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Final Fantasy VIII

UP YOURS!!
Quote by: Selphie, To Galbadian guards once she gets to the control room of the desert missile base

Important Terms

Refer to the following tables to learn more about some of the Important Terms used in Final Fantasy VIII. These terms will be used regularly in the Final Fantasy VIII section here.

Important Terms List

Term	Description
Ammo	Ammo is the abbreviation of Ammunition and these are projectiles fired by Guns.
Angel Wing	This is Rinoa's second Limit Break, which she gets after Squall saves her in space. She'll get a pair of white feathered wings, similar to the one that is printed on her blue sweater and you'll loose control over her and she starts casting magic at the enemy.
Centra	(セントラ, Sentora) The name of a once flourishing civilization, but it was destroyed after the Lunar Cry long before the game starts. The Centra Ruins, Edea's Orphanage and the mobile shelters are the only things remaining from the Centra civilization.
Elder	Another common form that the Shumi may take upon evolution. Elders appear greatly similar to the Shumi themselves, but are much taller, and grow facial features that resemble beards. There is one known Elder who resides and leads the Shumi Village, and his attendant may become an Elder someday. NORG himself appears to be a misshapen Elder.
Garden Festival	A committee for students to have some fun in Garden. After the previous head of the committee leaves, Selphie takes over and tries to get people to join it. She wants to hold a big concert for the people of Garden.
Gil	The currency of most Final Fantasy games, it's usually won in battles, but in Final Fantasy VIII, you will gain it as a salary-basis for completing mission.
Great Hyne	A 'character' in Final Fantasy VIII, who created mankind and the first Sorceress ever to exist. A Sorceress is also known as Hyne's descendant for this reason, and as a symbol of respect. The tradition of Sorceresses and the passing down of their powers began through the legends circulating around Hyne.
Griever	Griever is the lion motif on Squall's Gunblade and Ring. As a symbol the lion is diverse. It's most common traits are: dignity, strength, courage, justice, military might, and it relates to almost any proud, courageous characteristic. The parts of the lion carry different symbolism as well. The head is means care and vigilance and if it is winged like on the Revolver and on the Ring, it represents fire.
Guardian Forces	Guardian Forces (or just GF) are an independent form of energy. By combining it with Para-Magic, it is possible to control tremendous energy. Memory loss is a possible side effect, but this has not been proved as of yet.
Junctioning	A system to connect a character with a Guardian Force, so the character will gain strength & more abilities.
Lion Heart	(ライオンハート, Raionhāto) The ultimate Gunblade for Squall.
Lunar Cry	(月の涙後, Tsuki no Namida) It refers to a phenomenon where creatures of the Moon, enemies, fall to earth at regular intervals. The enemies that roam the plant are the ones that had bred since the last Lunar Cry. This phenomenon may also transform animals into enemies.
Moomba	(ムンバ, Munba) They are the possible final stage in the life cycle of a Shumi. They have red fur and get around by running or walking an all four legs, though they can also stand on two legs. They have oversized paws with sharp claws and are usually used as slaves or laborers and as such are treated poorly. Most are unable to talk, but have an expressive body language. They also present no difficulty in communicating with other Moomba's and Shumi, and can recognize, and maybe track, someone's DNA by licking their blood. Laguna befriended some and tried to teach them to talk, but all they could say was "Laguna". Due to this kindness, Laguna became a hero to the Moomba race. Years later, they recognized Laguna's son Squall through his blood when he was held captured in D-District Prison. The Shumi hold Moomba's in high regard, almost as they do Elders. While there appears to be only a single Moomba who stays in the Shumi Village, the Elder speaks of many Moomba's, therefore hinting that Moomba's do indeed come from the Village, and were once Shumi.
Moon	The Moon has an important role in Final Fantasy VIII, as all enemies come from it, brought over to Earth during the Lunar Cry. They say this happens when the Moon is in its closest position to Earth.
Para-Magic	"Magic used by regular humans", as Final Fantasy VIII explains it. This shows that Limit Breaks and Sorceress' Powers involve magic in a different way. Dr. Odine developed Para-Magic, by studying on a Sorceress. Balamb Garden uses it and it involves manipulating energy and drawing in specific spells from the enemy.
Ragnarok	This is the primary airship and the best and fastest vehicle in Final Fantasy VIII. The ship has at least two Save Points and at the end of the game, after Time Compression, the Card Club Group will be available to challenge aboard the ship.
Rail Transportation	This is the main way of traveling before you've got the airship. You can travel between Balamb and Galbadia or to Timber, Dollet or Deling City. There is a rail connection between Timber and Esthar on the Horizon Bridge, going through FH, although it is now disused. It will cost you 3000 Gil to use the train.
Ring	Squall's ring features a profile of Griever's head along with one wing along its side. Rinoa expresses interest in this ring later on in the game and eventually ends up possessing it where she wears it next to her own ring through a chain around her neck. Eventually Squall allows her to keep it. The ring, as a symbol, is a tangible manifestation of the CIRCLE; it represents infinity and eternity, divinity and life. The ring also represents power, dignity, sovereignty, and strength. Thus, to bestow a ring is to indicate a transference of power. As is exemplified by the traditional wedding ring, the object is also binding, as with husband and wife.
Save Point	A place to save your progress and fully heal the party's HP and MP. When you're on fields, this is one huge Save Point. In town and dungeons are Save Points on specific places and they must be touched before you can save. Usually, they are placed right before a hard point in the game.
SeeD	A mercenary force started by Edea and Cid. To the outside world SeeD is a mercenary force for hire, conducting missions around the world as battle support and undercover operatives. Their services are requested by governments and civilians, their tasks range from providing military support to protecting civilians. Its true purpose however is to monitor and contain Sorceress activity if they ever posed a threat to the world. SeeD battle operations are noted for their skillful use of Para-Magic. They are in high demand by groups requiring a small force of undercover specialists, commissions made through such dispatches are an important part of the Gardens' income.
Shumi	The Shumi (シュミ, Shumi) are a race of humanoid creatures. Although the game offers little background information on this race, they seem simple and artistic in nature, but strangely technologically developed. They are also hinted to be merchants, who will go as far as funding entire projects. It is known that Cid used funds from the Shumi to build the Garden military schools, to the point where a Shumi named NORG become the finance head of the Balamb institution and practically its owner. Their forms are also based on their spirit and behavior, hence the obese form of the greedy NORG. It is also possible that Shumi may be immortal - when NORG is defeated, he does not actually die, but becomes an egg that eventually hatches, hinting that the Shumi are constantly reincarnating.
Study Panel	A Computer terminal that is used for school. Students can access them for info about their Garden or their studies. The system is garden-wide and also provides forums for chats or even public home-pages depending on the faculty's say-so.
Tempest	The car that Squall drives in when he attacks Sorceress Edea in Deling City. It a reminiscent of the American Cadilac, it's light blue with left hand steering, so designed to drive on the right side of the road. The roads of Deling City are designed for driving on the left side of the road, so it can be assumed that the car is from a different region. It does have a Galbadian license plate: WH-1637551.
Timber Maniacs	A publishing company that was funded 20 years before the story starts and it has published many magazines, one of the more famous ones are the Timber Maniacs, which is a compilation of freelance writings. Under President Deling, the Magazines were almost closed, because of revolutionist ideals. Since then, they shifted focus to publishing Battle series and photo books. Laguna joined the company when Kiros tells him that the chief editor was interested in making world travel articles. Laguna jumped at the chance and signed on to become a world-traveling journalist. Timber Maniacs mainly consists of articles about places in the world, which are written during his journey of rescuing Ellone.
Time Compression	The method Sorceress Ultimecia planned to change the course of time, space and destiny.
White SeeD	An elite force which were created in secret by Sorceress Edea to protect herself, Ellone and other children who have inherited Sorceress powers. They reside on a ship, and they are a secret group, unlike the only existing Garden SeeD's. They are very cautious and will never remain in once place for long, though they do like the Centra landscape and are usually found somewhere in the Centra continent. Although not much is shown of them these SeeD have demonstrated a high jumping skill, hinting at a higher level of training than normal Garden SeeD. The White SeeD uniform consists of a cream colored over-coat with tails that extend to behind the knees. The collars are high, concealing the neck while the left and right shoulders of the coat possess decorative plates/patches with gold designs. Below the over-coat light gray trousers are worn tucked into black knee-high boots. A cream colored headband completes the uniform. The uniforms are identical for both genders.

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