Editing Amarant Coral

{{infobox character
|name=Amarant Coral
|release=FFIX
|japanese=サラマンダー・コーラル
|romaji=Saramandā Kōraru
|aka=Salamander Coral, The Flaming Amarant, Red, Scarlet Hair, Red-headed Man
|image=FFIX CG Render Amarant.png
|portrait=[[File:Amarant menu.jpg|Amarant's menu portrait.]]
|age=26<ref name="ixulti-22"/>
|dob=November 25, 1773<ref name="timeline">{{Refwebsite| page url = https://thelifestream.net/lifestream-projects/translations/1843/ffix-world-chronology-p44-46-of-the-ffix-ultimania/#comment-1358| page name = FFIX World Chronology – p.44-46 of the FFIX Ultimania - Characters' personal timelines| site url = https://thelifestream.net| site name = The Lifestream| access time = 03:02, December 07, 2018 (UTC)}}</ref>
|occupation=Mercenary
|race=[[Human]]<ref name="ixulti-22"/>
|gender=Male<ref name="ixulti-22"/>
|laterality = Right-handed<ref name="ixulti-22"/>
|height=226.3cm<ref>[[:File:FFIX Character Height Comparisons 1.jpg|Character Height Comparison Chart from ''Final Fantasy 25th Anniversary Ultimania'']]</ref> (7'5")<!--(Mathematically, 226.3cm=7'5")-->
|type=playable
|job=[[Monk (job)|Monk]]/[[Ninja (job)|Ninja]]
|abilities=[[Flair (Final Fantasy IX)|Flair]], [[Throw (Final Fantasy IX)|Throw]]
|limit break=Elan
|weapon=[[Final Fantasy IX weapons#Claws|Claws]]
|armor=[[Final Fantasy IX armor#Hats|Hats]], [[Final Fantasy IX armor#Armlets|armlets]], [[Final Fantasy IX armor#Light armor|light armor]]
|ultimate weapon=Rune Claws
|designer=[[Toshiyuki Itahana]]
|party member 1=Amarant (Final Fantasy IX gameplay)
|party member game 1=FFIX
|other appearances=true
|ffrk=true
|ffbe=true
|dffoo=true
}}
{{Quote|'''Arrogance'''—The only dependable thing about the future is uncertainty.|Amarant's quote}}
'''Amarant Coral''' is a playable character from ''[[Final Fantasy IX]]''. He is introduced to the player as '''Red-headed Man''' before his name can be chosen.

== Characteristics ==
=== Appearance ===
Although Amarant appears different from most human characters in the game, being much taller with blue-hued skin, the ''[[Final Fantasy IX Ultimania]]'' still lists his race as "human".<ref name="ixulti-22">{{Refbook|Final Fantasy IX Ultimania|022|023}}</ref>

Amarant is a tall man with red dreadlocks that cover his eyes, a red chinstrap beard, bluish skin, large forearms, and an ape-like posture. He wears a green vest and trousers, a red belt round his waist, red bands on his upper arms and green bands on his wrists, and brownish-red boots. He has salamander [[Tattoo (body modification)|tattoos]] on his shoulders, but doesn't appear to have them when he enters [[Trance (Final Fantasy IX)|Trance]] and his appearance changes. When in Trance, Amarant's clothes disappear (save for a ''[[wikipedia:fundoshi|fundoshi]]'') and his skin turns dark with purple highlights. His facial hair and dreadlocks also turn black.

=== Personality ===
An arrogant man who fights with the honor of a warrior, Amarant also seems a little naive, confused at [[Zidane Tribal|Zidane's]] actions, and follows him to understand more. He is enigmatic and rarely opens up. He wants to prove himself and his way of life superior to Zidane's, but when this does not pan out, he is forced into introspection.

== Story ==
{{spoiler}}
When Amarant was 18 he started to make a name for himself in [[Treno]]. When he was 24 Amarant worked as a bodyguard for a noble, and one day, Zidane stole something from his post. Amarant tried to stop him, but Zidane framed him as the culprit. Amarant was intrigued by the thief, and was confused by his attitude. Now a wanted man, Amarant soon fled Treno.<ref name=timeline/> 

[[File:AmanoSalamander.jpg|thumb|left|Artwork by [[Yoshitaka Amano]].]]
[[Brahne Raza Alexandros XVI|Queen Brahne]] hires Amarant and a woman named [[Lani]] to steal [[Garnet Til Alexandros XVII|Princess Garnet's]] pendant and kill [[Vivi Ornitier|Vivi]]. Amarant asks if he can kill Zidane as well, and Brahne says he can after he deals with her requests. He passes through [[Fossil Roo]]<ref name=timeline/> and arrives in [[Madain Sari]], where Lani takes [[Eiko Carol|Eiko]] hostage in return for Garnet's pendant. Amarant stops her, as he does not approve of hostage-taking, calls Lani a "scumbag" and tells her to get lost.

Amarant challenges Zidane to a fight and loses. He feels disgraced, and is confused by Zidane's mercy. The next day Amarant returns to the village, curious about what makes Zidane so powerful. Zidane accepts his help in accompanying the [[party]], but they have plenty of disputes as they travel to the [[Iifa Tree (Final Fantasy IX)|Iifa Tree]] and watch [[First Battle of the Iifa Tree|the battle]] between [[Kuja]] and Queen Brahne. Amarant accompanies Zidane down the roots of the tree to the shore, and returns to [[Alexandria]] with him.

In Alexandria, Amarant meets up with [[Freya Crescent|Freya]], and challenges her to a fight. The guards break them up, and Zidane takes the blame. He accompanies Zidane, Freya, and Vivi to [[Alexandria Castle]] where they meet up with Eiko and request a meeting with Garnet, now a queen. Amarant returns to Treno, reflecting on the events that happened in the city. Outside the [[Treno Auction House|auction house]] where Amarant formerly served as a guard, he tells Freya about his past and his meeting with Zidane, much to her amusement.

Alexandria comes [[Battle of Alexandria|under attack]] by Kuja who has summoned [[Bahamut]] to attack the kingdom. Zidane and Eiko round up Freya, Vivi, and Amarant and return to Alexandria on the ''[[Hilda Garde#Hilda Garde II|Hilda Garde II]]'' with [[Cid Fabool IX|Regent Cid]] and [[Erin]]. On the way, Eiko receives a mysterious distress call and jumps from the [[Airship (term)|airship]], meeting with Garnet and explains about Holy Judgment.

Amarant is among those who watch as the pair summons [[Alexander (summon)|Alexander]], defeating Bahamut. Amarant accompanies Zidane and his friends to the tower where Garnet and Eiko are found. He leaves with Freya, Vivi, and Cid just in time to see the ''[[Invincible (Final Fantasy IX)|Invincible]]'' destroy Alexandria and witnesses Zidane save Garnet and Eiko.

The party travels to [[Lindblum (Final Fantasy IX)|Lindblum]] to recuperate, and Amarant accompanies Zidane wherever he goes for the rest of the journey. When they get to [[Ipsen's Castle]] to find a way to open the gate to [[Terra (Final Fantasy IX)|Terra]], Kuja's homeworld, Amarant attempts to find the clue alone to prove his method superior to teamwork. He beats Zidane to the clue, which turns out to be mirrors, dictating the location of four shrines.

[[File:Amarant during Not Alone from FFIX Remastered.png|thumb|Amarant helps Zidane come out of his stupor in [[Pandemonium (Final Fantasy IX)|Pandemonium]].]]
Amarant falls into a trap on the way out, forcing Zidane to re-enter the castle to save him. Amarant accepts Zidane as an ally and visits the [[Fire Shrine]] with Freya to help break the seal on Terra. He accompanies Zidane to Terra and, along with the other party members, helps Zidane break from his daze when [[Garland (Final Fantasy IX)|Garland]] almost steals his soul. Kuja goes into [[Trance (Final Fantasy IX)|Trance]] and destroys Terra, and Amarant accompanies Zidane to [[Memoria (Final Fantasy IX)|Memoria]] where Kuja and [[Necron]] are finally defeated.

Some time later, Amarant walks along the [[South Gate#Dali and Treno Gates|Treno Gate]] where he stumbles upon Lani, and the two head for Alexandria to see [[Tantalus Theater Troupe|Tantalus]] perform ''[[I Want to be Your Canary]]''.
{{clear}}
{{endspoiler}}

== Gameplay ==
[[File:Amarant-ffix-battle.png|100px|right|Character model.]]
{{main|Amarant (Final Fantasy IX gameplay)|t1=Amarant Coral gameplay}}
Amarant wields [[Final Fantasy IX weapons#Claws|claws]] in battle, and his special abilities are [[Throw (Final Fantasy IX)|Throw]] and [[Flair (Final Fantasy IX)|Flair]]. Throw allows him to throw [[Final Fantasy IX weapons|weapons]] and [[Final Fantasy IX items#Offensive items|throwable offensive items]] at enemies to deal heavy damage. Flair allows him to cast offensive or defensive abilities. In [[Trance (Final Fantasy IX)|Trance]], this becomes Elan, and hits all targets instead of one.

Amarant is also fought as a [[Scarlet Hair (boss)|boss]] before being recruited. Amarant is the only permanent party member who does not, at some point, take a leadership role on the field.

When Amarant joins the party at Madain Sari, it is the first time the player is prompted to choose between party members. When Amarant first joins the party, he refuses to do a [[Final Fantasy IX victory poses|victory pose]]. After being rescued in Ipsen's Castle, he will begin doing his victory pose after winning a battle. His pose is to sit down.

== Musical themes ==
{{audio|filename=FFIX Amarant's Theme.ogg|title="Amarant's Theme" from ''Final Fantasy IX''}}
"Amarant's Theme" is named for himself, and plays during scenes in which Amarant questions Zidane's ways. It is a piece with a moderate tempo and changes from softer to louder constantly throughout the piece.
{{clear}}

== Other appearances ==
{{main|/Other appearances|t1=Amarant Coral other appearances}}
Amarant has made appearances in the following games in the [[Final Fantasy series|''Final Fantasy'' series]]:
*''[[/Other appearances#Dissidia Final Fantasy|Dissidia Final Fantasy]]'' as a cameo.
*''[[Amarant Coral (Opera Omnia)|Dissidia Final Fantasy Opera Omnia]]'' as a playable character.
*''[[/Other appearances#Pictlogica Final Fantasy|Pictlogica Final Fantasy]]'' as a playable character.
*''[[/Other appearances#Final Fantasy Artniks|Final Fantasy Artniks]]'' as a series of [[Final Fantasy Artniks cards|cards]].
*''[[Amarant Coral (Record Keeper)|Final Fantasy Record Keeper]]'' as a playable character.
*''[[Amarant Coral (Brave Exvius)|Final Fantasy Brave Exvius]]'' as a summonable vision.
*''[[/Other appearances#Final Fantasy Trading Card Game|Final Fantasy Trading Card Game]]'' as a series of [[Final Fantasy Artniks cards|cards]].
*''[[/Other appearances#Tetra Master|Tetra Master]]'' as an opponent and cards.
*''[[/Other appearances#Triple Triad|Triple Triad]]'' as a series of cards.

===Other media===
[[File:Home Wallpaper Amarant's Guise from FFVIIEC.png|thumb|Tifa themed after Amarant.]]
[[Tifa Lockhart]] has an attire themed after Amarant in ''[[Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis]]''. Her weapon, dubbed Amarant's Claws, was based on his Duel Claws.
{{clear}}

==Behind the scenes==
[[File:What motivates Zidane from FFIX Remastered.png|thumb|Amarant asks what motivates Zidane.]]
After completing the elemental shrines, Amarant asks Zidane what motivates him to continue, and the player can answer "I do everything for Dagger", "To find out what Kuja is after", or "I don't know". No matter what the player answers, Amarant thinks that he has begun to understand Zidane's way of thinking. In the endgame, the player can revisit [[Lindblum Castle]] and enter Lindblum Airship Station where talking the Aviator allows the player to board the ''Invincible'' and talk to Amarant to finish the conversation. If the player said their motivation was Dagger, Amarant is supposed to ask if something happened between Zidane and her, as the two seem "more honest with each other", but Zidane is baffled Amarant is showing interest in other people's relationships. However, due to a programming oversight, both "Dagger" and "Kuja" reasons lead to the same dialogue: Zidane says he has discovered he and Kuja are both the same and very different. If the player had answered "don't know", Zidane explains he is always discovering new things about the world and about himself. 

Amarant and [[Adelbert Steiner|Steiner]] are the only [[human]]s of the eight main characters. Zidane is a [[Genome (Final Fantasy IX)|Genome]], Vivi is a [[Black mage (Final Fantasy IX)|black mage]], Freya is a [[Burmecian]], [[Quina Quen|Quina]] is a [[Qu]], and Garnet and Eiko are [[Summoner (Final Fantasy IX)|summoners]]. Amarant and Queen Brahne are the only humans shown in ''Final Fantasy IX'' that have blue skin.

Amarant's Flair attack, No Mercy, originally appeared in ''[[Final Fantasy VIII]]'' as [[Seifer (Final Fantasy VIII gameplay)|Seifer's]] [[Limit Break (Final Fantasy VIII)|Limit Break]]. It also appeared painted on the wall in the [[Sector 8]] slums of ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]''. In the German version Amarant's No Mercy skill is called Mahagomeha, a word play with his German name (Mahagon) and the famous Kamehameha from ''Dragonball'' that was popular at that time ''Final Fantasy IX'' first came out.

== Gallery ==
<gallery>
Amarant 3.jpg|Artwork by [[Yoshitaka Amano]].
IX-art-amarant.jpg|Artwork by Yoshitaka Amano.
Amarant Rough Sketch 2.jpg
Amarant Rough Sketch 1.jpg
Amarant FFIX Art 1.jpg|Concept artwork.
Amarant FFIX Art 2.jpg|Concept artwork.
Amarant Trance FFIX Art.jpg|Trance concept artwork.
AmarantExplosion.png|Arrogance artwork.
FFIX_Arrogance.jpg|Arrogance.
TrenoPub.png|Amarant's wanted poster in Treno pub.
FFIX Amarant Ability.png|Amarant using a [[Flair]] ability.
Amarant Victory Pose.gif|[[Final Fantasy IX victory poses|Victory pose]].
FFIX Amarant Ready Pose.png|Amarant's ready pose.
Amarant and Kuja Bring Arts for FFIX.jpg|Bring Arts figure.
</gallery>

== Etymology ==
{{Etym|Amaranth}} There are several instances in which the game refers to Amarant's vivid hair color. It is likely his name would be spelled with the "h" on the end if the letter limitation for names were set at eight letters instead of seven. There are numerous mentions of the amaranth growing at the base of the tree of life in literature (Aesop and Milton come to mind). It's possible that Amarant, who joins the party to venture to the Iifa Tree, might have been chosen as the name for the English translation for this reason.

He is named Salamander in the Japanese version of the game. {{Etym|Salamander}} Hence Amarant's moniker "Flaming Amarant" (or "Flaming Salamander").

He is known as Scarlet Hair in the boss battle against him before he is named. {{Etym|Scarlet}}

The French translation of Amarant's name, "Tarask", could be a reference to the [[wikipedia:Tarasque|Tarasque]], a dragon-like creature from French legend. {{Etym|Tarasque}}

His German name, Mahagon, could be a variation on the word mahogany (''Mahagoni'' in German), which is a reddish-brown hard wood.

{{Etym|Coral}}

== References ==
{{citations}}

{{navbox characters FFIX}}


[[de:Mahagon Coral]]
[[es:Amarant Coral]]
[[fr:Tarask Coral]]
[[it:Amarant Coral]]
[[ru:Амарант Коралл]]
[[Category:Monks]]
[[Category:Characters in Final Fantasy IX]]
[[Category:Ninjas]]