GamesJRPGFinal FantasyFinal Fantasy XIVFinal Fantasy 14 fan soloing the MMO like it’s RuneScape’s Ironman mode finally finishes a 12-week boss grind thanks to a 6-week grind for 1 healing spellWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
GamesJRPGFinal FantasyFinal Fantasy XIVFinal Fantasy 14 fan soloing the MMO like it’s RuneScape’s Ironman mode finally finishes a 12-week boss grind thanks to a 6-week grind for 1 healing spellWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Square Enix)
Over the past year,Rath Gameshas been trying to solo the critically acclaimed MMO under rules borrowed from RuneScape’s Iron Man mode. You canread our previous chatwith Rath to find out how that came to be, but the basics are self-sufficiency over all else – no trading, no party members be they NPC or human, and no quest rewards.
Essentially, at one point in the fight, Susano slams a giant sword into the arena, tasking one player with holding it and the rest with breaking it. As Rath explains to GamesRadar+, he can’t do both, and failure to pass the damage check means the fight is over.
The eventual solution? Huge damage. As Rath points out, Susano will initiate the sword phase when he’s at 40% health or three minutes into the fight. At that point, you’ve got around 14 seconds to avoid defeat – or, 14 seconds you could theoretically take him out in with a burst window mighty enough.
Rath identified the new Pictomancer job as just the job to put out the damage he needed, but he still fell slightly short. One of the main issues is that he couldn’t utilize the Echo buff given to players who fail multiple times as he simply wasn’t surviving the fight for long enough – considering the buff helps out with damage and healing potency, it proves invaluable for a solo run like this.
Stumped, Rath put out a 50 million gil bounty to anyone who could chart the way forward and was essentially rewarded the same day. The Pictomancer has an ability called Star Prism that heals for 400 potency, theoretically giving the soloist enough survivability to last the fight long enough to get the buff. Couple that with the Pictomancer’s damage output, and you’ll be in business.
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Thankfully,the Pictomancer survived, andRath could hop on a six-week grindto level the Pictomancer to level 100 to get the needed Star Prism victory. The rest? Check it out below (3:27:50):
Solo FF14 Live - Today We Do The Impossible - YouTubeWatch On
Solo FF14 Live - Today We Do The Impossible - YouTube
Solo FF14 Live - Today We Do The Impossible - YouTube
It may come as little surprise, but Rath tells us the challenge of beating Susano “absolutely” ranks at the top of the list. And that’s saying something. A Heavensward boss calledBismark is an easy second, though I also recommendchecking out The Crystal Tower raid clear, whichessentially required a six-month training programto draft in fellow ironmen to ensure he complied with his own rules.
Regardless, Rath’s solo endeavor has been a long journey with plenty of road to cover. The Final Fantasy 14 fan reckons it’s taken 265 days to solo A Realm Reborn and 200 days to clear Heavensward. Stormblood, meanwhile, could be the longest. With that in mind, I ask Rath what the next big challenge might be.
“I never really know,” he says. “Susano and Bismark were the only ones I knew ahead of time. Maybe the Seat of Sacrifice, but there could be some dungeon before that that ruins me for a while. I’m looking forward to finding whatever it is.”
It’s currently a mystery whether he’ll be able to finish Final Fantasy 14 solo. He plans to end at Endwalker “no matter what,” though he says he can “never be sure when the end might sneak up on us.” Despite the many, many hours, though, there are certainly no regrets.
“It is, without question, the best thing I’ve ever done,” he says. “It’s a very fulfilling and enjoyable experience. I do love pushing the boundaries of what can be done.”
Meanwhile, Final Fantasy 14 devs just went ahead with their FF9 homage because otherwise they would have been “waiting and waiting” for the rumored JRPG remake to show up.
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1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1
Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
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Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
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3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
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Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
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3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
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4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
4
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5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
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2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
2
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3Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”
3
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4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
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5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”
5
Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”