Dark Knight Tank Gear and Best in Slot — Dawntrail 7.4

There are two main GCD speeds recommended to target for DRK specifically: 2.50 and 2.46. The damage difference between them is negligible, and comfort should be the main concern when picking between sets. 2.50 is more straightforward for keeping oGCDs aligned and hits slightly harder on a per-cast basis, but doesn't have a perfectly clean resource loop. 2.46, by contrast, does loop cleanly over a two-minute cycle but requires more attention to keep everything properly aligned. You can also use sets built for other tanks and different GCD speeds at very little loss.

There are two 2.46 sets listed; one has a higher damage ceiling by roughly 40 DPS, or ~0.15%, but requires re-melding to switch to 2.50. The other allows switching between 2.46 and 2.50 with just the boots and food swapped out, and is the recommended set to use for that GCD unless going for extreme high parses.

Each set shown has some deviation from the general meld priority. The 2.50 BiS and 2.46 compatibility BiS have 1x DH meld replaced with Det and 1x DH replaced with Tenacity, shown in the weapon and tome ring, respectively. The 2.46 true BiS has 3x DH replaced with Skll Speed, 3x DH replaced with Det, and 1x DH replaced with Tenacity, shown in the weapon, head, and jewelry.

There are two main GCD speeds recommended to target for DRK specifically: 2.50 and 2.46. The damage difference between them is negligible, and comfort should be the main concern when picking between sets. 2.50 is more straightforward for keeping oGCDs aligned and hits slightly harder on a per-cast basis, but doesn't have a perfectly clean resource loop. 2.46, by contrast, does loop cleanly over a two-minute cycle but requires more attention to keep everything properly aligned. You can also use sets built for other tanks and different GCD speeds at very little loss.

These sets are presented without tome gear as a base to work off of, and can be improved by spending tomes. We have outlined these with each set and their speed tier.

For 2.50, note the 2x Det XI melds in the chest and the 2x Tenacity XI melds in the second ring. If you have access to one week of tomes, buy a ring and meld with 2x DH materia. For two weeks of tomes, buy the chest instead of the ring and meld with 1x DH and 1x Det materia. With three weeks of tomes, use tome chest melded with 2x DH materia and neck with 1x Crit and 1x DH. For four weeks of tomes, use tome chest with 2x DH materia, neck with 1x Crit and 1x DH, and ring with 2x DH, replace the 2x DH melds on the weapon with Det, and meld three Tenacity XI materia on the crafted ring instead of two.

For 2.46, note the 2x Det XII melds in the weapon, the 1x Det XII and 1x Det XI meld in the chest, the 3x SkS XII and 1x SkS XI meld in the boots, the 2x SkS XII melds in the second ring, and the 2x Tenacity XI melds in the second ring. If you have access to one week of tomes, buy the necklace and forego the Det melds in the weapon/chest except for one Det XII. With two weeks of tomes, buy the chest and meld 2x DH in it. For three weeks of tomes, use the tome chest with 2x DH and neck with 1x Crit and 1x DH. With four weeks of tomes, use the tome chest with 2x DH melds, the neck with 1x Crit and 1x DH, and replace the ring with SkS+Tenacity melds with the tome ring melded with 2x SkS.

Weapon slot priority is Ultimate Edenmorn Zweihander > Phantom Guillotine Penumbrae > Dark Horse Champion's Greatsword, with the ultimate weapon being about 0.25% stronger than the phantom and savage weapons, which are near-identical.

Both 2.50 and 2.46 are viable speeds for FRU, with neither having a strong advantage in GCD alignment. Pick whichever is more comfortable for you.

For 2.50, note the 2x Det melds in the weapon. Meld priority is otherwise followed exactly. Dungeon gear can be replaced with i730 raid hat and legs and tome boots for a ~0.8% damage loss. Do not simply use a synced Cruiserweight BiS, which is about 3.3% weaker due to how ilvl sync works.

For 2.46, note the Det meld in the weapon. Dungeon/chaotic gear can be replaced with i730 raid hat and legs, tome boots, and either i760 or i730 tome chest for a ~0.8% damage loss. Do not simply use a synced Heavyweight BiS, which is about 3.2% weaker due to how ilvl sync works.

Portions of this gear set can only be acquired by completing the Arcadion Light-Heavyweight raid tier. A guide for the content can be found links below.

Weapon slot priority is Manderville relic > Ultimate Omega Claymore > Synced weapon > Abyssos Guillotine, with the Manderville relics being about 0.3%~0.5% stronger than the ultimate and synced/Abyssos weapons, respectively. Both the i645 and i665 Manderville relic stages perform identically in The Omega Protocol because of ilvl sync.

2.50 is strongly recommended for maximum damage output, ease of play, and excellent alignment with various mechanics in the encounter.

Gear of ilvl 755 or higher takes full advantage of ilvl sync for The Omega Protocol, and ilvl 740 or higher is generally easy to obtain and is not noticeably weaker. Using a full set of i740+ synced gear loses about 0.3% DPS and gains about 1% HP vs the listed sets.

For 2.50, note the Det meld in the head. Meld priority is otherwise followed exactly.

For 2.45, note the SkS meld in one ring. Meld priority is otherwise followed exactly.

Grade 1 Gemdraughts or higher will all provide the same benefit.

Portions of these gear sets can only be acquired by completing the Abyssos raid tier. A guide for the content can be found in the link below.

Weapon slot priority is Manderville relic > Ultimate Claymore of the Heavens > Synced weapon > Asphodelos Claymore, with the Manderville relics being about 0.1~0.4% stronger than ultimate and synced/Asphodelos, respectively. Both the i645 and i665 Manderville relic stages perform identically in The Dragonsong's Reprise because of ilvl sync.

Both 2.50 and 2.45 GCD speeds are solid options that work well for this encounter. 2.45 lines up particularly well with some mechanics, but you should still use whichever you find more comfortable.

For 2.50, meld priority is followed exactly. All of the i600/605 gear can be replaced with Crit+Det pieces of i725 or higher for a total loss of about 0.3% DPS and a gain of 0.8% HP. All i725+ pieces with Crit+Det perform identically in a given slot.

For 2.45, note Det meld in the head. All of the i600/605 gear can be replaced with Crit+Det pieces of i725 or higher for a total loss of about 0.3% DPS and a gain of 0.8% HP. All i725+ pieces with Crit+Det perform identically in a given slot. If you replace all at-ilvl pieces this way, you will need to reallocate your relic to 306 Crit/72 Det/306 SkS to reach a 2.45 GCD.

Grade 1 Gemdraughts or higher will all provide the same benefit.

Portions of these gear sets can only be acquired by completing the Asphodelos raid tier. A guide for the content can be found links below.

With a wide range of gear that caps both substats when synced to the ilvl for The Epic of Alexander now available, optimizing gear beyond a full synced setup provides only a fraction of a percent more damage and is generally not worthwhile. The item level listed below will outline what item level is required to max out both substats on gear for the fight. All gear above the specified item level will work:

• Item level 595

Additionally, Grade 6 or higher Tinctures of Strength will all provide the same benefit.

Use pieces with Crit+Det in every slot for 2.50 GCD, and substitute a Crit+SkS chest or leg piece to hit 2.45. Caramel Popcorn is the optimal, and likely most readily available, food.

The most significant optimization that can be made is the use of a completed Bozjan Resistance Weapon from the Shadowbringers relic questline. This is a significant amount of work for a ~1% damage increase, so it is only recommended for those who have completed their relics for other reasons. Stat allocation is as follows:

• 184 Critical Hit / 180 Determination / 104 Tenacity

Keep in mind, the Relic weapon is NOT mandatory to clear these fights. The damage gain is quite small, and DPS checks in old ultimates should not pose any significant obstacle to clearing.

With a wide range of gear that caps both substats when synced to the ilvl for The Weapons Refrain now available, optimizing gear beyond a full synced setup provides only a fraction of a percent more damage and is generally not worthwhile. The item level listed below will outline what item level is required to max out both substats on gear for the fight. All gear above the specified item level will work:

• Item level 500

Additionally, Grade 4 or higher Tinctures of Strength will all provide the same benefit.

Use pieces with Crit+Det in every slot for 2.50 GCD, and substitute a Crit+SkS chest or leg piece to hit 2.45 if you do not have a Shadowbringers relic. Caramel Popcorn is the optimal, and likely most readily available, food.

The most significant optimization that can be made is the use of a completed Bozjan Resistance Weapon from the Shadowbringers relic questline. This is a significant amount of work for a ~3.5% damage increase, so it is only recommended for those who have completed their relics for other reasons. Stat allocation is as follows:

• 136 Critical Hit / 131 Determination / 83 Tenacity / 118 Skill Speed

Keep in mind that the Relic weapon is NOT mandatory to clear these fights. The damage gain, while not insignificant, is still not likely to make or break a clear given the lower DPS checks in old ultimates.

With a wide range of gear that caps both substats when synced to the ilvl for The Unending Coil of Bahamut now available, optimizing gear beyond a full synced setup provides only a fraction of a percent more damage and is generally not worthwhile. The item level listed below will outline what item level is required to max out both substats on gear for the fight. All gear above the specified item level will work:

• Item level 470

Additionally, Grade 3 or higher Tinctures of Strength will all provide the same benefit.

Use pieces with Crit+Det in every slot for 2.50 GCD, and substitute a Crit+SkS chest or leg piece to hit 2.45 if you do not have a Shadowbringers relic. Caramel Popcorn is the optimal, and likely most readily available, food.

The most significant optimization that can be made is the use of a completed Bozjan Resistance Weapon from the Shadowbringers relic questline. This is a significant amount of work for a ~3.5% damage increase, so it is only recommended for those who have completed their relics for other reasons. Stat allocation is as follows:

• 127 Critical Hit / 122 Determination / 96 Tenacity / 118 Skill Speed

You can also opt to use the spread of 136 / 131 / 83 / 118 recommended for The Weapon's Refrain in order to avoid having to restat your relic for each encounter, at negligible cost of ~0.1% DPS.

Keep in mind that the Relic weapon is NOT mandatory to clear these fights. The damage gain, while not insignificant, is still not likely to make or break a clear given the lower DPS checks in old ultimates.