How to easily beat the Grasptropod in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth

The Grasptropod boss shows up in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth as the party attempts to enjoy some fun in the sun. Danger is never really far away from the AVALANCHE splinter cell, nor are the forces of Shinra. What makes this boss fight sort of interesting is that it takes place on the beach while everyone is wearing their swimsuits. The player gets a choice in which two party members they fight this boss with, as well.

We’ll go over the strengths, weaknesses, and things you need to know about dealing with the Grasptropod in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. We will not be posting videos with this guide to avoid potential major story spoilers.

Disclaimer: This features minor spoilers for the Costa Del Sol region of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth.

Tips for defeating the Grasptropod boss in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth

1) Phase 1 of Grasptropod

All the stats on this boss fight via Assess (Image via Square Enix)

Before you can even fight the Grasptropod in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, Cloud has to pick a group to help: Barret/Aerith or Tifa/Red XIII. I chose Tifa, because that’s who I was trying to get a date with later in the game, so I wanted to make sure my relationship with her was higher than anyone else's.

After that, you’ll fight some menial enemies, and then the Grasptropod boss shows up on the beach in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. Whoever you don’t group up with gets kidnapped, and it’s up to you to stop it. As a machine, it’s immune to nearly all status ailments. But it is Weak to Lightning and has a Lesser Resistance to Cold attacks.

If you want to Pressure this boss, inflict a lot of damage, and land plenty of synergy skills and synergy abilities. You also have to be aware that eventually, it’s going to capture members of your party, so you’ll be handicapped. Time is a factor in the Grasptropod fight in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, but it’s not on a timer.

This boss has lots of AOE attacks, but they're easily avoided (Image via Square Enix)

In addition, when this boss uses the Breakneck Spin ability, it will temporarily be inoperable, and this is the perfect time to land as many damaging attacks as you can on the Grasptropod boss in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth.

Like the Jenova Emergent boss in the previous chapter, this boss has an AOE poison ability, Sublimated Toxin. A lot of this boss's attacks can be evaded by running/rolling backwards. It has another status ailment that it fires in front of it in a cone: Silencing Solvent.

It can spin quickly to do Laser Saber, which hits anyone in melee range with its deadly strike. Tentadrill just jabs at the ground in front of it, which is easily evaded, and Drill Run does a few attacks to knock up anyone in front of it, before charging forward. This boss also has a knockback with Eerie Soundwave.

2) Phase 2 of Grasptropod fight

Around 75%-60%, the first Subject Retrieval happened, where the Grasptropod boss in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth claimed Red XIII. The boss continues to use the same attacks, but by now, you should also have a high stagger bar. At about 50%, the boss uses another Subject Retrieval, this time on Tifa.

My plan at this point became to spam Focused Thrust anytime I had a chance and avoid the various attacks Grasptropod used on me. Once finally Staggered, I used Thundara and got it to around 45% HP, where it stopped taking damage. This sets up the second phase.

Enjoy a really cool cutscene where Yuffie shows up to save the day! She prevents Cloud from being captured and allows the boss fight to go on. Buy her some time by keeping up with the fight and avoiding the boss's attacks.

Things are starting to get intense (Image via Square Enix)

You also have to keep an eye out for Pulse Blaster, which chases you with a few electric attacks. You might also see this at the start of the fight, but it’s a rare move, at least, in my experience. After a bit of damage, you’ll see another cutscene where Yuffie is almost ready to help.

Grasptropod upgrades at this point in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth and has a pair of Cylinders you can target. One blast of Thunder or Thundara completely defeats these, so build some ATB meter and crush the Left and Right Cylinders.

One final shock and it was down (Image via Square Enix)

A new move shows up at this point: Sonic Cannon. A rotating sound blast, it knocks Cloud back if hit, but you can dash around the boss to evade it in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. It had one more new move, Enervating Ammo, but I have no idea what it does. I responded with a Limit Break and Thunder to defeat the boss. Success gains you:

475 EXP
10 AP
950 Gil
50 Party EXP

From here, just watch the fantastic cutscene and proceed deeper into the game. You can find more information about this masterpiece in our in-depth review of FF7 Rebirth.