We turn away from the First and Second Circles of Pandaemonium, which easily fell beneath your blade. Now we move to the third leg of Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker’s first raid. The Third Circle is one of the only encounters in Pandaemonium that actually takes place within a circle. Weird.
The third fight pits you against another ancient beast, one that looks familiar. This is the Phoinix, a three-headed firebird that’ll recall your earlier encounters against the Phoenix and Suzaku. This battle takes place in a circular arena. Of course, the edge is a burning hazard zone, so you should avoid it.
Be warned that raid guides contain spoilers. If you prefer to preserve the surprise of raids for yourself, give them a try first before referring to a guide. Then, come back here for some help if you have trouble!
How to Defeat The Phoinix – Phase One
While the Phoinix is a beast of endless rebirth, that also means it needs to endlessly destroy first. Destroy you and the raid.
- Experimental Fireplume: This attack comes in two flavors, based on the number of orbs around the Phoinix when the cast ends. One big orb means the center will explode in a larger circle AoE. A group of smaller orbs means a smaller set of AoEs, starting in the east and west sides of the arena and rotating clockwise followed by one more in the center. To dodge it, stand in the center and then move into a safe space made by the passage of the starting AoEs.
- Scorched Exaltation: A raid-wide AoE. Heal through it, y’all.
- Heat of Condemnation: This is a combination of two single-target tankbusters. Both tanks should use their cooldowns and stay away from each other and the raid.
- Darkened Fire: This is a two-part attack. The first part is the cast, which places four Darkened Fires around the arena. The second part sees four random raid members marked with numbered circle AoEs. Each of the marked players needs to position themselves on top of one of the Darkened Fires, while the other players need to avoid them. The boss will attack the players in numbered order; you want this attack to kill the adds. If you don’t do this, the adds will explode, dealing heavy, heavy damage.
- Right/Left Cinderwing: The boss does a huge cleave on the side denoted by the attack name. Move to the other side to avoid this.
Phase Two – Phoinix Fire and Sunbirds
The boss will fly out of the arena to mark its transition to this phase. Wherever it stops, it’ll charge across the platform in a long line AoE. Once that’s done, it’ll charge up and move onto this phase’s mechanics. A Phoinix Fire gauge will appear. If this reaches the maximum, it’s a wipe.
- Blazing Rain: This is just raid-wide damage across the entire platform. Heal through it.
- Sunbird: Two Sunbird adds will spawn with larger green circles underneath them. The two tanks need to take them apart and the raid needs to kill both. Two more will spawn — kill them, too. You don’t want the green circles under the Sunbird corpses to overlap, as this will add way more to the Phoinix Fire gauge. They spawn East/West and North/South, so your best bet is to take them from where they spawn to the edge of the arena.
- Fore/Rear Carve: This is a Sunbird attack. It’s a cone AoE in front or behind the add. Dodge it.
- Flames of Undeath: The boss will cast this party-wide AoE when all four adds have died.
- Dead Rebirth: The party-wide AoE that marks the end of this phase. If the gauge is at 100, this is what will wipe you. If the gauge is below that, stack in the center and barrier up.
Phase Three – Sparkfledged
This time, the Phoinix is joined by its sparkfledged children, gaining further attacks and more complicated combinations. The worst of these will be Devouring Brand and Darkened Fire. Just keep dodging and attacking.
- Fledgling Flight: The four sparkfledged will position themselves in order at the cardinal directions of the arena. Each will then fire a cone AoE inwards towards the Phoinix. Stand outside of the first cone AoE and inside the last one to appear. After the first explosion, run towards the new safe spot.
- Experimental Charplume: Here’s a third iteration of the earlier attack, with a group of smaller dark orbs around the boss. Circle AoE markers will spawn on the entire raid — spread out to avoid stacking damage. This will come immediately after Fledgling Flight and randomly after that.
- Devouring Brand: This attack will see lines of fire coming from the edge of the arena at the cardinal directions, towards the center. When they meet in the center, they’ll expand into a larger cross-shaped AoE that will divide the arena. Don’t walk through this. Be ready to move because the burning section will disappear with the next attack.
- Searing Breeze: This will create larger circle AoEs under every raid member. Run away to avoid the explosions.
- Flare of Condemnation: This attack happens during the subsequent versions of the boss charge, creating circle AoE markers on every raid member. Spread out to avoid stacking damage.
Another circle of Pandaemonium Asphodelos is down!
If you need help getting prepared for the Pandaemonium raids, be sure to check out our Tomestone of Aphorism and endgame gear guide. And if you want to get different Jobs to level 90 and raid-ready, you can use our fast leveling guide for alternate Jobs. Pandaemonium isn’t the only endgame content available in Endwalker, so make sure you’ve unlocked and played through the optional level 90 dungeons Smileton and The Stigma Dreamscape.
We also have guides for the other circles!
