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Okay, so overall, Calculator definitely IS the best class in this game. No questions asked. However, I do have one minor issue with them:
Speed. This causes all of my other characters to knock out the entire battlefield before my Calculator can even have a single turn.
Now I have a question, what would be some of the equipment I can get in Chapter 4 that will assist my Calculator in gaining some speed? It's rather irritating that if I want to have him actually do something then I have to sit there, wait, and get hit up until they can go a single turn.

By the way: My calculator's speed at level 76 is the equivalent of Agrias' speed who I ended up leaving at level 12 and decided against ever using her.

Some quick calculator tactics, some of which I'm sure you know already:

- Don't move! Find a corner, plunk one or two characters next to your calc as shields, and don't move on the same turn you use him to cast a spell.

- Haste yourself. If you manage to haste only your calculator, and not your other characters, then you'll be getting close to the normal speed of the others on the battlefield.

As for equipment:

Head: Thief Hat. +2 Speed, and as an added bonus it negates Don't Act and Don't Move.
Body: Secret Clothes. +2 Speed, and you'll start off invisible, so you don't really have to worry about being attacked until you get your first shot off.
Accessory: (If female) Setiemson. Auto-Haste, Start the battle transparent, and +1 Magic Attack. (If male) Cursed Ring. +1 to Speed, Physical and Magical attacks, though it has the downside of making the character permanently undead.

The Thief Hat will eventually be available in shops. The Secret Clothes and the Cursed Ring are both only available in Deep Dungeon, on the floor titled TIGER, and can only be found using Move-Find Item. The lower the Bravery of the character looking to find them, the higher the chance the items will actually be there. The Setiemson can only be bought from the poaching shop after you've successfully poached a Hydra.

Well, those are the best suggestions I can offer. Good luck.

Edit: Forgot two suggestions:
- Don't be a Calculator. Jump into the class, learn all the abilities as quickly as possible, and switch to a faster class with Calculate set as your secondary ability.

- Use Ramza's Yell (or Tailwind, in the PSP version) to boost the speed of your Calc. Sure, you give up Ramza's turn to do so, and if it helps in achieving the suggestion right above this, I say it's worth it.

This post has been edited by Suunok on 19th January 2010 19:02

All of those things will surely help. One primary thing you said that I'd forgotten about was that I could add Calculator skills as a secondary and the speed would go up substantially as another class. I still have a lot of Calculator skills to learn, but afterward I will definitely use that suggestion to my advantage.

When you do master the Arithmatician (Calculator) just change his / her / Reis' job to a Black Mage (Wizard) / Dragonkin (Dragoner) and you have the best Mage in the game.

Quote (Suunok @ 19th January 2010 18:59)

Accessory: (If female) Setiemson. Auto-Haste, Start the battle transparent, and +1 Magic Attack. (If male) Cursed Ring. +1 to Speed, Physical and Magical attacks, though it has the downside of making the character permanently undead.

You forgot the Sprint Shoes, they also give +1 Speed.

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In order to find your oppenent's weakness, you must first learn their pattern. Once you know their pattern, you can build a counter strategy.

Call it a personal prejudice, and I skipped over them because I'm of the opinion all Boot-type accessories should increase movement in order to be considered useful. I did consider it, though.

How to train your calculator the easy way:

Step 1: Take a level 1 squire, Ramza (with the monk skill chakra), and your calculator (unarmed, with gain jp up) into an easy random battle along with two other characters.

Step 2: Have Ramza yell/tailwind at the calculator.

Step 3: Have your calculator punch your level 1 squire.

Step 4: Have Ramza heal the squire with chakra to keep him/her from dying.

Repeat steps 2, 3, and 4 while having your other characters take out the opposition. Try to extend the battle by either getting an enemy to critical health so they'll run away. Turning them into frogs or chickens helps.

By punching the level 1 squire your calculator will gain jp without leveling up as often (their stat growth is poor).

When your calculator has gained as much jp as you want, end the fight. Teach your calculator what they need then switch them to a class with good MA.

This post has been edited by ElPanachino on 21st January 2010 05:32

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Wha? Thanks to me?

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DragonGod: When you do master the Arithmatician (Calculator) just change his / her / Reis' job to a Black Mage (Wizard) / Dragonkin (Dragoner) and you have the best Mage in the game.

Exactly what I was thinking. The Calculator's speed is a huge nuisance, and isn't worth putting up with after you max his/her abilities.