For more, read Prima’s complete Bravely Default walkthrough.
Completing Chapters 5 through 8 and reawakening each crystal repeatedly brings you to the true ending of Bravely Default. When the chapter begins, you’ll watch a cinema where our team awakens on Grandship. It appears our team’s efforts may have worked this time.
Save your game at the Adventurer. Be sure to switch all special moves to Insect Slaying and Fire, and bring forth your best fire-based attacks (or your strongest attackers). More so, you’ll want to equip your members with Star Pendants (for poison). A Level 7 Time Mage will be useful with the Stop Immunity support ability, if you have it. Lastly, a Level 11 or higher Spiritmaster will be an efficient member to win this fight.
With your party all set, head to the south deck on Grandship to initiate a cut scene. There, you’re pitted against Airy. (This is the same fight in the Finale chapter.)
Boss! How to Beat Airy
- HP: 202,500 +
- Weakness: Fire
- Family: Bug
Airy will protect herself with a barrier known as Spike Guard, which allows her to counter every physical attack. Stick with elemental offense when this barrier is triggered (though a high-skilled Ninja can evade and attack her frequently). Airy’s Slaughter is a huge problem, so casting Templar’s Rampart frequently can guard the entire party from her strikes. Your members that lack Star Pendants or Stop resist can easily be immune to all these ailments by casting Fairy Ward (Spiritmaster) beforehand.
The most impactful set of attacks from your characters will be fire, but also using powerful attackers (Pirate, Dark Knight) seems to get the job done as well, though it puts your party at risk. Another effective maneuver that causes severe damage against Airy is the Megiddo Flame special.
Phase Two
Airy’s second form is a step up. She will unleash various elemental attacks. Use your Spiritmaster and Adaption to absorb any-given magic strike she throws at you. Reflect helps as well to deflect the magic back to Airy, but you need to careful of using cure spells when casting it.
Airy will decrease your magical defense and switch accordingly. Again, the Spiritmaster abilities are your best bet. Using Fairy Ward and Enigma (if you have it) will decrease or nullify ANY magic attack. Keep in mind these spells have a turn limit, and you’ll need to reapply them frequently.
After the lengthy battle, you will regain control of Tiz. The rest of the party is fiddling around on the Grandship. Go over to Grandship Deck and speak with Edea. She is marked on your map. She mentions Agnès is at the Drunken Pig Tavern.
At the Drunken Pig Tavern, talk to Agnès on the second floor. After the chat, make your way to Grandship Bridge to hear some more dialogue. The group then insists on seeing Sage. Gain control of the Grandship and fly over to Yulyana Woods Needleworks.
The team speaks with Sage and Lord DeRosso at Yulyana Woods. It’s time to settle everything with Airy. Purchase all the items you need (Turbo Ethers, Phoenix Downs, etc.), then head to Norende Ravine Peak, where it all began.
Note: Speaking with Sage in the final chapter triggers an optional dungeon, Dimension’s Hasp. You can enter the dungeon from the central crater, northeast of the overworld, on the circular-land strip. It’s well worth time to snag all the superb items in the dungeon, but be aware that this is by far the most difficult one—the end boss being the Adventurer, the most challenging adversary in Bravely Default.
How to Beat the Dark Aurora
When you arrive in Norende Peak, the team will discover the Dark Aurora, the final dungeon of the game. Enter the portal to be warped inside the dungeon.
Item List
- Safety Ring (1F)
- Megalixir (1F)
- Life Ring (2F)
- Lamia’s Tiara (2F)
- Black Belt (2F)
- Megalixir (3F)
- Heart Ring (3F)
- Blood Blade (6F)
- Lordly Robes (6F)
- Gold Hairpin (4F)
- Ribbon (4F)
- Aegis Shield (5F)
- Lilith’s Rod (5F)
- Brave Suit (5F)
Enemy List (and Weakness)
- Amber Horn: Earth
- Nightmare: Earth, Light
- Adamantite Shell: Water
- Diabolos: Light
- Spriggan: Lightning
- Mephisto: Earth
- Knight Dragon: Lightning
First Floor (1F)
Follow the path and grab the Safety Ring from the chest along the way. Continue westward and snag the Megalixir at the dead end. Now enter the portal beyond the north passage to reach 2F.
Second Floor (2F)
On 2F, take either path since they both lead to the central area. Stay on the east side to discover a chest holding a Life Ring. On the opposite end of this chest (west) is Lamia’s Tiara.
Two pathways can be seen below you. Move through the left one, where you’ll find a Black Belt. Now proceed to the south-most path and take the warp to 3F.
Third Floor (3F)
Open the two chests as you arrive on 3F. They carry a Heart Ring and Megalixir. Next, move southward. You will stumble upon two portals on this floor. Take the west portal first. This will warp you to 6F, leading to a chest. Open it to claim a Blood Blade. Then return to 3F and take south portal to arrive at 6F’s east side.
Sixth Floor (6F)
Move along the passage, passing a portal to your left. Head to the south end and grab the Lordly Robes from the chest, then proceed through the portal you passed by. This warps you to 4F.
Fourth Floor (4F)
Look to your immediately right and open the chest there for a Gold Hairpin. Either path below will lead you to the east side of 4F. Stick right on the east side to find a chest holding a Ribbon (which will become helpful in the final battle). Then, head north of the chest and go through the portal to warp to the central hall of 6F.
Sixth Floor (6F – Central)
In 6F’s central hall, there are three portals you can choose from. Take either the left or right warp first. Both will put you on 5F.
Fifth Floor (5F)
There are no twists around these corners on the fifth floor. Collect all the treasures here, which include an Aegis Shield, Lilith’s Rod and Brave Suit. When you’re done scavenging, return to 6F by going through either portal on this floor. From 6F, take the north-central warp to reach the seventh floor.
Seventh Floor (7F)
You witness a cut scene with Airy when you arrive on 7F. Save your game by talking to the Adventurer. Afterward, head through the north portal to reach the Altar of Darkness.
Before you talk with Airy, buff up your party with Safety Rings, Insect Slaying and any fire-related offense. You should have a decent Spiritmaster class or abilities by now combined with a White Mage. It is also safe to bring forth strong attackers (Valkyrie, Dark Knight, Pirate, etc.).
When you’re all set, approach Airy at the altar. It’s time to finish this!
Boss! How to Beat Airy for the Third Time
- HP: 134,998 +
- Weakness: Fire
- Family: Bug
Airy is one tough cookie. There are many ways to defeat her, but depending on what jobs you’ve unlocked, some strong attackers can win this fight.
The difference maker is Stillness (Spiritmaster). This will prevent your team from taking any damage when Airy throws the Acedia attack after a Default state.
Similar to your previous encounter, Airy will also blast your party with Slaughter again. Depending on whether you have Rampart set with a member or not, you may have to replenish your health. That said, it doesn’t deal as greatly as the Acedia maneuver.
There is a reason for using powerful-classed characters, because Airy is required to be defeated three times and is resurrected twice in the battle. The Dark Knight’s Dark Nebula and Minus Strike are effective, but it’s a risky move without Adaption applied to your characters. Don’t be afraid to go aggressively, but focus on keeping supporter(s) standing.
The Pirate is another effective member that can lower Airy’s physical and elemental attacks, making the battle run smoothly. Without it, you may need to recover HP or revive your team more often, depending on your timing of casting Stillness or Adaption.
When you finish Airy off for good, a human figure emerges in front of you. You have the option to leave the dungeon for the moment. Take the advantage and rest up, then return to the Altar of Darkness.
How to Prepare for the Final Battle
Whatever set up and preference you have with your characters, the Dark Knight and its support abilities are an efficient player. Ouroboros is going to knock out your party; he’s going to do it often. Because of this, assigning See You in Hell in a couple characters (or more) will send a “farewell” attack upon KO.
Depending on whether you have the Vampire class, you can combine the Rise From the Dead support ability. Doing so will usually revive the team member after suffering a fall, preventing the hassle of constantly reviving a teammate.
Since Ouroboros is going shut down your HP constantly, the Dark Knight’s Minus Strike and all other offensive maneuvers is capable of hurting him tremendously. Additionally, strong attackers such as the Pirate and Valkyrie are beneficial (Torrent being a highly-effective water attack; Super Jump delivering critical damage). Like Airy, the Pirate class is capable of reducing damage, raising attacks and deliver blows in one shot.
Another good idea is to assign Maximize HP support ability to your supporting character (through Spiritmaster), or equip attackers with Life Rings. These will increase your member’s HP capacity. In substitution, the Salve-Maker can use Compound and mix a Dragon Fang with Beast Lover. The end result is Giant’s Draft that doubles a character’s HP, while also restoring their health fully.
Additionally, switch all your specials to Dragon Slaying and Water-equipped Special Moves.
One final important preparation would be to equip your supporting character with a Ribbon accessory (which you found in Dark Aurora).
When you’ve got everything together, approach the figure to trigger the final boss of Bravely Default, Ouroboros.
Final Boss! How to Beat Ouroboros
- HP: 202,500 +
- Weakness: Water
- Family: Dragon
The final battle is more of “dealing enough damage to trigger the next stage in the fight.” That’s not to say you can’t lose, though—you’ll need to put all your effort into keep your party alive.
Stage One
The first stage in the fight is a tease, really. Ouroboros appears as a form of Tiz, using all the job skills that are currently assigned to your characters, including your strongest attacks. Adaption is yet again a key player, because absorbing all his attacks can backfire on him, much like Reflect. Not only that, but it can heal your party at the same time.
Stage Two
Keep attacking him with your strongest offense. He will heal himself several times using Total Regeneration. His Zero Dimension attack will instantly kill a party member, but can be avoided when equipped with a Ribbon. Again, this stage isn’t meant to win—push on aggressively and deal enough damage to reach the third stage, while concentrating on reviving or keeping your characters standing.
Stage Three
Though technically the same form, Ouroboros brings along some new tricks up his sleeve, including the Demon Touch, a maneuver where he removes one BP from your characters. This is a great time to cast Stillness or Moderation to give you an edge. Moderate your supporters HP, press on your attacks and revive any teammates that fall immediately.
Stage Four
Now you have some serious threats to worry about. Armageddon causes massive damage, leaving many members to possibly fall (while healing himself in the process). Disaster is another assault that can mess the party up. Again, Stillness can be a huge help, but it won’t prevent every attack, and works more like the sign of luck or chance. Keep the offense going, and heal or revive when available. If you’re struggling, it’s not a bad idea to summon a friend or two, especially one fixating medication or powerful offense.
Stage Five
You’ve made it this far! At the final phase, Ouroboros delivers one of the cheapest moves in RPG history: He’s capable of disabling multiple commands on your characters. This usually consists of deselecting Brave and Default. The effect is neutralized when the member has fallen. Throw everything you’ve got at him, but be wise in your commands (Phoenix Downs apply). If you haven’t been using Bravely Second, now’s the time to do so!
Congrats! You’ve beaten Bravely Default and achieved the true ending. Sit back and enjoy the Japanese music.
