Xenoblade 3: How To Chain Attack [Explained]

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 instantly received massive praise for its remarkable storyline and impactful combat system. Soon after the release, hardcore fans took the game by storm to try out many previous and new combat features. Meanwhile, one notable combat entry is the Xenoblade 3 chain attack. 

Despite being automatic combat like the original game, Xenoblade 3 chain attack is one of the best mechanics available to players. It is a massively powerful strike to help players dish out maximum damage output from their characters and defeat the opponents to pave the way for the storyline. 

Apart from that, players must follow a series of steps and combos to execute the chain attack system in Xenoblade Chronicles 3 flawlessly. Unfortunately, these combos are not going to be an easy feat and require special considerations from players to yield maximum damage out of the chain attack combo. 

Players struggling to execute the chain attack or are just starting new in the game to make the most out of their experience can follow this guide to learn everything about the secret attack combination. With that said, let’s discuss everything you need to know about Xenoblade Chronicles 3 chain attacks. 

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 Chain Attacks

Although, chain attacks are brought back from the previous games. But still, it is completely revamped to bring a unique gaming experience to players.

It follows the similar mechanics of performing an attack in conjunction with your party members. However, it comes with a twist that is extremely powerful to drain a huge portion of HP from opponents and also offer rewards to players. Let’s discuss what chain attacks are exactly in Xenoblade Chronicles 3 and how players can perform them with their character. 

What Is Chain Attack 

In essence, chain attacks are a combo move that combines your party members and then strikes the opponents by taking turns. This way, players can achieve massive damage to the opponents and gain a tactical advantage in any game battles. Your party members can use any of the Arts, which are special moves to dish out damaging strikes out of your character. 

You might wonder why you need chain attacks and what purpose they serve in gameplay. To answer that, it is worth noting that chain attacks are the top-tier combo that will aid players in challenging battle situations, especially in the endgame. Moreover, you will need chain attacks with a boss of massive HP and unique enemies that get on the nerves during a quest. 

You can use any available characters to set up the chain attacks in Xenoblade Chronicles 3. The cherry on top is that executing this combo will ideally grant you hefty rewards like XPs and attack/damage multipliers. 

The chain attacks are unlocked early on in the gameplay. It means you will not have to worry about playing special quests or grinding resources to achieve the combo for your characters. Once you unlock the chain attacks, you can see a chain attack gauge on the right side of the screen. 

How To Execute Chain Attacks?

The latest Xenoblade Chronicles 3 brings a lot of aspects that every player needs to know for chain attacks. Unlike the original combo introduced in the Xenoblade Chronicles, chain attacks are now much more detailed and powerful. 

First Chain Rotation

To get started, you must fill the screen’s chain attack gauge available on the right side. Filling this gauge is not much difficult. It is because executing different combos, canceling attacks, fusion arts, or even playing with your in-game companions will fill the gauge quickly. 

The crux of the matter is to execute a perfect chain attack to make the most out of the battle and achieve the desired gameplay experience. You can use the chain attack by pressing the start button on the gauge. It will instantly take you to a flash screen with your AI companions.

Not just that, but players will also see the attacks of each companion. Meanwhile, that is not about executing the chain attack, as you have the choice to select a specific attack of the party members that will yield the most bonuses. Make sure to check out the Completion Bonus below the chain order. 

Each of the companion characters will have its own unique Completion Bonus. The game mechanics equally distribute these to push hard damage to the opponent and offer good XPs for you.

For instance, if you have Tion in the chain orders, you will see his completion bonus which reduces the physical defense of the opponents by 35% points during the chain attack. It means after his attack completes, this debuff will be active throughout the rest of the chain attack sequence. 

You will have to go through and select a specific attack order with the highest Completion Bonus. Otherwise, you will still be able to dish out huge damage to the enemy with the chain attack. But it will be a complete waste without earning the most XPs and bonuses. 

Moreover, you will also want to ensure that all of your AI companions are alive. Otherwise, you will have to avoid using the chain attack as it will be a complete waste of the gauge meter and can be used further in the quest. 

Once you have selected all the attack orders for the chain attack, you will also see Damage Multiplier right next to the chain attack. If you do not know, it represents damage multiplied by all the art or attack combos you and your character will use in the chain attack. 

Since you are already on the chain attack sequence screen, you can see all the companion characters on the bottom left of the screen. Meanwhile, you can see the tactical points or TP values on top of these companion characters.

Although, these are the base TP of each character, considering you are still in the first round of chain attack. But, this value can be increased when you complete the first or any of the orders in chain attacks. The game mechanics sets the base values for TP, and you can not change them at all. 

Also, you must note that the highest base TP value for a character represents the highest damage dealer in the chain attack. Since Xenoblade Chronicles 3 introduced three classes, attackers, defenders, and healers, they also have respective perks they bring to the chain attacks. We will discuss these bonuses later in the guide. 

The bonus TP that players will receive with each order of chain attack depends on different factors. One of the prime factors you need to consider for bonus TP is the card you receive for a chain attack. This card is shown on the top right corner of the screen. On top of that, the character’s HP will also significantly contribute to receiving the bonus TP for each order in the list. 

It is worth noting that TP is the gateway to inflict massive damage without needing to do anything. If you accumulate 100% TP, you will yield considerable damage to the opponents. The TP values assist players in using a mighty Art move that can decimate all kinds of enemies. 

Although, you do not need to worry about TP as it will be filled with each attack order. But still, you will need to see which characters grant more TP and have multiple hits moves. 

Now that you know the stats and fundamental aspects of the chain attack, you can execute the attack one by one, starting with the attacker. You will accumulate the tactical points as you proceed with the chain attack with each character. Once that gauge hits 100%, you will finish the rotation of the chain attack for the respective chain order. 

Chain Reactivation

The chain attack does not end here. Now you will again see a flash screen that mentions the Reactivation of the chain attack. Once again, you will select a unique chain order to start the next rotation.

Here you will notice that you are bringing the bonuses like TP with your characters to the next rotation along with a massive damage multiplier. For instance, if Xenoblade Chronicles 3 Taion was at 30 TP, the TP value in the second rotation is doubled. You can again consider him as a starter for the chain attack rotation. 

Always consider the characters carefully in the chain attack rotation, as you need to collect maximum TP with each rotation. This will ensure you receive maximum bonuses and XP that you try hard throughout the game.

Once again, if you manage to bring the TP to 100%, you will be able to bring a character with the highest base TP back for another rotation. If you are lucky enough to break the gauge up to 150%, you may bring two characters for chain reactivation. 

The chain attack will be over in most cases after the second rotation. You can determine the end of a chain attack when you will not receive any more bonuses. This is because the opponent or boss you are fighting with might already be on low HP and will be taken down with the upcoming chain attack rotation. 

Ouroboros Chain Attack

Apart from completing a chain order with individual characters, players may also unlock interlinked attacks that combine the two heroes. This combination will do massive damage to the opponents, thus also adding better TP values and bonuses. In essence, Ouroboros represents merging two characters and using them to attack the opponent with a chain attack. 

To put it simply, let’s consider an example. For instance, if you completed the first chain attack with Taion and the second with Sena, you will see an Ouroboros chain order in the third chain rotation. You can select this infusion of heroes to dish out the best damage to the opponents and claim all the hefty rewards. 

One major downside of the Ouroboros chain attack is that it will end the chain attack sequence. You can only unlock it after the second chain attack rotation. At the third rotation, there will not be much opponent’s HP left that may grant you another chain attack rotation. 

For that instance, you might want to decide carefully to opt for Ouroboros or other chain orders during the battle. 

Overkill

Apart from the Ouroboros, you can also achieve an Overkill. As the name implies, Overkill is the sequence triggered when you have finished the opponent before the chain attack is even completed.

There is nothing much to this aspect of the chain attack. However, players with the Overkill will receive hefty bonuses of XP. All you need to do is to focus on selecting a particular chain order to ensure your game lets you experience the Overkill mode. Once you do, let all of your companion characters attack even when the opponent is down, and it will get you to receive XP bonuses. 

Tips And Tricks For Chain Attack

Now that you know how to perform the chain attacks, it is always wise to incorporate different tips and tricks to pave the way for maximum rewards and bonuses. As said earlier, your choices for selecting the chain order are crucial to maximize the TP multiplier and how you will end the chain attack. 

As the tactical points or TP accumulate, the game will also show you the attack ranking in each chain rotation. For instance, if you manage to hit the TP at 100% to 149%, the game will classify the chain rotation as Cool. Meanwhile, the TP values of 150% to 199% and 200% and above will set the Attack Rating at Bravo and Amazing. 

Another essential aspect you need to know in your gameplay is the role-specific chain rotations. It may sound a little tricky, but the game allows players to receive bonuses for using a particular character such as defender, attacker, or healer in each chain rotation. 

For instance, using an attacker to start the chain attack will unlock the First Blood bonus. This bonus will give you the TP values for the chain rotation. For instance, if your attacker stands at 35 bases TP. Starting the attack will grant you First Blood by performing more damage and increase in TP points multiplied by the total damage output, making a total of 64% TP in our chain rotation. 

On the other side, if you start the chain rotation with a defender, your next chain rotation will reactivate the defender character with the highest TP in the next chain order. Meanwhile, starting the rotation with a healer will push the TP cap to 99%. This will pave the way to achieving an Attack Rating of Bravo or Amazing. 

Also, if you check the pattern here, using the attackers first and defenders last tends to be more profitable for accumulating more resources for the upcoming rotation. As the attacker will unlock the First Blood and push the TP % for the next rotation, you can use the defender in the last to ensure this TP gauge hits 99% at the end of the rotation in a chain attack of Xenoblade Chronicles 3. This pattern will significantly aid in achieving the Bravo or Amazing rating. 

Choosing the hero in the second or third rotation is highly recommended. Although it purely depends on what chain attack outcome you are trying to pursue. But after the second rotation, you must meet the requirement of the Ouroboros chain attack. 

Not only is this required by the game mechanics, but also yields good rewards for your character to maximize the performance of each character in the chain attacks. Also, make sure to start the chain attack only when the opponents are in the state of Daze or launch. This way, players can achieve maximum damage output with each chain attack rotation, thus rewarding more bonuses and XP. 

Final Words

The key to a successful and most rewarding chain attack is to make the right decisions for picking the chain order and characters and incorporating the TP values. The overall process of executing a perfect chain attack might seem overwhelming initially. But once you experiment and work around the tactical points, you will quickly understand what to expect from the chain attack in every boss fight. 

That is about it for Xenoblade Chronicles 3 chain attack. Do you find this guide helpful for learning about chain attacks and the rewards?

What is your take on the best strategies for making the most of each chain attack? We would love to hear your thoughts in the comments section down below. 

Now that you are here, why not read: Do I Need To Play Xenoblade Chronicles 2 Before 3?