Quick Links
Persona 4 Goldenplayers will need to make use of the protagonist’s free time if they plan on unlocking and completing every Social Link. Of course, some Social Links aren’t readily available and will take some time in-game to unlock. Some even require an additional step before the protagonist can officially begin spending time with them.
Ai Ebihara serves as the Moon Social Link inPersona 4 Golden, and meeting her can take a while if players don’t know what to do. Ai has a unique Social Link in that it can split into two different “routes” depending on how the protagonist speaks to her. It’s also one of the harder Social Links to Rank Up. One wrong answer can delay the Social Link or possibly break it entirely, which is something thatP4Gplayers will want to avoid - especially on a first playthrough.
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Where to Find Ai
The protagonist can spend time with Ai onWednesday, Thursday,orFridayduring the Afternoon.P4Gplayers can find her by the shoe lockers intheClassroom Building (1st Floor). Much like the protagonist’s other classmates, her Social Linkisn’tavailable on rainy days.
Ai doesn’t have an exact in-game date whenP4Gplayers can start the Social Link. As long as they reach Rank 4 of the Strength Confidant, which becomes available onApril 19th, the protagonist can speak to Ai. It doesn’t matter which team the protagonist joins; Ai will show up regardless of whose chosen.
Reversing vs. Breaking Social Links
Along with Naoto Shirogane, Ai’s Social Link can beReversed. When a Social Link is Reversed, the Social Link points gained will bereset to 0. For example, if the protagonist gets 3 Social Link points during Rank 3, but then chooses an answer (during Rank 3) thatReversesthe Social Link,P4Gwill treat it as though the protagonist received 0 points instead.To “fix” a Reversed Social Link, the protagonist will need to speak to Ai the following day (or whenever she’s available). From there,P4Gplayers will need to build up Social Link points either by spending time with Ai (when she asks) or drawing Fortunes at Tatsuhime Shrine
Players will want to avoid Reversing as they will be spending additional time to achieve the remaining Ranks. SincePersona 4 Goldencan be unforgiving in terms of Free Time (especially on a first playthrough), a Reverse Social Link will be more of a hindrance than something fun to see in action. While it has its drawbacks, a Reversed Social Links are not irreversible.
On the other hand,breakinga Social Link is far more damaging andneverrecommended. A broken Social Link will be treated as if itnever existed. Ai will not want to spend time with the protagonist. To make matters worse, a broken Social Linkpreventsthe player from summoningPersonas of the matching Arcana. In this scenario, Persona of the Moon Arcana will become unavailable if Ai’s Social Link is broken.
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Ai Ebihara Social Link Guide
Rank 1
P4Gplayers can go a whole playthrough and not meet Ai if they’re not building up the Strength Social Link. Again, the protagonist will need to reachRank 4 of the Strength Social Link (Kou or Daisuke). Then, he will need to speak with her during the day. She’s found on thefirst floor of the Classroom Building.
If players don’t haveLevel 3 Courage, they won’t be able to evenstarther Social Link, regardless if they’ve reached Rank 4 (Strength) or not. A good way to increase Courage is towork at the hospitalor try various foods from the fridge at home.
Once Ai has been spoken to, she’ll approach the protagonist during the next day of school. Select “Sure, why not?” to start Rank 1. Fortunately, since this takes place during school hours, the protagonist will still have Afternoon Time.
Players will need to be careful when talking to Ai forRanks 3, 5, 6,and9. Rank 9 alone can undo the entire Social Linkdepending on the protagonist’s answer.
Rank 2
These are the best answers/choices for Rank 2 of the Moon Social Link:
Points (withmatching Persona)
Misc.
“Hmm, doesn’t look like they’ve gotten anything new in. I already have all this…”
3
“Buy me an ice latte.”
N/A
“They should get rid of all salespeople and put in vending machines. Press a button, and out come your clothes.”
0
Rank 3
At thethird dialogue tree, players will have the option to say “That was downright cruel…” in response to Ai’s actions. Donotselect that answer. Doing so will Reverse the Social Link.The free time inPersona 4 Goldencan be limitedas more Social Links become available, so it’s best to avoid Reversing Social Links if at all possible.
“What should we do instead?”
“Looking at it from your perspective, I’d say you got pretty lucky.”
“> Ai rejected him without a second thought…”
“> The conversation is getting more and more vulgar…”
Stop them.
These points will counttowards theStrengthSocial Linkinstead of the Moon Social Link.
“….”
Rank 5
This is thesecond time whenplayers can potentially Reverse the Social Link. Once again, at the third dialogue tree, the protagonist can give an answer that will upset Ai (ie: “Not gonna happen!"). Selecting this will cause Ai to storm off, and players will need to reconcile with her on the next free day (Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday). While some players may want to annoy Ai on purpose,they should do this on their NG+instead of their first run.
“Th-Thank you for that, last time…”
What are you talking about?
Do you think that maybe I’m his type? O-Or do you think he hates… people like me?”
“All I need you to do is… ask him what’s his type. That’s it.”
Choosing “Not gonna happen!” willReversethe Social Link.
Rank 6
During this Rank, players can potentially block off Ai’s romance route/dating route. Though if they’ve struggled with Ai up until now, they may want to purposefully lock themselves out. When the option “I’ll be your boyfriend” appears, players can select it or “…..” to start the Fake Dating or Normal route respectively of the Social Link. Choosing to date Ai now will make herwant to stay as friends.
For a first playthrough, it’s recommended to choose “…..” and forgo the Fake Dating. This is because it’s very easy to give the wrong answer during Rank 9 (Fake Dating) and break the Social Link.
“But if I can’t be loved, then… Then what’s the point?”
“It’s not like I have any other redeeming qualities…”
“Haha, just kidding…”
…..
Selecting “I’ll be your boyfriend” will start the “Fake Lovers” route of Ai’s Social Link.
- “Hey… Why don’t you and I just go out?”
Are you sure about that?
- This only appears if “…..” waschosen for theprevious question.
“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to keep making you hang out with me…”
“I wonder why…”
“Hey, why don’t you pick out some clothes for me? What do you think I’d look good in?”
“Isn’t that right?”
“…Do you think I’m pretty?”
“He was just…a normal, good guy. I guess what I felt was kind of a fleeting thing.”
“…Do you love me?”
“You need me, right?”
Rank 9
If players are on theNormal Routeof Ai’s Social Link, then they just need to select any of the recommended choices below. If they’re on theFake Dating Route, they’ll want to avoid picking “We need time apart.” This Breaks the Social Link, which again, unlike Reversing, is irreparable.P4Gwill say “maybe you should start from scratch” if the Link has been broken.
“> Things don’t look good…You feel Ai is in danger.”
“Uh… Sorry, was that unnecessary?”
“I think we need to… break up.”
“I’m so worthless…”
“I’m sure you’ll eventually hate me… and then you’ll leave me.”
“Is there any way… that we could just be friends?”
Choosing “We need time apart.” willBreakthe Social Link.
Rank 10
If players have taken theFake Loversroute,theywon’tbe able to date Ai. If they went theNormal Route, then they will have the option toacceptorrejecther. Regardless of the route taken, players will still Max Out the Social Link if they’ve made it this far.
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Social Link Completion Reward
As a reward for all the hard work, Ai will give the protagonist theCompactKey Item. This allows players to Fuse the ultimate form of the Moon Arcana, Sandalphon. Like all Key Items, the Compact will carry over into NG+. Fortunately, Sandalphon isnotpart of a Special Fusion, meaning he can be Fused through a Regular Fusion as long as players have the right Ingredients/Personas in their “inventory.”
Sandalphon is alevel 84Persona. Meaning he can’t be Fused if the protagonist islower than level 84. If the Moon Social Link is Maxed Out or not Reversed, then Sandalphon will gain a boost in experience upon creation. Stat-wise, Sandalphon has high Magic and useful Passive Skills such as Angelic Grace. He canNull WindandRepel Light.
Persona 4 Goldenis available on PC, Switch, PS4, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
