The Final Fantasy series has been around for almost 35 years now, going on their 16th main game. In each game, you have a number of different party members that you can recruit, switch around, and equip with special gear to help within the game. Whether they be main characters related to the story, or optional partners obtainable in the RPG, it’s hard to know just what you’re getting into when they first join.
With so many strong party members, and a good amount of duds on top of that, there are definitely a few characters who are stronger than others. Some could even argue that there is a definitive ranking of the strongest Final Fantasy party members across sixteen different games.
10 Gladiolus Amicitia Has A High Damage Output – Final Fantasy XV
Gladio is an offensive threat both as the A.I. controlled party member and as the player-controlled character in any fight in the Royal Edition of Final Fantasy XV. Much like a lot of characters with similar stats, Gladiolus is a cut above the rest due to his high damage output and HP.
He can easily help Noctis create space, take cover, and make enemies vulnerable for any burst damage Noctis is able to deal out. Even without magic, Gladio is just so useful in all other avenues that it barely matters.
9 Barret Wallace Has Some Of The Strongest Limit Breaks In The Game- Final Fantasy VII
In the original FFVII game, Barret is a close choice for being a mainstay in your party. The range, high survivability, and strong Limit Breaks outclass many of the party members in the game. In the early game, he’s a strong tanky character with lots of physical potential.
However, by late game, his ultimate weapon gives him access to a large amount of magic. Even without abusing the overglow glitch present in FFVII, Barret can carry a team to the end of the game with some of the strongest Limit Breaks in the game.
8 Terra Branford Can Melt Through Enemies Faster Than Anyone Else- Final Fantasy VI
Final Fantasy VI doesn’t treat a single character as the main protagonist, and because of that, everyone shares the limelight over the course of the game. While characters like Celes and Sabin can do massive amounts of damage, while having plenty of utility with the help of Espers, Terra is on another level.
With some of the best unique equipment in the game and a fully kitted-out arsenal of magic, Terra can melt through enemies faster than anyone else. Her Trance ability is simple, but effective, doubling damage and only taking half damage from magic attacks. Any player can’t go wrong with Terra on their team for any situation.
7 Vaan Has The Highest Stat For Strength And Vitality – Final Fantasy XII
While Vaan is the main playable character in FFXII, he is not really seen as the protagonist. It’s possible to do all combat without him, apart from some necessary sections relating to the story as well. With the overall community favoring Balthier and Basch, it’s hard to argue that Vaan makes a welcome addition to any team.
With high damage, quick speed, and the highest stat for Strength and Vitality, Vaan feels obvious to keep on the team. Ashe may be the real focus of this game’s story, but Vaan got all the love in this very different Final Fantasy game.
6 Samurai – Final Fantasy V
Every character can be placed into any job in FFV, each with their own advantages and disadvantages. The characters with higher strength stats are obviously a good choice to start going into Samurai, but for the most part any character could be used for this insanely broken job. There’s little to no downside to choosing Samurai, even with no magic options. Samurais can get up to 50% evasion with ease, meaning only half of physical attacks will even hit.
Samurai has a high crit chance, and has one of the best legendary weapons in the game, giving your character “First Strike” so they always move first in every encounter. Diversifying your team with several different kinds of jobs can round out the underlying issues for Samurai, but even on its own, Samurai can carry the game to the end in style.
5 Steiner Is The Most Powerful Character In His Respective Game – Final Fantasy IX
The absolute strongest character in the last game for the PlayStation 1 is the haughty, comical character himself, Steiner. At the beginning of the game it may feel as though Steiner and Freya are tied for being the melee powerhouses, Steiner surpasses Freya’s strength with ease.
Freya’s damage using Dragon’s Crest is entirely dependent on how many dragon’s you farmed, whereas Steiner can reach the same damage potential with just one skill. Without having to check for elemental weaknesses or resistances, Shock will do max damage on everything it hits at the end of the game. This, coupled with Steiner’s natural strength, makes him a valuable party member in any stage of the game.
4 Rydia Is The Only Character That Can Summon Eidolons – Final Fantasy IV
This entry doesn’t need too much of an explanation as anyone who has played FFIV knows that Rydia is a welcome addition to the game. In the early game, she can use Black Magic for high DPS and by the end game, she will be changed entirely.
She is the only character that can summon Eidolons, capable of damaging multiple enemies with different elemental attacks or even using instant death spells to every creature in an encounter. There will be lots of farming involved for summon drops but it is well worth the grind. It’s easy to get through FFIV underestimating some party members, but not a single person overlooks just how powerful Rydia can be.
3 Lightning Is Canonically The Most Powerful Protagonist – Final Fantasy XIII
While canonically being the most powerful protagonist in the Final Fantasy series, Lightning didn’t have her more powerful assets, seen in Lightning Returns, in the original Final Fantasy XIII game. Lightning outclasses many of the party member options within FFXIII, having arguably the most balanced stats in the game. High DPS potential is one thing, but Lightning has the speed to be able to effectively take down enemies before getting hit herself. With low HP, she may be seen as more of a glass cannon, but she has the ability to learn “Elude”, increasing her survival with the high 50% chance of evading each attack coming her way.
While she doesn’t have the highest offensive stat total in any one attribute, she has the second-highest magic and physical attack stats and the highest speed. Whether she is used as a Medic for a secondary healer or go all out as a Ravager, Lightning is well versed in every role she is slotted in.
2 Yuna Has High Utility- Final Fantasy X
The sunglass-wearing swordsman is an easy choice for choosing any party in Final Fantasy X, but Auron comes second next to Yuna. The damage limit can be broken with all the characters with their respective Celestial Weapons, but Yuna has an additional layer to her overall DPS. Yuna has high utility and is seen as the healer of the party, but she can surpass everyone’s damage capabilities with one special move.
Everyone’s Celestial Weapon can exceed the standard 9999 limit, with a new limit of 99,999, but when using Anima, one could seemingly exceed that number with its Overdrive. Because Anima’s Overdrive does 16 hits in total, the game will tally those hits all up to get to a maximum total of 1,599,984. An absolutely ridiculous number to reach for the girl everyone uses just for “Revive”.
1 Zell Dincht Can Defeat Nearly Every Enemy In One Round- Final Fantasy VIII
Possibly the most broken character in the entire series, Zell can finish nearly every single enemy in the game in just one round. With high damage output and a Limit Break that can be exploited with fast inputs, it’s no wonder why Zell would be on the top of people’s priority list to make FFVIII a breeze to get through.
All that is needed is his Limit Break “Duel” and to use what is commonly referred to as “Armageddon Fist” to do upwards of 720,000 damage. It may be tiring to have to input all the commands during “Duel”, but the results reward the tedium.
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