Infernal Shadow is a story boss in Final Fantasy 16 that appears during Buried Memories main quest. This battle is crucially important to the story of Final Fantasy XVI and it pits Clive against his doppelganger that can use a multitude of devastating attacks.
After the cutscene where Jill and Torgal get frozen in time, Clive comes across the mysterious hooded figure from the Night of Flames. After you defeat the Infernal Eikon as Clive, the next cutscene goes over the Night of Flames again, explaining more parts of the puzzle, before plunging Clive into a fierce battle to face his worst nightmare, himself.
How to defeat Infernal Shadow in FF16
Infernal Shadow in FF16 is a level 20 boss and can be difficult at this point in the game. Make sure you have leveled up Clive beyond level 20 and equipped the most powerful sword you could get your hands on. Increase your healing potion capacity to carry the max amount of potions and Steelskin tonics. This is purely a 1-on-1 fight so you can’t rely on Torgal to have your back this time around.
Phase 1
Infernal Shadow in FFXVI has a plethora of skills at his disposal. It always starts the fight by lunging at the players with a pierce attack. Dodge this attack to create some space and hit it with a basic 4-hit combo. Don’t get greedy as Infernal Shadow’s attacks do a lot of damage.
Infernal Shadow throws homing fireballs at Clive from a distance and uses Fira skill to fire a powerful fireball in a straight direction. These attacks usually accompany each other making it a bit difficult to avoid them. Infernal Shadow also uses Phoenix Shift to create distance between Clive and itself.
Look out for two slash attacks if the Infernal Shadow jumps backward and raises its sword halfway. This attack has a delayed animation making it extremely difficult to dodge precisely.
Molten Thrust skill allows Infernal Shadow to envelope its sword with flames and thrust it in the forward direction while dashing itself. The startup animation of this attack is way too long and can be avoided by moving to the back of Infernal Shadow.
To inflict maximum damage, make sure to stagger Infernal Shadow in FFXVI as quickly as possible. Otherwise, its guard doesn’t allow Clive to inflict a lot of damage.
Phase 2
Infernal shadow recovers by entering semi-primed state (demonic form). It gains a lot of speed and its attack power increases by a huge margin. Now each of its sword strike is followed by an arc of flame that deals burn damage to Clive on contact.
Infernal Shadow introduces Incinerate skill during this phase. It uses its swords to summon waves of flames from the ground. This attack can be avoided by moving to the back of Infernal Shadow. Keep avoiding the attacks while dealing damage to stagger it once more.
The second recovery of Infernal Shadow in Final Fantasy XVI is followed by Hellfire attack. This attack creates craters of fire on the ground which erupts periodically. Move through the safe zones to avoid burn damage. This attack always ends in a massive AoE around Infernal Shadow. Move away during this attack and use magic projectiles to deal damage.
Infernal Shadow also uses Crimson Rush which allows it to dash past Clive creating flames in the line of its path. This attack is always followed by Hammer and Anvil attack. Infernal shadow teleports above Clive and slams into the ground creating a massive explosion.
At this point, FFXVI’s Infernal Shadow boss goes completely Berserk and starts spamming all the powerful attacks in its arsenal. It is now a fight for survival for Clive. Dodge, attack, heal and repeat.
A cutscene starts nearing the end of the battle against Infernal Shadow. Clive gains the same power as Infernal Shadow by accepting the truth. The last phase of the battle is rather easy but look out for another attack called Eruption. It creates a volcanic crater below Clive’s feet.
The next phase is basically a QTE fest between Ifrit and Infernal Eikon. Press square rapidly whenever prompted to finish this fight in a few seconds. Rewards for defeating Infernal Shadow in Final Fantasy 16 includes 450 exp points, 180 renown points, 3200 gil, Fire Shard (unique crafting material) and Magicked Ash.
After the cutscene, the Meaning of Life quest in FFXVI begins and you return to Eastpool.
