The Hand of Dione Chronolith Trial Guide

The Hand of Dione is Garuda's Chronolith Trial found at Drakos Deep in Final Fantasy 16 (FF16). Here are tips on completing each stage of the Hand of Dione, how to beat Windbound Coeurl, and ability loadouts in the Trial by Wind!

The Hand of Dione Location

Drakos Deep - Dhalmekian Republic

World Map	Dhalmekian Republic
Local Map

The location of The Hand of Dione, Garuda's Chronolith Trial, can be reached by warping to the The Dalimil Inn in the Dhalmekian Republic and heading northeast.

Alternatively, the nearby Krozjit Echoes can be warped to if it's available.

Garuda Summon Guide and How to Unlock

The Hand of Dione Overview

Trial By Wind Completion Reward

Accessory	Effect	How to Get
The Will of Wind (Aerial Blast)	Increases Aerial Blast will damage by 12%.	Acquired after completing the Garuda Chronolith.

Clearing the Trial by Wind, The Hand of Dione, for the first time rewards you with The Will of Wind (Aerial Blast) that enhances the damage of Garuda's ultimate ability, Aerial Blast.

Ability Loadout

Stage 1	・ Wicked Wheel ・ Gouge
Stage 2	・ Rook's Gambit ・ Wicked Wheel
Stage 3	・ Aerial Blast ・ Rook's Gambit
Final Stage	・ Aerial Blast ・ Gouge

Time Bonuses

Battle Technique Bonuses

Additional Bonuses

The Hand of Dione Stage Guides

Stage 1

Trial Stage Tips
Extend Gouge Duration by Tapping Button Repeatedly Use Wicked Wheel and Land 3-Hit Aerial Combo

Extend Gouge Duration by Tapping Button Repeatedly

Always try to extend the duration of Gouge by repeatedly tapping the Eikonic Feat button against an enemy, since hitting the maximum Gouge hits will give you a 12 second bonus.

Aim to do this against a higher HP enemy so it won't die easily to stop you from getting the bonus. Note that dodging an attack also interrupts Gouge and prevents you from getting the bonus, so if you see an attack about to hit you, just take it if you can.

Use Wicked Wheel and Land 3-Hit Aerial Combo

When you launch an enemy to the air with Wicked Wheel and land three aerial strikes, you get a 12 second bonus.

Note that hitting one combo on multiple enemies will count. You'll get an 8 second bonus for each enemy you land the full combo on, so try to hit Wicked Wheel on multiple enemies if you can!

Stage 2

Trial Stage Tips
Always Try to Hit the Rook's Gambit Counter Use Wicked Wheel and Land 3-Hit Aerial Combo

Always Try to Hit the Rook's Gambit Counter

Rook's Gambit allows you to dodge an attack and counterattack after. If you manage to hit the counter attack, you'll get a 12 second bonus!

If you're having difficulty dodging, you can use the Ring of Timely Focus to allow you to hit Rook's Gambit for the bonus.

Stage 3

Trial Stage Tips
Hit Three or More Enemies with Aerial Blast Always Try to Hit the Rook's Gambit Counter

Hit Three or More Enemies with Aerial Blast

When you land Aerial Blast on three enemies, you'll gain a 15 second bonus. At the start of the fight, cast it immediately while there are still a lot of enemies to target!

You'll want to use this ability as much as possible. Even if you can't hit many enemies, it's still good to use it when you can to end the fight earlier.

Final Stage

Final Stage Tips
Aerial Blast Greatly Reduces Will Gauge Find Openings Where You can Hit the Gouge Combo Enemy Boss Has a Tendency of Pouncing Away Whipcrack is a 3-Part Attack

Aerial Blast Greatly Reduces Will Gauge

Against bigger enemies with Will Gauges, Aerial Blast will greatly deplete their will if they stay on the tornado for the duration. If Windbound Coeurl gets hit from start to finish, that's almost half of its gauge depleted!

Note that you'll want to constantly use this ability because of its huge cooldown. Use it right off the bat, then watch its cooldown and use it again as soon as you can hit the boss.

Find Openings Where You can Hit the Full Gouge Combo

Hitting all Gouge hits rewards you with a 12 second bonus, but this is easier said than done since this is a boss that often jumps around the battlefield.

Observe its patterns when it stays on one place, such as the cooldown after its special attacks, then use Gouge repeatedly and hit all strikes to get the bonus.

Enemy Boss Has a Tendency of Pouncing Away

The Coeurl will tend to pounce away from you from time to time; just keep running at it to cut the distance and continuously land your attacks.

If you're willing to use it, the Ring of Timely Evasion allows you to approach the boss without worrying about being hit when running towards it.

Whipcrack is a 3-Part Attack

During the Windbound Coeurl's special attack, Whipcrack, it swings its tendrils around it three times. Dodge sideways during the first strike so you can easily avoid the two following strikes after.

The boss will be vulnerable after this attack, so unleash everything after the third Whipcrack strike!

The Hand of Dione General Tips

Trial By Wind Tips
Use Garuda's Embrace and Land 4-Hit Combo Use Garuda's Embrace When Will Gauge is at 50% Fill Limit Break Gauge Before Using it Accumulate Bonuses in the Earlier Stages

Use Garuda's Embrace Against Small Enemies and Land 4-Hit Combo

When you use Garuda's Embrace and land a four-hit melee combo after, you'll get an 8 second bonus. Use this while waiting for the cooldown of your other abilities, since Garuda's Embrace has no cooldown!

Note that Garuda's Embrace doesn't work for the larger enemies, so only use this strategy when you're facing smaller targets.

Use Garuda's Embrace Against Bigger Enemies When Will Gauge is at 50%

For bigger enemies with a Will Gauge, they get partially staggered when their gauge is at 50%. During this time, you'll get an 8 second bonus if you use Garuda's Embrace to topple them!

Always watch when an enemy's Will Gauge is reaching 50% so that you can be ready to use Garuda's Embrace to get the bonus and get a lot of hits in.

Fill Limit Break Gauge As Much as Possible Before Using it

It's better to fill the Limit Break gauge as much as you can before using it. If you find an opening where you can get lots of hits in, such as when the enemy is staggered, use it!

Accumulate Bonuses in the Earlier Stages

It's much easier to get bonuses in Stages 1 and 2 than Stage 3 and the Final Stage, so try to get the time bonuses in the earlier stages as much as possible!

Don't rush to kill the enemies too much; try to hit as much of the Wicked Wheels, Gouges, and Garuda's Embraces while they're still easy to use against the weaker enemies.

Final Fantasy 16 (FF16) Related Guides

All Chronolith Locations and Rewards

All Chronolith Trials

Chronolith Trials
Hand of Hyperion	Hand of Dione
Hand of lapetus	Hand of Titan
Hand of Mimas	Hand of Rhea
Hand of Enceladus