Summary: Small, self-contained session where moogles tutor me on the basics of FFIX game mechanics.
Teach Me, Mogster! - Trance
-Active Time Event. Tutorial probably.
-We see two moogles, Moggy and Mogster. The music is super dramatic. XD
-Let’s learn about… Trance, first. Trance transforms a character, giving new skills and abilities and greater power.
-The Trance Gauge increases as we get hit, so more FFVII than FFVIII. And they avoid the FFII problem altogether by making it so that if you hit a character with your own party member, the trance bar doesn’t move. (I wonder if that’s the case even when your own party member is under the effect of charm.)
-Zombie brings the trance bar back to zero.
-This music is fucking awesome! Feels almost more epic than a tutorial deserves, but no complaints from me.
-At the end of a battle, trance gauge goes back to zero. So unlike FFVII, you can’t save up a trance bar for another fight. It’ll probably only become relevant in longer encounters.
-There’s an ability out there (that Mogster doesn’t name) to help speed up the trance gauge. Like Aura maybe.
-Not everyone can achieve trance.
---
Teach Me, Mogster! - Abilities
-Two categories of abilities: action and support.
-Action have a red gem icon and are things like Steiner’s and Vivi’s Fire.
-Support have a blue gem icon. Unlike action abilities, you have to spend Magic Stones to equip them like we saw before.
-Now we learn why abilities from items have AP bars: they bring out your inherent abilities.
Essentially, you learn abilities more permanently from them, like from materia in FFVII.
-Grayed out abilities can’t be learned, so not every character can learn every ability. I like that. It’ll prevent someone like Steiner from learning something that’s very un-Steiner.
---
Teach Me, Mogster! - Battles
-You can cycle to another character who’s ready to go! Yay!
-Goes over active vs wait. I’ll go with wait. Mogster says that wait mode stops when you are choosing abilities and magic. [Non-rhetorical question for y’all: does combat keep going after I’ve clicked attack and am just deciding who to target?]
-Yellow numbers indicate critical hits.
-“Guard” means that a status or elemental attack had no effect.
-Front and back row are still a thing.
-I wonder if I eventually get a ranged physical attacker, like someone who uses bow or gun, whether they can get full attack value from the back. Probably. I’ll cross that bridge if I come to it.
---
Teach Me, Mogster! – Help Menu
-Not much new here, but his final comment makes me lol.
Moogles aren’t just gameplay mechanics. They have feelings, and lives!
---
Teach Me, Mogster! – Save Moogles
-I can only save or use a tent at a moogle. I wonder how this works in the overworld. Maybe Monty will come with me so that I can always use him in the overworld.
-Aha. Not Monty, but Moguo. X will make Moguo join me.
-Note to self: do not piss off Moguo.
-And that’s it! This whole tutorial came in the form of Moggy learning from his big bro, Mogster. Adorable.
---
Campsite
-Back with the party and Monty.
-Monty gives us a flute that we can use to call a moogle.
-LOL Steiner fell asleep during the tutorial.
---
Mist Continent
-Beautiful overworld music, with kind of a spacey background.
-Sat here listening for a couple of minutes, and this is easily one of my favorite overworld themes in all of FF. Tied maybe with one of the pieces from FFVI.
-Summoned Moguo and saved.
---
Next time: towards the cavern.
Teach Me, Mogster! - Trance
-Active Time Event. Tutorial probably.
-We see two moogles, Moggy and Mogster. The music is super dramatic. XD
-Let’s learn about… Trance, first. Trance transforms a character, giving new skills and abilities and greater power.
-The Trance Gauge increases as we get hit, so more FFVII than FFVIII. And they avoid the FFII problem altogether by making it so that if you hit a character with your own party member, the trance bar doesn’t move. (I wonder if that’s the case even when your own party member is under the effect of charm.)
-Zombie brings the trance bar back to zero.
-This music is fucking awesome! Feels almost more epic than a tutorial deserves, but no complaints from me.
-At the end of a battle, trance gauge goes back to zero. So unlike FFVII, you can’t save up a trance bar for another fight. It’ll probably only become relevant in longer encounters.
-There’s an ability out there (that Mogster doesn’t name) to help speed up the trance gauge. Like Aura maybe.
-Not everyone can achieve trance.
---
Teach Me, Mogster! - Abilities
-Two categories of abilities: action and support.
-Action have a red gem icon and are things like Steiner’s and Vivi’s Fire.
-Support have a blue gem icon. Unlike action abilities, you have to spend Magic Stones to equip them like we saw before.
-Now we learn why abilities from items have AP bars: they bring out your inherent abilities.
Essentially, you learn abilities more permanently from them, like from materia in FFVII.
-Grayed out abilities can’t be learned, so not every character can learn every ability. I like that. It’ll prevent someone like Steiner from learning something that’s very un-Steiner.
---
Teach Me, Mogster! - Battles
-You can cycle to another character who’s ready to go! Yay!
-Goes over active vs wait. I’ll go with wait. Mogster says that wait mode stops when you are choosing abilities and magic. [Non-rhetorical question for y’all: does combat keep going after I’ve clicked attack and am just deciding who to target?]
-Yellow numbers indicate critical hits.
-“Guard” means that a status or elemental attack had no effect.
-Front and back row are still a thing.
-I wonder if I eventually get a ranged physical attacker, like someone who uses bow or gun, whether they can get full attack value from the back. Probably. I’ll cross that bridge if I come to it.
---
Teach Me, Mogster! – Help Menu
-Not much new here, but his final comment makes me lol.
Moogles aren’t just gameplay mechanics. They have feelings, and lives!
---
Teach Me, Mogster! – Save Moogles
-I can only save or use a tent at a moogle. I wonder how this works in the overworld. Maybe Monty will come with me so that I can always use him in the overworld.
-Aha. Not Monty, but Moguo. X will make Moguo join me.
-Note to self: do not piss off Moguo.
-And that’s it! This whole tutorial came in the form of Moggy learning from his big bro, Mogster. Adorable.
---
Campsite
-Back with the party and Monty.
-Monty gives us a flute that we can use to call a moogle.
-LOL Steiner fell asleep during the tutorial.
---
Mist Continent
-Beautiful overworld music, with kind of a spacey background.
-Sat here listening for a couple of minutes, and this is easily one of my favorite overworld themes in all of FF. Tied maybe with one of the pieces from FFVI.
-Summoned Moguo and saved.
---
Next time: towards the cavern.
