Ogre Battle

[Jedi]

Has anyone else played this awesome series? This isn't counting Tactics Ogre which is basically its own series. I'm talking about the RTS like Strategy RPG's, one for the SNES called March of the Black Queen, and the other known as Ogre Battle 64 or "Person of Lordly Caliber". There is also Gaiden on the Wonderswan which I need to play still.

They remain two of my favorite games of all time, with very unique mechanics, class systems, morality (The chaos frame system), along with its cool quizes on starting the game which determined your starting battalion, and in the original it determined your MC's moveset.

Both games while having similar mechanics work fairly differently, in SNES you have to use Gald to deploy units and you get a stipend from the people, but if you take too long or your chaos frame goes down they will start supporting you less and less.

64 was more tame, but also hid the chaos frame system, which you had to use a unit of a certain alignment to liberate towns, to get 0.5 a chaos frame point while capturing decreased it by 2, also story choices in both games affected your frame. Be it just recruits of the special units available or things you do.

There is alot more to it, this site describes 64 in pretty good detail

Both of these games were on the Wii virtual console as well, not sure about Wii U.

I really want a sequel, but I doubt it'll ever happen. There isn't even a game that plays anything like it. People said Last Remnant was like Ogre Battle and I found it really wasn't.

Edited November 5, 2015 by Jedi

[Terrador]

You already know this, but to kick the thread off: I'm currently running Ogre Battle 64: Person of Lordly Caliber. Never got around to finishing it, so hey, going in on that! It was a bit of a surprise to discover that this game was actually not particularly friendly to lowmanning, and I'm additionally challenging myself by not allowing exploration (so no to a lot of things: most recruitables, a lot of swag items, some classes). I'm currently a bit into Chapter 3 and about to try to L&P myself a Cockatrice to round out my flying unit! And by "L&P myself a Cockatrice" I mean "TRY TO KILL THE LEADER; PRAY FOR SUCCESS AFTER".

[Jedi]

You already know this, but to kick the thread off: I'm currently running Ogre Battle 64: Person of Lordly Caliber. Never got around to finishing it, so hey, going in on that! It was a bit of a surprise to discover that this game was actually not particularly friendly to lowmanning, and I'm additionally challenging myself by not allowing exploration (so no to a lot of things: most recruitables, a lot of swag items, some classes). I'm currently a bit into Chapter 3 and about to try to L&P myself a Cockatrice to round out my flying unit! And by "L&P myself a Cockatrice" I mean "TRY TO KILL THE LEADER; PRAY FOR SUCCESS AFTER".

Yeah you're pretty much gimping yourself .

Yeah the game doesn't really encourage lowman runs, its better to have a very effective semi-big group of units.

[Terrador]

Yeah, I ditched lowmanning long ago.

IN RECENT NEWS, LOVE AND PEACE FLOPPED, I AM INCREDIBLY SAD.

and the last
character left in a unit

I AM A MORON

Edited November 5, 2015 by Terrador

[Jedi]

Love and Peace is so rare I tend to reset!

What did you even try it on?

[Terrador]

On... Scene 21, a Freya/Cockatrice/Cockatrice unit. I didn't know you couldn't use it on the last character in a unit, so... gg me. That said, I think I want to start planning for The Clowniest Run Possible--not even necessarily good units, just stuff that'd make me laugh.

So, quick questions: which units can you not just buy into after you can access them? Ex. Paladin being one you can just buy into, Angel Knight being one you can't. Namely, I'm curious about Vampire, and if I recall correctly... Dragoon, Princess, Black Knight, and Lich are limited?

Edited November 5, 2015 by Terrador

[Jedi]

Vampires, Dragoons, Princess, Black Knights (you can buy everything but the Valiant Mantles), Santuros.

Are all limited the last one only being able to be loved and peaced. Although you can grind those off late game Gorgons it seems.

[Knight Falchion]

I looked at the site linked in the OP and figured the gameplay premise was interesting enough to give it a shot, and I'm starting with March of the Black Queen. I haven't gotten very far past the opening but I did like the intro quite a bit.

[ClevelandSteve]

I haven't played the SNES one, but the N64 one was really good (probably one of the few N64 games that still holds up to this day), so I should probably give it a try at some point. As for Love and Peaces, I usually save them for Angel Knights (since they're a pain to make for yourself) and Saturoses (which admittedly aren't that good, but I still like to get one simply because they're the only unit that you 100% need a Love and Peace for).

If I had one complaint, it would be that alignment is a total pain to manage without using the duplication glitch to spam Scrolls of Discipline and/or Urns of Chaos to get your units into the right range. From about midgame on, it's hard to liberate any town that doesn't have ridiculously high or ridiculously low morale because any units you use fairly regularly will almost certainly all be at one extreme of the spectrum or another.

It is a shame that a sequel seems highly unlikely because the series is yet another entry into the heap of great IPs that Squeenix is sitting on without doing anything.

[Jedi]

I looked at the site linked in the OP and figured the gameplay premise was interesting enough to give it a shot, and I'm starting with March of the Black Queen. I haven't gotten very far past the opening but I did like the intro quite a bit.

You're in for a treat, although I think 64 is more friendly to newcomers, MOTBQ has quite a bit more to its management, I love both games. Glad to see you're trying the series

I haven't played the SNES one, but the N64 one was really good (probably one of the few N64 games that still holds up to this day), so I should probably give it a try at some point. As for Love and Peaces, I usually save them for Angel Knights (since they're a pain to make for yourself) and Saturoses (which admittedly aren't that good, but I still like to get one simply because they're the only unit that you 100% need a Love and Peace for).

If I had one complaint, it would be that alignment is a total pain to manage without using the duplication glitch to spam Scrolls of Discipline and/or Urns of Chaos to get your units into the right range. From about midgame on, it's hard to liberate any town that doesn't have ridiculously high or ridiculously low morale because any units you use fairly regularly will almost certainly all be at one extreme of the spectrum or another.

It is a shame that a sequel seems highly unlikely because the series is yet another entry into the heap of great IPs that Squeenix is sitting on without doing anything.

Santuros seem to be slightly worse Black Knights from my experience (partly from being locked to 1 handed axes), also I've gotten pretty good at managing my alignment, I don't really need the dupe glitch anymore for even neutral units, I'd explain it, but its just a natural way I do things now I guess.

Also you know, they had plenty of ammo for a sequel from the Best ending alone too.

Edited November 6, 2015 by Jedi

[Shaman]

I first played this game (Ogre Battle 64) when I was 7 years-old. My first playthrough I got the worst ending, but my legions of chaotic sirens were unstoppable. I remember my best unit was 3 sirens in the back row and a cerberus in the front. They demolished every unit that stood in their way. I was quite surprised when I got the worst ending, because I thought I played well. I later learned about chaos frame and the importance of the alignment system.

The battle system is SUPERB! When you have two spell-casters next to each other in the same unit for a certain number of battles, they eventually start to combine their spells. This had to be the COOLEST thing I have ever seen in an SRPG game. I spent a significant amount of time discovering all of the spell combinations. Later on I found the draconic tomes...after hitting the enemy unit with two of them in a row, everyone was vaporized.

My jaw dropped when I first saw angel knights. As a kid who was obsessed with female video game characters, I had to find a way to get them on my team. I never got them on my first playthrough because I ran out of Love and Peace.

Now when I do a playthrough I gather as many female characters as possible and level them up as healers or valkyries. Then when I have access to all of the items necessary, I send them to die bravely in battle and watch them rise again as angel knights. They turn into the blue-haired seraphs after a certain level/number of battles.

This game is like no other and I dream of making an RPG that has a similar battle system and graphics. Ogre Battle 64 is my all-time favorite game. I could talk about it for days.

TL;DR: The highlight of Ogre Battle 64 is the unique battle system and character transformation. Groups of soldiers can be trained until one of them turns into an independent character. Characters have access to specific classes depending on their alignment and if they are in offensive or defensive-type units. When characters die, they can become zombies, skeletons, ghosts, or angel knights. Vampires and liches are also available.

Edited November 14, 2015 by Shaman

[Jedi]

This game is like no other and I dream of making an RPG that has a similar battle system and graphics. Ogre Battle 64 is my all-time favorite game. I could talk about it for days.

I like you, we should chat more for certain. I could go on for days about the game!

[Shaman]

I like you, we should chat more for certain. I could go on for days about the game!

Who is your favorite character? I like Biske because he is a lycanthrope. I am also a fan of Meredia.

[Jedi]

Who is your favorite character? I like Biske because he is a lycanthrope. I am also a fan of Meredia.

That's a toughy!

I do like Magnus himself, but also Leia, Liedel, Vad, Destin, Europa, Paul.

I also like Biske! But man there are so many good ones x.x

[Shaman]

That's a toughy!

I do like Magnus himself, but also Leia, Liedel, Vad, Destin, Europa, Paul.

I also like Biske! But man there are so many good ones x.x

The game has a terrific cast. I like Magnus too! I do not know any other protagonist that sports a blue braid. The development between Magnus and Yumil is quite remarkable. I think the story would have had a much happier ending if Magnus had put his duty as a knight aside just for a moment and turned Yumil away from...

the infernal aura

...sigh I am feeling mega nostalgic right now.

Edited November 14, 2015 by Shaman

[Jedi]

The game has a terrific cast. I like Magnus too! I do not know any other protagonist that sports a blue braid. The development between Magnus and Yumil is quite remarkable. I think the story would have had a much happier ending if Magnus had put his duty as a knight aside just for a moment and turned Yumil away from...

the infernal aura

...sigh I am feeling mega nostalgic right now.

Oh yeah, that could have changed quite the number of things ^^. Magnus and Yumil had quite a touching story, just a shame they had different ways to try to do things.

I tried to save him at the Western Division once, refusing the alliance, Ankiseth actually says TAKE YUMIL, and I was like "Whoa can I get him this way?" Then Baldwin comes in and i'm like oh shoot

[Shaman]

They do have a very touching story. Looking back now, I realize that it was actually quite amazing and deep! I cannot identify exactly what mythology it is inspired by, but I want to say Jewish/Christian. There are many themes in the story that reflect this. It really is a masterpiece. I kind of want to play it now...I own a copy.

[Jedi]

Yeah, sometimes the translation is eh, but it still gets the points across.

Hey man I bought the game twice, for the 64 and the Wii VC which I still can't believe it got on.

[Shaman]

I read on Wikipedia that the story behind Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together was inspired by the civil wars in Bulgaria. Maybe the story for Ogre Battle 64 is also based on historical events?

I am surprised that it made it too, because it was not a very popular game. You should check out Vandal Hearts, it is another old-school TRPG.

[Jedi]

Hmmm, I can't think of a historical event that OB64 could take place after.

Vandal Hearts? What was that for?

[Shaman]

Vandal Hearts is for the PS1. It is known for its 'blood geyser death-animations'. It is a TRPG.

[Jedi]

I will for sure look into it.

So whats your favorite class in Ogre Battle 64?

[Shaman]

I have a few favorite classes. It is mostly based on aesthetic and color scheme. Seraphs and princesses are my favorite because of how they look, but also because they are harder to obtain. I like the feathered helm on the Dragoons and valkyries. I do like all of the classes in the game though.

Edited November 15, 2015 by Shaman

[Jedi]

Oh man, having a Princess in an army with a Lich, talk about broken

[Shaman]

They were quite broken actually...but it was definitely balanced out by the alignment system. It is fun to challenge yourself by trying to deploy your units according to their alignments. Units with clerics level up more slowly, but they are useful for liberating strongholds with high morale. If you send them out to pursue enemies, then their alignment slides towards chaotic, they lose their alignment and cannot be used to liberate strongholds because they capture them instead.

As I age, I can better appreciate this being a factor to my game-play because it is a challenge. It is not difficult to grind levels and build powerful armies, but it is difficult to keep their alignments balanced.

Edited November 15, 2015 by Shaman