Fafnir is a boss that appears during the Fanning Embers quest in Final Fantasy 16 (FF16). See the best strategies for how to beat Fafnir, how to counter its attacks and abilities, as well as its location, quest appearance, spoils, and drops.

Fafnir Overview

Fafnir Location and Drops

Fafnir
Quest	Fanning Embers
Location & Region	The Greatwood , Holy Empire of Sanbreque
Rewards	・28 EXP ・70 AP ・1000 Gil ・ Wyrrite ・ Gnarled Scale
Abilities	・Spin Cycle

How to Beat Fafnir

Step-by-Step Guide
Aim for the Head Play Defensively Patiently Wait For Spin Cycle to End

Aim for the Head

The head is the weakest point of Fafnir and attacking it is the fastest way to defeat the boss as you'll always deal more damage to it compared to hitting its other body parts and the quickest way to wear it down and stagger it, so try to always remain in front of it despite how dangerous it may seem like.

Lunge Forward Then Dodge After Landing a Few Hits

If you want to play it safe, you can strike a few basic hits on the head then dash away to evade its attacks then Lunge forward at it again.

At this point of the game, you'll probably have a good feel of the combat mechanics so try to Precision Dodge each attack to launch a counter attack after.

How to Parry Attacks

Use Phoenix Skills on the Head After Staggering

Since the head is already vulnerable at the start of the battle, you'll deal even more damage after staggering it, so save up those Phoenix Abilities and make sure they're not on cooldown.

You won't be able to use them anyway when the monster isn't stunned due to its incredible speed and mobility.

Best Abilities to Learn and Master

Play Defensively

Fafnir has access to a wide array of moves including tail swings, roll overs, and aerial strikes. You'll need to stay focused and keep on high alert as it'll always sense which direction you're at and will attack you in an instant even after dodging!

Stay Away From Its Tail

Due to how long the tail is, it can be difficult to dodge away from it and you'll often get hit as it'll sway its tail left and right if you're behind it. As mentioned earlier, it's best to always stay in front of the boss to avoid getting caught in this.

Watch Out For Roll Overs When Staying Beside It

If you're positioned right beside it, it'll roll over towards you. This attack is the most predictable out of all his movesets as you'll see that he'll lift his foot up for a few moments before rolling over.

Keep on the Lookout for Aerial Strikes

Keeping your distance from Fafnir will trigger it to curl up like a ball, leap towards the air, then launch itself towards you! This is probably a good thing since successfully evading it will give you time to hit it with basic attacks, or heal yourself up with potions if you're low on health.

Patiently Wait For Spin Cycle to End

While Spin Cycle is active, Fafnir will roll around the battle arena for a few seconds. Keep moving around during this and prepare to dodge at the end of the ability as it'll roll towards your direction then will land on its belly afterwards.

Unlike previous bosses, it will not stop to recover from the special skill and you won't be given time to land a few hits on it.

Final Fantasy XVI (FF16) Related Guides

List of Bosses and Formidable Foes

All Formidable Foes

All Formidable Foes
Gigas	Morbol	Knight of the Blinding Dawn
Eikon of Fire	Shiva's Dominant	Tiamat
Dragon Aevis	Fafnir	Midnight Raven
Chirada	Suparna and Chirada	Benedikta
Garuda	Knight of the Dying Sun	Iron Giant
Infernal Eikon	Infernal Shadow	Imperial Cannonier
Akashic Dragon	Typhon	Republican War Panther
Akashic Morbol	Flame Lizard	Liquid Flame
Coeurl	Hugo	Undertaker
Titan	White Dragon	Necrophobe
Bahamut	Sleipnir	Barnabas (First Encounter)
Control Node	Aurum Giant	Barnabas (Second Encounter)
Behemoth	Ultima (First Encounter)	Ultimalius