plan to restart the game with:
- Paladin -> to be turned into a Geomancer
- Bard
- Rogue
- Conjurer -> to be turned into an Archmage
- Magician -> to be turned into a Chronomancer
- Conjurer -> to be turned into an Arrchmage that is then "sacrificed."

Will that setup get me through the entire series without needing to sub characters in/out of my team? I just wanted to confirm this before I get too invested in my new team.

Oh, I also plan to restart my new game with a few Legacy Options on:
- Individual Inventory (a bit more of a nightmare to manage inventory, but gives me more inventory slots to play with)
- Game-specific songs - Seems more fun to get songs unlocked later on
- Use unequipped items - I always thought it was silly that an item needs to be equipped to use
- Full XP requirements - so I can replay fun battles
- No Items in Empty Houses - I didn't see the need to nerf how difficult it is in the beginning

Which, I don't think should affect things with my new party of 6, but I thought I'd include that info' here just in case.

[kaypy]

Your initial party setup was perfectly fine for a trip through the whole trilogy. Three mages is a personal preference not a requirement. Note that unless you have a very specific trick build you *will* need to swap out characters in BT2 (but only for one specific puzzle)

One potential issue with your new setup is that game-specific songs works the opposite of how you seem to expect. With it set on, you will lose all your old songs and get all the new songs immediately when changing volumes. With it off, you can find and learn all the new songs in game to wind up with three times the total repertoire

By "sacrificial" I believe what was implied was a more advanced strategy to get high level spells fast. By now you probably know that you get spells in one mage class then change to another. The normal way to behave is to get all the spells in one class before changing.

But with a third mage, it is viable to have one skip most of the early classes to start getting sorcerer, wizard or archmage spells as early as possible. The downside is that the mage is permanently crippled because you cant go back to old classes. So they will miss out on both the spells, and the cheap experience levels, and thus be significantly worse one the regular mages catch up.

The theory is that you retire them at this point, and if you want three mages long term you use the high level spells you have to powerlevel a replacement.
(Another option might be to use them as the chronomancer- they will still lack a bunch of hp/mp due to their level, but at least the spell list wont be an issue)

[Marcycle]

Originally posted by kaypy:

By "sacrificial" I believe what was implied was a more advanced strategy to get high level spells fast. By now you probably know that you get spells in one mage class then change to another. The normal way to behave is to get all the spells in one class before changing.

Lol, sounds like I completely misread that! Could you let me know if this is correct? It is possible to finish all three volumes of the trilogy with my initial setup of Paladin, Monk, Bard, Rogue, Conjurer, and Magician with three spellcasters:
- One as an Archmage (e.g. my original Conjurer) that knows spells for Magician, Conjurer, Sorcerer, Wizard, and Archmage
- One as a Chronomancer (e.g. my original Magician) that knows spells for a Chronomancer
- One as a Geomancer (e.g. my original Monk) that knows spells for a Geomancer

Originally posted by kaypy:

Note that unless you have a very specific trick build you *will* need to swap out characters in BT2 (but only for one specific puzzle)

Hmm, that's a shame. Is there one class in particular I can switch for another one in order to avoid that, or is it something more complicated that I'll need to read a hint in BT2, then advance a class a certain way or create a combination of party members (like only having 3 party members of particular classes) to overcome the puzzle?

Originally posted by kaypy:

One potential issue with your new setup is that game-specific songs works the opposite of how you seem to expect. With it set on, you will lose all your old songs and get all the new songs immediately when changing volumes. With it off, you can find and learn all the new songs in game to wind up with three times the total repertoire

Oh, that is *completely* opposite to how I assumed it would work! Thanks for explaining that to me. That was not clear to me when I read the F1 manual.

[kaypy]

Originally posted by Marcycle:

Lol, sounds like I completely misread that! Could you let me know if this is correct? It is possible to finish all three volumes of the trilogy with my initial setup of Paladin, Monk, Bard, Rogue, Conjurer, and Magician with three spellcasters:
- One as an Archmage (e.g. my original Conjurer) that knows spells for Magician, Conjurer, Sorcerer, Wizard, and Archmage
- One as a Chronomancer (e.g. my original Magician) that knows spells for a Chronomancer
- One as a Geomancer (e.g. my original Monk) that knows spells for a Geomancer

With the caveat that Monks are about the worst class for Geomancers. (About the only thing that Geomancers get from their previous class is the HP, of which Monks are the worst applicable class. They will also suddenly need all the armour and weapons a monk wont be carrying)

Also, technically, the geomancer is more something you want than mandatory.

Is there one class in particular I can switch for another one in order to avoid that, or is it something more complicated that I'll need to read a hint in BT2, then advance a class a certain way or create a combination of party members (like only having 3 party members of particular classes) to overcome the puzzle?

The latter- you won't need any new characters, just to reorganise the party for a bit. It is technically (but barely) possible to have a party that wouldn't need to be reorganised, but it would be the sort of party for people who already know the game and are deliberately making life more difficult for themselves.

Oh, that is *completely* opposite to how I assumed it would work! Thanks for explaining that to me. That was not clear to me when I read the F1 manual.

8-)

[kaypy]

Having had a look at the manual, "songs work like the original" isn't very clear for someone who hadn't played the original, is it?

[phimseto]

I suppose, though I think it details out what that means in the actual Legacy Mode selection screen? It's been a while.

And props to Marcycle for going through with a party of 6. That's the best way to go through the game and enjoy the full range of spells and challenges.

[Marcycle]

Originally posted by kaypy:

The latter- you won't need any new characters, just to reorganise the party for a bit.

Sweet, thanks a bunch for your spoiler-free help! I really appreciate it!

[kaypy]

Originally posted by phimseto:

I suppose, though I think it details out what that means in the actual Legacy Mode selection screen? It's been a while.

Just checked, and the selection screen text and the manual are pretty close to identical...

Originally posted by Marcycle:

Sweet, thanks a bunch for your spoiler-free help! I really appreciate it!

You're welcome! Nearly everything about the original series is documented online, but only if you want nearly everything spoiled as well. So I try to give the spoiler-free version here 8-)

[Adventure Square]

I don't think Geomancer is optional in the original trilogy. I haven't tested extensively here.

Depending upon what options you're using in the remake, I would end up playing BT1 with a party of 6 and BT2 & BT3 with a party of 7, or I would play the whole thing with a party of 7.
That said, you certainly CAN play through all of them with a party of 6, and it's more convenient in various spots in BT2.

That said, making substitutions to your party if you change your mind at some point isn't really that bad. They'll get hit more by spells for a while but it will work out soon enough.

[kaypy]

A friend of a friend has a second cousin who purports to have a fuzzy photograph of swamp gas that looks like a geomancer being necessary in some version or another