Well, last night I started it. After my first fight, I went to save and realized I didn’t have enough memory. :rolleyes: So it looks like I get to start over. The fighting is very interesting, and at first a little confusing. It may take me awhile before I really get the strategy down.
Some general fighting advice if you’d like: [spoiler]Forget the horoscope signs. For all the title would make it say, it only gives a marginal advantage, and I’d say is only important for theives trying to steal unique equipment from certain bosses.
What you need to do is get the hang of not leaving your back available for attack. Using the “cancel” button on the battlefield will let you move the cursor around anywhere. Hitting select on land will tell you about it, and hitting the “action” button on enemies will elt you learn anything about them. When their status comes up, using select you can find out all the specifics.
Finally, hitting the cancel button over an enemy will show you all the places it can move to. Not too important in the beginning, but later on when you are trying to set up attacks on panels and so on, luring monsters into traps and such, such help becomes super important.[/spoiler]
More direct fighting adviceHeight and sex are the two biggest advantages you’ll find in this game. Depending on the attack/spell, these two will impact it the most (spells<->sex and height<->attack). Keep your archers and anyone with a gun or crossbow high. Archers with bows gain distance as they move higher.
Finally, something that might not strike you right away but when it does you’ll wish you thought of it sooner:If you have the battle in hand (such as one weak guy left) start attacking your own men! As long as you do not do level-down or power-down attacks you’ll gain plenty of experience and job points.
General job advice: [spoiler]Make sure everyone gets high enough on squire to get Gained JP Up and Accumulate, and make sure they have the “basic” skill and “Gained JP Up” ability set, and make “Gained JP Up” your first order of the day before anything else! From then on, if you can’t attack someone in a battle, simply accumulate your strength for easy exp and jp!
Make sure that Ramza goes way up on his Squire ability as he gets extra abilities over the others (note he has no “basic” skill, but instead has “Guts”).
One of Ramza’s Guts abilities raises brave points. Every 5 or ten you raise them in battle (either his own or someone else’s, and I can’t remember the exact number, but I think it is 5) they are raised one permanently. Great for your fighters, but don’t go over 90-something (94 I think) or they will leave your party. brave is great for your fighters. Faith works similarly, but you want everyone to have faith.
Though it sounds like you can build the most incredible army in the world this way don’t count on it. You’ll find plenty of other things to occupy you and sometimes you’ll think, “shit, I should be raising these people’s faith!” lol[/spoiler]
Finally, I want to tell you straight out that until you get to chapter two (I think) don’t bust your hump raising levels because you’ll get the opportunity to recruit new soldiers free that are often better than the ones you start with. Don’t waste too much time leveling anyone but Ramza up. Whenever it is, it is a little ways into the game, you’ll get a series of “Add so and so to your party?” Add everyone and afterward sort through them to find those with the best brave/faith rankings.
Knowing that magic goes hand in hand with faith and brave goes hand in hand with fighting, make your choices early on who is going to do what and work with that. Later on everyone will have done a little of everything, but characters will still have become rather specialized (especially the mages since learning all the spells takes FOREVER).
Also, monsters are always just a little stronger than you. If you level up, they level up. Level 70 yellow chocobos are bastards! 
I love this game so, so much. Damn, I think I am going to play it now! lol
Oh, and of course, save often, except when you’ve got people out doing “jobs” which you’ll encounter later in the game, at which points save never (in case you sent the wrong folks out and they return with junk).
Finally, the game takes over 40 hours if you’re flying through it as an RPGer. I imagine it could be beaten much quicker, but there is so much cool shit to do that you’ll be sidetracked for almost the entire time.
The game is one big, long, sidequest. LOL I really hope you enjoy it!
Wow, thanks for the advice! I appreciate it, since there are some similiarities to other RPGs, but is still different.
40 hours, eh? Knowing me, it’ll take me 75…
If you tell yourself, “I’m going to make all my guys know everything for every job” then you’ll be playing forever. The development system in this game is so huge it is incredible. Each time I play I think of new teams of character that romp.
Keep me posted on your progress, if you don’t mind. I’d love to hear how you’re doing with it and liking it. If you want to read an insane amount of data about the mechanics of the game you can go through the tutorial, but its a real sleeper. Check out http://www.gamefaqs.com/ for some excellent FAQs. Very, very, very in depth. But as usual filled with spoilers, and if there is one thing that FFT has over other RPGs it is one of the most insanely complicated and convoluted stories ever.
I could talk about this game all day long. 
If you’ve got 75 hours to play it this game has enough to keep you busy. If you’re a FFVII fan you might want to check out the gamefaq site above to find out how to get Cloud. He is VERY difficult to use because you get him very late in the game at level 1! But, if you raise him well and get his speed up he is an incredible character.
If you’re the kind of player who beat all the weapons in FF7 then this game will be a godsend. I can’t wait until I can get it for the GBA and carry it with me everywhere!
Ok, FFT is really hard. I’m stuck on one fight–the one where I’m fighting 2 mages, 3 archers, and the leader of Death Corps. How the heck am I supposed to beat that?
FWIW, I was totally new to RPGs when I started Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliace. I finished it the first time in under 13 hours; the second time, in 9; the third, 6. Each time I skipped nothing, killed everything… I did very little differently.
I’d say the game is good for those new to games and the genre, but experienced players won’t be impressed or satisfied with it.
pepperlandgirl - yes, FFT is hard! Really good, but there’s some tuff fights in there. If you’re at the one I’m thinking of, it’s in the catacombs of some building. Check out www.gamefaqs.com for strategies and hints. I don’t remember how I got past that one.
Don’t worry, there are harder fights ahead, including the one I got stuck on. Still, good game.
I myself have recently started Shadow Hearts and I’m stuck on a fight myself. I haven’t had much time the last two days to devote to it. Hopefully I can get through it tonight if I get a chance to play. Keep your fingers crossed for me.
What city are you in? I’m trying to picture that battle…
In general, prepare to switch into sacrifice mode if you’re having a hard time with a battle. Pick one guy and say, “This chump is gonna take out those mages.” Then take another who is only going to do some damage, but intend this person to die… have him go up first, your sacrificial lamb, and draw fire from the mages. After he’s been hit once, then send your killer in. The AI goes after the weakest, closest character. Just be sure your characters aren’t close enough to have one spell hit both of them.
Meanwhile, keep a chemist in the background. If your sacrificial lamb hits the dirt, revive him so the computer can waste a turn killing him again.
Keep in mind that chemists are weak, too. Let the chemist have “move +1” and some battle boots so he can run in and out and get the job done.
In general, you want to kill mages before anyone, even if archers are doing more damage to you. Mages can do damage to more characters at once, and besides, they’re weak in the HP, so kill them quick and forget about it. Archers would be the next priority. Knights are always last since they can usually only move three squares at a time and you can keep away from them easy enough.
If it is the town I think it is, where you come upon one guy threatening another, then here’s what I do.
Ramza: squire. Delita: Knight or Squire (whatever has the best equipment). Algus: Knight or Squire (same thing). One chemist, and another squire. That should be all you can bring to the battle.
Send your two squires forward slowly… when you go forward, you’re going to have to be able to hit a mage before they hit you (very tought since their magic has such range). Alternatively you can deliberately let one be targeted and use the “spray” to hit the knight or one of the mages. Whatever character goes in first will die, no doubt about it.
Meanwhile, send your chemist up to the first section of roof. This will lure the archer that starts off on the ground up there. Algus should be able to take care of him while Delita takes out the archer up on high.
By now your lamb is dead. If Ramza needs healing, bring him back a little bit and get your chemist to toss him a potion. Keep your chemist back, and when the time is right (or right enough) have him revive the lamb to take down a mage that should be really close now and should have taken a few hits already.
The archer without a bow should be dead soon, and this should leave one archer on the smaller roof, the knight, and maybe another mage. Let delita and Algus do their thing… try not to back them up because they never do what you want them to when you try and work with them. They’ll probably go for the archer or the knight, you stay on the mage and the archer. Keep your chemist back, tossing a phoenix down here and there. As long as only one of your men is dead at a time and no more you chouls be able to pull it off.
Good luck! Believe it or not this is one of the toughest battles in the game. It doesn’t stay this hard forever. But there are quite a few “tough” random battles in several areas that are even harder than this. Advice, reiterated: save often! And remember the L+R+Start+Select reset trick. Get used to it. 
Forgot to mention, if you want Ramza to be your lamb, then make sure he has the “yell” ability and the other squire has “accumulate”. Have Ramza yell at him/her (speed +1 never misses!) while s/he accumulates. You should get off two cycles before you have to start attacking. This will be major, major help.
Baldurs Gate: Dark Alliance is the best game I have played for PS2 so far.
Maybe not the best all around game, but the graphics and controls and the best on the system. Definetly a rental because it is WAY too easy to beat, but tons of fun if you like Diablo type games.
Is it part of the Baldur’s Gate storyline?