After witnessing the Eikon duel on the Nysa Defile during To Kill a Dominant, Clive will end up taking an involuntary trip down memory lane. Clive himself may be a gristled veteran at the chronological present in Final Fantasy XVI, but up to this point we’ve had no proper exposure to combat. The first main quest in the game, Pride, covers that gap by putting you in control of a much younger, less experienced Clive, allowing you to learn the ropes more organically. This page will cover the main quest Pride in Final Fantasy XVI, including the combat tutorial with the Lord Commander.

Combat Basics with the Lord Commander - FF16 Pride Main Quest Walkthrough¶

As mentioned above, this quest starts with a younger Clive being unceremoniously roused… presumably after a less-than-stellar showing against the Lord Commander. Fortunately, whatever head trauma knocked Clive unconscious doesn’t prevent him from having another go at the Lord Commander, and it’s here where we’ll get our combat tutorial.

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Start out the combat tutorial by performing two four-hit melee combos.

Execute a Four Swing Combo - FF16 Pride Main Quest Walkthrough¶

The first test is simple, you just have to attack the Lord Commander. Press the button four times to complete a combo. You don’t need to actually land any of these attacks and the Lord Commander won’t retaliate, so just swing away. Do this twice and you’ll move onto the next tutorial.

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You can punish enemies from afar with the Fire spell.

Land a Fire Spell Five Times - FF16 Pride Main Quest Walkthrough¶

Next up, magic. This is Clive’s ranged option, and you can free cast Fire by pressing the . There’s no magic points or cooldown to worry about, so feel free to spam it. For the purposes of this tutorial, however, you’ll want to utilize Fire in a more deliberate manner - the Lord Commander will take the first hit, but block subsequent casts, so just pelt him with a Fire spell, wait for him to let down his guard, then cast another. Repeat until you’re done.

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Evade attacks at the last moment to perform a !Precision Dodge.

Evade Four Times - FF16 Pride Main Quest Walkthrough¶

Having proven himself fit enough offensively, the Lord Commander decides to go on the attack, testing Clive’s defenses. At this point in time Clive is pretty much just limited to dodging with . Just watch the Lord Commander’s painfully telegraphed attacks and dodge to evade them. If you dodge just before the attack lands you’ll perform a Precision Dodge, which leaves the enemy vulnerable to counterattack - not useful for this particular tutorial, although you can try them out if you want some acclaim from the audience.

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(1 of 2) Use !Phoenix Shift to dash at enemies,

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Use !Phoenix Shift to dash at enemies, (left), and append your dash with a melee attack or magic attack. (right)

Execute a Phoenix Shift Three Times - FF16 Pride Main Quest Walkthrough¶

Next up you’ll have to make use of Clive’s offensive mobility option - Phoenix Shift. Pressing will cause Clive to dash at a targeted enemy, and you can append this dash with a normal attack or a magic attack. Perform either a + or + combo three times to complete this phase of the tutorial.

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Restorative and buffing items are mapped to the D-pad. Fully restore your HP to continue the tutorial.

Use Potions to Fully Restore HP - FF16 Pride Main Quest Walkthrough¶

Despite Clive’s apparently miraculous ability to recover from head trauma with little apparent ill effect, he did wind up worse for wear after his earlier, unwitnessed bout with the Lord Commander. Before he gets serious and makes you demonstrate all you’ve learned, he wants you at full health, which also serves to teach you how to use recovery items in combat. These are mapped to the D-pad, so at this time press to use a Potion and press to use a High Potion.

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(1 of 2) Dodge the Lord Commander’s attacks and retaliate - each hit will deplete his Will Gauge and eventually stagger him.

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Dodge the Lord Commander’s attacks and retaliate - each hit will deplete his Will Gauge and eventually stagger him. (left), Once staggered, hit the Lord Commander with your Rising Flame Eikonic Ability to deal heavy damage. (right)

Defeat the Lord Commander - FF16 Pride Main Quest Walkthrough¶

When you’re fully healed, the Lord Commander will decide it’s sporting to truly test your mettle. What follows is a full fight putting together everything you’ve learned in the previous tutorials - the Lord Commander will attack, you’ll need to dodge (ideally pulling off precision dodges and counterattacks). More tutorials await you, however, as the fight is capped with a tutorial on enemy Will Gauges; as you land attacks the enemy’s Will Gauge will deplete, and when it’s empty your enemy will become staggered, allowing you to punish them for a period of time.

Whittle down the Lord Commander’s Will Gauge and when he’s staggered you’ll be prompted to land the Rising Flames Eikonic Ability. To do this press + . Eikonic Abilities are incredibly powerful, but unlike other attacks you’ve used they have cooldowns. Be sure to abuse them whenever possible, as long as you have one ready for staggered enemies.

After you defeat the Lord Commander more scenes will play, after which you’ll finally be in control (and the quest Sunrise, Sunset begins.