The Dark Inside

The Dark Inside is a level 83 trial unlocked through the Main Scenario Quest “The Martyr” on Mare Lamentorum. Players face Zodiark, the god of darkness, on a square arena with no railings. The fight emphasizes mechanic overlap and arena-wide awareness.

Zodiark

Phase 1

Mechanic	Type	Description
Kokytos	Raidwide	Reduces all party members’ HP to 1. Healers must quickly restore health.
Exoterikos (Triangle)	AoE	Arcane Sigil with triangle symbol fires a conal AoE toward the arena center. Stand near the wall where the sigil appears.
Exoterikos (Square)	AoE	Arcane Sigil with square symbol covers half the arena. Move to the opposite side.
Ania	Tankbuster	Heavy damage on the main tank. Use defensive cooldowns.
Phlegethon	AoE	Ground AoEs placed under all players. Spread out and move.
Styx	Stack	Multi-hit stack marker dealing heavy damage. Group up and use mitigation.
Paradeigma	AoE	Summons untargetable behemoths (circular AoEs) or pythons (line AoEs). Dodge accordingly.

Phase 2

Mechanic	Type	Description
Astral Flow	AoE	Fetters players in place while the arena rotates 90 degrees. Remember your new orientation.
Adikia	AoE	Two large semi-circular AoEs in succession. Move close or far from Zodiark to dodge.
Triple Esoteric Ray	AoE	Sequential line AoEs from Zodiark. Dodge into the first one that fires as it becomes safe.
Algedon	Cleave	Zodiark moves to a corner and charges down the middle of the arena. Move to the opposite corner to avoid.

Notes: The difficulty of this fight comes from frequent mechanic combinations rather than individual attacks. Watch for Exoterikos patterns combined with other mechanics. Stay near the center during knockback-adjacent mechanics to avoid falling off the arena.