Category:Ambuscade

Ambuscade is a new type of battle content wherein the enemies within change every monthly version update, first released in the April 5th 2016 Version Update[1]. Ambuscade has a variety of difficulty levels, so everyone from seasoned veterans to those just starting out should find a challenge equal to their needs. With varying rewards to match. Those wishing to tackle the strongest foes are advised to select “Very Difficult” and be prepared for a valiant struggle! Latent effects from Legion Rewards denoted with "Legion:" are active in Ambuscade.[2]

Getting Started

Complete the Stepping into an Ambuscade Records of Eminence objective and speak with Gorpa-Masorpa in Mhaura at (G-9) for an explanation about Ambuscade.

• Players must have completed the First Step Forward Records of Eminence objective in order to undertake Stepping into an Ambuscade.
  • Stepping into an Ambuscade can be set from the Tutorial section of the Records of Eminence menu under Basics:

Quests → Objective List → Tutorial → Basics → Stepping into an Ambuscade

Be in possession of either the Ambuscade Primer Volume One or Volume Two Key Items.

• All party members must be in possession of one of these two Key Items.

Eligibility Requirements

In order to participate, players must satisfy the following:

• Complete either the Ambuscade Primer Volume One or Volume Two objectives in order to obtain the Key Item for the corresponding volume of the primer for the type of battle players wish to complete.
  • Players may have only one of each of the Ambuscade Primer Key Items.
    • Objective targets vary by month after a version update, opponents are rotated out, and generally not repeated.

• The Ambuscade Primer Volume One and Two objectives can be undertaken from the Ambuscade category of the Records of Eminence menu.

Quests → Objective List → Content → Ambuscade

Dynamis and Abyssea monsters do not count for kills required

Entry and Progression

• Examine the Ambuscade Tome in Mhaura (G-9) and select the type and difficulty level you would like to attempt.
  • Only the party leader may register the group.
  • The party will be registered so long as the system detects that there are no issues with the layer area or registering party members.
    • Players will be unable to register if:
      • Any player is not in possession of an Amuscade Primer Volume One or Two Key Item.
      • The number of registrants exceeds the maximum of fifty reservations.
      • A party member already has a reservation.
        • To cancel a reservation:
          • A player may cancel their reservation via the ambuscade tome.
          • Three minutes has passed from the time the player is notified that their instance is ready.
          • The registrant boards a boat.
          • The registrant leaves Mhaura in any way.
  • Adding new party members after registration will not cancel the registration, but the party may only enter with the number of players it registered with.
• A message will display for the party leader when entry is ready.
  • As of the July 2016 update^[3], automatic entering was added.
    • The default setting is "off" and may be changed by having the party lead examine the Ambuscade Tome and selecting the Toggle auto-transport function.
    • In line with this, having the auto-transport function off has a notification sound played when it is the party's turn.
      • This may be disabled via the sound settings in the Config menu.
• Examine the ambuscade tome within three minutes to enter.
  • The time limit for an Ambuscade is 30 minutes (Earth time).
  • Between 1~6 players may participate.
    • Trusts may be called after entering Maquette Abdhaljs-Legion.
      • The number of alter egos that may be called forth will depend on the number of players initially registered.
    • Player HP and MP will be restored to full and any status ailments they are suffering from will be removed upon entry.
  • Key Items will only be lost upon victory.
    • Meaning that should a player or group lose, they may reattempt the battlefield without having to reacquire new Key Items.
  • As of the August 2022 update^[4], Exemplar Points are no longer gained or lost in Ambuscade.

Upon victory, a special currencies known as Hallmarks and Badges of Gallantry, which may be exchanged for rewards, Experience/Limit Points, and Capacity points will be given to all players.

Notorious Monsters inside Ambuscade do not drop any treasure directly.

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Battle Information

A Word On Enmity

• Enmity functions abnormally in two ways.

1. The mobs will go to a random player once someone aggros.
2. After aggro everyone is on the hate list by default, so you can easily get hate with AOE enmity actions like Warcry and Valiance or self target enmity actions like Foil and Pflug.

Battle Type & Levels

There are two types of Ambuscades you may attempt. Entry into either is determined by which Key Item you possess.
Note: Hallmark and Gallantry values have been updated to reflect the changes implemented in the May 2026 Version Update.

Primer Volume One Type Difficulty Content Level Hallmarks Earned Gallantry Earned Intense Ambuscade Very Difficult 139 3600 300 / 600 / 900 / 1200 / 1500 Difficult 134 2400 240 / 480 / 720 / 960 / 1200 Normal 129 1200 180 / 360 / 540 / 720 / 900 Easy 124 800 120 / 240 / 360 / 480 / 600 Very Easy 119 400 40 / 80 / 120 / 160 / 200

Primer Volume Two Type Difficulty Content Level Hallmarks Earned Gallantry Earned Ambuscade Very Difficult 129 600 60 / 120 / 180 / 240 / 300 Difficult 124 500 50 / 100 / 150 / 200 / 250 Normal 119 400 40 / 80 / 120 / 160 / 200 Easy 114 300 30 / 60 / 90 / 120 / 150 Very Easy 109 200 20 / 40 / 60 / 80 / 100

An Abdhaljs Seal will triple the amount of hallmarks and gallantry you receive from a successful Ambuscade.

Intense Ambuscade (Vol. One)

Volume 1, May 2026, Tonberry

Difficulty Foes Notes Very Difficult Bozzetto Monarch (THF) Bozzetto Rascal(SMN), Bozzetto Chaser(THF) x2, Bozzetto Slicer(NIN), Bozzetto Defiler(BLM) Difficult Bozzetto Monarch (THF) Bozzetto Rascal(SMN), Bozzetto Chaser(THF) x2, Bozzetto Defiler(BLM) Normal Bozzetto Monarch (THF) Bozzetto Rascal(SMN), Bozzetto Chaser(THF) x2 Easy Bozzetto Monarch (THF) Bozzetto Rascal(SMN), Bozzetto Defiler(BLM) Very Easy Bozzetto Monarch (THF) Bozzetto Rascal(SMN) Notes: Bozzetto Monarch: Upon defeat of the Bozzetto Rascal, a Bozzetto Monarch will spawn. The Monarch's is a THF, but will receive a random job's 1-Hour per fight: WAR, MNK, THF, or DRK. The corresponding 1-Hour ability will be assigned to the Bozzetto Monarch. Possesses -50% potency against Geomancy debuffs. Uses the following moves: Light of Condemnation: Single target Gravity, Bind, and TP reset. Vertical Slash: 1-hit damage and accuracy down. Lateral Reap: 1-hit damage and -75% defense down. Everyone's Wrath: Single target damage equal to your Tonberry Hate x20. Everyone's Revenge: 25'+ (AoE) Damage is equal to your Tonberry Hate x100. Everyone's Virulence: Deals 99,999 damage regardless of Tonberry Hate. It is somewhat unclear what exactly triggers this move, but it seems that if one player is hit with a Distortion skillchain and then loses hate causing the Bozzetto Shade to go after another target then Virulence becomes a potential follow up. Sigh: Grants ~+400 evasion. Slash Vitals: Single target critical damage and hate reset. Words of Bane: Single target -50% HP/MP Curse. Light of Condemnation is always proceeded by either Vertical Slash or Lateral Reap creating a Distortion skillchain. Immediately after this, a Bozzetto Shade appears and will attempt to perform a sneak attack on the target and close a Darkness skillchain. Players must turn to avoid taking severe damage from behind when this occurs. Everyone's Wrath, Revenge, and Virulence are not affected by Earthen Armor, Sentinel's Scherzo, or Migawari: Ichi. Bozzetto Rascal: Uses Astral Flow multiple times, dealing either water or ice damage. Possesses -25% potency against Geomancy debuffs. Possesses a potent Regen. Bozzetto Defiler: Uses Manafont. Bozzetto Slicer: Uses Mijin Gakure. Bozzetto Chaser: Uses Perfect Dodge. Tonberries have high Light Resistance, so Magic Finale will be resisted whereas dark based removal spells will not. E.g. Dispel, Dark Shot, and Geist Wall. Players will need to reset their Tonberry Hate after a max of 2 or 3 fights via the quest Everyone's Grudge if they do not Call for Help. Using Call for help on all of the Tonberries will avoid building Tonberry Hate in Ambuscade. You will not lose Hallmarks or Gallantry. Setups and Strategies: Very Difficult: Suggested kill order is SMN>BLM>NIN>THF&THF>Monarch. The Rascal (SMN) can use multiple Astral Flow, so it is best to take it out as quickly as possible before it can do more than one. Melee Strat VD RUN, WHM, GEO/RDM, Savage BRD/NIN, Savage COR/NIN, DD Pre Fight Setup WHM - Barblizzard, Barsleep RUN - 3X Sulpor runes (Use valiance RIGHT before you start/pull to give water resistance to entire party) GEO - Fury/Frailty (I use entrust STR, but anything to help boost your dmg here would work depending on your group, precision or torpor would also be a possibility) COR - Chaos/Sam BRD - Marcato HM, Mad X2, Minuet (Doing madrigal X2 as the boss at the end has high evasion even if you are dispelling his evasion boost when he puts it on) Fight Strategy Part I This fight is essentially won or lost in the first couple minutes, and comes down to killing the first mob (SMN Tonberry called Bozzetto Rascal) who is present when you first enter. Your goal is to try and kill the Rascal SMN as quickly as possible. While fighting the Rascal several things occur, the first of which are his astral flows. For this strategy you let the astral flows hit you (which should be survivable) as long as you have barblizzard from the WHM, sulpor / valiance from the RUN, and finally your RUN's One for All (OFA) up. I wait about 15 seconds AFTER pulling the Rascal before the RUN does OFA in order to increase the amount of time it's available to help reduce astral flow damage (In other words, when used too soon it's wasted as the Rascal doesn't use astral flow until about 20-30 seconds into the fight). Also, while fighting the Rascal several adds will spawn followed shortly after by the boss. In order to deal with these spawns and allow the Run to perform a quick AoE hate grab (Geist Wall or whatever), I would highly suggest having EVERYONE grouped together within ~5 yalms. Most of the newly spawned mobs will run right into your camp (if everyone is grouped together) allowing the RUN to cast an AoE hate spell on them quickly. For the Bozzetto Defiler (BLM) you will need to flash or blank gaze to grab hate as he will initially remain at casting distance. With all this in mind, everything comes down to quickly killing the SMN (Bozzetto Rascal) as quickly as you can. Get Dia II on it and use anything else that will help you kill it before your Sulpor/Valiance and One For All buffs wear off. After you have successfully defeated the SMN then this is a relatively easy fight. Part II After the SMN, proceed with the following kill order. Make sure to have your GEO cast Dia II, Distract, and Dispel on all of these mobs. Magic Finale will not work, as Tonberries have high Light resistance. 1: Engage and deal damage to the first Bozzetto Chaser (THF) until he uses Perfect Dodge at which point you will disengage and go to the next mob 2: Engage and deal damage to the second Bozzetto Chaser (THF) until he uses Perfect Dodge at which point you will disengage and go to the next mob 3: Engage and kill the Bozzetto Defiler (BLM) 4: Engage and kill the first Bozzetto Chaser (THF) 5: Engage and kill the second Bozzetto Chaser (THF) 6: Engage and kill the Bozzetto Slicer (NIN). Have your Whm put Sacrosanctity up. Part III Now it's time for the Boss, the Bozzetto Monarch. You will want your GEO to swap their spells to Geo-Frailty / Indi-Precision / Entrust Torpor. The Monarch can and most likely will use a +400 evasion boost move named "Sigh". You will want your GEO to dispel this, along with keeping Dia II & Distract up throughout the fight. The boss is a cake walk except for a couple things. The first thing to watch out for is the ethereal (translucent) mob that spawns anytime the Bozzetto Monarch uses Vertical Slash or Lateral Reap. Whenever this ethereal Tonberry is summoned, he will try to Sneak Attack and close a Darkness skillchain on whoever currently has the highest hate level on the Boss which will likely one-shot players. To combat this, all you need to do is have the Tank (or whoever has hate) turn and face the ethereal mob any time they spawn. This can get tricky with your damage dealers when the Bozzetto Monarch uses the hate reset move called Slash Vitals. If the monarch uses this hate reset move on the tank it will result in the monarch changing his focus to the DD with the highest hate resulting in the necessity for this DD to turn and face the ethereal mob if/when it spawns. Usually the tank can get hate back relatively quickly all things depending, but make sure if a DD has hate they are prepared to turn when the ethereal mob spawns. Lastly, you will need to reset and keep your Tonberry hate as low as possible, due to a couple of the Bozzetto Monarch's moves doing x20 and x100 whatever your current Tonberry Hate is at. You CAN call for help on every mob in this ambuscade and still receive ALL the Hallmark and Gallantry rewards for this fight. By calling for help on all the mobs you will build less tonberry hate which also results in fewer deaths from moves that multiply damage based on Tonberry Hate. I had to reset my hate every few fights as you still build up hate from killing the mobs for the KI. Strategy by Tayana (Asura) Key Item Locations: Elshimo Uplands > Den of Rancor > Home Point #1

Regular Ambuscade (Vol. Two)

Volume 2, May 2026, Pteraketos

Difficulty Foes Notes Very Difficult Natsilane () Moves seen May 2024: Deep Sea Dirge, Caudal Capacitor, Depth Charge, Blowhole Blast, Echolocation, Baleen Gurge, Waterspout, Angry Seas Difficult Natsilane () 819,000 HP. Normal Natsilane () Easy Natsilane () Very Easy Natsilane () Notes: Can spawn a Bozzetto Golden Bomb which immediately explodes for trivial damage and increases hallmark rewards by 100 on VD. Physical Damage Phase After using Waterspout, Natsilane gains an Addle/Drown/Plague aura. During this phase, Natsilane takes significantly increased physical damage. Will use water-based TP moves. This phase ends after Angry Seas is used, which has an animation where Natsilane flips over on its back and slams the ground with water. Stunning this move can keep Natsilane in the phase. Magical Damage Phase After using Caudal Capacitor, Natsilane gains an undispellable Shock Spikes. During this phase, Natsilane takes significantly increased magical damage. Will use thunder-based TP moves. This phase ends after Blowhole Blast is used, which has an animation where Natsilane flips over on its back and slams the ground with electricity. Stunning this move can keep Natsilane in the phase. Baleen Gurge is an AoE draw-in that will drain moderate HP from all affected. Echolocation is a frontal AoE cone that inflicts Silence. Only thing that changes is HP/DMG Weak to Ice and Darkness. Has MP and is susceptible to Aspir. Natsilane's abilities are modified versions of Pteraketos abilities, with most of the status effects removed or changed. Setups and Strategies: Key Item Locations: Elshimo Uplands > Den of Rancor > Home Point #2

Previous Battles

Old battlefield information is stored on the Ambuscade Archive page.

Rotation Order

Note: This list is unofficial and subject to change at any time.

2026

• 01/2026 Lamia
• 02/2026 Fomor
• 03/2026 Velkk
• 04/2026 Antica
• 05/2026 Tonberry
• 06/2026 Sahagin
• 07/2026 Qiqirn
• 08/2026 Meeble
• 09/2026 Qutrub
• 10/2026 Dullahan
• 11/2026 Moogle
• 12/2026 Magic Mamool

2027

• 01/2027 Ironclad
• 02/2027 Doppleganger
• 03/2027 Corse
• 04/2027 Goblin
• 05/2027 Orcs
• 06/2027 Quadav
• 07/2027 Yagudo
• 08/2027 Gigas
• 09/2027 Mamool
• 10/2027 Troll
• 11/2027 Frog
• 12/2027 Soulflayer

Rewards

See Ambuscade Rewards for specific item and equipment rewards.

Hallmarks

Hallmarks are the primary currency of Ambuscade. They can be used to purchase items from Gorpa-Masorpa.
There are two types of rewards available. Those received in exchange for Hallmarks and those received for total amount of hallmarks accumulated.

• Hallmarks are not expended upon receiving items from the list of rewards for total amount of hallmarks accumulated.
• The types of items available vary with the content of that month’s Ambuscade.
• Your total number of hallmarks will reset back to 0 after each month's version update.

Hallmarks and Badges of Gallantry are reset upon the next month's version update being implemented (usually set to happen from around the 3rd to the 10th of a month).^[5]

Gallantry

Badges of Gallantry are the secondary currency of Ambuscade. They can be used to purchase items from Gorpa-Masorpa, and are only given to those who participate in Ambuscade with other players.

• Like Hallmarks, your Badges of Gallantry will reset back to 0 after each month's version update.

Hallmarks and Badges of Gallantry are reset upon the next month's version update being implemented (usually set to happen from around the 3rd to the 10th of a month).^[6]

Monthly Adventurer Campaigns

There is one type of campaign that may run any given month.

Ambuscade Point Bonus Campaign

• When this Monthly Adventurer Campaign is active, hallmarks and badges of gallantry will yield triple the normal amount once per day when participating in each Ambuscade difficulty level.
  • This bonus will reset at Japanese Midnight Earth time and stacks additively with the effects of Abdhaljs Seals to yield a total of five times the normal amount.
    • As of April 2026, the description on the official website incorrectly states that rewards will be doubled, with four times the normal rewards being received when using a seal.

Ambuscade Gallantry Campaign

• When this Monthly Adventurer Campaign is active, the number of Badges of Gallantry earned from Normal and Intense Ambuscades will be doubled once per Earth day.
  • This bonus will reset at Japanese Midnight Earth time and stacks with the effects of Abdhaljs Seals.
    • Using a seal during the Campaign stacks multiplicatively, resulting in 6 times the usual Gallantry.

JSE Cape Augmentation

Job-specific Back equipment obtained with a Ambuscade Voucher: Back can be augmented by trading them along with certain items to Gorpa-Masorpa.

• See the JSE capes page for augment information for the Job Specific Capes.

To augment a cape:

• Trade the item to Gorpa-Masorpa along with either an Abdhaljs Thread, Abdhaljs Dust, Abdhaljs Sap, Abdhaljs Dye or an Abdhaljs Resin.
• Select the desired attribute, and confirm your choice. After the initial trade, you can max out that path on your next trade if you also trade enough materials.
  • Augments may be changed by repeating the above steps.
  • Changing the augment path will not return any items used up to that point.
    • However, when using an Abdhaljs Needle to change the augment, the current potency is maintained.
• Further trading an augmented item with items corresponding to the attribute initially selected will increase the strength of the augmentation.
  • For maximum strength augments the following are all required per cape:

Abdhaljs Thread x20, Abdhaljs Dust x20, Abdhaljs Sap x10, Abdhaljs Dye x10, Abdhaljs Resin x5

Armor Upgrade

To upgrade Salvage Armor Variant Ambuscade Armor trade either the NQ or +1 variant and the requisite Abdhaljs Metals to Gorpa-Masorpa:

Base Armor	Trade	Armor Piece +1	Trade	Armor Piece +2	Jobs
Sulevia's		Sulevia's +1		Sulevia's +2	WAR / PLD / DRK / DRG
Hizamaru		Hizamaru +1		Hizamaru +2	MNK / NIN / SAM / PUP
Inyanga		Inyanga +1		Inyanga +2	WHM / BRD / SMN
Meghanada		Meghanada +1		Meghanada +2	THF / RNG / BST / COR / DNC / RUN
Jhakri		Jhakri +1		Jhakri +2	BLM / RDM / BLU / SCH / GEO

To upgrade Limbus and Nyzul Armor Variant Ambuscade Armor trade either the NQ or +1 variant and the requisite Abdhaljs Fibers to Gorpa-Masorpa:

Base Armor	Trade	Armor Piece +1	Trade	Armor Piece +2	Jobs
Flamma		Flamma +1		Flamma +2	WAR / PLD / DRK / SAM / DRG
Tali'ah		Tali'ah +1		Tali'ah +2	BST / PUP / SMN
Mummu		Mummu +1		Mummu +2	MNK / THF / RNG / NIN / COR / DNC
Ayanmo		Ayanmo +1		Ayanmo +2	WHM / RDM / BRD / BLU / RUN
Mallquis		Mallquis +1		Mallquis +2	BLM / SCH / GEO

Ambuscade Weapons

Speaking with Gorpa-Masorpa and listening to the message from Abdhaljs will allow you to exchange an Ambuscade Voucher: Weapon for a weapon of your choice or the grip.
Each stage is then upgraded as follows:
Abdhaljs Nugget x5 (1,500 Total Hallmarks / 4,500 Total Gallantry)
Abdhaljs Gem x5 (2,500 Total Hallmarks / 7,500 Total Gallantry)
Abdhaljs Anima x5 (4,000 Total Hallmarks / 12,000 Total Gallantry)
Abdhaljs Matter x5 (6,000 Total Hallmarks / 18,000 Total Gallantry) and one of any non-Ambuscade Pulse Weapon^‡

• Any means literally any. The Pulse Weapon type does not have to match up with your desired Ambuscade Weapons. For example, one could use Ephemeron to create Gokotai.
• Total Hallmark milestone rewards grant an Ambuscade Voucher: Weapon as well five(5) of each of the above upgrade materials (not including Pulse Weapon), allowing you to score a complimentary Kaja Weapon by collecting 5,300 Hallmarks, or (if you have a Pulse Weapon) a fully-upgraded Ambuscade Weapon by 9,600 Hallmarks, per monthly reset.
• Beyond the one complimentary item each month, additional Weapon Vouchers and upgrade materials may be purchased using Hallmarks or Gallantry. The full cost per weapon including the Weapon Voucher and upgrade materials comes to 15,000 Hallmarks or 48,000 Gallantry.

Weapon Type	NQ Tokko	Trade	Ajja Version	Trade	Eletta Version	Trade	Kaja Version	Trade	Final Form
Hand to Hand	Tokko Knuckles		Ajja Knuckles		Eletta Knuckles		Kaja Knuckles	➕ 1 Pulse Weapon‡	Karambit
Dagger	Tokko Knife		Ajja Knife		Eletta Knife		Kaja Knife		Tauret
Sword	Tokko Sword		Ajja Sword		Eletta Sword		Kaja Sword		Naegling
Great Sword	Tokko Claymore		Ajja Claymore		Eletta Claymore		Kaja Claymore		Nandaka
Axe	Tokko Axe		Ajja Axe		Eletta Axe		Kaja Axe		Dolichenus
Great Axe	Tokko Chopper		Ajja Chopper		Eletta Chopper		Kaja Chopper		Lycurgos
Scythe	Tokko Scythe		Ajja Scythe		Eletta Scythe		Kaja Scythe		Drepanum
Polearm	Tokko Lance		Ajja Lance		Eletta Lance		Kaja Lance		Shining One
Katana	Tokko Katana		Ajja Katana		Eletta Katana		Kaja Katana		Gokotai
Great Katana	Tokko Tachi		Ajja Tachi		Eletta Tachi		Kaja Tachi		Hachimonji
Club	Tokko Rod		Ajja Rod		Eletta Rod		Kaja Rod		Maxentius
Staff	Tokko Staff		Ajja Staff		Eletta Staff		Kaja Staff		Xoanon
Bow	Tokko Bow		Ajja Bow		Eletta Bow		Kaja Bow		Ullr
Grip	Tokko Grip		Ajja Grip		Eletta Grip		Kaja Grip		Khonsu

‡ Eligible Pulse Weapons	Source	Potpourri Category
Sagasinger	Arch Dynamis Lord	None
Ephemeron	Aello	Voidwatcher Goodness 2
Coruscanti	Qilin	Voidwatcher Goodness 2
Murasamemaru	Uptala	Voidwatcher Goodness 2
Borealis	Ig-Alima	Voidwatcher Goodness 2
Asteria	Botulus Rex	Voidwatcher Goodness 2
Delphinius	Bismarck	Voidwatcher Goodness 2
Aytanri	Morta	Voidwatcher Goodness 2
Girru	Paramount Gallu	Legion Clomper Goodness 2
Ikarigiri	Paramount Botulus	Legion Clomper Goodness 2
Tenkomaru	Svaha	Burrower Goodness 2
Himthige	Grannus	Burrower Goodness 2
Adflictio	Samursk	Burrower Goodness 2
Gusterion	Dreyruk	Burrower Goodness 2
Dukkha	Silagilith	Burrower Goodness 2
Chastisers	Urmahlullu	None
Router	Fleetstalker	None
Annealed Lance	Shockmaw	None