Receiving his name from the All-Father of Norse mythology, Odin is a recurring summon that appears in nearly every game in the Final Fantasy series. Since making his debut in Final Fantasy III, almost every mainline game in the series (as well as several of the spin-off titles) has included an appearance from Odin. Contrary to his appearances across various depictions in pop culture, Final Fantasy‘s version of Odin appears as a horned knight atop a powerful, 6 or 8-legged horse and is always wielding an intimidating blade. Using this blade, Odin will execute his signature, instant-kill move: Zantetsuken.
Regardless of which game he appears in, there are several consistencies across each Final Fantasy‘s version of Odin. His horse, Sleipnir, will always carry Odin into battle, and the number of legs that the steed has will change from entry to entry. Additionally, Odin always wears a helmet with horns adorning it and wields either a scimitar or his spear from Norse mythology, Gungnir. With few exceptions, Odin is typically one of the final summons that players will acquire and is exceedingly powerful, even when enemies are immune to instant-death attacks.
Final Fantasy III
Players can acquire the Odin summon by defeating him in the Saronia Catacombs that are reachable by using the Nautilus to search the depths in the sea southeast of Saronia. If players happen to miss their chance to recruit Odin this way, the Catastro spell required to summon him is also obtainable in Eureka for 60,000 gil. Summoners, Evokers, and Sages can all summon Odin using the Catastro spell, with the effect changing depending on which job players are using when summoning the fearsome knight.
Final Fantasy IV
Following his murder at the hands of the fiend of water Cagnazzo, the former King of Baron assumes the role of the Odin summon and awaits players within the basement of Castle Baron. It’s possible to fight and recruit Odin for Rydia to summon him in battle after visiting the Passage of the Eidolons/Feymarchin the underworld, though it’s recommended to have recruited every member of the final party before attempting the fight. Once Rydia learns the Odin summon, she can call on him to instantly kill large groups of weaker enemies using Zantetsuken.
Final Fantasy V
Characters using the Summoner job in Final Fantasy V can call on the game’s version of Odin after defeating him beneath the Castle of Bal in the Merged World. Players can reach the basement of the castle by traversing through Jachol Cave and then speak to him to initiate battle. Like his previous appearances, players have a limited amount of time in which to defeat Odin (one minute, to be precise) before he uses his Zantetsuken attack against the party, wiping them out completely.
Final Fantasy VI
Players can acquire Final Fantasy VI‘s version of Odin without needing to defeat him in battle beforehand, although the location where he can be found has its own series of challenges to overcome. Odin serves as the guardian of the Ancient Castle, where players can acquire his Esper and also upgrade it to the Raiden summon. Like previous versions, summoning Odin will see him perform his instant-kill Zantetsuken attack, and the Esper will teach players the Meteor spell at a rate of 1x AP. Odin also happens to be one of the only Espers that grants a level bonus to the speed stat, which the Raiden upgrade does not include.
Final Fantasy VII
Much like in Final Fantasy VI, players do not need to defeat Odin before obtaining his summon Materia in Final Fantasy VII, although there is a different enemy players must defeat before they can claim the knight as one of their available summon options. After arriving in Nibelheim, visiting the Shinra mansion will lead players to a room with a locked safe. Successfully deciphering the combination and unlocking the safe will result in a battle with the Lost Number boss, after which the Odin materia is given as a reward. Odin has two attacks, one with his scimitar dubbed “Steel-Bladed Sword” (a loose translation of Zantetsuken) that instantly kills enemies, and another attack with the spear Gungnir that deals damage to foes invulnerable to instant death effects.
Final Fantasy VIII
Unlike the other Guardian Force summons in Final Fantasy VIII, Odin is not controllable by the player but instead appears randomly during battles according to the party’s luck stat. Players can first acquire Odin at the Centra Ruins following solving a puzzle involving two statues and removable ruby eyes. Once in the room where Odin resides, the Guardian Force will challenge the player and present a 20 minute timer in which he must be defeated. Like his previous series appaearances, when Odin shows up on the battlefield it is to use his Zantetsuken attack, which will instantly kill all enemies on screen. After fighting Seifer in Lunatic Pandora, Odin transforms into Gilgamesh.
Final Fantasy IX
Dagger (aka Princess Garnet) can obtain the Odin summon spell by equipping the Dark Matter accessory and will need 30 AP to learn the spell. As in previous Final Fantasy games, Odin will appear during battle after summoning and perform the Zantetsuken attack, instantly killing all enemies on the battlefield. While it costs 128 MP to summon Odin earlier in the game, this cost dramatically reduces to 28 MP after Dagger has all of her Eidolons extracted and then reacquired. Dagger can also equip the Ancient Aroma add-on to learn the Odin’s Sword ability for 50 AP, allowing Odin’s Zantetsuken attack to still deal damage to enemies invulnerable to instant death.
Final Fantasy XI
Prior to the 2010 update to Final Fantasy XI, Odin only existed in the game as an Avatar and enemy of the player, but is now a summonable ally. Summoners over level 75 can bring Odin into battle and have him perform his signature Zantetsuken attack at the cost of completely draining the player’s MP and only being castable while under the effect of Astral Flow. Zantetsuken has the power to instantly wipe out weaker enemies and will typically deal damage equal to 10-20% of an enemy’s total HP for stronger foes.
Final Fantasy XII
While other Final Fantasy games opt to exclude Odin as a summon, the only game in the series to have the character appear in name only is Final Fantasy XII. The Archadian Empire’s use of traditional summon names for its signature airships is a recurring theme throughout the game, and though players get to see the Shiva, Ifrit, and Alexander ships, the Odin ship is never visible in the game. What little information there is in the game on the Odin is that it is a powerful airship in the 1st Fleet.
Final Fantasy XIII
Odin is the summon spell (aka Eidolon) that resides within Lightning’s signature rose-shaped Eidolith, which is hers and hers alone as an L’Cie. Prior to being able to summon Odin, Lightning and Hope must defeat him in battle as in other Final Fantasy games, but his appearance in battle in Final Fantasy XIII is unique in the series. Rather than appear as a knight atop his horse Sleipnir, Final Fantasy XIII‘s version of Odin takes the form of Sleipnir for Lightning to ride him into battle when his Gestalt gauge is full, and Zantetsuken makes a return once again as a powerful lightning-elemental attack. It’s possible to guarantee Odin’s secondary form by summoning him with Lightning as a Ravager in order to build up his Gestalt gauge.
Final Fantasy XIV
Final Fantasy XIV‘s version of the iconic summon monster is one of the game’s “Primals”, the name given to the traditional summon monsters from across the Final Fantasy series that are also occasionally referred to as Eikons or Eidolons. Odin in Final Fantasy XIV is one of the roaming Primals whose power is attached to an object rather than an area of land, and this sword contains his essence even after defeat. Players can only call upon Odin in very specific moments, but he is capable of completely wiping out both regular enemy groups and bosses.
Final Fantasy XVI
Odin is the penultimate foe that players must battle as Clive in Final Fantasy XVI, being the Eikon wielded by the mad king Barnabas Tharmr. As the dominant of Odin, Barnabas has used the immense destructive power of the Zantetsuken blade to tear the fabric of reality itself, and Clive must defeat both Barnabas and Odin atop a tower deep within the Kingdom of Waloed. Like other Eikon battles, Clive will obtain the abilities of Odin from Barnabas after defeating him, and his Eikon abilities are some of the best in the game. In battle, Clive can continually strike enemies using Odin’s other abilities to build up a gauge that allows him to trigger Zantetsuken, which can instantly kill weaker enemies and build up the stun gauge of stronger foes.
