How to unlock The Cloud of Darkness: Chaotic in Final Fantasy XIV

The first ever savage-tier 24-player ‘Chaotic’ Alliance Raid is coming to Final Fantasy XIV on December 24, and this Christmas is going to be all about taking part to get sweet, sweet rewards. 

Thankfully, we don’t have to wait until then to figure out the specifics, such as unlock requirements, how to queue, or even how the reward system will work. All of this information was graciously given during the 83rd Live Letter from the Producers on November 1. So, without further ado, let’s get into the details. 

How to unlock The Cloud of Darkness (Chaotic)

According to the information we’ve already been given, unlocking The Cloud of Darkness (Chaotic) won’t take much additional effort outside of completing the main story because it will become unlocked after you’ve completed the following quest:

• Level 100 MSQ quest “Dawntrail”

When it’s unlocked, you’ll be able to queue via either the Raid Finder, which is accessed through the Duty Finder, or through Party Finder. As this is high-level and brutally punishing content designed for those who already participate in Savage or Ultimate duties, it will be on the same menu. 

How many players are needed for The Cloud of Darkness (Chaotic)

According to information given during the Live Letter, the first Chaotic Raid can technically be completed with as few as 12 players, provided those players are part of a preformed team. However, just because it can be completed with 12 players, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it should be completed with 12 players. 

The duty difficulty is balanced and optimized for the full amount of 24 players, so rocking up with 12 players is likely to be something to strive for in the long run rather than something to try on day one. There are definitely teams out there who could climb that mountain and come out victorious, but for the average player, it’s likely to be a huge challenge. 

According to Yoshida (with translations provided by Iluna Minori on the FFXIV Discord Server), the Chaotic Raid sits somewhere between The Dragonsong’s Reprise and The Omega Protocol in terms of difficulty. Apparently, mechanics will be coming thick and fast, so players will need to adapt their speed and movement accordingly. 

With that in mind, the party composition for Chaotic raids will be identical to that seen in regular alliance raids. That means you’ll need three parties made up of the following roles:

• 2 Tanks
• 2 Healers
• 4 DPS

Rewards for The Cloud of Darkness (Chaotic)

So far, we know that there will be a number of rewards up for grabs for completing The Cloud of Darkness (Chaotic). While the specifics of some of them have not yet been revealed (minions and hairstyles), we do have some information about the mounts and gear that will be dropped. 

Firstly, the Chaotic Raid will reward a number of Tokens. These can then be traded for drops that are more on the rare side. However, everything that can be gained with Tokens will be available as a drop when completing the duty. 

iLvl 730 gear

While iLvl 730 gear is already available in FFXIV, it is locked behind the AAC Light-heavyweight Savage Raids. So even if this new gear isn’t a step up in terms of stats, it is nice to have another source for max iLvl gear. 

It’s also a solid alternative if you’re not a fan of the current max iLvl gear; there’s definitely a different look to the gear that will drop from the Chaotic, some of which can be seen above. 

Tile mount

The exact name of this mount is not yet known, but it is essentially one of the tiles that appear during the Raid itself. For anyone who is familiar with a specific tile mechanic that has previously been used, this will give them some idea of one of the mechanics to expect from the Raid. 

This mount also features an action that causes the player to panic before the mount disappears from beneath them. 

Cloud of Darkness mount

Have you ever wanted to become the Cloud of Darkness? Well now you can with the Cloud of Darkness mount. Yoshida showed off how this mount looks with his Lalafell, and with just his head sticking out, I can only imagine how this looks with a Roedagyn floating around inside. 

How does the bonus reward system work in FFXIV?

For the first time, there will be a bonus reward system that centers around the Cloud of Darkness (Chaotic). There will be two different types of bonuses, one of which is more reliable than the other. 

First-time duty bonus

Just like when you run any dungeon or other duty in FFXIV, the new Chaotic Raid will feature a bonus that rewards additional Tokens if one or more players are new to the duty. Naturally, this means that if you’re diving in on the first day (December 24), then you’ll get a hefty number of Tokens for your troubles. 

Limited time bonus

The limited-time bonus is slightly more complicated, and if you’ve ever farmed for light during a Relic Weapon grind, then you’ll know what to expect. At certain times, a DC may have a limited-time bonus applied to The Cloud of Darkness (Chaotic). This will be different for each DC, so you might want to think about getting to grips with the DC travel system. 

During this limited-time bonus, the number of Tokens that drop will increase, and the drop rate of items will also increase. If your DC has this bonus applied on release day, then expect a lot of international visitors.