Blue Reflection details non-Reflector allies, battle techniques and tips, more

Just over a month until the magical girl RPG launches in Japan.

Gust has shared released new Blue Reflection: Sword of the Girl Who Dances in Illusions information and screenshots introducing the game’s non-Reflector allies, otherwise known as the girls you’ll befriend in school, battle techniques and tips, and more.

Get the details below.

■ Ally Support
Hinako and company will face against powerful creatures known as “Pure Breeds.” This section is an introduction to the techniques you’ll use in standing against these overwhelming threats of incomparable power and scale.
Battles against the Pure Breed are very different than the standard battles that take place in the Other WOrld. You’ll fight alongside allies as supporters in addition to the other Reflectors. Those allies are made up of the other students that you strengthen your bonds with during your daily life as a student.

—The friends you fight alongside will report on the progress of the battle and current conditions, as well as provide advice.
—Support allies have various effects, including recovery and stat boosts. Support consumes the student’s own MP. Also, if the student’s HP reaches zero, they’ll withdraw from the battle.
Hinako, Yuzuki, and Raimu can each have a maximum of four support allies that can be assigned before battle. You can freely mix and match support allies, whether it be a recovery-type supporter for your mainly attack-based Reflector, or perhaps a stat boost-type supporter from your attack-based Reflector.
■ Active Command and Overdrive
The variety of Active Commands will increase as you progress through the game. Active Commands include “Guard” and “Recovery,” and are an important element to standard battles. In your fight against the Pure Breeds, creatures of considerable power and strength, the use of these Active Commands cannot be greater emphasized.
—Unlike other commands such as Attack, Active Commands are entered in real-time between actions.
Types of Active Commands
Supporter Protection -Recovers the HP and MP of your support allies as you continue to push the button.
Recovery – Recovers the HP and MP of the Reflectors as you continue to push the button.
Guard – Reduces the damage received from enemies. Guard’s effectiveness increases each time you use it.
Timeline Control – Moves forward your allies’ turns while pushing back the enemies’ turns as you continue to push the button.
“Ether” is required to use Active Commands. When it is a Reflector’s turn to take action, she can use the “Ether Charge” command to build up Ether.
In the fight against the Pure Breeds, its method of attack will change each time you reduce the its HP to a certain amount, and the damage you receive will become even greater.
No matter how much support you have from your allies, you cannot avoid difficult battles by simply using one-shot skills.
For that, you can use the Ether you build up to activate “Overdrive.”
Generally, you can use skills once per every turn, but if you select the Overdrive command, you can skills consecutively a number of times in a single turn.
—In Overdrive, you can choose the number of skills to use consecutively. The higher the number of skills, the greater the power of the skills.
—The first image shows a single skill being used. The second image shows three of the same skills being used in Overdrive. The difference in power is clear (74 damage versus 138 damage). However, depending on the number of times you choose to use the skill, the amount of required Ether will increase.
■ Battle Tips
By skillfully using these systems, you’ll further enjoy the battles against the Pure Breeds. What commands will you use in what situations…? Remember these tips in battle to fight with greater peace of mind.
Step 1: Create an Opening
The power of Ether is important in battle. In order to build up Ether, use skills to push back enemies’ turns, and create an opening where the enemy can’t take action.
Step 2: Ether Charge
In speeding up the Reflector’s turns to come before the enemy’s, and while using skills to delay the enemy’s turn, build up your Ether with Ether Charges. In addition to Ether, Reflectors also recover MP during an Ether Charge.
Step 3: Active Commands
Use Active Commands as necessary while constantly creating situations where someone can Ether Charge. Use Recovery when you’re hit with an unexpected blow, use Guard when you foresee a powerful attack coming, and son. Analyze the state of battle to make the best uses of the four Active Commands.
Step 4: Overdrive
When the turn of a Reflector with high attack power arrives, unleash an Overdrive using the Ether you’ve built up. In using your consecutive skills, you shouldn’t forget to use skills that delay the enemy’s turn in order to create openings. Also, it is recommended that the last skill you choose for an Overdrive is one of considerable power that consumes a lot of MP. Additionally, if you use a skill consecutively a certain number of times, a cooperative technique of tremendous power will be activated on the final move that you choose.
There is no one way to battle against the Pure Breeds. Whether you repeat Steps 1 to 4 or discover your own battle style, either way is OK. Depending on the Pure Breeds you fight, you can also enjoy figuring out the best way to battle against them.
—Take on the powerful Pure Breeds while making use of all of the game’s systems and skills.
If you continue to fight without being defeated by the Pure Breed, a “Reflect Counter” will be displayed on screen at a certain time. A Reflect Counter is a finishing blow technique that concentrates the Reflector’s power. Pay close attention to the scene that develops after it is chosen as you attack and defeat the Pure Breed.
■ A New Pure Breed: Cochma
So far we’ve been introduced to three Pure Breed: Yesod, Netzach, and Tiphereth. In order for Hinako to get her wish granted, and in order to protect the world, she must continue to fight these powerful creatures.
—Cochma has the body of a heavy tank and unleashes mainly bomb-based attacks from each point in its body.
■ Interaction Level
By strengthening your bonds with the other students, who appear as friends during your everyday life and as supports in battles against the Pure Breeds, Hinako will gain even more power.
In Blue Reflection, the strength of your bonds is represented by an “Interaction Level,” and the higher its value, the more frequent the support you’ll receive during your battles against the Pure Breeds.
So how do you increase this Interaction Level?
Bond Episodes
If you talk to your friends in school after school ends, special episodes may occur. In some cases, various choices will be displayed on screen, and your Interaction Level will change based on the choices you make.
Date Events
After you’ve talked to your friends in school after school ends, special episodes where you’re invited to go out may occur. After the invite, you can enjoy a special event at wherever you go.
Between Bond Episodes and Date Events, various things are being prepared to do with your friends. As you progress through each episode, your bonds will gradually strengthen and become a source of support for Hinako.
■ The Girls’ Stories
This section will introduce some of the main story and character episodes.
Secret of the Annoying Girl
Ako Ichinose had appeared before Hinako, who was surprised at her election to the culture festival executive committee. She seems to have some sort of secret…
—The profusely cheerful Ako Ichinose shows up in front of Hinako, who is worried about what to do for the culture festival. Ako says that she is investigating an incident that happened at school, but what is it that’s on her mind…?
—Even though you help Ako look into whatever it is she is investigating, Ako is disappointed that it produced no results. For the time being, they go home that day.
—Afterwards, Hinako participates in a culture festival meeting for the first time, but worries about Ako, who was absent for no reason. While every contributes their thoughts on what to do at the festival, they are having a hard time deciding, so it seems things will be difficult.
—After the meeting, Hinako hears an unsettling rumor about Ako. Could that really have happened to Ako…?
The Two Who Cross Paths
In middle school, Karoi Mitsui and Rika Yoshimura were part of the same track club. The relationship between Kaori, who spends her days leisurely, and Rika, who wants Kaori to do track again, gradually changes with a certain incident as the start.
—Rika, who knows the true ability of Kaori from their middle school days, recommends she joins track at every opportunity, but Kaori is cold towards her when she does.
—When the two first started track, it was their opportunity to show off their efforts of being a senpai, but for Kaori it’s enough that senpai are hardworking, and she doesn’t feel like returning to track.
—The next day, Hinako, worried about the unwell Rika, moves to give Rika advice at the push of Yuzuki and Raimu.
—While it was thought that she was worried about things with Kaori, Rika didn’t show up for track practice due to an incident that occurred in the track club room. Hinako and company join in on the investigation, but the culprit is…