Leviathan is one of the hardest boss battles in Final Fantasy VII Remake. Here are tips and tricks to beat it as part of the endgame.
How to Unlock Leviathan Boss Fight
The fight against Leviathan is available as a VR mission from Chadley after you reach Chapter 14.
Preparations
This is one of the game’s final (optional) challenges. You need to be as prepared as possible before going in. In general, you want to prioritize Magic Defense.
Up to 11 of the 12 types of magic Materia can be purchased from vending machines, while the last (Aero) can be purchased from Chadley.
Below are our recommendations:
- Thunder Materia (for all three party members)
- Elemental Materia (for the physical attacker)
- Chocobo and Moogle / Fat Chocobo / Chocobo Chick as Summon Materia
- Barrier Materia w/ Manaward (link with Magnify for magic defense buff)
- Revive Materia
How to Defeat Leviathan
You can mix and match various party members for this fight. It helps to have Barret and Aerith because they can hit Leviathan when its airborne without having to rely on magic. The key to success is dealing with positioning and mitigating Leviathan’s magic damage.
General Attacks
Briny Bellow
This attack goes in a line. The further away you are from it, the more difficult it will be to dodge. Therefore, it’s better to block it. If you happen to be close to Leviathan, simply position behind it.’
Briny Barrage
If you find it impossible to dodge this long-range missile attack, simply guard it instead.
Gyre Spume
This AOE attack damages everything around Leviathan’s body. When you see it start to charge up, simply run away from it and unleash powerful magic attacks while at range.
Tail Whip
This AOE attack does physical damage with a very short charge time. If you’re not already standing at a distance from the boss, prepare to block it.
Aquatic Focus
Leviathan will start to charge, and you will need to stagger it in order to break the ability.
Tidal Roar
Leviathan leaves a cyclone right below itself. When you see it preparing this attack, simply run away from it.
Spinning Dive
Leviathan dives out of reach, then back into the arena. Once targeted, the attack is practically unavoidable. Block it instead of dodging.
Tidal Wave
This attack cannot be dodged and targets all party members on the map. Use Manaward via Barrier Materia to grant the party a 50% magic resistance buff then quickly heal up before the attack goes off.
Phase One
During the initial round of attacks, Leviathan will position itself on the ground. See above for the strategy on how to deal with each of the specific moves.
Phase Two
After reaching 50% Leviathan will start to do a Tidal Roar attack and move up into the air. Simply heal up and use ranged attacks to keep hitting him while avoiding anything thrown at you.
Final Fantasy VII Remake is an action role-playing game developed by Square Enix and initially released in 2020 for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and PC. Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade, the enhanced version of the game, was released in 2021 for PlayStation 5 and PC.
