======================= UNLIMITED SAGA PANEL BONUS GUIDE, v0.9 ======================= 1) Version History 2) Panel Introduction 3) Panel Bonus Configurations 4) Panel Categories 5) Panel Strategies 6) Future Additions? 7) Special Thanks ====================================================================== 1) Version History v0.8 - First Release – October 21, 2003 v0.9 - Second Release - December 19, 2003 Added Base Stat Values for the following categories: Axe, Bow, Gun, Shield, Sword, Staff, Flying Kick, Pacifist, Sealed Weapon, Judy's extra Familiars Also, I included an area that lists each skill and sorts the corresponding panel categories by their base stat values. Please send corrections to me at the following address: fredga01 at att dot net ====================================================================== 2) Panel Introduction This guide assumes the reader has some basic experience with the game Unlimited Saga. I will show how the game calculates Panel Bonuses, how these bonuses affect character's stats, and strategies for placing your panels to get the most out of your character. The various growth panels provided by the game can be divided into categories depending on the picture shown on the panel. Throughout this guide I will refer to various panel positions by number for ease of reference. Since the game always lists skills in the same order, I have chosen the following method to refer to panel locations: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] Whenever the game displays a list of skills for a character, for instance in the "Magic Tablet" Status screen menu or when viewing skills from a town's Inn, it will display the skills in this same numerical order. This can be used to visualize the actual panel placement since you can't get to most status screens until you are inside an adventure. All panels that have the same picture can be made into combos, however panels that do not have the same picture can not be made into combos. For instance, Punch Kick and Throw panels all have the same picture on them and can be part of the same combo. Sword and Spear, despite being weapon/attack panels, cannot be part of the same combo since their pictures are different. ====================================================================== 3) Panel Bonus Configurations There are 4 ways to achieve a Panel Bonus. The first 3 methods are by placing panels in a certain formation, while the fourth bonus type is awarded to characters who have a Finished Magic Tablet. When planning a combo, you should know that formation bonuses cannot overlap each other. For instance, putting the same category panels in Spots 1, 3, 4, and 5 would only result in a Line Bonus for Spots 3+4+5. However since Finished Magic Tablet bonuses are not created by a formation, these CAN overlap formation bonuses. If you had Tablets in Spots 3+4+5, you could get a Line Bonus in addition to a Finished Magic Tablet bonus for each Tablet. Stat increases from panel bonuses are solely determined by three things: - Type of formation - Category of panels involved - Level of panels involved (only if panels are the same level) The type of formation acts as a multiplier, increasing in power from Joint to Triangle to Line formations. The category of panels involved will determine which stats are affected by the combo and the base amount awarded to each stat. Note that the location of your combo doesn't change any stat increases from a Bonus. What this means is that a combo based on spots 6 and 7 can affect the Strength and Skill stats even though those are located on the other side of the panel grid. Same level bonuses add a few extra points onto a combo equal to the level of the panels. The level of the panels involved must be the same for all panels in order to receive the "Same Level Bonus." This also means the when combos have panels of different levels then the total Panel Bonus is always the same. A combo with a Level 1 Punch and Level 2 Kick panel will give you the same Panel Bonus as a Level 4 Punch and Level 5 Kick panel. The various types of formation bonuses are as follows: JOINT BONUS- Formed by 2 panels on the outer ring of the grid that are placed next to each other. Note that panels placed in the center (Spot 4) are unable to be part of a Joint Bonus. Valid configurations for Joint bonus formations are Spots 1+2, 1+3, 2+5, 3+6, 5+7, and 6+7. The formula for a Joint Bonus stat increase is: (Base Stat Value) x 1 + (Same Level Bonus) TRIANGLE BONUS- Formed by 3 panels on the outer ring of the grid that would create points on an equilateral triangle. Note that Spot 4 is again unable to be part of a Triangle Bonus. Valid configurations for a Triangle bonus are Spots 1+5+6 and 2+3+7. The formula for a Triangle Bonus stat increase is: (Base Stat Value) x 2 + (Same Level Bonus) LINE BONUS- Formed by 3 panels creating a straight line through the panel grid. This is the only formation that can/must use Spot 4. Valid configurations for a Line Bonus are Spots 1+4+7, 2+4+6, and 3+4+5. The formula for a Line Bonus stat increase is: (Base Stat Value) x 3 + (Same Level Bonus) FINISHED TABLET BONUS- When a character learns every spell from a Magic Tablet, they get a slight stat bonus for leaving the Tablet panel on their grid. Any location is good for a Finished Tablet Bonus, but if you overwrite that panel with something else you will lose the Bonus. Finished Tablet Bonuses are unique in that they can be combined with formation bonuses for an extra stat boost. The formula for a Finished Tablet Bonus stat increase is: Element increase equal to the Level of Tablet, Spirit increased by 2, and Magic increased by 2. However, there are tablets that do not follow this formula. Judy starts her quest with an "Ancient Tablet L2" and can acquire a Level 3 tablet, both of which I'm guessing belong to the "Forbidden" element category. They seem to raise only the Magic stat when completed, but the bonus is higher than for regular tablets. ====================================================================== 4) Panel Categories Each of the Panel Categories has different Base Stat Values that are used to determine the Panel Bonuses. Here is a listing of the various Panel Categories along with a description of the panel and the various skills that are a part of the category. Not all skills are listed under each panel since I have only listed the ones I have been able to get. Panels that personally seem to be unusually rare to get from completing an adventure will be marked with an asterisk (*). ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "Melee" - Looks like a fist Punch Kick Throw Base stat values: 2 Strength and 2 Endurance ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "Key" - Looks like a key Defuse Locksmith Sharpeye Eavesdrop Aura * Base stat values: 2 Skill and 2 Earth ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "Map" - Looks like a scrolled piece of paper Cave Guide Road Guide Architect Obstacle Crossing Swimming Adaptability Base stat value: 2 Endurance and 2 Water ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "Talk" - Looks like 2 people with speech balloons overhead Diplomacy Monger Maharaja Inconspicuous * Fashion * Base stat value: 2 Spirit and 2 Wood ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "Tool" - Looks like a hammer and tongs, crossed Quick-Fix Artiste * Weaponsmith Accessory Smith Base stat value: 3 Skill and 2 Metal Note: I'm pretty sure that you can only get Weaponsmith and Accessory Smith panels if Mythe is in your party. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "Globe" - Looks like a figure with arms raised and a globe above with light rays shooting out of it Fortuneteller Arcane Tongue * Base stat value: 3 Magic and 2 Fire ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "Body" - Looks like a figure with arms raised with vertical lines Iron Body * Iron Will * Toughness * Recovery * Natural * Fortitude * Base stat value: 4 Endurance ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "Tablet" - Looks like a slate with tiny writing on it Magic Tablet (all 5 elemental types) Magic Blender * Base stat value: 1 Fire, 1 Earth, 1 Metal, 1 Water, and 1 Wood Note: I would consider any Magic Tablet at Level 3 or 4 to be rare. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "Familiar" - Looks like a fish Familiar (all 5 elemental types) Base stat value: 1 Spirit and 3 Magic Note: When playing as Judy, you can get 3 extra versions of familiars. These familiars are treated differently than the regular ones. Despite having the same graphic as the normal familiars, Judy's extra familiars cannot be used in combos with the regular familiars. They seem to have the same spells as their elemental counterparts, but the Earth familiar (Atlas) has the Architect skill instead of Road Guide. Also, their base stat values are different: "Judy's Familiars" - Looks like a fish Astraios (Judy Fire Familiar with Road Guide skill) Aigaion (Judy Water Familiar with Cave Guide skill) Atlas (Judy Earth Familiar with Architect skill) Base stat value: 3 Spirit and 1 Magic ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "Flying Kick" - Looks like a figure doing a flying kick with diagonal action lines; as in a martial arts movie Master Technician * Master Magician * Thrift Saver * Base stat value: 2 Skill and 2 Spirit ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "Weapons" - Looks like a Sword, Dagger, Staff, and Spear laid on top of each other Weapon Meister * Master Fighter * Base stat value: *UNKNOWN* ---------------------------------------------------------------------- *WEAPONS SECTION* Each weapon skill panel combines only with panels from its own category, so I am placing all the various weapon panel categories here for quicker reference. You cannot get Same Level Bonuses using weapon panels since you can't have two identical panels on your growth grid. "Axe" Base stat value: 3 Strength and 1 Endurance "Bow" Base stat value: 2 Strength and 2 Skill "Dagger" Base stat value: 2 Skill, 1 Magic, 1 Endurance "Gun" Base stat value: 4 Skill "Shield" * Base stat value: 4 Endurance "Spear" Base stat value: 2 Strength and 2 Endurance "Staff" Base stat value: 2 Spirit and 1 Endurance "Sword" Base stat value: 2 Strength and 2 Skill ---------------------------------------------------------------------- *NEGATIVE PANEL* -"Phobia" - Looks like a dark void with eyes, with an arrow pointing down, and the word "DOWN" Phobia (all varieties) Base stat value: 2 Strength and 6 Magic ---------------------------------------------------------------------- *NEGATIVE PANEL* -"Pacifist" - Looks like a figure with its hand over its heart, as if taking a solemn vow Pacifist (all varieties) Base stat value: 3 Spirit and 3 Magic ---------------------------------------------------------------------- *NEGATIVE PANEL* -"Sealed Weapon" - Looks like a sword with a red X, regardless of what actual weapon is being sealed Seal (all varieties) Base stat value: 2 Strength and 4 Spirit ---------------------------------------------------------------------- *NEGATIVE PANEL* -"Gauntlet" - Looks like a piece of armor for a hand Gauntlet (Only appears on certain characters, such as Kurt) Base stat value: N/A - I don't think a Gauntlet can be used in any combo. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Unknown Panel skills: I think this list is now complete. Please let me know if I may have missed any. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- BASE STAT VALUES SORTED BY AMOUNT: STRENGTH: 3 Axe 2 Bow, Melee, Spear, Sword -Phobia, -Sealed Weapon SKILL: 4 Gun 3 Tool 2 Bow, Dagger, Flying Kick, Key, Sword SPIRIT: 4 -Sealed Weapon 3 Judy's Familiars -Pacifist 2 Flying Kick, Staff, Talk 1 Familiar MAGIC: 6 -Phobia 3 Familiar, Globe -Pacifist 1 Dagger, Judy's Familiars ENDURANCE: 4 Body, Shield 2 Map, Melee 1 Axe, Dagger, Spear, Staff FIRE: 2 Globe 1 Tablet EARTH: 2 Key 1 Tablet METAL: 2 Tool 1 Tablet WATER: 2 Map 1 Tablet WOOD: 2 Talk 1 Tablet ====================================================================== 5) Panel Strategies FORMULA EXAMPLES- So how do you use the above information to figure out your stat bonuses for various combos? Look up the category of panels that are being used. Each category affects stats by a base value. Now take that base value and plug it into the equation for the Formation of the combo, and add the Same Level Bonus if your panels are at the same level. Here are some examples: You have a Joint combo of Level 4 Obstacle Crossing and a Level 4 Swimming. These panels are in the “Map” category which has a base value of 2 Endurance and 2 Water. The Joint combo formula is: (Base Stat Value) x 1 + (Same Level Bonus) so, you plug each value in to get the results: (2 Endurance) x 1 + (4) = 6 Endurance (2 Water) x 1 + (4) = 6 Water Here’s another example using a Triangle formation of Familiar panels. Let’s say you have a Level 3 Fire Familiar, a Level 3 Earth Familiar, and a Level 3 Water Familiar. These are “Familiar” panels so the base stat value is 3 Magic and 1 Spirit. The Triangle combo formula is: (Base Stat Value) x 2 + (Same Level Bonus) so, you plug each value in to get the results: (3 Magic) x 2 + (3) = 9 Magic (1 Spirit) x 2 + (3) = 5 Spirit Here’s another example using a Line formation of “Globe” panels. Let’s say you have a Level 1 Arcane Tongue, a Level 2 Fortuneteller, and a Level 3 Fortuneteller. The base stat value for these “Globe” category panels is 3 Magic and 2 Fire. The Line combo formula is: (Base Stat Value) x 3 + (Same Level Bonus) so, you plug each value in to get the results: (3 Magic) x 3 + (0) = 9 Magic (2 Fire) x 3 + (0) = 6 Fire FORMATION OBSERVATIONS- Each of the Formations seems to have Pros and Cons; different combos seem to be better for certain situations and or panel categories. Here are a few of my observations: Joint formation- +Is quickest to create or change +Uses few spots in the grid, so you have room for more combos +Leaves the center spot free as a dumping ground for unwanted panels -Lowest stat increases of all the combos -Gives poor bonuses if you can't get a same level bonus When making Joint combos, I try to build them using common panels so that I can be assured of making a same level bonus. For a focused approach, you can combine a Joint combo and Line combo. For a balanced character, you can use 3 Joint combos to increase a mix of stats like Strength, Skill, and Endurance. Triangle formation- +Makes combos of uneven levels stronger than Joint combos +Leaves the center spot free as a dumping ground for unwanted panels +/- Unique formation allows 2 Triangle combos Triangles restrict you from using other formations -Uses 3 panels so it requires more planning -Doesn't maximize the bonus you can make with 3 panels I haven't really experimented much with these, but I can see how they can be useful for mages who don't need weapon panels to attack aggressively. You could make a Triangle combo of 3 tablets and 3 Elemental-raising skills (or Familiars) and they can attack without the need of weapon skill panels. Line formation- +Creates the biggest combo bonuses +Same level bonus isn't necessary for great stat increases +Allows room for Joint combos on either side -Line combos require the center panel, so some characters can't (Kurt) or probably shouldn't (Iskandar) use them. -Uses 3 panels so it requires more planning Line combos are the strongest, and I always try to create a Line combo that complements a character's best stat. If you are trying to create a panel combo using rarer panels, it's a good idea to go for a Line formation since there's no guarantee that you'll be able to upgrade your rare panels. Also, the rare panels tend to be in categories that have a high Base Stat Values, and the Line formation acts as a tripler for these values. This means that a Line combo made of "Body" panels gives you a bonus of 12 to Endurance even with panels of different levels. DUMPING PANELS- Q) Why use the center spot as a dumping ground when making combos? Why even have a Dumping spot at all? A) In the best of all possible worlds, you could have a character with a Line combo and 2 Joint combos. Or you could have a full panel of Joint/Triangle combos and use the center spot for Weapon Meister. In reality, you will often end an adventure and have to choose between 4 panels that you don't really want. It then becomes important to plan ahead so that you can place a panel that won't negatively affect your combos. For fighter characters, I see 2 good places for creating a dumping spot: SPOT 4 Panels placed here will affect all your stats, but only slightly. Therefore, placing a bad panel here won't change any of your character's stats too much. This is the best dumping spot for making characters have 3 Joint combos or 2 Triangle combos. The downside to using this spot to dump panels is that you can't make a Line combo. SPOT 6 In the lower left corner, this spot only affects the Magic stat and the surrounding Elemental stats. This makes it a great dumping ground for fighter characters with Line combos since it won't mess with their other stats. For Magic users, there is a lot more to take into consideration. Elemental stats are in different places on different characters, and you may want to increase each elemental stat as much as possible. Spot 2 can possibly be used as a Dump, since I think it only affects on Element on a character. On the other hand, if this is your mage’s best Element, then you’ll need to find another spot to use. As a general rule for making combos, I try to set up combos that will increase stats that the character is already good at. For fighters, this usually means a Line of Melee panels, and for mages I try to make some combo to boost their strongest Element. Since the categories that affect elements don't seem to follow a pattern, here's a short list of what Elements are affected by which categories: Fire "Globe" Earth "Key" Metal "Tool" Water "Map" Wood "Talk" An important note about these Categories is that "Globe" and "Tool" categories are harder to make same level combos due to the rarity of some of their panels. I'm pretty sure that "Tool" combos are easier to make if you're using Mythe since you can get extra "Tool" panels with the Weaponsmith and Accessory Smith skills. If you really want to boost the element stats for Fire and Metal, you can make a Triangle or Line combo to make use of the formation multiplier. WEAPON SKILL COMBOS AND OTHER MIXED LEVEL COMBOS- If you decide to make a combo with Weapon skill panels or categories with rare panels, you'll have to work around the restriction of not being able to receive a Same Level Bonus. Most fighter characters will get a benefit from a Line combo of Melee panels, but the only other easy combo options for boosting Strength seem to be awarded for using Weapon panels in combos. The good news is that Weapon panels are usually the best panels just for raising stats. When planning out a combo that you know is probably not going to get a Same Level Bonus, try to set up the panels so that the weaker ones will be in spots that won't affect your stats too much and the higher level panels will augment your strong stats. For example, you want to set up a Triangle combo with Spear skills. If you go with a 1+5+6 setup, then you can use Spot 6 for a Level 3 Spear, while Spots 1 and 5 can get the Level 4 and Level 5 Spear spots. This leaves the other Triangle spots open for a Melee combo or something else. If you do a Line Combo, try making a 1+4+7 or 3+4+5 combo and place the lowest level panel in Spot 4 while reserving the side spots for the higher level panels. This is a actually a good strategy to use even for Same Level Bonus combos since all the panels in a category don't naturally raise stats by the same amount. For instance in the Melee category, Punch and Kick skills raise stats equally, but Throw is slightly weaker. This means you might want to place Throw in a spot that won't affect your desired stats as much, such as Spots 4 or 6. This works for several categories, such as "Map" panels where Swimming and Obstacle Crossing raise stats more than the various Guides. NEGATIVE PANEL COMBOS - ARE YOU SERIOUS?! Thanks to St.Ajora's experimenting and posting to the GameFAQs message board, it seems that combos involving Negative Panels will offer the greatest Base Stat Values out of any category in the game. If you can live with a character who has a disadvantage versus certain monsters, you could end up with a very strong character. Also, combos with "Weapon Seal" panels aren't as difficult to use as you might initially think. How often would you really need a certain character to be able to use every weapon? ====================================================================== 6) Future Additions? For future revisions of this guide, I hope to include: Base stat values for the Categories that are currently unknown, including: "Weapon Meister" Descriptions for the various Panel skills that are rare and/or confusing, such as "Flying Kick" skills. Info on Finished Forbidden Magic Tablet Bonuses. ====================================================================== 7) SPECIAL THANKS- Gennojo - Without his copy of the game, I could never have written this guide. St.Ajora - Who dared to make a combo of Phobia panels and who could probably write a novel with all of his helpful GameFAQs posts. ====================================================================== This guide is Copyright 2003, Graham Fredrick ======================================================================