To say Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles is best played with other people is an understatement — the game is meant to be played with multiple players, which is very apparent once you get a load of its magic and chalice systems. Having a Moogle follow you around with the chalice and casting magic alone just isn’t the same.
There are four races to choose from in Crystal Chronicles, each with its own strengths. The flexible Clavats, hard-hitting Lilties, dexterous Selkies, and magically-inclined Yukes. All four cater to differing playstyles.
We’re going to go over most of what you need to know about all four of the game’s races, including their overall strengths and weaknesses, base stats, and favorite foods.
Clavat
Though Clavat is the game’s “balanced” race, Clavats are the sword and shield wielders in Crystal Chronicles. Just don’t mistake that shield for low attack or magic — its stats, movement, and available equipment make it a more versatile race than it appears.
Clavats’ shields are able to block both physical and magical attacks from the front when using the Defend command, but are vulnerable from other directions.
Despite the fact that Clavats use shields, they can move as deftly as the other three races. Their stats are balanced on the higher side of the races options.
Base Stats
Attack: 6 Defense: 7 Magic: 13
Their stats aren’t different, but male Clavats do attack faster than females by a significant margin throughout all three attacks in its main combo. This makes male Clavats more suited to physical attacks, while females are better suited to using magic.
Clavats take a small amount of time to begin casting and actually fire off magic, and have a +5 range bonus to magic spells. They also have an average duration for all negative and positive status effects cast on them.
Food
Each race has different preferences for each food at the start of the game. This list is the base “like” value; higher values equate to them enjoying the food more.
If a character likes the food it eats, it gets a temporary increase to a specific stat. If it eats food it doesn’t like, it gets a temporary decrease to a specific stat. The more a character eats food it doesn’t like at a time, the more it will come to enjoy it and eventually get the stat boost from it.
Cherry Cluster: 75 Fish: 15 Gourd Potato: 45 Meat: 25 Rainbow Grapes: 65 Round Corn: 35 Star Carrot: 65 Striped Apple: 85
Lilty
Lilties are almost like little Onion Knights come to life. Small, strong, and well-armored.
Taking the spot as the dwarven race in Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles, Lilties are tiny powerhouses that can take a beating as well as dish one out. Their focus attack is the same as that of Clavats’, but its charge time is long enough it shouldn’t be your focus in combat.
Lilties are not suited to magic. Instead, they are best suited to button-mashing their way to victory. Lilties can use the Defend command to block from the front using their spear.
Base Stats
Attack: 8 Defense: 8 Magic: 10
Lilties and Yukes, which we’ll come to shortly, have the same attack speeds. However, Lilties boast a much higher attack power.
Lilties take the longest to charge and cast magic, and they receive no range bonus to casting. They have the lowest negative and positive status effect durations among the races, making debuffs and buffs alike last less time than their larger companions.
Food
Each race has different preferences for each food at the start of the game. This list is the base “like” value, higher values equate to them enjoying the food more.
If a character likes the food it eats, it gets a temporary increase to a specific stat. If it eats food it doesn’t like, it gets a temporary decrease to a specific stat. The more a character eats food it doesn’t like at the time, the more it will come to enjoy it and eventually get the stat boost from it.
Cherry Cluster: 25 Fish: 45 Gourd Potato: 75 Meat: 85 Rainbow Grapes: 35 Round Corn: 65 Star Carrot: 55 Striped Apple: 15
Selkie
Of all four races, Selkies are the quickest moving of the bunch and have middling-range attacks to help keep them out of the depths of the fray.
All races have a Defend command, but the Selkie is the only one that backflips instead of actively defending. While flipping, the Selkie is invulnerable — but they are vulnerable briefly after the animation, making this a race you generally want to avoid using the Defend command with.
Selkies have the second-lowest Defense in Crystal Chronicles and are best suited to hit-and-run tactics using their ranged focus attacks and weaving in and out of direct combat for safety.
Base Stats
Attack: 7 Defense: 6 Magic: 12
As with Clavats, male Selkies have slightly faster attack speeds than their female counterparts sans the third attack in their combo. Male Selkies are also notable for the fact that the last hit of their combo can strike airborne enemies. Both genders boast the same force attack speed, which is the highest in the game.
This race has high magic power and charges its magic at the same rate as Yukes, but it has a slight casting delay and receives no range bonus. They have purely average durations for status effects both negative and positive.
Food
Each race has different preferences for each food at the start of the game. This list is the base “like” value, higher values equate to them enjoying the food more.
If a character likes the food it eats, it gets a temporary increase to a specific stat. If it eats food it doesn’t like, it gets a temporary decrease to a specific stat. The more a character eats food it doesn’t like at the time, the more it will come to enjoy it and eventually get the stat boost from it.
Cherry Cluster: 45 Fish: 85 Gourd Potato: 15 Meat: 75 Rainbow Grapes: 55 Round Corn: 25 Star Carrot: 35 Striped Apple: 65
Yuke
The obligatory magic race, don’t let the Yukes’ bizarre visage scare you off. This is the race you want to play as if you’re embracing the caster life.
Yukes are below average in every field, including magic damage. It starts with low attack and defense, and even magic lower than Clavats or Selkies. This race is entirely geared toward casting magic, but for reasons that are not its base magic stat — a Yuke’s magic power will come from equipment, not from stats.
The race’s lack of defense is made up for by its Defend command granting invulnerability from all directions, but its force attack is nearly useless in the face of its magic prowess. Keep these facts in mind if you play Yuke; they will save your life.
Base Stats
Attack: 5 Defense: 5 Magic: 10
Yukes’ boon lies in its quick spell charging speed, total lack of spell cast time, and a massive +10 range bonus on spells. This means Yukes can cast from further away than the other races, and they do it without much effort at all.
In addition, this race has the longest status effect durations. Both negative and positive status effects will last the longest on a Yuke, which is as double-edged a sword as the rest of the race.
Food
Each race has different preferences for each food at the start of the game. This list is the base “like” value, higher values equate to them enjoying the food more.
If a character likes the food it eats, it gets a temporary increase to a specific stat. If it eats food it doesn’t like, it gets a temporary decrease to a specific stat. The more a character eats food it doesn’t like at the time, the more it will come to enjoy it and eventually get the stat boost from it.
Cherry Cluster: 55 Fish: 65 Gourd Potato: 25 Meat: 35 Rainbow Grapes: 45 Round Corn: 75 Star Carrot: 85 Striped Apple: 15
Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles was one of my favorite Gamecube games, and I am thrilled to see it come to the modern age with online multiplayer — no more need for a bunch of GBA cables to make the game worth it, thank goodness.
Did you play the original Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles, and are you looking forward to the remaster on PS4, Nintendo Switch, and mobile devices coming this summer? Let us know in the comments below!
