Concept art of the four Dark Players; from Matt Roszak's DeviantArt page
The Dark Players are a group of optional bosses encountered in Epic Battle Fantasy 4. They are evil undead versions of the playable characters, found near the summit of Battle Mountain; this makes them exclusive to the Steam release of the game and the Premium Pack.
Description[]
As their names suggest, the Dark Players look like sinister, evil counterparts of the playable characters (but as of the v3 update, they are different from their Evil Counterparts in EBF5 in that rather than representing a corrupted form of the players, they're instead portrayed as the manifestation of the Player's darkest thoughts and a lack of their core personality). They all have reddish-brown skin and black eyes (possibly empty eye sockets) with tiny red pupils, giving them an undead appearance. They wear black-and-red versions of their counterparts' clothes, and wield one of their Dark-based weapons, though with changed properties. Dark Players can also use Limit Breaks, which are charged upon receiving damage.
The Dark Players are encountered right before the summit of the Battle Mountain, in a dark chamber filled with what appears to be evil spirits (similar to the ones that appear in the animation of Haunt). The cave is initially pitch-black, similarly to some parts of the Crystal Caverns, but each of the Dark Players guards a brazier that can be lit with The Candle. Only after dealing with all four Dark Players and lighting all four flames will the entrance to the next area open; this also reveals an additional treasure chest to loot
At the summit of Battle Mountain, the Dark Players return for the Dark Boss Rush, a challenge that tasks the party with defeating all four of them in a single fight. The Dark Players attack in pairs (Dark Lance and Dark Anna, then Dark Matt and Dark Natalie), only summoning their usual backup when their initial ally falls.
Epic Battle Fantasy 4 - Boss Rush 4 (Epic) - Dark Players Level 51
The Dark Player Boss Rush (epic mode, party level 51)
Members[]
There are four Dark Players, each acting as a counterpart to one of the playable characters. Their properties and fighting style are roughly based on the original character; for example, Dark Matt is a powerful warrior with high physical attack and defense but relatively weak magical abilities.
Defeating each of the Dark Players on Epic difficulty will award the player with their respective medal, and beating the Dark Player Marathon on Epic will additionally reward the player with "Dark Boss Rush" medal.
Trivia[]
- Each Dark Player always drops one Bottled Darkness and one additional item upon defeat.
- Dark Players are the only foes in EBF4 to have a Limit Break bar, a feature otherwise unique to playable characters.
- In the Bestiary, when viewing the Dark Players, instead of facing toward the left (similar to other foes), they are facing toward the right (similar to the players). However, this doesn't exist in EBF5 for Evil Players.