Leviathan. Our most profaned fragment.
Leviathan, the Warden of Water, is a lost Eikon in Final Fantasy XVI. Leviathan disappeared nearly one century ago, and as such, initially did not make any appearances outside his portrayal on the murals of the Circle of Malius cult. In the mural, he is depicted as a long sea serpent.[note 1]
Like with the other Eikons, Leviathan is supposed to awaken among the descendants of the "Motes of Water" people, but has not done so in more than a century due to the tribe's presumed extinction at the hands of Sanbreque after they were labeled as heretics. The Motes of Water's homelands were the coasts of southern Ash and their Mothercrystal was the destroyed Drake's Horn similar to the other Motes' homelands and crystals mentioned in the "Hidden Truths" sections on Eikons in the Bestiary.
Leviathan is a recurring Water-elemental summon in the Final Fantasy series. He is commonly one of the largest summons in the games he appears in.
Leviathan plays a central role in "The Rising Tide" DLC, appearing as a boss and an Eikon that Clive Rosfield can use in battle.
Active Time Lore[]
Despite the prominence of the Dominants and their Eikons in modern politics and warfare, recent history makes no mention of an Eikon of Water. So long has it been, in fact, since Leviathan last appeared in Valisthea that he is now almost exclusively referred to as "the Lost." As to where exactly he went, though, no one is quite certain.
Leviathan the Lost: Legend
So long has it been since the Eikon of Water last appeared in Valisthea that many have forgotten Leviathan even existed, despite much evidence to the contrary. Old writings clearly speak of Dominants past summoning great whale-like creatures capable of swallowing entire cities with their gaping maws. Visual records such as the famed Circle of Malius tapestry also exist, depicting the Eikon as a giant serpent alongside its elemental brethren.
Leviathan the Lost: Basic Information
Eighty years ago, a baby was born to the Motes of Water—a Dominant, the first to awaken after decades of silence. Yet rather than embrace this miracle, they instead chose to use him for their own gain, subjecting him to a torturous rite that stirred the serpent slumbering inside him. Fearing the destruction of their village at the hands of an enraged Eikon, the Motes cast a spell on the child, imprisoning him within time itself, where he remains trapped to this day, his anger stayed but not soothed.
Leviathan: Hidden Truths
History[]
Leviathan is an Eikon that awakened as a result of Ultima planting a "seed" of his kin's power in the newly-created humans of Valisthea, with Leviathan awakening in the "Motes of Water" people who originally dwelled in southern Ash. Like the other Eikons, Leviathan was created by Ultima to act as a vessel of power to eventually be absorbed by Mythos, Ultima's chosen vessel, in order to cast his "Raise" spell and reshape the world for his species.
The Motes of Water fled from Ash when the Drake's Horn Mothercrystal fell in the Year of the Realm 350 and the Blight began to spread across their land. They migrated to Storm and adopted a nomadic lifestyle, eventually making their way to Sanbreque in the northeast, around the Year of the Realm 708. When they refused to give up their beliefs, the Greagorian Church branded them as heretics and hunted them to extinction, according to the Church's records.
A few Motes of Water survived the extermination attempt, fled, and eventually made a home in Mysidia, a region located in the fallen Northern Territories. They would hide their new home with a massive illusionary dome called the Glamour, which made the location of their village, Haven, appear as though it was simply another area of land consumed by the Blight and devoid of all life.
Nearly a century after their arrival, the people of Haven would come across a woman named Ysay, the Dominant of Shiva at the time. Ysay had been exiled and left to die from the Crystals' curse by the northern thegns whom she had served after failing to prevent the destruction of the Northern Territories' Mothercrystal, Drake's Eye. The Motes of Water took Ysay in, referring to her as "the Witch of the North", and cared for her in her dying days. In return, she taught them how to use her Chronomancy spell, which she had created in her attempt to preserve Drake's Eye by freezing it in time. With this spell, the Motes of Water hatched a devious plan: they would create their own Mothercrystal, having learned how to do so after discovering the Sagespire, and use Leviathan's Dominant as an artificial heart by freezing them in time, so that the Mothercrystal would never decay.
When the infant Waljas was born in the Year of the Realm 798 and identified as the Dominant of Leviathan, the plan was put into motion, forcing Waljas to prime. The plan backfired, as an enraged Leviathan retaliated against the Motes' betrayal and unleashed a powerful tidal wave that would obliterate Mysidia. Before the wave could come down on them, the Motes of Water used the Chronomancy spell to stop it. Waljas was frozen in time, along with the massive wave Leviathan had created, which would eventually come to be known as the Surge. Ultima deemed that Leviathan had been profaned by humanity and chose to rebuke the Eikon, not intending to guide his Mythos to it when they eventually awakened.
Eighty years later, Shula, Waljas's great-niece and tributary of the Motes of Water, sent an anonymous letter to Clive Rosfield, asking that he help her free Waljas from his imprisonment. The two met in the plains outside of Northreach, where she took Clive and his party on her skiff and on to Mysidia. They traveled to the Surge, where Clive used his powers as Mythos to absorb Leviathan's aether from the child. A frightened and angry Waljas summoned an Egi called Perykos to attack him and his allies, prompting Clive to use his newfound control over Leviathan's magick to dispatch the creature.
Clive, Shula, and Jill Warrick later headed to the Aire of Hours to disable the Vare, a magical device used to stop the flow of time, with Shula weakening its output to free Waljas but leave the Surge untouched. Ultima contacted Clive telepathically, calling Leviathan his "most profaned fragment", and told Clive to atone for humanity's sins from 80 years ago. Ultima goaded Waljas into priming, sending the serpent into the frenzy it had been prevented from starting nearly a decade prior as it created a massive waterspout.
Leviathan appears from inside the waterspout.
Clive traveled to the Surge to stop Leviathan, while Jill and Shula returned to Haven to move the villagers to higher ground. Clive confronted Leviathan and primed into Ifrit, and the two Eikons battled, first inside of the waterspout and then inside of a pocket dimension of Leviathan's making. Leviathan fought ferociously, with powerful water magicks and vicious biting attacks, but Ifrit whittled away at his strength, all the while trying to reason with Waljas. On his last leg, Leviathan attempted to crush Ifrit by unleashing his ultimate attack, Tsunami, but Ifrit countered and vaporized the wave with a new spell of his own: Controlled Burn. With Leviathan hanging on to what little energy he had left, Ifrit began to cast Hellfire to end the fight and to put the great serpent to rest. Leviathan attempted to deflect the attack with a magic barrier, but Ifrit hit Leviathan with a second fireball, disorienting the serpent and allowing Hellfire to make contact, engulfing the Eikon of Water in a massive explosion. Leviathan was defeated and reverted into Waljas, ending the serpent's threat to Mysidia and allowing Waljas to return to his people.
After Clive's final battle with Ultima on Origin, he used his power to destroy the wellspring of magic, erasing all magic, Eikons, Dominants, Bearers, the Crystals' curse, and hopefully the Blight, from the world. The Eikons, including Leviathan, would eventually fade into legend, but their story would carried into the future through the story of Final Fantasy, authored by "Joshua Rosfield".
Characteristics[]
Leviathan is a massive, serpentine creature with blue scales and red accents on his body, most notably on his head and tail. He has large, dragon-like wings that allow him to fly, with multiple fins on his body and long, flowing tendrils on his head. His head has a long, narrow snout, and his mouth is filled with multiple razor-sharp teeth.
Gameplay[]
Boss[]
Leviathan is fought in the location the Surge resides: Cape Nepto. He and Ifrit fight within the waterspout that was summoned when Waljas primed and also fight within a pocket dimension of Leviathan's power. His Egi, Perykos and Thalaos, are also fought, with the former being fought after Clive gains Leviathan's power from Waljas, and the latter being fought as a notorious mark (in a quest).
Clive's abilities[]
Rise, Tides!
Clive when switching to Leviathan mid-battle
With Leviathan now at Clive's disposal, he can summon an aspect of the serpent's head on his off hand with Leviathan's Eikonic Feature, Serpent's Cry. This Eikonic Feat is unique in its own right, since it focuses on far-ranged attacks. The skills when Serpent's Cry is active are known as Tidal Torrent, Tidal Stream, and Tidal Bomb. Tidal Torrent is an attack in which Clive can fire off an array of bullets each time the attack button (
) is pressed. Holding the button unleashes more bullets. If Precision Dodge is enacted, Clive can cause a short burst of water after he rushes towards any enemy.
Tidal Stream allows Clive to spray in a single line by pressing the magic button (
), while summoning a small, condensed stream of water wherever the serpent head sprays. The attack summons bombs of water, which shortly explode. Holding the attack will summon more bombs. When enacting Precision Dodge, the bombs will cluster. Tidal Bomb lets Clive lob three condensed orbs that explode in pillars after dropping to the ground when both the attack and jump buttons ( + 
at the same time) are pressed. The player needs to be careful of using these attacks too much, for the Tidal Gauge, exclusive to Leviathan, depletes each attack (Tidal Torrent - 10, Tidal Stream - 30, Tidal Bomb - 10).
Reminder: To recharge the Tidal Gauge, the skill Refill (using 
) fills the gauge, allowing Clive to unleash tidal attacks again. Timing the attack will allow the attacks to be unlimited for a moment. Clive can also enact Roll by pressing the evade button (
) again after dodging.
Along with this Eikonic Feat, Clive gains access to two moves, which would be used in his fight against Perykos: Deluge and Cross Swell. Deluge lets Clive unleash a barrage of bullets in rapid succession, dealing decent amount of Will damage to enemies. It would be best to be at a certain distance for this attack, just as to not get attacked while the skill is in effect. Upgrading this move will lengthen it, while for the second half of the attack, the bullets will become much faster. Cross Swell, the second Eikonic ability Clive gains, summons two waves of water that will collide with each other, while also gathering smaller enemies together. This could be great to deal with crowds of enemies, although it may be difficult to get most of them.
The remaining Eikonic moves, Abyssal Tear and Leviathan's Signature Move, Tsunami, can be unlocked via the Eikonic Ability Tab in the main menu, as for every Eikonic Ability. Abyssal Tear has a similar mechanic to Bahamut's Wings of Light, although a small orb will be at Clive's side, following him until he enacts the skill, which releases a barrage of water bullets onto multiple enemies. The max level is 4, with the attack being lengthened by a bit, depending on how long the player levels up the attack. Dodging will also increase the meter by a bit.
Tsunami unleashes a tidal whorl that drags enemies into the abyss. Upgrading Tsunami will allow Clive to unleash a second wave. This attack not only has great damage but is also great for dealing with a crowd of enemies.
Musical themes[]
Leviathan's theme is "Cascade", which plays during the fourth and final phase of the boss battle. This was the theme was used in the very first trailer of Final Fantasy XVI. "A Most Profaned Fragment" is an arrangement of "Cascade" that plays during the second phase of the boss battle. "To Sail Forbidden Seas" plays during the first phase and is a common boss theme for Dominants and Eikons. "High Tide" is an arrangement of "Through the Maelstrom" from Final Fantasy XIV that plays during the third phase.
Behind the scenes[]
The final boss uses abilities from all Eikons besides Leviathan. Only water-aspected Bearers, such as Tiamat, are known to use water spells.
Each chronolith trial is named as "hand of" and a name of a one of the first eight moons of Saturn. Tethys (Saturn III) belongs to the trial of Leviathan. In Greek mythology, Tethys was the mother of the river gods.
Gallery[]
Etymology[]
Leviathan (Biblical Hebrew לִוְיָתָן or לווייתן Liwyāthān) is a violent sea creature referred to in the Hebrew Bible as well as the Talmud and some other ancient Jewish texts. The Ugaritic equivalent being Lotan. During the golden age of seafaring, the term Leviathan became synonymous with any large sea creature, sometimes describing whales. Bible scholars interpreted Leviathan to be either a demonic sea creature and an enemy of God.
The Talmud and other ancient Jewish sources refer to Leviathan more specifically as a sea serpent, sometimes with multiple heads capable of breathing fire, that was made on the fifth day of Creation. It is said that during the end of days, God will make tents, or sukkah, out of the skin of Leviathan for the righteous to live in. Some have speculated that Leviathan was based on a real animal, the most popular theory being the Kronosaurus and the Nile crocodile.
Leviathan is also one of the seven princes of Hell associated with the deadly sin Envy and Hell's gatekeeper in Christian demonology.
In the Final Fantasy series, Leviathan is sometimes referred to as the King of the Seas. Its incarnation in the series appears to derive from the legends of the Shinto god Ryūjin or Owatatsumi, said to be the dragon god that reigns over the seas. It also resembles the Chinese dragon, mystical beings seen as the rulers of moving bodies of water, and the Dragon God as the dispenser of rain.
Notes[]
- ↑ When Joshua Rosfield explores the Apodytery in Ash, he finds a complete mural and comments "Even Leviathan the Lost is here."