Gladiolus Amicitia/Gameplay

Gladiolus is a party member in Final Fantasy XV who acts autonomously in battle. He can rescue party members in Danger status, invoke link-strikes with Noctis and perform Techniques and use items on himself by the player's beckoning.

He is the toughest party member with the most HP and strength. Gladiolus will be playable as the main playable character in his own DLC episode, and in an added segment to Chapter 13.

Party member
In battle, Gladiolus uses greatswords as his Primary Arm and can equip shields as Secondary Arm. He has the highest physical power and HP of the group. Though he has a great deal of Spirit to allow him to outlast magical attacks, he lacks in Magic, which is best left to anyone else in the group. He is best as the tank and the fighter.

Gladiolus has a good range due to his use of greatswords, which he can also throw, and he can thus attack enemies without need to cover distance in close. His shield comes in handy to bolster his defenses, especially from long range attackers, and increase his stats further. He can use his shield as a makeshift knuckle to pound the ground to throw enemies off balance and strategically attack enemies with the bonus of doubled damage. He is the worst equipped when fighting aerial enemies, as he has little way of intercepting their flowing offensives, and his intervals compared to gun wielding enemies sees him vulnerable to their attacks.

His skills are centered on supportive, offensive and defensive actions. Though he only provides cover for Noctis, Gladiolus acts defensively through brute force, kicking away enemies who come in too close, and even providing cover, defending himself as well as his charge if they are in close and nullifying the oncoming attack.

Stats
Gladio's statistics with his default Crownsguards Fatigues equipped.

Abilities
As Noctis's party member, Gladiolus learns First Aid abilities from the Recovery grid in the Ascension. that let him recover his own health when low.

Teamwork
Gladiolus learns the following Teamwork abilities in the Ascension Grid. He will perform these autonomously.

Techniques
Gladiolus can learn the following Techniques from the Ascension Grid. They can be invoked by the player, and Noctis can usually do a follow-up-attack with them. Gladiolus starts with the Tempest Technique.

Gladiolus excels in bringing on massive direct damage on single targets and controlling crowds of enemies. Tempest allows him to attack through wildly brandishing his greatsword, spinning across the field, indirectly hurting enemies in his path, before finishing with a mighty swing on the designated target; depending on the situation, it comes in handy as either a crowd-controlling technique, or a multi-hitting damage attack with no excessive cost. It requires accuracy and strategic placement to properly realize its full effect.

Dawnhammer brings Gladiolus to prepare a mighty downward slash capable of inflicting a critical hit and Break. It is especially useful for breaking appendages; having Noctis following in for the additional attack further increases its chances.

Royal Guard has Gladiolus immediately provide a cover for Noctis, which the player should direct Noctis to. This allows Noctis makeshift sanctuary from enemy attacks. After a given period of time, Noctis can charge back into battle with a prompt.

Impulse is Gladiolus's Lv.3 Technique. Focusing and wielding his weapon in front of him, Gladiolus draws his sword and cuts a quick slash from left to right. The cut unleashes a wide, sweeping and shredding vacuum that hits all in the vicinity in front of him with massive damage and for multiple times. It is especially useful for bringing down tanks of enemies with enormous amounts of HP, clearing out numbers of enemies who have power in groups, and for quickly wrapping up battles when the opportunity sees itself present. This technique often deals 9,999, especially when critical blows are landed, meaning it will deal more if Gladiolus's Limit Break node is activated.

Accessories
Some accessories are exclusive to Gladiolus.

Survival
Gladiolus's skill in is Survival, which has him find items during and upon winning battles; the higher the Survival Skill Level, the better items he can find. The chance of finding items is better the more steps the player has taken between battles. Gladiolus can find consumable items like potions and elixirs and treasures from animal parts to coins and notes. The higher level Survival skill provides better quality items at the end of fights, no matter what the outcome is. The number of items he finds can be doubled via abilities learned in the Ascension's Exploration grid.

Survival levels up by running on the field. The player can leave the game to run on its own with the controller in a position the party will run in circles to accumulate steps to level up Gladiolus's Survival.

Food
Gladiolus's tastes reflect his nature as an outdoorsman, enjoying wild game cooked with the bare essentials and seasoned with the gathered flora and herbs of the surrounding area. He especially enjoys meaty dishes, a majority of them skewers, and is fond of Cup Noodles. Much of the game that compose his favorites are powerful monsters ranging from Buelettes to Behemoths, and some of the fish he enjoys are among the more challenging to land. The sidequest "A Perfect Cup" requires the player to hunt down either a Karlabos, a Zu, or a Behemoth, for the pursuit of sharing with the team the "real" experience of feasting on a cup of Cup Noodles.

Gladiolus's favorites:
 * Prairie-Style Skewers
 * Fried Frontier Skewer
 * Skewered Wild Trout
 * Prime Garula Rib
 * Carp of the Diem
 * Cup Noodles

Downloadable content


Gladiolus has his own downloadable episode where the player takes control of him directly. Gladiolus will face Gilgamesh, and fight alongside Cor Leonis.

The episode uses the same Active X Battle system as Final Fantasy XV, although it has been adapted to fit Gladiolus's combat style. By blocking enemy attacks, Gladio can build up his "rage" meter which will increase his damage output with a maximum of 4x damage. The meter can be filled quicker by timing precise blocks, which will also leave the enemy vulnerable to a counterattack. The meter drains slightly after every attack Gladiolus performs, and will automatically begin to drain over time during battles. Gladiolus can hold his block for a limited time, as measured by the bar below his health. If the bar empties, he will become vulnerable. Certain enemies can also break through Gladiolus's block with strong attacks.

Gladiolus's "valor" gauge can be built up by chaining regular attacks. Once full, a special Glaive Art attack can be performed. The gauge can be filled multiple times and each full gauge will unlock a more powerful Glaive Art.

Glaive Arts
Earthshatter Razor's Edge Tempest Maelstrom Dual Master

In certain areas, Gladiolus can use stone pillars as weapons.