When you first arrive in New Los Angeles in Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition, the sheer number of sights to see and quests to complete can be a bit overwhelming. Of those many sights, though, one of the first that may catch players’ eyes is a locked container right outside B.L.A.D.E. tower.
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Up to that point, you’ve been able to examine every recon object like this without a problem, but this one is different, as it requires a mechanical field skill that the game doesn’t tell you how to obtain. This guide will detail how to obtain all three field skill upgrades by completing all Off the Record quests.
Off The Record 1 – Archaeological Field Skill
Each quest that ends with upgrading one of your field skills is titled Off the Record. These quests can appear randomly when accessing the B.L.A.D.E. mission concourse, but if they don’t appear for you initially, simply exit that concourse and reopen it until one appears.
The first of these Off the Record missions is to upgrade your archaeological field skill, with this mission having a recommended level of 18. Unlike most other missions in the game, you are unable to track this quest on your map or with the follow ball, and are instead given three riddles.
- Riddle 1: “If you seek a pure white shell, to the east does it now dwell.”
- Riddle 2: “A snake of stone amid lucent boles. Slip its gaze, enter its belly whole.”
- Riddle 3: “Where primordial cliffs face the sea, in a cleft you must seek longevity.”
Each of these riddles corresponds to either a collectible item, a hidden location, or an enemy tyrant. These riddles can be difficult to work out, especially for those unfamiliar with the map and the areas in question.
For riddle number one, the “pure white shell” the riddle is referring to is a White Forfex shell, which is dropped by Forfexes in Oblivia.
These enemies can be commonly found over by FrontierNav Site 319, and are not too difficult to kill. You can also buy 10 of these with material tickets in the online material exchange shop for relatively cheap.
The second riddle refers to a “snake of stone” that you must enter, which is actually talking about the Orichi’s Belly hidden area in Noctilum.
Starting from FrontierNav Site 220, simply hop off the edge of the land bridge and climb up onto the nearby ledge to discover the area. Once you’ve added it to your map, even before accepting the quest, this objective will be complete.
The final riddle for this first quest is the clearest of them all, as it refers to some part of Primordia that borders the sea. In truth, this area is the Turtle’s Nest hidden area, which you can find by going to FrontierNav Site 108, hopping off the cliff onto the beach down below, then turning left to see a nearby canyon. Follow said canyon to its end and you will discover the hidden area.
Upon completing these first three riddles, you’ll receive a fourth one that tells you where to find your prize. The last riddle goes: “In the fields of green in New LA, ask in the morning to find the way.”
To find the answer to this riddle, head to Deliverance Park in the Residential District and head west to talk to Solan, who will give you the archaeological field skill upgrade.
Off The Record 2 – Mechanical Field Skill
The second quest, titled Off the Record is to upgrade your mechanical field skill, with a recommended level of 34. Obtaining this field skill upgrade will also allow you to finally open the locked container in front of B.L.A.D.E. tower, along with any similar containers out in the world.
From this point onward, we recommend waiting until you have obtained the Skell Flight Module to continue, as the rest of the objectives for this quest line require you to have access to hard-to-reach areas that require flight to reach.
The three riddles for this quest go as follows.
- Riddle #1: “In nest behind rock at a primal lake, quiet lady’s ichor thy lust will slake.”
- Riddle #2: “Soar deep into the skies and seek the forgotten land’s ultimate peak.”
- Riddle #3: “Take this elevated corn to hand, atop the peaks of a delusional land.”
For the first riddle, the “quiet lady” it refers to is actually the tyrant Yelena, the Sequestered, a scirpo enemy who can be found to the east of Janpath Lake beneath the large natural overhang.
If you’ve already defeated this tyrant before the quest, you’ll have to defeat it again for this objective to be counted.
For the second riddle, the “forgotten land’s ultimate peak” is actually the Mount Edge Peak area in Oblivia. It’s the tallest mountain in the region, so once you have the Skell Flight Module, you can simply fly up there and complete this objective for the quest.
For this quest’s last riddle, the “elevated corn” the riddle refers to is actually the collectible item Pale Maize, which can be found in Sylvalum. This is a very rare drop from item orbs, but the place it appears most frequently is in the Delusion Mountains North Summit area in Sylvalum.
Once you’ve completed these three riddles, Solan’s final riddle to you is: “In suburban glory in a setting sun, the afflicted tell of what’s to come.” For this last riddle, you can find Solan north of the Ishmael Hills landmark in the Residential District during the evening in order to receive your second field skill upgrade.
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Off The Record 3 – Biological Field Skill
The final mission titled Off the Record, focuses on upgrading your biological field skill, with a recommended level of 51. After completing this mission, you will be able to analyze every recon point on Mira without fail.
Your final three riddles standing between you and free analyzing are as follows.
- Riddle #1: “In chalky grove, midst gems of jade, a starving beast awaits the blade.”
- Riddle #2: “In the court of the forest gods, a brood of sentinels here do flock.”
- Riddle #3: “Etchings of ancient beasts to find? Seek a stony shore in fired climes.”
The first riddle of this mission clearly requires you to kill a tyrant somewhere in the world. In this case, the tyrant in question is Andrea, the Famished Hunter, who you can find on the western shore of Lake Ciel in Sylvalum.
Be careful fighting this tyrant, as it is surrounded by weaker versions of the same species who will all attack you when you engage with Andrea.
The second riddle for this mission refers to a secret area in Noctilum, specifically an area called the Sentinel’s Nest in the northeast portion of the Divine Roost area in Noctilum. There are several powerful enemies here, including the level 99 tyrant Telethia, the Endbringer, so be careful while traveling to this hidden area to fulfill this objective.
The final riddle of this questline requires you to obtain a collectible item from Cauldros. In this case, you must collect six Savage Sketches, a rare collectible from item orbs in the fiery region, but they can be found most commonly around FrontierNav Site 515.
If you don’t find all six items on your first go around, simply fast travel back to Site 515 and collect the nearby item orbs again.
Upon completing the hardest riddles yet in this quest, Solan presents you with one final riddle: “Where ordnance takes first breath, collect your spoils after sunset.” To claim your final field skill upgrade, you must find Solan at night in the Outfitters Test Hanger near the break room.
Once all three of your field skills have been upgraded, Solan will have no more riddles for you, and you can return to surveying the rest of Mira without being held back by arbitrary skill checks.
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