walkthrough

How to do aerial combat (and why every Cloud should)

Aerial combos ignore enemy armor. Most players never get airborne — here's the easiest launch and the abilities to spam up there.

“Aerial attacks are kind of like Advent Children style combat. An easy way to get airborne with Cloud is to dodge with circle and then hold the basic attack square — this dashes you towards an enemy and puts you in the air. Some favorite aerial moves include Firebolt Blade, Disorder, and Aerial Onslaught. Braver actually has its potency increased in the air. While airborne you can freely dodge in any direction. Aerial combos seem to ignore the armor of enemies — going airborne against shelled enemies lets you keep hitting and build ATB.”

How to do aerial combat

Aerial combat looks like Advent Children fan service but it's actually one of the strongest tools in Rebirth. Air combos ignore enemy armor and let you keep hitting shielded enemies that would normally bounce off you on the ground.

The easiest launch (Cloud)

  1. Dodge with circle.
  2. Hold square during the dodge — Cloud dashes toward the locked-on enemy, gap-closes, and ends airborne.
  3. From the air, you have a small window to chain abilities.

You can also look at any ability with the airborne icon next to it — those launches you up. Cloud's Firebolt Blade and Disorder are the best for this.

Stay up longer

  • In the air, dodge in any direction — fast, free, doesn't have ground-dodge recovery.
  • Up Barrage synergy skill (Cloud + Barret) keeps you airborne longer.
  • Tifa has Reverse Gale, which folds straight into her combos.
  • Yuffie has a dash-launch similar to Cloud.

Best aerial abilities

  • Firebolt Blade — fire + lightning damage, sends you airborne, hits hard.
  • Aerial Onslaught — dedicated air ability, pure damage.
  • Braver — has higher potency in the air than on the ground.

Why bother

  • Bypasses enemy armor. Heavily armored mobs that bounce your ground attacks become free hits in the air.
  • Faster ATB build since you're chaining without breaks.
  • Free directional dodges turn it into a full mobility tool.

If stuck: if you keep falling out of the air, you're using a non-aerial ability. Check your shortcut bar — only abilities with the small airborne icon keep you up. Reset your shortcuts to two ground + two aerial slots.