Master prowess to deliver flurries of powerful close-combat strikes!
Tutorial Description
The Pugilist is a Basic Job in Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin, and is available in the earliest stages in the game as well as the first job available to Ash at the start of the game. Leveling this job is required to unlock the Monk and Thief jobs.
Pugilist serves as an introduction to the Knuckles, close-quarters striking weapons used fit for dealing break damage and landing critical hits. They will increase what is called a Boost Level upon delivering hits, which increases the general damage dealt and break damage dealt the higher the level, along with providing different combo enders at the end of a normal attack combo. To keep up with its speedy playstyle, the job grants passives such as increased MP recovery via normal attacks, greater ability damage, and faster break gauge recovery speed.
[Attack Type: Strike] [Stat Bonus: Agility] Deliver a weighty striking blow. Hold to continue the assault, slowly increasing the number of attacks made.
[Any Link] Can be set to any link ability slot.
The Pugilist's Job Action is Explosive Fist, a heavy hit that advances toward the opponent and continues with a speedy barrage of blows as long as you hold that lasts until the player runs out of MP. This ability is good for increasing the player's Boost Level and in certain cases it can aid in enemy status accumulation.
Temporarily reduces the break cost of a successful soul shield and increases MP restored.
The Pugilist obtains the Counter support ability which improves your soul shielding by spending less Break upon a successful soul shield and improving the MP recovered thereof. This ability is great for defending yourself and retaliating in quick succession without using as many resources. It becomes very beneficial at later levels when break recovery becomes a greater issue and soul shielding much more costly.
Combo Abilities[]
Ability
Type
Job Points
MP Cost
Required Ability to Unlock
Description
Movie
Aerial Hook
Knuckles Combo
5
100
Normal Attack MP Recovery +3.5%
[Attack Type: Strike] [Stat Bonus: Agility] Leap into the air to unleash two consecutive kicks that deal striking damage and knock enemies back.
Partial unlock for the Monk Job. Also requires a similar ability in the Lancer Job Tree.
New Job: Thief
Job Unlock
Pugilist Affinity +25%
Partial unlock for the Thief Job. Also requires a similar ability in the pugilist Job Tree.
New Class: Martial Master
Class Unlock
All Pugilist tree abilities
Unlocks the Evocation Class for Pugilist, Martial Master. Only available in the Trials of the Dragon King DLC.
New Class: Iron Fist Champion
Class Unlock
All Pugilist tree abilities
Unlocks the Ultima Class for Pugilist, Iron Fist Champion. Only available in the Trials of the Dragon King DLC.
Class Trees[]
Introduced in the Trials of the Dragon King DLC, These classes are unlocked after visiting Bahamut's Cave and completing the "A Token of Courage and Strength" conversation with Bahamut and the abilities thereof can be bought by using Rat Tails which are accumulated by completing missions on the Bahamut difficulty onward and purchasing them from the Bahamut Exchange Shop via Dragon Treasures:
Martial Master[]
Ability
Type
Required Ability to Unlock
Description
Movie
Phasing Palm
Job Action
All Pugilist tree abilities
Explosive Fist + [Class Change Effect: Evocation] Increases duration of buffs on self every time an attack hits.
Decreases damage taken while the ability is active.
HP +200
Passive
12
Status Ailment Resistance +18.0%
Increases HP by 200.
Pugilist Master Points +3
Passive
17
HP +200
Increases pugilist master points acquired.
Iron Fist Champion[]
Ability
Type
Required Ability to Unlock
Description
Movie
Bloodpunch
Job Action
All Pugilist tree abilities
Explosive Fist + [Class Change Effect: Ultima] Enemies broken or brought to 0 HP by this attack will be finished with a soul burst. Releasing will increase its damage based on your prowess.
Most weapons and items of clothing have a certain percentage of Job Affinity for a certain job. By combining them together and raising this percentage, the character may not only gain extra EXP to that Job, but also unlock abilities and bonuses to their stats. The bonuses for the Pugilist Job Affinity are:
Name
Job Ability Percentages
Description
Pugilist's Wisdom I
20%
Increases the corresponding stat(s). Agility+1
Pugilist's Wisdom II
30%
Increases the corresponding stat(s). Strength+1 Agility+1
Strike Attack Bonus I
50%
Increases strike break damage dealt by 5.9%
Pugilist's Wisdom III
80%
Increases the corresponding stat(s). HP+25 Stamina+2 Agility+2
Strike Attack Bonus II
120%
Increases strike break damage dealt by 9.8%
Pugilist's Wisdom IV
160%
Increases the corresponding stat(s). HP+50 Strength+1 Stamina+2 Agility+3
Brawler's Soul
250%
Knuckles: Reduces the enemy's max break gauge when hitting with a strong attack (Hold ).
Grappling Master
400%
Knuckles: Enables the use of all weapon abilities for the knuckles and increases damage dealt with knuckles combo abilities.Including Explosive Fist
Reduces the MP cost of knuckles combo abilities while knuckles are equipped. Also enhances the effects of Pugilist's Wisdom.
Pugilist's Essence
800%
Enhances the effects of Pugilist's Wisdom, and also boosts stats based on your affinity.
Gameplay[]
Pugilist is a close-quarters Speed-type job centered around the use of knuckles for hand-to-hand combat with great speed to quickly stagger and break enemies. While it has a good balance of offensive and defensive play, its main selling point is the barrage of blows it lands with high agility and MP Recovery. This jobs is a good choice for those who enjoy dodging attacks and going in for the kill at the right time and can be a great DPS job for parties within the earlier levels of the game.
Strengths[]
Good overall balance between offense and defense, possessing abilities scaling from Agility and Stamina.
One of the best basic jobs for breaking enemies and clearing break gauges.
Easy to build around, whether it be for extending buffs with the Martial Master or landing easier kills with the Iron Fist Champion
Weaknesses[]
Very vulnerable to enemy attacks with Explosive Fist, as it cause the character to enter a stationary stance.
Rather unspecialized. Can be replaced with the Thief, Monk, or Assassin.
Stats[]
This job gives a stat bonus to Agility, giving the character more break damage upon landing a critical hit.
Hunter is an excellent support job for any physical job, especially those that deal in Agility. Analyze is helpful to bolster your attacks with the Pugilist's excellent damage speed with the addition of bypassing resistances. This can also aid in MP management should the Pugilist have the Lancet support ability at the ready.
Similar to Hunter, Tyrant is a good support job for any physical job, especially those that deal in Intellect. The Tyrant's Enchantments help to add elemental attributes to your attacks for the Pugilist's less than stellar damage output by easily taking advantage of elemental weaknesses and gain MP.
Monk probably remains the most popular support job for Pugilists at any level. The Monk's stats compliment Pugilists well and provide a moderate boost in total HP and means of quick attacks. Also, the Monk's Focus ability is useful for total damage output and damage mitigation.
[Attack Type: Strike] [Stat Bonus: Stamina] Counter any incoming attacks on activation, kicking the attacker into the air and then throwing them toward the ground. *(Does not throw larger enemies and bosses.)
Strike]
Agility]
to continue the assault, slowly increasing the number of attacks made.
> 
Stamina]
+ 
Slash]
