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I am that which follows Omega...

Shinryu

Shinryu is a superboss in Dawn of Souls and many succeeding editions of the original Final Fantasy, bar the Android version or Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster. He is arguably the hardest boss in the Dawn of Souls release, along with Omega, but Chronodia takes its place in the versions that include the Labyrinth of Time. He is encountered on Floor B20, the final floor of the Lifespring Grotto, and either he or Omega must be defeated to complete and leave the dungeon.

Stats[]

Battle[]

FFI Tidal Wave

Tidal Wave in the 20th Anniversary version.

Shinryu uses attacks that inflict large amounts of damage to all party members. Although he can use Thunderbolt, Ice Storm, and Tidal Wave, the biggest threat is his Flare. With each casting, Flare can either leave the party close to death, KO a few and leave the rest on the verge of defeat, or destroy them outright if the player is ill-prepared. Shinryu's physical attack can inflict heavy damage as well.

The speed at which Shinryu can cleave through a party makes this battle more about all-out power than anything else (instead of the endurance battle Omega ends up being).

Strategy[]

It is best to be at level 70 or above (though lower-level wins are still possible). The successive castings of Flare are dangerous, even to high-leveled parties. Victory is likely if Shinryu does not wipe the party out in the first few turns, because he only has 35,000 HP and is susceptible to high-powered physical onslaughts using the usual strategy of Haste/Temper.

Gallery[]

Etymology[]

Shinryu is the Japanese on'yomi name for Shénlóng, literally "god/divine dragon", an important ancient dragon in Chinese mythology. It is said to preside over storms and rain, and can bring disastrous drought, thunderstorms and general bad weather if it feels neglected and/or angered.

Though Shinryu's name is taken from the East Asian dragon which normally is depicted with four claws and no wings, it does not greatly resemble the mythological Shénlóng, as it originally had five claws on each hand as opposed to four as a way to show higher-rank (as well as sharing the same azure color as another mythological dragon, the Qīnglóng/Seiryu).

The Final Fantasy depiction of Shinryu's most iconic recurring design more closely resembles the European wyvern, a dragon-like serpent with two claws and two wings.

Related enemies[]

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