Has anyone played "FFT 1.3 EZ-8"?

You can see more info about it here: http://ffhacktics.com/smf/index.php?topic=11170.0

It looks like it was "completed" in 2015, which is two years after the final version of 1.3, so I assume it's based on 1.3.0.8.

I can't say I agree with every change (also, I only skimmed through the changes), but overall I like the idea. I enjoyed 1.3 (I only got to chapter 3), but it was a little too tough for my old man self and stopped being fun at several points. A lot of these changes seem like good QoL changes (controllable guests, special units can go on props, inherent JP-Up) and some things to make the battles a little easier (not having the enemies have Party Level + 57 or whatever).

The only thing that I really don't think I like is that it says Meliadoul is a guest for every story battle after some point... that's weird.

EDIT: The other thing I don't like about it is that I can't find the patch to be able to play it...

Good thing I just got the time to read the whole deal. I must say this is a 5/10 in my books just because how crazy or outta nowhere some of the stuff is there or how he could manage to NOT FIX some glaring problems with 1.3. Here, let me start with it:

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-SUPERIOR SQUIRES
Your starting party now consists of a group of highly trained individuals that have multiple job levels in a 2nd tier job (Knight/Archer/Black Mage/White Mage) and 72 Brave (the maximum possible in 1.3), speeding up the early game from boring Throw Stones fests. In addition, there are two Squires with Mime unlocked who start with much unspent JP to spend freely as they unlock classes.

So......he basically just eliminate the point of having starting classes. I mean yes, you will eventually move from squire and never use it once again, but , now you can outright ignore the whole class

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Heaven Knight (Rafa)
*Significantly improved Stat Growths
*C.EV 10% -> 24%
*Can now Equip Shields

Hell Knight (Malak)
*MA Multiplier increased (100 -> 120)

*JP Cost decreased
-Asura / Back - 200 -> 100 JP
-Diamond Sword / Back - 300 -> 150 JP
-Hydragon Pit / Back - 400 -> 200 JP
-Space Storage / Back - 500 -> 300 JP

Those buffs are meaningless if said skills still are useless outside of very specific situations. I haven't use Rafa and Malak EVER and I'm happy with that since I do not have to keep my focus on silly things like vertical terrain while my party is been pummel down just because I want to be fancy with the kill. We need more PRACTICAL skills

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Squire
As the only class that has the distinction of being obsolete as the game goes on, these changes are intended to give them a chance to potentially be in your party.

*Improved Stat Growths and Multipliers
*Innate Monster Skill
*Added Yell to abilities list.
*New ability: Mimic Ultima.
MA * 9, Range 5, AOE 2v3, 10 MP, 4CT. JP Cost 800
*Cheer Up now adds Regen & Defend.
*Heal now improved to remove more Status Conditions (same as Esuna)
*Wish now revives with 5% HP, Range 3.
*Defy Pain can now be used under the following conditions - Confusion/Critical/Slow/Death Sentence. Can now be used on other characters at Range 1. JP Cost increased to 300 JP. Also less used on the AI side
*Wild Swing Formula Change - Now (Rdm(1..9)*(PA*3+10)) (a.k.a Repeating Fist Formula). Vertical Tolerance up from 1 to 2. JP Cost increased to 600 JP (AI chance to learn 100% -> 50%)
*Target Damage Formula changed - SP * WP, CT 4
*Can now equip Robes, Poles, Books and Knight Swords.

Note that outside of the skill changes, these changes apply ONLY to Generic Squires.

I would keep Yell to generics (of course I would nerf the hit rate now that everyone can use as early as CH1), Mimic Ultima sounds broken for a basic class, Cheer looks more on line with the class (Protect+Shell is more game-changing), Heal/Wish are OK, Defy Pain was broken and now is outright ludicrous, Wild Swing and Target should be test for their utility and the new equip options should be limited to Robes

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Wizard
*Gains "Don't Move"
*Gains "Zombie"
*Zombie AOE increased from 0 -> 1
*"Comet" - now 5 CT, 40 MP, Fire Elemental, Faith-Independent MA Formula. 500 JP.
Essentially an boss-killing nuke alternative to Dark Holy.
*Cyclone - 200 -> 150 JP
*Meltdown - 280 -> 80 JP

 And now I must ask.......Why? The real problem with the poor Wizard is that, by the end of Ch3, most enemies and allies will get their turn before the spell goes out (EVEN if we add short charge to the mix). They need faster spells rather than new spells

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Special Monsters such as Boco have had several experimental improvements made to them. Note that there's only so much I can do since they're used as enemies as well, which means any buff I make to them might roll over to the enemy versions.

Secondary + R/S/M.
Boco: Steal. Hamedo. Monster Skill. Ignore Height
Worker 8: Move-Find Item. Removed Immune: Haste.
Holy Dragon: Talk Skill. Dragon Spirit. Monster Talk. Move-HP Up
Archaic Demon: Time Magic Secondary. Counter. Magic Defense Up. Move-Find Item

Boco is kind of OP now along Worker 8 since haste make him a juggernaut with few weaknesses. Reis and Byblos are just the same

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Many reactions were too expensive/weak to see much use. While changing them to be stronger may be beyond the scope of this project, there has been some adjustments made such that these weaker abilities may gain some usage.

MP Switch - Moved from Dancer to Knight, 300 -> 50 JP
Counter - 300 -> 100 JP
Distribute - 150 -> 50 JP, moved to Chemist.
Finger Guard - 250 -> 50 JP

Regenerator - 350 -> 150 JP.

MP Restore - 400 -> 25 JP
Absorb Used MP - 200 -> 25 JP

Critical Quick - 700 JP -> 150 JP

Catch - 200 -> 50 JP
Gilgame Heart - 0 JP (Unsalvageable!)
Caution - 150 -> 200 JP. Now adds Haste + Poison instead of Defending

Mediatate - 800 -> 400 JP, Moved from Sage to Summoner.

(MP Switch got a knee jerk nerf in the latest version of 1.3 where damage would now "spillover" into actual HP, making it almost pointless. I still don't think anyone is going to use it at this cost but I can't revert the change so thems the break.)

A Save - Moved to Geomancer
MA Save - Moved to Meditator

Mp switch sounds awesome now, Caution is WTF (or at least the modder should rename the thing). Outside of all that, everything is OK since no one likes to spend hours grinding for jp

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The Deep Dungeon now has all enemies at a set level of 40, allowing you to potentially outlevel them if you wish.

 This one is just stupid. I mean, why would you go there if the WHOLE reason to be there in the first place if to have a challenging post-game experience? At least crank the whole thing to (party level) and reduce the speed multipliers of some enemy classes

Overall, this guy just added stuff without seeing how it would affect the balance in some places. Now Ch1 is the EASIEST chapter ever since now Squire are quite powerful for the enemies you found there. Of course, I wont undermine his whole job since some things were awesome (like having an actual reason to use books outside of throw and katanas having their draw outs as proc along extra stuff)

Yeah, I agree with most points you made except about Rafalak. I like using Rafa, even in vanilla, so it's a play-style thing. Especially if this mod is overall less brutal than 1.3, it means there's room for them to be legit party choices.

Hello, I'm the guy who does this mod. I guess this is kinda late so maybe people have moved on now but I only really found this place through a lark when I tried to search for why ID went down.

The official page for it is here on my blog.

https://ontlogy.wordpress.com/fft-ez-8-mod/

It was indeed based off 1.3.0.8, but at this point of time, I think the mod has basically become its own thing in terms of balance issues and "vision", so I kind of apologize if anyone wants just a "1.3 but easier and with QOL fixes", though the latter is simply applying some common public ASM patches so anyone who wants that shouldn't have too much trouble.

I'm actually sitting on a "new" version for quite some time already - I just haven't found the time to do a full playthrough to fully test it before release (my target audience is basically just me, so I basically have to do all the bug testing myself)

I'll reply to some of the comments so far on the balancing, though like I said, it might be a bit outdated.

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So......he basically just eliminate the point of having starting classes. I mean yes, you will eventually move from squire and never use it once again, but , now you can outright ignore the whole class

Outside of the 2 mime starters, you actually do have to use the reverse class to unlock the Fighter/Mage tree given how FFT Tactics does its job and skill unlocks. Like the AI picking Chemist skills is likely to start buying a ton of pointless status curing items and not Auto-Potion.

I think Squire is now useful enough to actually see usage sometimes though, especially for parties that mix in Monsters. Now if you want a class that has given me headaches and I think I still haven't really solved the issue of really reforming it yet, that would be Archers.

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Those buffs are meaningless if said skills still are useless outside of very specific situations. I haven't use Rafa and Malak EVER and I'm happy with that since I do not have to keep my focus on silly things like vertical terrain while my party is been pummel down just because I want to be fancy with the kill. We need more PRACTICAL skills

Malak was actually considered the best Special in 1.3.0.6. He was considered to be nerfed into uselessness in 1.3.0.8, so the numbers here are basically halfway in-between. Though I feel it might be a bit too conservative and I would return it back to his 1.3.0.6 numbers if it wasn't for the fact that enemy Hell Knights use the same data.

Now Rafa, I kinda agree that her changes are mostly flavor - Malak was made into Super Ninja in 1.3 so following on the theme Rafa is now "Knightly", but being able to put on a Shield is probably the most practical change there. 

Maybe you mean that they should get a completely new skillset or something, but I kind of feel that their abilities are pretty crucial to their character. Truth will get a Revival skill next version so that's a buff incoming.

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I would keep Yell to generics (of course I would nerf the hit rate now that everyone can use as early as CH1), Mimic Ultima sounds broken for a basic class, Cheer looks more on line with the class (Protect+Shell is more game-changing), Heal/Wish are OK, Defy Pain was broken and now is outright ludicrous, Wild Swing and Target should be test for their utility and the new equip options should be limited to Robes

Defy Pain got removed to return Accumulate... probably. Or maybe that's in the version that I have which isn't uploaded yet. I think it's interesting that you think its broken because I've never really found it that useful - enemies tend to kill my characters before they can be healed and it was mostly just really annoying when the AI still used it.

Wild Swing has been gone for quite a while. True that Mimic Ultima is pretty silly good on Chapter 1, but eventually it becomes an AOE (Non-Element) Thunder Spirit with Charge Time and I don't think anyone is clamoring to use Skeletons in Chapter 4. Still, I could consider cutting it for another utility skill.

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And now I must ask.......Why? The real problem with the poor Wizard is that, by the end of Ch3, most enemies and allies will get their turn before the spell goes out (EVEN if we add short charge to the mix). They need faster spells rather than new spells

I always heard that Wizards need more utility compared to the other skillsets - it looks really bad when Summoners kill faster, doesn't need to care about friendly fire and ALSO has utility like Revival. The issue is Black Magic's identity in the Final Fantasy series so this is kinda the best I can do maybe unless I get divine inspiration.

Though in the current version, enemies and especially bosses are no longer super sanic speed so getting spells out is much more viable (and in the next version, I'm cutting Summons damage down a bit)

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Boco is kind of OP now along Worker 8 since haste make him a juggernaut with few weaknesses. Reis and Byblos are just the same

Worker 8 still has Always: Innocent, so you need a Squire to Haste him, which goes along with that whole "Squires good at supporting monsters" niche thing I am going for. Reis was mostly just a flavor change since most people won't use her for long. Boco being super powerful, fair enough, but I feel he drops off in favor of a human as the game goes.

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Mp switch sounds awesome now, Caution is WTF (or at least the modder should rename the thing). Outside of all that, everything is OK since no one likes to spend hours grinding for jp

Caution is named Adrenaline now. I think "Spillover to HP" MP Switch is actually pretty horrible right now but that's my opinion.

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This one is just stupid. I mean, why would you go there if the WHOLE reason to be there in the first place if to have a challenging post-game experience? At least crank the whole thing to (party level) and reduce the speed multipliers of some enemy classes

I admit it's kind of a quick and dirty fix - the Deep Dungeon has some very stupid set-ups and I rather redo the entire thing - allowing players to overlevel it was just kinda a stopgap measure.

(Though I never really liked level scaling and would revert even story battles back to non-scaling if I had the time)

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Overall, this guy just added stuff without seeing how it would affect the balance in some places. Now Ch1 is the EASIEST chapter ever since now Squire are quite powerful for the enemies you found there. Of course, I wont undermine his whole job since some things were awesome (like having an actual reason to use books outside of throw and katanas having their draw outs as proc along extra stuff)

My intention was that players would blow through Chapter 1 as fast as possible, because to be honest, it's not a very interesting part of the game - there's very little gear choice and your units are underdeveloped, so outside of a complete overhaul, I feel like shuffling you quicker towards Chapter 2/3 (the meat of the game, IMO) is an acceptable compromise.

(Also, I don't feel Squires are that powerful - Black Mages are still the dominant Chapter 1 class and I still use more Knights than Squires because the Heavy Armor is just vital to not dying at that point of time or Thief/Archers for Bow Access)

On 5/12/2017 at 0:38 AM, Davzz said:

Maybe you mean that they should get a completely new skillset or something, but I kind of feel that their abilities are pretty crucial to their character. Truth will get a Revival skill next version so that's a buff incoming.

Not exactly. What I would like is that said moves have the same treatment as sword skills: different vertical/AoE between skills, different hits per caster (Malak could use 3 to 6 hits while Rafa 1 to 3 but with more power), some of them can even being single target so the whole point of "expert assassins" is reflect on the gameplay. They just need more creativity in their tools

On 5/12/2017 at 0:38 AM, Davzz said:

Defy Pain got removed to return Accumulate... probably. Or maybe that's in the version that I have which isn't uploaded yet. I think it's interesting that you think its broken because I've never really found it that useful - enemies tend to kill my characters before they can be healed and it was mostly just really annoying when the AI still used it.

Wild Swing has been gone for quite a while. True that Mimic Ultima is pretty silly good on Chapter 1, but eventually it becomes an AOE (Non-Element) Thunder Spirit with Charge Time and I don't think anyone is clamoring to use Skeletons in Chapter 4. Still, I could consider cutting it for another utility skill.

Defy Pain is actually quite handy when you learn CT management: Someone toss phoenix down on a fallen ally reviving with 1 hp, then said unit uses defy pain so the enemy has to expend MP on a spell strong enough to take out the unit, so the process can be repeat until either the player get away with the kill or said player run out of resources while the AI wins by default.

 Defy Pain shines when you first encounter Miluda alongside a thief with basic skills and two healers to boot 

On 5/12/2017 at 0:38 AM, Davzz said:

I always heard that Wizards need more utility compared to the other skillsets - it looks really bad when Summoners kill faster, doesn't need to care about friendly fire and ALSO has utility like Revival. The issue is Black Magic's identity in the Final Fantasy series so this is kinda the best I can do maybe unless I get divine inspiration.

Though in the current version, enemies and especially bosses are no longer super sanic speed so getting spells out is much more viable (and in the next version, I'm cutting Summons damage down a bit)

Wizards are OK in terms of damage potential and if you really did tone down the absurd speed of enemies in CH4 they may as well being pretty terrifying now

Must admit, now you got me interested. Good luck with your mod

Hey, it took me a year I guess but I did release a new version of this.

Some excerpts from the Changelog

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v1.50: Yet Another Archer Rework
The Marksman class has had many of its skills revamped in order to promote a more general use.

Other characters have been tweaked, with Ninjas and Monks now having a greater focus on offensive magic and MP respectively in exchange for some of their physical prowess, while Rafa and Malak have been further improved with a new ability and statistical changes.

In addition, the early game has been tweaked with and magic should not be as dominant as it used to be (though quite likely still the better choice due to game mechanics). Summon Magic has taken a slight damage hit.

...
Excerpts from Changelog: Squire
*New ability: Sand Attack
Inflicts Blind. Range 3v3. JP Cost 80
*New ability: Bullrush
PA * 9, Self Damage PA * 1. Unevadable. Range 1v1. JP Cost 100

Excerpts from Changelog: Marksman
*New Ability: Phoenix Strike
Weapon Range. 6 CT. (WP + 7 * PA). Fire Elemental. Add: Reraise
*New Ability: Rain of Arrows
Range 4 (AOE 1v2). (70 + PA)% chance of reducing PA by 2.
*Heartache Strike -> Finishing Shot
Range 5. 120 JP.
An attack that finishes off Critical Foes. (20% Max HP Dark Damage)

As usual, you can find the latest version of my mod here

https://ontlogy.wordpress.com/fft-ez-8-mod/

So FFT modding is actually fairly done for me right now and I've sorta moved on, so I'll want to put a spotlight on my other SRPG works here - check out SRW DB / SRW GR (you can find it on the toolbar on the top of my page) - because I think if you like short but interesting SRPGs you might enjoy them - one small caveat is that unfortunately a fair portion of the game's interface are in Japanese as I am using a Japanese Engine but I've provided translations in the form of image files included with the download, so if you're willing to put up with that, you might find it fun.