How to Give Commands to Pawns in Dragon’s Dogma 2

Dragon’s Dogma 2’s most unique featureis the Pawn system, which sees you forming a party of pseudo-lobotomized warrior servants to help you adventure. But it can be a little confusing to order them around both battlefields and treasure-rich towns, so here’s how to command Pawns in Dragon’s Dogma 2.

How to Give Commands to Pawns in Combat

You’ll probably notice fairly early on — or read the tutorial — that Dragon’s Dogma 2 has four different commands available to Pawns, which on consoles are assigned to the D-Pad: Go!, Wait!, To Me!, and Help! In combat, these are all straightforward:

• The Go! command will send your Pawns charging into battle to attack as they please. If you aim the Go! command toward a specific enemy (highlighted by the circle targeting reticle), your Pawns are more likely to attack that foe.
• Telling your Pawns to Wait! will halt them in place. Try not to hit this command mid-combat, otherwise you may find yourself fighting alone. However, this is a great tool to use to wait out dangerous attacks from massive monsters. 
• To Me! will gather your Pawns in a group around you. This has a couple of important applications in battle: if you have healing magic, you can pull all your Pawns into the healing aura, and if you find your squad outmatched by dangerous foes, you’ll have to use this command to get them to follow you if you run. Your Pawns will continue fighting near you in a group with this command.
• Help! is the most obvious. If you’re being attacked or low on health, Help! will have your Pawns rushing to your aid. If they have healing magic, they’ll cast it, and if they have Chirurgeon inclination they will use any healing items in their inventory on you.

How to Give Commands to Pawns Outside of Combat

All the commands except for Help! have different applications outside of combat.

• If your Pawn comes from another world and has advice on how to solve a quest or find a hidden item, issuing the Go! command after they suggest something will send them off running. Follow them to find the hidden chest or let them take you to your prioritized quest location.
• Wait! is great for making sure your Pawns don’t kill themselves as you navigate tricky situations, such as climbing a steep cliff face or leaping across dangerous waters. It’s also great at stopping them from aggroing a pack of goblins as you get a lay of the land.
• To Me! will bring your Pawns back to you and cancel their guidance toward hidden items and quest objectives.
• Help! will simply have your Pawns heal you outside of combat; this is great if you have a Mage in your party with the Anodyne spell

And that’s all you need to know to issue commands to your Pawns in Dragon’s Dogma 2. While you can’t issue orders individually, different inclinations, specializations, and histories with other players make all Pawns unique from one another and assets to your party.