The Mage is another basic Archetypes in Metaphor: ReFantazio unlocked during the opening events in Grand Trad. It has a variety of Fire, Ice, and Electric spells making it the perfect choice for targeting enemy weak points with regular Skills and Synthesis Skills, dealing affinity damage. A downside of this is it lacks protection and is weak to attacks itself. It’s main resistance is against Ice, while it is weak to Piercing melee damage.

Investing in the Mage will allow you to unlock new Skills and its Adept and Elite forms: Wizard, Elemental Master, and Warlock. The Mage Archetype is a great choice during the early game once you start to get more party members due to its ability to deal a variety of damage types, something that few classes at this point have access to.

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How to unlock the Mage Archetype¶

The Mage is unlocked after achieving Rank 1 with Gallica’s bond social link. This moment is a part of the main story and happens automatically in the Nord Mines after you defeat Klinger. This takes place during your trip back to Grand Trad with Grius and Strohl.

Therefore, you can’t miss obtaining this Archetype. You will need to spend a small amount of MAG to be able to apply it to your protagonist and party members.

Mage Skills¶

The Mage has access to five different basic skills:

• Bot - Deals weak magic Fire damage to one enemy (4 MP) [Unlocked by default]
• Blizz - Deals weak magic Ice damage to one enemy [Unlocked at Rank 2]
• Kande - Deals weak magic Electric damage to one enemy [Unlocked at Rank 6]
• Magic Font - [Passive]] Raises max MP by 15% [Unlocked at Rank 11]
• Magic Circle - [Passive] Increases magic skill attack by 10%. Attack increases further if archetypes of the same Lineage are present. [Unlocked at Rank 20]

The skills with the Mage aren’t as extensive as the Adept and Elite forms of this Lineage. However, Bot, Blizz, and Kande will become crutches for you in fights as you try to exploit enemy weaknesses.

Mage Synthesis Skills¶

The Mage has seven different Synthesis skills available depending on your party’s other Archetypes:

• Gabot - Requires Bot Skill. Deals weak magic Fire damage to all enemies (6 MP) [Allies needed: Seeker, Mage, or Healer Lineages]
• Botra - Requires Bot Skill. Deals medium magic Fire damage to one enemy (10 MP) [Allies needed: Mage, Masked Dancer, Summoner Lineages]
• Gablizz - Requires Blizz Skill. Deals weak magic Ice damage to all enemies (6 MP) [Allies needed: Seeker, Mage, or Healer Lineages]
• Blizza - Requires Blizz Skill. Deals medium magic Ice damage to one enemy (10 MP) [Allies needed: Mage, Masked Dancer, or Summoner Lineages]
• Gakande - Requires Kande Skill. Deals weak magic Electric damage to all enemies (6 MP) [Allies needed: Seeker, Mage, or Healer Lineages]
• Kandera - Requires Kande Skill. Deals medium magic Electric damage to one enemy (10 MP) [Allies needed: Mage, Masked or Summoner Lineages]
• Meteophor - Deals severe magic Fire damage to one enemy (22 MP) [Allies needed: Mage, Masked Dancer, or Summoner Lineages]

This is one of many Archetypes in the game that cover a variety of elements, abilities, and fighting styles from traditional ranged fighters to melee brawlers. Some Archetypes even have unique functions like spending money when using skills. To progress this Lineage, you will need to grow closer with Gallica throughout the story and level up each previous Archetype in the Lineage to Rank 20. So if you do want to stick with this Lineage, you will need to invest a lot of time.