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Final Fantasy: Crystal Defenders R1
Advanced Unit Analysis Guide
written by Mike Turley, aka Adilor(15/18)
===============
1: Introduction
===============
Hello and welcome. You're probably here because you're looking for a guide
that goes through the units of this game, namely Final Fantasy: Crystal
Defenders R1. If this is true, then you're in the right place. This guide goes
through the seven units, giving a detailed look at the statistics of each, and
how they all come together in terms of effectiveness and cost-efficiency, to
name a couple factors. This guide does not go through basic controls, unit
placement, enemy types, etc. That information can be found in other guides.
====================
2: Table of Contents
====================
1: Introduction (already passed it)
2: Table of Contents (you are here)
3: Version history (kinda boring)
4: Basic Statistics (now we're talking)
5: Cost-Effectiveness - Power (deep stuff)
6: Cost-Effectiveness - Overall (the big finale)
7: Conclusion (victory dance)
8: Credits/Legal Info (more boring stuff)
9: Contact Info (I'll shut up now)
==================
3: Version History
==================
5/09/09: 0.1 - Pretty spreadsheet full of game values created. Partial
analysis of such completed.
5/10/09: 0.5 - Further analysis performed on game values. Text portion of guide
started.
5/11/09: 1.0 - All planned sections completed. Guide submitted to GameFAQs for
review.
===================
4: Basic Statistics
===================
Alright, so the best place to start off would be to list off the game's visible
numbers, or in simple terms, the stats shown for each unit of each level. This
gives us the basic foundation upon which to build our more advanced
calculations to really get a good sense of how particularly useful each unit
is. Here's the listing of just the stats given by the game itself (including
one more, Total, which is simply the cumulative total cost to get a unit to
a particular level, whereas Cost simply shows what the game charges you for
that level alone):
Unit Name |Level|Cost|Total|Power|Range|Speed|
----------------------------------------------
Soldier | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 140 | 83 |
| 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 144 | 83 |
| 3 | 6 | 11 | 11 | 148 | 83 |
| 4 | 12 | 23 | 22 | 152 | 83 |
| 5 | 25 | 48 | 30 | 156 | 83 |
| 6 | 37 | 85 | 55 | 160 | 83 |
| 7 | 50 | 135 | 102 | 164 | 83 |
----------------------------------------------
Black Mage| 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 200 | 41 |
| 2 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 220 | 41 |
| 3 | 7 | 12 | 7 | 250 | 41 |
| 4 | 12 | 24 | 12 | 270 | 41 |
| 5 | 25 | 49 | 18 | 300 | 41 |
| 6 | 37 | 86 | 28 | 320 | 41 |
| 7 | 50 | 136 | 40 | 340 | 41 |
----------------------------------------------
White Monk| 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 160 | 58 |
| 2 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 162 | 58 |
| 3 | 6 | 11 | 8 | 164 | 58 |
| 4 | 12 | 23 | 18 | 166 | 58 |
| 5 | 25 | 48 | 25 | 168 | 58 |
| 6 | 37 | 85 | 46 | 170 | 58 |
| 7 | 50 | 135 | 90 | 172 | 58 |
----------------------------------------------
Archer | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 180 | 71 |
| 2 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 200 | 71 |
| 3 | 6 | 11 | 7 | 220 | 71 |
| 4 | 12 | 23 | 17 | 240 | 71 |
| 5 | 25 | 48 | 25 | 260 | 71 |
| 6 | 37 | 85 | 37 | 280 | 71 |
| 7 | 50 | 135 | 60 | 300 | 71 |
----------------------------------------------
Time Mage | 1 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 180 | 41 |
| 2 | 12 | 24 | 18 | 180 | 45 |
| 3 | 17 | 41 | 24 | 180 | 50 |
| 4 | 22 | 63 | 30 | 180 | 55 |
----------------------------------------------
Thief | 1 | 12 | 12 | 1.5x| 120 | 83 |
| 2 | 12 | 24 | 2.0x| 130 | 83 |
| 3 | 25 | 49 | 2.5x| 140 | 83 |
| 4 | 37 | 86 | 3.0x| 150 | 90 |
----------------------------------------------
Dragoon | 1 | 12 | 12 | 50 | 300 | 10 |
| 2 | 25 | 37 | 125 | 320 | 10 |
| 3 | 37 | 74 | 200 | 340 | 10 |
| 4 | 50 | 124 | 300 | 360 | 10 |
----------------------------------------------
Okay, so, some basic realizations from this: The only units that gain in speed
are the ones that don't do any direct damage. And yes, Time Mage technically
doesn't have a "power" stat, but I just put it in the same column for ease
of making ASCII charts here. I don't think anyone knows exactly what the "Slow"
stat correlates to, but it's probably a direct percentage of movement speed or
something simple like that. Anyways, it's not much relevant for the purpose of
this guide; we're going to be ignoring Time Mage and Thief from here on out,
anyway. Don't get me wrong, they're entirely essential classes, but they don't
have much of a place in this guide, which is focused towards comparing the
other five in terms of cost-efficiency and whatnot, relating specifically to
raw damage. So wave goodbye to them now, and we'll move onto the next section.
=============================
5: Cost-Effectiveness - Power
=============================
So, we have all those numbers there. By themselves, they say quite a bit to
begin with. When we combine them, however, we can get some even more
interesting figures that tell us a whole lot more about these five classes, and
really allows us to start getting a more in-depth look at them.
This section's table specifically combines the Power, Cost, and Total variables
in ways that show us how economical each unit's levels are in terms of raw
power alone. It's the first step towards showing us how to really get the most
for our money in this game, and it's also the biggest factor in this.
Key: P/T = Power by Total, Plg/C = Power level gain by Cost of that level
Unit Name |Level|Cost|Total|Power| P/T |Plg/C|
----------------------------------------------
Soldier | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1.00| |
| 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 1.20| 2.00|
| 3 | 6 | 11 | 11 | 1.00| 1.67|
| 4 | 12 | 23 | 22 | 0.96| 1.83|
| 5 | 25 | 48 | 30 | 0.63| 0.67|
| 6 | 37 | 85 | 55 | 0.65| 1.00|
| 7 | 50 | 135 | 102 | 0.76| 1.27|
----------------------------------------------
Black Mage| 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0.50| |
| 2 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 0.60| 1.00|
| 3 | 7 | 12 | 7 | 0.58| 1.33|
| 4 | 12 | 24 | 12 | 0.50| 0.71|
| 5 | 25 | 49 | 18 | 0.37| 0.50|
| 6 | 37 | 86 | 28 | 0.33| 0.40|
| 7 | 50 | 136 | 40 | 0.29| 0.32|
----------------------------------------------
White Monk| 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0.50| |
| 2 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 0.80| 1.50|
| 3 | 6 | 11 | 8 | 0.73| 1.33|
| 4 | 12 | 23 | 18 | 0.78| 1.67|
| 5 | 25 | 48 | 25 | 0.52| 0.58|
| 6 | 37 | 85 | 46 | 0.54| 0.84|
| 7 | 50 | 135 | 90 | 0.67| 1.19|
----------------------------------------------
Archer | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0.50| |
| 2 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 0.60| 1.00|
| 3 | 6 | 11 | 7 | 0.64| 1.33|
| 4 | 12 | 23 | 17 | 0.74| 1.67|
| 5 | 25 | 48 | 25 | 0.52| 0.67|
| 6 | 37 | 85 | 37 | 0.44| 0.48|
| 7 | 50 | 135 | 60 | 0.44| 0.62|
----------------------------------------------
Dragoon | 1 | 12 | 12 | 50 | 4.17| |
| 2 | 25 | 37 | 125 | 3.38| 6.25|
| 3 | 37 | 74 | 200 | 2.70| 3.00|
| 4 | 50 | 124 | 300 | 2.42| 2.70|
----------------------------------------------
Okay, so these initial numbers somewhat reinforce the common belief that Lv4
units are the most efficient. At least at the time of myself writing this
guide, the general concensus that the community (namely the game's board on
GameFAQs) reached was that Lv4 units were the best in terms of comparing power
to how much cash it takes to get them to that level. Again, these numbers do
prove this true, but only partially. The Dragoon is technically excepted from
this, as it maxes out at Lv4. Out of the other four classes, two of them are
true to this, White Monk and Archer. The Black Mage actually tops out at Lv3,
taking a huge drop when pushed to Lv4, and the Soldier is technically most
cost-effective at Lv2, though Lv4 isn't much less.
Now, looking at Lv5-7, it's also a bit different for each class. Both Soldier
and White Monk drop off hard at Lv5, but climb back up respectably, capping
off at a still decent ratio at Lv7. Archers might be best left at Lv4, as Lv7
is actually slightly worse than Lv5 in these terms. Black Mages are just
pitiful; their cost-effectiveness drops sharply at Lv4 and continues to decline
all the way down to Lv7.
Now then, let's factor in a couple more variables and bring this all to a
culmination.
===============================
6: Cost-Effectiveness - Overall
===============================
I know what some of you are thinking: "That chart makes Dragoons look really
good, but they attack so slow!" or "Some units get to attack more than others
due to range advantages, what about that?" This section takes these factors
into view, adding in a couple more figures calculated by adding range and speed
into the mix, and gives us one big, shiny number that effectively ranks each
unit's level across the board with all others. Of course, this is all still
with the economy in mind; every additional figure uses the same cost
calculations as before.
Key: D/t/T = Damage by time by Total, D/t*Rm/T = Damage by time times Range
multiplier by Total
Unit Name |Level|Cost|Total|Power| P/T |Plg/C|D/t/T|D/t*Rm/T|
-------------------------------------------------------------
Soldier | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1.00| | 8.30| 8.30 |
| 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 1.20| 2.00| 9.96| 10.24 |
| 3 | 6 | 11 | 11 | 1.00| 1.67| 8.30| 8.77 |
| 4 | 12 | 23 | 22 | 0.96| 1.83| 7.94| 8.62 |
| 5 | 25 | 48 | 30 | 0.63| 0.67| 5.19| 5.78 |
| 6 | 37 | 85 | 55 | 0.65| 1.00| 5.37| 6.14 |
| 7 | 50 | 135 | 102 | 0.76| 1.27| 6.27| 7.35 |
-------------------------------------------------------------
Black Mage| 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0.50| | 2.05| 2.93 |
| 2 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 0.60| 1.00| 2.46| 3.87 |
| 3 | 7 | 12 | 7 | 0.58| 1.33| 2.39| 4.27 |
| 4 | 12 | 24 | 12 | 0.50| 0.71| 2.05| 3.95 |
| 5 | 25 | 49 | 18 | 0.37| 0.50| 1.51| 3.23 |
| 6 | 37 | 86 | 28 | 0.33| 0.40| 1.33| 3.05 |
| 7 | 50 | 136 | 40 | 0.29| 0.32| 1.21| 2.93 |
-------------------------------------------------------------
White Monk| 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0.50| | 2.90| 3.31 |
| 2 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 0.80| 1.50| 4.64| 5.37 |
| 3 | 6 | 11 | 8 | 0.73| 1.33| 4.22| 4.94 |
| 4 | 12 | 23 | 18 | 0.78| 1.67| 4.54| 5.38 |
| 5 | 25 | 48 | 25 | 0.52| 0.58| 3.02| 3.63 |
| 6 | 37 | 85 | 46 | 0.54| 0.84| 3.14| 3.81 |
| 7 | 50 | 135 | 90 | 0.67| 1.19| 3.87| 4.75 |
-------------------------------------------------------------
Archer | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0.50| | 3.55| 4.56 |
| 2 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 0.60| 1.00| 4.26| 6.09 |
| 3 | 6 | 11 | 7 | 0.64| 1.33| 4.52| 7.10 |
| 4 | 12 | 23 | 17 | 0.74| 1.67| 5.25| 9.00 |
| 5 | 25 | 48 | 25 | 0.52| 0.67| 3.70| 6.87 |
| 6 | 37 | 85 | 37 | 0.44| 0.48| 3.09| 6.18 |
| 7 | 50 | 135 | 60 | 0.44| 0.62| 3.16| 6.76 |
-------------------------------------------------------------
Dragoon | 1 | 12 | 12 | 50 | 4.17| | 4.17| 8.93 |
| 2 | 25 | 37 | 125 | 3.38| 6.25| 3.38| 7.72 |
| 3 | 37 | 74 | 200 | 2.70| 3.00| 2.27| 6.56 |
| 4 | 50 | 124 | 300 | 2.42| 2.70| 2.42| 6.22 |
-------------------------------------------------------------
Woohoo. There you go. One number that effectively compares the units against
each other. That last column is a mashup of all the numbers that matter. The
previous one is more of a variable that factors into it, but it's still
interesting to look at. Let me explain...
The first is effectively a DPS number. Now, before you jump on me, it's not
actually damage per second. Figuring out how the game's speed rating relates
to realtime has been nothing but difficult and confusing, and I gave up on it
after realizing this. What I've done is made a relative variable that, again,
has its basis in comparing the units. In this case, the formula runs thusly:
Power * Speed / 10 / Total
Now, fortunately, Square gave us a nice slow unit to use as the baseline. I've
taken the Dragoon's speed of 10 and set that as the basic 1.0x speed
multiplier here. A soldier has a speed of 83, and is therefore going to get
8.3 times as many attacks as a Dragoon, on average, assuming they're both in
attack range an equal amount of time.
The last column here takes this value and factors in range as well. Now,
obviously there will be variations in map and unit placement; this guide is
ignoring that and running calculations from a purely mathematical standpoint.
Formula:
Power * Speed / 10 * Range / 140 / Total
The same idea is used to bring Range into view. The Lv1 Soldier has the lowest,
140, which is set at our baseline, 1.0x. Anything higher than that essentially
multiplies into the combination of power and speed, again further augmenting
the numbers to provide a more accurate comparison of the units. It's like, an
overall rating of usefullness, essentially.
Now, of course, this doesn't take into effect the splash damage that White
Monks and Black Mages inflict. It's not exactly possible to know what the range
of it is, or what percentage of damage is spread, so their numbers could be
potentially higher, moreso when combined with Time Mages to clump units
together. So again, these numbers aren't intended to dictate what classes
should be used, but more to supplement decision making in doing so. The player
is still expected to make intelligent decision based on what enemies are coming
up and what map layout is being dealt with.
=============
7: Conclusion
=============
And that's about it, really. Hopefully this guide will help players out there
make better decisions about what units to use, increasing their scores and
making for an overall more enjoyable gaming experience.
I'm not going to consider it complete, though; I still need an accurate way to
translate these statistics into a true DPS (damage per second). If anyone has
any information on how the game's speed rating translates into realtime, please
contact me using the information below. Information regarding the splash damage
dealt by White Monks and Black Mages would also be much appreciated.
=====================
8: Credits/Legal Info
=====================
GameFAQs, for continuing to be an excellent site with all the best game info
SquarEnix, for continuing to churn out excellent games such as this one
You, for reading!
All trademarks and copyrights contained in this document are owned by their
respective trademark and copyright holders. Guide itself is written and owned
by Mike Turley, copyright 2009. No part of it may be modified, reproduced, or
redistributed without the personal, written consent of its author. The only
site currently allowed to host this document is www.gamefaqs.com.
===============
9: Contact Info
===============
Have something you want to add? Found a glaring typo that makes the guide look
really bad? Let me know about it!
Email:
[email protected]
Spam and hatemail will be deleted with extreme prejudice. Put GameFAQs in the
subject line to ensure it gets noticed by myself.
Thanks for reading!
END DOCUMENT
