While crafting may seem like it takes a backseat to combat and Blue Reflection: Second Light's main story, it's actually quite important. Our Blue Reflection: Second Light Crafting Guide has you covered on the key aspects of crafting that will help you develop the school, complete requests, craft food, and more.
How to Cook and Craft in Blue Reflection: Second Light
Throughout the game, Ao will receive requests from her companions at the school, asking her to craft an item or recipe or build a new school facility. Completing Requests is one of the only ways to earn more Talent Points, and crafting school facilities provides status buffs while the team is exploring Heartscapes.
In the same crafting menu, Ao can also cook recipes, and the final dishes can also provide status buffs like improved Ether Recovery Speed or healing while the team is out exploring a Heartscape. All crafting happens in the Work Room on the first floor, 1F.
When crafting, you'll have to pick four characters, and each has a different primary skill focus. For example, Shiho's main crafting skill is Recovery while Yuki's is Repair, so combining different combinations of four characters will lend you different combinations of boosts to any one item or facility. You can check this anytime through the Database Index. More boosts can be purchased with Talent Points.
Blue Reflection: Second Light Crafting and Cooking Basics
To craft anything, you'll need resources that are found in the Heartscapes. Though resources are collected mainly inside the Heartscapes, you cannot consume any raw resources or craft anything while in the Heartscape; it must be done at the school. For this reason, it's important to prepare food before heading out.
All food and crafting items are made at the glowing blue table in the Work Room. Each item can exhibit multiple effects, such as Revival, Vitality, Cure, and Recovery for many food items and Attack Down for offensive items like Firecrackers. These will be listed on the right-hand side after entering the crafting menu.
Increase the effect with higher-quality items | Blue Reflection: Second Light Cooking
When an item lists its effects on the right side of the screen, it will typically say something like "HP Gain XS" or "Ether Speed Up S." The "XS" and "S" refer to Extra Small and Small, respectively, indicating how much of that effect it'll provide. Especially early on, these will work fine for the most part, but you can increase their effects marginally, such as from XS to S or M to L, with higher quality versions of the items.
For example, Heart Fruit and Jack-o-Lanterns are both considered sweet ingredients and can be used in the recipe for Pancakes, which increase Ether Speed Recover by a Medium amount. However, Heart Fruits are found in the first Heartscape while Jack-o-Lanterns are found in Kirara's several chapters in. Using the latter ingredient in Pancakes can increase the Recovery Speed effect from Medium to Large.
What Items to Keep On-Hand Early On in Blue Reflection: Second Light
You won't have access to many recipes early on, but as you perform requests and interact with your party members, you'll gain access to more as time goes on. But in the early hours, you'll probably find that you need to heal between battles occasionally. Again, all of these recipes' effects can be increased.
- Tamagoyaki - HP Gain XS
- Sandwich - HP Gain S
- Tea - Single Status Ailment Recovery
- Pancake - Ether Speed Up M
- Macaron - KO Recovery XS
There are, of course, many other items that can increase other statuses as well, such as Attack and Defense. Additionally, you won't have access to Maracons right away, but once you gain the recipe, you should keep at least a few on hand.
Use the Database Index or pin requests to locate items
This goes for both edible and non-edible items, as you collect both when out exploring a Heartscape. At some point, you'll probably run out of an ingredient that you need for crafting and will need to go collect more. The Database Index can tell you which enemies drop that item and/or where it can be located. If the item is being crafted through a Request, you can pin the quest. Furthermore, head to the helm, and it should tell you which Heartscape it can be found at and specifically which level in addition to what enemies can be found there.
School Development in Blue Reflection: Second Light
School Development in Blue Reflection: Second Light means building new facilities on the campus and is also important to gameplay. Sometimes, it'll be required as a part of quests, but it's important to build facilities for Requests when they become available.
Each facility implements passive and active effects when exploring the Heartscape and in combat. For example, the Morning Glory Garden provides a Medium level of Gear and Attack boosts and the Cafe Space provides HP Up XS. In addition to their effects, some facilities offer items for trade with Coins. The Cafe Space will trade Coffee and the Vending Machines will trade Hydrating Water.
Some facilities require activation before their boosts will take effect. For example, the Bonfire's Heal Recovery M is quite useful, but it requires resources to activate and only lasts for a limited time before it must be re-activated.
Finally, facilities can be upgraded using resources, which can boost their effects significantly but may require farming more resources out in the Heartscapes.
Check active effects before replacing facilities
Much like recipes gained early on in Blue Reflection: Second Light, many facilities built earlier on will have weaker effects than those built later. Still, at some point, you'll probably run out of space and need to replace facilities to replace new ones, but before doing so, you should check their effects before building over them.
The effects of each current facility can be checked in the Party menu.
Check for New Dates after building a new facility
Many new facilities will provide new Date opportunities for at least a couple of characters, if not all of them. Because Dates reward Ao and her team with Talent Points, building new facilities at every chance is a great opportunity to collect Talent Points.