TheFinal Fantasyfranchise has a rich history of intimidating foes that seek to enact their vision at any cost.Final Fantasy 16expands upon this formula by adding a layer of political intrigue to each villain’s motives, interlinking them in a largerpower struggle across Valistheawhile protagonist Clive Rosfield attempt to foil their plans.
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It is a testament to the game’s strong writing that discerning the single best villain is a tough task as each one of these characters is guided by their own unique motives, constituting different kinds of malice. Some are more evil, but don’t have grander plans like Ultima for example but still sometimes the most evil actions are usually senseless as with Anabella.
6Sylvestre Lesage
Sylvestre Lesage is the Emperor of Sanbereque, Valisthea’s most powerful Kingdom. The story hints that Sylvestre was once a noble leader, but over the course of the game his wife, Anabella, exerts manipulation tactics to win his favor. Due to this, the emperor is shown to make decisions that benefit him and his bloodline rather than his own people, invading neighboring kingdoms while having his own folk suffer from starvation.
Additionally, his second child is shown to be a vessel of Ultima, and it may be deducted that this too influenced his decision-making in regard to governing Sanbereque. Regardless of Anabella’s influence, Sylvestre commits heinous acts that cause mistrust among not only his own people but his own son Dion as well. His actions lead to his own death at the hands of his son in a horrifying accident and cost him the entire kingdom as Dion loses control as Bahamut, wreaking havoc.
5Benedikta Harmon
Benedikta Harmon is Waloeds supreme intelligencer and dominant of Garuda. Her loyalty is based upon self-preservation. She is a tactful and manipulative woman who utilizes Garuda on the battlefield to ensure a swift victory. Bendikta utilizes her attractive persona to gain allegiance with powerful political figures such as Hugo Kupa and Barnabas Tharmr; however, the only person she forms a genuine connection with is Cid.
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Benedikta’s tale is in many ways that of wasted potential as she is often conflicted by the corrupt path she chooses (mainly by Cid, who tries to show her that she can still make amends),yet in the end her will to preserve herself takes over. This not only leads to her eventual death but also leaves her in a tragic state of isolation as her actions prevent her from having a satisfying future. It is a sad story that did not need to end in tragedy.
4Barnabas Tharmr
Barnabas Tharmr is the King of Waloed and a Dominant of Odin. As an excellent tactician, Barnabas exerts his military influence to protect his kingdom from invaders in this tense time.His Eikon, Odin, invokes fear across the land and is respected as a powerful force by other dominants.
Not much is known about his past, but he is clearly well-versed in issuing a commanding presence that demands conformity. Upon losing his lover Benedikta, Barnabas spirals into insanity and gains a nihilistic approach toward life. Ultima utilizes this broken, susceptible man and capitalizes on his psyche by making him his sword. As a servant to Ultima, Barnabas sets out to deliver the deity’s message and embraces his power as Odin to torment Clive.
3Hugo Kupka
Hugo Kupka is an immensely powerful businessman and ruler who utilizes political pressure and tactics of manipulation to gain control over southern Dhalmekia. As cunning as he is intimidating, Kupka utilizes his abilities from the Eikon,Titan, to create a fearful imagewhile amassing an abundance of wealth through his negotiating strength as Dhalmekia’s economic advisor.
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Kupka proves to be a major threat to Clive and company with his remarkable intellect and immense physical prowess granted by the powers of Titan. After Bendikta Harmon’s death, Hugo spirals into a fit of rage and seeks out Clive for revenge.He proves to be a huge challenge Clive encounters, and the Eikon brawl between the two shakes the very land itself.
A divine being that endorses nihilism,Ultima seeks to reshape the worldwithout humans as he views them as a flawed creation, constrained by their own individual desires. As soon as Ultima is introduced, he is shown to be a ghastly entity who has immense god-like power. Initially, Ultima remains elusive and pulls the strings of Valesthean politics to enact his goals. According to his ideology, humanity is an inherently flawed creation that is destined to destroy itself.
It is this very characteristic that Ultima exploits, pitting various armies against one another in search of Eikons, particularly Ifrit, whose power he needs for completion. However, by the end, this divine being shows his true form by challenging Clive in aculminating battle that shall decide the fate of humanityand those he holds dear. The game poses an interesting conundrum of whether man can defy his own creator and win against a seemingly insurmountable power. In the end, Ultima’s own hypocrisy against will leads to his own downfall by his very own creation.
1Anabella Rosfield
Anabella is perhaps the epitome of humanity at its worst. The former Duchess of Rosaria betrayed her own kingdom, leading to its destruction in an act of treachery. After Clive is born, the Duchess grows resentful of her own son as he lacks Eikon abilities. This is unacceptable to Anabella, and she feels humiliated, thus she gives birth to a second boy, Joshua, who is the bearer of Phoenix.
However, this new development would not be enough to quench her thirst for power. Anabella pledges allegiance to imperial forces and launches an attack on the Rosarian Kingdom, unaffected by the horrific act of conquering the place she once called home and killing her husband and nearly giving the order to kill her own son, Clive. Anabella signifies the game’s overarching themes of corruption intensified by magic from theMothercrystals. She cares about nothing more than power and preserving her magic-infused bloodline. In this world, magic is a sought-after luxury, one that is tempting to the human heart’s inherent longing for power.
Next:Final Fantasy 16: Story Explained
