Dark Knight Tank Gear and Best in Slot — Endwalker 6.4

As usual, 2.50 is recommended for user-friendliness and compatibility with other tanks.

For 2.50, exceptions to the general meld priority are one Direct Hit X meld replaced with Determination, shown here in the hands; and two Direct Hit IX melds replaced with one Determination IX and one Tenacity IX, shown here in the head. As always, the location of these substitutions are flexible, provided that you avoid overcapping on a given substat.

For 2.45, exceptions to the general meld priority are one Direct Hit X meld replaced with Determination and two Direct Hit IX melds replaced with Skill Speed, shown here in the head; and one Direct Hit IX replaced with Determination, shown here in the neck. As always, the location of these substitutions are flexible, provided that you avoid overcapping on a given substat.

As usual, 2.50 is recommended for user-friendliness and compatibility with other tanks.

For 2.50, the exception to the general meld priority is one Direct Hit meld replaced with Determination. This substitution is shown in the headpiece, but can be done on any other slots that won't overcap on Determination as a result, indicated by red text in the melding menu.

For 2.45, exceptions to the general meld priority are three Direct Hit melds replaced with Skill Speed. These melds are shown in the neck and the raid ring in order to require as little adjustment from the 2.50 set as possible, but can be done on any slot that would otherwise meld Direct Hit.

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

These sets are specifically for The Omega Protocol (Ultimate) with an ilvl sync of 635. Because much higher ilvl gear is required to cap out both substats on syncing down, the major benefit from later patches are higher-grade food and potions. The latest Manderville relic stage also provides a roughly 0.5% damage boost vs the i635 savage or ultimate weapons. These sets are subject to further change with the eventual release of further relic steps and ilvl 635 dungeon gear.

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

For 2.50, general meld priority is followed with on Direct Hit replaced with Determination, shown in the wrist. If you don't have the latest relic step, meld two or three Direct Hit materia to the savage or ultimate weapons, respectively.

For 2.45, exceptions to general meld priority are two Direct Hit melds replaced with Determination, also shown in the wrist. If you don't have the latest relic step, meld two Skill Speed materia into the savage weapon and add a Direct Hit for the ultimate weapon.

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.

With the advent of patch 6.3 and Lapis Manalis, i605 armor is now available and represents an improvement in some slots. Even if you don’t wish to farm Lapis Manalis, some gains can be made with higher-ilvl synced gear, new food and potions, and the latest step of the Manderville relic weapon. Gearsets for both cases are provided. As with TOP, Manderville relics are about 0.5% stronger than the i605 savage or ultimate weapons.

A 2.45 GCD aligns extremely well with mechanics for this encounter and is an extremely solid option. The damage output between GCD speeds is still quite small, but 2.50 will have its higher burst damage offset more by losing GCDs in multiple phases.

For 2.50, meld priority is followed exactly.

For 2.45, exceptions to the general meld priority are two Direct Hit melds replaced with Determination and two Direct Hit melds replaced with Skill Speed, shown here in the head and ring, respectively.

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.

These sets do not require farming dungeon gear, and perform about 1.5% lower. As with the dungeon gear sets, the ultimate weapon is better than the Manderville relics, which are roughly equal to the Asphodelos raid weapon. Use two Direct Hit melds in the raid weapon for 2.50 or one Direct Hit and one Determination for 2.45.

For 2.50, the exception to the general meld priority is one Direct Hit meld replaced with Determination, shown here in the neck.

For 2.45, exceptions to the general meld priority are one Direct Hit meld replaced with Skill Speed, shown here in the head; and two Direct Hit melds replaced with Determination, shown here in the head and neck.

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

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. Baked Eggplant 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

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. Baked Eggplant 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

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. Baked Eggplant 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.