--The Multitechs-- The Multitechs are an unique aspect of battling in the Commander mode. They are pretty powerful in low-to-mid games (but, sadly, they are a tad useless in high levels where two SIS-s do as much damage as three-men tech) and, since they use AP which recharge every round, they are extremely useful for those who hate spending WP. And, last but not least, they look extremely cool :). But, of course, there is a hidden catch (or two). First of all, if you aren't playing as Sara, you should forget about Multitechs since no matter what you do you'll end up with four-character Commander mode or five-character normal mode. Needless to say, it is hard to win with four chars, even if they have auto regen. Next, the characters that do Multitechs will obviously use no wazas - and you can end up in high levels with low-tier ones >_<. This can be prevented by putting in a Martial or Bow fighter in autotechs places (autotech is done by selecting formation name, e.g. Time Gap Attack by selecting Whirlwind) but can be a pain. Next two are power issues - you must leave out your main and because of this he'll be way underpowered and with (almost) no wazas - at least in one place you'll end with ONLY your main in party and things can get dangerous... And again, what's the point of, say, Shinryu dance when five Tiger Breaks will do even twice as much damage? (Multitechs can't exceed 9999 damage...) But if you're out of WP (which can happen in long battles), they can save your life and, after all, when you use Commander mode, characters deem to grow much faster than usual (probably a way of balancing the lack of wazas). And if you're bent on magic-using team then Commander mode is great (GALAXY! Wheee!). The worst thing I can think of is extremely random learning of new multitechs (spells are available as soon as you have mages in right positions - not counting Megaspells - Galaxy, Tempest, Light Wall and Crimsoon Flare) At least two characters act unpredictably in Commander mode. First one is Muse - she keeps pounding enemies with magic and -only- magic. If you won't buy her any, she'll always defend and that's what kills the purpose of geting her (there are many better magicians). The other one is Julian - for some unknown reason he keeps hitting enemies with punch *A LOT*, even he has other much better skills, that makes it very annoying to train him in, say, swords (and SSS glitch is exremely tedious to achieve). Luckily, he does very well with Martial Arts, but... All known multitechs can be checked by pressing the Y button when rearranging party. The Multitech list is now divided into two parts: Formation part (which is very similar to DShort's Formation Guide...) and Tech Part. Formation: Free Fight "Everyone fights freely" (this quote is taken from game - select formation and hold Y) 4 2 1 3 5 Autotech: None Attacks: None Spells: Spell Fusions Formation: Speculation "Front row attack up" 4 2 1 3 5 Autotech: Twin rush (4,5) note: All autotechs cost 0 AP. Attacks: High speed (1, 2, 3) Shiva triangle (1, 2, 3) Cross driver (2, 3 - Spear only) Axel driver (1, 2, 3 - Spear only) Spells: None Formation: Whirlwind "Whole party moves faster" 4 2 1 3 5 Autotech: Time gap attack (2, 3) Attacks: Twin rush (4, 5) High speed (1, 2, 3) Shiva triangle (1, 2, 3) Cross driver (2, 3) Jack knife (1, 2, 3) Spells: Spell fusions Formation: Phoenix dance "Middle member lures attacks" 2 4 1 3 5 Autotech: X attack (2, 3) Attacks: Time gap attack (2, 3) Double X (2, 3, 4, 5) Nature moon (2, 3, 4, 5 - katanas only) Crossbow bolt (4, 5 - bow only) Formation: Genbu "Whole party defense up" 4 2 1 3 5 Autotech: None Attacks: External bind (All) Spells: Spell fusions Wormhole (1, 4, 5) GALAXY (1 - Sun, 5 - Moon, 4 - Wind) Formation: Power Raise "Middle member magic up" 2 4 1 5 3 Autotech: Time Gap Attack (2,3) Attacks: X Attack (2, 3) Spells: Spell fusions MULTISPELL: CRIMSON FLARE (1 - Sun, 4 - Fire, 5 - Moon) MULTISPELL: TEMPEST (1 - Sun, 4 - Water, 5 - Moon) Formation: Dragon Form "Good for conitnuous attack" 2 1 3 4 5 Autotech: Kibaryu dance (All) Attacks: Shinryu dance (All) Thousand hand god (All) Double impact (1, 2) Formation: Tri Anchor "Ideal for combined attack" 2 1 4 5 3 Autotech: Dinofang (1, 2, 3) Attacks: Marvelous cannon (1, 4, 5) Shiva triangle (1, 2, 3) Triplet (1, 2, 3 - Epee only) Water stream (1, 4, 5 - Axe only) Spell: MULTISPELL: LIGHT WALL (1 - Sun, 4 - Earth, 5 - Moon) Formation: Tiger Cave "Improve defense" 4 2 1 3 5 Autotech: Deflect (All) Attacks: Twin rush (4, 5) Multi counter (All) Spell deflect (All) Spells: Spell fusions Formation: Hunter Shift "Middle member shoots better" 4 2 1 3 5 Autotech: Arrow storm (All) Attacks: Time gap attack (2, 3) X attack (2, 3 - Bow only) Crossbow bolt (4, 5 - Bow only) Shadow arrow (4, 5 - Bow only) Dragon shock (1, 4, 5 - Bow only) Formation: Desert Lance "One person fight at the front" 4 2 1 3 5 Autotech: Twin rush (4, 5) Attacks: Shadow arrow (4, 5 - Bow only) Crossbow bolt (4, 5 - Bow only) Spells: Spell fusions ---------------------------------------------------- Tech list: Attacks: Arrow storm - 0 AP What it does: All characters perform Random Arrow tech. Low damage on all. Is it any good?: It's autotech so it's natural that it does low damage but low damage by "all on all" is too much for me >_<. Dinofang - 0 AP What it does: Each character hits enemy with a normal attack. Is it any good?: It's autotech so don't except too much. Maybe the only difference between it and normal attack is that you can select target... (after all, you can't pick enemies in Commander mode) Kibaryu dance - 0 AP What it does: apparently, everyone attacks with slighty higher strength. Is it any good?: Well, you can use nomral techs here but I'm not sure if it's really bonus damage. AND IT'S AUTO! "Deflect" - 0 AP What it does: Seems quite similar to Kibaryu Dance >_>. Is it any good?: :sigh: well... Crossbow bolt - 1 AP What it does: Characters shoot simultaneously and Shot Wave effect appears at enemy. Low damage. Is it any good?: Nope... External Bind - (1)AP What it does: ??? Is it any good?: I've no friggin' idea. I have never seen this multitech kick in and it never consumed the stated 1 AP for me. It seems to be a counter (?) tech but that's only my best guess. Help me out there, anyone? Jack knife - 1 AP What it does: Two characters do a X slash on enemy while third falls down on it. Damage as in Twin rush. Is it any good?: NO! For same damage (and a free attack, say, SIS ;) ) I recommend against it. Boy, do 1AP techs suck... Nature moon - 1 AP What it does: Characters throw their swords like boomerangs at all enemies. Is it any good?: It's TERRIBLE. Damage is pretty low, even for a hit-all tech. 30-skill people with Beauty katans did only 2600 damage with it >_>. But since it's 1 AP... Time gap attack - 1 AP What it does: Both characters approach the enemy. Suddenly one jumps away while second slashes with his weapon (even mace ¬_¬) Is it any good? This one is actually quite good. Not *very* good but a lot better than certain other 1APs Triplet - 1 AP What it does: All characters do "matador" hit on one enemy. Medium damage. Is it any good?: The best of 1 AP techs and surprisingly good for an Epee. Twin rush - 1 AP What it does: Characters do a basic hit one after another for almost no bonus damage. Is it any good?: Nope, not at all. But you'll see a *lot* of it until a multiattack comes and even then you'll need extra APs for them... It's simply basic. Water Stream - 1 AP What it does: All characters slash the enemy with axe, one after another. Low damage. Is it any good?: It isn't too bright, but among 1APs it's pretty decent. "Multicounter" - 1? AP What it does: Probably characters try to counter multi-hit attacks but... Is it any good?: ? "Spell deflect" - 1? AP What it does: I have no idea. Probably nullifying spells but... Is it any good?: that's a good question... Cross driver - 2 AP What it does: Characters charge at enemy, moving in Double Dragon pattern (up and down...). Great damage. Is it any good?: It's cheap and powerful. In late game it does more than 7000 damage, which IS impressive for a multitech and is an useful replacement for wazas. Double impact - 2 AP What it does: One character grabs an enemy while other smashes him to the ground. Average damage. Is it any good?: NOOO! It has the power of a u t o t e c h s! (two of them, to be exact) Why it costs 2 AP is beyond me. >_< High speed - 2 AP What it does: Characters circle the enemy and do three slashes forming a triangle. Massive damage. Is it any good?: Good lord, of course! It's a bit hard to learn but is comparable with Marvelous Cannon in power _and_ costs 1 AP less! With three skilled chars it goes up to 9999 easily (unfortunately, in contrary to MC, it isn't too good against the Destroyer) Shadow arrow - 2 AP What it does: Characters shoot arrows and target is engulfed in darkness on hit. Anti-air Is it any good?: Anti-air is a good thing but damage output isn't the greatest there is... Shinryu dance - 2 AP What it does: everyone punches same enemy once and jumps back. High damage. Is it any good?: high-level avg. 9000 / 5 = 1800. Yup, use Tiger Breaks instead... Axel driver - 3 AP What it does: Characters charge at enemy, moving in a spiral pattern. Massive damage. Is it any good?: Well, it would be damn unstopppable if only someone would be patient enough to train three spearmen. But for average folk, Marvelous Cannon and High Speed are better. Dragon shock - 3 AP What it does: Characters shoot arrows randomly and an earthquake appears. Medium damage on one. Is it any good?: The best of Bow techs. But not too great compared to other 3APs Marvelous cannon - 3 AP What it does: Characters take a step forward and instantly appear before enemy, delivering a simultaneous blow. Randomized (but mostly huge) damage. Is it any good?: Well, from my experiences with it, it's the Split Image Slice for multitechs. In medium-level fights it does 4000-7000 damage, with rare criticals but in late game it *almost always* deals critical - 9999 - damage, even for Destroyer (my record: defeated him in three turns after Total Eclipse!). If you have low damage with this tech try to fiddle with individual positions, you never know what they may do if placed right... So, this is the most powerful multiattack there is. Dot. Shiva triangle - 3 AP What it does: Looks the same as High Speed but at the end an energy triangle appears. Does even more damage than HS. Is it any good?: Well, it's quite hard to learn and will be useful during the mid game but at the end game, since multitechs cannot exceed 9999 damage limit it'd be a waste to use when you have the High Speed around. That's what I call overkill... Thousand hand god - 3 AP What it does: A hindu deity appears and everyone hits one enemy twice and jumps back. Massive damage. Is it any good?: Well... If only multitechs could break the 9999 limit... But since they can't, it's not only overkill like Shiva triangle, but also a waste of about 5000 points of normal damage. It looks ExCeLlEnT though. Spells: Rabbit Storm (moon, elemental) - 1 AP What it does: This has to be the most hilarious tech in game XD. And odd music starts playing and through the screen comes a lot of (gasp) dancing bunnies and spotlights. This tech stuns all enemies on screen but deals no damage :(. Is it any good?: Stun is an okay status aliment and stun all is even better but your mages must be fast to make any use of it. Good for stalling purposes. And for making everyone nearby laugh uncontrolably =D. Star Virus (sun, elemental) - 1 AP What it does: Background turns into stars and enemies are engulfed in yellow diamonds. Low damage. Is it any good?: Not at all. Can be useful in the beginning but later on there are many better choices. Doing 1000 damage in Abyss feels stupid to say at least. Sunshine (sun) - 1 AP What it does: Single-spell Sunshine powered up a bit. Looks the same and does roughly twice as much damage. Is it any good?: Again, not much... After all, Sunshine isn't too exciting. Morning moon (sun, moon) - 1 AP What it does: Background turns into a landscape and from it's middle comes something looking roughly like Shot Wave waza effect. Is it any good?: I have no damn idea what it does. Help me, someone? It does no damage nor it heals the party. Tidal Wave (water, element*) - 1 AP *here and anywhere else element must have lower skill in elemental magic than water (mull it over) What it does: A big tidal wave sweeps the enemies away. Chance of instakill on all except water enemies. Is it any good?: Well, in the beginning it can prove quite useful but later on... Rising Flame (fire, element) - 1 AP What it does: An enemy is engulfed in a column of flame. Does more damage than Sunshine... Is it any good?: Well, it can be very good on bosses in the beginning - I did 500 damage with lv 1 Thomas and lv20 Sharl... Later on it's useless (as all basic spells) Black Dragon (wind, element) - 1 AP What it does: A black dragon charges on one enemy, sweeping him away. Instakill on one. Is it any good?: Unlike Tidal Wave, it affects water enemies too and chance of instakill is a bit larger. It's like a Shadow kill done by two people - you do the math... Dopler Roar (earth, element) - 1 AP What it does: A beast head appears and emits a wave of golden energy. Attacks all. Is it any good?: Yet another basic spell. Same as any other one... (note: these spells have a common name of "Spell Fusion") Wormhole - (1)AP What it does: ??? ??? ??? Is it any good?: This is my bad day :[. About this one I have even less clues than about External Bind. These mages seem to cast their basic spells but what happens when they actually succeed is even more mysterious than the Bermuda Triangle for me X_X. Zodiac Fall - 2 AP What it does: Screen slides up. Sky appears and some stars spark. Then screen slides back down and enemies are showered with meteors for medium damage. Is it any good?: Well, multispells aren't too hot if you're not focusing on magic only but if you try to win with mages then every extra bit of damage can help. MULTISPELL: CRIMSON FLARE - 3 AP What it does: Energy focuses (?) on enemy, background disappears, a red explosion appears and everything turns red for a while. It's somewhat similar to Square's standard (FF and CT) Flare. Great heat damage to one. Is it any good?: Galaxy>Flare, mainly because of it's hit-all-for-same-damage-and-look-cooler perk. But if you're still far from tackling Byunei, make it your horse as Tempest and Light Wall suck (LW is bugged!). MULTISPELL: GALAXY - 3 AP What it does: Background disappears and enemies are smashed by all the Sol planets and finally the Sun itself. Great damage to all. Is it any good?: Non-magic parties: bleah. Magic parties: OMFG IT RULEZZZZ! Enough said. Remember that you actually have to discover its writing in Byunei's Den. MULTISPELL: LIGHT WALL - 3 AP What it does: A light wall appears to protect from some damage. Is it any good?: According to AWJ, this tech was meant to cost 6 AP, but because of a bug, it "wraps around" to 255 and gets truncated to 9 >_>. Becuse of this, it's great for charging up your APs :). MULTISPELL: TEMPEST - 2 AP What it does: A giant whirlpool appears, eventually sweeping the enemies away. Chance (!) of instakill on all. Is it any good?: Well, to my experience it's the best instakill tech there is. But since it's instakill, it's absolutely useless in late game fights... And STILL missing, even being a multispell is just too annoying for me.