How to beat the Morbol boss in Final Fantasy 16

The return of the Morbol boss within Final Fantasy 16 might cause a split reaction with series veterans, as it is great to see familiar faces, but perhaps not ones with such bad breath.

The Morbol is one of the most used enemies within the Final Fantasy series and is infamous for its status-effect inducing bad breath attack, which does of course accompany the many-toothed monster in the latest game.

How do you beat the Morbol boss in FF16?

The Morbol boss in Final Fantasy 16 isn't too complex to master once you understand its move set, as it is relatively slow and therefore easy to avoid.

It does have a fair amount of health - especially as you don't have too many tools at this point in the game to deal with big monsters - but chipping away and staying alert for its move will get the job done with ease.

First phase

The Morbol boss' two main physical attacks in Final Fantasy 16 are telegraphed by lifting its tentacles up and to the side, and it will swipe around a second after the attack animation starts.

All you need to do here is dodge with R1 just before the attack hits to get a precision dodge bonus, or simply back up with enough room for the swipe to miss.

It also has an attack where it will stick its tentacles into the ground, and around a second later they will sprout up from the water underneath you. The best way to deal with this is to back up, as the timing is more unpredictable in terms of dodging.

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Its main named attack within the first phase is the classic Bad Breath attack that you might remember from past Final Fantasy games. While it is nowhere near as dangerous and fatal as its former existence, it can still do a fair amount of damage that you will want to avoid.

It has a lengthy and obvious tell where the Morbol breathes in, and the attack is signaled by its name appearing above the boss. Move around the side and back of the boss to avoid the attack and this way you can continue attacking as well.

By this point, you should be able to stagger the boss, which will render it inactive for a short while. Use the Rising Flames attack with R2+Square if you have it on cooldown, and hit away as much as you can to deal plenty of damage.

Second phase

After the first stagger period, the Morbol will lift its head slightly and then tunnel into the water. You will want to make sure that you're out of the way once it lifts its head up, as the impact can do a fair amount of damage before it disappears.

It will then pop out of the water in a random spot, and start to suck in the area. This part will involve a few cinematic strikes, so make sure to hit the correct button once it appears on the screen.

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It will stagger once more when out of the cinematic strike phase, so make sure to hit as hard as you can again. 

Then, once it is back the boss will lift its head up and breathe in for around 2 seconds, prepping for an AoE attack. For this attack, you will want to get as far back as possible as you won't be able to dodge the incoming damage.

Some of the standard physical attacks from now on will become a double hit instead of a single hit, so make sure to stay on your toes just in case that second swing comes barrelling towards you.

The Morbol will also now start spitting out black goo which slows you down if you step inside it, so make sure to avoid it at all costs as it can leave you rather vulnerable otherwise.

Third phase

After your next evasion, the boss will dive into the ground again and recommence the cinematic strike sequence. Once again, make sure that you hit the correct buttons to evade and attack the boss, and the fight should then continue.

The only difference about this third phase is that a new attack called 'Wild Rage' is introduced into the move set. This is arguably the Morbol's most dangerous move, as it launches itself towards you for around five seconds, progressively attacking the whole time.

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This is not really an attack that you can dodge, as the sheer number of attack windows will have you hit any one point during the animation. Therefore, it is best to just steer clear and stay out of danger - especially as the boss becomes staggered for a short while post-attack regardless of whether you touch it.

It has the chance to do Wild Rage more than once for the rest of the fight, so make sure to follow the steps above to avoid it if so. All you need to do now is continue attacking the boss until its HP is depleted, which should be fairly easy now that you know the complete moveset.

What are the Morbol boss rewards?

Beating the Morbol boss in Final Fantasy 16 will give you the following rewards:

• 50 Experience
• 70 Ability Points

You unfortunately won't be entitled to any crafting materials, nor will your coin purse be filled at all by besting this classic foe.

However, the rewards are still more than welcome, as they will make Clive stronger and allow you to invest in all of your favorite abilities.

Make sure that you check out our dedicated Final Fantasy game page for all of the latest news and guides.