Gilgamesh (Final Fantasy XII boss)

Gilgamesh is an Elite Mark in Final Fantasy XII, and is petitioned by Montblanc. The hunt can be undertaken after the storyline events in Draklor Laboratory are complete.

Gilgamesh is found in the Lhusu Mines and must be fought twice. The first is on the bridge just to the west of the Gate Crystal, in a homage to the "Clash on the Big Bridge" (which is also the name of the hunt) from Final Fantasy V; a reworked version of the iconic theme music is heard during both fights. Gilgamesh escapes after defeat and the player must find the Site 11 Key and venture deep into the mine to Site 7. During the second fight Gilgamesh's HP is triple what he previously had, and his stats are raised.

Gilgamesh uses weapons from various Final Fantasy games, as well as one from Dragon Quest (also known as Dragon Warrior). All of the swords differ from their appearances in their respective games, and the Bestiary states none of the swords are authentic.

He is voiced in the Japanese version by, who voiced Fungus in Final Fantasy: Unlimited, making it his final voice role in the Final Fantasy series before his death. In the English version Gilgamesh is voiced by John DiMaggio of Futurama fame, who also voices Migelo, as well as the Final Fantasy X characters, Wakka and Kimahri.

Hunt 40: Battle on the Big Bridge

 * Petitioner: Montblanc
 * Petitioner's Location: Rabanastre/Clan Hall


 * A petition has been submitted for the hunting of the Ancient Man of Mystery (Rank VII). The petitioner is Montblanc in the clan hall in Rabanastre.
 * Hunt accepted. Montblanc tells you that an individual has wagered his sword in combat with the Ancient Man of Mystery and lost. This mysterious adversary is to be found on a bridge somewhere in the Lhusu Mines.
 * Gave chase to Gilgamesh, yet he escaped. You must find out where he hides and confront him once again!
 * Gilgamesh defeated in the depths of the Lhusu Mines! Report to Montblanc in the clan hall.
 * Hunt reported. But just who was Gilgamesh, and why did he yearn so for a sword? No wonder they call him the Ancient Man of Mystery!

Bestiary Entry

 * Genus: Elite Mark
 * Classification: ???

Site 11 Key
To get deeper into the mines the player must complete the hunt for Antlion, after which the Site 11 Key appears in the Hunters' Camp in Phon Coast, on the ground next to a Fallen Bhujerban.

First Encounter
Before the fight the player should buff with protective spells; a Gate Crystal is located before entering the bridge. When the fight begins the party should dispel both Gilgamesh and Enkidu's positive statuses. If the party has the Nihopalaoa accessory, the player can use it to sleep Enkidu, then oil it and fry it with Fire-elemental spells.

Gilgamesh's positive statuses renew whenever he pulls out a sword, so the player can set up gambits to dispel it. His attacks only damage one character at a time, which gives the party an advantage if they defeat Enkidu first. When Gilgamesh's HP is left around 40%, he draws an imitation of Zidane Tribal's Orichalcum, and the party has the opportunity to steal his first Genji set, Genji Shield and Genji Gloves; it is advisable to at least steal the Genji Gloves. After Gilgamesh's HP drops close to 30% he will pull out his replica of the Tournesol.

After every cutscene the player can steal more items from Gilgamesh. Stealing from Gilgamesh in both battles is the only way to get a complete set of Genji equipment. There are five phases one can steal from him. The first three phases are Potions.

Second Encounter
There is a Save Crystal before Gilgamesh and the player should make sure to buff the party.

This time Gilgamesh uses status inflicting magicks, such as:
 * Lv.2 Sleep
 * Lv.3 Disable
 * Lv.4 Break

If the party members' levels are prime numbers, they'll have more advantages during the fight. If the party's levels are divisible by 2, 3 or 4, the player should set Remedy or Esunaga gambit. The player can also purchase the Black Belt accessory, which gives immunity to Disable. If the player has leveled the party accordingly, so the party is immune to the spells, Gilgamesh will still waste time casting them, giving the party time to heal and buff. Any level that isn't an even number and isn't divisible by three is great for this purpose.

The party should first dispel Gilgamesh's and Enkidu's buffs and focus the party's attacks mainly on Enkidu. Gilgamesh's standard attacks are strong, as his stats have increased since the first battle. If the party's level is set on prime number they will have more time defeating Enkidu, and if not, they can use the Nihopalaoa trick to sleep Enkidu, then oil it and fry it with Fire spells. A good trick is to use Flame Staff or other weapon with affinity to Fire, to deal increased damage.

Before defeating Enkidu, players can steal Hell-Gate's Flame from it, required in making the Tournesol.

After defeating Enkidu, the player should make sure the party has Vanish, or Protect. Gilgamesh's attacks chain often. Every time he pulls out a different sword the party should dispel his positive statuses. When about 30% of his HP is drained, Gilgamesh will use his special attack, Bitter End, and has chance of inflicting Sap to the party. Once the party has drained 60% of Gilgamesh's HP he draws out the Tournesol replica, and the party can steal the Genji Helm.

The player needs to do this before having drained about 70% of his HP, because then Gilgamesh will pull out a replica of the Wyrmhero Blade; saying "Quake, mortals! You face the blade of legend!", and erects a paling. During this period Gilgamesh can be lethal: his attacks can chain up to 15 hits, meaning, once his attack connects, the character is dead. His special attacks are replaced by Monarch Sword, but luckily, his paling fades after he executes Monarch Sword twice.

After Gilgamesh's paling fades the player can steal the remaining piece of Genji equipment: Genji Armor. After defeating him, a cutscene will follow as the party leaves the battlefield (the cutscene varies depending on which character is the party leader).

To make stealing items easier the player can activate the Steal gambit on one or even all characters and disable the gambit when stealing is no longer needed.

Report and Reward



 * 10,000 gil
 * Masamune

Defeating Gilgamesh unlocks his sprite in the Sky Pirate's Den granting the player the title of Master Swordsman.

Other Events
As part of the fishing minigame, after the second battle with Gilgamesh, the swordsman will appear in a niche at the end of the bridge at the Barheim Passage Zeviah Span. He explains he wasn't there to spill their blood, but to hunt for a sword; he even refers to them as friends. He says, "There was no treasure, a useless stick I found". He hands the party the Matamune fishing rod and leaps away with Enkidu hot at his heels.

Swords
Throughout the battles Gilgamesh wields various famous swords used by the protagonists of other Square Enix games. When he first appears he only uses unnamed katanas that use the same model as the weapon Kotetsu, but as the fight progresses he draws his other swords. However, as a reference to Excalipoor and Excalibur, Gilgamesh's weapons are counterfeit versions of the real items.

These swords are:
 * Cloud Strife's Buster Sword: the blade has the kanji for "fake"/"imitation" painted on it and four holes instead of the usual two.
 * Squall Leonhart's Revolver: instead of Griever, the blade has an image of a chocobo and chocobo footprints, and it has no keychain.
 * Zidane Tribal's Orichalcon: this is Zidane's left-hand dagger. It is longer than the original and has a differently-shaped handle.
 * Tidus's Brotherhood: the blade has two hooks protruding from the tip instead of one and is more transparent than the original. The guard has a slightly different design.
 * Odin's Zantetsuken: it has a skull emblem near the guard, rather than being shaped like a lightning bolt.
 * Two copies of the Tournesol, the game's strongest greatsword. In the first battle Gilgamesh uses one with a moon emblem on it, in the second battle he uses one with a sun emblem. The two share an extra blade running along the curved main blade, and have shorter, thicker handles than the real Tournesol. Gilgamesh's use of the two swords with differentiating emblems is a reference to Excalibur and Excalipoor.

Gilgamesh also wields the Wyrmhero Blade, his ultimate weapon that he uses in the last phase of the second battle with him. Unlike his other weapons however, the Wyrmhero Blade appears to be genuine, with no cosmetic differences from the version the player can acquire. When Gilgamesh is defeated he leaves the sword stuck in the dirt, examining it prompts the message "Appears to be just an ordinary sword of legend". As the player leaves the area, Gilgamesh reappears to seize the sword before fleeing.

Trivia

 * Gilgamesh's special attack is called Ultimate Illusion (Kyuukyoku Gensou in the Japanese version, Finale Fantasie in German, Fantasia finale in Italian, a direct reference to the series), a synonym for "final fantasy". While using the attack, Gilgamesh cries "This sword I wield... is no counterfeit!", although his swords are fakes. In Dissidia 012 this attack is used as Gilgamesh's perfect EX Burst.
 * As with Final Fantasy V, the player can steal a full set of Genji equipment from Gilgamesh, and his sidekick, Enkidu, returns as a dog of the same name, possibly the same creature that changed its form.
 * As in his original appearance in Final Fantasy V, the party battles Gilgamesh the first time on a large bridge.
 * If the player defeats Enkidu before Gilgamesh loses 20% of his HP, or doesn't kill Enkidu before that point, a slightly different scene plays, in both battles.

Related Enemies

 * Enkidu (Elite Mark)