Are you bored with battling the various enemies you encounter while exploring the world in Final Fantasy 16? Well, you’re in luck. If you’re up for a higher level of challenge, you could always take on a notorious monster.
After completing the first 12-15 hours of story, you’ll eventually unlock the Hunt board where you can view bounties of notorious monsters. In this guide, we’ll walk you through where to find the first of them, Ahriman, and how to defeat them.
Where To Find Ahriman
You will certainly discover Ahriman before you even unlock the Hunt board. That is because they are essentially blocking your path on a main quest in Martha’s Rest. In order to finish the quest, you’ll need to take Ahriman out first.
To find them, you can just naturally follow the path the quest leads you on. They are located southwest of Martha's Rest in the Sorrowise area. But keep in mind, they won’t appear until you are on this particular quest which is unlocked only after encountering your first Mother Crystal.
Although they are the first notorious enemy you’ll encounter and a C-rank at that, they are actually quite difficult, especially when compared to the other C-rank monsters. Being a notorious enemy, they’ll naturally come with a larger health bar, not too dissimilar to a boss health bar. In addition, they’ll have more lethal abilities and even be able to inflict status effects on you.
How To Defeat Ahriman
To defeat Ahriman, first, make sure all your potions are fully stocked. They’ll use a few electric-type attacks on you, so be sure to prioritize evasion before attacking. The easiest of their attacks to dodge is the electro ball. They’ll always fire two that will hunt you down, so just be sure to dodge right before they hit you, and you can completely avoid them. They also typically follow this attack with a laser beam, so be prepared to sidestep it before closing in on them.
By far the most devastating attack they will use on you is their Doom attack, which is executed in two phases. The first phase will place blue electric orbs on you, making you more susceptible to the second part of the attack. When you see this, use Torgal’s Heal ability to dispel some of them. Not long after, they'll cast a wide circle of red electric orbs. You'll only have a couple of seconds to get out of the attack range before a massive blast is delivered. Above all else, always prioritize evading this as it can obliterate your health.
Now that you know their moves, you’ll want to unleash your attacks when you get an opening. It can be hard to get a long window of time for attacking since they often teleport or unleash attacks that you must dodge. Be persistent, and use your Geruda abilities to drain their defense. Eventually, you will stun them. When this happens, use your Limit Break and your most powerful abilities to devastate their health, and eventually, they will go down.