Phantasy Star 2 question

[UnholyBlood]

In Phantasy Star 2 the character 'Rudo (Rudolf) Steiner' describes himself as a 'Professional Biomonster hunter'. On his character status screen it stats his class is 'Hunter'.

Rudo Steiner specialised in guns yet could use knifes and daggers , he also could use no techniques ( maybe representing his pure toughness and lack of int)

I come to the conclusion he is a 'Hunter'.

However some would argue he is a 'Ranger' because of his skill with guns and his uniform and armor type.

So what is your opinion?

My PSO character was a Hunter named 'Rudo Steiner' and so I would greatly accept the feedback on this subject.

[Sinue_v2]

A Hunter in Phantasy Star classic is a generic term for a freelance mercenary who tracked down and eliminated Biomonsters. Weapon types and skills don't matter. They formed a guild to assist and police each other by PSIV's time. Even in PSO, even though you were a Ranger, you were still considered a Hunter - and reported to the Hunter's Guild.

PSII also had Guardians, like Anna Zirsky, who were basically ex-Hunters who were tasked with hunting down and eliminating Hunters who used their skills for extortion and brigandry.

But in general, like most things, it's best to assume a difference between the terms when going from one series to the next.

[pionear]

Well, since Rangers in PSO/PSU could use daggers and sabers as well as the Big Guns, I would say Rudo was a Ranger.

[HUnewearl_Meira]

Listen to Sinue. He knows what he's talking about. The character info display on PSII listed a Profession-- this is not to be confused with a Class. Characters in PSII, and indeed, generally in most RPGs lacking character customization, did not have Classes. Consider that Nei's Profession was listed as "None".

[cel]

Rudo was undoubtedly a Hunter. As was Chaz in the real sequel to PS II (PS III is a redheaded bastard which we don't speak of).

A Ranger was that blonde 80's-german-looking-guy who used cool laser cannons.

But yeah the dudes above me pretty much nailed the proverbial hammer on the head with detail to spare, however, since I gathered you were comparing classic PS material with modern... my reply was tailored as such.

[Zorafim]

Yeah, genesis terminology and online PS terminologies don't mix very well. The hunters, rangers, etc. you see in the old games don't mean what weapons they're good at, but rather what professions each character had. Notice there's no agent job in PSO, nor a force job in PSII. It's simply what the character did before joining your group.
This is somewhat more apparent in PSIV, where the jobs are more common terms than seen in PSII.

[silverfur]

In Phantasy Star 2 the character 'Rudo (Rudolf) Steiner' describes himself as a 'Professional Biomonster hunter'. On his character status screen it stats his class is 'Hunter'.

Rudo Steiner specialised in guns yet could use knifes and daggers , he also could use no techniques ( maybe representing his pure toughness and lack of int)

I come to the conclusion he is a 'Hunter'.

However some would argue he is a 'Ranger' because of his skill with guns and his uniform and armor type.

So what is your opinion?

My PSO character was a Hunter named 'Rudo Steiner' and so I would greatly accept the feedback on this subject.

He's a hunter, they didn't have the ranger class back then, anyone who hunted biomonsters was called a hunter.

So to even suggest he was a ranger would be incorrect.

[HUnewearl_Meira]

He's a hunter, they didn't have the ranger class back then, anyone who hunted biomonsters was called a hunter.

So to even suggest he was a ranger would be incorrect.

For what it's worth, if you were to try to define Rudo by PSO's terminology, the most accurate description of him would be to call him a "Ranger", as his selection of equipable weaponry most easily coincides with that of PSO's Ranger class. It might be more accurate yet, however, to try to shoehorn him into PSU's terminology, and suggest that he is a Gunmaster, if not a Fortegunner. This can never apply directly to Phantasy Star II, though if you are trying to describe his nature to a person who has only played recent Phantasy Star installments, then these terms are what you would be at the greatest advantage to use.

[silverfur]

For what it's worth, if you were to try to define Rudo by PSO's terminology, the most accurate description of him would be to call him a "Ranger", as his selection of equipable weaponry most easily coincides with that of PSO's Ranger class. It might be more accurate yet, however, to try to shoehorn him into PSU's terminology, and suggest that he is a Gunmaster, if not a Fortegunner. This can never apply directly to Phantasy Star II, though if you are trying to describe his nature to a person who has only played recent Phantasy Star installments, then these terms are what you would be at the greatest advantage to use.

Not really, he was a Hunter, that's what he did, it would be incorrect to describe him as anything else.

[HUnewearl_Meira]

Not really, he was a Hunter, that's what he did, it would be incorrect to describe him as anything else.

And if you describe a man who works primarily with large guns as a "Hunter" to a person who recognizes that term as a person who works primarily with large melee weapons, do you subsequently convey a correct understanding of what he is, or have you simply confused your friend?