Cactuar



The Cactuar is a recurring enemy from the Final Fantasy series as well as appearing as a summon. Cactuars are little cacti, typically depicted having stiff arms and legs, three black holes for their faces, representing two eyes and an oblong mouth, and three reddish quills at the top of their heads. They have their own language, mostly consisting of variations of the word "Ge-ka", which resemble squeaks and warbles to the ear. Cactuars in Final Fantasy X appear to speak Al Bhed.

They were originally known as Cactrots, and later renamed to cactuar. Other variations of cactuar include Qactuar, Kactuar, Cactuer and Cactoid. Other languages refer to them as "Pampa", "Kyactus" and "Cactilio".

The cactuar's debut appearance was in Final Fantasy VI as an enemy in the desert near Maranda on the World of Ruin.

Profile
According to an article in the 15 February 1997 issue of V-Jump, the cactuar was designed by Tetsuya Nomura based on a doodle he drew on a notebook when he was a high school student. They bear a resemblance to Japanese "", a type of clay figure made for ritual and funerary uses.

Cactuars are usually very fast, and tough to hit. Their HP is usually low, but their defenses are high and they often yield large amounts of gil and EXP. Often, they counter most attacks with 1000 Needles (Blow Fish in some versions of Final Fantasy V and Final Fantasy VI), which always deals 1000 HP of unblockable damage that ignores Defense. Usually, this ability can be learned as Blue Magic.

In some games, such as Final Fantasy IX, cactuars may be underground and will only counterattack if they are hiding. Some games have stronger versions of this attack, such as the 10,000 Needles. Cactuars are often weak to Water.

The Gigantuar, also known as the Jumbo Cactuar, is a recurring boss type of cactuar. They are bigger versions of the cactuar and sometimes sport a mustache. In some occurrences, Gigantuar has the attack "10000 Needles", with an additional "99999 Needles" in games where the max HP limit is more than 9999.

As a Summon

 * See Cactuar's summon sequences here.

The cactuar has also appeared as a summon from time to time. Usually becoming available after defeating the Jumbo Cactuar, the cactuar uses 1000 Needles as its main attack, though this does not necessarily inflict 1,000 points of damage.

Final Fantasy VI


Cactuars, titled Cactrots in the original SNES English translation, have their first appearance in Final Fantasy VI. They can only be found in a small desert near Maranda in the World of Ruin. Cactuars leave behind 10,000 Gil and 10 Magic Points, the largest of any common enemy.

A Gigantuar can be fought in the Advance and mobile versions after the player defeats ten cactuars. If it is defeated, the Cactuar magicite is available. When summoned for 50 MP, Cactuar randomly uses "1000 Needles" on all enemies, or an attack called "10,000 Needles?" that does 9,999 damage.

Cactuar's magicite grants +2 Speed at Level up.

It teaches the following spells:
 * Teleport x20
 * Vanish x10
 * Hastega x5

Final Fantasy VII


There are two type of cactuars; the regular cactuar found in the Corel Desert, and the Cactuer found at Cactus Island (south of Cosmo Canyon). Cactus Island is only accessible through the use of the Highwind or gold chocobo.

Cactuers can be morphed into Tetra Elementals, an accessory that absorbs fire, ice, lightning, and earth magic.

A cactuar can also be made to appear in the Snowboarding game at Gold Saucer, as an extra figure to race the player during Time Attack mode.

Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII-
Cactuars appear during Chapters 6 and 10. They will not attack during these chapters, but will when encountered in extra missions.

Before Crisis -Final Fantasy VII-
The Sabotender and Sapotender are the two variants of cactuar.

Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-
Large numbers of Kactuars can be fought in three special missions. A Kactuer also appears in the final mission, dropping Cactus Thorn. Cactuar appears as a summon on the DMW after obtaining the Cactus Thorn. 1000 Needles hits enemies a total of 18 times dealing damage based on the level of the DMW. A cactuar also appears from the safe later occupied by Lost Number if the player inputs the correct code.

Final Fantasy VIII


While a recurring enemy common in Kashkabald Desert, they are far more prevalent on Cactuar Island southeast of the location. After defeating the Jumbo Cactuar, the Cactuar can be obtained as a Guardian Force. Obtaining Cactuar in the Steam version earns the player the achievement Cactuar.

Normal Cactuars yield very little (around 2 to 3) EXP, but do yield 20 AP, the most of any regular enemy and even some bosses.

The Cactuar Guardian Force uses its signature 1,000 Needles move like the other Cactuars, however, the damage is calculated by the first digit in Cactuar's level times 100. At level 100 it will always do 10,000 damage to all enemies, one of the few attacks that breaks the damage limit. Because the damage is fixed, Cactuar cannot be boosted. Cactuar is a notable Guardian Force in that it has all the Bonus abilities learned, letting the player easily give permanent boosts to any character's stats all at once.

Cactuar's compatibility is boosted by 20 when summoned, and its compatibility with the user decreases by 1.6 if the player summons another GF. Unlike most other Guardian Forces, Cactuar doesn't have an "opposing" GF whose summoning would greatly decrease compatibility, nor does casting magic have any effect on its compatibility. The compatibility item Cactus Thorn increases compatibility by 3.2, and the LuvLuvG by 20.2, as with every other GF.

Stats
The following table represents the base stats:

Abilities
Abilities learned naturally by Cactuar are listed below:

Chocobo World
Cactuar is one of Boco's friends and assists him on his quest to find MiniMog, and later on in his quest to save Koko. He helps by finding items for them to use throughout the game.

Final Fantasy IX


Cactuars appear in the desert areas on the Outer Continent and Forgotten Continent. They usually hide underground and counter any attack with 1000 Needles. They can cast Confuse and use a turn to emerge above ground; after doing so, they won't use their counterattack anymore but instead hide again after being attacked. The Cactuar is the only enemy Quina can eat to learn its signature 1000 Needles move.

Final Fantasy X


The cactuars are native to the deserts of Bikanel Island. A sidequest involves Ten Cactuar Gatekeepers guarding the entrance to the Valley of the Cactuars in the Sanubia Sands. The player can obtain special spheres for locating each cactuar, which leads the player to the Mercury Sigil.

Another variation is the Qactuar, which migrated from Bikanel to the Thunder Plains where Gandof sealed them within statues. Praying at any three Qactuar stones will cause a spirit to appear. Following the spirit of the Qactuar and praying at the broken tower will reveal a chest containing the Spirit Lance, Kimahri's Celestial Weapon, if the is pressed.

The Cactuar King is another, tougher version of the Cactuar. It is bred and fought at the Area Conquest section of the Monster Arena. The monster becomes available after collecting at least one of each fiend found at the Thunder Plains, and the prize for unlocking it is 99 Chocobo Wings. Defeating it will net some Blessed Gems.

Twelve of Lulu's Dolls are based on the Cactuar. These dolls may increase AP, reduce MP cost, give Counter abilities, Preemptive abilities, Magic Booster or the Sensor ability.

Final Fantasy X-2
The cactuars of the Cactuar Nation return under the guidance of their leader, Marnela. Their life-cycle involves starting off as cacti before becoming mobile and later returning to a cacti state, though there are rogue cactuar who refused to abide by it and were thus sealed off. These cactuar can enlarge monsters with their needles. A young Al Bhed boy named Benzo is able to communicate with the cactuar.

The Ten Cactuar Gatekeepers are again gathered from across Spira to save the Cactuar Nation from their mortal enemy, Angra Mainyu. Marnela sacrifices her life to protect the Cactuar Nation until they are gathered. During the quest, the player also has the opportunity to fight the Jumbo Cactuar the rogue cactuar create. If a cactuar is the last enemy and it runs away while one of the girls is trying to attack, the girl will run off screen in pursuit. She will be visible again when everyone does their victory pose. It takes 15 kills to Oversoul a Cactuar-type enemy.

Rikku's initial reaction to the Mascot dressphere is that she wanted to be a cactuar, which is actually Paine's weapon for this dressphere.

Final Fantasy X-2: Last Mission
Cactuars appear on floors 15 to 19, 27 to 30, and 75 to 77.

Cactuars have high Evasion and are difficult to hit with physical attacks. They lack the ability to attack from a distance and can only attack when adjacent to the player, but their "X-Needles" attack never misses and can completely destroy one's primary dressphere in one hit. Cactuars are not hostile unless provoked, and are only a problem when encountered in hallways and block the way past. It is recommended to attack them from a distance if battling is necessary.

A Black Mage's magic can kill it in one hit from a distance, provided one has high Magic, a Dark Knight's Doom ability will kill the Cactuar after five turns, and a Lady Luck's MP Dice can deplete the Cactuar's MP (depleting 14 MP in total will render it unable to cast "X-Needles").

Final Fantasy XI


Cactuars are a monster of the Sabotender family (the name commonly used for Cactuar in the Japanese games). The game marks the first time in the series that the monsters have deviated from their established design.

Members of the Sabotender family reside in the Kuzotz region—mainly in the Altepa Desert, Quicksand Caves and Kuftal Tunnel. They are aggressive to players by sound, and their 1000 Needles ability deals a total of one thousand points of damage to all targets within the area of effect. 10,000 Needles follows similar suit, and is used by Notorious Monsters in the Sabotender family.

The Sabotender family has two peculiar notorious monsters in the Altepa Desert, including the well known Cactrot Rapido. Unlike their weaker cousins, these notorious monsters are not aggressive whatsoever, and run at high speed throughout the desert, ignoring all forms of provocation other than defending their fellow Sabotenders. As such, these monsters are unable to be grabbed for battle via normal means (i.e an attack spell), instead parties that hunt these NMs do not sit in one spot waiting for them to appear; rather, a normal Sabotender attacked and held until the notorious monster stops running to join in the defense of its cousin.

Cactuar is also the name of a cross-shaped constellation in the middle of the stellar map. At one time, a group of meteors observed falling from the location of the central star and was dubbed the "Thousand Needles Shooting Star".

Final Fantasy XII
Cactoids and Cactites are docile creatures found in the Dalmasca Estersand and Dalmasca Westersand. They will usually not attack unless provoked and are often found sleeping peacefully. Cactoids are not cactuars in the traditional sense, but share many traits, mainly being mobile cactus-esque beings. As they are only encountered early, they are not seen using a '1000 Needles' attack or any variation as most cactuars do. They can drop Bundles of Needles when defeated while holding the Dragoon's Monograph.

One of the hunts in the clan primer is the Flowering Cactoid, which looks similar to an ordinary Cactoid but with a flower on its head. It will attack unprovoked and can be found with the ordinary Cactoids in the Dalmasca Estersand. It is the only enemy in the game that can use the 1,000 Needles attack.

Later in the game, the party can also obtain the 1000 Needles attack as a technick from the merchant at the Mosphoran Highwaste.

Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings


The Cactoid is the Rank I Earth Ranged Yarhi. It attacks with 1000 Needles to deal minor damage.

Final Fantasy XIII


Cactuars are rare enemies in Gran Pulse's Archylte Steppe. They have 777,777 HP and use Kick as their attack. If not attacked in the beginning of a battle, the Cactuar will transform into a stronger version. There is a rare variant called the Flowering Cactuar that usually attempts to flee the battle, but may use powerful magic attacks as well.

The game also includes the Gigantuar, which can be fought in Cie'th Mission 54 on the Archylte Steppe. Its main attack is 10,000 Needles, which deals exactly 10,000 damage and sometimes deals Pain and Fog.

Additionally, there exists an uncolored version with a mustache in the game's data.

Final Fantasy XIII-2


The Cactuar appears in the Archylte Steppe, as does its larger brother, the Gigantuar. Defeating three Gigantuars will unlock a sealed Time Gate. Other types include the Metallicactuar, Cactuaroni, Flowering Cactuar and Metal Gigantuar.

Each type of Cactuar may be recruited as a party member at the end of battle. In addition, the Cactuarina and Cactuarama may also be recruited with the use of Moogle Throw.

In Academia -500 AF-, green Cactuar-shaped statues are used as checkpoints within the maze of floating blocks. In a Brain Blast quiz in Academia, it is also revealed that Cactuar signs are used for symbols for emergency exits in amusement parks.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 Fragments After reveals Snow Villiers was branded by the fal'Cie Cactuar with a Focus to find Serah Farron and fight alongside her in her fated battle.

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII
Cactuars appear as an enemy in the Dead Dunes. A cactuar statue is also placed prominently in the town of Yusnaan. Lightning can also obtain cactuar-related adornments: Cactuar Figurine and Cute Cactuar Figurine.

Final Fantasy XIV
Cactuars are common sights in Thanalan, and unlike in other games, can be encountered even at low levels. The weaker ones use lesser variations of their infamous technique "1000 Needles" such as "100 needles". Stronger cactuars, such as the Sabotender Del Sol, still use a full 1000 needles.

Cactuars retain their classic pose from earlier games while walking around, but adopt a more combative stance when engaged in battle. Players can also obtain a minion known as a "Cactuar Cutting" from a high-level game sidequest.

Final Fantasy XV
A cactuar figure has been spotted in trailers, positioned atop a cactus plant.

Cactuars will appear as enemies. They will be powerful opponents that can dodge Shift Breaks.

Final Fantasy Type-0
Cactuars appear as recurring enemies in the Berith Desert, Cetme District, and Old Lorica. The Kactuar and Blooming Cactuar also appear as enemies in the Berito Desert.

In the story, the traitor among the "Four Champions," which included Class Zero's instructor Kurasame Susaya, was said to have owned a pet Cactuar just like how Kurasame has a pet Tonberry. Though the traitor perished in his attempt to kill all his comrades, his Cactuar is said to still lurk in Akademeia. The player can randomly encounter the pet Cactuar while exploring certain areas of Akademeia. These areas include: Terrace, Chocobo Ranch, Back Garden and the Airship Landing. Sighting the Cactuar for the first time has it drop a l'Cie Stone. It also drops an item needed for completing a task and couple random items, including a Crystal Shard and a Wizard's Hat.

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles


Cactuars appear in Lynari Desert in all three cycles. They are fairly scarce regardless of Cycle.

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life as a King
Cactuars appear as normal enemies in various dungeons. The Jumbo Cactuar is a boss which can be fought in the Infinity Spire.

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life as a Darklord
Cactuar appears as a summon, however, it cannot attack; instead, it cures its allies. Its speed is Sprightly, and it takes one slot to summon. It is obtained in Chapter 3, in Quartint Hills 3.

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time
Cactuar makes a cameo appearance. In the desert on the overworld, casting magic on the cactuar shaped cactus will make two to four scratch cards pop out.

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers
Cactuars appear as enemies. When a water attack is used on one, it grows to immense proportions. The player can pick up cactuars and use their special attack 1000 Needles against other enemies. It is also possible to acquire a cactuar emblem.

Final Fantasy Dimensions
All Cactuar enemies used the same sprite, however the Gigantuar sprites are scaled up by stretching pixels to varying degrees.


 * Cactuar
 * Cactuar King
 * Super Cactuar
 * Gigantuar

Dissidia Final Fantasy


Cactuar appears as a summon. It uses 1,000 Needles on the opponent's Bravery points, reducing them by 1,000. If the opponent's bravery is less than 1,000, their bravery is reduced to zero, without inflicting break. Cactuar can be obtained as a Stage Bonus on the Destiny Odyssey IX storyline.

Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy
Cactuar returns as a summonstone, with the same function as in Dissidia. He can be purchased from certain Moogle Shops for 60 KP.

Theatrhythm Final Fantasy
Cactuars appear as enemies during Battle Music Sequences (BMS).

Pictlogica Final Fantasy
Cactuar appears as an enemy.

Final Fantasy All the Bravest
The Cactuar appears as an enemy inside the Fabul Waterways. It uses 1,000 Needles and drops the Kotetsu.

Final Fantasy Record Keeper
Cactuar species make appearances throughout the game, most frequently as bonus targets during certain Special Events. Appearing in singles, they can sometimes drop Orbs that are one or two levels above those that would drop from a more common foe.

As a standard enemy, they are found within the intermediate to advanced Records of Final Fantasy VI and in the Monday Daily Dungeon, the latter basing itself on Final Fantasy VI for the enemies drawn.

Dr. Mog is shown to own a figure of a Cactuar, which can be seen in the background whenever the player accesses their Item Chest.

Chocobo no Fushigi na Dungeon and Chocobo's Dungeon 2
The Cactuar also appears as an enemy class and a specific enemy. Oddly, they attack primarily with Gil Toss, though some types can use Poison Needle. They can also drop a large amount of gil upon defeat.

Chocobo Racing
The Cactuar is a secret character. In order to unlock it, the Story Mode must be beaten six times. Afterwards, the cactuar can be selected by holding R2 while the cursor is over Squall. It is unique in that the cactuar does not use a vehicle to race, and rather runs around the track.

Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon
Cactuars are fairly enigmatic enemies in this game, as their movement speed doesn't work like that of most enemies. They technically have the same movement speed as chocobo, but they are allowed to move two grids or attack once each turn, making them hard to fight. They have long-range skills such as Gil Toss and 1000 Needles. They also appear as a Dry Cactuar variant in the Guardian of the Light dungeon.

Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo Tales
Cactuar is an earth element, and has six cards under his name.

Final Fantasy: Unlimited
The cactuar used to live in a peaceful desert until they were attacked by the Wandering Ocean, which destroyed their home and forced them to hide underground. Thanks to the Comodeen and Kaze, the cactuar gained the courage to use their own lifeforce to create a whirlwind that destroyed the Wandering Ocean. Everyone mourned the deaths of their fallen comrades, until it was revealed the cactuar could be revived with sunlight. Fungo was the only one of the heroes to translate the cactuar language.

The cactuar were all voiced by Etsuko Kozakura in the Japanese version. Herba uses a similar group of cactus creatures as servants, referred by her as her "Cactibabies", last seen in "Fungus: Eternal Life" obtaining an Omega crystal and almost all of them were destroyed by Omega's aura in the process.

Final Fantasy Trading Card Game
Cactuar appears in the trading card game with Wind- and Earth-elemental cards.

Triple Triad
Cactuar from Final Fantasy VIII and Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-, and Sabotender from Final Fantasy XIV appear on Triple Triad cards in the version available via Final Fantasy Portal App.

Itadaki Street series
Cactuars appear in Itadaki Street Portable.

Cactuars also appear in Itadaki Street Special.

Dragon Quest X
Characters dressed in a Cactuar can be seen in the world of Dragon Quest X, they also pose with the iconic Cactuar pose.

The Cactuar appears as a secret character in the sports game,  along with a Ninja, a White Mage and a Black Mage. This is mainly because Square Enix developed the game. Cactuar's special shot is 1000 Needles.

Unique to its design in this game and the Nintendo Wii spiritual sequel, Mario Sports Mix, in which it was also an unlockable character, the cactuar's design incorporates segmented limbs, giving the arms and legs a jointed appearance, which may have been intended to make it look flexible enough to play basketball. He is the fastest player in the game.

Cactuar is unlocked by first unlocking Glare Desert, which is unlocked by scoring 800 points in Jr. Street, playing in the Star Cup. Once Glare Desert is unlocked, Cactuar's head appears in the sand. Dribble the ball on it causes it to move. After dribbling on it a few times, it will run away. Once this has been done, win the match to unlock Cactuar.

Cactuar reappeared in Mario Sports Mix for the Nintendo Wii alongside the same four unlockable Final Fantasy characters with which it debuted. It can be unlocked by playing 60 Matches or by completing the Cactuar Mission at Star Cup.

series
The Cactuar is a special ship that can be obtained in the Kingdom Hearts series. In the original  the player can unlock the blueprint by defeating 1000 Heartless and then talking to. This can be done after locking the. In , by receiving an S-Rank in (Mission 2), the blueprint for the Special Cactuar ship is received. It costs 1197 munny and requires 198x Material-G, 8x Fire-G and 2x Orichalcum-G gummi blocks to build.

Cactuars make an appearance in the ending cutscene of Hanjuku Hero 4 as drawings.

In The Bouncer, another game made by Squaresoft, one of the main protagonists, Volt Krueger, has three pictures of a Cactuar on his jacket.

Lord of Vermilion
A Cactuar appears as a card in the card game Lord of Vermilion III.

They reappear in Lord of Vermilion Arena.

Roblox
In the online game , the player can purchase a hat called "Cactrot". The hat's description, "Desert, South of Miranda. World of Ruin. Watch out for Blow Fish", is a direct reference to Final Fantasy VI (the original term for 1000 Needles was "Blowfish"). The player can purchase it for 1000 Tix, or ROBUX, another reference to the 1000 Needles ability. It is even in the form of a cactus wearing a small hat.

Rise of Mana
Cactuars appear in the Rise of Mana.

Sword Art Online II
A cactuar appears as a profile picture and it wears a blackglasses while video-chatting with Death Gun.

Trivia

 * In the description of the Cactuar in one of the Final Fantasy games on PlayStation, the Cactuar was going to be described with the sentence "It ejaculates needles!". This was because the game was being translated by a Japanese speaker. His reviser, Alexander O. Smith, managed to change the description before the game's release, as while it is technically accurate, it carries the unfortunate connotation of one particular meaning of the word "ejaculate".
 * Players can buy a Cactuar as a pet in the Xbox Live Avatar Shop.