There's no reason to fear these foes, however, so long as you know your role in the party and what to expect from their attacks. Each encounter is based on learnable sequences of abilities, most of which can be avoided consistently by skilled players. So without further ado, let's get on to learning how to beat them all in their Normal and Hard incarnations, along with the other Trials you'll encounter on your journey.
Required level: 20
Unlocked by: Main story quest "Lord of the Inferno"
Your first Primal battle will come as part of the main story, and despite the threatening, fiery arena and the enormous size of your opponent actually isn't all that difficult at all. Be prepared to move around and switch targets when required.
The tank should begin the encounter by pulling Ifrit towards one of the arena's walls, placing their back against the fire and facing Ifrit away from the rest of the party. This simultaneously ensures that Vulcan Burst doesn't knock the tank back -- the fiery wall will stop them -- and that Ifrit's frontal breath attack Incinerate doesn't hit anyone other than the tank.
Every so often, Ifrit will use Eruption, which will cause cracks to appear in the ground underneath a random player's feet. Move quickly out of the way to avoid the explosion that is coming a few seconds later. The party should spread out to avoid multiple people being caught in one Eruption.
At 50% health, Ifrit will spawn an Infernal Fetters in the middle of the arena. DPS characters should leave the boss, pop any cooldowns they have to improve their damage output (Raging Strikes for Archers, for example) and defeat the Infernal Fetters as quickly as possible.
After a while, Ifrit will cast Hellfire. This will kill everyone if the Infernal Fetters was not defeated; otherwise, it will do around 300 damage to everyone. Healers should quickly restore everyone as much as possible, and the party should prepare for Phase 2.
Phase 2 is largely the same as Phase 1 with the addition of one extra ability: Radiant Plume. Here, Ifrit will create a pattern of fiery ground effects on the floor which will explode after a few seconds, dealing a reasonable amount of damage. The pattern will alternate between a ring around the outer edge of the area and a splodge in the middle of the area, so it is easy to predict where it will be coming next. Alternate moving in and out as the Radiant Plumes happen and before long Ifrit will be no more.
Required level: 34
Unlocked by: Main story quest "Lord of Crags"
Titan is a more difficult Primal battle, but nothing compared to his Hard and Extreme mode variants that you'll face at level 50. This is a dodge-heavy fight, so pay careful attention to what is going on around you and be ready to move at a moment's notice.
Tank Titan towards the middle of the arena, with other party members spread out on either side. The main thing you must be extremely careful of is Titan's Landslide ability, which targets a random player with a frontal column attack, pushing them off the edge of the cliff to their death if it hits. Move to one side immediately when you see the marker for this appear, regardless of whether or not you're in the middle of something.
At two points during Phase 1, Titan will leap into the air for his Geocrush ability. This will leave a red marker around the outside of the arena. Move towards the outer edge of the platform and cluster together as a party but stay out of the red area; the closer you are to the middle when Titan lands, the more damage he will do. The red area will also break off when he lands, reducing the size of the arena. Healers should heal everyone before the group spreads out again.
Titan will also use Tumult throughout the fight, which will damage everyone unavoidably. Healers, stay on top of your party's HP!
After the second Geocrush, Titan will lose this ability and the fight moves into Phase 2. Here, the party must destroy Titan's Heart as quickly as possible. Titan will continue to use Tumult, Landslide and his single-target Rock Buster ability throughout this phase, so healers keep healing and everyone keep dodging.
Also watch out for Titan's new Rock Throw ability in this phase. A symbol will appear beneath a random player's feet, and after a moment they will be trapped in a Granite Gaol, which must be destroyed by the other party members as quickly as possible.
When Titan's Heart is destroyed, he will use Earthen Fury, which will deal heavy damage to the whole party. Healers should quickly heal through this and the party should prepare for the final phase.
The final phase sees Titan dealing a lot more damage than previously. He starts using Tumult twice in succession, and this phase also introduces Weight of the Land, referred to by many players as "plumes" due to its resemblance to Ifrit's Radiant Plume ability, and an attack that you will grow to loathe very quickly.
Weight of the Land places sand trap markers under the feet of two random players, then deals heavy damage in these zones a few seconds later. You must move out of the area the second you see these markers, since the damage comes just a second or two later. They are very difficult to dodge effectively, but if you want to take on Titan's Hard Mode incarnation at level 50, it's essential to master avoidance quickly.
Somewhere amid all the Landslide and Weight of the Land dodging, keep throwing damage at Titan until he falls, then breathe a sigh of relief until level 44.
Required level: 44
Unlocked by: Main story quest "Lady of the Vortex"
Garuda is the most challenging of the Story Mode primals, and a complicated fight to get right. Pay careful attention to your positioning, and be particularly aware of the status of the rock pillars in the center of the arena -- you need to keep these standing as much as possible.
The tank should face Garuda away from the center of the arena and keep her away from the stone pillars. Ranged attackers should all move to the same side of the area, but spread out as much as possible while remaining in range.
Garuda's abilities include Friction, which damages a random player and everyone around them (including the stone pillars); Downburst, which deals damage to everyone in front of her; Wicked Wheel, which deals damage all around her; and Slipstream, which is a powerful frontal column attack with no ground indicator. The tank in particular should ensure they step well and truly out of the way of this when it is being cast.
At about 75% HP, Garuda will disappear, and the party should put a stone pillar between themselves and where she was being tanked. A moment later she'll cast Mistral Song, which will obliterate anyone in her line of sight when she reappears. Once it's gone off, the tank should run back first, followed a few seconds later by melee DPS to avoid Downburst and Slipstream.
After her first Mistral Song, she'll spawn a number of Razor Plume feathers from the sky. Destroy these as quickly as possible, as they will attempt to knock down the stone pillars. They can be hit with an area-effect spell if you're quick enough.
At 50% health, Garuda will disappear again ready for another Mistral Song. This time, she will reappear on the opposite side of the arena, so position yourselves accordingly to keep out of her line of sight again. After Mistral Song, she'll move to the middle of the room and summon another swarm of Razor Plumes which should again be destroyed as quickly as possible; the tank should move her back to the edge of the arena while the DPS is busy burning down feathers.
Phase 1 concludes when Garuda moves to the middle of the area and begins casting Aerial Blast. The entire party will take damage according to the state of the rocks, which can be a wipe if you weren't careful. A tank limit break can be useful here to mitigate some of the damage -- just time it carefully!
Stack in the center of the arena to avoid Eye of the Storm, which summons a whirlwind around the outside of the area. Step into this and you'll likely die, so stay in the middle as much as possible.
The tank should again take Garuda to one edge and face her away from the bulk of the party to minimize damage from Downburst. When she teleports to one side of the arena, she's about to use her new ability Mistral Shriek, so everyone should move as far away from her as possible, since it affects a circular area around her rather than the line-of-sight attack of Phase 1's Mistral Song.
Mistral Song itself works a little differently in Phase 2. Instead of teleporting to one side of the area, she'll move to the middle and cast it in the direction she is facing. Simply move behind her to avoid this.
The main thing to be wary of in Phase 2 is that there is a lot less space to move around. The tank will still need to dodge the frontal column attack of Slipstream, but there is less room to do so. Running straight through Garuda's legs to move behind her can be a useful strategy here -- just take care to move back into position immediately afterwards to protect the rest of the party from Downburst.
At around 25% HP, one final set of Razor Plumes will appear. Destroy them quickly to minimize damage to the party, and before long Garuda herself will fall. Congratulations on beating one of the hardest bosses in the main story!
Required level: 49
Unlocked by: Main story quest "Operation Archon"
This will be your first 8-player Trial, and the beginning of the end of the main story. Fortunately, it's an extremely straightforward fight that shouldn't give you too much difficulty; just be warned that since there's little incentive to replay this Trial after completing it once, Duty Finder queues are often pretty hefty. Manually gather a party via your Free Company or the Party Finder if at all possible.
For the most part, everyone should simply attack Rhitahtyn sas Arvina with their most powerful abilities, avoiding the Firebombs that cause flaming circles to appear on the ground.
At about 60% HP, Rhitahtyn will call for help from two guards. The off-tank should move to pick them up and mark them as "Target to Attack 1" and "Target to Attack 2" while the main tank stays on Rhitahtyn. The rest of the party should give the off-tank 5-10 seconds to pick up some solid aggro on the two guards, then turn their attention to them, beginning with target 1 and then moving to number 2. Once they're both down, return your attention to Rhitahtyn for the final stage of the fight.
At about 25% HP, Rhitahtyn will start launching Magitek Missiles every so often. These will appear as a large circle around Rhitahtyn, so everyone should get well back when this appears to avoid taking heavy damage. Simply continue hurling damage at Rhitahtyn and the Trial will be over before you know it.
Required level: 50
Unlocked by: Main story quest "You Have Selected Regicide"
The final boss of the "A Realm Awoken" patch, Good King Moggle Mog XII is an interesting fight that is a little different from the other Primal battles. There are two main phases, and in both you will need to kill the moogles in a specific order to make life easier for yourself. The order to kill the moogles is as follows -- you may find it helpful to mark them, since the marks will persist between phases of the fight.
The moogles don't appear in this order, however, so be ready to adapt. Whiskerwall will appear first, so everyone pile on to defeat the paladin moogle if at all possible. If this doesn't happen, the main tank should stay on Whiskerwall while everyone else moves through the kill order above.
After the main tank finishes off Whiskerwall, they should move to WoolyWart, who should be around the outside of the arena. They should also pick up the Warrior moogle Ruffletuft when they appear, and position them so that their cone-shaped Overpower attack faces out of the arena, helping to keep the rest of the party safe.
The Warrior will likely still be alive when the King finally shows up and casts Momento Moogle. This does damage based on how many moogles are still alive; 3 or more still standing will be a party wipe, so be sure you've taken enough moogles down by then.
Once the King shows up, the other moogles will get up again. The main tank should pick up the king and take him to the edge of the arena as well as provoking the Warrior moogle Ruffletuft. They should then continue kiting the pair around the outside of the arena while the rest of the party works through the kill order.
Once all the moogles are down for a second time, pile on the King and finish him off to beat this encounter and complete A Realm Awoken.
Required level: 50
Unlocked by: Main story quest "Into the Heart of the Whorl"
Compared to some of the other Primal fights, the final boss of Through the Maelstrom is an extremely easy encounter that shouldn't give you much trouble unless you're undergeared. Note that you'll need to challenge Leviathan's Extreme incarnation in order to get any loot; this encounter is purely for the main story.
The main things you'll need to organize as a group are the following:
A switch pusher: When Leviathan prepares to use his Tidal Wave attack, you'll need to push the switch in the middle of the arena to activate a shield, and everyone needs to gather beneath it to avoid heavy damage.
Two tanks: One tank should take Leviathan's head, the other should take Leviathan's tail when it pops up.
Kill the adds: Yellow orbs deplete the shield's energy, while Sahagin just get in the way. Kill the orbs first and then deal with the Sahagin before returning your attention to Leviathan.
Aside from this, be wary of when Leviathan dips beneath the waves, as he's either going to flop onto the deck and tilt it in one direction or the other, sending everyone flying to the "bottom" end of the slope, or Spinning Dive, which will whoosh either horizontally or vertically across the arena before plopping into the water on the other side. Most classes can survive a direct hit from this no problem, but to be safe, it's worth everyone gathering in the middle of the arena. This way, you'll stay out of the way of Spinning Dive and simply slide to the side if Leviathan deckflops.
The only other thing to watch out for is Hysteria, which forces players to run away. Avoid Leviathan's area-of-effect markers and you should remain safe from this frustrating debuff.
Required level: 50
Unlocked by: Sidequest "The Three Collectors," part of the Hildibrand arc.
The battle with Greg, sorry, Gilgamesh unfolds in two distinct phases, between which you'll have to chase the big lummox over the bridge and defeat a few trash mobs along the way.
During this phase, Gilgamesh will occasionally cast Toad on a player, which has a fairly self-explanatory effect. A Toaded player should keep moving and attempt to stay well away from Gilgamesh's pet chicken until the debuff wears out.
Gilgamesh also has a frontal cone attack with a long cast time, and a circular area of effect attack around himself. Both of these are easily avoided.
Deal enough damage and Gilgamesh will run off. Follow him, defeating the monsters on the way.
In the second phase, Gilgamesh will continue using Toad, this time on multiple players. There are several chickens, too, each of which will go after a single player.
Gilgamesh will also use Mini to shrink players, reducing their damage dealt while increasing damage taken. He'll also use whirlwinds, which need to be avoided, and target individual players before jumping on them to deal damage.
Pay attention to Gilgamesh's abilities and keep out of the way when Toad or Mini happens and this fight isn't difficult at all. It's worth it purely for the music and dialogue, though.
Required level: 50
Unlocked by: Sidequest "A Relic Reborn" (available after completing main story quest "The Ultimate Weapon" and repeatable for every class)
As part of the quest to acquire your Relic weapon, you'll be asked to defeat the Dhorme Chimera that makes its home in the cave in the far north-eastern corner of the Coerthas Central Highlands. Bring along a party of 8 -- or use the Duty Finder once you've unlocked the encounter by examining the destination marker there -- and be ready for a fairly straightforward fight.
At the start of the battle, everyone except the main tank should run backwards out of the cave into the open area outside and indicate when they are in position. The main tank should then bop the Chimera on the nose and pull it to the outdoor area so there is plenty of room to move around.
This fight is very similar to the Chimera you fight in Cutter's Cry in that there are two main abilities to avoid: Ram's Breath is an indication that melee attackers should move back away from the Chimera, while Dragon's Breath is an indication that ranged attackers should move in towards the Chimera.
Aside from this, be wary of Cacophony, an ability that summons an aggro-locked orb on a single player. The player, who will be marked with crosshairs, should move well away from the rest of the party and then allow the orb to get close; it will explode, potentially causing damage and inflicting paralysis, but keeping away from other party members should minimize the work healers will have to do.
The final thing to watch out for is Ram's Keeper, an attack that leaves a large icy patch on the ground. Move out of the circular ground indicator when it appears.
Keep throwing everything you've got at the Chimera and it'll be down before you know it.
Required level: 50
Unlocked by: Sidequest "A Relic Reborn" and defeating the Chimera.
During this fight, both tanks should pull the Hydra near to a wall facing outwards and then stand in front it to split the damage from its Triumvirate attack, which does less damage the more targets it hits. They should also take care to avoid the White Breath attack, since this afflicts Infirmity, which reduces healing on anyone suffering it and cannot be removed by Esuna.
The rest of the party should spread out and continue to attack the Hydra. Melee classes should try not to stand directly behind Hydra due to its Mean Thrash attack. Ranged classes should stay at long range, since Radiant Breath hits everyone at medium range and also inflicts Infirmity. This is slightly less of an issue when it's not on the tanks, but it's still a pain.
Partway through the fight, the Hydra will spawn a Wyvern that buffs its abilities with Bravery. You want to avoid that happening at all costs, so burn down the Wyvern as quickly as possible when it appears.
At various points throughout the fight Hydra will begin casting Fear Itself by moving to the center of the room and initiating a long cast. Everyone should immediately run into the middle of the room when this casting starts to avoid being hit; if you're not in melee range of Hydra when it goes off, you'll take heavy damage and be afflicted with Hysteria for a few seconds, causing your character to become temporarily uncontrollable.
Healers may find it handy to use the Focus Target ability on Hydra to keep an eye on when Fear Itself is coming, since they will normally be targeting players rather than the boss. Everyone else should keep an eye out for the ability; if you struggle after a couple of attempts, nominate someone to watch for Hydra starting to cast or moving to the center of the room, and get them to use a macro with a sound effect (something like "/party Hydra casting Fear Itself! Move to the center! <se.1>" is simple and clear) to call out when trouble is coming.
Survive the Hydra's various abilities and it won't be long before he's down for the count, and you're a step closer to your Relic.
Required level: 50
Unlocked by: Chronicles of a New Era quest (available after completing main story quest "The Ultimate Weapon") "Ifrit Bleeds, We Can Kill It"
Ifrit's Hard Mode incarnation is quite similar to his Story Mode counterpart, with the main difference being that you're now fighting with an eight-player Full Party instead of a four-player Light Party. You'll need to defeat Ifrit as part of the A Relic Reborn quest, but he also drops some good beginning endgame weaponry.
It's helpful to have several jobs on hand for this fight if at all possible. A Black Mage or Summoner is extremely useful to have around for their Limit Break, and a Paladin is a useful tank to have around for the stunning Shield Bash ability, which will be used frequently throughout the battle.
As with Ifrit's Story Mode incarnation, tank him with your back against the wall to avoid being buffeted around by Vulcan Burst. If the tank is a Paladin, use Shield Bash to interrupt Eruption every time it comes up. Warriors and Dragoons can also alternate on stunbot duties, but a Paladin is by far the most effective job to use here.
Ifrit's main new ability for Hard Mode is Crimson Cyclone. Here, he'll disappear and reappear on a random side of the arena; a moment later, he'll blast forwards in a straight line across the arena, so move out of his trajectory as quickly as possible to avoid damage.
At 75% HP, you'll move onto the next phase.
Radiant Plume appears again here, functioning much as it did before: alternating between a pattern in the middle of the room and around the edge. Eruptions will start occurring more frequently and you may not be able to stun all of them, so be ready to dodge if necessary.
When Crimson Cyclone occurs in Phase 2, there will be two Ifrits instead of one. Take care you are not in the path of either of them; the one which will fly out first will be marked with a purple glow.
At 50% HP, Ifrit will summon four Infernal Nails towards the middle of the room. Ideally you'll have built up a level 3 Limit Break by this point, which a Summoner or Black Mage should fire off to use Meteor and destroy several of the nails at once. If you don't have such a caster to hand, knock down the nails as quickly as possible: use a melee Limit Break on one, focus down two more then kill off the last with another melee Limit Break.
Ifrit will leap up once the Nails are destroyed; everyone should move into the center of the arena, Scholars should cast Succor and White Mages should cast Medica II. Scholars can also use Sacred Soil to reduce damage, but as long as the nails were destroyed quickly enough, everyone should survive the incoming Hellfire.
The final phase follows a strict pattern. Firstly, Ifrit will perform a Crimson Cyclone with two additional copies of himself, so take care to stay out of the way of all three of them. Secondly, he will use Radiant Plume around the edges of the room, followed shortly by another Radiant Plume in the middle, so move in then out to avoid both of these. This will then be followed by an Eruption which should be interrupted without fail to ensure no-one is wandering around out of position. There will then be a new Radiant Plume pattern, with the only safe zone being practically on top of Ifrit, so everyone stack on Ifrit to avoid it. After this, there will be one more interruptable Eruption, after which the cycle will repeat.
In between dodging things, hurl everything you've got at Ifrit and it won't be long before he topples over for the second time.
Required level: 50
Unlocked by: Defeating Ifrit (Hard) and following the Chronicles of a New Era post-story quest "In for a Garuda Awakening"
The first part of Garuda's Hard Mode incarnation is similar to your Story Mode encounter, which may still be quite fresh in your memory. The second part, however, is a bit different. Like Ifrit, you'll need to defeat Garuda for the A Relic Reborn quest, and she also drops some good mid-range endgame weaponry.
The main tank should bring Garuda to the northern end of the arena and, as usual, face her away from the group. Pay close attention to her casting and avoid Slipstream when it comes up, since it once again has no ground indicator.
Ranged players should spread out on the left side, away from the rocks. Melee DPS should make sure they're not getting hit by Downburst if at all possible -- poke or punch her in the back or sides to avoid this happening.
Roughly every minute, Garuda will disappear and cast either Mistral Song or Mistral Shriek. The first time she disappears, she'll reappear on the north side of the arena and use Mistral Song. The second time, she'll appear in the middle and use Mistral Shriek. The third time, she'll appear at the eastern side of the room and use Mistral Song again. If you survive to a fourth vanish, she'll use Mistral Shriek from the middle again, but you'll almost certainly die shortly after this; it means you're not doing enough damage.
In each case, put a rock between you and Garuda's line-of-sight to avoid taking heavy damage from her Mistral abilities. Hide inside the rock pillar arrangement for Mistral Song; hide outside them for Mistral Shriek. After surviving each blast, a large number of Razor Plumes will appear around Garuda. Destroy these as quickly as possible to ensure they don't destroy the rocks.
At around 50% health, Garuda will bellow "soon you will see the depths of your folly, mortals!" before disappearing and reappearing in the middle. This time, Razor Plumes will appear around the outside; again, destroy them as quickly as possible.
After knocking down this last set of Plumes, Garuda will move to the middle and start casting Aerial Blast. Gather together behind one of the rocks; healers should plonk down Sacred Soil if they have it and start casting Medica II or Succor so it goes off just after Aerial Blast hits.
After Aerial Blast, the tank should move Garuda to the north-west corner, while ranged characters should move to the western edge. This helps keep everyone safe when the Great Whirlwinds show up a moment later -- keep out of these at all costs!
Garuda will vanish after the whirlwinds appear and reappear with two friends at the southern end of the arena. Suparna and Chirada both have the same abilities as Garuda, so be wary of Slipstream.
The main tank should remain in position while everyone else joins the ranged attackers. After the tank avoids Slipstream and ensures they have established aggro, the entire group should focus on killing whichever of the two sisters is connected to Garuda by a green beam, since it heals Garuda. After this, the second tank should grab the add with the red beam and drag it near to the whirlwinds, facing it away from the group, and everyone should likewise kill it as quickly as possible.
When Suparna and Chirada are killed, the Great Whirlwinds will start to fade and rotate. Move clockwise around the arena to avoid taking damage, and take out the Satin Plume as soon as you see it, followed by the Razor Plumes and then returning your attention to Garuda. Once the party reaches the eastern edge of the arena, the whirlwinds will fade completely and everyone should stack in the middle to prepare for Eye of the Storm which, like in the previous encounter, reduces the available fighting space considerably and deals heavy damage to anyone caught in it.
Garuda will vanish yet again and bring Suparna and Chirada back, this time on the eastern and western sides of the room. Once again, kill whichever has the green beam first, followed by the red beam; healers should stay at the north edge while the two tanks hold Suparna and Chirada where they appeared.
After Suparna and Chirada fall for a second time, Eye of the Storm will fade. Everyone should move to the south, while the main tank should go to the south-west. Great Whirlwinds will appear again and rotate clockwise as before, so pay close attention to what's around you.
Garuda will vanish for one last time and bring Suparna and Chirada back once more. You should have a level 3 Limit Break built up by now; a Summoner or Black Mage should set it off to cast Meteor and, assuming your damage was high enough throughout the fight, defeat all three sisters in one fell swoop.
Required level: 50
Unlocked by: Defeating Garuda (Hard) and following the Chronicles of a New Era post-story quest "In a Titan Spot"
Titan is by far the most difficult of the primal fights, and demands two things: everyone in the party paying attention, and minimal lag. Your main priority is avoiding the "plumes" from Weight of the Land; these deal heavy damage if they hit, so get well out of the way when they appear. Note that they appear under players' feet, so running away from where other players were standing is usually the best means of escaping in time.
Like the other Hard Mode primals, you'll need to defeat Titan to get your hands on your Relic weapon, and he also drops decent endgame equipment to use in the meantime.
This is a complicated encounter with five phases, but the first three are just gradually introducing new mechanics. Take a deep breath and get ready for your toughest battle yet.
The first phase is fairly straightforward. Dodge Titan's Landslide ability when you see the cracked markings on the floor -- at this stage, there is a rock wall around the arena that will prevent you falling off, but you should still avoid getting hit by it.
After each Landslide, Titan will use Tumult up to twice in a row, which will damage everyone. Healers should start casting Succor or Medica II while Landslide is still going on so their regeneration effects are in place when Tumult shows up.
At around 90% health, Titan will leap into the air to use Geocrush. As before, this will leave a red marker around the outside of the arena showing which area is going to break off, so keep out of this. Everyone stack on the tank, and healers should cast Sacred Soil, Medica II and/or Succor depending on classes. If you can't make it to the tank, just get to the edge to minimize the damage you take.
After you knock Titan down to 90%, he'll start using Weight of the Land as well as Landslide (which can now knock you off) and Tumult. Start moving during Tumult and you'll more than likely avoid the dangerous plumes -- remember, they appear under party members' feet, so keep away from where people were standing to avoid them as much as possible.
Titan will use a predictable rotation of abilities: Weight of the Land, then Landslide, then Tumult. As before, healers should get out of the way of Landslide and be already casting Medica II and/or Succor by the time Tumult hits.
At 75%, Titan will use Geocrush again; respond to it as before.
Titan will start casting Tumult three times in a row in this phase, making it all the more important for healers to pre-cast Medica II and/or Succor to go off as Tumult hits.
As in Story Mode, Titan gains the Rock Throw ability which encases one party member in a Granite Gaol. Knock them out as quickly as possible, and healers should promptly remove the Determination Down debuff that this leaves them with.
The most dangerous ability in this stage is Bomb Boulders, which causes one of two patterns of bombs to fall into the arena and explode in the order they were dropped.
The first pattern will fill the edges of the arena with bombs and drop a final bomb in the middle. Stack behind the middle bomb and watch for the first of the outside bombs to blow up, then quickly move into the newly-created safe zone before the central bomb explodes.
The second pattern will fill the center and corners of the arena with bombs. Move to the north, south, east or western edge of the arena to avoid these.
Titan's rotation in this phase goes Landslide, Weight of the Land, Bomb Boulders, Landslide, Weight of the Land, Rock Throw, Tumult. As before, the end of the phase will be marked by a Geocrush; handle it as always.
You're on a time limit in this phase; if Titan reaches the end of his set sequence of abilities here before you destroy his Heart, you will all die, without fail. The sequence runs Rock Throw, Landslide, Weight of the Land, Tumult, Rock Throw, Landslide, Weight of the Land, Earthen Fury. Earthen Fury is the ability that will finish you off if you haven't destroyed his Heart by then.
Note that Titan will not use Bomb Boulders in this phase, and will use Rock Throw twice. Break out the first party member to be encased in a Granite Gaol, but leave the second trapped until the Heart has been destroyed.
When the Heart is destroyed, everyone should gather around the trapped player and break them out. Meanwhile, healers should cast Medica II and/or Succor to prepare for the weakened Earthen Fury when it eventually hits.
This is it; the toughest part of the battle, and the most complicated rotation of abilities in Titan's arsenal.
Titan will add Mountain Buster to his abilities in this final phase; a heavily damaging frontal attack on the main tank. Healers should be ready to deal with this, and tanks should try to use damage reduction cooldowns when it is used.
The full rotation is Mountain Buster, Tumult, Weight of the Land, Bomb Boulders and Landslide simultaneously, Mountain Buster, Weight of the Land, Rock Throw, Landslide.
The two previous Bomb Boulders patterns will appear along with a new third one: this one drops a column of bombs down the middle of the platform from east to west, a second column at either the north or the south, and a final column on the opposite side. Quickly move to the last column to drop and, as soon as the middle set explodes, move into the newly created safe zone. Be careful to avoid Landslide, which will come alongside the Bomb Boulders in this final phase.
As Titan weakens, Tumult will become more and more dangerous, eventually triggering up to seven times in a row. Healers should cast Medica II/Succor just after Landslide to have the regeneration effects in place ahead of having to deal with the damage from Mountain Buster. As a White Mage, a good strategy is to cast Medica II during Landslide, throw a Cure II at the tank as Mountain Buster hits, then spam Medica I until the Tumults end.
