Ghastly Gibous

"*I will tear your souls apart!*"
— Gibous ambushing the party.
**Ghastly Gibous** is a cutting-edge killing machine-turned eldritch abomination currently active in an abandoned technological facility in an unknowable location. It is strongly discouraged by world authorities to seek him and much less to engage him. It has been reported that he is sentient and extremely intelligent, and that he excels at manipulating human hatred and fear. He was created by what must have been an exceedingly well-funded mad scientist with a fascination for warfare and forbidden magicks. The site in which he was found was also home to many beasts who, despite being far from innocent, were experimented on and infused with great doses of various elements and substances while being kept in captivity. The collective plea of these powerful monsters momentarily shattered space-time and allowed a great influx of extradimensional quintessence and phantom energy, which possessed and gave live to an impressive and towering suit of armor. Whether this was intentional is impossible to know; however, the event was documented in a retrieved journal in an on-site study. Its official name, PROJECT ß-999, implies that it is not the first creation of its kind, and that the other(s) may be scattered throughout the world - or nearby.

## Characteristics in Lore

### Appearance

Gibous is an enormous automaton constructed of an alloy composed of classified elements, although it can be disclosed that they are related to codanium. The "body" is exceedingly well protected by this nigh impenetrable armor; however, studies as to what lay within the armor have been entirely unsuccessful. Surviving Society researchers have been able to ascertain that a phantasmal essence roars within Gibous' outer mechanical shell, and its "voice" seems to emanate from this haze. The haze bears two red-orange eyes and have been observed to blink rarely, albeit not simultaneously. Additional decorations to the armor include beast horns, sharp shoulder pads, and a center chestplate bearing marks almost identical to certain legendary Sivellan symbols denoting violence, fury, bereavement, and hopelessness.

### Personality

Despite being physically a machine, Gibous is sentient, intelligent, and malicious. It is alert and violently hostile to all those who enter its burial, tearing apart its own home to mow down any who run or hide. It easily detects fear or anger in the humans around it, and twists these emotions to his bidding by words and by actions. Gibous vocalizes with a transcendental and deep voice that seems to ring directly into listeners' minds. He is capable of engaging in conversation, although he is seldom willing to. He is fiercely protective of all other monsters in his site. Being that he opts not to leave the site to ravage the outside world, the Society has not classified him as a priority threat. In all tests, Gibous was found to be friendliest (emphasis on the -est; he was still physically and mentally hostile) with subjects with extreme "anti-hero" tendencies; that is, people willing to do great evil in the name of a personal or greater good.

## Gameplay

*Note: The following information is not canon and written entirely for fun with the layout and tone of an RPG guide.*

The existence of Ghastly Gibous and his whereabouts are alluded to by the librarians of the nearby Ville. Once the early storyline quest "Harvest" is complete and the residents of the town are able to move back in, the head scholar, Syde, states that there are extreme space-time abnormalities present in a waterside clearing of a roofed forest several dozen kilometers to the east. However, she urges the player party not to explore it, but rather to avoid it. The party can not access it anyway, as the clearing in question is blocked by an invisible pailing that skyships can not pass and that does not weaken until the completion of the main storyline quest and the defeat of the final boss.

Once the game is complete, the pailing weakens and becomes penetrable to codanium-powered aircraft. However, this development is not directly stated to the player party, and they can only learn of it if they accept the "Moral of the Story" quest from the receptionist at the DCS OR the "Emanation's Call" quest from Madame Elise of the white mage coven on Iris. In the former, the DCS tasks the player party with entering the dreaded Dig Site 69 and extracting raw quintessence from within, granting them a broken half of the key sphere to enter as well as coordinates to the location. In the latter, the white mages task the player party with entering the site and extracting an Angel Feather from within, granting them the other half. How they both possess a part of the key sphere is not explained, but it is implied that the ACS has begun supporting the practice of white magic in contrast to its previously hardline antimage stance.

Upon reaching the roofed forest clearing, the player party must place the Resplendent Sphere on the pedestal on the exact coordinates provided by the DCS. Doing so causes a break in the ground nearby, revealing the entrance to Dig Site 69. Therein lay the strongest monsters in the game, all possessing the highest levels and stats as well as punishing and often unique magic spells and abilities. Upon making it to the fifth sublevel, Ghastly Gibous can be reached by traversing the west wing. In contrast to the more aesthetically pleasant east wing housing Queen Candace, the west is replete with lava traps, tripwires, and obsidian spikes barring much of the path. Monsters in the west wing are the best in the game at brute physical and magical force, in opposition to the more gimmicky beasts of the east wing. Ghastly Gibous is hidden in the cave clearing at the end of the hall, "Verge of Chaos", before which machinery becomes increasingly sparse. Upon examining the enchanted obsidian tomb therein, Gibous rips through the ground from underneath and engages the party in battle.

 Everdark
 Bedlam's Fury
 Black Hole
 Havoc's Call
 Hellfire
 Soul Cannon

Looking at his stats and moveset, it is easy to see why Gibous deserves the title of superboss. He is indeed tied for the highest-level enemy in the game alongside Queen Candace, and is the only enemy to have strength or endurance at a value of 100. He has the highest HP of any enemy in the game; for reference, an average beginning player with "10 hearts" has 100 HP. His is a battle in which all classes must be masters of their work and cooperate; while knights, vikings, ninjas, and their like can lead the offensive assault, it is vital that they have supporters like alchemists, artists, and white mages that will negate and reverse the destructive effects Gibous' attacks have on the party and its morale. His battle is one of two ultimate tests of team strength and cooperation.

Upon defeat, Gibous always drops a Cask of Quintessence and a Teal Orb. The former is to be taken back to the DCS for a reward of 1,500,000 credits, roughly equivalent to 128 emerald blocks. The receptionist will also give the player party a Cone Hat, a joke item that immunizes the wearer against physical attacks and detrimental physical ailments. The Teal Orb is one of two orbs necessary to open the door to the sixth sublevel, where there are computers that allow for the re-summoning of Gibous and Candace for battle and also a teleporter leading to the hidden locked basement of Bistro Garlande. Outside on the Bistro end is the "Debug Room" in which the creators and testers of the game left personalized messages. From then, Dig Site 69 is accessible from Dreiton itself.

Defeating Gibous earns the players the achievement "Got Me Aghast."