DAWNTRAIL HYPE! Initial guide updates...
See: Viper STARTER Guide / Rotation | Pictomancer Starter Guide / Rotation
How to Unlock Pictomancer & Viper
Welcome to Mahiko San’s very basic FFXIV Viper (VPR) Starter Guide! Here I aim to teach you the basics of the Viper Rotation, and Job, what’s the Unlocking Viper, Starting Gear, Basic Setup and other tips!
The most important part of this guide is:
The basic Viper rotation at 80 – with notes up until 100.
This guide is written with those in mind that are about to, or just unlocked the Viper Job, and need some help figuring out how to make sense of it all!
“Man… I didn’t think I would ‘Slice and Dies’.”
Mahiko “Edgelold” San
Viper Starter Guide – Scroll to: Top (Basics, Unlock, Gear)
Rotation summary | 2 Button | Dreadwinder | Reawaken | Utility Skills
Prefer to discuss / give feedback on reddit? See: /r/MahikoSan/ Viper Starter Guide thread.
Starting out with Viper: Basic Info
Viper Rotation
First, some assumptions, this is about L80 Viper (the level you unlock at), and I have notes leading up to L100 as well. Let’s cut the whole thing into more manageable pieces – a summary of the Viper rotation you can refer to:
Two button combo – Dreadwinder combo – Reawaken combo
LOTS OF OGCD WEAVING! Many buttons “evolve” into other skills.
Button A1 (Steel Fangs) changes to A2,A3.
Button B1 (Dread Fangs) changes to B2,B3.
(Hotbars and gauge light up which is the “right” side to press)
- A1) Steel Fangs – Higher potency default attack. OR
- B1) Dread Fangs – Debuff enemy, you deal more damage to the it. Maintain this debuff!
- then…
- A2) Hunter’s Sting – Gives you a damage buff. Maintain this buff! OR
- B2) Swiftskin’s Sting – Gives you a “speed” buff. Maintain this buff!
- then…
- A3) Flanksting Strike – Deals bonus damage on targets flank.
- B3) Hindsting Strike – Deals bonus damage from behind.
Using Flanksting buffs your next Hindsting, and vice versa.
All of this happens in two buttons.
Combo finishers give Serpent’s Offering Gauge, and activates Serpent Sting into Dreadwinder (see next tab)
Pre note: Twinfang and Twinblood are your main weaving skills. They evolve into various skills, but are all OGCD weaves. TLDR: Use the one that lights up, only double on “long skills”(?).
- Serpent’s Tail / Dreadwinder after previous combo finisher.
- Use BOTH Hunter’s Coil, and Swiftskin’s Coil in “any order”. (positionals)
Each Dreadwinder also gives 1 use of Rattling Coil, a ranged nuke. Tracked by the Red Diamonds on your bar. (L82)
This whole chunk is at L90+, ignore for now if you like.
- Reawaken through Gauge or Serpents Ire.
- Use First, Second, Third, Fourth Generation in order.
- L100, interweave First, Second, Third, Fourth Legacy in between.
- Use the final stack on Ouroboros (same button as Reawaken)
Reawaken itself does point blank AoE damage!
It’s fast, and quite busy, but thankfully you don’t need THAT many buttons thanks to “evolutions”, as well as many buttons “lighting up” for assistance.
For a more detailed explanation, read below.
The 2 Button Combo
The basic portion of your rotation involves a “2 button, multi-path flexible combo”. These two buttons transform into the next step together. Let me try to explain.
Button A is Combo A1 > Combo A2 > Combo A3
Button B is Combo B1 > Combo B2 > Combo B3
You can press A,B,A to complete your combo. (AAA,BBB,BAB, etc)
Viper Combo First Stage
A1) Steel Fangs – higher potency default attack.
B1) Dread Fangs – Debuff enemy, you deal more damage to the it. Maintain this debuff!
Viper Combo Second Stage
A2) Hunter’s Sting – Gives you a damage buff. Maintain this buff!
B2) Swiftskin’s Sting – Gives you a “speed” buff.
Viper Combo Third Stage
A3) Flanksting Strike – Deals bonus damage on targets flank.
B3) Hindsting Strike – Deals bonus damage from behind.
These also have additional effects: on both, they give Serpents Offering Gauge. Secondly, they “evolve” their opposite for the next round in your rotation. For example…
Flanksting Strike used! on your next cycle, Hindsting Strike is “buffed”. The reverse also applies. Hindsting will buff your next Flanksting.
These buffs also change the names of the skill to Flanksbane and Hindsbane – but have no implications on your hotbars. This all happens in two buttons.
The AoE version is essentially a mirror of this, except there’s no positionals. You just alternate between A and B finishers.
THE SKILL AND SWORD GAUGE “LIGHT UP” to tell you WHERE TO PRESS.
It “smartly” detects your ideal next combo (supposedly).
It’s actually pretty cool, depending where you slot the skills left or right.
next step – Serpent’s Tail / Dreadwinder
Serpent’s Tail (L55) evolves after you do any combo finisher. “Always use it”. This is the second part of your rather long combo chain…
Serpent’s Tail 1 – Dreadwinder (L65). Strong OGCD that gives the same debuff as Dread Fangs. (Pit of Dread is the AoE version)
the skill names give much clues on their buff / debuff / purpose.
Notice Dreadwinder gives the same debuff as Dread Fangs.
After Dreadwinder you gain access to a pair of attacks Hunter’s Coil (L65), and Swiftskin’s Coil (L65). A flank and back attack. Use them both in any order you like. They also give the damage and speed buff.
FURTHERMORE There’s Twinfang (L75) and Twinblood (L75). These evolve into your OGCF weaved follow-ups to certain attacks. There is a correct order to press them, but I’m pretty sure they light up anyway. Only double weave on “long” attacks.
At L82 Dreadwinder also gives Rattling Coil (L82), which allows you to use Uncoiled Fury. It’s a long range powerful nuke, so you can save this for movement. These are the red diamonds on your gauge.
Serpent’s Offering Gauge / Reawaken
(This is L90+ stuff, but worth talking about)
After gaining enough gauge, or using Serpent’s Ire (L86) you can Reawaken (L90). Giving you 5 Stacks of Anguine Tribute. Reawaken itself does damage to nearby enemies, notably.
Basically, you need to use the first four of these stacks on these skills – First Generation, Second Generation, Third Generation, Fourth Generation. These aren’t new buttons – your old skills evolve into them. There’s an order to this, so to simplify it – follow the lights, haha.
At L100, Serpent’s Sting (the button for Dreadwinder) becomes yet another weaved OGCD to be used after every generation. Namely First Legacy, Second Legacy, Third Legacy, Fourth Legacy.
The final attack, the 5th stack, should always be used on Ouroboros (it’s the same button as Reawaken).
Viper Utility Skills
Finally, the odds and ends – Viper Utility, Defensive, and Mobility skills.
Writing Snap (L10) – essentially useless desperation ranged attack,
Slither (L40) – Rush to an enemy, or allies location. Multiple charges, good range.
Serpent’s Ire (L86) – Gives one use of Uncoiled Fury (L82 ranged nuke).Tt L90 grants Ready to Reawaken , which… readies you to Reawaken…
Viper uses Melee DPS Role Actions.
Summary, Closing, Other Info
“Typing late night dried out my wit. It’s a double edged sword.”
– Mahiko “Couerl Hand” San
OUTRO. Well, I hope my Viper Starter Guide helped you out somehow. If you cut through the BS, The rotation’s pretty sharp right!
After studying the skills and rotation, I’m actually super impressed with the “design” of it. It’s really snake-like, haha. Long, with left or right cycles, quick strikes in between, ending in “two fangs”. The Dawntrail classes knock it out of the park.
If you’re here you might wanna check out the Pictomancer Starter Guide. Seriously I’m proud of the puns there. I’m NOT proud of how long the Starry Sky explanation is…
Prefer to discuss / give feedback on reddit? See: /r/MahikoSan/ Viper Starter Guide thread.