Darlavon's Lectures

Darlavon is a famed, but long-winded lecturer at the Gariland Military Academy. Some of his famed lectures are so famed that they are inscribed on plaques on the Academy's walls.

Defeat

If a unit is felled in battle, they have are allowed 4 actions [posts] in which to be restored to life, or to have successfully fled the battle with the aid of a partner. Should they fail, their souls will crystalize, marking their permanent end. Someone who picks up a soul crystal has 3 options: Fully restore health & mana, retrieve all of their equipment, or learn all of their equipped abilities. The latter, obviously, do not apply to monsters.

Should the person be escorted from the battlefield & stabalized before this event is reached, they are in a condition the scholars refer to as "coma." In most cases, coma can be treated the same way as death, but with a much greater window of time. This is an obvious advantage to anyone who lacks the means to reliably revive a comrade in battle.

Another way to be defeated is to retreat. Retreat is a simple matter of fleeing from the scene until the attacker can no longer follow, but it greatly hinders attacking & defending options. Retreat routes can be hindered by obstacles; such as buildings, trees, rivers, or mountain summits, or by dragging along a deceased ally. A faster job class is able to retreat more easily. However, a stronger job glass is less affected by rescuing allies. Movement abilities can also assist in escape. Job Points can still be gained when closing a battle in this fashion, but Gil usually can not.

Rewards

There are two main commodities in Ivalice. Gil is money that is exchanged for goods, while Job Points (JP) are a measure of experience, used to trade for abilities. JP is collected on the basis of performance, often in large numbers at the end of a battle. Gil can also be found after a battle, usually as some form of lump sum of treasure, which the party must decide how to divide amongst themselves.

Another way to gain these rewards is to undergo some kind of task or errand. These can include ship salvage, escort missions, deliveries, smithing, & any other odd job that is agreed upon. Your Job Class will affect your ability to perform &, consequently, the extent to which you are rewarded. A failed task nets no rewards.

Still another way to acquire JP is through apprenticeship. Simply put, the very act of attempting to learn a trade tends to sometimes award a very small amount of JP. For instance, a Squire who works under a Knight for several months may accrue 1 or 2 hundred JP for his service. Despite being a Squire, & learning under a Knight, this JP can be used for any purpose.

Fighting

It might sound basic, but a fight comes down to several factors. Obviously, the quicker you are, the more ground you can cover in a short time. But did it ever occur to you that attacking slows you down? Actions take time, & the more actions you perform, the less you can move. At 3 or more actions, you should not be surprised if you have no time to move at all, or even if you fail to perform some of them. This does not affect reaction abilities, which trigger after being attacked.

Another thing to keep in mind is the world around you. It is difficult to move up sloped terrain, or through watery terrain. Storms make this more difficult, & they can also throw off projectiles, but they can make thunder spells stronger, like a desert or a volcano can make fire attacks stronger, & snow can make blizzard spells stronger. Various jobs have developed abilities to curb these disadvantages.

Magick

It is now common knowledge that one's level of faith, as well as that of his target, alters the effectiveness of the magic he casts. This is true of both offensive & defensive spells. What most people do not realize is that magic is very difficult to control regardless of one's faith. Most spells will either hit only a single target, or hit in a cross-shaped radius immediately surrounding that target. It pays to know the type of spell you're casting, lest you accidently hit yourself, or cure an enemy! What can be helpful in this regard is that you can choose to lock a spell onto a piece of land, or an individual. Once you are finished charging, the spell will be cast around the targeted area, regardless of whether or not anything is there.

In general, the higher the level of a spell, the more likely it is to be effective, even on targets with low faith. It will also often be less likely to miss due to height differentials. The elemental "aja" spells gain a much wider radius, & will not hit the caster even if he's standing inside of it.

Summon spells have a particular advantage to most magicks. Not only do they hit in a wide radius, but they will only affect the desired targets. Moogle, for example, will not heal enemies, while Ifrit will not attack allies. In exchange for these advantages, they cost a large amount of mana & take some time to charge. If a spell takes too long to charge, the enemy may simply move out of the way, or even attack you before you're through. Certain conditions can also cancel the charging process; like sleep, or being knocked back.

There is also a branch of magicks called Arithmeticks. Arithmeticks will allow you to cast a certain spell with no charge time & the normal cost, but that spell will hit everyone within a defined parameter. For example, you could hit everyone standing on a height of 5 with Holy, provided you know the Holy spell. But this does mean EVERYONE, enemies & allies alike. Some spells cannot be used with Arithmeticks, including all Summon Magicks.

One final note: Job classes tend to reflect the magicks they can cast. For instance, Black Mages have a high attack, while Summoners have high mana.

Special Jobs

This has yet to be recorded.