Additions

Additions are the combo system that is used in battles of The Legend of Dragoon. They are a series of timed button presses, increasing the number of hits for one attack and subsequently the damage dealt with the character's attack.

Gameplay

Master Tasman explaining the timing of pressing X to Dart. The X Button must be pressed when the central blue square and the outer square that "zooms in" overlap. Correct timing makes the combined square flash white.

How Additions work

In the game, Additions are explained by Master Tasman in Seles who can give the player the full tutorial of how additions work.

When the player chooses the "Attack" option from the command menu and picks a target, the character will charge in and perform an initial strike at the enemy. While doing so, two blue squares will pop up, one fixed in the center and the other on the outside edges of the screen, zooming into the central square. When the outside square aligns with the center square, the player should press the X button. If timed correctly the combined square will flash white and the addition will continue and the process will be repeated. If the player misses the timing, the center of the square will either turn Blue if the player is too slow or Gray if the player is too fast.

The number of correctly timed inputs required in an addition is the number of strikes minus one. For example, Dart's initial addition, Double Slash, is a two-hit combo and requires one correct input.

During the longer additions, there is chance for the enemy to counterattack. When it does, the squares will turn red and there will be a sound. Instead of hitting the X button, the player must hit the circle button. If timed correctly, this will break the counter and continue the addition. However, if the player misses, the addition will end and the character will be thrown back receiving some damage.

Addition Levels

The addition selection screen with some of Albert's additions.

See also: Level

Each character initially starts with one addition, which is always a two-hit combo. However, as the characters gain levels, they unlock new additions at set character levels. except each person's final addition which is unlocked by mastering all other additions.

Once an addition has been completed, its use counter will increase, as can be seen on the menu screen. When it has been used and completed 20 times, it will level up and improve. For some additions, both damage multiplier and SP gain may go up, for some only one of them. Once the player has successfully perfomed the addition 80 times, it reaches it maximum level and highest efficiency.

Items supporting Additions

There are two accessories that make additions complete (meaning the addition is done without needing to press a button), the Wargod Calling and the Ultimate Wargod.

• The Wargod Calling completes each addition but does half damage, gives half SP and does not add to the use counter to increase the Addition Level. It can be bought for 1,000 G at Lohan or Fletz.

• The Ultimate Wargod is much more expensive, but does full damage, gives full SP and does add to the use counter meaning it is completely successful. However, the 10,000 G required to buy it in Lohan or the extreme amount of either luck or patience for abusing save states at the Phantom Ship as well as it blocking the Accessory Spot for basically no inherent advantage apart from easier or more relaxed battles make it a somewhat unrewarding item.

Player Guidance

Note: This section is subjective and may not apply to each player individually.

Volcano, one of Dart's earlier additions, requires three correct inputs.

Generally, mastering the execution of additions is a crucial key for a player of The Legend of Dragoon to successfully win battles, particularly the more difficult boss battles, and arguably also to make the battle system enjoyable in itself. Although additions technically are optional (also exemplified by some "Challenge" playthroughs such as "No Addition" or "Initial Addition"), they are often considered one of the defining features that set The Legend of Dragoon apart from other RPGs, leading to a mixed reception by the public (see section "Reception" for more).

It is recommended that when learning additions, a player focuses primarily on the visual clue (the square zooming in) to figure out the correct timing, instead of following other clues such as sound clues or learning the timing of an addition by heart. This focus on the visual timing has some notable advantages:

• Once the player figures out at which time the two squares overlap and the button press is required, the actual number of hits of an addition and their rhythm become unimportant, as the player only needs to focus on the squares zooming in.
• In contrast, learning the timing of an addition by heart will lead to a disruption once the enemy starts a counterattack, and makes it very difficult to learn new additions.
• There are also some additions that have too long intervals between two hits to memorize the timing by heart, such as Kongol's Inferno and Meru's Perky Step.
• Sound clues can make it difficult to get the first hit of the addition right, as the player needs to learn the "rhythm" between the footsteps of the character charging in and the timing of the first strike.
• Sound clues can also sometimes be obstructed by background music and a character's battle cries.

Double Punch, the initial addition of Haschel, only requires one correct input and has a 150% damage multiplier and gains 50 SP at the highest level.

If a player struggles continuously with additions, the Wargod Calling might become an actually viable item despite its drastic drawbacks (see "Items supporting Additions"). It can also be a good idea to stick to the easier additions of a character, as an initial or early addition with 2-3 hits on the highest level will often deal significantly more damage than a late multi-hit addition that is routinely botched. As the initial addition of each character will always have at least a 150% damage multiplier and gives at least 34 SP on the highest level, it is still well possible to beat the game, although the difficulty will increase somewhat.

Apart from this, there are certain additions exempt from counterattacks:

• Enemies cannot counterattack the first or the last move in an addition, making additions with 1-2 inputs easier for beginners.
• Kongol's Additions cannot be counterattacked.
• A number of Additions other than Kongol's cannot be counterattacked as well: Madness Hero (Dart), Blazing Dynamo (Dart), 5-Ring Shattering (Haschel), Omni-Sweep (Haschel), and Hammer Spin (Meru).

List of Additions

Below is a list of the character levels required for obtaining each addition for each character.

Dart

Name	Add (#)	SP (Max)	Damage % (Max)	Level
Double Slash	1	35	202	Initial
Volcano	2	36	250	2
Burning Rush	3	102	150	8
Crush Dance	4	100	250	15
Madness Hero	5	204	100	22
Moon Strike	6	20	350	29
Blazing Dynamo	7	150	450	Master Addition

Rose

Name	Add (#)	SP (Max)	Damage % (Max)	Level
Whip Smack	1	35	200	Initial
More and More	2	102	150	14
Hard Blade	5	35	300	19
Demon's Dance	7	100	500	Master Addition

Lavitz & Albert

Name	Add (#)	SP (Max)	Damage % (Max)	Level
Harpoon	1	50	150	Initial
Spinning Cane	2	35	200	5
Rod Typhoon	4	100	202	7
Gust of Wind Dance	6	35	350	11
Blossom Storm	7	202	405	Master Addition

Haschel

Name	Add (#)	SP (Max)	Damage % (Max)	Level
Double Punch	1	50	150	Initial
Flurry of Styx	2	20	202	14
Summon 4 Gods	3	100	100	18
5-Ring Shattering	4	50	300	22
Hex Hammer	6	15	400	26
Omni-Sweep	7	150	501	Master Addition

Meru

Name	Add (#)	SP (Max)	Damage % (Max)	Level
Double Smack	1	34	150	Initial
Hammer Spin	3	70	202	21
Cool Boogie	4	200	100	26
Cat's Cradle	6	20	351	30
Perky Step	7	100	600	Master Addition

Kongol

Name	Add (#)	SP (Max)	Damage % (Max)	Level
Pursuit	1	50	150	Initial
Inferno	3	20	200	23
Bone Crush	5	100	300	Master Addition

Note: Shana and Miranda are not added as they have no additions. However the amount of SP they obtain from each attack does increase with each Dragoon Level.

Dragoon Additions

Rose about to preform a Dragoon Addition.

Main article: Dragoon Addition

Whenever a character transforms into a Dragoon, they can use the Dragoon Addition as their regular attack. Just like ordinary additions, the X button must be pressed at the right time in order to deal as much damage as possible, but in case of a Dragoon Addition, a light stats rotating clockwise in a circle similar to a clock, and the player has to press X when the light is at the top. The speed of rotating increases with each successful input, making the timing for the following press more difficult. A Dragoon Addition has a maximum of four correct inputs to extend the combo.

Reception

As one of the defining features of the battle system of The Legend of Dragoon, Additions have received mixed reception and have occasionally been criticized for requiring too much precision or slowing the pace of the game. David Smith of ign.com was somewhat critical for their repetitiveness and the sophisticated timing of the later additions:

“	The combat system's fundamental elements are Additions, chain combinations that you activate with well-timed button presses. A square target indicator zeroes onto your enemy with each strike, and if you tap the X button at the moment it centers, your attack is stretched out with an additional hit. Good idea? Yes and no. Early on, it's more or less the same as using the Gunblade in Final Fantasy VIII. Your first Additions only have one extra stage, and completing the combo isn't usually necessary to defeat most opponents. It's just a neat little twitchy element to expand the variety of combat a litte. As the game goes on, though, the system wears out its welcome. The later Additions, which you learn from experience, have four, five, and six hits, often arranged in a tricky syncopated rhythm, and you have to learn them, develop them, and hit them every time to deal enough damage against the more powerful bosses. By about twenty hours in, I was dead sick of having to play Parappa during every battle.	”
-David Smith, ign.com

Neal Chandran of rpgfan.com had a similar outlook, despite of his overall review on the game being highly positive.

“	Other than that, the issues I have with the gameplay are the same issues I had when the game first came out. For example, the turn-based battle system runs on combos (called Additions) based on timed button presses and the timing is notoriously finicky. The required hair-trigger precision can be frustrating during the more merciless boss battles.	”
-Neil Chandran, rpgfan.com

Regardless of this reception, additions are generally seen favorably by the fan community as an unorthodox yet defining element of the game, with lots of online sources and videos around them, and even dedicated articles such as a tier list of the additions.

Trivia

• During the battle with Kongol at Hoax and at the Black Castle, if the player misses an addition, Kongol will perform a special "counter attack" that will deal damage to the character. This also happens at the first stage of the final boss fight of the game.
• "Flurry of Styx" is actually a typo, and the correct name is "Ferry of Styx." The correct name will appear at the end of the combo; however, Haschel will still say the erroneous name. The River Styx, in Greek mythology, was traversed by the souls of the dead on their way to the Underworld on a ferry piloted by the boatman Charon. The Japanese name for the move is "Sanzu no Wata" (三途の渡), which means "Ferry of the River Sanzu." (lit. Sanzu's Ferry)
• Haschel's additions are all named after the number of hits. Ferry of Styx is a reference to the Sanzu River, which literally translates to "The River of three worlds". The Japanese name 三途の渡 includes the Kanji for three (三, san).
• Meru's Final Addition has the highest damage rate of any character in the game, at 600%. She can also gain the most amount of SP of any character in the game. Equipping the Pretty Hammer and Wargod's Sash with her mastered Cool Boogie addition nets 495 SP.
• Lavitz learns Additions the fastest, as it takes him getting to Level 5 for Spinning Cane, Level 7 for Rod Typhoon, and Level 11 for Gust of Wind Dance. When he joins your party, he starts off at Level 3.
• It takes Meru the longest amount of time to learn Additions, with her last addition, Cat's Cradle, being learned at level 30.
• Albert and Lavitz will say two different names for “Flower Storm.” While the name that appears at the end of the addition will remain the same, Lavitz will say “Rose Storm” and Albert will say “Blossom Storm.” This is not present in the Japanese version, as both Lavitz and Albert call it "Cherry Blossom Blizzard" (桜の吹雪, sakura fubuki).