Kefka Palazzo/Dissidia (PSP)

Kefka Palazzo is a villain fighting for the side of Chaos in Dissidia Final Fantasy and Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, representing Final Fantasy VI. An insane sorcerer with a lack of scruples, his attacks are generally magic-based, but more chaotic than basic spells. Coupled with his erratic movements, Kefka's main skill is to annoy his opponents with his contemptuous manner. He shares his goal of destroying everything with most of the other villains, but handles any hindrance with extreme prejudice, regardless of the offender's allegiance. Kefka's short-term goal is to use the power of his rival, Terra, to further his plans and seize control of her again.

While Terra is his rival in the original Dissidia Final Fantasy, Kefka's main rival in the Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy storyline is Vaan, whom he detests for breaking Terra free of his control.

Dissidia Final Fantasy and Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy
Kefka's appearance is designed from his original Yoshitaka Amano artwork rather than his Final Fantasy VI sprites. His clothing is colorful with a variety of polka-dots and stripes, with red and yellow being predominant. His trademark blond hair and white and red facial makeup are present, and his lips are outlined in purple in a manner resembling a Glasgow smile.

Kefka's first alternate costume, "Zebra Tights," is based on and resembles. Kefka wears an outfit with more blue and white colors with a red, white, and blue ruffle around his neck and a white cape. His EX Mode in this outfit is a darker purple god form with a purple loincloth, white angel wings, and red and black demon wings.

Kefka's second alternate outfit, "Snobbish Turban," is based on, and resembles Kefka's. He wears an outfit in various shades of green with gold and red details, puffed sleeves, and a green and yellow skullcap. His lip makeup is dark blue and his EX Mode is based on Rest, one of the two final opponents in the Statue of the Gods leading up to Kefka in the final battle in Final Fantasy VI. Kefka has light blue-gray skin with a dark blue loincloth, golden angel wings and black demon wings.

Kefka's manikin, Phantasmal Harlequin, is red.

Default

 * Beauty Clown A - Default coloration. An updated version of his Yoshitaka Amano art.
 * Beauty Clown B - 1st alternate coloration. An updated version of his "Zebra Tights" attire from the PSP games and 16-bit battle sprite.
 * Beauty Clown C - 2nd alternate coloration. Colors his attire primarily green and red, and is identical to his 16-bit field sprite.

Alternate costume

 * Snobbish Turban - 1st alternate costume. An updated version of his attire from Dissidia 012 and alternate Amano art, but with his equipped weapon now visible above his head.

Weapons
Kefka's weapon type are Ornaments:
 * My Neat Hair Ornament - Default weapon. Kefka's feathered ornament functions as his "weapon", as dubbed by Kefka himself.
 * Jolly Hair Ornament - 1st alternate weapon. An original weapon design for Kefka, which resembles a Jester cap.
 * Mysterious Hair Ornament - 2nd alternate weapon. Another original weapon for Kefka, it loosely resembles a colourful turban with plumes at the top.

Kefka's alternate weapons have not appeared in any game prior, and are newly made for the Dissidia series. They reference his status as the court jester of Gestahl.

Personality
Kefka's personality is similar to his appearance in Final Fantasy VI. While Kefka remains maniacal, twisted, psychopathic, and short-tempered, Dissidia Final Fantasy displays Kefka as more manipulative, even manipulating his peers. He taunts any peers who fall to the Warriors of Cosmos, as evidenced by his actions to Kuja when the latter is defeated by Lightning, prompting her to compare him to the manikins, with Kefka agreeing. Kefka is childish, referring to his actions as playing, and throwing temper-tantrums.

He is antagonistic towards the Warriors of Cosmos, but does not take them seriously as a threat. In Shade Impulse Kefka expresses his nihilism, although it is painted in a more sympathetic and tragic light, with the implication that his loss of sanity resulted in a "broken heart" and he is no longer able to understand hope and dreams. Similarly, when confronting Terra in Shade Impulse in Dissidia 012, the latter, after Kefka chants "destroy" in a mantra, ponders if Kefka himself was feeling tormented as well.

Kefka remains snarky, abrasive, and confident of his victory foe even when he appears outmatched. His battle quotes are often slandering, exempting mirror matches, where he is entranced by his own image.

Treachery of the Gods
In Dissidia Duodecim Prologus Final Fantasy, Kefka is the second Warrior of Chaos Lightning and the Warrior of Light face. He tells Ultimecia to let him handle them, but is defeated.

Overhearing Kuja speaking with Cloud about memories, Kefka decides to "help" the two, arranging the chain of events leading to Cloud's defection by talking Sephiroth into attacking Tifa and revealing the battle to Cloud. After a brief interaction with Kuja, Kefka learns Kuja was going to lure the Warriors of Cosmos into a trap and informs the Emperor and Ultimecia of this development, even stating they should lie in wait to aid Kuja in case he needs assistance.

Due to Kuja's own scheme, however, Kefka finds himself unable to control Terra and retaliates by gathering the Emperor and Ultimecia, revising their original plan to foil Kuja's scheme and expose him to the Warriors of Cosmos he was attempting to align with. Kefka is impressed with Kuja's scheme and encourages him to try again in the next cycle, although he intends to be a witness to the young man's defeat, and nags Kuja into showing him what he is made of against Lightning. After Kuja is defeated, Kefka approaches Kuja as he is fading away and mocks him for his failure.

Though Kuja is defeated, Kefka takes in it stride and implies his intentions of supplying Kuja with fake memories upon his revival for the next cycle. Lightning is disgusted at Kefka's treatment of Kuja, but he dismisses it, and hints at the reviving nature of the conflict before taking his leave.

Kefka finds his prize "toy" Terra unwilling to fight, and tortures her until Vaan intervenes. Rendered giddy by the fight, Kefka fails to notice Vaan running off with Terra, yet remarks she will return to him eventually, as well as implying that this was not the first time she escaped from his control. Kefka joins the group under Garland to stop Lightning's team from advancing, battling Vaan, asking him to return Terra, before falling back. Afterwards, Kefka attacks the Cloud of Darkness for her part in the rift's closing, having her memories erased.

Light to All
After talking Exdeath into confronting the Onion Knight and Terra, refusing to accept he has lost the latter to Cosmos, Kefka recruits the Cloud of Darkness to help him unlock Terra's full power. While recruiting the Cloud of Darkness to capture Terra, he unintentionally alludes to Terra's prior service to Chaos in front of the still-amnesiac Cloud of Darkness. After the Cloud of Darkness is defeated and the Onion Knight obtains his crystal, Kefka finds out about the Cloud of Darkness's loss, boos, and resolves to turn Terra directly, having found the Cloud of Darkness useless. He briefly saves Terra and the Onion Knight from the Cloud of Darkness's particle beam to have Terra rejoin them.

Kefka appears before him and with Terra having forgotten about being a Warrior of Chaos and no memory of her battle with the little knight, Kefka mocks her, calling her "destruction incarnate" while firing spells at her to get her to awaken her cataclysmic power. Kefka claims Terra is better suited to fight for Chaos than against him, and extends an offer to her to rejoin him. Onion Knight attacks and Kefka teleports them away to the World of Darkness, leaving Terra alone to search for her friend. The Onion Knight questions Kefka's obsession with Terra, but Kefka rebukes by referring to him as an imitation hero. Kefka's taunts haunt Terra, and have her relapse before Cloud stops her.

Kefka meets with the Emperor concerning Sephiroth's plans, but Kefka does not care as he feels Sephiroth is "yet another sadist with a god complex." Kefka is surprised to learn from the Emperor that Sephiroth killed himself in front of the Emperor in the last battle, and they decide to keep an eye on him. Terra encounters Cloud after her powers reach breaking point upon remembering Kefka's taunts about her being destruction incarnate. Cloud takes the brunt of Terra's attacks and joins her to look for the Onion Knight.

They find Kefka and again she refuses his offer, having found hope for a future where dreams like those of Firion can come true. Kefka summons the Cloud of Darkness to assist him before the Onion Knight arrives to give Cloud a hand in holding off the Cloud of Darkness, while Terra fights Kefka alone. Kefka, likewise, decides to just destroy her due to viewing her not wanting to destroy anything as cowardice, also being disappointed that her powers didn't destroy her mind. Kefka bombards her with spells while demanding that she "play" with him, until she stops running and fights him. Terra overcomes Kefka and he fades away, still declaring he will get her back.

Kefka appears with Kuja, telling him to acquire some "bait" for Zidane, but Kuja protests that his friends cannot be kidnapped because they travel together. Kefka tells Kuja Squall travels alone, prompting Kuja to attack Squall and try to capture him, telling him to "kill two birds with one stone".

When Bartz falls into a trap laid for Zidane, Kefka appears before him and, still sore about having lost all chances at getting Terra to return to the Warriors of Chaos, refuses to tell him where Bartz is. The two duel and Zidane wins. Kefka tells Zidane Bartz has been taken to enemy territory and makes a brief appearance directly afterward, where Kuja complains Kefka botched his plan, only for Kefka to shrug off the accusation and taunt him with the failure. Kuja plotting to use the setback to trick Bartz into getting Zidane into a trap by using a fake crystal perks Kefka's interest.

After Chaos has killed Cosmos, Kefka appears along with Exdeath to ridicule the heroes, as they begin to fade away as a result of the goddess's death. He is confronted by Terra in his tower and taunts her for her role in Cosmos's death. Terra defeats him, and Kefka laments the futility of existence before self-destructing and fading away with a sorrowful laugh. Terra speculates Kefka desired destruction because he could not perceive anything else in life and needed it to fill his broken heart.

Official Quests
In "Sephiroth's Quest 012: The Hero's Memory" during the twelfth cycle, Kefka speaks to Sephiroth about the latter's desire to recover his memories. Though Kefka doesn't see the point of such a desire, he tells Sephiroth that fighting someone from their own world will make him "see things differently". Kefka appears in "Cloud of Darkness' Quest 013: The Power of Destruction", where, after they kidnap Terra in the thirteenth cycle, he and the Cloud of Darkness discuss the value of Terra as a minion with their supply of manikins running low.

Dissidia Final Fantasy and Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy
Kefka is described as a Mad Mage. His attacks consist of various magical projectiles that move in erratic patterns and hit over large areas, allowing him to catch opponents by surprise. His attacks usually have a lag or leave Kefka stationary while he manipulates the attack, leaving him vulnerable to counterattacks. Another drawback is that Kefka has slow ground movement, and many of his Bravery attacks can be blocked. As an upside, when they do hit his Brave attacks often do high damage.

Boss
In Dissidia Final Fantasy, Kefka is fought in Destiny Odyssey VI and IX, Shade Impulse, Distant Glory, and Inward Chaos.

In Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, Kefka is fought in Stern Eyes, An Undocumented Battle, The Chosen Path, Trust, and Conclusion of the Cycle chapters of Story Mode.

Bravery Attacks

 * DFF2008
 * Dissidia 012

HP Attacks

 * DFF2008
 * Dissidia 012

EX Mode
Kefka's EX Mode is Power of Destruction where he transforms into his God of Magic form as seen in the final battle of Final Fantasy VI. In EX Mode Kefka gains the abilities "Glide" and "Exhilarating Magic". Glide lets Kefka fly through the air by holding, while Exhilarating Magic augments his attacks in various ways, such as firing more projectiles, hitting over larger areas, and improving their tracking. This makes Kefka's attack even more erratic and difficult to defend against.

Kefka's EX Burst is Warring Triad, named after the trio of deities from Final Fantasy VI. Kefka attacks the opponent with Ultima, then leaps back and conjures a field of energy. Three button commands flash over Kefka's head, and the player must input the commands in the order they appear. If the buttons are input incorrectly, Kefka will use a stronger version of Forsaken. If the buttons are correct, he will use Light of Judgment, smiting opponents from above with a beam of light.

Equipment
Kefka can equip Rods, Staves, Instruments, Bangles, Hats, Hairpins, Ribbons, Clothing, and Robes. In Dissidia 012, Kefka can also equip Poles and Headbands.

Exclusive weapons

 * DFF2008
 * Dissidia 012

Dissidia Final Fantasy NT

 * Type: Marksman
 * Unique System: Charge Attack

Voice
Kefka is voiced in the Japanese versions by Shigeru Chiba.

He is voiced by Dave Wittenberg in the English versions, who voices him with a high-pitched, comical, cheerfully-deranged tone that sometimes drops down to an intimidating growl. This is similar to various portrayals of the DC Comics supervillain, the Joker.

Gallery

 * Dissidia and Dissidia 012

Allusions

 * Kefka's weapon, Dancing Mad, is named after his final battle theme, while his Lamia Flute originates from a Final Fantasy IX weapon for Eiko Carol.
 * A lot of Kefka's dialogue is based on the Final Fantasy VI script.
 * Against the Emperor, Kefka says "You are less than worthless!", his rebuke to Emperor Gestahl. When using Extra Crispy Firaga, Kefka yells "You'll be well done!", derived from "Run! Run! Or you'll be well done!", his line when Gestahl was escaping the Warring Triad's judgment.
 * When facing Cecil in Dissidia Final Fantasy, he says "Goody two-shoes!", his riposte to Leo.
 * "I hate, hate, hate, hate, HATE YOU!", a line he speaks on defeat, is derived from his dialogue to Celes after she stabs Kefka instead of her friends in the SNES/PS versions; he also quotes this in Destiny Odyssey VI shortly after he teleports himself and Onion Knight away from the Chaos Shrine.
 * "Don't think you've won this!" and "Graaah! I'll remember this!" are from his defeat at Narshe.
 * "You're lower than lower than dirt", is based on "You may as well be the dirt on the bottom of my boots! Or the dirt stuck to the bottom of that dirt!" in the GBA version of Final Fantasy VI. It is also referred to during Destiny Odyssey III in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy when Kefka insults Cloud of Darkness.
 * Kefka's line when facing Jecht, "Meatheads, meatheads everywhere", is similar to Ultros's exchange with Sabin.
 * It also mirrors his line in the GBA/iOS/PC versions when encountering Sabin and Shadow at the Imperial Camp near Doma, "Gah! Pests at every turn! Guess I'll have to take care of you, too!"
 * When Kefka denies Terra's request to know how the Warriors of Cosmos were responsible for Cosmos's death, Terra says "Stop fooling around!". In the GBA/iOS/PC translation for Final Fantasy VI, Emperor Gestahl, when Kefka demands that the Warring Triad use Gestahl as a demonstration of their true power, tells Kefka, "Stop playing around!"
 * When against Exdeath, Kefka says, "Destruction without death? BORING," which is comparable to his final battle dialogue; "What fun is destruction if no precious lives are lost?" On a related note, his line after Terra tells him none of his actions make sense, "Destruction isn't supposed to make sense! It's only fun when it's senseless!" is similar to the aforementioned final battle dialogue. Shortly before Terra fights him in Destiny Odyssey VI, Kefka says "I'm going to destroy... EVERYTHING!!", referring to his line to the Returners in the SNES and PS versions: "I will exterminate everyone and everything!" The full line, "Hopes aren't worth DIRT! I'm going to destroy... EVERYTHING!!", also resembles his line right before fighting the party in the ending of the GBA/PC/iOS versions, "Such meaningless things... I'll destroy them all!!"
 * During Shade Impulse, Kefka delivers several lines that mirror his dialogue before the final battle in Final Fantasy VI. Dissidia Kefka Speech.jpg If it is someone other than Terra, he greets them with "Welcome, dear, dear friends. I've been thinking of just the right thing to say when we met again", similar to his GBA/iOS/PC line "Welcome, friends! I knew you'd come, so I've been practicing my greeting!" If playing as Terra, Kefka says "Destruction is the fate of all things!", alluding to his line to the Returners in the GBA/iOS/PC version, "Embrace your destruction! It is the fate of all things!" After being defeated by Terra, he paraphrases various excerpts of his speech before the final battle in Final Fantasy VI; "Beyond the chaos, the end draws near", which is based on the SNES/PS ("The end comes... beyond chaos.") and GBA/iOS/PC ("The end draws near...") localizations of his line when preparing Forsaken. In addition, part of his final words, "Destroy! Destroy! Destroy!" are derived from the line from the SNES/PS version "No! I will hunt them down! I will destroy it all! Destroy! Destroy! Destroy!!" A similar reference to the above line was made in the pre-battle exchange between Terra and Kefka in "Light to All: Conclusion of the Cycle" in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy. If the player defeats Kefka as a character other than Terra, the post-battle narration will quote Kefka's nihilistic speech on creation and life.
 * When delivering his nihilistic speech upon being defeated by Terra, he delivers it in a depressed tone. This may allude to Kefka briefly pausing, as if sad, upon hearing the Returners' reasons for continuing to persist in the World of Ruin prior to the final battle.
 * The line "Destroy! Destroy! Destroy! Destroy!!" line from Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy also resembles a line he uttered when killing General Leo in the GBA/iOS/PC versions: "Die! Die! DIE!!"
 * When Lightning asks them to step aside in the final stages in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, Kefka responds with "'Step aside' she says. Do we look like side steppers?", alluding to Kefka's exchange with Sabin, "'Wait' He says! Do I look like a waiter?"
 * Kefka's opening quote to Kain Highwind, "Well, look who it is, the traitor," a near-direct quote of what he says to Celes Chere shortly before the Battle for the Frozen Esper.
 * One of Kefka's Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy win quotes refers to Kefka's first appearances, where he orders two soldiers to "clean [his] shoes!"
 * A sample voice clip of Kefka's in the theater is "Such magnificent power!", his line before demonstrating his strength to the party in Final Fantasy VI.
 * When fighting Vaan in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, he says "You're about to learn why 'oppose' rhymes with 'dispose'!" paralleling his orders before invading Narshe, "There's a reason 'oppose' rhymes with 'dispose'!"
 * When using Forsaken Null and while chasing Terra during Destiny Odyssey VI, Kefka briefly enacts the pose from Amano's artwork. On victory, he assumes a variation on the pose from.
 * Shortly after being forced to teleport himself and Onion Knight to the World of Darkness in Destiny Odyssey, Kefka refers to Onion Knight as an "imitation hero" when rebuking him, referring to Onion Knight having an equivalent role to Locke Cole.
 * During EX Burst, he will descend from above, similar to his introduction in the final battle of Final Fantasy VI. Golden lights shine upon him, alluding to the battle's scenery. If he uses Forsaken, the camera's perspective changes to that of a 2D Final Fantasy battle, with Kefka taking on the pose of his final battle sprite. The screen zooms on Kefka's face, a reference to when Kefka's facial expression is displayed before he prepares it.
 * Kefka's EX Burst, Warring Triad, refers to the three gods he absorbed power from to become a god himself. The color of the three circles that surround him corresponds with the trio's appearance; the top blue circle reflects Goddess, the right red circle reflects Demon, while the left yellow circle represents Fiend. Their positions relative to Kefka refer to him taking their power on the Floating Continent, with Kefka standing in-between them.
 * On victory, he breaks the fourth wall by humming the "Victory Fanfare".
 * Kefka's attacks are based on his final battle script in Final Fantasy VI; his Firaga, Blizzaga, and Thundaga in Dissidia Final Fantasy are variations of the normal versions he uses.
 * Kefka controls Terra in Destiny Odyssey III using a "Puppeteer's Wheel", a reference to Kefka using the slave crown on Terra in Final Fantasy VI.
 * Excluding chase sequences, Kefka's Havoc Wing is his only physical attack, as in Final Fantasy VI.
 * One of his opening lines before fighting a weaker character is "Do you think you can beat me?" This refers to a line Kefka stated when an esper's attack failed to hurt Kefka during his raid at Thamasa, "Imagine! Thinking you could defeat ME!!"
 * In Cid's Report 5, when Kefka attempts to goad Sephiroth into fighting Cloud to force the latter to continue to fight, he tells the latter he was "One born solely to fight," alluding to what he said to the Warring Triad in the SNES/PS versions of Final Fantasy VI shortly before demanding that they unleash their full power, "Goddesses...You were born only to fight."
 * In Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, Kuja attempts to sneak Zidane and his friends behind enemy lines to fight Chaos himself, but Kefka, the Emperor, and Ultimecia stop them, with Kefka claiming that Kuja's plan was to betray them in the end. This mirrors when Celes in Final Fantasy VI helps the party sneak into the Magitek Research Facility before Kefka tells them in the esper storage she is an imperial spy.
 * When Sephiroth faces Kefka in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, he says "Die laughing", similar to Gestahl's line to Kefka before he attempts to kill him on the Floating Continent.
 * When the Emperor faces Kefka in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, he says "Back to your cage, foolish jester", alluding to Emperor Gestahl placing Kefka under fake arrest to gain the Returners' trust and then releasing him to acquire magicite from Thamasa.
 * In Dissidia Duodecim Prologus Final Fantasy, the theme when fighting Kefka is "Esper Battle ~ arrange from Final Fantasy XII", alluding to Kefka's exploitation of the espers' power, before turning them into magicite.
 * Kefka in a mirror match compliments the other Kefka's appearance, alluding to how he likes looking at himself in the mirror according to his bio in Final Fantasy VI The Complete.
 * When using Heartless Angel in his debut trailer for Dissidia Final Fantasy arcade reboot, the landscape from Narshe turns into the World of Ruin in the same moment, which may allude to his role in causing the end of the world and creation of the World of Ruin in Final Fantasy VI.

Trivia

 * Kefka's exclusive weapon "Nephilim Flute" takes its name from the Nephilim, a group in the Hebrew Bible said to be the offspring of "the sons of god" (commonly interpreted to mean angels) and "the daughters of men". This could either be taken as a reference to espers, being humans granted magical powers by the Warring Triad, or to Terra, the offspring of the esper Maduin and the human Madeline.
 * Kefka is the only male character besides Cloud who can equip the "Pretty Princess" female-equipment set.
 * If Kefka begins Forsaken Null during EX Mode, and continues to keep the same Forsaken Null out after his EX Mode ends, that specific Forsaken Null will keep its EX Mode effects.
 * Kefka possesses the fastest attack in the game—in EX Mode, Ultima takes only one frame to execute. The only other attacks that execute as quickly as this are blocking abilities like Shield Bash and Omni Block.
 * The Japanese name for Kefka's "Exhilarating Magic" ability is Dokidoki Magic. "Dokidoki" is a Japanese onomatopoeia for a beating heart.
 * Much of Kefka's dialogue, as well as his tendency to change the tone of his voice mid-sentence, were ad-libbed by Kefka's Japanese voice actor, Shigeru Chiba. In particular, Kefka's use of "Ti-La-Pia!" as a magic spell in Shade Impulse is an example of Chiba's habit of using seafood-related puns when ad-libbing the dialogue of some of his anime roles.
 * Similarly, there was at least one ad-lib regarding fruit, a notable instance being when Kefka, in an attempt to draw out Terra's power in Destiny Odyssey VI, used "Ta-Pi-Oca!" as a magic spell.
 * In the English version, when Terra tells Kefka to "stop fooling around" in the second Shade Impulse cutscene, Kefka replies with "Sorry, ma'am." Kefka's tone when saying this, as well as the first Dissidia not placing the line in the subtitles, indicates a blooper that made the final cut.
 * Just before orchestrating the ambush on Kuja and the Warriors of Cosmos with Ultimecia and Emperor Mateus, Kefka refers to the term "Spoony Bard" in reference to Kuja.
 * Kefka is the second antagonist to appear in the arcade reboot.
 * Kefka is the first male shoot-type character in the arcade reboot.

Kefka Palazzo (Dissidia) Kefka Palazzo/Dissidia Kefka (Dissidia)