Astral



Astrals, also known as the Six, are summons that exist in Final Fantasy XV. They are colossal beings that protect Eos from humans and can only be called upon by Noctis Lucis Caelum after he forges a pact with them. Astrals are worshiped by Eos's populace.

Said to be physical manifestations of the stars' power, Astrals are hinted to be connected to the world's creation and deities. They are intelligent creatures that have their own agendas, speak a unique language, and play an integral role in the Final Fantasy XV Universe. Indifferent to human affairs, Astrals' behavior cannot be interpreted because their thought patterns transcend the comprehension of mankind.

Story

 * The Hexatheon
 * Titan, the Archaean, steadfast as stone.
 * Ramuh, the Fulgurian, sharp as lightning.
 * Shiva, the Glacian, gentle as snow.
 * Leviathan, the Hydraean, relentless as tides.
 * Bahamut, the Draconian, unbending as iron.
 * Ifrit, the Infernian, fickle as fire.
 * Since time immemorial, they have watched over Eos.
 * —Cosmogony

In A.E., the Astral Ifrit betrayed the prosperous nation of Solheim. This caused the Great War of Old and created a parasite that slaughtered Solheim's populace. Bahamut then descended from the stars to select the first Oracle. He chose a pious woman of the Fleuret family from Tenebrae and bestowed upon her the power to commune with the Six. Bahamut also gave this woman his trident.

A king of Lucis is said to have once fought alongside the Astrals against darkness. Trials by which the Six grant their blessings are mentioned in ancient tomes dating back two thousand years. They are said to have left devastation in their wake with entire cities laid to ruin. People saw them as tests of their faith.

A descendant of the Lucian kings, Noctis Lucis Caelum, is being called by the Archaean, Titan, once he reaches the town of Lestallum. Noctis is guided to Titan's location by the chancellor of Niflheim, Ardyn Izunia. Noctis asks to borrow the Astral's power when he learns his betrothed, the Oracle Lunafreya Nox Fleuret, was previously there.

Aware Lunafreya seeks to awaken the Six, Noctis accepts their allegiance. He finds Duscae is shrouded in a thunderstorm which does not clear until Ramuh's trial is passed and a covenant with the Fulgurian is made. Throughout the rest of his journey, Noctis is guided by Gentiana, the ageless Messenger of the Astrals, who communicates with him telepathically and directs him to where he must be to gain the gods' favor.

Gameplay
Astrals are ranked in accordance with their size. As the Astrals are so large, ones like Titan cannot be called in tight, enclosed spaces (i.e., cave interiors). Noctis must defeat the Astrals in battle or unlock them through other means to gain their favor. Players receive items for defeating Astrals, and they can sometimes borrow the Astrals' power after doing so.

When summoning becomes available the screen darkens, small white lights appear all around the area, and the battle theme changes. The player can summon by holding. The lights resemble the "soul fragments" which featured prominently for early Final Fantasy Versus XIII trailers, and appear in the Fabula Nova Crystallis: Final Fantasy series games of which Final Fantasy XV was originally a part of. Noctis's eyes glow red for a time after the summoning has ended.

In Final Fantasy XV Episode Duscae, Noctis can call upon the Astral Ramuh when his HP is depleted to 0. Ramuh uses Judgment Bolt when summoned; enemies defeated by this attack do not yield EXP.

In Final Fantasy XV, the player can summon once per battle. Astrals behave differently in dungeons than on the field. They act situationally; for example, Titan may punch an enemy, throw a boulder at it, or even flee. Different battle conditions trigger different Astrals' summonings: others have a higher chance of appearing whe Noctis is in trouble, and others when Noctis's allies are knocked out.

Titan


Titan resides in Cauthess under the glowing meteorite. He uses Gaia's Wrath to damage enemies and has a higher chance of appearing after Noctis's allies have been defeated. When summoned, Titan appears in the distance, picks up a large piece of earth, and tosses it at the enemies in Noctis's vicinity. When this lands, several gigantic pillars of earth rise from the ground to damage nearby foes.

In the "Trial of Titan" demo playable at E3 2016, Titan served as a boss.

Ramuh


Ramuh uses Judgment Bolt when outside a dungeon to deal heavy damage to all opponents within a wide radius. Inside a dungeon, Ramuh simply throws his staff at his foes from afar. When Ramuh is called upon, he scoops Noctis up with his left hand and wraps his staff in lightning. He then tosses the staff at the enemies below him, triggering a massive explosion that chars the surrounding landscape. Noctis obtains Ramuh at Gentiana's urging by completing the Astral's trial during the game's fifth chapter. Ramuh can be called upon in almost every area, and he has a higher chance of appearing the longer a battle lasts.

Leviathan


Leviathan dwells in Altissia and is the goddess of the tides. She is described as elegant, intelligent, and "very close to the gods." Altissia's human residents know to be wary of Leviathan, for she is as cruel and will not hesitate to drown her surroundings. Prior to the events of Final Fantasy XV, Leviathan entered a 1,000-year slumber that was interrupted by Lunafreya Nox Fleuret.

Enraged by the presence of Lunafreya and Niflheim, Leviathan seeks to test Noctis by asking him to halt her destruction of Altissia. Noctis succeeds at wounding the Astral, but it takes Titan's intervention to finally defeat her.

Leviathan is capable of disguising herself and traveling in liquid form; she cannot be summoned unless there is a body of water nearby, and she only appears to Noctis if he is in danger.

Shiva
Shiva is an Astral who is fond of humanity and acts as a foil to Ifrit. In M.E. 745, she awoke in the form of an ice giantess in the desert plains surrounding Gralea, the capital of Niflheim. Shiva led an assault on the empire, but she was felled by its magitek infantry. The result of this was an environmental anomaly; the desert transformed into a vast tundra trapped in a perpetual snowstorm that calms at its edge. The corpse of Shiva's first incarnation remains outside Gralea, where it can be seen from aboard the trains that pass the imperial capital by.

After Lunafreya becomes the Oracle, Shiva awakens once again in the form of Gentiana. In her human form, she guides Lunafreya and Noctis on their journeys. Ardyn Izunia recognizes Shiva's human form; the Glacian appears before him and Noctis on a train bound for Gralea after Leviathan's rampage in Altissia. Shiva gives Lunafreya's trident to Noctis, and from then on, he is able to summon her. Shiva can be called in many areas.

When summoned, Shiva freezes the surrounding landscape. She appears alongside several copies of herself and uses her signature attack, Diamond Dust. In the Chinese version of Final Fantasy XV, Shiva has a that gives her a shiny bodysuit and less pale skin. This is most likely due to China's regulations against exposed skin and the appeal for more human-looking characteristics over otherworldly ones.

Bahamut
Bahamut is the most powerful Astral, and he resides within Insomnia's Crystal. He descended long ago from the skies above and bestowed a pious maiden from Tenebrae with the power to commune with the gods of Eos. He also granted her his trident and made her the first Oracle. On the cover of Cosmogony, Bahamut is depicted as a winged man wearing black armor.

Bahamut is the one who selected Noctis to become the True King. He reveals this, along with many other truths, after Noctis is absorbed into the Crystal in Gralea.

Unlike other Astrals, Bahamut can only be called during Noctis's battle with Ifrit at the end of Final Fantasy XV. When summoned, he uses Ultima Sword, an attack that causes several massive blades to rain down on the enemy.

Ifrit
Ifrit is a hostile Astral who played an important role in Eos's history. In the Old Calendar Era, he betrayed the rest of his kind and caused the downfall of Solheim. Ifrit began the Great War of Old; this killed millions of people when a parasite turned them all into daemons.

Ardyn Izunia indirectly acts as an agent who carries out Ifrit's will. The Astral himself is the penultimate boss in Final Fantasy XV, and he is finally defeated by Shiva's Diamond Dust. Due to his malevolent nature, Ifrit cannot be summoned by Noctis.

Creation and development
Leviathan was one of the first Astrals to be designed for Final Fantasy XV. She was planned to appear even when the game was known as Final Fantasy Versus XIII.

According to Square Enix, Astrals are not "random creatures" that show up and suddenly disappear. Instead, they fit into the world around them, thus "forging a covenant" with them is meaningful. In regards to Astrals, director Hajime Tabata has said, "You get them to help you. You ask them to let them agree to help you. In the world of Final Fantasy, there is one word given to them, and that is 'Guardians.' They are protective deities. So the relationship that Noctis has with them is that he besieges them to request them to lend him their power."

All Astrals that appear in Final Fantasy XV are recurring summons from the Final Fantasy series. Hajime Tabata decided which summons to include by considering only those that could be a solid part of a story, play a meaningful role in a game's world, and represent the Final Fantasy series as a whole.

Titan was originally planned to be obtainable in Final Fantasy XV Episode Duscae, but the Astral's story significance led Square Enix to replace him with Ramuh, whose existence in the demo is intended to show players what happens when an Astral is tamed and becomes available for use.