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|                                                                      |
|                        Mega Man X5 Parts FAQ                         |
|                            v 0.5, 3-20-01                            |
|                    By Jjukil (Jjukil@excite.com)                     |
|                                                                      |
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Divisions

  0. VERSION CHANGES
    Updates to this document.

  I. INTRODUCTION
    What is this document all about?

  II. OPTIONAL PARTS
    A. PARTS SYSTEM EXPLANATION
      Explains, briefly, how parts are used in X5.
    B. MAIN PARTS LIST
      Describes each part, sorted by source boss.
    C. SUCCESSFUL PART COMBINATIONS
      Several part combos that will serve you well.

  III. THE USUAL FAQ ENDNOTES
    Copyrights, credits, disclaimers, etc.

---

0. VERSION CHANGES

1.0, 3-20-01:  Original document.

---

I. INTRODUCTION

Hello and welcome to the Mega Man X5 Parts FAQ.  This has been a side 
project of mine for a few weeks now (as of 3-20-01, anyway), and has since 
evolved into my second attempt at a major FAQ.  I'm doing it for two 
reasons.  First, mixing and matching abilities comes  naturally to me; I'd 
probably do some Final Fantasy system FAQs if they hadn't already been 
done to death.  Second, for a while there, how to even access the parts 
was a raging debate on the Gamefaqs X5 message board.  When it was finally 
solved, it left me with many questions about parts that other FAQs 
couldn't answer, so, as usual, I decided to answer them myself, and 
document my findings.

This is an early version, practically a beta, but I wanted to get this out 
earlier than usual for a reason.  I have several ideas of my own about 
what more to add to this FAQ, of course, but I'd like to hear from you, 
the readers, about what else you want to see out of this FAQ before I 
continue.  Once you're finished reading this document, drop me a line 
about what info you'd like filled in, what categories you'd like me to 
discuss, generally anything.  Ideas I've been having along the way but 
weren't sure would be successful are scattered through here, and of course 
any new suggestions are welcome too.  Send all suggestions to 
Jjukil@excite.com.  Thanks!

Okay, let's dive right in, then, shall we?

---

II. OPTIONAL PARTS

The Parts system may be confusing, but once you finally manage to get the 
parts, they can be pretty beneficial, as was no doubt the intention of the 
game's designers.  =)  This guide should help you figure out the ins and 
outs of the system, what each part can do for you, and how you can make 
them work best for you.

---

II-A. PARTS SYSTEM EXPLANATION

To get any of these parts, you have to beat a boss that is at least Level 
7.  To make bosses gain Levels, use up hours on your countdown timer.  (To 
do this without beating bosses, kill yourself off in a stage, then exit 
and enter again.  Kinda self-defeating, but it's the only way to get 8 
parts.)

Once you've beaten one of these bosses, after Alia's spiel about getting 
the boss's weapon you'll see an option:  Weapons + Life +, or Weapons + 
Energy +.  The + represents your part, and the part you get by choosing 
Weapons + Life + is different from the one you get from Weapons + Energy 
+.  Choose wisely, my friend, and use the list below to help you.  =)

Unfortunately, you do not have instant access to these parts.  The 
mechanics have to build them first.  It takes them two countdown timer 
hours to do this, which translates to two boss battles, two stage selects 
on game over screens, or one of each.  (This does make sense, really, but 
it does make playing with parts very irritating....)

Finally, once you have the part, hit L1 on the Stage Select screen to get 
to the parts screen.  From there, select one of your "bodies," AKA armors, 
by pressing X, then and equip parts to it.  (Zero only has one body, since 
normal Zero is replaced by Black Zero when/if you get that armor, which 
means he's weaker to play as but better for part purposes.)  Zero and 
Unarmored X can equip 4 parts; X's Fourth, Falcon and Ultimate Armors can 
equip only 2, although that's all I think you need.  X's Gaea Armor can't 
equip parts at all, and, therefore, will never be spoken of again in this 
document.  =)


Future improvements for this section:  I might go into a bit more detail
if enough of you want me to.
Ideas for this section:  Since I personally don't like the parts system 
and have already made that vocal, I'm kind of considering including the 
feelings of others about it, so there'd be some counterarguments.  Or 
maybe just reinforcement =)  I'll admit it's not very informative, 
though--just entertaining.  If you like this idea, send in your feelings 
today, and if there are enough they're going up!

---

II-B. MAIN PARTS LIST

This format's vaguely confusing, so check out this explanation first.  
First you'll get the boss that has the two parts listed ahead.  Life and 
Energy stand for Weapon + Life + and Weapon + Energy +, respectively; they 
tell the obvious--which weapon + option you choose to get the part.  If 
you see a ~ before this this abbreviation, it means I recommend this part 
over the other part.  After the name, you'll get an overall description, 
then some good offensive and defensive uses for the part.  If a certain 
armor (like Black Zero) already has a part or something close to it, it'll 
be listed in Already on?, meaning you usually shouldn't use it with that 
armor.  Overall Rank is just that, but it's not the most functional of 
categories--not only is it purely my opinion, but sometimes two good parts 
are offered by the same robot (like ranks 1 and 2!), and you'll have to 
choose....

When I'm forced to choose, I generally place a lot of value on the parts
that offer Life.  After all, the more Life you have, the longer you can
keep using parts!  ...as in, keep living.  =)  Since I go for parts that
are useful if you play as Zero OR X, this is really the only clincher in
which part I recommend going with, especially if they're low on my rank
scale.  Keep that in mind as you scan for those ~s.


Grizzly Slash:

LIFE: Shock Absorber
This part changes your recovery stance, or what your stun animation does 
to you when you get hit.  For most things, usually shots, you just freeze 
in place; others, usually the actual robots, will send you a block 
backward at about twice the normal rate of recovery.  It's a decent part, 
but only useful for unarmored X or Zero (Black Zero and the Armors already 
have it), so I much prefer the Energy alternative.
OFFENSIVE USES:  You won't get moved as far away from your firing post.
DEFENSIVE USES:  Reduces the impact from fire.
ALREADY ON?:  Every single special armor, I think.
OVERALL RANK:  9

~ENERGY: Hyper Dash
This part makes your character dash faster.  This works in a strange way:  
you still go the same distance, but go through that distance about one and 
a half times as fast as normal.  This makes your dashes shorter timewise, 
but moves your character along the ground--and through the air, if you 
dash then jump--faster.  For Zero, this works differently with midair 
dashes, at least when you have the F-Splasher--your dash takes the same 
amount of time, but goes faster and farther.  Since the F-Splashed dash is 
invincible, this works very well for him.
OFFENSIVE USES:  For Zero, you get a mini-Nova Strike.  As for X...well...
 sometimes your best offense IS a good defense...and your only offensive
 benefit here is improving that defense.
DEFENSIVE USES:  Gets you away faster for either.  For Zero, you also get
 a mini-Nova Strike.  =)  Just don't run into shots.
ALREADY ON?:  None.
OVERALL RANK:  4


Duff McWhalen:

LIFE: Super Recover
Capsules offer double the energy.  Yee and hah.  Actually, if the Energy 
alternative weren't so much better, this would be a handy thing to slap on 
until you got better parts, but as it is, Capsules randomly appear while 
the alternative will always be in effect.  You do get 2 more life bars to 
go with it, though.  Because of that, consider it if you use Zero, or if 
you just plain don't use weapons; otherwise stay away.
OFFENSIVE USES:  Recovering weapon energy faster lets you use weapons
 more....
DEFENSIVE USES:  Recovering life energy lets you live longer.
ALREADY ON?:  None.
OVERALL RANK:  10

~ENERGY: W-Energy Saver
Weapons use half the energy.  If you're using X, there should be no 
question--Falcon, Fourth and Ultimate Armor can all benefit more from more 
weapon energy than more capsule recovery.  Even Zero might consider 
it--having more Dark Hold and C. Flasher can help out in certain sticky 
situations.
OFFENSIVE USES:  Double offensive weapon uses.
DEFENSIVE USES:  Double defensive weapon uses.  =)
ALREADY ON?:  Well, X's armors have it already, but you can add this on
 for even more weapon energy saving action.  ...I think.
OVERALL RANK:  5


Squid Adler:

~LIFE: Quick Charge (X)
X's best friend.  It's only usable by him, of course.  This pretty much 
halves the time it takes for him to charge up--it's just a shade slower 
than how long it takes for a boss to lose his invulnerability after 
getting hit.  Useful in all situations.
OFFENSIVE USES:  Quickly Charge.  The name of the game.  =)
DEFENSIVE USES:  Charge defensive weapons faster (particularly the
 C-Slash Shield).
ALREADY ON?:  None.
OVERALL RANK:  3

ENERGY: Z-Saber Extend (Z)
Not as good for Zero as the alternative is for X, but useful nonetheless.  
This adds a little aura to the end of each of Zero's saber swings.  This 
seems most useful on ladder/wall swings, somewhat useful on the three-hit 
combo, and totally useless on midair swings, once you get Grizzly's weapon 
anyway.  Not as good as I expected, but I use it anyway.... 
OFFENSIVE USES:  Extend the Z-Saber.  The name of the game.  =)
DEFENSIVE USES:  Well...sometimes the best defense IS the best offense...
 and your only defensive benefit here is increasing that offense.
ALREADY ON?:  None.
OVERALL RANK:  6


Izzy Glow:

~LIFE: Burst Shot (X)
You get five regular plasma shots on the screen.  This is not as useful as 
advertised, but if you're rapid-firing from across the screen it can help 
you out.  Personally I've gotten in the habit of charging till I get up 
close, then rapid firing, but that's just me.  Still, it seems much more
useful than the alternative right now, and the extra life clinches it. 
OFFENSIVE USES:  Having more shots on the screen can take out more stuff
 faster, in the right places.
DEFENSIVE USES:  Just increasing your offense....
ALREADY ON?:  None.
OVERALL RANK:  11

ENERGY: Shot Eraser (Z)
Supposedly, it destroys a few more enemy shots than Zero can destroy
anyway.  However, thus far I haven't seen this actually WORK, which puts
it dead last on the ranking list for me so far.  I suppose this will
require EXTENSIVE testing to find the use of, then...*sigh*  More on
this later, then.  As for now, I'd go with the other one instantly.
OFFENSIVE USES:  None that I've seen!
DEFENSIVE USES:  None that I've seen!
ALREADY ON?:  Who knows...although I'd suspect Black Zero.
OVERALL RANK:  16


Dark Dizzy:

~LIFE: Anti-Virus Guard
It now takes twice as many Virii hitting you to get you infected.  Instead 
of four, it'll take a whopping eight Sigma Virii.  If you're having 
trouble dodging them, have an extra slot or just don't want to deal with 
dodging them anymore, go ahead and slap this on...if you're X.  If you're 
Zero, then there is no benefit whatsoever to using it, considering the 
benefits of getting Infected....Still, you do get the Life out of it. 
OFFENSIVE USES:  Just living longer, if you're X.
DEFENSIVE USES:  Guards against viruses.  The name...you know.
ALREADY ON?:  None.
OVERALL RANK:  15

ENERGY: Virus Buster
You can shoot and eventually destroy the Sigma Virii.  To me this is the 
better of the two Virus guarding powerups--you can get rid of them once 
and for all, and they rarely just come out of nowhere at least to me.  I 
don't like either of them, though--I just don't have enough trouble with 
them to merit wasting a part slot. Again, there is no benefit to using 
this with Zero, so don't even think about it--especially with Black Zero, 
who already has it (for plot purposes, I assume). 
OFFENSIVE USES:  I can't decide what to call this.  It lets you hit the  
 Virii, which would seem like it improves your offense, but if you think 
 about it, that's really increasing your targets, almost bringing DOWN
 your offense.  It IS bringing down your offense if you're Zero--you
 might accidentally make what's basically Zero's answer to Mario's
 Starman explode!  Still, if you're X, it does help you live longer...I
 dunno.  I'm probably thinking about this too much.  =P
DEFENSIVE USES:  Shoots down viruses.
ALREADY ON?:  Black Zero.
OVERALL RANK:  14


The Skiver:

~LIFE: Jumper
Ah, the Skiver's powerups.  These two are the best of the bunch to me and 
I really wish you could combine them.  But you can't--you have to choose 
one, and I generally prefer this one, which raises your jump height by 
about half.  You still move at the same speed, but you can go higher if 
you hold the button down.  It does not work on Zero's second jump (from 
midair).  This makes accessing places much easier and can help out some 
boss fights.  And it's just plain fun.  =)
OFFENSIVE USES:  Not much, although it lets you reach and shoot more
 stuff.
DEFENSIVE USES:  You will also be able to dodge more.... 
ALREADY ON?:  None.
OVERALL RANK:  1

ENERGY: Speedster
This is even more fun.  Your normal horizontal movement increases 
by...well, some multiple.  It's not twice, but I'm not sure how close to 
one and a half it is.  That's what I'd guess though.  Unfortunately, this 
does not work with dashes, which rather ruins the point for me, since all 
I ever do is dash.  On the ground this is fun, and you get longer jumps 
out of it too, but climbing the walls can get risky and difficult when you 
move farther outwards, and most of the time dashing or Jumper will get the 
same job done.  Still, I know I'd use it if I didn't like Jumper more.
OFFENSIVE USES:  Speedster helps you get to enemies quicker, which is good
 for Zero.
DEFENSIVE USES:  This gets you away from stuff quicker too.  However, it
 should be noted that it can actually throw you off and put you in more
 danger while wall-climbing up one side of a wall (not bouncing between
 two walls).
ALREADY ON?:  None, I think.  I thought Falcon might have it at first, but
 I think testing something with Gaea disillusioned me....
OVERALL RANK:  2


Mattrex:

LIFE: Speed Shot
Shots travel across the screen faster.  No, no, not weapon shots--just 
Buster ones.  No, no, not Zero's--just X's.  Even though you can equip it 
for Zero.  ...as you can see, I find very little point to this powerup.  
Ah, well, at least it's not as bad as the Anti-Virus ones, but still, its 
alternative totally outdistances it.
OFFENSIVE USES:  Uh...shots...get...there...sooner.  Yeah.
DEFENSIVE USES:  Just "increasing" your offense.
ALREADY ON?:  None. 
OVERALL RANK:  13

~ENERGY: Buster Plus
I think this increases your shots' power, but this requires more testing to
see how much.  It's equippable by Zero, so that should make it count for
something for him.  Regardless, it is almost certainly superior to Speed
Shot--no matter what it does....
OFFENSIVE USES:  Take down enemies more quickly with more powerful shots!
 (Wow, I feel like Dr. Light--I mean, an ad....)
DEFENSIVE USES:  Just increasing your offense. 
ALREADY ON?:  None.
OVERALL RANK:  8


Axle the Red:

LIFE: Ultimate Buster (X)
Ergh.  This is NOT the Ultimate Buster.  What this does is make it so all 
you fire is charged shots.  This sounds great at first, but you can't fire 
instantly after you've fired once.  In fact, it takes you about as long to 
fire again as it would if you charged up the shot using Quick Charge.  
Worse yet, you can't fire your special weapons' normal form if you're in 
the Fourth or Ultimate armor--you'll only fire the charged form.  Since I 
find rapid firing pellets useful, this powerup does nothing but frustrate 
me.  Maybe if it went as fast as the Hyper Cannon from X3, which it was 
obviously trying to emulate....
OFFENSIVE USES:  I'd almost go so far as to say this DECREASES your 
 offense, seeing as how you can no longer rapid-fire.  However, it does 
 speed your charge time marginally.
DEFENSIVE USES:  You can react to any strange surprises faster.
ALREADY ON?:  None.
OVERALL RANK:  12

~ENERGY: Z-Saber Plus (Z)
Turns your saber a different color, and supposedly makes it more powerful.
As with Buster Plus this requires more testing.  At least this changes the
graphic, unlike Buster Plus--the saber turns purple if you're normal Zero,
and red if you're Black.  It looks pretty cool IMO.
OFFENSIVE USES:  See the above ad for the Buster Plus.
DEFENSIVE USES:  Just increasing your offense.
ALREADY ON?:  Probably Black Zero, but you can probably layer it up--what
 would be the point of just getting a new color?
OVERALL RANK:  7


Summary:

Best Offensive Part:
X:  Quick Charge, hands down.  It nearly doubles your offense.
Zero:  Probably Z-Saber Plus, but Z-Saber Extend is an obvious contender.
Hyper Dash is a less obvious one, but it makes Zero's invincible air dash
almost twice as powerful since it goes twice as far.

Best Defensive Part:
X:  Oddly enough, this'd have to be Super Recover.  You'd think it would
be Shock Absorber, but you get armor that includes it for X pretty soon
into the journey--in fact, you start with it if you start with him.
Meanwhile Super Recover's unique and randomly useful throughout the game.
I stlil don't recommend it over W-Energy Saver, though.  =P
Zero:  Probably the Shock Absorber, at least until you have Black Zero,
after which point it's Hyper Dash or maybe Super Recover.

Part Most Often Already On: Shock Absorber.  It's nice while you need it,
but you WON'T, if you have any armor.

Overall Rank List:
Jumper
Speedster
Quick Charge
Hyper Dash
W-Energy Saver
Z-Saber Extend
Z-Saber Plus
Buster Plus
Shock Absorber
Super Recover
Shot Eraser
Burst Shot
Ultimate Buster
Speed Shot
Anti-Virus Buster
Anti-Virus Guard


Future improvements for this section:  Some of the more obscure part uses
are going to get tested, when I get the time again (shouldn't be TOO
long).
Ideas for this section:  I was thinking of scrapping the Overall Rank 
category, for the reasons listed above.  It might be replaced with a less 
restricted version that talks about whether or not you should get it and
why, separately from the description.  I was also thinking of adding
several different listings of the parts, with different organizations;
this would go in a different section, with the Summary.

---

II-C. SUCCESSFUL PART COMBINATIONS

The irritating part about the Parts system is that you can't really just 
slap a rank onto each part, pick the top 4 parts and call it a day, 
because you're only allowed to choose 1 of 2 parts every time.  Some good 
combinations you'd really want to have just aren't possible--without a 
Game Shark, anyway.  Still, it's more than possible to build offensive, 
defensive and/or mobile powerhouses using just the Parts.  Here's some 
examples.  (Just take the first two parts if you're Armored X.)

Offense--X:  Buster Plus, Quick Charge, W-Energy Saver, Burst Shot
Not the best combo IMO, since it's too one-sided for my liking
(especially the last part), but this is your best bet for pure damage
dealing with X.

Offense--Zero:  Z-Saber Plus, Z-Saber Extend, Hyper Dash, W-Energy Saver
Maybe I'm obsessing with the midair Hyper Dash, but it really is pretty
useful for offense AND defense, and one of Zero's best offensive shots.
The other parts are more obvious.

Defense:  Super Recover, Jumper, Hyper Dash, Anti-Virus Buster(X)/Shot 
 Eraser(Z)
Again, for pure defense this is a good collection.  It's more well
rounded, but still not my favorite configuration.

Mobility:  Jumper, Hyper Dash, Shock Absorber, Speed Shot(X)/Z-Saber 
 Extend(Z)
You'll have a lot more control over your movement with this combination.
(The last part may be a stretch, but it DOES reduce your distance to
enemies.... =)

Overall--X:  Jumper, Quick Charge, Hyper Dash, W-Energy Saver
This gives you a powerful mix of offense, defense and mobility.  One of my 
favorite ways to play through the game is with the Falcon Armor and the 
first two parts here.  (Note:  Switching out Jumper for Speedster is less 
functional, but more fun =)

Overall--Zero:  Jumper, Hyper Dash, Z-Saber Extend, Super Recover
Again, mixing offense, defense and mobility gives you a much-improved 
Zero.  I'll probably substitute in the Z-Saber Plus for the Super Recover, 
though, when I know more about what it does.  (Note:  Again, switching out 
Jumper for Speedster is less functional, but more fun =)


What To Avoid:

--Putting on a part your armor already has.  This really only applies with
the Shock Absorber, although Black Zero also has the Virus Buster (and
possibly the Shot Eraser) pre-equipped.

--Putting on two parts that conflict.  The only example I can think of 
this, though, is Quick Charge and Ultimate Buster.  I'll post more when I 
can figure them out.


Future improvements for this section:  I'll probably end up adding several
two-part combos, and maybe even a couple more four-parters.
Ideas for this section:  What To Avoid could become another subsection, if
I can think of and get enough ideas about what to avoid.  =)

---

III. THE USUAL FAQ ENDNOTES

Credits

Well, unfortunately the biggest credit I have to give goes to a group of 
people I don't remember the names of.  =P  The ones I'm talking about here 
are those involved in the debate about parts on the Gamefaqs message 
board.  They really shed some light for me on how to get the 
parts--especially the one that listed which 8 parts he got by beating the 
Mavericks with Zero and picking one Weapon + type.  Even though the part 
about different parts with X and Zero turned out to be wrong, I finally 
figured out parts by testing it myself.  Sadly, now these messages are
gone, and I have no idea who participated in the search.  The one accurate
credit I can give for this group goes to Uratoh, who currently has a
message up explaining getting parts briefly and accurately.  I seem to
remember him from the debate, too.  Still, thanks a lot, everyone!

Thanks also go to Mandi Paugh, for http://www.mmhp.net.  The site is
really cool, and the X5 hints were helpful too.  Keep up the great work!

And, of course, I'll give Capcom credit where it's due.  (...on time, this 
time.)  Capcom is probably the most prolific game developer out there 
today, and for all their games I don't enjoy, I enjoy more games by them 
than anyone but Square.  Again, keep up the good work!

Finally, I'd like to give everyone who sends in their suggestions and
contributions thanks in advance!  =)


Copyright

This FAQ is Copyright 1999, JJ Ukil(Jjukil@excite.com).  I do not want bad
things happening to it without my knowledge.  You may not publish it,
reprint it for commercial use, modify and redistribute or reprint it, or
use information from it in another document without my written consent.
I welcome and highly encourage its distribution, but only unmodified and in
its current form.  I would also greatly prefer you mention to me that you
are distributing it.  I have found my work in odd places before, and it has
made me unhappy.  I've found my modified work in odd places before, too, and
that has made me very unhappy.  (Especially because the modification was
horrible.)

Disclaimer

Finally, I'd like to say again that this FAQ is in its EARLY stages, and
while it is meant to be the final authority on the parts system, it isn't
yet. This is very much meant to be a work in progress, and your 
suggestions will help me decide where to go from here. Should you find an 
error or have any kind of idea about what you'd like to see here, please 
e-mail me at Jjukil@excite.com, and I will add it to the list of 
improvements for the next version of the FAQ.  However, I want any emails 
you send me to be polite, coherent, and, in the case of new info, 
informative.  Flaming me for no reason will get you nothing, and I will 
tend to respect your opinion less (read: not at all) if your suggestion is 
phrased rudely.  Remember: polite, coherent, and informative.  Thank you! 
=)

----

Well, that's about it!  Hope you enjoyed it!

Thanks, Jjukil

