The Eleventh Circle P11S (Savage): Themis Raid Guide
This guide aims to prepare players for Anabaseios: The Eleventh Circle (Savage) by providing detailed explanations of the fight's mechanics, as well as consistent strategies for the purpose of clearing weekly for loot.
Introduction to The Eleventh Circle (Savage)
A tale of two friends pitted against each other by the hands of a cruel puppetmaster, every drop of blood spilled mixing with the tears shed at their lost fellowship... The mere facts of your battle with Themis would be enough to spin a compelling tale for most, but Nemjiji aspires to something greater. While she seems moved by your story of tragedy and triumph, her artist's eye is ever searching for spots where her “theories” might serve to add a dash of flavor.
Unlock Requirements
The Eleventh Circle (Savage) can be unlocked at level 90 after completing the Normal difficulty of the Anabaseios raid and talking to Nemjiji in Labyrinthos (x8.4, y27.4). It requires a minimum item level of 640 to queue, but this requirement can be bypassed when entering with a full party.
Themis Raid Guide
Themis has a hard enrage of 11:15. The fight has a DPS check of roughly 73,600 raid DPS.
Raid Preparation
Begin by assigning all players clock positions, with supports at cardinals and DPS at intercardinals. Assign two light parties of one tank, one healer, and two DPS each. Light party one will default to west, while light party two will default to east. Each support will have a DPS partner, who they will rotate clockwise to or stack with for certain mechanics.
Players can place waymarks to support positioning for the Dark and Light mechanic. Use the small square notches on the arena to place waymarks correctly.
Themis's Main Mechanics
Many of Themis's abilities are aspected with either light or darkness. After casting any aspected ability, Themis will follow up with an attack depending on the element. If light, Themis will cast Inevitable Law, magic damage on both healers that must be shared by four players. If dark, Themis will cast Inevitable Sentence, magic damage on either all supports or all DPS that must be shared by two players.
In addition, Themis has four main mechanics used frequently in the fight. All of these abilities are aspected with light or darkness, and have different effects based on the element as well.
- Jury Overruling: Themis will shoot a wide line AoE towards all players that deals moderate physical damage. If light, leaves a small AoE where they stood when they were hit. If dark, leaves a small donut AoE where they stood when they were hit.
- Upheld Overruling: Tethers to a player and jumps to them. If light, tethers to a random non-tank and deals shared physical damage, then a large point-blank AoE. If dark, tethers to a random tank and deals heavy physical damage in a large AoE that knocks other players back, then a donut AoE.
- Divisive Overruling: Themis jumps to the middle and faces the tank. He will do a large line AoE across his hitbox, and another AoE afterwards. If light, the second one is a wider line AoE. If dark, the second one cleaves the sides of the arena, making the original line AoE's spot safe.
- Dismissal Overruling: Themis will knockback from the centre of the arena. Knockback prevention abilities work on this attack. If light, he will do a large point-blank AoE. If dark, he will do a donut AoE.
Phase One: Shadowed Messengers
Themis introduces the following abilities in this phase.
- Eunomia: Moderate raidwide magic damage that inflicts a bleed DoT.
- Dike: A tank buster on first and second aggro, which hits twice. It deals dark and light damage as well as inflicting a Resistance Down debuff of the corresponding element, so tanks will have to swap during the cast.
- Styx: A multi-hit stack marker on a random healer that deals one hit of heavy magic damage, and multiple hits of moderate magic damage. It starts with five total hits, then increases by one each time it is used.
- Arcane Revelation: Themis summons light and dark portals at the edge of the map. The element shown during the cast will shoot a line AoE across the arena. The configuration of portals ensures that opposite intercardinals are always safe.
- Shadowed Messengers: Themis summons clones at the edge of the arena that cast Divisive Overruling across the middle of the arena. One will be light-aspected and the other will be dark-aspected. After dashing, two new clones will then cast Upheld Overruling. Again, one will be light-aspected and one will be dark-aspected.
Themis is a sequential fight that builds upon mechanics slowly introduced in the fight. Players will need to master the four basic mechanics in Jury Overruling, Upheld Overruling, Divisive Overruling, and Dismissal Overruling and their variations while progressing through the harder mechanics.
The fight begins with Eunomia, a bleed raidwide, and Dike, a swap tank buster. The offtank must make sure they are 2nd in aggro before the buster, as it does not automatically target both tanks. He will then cast Jury Overruling. Players must spread into their clock spots at max melee range. If it's light, after being hit everyone will move into the boss's hitbox in their light party stacks east and west for the shared damage. If it's dark, after being hit supports will rotate clockwise to stack with a partner for the shared damage.
Themis will then cast Upheld Overruling. If it's light, he will tether onto a random non-tank. All players should go to the centre to take shared damage, then go west and east in their light parties outside of the boss's hitbox to take another instance of shared damage. If it's dark, he will tether onto a random tank. This tank will stand in the direct centre and mitigate. All other players including the other tank need to stand outside of the boss's hitbox at max melee range, then move into the donut and stack with their partner.
Next, Themis will cast Divisive Overruling. If it's light, players can easily stand east and west at max melee range to dodge the line AoE, the larger line AoE, and stack for the shared damage. If it's dark, players will need to move into the line AoE after the initial hit to dodge the side cleaves, and stack with their partner after moving in. Themis will then cast Styx, and all players should stack in the centre and use their mitigation.
Arcane Revelation is the next mechanic. Players should preposition to west and east in their light parties. Themis will show an element with the castbar, and portals of that element will do a line AoE across the arena. The portals will always spawn such that two opposite intercardinals will be safe. Themis casts Dismissal Overruling as the portals appear. Players need to either run in and get knocked back to the safe spot, or use Arms Length and Surecast and run to the safe spot. After the AoEs go off, players will either stay out with their light party for shared damage, or run into the donut AoE with their partner for shared damage.
After a few autoattacks on the main tank, Themis will begin casting Shadowed Messengers. Players should pre-position west and east at max melee range, and look at the clones spawned on the outer edge of the arena. One clone will be light, and the other clone will be dark. Players must rotate clockwise or counterclockwise 90 degrees in the direction the dark clone is. The main tank can take this time to point the boss towards the light clone if they want to. If they do, players will only have to rotate 45 degrees instead of 90 degrees.
After clones spawn, Themis will cast Divisive Overruling. This will go off after the Shadowed Messenger clones do their mechanic. This means that after rotating to the safe spot, players must either stay out in their light parties or go in with their partners. While players are rotating, they will receive tethers from the clone's Upheld Overruling. Only the tanks must pay attention - if they have the tether, after their mechanic they should head north and mitigate the hit at max melee range. All other players can stand in the centre of the arena to take shared damage.
The tank's tether will do a donut AoE, and the boss does a point-blank AoE. All players will have to run north to avoid both AoEs. At this point, Themis will begin casting Jury Overruling. As the boss is already facing north, all players go to their clock spots and do the light or dark mechanic. Afterwards, Themis will cast Styx, this time hitting six times in total.
Phase Two: Dark and Light
Themis introduces the following abilities in this phase.
- Lightstream: Themis summons three orbs northeast, northwest, and south. These will shoot a line AoE across the arena that rotate in the direction indicated.
- Dark and Light: All players will receive either Dark's Discord or Light's Discord, and be tethered to another player of the opposite role with the opposite debuff. This tether will either be pointing away, or pointing together. Players need to obey the tether with their partner and either stand close or far at all times. When the tether is obeyed, the debuff will become Dark's Accord or Light's Accord
- Emissary's Will: Players without Light's Accord or Dark's Accord are instantly killed.
- Arcane Revelation: In this phase, Arcane Revelation will spawn dark and light orbs. The orb that's the same element of the element shown during the cast will do a large AoE.
The phase begins with Lightstream. To find the safe spot from the rotating lasers, find the laser that has a different orientation from the other two, and go two safe spaces away from the direction it's pointing in. For example, if the south laser is the only one rotating clockwise, two safe spots counterclockwise would be just south of the northwest laser.
Immediately after, players will need to go to their west and east light parties relative to where the boss is facing, as Themis will cast Divisive Overruling. Be sure to not walk into a laser too early while it is still rotating. After doing the line mechanic, he will cast Eunomia, followed by Upheld Overruling. After a few autoattacks, Themis will face north and begin casting Dark and Light.
All players will receive a debuff and a tether. The debuff will either be light or dark, and the tether will either be pointing close or far. Players can choose to either ignore the tethers and use debuffs for initial positioning, or ignore the debuffs and use tethers for initial positioning.
- To use tethers for initial positioning, tanks and healers will go to these
set spots depending on what tether they have. This is the initial part of
Kindred strat, and adheres to the respective waymarks.
- Tank long tether on A;
- Tank short tether on D;
- Healer long tether on C;
- Healer short tether on B;
- DPS match their tether partner, opposite on a number;
- Make sure the tank at A has aggro.
- To use debuffs for initial positioning, players can see what debuff they have
and go west or east corresponding to their role and debuff.
- Support light debuff west;
- Support dark debuff east;
- DPS light debuff east;
- DPS dark debuff west.
Next, the boss will cast Arcane Revelation. Players will have to move to the opposite coloured orb than the element shown during the cast. If players are already at a safe orb they stay there at max melee, but if players are at an unsafe orb, they should rotate clockwise. Afterwards, return to the marker positions for players, with tanks and healers on cardinals on numbered waymarks and DPS on intercardinals on letter waymarks.
Themis then casts Jury Overruling. If it's light for light party, long players will rotate clockwise and stack with the short players while dodging the placed AoE marks. If it's dark and partners, the long DPS will rotate counterclockwise to stack with their partner, and both short players will either rotate counterclockwise to the long player's spot on the 1 and 3 markers (uptime) or go out to the edge (normal) to dodge the donuts.
Return to original positions. Themis will then cast Divisive Overruling. To solve this, have long players rotate clockwise to dodge the initial line AoE. If it is light, players can move out to max melee together to dodge and stack. If it is dark, the players move into the line AoE as a group to dodge the side cleaves. Far players should ensure that they move in a wide arc to remain being far. All players should stay where they are to ensure the tether is obeyed before Emissary's Will finishes casting.
Themis will then cast Styx with seven hits in total, Dike on the tanks, and begin the final set of new mechanics.
Phase Three: Letter of the Law
Themis introduces the following abilities in this phase.
- Dark Current: Themis spawns circle AoEs in a line on the ground from the centre, spawning either horizontally or vertically. These will rotate in the direction indicated by a line on the ground.
- Blinding Light: All players receive a marked AoE.
- Letter of the Law: Summons two sets of clones. The first set of clones will cast Upheld Overruling, one light and one dark. The second set of clones will cast Divisive Overruling, one light and one dark.
- Twofold Revelation: Themis spawns portals and orbs from Arcane Revelation, doing both mechanics at the same time.
- Heart of Judgment: Themis spawns four towers at intercardinals, which must be soaked by two players each.
The first mechanic in the final phase is Dark Current. Players should start west and east in their light parties. If west and east are covered by AoEs, rotate clockwise to the safe spot. Players will have to follow the rotating AoEs, and spread out for Blinding Light. Have the supports chase the AoEs close, and DPS behind them.
The tank should stop at a letter waymark, as the boss will begin casting Jury Overruling. Players can choose to do this spread true north or relative, but relative makes more sense as markers are disoriented. Remember the light and dark mechanic that happens afterwards. This is followed by Upheld Overruling and Divisive Overruling.
Finally, Themis will cast Letter of the Law. This is the final difficult mechanic of the fight, and is a high-paced combination of mechanics seen previously. DPS and healers should preposition to the northeast of the arena, and tanks will go to the middle to ensure they have ample time to either stack with the party or go across from the party.
Themis will begin by casting Twofold Revelation. Note the element of the castbar, as that will be safe for both the orb and the portal line AoEs. At the same time, to clones on the outside will begin casting Upheld Overruling. The tank with the tether needs to go opposite of the party, and the other tank stacks with the party. Both the party and the tank need to adjust to the right safe spot - go to the safe orb, and go either left or right, on the safe intercardinal for the portal AoEs.
After the laser AoEs go off, Themis will cast Heart of Judgment. The party stays at the safe spot at max melee for the shared damage, while the tank needs to run to the middle and mitigate to place the donut in the middle.
Once both AoEs go off, players need to run into the middle of the arena, far away from the original spot to dodge the point-blank AoE as well as the donut AoE. At this time, they should look at where their tower is, from true north.
Players will stack with their partner inside their tower, which is at DPS clock spots, and one spot clockwise for supports. At this point, look for the clones on the outside of the arena casting Divisive Overruling. Similar to Shadowed Messengers from earlier, rotate towards the dark one. Players only need to rotate 45 degrees.
Immediately after, move east and west to dodge the initial line AoE from the clones. Rotate towards the dark one, and Themis will begin casting Dismissal Overruling. Again, either use knockback prevention abilities or move in and get knocked back. You will either do the light or dark version of the mechanic. After the partner stack or light party stack, Themis will cast Styx. This attack has eight hits.
The rest of the fight are mechanics players have seen previously. Themis will cast Lightstream into Divisive Overruling. This is followed by Dike, and a final Jury Overruling. Themis will finally cast Eunomia, and then begin casting the enrage. The enrage is a long casted attack, Ultimate Verdict, that begins at 11:05 and ends at 11:15, instantly wiping the party. Defeat Themis before he finishes you off!
Party Finder Strategies
Note if the tank will point the boss towards a light clone during Shadowed Messengers. Most NA PFs use Uptime Kindred for Dark and Light, explained in the guide as the tether-based solution. Also note if the party is doing true north or boss relative for Jury and Upheld.
Loot
When Themis is defeated, a treasure coffer will appear that contains Anabaseios Gear Coffers and upgrade tokens. When opened by a player, these coffers contain item level 660 Anabaseios equipment for the job the player is currently on. The amount of coffers that appear depend on how many players have already cleared during the weekly lockout. If no players have cleared yet, an Anabaseios Body and Chest coffer will drop, as well as a Divine Twine and a Divine Solvent. If one to four players have already cleared, the loot is halved. If five or more players have already cleared, no treasure coffer will appear.
Players who defeat the encounter for the first time during the weekly reset will also receive an Anabaseios Mythos III token. Six of these can be traded in for an Anabaseios Chest or Legs gear of your choosing at a Pandaemonium gear vendor. Three of these can be traded for a Divine Twine, used to upgrade Credendum armour, or Divine Solvent, used to upgrade Credendum weapons.
Changelog
- 13 Jun. 2023: Guide added.
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This guide has been written by Lyra an accomplished raider in FFXIV and has written raid guides for the game for the past five years. You can follow him on Twitter and he streams raids on Twitch.
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