The Gaia Gear is a mid to high-ranked mystic armor in Final Fantasy XII that boosts the wearer's Defense by 47 (Zodiac) or 35 (original), and Magick Power by 9. Unusually for a mystic armor piece, it gives HP: 150 in the Zodiac versions and 100 in the original. In the Zodiac versions, it also gives 10 MP, which is much less than preceding mystic armors.
Obtain[]
Original[]
In the original PlayStation 2 version, the Gaia Gear is sold for 9,300 gil in Balfonheim Port. It rarely drops from the Mythril Golem. Gaia Gear is also available from the Hunt Club quest on the Phon Coast by giving 15 Rare Game trophies to Blok; the Gaia Gear can hen be bought from the Shifty-Eyed Merchant's store nearby for 8,370 gil.
Zodiac[]
In the updated Zodiac versions, Gaia Gear is not sold in shops, but sells for 4,650 gil. It is a treasure in Cerobi Steppe's South Liavell Hills (20% chance to appear, 20% chance for gil, 5% chance the item treasure is the Gaia Gear with the Diamond Armlet equipped), and in Great Crystal's Trahk Pis Praa (always appears). It still rarely drops from the Mythril Golem.
Use[]
Gaia Gear is a mid to high-ranked mystic armor, giving 47 or 35 Defense and 150 or 100 HP depending on version, 8 Magick Power, as well as 10 MP in the Zodiac versions. Mystic armor offer magick-related bonuses that affect all types of magickal actions, from casting black magick to damage an enemy, to casting white magick to heal the party. Magick Power is also a factor when determining damage dealt by katana, staves, and maces. Usually only light armor give HP, so Gaia Gear can be the mystic armor equalavent of that, though much less potent at it than light gear is. However, Gaia Gear has the HP boost for a mystic armor, which can be relevant in the Zodiac versions where certain jobs cannot equip light gear.
In the Zodiac versions, White Mage, Red Battlemage, Black Mage, and Bushi can equip it, and so the Gaia Gear is only useful to look for if the player has chosen any of these License Boards for their party. In The Zodiac Age versions, after fighting Belias the player can choose two License Boards per party member; it is usually a good idea to pair jobs that use two different types of armor for versatility.
Etymology[]
Gaia or Gaea was the goddess or personification of Earth in ancient Greek religion, one of the Greek primordial deities. Gaia was the mother of all: the heavenly gods, the Titans and the Giants were born from her union with Uranus (the sky), while the sea-gods were born from her union with Pontus (the sea). The Greek word "γαῖα" (transliterated as gaia or gaea) is a collateral form of "γῆ" meaning Earth. Her equivalent in the Roman pantheon was named Gaea (Terra in more ancient documents). This is alluded to in Final Fantasy IX with the existence of Gaia's twin world.
The mythological name Gaia was revived in 1979 by James Lovelock, whose Gaia hypothesis proposes that living organisms and inorganic material are part of a dynamic system that shapes the Earth's biosphere, and maintains the Earth as a fit environment for life. In some Gaia theory approaches the Earth itself is viewed as an organism with self-regulatory functions. This theory is especially alluded to in the Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within take on Gaia as the planet's soul.