Final Fantasy’s most iconic protagonist makes his appearance in Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories as one of two Boss encounters in Olympus Coliseum. This guide will give you the knowledge you need to avoid Cloud’s staggering offense and defeat him.
Quick Tips for those who find themselves on the sharp end of the Buster Sword:
- Card String: Try to create Combos with a value that won’t get broken by Cloud.
- Friend Cards: Take advantage of Donald, Goofy and Pluto’s abilites in this fight.
- Spacing: Get some distance as you heal or reload to avoid getting punished for playing defensively.
Preparing for Cloud
In somewhat of an exception for Boss encounters in Re:Chain of Memories, Cloud is fought in the Key to Guidance room. Sora, Donald and Goofy will have met the enigmatic ex-SOLDIER at this point in an earlier cutscene, but if you are not expecting it, this boss encounter may sneak up on you. Luckily, this fight relies much more on playing around Cloud’s deck rather than one specific Sleight, so you should be okay with most decks.
On the subject of Sleights, though, it may prove fruitful for you to visit Olympus Coliseum’s Calm Bounty room before this fight to acquire Blizzard Raid, a Ice element Sleight that can be useful in this fight as well as later bosses down the line.
Enter the Key to Guidance room, and you’ll have another cutscene with Cloud before you’re thrown into a duel with him.
Defeating Cloud
Enemy Attacks:
- Braver
- Slash
- Cross-Slash
- Omnislash
Like members of the Organization and a few other Boss fights in this game, Cloud’s deck is visible, using Attack cards unique to him as opposed to the gray Enemy cards that the Heartless use.
This is somewhat of a double-edged sword as while this means Cloud can run out of cards and will be forced to reload at points, he also has access to powerful Sleights that make this fight a frightening one.
Additionally, he’ll have an easier time breaking your cards, especially with his 0 Cards. If you find yourself struggling to keep up with his Card breaks, try using the Jafar-Genie Boss card, which will make your Attack cards unbreakable for a duration.
Cloud’s basic Slash attacks aren’t too elaborate as long as you anticipate him dashing towards you, but given the huge hitbox on his Buster Sword (which makes sense, given the size), you’ll have an easier time trying to jump over his slashes rather than trying to Dodge Roll through them.
Another move he’ll frequently use is Kingdom Hearts’ interpretation of Final Fantasy 7’s Braver, having Cloud leap into the air and quickly drop down on you. Unlike the Slash moves, this move is easier to escape with a Dodge Roll, as trying to jump out of this will most likely just end with him dunking you back to the ground.
In terms of Sleights, Cross-slash is actually one of the easiest moves to play around, as unlike most of his toolkit, his attack has very vertical or horizontal movement, leaving Cloud fairly stationary as he takes some swings at you.
Provided you’re not caught in the attack, Cross-slash is your best window of opportunity to get some distance, heal, and reload either manually or with a Potion card.
Omnislash, Cloud’s final Limit Break from his original game, is the main Sleight to be wary of. Slashing and Dashing you what feels like dozens of times, it is very easy to get stuck in this Sleight.
The best way to avoid getting KO’d by Omnislash is to load up a Sleight or 0 card and wait until Omnislash is active to Break it.
In terms of offense, Physical attacks and Spells are both viable against Cloud, with magical Sleights like Firaga and Blizzard Raid most useful when he is dashing toward Sora.
Friend cards have their value in this fight as well, with all of Donald’s spells being usable in this fight. On top of that, Goofy Smash (Goofy+Attack Card+Attack Card) is great at disrupting Cloud’s attacks and leaving him stunned while also dealing a sizable chunk of damage.
You won’t get any special card rewards for beating Cloud at this point, but fans of this hero will have something to look forward to after fighting this world’s second Boss later on.
