Ye have tae raise yir hand up an' open yir mooth wide when ye say Rally-Ho!
Harold Pathknower, Final Fantasy IX
Dwarves are a race that appears in some titles of the Final Fantasy series. They are usually portrayed as skilled engineers, and almost always have a special password, usually "Lali-ho!" or something similar. Depending on the game, they may have a friendly or hostile relationship with the Elves, or none at all.
Appearances[]
Final Fantasy[]
Concept art.
Mount Duergar is the home of the Dwarves. The Dwarves are a friendly short-statured people, known to be hard workers and very good blacksmiths. One of the Dwarves, Nerrick, after being given Nitro Powder, blows up a rock creating a canal that allows the Warriors of Light to leave the Aldean Sea and reach Melmond. The Dwarves later excavate the cavern where the Earthgift Shrine is located. The Warriors of Light encountered the Dwarves again at Whisperwind Cove, where they bartered for a Star Ruby, among other things.
Final Fantasy III[]
The dwarves inhabit the underground caverns of Dwarven Hollows and many say "Lali-ho!". When the Warriors of the Light first visits them, they are dismayed by the stealing of one of the Horns of Ice from their sacred shrine by "that rascal Gutsco".
Final Fantasy IV[]
The dwarves live in The Dwarves' Castle and the tiny city of Tomra in the Underworld. The dwarves of the castle say "Lali-ho", while the dwarves of Tomra say "Hi-ho".
They are ruled by a king named Giott, and his daughter Luca, and are protectors of one of the Dark Crystals. They use tanks as their main weapon. Female dwarves act as nurses and they heal Cid Pollendina after he is wounded.
Cecil Harvey, Kain Highwind, Rosa Farrell, Yang Fang Leiden, and Cid arrive at the Dwarves' Castle at about the time Golbez and the Red Wings are attempting to steal their Crystal. Cecil and his friends offer their help, and Giott accepts. Giott announces that the Crystal is still safe, but Yang senses something strange in the crystal room. Luca's dolls, the Calcabrina, have become possessed by Golbez. Giott lets the party into the back to defeat them.
They succeed, but then Golbez appears, and after a long battle, he steals the Crystal. Giott divulges the last Crystal is in the Sealed Cave which Golbez cannot open, saying it is a good time to reclaim the other Crystals in the Tower of Babil. He orders his tanks to create a diversion so that Cecil may enter the tower.
Cecil's party fails to acquire the other Crystals, and they return to the Dwarves' Castle. Giott decides it is time to open the Sealed Cave and orders Luca to give Cecil her necklace, which is the key to opening the Sealed Cave. Golbez steals that Crystal too and Giott tells Cecil about the Lunar Whale that was alluded to in the Mysidian Legend. The dwarves do not know that Mysidia exists, but Cecil does.
The dwarves' tanks appear in the battle with the Giant of Babil, likely one of the few times in the world's history that they are seen above-ground.
Final Fantasy IV -Interlude-[]
A few dwarves appear on board the Falcon acting as vendors for the party. Once the Tower of Babil glows for a few moments, King Giott sends the dwarves' tanks at the base of the tower and surrounds it.
Final Fantasy IV: The After Years[]
The dwarves play a major role in Rydia's Tale, but a minor role otherwise. Luca is a member of the playable party, and one of the few new party members that cannot be missed for recruitment in the final tale. The Dwarven Castle is attacked by the Red Wings and their Crystal stolen, so Rydia and Luca go to Tomra and then the Sealed Cave to retrieve the final Crystal.
In Edge's Tale, Zangetsu disguises himself as a dwarf while observing the state of their people. He often fails to get their mannerisms correct and has to make excuses to keep his cover.
Final Fantasy V[]
The dwarves appear in the Great Sea Trench where they manage a small town, and are attempting to dig a long tunnel. A dwarf named Rallybo feels something directly above him though he is actually alluding to the Phantom Village. They claim to be part of a great nation even though five or so are actually seen.
In the iOS version, meeting with the dwarves earns the player the achievement "Lali-ho!".
Final Fantasy IX[]
"Rally-ho!"
The dwarves live in Conde Petie and speak with an exaggerated Scottish accent. Their password is "Rally-ho!". They hold the institution of marriage to be sacred, and only allow those who have married to travel to the Sanctuary. This forces Zidane and Dagger, and Vivi and Quina — if the player chooses — to have a wedding. The dwarves trade with "aware" black mages who inhabit a village in the forest to the south.
Unlike other depictions of dwarves, the dwarves of Conde Petie consider forests and sunlight to be sacred, and live above ground. The dwarves of Final Fantasy IX also have green skin and physically resemble goblins rather than the typical appearance used.
In the Japanese version of the game the dwarves have Japanese-style names, while in the English versions their names seem to be more old British-inspired. For example, Bantsugai-no-Ukon (番つがいのウコン?) is Richard Watchman, and Nehashiri-no-Kikunosuke (根走りのキクノスケ?) is Bryan Rootrunner.
Final Fantasy XIV[]
Dwarves are an allied society, formerly known as beast-tribes, in the parallel world of the First, rarely seen without their face-obscuring helmets and beards. However, the "beards" are in reality elaborate scarves, and removing the helmets and "beards" reveals them to be the First's version of Lalafells.
Final Fantasy Adventure[]
The dwarves live in Dwarf Cave. The player meets a dwarf named Watts in the Old Mine, and he joins up with Sumo temporarily. Watts is a recurring character in the Mana series, appearing in other titles such as Secret of Mana (as a blacksmith to upgrade the party's weapons), in Trials of Mana as a prospector, and in Legend of Mana (as an NPC during a couple of quests).
Final Fantasy Dimensions[]
The dwarves make their home in the town of Aulë. The Warriors of Darkness come to Aulë in the hopes of recruiting the dwarves in the fight against the Avalon Empire. They are unable to recruit the dwarves directly, but they are able to get information about the mysterious dark knight, and can have the dwarves forge weapons for them if they bring the ore. The dwarves in the past had an alliance with the kingdom of Falgabard: they aided the knights of Falgabard by crafting powerful weapons and armor in exchange for Falgabard protecting Mt. Gulg, whose lava the dwarves needed to perform their craft. However, they were unable to prevent Falgabard's destruction at the hands of Baugauven.
Towards the end of the game, a few dwarves are trapped within Castle Falgabard as it is drawn into the Void. Trapped in the World of Misery, the dwarves inside the castle are reduced to utter apathy, until the Warriors of Light and Darkness defeat Misery and restore the dwarves to their proper states.
After the game is completed, a single dwarf can be found in the Gladiators' Hall. There, he will use pieces of Adamantite the player has won from the Adamantoise to create Adamant equipment for the player to use.
This section about a character in Final Fantasy Dimensions is empty or needs to be expanded. You can help the Final Fantasy Wiki by expanding it.Final Fantasy Dimensions II[]
This section about a character in Final Fantasy Dimensions II is empty or needs to be expanded. You can help the Final Fantasy Wiki by expanding it.Final Fantasy Brave Exvius[]
Dwarves are a diligent and sincere race that are often busy working on underground forges across the world. Many dwarves from the Dwarves' Forge in Dirnado where kidnapped by the Veritas of the Heavens to convince them to work for him on the Invincible. Dwarves live alongside monsters and have a good relationship with humans, the first Cid having taught dwarves about airships and technology, but they don't get along with elves. One exception is the dwarf Ruggles, who befriended an elven couple in Gronoa. Due to this, it is said that his people cut off all ties to Ruggles, since he had befriended the elves so hated by his kind.
This section about a character in Final Fantasy Brave Exvius is empty or needs to be expanded. You can help the Final Fantasy Wiki by expanding it.Behind the scenes[]
In the Squaresoft title Chrono Cross, the dwarves prominently say "Hi-ho", and are similar in appearance to the dwarves of Final Fantasy IV.
Since their appearance in Final Fantasy IX, all dwarves in 2D ports of the series have spoken in the same exaggerated Scots dialect. This is particularly evident in the ports of Final Fantasy, where the dwarves have lines such as, "Have ye blethered with Smyth the smith?" ("Have you talked with Smyth the smith?"). Similarly, Nerrick is looking for "nitro pouder".
Gallery[]
Etymology[]
In Germanic mythology, a dwarf is a being that dwells in mountains and in the earth, and is variously associated with wisdom, smithing, mining and crafting. Dwarves are often described as short and ugly. The modern English noun dwarf descends from the Old English dweorg and has two plurals for the word dwarf; dwarfs and dwarves. Final Fantasy uses the latter. Dwarfs remains the most commonly employed plural, but "dwarves" was popularized by J.R.R. Tolkien.