The Minstrel's Ballad: Fall - FFXIV Endwalker Raid Guides

Overview

The account of your triumph over the god of Darkness has prompted the wandering minstrel to once again perform the impossible, by taking an already senses-shattering encounter and exaggerating it to ludicrous extremes.

His mellifluous musings transport your mind to that fateful moment, where your terrifying foe awaits, His unfathomable strength surpassing even your wildest imagination…

The Minstrel’s Ballad: Zodiark’s Fall is one of two Extreme Trials for Patch 6.0.

It is unlocked after finishing the Main Scenario for 6.0, then talking to the Wandering Minstrel in Old Sharlyan.

If you have any suggestions, corrections or feedback for particular phases please let us know at feedback@akhmorning.com.

Loot can be found below.

Video Guide

General Considerations

• This fight does not have any party coordination considerations. Everyone has to do the same mechanics, but if you mess up, you’re the only person that pays for it.

• During sequences where the platform is rotating, you can still attack Zodiark even though you are bound. Don’t miss out on this free damage!

Enrage & Required DPS

• The enrage timer depends solely on the time taken to beat the add phase. It specifically starts immediately after the final Styx stack mechanic.

DPS Role Considerations

There aren’t many sources of raid wide damage through this encounter. Mitigation skills such as Addle, Troubadour, Tactician, Shield Samba, and Magick Barrier should be used whenever Zodiark casts Styx.

If melee DPS are planning to eat the Algedon attack with arms length, it’s a good idea to use Feint here to help reduce the damage.

Mechanics

Here we’ll explain the underlying mechanics throughout the encounter.

Timeline

Phase 1

Zodiark begins by casting Kokytos, reducing everyone’s HP to 1. With the next source of raid wide damage not occurring for some time, you may use passive healing spells such as Asylum, Celestial Opposition, Whispering Dawn, etc. to gradually top the party.

Next will be the first Paradeigma sequence, and easily the simplest one.

This first Paradeigma combination will spawn 4 Quetzalcoatl holograms in each quadrant of the arena. After several seconds, Quetzalcoatls will cast Keraunos Eidolon, a donut-shaped AoE. While this mechanic is resolving, Zodiark will then begin casting Styx, a continuous group-soak AoE that will hit a total of SIX times with this first appearance. Have the whole party stack underneath a Quetzalcoatl when they spawn, and remain stacked until the first Styx fully resolves.

Styx is followed up with Ania. Ania is a mini tank buster + will apply a debuff called Umbral Rays, which will result in the main tank dying if any autos are taken during the duration of this debuff, so tanks make sure to mitigate and swap appropriately. Ania also does a small circle AoE cleave around its target, so be sure the main tank is away from the party. Ania occurs rarely enough that you can afford to heavily stack cooldowns, if you desire.

The tank buster is followed by an Exoterikos + Esoterikos combination, summoning some combination of Triangle and Square Arcane Sigils. The first sigil spawned from Exoterikos will always be a Triangle Sigil here, but the Sigil spawned from Esoterikos will be random whether it’s a Triangle or Square Sigil. Remember, Triangle Sigils will cast Esoteric Sect, which is a conal-shaped AoE, while Square Sigils will cast Esoteric Dyad, a rectangle AoE that hits half of the arena.

It may be common for melee DPS and tanks to eat the Esoteric Dyad if a Square Sigil is spawned. Doing so will not be lethal, but will deal significant damage and apply a vulnerability stack.

Zodiark then casts the 2nd Paradeigma, this time spawning 2x Quetzalcoatl + 2x Behemoth holograms. Immediately after activating Paradeigma, Zodiark will then begin casting Algedon. During Algedon, Zodiark will move to either the North East or North West corner, and then charge up a rectangle shaped AoE that will hit the arena diagonally. This will result in a combination of three AoEs to dodge simultaneously:

• Quetzalcoatls will once again cast Keraunos Eidolon.
• Behemoths will cast Meteoros Eidolon, dropping a meteor AoE that encompasses the entire quadrant.
• Zodiark’s Algedon.

First, identify the two Quetzalcoatl spawns, and then identify the direction of Algedon. Due to the randomness of these spawn locations, you may be forced to the southern side of the arena temporarily until the AoEs resolve.

There is another common uptime strategy that melees use for this mechanic sequence, which involves eating the Meteoros Eidolon or Algedon. In this situation, melees must use personal mitigation skills, and Arms Length is required for Algedon as it has a pushback effect. If you already have a vulnerability stack as a melee DPS and attempt this, then you will also requires additional mitigation from healers or tanks. This is not recommended for Party Finder groups, but can be done in organised parties where this plan can be communicated.

Once the 2nd Paradeigma is resolved, it will be followed up with Phobos. Phobos will deal strong raid wide damage + apply a bleed debuff on all party members. Any remaining party mitigation should be used here to ease the amount of incoming damage.

Up next will be the 3rd Paradeigma, this time introducing Python holograms.

2x Pythons will spawn on the sides of the arena, from any of the 4 cardinals. Zodiark will immediately follow this up with casting Exoterikos afterwards, randomly spawning either a Triangle or Square Arcane Sigil. This Paradeigma will also introduce the Astral Flow mechanic, which will turn the arena 90 degrees in a clockwise, or counter-clockwise direction while players are locked in the air. In this situation, the Pythons will rotate with the arena, however Sigils will not.

When the Astral Flow rotation finishes, Pythons will immediately cast Opheos Eidolon, a line AoE that will be shot down the column or row that the Python is facing, while the Sigil will cast either Esoteric Sect or Esoteric Dyad.

This may sound like a lot, but it’s not so bad. Dodging the Arcane Sigil is straightforward, but it will be more difficult for most players to visualize the snakes rotating 90 degrees. The most straightforward solution is to just look and think, but here are some tips that may help.

Imagine the arena is split into columns and rows numbered 1 through 4 as such:

Both Pythons will always spawn on the same side as one another, but will only spawn in Odd-numbered or Even-numbered columns or rows. For example, Pythons can spawn in Rows 1 and 3, or 2 and 4.

Using this number configuration, we can provide some rules to memorize:

• If Pythons initially spawn in columns, and the arena rotates clockwise, the safe rows will be the same configuration as the safe columns from the initial spawn. (Example: If Pythons spawn North in the 2 and 4 columns, leaving 1 and 3 “safe”, the Pythons will rotate to the 2 and 4 rows, making 1 and 3 “safe”.)
• If Pythons initially spawn in columns, and the arena rotates counter-clockwise, the safe rows will be the opposite of the spawn configuration. (Example: If Pythons spawn North in the 2 and 4 columns, leaving 1 and 3 “safe”, the Pythons will rotate to the 1 and 3 rows, making 2 and 4 “safe”.)
• If Pythons initially spawn in rows, and the arena rotates clockwise, the safe columns will be the opposite of the spawn configuration. (Example: If Pythons spawn East in the 2 and 4 rows, leaving 1 and 3 “safe”, the Pythons will rotate to the 1 and 3 columns, making 2 and 4 “safe”.
• If Pythons initially spawn in rows, and the arena rotates counter-clockwise, the safe columns will be the same configuration as the safe columns from the initial spawn. (Example: If Pythons spawn East in the 2 and 4 rows, leaving 1 and 3 “safe”, the Pythons will rotate to the 2 and 4 columns, making 1 and 3 “safe”.)

After Paradeigma is completely finished, Zodiark will follow up with another Ania, so mitigate and swap.

Zodiark then casts his 4th Paradeigma, this time combining 2x Pythons with Adikia. When Zodiark casts Adikia, he will slam the arena with both fists from the East and West sides, leaving small safe spots on the North and South. This time, Pythons will ONLY spawn on the 1 and 3, or 2 and 4 rows.

After a few more auto-attacks, Zodiark enters his relatively short orb phase.

Phase 2: Adds

Zodiark’s add phase is fairly short and simple. He summons four Roiling Darkness orbs that need to be killed, all while charging his Zodiark’s Power gauge. So long as a Roiling Darkness orb is left on the arena, his gauge will continue to build, until it reaches a maximum of 100, in which Zodiark will immediately cast his enrage and wipe the party.

While you need to deal with these orbs, Zodiark will periodically cast different combinations of Arcane Sigils, forcing you to dodge various AoEs at the same time. Zodiark will cast three distinct combinations:

• 2x Diamond Sigils + 1x Triangle Sigil
• 2x Triangle Sigils + 1x Diamond Sigil
• 2x Diamond Sigils + 1x Square Sigil

These combinations can be cast in any random order, but you will always see each combination one time, unless you skip the later sequences by speed killing the orbs. Sigils will always spawn on the North side of the arena as well, giving you an easy reference point to keep your camera focused on.

Phase 3

Zodiark opens Phase 3 with one of his more fun mechanics: Astral Eclipse. During Astral Eclipse, Zodiark will become untargetable and fly counter-clockwise around the arena. At the West, South, and East edges, he will summon meteors to fall down on the arena, showing each pattern in the sky. These patterns will fall in order, meaning you will always resolve the West pattern first, South pattern second, and East pattern third.

The way meteors fall may appear a bit tricky at first, as the grid pattern initially shown to you acts like a piece of paper falling on-to a table. To best visualize this, we can use this short video clip:

As the second set of meteors are falling, Zodiark will then begin to channel Triple Esoteric Ray. This will spawn a total of 3x Diamond Arcane Sigils on the North edge of the arena, at staggered times to indicate which sigil will activate first. Once again this will be resolved in order, with the first Esoteric Ray casting immediately after the 3rd set of meteors explode on the arena.

Next will be the 5th Paradeigma, once again combined with Astral Flow, but also introducing a new mechanic for Phase 3. This new mechanic is Infernal Torrent, a line of fire that will also rotate with the arena during Astral Flow. Being hit by Infernal Torrent will deal significant damage to any player, and apply a vulnerability debuff. This means you not only need to identify the safe spots to handle the holograms, but you will also need to be mindful of where Infernal Torrent will be rotating, thus reducing the safe space.

After this comes another Ania, followed by Exoterikos and Algedon. Exoterikos will once again spawn a random Triangle or Square Arcane Sigil, while Zodiark is charging his Algedon cast on the North West or North East corner of the arena. The combination of these mechanics will only leave one quadrant of the arena safe, so find it and get there quickly.

Zodiark then casts his 6th Paradeigma, combining 2x Quetzalcoatl + 2x Python holograms with Infernal Torrent and Astral Flow. To make the decision making easier on yourself:

• Identify the Python spawn configuration first, and which direction Astral Flow will rotate.
• Once you figure out the safe columns or rows for Pythons, then look at the Infernal Torrent line and whether you need to stand above or below the initial line.

It’s ideal for the party to be stacked together while resolving this Paradeigma, as this mechanic will coincide with the next set of 120s cooldowns, as well as Zodiark immediately following up with another set of Styx AoEs.

Once all the hits of Styx have finished, Zodiark begins casting Trimorphos Exoterikos. During Trimorphos Exoterikos, Zodiark will cast a total of 3 Arcane Sigils, one at a time. These sigils are random whether they are Triangle or Square Arcane Sigils, and will be spawned on the West, South, and East sides of the arena. Since these sigils one at a time, they will resolve in the order they spawn, so you only need to worry about one Sigil at a time.

Soon after, Zodiark will cast Astral Eclipse again. The meteor spawns will be the exact same as the 1st Astral Eclipse, however, once Zodiark returns he will begin charging Algedon. Once again, resolve the three meteor patterns in order, and then move to the safe quadrant before Algedon is cast.

Following the 2nd Astral Eclipse, Zodiark will cast his 7th Paradeigma accompanied with Exoterikos. This Paradeigma sequence will only spawn Python holograms with Infernal Torrent and Astral Flow, with Exoterikos spawning a random Triangle or Square Arcane Sigil. Since you’ll know the Arcane Sigil before Astral Flow begins, you can pre-emptively determine which quadrant you should be in, and only need to focus on the safe spot to avoid Opheos Eidolon and Infernal Torrent.

It’s helpful to have the party stacked together during this Paradeigma, as the moment Opheos Eidolon resolves, Zodiark will begin casting Phlegethon. During this cast, ground AoEs will randomly spawn under various players, a total of 3 times. Having the party already stacked together just makes it easier for baiting these AoEs.

Immediately after, Zodiark casts Styx again, adding yet another hit to it, followed by Exoterikos and Triple Esoteric Ray. The timing is such that the Exoterikos sigil goes off at the same time as the first firing in Triple Esoteric Ray. Wait for the first ray to fire, then move into its spot to avoid the second round.

Soon after, Zodiark will cast the 8th Paradeigma, combined with an Exoterikos to go along with it. This Paradeigma summons 2x Behemoth holograms and 2x Quetzalcoatl holograms. Once again, the Exoterikos cast will telegraph the Triangle or Square Arcane Sigil ahead of time, allowing you to pre-emptively position and focus on the safe spot to avoid Infernal Torrent and Keraunos Eidolon + Meteros Eidolon.

After a short pause, He casts Trimorphos Exoterikos once again. Keep an eye out for each sigil as it’s summoned, and dodge them in order. This is followed by Algedon, and then a 9-hit Styx, so try to dodge as a group.

Following the 9-hit Styx, Zodiark will cast his 9th Paradeigma, this time with Quetzalcoatl holograms + 2x Python holograms, Infernal Torrent, and Astral Flow accompanied with Exoterikos. Once again, the Exoterikos cast will telegraph the Triangle or Square Arcane Sigil, allowing you to pre-emptively position and focus on the safe spot to avoid Opheos Eidolon + Infernal Torrent.

After that is one final Styx, this one also hitting 9 times. Once He finishes that cast, He immediately begins channeling his enrage Apomnemoneumata. As far as enrages go, it’s a pretty fast cast, so you won’t have a whole lot of time to squeeze out that last little bit of DPS.

Once you’ve downed him, congratulations! You can claim your loot in the form of accessories, totems, and a chance at the rare Lynx of Eternal Darkness mount.

Loot

Totems

1x Astral Totem per clear.

Weapons

Zodiark drops i580 accessories. They can also be bought for 5 Astral Totems each,

Slot	Item	Jobs	Major Substat	Minor Substat
Wrist	Eternal Dark Bracelets of Aiming		121 Critical Hit	85 Direct Hit Rate
	Eternal Dark Bracelets of Casting		121 Critical Hit	85 Determination
	Eternal Dark Bracelets of Fending		121 Critical Hit	85 Skill Speed
	Eternal Dark Bracelets of Healing		121 Determination	85 Piety
	Eternal Dark Bracelets of Slaying		121 Critical Hit	85 Determination
Ear	Eternal Dark Earrings of Aiming		121 Skill Speed	85 Direct Hit Rate
	Eternal Dark Earrings of Casting		121 Direct Hit Rate	85 Determination
	Eternal Dark Earrings of Fending		121 Critical Hit	85 Determination
	Eternal Dark Earrings of Healing		121 Determination	85 Piety
	Eternal Dark Earrings of Slaying		121 Determination	85 Critical Hit
Neck	Eternal Dark Necklace of Aiming		121 Critical Hit	85 Determination
	Eternal Dark Necklace of Casting		121 Critical Hit	85 Spell Speed
	Eternal Dark Necklace of Fending		121 Determination	85 Skill Speed
	Eternal Dark Necklace of Healing		121 Critical Hit	85 Spell Speed
	Eternal Dark Necklace of Slaying		121 Determination	85 Direct Hit Rate
Ring	Eternal Dark Ring of Aiming		121 Determination	85 Direct Hit Rate
	Eternal Dark Ring of Casting		121 Spell Speed	85 Determination
	Eternal Dark Ring of Fending		121 Tenacity	85 Critical Hit
	Eternal Dark Ring of Healing		121 Determination	85 Spell Speed
	Eternal Dark Ring of Slaying		121 Direct Hit Rate	85 Skill Speed

Mount

• Lynx of Eternal Darkness

Orchestrion Roll

• Faded Copy of Endcaller

Cosmetics

Crystal of Eternal Darkness is a crafting material used to create:

• Trophy of Eternal Darkness (Housing)
• Barding of Eternal Darkness (Chocobo Barding)

Triple Triad Card

• Zodiark Card

Change Log

• 2021/12/16: Release of this guide.