Action Time Battle

The Action Time (AT) Battle (ATバトル), also known as Command Battle in Trails through Daybreak, is the traditional battle system in Trails games, used since Trails in the Sky FC.

Description

Action Time Battles take place turn-based on a grid. The units' turn order is shown by a tracker called the AT Bar. During the player character's turn, the player can attack, move, use items and a number of other actions introduced in subsequent refinements.

In addition to normal attacks, each character also has other methods available for action: moving without attacking, Arts, Crafts and S-Crafts, and using items. Arts are magic spells costing Energy Points (EP) that characters can use to attack opponents or support teammates but must take an additional turn to cast. Crafts are character-specific abilities costing Craft Points (CP) that can be similar to Arts but don't need an additional turn. S-Crafts are special Crafts that can be performed once a character has over 100 CP but completely deplete the CP gauge upon use. S-Breaks are actions which allow pre-set S-Crafts to be unleashed immediately, moving the character to the top of the AT Bar.

AT Bar and AT Bonuses

See Action Time Battle

Battle order bonuses or AT bonuses are a feature of the Action Time Battle system of the Trails series. The system features a list on the left side of the screen, known as the AT Bar showing the order of turns that will occur next, with some turns having a bonus attached to them. The bonus comes into effect for the unit who takes the turn the bonus is attached to.

Players can take advantage of the bonuses by using the fact that arts take an additional turn to cast, by using S-Breaks at the desired time (if an S-Craft is ready), and by using the effects of various arts and crafts to delay or advance units into the desired positions.

List of battle order bonuses

• Sky FC and SC
• Sky the 3rd
• Zero and Azure
• Cold Steel I and II
• Cold Steel III and IV, Reverie
• Daybreak I and II
• Akatsuki

Sky FC and SC

Icon	Activation Banner	Effect
		Unit recovers 10%/50% of their max HP.
		Unit recovers 10%/50% of their max EP.
		Unit recovers 10/50 CP.
		Unit's STR or ATS increased by 10%/50% when calculating damage.
		Damage or HP/EP restoration done by unit increased by 50%.
		Unit makes targets drop sepith for each hit their animation does. Sepith dropped depends on the sepith the target would drop (all types for player characters).

Sky the 3rd

Icon	Activation Banner	Effect
		Unit recovers 10%/50% of their max HP.
		Unit recovers 10%/50% of their max EP.
		Unit recovers 10/50 CP.
		Unit's STR or ATS increased by 10%/50% when calculating damage.
		Damage or HP/EP restoration done by unit increased by 50%.
		Unit makes targets drop sepith for each hit their animation does. Sepith dropped depends on the sepith the target would drop (all types for player characters).
		Unit inflicts Deathblow on any attack.
		Unit inflicts no damage.
		Unit immediately takes a second turn afterwards.
		Unit inflicts Vanish on any attack.
		Enemies defeated in this turn are guaranteed to drop an item.

Zero and Azure

Icon	Activation Banner	Effect
		Unit recovers 10%/50% of their max HP.
		Unit recovers 10%/50% of their max EP.
		Unit recovers 10/50 CP.
		Damage or HP/EP restoration done by unit increased by 50%.
		Unit makes targets drop sepith for each hit their animation does. Sepith dropped depends on the sepith the target would drop (all types for player characters).
		Unit immediately takes a second turn afterwards.
		All active units attack enemies in a large radius around the target, with the same mechanics as a Chain Craft. For enemy units, every active enemy unit has their delay reduced to 0.
Additional bonuses only when higher elements are active
		Unit inflicts Deathblow on any attack.
		Unit inflicts no damage.
		Unit inflicts Vanish for 3 turns on any attack.

Cold Steel I and II

Icon	Activation Banner	Effect
		Unit recovers 10%/50% of their max HP.
		Unit recovers 10%/50% of their max EP.
		Unit recovers 10/50 CP.
		Damage or HP/EP restoration done by unit increased by 50%. If an attack can unbalance an enemy it will always do so.
		Unit makes targets drop sepith for each hit their animation does. Sepith dropped depends on the sepith the target would drop (all types for player characters).
		Unit can cast an art instantly and with no EP cost.
Additional bonuses only when higher elements are active
(EN) (JA)		Unit inflicts a random abnormal status on any attack.
		Unit inflicts Deathblow on any attack.
		Unit inflicts Vanish on any attack.
		Unit recovers 100 CP.
		Unit loses all CP.

Cold Steel III and IV, Reverie

Icon	Activation Banner	Effect
		Unit recovers 10%/30%/50% of their max HP.
		Unit recovers 10%/30%/50% of their max EP.
		Unit recovers 10/30/50/100 CP.
		Party recovers 1/3/5 BP.
		Damage or HP/EP restoration done by unit increased by 50%. If an attack can unbalance an enemy it will always do so.
		Any damage inflicted instantly breaks targets.
		Unit makes targets drop sepith for each hit their animation does. Sepith dropped depends on the sepith the target would drop (all types for player characters).
		Unit can cast an art instantly and with no EP cost.
		Unit can use a craft instantly and with no CP cost (including S-Crafts).
		A Brave Order can be issued with no BP cost.
Additional bonuses only when higher elements are active
		Unit inflicts a random abnormal status on any attack.
		Unit inflicts Deathblow on any attack.
		Unit inflicts Vanish on any attack.
		Unit recovers 200 CP.
		Unit loses all CP.

Akatsuki

	Activation	Name	Effect
		HP Heal	HP 10% or 50% recovery
		EP Heal	EP 10% or 50% recovery
		CP Up	Increase CP by 10 or 50
		Rush	Able to act a second consecutive time
		Deathblow	Attacks and crafts become deathblows (unless target is immune)
		Critical	Attack, magic, or recovery effects 1.5×
		Guard	Attacks are always guarded
		Sepith Up	Steal Sepith from target

Trivia

• Despite the name, this is technically a Conditional Turn Based battle system (CTB), not an actual Active Time battle system (ATB).
  • An actual ATB is a system where each character has a "cooldown bar" which empties in real time after a character has acted: after it empties, said character can act again. In an ATB, a character can be attacked during their turn (when their action menu is displaying) and two characters' turns can happen one right after the other if both cooldown bars are empty.
  • In a CTB, on the other hand, turn order does not rely on real time. The player can also see the icons of future turns, change their order and act accordingly.