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Shinryu is the final boss of the Abyssea quest series in Final Fantasy XI. He is fought in the battlefield The Wyrm God in Abyssea - Empyreal Paradox. Shinryu is the new dreadful form that Abyssea's Promathia takes after absorbing Selh'teus.

Stats[]

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Appearance[]

Personality[]

Abilities[]

Story[]

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow. (Skip section)

In one version of Vana'diel, a dying world known as Abyssea, the Promathia of that world consumed the world's version of Selh'teus and evolved into his ultimate form: a being of pure darkness. In time, Shinryu became the sole living resident of Abbyssea after slaughtering all but Prishe.

Final Fantasy XI: Rhapsodies of Vana'Diel[]

When the Adventurer was infused with darkness from his/her counterpart Volto Oscuro, Selh'teus advices him/her to see Shinryu as the deity would suck out the darkness. Though the Wyrm God does so, he instigates a fight with the Adventurer as the death of one of them would cease the Cloud of Darkness's advance and is ultimately defeated. In his final moments, Shinryu transfers his godhood into Volto Oscuro to transform him/her into a god of darkness while purging the Cloud of Darkness influence.

Spoilers end here.

Gameplay[]

Shinryu is a very large boss with a wide array of strong abilities and spells at his disposal. His normal attacks are conal and come with the additional effect of stun. He is also able to instant-cast Ancient Magic. During the fight, his HP bar cannot be seen unless he's using certain moves, and he changes stances every 2-3 minutes.

When his wings are spread open, which is the stance he always starts off with, he will absorb any damage taken if he is casting magic or using special abilities at the time, including his normal attacks. When Shinryu's wings are folded inward, he will no longer absorb damage, but damage from all sources is decreased.

Special Abilities[]

  • Draw In: Draws players in.
  • Atomic Ray: AoE magic damage.
  • Cataclysmic Vortex: AoE HP reduction to 10%, may reset enmity of player with highest enmity.
  • Cosmic Breath: Conal damage, Plague, Attack Down.
  • Dark Matter: AoE dark magic damage, Terror.
  • Gyre Charge: AoE damage, Paralyze.
  • Mighty Guard: Restores HP, Regain, damage shield.
  • Protostar: AoE damage, reset all job ability timers.
  • Supernova: AoE magic damage, Doom.

Music[]

The music that plays in this battlefield, named "Shinryu", is a unique track released in the Final Fantasy XI Original Soundtrack - Plus album. This track was also used in the trailer for Heroes of Abyssea, and appears in the compilation album Sword Songs: Final Fantasy XI Battle Collection.

Gallery[]

Trivia[]

  • This battlefield was introduced in the December 7, 2010 Version Update. The level cap then was 90.
  • If in possession of a Primeval Brew, it is possible to solo Shinryu but with considerable risk. However, the brews themselves cost a hefty 2,000,000 cruor to purchase unless the player has already defeated Shinryu before, after which the cost for the player is lowered to 200,000 cruor.
  • Although Final Fantasy XI Final Bosses are typically mission bosses, Shinryu is an exception because the storyline for Abyssea is presented as quests (due to the nature of it being 3 separate battle area add-ons). Strictly speaking, there are no missions in all 3 Abyssea battle area add-ons.
  • Shinryu is the only battlefield boss in the entire Abyssea storyline. The rest of the fights in this storyline deal with notorious monsters only.

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.

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