Final Fantasy: The 15 Strongest Secret Bosses Ranked From Weakest To Most Powerful

The turn-based nature of most JRPGs means that you need more patience than skill in order to finish the game.

It takes a lot of practice and hand-eye coordination to become good at action and fighting games, while most Dragon Quest and Pokémon titles can be completed by just engaging in a lot of random encounters and reaching high-levels, as even the end boss won’t be a match for a group of level ninety-nine characters.

The Final Fantasy series is no exception to this, as the most basic tactic for dealing with a tricky boss is going off to fight a bunch of random monsters and coming back stronger, as your characters will be more durable and will hit harder in combat.

The developers of the Final Fantasy series have included numerous secret bosses (also known as Superbosses) within the games. These are monsters that are more powerful than the actual end boss of the game and will provide the ultimate challenge for the player.

All of the Final Fantasy games use different systems for their combat, which means that not every secret boss will be as strong as their contemporaries. The fans have also worked out methods by which these terrifying creatures can be easily beaten, so long as you are properly prepared for battle.

We are here today to rank the secret bosses of the Final Fantasy series. From the easily defeated terrors of Spira, to the mysterious machine who will put all of your skills to the test.

Here are The Strongest Secret Bosses In Final Fantasy Ranked From Weakest To Most Powerful!

15 Penance & The Dark Aeons (Final Fantasy X)

The Final Fantasy fans in Europe used to have to wait longer to receive the newest entries in the series. Final Fantasy X was no exception to this, as the European version of the game came out almost a year after the original Japanese release and almost six months from the North American version of the game.

One of the benefits of having to wait longer for Final Fantasy X was that the European version of the game was based on Final Fantasy X International, which added a ton of secret bosses to the game, including the Dark Aeons. These bosses would later appear in the HD remaster of the game.

The Dark Aeons were evil versions of the regular Aeons and acted as some of the most powerful bosses in the game.

Once these were all defeated, a new enemy would appear in the skies above Spira. The player was given the opportunity to battle Penance, who is meant to be the most difficult boss in the game.

The problem with the Dark Aeons and Penance is that they are all susceptible to Yojimbo.

If you summon Yojimbo in battle and give him a ton of money, then there is a chance that he will use Zanmato and instantly end the battle. This means that you can easily beat all of the secret bosses with the aid of save scumming.

14 Emerald Weapon & Ruby Weapon (Final Fantasy VII)

Emerald Weapon and Ruby Weapon are easily the most famous secret bosses in the history of Final Fantasy. This is due to the fact that many gamers were introduced to the series (and JRPGs in general) through Final Fantasy VII.

 As such, these monstrosities became the bane of everyone who was trying to 100% complete Final Fantasy VII when the game was first released.

The infamy that comes with being the most iconic secret bosses in Final Fantasy history means that fans have spent a lot of time working out how to defeat the Weapon monsters. It is our sad duty to report that there are several ways to beat the Weapons in combat without having to pull out the Knights of the Round materia.

The easiest way to defeat both Emerald Weapon and Ruby Weapon is with the aid of Cait Sith. His Slots Limit Break can potentially land on Game Over, which will instantly win the battle for you.

The game normally cheats to prevent you from landing on the correct reels, but players have worked out how to cheat the system.

It’s also possible to defeat Emerald Weapon and Ruby Weapon using the Overflow Glitch, which is caused when damage rolls over a certain number. Fans have used this glitch to defeat Emerald Weapon in under seven seconds.

13 Omega Weapon & Ultima Weapon (Final Fantasy VIII)

Final Fantasy VIII is regarded by many as being the easiest game in the series. This is due to how the strength of the enemies will scale with your level, as well as the numerous tricks that you can use to shift the odds in your favor, such as abusing the Junction system or keeping a single character at low health in order to repeatedly use their powerful Limit Breaks.

The two secret bosses of Final Fantasy VIII are Omega Weapon and Ultima Weapon. They can also be defeated without much hassle, as one ability will instantly destroy them.

The only reason they are placed higher on the list than Emerald Weapon and Ruby Weapon is due to the fact that you have a smaller timeframe in which to do it.

The secret to defeating Omega Weapon and Ultima Weapon is with the use of Selphie’s Limit Break.

She has a random chance of being able to use a unique spell called The End. This will instantly destroy the enemy unless they are undead. The End can be used to one-shot most of the creatures in the game, including the end boss.

The reason why The End can’t be relied upon is that it won’t appear in Selphie’s Limit Break list if she is between level forty-one and seventy-nine.

This means that you either have to rush to the secret bosses or wait until you are so high level that it wouldn’t matter if you used The End or not.

12 Adamantoise (Final Fantasy XV)

The worst thing a developer can do when promoting one of their video games is brag about how difficult one of the monsters in the game is.

This will incite a rage that exists within the heart of every gamer, as their natural instincts will tell them to wipe that creature from the face of the planet. It will take about a day until videos show up on YouTube of gamers beating this so-called tough boss using a Rock Band drum kit as a controller.

The Final Fantasy XV version of Adamantoise was hyped up by Hajime Tabata as taking at least fifteen hours to defeat in real-life.

The fans were skeptical of this claim, as this was a far longer period of time than it would take to defeat even Yiazmat under normal circumstances.

This turned out to be untrue, as the battle will only go on for that long if the player chooses to prolong the battle artificially, as a weaker party will be destroyed by Adamantoise, while a strong one will be able to defeat it within a shorter timeframe.

The battle against Adamantoise was tough, but it can still be done in a few hours if you want to use conventional methods.

Square Enix would later make the battle trivial with the 1.06 update of the game, as it now became possible to use the Ring of the Lucii to destroy the Adamantoise with a single spell.

11 Shinryu (Final Fantasy V)

The secret bosses of Final Fantasy V can easily be encountered during the final dungeon. This will almost certainly result in a game over if you aren’t aware of where they are, as Shinryu is found hiding in a chest that looks like any other.

The player can find a book in the final dungeon that talks about how two creatures descended from the sky and are even more powerful than the end boss. They are Shinryu and Omega Weapon, which are creatures that have been given greater roles in the later Final Fantasy games.

Shinryu uses a wide-range of elemental and magical attacks which are difficult to protect yourself from. It can also use a devastating array of status inflicting attacks.

The secret to easily defeating Shinryu lies in the fact that it isn’t immune to the Blind or Berserk status effects.

This means that a Chemist can use the Mix command to inflict both statuses on Shinryu, which means it will only use physical attacks and they will usually miss.

You can also give yourself an extra layer of protection by using the Golem summon, as it will absorb any attack that does manage to slip through.

10 Omega Weapon (Final Fantasy V)

The other secret boss in Final Fantasy V is Omega Weapon. Like Shinryu, it is also a creature from another world with the power to challenge Exdeath.

Omega Weapon has no interest in completing the game for you, however, as it prefers to run around on the overworld and utterly destroy players who aren’t aware of its true nature.

The tactic that you can use to defeat Shinryu won’t work on Omega Weapon, as it is immune to the Berserk status effect.

Omega Weapon does have another weakness in the form of the Stop status effect, which means that you can paralyze Omega Weapon for brief periods of time using Romeo’s Ballad, which can be used by a Bard. This means that you can defeat Omega Weapon by singing some seriously sad songs in its general direction.

It’s trickier to exploit Omega Weapon’s weakness than it is with Shinryu, as the Stop effect needs to constantly be applied in order for it to stick.

This means that you should go into the battle with multiple Bards and use the other character to actually deal damage to Omega Weapon. It will take a while, but it’s possible to keep Omega Weapon frozen for almost the entire battle.

9 Yiazmat (Final Fantasy XII)

Yiazmat once held the title of being the Final Fantasy enemy with the most health, as it has over fifty-million hit points. This means that even high-level characters will be taking a long time against this marathon monster.

It’s not possible to instantly defeat Yiazmat with the aid of glitches or status effects, as the developers did a good job of making sure that it was immune to everything that could potentially tip the balance in the player’s favor.

The developers did throw the players a bone in the form of being able to leave the battle arena and save, without Yiazmat’s health being restored between rounds (unless it cast Regen before you left) which allows you to take your time.

Yiazmat does have one crippling weakness that it shares with the Daleks of Doctor Who, as it cannot use stairs.

The stairwell that appears in Yiazmat’s arena is too small for the creature to move down, which means that it will be forced to use ranged attacks on the party.

With the right setup, it’s possible to defeat Yiazmat using a low-level party. All you need is the correct setup that is based on ranged weapons and you can defeat Yiazmat using chip damage.

8 Omega (Final Fantasy XV)

Omega Weapon has appeared in several Final Fantasy games since it debuted in Final Fantasy V. It usually has the appearance of a four-legged machine that aimlessly scuttles around the world, with most outside observers unaware of just how frightening and powerful it really is.

Final Fantasy XV didn’t ship with Omega in the game. It was added in as part of the Royal Edition update, where it would appear in the ruined city of Insomnia, which you visit at the end of the game.

The new version of Omega might be the most frightening incarnation of the monster, as it possesses ninety-nine percent resistance to normal attacks, in a game where most of the battle commands fall under that category.

Omega’s greatest weakness is in its shoddy pathfinding, which one character, in particular, can exploit.

It’s possible to play as each of Noctis’ three friends once you complete their individual story DLC. This means that you can play as Prompto and use his selection of ranged weapons in battle.

There are parts of the stage that Omega has trouble seeing. This means that a low-level Prompto can destroy Omega from a distance with sheer firepower, while it scuttles around uselessly trying to find him.

7 Elidibus (Final Fantasy Tactics)

Final Fantasy Tactics is a game that starts out with some brutally difficult battles and ends with you breezing through even the end boss.

The reason for this is that the early stages often tipped the balance in the opponent’s favor, with them being given better starting positions and having characters with classes that you likely haven’t unlocked yet.

The game then becomes too easy, as you are given several unique characters with abilities that will annihilate every enemy with ease.

The only endgame battle that will give you any trouble in Final Fantasy Tactics is the one against Elidibus, who is the bearer of the thirteenth Zodiac Brave.

Elidibus isn’t much stronger than the end boss of the game, but there are several key differences between the two battles that make Elidibus the more challenging foe.

The final battle against Altima takes place on an almost level playing field in an empty arena. This means that you can easily dogpile on her and just keep inflicting damage until the battle is won.

The battle against Elidibus takes place on a stage with an unusual shape. The player has to fight their way through several powerful Reaver enemies before they will even get a chance to approach Elidibus. This will leave them a target for Elidibus’ powerful status attacks and summons.

Elidibus would have made for an epic boss battle in a more balanced game, but you can still overpower him with the help of your unique party members (like Beowulf and T.G. Cid) without too much trouble.

6 Trema (Final Fantasy X-2)

The Final Fantasy series has earned a reputation for its amazing (and often horrifying) monster designs.

The bosses in particular love to transform into more powerful creatures when engaging the party in the battle, which is often referred to as going all “One-Winged Angel” in reference to Sephiroth’s form during the penultimate fight of Final Fantasy VII and the name of the song that plays during the battle.

The last secret boss of Final Fantasy X-2 is unusual for the series in that he is just an old man wearing a set of robes and a silly hat.

Trema is an unsent soul who awaits you at the bottom of Via Infinito for what will be the most challenging battle of the game.

Don’t let Trema’s appearance fool you, as he will absolutely destroy you in battle. Trema will assault you with a volley of punches that will drain your health in moments, while also inflicting status effects.

Trema is really easy to defeat in the original version of Final Fantasy X-2, due to how the Cat Nip accessory worked. Cat Nip originally allowed a character to always deal 9999 damage if they were in HP Critical status.

This could be combined with the Gunner’s Trigger Happy ability to deal over one-hundred-thousand points of damage in a single attack. You could defeat Trema in a few rounds with this tactic.

The effects of Cat Nip were changed in later versions of Final Fantasy X-2, which meant that you had to beat Trema the old-fashioned way.

5 Hades (Final Fantasy IX)

The first secret boss of Final Fantasy IX that we will be looking at was actually planned to be the end boss of the game.

Hades was originally going to be the final battle of the game, but he was swapped out with Necron at some point during development of the game.

It seems that the developers liked his design, as he was repurposed as a secret boss and the owner of the best synthesis shop in the game.

Hades is a force to be reckoned with, due to his range of powerful magical spells and his ability to easily inflict status effects.

This battle will put a high-level party through its paces and even a group with the best equipment in the game shouldn’t expect an easy victory.

It’s also possible to beat Hades at some of the lowest levels in the game, thanks to the design of the battle system in Final Fantasy IX. This is due to how much of a benefit you gain from equipment over levels and how it is possible for certain low-level abilities to deal tons of damage, such as Limit Glove.

It’s entirely possible to game the system and beat Hades using only a level one Quina.

4 Ozma (Final Fantasy IX)

Ozma is the second secret boss of Final Fantasy IX and he is by far the more fearsome opponent in the game. Hades looks like a generic fantasy villain, while Ozma is just a floating ball.

There is something so creepy about this spinning orb of doom that just wants to massacre the party where they stand… and it will, because Ozma is the most difficult boss in Final Fantasy IX.

In order to be able to hit Ozma with physical attacks, you have to complete the annoying Friendly Enemies sidequest, which was only created to sell strategy guides. Once that is completed, you will also be able to harm Ozma with Shadow-elemental attacks.

It’s possible to defeat Ozma using a single level one character, but this is trickier to accomplish than with Hades. This is due to how unpredictable Ozma’s attack patterns are.

Ozma will know not to use moves that the player can absorb, which means that you cannot trick it into using attacks that will cause it to waste a turn or heal the party. Ozma also possesses the ability to counter your attacks with specific moves.

In order to be able to defeat Ozma at low levels, you need to be familiar with the unique way in which his a.i. behaves, otherwise, he will decimate your party.

3 Minerva (Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-)

The vast majority of the games in the Final Fantasy series use a turn-based battle system. This is something that dates all the way back to Dungeons & Dragons, which the first Final Fantasy game emulated heavily.

The player has all of the time in the world to think of their strategies and plans their attacks, while the enemy waits patiently for them to make their move.

Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- was an action RPG that starred Zack Fair. This was the game in the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII that revealed there was a godlike figure in the world of the game with the power to bring the deceased back to life.

Her name was Minerva and she chose to use her resurrection powers on Genesis instead of Aerith.

Zack is given the chance to battle Minerva in Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- and she is intended to provide the ultimate challenge for the player. This battle takes place in an action RPG, which means that you aren’t afforded the luxury of being able to move at your own pace, as Minerva will annihilate you if you dawdle for too long.

There is a way to defeat Minerva easily, but it requires an unbelievable amount of preparation.

It’s possible to make yourself almost totally immune to Minerva’s attacks by using the right combination of materia.

You can also deal a ton of damage by using Gil Toss, but this requires millions of coins in your possession. This trick might make Minerva seem easy, but it will take hours and hours of gameplay to pull off.

2 Long Gui (Final Fantasy XIII)

The supporters of Final Fantasy XIII often claim that the game finally starts to become good once you reach Gran Pulse, which offers a more lush and open world for you to explore, as you had only been running down corridors throughout the game up to this point.

Gran Pulse is home to a species of monster that resembles a giant elephant. These creatures are meant to provide the biggest challenge in the game, except that Vanille can easily defeat them with her magic.

The exception to this is Long Gui, which is a monster that is immune to being instantly dispatched by Vanille. This doesn’t offer Long Gui total protection, however, as Vanille can still deal almost a million points of damage when Long Gui is staggered.

It can take a lot of preparation, but players have managed to defeat Long Gui within the space of two minutes. This is made possible with the correct setup and shifting between different class formations at the exact right moment.

It’s possible to stagger Long Gui using Vanille’s Eidolon, which will give the player a chance to inflict lots of status effects and start spamming damage spells until all sixteen-million of the creature’s hit points are gone.

1 Warmech (Final Fantasy)

If you have ever tried to defeat a secret boss in a Final Fantasy game and got your posterior handed to you by one of its overpowered attacks, then you have this guy to thank for your punishment.

Warmech is often considered to be the first secret boss in JRPG history. It was a giant robot that appeared in the first Final Fantasy game and was intended to present a challenge for the player beyond what you would find in the story.

Warmech can be found patrolling the corridor outside of Tiamat’s chamber. If you encounter Warmech, we suggest you run.

The reason Warmech provides such a challenge is due to its sheer simplicity. Warmech likes to spam his Atomize attack which will hit your whole party like a truck. If you can survive his initial onslaught, then the battle becomes one of endurance, as you desperately try to keep healing and deal damage against a constant barrage of powerful attacks.

Warmech exists in the first Final Fantasy game, which means that your choices of character abilities are much more limited than in later games.

You can’t use exploits or glitches to help you get by this one. If you are going to take on the ultimate challenge in Final Fantasy, then you have to do it like the developers intended.

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Are there any other secret bosses in Final Fantasy that we forgot to mention? Sound off in the comments!

About The Author

Scott Baird
(2512 Articles Published)

Scott has been writing for Screen Rant since 2016 and regularly contributes to The Gamer. He has previously written articles and video scripts for websites like Cracked, Dorkly, Topless Robot, and TopTenz.
A graduate of Edge Hill University in the UK, Scott started out as a film student before moving into journalism. It turned out that wasting a childhood playing video games, reading comic books, and watching movies could be used for finding employment, regardless of what any career advisor might tell you. Scott specializes in gaming and has loved the medium since the early ‘90s when his first console was a ZX Spectrum that used to take 40 minutes to load a game from a tape cassette player to a black and white TV set. Scott now writes game reviews for Screen Rant and The Gamer, as well as news reports, opinion pieces, and game guides. He can be contacted on LinkedIn.

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