Boss

Bosses are a classification of enemy or battle in gaming terminology. In the Final Fantasy series, bosses are usually identified by the traits of not being encountered by normal means (relevant to random encounter-based games) and featuring unique enemies not fought earlier in the game.

Boss enemies are often identified in game's bestiaries or guides; enemies identified as bosses are usually fought only, first, or primarily in a boss battle. In addition to being encountered in specific scenarios, boss enemies will typically have higher stats, stronger and unique abilities, more immunities, and more complex AI; many possess a unique death sequence when defeated. Typically the game's boss theme plays during the battle; some bosses will utilize a different theme, including one relatively unique to them.

Though dialogue often occurs in boss battles, they follow no strict structure, though they often have more variety than regular battles and require employing certain strategies to beat. Battles in phases or battles with optional targets are common structures used. Common immunities held by by bosses are often managed by a flag, commonly known as the boss flag or the Heavy flag. This flag often protects against instant death attacks, and belong to boss enemies, special enemies, and often other enemies designed to be difficult.

Bosses battles typically have some relevance to the story or otherwise be an obstacle. Other boss battles are part of sidequests. Superbosses are optional bosses made to be exceptionally difficult, and require high stats or specific strategies to defeat.

Final Fantasy

 * Chaos Shrine
 * Garland
 * Pravoka
 * Pirate x9
 * Marsh Cave
 * Piscodemons
 * Western Keep
 * Astos
 * Cavern of Earth
 * Vampire
 * Lich
 * Mount Gulg
 * Marilith
 * Cavern of Ice
 * Evil Eye
 * Citadel of Trials
 * Dragon Zombie
 * Sunken Shrine
 * Kraken
 * Mirage Tower
 * Blue Dragon
 * Flying Fortress
 * Tiamat
 * Chaos Shrine
 * Lich
 * Marilith
 * Kraken
 * Tiamat
 * Chaos


 * Optional
 * Flying Fortress
 * Warmech

Final Fantasy II

 * Semitt Falls
 * Sergeant
 * Snow Cave
 * Adamantoise
 * Borghen
 * Kashuan Keep
 * Red Soul
 * Deist Cavern
 * Chimeras
 * Altair
 * Lamia Queen
 * Coliseum
 * Behemoth
 * Castle Fynn
 * Gottos
 * Tropical Island
 * Big Horns
 * Leviathan
 * Roundworm
 * Mysidian Tower
 * Fire Gigas
 * Ice Gigas
 * Thunder Gigas
 * White Dragon
 * Cyclone
 * Green Dragon
 * Emperor, Royal Guard x2, Wood Golem
 * Jade Passage
 * Blue Dragon
 * King Behemoth
 * Red Dragon
 * Pandaemonium
 * Zombie Borghen
 * Tiamat
 * Beelzebub
 * Astaroth
 * Emperor

Final Fantasy IV

 * Mist Cave
 * Mist Dragon
 * Underground Waterway
 * Octomammoth
 * Antlion's Den
 * Antlion
 * Mt. Hobs
 * Mom Bomb
 * Mount Ordeals
 * Scarmiglione (Hooded), Skulnant x4
 * Scarmiglione (Undead)
 * Dark Knight
 * Baron Castle
 * Baigan
 * Cagnazzo
 * Lodestone Cavern
 * Dark Elf
 * Tower of Zot
 * Sandy, Cindy, Mindy
 * Golbez (Scripted)
 * Barbariccia
 * Dwarven Castle
 * Calcabrina
 * Golbez
 * Tower of Babil
 * Doctor, Barnabas
 * Dr. Lugae
 * King of Eblan, Queen of Eblan
 * Rubicante

Final Fantasy V

 * Wind Shrine
 * Wing Raptor
 * Torna Canal
 * Karlabos
 * Ship Graveyard
 * Siren
 * North Mountain
 * Magissa
 * Walse Tower
 * Garula
 * Fire-Powered Ship
 * Liquid Flame
 * Karnak Castle
 * Iron Claw
 * Library of the Ancients
 * Ifrit
 * Byblos
 * Desert of Shifting Sands
 * Sandworm

Final Fantasy VI

 * Narshe Mines
 * Ymir
 * Guard Leader, Silver Lobo x2
 * Desert
 * Magitek Armor x2

Final Fantasy VII
Boss battles are inescapable. This can result in the Inescapable Battles Glitch in an area where a boss is battled.

Regular bosses are fought to the battle music of "Fight On!", but some recurring bosses have their own boss themes, like the members of the Turks who are battled to the "Turks' Theme", and the pieces of Jenova fought to the "Jenova" theme. Some boss battles are mainly cinematic rather than an intended challenge, like the last boss battle of disc 1 that uses "Aerith's Theme", and the battle fought after the final boss.

Boss battles yield both AP and EXP.


 * No.1 Reactor
 * Guard Scorpion
 * No.5 Reactor
 * Air Buster
 * Sewer
 * Aps
 * Sector 7
 * Turks:Reno
 * Shinra Bldg.
 * Sample:H0512, Sample:H0512-opt x3
 * Hundred Gunner
 * Heli-Gunner
 * Rufus, Dark Nation
 * Midgar Highway
 * Motor Ball
 * Under Junon
 * Bottomswell
 * Cargo Ship
 * Jenova∙BIRTH
 * Corel Prison
 * Dyne
 * Cave of the Gi
 * Gi Nattak, Soul Fire x2
 * Mt. Nibel
 * Materia Keeper
 * Rocket Town
 * Palmer
 * Temple of the Ancients
 * Red Dragon
 * Demons Gate
 * Forgotten Capital
 * Jenova∙LIFE
 * Gaea's Cliff
 * Schizo
 * Whirlwind Maze
 * Jenova∙DEATH
 * Coal Train
 * Gas Ducter
 * Wolfmeister
 * Eagle Gun
 * Attack Squad
 * Junon Underwater Reactor
 * Carry Armor
 * Left Arm
 * Right Arm
 * Rocket Town
 * Turks:Rude
 * Midgar
 * Diamond Weapon
 * Proud Clod
 * Sister Ray
 * Hojo, Poodler Sample, Bad Rap Sample
 * Helletic Hojo
 * Left Arm
 * Right Arm
 * Lifeform-Hojo N
 * Northern Cave
 * Jenova∙SYNTHESIS
 * Bizarro∙Sephiroth
 * Safer∙Sephiroth
 * Sephiroth


 * Optional
 * Gongaga
 * Turks:Reno, Turks:Rude
 * Shinra Mansion
 * Lost Number
 * Da-chao Statue
 * Rapps
 * Wutai
 * Gorki
 * Shake
 * Chekhov
 * Staniv
 * Godo
 * Gelnika
 * Turks:Reno, Turks:Rude
 * Sector 8
 * Turks:Reno, Turks:Rude, Turks:Elena
 * Bottom of the Sea
 * Emerald Weapon
 * Eye
 * Gold Saucer
 * Ruby Weapon
 * Ruby's Tentacle
 * Various Locations
 * Ultima Weapon

Final Fantasy VIII
Most boss battles are accompanied by the "Force Your Way" theme, although battles against sorceresses use different battle music.

Boss battles cannot be escaped from, with one exception, the X-ATM092. The first time X-ATM092 is battled the party must flee, and afterward it begins to chase the party under time limit. Every subsequent encounter can be avoided by correctly evading the spider mech, but if the player engages the boss again, they can now destroy it if they keep attacking it even if they are prompted to flee. If the player destroys the X-ATM092 they get plenty of AP and a good item as well as a bonus the SeeD exam score, but if they escape/evade the boss all the way to the Dollet beach, they get a scene where Quistis Trepe destroys the boss with a mounted machine gun.

Most enemies in Final Fantasy VIII have their level determined by the party's average level. Their level determines which attacks they use and what magic they have for drawing. Bosses sometimes have rare magic to draw that is not obtained from normal enemies. Bosses usually have level caps, so if the party level grinds they can exceed the boss's level. Some bosses have Guardian Forces to draw. If missed, they cannot be reclaimed until the final dungeon whose bosses carry GFs the party missed earlier.

Bosses yield AP but no EXP, making no-level-up runs possible. Bosses cannot be carded with the Card command, but GF bosses often drop their Triple Triad card. Regular bosses usually don't drop their card, but regular enemies have a small chance of being carded to a boss card.

There are no boss battles for the battles played as Laguna Loire, although some battles are set up in a way that resembles boss battles, in that they are inescapable, even if the enemies fought are the same that are fought in random encounters. The only exception is Diablos, as the player can use the Magic Lamp to battle it even as Laguna.

The randomly appearing GF Odin never appears against a boss, with one exception, the final confrontation against Seifer. If the party has acquired Odin before this battle, Odin is replaced by Gilgamesh that can appear during boss battles.

Final Fantasy IX
Boss battles are usually fought to the normal boss theme, although some bosses, like Beatrix and Kuja, have their own boss themes. Boss battles yield AP but no EXP making low level playthroughs possible.

Bosses usually don't drop anything special, but have good items that can be stolen from them. Bosses can have up to four items for steal, and the best items are the hardest to obtain as the steal success chance can be very low. Often the best steal items from bosses are equipment that are not available from shops for some time yet, giving the player incentive to steal them to get the equipment early, as equipment teaches abilities.

Usually bosses appear on the field and the entry into battle is a story scene. However, in Memoria the battles against the shrine guardians of Terra appear as if by random encounter, although they are actually fixed encounters triggered when the party steps on a specific spot on the field. This is to mimic the way the Four Fiends were battled in the original Final Fantasy. In Crystal World the shrine guardians appear as regular encounters in crystalline forms. Even if similar to their boss encounters, the crystalline versions can be eaten by Quina Quen, something that does not work against regular bosses.

Unlike in Final Fantasy VIII, bosses never drop rare cards.

Final Fantasy X
The bosses use the regular boss music apart from the battles against Seymour Guado's field forms that have unique themes, and the final battles. Boss battles are inescapable and yield normal sphere levels. Like other enemies, bosses can be defeated with an Overkill to double their item drops.

Some bosses use "Limit Breaks", called Overdrive in Final Fantasy X. Some boss battles have Trigger Commands available with various effects, depending on the battle.

The International and PAL versions of the original Final Fantasy X had many new optional bosses added in the form of Dark Aeons and Penance. The HD Remaster versions include these new optional bosses for all regions.


 * Dream Zanarkand
 * Sinscale

Final Fantasy XIII

 * Hanging Edge
 * PSICOM Marauder, PSICOM Warden x2
 * Beta Behemoth
 * Manasvin Warmech
 * Pulse Vestige
 * Anima
 * Right Manipulator
 * Left Manipulator
 * Lake Bresha
 * Manasvin Warmech
 * Garuda Interceptor
 * Stiria, Nix
 * Vile Peaks
 * Dreadnought
 * Odin
 * Gapra Whitewood
 * Aster Protoflorian
 * Sunleth Waterscape
 * Enki, Enlil
 * Palumpolum
 * Ushumgal Subjugator
 * Havoc Skytank
 * Starboard Hull
 * Starboard Turret
 * Portside Hull
 * Portside Turret
 * Nautilus Park
 * Midlight Reaper
 * Brynhildr
 * Palamecia
 * Kalavinka Striker
 * Barthandelus
 * Right Pauldron
 * Right Ailette
 * Left Pauldron
 * Left Ailette
 * Fifth Ark
 * Cid Raines
 * Bahamut
 * Vallis Media
 * Alexander
 * Mah'habara Subterra
 * Hecatoncheir
 * Taejin's Tower
 * Dahaka
 * Oerba
 * Barthandelus
 * Eden
 * Anavatapta Guardmech
 * The Proudclad
 * Orphan's Cradle
 * Bandersnatch, Jabberwocky
 * Wladislaus
 * Tiamat Eliminator
 * Barthandelus
 * Orphan

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII

 * Luxerion
 * Noel Kreiss (becomes Noel Kreiss+ starting Day 8)
 * Yusnaan
 * Cyclops
 * Snow Villers (becomes Snow Villiers+ starting Day 6, Snow Villiers++ starting Day 10)
 * Wildlands
 * Chocobo Eater
 * Caius Ballad
 * Dead Dunes
 * Grendel (becomes Parandus starting Day 8)


 * Optional
 * Dead Dunes
 * Aeronite
 * Ultimate Lair
 * Ereshkigal

Final Fantasy XIV

 * Sastasha - Denn the Orcatoothed
 * The Tam-Tara Deepcroft - Galvanth the Dominator
 * Copperbell Mines - Gyges the Great
 * Halatali - Tangata
 * The Thousand Maws of Toto-rak - Graffias
 * Haukke Manor - Lady Amandine
 * Brayflox's Longstop - Aiatar
 * The Sunken Temple of Qarn - Adjudicator
 * Cutter's Cry - Chimera
 * The Stone Vigil - Isgebind
 * Dzemael Darkhold - Batraal
 * The Aurum Vale - Miser's Mistress
 * The Wanderer's Palace - Tonberry King
 * Castrum Meridianum - Livia sas Junias
 * The Praetorium
 * Gaius van Baelsar
 * The Ultima Weapon
 * Lahabrea
 * Amdapor Keep - Anantaboga
 * Pharos Sirius - Siren
 * Copperbell Mines (Hard) - Ouranos
 * Haukke Manor (Hard) - Halicarnasus
 * The Lost City of Amdapor - Diabolos
 * Halatali (Hard)
 * Franz the Fair
 * Silent Moss the Solemn
 * Mamazo the Charred
 * Brayflox's Longstop (Hard) - Gobmachine G-VI
 * Hullbreaker Isle - Kraken
 * The Tam-Tara Deepcroft (Hard) - Avere Bravearm
 * The Stone Vigil (Hard) - Giruveganaus
 * The Labyrinth of the Ancients - Phlegethon
 * Syrcus Tower - Xandes
 * The Binding Coil of Bahamut - Turn 1 - Caduceus
 * The Binding Coil of Bahamut - Turn 2 - ADS
 * The Binding Coil of Bahamut - Turn 5 - Twintania
 * The Second Coil of Bahamut - Turn 1 - Rafflesia
 * The Second Coil of Bahamut - Turn 2 - Melusine
 * The Second Coil of Bahamut - Turn 3 - The Avatar
 * The Second Coil of Bahamut - Turn 4 - Nael deus Darnus
 * The Bowl of Embers - Ifrit
 * The Navel - Titan
 * The Howling Eye - Garuda
 * Cape Westwind - Rhitahtyn sas Arvina
 * A Relic Reborn: The Chimera - Dhorme Chimera
 * A Relic Reborn: The Hydra - Hydra
 * Battle on the Big Bridge - Gilgamesh
 * Thornmarch - Good King Moggle Mog XII
 * The Whorleater - Leviathan
 * The Striking Tree - Ramuh
 * The Akh Afah Amphitheatre - Shiva
 * Snowcloak - Fenrir
 * Sastasha (Hard) - Kraken
 * The Sunken Temple of Qarn (Hard) -
 * Coerthas Central Highlands - Behemoth
 * The Black Shroud - Odin
 * Coerthas Central Highlands - Behemoth
 * The Black Shroud - Odin