Xenoblade Chronicles 3 has job classes. A lot of job classes. Some are fairly broad in their gameplay application. Others are fairly specialized. And then there's the Signifer, Fiona's Unique Class.
The Signifer is the specialist among specialists. The class revolves completely around the prospect of buffs, those helpful status effects that keep your party hale and hearty. Signifers wield spears, but their offensive output is extremely limited. It's more for show, really. And "pure healing" — a focus on keeping the team's HP topped off at all times — isn't the big picture here.
Even so, Signifers can be terrific in the right sets of circumstances — and Fiona's cool, too. Let's unlock them!
What Is The Signifer Class?
Think of it this way. If the classical fantasy archetypal healing class is someone whose magic directly restores the target's pool of health (like a sort of sentient potion doing sentient potion things, if you will), then the Signifer is more of a terrific energy drink to chug throughout lengthy encounters.
By buffing the party with extra tools to obliterate the enemy, the Signifer merrily speeds things along in a way that is uniquely theirs. The ideal setup, then, is to have a pair of Attackers and a pair of Defenders, as per normal recommendation, and then something like a War Medic for area-wide heals. While they're busy with restorative stuff, the Signifer makes the fighters all the mightier.
Of course, the alternative is to have Fiona active as your seventh party member and rely on her to cover that role while you, perhaps, add a third Attacker. If raw damage threshold is the most candid means by which to quickly dispose of powerful adversaries, Signifer Arts like Illuminate are your secret second weapon.
How To Unlock The Signifer Class
Fiona and the Signifer belong to the group of Heroes and Unique Classes that are not automatically unlocked as players progress through Xenoblade Chronicles 3's epic storyline. That makes the Agnusi gal and her trusty spear purely optional. But the more's the merrier, right? Ouroboros needs as many allies as possible. Especially when they're useful.
The earliest you can unlock Fiona is during Chapter Five, after the gang's gained control of the Boundary. You'll still have plenty of gameplay to tackle afterward, even if you're not terribly far from what we'd classify as the start of Xenoblade Chronicles 3's third act.
All right, so by now you must be acquainted with the question mark symbols that pop up on regional maps periodically. It's never a bad idea to investigate them whenever possible, and in this particular case the mark you want to check out is at Conchrock Beach.
Fiona's recruitment quest, 'Transparent Dream', fires off immediately after the party rescues her at the beach. Battling a Kevesi strike team will only be the start of everyone's problems, but when it's time for a meeting to discuss the next course of action, we recommend listening to everything here rather than skipping for some additional world lore.
After the situation's been discussed, keep tabs on your quest markers to talk to the necessary NPCs, Nico and Shu. at which point 'Colony Mu Investigation' kicks off with the ultimate goal of fighting Colony Mu's ruler, the Consul.
As with other instances, like Teach and Zeon, unlocking Fiona and Signifer boils down to liberating Colony Mu. With Moebius I's rule at an end, the people of Mu can move on with their lives, and Noah and Mio's team have one more powerful ally.