Final Fantasy has always been about spectacular set-pieces, robust role-playing gameplay elements, and challenging boss fights — all of which are retained in the series’ latest outing, Final Fantasy 16. From legendary beasts that you will find during hunts (Notorious Marks) to the massive and powerful Eikons, there’s a host of unique and challenging bosses for you to fight in Final Fantasy 16.
Garuda the Eikon of the Wind is a spectacular foe you will combat during the early sections of this game. What elevates this boss fight to great heights is the impact it has on Clive as well as the title’s overall narrative. While this might not be the most challenging battle in FF16, it surely offers some moments that are nothing short of visual spectacles.
Here’s a comprehensive guide on how to easily defeat Garuda in Final Fantasy 16.
Where do you encounter Garuda in Final Fantasy 16?
You will go face-to-face against Garuda in the main story mission – Headwind. After facing defeat at the hands of Clive and Torgal in the previous mission, Garuda’s Dominant, Benedikta is ambushed by a group of bandits who kill her soldiers and plan to capture her. However, she eventually ends up awakening her Eikonic powers and transforms into Garuda.
As you make your way towards this boss’ location, you will face a horde of Chirada in FF16, which has spawned as a result of Benedikta’s overconsumption of “ether,”which caused her to transform into Garuda. While this mission starts with Clive being accompanied by Cid and Torgal, he eventually ends up getting separated from his party. This leaves him alone as he prepares to fight the Eikon.
How to defeat Garuda in Final Fantasy 16
The fight against Garuda is divided into two phases, with each featuring its own set of attacks you will need to be mindful of. Most of this boss’ moves are essentially the same as Benedikta’s but with a much larger telegraph. This makes Garuda much easier to dodge and punish. However, unlike Benedikta, this foe does not leave much breathing room between attacks.
The first phase is quite easy to deal with, provided you’re good at timing dodges and also know when to best use your Eikonic abilities. Garuda has three primary attacks: a claw swipe, a kick, and explosive projectiles that detonate on impact.
Most of Garuda’s melee attacks are easy to dodge and are very well-telegraphed. However, she can mix her claw attacks with projectiles, which can make them a bit hard to dodge.
Here are some tips for dealing with this foe in the first phase:
- The best way to deal with Garuda is to use your Eikonic abilities (Phoenix and Garuda) and only inflict stagger damage using your flame attacks from a distance until you can once again use your powerful abilities.
- After getting Garuda’s health down to 50%, you will gain the ability to hold enemies down by pressing Circle while equipping Garuda as your Eikon.
- Most of your damage will come from the Eikonic abilities. As such, make sure to equip only those that have a shorter cooldown.
Once you defeat Garuda’s first phase, she will grab Clive, which will result in him finally embracing his true power as Ifrit’s Dominant and becoming the Eikon. As Ifrit, you have a limited set of attacks at your disposal, including a lunge, fireball, and melee swipes.
Here are a couple of tips to deal with Garuda in the fight’s second phase:
- The best attack to utilize against this foe is the lunge, which also acts as a better gap closer than using dodge.
- The second phase is fairly automated, and as long as you stay hot on Garuda’s tail — dealing damage to the boss using a combination of lunge and melee swipes — you will easily defeat this foe.
The Garuda fight is the perfect battle to kickstart the game’s Eikonic boss fights. It offers gamers a taste of what they can expect from other such Eikon vs. Eikon battles in Final Fantasy 16.
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