Welcome to GamesBeat’s Final Fantasy XIII-2 game guide. Here you’ll find some clarification on the Crystarium and Historia Crux systems, as well as specific tips and tricks on unlocking the best weapons, powerful fragment skills, and winning all the chocobo races with ease.

More importantly, if you have any specific questions or feedback, leave a comment and I’ll get back to you right away. Useful information will be added to the guide and credited to whoever submitted it.

Index

  1. Crystarium (<–you are here)
  2. Historia Crux
  3. Serendipity: Casino & Chocobo Races
  4. Fragment Skills
  5. DLC: Coliseum, Omega, and beyond
  6. FAQ & Ultimate Weapons
  7. Review

Crystarium
The Crystarium is Final Fantasy XIII-2’s leveling system, which shares some similarities to those found in Final Fantasy X and Final Fantasy XIII.

Both Noel and Serah have six roles to choose from:

  • Ravager – Offensive magic caster who increases the stagger* progress on an enemy; can also do area of effect attacks that damage multiple enemies
  • Commando – Melee damage dealer who maintains stagger progress and can launch enemies in the air where they can be infinitely juggled (with proper timing by all party members)
  • Sentinel – Tank class, can provoke enemies and withstain large amounts of attacks at reduced damage rates
  • Medic – A healer that can restore health, raise the death, and remove negative status ailments
  • Synergist – A support caster who bestows positive boosts on the party, including increased attack and defensive stats (good to start almost any battle of with one of these for increased efficiency)
  • Saboteur – The opposite of the Synergist, a Saboteur removes boosts from enemies and can inflict negative ailments as well as deal moderate damage in the process

Note: Monsters only have one role, though it varies from monster to monster.

To level up your character, you just need to choose which role you’d like to level and use the Crystogen Points required. The amount needed applies across all roles, regardless of level, and perpetually increases the more you level up. All roles use the same level progression track, so you can freely level whichever role you want to at any time.

For example: You take a Ravager from level 1 to level 2 at the beginning of the game. It only costs 100 points. But, let’s say you’ve leveled your Medic and Sentinel to 99 already; then leveling your Ravager from 1 to 2 could cost 500 points.

After a certain amount of levels, you’ll rank up the Crystarium, and can choose from various one-time perks (such as unlocking a new role, role bonuses, increasing the ATB gauge, or even gaining access to powerful role-specific moves like the Ravager’s Ultima Arrow).

Lastly, to increase the amount of CP you’re getting, you can unlock a fragment skill that rewards double CP. Check the Fragment Skill page for more.

*Stagger: By filling the stagger meter of an enemy, they will enter “Staggered” status and any damage they take will be notably increased. Attacks may also cancel out whatever move they were attempting to perform, and Commandos can even launch staggered enemies into the air for a juggle combo. The enemy cannot retaliate while being juggled, and if you time your attacks with the rest of the party, you can usually keep the enemy in the air until they do, regardless of how much HP they have.