Final Fantasy Tactics Advance (GBA)

STORY
(Interpretation of Japanese story)

FINAL FANTASY AND THE CALLING OF THE ANCIENT TOME

Before Noah's Ark there was a world swords and sorcery prospered, this was
the era of the Ancient Keltia... a wondrous magical civilization that was
lost with the great flood. However, a key to the knowledge of that era
exists. Sealed with darkness by the hand of that era's dictator into ancient
documents, the Grand Grimoire.

Although it is unknown how many volumes exist presently, those who once
possessed the book said that it has the power to drastically change the
world. Those seeking power have searched the world for it, despite the fact
that no one knows for sure it even truly exists. Unattainable, this
magical book became to be known as the... Final Fantasy.

"I want this world to change for good. I want to see Final Fantasy, the
world of swords and magic"

Once crowded with merchants, the small country town of Ivalice has since
become rustic. Amongst a row of dilapidated buildings is a second hand
bookseller. Within it, lost in time, a book rests. Untouched by hands for
many years, in the book firmly shut are strange unreadable characters which
record some unknown history.

One day, accidentally, a lonely boy found that book. And with his thoughts
turned the normal countryside town of St. Ivalice into the world of
"Ivalice", a world of law and chaos....

2) CONTROLS

W O R L D  M A P
- - - - - - - - -
Control Pad - Move cursor (hold B to make it move fast).
A Button - Confirm selection.
B Button - Cancel selection.
L Button - View current World Law(s).
R Button - View info on a selected area.
Start Button - Open System Menu.
Select Button - View Help (In-depth Info) on basically anything.

B A T T L E  E N T R Y
- - - - - - - - - - - -
Control Pad - Switch between units.
A Button - Confirm selection.
B Button - Cancel selection.
L Button - Switch to "Field View Mode".
R Button - View info on selected unit.
Start Button - Battle Start.
Select Button - View current World Law(s).

B A T T L E
- - - - - -
Control Pad - Move cursor.
A Button - Confirm selection.
B Button - Cancel selection, and view range of hi-lighted unit.
L Button - Shortcut button for selected System Menu option.
Start Button - Open System Menu.
Select Button - View Help (In-depth Info) on basically anything.

3) GAMEPLAY OVERVIEW

Final Fantasy Tactics Advance (hear by known as FFT-A) is the third product
of Square's engulfment of Quest. It's a Strategy RPG (known as a Simulation
RPG in Japan) based on the "world" of Final Fantasy. If you have played the
original Final Fantasy Tactics, or any of the Ogre Battle/Tactics Ogre
series, or even Advance Wars; this game should be familiar territory.
Battles are turn-based and take place on what essentially is a grid. Each
time it becomes a unit's turn, they will get a chance to move and execute an
action. Each unit has 8 stats which determine different attributes:

?@?@?@?¢?Ç?¤ Move          - Amount of panels that unit can move each turn.
?@?@?W?????v Jump          - Maximum height that unit can scale.
?@?@?@?©?¢?Ð Evade         - The % of attacks that unit can possibly dodge.
???í?±?¤?°?« Weapon Attack - How strong that unit's physical attack will be.
?@?@?Ú?¤?¬?å Defence       - How well that unit can defend a physical attack.
???@?Ì?Â?æ?³ Magical Power - The strength of any magic cast by that unit.
?@?@?Ú?¤?¬?å Magic Defence - How well that unit can resist a magical attack.
?@?@?X?s?[?h Speed         - Determines the order and frequency of AT.

Unlike FFT, there is no "casting" time for spells and abilities, not even for
Jump (which is highly unorthodox by Final Fantasy standards). Also there is
no Bahamut summon... a break of a tradition set since Final Fantasy III.

FFT-A is filled with many systems; some are old, some are revised, and some
are brand spanking new. Because of their complexity, I might as well go over
them one at a time for you:

Job System
************
FFT-A uses the Job System which was born from Final Fantasy III, built upon
in Final Fantasy V, and almost perfected in Final Fantasy Tactics. It's also
going to be used in Final Fantasy X-2 under the guise of "Dress Ups"... not
that anyone noticed with the new artwork of Rikku emerging ^_^. Anyway, FFT-A
uses a revised Job System, it defers from FFT's system like so:

* No more Job Points, JP is now Judge Points.
* The inclusion of Tribes and the abolishment of Sexes and Zodiac signs.
* The inclusion of an AP (Ability Points) system, ala Final Fantasy IX.
* A whole new collection of Jobs and abilities.
* New Jobs are learned by mastering abilities, not by Job Levels.

Ability System
****************
The ability system is almost exactly like Final Fantasy IX's. Abilities are
embedded in equipment; once you equip items (weapons, armour, etc.) on a
unit you will be able to use the abilities associated with that equipment.
As soon as you unequip those items, the unit will no longer be able to use
those abilities. However, you can permanently learn abilities by mastering
them. To "master" an ability, you must equip the item the ability is embedded
in and gain enough AP (Ability Points) to learn it. Be aware that you still
have to select Secondary, Reaction and Support Abilities to use them, and
that Movement Abilities have been replaced by Combo Abilities. Movement
abilities are now "status effects" found in special shoes/boots.

Judgement System
******************
The world of Ivalice is ruled by Law and Order. All battles are adjudicated
by "Judges" who are there to enforce the constantly changing "World Laws".
The current "World Laws" can be viewed by; pressing L on the World Map
screen, pressing Select during Battle formation, and by selecting the
"World Law" option from the System Menu during a battle. If a unit breaks a
law in combat, the Judge will give that unit a Yellow "Caution" Card, which
will mean that unit will be penalised at the end of battle. Also, if that
unit continues to break the law or breaks the law to defeat a unit, the Judge
might give that unit a Red "Arrest" Card; which will mean that unit will be
sent to a nearby Prison. You must pay a lot of Gil to either "Bail" the
jailed unit out of Prison, or to "Acquit" them to remove any cards. Judges
also award JP (Judge Points) to units that legally defeat their enemies. With
JP you can use strong Combo attacks, and if you gain the maximum amount (10)
you can summon the powerful "Divine Beasts". Judges will also move
"unconscious" units out of the way to keep the battle flowing. Later in the
game it will be possible for you to add and remove laws by using "Law Cards".

Clan System
*************
Ivalice is filled with many mercenary groups called "Clans". Clan Members
work together to complete "Quests" for payment in Gil and treasure. In order
to participate in a Quest you must first buy its information from a Pub.
There are many types of quests, they are:

* Story Battle Quest (Sword Icon)
Always the first on the list and usually more expensive than the
others, these quests progress the story and will generally unlock a
new area on the World Map.
* Battle Quest (Sword Icon)
The "standard" quest, these involve fighting a battle in which your
opponents are generally monsters.
* Non-Battle Quest (Paper Icon)
Much like the "Propositions" of the original FFT, these involve sending
a unit off alone to complete a quest and then return with the reward.
Although, you don't have to go back to collect them in this game.
* Territory Quest (Flag Icon)
These Quests involve sending off a unit to set up a base in another area.
Usually you must defeat a specific amount of units in battles before the
unit will return and the area is captured. Once you have established an
area as your territory, other clans will constantly try to capture it, so
make sure you stop them!
* Encounter Quest (Tribe Icon)
Uncommon quest, these involve an encounter with a rival Clan in which you
will be given a choice on how you are to act.

Your Clan also has 8 Skill Levels which will develop as you complete
more and more quest. These affect your success at Non-Battle and Territory
Quests, with higher levels you will receive rare items, and a lot of Quests
require a certain Skill Level to actually even attempt them, the stats are
set out like so:

?@?@?í?¬ - Combat Skill (Sword)
?@?@?b?è - Metallurgy Skill (Hammer)
?@?@?Ó?è - Analysis Skill (Magnifying Glass)
?@?@?ð? - Negotiation Skill (Hand-shake)
?@?@???@ - Magic Skill (Lightning Bolt)
?@?@?×?H - Labour Skill (Pliers)
?@?@?Ì?æ - Collection Skill (Bug Net)
?@?@?Ç?Õ - Pursuit Skill (Foot Prints)

Region Create System
**********************
Unlike the original Final Fantasy Tactics for the Sony Playstation, the land
of Ivalice in FFT-A is completely malleable thanks to a "Region Create"
system. This system is somewhat from the same vein as Legend of Mana's
infamous "Artifact Placement" system. But thankfully; FFT-A's "Region Create"
system is far simpler, and only really effects the outcome of "Treasure
Hunts" which will spring up often.

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