In thisA.I. Limitguide, I’m going to share the general idea behind building your character when using the Longsword as your main weapon.
The Longsword inA.I. Limitis a weapon type that offers a good balance between power and speed with its slashes. It’s the best weapon if you’re aiming for a more balanced playstyle rather than going fully offensive.
If you picked the Blader Longsword as your starting weapon, you’ve chosen one of the most reliable Longswords in the game thanks to its amazing weapon skill. Due to the nature of the weapon upgrade and scaling system, none of the weapons become obsolete as long as you continue upgrading them using the materials you find throughout your journey.
Attribute Distribution
Let’s begin with allocating points for your attributes. The Longsword’s damage scales with both Strength and Technique inA.I. Limit.While the exact scaling varies between different Longswords, the weapon type generally scales better with Strength. In most cases, I recommend investing only the minimum required points in Technique to wield the weapon and focusing the rest on Strength for the highest damage output.
For other attributes, I’ve found that having15 points in Vitalityaround level 50 and20 points around level 100is sufficient. Although increasedSync Rategain from higher Conversion and Stability is helpful, the benefits don’t outweigh the damage boost from investing in Strength or Technique.
As for the Life attribute, the comfort level will vary between players, but generally, having25 points in Lifearoundlevel 50and35 around level 100is a good benchmark. Investing more in Life makes the game easier by allowing you to survive more hits, which is great if you want more room for mistakes.
The number of points you invest in the Spirit attribute depends on the Longsword you’re using. Most Longswordsdon’tscale with Spiritor require it, except for theHoly Ritual, which needs18 Spirit to wield. You don’t need to invest beyond this minimum unless you’re planning to use that weapon. If not, it’s safe to leave Spirit at its base value of 10. However, I find it helpful to have at least12–15 points in Spiritso I can wield all weapons in the game, except Holy Ritual.
There are a total of 9 Longswords in the game, including the Rusty Longsword you start with during the tutorial.
Blader Longsword
As mentioned earlier, theBlader Longswordis one of the most reliable early-to-mid-game weapons, mainly because of its simple and effective weapon skill, Refined Combo. This skill has minimal wind-up, hits three times in front of you, and can easily stagger enemies. It’s especially useful against tougher enemies since you may seamlessly integrate it into your regular combos, keeping up the pressure and giving enemies little room to counterattack.
Corrupted Blader Longsword
Around mid-game, you’ll come across multiple Longswords, but I recommend switching to theCorrupted Blader Longsword.
This Longsword inflicts the Piercing status on enemies, triggering burst damage when the effect procs. Its weapon skill, Ghoststep Slash, can stagger enemies and is relatively fast, though it has a slightly longer wind-up compared to the Blader Longsword. It’s worth using because it builds up the Piercing status rapidly and can trigger a Piercing proc after landing two full skill attacks on most enemies.
Holy Ritual
Alternatively, you can invest 18 points into Spirit and use the Holy Ritual Longsword, one of the few Longswords that scales with Spirit.
This weapon has a ranged skill, Lightning Chop, which sends out two lightning waves and electrifies your sword, boosting its electric damage. Its main weakness is low physical damage and poor performance against enemies resistant to electric damage (e.g., church enemies). It’s best used in combination with a secondary weapon that deals other damage types.
In the late game, you’ll find the most powerfulLongsword: Dawnfrost.
Dawnfrost has the best scaling with both Strength and Technique. If you’re maining Longswords, this is hands-down one of the strongest choices. It deals physical damage, and its skill,Frost Blossom, sends a cone-shaped ice wave forward after a short wind-up. It’s powerful, but difficult to land unless the enemy is staggered. The best time to use it is just after a fatal strike, while the enemy is getting up, for maximum damage.
While there are other Longswords, I found these three—Blader, Corrupted Blader, and Dawnfrost—to be the most effective in my playthroughs.
A.I. Limit does include spells, but they serve more as secondary abilities than primary damage sources. You can change spells any time via the equipment menu, but you can only have one equipped at a time, which can disrupt the flow of combat.
The most universally useful spell I found is Partial Reconstruction. It costs 60% Sync Rate—making it the most expensive spell—but heals you without using consumables. However, it has a longer cast time, so timing is key.
For offensive spells (especially if you invested in Spirit), the Railgun—your first spell—is good for pulling enemies or sniping small mobs before engaging. It’s not very effective against bosses due to its low damage.
For more offensive spells, there are a few options, especially if you decided to invest some points in the Spirit attribute. The bread and butter offensive spell will be the first one you obtained in the game, the railgun. This is mainly to draw single enemies off from groups or to pick off small enemies in a large group before you go into engage with your main weapon. This spell has little room when fighting against bosses as it doesn’t deal too much damage.
With the Longsword, I found the Standard Seal of the Bladers works well in early and mid-game. It’s ideal for balanced builds: it increases Sync Rate gain when below 70% and boosts Stability when above 70%, helping you manage your Sync effectively.
This main seal has four sub-slots for passive bonuses. My go-to setup includes: increased defense for all damage types, increased conversion, increased life, and increased burst damage. These aren’t required—you may swap in other seals based on your preference.
If you’re using offensive spells like Railgun or Terra Inferno, consider the Seal of the Pilgrim or Seal of the Investigator. These let you reach Sync Level 1 at 40% instead of 50%, enabling more frequent spell usage.
In the late game, I switched to theSeal of the Tree, which increases passive Sync regeneration from 50% to 75%. This allows more frequent use of weapon skills and spells without relying solely on attacks to recharge Sync Rate.
The Headwear, Armor and Nucleus
Armor and headwear offer different levels of defense but no set bonuses or special effects. Simply equip the gear with the highest defense as you progress—they won’t affect your playstyle, only your survivability.
The Nucleus in the accessory slot depends on your confidence. If you’re exploring a new area and want to play it safe, equip one with higher crystal retention. If you’re farming or comfortable with an area, use one with higher absorption to gain more crystals.
Spell Frame Abilities
The first spell frame you get, Counter Field, is the most useful in my opinion. Learning enemy attack timings lets you counter easily, and the window isn’t too strict. Mastering this can make most of the game significantly easier, as many enemies become vulnerable to fatal strikes after being countered.
If you’re struggling with the timing or learning enemy patterns, the Shield frame is a good alternative. It blocks all physical and most elemental damage, though status effects still build up. The shield can’t be used indefinitely—it builds energy with each block and eventually overloads (glows purple). Use the Overload Burst to release the energy and stagger enemies before continuing to block.
The third frame, Piercing Claw, is more offensive. It applies the Piercing effect to you, damaging you slightly while enhancing your attacks with extra claw strikes. You can extend the buff by continuously landing attacks. It’s strong, but I rarely needed the extra damage.
The final frame, Thunder Step, is a mobility skill. It lets you dodge further and faster, and a perfect dodge leaves a mirror image that explodes for electric damage. However, it doesn’t stagger enemies or open them up for fatal strikes, making it the least useful in my opinion.
Conclusion
That wraps up my guide for using the Longsword inA.I. Limit.While it may not be the flashiest or strongest weapon type, it offers a reliable and balanced experience with solid range and damage. If you’re looking for a steady and versatile weapon type, the Longsword is a great choice.
If you have any other tips or tricks for using theLongsword, feel free to leave them in the comments below, and be sure to check out thewikifor more guides.
