Honestly, the first few hours of Shin Megami Tensei IV are a total lie. You start as Flynn, a fresh-faced Samurai in the medieval kingdom of Mikado, and the game spends its time convincing you that you’re playing a standard, maybe slightly difficult, dungeon crawler. Then you hit Naraku. Then you meet the Minotaur. Suddenly, you're looking at a Game Over screen because a cow-man crit your party once and gained four extra turns.
It’s brutal. It's kinda unfair. But that’s the charm. This isn't a game where you can just grind your way out of a problem. If you try to power-level to beat a boss in SMT IV, you’re basically trying to put out a forest fire with a water pistol. You need a better plan. This shin megami tensei 4 guide is here to help you stop dying to random encounters and actually make it to the "real" game waiting beneath the surface.
The Stat Trap: Dexterity vs. Magic
Most people see "Strength" in the menu and dump all their points there. Don't. Seriously, just don't touch it. In SMT IV, the Strength stat is weirdly underpowered because it only affects your basic sword swing. If you want to do physical damage with actual skills like Lunge or Critical Wave, you want Dexterity.
Which Build is Actually Better?
If it’s your first time, go Magic. It’s the "easy" mode, though I use that term loosely. High Magic allows you to exploit elemental weaknesses, which is the entire core of the Press Turn system. When you hit a weakness, you get an extra icon at the top of the screen. More icons mean more actions. More actions mean the demon doesn't get a chance to breathe.
- The Magic Build: 3 points in Magic, 1 in Agility, 1 in Luck every level.
- The Dex Build: 3 points in Dexterity, 1 in Agility, 1 in Luck.
Dexterity actually scales better for the literal end-game bosses (we're talking 80+ hours in), but Magic makes the journey there much less of a headache. If you're struggling with the early game, a Magic-focused Flynn is your best friend.
Surviving the "Wall" (Minotaur and Medusa)
There’s a reason people talk about the Minotaur like he’s a legendary gatekeeper. He is. He’s designed to check if you’ve actually learned how to fuse demons. If you walk into that fight with a party weak to Fire, you’re done.
Pro-tip for Minotaur: Use Bufu. A lot of it. You want every single demon in your active party to have some form of Ice magic. Also, keep an eye on your partner character. If you get Walter and he uses Agi (Fire), the Minotaur will nullify it, lose his mind with joy (Smirk), and wipe you out. Some players literally reset the fight until they get Jonathan or Isabeau as their AI partner.
Medusa is the next hurdle. She uses Gun and Electric attacks. If you can fuse a Gu Huo Niao or something that repels Gun, she becomes a joke. Every time she shoots and you repel it, she loses all her turns. That’s the "Aha!" moment of SMT IV: the game isn't about how much HP you have; it's about stealing the enemy's turns.
Mastering the Alignment Tightrope
The most stressful part of any shin megami tensei 4 guide is explaining the Neutral path. SMT IV has a hidden "Alignment" counter.
- Law (Positive)
- Chaos (Negative)
- Neutral (The Sweet Spot)
If you want the "best" ending (Neutral), you have to stay within a tiny window of -8 to +8 points by the end of the game. It’s incredibly easy to accidentally slide too far into Law or Chaos.
How do you check where you stand? Go to a bar in any of the Tokyo districts and talk to the Cynical Man.
- If he calls you "polite," you’re leaning Law.
- If he calls you "hot-blooded," you’re leaning Chaos.
- If he says you’re "hard to get a handle on," congrats, you’re currently Neutral.
A good rule of thumb for Neutral seekers: always pick the first dialogue option for most of the game, side with Jonathan at the big mid-game split, but then choose to "Destroy the status quo" later on. It sounds counter-intuitive, but it balances the math.
The Secret to Infinite Macca (Money)
Macca is notoriously hard to come by in this game. Demons don't just drop gold when they die; they’re stingy. You basically have to beg, borrow, and steal.
The Fundraise App is your best investment. But there’s a trick. If you inflict the Bind status on a demon during battle and then use Fundraise, they’ll give you way more money and won't be able to run away as easily. Also, sell your "Relics." Those random scraps of junk you find in dumpsters in Tokyo? Those are your primary income. Don't hoard them; sell them at the first shop you find.
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Essential Apps to Buy Early
Forget the HP recovery apps. They're a waste of points. Focus on these instead:
- Skill Expansion (Flynn and Demon): You need more slots. More slots = more versatility.
- Demonlingual: You can't talk to half the demons in the game without this.
- MP Recovery: This is the MVP. It lets you recover MP just by walking. It turns long dungeons from a nightmare into a stroll.
- Scout +: Gives you a chance to recruit a second demon for free when you successfully talk to one.
Fusion Accidents and Famed Demons
Sometimes, Mido (the AI in the Cathedral of Shadows) messes up. This is a Fusion Accident. Usually, it’s annoying. But if you're lucky, it’s the only way to get "Famed" or "Zealot" race demons like Jeanne d'Arc or Siegfried.
If you actually want to trigger an accident, you can "game" the system. Use demons that are Sick or at 0 HP as fusion materials. It bumps the accident rate from a measly 1/64 to something much higher. It's a gamble, but for completionists, it’s the only way to fill that compendium.
What to do next:
- Check your Flynn's stats. If you've been splitting points between Strength, Magic, and Dex, pick one (Magic or Dex) and stick to it from now on.
- Go to the Cathedral of Shadows. Look at your current demons. If they've learned all their skills, they are "dead weight." Fuse them into something higher level immediately.
- Find a map of Tokyo. The in-game map is intentionally confusing. Having a real-world map of Tokyo districts helps you navigate the ruins much faster.
- Save your game. Right now. In both slots. SMT IV is a game where a single back-attack from a weak mob can end a two-hour run.
The world of SMT IV is bleak, but once you stop treating it like a typical RPG and start treating it like a tactical puzzle, it becomes one of the best experiences on the 3DS. Just watch out for the Macca Beam. It’ll ruin your day.