This FAQ is intended for use anywhere, for any purpose. Good luck trying to
sell it. Hey, you could even print it out, ball up the paper and use it to feed
a fire. Let your imagination guide you. There is nothing really special about
it, but since there isn't a collection of information on the subject, there
might as well be one here.
I. How to attain S Rank.
II. S Rank Prizes and stats.
III. Miscellaneous tips for an easier game.
IV. In closing.
I. The exact triggers that need to be taken haven't been specifically found
yet, but from what I have gathered through my recent playthroughs, if you
follow these instructions and general guidelines, you will manage an S Rank for
every single battle.
1. On your first playthrough of the game, it will be very, very hard. Therefore
I suggest waiting for New Game+, unless you desperately want the items on your
first playthrough. However, they will only be one copy of that particular S
Rank item - ever. They do carry over through to New Game+. On New Game+, your
skills all carry over, your armor carries over and your items carry over. These
all greatly contribute to your chances later on.
2. Get all your treasure hunting and stealing over with Rene and Noah on your
first playthrough. Since Rene and Noah are likely gaining little EXP and
spending most of their time running around instead of attacking or casting
elements, they will lower your chances at S Rank.
3. Every character, if they are not a mage, must have an Elemental Sword rune
of their current element. The reason for this is that standing on your own
element at the end of your turn offers several benefits. I will cover the first
here. It seems that the more that you land on your own element, the more it
contributes to you getting an S.
4. This is dedicated to the second reason. While you are on your own element,
everything about your character improves. The damage they deal out, how likely
they are to land a blow, the less damage they receive. An elemental sword rune
also allows for characters to cast negative elements on enemy characters, which
results in them hitting for less and being hit for more. To be able to get an
S, you need to dish out high damage and you need to be able to do it often.
Your average damage dealt out and your average damage taken is a factor in your
rank.
5. If your to-hit % is less than 90%, don't risk attacking an enemy. Therefore
you should always attack from the side or better yet, behind. If none of those
are options, just land on your own element and wait for the enemy to draw
nearer. The reason for this is that if you miss an attack, your average damage
is lowered.
6. Kill everything on the field. Quickly. Even if the mission doesn't require
killing everything, go ahead and do it anyways. This boosts the experience
gained in battle, which is a factor in determining your rank. Also it seems
that if you leave a bunch of enemies alive, your rank may go down.
7. If your current characters are only getting 30-50 experience for attacking
or even killing your current opponents, switch to a lower leveled character
whenever an enemy gets to low HP. Switch is an option given to you when Akaghi
and Mizuki join your party for a second time, the game will explain it better.
The reason for this is if a level 15 character kills a level 14 monster, you
can only expect 50 EXP. When a level 9 character kills a level 14 monster,
however, you get somewhere in the neighborhood of 500+. High amounts of gained
EXP improve your rank.
8. Finish the battle in a timely manner. If you are sitting around hunting
treasure, stealing, busting open crates or treasure chests, your rank is going
to slip from taking too long. Go out in full force and move as one.
9. If you have green allies, keep them alive. Usually this is a requirement,
but when it's optional, it's always nice to have helpers slicing up the
opposition. Also this tends to net you bonus rewards after battles, or helps to
recruit a character or two in certain parts of the game.
10. In certain battles, such as the one where you first fight with Dario, Kika
and Nalleo on your team, keep all them of them back away from the enemies and
on their own terrain. The game hasn't allowed you to change their equipment,
give them items or choose their skills and chances are you will end up getting
them damaged for heavy amounts.
11. Finally, use your own judgment. Save before every battle. If you feel that
you have taken too long, or have taken too much damage, just press Start and
hit retry. If you're near the end of the battle, though, just go ahead and win
it. If you get a rank besides S, then reset and try again.
II. Not all battles have S Rank prizes. The first two are examples of this.
Also different battles that take place on the same map will give the same
prize, so I will only mention the first encounter. Also not all prizes have a
use, some are merely for decoration.
NOTE: All S rank items in Obel Dungeon have no use and are named after the
level they are on. But I will list them regardless, in case you miss one of the
elemental floors.
III. Having read through all that, still having trouble getting those wonderful
stat-pumping items? Read on for tips various tips.
1. To ensure that you always finish battles in a timely manner and cause
maximum damage, always use Lazlo, the Suikoden IV hero. Give him every single
stat-boosting item you can find, particularly magic and magical defense, then
give him a Wizard's Rune (transfers 1/2 of MDF to MAG). His level 2 spell, that
strikes 8 times, will always do at least 1,000 damage to any enemy except
perhaps those on their own tile and golems or bosses. In my case, he did about
2,200+ at his best. The best thing about it is that it hits in a 3x3 grid,
easily killing pesky small enemies that slow you down. Also of note is his
level 4 spell, that if timed correctly, can destroy the entire opposition while
healing your party.
2. If you followed the setup I mentioned in the previous paragraph, you may
want to consider giving Cedric a Gale Rune and several speed boosting items, as
well as maxing out his unique skill True Godspeed. Then, when battle starts,
have Cedric run deep into the enemies and then switch to Lazlo. Lazlo should
use his second spell against the largest group of enemies around him or a mage,
then sit and wait. If you gave him Counterattack, the enemies will practically
kill themselves while dealing very minimal damage to Lazlo.
3. Optionally, instead of hitting 'Retry' when a character dies or you are sure
you won't get Rank S, kill off every other member of your team - if you are not
in Obel Ruins. This will prompt the Give up/Continue? screen. The difference
between Retry and Continue? is that retry resets everything to how it was at
the start of battle. Continue? saves all experience gained and puts you in the
same situation.
4. If you ever get the chance, switch to Noah in the elemental chambers of Obel
Ruins, preferably near the end of the battle or when you are sure you can kill
the dragon immediately after deploying him. Have him steal from the dragon.
Each dragon has an elemental mirror, which serves as an infinite use first
level elemental bead. This saves massive amounts of inventory space on New
Game+ and doesn't have you wasting MP.
5. If the golems are killing your chances of getting an S Rank in Obel Ruins -
Level 5, use Lazlo in the setup I mentioned previously, march him forward and
have him stand on his own terrain. The golem’s arms will do less than 1/5 of
his max HP, if they survive his second level Rune of Punishment spell.
6. If you are looking for massive amounts of easy experience, skill levels and
gold, go to Obel Ruins - Level 1. If you are in a battle with two skeleton
archers at the direct opposite end of the hall with a skeleton sword in front
of them, you're in the right place. Kill everything else off and go back to
them. Surround them in whatever formation you like, preferably at the sides and
behind, and attack. When all three are dead, they immediately respawn. Just
don't level up all your characters too much, you still need some low leveled to
gain EXP for your S ranks.
7. For your first playthrough, I recommend playing as horribly as you can to
get Bronze Medals and Silver Medals. If you follow these instructions and
manage to get a bunch of gold medals, your characters are going to end up with
low HP. Bronze medals give +15 HP and +3 PDF, Silver +10 and +2 PDF, Gold +5
and +1 PDF. So, eh, go for the bronze?
8. To keep green allies alive, just look at their element and cast it roughly
3~ spaces in front of them. Instead of running directly to the enemies, they
will end up staying on their own terrain for a bit. This helps massively on the
battle against Steele.
IV. In closing, I hope that this has managed to help you in some way. There
weren't many Suikoden Tactics FAQs when I started playing the game and almost
no information on the S Rank or the items gained through it. Thanks for reading.
