Okay so, you somehow ended up in the Netherworld and fused with Aogami. What the heck are you supposed to do now? First things first. You need to get some demon allies so you don’t get eaten alive.

You’ll come across all sorts of demons in your travels but there are few that will actually help you succeed. There are a lot of tough enemies and two boss fights between you and the way home. So you’ll want to make sure your party is strong enough to endure the journey.

Here’s a list of the top five demons you should really think about putting in your party in the beginning portion of the game.

5. Onmoraki

This critter was born from a corpse that hasn't had a proper memorial service.

This weird looking onion-chicken baby isn’t really that cute… but at least he’s powerful.

Onmoraki is a demon you can get very early on once you get past some of the Slime hordes. He is stronger than other demons you have encountered. He isn’t as easy to kill like Pixie and Slime are, and he’s a great magic user.

What makes Onmoraki powerful early game:

• His base build starts out with Agi. A lot of demons you’ll come across early on have a weakness to fire moves.
• Onmoraki’s vitality and magic are his highest stats so you won’t have to worry about him falling in battle easily. 
• He also learns Pulinpa and can potentially help you avoid some damage by confusing your enemies.

4. Caith Sith

Humans that don't treat a Caith Sith nicely will get kidnapped by them and taken to their kingdom.

Isn’t he adorable with his little boots and hat? He can be pretty feisty though.

After you get past the big mouth guys and the Neko Shogun, you can progress to the next area of Da’at Minato. You’ll move to an area where Caith Sith are everywhere. So you’ll have plenty of chances to negotiate and recruit one of them. 

What makes Caith Sith powerful early game:

• If you are using Pixie as your current party healer, you can replace her with him. He also has Dia but is stronger and harder to kill.
• As he levels up, he’ll learn Zio and a lot of enemies in the beginning area have a weakness to electric moves.
• He has a high strength stat and will quickly learn Gram Slice which has a high chance of landing a critical.

3. Sandman

If one of his victims resisted falling asleep, he would sit on their eyelids to try and force them to sleep.

It’s better when he’s throwing his sleep sand at your enemies instead of you. Or hitting them with that heavy looking bag he carries.

Sandman is versatile because he has a variety of different skills as he levels up. He is a demon you will definitely want to have in your party when you enter the first boss battle against the Hydra.

What makes Sandman powerful early game:

• His luck and agility stats are the highest. He is more likely to dodge enemy attacks and also inflict sleep on your enemies when using Dream Needle.
• Sandman learns Bufu relatively quickly, which will be helpful when fighting the Tsuchigumo standing between you and Tokyo Tower. The Hydra you’ll fight also has a weakness for ice moves.
• Sandman learns Zan and Mazan. Few enemies before Tokyo Tower have a weakness for wind attacks. But these abilities will help you after you win the first boss fight.

2. Asparas

These beautiful creatures dance for the gods and guide heroes who died in battle to paradise.

She helps you out of the goodness of her heart, even though she has you beat up another pretty lady first.

With Asparas, you don’t have to negotiate or try to recruit her. You can get her by doing a quest that can be initiated by her or Leanan Sidhe. They want you to kill the other because they have different ideals– totally a healthy way of handling disagreements. 

Asparas is the better of the two in early game because she will be insanely helpful during the first boss fight with the Hydra. Besides, you can just fuse Leanan Sidhe later. You get Asparas at level 16 and it’s likely she is at a higher level than the other demons you currently have in your party.

Additionally, you and your other demons will gain EXP from completing her quest, so there’s an added benefit. You will want to level her up and use incense to increase her vitality. Otherwise, she’ll have a hard time against the Bicorn in the area after Tokyo Tower.

What makes Asparas powerful in early game:

• She has a high magic stat and starts out with Bufu and Mabufu. This will be helpful in your fight against the Hydra.
• Asparas eventually learns Patra and Tarunda so she can offer support as well as offense.
• If you acquire the Yoma talisman, she will have Omagatoki: Potential. This maxes out all skill potentials for all allies for one turn.

1. Fortuna

She's the Roman goddess of luck and some believe that she was originally a fertility goddess.

Let’s hope she keeps spinning the wheel of fortune in your favor.

You can only acquire Fortuna through fusion but you should have all the demons needed to get her. She’ll join your party at level 15 if you’re at that level or higher, so not far off from Asparas. You will want to level her up for the next boss fight because they have a weakness to wind. 

Like Sandman, she has a variety of moves at her disposal. If you use Sandman to fuse her after he learns Mazan, that might also be helpful to you.

What makes Fortuna powerful early game:

• Fortuna’s magic stat is the highest, followed by agility and luck.
• Her basic build includes Dia so she can also act as your party healer and replace Caith Sith when needed.
• She eventually learns Hama which can be helpful when fighting the enemies you’ll come across with a weakness to light moves.
• Like Asparas, she can also act as support after she learns Rakunda.

You may also be interested in:

• [Top 10] Shin Megami Tensei V Best Demons (Ranked)
• [Top 10] Shin Megami Tensei V Best Miracles (Ranked)
• Shin Megami Tensei V Stats Guide: The Best Stats To Upgrade