Magitek Armor

Magitek Armor is a technological device in Final Fantasy VI. It is a mechanical weapon employed by the Gestahlian Empire, able to fire beams of magical energy through the Empire's Magitek technology.

Appearance
Magitek Armor appears in-game as a green, yellow and brown exo-suit, roughly humanoid in design with the seat for the rider being mounted on the armor's torso. Magitek attacks are seen to be fired from the chestplate of the armor when used by party members. In CG sequences and Yoshitaka Amano's designs Magitek Armor is draconian in appearance, lacks arms entirely, and the rider sits on the approximate location of the "neck".

Story
Magitek Armor, along with the rest of the Empire's Magitek, was developed by Cid Del Norte Marquez. All Magitek Armor units are produced in the Magitek Research Facility at Vector. Magitek Armored troops appear in all territories and cities occupied by the Empire, though they are not as numerous as the Empire's foot army.

In order to reduce the Empire's ability to use Magitek, and to gain insight on Espers, Locke Cole and Celes Chere infiltrate the Magitek Research Facility and free the trapped Espers the Empire was draining magic from. This, combined with the Empire's discovery of Magicite, results in them foregoing Magitek usage outside of troops already stationed, and soldiers mention that the Magitek Research Facility is being dismantled and the armor is being refurbished.

Gameplay
There are various enemies that can be fought in the game that involve Magitek Armor to some degree. These include Magitek Armor, Heavy Armor, Proto Armor, and Mega Armor. There are also a handful of Magitek Armor-type enemies in the World of Ruin. Pluto Armor appears as a manifestation in Cyan's Soul, and Duel Armor and Fortis appear within Kefka's Tower.

Ability
Wearing Magitek Armor gives access to the Magitek command, although there are limited occasions where Magitek Armor is usable; the first time is at the beginning of the game, where the player controls Terra, Biggs and Wedge. The second time is at the Imperial Camp near Doma Castle, where Sabin, Cyan and Shadow, if the player recruited him, escape in stolen Magitek Armor. The third time is within Cyan's soul during the sequence that takes place in a mine.

Terra alone is able to use the full arsenal of Magitek abilities. If Gogo has the Attack command assign to his/her battle menu list and he/she's also in the party, all eight commands will be available to him/her.

Development
The opening of Final Fantasy VI uses a different in-game sprite of the Magitek Armor than the rest of the game. The game's producer, Hironobu Sakaguchi, wanted to make the Magitek Armor in the opening identical to the Magitek Armor that appears elsewhere in the game, but Tetsuya Takahashi, a graphics director for Final Fantasy VI, redesigned it his own way, which Sakaguchi felt was even better than the original.

Final Fantasy XIII
Vanille's Eidolon Hecatoncheir's Gestalt Mode was not intended as a reference to Magitek Armor, but the developers acknowledged it appears similar. In Final Fantasy XIII-2 the Brain Blast quiz refers to this transformation as Magitek Armor.

Final Fantasy XIV
Magitek armor, matching Yoshitaka Amano's original design, features prominently and is a primary tool of war for the Garlean Empire, with models ranging from manned units similar to those in Final Fantasy VI to fully-robotic "juggernaut" units.

The Adventurer can obtain an armor as a rideable "mount" in A Realm Reborn. The mount is obtained by clearing the game's main storyline.

Final Fantasy XV
Noctis is able to use Magitek Armor.

Final Fantasy Type-0
The White Tiger Crystal in the Militesi Empire, the nation that instigates the war in Orience, grants the power of weapon to its people, allowing the creation of magitek armor. Qator Bashtar and Qun'mi Tru'e are two notable pilots of customized magitek armor for the war.

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time
The Mage Mail, available from the last boss rush mission on Normal mode, appears to be some kind of reference to the Magitek Armor. The game description says: "Military equipment that exists in the sixth final fantasy". The armor appears as a mechanical armor suit.

Theatrhythm Final Fantasy Curtain Call
Magitek Armor will appear as a new enemy from the original Theatrhythm Final Fantasy. They are based on their Final Fantasy VI sprite.

Final Fantasy Airborne Brigade
Terra appears on two different types of Magitek Armor in the game.

Final Fantasy All the Bravest
A generic Imperial Soldier is piloting a Magitek Armor, an exclusive character only available from the Premium Character Shop as a random downloadable content, he uses the Thunder Beam ability during battle.