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FINAL FANTASY In '' Final Fantasy '', the ancient Lufenian civilization ("Lefeinish" in the original North America n Software Localization ) was renowned for their skill and manufacturing airships. In the present, however, all but one of those airships has been lost to time. The one remaining airship, lacking a power source, lies buried beneath the desert. Only by obtaining the anti-gravity Levistone ("Floater" in the original North American software localization) can the ship be salvaged from the sands and returned to the sky. In the ''Final Fantasy I'' remakes, the Lufeinians reference an ancestor named Cid as the creator of their airship. The airship in ''Final Fantasy'' moves roughly four times faster across the world map than standard walking speed. It can't land on any area other than plains, but traveling via airship does prevent the party from encountering random battles. FINAL FANTASY II In '' Final Fantasy II '', much of the power of the Palamecian Empire is derived from their mastery of the skies. Cid's airship frequently shoots across the skies when the player is traveling the Overworld . Fleeing from the captured city of Fynn ("Phin" in the original Japanese version), four youths deliver news that the Emperor plans to build a gigantic airbound warship called the ''Dreadnaught'' to Fynn's princess-in-exile, Hilda. In order to stop the warship, Hilda and the youths enlist the aid of Cid , one of the world's only freelance airship pilots. Using Cid's ship, the rebels hope to turn the tide against the Emperor. FINAL FANTASY III A total of four airships appear in '' Final Fantasy III ''. The first of these airships, owned by Cid Haze , is bequeathed to the four protagonists of the game to help them lift the curse placed on the village of Kazus by the demon Jinn. Following the defeat of Jinn, Cid and Kazus's village blacksmith outfit the airship with a Mythril bow that allows the ship to plow through the rock slide that has blocked the mountain pass between the villages of Kazus and Canaan. Although the bow does its job, the airship is torn apart in the process. Later, after obtaining the sailing ship ''Enterprise'' from Vikings, the four heroes use machinery salvaged from the Floating Fortress to convert the ''Enterprise'' into an airship. While slightly faster than Cid's old airship, the ''Enterprise'' is still unable to cross mountains, and, because it was created as a seabound vessel, it can only land on water. While traveling over the city of Salonia, the ''Enterprise'' is mistaken for an enemy vessel and shot down. Realizing their mistake, the scholars of Salonia develop a new airship for the heroes. Designed to be both lightweight and aerodynamic, the ''Airship Nautilus'' is the fastest airship in the world. Only the ''Nautilus'' can travel through the high-wind mountain passes that would repel a slower ship. Later, the ''Nautilus'' is modified by the wizard Dorga so that it can travel underwater and find deep sea caves. Like Cid's airship, the ''Nautilus'' can only land on grassland. Finally, the ''Airship Invincible'' is the largest airship ever devised. Four times the size of the ''Nautilus'', it features its own shops and sleeping quarters. Because of its size and weight, the ''Invincible'' must stay in the skies at all times: it is necessary to exit the ship via a small boarding ladder that hangs beneath it. The ''Invincible'''s engines are powerful enough to briefly boost the ship into higher flight than any airship before it. However, because of the power required, it can only maintain such high altitude for a very short period of time: only long enough to pass over small sections of mountain. Lastly, the ''Invincible'' includes a single cannon defense system to be used against the airborne monsters who appear very late in the game. In PlayStation spin-off '' Chocobo Racing '', the S.S. Invincible is an unlockable 'racer' capable of speeds greatly surpassing the regular characters of Chocobo's Racing. The S.S. Invincible's speed is even higher then custom-made characters in the game's "Edit Parameters" mode. Its high speed, although useful in races without the dangers of falling off the course, is sometimes a bit too fast, sometimes causing the racer to repeatedly hit the wall before getting on with the race. FINAL FANTASY IV Much of the story of '' Final Fantasy IV '' involves airships. While Cid Pollendina is credited with the invention of airships, it is actually the Lunarian KluYa who introduces the idea to humans. As chief Engineer of Baron , Cid created a military fleet of airships, known as the Red Wings. Cecil Harvey begins the game as the commander of the Red Wings, but is relieved from the role when he begins to question the King's judgment. It is later revealed that the power-obsessed king is in fact Cagnazzo, the Elemental Lord of Water, in disguise. Cecil defeats Cagnazzo, and is joined by Cid. Cid gives Cecil and the rest of his party access to his airship the ''Enterprise'' (no relation to the ''Final Fantasy III'' ship of the same name). The ''Enterprise'' is modified to carry Edward's hovercraft. When Cecil and Cid take the ''Enterprise'' to the Underworld , it is caught in the middle of a battle between the Red Wings and the Dwarven Tanks. After an emergency landing at the Dwarven Castle, Cid leaves the party to fix the ''Enterprise''. When exiting the Underworld, Cid closes the entrance to the Overworld, so the Red Wings cannot follow. Cecil later enters the Underworld in a trap which drops him to the Underworld level of the Tower Of Babil . They then steal an enemy airship, which Edge dubs the ''Falcon''. The ''Falcon'', however, cannot fly over magma, which covers much of the Underworld. Cid and the Dwarves modify the ''Falcon'' to allow it to withstand the extreme heat, as well as adding a drill to the airship so that it can burrow its way back to the surface. In the Tower of Worship of Mysidia , the mages magically raise the ancient Lunarian ship, the ''Lunar Whale'', from the sea floor. The ''Lunar Whale'' is a gigantic vessel capable of short-distance space flight between the earth and the Red Moon, which KluYa used years ago for his own Moon-to-Earth voyage. FINAL FANTASY V Airships in '' Final Fantasy V '' do not exist in the present, but were the results of the labor of an ancient civilization. During their journey, the party stumbles upon an airship. Cid , the engineer and scholar of the kingdom of Karnak, with the help of his grandson Mid, fix the airship with the use of a rare metal called adamantite. The party has to spend many quests to obtain this adamantite to upgrade the airship. After the completion of the airship repair, more adamantite must be found in order for the party to get to the Earth Crystal, as the metal is used to reach a gigantic flying fortress. Later in the game, the airship is upgraded even more, until it has the capabilities to become a submarine, as well as a boat. FINAL FANTASY VI ''The Blackjack'' In '' Final Fantasy VI '', the gambler Setzer Gabbiani first appears with his ship the '''''Blackjack''''' to abduct Celes from the Opera House during a show. The airship is decorated like a casino and has its own personnel staff. The ''Blackjack'''s final flight takes place after Kefka rearranges the Esper Goddess Statues and defaces the World Of Balance . The resulting chaos destroys the ''Blackjack'' in mid-flight and scatters its passengers. ''The Falcon'' The game's other airship, the '''''Falcon''''' (no relation to the ''Final Fantasy IV'' ship of the same name) belonged to Setzer's long lost friend Daryl, who crashed it after a race with him many years ago. Setzer discovered the wreck a year later, but Daryl was nowhere to be found. He fully restored it and put it underneath her resting tomb. After making their way through Daryl's Tomb in the World Of Ruin , the Returners find the ''Falcon'', their only means of reaching Kefka's Tower. FINAL FANTASY VII As well as the traditional Final Fantasy Airship, in '' Final Fantasy VII '', a Gelnika Type B Jet appears, as well as a Tiny Bronco. Instead of a classic ship as well, a Submarine is available. Unlike the latter two, the Gelnika Jet is not controllable, it is a location once it has crashed into the sea. The game's only airship is first shown in the town of Junon . The ''Highwind'' is used by Shin-Ra, which is headed by Rufus Shinra at this point, to track Sephiroth . Cid Highwind leads the party inside the airship to escape from Junon. One of the famous promotional pictures, seen above left, shows Aerith Gainsborough standing before the Highwind. In the game, however, she dies before the chance to ride it; this picture is thus one of the arguments in debate on whether or not it's possible to revive Aerith in the game. However, Aerith does have a chance to see the airship in Junon airport, and mentions it to Cloud in the cargo ship on the way to Costa del Sol, so this argument appears to be mostly unfounded. Shortly after Meteor is released, Cid leads the crew of the ''Highwind'' in order to rescue and evacuate the party from Junon; after this point the airship falls into the hands of the player's party. It is used as a command center by Cid as the party attempts to locate the missing leader of the party, Cloud Strife , and later allows the party to paradrop into the city of Midgar . The ''Highwind'' later takes the party to the Northern Crater in preparation for their confrontation with Sephiroth and allows the party to escape. Although the ''Highwind'' features no weapons capability in-game, Cid's Limit Break "Highwind" involves a swarm of missiles launched from the airship. The ''Highwind'' undergoes two transformations; one occurs when the main propeller and pod-mounted propellers are jettisoned in favor of jet engines, and the second occurs in the final cinematic, where Cid triggers an "emergency" function leading to the deployment of a much sleeker airship. In ''''. FINAL FANTASY VIII The first form of airship found in '' Final Fantasy VIII '' is the Balamb Garden mercenary academy building. The Garden is forced to transform into a transportation method to escape missile bombardment from the Republic of Galbadia. The ''Ragnarok'' is the name of the main airship in ''Final Fantasy VIII''. Also a spacecraft, it was used, along with two similar craft, by the nation of Esthar to send the sorceress Adel into space to finally rid the world of her (or so Esthar believed) and put an end to the second Sorceress War. Seventeen years later, Squall Leonhart and Rinoa Heartilly are rescued from being lost in space when they drift near the ''Ragnarok''. Upon boarding the ship, Squall and Rinoa discover that the ship has been raided by monsters and the ship's crew eradicated. After purging the ship of the creatures, the two return to the planet, where Selphie Tilmitt (accidentally) assumes the role as the ship's pilot. The quadruped-esque ''Ragnarok'' is a heavily-armed ship, equipped with several rapid-fire turrets, manipulator arms, and a large beam cannon mounted beneath its hull. While none of the weapons are usable by the player, they are used in an FMV sequence when Squall and company initiate their assault on Lunatic Pandora. The obtaining of the ''Ragnarok'' in ''Final Fantasy VIII'' uses symbols from the Norse legend of Ragnarok , the Viking doomsday, from which the name is borrowed: after the player obtains the ship, the sky, land, and sea on the game map all turn red, signifying the death of the gods (sky), man (land), and the devils (sea). The known specifications for the ''Ragnarok'' are as follows. Weight: 2,850 tons without propellant, charge, or occupants; 3,134 tons with one third propellant, full charge, and full occupancy; 3,450 tons with full propellant, full charge, and full occupancy. Length: 108 meters Width: 77 meters Height: 54 meters in landing configuration, 65 meters in flight. Complement: 4 crew (navigator, wireless operator, cannoneer, and cox), 10 passengers. Armaments: 609 mm charged particle cannon, 152 mm multi-barreled laser x2. Maximum Speed: 11.8 km/s FINAL FANTASY IX '' Final Fantasy IX '' has many airships. Cid Fabool , even if he is a king, likes airships and mechanics in this game and is the builder of the ''Hilda Garde'' series of airships. Hilda Garde I — The ''Hilda Garde I'' was considered a magnificent piece of technological engineering. The airship, which was the first to run without the use of a mist engine, was stolen by the ship's namesake and the Regent's wife, Hilda Garde, after she discovered the womanizing ways of her husband and turned him into an Oglop . The airship was later taken from her by the powerful Kuja who used it for his deeds. Not long after being reclaimed, it was retired after construction had finished on the superior ''Hilda Garde III''. This ship cannot be used by the player. Hilda Garde II — The ''Hilda Garde II'' was a failed attempt by Cid to reproduce the stolen ''Hilda Garde I''. The ''Hilda Garde II'' was poorly designed because of Regent Cid's hampered skills as an oglop and frog. As a matter of triva, the ''Hilda Garde II'' was mistakenly replaced by the ''Hilda Garde III'' in an FMV intended to feature the ship. This ship is also unusable for the player. Hilda Garde III — The ''Hilda Garde III'' was the third airship designed and built by Regent Cid. After Cid was reunited with his wife, she transformed him back into a human, and just after promising his faithfulness to Hilda, he began to design and build the ''Hilda Garde III'' so that Zidane and his allies would be able to travel unrestricted around the world. The airship was built by cannibalizing the Blue Narciss, which had previously ferried the party across the oceans of Gaia. The Invincible — The ''Invincible'' (no relation to the ''Final Fantasy III'' ship of the same name) is the final airship in ''Final Fantasy IX''. The ''Invincible'' appears as an eyeball in early memories of Princess Garnet Til Alexandros XVII , and she remembers it as the destruction of her hometown. It is only revealed later in the game what is beyond the eye. The ''Invincible'' comes to the party's rescue when Trance Kuja sends Terra to its doom. FINAL FANTASY X .]] '' Final Fantasy X 's'' airship belongs to the Al Bhed , a race of Machina users rejected by the rest of Spira for this same reason. Upon its first appearance, the party are simply passengers aboard the ship and Cid is in control of flight. Later, when the party reaches Bevelle, they lose use of the airship. Eventually, the party gains full control of the airship and use it as they see fit. Initially, the Airship was a machina from the Machina War, probably used by Bevelle (as they used the better machina). It obviously fell into the sea near Baaj and near the start of Final Fantasy X, Tidus and Rikku must activate the power in some ruins so the Al bhed could salvage it, most probably as a transport for the Al Bhed race. it was used as an escape vessel because of the attack on the Home by the Guado. ''Final Fantasy Xs airship doesn't allow free-roaming around a world map unlike previous games in the series. Instead, the player selects an available destination from a list and the ship takes them there directly and instantaneously. While not as interactive as previous airships in terms of manual navigation, the ship does serve a number of purposes in the game. The interior of the ship is very large, large enough that there are two separate save points on board. At one point in the story, the ship serves as the eszatz home of Rin and a number of other Al Bhed. A battle occurs on the airship in which the player can interact with Cid , the ship's captain. The ship is also part of the sidequest in which Rikku obtains her Celestial weapon. Perhaps most importantly, the ship becomes an important element in the game's plot as it is an integral part of the heroes' plan to finally defeat Sin once and for all. Although not revealed during the game, the sequel stated that this airship was called ''Fahrenheit'''''. The only known weapons are missile launchers on the top and 2 giant lance-shaped cannons on the underbelly of the ship, as well as 7 tow hooks. FINAL FANTASY X-2 ''Celsius'' is the name of the airship in '' Final Fantasy X-2 ''. Like Final Fantasy X, the player can't control the airship directly on a world map, but instead get to choose from a list of locations. The main difference is that the player can use the ship from the start of the game and get to choose to where they want to go, in a non-linear way. Brother , who was introduced in ''Final Fantasy X'' as Cid's son, is the leader of the Gullwings, a group of sphere hunters including Yuna , Rikku and Paine , and so therefore, is the airship's owner. Most of the party's interactions occur inside the ''Celsius''. FINAL FANTASY XI There are many methods of traveling in '' Final Fantasy XI ''. The airships can be used in the game to travel between the four major cities in Vana'diel and a town called Kazham . To ride an airship, a player must obtained a rank of five in any of the starting nations. This is not the same as a character level. Alternatively, a player can pay 500,000 Gil to obtain a pass earlier. Airship tickets are 200 Gil each way, and no monsters will attack whilst on-board. ''Final Fantasy XI'' In the peace treaty after the Crystal War, San D'Oria demanded Bastok's airship armada be destroyed, as it was the long time enemy of Bastok. In a comprimise, Bastok sold the fleet to Jeuno, who used it to ferry adventurers and trade goods between cities quickly. Cid also wants your character to clandestinely acquire supplies to build another armada, because of the increasingly dangerous situation developing in Vana'diel, and because Cid has started to doubt Jeuno's motives. This has to be done by an independant group such as yourself, as it involves stealing the power regulators from Jeuno. FINAL FANTASY XII '' Final Fantasy XII '' takes place in the land of Ivalice, although not necessarily the same Ivalice of the ''Final Fantasy Tactics'' games. The airships of this game are quite varied; they come in a myriad of shapes and sizes, but all are relatively high-tech aircraft. The party's primary airship is known as the Strahl. Most of the other airships bear the names of traditional ''Final Fantasy'' Summons such as '''Ifrit''', '''Leviathan''', '''Atomos''', '''Shiva''', '''Alexander''', and '''Bahamut'''. Some of the dungeons in the game are in fact the interiors of airships. FINAL FANTASY TACTICS During the era of St. Ajora, several centuries before the start of the '' Final Fantasy Tactics '', the land of Ivalice was dominated by kingdoms which relied on the power of airships. The abandoned city of Goug was a major center of industry, and, though long since abandoned, many airship parts can still be found scattered throughout the wreckage. The so-called "graveyard of airships" in the netherworld of Murond Death City consists of several downed ancient airships, and it amongst these ruins that Ramza Beoulve and his army find the last of the Zodiac Braves, Altima. FINAL FANTASY: UNLIMITED In the '', Cid creates an airship he named Silvia that requires flying water to run. The main party has to travel to end of the Wonderland Sea in the submarine Jane to obtain the water. Cid had planned the airship to be used to raid the flying fortress Gaudium. Unforunatly he never used the airship in combat, but Cid is seen piloting Silvia in the end credits of the final episode. |
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