Metaphor: ReFantazio How to cook Guide

In Metaphor: ReFantazio, your journey to save the prince and conquer dungeons isn’t just about swinging swords and casting spells. It’s also about preparing delicious meals that boost your team’s power and survivability. From healing HP to curing status ailments, each recipe can be the key to surviving tough battles or enhancing your team’s abilities. So, how can you master the culinary arts in this fantasy world? Let’s dive into the essential cooking guide to make sure you’re prepared for every challenge ahead.

Mastering the Art of Cooking in Metaphor: ReFantazio

Cooking in Metaphor: ReFantazio isn’t just an extra feature it’s a crucial mechanic that can make or break your experience. Whether you’re brewing potions or preparing meals, understanding the system will give you an edge. But cooking isn’t available right off the bat, and there are a few things to keep in mind before you can unlock your kitchen potential.

Unlocking Cooking: When and How

One of the first things you need to know is that cooking isn’t available from the get-go. You’ll start collecting ingredients early in the game, but you won’t be able to cook until June 24th in the game’s calendar. This date is significant because it marks the beginning of the Tournament for the Throne the main event around which the entire plot revolves.

On June 24th, you also unlock the Gauntlet Runner, a critical asset in your journey. The Gauntlet Runner is essentially your mobile base and is where all your cooking takes place. Think of it as your traveling kitchen. Cooking can only happen when the Gauntlet Runner is active, meaning it needs to be en route to a location.

The kitchen itself is located inside the Gauntlet Runner, down a hallway and through the second door on the right. This little detail is easy to miss, but once you find it, you’ll be all set to start whipping up some dishes.

The Time Cost of Cooking

Here’s where things get tricky: cooking isn’t instantaneous, and it comes at a cost. Every time you cook a meal, it takes up an entire day in the game. This means you need to carefully plan when to cook because that day could be spent levelling up, working on side quests, or exploring dungeons.

However, you can eventually unlock a Fast Cooking trait that reduces the time it takes to cook meals, making it a much less costly activity. But early in the game, cooking needs to be balanced with everything else on your plate pun intended.

Gathering Ingredients: Where to Find Everything You Need

The world of Metaphor: ReFantazio is full of opportunities to gather ingredients, but some methods are far more reliable than others. Sure, you’ll stumble upon ingredients in dungeons or as loot drops from monsters, but this isn’t something you can count on.

For a more predictable supply of ingredients, your best bet is to visit merchants. These vendors are scattered throughout the major cities, and you can identify them by specific icons on your map. Here’s a breakdown of where to find different types of merchants and what they offer:

• Butchers: Represented by a knife and meat icon, these vendors sell a variety of meat-based ingredients.
• Herb Merchants: Found in many towns, these vendors offer an assortment of herbs essential for many recipes.
• Water Merchants: You can buy essential ingredients like pristine water from these shops, which are represented by a water droplet icon.

There’s also the option to check the pantry in the Gauntlet Runner. Random ingredients can show up here, so it’s worth checking regularly. And if you’re diligent about side quests, you’ll often be rewarded with unique ingredients tied to the region you’re exploring. Side quests are a great way to collect items you can’t easily buy.

Cooking Basics: What You Need to Know

Before you start whipping up dishes, it’s essential to understand how cooking works in Metaphor: ReFantazio:

1. Where to Cook: Early in the game, cooking is limited. You can cook at the Hushed Honeybee Inn, but this is only available until you unlock the Gauntlet Runner. Once you unlock the Gauntlet Runner via the main story, all your cooking will take place there.
2. Time Matters: Initially, cooking takes up time in the game. That means each meal you prepare costs you a portion of your day. But don’t worry this changes once you unlock the Fast Cooking trait through Maria’s Follower Link at Rank 4. This trait allows you to cook without losing time, which is critical to maximizing your gameplay. Once you unlock this, you’ll have more freedom to boost your stats, work on Follower Links, and strengthen your Royal Virtue.
3. Ingredient Hunting: Every recipe requires specific ingredients, which can be found in different locations: from defeating wild monsters, discovering hidden items in dungeons, or purchasing them in various shops. Completing every recipe once unlocks a special bonus recipe, making it worth your while to track down those elusive ingredients.

Now that you’re up to speed on the basics, let’s look at the recipes you can cook, the effects they provide, and how to gather the ingredients.

Cooking Recipes and Their Benefits

The meals you prepare in Metaphor: ReFantazio come with a wide range of benefits. From restoring health to boosting stats, each dish can provide a strategic advantage during battles.

Essential Recipes to Unlock Early On

1. Redgrass-Roasted Bidou
   • Effect: Restores 400 HP and cures Burn for one ally.
   • Ingredients: 1x Bidou Meat, 1x Pristine Clearwater, 1x Redgrass
   • How to Unlock: This is the first recipe you obtain after using the Gauntlet Runner kitchen.
2. Curative Coney Roast
   • Effect: Restores 250 HP and cures Poison for all allies.
   • Ingredients: 1x Mora Coney Meat, 1x Orgo Sugar, 2x Pristine Clearwater
   • How to Unlock: Automatically unlocked with the Gauntlet Runner kitchen.
3. Coney Stew
   • Effect: Cures status ailments for all allies.
   • Ingredients: 1x Mora Coney Meat, 2x Briny Salt, 2x Mellow Milk
   • How to Unlock: Automatically unlocked with the Gauntlet Runner kitchen.
4. Holistic Whitefish Platter
   • Effect: Fully restores HP for all allies.
   • Ingredients: 2x Limp Goldfish, 2x White Peach Turnip, 1x Gauntlet Shrooms
   • How to Unlock: Unlocked in the early stages of the Gauntlet Runner kitchen.
5. Critical Meatballs
   • Effect: Increases critical hit rate for all allies for three turns.
   • Ingredients: 1x Giant Worm Meat, 1x Rockbeans, 1x Redgrass
   • How to Unlock: Automatically available after your first cooking session.

Recipes for Stat Boosting

These recipes are fantastic for battles where you need to maximize damage or defensive strategies:

1. Steadfast Stew
   • Effect: Allows one ally to survive fatal damage with 1 HP.
   • Ingredients: 1x Giant’s Rib, 1x Briny Salt, 3x Pristine Clearwater
   • Perfect for: Boss fights where every HP counts.
2. Precision Fermented Ribs
   • Effect: Increases the next attack’s hit rate to 100% for one ally.
   • Ingredients: 1x Fiendflower Nectar, 1x Giant’s Rib, 2x Marbled Bluefin Tuna
   • Use in: Situations where missing a critical attack could be devastating.
3. Almighty Golden Stew
   • Effect: Heat Riser for all allies (Boosts Attack, Defense, Hit, and Evasion).
   • Ingredients: 1x Limp Goldfish, 1x Mellow Milk, 1x Lumibee
   • Ideal for: Boss battles that require an overall boost in every stat.

Status-Curing Meals

For dungeons packed with enemies that love to inflict status effects, these meals will be lifesavers:

1. Sweeter than Poison…
   • Effect: Restores 200 MP and cures Poison for one ally.
   • Ingredients: 1x White Peach Turnip, 1x Gauntlet Shrooms, 1x Lumibee
   • How to Unlock: After unlocking the Masked Dancer party member.
2. Cursed Love Ballad
   • Effect: Restores 100 MP and cures Hex for all allies.
   • Ingredients: 2x Rockbeans, 2x Briny Salt, 1x Dreameater Moth
   • How to Unlock: After unlocking the Masked Dancer.

Endgame Power Meals

Once you’ve unlocked advanced party members, you’ll gain access to the most powerful dishes. These meals will give you the upper hand in the game’s toughest challenges.

1. Indestructible Honey Cake
   • Effect: Nullifies the next physical attack on one ally.
   • Ingredients: 2x White Peach Turnip, 2x Altabury Wheat Flour, 2x Lumibee
   • How to Unlock: After unlocking the Berserker party member.
2. Sublime Spoonful
   • Effect: Adds four Press Turn icons in battle.
   • Ingredients: 1x Lord of the Lake, 3x Queen’s Honey Jar, 3x Gauntlet Shrooms
   • How to Unlock: This is only unlocked after making each other recipe at least once.

Ingredient Hunting: Where to Find Everything

To create these culinary masterpieces, you’ll need to source your ingredients from various places. Here’s a quick guide to where you can find them.

• Bidou Meat: Sold at the Holy Meat Butcher in Grand Trad for 250 Reeve or dropped by bird-type enemies.
• Pristine Clearwater: Sold in all water shops across different cities for 50 Reeve.
• Redgrass: Available at the Redgrass Shop in Grand Trad after unlocking it through a side quest.
• Mora Coney Meat: Available at the Fresh-Picked Meats shop in Martira for 500 Reeve.
• Orgo Sugar: Sold at water shops in Altabury Heights for 1,000 Reeve or at the village of Ligno near Grand Trad.
• Briny Salt: Sold at the Castor Water Shop in Port Brilehaven for 800 Reeve.

For a more comprehensive list of ingredients and their locations, refer to our ingredient cheat sheet below. It’ll help you track down every item you need to cook the best dishes.

Cooking Tips and Strategies for Success

• Time Management is Key: Until you unlock Fast Cooking, make sure to balance cooking with other activities. Don’t spend too much time in the kitchen if it’s going to prevent you from completing quests or leveling up other skills.
• Experiment with Recipes: Try cooking different meals based on the enemies you’re facing. If you’re up against a poison-heavy dungeon, prepare plenty of meals that cure Poison.
• Stock Up on Ingredients: Whenever you visit a town, make sure to stock up on essential ingredients. Nothing’s worse than being halfway through a dungeon and realizing you don’t have what you need to cook a critical dish.

FAQ: Everything You Need to Know About Cooking in Metaphor: ReFantazio

Q: When can I start cooking in Metaphor: ReFantazio?
A: You can start cooking on 6/24, after the Tournament for the Throne begins, and you have access to the Gauntlet Runner.

Q: How do I unlock more recipes?
A: Recipes are unlocked as you progress in the main story and recruit new party members.

Q: Can I cook without using up in-game time?
A: Yes! Once you unlock the Fast Cooking trait through Maria’s Follower Link at Rank 4, cooking no longer takes up time.

Q: What happens if I complete all the recipes?
A: Completing every recipe unlocks the special Sublime Spoonful dish, which adds four Press Turn icons during battle.

Q: Where do I find rare ingredients like the Lord of the Lake?
A: Rare ingredients like the Lord of the Lake are dropped by unique bosses or found in special areas.

Now you’re ready to cook like a master and take your team to new heights in Metaphor: ReFantazio. Whether you’re up against a tough boss or exploring new dungeons, cooking the right meal at the right time will give you the edge you need.