Is Magus really all that cool?

[HeadlessFritz]

Any party with Robo is automatically balanced.

When you first get Magus, his Magic and level are going to be higher than the party's unless you didn't avoid many battles or something...and besides Robo is the only character that has access to multiple (all) Magic elements.

In term of potential damage Luminaire and Flare totally overpower dark matter. When I had a perfect game with ** in all possible stats (that is until my cartridge began deleting saves) Luminaire's base damage was about 4000 and Dark Matter was only 2500. Flare was about 3500. I must say I was disappointed by Magus because of this. Sure, he started with more magic to balance this, but that killed a lot of his potential. The problem with the Robo, Magus and Lucca party is the lack of heal. Heal beam is a good support but lacks the effectiveness of double cure, cure wave, and all double techs that healed everyone, though I must admit that CT is an easy game that doesn't require that much healing !

[V_Translanka]

Magus' Magic is still impressive in that he seemingly had to overcome a lot in order to use it at all...whereas Crono & Co. had their Magic unlocked by a God (? I forget if that was 'bunked as a Woosley or the other way around, but still...! God or not, Spekkio is still a mighty, outside force) because they learned how to walk and turn right (holy crap, Spekkio turned them into runway models!!) and, again, boss battles Magus didn't have to help him level early on in his Magical endeavors (as far as we know, anyway)...

As for Team Omega Flare's "problem"...What's so effective about wasting two characters' turns (turns that could go into attacking with single techs or a good attacking double tech) instead of just one? And I'm never down enough to need 999 healing for the whole team anyways. Heal Beam saves your butt when you need it, and although it won't bring you up to perfection, it'll still leave you with enough to survive after those rare Hallation attacks...Granted Robo's slow, but the Speed stat is the easiest to compensate for...I personally don't go for a team based on Triple Techs, though, especially since the single targeting ones with Ayla do the most damage (I think that's right anyway)...but my team is Omega Flare when Crono is elsewhere....(or when I feel like hearing Magus quotes...!)...

[Sourkeys]

Magus goes from a borderline lawful-evil to a chaotic-neutral personality throughout all of Trigger. I think, for me anyway, it was that Chrono Trigger was the first game I ever played where the clear distinction of a villain became a hero. I also found his sprite animations extremely cool being a young kid. I think many of us actually DO look at Magus with some subjectivity, but that just goes to represent the affect it has had on us and how strongly we all feel about these games and these characters. =)

EDIT: Well technically Golbez did become a good guy in FF4, but it just isn't the same level of epic as Trigger. I DO find Golbez and even Kain to be some of the best characters on par with Magus for cool sprites, dark and chaotic personalities, and cool names =P.

[Dice.]

I don't really feel like reading the 29-odd pages of this.  But I'm going to have to go with the sentiments of the topic creator. 

I never used the guy for Final Battles.  He was an interesting replacement to Chrono, but not usually in my final party.

I'm also on the small bandwagon of people who don't really find the "I'm cool" archetypes all too 'cool'.  I find their act tiresome and boring.  I don't know what the world see in FFX's Auron.  What a bore.
"We. call. him. sin." - gotta love the sunglasses he tacks on with it.

Don't get me wrong, it's always cool to see a bad guy join the good guys - Magus does have some flare to him.  And I can see how he's a fanfic writer's wet dream because of the huge potential within the character; but I still find him pretty incomplete - and emphasizes how incomplete and in-need the series is of a new title to help him out.

[V_Translanka]

Yes, but one of the main things about Magus is that you learn that all along he really wasn't such a bad guy after all...NOW READ 29 PAGES OF FAN GUSHING~!!

[Dice.]

Yes, but one of the main things about Magus is that you learn that all along he really wasn't such a bad guy after all...NOW READ 29 PAGES OF FAN GUSHING~!!

Oh lord, not after I just said he's "over-rated" in so many words haha

[SilentMartyr]

Wow I really just read all of that. Kinda surprising it wasn't more favored towards Magus to be honest. Me personally, I like Magus but I was always bothered by his random change of heart by telling the crew about saving Crono. Yes you could say that they shared a common goal, but why would he care about bringing Crono back? He himself said Crono was weak.

   

You got whacked, 'cuz you're weak.

I always liked that line. But anyways, most likely he just thought having Crono on the team was going to be helpful for both their causes. I'm still not convinced.

[Zephira]

You got whacked, 'cuz you're weak.

Now did he actually mean that line, or was he just trying to insult Crono for the heck of it? Look at it from an angry wizard's point of view: He showed a moment of weakness in admitting that he needed these people's help (by joining them), and that was probably a major hit to his ego. Especially after losing a battle he had spent at least a decade preparing for. So, once Crono is alive and the team's gaining steam, Magus starts tossing around insults to make it feel like he's still in control.
Magus also mentioned that he would kill the team if they ever got in his way, and that never happened, so he must not believe they're actually weak.

[Tactinius]

I can't believe this thread is still alive and stickied.

Magus is da best cause he is da coolest

[Hayden]

I'm really getting tired of everyone saying that magus is the best character in either of the Chrono games.

I'm really getting tired of how out of every 5 CT fanfics I read, at least 3 center around him.

Am I really the only one who isn't freaking obsessed with Magus? I mean, come on! Sure, he's cool and all, and he's Schala's little brother, but in the end he's just BORING. He has very little Personal Development, and he always acts all stuck up, like he's better than everyone else.


AND HIS HAIR IS PURPLE >:U

Tbh hes hair is blue if its not blue its gray. and Magus is surely Overpowered when you first get him he starts with a good amount of magic,hes character is not like any another would.

[SilentMartyr]

You got whacked, 'cuz you're weak.

Now did he actually mean that line, or was he just trying to insult Crono for the heck of it? Look at it from an angry wizard's point of view: He showed a moment of weakness in admitting that he needed these people's help (by joining them), and that was probably a major hit to his ego. Especially after losing a battle he had spent at least a decade preparing for. So, once Crono is alive and the team's gaining steam, Magus starts tossing around insults to make it feel like he's still in control.
Magus also mentioned that he would kill the team if they ever got in his way, and that never happened, so he must not believe they're actually weak.

I don't see it that way at all. He realizes without his full powers (after being drained) he has no chance of defeating Lavos. He would have to spend another twenty or so years to regain that strength, and by then he'll be nearly fifty. Not really a good age to be trying to solo Lavos. He sees this group of powerful warriors (They beat him already once) that also got wrecked. Much like his association with the Mystics when he was sent back to 600 it was completely for his own gain. Yes, he helped revive Crono. I thought of that more as a "Hey I'll help you out so you can trust me in the group" more so than anything else.

I definitely do not see it as some giant change of character where he realizes he isn't as powerful as he thought he was and becomes nicer and blah blah blah. I always saw it as him coming to terms to the fact that Lavos was far more powerful than he even imagined. 7 against 1 is way better than 1 on 1. Magus is such a cold calculating person. The only time where he really let emotions affect his decision making is when he "spared" the group when he was the prophet.

[maggiekarp]

However, the real heart of the matter still bugged me. "You know, for a bunch of people you think are weak, stupid and useless, you sure keep hanging around. Why did you really let me come with you? And Crono? And everybody? If all you wanted was the Gate Key, you had a million chances to just take it. I know there has to be some other reason."

It wasn't something that just occurred to me; it was something I'd been wondering since he joined our team in the first place. In all our travels together, the best explanation I could fathom was his recognition that we were the only people both brainsy and ballsy AND crazy and stupid enough to take on Lavos, and that put him in the right crowd. I knew that whatever the reason, it was as fragile as any of Magus's alliances, and I had never contemplated it further out of the fear that seeking the answer would push him to desert us-or worse. And yet, now that Lavos was gone and no further explanations were forthcoming, this was the first time I actually got the nerve to ask him myself.

If I couldn't see any better, I'd mistake that twitch for a grin, a teasing little thing. "You're not unilaterally stupid and useless. The cavewoman has uses. The frog isn't stupid."

[V_Translanka]

Wow I really just read all of that. Kinda surprising it wasn't more favored towards Magus to be honest. Me personally, I like Magus but I was always bothered by his random change of heart by telling the crew about saving Crono. Yes you could say that they shared a common goal, but why would he care about bringing Crono back? He himself said Crono was weak.

  

You got whacked, 'cuz you're weak.

I always liked that line. But anyways, most likely he just thought having Crono on the team was going to be helpful for both their causes. I'm still not convinced.

I always sort of saw it as his (Magus) wanting to know it (the use of the Time Egg) was possible. He even got to see Schala again...but to Magus, first thing's first: taking down Lavos...as for that line, was there a de-Woosley'd version or was that the basic sentiment in the original script as well...?

Oh, and for some reason I want Lucca's middle name to be Eleanor now, maggiekarp...

[Kodokami]

...as for that line, was there a de-Woosley'd version or was that the basic sentiment in the original script as well...?

"You got whacked, 'cuz you're weak." --> "Your death was thanks to your weakness."

That's from the retranslation script. Personally, I think the left is more humorous.

[maggiekarp]

I'd buy the "Magus wanted to see if it worked" theory, but he tells you about it even if you kill him.