Final Fantasy Type-0 HD Characters and Party Formation Tips

Final Fantasy Type-0 HD, like any RPG, is built around knowing your heroes, the roles they play, and the characters they work well with. After all, you wouldn’t want to end up running around without a party full of ranged warriors, would you? Faced with unfair matchups, your ranged and magic users would get ground to dust in no time.

To help ease your journey into Orience, we pulled statistics of various characters and put them together. At the end of this article, we’ll give you a few tips on how to set up your three-character party so you have the best chance of making it out of these missions alive.

New to the game and wondering where to go next? Don’t worry, we have you covered. Check out our Beginner Tips and Tricks to learn how to manage your time in town, understand the S.O. System, and use the best abilities.

Ace

• Initial Level – 6
• Starting Weapon – Playing Cards
• Defense Command – Wall
• Commands – Cut Cards, Blizzard BOM

Ace is a ranged fighter. His overall HP and MP are both low, thus ruling him out as a capable close quarter’s brawler. When playing with Ace, you’ll want to make good use of his dodging skills. His ability to quick dodge is very handy when used in succession with his attacks.

Deuce

• Initial Level – 8
• Starting Weapon – Flute
• Defense Command – Cura
• Commands – Concerto, Fira RF

Unlike Ace, Deuce is a support based character who you’ll use to keep other party members alive. Her main specialties are support spells, but if you need it, her attack is rather devastating against enemy soldiers.

Trey

• Initial Level – 9
• Starting Weapon – Longbow
• Defense Command – Wall
• Commands – Raining Arrows; Blizzard BOM

Trey is a ranged based fighter who specializes in dealing heavy amounts of damage from anywhere on the battlefield. Abilities like his Charge Shot deal massive damage and are available anytime a Breaksight or Killsight appears. He is limited in close quarters combat, and it should be avoided if possible.

Cater

• Initial Level – 9
• Starting Weapon – Magicite Pistol
• Defense Command – Cure
• Commands – Elementillery; Blizzard BOM

Unlike previous ranged characters covered in our guide, Cater’s shots will charge when her weapons remain drawn. She is also able to dodge, move, and utilize many of her command abilities without the charge being reset. Her ability to imbue her attacks with elemental effects also makes her a prime party member for exploiting enemy weaknesses.

Cinque

• Initial Level – 8
• Starting Weapon – Mace
• Defense Command – Cure
• Commands – Earthquake, Fire RF

Cinque’s high damage, high HP, and high Defense stats make her a perfect candidate for taking on tough enemies. However, players should be careful, as her more powerful attacks are slow and leave her open to attack. She is easily one of the strongest members of Class Zero, and is a respectable party member for any mission.

Sice

• Initial Level – 10
• Starting Weapon – Scythe
• Defense Command – Cure
• Commands – Dark Nebula; Thunder SHG

Sice is one of the trickier characters to use in Type-0 HD, as she absorbs Malice from defeated enemies and loses Malice whenever she is attacked. This makes risk and reward a valuable factor in any situation, and players will want to be careful when placing Sice in the middle of battle. However, it is hard to keep her away from harm, as she specializes in short-range combat and features a high attack speed.

Seven

• Initial Level – 9
• Starting Weapon – Whipblade
• Defense Command – Cura
• Commands – Snakebite, Blizarra BOM

Seven is a character players meet early on when they face their first boss. Her quick attack speed and the ability to imbue her weapon with Fire Magic and Ice Magic make her a promising asset on any battlefield.

Eight

• Initial Level – 9
• Starting Weapon – Brass Knuckles
• Defense Command – Block
• Commands – Swiftwind Stance, Blizzard BOM

Eight is a quick, close-ranged fighter. His various fighting styles, extremely fast attack speeds, and fairly high HP make him ideal for leaping into the midst of battle and taking on several enemies at once. Players should take advantage of the several fighting style options, since each one offers distinct advantages like regenerating health, AG, and even summoning pillars of fire to reign down upon enemies.

Nine

• Initial Level – 6
• Starting Weapon – Lance
• Defense Command – Block
• Commands – Jump, Fire RF

Nine is one of the first mid-ranged fighters that players will come in contact with, and they’ll be able to get a good taste of his abilities in the game’s first boss fight. Nine also has the highest maximum HP and Defense of all the Class Zero Cadets, and this makes him the ideal tank for your party. His mid-range attacks can be combined to create devastating combos.

Jack

• Initial Level – 9
• Starting Weapon – Katana
• Defense Command – Block
• Commands – Reflex, Fire RF

Jack has the highest rated Attack power of any Class Zero members, however his attack and movement speed are slow, which makes him a tough character to master. Every strike should count when players control Jack, as the lack of movement and attack speed leaves him open to enemy attacks.

Queen

• Initial Level – 7
• Starting Weapon – Longsword
• Defense Command – Cure
• Commands – Divine Judgement, Thunder SHG

Queen is another one of the first characters that players experiment with. She wields a longsword, and her attack speed is very fast considering she is mainly meant to be a support character. With skills like Magic Martyr and Divine Judgement, players can use Queen as a full on support character when her offensive help isn’t needed.

King

• Initial Level – 10
• Starting Weapon – Twin Revolvers
• Defense Command – Block
• Commands – Point-Blank Shot, Blizzard BOM

King’s weapon of choice is one of the toughest to get used to, as players will need to worry about keeping track of ammunition. He has the lowest Defense rating in the game, so his most effective attacks will come from a distance where he is safer. His abilities, such as Trigger Finger and Point-Blank Shot more than make up for his lack of defense.

Machina

• Initial Level – 10
• Starting Weapon – Bolt Rapiers
• Defense Command – Cure
• Commands – Cyclone Driver, Thunder SHG

When looking solely at character stats, Machina rests near the top. His short-range melee skills and precision over attack speed make him a versatile character no matter how many enemies you face. Alongside this, he is also equipped with powerful magic skills that offer a wide array of medium to long-range attacks, making him one of the more versatile characters available.

Rem

• Initial Level – 9
• Starting Weapon – Daggers
• Defense Command – Curaga
• Commands – Fira RF, Thundara SHG

Rem is Class Zero’s highest rated MP user, as well as an extremely agile and effective melee fighter. Her quick dagger strikes, powerful magic skills, and speedy movement make her a great jill-of-all-trades kind of character. She is effectively one of the easiest characters to get used to, and this makes her a massive asset to new players.

Creating the Perfect Party

Creating a great party in Final Fantasy Type-0 HD is about more than just placing stats beside each other and running with the best. Unlike traditional RPGs, where players simply set up one party, Type-0 allows players to create a Reserve group, which they can use to switch out injured or deceased characters in battle. This makes it important for players to not simply run into every mission with their favorite characters, as any deaths will leave you with less capable party members.

For example, if your favorite characters include Ace, Rem, and Queen, you’d want to refrain from simply running each mission with these three party members. Instead, you could choose one or even two of your favorites and then place the remaining heroes within your party’s Reserve pool. This removes the danger of all three of the player’s “good” characters dying off and gamers being left with an inferior party to finish off the mission.

Alongside managing your reserve, you will also need to figure out the best format to run your team. We highly recommend running with at least a ranged fighter and a healer. The third character is of course up to your personal preference. We set aside a few good setups below that you can utilize until you really start to understand each character.

Setup 1

• Ranged: Ace
• Support: Deuce
• Close Quarter: Rem

Setup 2

• Ranged: Trey
• Support: Queen
• Close Quarter: Eight

Setup 3

• Ranged: Cater
• Support: Deuce
• Close Quarter: Jack

There are plenty of ways to set up your party, and these are but a few choices we found suitable for several missions. However you decide to run things, at least be sure you have dedicated Support and Ranged characters. This will eliminate the problem of grouping party members too close together, which will in turn help you stay alive longer.

If you happend to have stumbled across this guide and have yet to check out our Final Fantasy Type-0 HD Review, we highly suggest that you take a few moments to give it a read. You won't be disappointed.