The Xenoblade Chronicles series is one of the quickest success stories in gaming. Between the original release in 2010, and Xenoblade Chronicles 3 in 2022, the series has released 4 games, all of which have been praised for their unique gameplay, stunning environments, and complex stories.
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 seeks to pay homage to the series history so far, featuring many elements that call back to Xenoblade Chronicles 1 and 2. One such feature returning from 2 is the smash combo, which built on a similar mechanic in 1. This combo requires good synergy between party members, but if used properly can be integral to besting many of the game’s powerful enemies.
Break
Making its first appearance in the original Xenoblade Chronicles, break remains the reliable way to start combos. As the name implies, it functions as a way to break open an enemy’s defenses, leaving them vulnerable to further attacks and combos. A small detail is that it also cancels whatever an enemy is doing at the time, so can be used to put off incoming damage even if a combo isn’t possible at the moment.
As the combo starter, break is available quite early on, with Noah having access to it via his ‘sword strike’ art. This art in particular requires the enemy be attacked from the side in order to achieve the break effect, so it’s vital that the character going for a break is not the one being focused by the enemy, as enemies will always directly face whoever is drawing their attention. Once the break has been achieved, a small icon will appear signifying it, and showing a countdown to when the effect will wear off.
Topple
Before the break effect can wear off, it’s time to keep the combo going with the next step; topple. As the name implies, topple takes advantage of the enemy’s broken defenses to push them off their feet, sending them down to the ground for a fixed amount of time. In this time, they will be unable to move, and thus unable to attack, giving the party some free time to deal damage and recover HP without worrying about taking extra hits.
Topple is also available quite early on, with Lanz having access to it via his ‘bull rush’ art. In general, topple tends to be available via defender classes, just as it was in XC1, where Rein was the primary toppler. Due to this, topple will never be positionally dependent, so any character seeking to use it can draw as much enemy aggro as they want. Once topple is activated, the break icon will be replaced by the topple icon, and the countdown reset in preparation for the next part of the combo.
Launch
This is where the smash combo really starts to shine. On a toppled enemy, players can activate launch by using any art with a launch property. This will cause the enemy to be literally launched into the air, spinning at high speeds, which is fun to watch. While in a launch state, enemies will be unable to move, just like when they are toppled. They will also take increased damage from attacks, meaning this is the best time to go for high damaging arts. This can make XC3's fights much easier to handle.
Unlike break and topple, launch takes some effort to get a hold of. Due to its power, it isn’t available at the start of the game. The easiest way to get access to launch is through the ogre class, first found on Sena. Since she isn’t part of the starting cast and joins the party a little later on, launch is inaccessible for some time. Even after she joins, the art ‘pressure drop’ which is needed for launch must be unlocked. Although once class switching is available, any character can become an ogre, unlock pressure drop, and keep it as a master art even when changed to a different class. Once launch is activated, the topple icon will be replaced by the launch icon, and the countdown reset.
Smash
Finally, smash is the combo ender, and the goal to work towards. While launch provides an opportunity to deal out a lot of damage, smash offers one last burst of high damage that ends the launch itself. Due to this, it is better used just as the launch timer is about to run out. This way, none of the potential damage from launch will be wasted.
Just like launch though, smash is inaccessible at the beginning of the game, but can be unlocked through specific classes. Alternatively, when certain characters fuse into their Ouroboros form, their Ouroboros arts may include smash as an effect. Due to the value of this form however, it can’t be used in every situation. Once smash is activated, the launch icon will be removed and the enemy will return to normal, after which they can be broken again if they haven’t developed a resistance to it.
Strategy
With a party as big as XC3’s, there is ample space to assign arts that will allow the party to carry out the full break combo. The AI will thankfully detect a potential combo and continue it, but in fights with many enemies, this might be more difficult.
In these situations, it is smart to use tactics to order the party to either focus on one enemy, or to go for the combo outright. In order to make sure the combo can be completed, it’s also vital to build the party in a way that every step of the combo will have at least one character who can carry it out.
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is out now on Nintendo Switch.