T4 – Binding Coil Turn 4 Guide | Clockwork Gauntlet (FFXIV)

Encounter Overview

T4 – The Binding Coil of Bahamut Turn 4 is a full gauntlet-style encounter with no traditional boss. Instead, the fight consists of six escalating waves of enemies that must be defeated in sequence. Each phase introduces new add combinations and mechanics, culminating in a final overwhelming wave that serves as the encounter’s true difficulty check.

This fight emphasizes add control, correct target priority, and coordinated tank/healer execution. Poor grouping, incorrect DPS focus, or mismanaged mechanics can quickly snowball into a wipe, especially in the later phases.

If you want to compare this fight against other raids, see the FFXIV Raid Rankings.

Arena Overview

The encounter takes place in a circular arena where waves of enemies spawn in fixed locations. Positioning is critical, as later phases require precise grouping to prevent adds from gaining buffs or healing themselves.

Combat begins when a player interacts with a terminal, triggering the gauntlet sequence. :contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0}

Boss Mechanics

Phase 1 – Clockwork Bugs

Life Drain: Bugs attack and heal themselves through damage dealt. Group all bugs together and AoE them down quickly to minimize healing.

Strategy: Use AoE damage and mitigation to clear this wave before the next phase begins.

Phase 2 – Knights and Soldiers

Clockwork Knights: Reflect magical damage. Only physical DPS should attack these.

Clockwork Soldiers: Apply a stoneskin effect that negates physical damage until broken. Magical DPS should handle these.

Strategy: Split DPS roles—physical DPS focus Knights, magical DPS focus Soldiers. Tanks should separate targets to prevent overlap and maintain control.

Phase 3 – Dreadnought #1

Dreadnought: A heavy-hitting add that should be tanked with strong mitigation.

Bug Consumption: Additional bugs spawn and are consumed by the Dreadnought, massively increasing its damage.

Strategy: Allow the Dreadnought to consume the bugs, then reposition it and burn it down quickly before additional bugs spawn. Healers must keep the tank stable through increased damage.

Phase 4 – Rooks and Bugs

Spinner-rook: Casts POX, a frontal cone that reduces maximum HP. Tanks must face Rooks away from the group.

Additional Adds: Bugs and other enemies spawn and should be grouped together.

Strategy: Prioritize killing Rooks while grouping all adds for AoE damage. Maintain safe positioning to avoid POX.

Phase 5 – Mixed Wave

Dreadnought: Spawns without buffs and deals manageable damage compared to Phase 3.

Knight and Soldier: Spawn alongside the Dreadnought and must be handled similarly to Phase 2.

Strategy: Tanks split responsibilities—main tank handles the Dreadnought, off-tank handles Knight and Soldier. DPS clear Knight and Soldier first, then begin damaging the Dreadnought.

Phase 6 – Final Wave

Double Dreadnoughts: The main tank must handle two Dreadnoughts simultaneously, requiring heavy mitigation and healer focus.

Additional Adds: Bugs, Knight, Soldier, and a Rook spawn together.

Rook Priority: The Rook should be handled first, often kited or controlled while DPS burns it down.

Bug Interaction: Bugs can be fed into a Dreadnought to remove them quickly, saving time.

Raid-wide Pressure: The arena begins pulsing raid-wide damage over time, increasing urgency.

Strategy:

• Kill the Rook first.
• Burn the weakened Dreadnought from Phase 5.
• Feed bugs into the remaining Dreadnought.
• Split DPS: magical DPS kill Soldier, physical DPS kill Knight.
• Finish by stacking behind the final Dreadnought and burning it down while healing through raid damage.

Encounter Flow

Phase 1: AoE down life-draining bugs.

Phase 2: Split DPS roles between Knights and Soldiers.

Phase 3: Handle first Dreadnought and burn it after bug consumption.

Phase 4: Prioritize Rooks while managing grouped adds.

Phase 5: Split tanks and eliminate Knight/Soldier before damaging Dreadnought.

Phase 6: Survive final wave, eliminate priority targets, and burn down the last Dreadnought under heavy raid damage.