Despotic Arsene

Tackle the superboss Despotic Arsene in Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition! Learn its weaknesses, recommended builds, and strategies to overcome its high Agility and powerful attacks.

Alright, let's talk about Despotic Arsene. This guy's a real pain, mostly because he's got the highest Agility in the entire game. Add that to his level 108 status, and you'll find him pretty tough to hit if you're not prepared. Seriously, if you haven't farmed up some Night Vision gems from Ancient Daedala yet, do it now. It's a lifesaver for physical attackers against this boss – and the other superbosses after him. Just remember, Night Vision only helps physical characters, not Ether-based ones. You'll also want to stack as much Agility as you can on your party, using Skill Links and Agility VI gems (maxing out at 50). The good news? Arsene only uses physical Arts, so you don't have to worry about Ether resistance.

You'll find Despotic Arsene chilling in Satorl Marsh, just north of the Glowing Obelisk landmark. He likes to hang out with a bunch of other Bunnias, and if they're too close, they'll jump into the fight with you. So, watch out for that!

Despotic Arsene's Arts:

• Emperor Blow — A physical Art that hits one target for decent to high damage and inflicts Strength Down.
• Imperial Sobat — This physical Art hits in a frontal arc for high damage, and it also causes Bleed and Knockback.
• Imperial Upper — A single-target physical Art dealing high damage, which can cause Blowdown but not Daze.
• Emperor Combo — A two-hit physical Art that deals major or fatal damage, inflicting both Blowdown and Daze.
• Imperial Might — A buff that grants Despotic Arsene Haste.

For your physical attackers, those Night Vision gems are a must. If you're using Ether-based characters (besides Riki), you'll want to make sure they have accuracy bonuses. Melia's Enlightenment skill (from the Honesty tree) and Riki's Bullseye! skill (from the Cowardice tree) are your best bet. Together, they should ensure all your Ether Arts land, no matter what. The downside, though, is that Ether characters (again, outside of Riki) can be a bit squishy.

Here's a cool trick: Despotic Arsene is surrounded by weak Bunnias, which is actually great for Chain Attacks! Since you get a Party Gauge bar back every time you defeat an enemy during a Chain Attack, you can use area-of-effect attacks to take out those little guys. This helps you build up your gauge to focus on Arsene. The Bunnias themselves don't really add anything to the fight otherwise; they can't hit you, and Arsene doesn't benefit from them being there.

When Despotic Arsene hits 30% health, he'll activate an aura that bumps his level up by three. This makes his Agility even higher, potentially making him harder to hit. You can try to dispel Auras with Shulk's Monado Purge or Melia's Mind Blast, but Arsene has a 70% resistance to them, so it's not super reliable. To get the most out of your Night Vision gems, it's best to start the fight around 7 PM (19:00) in-game.

It's worth noting that Despotic Arsene only has resistance to Break outside of Chain Attacks. This means you can actually Break and Topple him during normal combat. However, it's still more effective to do the Break-Topple combo during Chain Attacks, as he has no resistance to Break then.

Pro Tip: Despotic Arsene is the only enemy in the game that drops Critical Up crystals/cylinders, so keep that in mind!