Guardian Force

A GF is an independent energy force. By combining it with para-magic, it is possible to control tremendous energy. Memory loss is a possible side effect, but this has not been proven as of yet.

Final Fantasy VIII Tutorial

Guardian Forces (GF) are the summoned creatures of Final Fantasy VIII used by junctioning them to a character.

Conceived and designed by Hiroyuki Ito, the GF govern major stat growth, elemental/status effect offense and defense, and the commands the character may use during battle. Each GF has a preset list of abilities they can learn, but through certain items, they can learn additional abilities and forget those that were previously learned. A total of twenty-two abilities can be learned. Only three Guardian Forces are obtained during the storyline—Quezacotl, Shiva and Ifrit. All others are optional.

Profile[]

Each Guardian Force possesses special characteristics and can appear in multiple forms as mighty autonomous energy bodies. Guardian Forces exist in specific energy fields and can reside within objects and living organisms.^[1]

When a Guardian Force is junctioned to a human, two kinds of beings are brought together, and if the junctioner possesses a comparable consciousness, the Guardian Force will lose its solid form and can only manifest for limited periods of time. Guardian Forces give superhuman strength and enhance the users' body functions.

Long-term junctioning causes memory loss (as seen with Selphie and the unnamed GF she junctioned when she was a child) because the Guardian Force draws power from the same section of the mind that stores memories. This, however, is only a plot point; junctioning has no negative effects on the characters during gameplay. Memory loss is stated to be the reason the use of Guardian Forces is widely criticized, and within Garden, Balamb Garden is the only school where their use has been approved.

When designing the Guardian Forces, Tetsuya Nomura felt they should be unique beings and not humanoid, unlike the summoned monsters in many previous games. Ramuh, who had been the staple Lightning summon until Final Fantasy VIII, was thus replaced by Quezacotl, a bird-like entity, and Ifrit, who appears as a human-like being in Final Fantasy VII, was redesigned as a beast with lion features.

Even the most humanoid Guardian Force, Siren, was designed to be more beast-like, wearing feathers to conceal her body instead of clothing, having a pair of wings descending from her head substitute for human hair, and having long and sharp toenails that resemble paws more than feet. Leviathan was the first Guardian Force created, which was included in a game demo. After receiving a positive reaction from players, Nomura decided to create the remaining sequences in a similar fashion.

List of Guardian Forces[]

There are sixteen Guardian Forces that can be junctioned and summoned by the summon command, and six that cannot be junctioned, and appear either randomly or are summoned with items. There are also two GFs, Griever and Tiamat, that only appear as enemies under Sorceress Ultimecia's control.

Junctionable[]

GF	Image	Obtaining
Quezacotl		Squall's default GF. It uses a lightning attack called Thunder Storm. Quezacotl is fairly weak and is primarily used for its Card Mod ability, which allows the player to modify Triple Triad cards into items, and the Card command, which can turn weakened enemies into cards (which can be used to refine). Quezacotl is able to refine items into Thunder/Wind magic and low-level magic to mid-level magic.
Shiva		Squall's default GF. Her attack is an ice-based attack called Diamond Dust. She is also fairly weak but her Doom ability can be used to kill stronger enemies that are vulnerable to instant death. She is able to refine items into Ice/Water magic.
Ifrit		A GF who lives in the Fire Cavern, not far from Balamb Garden. It is the objective of the pre-SeeD exam to defeat Ifrit within a chosen time limit. He uses a fire attack called Hell Fire. Ifrit is useful due to its Strength increasing abilities such as Str+40% and Str Bonus. He can refine items into fire magic (plus Flare) and items into ammunition for Irvine's Shot.
Siren		The first GF that can be drawn from an enemy. The player can draw her from Elvoret during the battle atop the Communications Tower in Dollet, or from Tri-Point in Ultimecia Castle if missed. She uses a non-elemental attack called Silent Voice that does moderate damage and induces Silence upon the enemies. Her Move-Find ability reveals hidden save/draw points and her Mag Bonus boosts the user's Mag stat upon leveling up. Her Treatment ability cures all status ailments. She can refine items into Life magic, Life medicine, or tools (for upgrading and refining).
Brothers		A pair of GF named Sacred and Minotaur that make their home in the Tomb of the Unknown King. If the player defeats Sacred in combat, he will call Minotaur to help him and both must be defeated before they will join the player. The pair use an earth-based attack called Brotherly Love that will not affect flying enemies. Their top abilities are HP+80% and HP Bonus, but also have Defend, which makes a character immune to physical damage, and Cover, which allows a character to defend an ally in low health. Brothers is the first GF that cannot refine anything.
Diablos		A powerful GF that lives in a magic lamp. When the item Magical Lamp is used, the party will be transported to a battle with Diablos. Upon defeat Diablos will join the player. He uses a gravity attack called Dark Messenger that does damage equal to Diablos's level in percentage to the enemies' max HP. Notable abilities are Darkside (sacrifice some HP to increase Str.), Mug (steal when attacking) and Enc-Half/Enc-None (decreases amount of random encounters). Diablos can refine items into Time or Status magic.
Carbuncle		Can be drawn from the Iguions in Deling City before fighting Edea just before the end of the first disc, or from Krysta in Ultimecia Castle if missed. Carbuncle's attack, Ruby Light, casts Reflect on the party. Carbuncle's important abilities include Vit Bonus, Counter (enables counter-attacking), and Auto-Reflect, which automatically casts Reflect on the junctioned party member. It can refine recovery medicine from items.
Leviathan		Can be drawn from NORG after opening his pod, or Trauma in Ultimecia Castle if missed. It uses a water elemental attack called Tsunami. Leviathan's boost option is easier to get to max than the previous GFs'. It has useful abilities including Spr Bonus, Auto-Potion, and Recover. It can refine items into support magic or GF recovery medicine.
Pandemona		Can be drawn from either Fujin during the battle with Raijin and Fujin in Balamb or Red Giant in Ultimecia Castle. It attacks with a Wind-based move called Tornado Zone. Though not as powerful as other GFs, it is the first GF to give Speed increases. It also has Absorb, which takes HP from the enemy and gives it to the caster, and Initiative, which lets the junctioned character start the battle with the attack gauge full. Pandemona cannot refine anything.
Cerberus		Can be found in the Galbadia Garden main hall during the Battle of the Gardens. He must be defeated in combat for him to join. If the player misses him, he can be drawn from Gargantua in Ultimecia Castle. Cerberus's attack is called Counter Rockets and casts Double and Triple on all party members. Because of his Auto-Haste and Spd Junction abilities, he is useful for quick magic users. His Expendx2-1 ability makes Double only use one spell instead of two. Along with these, Cerberus also has the Alert ability, which makes the party immune to back-attacks (bar fixed encounters). Cerberus cannot refine anything.
Alexander		A giant machine that must be drawn from either the second fight with Edea in Galbadia Garden or Catoblepas in Ultimecia Castle. He uses a holy attack called Holy Judgment, which is useful against undead enemies. Alexander has Revive, Med Data (doubles recovery items' potency), and Med LV Up (levels up medicine). It can also refine mid-level magic into high-level magic.
Doomtrain		A GF that must be assembled by acquiring six Remedy+'s, six Steel Pipes, six Malboro Tentacles and the Solomon Ring. Doomtrain's attack, Runaway Train, does minor poison-based damage, but also inflicts every status ailment. It has the abilities Darkside and Absorb (from Diablos and Pandemona, respectively) plus Auto-Shell and junk shop, which calls the weapon upgrading shop from the menu. It can also refine items into forbidden (powerful) medicine.
Bahamut		A powerful GF that must be fought in the Deep Sea Research Center to acquire. He will ask two questions, and when the player gets them right a Ruby Dragon must be fought for each, and at the third question a hidden option, "It's in our nature...", must be selected . His attack, Mega Flare, inflicts major non-elemental damage on all enemies. It has Diablos's and Cerberus's abilities Mug and Expendx2-1 as well as Auto-Protect, Move-HP Up and Rare Item, which increases the chance of getting rare items from battle. He can also refine items into powerful forbidden (the most potent) magic.
Cactuar		Acquired by defeating the Jumbo Cactuar on Cactuar Island. His 1,000 Needles attack does 1000 extra non-elemental damage for every ten levels he gains. He is notable because he has HP, Str, Vit, Mag, and Spr Bonuses as well as Luck-J and Evade-J junctions. He also has Pandemona's Initiative, Leviathan's Auto-Potion, Cerberus's Expendx2-1, Bahamut's Move-HP UP, Brothers' Defend, as well as his own Kamikaze. Cactuar cannot refine anything.
Tonberry		Joins after the party defeats Tonberry King, but to fight him, the player must defeat 20 Tonberries in Centra Ruins. His Chef's Knife ability does minor non-elemental damage. He has the LV Down and LV Up abilities which decrease or increase the power of the enemy for decreased or added bonuses. He also has Initiative, Move-HP Up and Auto-Potion from previous GFs. He has four shop related abilities: Call Shop (visit a shop from the ability menu), Haggle (get a discount at shops), Sell-High (increase selling price), and Familiar (buy rare items in shop). Tonberry cannot refine anything and has no junction abilities.
Eden		Can be drawn from either Ultima Weapon in the Deep Sea Research Center or Tiamat in Ultimecia Castle. It is the most powerful GF in the game. Its attack is a galactic scale attack called Eternal Breath, and it can easily exceed 9,999 points of damage. Due to the attack's long duration, maxing out Eden's Boost is relatively easy. It has the previous abilities Mad Rush and Darkside, as well as a new one, Devour, which can be used to eat enemies. It also has Expendx3-1, which only uses one magic instead of three for Triple. It can refine items into GF ability items.

Non-junctionable[]

GF	Image	Obtaining
Odin		A warrior who randomly appears on a six-legged horse at the start of battle. His attack, Zantetsuken, kills all enemies instantly. Odin can be found in the Centra Ruins. He must be defeated within a time limit or else he will use Zantetsuken and kill the party. If Odin is acquired before the end of disc 3, he will be replaced by Gilgamesh during the last fight with Seifer.
Gilgamesh		Gilgamesh replaces Odin after the final boss of disc 3 if Odin was acquired before this point. He has four attacks: Zantetsuken works the same as Odin's attack; Excaliber does medium/strong non-elemental damage; Excalipoor does just 1 damage and Masamune does high non-elemental damage. He appears at random although, unlike Odin, he appears during battle and not before it. He can also appear in boss fights.
Phoenix		A fire-elemental GF that can be summoned by using the item Phoenix Pinion in battle; it deals fire damage to all enemies and revives KO'd party members. It may also appear when the party has been KO'd to save the player from a Game Over.
Boko		A chocobo summoned using Gysahl Greens and leveled up via the Chocobo World minigame. Also, the first time the party goes to a chocobo forest and catches a chocobo, the Chocoboy will reward the party with Boko, who will follow the mother chocobo when the player rides her on the world map.
Moomba		Moomba is a GF acquired via Chocobo World in the versions where the minigame is available. In the Remastered version, Moomba's summon item can appear in Angelo Search instead. Moomba is summoned by using the Friendship item, attacks one opponent, leaving it with 1 HP, or, if the enemy has more than 9,999 HP, deals full damage instead.
MiniMog		Another GF acquired through Chocobo World in the versions where the minigame is available. In the Remastered version, his item can appear in Angelo Search instead. The item Mog's Amulet teaches a GF the command ability MiniMog, which summons the Mog to the battlefield to revive and heal all of the party's GFs.

Gameplay[]

Support abilities and stats[]

Most Guardian Forces can be junctioned onto a character, although there are a few that cannot. A character can junction an unlimited number of Guardian Forces, gaining access to command abilities, support abilities and stat-boosting abilities. Final Fantasy VIII is the first game where summons have their own growth path, gaining levels and learning abilities.

Abilities are learned via accumulating AP in battle. All Guardian Forces gain the same amount of AP from battle even if the GF or the character junctioning the GF is knocked out at the end of the battle. Experience Points, however, are a different matter: EXP is divided between all the GFs the character is currently junctioning, meaning the more GFs a character junctions, the less EXP each receives. Most GFs take 500 EXP to level up, but some take only 400, and Eden takes 1,000. GFs equipped to KO'd characters still gain EXP from battle even if the host does not; the only time GFs do not get EXP is when they are KO'd themselves. They obtain as much EXP as the host character would (shared among them) and get the kill bonus if the enemies died to a summon attack.

Junctionable Guardian Forces have their own HP stat which can be boosted by leveling the GF up and by learning HP-boosting abilities on the GF. There are a number of GF medicine items that heal a GF's HP, and similarly to the Move HP Up ability, a GF's HP is restored by walking around on the field.

Summoning[]

For the summon sequences, see: Guardian Force/Videos

A Guardian Force can be called during battle with the GF command every junctionable GF learns by default. After the summoning has been initiated, there is a charge period whereupon the GF's HP replaces the character's, and every attack the character takes damages the GF instead. This can be used for strategic advantage to use a GF as a shield to survive strong enemy attacks. Attempting to heal a GF will instead heal the character summoning them, and gravity attacks will factor in the character's HP, meaning they can kill a GF if their own HP is low enough. If the GF dies before the charge period is finished, the summon is cancelled.

Usually, killing enemies boosts SeeD ranking, but enemies killed by Guardian Forces do not count toward this. CC Joker gives an enhancement called GF Report to the party's Battle Meter in the Balamb Garden training center that lets the player view the kills and KO's of each GF.

Charge time and compatibility[]

The charge time depends on the compatibility between the character and the GF, and the Battle Speed, which can be adjusted in the config. The greater the compatibility, the less time it takes to summon. The initial compatibility is around 600 for most characters. Edea has higher base compatibility with Guardian Forces than the other characters, while Seifer's base Guardian Force compatibility levels are slightly lower.

Compatibility can be boosted with compatibility-boosting items, by casting magic that is the same element as the Guardian Force (e.g. casting fire magic boosts compatibility with Ifrit) and by summoning the GF during battle. Boosting one GF's compatibility reduces another one's, if that other GF is junctioned to the same character; Shiva, the ice-elemental GF, loses compatibility when a character uses fire magic, and also when Ifrit is summoned. Using compatibility items boosts the compatibility with the assigned GF, but slightly reduces (by 1~2 points) the compatibility with all other junctioned GFs.

Many junctionable GFs have another GF that is "opposed" to them that, when summoned, reduces their compatibility with said character the most. Eden in many ways is an exception to the rules, as it is the only Guardian Force that boosts compatibility for both itself and other junctioned GFs when summoned, albeit by a much smaller increment than the other GFs.

The compatibility mechanic is intended to make players think which Guardian Forces to assign to which character, and to avoid switching junctions between characters regularly. However, as the charge time is never very long, compatibility does not actually have much impact on the gameplay.

${\displaystyle Compatibility = 6000 - 5 \times ShownCompatibility}$^[2]

Charge time is calculated by:

${\displaystyle Duration = Compatibility \times BattleSpeed \times 0.9143 / 32}$^[2]

Compatibility	Charge Time
0	~16.8s
500	~10.2s
1000	~2.8s

^[3]

Base compatibility[]

GF	Squall	Quistis	Zell	Selphie	Rinoa	Irvine	Seifer	Edea
Quezacotl	580	620	600	580	640	640	500	760
Shiva	570	640	540	590	650	580	480	750
Ifrit	600	570	630	600	620	570	460	740
Siren	560	584	580	640	630	620	440	660
Brothers	576	580	610	590	610	540	400	730
Diablos	660	600	580	610	620	610	380	690
Carbuncle	580	640	600	720	680	590	360	620
Leviathan	620	570	580	640	660	560	340	730
Pandemona	570	560	570	620	640	540	320	729
Cerberus	640	620	600	740	700	650	300	728
Alexander	580	540	560	640	620	530	280	700
Doomtrain	540	520	520	580	600	510	260	720
Bahamut	520	510	500	560	580	520	240	700
Cactuar	580	550	540	700	640	560	220	680
Tonberry	540	520	500	660	540	530	200	660
Eden	480	440	400	520	560	380	180	540

Compatibility modifiers[]

The exact compatibility values in this chart are from Absolute Steve's Final Fantasy VIII Walkthrough.

Guardian Force	Summon Effect	Compatibility Items	Casting Magic
Quezacotl	Quezacotl +20, Leviathan -10, Every other GF -1.6	Dynamo Stone +3.2 (-1.6 for others), LuvLuv G +20.2	Thunder +1, Thundara +2, Thundaga +2.4, Aero +0.2, Tornado +0.6, Water -0.8
Shiva	Shiva +20, Ifrit -10, Every other GF -1.6	Arctic Wind +1.6 (-0.8 for others), North Wind +3.2 (-1.6 for others), LuvLuv G +20.2	Blizzard +1, Blizzara +2, Blizzaga +2.4, Fire -0.8, Fira -1, Firaga -1.2
Ifrit	Ifrit +20, Shiva -10, Every other GF -1.6	Bomb Fragment +1.6 (-0.8 for others), Red Fang +3.2 (-1.6 for others), LuvLuv G +20.2	Fire +1, Fira +2, Firaga +2.4, Blizzard -0.8, Blizzara -1, Blizzaga -1.2
Siren	Siren +20, Carbuncle -10, Every other GF -1.6	Silence Powder +3.2 (-1.6 for others), LuvLuv G +20.2	Silence +1.6, Berserk +0.6, Blind +0.6, Break +0.6, Confuse +0.6, Pain +0.6, Sleep +0.6, Slow +0.6, Stop +0.6, Esuna -1.2, Dispel -0.8
Brothers	Brothers +20, Pandemona -10, Every other GF -1.6	Dino Bone +3.2 (-1.6 for others), LuvLuv G +20.2	Quake +2, Apocalypse +0.2, Flare +0.2, Meteor +0.2, Ultima +0.2, Aero -0.2, Float -0.4, Tornado -0.8
Diablos	Diablos +20, Every other GF -1.6	Steel Orb +3.2 (-1.6 for others), LuvLuv G +20.2	Demi +2, Apocalypse +0.2, Flare +0.2, Meteor +0.2, Ultima +0.2, Esuna -0.2, Protect -0.2, Dispel -0.4, Shell -0.4, Reflect -0.6
Carbuncle	Carbuncle +20, Siren -10, Every other GF -1.6	Dragon Skin +3.2 (-1.6 for others), LuvLuv G +20.2	Aura +1, Double +1, Haste +1, Holy +1, Protect +1, Reflect +1, Shell +1, Triple +1, Cure +0.2, Cura +0.2, Curaga +0.2, Esuna +0.2, Full-life +0.2, Life +0.2, Regen +0.2, Berserk -0.2, Blind -0.2, Break -0.2, Death -0.2, Pain -0.2, Silence -0.2, Sleep -0.2, Slow -0.2, Stop -0.2, Zombie -0.2, Dispel -1.2
Leviathan	Leviathan +20, Quezacotl -10, Every other GF -1.6	Fish Fin +2 (-1 for others), LuvLuv G +20	Holy +1, Water +1, Apocalypse +0.2, Flare +0.2, Meteor +0.2, Ultima +0.2, Thunder -0.4, Thundara -0.6, Thundaga -0.8
Pandemona	Pandemona +20, Brothers -10, Every other GF -1.6	Shear Feather +1.6 (-0.8 for others), Windmill +3.2 (-1.6 for others), LuvLuv G +20.2	Tornado +1, Aero +0.6, Apocalypse +0.2, Ultima +0.2, Water -0.8
Cerberus	Cerberus +20, Every other GF -1.6	Dragon Fin +3.2 (-1.6 for others), LuvLuv G +20.2	Triple +2, Double +0.8, Haste +0.6, Apocalypse +0.2, Aura +0.2, Dispel +0.2, Esuna +0.2, Protect +0.2, Reflect +0.2, Shell +0.2, Ultima +0.2, Berserk -0.2, Break -0.2, Blind -0.2, Confuse -0.2, Pain -0.2, Sleep -0.2, Silence -0.4, Slow -0.8, Stop -0.8
Alexander	Alexander +20, Doomtrain -10, Every other GF -1.6	Moon Stone +3.2 (-1.6 for others), LuvLuv G +20.2	Holy +2, Apocalypse +0.2, Curaga +0.2, Full-life +0.2, Life +0.2, Regen +0.2, Ultima +0.2, Bio -1
Doomtrain	Doomtrain +20, Alexander -10, Every other GF -1.6	Poison Powder +1.6 (-0.8 for others), Venom Fang +3.2 (-1.6 for others), LuvLuv G +20.2	Berserk +1, Blind +1, Bio +1, Break +1, Confuse +1, Death +1, Silence +1, Sleep +1, Slow +1, Stop +1, Zombie +1, Apocalypse +0.2, Ultima +0.2, Holy -2
Bahamut	Bahamut +20, Every other GF -1.6	Shaman Stone +3.2 (-1.6 for others), LuvLuv G +20.2	Apocalypse +0.2, Flare +0.2, Holy +0.2, Meteor +0.2, Quake +0.2, Tornado +0.2, Ultima +0.2
Cactuar	Cactuar +20, Every other GF-1.6	Cactus Thorn +3.2 (-1.6 for others), LuvLuv G +20.2	No spells change compatibility with Cactuar
Tonberry	Tonberry +20, Every other GF -1.6	Chef's Knife +3.2 (-1.6 for others), LuvLuv G +20.2	No spells change compatibility with Tonberry
Eden	Eden +2, Every other GF +1	LuvLuv G +20	Apocalypse +0.4, Flare +0.4, Holy +0.4, Meteor +0.4, Quake +0.4, Tornado +0.4, Ultima +0.4, Aura -0.2, Blizzard -0.2, Blizzara -0.2, Cure -0.2, Cura -0.2, Curaga -0.2, Dispel -0.2, Double -0.2, Esuna -0.2, Fire -0.2, Fira -0.2, Full-life -0.2, Haste -0.2, Life -0.2, Protect -0.2, Reflect -0.2, Regen -0.2, Shell -0.2, Slow -0.2, Thunder -0.2, Thundara -0.2, Triple -0.2

Damage calculation and the Boost ability[]

Every GF except for Diablos, Carbuncle, Cerberus, and Cactuar learns the Boost ability. During the summon animation, the player can tap to increase damage, but if the player fails to boost the GF properly, it may end up dealing less damage than it otherwise would have. The damage ranges between 75% and 250% of the normal damage. The percentage rises when the player taps correctly, but drops to 75% if the player presses the button during a time a red cross appears over the cursor. GFs with longer summon animations are the easiest to boost.

With battle speed set to medium, the list below displays the approximate length of time allowing the player to boost and the approximate value of % increase for summon damage.

GF	Summon Time	DMG Potential
Quezacotl	13.3s	180%
Shiva	12.9s	180%
Ifrit	13.0s	180%
Siren	17.6s	200%
Brothers	19.3s	220%
Leviathan	21.4s	230%
Pandemona	22.8s	240%
Alexander	22.1s	230%
Doomtrain	22.9s	240%
Bahamut	22.1s	230%
Tonberry	14.0s	190%
Eden	72.6s	250%

^[3]

Each GF uses the following formula for determining the amount of damage they deal. The Boost modifier is equal to 100 if the player does not attempt to boost the damage or does not have the ability learned. The LevelMod and Power values vary per GF.

${\displaystyle Damage = LevelMod \times Level / 10 + Power + PowerMod}$^[2]

${\displaystyle Damage = Damage \times (265 - TargetSpr) / 8}$

${\displaystyle Damage = Damage \times Power / 256}$

${\displaystyle Damage = Damage \times Boost / 100 }$

${\displaystyle Damage = Damage \times (100 + SummonMagBonus) / 100 }$

If the Guardian Force is elemental, the target's elemental defense attributes affect the damage outcome.

${\displaystyle Damage=Damage\times (900-ElemDef)/100}$^[2]

Elemental Defense starts at 800 (0%), 900 nullifies damage and 1000 absorbs it. If an enemy is shown to be weak against an element, its Elemental Defense is below 800. If damage becomes negative (due to high Elemental Defense), the target is healed by that amount.

For non-junctionable GFs, the Level value is equal to the average level of all junctionable GFs.

List of GF attacks[]

GF	Attack	Pwr	Pwr Mod	Lvl Mod	Description	Image
Quezacotl	Thunder Storm	44	0	60	Lightning damage to all opponents.
Shiva	Diamond Dust	43	0	62	Ice damage to all opponents.
Ifrit	Hell Fire	45	2	61	Fire damage to all opponents.
Siren	Silent Voice	35	0	55	Non-elemental damage to all opponents and inflicts Silence.
Brothers	Brotherly Love	46	4	60	Earth damage to all opponents.
Diablos	Dark Messenger	—	—	—	Deals fractional damage depending on the GF's level.
Carbuncle	Ruby Light	—	—	—	Bestows Reflect on the party.
Leviathan	Tsunami	47	10	63	Water damage to all opponents.
Pandemona	Tornado Zone	46	14	65	Wind damage to all opponents.
Cerberus	Counter Rockets	—	—	—	Bestows Double and Triple on the party.
Alexander	Holy Judgment	48	20	63	Holy damage to all opponents.
Doomtrain	Runaway Train	45	10	58	Poison damage to all opponents. Can inflict Sleep, Poison, Darkness, Silence, Slow, Stop, Berserk, Confuse, Doom, Petrifying, and Vit 0.
Bahamut	Mega Flare	55	30	70	Non-elemental damage to all opponents. Ignores enemy SPR.
Cactuar	1,000 Needles	—	—	—	Fixed non-elemental damage to all opponents calculated by the first digit in Cactuar's level times 1000. At level 100, it will deal 10,000 damage.
Tonberry	Chef's Knife	60	4	45	Non-elemental damage to a random opponent.
Eden	Eternal Breath	70	250	100	Non-elemental damage to all opponents. Ignores enemy SPR. Damage cap is 60,000.
Phoenix	Rebirth Flame	30	50	254	Fire damage to all opponents. Revives all KO'd allies.
Odin/Gilgamesh	Zantetsuken	—	—	—	Instant Death to all opponents.
Gilgamesh	Excalipoor	—	—	—	1HP of non-elemental damage to all opponents.
Gilgamesh	Excaliber	50	100	100	Non-elemental damage to all opponents.
Gilgamesh	Masamune	100	100	100	Non-elemental damage to all opponents and inflicts Slow.
Boko	ChocoFire	40	100	100	Fire damage to all opponents.
Boko	ChocoFlare	60	100	100	Non-elemental damage to all opponents.
Boko	ChocoMeteor	80	100	100	Non-elemental damage to all opponents.
Boko	ChocoBocle	100	100	100	Non-elemental damage to all opponents. Damage cap is 60,000.
Moomba	MoombaMoomba	—	—	—	Reduces an opponent's HP to 1. Cannot exceed 9,999 damage.
MiniMog	Moogle Dance	—	—	—	Restores HP to all junctioned Guardian Forces.

^[2]

Other appearances[]

Final Fantasy XIV[]

In the Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers expansion, the term "Guardian Force" is used as a title for the Quetzalcoatl creature, which appears as the final boss in the Akadaemia Anyder dungeon.

Final Fantasy Dimensions II[]

Certain Eidolons reference the GFs of Final Fantasy VIII in multiple ways. Specific variants of the Diabolos, Gigantuar, Cerberus, and Ifrit summons are based on their Final Fantasy VIII appearance. While not sharing the same appearance and English name, the Glasya Labolas summon is based on the Doomtrain GF, sharing the same Japanese name and Runaway Train summon attack. In addition, its final artwork is based on Doomtrain's color scheme.

As a nod to Siren from Final Fantasy VIII, first Siren signet gains feather-like hair for its final artwork.

Lastly, the Shinatsuhiko Eidolon's overall design is heavily inspired by the Pandemona Guardian Force from Final Fantasy VIII, who is also based on the Fujin deity. In addition, Shinatsuhiko's Tornado Zone summon attack was also Pandemona's summon attack in Final Fantasy VIII.

Dissidia Final Fantasy (2008)[]

Ifrit appears as an auto summon in Dissidia Final Fantasy, boosting the summoner's Bravery for 50%. It activates when player receives stage Bravery. Shiva appears as an auto summon, preventing the opponent's Bravery from rising for 13 seconds. It activates when opponent's Bravery drops to zero. Carbuncle appears as a manual summon, matching opponent's Bravery to the summoner's Bravery. Phoenix appears as a manual summon, and for 50 seconds, if the player is afflicted with break, will automatically "Reraise" with base Bravery and opponent will not receive stage Bravery. Alexander appears as a manual summon that prevents player's Bravery from changing for 25 seconds. Leviathan appears as an auto summon that decrements opponent's Bravery by 20 per second for 33 seconds and activates when opponent receives stage Bravery. Cactuar appears as a manual summon that reduces opponent's Bravery by 1000, but does not inflict break. Tonberry appears as a manual summon that makes it so after 26 seconds the opponent loses Bravery equal to the amount of HP the summoner has lost.

Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy[]

The same summons return in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy.

Dissidia Final Fantasy Opera Omnia[]

Final Fantasy Airborne Brigade[]

Some of the Guardian Forces appear in Final Fantasy Airborne Brigade.

Ability Cards

Legend Cards

Other

Pictlogica Final Fantasy[]

Some Guardian Forces appear in Pictlogica Final Fantasy.

Final Fantasy Record Keeper[]

Some Guardian Forces appear in Final Fantasy Record Keeper.

Mobius Final Fantasy[]

Final Fantasy Trading Card Game[]

Some Guardian Forces appear in Final Fantasy Trading Card Game with cards usually the same element as the summon was in Final Fantasy VIII.

Final Fantasy Portal App[]

Some Guardian Forces appear as Triple Triad cards.

Merchandise[]

When Final Fantasy VIII was first released many of the Guardian Forces were released as action figures. Different versions of this set exist: the Japanese and the North American versions, and full colored and colorful translucent versions. The Japanese GF figures each included a piece of the airship Ragnarok, able to be built if one collected all its pieces; the translucent versions would also give translucent Ragnarok pieces.

• Ifrit, includes the Tonberry figure.
  • Bonus Ragnarok Part: Arm*(Unconfirmed)
• Shiva, includes MiniMog and Carbuncle figures.
  • Bonus Ragnarok Part: Main Gatling Gun (Under belly)*(Unconfirmed)
• Odin & Sleipnir: Included Zantetsuken sword. Sleipnir's (horse) third set of legs have been cut off with graphic detail (in the myths of Odin, Sleipnir had eight legs). This detail is not present in the in-game model.
  • Bonus Ragnarok Part: Body/Neck*(Unconfirmed)
• Cerberus: Includes Angelo figure.
  • Bonus Ragnarok Part: Head & Neck
• Siren: Includes harp and Cactuar figure.
  • Bonus Ragnarok Part: Arm*(Unconfirmed)
• Diablos
  • Bonus Ragnarok Part: unknown
• Bahamut
  • Bonus Ragnarok Part: unknown
• Gilgamesh: Includes three of the four swords: Excaliber (Blue), Excalipoor (Red), Masamune. Only one hand can carry a sword.
  • Bonus Ragnarok Part: unknown

Serial-numbered statues featuring the party members alongside the Guardian Forces were also released in limited editions of this time as . Later on, the Guardian Forces have appeared in Square Enix's monster series of figurines.

Citations[]