Bahamut (Final Fantasy XV)

Bahamut, the Draconian is an Astral in the Final Fantasy XV Universe. He is one of the Six and is the God of War clad in winged armor. Bahamut is said to have bestowed the powers of the Oracle and given the Ring of the Lucii and the Crystal onto his chosen king. He is the most mysterious of the six gods with the fewest mentions in written records.
As the Astral standing above the other deities, Bahamut is depicted benevolently in Final Fantasy XV, but the game's expanded universe depicts him as harsh and indifferent to individual lives.
Like the other Astrals, Bahamut is based on a recurring summon in the Final Fantasy series. He is is one of the most prominent summoned monsters in the series, and is typically considered the strongest among storyline summons.
==Profile==
===Appearance===
Bahamut dons a metallic suit of armor similar to that of the traditional Dragoon armor, and is more humanoid in appearance, having the title of "Bladekeeper". He has a dragon's tail and the wings of his armor are made of swords, 15 on each side, himself also brandishing one. When he unleashes Ultima Sword his wings disappear as the swords circle him and two long red capes with golden markings billow behind him, giving him the appearance of flying with wings. He is big enough for Prince Noctis to fit upon the palm of his hand. On the cover of the Cosmogony books , and on the paintings of the prophecy kept in the Hall of History , Bahamut is depicted as a winged man wearing black armor.
He wears a face mask, but after Noctis destroys it in his battle with Bahamut in Final Fantasy XV -The Dawn of the Future-, it is revealed that his visage resembles Noctis and Somnus.
===Personality===
Though Ramuh is depicted as the god of judgment, Bahamut takes upon the role of a judge in Final Fantasy XV: Comrades when evaluating the Glaives' repentance. Bahamut is bound to protect the planet, but possesses a ruthless streak when performing his duty.
Bahamut believes sacrifice is necessary, and in the manga chapter "Flowers in the Thaw" in Final Fantasy XV Official Comic Anthology 2, is displeased when Shiva shows sympathy towards humanity, which Bahamut considers a deviation from her role as a protector of Eos. In contrast, he begins to show the beginnings of emotion, as he struggles to understand why he has "snow" coming from his eyes with each human death.
Bahamut's ruthless side is more clearly evidenced in the bonus content added after Final Fantasy XV: Final Fantasy XV: Comrades, Final Fantasy XV: Episode Ardyn and Final Fantasy XV -The Dawn of the Future-. The content released after the main game paints him as uncaring toward the individuals who are to play a part in the fate he has spelled for the planet. He views himself the supreme ruler of Eos who alone is fit to decide upon its fate, and that without him, humanity would suffer regardless. He considers humans "like flowers", indistinguishable from one another, worthy of cultivation when healthy but also as organisms that need removing if diseased. His attitude in both the main game and additional content paint him as fatalistic in his dismissal of an alternate solution to the demise facing the planet, and in The Dawn of the Future, this leads him to abandoning the salvation of Eos.
===Abilities===
The Astrals of Eos are associated with a classical element from the Final Fantasy series, although not all of the elements (e.g. Leviathan's water) are represented in Final Fantasy XV as gameplay elements. Whereas the other Astrals are linked to "earthly" elements, Bahamut is associated with the power of light or holiness. In the Japanese five elements philosophy, Bahamut could be seen as representing the highest element, 空 Kū or sora, most often translated as "Void", but also meaning "sky" or "Heaven". It represents things beyond people's everyday experience, particularly things composed of pure energy.
Bahamut can use the swords of his wings as weapons, flying in the sky while raining down the colossal swords upon his enemies, in an attack known as Ultima Sword. Bahamut's use of his swords resembles the Lucian kings' ability to wield multiple weapons at once with Armiger, although not all of the weapons they wield are swords. His "final summoning" is Teraflare, and is strong enough to end all life on Eos. He can summon an army of small Bahamuts and levitate entire buildings. When he communicates with mortals he has pulled into his realm, Bahamut speaks to them telepathically.
Bahamut can bestow supernatural powers to mortals that may begin to run in their bloodline. He can revive the dead, having seemingly done this with the Glaives in Final Fantasy XV: Comrades (including the player character) so they would serve his ends. The English localization all but omits this, however; there is only a loading screen saying the Glaives' lives are on loan from Bahamut, and Ardyn's line before the Ifrit battle ("Try not to die this time"). In The Dawn of the Future, Bahamut brings Lunafreya Nox Fleuret back to life ten years after her demise. In Episode Ardyn, Bahamut conjures an illusion of Aera to torture Ardyn.
==Story==
Bahamut is one of the six Astrals that ruled over Eos, having descended from a higher plane in a time before recorded history. While the other Astrals are bound to the planet, Bahamut exists in a realm beyond the physical world, overseeing all beings on Eos, including the other Astrals.
After the civilization of Solheim turned against the gods, Ifrit attempted to destroy it. In the German localizationShiva: Dieser Verrat brach Ifrit das Herz und entfachte seinen Zorn. Blind vor Wut wollte er diese Welt mitsamt der Menschheit einäschern. Und so… blieb dieser Göttin keine Wahl. Sie musste gegen Ifrit Kämpfen, um Eos zu schützen. and in Final Fantasy XV: Official Works, Ifrit is said to have wanted to destroy Eos itself along with humanity. As the Astrals are sworn to protect the planet even from one another, the other five turned against Ifrit, resulting in a war that would become known as the War of the Astrals. The war culminated in a battle between Bahamut and Ifrit where Ifrit was killed and laid asunder upon Rock of Ravatogh. As told in Final Fantasy XV -The Dawn of the Future-, during this time Bahamut grew disillusioned with the growing conflict and sought to end it with Teraflare. The other Astrals blocked his attack, putting them to sleep as a result, and weakening Bahamut to such an extent that he was forced to recharge for millennia.
At some point in this time period, the Starscourge plague appeared and began turning lifeforms into daemons, gradually eating away daylight from the world as it rapidly spread through the human population."Ancient history is marked by the prosperity of the civilization of Solheim. When this civilization was at its peak, the betrayal of one of the six Astral gods, Ifrit, led to a conflict known as the Great War of Old. This was fueled by the spreading of a mysterious parasite, causing the death of millions, and ultimately the fall of Solheim." The Complete Official Guide pg. 318 According to legend, Bahamut chose two mortals who became the first Lucian king and the first Oracle. The Oracle can commune with the Astrals and Bahamut is said to have granted her his trident. The Oracle has the power to heal people of the Starscourge and hold it at bay until the coming of the True King. The Lucian king meanwhile was given the Ring of Lucii, which would house the soul of each successive Lucian kingLoading screen for the Ring of the Lucii. until the final king will purge the Starscourge from Eos.
Bahamut resides in an otherworldly realm accessed from within Insomnia's Crystal, a magical stone the kings are sworn to protect until the coming of the True King. On the cover of the Cosmogony books, Bahamut is depicted giving the Crystal to the Founder King. Final Fantasy XV: Episode Ardyn – Prologue depicts that the Oracle already had the power to commune with the gods before the Astrals had delivered their decision on whom to crown king: Ardyn Lucis Caelum, the venerated healer of people, or Somnus, Ardyn's ambitious but ruthless younger brother. After Bahamut appeared to Lady Aera, the Oracle, from the Crystal, she parleyed the gods' choice to Somnus who betrayed her and Ardyn by instead declaring himself as king. When Ardyn sought confirmation from the Crystal, he was shunned by its light due to having absorbed the Starscourge into his own body to save others and Somnus became the Founder King as he had declared.
As told in Final Fantasy XV: Episode Ardyn, during Ardyn's attack on Insomnia in M.E. 734, Bahamut intervenes when the Accursed is about to slay King Regis who is yet without an heir. Calling him by his true name and demanding him to halt, Bahamut draws Ardyn into his realm to reveal Ardyn's new calling: as Ardyn had failed to become the Chosen, he is to become the vessel of concentrated darkness—a "sacrificial lamb" as Ardyn terms it—to spread the Scourge and usher in the light's return. Conversely, Ardyn would be granted death and his revenge: the termination of his brother's bloodline.
Prince Noctis encounters Bahamut in an otherworldly dimension after he is absorbed into the Crystal. Bahamut explains the Crystal holds the soul of Eos, and the true nature of Ardyn Izunia as the Starscourge incarnate. The only way to defeat Ardyn and cast away the darkness is with the Light of the Providence, for which Noctis as the True King must sacrifice himself. Bahamut releases Noctis from his grasp, allowing him to enter a state of hibernation, giving him time to reflect on his destiny and to become the vessel for the Crystal's power.
As the world falls further into darkness mankind comes together to protect it in wait for the coming of the True King. As depicted in Final Fantasy XV: Comrades, some of the former members of the Kingsglaive who had betrayed the crown are tested by Bahamut at Angelgard, a mysterious island off the coast of Galdin Quay. After the Glaives prevail Bahamut forgives their previous betrayal, seeing how committed they are to protect the world. Gentiana, the High Messenger of the Astrals, explains Angelgard must be safeguarded for Noctis to eventually awaken from his long sleep. Some of the Glaives are chosen to protect the island along with Gentiana.
Noctis awakens after sleeping for ten years. Bahamut instructs him to return to Insomnia to battle Ardyn and gives Noctis the ability to summon him. In Insomnia, Bahamut appears at the battle against a daemonic Ifrit whom Ardyn has summoned. Bahamut rains down swords before descending upon Ifrit himself allowing Noctis to cleave off one of Ifrit's horns, and Bahamut vanishes into the nether. In the Royal Edition, Bahamut participates in the Astrals' effort to destroy the magical barrier Ardyn erects around the Citadel.
As Noctis sits upon the throne and calls down the past kings the Astrals show up and turn into energy, entering the Ring of the Lucii alongside Noctis and the kings. Bahamut's plan comes into fruition when Noctis and the combined powers of the Crystal's light and the Lucian kings and their royal arms cleanse Ardyn's spirit of the Starscourge. The Ring of the Lucii disintegrates, and both of the bloodlines Bahamut had blessed have been extinguished.
===Alternate ending===
Final Fantasy XV -The Dawn of the Future- chapters for Lunafreya and Noctis depict an antagonistic Bahamut who seeks to purge Eos of life to cleanse the Scourge, as Ardyn has accumulated power too great for the Ring of the Lucii to handle. To power Teraflare, Bahamut decides to use the darkness itself as his source of power, reviving Lunafreya to become the new focus for that darkness.
Bahamut sends the revived Lunafreya to kill Ardyn under the pretense this will save Noctis. Lunafreya learns the truth of Bahamut's plans and of what happened to Ardyn, realizing the power given to her is the same he had as a healer. She plans to trick Bahamut into unleashing Teraflare so the other Astrals can again block it and thus exhaust him, forcing Bahamut into slumber. When she tries to get Ardyn to cooperate with her, however, he is unconvinced and summons Ifrit, and when she absorbs the Scourge from the Astral and makes a Covenant with him, she fully turns and attacks Noctis when he arrives in answer to her summons. Bahamut announces humanity's coming end and orders Lunafreya to carry out her role: absorb the world's darkness to energize Teraflare. Lunafreya's darkness is drained to power Bahamut's "final summoning," which is blocked by the other Astrals' intervention.
Noctis and Ardyn cooperate to destroy Bahamut in both the physical and the heavenly realms. Magic is lost and the Astrals and the Crystal vanish. Before shattering, the Crystal absorbs all remnants of the Scourge, cleansing Eos.
==Obtained==
Bahamut cannot be obtained as a regular summon.
==Boss==
Bahamut is fought as the final boss of Final Fantasy XV: Comrades. He has tremendous amounts of health and fights using his sword.
==Battle==
320px|thumb|Ultima Sword
Unlike the other Astrals, Bahamut can only be called during the original penultimate boss encounter. When summoned, Bahamut uses Ultima Sword, an attack that rains down several massive blades.
==Non-Final Fantasy guest appearances==
===Assassin's Creed: Origins===
During the mission A Gift from the Gods, Bayek inadvertently brings Ardyn to ancient Egypt. Before he has time to do much of anything, Bahamut, the Astral of Eos, appears in the sky above the tomb, attacks Ardyn and whisks him away.
===Minecraft===
Bahamut has a downloadable skin.
Minecraft FFXV Bahamut.png|
==Behind the scenes==
In the 1.00 version of the game, Bahamut spoke in the Hexatheon language.https://youtu.be/CpHLfxYXmLg?t=44400 It was changed to the human language in the day one patch; the original scene would not make sense if the player had no subtitles on. This makes Bahamut and Shiva the only Astrals heard speaking the human language. Bahamut also speaks in human language to the Glaives in Comrades.
Bahamut is the symbol for the Kingsglaive alongside fifteen swords, likely an allusion to Final Fantasy XV. The paper model for his wing (see the Gallery) used for designing his character model, also comprises of fifteen swords. Bahamut briefly poses like the Kingsglaive logo in Episode Ardyn.
The Behemoth's bestiary entry says it is called the "King of Beasts" after Bahamut, the Bladekeeper. This alludes to the rest of the Final Fantasy series where Bahamut has been known as the Dragon King.
The player can get the Big Blaze Bahamut fishing lure from the Liege of the Lake tour at the Vesperpool. It returns even if the line snaps.
Bahamut's speech to Ardyn in the Defy Fate ending slightly deviates between the English and Japanese versions. In the Japanese version, he ominously closes by claiming that Ardyn will have to prepare for a far worse fate for rejecting his allotted destiny, while in the English version, he echoes Ardyn's earlier taunt during his hijacked broadcast during the Attack during Founder's Day, implying that he was going to have Ardyn sacrificed to the True King regardless.Episode Ardyn – FINAL FANTASY XV Translation (wordpress.com)
According to Final Fantasy XV -The Dawn of the Future-, the "anti-deity" weapons Niflheim successfully used against Shiva, were developed at Ardyn's behest who hoped such weapons could be one day used against Bahamut.
Bahamut in Final Fantasy XV -The Dawn of the Future- is the first omnicidal depiction of him in the series as his true incarnation, as although the Bahamut in Final Fantasy XIV was equally destructive, he was but a primal re-creation of the original. Bahamut has appeared as an adversary in the series before, but usually as a boss for a summoner's trial or otherwise as a being corrupted or driven by another's will, like Chaos Bahamut or Bahamut SIN. Elements of his characterization Final Fantasy XV -The Dawn of the Future, and to a lesser extent the expanded media for the game, resemble Bhunivelze from Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII. The Defy Fate ending for Episode ArdynAera/Bahamut: "The gods who rule above and the men who reign below shall lend their strength to the King of Kings. Only a fool would defy such opposition. Though mankind may not realize, everything in this world is preordained. Man exists solely by the grace of the gods and cannot live without. Resist if thou must, but know thy struggles are in vain." (Episode Ardyn; Defy Fate ending), and his final speech in Dawn of the FutureBahamut: "Always have mortals lived under patronage divine. Though guided by the Light, they war among themselves and defile the Star. How could mortals hope to survive alone in a godless world?", resemble Galenth Dysley's address towards th l'Cie just before facing them for the first time in Final Fantasy XIII.Galenth Dysley: "Without our help, death is all of which you're capable. You saw the fools. A mindless mob drunk on fear of a few l'Cie." The official comic anthology volume 2 also has Bahamut pondering why he's emitting "snow" (heavily implied to be tears) with every human death, which resembles how Bhunivelze started experiencing emotions late into his battle with Lightning, although to a far less severe extent. This may owe to how Final Fantasy XV as a whole was originally planned to be part of the Fabula Nova Crystallis. The novelization implies that at least part of the reason why he viewed humanity as contaminated as his motive for trying to destroy everything was because of their free will, similar to Bhunivelze. However, his disdain for the concept was not to the same degree as Bhunivelze due to his offering Ardyn the choice to submit to his fate.
In Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origins, an incidental character named Bahamut plays a key role by aiding the Lufenians in mixing darkness, yet also aiding Jack Garland's group. His physical appearance bears some resemblance to Bahamut from Final Fantasy XV, and he was originally worshiped as a god until slain by humans after he tried to turn the world into pure light, similar to what happens in Dawn of the Future.
==Gallery==
Bahamut-Ultima-Sword1-FFXV.png|Megaflare.
Bahamut_preparing_Megaflare_XV.png|Megaflare.
Bahamut-Armor-fFFXV.png|Bahamut's armor and sword.
Bahamut-Model-FFXV.png|Model.
Bahamut-Bestiary-FFXV.png|Bestiary entry.
Bahamuts swords in FFXV Episode Ardyn.png|Bahamut's swords in Episode Ardyn.
Bahamut flies in FFXV.png|Bahamut flies over Insomnia.
Bahamut2-FFXV-Comrades.png|Bahamut boss in Comrades.
Ifrit and Bahamuts swords from FFXV.png|Bahamut's swords over Ifrit.
Bahamut in Angelgard in FFXV Royal credits.png|Bahamut in the Royal Edition credits.
Dragon-Concept-Art-FFXV.png|Possible concept artwork featuring Bahamut.
==Etymology and symbolism==
Bahamut's attack in Final Fantasy XV is Ultima Sword. 
Bahamut's incarnation within Final Fantasy XV may draw upon the archangel Michael, who is considered the Sword of God and the leader of God's forces against the Dragon in the Book of Revelation. Within Christianity, Michael is also regarded a saint in many denominations. Within Catholicism, Michael is the patron saint of the peoples of Israel, the protector of the Catholic Church, military and civil services, produce and food, and healing sickness. Symbols that represent him are the sword, scales, carrying a banner, and triumphing over a dragon. Within Roman Catholicism, Michael is viewed as the angel to represent the might of good against evil, and also as a spiritual warrior, to also emphasize the importance of fighting evil within, and the redeemer of souls recently deceased to grant them passage to heaven. Within Islam, Michael is regarded as the archangel in charge of the forces of nature.
The concepts of Asian dragons play off Bahamut's "King of Dragons" title. Within Asian mythology and religion, dragons are said to have created the world through breathing divine qi, and it is believed that crystals are the purest manifestation of the remnants of their sacred breath.
His title of Draconian may refer to both his armor having a dragon-like appearance, as well as being derived from the Greek lawmaker Draco, who was notorious for implementing excessively harsh statutes against his people. In The Dawn of the Future his disregard for all life, especially humans, would liken his character to a demiurge, as was the case with the similarly antagonistic gods in the Fabula Nova Crystallis: Final Fantasy games, of which Final Fantasy XV was originally a part of. Though a notable difference from the demiurge is his explicitly not being tied to the material realm.
Satan is referred to as a dragon in some sources, especially the book of Revelation (12:9)http://www.usccb.org/bible/revelation/revelation12.htm. In the Dawn of the Future Bahamut is a traitor to his kind as well as mankind, and the reason for Ardyn becoming an antichrist-like foil to Noctis. Bahamut being the most powerful god and also being implied to have molded Noctis to act as his messiah due to wanting someone with his face to sit on the throne ties in to the concept of Maltheism, where God is deemed evil.
==Notes==
===Annotations===
===Citations===
ru:Багамут (Final Fantasy XV)
Category:Astrals in Final Fantasy XV
Category:Antagonists