Swing vs. Continual Attack

[Hxc Flavor]

I've read the Skills guide on the site but am still a little confused by these two skills. Can someone explain the differences a little more and maybe provide an example? Also, what kind of characters should be getting these skills maxed first?

(Suprisingly, this is my first playthrough of Suikoden III.)

[gildedtalon]

swing is for multiple hits on a single enemy unit
continual attack is more like hit target a then target b in a single turn

[KFCrispy]

yes if you have more swings left after defeating one target and have the MOV points (sort of like "time") for it, the Continual Attack skill gives the character a chance to use the remain attacks and MOV to go at another target. the Swing skill decreases the attack time that decreases your overall action time, and when strikes get small enough you can perform another on the same turn.

[Hxc Flavor]

So in comparison to Suikoden II, Swing is like using a Double-Beat rune where you attack a single opponent twice, and Continual attack is where you may hit multiple enemies if you are fast enough. Sort of?

[Oppenheimer]

You can use swing hit someone far more than twice, Augustine can hit someone a whole bunch of times when his swing reaches "S". So it's better than the double beat rune if the character is at all proficient with it.

[KFCrispy]

So in comparison to Suikoden II, Swing is like using a Double-Beat rune where you attack a single opponent twice, and Continual attack is where you may hit multiple enemies if you are fast enough. Sort of?

yup

[patapi]

Swing made Double-Beat obsolete, for sure.

[KFCrispy]

oh.. and Double Beat is kinda superior because it allowed the character to target a second enemy if the first died........ so not exactly the same effect.

[Hxc Flavor]

Thanks! Still getting used to the character development and battle tactics of this game....after playing Suikoden 1 & 2 repeatedly it takes a bit getting used to. Also, I noticed something on the Skills guide that was confusing:

Genius Slow Excellent Fast Good Normal Useless
Rank S A+ A B+ B+ B C

I don't see why "Slow" would be on the A+ Ranking.

[KFCrispy]

Slow represents someone with high potential but needs a lot of work to get there.. basically your underdog who can become great with enough 'training.' The amount of SP you have to collect for a Slow growth skill is much greater than any other growth value.
Fast growth is the opposite - it is really easy to get to the max potential, but the potential is capped.

[Hxc Flavor]

Im just wondering why the order goes "Genius, Slow, Excellent, Normal." It doesn't sound right, thats why I'm wondering if it was just put in the wrong order. S = Genius and is the highest, but A+ = Slow?

[KFCrispy]

what's in a name?
these are the available skill growth (or training) types:
max grade : total SP needed
S: 1130 ("genius")
A+: 1410 ("slow" = "useless" learning rate / many SP needed, high potential)
A: 670 ("excellent")
B+: 435 ("fast" = "genius" learning rate, low potential)
B+: 549 ("good")
B: 410 ("normal")
C: 310 ("useless")

this info is already listed in our Skills Guide, of course

[Hxc Flavor]

I guess I'm just kind of confused. A character beeing able to get to A+ is Useless because it takes so many SP? I also read a FAQ saying that you can't always believe what the Teacher tells you, someone who is "Average" in a skill can max it and someone who is a "Perfect Match!" might not be able to.

[Vextor]

It's based on what the trainer NPC says in the game. Even if a character has A+ potential with the slow growth rate, the trainer will say your skill potential is useless, just like someone with C potential, etc. It's designed to fool the player into thinking a certain character is not very good at something, while those who find out the truth can wallow in joy, etc.

[KFCrispy]

you need to think about the SP requirements to gain a level instead of just the maximum achievable level.
IN GENERAL, the less points it takes to gain a level, the higher maximum level they can reach (Excellent, Good, Normal, Useless)
The odd ones, Slow and Fast, don't follow the normal idea........ a trainer will look at their SP requirement for gaining a level (ie learning/training rate) and doesn't know what the maximum potential is.....

sorry but if you don't get it after these 4 explanations that are essentially the same, i can't help you further