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This divine protector of the Chun-nan people was tainted by Dark Gaia's influence and went berserk, leaving its usually quiet existence in the depths of the Gaia Temple.


— Description, Sonic Unleashed (Xbox 360/PlayStation 3)[1]

The Dark Gaia Phoenix[1] (聖獣ダークフェニックス[2] Seijū Dāku Fenikkusu?, lit. "Divine Beast Dark Phoenix") is a character that appears in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. Originally a benevolent phoenix, this magnificent creature became corrupted by Dark Gaia's energy and went on a rampage until Sonic the Werehog and Chip managed to restore him to his former self. He is the guardian of the Gaia Temple in Chun-nan.

Appearance[]

The Dark Gaia Phoenix stands out as a very large creature, about ten to twelve meters tall. While he mostly resembles a phoenix, he also possesses some peacock-like traits such as a long, slender neck and long eye-spotted feathers as its tail feathers and on his abdomen and head. In his natural form, he has a beautiful multi-colored glowing plumage, complete with a golden torso, neck and tail, violet wings with a golden edge, and a green and red head with violet eyes.

After being corrupted by Dark Gaia's energy, the Dark Gaia Phoenix's entire body becomes dark purple, and he is constantly surrounded in flames.

History[]

Unlike the majority of Dark Gaia's Minions, the Dark Gaia Phoenix is not originally a fragment of the creature's essence, but an independent creature of his own. Originally, the Dark Gaia Phoenix was a regular phoenix who resided in Chun-nan and had served as the protector of Chun-nan's people and guardian of the local Temple of Gaia for an unpresented amount of time. It spends most of its time living quietly at the temple but reveals itself once a year at the Meat Bun Festival. According to Zonshen, he has been taking care of the phoenix.

At the beginning of Sonic Unleashed, however, due to the actions of Dr. Eggman, the Chaos Emeralds were left drained of their power in his attempt to awaken Dark Gaia. This disturbance in the emeralds' power caused the Phoenix to go berserk, and it was soon after tainted by Dark Gaia's energy that had spread across the globe, thus it mutated into the Dark Gaia Phoenix and went on a total rampage.

By the time Sonic the Werehog and Chip arrived at Chun-nan's Temple of Gaia to search for Zonshen, the Dark Gaia Phoenix had apparently assaulted its old friend. As soon as Sonic and Chip came to Zonshen's aid, however, the Dark Gaia Phoenix attacked them. Despite its continuing persistence, Sonic managed to defeat the great beast and subdue it long enough for him and Chip to restore one of the Chaos Emeralds.

With the restoration of the emerald, the Dark Gaia Phoenix was returned to normal and it regained its senses, and Sonic and Chip understood the reason for the Phoenix's transformation. After accepting some chocolate from Chip, the phoenix soon after returned to the Temple of Gaia to resume its duty as the temple and Chun-nan's guardian.

Powers and abilities[]

Much like its namesake, the Dark Gaia Phoenix is shown to possess pyrokinetic abilities. He can envelope himself in an aura of flames that can make Sonic the Werehog catch on fire (and slowly drain his health) if he makes physical contact with the phoenix by either attacking or touching him, just like the Fire Master, and he can send out waves of flames by stomping onto the ground. He also appears to possess great physical strength as seen on the Xbox 360/PlayStation 3 version, where he can make entire towers crumble by simply flying into them.

The Dark Gaia Phoenix can also use his pinions as weapons; he can send out rows of pinions that will home in on Sonic and track him over long distances. If they hit, they can cause Sonic to catch on fire and knock him down for a moment, and on the Xbox 360/PlayStation 3 version they can even immobilize him for a short while. This attack cannot be blocked by Sonic the Werehog's guarding abilities. On the Xbox 360/PlayStation 3 version, he can also shoot a steady barrage of pinions at Sonic. This attack, however, can be blocked by Sonic the Werehog's guarding abilities.

The Dark Gaia Phoenix's greatest weakness, however, is water, which he appears to be highly vulnerable to; if dowsed with water, his flames will go out and he will be so exhausted that he has to land in order to rest and reignite.

Battle[]

Wii/PlayStation 2[]

The Dark Gaia Phoenix is the first nighttime boss in the Wii/PlayStation 2 version of Sonic Unleashed, and the game's overall second boss. It is fought with Sonic the Werehog directly after clearing Dragon Road Act III: Path to Darkness. The boss battle takes place in an area with self-generating water barrels.

Boss guide[]

The Dark Gaia Phoenix starts off by firing several feathers at Sonic. Dodge them. When the boss charges up for a larger attack, jump up to one of the platforms and throw a water barrel at him and his fire aura will fall, giving you a window of opportunity to attack. If you do not throw a water barrel at the Dark Gaia Phoenix, he will launch feathers that will home in on Sonic and possibly destroy the water barrel. A button sequence (QTE) will play, giving you a chance to damage him more. The amount of water barrels to douse his fire aura increases by one every time you deplete a third of his health. After Sonic the Werehog attacks him, he stomps on the ground and creates a fire earthquake. After 3 attacks, he will fall.

The time needed to "S" Rank is 5:00. Failure to make that time will yield a "C" Rank. Therefore, no Sun Medal will be awarded.

Music[]

Name Artist(s) Length Music track
"Boss Battle - Night" Hideaki Kobayashi 4:51

Video[]


Xbox 360/PlayStation 3[]

The Dark Gaia Phoenix is the first nighttime boss in the Xbox 360/PlayStation 3 version of Sonic Unleashed, and the game's overall third boss. It is fought with Sonic the Werehog directly after clearing the nighttime version of Dragon Road Act 1. The boss battle takes place in an area with self-generating water jugs.

Boss guide[]

The Dark Gaia Phoenix starts out by shooting homing feathers at Sonic. Then it will fly around and land with a fire earthquake. Sonic will not be able to attack the phoenix while it is encased in fire.[3] He can only hit it by throwing water jugs after it uses this attack; otherwise, the phoenix will destroy them. After getting hit by a water jug, the Dark Gaia Phoenix flies over to one of the platforms to rest.[4] Go over to it and hit it a few times to initiate a short QTE. After that, Sonic will punch him before leaping off and howling. After attacking it, it will fly around a bit before charging at Sonic, then fly up and come back down with a fire earthquake before repeating its usual pattern. It also gains a new attack which is shooting a barrage of feathers at Sonic. Guard to protect Sonic from this attack. At this point, Sonic is required to toss two water jugs at the Dark Gaia Phoenix to weaken the flames. After completing the third QTE, which requires the player to push the XboxA/Cross six times, Sonic will grab the phoenix, throwing and slamming it hard into the pool in the middle of the stage and the Dark Gaia Phoenix is defeated. Sonic will let off a triumphant howl before slamming one of his fists into the open palm of the other and quip "Strike Three, monster! That's enough out of you!"

Music[]

Name Artist(s) Length Music track
"Boss Battle - Night" Hideaki Kobayashi 4:51

Video[]


In other media[]

Gaia Phoenix true form

The Gaia Phoenix, from Sonic the Hedgehog #282.

Archie Comics[]

Main article: Gaia Phoenix

In the Sonic the Hedgehog comic series and its spin-offs published by Archie Comics, the Dark Gaia Phoenix is known as Gaia Phoenix. Much like its game counterpart, the Gaia Phoenix is the phoenix spirit that guards the Chun-Nan Gaia Temple. It was temporally possessed by Dark Gaia before being rescued by Sonic the Werehog and Chip, returning it to its peaceful self.

Trivia[]

  • In the Xbox 360/PlayStation 3 version, it is possible to defeat this boss in under a minute using the Missile Punch. It will only take two hits, at which point Sonic will say: Strike three monster, that's enough out of you!, indicating the end of the battle.
    • If the player manages to get the boss' health pass the threshold for the QTE, the player won't have to do the final button prompt to finish it off.
  • Dark Gaia Phoenix is the only Dark Gaia-related boss (apart from Dark Gaia itself) to have "Gaia" in its name.
  • The Dark Gaia Phoenix is the only boss in the game that is a "natural" guardian of the Gaia Temple, where all the other bosses appeared during the events of the game.
  • A yellow figure resembling Dark Gaia Phoenix appears on the flag of Chun-nan, taking the place of the five stars of China's flag.
  • The phoenix's shriek is reused two games later for the Biolizard in the Nintendo 3DS version of Sonic Generations.
  • The Dark Gaia Phoenix is the only boss in Sonic Unleashed who has its health bar emptied more than once (in the Xbox 360/PlayStation 3 version), which is a nod to the concepts of phoenixes being able to come back to life via special revivals after dying in various ways.
  • In the Wii/PlayStation 2 version of the fight, the water barrels respawn much faster than they do in the Xbox 360/PlayStation 3 version.

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Sonic Team (18 November 2008) Sonic Unleashed. Xbox 360. Sega. Area/level: Bestiary. "Dark Gaia's Minions 021/025: Dark Gaia Phoenix"
  2. Sonic Team (19 February 2009) Sonic Unleashed. Xbox 360. Sega. Area/level: Bestiary. "Dark Gaia's Minions 021/025 (Japanese): 聖獣ダークフェニックス"
  3. Sonic Team (December 9, 2008) Sonic Unleashed. PlayStation 3. Sega. Area/level: Chuan-nan: "Sonic the Werehog: Ngh! Looks like I can't get at it while it's covered in fire..."
  4. Sonic Team (December 9, 2008) Sonic Unleashed. PlayStation 3. Sega. Area/level: Chuan-nan: "Sonic the Werehog: Looks like he runs out of breath eventually. That's my chance!"


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