Brace yourselves before you waste yourselves
In The Zodiac Age, a good piece of armor can mean the difference between life and death! It’s just as important to equip the right armor as it is the right weapon. Though armor is split into several subcategories like shields, heavy helms or mystic armor, there’s plenty of great picks from each category! Below are the top 10 pieces of gear that players should aim towards during their journeys.
10. Renewing Morion
How to get:
Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age — Guides — How to get the Renewing Morion - RNG method
The Renewing Morion is a fantastic light armor that bestows a permanent Regen effect on the player and boosts Vitality by 4. As with most light armor, it also boosts HP by 370. Because of its large HP boost and Regen effect, it’s a great piece to equip on tanking classes like Shikari.
The permanent Regen effect also immunizes the wearer to Sap, making it great against enemies that utilize the status ailment often.
Renewing Morion strengths:
- Regen effect is great for survivability
- Renders the wearer immune to Sap
Renewing Morion full stats: https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Renewing_Morion_(Final_Fantasy_XII)
9. Dueling Mask
How to get:
Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age — Guides — How to get the Dueling Mask - RNG method
The Dueling Mask is interesting in that it’s a light armor that—aside from its lofty HP boost of +800—also happens to increase Strength by 2. This makes it a fantastic piece for characters using melee weapons that rely on the strength stat.
Dueling Mask strengths:
- Best light armor available for the head slot
- Great for physical attackers
Dueling Mask full stats: https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Dueling_Mask_(Final_Fantasy_XII)
8. Mirage Vest
How to get:
Final Fantasy 12 The Zodiac Age WEAK MODE - MIRAGE VEST Guaranteed RNG MANIPULATION! POWERFUL ARMOR!
The Mirage Vest is a great light armor option for any character using speed based weapons—daggers, ninja swords and bows. While it doesn’t offer any beneficial status ailments or elemental resistances, it offers a considerably high Vitality and Speed+10 in addition to HP+800.
This armor piece offers the biggest stat boosts for its type, and so is perfect to consider for a Shikari.
Mirage Vest strengths:
- High Speed and Vitality make it great for tanking characters
- Good option for Axes, Hammers, Handbombs in addition to Daggers, Ninja Swords and Bows
Mirage Vest full stats: https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Mirage_Vest_(Final_Fantasy_XII)
7. Genji Helm
How to get:
Final Fantasy XII The Zodiac Age - Gilgamesh - All Genji Armor
The Genji Helm is a heavy armor helm that not only offers a massive Strength +9 and Magick Power +4, but also enables the wearer to counter attacks at a rate of half their speed rate as a percentage!
Due to the nature of this piece of armor, it’s preferable to equip it on a character that’s either going to be taking lots of hits, or a character that’s focusing on dealing damage—particularly a Bushi.
Genji Helm strengths:
- Auto-counter makes it a great piece to put on tanking characters
- Works extremely well for Bushi
Genji Helm full stats: https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Genji_Helm_(Final_Fantasy_XII)
6. Genji Armor
How to get:
Final Fantasy XII The Zodiac Age - Gilgamesh - All Genji Armor
Similarly to the Genji Helm, the Genji Armor is also heavy armor that increases Strength by 9 and Magick by 3. It also improves the chance to counter, making it pair extremely well with the aforementioned head piece.
However, players should keep in mind that you still need to equip a piece that grants them the ability to counter, as this piece only increases the rate. One common piece that grants the effect is the Battle Harness accessory.
Genji Armor will work well with any character also wearing the Genji Helm, as the benefits are similar and will also grant counter to the wearer.
Genji Armor strengths:
- Synergizes with Genji Helm
- Works extremely well for Bushi
Genji Armor full stats: https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Genji_Armor_(Final_Fantasy_XII)
5. Maximillian
How to get:
Final Fantasy XII Zodiac Age. MAXIMILLIAN! 64DEF Heavy Armor Earliest & Easiest!
The Maximillian is an excellent heavy armor that offers high defense in addition to 9 Strength and 6 Speed. It also offers a paltry Magick Resist +1, but this piece is best used on damage dealers that use weapons that use strength or speed.
It can be obtained both earlier and easier than most good armor, and thus players may want to obtain it as early as possible.
Maximillian strengths:
- Great heavy armor for physical attackers using strength or speed formula weapons
Maximillian full stats: https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Maximillian_(Final_Fantasy_XII)
4. Black Robes
How to get:
Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age - Early Black Mask/Black Robes
The Black Robes are an amazing mystic armor with a nice trick up its sleeve. It bears a hidden Dark Damage+50% bonus, so it’s a great option for any character focusing on utilizing the Dark element, particularly Black Mages or Shikari using the Yagyu Darkblade.
It also offers Magick Resist+5, MP+66 and Magick Power+12, so equipping this on Black Mage or Red Mage is the best option in most contexts.
The robes can be obtained very early in the game, making it a great piece to wear just for its high defense compared to other armor options at that point in time.
This armor piece truly shines on a Shikari using the Yagyu Darkblade against enemies weak to Dark, like the game’s super boss!
Black Robes strengths:
- Fantastic damage dealing piece for a Shikari in certain situations
- Early accessibility makes this a great armor piece to wear on any character that can equip it for a majority of the game
Black Robes full stats: https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Black_Robes_(Final_Fantasy_XII)
3. Brave Suit
How to get:
FINAL FANTASY Ⅻ THE ZODIAC AGE - Brave Suit Spawn Location
Without a doubt, the Brave Suit is one of the best light armors for the body available in the game. Although it only offers +500 HP, it also grants the wearer a permanent Bravery buff, making it extremely beneficial to equip on characters looking to hit hard.
Given Bravery’s limited availability in The Zodiac Age compared to the original version, a piece of armor that grants it permanently becomes more invaluable than ever.
Brave Suit strengths:
- Auto-bravery can save lots of MP and turns during longer battles
- Great to combine with characters under Berserk status
Brave Suit full stats: https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Brave_Suit_(Final_Fantasy_XII)
2. Zodiac Escutcheon
How to get:
Zodiac Escutcheon in Sochen Cave Palace | Final Fantasy XII The Zodiac Age Tips and Tricks
This shield is considered the 2nd best shield in the game due to its massive +75 Evade and +45 Magick Evade, making it able to grant both types of evades in one equipment slot. Most wielders will have near-guaranteed block rates using this.
Additionally, it comes with a very handy immunity to the Lightning element, so it’s particularly effective against monsters that cast heavy-hitting thunder spells.
It’s worth noting that certain very high level bosses at endgame will ignore the evade bonuses granted by shields.
Zodiac Escutcheon strengths:
- Flexible shield for tanking in all situations
- Thunder immunity is helpful to mitigate damage
Zodiac Escutcheon full stats: https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Zodiac_Escutcheon_(Final_Fantasy_XII)
1. Gendarme
How to get:
Final Fantasy XII The Zodiac Age HOW TO GET GENDARME - BEST SHIELD - BEATING THE RNG GUIDE
The Gendarme is the ultimate shield but also a secret equipment piece, making it very hard to get! However, it’s undoubtedly the best shield in the game by a landslide!
Not only does it absorb every single element, but it also adds a massive 90 to both Evade and Magick Evade, making the wielder virtually untouchable from both damage magic and physical attacks.
Combining this shield with the Ribbon accessory will turn any character into a solid wall, becoming both immune to elements and nearly all status ailments!
It is similarly subject to the same single weakness of the Zodiac Escutcheon in that various high level endgame bosses will ignore the evade stats granted by shields.
Gendarme strengths:
- Immunity to every status ailment
- Extremely high physical and magickal evasion
- Excellent synergy with the Ribbon accessory
Gendarme full stats: https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Gendarme_(Final_Fantasy_XII)
