Airship (term)



An Airship (飛空艇, Hikūtei, lit. "Flying boat") is a recurring feature throughout the Final Fantasy series, having made an appearance in almost every game. As the name suggests, airships are a form of aerial transport, although their appearance has differed widely between games.

Recurring Elements
The airship is often one of the few, or only, airborne vehicles in the game world and is generally received towards the middle or end of the game, opening up the entire world to exploration by the player. Airships can generally cross over most, if not all types of terrain including oceans and mountains. In the first two titles, airships did not include any facilities, and the player needed to halt and land (often only in clearings) before being able to save. Beginning with Final Fantasy III, the games would begin including airships that frequently featured shops, a save point and a bed or other facilities to restore lost HP and MP. In Final Fantasy VII, chocobos can be transported in the airship, and the player can exit the Highwind riding a chocobo—this method is required to reach several areas that would be impossible to reach otherwise.

Some airships can be used as a means of transit on and through multiple mediums. The airship from Final Fantasy V can not only fly, but can also be used on the surface of the water like a normal boat. She, along with the Nautilus, can even double as a submersible should it be required. The Ragnarok and the Lunar Whale are yet more airships that are not limited to the skies as they are capable of being used for space travel.

Another recurring feature is for the airship to be invented, or at least owned by a character called Cid (e.g., Cid Highwind and the Highwind in Final Fantasy VII and Cid Pollendina and the Enterprise in Final Fantasy IV). In Final Fantasy IX, Cid Fabool oversees the creation of the three Hilda Garde airships, although the first was stolen, and the second was presumably destroyed along with Alexandria.

Appearance
In many instances, airships appear very much like carracks or galleons—wooden boats, but with propellers to give them lift, fashioned like helicopters. Generally propellers set vertically along the sides provide lift while the bow or stern rotors are used for maneuvering and propulsion. Airships of this type feature prominently in earlier Final Fantasy games but do still appear in newer titles such as Final Fantasy XI.

Another common type of airship seen in only a few of the series's installments actually resembles and occasionally behaves like real-life airships/dirigibles. The two airships of Final Fantasy VI, the Blackjack and the Falcon are such, along with the Highwind of Final Fantasy VII. Among the Falcon's distinguishing features is its large balloon-like cavity that, like zeppelins, keeps it aloft while propellers on the sides and rear of the vessel provide steering control. As with real airships, the Highwind utilizes moorings to "land", essentially remaining floating but tethered to the ground.

In a few of the more recent games the airships have taken on more technologically advanced appearances, with elements of sci-fi, steampunk, and fantasy being reflected in the hull architecture (e.g., the Ragnarok from Final Fantasy VIII, the Fahrenheit from Final Fantasy X, and the Galbana from Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings).

Limitations
The airship provides a quicker, easier way to travel throughout the game world, enabling the bypass of large expanses without encountering any enemies. Some areas are altogether unreachable without the use of an airship, which may be needed to progress the game further. However, the lack of random encounters also means that the player's party will not level up, and may be unprepared for battle. Most airships can also only land on certain terrain, restricting access to some areas. Usually they can only land on flat green land. Later games that removed an explorable World Map limit the player to the places that the Airship can take them, but can travel there instantaneously. Airships are also important to the overall plot of some games and their presence is requisite in order to progress the story. In some games, battles can even happen while in airships, notably Deathgaze in Final Fantasy VI, Ultimate Weapon in Final Fantasy VII and Evrae in Final Fantasy X.

Tetra Master
The airship appears as a Tetra Master card in Final Fantasy IX. Its appearance is based on the unnamed airship in Final Fantasy V.
 * Card 100
 * Location: Memoria