What I Know Going Into FFXII
-It’s part of a wider world. The Tactics games take place here, as (maybe?) does Vagrant Story.
-This is the international version, which is different because of the first US version because of something something Zodiac.
-The icon for FFXII has a knight dual wielding swords. The logo characters can be heroes (Cecil, Yuna), villains (e.g. Emperor Palamecia), or none of the above (the crystal in FFIX), so not sure what to read into this. But he sure looks villainous.
-I’ve heard the mechanics can be complicated, so while it hasn’t really been an issue before, I’ll add this request for anyone new to this series:
PLEASE DO NOT “BACKSEAT GAME.” If I feel like the game is being super unclear I may ask for a specific clarification, but I’ll do my best to work through things on my own.
I will fail at it. I will screw up, I will play sub-optimally, miss stuff, and I’m FINE with that. That’s where I get most of the joy from while playing unspoiled. Keep any hints, suggestions, intimations, or judgments (whether “oh god wtf are you doing that’s a horrible materia to pick” or “good choice! that item will definitely come in handy *wiiiink*”) in rot13. This goes for both story and mechanics – if it has not come up in game, if I have not explicitly discussed it, do not discuss it or hint at further implications or anything like that. Thank you!
Here we go.
-The title screen has a string-heavy version of the theme, and that dark knight dude on the cover with a watery glow effect.
-Won’t try “Trial Mode” yet, whatever that is.
-Configuration screen. I set the music to reorchestrated and start.
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A Short Marriage
-Birds across the sky. An airship. A sprawling city with a mix of humans and non-humans: Dalmasca.
-Wedding time! A royal man and woman in a car driving through the starts. One of the brighter openings to an FF game. [Later edit: I IMMEDIATELY REGRET THIS SENTENCE.]
-We see the wedding itself, the prince and princess. Both seem happy.
-War council with the king, preparing to fight Archadia. Nabudis has fallen and Archadia advances. Already getting FFII vibes. The prince leads the Dalmascan army.
-Scene change, to a brutal battle. Ground melee combat with swords/armor, dogfighting in the air.
-Things go badly for the Dalmascans. Worse when the Archadians take out the city’s magical shield.
-The prince, Lord Rasler, takes an arrow to the chest. His captain evacuates him from the scene. The Archadians win.
-Scene change to his wife, Princess Ashe, watching his burial. He died.
A short marriage.
-Title screen. Simple white letters on a black background.
-Ivalice is the country. Archadia and Rozarria are the two main enemies. Dalmasca is just a small nation in the middle. Dalmasca tried to counter attack, but they failed.
-Lord Raminas, King of Dalmasca, surrendered. He went to Nabina for the official surrender, but as soon as he left, Dalmascan scouts learned that he would be killed immediately after.
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Nalbina Fortress - To the King!
-My character is Reks, an injured soldier. Our protagonist. in Nalbina Fortress. Reks is 17 with a younger brother in Rabanastre that he fights for.
-We’re part of a Dalmascan company trying to save the king before he signs the treaty.
-I take control of Reks. There’s a mini-map, HP and MP. No status screen yet.
-I like the city design! It looks vaguely Persian. Ornate and colorful.
-Captain Basch leads the company. We head into the castle and I get my first combat.
-It reminds me a bit of Crisis Core. Sort of an action set-up. Once I select to “attack” a foe, I run up to him with left stick, and I’ll keep auto-attacking until he dies.
-Yay! Pulling up the options menu pauses the game. My favorite combat system was the untimed choices of FFX, and I’m happy to see them going back to that at least a bit.
-THIS MUSIC THOUGH
-I have access to Thunder and Cure. Maybe Reks is a red mage.
-We reach the tutorial boss, a drone thing. Combat positioning seems to matter a lot.
-After we defeat it, we hear the pilot pulling out: “Antlion, this is Tonberry. My engines are hit. She’ll not hold much longer.”
His commander approves and complements him for holding out as long as he did. I like that.
-We press on. Captain Azleas Vossler is missing.
-First fight on my own against three imperials. LOL bad start – I tried to cast thunder on their party and accidentally cast it on myself.
-I try to funnel the enemies so I get one at a time, but it’s really tough. I just kind of hang in there and attack and heal up.
-Reached the top room. Full of corpses. The king dead on the throne.
CPT BASCH: “The King intended all along to sell Dalmsaca to the empire. His majesty was a traitor.”
-OH SHIT, BASCH BETRAYED US! He stabs me, and it looks pretty fatal tbh.
-A mirthful enemy commander who I assume is a Big Bad enters. “Dalmasca is the property of the empire, now.” The villain dude arrests the captain. So now there’s no surrender.
Reks’ dying words: “Vaan.”
-The aftermath went badly for Dalmasca. Archadia pushed on and conquered Rabanastre.
-PRINCESS ASHE COMMITTED SUICIDE HOLY SHIT
-Captain Basch was executed for high treason.
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Rabanastre – Two Years Later
-Scene change. Vaan must be Reks’ little brother, hanging out with a kid named Kytes.
-The music is super playful.
-Both work for Migelo. Their caretaker maybe.
-We’re in Rabanastre, two years after the fall of Dalamasca.
-Imperial soldiers are assholes, stealing from and intimidating merchants. An occupied city. Vaan picks one of their pockets and runs away.
-A girl named Pinelo runs up to Vaan and scolds him for stealing. Both are orphans.
VAAN: “One of these days, I’ll fly an airship of my own. I’ll be a sky pirate, free to go where I will.” Arrr!
-I get control of Vaan. He only has one “technick:” steal.
-The new imperial consul arrives today.
-The non-human race in Rabanastre is the bangaa. They look sort of like crocopigs.
-LOL MIGELO’S VOICE ACTING – he sounds like someone doing a decent Bill Cosby impression.
-Migelo is a player in town. He runs the item shop and is helping host the fete for the new consul.
-I can’t get over the level of detail in the shop design here.
Long gone are the days when an armor shop consisted of a single dude in a spare room behind a desk.
-One of the weapons sold is a gun called an “altair.” FFII reference or actual weapon type?
-I found a moogle. …Sort of.
It’s the first design piece in FFXII I dislike. It looks like a rabbit or a rat. I dunno. Maybe it’s just the fact that it is fully clothed that’s throwing me off.
MOOGLE: “The more loot you sell, the more bazaar goods you’re like to likely to come across.” Not quite sure what this means yet.
-Elementals react to magic use by attacking the caster with their own magic. I’ll have to be careful of that.
-Walking restores MP.
-When I target a foe without using Libra, its name’s color tells me its strength.
-There’s a gambit shop. (lol hi balthier) It sounds a bit like Dragon Age’s tactics, pre-set instructions for a party.
-Found a mysterious and unnamed shop. They won’t let me in because “I don’t even have one.” Hm.
-There’s an anti-Imperial resistance group in town. AVALANCHE!
-I finish up my exploration and head to the Sandsea. I learn here about a bounty board, which presumably will be a mix of side quests and main quests.
-LOL THE FIRST WANTED POSTER LOOKS LIKE A TOMATO MONSTER
IT’S LITERALLY CALLED “THE ROGUE TOMATO”
-Tomaj, The bartender, gives me an armlet I can’t yet use. I need a “license.”
“How can I equip this great treasure you’ve bestowed on me, you ask? Easy: learn by doing.”
I mentioned before that the style seemed FFII-ish. This carries over here. “Learn by doing” was the heart of FFII’s mechanics. I’m psyched to see how FFXII riffs on it.
-The city is so bright, colorful, and ornate! This includes Vaan’s dress. Except for the imperial soldiers with their muted style.
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Next time: Our epic journey begins!!
...Sort of.
