Contents |
Basic Information
Base Stats
Vigor | 36 | Battle Power | +30 | Bonus HP | +66 |
Speed | 42 | Def/M.Def | 36/30 | Bonus MP | +0 |
Magic | 30 | Block/M.Block | 24/12 | Run Chance | Very High |
Stamina | 30 |
Locke's biggest weakness is a somewhat below-average Magic stat and a lack of bonus MP, which is unfortunate on a character with a spell list that likes a lot of both. Aside from that, however, his stats are all average or better. His Speed is tied with Shadow for the highest in the game, his defenses are bulkier than you'd imagine, and his evasion - particularly against physical attacks - is pretty good. He also runs away really well, as one might expect of a thief.
Special Skill - Steal/Mug
Locke's special ability is somewhat unusual in that it provides him with no particular offensive or defensive benefits in combat. Steal just allows Locke to, well, steal things from some enemies. He is the only character other than Gogo who can steal items without dedicating a weapon slot to it, but for the most part this ability only has marginal benefit in serious fights.
That said, there are some pretty neat things Locke can acquire via Steal. Most of them are quite niche, but a few can be really handy, and many of them benefit characters other than Locke. Try jacking things from every vaguely humanoid enemy in sight and see what turns up. You might discover some things for characters like Shadow, Setzer, and Gau that really help them out...
Equipping the Thief Glove accessory turns Steal into Mug, an ability that attempts to steal while also otherwise acting like Fight. This is a good way to allow Locke to keep attacking while also swiping items, but bear in mind that Mug has a few peculiar side effects. It disables the special effects of weapons like the Atma/Omega Weapon and Valiant Edge's defense-ignoring properties. In exchange, however, Mug is slightly faster to come out than a regular Fight command, so in the right circumstances it could actually be extremely beneficial. Plus, the Thief Glove is an excellent relic for Locke, so why not?
Espers
Ramuh | Vigor +2 | Phoenix | HP +30 / MP +15 |
Kirin | HP +30 / Stamina +1 | ||
Ifrit | Speed +2 |
Locke's Esper selections are short and sweet. He has access to +2 boosts for both his Vigor and Speed, making him the only character who can crank both up to the limit at the same time, and he has access to both HP and MP in decent amounts. The only real issue is his MP gains come from a WoR Esper, but at least it's an Esper he can't miss (if you have Locke back, you also have Phoenix). He can also boost his Stamina via Kirin, but he can't do a whole lot with it. No boosts to Magic possible, but Locke has some ways around that.
Spells
Cure | (Kirin) | Fire | (Ifrit) |
Cure 2 | (Kirin) | Fire 2 | (Ifrit) |
Cure 3 | (Phoenix) | Fire 3 | (Phoenix) |
Life | (Ramuh) | Bolt | (Ramuh) |
Life 2 | (Phoenix) | Bolt 2 | (Ramuh) |
Demi | (Kirin) | ||
Doom | (Ifrit) |
Like his Esper choices, Locke is pretty simple and to the point. No status-affecting spells of any kind, positive or negative. Just all the Cure spells, both Life spells, all three Fire spells and most of the Bolt line. His most exciting spells are the fractional damage of Demi (which has its uses) and the instant kill power of Doom. Everything else is straightforward, easy to understand, and handy.
Equipment
Locke can't really complain about the gear he has available. No Heavy Armor outside the Genji Armor, but he can wear basically all Light Armor (including the potent Mirage Vest), most Hats (including the amazing Ninja Mask), and every Shield including the Hero Shield (an honor he alone shares with Terra/Celes).
His weapon options are better still. He's the only character who can use both Swords and Daggers, but he can also dual wield with Thrown Weapons if he wishes. This gives him a ton of good front and back row weapon options, from elemental swords and the Zantetsuken to dual-wielded Avengers or Wing Edges. He even gets a Sword all to himself: The Valiant Edge, the only pure Vigor-based defense-ignoring weapon in BNW. The low BPow of the Valiant Edge is deceptive; since it ignores defense, it almost always outdamages Locke's other options. He can also use the Atma/Omega Weapons, but he generally doesn't benefit from them as much as the other users of those weapons (except to use it as a stat stick, whereupon it can be very handy indeed).
The ability to dual wield or use shields is something Locke needs to always consider carefully. It's a big advantage over Shadow at times to have access to a Shield, but dual wielding allows him to dish out a ton of damage thanks to his high Speed. Two weapons will tend to jack up Locke's Evade but lower his Defense, meaning he'll be hit less but get hit harder when he does fumble a roll. Shields can also provide him with auto-statuses, something weapons won't do.
Relics are another bonanza for Locke. There are a ton of relics restricted to just a handful of characters, and Locke can equip more of them than anybody else. The Thief Glove (unique to him and Gogo) works as a physical booster (saving a Power Glove for other characters) and also enables his Mug command. The Rogue Cloak (unique to him and Shadow) allows for perfect Fight accuracy and serves as a very coveted magical booster, which has numerous uses on Locke. And the Sage Stone (unique to Locke, Mog, and Strago) lets Locke use X-Magic, which is no joke when you consider he has access to Life 2 and Fire 3. Locke of course can do quite well with all sorts of conventional relics too; the unique ones shouldn't be the only ones considered, as defensive relics synergize well with his high potential Vigor and Speed (meaning he needs +Vigor/Speed relics far less than other characters).
Availability
Locke is the king of World of Balance availability. He's controllable mere minutes after Terra for the Marshal fight, and he sticks around all the way to right before the Lete River sequence. Splitting off, he has an entire scenario to himself (well, and to Celes, eventually), and is available for the Narshe Battle and Zozo sequence. After that, he's forced into the party for the IMRF sequence and remains available or forced for the Sealed Gate, Crescent Island, and Floating Continent. Pretty much no other character in the WoB is around longer than Locke, making him an excellent choice to invest in early. Since two of the first four Espers you get are usable by Locke, with a third following halfway into the IMRF, he's a great pick... though some of his builds will punish that behavior, so decide whether Locke's availability should be exploited to benefit other characters or if he should be managed carefully.
By contrast, however, Locke's availability in the World of Ruin is a bit stickier. Technically speaking he is available without fighting a single WoR boss... but he's at the end of the Phoenix Cave, one of the longest and roughest dungeons in the game. Getting him early will probably require fleeing from most of the Phoenix Cave's enemies and coming back later to fight the Red Dragon, something that might not seem worth doing when the whole thing could be done in one go. But putting it off generally means not getting Locke back for quite a long time. How useful he is will depend a lot on when you decide to get him back.
Build & Role Options
Physical Stabbinator
At one point in the Woolsey FF6 script, Locke threatens to rip a man's lungs out. Suffice it to say that in BNW Locke can rip a lot of things out of his enemies with alarming speed. A Vigor build is one thing; lots of characters can do that. But none of them - except maybe Shadow - can do it with as much Speed as Locke.
The ability to juggle +2 levels means Locke can leverage incredible power with the ability to act more frequently than other characters. Sure, he's not hitting as hard per strike as Terra or Cyan, but those two usually aren't hitting twice per turn and they sure aren't getting turns as often or as quickly as Locke. On balance, Locke can potentially be the best physical damage dealer in the game in terms of raw damage output (although circumstances like elemental weaknesses can throw things in favor of others).
Of course, none of that would matter if Locke were fragile, but despite being a "Thief"-type character (reputed for their frailty), he really isn't at all. His Physical Evade is spectacular and his defenses are really not too bad. He just needs some HP levels and maybe Safe/Shell and he's fine. His ability to heal himself and others does wonders for his survivability too. Be aware of magical attacks, however; Locke's Magic Evade is not tops and his Magic Defense is just kind of average. Locke has a clever way to subvert this if you're thorough with your Steals, but it's not the best option. The Mirage Vest can help his Magic Evade a lot, but it won't necessarily help him against magical moves that always hit.
This Locke ain't subtle: Pick Fight (or sometimes Mug), eviscerate enemies. Repeat every time his turn comes up, which will be a frequent occurrence. Win. He's probably better against bosses where his turn advantage and single-target focus shines, but he's not awful against random encounters for two reasons. First, his Speed means he'll get off multiple single-target attacks between enemy turns. Second, he still has access to the Rogue Cloak and his spells for random encounters. Just save some MP for clutch revives and Locke's doing his part; it's not like he needs his MP for damage unless you've decided to throw the Excalibur on him (which is really not needed).
CRITICAL ESPERS - Ramuh / Ifrit
Vigor and Speed in maximum dosage. You shouldn't go 1:1 though; in fact, you want to be careful to avoid going overboard on Ifrit. Speed's great, but Locke already has a ton and there is such a thing as being too fast. Consider that Locke has access to tons of +Speed gear and go light on Ifrit, no more than 3-5 levels. Put most of the rest into Ramuh, because you really can't have enough Vigor.
USEFUL ESPERS - Kirin / Phoenix
HP/MP are good picks on any Locke and even a brawler Locke will appreciate some extra durability and healing juice. Kirin is an option as well and comes far sooner, but MP is something Locke really appreciates. It might be worth letting Locke sustain himself on Ramuh and Ifrit levels before the WoR, then dunk into about 5 or so levels of Phoenix for lategame survival and support.
Speedy Support
Locke's obviously pushed toward Fight, what with that being one of his only real sources of damage. That doesn't necessarily mean he has to use Fight though. After all, he's got access to Shields... and he has an early-access WoR magic booster in the Rogue Cloak and the ability to utilize X-Magic via the Sage Stone. And a third-tier elemental spell, too... hmmmm.
The idea behind exploiting Locke's relic choices and spell selection is simple enough: A simple straightforward healer with good durability and plenty of Speed is a healer who is always on top of his game. And the ability to X-Magic Fire 3 makes Locke a damage competitor with the likes of even Morphed Terra until the endgame, where he's still a fast healer. The Sage Stone also makes him the sole character in the game capable of popping two Life 2s in a single turn.
To pay for this, he's going to need MP. Enter Phoenix, which makes Locke basically a bulky-as-hell healer with a decent MP reserve to boot. He'll still probably want a Magic Cube when he isn't rocking the Sage Stone, but the Rogue Cloak lets him use Cure and Cure 2 as primary single/multi-target heals, so he's much less reliant on Cure 3 in the lategame than other characters. Stick Locke in the back, contribute occasionally with good spells, use X-Magic to make up the difference in random encounters, and drop the hammer on Fire-weak bosses with doublecasts of Fire 3.
The biggest flaw with this build comes not from Locke's own deficiencies, but from the general flow of the game. Locke is a high-availability character early on and is forced several times. He's generally encouraged and expected to gain levels, and he wants to do that as little as possible in this build to ensure he can stack more Phoenix. You'll be forced to either keep him underleveled or mostly raise him on Ifrit, which might end up making him a bit too fast.
CRITICAL ESPERS - Phoenix
To exploit his MP, Locke has to actually have MP. Only Phoenix can give it to him. There's really no such thing as too many Phoenix levels to this build. The lower Locke's level is to start, the more Phoenix levels he can get, and the better and better it makes him as both a damage-dealer and healer.
USEFUL ESPERS - Ifrit
The only other thing that really benefits a supportive Locke is to leverage his Speed. He can afford more Ifrit levels than most other Lockes because the gear he's likely to equip to boost his Magic tends not to jack up his Speed as much as gear that boosts his Vigor. Still, overuse of Ifrit cuts into Phoenix, which is far more important, so this is a case where it might be beneficial to bench Locke everywhere he isn't forced and try not to get into too many fights when he is.