Summary
Persona 3 Reloadrevolves heavily around tarot cards as one of its themes. They represent relationships along with Personas players can get, along with items. In the original game, players had a chance to get extra rewards after battle during a segment called Shuffle Time.
There were typically three cards players could choose from and they were all face down. The randomization made it hard to plan rewards out, butPersona 3 Reloadredid this system and made Shuffle Time cards visible. It was a wise decision from thePersonateam within Atlusfor this remake. So, of the many cards players can acquire, what are some of the best?
1EXP Up
Boosts Experience Points Earned
EXP Up is a pretty common card that should show up on the regular. It will boost EXP gained, which operates differently than most RPGs. If the battle rewards say players are going to get four hundred EXP, that means the EXP will be split among all party members and Personas in the team.
This fracturing makes it hard to grind in the game, putting it on a similar level to earlyDragon Questtitles. That’s why cards like EXP Up are so important. The more leaves that appear on the card, the more EXP will increase.
2The Fool
Boosts Experience Points Earned Until Players Leave Tartarus
The Fool is the tarot that represents the main character, Makoto, in the game,and tarot cardsoverall are a big theme. It is known as a Major Arcana and it will appear during Shuffle Time. Its effects are similar to EXP Up but The Fool is a much better card.
The Fool will increase EXP gained for the entirety of the dungeon until players leave. The effect will stack on top of EXP Up cards but only one of The Fool cards will appear during a run. Stacking cards is a great way to level up fast, but players need a lot of luck to carry out thisclassic RPG trick.
3High Priestess
Boosts All-Out Attack Until Players Leave Tartarus
The High Priestess is another card part of the Major Arcana. As players progress further into the game, more Major Arcana like this will unlock. In the early stages ofPersona 3 Reload, players are going to be limited to both The Fool and High Priestess, which is not a bad combo.
The battle system in thePersonaseries, and manyShin Megami Tenseigames, revolve around taking advantage of elemental weaknesses. If an enemy weak to fire gets hit with a fire-based attack, players will gain an extra attack. When all enemies are weakened in a battle, players can carry out a move called an All-Out Attack. The High Priestess card will increase its damage for the entirety of the player’s current Tartarus run.
4Money Up
Boosts Yen Points Earned
The world revolves around money and players will not escape that fact in this game. ManyRPGs have unique currencylikeFinal Fantasy’sGil system or Capcom’s Zenny trade.Persona 3 Reloadjust uses Yen, which is the normal currency of Japan.
Yen is hard to come by in the game, so Money Up is a great card to find. It won’t increase how much money is earned in battle like EXP Up’s effects. It will instead just give players a set amount of Yen to squirrel away.
5Persona Cards
Angel, Pixie, And Beyond
Players are going to get a handful ofPersonas as is tradition in the seriesas they explore Tartarus. It’s the only way to get them in the game besides fusing two or more in the Velvet Room. If a new Persona pops up during Shuffle Time then players should snag it no matter what.
The only exception to this rule is Major Arcana as they can help through the entire dungeon run as previously mentioned. Some early Persona examples include Angel who knows Garu, the wind-based magic. Also, Pixie knows Dia, which is a healing spell.
6Skill Cards
Look Out For Spirit Drain
Skill Cards are a common pop-up during Shuffle Time, which appear as swords. These cards can teach Persona abilities to help broaden their specialties. One great example is Spirit Drain, which absorbs SP away from monsters.
SP is how players cast spells, and as healing SP is tricky, it’s not a bad idea to have magic like this on hand. Another good early Skill Card to find is for Bufu. That is an ice-based spell and no party members will have ice magic naturally until a couple of months into the game’s time.
7HP Recovery
Heal The Party’s HP
If there are no good cards available then players can always fall back on the tried and true power of HP Recovery. These cards will be represented by blue goblets and their potency will vary. Using them will save on healing items or characters that heal through magic.
Most cards in this category will heal for 50% of the party’s health while others will restore everyone to full. Other cup-based cards will even boost stats like attack power for the next battle, so always be sure to check these cards out even though nine times out of ten they will just heal players.
