FF14 M1S Guide: Conquer Black Cat in Light-heavyweight Savage

Black Cat awaits as the first formidable challenge in the Anabaseios: Light-heavyweight (Savage) raid tier. This comprehensive guide will equip you with the knowledge and strategies needed to overcome this encounter, ensuring your raid group emerges victorious.

Unlocking the Black Cat Savage Encounter

To access the Light-heavyweight M1 (Savage) trial, you must first prove your mettle by completing the Normal difficulty of the Light-heavyweight raid. Once victorious, seek out Gabbro in Solution Nine (x22.3, y17.1). A minimum item level of 700 is required to queue for the Savage encounter, though this restriction is lifted when entering with a full party of seasoned adventurers.

Delving into the Lore of Black Cat

“Gabbro listens intently as you recount your thrilling battle against Black Cat, his gaze fixed upon you. Yet, a subtle furrow in his brow betrays a curious contemplation. How vividly will he depict this clash in his retelling? What visions dance in his mind’s eye? Intrigued, you find yourself reimagining the deadly encounter anew…”

Video Resources for Visual Learners

For those who benefit from visual aids, Hope Productions has created an insightful video guide to the Black Cat encounter. Watching a video walkthrough can solidify your understanding of the mechanics and strategies involved.

Mastering the Raid: A Comprehensive Guide to Black Cat Mechanics and Strategy

The battle against Black Cat unfolds on a platform divided into a grid of sixteen squares. Be wary of the edges, as knockbacks and breaking tiles pose a threat of falling off. Tiles break after being hit twice by specific mechanics. Uncracked tiles are safe, while cracked tiles are vulnerable and will break upon a second hit.

Black Cat’s enrage timer triggers around 10 minutes and 5 seconds into the fight, demanding a raid DPS of at least 125,500 to defeat her before time runs out.

Raid Preparation: Setting the Stage for Success

Prior to engaging Black Cat, establish clock positions around the arena. Assign Supports (Healers and Tanks) to cardinal directions (North, East, South, West) and DPS to intercardinal directions (Northeast, Southeast, Southwest, Northwest). Pair each Support with a DPS, instructing Supports to move clockwise for mechanics requiring partner coordination. Divide the raid into two light parties for easier organization. Utilize waymarks based on the following locations or the provided diagram to mark the arena for positional mechanics.

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Phase One: Introduction to Black Cat’s Arsenal

Phase one serves as an introduction to Black Cat’s core mechanics. Mastering these early challenges is crucial for progressing through the fight.

Phase One Mechanics Breakdown

Quadruple Crossing: Black Cat targets the four closest players with a series of two conal AoEs. These AoEs are then repeated in the locations where they initially hit. This attack deals physical slashing damage and applies a slashing vulnerability up debuff. Expect approximately 125,000 unmitigated damage.
Biscuit Maker: A physical tank buster consisting of two hits, also inflicting a slashing vulnerability up debuff. Be prepared for roughly 250,000 unmitigated damage.
Nine Lives: Black Cat telegraphs that her next ability will be replicated by a Soulshade clone later in the fight.
One-two Paw: Black Cat cleaves one side of her hitbox, followed immediately by the other side.
Soulshade: Summons a sleeping clone of Black Cat onto the arena. This clone awakens after a short delay and executes the ability stored by Nine Lives, mirroring the boss’s orientation.
Double Swipe: An unmarked stack marker targeting both healers. It deals approximately 400,000 physical damage, split among stacked players, and inflicts a physical vulnerability up debuff.
Quadruple Swipe: An unmarked stack marker targeting either all Supports or all DPS. Deals around 200,000 physical damage split between the two stacked players, inflicting a physical vulnerability debuff.
Leaping Quadruple Crossing: Black Cat jumps to a marked location and then executes Quadruple Crossing, maintaining her facing direction from before the leap.
Bloody Scratch: A raid-wide physical damage attack dealing approximately 115,000 damage to non-healers/casters and 130,000 to healers and casters.

Phase One Strategy: Navigating the Initial Assault

The fight commences with Quadruple Crossing. To manage this mechanic, have one designated role (e.g., DPS) bait the initial conal AoEs by positioning themselves within the boss’s hitbox at their assigned clock spot. The other role (e.g., Supports) should stand at their clock spot, outside the hitbox. After the first role is hit, roles swap positions to bait or dodge the second set of conal AoEs. Once both sets have resolved, all players move to a safe zone as the AoEs repeat in their original bait locations.

Following Quadruple Crossing, Black Cat unleashes Biscuit Maker. Tanks should utilize invulnerabilities or execute a tank swap to mitigate this powerful attack.

A sequence involving Nine Lives and Soulshade then begins. Nine Lives will be cast, storing the subsequent One-two Paw. Soulshade summons two clones that will simultaneously cast the stored One-two Paw after a brief delay, mirroring Black Cat’s cleaves. Identify the initial safe side (left or right) from Black Cat’s cast, move to that safe zone, and then transition to the opposite side to evade both clone cleaves. The clones consistently spawn in a predictable configuration, though it may be mirrored or shifted.

Immediately after the One-two Paw sequence, Black Cat will cast either Double Swipe or Quadruple Swipe. For Double Swipe, light parties stack together relative to the boss. For Quadruple Swipe, stack with your pre-assigned partner at your designated position. Remember which Swipe variant occurs, as it will be stored by Nine Lives for later replication.

Black Cat then passes the stored Swipe mechanic to a Soulshade. She will then cast Leaping Quadruple Crossing. Players execute Quadruple Crossing as before, but centered on the new marked location where Black Cat leaps. The baiting roles should pre-position on the marked spot. The mechanic is largely the same as the initial Quadruple Crossing, but after the second set of repeating conal AoEs, the Swipe mechanic stored earlier will resolve. Stack with your light party or partner based on whether it was Double or Quadruple Swipe in a safe spot.

A Bloody Scratch raid-wide follows, after which Black Cat jumps to the center of the arena, initiating the first Mouser phase.

Phase Two: Mouser 1 – Arena Destruction and Limited Space

In Mouser 1, Black Cat begins to break sections of the arena using Mouser. Players must contend with Elevate and Eviscerate in an increasingly confined space.

Phase Two Mechanics Breakdown

Mouser: Black Cat marks tiles on the arena, hitting each marked panel in sequence. Tiles struck twice break, while those hit once become cracked. After the sequence, tiles are restored, leaving a central 2×4 grid intact.
Copycat: Summons a clone to execute mechanics alongside Black Cat.
Elevate and Eviscerate: Black Cat’s Copycat sequentially marks four players from one role.
1. After a delay, the clone teleports behind the marked player’s current facing direction and initiates a knock-up. This knock-up triggers explosions on all tiles in the player’s current row and column, knocking back other players.
2. If the clone is hunched and raises its right arm, the player will be knocked forward one platform tile length.
3. If the clone stands upright and raises its right arm, the player remains on the current tile.
4. Landing on a cracked tile will cause it to break.
5. This mechanic deals approximately 50,000 physical damage.
Shockwave: Black Cat executes a knockback from the center of the arena, pushing all players outwards.
Grimalkin Gale: Marks all players with AoE markers, inflicting a magic vulnerability debuff and dealing roughly 110,000 magic damage.

Phase Two Strategy: Surviving the Mouser’s Maze

While Mouser‘s arena destruction may initially complicate safe spot identification, there are only two possible tile breaking patterns. Crucially, observe the central four tiles. Two diagonally opposite tiles will always remain safe. Begin on the southwest inner tile, then move to the southeast inner tile after the southwest tile is hit. If the southeast tile is targeted for a second hit, move to the northeast inner tile; otherwise, remain on the southeast tile.

The broken tiles will regenerate, forming a 2×4 grid in the center, composed of four cracked and four normal tiles. Black Cat’s Copycat will then target four players of one role sequentially with Elevate and Eviscerate. The clone teleports behind each targeted player and knocks them up, potentially moving them forward one tile or keeping them in place.

While observing the Copycat’s stance determines knockback distance relative to uncracked tiles, a simpler strategy is to always stand at the corner of an uncracked tile and face towards the opposite corner within that tile. This ensures you are knocked the length of a tile but land back on the same tile. Keep the boss positioned in the center, with melee DPS and tanks taking the inner two tiles and ranged DPS and healers taking the outer two tiles.

When a player is knocked up, the Copycat triggers row and column explosions, knocking away players in those lines. Therefore, all players must move to a safe tile within the inner four tiles diagonal to the marked player to avoid the explosions. Minimal movement and straightforward positioning are required; simply move diagonally from the marked player.

After all players of one role have been knocked up, a Biscuit Maker tank buster follows. Use an invulnerability or tank swap as needed. The arena will begin to restore as Black Cat casts Shockwave, a knockback emanating from the arena’s center. Two opposite quadrants on the outer edge of the arena will restore first. Supports should position themselves to be knocked into the north quadrant, and DPS into the south quadrant. Prepare to spread out for Grimalkin Gale. Melee DPS and tanks should quickly dash inwards to create ample space on the outer edges for other players to spread and mitigate the AoEs.

Phase Three: Remembering the Soulshapes

Following Mouser 1, the arena fully restores. Phase three introduces mechanics that require memorization of Soulshape casts to execute correctly.

Phase Three Mechanics Breakdown

Leaping One-two Paw: Black Cat jumps to a marked location and performs One-two Paw, maintaining her pre-jump facing direction.
Tempestuous Tear: A marked line stack marker appears on both healers. Deals approximately 420,000 magic damage split among stacked players, and inflicts a magic vulnerability debuff.
Nailchipper: Four players from one role are marked with prey markers. These inflict unmarked AoEs, dealing roughly 90,000 magic damage each and applying a magic vulnerability debuff.

Phase Three Strategy: Mastering Memory and Execution

Phase three begins with Black Cat casting Nine Lives followed by Leaping One-two Paw. She then casts Soulshape, summoning a clone at either waymark A or C, which will remember this One-two Paw cast. Players must dodge the initial One-two Paw and then remember three key pieces of information: the direction Black Cat leaped (left or right), the initial safe side for the cleaves (inside or outside), and the tethered clone’s location (A or C). Communicating this information in party chat is highly recommended for clarity.

Black Cat casts Nine Lives again, this time combined with Leaping Quadruple Crossing. She then casts Soulshape again, summoning a clone at the remaining waymark (A or C, whichever was not used previously). This clone will remember the Quadruple Crossing cast. Players execute the Quadruple Crossing mechanic, remembering two things this time: the direction Black Cat leaped (left or right) and the tethered clone’s location (A or C). Again, relay this information in chat.

The tank must then reposition the boss back to the center. One of the two sleeping clones will awaken. Players must then execute the mechanic remembered by the awakened clone, relative to the clone’s facing direction. After the first clone’s mechanic resolves, the second clone’s mechanic will follow.

If the awakened clone casts Leaping One-two Paw, drag the boss to the location where the clone will jump, as Black Cat will simultaneously cast Tempestuous Tear. Designate one light party to stack True North and the other True South of the clone. Dodge the One-two Paw cleaves while managing the stack damage.

If the awakened clone casts Leaping Quadruple Crossing, drag the boss to the clone’s jump location, as Black Cat will cast Nailchipper concurrently. The role without prey markers must bait the first set of conal AoEs, as they are quite large. Remember to bait based on the lines on the ground emanating from the clone, not Black Cat herself, as her positioning may be slightly off.

The four marked players need to slightly distance themselves from the boss to avoid hitting other players with their AoEs. The first baiting sequence occurs simultaneously with the first Nailchipper AoEs, so marked players must be ready to quickly move in to bait the second set of conal AoEs. A second set of prey markers will then target the role that was not marked initially. These players should spread out in the safe intercardinal quadrants to resolve their AoEs.

Phase three concludes with a Bloody Scratch, followed by Black Cat jumping to the center for the second Mouser phase.

Phase Four: Mouser 2 – Escalating Chaos and Combined Mechanics

Mouser 2 mirrors Mouser 1 in arena destruction but introduces additional mechanics during Elevate and Eviscerate.

Phase Four Mechanics Breakdown

Splintering Nails: Black Cat targets a random tank, healer, and DPS not currently targeted by Elevate and Eviscerate with thin conal AoEs. These deal roughly 90,000 physical slashing damage and inflict a slashing vulnerability debuff.
Overshadow: A stack marker dealing immense magic damage, approximately 800,000, split among stacked players.

Phase Four Strategy: Adapting to Mouser 2’s Challenges

The second Mouser cast utilizes the same tile breaking patterns as the first. Dodge accordingly. In this phase, each Elevate and Eviscerate sequence is paired with either Splintering Nails or Overshadow. There will always be two of each mechanic, but their order is randomized. The Copycat will target the role that was not targeted in the first Mouser phase.

For Overshadow, ensure all players are already stacked within the safe tile before it resolves. For Splintering Nails, all players must face the boss and position themselves in role-based spreads relative to the safe square. Assign tanks to the left, healers to the center, and DPS to the right. Heal through the damage between each Elevate and Eviscerate knock-up while the targeted players move to their designated tiles.

Phase four concludes with Biscuit Maker, Shockwave, and Grimalkin Gale, mirroring the end of Mouser 1. Unless the tank is a Warrior, tank invulnerabilities will likely not be available for this Biscuit Maker if used previously.

Phase Five: The Final Push and Overwhelming Assault

The final phase introduces challenging mechanics that can be skipped with exceptional DPS, allowing for a faster clear.

Phase Five Mechanics Breakdown

Raining Cats: Two tethers emanate from Black Cat, each inflicting a conal AoE. These apply a long-lasting slashing vulnerability debuff and deal roughly 140,000 physical slashing damage. Simultaneously, the two closest and two furthest players are targeted with unmarked stack markers, inflicting a magic vulnerability debuff and dealing roughly 200,000 magic damage split between each stack.
Predaceous Pounce: Black Cat’s Copycat leaps around the arena, executing large circular AoEs and line AoEs between jumps. Players hit by these receive a damage-over-time debuff.

Phase Five Strategy: Overcoming the Final Gauntlet

Phase five presents two complex mechanics, but with strong DPS and minimal deaths, this phase can be quickly bypassed.

The first mechanic is Raining Cats. Players must manage the tethers in sets while simultaneously stacking for the stack markers. Divide the raid into groups for handling tethers and stacks. Light parties or role-based splits (tanks/melee and healers/ranged) are viable options. Assign tether pairs to the northeast and northwest, and stack markers to the southeast and southwest. Each player should take a tether only once. A tether order of Tank, Melee, Ranged, Healer (TMRH) is recommended, allowing healers to prioritize healing until the end.

Position the southeast stack inside the boss’s hitbox, and the southwest stack outside. Players taking tethers should stand on the boss’s ring to avoid being targeted by either stack marker. After each stack resolves, heal up, and the next designated player in the tether order takes a tether on each side by moving through the boss. Players who just took tethers should move along the outside edge back to their stack to prevent accidentally retaking a tether. After four sets, Raining Cats concludes.

Alternatively, if both tank invulnerabilities are available, they can be used to cheese two tether sets. In this case, the tether order becomes MTTT, with tanks taking the second set normally and using invulnerabilities for the third and fourth sets.

The fight concludes with Copycat into Predaceous Pounce. This mechanic is similar to the normal mode version, but Black Cat also casts One-two Paw near the end. Dodge the large circular AoEs on the safe side of the arena, then move to the opposite side after the dashes are complete. Predaceous Pounce‘s final AoE occurs simultaneously with the first One-two Paw cleave.

Black Cat will then jump to the center of the arena and initiate her enrage sequence, a final Mouser. This final Mouser will eventually break all remaining tiles, causing a raid wipe. Defeat Black Cat before she overwhelms the arena!

Party Finder (PF) Strategies: Adapting to PUG Groups

Party Finder groups may employ variations in strategy depending on the data center and prevalent tactics. Be aware of these common adjustments:

Quadruple Crossing: PF descriptions should specify which role baits first and the rotation direction for the second role. “DPS first bait Support CCW (counter-clockwise)” is a frequent convention.
Quadruple Crossing with Nailchipper: During the second Nine Lives sequence, the role without prey markers should consistently bait on the intercardinal positions first, regardless of role. This is usually executed True North.
Mouser 2 – Splintering Nails: While the guide suggests THD (Tank, Healer, DPS) order, other orders may exist. The order typically indicates the role spread from left to right when facing the boss.
Raining Cats: Tanks may volunteer to bait the third and fourth stack markers, with one tank taking the close stack and the other the far stack.

Loot Rewards: Spoils of Victory

Upon defeating Black Cat, a treasure coffer appears, containing Dark Horse Champion’s Accessory Coffers. Opening these coffers grants an item level 730 Dark Horse accessory appropriate for your current job. The number of coffers varies based on weekly clears within the party. Four coffers appear if no players have cleared that week. Two coffers appear if one to four players have cleared. No coffer appears if five or more players have already cleared.

First-time clears each week also reward players with an AAC Illustrated: LHW Edition I token. Four tokens can be exchanged for a Dark Horse accessory of your choice at an Arcadion gear vendor.

Changelog: Guide Updates

August 5th, 2024: Added information on potential Party Finder strategies and clarifications.
August 2nd, 2024: Included Raining Cats invulnerability cheese strategy and added a boss image for visual reference.
July 31st, 2024: Initial guide creation.