Final Fantasy Equipment Guide

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Final Fantasy is a franchise that didn’t just popularize a genre; it created one. While there were RPGs in video games before Final Fantasy, there was not a style that defined it. Once Final Fantasy came along, all that changed, and so began the side view battle system. For the first time, you could actually see your Final Fantasy characters in battle.

Although they didn’t really have attack animations so much as they had little vibrations to signify their attacks, the magic effects were impressive, and the whole experience felt so much more personal because of it.

As the years went on, those characters were detailed better and better, and soon, the equipment they were wearing in the menus back the equipment you would see on their bodies.

I’m a long-time Final Fantasy game, and when it comes to the equipment of the game, I fell in love with the wild designs of the character’s clothing and weapons. My particular favorites are the weapon designs.

Ever since I was introduced to Final Fantasy VII, the wild weapon designs got better and better. My favorite design of the series is the Gunblade in Final Fantasy VIII, and while it seems like such an obvious combination of weapons, I’d never seen it done before, and the use of it was just as cool as the design.

Much like the monsters throughout the series, several of the games share many of the same Final Fantasy equipment in common. We’re going to explore the history of equipment throughout the series. Grab your Chocobo; here we go.

What is Final Fantasy Equipment?

The gameplay in Final Fantasy consists of a few things throughout the years. You’ve got conversations, exploration, combat, and customization available in pretty much any Final Fantasy you can find. When it comes to customization, there is a ton of variation from game to game.

The types of equipment can change, but they generally will serve a similar purpose. Here are some types of equipment throughout the series.

Weapons

Final Fantasy Weapons

These consist of items that can do damage. In most Final Fantasy games, each character is confined to using a particular weapon type. For example, Dragoons will only use spears, and Mages will strictly use magic staffs.

Weapons can cause a variety of status effects and benefits like special abilities as well. Weapons, on occasion, will come imbued with a specific element; for example, the Firebrand sword found throughout several of the games in the series will always carry fire damage with it.

Armor

Armor is needed to protect the character during battle. Armor can also cause a variety of side effects like increased health, special effects like items being used automatically, and other benefits.

Some games only allow you to equip one single Armor, while others let you equip specific Armor for your arms, legs, chest, and head, allowing you to mix and match to get the best protection possible.

Read More: Final Fantasy XVI Best Armor: Ouroboros, Circle of Heaven, More

Accessories

Accessories are usually supplemental items in Final Fantasy games that can help out in a variety of ways. These can equip you with special spells, create increases for your health and magic, or give you defenses against certain status effects. You will find yourself needing specific accessories at times in order to win particularly tough fights.

Summons

Summons come in many forms in Final Fantasy, and generally, in order to be able to summon a creature to your aid in battle, you need to behave a certain piece of equipment on you.

In Final Fantasy VII, it’s Materia; in Final Fantasy VIII, you must equip GFs. Most characters in the games can use summons, but on occasion, only a select few are able to summon creatures to fight with you.

How Do You Find Equipment in Final Fantasy

Final Fantasy Chests

A big part of Final Fantasy games is the exploration, and it uses that to point you in the direction of new equipment. While all characters begin the game with basic equipment, it’s usually not long before you’re able to discover new equipment that improves your characters in a variety of ways. There are several ways you can acquire equipment in Final Fantasy games.

Chests

There are tons of chests to discover in the Final Fantasy games, and often these will be well hidden from the normal path you’re on. The chests that carry equipment are either found off the beaten path or after a boss battle.

Sometimes, equipment will be found on things like counters or hidden in the environment as well, so always be on the lookout for new gear. One game that does this particularly often is Final Fantasy XV.

Shops

You’ll be exploring tons of cities and towns during your Final Fantasy adventures and in each of these is generally a selection of shops. Some only sell items, others specialize in magic, and others specialize in equipment.

You want to visit the equipment shops in any new town you come across. They will usually have brand new equipment to help you with the next challenge in the game.

Rewards

Each game is different, but sometimes, you will receive special equipment in Final Fantasy by completing certain tasks. This can be after completing a quest, defeating a difficult boss, or even just coming upon a new area.

For example, in Final Fantasy VII, you get special Materia after certain events in the game, although you can also acquire it in shops and chests throughout the game.

Crafting

It’s not available in every game, but certain Final Fantasy games will allow you to craft equipment out of various items in order to build better weapons and Armor.

Final Fantasy VIII utilizes this through its weapon system, which requires specific items to create the various weapons you can get throughout the game. Final Fantasy XIV also gives you this ability as well.

Characters

Certain characters in Final Fantasy games will reward you with equipment throughout the games. These aren’t necessarily shops, but rather side characters or party members that will give you things out of nowhere for no particular reason.

How Each Final Fantasy Handles Equipment

Final Fantasy

Final Fantasy

In the original Final Fantasy, your options for equipment were actually quite robust. You can equip weapons, armor, gloves, shield, and a helmet as well.

Inversions that have come out recently, there are 5 slots, but in the original game for Nintendo, there were actually 8, allowing you to customize your characters far more in terms of their weapons and Armor.

Final Fantasy II

In the second Final Fantasy, you ould equip weapons or shield in either hand. Which one you decided on was based on the prominent hand of your party members.

You could also equip Armor on the head, arms or body. Uniquely, you also needed to equip items in Final Fantasy II, and when you did, they became only usable by whoever you equipped them to.

Final Fantasy VIII

In Final Fantasy III, there started to be fewer and fewer equipment slots. Here, you retained the ability to equip items to your body and arms, but your head was left out this time around.

Final Fantasy IV

Final Fantasy IV added the ability to have two select characters in Edge and Yang be able to dual wield weapons. You again had to pay attention to a character’s prominent hand when equipping weapons and shields. In addition, you regained the ability to add Armor to the head.

Final Fantasy V

Things were pretty basic in Final Fantasy V, and you were able to equip 5 things at once. This includes one per hand, your head, body, and also an accessory. There were no dual-wielding characters in Final Fantasy V.

Final Fantasy VI

Final Fantasy VI gave the ability to have 6 equipment slots in total. In a unique twist for the series, certain characters could not equip weapons at all, as they had their own combat styles. You were again able to equip both arms, your body, and your head as well. This time around, certain characters were restricted to different kinds of equipment.

Final Fantasy VII

In Final Fantasy VII, Square wanted to make an attempt at streamlining the series for a larger audience, and needless to say, it worked. You only had three equipment slots available here.

Your weapon, Armor, and accessory were the only slots available. Within your weapons and Armor, you could equip different kinds of Materia, and this determined what special abilities, magic, and summons you could use in battle.

Final Fantasy VIII

Final Fantasy VIII

Things got even more streamlined in Final Fantasy VIII, and you were only able to equip Weapons and GFs. The GFs determined not only what monsters you could summon but also had a direct effect on your stats as well.

You could also engage in the junction system, which essentially equipped various spells to your characters which had a huge effect on your stats as well.

Final Fantasy IX

Final Fantasy IX has always been praised for going back to the old school traditions of Final Fantasy, and they did that in multiple ways, with the equipment slots returning as well. You again had 5 slots to equip add-ons, arm gear, Armor, headgear, and jewels, with each character having equipment specific for them.

Final Fantasy X

After the success of Final Fantasy IX, Square had to shape up for the next generation and again tried to streamline the experience accordingly.

Here you can equip your weapon and armor, and that’s all. Within each set of Armor, though, you will have one to four slots to place various auto abilities in. This allowed for a different kind of customization, and the Grid Sphere system allowed a whole other level of that as well.

Final Fantasy XI

Final Fantasy XI was the first foray into the MMO world for Final Fantasy games, and you were able to customize your head, arms, chest, and legs for the first time, as well as having two equipment slots for weapons.

Final Fantasy XII

In Final Fantasy XII, you got 5 slots for equipment, including weapons, your off-hand, your head, body, and accessories. Again, Square leaned on the old-school feel to make long-time fans very happy.

Final Fantasy XIII

In Final Fantasy XIII, you could only customize your weapon slot and one accessory slot, although eventually, two more get unlocked through the Crystaria system, which was analogous to the Final Fantasy X Grid Sphere.

Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn

Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn married the past with the future in many ways to create the most profitable game in Final Fantasy’s lengthy history.

Here, you can equip more items than any game in the series. You could equip the head, body, legs, arms, leggings, pants, rings, earrings, necklaces, and bracelets. The customization available would also fully show in the game as well, making the hunt for new equipment more appealing than ever before.

Final Fantasy XV

Final Fantasy XV allowed you to equip an outfit and an accessory. You could also equip up to four weapons at once with Noctis, two with Gladio, two with Ignis, and two with Prompto.

Recurring Weapons

Final Fantasy Masamune

In Final Fantasy, there are several items that will be recurring throughout the series in both accessories as well as weapons and Armor. Here are some of the weapon standouts that you will find in the various games.

Masamune

This massive katana is found in both Final Fantasy VII as well as Final Fantasy XII. Most famously, it is known for being the enormous sword that Sephiroth wields. In Final Fantasy XII, you get to use it for the first time.

Excalibur

The name suggests that it might be related to the sword Excalibur, but really, Excalipoor is a running joke throughout the series. Often used by the big talking warrior Gilgamesh, you will find this weapon to be among the worst you can find among the 7+ times it appears throughout the series.

Buster Sword

Possibly the most iconic sword in Final Fantasy history, you can find the Buster Sword in a surprising amount of games in the series. Although it’s strictly wielded by Cloud in Final Fantasy VII, you can also find it in both Final Fantasy IX as well as Final Fantasy XII and Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn.

Gae Bolg

Although it’s not specific to any one character in the series, the Gae Bolg spear has made an appearance 5 times in the mainline entries and a ton of times in the spinoff games as well. This spear is generally pretty strong and one of the better ones you can find in the game.

Godhand

The Godhand is an awesome-looking weapon that generally represents one of the better weapons in each Final Fantasy game where it appears. It is strictly used by the hand-to-hand characters that are in your party. It was made famous by Tifa in Final Fantasy VII, and several characters have used it since, including Rikku in Final Fantasy X.

Save the Queen

This weapon was introduced in Final Fantasy Tacts and has since made tons of appearances throughout the series, including the ultra-popular Final Fantasy: XIV. It’s notable because it’s one of the only swords in the series that is generally reserved for the female characters in the Final Fantasy universe.

It was famously used by Beatrix in Final Fantasy IX as the leader of Queen Brahne’s army and is generally used y knights or paladin-type classes throughout the series. It is usually equipped with defensive abilities as well as strong attack power, making it incredibly valuable no matter which game you acquire it in.

Recurring Armor/Misc Items

Final Fantasy Genji Armor

Just as with the weapons of the series, Armor tends to reoccur throughout as well as several miscellaneous items that have their uses as well. There are several unique pieces that the series likes to showcase time and time again. Let’s take a look at some of them.

Mythril Mail

In the Final Fantasy games that do feature it, when you acquire some Mythril Mail, it’s generally some of the best equipment in the game.

Taking a page from the Lord of the Rings, Mythril is every bit as epic in this version of High Fantasy. Stats that generally follow it from game to game are elite defensive abilities and, on occasion, some magical properties as well.

Genji Armor

This armor type has been in tons of games as well as spinoffs throughout the series. When you acquire it, it has some of the best defensive capabilities in the game.

Its signature is that it’s usually only able to be found one time throughout each game, and that’s usually because it’s either dropped by Gilgamesh or stolen from him at some point. Genji Armor occasionally comes with the ability to heal the character wearing it constantly, making it an invaluable item to come across.

Ribbon

Although it may seem pretty innocuous in terms of the wild things you can acquire in Final Fantasy games, the Ribbon is among the most useful items in the entire series.

It is one of the only items to have appeared in every single main Final Fantasy game, and that’s a testament to its usefulness. Whoever wears the Ribbon will be impervious to all status effects.

Angel Wings

These are unique accessory that is found in multiple titles throughout the series. Its main feature is to give whoever has equipped it the ability of Auto-Float.

This makes it so that any physical attacks will completely miss whoever has the Angel Wings, although they can still be hit by magic. It’s appeared in spell form throughout the series as well in the form of Float and is usually signified by a pair of Angel Wings appearing on the character.

Bangles

Bangles usually are arm-based equipment in Final Fantasy games, and they take on a variety of forms throughout the games. One of the most common effects a Bangle will have is the increase of the character who is wearing its’ HP. It also can provide a sizable defensive boost as well.

Recurring Items

Phoenix Down

Throughout the series, more so than weapons and Armor, the items of Final Fantasy games have remained the most static. While there are a few unique ones to each game, the majority share the exact same ones, and it’s one of the top ways you can recognize a Final Fantasy game.

Phoenix Down

In any RPG, there is a time when you’re going to have a party member die in battle. In Final Fantasy games, there are generally two ways to get your party back, the spell Revive or the item Phoenix Down.

Phoenix Downs brings your character back to life with a small percentage of health and is generally shown as a small phoenix rising from the character when it’s used. Phoenix Downs can also be used as a weapon, acting as an instant kill to any enemy that is undead or afflicted with the status zombie.

Ether

Magic is a big presence throughout the Final Fantasy series, and regardless of the game, it’s always governed by some kind of magic point system. While some titles in the series regenerate that meter after battles are over, others don’t and will require user maintenance to be able to use magic again. That’s where Ethers come into play.

These will replenish a portion of your magic bars, and they come in various forms, including one that will completely fill your magic or even ones that replenish the party’s magic as well.

Elixir

Coming across an Elixir in a Final Fantasy game is generally both a blessing and a curse. The reason is that an Elixir completely heals all your health and magic in one fell swoop.

The problem is determining when the best time to use it is. They are generally pretty rare, so choosing your spot to use it is a tricky endeavor and is usually best reserved for the toughest bosses you can face.

Remedy

Remedies are usually overlooked when it comes to Final Fantasy games, and for me, I’ve always found myself in battles where I need much more of these than I’d have on hand.

Remedies completely cure your character of any status effect in the game and can be a godsend when facing enemies that deliver multiple ones at the same time, like the Malboro, an enemy who can deliver every status effect in the game in one devastating attack.

Cottage

The Cottage appears in tons of Final Fantasy games, and it’s incredibly unique because of one thing. It cannot be used in battle. Unlike most items in the game, the Cottage can only be used on the world map.

When used, the Cottage restores all of the HP and MP of all your party members. In games where this doesn’t recharge after battles, it can be incredibly useful and is especially good to have when you’ve been wandering without a Save Point in sight for a while.

Potions

The old standby that has been in every Final Fantasy game and spinoff imaginable. The Potion is usually the first item you receive in any Final Fantasy game, and regardless of what point in the game you’re at, these will be helpful as they restore a portion of a single character’s health.

Some games let Potions restore more health than usual after acquiring certain abilities. There are better variations available as well, such as the Hi-Potion and Mega-Potion, but these are far rarer and usually pretty expensive to purchase as well.

Unique Equipment

Final Fantasy Megaphone

Although many pieces of equipment show up multiple times throughout the series, there are unique items in each game as well.

Blitzball

I’ll admit that I wasn’t a huge fan of Wakka using a dodgeball as a weapon for Final Fantasy X, but it went well with his character and certainly made him stand out because of it.

He can light the ball on fire and deliver huge damage with it via his Slot Limit Break, but regardless of how many big numbers pop up on the screen after the attacks, the animation of him chucking a ball really hard at the face of Sin, an immortal whale-like monstrosity will never not be funny to me. Final Fantasy X is the only game to have such a weapon.

Gunblade

For my money, the Gunblade is the coolest weapon throughout all of Final Fantasy. As its name suggests, it’s a combination of a gun and a sword, and the result is an amazing-looking weapon that has a unique capability.

While playing as Squall in Final Fantasy VIII, you can trigger the Gunblade with proper timing during battle to release an explosion that does way more damage.

This was the first hint of interactivity mid-combat the series had seen in the 3D era, though it wasn’t followed up upon with future games. The weapon had a sleek look, with a revolver as the handle and a massive blade as the sword.

Hand Cannon

Final Fantasy had generally been a very high fantasy type of environment until Final Fantasy VII. When that title dropped, immediately, the vibe was completely different, and part of that vibe was introduced via Barrett, a hulking man with a machine gun for an arm.

This was the first time in the series one of the main party members wielded a weapon of this sort, and it helped bring Final Fantasy to the next generation at the time. The Hand Cannon could be altered throughout the game, taking on several forms, including a high-powered laser at one point.

Doll

While it doesn’t seem like much of a weapon, Lulu’s Doll in Final Fantasy X provides her the ability to cast some of the most devastating magic in the game. She acquires new ones throughout the game, and each one ups her ability to deal out better and better damage.

The lore on how she channels her magic through the doll is never fully explained, which renders Lulu and her weapon of choice one of the most unique and mysterious things in all of Final Fantasy.

Megaphone

Cait Sith is easily one of the more bizarre characters in Final Fantasy games as he is a cat that controls a robot. If that’s not strange enough on its own, his weapon is a Megaphone. Yes, an actual Megaphone is used as a weapon in Final Fantasy VII, and the result is one of the strangest looking characters delivering the strangest looking attacks imaginable.

You certainly can’t knock Square Enix for their creativity here, but man, this is easily the most bizarre inclusion in a game that I can think of.

Fork and Knife

While Cait Sith is pretty weird, Quina might take the cake. Quina is a playable character in Final Fantasy IX that is a chef, and she also eats pretty much everything in sight. Because of that, her weapon of choice is a Fork and Knife, and it’s a disturbing sight to see as Quina’s appearance is a bit disarming, to begin with.

She also attacks with her tongue hanging out of her mouth, giving the visual that this character would like nothing more than to devour any foe she’s up against. Thankfully, we’re on her good side in the game.

FAQs

Question: What is the Strongest Weapon in Final Fantasy?

Answer: It varies for each game, but the Ultimate Weapon is generally found in many games and represents the best weapon in the game for the main character on several occasions.

Question: Which is the Easiest Final Fantasy Game?

Answer: Final Fantasy XV is by far the easiest Final Fantasy because of its lenient death system, which requires your characters to be downed twice before finally succumbing to their wounds.

Question: Is Final Fantasy Multiplayer?

Answer: Generally, the answer is no, but there are some exceptions, such as Final Fantasy XI, Final Fantasy: A Realm Reborn, and several of the spinoff titles as well.

Conclusion

Final Fantasy equipment is among the most unique you’ll find in all of gaming. While western RPGs have defined their own serious and realistic style over the years, Final Fantasy has also created one as well, and it’s one of the most fantastical and imaginative ones out there.

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