Jack’s English voice dub really puts me off, which is a shame because he’s recently become my absolute favorite cadet to use hands down. Jack is the happy-go-lucky one and takes on the role of the class clown to cheer everyone up, but he can sometimes be seen as shallow. I should also mention that Jack is pretty much the hardest character to use in Final Fantasy Type-0 HD. Well, him and Cinque, but that’s a story for another time.
When you first take control of him and whip out that badass katana, you might fall into a state of shock at how incredibly slowly he moves. Heck, you need to holster your katana in order for him to even move at a decent speed. So having said that, Accelerate and Slipstream are definitely your priorities when you use Jack. When he has his katana out, keep dodging to allow him to quickly reach his enemies. If not, put the weapon away instead and run towards them.
Jack has the highest attack stat in Class Zero so his regular attacks alone will do a ton of damage. A few slashes of his katana could easily deal a few thousand points worth of damage, if he can get to his enemies that is. So the most important thing you need to focus on with Jack is his speed. A great ability that I’ve found myself relying on during every battle is Lightning Flash. This ability allows him to slash in rapid succession, giving him more hits and thus, more damage. Lightning Flash also allows him to hit any enemies who may be standing near your locked-on target.
To get the most out of Jack’s ridiculously high attack stat, you may also want to consider purchasing the Piercing Gleam ability. Executing this ability will lower an enemy’s defense and deal damage at the same time. The only problem with Piercing Gleam is that it takes about a second for Jack to ready his katana and strike his foe with it. It’s a move that’s more effective against slower enemies like mechs or flans, but I wouldn’t advise using it against light-footed enemies as the ability will leave Jack open to attacks.
As Jack begins to reach the higher levels, that’s when you start unlocking the really good stuff. The ability Deliverance, for example, allows him to rush at and attack enemies inflicted with Kill Sight. If you thought Jack was worthless before because of his abysmal speed, this skill is a definite game changer. Deliverance will allow him to hit Kill Sights much more easily.
Another skill that’s worth considering is Tranquility. This is a more defensive ability that has Jack read his enemies’ moves before delivering a devastating counterattack. If you choose to upgrade it, however, you’ll also be able to attach the Kill Sight ability to it. Couple Tranquility with Deliverance and you’ll have a lightning fast samurai type character wrecking every enemy on the field.
The good thing about Jack is that he has a pretty decent amount of HP so he can definitely take a few hits before you have to worry about him. Besides, he’ll probably be able to slash his enemies to death before they can even do any real damage to him. Your main concern when using Jack should be upgrading his dodging capabilities. Avoid is a really good choice for his defensive spell since it’ll allow him to automatically evade attacks. Also, since he isn’t exactly meant to be used as a magic user, his MP could be better spent on Avoid than anything else.
Find out how to play as the other Class Zero cadets here, and you can check out our review of the game here.
Published: Mar 21, 2015 05:52 pm