Mystic Knight

The Mystic Knight is one of three Hybrid vocations in Dragon's Dogma. Hybrid vocations are exclusive to your main character, the Arisen. It costs 1,500 Discipline Points (DP) to unlock this vocation.

Description
Masters of sword and sorcery, the Mystic Knight deals devastating damage to foes on the battlefield with their enchanted weapons, while also defending against the most ferocious attacks with their magickal shields.

Primary Weapon: Sword, Mace or Staff (NOTE: Maces cannot be traded.)

Secondary Weapon: Magick Shield (NOTE: Magick Shields cannot be traded.)

Primary Offensive stat: Magick

Strengths and Role
Battle Magick: Mystic Knights are able to cast powerful magicks while wearing heavy armor and wielding maces or swords.

Stalwart Defense: Mystic Knights carry large, magickal shields with them in combat, allowing them to defend against all but the most punishing attacks. The shields can also be imbued with magickal energy, providing a deadly surprise for any enemy that dare attack.

Deadly Enchantments: The Mystic Knight is the only magickal character capable of enchanting the entire party’s weapons at once, making them invaluable support characters.

Versatility: Having both ranged and melee capabilities as well as a shield allows the Mystic Knight to adapt to many situations. He can act as both the Tank and frontline Fighter or can hang back and cast Cannon spells for ranged magick attacks. They are also able to wield slashing swords or blunt damaging maces, giving them even more options to aim for enemies weaknesses.

Weaknesses
Silence: If Silenced, Mystic Knights will not be able to use their most powerful skills, although it is less disadvantageous than the mage classes since you can still use melee.

Slower Movement: Though their defenses are very strong in one direction, Mystic Knights have trouble against multiple opponents due to their slow movement and lack of turning when their shield is deployed. This leaves their backside vulnerable to attack, and many late-game enemies use flanking attacks to attack from behind.

Knockdown Prone: Mystic Knights can be knocked over or have their casting interrupted very easily.

Slow Casting Speeds: Combined with their weakness to being knocked down, some fast enemies, such as Hellhounds, Harpies, and Bandit Archers can be infuriating to fight as you will be hit before you can pull out a Sigil.

Augments
For information on how augments impact stats and how stacking of multiple augments work see the Stats page.

Tips and Tactics

 * Using both Sigil spells in conjunction with one another creates a very useful damage trap, further enhanced by the sigil's ability to match the knight's weapon enchantment element.
 * Each time the Cannon spells are cast, it creates a floating orb of magick that can be struck to release projectiles, and can be cast multiple times without cancelling out. This means that a Mystic Knight can have up to four orbs on the field at once, all of which can release up to three projectiles each per hit. Given enough preparation time, this can quickly fell large monsters singlehandedly.
 * If there are no enemies nearby, and the Mystic Knight has placed multiple Cannon orbs, shots from one Cannon will seek another and act as a network. This can be used to attack enemies from farther away, and possibly to shoot around corners. The shots that pass through a second Cannon orb will acquire that orb's element, if different.
 * Although the Anguish spells are technically Dark, they only extend the weapon's range and do not affect its element. This allows for the creation of long-range elemental weapon enchantments.
 * Even though it has an extremely long cast time, Holy Furor can and will be your best friend. It could be move that will turn the tide of a losing battle. However, note that it is a double-edged sword and not only does it take a long time to charge, it will drain all stamina from the party after its finished so beware.
 * If you want to be more of a bruiser/tank Mystic Knight, start with Fighter as your basic vocation, that way you get used to being in the middle of combat and you get that early extra health per level. If you want to be a caster Mystic Knight, start with Mage as your basic vocation, that way you can get used to the timing of your spells, etc.
 * After learning the skill Reflect, proper timing can greatly improve both one's survivability and damage output. A properly timed block will not only negate damaged that would have been received but will also unleash a blast of magick, depending on the shield's current enchantment. Most melee attacks can be successfully countered as well as arrows, bolts from a staff, and thrown torches/rocks. Strong Magical based attacks such a wyrm's firebreath cannot be countered, although you can block some, like Ingle.
 * Its a good idea to play as a warrior and/or a sorcerer before becoming a mystic knight to get their good augments to make the Mystic Knight more effective.
 * Placing a magic/great cannon in the Ruinous sigil will make it an automatic turret if any enemy touches the sigil which hits the cannon and shoots magic bolts
 * In the fight against Grigori, using the Holy Aid/ Holy Glare spell on the shield, coupled with the Reflect core skill is a great way to negate damage and the usage of your own restorative items.
 * If you're looking for a way to make faster blocks with the shield,  flick the analog stick you use to move in the direction of the blow and quickly follow up with the Secondary items button.  This done quickly enough will help you change the direction you fight almost instantaneously.
 * Taking on some of the Warrior, and Fighter's Augments will also help derive your enemies of a close-range  advantage since they carry over from class to class.  Plus, the Ranger has an Augment allowing for increased potency in any curative you take.
 * Try taking on lighter armor types to loosen up the hampered mobility this class suffers from, just wearing light boots and gloves with a light underarmor will give you protection and mobility. Take some mobility augments from the ranger class if you don't want to slate the extra protection, or take the Warrior's Augment Bastion if you're willing to shed some carry weight while still maintaining decent defense.
 * Using the advanced anguish spell on a staff is recommended since a shockwave follows up each projectile shot, producing a devastating barrage if used consecutively. This tactic is very effective against dragons as the shockwaves tend to hit the most vunerable spots of a target (in this case the heart).
 * Bitterblack Isle features a new variant of the Ogre (Elder Ogre). Try to cast Abyssal Trance before striking with your melee weapon, casting Great Cannon, or dropping a Ruinous Sigil. This dark magic type does great damage to this new enemy type variant.