FF7 Rebirth: How to Pressure and Stagger enemies

The best ways to quickly Pressure and Stagger enemies to complete objectives in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth

Contents

1. How to Pressure enemies – FF7 Rebirth
2. How to Stagger enemies – FF7 Rebirth

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth has a rich action-RPG combat system with seven different gameplay styles across its different characters. Each and every character has a totally unique way of fighting – an impressive feat for a game that’s already massive – but engaging with an enemy will usually look the same no matter who you play.

The basic combat loop involves pressuring an enemy, which puts them on the back foot, and then staggering the enemy, which temporarily stuns it and increases the damage you do to it. No matter what you’re fighting against, pressuring and stunning enemies is always the best way to approach a combat encounter, so getting the hang of it early is a great idea.

Not every enemy is pressured and staggered in the same way, though, so this guide will tell you how to pressure and stagger enemies in FF7 Rebirth.

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How to Pressure enemies – FF7 Rebirth

Pressuring is a status affliction that can be applied to enemies in combat that increases the speed at which stagger builds. What pressures an enemy is different for each enemy you encounter, but some common ways to pressure an enemy include hitting it with its elemental weakness, guarding its attacks, and dodging its abilities.

Use Assess on every enemy you see to find out how to pressure it / Square Enix

Thankfully, there is a very simple way to figure out how to pressure enemies, and that’s by scanning them with the Assess materia. Using Assess on an enemy will not only tell you its weaknesses, but exactly how to pressure an enemy. Some of these methods are a bit complex and aren’t immediately obvious, so scanning them with Assess is absolutely necessary to make sure you’re fighting as effectively as possible.

How to Stagger enemies – FF7 Rebirth

Once you’ve pressured an enemy, the next step is staggering them. Staggering an enemy knocks them off their feet, and lets you deal huge amounts of damage to them without the fear of taking any damage in return. Staggering an enemy is absolutely crucial, especially in difficult boss fights.

Staggering an enemy lets you deal extra damage / Square Enix

Thankfully, staggering an enemy is fairly easy. Once you’ve got them pressured, you’ll want to deal as much damage as you can without interruption. Hitting a pressured enemy with elemental weaknesses will increase the stagger rate, as will anything else that would normally pressure an enemy. Some abilities and skills also increase the stagger, such as the Focused Thrust ability on Cloud’s Buster Sword. Once you fill the stagger gauge, the enemy will be knocked to the ground and you’ll be able to go all out.

You can also increase the damage multiplier on a staggered enemy with some abilities, like Tifa’s unique character ability.

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