Dragon’s Dogma 2 prides itself not only on how dense and multilayered it is in nearly everything that it does, but also on how little it guides you through its many systems, instead leaving it to the player to figure things out for themselves. Of course, a byproduct of that is that many players will end up missing out on or completely ignoring (if inadvertently) parts of the experience that they simply aren’t aware of the importance of. As such, to remedy that, here, we’ll be calling your attention to a few things that you should be doing in Dragon’s Dogma 2 to make life a little bit easier for yourself in its harsh, unforgiving fantasy world.
YOUR ARISEN’S PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES
Let’s start with the basics, i.e. literally the very first thing you’ll be doing in the game. While creating your character in Dragon’s Dogma 2, you’re going to have to pay attention to things that, in most other games, tend to be purely cosmetic. When setting your character’s height and weight, keep in mind that those physical attributes have an actual impact on gameplay. How tall, short, heavy, or light your character is will determine things such as their stamina and their carry capacity, so ensure you pay attention to those parameters right off the bat.
EXPERIMENTING WITH DIFFERENT VOCATIONS
There’s a number of different Vocations (or classes) to play as in Dragon’s Dogma 2, with four of them being available for you to choose between right off the bat, and though you may be tempted to pick one and stick with it, our recommendation is to experiment as much as possible. And we’re not just saying that because mastering each Vocation and learning its strengths and weaknesses is a hell of a lot of fun- no, making progress with different Vocations also yields very tangible gameplay benefits. Such as…
UNLOCKING AUGMENTS
Each Vocation comes with a different set of unlockable Augments, which are passive buffs that provide various boosts, ranging from increasing your defense or stamina regeneration to even how quickly you move while you’re carrying something. However, once unlocked, Augments aren’t exclusive to Vocations, and can be equipped no matter which Vocation you’re playing as. As such, it becomes doubly important to keep making progress with different Vocations so you’re able to unlock and equip the Augments they yield as rewards.
ENHANCING EQUIPMENT
This would go without saying in most other RPGs, but Dragon’s Dogma 2 is not most other RPGs. Given how stringent the game’s economy is (especially in the early hours), spending money on enhancing weapons and equipment can feel like an unaffordable luxury, though ignoring it outright isn’t something that we’d recommend. For starters, enhancing equipment tends to be much cheaper than buying new gear, while enhancements also bring about other advantages that simply purchasing new equipment doesn’t, like making the gear piece or weapon in question a little bit lighter, thus easing up your inventory just that much more.
SWAPPING OUT PAWNS
This is something that newcomers can easily miss in their early hours with Dragon’s Dogma 2, but other than your main Pawn (i.e. the one that you create yourself), all the other recruits in your party should be viewed as temporary guest members. Unlike your main Pawn, the ones that you hire through Rifts or in the open world itself do not level up, which means it’s in your best interests to keep swapping them out with more powerful options, lest your party grow too underleveled.
PAWN INCLINATIONS AND SPECIALIZATIONS
When recruiting new Pawns, it is, of course, important to consider which Vocations they belong to so you can have a balanced party composition, but just as important is paying attention to the inclinations and specializations of each of your Pawns. The former are essentially personality traits that dictate how they will behave in and out of combat, while the latter will give them specific abilities. So, for instance, it’s a good idea to have a Pawn with the Kindhearted inclination, especially if you’re looking for a healer, since their primary goal will be to support you. Some inclinations and specializations can also be helpful in very specific cases- like a Pawn with the Woodland Wordsmith specialization being able to translate elvish for you.
PAWN QUESTS
When accessing a Riftstone, you can set specific quests for your Pawn to work towards when they’re summoned by another player, and though not a completely crucial aspect of the experience, it can still come in quite handy. Pawns who complete such quests not only gain new knowledge about the world that you yourself may not have acquired yet, but also bring back useful items and Pawn badges that can reveal crucial details about enemies, specific regions of the world, and more.
SLEEPING AT INNS
Sleeping at inns – or, really, sleeping in general – is a big deal in Dragon’s Dogma 2. Owing to the Loss gauge mechanic, over time, as you take more damage, your max health will start depleting, and the only way to replenish it will be going to sleep, which you can only do at an inn or a campsite out in the wilds. Sleeping is also a convenient way to pass the time, something that you might find yourself in dire need of if you’re caught out in the world when night falls and the monsters grow even deadlier. Beyond that, inns are also the only place where you can organize your storage. Speaking of which…
ORGANIZING YOUR STORAGE
Inventory management is something that underpins pretty much the entirety of the Dragon’s Dogma 2 experience. The most crucial things in the game – whether that be weapons, gear, your lantern, camping kits, or Portcrystals – tend to weigh quite a bit, which means you’re guaranteed to become overemcumbered even in the regular course of foraging items and resources when exploring the world. Make sure to keep visiting inns, then, and each time you do, dump everything you don’t need into your storage- especially all of your upgrade materials, which you should have on you only when you’re visiting a vendor to enhance your equipment. As a rule, always travel light in Dragon’s Dogma.
BUYING A HOUSE
An RPG that asks you to immerse yourself in its rich setting is of course going to also give you the option to purchase a place (or several) you can call home, and sure enough, Dragon’s Dogma 2 doesn’t defy that particular convention. In fact, pretty early on in the game, you’ll be given the chance to buy your first house in the city of Vernworth, and though the asking price of 20,000 gold might seem a little hefty (especially in those early hours, when gold is so hard to come by), we recommend splurging that cash. As long as you’re in or around the city, you’re not going to have to spend gold at an inn ever again, which is going to save you plenty in the long run. You can also organize your storage at the house, which is another bonus.
COMBINING MATERIALS
Back to inventory management, combining materials is something else that you should be doing plenty and often, because as you’d expect, doing so reduces their collective weight. You and your Pawns will be foraging and picking up an abundance of resources as you’re exploring the world, and all of it can start adding up pretty quickly. As such, make sure that you’re frequently going into your inventory to combine items- or, alternatively, you can have a Pawn with the Logistician specialization, which allows them to combine resources in their inventory into consumables.
COOKING
Given how harsh and unforgiving Dragon’s Dogma 2’s world can be, every tiny little boost or buff can be a big help, and cooking meals lets you do just that. Of course, you can’t just start preparing meals anywhere and anywhere you want, but when you’re resting at campsites, thanks to the different buffs they provide for you and your entire party, it’s a good idea to prepare and consume a meal (as long as you have the required resources, of course).
GOLDEN TROVE BEATLES
There isn’t a lot you can do about easing up the stringent inventory restrictions in Dragon’s Dogma 2, but keeping an eye out for Golden Trove Beetles is definitely going to help at least a little bit. These critters are found out in the open world, so make sure you explore your surroundings properly so you don’t miss any. Each Golden Trove Beetle that you find and consume will marginally increase your carry capacity, and collectively, that can add up to quite the boost.
SEEKER TOKENS
Similar to Golden Trove Beetles, Seeker Tokens are items that are hidden and scattered throughout the open world, and they’re another thing that you should be keeping an eye out for. Turning in the Seeker Tokens you’ve found at Vocation Guilds allows you to unlock new items and gear as rewards, and though these rewards start out pretty tame, the further you progress, the more useful and unmissable they become.
DRAGONSPLAGUE
A disease contracted by Pawns either by fighting a dragon or by coming into contact with other infected Pawns, Dragonsplague can deal devastating blows to your entire save if you’re not paying attention. There are definitely signs to spot when one of your Pawns is infected – from glowing, red eyes to recurring headaches to flagrant disobedience of your commands – but if you miss or ignore those signs, you’ll be in for catastrophic consequences, with your infected Pawn ultimately destroying entire towns and killing even story-related NPCs (should they be in the vicinity). Always keep an eye out for Dragonsplague, and if you spot signs of infection, lead that Pawn to their death as quickly as possible. It’s the only way to get rid of the disease.
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