This is an essay I wrote about Final Fantasy I, I actually thought I had deleted it but I found it in all my files. I don't think it is very good but I may as well publish it.

The first party.

Fighter
Black Belt
White Mage
Black Mage

This is the recommended party, and the one that (all?) players will start out with. It has its strengths. It can beat the game, with maybe a couple tough spots. Its biggest strength is Mr. Big at the top, the Fighter. That guy will hang in there through every battle from the beginning of the game to the end, pumped up on 'roids and laying out the beats. The second character, the Black Belt, is cheap. You do not have to worry about weapons and armour, just upgrade his armour when you can and make sure you go barehanded when he starts getting enough attacks. He is no Sabin but he gets the job done. The last two characters, the Mages are included for fun. The magic items you get make them useful for trash mobs and when it is time to get dirty they pull out the big spells.

Fighter
Fighter
Thief
Red Mage

This is probably my favorite party, or has been. The Fighters have just about the same damage output as the Black Belt and are MUCH more durable, especially when they start casting CURE2 and AFIR. The Thief is fun, going first using potions or escaping and later doing respectable damage as an armour wearing Ninja. The three tank characters can be fun because you recycle your old equipment, although it is a little pricey in the first parts of the game when you need the Silver Swords and Armour. The Red Mage casts the crucial support spells of FAST and EXIT while providing healing in the early game. Three Fighters and a Red Mage I got through the last level without a single healing potion. Move your guys around top to bottom as they lose hit points and cast their CURE spells.

The fun party, and I might play it through with this, for old time's sake. Those funny dwarf guys.

Fighter
Thief
Black Belt, Thief or Fighter
White Mage or Black Mage

This party is cool to me, mostly because I find the Red Mage boring after my last few plays-through, back-in-the-day, which was after the first back-in-the-day. Two ninjas? The second Ninja can use the Masamune (or there is even a second Katana in the end level for power gamer types) and the Thief holds its own anyway because it can use potions early in the battle turn cycle. So it is sort of a "mix" or "item" character like you have in the later games. Pick White Mage or Black Mage to taste; Fighter, Thief, Thief and White Mage is probably the "cool" party, even going so far as a Rat Pack (TM) at least if you have played the game 1000 times before. Skip the Black Belt just because they are kind of dull although they have the advantage of having cheap equipment; two Ninjas with White Mage so they can cast FAST. Having said that the Black Belts are definitely OK+ when backed up by the support spells of a White Mage and a Black Mage on a consistent basis. It is like they PLANNED it that way. :D