Shin Megami Tensei V is now available for Nintendo Switch. In this latest entry in the long-running JRPG players will be exploring the Netherworld and recruiting demons once again. While at times you might find that there's a steady grind there are ways to speed up that grind and coast through the game. In this Shin Megami Tensei V Mitama Battle Guide, we'll be going over what Mitama are, why you should care about them, and how to ensure you get the best rewards from them.
What do Mitama do in Shin Megami Tensei V?
Mitama are teardrop-shaped enemies that you'll encounter on your journey through the world of Shin Megami Tensei V. You can either encounter them alone, in groups of four, or as a random addition to a normal battle. Their encounter rates are quite low so don't expect them to always appear to you, but if you happen to see one in the overworld it's definitely in your best interest to interact with them as successfully killing them will earn you some of what are arguably the best consumable items in the game.
There are four different variants of Mitama, each has its own color and each drops a different item
- Kushi Mitama - Black
- The item dropped by the Kushi Mitama is the Gospel. When you use this item it gives the main character enough EXP to level up. It will bring them to "0 EXP to level up" and after completing one more battle you will gain a level.
- Ara Mitama - Red
- The item dropped by the Ara Mitama is the Grimoire. When you use this item it gives any of your demons enough EXP to level up. It will bring them to "0 EXP to level up" and after completing one more battle you will gain a level.
- Saki Mitama - Gold
- The item dropped by the Saki Mitama is assorted Relic items that can be sold for a high price. The value of the items sold is normally that of 3-5 times the amount you'd earn from a normal battle.
- Nigi Mitama - Blue
- The item dropped by the Nigi Mitama is Glory Crystals of various sizes. These can be consumed to earn Glory, the currency used to purchase in-game perks called Miracles.
The further into the game you are the better these rewards will be.
Needless to say, an item that gives you free level-ups and extra money is pretty powerful in a game where you'll be looking to continuously get stronger, especially at later levels. How hard is it to defeat the Mitama though?
How to defeat Mitama in Shin Megami Tensei V?
The Mitama are not difficult to defeat enemies, they're actually some of the weakest enemies in the game with an average of 70hp at the beginning of the game and no attacks, only an ability to lower the party stats. What makes them difficult to defeat is that each Mitama you encounter has a completely randomized weakness and is immune to every other damage type. Even if you encounter four Mitama in a single battle they'll all have their own weaknesses. To add to the frustration they're also very quick to escape from battle, imagine an Abra from the Pokemon series but it drops Rare Candy on defeat. When you encounter a Mitama you can randomly try attacking with what elements you have available to you but chances are you'll only get two guesses before it's the Mitama's turn and he escapes, there is a way to ensure that you always know what the Mitama is weak to though.
If you don't want to miss out on chances to defeat Mitama when they appear in front of you then we highly recommend purchasing a lot of the Spyglass item from the store at Leylines. When the Nahobino uses the Spyglass item they're able to identify all of an opponent's elemental affinities. In a boss fight this is helpful to maximize damage, but using a Spyglass on a Mitama will allow you to know from the beginning of the battle what the Mitama will be weak to.
If a Mitama is weak to an elemental type that you don't have then the next most important item to purchase is the <Elemental Item Name> from the shop. For each elemental affinity these items are only 200 macca, or 250 macca for the light or dark item. As long as you always make sure you have these elemental attack items on you you can identify and defeat the Mitama.
Where to find Mitama in Shin Megami Tensei V?
Here's where the other shoe drops on how great the rewards of the Mitama are. The spawn rate of Mitama in battles is incredibly low, so there's no normal way to really ensure that they appear. They have a low chance of appearing in the overworld for you to get a guaranteed battle, and other times they might randomly show up as an additional participant in any non-boss fight you start.
The one way I've found I've encountered Mitama more frequently is to check interest spots that you'll come across in the world. Your fairy companion will routinely point out interesting spots on your map, you'll even see these locations indicated by an exclamation mark. The majority of the times you interact with these spots you'll earn an item, but every now and then you'll get pulled into a battle and sometimes with a Mitama.
Using this DLC will obviously make any Mitama Farming go much faster, but if you power level too much you can also risk ruining any potential difficult encounters for yourself so try to use in moderation!
There is one more way to get guaranteed drops for Mitama but that requires you to purchase the Shin Megami Tensei V Digital Deluxe Edition, or the DLC packs titled Mitama Dance of EXP (for Kushi Mitama and Ara Mitama), Mitama Dance of Wealth (for Saki Mitama), or Mitama Dance of Miracles (for Nigi Mitama). Each of these DLC are $2.99 on their own but add a setting in the options menu to change the frequency of that Mitama spawning from Normal to Increased. If you Increase a Mitama spawn rate it will go from rarely appearing, to being every battle you see.
Best Shin Megami Tensei V Mitama Farming
How to prepare for a Mitama battle:
- Purchase Spyglass items from the Shop
- Ensure the demons in your party have attacks that cover all elemental possibilities OR Purchase the Element Shard items from the shop
- NOTE: For battles where you end up with four Mitama of a type appear it's highly recommended to have the Element Shard or spells that hit all enemies and not just one
Mitama farming steps for guaranteed success
- Find an area of the map around your current level that has a good route of Exclamation Mark spots
- Walk between them continuously collecting items and waiting for combat to trigger
- Cross your fingers that it's a Mitama battle
- When a Mitama battle begins have the Protagonist use the Spyglass Item on a Mitama to discover its weakness
- Use R to cycle through your demon's turns until you reach one that can use an attack that the Mitama is weak against. If you don't have an attack the Mitama is weak to use the Element Shard items.
- Note: If there are multiple Mitama in the battle they will all have randomized weaknesses, use an Element Shard that hits all enemies to get a guaranteed kill that will also test the other Mitama. If you're lucky and all four have the same weakness then you'll get 4x the rewards.
- Attack the Mitama and collect your reward
- Out of battle repeat from step 1, if you run out of Exclamation Mark locations you can teleport away and back from a Leyline
Keeping these steps in mind should ensure that on the off chance that you do encounter a Mitama in Shin Megami Tensei V you'll always be prepared to reap the rewards.