Technical Seiken Densetsu 3 Faq
Meeple Lard
Date 9/19/01, Version 3.0

Table of Contents:
1.Introduction
2.Back Ground
3.Terms to know
4.Damage Calculations
5.Stat and Equipment Calculations
6.Spell Calculations
7.Stat Ups and Stat Down Calculations
8.Rumors that these Calculations have Proven False
9.Miscellaneous Stuff
10.Other Faqs to Read
11.Version History
12.Credits
13.Legal Stuff

1.Introduction
Hi there all you viewers.  If you're reading this, then it must be 
posted.  This is my Second Faq, for those who don't know.  My first was 
a Faq for the Same Game, Seiken Densetsu 3, on the Character Hawk.  
This one is a bit different.  If you ever wondered how the Game figures 
out things like damage, or if you wondered things like "Do Sabers 
Effect Techs?" this is where most of those Questions will be answered.  
This Faq is dedicated to all the technical Stuff within the game Seiken 
Densetsu.  Please realize that this is not a regular Faq or a 
Walkthrough, but an Information Guide so that you can see certain 
Aspects of the game and whether some rumors related to this are true or 
false.  Anyway, Lets Start.

2.Back Ground
For those who don't know what this game is, this is an explanation of 
it.  The Game is the Prequel of Secret of Mana, or in Japan, Seiken 
Densetsu 2.  In other words, this Game was made after, but takes place 
way before the events in Secret of Mana.  The game is an Action RPG or 
an Adventure as some people might consider it.  The story is about in a 
land where Mana is source that brings life; the Goddess has sealed 8 
mighty Creatures called the God Beasts in 8 Mana Stones.  Years later, 
Mana is fading from the world, and the Mana Tree, which is the current 
form of the Goddess, is slowly Dying.  A few Malicious Hearted people 
have decided to take this time to receive the Mana Sword, the mightiest 
Relic in the World, which houses Power even Greater than the Goddess 
herself.  To do this, they must release the power of the 8 Mana stones 
and Open the gate to the Mana Holy land.  The Goddess sent Faeries to 
find the Chosen ones for the Sword to save the world.  Only one makes 
it, but that's all that was needed.  6 teenagers are chosen.  This is 
where you come in.  You choose 3 of the six, the first is the Main 
Character, and the other 2 are the supporting ones.  The 6 you could 
choose from are:
Duran the Swords Man Mercenary of Forcena
Angela the Magician Princess of Altena
Kevin the Half Beast Man Grappler, Prince of the Beast Kingdom
Carlie the Half Elf Cleric Granddaughter of the Light Priest of Wendel
Hawk the Thief from the Navarre Thieves Guild
Lise the Amazoness Princess of Rolante

Now, the game was not released in the US.  Some people imported the 
Cart from Japan, but a few people translated the game into English and 
made a patch for the rom.  Most people who played this Game in the US 
use the Rom, but a few have the Cart.  Anyway, this game was a big Hit 
in Japan, but never released anywhere else since the game had a bunch 
of bugs in it.  Anyway, this Faq is dedicated to how the Game works 
things out.

3. Terms you should know
FS=Full Screen- Hits all enemies on the Screen, regardless
ST=Single Target-Always hits one enemy
MT=Multi Target- Can be chosen to be FS or ST
T=Tech (used in conjuction with FS and ST)-A move used by the B button 
(default) when your Attack Bar reaches a high enough point
WF=Wolf Forms- At night Time, Kevin becomes a wolf, which makes him a 
different Character in a way
SU=Stat Up- Spell or Item that raises Stats of your Characters
SD=Stat Down-Spell or Item that lowers Stats of the Enemy
HP=Hit Points-how much damage your character can take before they die
MP=Magic Points-The amount of Spells that can be used (spells cost a 
different amount of MP)
STR=Strength-Stat that Effects your Attack Power
AGL=Agility-Stat that effects your Hit and Evade Rates
VIT=Vitality-Stat that Effects your HP and Defense
INT=Intelligence-Stat that effects MOST of your Offensive Magic and 
Magic Defense
SPR=Spirit-Stat that effects your MP, healing, and power of Summons and 
Holy Spells
Luck-Stat that affects your Trap Rate from chests, Rare Item Rate from 
chests, and Critical hit rate
DEF=Defense-The amount you defend against Physical attacks
ATK=Attack-Related to Physical Attacks
MAG=Magic-Related to Magic Attacks
PWR=Power-How much damage you deal
EVD=Evade-How often your Character Dodges attacks
CC=Class Change-When a Character becomes a New more powerful Class
LL=Light Light-Character Class Changed to the Light Side both times
LD=Light Dark-Character Class Changed Light First, then went Dark
DL=Dark Light-Character went Dark First then Light
DD=Dark Dark-Character went Dark both times.
FC=Final Class-Class achieved after the 2nd Class change, all Light 
Light, Light Dark, Dark Light, and Dark Dark Classes are Final Classes. 
Light Classes- Includes Light, Light Light, and Light Dark classes
Dark Classes- Includes Dark, Dark Light, and Dark Dark Classes.
Schematic of classes:
                 Light Light
                 /
            Light
            /     \
           /       Light Dark
    Neutral
           \      Dark Light
            \    /
             Dark
                 \
                  Dark Dark

So, on the Menu screen, an Arrow up means Light and an Arrow down means 
Dark when showing the Possible Class Changes.

4.Damage Calculations
Now, this is for the Sole purpose of how Damage is dealt in this Game.

For Regular attacks, The Characters ATK PWR subtracted by the Enemies 
Defense Power is the base damage.  Then, 1 point of Damage is randomly 
added or subtracted from that amount.  If the amount is 0 or Negative, 
then the damage dealt is 1.

Magic Attacks follow a similar rule.  The rule is the MAG PWR of the 
spell subtracted by the MAG DEF of the enemy.  Then, a few minor points 
of damage are randomly added or subtracted (depends upon the Spell).  
For elemental spells, they do 1.25 the damage they do on their elements 
day, but .75 on their Opposite elements day.  This is a chart the 
opposites:
Salamando (Fire) - Undine (Ice and Water)
Jinn (Wind and Thunder) - Gnome (Earth)
Dryad (Leaf and Woof) - Luna (Moon)
Wisp (Light and Holy) - Shade (Darkness)
The only significance the Mana Holy Day has is that it makes Inns free.  
Also, people believe that Light spells are stronger at Day and Dark at 
Night, but this is false.  Day and Night determine other random factors 
like Kevin's WFs and Enemies are examples.

When an Enemy is weak against an Elemental attack, the Spell does 2x 
the damage it would normally do.

Now, for techs, they each follow this rule:
Level 1 techs: 2x the characters ATK PWR
Level 2 techs: 2.5x the characters ATK PWR
Level 3 techs: 3.5x the characters ATK PWR
NOTE: Level 2 and 3 techs don't add the random numbers.

So, for example, if you take the Duelist, who has an ATK PWR of 351, 
and put it up against an Enemy who has a DEF of 100, then the Damage 
dealt would be:
Regular Attacks: 250-251
Level 1 tech: 500-502
Level 2 Tech: 625
Level 3 Tech: 825

Now, that applies for MAG damage as well, only it's much harder to show 
examples since they don't give you the MAG PWR of each spell.

Now, if Sabers were on the Weapon, then we simply double the ATK PWR of 
that character (providing the enemy has a weakness to that element), 
but note that Sabers DO NOT affect Level 2 and 3 techs.

So, the Duelist in the same situation has Thunder Saber cast on his 
weapon against the same enemy who is weak against Thunder:
Regular attack: 601-603 points of damage
Level 1 tech: 999 points of damage.
NOTE: 999 is the max damage dealt by 1 attack

Now, these might seem a little high, but that's because I was using an 
Extremely Strong Character vs. an enemy with a Mediocre Defense.  The 
Results won't be so high in the game.

So, now that damage is out of the way, on to Stats.

5. Stat and Weapon Calculations.

First we'll start with ATK PWR, since that's what we were discussing.

The rule of ATK PWR is this:
STR x Weapon's Power (lowest is 2, highest is 15) + Bonus (depends on 
Weapon)

Now, we'll be doing Calculations with the Strongest Equipment, since 
it's a lot easier to work with that stuff, and there is the most 
variety of Best Equipment.  This also takes away from the Confusion 
Factor.  So basically, all weapons we will be discussing have a Weapon 
power of 15, but most have much lower, remember that these are the 
Strongest Equipment.

Now, the order of Average STR the characters have goes in this order 
from Best to worst:
Duran
Lise
Kevin
Hawk
Angela and Carlie

So, Duran has the Highest ATK PWR while Angela and Carlie have the 
Lowest.  
So, every point of STR with the Strongest Weapon means 15 points of 
damage more not including the modifiers from the bonuses that come 
after.

Now, if 2 Classes have Equal STR, then to determine the Higher ATK PWR, 
you go by the Bonuses.  The bonuses from highest to lowest go as 
follows:
Neutral Weapons are Weakest
Light Weapons or LL Weapons are 2 points stronger than Neutral weapons
Dark Weapons or LD Weapons are 2 points Higher than Light or LL weapons
DL weapons are +2 to LD weapons
DD weapons are strongest at +2 to DD weapons.

So, basically, if you take the God Hand (Kevin's LL) and the Dervish 
(Kevin's DD), both of which have an STR of 18, the Dervish would have a 
Higher ATK PWR by 6 points since it's a DD class and the God Hand is a 
LL.  Now, granted, 6 points is very little, but Square probably made a 
few point differences in ATK PWR to make sure that No class of the same 
character was equally as strong.

Next, if 2 classes have the Same STR but are NOT from the Same 
Character, then this system follows with the Bonus Modifiers:
Duran has the weakest weapons.
Lise's weapons are +1 to Duran's
Kevin's weapons are +1 to Lise's
Hawk's weapons are +1 to Kevin's
Angela's and Carlie's Weapons are +4 to Hawk's

The test for this:
Take the STR of the Character with their Best Weapon, Multiply that by 
15, and then subtract that from their ATK PWR.  Your result is the ATK 
PWR bonus.  The way I did it was looked at the Duelists ATK PWR 
(Duelist has Highest STR in the game with 22), which is 351.  
Multiplied 22x15 and got 330.  Subtract and you get 21.  So for I did a 
Check for the DD Class of Each Character, since the Duelist is DD.  
Now, here's each DD class and their MAX ATK PWR and their STR:
Lise: Fenrir Knight, 19 STR, 307 ATK PWR
Kevin: Dervish, 18 STR, and 293 ATK PWR
Hawk: Night Blade, 18 STR, and 294 ATK PWR
Angela: Magus, 16 STR, and 268 ATK PWR
Carlie: Evil Shaman, 17 STR, and 283 ATK PWR

NOTE: DD classes don't always have the Highest STR, just the Strongest 
Weapons if all classes had equal STR.

So, the most significant Aspect for ATK PWR is the STR of the 
Character, then the Type of Class he/she is, and then what character 
they are.  This means that although the Paladin (Duran's LL) has the 
Weakest Weapon, since his STR is higher than the other characters, he 
has a Higher ATK PWR than the others.  Yet, while the STR of the 
Paladin is the same as the Lord (Duran's LD) and the Sword Master 
(Duran's DL), he is weaker than both since he is a LL class, and his 
best weapon is weaker.

Now, on to Defense and Armor.
Defense is figured out through a similar Method as ATK PWR.  The Rule 
for DEF is:
VIT x Armor Defense (Lowest is 2 and highest is 14) + Bonus

Now, the difference between ATK PWR and DEF is that in DEF you can't 
Surpass 300, while in ATK PWR, you can go as high as it allows.  It is 
possible for all characters to Reach a 300 DEF, but some have an Easier 
time than others.  The Order of VIT for each character from Highest to 
Lowest is:
Kevin
Duran
Lise
Hawk
Angela
Carlie 

Now, the interesting thing about VIT is that all the FC's of one 
character have equal Vitality.  The one exception to the rule is the 
Rune Master, who has 1 point Higher in VIT than the other 3 classes of 
Angela's, and that is why she is ranked higher than Carlie even though 
she generally has the Same VIT as her.  Now, there are 2 reasons that 
let each Character Max out their DEF.  They Are:
Accessories and Helmets add to DEF and are not related to the 
Character's Stats.
The other is that the Difference in Armor Bonus is much higher than 
that of the Weapon Bonuses.

I can't say exactly what each of the Armor Bonuses is, but I can give 
you who have the highest and lowest in that order:
Carlie
Angela
Hawk
Lise
Duran
Kevin

So, its not unlikely that early in the game, Angela and Carlie could 
have a Higher Def than Kev, even though his VIT is higher.  When it 
comes to difference in Armor for Classes, it really does not matter 
much in the Long run, since they all are going to gain the 300 DEF mark 
at some point.

Now, the Helmets and Accessories work differently.  They don't include 
VIT in anyway.  Instead, they have there own Constant Defense rating.  
For instance:
A certain Helmet would raise DEF by 3 points and MAG DEF by 1 point
Another Helmet would raise DEF by 5 points and MAG DEF by 2 points.
You see.  It's just added on, not effected by your VIT or INT in 
anyway.

Speaking of INT, I would say its time for MAG DEF.  MAG DEF follows the 
same system as DEF only with INT instead, so this is the system: 
INT x Armor MAG DEF + Bonus.

Now, unlike all the other 2 stats, all the characters have the Same MAG 
DEF ratings for their Armor.  There are only 2, although, which follow 
this system:
The first half of the armor you get is INT x 4 + 7
The Second half of the Armor you get is INT x 8

That means, in all cases, the Character with Highest INT (Considering 
Equivalent Armor is equipped, no doubt) will have the Highest MAG DEF 
of the party.  The order of INT ratings from Highest to lowest is as 
follows:
Angela
Carlie
Lise
Hawk
Duran and Kevin

Now, Helmets and Accessories, like in DEF, play a similar role in MAG 
DEF, as they just Add points to that rating, don't involve INT in 
anyway.  Also, like with Weapons, the darker the Helmets and 
Accessories, the Higher the Ratings.  But the difference is only a 
point or 2, so it's not much of a difference.

Now, for Evade.  I can't tell exactly how Much Agility effects evade, 
but I believe it raises Differently for Every point of Agility.  For 
instance, if you have raise Agility from 16 to 17, you Evade might go 
up by 2 points.  If you raise Agility from 17 to 18, it might only go 
up one.  Now, the only other thing that Effects Agility is Shields, and 
the only Classes that can equip them are Duran's Light Classes (Knight, 
Paladin, Lord) all shields raise Duran's Evade by 20 points, with one 
Exception.  That exception is the Adamant Shield, which raises Evade by 
25 points.

For Shields that protect against Elemental Attacks, it defends against 
it by 1/3, which is significantly lower damage, but it's not always 
that noticeable.  Anyway, here are the Special Elemental Shields and 
what they defend against:
Thunder God Shield ->Thunder/wind
Red Heat Shield -> Fire
Water Dragon Shield -> Water/Ice
Earth Shield -> Earth
Sacred Shield -> All Elements

6. Spell Calculations

Each spell is affected by different Stat and each Spell is affected 
differently by that Stat.  Here's a list of spell types and what they 
are effected by:
Intelligence: Basic Elemental Spells, Hawk's Jutsu Spells (not agility, 
like many believe), Angela's Ultimate Spells, any spell with the Word 
Breath in it, Black Rain, Poison Bubble, and Carlie's Summons

Spirit: Holy Elemental Spells, Healing Spells, and Lise's Summons.

Agility: Throwing and trap spells
NOTE: This applies for equivalent Items as well, so a High Spirit 
character best throws Poto Oils, or Coins by a High INT character.

Now, we'll start with Basic elemental spells, or in other words, the 
Spells that Angela Learns and the Jutsus Hawk Learns (Carlie also 
learns the Holy elemental ones in her Light Classes)
The damage Calculations for all of Angela's Spells are (remember to 
swap SPR for INT when working with Holy ball And Saint Beam):
INT x (MP Cost + Spell Power Factor)

The Factor for each spell goes as follows:
Level 1's are 15
Level 2's are 25
Level 3's are 35
Ultimate Spells are 30
Jutsus are 17

So, for the Spell Dark Force (5 MP level 2 spell) in the Rune Master 
form its:
21 x (5 + 25)=630

Now, for the spell Fire Ball (2 MP level 1 spell) in the Magus form 
its:
22 x (2 + 15) = 374

NOTE: These are estimates, not exact Values, as they are subtracted 
from the Enemies MAG DEF, and there is no way of telling how high those 
are.

Now, if it were Salamndo's day, for instance, then the Formula for Fire 
Spells would be:
1.25 (MAG PWR)
For Ice and Water Spells on the same day, its: .75(MAG PWR)
This does not apply for Jutsus, only the regular elemental spells, as 
the Jutsus, although you need the Proper spirit to cast it, Hawk casts 
it himself, as opposed to Angela who calls the spirit who casts it on 
the enemy.

That was an example of how days effect spells.  For other what days 
affect what kind of spells, refer to section 4.

Now, with Carlie's Summons, each have their own Equation: 
Unicorn: INT x (MP Cost + 15)
Golem: INT x (MP Cost + 15)
Ghoul: INT x (MP Cost + 20)
Ghost: INT x (MP Cost + 20)
Gremlin: INT x (MP Cost + 20)
Great Demon: INT x (MP Cost + 20)

Now, these Spells are a bit off like the earlier ones, but they are 
close enough to work.  Remember, random Numbers are configured in.

Lise's Summons are based on Spirit.  Unfortunately, they all have 
different Calculations, so it's really hard to tell their Calculations.  
In a later Update they might appear.  Anyway, the order of the Strength 
in the Summons is (Strongest to Weakest):
Jormungand
Lamia Naga
Marduke
Freya

NOTE: On the Cart, Lamia Naga is Stronger than Jormungand, but this is 
based on the Rom.

Now, when it comes to Healing, there is only 1 spell that heals: Heal 
Light.  Heal Light is affected 35 points per SPR point.  Its hard to 
tell the Exact Equation, But I believe its SPR x 25, that's a little 
off, but it seems to work although, but also, that's only when its ST.

That brings me to my Next point, MT vs. ST.  Now, here's the basic 
ratio of when a Spell is used vs. 3 to when the same spell under same 
Conditions is used vs. 1: 3 to 4.

Lets show use an example:
Suppose you cast a spell that does 400 points of damage to 1 enemy.  
Your Character learns to MT that spell, yet does not raise the Stat 
that Effects the Spell.  You now try it on a group of 3 of those 
enemies; it would do 300 points of damage.  Now, these are estimates, 
but they are relatively Accurate, though.

Now, for the Spells Affected by Agility:
First 3 Trap Spells: AGL x (MP Cost + 10)
Land Mine: AGL x (MP Cost + 15) 
Rogue's Flying Weapon Spells: AGL x (MP Cost + 15)
Shurikens and Deadly Weapon: AGL x (MP Cost + 20)
Black Rain: INT x (MP Cost + 15)

Now there are a few Spells I left out, but that's because either I 
can't figure out the Equation, or had not have had a chance to test the 
spells.  In an Update, they will most likely be there.

7. Stat Up and Stat Down Calculations

In this game, certain Spells or Items Actually raise your Stats or 
lower the Enemies.  The spells that do so are:
The Spells Lise Learns as a Valkyrie are SU
The Spells Lise Learns as a Rune Maiden are SD
The Spell Magic Shield Learned by the Bishop (Carlie's LL class) is an 
SU
Pressure Point learned by Kevin's Light Classes is an SU
All spells the Ninja Learns (Hawk's Dark Class) have SD side effects to 
them
The Spell Black Curse used by the Necromancer (Carlie's DL) is an SD
Demon Breath used by the Evil Shaman (Carlie's DD) has SD side effects 
to them

The concept behind SU's and SD's and how much they raise them by is 
rather simple.  Take the current Stat it's raising (IE ATK PWR for PWR 
Up and Pressure Point) and raise it by 1/3.  So if your character has a 
DEF of 300, and you use Protect up on him/her, then that character now 
has a DEF of 400
NOTE: Max Def applies to Armor Only; SU's can let that character exceed 
that max Def temporarily
SD's work the exact same way, only Subtract 1/3 of the Stat instead of 
adding 1/3 of the stat.  For instance, you have a MAG DEF of 99, and 
some one casts Mind Down on you (lowers MAG PWR and MAG DEF), that 
character now has a MAG DEF of 66.
All Stat Changes do not matter whether they are MT or ST, they will 
always raise the Stats by the same amount.  Also, as I said before, 
they will last until Nullified, Countered with the Opposite effect, 
character/enemy dies, or battle ends.  Also, MT Spells are NOT casted 
any slower than the ST version of the spell.
NOTE: NO stat spell affects stats like STR or INT, just the stats 
altered by them.


Now, the Next SU's and SD's that are going to be discussed are the ones 
that Alter HP.  3 Spells/Skills do so: Lunatic (Lowers), Deadly Weapon 
(lowers) and Life Booster (Raises) The amount they Raise the Stat by is 
1/5 only, though, and the effect Does Wear Off over time, unlike the 
other Stat Effecting Spells which last until the Battles over, the 
Effects are nullified through Star dust herbs, Anti Magic, or the 
spells Opposite (IE Speed Down Overrides Speed Up if cast Second, and 
vice Versa) or if the character dies.  These spells were off in the 
same way, but last a limited time as well.  Also, if a characters HP is 
lowered and his Current HP is Higher than that of his NEW max HP, his 
HP drops to the Current Max.

Now, Kevin's Wolf Forms.  The only things they affect are his ATK PWR 
by 1/7.  So in Wolf Form, he is 1/7 stronger than his Human Form.

Now, for some reason, the God Hand's Golden Wolf Form (Kevin's LL) gets 
not only the Wolf Upgrade in damage, but the same effect as if he was 
Pressure Pointed.  I discovered this when his Attack Power Sky Rocketed 
to 440, which is higher than 1/7 of his usual power, 287.  I then used 
an Attack Up spell on him (many ones actually) and it did not raise 
above 440.

8. Rumors that These Calculations have Proven False:

"Ninja Master is Stronger than the Night Blade"

If you read my Hawk Faq, then you know I like the Ninja Master the best 
of Any Class.  But, I do admit the Night Blade is stronger, and I 
always have admitted it.  Now, if you compare the STR and the Weapons 
of Both Classes, you see No doubt that the Night Blade is Stronger than 
the Ninja Master

"FSTs are Weaker than STTs"

Yet again, false.  All techs are based on the Attack Power of the 
Character.  The higher the Attack Power, the Stronger the Tech.  This 
proves that Eruption Sword is the Strongest of the Level 3 techs.  
Whether FSTs suffer when hitting multiple Enemies, I have yet to Find 
out, but on bosses and Single Enemies, ATK PWR means everything.

"Counter Magic repels Magic as the elemental, so you will end up 
healing the God Beasts instead of hurting them" 
 
This is not entirely false, but it's not true either.  You see, it does 
repel it as an Elemental, but the thing is that the Enemy gets dealt a 
ridiculously Small amount instead of being healed, so it's still useful 
to cast on yourself.  The proof of this is when I used Counter Magic 
against Zable Fahr, his Evil Gate Spell got reflected and he was dealt 
0 points of Damage.  Now, I know he Absorbs darkness, since he casts 
Evil Gate on himself to heal, thus proving that he is Dark Elemental.  
Now, if Counter Magic Reflects Spells at a much weaker Proportion (kind 
of like Reflect in the Final Fantasy Series), then that might explain 
why he was dealt 0 instead of Absorbing it, since Magic's Minimun 
damage using the Equation without Absorption thrown in is 0, as a 
opposed to Physical's Minimum which is 1.

"The Magus Casts Spells faster than any of Angela's other classes" and 
similar situations as well.

This is really false.  Well, when comparing FC's it is.  All of the 
characters Final Classes with the Same spells, MT or ST versions, cast 
spells at the same Speed, regardless.  For instance, all of Carlie's 
Final Classes can cast MT Heal Light instantly, regardless of the fact 
that her Bishop has a Spirit of 22 while the Evil Shaman has a spirit 
of 20.  Now, sure Bishop casts it faster than the Priestess or the 
Enchantress (and Kevin's or Duran's Heal Lights, but they are different 
characters so it does not apply here), but not any faster than the Evil 
Shaman, Necromancer, or Sage, all of which are Carlie's Final Classes.  
This also applies for Second Classes as well.  Example being that the 
Delvar can "Cast Level 1 spells faster than the Sorcerress" which is 
not true, since they both cast spells in the same amount of time.  The 
Ninja Master and Night Blade are another example.  Both cast Shurikens 
almost instantly, and cast Jutsus in the same amount of time as well. 
Same as the SU's for the Vanadis and the Star Lancer or the SD's of the 
Dragon Master and the Fenrir Knight. So, classes of equal Level's 
(referring to What kind of class like First, Second or Final, not the 
literal levels). So don't choose a class if you heard somewhere that it 
"Cast Spells faster than its Alternatives" because it does not.

"Duran's Recovery rate is much slower than anyone else's"

This is probably the worst lie someone could come up with.  If you 
played Secret of Mana, you'd remember that all 3 characters get their 
attack Gauges up just as fast as the other 2, no matter which one it 
was.  A similar idea appears in this game.  Instead of the Attack Gauge 
where you can attack but deal less damage than if you waited, you can 
Attack but then the character has to Recover for a short while until he 
gets back into a fighting pose.  That is what is meant by "Recovery 
Rate" in this game.  Anyway, all Characters take equal times to recover 
from each attack.  Even Hawk in the Ninja Master Form who has the 
Highest Agility (Seems to be the only stat that would effect it if any 
did) against Carlie as a Cleric or Angela as a Magician (Both Neutral 
Classes and both have the Lowest Agility) at level 1 would attack at 
the same rate.  The only reason characters like Hawk and Kevin seem to 
have less recovery time is because they Attack 2x every time you push 
the A button.  But the time between the Second attack and the First of 
the next set is the same as the time between each attack of Duran's (or 
any other character for that matter) swings.  Another reason why people 
choose Duran is that he has the most noticeable recovery pose.  
Characters like Hawk, Lise and Kevin all have their Weapons up and look 
sort of ready and when they get into their attack pose, not much 
appears to change.  Duran has to Drag his sword around and then Raise 
it, but that takes just as long as it does for other characters to 
recover.  To make things short, all characters have Equal Recovery 
Rates, and its all-psychological if it seems longer.  Also note that if 
a Character is hit while in their Recovery Pose, they will be forced to 
start it over again.  Generally, this applies a lot for Duran as well, 
since a lot people use him up as a Close range fighter where he easily 
gets hit, as a opposed to a Semi-long range fighter which he does well 
in too.  

More too come...
9.Miscellaneous Stuff

-Whatever I notice I missed out on.

More to come...

10. Other Faqs to read

Here are a list of Faqs that are really good IMO, not including my own.

First of all, if your looking for Good info on the Whole game it self, 
check out Ryu Seiryuu's Faq.  There are a lot of Faqs on the whole 
game, but his, IMO, is the best one out there.  His Faq is still being 
updated every now and then.  Now, what makes his Faq stand out is the 
Fact that he got other Board Members such as myself to give their 
opinions on stuff like Classes and Boss tactics, so you see multiple 
point of views.  As a person, he's perhaps the most respected member on 
the SD3 board, since he's been there a long time, knows a lot about the 
game, and shares his Knowledge with others to Help them, not to show 
off.  His Faq is truly worth Reading.

Next, Tw1light, a fellow board member and of Friend of mine on the 
boards too.  He created the first In Depth Character Faq.  His was on 
Duran, and he has finished it already.  He put everything he could 
about Duran in the Faq, and showed people that Duran DOES NOT suck like 
many people think.  I gave input to his Faq as well.  But he's done 
more.  He's also written a Single Character Challenge Faq for those who 
want a bit of a Challenge in the game.  GO there to get the Rules and 
tips for playing one.  I have already finished the challenge once with 
the Ninja Master and am attempting it again with the Dragon Master.  
Both faqs are worth Reading.

Lord Zero is another Character Faq writer, and the one who inspired me 
to write my Hawk Faq.  He did a Faq on Lise in the same way Tw1light 
did one on Duran.  It's the best info you could find if you want to 
know everything you can about Lise and her classes.  He also included 
some Norse Mythology that relates to her.  For those who speak Spanish, 
he wrote a Spanish Faq for the game as well.  He's also a fellow Board 
Member, so expect to see him on the boards from time to time.

Now, an AIM friend of mine also wrote a Character Faq, his on Angela.  
His name is Thunda Snake.  His faq is still in the early Stages, since 
it was written not too long ago, but its Still worth Reading.  But 
don't e-mail him saying the Grand Divina Sucks, as he likes that class 
a lot more than I like the Ninja Master.

Another Character Faq that is good to look at is Veib's Kevin Faq.  He 
did a good job on expanding the basic strategy of Kevin, "Beat Down all 
the enemies in your Path" into a well-developed Faq.  If you need good 
info on Kevin, then his Faq is definitely worth reading.

The Sixth Character Faq on Carlie has finally been created just 
recently.  It was made by Anemo, yet another Board Member.  His is in 
its Early Stages but its still good to check out, and by the looks of 
it, it could become a rather well developed one after a few updates.  
Despite its youth, its still a good idea to check it out for Info on 
Carlie.

Now, there is a HUGE Faq in the making which is a COMPLETE Class faq by 
Paul Wolfstien.  He actually owns the cart, so his results in certain 
areas come out a bit different.  Still, he knows a lot about the game, 
and although I disagree with him on many occasions, I do respect him, 
as many others do.  His Faq is currently taking Opinions, and that's a 
big plus, as you can see the other views on classes.  Look for this one 
in the future as well.

11 Version History:
Version 1.0-Faq was created
Version 2.0-Added Miscellaneous Section
Version 3.0-Added more to the Rumors Section, added info on shields, 
added to the advertisement Section, changed the name of versions in 
Version Updates.

12. Credits.
I would like to first give credit to Square Soft for creating an 
amazing game.  Next, Gamefaqs for their great site and Message Board I 
never leave (almost anyway) I would also like to thank all those board 
members who supported the idea of doing this Faq.  I would also like to 
give my thanks to Gyara Man for, yet again, inspiring me to do this, 
and Eternal Spirit for helping in ways to figure it out.

13. Legal Stuff.
This Faq is a copyright of Meeple Lard, Copy Right year 2001.  If you 
want to use this Faq to help you in anyway, contact me at my E-mail:
DBZfflord@aol.com
It can be found at www.gamefaqs.com and there only.  All updates can be 
found there as well.

This Is Meeple Lard saying good day, and hope you enjoyed my Faq on 
Technicalities.  Be sure to look for updates in the Future.  And if you 
can, check out my other Faq on Hawk if you need info on that elusive 
Character.

Good Bye, all of you, and Good Luck in the future.
