A Dream of the Future

A Dream of the Future is one of 's Battle Skills in Xenoblade Chronicles 2.

The in-game description of this skill's effect is misleading in that it is not random at all. Instead, it allows Rex to manually modify Pneuma's s to be any that would continue the current Blade Combo, or any element if no combo has yet begun. If the player is controlling Rex, this is done by pressing up and down on the D-Pad to select a valid element (overriding the D-Pad's normal usage); elements that would not continue an existing Blade Combo cannot be selected. If controlled by the AI, Rex will attempt to pick an element that no one else has currently readied.

Overview
A Dream of the Future can be very useful in the lategame, during the last few chapters of the story; it allows for much more Blade Combo accessibility for teams with limited numbers of elements, possibly by acting as a wildcard when one element required for a Blade Combo is missing (or must be done by inconsistent AI-controlled party members). When the player is controlling Rex, it is substantially more useful as getting the desired element is much more consistent.

This skill is also particularly useful in conjunction with the free Genesis Saber obtained upon activation of Pneuma, as it can instantly be used to finish any Blade Combo that is on its second stage. With good Pouch Items, it is even possible to fully complete another Blade Combo and begin a in the 60 seconds that Pneuma remains active; A Dream of the Future allows this Blade Combo to be of any route, either in order to exploit an enemy's elemental weakness or to add an arbitrary elemental orb which has not already been applied.

In postgame and on Bringer of Chaos difficulty, where stacking orbs for a massive Chain Attack becomes a relatively less effective strategy, the usefulness of A Dream of the Future decreases accordingly. However, it can still find more situational use as a wildcard, as mentioned above.

Trivia
In the game's code, A Dream of the Future is treated like the other Battle Skills; however, it is not responsible for the effect it implies. The ability for Pneuma to choose her Specials' elements is actually coded in elsewhere.