Final Fantasy 16: Garuda Boss Guide

The Final Fantasy 16 Garuda boss fight is your first real test against an Eikon summon or eidolon. You’ll battle this gargantuan entity that has power over the winds, and you have to do everything you can to prevail. Our Final Fantasy 16 Garuda boss guide tells you about this Eikon’s abilities and how to beat her. Spoilers follow.

How to Beat Garuda in Final Fantasy 16

The Final Fantasy 16 Garuda boss fight occurs during the Wings of Change mission. Once you’ve defeated Benedikta, you’ll claim the Eikon’s powers. Shortly thereafter, she creates a Tempest due to her anguish. After going through the grassy fields teeming with Wind Elementals, you’ll reach the Tempest, where you must follow the Hooded Man. There’s a cutscene here, which leads to the Awakening chapter, as well as the bout itself.

How to Defeat Garuda Phase 1

The Final Fantasy 16 Garuda boss is a gigantic foe, which means her attacks are quite slow, but they pack a punch. There’s also a new mechanic that you’ll learn soon enough. These are the abilities that you need to avoid:

• Sideswipe Kick — Garuda does a sweeping motion with her leg, which you’ll want to dodge or back away from.
• Claw Hammer — When you see the two large claws raised, you’ll want to dash to evade this crushing move.
• Tornado — A tornado will funnel you in, so make sure to get out of its radius.
• Aerial Blast — This is a massive AoE that will take out a chunk of your HP unless you get out of the way.

Ideally, you’ll want to use aerial attacks to avoid any ground-based moves done by the boss. The Stomp general ability and Garuda Wicked Wheel ability both help you stay airborne for prolonged periods, too.

Likewise, once the boss’ Will Gauge/Stagger Meter has reached 50%, a new mechanic called Takedown is introduced. Takedown requires you to use the Garuda Deadly Embrace skill against larger foes that have reached 50% of their Will Gauge. This will cause Clive to pull them down, leading to a Stagger sequence.

For your efforts, you’ll receive 55x Sharp Fangs. These might seem like meager rewards, but there’s still more to this fight.

How to Defeat Garuda Phase 2

Now, you’re ready for an epic battle. This time, you’ll control another Eikon, Ifrit, who will go toe to toe with Garuda. Garuda will still use Aerial Blast, which will do a lot of damage unless you avoid it. Ifrit, too, has some notable abilities:

• Evade — R1.
• Attack — Square; must be done when in melee range.
• Fireball — Triangle; this is your ranged projectile.
• Lunge — Circle; this allows you to close the gap.

This portion of the FF16 Garuda boss fight is all about getting close enough to Garuda so you can pummel her with your melee attacks. As you deplete her HP, you’ll trigger Cinematic Strike, Evasion, and Clash sequences, including some spectacular moments.

At the end of it all, Ifrit will cast Hellfire to finish off the Wind Eikon. This nets you 60x Wyrrite, 2x Meteorite, and 1x Wind Shard. This last one is a special crafting material.

In any case, that’s how to beat Garuda in Final Fantasy 16. For more tips and strategies, you can visit our FF16 guides hub.