Final Fantasy XIV received a small hotfix on February 5, 2026 (roughly 33.79 MB) aimed at cleaning up a handful of Patch 7.41 issues. The headline items are a temporary repair process for Strategy Board local data, fixes for Cosmic Exploration cutscenes that could get stuck on a black screen, and corrections to certain phantom-related settings that weren’t persisting after logout.

Below is a clear breakdown of what changed, what it means in practice, and what you can do if you were affected. (This is firmly FFXIV context: Strategy Boards, Cosmic Exploration on Ois, and phantom jobs/actions are all Final Fantasy XIV systems.)

Hotfix summary (Feb 5, 2026)

• Strategy Board: Added a temporary consistency check and repair attempt for locally stored Strategy Board data.
• Cosmic Exploration (Ois): Fixed a cutscene fade issue after completing projects that could leave the screen black.
• Cosmic Exploration (Ois): Addressed cases where projects and red alerts could trigger simultaneously, causing repeated announcement spam.
• Accord Crescent South Horn: Fixed phantom job settings that weren’t saving and would revert to default after logging out.
• Phantom action panel: Resolved an issue tied to assigning to a default phantom action slot and Hide/Display behavior in the panel.

Strategy Board local data: what was happening and what the hotfix does

The biggest “quality-of-life” change in this hotfix is a temporary repair for Strategy Board local data inconsistencies. Players reported problems such as:

• Strategy Boards failing to save properly
• Boards disappearing after logging in
• Board names or field names being replaced by previously deleted entries

Square Enix noted they haven’t been able to reproduce the issue reliably yet, and that they can’t directly inspect the problematic data because the relevant Strategy Board information is stored locally on your machine. Based on reports, the working theory is that local data can become inconsistent, which then leads to missing or scrambled boards.

What “repaired boards go into an untitled folder” means

With this hotfix, when you open the Strategy Board, the game now checks your local Strategy Board data for inconsistencies and attempts to repair them. If the repair process recovers boards, they may be placed into an untitled folder.

So if you log in and notice an untitled folder you didn’t make, it can be a sign that the game detected and repaired something in your local data.

Depending on the situation, the repair may only recover the folder structure without successfully restoring the boards inside. In other words, you could see untitled folders even if the actual board contents weren’t salvageable.

What you should do if you see extra folders or boards

• Review recovered items: Check whether any recovered boards are duplicates or outdated.
• Delete unnecessary clutter: If the repair creates extra folders/boards you don’t need, delete them to keep your Strategy Board list tidy.
• Be cautious with big reorganizations: Until the root cause is identified, avoid doing huge renaming/moving/deleting sessions all at once. Smaller changes can make it easier to notice when something goes wrong.

This fix is explicitly described as temporary while the team continues investigating the underlying cause. If you rely on Strategy Boards for raid planning or group coordination, it’s a good idea to keep your important layouts organized and easy to recreate. Keeping your setup stable can also help keep repair costs, consumable restocks, and other in-game gil expenses predictable when you’re prepping for content.

Take a look at: our breakdown of Strategy Boards and other quality-of-life features

Cosmic Exploration (Ois): black screen after project completion cutscene

The most disruptive bug mentioned is the Cosmic Exploration cutscene issue on Ois where the screen would fail to fade back in after completing a project. The intended flow is a fade to black, then a return to the scene with the completion moment (often with celebration visuals). Instead, some players were left staring at a black screen indefinitely.

In many cases, the only workaround was to forcibly close the game (for example, ending the process) and relaunch. This hotfix resolves that fade behavior so the cutscene can complete normally.

If you were affected, what to expect now

• You should no longer need to force-close the client after a project completion cutscene.
• If you previously avoided contributing to projects due to fear of the black screen, it should be safe to resume participation.

Cosmic Exploration tends to be a steady source of progression materials and a reason many players spend on repairs, food, and other preparation items. Keeping a comfortable buffer of FFXIV gil helps you stay flexible when new patch activities add extra upkeep.

Another fix targets situations where Cosmic Exploration projects and red alerts could occur simultaneously, leading to overlapping announcements and repeated message spam. If you noticed constant back-to-back callouts, this hotfix should reduce that noise and make it easier to focus on the actual objective.

Accord Crescent South Horn: phantom job settings now persist

The hotfix also addresses an issue in Accord Crescent South Horn where certain phantom job settings were not saving correctly. Players would configure settings, log out, then return to find everything reverted to default.

With the fix applied, your phantom job configuration should now remain as you set it between sessions, which is especially important if you’re trying to keep your loadouts consistent for repeated runs or group coordination.

Phantom action panel: default slot assignment and Hide/Display issue fixed

Finally, the patch resolves a problem related to assigning actions to a default phantom action slot and the Hide/Display behavior in the phantom action panel. While the hotfix notes are brief, the practical result should be fewer cases of phantom action setups behaving unpredictably after changes.

Take a look at: a focused guide to Cosmic Exploration farming on Ois

Why this matters for Patch 7.41 players

Micro-patches like this are common after feature-heavy updates. Patch 7.41 introduced enough moving parts that a few edge-case bugs were expected, and this hotfix focuses on the issues that were either disruptive (the black screen) or potentially confusing and persistent (Strategy Board data inconsistencies and phantom setting reverts).

If you’re actively engaging with new systems, it’s worth keeping your routine resilient: plan for occasional maintenance windows, keep a small stock of consumables, and maintain a healthy gil buffer for sudden needs like materia swaps, crafted pieces, and repair cycles. For players with limited time, that’s often the difference between enjoying new content and feeling forced into extra grind. Some players look for fast FFXIV gil options specifically to stay raid-ready and avoid losing evenings to the Market Board.

Why did my Strategy Boards disappear or rename themselves?

Reports indicate inconsistencies in Strategy Board local data can cause failed saves, missing boards, or old/deleted names reappearing. The Feb 5 hotfix adds a temporary check-and-repair step when you open the Strategy Board.

What is the “untitled folder” that appeared in my Strategy Board list?

If the game repaired your local Strategy Board data, recovered boards may be placed into an untitled folder. It’s essentially a recovery container created by the repair process.

Is the Cosmic Exploration black screen bug fully fixed now?

The hotfix specifically addresses the cutscene fade issue after completing Cosmic Exploration projects on Ois. If you were previously forced to close the game to recover, you should now be able to continue normally.

No extra steps should be required. After the fix, phantom job settings in Accord Crescent South Horn should persist instead of reverting to defaults on logout.

How can I avoid falling behind on costs when patch content adds more upkeep?

Keep a small budget for repairs, food, and materia, and consider building a sustainable routine via FFXIV gil from roulettes and daily content plus occasional Market Board sales. If you’re short on playtime, some players research how to get extra FFXIV gil without endless grinding to keep progression smooth.