Final Fantasy XVI | Eikon Skill Tier List

In this video I go over everything there is to know about the best skills and feats related to Eikons that will net you the best loadout in FFXVI. Everything featured in this video should help get you up to scratch on the SSStylish combat of Final Fantasy XVI and what i think is the best build for Final Fantasy Mode and Ultimaniac Mode.
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#FFXVI #SquareEnix #FinalFantasy

[@telltellyn]

The stagger damage on Impulse when you manually explode the golden orbs is enormous, highly recommend more people try it.

[@unstoppableforcevsimmovabl1701]

How do you manually explode them?

[@ArmoredRevenger]

@@unstoppableforcevsimmovabl1701 Press the skill again. wait for the lasers to turn orange first though.

[@VashimuXIV]

The constant ticks to keep uptime is invaluable

[@mushukotenseii]

I tested Impulse in the training room because it felt like it did a lot of stagger. With the ability trigger at the end of the third stage before it ended it did 40%-50% depending on enemy and around 25%-30% with no trigger and comparing it to diamond dust which had 5 star stagger, the stagger gauge went down around 30%. Shocking impulse did more than diamond dust with correct timing. I pair impulse with rift slip on shiva so i can impulse safely and i can do the rift slip cold snap combo.

[@MikeRavia-xp5ig]

I hear everyone say this move is trash but I love it. Locks small enemies in place. Works while you do other moves and can be blown up while using long animation moves.

[@abdouwho]

Impulse is hugely slept on, that jaunt is a demon to both the stagger and damage bar if you explode the orbs at the right time! Also has great DOT value

[@mushukotenseii]

agreed one of my most used skills

[@Okkotsu86275]

Shiva and Odin are my S Tier Eikon.

[@Blastanker]

Other than Diamond dust I’m pretty sure impulse does the most stagger damage alongside its decent cooldown.

[@FURognar]

Does Impulse have synergy with Lightning Rod? I need to test this.

[@joaolima9622]

Impulse is straight up broken. Almost no risk using it, does insane amounts of stagger damage (which can be increased if you manually explode the orbs) and by the time the ability ends the cooldown is almost over as well. I'd honestly put it only behind Zantetsuken. Ignition is at least A tier. It can one shot some mobs and it's perfect to group up them for charging up Zantetsuken using Dancing Steel.

[@suavyp1337]

Impulse is massively underrated

[@sanfordday]

Cool list, and thanks for including the feats. I'm still in my normal playthrough and i just got Shiva. I love it in games when an attack is really simple but super useful, just like Deadly Takedown. I can't wait to start FF mode and play the whole with my favorite stuff.

[@Blastanker]

I personally love mesmerize. The stagger damage is actually pretty decent on it and it’s cooldown is incredibly fast. I also use it as a combo.I mesmerize and then use upheaval to get crazy damage and an awesome score in arcade mode.

[@GamersGlobal123]

I'm also a fan of Mesmerize! I enjoy using it with Wicked Wheel to get a crowd of enemies knocked up.

[@melaniebiberger2191]

I like mesmerize into diamond dust

[@vladtepes1047]

Ignition slander! It's been a mainstay in my load out for a couple reasons: First, it's amazing at gathering as you can pick up light enemies and take them along with you - and you can zip around the map quite quickly if not locked-on - and the slash at the end does a surprising amount of damage. Combined with a decent CD and you got a good way to quickly clear mobs without Zan. Second is against big enemies as it's a nice start to a stagger phase as it builds multiplier quickly due to its rapid hits, and doubly so if you combine it with lightning rod.

[@andimari9194]

The problem with it against staggerable enemies is that it misses a TON. Clive will just zip past or miss his final attack, unless they’re already staggered

[@Valentien23]

@@andimari9194you can cancel it by jumping if u miss your target

[@grantgarbour]

Dunno if you moved it by the end of the video but Aerial Blast imo is one of the worst abilities in the game. It doesn't do a lot of damage and the stagger damage is at the price of all visibility of the entire area. It's overshadowed by judgement bolt in damage and usefulness and diamond dust in damage and stun. It actually turns into a detriment since I can't even see during it

[@VashimuXIV]

I’m a pure advocate of Team Impulse on every load out I use. It’s so amazing for damage over time and stagger build up.

[@notsofunny9651]

Glad to see I wasn’t the only shocked by his placement of Impulse. That ability never left my side the moment I got it.

[@House_of_Green]

Impulse has to be S tier, crowd control plus fat stagger damage with the timed explosion. I combo my dodge attacks with it to chop the will quick.

[@Jylstin]

Cool video. Always interesting to hear everyone’s different opinions

[@_moodrings_]

Agree with most of this list. Really just think Titanic Block is too highly rated compared to its contemporaries. It competes hard with Cold Snap which is just the better button press most of the time.

[@blue-phoenix115]

I feel like you're too lenient with some of the skills: Gungnir, Heavens Cloud, Ariel Blast, Rime, Flare Breath, Satellite. Some of these skill are completely useless and outclassed by other skills. Then skills like Gungnir, Ariel Blast, Flare Breath will get you hit a lot, or killed. Most times when I see other players use Satellite, it's just floating there doing nothing. Plus, if you're using Type A controls, which most people are, it's even more difficult using Satellite. Ignition, Impulse, and Upheaval can be swap with the trash tier skills most people don't use. Ignition is a little overrated, but it's still pretty good and a fan favorite. Impulse actually does decent damage & Stagger damage, plus you can detonate the orbs for even more damage. Upheaval is a better stronger aoe than Pile Drive, plus you can combo it with Gaurda to slam it down from up high. Other than these minor disagreements, this is a solid well thought out professional ranking!

[@maesonroode4969]

I think that gunnir is one of the fastest ways to build zan because of its ability to hit multiple enemies and increase zan based on how many you hit. I think using ignition is A tier because it has good damage and can carry a bunch of enemies at once (I call it the flame train) and gather like 3-5 enemies and use gungnir. AND lightning rod counts as an enemy while in combat so if you can use it while hitting the lightning ball and enemies, it will charge twice as fast.

[@blue-phoenix115]

@@maesonroode4969 Dancing Steel with Lightning Rod is the best way to build Zantetsuken. Gungnir unusable on big enemies with Stagger bars.

[@maesonroode4969]

@@blue-phoenix115Not exactly unusable but I’m just not a fan of time stop abilities cause I like moving around for combat but I do know that DS is the fastest. I just like using gungnir because it’s faster, and I like juggling enemies while they are helplessly bouncing in the air. But one thing I do agree with. Airial blast. It says stagger damage is high but it takes so long and if the enemy isn’t picked up you can’t see what they are doing like an aevis using fireball. Compared to diamond dust, it’s so much worse in all cases

[@josemartinez-hq2vg]

I agree with you in regards to him being way to indecisive and especially overrating alot of odins kit.

[@SchmeaterPan]

Impulse has got to be higher, I haven't tried out Ultimaniac but for base game it's like a top 3-5 ability. Absolutely melts the stagger bar of most enemies that have one with the third stage timed explosion and the cooldown is so short that you can send out another round within 10ish seconds of the first going off without even needing the Breath accessory for it. Being able to partial stagger an enemy within 1-2 abilities and then reapply as you close out your stagger set makes most encounters, even hunts, a breeze. It does decent enough damage plus stunlocking to have utility in trash mob clearing kits as well.

[@TheCrewExpendable]

Ignition is S tier in terms of fun. Just boosting across the battlefield scooping up all the minor (no stagger bar) enemies.

[@dpeze421]

It should be S tier no matter what. It's the easiest skill to clear mobs fast while scooping them all into one place. The stagger damage is pretty decent on bosses especially when you through down a Lightning Rod.

[@shishioh]

And the damage is insane

[@Ephideltrance]

Agreed, it clears through mobs so well, and fun to maneuver it to grab up a screen of enemies. on bosses, paired with lightning rod, it does insane damage. It makes sense Ifrit 2 abilities are S tier, they are the supreme eikon of the game. I do wish limit break had special moves to it though instead of just a combo extender. Should have had moves that are tiered to the limit break bars.

[@UnknownZealot77]

Using it after a stomp in mid air and timing it so that you get stuck boosting against a heavy enemy is also pretty great. And then you can just stomp/ rift slip cancel if you are about to be attacked.

[@gladius9267]

Thanks for the video

[@SuperTrailerz]

Impulse is A tier possibly S for the huge stagger damage and crowd control when destroying the orbs. Plus low cooldown

[@Eziokilla9595]

If you use Blind Justice and then fire off Impulse, you can rip through stagger like no one's business.

[@pogoacct8611]

​@@Eziokilla9595THANKS!! IM STEALING THAT!

[@zenbrown7144]

Time stops during Raging Fists if you time it right, so it's an interesting move to force through some stagger between strikes where there's not necessarily time to counter attack. Not as powerful as Cold Snap though

[@mushukotenseii]

I tested Impulse in the training room because it felt like it did a lot of stagger. With the ability trigger at the end of the third stage before it ended it did 40%-50% depending on enemy and around 25%-30% with no trigger and comparing it to diamond dust which had 5 star stagger, the stagger gauge went down around 30-35%. Shocking impulse did more than diamond dust with correct timing. I pair impulse with rift slip on shiva so i can impulse safely and i can do the rift slip cold snap combo.

[@whitleylevi]

Why do you have it all crowded with half tiers when D, C, and B are hardly touched lol?

[@SquareNinja]

upheaval can be done in the air and gets a substantial damage boost when done high enough (like clive's helm breaker), both physical and will. one wicked wheel followed by an air burning blade will get you high enough for the "extreme" height bonus. rising flames has a pretty fast cooldown for how much damage it does and how well it juggles. it's not big unga damage, but in that case why not just have every hotbar button be an ultimate? rook's gambit, when it's a counter, recovers with clive airborne even when used on the ground. i found it particularly useful against big enemies like ogres and cannon guys, jumping off and over them and slapping the backs of the heads with air burning blades or whatever

[@terry85mar]

Are you still gonna make videos on how to use the rest of the eikons?

[@Z1nt3k]

Megaflare is best used like cold snap and not passively. Dodge an easily timed multi phase attack or dodge repeatedly into an attack that has a lingering hurtbox like the midnight raven's katon (flamethrower) in order to build meter instantly. Also activate satellite and use it during an ability when you're stuck in a long attack animation like Gigaflare or Dancing Steel for additional damage.

[@ironstark917]

Man, your take on Blind Justice is so solid. For Kingdom Hearts fans, Blind Justice is something of a spiritual successor to the Shotlock mechanic in Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep and Kingdom Hearts 3, where time slows down and you build target locks to then launch projectiles. The reason why it was amazing in those games and why Blind Justice isn't that great in this one, is the target locks built so much quicker compared to this game. Phoenix Shift would be god-tier if it it had i-frames. Agreed with your take on Flames of Rebirth; it is good, it just gets outclassed so hard by other ultimates, like Diamond Dust and Gigaflare. Cold Snap and Diamond Dust are goated. They were added to my Clive kit pretty much as soon as I unlocked Shiva. Completely agreed with your take on Mega Flare. I'm also like you that I prefer to stay aggressive so while Megaflare is great for dealing damage once it gets out, it just forces you to be so passive and like you, I can't justify putting it past A. YES, Gigaflare is the Kamehameha/Comet Azur "get wrecked" move in the game. Also a staple of my Clive. Lastly, yeah, Titan is just S tier overall. The "Royal Guard" of this game, bar none.

[@zenbrown7144]

Shotlock was just a lot more versatile. Not only did targets get acquired so fast you could use it as a combo ender, but it also had Airstep built into it, which feels a lot more satisfying to me than the very similar Phoenix Shift because you had more fine grain control. Blind Justice kind of just feels like you're playing with a gutted shotlock. I'd always find myself looking down my Shotlock scope in the Org 13 Data fights, waiting to pounce on unconventional openings with Airstep.

[@ironstark917]

​@@zenbrown7144Airstep was goated. haha. Really hope that makes it back in KH4.

[@azuredeath]

Blind Justice is awful. C tier is very lenient. There is no slowdown effect from shotlocks. The controls are weird, you use one stick for movement and the other to move the camera. The lock-on is very slow. The attack animation is also slow and you can be knocked out of the attack animation.

[@ironstark917]

​@@azuredeathAgreed! Had I been putting the tiers, Blind Justice would be D. It has some merits in adding the Chain Lightning, but every part of that attack is begging for Clive to get punished for it. Plus, it is immediately outclassed in function by Bahumut's Wings of Light and Ramud's Lightning Rod.

[@obamaorb7426]

Honestly on a recent playthrough, completely foregoing the ultimate abilities has made the experience a lot more fun and engaging, one shotting everything is fun but it gets so dry

[@therentpursuer9869]

Yeah the non-Odin stagger melting stetups make every fight incredibly samey & boring imo.

[@Karami42]

Upheaval is amazing for clearing crowds, it staggers everyone, has a decent zone of effect, does good damage, even in FF mode and ultimaniac, and the windup can be cancelled by a block or a dodge if you get attacked, that and the cooldown is rather low. Its A tier at the minimum tbh. It is always better than earthen fury imo, because it is both instant and on a short cooldown, both things that drag down earthen fury. Impulse is way stronger that people give it credit, if you are only facing one enemy, this move can deplete 1/4th of the stagger bar at minimum, 1/3 if you time the explosion correctly. It is really really good at stopping enemies from attacking as well, even the big ones. For the small ones, they are just completely paralysed during the whole effect (yea that wears down in FF mode and ultimaniac, but still its very useful). Also the CD is surprisingly short, you can cast it two or three times between each stagger phase on the beefier mobs (two to deplete it, one during the bonus damage). Other than that great video brah :) Keep goin

[@pedrocherfen1204]

I just can't help myself with Bahamut. I find the Megaflare, Impulse and Gigaflare combination just too good. Tha aside, honestly, nice job on the tier list!

[@SoulDeSol]

Aerial Blast is really incredible. I haven't used it on the hard mode yet, but in the normal difficulty mode it basically eliminates small mobs instantly. It's really useful for the multiple battles in the later half of the game where they send lots of enemies at you. Really the only downside to it is against single boss enemies because it won't stun lock them.

[@Eziokilla9595]

Aerial Blast is so fun combined with Impulse, Blind Justice, Satellite, etc.

[@PleasantLeech]

My main issue with it is that I just don't like how it looks. Mainly in that it completely kills visibility. So I can't see my moves and I can't see anyone attacking me if they're too big to be stunned by it. Otherwise it's pretty cool.

[@nariya36]

gungnir on collateral enemies fills insane zan + good damage and range coupled with lightning rod since both attacks have a magnet effect

[@austinhudson5349]

So I think this list is pretty accurate for the most part. I have some personal disagreements with 3 abilities in particular: Ignition, Impulse, and Thunderstorm. Now, Thunderstorm is more of a pet favorite, I will admit it, but I have used it more than most abilities in the game, it's just so satisfying and versatile, not to mention, low cooldown, a point I am going to hammer home with the next two abilities. Now Ignition and Impulse I think got did dirty. Ignition may be a bit goofy but it is very useful. A. It has an insanely short cooldown, so it will be up way more often and be able to be used multiple times compared to other abilities, B. It is really useful for cleaning up small enemies that appear in larger groups, C. It can even be used in the air, and D. It triggers Lightning Rod multiple times if it is set up right. I think Impulse is one of the best abilities in the entire game, not to mention, versatile. Impulse is low cooldown, hits multiple enemies multiple times, does decent damage and exceptional Will damage for such a cheap ability. Yeah, you have to wait a few seconds but you can be comboing with other stuff then pop the Impulse once it turns orange. I used this ability the entire rest of my first playthrough after I got it. I didn't even start experimenting with Lightning Rod and it works well with it too. If you haven't noticed, I value efficient abilities that are versatile, but that is the best part of this game: There is no wrong build and it is all up to opinion at the end of the day.

[@thegamewin100]

All the ice moves are great to me especially diamond dust and the one that comes back in like 12 seconds 😭 wow is that one great and it can be done in the air too insane

[@Blastanker]

Yea mesmerize is great

[@PleasantLeech]

Wait you can mesmerize in the air?? That's kind of a game changer.

[@CarurossTheSecond218]

@@PleasantLeechcombo starter for sure

[@craigfairweather3644]

Mate, I think all of your points were legit but the orientation is botched. You know Blind Justice is the lowest so that has to be D. That then allows you to properly allocate tiers for the rest rather than smooshing them into the bylines of the tiers.

[@hammo4168]

Nice video! I think I like heatwave, gouge and, raging fists much better than you only because they melt the stagger gauge and once the enemy is staggered, the hit multipliers are pretty solid. Each time I counter with Rooks gambit, heatwave or raging fists, I am always impervious to enemy attacks. The entire animation freezes everything and I don't take damage.. Only exceptions are if I mistime raging fists, then I get melted on attacks for sure. Also some enemies that execute a charging attack have the ability to swoop past you despite successful counter with raging fists similar to rooks gambit missing its attack

[@danielnolan8848]

Upheaval does get the charge bonus if airborne, it's effective a stonger slam with an aoe. Good but has a long cooldown for what it is

[@Ephideltrance]

I think Blind Justice is the worst ability (definitely D tier) in the game, it breaks combat flow so badly. It needed to be snappy like Kingdom Hearts shotlock attacks. It is slow and hard to maneuver to lock on to multiple targets, and the bonus damage just isn't worth it. It makes Ramuh the only eikon that I never used after an initial test run. it is best to master his abilities and slap it on to other eikons as his eikonic feat is a complete waste of time. Luckily, Lightning Rod is god tier.

[@chrisjarrad581]

Lighting rod and Gigaflare for melting health bars, impulse is s tear for sure

[@JohnIvory713]

Dancing Steel makes Heaven’s Cloud and Gungnir irrelevant -especially when paired with lightning rod. Instant lvl 5 w no special equipment needed

[@pogoacct8611]

Exactly

[@Goku49]

Can you do a devil sword sparda move set from dmc 5?

[@FURognar]

Upheaval is A-Tier. Late game I was using it to clear out hoards of enemies with one shot.

[@josemartinez-hq2vg]

For Odin I believe his Zanketsu ability is A tier because of the fact you can't use it to its full potential without that 5 bars you have to build. His Rift I would agree would be S tier but as for the rest I would say they are C tier at best because they are only used to build the Zanketsu bar and nothing else. They do less than decent damage and are basically only there to build the bar.

[@ragna6410]

My most used Eikons are Bahamut,Odin and Shiva.

[@Hakeemthedr3am]

Switch bahamut with titan then you have my loadout as well😈😈🔥

[@Amonkira1029]

You tried so hard to make it visually crisp with little tweaks, but didn't sort them properly at the end. Bottom of a tier or top of the one below is how you do in between tiers. Blind Justice is D, Flare Breath and co are C, Aerial Blast and co are B. Phoenix Shift's subtier is the top of A (if you truly think it's better than Dancing Steel?), and Ignition's subtier is bottom of C. I love your vibes, I've been waiting for this video, I can tell with your fiddling that you wanted it to look nice. So add extra tiers or just organize better.

[@wood1066]

You're supposed to use Gunginir on large groups of enemies to build the gauge.

[@nariya36]

its magnet effect is good too

[@keyonclay3908]

No disrespect I got to click off ignition by far is a S ablity it’s quick powerful can stranger good for big boss or mobs and a cherry on top gets a solid amount of limit gauge back.

[@FilmColossus]

If Gigaflare is S tier then there’s no way Deadly Embrace is S tier. They’re not even close to having the same utility.

[@AnxMa]

I had some experience with Motion Capture and gotta say those recent Final Fantasy games have, aside from the realistic performance capture, a seriously stylish fight and movement choreography. Considering how important the story and dialouges were in this franchise, they really did it justice this time. Finally - no pun intended - they managed to combine the best aspects and systems of games like DMC, Witcher, even MG Rising into one. PS. You almost saw me as Leon in those new Resident Evil Remakes🙂

[@blue-phoenix115]

Dude, you're just spamming the same comment on every FF video for attention. Spamming the same comment that has nothing to do with the video.

[@OmarO_721]

Definitely disagree with the Impulse placement. It’s very useful late game and even hard mode. It can clear basic enemies quickly, and it deals very good stagger damage

[@Ephideltrance]

Diamond Dust is so awesome, looks amazing, decent damage and stagger, plus very low cooldown for an ultimate. Titan's ultimate is the worst imo, and it is more suited to fighting mobs than a singular boss.

[@milagroman75]

Zan is too powerful. I rather play without it. I started the Echoes DLC and the first boss is SO dope but was ruined by Zan and I didn’t even abuse it. You have to self nerf in this game a lot. Every build having rift slip, dancing steel, gigaflare, lightning rod, wykes, and judgement bolt gets old fast. I prefer a narrow squeaker or a win that melting bosses. Fun way to self nerf with Zanketsuken though, is to never use dancing steel or heavens cloud, and focus on gungir, slip, and steel counters. Makes it feel super worth it when you get to level 5. When this comes to PC there will be some awesome balancing and boss rushes I look forward to (I have a Mac but I look forward to seeing what you do with mods lol). Dig the channel been subbed for a few weeks now. You get more technical than tell us to just melt bosses with V (is he still the OP DMCV character?)

[@Antimonium]

aerial blast would be a nice-ish ability if it didn't obscure the whole freaking battlefield

[@RaineAvina]

Lol my build on my first playthrough was Gouge, Upheaval, Rising Flames, Ignition, Raging Fists, and Wicked Wheel xD Basically, all the worst skills in the game according to this list. The game was just so easy on first playthrough that it gave me no reason to change anything. I mean, it was working and I wasn't ever dying so why adjust?

[@rdh9475]

Why’s is S better than A ? Didn’t Devil my cry started all that with the S for Stylish and SS categories just based of cool combos ? 😅

[@nizzynick9298]

👍👍👍

[@Jojo-nq3bp]

Gigaflare recovery time is also very small

[@FilmColossus]

Gunginir is so bad. I’m now doubtful about this entire video.

[@EliMonpress]

I wanna love it and it can dish out really good stagger damage with the proper accessories and lightning rod/will of the wykes but it takes up at least two ability slots to do what others can do just as good if not better. It looks so sick I keep trying to find a really good way to use it lol

[@danielmunroe1423]

Flames of rebirth is pure filth.

[@MS-ql8ek]

My favorite combo is □□□□

[@thiopental_iv]

Idk how to use Rift Slip. Pls Help.

[@Sincleaver]

Well for example you could cancel your melee combo with it as an enemy is about to attack, start comboing again and get an easy parry.

[@therentpursuer9869]

It resets Clive back into neutral. Allowing you to combo skills into eachother. Think of it like Guilty Gears' Roman Cancel mechanic (its even got the slowdown that Xrd added). For a good "beginner combo" that teaches you to get a hang of it, I suggest doing your standard 4-hit combo - magic burst finisher - rift slip - rising flames. Put rift slip & rising flames (or whatever other skill you want to combo into) on the same Eikon, so that way its easy to do.

[@vincenguyen6773]

For that reason alone

[@MS-ql8ek]

Riftslip best move in the game

[@WreakHvok]

Ignition is at least an A-Tier

[@_Deez]

Tier list content? I see we want VIEWS.

[@Kumakaree]

how do you feel about peak of combat and the shitty honkai impact combat mechanics

[@ddoublej9201]

Raging fists parry time stops so you are invulnerable

[@stephensullivan1879]

The yellow Eikon I can’t stand

[@YetiCoolBrother]

S is better than A better S is traditionally for "Special"

[@remymaru]

How exactly do you do a tier list and rank something based on "I haven't used this much and don't know much about it"? Come on, man.

[@AntonioCunningham]

Did my man really put that worthless Lightning move is S tir. I'm not sure I can trust this list now.

[@FURognar]

Raging Fists is B-tier?!?!?! Never have I heard something so ridiculous! Good day sir!

[@pogoacct8611]

Your views on igniton make no sense

[@abdelcarcamo]

This is the first Main stream final fantasy game I had so little interest for. It feels like it's just another DMC game. I was never a fan of those.

[@ironstark917]

So, serious question: why are you here? The KZbin channel name of this guy is "DevilNeverCry", a reference to Devil May Cry and he is covering Final Fantasy XVI.

[@abdelcarcamo]

@@ironstark917 to express my disappointment

[@edohanma]

Why did you apologise for calling Shiva a “she”? Genuine question, I don’t get it. Looks clearly female to me.

[@danielnolan8848]

I like rook's gambit, but you really have to position to get the damage counter, and you really have to lab that out per enemy, and sometimes the enemy just doesn't want to do the attack on cooldown