The Cloud of Darkness is getting another makeover in FFXIV patch 7.1

Nine years since her first appearance in patch 2.5 and four years since her first makeover in patch 5.4, the Cloud of Darkness will be getting yet another revamp comeback in Final Fantasy XIV.

Her newest appearance was confirmed in the most recent Letter from the Producer LIVE, where director Naoki Yoshida and producer Toshio Murouchi previewed what players can expect in FFXIV patch 7.1 this November. After announcing that they’re adding a completely new kind of battle content to the game, the devs revealed the Cloud of Darkness in her new arena to a chorus of groans from the live audience. 

Apparently, she will be the first feature boss in a new series of raids dubbed Chaotic Alliance Raids. Despite what it sounds like, they are more than just harder remixes of existing alliance raids—for one, there will be no mad rush through a circuit of bosses and mobs. Players will instead start the instance from the Cloud of Darkness’s boss arena and stay there until the completion of the fight, much like in normal and savage raids.

However, Chaotic Alliance Raids aren’t just spruced up normal raids, either. While constrained to only one boss, these new alliance raids will still feature the full 24-man alliance format. Players probably won’t be required to practice the mass coordination needed for content like Delubrum Reginae (Savage)—and thank Hydaelyn for that—but it’ll be more complicated than wrangling just eight party members into performing simple math on the fly. 

The devs were originally aiming for extreme difficulty before their combat designer let them know that it “accidentally” went up to savage tier and needed rebalancing, according to Yoshida. Reportedly, players can expect the difficulty to fall somewhere between extreme and savage levels. 

Murouchi also added that there will be rewards not just for the first clear but also an incentive to re-clear multiple times and to help others get through the fight. 

The screenshots of the fight mechanics themselves earned another great wave of dismay from both the live audience and the livestream chat and for good reason. From the looks of it, The Cloud of Darkness (Chaotic) will feature mechanics from Eden’s Promise: Umbra, including a transforming arena, damage soak towers, extra Cloud of Darkness clones, and possibly the infamous disappearing floor tiles mechanic. 

Between this and the new upcoming ultimate, it looks like the raids in patch 7.1 will be a total throwback to the Eden raid series from Shadowbringers. Other news from the LIVE Letter included Duty Support for Mahjong, updates on the new MSQ dungeons, and more—you can check out the full broadcast on the official Square Enix Youtube channel for more details.