The Windward Wilds Trial Guide

Animal carcasses have been turning up left and right in Shaaloani, with a mysterious mark bill suggesting that a new monster prowls the plains. Tasked with hunting the beast, you set off to meet your client, a stray Felyne, and together with their stalwart Seikret companion, scour the wilds and identify your mark: Guardian Arkveld. Now invigorated by a repast of grilled meat and equipped with potent mega potions, the time is come to end the Guardian's rampage and return peace to the wilds!

The Windward Wilds can be unlocked in Patch 7.35 after completing the main scenario quest "Dawntrail" and the sidequest "The White Wanderer," unlocked at Tuliyollal (x13.3, y13.1) through the NPC Dawn Hunt Tracker. The duty requires an item level of 725. Players above Level 100 will be level synced to Level 100 when entering.

Guardian Arkveld is fought in a circular arena with a death wall. Like a monster in Monster Hunter, all boss attacks are indicated by its animation and there are no castbars. In addition, players have ten Mega Potion charges: these heal the player by a large amount and should be used whenever needed. All players have the Well-done, Steak buff, which heals around 5000 HP every 3 seconds.

Throughout the fight there are two mechanic tells that players need to watch out for. They are Roar and Chainblade Blow. Boss tells for both are shown below.

In phase one, you fight Guardian Arkveld.

The following mechanics are introduced in phase one.

• Roar: Guardian Arkveld braces back and prepares to roar, dealing raidwide magic damage.
• Chainblade Blow: The boss raises one of its arms. It smashes down, doing a half-room cleave on that side, then explodes the ground in a large AoE. Get to the other side of the boss.
• Wyvern's Siegeflight: The boss jumps to the edge of the arena and prepares a charge across, with red or white cracks appearing on the ground. This does a line AoE across the arena. Red cracks indicate cleaves to the sides after the dash (middle is safe), while white cracks indicate another line AoE down the middle (sides are safe). White sparks also have a rolling line AoE.
• Rush: The boss jumps to the edge of the arena and prepares three red line AoE charges across the arena. Charged to locations will explode in expanding ring-shaped AoEs. Walk into one and dodge the incoming rings.
• Chainblade Charge: A stack marker on a random healer that must be shared. Deals physical damage.
• Towers: Six towers appear on the arena which must be soaked. Two of these towers are larger and must be soaked by tanks with mitigation. However, three sets of targeted ground AoEs appear beforehand, which must be baited before soaking the towers. Towers leave behind spikes that explode in a large ground AoE when hit by another mechanic.
• Wyvern's Vengeance: Four ground AoEs appear from Arkveld and move towards the outside of the arena.
• Wild Energy: Targets four players with an AoE marker that deals magic damage and inflicts a short magic vuln debuff. Spread out.
• Forged Fury: Guardian Arkveld's ultimate ability. Deals massive magic damage and inflicts Guardian Will, a debuff that deals damage over time and increases damage taken for the rest of the fight.

• While no mechanics have a castbar, all mechanics in the fight have a tell and two options, or the mechanic gives plenty of time for players to find a safe spot.
• Always note when Guardian Arkveld raises one arm, as it will be casting Chainblade Blow. Get to the other side if you ever see this animation.
• Take note of the colour of the ground during Siegeflight. Dodge the line AoE across the middle and collapse in the centre if red or fan out to the sides if white.
• When the towers appear, don't rush to soak them immediately. Drop the AoEs outside before going in.

Phase two adds extra damage and effects to certain mechanics, as well as new mechanics on top.

The following mechanics are introduced or modified in phase two.

• Chainblade Blow: Now strikes three times.
• Wild Energy: Now targets all eight players for all mechanics except towers.
• Wyvern's Weal: The boss jumps to the edge of the arena, then channels a rotating laser AoE. This is accompanied by Wild Energy on all eight players, so head to the side that isn't hit by the laser and spread out after it begins rotating.

• Phase two is not much different from phase one. The debuff adds extra incoming damage, but there is not much damage taken in the first phase if mechanics are done correctly and attacks are dodged.
• For Wyvern's Weal, stand behind the rotating laser and spread out afterwards.
• The rest of the fight is just repeats of mechanics from phase one with higher incoming damage.

Completion of this duty rewards 12 Allagan Tomestones of Heliometry and 7 Allagan Tomestones of Mathematics. Upon completion of the duty, all players will receive a Veldian weapon coffer that can be used to obtain an item level 745 weapon for the job the player is currently on. In addition, 2 Guardian scales may be carved from Guardian Arkveld's hide, which can be exchanged for a variety of weapons and items in Tuliyollal. Finally, there is a rare chance for the Felyne Support Team Cart Horn mount to drop.