Being able to influence how one person interacts with and feels about another is as common in real life as movies and shows make it out to be. Thankfully those that wish to have this influence over other people can achieve this through the Affinity system in Xenoblade Chronicles 3.
On top of individual Affinity systems, there is a larger system involving whole colonies of people. This just doesn’t change how one person feels about another but also changes the political landscape of the world around a gamer.
Unlocking a Colony
Before players can improve a Colony’s Affinity, the colony must be freed for them to do so. This is done by breaking a Flame Clock powering the colony’s Ferronis. These giants are designed to be weapons of war between the 2 main factions. Once a Flame Clock is destroyed that is at the center of a colony, that colony becomes available for quests, conversations, shopping, and even becomes a rest point. From there, gamers can work on getting the colony up and running for their own benefit. It isn’t easy to take down a Ferronis, but doing so prevents the people from dying to it running out of power. There’s more to it, but that requires spoiling some of the best parts of the XB3 storyline.
How to Improve
There are many avenues to improving and working on Colony Affinity. Most players naturally stumble into raising levels by just going through with normal gameplay and traveling around the land. There are, however, set game mechanics that will improve Colony Affinity.
Questing throughout the world will lead to boosting Colony Affinity. Talking to characters in Colonies that have requests and completing those requests will give rise to the overall affinity level. Not all quests can be found just by talking to a specific character. Instead, XB3 has a system where players are expected to loiter around areas eavesdropping for investigative information on people’s needs. When a need is overheard, you can interact and help out that character.
Talking is another way to raise Colony Affinity. Just like interacting and conversing with people in real life can enamor them. Doing this in Xenoblade Chronicles 3 can do the same thing. People, whether fleshy with bones or digital, enjoy talking to others, and that’s a good way to gain their favor. Chat about their life, get to know them, and just lend an ear overall to get better levels within a Colony. Maybe you’ll meet your favorite in-game character!
Sending off the dead has been a large staple in Japanese-based RPGs, and Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is no different. Here they are called Husks, and guiding them into the afterlife is a spectacle like in most other JRPGs. Performing these sending-off ceremonies also will improve how a nearby colony feels about you. Grab one of the Off-Seers in your party, and proceed to areas shown on the map to serenade the souls into the land beyond life.
Fighting alongside folks builds comradery in real life, and that has been translated into XC3 as well. Skirmishes are fights between different groups that you can walk into the middle of throughout the world. Siding with a group during these fights will see the side that you favored returning that favor in Colony Affinity boosting. Take the time to weigh the pros and cons of which colony you side with during these fights, or you could end up working against your own progress with a group.
Lastly, gamers can accept requests through the game’s job request board mechanic known as Collectopedia Cards. These cards are like a job board listing with a Request Card that will have several wants in exchange for Affinity, Exp, and an occasional reward. Some requests have several steps, each giving more Affinity, so this can be a way to speed up getting the first phases of Colony Affinity.
Gifts for Influencing
Each Colony gives the same overall rewards as certain levels of affinity are achieved. This also means in each new colony a player needs their affinity raised to regain those bonuses. There are 7 different bonuses to unlock in each colony.
Slow Digestion: Whatever meals are consumed have boosted stats and effects, which makes picking certain meals mean more.
Shiny-Hunter: Draw in more rare monsters that are native to the areas nearby. Good for getting certain loot drops and increased experience.
Swift Swimmer: Swimming speed becomes faster as this skill is increased.
Caravan Call: Picking this skill will bring Nopon Caravans to colonies.
Speed Jogger: Improves overall movement speed when not engaged in a fight. Great for traversing large expanses.
Item Retriever: A magnetic ability that increases the range at which a player can pick up an item automatically.
Silent Steps: Become stealthy and harder to detect at a distance from enemies. Lowers the aggro range of monsters.
These 7 attributes make traveling the world and exploring easier as the game progresses. Increased moving and swimming speed allows quicker work of looking around. Caravans, rare monsters, and item retrieval improve inventories for players. Better stats combined with a smaller range makes it easier to pick combat moments that can be won without facing off against enemies that would steamroller a player currently. All of these rewards have good reasons to get them, but players must choose what they want the most, as it takes time to build up enough affinity to get each bonus unlocked.
