How to Choose the Best Secondary Jobs in Octopath Traveler
Make the right choice in Octopath Traveler by choosing the best secondary job for any given hero.
Octopath Traveler is a game that may surprise a lot of people, and not just for its gorgeous graphics and crisp presentation. Square Enix's latest RPG is an experience that at first appears quite simple, but actually provides loads of depth when it comes to party customization and combat strategies. Players will eventually be tasked with choosing secondary jobs for each character, a process that provides access to new skills and distinct attribute bonuses. Choosing the right secondary job isn't exactly straightforward, however, so we've got some tips on how players can select the best sub jobs for their each of their characters.
Choosing The Best Secondary Jobs in Octopath Traveler
Understanding secondary jobs is a key component to Octopath Traveler. Essentially, players can flex the strengths or supplement the weaknesses of any given character in their party by assigned them an appropriate secondary job. Many players will likely choose their initial secondary jobs to earn access to certain skills, but as heroes become more specialized, they stand to a earn a lot from the attribute bonuses for each job.
| Warrior | Apothecary | Merchant | Cleric | Scholar | Dancer | Hunter | Thief | |
| Max HP | +18% | +20% | 8% | |||||
| Physical Attack | +5% | +1.5% | +3% | +8% | +2% | |||
| Physical Defense | +5% | +1.5% | +3% | |||||
| Accuracy | +6% | +5% | ||||||
| Critical | +1.5% | +6% | +5% | |||||
| Max SP | +8% | +18% | +13% | |||||
| Elemental Attack | +1.5% | +3% | +5% | +10% | +8% | |||
| Elemental Defense | +3% | +5% | +5% | |||||
| Speed | +10% | +5% | +8% | |||||
| Evasion | +10% | +5% | +8% |
For instance, the Warrior Olberic has base stats that place an emphasis on HP, physical attack, and physical defense. Players who wanted to make him something of a battlemage could equip the Scholar secondary job, giving him a big increase to SP, elemental attack, and elemental defense. However, those who want Olberic to stick to physical might can equip the Hunter, the Thief, or even the Apothecary subclass, boosting his innate physical strength even further while also taking advantage of extra bonuses to accuracy, critical, and speed.
On the other side, characters like Ophilia or Primrose don't start the game with very much HP or physical defense, so equipping the Apothecary, Warrior, or Merchant jobs are easy ways to bolster their health and keep them from getting knocked out early. The Merchant in particular is a strong secondary job to choose for any character at almost any level, as it's the only main job class to provide boosts to both HP and SP, both physical and elemental attack, and both physical and elemental defense. It also allows the equipped character to Sidestep any physical attack, Rest to restore their own HP and SP, and even Donate BP to other fighters.
It's a given that allowing a hero to drop Job Points into a given class is the only way to unlock active, passive, and Divine skills, which do ultimately affect how much utility the character will provide in battle. However, toward the end of the game players will have to place a special emphasis on raw stats. Fortunately, not only can heroes change secondary jobs to boost given attributes, they can also equip weapons and armor that provide similar or competing benefits. Players who want to mix and match abilities could give a Warrior a sword that boosts their critical rate or a give Cleric a staff that boosts physical damage, but the smartest players will choose weapons and armor that boost not only the hero's innate attributes, but also those boosted by their secondary job. This is the best way to truly take advantage of late-level skills like Aeber's Reckoning, Saving Grace, or Surpassing Power.
There's still much to learn about Square Enix's latest RPG adventure, so be sure to stop by Shacknews' Octopath Traveler strategy and guide hub to learn more crucial details about job classes, active and passive skills, Divine Skills, shrine locations, boss weaknesses, and more.
