Unlimited SaGa Panel Growth FAQ

Unlimited SaGa Panel Growth FAQ

This FAQ was created 11/05/2003 and was last updated 12/19/2003

1.0: The first version of the faq.
2.0: I decided to start a section for recommend strategies on
how to use each member as either a fighter, a mage, or a hybrid.
2.2: I corrected some mistakes in the FAQ. I also decided to change the
strategy for mages to include two elements instead of one. As such I
changed Michelle and Armand's strategies. Edel and Marie now have their
own strategies in the FAQ. I also added a list of trusted sites.
2.5: I added strategies for Ruby, Sapphire and Armic to the FAQ.
2.6: I corrected even more mistakes. Added Judy's Strategy. As well
as some general tips.
3.0: More mistakes corrected. An entire new section was added to the FAQ.
3.2: Added set ups for Ventus and Tiffon. Yes it has been almost a year
since I last updated the FAQ. Also corrected a couple more mistakes.
--------------------------------------------------
Sections 0-11
---------------------------------------------------
00. Introduction and explantion of the faq.
01. The status that each abbreviation stands for and the icon that
representents each status.
02. The Main Base Grid Graph to reference back to.
03. What each abbreviation stands for in terms of panel spots revealed.
04. Which panels affect which stats.
05. How good each panel spot will affect each of your stats.
06. How to read the grid information for each character in depth.
07. Party member panel grid and growth rate information!
08. Character Panel Strategy Explanation.
09. Character Panel Strategies! (Mostly Under Construction).
10. General Tips
11. The ideals of panel growth and setting up your characters in general.
12. Legal Disclamier. Contact Info and Credits.
*******************************************************************************
0. Introduction and explantion of the faq.
*******************************************************************************
In Unlimited SaGa every character has ten stats. Each stat is effected by
three panel spots on the grid. This guide will tell you which panel spots will
effect which stats. The guide will also tell you the most effective panel spot
for each stat.

Every character has their stats in a different order on the grid. The faq will
tell you where each character's stat is on their grid. Like wise each character
varies in their growth rate for the ten stats. You will be able to use this faq
to learn every character's growth rate in all ten of their stats.
*******************************************************************************
1.The status that each abbreviation stands for and the icon that representents
each status.
*******************************************************************************
ST= Strength. Strength is represented by an "arm" icon.
SK= Skill. Skill is represented by a "sword" icon.
SP= Spirit. Spirit is represented by a "heart" icon.
MA= Magic. Magic is represented by a "Cane" icon.
EN= Endurance. Endurance is represented by a "fist" icon.
FI= Fire. Fire is represented by a "flame" icon.
EA= Earth. Earth is represented by a "rock" icon.
ME= Metal. Metal is represented by a "plate" icon.
WA= Water. Water is represented by a "water droplet" icon.
WO= Woord. Wood is represented by a "tree" icon.
*******************************************************************************
2. The Main Base Grid Graph to reference back to.
*******************************************************************************
(10) (01) (02)
(09) [TL] [TR] (03)
[ML] [MI] [MR]
(08) [BL] [BR] (04)
(07) (06) (05)

This will be your reference guide for each person's grid. For example if you
read the section "Which panels effect which stats" you will see that Top Left
and Middle left both effect stat 9. If you read "How good each panel will
effect each stat." you will know middle left affects stat 9 better than
top left. Now if you go to "Party Member Grid and Panel Growth Information."
You will see "EN" where "09" should be. This means that "EN" for that character
is the same as "09". This means that middle left and top left affect "EN" for
the character because it is the character's stat "09". And it also means that
middle left raises "EN" more than top left because "EN" is stat "09". Which
I have already mentioned is affected more by middle left than top left. And
since we know that "EN" stands for endurance we know that it is endurance
being affected here in the example.
*******************************************************************************
3. What each abbreviation stands for in terms of panel spots revealed.
*******************************************************************************
TL= Top Left Panel.
TR= Top Right Panel.
ML= Middle Left Panel
MI= Middle Panel.
MR= Middle Right Panel.
BL= Bottom Left Panel.
BR= Bottom Right Panel.
*******************************************************************************
4. Which panels affect which stats.
*******************************************************************************
Top Left Panel: It affects Stats 9, 10 and 1.
Top Right Panel: It affects Stats 1,2 and 3.
Middle Left Panel: It affects stats 7, 8, 9 and 10
Middle Panel: It affects all stats.
Middle Right Panel: It affects stats 2,3,4 and 5.
Bottom Left Panel: It affects stats 6, 7, and 8.
Bottom Right Panel: It affects stats 4, 5 and 6.
********************************************************************************
5. How good each panel spot will affect each of your stats.
********************************************************************************
Note: Every stat is the least affected by the "Middle Panel". So just remember
that as I am not going to repeat that every single time. A panel being more
"effective" simply means the panel is better at raising that stat.

Stat 01: The top Left panel and top right panel have an equal effect.
Stat 02: The top right panel is more effective than the middle right panel.
Stat 03: The middle right panel is more effective than the top right panel.
Stat 04: The middle right panel is more effective than the bottom right panel.
Stat 05: The bottom right panel is more effective than the middle right panel.
Stat 06: The bottom Left panel and bottom right panel have an equal effect.
Stat 07 The bottom left panel is more effective than the middle left panel.
Stat 08: The midde left panel is more effective than the bottom left panel.
Stat 09: The middle left panel is more effective than the top left panel.
Stat 10: The top left panel is more effective than the middle left panel.

*******************************************************************************
6. How to read the grid information for each character in depth.
*******************************************************************************
Example
1 3 5
(EL) (ST) (EL)
2(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)4
[ML] [MI] [MR]
3(EL) [BL] [BR] (EL)3
(MA) (EL) (SP)
4 3 5

In this example we see that (1) is replaced by (ST) which stands for Strength
as I mentioned earlier in this faq. This means that "Strength" is Stat 1 for
the said character. Of course Strength, Skill, Spirit, Endurance and Magic are
in the same exact spot on every character's grid. The elements
fire, wood, metal, earth and water are in different spots on different grids.
This is what you want to pay attention to more than anything else.
As you will note I put "EL" in those places to show you where elements go.

You should notice some numbers. These numbers are the growth rate for each
stat. The range is 0-5. O is just plain worthless, 1 is terrible, 2 is bad,
3 is average, 4 is good, and 5 is great. The numbers you see in the example
are showing the growth rate for each stat. If you are confused then here is
another example that will use the original grid and letters instead of
growth numbers. This is to avoid some confusion.

Second Example
J A B
(10) (01) (02)
I(09) [TL] [TR] (03)C
[ML] [MI] [MR]
H(08) [BL] [BR] (04)D
(07) (06) (05)
G F E

Now then you see where the "A" is in reference to stat 1? Well that "A" is
where
I would put the growth rate number for stat "1". In stat 1's spot you see (ST)
in
the first example meaning stat 1 is strength. In place of "A" in the first
example I have the number "3". This tells you that the character's stat 1 is
strength and that their growth rate for strength is 3. For reference here is
an easier view of this example

A= Growth Rate for Stat 1
B= Growth Rate for Stat 2
C= Growth Rate for Stat 3
D= Growth Rate for Stat 4
E= Growth Rate for Stat 5
F= Growth Rate for Stat 6
G= Growth Rate for Stat 7
H= Growth Rate for Stat 8
I= Growth Rate for Stat 9
J= Growth Rate for Stat 10

Hopefully you will now be able to understand the type of grid I plan to use.
And how to reference it back to the base grid. As well as the growth rate of
each character and where their stats are. Now on with the grids!
*******************************************************************************
7,Party member panel grid and growth rate information!
*******************************************************************************
-------------------------------------
Anzan

3 2 4
(FI) (ST) (EA)
4(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)1
[ML] [MI] [MR]
1(WO) [BL] [BR] (ME)2
(MA) (WA) (SP)
2 0 5
------------------------------------
Armand

2 5 1
(EA) (ST) (ME)
1(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)5
[ML] [MI] [MR]
4(FI) [BL] [BR] (WA)1
(MA) (WO) (SP)
1 2 3
---------------------------------------
Armic

1 3 0
(WO) (ST) (FI)
5(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)2
[ML] [MI] [MR]
4(WA) [BL] [BR] (EA)1
(MA) (ME) (SP)
2 3 2
---------------------------------------
Edel

2 5 2
(FI) (ST) (EA)
5(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)5
[ML] [MI] [MR]
1(WO) [BL] [BR] (ME)3
(MA) (WA) (SP)
2 2 1
---------------------------------------
Francis

2 4 2
(FI) (ST) (EA)
4(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)4
[ML] [MI] [MR]
3(WO) [BL] [BR] (ME)2
(MA) (WA) (SP)
1 1 5
---------------------------------------
Grace

3 1 1
(ME) (ST) (WA)
5(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)3
[ML] [MI] [MR]
2(EA) [BL] [BR] (WO)2
(MA) (FI) (SP)
3 2 1
-------------------------------------
Hiro

3 4 1
(WA) (ST) (WO)
4(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)3
[ML] [MI] [MR]
1(ME) [BL] [BR] (FI)2
(MA) (EA) (SP)
1 3 3
---------------------------------------
Henri

3 3 2
(WO) (ST) (FI)
2(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)4
[ML] [MI] [MR]
1(WA) [BL] [BR] (EA)3
(MA) (ME) (SP)
4 1 3
---------------------------------------
Iskandar

2 4 1
(EA) (ST) (ME)
3(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)4
[ML] [MI] [MR]
3(FI) [BL] [BR] (WA)3
(MA) (WO) (SP)
3 1 3
---------------------------------------
Josef

1 1 1
(WA) (ST) (WO)
3(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)4
[ML] [MI] [MR]
2(ME) [BL] [BR] (FI)3
(MA) (EA) (SP)
4 3 3
---------------------------------------
Judy

1 1 2
(ME) (ST) (WA)
5(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)5
[ML] [MI] [MR]
3(EA) [BL] [BR] (WO)3
(MA) (FI) (SP)
5 3 2
---------------------------------------
Kong Ming

3 2 2
(EA) (ST) (Me)
4(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)4
[ML] [MI] [MR]
2(FI) [BL] [BR] (WA)1
(MA) (Wo) (SP)
4 2 1
----------------------------------------
Kurt

1 2 3
(ME) (ST) (WA)
3(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)2
[ML] [MI] [MR]
1(EA) [BL] [BR] (WO)2
(MA) (FI) (SP)
3 3 2
---------------------------------------
Laura

2 4 2
(EA) (ST) (ME)
3(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)1
[ML] [MI] [MR]
4(FI) [BL] [BR] (WA)1
(MA) (WO) (SP)
2 1 4
---------------------------------------
Marie

2 2 3
(WO) (ST) (FI)
2(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)5
[ML] [MI] [MR]
1(WA) [BL] [BR] (EA)1
(MA) (ME) (SP)
5 3 3
----------------------------------------
Michelle

4 5 2
(WA) (ST) (WO)
2(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)5
[ML] [MI] [MR]
1(ME) [BL] [BR] (FI)2
(MA) (EA) (SP)
2 1 3
---------------------------------------
Mordeus

2 4 3
(FI) (ST) (EA)
3(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)2
[ML] [MI] [MR]
2(WO) [BL] [BR] (ME)1
(MA) (WA) (SP)
4 2 3
---------------------------------------
Musol Yanii

2 5 0
(WA) (ST) (WO)
2(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)1
[ML] [MI] [MR]
4(ME) [BL] [BR] (FI)1
(MA) (EA) (SP)
3 3 5
---------------------------------------
Mythe

4 2 1
(WA) (ST) (WO)
1(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)3
[ML] [MI] [MR]
1(ME) [BL] [BR] (FI)3
(MA) (EA) (SP)
3 1 3
---------------------------------------
Norff

1 3 2
(ME) (ST) (WA)
4(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)3
[ML] [MI] [MR]
2(EA) [BL] [BR] (WO)3
(MA) (FI) (SP)
5 2 1
---------------------------------------
Nuage

3 5 3
(WA) (ST) (WO)
3(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)2
[ML] [MI] [MR]
1(ME) [BL] [BR] (FI)2
(MA) (EA) (SP)
1 1 2
---------------------------------------
Pharr

2 3 1
(FI) (ST) (EA)
2(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)3
[ML] [MI] [MR]
3(WO) [BL] [BR] (ME)2
(MA) (WA) (SP)
2 2 4
----------------------------------------
Platyphyllum

1 3 3
(ME) (ST) (WA)
3(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)3
[ML] [MI] [MR]
0(EA) [BL] [BR] (WO)4
(MA) (FI) (SP)
2 2 2
---------------------------------------
Rebecca

1 4 1
(EA) (ST) (ME)
3(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)2
[ML] [MI] [MR]
3(FI) [BL] [BR] (WA)1
(MA) (WO) (SP)
5 4 1
---------------------------------------
Roy

1 2 2
(EA) (ST) (ME)
2(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)3
[ML] [MI] [MR]
3(FI) [BL] [BR] (WA)2
(MA) (WO) (SP)
3 2 5
---------------------------------------
Ruby

1 3 2
(ME) (ST) (WA)
4(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)1
[ML] [MI] [MR]
1(EA) [BL] [BR] (WO)2
(MA) (FI) (SP)
4 4 4
---------------------------------------
Sapphire

1 2 2
(WA) (ST) (WO)
5(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)4
[ML] [MI] [MR]
2(ME) [BL] [BR] (FI)4
(MA) (EA) (SP)
4 1 4
---------------------------------------
Silver Girl

2 3 2
(FI) (ST) (EA)
1(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)1
[ML] [MI] [MR]
2(WO) [BL] [BR] (ME)2
(MA) (WA) (SP)
5 2 5
---------------------------------------
Tiffon

3 1 2
(FI) (ST) (EA)
1(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)3
[ML] [MI] [MR]
1(WO) [BL] [BR] (ME)2
(MA) (WA) (SP)
3 2 2
---------------------------------------
Thomas

1 4 2
(ME) (ST) (WA)
1(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)4
[ML] [MI] [MR]
2(EA) [BL] [BR] (WO)1
(MA) (FI) (SP)
1 4 2
---------------------------------------
Vearst

1 1 3
(ME) (ST) (WA)
1(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)2
[ML] [MI] [MR]
2(EA) [BL] [BR] (WO)2
(MA) (FI) (SP)
4 2 4
---------------------------------------
Ventus

1 3 3
(WO) (ST) (FI)
5(EN) [TL] [TR] (SK)2
[ML] [MI] [MR]
1(WA) [BL] [BR] (EA)4
(MA) (ME) (SP)
3 1 4
---------------------------------------
******************************************************************************
08. Character Panel Strategy Explanation.
*******************************************************************************
In the next section I will cover three basic strategies to develop each member
of your party. The first strategy will be "Fighter". This will cover how to
develop the said member towards fighting only. The second strategy will be how
to develop the said members towards magic. This will be known as "Mage". The
third strategy will be how to develop the member toward both the use of Magic
and Fighting. This will be known as the "MagicKnight" strategy.

I will refer to the panel spots by the same abbreviations as before. In other
words "MI" is still short for "Middle Panel". Most of section 09 will be under
construction. And the strategies will be as general as possible. One thing to
remember is since panels are random you may have to settle for something else.
For example while it is best to have Judy use a bow or a dagger it would be
good to settle for Spear if you get that until she has access to a bow or of
course a dagger panel. Your main goal is a level 4 panel of a skill weapon
or strength weapon depending on the character. In any case it is time for the
next section.

Forbidden Magic is a special case. Forbidden Spells can take a long time to
get. And at the same time it can be a long time before you can use them. At
the same time raising magic a stat can also lower element. I will instead
consider forbidden magic as a possible bonus to a fighter set up, a mage set up
and/or a magic knight set up. In other words look at the recommended section.
If it says "Forbidden" as one of the recommendations. It means you should try
to learn forbidden magic to use in addition to the recommended element/weapon
and/or both as the case may be. Or heck once you have the forbidden spells and
can use them perhaps you should use it instead of the weapon or element as your
main use.

In all the fighter and magicknight sections. I will either say put down a
strength weapon in this spot or put down a skill weapon in this spot in many
cases. This is because you will have a much easier time using say sword skills
if you have a sword panel for example. When I say skill I mean put down either
dagger, bow or gun. When I say strength I mean any other weapon. Which would be
Sword, Axe, Spear and Staff. When I say (light version) next to Kick, Punch
or Throw what I mean is this. To make sure the character is not heavily equipped
so they can access the light version of the move and thus use it.
*******************************************************************************
09. Character Panel Strategies! (Mostly Under Construction).
*******************************************************************************
General Advice: Each Mage should only work on one tablet at a time. It is best
to finish them as soon as possible in order to keep the stats as best as
they can be. Limit yourself to one familiar unless other wise stated. Remember
that these are strategies to shoot for if you can. If not you can still work
with characters remembering basic ideals. Ie Ruby is good at fire and bad at
water so Ruby should not worry about water as yet another example of course.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anzan Fighter: Under Construction.

Anzan Mage: Under Construction.

Anzan MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Armand Fighter: In the panels TL, MI and BR make a line bonus of melee. In ML
put the level 4 panel you want to use as your main weapon. Make sure it is a
strength based weapon. In TR put a panel good for raising strength and in MR
put a panel good for raising skill. Use BL as a replacement panel spot.

Armand Recommended Weapon: Axe or Sword.

Armand Mage: In TL, ML, and BL put down panels that bias toward elements. This
will result in good fire and earth elemental levels. Use MI as a replacement
panel spot. TR should be used for a magic tablet. Use MR to hold a familiar or
bias it toward stats to keep your spirit higher. Put down a panel good for
stats in BR.

Recommended Element: Fire and Earth.

Armand MagicKnight: Bias TR and MR towards stats to get high skill. Put either
a level 4 dagger or level 4 bow in the BR spot. Bias ML and BL toward elemental
to keep your fire level up. TL should be used for your magic tablet or your
familiar. Use MI as a replacement spot.

Recommend Weapon and Element: Knife and Fire.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Armic Fighter: Make a melee bonus in TL, MI, and BR. Try to make another melee
bonus in TR and MR. Shoot for a line bonus of level three and a joint bonus of
level 4. As level 4 is easier to get. Try to mak sure one of them is a level 4
kick. Use BL as replacement panel. Put a panel good for stats in ML or use it
for things like locksmith, defuse and etc if need be. If you want him to use a
a weapon instead of meele, ML is also a good spot to use.

Recommanded Weapon: Kick (Light Version)

Armic Mage: ML, BL and BR should be biased toward raising elements to get your
water and metal elements high. MI should be a replacement panel. TL should be
for a magic tablet. TR and MR should be used for familiars. Level 4 water and
level 4 metal is what you want.

Recommended Elements: Water and Metal.

Armic MagicKnight: Bias ML and BL towards elements to have a good water level.
TL and TR should have panels good towards stats to have decent strength. I'd
recommend a joint bonus of melee. Level 4 if you can swing it. MI should be a
replacement panel spot. Use MR for magic tablets. Bias BR toward stats. Try to
use MR for a water familiar when not working on a tablet.

Reccomended Weapon and Element: Kick (Light Version) and Water.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edel Fighter: A line bonus of Melee in TL, MI and BR for the Strength bonus. TL
should have a panel biased toward stats to keep your strength up. Put down a
strength weapon panel in ML. Use BL as the replacement panel spot.

Recommended Weapon: Sword

Edel Mage: Bias TR, MR and BR towards elements. This will give you good levels
for Earth and Metal. Use MI as the replacement panel spot. TL and ML should be
used for familiars or a joint bonus. BL should be used for your magic tablet.

Recommended Element: Earth and Metal.

Edel MagicKnight: Bias TR and TL towards stats to have high strength. MI should
be for a replacement panel spot. MR and BR should bias toward elements to keep
your metal level up. ML should be used for your weapon of choice. And it should
be a strength weapon. BL should be used for your magic tablet.

Recommended Weapon and Element: Sword and Metal.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Francis Fighter: Under Construction.
Francis Mage: Under Construction.
Francis MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Grace Fighter: Under Construction.
Grace Mage: Under Construction.
Grace MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hiro Fighter: Under Construction.
Hiro Mage: Under Construction.
Hiro MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Henri Fighter: Under Construction.
Henri Mage: Under Construction.
Henri MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Iskandar Fighter: Under Construction.
Iskandar Mage: Under Construction.
Iskandar MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Joseph Fighter: Under Construction.
Joseph Mage: Under Construction.
Joseph MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Judy Fighter: TL and ML should be a joint bonus of Key. BL and BR should have
Bow and Dagger. MR and TR should be biased toward stats. Judy can be good
forbidden magic. If you desire to use it then put tablets in BR and choose
between Dagger and Bow as your weapon. In fact this is probably your best
version to use forbidden magic.

Recommended Weapon: Bow and Dagger or Bow/Dagger and Forbidden Spells.

Judy Mage: BR and MR should be biased towards elemental to have your Wood level
good. ML and BL should be biased toward elemental to have your earth level good.
This will also result in a good fire level. TL should have a magic tablet. TR
should be for a familiar of Earth or Fire. Mi should be a replacement panel.
Although she is good for forbidden magic I'd recommend her as an elementalist
in this regard. In this way you do not have to sacrifice Fire and Earth to
use spells that honestly take a long time to learn.

Judy Recommended Elements: Fire, Wood and Earth.

Judy MagicKnight: TL should be for your tablet. Bias TR and MR towards stats
for good skill. MI should be a replacement panel. ML should have your weapon
of choice. Bow or Dagger. And I'd recommend BL and BR be biased towards
fire. Again I would not recommend forbidden magic to go with this set up.

Recommend Weapon and Element: Dagger and Fire.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kong Ming Fighter: Under Construction.
Kong Ming Mage: Under Construction.
Kong Ming MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kurt Fighter: Under Construction.
Kurt Mage: Under Construction.
Kurt MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Laura Fighter: Under Construction.
Laura Mage: Under Construction.
Laura MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Marie Fighter: Make a line bonus of Key panels in TL, MI, BR. Biase TR and MR
toward stats to keep your skill high. BR should have a Dagger Panel or Bow
panel of the best level you can get. It depends on the weapon you want to use.
Use ML as the replacement panel spot. If you want her to learn forbidden spells
then put the tablet down in ML and use MI as the replacement panel spot. Just
try to bias toward's a key panel for the line bonus.

Recommended Fighter Weapon: Bow and Forbidden Spells.

Marie Mage: Bias TL and ML towards element for a good Wood Level. Bias TR and
MR toward elements to have a good fire level. Use MI as a replacement panel
spot. BL should be used for your magic tablets. BR should have a panel good
for raising stats to keep spirit high. If you want familiars then put them
in TL and ML. This will still give you a good wood level. When you do not have
a magic tablet bias the BL panel towards stats to keep your magic high. This
is for if you want to use forbidden magic.

Reccomended Element: Fire, Wood and Forbidden Spells.

Marie MagicKnight: TL and ML should have panel biased toward elements to keep
your wood level high. TR and MR should be biased towards stats to keep your
skill level high. In BL put down your magic tablet. BR should have a Bow or
Dagger panel depending and what weapon you want to use. MI should be the
replacement panel spot. Bias BL towards stats whenever you do not have a
tablet to learn as this will help your magic level. That is good if you want
to use forbidden magic.

Recommended Weapon and Element: Bow, Wood and Forbidden Spells.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Special Note: Michelle's Strategy will have two versions to each secton. This
is because in one quest she has a gauntlet panel for the entire quest. While
in another the panel is gotten rid of. So in the former you must work around
this panel since you can not replace it. While in the latter this becomes part
of your strategy. For this reason Michelle will have six sections. The ones
with the word "Gauntlet" will tell you how to develop when she has the gauntlet
panel of course. While the ones without the word "Gauntlet" will tell you how
to develop when she does not have this cursed panel.

Michelle (Cursed Gauntlet) Fighter: Use TL and ML to form a joint bonus that
will help strength. Two level 4 Melee panels or a level 4 Weapon Panel in TL
and a level 3 Weapon Panel in ML are your best bets. Do the same thing with the
spots TR and MR. In BR put down the level 4 panel of the weapon you want
Michelle to use if the panel is not already being used for a different purpose.
Use BL as a replacement Panel slot for Michelle.

Michelle (Cursed Gauntlet) Fighter Weapon Recommendation: It should be a
strength Weapon. I recommend Spear, Sword or Light Kick.

Michelle (Cursed Gauntlet) Mage: In TL and ML put down panels biased toward
elements in order to help your water level. Do the same in TR and MR. Use
BL as the spot for your tablets. Use BR as a replacement panel spot, but
bias it toward stats for good spirit. If you want familiars then put them
in TR and MR. They still raise elements decently.

Michelle (Cursed Gauntlet) Mage Element Recommendation: Water and Wood.

Michelle (Cursed Gauntlet) MagicKnight: In TL and and ML put down panels that
will help your water level. Try to make them map panels as to get a joint
bonus for water. In TR put down a level 4 bow or Dagger panel depending on
what you get and which you want to use. In MR put down a panel good for
raising your skill. Now then I recommend you avoid using familiars in this
case. Because you don't have many spots to work with. Your best is to just
use a familiar until Michelle learns some spells and a member can use
quick fix. Then after that have Michelle rely on a weapon or accessory with
"____ Arts" for example "Water Arts". instead. Heck once she gets purify
her main purpose in being a water user then you just need an item with
"Water arts" and one with hopefully "water support". So use BL as a
replacement panel slot. BR should be used for magic tablets or for a good
strong panel to raise your spirit. One idea you could try is using the BR
and BL as places for a joint panel bonus. Two Key panels be good toward
skill while two more map panels can be good towards your water level.

Michelle (Cursed Gauntlet) MagicKnight Element and Weapon Recommendation:
The element should be water. The weapon should be a skill weapon.
I recommend Bow the most. If not shoot for Gun probably.

Michelle Fighter: Make a line bonus of Melee using TL, MI and BR. Put a
good panel towards raising strength in TR. Put a good panel towards
raising skill in MR. In ML put down the level 4 panel of the weapon you
want Michelle to use if it is not already being used in another spot.
Use BL as the replacement panel slot.

Michelle Fighter Weapon Recommendation: It should be a strength Weapon.
I recommend Spear, Sword or Light Kick.

Michelle Mage: In TL and ML put down panels biased toward
elements in order to help your water level. Do the same in TR and MR. Use
BL as the spot for your tablets. Use MI as a replacement panel spot. Use
BR to keep your spirit high. If you want familiars then put down them in
TR and MR as they are still good for raising your elemental level.

Michelle Mage Element Recommendation: Water and Wood.

Michelle MagicKnight: TL and ML should be used to raise water level. TR
should be where yout put down a dagger panel or bow panel of level 4. MR
is where you put down a panel good for making your skill high. Put down a
panel good for raising Spirit in BR or a familiar if you prefer. In BL put
down your magic tablet or familiar if you feel you are done with magic
and/or not learning magic right now. Use MI as replacement panel slot for
Michelle of course.

Michelle MagicKnight Element and Weapon Recommendation: The element
should be water. The weapon should be a skill weapon. I recommend Bow the
most. If not shoot for Gun probably.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mordeus Fighter: Under Construction.
Mordeus Mage: Under Construction.
Mordeus MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Musol Yanii Fighter: Under Construction.
Musol Yanii Mage: Under Construction.
Musol Yanii MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mythe Fighter: Under Construction.
Mythe Mage: Under Construction.
Mythe MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Norff Fighter: Under Construction.
Norff Mage: Under Construction.
Norff MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nuage Fighter: Under Construction.
Nuage Mage: Under Construction.
Nuage MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pharr Fighter: Under Construction.
Pharr Mage: Under Construction.
Pharr MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Platyphyllum Fighter: Under Construction.
Platyphyllum Mage: Under Construction.
Platyphyllum MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rebecca Fighter: Under Construction.
Rebecca Mage: Under Construction.
Rebecca MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Roy Fighter: Under Construction.
Roy Mage: Under Construction.
Roy MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ruby Fighter: Make a line bonus using TL, MI and BR. Put the weapon you want her
to use in ML. Use BL as the replacement panel spot, but bias it towards stats
to keep her magic high as be good with forbidden magic. TR should be a panel
good for stats. Finally MR should be used for magic tablets to learn forbidden
spells.

Recommend Weapon: Spear and Forbidden Spells

Ruby Mage: BL and BR should be biased towards element to keep your fire high.
Bias TR and MR towards elements to for a decent water level. ML should have
a panel good towards stats. MI should be your replacement panel. MR should
be used for magic tablets. If not use MR for familiar or whatever.

Ruby MagicKnight: Bias BL and BR towards elements to have your fire high. TL
and TR should be biased toward's strength to keep your strength high. MR should
have the weapon you want to use. MI is your replacement panel. Use Mr for magic
tablets of course.

Recommended Weapon and Element: Spear and Fire.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sapphire Fighter: TL, MI and BR should be a line bonus of key. TR should have
the weapon you want to use. I'd recommend Dagger. MR should have a panel good
Use ML for a magic tablet. Use BL as a replacement panel spot, but try to keep
your magic high. As in the end Sapphire is recommended for forbidden magic.

Recommended Weapon: Dagger and Forbidden Magic.

Sapphire Mage: Bias TR, MR and BR towards elements to have a good wood and fire
level. Bias BL towards stats to have a good magic level. MI should be used for
a replacement panel. TL should be used for magic tablets or for familiars.
ML should be a used as a replacement panel spot. Bias it toward magic to help
your magic level.

Recommend Elements: Fire, Wood and Forbidden Magic

Sapphire MagicKnight: TR and BR should biased toward stats to have good skill.
Use TL for a magic tablet. MI should be a replacement panel. BR should have the
weapon you want to use. I again recommend dagger. BL and ML should be biased
towards element for a good metal level.

Recommended Weapon and Element: Dagger and Metal.

In the first example I went for one of Sapphire's lesser elements in order to
bias towards the weapon type she is better for. If you prefer bias towards
magic. Then do this instead.

Sapphire MagicKnight (Alternative): Bias MR and BR towards elements to have
a good fire level. Use MI as the replacement panel spot. TR and TL should have
panels good toward stats to have a decent strength Two level 4 melee for a joint
bonus may be good bet. BL should have the weapon you want to use. Make it either
Spear, Axe or Sword. This will also give you a decent level for using forbidden
magic. ML should have your tablet or familiar.

Recommend Weapon and Element: Spear, Fire and Forbidden Magic.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Silver Girl Fighter: Under Construction.
Silver Girl Mage: Under Construction.
Silver Girl MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tiffon Fighter: TL and ML should be key panels in order to help give Tiffon
a boost in her skill level. Make sure TR and MR are both melee panels. As
this will give a boost to endurance and melee panels are good at raising stats.
So this helps your skill. Either a dagger or bow panel should be in BR. BL
should be used as the replacement panel spot for her.

Recommend Weapon: Dagger.

Tiffon Mage: TL and ML should be familiars. Try for a fire familiar in one
of the two spots at least. TR and MR should be used for magic tablets or
for a joint bonus. I'd suggest map panels as this will give you a bonus
toward water and endurance. In fact I feel it is probably best just to not
worry about having Tiffon learn spells. Instead just use a water and fire
familiar. BR should be something like a staff or dagger as they are
balanced between raising both elements and stats. BL should be the same
way, but it is also your replacement panel.

Recommended Elements: Fire and Water.

Tiffon MagicKnight: TL and ML should be familiars. TR and MR should be
punch and kick. BR should be either a dagger or a bow. Although a bow is
your best bet. BL should be a replacement panel but biased toward magic.
You still want one of the familiars to be a fire one. The other should be
water. While her purify and bubble blow may not be that strong it can
still be a bit useful with the help of a decent magic stat. Definitely do
not go for magic tablets at all in this set up.

Recommend Weapon and Elements: Dagger, Fire and Water.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thomas Fighter: Under Construction.
Thomas Mage: Under Construction.
Thomas MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vearst Fighter: Under Construction.
Vearst Mage: Under Construction.
Vearst MagicKnight: Under Construction.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ventus Fighter: TL and TR should be level 4 punch and level kick. ML, MI
and MR should be level 3 punch, kick and throw. BL should be a replacement
panel. BR should be for either Spear, Axe, or Sword. Ventus should use both
melee and a weapon. It's probably best to use a spear with him. If you can
make Ventus light to use hummingbird.

Recommended Weapons: Hummingbird (Light) Punch line and Spear

Ventus Mage: TL should be for your magic tablets. TR should be a
replacement panel, but be biased toward elements for a good fire level.
ML, MI and MR all should be familiars. Make it a case of fire, water and
earth. BR and BL are to be used for punch and kick as this will give a
bonus to endurance due to their properties as joint panels. They will also
help with your magic and spirit stats.

Recommended Elements: Fire, Earth and Water.

Ventus MagicKnight: TL and TR should be a punch and kick panel. MI, MR
and ML should be familiars. Make it so BL is where you place your tablets.
BR should be a replacement panel spot biased toward stats for a good
spirit level. In this case it is best to have Ventus rely on melee.

Recommended Weapon and Elements: Punch Line and Fire, Earth and Water.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*******************************************************************************
10. General tips
*******************************************************************************
1. Do not drown someone in magic tablets. It can take awhile to finish them.
Spreading them out among your members is a good idea.
2. Try to finish magic tablets as soon as possible.
3. In fact follow this ideal. If you already know the last two spells on a
tablet are ones you are not going to use. Then unless you really care about
the bonuses then just skip finishing the tablet. This is easier to follow
when you know what the spells in the game and what types they are.
4. Your weapon of choice should not be in the skill/strength spot. This is
because while Sword may be your weapon of choice, Axe is much better for
raising Strength for example. So it is better to have the sword in a spot
that does not affect strength. This is especially true for using skill
weapons. As bow and dagger are very bad for raising skill compared to things
like Axe, Kick and Punch.
5. High Skill people should use Bow and Dagger or Gun and Dagger for the most
part. High Strength people should use Spear and Sword or Axe and Sword the way
I see it. Although this could be a bit debatable. The general idea is to have
the blocking weapon your stats are good for. Sword (Deflect) for Strength
users and Dagger (Parry) for skill users. Staff could be good if you plan
to only use the secondary weapon for the purpose of its status dropping
abilities. And of course staff has that in spades.
********************************************************************************
11. The ideals of panel growth and setting up your characters in general.
********************************************************************************
In reality the growth system is nothing more than a case of choices between
two ideals. And I will go through this using some example characters. I will
also try to keep it simple as it were. But remember this is only the basics.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Maximize vs Balance]

Take for example Sapphire's Fire and Spirit. Fire and Spirit are both
affected by the bottom right and middle right panel spots. In general panels
either help your stats more or your elements more. This is where you choice
comes in. You can either maximize Fire or Spirit first of all. This means in
both spots you put down a panel that helps spirit/fire more than fire/spirit
depending on your preference. This will result in good fire/spirit, but bad
spirit/fire. Then of you have the option of balance. This means putting a panel
good for spirit in the slot that affects spirit more and a panel good for fire
in the slot that affects fire more. While neither stat will be at its best,
they will be at a good level. Of course good for your growth rate that is.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Stat vs Functions]

As you may realize each panel has a different function of course. And at the
same time raises stats and elements by different rates. So you may often have
to make a choice between them. For example Sapphire has level 4 dagger skills
and you want her to use a dagger because of that. She has gotten access to
level a 4 Axe panel and a level 4 Dagger panel at the end of a scenario. The
Axe panel will raise her stat more than the dagger will. And thus if she puts
it in the slot that affects skill the most her damage will become even better
than the level 4 dagger panel would have made it. However at the same time
let's say she doesn't even have as much as a level 1 dagger panel in her grid.
Making it very hard for her to hit the level 4 panels on the reel. So while
the level 4 dagger panel may not help any of her stats as much it will make
her easier to use in battle. Sometimes the choice between stat and function
is easy. Other times it may not be. I will say this much I'd go for the
level 4 panel of the weapon I am using first.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Concentrate on Stat/Element means a loss for two Elements/Stats]

Case in point when Sapphire concentrates on her fire element she is
essentially making herself weaker in skill and spirit. Meanwhile when she
concentrates on her skill stat, she is making herself weaker in wood and fire.
This often means you are going to have to accept some loss in something.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Direct confrontation of Stat vs Element]
In our original example we noted that fire and spirit share the same panel
affects for Sapphire. And while Spirit is more affected by bottom right panel
spot, fire is more affected by middle right. This allows for us to create a
balance. However sometimes the stat and element are both affected the greatest
by the exact same spot. In Sapphire's case fire and skill are both affected
greatly by middle right. This means in the end you will either greatly give up
skill or greatly give up fire. It is at this point you must make the tough
choice. Think ahead of time which you'd rather have her do. Because trying to
do both will not work well. Simply because one will end up rather weak. So
remember in these cases just choose one over the other.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Who cares about that stat/element! I just want a bonus for this stat/element]

As you may alreadly know you gain bonuses for having panels of the same type
next to each other. There is a triangle bonus, joint bonus and line bonus. I
will not get into how bonuses work too much. Let's give a very basic example
using joint bonuses only. If you have two panels that look like each other in
middle right and bottom right you will get a bonus based on the type of panel.
Even more if the panels are the same level. For example key panels will give
you a joint bonus to "skill" as it were. Let's look at this bonus alone for a
minute. We're thinking of giving Sapphire more skill by using the joint bonus.
So we end up putting the key panels in the top left and middle left spots so
we can get the joint bonus. And at the same time still put the panels that
affect skill the best in the slots that affect skill itself.

However here is the problem we run into. While sometimes the two panels that
create the bonus are the best choice you get. Other times they will harm the
stats you are trying to help. For example we decided to have Sapphire use
top left and middle left for the joint bonus. So in other words we are
restricting the growth of her Strength, Water, Endurance, Metal and Magic
just so we can have a joint bonus. And by the fact middle left greatly
affects metal and endurance, we are being very restrictive on the growth of
those two stats. Also by the fact top left greatly affects water and
strength we are affecting those stats greatly at the same time.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Time for a Fighter who uses magic! No wait a Mage who can fight that's
the ticket!]

In the end most of your weapons are affected by skill or strength. And each
spell of a certain element is of course affected mostly by that said element.
For the sake of being simple, we will just refer to sword as our strength
weapon and bow as our skill weapon. Making a fighter/mage character is a matter
of having one element good and either your skill good or your strength good.
However there are times we run into a problem.

Take for example Michelle. Michelle has five growth in strength and five
growth in skill. Meanwhile she has four growth in water. Her strength stat and
water stat are both affected greatly by one of the same spots. Meanwhile her
skill can be greatly raised without affecting her water. What this boils down
to is Michelle can still be a great fighter by using her a skill weapon the bow
and be a great magic user by using her water stat. Because neither will conflict
with each other.

In another example we have Sapphire. Sapphire's best element is of coure
"fire" at 4. All her other elements are at "1" or "2". Meanwhile her strength
is at "2" and her skill is at "4". So you're thinking "Let's make her a bow
user that burns people with fire spells!" Back up a minute! Her skill and fire
spot are both greatly affected by the same spot. This means you can't have both.
So your perfect hybrid is not to be. So what do you? You have two choices.
Fighter who uses magic or mage who can fight. What this means is simple.

If you choose "Fighter who uses magic" then what you first do is look at your
strength vs skill. In the case of Sapphire "skill" wins. Now then you
concentrate on skill over the elements that are affected by the same spot as
it minus the middle panel since it affects everything. As you should know
Wood and Fire are the elements affected by along with skill. This means as a
fighter who uses magic, Sapphire should forget about her wood and fire
elements. At the same time we see Water, Metal and Earth are not in conflict
with her "skill" stat. So what you would do is choose one of them as your
element instead. The growth for earth and water are both "1" while metal is
"2" making metal the logical choice. What we have is Sapphire using bow
because we concentrated more on her best fighting ability. And at the same
time she is using metal because it is her best element that does not conflict
with her skill.

In truth "Mage who can fight" is a simpler choice. First we look at the fact
fire is Sapphire's greatest element. Since her skill is in direct conflict
with her fire, we must forget about raising her skill. So essentially this
means we are now going to concentrate on her strength instead of her skill for
her fighter aspect. Simply because strength is not in conflict with her best
element. So in this instance we have Sapphire using her best element fire.
And at the same time she has opted for her lesser fighting stat "strength"
because her better fighting stat "skill" must be sacrificed for her best
element "fire".

For some characters their strength and skill are about the same. Still for
others many of their elements are about the same. And some have skill and
strength the same while having many elements the same. Of course when I say
"same". I mean same growth rate or well almost. These people are in general
easier to decide how to set up as hybrid between using magic
and fighting.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Limiting your spots by your plans]

When ever you do things like set up joint bonuses, triangle bonuses or line
bonuses you are in of course in essence restricting certain panels to never be
replaced. This can be good when you have a dumping spot. But sometimes you may
get a really good panel as it were. Thus having a bunch of joint bonuses can
make it so you have to put the panel in the dumping spot if you are against
ruining your bonuses. So by trying to have bonuses you can often ruin your
chances to grow if you are stubborn. One of the worst offenders can be line
bonuses. Often the middle panel which is always included in a line bonus is
the best spot for dumping "panels" as the amount you lose in stats over all
is not that great. By having such a line bonus and being too stubborn to lose
it, you have lost the best place to dump bad panels. And yes I have been quite
stubborn about killing line bonuses too. So while it is good to have bonuses,
you must remember they can restrict your spots.

Another thing that can restrict your panel spots is of course "magic tablets".
You never know when you will find one or even find the same one again. So you
can feel obligated to finish the tablet. But as long as the tablet remains on
your grid, it takes up a valuable spot. If you are the type who moves forward
rather than staying behind to finish a tablet you will often be with one spot
you can't use. Even worse if you are the type who feels he must finish the
tablet no matter what. Or heck the type who does both. This can have you go
through several adventures without ever being able to use that spot. Of course
finished tablets give bonuses so some want to keep them even if they finish
them.

Being a realist you can really only do one of three things. First accept the
fact you will not be able to use that panel spot for awhile. Second forget about
learning spells completely. Third either don't get all the spells the tablet has
or just finish the tablet before moving forward. I find that once you know what
spells are what is it far better just to get the spells you want to use for the
most part and ski pgetting the other spells. As this speeds things up.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Wait a minute why am I doing this? That other member can do it!]

While some panels are good to have on multiple members others are not. For
example in Mythe's quest many members are better at skill growth than strength
growth. Such as Marie, Sapphire and Tiffon. So it makes sense for them to all
have a level 4 bow panel. However at the same time you really do not need all
three with "quick fix" as just one member alone is enough to perform the
function. As long as that member is in the party of course. So what you may
want to do is spread out the functions among members. Don't have it so
Sapphire, Marie and Tiffon can all use quick fix when only one needs to be
able to. If Sapphire already has quick fix level 3 and Tiffon gains access to
a choice between level 3 quick fix and level 3 monger, consider giving Tiffon
level 3 monger panel instead. You will gain a new funtion to use and of course
not be wasting a spot on a function you already have.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Planning ahead vs Accepting your fate]

So you're going to have Francis concentrate on using swords. However he
doesn't get a level 4 sword panel. No he gets a level 4 Spear panel! This where
planning ahead and accepting fate come into play. You can either keep using
swords with Francis and gain more sword skills all in the hope you will gain a
level 4 sword panel. This is good if you already have sword skills and no
spear skills. However at the same time you are hoping for a good future. One
that may never come. Alternatively you can accept your fate and have him use
spears instead because he now has a level 4 spear panel. What's good is once he
learns level 4 spear skills, he should have an easy time hitting them. But now
you are forced into hoping he will learn the skills. And while there is a chance
you may never gain the level 4 sword panel in the first example at the same you
may have trouble sparking level 4 spear skills.

The point is you must either accept working with the panels you have or hope
for good panels for what you are planning to use. And for some the choice is
easier than others. After all if you decide to make Armand just a fighter, he
has high strength and skill. So he can be fine with just bow or sword. However
Marie who has low strength can't really make use of the sword that well so she
needs the bow panel. While Laura who has high strength needs the sword panel
and not the bow panel because her skill is bad. Since most weapon are strength
weapons, the ones who are reliant on skill weapons potentially have it the
worst. However depending on your opinions of the specialities of the skill
weapons bow, dagger and of course gun it can easily balance out anyway.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Defenses are down! Defenses are down!]

For the most part "Spirit" and "Endurance" make up your defensive stats.
Spirit is your defense against mental status affects while endurance is your
defense against physical status affects. Like all other stats they are in
conflict with elements. Let's go back to Sapphire for example her metal
and endurance are in direct confrontation with each other. This means for a
good metal stat she must have a lower endurance than she could have. As many
panels again either help elements more than stats or vice versa.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Helping my terrible stat/element or my good element/stat? Choices, choices]

Sometimes you will have an element and stat in direct confrontation where the
growth rate difference is a case of stat/element being 4 and element/stat being
1. For the sake of argument let's look at the set up for Musol. His endurance
growth rate is 2 while his metal growth rate is 4. Both are in direct conflict
with each other in the middle left panel spot. On one hand you could say that
endurance is lower so it should be forgotten about in favor of having a good
metal level. This is a strategy of going for the best you can be. However
sometimes you may find it is better to help the stat you are worse at. Give it
the extra boost it needs. After all with better endurance, you can resist
physical status effects easier. And at the same time since your metal level
is twice as good it can afford to have panels that are not as good for it. So
you have a basic choice between making a terrible stat good or a good stat
great. Depending on how you set up your members this can be good or bad.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[What is the point of this thing my member has? Should I even bother with it?]

Sometimes members like Sapphire will start with a good panel in the middle
spot. For example the panel fortuneteller level 4 helps you with treasure
hunting and is a great panel to have early on. The problem is the urge to keep
such a panel for fear of never getting it again can be pretty bad. For one
thing if she keeps the panel, she will definitely never get it again. Second
that middle spot is often your best spot for dumping bad panels as well as the
spot always used for line bonuses. Now if you plan a line bonus that involves
that look like the fortune teller panel that is not so bad. However if you
desire a line bonus of keys for example then the fortune teller panel is
liability. At the same time sometimes the panel can be so rare that getting
rid of it is even harder. For example Iskandar starts with a level 4 meister
panel in the middle spot panel spot. This panel is as far as I know a very
rare panel. Meaning if you give it up you may not get it back at all. Of
course the same can be said about replacing any panel.

Another example is spells and magic tablets. Some members start with
spells. For example Mythe starts with purify a water spell. And he has a
water growth of 4. So in esseence he can take advantage of the spell he
already has by making his water stat good. In another example we have Grace
who starts with many water spells. The problem is her water growth is not
that good. So you have to ask yourself if you should bother raising her water
level to take advantage of spells she already has or instead get her some metal
spells since her metal growth is much better. If you choose to go for the spells
she already has you have a good base of spells but you limit your potential due
to her low water growth. At the same time if you choose to go for getting new
spells to take advantage of her better element metal you must hope to find these
tablets and learn these spells. Likewise some members start with tablets that
may or may not have spells that are good for their respective growth rates.
Such as Judy having a tablet with forbidden spells and having high magic growth
which is good for forbidden spells. And Michelle starting with a tablet that
has earth spells, but her growth for earth is bad. The idea here is similar
to our examples with Mythe and Grace except instead of knowing the spells,
you just have the tablet with the spells.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Looking at the multiple factors]

I have gone through several different ideals of setting up your character.
However the next step is realizing the factors have to be taken into
consideration with each other. And sometimes are even directly affected by each
other. For example before we talked about making Sapphire a fighter who uses
magic. This meant first choosing the greater of the two weapon stats "Skill" or
well "Strength". Of course skill wins out for Sapphire. Next we chose to forgo
"fire" and "wood" since trying to help either element could not be done due to
full concentration on "skill". So we were left with a choice between water,
metal and earth of course. And in the end since earth and water were "1" and
metal was "2" we went with it as our element.

This is where what I said comes into play. Remember the section on defenses.
Endurance is your defense against physical status effects. And it is affected
the greatest by the same exact spot that greatly affects metal. So you run into
the problem of sacrificing some of your defense for your best remaining element
stat. And if you decide not to sacrifice your defense against status effects,
you are then left with concentrating on Sapphire's two remaining elements.
Water and Earth. So if we decide to go for Sapphire's water element we are
brought back to the idea of "maximize vs balance". Here to have both decent
endurance and decent water, we would end up putting a good panel for water in
the top left spot since it affects water the most and a good panel for
endurance in the middle left spot since it affects endurance the most.
Thus we create a balance.

So as you can see you will be taking multiple factors into account. Sometime
factors won't matter as much depending on you set up your member. Heck if you
plan to only use someone until you get to kick them out, you really don't
need to concentrate on the member much anyway.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[My set up is perfect! I don't want to ruin it!]

So you have several members with good set ups. If only you could keep them
that way. Well it's quite simple what you can do is this. Remove two of the
members who have the so called perfect set ups. That's right let the two
members you do not plan to use take their place. If a member is not present
when you complete an adventure they will not have to worry about replacing a
panel. However be warned that eventually if you want to use the "tetra force"
you must replace a panel. And the member won't gain any HP at all due to the
fact he will not be present in the adventure. To be blunt you are better off
having your perfect set up revolve around six of the panels spots.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[So what is sacrificed for what? What balances with what?]

If you have read sections 2-5 you have a very good idea how well each element
and stat is affected by each panel spot. However what you want to know here is
direct element vs stat. Well for this let's create a new grid. S will stand for
"stat" while E will stand for "element".

(E5) (S1) (E1)
(S5) [TL] [TR] (S2)
[ML] [MI] [MR]
(E4) [BL] [BR] (E2)
(S4) (E3) (S3)

First the direct confrontations. S1, E1 and E5 are in direct confrontation
with each other. S2 and E2 are in direct confrontation with each other. E3, S3
and S4 are in direct confrontation with each other. And finally E4 and S5 are
in direct confrontation with each other. Now if you choose to go for balance
then S1 must be balanced with E1 and E5. S2 must be balance with E1 and E2.
S3 must balanced with E2 and E3. S4 must be balance with E3 and E4. S5 must
be balanced with E4 and E5. E1 must be balanced S1 and S2. E2 must be
balanced S2 and S3. E3 must be balanced with S4 and S3. E4 must be balanced
with S4 and S5. Finally E5 must be balanced with S1 and S5.

So as you can see you have many different options for balancing out the
stats. This is probably making your head spin or at least mine. Well try
to think of it in smaller terms instead for balance. Ie if you want
Sapphire to have to good spirit and fire then just look the idea of
balancing E2 which is her fire element with S3 here spirit stat. At the same
time just forget about certain stats. In other words if Sapphire is not
going to use a strength weapon ever and she will never even think about
using punches, kicks or throws then you should not even worry about her
strength stat at all. Thus that should save you a headache.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Get to the point!]

In conclusion for this section. We get to the basic heart of growth in U.SaGa.
It boils down to one thing. And that is making a choice between different
ideals. I have shown you the very basic ideas and have given you examples. This
section should have hopefully given you an idea of things you need to think
about. And by thinking about these things you will have a better basic idea of
how to build up your members as well as the choices you will be faced with.
Also remember I did not take the middle panel into consideration in a lot of
these examples. While it affects all stats it does so by small amounts and
thus does not really work for some of the points being made.
*******************************************************************************
12. Legal Disclamier. Contact Info and Credits.
*******************************************************************************
Disclaimer: This FAQ is copyrighted by Robert Gilreath and can not be copied
for use on other sites without my permission.

Where can this FAQ be found: It can only be found at http://faqs.ign.com
and http://www.gamefaqs.com as of right now. If it is at any other site then
the FAQ has been posted there without my permission in most cases. There may
be a rare case I give a site permission, but this FAQ has not updated at
the other sites to reflect this. So if you do find someone stealing the FAQ
then please email me about it. Don't go into a flamewar with the person.

Contact: You can email at [email protected] if you wish to contact me to
ask me about some questions such as permission to use the FAQ. You can also
post at the Unlimited SaGa message board at Gamefaqs. Do not email me gameplay
related questions. Especially heavy handed ones. Post such questions at the
board itself. I do not check my email that much.

Credits: This FAQ could not be possible without the following people.

Niu: For clarifying a lot of the information about the game and allowing me to
draw conclusions on what information to look for when making this guide.

The regulars at Gamefaq's U.SaGa board: Their dedication and various topics
helped inspire the writing of this faq. As well give ideas on the the study of
information.