Just wondering what everyone's main party is, what weapons you prefer to use with each character, and their role jobwise in your party. Here's mine:

Vaan- Swords and Shields - Paladin licenses
Fran- Bows - Whitemage licenses
Basch- Spears - Blackmage licenses

Although i call this my main party, I still use Ashe, Balthier, and Penelo. I keep them leveled and licensed up so they can be take over as back up party if the main crew goes down. I love this game.

vaan -swords/shields - warrior
fran - bows - attacker/back up healer
ashe - staff - mage/primary healer


Btw is bow damage increased by strength? not quite sure, cuz if so i gotta get fran some heavy armor.

I'm a sexist bitch and my main party goes along the lines of;

Ashe: swords and shields.
Fran: poles
Penelo: bow and arrows

Ashe is my tank, Fran the dps, and Penelo the healer. It's an easy concept really, keeping Penelo at range and so on and so forth. Playing FFXII makes me feel like I'm watching Lifetime except way better and not as nearly as shitty.

Vaan - Sword & Shield
Ashe - Sword & Shield
Balthier - Gun

I think that there was a discussion on this already buuuut:

Vaan :: Sword/Shield
Ashe :: Sword /Shield
Bash :: Hammer[Axe]/Shield

Balthier :: Gun
Fran :: Katana
Penelo :: Staff

i remember i talked about this somewhere....was hoping i would copy and paste..but...ok :p


see for me, it was hella hard deciding cause i just couldn't make up my mind. but finally i did. I don't have a main 3 yet cause i like them all. i swap my chars all the time making sure everyone is the same lvl. (currently, all 18)
so here we go.


Vaan: Melee: Dagger/Shield (with the option of going swords if needed)

Basche: Melee: Sword/Shield (with the option of going axe/hammers and definate plans of touching the greatswords)

Balthier: Guns and Poles

Fran: Bows and Spears

Ashe: Maces/Measures/Rods/Staves

Penelo: Maces/Measures/Rods/Staves

I'm still undecided for ashe and penelo to narrow it down to two each, but they'll deinfately be using "those" type of weapons. they benefit magic users and that's what i'm going to make them.


Fran and Balthier i chose simply because it suited their characters the most according to how i see them.

Balthier has class, LOTS OF IT. with people with his personality, fencing comes to mind as well, but i rememberd the movie "coming to america" with eddy murphy and how he practiced with a pole every morning with his friend, the image fit imo. So I gave him the option of poles to play with. I'm happy.

Fran on the other hand, DOES NOT look anything like some weak robe wearing mage type person. when i think of mages, i think of garnet, and ashe and penelo, and aeris, and chicks like that. Fran isn't like that. So i definately knew i did not want her to be a mage. But at the same time, the Bow seemed boring. I wanted her to be a little cooler. So Freya came to mind. DragonKnights. now that's a cool image. So I gave her spears along with Bows. Don't know if i wanna give her xbows or give them to balthier. i'll have to see.


if everything goes as plans, i should been able to see every weapon in the game used in action except for bombs. and that's definately something i wanted to do. make sure i get to see how they all look in game and stuff for fun. they always look nice. i didn't wanna miss any. :p

Vaan, Balthier and Basch, all uberlvld up (the girls are like lv 20) and with the best equipment to that point, generally axes and shield

lvl 20? where are you though?

I'm at the finishing line, but I've never used the girls except for one mark where you must use them (and THAT was tough), so all males have 60-70 lvls more than the girls -_-, and it's not anything against girls, I just got used to the guys
oohh and one piece of advice, like you all know the non-battling party members get LP too, so I equipped all my 3 girls with the double LP acc. and it works!! they were the first ones in completing the license board, around the time you get to archades...

I made all of them carry strong spears(Javelin... so far, until I find something stronger) and equipped them with strong magick accesories, so they are like half warrior, half mage.

I really don't have a main party, because I choose different parties all the time so they can all level up. But I think I use Ashe the most.

I don't think I could go through the game without using all my characters. Sure I have my favorites, but...I'd be lost if one of them were to die and I couldn't swap that person out with someone of equal power and strength.

I don't think I could go through the game without using all my characters. Sure I have my favorites, but...

Ditto. I don't have a main 3-person party. I do, however, have certain "jobs" that I switch in and out depending on the situation.

Vaan, lvl 29, > 2000 HP - Swords/Greatswords, heavy close-range hitter, black magic, white magic

Balthier, lvl 29, > 2000 HP - Crossbow, long range heavy attacker, white magic, black magic

Fran, lvl 28, 1750 HP - Bows, long range heavy hitter, green magic, white magic, arcana magic, time magic, black magic

Basch, lvl 29, > 2000 HP - Axes & Hammers, Katana, heavy close range hitter, white mage

Ashe, lvl 29, > 2000 HP - Swords, close range light attacker, white mage, black magic, green magic

Penelo, lvl 29, > 2000 HP - Dagger, heavy close range hitter, white magic, black magic, arcana magic

GOLMORE JUNGLE = HUGE BATTLE CHAINS!

those panthers keep respawning real quick and they give good exp....

i was like

vaan knight sword
ashe knight sword
penelo bow

b/c like whatever

i would use sword but man the knight swords were like u know stronger atk and then shields not used too much i saw i dunno used sword enemies die faster in places u know that was good

Seriously, though, I didn't really used anybody else. Vaan, Ashe and Penelo were like at level 68 while the rest of my party was around 15 oh my that is truly some good stuff.

I don't think I could go through the game without using all my characters. Sure I have my favorites, but...I'd be lost if one of them were to die and I couldn't swap that person out with someone of equal power and strength.

well.. mine don't die...

Vaan - Swords/Shield

Fran - Bows and im starting to think katanas or spears (for zodiac spear)

Ashe - Swords /Shield (maybe mace soon?)

im gonna make either vaan or ashe use katanas and ninja swords just dont kno who

I also don't like to narrow my party down, I use everyone and make sure they are around the same level. I usually have the three males together, then switch out for the three females.

Vaan-{tank} Daggers(Swords) & Shield~ a little white magic and some time
Bashe-{warrior} Spear~ a bit of white magic
Balthier-{support} Gun~ some white and a little black magic

Ashe-{tank} Swords & Shield~ Most of the white magic
Pan- {warrior} Poles/Katana or Xbow~ a mix of both white and black magic
Fran-{support} Bow~ Most of the black magic

Pretty much everyone is balanced in magic, with a few such as ashe and fran leaning more toward one than the other. All have cure, most have cura. Of course the characters can equip other weapons right now, but those are the ones I prefer. I plan on giving Pan the Greatswords later on.

Blathier - Spears - i dont care of the LP ill get them all
Fran - Archer - i dont care of the LP ill get them all
Ashe - Sword and Shield - i dont care of the LP ill get them all

Vaan: Daggers/shields (thief)
Basch: Greatswords (Warrior)
Balthier: Guns/bombs (havent tried the bombs yet but i figure ill give em to him)
Fran: Bows/Spears (Definetely agree witht he guy who compared her to Freya, as thats exactly what i thought of when i first saw her.)
Ashe: Swords/shields/white magic (warrior)
Penelo: Rods/Staves/All magicks (Mage)

My 'Main' party = Vaan, Fran, Basche, but i use all of the characters equally.

Ashe- Swords and Shields - Main attacker
Bacsh- Swords - attacker
Fran- Bows - healer

What I personally like to do is have every type of top weapon / armor / accessory available in case I change my mind, like have Fran become an attacker and Vaan become a mage (just an example), so have all the resources available.

Oh and I also keep the weaker weapons / armor / accessories too.

i am still in the beggining of the game. I have stuck with light armor. Are there any places in the beginning of the game where I can purchase heavy armor.

Ditto. I don't have a main 3-person party. I do, however, have certain "jobs" that I switch in and out depending on the situation.

Vaan, lvl 29, > 2000 HP - Swords/Greatswords, heavy close-range hitter, black magic, white magic

Balthier, lvl 29, > 2000 HP - Crossbow, long range heavy attacker, white magic, black magic

Fran, lvl 28, 1750 HP - Bows, long range heavy hitter, green magic, white magic, arcana magic, time magic, black magic

Basch, lvl 29, > 2000 HP - Axes & Hammers, Katana, heavy close range hitter, white mage

Ashe, lvl 29, > 2000 HP - Swords, close range light attacker, white mage, black magic, green magic

Penelo, lvl 29, > 2000 HP - Dagger, heavy close range hitter, white magic, black magic, arcana magic

Im around those levels and my health isn't as nearly as high as yours? Please do explain.

Vaan-Tank/back-up Healer/Caster of Green/black magic
Basch-Tank/Back up healer/focused more on skills then augments
Balthier-Tank/Back up Healer/focused on augments

Vaan-vl 27: has a demonsbane and golden sheild and armor
fran-lvl20 and bathlier-lvl:22 equipped with a hammer
basch lvl:22 equipped with a hammer as well.

still workin on it.

Fran lvl 31 zodiac spear (party leader)
Basch lvl 32 barehanded / theif
Balthier lvl 31 barehanded / item mage

This team looks sexy.

vaan- thief - dagger/shield
basch - knight - greatsword
ashe - red mage - gun/magick

yea...cause vaan now has an 80 speed...that makes him a thief...or ninja.... automatically...right?

at this point my main party consists of:

Vaan: lvl82 zodiac spear
Balthier: lvl73 Golden axe/demon shield
Fraan: bow(I forget the name but it starts with a P)/ and bamboo arrows for poison

vaan- thief - dagger/shield
basch - knight - greatsword
ashe - red mage - gun/magick

yea...cause vaan now has an 80 speed...that makes him a thief...or ninja.... automatically...right?

Vaan's stats are just the nuts. The only drawback from having him in main party is that he might look a bit out of place standing next to Basch and Fran, quite possibly the 2 coolest looking FF characters ever. Or at least in the top 5.

Unfortunately for the rest of us, only a mofo like Basch can look badass in that vest. The rest of us would probably look like gay elvis impersonators.

true...true

Ashe - Deathbringer/Shield - Support/Assist DPS and heal/Buff and debuff
Vaan - Zodiac Spears - Main Fighter
Penelo (sp?) - Mystic armor/weapon - Healer/Nuker

Right now I'm only around lvl 32 but Penelo is able to cast Cure that heals for 500+ and Cura for 1100+, kinda ridiculous how just a few extra Magick point helps.

Vaan - Paladin (25)
Baltheir - Gunman (23)
Fran - Archer (23)

Basch - Spearman (14)
Ashe - White Mage (18)
Penelo - Thief (18)

Vaan lvl 71: Greatswords, Katanas, or Zodiac Spear. Full black and Dark magic. Some Green for status, some white for good healing (curaga) and some Time for Haste.

Ashe lvl65: Swords and shields, period. Full white and time magic

Basch lvl64: Greatswords, axes, and Spears. LImited healing magic. full green magic

Fran lvl58: Bows. Full White magic, lots of green magic, lots of Black magic.

Balthier lvl59: guns. Full time and green magic. Enough white to be back-up healer.

Penelo lvl56: Crossbows. Full white and black magic. One time magic for haste. some green for Protectga, shellga, brave, and faith.

All that is rough guess. some could be wrong, but most of it is accurate.

Vaan 57- Familiar in all gear and magic
Balthier 55- Familiar in all gear and magic
Basch 56- Familiar in all gear and magic

I don't get why people just focus on one class when you can have your hero be a knight/black mage/time mage/white mage/ etc. all in one with little training.

Hmmm took me a long time to settle on anything... but generally

Ashe - tank, fulltime. Sword and shield. Paladin stuff, so white magic, defensive, offensive, and magick power augments. Gambits Decoy, Cure, buff self.

Baltheir - Gun, technician. I used him on guys weak to gun (heavy defense), and on bosses for Wither tecknick (very nice). Since he doens't use magic, I used his MP for mist chains.

Vaan - Thief (nonbosses), Dagger/ninja sword/light DD/support magic/chemist. Some support magic. Got Chemist augments early, usually keep Pheasent Netsuke on him with Chemist gambits on bosses.

Bashe - Thief, Greatsword, heavy DD. No magick or Technicks. Just dishes out the damage without distractions. Had a few gambits for status items (smelling salts, eyedrops on self, etc). Used his MP for Mist chains with Balthier.

Fran - Bow, DD to flying, basically Red mage. All white, green, and time magic, so used her to haste/protect the whole party, and debuff (blind, slow, etc) bosses.

Panelo - Pure spellcaster. I power leveled her between battles, then ONLY used her on bosses for nuking, debuffing, heavy healing, hasting, whatever was needed at the time.

wow that looks like a really good setup, Synthia. i could never come up with something that complex. that's why i made mine like 3 basic builds for 6 chars.

vaan/basch - tanks/melee
panelo/ashe - spellcasters
balthier/fran - shooters (gun/bow)

i feel so noob now. my "strategy" is just making sure there's one of each for every team. so basically, i always have vaan, panelo and balthier as one team, and basche, ashe and fran as my other team.

simple huh? i still can't help i'm not using this system to its full potential like Synthia's setup. it just seems more awesome than mine. >.<

wow that looks like a really good setup, Synthia. i could never come up with something that complex. that's why i made mine like 3 basic builds for 6 chars.

Haha thankyou! I appreciate the complement.

I loved the part of the game where you got to choose "jobs" for your characters, and make up new ideas for how characters would work and I think that shows in what I did with them.

Honestly though, I think the licensing game mechanic is a little disappointing because probably the "best" strategy is just to have everyone wield deathbringers, shields, and use some white and support magic, then have everyone learn Flare just in case they use immune to physical. Which is just a shame because... BORING.

I like to make things more complex. Makes the game more fun. I also like swapping in characters, having them do something, then swapping out. It works a lot like FFX that way in my mind. I was always doing that in X.

I really encourage use of the Chemist "job", though. I think that's one thing that is actually complex AND useful. With Pheasant Netsuke it's actually really powerful, and you don't have to waste MP! Phoenix downs will always heal from death to full health, Hi ethers heal about 500 MP and X Potions about 4000. Having someone to cure every status ailment in their gambits with items is also quicker and more efficient then using spells to do it.

what is pheasant netsuke? is that an item? O_o

i've barely entered the phon coast. haven't come across that at all whether it be a item or a technike

what is pheasant netsuke? is that an item? O_o

i've barely entered the phon coast. haven't come across that at all whether it be a item or a technike

It is an accessory that lets your curative items go completely bonkers. Very useful.

awesome. i actually baught some cause now i'm in archades and they had it for sale. also. i'm really happy they're finally selling xpotions now. weee.

right now i'm trying to take advantage of the unlimited guards coming from the elevator trick in draklor's laboratory. :p

All my guys are level 53, I'm at the Pharos at Ridorana.

So far, most of my guys are proficient with more than one weapon class, I'll try to remember them all because I'm too lazy to boot up XII.

Vaan : Spears/Katanas, Tank/Subtank class. Knows all except rank 6-7 magic. Proficient with heavy armor.

Basch : Greatswords/Great Katanas, Tank/DD class. No magic, but all techs. Heavy Armor.

Balthier : Gun/Crossbow/Hand Grenade, Debuff/buff. All Magic, all techs. Light/Mystic armor.

Fran : All weapons. Jack of all trades. All magic/techs. All armor.

Penelo : Hammers/Daggers/Guns. Healer/Summoner. All magic/all summons. Mystic/light armor.

Ashe : Swords/shields/Katanas. Back up heal/debuff/buff. All magic/techs. All armor.

Vaan - Katana/Sword and Shield - All Tekniks
Balthier - Gun/Greatswords - All Time, White, Green, Dark and Black
Fran - Bows - Same as Balthier

So, all my guys are lvl 90's now and they are all basically the same - same ridiculous stats after all the gear is on, same absurd hp, damage, etc, and all have entire license grid unlocked for no good reason just to get that piece of the Pirate's Den unlocked.

All that's left for me to base who - uses - what on is aesthetic appeal.

Ashe - Ragnarok. (red sword, red skirt)
Basch - Tournesol (blonde hair, bright clothes, bright sword)
Baltheir - Excalibur (clean cut guy, pretty boy pretty sword)
Vaan - Masamune (plain looking guy, plain looking sword)
Penelo - Ultima Weapon (this makes perfect sense when you see her paddling zombies with the stupid looking thing)
Fran - Zodiac Spear (she looks good with anything, but the spear makes her hit 9999)

Vaan - icebrand, golden shield (lvl 32)
Ashe - Storm Rod (lvl 32) <-- Ashe = Crazy spellcaster. cura heals for 1500 ^_^, and gets stronger every level.
Basch - some spear (lvl 32)

All the rest are crap.

I go between 2 parites as well.

Vaan - level 49 - swords & shield/Katanas/Axes - light healer
Balthier - level 49 - Poles & spears/Guns - light healer
Fran - level 49 - Bows - Red Mage, all magics

Basch - level 49 - Swords & shield/Katanas/Hammers - light healer
Ashe - level 49 - Sword & shield - Red Mage - all magics
Penelo - level 49 - Daggers & shield/Swords - Red Mage - all magics

Eventually they will have all licenses.

Also Penelo, Ashe, and Balthier have 1 summon each. All 3 have all their Quickenings as well.

Vaan---Sword and shields---???
Penelo----Katanas----whitemage
Basch----Two-handed swords----Knight

For some reason, i rarely change out members...but still keep them all at decent Lvs...heh...

currently, i would believe my party consists of only the girls. I'm training them all to be the same level (i got the cheat book and saw the final boss and decided this was a good idea) So this would be their current 'job' status and weapons:

Penelo: Melee/ Mage- Lances/ poles
Ashe: Melee- Lances/ long swords
Fran: Mage- Knows most of the magic board, uses Lances. Back up/ all around character

Vaan: Back up, all around Character. Knows almost all of the magic board and uses a variety of close combat weapons
Bash: Fighter- Axes and Hammers. Knows only white Magic
Balthier: currently working on his status aliements. Helps with taking down monsters. Long range weapons most of the time. Knows mainly green and arcane magic.

All of my characters are roughly around level 30, with more LP than they can handle. I would believe Penelo has the most HP (tis somewhere in the 2000's if i remember correctly). All have their quickenings, and i would believe that each one has one summoning..that or only Vaan and Ashe have one. I dnt remember i haven't played it in a while. I just have their names plastered across the License board map that i have stuck on my wall....

In general you really shouldn't revive 2 year old threads, but you've made a substantive comment, and there isn't another one like this that is active, so it can stay open, I suppose.

In the future, please take note of the age of a thread before posting. If a thread is on the first page of a given forum, they are usually of an acceptable age.

Well, since this is still on the front page...I should contribute.

My party is Ashe (party leader), Vaan, and Bashe. They all have Deathbringers and Crystal Shields. This is only until I can get the ribbons from Lv.99 Red Chocobo's and start using my Demon Shields (or whatever they are called...the ones with amazing evade, but give all of the negative status effects).