Lightning Returns Guide: The Last Day (Bhunivelze)

This is the final boss in Lightning Returns. If you’ve adequately prepared for this, it shouldn’t be a problem. For whatever reason it urns out you are not prepared and you lose, just go back to the chamber area where Mog is and use the Crystal of Atonement. This will send you back to day one while retaining all abilities and inventory, minus key items.

Preparing For The Battle:

Since this is such an unforgiving fight, I’m going to take a different approach. Instead of just suggesting where to focus your Schemata build, I’ll share the suggested Schemata build I found. Note: there are some interchangeable pieces, but this is the top-tier suggestion based on a first playthrough, from Square Enix themselves.

Note that if you want the Double Deity weapon from Bhunivelze you can substitute Beggar’s Beads in for Dawn Guantlets.

As far as items go, I wouldn’t recommend getting offensive items this time around. Instead stock up on recovery and resurrection items. This boss is the epitome of a boss rush, with 4 forms back to back.

Bhunivelze Theme.

Strategy:

I’m just going to run straight through each form adding the notable stats just to show how much different each form is.

1st Form:

Noteable Stats:

• 600,000 HP
• 300 Strength
• 300 Magic

This form should be fairly simple. Besides getting Doom cast on you at the start, there isn’t too much to worry about. Guard if you feel you need it, but otherwise just Deprotect and Imperil him and get to work. Staggering 1st Form causes Unprotected to speed up this portion of the fight.

2nd Form:

Noteable Stats:

• 700,000 HP
• 350 Strength
• 350 Magic

The big thing to watch out early in this form is the rotating elemental strengths and weaknesses. This is why your Red and Blue Schemata are specifically focused on different elements.  Make sure you keep Deprotect and Imperil up and continue to hammer down Bhunivelze. Staggering this form adds Unshelled increasing magic damage.

There is one big thing you need to watch for in this phase, Genethliac Hymn. Upon activating this, one of two outcomes will happen. The first, is Dancing Mad (note the reference to FFVI), and this is the outcome you don’t want. The other outcome is Falling Star.

Of these two options, Falling Star is the weaker attack. To get this outcome, Bhunivelze has to be staggered while casting Genethliac Hymn. It should be noted, that if you can put out enough damage early Bhunivelze will never cast Genethliac Hymn.

3rd Form:

Noteable Stats:

• 900,000 HP
• 420 Strength
• 420 Magic

In this form you’ll rely heavily on your guarding. Take openings when you can find them, but don’t take a hit just because you wanted to finish an attack string. Bhunivelze has long physical combos in this form so if you take a hit you’ll be taking quite a few more in short succession. Try to stagger him and use your Heavy Slash to push out massive damage.

Keep your HP reletively topped off, because if this form lasts too long Bhunivelze will use Hypernova. Hypernova prevents the use of your menus for a time after use, but if the phase ends fast enough Hypernova won’t be used.

4th Form:

Noteable Stats:

• 1,050,000 HP
• 700 Strength
• 700 Magic

This is the final form. This form is basically the final Orphan fight from the original FFXIII all over again. You need to stagger Bhunivelze to deal damage to him. Continuously flow through your skills to keep nearing the stagger. Once Heartless Angel skill is started unload all staggering abilities. Use Overclocks if you have to. If you don’t stagger Bhunivelze before the camera zooms in on Lighting immediately Guard, otherwise you’ll have your HP dropped to 1.

Once staggered You’ve pretty much won the fight as Bhunivelze takes massive amounts of damage while staggered.

This wraps up the final boss fight of Lightning Returns. For other guides check out my Lightning Returns directory.