Best Octopath Traveler 2 Characters to Start With

Just like its predecessor, Octopath Traveler 2 features eight protagonists that you can start your journey with. They all have unique backstories and goals to pursue, and you’ll ultimately go through all of their stories as you play through the game, but picking your main character is crucial. If you need help deciding which character to start with in Octopath Traveler 2, here’s what you need to know.

First off, do note that whichever character you pick first in Octopath Traveler 2 will be your party leader. You will not be able to swap them out of your party until you’ve completed their full story, so keep that in mind.

With all that out of the way, listed below are the best characters you should start with in Octopath Traveler 2, ranked from best to worst.

Best Starting Characters in Octopath Traveler 2, Ranked

1. Osvald

Osvald is easily the best character to start with in Octopath Traveler 2, for two reasons: Analyze, and insane AoE spells. He starts with the Scholar job, and while his physical damage output will feel weak at first, he more than makes up for that shortfall with his ability to hit entire groups of enemies at once with his powerful spells.

In addition to that, the Scholar also starts with the innate ability to immediately identify an enemy’s weakness when you encounter them in battle. This will make your life so much easier as you’re traveling around the world, so yeah, pick Osvald if you wanna start on easy mode.

2. Temenos

Temenos is another solid choice as your first pick in Octopath Traveler 2. As a Cleric, he gives you access to a group heal, as well as single-target and AoE light-based spells. His light magic isn’t quite as powerful as Osvald’s, and again, his physical damage output will be lackluster at first, but considering the fact that you can never go wrong with a healer in your party, Temenos is a great pick.

3. Partitio

Partitio is shaping up to be one of the more broken characters in the game, and that’s really not surprising, especially when you look at how insane the Merchant job was in the first entry. Still, it’ll be a while before you can really make full use of his potential.

Partitio starts with a spear and axe, making him a pretty decent physical attacker in the early hours. Not only that, he also has the ability to buy items off of people for a lower price, allowing you to save tons of money in the process.

4. Ochette

Ochette is a fun one, and a great pick if you want a strong physical attacker to start with, but are finding Hikari to be a bit bland for your tastes. As the Hunter of Octopath Traveler 2, Ochette has the ability to capture beasts.

It’s worth noting that the Hunter has gotten a nice upgrade in this game, and beast uses are now unlimited. You no longer have to worry about recapturing beasts or saving them for boss battles, and when you take into account the fact that you can catch Caits, Ochette is a great long-term pick.

5. Hikari

Hikari is the ultimate JRPG protagonist. He’s a very middle-of-the-road option, but if you want a classic “go on a journey and save the world” story, pick Hikari. His story literally revolves around recruiting allies to take back his kingdom, and he also starts with a sword and spear. He’s probably the strongest physical attacker in the game, so you can’t go wrong with him.

6. Castti

Castti is another classic JRPG protagonist who starts her story off with amnesia, making her another easy pick if you want a more immersive start to your Octopath Traveler 2 journey. That being said, while she is a decent character, she doesn’t really bring anything new to the table that the others haven’t already covered.

As an Apothecary, she can mix ingredients to heal and buff the party, and she also starts as a decent physical attacker with the axe. We’re not saying she’s a bad choice, but there’s no reason to pick Castti unless you really like the Apothecary aesthetic, or you’re really drawn to her story.

7. Throné

Throné is awesome, don’t get me wrong. She was my personal first pick in Octopath Traveler 2, but truthfully, she doesn’t bring much to the table either. Starting with the sword and dagger is nice, but her physical damage output isn’t outstanding. Not to mention the fact that there are no longer purple chests in this game, and Throné’s stock as a Thief has drastically fallen.

8. Agnea

Finally, we have Agnea. Look, I get it. Bewildering Grace is fun, and gives you the potential to completely break the game with oodles of experience and JP, but just like in the first game, the Dancer job is probably one of, if not the worst jobs to start with. This is coming from someone who picked Primrose as her main character in Octopath Traveler: don’t start with Agnea in Octopath Traveler 2.

The Dancer is meant to buff the party, and Agnea only has access to the dagger weapon type, making her the weakest character to begin your journey with.

At the end of the day, it doesn’t actually matter which character you start with. You’ll recruit everyone eventually, and with all the secondary jobs to play around with, you’ll be able to put together a strong party no matter what. However, if you really want the smoothest possible start to the game, then we’d definitely recommend checking out Osvald or Temenos.

Hopefully that answers your question of which character you should choose first in Octopath Traveler 2. Be sure to search for Twinfinite for more tips and information on the game.