Octopath Traveler 2 draws from a lot more settings and influences than the first game did. Instead of being a traditional medieval fantasy world, locations in the game include Japanese clans, Wild West boomtowns, and tropical islands.

However, the location in Octopath Traveler 2 that's the furthest from traditional fantasy would have to be New Delta, a city straight out of a Charles Dickens novel. This is the hometown of the thief protagonist, Throne, and it's here that her tale of poverty and exploitation begins.

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A Heist Gone Wrong

Octopath Traveler 2 Throne Sewers

The story begins with Throne and her companions Pirro, Scaracci, and Donnie trying to escape the Diamante Estate through the sewers. Two Pursuers catch up, and so players get a taste of combat right away. Luckily, the Pursuers only have one shield each and are weak to every weapon Throne and her gang can use.

After the fight, players get control of Throne and must move left through the sewers. If players cross a bridge they can reach a chest with a Healing Grape inside. However, the way forward is back towards the ladder.

At this point, players get a tutorial for Throne's nighttime Path Action, Ambush. This will knock down enemies without needing to fight them, but it only works if Throne's current level is high enough. To Ambush the lookout, Throne will need to climb up the ladder, cross the ledge above, and climb down a ladder on the opposite side.

There's a ladder to the surface behind the lookout, but one last set of Pursuers led by the Pursuer Leader will try to stop Throne. The Leader has three shields and is only vulnerable to axes and darkness.

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How to Fight with Throne

Octopath Traveler 2 Throne Pursuers

Before continuing, it may help to explain how Throne works in combat.

  • Throne's Job is Thief, and her weapons of choice are swords and daggers.
  • Throne starts with two Thief skills: Steal and Darkest Night. Steal has a chance of taking an item from an enemy, and Darkest Night is a darkness-element spell that hits one target.
  • Throne's learnable skills include enemy debuffs, a speed buff, a dagger skill that steals HP, and a sword skill that does more damage depending on how early her turn comes in a round.
  • Throne's Talent is the Blessing of Darkness, which gives her and her allies a buff at the start of combat when it's nighttime. This buff is 3 rounds of extra speed, physical attack, and elemental attack.
  • As a starting character, Throne is a decent choice. Her Steal action can get her a lot of items without much effort, and with three damage types she can break the shields of a lot of enemies.
  • Throne's Latent Power is Leave No Trace. When activated, Throne will act twice in a single round. This is a useful way to get more done, but players should be aware that she doesn't get an extra Boost point during her second turn.

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Back on the Surface

Octopath Traveler 2 Throne New Delsta

Once Throne reaches the streets of New Delsta, she and her crew split up and head to the Backstreets area. Players can't leave the Backstreets at this point, but they don't have to head straight for Throne's destination, the Game Parlor.

Instead, Throne should Ambush the guard standing in a door to get past him and pick up a Dagger from the chest he was guarding. On the west end of the Backstreets is a tavern, and behind the tavern is another chest with an Inspiriting Plum inside.

A third chest is behind the Game Parlor. Go left of the exit and descend the stairs to the water. A canoe will automatically appear beneath Throne's feet, and she can go across the water to the stairs behind the Parlor. Go right to reach the chest and pick up a Critical Nut.

Inside the Parlor, players will meet the gang leaders "Father" and "Mother." They'll also see an NPC called the Safe Keeper, but Throne will need to be level 48 to Ambush him.

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The Morning After

Octopath Traveler 2 Throne Morning

The next morning, Throne and Pirro will have a rooftop chat, after which Throne has to go back to the Game Parlor and talk to Father. There's nothing new to do in the Backstreets, so players should head straight over. At this point, Father will tell Throne some bad news and ask her to go back to the Diamante Estate. She'll need the right clothes to do so, and so players now get access to her daytime action, Steal.

Steal gives players a chance to take the possessions of any NPC, but there's often a chance of failure. If Throne fails 5 times, she can't try again until she visits the local tavern keeper and pays to restore the party reputation. However, during Chapter 1 there are no consequences for failing, so players should steal everything they can from every NPC in the Backstreets and in New Delsta.

Once Throne has the clothing she needs (get them from the woman standing by the save point), she can enter New Delsta proper. The city has an armorer and provisioner, so players should take a moment to buy what they can't steal and equip themselves for the Diamante Estate dungeon. They can also get a Healing Grape from a chest up a ladder near the south Backstreets entrance and an Energizing Pomegranate from a chest to the right of the tavern.

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The Diamante Estate

Octopath Traveler 2 Throne Diamante

Once players are ready, head to the Diamante Estate in the northeast corner of the city and a cutscene will play. After it ends, players must Ambush the guard outside Throne's room, but they should expect random encounters as they explore the rest of the estate. Diamante Guard 1 is weak to daggers and darkness, Diamante Guard 2 is weak to swords, daggers, and darkness, the Guard Dog is weak to swords and darkness, and the Light Sentinel is only vulnerable to darkness.

First, players should head to the left of the staircase to find a chest with 1200 leaves inside. Then there's a room behind the top of the stairs with a Shadow Soulstone. When players start seeing dead guards around, they should go down a short staircase to open a chest with a Long Sword. Finally, when players happen across a save point and a peddler, they should keep going right to get an Inspiriting Plum.

The peddler and save point mean a boss fight is coming up, so players should make sure Throne is healed up and ready to go before entering the next room.

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How to Beat Pirro

Octopath Traveler 2 Throne Pirro
  • Pirro has 5 shields and is weak to swords and darkness, but not to daggers.
  • Pirro's first action is Hesitation and wastes his turn, but as the fight continues he'll get permanent buffs to his physical attack power and speed.
  • When the text "Pirro steels his resolve" appears, it means he's going to attack twice in the next round. Players should either Defend or break his defense to stop him.
  • When Pirro falls, he drops an Inspiriting Plum Basket.

The chapter ends soon after the boss fight does, but Throne's journey to free herself is only beginning.

Octopath Traveler 2 is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, and Switch.

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