Upon defeating Abzu and sending Don Corneo on his way, it seems like the party finally got their hands on the Keystone. However, that hope is dashed, as Elena rushes in and steals it. Ultimately, the Turks get their hands on the Keystone and you’re left fighting Elena and Rude. However, thanks to Dio, you get a chance to rest, as well as do any shopping for items. Note that you will be stuck using Cloud, Tifa and Aerith for this battle, so make sure they are fitted with the appropriate equipment and materia.

All of Elena’s Attacks¶

Most of Elena’s attacks are unblockable, so it’s important to learn them so you can dodge them all. Petite Powerhouse is listed amongst her moves, but she doesn’t use it in this battle.

• Stun Grenade: Unblockable. Elena will toss a grenade out onto the field, which can explode and stun you, if you get hit by it.

• Grenade Kick: Unblockable. She will toss a grenade into the air, then perform a kick that sends it in your direction.

• Elena Knuckle: Unblockable. She’ll do a big wind-up, then perform a dashing punch attack. It doesn’t go too far and it’s quite easy to dodge.

• Backflip Barrage: Unblockable. Elena will perform a backflip, while tossing out some stun grenades. She will either follow up with machine gun fire, or a kick attack.

• Rogue Stance: Changes Elena’s fighting style, where she’ll become a little faster and chain together some attacks.

• Dash Knuckle: Another punch, similar to Elena Knuckle, that comes out quicker. Seems to be used once she does Rogue Stance.

• ’Nadefield: Unblockable. Happens when she teams up with Rude. She simply tosses out a bunch of stun grenades onto the field.

• Turk’s Vengeance: Unblockable/Unavoidable. Double team attack with Rude. She will use ‘Nadefield while this move is charging. Does big damage if you don’t interrupt.

All of Rude’s Attacks¶

A good number of Rude’s attacks are unblockable, but most are easy enough to avoid if you keep moving.

• Shockwave: Unblockable. Rude will fire off a small shockwave on the ground that slightly homes in on a character. He will usually counter long-ranged attacks with this move, too, if you keep attacking while he’s guarding.

• Triple Shockwave: Unblockable. Similar to Shockwave, but Rude will charge up a bit first before unleashing three shockwaves in a fan-like pattern.

• Spirit Geyser: Unblockable. Rude will punch the ground and cause multiple pillars of energy to come out from underneath a character. Keep moving to avoid these.

• Whirlwind: Unblockable. Rude summons a tornado that will track a character for a little bit. Just keep moving to avoid it.

• Stalwart Stance: Rude will change his combat style a little bit when he uses this. He’ll do various quick attacks that he can chain together sometimes, like Right Hook, Snap Kick, High Kick and Roundhouse.

• Turk’s Two-Step: Unblockable/Unavoidable. Combo team move with Elena. They will charge this move together, with Rude sending out Shockwaves/Triple Shockwaves and Elena does ’Nadefield.

Elena and Rude Ch. 12 Boss Strategy¶

This fight can be pretty difficult, despite having fought them back in Chapter 3, as their damage output as increased. If you use Assess and look at Rude’s list of moves, you will see a Phoenix Down on it. He can use this to revive Elena once during the battle, but he’s the only one to have this, as Elena doesn’t. Despite this, it’s still a good idea to go after Elena first during this bout, as she is much more aggressive than Rude. They will both have a lot of the same moves as during their previous bout, but there are some new ones, too.

One of the biggest annoyances with Elena is her firing her gun at you, which can stack up the damage pretty quickly. Likewise, she likes to toss her Stun Grenades very often, so you don’t want to get hit by those and be left stunned. She can kick the grenades towards you with Grenade Kick, which are a little quicker than her normal throws. At some point, she will use Rogue Stance, which seems to make her quicker and allows her to use the blockable Dash Knuckle attack. Elena is weak to lightning, so you’ll want to strike her with Thunder often, as it will likely pressure her with a single casting (two should do it, though).

Rude is more or less the same as his previous encounter, as he will do his usual turtling. If you keep striking him while he’s guarding, he will counter with melee strikes (if using melee) or a Shockwave (if using ranged). He’s a little tougher to pressure, as you have to hit him with strong abilities (weak to wind) while he’s guarding. A new move he has is Whirlwind, where he’ll basically summon a tornado that chases after you for a short time. Stalwart Stance will change Rude’s fighting style, where he’ll use quick strikes that he can chain together.

Once you deplete one of the Turks’ HP to 50% or so, they will begin their team-up attack. While they are preparing it, Rude will send out a bunch of Shockwaves/Triple Shockwaves, while Elena will use ’Nadefield (she just tosses out a bunch of stun grenades). When their big attack it ready, you will see a cinematic attack called Turks’s Two-Step/Turk’s Vengeance. This move does a lot of damage to all three characters, so you either need to keep your health up high, or try to interrupt it.

Interrupting it can be difficult due to the onslaught of grenades and shockwaves, but just use as many strong abilities as you can. Even something as simple as spamming Thunder on Elena can help here. Should you interrupt the attack, then you will pressure them both, allowing you to continue to fill the stagger gauges. Upon defeating one of the Turks here, the rest of the battle will become a lot easier.

Unfortunately, you won’t get much of a break after defeating the pair, as President Shinra shows up and your next battle will be against Rufus, although it’s going to be with only Cloud.