Zack has both Magic Point (MP) and Ability Point (AP) meters, the former being used to cast spells, and the latter for physical attacks performed with the help of materia. He also gains Soldier Points (SP) alongside EXP in battle. These are used for the Digital Mind Wave (DMW) and materia fusion: the two most important elements of combat in the game, but also the most frustrating.<\/p>\n The reels have three Modes. Normal Mode features NPC portraits, which Zack will unlock naturally by progressing through the main storyline. If the images on the left and right reel match, a Modulating If Zack has at least one Summon materia in his inventory, the Summon Mode can trigger instead of Normal Mode, in which case, all the images will be replaced by Summon portraits, but the idea is the same: Modulating Phase if two pictures match (likelihood determined by the wave pattern), then Summoning sequence if the third one matches as well. The Emotion Gauge will also go down a level after each successful summoning sequence, but can be cancelled out by a level 5 summoning of either version of Bahamut.<\/p>\n If Zack clears certain optional Missions, opens a specific treasure chest or encounters a Magic Pot while on those Missions, he will unlock the critters for the Chocobo Mode. This can trigger if Summon Mode doesn’t (it has a lower order of priority), but the mechanics are exactly the same. The only difference is that Chocobo Mode has no abilities that prevent the Emotion Gauge from going down.<\/p>\n If neither the Summon Mode nor the Chocobo Mode trigger, there’s still a chance that Genesis Mode will. This is essentially the same as the Normal Mode, but a portrait of Genesis will replace the two matching reels before the centre reel stops. If the third reel then also stops on Genesis, it will trigger his Limit Break, which won’t prevent the Emotion Gauge from going down.<\/p>\n The numbers appearing next to the images are completely independent and control level gains, as well as beneficial status effects. The latter happen whenever three identical numbers align, and whenever you get any combination with at least one 7 in it. If you get The main issue with the DMW system is that it\u2019s randomised. You can\u2019t control which Limit Break or Summoning sequence you will get at any given point or, indeed, whether you\u2019ll get one at all. It\u2019s particularly annoying to see, say, Bahamut Fury pop up when Zack is fighting some insignificant mook, because chances are that he would\u2019ve been able to dispatch said enemy in less time than it takes for the system to even trigger the Modulating Phase, let alone the Summoning sequence itself. It\u2019s a good thing the latter are skippable at least, because they\u2019re all quite long.<\/p>\n Materia fusion is a good idea on paper, as it gives materia a new purpose, opens up a lot of customisation options and is actually the key to beating the optional superboss. The problem is that there are hidden statistics which make the process much more confusing than it has to be. You see, each type of materia has a grade (not to be confused with its level), and while you may intuitively guess some of them (e.g. Fira will have a higher grade than Fire, as it\u2019s a stronger fire spell), others are far less obvious. In fact, two pieces of the same type of materia can be two different grades. This grade determines the priority of the materia during the fusion process, and therefore the result you obtain. What\u2019s more, if you\u2019re using any items in the fusion, those also have a hidden grade. Therefore, unless you\u2019re following a guide, it\u2019s entirely possible that you will be wasting time and resources in trial and error, trying to get the materia you need.<\/p>\n << Back to: Characters<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Forward to: Gameplay >><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" There are two difficulty levels to pick from at the beginning of the game: Normal and Hard. Keep in mind that Hard really does mean \u2018hard\u2019 here. Enemies\u2019 stats will double or even triple, and they can have up to five … Continue reading ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.grafskaya.club\/mysst\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/why-am-I-fighting-bouncy-balls-300x170.jpg\" "\\"\"Why")
This is an Action RPG, so the combat is more dynamic than in FFVII. Battles happen in real-time, and Zack can move freely around the enemies, as well as being able to dodge and block their attacks. He can also escape from random encounters by running against the edge of the battlefield, but keep in mind that any attack from the back (be it Zack attacking an enemy or vice-versa) deals critical damage. The combat menu is at the bottom right of the screen, and you can select between melee attacks, the various materia Zack has equipped (he starts out with four, then upgrades to six once promoted to 1st <\/sup>Class), or items by pressing the L and R shoulder buttons. However, keep in mind that this will not <\/em>pause the battle, so you might end up in trouble if you take too long.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.grafskaya.club\/mysst\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/now...who-am-I-thinking-of-300x170.jpg\" "\\"\"Now...who")
<\/a>The DMW is the bread-and-butter of combat in this game. It consists of a set of spinning reels at the top left of the screen depicting images and numbers, and an Emotion Gauge indicating Zack\u2019s state of mind (from \u2018Low\u2019 to \u2018Heavenly\u2019). The idea is that Zack\u2019s combat abilities are influenced by his emotions and the people he knows, which is quite a novel approach to combat. The reels require Soldier Points (SP) to spin, but they do so continuously and without your input, as long as you have some SP left (each successful spin costs 10 SP). There are three sets of images: NPCs, and two types of summoned creatures. NPCs are associated with Limit Breaks, which are strong special attacks. The first type of summoned creatures includes some of the traditional summons of the FF series (Ifrit (in disturbingly tiny briefs), Bahamut, etc.), which all perform attacks and have very long summoning sequences. The second type of summoned creatures are lesser critters, which can either trigger a beneficial effect (Moogle, Cait Sith, Magic Pot) or an attack (Chocobo, Cactuar, Tonberry), and their \u2018summoning\u2019 sequences are much shorter.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.grafskaya.club\/mysst\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Fishing-for-compliments-300x169.jpg\" "\\"Fishing")
<\/a>Phase will trigger; the Emotion Gauge affects the likelihood of that happening, as well as the power level of the attack (from 1 to 5), if it triggers. If the image on the middle reel then matches the other two \u2013 and this is sometimes heralded by a short cutscene or screenshot featuring that character, which also affects the attack’s power level \u2013, Zack will experience a Power Surge and perform a Limit Break inspired by that character. Each character has a certain number of scenes associated with them (the ones you\u2019ve seen are indicated by a percentage in the main menu), and Zack will get a reward once he\u2019s seen all the scenes for every character. He will also get a reward for completing the portrait list (this includes NPCs and all summons). Each successful Limit Break should technically bring the Emotion Gauge down one notch until it hits ‘Normal’, but this can be cancelled out by Angeal’s or Cissnei’s Limit Break (which can actually bring the Gauge up<\/em> one or more levels).<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.grafskaya.club\/mysst\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Lining-up-300x170.jpg\" "\\"Lining")
777, Zack will gain a level. If you get two identical numbers other than 7 in any order, the materia in the corresponding slot will gain a level. For example, if you get 4-3-4, the materia in Zack\u2019s fourth equipment slot will level up. If you get three identical numbers other than seven, the corresponding materia will gain two levels.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.grafskaya.club\/mysst\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Lucky-chicken-300x170.jpg\" "\\"Lucky")
<\/a>It also means that levelling up is random as well. Accumulating enough EXP to actually level Zack up only means that you can <\/em>get the coveted 777 combo, not that you will <\/em>get it. In fact, it\u2019s entirely possible to go ages without Zack levelling up at all, only for him to level up twice in a random battle, because he\u2019s accumulated so much EXP. This is a rather puzzling approach, and I suppose that it balances out over time, but it also means that you have no way of controlling Zack\u2019s level progression or the quality of his materia at any given time. The only thing you can control is the likelihood of getting a certain Limit Break, Summon or Chocobo Mode sequence (by equipping the appropriate materia), and even that is indirect.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.grafskaya.club\/mysst\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/at-least-its-not-radioactive...right_-300x170.jpg\" "\\"At")
The other issue with materia is the fusion system. For those who haven\u2019t played FFVII, materia are crystallised orbs of the planet\u2019s vital energy (Mako) that characters use to power up their attacks and cast magic. There\u2019s magic materia (three shades of green), which covers basic offensive and curative spells; summon materia (red), which covers summonable creatures; command materia (two shades of yellow), which adds various attack or item-related commands; support materia (two shades of blue), which enhances the effects of other materia; and independent materia (two shades of purple), which grants various passive effects. Materia can be used as-is in combat \u2013 although blue materia can only be used in combination with another colour \u2013, but two pieces of materia can also be fused, at the cost of some SP. The better the combination, the higher the cost, and the order in which you put the materia to be fused changes the result. The resulting materia will either be a completely new specimen, a higher level of one of the two component materia, one of the two component materia with higher stat boosts, or a combination of these. You can also further boost its stats with items (but beware, as that can make your SP cost skyrocket).<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.grafskaya.club\/mysst\/wp-content\/plugins\/advanced-wp-columns\/assets\/js\/plugins\/views\/img\/1x1-pixel.png\"){kind=tracking}
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