Buddies level up with berries and Zenny from the Adventurer menu. At Lv. 20 they hit a level cap, and each Ascension with Acorns and Zenny raises the cap by 10. This guide covers the costs, the Ecological Rank requirements, Buddy skills and Core Passive Training.
How to Level Up Buddies
Open the Buddy tab in the Adventurer menu
Open the Adventurer menu and select the Buddy tab (the pawprint icon). Pick the Buddy you want to level up and press Train.
Feed berries and pay Zenny
On the Upgrade tab, choose the berries to use and press Upgrade. Berries give the Buddy EXP, and feeding berries also costs Zenny. The Zenny cost depends on the Buddy's current level.
| Berry | EXP |
|---|---|
| Dewberry (Fine) | 100 EXP |
| Primeberry (Rare) | 500 EXP |
| Deluxeberry (Epic) | 2,000 EXP |
| Level | EXP and Zenny |
|---|---|
| Lv. 1–20 | 3,200 EXP, 30,000 Zenny |
| Lv. 20–30 | 4,200 EXP, 40,000 Zenny |
| Lv. 30–40 | 8,200 EXP, 80,000 Zenny |
| Lv. 40–50 | 16,100 EXP, 160,000 Zenny |
| Lv. 50 and above | Not yet confirmed |
Leveling up raises both the Buddy's Adventurer Boost and its Stats. Adventurer Boost is the stat bonus the Buddy gives the Adventurer who equips it, and Stats are the Buddy's own attributes. As the Buddy gets stronger, the Adventurer Power of the Adventurer equipping it goes up too.
Buddy Ascension: Level Cap and Benefits
Ascension raises a Buddy's level cap. A Buddy stops leveling at Lv. 20 until you ascend it, and after that it needs another Ascension every 10 levels. The Ascend button only appears once the Buddy reaches its current level cap.
| Level cap | Materials and Zenny |
|---|---|
| Level cap to Lv. 30 | Tasty Acorn x3, 9,000 Zenny |
| Level cap to Lv. 40 | Tasty Acorn x6, 18,000 Zenny |
| Level cap to Lv. 50 | Premium Acorn x6, 54,000 Zenny |
| Level cap to Lv. 60 | Premium Acorn x9, 81,000 Zenny |
| Past Lv. 60 | Not yet confirmed |
Acorns come in three rarities: Tasty Acorn (Fine), Premium Acorn (Rare) and Prized Acorn (Epic).
| Ascension | Ecological Rank |
|---|---|
| Ascension 1 (level cap to Lv. 30) | Ecological Rank 2 |
| Ascension 2 (level cap to Lv. 40) | Ecological Rank 3 |
| Ascension 3 (level cap to Lv. 50) | Ecological Rank 4 |
| Ascension 4 (level cap to Lv. 60) | Ecological Rank 5 |
You cannot ascend Buddies at Ecological Rank 1.
The number after the slash in a Buddy's level (for example Lv. 30/50) is not that Buddy's current level cap. It is the highest level your Ecological Rank currently allows, so it changes as your Ecological Rank goes up.
Each Ascension also strengthens the Buddy's Adventurer Boost and can add a new Adventurer Boost stat. For example, Hoppy's Adventurer Boost starts with only Elemental Attack. Its first Ascension (at Lv. 20, raising the cap to Lv. 30) adds Water at 2.5%, and the second Ascension (cap to Lv. 40) raises it to 5.0%.
On the Buddy screen, the top Adventurer Boost row is the stat the Buddy has from the start, and the rows below it are the stats added by Ascension. Which stat Ascension adds differs from Buddy to Buddy. For Hoppy, it is the Water damage bonus.
Ascension also strengthens the Buddy's Ultimate Skill. Each Buddy has its own Ultimate Skill, so what improves differs from Buddy to Buddy.
The Buddy screen shows six stars, and one lights up with each Ascension. Based on the six stars, Buddies may be able to ascend six times and reach Lv. 80, but Ascensions 5 and 6 and their requirements are not yet confirmed.
Buddy Skills: Ultimate and Passive Skills
Besides Adventurer Boost and Stats, each Buddy has one Ultimate Skill and two Passive Skills. Passive Skills give a continuous effect to the Buddy itself or to the Adventurer it is paired with.
You trigger the Ultimate Skill yourself by pressing the Buddy button on the hunt screen. As covered above, Ascension also strengthens the Ultimate Skill. There is no confirmed way to strengthen Passive Skills yet.
How to Upgrade a Buddy's Core Passive
Each Buddy has its own Core Passive, which gives a continuous effect. Depending on the Buddy, it affects the Adventurer carrying the Buddy, every Adventurer in the squad, or both. Core Passives have more specialized effects than Passive Skills, and you can upgrade them with Training.
Open the Train tab
In the Adventurer menu, select the Buddy tab (the pawprint icon), press Train, then select the Train tab on the left. The Upgrade tab takes you back to leveling up and Ascension.
Spend Buddy Tokens to Train
Press Train to raise the Core Passive by one Tier and strengthen its effect. Going from Tier 0 to Tier 1 takes 1 Buddy Token.
R Buddies use Assault, Support or Disruptor Buddy Tokens, while SR and SSR Buddies need Buddy Tokens for that specific Buddy. You get Buddy Tokens when you obtain a duplicate of a Buddy.
Buddy Upgrade Priorities
Leveling up and Ascension strengthen a Buddy's Adventurer Boost, Stats and Ultimate Skill all at once, so there is no set upgrade order. We recommend leveling up and Training your Buddies as far as your account's progress allows.