This is an extensive mod that changes the way you play the game.

Sword and Martial techs can't be sparked (well technically they can, but they are all very hard to spark), and no one starts with any equipped.

Gun techs can't be learned and no one starts with any equipped.

Dodge techs can be sparked at the normal rates, and I made some bugfixes which make certain abilites (namely the 4 gaze monster techs and DodgeGaze) give you a chance to spark the approprate ability.

Sword, Martial, and Gun techs do not produce any stat gains whatsoever.  The only ways to gain stats are to use magic, item-based abilities like Cures, and heavy weapons (although these last two categories provide awful stat gains).

As a nod towards Mystics I made the "Other" category of attacks produce very good WP gain.  Mystics can now produce a decent amount of WP and they have a small chance to boost their charm when using their mystic weapons and abilities.

I also made the difficulty table for when you don't have mastery 3/2 better (I multiplied every number in that table by 3/2)  So it's still not as good as having mastery, but it's not as crippling as not having mastery was before.  This is applicable to mystics (who can't get magic mastery) and to mecs who have a tough time learning abilities for several reasons I didn't want to deal with at the moment - this was the quickest fix I could come up with.

There are two fixes to the monster forms.  You can now become a Gunfish and a Lich.

Item data got quite a few changes.  The WonderBangle now blocks all elements including Status, at about 16/63.  DarkRobe is a decent armor if you can find one.  ShadeRobe is well worth the purchase in Omble.  The various Mec bodies are all very different from one another in defense.  MysticMail is now second only to GoldenFleece and PlutoArmor, and even then only by 2 points.  MysticMail provides the best Status and Force defense on any body armor, excellent Heat/Cold/Electric defenses, and solid Slashing/Bashing/Piercing defenses.  MysticMail also should allow any mystic to use the 3 basic mystic magic spells, so you needn't waste slots to equip those spells.

All of the following armors have been changed, and you can find out exactly how by looking at the "def" sheet in sf_item_hack_generator.xls:
* MagicWear
* PowerBelt
* YolkHat
* FiberHood
* EggHat
* OgreGlove
* Norn'sBangle
* RubberShoes
* FeatherBoots
* IronClogs
* Catsocks
* SH-Anklet
* DanceShoes
* FireCrystal
* IceCrystal
* BoltCrystal
* SleetCoin
* SolGrail
* ThunderCharm

The last three items on this list are easily the best accessories in the game.  ThunderCharm was fixed to provide primarily Electric defense (in the original game it provides primarily Force defense).

Note To Self: in future releases change the -"Barrier" abilities so that they no longer destroy equipment when they are used.

GhostCannon is now much more powerful.

BloodChaliceprovides the same status immunities that undead like DeathKnights have, but it cuts your Heat, Force, and Status defenses by 15 (the same values it had in vanilla).  I may have to increase the defense penalty more, this seems overpowered.

Evil magic can now be learned if you have the gift for it.  Several people have this gift.

Most spells were changed in some way, either by granting them an AoE (Area of Effect), making them more powerful, or making them faster (especially healing abilities).  I don't have a good way to preview which changes were made and I haven't had time to extensively test them, so there's a good chance that odd things will happen.  When they do, please tell me!

I don't think that I changed any other types of abilities.


Character data was reworked quite a bit.  Aselllus has a little more LP, T260 and ZEKE have more WP, nobody has WP, and everybody has JP.

T260 has better stats.  The mystics and mecs had their stats reworked to balance them out and make them all roughly as powerful as one another.

A lot of people start with magic gifts and spells.  Rarer characters have more gifts and spells.

For some reason I gave almost everyone a unique spark talent list (Blue and Rouge share a list, Captain Hamilton and Doll share a list - which doesn't matter, because you can never recruit both of each pair at the same time).  If you want to undo my changes to ability sparking then everyone would be unique.

Mesarthim and Dr. Nusaken both have MysticMail.  Mesarthim keeps her MellowRing.

All humans have unique stat growths that are all roughely the same power.  All mystics have the same magic/gun/int growths which are matched only by Blue and Rouge.  Each mystic has their own unique HP and Charm growths.


Thanks goes out to Zaraktheus, Erroneous Waylay, x_loto, and NeoElfboy for their work on finding and documenting the data used to make this hack; and to Xenesis of warsworldnews.com for hosting my forums.

Questions, comments, and hatemail should be directed to Mir_Vimes, at the Biolab forums:
biolab.warsworldnews.com