Memoria (Final Fantasy IX)

Memoria is the penultimate dungeon in Final Fantasy IX.

Story
After the destruction of Terra at the hands of Kuja, Memoria appeared above the Iifa Tree. It is made from the memories of Zidane and his friends. The four Chaos guardians, Maliris, Tiamat, Kraken and Lich fight the party once more here. However, not only are the memories of Zidane's party here, but the very memories of Gaia itself. Throughout the Dungeon, Garland's voice can be heard, guiding the Party to their destination.

After the Battle of the Iifa Tree and entering Memoria, the party departs the Invincible, but they may return to it and leave Memoria at any time. The first area of Memoria is the Stairs of Time. After wading through several planes of recollections with the guidance of Garland, Zidane and his party are attacked by Marilis. The heroes next venture into their own pasts, and witness another annihilation of Alexandria. After passing the fateful scene and entering a Time Interval, they confront Tiamat. Continuing after the Chaos Fiend's defeat, the party ventures through several abandoned buildings and enter a waterfall, which brings them to an underwater memory of Gaia's earliest existence. The secret boss Hades can be fought here, who is the Master Synthesist referred to in one of Mogster's early lectures. He can synth two pumice pieces to create the Pumice that can be used to summon the Eidolon Ark.

Progressing further along the ocean floor brings the party face-to-face with Kraken, who is summarily defeated. Zidane's party moves on and witnesses a swirling sphere of fire surrounded by emptiness, which Garland reveals to be the birth of Gaia. They climb upwards into space and defeat the last of the Chaos Guardians, Lich. A glowing green portal warps them into a maze of stars, and Garland sends Zidane his final words before parting. The party wanders through a seemingly endless labyrinth of starry void before emerging in the Crystal World.

There are glowing orbs throughout Memoria that allow you to save, use Tent, or switch your party members. These orbs switch option also allows you to switch Zidane out of battle (example: your battle party can be Freya, Quina, Amarant, and Eiko.) Zidane will still lead the party though, just not in battle.

Excalibur II
If the player reaches the room called Gate to Space, where the party fights Lich, with less than 12 hours of game time completed then they are able to receive Steiner's strongest weapon: the Excalibur II. A message is left near the sword for Gilgamesh, written by Enkido, which says:

Gilgamesh is one of the few people to survive the void. This is reinforced by the fact that he can be found outside in Gaia, as Alleyway Jack, the man who steals from Garnet in Treno, and the Treasure Hunter in Daguerreo. He also appears in many of the other Final Fantasy titles.

Enemies

 * Ash
 * Behemoth
 * Chimera
 * Hades (Boss)
 * Iron Man
 * Kraken (Boss)
 * Lich (Boss)
 * Maliris (Boss)
 * Necron
 * Stilva
 * Tiamat (Boss)
 * Veteran

Treasures

 * Excalibur II*
 * Kain's Lance
 * The Tower
 * Mace of Zeus
 * Angel Flute
 * Rune Claws

Shops
NOTE: This is only available after the player defeats Hades.

Card Challenge
There are multiple Tetra Master locations in Memoria. In niches and corners of Memoria, the action icon (! or ?) will appear. However if you press the button, Zidane will look up and shake his head. If you press the button though as you would to challenge someone to a card game, you will talk to a ghost. The ghosts are advanced Tetra Master players who carry rare and strong cards, and they will also provide difficult card battles.

Musical Themes
The theme that places in Memoria is called "Place of Memory".

Etymology
Memoria is the Latin word for "Memory". This is a reference to the fact that Memoria is created through the party's memories.