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Magitek knights[note 1] are a group of warriors in Final Fantasy VI. A Magitek knight is a soldier of the Gestahlian Empire that has been infused with Magitek and given the ability to cast magic.

Overview[]

Cid Del Norte Marguez helped spearhead their creation. The exact process for creating Magitek knights is unknown, but it apparently involves a brain augmentation, and according to Celes Chere, the subject is asleep during the procedure. Kefka Palazzo was the first experimental Magitek knight, but the process wasn't perfected yet and it drove him insane. Later experiments refined the process to be more reliable, but Kefka is implied to be significantly stronger than other Magitek knights in terms of magical ability. General Leo Cristophe was also considered for the process of becoming a Magitek knight, but refused the infusion.

Magitek knights, given their considerable sword skills and magical powers, were likely among the elite troops of the Empire. However, as Kefka shows, not all Magitek knights are as proficient in physical combat as they are in magic. Leo's Shock ability is magic-based, though he is not a Magitek knight. Emperor Gestahl also had access to magic, but did not seem to possess any notable combat abilities.

Beyond this, Magitek knight is used as a broad term for any soldier of the Empire who can cast magic. The orange-armored (crimson-armored in the mobile/PC versions) soldiers that accompany Kefka in Thamasa are referred to as "Magitek Soldiers". They should not be confused for Magitek knights, as the Japanese word for them is アーマー兵 (āmā-hei?), which literally means "armored soldier". When Gestahl offers Celes Chere the chance to rule the world with him and Kefka, he puts forth the idea that a child of two Magitek knights may also be able to use magic.[1]

Terra Branford's job is listed as "Magitek Elite", but she never received a Magitek infusion and uses magic naturally due to her half-esper heritage. However, the Empire used her as a soldier and she has similar abilities as Celes, so it seems the Empire considered her a Magitek knight regardless of the source of her powers.

Other media[]

Terra has an outfit called Magitek Knight in Dissidia Final Fantasy NT.

World of Final Fantasy has a trophy called Magitek Knight for felling enemies in Magitek Armor.

Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin features the Magitek Knight as a Class Tree for the Tyrant job.

Etymology[]

"Magitek" is a portmanteau of "magic" and "technology".

A knight is a mounted soldier in armor who served his sovereign or lord in the Middle Ages. The word comes from Old English cniht ("boy" or "servant"), a cognate of the German word Knecht ("servant, bondsman, vassal"). In most European languages (with the notable exception of English), the word for "knight" comes from "horse", thus implying that a knight is a "noble horseman" or a "horse-mounted nobleman". The English noun cavalier, an archaic term for a mounted soldier, traces its roots to Latin, and is closer in meaning to the "horseman" of Romance languages.

Notes[]

Annotations[]

  1. The term is written as "Magitek Knight" in the SNES script, but as "Magitek knight" in the GBA script.

Citations[]

  1. Gestahl: Celes, child... You alone are special. Why don't I give you and Kefka the task of creating progeny to populate my new Magitek empire?
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