Final Fantasy VI（Super Famicom）
Characters and unique commands
Check initial recruitment and post-ruin conditions for all 14, including Tina and Cayenne. Tools, Blitz inputs and Mog's Dances are organized for SFC controls.
Scope: Japanese Super Famicom release (April 2, 1994) / GBA additions and Pixel Remaster changes noted separately / Content checked: October 2, 2026
Who to recruit first and required companions
Even at the same location, recruitment may not progress unless a required companion is in your current party. Shadow additionally requires a rescue record from before the world's ruin.
Initial recruitment and rejoining conditions for 14 characters
| Companion | Unique command | Before the world's ruin | After the world's ruin | Control notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tina | Trance | At the start of the story | After the first Mobliz event, return after obtaining the Falcon and defeat Humbaba | Combines magic and healing. Use her transformation time to attack bosses. |
| Locke | Steal | Rescue Tina in Narshe | Take 2 parties through Phoenix Cave and complete the Kohlingen event | Also enables entry to locked houses in Narshe. |
| Edgar | Tools | Escape from Figaro Castle | Follow Gerad from Nikeah and defeat Figaro Castle's Tentacles | Use Auto Crossbow for groups and Drill for single targets. |
| Mash | Blitz | The Vargas battle on Mount Kolts | Rescue the child from Tzen's collapsing house | Press A after the input. Different Blitzes scale with Strength or Magic. |
| Celes | Runic | South Figaro in Locke's scenario | Starting character after the world's ruin | Heal with items during Runic. Do not cast your own spells into it. |
| Cayenne | Bushido | Imperial Camp in Mash's scenario | Follow Lola's pigeon and use Rust-Rid to enter Mount Zozo | Completing Doma Castle's dream unlocks every Bushido technique. |
| Shadow | Throw | Temporarily accompanies you at the lone house in Mash's scenario and elsewhere | Rescue on the Floating Continent → Cave on the Veldt → Coliseum battle wagering the Ichigeki blade | Floating Continent rescue is required for rejoining. Shuriken and similar items are consumed. |
| Gau | Rage / Leap | Use Dried Meat on the Veldt | Finish a Veldt battle with 3 or fewer and wait when he appears | You cannot choose individual actions during Rage. Check the enemy's elements and techniques first. |
| Setzer | Slots | After the opera; joins battles in Imperial territory | Speak to him at Kohlingen's tavern | Needed to unlock the Falcon in Darill's Tomb. |
| Stragos | Lore | The fire in Thamasa | Bring Relm to the foot of the Cultists' Tower | Do not finish the enemy before learning Force Field or Grand Trine. |
| Relm | Sketch | Ultros battle at the Espers' Gathering Place | Defeat Chadarnook in Owzer's Mansion | A save where Shadow was not rescued requires rescuing her in the Cave on the Veldt first. |
| Mog | Dance | After the Magitek Research Facility, rescue Mog rather than the thief in Narshe | Speak to him in Narshe Mines' moogle settlement | Water Harmony is available only before the world's ruin in the SFC version. Molulu's Charm is exclusive to him. |
| Umaro | Automatic actions | Only after the world's ruin | Bring Mog, defeat the yeti in the Yeti's Cave and speak to it again | No normal command input. Choose his relics beforehand. |
| Gogo | Mimic | Only after the world's ruin | Have everyone swallowed by Triangle Island's Zone Eater and speak to Gogo deep inside it | Set commands on the Status screen. Cannot equip magicite. |
Mash: 8 Blitzes and SFC inputs
Choose Blitz and enter the directions in order after the cursor moves to Mash. Confirm with A at the end. Press each direction in sequence, not simultaneously.
| Technique | Input | Learning condition | Damage scales with |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exploding Fist | ←→← | From the start | Strength |
| Aura Cannon | ↓↙← (↓←← also works) | Already learned on initial recruitment | Magic |
| Meteor Strike | X Y ↓ ↑ | Lv10 | Strength |
| Phoenix Dance | ←↙↓↘→ (←←↓↓→ also works) | Lv15 | Magic |
| Chakra | R L R L X Y | Lv23 | Not dependent on stats |
| Vacuum Wave | ↑↗→↘↓↙← (↑↑→→↓↓← also works) | Lv30 | Magic |
| Spiral Soul | R L X Y → ← | Lv42 | Not dependent on stats |
| Dream Dance | ←↖↑↗→↘↓↙← (←←↑↑→→↓↓← also works) | Lv70 or visit Duncan | Magic |
- Diagonals can be replaced with an adjacent vertical or horizontal direction. Simplified inputs produce the same technique.
- After obtaining the Falcon, bring Mash to Duncan at the center of the cross-shaped trees northeast of Narshe to learn Dream Dance.
- After Spiral Soul, Mash cannot be revived during that battle. This differs from ordinary revival used to bring a healer back.
Edgar: 8 Tools and acquisition conditions
Tools work while held in your inventory; they need not be equipped in the weapon slot. They are not consumed and lose no power from the back row.
| Tool | Use | Damage scales with | Accessible acquisition method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Auto Crossbow | Physical attack on all enemies | Strength | Figaro Castle, 250 gil |
| Noiseblaster | Confuses all enemies | Not dependent on stats | Figaro Castle, 500 gil |
| Bioblaster | Poison attack on all enemies | Magic | Figaro Castle, 750 gil |
| Flash | Group attack and darkness | Magic | Figaro Castle after Tina disappears, 1000 gil |
| Drill | Defense-ignoring attack on one target | Strength | Figaro Castle after Tina disappears, 3000 gil |
| Chainsaw | Single-target attack or instant death | Strength | Set Zozo's clock to 6:10:50 |
| Debilitator | Creates an elemental weakness on an enemy | Not dependent on stats | Figaro Castle after the world's ruin, 5000 gil |
| Air Anchor | Makes the enemy destroy itself after its next action | Strength | Examine the right-hand wall in the Cultists' Tower's first chest room |
- In the SFC version, Figaro Castle's listed prices are halved when Edgar leads the party.
- Against enemies immune to the Chainsaw's instant death, choose reliable damage such as Drill.
Mog: locations for learning 8 Dances
Put Mog in the party and finish a battle with the appropriate background. Check learned Dances under Abilities in the menu.
- For Water Harmony in the SFC version, rescue Mog in Narshe before the world's ruin.
- Park the airship near Nikeah and ride a chocobo to Baren Falls. Cross the Veldt and Crescent Mountain to enter the Serpent Trench.
- Finish a Serpent Trench battle and check that the Dance was added. End the battle with normal attacks rather than another Dance that changes the background.
- After washing ashore at Nikeah, you can return to the parked airship.
| Dance | Battle location | Timing |
|---|---|---|
| Wind Rhapsody | Plains | Before and after |
| Forest Nocturne | Forest | Before and after |
| Desert Lullaby | Desert | Before and after |
| Love Serenade | Indoors, such as Zozo | Before and after |
| Earth Blues | Mountains, such as Mount Kolts or Mount Zozo | Before and after |
| Water Harmony | Lethe River or Serpent Trench | SFC: only before the world's ruin |
| Darkness Requiem | Caves | Before and after |
| Snowman Rondo | Narshe snowfields | After the world's ruin |
- SFC Water Harmony cannot be learned after the world's ruin. The GBA Leviathan battle is an exception in a different edition.
Gau: distinguish encounter registration from Rage learning
- First encounter the desired enemy in its normal location. Encountered enemies are added to the Veldt.
- Using Gau's Leap on the Veldt temporarily removes him. Fight several times with the remaining members, then wait without attacking Gau when he returns.
- Choosing Rage makes him use the techniques and elemental actions associated with that enemy. You cannot specify each subsequent action yourself.
- When collecting enemies from places you cannot revisit, such as the Phantom Train, factory, Floating Continent or Doma's dream, encounter them before finishing the area.
- Do not treat 256 data slots as "all 256 are learnable in normal play." This page does not list every enemy whose Rage can be learned.
Stragos: important opportunities to learn by watching
| Technique | Learning location | Action to take first |
|---|---|---|
| Grand Trine | Hidon at Ebot's Rock | Bring Stragos, defeat the 4 Erebus enemies and wait for the main body to use it |
| Force Field | The Fiend in Kefka's Tower | Put Stragos in the party heading to the Fiend and watch the technique before defeating it |
- After seeing the technique, finish the battle and confirm it was learned. Do not proceed with Stragos in a condition that prevents him recognizing it.
- Equipping Relm with the Fake Mustache changes Sketch to Control. It can be used to prompt the action you want to learn.
Checks before using unique commands
| Companion | What to check |
|---|---|
| Celes | Equip a weapon that supports Runic. It also absorbs affected allied spells, so heal with items. |
| Cayenne | SFC Bushido uses a charging gauge to choose techniques. Watch enemy actions and allied HP while charging. |
| Shadow | Throw consumes the item used. Check Shuriken and other supplies before bosses. |
| Gogo | Set the command slots on the Status screen. This character does not learn personal magic through magicite. |
| Umaro | Actions are automatic. Decide the role beforehand with the relics this character can equip. |