Chained Echoes: SP Points Explained

In the age of open-world titans and real-time action combat — where even JRPG classics like "Final Fantasy" are more focused on fast paced action — "Chained Echoes" is a hidden gem almost tailor-made for avid fans of the classic JRPG. Judging from the rave reviews on its Steam page, it seems to get the nostalgic formula just right with gorgeous neo-retro pixel art, an engrossing story, a streamlined combat system, and of course, a slightly peculiar progression system that makes character-building all the more compelling. 

It takes the cue from the classic JRPGs it takes inspiration from, of course — where games "Final Fantasy Tactics" had Clan Points and Ability Points to allocate separate from the traditional EXP, "Chained Echoes" operates on a system of Grimoire Shards and Skill Points, abbreviated to SP in-game. Those unfamiliar with unconventional skill-leveling systems might have a little trouble finding their way around how to utilize SP effectively: Here's a rundown on what SP is and how to use it in "Chained Echoes."

In fairness, even tactical JRPG veterans might have a hard time understanding how character progression works in "Chained Echoes." At first glance, there's no traditional level system at all, and characters are improved via unlocking skills with GS and then improving them with SP (via Gamer Journalist) — or, in Tomke's case, canning enemies like the Titan Elemental to learn its skills. Keeping skills equipped while going into battle will automatically award SP, so in practice, it's your characters' skills that are being leveled, not the characters themselves.

Another thing to note is that, while all your equipped skills receive SP from a successful battle, so do your characters — over time, characters will build up a personal pool of SP that can then be manually allocated to skills in the skill menu. The catch is that you have to have the entirety of the amount of SP a skill needs to level up, or you won't be able to apply it at all. For example, if a skill needs 100 more SP in order to level up and you only have 99, you still won't be able to invest the extra SP unless you gain at least one more from battle (via VoxelSmash). But, that doesn't mean you should be hoarding your SP reserves forever. Each character's personal SP pool caps out at 999, so be sure to spend them when you're reaching the higher end of the limit.