Chimera

The Chimera (キマイラ Kimaira) is an enemy that appears in multiple Final Fantasy games. They are usually depicted as a monster made up of a lion, goat, and snake. Most varieties of Chimera attack with Fire-based attacks. Other types can use several types of elemental attacks, particularly in the later games. Common variants of the Chimera include the Chimera Brain, Chimerageist, Gorgimera and Rhyos. The Chimera family first appeared in the original Final Fantasy as an enemy at the Mirage Tower.

Final Fantasy


Chimera is an enemy in Final Fantasy and are fought in the Mirage Tower and a palette swap, Rhyos appears in the past Chaos Shrine. In the Dawn of Souls version of the game, a gray-furred version, the Mage Chimera is found in the Whisperwind Cove. Its signature attack is Blaze.

Final Fantasy II


The Chimeras appear as a boss, guarding the spring where the player must deposit the Wyvern Egg and later as random encounters in Final Fantasy II, usually in the Mysidian Tower. Rhyos and Chimera Sphinx also appear as palette swaps in the original, as well as Chimera Brain in the Dawn of Souls remake.

Final Fantasy III


The Chimera appears as a random encounter in the skies of the surface world in Final Fantasy III. A blue version, the Chimera Mage appears as a random encounter in the Temple of Time.

Final Fantasy IV


Chimera is a regular enemy fought in the Tower of Babil in ''Chimera Brain, appears as a random encounter in the Sealed Cave and Lunar Ruins (GBA version only).

Final Fantasy IV: The After Years
The Chimera reappears as an enemy in Yang's and the Lunarian's Challenge Dungeons, as well as in the Lunarian's Tale. The Chimera Brain appears in the Lunarian's tale as well as in Edge's Challenge Dungeon. The Chimera Geist appears in the Depths, being a very powerful enemy.

Final Fantasy V


The Dhorme Chimera is a randomly encountered enemy in Final Fantasy V. He can be fought in the desert near the Library of the Ancients. The Manticore is a boss fought at Gohn Meteorite. The Gorgimera is a stronger version that appears in the Interdimensional Rift.

A dummy version, the standard Chimera, appears with the use of cheats.

Final Fantasy VI


The Chimera is a random encounter in Final Fantasy VI. It can cast dangerous spells such as Aqua Breath, Snowstorm, Fireball, and Cyclonic. The Gorgimera, Vector Chimera, and Maximera appear as color variations all fought in different locations.

Final Fantasy VII


The Maximum Kimaira is a random encounter on the Mako Cannon in Midgar in Final Fantasy VII. It has a powerful attack called Northern Cross. A brown version, the Harpy, appears in the Gold Saucer Desert Area on the World Map. An insect-like Chimera, Kimara Bug, appears as an encounter in Gongaga Jungle.

Final Fantasy VIII


The Chimera is a random encounter fought in several places in Final Fantasy VIII. Each head corresponds with a different attack: the lion causes physical attacks, the lizard casts Aqua Breath, the hawk casts magic, and the snake head (on the tail) enforces status effects.

Final Fantasy IX


The Chimera is a demon enemy fought in Memoria in Final Fantasy IX. It is one of the strongest enemies in the game and can attack with Virus Crunch, which causes a character to be afflicted with Virus.

Final Fantasy X


The Chimera is a randomly encountered enemy in Final Fantasy X. The Chimera Brain is a variation appearing in the Calm Lands and the Chimerageist is an Area Conquest enemy.

Final Fantasy X-2
Although there is no enemy named Chimera in the game, the versions of the monster, Protochimera and Rhyos are present.

Final Fantasy XI


Khimairas are members of the Arcana family found exclusively in the form of Notorious Monsters. They were introduced in the Treasures of Aht Urhgan expansion.

Final Fantasy XII


The Chimera Brain is an enemy fought in Final Fantasy XII and is in the class of Cockatrice. They like to travel in packs. The Lesser Chimera and Gorgimera exist as other alternate colored versions and randomly encountered enemies.

Final Fantasy Mystic Quest


Chimera appears as an enemy in Pazuzu's Tower, Mac's Ship, and Doom Castle. They can cast elemental spells and inflict status effects. They are not much to worry about though.

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles


Chimera appears in the Lynari Desert and at Mount Vellenge. Theses are aggressive creatures that cast Thunder to paralyze the player. Their appearance is dramatically different from past Final Fantasy games.

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates


Chimera appear in two different forms, Chimera and Chimaiga. Their appearance is different from how they looked in Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles.

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time


Chimera are identical to their appearance in Ring of Fates. They can inflict heavy damage with their beams they shoot from their mouths, which causes the player to become disoriented (if hit).

Trivia

 * The Chimera is the only monster to have appeared in the first twelve games of the main series.

Etymology
The is a fire-breathing monster, one of the offspring of Typhon and Echidna. It is commonly represented with a lion's head, a goat's body, and a serpent's tail in Greek mythology. In modern usage, the term Chimera is often taken to mean any sort of hybrid between two or more races.

Gallery
Chimära