Maximillian (Final Fantasy XII)

The Maximillian is a top-tier heavy armor in Final Fantasy XII that boosts the wearer's Defense by 64 (Zodiac) or 58 (original), Magick Resist by 1, Strength by 9 and—unusually for a heavy armor—Speed by 6, the latter making it good for a character wielding a weapon that accounts for Speed stat in damage calculation: bows, ninja swords, and daggers. However, in the Zodiac versions, the Shikari board cannot unlock heavy armor. The Maximillian is metallic for the purposes of the Magnetize debuff present during the Vinuskar (though mainly available after this boss) and Ultima boss battles.
==Obtain==
===Original===
In the PlayStation 2 version, the Maximillian is bought for 17,000 gil from the "secret shop" in Necrohol of Nabudis after obtaining the Treaty-Blade.
It is found in a treasure in Lhusu Mines' Site 6 South (dead-end on the northeast side; 50% chance to appear, 65% chance for gil, 50% chance the item treasure is the Maximillian without the Diamond Armlet equipped ), and Great Crystal's Sirhru Phullam Praa'vaa (always appears, 85% chance for gil, 50% chance the item treasure is the Maximillian without the Diamond Armlet equipped ). It very rarely drops from the Elvoret.
It is made in the bazaar set "Sturdy Battle Gear" by selling four Charger Bardings (from some insect or plate wyrm-type enemies e.g. Deathclaw), two Split Armors (from Charybterix), and three Pisces Gems (from many fish-type enemies, e.g. Focalor).
Maximillian is available through the Hunt Club sidequest on the Phon Coast by giving Blok 30 Rare Game trophies; the armor can then be bought from the Shifty-Eyed Merchant's store nearby for 25,500 gil. However, it is a better deal to give the trophies to Atak or Stok, as the best armor pieces from the Hunt Club from giving trophies to Blok can be bought from normal shops, albeit the "secret shop" in Nabudis is in a dangerous optional area; by the time the party has the Treaty-Blade, they should be strong enough to brave it, however.
===Zodiac===
In the updated Zodiac versions, the Maximillian is no longer sold in normal shops, but sells for 8,000 gil. It is found as a treasure in Lhusu Mines' Site 6 North (always appears) and Cerobi Steppe's Feddik River (20% chance to appear, 80% chance for gil, 5% chance the item treasure is the Maximillian with the Diamond Armlet equipped). The Maximillian and Magepower Shishak chests are close to each other.
It still very rarely drops from the Elvoret, and is now also the rare steal from the Vishno in Trial Mode Stage 45, and Abelisk in Stage 85. It is still made in the bazaar set "Sturdy Battle Gear" with the same items as before.
Maximillian is available through the Hunt Club on the Phon Coast by giving Atak and Stok 5 Rare Game trophies each and Blok 10, and then buying the armor from the Shifty-Eyed Merchant's store nearby for 20,400 gil.
==Use==
Maximillian is a top-tier armor giving 64 or 58 Defense depending on version, a negligible 1 to Magick Resist, 9 Strength and 6 Speed, the latter useful for a bow/ninja sword/dagger-user whose weapon counts the user's Speed for damage calculation. The ultimate armor, Grand Armor, offers more in other stats but no Speed, so Maximillian could be the ultimate armor for a bow/ninja sword/dagger-user, although in the Zodiac versions, the Shikari cannot unlock it, and Archer can only unlock it with an Esper. The Grand Armor is also so arduous to procure in the original version that the player may simply want to stick with the Maximillian anyway for all endgame content.
The strength bonuses make heavy armor ideal for frontline fighters, and the Maximillian is a good armor to equip over any inferior equipment the player may have on anyone who attacks physically, although a gun-wielder does not benefit from the strength-boost.
In the Zodiac versions, Uhlan, Knight, Time Battlemage, and Foebreaker can equip it natively, and Archer can unlock it with Shemhazai, and Bushi with Zodiark. Maximillian is only useful to obtain if the player has chosen these License Boards for the party. In The Zodiac Age versions, after fighting Belias the player can choose two License Boards per party member and so more characters can benefit from heavy armor, as it is usually a good idea to match jobs that use different types of armor to bolster light armor jobs' strength, and to give more durability to spellcasters.
In the original version, the best way to get the armor is to buy it from the secret shop in Necrohol of Nabudis, while in the Zodiac, it is available from the Lhusu Mines, and thus can be nabbed as soon as the player reaches Hunter's Camp on Phon Coast to get the key from next to the Fallen Bhujerban to the deepest parts of the mines. The bazaar set for it can be made once the player has access to Cerobi Steppe.
==Etymology==
Category:Armor in Final Fantasy XII