The fight itself requires an average Item Level of i580 to even queue for in Raid Finder. It’s the most difficult Level 90 content currently available in the game (as of this writing). Savage itself is separate from the normal Raid series, and also has weekly loot lockouts. This means that you’ve got one opportunity per clear to win your Demi-Phoinix. The Loot lockout will be removed later though, likely sometime in the 6.2X patch series. With that said, the fight itself isn’t quite farmable yet, due to both difficulty and loot restrictions. Your best bet may be to find a group to tackle the content in sequence. In time, with gear and experience, the fight will become a bit more manageable. However, with this being the current level savage you’ll need to be familiar with mechanics.
Unlocking The Gates Of Pandaemonium
Your first steps towards the Demi-Phoinix are to have finished up the Main Story Quest of Endwalker. The Level 90 Quest, aptly titled “Endwalker”, will have you confronting the end of existence in the Ultima Thule. If you’ve already foiled the nefarious Song of Oblivion then good news! You’re halfway there. Head to Old Sharlayan and seek out Nemjiji (Old Sharlayan – The Baldesion Annex, X;9 Y:12). You’ll be directed to do the following:
Speak with Claudien at Aporia (Labyrinthos – Aporia, X:9 Y:28). Journey to The Ocular and investigate the Portal (The Crystarium – The Dossal Gate, X:13 Y:11). Speak with Themis and you’ll be teleported directly next to them.
All said and done, you’ll follow a series of quests that break down like this:
“Where Familiars Dare” “Under the Surface” “Fire of Creation”
First speak to Themis to accept the next Quest “Where Familiars Dare”. This Quest unlocks Pandaemonium Asphodelos: The First Circle. This is the beginning battle of the Raid tier, and you’ll need to topple Erichthonios to proceed. Afterwards, Themis will once again have your next Quest, “Under the Surface”. Here you’ll need to defeat The Hippokampus. Interestingly enough, if you’ve done Elpis sidequests, the creature is mentioned a few times. Familiarity aside, crushing the beast will allow you to accept the “Fire of Creation”. Hopefully this serves as motivation for you, since you’ll be quelling the Demi-Phoinix itself. But one day you’ll find yourself traversing the skies on the bird which burned you to death many times. After cooking the Demi-Phoinix you’ll be facing the warden of Pandaemonium, Hesperos. Who is definitely not Dracula. Once you’ve defeated him, you’ll be rewarded with an ominous sense of foreboding. Well, that and some i580 gear tokens and a Nosferatu Minion. You’re now prepared to unlock Savage!
The Savage Raid
Thankfully, all you’ll need to do to unlock the Savage Raid Tier is return to Nemjiji (Old Sharlayan – The Baldesion Annex, X:9 Y:12). Now you’re prepared to descend to the horrifying depths of Party Finder – I mean Pandaemonium (Savage). The fights are exceedingly different from the normal tier you just triumphed over. Make sure to try and familiarize yourself with not only your Job, but also the Raids themselves. We’ll likely create a separate guide for all these details since they can’t be covered here in-depth. But watch other video guides, look up diagrams, and prepare to probably wipe quite a bit. The Fourth Circle (Savage) even has an entirely separate fight with Hesperos once you’ve beaten his human form.
The Spoils of Savage
As you battle your way through Pandaemonium Asphodelos, you’ll accrue quite a bit of gear. And in addition to gear you’ll receive an Asphodelos Mythos I-IV, depending on the floor cleared. These Mythos can be exchanged for various items, should you be unlucky with loot. You can get your goodies from two NPCs:
Mylenie (Labyrinthos – Aporia, X:8 Y:28) Djole (Radz-at-Han – West Balshahn Bazaar, X:10 Y:10)
Either will trade you the following for your Mythos: So if you really dig the Greek Toga look, you’re in luck. The other plus is that the gear here will be best-in-slot for the upcoming Dragonsong War: Ultimate. But putting all that aside, you’ll simply need to win the loot roll and the Demi-Phoinix Horn will be yours. Best of luck!
