A Final Fantasy is not a Final Fantasy without the good old summons, and Dissidia Final Fantasy NT is no exception. The new chapter of the Final Fantasy fighting game uses summons as a game mechanic that can change the course of a game. In all, 7 summons are available, officially called Guardian Forces as a reference to Final Fantasy VIII; each of these gives different benefits and performs different actions. In this guide we will explain how these Summons work, how to use them and what effects they will have in battle.
How to summon a Guardian Force in Dissidia Final Fantasy NT
In order to summon in Dissidia NT two conditions must first be met: first a bar must be filled, visible above the HP in the upper left, with the face of the summon; afterwards an additional bar will have to be loaded, which will appear in the center of the screen when the first one has been filled.
The first bar will be filled whenever you attack the enemy with any type of attack, be it bravery or HP. However, there is a faster way to fill it: from time to time, crystals will appear on the map, which can be quickly targeted by holding R2, and destroying these crystals will give the team a large amount of energy for summoning. However, destroying only the crystals will not completely fill the Guardian Force gauge: it will also be necessary to inflict damage on enemies.
The bar is shared for the whole team, so your every action will contribute to filling it. Speaking of tactics, in 3v3 it might be helpful for two people to deal with enemies and one to target crystals. Let's explore this tactic in the next paragraph.
Summon the GF once available
Once the first bar is full, you will need to press the PS4 controller's touchpad to begin the summoning process. But to evoke it will not be enough to press only the button, you will have to stay still with the touchpad pressed to allow the second bar to fill up. This will not only leave at least one player in a vulnerable condition, but the player in question will be highly visible to the entire enemy team during summoning as a huge magic circle will appear under his feet.
This process can be accelerated if several people on the same team try to summon at the same time: if only one character enters the summoning process it will take 8 seconds to complete it, but with the help of other companions the action will be faster.
Always remember that summoning implies staying completely still, and therefore being vulnerable to enemy attacks.
When the second bar has filled, an animation will introduce the Guardian Force chosen by the team before the game.
How to choose the best Summon and what they do in battle
Each of the 7 summons now available has a different effect. Before a battle you will be asked to choose the Guardian Force to support the team and the GF with the most votes (in case you are online) will be assigned to the team.
Summons can be chosen to support a team's style of play: it is recommended not to choose at random but if possible to discuss them with the other team members.
Summons have 3 different effects
- Pre-Summon effects - These are passive benefits that will accompany the team throughout the entire encounter
- Post-Summon Effects - These are passive benefits that will accompany the team from the Guardian Force summon onwards
- Summon Attacks - These are attacks that Summons will perform once activated, and once hit they will disappear
So let's talk about what the specific Summon do, counting that the attacks are all extremely similar so it is not recommended to choose the summon based on them.
Ifrit
Ifrit is essentially the most balanced summoning suitable for all types of teams: it helps to break the guard of enemies more easily, which is convenient for both the avant-garde with heavy attacks and with shooters with volleys of ranged attacks. . Funny post summoning the general attack and the generation of Boldness.
- Pre-Summon: Reduces the enemy's Stamina faster by allowing them to break their guard earlier (50% less guard duration)
- Post-Summon: Further reduces stamina guard but also grants an increase in strength and damage dealt by Boldness attacks (20% additional damage from Boldness damage)
Shiva
Shiva is suitable for teams with strong defense that need non-aggressive support for their attacks. The skills of the Ice Queen aim to increase the audacity of the team and to keep it high even after being attacked.
- Pre-Summon: Increases the regeneration of Boldness by 500%
- Post-Summon: Increases Base Boldness by 300
Ramuh
Dear old God of Lightning Ramuh is a summon who aims to help characters who rely on Buff's Ex-Skills (the ones that are used with triangle), so she is useful in teams with characters able to give Buffs to consistent area .
- Pre-Summon: Increases the duration of buffs by 10%
- Post-Summon: Decreases the cooldown of non-exclusive Ex Skills every 4 hits
Odin
The Knight and his loyal Sleipnir will provide speed-oriented support for players. If you have characters such as Cloud Strife or Garland, a speed boost can only be convenient, while with characters like Zidane and Tidus this support becomes very valid because they will become even more difficult to reach.
- Pre-Summon: Increases the speed of Sprint bar regeneration
- Post-Summon: Further increases Sprint regeneration by also increasing its speed
Leviathan
The Queen of the Seas stands in this Dissidia NT as a completely opposite support to that of Ramuh. While Ramuh was facilitating buffs, Leviathan supports Debuff's EX Skills
- Pre-Summon: Increases the reload speed of debuff skills
- Post-Summon: Further increases the reload speed of debuff skills, also increasing the duration of the effect.
Alexander
The sacred guardian, who remained in the hearts of every Final Fantasy IX fan for his fight with Bahamut, returns to being a protector of the players (after having been the destroyer in type 0) in Dissidia NT. Alexander gives buffs to max HP and defense
- Pre-Summon: Increases the maximum HP value for the entire battle
- Post-Summon: further increases the HP value by also increasing the defensive stats
Bahamut
The most famous evocation of the saga could not be missing: the King of Dragons aims to facilitate the use and recharge of the unique Ex-Skills. It is therefore exceptional with characters like Noctis or Zidane, where the prince of Insomnia can use the teleportation while the thief of Lindblum can use the Trance.
- Pre-Summon: Increases the reload speed of unique Ex Skills
- Post-Summon: Further increases the reload speed of unique Ex Skills, also increases the duration of the effect they generate.
