Gilgamesh (Dissidia)

Gilgamesh is a secret playable character in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, representing Final Fantasy V. Though he is a villain, he is not aligned with Chaos, instead, he is determined to find Bartz and challenge him to a "true rematch." Introduced as Exdeath's most prominent lieutenant, he was ultimately banished to the Interdimensional Rift after repeatedly failing his assignments. Since then, he began traveling between worlds, sometimes appearing to the player party to battle them, making him unique as a recurring comic relief character. Although Gilgamesh has appeared more times in the entire series than any other character, whether as a boss, summon, or a normal NPC, his inclusion in Dissidia 012 marks his first truly playable appearance.

In order to unlock him as a playable character, the player is first required to beat the entirety of the Dissidia 012 storyline, then complete the first chapter of the 013 story. The player will need to go to the Reports section and beat the sixth scenario in Report 8 with Bartz. It will unlock Gilgamesh in the PP Catalog as a purchasable character, which costs 300 PP.

Appearance
Gilgamesh's appearance in Dissidia 012 is directly based on his original artwork by Yoshitaka Amano for Final Fantasy V, which, in turn, is based on a design by Tetsuya Nomura. He wears primarily red and gray armor with yellow accents, gray shorts with red polka-dots, and a horned hood.

Gilgamesh's first alternate outfit, "Special Red Cloak," is based on his Final Fantasy VIII appearance, where he has lighter armor and a red cloak that obscures most of his head and face. During EX Mode, his appearance is stated to be based on his Final Fantasy XII design, though it moreso resembles his Master Creatures figure.

Gilgamesh's second alternate outfit, "Special Steel Armor," is based on his recurring sprite appearance. Gilgamesh wears heavier full-plate armor on his torso and arms with a hornless helmet. The lower half of his head is partially covered by a golden neck guard. His EX Mode is recolored to match his morphed appearance in Final Fantasy V while in the Interdimensional Rift, giving him darker skin, purple wrist guards, and black and red armor with purple jewels.

Gilgamesh's DLC costume "Great Genbu Armor" is taken directly from his upcoming appearance in Final Fantasy Type-0. He wears black and red turtle-themed armor, with a black tunic flaring down from his waist. His helmet obscures most of his face, and lacks horns. Gilgamesh gains an additional six arms for his EX Mode as in his other outfits, but otherwise his appearance remains the same.

Gilgamesh's manikin, the Fallacious Giant, is turquoise.

Story
Unlike the other characters, Gilgamesh was not summoned to the world the wars take place in, but instead stumbles upon it by chance and, in contrast with everyone else, retains his memories because of it. Wandering the depths of the Rift, Gilgamesh finds himself at Pandaemonium. Sensing the presence of his old rival, Bartz, Gilgamesh suddenly hears someone coming up behind him. He turns around, announcing his return to Bartz, only for Squall, Zidane and Vaan to appear instead. Much to his confusion, not one of them remembers him from his visits to their respective original worlds, due to the memory loss caused by being summoned to the cycles of war. Realizing Bartz is not among them, Gilgamesh walks off, leaving the three thoroughly confused. Just after he disappears, however, Bartz arrives, asking if he missed anything. Zidane asks him if he knows Gilgamesh, describing the swordsman's appearance. Suffering from the same memory loss as the others, Bartz doesn't recall Gilgamesh, and denies knowing such a person.

Some time later, Gilgamesh, wandering the Rift once again, has a short fantasy of how his rematch will play out with Bartz once he finds him. In this fantasy, the rematch ends in his favor, resulting in praise from Bartz while Gilgamesh enjoys his victory. Sensing Bartz shortly after this, coming to at the Rift and confused how he got there, Gilgamesh emerges from a portal high above, landing on the ground in front of Bartz. He assumes a kabuki pose as Bartz seems to begin remembering him. Deciding he doesn't recognize Gilgamesh after all, Bartz simply walks away, noting Gilgamesh as being "weird." Crushed by his rival's nonchalance, Gilgamesh reintroduces himself, trying to figure out why Bartz doesn't remember him. Repeating the speech he had fantasized shortly before, he explains how he had traveled to many worlds, and finally came back from the Rift to get his promised rematch with Bartz. Still confused, Bartz ends up being persuaded into fighting Gilgamesh, in a battle he ultimately wins.

Surprised Bartz has also been honing his skills since their last meeting, Gilgamesh declares the battle is only beginning, only for Bartz to point out he's fading. Much to Gilgamesh's surprise, he has been affected by the rules of the war, and, now defeated, must return to his original world (or rather, lack thereof). To his dismay, a portal opens beneath his feet and, despite his best attempts to resist, Gilgamesh is sucked back into the Rift, swearing to return for a true rematch against Bartz someday. Bartz notes something seemed familiar about Gilgamesh, and simply muses that he and Gilgamesh will probably meet again some day.

Official Quest
It is later revealed in an Official Quest which is only available for the japanese version of Dissidia 012, that Gilgamesh managed to escape again from the Rift after wandering for a short time. However, while looking for Bartz, Gilgamesh crosses paths with Exdeath. However, Gilgamesh seems to have forgotten Exdeath as his master and mistook him for his life long companion, much to Exdeath's irritation. He then challenged Exdeath to a series of matches and eventually regaining his memories of being Exdeath's follower as the warlock attacks him. Though Gilgamesh won against Exdeath, he finds himself being sucked back into the Rift and ponders whether he will be able to be freed from his eternal exile before disappearing. Exdeath then answers that he won't and that he should stay there because the Rift is suited best for him.

Battle
Gilgamesh is described as a Frenzied Swordsman, where he picks a weapon at random when attacking. This makes the strength and effects of his attacks unpredictable. Gilgamesh is mostly a mid to melee-range fighter, with quick close-range attacks and slower charging mid-range attacks. He does however have access to a handful of magic attacks that have decent range. His HP attacks are versatile across range as well. However, he moves a bit slowly, and the unreliable nature of his fighting style means his attacks have inconsistent power and range. The weapons he may use when attacking are as follows:

Each weapon's special ability is listed below:
 * Excalibur - All Bravery damage dealt is doubled.
 * Excalipoor - All Bravery damage is reduced to 1.
 * Naginata - Attack has greater range.
 * Masamune - Generates more EX Force than usual.
 * Genji Blade - Depletes the opponent's EX Gauge.
 * Zantetsuken - Has a chance of inflicting Bravery Break.
 * Battle Axe - Attack does random damage.
 * Chicken Knife - The lower Gilgamesh's HP, the higher the Bravery damage done.

EX Mode
Strongest Sword lEXZN68uX6g Gilgamesh's EX Mode is Gilgamesh Morphing Time, in which he transforms into his true form as seen in Final Fantasy V, giving him eight arms, different armor and a monstrous-looking helmet. While in EX Mode, Gilgamesh gains the ability "Octo-Break," which causes each arm to wield any of the eight weapons used by him in battle. Whatever weapon(s) Gilgamesh is holding, their relevant attacking bonus is applied to all his attacks, while weapons that affect his attack power alternatively activate their effects. This makes the exact benefits of Gilgamesh's EX Mode impossible to predict, but make his attacks much more reliable since the player knows exactly what effects will occur when he attacks. Some of Gilgamesh's attacks are also augmented to fire more projectiles, deal more hits, and/or hit over larger areas.

Gilgamesh's EX Burst is Strongest Sword, where seven blue Excalipoor and the red Excalibur rotate around in a circle in front of Gilgamesh. The player must press to select the Excalibur as it rotates around. Gilgamesh performs several attacks with the blade and finishes the combo with Ultimate Illusion, an attack used by him in Final Fantasy XII, in which he jumps up and crashes down to the ground, striking the opponent with a shock wave to deal HP damage. If the Excalipoor is chosen Gilgamesh will deal only one damage per hit, then look at the blade, realize it's not the Excalibur, and exasperatedly throw it away. The Excalipoor will fall on the enemy, dealing HP damage.

Equipment
Gilgamesh can equip Swords, Daggers, Greatswords, Katanas, Spears, Axes, Thrown Weapons, Parrying Weapons, Shields, Gauntlets, Large Shields, Helms, Light Armor, Heavy Armor, and Chestplates.

Allusions

 * Gilgamesh's exclusive weapons are katanas of varying strength. They are obtained in their respective order of strength, with the Osafune being low-ranked, the Kotetsu being mid-ranked, while the Yoshiyuki (also known as the Mutsunokami) surpasses them both.
 * Gilgamesh's HP attacks are based on those he used in several battles during Final Fantasy V.
 * Gilgamesh's weapon arsenal references his weapons throughout the series, and have effects that also draw back to famous weapons:
 * Masamune, Excalibur and Excalipoor are recurring abilities he may perform when summoned.
 * Excalibur, in particular, is the legendary blade Gilgamesh is searching for in several games.
 * One of Gilgamesh's trademark weapons is Excalipoor, a false Excalibur Gilgamesh mistook for the real one in Final Fantasy V. Both Excalibur and Excalipoor resemble the fake Tournesol he wields in Final Fantasy XII.
 * The Masamune is Sephiroth's variation, albeit with a slightly shorter blade.
 * The Genji Blade alludes to the Genji equipment Gilgamesh carries in his appearances, which can be stolen or dropped from him. In Dissidia 012, the Genji Blade appears as a fake of Auron's version of the sword from Final Fantasy X, much like the counterfeits Gilgamesh wields in Final Fantasy XII. It bears a Japanese character denoting it as fake, which echoes Gilgamesh's false Buster Sword.
 * Zantetsuken is Odin's weapon, which Gilgamesh is in possession of in Final Fantasy VIII and Final Fantasy XII. In Dissidia 012, its design is based on its appearance in Odin's Final Fantasy IV artwork.
 * The Naginata and the Battle Axe are present on sprites in Final Fantasy V, with the Battle Axe only appearing in his morphed form in Final Fantasy V. The Battle Axe's effect of dealing random damage is similar to how axes and hammers function in Final Fantasy XII.
 * The Chicken Knife in Final Fantasy V increases in power when the party escapes battles, and is potentially the strongest weapon in the game. Although Gilgamesh never wielded it, he has a penchant for running from battles he loses. Additionally, Bartz wields the Chicken Knife's counterpart, the Brave Blade, during his EX Burst. Contrarily, the Chicken Knife in Dissidia becomes stronger as Gilgamesh's HP drops, reflecting the Valiant Knife's function from Final Fantasy VI. Penelo alludes to this when describing it.
 * During his introductions before a fight, Gilgamesh emerges from a interdimensional portal on the ground, an allusion to his travels through different dimensions following his banishment to the Rift by Exdeath. The portal resembles the Banish spell from Final Fantasy V, which Exdeath used to cast Gilgamesh into the Rift. After losing to Bartz in Dissidia 012, Gilgamesh also utters the same set of pleas in his attempt to escape the Rift.
 * The name of Gilgamesh's EX Mode is a reference to his quotation prior to assuming his multi-armed boss form in Final Fantasy V. The quote itself was a reference to .
 * Gilgamesh's perfect EX Burst, Ultimate Illusion, is an attack he uses during his first battle in Final Fantasy XII, performed after he draws all of his fake weapons. It is a synonym of "Final Fantasy", and a line of dialogue spoken by Exdeath after his defeat in Final Fantasy V ('Is this my final fantasy?'). His cry of disappointment after failing his EX Burst, "This is far from the strongest of swords!", mirrors what he says in Final Fantasy V after attacking the party with Excalipoor.
 * In Final Fantasy VI Advance, Blade Dance is an attack exclusive to Gilgamesh.
 * When Gilgamesh throws Excalipoor, a speech bubble pops up with the Japanese equivalent of "Doink!", a sound associated with Tonberries stabbing a target. The English version's speech bubble instead features an exclamation point.
 * When using Jump, he shouts "Fell for it!" In several games, Gilgamesh feigns defeat, only to cast Shell, Haste, and Protect on himself and renew his assault with Jump, while mocking the party for being mislead.
 * When Gilgamesh searches for Bartz, he runs into Vaan, Zidane, and Squall, who do not remember him, despite that he was in each of their games with a different appearance.
 * Zidane does not recognize Gilgamesh because he only has two arms, which references the fact that Gilgamesh from Final Fantasy IX has four arms.
 * Before fighting Yuna, Gilgamesh says "Huh, I wouldn't mind being summoned by you." This is a reference to him being a summon in several games, including Dissidia and Dissidia 012.
 * When facing either Zidane or Vaan, he alludes to them being thieves, and the fact that weapons and Genji equipment can be stolen from him during boss encounters.
 * Gabranth's dialogue when encountering Gilgamesh alludes to Gilgamesh being an Elite Mark in Ivalice.
 * In Gilgamesh's EX Burst, there are seven spinning Excalipoors, one for each of his appearances in the series besides Final Fantasy V. Including Excalibur, this makes one sword for every appearance.
 * An item needed to create the Yoshiyuki is the Enkidu Feather, an allusion to his companion.
 * Although he isn't mentioned in the game, he is hinted in the japanese version official quest where Gilgamesh had no memories of who Exdeath really is and believe that he was in fact his companion. This is shown when Gilgamesh trying to identified who Exdeath is by trying to say his name, however the name he spoken of is 'E...En...Enn' instead of 'Ekusu' in Japanese romaji before discarding it. He even reminiscing the memories of the time he spend together with Enkidu from Final Fantasy V.
 * Gilgamesh's Bravery attack, Tsubamegaeshi, is Cyan's Desperation Attack in Final Fantasy VI.
 * Bartz's line when encountering Gilgamesh is "Don't go running off now!", referencing how Gilgamesh escapes any battle he loses in Final Fantasy V.
 * When seen from the side during fights, Gilgamesh has the same pose he assumes in his battle sprites.
 * When Gilgamesh fights Prishe, he will say "Ladies must act elegantly." This may be a reference to his advice to the tomboyish Faris Scherwiz before he sacrifices himself to defeat the Necrophobe in Final Fantasy V. In that battle, he tells her to "act like a lady every now and again."

Trivia

 * Gilgamesh's Excalibur is red and his Excalipoor is blue as they were in Final Fantasy VI. However, when he appears with them as a summon in Final Fantasy VIII and Dissidia, Excalipoor is the red sword and Excalibur is blue.
 * Kazuya Nakai took over the role of Gilgamesh's voice after, his Japanese voice actor from Final Fantasy XII, passed away on January 17, 2010 . This makes Gilgamesh, along with Vaan, the only characters not to have their original Japanese voice actors reprise their roles.
 * Additionally, Kazuya Nakai provided the voice of Wakka in Final Fantasy X. Gilgamesh's English voice actor in Final Fantasy XII, John DiMaggio, also voiced Wakka. With Keith Szarabajka taking over the role in Dissidia 012, Gilgamesh is the only character to have neither of his original voice actors reprise their role.
 * When Gilgamesh attacks, there are various sound and/or visual effects that occur depending on his weapon. For example, the Chicken Knife creates clucking sounds, the Excalipoor has a "plink" sound, Zantetsuken creates lightning when it hits, and Excalibur creates a shockwave.
 * When Gilgamesh begins his EX Burst, he spins forward and crashes into the "screen," leaving a crack that breaks away to reveal the EX Burst background. This is a pun on the drama concept of "breaking the ," referring to when one acknowledges they are a character in a form of media.
 * If Gilgamesh wins through an HP attack in EX Mode, his extra arms will be holding the weapons he wielded while in his EX Mode during his victory pose. If he wins a fight through a properly executed EX Burst, he can be seen holding the Excalibur during the fight's slow-motion ending, but at the beginning of the victory sequence he quickly dismisses the sword and poses unarmed. If he wins through a failed EX Burst, he holds no weapon at all.
 * Due to the random nature of his EX Mode, there are 6,435 different combinations for Gilgamesh's benefits while in EX Mode.
 * When using Excalipoor, Gilgamesh is the only character with attacks that can deal a set amount of damage regardless of Attack or Defense values.
 * Despite being a playable character, the Gilgamesh summon is still available, and is the summon Gilgamesh himself has equipped when the player fights him as Bartz in the Reports.
 * When used as an Assist, Gilgamesh will always attack with either Excalibur or Excalipoor.
 * Gilgamesh's EX Burst is the strongest in the game, assuming the player performs it correctly.