Final Fantasy XVI: Forging The Most Powerful Sword In The Game

Most role-playing games don’t give you much of a chance to really get to know your blacksmith, but one of Final Fantasy XVI’s most charming multi-part quests has you investigate what’s bothering the smithy Blackthorne. Even more importantly, it’s vital to unlocking and crafting the single best sword you can get on your first playthrough: Gotterdammerung.

As is the case with many of Final Fantasy XVI’s best weapons, you have to craft a different weapon that’s used as the base and then unlock the recipe, and you have to collect a few other ingredients. With this being such a powerful weapon, it requires some rare ingredients only acquired through some of the game’s toughest hunts. But it’s worth it for a sword that has 375 attack and stagger power. So here’s everything you need to do in order to claim this legendary blade.

Acquire Ragnarok and the Gotterdammerung Crafting Recipe

Sporadically throughout the game, the Cursebreaker soldier August at the Hideaway central hub will offer a sidequest called “Blacksmith’s Blues.” This good-natured fellow recognizes when his buddy Blackthorne, the Hideaway’s resident blacksmith, is feeling down in the dumps. This first happens during the “Here Be Monsters” chapter just beyond the halfway mark for the game and not long after the big time skip. August will typically have the side quest marker over his head somewhere in the mess hall near Otto, so be on the lookout whenever that happens.

At first, Blackthorne is intimidated by the skill of a leatherworker, but eventually he confesses that he’s worried about his hometown of Dravozd. As is the case with many late-game quests, “Blacksmith’s Blues IV” sees the town overrun by the zombie-like Akashic after you reach chapter 44, “Across the Narrow” quite late in the game. After you help defend the town, Blackthorne works with the town’s leader Zoltan to craft Ragnarok.

At 325 power, Ragnarok is one of the better swords in the game, but you can do even better. So it’s a good thing that completing “Blacksmith’s Blues IV” also unlocks the crafting recipe for Gotterdammerung:

Ragnarok (1)

Orihalcum (3)

Darksteel (2)

Primitive Battlehorn (1)

Where to Find Orihalcum

Several A- and S-rank Notorious Marks on the Hunt Board offer Orihalcum as a reward, so a great place to start is to make sure that you complete all of them as they’re unlocked. The earliest chance you get happens when you reach the “Out of the Shadow” story quest about three quarters of the way through the game, which is when Mid requests help with building her ship, the Enterprise. That’s when “The Breaker of Worlds” hunt is added to the board for a large Fallen construct called Atlas.

The Hunt Board description mentions little more than “Rosarian ruins.” Fast travel to either Eastpool or Martha’s Rest in Rosaria. Then proceed through Greensheaves and continue east beyond Cressida to the end of the path, and you’ll find Atlas there.

Though they unlock rather late in the game, the other easiest methods of finding more Orihalcum are by completing the “Under New Management II” quest for Isabelle (a.k.a., The Dame) in Northreach and the “Duty Undying II” quest for Cyril, a member of the Undying group that devotes their life to supporting the Phoenix who resides in Tabor. The first part of these two quests unlock at the same time as “Blacksmith’s Blues IV” once you reach “Across the Narrow.” And the final parts unlock once you hit “Back to Their Origin” which is the final chapter before you proceed ot the big finale.

In “Under New Management II,” speak to the Dame and follow the quest markers to speak with Philippe and slay Akashic Thralls in a few different locations. Cyril’s quest has you investigate the whereabouts of a missing member of the Undying. You travel to Mikkelburg on the eastern continent of Ash where you look into some cultlike activity.

Alternatively, you can also get Orihalcum from the following hunts:

The Tricephalic Terror (Gorgimera) in the Velkroy Desert of Dhalmekia just west of The Watcher location in the desert center

The Masterless Marauder (Behemoth King) in the northeastern Vidargraes area of Waloed just southwest of the Vidargraes obelisk

The Gorgimera is a chimera-type enemy with a lion-like face and two dragon heads protruding from its back, and you should be able to find it wandering out in the open. The Behemoth King is similarly wandering out in the open. As both are larger marks, you may want to use Eikon Abilities like Impulse, Lightning Rod, Rime, Will-o’-the-Wykes, and Aerial Blast for some consistent passive damage while you’re executing other attacks. Windup is also worth it, as such a large target is hard to miss.

Where to Find Darksteel

Darksteel is another high-end material, but this one can only be obtained from some of the more challenging hunts, specifically these:

Usher to the Underworld (Thanatos) in the Titan’s Wake area in southeastern Dhalmekia, but be sure to follow the northern path when it forks

The Grim Reaper (Prince of Death) in Cape Orsiere, which is the southwestern peninsula of the Royal Meadors just north of Northreach

Thanatos is a large Fallen golem enemy that you’ve definitely fought before. It’s the kind that fires huge beams of energy out of its chest. Be sure to maneuver behind it to avoid getting hit for tons of damage.

The Prince of Death is also a fallen, but of the much smaller reaper subtype. So he’ll teleport around and string projectile slashes together. And maybe his swings are a bit slower, so don’t dodge too quickly. Note that you’ll have to complete “Under New Management II” first to unlock the hunt, which is helpful because you need Orihalcum anyway. So the Prince of Death is probably the better option here.

Where to Find a Primitive Battlehorn

The Primitive Battlehorn is yet another reward, but only for one specific hunt that unlocks once you hit the late-game chapter called “Brotherhood.” Chances are high that you’ll be beyond this point by the time you collect the other pieces to the recipe, but you’ll want to prioritize this hunt nonetheless:

The goblin Gobermouch to the southwest of the Maudlin Mason in Eistla

From there, all you have to do is take all of the materials to Blackthorne at the Hideaway and craft Gotterdammerung which translates to “twilight of the gods” and is a nod to Richard Wagner’s 1876 opera of the same name. If anything, this proves that FFXVI is a Final Fantasy for nerds.