Helgenish is an old, overweight man who runs the tavern in which Primrose works. He is the Octopath Traveler boss of Primrose’s story and is encountered in the very first chapter.
Helgenish is a greedy man who treats his employees like slaves including Primrose. He gets to know about Yusufa’s betrayal and kidnaps her by taking her to a cliff in the Southern Sunshade Sands. This is where he kills her and Primrose decided to avenge her by defeating Helgenish in a battle.
To avenge your friend and take Helgenish down, you need to fight not only him but also his lackeys. You can target their weaknesses to break their health and shields. So the first step to initiating the Octopath Traveler Helgenish boss fight is to know the location of the battlefield.
Helgenish location
You will encounter Helgenish during the First Chapter of Primrose’s story as he will ambush you in the Southern Sunshade Sands.
You will visit the Southern Sunshade Sands after emerging from the Sunshade Catacombs of the Sunlands. Here, you will see Helgenish on a cliff forcefully holding Yusufa captive. Helgenish kills Yusufa which sparks Primrose’s rage and she refuses to dance for Helgenish anymore. This will initiate the boss fight against Helgenish.
Helgenish won’t fight alone as two of his lackeys will also be present by his side.
Helgenish weaknesses
In Octopath Traveler, Helgenish is a strong boss so your best bet against him is to exploit his weaknesses with each attack. As for Physical Weapons, you can inflict a great deal of damage using a Spear, Dagger, and Bow.
To cause Elemental Damage, you can use spells based on Ice and Light as Helgenish is vulnerable to these elements.
Helgenish’s lackeys also need to be tackled by using a Dagger or an Axe. For elemental damage, they are weak against Wind and Dark.
Helgenish special attacks
| Special Attacks | What They Do |
|---|---|
| Attack | A standard melee attack causing 30 damage |
| Double Slap | A Single-target attack that strikes twice causing 40 damage |
| Oppressive Shadow | An all-party attack that results in Dark elemental damage |
| Know Your Place | An Extreme Physical Attack that needs to be blocked. Attacks all party members |
| Helgenish is trembling with anger | Boost mode for Helgenish |
How to defeat Helgenish in Octopath Traveler
Helgenish is a strong boss however he does not put up an exceptional fight. He comes with 4577 Health Points and 8 Shields in Octopath Traveler.
To defeat Helgenish, you need to make sure that your HP is conserved at all times during the fight. Then you can focus on causing damage and breaking his shields. For Physical Damage, it is best to use a Dagger Attack and a Bow Attack along with their boosts to cause massive amounts of damage simultaneously.
You can use Ophilia’s ‘Luminescence’ skills to deal Light based damage. Her wound-healing skills can help you keep your HP above par.
Primrose can use her ‘Night Ode’ to deal Dark Elemental Damage to all the enemies. The lackeys are weak to Dark so this attack will help you get them out of the way.
The lackeys can also be finished off by using Tressa’s ‘Trade Tempest’ that will deal Light damage.
Helgenish is vulnerable to Spear Attacks in Octopath Traveler, so the best way to exploit this weakness is to call your Old Man to help. The Old Man can only be summoned if you have used ‘Allure’ on him before in Sunshade.
Using these attacks, you can easily get Helgenish and his henchmen out of your way.
Best party for Helgenish
A party consisting of Primrose, Ophilia, Tressa, and Olberic can be the best against Helgenish and his henchmen.
Primrose is a dancer who can provide buffs and exploit Helgenish lackey’s weakness against Dark Elemental Damage. She is also equipped with a Dagger that can be used to cause Physical Damage.
Ophilia is also a great addition to your party as she can provide the healing ability to all party members. She can use spells based on Light that can deal massive elemental damage to Helgenish.
Teressa can attack using a Bow and exploit Helgenish’s weakness. She can also donate BP to other party members when required.
Another useful member to have in your party is Olberic. He has high Physical Attack stats and can also Cover his allies when needed.
What else to bring to the fight?
While fighting Helgenish, it is essential to conserve your health. It is recommended to keep your HP above 100 and the best item for this is ‘Healing Grape’. This item will restore HP to a single member in your party and costs around 50 leaves.
You can also bring ‘Energizing Pomegranate’ to the fight against Helgenish as this item will help you revive your BP.
Helgenish drops
- Heavy Coin Pouch
- Break Bonus
- 1760 Leaves
- EXP 50
- JP 30
