It’s no secret that Xenoblade Chronicles X has an absolutely massive open-world, and that can be pretty daunting for some adventures facing vast landscapes, mountain ranges, and enormous creatures. When there are giant robots around, why should anybody have to run around on foot for the entirety of their stay on Mira? The beginning of the game introduces you to the hulking masses of metal called Skells, giant mecha, and they are to be reckoned with. The big question is, however, how do you get one of your own?
At the start of the game, you’ll be informed that the folks at BLADE will be watching you and shall contact you when they feel you are ready to obtain a Skell license. Fortunately, the primary criteria for this is just to complete the Chapter 6 story mission. Only then will they deem you worthy, regardless of your level and gear.
Of course, getting your Skell license won’t be a simple walk in the alien park. Taking your first steps towards earning that Skell license will require approval from every faction of BLADE. Luckily, we’ll be going over each of eight exams to help you on your quest. We want you to get your own badass ride, too, after all.
Proficiency Exam 1
The Pathfinders give you the easiest time, simply tasking you with activating FN Site 117 on Primordia. Nothing too wild. Thanks, Pathfinders.
Proficiency Exam 2
The Interceptors want you to go to Noctilum and defeat 12 blitz blattas. At this point in the game, this should be an easy enough task. This one is more of a nuisance, as 12 is a lot. They do move around in numbers, so you shouldn’t have a hard time finding them on your minimap. In the event that you can’t find any more, though, just fast travel back to the nearest found data probe and try again.
Proficiency Exam 3
The Harriers would like you to go the Northpointe Cove in Primordia and defeat the tyrant known as Shatskikh, the Flash. Of course, you’ve already matched his level 25, right? He should be no problem for you, right? Nevertheless, like any other tyrant, target the limbs for added damage. Shatskikh is no exception, proving quite the pushover once the tail is destroyed.
Proficiency Exam 4
The Reclaimers won’t give you very much of a hard time either. They’ve requested that you simply pick up a Solar Starship Map, which you can find in Noctilum’s Humdrum Peaks. Of course, dodge or fight your way to the item as you see fit. Easy, yes, but these are just the four simplest exams…
Proficiency Exam 5
The Curators will now shake things up. You’ve been tasked with collecting eight Rock Armadillos in Noctilum, which are found in Upper Hushflood and Shark’s Jaws, but the cave located at FN 224 should have everything you need. Next, find three Bagflea Squashes, which can commonly be found in the water of Lake Basel in the Northeast section of Oblivia, but also Devil’s Colony and Beachside Trove, just not as often.
Last, you’ll need six of the rare Multi-Speckled Ladybugs, which can typically be found in Sickle Rock Rise and Sayram Lake over in Primordia. If you’re lucky, though, you might have already picked many of these objects up by accident. Go you!
Proficiency Exam 6
The Prospectors offer the toughest exam of them all, as you must acquire a revenue of 15,000 credits in a single return using the FrontierNav. If you haven’t been changing your probes up to this point, you’re about to. Using the Research Probes you’ve obtained so far, unless you want to find more, set them all up in a cluster to obtain the group percentage bonus. Just as well, you can add a booster probe adjacent to your most profitable probe to increase its power even more.
Pay attention to which data points will be most profitable, as their stats will let you know, with rank A obviously being a great location to place a Research Probe. Also, keep in mind that Mining Probes lower your revenue slightly, and, if you’ve been placing them gratuitously throughout the game, removing them may give that small push to finally reach 15,000 credits. Once you’ve reached the threshold, just wait for the money to come in, and there you have it.
Proficiency Exam 7
The Outfitters will require you to equip either a Trial Knife, Trial Assault Rifle, or a Trial Longsword with which you must defeat three Giant Grexes in Primordia. They may take a little while to take down, as you might be used to your stronger equipment by now, but you should have the stats to survive relatively unscathed. Just watch out and make sure you take them on one at a time. You only need to complete one of the objectives with one of the Trial weapons, so don’t worry about using each one. Just change your class if you need to, as you can change right back as soon as you’re done.
Proficiency Exam 8
The Mediators offer the final exam, letting you choose between three different missions. They mainly consist of handling personal problems among the people of New Los Angeles, so just follow along, carry out their respective wishes, and you’ll be fine. These are all generally simple, but The Pip-Squeak is arguably the easiest of the three, simply carrying out a short fetch quest for various items for a local Ma-non, accompanied by some funny dialogue. It’d be a nice breather among all the other exams
Once you’ve completed every exam, it’s time to go and report back to Commander Vandham, and you’re all set. Enjoy the cutscene as you’re introduced to your first Skell! You’ll be spending a lot of time with it in the days to come, and you’ll absolutely love the mobility you’re allowed, as you continue to upgrade your Skell. Be sure to fiddle with different customization options to create the battle mech of your dreams. You earned it!
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