TL;DR
- Abzu is critically weak to Fire magic – exploit this for massive stagger damage
- Target the horn immediately to disable water-based attacks and reduce difficulty
- Poison management is essential – keep Antidotes ready for emergency cleansing
- Phase 2 requires precise positioning to avoid Backwash Blast and Spout attacks
- Use Tifa’s melee combos to build stagger while Aerith handles magical assaults
Discover every hidden treasure and essential item within Chapter 10’s challenging sewer environments with our comprehensive Final Fantasy 7 Remake walkthrough.
Venturing deeper than the Midgar Undercity, Chapter 10 plunges you into treacherous sewer systems teeming with dangers and rewards. While the path appears linear initially, Square Enix has masterfully concealed numerous valuable collectibles throughout these murky passages, including powerful new armaments and rare Materia that significantly enhance your party’s capabilities.
Our detailed exploration has uncovered all significant loot locations and strategic advantages within these submerged corridors. Continue reading for comprehensive tactics to overcome the sewer inhabitants and secure their valuable treasures.
Explore our additional Final Fantasy 7 Remake guides to ensure you collect every secret and achievement. You can also consult our in-depth FF7 Remake analysis for broader strategic insights.
Abzu presents as a formidable aquatic adversary with extensive reach, but the primary threat stems from pervasive poison contamination within the sewage-filled arena. Specific Abzu strikes will inflict toxic status on your party members, requiring immediate attention through Antidote items or Cleanse spells, as the cumulative damage often goes unnoticed until characters are critically endangered.
The creature demonstrates pronounced vulnerability to Fire-element spells, making enhanced Fire Materia absolutely crucial for this confrontation. Fire incantations dramatically accelerate his stagger accumulation while simultaneously creating brief incapacitation windows perfect for unleashing devastating assaults. Prioritize equipping Aerith with your most potent Fire Materia if limited to single copies, though additional magical sources provide substantial advantages for countering Abzu’s most dangerous maneuvers. Concentrate offensive efforts on Abzu’s cranial horns whenever opportunities arise. Severely damaging these protrusions neutralizes his most potent aqueous abilities, making early horn destruction your top strategic priority.
During the opening engagement, Abzu frequently employs his deceptive Backwash technique, which proves far more dangerous than initial appearances suggest. This ability generates explosive sewage eruptions from the brown pools distributed throughout the combat zone, causing both direct injury and poison infliction. Should party members suffer contamination, address the toxic status immediately to prevent escalating health deterioration. Remain vigilant against his Ground Slam assault, which becomes evadable with proper anticipation, alongside powerful melee arcs that can be effectively blocked and countered using Punisher stance. When Abzu ascends to the peripheral piping network, he prepares for a devastating Pounce maneuver to immobilize one teammate. This creates an ideal opening for fiery spells that disrupt his victimization of your ally and render him susceptible to follow-up attacks. Shortly thereafter, he’ll retreat into the surrounding waters.
Magical assaults cannot increase Abzu’s stagger gauge progression, so conserve these for pure damage output—instead, aggressively engage with physical strikes, especially utilizing Tifa’s rapid combos, to elevate his stagger meter. Most critically, maintain relentless pressure on Abzu’s horn structure, which when sufficiently damaged creates extended vulnerability periods.
Upon entering the battle’s subsequent stage, Abzu becomes Enraged, significantly amplifying his aggression levels. He’ll again scale the piping infrastructure and unleash Backwash Blast, projecting massive sewage streams from the large conduits lining the arena perimeter; when this occurs, sprint parallel to the pipe direction to evade the deluge. Additionally, remain alert for Backwash Spout, generating aqueous vortexes from the battlefield puddles that rapidly advance toward your position.
Successfully crippling Abzu’s horn structure will terminate his Enraged state and restore vulnerability, so sustain offensive pressure whenever possible and deploy substantial damage through Fire magic. Maintain safe distancing when he prepares Triple Charge or Bash and Smash executions, though well-timed powerful spells can interrupt both maneuvers. Preserve your party’s health integrity and continuously immolate the boss until achieving victory.
Advanced Combat Insight: Expert players should note that Abzu’s horn possesses its own hidden health bar separate from his main vitality pool. Focusing two fully-charged Fira spells typically breaks the horn within the first minute, dramatically reducing encounter difficulty. Common mistakes include underestimating poison tick damage and failing to reposition during pipe-based attacks—both easily avoided with proper preparation.
Action Checklist
- Equip maximum Fire Materia on Aerith and secondary mages
- Target Abzu’s horn immediately with focused magical and physical assaults
- Maintain Antidote inventory and assign Cleanse duty to one party member
- Practice dodging Ground Slam and positioning for Backwash avoidance
- Use Fire spells during pipe jumps to interrupt Pounce attacks
No reproduction without permission：SeeYouSoon Game Club » Final Fantasy 7 Remake Chapter 10 Walkthrough: Rough Waters (Spoiler-Free) Master the Abzu boss fight with expert strategies, hidden secrets, and essential combat techniques