Metaphor: ReFantazio – The Best Strength Build

Atlus has tried to launch a new type of game with mechanics very similar to those in the Persona series. In terms of combat and other types of characteristics, Metaphor: ReFantazio replaces personas with archetypes.

These archetypes will feature a variety of attack types and classes. One of the classes that deals the most physical damage in combat is the Slasher and Strike class.

In this guide, you will see what types of archetypes you need to have the best strength class, as well as what items to use and which character formation to place in your party. This is a guide for the best strength build in Metaphor: ReFantazio.

The Best Strength Build Overview

This is one of the most complicated builds to consider in Metaphor: ReFantazio, given that in the early hours of the game it will not be as effective compared to others.

However, once you reach a certain stage in the game, this is one of the best builds to have active and to use in your party. Most of the archetypes you will use for this build will deal incredible physical damage, being able to defeat multiple enemies in a single blow.

Once again, what stands out in this particular build is that you will need to level up the ranks of bonds and archetypes to achieve maximum effectiveness with better attacks and strength-based archetypes.

There will be a total of four ideal basic archetypes to incorporate into your strength-based build. One of the best archetypes for dealing physical damage is the Gunner. The Berserker is also another archetype to consider for this fully strength-oriented formation.

You can check our Metaphor: ReFantazio review.

Strength Build Best Skills

There are many skills to consider, at least within the basic classes of archetypes. For the Warrior in Metaphor: ReFantazio, the best skill combo to consider in combat is Slash Boost combined with Diagonal Slash.

On the one hand, Slash Boost gives you 20% more Slash-type damage; once you’ve applied this buff, you can use Diagonal Slash to deal more damage.

Reaching the Rank 8 bond with Strohl unlocks the Royal Warrior, the finest archetype in this lineage. The Royal Warrior can use Brave Blade, a skill that deals a large amount of physical damage, making it the ideal archetype for a strength build.

The best synthesis skill to consider is Peerless Stonecleaver, which is perfect for a strength build comprising a warrior, berserker, and brawler since it is one of the requirements. This skill deals a large amount of physical damage to an enemy and also activates the deathblow icon.

The other strength archetype to consider is the brawler. This archetype has two fairly intriguing skills to combine in your build.

First, there’s Health Font, which increases HP by 15%. Moving on to passive skills, Diligent Disciple increases the critical hit chance by 15% and works even better for archetypes of the same lineage.

Skill name	Archetype	Type	Description
Slash Boost	Warrior	Passive	Gives you 20% more Slash-type damage.
Diagonal Slash	Warrior	Slash	Deals weak physical slash damage to one enemy.
Brave Blade	Royal Warrior	Slash	Deals a large amount of physical damage.
Peerless Stonecleaver	Royal Warrior	Synthesis skill	Deals a large amount of physical damage to an enemy and also activates the deathblow icon.
Health Font	Brawler	Passive	Increases HP by 15%.
Diligent Disciple	Brawler	Passive	Increases the critical hit chance by 15% and works even better for archetypes of the same lineage.
Unyielding Blood	Martial Artist	Passive	Allows an ally to survive a fatal attack once per battle, fully restoring their HP.
Spiral Fist	Martial Artist	Strike	Deals a large amount of physical damage to an opponent depending on the archetype’s remaining HP. It also removes all applied buffs
Hell Thrust	Martial Artist	Pierce	Inflics a large amount of piercing physical damage to an enemy while lowering their defense for three turns.
Boltburst Fist	Martial Artist	Synthesis skill	Will deal two to four times medium electric physical damage to all enemies. You need any variant of the Warrior, Berserker, or Brawler basic-class archetypes in your build.
Hex Shot	Gunner	Pierce	Deals high piercing physical damage to an enemy and has the potential to inflict a hex. It can only be used in back row of the battle formation.
Poison Shot	Gunner	Pierce	Deals moderate piercing physical damage with a high chance of poisoning the enemy. It can only be used in back row of the battle formation
Long-Range Boost	Dragoon	Passive	It increases all attacks in the back of the formation by 10%.
Redfeather Dragonshoot	Dragoon	Fire	Deals medium fire damage to all enemies one to three times. It only works from the back row of the formation.
Feather Dragoonshot	Dragoon	Electric	Deals medium electric damage to all enemies one to three times. It only works from the back row of the formation.
Bluefeather Dragonshoot	Dragoon	Ice	Deals medium ice damage to all enemies one to three times. It only works from the back row of the formation.
Slam Strike	Berserker	Strike	Deals medium physical damage to one enemy.
Slam Shatter	Berserker	Strike	Deals medium physical damage to all enemies.
Frenzy	Berserker	Strike	Deals heavy physical damage to all enemies one to three times.
Strike Surge	Royal Berserker	Passive	Increase damage of strike-type attacks by 30%.
Systematic Destruction	Royal Berserker	Strike	Attack that ignores all enemy resistances and deals extreme damage to a single enemy.
Rampage Slash	Royal Berserker	Synthesis skill	Deals an extreme amount of slash-type damage to one enemy. You need a Warrior, a Brawler, and a Berserker, or any archetype from their lineages in your build to use this attack.

The martial artist represents the best version of the brawler in its lineage. This archetype has three skills worth noting.

Unyielding Blood, the best passive skill, allows an ally to survive a fatal attack once per battle, fully restoring their HP. The two physical damage skills are Spiral Fist and Hell Thrust, both of which justify their place in this strength build.

Spiral Fist deals a large amount of physical damage to an opponent depending on the archetype’s remaining HP, and it also removes all applied buffs. Another powerful physical attack is Hell Thrust.

This skill deals a large amount of piercing physical damage to an enemy while lowering their defense for three turns, a lethal combination that allows you to target a specific enemy and swiftly destroy them.

Compatible with the strength build, the synthesis skill Boltburst Fist will deal two to four times medium electric physical damage to all enemies. To use this synthesis skill, you need any variant of the Warrior, Berserker, or Brawler basic-class archetypes in your build.

The Gunner archetype can leverage its advantages without being in the front of the formation. This archetype is purely offensive and has two notable skills that make it ideal for positioning in the back row. These skills are Hex Shot and Poison Shot.

Only from the back row in combat can you use Hex Shot, which deals high-piercing physical damage to an enemy and has the potential to inflict a hex. Poison Shot, the other attack, is only available from the back row of the formation and deals moderate piercing physical damage with a high chance of poisoning the enemy.

The Dragoon archetype is the best in the Gunner lineage. This archetype leans more toward elemental attacks but again works spectacularly when positioned in the back row. Starting with the passive skill Long-Range Boost, it increases all attacks in the back of the formation by 10%.

After activating this passive, the best approach is to use any of the three elemental attacks: Redfeather Dragonshoot, Bluefeather Dragonshoot, and Feather Dragoonshot.

Using these three skills from the back row in combat is their key feature. Redfeather Dragonshoot deals moderate fire damage to all enemies one to three times.

Feather Dragoonshot deals moderate electric damage to all enemies one to three times, while Bluefeather Dragonshoot deals moderate ice damage to all enemies one to three times.

Unfortunately, this specific archetype does not have any synthesis skills compatible with the Strength build.

As for the Berserker, this is the most offensive archetype of all, with three attacks that deal significant damage in their basic versions. Slam Strike deals medium physical damage to one enemy, Slam Shatter deals medium physical damage to all enemies, and Frenzy deals heavy physical damage to all enemies one to three times.

The best archetype in the Berserker lineage is the Royal Berserker. This archetype has two attacks that work hand in hand and are perfect for destroying an enemy in one blow.

First, the passive skill Strike Surge increases strike-type attacks by 30%. Once this passive is active, you can use Systematic Destruction, a strike-type attack that ignores all enemy resistances and deals extreme damage to a single enemy. This combination is lethal for quickly destroying enemies.

For synthesis skills, the most compatible with the strength build is Rampage Slash. This skill deals an extreme amount of slash-type damage to one enemy. To use it, you need a Warrior, a Brawler, a Berserker, or any archetype from their lineages in your build.

Strength Build Best Archetype

To have the best strength build in Metaphor: ReFantazio, you’ll need any variation of the following basic archetypes: Gunner, Brawler, Berserker, and Warrior.

These four archetypes are extremely compatible not only in a strength-based build but also in many of their synthesis attacks, which can achieve a significant amount of damage to enemies along with other characteristics and effects. Every archetype has compatible variations within its lineage.

The best version of each lineage is the Royal Warrior for the Warrior, the Martial Artist for the Brawler, the Dragoon for the Gunner, and finally, to complete this ideal strength-based formation, the Royal Berserker for the Berserker.

This combination would be ideal, as these are the best versions of these archetypes; however, they are not easily obtained in the game. This is because some will only appear much later in the game. It’s a build that’s very difficult to keep in mind during the early hours of the story.

Strength Build Best Equipment

There are various types of equipment to consider; of course, the best available in the game will appear much later in the progress of Metaphor: ReFantazio.

The four items to consider are the axe, the greatsword, the knuckles, and the bow. This equipment and its variations will be perfectly compatible with the strength build since each of these items can easily match the different archetypes.

Weapon	Type	Rarity	Description
Dynastic Blade	Greatsword	Gold	Significantly increases Slash attack strength.
Axe of the Old God	Axe	Gold	Significantly increases Strike attack strength.
All Creation Fists	Knuckles	Gold	Significantly increases Strike attack strength.
Apollo’s Eleventh	Bow	Gold	Pierce, Multi-hit skills will hit the max amount, Strength +5, Agility +5. Skills that hit multiple times will always hit the maximum amount.

For instance, the Gunner, or any of its variants, can equip a powerful bow and significantly impact the formation from the back row. The axe can be perfect for the Warrior or the Brawler.

Any Warrior variation is best equipped with a Sword to deliver stronger blows. Finally, the Knuckles will be perfect for the Berserker, maximizing their heavy physical damage.

Strength Build’s Best Role

In terms of different combat roles in Metaphor: ReFantazio, the Warrior should always be in the back row since it has many passive skills to buff allies.

Right next to them in the back row should be the Gunner, as nearly all of this archetype’s skills need to be used from the back row to function correctly. This formation also helps preserve the health and resilience of this archetype.

The Berserker and the Brawler should be in the front row, aiming to destroy as many enemies as possible with a few blows.

The Berserker, with its spectacular physical damage attacks, will always deal the most damage, so it should lead the charge in your formation to annihilate multiple enemies in just a few hits.

The Berserker will act as a tank, the Warrior will serve as a sort of buffer/healer, and the Gunner will obviously play the role of an archer or sniper. Lastly, the Brawler will fill a support role, finishing off enemies that the Berserker couldn’t defeat with its powerful blows.

What’s your favorite build in Metaphor: ReFantazio?