Dr. Odine

Dr. Odine (オダイン博士, Odain-hakase) is a non-playable character in Final Fantasy VIII. He is a scientist working for Esthar. He has a ludicrously big collar and speaks with a smarmy, German-like accent. He will do anything for his research, often demonstrating a lack of moral empathy for the ramifications of his inventions. As a result he has provided scientific knowledge for both sides of the conflict.

Story
Dr. Odine began his career as a monster researcher. Along the way, he discovered the beings known as Guardian Forces. With the cooperation of a sorceress, Dr. Odine became the first sorceress researcher, devising a mechanism that would enable ordinary human beings to use Para-Magic, a form of magic less powerful than Limit Breaks and Sorceress power. Para-magic saw an extensive use in Balamb Garden, which combined it with the power of Guardian Forces.

During the Sorceress War, he was hired by Sorceress Adel and eventually received information about Ellone and her abilities. When she was abducted Odine was allowed to study her, as he was also charged with the building and study of the Lunatic Pandora. When Laguna, Kiros, and Ward set out to rescue Ellone they were able to convince Odine to help them trap Adel in a containment seal.

It is unknown exactly what Odine did during the intervening years between the mutiny against Adel and Squall's arrival to Esthar however it can be summarized that Odine had a hand in designing the city's camouflage grid and might be in part responsible for the experiments that created the Great Salt Lake.

When Squall Leonhart and his companions arrived in Esthar City Edea Kramer, then one of Squall's companions, sought Odine in regards to his expertise in Sorceress Power. Later on Odine was called for again for assistance in a plan to disrupt Sorceress Ultimecia's attempts for Time Compression.

Odine Items
Fearful of Sorceress Adel, Odine had silently created items which were believed to hold a sorceress' power at bay. One of these items was the Odine Bangle, which Rinoa somehow acquired. She attempted to use it on Sorceress Edea but failed to put it on the sorceress and was almost sacrificed to a pair of Iguions as punishment.

Junction Machine Ellone
Though it is never revealed how the machine works or what it looks like Odine claims that he had studied Ellone's brainwave patterns and successfully imitated it into a machine. Going by this it can be assumed that the Junction Machine Ellone was a kind of mental time traveling device. This machine would later be improved upon in the future, when Ultimecia would use it to send her consciousness to the past to possess other sorceresses. Dr. Odine was proud that his machine was used in the future, even if it was for nefarious purposes.

Junction System
The Junction System is a device that allows a person to replicate the powers of a Sorceress via the storage and control of magical powers and Guardian Forces. The system itself is capable of storing 32 different forms of Para-Magic with a stock of 100 units of each form. The system acts as a type of filter, filtering out magic (known as Drawing) from a being or entity and storing it ready to be used or junctioned by the user. This allows the user to possess superhuman abilities such as increased speed and strength as well as being able to use magic as a weapon. Various Junction Systems are seen in wide use in the military.

Triple Triad
Dr Odine possesses a rare Triple Triad card of Ward Zabac. The card can be won from him in Esthar's Presidential Residence.

Dr Odine