Billiken Exploit: How high should my level be before I stop using it?

[Umdytr]

Putting it another way: there's still a certain amount of game content after Billiken stops being available (story, strong optional enemies, etc.), and I'll get a bunch of BOND exp from that content. As such, grinding up to 99 with the Billiken method would be a partial waste of time, so I'm looking for some estimates on how high I should get my BOND level before moving on.

 

The objective is having to grind BOND exp as little as possible once I'm done with everything else in my playthrough, without overgrinding on Billiken either. It is my first run so I don't have a solid idea of how much content there is after the point where I'm at (Konoe's Jail).

 

Any input is appreciated, thanks!

[FeelTheCosmos]

I saw this and though I haven't played the game, I was able to consult an expert who was telling me about this every night just a bit ago while she was going through the same thing.  Here's her advice:

 

Oh man I really had to think about it. I think I actually stopped at 82? I seem to think I only got a few more levels by the end of the game, maybe ended on 86/87 or so? Far less than I thought I would. I’m almost positive I didn’t hit 90 by the end. If this person wants to completely avoid hard mode then probably get to level 95 or so to be on the safe side. You get xp much quicker in hard mode though, so if they think they can handle it I’d recommend that route so they don’t completely die from boredom. Hope that helps!

[Umdytr]

13 hours ago, FeelTheCosmos said:

I saw this and though I haven't played the game, I was able to consult an expert who was telling me about this every night just a bit ago while she was going through the same thing.  Here's her advice:

 

Oh man I really had to think about it. I think I actually stopped at 82? I seem to think I only got a few more levels by the end of the game, maybe ended on 86/87 or so? Far less than I thought I would. I’m almost positive I didn’t hit 90 by the end. If this person wants to completely avoid hard mode then probably get to level 95 or so to be on the safe side. You get xp much quicker in hard mode though, so if they think they can handle it I’d recommend that route so they don’t completely die from boredom. Hope that helps!

Thanks to both of you, that's helpful.

 

I guess by "hard mode" she means the Merciless difficulty you unlock after beating the game, because I'm technically playing on 'Hard' already. I did read Merciless hands out a lot more BOND exp, so maybe I'll go for that if I come up short of max level after doing all the content.

 

95, huh? Dang, this is going to take a while, better grab some show to watch while at it haha.

Edited June 8, 2022 by Umdytr

[Ranari_Kai]

16 hours ago, Umdytr said:

Putting it another way: there's still a certain amount of game content after Billiken stops being available (story, strong optional enemies, etc.), and I'll get a bunch of BOND exp from that content. As such, grinding up to 99 with the Billiken method would be a partial waste of time, so I'm looking for some estimates on how high I should get my BOND level before moving on.

 

The objective is having to grind BOND exp as little as possible once I'm done with everything else in my playthrough, without overgrinding on Billiken either. It is my first run so I don't have a solid idea of how much content there is after the point where I'm at (Konoe's Jail).

 

Any input is appreciated, thanks!

Hi there, I used to that billikin exploit to level my bond level all the way to 99. I regreted that a bit because in the end I still needed to level my exp level to 70. I used the metatron method for that by the way.

my advice would is: stop the bilikin grind at around 90. while grinding for exp level 70 you you get a lot of bond exp. likely enough to get to 99. though that depends on how you play of course.

that might save you some time and nerves.

 

[Optinooby]

If you grind to level 90, the rest of the minimum content from that point required for platinum will get you to level 97.

 

Level 97 to 99 is quite a big jump.

 

I know all this if you're wondering because I did a platinum speedrun of sorts doing only the minimal.

 

Biliken Statue is the fastest Bond XP way if you're on PS5. MUCH MUCH quicker than the advised Merciless grind.

 

My advise would be to use the Biliken Statue to get to level 95. The rest should get you to 99 then, if not, you won't be far off.

 

 

 

One thing to bear in mind though is that I forget what character level I was when I get to the end and had to grind levels, think I was 68 or 78. That grinding is what got me from level 90 to 97 with everything done except for the bond.

 

If you are a higher character level, you obviously won't need to grind character levels as much as me at the end and so that will lead to less bond xp and so maybe not quite 90-97. 

 

As I was doing a platinum speedrun with only minimal, it's why I was quite a low level at the end. I think as a guide creator, we need to know the absolute minimal of what needs to be done for platinum and what the absolute minimal will get you, as it gives  the best base for everything thing guide related. So many different types of players out there, the only way to give advise accessible to all types is to know the absolute minimal required

 

Hope that helps

 

 

Edited June 8, 2022 by Optinooby

[Umdytr]

Thank you guys a lot for your input.

 

I ended up grinding to Lv 95 and leaving it there, will finish the Osaka Jail now. Hopefully that'll be enough to reach 99 naturally, but if I come up a little short I'll just repeat some requests I suppose.

[Lavenza]

Currently doing this and Recall few people mentioning around 95-97 is the sweet spot. What I was going to aim for 

[Umdytr]

Got the plat for the game today and would like to mention that in my case Lv 95 was enough to get to 99 during NG - I got there while cleaning up postgame requests.

 

Actually, if you're like me and stuck to the same team during the whole playthrough (minus Master Arts farming) the trophy you might be left with is Best of the Best, i.e. the one for getting all characters to at least Lv 70.

 

In my case I went into Merciless NG+ and made some progress to earn the remaining exp - you could also do so at the endgame instead, but you need to start NG+ to fuse Lucifer anyway, so I figured I'd get the exp that way.

 

My point is, if you're planning on doing a bit of NG+ for whatever reason, you can probably shave off a couple more BOND levels during the Billiken grind and get them naturally later on.

Edited June 12, 2022 by Umdytr

[Lavenza]

True,

 

I finished under 65 hours, found doing 96 at statue was fine. If you are stuck in xp grind doing metaron on easy with ryuji, lighting plus physical does technical. Can grind the whole team up easily, along with money farming for personas later.

 

Merciless is just such a jump also haha, struggled a bit just getting to the velvet room to summon Lucy 

[JABing]

What level were you all when you 

On 6/7/2022 at 8:37 AM, Umdytr said:

Putting it another way: there's still a certain amount of game content after Billiken stops being available (story, strong optional enemies, etc.), and I'll get a bunch of BOND exp from that content. As such, grinding up to 99 with the Billiken method would be a partial waste of time, so I'm looking for some estimates on how high I should get my BOND level before moving on.

 

Do you remember what BOND level you were when you got the the statue for the first time? I am only in the 40s.... seems like 95 is a loooooong way off.

[Umdytr]

35 minutes ago, JABing said:

Do you remember what BOND level you were when you got the the statue for the first time? I am only in the 40s.... seems like 95 is a loooooong way off.

I'd say around 40 too. 

 

It does take a while, I watched quite a chunk of a TV show while grinding it.

[Angulus]

I finished the postgame extra content and my Bond level is 62. I'm thinking to start a NG+ and use the exploit but Billiken statue is in late game.

 

Can someone confirm if the exploit work with the fortune teller in Sendai? Can I farm from level 62 to 100 easily in this place?