Dragon’s Dogma 2: Essential Tips & Tricks Guide for your Journey

Part I: The First Steps of Your Epic Journey

Your grand adventure in Dragon’s Dogma 2 begins not with a sword, but with a choice. The decisions you make before ever setting foot in the world will shape the very fabric of your journey.

Tips for the Character Creator: Beyond Aesthetics

The character creator in Dragon’s Dogma 2 is a powerful tool, allowing for a level of detail that goes far beyond simple appearance. Your physical form has a direct and tangible impact on how you navigate and fight.

1. Your Size Matters. Your Arisen’s height and weight are your first strategic decision. Taller, heavier characters have a larger base stamina pool and are harder for enemies to knock down. However, their stamina regenerates more slowly.
2. Embrace Agility. Smaller, lighter characters have less base stamina but recover it much more quickly. They are also nimble enough to slip through small gaps and can even run between the legs of giant monsters like cyclopes.
3. Plan for Your Vocation. Consider your intended playstyle. If you plan to play a stamina-hungry Vocation like the Warrior, a larger character’s bigger pool might be beneficial. If you prefer the fast, dodge-heavy style of a Thief, a smaller character’s rapid stamina recovery will serve you well.
4. Use the Free Demo. Capcom has provided a free Dragon’s Dogma 2 Character Creator & Storage application. Use this to design your Arisen and Main Pawn ahead of time. You can save your creations and import them directly into the full game, saving you time when you’re eager to start your adventure.
5. Create a Backup. Using the separate character creator also serves as a backup for your designs. Should you ever wish to revert to your original look after making in-game changes, you will have the original data saved.

Choosing Your Starting Vocation and Main Pawn

Your Vocation is your combat identity, and your Main Pawn is your ever-loyal companion. Choose them wisely, for they are the cornerstones of your party.

6. Experiment Freely with Vocations. You begin with a choice of four starting Vocations: the sword-and-shield Fighter, the long-range Archer, the swift dual-dagger Thief, and the supportive Mage. Do not stress this choice; you can change your Vocation easily and early in your journey.
7. Name Your Pawn Carefully. During the creation process, you will be prompted to name your Main Pawn. Make sure you give them a unique name. If you skip this step, they will be permanently named “Main Pawn” for the entirety of your game.
8. Create a Marketable Pawn. Your Main Pawn will travel into the Rift to be hired by other players. A well-designed, useful Pawn will be hired more often, earning you valuable Rift Crystals (RC), items, and knowledge. A Mage with healing and support spells is always in high demand and a safe bet for generating passive income.
9. Complement Your Arisen. Your Arisen and Main Pawn should work as a team. If you choose a melee Vocation like Fighter, consider making your Pawn a Mage for healing or an Archer for ranged support. This creates a balanced core for your party from the very beginning.
10. Choose a Fitting Inclination. When creating your Pawn, you will select an Inclination: Kindhearted, Calm, Simple, or Straightforward. This determines their AI behavior. A “Straightforward” Pawn will be aggressive and charge into battle, perfect for a Fighter or Warrior. A “Kindhearted” Pawn will prioritize supporting and aiding allies, making it an excellent choice for a Mage.

Essential Early-Game Priorities in Dragon’s Dogma 2

The opening hours of Dragon’s Dogma 2 are critical. A few smart moves can set you up for a much smoother adventure.

11. Form a Full Party Immediately. Your first priority upon gaining control should be to visit a Riftstone and summon two Support Pawns. A full party of four is essential for surviving the wilds.
12. Build a Balanced Team. For your first party, aim for balance. A classic and effective setup is one tank (Fighter), one healer (Mage), and two damage dealers (like an Archer and a Thief).
13. Help Flora in Melve. In the first village, Melve, you will find a young girl named Flora near the apothecary. Complete her short quest, “Medicament Predicament.” Later, when you reach the capital city of Vernworth, her father will reward you with a discount at his shop and a tome that unlocks the valuable “Chirurgeon” Pawn Specialization.
14. Find Beren Early. Before proceeding too far with the main quest, venture off the main path from the Borderwatch Outpost to find Beren. He is a Beastren warrior whose questline is required to unlock the advanced Warrior and Sorcerer Vocations. Finding him early saves you a long trip back later.
15. Start Trysha’s Tome Quest. Near Beren’s location, you can find a secluded cabin where a young girl named Trysha lives. Visiting her will initiate a quest to find several magical tomes. Start this quest early so you can keep an eye out for the tomes as you explore.
16. Buy a House in Vernworth. Once you reach the capital, you can start a quest by speaking to a woman named Mildred. She will let you stay in her house for a week, after which you can purchase it for 20,000 Gold. Do this as soon as you can. A house provides a free place to rest and access your storage, saving you a fortune in inn fees over time.

The One Tip Every Arisen Must Know: Your First Seeker’s Token

Of all the secrets in Dragon’s Dogma 2, one piece of advice is echoed by every seasoned adventurer. Heed it well.

17. Mark Your First Seeker’s Token. As you explore, you will find small, circular medals called Seeker’s Tokens. When you find your very first one, immediately open your map and place a custom marker on its exact location. Take a screenshot if you must. The game will not do this for you. This single action will save you immense frustration dozens of hours later when a certain Sphinx asks you to solve her “Riddle of Finding.” She will task you with retrieving the “Finder’s Token,” which appears at the location where you found your very first Seeker’s Token. Without a note, finding it again in this massive world is a monumental task. This quest is a lesson in the game’s core design: it rewards your personal memory and meticulousness above all else.

Part II: Mastering the Art of Combat

Combat in Dragon’s Dogma 2 is a brutal and dynamic affair. It is a physical conversation where strategy, positioning, and resource management speak louder than brute force.

The Fundamentals of Fighting in Dragon’s Dogma 2

18. Stop Mashing Buttons. Mindlessly spamming attacks will quickly deplete your stamina and leave you open to devastating counters. Combat is a dance of observation and reaction.
19. Learn Enemy Patterns. Take a moment to watch how your enemies move. Goblins may charge wildly, but saurians will often circle and probe for an opening. Understanding their behavior is the first step to defeating them.
20. Positioning is Everything. Do not get cornered. Always try to fight in open areas where you can maneuver. Fighting on steep, uneven slopes can cause your attacks to miss or put you in a bad position.
21. Use Your Light Attacks. Your basic light attacks do not consume stamina. Weave them between your powerful skills to conserve your energy while still applying pressure.
22. Leverage Gravity. The world’s physics are your ally. A well-timed shove or a Warrior’s mighty swing can send enemies tumbling from cliffs for an instant kill, granting you full experience.
23. Throw Things! You can pick up rocks, explosive barrels, and even smaller enemies like goblins. A thrown goblin can knock over its friends, and a well-placed explosive barrel can end a fight before it begins.

Stamina: Your Most Precious Resource

Your yellow stamina bar is your lifeblood in combat. When it runs dry, you are a sitting duck, gasping for breath and unable to attack, block, or run.

24. Manage Your Actions. Heavy attacks, weapon skills, sprinting, jumping, and climbing all consume stamina. Be deliberate with every action.
25. Watch Your Weight. Your encumbrance level has a massive impact on stamina consumption. A “Heavy” or “Very Heavy” load will cause you to burn through stamina at an alarming rate.
26. Use Pawns as Pack Mules. Offload heavy materials, excess curatives, and camping gear onto your Pawns. This keeps your own weight down, allowing you to stay nimble in a fight.
27. Carry Stamina Curatives. Always carry a stack of stamina-restoring items. Large Mushrooms offer a great balance of restoration to weight.
28. Hotkey Your Curatives. Do not fumble through menus mid-fight. Assign your primary health and stamina potions to your hotkeys for instant access when you need them most.
29. Blocking Drains Stamina. Holding your shield up will stop your stamina from regenerating. Only block when you anticipate an attack, and lower your guard between enemy combos to recover.

Exploiting Weaknesses: Elemental and Physical

Every foe in Dragon’s Dogma 2 has an Achilles’ heel. Finding and exploiting it is the key to efficient combat.

30. Listen to Your Pawns. Your companions are a wellspring of combat knowledge. If they have fought a monster before, they will shout out its weaknesses. If they yell “Fire works well!”, listen to them.
31. Observe Elemental Cues. When a Mage Pawn enchants your weapon, pay attention to the element. They often automatically choose the correct element for the enemy you are facing. A blade wreathed in flames is a clear hint.
32. Use the Right Damage Type. Physical damage is split into Slash and Strike. Slashing weapons like swords are great against unarmored flesh. Striking weapons like maces and hammers excel at crushing armored skeletons and golems.
33. Target Undead with Holy. Undead enemies are highly resistant to physical damage but melt under the power of Holy magic. Always have a Mage with a Holy enchantment ready for crypts and graveyards at night.
34. Electrify Wet Foes. Lightning damage is significantly more effective against enemies that are wet, whether from rain, a nearby river, or a Drenching Arrow from an Archer.

The David vs. Goliath Tactic: Climbing Large Monsters

The colossal beasts of Dragon’s Dogma 2 are its most iconic encounters. To defeat them, you must become a flea on the back of a giant.

35. Climbing is Often Necessary. Many large monsters have weak points that are impossible to reach from the ground, such as a cyclops’s eye or a griffin’s wings. Climbing is not optional; it is a core strategy.
36. Watch Your Stamina Bar. Grabbing onto a monster and climbing its body drains stamina rapidly. Attacking while mounted drains it even faster. This creates a tense mini-game: deal as much damage as you can before your grip gives out.
37. Jump from High Ground. Conserve stamina by looking for tactical advantages. Instead of climbing a cyclops from its ankles, get to a higher ledge or ruin and jump directly onto its back or head.
38. Beware of Mid-Air Peril. Flying monsters like griffins and harpies will try to shake you off while high in the air. A fall from that height is almost always fatal. Know when to let go.
39. Topple the Beast. You don’t always have to climb. Focusing attacks on a monster’s legs can cause it to stumble and fall, bringing its weak points down to your level and creating a massive damage opportunity for your entire party.

Using the World as Your Weapon

The battlefields of Dragon’s Dogma 2 are not static arenas; they are interactive sandboxes filled with destructive potential.

40. Scan Your Surroundings. Before engaging a large group of enemies, look around. Is there a large boulder perched on a ledge above them? Is there a rickety wooden bridge they need to cross?
41. Become an Architect of Destruction. A well-aimed arrow can shatter the supports of a dam, unleashing a torrent of water that washes enemies away. Use the environment to solve your problems.
42. Instigate Monster Infighting. The world is a living ecosystem where creatures have their own territories and rivalries. If a cyclops is blocking your path and a griffin is circling overhead, try luring the griffin into attacking the cyclops. Let them weaken each other while you watch from a safe distance.

Part III: The Arisen’s Calling: A Guide to Vocations in Dragon’s Dogma 2

Your Vocation defines your role in battle, granting you unique skills and a distinct playstyle. With ten diverse Vocations to master, the possibilities for your Arisen are nearly endless.

Understanding the Vocation System: Flexibility is Key

The Vocation system in Dragon’s Dogma 2 is designed to encourage creativity and experimentation. Forget the rigid class structures of other RPGs; here, freedom is paramount.

43. Change Vocations Freely. You can switch your Vocation at any Vocation Guild, found in major cities and inns. It costs a small amount of Discipline Points (DCP), a resource earned by defeating enemies.
44. Get Free Gear. The first time you switch to a new Vocation, the guild will grant you a complimentary set of basic weapons and armor for that class. This makes it easy to try out new playstyles without having to first grind for gold.
45. Stats Are Not Permanent. Unlike the first game, your base stat growths are not permanently tied to the Vocation you level up with. When you switch from a Mage to a Warrior, your stats will automatically adjust to be appropriate for a Warrior of your level. This removes the pressure of “ruining” your build and lets you play what you find fun.

Vocation	Type	Primary Weapon(s)	Core Role	Available for Pawns?
Fighter	Starting	Sword, Mace, Shield	Tank, Melee DPS	Yes
Archer	Starting	Bow	Ranged DPS	Yes
Thief	Starting	Daggers	Melee DPS	Yes
Mage	Starting	Staff	Healer, Support	Yes
Warrior	Advanced	Greatsword, Hammer	Melee DPS, Stagger	Yes
Sorcerer	Advanced	Archistaff	Magick DPS	Yes
Mystic Spearhand	Hybrid	Duospear	Melee/Magick DPS	No
Magick Archer	Hybrid	Magickal Bow	Ranged/Magick DPS, Support	No
Trickster	Hybrid	Censer	Support, Crowd Control	No
Warfarer	Hybrid	All Weapons	Versatile/Custom	No

Profiles of the Ten Vocations

Each Vocation offers a unique path to victory. Find the one that resonates with your spirit.

Fighter

46. The Stalwart Defender. The Fighter is a master of close-quarters combat, using a sword and shield to control the battlefield. Their primary role is to draw enemy attention and protect their allies.
    • Key Skills: Blink Strike allows you to instantly close the distance to an enemy. Shield Summons taunts foes, forcing them to focus on you. Impeccable Guard blocks attacks from all directions.
    • Pawn Role: An excellent and reliable choice for a Main Pawn, providing a solid frontline for any party.

Archer

47. The Eagle-Eyed Sniper. The Archer excels at dealing damage from afar, picking off dangerous targets and exploiting the weak points of massive beasts.
    • Key Skills: Barrage Shot unleashes a rapid volley of arrows for high burst damage. Dire Arrow fires a single, powerful shot that can knock enemies off their feet.
    • Pawn Role: A great addition to any party, especially for dealing with flying enemies that melee Vocations struggle to reach.

Thief

48. The Shadowy Assassin. The Thief is a blur of motion, using twin daggers to inflict a flurry of rapid strikes. They possess unmatched mobility and excel at climbing large foes to strike at their vitals.
    • Key Skills: Biting Wind is a quick dash and slash that can be chained together. Skull Splitter is a devastating spinning aerial attack. Formless Feint is a Maister skill that allows you to automatically evade all incoming attacks at the cost of stamina.
    • Pawn Role: A high-damage, aggressive Pawn that can quickly dispatch threats, though they can be fragile.

Mage

49. The Heart of the Party. The Mage is the quintessential support class, wielding magick to heal wounds, cure debilitations, and enchant their allies’ weapons with elemental power.
    • Key Skills: Anodyne creates a sigil that heals the party over time. Halidom cures negative status effects. Elemental Boons (Fire, Ice, Lightning) are essential for exploiting enemy weaknesses.
    • Pawn Role: Arguably the most valuable Pawn Vocation. A well-built Mage Pawn is always a welcome addition to any party and will be hired frequently.

Warrior

50. The Unstoppable Juggernaut. The Warrior wields massive two-handed weapons like greatswords and hammers to deliver slow but incredibly powerful blows that can stagger even the largest of foes.
    • How to Unlock: Complete the “Vocation Frustration” quest, which starts at the Vocation Guild in Vernworth and leads you to Beren.
    • Key Skills: Skyward Sunder is a mighty upward slash perfect for hitting high weak points. Rending Sweep is a spinning attack that cleaves through groups of enemies.
    • Pawn Role: A powerful damage-dealer and stagger specialist, though their slow speed requires a party that can support them.

Sorcerer

51. The Master of Destruction. While the Mage supports, the Sorcerer destroys. They command the most powerful offensive spells in the game, capable of calling down meteors and conjuring tornadoes to annihilate their enemies.
    • How to Unlock: Complete the “Vocation Frustration” quest alongside the Warrior.
    • Key Skills: Meteoron calls down a shower of fiery projectiles from the heavens. Maelstrom creates a massive tornado that traps and shreds anything caught within.
    • Pawn Role: A devastating source of magick damage, capable of turning the tide of difficult battles with a single well-timed spell.

Mystic Spearhand

52. The Arcane Lancer. An Arisen-exclusive Vocation, the Mystic Spearhand blends lightning-fast melee attacks with potent magick. They use a unique Duospear to teleport around the battlefield and lock down enemies with magickal bolts.
    • How to Unlock: Seek out the Maister Sigurd. You may first encounter him in Melve during a dragon attack, or later in the coastal village of Harve.
    • Key Skills: Dragoun’s Foin is a teleporting lunge attack. Mirour Vesture creates a temporary, impenetrable shield for the entire party.
    • Pawn Role: Not available for Pawns.

Magick Archer

53. The Elemental Marksman. This Arisen-exclusive Vocation fires magickal homing arrows that can strike multiple targets or heal allies from a distance. They are masters of both offense and support.
    • How to Unlock: Travel to the Volcanic Island Camp and complete the quest given by the dwarf Gautstafr and his wife Cliodhna.
    • Key Skills: Ricochet Hunter is devastating in enclosed spaces, as the arrows bounce off walls. Recovery Arrow can revive downed Pawns from a safe distance.
    • Pawn Role: Not available for Pawns.

Trickster

54. The Master of Illusion. A truly unique, Arisen-exclusive support Vocation that deals no direct damage. The Trickster uses a Censer to create an illusory phantom of themselves, taunting enemies and manipulating the battlefield while their Pawns do the killing.
    • How to Unlock: Find the Reverent Shrine in Battahl and speak to the spectral Maister, Luz.
    • Key Skills: Effigial Incense creates your phantom double. Aromatic Resurgence provides a massive temporary damage boost to your Pawns.
    • Pawn Role: Not available for Pawns.

Warfarer

55. The Jack of All Trades. The ultimate Arisen-exclusive Vocation, the Warfarer can use the weapons and skills of every other Vocation. They can switch between up to nine weapons on the fly, creating unique and powerful combinations.
    • How to Unlock: Speak to Lamond at the Geyser Hamlet on the Volcanic Island and give him three bottles of Newt Liqueur.
    • Key Skills: Rearmament is the core skill, allowing you to switch weapons in combat. The other three slots can be filled with any unlocked skill from any Vocation.
    • Pawn Role: Not available for Pawns.

The Power of Augments: Mixing and Matching for Success

Augments are the key to creating a truly powerful and customized build in Dragon’s Dogma 2.

56. Augments are Universal. Augments are passive abilities you unlock by ranking up Vocations. Once an Augment is unlocked, it can be equipped regardless of which Vocation you are currently playing.
57. Level Vocations for Their Augments. It is highly recommended to spend time leveling up multiple Vocations, even if you don’t plan to main them, just to acquire their powerful Augments.
58. Essential Augments to Get. Some Augments are universally beneficial. “Endurance” (from Archer) increases your maximum stamina. “Thew” (from Fighter) increases your carrying capacity. “Verve” (from Thief) boosts your Strength. “Sagacity” (from Sorcerer) boosts your Magick. Collect these to enhance your preferred Vocation.

Effective Vocation Combos and Party Synergies

A well-oiled party is far greater than the sum of its parts. Synergize your Vocations for maximum effect.

59. The Classic Balanced Party. The tried-and-true composition for most of the game is a Fighter to tank, a Mage to heal, and two powerful DPS Vocations like a Thief and a Sorcerer. This covers all your bases.
60. The Sorcerer-Thief Nuke Combo. A devastating advanced strategy involves a Sorcerer casting Augural Flare on an enemy. This attaches a magickal orb to the target. Any subsequent hits cause the orb to build in power before exploding. A Thief using a rapid-hit skill like Skull Splitter on the flared target can trigger a cataclysmic detonation, often deleting multiple health bars from a boss.
61. The Trickster’s Orchestra. The Trickster Vocation enables a unique party composition. Since the Trickster holds all enemy aggression with their phantom, you can bring three high-damage “glass cannon” Pawns, such as two Sorcerers and a Thief. The Trickster acts as the ultimate tank, giving the Sorcerers the uninterrupted time they need to cast their most powerful spells.
62. Warfarer: The Ultimate Combo Creator. The Warfarer allows for combos that defy traditional class roles. Combine the Thief’s Formless Feint (auto-dodge) with their self-damaging Blades of the Pyre skill to negate the health drain and become an untouchable whirlwind of fire. Or, equip a Mage staff and a bow to cast an elemental buff on yourself, then switch to the bow to fire elemental arrows without needing a Mage Pawn. The possibilities are limited only by your creativity.

Part IV: Your Loyal Companions: The Pawn System

Pawns are the heart and soul of Dragon’s Dogma 2. They are your loyal soldiers, your trusted guides, and your connection to the worlds of other players.

Your Main Pawn: More Than a Sidekick

63. Your Constant Companion. Your Main Pawn is your creation, bound to you for your entire journey. They level up alongside you, and you have complete control over their Vocation, skills, equipment, and appearance.
64. Build Affinity. You can increase your affinity with your Main Pawn by fighting alongside them, giving them a high-five after a battle, and giving them gifts. Higher affinity will cause them to act more familiarly, with unique dialogue and idle animations.
65. Set Profitable Pawn Quests. Visit a Grand Riftstone to set a Pawn Quest for your Main Pawn. You can set a task (such as “Defeat a Cyclops”) and a reward (such as 10,000 Gold). When another player hires your Pawn and completes this task, you will be notified, and they will receive your reward. This is an excellent source of passive income.

Hiring and Managing Support Pawns

66. Recruit from the Rift. You can hire up to two additional Pawns from Riftstones found throughout the world. These are the Main Pawns of other players.
67. Support Pawns Do Not Level Up. This is a critical mechanic to understand. The Support Pawns you hire are locked at the level they were when you recruited them.
68. Hire for Free. Hiring Pawns at or below your own level is always free. Hiring Pawns of a higher level costs Rift Crystals (RC). You can also hire the Pawns of anyone on your friends list for free, regardless of their level.
69. Rotate Your Roster. Because they don’t level, you must regularly dismiss your Support Pawns and hire new ones that are closer to your current level. A good rule of thumb is to refresh your party every 5-10 levels.
70. Don’t Gift Gear to Hired Pawns. Any weapons or armor you equip on a Support Pawn will be lost forever when you dismiss them. Only give them consumables.
71. Their Inventory Goes to Storage. When you dismiss a Support Pawn, any items or materials they were carrying in their inventory (but not equipped) will be automatically sent to your item storage. This is a useful way to send loot back to town without making the trip yourself.

Decoding Pawn Inclinations and Specializations

72. Understand Inclinations. A Pawn’s Inclination dictates their AI. “Straightforward” Pawns are aggressive attackers. “Simple” Pawns love to explore and gather items. “Calm” Pawns are cautious and strategic. “Kindhearted” Pawns prioritize helping and supporting the party. Match the Inclination to the Pawn’s Vocation for best results.
73. Seek Out Specializations. Specializations are powerful, unique abilities Pawns can learn from special tomes.
74. Hire a Forager. The “Forager” Specialization causes a Pawn to mark the location of nearby enhancement materials on your map. Having one in your party is invaluable for upgrading your gear.
75. Use a Woodland Wordsmith. The “Woodland Wordsmith” Specialization allows a Pawn to translate the Elvish language. This is the only way to understand the elves and use the vendors in the Sacred Arbor.
76. Consider a Chirurgeon. The “Chirurgeon” Specialization enables a Pawn to use curatives from their inventory on you and other party members. This can be a lifesaver, but be aware they might use valuable potions when a simple Mage heal would have sufficed.

Issuing Commands and Leveraging Pawn Knowledge

77. Use Your D-Pad. The D-pad commands are simple but crucial. “Go!” tells Pawns to press the attack or investigate something. “To Me!” calls them to your side for a defensive formation. “Help!” instructs them to prioritize healing and support. “Wait!” tells them to hold their position.
78. Confirm Their Suggestions. When a Pawn points out a hidden chest or offers to guide you, they will not act until you give the “Go!” command.
79. Look for the Hand Icon. When browsing your quest log, a small hand icon next to a quest means a Pawn in your current party has knowledge of it.
80. Prioritize Quests for Guidance. If a Pawn has quest knowledge, they can lead you directly to the objective. To enable this, you must select that quest as your priority quest in the menu. The Pawn will then take the lead.

A Shadow in the Rift: Understanding and Curing Dragonsplague

81. Recognize the Signs. Dragonsplague is a mysterious contagion that affects Pawns who travel between worlds. Infected Pawns will become more aggressive and disobedient. Their eyes will also begin to glow with a faint red hue.
82. Act Before Calamity. If left untreated, the final stage of Dragonsplague will result in a “devastating calamity” upon resting at an inn, which can wipe out entire cities.
83. There is No Simple Cure. The only ways to cure Dragonsplague are for your Main Pawn to pass it to another Pawn in the Rift, or to kill the infected Pawn. Reviving them with a Wakestone does not work.
84. The Watery Grave. The most reliable way to cure an infected Pawn (including your Main Pawn) is to pick them up, throw them into deep water or off a high cliff to kill them, and then re-summon them at a Riftstone. This will cleanse them of the plague completely.

Part V: Traversing a Perilous World

The world of Dragon’s Dogma 2 is a character in itself—vast, beautiful, and utterly hostile. Learning to navigate it is as important as learning to fight.

Getting Around in Dragon’s Dogma 2: Oxcarts, Ferrystones, and Your Own Two Feet

The game’s design intentionally makes travel a significant part of the experience. Every journey is a potential adventure, filled with unexpected encounters and discoveries.

85. Embrace the Journey. Fast travel is severely limited by design. This forces you to engage with the world, leading to emergent stories and unplanned adventures. Don’t fight it; prepare for it.
86. Ride the Oxcart. Oxcarts travel on fixed routes between major settlements for a small fee of 100-200 Gold. This is the most common form of “fast travel.”
87. Doze Off, But Be Wary. You can choose to “doze off” on an oxcart to speed up the journey. However, this increases the chance of being ambushed by monsters. If the cart is destroyed, you will be stranded in the wilderness.
88. Use Ferrystones Sparingly. Ferrystones are rare, expensive (10,000 Gold from vendors), consumable items that allow you to instantly teleport to a Portcrystal. Save them for true emergencies or for traveling to remote, hard-to-reach locations.
89. Place Your Own Portcrystals. Throughout your adventure, you will find a limited number of portable Portcrystals. You can place these anywhere in the open world to create your own custom fast travel points.
90. Be Strategic with Portcrystals. Place your Portcrystals in locations that are important but lack other travel options. The Sacred Arbor, the Volcanic Island Camp, and remote quest hubs are excellent choices. Do not waste one by placing it in a city that already has a permanent Portcrystal, like Vernworth or Harve Village.

Surviving the Night: Lanterns, Camping, and Nocturnal Threats

When the sun sets in Dragon’s Dogma 2, the world transforms. The darkness is absolute, and far more dangerous creatures emerge from their lairs.

91. Never Travel Without a Lantern. A lantern is not optional at night; it is essential. Without it, you will be completely blind and likely to walk off a cliff or into a monster’s den.
92. Stock Up on Lantern Oil. Your lantern consumes oil over time. Always carry a spare flask or two. You can buy oil from merchants or craft it.
93. Beware Nocturnal Beasts. The night is home to enemies you won’t see during the day, including legions of skeletons, phantoms, and wights. They are generally stronger and more numerous than daytime fauna.
94. Carry a Camping Kit. Camping Kits allow you to rest at designated campsites scattered throughout the world. They are reusable.
95. Rest to Restore the Loss Gauge. As you take damage, your maximum health will decrease, represented by the grey “Loss Gauge” on your health bar. This lost health cannot be recovered with potions. The only way to fully restore it is by resting at a camp or an inn.
96. Camp Safely. Before you make camp, take a moment to kill any enemies in the immediate vicinity. This reduces the chance of being ambushed in your sleep, which can result in your Camping Kit being destroyed.

Mastering Your Inventory and Encumbrance

97. Lighten Your Load. Your encumbrance level (Light, Average, Heavy, Very Heavy) directly impacts your movement speed and how quickly your stamina drains when sprinting. Stay as light as possible.
98. Combine Materials on the Go. The crafting system is simple. You can combine items directly from your inventory. This is a great way to reduce weight; for example, combining two different herbs might create a single, lighter potion.
99. Use Your Storage. Every inn has a storage chest. Deposit all of your crafting materials, monster parts, and unused equipment here. Your inventory should only contain what you need for your current expedition.
100. Craft from Storage. You do not need to have materials in your personal inventory to use them for upgrading gear. Blacksmiths can pull directly from your storage.
101. Hunt Golden Trove Beetles. These rare, glowing beetles are found on trees and rocks throughout the world. Consuming one permanently increases your carrying capacity by a small amount. These add up over time, so grab every one you see. Give them to your Main Pawn as well to increase their capacity.

Part VI: The Adventurer’s Economy: Gear, Gold, and Glory

A successful Arisen is a well-equipped and wealthy Arisen. Mastering the economy of Dragon’s Dogma 2 is crucial for tackling the game’s toughest challenges.

Enhancing Your Equipment: A Guide to Smithing Styles

Upgrading your gear is one of the most important ways to increase your power. However, not all blacksmiths are created equal.

102. Enhance Your Gear Often. You can upgrade weapons and armor at any smithy. Each piece can be enhanced up to three times.
103. Choose Your Smithing Style. Different regions practice different smithing styles, each offering unique stat bonuses.* Vermundian Style: Found in Vernworth. Provides a balanced, all-around stat increase.* Battahli Style: Found in Bakbattahl. Greatly increases Strength and Defense, with minimal magick boosts. Ideal for Fighters and Warriors.* Elven Style: Found in the Sacred Arbor. Greatly increases Magick and Magick Defense, with minimal physical boosts. The go-to for Mages and Sorcerers.* Dwarven Style: Found on the Volcanic Island. Provides a good physical boost and significantly increases your weapon’s Knockdown Power.
104. Seek the Wyrmfire. After a piece of gear has been enhanced three times, it can receive a final, fourth upgrade from a special NPC known as The Dragonforged. This “Wyrmfire” enhancement costs Wyrmslife Crystals (WLC), halves the item’s weight, and provides a massive boost to all of its stats.

Style	Primary Bonus	Best For	Location(s)
Vermundian	Balanced Stats	General Use	Vernworth
Battahli	↑ Strength/Defense	Physical Vocations	Bakbattahl
Elven	↑ Magick/Mag. Defense	Magick Vocations	Sacred Arbor
Dwarven	↑ Knockdown Power	Stagger-focused Builds	Volcanic Island
Wyrmfire	Halves Weight & ↑ All Stats	Endgame	Bay Wayside Shrine

Farming for Fortune: The Best Ways to Earn Gold

High-end gear is expensive. Keeping your coffers full is a constant necessity.

105. Loot Everything. Be a kleptomaniac. Pick up every shiny object, open every chest, and loot every monster corpse. Sell what you don’t need.
106. Sell Precious Gems. You will find valuable gems like Jasper, Onyx, and Tiger’s Eye in chests and as drops from certain enemies. These exist almost exclusively to be sold for a high price.
107. Complete Monster Culls. Notice boards will often have repeatable “Monster Culling” quests. These are a quick and reliable source of a few thousand Gold.
108. Farm Digger’s Cave. A highly efficient method for farming gold is to repeatedly clear out Digger’s Cave, located south of Bakbattahl. The cave is filled with valuable Glymercole ore. After clearing it, rest for about five in-game days for the ore to respawn, then repeat.

Leveling Efficiently: Farming XP and Discipline Points (DCP)

Gaining levels increases your base stats, while earning Discipline Points (DCP) allows you to unlock new Vocations, skills, and augments.

109. XP vs. DCP. You gain Experience Points (XP) from both completing quests and killing enemies. You gain DCP almost exclusively from killing enemies.
110. Farm Mobs for DCP. While killing a griffin is exciting and gives a good amount of XP, it’s not very efficient for farming DCP. You will earn DCP much faster by killing large groups of weaker enemies like goblins, saurians, and bandits.
111. Find High-Density Routes. The best way to farm DCP is to find a route with a high density of enemy spawns between two campsites. Run the route, kill everything, rest at the second camp for a day or two to respawn the enemies, and then run the route in reverse.
112. The Volcanic Island Farm. The most effective late-game farming spot is the Volcanic Island. The roads and ravines there are teeming with high-level enemies, making it the premier location for quickly maxing out your Vocation ranks.

Part VII: Secrets of the Veteran Arisen

You’ve mastered the basics and forged yourself into a capable warrior. Now it is time to learn the hidden techniques and esoteric knowledge that separate the good from the legendary.

Advanced Combat Techniques and Hidden Mechanics

113. Animation Canceling. You can cancel the recovery animation of some attacks to increase your overall damage output. The Warrior’s Barge skill is excellent for canceling the end lag of a heavy swing, allowing you to start your next attack sooner.
114. Rapid-Fire Magick Archer. The Magick Archer can dramatically increase their rate of fire with Blazefang Arrow. As soon as you fire the arrow, press the sheath/cancel button to immediately end the recovery animation, allowing you to charge and fire the next shot while the first is still in the air.
115. Mass Revive Your Pawns. If a devastating attack downs multiple Pawns at once, you don’t need to revive them one by one. Pick up their bodies and place them in a pile. Reviving one will instantly bring back any others in the immediate vicinity, saving precious time in a chaotic battle.
116. Pawn Teleportation Retrieval. Your Pawns will automatically teleport to your location if they get stuck or fall behind. You can exploit this. If you see a treasure chest on a ledge you cannot reach, aim at it and use the “Go!” command. Your Pawns will often find a way to pathfind to it, grab the loot, and then teleport back to you with the contents.
117. Age Your Meat. After killing a wild animal like a deer or ox, don’t loot it immediately. Wait for a minute or two. Flies will appear around the corpse, and when you finally harvest it, you will receive Aged Meat, a more potent cooking ingredient. Don’t wait too long, or it will become rotten.

Uncovering Hidden Treasures and Rare Items

118. The Pawn’s Sixth Sense. Pawns with the “Detection” Augment will audibly and visually alert you to nearby Seeker’s Tokens. Even without it, any Pawn may exclaim “What might that be?” when a token is close, placing a helpful exclamation mark on your minimap.
119. Ride a Griffin Home. If you deal enough damage to a griffin, it may attempt to flee the battle and fly back to its nest. If you can grab on and survive the journey, you will be rewarded with a nest full of treasure, which can even include a rare Portcrystal.
120. Shoot Through Windows. See a locked door with a bar on the other side? Look for a nearby open window or crack in the wall. You can often shoot the bar with an arrow to break it and unlock the door from the outside.
121. Look Up. Cities like Vernworth and Bakbattahl are filled with verticality. Explore the rooftops and jump across balconies to find hidden chests and secret areas.

Interacting with the World: Forgeries, Gifting, and Timed Quests

122. The Art of Forgery. The Scrap Store in Checkpoint Rest Town offers a unique service: creating forgeries of items in your inventory. You can duplicate valuable materials, but its true power lies in copying quest items.
123. Solve Dilemmas with Duplicates. If a quest requires you to hand over a unique, powerful item, make a forgery first. Give the NPC the fake and keep the powerful original for yourself. Be warned, some savvy NPCs may notice the deception.
124. Win Friends with Gifts. You can give gifts to almost any NPC in the game. Giving an NPC an item they like (check their character profile in the history log for clues) will raise their affinity toward you.
125. High Affinity Has Perks. NPCs with high affinity may give you gifts, offer discounts at their shops, or even unlock new, secret quests.
126. Heed the Call of Urgency. When an NPC begs you to save their child from wolves right now, they mean it. Many quests in Dragon’s Dogma 2 are on a hidden timer. If you accept an urgent-sounding quest and then spend several days exploring or sleeping, you may return to find the quest has failed, often with tragic consequences.
127. Death is Not Always the End (for NPCs). Important NPCs can be killed, either by your hand or by monsters. If you see one die, you have a brief window to use a Wakestone on their body to revive them. If you’re too late, their body may be transported to the morgue in the nearest major city, where you can pay a fee to have them prepared for revival.

Conclusion: Your Legend Begins

You now hold the wisdom of a hundred battles, the secrets of a thousand roads. You have learned of the intricate dance of combat, the unbreakable bond of Pawns, and the unforgiving nature of this vibrant world. But remember this, Arisen: this journal is not a scripture to be followed, but a whetstone upon which to sharpen your own instincts.

The true magic of Dragon’s Dogma 2 lies not in the tips you have read, but in the moments between them. It is in the heart-stopping terror of a griffin ambush at dusk, the quiet camaraderie of a shared meal at a campfire, and the triumphant roar of felling a dragon against all odds. These pages have given you a map, but you must walk the path. They have given you a sword, but you must learn its song. Take this knowledge, step out into the world, and create a story that is uniquely yours. For the cycle awaits, and your legend is yet to be written.

Disclaimer: This is an unofficial fan work, all trademarks and copyrights for Dragon’s Dogma 2 belong to the developer CAPCOM Co., Ltd.

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