How to get the Battle-Tested Blade in Octopath Traveler 2

Battle-tested, mother approved

The Battle-Tested Blade is arguably the best sword in Octopath Traveler 2. While a few blades are in contention for that title, the Battle-Tested Blade has a whopping 400 Phys. Atk., 120 Critical, and a perk that raises the potency of physical skills. The only swords to reach those heights are the Serpent Blade (which gives 420 Phys. Atk at the cost of accuracy and critical) and the Conqueror’s Sword (which requires foes to be broken to achieve its max potential).

Fortunately, the Battle-Tested Blade isn’t necessarily difficult to get. In order to unlock this ultimate sword, you need to complete chapter five of Hikari’s story. You’ll also need to bring a character who can obtain items from NPCs. Unless your party is overleveled, I strongly recommend using Partitio to get the Battle-Tested Blade. With that established, here’s what you need to do.

Where to find the Battle-Tested Blade in Octopath Traveler 2

With the prerequisites above taken care of, head to Crackridge Harbor: Anchorage. To get there quickly, warp to Cropdale and travel east through the Eastern Cropdale Trail. Any battles along this route should barely make a dent in you at this stage. Once you arrive in Crackridge Harbor, continue moving east. Look for an offshoot that leads south when you reach the first turn in the road. Climb up the small staircase and you’ll see Bandelam the Reaper moping by himself, as one does (pictured at the top of this article).

From here, all your usual Path Actions are available to use on Bandelam. However, what you’re really here for are his items, which include the Giant’s Shield and the Battle-Tested Blade. As mentioned above, Partitio is your most straightforward path to grabbing the weapon. You should have a decent chunk of change to spend on a powerful sword, especially if Partitio recruits an NPC that gives item discounts. You can use Path Actions like Mug and Steal here, but a high-level NPC like Bandelam is no joke to contend with.

That’s honestly all there is to getting the Battle-Tested Blade. Unless, of course, you want multiple copies of it.

Can you farm the Battle-Tested Blade in Octopath Traveler 2?

You can technically obtain as many copies of the Battle-Tested Blade as you’d like in Octopath Traveler 2, but whether it’s worth the effort is up to you. If this pursuit interests you, head to Tropu’hapu. On the docks on the west side of town, you’ll find an NPC with the unremarkable title of “Young Man.” Despite outward appearances, the man has a maximum strength rating if challenged or provoked. This is who you need to farm for more Battle-Tested Blades.

Obviously, either Hikari or Ochette must be sufficiently powered up to take down the Young Man. He has six shield points and is weak to Spears, Axes, Thunder, and Light. Even if you defeat the Young Man, the Battle-Tested Blade is far from a guaranteed drop. On the contrary, the Battle-Tested Weapon has an estimated 2% drop rate. These odds are incredibly low, and in truth, you really don’t need more than one Battle-Tested Blade. No content in the game requires this much grinding, including the secret superboss. The option is here if you want it, but the guaranteed weapon from Bandelam should do the trick for most players.