Atelier Sophie is my first game of Atelier Series. In 2015 I played this game on my psv, and I love it. Now the steam version released, so I re-played this wonderful game. Here I will share some hidden things or tricks.

Some have been already posted here, I will make some addition.
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1.1. When choosing materials, pressing Y button can sort or filter your things, and pressing START button can see if you can synthesize this piece of material.

1.2. When synthesizing, if you fullfill your caldron, you can get a 20% quality bonus.

1.3. Taking 6*6 Expert Caldron as an exsample. fullfilling, 1 grid = 3 quality, there are 36 grids = 108 quality, so your materials average quality reaching 999/1.2-108=725 is enough. If you set 'Super Quality','Pro Perfiction','Quality Up ++' on it, your materials average quality reaching 999/(1+0.5+0.3+0.2)/1.2-108=309 is enough.

1.4. Cuz some recipies do not need that many materials, or some of them are gathered things that you cannot fullfill your caldron. Because of this, you should get a 5*5 caldron, or even 4*4. Getting the grid bonus, or the fullfilling bonus, you deside on your condition.

1.5. If over the time limit of Expert Caldron or Ancient Caldron, your materials will become Failure Ash, quality 0 but you can still put traits on it. So, you can fail on purpose to get the ash, then transfer the traits to Philosopher Stone, and then to other materials.

1.6. 999 quality makes most effects and some traits 1.19 times more powerful than 100 quality, while some are just 1 times more, or not affected at all.

2.1. If LP>=90%, he/she will buff 50% of ATK,DEF,SPD IN BATTLE.

2.2. Speed desides the start order, but it has a random multiple factor. If you want to adjust the start order of your party, a 40 point difference is recommended.

2.3. More speed, more chain attack hits, but there is still a float.(The formula is not that simple, but the result is.)

2.4. Buff or Debuff works as overwriting. Debuffs of XXX down and XXX drain can work at the same time.(not overwriting)

3.1. There is a bug you can easily reach 999 quality. IT IS NOT RECOMMENDED BEFORE YOU ENTER THE DESPAIR DIFICCULTY.

a) craft weapon/armor
b) choose your target weapon/armor
c) choose materials (make sure your 3 target traits and at least one trait of QUALITY UP SERIES in them)
d) choose 'craft' to go on
e) choose traits of QUALITY UP SERIES
f) press B button to back ONE step (DO NOT RE-CHOOSE MATERIALS HERE)
g) press START button and choose 'craft' to go on
h) repeat efg until the quality is 999
i) choose your 3 target traits and craft this weapon/armor
j) end
For most equipment, this way just save your time of preparing materials.

4.1. You just enhance your weapon/armor with your materials one by one, right? And soon you will gradually find that all stat enhancement become fewer and fewer, and at last 1. That's the system: the more times one stat is enhanced, the enhancement will get more loss.

4.2. You can take an enhanced equipment to enhance another equipment, weapon to weapon, armor to armor. But every equipment has its own enhance limit times. If the total enhanced times is over the target equipment's limit, it will get a great loss. Besides, for exsample, if your target is 5 times limit with 2 times enhanced, your material is 3 times limit with 4 times enhanced, it will get a great loss, too.

4.3. A 6 times limit equipment is a great thing, because there is almost no loss in the SECOND enhance time(the sum is not over the limit)

4.4. That's the way. I take a 5 times limit weapon as a target as an example,
a) craft five 6 times limit weapon, I call them A B C D E
b) enhance A B C D E one time each, you get A1 B1 C1 D1 E1
c) enhance B1 with A1, you get B2 C1 D1 E1
d) enhance C1 with B2, you get C3 D1 E1
e) enhance D1 with C3, you get D4 E1
f) enhance E1 with D4, you get E5
g) enhance your target weapon with E5
h) end

4.5. Different enhancement material has it own base stat enhancement, and traits on it can make an addition.
Well Rounded Power: (except DMG) +3
Develops the Body: (except DMG) +3
Evolves Body: (except DMG) +5
Tenacious Body: (except DMG) +5
Skill Power +10%: (except DMG) +3
Skill Boost: (except DMG) +3
Skill Super Enhance: (except DMG) +4
Saving Skills: (except DMG) +3
Expert Skill(DLC): (except DMG) +4
Super Skill(DLC): (except DMG) +5
Increse Aggression: DMG +2
Changing Attack: DMG +1
Avidya Attack: DMG +2
Barrage Attack: DMG +2
Skillful Attack: DMG +3
Persistent Attack: DMG +2
Deadly Attack: DMG +3
Dreadful King(DLC): DMG +3
Persuit of Knowledge(DLC): DMG +5

4.6. For weapon, the most recommended enhancement material is Rubilium. For armor is Flugel or Fairheit.

5.1. With DLC, there's 14 forms in total. The best for battle is Silver Tail, while you can just choose which you like.

5.2. Every material has its own base stat enhancement, and the larger size the material is, the more stat enhancement it can get.
The recommended materials are 'Philosopher Stone','Golden Thread','Noble Sapphire','Philosopher Stone'.

5.3. Traits on materials can make the stat enhancement an addition. (I cut HP and MP)
Well Rounded Power: (except DMG) +5
Develops the Body: (except DMG) +3
Evolves Body: ATK+4 DEF+3 SPD+3
Tenacious Body: ATK+3 DEF+9 SPD+3
Increse Aggression: DMG +2
Changing Attack: DMG +1
Avidya Attack: DMG +2
Barrage Attack: DMG +2
Skillful Attack: DMG +3
Persistent Attack: DMG +2
Deadly Attack: DMG +5
Dreadful King(DLC): DMG +10 ATK,DEF,SPD+5
Persuit of Knowledge(DLC): DMG +15
Dragon Soul: ATK,DEF,SPD+3

6.1. One hit Death. Not 100% death, a few change will miss(maybe 5%)

6.2. XXX Slayer. Each produce 50% damage enhancement against a certain monster type. With 'Ancient Seal' or 'Wards Evil' the amount can get 100% in total. If you want to chalange the boss, this trait is the best choice.

6.3. Avidya Attack, Barrage Attack, Skillful Attack，Persistent Attack，Deadly Attack. These traits of additional damage cannot work together (only one is actived) while the skill enhancement of these traits can. And its real effect is an addition damage range, not a certain percentage.

6.4. To those use items, bigger size means more use times. Every 2 level of size equals one use time. This is important for those traits associated with use times, such as 'One Time End(DLC)' and 'Enhance with Count'.

6.5. In DLC map, you can gather much more powerful materials and traits. Among those traits, I'd like divide them to three grades.

SR:
Those traits you can get them directly by gathering the materials.
勇气的觉醒 Awakening Courage
狡猾的知性 Cunning Wit
etc.

SSR:
a) Defeat the last boss in DLC map, get the 'Philosophy Stone' (High rate)
b) Rarely you can gather 'Failure Ash' of 200 quality (Low rate to get the ash)
c) Open the chests to get the material 'Spirit Stone' and 'Star Powder' (Low rate to get the materials)
本能的指引 Guide Intuition
超级技能 Super Skill
etc.

UR:
Open the chests when gathering level >= 3 to get the material 'Velvetis' and 'Harmonium' (VERY LOW RATE to get the materials)
知识的渴求 Persuit of Knowledge
恐怖的霸王 Dreadful King
正义的铁锤 Hammer of Justice
etc.

UR traits are REALLY REALLY DIFFICULT to get, but they are REALLY REALLY POWERFUL.

A recommended way:
a) Choose your game difficulty to EASY
b) Enter the DLC map (do not raise gathering level, DO NOT OPEN ANY CHESTS)
c) Defeat two bosses in DLC map
d) Get out to World Map (do not go back to atelier)
e) Press START button, save
f) Go back to DLC map, raise gathering level >= 3
g) Open all the chests
h) No target traits -> return to atelier, load; Otherwise, return to atelier, save, start another loop for the other traits.

7.1. Frendly Persona from Tess. Only this from Tess is the most presious, because you can get only one in one run of this game. The reason is its traits. Trait 'Demon Soul' can only be put on bombs, but this Frendly Persona not, it has. So the result is that it can make an additional damage of 100% on your NORMAL ATTACK and SUPPORT ATTACK damage. Right, the damage is doubled. It has the best effect with Plachta.

7.2. Time Control Hourglass. Fullfilling the 4th gage can get the effect "Control the Future". Don't care the introduction. The real effect is damage enhancement, about 35% with quality 900 around.What's more, normal attack or some skills or bombs have a multipule hits, and with this effect, the first hit damage enhanced by 35%, the second is 70%, the third is 100%, the forth is 100%......

7.3. Hustle Belt. This can provide you a nice break value enhancement.

7.4. Meister Mittons. If you feel it's hard to synthesize powerful accessories (broken caldron's fault), then you can make this. It can make you chain attack more hits.

I will make an addition if you or I find more hidden things or tricks.

After I get the UR precious powerful traits in DLC, I will modify the name.

Any questions, you can discuss with me, English or Chinese both OK.
有什么问题，可以直接与我讨论，英文或者中文都可以