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In Persona 4 Golden, Golden Hands can randomly spawn in any dungeon—either roaming the overworld or emerging from chests. Each dungeon features progressively stronger Golden Hands, consistently ranking among the toughest enemies you’ll face.
Though difficult to defeat, they grant massive amounts of XP when taken down, making it well worth the effort. Happiness Hands are the Golden Hands found in Yukiko's Castle. Here’s how to tackle them early in the game.
Happiness Hand Affinities In Persona 4 Golden
Happiness Hands possess strong resistance to all forms of elemental damage.
The key to defeating Happiness Hands lies in understanding that they’re only significantly vulnerable to Physical damage. While Almighty damage typically works well against other Golden Hands, it’s not an option this early. Happiness Hands don’t deal heavy damage and may occasionally waste turns standing idle, but they’ll flee if given the chance.
If they exploit a party member’s weakness or land a critical hit, they’ll attempt to escape. That’s why, if you encounter a group, you should focus on eliminating one at a time—since you’d be lucky to defeat even one before they run.
How To Beat Happiness Hands In Persona 4 Golden
One reliable strategy is to fuse an Orobas, which comes with the skill Hysterical Slap. This skill strikes twice and has a slight chance to inflict Rage on the enemy. A Rage-afflicted Happiness Hand will repeatedly use its basic attack and won’t try to escape. You can fuse Orobas using these Persona combinations:
- Apsaras + Forneus
- Apsaras + Slime
Before engaging a Happiness Hand, heal your party completely so everyone can focus on using HP-costing physical attacks without interruption. Direct Yosuke to use Sonic Punch, Chie to use Skull Cracker, and the Protagonist to use Hysterical Slap. Repeat this sequence as needed. Since it’s early in the game and options are limited, success often comes down to luck—but taking down a Happiness Hand gives a substantial early-game experience boost.
Avoid using an All-Out Attack on a downed Happiness Hand unless you're certain it will finish them off—otherwise, they’ll get up and escape immediately.
