More Final Fantasy

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

FF 12 Zodiac Age Solo Machinist Part 4


It wouldn't be an RPG without an annoying sewer level, and Final Fantasy 12 is no exception.  To make it worse for solo Vaan, it was a point of no return once he entered the palace for the "Hey, Buckethead!" sequence.


Gigantoads loved to cast Angelsong on themselves and their allies for Regen status, which proved especially deadly if Steelings showed up.  About 6-8 Altair shots were needed for each Angelsong Gigantoad, and even Steelings needed around 5.  


Vaan took Light Armor 6 for 40 LP as another useless (for now) prerequisite.  The 4 Imperial Soldiers miniboss battle had Ashe Amalia as an AI guest character, who both distracted the enemies and dealt most of the damage.  She joined the group afterwards.  Fran and Balthier could simply be removed from the active party in the menu, but Amalia had to be murdered every time Vaan touched a save crystal.


The viability of the variant was questioned when a boss encounter with 4 Flans barred Vaan's path.  He had no spells to get past their elemental weaknesses, and I didn't want to revive Amalia even if Guest characters aren't technically party members.  Bullets couldn't pierce the Flans quickly enough to overcome their Cure spells.  Take 2 was more promising when Vaan got the idea to punch them, since Unarmed was better than Altair in this case.  It still wasn't sufficient to win.


Even while grinding, Vaan died at least 3 times to Gigantoad and Steeling squads.  But there was a plan.  Vaan bought Red Spiral for 50 LP.  This is a Quickening, or FF 12's version of Limit Breaks.  Quickenings use Mist charges to deal heavy damage, and can be chained.  With one Red Spiral, Vaan melted one of the Flans and began hacking away with the Dagger that I forgot he still had in the inventory.  


The Dagger increased Vaan's Attack Power to 14, though its Evade of 5 was less than Altair.  Unlike Altair, the Dagger sometimes gashed the Flans multiple times per Attack.  This was just enough to get past Cure and win the battle.  The Final Fantasy victory music is played sparingly in 12 due to the pseudo real time combat, and Vaan earned it here!


(Now that I think about it, Trials of Mana has some similarities to this game.  Both Trials and FF 12 both lack special background music for normal battles.  Both look like they're real time, but function more like fast turn-based games.  And both games now have job systems.) 


Vaan's woes were not over after the Flans perished.  Ghosts inflicted Slow with attacks and cast low level Black Magick such as Fire and Blizzard.  Garchimaceras were small green demons who liked to inflict Blind status and had fast action speed.  Then came Firemane, the flaming horse that was the true boss of Garamsythe Waterway.  Red Spiral blasted about 1/3 of its HP away, though Vaan was hard-pressed to defend himself against 50s-60s kicks, 86 power poisonous Bushfires, and Fire casts for about 70.  Hooves are already painful enough without being on fire as well.


Vaan didn't succeed until he tried twice at Level 12.  While leveling up and gaining LP, a Ghost wanted to join him in the afterlife.  All the battles were worth it when Vaan bought Potion Lore 2 for 35 LP, increasing the strength of Potions from 140 to 180.  Defeating Firemane with a Dagger, a Quickening, and many Potions was not a particularly Machinist method of victory, but you have to be pragmatic when dealing with points of no return.


(On THAT topic, at least the 1995 Trials of Mana had the courtesy to include an item shop on the Ghost Ship!  FF 12 from 2006 doesn't have an item shop in its awful sewer level. . .)


Vaan was later thrown into the Nalbina Dungeons by the Archadian soldiers and stripped of his equipment.



Stats and Equipment
 

Level 12 Machinist
 


HP:  357
MP:  91
Attack Power:  12
Defense:  0
Magick Resist:  0
Evade:  0
Magick Evade:  0
Strength:  29
Magick Power:  28
Vitality:  28
Speed:  25
 
Weapon:  Unarmed
Off-hand:  Nothing
Helm:  Nothing
Armor:  Nothing
Accessory:  Nothing

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

FF 12 Zodiac Age Solo Machinist Part 5


Nalbina Dungeons had a brief gladiatorial battle versus 3 Seeqs, piglike humanoids who must have replaced the Nu Mou from Tactics Advance.  The audience must have been confused when naked Vaan punched out his partner Balthier before any of his opponents!  Vaan KOd Gwitch just before he cast Cure, while Daguza was last due to his Protect buff.


Vaan recovered his equipment after the battle in a skipped cutscene, but had to dodge most of the Imperial Marksmen, Imperial Magi, and Imperial Hoplites.  The Marksmen had guns and Potions, and each Magus cast basic elemental spells such as Thunder.  Hoplites preferred Protect.  Vaan died about twice when many Archadian soldiers ganged up on him.


Barheim Passage, a mineshaft probably as long as less ambitious RPGs, had Basch join as a Guest.  It was appropriate for joke related reasons to kill him off, and not just because of the solo challenge.  A Bangaa named Burrogh sold new equipment, and more importantly, Potions to sustain Vaan's addiction! 


A Leather Breastplate from the shop gave extra defenses and HP, and I just noticed the Goddess's Magicite from earlier that eliminated all MP in exchange for 13 Magick Resist.


The gimmick of Barheim Passage was Battery Mimics, sturdy electric enemies that could heal themselves and drain the power necessary to open gates.  Whenever a Battery Mimic died, the power would be restored.  In addition to these mandatory opponents were countless Zombies and Spectres.  Zombies loved to Poison Touch Vaan while Spectres cast low level Black Magick and sometimes multiplied when low on HP. 


"Upgrading" to the Capella from Burrogh's shop and the 50 LP cost Guns 2 license was a total waste.  It took 4 shots to kill one Zombie, the same number of hits as the Dagger.  And the Dagger had much faster action speed.  Guns were worthless against Spectres and only tickled them for about 10 damage, around 1/7 of the Dagger's strength.


Other enemies that were found in the Barheim Passage were Skeletons who knew Poison, Thunder, and Protect.  Flans sometimes accompanied them, and were as much of a pain for a physical solo as ever.  Vaan had no choice but to fight a few Flans to get to a Battery Mimic.


Vaan invested in Magick Lore licenses in order to get to Battle Lore for better physical attacks with the Dagger.  I saved at the next crystal and called it quits for the night.


Stats and Equipment
 

Level 17 Machinist
 


HP:  630
MP:  127
Attack Power:  14
Defense:  7
Magick Resist:  7
Evade:  5
Magick Evade:  0
Strength:  34
Magick Power:  32
Vitality:  30
Speed:  26
 
Weapon:  Dagger
Off-hand:  Nothing
Helm:  Headguard
Armor:  Leather Breastplate
Accessory:  Orrachea Armlet

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

FF 12 Zodiac Age Solo Machinist Part 6


These sessions took place over the past couple of days, but I didn't have the time to make a proper post before now.  Hopefully my elaboration of my notes will be sufficient.  Where we last left off, Vaan was stranded in the Barheim Passage mineshaft.


Vaan bought Accessories 3 to equip the Argyle Armlet, an accessory that granted Blind immunity, and a Battle Lore to increase his physical strength.  He then challenged the Mimic Queen spider boss at Level 19, and gashed her for about 34-43 per slash.  If he was fortunate, his Dagger connected multiple times every time Attack came up in the ATB bar.


Mimic Queen was an electric themed boss, as expected when her offspring survived by draining power from the mine.  She cast Thunder for about 63, and activated a short cutscene to burst in a Shockstorm for 158.  She wasn't alone, either.  Her Tiny Mimic children gnawed Vaan's ankles throughout the fight, and killing them wouldn't have saved him since she would just Spawn more.  Without the help of a Quickening, Vaan removed less than 1/4 of the Mimic Queen's HP before succumbing to his wounds.


Drastic action needed to be taken if Vaan wanted to see sunlight again without leveling for many hours, even with turbo.  So he purchased Light Armor 7, then gathered 100 LP to get his 2nd Quickening White Whorl.  I remembered that Quickenings were useful in the early to mid game in the original PS2 version, but I had forgotten the extent.  One almighty tornado at Level 20, and all Vaan had to do was scratch the Mimic Queen maybe once or twice to triumph.


White Whorl and Vaan's increased level had its limits once he escaped into the Estersand.  Sure, it blew away Flowering Cactoid as revenge for yet another failure of an "honest" attempt to 1000 Needles.  But Garamsythe Waterway had much fiercer monsters now, and he had no hope of Hunting the Wraith when Marlboro Overkings and Lizards were mauling him.  The Cluckatrice Hunt was impossible at this point too, since the bird could easily withstand a Quickening.  Clucktrice was accompanied by its Chickatrice children, and inflicted Slow status.


It seemed the only option was to advance to the floating city of Bhujerba, which is not a Star Wars reference in any way.  And Marquis Ondore in no way resembles Lando's role in the plot.  Anyway, its shops had no new weapons, to Vaan's despair, though the Bronze Chestplate and Leather Headgear helped on the defensive side.  Larsa "Lamont" joined as a guest character for the Lhusu Mines dungeon.  Vaan was always annoyed at having to kill off guests, when party members were polite enough to stay out of combat!


Yes, Vaan was out of one mineshaft and into another.  My memories of a PS2 version playthrough involved mines for good reason.  The enemies were tough enough that I reloaded a pre-Bhujerba save file and started a long grind for LP in the Giza Plains and the deserts surrounding Rabanastre.  The Werewolves in the western area of the Giza Plains kept Vaan from advancing into further regions, and Urstrix birdmen in the Westersand were tougher than their Giza Plains relatives.  (It's not a palette swap, either.  The same enemy type can have different stats in different locales.)


The most important spots on the Machinist License Board to grab were the 8 "+HP" squares, which ranged from +30 to +310.  1360 extra health increased Vaan's chances of survival, but did nothing for his attack power, and his level only grew to 22 from slaughtering the low level wildlife at turbo speed.  Vaan first had to take the then-useless Accessories 10 and 11 prerequisites to reach that area of the License Board.


It should be noted that a "purist" class variant cannot access every square on a particular License Board, unless I'm mistaken.  Some are either detached entirely, or diagonal to other squares.  The following tiles fit in this category for Machinist:



+350 HP
+390 HP
Green Magick 1 (Decoy, Oil)
Time Magick 8-10 (Vanishga, Warp, Reflectga, Slowga, Graviga, Hastega)
4 Magick Lores
Hand-bombs 3 (Caldera, Volcano)
Makara (Makara hand-bomb weapon)


As you can see, Machinist is meant to be a sort of support magic class with high HP.  Vaan won't be taking Green or Time Magick unless he has to, however.


Vaan bought the Achilles, Ether Lore 1, and Gil Toss licenses as prerequisites for Potion Lore 3, which increased Potion healing from 180 to 228.  The infamous Samurai skill from Final Fantasy 5 is on the Machinist License Board in Final Fantasy 12 Zodiac Age, though any dreams of throwing money at problems were dispelled by the fact that Vaan would first have to buy the Technick at a shop.  And money is earned in this game by selling randomly dropped loot, so spending too much time in the wild would exhaust his supplies anyway.


Selling some items yielded a Silent Shot from the Bazaar.  It was no stronger than Onion Shot, but at least Vaan could Silence enemies with his ammo.  Did you know that Hyenas have "Wolf Pelt" skin?  That's not something you'll learn from a nature documentary.


Vaan once died to a Lindbur Wolf in one of the deserts, and was forced to retreat from the Nekhbet version of cockatrice when a 2-chain White Whorl wasn't enough.



Lhusu Mines was still difficult when Vaan returned.  The reason I reloaded a save for all those +HP and Potion Lore bonuses was that Bhujerba is ANOTHER point of no return.  Even with the Zodiac Age conveniences, Final Fantasy 12 has some cruel design in some areas.  Skull Defenders appeared in packs and liked to cast spells.  Vaan had to run past one of the screens where the Skeleton upgrades were numerous.  Playing as Machinist Vaan felt much like being a Chansey or Blissey from Pokemon:  High HP, but low defense, and relies on fixed damage attacks. 


(Well, partially fixed:  guns still have damage rolls and critical hits, but they never get any better from increased stats.  True fixed damage will be described later in the post.)


To rescue Penelo, Vaan had to defeat some bandits by the name of Ba'Gamnan, Bwagi, Gijuk, and Rinok.  All had at least Protect status, and could acquire more like Haste and Shell.  Gijuk was the mage of the group, so Vaan shot to prevent Blizzard and Cure.  Ba'Gamnan had some kind of chakram attached to a pole for melee attacks.  White Whorl drained most of Ba'Gamnan's HP on the first try, but Vaan fell in battle.


On Take 2, White Whorl gales knocked out Ba'Gamnan, immediately ending the fight.  Maybe Quickenings have damage rolls too?


The next task in the game is fondly remembered by every Final Fantasy 12 player:  shout to random Bhujerbans and raise a meter to 100% in order to meet Marquis Ondore.  Who could forget such voice acting as "I'm Captain Basch fon Ronsenburg of DalMASca!" or "Don't listen to Ondore's lies!"?  


Ondore's lies trapped Vaan on the Dreadnought Leviathan, another point of no return.  Square hates solo characters, especially ones who obstinately stick to one job.  A voiceover suggested taking out the 2 Judges first in a boss battle with Archadian forces, but Vaan had more success killing the Imperial Swordsmen and Imperial Magus between Judges.  A White Whirl + Red Spiral chain impeached the first Judge.  The Imperial Magus was Silenced with bullets.  Vaan's non-renewable stock of Hi Potions dwindled throughout the fight.


Tetran the Moogle in the brig had a better stock than the combined cities of Rabanastre and Bhujerba.  Don't ask me how.  A Vega gun gave 5 more Attack Power than Capella, and still qualified as Guns 2.  Tetran also provided a Horned Hat and Ring Mail. 


Next came the escape sequence, when alarms played as armored imperials charged at Vaan.  Vossler was a guest character here, and he took much of the damage as I held down the ZR button to flee to the exit.  Not "clean" solo run tactics, but Vaan would have left an unrecognizable corpse otherwise.  Vossler left the party towards the end of the sequence anyway.


Judge Ghis and 3 Imperial Swordsmen were the final obstacle between Vaan and safety.  Vaan drank several Hi Potions and shot down the minions first before ripping apart Ghis with a White Whorl.  Didn't expect White Whorl to kill him so quickly, and it was disappointing not to see what he could do.


Vaan landed in the Westersand and found to his delight that a random merchant sold Technicks!  Or at least Poach and Horology.  Poach can give extra loot, but Horology is the sort of skill that belongs to a Final Fantasy 5 Advance Oracle.  And it's appropriate that I should mention a later port of an FF game because Horology was improved in Zodiac Age.  The desert shopkeeper sold a Balaclava and Windbreaker too, and the latter gave an 1/2 damage elemental resistance.


Horology's damage in PS2 FF12:  Level/2 X (2nd digit of minutes squared)
Horology's damage in Zodiac Age:  Level X (2nd digit of minutes squared)


Horology functions on a 10 minute timer.  If the 2nd digit ends in 0 (e.g. 12 hours and 10 minutes), the Technick does nothing.  If the 2nd digit ends in 9 (e.g. 20 hours and 39 minutes), the Technick is at maximum power.  With its power increase and the help of the turbo button, Horology can be better than what the developers intended.  Enter a tough fight, wait until the 8-9 minute mark on the pause menu, then watch your foes die!  "Foes" plural because Horology also affects a small radius around the target and consumes no MP.


(FF12 has no distinction between the overworld and the battlefield, much like Trials of Mana.)


At first I thought Horology simply became more powerful with total playtime elapsed, which the turbo function would actually hinder.  Didn't learn about the minute function until I found it on a wiki.  With this knowledge of gimmick game mechanics, Cluckatrice and the Chickatrices perished, but not before Slowing Vaan and pecking away the majority of his HP.


Trying Horology on the Wild Saurian. . .got Vaan swallowed in one hit for his trouble.  You'd all try to kill a dinosaur with your exciting new spells and Technicks too.  


Other notable licenses included 2 Swiftness squares that reduced action speed requirements by 10% each.  There's another Swiftness farther away that Vaan hasn't reached yet.


One reward for the Cluckatrice Hunt was an item that unlocked 10 Hi Potions in the Bazaar.



Stats and Equipment
 

Level 23 Machinist
 

HP:  2373
MP:  172
Attack Power:  14
Defense:  12
Magick Resist:  12
Evade:  10
Magick Evade:  0
Strength:  41
Magick Power:  36
Vitality:  32
Speed:  27
 
Weapon:  Vega
Off-hand:  Silent Shot
Helm:  Balaclava
Armor:  Windbreaker
Accessory:  Battle Harness


(It's sad when the THIRD Gun has the same Attack Power as the Dagger.  Forgot to mention earlier that the Battle Harness sometimes triggers counterattacks with the equipped weapon.)

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

FF 12 Zodiac Age Solo Machinist Part 7


Vaan trudged through the Ogir-Yensa Sandsea, an analogue for a desert oil field.  Most enemies there took about 4-6 shots from Vega to kill.  The developers must have used Control + V liberally with Alraunes and Urutan-Yensa desert people, as Vaan built up large Chains to get more loot.


Urutan-Yensa, Alraunes, and Speartongues were melee enemies for the most part, though the desert people cast Sleep, and Speartongues had Regen thanks to the typical frog Angelsong.  Whenever the play time was at least at the 5 minute mark or so, Vaan switched from Vega gunfire to Horology.  But our hero still consumed Potions like a hypochondriac, and ran out by the time he crossed the western part of the desert, the Nam-Yensa Sandsea.  This cost him his life once against some Urutan-Yensa.


Vaan's level increased rapidly since the experience yield was so high compared to early levels.  He went from 24 to 29.  He skulked around the entrance of the Zertinan Caverns during a detour, and managed to kill some Flan type Slime enemies with the power of the game clock.  Vaan would probably have failed if he were forced to shoot broadsides from Vega.


An NPC in the Nam-Yensa Sandsea warned of an enemy that ate Urutan-Yensa.  These claims were accurate when Vaan ran against a metal tortoise named the Urutan Eater who attacked several of the desert people.  With Horology, Vaan received a special message saying that the miniboss had fallen.  Urutan Eater only cast weak spells such as Blizzard and Fire.


Dyce, a merchant riding a Chocobo at the end of Nam-Yensa Sandsea, was my favorite NPC yet.  That's because he sold Hi Potions!  Vaan maxed out his supply and acquired some new equipment.  Light Armor 4 made Vaan eligible for the Soldier's Cap and Heavy Coat, and the Sirius gun gave 17 Attack Power total.  Dyce also provided useful accessories such as Nishijin Belt for Sleep immunity, and Black Belt for Disable and Immobilize immunity.


The reason that Vaan was wading through the sand in the first place was because Ashe wanted the Dawn Shard from Raithwall's Tomb.  Garuda awaited at the entrance, but 7 minute Horology allowed Vaan to withstand the boss's physical attacks.


Raithwall's Tomb contained many undead enemies, including Zombie Mages.  Magical zombies are at least more original than most games' ideas of walking corpses.  Tallows were Flans that specialized in Oil status and Fire magic.


Demon Wall 1 took about 3 attempts to kill even with the minute hand, due to its tendency to inflict petrification and Doom.  It seemed the trick was to use White Whorl out of desperation in addition to Horology.  Demon Wall 2 was far easier than the 1st version for unknown reasons.  All it tried against Vaan was a 110s power physiical attack and Blindga.  Turbo speed 8 minute Horology timed out Demon Wall 2.  The wait in the pause menu took longer than the battle itself.


The last boss of Raithwall's Tomb will bring back bad memories for Final Fantasy Tactics players:  Velius.  He may have been renamed "Belias" in Final Fantasy 12, but it was the same sheep that forced many players to start a new game once they realized they couldn't back out of Riovanes Castle.  In the distant prequel Final Fantasy 12, Belias was a replacement for Ifrit. 


Like other Horology abuse battles, this took place at 4 times normal speed, so it was difficult to see what was going on.  Belias soaked Vaan in Oil and proceeded to cast Fire spells, including the one with a short cutscene that was Final Fantasy 12's version of Hellfire.  Belias buffed itself with Greater Barrier for Protect and Shell status when at low HP, but this was irrelevant since Horology was fixed damage.  Vaan was definitely under 50% HP at the end of the fight because he drank a Hi Potion immediately afterwards.


I haven't discussed it before now, so let's talk about Gambits.  Detractors of Final Fantasy 12 when it first came out accused the game of "playing itself".  This is because Gambits automate much of combat if you set them up correctly.  The ones Vaan has now are "use Hi Potion when below 50% HP", "Attack enemy with highest max HP", or "Horology to enemy with highest max HP".


My opinion on the Gambit topic is that most RPGs are not particularly tactical anyway.  That is one weakness the genre has.  How many times have you clicked Attack repeatedly to get through random battles?  This is one reason I play with variant restrictions for many games.  The "no weapon equipped" challenge made Phantasy Star 4 a different game, for example.  Much of the appeal of RPGs comes from watching player characters develop, and planning out their equipment, abilities, and long term strategy.


(And watching Vaan automatically chase down millions of animals in the desert and pelt them with bullets really makes you appreciate the "murder hobo" ideal of the RPG protagonist.)


The Zodiac Age staff must have realized that Horology was much better than in the original PS2 version, since they moved it from the Bhujerba shop to the Dalmasca Westersand merchant.



Stats and Equipment
 

Level 31 Machinist
 

HP:  2798
MP:  242
Attack Power:  18
Defense:  13
Magick Resist:  14
Evade:  10
Magick Evade:  0
Strength:  43
Magick Power:  40
Vitality:  42
Speed:  28
 
Weapon:  Sirius
Off-hand:  Silent Shot
Helm:  Soldier's Cap
Armor:  Windbreaker
Accessory:  Black Belt


EDIT:  Did I really forget to mention Vossler the traitor guest character?  He battled against Vaan on an airship with a few minions who had their clocks cleaned by Horology at turbo speed before I even knew what was happening.  Vossler himself was a typical melee enemy with more HP.  Horology made him trivial as well.


And yes, since this playthrough is based on a time Technick, expect more horrible clock and watch puns.


Another concept from Tactics Advance that reappears in Final Fantasy 12 is the Jagd.  In Tactics Advance, Jagds are areas where Ivalice's magical laws don't apply and character deaths are permanent if not revived before the end of a fight.  Jagds in Final Fantasy 12 are regions where airships can't fly, and therefore are claimed by no nation.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

FF 12 Zodiac Age Solo Machinist Part 8


In this episode, Vaan pursued a few Hunt sidequests.  Horology still was not enough to defeat Malboro Overkings in Garamsythe Waterway, but our hero stumbled into Wraith and exorcised it with the Technick.  Its Doom functioned similarly to Exdeath's Condemn, but Horology's clock ticked faster.  If Vaan was in serious danger, he could have cured the ailment with a Remedy.  Poison Touch was Wraith's only other notable move.


Vaan returned to Bhujerba to strike down Nidhogg in Lhusu Mines.  The snake may have started with Protect, but Horology timed out the fight after only about 4 hits at the 8 to 9 minute mark.  Croakadile in the rainy season version of Giza Plains was NOT viable at Level 32, however.  Its damage output with melee and Aqua Bubbles was considerable.  Renew was far more dangerous as it restored Croakadile's HP completely.


Rainy Giza Plains had stronger enemies due to being later in the story.  Even Hyenas took about 3 bullets to kill now.  As for Storm Elementals and their Mardu Entite cousins. . .Vaan was defibrillated every time he ignored the subtle warning of Gambits not automatically targeting them.


Ozmone Plains came with possibly POIsonous Vipers, Mesmenir horses, and even Black Chocobos.  Perhaps solo Vaan should have killed a few more of the birds to save his descendant "solo low Faith Ramza" trouble in the future.  (If any readers are considering a Tactics solo, remember that monsters scale to your character level and appear in some story missions.  Wonder why Chocobos haven't conquered Ivalice already. . .)


Besides new armor, Jahara's merchant sold the Traveler Technick, probably the most disappointing skill in the playthrough.  Previously I thought Traveler worked like the Chicken Knife and could only grow in power based on number of steps taken.  Turns out Traveler damage is based on a 999 step counter.  If the user goes over 999 steps or casts Traveler, the counter resets to 0.  Optimal damage has a short window of 990 to 999 steps, since the counter is multiplied by 10 for damage in that "bracket".  At least Horology gives you a full minute for the X 81 multiplier!


Croakadile. . .croaked in a Level 34 rematch.  Its AI was willfully stupid and refused to Renew its HP.  Perhaps it got bored of Vaan waiting 9 minutes in the pause menu between the first and second Horology casts.  


Wyvern Lord in Nam-Yensa Sandsea was another trivial Hunt when it mostly struck in melee or cast Aero.  9 minute Horology time waits for no monster, not even the Werewolves in Giza Plains.  



Stats and Equipment
 

Level 35 Machinist
 

HP:  3026
MP:  278
Attack Power:  18
Defense:  18
Magick Resist:  16
Evade:  10
Magick Evade:  0
Strength:  45
Magick Power:  42
Vitality:  49
Speed:  31
 
Weapon:  Sirius
Off-hand:  Silent Shot
Helm:  Green Beret
Armor:  Survival Vest
Accessory:  Black Belt


It seems all Guns provide 10 Evade.  You'd think a primitive rifle would give nothing, but that's not how Final Fantasy 12 logic works.  Strength, Magick Power, Vitality, and Speed increase with levels, while Attack Power, Defense, Magick Resist, and Evade come from equipment.


Most of the playthrough from here on out will likely be Horology countdowns, but regular attacks and Quickenings will return.  Summons may appear too, since those aren't tied to any specific job.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

FF 12 Zodiac Age Solo Machinist Part 9


Vaan spent most of tonight's session checking off his Hunt list.  He backtracked to Bhujerba's sky island at Level 36 to cast 9 minute Horology about 6 times on Rocktoise, which caused its large size to run out of time and go back to being a Moogle's pet.  The turtle put up enough of a fight that Vaan fell below half HP and drank a Hi Potion.  Its melee attacks Slowed our solo hero down too.  Vaan had Protect status during the fight for reasons unknown to me.  Was it some kind of bonus from a high chain against all those Skull Defenders?


During the sprint to the exit of Lhusu Mines, Vaan found Numerology in a random treasure chest.  Numerology is another gimmick Technick that the Machinist can learn, but like Traveler it's impractical at best.  Numerology starts off with a 1 damage hit, and doubles in power for consecutive hits.  It sounds like it would be great for longer battles, until you learn how abysmal Numerology's accuracy is.  Numerology combos fail long before they start ripping away thousands of enemy HP.  In almost all cases, 9 minute Horology is superior.


Enkelados in Ozmone Plain near Jahara was another physically inclined sidequest boss.  It came prepared for Fighter type classes, but Vaan surprised it with fixed 9 minute Horology.  Vaan still had to drink 1 Hi Potion, and almost needed another.  Enkelados held out for longer than it should have when it Restored 30% of its HP.


It wouldn't be an RPG solo challenge without hubris, and Vaan thought he could defeat Orthros in Garamsythe Waterway as soon as the Hunt was available.  The existence of Malboro Overkings and the fact that Orthros was Rank V when previous bosses were Rank I or II should have warned him.  But Vaan insisted on drawing out Orthros with an all-female party, then switching back to himself only to perish immediately.  (Orthros refuses to appear to a party with at least one male character.)


Vaan fled Garamsythe Waterway, but not before dying a few times from random enemies when he couldn't find the exits in time.


Golmore Jungle to the east of Ozmone Plain had dangerous new enemies such as Panthers which could Petrify him, or Hellhounds which were far above Vaan's capabilities.  Petrify in Final Fantasy 12 works like a Doom/Condemn timer rather than an instant death, so it's a relief to see that solo characters don't have to worry about it as much.


A Gargoyle in Golmore Jungle dropped a Gilt Measure, the first of the Machinist's OTHER weapon class.  Measures are devices like sextants, but Machinists don't use them to study the night sky.  Instead, their wielders conk themselves on the head to get positive status conditions like Protect in the case of Gilt Measure.  Measures also give enemies these buffs, so they should never be considered as a primary weapon, but rather a party support spell that doesn't consume MP.


Eruyt Village sold the next Guns 3 weapon, Betelgeuse.  Red Cap was bought but ignored for now because it didn't give the Green Beret's Speed bonus.  Brigandine decreased Vitality but increased Defense relative to previous armor, which doesn't make sense.
  

Stats and Equipment
 

Level 38 Machinist
 

HP:  3196
MP:  306
Attack Power:  23
Defense:  21
Magick Resist:  16
Evade:  10
Magick Evade:  0
Strength:  47
Magick Power:  43
Vitality:  45
Speed:  32
 
Weapon:  Betelgeuse
Off-hand:  Silent Shot
Helm:  Green Beret
Armor:  Brigandine
Accessory:  Black Belt

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

FF 12 Zodiac Age Solo Machinist Part 10


Vaan left the Viera village to enter Henne Mines.  This has been the 3rd mine so far in the playthrough, and there's still a long way to go.  At least Henne Mines had the decency to make the walls and floors look different.


Redmaws, the Henne Mines variety of bat, were common here.  Other monsters were Nightmares with snake hair, Thunderbug treasure chest mimics, and the occasional Tyranorox dinosaur.  The worst foes were Jellies, Flan-type monsters that swarmed Vaan at once when he activated switches to open doors.  Navigating the maze of doors required enough Hi Potions that it was a relief when a teleport crystal appeared just before the boss so that Vaan could buy more in town.


Nine minute Horology barely had enough time to wind down Tiamat before the damage rolled back to zero.  Vaan's Black Belt accessory nullified Tiamat's Disablega spell, though this was a fortunate accident and not the result of planning.  Rake was a stronger version of the basic melee attack, while Aero was a standard wind spell.  Vaan drank 6 Hi Potions, indicating a slower fight than usual.  Typically, Vaan destroys his foes within seconds with Horology, or faints due to having insufficient defenses.


Leveling is surprisingly fast for a game as long as Final Fantasy 12.  Will Vaan get to 99 before seeing Vayne?



Stats and Equipment
 

Level 43 Machinist
 

HP:  3519
MP:  353
Attack Power:  23
Defense:  21
Magick Resist:  16
Evade:  10
Magick Evade:  0
Strength:  50
Magick Power:  46
Vitality:  47
Speed:  33
 
Weapon:  Betelgeuse
Off-hand:  Silent Shot
Helm:  Green Beret
Armor:  Brigandine
Accessory:  Black Belt

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

FF 12 Zodiac Age Solo Machinist Part 11


Elder Wyrm in Golmore Jungle must have earned its name by outliving hundreds of lesser murder hobos.  Being accompanied by 2 Treants made the fight more difficult, even if they couldn't survive more than a couple of Horology ticks.  Elder Wyrm had 71,692 HP, and sheer health was the only obstacle to a Horology countdown that a boss could have.  Besides its other tricks, Elder Wyrm attacked with Rake and other melee strikes.


Elder Wyrm's signature Technick was Sporefall, inflicting Confuse, Slow, Silence, Blind, Poison, Oil, and Sap at once.  The boss often followed up the Oil slick with a physical based Fireball.  These ailments ignored Vitality due to a flag in the code.  Vitality does NOT work in FF12 like in other RPGs.  Here, the name is meant to suggest a greater duration for positive status effects, and shorter duration for ailments.  Vitality is also used for Axes, Hammers, and Hand-bomb weapons.


One failed attempt involved a 3 chain of Pyroclasm, White Whorl, and another Pyroclasm.  Vaan had acquired the license for his 3rd Quickening before the battle, and now threw fireballs at Elder Wyrm with an impressive animation.  But this combo only cut the boss's HP by about 1/4.


The real trick to winning was another way to spend a Mist charge:  Belias!  Upon being pressed into service, the Lucavi cast Painflare and made for an effective decoy.  Summons in FF12 are treated like temporary AI companions rather than stronger elemental spells.  This may offend solo run purists, but it was a better option than outleveling the rest of the game.  One Sporefall was cured with a Remedy, so the related Remedy Lore licenses weren't a waste after all. 7-9 minute Horology contributed some to the damage output. 


Elder Wyrm's demise opened the way to Paramina Rift, a mountainous ice level.  White Wolves were the obligatory canine enemy.  Yetis smacked Vaan in melee.  Ice Elementals were to be avoided if possible once they started casting Blizzara.  Wild Onions were not hostile and therefore not targeted with Gambits, but still made for experience points.  Twintania from FF5 made an appearance as a difficult normal enemy.


Mt. Bur-Omisace was the religious town, and I wonder what connection the Kiltias religion has to the St. Ajora sham from Tactics.  The only notable item from the shop was a Bowline Sash for Confuse immunity.


Stilshrine of Miriam was another Raithwall ruin dungeon, and thus involved a few puzzles like turning statues in the proper direction.  Redmaw bats from Henne Mines returned as the low level enemy.  Balloons were the Bomb replacement.  Dragon Aevis and Blood Gigas were difficult to kill even with Horology if more than one showed up at a time.  Vaan had to tactically position himself to minimize enemy swarms, instead of mindlessly pushing ahead as he had done before.


Vinuskar the metal dragon boss had a gimmick where metal equipment caused Slow status with the message "A magnetic field envelops the party!  Your metal equipment grows heavy!"  But the boss only had 15,138 HP, so the fight was over with Horology before I could pay much attention to it at all.


Mateus the Corrupt served as the replacement for Shiva as the Ice summon in Vaan's journey.  The name is meant to be a reference to the evil emperor from FF2, and he gets his Ice property from using a goddess as a shield.  Mateus is also a Totema in Tactics Advance.


Mateus's preferred tactics against Vaan were to cast Slow, then cast spells of his element like Blizzaja.  He had Ice Azer minions which were toned-down versions of Ice Elementals.  But 9 minute Horology's radius eliminated them, and the Esper as well.


The reward for clearing the dungeon was the Sword of Kings, not to be confused with a plot weapon from Dragon Quest 3 or a rare item in Earthbound.  As a key item, the Sword of Kings did NOT require a license to wield!  It was one of the few 2-handed weapons Machinist Vaan could swing, and having 53 Attack Power made it worth considering.



Stats and Equipment
 

Level 48 Machinist
 

HP:  3903
MP:  391
Attack Power:  53
Defense:  21
Magick Resist:  16
Evade:  0
Magick Evade:  0
Strength:  53
Magick Power:  49
Vitality:  49
Speed:  33
 
Weapon:  Sword of Kings
Off-hand:  Nothing
Helm:  Green Beret
Armor:  Brigandine
Accessory:  Black Belt




(Why do bulky swords give no Evade, but unwieldy guns do?)

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

FF 12 Zodiac Age Solo Machinist Part 12


Vaan returned to Mt. Bur-Omisace, only to find that Judge Bergan and 3 anonymous Judges had sacked the city.  Bergan had irrelevant Shell and Protect status, but even Horology couldn't kill all enemies quickly enough before the "stormtroopers" beat Vaan down with melee.  The trick to winning was to turn off the "Hi Potion below 50% HP" Gambit.  Vaan was glowing red at the end with only 629/3903 HP.


A Machinist's weakness is in defense rather than offense.  Being stuck with Light Armor and having no Cure spells at all makes each serious battle into a Horology "damage race", since Hi Potions are too feeble to keep up with most enemy attacks by the midgame.  And that's with all Potion Lore licenses.


Our solo hero stopped by Jahara to listen to one of the Garif talking about Ixtab, a sidequest Hunt in the Henne Mines.  Ixtab the undead monster cast Dark and Doom in an attempt to drag Vaan to the hereafter.  It also unleashed Annul, not realizing Vaan depended on Technicks rather than MP consuming spells.  Vaan drank a few Hi Potions, but 9 minute Horology ensured Ixtab's time was up.



After that point, I decided to press on with the story.  Hunts grow tiresome quickly when you're using a one trick class like Machinist.  Weapons are pointless when Horology at its peak is almost 4 times stronger than the Sword of Kings.  Horology has no accuracy checks, especially noticeable when swords whiff against flying monsters like Zus.  Other Technicks like Traveler and Numerology have severe drawbacks that make them worthless, like having to micromanage your step count for the former and low accuracy for the latter.  For a class that's supposed to be "weird", Machinist is one of the most rote you can play as in the game.


(And no, I haven't used Measure stat buffs for anything.  Only the Gilt Measure has appeared so far, and Protect doesn't seem to be worth wasting a turn that could be used for Horology clock ticks.)


The plot ordered Vaan to go north to Archades, which meant passing through the Dalmasca Estersand one more time.  He tested out the Sword of Kings vs. 9 minute Horology against Wolves at Level 50, and came out with 1270 for the former on a high roll, and 4050 for the latter.  As for the Wild Saurian?  65 million years passed in 2 Horology ticks. 


Mosphoran Highwaste was another mountainous area.  It was at this point that Vaan abandoned the Hi Potion Gambit altogether, as the Worgens, Slaven Wilders, and Pythons were too dangerous for him to stop and heal.  He chugged them after combat, though, and often fell victim to random damage traps in the environment.


Nearly all the weapons the local shop sold would have been stronger than the Sword of Kings, had Vaan been able to equip them.  He bought a Ras Algethi (29 Attack) which he didn't even have the Guns 4 license for as a formality.  Not that LP is an issue this late in the game.  Vaan bought a Brigandine, an upgrade from 21 Defense to 32.


The recommended level for the Mosphoran Highwaste is 33 in a normal playthrough according to a Reddit thread accessed through a quick search.  Do solo characters gain more experience in FF12 like in other RPGs?  Characters outside of the active party don't level up at all.


 

Stats and Equipment
 

Level 50 Machinist
 

HP:  4191
MP:  404
Attack Power:  53
Defense:  32
Magick Resist:  16
Evade:  0
Magick Evade:  0
Strength:  54
Magick Power:  50
Vitality:  49
Speed:  34




 
Weapon:  Sword of Kings
Off-hand:  Nothing
Helm:  Green Beret
Armor:  Brigandine
Accessory:  Black Belt



(It's better to equip a gun for the 10 Evade even if you aren't attacking with it, but I wasn't thinking of that at the time.)

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

FF 12 Zodiac Age Solo Machinist Part 13


Salikawood had a forest fire when Vaan stumbled into King Bomb while looking for enough "layabout" Moogles to open the gate to Phon Coast.  King Bomb set up Oil and blazed with Fira, while ramming into Vaan for melee damage.  9 minute Horology only made about 1/2 of the sands of the hourglass disappear before Vaan died.  


But the problem was once again on the defensive side.  King Bomb started with Bomb subjects and summoned more with Cry for Help.  Then came Renew, which completely restored King Bomb's HP.  Vaan tried many tactics on subsequent attempts, like summoning Mateus.  The Esper swam underwater and made the screen shatter with his frozen spear, but King Bomb thawed out.  A 6 Quickening chain with Red Spiral and White Whorl followed by a bonus Torrent activation had no more success.


How was Vaan going to get past this part?  By looking up a guide and finding out that King Bomb is an optional boss blocking the path to the bonus Nabradia region rather than part of the plot.  So our hero skipped the fight, rounded up the other Moogles, and trudged through the Phon Coast beach. 


In Phon Coast, Vaan bought an Adamant Hat and Adamant Vest from the merchant in the camp.  These pieces of armor provide "Half Damage from Fire" with an Ice weakness drawback.  Perhaps Vaan may have one more shot at King Bomb?  Supposedly Renew can only be used 3 times. . .




Stats and Equipment
 

Level 52 Machinist
 

HP:  4531
MP:  416
Attack Power:  30
Defense:  36
Magick Resist:  31
Evade:  10
Magick Evade:  0
Strength:  55
Magick Power:  51
Vitality:  50
Speed:  31



Weapon:  Ras Algethi
Off-hand:  Silent Shot
Helm:  Adamant Hat
Armor:  Adamant Vest
Accessory:  Black Belt