When crafting a team in Metaphor: ReFantazio the main thing you need to focus on is what Archetype each member of the team is going to use, and what skills they're going to inherit from other Archetypes. With 47 different ones to choose from across 14 lineages, the choices can be a bit overwhelming, especially as you can't tell from the get-go which lineages will lead to the most powerful skills.
To help you out, we've put together this list of every Archetype in the game, explaining how you unlock them, and showing what all their skills are so you can more easily plan ahead. If you want to know which ones we like the most though, you'll need to check out our best Archetype tier list to get a full rundown.
Seeker is the protagonist’s main archetype and it’s unlocked through the story once you start your bond with More. There are three archetypes in its lineage, and it uses a mix of magic Wind attacks and healing.
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Warrior is the archetype of Strohl, and can be used after Strohl is awakened. It’s an offensive archetype with a strong focus on Slash damage.
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Mage is the archetype associated with your fairy companion Gallica, and as the same suggests, it focuses on magic attacks. Archetypes in this lineage use Fire-, Ice-, Electric-type attacks to deal damage to multiple weaknesses.
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Knight is the archetype lineage of Hulkenberg, and focuses primarily on defensive powers. It’s very flexible and can force enemies to target it, which can take advantage of blocking and dodging.
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Brawler is Catherina’s archetype and it’s high risk/ high reward, where you need to balance your HP carefully to get the most out of it. While difficult to use, you can pull off devastating damage if you play it properly.
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Maria’s archetype is the Healer, and as the name suggests the focus is on healing magic with some Light magic attacks thrown in. It’s one of the more valuable and versatile archetypes, so you’ll need at least one party member to invest in it.
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Brigitta embodies the Merchant archetype, which can be one of the strongest late in the game. It uses money instead of MP for its attacks allowing you to hit repeatedly. Its attacks also deal Almighty damage, so nothing can block them. Almighty attacks can’t hit an enemy’s weakness, to counter this Merchant’s attacks have a high chance of landing a critical hit, giving you another Turn Icon.
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Neuras’ archetype, Gunner, focuses on dealing physical damage from the safety of the back row. Many of the attacks in this archetype can also land status effects, making it useful in dungeons, but not so much against late-game bosses.
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Faker is Alonzo’s archetype and is the ultimate support piece. It specialises in debuffing the enemy. However, if you want to deal damage, you’ll need to inherit those skills from another archetype.
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Heismay’s archetype is based around high agility, increasing the chance of stealing from the enemy to faster you are. In terms of damage it's focused on Dark magic.
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Bardon’s archetype is a great all-rounder with some of the best moves in the game. Commander Archetypes can boost allies, debuff enemies, create weaknesses, add statuses and deal damage.
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Junah’s archetype deals strong magic Fire damage and focuses on creating weaknesses so your other teammates can gain turns.
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Unlike other Lineages, Eupha’s archetype relies on crafting summons in Akademia. However, if you have the right materials, these are some of the strongest attacks in the game. These summons are not inheritable even across archetypes of the same lineage.
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As you might imagine from the big ax, Basilio’s archetype is all about dealing huge amounts of Strike damage. It works best with three supporters who all boost Basilio to deal one-hit knockouts.
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