Combat Basics

Battle Screen Layout

The combat UI divides into five regions: timeline (left) showing upcoming turns; field (center) with grid positions; intent row above enemies; party panel (bottom) with HP, buffs, and AP; and command menu (right) for skills, guard, items, and end turn.

Hover intents for detailed text. On PC, hold Shift to compare damage estimates against current guard values — a tutorial tip easy to miss after the Day 1–5 Tutorial.

Turn Flow and Action Points

Each active character receives a base pool of action points (AP) per turn, modified by Agility, statuses, and passives like Pike's refunds. Skills list AP costs in the command menu. Unused AP does not roll over by default; some ultimates bank overflow from the previous turn via accessories.

1. Select unit when their portrait highlights on the timeline.
2. Move (optional) — costs 0–1 AP depending on tiles.
3. Act — skill, basic attack, guard, item, or interact with objects.
4. End turn — remaining AP is lost unless a passive states otherwise.

Turn order updates live when skills apply delay or haste — see Turn-Based Tactics for manipulation chains.

Core Actions

Attack / Skills: Damage or utility based on equipped weapon and companion kits. Hills starts with a slash and a focus skill that builds link meter with Micoco.

Guard: Reduces incoming damage until next turn; stronger with Resolve. Guarding does not consume a full turn — it costs AP within the turn.

Items: Battle-accessible consumables from the items menu — heals, cleanses, bombs. Using an item ends the character's turn unless a perk says otherwise.

Interact: Context actions on traps, levers, or story objects. Appears rarely but matters in set-piece fights listed under Boss Strategies.

Status Effects

• Bleed — Damage over time; stacks with Kael and traps.
• Poison — Stronger DoT; cleansed by Suri skills.
• Guard Up / Down — Modifies guard effectiveness.
• Exposed — Increases crit taken; applied by certain elites.
• Delay / Haste — Moves intent resolution along timeline.

Buffs display on the party panel with timers in turns, not seconds. Debuff icons on enemies show remaining triggers.

Winning, Losing, and Rewards

Win conditions are usually defeat all enemies or survive waves. Loss when Hills is downed without revival ends the fight. Retry options depend on difficulty; rewards may downgrade on repeat clears of optional fights.

Post-combat screens show EXP, coin, drops, and affinity bumps for participating companions. Bench members with Triage-style passives still grant small healing after victory.

Tactical Pause and Accessibility

Hills unlocks Tactical Pause after the first boss — freezes intent display for planning once per fight. Additional accessibility options in Settings include intent text size, colorblind palettes for debuffs, and auto-battle for trash mobs (disabled in bosses and achievements).

First Boss Checklist

Before the Day 7 mandatory encounter in Early Game: equip two heals, set Renna to taunt if recruited, guard against telegraphed heavy hits, and save beforehand per Save Points. If damage feels high, spend one extra day on Vitality training per Action Point Builds.

Controller and PC Input Notes

PC mouse users click tiles and skills; keyboard shortcuts map 1–4 to skills, G guard, I items, Space end turn. Controller uses shoulder buttons to cycle units and face buttons for skills — full layout on PC Controls. Intent inspection requires holding left trigger on controller; same as Shift on keyboard.

Input mistakes cannot be undone except via reload — no in-battle undo button. Confirm target prompts appear for friendly-fire AoE skills unless disabled in settings.

Enemy Families Overview

Early thugs: low guard, susceptible to bleed. Guild constructs: immune bleed, need shield break. Noble elites: riposte stances and magic resist. Watch patrols: exposure-linked reinforcements if fights drag. Understanding family tags helps before reading full Boss Strategies — families reuse kits across optional and mandatory fights.

Tutorial Fight Walkthrough (Day 3)

The first skirmish teaches guard and item use against two thugs. Turn 1: Hills guards if enemy intent shows red fist; otherwise basic attack focused target. Turn 2: Renna taunts if present; if solo, use Minor Salve at 50% HP threshold. Turn 3: finish weakest thug — never split damage until one is below 30% to avoid double attacks. The game allows mistakes; this walkthrough simply prevents learning bad guard habits early.

Post-Battle Flow

After victory you return to the city map or story scene — not a separate loot screen except for rare drop popups. EXP distributes immediately; bench passives like Triage heal then. Use the moment to check encyclopedia new entries and equip upgrades before spending the next AP. Defeat returns you to retry prompt or last load depending on settings.