The PS5 demo for Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin takes players through the Shrine of Chaos, a gothic looking structure filled to the brim with dangerous enemies. Each of these foes has a unique set of strengths and weaknesses, and understanding these can give players a much needed edge in combat. The game can be extremely challenging at times, especially for players that chose Hard mode at the beginning, but going into a fight with a little extra knowledge is always helpful. In total, there are eight different kinds of enemies encountered in the demo.

As with many other Final Fantasy titles, Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin utilizes six different kinds of magic. Players can use Fire, Blizzard, Thunder, Water, Quake, and Aero against their enemies. In terms of physical attacks, there are only three different types of damage: Slash, Strike, and Pierce. These damage types also interact differently with different enemies. providing a neutral effect or triggering a weakness or resistance. It should also be noted that the Black Mage Flare spell does non-elemental damage and will never trigger weaknesses or resistances.

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Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin Demo - What are Weaknesses and Resistances

Stranger of Fantasy: Final Fantasy Origin Magic

As the name implies, weaknesses and resistances are the types of damage that affect a given enemy differently than normal. These can be identified by attacking a monster with a specific type of damage, at which point the damage number will appear in tandem with the words "Weak" or "Resist." If the attack is neutral (ie. the monster isn't weak or resistant to the damage), there will be no accompanying words. There hasn't been enough testing done to figure out what the exact effect of weaknesses and resistances are, but they very clearly affect the amount of damage an attack does. This applies to both standard HP damage that depletes an enemy's health bar and Break Gauge damage that brings them closer to being stunned.

Since stunning enemies and defeating them with the Soul Crush ability is the primary way of gaining MP in the game, players will want to exploit enemies' weaknesses while avoiding their resistances. The best job combination for accomplishing this is easily Black Mage/Dragoon, as this will give the player access to every damage type. The Black Mage (or Mage class if players haven't specialized yet) has access to every type of magical damage, making it an extremely versatile class for dealing with any enemy. Similarly, the Dragoon (Lancer) has a different attack for every type of physical damage. Pressing the attack button without a directional input causes piercing damage, pushing the left stick to the left or right before attacking will perform a slashing attack, and pushing the left stick down will cause a striking attack.

Goblin

SoP FFO Demo enemy weaknesses

Goblins are the most basic enemy to be found in the Final Fantasy Origin demo, but that doesn't mean they are weak. Especially early on, these conniving enemies can pose a real threat to the player

Weaknesses

  • Fire

Resistances

  • None

Bomb

All enemy weaknesses SoP FFO demo

Bombs are a classic Final Fantasy enemy, and they live up to their reputation as fearsome foes in Final Fantasy Origin. These creatures command fire magic, and as their name implies, will explode if they grow too large.

Weaknesses

  • Water
  • Strike

Resistances

  • Fire - Bombs are immune to Fire damage. Receiving Fire damage causes them to Grow. If this happens three times, they will self destruct.
  • Blizzard

Wolf

Final Fantasy Origins Demo enemy weaknesses

The Wolf enemy in Final Fantasy Origin is very agile, and they can pose a major threat to the player when they are in large groups. This is especially true if they are led by an Alpha, another variant of the Wolf monster group.

Weaknesses

  • Fire
  • Quake

Resistances

  • None

Leech Bat

Final Fantasy Origin Stranger of Paradise bat weaknesses

Leech Bats are challenging enemies because they often fly out of reach of melee attacks. That said, if players use Soul Guard at the right time, they can learn the Supersonic Wave ability, a move that does a ton of damage to an enemy's Break Gauge.

Weaknesses

  • Blizzard
  • Aero
  • Pierce

Resistances

  • None

Skeleton

SoP FFO Demo Enemy Weaknesses

Skeletons are encountered towards the end of the Final Fantasy Origin demo, and bring some new mechanics to the table. They can block the player's attacks, and will counterattack after doing so. Thankfully, their weaknesses seem to affect them heavily.

Weaknesses

  • Aero
  • Strike

Resistances

  • None

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Griffon

SoP FFO Demo Enemy Weaknesses

As a sort of optional mini boss, players can choose to challenge the Griffon enemy right before taking on Garland. While it is very tough to take down, it does provide the player with some nice items, a lot of experience, and the potential for a powerful Instant Ability. This beast's weaknesses and resistance vary depending on whether or not the player is striking its armor.

Weaknesses (Armored)

  • Strike

Resistances (Armored)

  • Fire
  • Blizzard
  • Thunder
  • Water
  • Quake
  • Aero

Weaknesses (Unarmored)

  • Aero
  • Slash
  • Strike
  • Pierce

Resistances (Unarmored)

  • None

Cactuar

Weaknesses and resistances of cactuar stranger of paradise

Another iconic Final Fantasy monster, the Cactuar is an extremely rare enemy in Final Fantasy Origin. Due to how rare this monster is and how quickly it moves around, its weaknesses and resistances have not yet been fully confirmed. Defeating it will reward the player with a ton of items and equipment.

Garland

Everything you need to know to beat Garland Stranger of Paradise

The final boss of the Final Fantasy Origin demo is Garland, a former knight of Cornelia turned Chaos fanatic. Garland doesn't have any weaknesses or resistances like normal enemies do, but he is susceptible to both Fire and Water under specific circumstances.

Weaknesses

  • Fire - Hitting Garland with Fire damage while he has his Ice Sword ability (Phase 2 Buff) active will dispel the Ice Sword, deal heavy Break Gauge damage, and stagger Garland.
  • Water - Hitting Garland with Water damage while he has his Firebringer ability (Phase 1 Buff) active will dispel the Fire Sword, deal heavy Break Gauge damage, and stagger Garland.

Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin releases in 2022 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.

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