M1N Black Cat Raid Guide – Arcadion Light-Heavyweight (FFXIV)
Expansion: Dawntrail
Raid Series: Arcadion
Raid Tier: Light-Heavyweight
Boss: Black Cat
Encounter: M1N
Players: 8 (Tank / Healer / 2 DPS / 2 DPS / 2 DPS / 2 DPS)
Duty Finder Type: Normal Raid
Unlock Requirement: Arcadion Raid Series
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Encounter Overview
Black Cat is the first encounter of the Arcadion: Light-Heavyweight raid tier in Dawntrail.
The fight revolves around arena tile destruction mechanics, knockback positioning, and chained AoE patterns. Players must carefully track which tiles remain safe as repeated attacks gradually destroy sections of the battlefield.
Many mechanics force players to reposition while avoiding tile breaks, making spatial awareness critical throughout the encounter.
Players can fall from the arena and die.
Arena Overview
The arena is a 4×4 grid of square tiles.
Certain attacks will damage or destroy tiles, permanently removing sections of the battlefield until the arena regenerates.
Arena hazards include:
• falling through broken tiles
• knockback positioning errors
• tile destruction mechanics
• overlapping AoE patterns
Mechanic Archive
Bloody Scratch
Black Cat unleashes raid-wide physical damage.
Response
• mitigate raidwide damage
• heal through the attack
One-two Paw
Black Cat raises a glowing claw on one side.
Two sequential half-arena cleaves follow:
-
first claw side
-
opposite side
Response
• move to the safe side of the first cleave
• reposition for the second
Black Cat Crossing
The boss summons four glowing lines at either cardinals or intercardinals.
These lines indicate late telegraphed cone AoEs.
A second set of cones appears in the remaining positions.
Response
• move between the cone telegraphs
• reposition for the second set
Biscuit Maker
Single-target tankbuster dealing physical damage.
Response
• tanks mitigate
• healers prepare single-target healing
Clawful
A stack marker appears on a random player.
Deals magical damage.
Response
• stack together to share damage
Mouser
Black Cat targets nine sequential tile attacks.
Each attack strikes two tiles.
Tiles react differently depending on how many times they are hit:
| Tile State | Result |
|---|---|
| Hit once | Tile becomes damaged |
| Hit twice | Tile breaks |
| Not hit | Tile remains safe |
Players standing on broken tiles fall off the arena.
After the sequence completes, two tiles regenerate.
Response
• watch which tiles are targeted
• move between remaining safe tiles
• avoid standing on damaged tiles during later hits
Each quadrant typically retains at least one safe tile.
Elevate and Eviscerate
Black Cat tethers a player and prepares a knock-up attack.
The player is launched into the air and lands where their arrow indicator points.
Landing on a damaged tile breaks it, causing the player to fall.
Landing on an intact tile damages the tile instead.
The mechanic occurs four times in sequence, targeting either:
• all DPS
or
• all supports
Response
• aim landing arrow toward a safe tile
• avoid already damaged tiles
Shockwave
Radial knockback centered on the boss.
Deals magical damage.
The knockback distance is slightly less than half the arena.
Response
• stand near the boss to control knockback
• avoid being knocked toward broken tiles
• use knockback immunity if needed
Afterward, the arena regenerates.
Predaceous Pounce
Several AoE indicators appear in sequence:
• line AoEs (paw tracks)
• large circular AoEs
Black Cat then charges through them in the same order they appeared.
Response
• track the order of telegraphs
• move between attack zones
Leaping One-two Paw
Black Cat tethers a location on the arena and slides to it.
After moving, the boss executes One-two Paw cleaves from the new position.
The boss does not rotate, keeping the same facing direction.
Response
• anticipate final boss position
• move to the safe side of the cleave
Leaping Black Cat Crossing
Similar to Leaping One-two Paw, but the boss performs Black Cat Crossing after moving.
Response
• anticipate movement destination
• avoid cone AoE positions
Grimalkin Gale
All players receive spread markers.
Commonly overlaps with other mechanics such as:
• Predaceous Pounce
• Leaping One-two Paw
• Leaping Black Cat Crossing
Response
• spread to avoid overlap
Mouser (Second Use)
The tile destruction mechanic repeats.
More tiles become damaged or broken.
Players must again navigate the remaining safe tiles.
Copycat
Black Cat summons an untargetable clone.
Two mechanics occur simultaneously.
Elevate and Eviscerate (Clone)
The clone launches players with the knock-up mechanic.
Overshadow
The boss creates a line stack marker on a random player.
Players must stack in the line to share damage.
This sequence occurs four times.
Because the knock-up occurs first, the launched player cannot be hit by the line AoE, allowing them to focus entirely on landing safely.
Copycat (Second Version)
The clone now uses Predaceous Pounce instead of Elevate and Eviscerate.
Players must dodge the clone’s attack pattern while resolving boss mechanics.
Final Phase
After the arena regenerates again, Black Cat repeats mechanics until defeated.
Role Pressure Analysis
Tanks
Tanks handle Biscuit Maker tankbusters and maintain boss positioning during movement mechanics.
Healers
Healers must sustain raidwide damage while handling frequent movement and stack mechanics.
DPS
DPS players must carefully navigate tile destruction patterns while maintaining uptime.
Failure Points
Common wipes occur from:
• standing on broken tiles during Mouser
• landing on damaged tiles during Elevate and Eviscerate
• knockbacks pushing players into broken tiles
• overlapping Grimalkin Gale spreads
Difficulty Profile
| Category | Rating |
|---|---|
| Mechanical Complexity | Moderate |
| Movement Requirement | High |
| Coordination Requirement | Moderate |
| Punishment Severity | High |
Black Cat emphasizes arena awareness and movement precision, especially during tile destruction sequences.
Related Encounters
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