Final Fantasy 16 Benedikta [Location, Moves & Tips]

Benedikta is one of the many Dominants in Final Fantasy 16. She is a new character in the franchise and can be fought as a central boss. She hosts the Eikon of Garuda inside her, using it in battle. This guide highlights how to defeat Benedikta and learn her move set.

Benedikta Character Profile

Benedikta Harman is a new character in the Final Fantasy franchise. She is a secret agent and spy who hails from Waloed. She plays the role of the Waloed’s elite intelligence commander and the Dominant of Garuda.

Final Fantasy 16 introduces the concept of Dominants. These influential people can bear host to Eikons, a handful of stalwart and potent creatures. Benedikta hosts Garuda within herself, a powerful entity and the Warden of the Wind.

Unlike Benedikta, Garuda is not a new character. You fight Benedikta as a central boss, after which you acquire the Garuda Eikon.

Benedikta is a Dominant fight that you cannot miss. She must be battled when you’re about to finish the Main Quest, “Headwind.” This is the ninth Main Quest in which you’ll be tasked with finding the missing Dominant by raiding a Sabreguois Fortress.

As such, this fight takes place in the Holy Empire of Sanbreque. This quest is challenging because you must fight two minibosses before the primary battle with Benedikta. You must fight Royal Tognvaldr, followed by Suparna and Chirada.

After you do so, you’ll need to defeat a few more enemies as you chase Benedikta to the top of the castle, where the fight will finally begin.

Benedikta is the first Dominant you fight. However, her move pool is as diverse as any late-game boss. Moreover, she features two phases. Here are her phases and her moves:

Phase 1

In the first phase, you fight Benedikta in her human form. Her battle style is unique as she has several close and long-range attacks. Most of her long-ranged attacks are telegraphed by blue particles, whereas green particles telegraph several of her close-range attacks.

Like other Dominants, Benedikta has a few named moves. These names appear on the screen when the telegraph for the move begins. She also has a few unnamed moves that we gave unofficial names here. Here is her phase 1 move set:

Move	Telegraph	Attack	Counter
Aeroga	Benedikta hovers in the air with blue particles forming below her and a ball of wind charging above her.	She throws the ball toward you. It explodes when it hits you or the ground, leaving behind a damaging wind on the floor.	Side-step the wind balls or dodge them.
Wind Blade	Benedikta jumps a great distance back and hovers in the air, with blue particles forming below her.	She will either send out one sizeable horizontal blade of blue wind followed by another or three vertical blades followed by another three vertical blades.	Dodge, jump over or roll under the horizontal waves. For the vertical waves, you'll want to step in between them.
Aerora	The boss stands on the ground and swings her blade. No particles form this time.	Benedikta will throw a quick wind ball toward you, but it won't leave a slow-damaging whirlwind or explode. This wind gust comes out faster than the one in Aeroga.	Either side-step the ball or dodge it.
Wind Wave (Unnamed)	Benedikta will stand on the ground while blue particulates form beneath her.	She sends out a wave of five wind gusts, each with some space between them.	Step in between the gusts or dodge them entirely.
Air Strike (Unnamed)	She will jump in the air and hover while a few green particles form around her.	Benedikta will strike where you're standing, dealing melee damage.	Jump back and then dash back in to land some hits.
Rapid Strike (Unnamed)	She will jump back.	Benedikta will try to hit you at your current position and follow the attack with five swings of her blade.	Dodge the initial strike and dash back to avoid the swings.
Projectile (Unnamed)	None	She will shoot out wind orbs, either in waves of two or one.	Side-step and keep moving to avoid the subsequent potential waves.

First Phase Moveset Table.

After you take her HP down, she will enter her Stagger Mode. In this mode, she doesn’t attack; instead, she stays down. This is where I strongly recommend pushing maximum attacks to drain her HP, thus ending Phase 1.

Phase 2

After a short cutscene, Benedikta will enter her second phase, her Semi-Primed Form. During this phase, she gains wings, and her attacks become more powerful and faster.

This phase also has named moves. However, a few unnamed moves will be harder to dodge if you can’t see their name on-screen. Here are her second phase moves:

Move	Telegraph	Attack	Counter
Aeroga	Benedikta hovers in the air and starts forming three wind balls above her. No particles appear this time.	She will throw these balls at you individually, with each ball following our current position, exploding on impact, and leaving behind a violent whirlwind.	Side-step all three wind balls or dodge them.
Aerial Slash	Benedikta hovers in the air, with blue particles forming below her.	She sends out either three consecutive horizontal strikes (at alternating heights) or three vertical strikes that change direction based on your current position. Upgraded Version: After losing 50% of her health, Benedikta will send out three vertical waves followed by three horizontal ones.	Roll under or jump over the horizontal strikes and step in between the vertical strikes.
Aerora	She stands on the ground while swirling her blade above her head.	She will send out two wind orbs in quick succession.	Side-step the wind orbs or dodge them.
Nosedive	Benedikta will jump directly upwards and disappear off-screen. A beam of blue light will appear on the floor.	Benedikta will swipe down where the beam is pointing and damage you.	Dodge or side-step the beam before it locks on you.
Gathering Clouds	None	The boss will form a powerful bed of clouds beneath your feet. Rammelfall quickly follows these.	Run outside the ring of clouds if you want to dodge her next attack.
Rammelfall	Benedikta will perform Gathering Clouds. After that, she will pick up pieces of the tower surrounding you. This attack occurs directly after losing 25% of her HP and entering her first Stagger Mode.	She throws the giant tower pieces toward you. If you haven't escaped Gathering Clouds, the tower debris will envelop and hit you.	Dodge Gathering Clouds and then side-step the Rammelfall attack.
Tornado	Green lightning will appear on the floor as Benedikta slowly flies up with blue particles under her. In the upgraded version, multiple green lights appear on the floor.	Benedikta will conjure up a tornado where the green lightning fell. This twister lasts for a short period and can make you airborne. Her attack gets upgraded when she's at 25% HP, summoning several tornadoes on the ground instead.	Keep your distance from the green lightning. If you do get hit, be sure to dodge and side-step in time.
Twister	Benedikta flies up with Garuda's claws out, ready to attack you.	The claws grab you and then launch you into the air. These claws will then ram you into the ground.	Side-step the first grab. If you do get grabbed, be sure to heal up before you hit the ground.
Deadly Embrace	Benedikta holds her hand and sends one of Garuda's claws lunging toward you. This attack gets triggered when Benedikta reaches 25% HP and cannot be avoided this time.	The boss will grab you with one of Garuda's claws and slam you into the ground.	The attack can be easily side-stepped. She will most likely use Tornado after this, so be sure to get back up and dodge the Tornado.
Aero Rain	Benedikta will fly very far away and start circling the arena.	She zooms around the arena, circling and shooting nine groups of six wind orbs. These loosely follow you as you move.	Circle with the orbs, trying to dodge them. You can use the pillars as cover, but the orbs can turn around the pillars. Use ranged attacks to hit Benedikta.
Tri-Attack (Unnamed)	Benedikta flies in the air a short distance with green particles coming off of her.	She performs three attacks. First, she swipes in your direction, then spins towards you (dealing damage), and finally stomps on you using Garuda's foot.	You'll need to dodge all three attacks. The spin attack can be easily side-stepped, as can Garuda's foot.
Quad-Attack (Unnamed)	This attack gets triggered when Benedikta's HP is almost about to end. All moves in this are telegraphed by Garuda's claws appearing above Benedikta.	Benedikta conjures two claws that clap in front of her. Then she teleports above you and makes the claws strike down on you. Then she teleports again, and a flurry of claws strikes directly below her. Finally, she uses Garuda's foot to stomp on you.	This attack can be easily side-stepped and dodged. Moreover, since she locks onto your current location, you can easily avoid the final blow by moving during the telegraph phase.
Twin Orbs (Unnamed)	Benedikta goes airborne and circles around you briefly, with green particles falling off her.	She shoots out two wind orbs in succession.	Side-step the orbs as they follow you.
Push (Unnamed)	Triggered after Benedikta's Staggered Mode ends.	Benedikta generates a gust of wind that pushes you away from her.	This attack can be dodged but will most likely hit.

Second Phase Movesets Table.

Her second phase has two extra cutscenes. During the first cutscene, she will use Ramelfall (without using Gathering Clouds beforehand). And during the second cutscene, she will use Deadly Embrace.

My Tested Strategy 

With so many attacks, several unnamed, defeating Benedikta seems extremely difficult at first. You will quickly defeat her in battle if you’re prepared for the fight and know the right strategy.

Before you enter your fight with Benedikta, I recommend doing the following:

1. Level up to at least level 14 before the fight. If you’re under-leveled, consider farming for Experience Points to reach this level.

2. Progress through the “Headwind” Main Quest until you’re about to face Benedikta. Defeat all enemies and mini-bosses along the way, and then pause to adjust your build or purchase items.

3. Utilize your ability points to upgrade your abilities, especially the Phoenix Eikon Abilities. “Flames of Rebirth” is recommended for dealing with fire damage and HP regeneration, while “Heatwave” can be effective for long-range attacks. “Phoenix Shift” may also be useful in certain situations.

4. Familiarize yourself with Benedikta’s move pool and phases. Understanding her moves, including their telegraphs, is essential for effective dodging and countering.

5. Equip powerful weapons for the battle. Refer to our weapon comparison guide to find the best weapons for your character.

Defeating Benedikta requires a lot of agility and strategic movements. Previously, I have already discussed how to counter her moves.

But here is what you should do after you have prepared for the Benedikta fight:

• Be prepared for Benedikta’s ranged attacks at the start of the first phase. Move quickly to avoid taking damage.

• Focus on using ranged attacks during the fight, especially during the first phase—practice aiming your Charged Magic shots for accuracy.

• When Benedikta approaches for close-range attacks like Air Strike and Rapid Strike, dash backward to create an opening for your attacks and Abilities.

• Watch Benedikta’s Will bar (yellow bar below her HP). Depleting it causes her to stagger, allowing you to land more hits and use Abilities effectively.

• In the second phase, stay aware of your positioning relative to Benedikta. Her attacks will be closer, and you must dodge her moves, including Aero Rain, Tri-Attack, Quad-Attack, and Rammelfall.

• Learn to dodge challenging attacks like Aerial Slash, which has varying blade heights, and take advantage of opportunities during cutscenes to land Cinematic Shots and Precision Shots.

• Prioritize staggering Benedikta before depleting her HP to maximize damage and combo potential.

Eventually, with enough side-stepping and melee rushes, you’ll take down Benedikta in no time.

When that happens, you’ll be rewarded with the following:

• 150 Ability Points.
• Crafting materials.
• 60 Experience Points.
• The Will of Fire.
• Meteorite.
• Wyrite.

Afterward, the next quest, “Wings of Change,” will initiate. At the start of this quest, you will acquire the Garuda Eikon from Benedikta. This Eikon is great for dealing wind damage to enemies and using some of Benedikta’s attacks in battle.

Benedikta is a major boss who must be defeated to acquire the Garuda Eikon. She is a new character from Waloed who hosts the Garuda Eikon inside her. Eventually, if you know her move set and can dodge her in time, your long-drawn fight with her will come to fruition.

That is about it for the boss fight. If you are still confused or have any queries, share them with me in the comments section below, and I will be happy to answer them for you.

Up Next:

• Final Fantasy 16 Scarletite.
• Final Fantasy 16 Mission List.