Dragons' Den

The Dragons' Den is a bonus dungeon in Final Fantasy VI in the Game Boy Advance and 2014 iOS/Android/Steam versions, located just north of the Dragon's Neck Coliseum on an island with a single tree. It can be accessed after defeating the eight legendary dragons and gaining the Stone Tablet. 
The Dragons' Den houses reincarnations of the eight legendary dragons that are stronger than before, with higher stats, better attacks, and they all have a new "gimmick" to the fight to increase their challenge level: the Ice Dragon mimics the Vector Lythos and attacks in a group of four, while the Gold Dragon has the Runic status to absorb magic, and so forth. As the party defeats the reborn eight dragons, seals around the dungeon linked to the dragons shatter, unlocking new areas. When all eight are defeated, the party can access the deepest chamber of the dungeon and face the "leader" of the eight dragons, Kaiser Dragon.
In addition to the eight dragons, the dungeon also contains powerful ultimate weapons for the party members and powerful equipment pieces in general. The dungeon also houses a variety of monsters, including many new and exclusive to Dragons' Den.
== Layout==
The den requires three parties to traverse, which lets the player exploit the save point glitch. The save areas have sparkling, star-like lights that allow the player to change party members between the three parties if all three are brought to the same room. Also, unlike Kefka's Tower and the Phoenix Cave, this means that while the den requires three parties to open paths for each other, all areas are accessible by all parties, and the player can face all eight dragons with the same party, if they know the den well enough to navigate it properly.
Several areas are sealed off with magical barriers linked to one of the eight legendary dragons. Defeating a dragon shatters the corresponding seals, and to access the den's deepest areas, all dragons must fall.
Seal 	Dragon 	Areas 	Sprite
Seal of Ice 	Ice Dragon 	Earth Labyrinth x3 	
Seal of Wind 	Storm Dragon	Earth Labyrinth 	
Seal of Water 	Blue Dragon 	Burning Labyrinth, Flame Labyrinth, Grand Cavern 	
Seal of Earth 	Earth Dragon	Earth Labyrinth 	
Seal of Fire 	Red Dragon 	Dragon Temple, Grand Cavern 	
Seal of Darkness 	Skull Dragon	Inner Eye Labyrinth 	
Seal of Heaven 	Holy Dragon 	Inner Eye Labyrinth, Dragon Temple 	
Seal of Lightning	Gold Dragon 	Inner Eye Labyrinth, Dragon Temple x2, Grand Cavern	
=== Entrance ===
The entrance is named Dragons' Den in-game. The location resembles a cliff with two main cave entrances. There is also an escape route back to the airship through the crane hook device.
=== Earth Labyrinth ===
The Earth Labyrinth is the first area of the dungeon. It is interconnected with several passageways to the Burning Labyrinth.
Taking the left route leads to three openings to the Burning Labyrinth; one is opened by operating the switch above. The three passages are blocked until the Seal of Ice is broken. The leftmost part contains two treasure chests and is entered from the Burning Labyrinth after breaking the Seal of Water. Taking the right entrance leads to the Ice Dragon and an entrance to the Dragon Temple blocked by the Seal of Wind. There is also an exit behind the Ice Dragon that leads to the Burning Labyrinth. Thus, all paths deeper into the dungeon are blocked until the Ice Dragon is defeated.
In the northern areas of the Earth Labyrinth, the Earth Dragon can be found, as well as a save point area, the Shrine of Serenity. A switch near where the Ice Dragon was found can be used to create a bridge while held down which grants the other two parties easier access to the rear area. The Seal of Earth blocks the entryway to the Flame Labyrinth and can be broken by defeating the Earth Dragon. The access to the Earth Dragon can be reached from the Burning Labyrinth, and it can be fought before or after the Storm Dragon in the Burning Labyrinth.
;Enemies
;Treasures
=== Shrine of Serenity ===
The Shrine of Serenity is a small save room area where party members can be changed. It connects to the Earth Labyrinth and has no random encounters.
=== Burning Labyrinth ===
The Burning Labyrinth is a lava cave and the lair of the Storm Dragon. It contains several switches that create rocks above the lava that the other parties can use to jump across it, similar to the Phoenix Cave. Reaching the Storm Dragon in the center of the cave requires two parties to hold down switches so that the third party can reach the dragon.
;Enemies
*Zurvan
*Vilia, Dark Force x2
*Great Dragon
*Vilia, Zurvan x2
;Treasures
=== Flame Labyrinth ===
The Flame Labyrinth is a cave area and the lair of the Red Dragon. It is first entered through the Earth Labyrinth. The upper door is locked until a switch is operated in the Dragon Temple. The cave contains two switches operating the rocks leading to the other exits. The right one leads to the Grand Cavern and the central one is blocked until the Seal of Water is broken and leads to the Inner Eye Labyrinth. There is also a hidden chest in the southwest corner of the cave and a hidden passage to another chest in the northwest part of the cave.
;Enemies
;Treasures
=== Inner Eye Labyrinth ===
The Inner Eye Labyrinth is a puzzle cave area. The lower left exit leads to the Flame Labyrinth and the lower right exit leads to the Grand Cavern. A Seal of Heaven blocks a path leading to a save point after which a Seal of Lightning blocks the entryway to Kaiser's Breath. A Seal of Darkness blocks the opening leading to the Holy Palace.
To proceed, the party has to push a 4-ton weight over a switch, similar to Kefka's Tower. Then two parties can operate the remaining switches that control rocks through the lower and upper levels of the cave. There are also two hidden chests on the lower left and lower right corners and a hidden switch near the lava that opens a pathway inside the Holy Temple.
;Enemies
Enemies shown in italics do not appear at the beginning of battles, but are nonetheless coded into the enemy formations.
;Treasures
=== Dragon Temple ===
The Dragon Temple is a central area that connects to the Earth Labyrinth and hosts a turtle that can be used to cross a pond. After breaking the Seal of Lightning, the turtle can be used to reach the Grand Cavern. A skull switch after the turtle opens a door to the Red Dragon's chamber in the Flame Labyrinth.
The upper central path is blocked by the Blue Dragon and contains a save point and an exit to Kaiser's Breath blocked by the Seal of Lightning after the dragon. To use the exit, the door has to be opened from the right side by another party.
The passage to the upper-left is blocked by the Seal of Fire and contains a gravestone which hints about the location of the Inner Eye Labyrinth lava switch: "If ye would face a drake divine, search ye between the molten pools within the Inner Eye". 
The upper right passage contains another gravestone with an inscription puzzle similar to the Darill's Tomb. The inscriptions FDRA INGO THEK GONS can be found from the rightmost passage blocked by the Seal of Heaven. After the inscriptions, there is the chamber of the Gold Dragon. Carving THEK INGO FDRA GONS, "The King of Dragons", on the gravestone grants access to the Cloister part of the Dragon Temple.
;Enemies
;Treasures
=== Dragon Temple - Cloister ===
The Cloister part of the Dragon temple contains several stairs and doorways to the Treasure Room. One of the doorways has to be entered by operating a switch with another party.
;Enemies
*Great Dragon, Magic Dragon
*Dragon Aevis x2
*Outsider, Yojimbo x2
*Death Rider
;Treasures
=== Dragon Temple - Treasure Room ===
The Treasure Room contains several treasure chests and teleporters connecting different parts of the area. The connections are marked with colored dots on the map image below. There are three chests that contain powerful monster-in-a-box bosses.
;Enemies
*Ahriman x2
*Dinozombie, Yojimbo
*Dinozombie, Great Malboro
*Death Rider
;Treasures
=== Shrine of Repose ===
The Shrine of Repose is a small save room area where party members can be changed. It connects to the Grand Cavern and has no random encounters. A dummy version of the Shrine of Repose also exists that uses the same tile-set as the Grand Cavern.
=== Grand Cavern ===
The Grand Cavern is a mountainous region. It has several tight passages and bridges guarded by mysterious figures in green similar to Zone Eater's Belly. The player must leap between the bridges while avoiding the figures or else be knocked down to the Cloister of Trials.
The left exit connects to the Inner Eye Labyrinth. Next to the exit is the Shrine of Repose. A Seal of Water blocks the entrance to the Flame Labyrinth down left and a Seal of Fire blocks the right exit to the Dragon Temple. Upwards, a Seal of Lightning blocks the way to Kaiser's Breath.
The Skull Dragon awaits at the top of the Grand Cavern and defeating it breaks the Seal of Darkness in the Inner Eye Labyrinth, revealing a staircase that allows the party to go around the green men.
;Enemies
;Treasures
=== Cloister of Trials ===
The Cloister of Trials is the landing place if the party falls from the Grand Cavern. It has powerful random encounters and five bosses marked with blue flames. The only exit is the dim light on the right side of the map leading back to the lower part of the Grand Cavern.
The bosses walk randomly in the area and the party can try to avoid them. Defeating the bosses removes the blue flames, but they will respawn should the party fall to the Cloister again.
;Enemies
*Death Rider
*Armodullahan
*Maximera
*Crystal Dragon
*Earth Eater (Boss)
*Gargantua (Boss)
*Malboro Menace (Boss)
*Dark Behemoth (Boss)
*Abyss Worm (Boss)
=== Kaiser's Breath ===
In a repeat of Kefka's Tower, Kaiser's Breath has three switches used for the final puzzle where two of the switches have to be pushed simultaneously by different parties. Upon doing so, the last switch becomes a teleporter, allowing the third party to reach the last area of the dungeon: Kaiser's Lair.
;Enemies
*Magic Dragon x3
*Primeval Dragon, Magic Dragon, Vector Lythos
*Hexadragon, Magic Dragon
*Armodullahan
=== Holy Palace ===
The Holy Palace is a small castle-like area whose central path leads to a dead-end and the left path contains a treasure chest. The Holy Dragon awaits on the right, but the path is blocked until a switch is pressed in the Inner Eye Labyrinth. Defeating the dragon breaks the Seals of Heaven in the Inner Eye Labyrinth and the Dragon Temple.
;Enemies
*Maximera
*Shield Dragon
*Shield Dragon x2
*Maximera, Chimera
;Treasures
=== Kaiser's Lair ===
Kaiser's Lair is the final area and hosts the final boss enemies. Random encounters are disabled and, on the first trek, Kaiser Dragon awaits next to flames. After completing the dungeon, returning to the lair reveals Omega Weapon in its place. The save point tile after the boss teleports the party back to the airship.
;Enemies
*Kaiser Dragon (Boss)
*Omega Weapon (Boss)
;Treasures
*Magicite Diabolos (After defeating Kaiser Dragon.)
==Gameplay==
===Encounters===
Enemies shown in italics do not appear at the beginning of battles, but are nonetheless coded into the enemy formations. 
Number	Enemies 	Normal	Back	Surrounded	Side	Introduction flag	Musical theme 	Magic AP
 	Zurvan 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Vilia, Dark Force 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Great Behemoth 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Great Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Zurvan 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Vilia, Dark Force x2 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Great Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Vilia, Zurvan x2 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Abaddon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Dragon Aevis 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Great Behemoth 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Abaddon, Vector Lythos 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Landworm x2 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Great Behemoth, Great Malboro x2 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Abaddon, Tonberries x5 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Abaddon, Magic Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Vector Chimera, Great Malboro 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Outsider x2, Yojimbo 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Dinozombie 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Death Rider 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Great Dragon, Magic Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Dragon Aevis x2 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Outsider, Yojimbo x2 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Death Rider 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Ahriman x2 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Dinozombie, Yojimbo 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Dinozombie, Great Malboro 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Death Rider 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Hexadragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Primeval Dragon, Magic Dragon, Vector Lythos	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Magic Dragon x3 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Armodullahan 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Magic Dragon x3 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Primeval Dragon, Magic Dragon, Vector Lythos	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Hexadragon, Magic Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Armodullahan 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Death Rider 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Armodullahan 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Maximera 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Crystal Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Maximera 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Shield Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Shield Dragon x2 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Maximera, Chimera 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle 	—
 	Earth Eater 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Gargantua 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Malboro Menace, Malboro Menace x3 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Abyss Worm 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Dark Behemoth 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Flan Princess x5 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Plague 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Neslug (Head), Neslug (Shell) 	 	 	 	 	Sides, synch. 	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Omega Weapon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle to the Death	—
 	Red Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Blue Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Gold Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Skull Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Storm Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Earth Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Holy Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Ice Dragon x3, Ice Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	The Decisive Battle	—
 	Kaiser Dragon 	 	 	 	 	Sides, individual	Battle to the Death	—
=== Quests ===
==== Defeating the dragons ====
The ultimate goal of the Dragons' Den is to defeat the eight dragons again and reach Kaiser Dragon in the back of the dungeon. With all eight dragons fallen, the parties can reach Kaiser.
To solve the final puzzle, it is first recommended to teleport back to the entrance and bring all three parties to the turtle in the Dragon Temple. One party should open the central door for another party to enter the right switch part of Kaiser's Breath. The remaining two parties should head to the Inner Eye Labyrinth (through the Grand Cavern). One party is used to press a switch and send the other party to the left switch part of Kaiser's Breath. The last party should return to the Grand Cavern and go around it to reach the central switch part of Kaiser's Breath.
Any of the three parties can reach Kaiser - when the other two stand on their switches, the third switch becomes a teleporter to Kaiser's Lair.
When Kaiser Dragon is defeated, the party receives the Diabolos magicite. Touching the save point tile triggers a congratulations message from Kappa with an introduction to Soul Shrine, and the player is returned to the airship. Completing the Dragons' Den earns the Master of Dragons achievement in the mobile/PC versions.
====Raiding the Treasure Room ====
This quest is a somewhat separate part of the Dragons' Den and can be done once the Seal of Heaven is broken and the inscription puzzle is solved. Two parties are needed to reach the end and three monster-in-a-box enemies (Plague, Neslug and Flan Princess) are encountered along the way.
==== Defeating Omega Weapon ====
Returning to Kaiser's Lair reveals Omega Weapon whose defeat earns the Congratulations! achievement in the mobile/PC versions. Since the seals have been broken, the player only has to solve the final puzzle to reach Omega Weapon.
===Full Map===
Note - due to the size and complexity of Dragons' Den, some entrances/exits in the map below are represented by a different icon, but otherwise are normal entrances/exits with nothing special about them.
== Musical themes ==
"Phantom Forest" is the track used as the background theme for most areas of the Dragons' Den.
"Floating Continent", or "New Continent", is the background theme of Kaiser's Lair.
== Other appearances ==
=== Final Fantasy Airborne Brigade ===
FFAB Dragons' Den FFVI.png|Normal background.
FFAB Dragons' Den FFVI Special.png|Special background.
== Gallery ==
;Screenshots
FFVI PC Dragon's Den Entrace.png|The entrance (iOS/Android/PC).
FFVI PC Dragon's Den 1.png|Area 1 (iOS/Android/PC).
FFVI PC Dragon's Den 2.png|Area 2 (iOS/Android/PC).
FFVI PC Dragon's Den 3.png|Area 3 (iOS/Android/PC).
FFVI PC Dragon's Den 4.png|Area 4 (iOS/Android/PC).
FFVI PC Dragon's Den 5.png|Area 5 (iOS/Android/PC).
FFVI PC Dragon's Den 6.png|Area 6 (iOS/Android/PC).
FFVI PC Dragon's Den 7.png|The last puzzle to open the way to Kaiser Dragon's lair (iOS/Android/PC).
FFVI IOS Kaiser Dragon Encounter.png|Kaiser Dragon's lair in the heart of the Dragons' Den (2014 mobile/Steam).
FFVI PC Kappa Congratulates.png|Dragon's Den complete (PC).
FFVI Dragon's Den World Map.png|Dragon's Den in the world map (GBA).
KaisersLair.JPG|Kaiser Dragon's lair in the heart of the Dragons' Den (GBA).
FFVI-DDEndgame.png|Holy Temple (GBA).
;Battle backgrounds
Battleback cave c.png|Earth Labyrinth (Mobile/PC).
Battleback cave d.png|Burning/Flame/Inner Eye Labyrinth (Mobile/PC).
Battleback darills tomb.png|Dragon Temple (Mobile/PC).
Battleback cave b.png|Grand Cavern/Kaiser's Breath/Cloister of Trials (Mobile/PC).
Battleback castle a.png|Holy Palace (Mobile/PC).
FFVI PC Battle Background Fire.png|Kaiser's Lair (Mobile/PC).
FFVIA South Figaro Cave BG.PNG|Earth Labyrinth (GBA).
FFVIA Cave to the Sealed Gate BG.PNG|Burning/Flame/Inner Eye Labyrinth (GBA).
FFVIA Darill's Tomb BG.png|Dragon Temple (GBA).
FFVIA Kolts BG 2.PNG|Grand Cavern/Kaiser's Breath/Cloister of Trials (GBA).
FFVIA Castle Interior BG.png|Holy Palace (GBA).
FFVIA Thamasa Burning House BG.PNG|Kaiser's Lair (GBA).
== Etymology ==
de:Drachenhort
ru:Логово Драконов
Category:Locations in Final Fantasy VI
Category:Caves