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Affinity is a game mechanic in Xenoblade Chronicles. Relationships among characters, as well as the party's reputation in various places, can be improved or worsened through various actions. Affinity among the playable characters and NPCs, as well as the global Area Affinity, can be viewed on the Affinity Chart from the main menu.

Playable Characters' Affinity[]

XC-affinity-party

Affinity Chart between Shulk and other party members

The affinity between each pair of playable characters can be improved by battling together (Chain Attacks, Burst Affinity, and helping characters who are knocked out or suffering from other negative statuses), completing quests, completing Heart-to-Hearts, and gifting collectables. However, it can also be lowered through the latter two means.

The affinity between each pair of characters is calculated by the number of affinity points amassed throughout the game. Upon joining the party a character has 0 affinity points with each of the others, with the partial exception of Shulk, who starts at 900 points with Reyn and 550 points with Fiora, and the seventh party member, whose affinity with Shulk and Dunban is increased by 1500 points after the cutscene that plays after completing the first quest on the Fallen Arm. Affinity is indicated on the Affinity Chart by a coloured symbol, with a pink heart representing the highest affinity:

Symbol / Colour Total Points
Yellow affinity Yellow 0 - 999
Green affinity Green 1000 - 1999
Blue affinity Blue 2000 - 2999
Lavender affinity Lavender 3000 - 4999
Pink affinity Pink 5000

Benefits[]

There are a number of benefits that result from a higher affinity between playable characters:

  • An additional Skill Link slot is unlocked at each level of affinity, allowing the two characters to borrow each other's skills. In order to use Skill Links, the characters will need Affinity Coins which are gained by levelling up or defeating Unique Monsters.
  • It becomes increasingly easier to activate a Chain Link at the end of a Chain Attack as the affinity between playable characters grows.
  • During Gem Crafting, higher affinity improves the chances of creating better gems in two ways. First, the number of turns is dependent on the affinity between the shooter and engineer. Second, the probability that other party members will also assist is dependent on their affinity.
  • Heart-to-Hearts are unlocked when the affinity between two characters reaches a certain level.

Raising Affinity[]

Affinity between playable characters can be raised by actions during battle, by accepting and completing quests, by completing Heart-to-Hearts, and by gifting collectables.

Battle[]

There are several ways to gain affinity during battle.

  • Chain Attacks - Every activation of a Chain Attack will grant 10 affinity points (1 heart) among all active battle members.
  • Burst Affinity - Burst Affinity, which if successfully triggered will increase the Party Gauge as well as the Tension of the triggering active battle member, can be triggered by chance if a battle member performs a critical hit, dodges an attack, or misses an attack. If the B button is pressed when the ring touches the rim of or is just inside the central circle, 30 affinity points (3 hearts) will be granted between the two pairs of active battle members that include the triggering battle member. If the B button is instead pressed when the ring is elsewhere inside the central circle, 10 affinity points (1 heart) will be granted. After any successful trigger, there will be a 15-second cooldown until the next Burst Affinity has a chance to trigger.
  • Helping battle members - 20 affinity points (2 hearts) will be granted between the pair of active battle members for helping a battle member who is suffering from a negative status, such as KO, topple, daze, confuse, etc.

Questing[]

Affinity between two playable characters can be increased by accepting and completing quests. The amount of affinity points received depends on the character used to talk to the NPC. See below for details:

  • 2 hearts is worth 20 affinity points
  • 3 hearts is worth 30 affinity points
  • 4 hearts is worth 50 affinity points
  • Big heart is worth 100 affinity points

Heart-to-Hearts[]

Affinity between two playable characters can be increased or decreased by selecting one of two lines of dialogue during each of two required dialogue choices in each Heart-to-Heart. For each of the two choices, one line of dialogue will increase affinity by 50 points (4 hearts), while the other will decrease affinity by 50 points (4 hearts). At the end of the Heart-to-Heart, regardless of the outcome of the two dialogue choices, 300 affinity points (big heart) will be granted to the participating playable characters. Therefore, the minimum affinity gain from each Heart-to-Heart is 200 points, and the maximum is 400 points.

Gifting/Presents[]

Affinity between two playable characters can be increased or decreased by gifting specific collectable items. The amount of affinity points gained or lost depends on the item and the recipient. For example, giving an ether plum to Dunban will result in a loss of 20 affinity points between the giver and Dunban. It is possible to deduce what the character likes or does not like based on the item's characteristics, such as its type and colour.

All the details concerning the collectable items that can be gifted can be found in Presents, and on this Japanese website.

  • 1 heart: 2-14 affinity points
  • 2 hearts: 16-20 affinity points
  • 3 hearts: 22-30 affinity points
  • 4 hearts: 100 affinity points

NPC Affinity Links[]

Talking to a named NPC for the first time causes that person to be registered on the Affinity Chart. If their name is later mentioned by another named NPC, they will be linked on the chart. This conversation may occur during a quest or at a particular time of day. In the latter case, the conversation will not occur while a quest involving the NPC is available or in progress, as the NPC's normal dialogue will be replaced by quest-specific dialogue. In some cases, the conversation will not occur until after a particular story event or quest.

The Affinity Link will have a caption describing the NPCs' relationship, and a colored icon will indicate how much they like or dislike each other:

  • Red affinity Red (lowest affinity; the two NPCs strongly dislike each other)
  • Orange affinity Orange
  • Yellow affinity Yellow
  • Green affinity Green
  • Blue affinity Blue (highest affinity; the two NPCs are very fond of each other)

The affinity between two NPCs can be improved or worsened by completing certain quests or by making certain decisions during quests or conversations. Registering NPCs and establishing or improving/worsening Affinity Links between them also raises/lowers the party's Area Affinity with the place where the NPCs reside.

Area Affinity[]

Area Affinity is a measure of the party's reputation within each of the following five places:

Place Areas
Colony 9 Area Colony 9 and Tephra Cave
Colony 6 Area Bionis' Leg and Colony 6
Central Bionis Satorl Marsh, Makna Forest, and Frontier Village
Upper Bionis Eryth Sea, Alcamoth, and Valak Mountain
Hidden Village Fallen Arm, Mechonis Field, Central Factory, and Agniratha

As Area Affinity increases, more quests and better trade items become available from the NPCs in that place. This is represented internally as a number of reputation points, which are earned (or sometimes lost) by completing quests and talking to NPCs. Reputation gains or losses are indicated by a notification bar with stars in the lower right corner; within this notification bar, small stars represent 50 points, and a large star represents 250 or more points.

Reputation point totals are not available to the player; instead, they are represented on the Affinity Chart by 1 – 5 stars. Each place starts with one star, and another star is added for every 2,000 points.

Many quests have as a prerequisite a number of reputation points corresponding to a partial number of stars. These are indicated on this wiki by a star followed by a fractional number, e.g. "☆1¼".

The following table shows the number of reputation points needed to reach a particular level of affinity:

Affinity Chart Mission Prereq Reputation Points
☆1 0
☆1¼ 500
☆1½ 1,000
☆☆ ☆2 2,000
☆2¼ 2,500
☆2½ 3,000
☆☆☆ ☆3 4,000
☆3¼ 4,500
☆3½ 5,000
☆☆☆☆ ☆4 6,000
☆4¼ 6,500
☆4½ 7,000
☆☆☆☆☆ ☆5 8,000
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