Phantasy Star 4 Save State Hacking Guide Usable with the Genecyst emulator (.gs0 style save states) Written by Thundergod (dragon_god_inferno@yahoo.com) Version 1.0: First draft. Version 1.1: Minor corrections made. Version 2.0: New offsets added for skills and techniques with matching value tables, all thanks to Sulphuric Ghost. Version 2.1: More minor changes. Unpublished work Copyright 2000 Thundergod This FAQ is for private and personal use only. It can only be reproduced electronically, and if placed on a web page or site, may be altered as long as this disclaimer and the above copyright notice appears in full. This FAQ is not to be used for profitable/promotional purposes; this includes being used by publishers of magazines, guides, books, etc. or being incorporated into magazines, etc. in ANY way. This FAQ was created and is owned by me, Thundergod . All copyrights and trademarks are acknowledged that are not specifically mentioned in this FAQ. Please give credit where it is due. Thanks go to: Ragnarosen (ragnarosen@hotmail.com) for the form of the following paragraph, and for the section on hexadecimal. Kao Megura (kmegura@yahoo.com) for the copyright statement. SulphuricGhost sulphuricghost@hotmail.com for the offsets and tables for skills and techniques. To download ROMs and emulators for all systems, go to www.pe2000.net. To alter the statistics of your characters through hacking into your save state (or .gs0 file), you'll need to go to Break Point Software (http://www.bpsoft.com) and download a program called "Hex Workshop." Once you're finished downloading and the program is finished running SETUP.EXE automatically, open Hex Workshop and use it to open any Phantasy Star 4 .gs0 files you may have. NOTE: This Hacking Guide was designed for use with the Genecyst emulator, and was hacked with Break Point Software's Hex Workshop. This guide will not work with any other programs, as each one works with the save states differently. ----------------------------------------------------------- OFFSETS: Most of the questions I get anymore have to do with offsets – what are they, how do I tell what I'm editing, I don't understand hacking in general, etc. As far as I am concerned, the help Section is as thorough is it is going to get. The only way I could explain it any better would be to point at the screen and say, "See that there? That's what you need to change!" Since I can't do that, you'll just have to be on your own if you need any help more detailed than what I have included below. If you REALLY cannot figure out offsets and hacking on your own, read the Hex Workshop help file. For the best explanation (with pictures), open the help file and click on the Find tab. Search for offset, click on the first option (there should be four), and click on "How to Hex Edit" in the box below. Read over that very carefully, and you should have no trouble with hacking and finding offsets after that. If you STILL do not understand, then odds are hacking is, quite seriously, not for you. If you have reached this stage and do not understand, do not e-mail me, for I will not be able to help you. Do not ask me to hack files for you; I will ignore any request to do so. ----------------------------------------------------------- Help! Answers for commonly asked questions: You don't use a cartridge in the Genesis for this process. Have you heard of emulation? An emulator is a program on your PC (or Mac) that you can use to play the games you have. First, you need to download an emulator (Genecyst is the best, in my opinion) and Phantasy Star 4 ROM. Once you have both, load up the ROM in your emulator. If you are using Genecyst, press F5 to save the game's state. This will make a copy of that EXACT moment in the game, so when you load the state (F7) it will reappear right at that point. Now that you have a save state file (.gs0 for Genecyst), load up the Hex Workshop program, load the save state, and hack away! This can only be done on the computer, when you are using an emulator (like Genecyst) and ROMs (in this case, Phantasy Star 4.) Go to www.pe2000.net for ROMs, emulators, and how to use them. If you already know, and/or are already using an emulator, then move on to the next paragraph. Otherwise, get them so that you can follow the rest of this. Once you are using an emulator, you may have found out how to use save states. Basically, save states save all the details of your game at that exact moment. Thus, you can use it more often, and faster, than regular saving. For example, if you want to save your state right before making a choice (like a fork in the road,) if you choose the wrong path, you can just load up your save state and choose again. At any rate, to begin hacking, go to the Breakpoint software homepage (www.bpsoft.com) and download a copy of Hex Workshop. Load up your favorite emulator (whatever that may be) and make a save state. A Genecyst save state will have the same name as the ROM, and will have the file extension .gs0. For Genecyst (the best emulator , in my opinion) press F5 to save a state, and F7 to load a state. Next, load up Hex Workshop and load the save state (ex: ps4.gs0) Use the "go to" command, which should be under Edit, to got to the offset you are looking for. For example, if the offset is 90B4, type 90B4 and press enter, and it will take you right to it. Keep in mind that this all uses the hexadecimal system, which means that not only is there 0 - 9, but also A - F. A = 10, B = 11, and so on. This is called hexadecimal because there are 16 numbers instead of ten. So, let's say that offset 24041 is the offset for speed, and you want speed to be at max (255, FF in hexadecimal). Use "go to" to go to offset 24041, and then type in FF. Next, save the data, and open the emulator again. Load the state, and voila! the character's speed will be at 255. Note that you can make as many changes as you want before reloading the state (not just one, as in the example), and that you should close Hex Workshop before reloading the state. To find a particular offset easily, use the "go to" command in the edit menu (I think). Remember, because of the hexadecimal system you can also enter letters from A to F. For example, if the offset is 2041A, use "go to" and type in 2041A. The program will take you right to it! Also, somewhere on the screen (bottom right corner I think) a small box will say what offset you are currently on (ex. Offset: 2041A). Now for the entering of values. Let's say you want to change Chaz's attack to 99 (which is the max). To do that, go to the offset that changes attack (I forget the number) and type in two number (or letters from A to F) The hexadecimal system is hard to grasp at first. In the 99 example, 99 become 63 in hexadecimal form. In decimal (or standard) form, the base is ten. This means that for a number (say 1429) each digit is multiplied by an increasing power of ten. For 1429, it looks like this: (9*1)+(2*10)+(4*100)+(1*1000) or (9*10^0)+(2*10^1)+(4*10^2)+(1*10^3) with the carat (^) referring to the power of the number. If you already know how to work with powers, I apologize for repeating this basic information. As you can see, the powers of the digits increase at we go along. In hexadecimal, the base is 16, not 10, so there are a few changes. Here's what 1429 would look like in hexadecimal: (9*1)+(2*16)+(4*256)+(1*4096) or (9*16^0)+(2*16^1)+(4*16^2)+(1*16^3) Thus, 63 in hexadecimal equals 99 in decimal because (3*1)+(6*16) equals 99. The highest number you can get with one offset is 255 (FF in hexadecimal). ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- Those new to hex and hex editors can read the following: - Typical hex editors display a file with "offsets" on the left of the screen, "hex values" in the middle, and the "printed garbage" on the right of the screen. - Offsets are the addresses. It may appear like this: 00000000 - Hex values are the values. They may appear like this: E6 03 20 20 FF - The printed garbage is there only so humans can look at it. It's not very pretty; it won't help you in most cases; don't worry about it. - This guide will represent the offsets in this format: #B9 - The last number (0-9, A-F) in an offset is the COLUMN you need to go to. So for the offset of #B9, go to the line "000000B0" and the 9th column to the right. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- - For the different offsets, here's a Quick List of the most commonly used values: HEX VALUE DECIMAL VALUE USES ----------------------------------------------------------------------- "63" for "99" used for levels, item quantities "FF" for "255" used for statistics "03 E7" for "999" used for HP, Max HP, statistics "0F 27" for "9999" used for HP, Max HP "98 96 7F" for "9,999,999" used for money or experience ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Items: 11888 – 118B0 Meseta: 118B3, 118B2, 118B1 CHARACTER OFFSETS: Chaz: Level: 11981 Experience: 11983, 11984, 11985 Current HP: 11986, 11987 Maximum HP: 11988, 11989 Current TP: 1198A, 1198B Maximum TP: 1198C, 1198D Strength: 11990, 11991, 11992 Mental: 11993, 11994, 11995 Agility: 11996, 11997, 11998 Dexterity: 11999, 1199A, 1199B Weapon Slot 1: 119C4 Weapon Slot 2: 119C5 Helmet: 119C6 Armor: 119C7 Techs: 119CA – 119D9 Skills: 119DA - 119E2 Amount: 119E2 – 119F1 Alys: Level: 11A01 Experience: 11A03, 11A04, 11A05 Current HP: 11A06, 11A07 Maximum HP: 11A08, 11A09 Current TP: 11A0A, 11A0B Maximum TP: 11A0C, 11A0D Strength: 11A10, 11A11, 11A12 Mental: 11A13, 11A14, 11A15 Agility: 11A16, 11A17, 11A18 Dexterity: 11A19, 11A1A, 11A1B Weapon Slot 1: 11A44 Weapon Slot 2: 11A45 Helmet: 11A46 Armor: 11A47 Tech: 11A4A – 11A59 Skills: 11A5A - 11A62 Amount: 11A62 - 11A67 Hahn: Level: 11A81 Experience: 11A83, 11A84, 11A85 Current HP: 11A86, 11A87 Maximum HP: 11A88, 11A89 Current TP: 11A8A, 11A8B Maximum TP: 11A8C, 11A8D Strength: 11A90, 11A91, 11A92 Mental: 11A93, 11A94, 11A95 Agility: 11A96, 11A97, 11A98 Dexterity: 11A99, 11A9A, 11A9B Weapon Slot 1: 11AC4 Weapon Slot 2: 11AC5 Helmet: 11AC6 Armor: 11AC7 Tech: 11ACA – 11AD9 Skills: 11ADA -11AE2 Amount: 11AE2 - 11AF1 Rune: Level: 11B01 Experience: 11B03, 11B04, 11B05 Current HP: 11B06, 11B07 Maximum HP: 11B08, 11B09 Current TP: 11B0A, 11BOB Maximum TP: 11B0C, 11B0D Strength: 11B10, 11B11, 11B12 Mental: 11B13, 11B14, 11B15 Agility: 11B16, 11B17, 11B18 Dexterity: 11B19, 11B1A, 11B1B Weapon Slot 1: 11B44 Weapon Slot 2: 11B45 Helmet: 11B46 Armor: 11B47 Tech: 11B4A – 11B59 Skills: 11B5A - 11B62 Amount: 11B62 - 11B71 Gryz: Level: 11B81 Experience: 11B83, 11B84, 11B85 Current HP: 11B86, 11B87 Maximum HP: 11B88, 11B89 Current TP: 11B8A, 11B8B Maximum TP: 11B8C, 11B8D Strength: 11B90, 11B91, 11B92 Mental: 11B93, 11B94, 11B95 Agility: 11B96, 11B97, 11B98 Dexterity: 11B99, 11B9A, 11B9B Weapon Slot 1: 11BC4 Weapon Slot 2: 11BC5 Helmet: 11BC6 Armor: 11BC7 Tech: 11B4A – 11B59 Skills: 11BDA - 11BE2 Amount: 11BE2 - 11BF1 Rika: Level: 11C01 Experience: 11C03, 11C04, 11C05 Current HP: 11C06, 11C07 Maximum HP: 11C08, 11C09 Current TP: 11C0A, 11C0B Maximum TP: 11C0C, 11C0D Strength: 11C10, 11C11, 11C12 Mental: 11C13, 11C14, 11C15 Agility: 11C16, 11C17, 11C18 Dexterity: 11C19, 11C1A, 11C1B Weapon Slot 1: 11C44 Weapon Slot 2: 11C45 Helmet: 11C46 Armor: 11C47 Tech: 11C4A – 11C59 Skills: 11C5A – 11C61 Amount: 11C62 - 11C69 Demi: Level: 11C81 Experience: 11C803, 11C84, 11C85 Current HP: 11C86, 11C87 Maximum HP: 11C88, 11C89 Current TP: 11C8A, 11C8B Maximum TP: 11C8C, 11C8D Strength: 11C80, 11C81, 11C82 Mental: 11C83, 11C84, 11C85 Agility: 11C86, 11C87, 11C88 Dexterity: 11C89, 11C8A, 11C8B Weapon Slot 1: 11CC4 Weapon Slot 2: 11CC5 Helmet: 11CC6 Armor: 11CC7 Tech: 11CBA – 11CD9 Skills: 11CDA - 11CE2 Amount: 11CE2 - 11CF1 Wren: Level: 11D01 Experience: 11D03, 11D04, 11D05 Current HP: 11D06, 11D07 Maximum HP: 11D08, 11D09 Current TP: 11D0A, 11D0B Maximum TP: 11D0C, 11D0D Strength: 11D10, 11D11, 11D12 Mental: 11D13, 11D14, 11D15 Agility: 11D16, 11D17, 11D18 Dexterity: 11D19, 11D1A, 11D1B Weapon Slot 1: 11D44 Weapon Slot 2: 11D45 Helmet: 11D46 Armor: 11D47 Tech: 11D4A – 11D59 Skills: 11D5A - 11D62 Amount: 11D62 - 11AF1 Raja: Level: 11D81 Experience: 11D83, 11D84, 11D85 Current HP: 11D86, 11D87 Maximum HP: 11D88, 11D89 Current TP: 11D8A, 11D8B Maximum TP: 11D8C, 11D8D Strength: 11D90, 11D91, 11D92 Mental: 11D93, 11D94, 11D95 Agility: 11D96, 11D97, 11D98 Dexterity: 11D99, 11D9A, 11D9B Weapon Slot 1: 11DC4 Weapon Slot 2: 11DC5 Helmet: 11ADC6 Armor: 11DC7 Tech: 11DCA – 11DD9 Skills: 11DDA - 11DE2 Amount: 11DE2 - 11DF1 Kyra: Level: 11E01 Experience: 11E03, 11E04, 11E05 Current HP: 11E06, 11E07 Maximum HP: 11E08, 11E09 Current TP: 11E0A, 11E0B Maximum TP: 11E0C, 11E0D Strength: 11E10, 11E11, 11E12 Mental: 11E13, 11E14, 11E15 Agility: 11E16, 11E17, 11E18 Dexterity: 11E19, 11E1A, 11E1B Weapon Slot 1: 11E44 Weapon Slot 2: 11E45 Helmet: 11E46 Armor: 11E47 Tech: 11E4A – 11E59 Skills: 11E5A - 11E62 Amount: 11E62 - 11E71 Seth: Level: 11E81 Experience: 11E83, 11E84, 11E85 Current HP: 11E86, 11E87 Maximum HP: 11E88, 11E89 Current TP: 11E8A, 11E8B Maximum TP: 11E8C, 11E8D Strength: 11E90, 11E91, 11E92 Mental: 11E93, 11E94, 11E95 Agility: 11E96, 11E97, 11E98 Dexterity: 11E99, 11E9A, 11E9B Weapon Slot 1: 11EC4 Weapon Slot 2: 11EC5 Helmet: 11EC6 Armor: 11EC7 Tech: 11ECA – 11ED9 Skills: 11EDA - 11EE2 Amount: 11EE2 - 11EF1 Notes: Although you can set the characters' stats to a maximum of 255 (FF), if they gain a level or equip something that increases stats, the affected stat will reset itself and work upwards from there. For example, if you set Chaz's strength to 255, then have him gain five more points of strength, he will immediately gain one and make it 0, then gain four more after that, leaving him with a strength of four. However, the game's normal maximum for character stats is 99 (63), so you would be wise to gain as many levels as you want (or change the characters' experience to 9999999, or 98967F in hexadecimal, for level 99), then make all their stats 99. The Technique Amounts section works as follows: starting with the character's first technique, it alternates between the current number of allowed usages of a technique and the maximum number of usages. For example, Chaz's first technique is Earth, and on level 99 he can use it 46 times. 46 converts to 2E in hexadecimal, so you should see a 2E in offset 119E2, and a 2E in offset 119E3. As far as I know right now, you cannot change which techniques they have, or give them more techniques than they started with. ITEM MODIFIER VALUES: * = Debug/Useless item 00: Empty 01: Dagger 02: Hunting Knife 03: Boomerang 04: Leather Cloth 05: Leather Helm 06: Leather Crown 07: Leather Band 08: Steel Sword 09: Slasher 0A: Leather Shield 0B: Carbon Suit 0C: Carbon Shield 0D: Carbon Helm 0E: Carbon Crown 0F: Circlet 10: Wooden Cane 11: White Mantle 12: Titanium Sword 13: Titanium Dagger 14: Titanium Slasher 15: Titanium Axe 16: Broad Axe 17: Titanium Mail 18: Titanium Shield 19: Titanium Helm 1A: Titanium Crown 1B: Nothing* 1C: Graphite Suit 1D: Graphite Shield 1E: Ceramic Sword 1F: Graphite Crown 20: Claw 21: Ceramic Knife 22: Ceramic Shield 23: Laser Slasher 24: Saber Claw 25: Struggle Axe 26: Ceramic Mail 27: Ceramic Helm 28: Laser Sword 29: Laser Claw 2A: Laser Barrier 2B: Impacter 2C: Titanium Armor 2D: Head Gear 2E: Stun Shot 2F: Laser Axe 30: Laser Knife 31: Ceramic Armor 32: Titanium Gear 33: Psychic Mail 34: Psychic Shield 35: Psychic Crown 36: Psychic Circlet 37: Force Cane 38: Psychic Robe 39: Pyscho Wand 3A: Frade Mantle 3B: Wave Shot 3C: Space Armor 3D: Ceramic Gear 3E: Plasma Rifle 3F: Pulse Laser 40: Plasma Sword 41: Plasma Claw 42: Plasma Dagger 43: Plasma Field 44: Silver Rod 45: Silver Mantle 46: Silver Circlet 47: Silver Mail 48: Silver Shield 49: Silver Helm 4A: Silver Crown 4B: Zirco Gear 4C: Napalm Shot 4D: Zirco Armor 4E: Flame Sword 4F: Thunder Claw 50: Tornado Dagger 51: Dream Rod 52: Phantasm Robe 53: Silver Tusk 54: Pulse Vulcan 55: Compound Armor 56: Compound Gear 57: Reflect Mail 58: Reflect Shield 59: Reflect Robe 5A: Laco Sword 5B: Laco Dagger 5C: Laco Claw 5D: Laco Slasher 5E: Guard Rod 5F: Plasma Launcher 60: Elastic Armor 61: Elastic Gear 62: Laco Rod 63: Genocycle Claw 64: Swift Helm 65: Moon Slasher 66: Power Shield 67: Laco Mail 68: Laco Helm 69: Laco Crown 6A: Laco Circlet 6B: Laco Shield 6C: Cyber Suit 6D: Guard Sword 6E: Photon Eraser 6F: Laco Armor 70: Laco Gear 71: Mahlay Dagger 72: Guard Claw 73: Guard Armor 74: Guard Robe 75: Guard Mail 76: Nothing* 77: Elsydeon 78: Laco Axe 79: Sonic Buster 7A: Defeat Axe 7B: Nothing 7C: Mahlay Mail 7D: Monomate 7E: Dimate 7F: Trimate 80: Antidote 81: Cure Paralysis 82: Moon Dew 83: Star Dew 84: Telepipe 85: Escapipe 86: Sol Dew 87: Guard Shield 88: Mahlay Shield 89: Shadow Blade 8A: Alis Sword 8B: Dynamite 8C: Nothing* 8D: Alshline 8E: Eclipse Torch 8F: Aero Prizm 90: Repair Kit 91: Shortcake 92: Penguin Feed 93: Perolymate 94: Pennant 95: Wood Carving 96: Land Rover 97: Ice Digger 98: Hydrofoil 99: Control Key 9A: Canceller 9B: Palma Ring 9C: Motavia Ring 9D: Dezolis Ring 9E: Rykros Ring 9F: Algo Ring A0: Mahlay Ring A1 - FF: Debug items* SKILL VALUES: Please Note: Although you can give any character these skills, it may cause your game to malfuction. EG: Giving Rika "Efess" (and then trying to use it in battle) will crash the game. 00: Empty 01: Crosscut 02: Rayblade 03: DblSlash 04: Flaeli 05: Flare 06: Vortex 07: Astral 08: Airslash 09: Disrupt 0A: Hewn 0B: Tandle 0C: Efess 0D: Legeon 0E: Burstroc 0F: Posibolt 10: Sweeping 11: Phonon 12: St. Fire 13: Corrosion 14: Explode 15: Eliminat 16: Diem 17: Spark 18: Death 19: Holyword 1A: Dthspell 1B: Negatis 1C: Illusion 1D: Telele 1E: Shadow 1F: Earth 20: Hijammer 21: Moonshad 22: Crash 23: Statisbm 24: Bindwa 25: MindBlst 26: Barrier 27: War Cry 28: Blessing 29: Warla 2A: Recover 2B: Medice 2C: Miracle 2D: Medic Pw 2E: Ataraxia 2F: Vision TECH VALUES: 00: Empty 01: Foi 02: Gifoi 03: Nafoi 04: Wat 05: Giwat 06: Nawat 07: Tsu 08: Githu 09: Nathu 0A: Zan 0B: Gizan 0C: Nazan 0D: Gra 0E: Gigra 0F: Nagra 10: MEGID 11: Brose 12: Vol 13: Savol 14: Gelun 15: Doran 16: Seals 17: Rimit 18: Res 19: Gires 1A: Nares 1B: Sar 1C: Gisar 1D: Nasar 1E: Shift 1F: Saner 20: Deban 21: Feeve 22: Anti 23: Rimpa 24: Rever 25: Regen 26: Arows 27: Ryuka 28: Hinas