The Persona series has held on as one of the more popular modern JRPG series for a while now, but with the release of Persona 5, the franchise reached new audiences. Plenty of new fans flooded in, and, with Persona 5 making novel gameplay changes, it seems like now is the perfect time to get into the series.
One of the most important aspects of the game is fusing personas to bring with you in battle. Good players will have a diverse roster of personas ready for any situation. There are plenty you can go for, but only a select few that are really good in terms of usability. Here they are.
Updated February 27, 2022 by Jerrad Wyche: Persona 5 Royal is considered by many to arguably be the pinnacle of the series, and with the post-launch DLC that has come out, fans can't get enough. As development efforts likely turn to Persona 6, both Nintendo Switch and Xbox Series owners are still holding out hope that Persona 5 Royal will one day come to their platforms. Whether or not that happens, there are still plenty of new things to learn and experience with the game, on the platforms on which it currently resides.
20 Kaguya
The great thing about Kaguya, and why it's a solid persona is due to how accessible and effective it is. It can dole out an incredible amount of damage to its opponents, which is always useful and needs little further explanation. Its abilities also cost a low amount of SP but as previously mentioned deal good damage which makes them a great return on investment. Having what many consider to be the strongest magical persona is a worthy addition to any team.
19 Messiah
Despite being reminiscent of a Dark Souls boss or something you'd see in the Berserk manga, the persona known as Messiah is rather helpful. As a member of the Judge Arcana group of personas, it was included as part of free DLC for Persona 5 Royal. Its healing abilities are invaluable when it comes to its usefulness in a support role. Messiah's passive recovers all of the player's HP, and is called Enduring Soul. Support-type personas may not be the most exciting, but they can mean the difference between success and failure.
18 Odin
Versatility can often be a factor that sets personas apart from one another, and with Odin, there's a host of things it does. Not only does it reflect both bless and curse damage, but it blocks electricity and can also drain wind. With the use of both concentrate and electric amp Odin can multiply its electric damage output by 3.75 times its base. It also happens to be the single wielder of two extremely powerful electric moves, those being Wild Thunder and Thunder Reign.
17 Lucifer
If it wasn't for the existence of Satanael, most people would consider Lucifer to be the greatest Almighty Persona in existence. Taking into account that Lucifer can use Morning Star, the most effective Almighty spell in Persona 5, that alone makes it viable. Its natural trait reduces its SP consumption, meaning its abilities are much cheaper and likely a better investment per use when compared to most other personas. It also happens to sport one of the most metal designs in the entire game.
16 Izanagi
A skill often overlooked when it comes to personas is how good they are when it comes to fighting bosses. With Izanagi, the combination of a Charge skill card and its Cross Slash ability give it the damage output and effectiveness to label it as a boss killer persona. Its strength comes from being able to single target an opponent, so when it's just one enemy you're trying to deal with, that's when Izanagi can truly shine as a persona.
15 Shiki-Ouji
Shiki-Ouji is a very good persona to have for the earlier stages of the game. You can fuse it at level 21, and it’ll certainly get you through some tough battles as you progress through the first several weeks.
Shiki-Ouji is a good persona to have early on for a few reasons; he blocks gun, physical, and curse attacks, which can come in handy when you least expect it. What’s more is that his weakness, nuclear, is something you’re not likely to get hit with at that point in the game.
14 Cybele
Cybele is an incredibly powerful persona that’s good to have on hand at all times. Like Shiki-Ouji, she’s weak to nuclear attacks. And, while they’re a bit more common later on in the game, you should have a more diverse party so you can choose your battles more carefully.
Cybele is great for players who want to assume the role of healer. She has various healing and revival moves that will more often than not save your party from some pretty inconvenient attacks.
13 Abaddon
With one of the highest base Endurance stats in the game paired with physical, gun, and Curse absorption, Abaddon stands out as one of the very best defensive personas around. Abaddon is able to shut down a ton of enemies with just its absorptions alone and can retaliate with good damage as well.
Its strength stat may not be the highest when compared to other later game personas, but it still gets the job done. Gigantomachia and Megaton Raid are going to be its most used attacks, and giving it attack-boosting spells will turn it into quite a heavy hitter.
12 Black Frost
The evil version of Atlus’ mascot character Jack Frost, Black Frost is always a useful persona to fuse, regardless of which game you’re talking about. One of the more powerful personas of the Fool Arcana, you’ll have to wait a while before you can get your hands on him.
He doesn’t have any weaknesses, which is a great start. Plus, he reflects Fire and Curse, absorbs Ice, and blocks nuclear. Get Ice Amp and Freeze Boost on him and you’re set.
11 Sandalphon
This robotic, angelic deity is the ultimate persona of the Moon Arcana and functions as an amazing healer and attacker. It learns Samarecarm and Amrita Shower to revive allies to full health and cure any status ailment, and learns some of the strongest Bless, Almighty, and physical attacks.
Sandalphon also has no weaknesses whatsoever, resisting both physical and gun, repelling Bless, and Nullifying Curse. These attributes make it function as both a great defensive persona and one with the potential to deal massive damage, especially when given abilities like Charge or Concentrate.
10 Alice
Though she may not look like it, Alice is actually a pretty tough customer. One of the strongest personas of the Death Arcana, she’ll come in handy plenty if you choose to fuse her.
Though weak to Bless moves, she’s resistant to psychic and nuclear moves, which is certainly helpful. Alice is best used for insta-kill moves and boasts a pretty high magic stat that you can boost with Concentrate whenever you feel it’s necessary.
9 Vishnu
Another powerful member of the Fool Arcana, Vishnu is a persona you’ll definitely want for the late game. There are ways around his weakness to fire, and the pros certainly outweigh the cons here. The best way to use Vishnu is to load him up with Magarudyne, Wind Amp, and Repel Fire. That way you can focus on what he’s best at while making up for his weaknesses.
8 Trumpeter
A powerful member of the Judgement Arcana, Trumpeter has been a go-to persona for a while now. Looking back at Persona 3 onwards, most go for this fusion once it’s made available. With no weaknesses and the ability to reflect electric and bless attacks, you can see why this is.
Trumpeter has some really useful auto moves, namely Life Aid, which recovers 85 HP and SP after battle. He’s also great for debuffing and will end up supporting your party more than you think.
7 Beelzebub
Beelzebub is the ultimate form of the Devil Arcana and is a staple in most Shin Megami Tensei and Persona games. Great things are expected from ultimate personas, and Beelzebub doesn't disappoint.
It has one of the highest base Magic stats of any Persona in the game at 61, and has attacks such as Maeigaon and Megidolaon to put it to good use. Not only this, but it learns Curse Amp to further strengthen its attacking power with Curse spells, and Concentrate to amplify any magical attack by 2.5x damage.
6 Michael
Michael is hands-down one of the best personas you can get in the game. It’ll take some level grinding and some work put towards getting him, but, in the end, you’ll be better off during the last couple boss fights with him.
Michael isn’t weak to anything and can block curse while resisting gun attacks. He has some insanely powerful attacks as well, with moves like Cosmic Flare, Megidolaon, and Divined Judgement being able to mess opponents up real good. The only major downside is, as previously mentioned, you won't be getting your hands on him until you're a significant way through the game.
5 Fafnir
Fafnir makes its return into Persona 5 for the first time in the series since Persona 2, and it has some pretty wicked potential as a late-game persona. Starting with its resistances, it absorbs Fire and Nuclear, repels physical and gun, and resists Electric. That's half of the attacking types in the entire game.
Its stats are also excellent, with a base 61 Strength stat and 55 Magic stat to utilize moves like Gigantomachia and Cosmic Flare. It also learns Debilitate and Nuke Amp, making it even scarier for any enemy standing in its way.
4 Satan
In P5, Satan is the ultimate persona of the Judgement Arcana. You can only get him once the Judgement Arcana is completed, but boy is it worth the effort.
Again, there are no weaknesses here, so there's nothing at all to worry about. Satan has some wicked auto moves and some incredibly powerful attacks that will make boss fights way easier than they should be. There should be no doubt in your mind about fusing this persona.
3 Maria
Maria is an exclusive persona to Persona 5 Royal and doesn't disappoint as the ultimate persona of the Faith Arcana. Maria is one of the last personas to acquire in the game, as her base level is 93, tied for second with Lucifer and just behind Satanael at level 95.
She is, without a doubt, the best healer in the entire game, with Saintly Devotion fully healing and reviving all party members, and Invigorate 3, Saintly Words, and Saintly Embrace to constantly restore its own HP and SP.
2 Yoshitsune
Yoshitsune is an advanced fusion in the game. The recipe for him is only unlocked once Rank 5 of the Strength confidant is completed. It’s a pretty solid trade-off, as it’ll become much more useful to you later on in the game.
A good chunk of his moves are auto, which will undoubtedly help you out during battle. Getting in Ziodyne and Elec Amp will turn him into a pretty solid killing machine and should help take out a good deal of you opponents.
1 Satanael
This next one is kind of the best persona in the game by default. Satanael is the ultimate persona of the protagonist and is given to you at the very end of the game. You can fuse him yourself, but only in NG+.
Doing so isn’t easy, as you’ll need a number of high-level personas to fuse, and you'll have to be at level 95 as well. But all that effort is worth it, as he’ll end up making battles a little too easy for players.