Shantotto Shantotto is a non - playable character from " Final Fantasy XI " . She is a Tarutaru Black Mage from the Federation of Windurst and a hero of the Crystal War . She is famous for her iconic laugh and her habit of speaking in rhyme , although she does not speak in rhyme in the Japanese version . She is a central character in the expansion pack , " " . In the original release , Shantotto was primarily a character involved in Black Mage related quests , and was not meant to have become such an iconic Windurstian character . Her few appearances proved memorable to fans on both sides of the Pacific and in response the developers expanded on her character in a number of expansion stories . Due to her general popularity with the player - base she has become one of the game ' s most iconic characters , and typically serves as its main representative in crossover products or events . Profile . Appearance . Shantotto is a Tarutaru and as such is short in stature , about 2 ' 0 " in height . Much like the rest of her race her physical appearance stays the same regardless of aging ; despite her youthful appearance she is quite old , even by Tarutaru standards . She has brown eyes and blonde hair , which she keeps held up in pig - tails with red and blue ribbons . In her released for the " Shantotto Ascension " pack , the poster depicts her with blue eyes . Her primary outfit is robe with dark deep green and grayish cream stripes , gold linings , and two gauntlets , known as the " Tactician Magician ' s Cloak Set " in " Final Fantasy XI " . She has almost the complete set , sans for the head gear that goes with it . Personality . Shantotto views herself superior to all others and will not bow down to anyone . However , as shown in the " Dissidia Final Fantasy " series , when in the service of Cosmos , Shantotto showed respect to the heavenly deity during the time she served her . She lives by the motto " The Ends Justify The Means , " meaning she will do whatever it takes to win even if an ally were to get hurt . Shantotto has a short fuse , easily losing her temper with anyone who would stand up to her or question her . Due to her lineage as being from one of the most powerful Black Mage families in Vana ' diel , she is on a never ending journey to further her knowledge of the magical arts , as well as other things , to preserve her family ' s status . Upon finding something strange or out of the ordinary , she desires to study and learn from it , if only on the basis of doing so before others . Her thirst for knowledge can bring out either the best or worst in her , depending on the situation . Despite her shortcomings , Shantotto is loyal if she finds a cause she thinks is worth fighting for ; if she finds it doesn ' t benefit her on a personal level , or if said cause could have a negative effect on the overall populace , she will leave without a moment ' s hesitation . Story . Shantotto was born to a family of distinguished Tarutaru black mages . Her early childhood was spent dreaming of " healing the world and spreading love " and as she got older her parents spent hours lecturing her on the dark arts . She practiced her black magic to utter perfection to ensure that her family line was preserved . When she was honored with the title of mage her life took a turn for the worse when her parents were divorced and her house was destroyed and her dog drank a shrinking potion . In spite of these events , Shantotto kept true to her parents ' words and persevered to become one of the top minds in the Federation . Prior to the Crystal War she was appointed minister of the Orastery , Windurst ' s Department of Magic . She was revered by many as Professor Shantotto . Early in the Crystal War , Shantotto was stripped of her position as minister and exiled from the Federation for unspecified reasons . This was of little consequence to her , however , and she went on the offensive against the Beastmen . She compelled Master Caster Doron - Fulun and his Leonian War Warlocks to follow her into enemy territory , undermining the strategies of Warlock Warlord Robel - Akbel but producing dramatic victories . Although Shantotto was absent for the Battle of Windurst she obtained critical intelligence in Xarcabard that allowed the Federation to prepare for the onslaught . The professor later infiltrated Castle Zvahl Baileys and delighted in the destruction of its varied demonic occupants . After the war Shantotto returned to Windurst a hero and was reinstated at the Orastery . In the years to follow she retired to her manor in Windurst Walls and left the ministry to her successor , Ajido - Marujido . Present Day . Doctor Shantotto remains busy in her retirement , captaining a local staff - wielding team and selling a range of cursed stationery and curse - removal services . Her magical research frequently requires her to berate the Adventurer and send them on dangerous errands . This nearly leads her to ruin when , having hired a passing stooge to gather ingredients with which to punish a Peeping Tom , she accidentally places a deadly malady on a newspaper reporter . Unwilling to go down for murder and choosing not to dispose of her accomplice and the evidence , Shantotto devises a cure and corrects what she would describe as her helper ' s mistake . Shantotto develops a new warp spell using the energies of Fei ' Yin . She is not inclined to travel to the Beaucedine Glacier to complete the magic herself , however , and leaves the legwork to Rhinostery Minister Rukususu and her subordinates . After dismissing a number of " total losers " from her manor , Shantotto finds a suitable courier to visit the Northlands and retrieve her finished product . Shantotto is summoned with fellow retired ministers Koru - Moru and Yoran - Oran to investigate the deteriorating health of the baby star trees at Heaven ' s Tower . She is confident that the trees aren ' t receiving enough light but her colleagues disagree and all three implement their own solutions . When they return they discover no change in the trees ' conditions . The professors review past events to determine the origin of the problem and Koru - Moru suggests the plants are angry because he stole a bag of their seeds during the Crystal War , but Shantotto suspects they have been cursed by an enchanted doll which she abandoned in Castle Zvahl Keep during the campaign against the Shadow Lord . Both hypotheses ultimately prove incorrect . As a last resort the professors send a younger black mage into the Toraimarai Canal to search for problems beneath Windurst itself . As these underground passages are normally closed Shantotto uses the opportunity to go looking for Karaha - Baruha ' s laboratory . She returns disappointed , covered in grime and not discovered anything of interest . When their envoy reports that magical stagnation is accumulating in the canal and weakening the star trees Shantotto offers her still mildew - encrusted hat as a reward . When Ajido - Marujido is imprisoned for breaking into the Full Moon Fountain Shantotto takes a personal interest in his welfare . She cannot bear have him wasting away in a cell after all the time she spent grooming him to be a tough - as - nails Orastery minister and instructs his sister , Apururu , to gather the five enchanted rings worn by the leaders of Windurst ' s ministries . Shantotto combines them to create a glove capable of breaking the lock on Ajido - Marujido ' s prison . Expressing some concern regarding the ease with which such valuable items parted from their respective ministers , Shantotto leaves the jailbreak itself to Apururu . Shantotto intervenes when Sin Hunter Shikaree Y and two minions appear in Windurst Walls to threaten Yoran - Oran and Prishe . The trackers meant to take Prishe ' s magicite but are unwilling to use force against Shantotto . In the interest of moving everyone along , Shantotto convinces Prishe to display her magicite and prove it cannot be separated from her . Seeing this , Shikaree goads Prishe toward Attowah Chasm and departs . Shantotto travels to the Empire of Aht Urhgan disguised as Lady Karababa , ambassador plenipotentiary of Windurst . Her mission is not diplomatic , however , and she is more interested in forcing the Empire ' s secretive politics into the open while collecting souvenirs for the Federation ' s ministries . To this end she is accompanied by King of Hearts , a Cardian who can detect many curiosities . Shantotto arrives at Aht Urhgan Whitegate by means of the Mhaura ferry . Her official welcome to the Near East is derailed when Mnejing , an automaton , picks a fight with King . The Cardian defeats the puppet and Shantotto uses the incident as an excuse to wander around Al Zahbi rather than keep her appointment with the local authorities . While exploring the city Shantotto encounters a familiar Adventurer working as a mercenary and , pretending to be meeting for the first time , orders this person to accompany her or be branded a traitor back home . They embark for the Aydeewa Subterrane to search for legendary tools that function on electrical power her hope being that Cardians might be improved by such technology . While exploring Shantotto comes to the aid of Aphmau and her puppet Ovjang . They are not pleased to see her as they bear a grudge over Mnejing ' s earlier defeat at King ' s hands . This leads to another scuffle between Cardian and automaton that inadvertently incapacitates everyone but Shantotto and King of Hearts . Seeing that Aphmau had found an interesting relic , Shantotto takes it and leaves . After briefly visiting Naja Salaheem to reunite with the Adventurer in the Mithra ' s employ , Shantotto travels to the Navukgo Execution Chamber to conduct a trade . A moblin there accepts Shantotto ' s gil but unleashes a Khimaira upon her instead of completing the exchange . Shantotto uses her companion as a shield and destroys the creature with a barrage of powerful spells . Ultimately the moblin ' s betrayal does not bother Shantotto . The khimaira wing she obtains from the defeated beast is a better prize than the item for which she had bartered and the chest of gil she paid was actually a cache of bomb arms . She pauses to enjoy the inevitable explosion and returns to Al Zahbi with King . Shantotto meets Naja Salaheem again and excites her with the prospect of expanding her mercenary business into Windurst . The professor ' s true goal is to recall the Adventurer working for Salaheem to the Midlands . When it emerges that this person has access to Aht Urhgan ' s Empress Shantotto realizes the value of leaving such an informant behind and twists Salaheem ' s words as a means of canceling their deal while placing the blame on the mercenary captain herself . That evening Shantotto attends an Imperial banquet and uses her time inside the palace to search for an Astral Candescence . When the Serpent Generals get in the way she puts on a magical tantrum to deflect suspicion . Having worn out her welcome , Shantotto decides to return home . She briefly reminds the useful Adventurer to be vigilant on behalf of the Alliance of Altana before warping herself and King of Hearts back to Windurst . In time , the Empire grows unstable as forces within struggle for dominance . Shantotto goes to Jeuno to discuss the Alliance ' s response . She instructs the assembled dignitaries in Aht Urhgan ' s history and ensures that all are aware of the threat posed by the ancient technology slumbering there . When the leaders elect to send a covert operation to the Empire rather than start a war Shantotto commits King of Hearts to the cause . Once the dust settles , Shantotto returns to Aht Urhgan in her ambassador disguise . Although she attends an official ceremony , her true objective remains the mysterious astral candescences and gates that exist in that land . Shantotto is most eager to examine these phenomena and cannot imagine the magical advances that will be made as a result . While attempting to perfect a spell of interdimensional travel , Shantotto ends up in an alternate universe where she attempts to take over Vana ' diel to no avail . In her absence , the Shantotto of the other dimension enters her world with the force of transference splitting her in two , the crazed Domina Shantotto and a " good " Belle Shantotto , with everyone believing she was the Shantotto they knew as Domina Shantotto who plots to execute a " Shantottofication " curse that would turn everyone in Vana ' diel into Shantotto clones . She returns in time to stop Domina and Belle from carrying out the Shantottofication , and explains who they really are and what happened to her . Though she momentarily wonders if the three of them should ally to conquer Vana ' diel together , Shantotto assures the heroes she was joking and convinces her splintered counterpart to return to her dimension to maintain the order of the worlds . Musical themes . " Feast of the Ladies " is a theme that serves as Shantotto ' s boss theme , first used in " A Shantotto Ascension " . A version of it appears in " Final Fantasy XIV " under the name " Reign of Pain " . Other appearances . Shantotto has appeared in the following games throughout the " Final Fantasy " series : Non - " Final Fantasy " guest appearances . Shantotto has made key guest appearances in the following non - " Final Fantasy " games :