Introduction to Limbus Company

Limbus Company is an occultic RPG by Project Moon, known for its dark, intense narrative and complex mechanics. It offers a unique take on gacha RPGs with a focus on character-driven storytelling and deep gameplay systems. Understanding these intricate systems is key to progressing efficiently and overcoming challenging encounters.

Understanding Combat Mechanics

The combat in Limbus Company is turn-based and involves chaining skills, managing resources, and strategically engaging in clashes.

Skills and Coin Mechanics

Each skill in Limbus Company has a base power and at least one coin. These coins add or remove power from the skill, with extra effects often triggering if the coin lands on 'Heads'. The final power of a skill is determined by its base power combined with coin bonuses. Skills can have unique effects that should be examined before use.

Clashes

Clashes occur when two opposing skills collide. The outcome is determined by comparing the final power values of the clashing skills, with the higher power winning. Winning a clash allows you to cancel the enemy's attack and remove one of their coins. If a skill has multiple coins, losing a clash round means you lose one coin and proceed to the next, potentially spiraling into defeat if multiple coins are lost. The victor then deals damage for each remaining coin.

Damage Types and Resistances

All skills, both ally and enemy, deal one of three damage types: Slash, Pierce, or Blunt. Characters and enemies have resistances and strengths against these damage types, which work similarly to a rock-paper-scissors system.

Sin Affinities and Resonance

There are seven unique Sin Affinities: Wrath, Sloth, Lust, Gluttony, Pride, Gloom, and Envy. These Sins act as elements, with characters having varying resistances and vulnerabilities. Matching three or more skills of the same Sin Affinity in a chain triggers 'Absolute Resonance', which boosts skill power to the maximum. 'Sin Resonance' can also be activated by chaining skills of the same type, increasing overall damage.

Sanity (SP)

Sanity, or SP, significantly affects combat flow, particularly the odds of coin flips. Positive Sanity levels (between +1 and +45) increase the chance of favorable coin results (Heads), while negative Sanity (down to -45) can lead to unfavorable outcomes. Sanity increases when a clash is won or an enemy is defeated, and decreases when a clash is lost, an ally dies, or an E.G.O. is used. In Story and Mirror Dungeons, Sanity carries over between fights.

Stagger

Units have stagger thresholds, indicated by yellow bars on their HP. When a unit's HP drops to these levels, they become staggered, making them unable to attack and causing them to take more damage. Staggered units recover after two turns. Reducing HP through multiple stagger thresholds can lead to even more damage.

Defensive Options

Aside from attacking, characters can use defensive abilities: Guard, Evade, and Counterattack.

Speed

Speed is randomly determined at the start of each turn within a Sinner's range, dictating the order in which characters take turns. Higher speed allows a character to initiate clashes earlier. In focused fights, strategically ordering high-speed attackers can lead to unopposed attacks before a clash, which is beneficial for low-HP or near-stagger enemies.

E.G.O. Abilities and Strategic Use

E.G.O.s are powerful ultimate attacks that inflict significant damage and can trigger passive effects.

Using E.G.O.

E.G.O. skills can be manually equipped to each Sinner, regardless of their Identity. To use an E.G.O. skill, you tap and hold the Sinner and then target an enemy. E.G.O.s cost both E.G.O. resources (corresponding to Sin Affinities) and Sanity.

E.G.O. Corrosion and Overclocking

Using an E.G.O. while a Sinner has low Sanity (below 0, especially at -45) carries a risk of 'E.G.O. Corrosion'. In this state, the Sinner's E.G.O. becomes uncontrollable, potentially targeting allies.

'Overclocking' an E.G.O. by clicking and holding it costs 1.5 times the resources and Sanity but provides a controlled version of the sometimes powerful corrosion effects. This can remove the indiscriminate targeting, though if the corrosion specifically targets randomly, it will still do so but avoid allies.

E.G.O. Resources and Passives

E.G.O. resources are generated by using skills with specific Sin Affinities. E.G.O. passives activate the turn after an Awakening E.G.O. is used or immediately upon using a Corrosion E.G.O., remaining active for the rest of the fight and stacking with other unique E.G.O. passives.

E.G.O. and Sin Resistances

By default, a Sinner's Sin resistances are based on their lowest level E.G.O. (usually their base E.G.O.). These resistances change the moment another E.G.O. is used.

Effective Team Building Strategies

Team building in Limbus Company is crucial, focusing on synergy between Identities and E.G.O.s.

Synergy and Status Effects

A good team often centers around characters with synergized status effects, such as Rupture, Burn, Bleed, Tremor, Sinking, Poise, or Charge. Look for characters that provide buffs to maximize the effectiveness of your strongest Sinner Identities.

Sin Affinity and E.G.O. Activation

It's vital to ensure your team has the necessary Sin Affinity resources to trigger E.G.O. abilities. Matching Affinity colors can also help trigger passive abilities and gain Lustre boosts.

Support Skills

Even characters not actively in battle can provide benefits through support skills, which require Identities to be at least Uptie 3 to unlock.

Prioritizing Identities

When building a team, consider an Identity's Clash Power, Damage, and Utility. While higher rarity Identities (000) are generally stronger, team synergy is paramount, and even 00 Identities can be highly effective. Some guides suggest that Uptie 3 starter characters can be stronger than Uptie 1 gacha characters.

Progression and Resource Management

Efficient progression in Limbus Company requires careful management of resources and understanding the game's systems.

Main Story Progression

Focus on clearing the Main Storymode first, as it's a primary source of rewards and provides a practical understanding of the combat system.

Rerolling

Rerolling involves starting the game as a guest, skipping the tutorial, and using initial currency and mailbox rewards for pulls. If unsatisfied with the initial pulls, you can reset the account via the 'Options' menu. It's recommended to link an account to Steam after rerolling on a phone or emulator.

Gacha System ('Extraction')

The gacha system, called 'Extraction', allows players to use premium currency (Lunacy) to summon Identities and E.G.O.s. Identities come in different rarities (1-star, 2-star, 3-star, or 0, 00, 000), with higher rarities having lower probabilities. It's generally advised to only do 10-pulls, as the 10th pull is guaranteed to be 00 rarity or better. Avoid the Standard Extraction banner in favor of limited-run banners.

Leveling and Uptie

Leveling units increases their HP, defense, and offense levels. However, 'Uptie' (tier upgrading) is more impactful than raw leveling, significantly boosting base skill power, coin power, adding/increasing skill effects, and improving speed ranges. Getting units to Uptie 3/4 is crucial for progression.

Egoshards and Thread

Egoshards, obtained from gacha pulls, are converted into Thread, which is essential for 'Uptie' upgrades. It's recommended to spend Egoshards primarily on Identities before focusing on E.G.O.s, as Uptie buffs units more than acquiring new ones.

Enkephalin Management

Enkephalin is the stamina consumed for entering and clearing stages. Optimal resource management involves daily refills, saving Lunacy for target extractions, and knowing when to invest in additional refills.

Mirror Dungeon and Luxcavations

Mirror Dungeons are a primary source of resources and shards. Characters start at level 10 inside Mirror Dungeons, but collected E.G.O.s still matter. Luxcavations offer a skip option for convenience, instantly completing a stage for double the module cost but only 1.5 times the rewards, making it less resource-efficient than manual play.

General Tips for Success