Final Fantasy 16: THE Best Abilities

In this guide, we will mention all the Best Abilities that will help you during your journey in Final Fantasy 16.

FF16 cover
Final Fantasy 16: Best Abilities

Abilities in FF16 are different skills that Clive can learn along his journey to make his combat easier. It makes the gameplay more joyful so players can have fun playing FF16. 

Key Takeaways

  • Abilities are essential skills that players must learn to improve their gameplay.
  • These can extend Clive’s attacking or defending moves to improve during combat.
  • There are a lot of abilities in Final Fantasy 16 that players can try.
  • It is suggested to play with all of them to understand how they work.
  • The abilities appear as ground or aerial that involve counters against enemies or simple attacks.
  • Some abilities are unlocked at the start of the story mode, while others are to be purchased by spending Ability Points (AP)
  • After learning the abilities, players can upgrade to mastery level, further enhancing ability stats.

story gameplay
Early gameplay of FF16 | Image Credits: VeryAli Gaming

Abilities are different skills that Clive can learn along his journey to make his combat easier. It makes the gameplay more joyful so players can have fun playing FF16. Here are some of the significant reasons why abilities become helpful.

  • Flexibility: Players can be adaptive by mastering any ability that can be equipped to Eikon’s character of choice. This will let you share their mastered abilities with yours, which increases your ability set. Hence, you gain flexibility in your abilities.
  • Strong Attacks: Not all abilities are available at the start. You progress through the story and unlock new and powerful abilities that can be later upgraded. Mastering or upgrading an ability will further enhance Clive’s combat as stats improve.
  • Universality: Always have a clear knowledge of the abilities you chose for an attack. Keeping the ones that are more applicable in a battle will give you a greater advantage over your enemies. Avoid those skills that are not for combat, even if they look strong. 
  • Mastery: As you explore more of the story, you will unlock more Eikons and simultaneously more Abilities. Mastering them will provide you with an advantage in tough battles. 
  • Ability Points (AP): In FF16, unlocking new abilities or upgrading the current ones require Ability Points or AP. Earn them from battles and defeat enemies. The more enemies you knock down, the more AP you secure.

How To Unlock FF16 Abilities

combat gameplay while using abilities
Engaging in combat | Captured By: VeryAli Gaming

Ability Points, or AP, are the in-game currency for unlocking and upgrading abilities. You must get them through winning battles, defeating enemies, or progressing in the campaign. Follow the steps below to easily get abilities.

  • Get access to the abilities tab from the main menu.
  • Notice that abilities are related to their specific Eikons. Unlock any ability from the list that you currently have access to.
  • Every ability has its own purchase cost in terms of AP. Ensure you have enough of them with you before deciding to buy an ability.
  • Once you have a sufficient amount, hover over the desired ability and select the option to unlock or upgrade
  • The abilities associated with Eikons will require that Eikon be dominated first in the story. By performing this act, the Eikon will grant you the ability so you can add it to your collection. 
  • After unlocking, you can keep upgrading the ability by spending AP until it reaches Mastery Level
  • Mastering an ability will have more benefits, like enhanced combat and engaging in ability combos.
  • If you are uncomfortable with your current skill set, there is an option to reset it through Respec Mechanic. Using it will allow you to rebuild your tree from scratch.

Best FF16 Abilities To Learn

Now that you know enough about abilities let’s look at some of the best ones in FF16. Note that all the basic abilities that Clive has are significantly less costly. Therefore, try to unlock all of them and have mild knowledge about them. Note that the list below will decide the best options regarding the cost (Ability Points) and efficiency.

Swift Recovery

The main issue with Clive is that he takes a lot of time to get back into the fight after being knocked down by a strong hit from the enemy. Swift Recovery is here to rescue, as it lets Clive get back on his feet in no time. To activate the ability, press R1 on your controller, which will get Clive standing and also make him hit a melee attack on any nearby opponent.

Swift Recovery is one of those abilities that unlock at the story’s start. Moreover, it does not need any AP for upgrade purposes. If you open Mastery for this ability, it will get more efficient and quicker. The perfect scenario to use Swift Recovery is against Chirada‘s Dash when Clive is knocked down in the air. Pressing R1 right after the knock will do the trick.

Flames Of Rebirth

flames of rebirth ability
Flames of Rebirth animation | Picture Credits: VeryAli Gaming

This is one of those unlockable abilities that require Ability Points. Players must unlock this in the quest, Sunrise, Sunset, where they must interact with a specific mission part. This ability is related to Phoenix’s Eikon, where a storm of fire magic is brought that damages all the enemies in its range. Furthermore, it also heals Clive if he is under the storm.

Flames of Rebirth costs 1695 AP to unlock. When you wish to use this ability, equip the respective Eikon and ensure you got enough AP in the bank. Select the targeted area where the storm should appear and cause damage. It has a very huge range and can cover the whole field in some situations.

Charged Magic

charged magic is one of the best abilities in combat
Magic in action | Image By: VeryAli Gaming

Charged Magic is worth 20 AP, and it enhances the regular magic. To charge it, hold the triangle button on the right side of the controller. Upon release, the ability will launch the attack. Use this skill when you plan to dodge the opponent’s strike. Therefore, you must master this to help you counter powerful enemy attacks.

Stomp

Stomp is one of those abilities that provide an advantage for aerial attacks and costs 15 AP. If press X when in mid-air, you will kick any enemy close to you. Using the ability maximizes your jump height and can be an excellent choice for powerful combos with abilities such as Downthrust. When upgraded, Stomp can increase the kicks you get in mid-air so you can knock more enemies in a single go.

Gauge

Introducing another aerial ability, Gauge lets you bring two claws into the battle that can destroy the enemies completely. It is applicable in the air and can exponentially increase stagger damage. Players can work on this ability by using it to stun big groups of enemies. Moreover, mastering this ability will enhance the speed of attacks.

Here is a summary of all the abilities so you can choose what to master.

Ability Type Price (AP) Description
Swift Recovery Ground 10 Helps Clive get back on his feet quickly
Flames of Rebirth Ground 1695 Brings a storm of fire magic to crush all the enemies in its range charged
Charged Magic Ground 20 Casual magic is charged to dodge enemy strike
Stomp Aerial 15 Stomp any enemy close to you in mid-air by kicking
Gauge Aerial Clive introduces two claws that dominate the opponents.

Best Abilities

This is where our guide on Best Abilities in FF16 ends. There are various abilities in the game, and we suggest you try them all to understand what you are comfortable with. However, the abilities in the list are very powerful, so learning them will give you an upper hand against tough opponents.

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