Final Fantasy III weapons

The following is a list of the weapons in Final Fantasy III. The reader may also wish to consult the list of List of Final Fantasy III Armor.

Weapons can be equipped on both the left and right hands. When dual-wielding, the attack ratings of each weapon are added together for the overall attack rating of the character.

In the original NES version, some elemental weapons are glitched.

Bare Hands
The default weapon when the character's hands are empty, this "weapon" remains unnamed. Only the Monk (Final Fantasy III) and the Black Belt (Final Fantasy III) can effectively use bare hands in combat.

Daggers
Except thrown weapons, daggers are the only type of weapon that Thieves can equip. As such, most daggers add to the Agility statistic. Additionally, the Red Mage is the only magic-using job that can equip daggers. Black Mages, however, can use Knives and Daggers (the weapons themselves, not the class of weapon), but nothing beyond those two.

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 * NES


 * DS

Swords
Swords are the most basic weapon for physical damage dealing jobs, like Warrior, Knight, and Dark Knight. Additionally, the Red Mage is the only magic-using job that can equip swords.

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Dark Blades
All Dark Blades have the Dark Blade attribute, making them effective against dividing enemies. Dark Blades are also the primary weapon of Dark Knights and Ninjas.

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 * NES


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Staves and Rods
Staves and rods are the primary weapon of magic-using jobs like White Mage, Black Mage, and Evoker. As such, they usually add to the Mind and Intellect statistics. Most staves will cast a spell if used from the "Item" menu in battle.

In the NES version, they don't grant any elemental defense because of a glitch.

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 * NES


 * DS

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 * NES


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Nunchaku
Nunchaku are weapons used by Monks. They are relatively weak weapons meant to be used early in the game before the Monk can do more damage with their bare hands. These weapons are only found in the original version of the game, and were removed from the Nintendo DS remake.

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 * NES

Bows and Arrows
Bows and arrows are the primary weapons of Rangers and must be equipped separately in the right and left hands. Bows give stat bonuses, while arrows carry the additional effects, like elemental damage and inflicted status ailments. Bows and arrows are effective against enemies weak to Wind.

Since bows and arrows deal the same damage from the back row as they do from the front row, and since the weaker bows are available to Black Mages, the player can equip a Black Mage with a bow and arrows in order to make them a decent physical damage dealer if the need arises. The player can still place the Black Mage in the back row for reduced damage, since the armor available to magic-using jobs does not offer as much physical defense as that available to melee jobs.

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 * DS

Arrows
Arrows deplete like stockable items, meaning they disappear from the player's inventory once they are used. However, they are still bought at Weapon Shops and not Item Shops.

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 * NES

Books
Aside from Onion Knights, who can equip everything except ultimate weapons, only Scholars can equip books. As is to be expected, books give stat bonuses in Intellect and Mind to boost the power of the limited amount of magic Scholars can learn. Books are rare finds, as they can only be found in a few treasure chests and are not sold in Weapon Shops.

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Fist Weapons
Claws and knuckles are the primary weapons of Monks and Black Belts. They are worn on the hands in order to deal extra damage when punching an enemy. Like books, claws and knuckles are not sold in Weapon Shops.

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 * NES


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Polearms
Spears, lances, and the like are the primary weapons of Dragoons and, except for Onion Knights, Dragoon is the only job that can equip them.

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Hammers
Hammers are the primary weapons of Vikings and, except for Onion Knights, Viking is the only job that can equip hammers. All Hammers are Lightning elemental.

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Axes
The Warrior ultimate weapon is an axe, though Warriors can equip many other weapons. These weapons include the Morning Star, that is only available in the NES version.

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Thrown Weapons
Thrown weapons can either be equipped normally or Thrown by Ninjas, who are the only characters that can use the ability. Thrown weapons offer no stat bonuses and no additional effects.

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Bells
Bells are the only weapons Geomancers can equip.

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Harps
Harps are the primary weapons of Bards. They are meant to boost magic rather than attack the enemy. Three of the five Harps that the Bard uses with "Attack" command can inflict status ailments at the enemies.

In the NES version, the confusion-inflicting Lamia Harp is bugged and won't inflict the status. Moreover, in the NES the sleep-inflicting Dream Harp is nowhere to be found and can only be obtained through the Item Upgrade Glitch.

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Unobtainable Weapons
These two weapons can't be equipped nor acquired normally, they can be gotten via a cheating device. They can be Thrown by Ninjas, and thrown weapons offer no stat bonuses and no additional effects.

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 * DS