Gauntlets (Final Fantasy IX)

The Gauntlets are endgame arm gear in Final Fantasy IX for Steiner and Freya. They have the best physical Evasion of any gauntlet. The Gauntlets teach Cover, which allows the character protect allies from enemies' physical attacks. They give a bonus to the character's Speed stat when they level up with them equipped and halve damage from Fire, Earth, Water, and Wind.
==Obtain==
The Gauntlets are found by using Dead Pepper at mountain crack near Oeilvert while riding Choco. The earliest the player can get them is to progress the Chocobo Hot and Cold quest to the point Dead Peppers become available before heading to Desert Palace as part of the story. When Zidane Tribal's party is taken to the Forgotten Continent, he can summon Choco from the local chocobo foot prints with a Gysahl Green, and ride him to the mountain cracks that contain treasures.
The Gauntlets can also be synthesized in Black Mage Village in the end of the game when the village shops gain new wares. To make them, the player will need 8,000 gil, the Mythril Gloves, and a Dragon Wrist. The Mythril Gloves can be purchased from Alexandria, and the Dragon Wrist can be bought from Daguerreo, if the player did not already have them in their inventory.
==Mechanics==
The Gauntlets provide 36 physical Evasion—the best of any arm gear for Steiner and Freya—and 7 Magic Evasion, mainly improving the wearer's chance to avoid physical damage. The gloves give a +1 bonus to the wearer's Speed stat when they level up with them equipped. When enough "bonuses" upon level up from gear have been accrued, the character gains a permanent stat increase. Speed is a fairly irrelevant stat however for its minor effect on ATB fill speed or turn order while in battle.
==Use==
The Gauntlets can be endgame equipment, though other good options are also available. The Genji Gloves have less physical Evasion but more Magic Evasion and also come with a level up bonus. The Defense Gloves also halve many elements and are the most balanced gauntlets with both physical and magical evasion. The Venetia Shield has the best level up bonuses and the most Magic Evasion, but much less physical Evasion and no elemental resistance. Steiner and Freya can equip Distract to avoid enemies' physical damage and so do not necessarily need a high Evasion stat from equipment. High physical evasion is a meaningful consideration if they equip Cover.
Steiner and Freya may have already mastered Cover from body armor, but it is a good ability to have and couples excellently with the Gauntlets' high physical Evasion. The elemental halving effect is good in general for the final dungeon and the final boss.
The Speed +1 level up bonus is not very useful. For level grinding the player is better off with the Venetia Shield (boosts both Strength and Magic) or Mythril Gloves (boosts Spirit). However, level grinding and min-maxing are unnecessary for a normal playthrough even when preparing for superboss encounters; the player can view any extra stats as simply a nice bonus.
Beatrix can also wear the Gauntlets, but the player cannot see this in a normal playthrough.
Category:Armor in Final Fantasy IX