========================== Solo Ramza Challenge Guide ========================== By: Stewart Bishop Document Created: May 05, 2003 Last Revision: May 05, 2003 (version 1.0) Contact: ciddypoo@cox.net -------------------------- LEGAL NOTES: Don't steal my work, that's all I have to say. Not that you would really want to rip this guide off, since it's intended to be a very brief, skeleton-esque sort of guide, so...just don't steal it and sell it for money and all that other fine jazz. You can reproduce this document electronically for personal use, but that's about it. If you see this documented on any website other than my own (Stewart Bishop) personal website or GameFAQs (http://www.gamefaqs.com), it has been placed there without my permission. Thank you. -------------------------- INTRODUCTION: This is a very simple guide that explains exactly what you need to do to clear a 'Solo Ramza' game in Final Fantasy Tactics. It has no level-caps, no restrictions other than only having only Ramza in the formation screen. This game assumes that you've cleared Final Fantasy Tactics at least once, and that you are familiar with intermediate-advanced mechanics of the game. If you have to ask 'why' I have MP-Switch/Move-MP-Up or Excalibur/MathSkillHoly combos, then you probably shouldn't be attempting this challenge right now. It is far from being the most difficult thing in the world, but it does get very tedious (though the first time I tried it I managed to beat the game in 12.5 hours, which isn't that bad considering how long some of the battles are) So, I give you this simple outline of how to beat Final Fantasy Tactics using Ramza as the only character on the formation screen (and being the only controllable character as well). -------------------------- THE AIM OF THE GAME: The basic steps on clearing this sort of game are as follows: Getting all Math Skill parameters as soon as humanly possible. Obtaining the spells 'Flare', 'Holy', and *possibly* Fire3 and/or Ice3. Learning Blade Grasp and MP Switch. Do not enter any random battles. Random battle = reset. The challenge is *not* difficult at all, but it is very tedious. I say tedious and not time-consuming because in my first Solo Ramza game I managed to get to the end and beat Altima's final form at a clocktime of around 12 hours and 30 minutes. So, clearly, if you are more prepared than I was, you should have a much easier time doing so. All non-guest party members must either be dismissed, or allowed to join and dismissed directly afterwards. You may strip these characters of their equipment (i.e. Meliadoul's Save the Queen, Cid's Excalibur, etc). I believe there is one fight where you may have to have two parties if you allow Mustadio to join, so I would suggest dismissing him instead allowing him to join up when given the chance. -------------------------- CHAPTER ONE: ** Battle Two -- Gariland Magic City ** Your first real battle is probably the most 'difficult' battle, not because it's actually hard, but because it's all based on dumb luck. On the formation screen, stick Ramza all the way to the right, as far as you can, and you'll be good to go. I will summarize this battle in a few short lines: The Squire that attacks Delita on the second turn is your first and most important target. You will attack him and Delita will do the same. If Delita does not kill the Squire --- Reset your game. The Squire *must* be killed by Delita's attack, otherwise the Chemist will come, heal the Squire, and you'll be swarmed. After the Squire dies, the battle heats up. Follow Delita's lead and attack whoever he attacks, and you should kill that particular enemy before the Chemist gets a chance to heal him/her. If you must choose your own target after the first Squire (sometimes dead bodies and Delita's own self blocks your way to reaching other enemies), choose the enemy the furthest from the Chemist and swing. The Chemist will usually ignore your victim and focus on healing Delita's target, which will allow you to kill your own target undaunted. Not much else to say about this fight ... It's all luck, really, and it's what discourages most players from doing the Solo Ramza Challenge--- They assume this fight is impossible. Not at all. Once you clear this, the game becomes infinitely easier. After Battle One is over, check Ramza's skills and pick up, in this order of importance: YELL, POTION, GAINED JP UP. If you began with Yell, then more power to you, swipe the Potion skill if you don't have it. Gained JP Up isn't always possible at this point, so don't worry if you don't have it. Just make sure you have Yell and Potion skills. If you don't, it may be a good time to reset (very unlikely). Purchase a couple of potions at Gariland if you must (I'd say you want about 5 in your inventory for the next fight). Now, equip Ramza with the Item secondary command and go meet Algus... ** Battle Three -- Mandalia Plains ** Okay, first things first, choose option 1 when you get into battle: "Destroy the Death Corps" or whatever the exact option is. It'll give you a Brave increase. Afterwards, check the field and the corners... To the very right of Ramza is a corner blocked off by a large rock... If you stand in this corner, there is only one square that an enemy can hit you from. Go there. Now YELL. Have Algus and Delita go off and get themselves killed and whatnot, but keep using YELL. Delita and Algus will eventually die and the enemies will start rushing you... But only one can attack you at a time. So keep YELLing until an enemy is adjacent to you and attacks. Kill this enemy with your own physical attacks (by this point you should have 4 or 5 turns for every 1 of theirs). You'll probably be hurting, so use a potion on yourself then continue to Yell. The enemy corpse will block any other enemies from standing on the square and harming you, so enjoy the EXP and JP. When the enemy you killed crystalizes or drops a box, swipe it, head back to the corner, then repeat. When you have 50 speed, kill the last enemy and claim a victory. After the battle, grab ACCUMULATE followed by GAINED JP UP and MOVE+1. You should have more than enough JP to do so. Any other skills are optional, though Throw Stone has its uses for the beginning parts of the game. Change your class to a Chemist, give yourself GUTS secondary skill, COUNTER TACKLE reaction ability if you have it, GAINED JP UP, and MOVE+1. Ramza should have the Battle Boots equipped. ** Battle Four -- Sweegy Woods ** Another doozy of a battle. Yeah, the rest of the game is a cinch, I'm telling you, but no one seems to believe me, so I'll keep going on... Your goal in this fight is to obtain enough JP for the Chemist skills Auto-Potion and Maintenance. That's it, really, and it shouldn't be a problem. Follow the same guidelines as before; run around and use YELL. By the time Delita and Algus are dead, your speed should be high enough (coupled with Battle Boots' increased movement bonus) to be able to elude all enemies. They shouldn't be able to touch you. Keep using Yell until it's either maxed out or you get bored, then Accumulate till you have about 10 PA (or up to 99 like I did), then totally waste the enemies. You shouldn't have to break out a single potion. When all is said and done, learn Maintenance, Auto-Potion and change Ramza's class to Wizard. Make sure you learn BOLT, stop by Gariland and pick up a Rod for your Ramza, along with a few more potions (I'd say 30 tops). Give your Mage GUTS, AUTO-POTION, GAINED JP UP and MOVE+1. Now run along to Dorter... ** Battle Five -- Dorter Trade City ** ::yawns:: Are you guys getting the picture on how to beat this game yet? Hehe. Use YELL and boost your speed up... Let Algus and Delita stall for you while you do so. When they've finally gone the way of the dodo, kill all enemies on-screen except the lone Knight (use Bolt, since it gets a bonus due to the rain). When all that's done, just keep using YELL/ACCUMULATE and run away from the Knight (he'll never be able to catch you) until you have maxed out stats (50 Speed and 99 PA), then nuke him with a final Bolt. After the fight, make sure you pick up FLARE and MAGICATTACKUP. If you want, go ahead and grab FIRE3, ICE3 and BOLT3 as well (though BOLT3 would be the worst out of the three). Change your class to TIME MAGE and give Ramza GUTS, AUTO-POTION, GAINED JP UP and MOVE+1. Head off to 'Sand Mouse' ... Heh! ** Battle Six -- Sand Rat Cellar ** Begin the round by Hasting yourself. Now yell like no tomorrow and run around like an idiot. When either Delita or Algus dies, stop Yelling and start Accumulating. When the second guest character falls, your PA should be high enough to kill any enemy in one or two hits, so do so. Auto-Potion will protect you if it has to. Kill all except one Knight. Now run around and keep YELLING until you have enough JP for TELEPORT and MP SWITCH. Then kill the stupid Knight. Done? Go learn said skills and change class to Priest. Pick up a Staff and other equips if you need them at Gariland. Might be a good time to stock up on a few more potions (50 is good). Give your Priest GUTS, AUTO-POTION, GAINED JP UP and TELEPORT. Now go see Miluda. ** Battle Seven -- Thieves' Fort ** You know how it goes. YELL and use ACCUMULATE till your eyes fall out... Or just do it until you have enough JP for Holy and MagicDefenseUP, then kill Miluda. Auto-Potion will protect you. Learn Holy and MagicDefenseUP after the fight, etc. etc. then change class to Knight. GUTS, AUTO-POTION, GAINED JP UP, MOVE+1. Make sure you've got Battle Boots on, cause Knights aren't exactly the most mobile units out there. ** Battle Eight -- Lenalia Plateau ** It's Miluda again. Delita'll run up and throw stones and get himself killed, so use that opportunity to accumulate. The Knight isn't exactly a class you need to speed up to be effective... So just accumulate and let the enemies come to you. Kill them ALL so you at least get some EXP and JP (although you don't need to learn any Knight skills), then finish Miluda. Afterwards, switch to Monk (the only reason we trained Knight in the first place). Give Ramza your best equipment (obviously) and Battle Boots... GUTS, AUTO-POTION, GAINED JP UP, TELEPORT. ** Battle Nine -- Windmill Shed ** Look out, it's Wiegraf, and he has Holy Sword! The basic aim of the game is to take out Wiegraf ASAP. Since your levels are significantly higher than your opponents', you'll have a much higher PA than normal, so we choose the Monk since its attack power isn't limited by the weapon. Just run up blindly to Wiegraf and attack him (or throw stones if you feel like it, they'll actually hurt him with your PA) until he's critical. An alternate method is to run BEHIND the windmill and let the nemies come to you. If you get pinned, just teleport around the Shed and repeat. You probably won't have the JP for it, but if you can, try and get CHAKRA. With Wiegraf defeated, head on to the next fight, still as a Monk. This time, though, give yourself Auto-Potion and Move+1. ** Battle Ten -- Fort Zeakden ** Not a problem. Algus is a little wussy, and you can dance circles around him... But take the time to slaughter all the other enemies too. If you still don't have enough JP at that point to get CHAKRA, just run around and YELL or ACCUMULATE until you have the necessary JP... Then go punch Algus' lights out. Yaddayadda, sequence stuff and then... ------------------- CHAPTER TWO: Before you do anything, be sure to strip Rad, Lavian and Alicia of their stuff before giving them the boot. Then give Gaff's items to Agrias (they're better) and give Gaff your weakest items (he'll stay alive no matter what thanks to Night Sword). Make Ramza an Archer and give him whatever bow you have (you should have one from Chapter One, but even if you don't, don't worry too much about it, we're just training Archer to advance the job-tree). Ramza needs GUTS, Auto-Potion and TELEPORT. Get into the next fight. ** Battle Eleven -- Dorter Trade City ** This is a really easy battle. Gaff and Agrias will tear these opponents up. As for Ramza, teleport on top of the chimneys and start firing arrows at everyone. You'll gain enough EXP/JP to advance the job tree. After the simple battle, switch to Thief. Give yourself whatever equipment you need, GUTS, AUTO-POTION and GAINED JP UP. NEXT FIGHT! ** Battle Twelve -- Araguay Woods ** Another easy battle thanks to Gaff and Agrias. Don't bother trying to save the Chocobo, it'll just cause a minor headache. Just sit tight and use YELL and ACCUMULATE until you have enough JP to learn Move+2. Then go ahead and join the fight and kill everything. At the formation screen, learn Move+2 then switch jobs to Lancer. You probably won't have a weapon, but it won't really matter; you'll have the help of two Holy Knights in your next fight ... Change Gafgarion's class to Chemist, strip him of his equipment and remove all abilities except his primary. Head for the falls. Give Ramza GUTS, Auto-Potion and Teleport. ** Battle Thirteen -- Zirekile Falls ** Gafgarion turns on you in this battle, but since he's a chemist with no equipment, he's all bark and no bite. Finish him off in one hit. You might not have a weapon, but since Delita and Agrias are helping you out, the fight'll be a snap. JUMP if you feel lucky; it'll do a LOT of damage, otherwise just attack or Throw Stones and whatnot. Stay around Princess Ovelia so she doesn't get swarmed by enemies. In the unlikely event that she's going to die, use Wish to bring her HP back, then continue slaughtering enemies. The aim is to get Lancer lv. 2, which is a simple task. After the fight, change your job to Samurai. You need GUTS, AUTO-POTION, GAINED JP UP and MOVE+2. ** Battle Fourteen -- Zaland Fort City ** Don't try to save Mustadio. He'll get eaten alive by the Wizards. Just sit tight by the entrance with Agrias and keep using YELL/ACCUMULATE. You want to learn BLADE GRASP, and that's it. When you've got enough JP for Blade Grasp, show them all who's boss, barefist-style. Learn Blade Grasp and switch to Oracle at the end of the fight. Give Agrias all your best Knight Equipment (and Battle Boots). Ramza should have his best equipment (plus Battle Boots), GUTS, Auto-Potion, MagicDefenseUP and Move+2. ** Battle Fifteen -- Bariaus Hill ** This fight is somewhat irritating, but only because Ramza's an oracle. Trust\ me, though, in two fights all will reveal itself. Take out the Summoners as soon as humanly possible. I can't stress it enough. If you don't, they'll kill Agrias and Mustadio, and you need them to distract enemies while you poke them with your rods. MagicDefenseUP will lighten the damage if something hits you, and hopefully Auto-Potion will kick in. When the Summoners are gone, the rest will fall like dominos. Play around with your enemies when the Summoners are gone until you have enough JP for Move-MP-Up, then continue. After the fight, learn Move-MP-Up. Remove all of Agrias' equipment. Have Mustadio learn Seal Evil, and Phoenix Down abilities. Change his class to Chemist and re-equip him. Give him SNIPE skill. Ramza should be changed to Calculator (!) and given GUTS, MP-Switch, Gained JP Up and Move-MP-Up. ** Battle Sixteen -- Zagolis Swamp ** This fight won't be that difficult. Since Mustadio's a Chemist, he'll be able to throw Phoenix Downs at enemies to kill them. If not, then he'll snipe them from afar with Seal Evil. Get as much JP as you can this fight. If anything, you should try to MASTER calculator in this fight... But if you can't, just make sure you have enough JP for all of the CT skills. After the fight, learn the skills you need (CT skills). Remove Mustadio's equipment, and keep Ramza's class as Calculator. He needs GUTS, MP Switch, MagicAttackUp and Move-MP-Up. ** Battle Seventeen -- Slums in Goug ** Mustadio at most will be able to snipe someone's arms or legs before he expires. It doesn't really matter, though. Check the CT of all your opponents and maximize your Calculator effect to cast HOLY, FLARE or BOLT3. If maximizing effect means hitting yourself, then just make sure its a spell that won't kill you. At any rate, you also have MP Switch protecting you, but it's not a sure thing, so be careful. End the fight with your Calculator skillz, and make sure you have enough JP to learn every Calc. skill there is. Learn them all, then switch class to Squire. Congratulations, you now have the ability to destroy most everything in a single turn. Here's a few tips right now: + Make sure you dedicate all your equipment to increases MA (unless otherwise noted). + Always have MP Switch/Move MP-Up on (unless otherwise noted) so you can target everyone (including yourself) and not get killed by it. + Alternatively, you can use a Flame Shield, Ice Shield of Rubber Boots in conjunction with Fire3/Ice3/Bolt3 to the same effect (Fire3/Ice3 will heal you, Bolt3 will be nullified). ----- The rest of the fights will be an absolute breeze, but here are a few that might require some preparations beforehand so you don't embarrass yourself ----- ------------ CHAPTER THREE: ==================================================== ... Ramza vs. Wiegraf (Battle 31 in Riovanes Castle) ==================================================== Ah yes, the 'most difficult' fight of the game... Or something. Easy pickins: Ramza (Monk) Punch Art Guts MP-Switch -Anything- Move-MP Up EQ: Make sure you have JUDO OUTFIT and JADE ARMLET to counter Velius' status effects (including SEAL's petrification) Run around and accumulate; it's simple as that. If Wiegraf hits you, MP Switch kicks in. Then move, MP is restored, and continue to Accumulate. If MP Switch fails to go off, simply use CHAKRA and repeat until your PA is around 50. Finish Wiegraf in one blow, and do the same to Velius (he might get a turn before you, which is why you want to be immune to the petrify that SEAL causes). ====================================================================== ... Ramza vs. Celia/Lede/Elmdor (Battle 32 in Riovanes Castle Rooftop) ====================================================================== Be whatever class you need to be, just make sure you have JADE ARMLET equipped so that Celia or Lede doesn't Shadow-Stitch you and kill Rafa if they somehow end up going first. ------------ CHAPTER FOUR: ================================================== ... Ramza vs. Chocobos (Battle 35 in Finath River) ================================================== This fight can be irritating if you the Red/Black Chocobos are close to you. Just in case, use... Ramza (Wizard) Wizard Rod Holy Miter Wizard Robe Magic Gauntlet Black Magic Math Skill MP Switch Magic AttackUP Move-MP Up Use CT (whatever their CT is, it's usually the same) --- Holy or your strongest attack. If you get hit, MP Switch will kick in. ========================================================================== ... Ramza vs. Celia/Lede/Apandas (Battle 42 in Outside of Limberry Castle) ========================================================================== Ramza (Squire) Excalibur Aegis Shield Flash Hat Judo Outfit Jade Armlet Judo Outfit prevents Stop Bracelet. Jade Armlet prevents Shadow Stich/Seal. Finish them off with Holy. ============================================================== ... Ramza vs. Celia/Lede/Elmdor (Battle 43 in Limberry Castle) ============================================================== Ramza (Squire) Excalibur Aegis Shield Flash Hat Judo Outfit 108 Gems Judo Outfit prevents Stop Bracelet. 108 Gems prevents Blood Suck and strengthens Holy ... Excalibur will absorb Holy. Go win. =========================================================== ... Ramza & Zalbag vs. Dycedarg (Battle 45 in Igros Castle) =========================================================== Ramza (Squire) Excalibur Aegis Shield Flash Hat Judo Outfit Jade Armlet Judo Outfit stops Crush Punch. Jade Armlet prevents Stop from Stasis Sword and Petrify from Adramelk's SEAL. Guts Math Skill MP Switch Maintenance Move-MP-Up Maintenance stops Dyce from breaking equipment. =========================================================== ... Ramza vs. Vormav & Kletian (Battle 47 in Murond Temple) =========================================================== Ramza (Squire) Guts Math Skill MP Switch Maintenance Move-MP-Up Don't want those fools breaking your Excalibur, do you? ================================================= ... Ramza vs. Zalbag (Battle 48 in Murond Temple) ================================================= Ramza (Squire) Excalibur Aegis Shield Flash Hat Wizard Robe 108 Gems You don't wanna get bloodsucked, so wear 108 gems. ==================================================== ... Ramza vs. Rofel (Battle 66 in Orbonne Monastery) ==================================================== Ramza (Squire) Guts Math Skill MP Switch Maintenance Move-MP Up Maintenance = No breaking Excalibur. =================================================== ... Ramza vs. Balk (Battle 68 in Murond Death City) =================================================== Ramza (Squire) Excalibur Aegis Shield Flash Hat Wizard Robe Defense Armlet Defense Armlet stops Balk from sniping legs and arms. ============================================================ ... Ramza vs. Hashmalum (Battle 69 in Graveyard of Airships) ============================================================ Just make sure Ramza has Jade Armlet so SPELL doesn't put him to Sleep. Cause if that happens, Hash wins, cause he'll use Slow/Meteor/Spell/Slow/Melt/Spell/Slow/Quake/etc. till you're dead. Altima's a cinch. ********************************************************************** I told you it would be pretty straightforward. Contact me if you have further questions or suggestions. ********************************************************************** ..... ..... End of Document.