Rufus (VII Remake boss)

Rufus is a boss in Final Fantasy VII Remake. He is fought during Chapter 17, "Deliverance from Chaos", by Cloud alone, during the quest "The Showdown". Rufus is accompanied by Darkstar, a canine monster. Rufus is fast and hard to pin down, but is susceptible to .
==Stats==
==Attacks==
Rufus's attacks depend on battle phase.
*Phase 1: Darkstar has ≥50% HP
*Phase 2: Darkstar has ≤49% HP
*Phase 3: Darkstar is defeated
: = Physical damage
: = Magical damage
Attack 	Pic	Phase	Description 	Block	
Shotgun 	 	All 	Fires 5–6 bullets (counterattack is 5). When firing 6 times, one bullet will knock Cloud back. 	 	
Reload & Combat Load	 	All 	Loads 4 or 6 bullets. 6 is during Combat Load and hard mode. 	- 	-
Follow Up 	 	1–2 	Rufus moves to Darkstar's position and fires his gun. 	 	
Assist 	 	1–2 	Fires his gun point-blank in front of Cloud. 	 	
Thunderclap 	 	1–2 	When Darkstar casts , Rufus will charge a bolt. 	 	
Heel 	 	1–2 	Summons Darkstar to his side. 	- 	-
Guns Akimbo 	 	2–3 	Fires 10 shots and needs to reloads.Hard Mode: Fires 13 shots and needs to reloads. 	 	
Up in Smoke 	 	2-3 	Throws a coin and shoots it, dispersing a cloud of smoke. Target will flinch. 	 	
Bright Lights 	 	2-3 	Throws and shoots at 2 coins, causing red lasers to fire. This can use be used as a counterattack. 	 	
Tread Softly 	 	2-3 	Throws 3 coins on the floor that emit electricity for 8 seconds. If Cloud is hit, he is stunned for 5 seconds.	 	
Think Fast 	 	2-3 	Tosses and fires at 5 coins, detonating them. 	 	
== Battle ==
Rufus is fought alongside his hound, Darkstar, against Cloud, alone. He fights with his shotgun and by commanding his dog. Direct attacks on Rufus are ineffective, since he always counters them. If the player attacks Rufus directly at the start of the fight, a short cutscene will play to signal the player to not focus on him. There are three phases to this battle with Rufus gaining more attacks each time.
During the first phase Rufus and Darkstar engage in combo tactics, both "linked" through Rufus' Heel ability, which will show a small thread connecting the two. The bulk of the offensive is done by Darkstar on Rufus's command, leaping and pouncing on Cloud for repeated damage, and must be brushed off. If Darkstar is too far away, Rufus will whistle to call him back to his side. Attacking Rufus is largely useless, and to proceed, Darkstar must be damaged around half its HP. Attacking Darkstar non-stop will result in Rufus intervening, retaliating with shotgun blasts. If any of Darkstar abilities hit Cloud directly, Rufus will use follow-ups to complement the damage.
The second phase starts when Darkstar loses half of its HP. A cutscene will play showing Rufus's helicopter leaving. Rufus demonstrates his new ability, Bright Lights, in which he tosses coins in the air as railgun projectiles for large damage. Rufus's arsenal will be greatly expanded in this phase:
* Bright Lights is mostly used when Cloud is far from Rufus. It can hit Cloud from across the entire screen, but has a slow start-up. This attack cannot be blocked, and must be dodged instead.
* Guns Akimbo has Rufus shooting at Cloud repeatedly. This attack cannot be dodged, and must be blocked (cannot be blocked in Punisher Mode), If Cloud is hit, he will be flinched and Darkstar will use a follow-up attack.
* Thunderclap is used after Darkstar casts Thunder on Rufus's gun, charging it up. This attack deals damage and can be blocked or dodged.
* Tread Softly has Rufus throwing three coins on the air and commanding Darkstar to pelt them with lightning, laying three orbs of electricity on the floor, which will stun Cloud on contact. This attack cannot be blocked, and must be dodged backwards instead.
* Up in Smoke has Rufus shooting a coin and dispersing a smoke screen. If Cloud is hit, he will be flinched for some seconds, and Darkstar will follow-up with an attack. Up in Smoke cannot be blocked, and must be dodged backwards instead.
*Think Fast has Rufus throwing five coins in the air and shooting them, causing massive explosions. If Cloud is hit, he will be sent flying, and Darkstar will follow-up with an attack that slams him on the ground. Think Fast cannot be blocked, and must be dodged backwards instead.
In the second phase Rufus will still command Darkstar, but is a more active attacker; the hound will instead follow-up any of Rufus abilities that directly hit Cloud. This phase will end when Darkstar is defeated, at which point Rufus will force it to retreat.
The third and final phase starts with another cutscene where Rufus reveals his new tactic, propelling himself with his gun for fast ground dashes and even in midair. Rufus will be very aggressive and mobile in this phase, zigzagging through the battlefield and quickly close the gap to attack Cloud. He still employs solid protective measures through evasion and swift counters, making it much harder for the player to land blows. He will use all his previous abilities save for Thunderclap. Tread Softly will be smaller, and thrown at Rufus feet, to preventing Cloud from approaching him. Rufus will only be vulnerable while reloading his shotgun.
=== Strategy ===
Only Cloud is used in this battle. Since Rufus fights from range, Punisher Mode is not recommended against him, as it'll not trigger counter attacks; his gunfire is best guarded against in Operator Mode. On the other hand, Punisher Mode and Counterstance are very effective against Darkstar. The player should get rid of Darkstar first to focus on Rufus alone. The fastest way to dispose of Darkstar is by using Triple Slash; this will instantly by sever the link between Darkstar and Rufus, and put the hound on a pressured state. The player can then simply use Focused Thrust in succession to stagger Darkstar. If Rufus tries to intervene, the player can block his attacks and use Triple Slash again to push him away.
It is possible to make Rufus fall asleep with the spell, rendering him unable to attack. Using Braver on Rufus instantly staggers him, potentially trivializing the battle; though normally it is tough (albeit possible with the right timing) to hit Rufus with Braver, the task becomes easy when he is sleeping. The player can then cast on the staggered Rufus, fill Clouds ATB to full and use Infinity's End. This way, the player can defeat him easily even in hard mode.
At first, Rufus fights with common shots and commands Darkstar. When Darkstar can no longer be targeted, the player should engage Rufus. Once Darkstar is defeated, Rufus becomes easier, but still should not be underestimated. The key is to pay close attention to Rufus's moves, and thus it is best to keep the target lock on. Charging head-on in any phase will result in Cloud being punished by Rufus counter-attacks, who will constantly move around before attacking in the third phase. The player should keep their guard up and wait for Rufus to reload his weapon, where he will be vulnerable; taking too long to attack while he is reloading will result in Rufus countering Cloud. Magic attacks can be used at any time, but Rufus resists damage from magic.
The player can equip on Cloud to build his ATB faster and protect him from some of Rufus attacks that require blocking, such as Guns Akimbo. As the player may need to be on guard and watch out for Rufus's attacks a lot, rather than engage head on, and there is only one party member, using on Cloud may also be useful for him to execute attacks faster. Equipping lets Cloud heal without using up MP, useful especially in hard mode.
=== Hard Mode ===
On the hard difficulty, while neither Rufus or Darkstar will employ any new abilities, Rufus will intervene faster when Darkstar is focused, and will also use his abilities more often on the second and third phase, being more aggressive and giving the player less time to react.
==Behind the scenes==
Rufus employs personalized coins for special attacks during his fight with Cloud. Each side has a meaning that reflects Rufus's personality and his plans to rule the Shinra Corporation and Midgar. One side shows an emblem with a sword, a shield, and a pair of wings, with the words "Shinra Inc., A New Era. Ever Forward. Reign Supreme.", which symbolizes the Shinra ideals and Rufus's lust for power. The other side shows the words "Fierce Pride", alongside Darkstar and mandragora flowers, which symbolizes both "enchantment" and "fear".Final Fantasy VII Remake Ultimania, pg. 731Final Fantasy VII Remake Material Ultimania, pg. 101Aitaikimochi's Tweet on Mandragora Flowers' Symbolism
==Gallery==
Rufus boss coin toss from FFVII Remake.jpg|Rufus's personalized coins.
File:Rufus' Heel from FFVII Remake.png|Heel.
Rufus boss battle from FFVII Remake.jpg|Shotgun fire.
File:Rufus' Follow-Up from FFVII Remake.png|Follow-Up.
File:Rufus' Follow-Up (Subdue) from FFVII Remake.png|Follow-Up after Darkstar's Subdue.
Guns Akimbo from FFVII Remake.jpg|Guns Akimbo.
File:Rufus' Up in Smoke from FFVII Remake.png|Up in Smoke.
File:Rufus' Thunderclap from FFVII Remake.png|Thunderclap.
File:Rufus' Think Fast from FFVII Remake.png|Think Fast.
File:Rufus' Thread Softly from FFVII Remake.png|Thread Softly.
FF7 Remake Rufus Shinra Shotgun.jpg|Shotgun artwork.
==Citations==
Category:Bosses in Final Fantasy VII Remake