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In the world of RPGs, leveling up is crucial, and Persona 5 Royal is no exception. Failing to level up your team can make late-game bosses a daunting challenge, forcing you to spend extra time grinding in Mementos. As an enhanced version of Persona 5, Persona 5 Royal introduces numerous quality-of-life improvements and adds 20 hours of new content.
The game features a new semester for the Phantom Thieves and tweaks to existing boss fights. With all this new content, maintaining high levels for your team is essential, and knowing the fastest ways to gain experience can make all the difference.
Updated January 13, 2025 by Renri Seong: While being over-leveled can make Persona 5 Royal too easy, it's crucial to match the levels of Palace Rulers, especially on a new file. There are several strategies to make experience farming easier in P5R, from leveraging Confidant Skills to utilizing Jose in Mementos. Joker can also earn EXP for non-active Personas with a passive skill. This guide has been updated to include a new section on quickly farming experience using the Insta-kill ability.
Accessories and The Moon Arcana
Mishima Yuuki's Confidant
In Persona 5 Royal, players can enhance their EXP gain by downloading the free Team Glasses accessory from the PlayStation Store. Equipping these glasses on each character boosts their EXP gain by 15% during battles. However, only Joker and three other Phantom Thieves can participate in battle at once, leaving the backline members to receive less experience.
To address this, players can increase the Moon Confidant (Yuuki Mishima) to Rank 3 and Rank 5, allowing backup team members to gain EXP. Reaching Rank 10 with Mishima ensures that backup members receive the same amount of EXP as those on the front lines. Progressing through Mishima's Confidant is straightforward; just choose dialogue options that resonate with him and bring a Persona of the Moon Arcana when spending time with him.
In Persona 5 Royal, Mishima's Mementos Missions are now linked to his Confidant progression. Neglecting these missions will hinder your ability to rank up his Confidant.
Mementos: Increase EXP Gain
Cognition of Mementos
Persona 5 Royal introduces Jose, a new character who, while not central to the plot, significantly aids gameplay. Throughout Mementos, players can find "flowers" and "Stamp Stations." Collecting these allows you to trade with Jose for items or to alter the Cognition of Mementos. In Jose's Shop, under the Cognition menu, you can choose to increase EXP, Money Rewards, or Item Rewards, but these boosts are exclusive to Mementos. Upgrading EXP gain to 110% costs 5 Stamps, while reaching the maximum of 200% requires 12 Stamps.
There are 165 Stamps in total, but you'll need 85 to max out the EXP Up. Stamp Stations are hidden in "dead ends" behind breakable walls on Mementos floors. You might encounter Jose when moving to a new floor.
Fight the Reaper
What Level is the Reaper?
The Reaper, a formidable foe in the Persona series, appears in Mementos if players linger too long on a floor. Warning signs include a blinking red screen, the sound of chains, and alerts from Morgana or Futaba about an ominous presence.
Early in the game, defeating the Reaper is nearly impossible unless you're on a New Game+ file. The Reaper wields -dyne tier spells and Support skills like Concentrate and elemental Breaks. At level 85, with exceptionally high stats, his Agility, though the lowest at 75, is still enough to outpace the Phantom Thieves if they're not adequately prepared.
Defeating the Reaper yields a massive amount of experience and money, often resulting in a level up for all characters. It's advisable to challenge the Reaper at level 60 or higher, equipped with Defense-raising Support skills and Makarakarn to reflect his magic. Alternatively, those with the Persona DLC featuring Izanagi-no-Okami (Picaro) can stack Concentrate, Heat Riser, and use Myriad Truths for heavy Almighty damage three times.
Defeat Treasure Demons
How to Summon Treasure Demons
Treasure Demons, unique Shadows introduced in Madarame's Palace, start appearing in the Metaverse after your first encounter. Unlike typical Shadows, they are harmless and will flee after a few turns.
Each type of Treasure Demon has different Affinity Weaknesses and Immunities, but all are vulnerable to Almighty attacks. The best strategy to defeat them before they escape is to use Shinya's Rank 1 Ability, Down Shot, to down them and follow up with an All-Out Attack. Alternatively, high-crit attacks like Morgana's Miracle Punch can work, provided the Treasure Demon doesn't nullify Physical attacks.
Treasure Demons appear in Palaces when security is high. Players can also craft the Treasure Trap infiltration tool to increase encounters, requiring:
- 2x Silk Yarn
- 3x Plant Balm
- 1x Cork Bark
Use Persona with EXP Skills
How to Get Growth Passive Skill
Typically, Personas not equipped by Joker at the end of a battle won't earn EXP. However, the Passive Skill Growth allows inactive Personas to gain a percentage of the battle's experience. There are three levels of Growth Skills:
- Growth 1: Persona gains a quarter EXP when inactive.
- Growth 2: Persona gains half EXP when inactive.
- Growth 3: Persona will gain full EXP when inactive.
The following Personas learn Growth upon leveling:
| Growth 1 | Growth 2 | Growth 3 |
|---|---|---|
| Saki Mitama (level 7) | Lachesis (Innate) | Izanagi (level 25) |
| Koppa Tengu (level 12) | Kurama Tengu (level 36) | Izanagi Picaro (level 28) |
| Thoth (level 42) | Narcissus (level 50) | |
| Ananta (level 47) | Raphael (level 81) |
With the Electric Chair in the Velvet Room, players can convert Personas into Skill Cards. However, in Persona 5 Royal, only Izanagi Picaro can be turned into a Growth 3 Skill Card. Growth 1 Skill Cards are unavailable in P5R.
To obtain the Growth 2 Skill Card, take Caroline and Justine to Miura Beach between September 2nd and September 29th, after clearing event 6 (Sky Tower). Spend evenings with them by the Velvet Room Door outside Mementos.
Ryuji Sakamoto's Confidant
How to Unlock Insta-Kill
Insta-kill is a powerful skill that allows Joker to instantly defeat a Shadow without engaging in battle. To use it, ambush the enemy when Joker's level is 10 levels higher than the Shadow's. In Persona 5 Royal, a successful Insta-kill not only defeats the Shadow but also grants items, yen, experience, and, if space allows, a Persona.
You can identify Shadows susceptible to Insta-kill using Joker's Third Eye ability; those with a green outline are vulnerable.
To unlock Insta-kill, reach Rank 7 with Ryuji Sakamoto's Confidant. Ryuji's Confidant is one of the easiest to max out, with no Social Stat requirements. To quickly gain Insta-kill, spend time with Ryuji and select the best dialogue options to maximize points. It's advisable to do this before unlocking other Confidants.
