Best Personas - Persona 1 Guides
This guide contains information about the best Personas that are available to you in Persona 1. As you can probably guess, in the Persona series the Personas that you can summon and obtain are very important and play a major role in the game. In this guide I am going to take a look at almost every Persona in this game and break down which are worth using and why.
You may notice that I said almost every Persona in the game, I make this distinction because there are some Personas that I have not tested myself or even gotten an opportunity to look at myself due to their rarity. A good example of this is the Fool Arcana, this is a very rare Arcana that you can only obtain through sheer luck or by gaming the system in some way.
Fool Personas are some of the strongest in the game if not the strongest - however obtaining them as a normal player is not realistic in my opinion. Keep this information in mind if you see one of your favorite Personas missing from this list. Since this game has a party size of 5 characters it means you're going to have 5 active Personas at all times.
As you level your characters up the Personas you use will change and you'll constantly be rotating new Personas in and out of your characters. This means there is no real "best in slot" Persona that you should always be using for each character. Honestly, this game intends for you to switch out your Personas frequently depending on the dungeon/boss you're facing. What that means is what the "best" Persona is going to be quite subjective.
In Persona 1 there is another factor you need to take into consideration too and that's Skill Tablets which you can use during the fusion process. These items will grant your Persona a skill depending on what tablet you choose to use - and the skills they grant you are insanely overpowered.
You can get Skill Tablets from the Judgment 1999 Casinos in Persona 1, they'll cost 3,000 Tokens each which is a bit pricey but totally worth it. Below is a list of each Skill Tablet and what they do.
Evil Fire Tablet: Teaches Maragidyne which deals heavy Fire damage to all foes.
Evil Ice Tablet: Teaches Mabufudyne which deals heavy Ice damage to all foes.
Evil Wind Tablet: Teaches Magarudyne which deals heavy Wind damage to all foes.
Evil Quake Tablet: Teaches Mamagnadyne which deals heavy Earth damage to all foes.
Scorching Tablet: Teaches Megidolaon which deals heavy Nuclear damage to all foes.
Gale Tablet: Teaches Mazandyne which deals heavy Blast damage to all foes.
Wall Tablet: Teaches Magrydyne which deals heavy Gravity damage to all foes.
Flash Tablet: Teaches Maziodyne which deals heavy Elec damage to all foes.
Half Moon Tablet: Teaches Mediarahan which heals all allies to full HP.
Out of this whole list the two best are Scorching Tablet which grants the Megidolaon skill and the Half Moon Tablet which grants the Mediarahan skill. Megidolaon deals Nuclear damage which not many enemies are resistant to and Mediarahan will heal your entire group to full HP with a single cast. I recommend you have at least one Persona in reserve at all times with Mediarahan on it.
This is one of the more common FOOL Personas in this game
In my opinion the main thing you'll want to look for when choosing a good Persona for your characters is their resistances. Thanks to the Skill Tablets mentioned above you can give just about any Persona in the game one of the strongest AoE attacks or an amazing AoE heal. However, you can't change a Persona's innate resistances. It's for this reason that I believe the best Personas in this game are going to be ones you custom make with Skill Tablets.
What resistances you need on a Persona change depending on the dungeon you're doing or the boss that you're fighting. For most of the game a Persona with strong resists to Elemental Damage will serve you well - however this Persona will be weak against some of the bosses too. It's for this reason that all of your characters have 3 Persona slots and are able to rotate them in and out of battle.
Below is a complete list of the various Personas in this game that I think are good. I've included the name of the Persona, the level and the Arcana along with a brief explanation about why I think that Persona is worth using.
(Level 14) Urvashi (Magician): This Persona comes with the Mabufula skill which deals medium Ice damage (and can freeze) all foes. It's hard to find low level Personas with such powerful AoE skills, I usually get this Persona early on and keep it for awhile until I can replace it with better.
(Level 17) Shouki (Hierophant): He comes with the Estoma skill which you can use to avoid battles with weaker enemies. I think this is the first Persona you can get in the game with this skill. To make this Persona even more powerful use an item during Fusion that will give him an AoE damage skill or a skill like Mediarama. If you give him Mediarama then you can keep him in reserve indefinitely for Estoma and Mediarama.
(Level 17) Quetzalcoatl (World): He is a decent low level Persona, comes with the Mazanma ability which deals medium Blast damage to all foes and Traesto which teleports you back to a dungeon entrance.
(Level 18) Gozu-Tennoh (Chariot): Comes with the skill Megidola which is amazing AoE damage. On almost every single playthrough I find myself using this Persona for awhile. The downside of this Persona is it's weak to Fire, Ice, Wind and Earth.
(Level 18) Phaleg (Judgement): The only thing I recommend this Persona for is the Mediarama skill it comes with. Keep him in reserve and use this skill as needed. Alternatively, you should purchase a Half Moon Tablet item which allows you to give Mediarahan to a Persona which is a better version of this same skill. If you can't purchase this item yet or it's too expensive then this Persona is your next best choice.
(Level 20) Pyro Jack (Lovers): Pyro Jack has good AoE damage skills and has Best compatibility with Maki.
(Level 21) Lilim (Moon): Lilim is great because of the absorbtion that comes with it; it'll has a 100% absorption to all elemental attacks. The biggest downside of this Persona is that it doesn't come with any powerful attacks so you'll have to use a tablet when fusing it to give it a good attack.
(Level 22) Janus (Star): This Persona comes with Magarula which deals medium Wind damage to all enemies and Maragion which deals medium fire damage to all enemies.
(Level 24) Vidofnir (Sun): Vidofnir comes with two skills that are good for this level range, Mabufu and Magarula. Mabufu deals light Ice damage to all foes and Magarula deals medium Wind damage to all foes. Also since this Persona is the Sun Arcana that means many of your characters have Good or better compatibility with it.
(Level 28) Macha (Justice): Macha takes more damage from all elemental based spells except Wind, to which it is immune. He also comes with the skill Mazanma which deals medium Blast damage to all enemies - this is a decent skill for lower level teams who can't afford better Skill Tablets yet.
(Level 28) Cu Chulainn (Magician): Cu Chulainn is one of the few low level Personas with the Estoma skill. Estoma allows you to avoid encounters with all enemies lower level than you. This is one of the best skills in the game and you should have a Persona in reserve at all times with this skill. I strongly recommend you also use an item like Half Moon Tablet on this same Persona to give him a heal too. This will make him a low SP cost reserve Persona that you carry with you for the entire game.
(Level 29) Illuyanka (World): Illuyanka is a decent mid level Persona, the strongest ability that it comes with is Megidola which deals medium Nuclear damage to all enemies.
(Level 29) Hathor (Priestess): Hathor comes with the Mediarama skill and solid resists to all elemental damage along with Gravity, Nuclear and Blast damage. If you want to make this Persona even better you should use a Skill Tablet during the fusion process to give it a strong AoE Skill.
(Level 36) Azrael (Judgement): The main thing you're going to be getting this Persona for is the nullification of all Elemental damage and Force damage. Azrael comes with some serious draw backs though because he doesn't have any powerful offensive abilities, you'll have to fix this by using a Skill Tablet during fusion. I recommend the Scorching Tablet.
(Level 37) Verethragna (Justice): He comes with the Magry spell which deals light Gravity damage to all enemies. If you want to make this Persona even stronger use a tablet when you fuse him to give him an ability that deals heavy AoE damage instead.
(Level 39) Byakko (Hermit): Requires the White Tablet item which you can get from the Mana Castle during the SEBEC run or Nemesis Tower during the Ice Queen Quest. What makes Byakko good is the very high Dexterity along with Estoma and Magarula. Check out my Persona Item Fusion Guide for more information about where to get the item needed to make this Persona.
(Level 39) Take-Mikazuchi (Hierophant): Take-Mikazuchi has high magic attack and magic defense along with decent resistances. However, he seriously lacks a good ability to use so you'll have to use a Skill Tablet during the fusion process to make him even better.
(Level 44) Ankou (Death): Ankou nullifies almost all elemental damage which is the main reason you'd want to get this Persona. The biggest downsides of this Persona is that it is weak to Light attacks which means you'll pretty much always get one-shot by an enemy using Hama. You also won't get any offensive skills with this Persona unless you use a Skill Tablet - then you can get any offensive skill you want.
(Level 47) Varuna (Magician): You'll need the Suitengu Talisman item which can be purchased from the Casino to make this Persona. One of the skills this Persona has is Mabufudyne which is a Heavy damage AoE Ice Spell, it's a fantastic skill on a Persona that isn't too high level.
(Level 49) Seiryuu (World): The main reason you'll be getting this Persona is the Mabufudyne skill that it comes with. Mabufudyne deals heavy Ice damage and hits all foes - it's a fantastic skill if you don't have a Persona with anything better. In order to make Seiryuu you'll need to use the Blue Tablet item during the Fusion process. Check out my Persona Item Fusion Guide for more information about where/how to get this item.
(Level 53) Succubus (Moon): Succubus is immune to almost all spell damage except Expel and Miracle. However, on the flip side she is weak to almost all melee based damage. If you want to make this Persona good you'll also have to use a Skill Tablet during the fusion process, give her a strong AoE skill because she doesn't have any good skills - only good resists.
(Level 55) Armaiti (Judgement): There are two things that make this Persona really good, the first of which is his resistances. Almost all spell damage is half-reflected by this Persona - the only downside is he is vulnerable to Death which means you're vulnerable to one-shot mechanics. The second thing that makes this Persona good is that when you return it to Igor at Max level you'll get the Angel Whisper item which is the best Bullets in the game. As far as skills go, Mediarahan is the best one available for this Persona. I recommend you use a Skill Tablet during the fusion process to give him a powerful AoE attack.
(Level 58) Mot (Death): This is a great Persona to use on Reiji during end game. It comes with excellent stats and the Maeiha ability which deals heavy Death damage to all foes. You unlock Maeiha at a low level with this Persona too which is another bonus because you don't have to wait long for the best ability.
(Level 76) Mucalinda (World): This Persona comes with the Crystal Wall skill which I think does the same thing as a Magical Guard item, reflects 25% of spell damage for 2 turns. You'll find this skill to be very useful for some of the tougher fights in the game. Mucalinda also has the Magrydyne skill which deals heavy Gravity damage to all enemies.
(Level 79) Garuda (Sun): This Persona is vulnerable to most Gun damage and resistant to most elemental damage. Most melee-based physical damage is also nullified by this Persona. Garuda learns the Magarudyne skill at level 8 which deals heavy Wind damage to all enemies. In order to make this Persona you'll need to combine two specific Spell Cards while using the Karura Totem. Check out my Persona Item Fusion Guide for more information about where/how to get this item.
(Level 80) Il-Dana (Magician): This Persona comes with several powerful attacks, among them is Maragidyne which deals heavy Fire damage to all foes. Il-Dana takes half damage from all elemental attacks and double damage from Blast, Rifles, Electricity and Gravity. You'll need the Dordona's Oar item to make this Persona as well as two specific Spell Cards. Check out my Persona Item Fusion Guide for more information about where/how to get this item.
(Level 90) Athena (Justice): Athena is a Persona that is good depending on the situation. She reflects half of all incoming physical damage including Tech and Rush damage. However, she is weak to all elemental damage and most other spell-based damage. For skills, Athena has Steel Wall which reflects 25% physical damage for two turns and Tarukaja which raises attack of all allies. Last but not least she also comes with the Mazandyne skill which deals heavy Blast damage to all foes. In order to make this Persona you'll need the Olive Necklace Totem; Check out my Persona Item Fusion Guide for more information about where/how to get this item.
(Level 96) Shiva (Chariot): Shiva is a great end game Persona that comes with the Megidolaon skill. This Persona is weak to all elemental damage except Wind (why is Shiva weak to Ice?) and resistant to Electricity, Nuclear, Blast, Nerve and Gravity damage. In order to make this Persona you'll need to use specific Spell Cards during the fusion process and the Maxi Tempest Totem. Check out my Persona Item Fusion Guide for more information about where/how to get this item.
(Level 99) Lucifer (Devil): As you'd expect from a Level 99 Persona, it's quite powerful. Lucifer doesn't have the best skill set but he has some of the best resistances you can ask for on a Persona. All physical damage except Spears is halved and almost all spell damage except Expel and Miracle is heavily resisted by Lucifer. The only gap in his armor is his vulnerability to Expel and Miracle damage, this makes him vulnerable to light-based one-shot mechanics. In order to make Lucifer you'll need the Morning Star Totem. Check out my Persona Item Fusion Guide for more information about where/how to get this item.
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