Irvine (Final Fantasy VIII party member)

Irvine is a playable character in Final Fantasy VIII. He wields shotguns in battle and his Limit Break is Shot that allows him to expend various ammo types for different effects. A Triple Triad card based on Irvine can be obtained. He acts as a party leader briefly in D-District Prison and in a sidequest in Fishermans Horizon. He is the last permanent party member to join.
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==Party member==
Irvine joins the party as they leave Galbadia Garden. His intro pose is to slowly point his gun towards his enemy before bringing it back. His victory pose is to twirl his gun and lay it on his shoulder, fix his hat, and the point.
===Weapons===
Irvine wields a shotgun, although being a ranged fighter doesn't give him an edge like in previous Final Fantasy games, as Final Fantasy VIII doesn't have rows in battle. As a marksman and a sniper, he also uses a rifle during the storyline. Irvine's guns are named after famous battleships, the majority being British. Irvine is the only playable character in Final Fantasy VIII who cannot acquire his ultimate weapon before the party has the Ragnarok.
There are four models for Irvine to use:
*Valiant – Initial model. Described in Weapons Monthly, April Issue.
*Ulysses – Described in Weapons Monthly, May Issue.
*Bismarck – Described in Weapons Monthly, July Issue.
*Exeter – Described in Weapons Monthly, 1st Issue.
===Limit Break===
Shot is Irvine's Limit Break. When executed, the player can choose from a variety of shot and ammo types and must press to fire at an enemy. The length of the allotted time varies depending on Crisis Level, a hidden stat. This Limit Break consumes ammo that can be bought from shops or refined from items and cards.
Prioritizing AP Ammo for ammo refines often works well as it is quick to fire and powerful even against enemies with high Vitality. Its Armor Shot is quick to dispatch "farmable" enemies that cannot be defeated with Quistis's Degenerator: Tonberries (for luring out Tonberry King) and Cactuars (AP farming). It is also great against Adamantoises, sturdy opponents that yield various great items and this are worth fighting.
===Stats===
===Guardian Forces===
Guardian Forces' main use is for the junction system that they enable, allowing the player to customize their party's stats and abilities. Irvine is a good candidate for GFs that have Str-J (Shiva, Ifrit, Brothers, Pandemona, Cerberus) and Str+% abilities (Ifrit and Pandemona), to make the best of his Limit Break.
The player should also learn Ifrit's Ammo-RF ability to easily replenish Irvine's ammunition from the menu, but he does not need to be the one junctioning it. Late into the game, the player has a lot of freedom in customizing their GFs' junction abilities, as most Stat-J Scrolls can be bought from a shop.
The below values are the base compatibility values at the start of the game.
GF 	Compatibility
Quezacotl	640
Shiva 	580
Ifrit 	570
Siren 	620
Brothers 	540
Diablos 	610
Carbuncle	590
Leviathan	560
Pandemona	540
Cerberus 	650
Alexander	530
Doomtrain	510
Bahamut 	520
Cactuar 	560
Tonberry 	530
Eden 	380
==Triple Triad==
Irvine is a Level 10 Player Card in Triple Triad used for playing the minigame and for turning into 3 Rocket Engines with Quezacotl's Card Mod. It is won from Flo in the Fishermans Horizon as part of Queen of Cards side quest.
The player can find Irvine from Balamb Garden's second floor classroom when he is not in the party, but if challenged, will say he only plays with girls.
==Quests==
===Optional scenes with Irvine===
Irvine's main side quest is in Fishermans Horizon (see below) but there are couple other scenes with him as well. When the party first leaves Galbadia Garden, Irvine will want to set the party up, and the following scene depends on whether the player accepts the party set-up or not. In Winhill, either Irvine or Quistis needs to be in the party to start the vase quest, although Quistis takes precedence for initiating the scene in the mansion. If the player takes Irvine to liberate Balamb Town, he will admire Zell's gun collection in a scene in his room only to discover they were loaded. In Trabia Garden, Irvine will take a shot at a hoop with a basketball, and whether it goes in or not depends on the number of battles fought.
Irvine's post to Selphie's "My Friends" blog can be viewed on the Study Panel after the battle against BGH251F2 in FH.
===Fishermans Horizon sidequest===
Irvine can have numerous scenes in Fishermans Horizon when the party first visits the town. The party must meet up with Master Fisherman before taking the lift down into the town the first time they arrive in FH by descending a difficult-to-see ladder next to a large silo, in the screen before the lift. Master Fisherman gives Squall the Occult Fan III magazine and asks Squall to find his apprentice.
After having liberated the town from Galbadia, the party can witness the apprentice boy near the junk shop learn to fish properly, and he wants Squall to tell his master. On the way, Irvine will join Squall, and instead of returning to the Garden, the two must return to Master Fisherman's fishing spot. He asks Squall to follow him to the local hotel, where he tells Squall and Irvine the town's history, then asks if they want to hear more.
Squall must respond positively and follow Master Fisherman out on the docks, and after some more conversation, receives a Megalixir. This will earn 20 SeeD Exp to the player, 0.2 of a SeeD rank.
Master Fisherman will leave, and if the party visits his fishing spot, they can find a Full-life draw point. After completing the side quest the party can later meet Master Fisherman in Shumi Village.
Grease Monkey living on the outskirts of the town owns a Moomba doll. After Squall has met up with Irvine on his way back to Garden, they can instead return to town and visit Grease Monkey to find the Galbadian officer demanding he fix the Iron Clad. After an event, Grease Monkey rewards Squall and Irvine with a Mega-Phoenix.
Later, Irvine is organizing a concert and must choose instruments for each party member. After choosing an instrument the player, now controlling Irvine, can leave the scene and roam around the Garden and the town. Irvine can have a scene with the man by the lift and explain why he follows the "warmongering SeeDs", and visit the sleeping Squall in his dorm. If he visits the Garden library he can get unique dialogue with the Library Girl with a Pigtail and if he visits the classroom, the Trepies ask if he wants to join their club. He can also hear news about himself by checking the terminal in the FH hotel.
If the player visits the Grease Monkey, they learn the Galbadian officer is back. After a scene, Irvine can receive a Phoenix Down from Grease Monkey, and by examining the officer's body, some ammo for his Shot. If Irvine plays cards in the Garden at this time he is treated the same as if he was Squall; in fact, if the player were to start the Card Club as Irvine, they even refer to him as Squall. After the player chooses the instruments for the concert and moves on with the story, if the player talked to the Familiar Face near the lift as Irvine, he will have unique dialogue if spoken to with Irvine in the party.
Category:Character gameplay in Final Fantasy VIII