Metaphor: ReFantazio – Ranking Every Royal Virtue

In Metaphor: ReFantazio, building bonds with the characters you meet is at the heart of the experience. To foster these bonds to their fullest, you’ll need to shape the protagonist into a leader worth following, which involves strengthening his royal virtues.

The game offers five core personality traits, each of which can be leveled up to deepen bonds with various followers. While every virtue plays a role, some are more challenging to develop than others. If you’re aiming to max out your bonds with ease, which royal virtues should you focus on first in Metaphor: ReFantazio?

5. Courage

Face Challenges with Bravery

Throughout your journey in Metaphor: ReFantazio, the protagonist will need to display bravery, especially in bond storylines. To level up this royal virtue, you’ll need to increase his courage stat.

Fortunately, courage is easier to improve than some other traits, as you’ll encounter numerous opportunities to boost this stat passively. For instance, completing bounties is a great way to earn both experience and courage points. Also, whenever you have downtime, consider participating in battles at the coliseum in Brilehaven. Not only will you gain unique rewards and experience, but you’ll also earn additional courage.

Additionally, early-game companion Strohl frequently presents opportunities to build courage through events on the Gauntlet Runner. Thanks to these steady chances to earn courage, you won’t need to dedicate extra effort to leveling up this stat.

4. Wisdom

Gain Knowledge of Euchronia

As you progress through the lengthy adventure of Metaphor: ReFantazio, you’ll naturally learn more about Euchronia and its inhabitants. Boosting the protagonist’s wisdom stat ensures he’s well-versed in this knowledge.

Much like courage, wisdom can be accumulated during regular activities. For instance, while traveling on the Gauntlet Runner, you’ll occasionally pause to take in the surroundings and chat with companions. These breaks often come with wisdom points, as do the postcards from Neuras that can be given to Maria.

Hulkenberg, a companion available early on, also provides strategic lessons that help improve your wisdom throughout the game. While you might need to grind wisdom slightly in the early stages to unlock some low-level bonds, it’s manageable since these bonds don’t expire quickly.

3. Tolerance

Embrace the Diversity of Your People

Tolerance is one of the virtues you’ll need to actively cultivate, as it’s less commonly rewarded through standard activities than courage or wisdom. In Metaphor: ReFantazio, tolerance is central to both the story’s lore and its gameplay, with an emphasis on appreciating the diversity of various tribes. This virtue will be especially critical at the beginning and near the end of the game.

Heismay, a companion who joins early in the journey, frequently provides tolerance-building opportunities on the Gauntlet Runner. These encounters also offer the chance to engage in elementa battles, which are useful for gaining MAG, making it a double benefit.

2. Imagination

Picture a Brighter Future

Imagination is one of the more unique royal virtues to develop in Metaphor: ReFantazio. Though it’s rarely awarded during routine quests, you can improve this trait by interacting with specific NPCs throughout the world.

Imagination is frequently tested within bond storylines, so it’s helpful to keep track of this virtue as the game unfolds. Though you won’t have a dedicated companion for boosting imagination until later in the game, your party members will occasionally offer imagination-raising interactions during nighttime on the Gauntlet Runner.

1. Eloquence

The Power of Persuasion

Eloquence, which measures the protagonist’s skill in speaking and persuading, is arguably the most challenging virtue to increase. There are limited passive ways to gain eloquence, as this stat is rarely awarded on the Gauntlet Runner and is primarily improved through reading books.

Eloquence becomes critical in the mid-game, so you’ll want to work it up to at least level 3 by then. The most effective way to build eloquence is through debates with other crown contenders. However, success in these debates hinges on careful dialogue choices—the better your responses, the more eloquence you’ll gain. Skilled debaters will find it easier to advance, but players less cautious with their choices may struggle to raise this virtue.