Our Stalwart Heroes

Jake also learns a variety of attack and healing spells. Casting Spark won't do a lot of damage as Jake's Magic Attack stat is not very high, but each enemy he hits with it will give him more TP to work with. Jake's magic is best used for healing in between battles. He learns Antivenom, which is very helpful in certain areas of the game and can learn the most powerful spell in the game - Holy - at level 27, which even Scott cannot learn naturally.

Jake's high Defensive attack stat, plus the variety of heavy armor, make Jake a great "tank" character, taking less damage than his peers. Jake also has access to axes, which are unique in that they are two-handed weapons, so he cannot use a shield while equipping one. This lowers Jake's defense stat, but axes are generally more powerful and some boast very interesting and powerful abilities. The Bloodaxe, for example, is much stronger than any spear when you can first acquire it and it can heal HP for every 20 steps taken on the map and heal a little HP after every round of battle. The caveat is that Jake is beserked - so you cannot control him to use skills or items. He will just attack a single random enemy every round.

Jake doesn't learn a lot of skills, but he gets a few really good ones, including Double Attack for 40 TP and Concentration to increase his attack damage. With the strongest armor, Jake may not take as much damage and may not fill his TP meter as quickly as other characters. Still, he has fantastic versatility on and off the battlefield, making him a great character for your party.

Scott doesn't learn any skills, so building his TP is meaningless. Where Scott shines is with his variety of magic spells. Early on, Scott will pick up Force Lightning, which is be his most powerful single target spell until mid-game. He learns not only Heal (restores HP to all party members), but Mega Heal (restore massive HP) later on. He can also learn Holy, the most powerful spell in the game, if he equips his Ultimate Weapon.

Scott starts the game with only a Staff and a Ring equipped. It is important to get him a Tunic while in the town of JC to keep him from being killed too quickly early on. Later in the game, there are items that will restores MP while walking on the map or after every round of battle. These are often weaker defensively, but restoring MP allows Scott to cast more magic during battle or help Jake heal the party between fights without running out as quickly. It isn't always the highest defensive equipment that is the most useful when it comes to Scott.

Scott can be a liability with his low HP and his spells can eat through his MP quickly. It is often best to use Jake or Mike for healing outside of battles to save Scott's MP for offensive spells or healing during battle. Scott's equipment tends to be light armor and most of it is relatively inexpensive, so it is easier to keep him equipped with the best gear. With powerful healing and offensive magic, Scott can be a powerhouse on the battlefield and sometimes the heaviest damage dealer, making him very useful to keep alive.

Jason doesn't learn any magic, so his MP is just for show. He does learn a handful of useful skills, including Double Attack early on in the game, and the more powerful Triple Attack later on. His other skills aren't quite as useful, but Chakra - which can clear most status ailments, including Poison - can be extremely helpful to save Jake and Scott's MP to remove the Poison status. Jason gets a more powerful version - Chakra+ - that removes status ailments and heals 300 HP late in the game as well.

At different points in the game, it is possible to permanently boosts particular stats by eating food. Scott is usually the first choice since he has the lowest defense and HP, however, giving Jason some of the Attack and Agility food boosts can be another great option, allowing Jason to always attack first and potentially finish off enemies before they get a chance to act.

Since Jason can use the largest variety of weapons, it is important to read up on all of the benefits to each one to determine which will be the most helpful to you in battle. Many have bonuses not listed in the weapon description in-game (because there is only so many characters that can be typed in), so even if a weapon doesn't appear as powerful up front, the hidden bonuses to Critical Hit % can make the difference in a difficult fight. Much of Jason's weapons and armor boost the same stats to massively increase his chance to large critical damage.