Which Stats to Pick When Leveling Up in Metaphor: ReFantazio

Like Shin Megami Tensei games, Metaphor: ReFantazio gives us the chance to customize our hero by allowing us which stats to dump points into as the protagonist levels up. However, there’s no guidance beyond there being one gain we can’t influence. What should you do?

Which stats should I pick and add points to when I level up in Metaphor: ReFantazio?

So the first thing to keep in mind when it comes to your stats in Metaphor: ReFantazio is that we won’t end up with a hero who is wildly unbalanced after leveling up and picking which ones to customize. Every time you level up, one will automatically get an additional point added to it. While it is possible to skew the balance by, say, only adding the bonus one to the same option each time, it isn’t like you’ll be completely at a disadvantage. However, I do recommend tossing an extra point into Endurance (En) and Agility (Ag) every few levels, for the sake of survivability and ensuring you hit opponents.

Basically, you want to consider what type of role you’d like your protagonist to fill. Your first Archetype (class/Persona/role) for the protagonist is the Seeker, who is something of an all-rounder. But you can get additional ones like Warrior, Mage, Healer, Knight, and so on, which prioritize attacking, magic, support, and being a tank. Those Archetypes will shift abilities with skills and equipment limitations. 

What I recommend is considering the type of damage you want your main character to deal in Metaphor: ReFantazio, then keeping that in mind when you build them up by picking stats when you level up in the game. So if you want your avatar to deal magical damage, then exclusively dump those extra points into Magic (Ma), Agility (Ag), and occasionally Luck (Lk). Since this type of unit would be a backline character, you don’t have to prioritize Endurance (En), and you could even forget about Strength (St) since the focus would be on Archetype spells. 

Meanwhile, if you think you want to rely on physical attacks and perhaps not use magic as frequently in Metaphor: ReFantazio, I think the best stats to prioritize are Strength (St), Endurance (En), and Agility (Ag). You need Strength, as you’re going to be focusing on constant melee attacks each round. (An occasional Magic stat might not be the worst, in case you have an elemental spell or two for exploiting weaknesses.) Endurance is handy, because that type of hero will probably be in the front row 90% of the time. Agility is practical, to ensure you land hits and perhaps evade attacks. 

As a reminder, here are some screenshots I took that explain what each stat in Metaphor: ReFantazio does.

In my experience, magic is incredibly broken in Metaphor: ReFantazio. Like any kind of role with some spells is going to do fantastic damage, so long as the enemy doesn’t repel or block it. So dump those points into that Ma stat!

Metaphor: ReFantazio is available for the PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC. There is also a demo available.