Black Frost Strikes Back is a Subquest in Shin Megami Tensei V. Most Subquests will reward you with a large amount of experience, some Macca, and then you’ll receive an item of sorts. Most of the time, it’ll be a Talisman which allows you to have access to the different Magatsuhi skills in the game.

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Black Frost wants you to defeat Dionysus

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Defeat Dionysus for Black Frost.

Where to start Black Frost Strikes Back¶

Once you make your way to the Chiyoda region and find the Ginza Leyline, you will find a building to the northwest of it that has a giant hole in its side. Enter that building and there will be a big Black Frost inside, who will give you the quest. He wants you to defeat Dionysus, so he can take control of the alcohol supply in the region.

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Black Frost’s location to begin the quest

Where to find Dionysus for Black Frost Strikes Back¶

As you continue exploring the Chiyoda region, you will come across the Sukiyabashi Leyline, which will be the second one. Dionysus will be right next to the Leyline.

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Dionysus’ location for Black Frost Strikes Back

Recommended Party¶

Icon	Name
	Eligor
	Quetzalcoatl
	Succubus

The battle with Dionysus is the easier of the two quests, as he doesn’t exactly have a lot of skills in his arsenal. The biggest problem in the battle will be Acrobat Kick, as it will always hit for a critical strike and give Dionysus more actions per turn. There is absolutely nothing you can do about this, as there isn’t a way to block Physical damage, outside of Phys Dampeners, at the level you can get this quest. Dionysus also has access to Agilao, so you don’t want anyone weak to Fire in your party, as you don’t need him getting even more turns.

The third, and final, skill in Dionysus’ skillset is Sexy Dance, which has a chance to Charm your entire party. If you use Succubus, she is immune to Charm, making the battle a little easier on your end (she also resists Fire). The other two demons suggested above will also nullify Fire, so Agilao will not really be a threat at all. Dionysus blocks Fire and resists Electric, while being weak to Ice. All other elements are neutral, so you do have a lot of leeway in dealing damage to the boss here. You just need to hope that Dionysus doesn’t use Acrobat Kick too often, and should anyone be charmed, you heal it immediately.

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(1 of 2) Acrobat Kick will always deliver a critical hit

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Acrobat Kick will always deliver a critical hit (left), Succubus blocking charm helps a lot in this battle (right)

Once you’ve defeated Dionysus in battle, report back to Black Frost to get your reward, as well as have him join your team.

Dionysus or Black Frost?¶

So, you have the choice to either side with Dionysus or Black Frost with this pair of quests. The item you receive as a reward is nice and all, but the real prize is the questgiver joining your party, without needing to fuse them at all. Dionysus starts with the same three skills that you saw during the battle, plus he learns Donum Magici, Heavy Blow and Hysterical Slap. Those aren’t bad skills in of themselves, with Donum Magici being probably the biggest one out of them all, but they’re not going to make your choice be a difficult one, especially once you see the other side.

Black Frost begins with Ice Dracostrike, Mabufula, and Black Dracostrike, giving him a bigger edge over Dionysus. He also learns Matarunda, Endure (helps with his Light weakness), Blinding Strike and Dark Block. Black Frost will also have more resistances than Dionysus, as well as starting with higher stats, where it counts. His higher Strength definitely suits the Dracostrikes and it shouldn’t be too challenging to get Resist Light, at least, on him to cover that weakness. To make things even nicer, Dionysus can be fused with a normal set of demons, while Black Frost is a special fusion, requiring three specific ones. The clear winner is Black Frost.