The family members of Ni No Kuni 2 are not the ones you met in the first chapter. Now, in the second chapter of the saga, we have the Higgledies taking the place of the family members. The Higgledies in Ni No Kuni 2 help your team by fighting at your side and using offensive and defensive skills automatically and/or when required. In this guide we explain how to get more Higgledies and what they do in combat.
What are Higgledies
Higgledies are small creatures that will help you in combat and as you travel through the game world. From the very beginning of the game you can have them at your disposal, but you can't increase or create new ones until the kingdom is built. If you are not yet able to give them precise orders in combat, you can let the Higgledies act automatically.
Without you doing anything, a Higgledy will be able to save party members, throw green and blue spheres that supply HP and MP respectively, and even protect party members with protective spells. This is all automatic, depending on which Higgledy you have in your group. You can have up to four Higgledies assigned to your group at once and swap them as if they were normal party members.
Each Higgledy has a fixed cost. Most of the Higgledy you find in the early parts of the game will only cost one point, but some of the Higgledies you create or find in the later stages of the game can cost four or more points. So, you can have up to four Higgledys in your group, but their total value must not exceed ten points. This means that if you're using three Higgledies that cost three points each, you won't be able to add others that cost more than one point.
Where to find a Higgledy
You can find a Higgledy by interacting with the Higgledy Stones or in a Higglery once you have built a kingdom. The Higglery is a structure, a kind of workshop, where you can create new creatures and assign them abilities, but until you create your own kingdom you can't do that.
When you come across a Higgledy Stone, you have to offer something in return for the monster to join your party. You will be given a hint about what the Stone wants from you and you will be able to select anything in your inventory that falls into that category.
If you have the item the Higgledy will join, if you don't, you'll have to give it something else. Anyway, you will lose the item you offer to the Stone, but these are usually common items, so not a big loss.
How to use Higgledies
The Higgledies will automatically use their normal attacks and abilities during a fight. All Higgledies have an attack and defense score similar to your normal weapons. Once you have inflicted enough damage to your enemies, a circle will appear around a Higgledy. If you interact with the Higgledy in the middle of the circle (go up and press X), they will use their main advanced skills.
After fighting long enough, Lofty can throw a golden sphere at the character you're controlling. If you touch this orb, your character will be able to absorb certain Higgledies to improve certain abilities. Also, all spells or abilities that normally cost MPs will be unlimited until Lofty's ability ends.
Higgledies have two normal abilities, while the third is their advanced ability. Finally, there's the final ability that allows the character you're controlling to go into a kind of trance state, during which he'll take full advantage of the powers he's given (as we saw with Lofty's Golden Globe). You can scroll through all of these Higgledies abilities by pressing Triangle in the party menu.
Search the skill menu for which type of Higgledy allows you to absorb more. This is one of the most important and effective skills in the game. It can make a big difference during boss battles and other challenging fights.
Higgledy Personality
The Higgledies also have a personality. It is important to balance the personalities of the creatures within the group. You can see what your Higgledy's personality is to the left of their attack and defense stats. If you have a shy Higgledy in your group, try to have at least one more aggressive Higgledy to balance them out. This will allow your Higgledies to do more during the fight. If you have four shy Higgledies in your group, they won't be so active because none of them will take the initiative.
Creation and improvement of Higgledies
Once you can build your kingdom, one of the structures you can do is the Higglery. At the Higglery you can create and improve the Higgledies. To create a Higgledy you will need a variety of materials, many of which you can collect from the shop located in your kingdom.
You can also level the Higgledy currently in your group. This is the only way you will be able to level them, which increases their attack and defense and the effectiveness of both normal and advanced abilities. Higgledies have to eat these materials through the Higglery. By doing this, they will be able to level up.
Ideally you should level up the Higgledies you plan to include in your party. Don't waste material on Higgledies that you'll never get to fight. If you have an abundance of materials you can take your Higgledies to level two or three, but wait until you have a lot of Higgledies to choose from before you spend any more than level three, otherwise when you have a lot of Higgledies you won't have enough materials to level them all. Also make sure you match your Higgledies with the skills of your party members so that you can use their full potential.