Skills are your bread-and-butter abilities in Ys 9: Monstrum Nox, a late entry on the PS4 that’s finally made it over from Japan. This little series of games has a devoted fanbase — which makes sense, the Ys games are one of the longest still-running game franchises in history. There were Ys games before Final Fantasy.
The the latest game sends Adol into a strange supernatural conspiracy. The self-titled adventurer is immediately incarcerated in the Prison City — and promptly splits into two different people. One of them is free of the massive prison complex, but works to lift the curse befalling the castle town. The original is still in prison, and you’ll slowly help him escape over the course of the game.
It’s a fast-paced action-RPG, and these games can get ridiculously hard on higher difficulty levels. If you need a helping hand, here’s a good place to max out your Skills by Chapter 5.
More YS series guides on Gameranx:
Easy Skill Farming Tips
In Chapter 5, you can find very tough enemies in the West Dumping Grounds, right after the Groaning Grotto area. Dodge their attacks and use your skills over and over to Max them out.
You can check out this mid-game farming method here shared by Youtuber Marilagi. It’s a simple way to boost your skills to max, which makes later parts of the game significantly easier to handle.
Much further into the game, you’ll reach the final Grimwald Night. This is a perfect grinding spot for maxing out your skills late in the game — using Warrior Seal 4 and any items to lower Skill Cost will make grinding faster. Just repeat that Grimwald Night.
This is especially helpful for maxing out skills for characters you don’t normally use — you’ll need everyone for end-game bosses or for the higher difficulties. Any edge you can get makes the rest of the game so much easier.
![10 Most DISAPPOINTING Games of 2025 [First Half]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/ZXdQgwOhnYo/mqdefault.jpg)
