This fellow's double sickle attack is one of the worst. Can easily Wound a character with one hit. Sucks MP with MindReaper.
Final Fantasy VI PlayStation Bestiary entry
The Greater Mantis, also called Mantodea, is an enemy in Final Fantasy VI that will appear after the cataclysm, and haunts the outskirts of Jidoor, Maranda, and Narshe.
Stats[]
Battle[]
Greater Mantis has the highest Attack Power of any regular opponent (more than twice as much as the final boss), and its physical attacks will do heavy damage. It is recommended to take it out first using 
Fire-elemental attacks, like Fira and Firaga. Its special attack, Mind Reaper, drains a target's MP. It can be found in the World of Ruin in the forests north of Jidoor and the plains south of Narshe.
Coliseum setup[]
Shadow equipped with a Thunder Shield will nullify Wind Slash, while Kagenui will have a chance to cast Stop on Greater Mantis. Mind Reaper will have no ill effect, since the player ideally will not be using MP for the duration of the battle, and it can still trigger a counterattack from Interceptor.
If the monster's immense power is too much to handle, having Mog with 255 Defense, or a character under the 
Imp status being fully equipped with the imp equipment (both in the back row), will be even more reliable. Choice characters to turn into an imp would be Gogo or any character that does not know the Imp spell.
Formations[]
| Number | Enemies | Encounter flags | Introduction flag | Musical theme | Magic AP | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Normal | Back | Surrounded | Side | |||||
| 323 | Greater Mantis, Sprinter, Lycaon x2 | Sides, individual | Battle | 3 | ||||
| 325 | Greater Mantis x2 | Sides, individual | Battle | 2 | ||||
AI script[]
Normal script[]
Attack Turns:
1st Turn: Attack (66%) or Nothing (33%)
2nd Turn: Mind Reaper (33%) or Attack (66%)
Coliseum script[]
Attack Turns:
1st Turn: Attack (33%) or Mind Reaper (33%) or Wind Slash (33%)
Other appearances[]
Pictlogica Final Fantasy[]
This section about an enemy in Pictlogica Final Fantasy is empty or needs to be expanded. You can help the Final Fantasy Wiki by expanding it.Final Fantasy Record Keeper[]
Greater Mantis from Final Fantasy VI appears as an enemy in Final Fantasy Record Keeper.
Etymology[]
Mantises is an order of insects that contains over 2,400 species and about 430 genera in 15 families worldwide in temperate and tropical habitats. Most are in the family Mantidae. A common name, often applied to any species in the order, is "praying mantis" due to the typical "prayer-like" posture with folded fore-limbs, although the eggcorn "preying mantis" is sometimes used in reference to their predatory habits. In Europe and other regions, however, the name "praying mantis" refers to only a single species, Mantis religiosa.
Mantodea, the name given to this monster by translator Ted Woolsey in the SNES version, is the proper name for the insect order of mantises, separating them from the similar order Orthoptera (which includes grasshoppers, crickets, and cockroaches).