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Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition
Overdrive Guide
★ Missions: Normal | Basic | Affinity
☆ Tier List: Characters, Classes, Skells
★ Best Divisions | How to Change Divisions
☆ Character Customization and Fashion Gear
★ 104 FN Site Locations | 99 Lobster Locations
☆ All Heart to Heart Locations
The Overdrive mechanic provides a lot of bonuses during combat for characters and skells in Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition. Learn how to unlock and how to trigger and all the different bonuses that Overdrive provides.
List of Contents
How to Unlock Overdrive
Complete Chapter 5 for Character Overdrive
| Mission | Details |
|---|---|
|
Ma-non Maneuvers
(Chapter 5) |
Lv. Requirement: 1
Rec. Lv. 19 How to Unlock: • Clear The Ganglion Menace • Clear Renewed Will
• Install a data probe at Oblivia's entrance
|
Overdrive becomes available immediately after completing Chapter 5 of the game's main story.
All Chapters Guide (Story Missions)
Unlock Skells for Skell Overdrive
| Mission | Chapter | Description |
|---|---|---|
| The Skell License | Chapter 6 (Clear) | Pass exams from each division to earn your Skell license. |
The overdrive ability for skells is unlocked simultaneously with skells themselves when you complete The Skell License normal mission.
Overdrive Counter Explained
 |
|
|
While Overdrive is active, a counter will appear in the arts palette, and a guide will appear on the upper right side of the screen, showing how to use the counter. Increasing the counter further increases the bonuses you get during Overdrive.
How to Increase Counter
The Counter is increased by activating arts in a specific sequence. To help keep track of a sequence, the color of the counter will indicate the type of the last activated art.
| Art Sequence | Example |
|---|---|
| Use the same art types in succession. |  Melee Art > Melee Art or Range Art > Range Art |
| If changing between offensive arts (melee or ranged), use a debuff (purple), support (green), or aura (blue) art in between to keep the counter going. |  Melee Art > Support Art > Ranged Art or Ranged Art > Debuff Art > Melee Art |
Counter Bonuses
The bonuses the counter provides will be shown near it in addition to a couple that aren't shown.
| Damage | Indicates current damage multiplier |
|---|---|
| Cooldown | Indicates how much art cooldowns are shortened |
| Resistance | Indicates how much the enemy debuff resistances have been reduced |
| Extend Overdrive | Extends OVerdrive duration by a few seconds |
| TP Bonus | Increases amount of TP gained when attacking |
How to Increase Counter Bonuses
 |
|
| Combo | Effect |
|---|---|
| Green > Any Color | Double Overdrive Count: Chained Art increases counter by double the amount. |
| Purple > Any Color | Appendage Damage Up: Chained Art deals 50% more appendage damage. |
| Blue > Green | HP recovery: Restores 10% HP for whoever completes this combo |
| Blue > Purple | Debuff Time Extended: Extends the purple art's debuff effect time by 25%. |
| Orange 3+ times in a row | EXP Up: Increases experience gained by 10% (to max 200%) |
| Yellow 3+ times in a row | Class EXP Up: Increases class EXP gained by 10% (to max 200%) |
Similar to how you would increase the counter, activating arts in specific sequences will provide different bonuses. As mentioned, to help keep track of a sequence, the color of the counter will indicate the type of the last activated art.
Party Chain
Each character in your party can activate Overdrive by issuing the order to them. If more than 2 characters in your party currently have Overdrive activated, your party will receive further bonuses.
| No. of Characters on Overdrive | Bonus |
|---|---|
| 2 | Soul Voice trigger rate +50 % |
| 3 | +50 TP per Art hit |
| 4 | Party takes 50% less damage and becomes immune to Stagger, Topple, Knockback, Launch, and Flinch |
Lasts 25 Extendable Seconds
After activating Overdrive, a timer at the bottom of the screen will indicate the Overdrive's duration. At the end of the timer, Overdrive and its bonuses will end.
However, if you were able to accumulate 3000 TP while in Overdrive, you can spend it to extend the Overdrive by 25 seconds. This can be done multiple times with no limit.
Skell Overdrive Effects
| Overdrive | Skells | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| JINRAI | Formula-series Skells | Increases accuracy and evasion, increased critical chance, shorter cooldowns |
| OBORO | Urban-series Skells | Increased damage dealt, reduced ranged damage taken, Skell appendage healing |
| HAGANE | Verus-series and Police Skells | Increased melee weapon attack, Skell appendage healing, reflecting physical attacks |
| NAGI | Lailah-series Skells | Timed regen, Skell appendage healing, reduced damage taken, immunity to debuffs |
| HIBANA | Inferno-series Skells | Skell appendage healing, increased ranged weapon attack, reflecting thermal attacks |
| GEKITETSU | Mastema-series Skells | Increased ranged damage, reflecting beam attacks, reduced damage taken |
| KURENAI | Amdusias-series Skells | Absorb fuel on melee attacks, double enemy appendage damage, increased melee weapon attack |
Skell overdrive effects depend on the type of Skell currently in use.
How to Get Infinite Overdrive
Increase Max TP and Equip TP Boosts
For character overdrives, because the duration extension of Overdrive is dependent on having accumulated 3000 TP within 25 seconds, you can build your character and party to potentially have infinite Overdrive by equipping arts, skills, armor, and augments that focus on increasing Max TP and providing TP Boosts.
Activate Cockpit Time
For skells, if you have cockpit time active when the overdrive time runs out, it will automatically extend. However, cockpit time is triggered randomly by art activations.
So, to have infinite skell overdrive, your skell needs to have a complete set of arts, preferably that are spammable, have quick activations, and have quick cooldowns to increase the chances of cockpit time activating.
Increase Max GP
While not technically infinite, one way to constantly be on skell overdrive is by increasing your Max GP. This way, you can easily reactivate with another 3000 GP as soon as it ends.
How to Trigger Overdrive
Accumulate 3000 TP or 3000 GP
Once you have unlocked Overdrive, it will automatically appear as an option during combat once you have accumulated 3000 TP for your character and 3000 GP for skells.
What is Overdrive and Skell Overdrive?
Timed State That Provides a Lot of Bonuses
Overdrive is an activatable mechanic with a duration that provides a lot of bonuses to your character, party, and/or skell.
For character overdrive, in addition to buffs, it immediately deals a large amount of damage to all enemies in the battle at the initial activation. The amount of damage dealt depends on your Potential stat.
Character Overdrive List of Buffs
- Shortens Art Cooldowns
- Provides Tertiary Cooldowns
- Increases Damage Dealt
- Weakens Enemy Debuff Resistance
Skell Overdrive List of Buffs
- Fuel is not consumed
- Cockpit time will trigger often
- Skell-series-specific bonuses
Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition Related Guides
Tips and Tricks: Beginner's Guide
All Tips and Tricks Guides
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