Phantasy Star 2: What Do Stats Actually Do?

[offshore33]

Hp and Tp seems straight forward, but what about Strength, Mental, Agility, Luck, Dexterity, Attack and Defense? Are there inter-relations such as Dexterity boosts defense? Does Strength affect melee damage? I can see Agility affects initiative, but does it do anything else? Attack seems deceptive since I can equip a Sword, get a seemingly huge Attack boost and not do significantly more damage than with a comparable knife.

Thanks in advance.

[CelestOrion]

Straight from Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection...

Strenghth - Hp rises with Strength, allowing stronger attacks and reduced injury.

Mental - As mental awareness increases, maximum Hp also Increases. Higher mental combined with with Tp allows the character to use more Techniques.

Agility - Characters become more coordinated in battle as this number increases.

Luck - A Higher value Increases the effect of Techniques.

Dexterity - Handling Weapons increases dexterity and the amount of injury one can inflict.

Attack - Higher numbers means greater attack skills.

Defense - Higher numbers mean greater resistance to attacks.