Phantasie series

[KeighnMcDeath]

The game works fine offline. I opened up the zip, put it in a folder I named phantasie 5 - Resurrection Offline and ran the edge html. Naturally ot popped up in my browser but worked fine offline so far including a save.

But a party of newbs again. We'll see if i have the fortitude to start fresh again or just use my online party. I'd transfer if i could.

 

[Morblot]

What? ROI?

Roi the German Shepherd, obviously.

 

[Deuce Traveler]

What? ROI?

Roi the German Shepherd, obviously.

Whose a good Roi! Yes you are a good Roi! Good Roi!

 

[DISKDOC]

The game works fine offline. I opened up the zip, put it in a folder I named phantasie 5 - Resurrection Offline and ran the edge html. Naturally ot popped up in my browser but worked fine offline so far including a save.

But a party of newbs again. We'll see if i have the fortitude to start fresh again or just use my online party. I'd transfer if i could.

KeighnMcDeath have you had any luck with P5?​

I might be slipping as I seem to be STUCK. I've gotten a wand, 2 keys and a gladiator badge.
I cant open 2 doors in the market town or 2 doors in the mines or the prison main door with a pick 83 skill.
I've backtracked all the others and I cant find where else to go. I heard gnolls have a backway but i've explored both the far east islands.
I think I got the iron key when I cleared out all the castle in the SW corner, but I cant find any doors it opens.
I'm really hoping something is bugged out or I did something out of order to break it, otherwise I am missing something and I cant seem to find it at all.



Over Christmas I Dled and solved P4 on an MSX emulator.
Using a phone camera translator device to decode parts of it.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1l4y_lVTZIVXOOK0F3WyI6yZiFZY5wlPn

I put up the maps, a walkthrough, and the english(ish) translation of the P4 game.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

I've been sidetracked with a lot of irl so I haven't gotten back to P5.

 

[DISKDOC]

Yeah, looks like I'll clear the browser cache and reset and try it 1 more time.

Ill write down what keys I get from where, make sure to get my thief's pick up starting lvl 1,
make sure the 3 in the front have 20 plus str so they can use the good armor
Ideally the 3 in the front 2*str + dex > 55 so they can all use magic swords / axes

Like all the Phantasie games, getting it started is the hardest part, after a level or 2 you can grind up a bit then go exploring.
I did like how hitting town healed me. The leveling up was auto and HP seemed based on CON...so first Phantasie game I didn't have to
reload 20 times to get over 4 HP on the wizard each level up. I think everyone got heal spells past lvl 6 or so and that helps extend the party's range.
I did miss the fog of war. Some of the castles are complete mazes, being able to see the targets then plot a way to them was helpful
even when some had locked doors you still had to circumnavigate to get into. Having the chests on the map and the rest of the map
revealed via fog of war would have been really cool. To know where you wanted to get to and then finding how to get there.

Part of the charm of the older video games was the lack of help. I would play zelda, and use graph paper to make little maps to find my way around.
My brother would just wait for the zelda issue of nintendo power before he would bother to try and play it. Being able to see maps and websites
with guides and walkthroughs is nice. And I find as i get older...and have less time for everything including gaming, I tend to follow the guides
a bit more to get past stuff or through stuff faster so I can see it all. Back in the days of Phantasie We just had MOAR TIME. We could backup saves
and reload and replay 4 times the same 5 hour session if we wanted to.

I did like how it was browser based for more platforms and it has a charm to it. It's a pretty fun proof of concept game.
I could see with a bit of a budget some refined controls / enhanced graphics it could be a very fine $5 steam game.

I beat P1+P2 on the old atari 8-bit-still have the boxes and instructions. I beat P3 on the atari ST emulator. Beat P4 on the MSX emulator.
JUST ONE MORE TO GO!!!! must complete the series...end Nikademus forever

 

[DISKDOC]

OK, I did restart and i figured out in the mines you need to not kill all the gnolls in 1 round but set some party people to parry and get them down to 1 or 2 then force them to JOIN the party
that gives the gnoll award needed to go into their cave.

I tried to pick a door and got it, then miss clicked instead of OK or CONTINUE I clicked PICK again and then it said it failed and is now locked.
I also have a 75 pick skill now and a higher one before, but previous game I tried to pick doors at lower level and failed and even with a pick over 80 wasnt able to open those doors in the previous game.
Not sure if picking of doors is rechecked after you leave if you level up and come back to recheck the doors.

 

[DISKDOC]

OK I finished it off. Its a good 10 plus hours of gameplay. I got stuck on 2 of the puzzles.
There is a vendor that sells a silver chest, you have to try and steal it to get sent to jail, and when you do you lose ALL YOUR GEAR.
But they let you keep all the cash (I guess so you can buy smokes in prison) So just sell all the gear before you do the market town and get sent there
and buy it after you escape with Filmon in tow.

Other stumper was down in the mines, figuring out the gnoll room, putting party members on parry so i could kill select few down and get them to JOIN me to get the flag.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LFE7NZ_h0PekLwxZFpRRSCU1BD09hdFe

I put the maps up I used with annotations and some map points as a beginner guide.
Enjoy I have.

Thank you again Lord Wood for countless hours of entertainment over the years.
The Phantasie series has been phantastic to play over the years.

-DISKDOC
(Savior of Pendragon)

 

[DaveO]

I'm debating on starting Phantasie I on either the Atari ST emulation or Apple II. My main concern is how to compose my party. I suppose 1 fighter, 1 thief, 2 priest types, and 2 wizard types would work.

 

[Ladonna]

I'm debating on starting Phantasie I on either the Atari ST emulation or Apple II. My main concern is how to compose my party. I suppose 1 fighter, 1 thief, 2 priest types, and 2 wizard types would work.

I usually just stick with one of each class whenever I play through these games. I mean to try out a totally random creature party one day and see how far I get. Would need a lot of money for this though.

 

[Tweed]

ST version is fine, most classes are trash, stick with the basics to fill out a party. If you want to roll for creatures it takes a really long time unless you're willing to edit your save file. I was having a p.gud time playing it until I got the coof and then I just never got back to it, totally lost my mojo for the game.

 

[Morblot]

The ST version sure is nice... if you can handle the mouse-only interface. It drove me nuts before I managed to finish the first dungeon.

I'm thinking of starting again with some other port that can be controlled with the keyboard.

 

[newtmonkey]

The Apple II original is pretty nice, honestly, once you get over the primitive graphics. It's all controlled by KB so it's very quick to operate, though loading is slow (probably not such an issue if playing on an emulator). It was honestly one of the best games I finished back in 2021... I was VERY impressed with the combat, dungeons, and exploration.

I don't remember the party I used 100%, but I know I had one thief, one priest, and two wizards; you want to have a thief for his ability to attack any enemy in any row, and you want to have two wizards because buffing/debuffing is so useful throughout the game (and because offensive spells are so useful later on). I had no problem with a single healer.

 

[DaveO]

Looks like I'd have to try to earn level 3 to avoid single hit point increases for most of my party when training. I tried my Apple II copy, but I could not figure a way to reset the game. Only a few platforms have P1 to P3 as a complete set.

 

[newtmonkey]

Yeah, I am playing the Apple II version. The entire wilderness (including the first area) is unexplored.

I am using version v1.11 (Apple II), which turns out to be a fan patch released in 2003/2004 (!) that includes a modified reset utility that blanks the wilderness maps:

https://apple2.org.za/gswv/a2zine/Sel/Phantasie_new.htm

After doing some research, I don't think ANY (retail) version is capable of resetting the game completely. When you run the (retail) reset utility, it simple clears the current dungeon and the party roster. I think this is true for all versions, including the last official Apple II release.

I don't think there is a similar patch for other platforms, which is a shame.

DaveO
Here's an earlier post I made in this thread. The site linked has a fan patched version of Phantasie I (Apple II) that come with a reset utility that resets everything, including the maps. I used this version to complete the game.

 

[DaveO]

I was able to beat Phantasie I with a new party. I went with Dwarf Fighter, Dwarf Ranger, Elf Priest, Gnome Thief, Elf Wizard(x 2). My party made it to almost level 12 overall. On the ST image I found, there was a level 15 party that had beaten the game before I reset the game. With the experience I did get, I reached level 2 for starting Phantasie II. I made a garbage sacrificial Minotaur fighter and he died in the Dosnebian temple.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

BBQ MINTOUR FOR THE SURVIVORS!

 

[DaveO]

I've been able to get to level 4 for all of the characters in Phantasie II. Saving dungeons seems like a bad idea and even with an imported party, throwing rocks helps a bit in the first dungeon. Unfortunately, all imported characters get only 5 magic points which means I have to cast spells enough to improve the magic points. At least this encourages character development in my opinion.

 

[Tweed]

I was using monsters for some of my guys, including a mino fighter, didn't seem like that much of an XP sink. Not that I made it too far before I was struck down with plague.

 

[octavius]

They are more of a money sink.
I think they are shortlived as well, so not a good choice in the long run.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Expect a zombie minotaur at best if a TPK happens.

 

[DaveO]

I should have checked my ST images, but Phantasie III won't run regardless if it is in .ST or .STX format. I know there are PC versions of Phantasie I and Phantasie III. Looks like Apple may be my only hope, but I'd have to make a new party yet again.

 

[Francois424]

I should have checked my ST images, but Phantasie III won't run regardless if it is in .ST or .STX format. I know there are PC versions of Phantasie I and Phantasie III. Looks like Apple may be my only hope, but I'd have to make a new party yet again.

I have a working Phantasie III image for ST.
If you PM me, maybe I could set you up.
Ironically, I had made the same suggestion to "Sinatar" a few years ago. But he had his fill with the game and turned it down, heh. I miss the guy.

 

[DaveO]

I'm thinking I may have made P2 more difficult with my transferred party. I've read some comments about the Beasts from CRPGAddict's blog and I'm not sure if the group I have can beat the highest beasts. Sure, recruiting the Fire Elemental would help a bit, but both P1 and now P2 are heavily leaning towards spellcasting parties(two priests and two wizards seem to be highly advisable). I suppose resurrecting some characters is not a huge deal since P3 allows transfer from P1, but ideally I don't want to resurrect more than once if possible due to the constitution loss. At the moment, I'm trying to keep my experience runs a bit low by running Senog's Lab multiple times. I'm trying to think of good ways to increase the spell points, but resting at an inn in town is probably not the best idea. I suspect the outside inns are where I need to consistently rest to increase the spell points. I could try exploring the Underworld, but I'll have to be cautious due to the current low spell points. I definitely believe I'll use the magic point potions and especially healing potions much more than in Phantasie I.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Yep, no hoarding. It isn't surprising about more magic use intensive. Tbh, I found that a little bit of the truth in the first one DEPENDING on which platform you play on. They aren't all exact duplicates. At times, I almost felt they were different games. Maybe I am not remembering right. I still hold onto the c64 as best for 1-2. I like the sound and presentation.