Vanguard 开关 Interface. The top character is the vanguard. The bottom ones are the rear 防守.
Vanguard 开关 is a game battle Mechanic exclusive to 异度神剑 2: Torna ~ The Golden Country. It is similar to Blade 开关, but instead of changing the Blade that supports the Driver in battle, it swaps the positions and roles of the Driver and the Blade. This action is performed in battle by pressing the 
or 
D-Pad buttons. The character in the vanguard position is controlled directly by the player, while the one in the rear 防守 takes a supportive role in the background. This allows Blades to be fully playable characters.
Each character has a separate set of arts that are available depending on the position. Vanguard Arts work exactly the same as Driver Arts, but are usable by both Driver and Blade. Rear 防守 Arts replace the functionality of Blade Arts but feature a greater variety of offensive and 敌人 debuffing effects. These passively recharge over time, but can also be charged faster with Auto-Attacks.
When a Vanguard 开关 is triggered, the character on the rear 防守 activates its 开关 Art upon jumping onto the vanguard position. These are powerful unique arts that can inflict reactions, making vanguard switching a useful tool to effectively enforce Driver Combos.
Performing a Vanguard 开关 will also fully restore any recoverable red HP for the team, so it is recommended to 开关 characters often in order to sustain team health.
Cooldown
At the beginning of the battle and after triggering a 开关, the option to use Vanguard 开关 goes on cooldown, preventing it from being used repeatedly. The indicator for this cooldown is the gauge that surrounds the portrait of the character in the rear 防守 position. Once it fills up, a Vanguard 开关 becomes possible with that character. Performing a Blade 开关 will not reset this gauge.
This cooldown duration is static and based on the overall Trust level of the team:
| Cooldown per Trust Rank | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| E | D | C | B | A | S | S1 | S2 | S3 | S4 | S5 | S6 | S7 | S8 | S9 | S+ |
| 15s | 14s | 13s | 12s | 11s | 10s | 10s | 10s | 10s | 9s | 9s | 9s | 9s | 9s | 9s | 8s |
开关 Arts
| Character | 开关 Art | Type | Ratio | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lora | Touch-Me-Not | 物理 | 270 – 450 | 吹飞 |
| Jin | Thin Ice | 物理 | 300 – 500 | 倒地 |
| Haze | Stormy Skies | 物理 | 240 – 400 | Smash |
| Addam | Illustrious 斩击 | 物理 | 300 – 500 | AOE / Topple |
| Mythra | Blinding 闪光 | 以太 | 240 – 400 | Smash |
| Minoth | Sierpe | 以太 | 330 – 550 | Break / Evasion |
| 雨果 | Sword 攻击 | 物理 | 240 – 400 | Smash |
| Brighid | Leaping Blaze | 物理 | 330 – 550 | Break |
| Aegaeon | Rushing Tide | 物理 | 270 – 450 | 吹飞 / Evasion |
Related gameplay changes
Given that both Drivers and Blades can now perform both roles in battle, Specials no longer work in the same way. To match the older fighting style of the era, Drivers have access to their own Specials and the vanguard is the one that performs the attack. This makes movement during Button Challenges no longer possible.
The way how equipment and stats work is also changed to account for the ability to play as Blades. While on the vanguard, they use the same HP, Strength, 以太, Agility, Dexterity and Luck as their Drivers. The effects of any accessories, Aux Cores, 牵绊 Chart skills and stat boosting Core Chip effects possessed by either the vanguard or the rear 防守 will apply to both characters simultaneously. However, characters no longer share their 武器 and defensive stats with each 其它.
