At A Glance
- What skill inheritance is and how it works in PAD
- How to choose which monsters to inherit and what assists to use
- Tips on cooldown management, same-color bonuses, and overcoming obstacles
When you enable Skill Inheritance (also known as Assist / Skill Transfer) in Puzzle & Dragons, you can give a monster a secondary active skill from another monster. The base monster retains its original skill cooldown, but also gains the inherited skill on a combined (longer) cooldown cycle.
Below is a step-by-step guide on setting it up, strategies for choosing assists, and pitfalls to avoid.
What Is Skill Inheritance and How It Functions
Skill Inheritance lets you pair a base monster with an assistant monster to grant the additional active. The base monster still keeps its original skill, but the inherited skill can only be used when its combined cooldown is ready.
Mechanically:
- You need a new material called Tan / Tans to perform a transfer (which you obtain from special dungeons or MP Shop).
- The base monster must already have an active skill. The assistant must be eligible (marked with a “assistable” icon).
- When you use either the base’s active skill or the inherited one, both skills reset and begin their cooldown again.
- If the inherited skill is used (once it’s ready), you cannot use the original until the full combined cooldown interval completes.
Thus, timing and planning matter a lot.
When & Why Use Skill Inheritance
1. To fill gaps in your team’s utility
If your team lacks a bind removal, gravity, board change, or delay skill, inheritance allows you to graft in that ability without removing a high-stat monster.
2. To counter new mechanics like skill delay
Some dungeons impose skill delay. Because the inherited skill’s cooldown is separate (and longer), in certain cases you can mitigate delay impacts.
3. To repurpose monsters you don’t actively use
You may have monsters you like for their awakenings or stats but whose active skill is weak. Inherit a more useful skill onto them to keep them relevant.
How to Choose a Good Assist / Inherited Skill
Match utility to your dungeon needs
List out what mechanics your team struggles with (e.g., binds, jammers, shields). Then find an assist that covers that weakness.
Avoid overwriting strong original actives
If a monster’s base active is extremely powerful, it may be better to leave it untouched or pair it only if the inherited skill adds different utility.
Prefer supports with synergy
Assist acts that work well in tandem with your team are ideal (e.g. board change + haste, orb converters + enhancers). One Reddit user replaced Pandora’s active with Haku because it generated orbs that paired well with Akechi.
Consider cooldown cost
Shorter cooldown assists are more usable. High cooldown assists are risky unless your team composition allows you to stall or sync the cooldowns.
Same-Color Inheritance Bonus & Stat Benefits
If you inherit a monster of the same color onto a base monster, you gain a passive stat bonus: approximately +10% HP, +5% ATK, +3% RCV from the assist monster’s stats.
To optimize this bonus:
- Use fully leveled, awakened, or +297 assists.
- Use same-color assists when possible for synergy.
- But avoid forcing a poor assist just for bonus — utility often outweighs the stat bump.
Practical Examples & Community Suggestions
- A common choice for “universal base” is Tardis, because you can inherit nearly any useful active onto it and its cooldown is forgiving.
- On Pandora teams, some players inherit Haku onto Pandora to give a board change + haste to strengthen kill turns.
- Silk and Sheen are often recommended supports to fully skill up and inherit due to their burst potential.
- Some Reddit users question whether leveling the assist is worth it — in most cases if you want the same-color bonus or maximize inherited impact, yes it’s worthwhile.
Common Pitfalls & How to Avoid Them
- Using the wrong assist: Inheriting a skill that doesn’t match your dungeon needs wastes resources.
- Cooldown mismatch: If the inherited and base skills interfere too often, you lose flexibility.
- Unleveled assist: A weak assist reduces the benefit and may underperform when needed.
- Forgetting to cancel an inheritance: You can undo a transfer, but Tans and gold won’t be refunded.
Best Practices & Tips
- Test your inheritance setup in easier dungeons first to iron out cooldown timing.
- Keep a list of assists in your box categorized by utility (bind clear, orb convert, haste, etc.).
- Update inherited skills as new monsters or better actives come out.
- Don’t over-rely on inheritance — a strong team still needs synergy, awakenings, and stats.
Final Thoughts
Skill Inheritance adds a powerful layer of customization to Puzzle & Dragons. When used thoughtfully, it lets you patch team weaknesses, reuse monsters, and adapt to tougher content. But it’s not a silver bullet — it requires planning around cooldowns, selecting the right assist, and maximizing both utility and stat bonuses. With practice and testing, inheritance can be a game-changer in your PAD strategy.