Persona 4 Golden: How To Beat Happiness Hands

Conquering Happiness Hands in Persona 4 Golden: A Guide

Happiness Hands are formidable foes in Persona 4 Golden, randomly appearing in dungeons, both in the overworld and lurking within chests. Each encounter presents a progressively challenging fight, making them some of the toughest enemies early on. However, their defeat yields substantial experience points (XP), making the challenge worthwhile. This guide focuses on defeating Happiness Hands in Yukiko's Castle, a particularly early-game encounter.

Happiness Hand Weaknesses and Strategies

Happiness Hands boast significant resistance to elemental attacks. The key to victory lies in exploiting their vulnerability to physical damage. While Almighty attacks are typically effective against Golden Hands, they're unavailable early in the game. Happiness Hands inflict minimal damage and sometimes remain idle, but they'll flee if given the opportunity. A weakness exploit or critical hit will trigger their escape. Prioritize targeting a single Happiness Hand if multiple appear, as defeating even one before they flee is a significant accomplishment.

Essential Persona and Tactics

The pivotal strategy involves fusing Orobas, a Persona possessing the Hysterical Slap skill. This skill delivers a double attack and has a chance to inflict the Rage status effect. A Raged Happiness Hand will continuously use its basic attack, preventing its escape. Orobas can be fused using:

• Apsaras + Forneus
• Apsaras + Slime

Before engaging, ensure your party is fully healed. Concentrate solely on physical attacks that consume HP, avoiding any other actions. Utilize the following attacks:

• Yosuke: Sonic Punch
• Chie: Skull Cracker
• Protagonist: Hysterical Slap

Repeat this attack cycle until victory. Early-game success relies heavily on luck due to limited options. However, defeating even one Happiness Hand provides significant level boosts at this stage.

Crucial Note: If you down a Happiness Hand, avoid using an all-out attack unless a kill is guaranteed. Otherwise, it will recover and flee.