AAC Cruiserweight M3, known to players as M7 or R7, is the third turn of the AAC Cruiserweight tier of The Arcadion 
Raid in Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail.
Objectives[]
Normal[]
- Defeat Brute Abombinator
Savage[]
- Defeat Brute Abombinator
Story[]
Normal[]
The president's “script” has culminated in a grudge match between you and the Brute Bomber, who has recklessly injected himself with multiple feral souls. Now an abomination, the only way to save the reviled heel is to stop him forcefully through battle. For his sake, this is a fight you cannot afford to lose.
Duty Finder Description
Savage[]
It seems the devastation wrought by the Brute Abombinator in your battle was not quite enough to satisfy Gabbro─at least not for the purposes of his cartoons. Having invited you to imagine your rival fighting with even greater savagery, you follow the train of thought to its end...
Duty Finder Description
Progression[]
Normal[]
Savage[]
Shortly after being pulled, the boss will cast Brutal Impact, causing six hits of physical raidwide damage. He will then cast Stoneringers, and will manifest either a club or a sickle in his right hand. If he manifested a club, his next AoE will be point-blank; if it was a sickle, the AoE will be a donut. The boss will also cast a Smash Here or Smash There shared tankbuster; if it was Smash Here, then the tankbuster will be on the closest player, while Smash There will be on the furthest. The boss will cast Spore Sac, leaving AoEs on the approximate outer cardinal positions, as well as casting Pollen, extending vines from those AoEs vertically or horizontally. Look for the safe spot in melee range unaffected by vines; this will be your new safe spot. He will also cast Sinister Seeds, which will target either the melees and tanks or healers and ranged. The other role will have baited orange AoEs on them. Whichever role has the purple AoE markers will need to stand in an intercardinal, as they will leave Tendrils of Terror starburst AoEs shortly after being dropped. The role that has the orange AoEs must bait them towards the south edges of the arena. At the same time, four Blooming Abomination adds will spawn from the Spore Sac AoEs. Stack in melee range in light parties to take Impact light party stacks while also avoiding the tendrils, then move to the side that was completely untouched by the orange AoEs from Sinister Seeds. Once this is done, target the adds and kill them before their AoEs go off, or silence as many of them as you can if you are unable to kill them in time; the adds will enrage if they are left alive for a prolonged period of time. The boss will cast Quarry Swamp shortly after, requiring the party to stand behind a Blooming Abomination corpse to avoid getting petrified and subsequently killed by the next mechanic. Three proximity Explosion AoEs will also appear around the arena. Start on the third Explosion AoE, then run into the first AoE once it resolves. Between the second and third AoEs, the boss will cast another Stoneringer and Smash Here or There, then a Pulp Smash stack just like in normal mode, but with baited Proteans on players after the stack resolves. The boss will then center himself, cast a Neo Bombarian Special raidwide which will destroy the arena. Anyone who is not at the very north of the arena will be sent plummeting to their deaths, while those who were will land on an entirely new arena.
Shortly after landing on a new arena, the boss will appear and cling to the north wall, with his hitbox becoming omnidirectional. The boss will cast another Stoneringer with either a club or a sickle, then Brutish Swing which shows what wall he will jump to by way of a tether and perform his respective AoE there. Depending on how long or short the jump is, you may need to use dashes and sprints. Once he performs his cast on the new wall, he will cast Glower Power, a line AoE just like in Normal mode, but with added AoEs on every player. The boss will then cast Revenge of the Vines, a magic AoE, followed by Thorny Deathmatch, which tethers to the player with the highest threat level and requires them to remain close to the boss. This tether cannot be stretched in any way or it will be fatal. The boss will cast an Abominable Blink Flare marker on the off-tank, requiring them to run away from the party.
Musical themes[]
"Not Afraid", a metal remix of "Burning Souls" from AAC Light-heavyweight M3, plays in the Normal and Savage versions of the encounter.
