If you have played a Final Fantasy game, then chances are that you have come in contact with a carbuncle. Depending on the game, you may have different associations with them. What ties them all together though is that they are magical creatures with red gems in their foreheads.
Despite being in so many Final Fantasy games, a lot of fans do not know much about carbuncles. If you search the word "carbuncle," you may come to regret it since carbuncle is also a word for a cluster of boils. Gross! However, you are in luck because this list will cover all the trivia you need to know on Final Fantasy's carbuncles.
10 They Are Based On A Real Mythical Creature
Outside of Final Fantasy, carbuncles actually exist in myth. Devoted fans have done the research and found that the first reference to a carbuncle was actually from a Spanish historian, Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés. It was mentioned in writing in the mid-16th Century.
Put plainly, there were mysterious sightings of animals with reflective stones in their foreheads. They were elusive though, and descriptions varied quite a bit. There is a running theory now that what the Spaniards saw actually was pink fairy armadillos.
9 Final Fantasy V Had The First Carbuncles
The first time carbuncles became a staple of Final Fantasy games was in Final Fantasy V. That goes back to 1992!
The carbuncle was actually an optional boss fight that the player could encounter in Castle Exdeath. The design for the boss is quite more fierce than later versions, who act more as allies and summons the player can use.
8 They Have Had Non-Final Fantasy Appearances
Gamers who don't play Final Fantasy may already be familiar with carbuncles. Games like Puyo Pop, Itadaki Street Portable, Knights of the Crystals, Puzzle and Dragons, and Antique Carnivale.
It is quite likely that these carbuncles were inspired by the Final Fantasy ones, as a lot of them share similar traits with those designs and, like Final Fantasy, are games out of Japan.
7 A Carbuncle Is Also The Name For The Stone In Their Forehead
Carbuncle is not just a cluster of boils or a mythological creature, it is also the name of any red gemstone. The word is used for gemstone in all kinds of literature such as The Bible, Hamlet, Paradise Lost, Sherlock Holmes, and many others.
All refer to carbuncle as a gem rather than a creature.
6 Unlike Chocobos, They Look Quite Different In Each Game
Carbuncles go alone with moogles, cactaur, and chocobos in terms of being part of the Final Fantasy brand. However, unlike the others, carbuncles look very different in each game. It actually is pretty clever, as there are so many descriptions of what the mythological carbuncle looked like when Spaniards put out records of mysterious glowing animals with gems in their heads in the mid 16th century.
Final Fantasy carbuncles range from cat-like, dog-like, fox-like, to even lizard-like.
5 You Can Glamour Your Summons to Always Look Like Carbuncle In Final Fantasy XIV
Final Fantasy XIV has the arcanist class that uses carbuncle to fight. However, the arcanist class turns into either summoner or scholar once it hits a higher level. Scholars then summon fairies and summoners summon egis.
However, carbuncles are so loved by the community that the game designers gave players a way to glamor their egis back into carbuncles.
4 The Mythical Carbuncle Appear In Some Anime
If they appear in Japanese games like Final Fantasy, you can pretty much guarantee that you'll them in anime as well. Espeon, a beloved psychic-type from Pokémon is one example. That ruby gem in its forehead should be quite familiar to carbuncle fans.
Crystal Beast Ruby Carbuncle is also a card that shows up in Yu-Gi-Oh. Those are the most well known, and it is likely to see more carbuncles appear in anime in the future.
3 Final Fantasy XIV And Final Fantasy XI Gives Carbuncles The Most Attention
If you want the Final Fantasy games that have the most carbuncle, then you need to pick up Final Fantasy XIV and XI. Not only do they give the creatures more attention than the other games, but the designs are arguably the most adorable.
In Final Fantasy XIV, you can basically have a carbuncle always follow you around if you play as an arcanist and summoner. In Final Fantasy XI, it is sort of the same in that you can have the summoner job with your own carbuncle.
2 Final Fantasy Carbuncles Weren't Always Cute And Cuddly
This picture of carbuncle concept art was revealed in the Final Fantasy V Anthology book and it made many fans' jaws drop. It looks like Yoshi from Mario and Cell from Dragon Ball Z had an ugly child together! The full image even has the creature wearing sneakers, which is quite an odd choice.
Thank goodness the artists took carbuncles down a more fluffy mammal route. There is a lizard version in Final Fantasy Tactics, but its design actually is pretty cute.
1 Final Fantasy III Actually Had Carbuncles . . . Sort Of
There is a reason why Final Fantasy III isn't known for being the first game with carbuncles. That is because while it had carbuncles, it was only in name and not what became the common Final Fantasy-brand carbuncle.
They were just eyeballs in flesh clumps. No gem, no animal traits, nothing similar to the carbuncles Final Fantasy sports today. However, they did deserve a mention since they were called carbuncles.