Brachioraidos (Final Fantasy IV)

Brachioraidos in an enemy exclusive to Final Fantasy IV Advance and Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection, inspired by the Brachiosaurs from Final Fantasy VI. A strong enemy that can be seen on the field, it is one of the superbosses. It drops the Hero's Shield, the strongest shield and the only shield that can be equipped by all party members.
== Stats ==
== Battle ==
The fight against Brachioraidos consists of multiple "phases", each with a different moveset and condition for activating. It will start the fight in its "physical phase", where Brachioraidos starts by using Inferno, inflicting severe Fire-elemental damage, which will likely KO whoever gets hit by it unless they resist or absorb it. Afterwards, it uses a physical attack, then two physical attacks in a row, then Inferno again, and finally two more physical attacks. After this, it begins counting down to use Megaflare, similarly to Bahamut.
While counting down, attacking Brachioraidos with a physical attack will cause it to enter its "magic phase". Attacking it with magic will cause it to enter its "status phase". Attacking it with anything else (such as Summon, Throw, Kick, etc) will cause it to counterattack with Crush, and will not interrupt its countdown. If the party survives Megaflare, Brachioraidos will return to its "physical phase".
In the "magic phase", it begins by doublecasting Protect and Reflect onto itself, and then triplecasting powerful spells off itself for high damage. It will begin by casting Firaga, Blizzaga, and Thundaga in a row, followed by Black Hole to remove any effects the party has. It will then cast Bio, Holy, and Flare, followed by Firaga, Blizzaga, and Thundaga again. After this, it will begin counting down to use Megaflare again, but if the player hits Brachioraidos with a magic attack, it will go back into this phase again instead of the "status phase". If at any point the player has damaged Brachioraidos with a summon during this phase, Brachioraidos counters all attacks with Object 199, instantly killing a random party member every time it goes off.
If Brachioraidos was hit by a magical attack while counting down, and the last phase was not the magic phase, it will transition to its "status phase", where it mainly uses status magic to annoy the player. It will start by using Cursed Elegy, slowing the entire party, then use Maelstrom to reduce the party's HP to single digits. It then casts Toad on the party, followed by a Bio on the entire party the next turn. It then triplecasts Confuse, Berserk, and Break on itself, which could cause it to waste a turn if it does not currently have Reflect active. After this, it will begin the countdown again. While in this phase, Brachioraidos counters any attack with Heal, restoring 9,999 HP, effectively halting any progress the party can make at damaging it until the phase ends.
When Brachioraidos is defeated, it drops the best shield, the Hero's Shield. After defeating Brachioraidos a few times, it can be noticeably easier to defeat again, as the Hero's Shield absorbs all forms of elemental damage, negating many of its attacks.
=== Strategy ===
There are several ways of dealing with Brachioraidos's powerful arsenal of deadly attacks, but generally the best way to do so is by avoiding them in the first place. By never attacking them with anything during the countdown, Brachioraidos will forever stay in the relatively tame physical phase. If the player has one, they can equip a Cursed Ring and any piece of Dragon Armor onto Cecil to make him absorb Inferno and take minimal physical damage, allowing him to effectively cover for any party members KO'd by Inferno. The party should consist of Cecil, Rosa, Porom, and two other party members of the player's choice, preferably Kain and Yang.
Once Brachioraidos begins counting down (stop attacking after the second Inferno goes off for safety), Rosa and Porom should begin casting Reflect onto the party. Reflect will bounce Megaflare back at Brachioraidos, and more importantly stops it from changing to its much deadlier magic and status phases. This cycle can be repeated until the player wins.
If the player accidentally enters the magic phase, it is best to not bother healing anyone, only focus on reviving KO'd party members. This task is made easier in the Advance version where multi-attacks deal damage in total rather than by a per-spell basis, meaning only 1 or 2 characters will be KO'd per volley instead of 3. The tier 3 elemental spells routinely deal 6,000–7,000 damage when resisted, Bio deals about 4,000–5,000, and Holy and Flare will almost always deal 9,999 damage. If the player has used any of the Lunar Summon Books, they can hold off attacking altogether until they make it back to the physical phase, as every attack will be countered by Object 199, killing whoever gets hit by it.
If for the player ends up in the status phase, they should stop attacking to prevent the Heal counters. The only thing to watch out for is Maelstrom followed by Bio, all the other attacks should be easy to deal with. 
The Hero's Shield reward is a fantastic shield that all party members can equip. It greatly increases all stats, allows the wearer to absorb any elements they resist, and offers great defense and evasion boosts.
== Other appearances ==
=== Pictlogica Final Fantasy ===
== Etymology ==
The Brachioraidos shares its Japanese name with the Brachiosaur from Final Fantasy VI, Vlakorados from Final Fantasy VII, and Th'uban from Final Fantasy X. Though the four all share the same Japanese name, to date "Burakioreidosu" has been translated a different way in every game the enemy appears in. Phonetically, "Brachioraidos" is the translation closest to the Japanese name.
== Related enemies ==
* Green Dragon
* Yellow Dragon
=== Final Fantasy IV -Interlude- ===
* Green Dragon
* Yellow Dragon
=== Final Fantasy IV: The After Years ===
* Green Dragon
* Curse Dragon
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Category:Enemies in Final Fantasy IV
Category:Superbosses