First off, yes I realized as of this morning after the file no longer exists that it says Seraph where Siren's name should be. That's a my bad. Secondly, as of a Pixel Remaster update as of yesterday there were a couple of upgrades. Raiden goes from +2 Strength to +2 Speed which would bump him up a a point or two. Alexander now goes from no level up bonus to +2 Strength which would bring him from bottom to around 3rd. Again, file no longer exists to edit so big sad. With THAT out of the way, who is your favourite esper and why?
@@Loyyid Only a handful are really worthwhile but they quickly lose their luster. In the GBA, Leviathan and Diablos are definitely some of the stronger summons, especially Diablos.
3 ways to get Image: - Summon Fenrir - Shadow uses the vanish edge/shadow edge (Gogo can do this too) - Equip the Mirage Vest, you start off with Vanish. It's honestly one of the better armors in the game.
I was surprised to see Crusader at the bottom of the list. The summon is garbage, but the meltdown spell is amazing. If you have four flame shields equipped it automatically becomes both a huge heal for all your party members and massive damage for 90% of the enemies you encounter. Usually I equip one of my parties like this and they absolutely breeze through anything.
Anything that grants Magic Power growth early and often is flat out the most busted Esper in my eyes, because way too many abilities scale way too strongly from Magic Power vs anything else in the game. Slots, Lore, Blitz, Magic Rods (Item, as consumable), and of course, plain ol' Magic in general is very OP in FF6. Sabin's Blitz in particular scales murderously fast with Magic Power growth, turning Aura Bolt into a Holy powered railgun with Fire Dance sweeping basically 90% of everything else until World of Ruin. (and Air Blade being a screen wide kill if you somehow overlevel him for that) I've turned Bum Rush into a delete key that hits near the damage cap before level 40 and nothing in the game has more than 60k HP. And that's just pumping +30 MagPwr into him, or about 20 odd levels between Stray (Cait Sith) and Maduin. Funny thing is, that's child's play compared to the walking nuclear holocaust you can turn Terra into since her Morph ability flat out DOUBLES her Magic Power while active and even tier 2 attack spells will hit like the fist of an angry god before you're even done with the World of Balance segment of the game. Her amazing equips from the moment you get her back onward only helps this, changing her from a crappy early game bop-stick who occasionally casts Fire and Cure into arguably the strongest, most flexible (and RELIABLE, sorry Gau) character in the game. As for the other stats: +HP% is nice if you're racing through events in World of Ruin and manage to get Bahamut early. However, HP growth is quadratic without any pumping whatsoever, spiking rapidly around level 33 onward for everyone. It's nice to have, but unnecessary as enemies will rarely hit above 1000 damage until Kefka's Tower anyway. +MP% is the same story, since once you've cleared the MagiTek factory, you have access to Zoneseek and rapid Osmose training and unless you keep accidentally trying to drain Undead monsters of their MP, it's basically floating around in nearly every encounter for free. Nice, but unnecessary. +Speed is the most interesting stat since there's something of a choice here since only Odin grants speed growth in vanilla FF6. The problem is, he's an Esper that you may possess for literally 30 seconds before upgrading him and that Speed growth vanishes when he turns into Raiden. Odin vs Raiden is really a choice between roiding your characters innate speed stat at a piddling rate vs learning one of the most busted spells in all of FF history: Quick. Frankly, the only time I'd ever look sideways at Odin's Speed growth is if I was doing some OCD fueled max stats levelgrinding project. +Vigor (Strength) is only really useful on Edgar/Mog and Cyan. Everyone else has better options through magic power in one form or another. (Quadra Slice is Cyan's sole saving grace from being rendered completely obsolete, but oh what an attack it is when pumped up.) And +Stamina is...not worth mentioning. Learning Magic Spells is important, but for any character to do well in FF6 they only really need the Tier 2 elemental spells, Tier 2 curatives (Life, Esuna, Cure 2), Rasp+Osmose, Vanish, and Flare and Meteor (or Ultima if you nab the Paladin's Shield/Ragnarok magicite early enough). You get access to nearly all of those after finishing the MagiTek factory. The other spells are nice (busted, if you want to abuse the Vanish+Doom combo in the original SNES version) but not really necessary for clearing the game's regular content. There are only a tiny handful of encounters / bosses that give me any real pause once I get my hands on the Bahamut Esper in early WoR, and that's largely due to the fact that FF6 just gives the player access to so many absolutely busted options, that's it's really just a matter of learning how to exploit them properly that negates any need for excessive level grinding.
Ya Krazy, Ragnarok can give da best items in da game!!! Summon it n have Gogo mimic n repeat till u get da item. N u can get da sword from stealing it from one of da enemies b4 Kefka
I love Golem. That giant stone hand coming out of the ground to protect you is awesome. Plus... they have him looking like a robot. Who wouldn't love a magic robot??
It’s just a shame you can’t summon multiple times in VI. In V, Golem was a summon with basically the same effect. But since you can summon him as many times in one fight as you want, he’s amazing for defensive options.
Don't sleep on ragnarok. Ribbons, genji gloves, safety bits, megalixers, thunder shields (bet for genji shields), miracle shoes, ichigeki/assassins dagger all can be obtained through metamorphosis.
Metamorph is god-tier for farming on SNES and Pixel Remaster. God-tier-plus on GBA. Also, hours of fun playing "Will It Jerky?" on random enemies. (Don't forget the dinosaurs!)
The actual trick to getting the most out of Ragnarok? Pairing its user with Gogo, to mimic that until the battle ends, or you need to heal. Very high rate of goodies.
Also XP eggs on the bird enemies. But you need to know what enemies morph into what. Also you gave up the Ragnarok sword (& Lightbringer/Illumina) in the process. I can't really rate it. But that's the old Ragnarok debate for ya.
@Chadius I wish the extended dungeons from the GBA version were included in the pixel remaster. The ability to steal those ultimate swords from the last tier of the monument to nonexistence made it very worth before going to the post game dungeons. Also, those summons were neat.
its still crap since it never really works and even the VANISH and doom glitch SNES and PS1 version will NOT give the Esper a 100% success rate so Ragnarok is still crap I'll use the Paladin Shield for Ultima. Cure rings/Miracles shoes later game makes HP regen FROM Kirin useless so I'll never really summon Kiren at all.
When I first played this, I very distinctly remember first getting the "Magicite" item that summons a random esper in the sealed gate cave, immediately using it out of curiosity, and getting Crusader. I never used the item again.
That's why Caith Sith sucks theirs no FF7 summon that kills its user but FF7 still has Cait Sith's version of Joker doom the One that kills your OWN party that's why in FFF7 I'll never use Slots for his 2nd limit break at all.
I can't believe you rated Quick (and thus Raiden) so low... Quick is one of the most busted spells in the history of the franchise. Extra turns are overpowered in any turn-based RPG, and Quick not only gives you two extra turns, but also disables anyone from doing anything else until you're done. Jump becomes "instant", Cyan can take his time charging up Bushido... also, enemies can't counterattack. There's a reason why we haven't seen this spell in the numbered games since VI: it's that busted. Also, Raiden increasing Speed is an amazing improvement.
He's ranking these summons with speedrunning in mind , quick is game breaking in casual play but when you speedrun it has one of the slowest magic growths imaginable (x1) , and at the point where you'd have unlocked quick you could've already gotten into kefka's tower fully decked out in gear. That's also why ragnarok magicite was placed so low despite ultima being the best spell , it's too out of the way and loses time
He also had the esper that teaches Ultima basically last on his list. That is the best/most busted spell in the game. This list is completely inaccurate
Yes. I don't know what Shadow's scroll is called in later versions, but in the Super Nintendo version it's called "Inviz Edge," I think. I thought that was garbage until I saw this video and its comment section! Now I may try buying him some once he joins permanently!
I always keep Odin, at least for a while. Not for the +Speed. But for the Meteor spell. It's a nice spell that sweeps many randoms. Especially in the Cultists Tower (the mobs there have numerous elemental resistances, and some even have innate Reflect, which Meteor simply disregards).
Imma level with you, Crusader needs extra points taken off for every time I died to it in my first play through's early game by using a magicite shard. EDIT: Other sources of image include Shadows scroll (forget the name) and the mirage vest (which I have never seen a single person use).
If nothing gets a 10/10 rating, is there a point to the cap? As it stands, the final scores should be out of 36, since none of the scores, not even the insane +2 speed on level up, manage to achieve it. If the concern is weighting certain things more (which accessibility may be guilty of) then the preferred solution would be to weigh each category differently.
Osmose is booty? Really? It's one of the best spells in the game since it lets you use your other spells with reckless abandon. No idea how Zoneseek's spells are rated so low.
Seconded. Especially in the late game when your casters have access to multiple MP-fueled nuke spells like Tier 3 elemental spells, Meteor, Grand Train, Ultima, etc., not having to dedicate items to MP recovery or precious relic slots to cost mitigation items and just spamming nukes with wild abandon because you can refill on command is huge. That plus the coveted Magic +2 put Zoneseek high on my list, and mitigating incoming magic damage with fewer downsides than reflect make the summon not half bad either.
@@Bdewd Maybe in other games, since you either get it late, or it's weak. In FF6 it's basically "MP management? What MP management?". You can just go wild with magic and recharge for a cost of a single turn off a random non-undead schmoe.
In FF 6 their great in FF5 Osmose barely drains even 1 MP off enemies that have 50+ of it its useless and for Rydia in FF4 not worth using in the final dungeon it would barely drain any MP IF at all.
@@zrayburton magic+2 and strength+2 will turn your characters into war gods real fast. You can beat the game at low level 30s if you apply the bonuses correctly. Only your HP and MP increase when you level up, so every boost counts!
It's been a very long time since my last playthrough, but getting the slower characters speed up to match Lock's natural 40 was always a priority for me. Cyan is much more formidable when he attacks more often, etc.
@@Bdewd Question..... Not that it matters to ranking but with Kirin being a mandatory story event and first group of espers you get, how is that not a 10/10 accessibility? You literally can't not get Kirin and the others in the group.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the first 4 you get in zozo should be 10/10 accessible since you get them by default. Would love to hear why they are docked a point.
@@Bdewd I can see where you're coming from, and thanks for the reply. I still disagree because, in order to earn a 10 in your logic, we would have to redesign the game to have Terra start with one. At that point, it's not the same game anymore. In the context of FF6 as designed, there's no esper more accessible than the zozo 4. The combination of being the first available to be acquired and the fact you cannot miss them makes them a 10. Either way, I enjoy the content. Keep up the good work.
I have to ask, you listed the initial Zozo espers as 9/10 for accessibility - the first espers in the game that you can get, who are all unavoidable. So is a 10/10 even possible? And what would that even look like?
Ummm... Seraph = Siren, right? Soz, but you can't do math. 7+0+6.5+7 = 20.5, not 21.5. Also, as an old-timer who once begged and groveled to get FF3 (6, but I didn't know that yet) for xmas 1994, you making this video off of the Pixel Remaster gives me the shits. The two worst things: - At least 1/3 of the Espers' names have been changed (Cait Sith? Yuck - he was the worst character in FF7 by an enormous margin. And wtf is Tritoch called!?) - It's Fire, Fire 2, Fire 3. Not Fire, Fira, Firaga. This isn't FF8. Kids these days with their bloody smartphone Final Fantasys... ffs, have some self-respect: put down your phone (Apple phones are made by union-busting slave labour sweatshops, get a soul and a backbone and throw it in the bin.) Get an emulator and download the rom for the original game, and play as Castle of Lasers had intended.
You are going to need an update of this video, because after the update a few days ago, Alexander now gives +2 STR bonus and Raiden gives +2 SPD, which is awesome.
I don't understand your scoring scales. You rate everything out of 10 but nothing gets a 10/10. Shouldn't the best summon ability get a 10/10 and the first espers you get are 10/10 for access? That aside great video!
Idk of it's just me, and I never played FFVI Advance long enough to get to the new summons but what I have seen of them is that the graphics for them look so out of place stylistically.
Wait, after all that none of the Espers hit a 30/40 on your list? Maybe you're being a bit stingy with those points. Maybe things would be a bit more fair if the points maxed out at 5? I do agree that magic is the superior stat in this game. There are some characters where it's better to focus strength (like Sabin with his bumrush) but magic is just insane, especially since with those early magic bonuses. If you play things right, you'll be nuking everyone with 9999 dmg with Ultima by the end game, easily. The world building and magic system shows that even some chumps like Setzer can become a god. It's why the Emperor valued those espers. But it also kind of makes those special abilities useless. Like, who is using slots in the World of Ruin? By then, your magic will far outclass anything the slots would be able to give you.
I really can't stand how they altered the names of so many things with the Pixel Remaster game. Not sure why someone would want to play a worse version of the original.
Kirin is #1 if you ignore lvl up bonus, easy. 5/10 is a huge underrating on his summon. It's the only all cast of regen in the game (very OP in WoB). Summon should be 7 or 8. There is absolutely no way Carbuncle is better than Kirin. Insanity.
If you have a 10 scale, then something needs to be 10, the first 4 espers should have 10 accessibility. They're the earliest you can get them and they're mandatory. But good list!
There is two other ways you can apply Image status other than Fenrir: 1. Using Shadow Edge through the Throw command. 2. Mirage Vest Both of which only work on one character, while Fenrir works on *the entire party.*
Why you count Odin/Quetzalli PR Bonus but count Raiden Original bonus? He should Got 9(Or 10 point for best Stat bonus in the game) like Odin Quick Should be TOP 3 best spell in this game and you score 5 while flare you score 7 I think Odin/Raiden is the earliest obtain at WoR or I miss something ? (Seraph can obtain af WoB right?) if so it should score higher than Quetzalli is'n it ? Poor Zona Seeker you score his Osmose/Rasp 3. Not only it can Full-fill your MP but it can cancle non-undead enemy spell and keep your vanish last longer I always use this method to grind LV with T-Rex by cut it MP
Magic +2 is 10/10. the magic stat multipliers are absurd in FFVI. Stamina is useless and could even be a 0.5/10 and 1/10 for +2. if i level with Stanima equipped, it feels like i leveled with a no-bonus equipped. HP and MP bonuses do not have a big impact if you look at the math of what you get below Level 45. they should all rank really low. It’s starts to be just ok from Bahamut and Crusader, but it’s not worth it vs more Str/ Mag/ Spd.
What’s the point of having a possible score of 10 in any category if nothing gets a 10? That seems really odd, especially in spell usefulness and summon power where some of the summons are monsters.
I love your videos covering the old jrpg's that made my childhood, but your rating metrics confuse me. Why make it 0-10 when nothing ever gets a 10? Surely if +1 speed is an 8, +2 speed should easily be a 10.
Who uses summons in this game? Just Atma Weapon, Tools, Blitz, you're done. Seriously, the twins are way too OP. Then late game, just Offering+ Atma and everything dies in one turn with no effort. Also, don't use HP gains for Atma Weapon.
Behamut at number 1? Interesting. I don't care about Flare that much. But the summon spell Mega Flare is another option that can mindlessly obliterate Cultist Tower mobs (it's basically a weaker Ultima). And to kill Doom Gaze faster, buy a bunch of Pearl/Holy Rods from Thamasa, then use them as items in battle for a crapton of damage (especially if Morph Terra does so). Using Fire Rods as items can work too, for almost as much damage.
Quick isn't just a "pretty good spell", it's essentially game-breaking. If you also farm and equip Economizers, it costs 1mp. Can we say "infinite turns" boys and girls? I did this back in the SNES days, and Kefka only got one turn per phase. The rest was all constant Genji / Master Scroll attacks and Mime, then re-casting Quick... lol
This list is a bit goofy. Outside of occasional golem usage, I don't use summons. Tey mostly don't matter; the only ones worth anything are the niche ones. Further, how you end up with Catoblepas in your top five is because you aren't weighting your metrics. the summon spell matters far less than the magic the esper teaches (with its attendant speeds), and that list matters less, for the majority of the game, than its level bonus. for that reason, Cait Sith is waaay ahead of a bunch of the ones you listed. Magic is the most important stat to everyone except Cyan, and nobody should be using Cyan (gotta love that theme, though). even a +3 in any other stat matters less than a +1 in magic.
Bro, Ultima learning should break the /10 scale. After you learn that spell the game is over. The only thing stronger is a strength build genji glove/offering Locke.
How did ragnarok not get an 11/10 for spells learned?! Imo it’s a top 3 esper for ultima alone. Honestly probably number 1, since the only other way to get ultima is the paladin shield which is a major pain in the ass.
I'm surprised you gave Phoenix such a high summon rating. For getting it so late in the game, it wouldn't be on my list of 4 magicites to equip (unless learning the spells).
Came to comment something similar. I got to Shiva and saw it's 8/10, but there's so little of the game in between getting the first pieces of magicite and getting Shiva and Ifrit. Basically just the Opera House and then the first part of the Magitek Factory. The first four you get should be 10/10 accessible, and AT LEAST Shiva and Ifrit should be 9/10, if not all the espers from Magitek Factory.
@@WillRennar Terra should only get 5/10 accessibility because she's only half esper. Joking aside, her esper form is only available after the magitech facility so... shouldn't she be 8/10 or 7/10?
Ragnarok has the ability to give you infinite genji gloves as well as the cursed ring without wasting the cursed shield. Sounds like a good deal to me!
Why do the earliest espers in the entire game not receive a 10/10 for accessibility? Why even do the ratings out of 10 if it's not possible to achieve it with the most accessible espers?
As a kid playing this game, I never bother with the level up bonus for Espers. I used them all just to learn spells for everyone. Some had faster spell rates to learn. Otherwise, my favorite espers to use is the bird that makes us all dragoons! Fun one that is!
Its a test. Memes aside, I did put in a small thing that's not INCORRECT for what the video is showing but also not completely correct. See if it gets caught
Sorry. I stopped the video to ask. I am not trying to be a jerk I am just curious. Why did you give the unicorn a 7/10 accessibility when it is part of the Magitech Factory batch when it is like one of the first espers you get and also very hard to miss? --- I just looked it up and apparently you CAN miss it, but still why the 7/10? I feel like if the first ones you get without any major trial gets a 7/10 I don’t know how you would get higher unless it was REQUIRED for plot reasons. Yet again. I am just wondering what qualifies at a 10/10 for accessibility to you. Anyways… thank you for this content. I am a random jackass from rural America eating peanuts and watching your video because my insomnia is playing up. I scrolled through my feed for like 240 videos but this is the one that caught my eyes. I truly appreciate the work you did on this even though it is stopped at 4:59 currently lmao.
Just discovered your channel recently, and I am loving your Final Fantasy videos. One minor bit of advice I wanted to offer: I noticed that when you speak about your evaluation criteria, you seem to refer to the categories as "rhetorics" (at least that's what it sounds like to me). I think perhaps the word you're looking for would be "rubric," or maybe "metric," which both can refer to grading systems. Just my two cents, anyway. Looking forward to checking out more from your channel!
well, i had taken the time to make a comprehensive list to add to yours, and i misclicked and closed the page and it's gone >.> overall, a solid assessment, but I would recommend you adjust the way you judge spells and more uniformly judge the level up bonuses. the stats are always more impactful than the hp/mp considering at max level, you'll all have 9500+hp and 950+mp. I do recognize they would possibly benefit a low level run more, but so would the stat increases. my list put bismark at the top because his bonus is the earliest way to raise str effectively, and he's the earliest way to get access to raise, additionally, despite his damage being largely unimpressive, he's one of the very few sources of water damage, making him critical in the house fire. summons like palidor are also overlooked because their damage isn't amazing, but against single targets, he's one of the best for many reasons- firstly, it makes all your characters un-target-able for several attacks, then causes 4 instances of high damage as each player comes crashing down, well exceeding the 9999 damage cap on any other esper against a single target. ragnirok is also the only way to obtain some very rare gear, which you mentioned, but it boost his (best) status considerably.
I was so irked by Ifrit and Shiva with those level-up bonus. Why didn't the devs give Shiva +1 to magic. It pairs well with Iftrit being her opposite. She teaches ice and healing, he teaches fire and drain. She should give +1 to magic to compliment Ifrit's +1 to strength. I do like how Golem and Zoneseek are both in the auction house. Shell and Protect for the party. I just like espers that compliment each other. I'm weird like that.
You know, it occurs to me that maybe your "Accessibility" category really should be replaced with something like "Usefulness Time". As in, rather than rate how long (potentially) you have something, rate how much of the game overall you are going to use it. IE: With Gau, if you use him, you can get Stray Cat right away with him, and you'll probably be using it for most of (if not all of) the entire game. Some of these Espers you get later game, you're going to be using the entire rest of your playthrough (especially if they have a good Level Up bonus), while others you get early, you probably won't use much (if at all) outside of teaching a few spells to a a character or two. So your overall use time for them (even if they're useful early, like Maduin) might not be very high.
Ragnarock was such a huge disappointment to me because from the name you'd assume it's out there with Bahamuth, Odin, and Alexander, then my disappointment was doubled after I learned that having it as equipment is much better
Not sure which version of the game you were basing this off of, but Meltdown/Merton was originally fire-based and you could equip flame shields to recover HP when casting it.
You giving Zona Seeker a 3 out of 10 on spells learned!? Are you crazy? Osmose makes it near impossible to run out of MP. And it's taught at x15 to boot! And while Rasp is niche and situational, it can be used to quickly kill certain enemies and bosses (most notable might be Atma Weapon).
bro!!!!! ragnarok is a farm beast! its way too low on the list. the summon is 10/10 as it gives you access to game breaking gear and items. idk if i can take your list seriously after seeing how you did my favorite esper! do you even rpg bro? its all about the loot!😅
@@Bdewd never said any of that but seeing as my opinion comment got you in the feels i guess it isnt arbitrary then. i liked your other videos but i guess i will keep my comments to myself regarding your videos so you dont scrap them in the future.
As for Ragnarok, half of the player's pass it up for the Ragnarok sword (which can be bet for an even better sword). You can still get the spell Ultima from the Paladin Shield (just gotta grind a lot to uncurse the Cursed Shield). From a pure completionist standpoint, the sword is better then the esper.
I did a run where I didn’t spend any money unless absolutely necessary and Unicorn’s x4 Cura was worth its weight in gold there. That’s about what it takes to make the esper useful. Also, Shadow can set Image using the Vanish Edge.
Now there's an idea. I'm always up for new challenges. No gil spent would be interesting, especially stacked with a few other handicaps like low level run or something.
The minimum gil you have to spend is 151 (you’ve gotta purchase Dried Meat for Gau at 150 gil and you have to sleep in the Thamasa inn to the tune of 1 gil). I haven’t found a way around either of those.
Ragnorok should have been lower. You can get ultima from the paladin shield, which is a pain in the butt to obtain, but this game is easy enough to where it really doesn't matter whether you have ultima or not anyway. On top of that, if you get it in it's sword form, you can trade it for the lightbringer in the colliseum, which is the most overpowered piece of equipment in the game. It's just not worth keeping it in esper form.
There was a bug in the SNES version (and I think the PS1 version) where if you did the Vanish + Xzone trick on any monster (ESPECIALLY Doomgaze), you wouldn't get any dropped items. That included the Bahamut magicite. So then I never really used Vanish + XZone, but rather Vanish + Doom instead (unless undead monster, then I just threw a phoenix down at it lol).
What I do find funny about the localisations of these games is that Midgardsormr was spelt correctly in this game but in FF7, somehow the translation became ‘Midgar Zolom’
Raiden for the heavy speed boost. I usually transform Ragnarok into a sword because you can get the second best sword in the game by betting it in the coliseum and you can learn Ultimate by equipping the Paladin Shield once you break its curse. Genii Glove/ Master Scroll/ Illumina/ Ultima Weapon= highest damage output in the game at late levels usually around 60k per turn with an additional chance to may cast Pearl. The espers IMO are mostly for visuals.
To be honest, nowadays I find the espers useless. The last few times I've played this game, I've done the raft trick early in the game to level everyone to lvl 99. Celes and Terra will learn every spell naturally, except for ultima and holy, and everyone else will be so overpowered they don't need magic. I love being able to explore the abilities the characters initially come with while crushing every enemy the game throws at me.
To me, the only 4 Espers worth using IN COMBAT, AGAINST A BOSS FIGHT are Golem, Zone Seeker, Fenrir, and Phoenix….Quetzalli I can see use for in place of Fenrir, maybe to avoid one big attack from a boss, and MAYBE Bahamut, just because it’s Bahamut, but to me, a one time simple attack spell isn’t worth it in a boss fight…I’m mostly talking about end-game. I don’t remember the spells or level up stats from the GBA summons, but the summon attacks themselves are all simple attacks so I don’t recommend them
Pretty sure if the GBA Espers were on here (sad that they haven't been added since), I can see Leviathan being in the top 10 because of being the only source of water magic, and Gigantuar being either under Bahumat or taking his place, since his summon is kinda busted, and he was the first +2 speed bonus. The only part hurting him is accessibility, since he's an absolute pain in the ass to take down to get.
Fun list, here's my personal thoughts on some of the choices: With the right setup, Crusader can barely touch you while demolishing foes (same with other similar spells in the game) Don't ignore what Ragnarok can do, though I do feel like it is also worth noting the great Ragnarok debate: The sword, or the summon Shiva also grants Rasp if memory serves, which can be an alt way in the WoB to defeat at least some bosses. Cait Sith is actually REALLY powerful, especially WoB when a lot of enemies are vulnerable to confuse. It's also good to help learn some Lores as well. Zone Seek is probably the most consistently useful (or very close to it) Esper in the game: It's summon effect is always useful, it's magic isn't bad, and it's level-up bonus is arguably the most useful (along with the other +2 magic ones) in the game. Raiden is probably the most amusing Esper in the game from a purely "I did this because it sounded stupid"-sort of way. Quick is way too good, even if it's not 'as' good as it was in FFV simply because the damage output of your party members can get utterly ridiculous, even in the mid-game, let alone the end. Thus you can turn any char with high damage output into an utterly ridiculous behemoth of raw power and cheese the hell out of most encounters. Depending on circumstance, Golem can be better over Fenrir. Image can be dispelled, or pierced if memory serves, and some enemies can and do attack multiple times to overcome that as well. Golem however is more consistent, and will block an attack even that exceeds it's "HP", and thus can stop even a death-blow in a lucky situation, but if someone's focused down, once Image runs out, that's it. Quezacolli is my 2nd fave in the whole game purely for the wild shit you can do, like 'Jump only' (which is "technically" not possible unless you allow for a lot of required exceptions). But it is hilarious, and Jump is surprisingly strong in this game.
Death Gaze is probably the most boring and annoying sidequest boss ever in this franchise. You can search him non stop and never find him or only find him when you are not prepared.
Note: Midgardsormr is Norse for “Midgard Serpent.” It refers to Jormungandr, the giant snake which is a child of Loki abd his wife Angrboda, that Odin threw into the ocean. Gradually it grew so big that it itself around Earth (referred to by the Norse as Midgard) and bit its own tail. During the doomsday event in their beliefs, Ragnarok, the serpent would unravel itself and fight Thor to the death at the end of days.
Good morning Bdewd! Just to let you know, I noticed a small error on your "chapters" so to speak in the video bar. It looks like you forgot to add the "Bismark" part and his part of the video is still labled along with Sirens.
Actually, the key to Ultima Weapon's damage is level, rather than HP... all characters, with no level up bonuses, will have around 9700-9900 HP at LV99, so a couple of levels with high HP bonuses is all it takes to ensure maximum HP.
I usually run and raid loot from Kefka's Tower, after I got Mog and his Moogle Charm. I always ice the two dragons while Im there too. It doesn't take that long! And then you get Crusader quite a bit earlier!
IDK if anyone else knows this, but using Gogo to mimic Ragnarok summon (which can be done infinitely) you can actually morph the entire bunch of enemies in an encounter (where there are more than 1). The only thing you have to remember, is Gogo "wastes" a morph turn right after a successful morphing because it doesn't re-target right away after an enemy has been morphed for some reason, but the next turn, it will lock on a new target and you can lather, rinse, repeat. While it's still tedious, it does make the chances of getting an item greater than not doing that.
Completely disagree with Phoenix being ranked so low. I feel like you knock the Espers that don’t give stat bonuses too much and it hurts your list. Phoenix is probably one of the best Espers in the game, especially if you are doing more challenging runs.
At the moment (I'm doing the Super Nintendo version on emulator), I'm just starting the World of Ruin, and my favorite thus far is Sraphim--Seraph for you modern players, I guess? Cure 2 (Curaga) has saved my characters' bacon more times than I care to count, but I'm looking forward to getting Phoenix and the one from Owzer's mansion, that's for sure...!!
First off, yes I realized as of this morning after the file no longer exists that it says Seraph where Siren's name should be. That's a my bad. Secondly, as of a Pixel Remaster update as of yesterday there were a couple of upgrades. Raiden goes from +2 Strength to +2 Speed which would bump him up a a point or two. Alexander now goes from no level up bonus to +2 Strength which would bring him from bottom to around 3rd. Again, file no longer exists to edit so big sad. With THAT out of the way, who is your favourite esper and why?
Quetzalli goes from no stat update to Speed+1 on PR too.
No worries mate. This worst to best videos are going to give me a good game on ff6 as soon as I finish the 5
Never used summon in this game 🤡
love the content though
@@Loyyid Only a handful are really worthwhile but they quickly lose their luster. In the GBA, Leviathan and Diablos are definitely some of the stronger summons, especially Diablos.
Ramuh. A weak attack spell but at least he actually has some personality.
3 ways to get Image:
- Summon Fenrir
- Shadow uses the vanish edge/shadow edge (Gogo can do this too)
- Equip the Mirage Vest, you start off with Vanish. It's honestly one of the better armors in the game.
Shiva is one of my favorites purely for teaching Osmose, which means infinite free MP for the rest of the game
Plus the fact that at that point in the game you want to learn Ice 1 & Ice 2 (as well as Fire and Lightning 1&2).
One of the best spells in the game.
On top of NEEDING osmose to slay one of the dragons
Love how people still post stuff like this, this game was my childhood
Some games are timeless
I feel the same way. It's 2024 and people are making content about my favourite game from 30 years ago.
So Tritoch right? :D
Don't forget how good Carbunkle is offensively with bouncing off 4 spells off of yourself
I was surprised to see Crusader at the bottom of the list. The summon is garbage, but the meltdown spell is amazing. If you have four flame shields equipped it automatically becomes both a huge heal for all your party members and massive damage for 90% of the enemies you encounter. Usually I equip one of my parties like this and they absolutely breeze through anything.
If the first set of Espers have a 9/10 for accessibility, what would it take to get a 10/10 there?
Think he's comparing to other videos where stuff can be gotten earlier
Do you think you’ll do a Relm sketch/control best and worst abilities!?
not really cuz honestly, they all kinda suck for the most part or were covered in other videos to *some* extent if they were useful haha
Anything that grants Magic Power growth early and often is flat out the most busted Esper in my eyes, because way too many abilities scale way too strongly from Magic Power vs anything else in the game. Slots, Lore, Blitz, Magic Rods (Item, as consumable), and of course, plain ol' Magic in general is very OP in FF6.
Sabin's Blitz in particular scales murderously fast with Magic Power growth, turning Aura Bolt into a Holy powered railgun with Fire Dance sweeping basically 90% of everything else until World of Ruin. (and Air Blade being a screen wide kill if you somehow overlevel him for that)
I've turned Bum Rush into a delete key that hits near the damage cap before level 40 and nothing in the game has more than 60k HP. And that's just pumping +30 MagPwr into him, or about 20 odd levels between Stray (Cait Sith) and Maduin.
Funny thing is, that's child's play compared to the walking nuclear holocaust you can turn Terra into since her Morph ability flat out DOUBLES her Magic Power while active and even tier 2 attack spells will hit like the fist of an angry god before you're even done with the World of Balance segment of the game. Her amazing equips from the moment you get her back onward only helps this, changing her from a crappy early game bop-stick who occasionally casts Fire and Cure into arguably the strongest, most flexible (and RELIABLE, sorry Gau) character in the game.
As for the other stats:
+HP% is nice if you're racing through events in World of Ruin and manage to get Bahamut early. However, HP growth is quadratic without any pumping whatsoever, spiking rapidly around level 33 onward for everyone. It's nice to have, but unnecessary as enemies will rarely hit above 1000 damage until Kefka's Tower anyway.
+MP% is the same story, since once you've cleared the MagiTek factory, you have access to Zoneseek and rapid Osmose training and unless you keep accidentally trying to drain Undead monsters of their MP, it's basically floating around in nearly every encounter for free. Nice, but unnecessary.
+Speed is the most interesting stat since there's something of a choice here since only Odin grants speed growth in vanilla FF6. The problem is, he's an Esper that you may possess for literally 30 seconds before upgrading him and that Speed growth vanishes when he turns into Raiden. Odin vs Raiden is really a choice between roiding your characters innate speed stat at a piddling rate vs learning one of the most busted spells in all of FF history: Quick.
Frankly, the only time I'd ever look sideways at Odin's Speed growth is if I was doing some OCD fueled max stats levelgrinding project.
+Vigor (Strength) is only really useful on Edgar/Mog and Cyan. Everyone else has better options through magic power in one form or another. (Quadra Slice is Cyan's sole saving grace from being rendered completely obsolete, but oh what an attack it is when pumped up.)
And +Stamina is...not worth mentioning.
Learning Magic Spells is important, but for any character to do well in FF6 they only really need the Tier 2 elemental spells, Tier 2 curatives (Life, Esuna, Cure 2), Rasp+Osmose, Vanish, and Flare and Meteor (or Ultima if you nab the Paladin's Shield/Ragnarok magicite early enough). You get access to nearly all of those after finishing the MagiTek factory.
The other spells are nice (busted, if you want to abuse the Vanish+Doom combo in the original SNES version) but not really necessary for clearing the game's regular content. There are only a tiny handful of encounters / bosses that give me any real pause once I get my hands on the Bahamut Esper in early WoR, and that's largely due to the fact that FF6 just gives the player access to so many absolutely busted options, that's it's really just a matter of learning how to exploit them properly that negates any need for excessive level grinding.
Mirage Vest and Shadow Edge both grant the image status in addition to Fenrir.
Ya Krazy, Ragnarok can give da best items in da game!!! Summon it n have Gogo mimic n repeat till u get da item. N u can get da sword from stealing it from one of da enemies b4 Kefka
I love Golem. That giant stone hand coming out of the ground to protect you is awesome. Plus... they have him looking like a robot. Who wouldn't love a magic robot??
Robo lovers rejoicing rn
I never thought about it before, but I guess they designed Golem as a robot in FFVI to fit with the "Magitek" theme?
It’s just a shame you can’t summon multiple times in VI. In V, Golem was a summon with basically the same effect. But since you can summon him as many times in one fight as you want, he’s amazing for defensive options.
If the first available espers don't get a 10 in accessibility then your methodology is off.
Fair point
its his video... and his ranking. that being said, only the first four should get a 10 in accessability.
It's not a scientific paper
Don't sleep on ragnarok. Ribbons, genji gloves, safety bits, megalixers, thunder shields (bet for genji shields), miracle shoes, ichigeki/assassins dagger all can be obtained through metamorphosis.
Metamorph is god-tier for farming on SNES and Pixel Remaster. God-tier-plus on GBA.
Also, hours of fun playing "Will It Jerky?" on random enemies. (Don't forget the dinosaurs!)
The actual trick to getting the most out of Ragnarok? Pairing its user with Gogo, to mimic that until the battle ends, or you need to heal. Very high rate of goodies.
Also XP eggs on the bird enemies. But you need to know what enemies morph into what. Also you gave up the Ragnarok sword (& Lightbringer/Illumina) in the process. I can't really rate it. But that's the old Ragnarok debate for ya.
@Chadius I wish the extended dungeons from the GBA version were included in the pixel remaster. The ability to steal those ultimate swords from the last tier of the monument to nonexistence made it very worth before going to the post game dungeons. Also, those summons were neat.
its still crap since it never really works and even the VANISH and doom glitch SNES and PS1 version will NOT give the Esper a 100% success rate so Ragnarok is still crap I'll use the Paladin Shield for Ultima.
Cure rings/Miracles shoes later game makes HP regen FROM Kirin useless so I'll never really summon Kiren at all.
The only reason Crusader sticks out in my head is that I remember spinning it on the Esper slots and getting sent back to the last save point.
lmao rekt
When I first played this, I very distinctly remember first getting the "Magicite" item that summons a random esper in the sealed gate cave, immediately using it out of curiosity, and getting Crusader. I never used the item again.
@@salculdSame thing happened to me.
@@salculd
I always try to avoid such random effects in games.
That's why Caith Sith sucks theirs no FF7 summon that kills its user but FF7 still has Cait Sith's version of Joker doom the One that kills your OWN party that's why in FFF7 I'll never use Slots for his 2nd limit break at all.
I can't believe you rated Quick (and thus Raiden) so low...
Quick is one of the most busted spells in the history of the franchise. Extra turns are overpowered in any turn-based RPG, and Quick not only gives you two extra turns, but also disables anyone from doing anything else until you're done. Jump becomes "instant", Cyan can take his time charging up Bushido... also, enemies can't counterattack. There's a reason why we haven't seen this spell in the numbered games since VI: it's that busted.
Also, Raiden increasing Speed is an amazing improvement.
He's ranking these summons with speedrunning in mind , quick is game breaking in casual play but when you speedrun it has one of the slowest magic growths imaginable (x1) , and at the point where you'd have unlocked quick you could've already gotten into kefka's tower fully decked out in gear. That's also why ragnarok magicite was placed so low despite ultima being the best spell , it's too out of the way and loses time
He also had the esper that teaches Ultima basically last on his list. That is the best/most busted spell in the game. This list is completely inaccurate
@@CosmicCosmo1 ultima is fair enough. Just get the paladin shield and enjoy one of the best weapons in the game
Quick + gem box + ultima or quick + offering + genji glove are both so completely busted.
That's because on the GBA onwards remakes that can no longer be done it only works on the SNES and PS1 games.
IRC Shadow has a scroll that gives himself image.
And mirage vests. Applies to anyone but Umaro I think.
Yes. I don't know what Shadow's scroll is called in later versions, but in the Super Nintendo version it's called "Inviz Edge," I think. I thought that was garbage until I saw this video and its comment section! Now I may try buying him some once he joins permanently!
I always keep Odin, at least for a while. Not for the +Speed. But for the Meteor spell. It's a nice spell that sweeps many randoms. Especially in the Cultists Tower (the mobs there have numerous elemental resistances, and some even have innate Reflect, which Meteor simply disregards).
I'm pretty sure Shadow can inflict the Image on himself if he used a scroll. Forget what it's called though.
You're 100% correct, it's the Shadow scroll
Imma level with you, Crusader needs extra points taken off for every time I died to it in my first play through's early game by using a magicite shard.
EDIT: Other sources of image include Shadows scroll (forget the name) and the mirage vest (which I have never seen a single person use).
Or slots 💀
Yeah, I died to Crusader once. Never summoned it again.
I'm sorry, but this is hella funny.
If nothing gets a 10/10 rating, is there a point to the cap? As it stands, the final scores should be out of 36, since none of the scores, not even the insane +2 speed on level up, manage to achieve it.
If the concern is weighting certain things more (which accessibility may be guilty of) then the preferred solution would be to weigh each category differently.
I do agree with this, I was also torn on consistency with the rest of the series. Future ones thats probably the idea going forward
Agreed. If the first Esper you get isn't a 10/10 Accessibility, what is the point of a 10 point scale?
You can also get Image statut with Shadow Scroll through the Thrown command with Shadow (or Gogo).
Noted thanks!
Osmose is booty? Really? It's one of the best spells in the game since it lets you use your other spells with reckless abandon. No idea how Zoneseek's spells are rated so low.
Also, a huge amount of monsters instantly die if you reduce their MP to 0, including bosses.
Seconded. Especially in the late game when your casters have access to multiple MP-fueled nuke spells like Tier 3 elemental spells, Meteor, Grand Train, Ultima, etc., not having to dedicate items to MP recovery or precious relic slots to cost mitigation items and just spamming nukes with wild abandon because you can refill on command is huge. That plus the coveted Magic +2 put Zoneseek high on my list, and mitigating incoming magic damage with fewer downsides than reflect make the summon not half bad either.
Osmose always hit me as a "im bad at mp management, the spell" hahahaha
@@Bdewd Maybe in other games, since you either get it late, or it's weak. In FF6 it's basically "MP management? What MP management?". You can just go wild with magic and recharge for a cost of a single turn off a random non-undead schmoe.
In FF 6 their great in FF5 Osmose barely drains even 1 MP off enemies that have 50+ of it its useless and for Rydia in FF4 not worth using in the final dungeon it would barely drain any MP IF at all.
Man, I'm so used to do Natural Magic Only runs that I totally forgot that equipping Espers grants you stat bonusses on Level Ups.
I don’t think I ever realized the stat/leveling bonuses were a thing on any play throughs I’ve done 🤯
@@zrayburtoni agree i have NEVER factored stat bonuses in my history of playing the game.... magic only
@@zrayburton magic+2 and strength+2 will turn your characters into war gods real fast. You can beat the game at low level 30s if you apply the bonuses correctly. Only your HP and MP increase when you level up, so every boost counts!
The Pixel version still allows that simply increase exp to a 4x Boost and AP gain to zero.
It's been a very long time since my last playthrough, but getting the slower characters speed up to match Lock's natural 40 was always a priority for me. Cyan is much more formidable when he attacks more often, etc.
“Wimpy horse is higher than a castle of lasers.” Dead.
So sad, so true
@@Bdewd Question..... Not that it matters to ranking but with Kirin being a mandatory story event and first group of espers you get, how is that not a 10/10 accessibility? You literally can't not get Kirin and the others in the group.
@@cyrusttoille Seriously. Kirin should teach Vanish for how little presence he has with the player.
@@cyrusttoille 10/10 would be you start with it
@@dynenuitari8930 or as soon as you can get it, it's given to you..... If there is not a way to not get it, it should be 10/10.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the first 4 you get in zozo should be 10/10 accessible since you get them by default. Would love to hear why they are docked a point.
Yeah. He underrated Kirin mad bad.
To me a 10/10 is perfection. So that would mean get it instantaneously. So 9/10 is next best bet. I'm a stickler on 10s tho
@@Bdewd I can see where you're coming from, and thanks for the reply. I still disagree because, in order to earn a 10 in your logic, we would have to redesign the game to have Terra start with one. At that point, it's not the same game anymore. In the context of FF6 as designed, there's no esper more accessible than the zozo 4. The combination of being the first available to be acquired and the fact you cannot miss them makes them a 10.
Either way, I enjoy the content. Keep up the good work.
I think you mean to say "rubric" and not "rhetoric".
i r stoopid
okay good now i don't have to say it, thanks
I have to ask, you listed the initial Zozo espers as 9/10 for accessibility - the first espers in the game that you can get, who are all unavoidable. So is a 10/10 even possible? And what would that even look like?
Ummm... Seraph = Siren, right? Soz, but you can't do math. 7+0+6.5+7 = 20.5, not 21.5. Also, as an old-timer who once begged and groveled to get FF3 (6, but I didn't know that yet) for xmas 1994, you making this video off of the Pixel Remaster gives me the shits. The two worst things:
- At least 1/3 of the Espers' names have been changed (Cait Sith? Yuck - he was the worst character in FF7 by an enormous margin. And wtf is Tritoch called!?)
- It's Fire, Fire 2, Fire 3. Not Fire, Fira, Firaga. This isn't FF8.
Kids these days with their bloody smartphone Final Fantasys... ffs, have some self-respect: put down your phone (Apple phones are made by union-busting slave labour sweatshops, get a soul and a backbone and throw it in the bin.) Get an emulator and download the rom for the original game, and play as Castle of Lasers had intended.
Try to do a better job of proofreading your videos. There were some obvious mistakes along the way.
You are going to need an update of this video, because after the update a few days ago, Alexander now gives +2 STR bonus and Raiden gives +2 SPD, which is awesome.
There was an update?
EDIT: Holy shyt there was! I been waiting for this for a long azz time. Thanks for the comment.
I don't understand your scoring scales. You rate everything out of 10 but nothing gets a 10/10. Shouldn't the best summon ability get a 10/10 and the first espers you get are 10/10 for access? That aside great video!
Idk of it's just me, and I never played FFVI Advance long enough to get to the new summons but what I have seen of them is that the graphics for them look so out of place stylistically.
These are the Pixel Remaster graphics and yes it's very jarring
@@BJGvideos I was aware the video wasn't using GBA footage, I was just using it as an opportunity to air my grievances lol
Wait, after all that none of the Espers hit a 30/40 on your list? Maybe you're being a bit stingy with those points. Maybe things would be a bit more fair if the points maxed out at 5?
I do agree that magic is the superior stat in this game. There are some characters where it's better to focus strength (like Sabin with his bumrush) but magic is just insane, especially since with those early magic bonuses. If you play things right, you'll be nuking everyone with 9999 dmg with Ultima by the end game, easily.
The world building and magic system shows that even some chumps like Setzer can become a god. It's why the Emperor valued those espers. But it also kind of makes those special abilities useless. Like, who is using slots in the World of Ruin? By then, your magic will far outclass anything the slots would be able to give you.
Great list, but why rate out of 10 if nothing ever hits 10?
I really can't stand how they altered the names of so many things with the Pixel Remaster game. Not sure why someone would want to play a worse version of the original.
Came here to say this, what are half these spells?! These weren’t the spell names on the snes
Kirin is #1 if you ignore lvl up bonus, easy.
5/10 is a huge underrating on his summon. It's the only all cast of regen in the game (very OP in WoB). Summon should be 7 or 8.
There is absolutely no way Carbuncle is better than Kirin. Insanity.
If you have a 10 scale, then something needs to be 10, the first 4 espers should have 10 accessibility. They're the earliest you can get them and they're mandatory. But good list!
There is two other ways you can apply Image status other than Fenrir:
1. Using Shadow Edge through the Throw command.
2. Mirage Vest
Both of which only work on one character, while Fenrir works on *the entire party.*
Why you count Odin/Quetzalli PR Bonus but count Raiden Original bonus? He should Got 9(Or 10 point for best Stat bonus in the game) like Odin
Quick Should be TOP 3 best spell in this game and you score 5 while flare you score 7
I think Odin/Raiden is the earliest obtain at WoR or I miss something ? (Seraph can obtain af WoB right?) if so it should score higher than Quetzalli is'n it ?
Poor Zona Seeker you score his Osmose/Rasp 3. Not only it can Full-fill your MP but it can cancle non-undead enemy spell and keep your vanish last longer I always use this method to grind LV with T-Rex by cut it MP
Magic +2 is 10/10. the magic stat multipliers are absurd in FFVI.
Stamina is useless and could even be a 0.5/10 and 1/10 for +2. if i level with Stanima equipped, it feels like i leveled with a no-bonus equipped.
HP and MP bonuses do not have a big impact if you look at the math of what you get below Level 45. they should all rank really low. It’s starts to be just ok from Bahamut and Crusader, but it’s not worth it vs more Str/ Mag/ Spd.
Love how you call then the Magitek Factory "Survivor" given that an Esper has to die ti become a magicite.
What’s the point of having a possible score of 10 in any category if nothing gets a 10? That seems really odd, especially in spell usefulness and summon power where some of the summons are monsters.
I love your videos covering the old jrpg's that made my childhood, but your rating metrics confuse me. Why make it 0-10 when nothing ever gets a 10? Surely if +1 speed is an 8, +2 speed should easily be a 10.
Who uses summons in this game? Just Atma Weapon, Tools, Blitz, you're done.
Seriously, the twins are way too OP. Then late game, just Offering+ Atma and everything dies in one turn with no effort.
Also, don't use HP gains for Atma Weapon.
Bahamuts accessibility should definitely be a 4 at best 😴
Behamut at number 1? Interesting.
I don't care about Flare that much. But the summon spell Mega Flare is another option that can mindlessly obliterate Cultist Tower mobs (it's basically a weaker Ultima).
And to kill Doom Gaze faster, buy a bunch of Pearl/Holy Rods from Thamasa, then use them as items in battle for a crapton of damage (especially if Morph Terra does so).
Using Fire Rods as items can work too, for almost as much damage.
can you even use Espers in the Cultist Tower?
yes only Lores you can't use.
Quick isn't just a "pretty good spell", it's essentially game-breaking. If you also farm and equip Economizers, it costs 1mp. Can we say "infinite turns" boys and girls? I did this back in the SNES days, and Kefka only got one turn per phase. The rest was all constant Genji / Master Scroll attacks and Mime, then re-casting Quick... lol
I go in under leveled and he gets no turns. Maybe it's a bad spell :) (this is for last phase, not sure if you mean the tiers as well)
I think perhaps doing a plus 1 2 or 3 points for accessibility and level ip bonus would have made for a more fair ranking system.
This list is a bit goofy. Outside of occasional golem usage, I don't use summons. Tey mostly don't matter; the only ones worth anything are the niche ones. Further, how you end up with Catoblepas in your top five is because you aren't weighting your metrics. the summon spell matters far less than the magic the esper teaches (with its attendant speeds), and that list matters less, for the majority of the game, than its level bonus. for that reason, Cait Sith is waaay ahead of a bunch of the ones you listed. Magic is the most important stat to everyone except Cyan, and nobody should be using Cyan (gotta love that theme, though). even a +3 in any other stat matters less than a +1 in magic.
Bro, Ultima learning should break the /10 scale. After you learn that spell the game is over. The only thing stronger is a strength build genji glove/offering Locke.
How did ragnarok not get an 11/10 for spells learned?! Imo it’s a top 3 esper for ultima alone. Honestly probably number 1, since the only other way to get ultima is the paladin shield which is a major pain in the ass.
Fun fact about Crusader. Its name in the original Japanese version is ジハード, pronounced ji-hā-do. It’s supposed to be Jihad.
I'm surprised you gave Phoenix such a high summon rating. For getting it so late in the game, it wouldn't be on my list of 4 magicites to equip (unless learning the spells).
I'm confused how the first summons both siren and Cait sith only have a 9/10 accessibility?
They are the first summons you get as the story progresses
Came to comment something similar. I got to Shiva and saw it's 8/10, but there's so little of the game in between getting the first pieces of magicite and getting Shiva and Ifrit. Basically just the Opera House and then the first part of the Magitek Factory. The first four you get should be 10/10 accessible, and AT LEAST Shiva and Ifrit should be 9/10, if not all the espers from Magitek Factory.
Because the 10/10 slot for Esper accessibility goes to Terra.
@@WillRennar Terra should only get 5/10 accessibility because she's only half esper.
Joking aside, her esper form is only available after the magitech facility so... shouldn't she be 8/10 or 7/10?
@@-Keith-
That makes her 9.5/10 😂
why do the first espers you unlock only get a 9/10 accessibility? like why not a 10 lol?
Ragnarok has the ability to give you infinite genji gloves as well as the cursed ring without wasting the cursed shield. Sounds like a good deal to me!
Why do the earliest espers in the entire game not receive a 10/10 for accessibility? Why even do the ratings out of 10 if it's not possible to achieve it with the most accessible espers?
As a kid playing this game, I never bother with the level up bonus for Espers. I used them all just to learn spells for everyone. Some had faster spell rates to learn. Otherwise, my favorite espers to use is the bird that makes us all dragoons! Fun one that is!
Man there's a lot of errors where the numbers don't match what you're Reading.
Its a test. Memes aside, I did put in a small thing that's not INCORRECT for what the video is showing but also not completely correct. See if it gets caught
Fenrir isn't the only source of image. You can get unlimited Mirage Vests from the colosseum which are equippable by everybody except umaro.
Mirage skean? I think one of Shadow's scrolls casts it.
@@dansmith1661 Shadow edge, yeah. Only usable by Shadow and Gogo sadly.
Sorry. I stopped the video to ask. I am not trying to be a jerk I am just curious.
Why did you give the unicorn a 7/10 accessibility when it is part of the Magitech Factory batch when it is like one of the first espers you get and also very hard to miss?
---
I just looked it up and apparently you CAN miss it, but still why the 7/10?
I feel like if the first ones you get without any major trial gets a 7/10 I don’t know how you would get higher unless it was REQUIRED for plot reasons.
Yet again. I am just wondering what qualifies at a 10/10 for accessibility to you.
Anyways… thank you for this content.
I am a random jackass from rural America eating peanuts and watching your video because my insomnia is playing up.
I scrolled through my feed for like 240 videos but this is the one that caught my eyes. I truly appreciate the work you did on this even though it is stopped at 4:59 currently lmao.
Level bonuses like str +2, mag + 2 and speed are all worth 10 ou of 10.
Just discovered your channel recently, and I am loving your Final Fantasy videos. One minor bit of advice I wanted to offer: I noticed that when you speak about your evaluation criteria, you seem to refer to the categories as "rhetorics" (at least that's what it sounds like to me). I think perhaps the word you're looking for would be "rubric," or maybe "metric," which both can refer to grading systems. Just my two cents, anyway. Looking forward to checking out more from your channel!
Generally agreed with most of this tier list, but the Str +2 & especially Mag +2 level up bonuses should be worth 10/10.
agreed, I did my own list, giving speed +2 a 10, mag +2 a 9, and str +2 an 8
well, i had taken the time to make a comprehensive list to add to yours, and i misclicked and closed the page and it's gone >.> overall, a solid assessment, but I would recommend you adjust the way you judge spells and more uniformly judge the level up bonuses. the stats are always more impactful than the hp/mp considering at max level, you'll all have 9500+hp and 950+mp. I do recognize they would possibly benefit a low level run more, but so would the stat increases.
my list put bismark at the top because his bonus is the earliest way to raise str effectively, and he's the earliest way to get access to raise, additionally, despite his damage being largely unimpressive, he's one of the very few sources of water damage, making him critical in the house fire. summons like palidor are also overlooked because their damage isn't amazing, but against single targets, he's one of the best for many reasons- firstly, it makes all your characters un-target-able for several attacks, then causes 4 instances of high damage as each player comes crashing down, well exceeding the 9999 damage cap on any other esper against a single target. ragnirok is also the only way to obtain some very rare gear, which you mentioned, but it boost his (best) status considerably.
Seems silly to have x/10 but have it be impossible to get a 10.
I was so irked by Ifrit and Shiva with those level-up bonus. Why didn't the devs give Shiva +1 to magic. It pairs well with Iftrit being her opposite. She teaches ice and healing, he teaches fire and drain. She should give +1 to magic to compliment Ifrit's +1 to strength.
I do like how Golem and Zoneseek are both in the auction house. Shell and Protect for the party. I just like espers that compliment each other. I'm weird like that.
I'm having a stroke with some of these final scores not being correct lol
thats ok i apparently had a stroke making them loooooooooooool
You know, it occurs to me that maybe your "Accessibility" category really should be replaced with something like "Usefulness Time". As in, rather than rate how long (potentially) you have something, rate how much of the game overall you are going to use it. IE: With Gau, if you use him, you can get Stray Cat right away with him, and you'll probably be using it for most of (if not all of) the entire game. Some of these Espers you get later game, you're going to be using the entire rest of your playthrough (especially if they have a good Level Up bonus), while others you get early, you probably won't use much (if at all) outside of teaching a few spells to a a character or two. So your overall use time for them (even if they're useful early, like Maduin) might not be very high.
Its a bit awkward and I'm def open to ideas for improvement. Ty!
Sabin with a +2 magic esper = broken. You can just about one shot everything with bum rush for the rest of the game
Ragnarock was such a huge disappointment to me because from the name you'd assume it's out there with Bahamuth, Odin, and Alexander, then my disappointment was doubled after I learned that having it as equipment is much better
Buh... Ultima!
Ragnarok can grant you incredibly powerful items. Your guys can always use magic that hits the cap quickly enough.
Not sure which version of the game you were basing this off of, but Meltdown/Merton was originally fire-based and you could equip flame shields to recover HP when casting it.
As a newcomer of FF6 Pixel Remaster, here’s my list from least to most favorite
27: Crusader
26: Cait Sith
25: Phantom
24: Ragnarok
23: Odin
22: Unicorn
21: Lakshmi
20: Siren
19: Carbuncle
18: Shiva
17: Ifrit
16: Kirin
15: Rahmu
14: Catoblepas
13: Midgardsormr
12: Seraph
11: Phoenix
10: Maduin
9: Golem
8: Bismarck
7: Alexander
6: Raiden
5: Zona Seeker
4: Valigarmanda
3: Bahamut
2: Fenrir
1: Quetzalli
I erjoy your portmanteau of rubric and metric 😅
I’m surprised Rasp didn’t make Shiva worth more. Eh, oh well.
Did rasp strats on intangir on the pixel remaster, he got stuck in a script loop and I had to reset. Forever scarred
You giving Zona Seeker a 3 out of 10 on spells learned!? Are you crazy? Osmose makes it near impossible to run out of MP. And it's taught at x15 to boot!
And while Rasp is niche and situational, it can be used to quickly kill certain enemies and bosses (most notable might be Atma Weapon).
bro!!!!! ragnarok is a farm beast! its way too low on the list. the summon is 10/10 as it gives you access to game breaking gear and items. idk if i can take your list seriously after seeing how you did my favorite esper! do you even rpg bro? its all about the loot!😅
You're right. I should scrap the entire arbitrary means the arbitrary list for a video that doesn't matter for sik lootz!
@@Bdewd never said any of that but seeing as my opinion comment got you in the feels i guess it isnt arbitrary then. i liked your other videos but i guess i will keep my comments to myself regarding your videos so you dont scrap them in the future.
Even at lv 99 the Esper is still pure CRAP is almost NEVER works even with Gogo using Mimic EVERY turn.
As for Ragnarok, half of the player's pass it up for the Ragnarok sword (which can be bet for an even better sword).
You can still get the spell Ultima from the Paladin Shield (just gotta grind a lot to uncurse the Cursed Shield).
From a pure completionist standpoint, the sword is better then the esper.
Love the vid, but what's the point of scoring out of 10 if you never go above 9?
10 is perfection. Nearly everything has a downside. The big take away is if something is a 10, it's a big deal imo :)
i wondered the exact same thing lol
I did a run where I didn’t spend any money unless absolutely necessary and Unicorn’s x4 Cura was worth its weight in gold there. That’s about what it takes to make the esper useful.
Also, Shadow can set Image using the Vanish Edge.
Now there's an idea. I'm always up for new challenges. No gil spent would be interesting, especially stacked with a few other handicaps like low level run or something.
The minimum gil you have to spend is 151 (you’ve gotta purchase Dried Meat for Gau at 150 gil and you have to sleep in the Thamasa inn to the tune of 1 gil). I haven’t found a way around either of those.
The Mirage Vest also gives the wearer image.
Ragnorok should have been lower. You can get ultima from the paladin shield, which is a pain in the butt to obtain, but this game is easy enough to where it really doesn't matter whether you have ultima or not anyway. On top of that, if you get it in it's sword form, you can trade it for the lightbringer in the colliseum, which is the most overpowered piece of equipment in the game. It's just not worth keeping it in esper form.
The first esper you can get has a 9 accessibility that means it's a 1 - 9 scale instead of 1 - 10...
I had thought the same thing, but since you learn magic in ways before obtaining them, I feel it's somewhat justified
There was a bug in the SNES version (and I think the PS1 version) where if you did the Vanish + Xzone trick on any monster (ESPECIALLY Doomgaze), you wouldn't get any dropped items. That included the Bahamut magicite. So then I never really used Vanish + XZone, but rather Vanish + Doom instead (unless undead monster, then I just threw a phoenix down at it lol).
What I do find funny about the localisations of these games is that Midgardsormr was spelt correctly in this game but in FF7, somehow the translation became ‘Midgar Zolom’
Raiden for the heavy speed boost. I usually transform Ragnarok into a sword because you can get the second best sword in the game by betting it in the coliseum and you can learn Ultimate by equipping the Paladin Shield once you break its curse. Genii Glove/ Master Scroll/ Illumina/ Ultima Weapon= highest damage output in the game at late levels usually around 60k per turn with an additional chance to may cast Pearl. The espers IMO are mostly for visuals.
The typo in the phantom scorecard got me more than it shouldve
I apparently was looking at the wrong stuff during the "its done, make sure stuff is all right" part D: lolol
@Bdewd you did well. Typos happen we all know editing can get mind numbing lol
And unicorn. Just way off
To be fair FF6 is notorious for misspelling everything. So if anything it's keeping things consistent.
To be honest, nowadays I find the espers useless. The last few times I've played this game, I've done the raft trick early in the game to level everyone to lvl 99. Celes and Terra will learn every spell naturally, except for ultima and holy, and everyone else will be so overpowered they don't need magic. I love being able to explore the abilities the characters initially come with while crushing every enemy the game throws at me.
To me, the only 4 Espers worth using IN COMBAT, AGAINST A BOSS FIGHT are Golem, Zone Seeker, Fenrir, and Phoenix….Quetzalli I can see use for in place of Fenrir, maybe to avoid one big attack from a boss, and MAYBE Bahamut, just because it’s Bahamut, but to me, a one time simple attack spell isn’t worth it in a boss fight…I’m mostly talking about end-game. I don’t remember the spells or level up stats from the GBA summons, but the summon attacks themselves are all simple attacks so I don’t recommend them
Pretty sure if the GBA Espers were on here (sad that they haven't been added since), I can see Leviathan being in the top 10 because of being the only source of water magic, and Gigantuar being either under Bahumat or taking his place, since his summon is kinda busted, and he was the first +2 speed bonus. The only part hurting him is accessibility, since he's an absolute pain in the ass to take down to get.
Fun list, here's my personal thoughts on some of the choices:
With the right setup, Crusader can barely touch you while demolishing foes (same with other similar spells in the game)
Don't ignore what Ragnarok can do, though I do feel like it is also worth noting the great Ragnarok debate: The sword, or the summon
Shiva also grants Rasp if memory serves, which can be an alt way in the WoB to defeat at least some bosses.
Cait Sith is actually REALLY powerful, especially WoB when a lot of enemies are vulnerable to confuse. It's also good to help learn some Lores as well.
Zone Seek is probably the most consistently useful (or very close to it) Esper in the game: It's summon effect is always useful, it's magic isn't bad, and it's level-up bonus is arguably the most useful (along with the other +2 magic ones) in the game.
Raiden is probably the most amusing Esper in the game from a purely "I did this because it sounded stupid"-sort of way. Quick is way too good, even if it's not 'as' good as it was in FFV simply because the damage output of your party members can get utterly ridiculous, even in the mid-game, let alone the end. Thus you can turn any char with high damage output into an utterly ridiculous behemoth of raw power and cheese the hell out of most encounters.
Depending on circumstance, Golem can be better over Fenrir. Image can be dispelled, or pierced if memory serves, and some enemies can and do attack multiple times to overcome that as well. Golem however is more consistent, and will block an attack even that exceeds it's "HP", and thus can stop even a death-blow in a lucky situation, but if someone's focused down, once Image runs out, that's it.
Quezacolli is my 2nd fave in the whole game purely for the wild shit you can do, like 'Jump only' (which is "technically" not possible unless you allow for a lot of required exceptions). But it is hilarious, and Jump is surprisingly strong in this game.
So what does it take for a 10/10 accessibility?
Death Gaze is probably the most boring and annoying sidequest boss ever in this franchise. You can search him non stop and never find him or only find him when you are not prepared.
Note: Midgardsormr is Norse for “Midgard Serpent.” It refers to Jormungandr, the giant snake which is a child of Loki abd his wife Angrboda, that Odin threw into the ocean. Gradually it grew so big that it itself around Earth (referred to by the Norse as Midgard) and bit its own tail. During the doomsday event in their beliefs, Ragnarok, the serpent would unravel itself and fight Thor to the death at the end of days.
Good morning Bdewd! Just to let you know, I noticed a small error on your "chapters" so to speak in the video bar. It looks like you forgot to add the "Bismark" part and his part of the video is still labled along with Sirens.
Ty fixed!
Actually, the key to Ultima Weapon's damage is level, rather than HP... all characters, with no level up bonuses, will have around 9700-9900 HP at LV99, so a couple of levels with high HP bonuses is all it takes to ensure maximum HP.
I usually run and raid loot from Kefka's Tower, after I got Mog and his Moogle Charm. I always ice the two dragons while Im there too. It doesn't take that long! And then you get Crusader quite a bit earlier!
IDK if anyone else knows this, but using Gogo to mimic Ragnarok summon (which can be done infinitely) you can actually morph the entire bunch of enemies in an encounter (where there are more than 1). The only thing you have to remember, is Gogo "wastes" a morph turn right after a successful morphing because it doesn't re-target right away after an enemy has been morphed for some reason, but the next turn, it will lock on a new target and you can lather, rinse, repeat. While it's still tedious, it does make the chances of getting an item greater than not doing that.
Completely disagree with Phoenix being ranked so low. I feel like you knock the Espers that don’t give stat bonuses too much and it hurts your list. Phoenix is probably one of the best Espers in the game, especially if you are doing more challenging runs.
At the moment (I'm doing the Super Nintendo version on emulator), I'm just starting the World of Ruin, and my favorite thus far is Sraphim--Seraph for you modern players, I guess? Cure 2 (Curaga) has saved my characters' bacon more times than I care to count, but I'm looking forward to getting Phoenix and the one from Owzer's mansion, that's for sure...!!