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Xenoblade Chronicles 3has an excellent roster of Heroes to fit the seventh slot of a player’s party and, thanks to Wave 2 of the DLC, that roster has expanded to include a new mechanical ally. In this guide, we’ll explain how to recruit Artificial Blade Ino, the Noponic Champion.
Xenoblade Chronicles 3has been out for several months at the time of writing, and plenty of players have already fought their way through Ouroboros' adventure to uncover the truth behind their world and its endless war. With the release of DLC Wave 2 players are able to enjoy a new hero quest, alongside a slew of challenge battles offered by the Nopon Archsage.
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Activating the DLC, and where to go Next
Once the DLC is installed, players should access the Expansion Pass section in the pause menu. Selecting Vol.2 allows players to receive the quests added by the DLC,and the quest to unlock Ino is called “Champion of the Nopon.“With the quest activated players will need to head to the Great Idalla Ravine, in the Fornis Region. Players who have visited the area before can Skip Travel to it, as it is treated as a landmark. If the quest is set as active players can navigate to the destination from there fairly easily.
Meeting Ino
Ino is found protecting a Nopon Caravan from a pack of monsters, more specifically some level 19 Dannagh Arachno. The party jumps in to assist and the battle begins. This shouldn’t be much of a challenge as long as the team are around the same level as the enemy, and in the aftermath Ino reveals that she protects all of Nopon-kind as her Masterpon taught her to. She’s also looking for something called “High Ether,” so the group offer to help her out.
The spot where the High Ether can be found is very close by, and guarded by some monsters. After beating them, Ino presents the party with a “HD Ether Cylinder+” (The HD stands for “Handy Dandy, by the way) to collect the High Ether with. After collecting it, she proceeds to drink it, much to the surprise of the party. Ino then explains that she is an “Artificial Blade”, aterm that players ofXenoblade Chronicles 2will be very familiar with.
Noah unlocks her class, and switching to it convinces Ino that he must be her “Destined Driver.” Not wanting to let her down, Noah takes on the role of Ino’s Driver, completing the quest and unlocking Ino in the Hero roster.
Going Full HD
Recruiting Ino also unlocks the Inoswap feature, allowing players to unlock and improve Ino’s skills by spending High Ether collected from around Aionios. The HD Ether Cylinder+ is the only means of doing this, but Ino mentions it could be upgraded with help from a Nopon Engineer. Heading for the Nopon Caravan indicated (which can be Skip Travelled to if players have visited the camp before), players meet with Totoma. Totoma is just the Nopon for the job, and after upgrading the Cylinder for free once, they can be asked for assistanceupgrading it further in exchange for the required materials.
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Upgrading the HD Ether Cylinder+ allows it to more efficiently collect High Ether, allowing players to upgrade Ino quicker and more easily. Ideally, this quest should be completed as soon as possible, and the Cylinder upgraded as soon as resources allow.
The Hope of Noponkind
In order to unlock Ino’s ascension quest “The Hope of Noponkind”, players must first unlock all available upgrades for Ino in Inoswap. Acquiring the requisite High Ether shouldn’t be too tricky, as thedeposits are indicated on the map in areas the player has already exploredand harvesting them often causes the game to reveal a new location as a bonus.
With the requirements met, players need to head back to the Nopon Caravan where Totoma is found during “Going Full HD.” This triggers a discussion between the Nopon and the party about a “Nopon Eater,” some manner of monster that hunts and eats Noponwhich Ino has fought in the past.Following the clues will lead players to a location near the Clifftop Ferronis Hulk in the Pentelas Region. Hopping down to the quest marker will trigger an encounter with the aforementioned avian assailant of Nopon.
This quest is best handled at around level 50, as the boss is this level. After the boss is defeated it will escape by the air, and the party will concoct a plan to prevent it from doing so a second time. This forces players to acquire the resources to make an “OP Pollen Orb” (The OP stands for “Overwhelmingly Potent”, by the way) which could be used to stop the Nopon Eater from fleeing again. After this the group tracks the Nopon Eater to the Cadensia Region and a second fight ensues.
Take down the Nopon Eater with the power of Driver and Bladeand the day is won. Clearing this quest raises the Class level Cap to 20 for Noponic Champion and unlocks the second half of the Inoswap menu, allowing players to further enhance Ino’s capabilities.
