Summary
Once players have made a decent amount of progress through Tartarus inPersona 3 Reload, they’ll be called into a meeting with Ikutsuki, who will introduce the SEES members to a brand-new technique called Theurgy. While he doesn’t explain exactly how it works at first, it’s soon revealed that these powerful abilities can be used when a character’s emotions reach a boiling point, and they ultimately serve as a last resort when a battle starts getting a little dangerous.
In this sense, they work slightly similarly to the Showtime Attacks seen inPersona 5 Royal, but the biggest difference between the two is that Theurgy abilities have their own unique properties and effects, as opposed to just dishing out damage. Each character can also charge up their Theurgy gauge by performing specific moves and abilities in battle, so it’s very important to know how to best utilize these devastating attacks, just in case anencounter starts to go wrong. With that being said though, there are definitely some Theurgy abilities that are not only much more reliable and effective than others, but they can also be recharged much easier, too.
It should also be noted that while every character starts off with a Theurgy ability, they will be able to earn a second one byleveling up their Personalater on in the story.
5Akihiko
Lightning Spike: Deals Heavy Electric Damage To All Foes While Ignoring Their Resistances
When it comes to zapping enemies in place with fierce lightning strikes, no one in the party can do itquite as well as Akihiko, and when his Theurgy gauge is fully charged up, he can deal a staggering amount of damage to all enemies at once. Because Shadows will start to become resistant to many more status effects as the game goes on, being able to completely negate this can prove to be incredibly useful. It can also just save Akihiko from using up a lot of his own SP, something that becomes much more vital when spells and attacks start costing a lot more later down the line.
The only real downside to Aki’s Theurgy is the fact that it can only be recharged by Aki and his allies constantly applying buffs to him throughout a battle, which encourages a pretty selfish play style, and while this can make him a very strong combatant, it also ignores the status of other party members in the process. Still, it’s a devastating ability that can prove to be a real game-changer in an intense bout with a group of Shadows.
4Fuuka
Oracle: Gives A Random Buff To Each Party Member
Once Fuuka joins the gang, she’ll assume a supporting role where she’s able to analyze enemy weakness at the cost of her own SP. This is already incredibly useful and an ability that players are heavily encouraged to make good use of. Since it also charges up her Theurgy gauge when it’s used, it means that she’s able to throw out random buffs very often, which can be a massive help.
Although the buff she grants the characters will be completely random, this doesn’t really matter too much since any benefit can be useful, whether it’s a small HP boost or something a little more impactful, like a higher critical hit rate for all party members. Once she obtains the Juno Persona, she’ll be able to take this a step further by gifting party members with enhanced effects that can be absolutely essential for boss enemies, who can often be a nightmare to take down with regular attacks and spells due to their durability.
3Koromaru
Hound Of Hades: Deals Severe Dark Damage To One Enemy While Ignoring Resistances
Although Dark and Light attacks aren’t too useful in the first few floors of Tartarus since the Shadows are usually weak to other elements, they both become much more important later on, which is why keeping Koromaru in the party is never a bad idea. Although he only has one Persona,everyone’s favorite canine companioncan still acquire a second Theurgy just like everyone else after progressing through the story, and it’s without a doubt one of the best support abilities in the game.
By doubling a party member’s physical attack damage, Koromaru is able to turn his fellow allies into unstoppable powerhouses, especially in the case of Junpei, who’s already absurdly powerful without the buff. Recharging the gauge is also extremely easy since every battle inPersonarevolves around finding an enemy’s weakness if they happen to have any, so players can essentially earn Koromaru’s Theurgy just by simply playing the game.
2Junpei
Hack N' Blast: Deals Severe Slash Damage To An Enemy While Ignoring Resistances
As soon as Junpei joins the SEES team in the first few hours of the story, it’s made very clear that he’s going to be the damage dealer of the crew, having the earliest access to Slash skills, which canmelt enemy health barsif he manages to pull them off. Because of how devastating a lot of Slash attacks are in their overall damage, it means that Junpei usually has to sacrifice a bit of his own HP to perform them, but his Theurgy basically allows him to take a free swing at an enemy, even if they are initially resistant to the attack.
What really makes Junpei’s Theurgy so powerful though is how quickly it can be recharged. When landing a physical attack on an enemy inPersona 3 Reload, characters have a chance to perform a critical attack, and since Junpei is going to be using physical attacks the most, it means that he executes critical attacks at a much more frequent rate. If players can stun enemies with elemental attacks, they can make the critical hit chance even higher, meaning that Junpei can barrage the opponents with a myriad of relentless attacks, all while powering up his Theurgy to deal the final blow. Although his second ability is earned much later on, it’s also still very useful and can even be utilized as a free heal to save items and SP.
1Ken
Divine Retribution: Deals Severe Light Damage To An Enemy While Ignoring Their Resistances
Although Ken is great at being a damage dealer, especially with his explosive Light attacks, he can also double as a support when the situation calls for it, with both of his Theurgy abilities perfectly representinghis flexible fighting style. Similar to Konomaru with his Dark abilities, being able to have a party member who can use Light for the mid to late game is absolutely essential, and completely negating enemy resistances is a wonderful added bonus.
While this first Theurgy attack is already extremely effective and viable, Ken’s second is by far one of the best support abilities in the entire game, especially since acquiring the skill Recarm, which revives an ally with a portion of their health, can take a long time to get. Not only can Ken restore a character’s health back to max, but he can do this to all downed party members and even reflect the next attack as an extra bit of support. Admittedly, he can be very risky to use since his Theurgy will only recharge once he’s below half SP, but when used at just the right time, Ken can be the only thing preventing a Game Over screen from appearing.
