Battle Basics: Gameplay

Avoid battles by not touching the 3D avatar on screen.

Open the battle menu by hitting Triangle to use items, change equipment, or change artes.

Hold R1 to view enemy info and change targets.

Use the directional pad to change your active character.

Characters move in a straight line toward or away from their target at zero CC cost.

Hold L2 to move freely around the area, but this consumes CC.

Hold Square and hit the Left Analog to side-step around your targeted enemy.

Characters have Hit Points (HP); when HP reaches zero, they are rendered unconscious.

Hold Square to guard, which decreases damage and grants aura effects.

Blue aura: Critical Gauge Increase.

Green aura: Enemies cannot stagger you when you start to attack (Iron Stance).

Red aura: Break through enemy guard when you attack.

The Critical Gauge is located under the characters HP. When full, characters perform a critical hit and Chain Capacity (CC) increases by one. Getting hit lowers the gauge.

The Eleth Gauge is on the left side of your battle screen, divided into blue (party) and red (enemies).

Increase the blue Eleth Gauge by attacking, guarding, sidestepping, or defeating enemies.

When the blue Eleth Gauge is full, Eleth Burst occurs, granting unlimited CC and immunity to knockback for a limited time. All critical hits are negated, but damage taken while guarding is normal.

Enemies receive a similar bonus called Eleth Break when their gauge fills.

Each character has a set value of Chain Capacity (CC) based on equipment and level, determining how many actions (outside of movement and defense) they can perform. Each action costs 1 CC, but can cost more.

Refill CC by standing still, guarding, or performing specific actions. Increase max CC by changing equipment, gaining levels, or filling the Critical Gauge.

The number in the upper right corner of the battle screen is the Combo Counter, representing chained attacks. Attacking an enemy’s weakness increases damage output within a combo chain. Hitting all weaknesses multiplies damage output.

There are two kinds of artes: Assault (A-Artes) and Burst (B-Artes).

A-Artes are physical attacks with a smaller range but are quicker, using Physical Attack power.

A-Artes are set up like a tree chain, starting with a 1 CC cost skill and working up to a 4 CC cost skill, for a full chain costing 10 CC. Learn more A-Artes through titles or levels.

B-Artes are generally magical and are unleashed by using O instead of X to attack.

Some B-Artes require charging by holding O. You can continue to hold O even once ready to add an attribute or unleash when desired.

Spell cast time can be lowered by using A-Artes and then a B-Arte. The more A-Artes chained to a B-Arte, the lower the cast time.

When Eleth Burst occurs, Mystic Artes can be performed by pressing L1.

Mystic Artes are learned from titles and add a new gauge on the left during Eleth Burst.

The number on the Mystic Artes gauge determines which Mystic Arte is used if you have more than one.