Rank the FF6 Characters!

[Rodney]

This is the third of my series of threads and polls, asking all of you for your personal rankings of the characters from each FF game in the numbered games. You can base them on personality, usefulness in gameplay, relevance to the story, general enjoyment of each character, or even frivolous things such as their character themes. Whatever you want to base them on. Also included is a poll on which you can vote for your absolute favorite from each game.

This is my third one. It's for FF6! And this was another tough set, because I actually didn't hate anyone in this game.

So here are my rankings:

1. Relm: I realize my tastes will be sort of unorthodox compared to the rest of EoFF's, but frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn. Whenever I started a new FF6 game, I always tried to do all of my grinding and story material in a hurry so I could get to Thamasa. I don't care how irrelevant to the story she allegedly was. I loved Relm's personality and how she spoke her mind whenever she had to. And while her Sketch ability was useless nearly every time in battle, I came to find that she was actually one of the better mages. At least third- or fourth-best. Also, I liked how quickly she bonded with Interceptor. Even now, I still can't quite figure out how or why she did so quickly. Oh, and yes, she gets the "perky young girl" character benefit to be up so high.

2. Sabin: Surprisingly, one and two were neck-and-neck. If there was anything I loved about Sabin, it was that he could be bold and brave, yet also had a comical side to him. (See: all of his "dancing" with Gau, and his moments of frustration with keeping Gau under control.) His contrasting personality with Edgar was another plus. I was always quite surprised that story-wise, the newcomer to the party (at the time) got the longest scenario when the party split up. Also, if we're adding battle abilities into the equation, a good monk is always valuable. And Bum Rush rocks. Enough said.

3. Gau: Another one I don't care was useless story-wise. Gau just cracked me up, from his simple unkempt appearance and manner to his inability to grasp basic social cues, I absolutely loved that wacky kid! Also, being the "energetic young boy" character (an archetype used much less often compared to Relm's archetype) Now, battle-wise, I didn't necessarily use him a lot unless I needed one really crucial Rage of his. That Rage? Gold Bear. Gouge is the tit. Trust me on this.

4. Celes: I can't necessarily put my finger on why I have her so far up here, but I really did quite enjoy Celes, too. It may have been her sense of nobility and her eventual choice to finally turn on the Empire after previously being their plant. Or it may have been her willingness to try new things whenever they came her way. (See: being an opera star.) But there was just something about the woman that made me really like her. She's one of those "like him/her a lot, but I don't know why" characters. Plus, her magic saved me whenever I really needed it, so she was useful that way.

5. Cyan: What can I say? People who use archaic, medieval-type speech just do it for me. At least when they're among cast members who don't speak like that. (If they're from games where nearly everybody does, they're not as fun.) I liked Cyan's own brand of nobility and how he was willing to sacrifice himself for his friends. And I found it oddly touching that he was willing to sacrifice his own happiness to make the poor girl in Maranda happy. Deceptive? Yes. Doomed to failure once she found out? Yes. But it was nice of him to at least show his selflessness. Also, the look into his own guilt and grief for not saving Elayne and Owain was a good bit of insight into his character. Also, the Cyan/Gau bond, however little it was focused on, was another one of my favorite things about Cyan (and Gau, as well). Also, his Bushido skills were something very much valued by me.

6. Edgar: I admired Edgar's craftiness and his ladies' man ways. I liked that he could charm the pants of women and hold the respect of men so easily. I enjoyed his contrast with Sabin, as well. If there was anything I didn't like about him, it was using his Tools in battle. Other than Drill and Chainsaw, I never really had a lot of fun using them.

7. Shadow: Shadow said one sentence. Just one. And he had me: "Leave us. The dog eats strangers." I don't know why, but it hooked me. I think it's because the designers were going for giving him that feeling of being a bad-ass not to be trifled with. And that very sentence made it work. And even then, he had a softer, more understanding side to him, as shown by lending an ear to Terra on the ship to Thamasa. I absolutely appreciated his ninja skills in battle, too, although I hated risking having him throw things that I may have needed later. If there was one thing I hated, though, it was his tendency to leave early in the game whenever he reached his required amount, and then never being able to find him again. I don't think that was ever possible to recruit again until he was given to the party to head to Thamasa with him.

8. Terra: I actually really liked Terra (even despite plotholeman's venomous rants about her), so I'm kinda surprised to be putting her in the lower half, especially considering the fact that I'm giving her the benefit of being the first female main protagonist FF history, a distinction she held for a long time before Lightning came along in FF13. I guess I just like the seven characters above a lot more. Unlike he who runs this board, I could totally get her situation. Enslaved for most of her life, being forced to know only the feelings of servitude and obligation, and not knowing how to express affection, or have it expressed to her. That could leave nearly any character messed up. So I never minded her wanting to know and feel what love was. I liked her arc as she slowly came to realize exactly what that was. Her backstory was a unique one, too. Daughter of a human and an Esper? Never been done again since then. (Though man, picturing that conception makes me cringe every time I, well, picture it.) Plus, in battle, her magic was probably either tops or second-best, depending on whether you developed her or Celes more. Also liked her transforming ability.

9. Mog: Yeah, story-wise, he was another useless one. But again, I don't care. He gets the benefit of avoiding the bottom group for being the first-ever moogle party member. That's another thing that's never been done since this game. That's pretty much it, though it's a killer getting all of his Dances. Did you all know that that's only possible if you obtain him during the World of Balance? I hate what going through the Serpent Trench with him and then walking all the way back around to the Blackjack does to my fingers. Still, if I based the rankings purely on gameplay, I can tell you all now that he'd probably be at the bottom, if not close to it. But since personality and storyline usefulness also count . . . ninth place.

10. Locke: So now, we start my moderate like/neutral group. I did like Locke, sort of, but at the same time, there was something kind of . . . cookie-cutter about his heroics. I mean, it was a chance that such a heroic guy was a thief and not a swordsman, but . . . I don't know. I did like the parallels of him wanting to protect Terra and Celes after failing to protect Rachel. That was a good story arc for him. But other than that . . . he was sort of "meh" for me.

11. Strago: As of now, the second-oldest character in all of FF history (behind FF9's Quina). I don't have a lot to say about him except for at least sort of liking his elderly freak-outs. And actually being one of the calmer authority figures in how he dealt with Relm wanting to put herself in dangerous situations. (Very calmly and easily just saying, "I don't think so" to her requests of going along with the party.) Granted, he was a failure at doing even that, but still . . . He also was a blue mage during the era of having to take an attack to learn the move, so that kept him out of my party quite often. (I much preferred -- and still do prefer, actually -- Quistis, Quina, and Kimahri's methods of learning blue magic.) So he's down here.

12. Setzer: I know many others love him, but I was so unbelievably neutral about Setzer. Rogue characters are usually appreciated by me, but not those that crash operas to kidnap the leading ladies. Also, aside from being the airship guy, what else was there to him? And who in their right mind would see his Lady Luck/Gambler class as the tiniest bit useful?! Again, meh.

13. Umaro: The bottom two were slam-dunks for me. Love occasionally having a good powerhouse Berserker (especially one who can occasionally throw his own friends!), but other than that, who is Umaro? What is Umaro? Just some yeti who lives in the Narshe mines? What's his backstory? What kind of personality does he have? Other than growling and roaring a lot, that is? So for the total lack of substance, Umaro's down here.

14. Gogo: Well, if I just knocked on Umaro for lacking a distinct enough personality, I have to knock even harder on Gogo for it. He was just a Mime who barely even spoke. Hell, he only spoke once (when you first meet him). Love his Mimic ability, especially when I use a strong magic spell or a strong special ability and need it repeated a second time. But we really don't get any look into his character at all. He's even more of a blank slate than Umaro, so he's at the bottom.

But these are just my rankings. How about everyone else's?

[chionos]

1. Sabin: I'm totally going on nostalgia here, because if I were to play the game right now for the first time, I would have an entirely different ranking. However, the first time I played the game, way back in 1994, I freakin' loved Sabin. I loved his attacks (Street Fighter in a FF, seriously!?), I loved his fun-loving bad-ass attitude, and I loved his backstory and interactions with other characters.

2. Terra: I have to put her here for the same reason as Sabin. I find her to be a bit whiny and pathetic now, but when I was 13, I loved her, she could do no wrong, and her theme song is still as haunting to me as it was then. I was never a fan of morph, but she just seemed to central to the story, like everything revolves around her. She's the bridge between humans and magic, and I'm pretty sure she's the first video game character ever to be conceived and birthed on screen.

3. Lock: Locke gets both nostalgia points and points for being my current favorite character, and it's all about the story. I mean, I always had him in my parties because it's useful to use him in the back with throwing weapons, but mainly Locke is so great because of his personality, his backstory, and the way he is with the other characters. The love triangle with Celes and Rachel, his friendship with Terra and working relationship with Edgar. Seriously, who doesn't like the amiable rogue-type?

4. Setzer: Here's the first big break from the nostalgia chains. I didn't like Setzer much at all the first time I played the game. Partly because I didn't like the randomness of his stupid dice, and partly because I thought he was an ass. But now, I see a more nuanced character, and I can ignore the dice, and Coin Toss is funness.

5. Shadow: There's not much to say, really. Ninjas are awesome. I also really like discovering his story in pieces, and the fact that he's so mysterious. Interceptor is also the best pet ever, loved his random counterattacks.

6. Cyan: Mainly here because of unique combat. It really sucks waiting on that damn timer to move, along, 1....2....3....4, but the payoff is worth it. Loved the way he's brought into the story, and the way you find him in WoR. Pretty brilliant, really.

7. Edgar: I like the Edgar/Sabin dynamic, maybe because I don't have a brother. Some people don't like his Tools, but I love them, auto-crossbow and chainsaw and you got me. Relm+Edgar = funnies.

8. Mog: Playable Moogle. The dance mechanic is pretty cool, even if the randomness of it often blows. Playable freakin' moogle.

9. Relm: Just for the funnies. see #7. Edgar

10. Gogo: I like the mysterious blank slate idea. Speculation is fun. The character is fun. Being able to chain ultima or back-to-back chainsaw is super fun time.

11. Gau: for the most part I dislike his battle-system, especially the randomness of Leaping all the baddies. Some of the attacks are pretty sick, but I like control.

12. Umaro: Just because.

13. Strago: Being this far down on a list of FFVI's best characters is not really as bad coming from me as it might be from someone else. Basically, someone has to be on the bottom, right? My last playthrough I actually spent a lot of time with Strago.

14. Celes: I've kind of grown to dislike Celes, at least as far as it's possible for me to dislike a character from FFVI. It's basically because I think the character never really lives up to its potential. We get to see her quite a bit, but I still don't get a good feel for her through the story. She's just overshadowed by a great cast of characters. It's not really her fault, it's theirs.

[Darylisgogo]

1. Edgar - he is calm, cool, and charming. He never loses his cool and he happens to be one of the central main characters. For a king he doesn't come off as snobbish, in fact he insist to pay his merchants in his castle when they decline his GP(small but notable detail). His tools are wonderful at the beginning of the game and even near the end I always end up with him somewhere in my main party usually. He is kind of a comedy relief, maybe not as much as Mog, Realm, or Strago, but he does bring some laughs. I don't really know why maybe partially nostalgia, but he is probably my all time favorite. I don't know its a really hard choice.

2. Locke - in many ways Locke could be considered the main protagonist of WoB. He is the 2nd member that joins the party and leads Terra on her journey. He is the main leader of your party when Terra morphs and flies across the sky up until you wake Terra up. He is a treasure hunter that dresses with style. His backstory with Racheal was very heartbreaking, and really makes me appreciate his character even more. steal is great although I never used him as much in my main party my opinion of him has greatly increased recently since I have replayed the game.

3. Sabin - BLITZ! Ok it might not be as awesome near the end of the game, but he is a martial arts master! He is also Edgar's brother so I put both the Figaro brothers up with high respect. Terra said it best, " At first glance, I thought he was some bodybuilder who had strayed from his gym." He always ends up in my main party . Both the Figaro brother's back story was tragic but gave great detail to why they turned out so different from one another, but still had great respect for each other.

4.Terra - Even tho she appears to be whiny and helpless at the beginning she really does evolve as the story progresses and I could empathize with her position. Her theme song is awesome, and so was her green hair. It's unfair to call her the main protagonist because of the way this game was designed, but she did give a very solid introduction to the game. Something about a story that starts off with the main character having amnesia has always turned me on. Opens the door to limitless possibilities. Morph might not be all that special but she usually ended up in my main group near the end.

5.Celes - Ok most would disagree with me on Celes, but there will always be a special place in my heart for maria, err I meant Celes. She is definitely the main protagonist of the WoR and the beginning of WoR with her trying to commit suicide and coming to terms with what happened to the world was tear jerking. To be fair and honest these top 5 favorites of mine are about equal and on different days I might choose Celes or Terra or Locke or Sabin as my all time favorite. I just love these 5 so much it is truly hard to decide. I don't think I literately ever use runic, but I guess it could be useful against that one magitek armor fiend in the cave shortly after she joins the party.

6. Shadow - Mystery man covered in black cloth like a ninja. Everyone loves ninjas and he got's a dog too! He comes off as a cold emotionless mercenary that is only concerned with filling his wallet with GP. On the floating island he proves himself to be a selfless hero and sacrifices himself to save the others. His backstory was interesting although I only had patience to sleep at the inn enough times to see his story-line once or twice so I remember it very vaguely. throw was awesome techniques and so was interceptor.

7.Setzer - calm, cool, and charming just like Edgar. Flies a ship and master of poker what more else could you want. His story-line with Daryl was a tearjerker and help build up his character and slot could be awesome when it worked the way you wanted it too but I hated the bunny. I dig the coat.

8. Cyan - Sad backstory, but somehow manages to contribute a fair amount of comedy relief with his english style of dialect that just didn't seem to fit with the others. His samurai sword techniques were okay but I couldn't stand the wait, so i rarely used them.

9.Mog - I dunno what it is about moogles, but they are so irresistible. I never used him much and never really used dance much, but I always felt like he was the story narrator even tho they never came out and said it. FFXIII-2 made me hate moogles, but hopefully this Mog's voice was not that annoying.

10.Gogo - for a character I rarely played and place so low on list it's kinda ironic i named myself after him in a way. I did love the conspiracies of who Gogo is since they never came out and said who he was in the game. I honestly just wanted to think he was Gilgamesh, but you receive Gilgamesh esper in the GBA version. I played FFV long after I played 6 so I didn't know about the gogo on that game at that time.

11.Umaro - okay these last few I got little to say about them. they contributed to the story, and I don't dislike them, but they were always just last on the list. Umaro was cool because he threw ppl....or was it just Mog he threw..oh well I don't really remember. You couldn't control him which made me rarely use him if even at all. Sorry Umaro I still like you sasquash guy.

12.Realm - sorry realm that I have to place you down this low. I liked the character fine and all I just rarely used her and the thamasa backstory never interested me as much as other people. I just know my favorite character leo was buried there

13.Strago - That old fuddy duddy. his backstory didn't interest me much with the monster in the cave in WoR. I rarley had patience to use him long enough to get all the lore. Although I don't dislike him he is still one of the 2 I'm almost indifferent to

14. Gau - meh......rage can be cool i suppose if you have patience to train him on Veldt for long periods of time. his story didn't interest me much. If I was his father I'd probably toss him out too, lol j/k.

If i had to choose one that wasn't on this list Id say Leo or Kefka (obvious choices I know)

[Wolf Kanno]

11. Strago: He also was a blue mage during the era of having to take an attack to the learn the move, so that kept him out of my party quite often. (I much preferred -- and still do prefer, actually -- Quistis, Quina, and Kimahri's methods of learning blue magic.) So he's down here.



This is incorrect, Strago simply needs to see the spell and live to the end of the battle to acquire it. He doesn't have to be hit with a blue spell like Blue Mages in FFV or Enemy Skill Materia in VII. Amusingly, he can also fail to learn a Blue Magic if he is blind when the spell is used. Meaning in the non-GBA versions of the game (where the blind spell doesn't actually affect accuracy due to a glitch) Strago is the only character who is affectded in a detrimental way by the status Effect Blind.

This list is a bit too hard for me, so I''ll come back later and give my rankings.

[Rodney]

Hope it's better than your 5 list, Wolf Kanno.

[Wolf Kanno]

You won't be happy with it, I hate the spunky girl/boy archetype so those characters will usually always be ranked low. Yuffie, Rikku, the orgasm chick from XIII are some of my least favorite characters in the series. Also, it's not my fault Reina is boring. :p

[Greatermaximus]

I wonder what my favorite is...guess.

It's Terra in case my avatar fails somehow.

I'm not sure I want to rate the others. They can all beat Kefka at level 99 with the exception of Umaro though I've never tried and won't.

In no particular order Edgar, Setzer, and Celes had means to deal with the empire overall besides Terra who is compeletly important to the entire theme of the series.

The others are kinda tag-alongs. They did advance the plot in some way. Gogo is probably the least found character anyway and is the least neccessary to completing the game.

But even I've solo'd the game before. It depends what you want out of it.

[Tigmafuzz]

Whenever I think of the name "Gau" I keep going "gau-ow-augh" over and over again in my head a la Bobcat Goldthwait.

[Mirage]

I'm not gonna bother with numbered rankings so i'll just put them in four tiers based on how much I like them, not battle utility.

God tier:
Terra, Locke

High tier:
Shadow, Celes, Relm, Cyan, Sabin

Mid tier:
Mog, Edgar, Setzer, Strago

Low tier:
Gau, Umaro, Gogo

The tier list for battle utility would be something like this:
The list is weighted for usefulness through the entire game, not just endgame.

God tier:
Terra, Relm, Edgar, Celes

High tier:
Sabin, Shadow, Locke, Cyan

Mid tier:
Mog, Gogo, Setzer, Strago

Low tier:
Umaro, Gau

No, I can't stand uncontrollable characters.

[the_best_noob]

Also, I liked how quickly she bonded with Interceptor. Even now, I still can't quite figure out how or why she did so quickly.
It was revealed in an interview and a deleted scene release that shadow was Relm's father. Only Strago, not Shadow discovered this.

[Wolf Kanno]

I still need to do this but it's just so hard... :kaocry2:

[Rodney]

I should say so with fourteen characters. Although everyone else so far has managed to.

[Wolf Kanno]

But I love them all :love:

[Jiro]

First place - everyone
Last place - noone

[Wolf Kanno]

^ That works, though it needs the incredibly unnecessary page long explanations to why this is the only right choice. ;)

[Jiro]

I could just use Lorem Ipsum? :greenie:

[blackmage_nuke]

Characterwise I loved them all but battlewise I used Relm, Strago and Gau the least.

[ryanraze]

Final Fantasy 6 is my favorite game, hands down. As a gamer from 86 and on, I consider that a rather prestigious honor. I am currently in the process of another play through and cannot wait to experience all the best moments again. I will base this list on personal preference and use. When FF6 was released, I didn't pour over strategy guides or stats; so if one character was more powerful then the next statistically; I never really noticed. I focused on who I liked and who I wanted to be powerful. This will be a tricky list to put together...

1. Locke - Locke became my new nickname for myself once Final Fantasy 6 was released. As a note, it took the place of "Kain" from FF4 fame. Yes, dorky but aren't we all? At the time, I recognized that Locke was not the strongest of characters, but he was the one I considered the coolest. I will forever think the name Locke Cole is the best name of any character in any game. I can't even think of a characters name as cool as "Locke". So I enjoyed Locke through the entire game and even more as his back-story began to open up. His relationship with Rachel was touching and his interactions with Celes were awesome. I distinctly remember using him when I first beat the game, and digging everything about the guy.

2. Terra - FF6 marked the first true time there was a strong and complex female lead in a game. Yes, I know everyone will say, "METROID HAD A GIRL!" but you didn't know that until the end, thus making it a moot point. FF6, however, had a complex WOMAN. I should have been straight about that part. Terra had me fascinated from the get go and never seemed to lose her interesting story and features. Once she rejoined my party in the WoR, I don't think she ever left. She always used the Atma Weapon, and constantly felt like an unstoppable force. She was my first character to level 99 as well. As I consider FF6 to be the pinnacle of gaming, there is nothing I would have changed with her. She was just a really well designed character.

3. Edgar - Edgar seemed like the smooth, intelligent and cool character in FF6. I loved his relationship with his brother and that he was a noble king (at least I recall him being King of Figaro i think). In the early portions of the game, his Tools were incredibly powerful which meant he was ALWAYS on the battle field. I really liked that he always seemed to do right by his people and was "dashing" in his own way. Edgar, now, seems like the predecessor to Balthier, and I loved that guy. Edgar stands the test of time easily.
4. Cyan - I typically am not one to really get into the "noble knight" version of a character, Cyan was something entirely different. For some reason, I loved the chivalry that Cyan exhibited. Cyan also had a horrible back-story where his wife and child were poisoned, along with the rest of Doma by Kefka. (This happened to be the point that I realized Kefka was the best villain EVER). After their death, he goes on a murderous vengeful rampage against the empire until he encounters the spirits of his family and then becomes depressed. Cyan stays depressed until the WoR when he becomes a pseudo-father for Gau. Additionally, Cyan hangs out on top of a mountain writing love letters to a woman pretending to be her husband simply because he does not want her to feel the heart break of losing your "one". Cyan also has the coolest back-story event in which he travels into his own memories to make peace with what happened. Cyan is a Samurai Knight who is awesome.

5. Shadow - 1. He was a ninja. 2. He looked like Snake Eyes. 3. He had a cool ass dog. 4. He would randomly leave the group, only to reappear stronger. 5. He kills himself, though saving his dog, because he was tired of running from his past and dealing with his own demons. Shadow was just a really, really cool character. The greatest appeal of Shadow lies in the "adolescence factor". Ie: I was like 11 years old when it was released, so of course I'm going to love the Ninja. I'm also an avid dog lover, so having Interceptor randomly bash an enemy was awesome. I was glad I saved him during my first play through, and was very curious about the random dreams he'd have. Ultimately, it played out that he had some relation to Relm, and I really thought that was a cool inclusion for a character with a secretive past.

6. Sabin - Well, first of all Sabin reminded me of Guile from SF2, so that gave him bonus points. At this stage in life, I'm not a fan of the spiky hair/muscle shirt guy; but back then I loved Sabin. His Blitz attacks were incredibly strong, especially the fireball one. I can remember fighting Atma Weapon on the floating continent, having my party wiped out, and Sabin landing a blitz to kill the boss. That was my first "cheer out loud" moment for video games. He was incredibly strong as a character and as a person in this game. He did the right thing despite having some difficult decisions, and proved to just be a good guy.

7. Celes - Celes enters a tight race between 7/8, but her Opera moments give her the nod. While she always felt weak to me in the game, "Runic" is stupid, her character really stuck with me. She was sentenced to death and saved. Brandished as a traitor and confused about her feelings and thoughts on Locke. She was a MagiTek soldier who was genetically engineered, which gives her huge bonus points. She saves the party on a few occasions, and in the end does have a relationship with Locke. In the WoR, Celes plays as the main character initially. Her relationship with Cid (SHE TRIES TO KILL HERSELF!) is one of the most touching of the game. She also finds Locke's bandanna which proves her friends are still alive. Her strength in over coming all of this makes her incredibly likable in act #2. The opera scene is one of the most iconic of any video game EVER. It is touching, emotional and incredibly mature. I love this game, and Celes, while not one of my favorites, is part of a number of reasons for my love.

8. Setzer - Ahh, a character whom I wish was a little stronger. What's odd is I always remember him being equipped with the Miranda Dagger. Odd the memories that stick with me. He's a gambler by nature and was untrustworthy initially (he kidnaps Celes thinking she was Maria). Which brings me to a question, how is it that someone who wants to abduct an opera singer he's in love with isn't looked at in a negative light? I do like that he was tricked via Edgar and that he eventually comes around. His slots option was ok, but not ground breakingly cool. His story in the WoR was pretty cool. It really showed more about him and his relationship with Daryl. I really grew to enjoy Setzer at that stage in my FF6 playings. I think having Setzer as a main part of the WoR was very important in FF6, as he felt "weak" in Act 1. A brilliant move by Square.

9. Gau - I really wanted Gau to be "better" in the game. He never felt very strong, and I never really enjoyed having a character I couldn't control. He has a heart breaking story, and one that I'm very glad they developed and explained more in the WoR. Gau's ability to learn enemy spells feels like the type of thing I didn't really explore fully. I've read that Gau has the ability to be one of the strongest members of the group; but to me I could never get past his initial weakness, and the amount of time you'd need to spend in the Veldt. However, I did love his relationship with Cyan and again, rough back-story.

10. Relm - I wanted to love Relm, I really, really did. However, she felt incredibly weak and her ability did nothing for me. Her story was cool enough, and she was interesting enough; but ultimately she brought nothing to my groups. Because of this, it was hard for me to ever include Relm in my party unless I was forced to. She gets some bonus points for being Shadows daughter and loving Interceptor; but ultimately Relm felt a little tacked on to me with no real value.

11. Mog - Big points for being a moogle, big points for saving Tera and Locke, but mini-points for an interesting "Dance" ability. Other then that Mog was pretty pointless. He didn't do a lot for me, nor my group and also was just one of those characters to fit into a group towards the end. Sorry Mog

12. Strago - As with Relm, Strago felt like a late addition to the game that while cool, was entirely unnecessary. His back-story seemed weak, his character seemed weak, and his ability did NOTHING for me. I wish I could say more, but I really didn't care about Strago.

13. Gogo - It was cool to find him, and Mimic was pretty powerful when used under the right circumstances. Otherwise...

14. Umaro - See above. Just a bruiser, but otherwise pointless.

Great list to make and makes me want to play the game that much more.

[Beowulf]

I really liked Gau. He was one of my favorites for his story, and that he became SUPER powerful. one of the best characters, IMO.

[ryanraze]

What made him so powerful? I've always wondered what I missed with him.

[Beowulf]

Veteran|Roulette. Unblockable death. He has another skill that just Muddles each enemy, one at a time though. That and meteo. it's a PAIN to get him to know all the skills, but so worth it.

[The Man]

No matter where you are in the game, there is pretty much always a Rage Gau can learn that will make him substantially more powerful than most, if not all, other characters in the game. Stray Cat is a good example - Catscratch is one of the most powerful any attacks any character can have when you obtain him. I don't remember what all the really good Rages were because it has honestly been close to a decade since I really played around with Rages, but there were quite a few of them. I do remember that Retainer's Shock is another fantastic ability. If he's at a decent level, it will wipe out pretty much all enemies at once in most enemy formations you can encounter for most of the game. (Unfortunately it's not available until near the end of the game).

I can't possibly rank these characters in order. There are too many great ones in this game. I will say that Terra would probably top my list though.

[Greatermaximus]

[theman]No matter where you are in the game, there is pretty much always a Rage Gau can learn that will make him substantially more powerful than most, if not all, other characters in the game. Stray Cat is a good example - Catscratch is one of the most powerful any attacks any character can have when you obtain him. I don't remember what all the really good Rages were because it has honestly been close to a decade since I really played around with Rages, but there were quite a few of them.[theman]

It's actually Locke who can be quicker with Wing Edge or Double Wing Edge. He could jump or cast vanish/doom in the first version before any other character could respond.

Though the safety ring could also protect from doom I think. It depends on the occasion you play the characters. My sig isn't big enough to have an optimized list for all the characters so I have Terra.

[ryanraze]

No matter where you are in the game, there is pretty much always a Rage Gau can learn that will make him substantially more powerful than most, if not all, other characters in the game. Stray Cat is a good example - Catscratch is one of the most powerful any attacks any character can have when you obtain him. I don't remember what all the really good Rages were because it has honestly been close to a decade since I really played around with Rages, but there were quite a few of them. I do remember that Retainer's Shock is another fantastic ability. If he's at a decent level, it will wipe out pretty much all enemies at once in most enemy formations you can encounter for most of the game. (Unfortunately it's not available until near the end of the game).

I can't possibly rank these characters in order. There are too many great ones in this game. I will say that Terra would probably top my list though.

Thanks for the info, I Just never gave him a good shot then. And in response you can possibly rank those characters; you're just choosing not to. You've written a response well enough, take the time to rank. It's kind of funny and it may surprise you how your opinion changes.
For example: My initial ranking had Cyan much lower on my list, until I began re-reading everything he did and I started to remember how much I used him.
Give it a whirl.

[The Man]

Nah, I'm much too indecisive. I'm one of those sorts of people that can't even make a definitive top ten list of albums in several of my favourite genres because I like too many of them too much. The best I would probably be able to do is rank characters in tiers, which I'm currently too lazy to do. Plus I would have different rankings for gameplay and story.

[ryanraze]

Fair enough.

[Loony BoB]

I quite liked these guys
Umaro - I just love this guy. Bugger all story but fighting with him (and fighting was most of the game for me) never got old. Highest level character in my game!
Celes - Easily the best of the lead characters. Had a good story and just came across as a likeable character.
Shadow - These kind of enigma characters that finally have their story shown are always pretty awesome. Loved Interceptor, too.
Edgar - If this game were expanded upon so that every individual got to show off his full story, I feel he would be my favourite lead character. I just liked his general attitude throughout the entire story.
Gau - UWAOOOOOO! Incredibly charismatic for a wild child. Just really enjoyable, a very uplifting character compared to most.
Sabin - Like Edgar, I feel I'd like him even more if his story was expanded upon. He does make me glad that there is no voice acting because I feel that voice acting on him would probably make him terrible.

These guys weren't bad either
Locke - Had too much of an Aladdin thing going for him for me to really enjoy his character, but he was good and I wouldn't have minded seeing more of his story on occasion. I just felt that in a lot of situations the things he said didn't really suit the character I wanted him to be in my head. :p
Setzer - Had a decent balance to him, I guess. Nothing I didn't really like about him, and anyone who flies an airship can't be all bad.
Relm - She's got a likeable fire to her. I liked it.

They were okay, I guess.
Mog - He's a fun little dude.
Strago - Just didn't see enough of him in the game to really enjoy his little story, I suppose.
Cyan - The speech was amusing for a little bit, and a very noble guy which I always like, but after a while the gimmick got old.

Glad to not use these characters often
Gogo - This guy has absolutely nothing that interests me. Mimic was vaguely useful but not very often.
Terra - I found her offputting. She is a constant downer. I mean, I know it's story related and she has reason to be sad, but that doesn't make her any more likeable. I found pretty much nothing whatsoever that endeared her to me in any way at all throughout the story. There was probably something, maybe, somewhere in there, but I honestly can't think of it. The good memory was probably drowned by her emo tears. =|

[ryanraze]

I quite liked these guys
Umaro - I just love this guy. Bugger all story but fighting with him (and fighting was most of the game for me) never got old. Highest level character in my game!
Celes - Easily the best of the lead characters. Had a good story and just came across as a likeable character.
Shadow - These kind of enigma characters that finally have their story shown are always pretty awesome. Loved Interceptor, too.
Edgar - If this game were expanded upon so that every individual got to show off his full story, I feel he would be my favourite lead character. I just liked his general attitude throughout the entire story.
Gau - UWAOOOOOO! Incredibly charismatic for a wild child. Just really enjoyable, a very uplifting character compared to most.
Sabin - Like Edgar, I feel I'd like him even more if his story was expanded upon. He does make me glad that there is no voice acting because I feel that voice acting on him would probably make him terrible.

These guys weren't bad either
Locke - Had too much of an Aladdin thing going for him for me to really enjoy his character, but he was good and I wouldn't have minded seeing more of his story on occasion. I just felt that in a lot of situations the things he said didn't really suit the character I wanted him to be in my head. :p
Setzer - Had a decent balance to him, I guess. Nothing I didn't really like about him, and anyone who flies an airship can't be all bad.
Relm - She's got a likeable fire to her. I liked it.

They were okay, I guess.
Mog - He's a fun little dude.
Strago - Just didn't see enough of him in the game to really enjoy his little story, I suppose.
Cyan - The speech was amusing for a little bit, and a very noble guy which I always like, but after a while the gimmick got old.

Glad to not use these characters often
Gogo - This guy has absolutely nothing that interests me. Mimic was vaguely useful but not very often.
Terra - I found her offputting. She is a constant downer. I mean, I know it's story related and she has reason to be sad, but that doesn't make her any more likeable. I found pretty much nothing whatsoever that endeared her to me in any way at all throughout the story. There was probably something, maybe, somewhere in there, but I honestly can't think of it. The good memory was probably drowned by her emo tears. =|


Great list Bob. I laughed at the part regarding Sabin having a voice, as I always picturing him to have a very annoying voice. I could, shudder, almost picture him having a jersey shore style voice. What with the blown out hair and muscle shirts. Was surprised to see Cyan this low on the list considering he has one of the most evolved back stories, but I'm not bashing by any means.
Celes is one who I didn't care for my first time around, so I'm looking forward to re-evaluating when I get towards her again.

[Loony BoB]

Don't get me wrong - Cyan's story is one of the best of them. But as a character...

[Pezmerga]

Wow tough question. I went with Locke, but man it is close between him, Terra, and Celes.


Now
1. Locke - Locke is a rockstar. He swoops in, saves the girl, and just kicks butt. His back story with Rachel is touching and tragic. Even if he doesn't have a particular strong special, he transcends that with just being an awesome character. I always gave him Illumina and the Paladin Shield because I liked him so much.
2. Celes - Celes is amazing. The Opera scene is still one of my favorite moments in a video game. I also always save Cid! The first time I played FFVI, He died and the scene of her jumping off the cliff was tragic and touching. I wish they would have added a little more depth to her and Locke's love story. One can hope for that if they ever remake it I suppose!
3. Terra - I love her music, and back story, plus her relationship with Locke and the kids of Mobliz.
4. Gau - I just played a LLG, and wow I have to say I have a new found respect for this guy. The Io rage is just insane. Also, Oversoul is great vs. Death effect using bosses, especially undead weak vs. fire!
5. Setzer - Weak in battle, but I love the character. Even if he is introduced as a creep!
6. Sabin - Blitz is awesome!
7. Edgar - Just a fun character. Really strong in WoB too.
8. Shadow - Cool character, would have been in my top 5 as a kid since he is a ninja! lol
9. Relm - I always liked Relm, I wish they would have come up with a better ability for her though. Sketch or control would be better if magic was not learned by everyone. As it is though, magic trumps this special.
10. Mog - I loved Mog as a kid. He is ok, but really nothing special story wise. He can have max defense with snow scarf, which is cool.
11. Cyan - I hate waiting for the Bushido timer to fill up! Story wise he is a good character though. I used to like him more, but there are just better characters.
12. Strago - Lore would be so much better if every character couldn't learn every spell. He is good in a natural magic game though. I rank him so low just because I don't care for the character.
13. Umaro - Boring and as others have said, I don't like that he is always uncontrollable.
14. Gogo - Kind of wish they would have just let Leo live! :D

Who else as a kid was convinced they could find an Imp character due to the Imp equipment? lol I wanted that talking Imp at the auction house dang it!

[cheesesteak]

Voted for Cyan, but I prefer a tier system, since it's so tough. In no particular sub-order...:

favorites
Sabin
Edgar
Cyan
Celes

like
Terra
Strago
Gau
Umaro

indifferent
Setzer
Mog
Gogo

dislike
Relm
Locke

Shadow's kind of in his own category. I both like and dislike him. Kinda...

[the_best_noob]

Sabin - Like Edgar, I feel I'd like him even more if his story was expanded upon. He does make me glad that there is no voice acting because I feel that voice acting on him would probably make him terrible.

Remember Tidus's laugh on FFX? I think Sabin's voice would come out a bit like that one.

[Spooniest]

jodD2izuo6M

Has this race been called yet?