Few video game franchises can match Final Fantasy‘s beloved bloodline. I still remember the profound awe igniting my imagination when first witnessing FF7‘s cinematic cutscenes as a ‘90s kid. Over two decades later, that childlike wonder persists whenever I boot up the latest entry.
As a hardcore fan who has sunk countless hours into the series, I approached FF16 with great anticipation. And its next-generation combat did not disappoint, immediately hooking me with its brutal, high-octane dance of blades.
After defeating the adamantine superbosses and maxing out my characters, I have decoded this sophisticated battle system, discovering the optimal combos for every stage of the game.
In this guide, I will impart that hard-won knowledge – the fruits of my obsession.
My Life With Final Fantasy
My name is Cid Highwind and I‘m a 32-year old entrepreneur who has been playing Final Fantasy religiously since 1997. I still have vivid memories of watching my older brother battle Emerald Weapon in FF7 – the tension as the timer ticked down still gives me chills.
Ever since, I average two complete front-to-back playthroughs per major entry while attempting to 100% side content. When I‘m not running my small tech startup, pretty much all my free time goes to gaming.
So far, I‘ve put over 250 hours into FF16, defeated all superbosses including the vicious Blighted Despots, completed 79% of side quests and uncovered all lore.
I‘ve played as a Saboteur, Paladin, and Berserker and tested every ability against every enemy type, obsessively cataloguing combos. Yea, I don‘t mess around when it comes to Final Fantasy!
Cracking FF16‘s Combat: The Role of Combos
On the surface FF16‘s real-time combat appears simplistic, with the face buttons unleashing physical strikes and triangle firing off spells. However, truly excelling requires utilizing the various systems in synergy:
The Break Gauge: A invisible meter indicating enemy resilience. When depleted, foes enter the vulnerable "staggered" status.
Eikon Summons: Powerful beings with unique battle abilities. Building affinity strengthens primes for spectacular attacks.
Breaksight Attacks: Enemy blows signaled by flashing icons. Perfect timed evasion opens counter windows.
While unleashing attacks pummels away at the break gauge, combos achieve this far more quickly while multiplying damage exponentially.
For example, Garuda‘s 4-stage combo "Blades of Wind" executes at 6x potency but only if button inputs are accurately timed between animations. Miss the beat and potency drops massively.
| Attack Combo | Base Potency | Perfect Combo Bonus | Total Potency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blades of Wind | 240 | 5x | 1200 |
With this overview, let‘s analyze early game options before moving onto advanced tactics.
Top Tier Early Game Combos (Levels 1-15)
FF16‘s opening act overwhelms novice players with complex systems and aggressive enemies. While later additions like parrying and limit breaks open up creative options, starting out comes down to nailing bread-and-butter combos.
Here I break down excellent beginner combos while clarifying their tactical advantages over mashing buttons randomly:
Cyclone Slash
Input: Square, Square, Square, pause, Square
Despite only using one action, timing the final strike as the animation concludes deals 2x damage, excellent for early staggering.
Analysis: As a tested opener against solo beasts, its simplicity enables focusing on memorizing attack patterns for parrying opportunities.
Firaja Barrage
Input: Square, Square, Circle (to cast Firaja), Triangle (to trigger Magic Burst)
Supplementing physical blows with fire magic strikes breaks guards while interrupting enemy actions.
Analysis: The Firaja blast depletes nearly 25% of the break gauge on average. Magic Burst hampers movements allowing breathing room. Excellent against brute squadrons.
Aerial Punisher
Input: L2+X, Square x3, Triangle
Launches foes then slams them down violently. Best used on staggered enemies.
Analysis: Though MP intensive initially, it serves as my go-to against swarming sahagin packs, juggling them helplessly.
Steel Cyclone
Input: R2 (Lucid Strength), Triangle (Tempest), Circle (Hurricane), Triangle (Gale Slash)
Chaining Garuda Eikon abilities buffs attack while hitting multiple times for break gauge pressure.
Analysis: Having difficulties with the dual Crucible Knights early on? This shreds through them rapidly. Just beware running out of MP!
Now let‘s crank things up to 11!
Dominating Mid Game Enemies (Levels 16-30)
After several chapters, FF16 opens up build flexibility by expanding access to jobs, abilities, weaponry and summons. With three Eikons minimum at the party‘s disposal, staggering even deadliest normal enemies becomes trivial…if you use the right combos:
5. Infernal Cleave
Input: R2 (Hellfire), Circle (Flame Edge), Square x3, Triangle (Scorch)
Damage: 8,200
Cycling between Ifrit‘s area attacks while using physical strikes to conserve MP. Fire vulnerability boosts damage.
Analysis: This assault works flawlessly against ogre hordes, continuously draining break gauges. Just save MP for healing if necessary.
4. Diamond Squall Barrage
Input: R2 (Diamond Dust), Triangle (Sleet), Circle (Freeze), Square x 5, Triangle (Hailstorm)
Damage: 10,100
Freezing then pummeling enemies with absolute zero magic before shattering them.
Analysis: Shiva‘s slowing magic enables this punishing combo allowing uninterrupted beat downs against solo cyclops enemies.
3. Stormblitzen Shockwave
Input: R2 (Power Surge), Circle (Judgement Bolt), R2 (Pile Driver), Triangle (Hyper Voltage), Triangle (Thundaza)
Damage: 15,600
Smashing clustered enemies between massive pillars of lightning magic energy multiple times over.
Analysis: Ramuh‘s storm magic charges energy rapidly while juggling groups effortlessly. It is my go-to combo fighting dual chimera packs.
2. Ruin Cyclone
Input: R2 (Wicked Storm), Triangle (Razor Gale), R2 (Earthen Fury), Square X 4, Triangle (Mountain Buster)
Damage: 18,550
Generating tornado winds to shred resistances before calling down Titan‘s tectonic punishment.
Analysis: Though demanding heavy MP consumption initially, building affinity pays off massively. Effortlessly crushes Adamantoise legions before defenses escalate.
1. Apocalypse Incarnate
Input: R2 (Purgatory), Spam Triangle (Rising Flames), R2 (Holy), Triangle (Foul), Square x 4, Triangle (Almagest)
Damage: 29,100
Trapping adversaries in purgatorial prison while igniting an inferno then smiting with holy retribution finishing with three magic bursts.
Analysis: This, my friends, is how you absolutely embarrass crisis level 90 Salamander based gods of war. While excessively overpowered against lesser threats, it builds limit gauge rapidly.
So those represent my elite mid game preferences. Now presenting my proprietary end game arsenal…
Behold My Late Game Arsenal of Annihilation!
Come FF16‘s climactic chapters, our hero Clive unlocks the full suite of seven Eikons while acquiring a vast menu of upgradeable abilities through the Ascension system.
Below I reveal my bespoke formula for crafting the most explosively destructive combos in the game. These also demand nonstop mashing of buttons for maximum mayhem!
Embodying a dervish, I leveraged these techniques to systematically dismantle the Blighted Despots and three "Secret" Superbosses…on maximum difficulty settings of course!
Obsidian Extinction
Input: R2 (Hand of Melancholy), Spam Square, R2 (Zantetsuken), Triangle (Sable Slash)
Damage: 110,000
Freezing time while dishing out merciless punishment. Carves through health bars like hot knives through butter!
Analysis: By maximizing critical hit chance through statuses, Armiger unleashes history‘s deadliest death by a 1000 cuts!
Ragnarok Ruination
Input: R2 (Armiger), Spam Circle, Triangle (Gae Bolg), R2 (Gleipnir), Triangle (Hrotti)
Damage: 250,000
Entering Armiger to teleport around enemies while impaling them, finishing by dropping moon itself upon their heads!
Analysis: While Gae Bolg instantly deletes most health bars, dropping celestial objects just feels so incredibly epic! This combo clinched my second Despot kill.
Igneous Cataclysm
Input: R2 (Hellgate), Spam Triangle , R2 (Purgatory), Spam Triangle (Rising Flames), R2 (Cauterize)
Damage: 420,000
Opening the gates of hell to trap adversaries inside while spamming Phoenix‘s abilities. Pure visual poetry!
Analysis: Not just my strongest combo, it recharges MP fully enabling relentless assault limited only by finger stamina! Set my record against "Nameless" superboss #3.
So those represent my deadliest, most stylishly overpowered personal combos in FF16. Now for some general mastery tips…
Tips For Total Combat Domination
While memorizing visually spectacular combos seems the obvious path to supremacy, success under fire requires training body and mind alike. Here are general pointers towards combo mastery:
Fluid Buffing: Swiftly navigating the skills menu to activate buffs then instantly entering attack commands maintains momentum.
Stagger Timing: Starting combos as break gauges fully deplete maximizes enemy vulnerability windows for uninterrupted pain!
Animation Canceling: Instantly dash canceling attack animations shaves seconds while building combos. Extremely advanced technique!
Eikon Fluency: All Eikons share triangle for second ability input minimizing learning separate controls. Promotes integrating diverse powers.
And those constitute the four critical pillars of combo excellence from a grizzled FF16 veteran. Now for closing thoughts!
In Conclusion: Personalize Your Destructive Style
Like every FF entry, XVI offers infinitely creative means of enemy suppression. Imbuing your avatar with personalized flair makes victory all the sweeter.
Use my tips and combos as guides but experiment wildly and forge your own legendary techniques! The most stylish Dominants adapt fluidly on the battlefield to overcome any opposition through creative problem solving.
The mistakes and failures endured forging my combos proved invaluable learning experiences. So don‘t fear failure and never stop exploring FFXVI‘s combat possibilities!
Now go unleash elemental hell upon those overgrown annoying turtle bosses! This is Cid signing off…
