Olberic, the Warrior

Learn how to unlock and use Olberic's powerful Challenge Path Action in Octopath Traveler. Master his combat skills and defeat early-game bandits with this guide.

Alright, let’s get Olberic set up! His story kicks off with a flashback, but you'll soon wake up in Cobbleston. A kid from the village will tell you the headman wants to chat. Head to the southern end of town, find him in front of his house, and he'll ask you to train some of the villagers. This is super important because it unlocks Olberic's Path Action: Challenge.

Think of Challenge like H’aanit’s Provoke, but way better. You get full control over Olberic's gear and actions in battle, and you don't have to deal with percentages. The only catch is that sometimes you'll need to be a certain level to Challenge certain folks. For now, just go ahead and Challenge the two required NPCs – they're pretty weak (strength of one), so they'll go down easily. After that, the game wants you to do a few more rounds, so just keep Challenging anyone you can.

Once you're done with that, start heading towards the northeastern exit of town. You'll get word that bandits are attacking, and the game will take over, throwing you into a fight. You'll face three bandits: two with one shield point and one in front with two. They're all weak to swords, so whip out Olberic's Level Slash skill to hit them all at once. Olberic is pretty tough, so you probably won't need to heal, but don't hesitate if things get dicey. After you beat them, more cutscenes will play, and then Olberic officially joins your main party!