Diabolos (Server)
This is one of the many worlds of FFXI. It was one of 20 servers activated upon the original release of FFXI in Japan.
ID Number: 13
Activation Date: May 16, 2002
History in the FF Series
Final Fantasy VI: Advance
Diabolos appears in the Game Boy Advance remake of FFVI. He is obtained by defeating the Kaiser Dragon in the Dragons' Den.
Final Fantasy VIII
Diabolos (FFVIII [JP]), Diablos (FFVIII [EN])
In FFVIII, Diabolos has to be defeated in order to be obtained. Diabolos is located inside an item, the Magical Lamp. Using this item transports the party to a stone floor surrounded by darkness where Diabolos fights them. Balamb Garden Headmaster Cid gives the SeeDs this item upon their graduation. Diabolos could be fought at any time, anywhere (including in the past by Laguna, Kiros, and Ward). Diabolos is a Gravity-element Summon who deals damage which is 10-100% of a target's HP, depending on Diabolos's level (Gravity was occasionally considered an Element in the FF series). Diabolos appears as a demonic, bat-like creature. His attack sequence involves a flock of bats forming into a growing black sphere under black and purple skies. From the black liquid sphere, Diabolos emerges, a demonic black and crimson gargoyle-like figure with spikes emerging from his face. He pulls the sphere towards the enemy, which flattens them. Arcane glyphs appear around the sphere before it disappears.
Final Fantasy XI
In FFXI, Diabolos is a Terrestrial Avatar, the Ruler of Dreams. He created the dream world Dynamis in another dimension, which he rules over. He appears in the Chains of Promathia storyline. He is not an ally, nor an adversary. To be obtained, he has to be defeated in The Shrouded Maw, a chamber in Pso'Xja, in the quest Waking Dreams.
Final Fantasy XII
Diabolos appears as a mark in FFXII, as a member of the imp family. He is involved in the hunt "The Child Snatcher". He has the red and black color scheme that he usually has, but is much smaller, and has flaming wings and a flaming spear.
Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings
Diabolos is the Rank II Flying Non-elemental Esper in Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings. His normal attack, Nightmare, deals damage to a single foe and may inflict Sleep, and his special attack, Gravity, takes off 25% of a single enemy's HP.
Moves:
"Dark Messenger"- deals gravity damage to every enemy, equal to 10-100% of their max HP, based on Diabolos's level. Its damage cannot exceed 9999, and does not work on enemies immune to gravity-based damage. (FFVIII) deals Gravity damage, reducing all opponents' HP to 1/16, ignoring protection to Instant Death, and also inflicts Seizure. It cannot fail. (FFVI: Advance)
"Ruinous Omen"- deals Dark-element damage to enemies in range, equal to a random percent of their max HP (FFXI)
"Nether Blast"- deals Dark-element damage (FFXI)
"Night Terror"- deals Dark-element damage (FFXI)
"Nightmare"- Inflicts Sleep & Bio status on all enemies in range (FFXI); deals damage to a single foe and may inflict Sleep (Revenant Wings)
"Ultimate Terror"- lowers the stats of all enemies in range (FFXI)
"Somnolence"- deals damage and weighs an enemy down (FFXI)
"Camisado"- deals physical damage to an enemy (FFXI)
"Noctoshield"- gives all party members in range the effect of Phalanx (FFXI)
"Dream Shroud"- raises Magic Attack and Magic Defense for all allies in range (FFXI)
"Gravity"- takes off 25% of a single enemy's HP (Revenant Wings)
Attributes:
Final Fantasy VIII
Stat Junction: HP-J, Mag-J, Hit-J, Abilityx3
Command Junction: Magic, GF, Draw, Item, Darkside
Character Ability: HP+20%, HP+40%, HP+80%, Mag+20%, Mag+40%, Mug
Party Ability: Enc-Half, Enc-None
GF Ability: GFHP+10%,20%,30%
Refine Ability: Time Mag-RF, ST Mag-RF
Compatibility Item: Steel Orb
GF Rival: None (slightly lowers compatibility with the other 15 GFs)
Compatibility-Boosting Magic Spells: Demi, Flare (only slightly), Meteor (only slightly), Ultima (only slightly), Apocalypse (only slightly)
Compatibility-Lowering Magic Spells: Reflect, Esuna (only slightly), Dispel (only slightly), Protect (only slightly), Shell (only slightly)
Final Fantasy VI: Advance
Diabolos teaches the following:
- Graviga X5
- Gravija X3
At Level Up, he provides a +100% boost to HP.
Historical Background
Diabolos is the Greek word for "devil". It was translated into many languages to mean devil, such as Diablo (Spanish). Diabolos actually means "accuser" or "slanderer" but eventually the general word came the specific name of the entity. In the original Greek rendering, it was used to refer to the Christian Devil (The New Testament was written in Greek). Devil is actually the English translation of Diabolos. In Christian belief, this being is the embodiment of evil. The Devil originated as an angel who became corrupt and was cast out of Heaven as a fallen angel. His exile was the result of his pride (refusing to acknowledge and bow down to humanity) as well as the war he waged against God. He corrupts humanity and plagues the world with all manner of misfortunes: plagues, illnesses, war, strife, conflict, etc. The Devil has received many alternate epithets over the years: Satan, Lucifer, Beelzebub, Mephistopheles (Mephisto), etc.
The concept of the Devil is believed to originate in Zoroastrianism with Angra Mainyu (also known as Ahriman) as well as from the Judaic Satan in the Book of Job in the Old Testament. However, there Satan was merely the "devil's advocate", an angel who acted as a skeptic and whom God allowed to afflict Job with all the ills and malaises he suffered. Satan is Hebrew for "prosecutor/accuser" or "adversary". The Islamic Devil, Iblis, was inspired by the Christian Devil. However, this being was created out of smokeless fire and had no power other than to persuade people to do evil. Iblis was actually created by Allah to tempt humanity. On Qiyamah (Day of Resurrection), Iblis will be cast into the flames of Hell along with all the humans he deceived. Iblis isn't Allah's rival, he is one of Allah's creations. Other versions of the story have him similarly cast out of Heaven for refusing to honor Adam. It should be noted some sects of Christianity, such as Gnosticism and the Cathars, believed God was the Devil and Lucifer was the source of good.
The Devil (as Satan) has appeared in Late Medieval, Renaissance, and Early Modern European literature, most notably The Divine Comedy by Dante Aligheri and Paradise Lost by John Milton.