Since Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion doesn't contain a multitude of weapons to collect, influencing Zack's stats and resistances boils down to its extensive list of accessories. Players begin the game with a mere two slots, but a pair of quests that open up at the beginning of Chapter Four allow for two more for a total of four.
There are enough solid accessories to choose between to make the act of limiting oneself to four somewhat challenging. That's why we've isolated the cream of the crop, the ultimate equipment which, upon acquisition, makes for the obvious optimal garb. Dress for success, SOLDIER 1st Class Zack Fair, or suffer the consequences of failure.
7 Soul Of Thamasa
Throughout the Final Fantasy series, magic spells range from pivotal to nearly pointless. Crisis Core: FF7 is far closer to the former than the latter. Properly pumped-up Magic Materia can really put the hurt on the competition. That's why the Soul of Thamasa, which gets its name from the titular Final Fantasy 6 village of magi, Thamasa, comes in handy. It nullifies MP costs outright, so you won't have to rely upon the devil-may-care DMW wheel to kindly offer up temporary niceness.
The ability to fling spell after spell at the enemy can provide a golden opportunity to stagger dangerous fiends into oblivion, preventing them from casting things you might not be prepared for (especially Death). For that reason, Soul of Thamasa, which can be found as a treasure chest in the 'Machines Gone Haywire' mission from the Great Cavern of Wonders category, is a rad must-have until you've obtained the absolute best replacements.
6 Genji Helm
Although the Genji equipment in Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion is all on our roster, the Genji Helm is probably the least significant of the four-pack. That's saying something, because the Genji Helm is fantastic. You'll never spend a single MP or even AP with this thing. That means you've got the Soul of Thamasa and its excellent advantage, and you can double your fun with attack abilities as well.
You'll need to unlock the Network Shade Shop for this piece. Unfortunately, that means completing Mission 9-5-4 'Abnormal Power', which numbers among the hardest places Zack can ever venture.
5 Brutal
Brutal is your big ticket to five-figure damage numbers. Equipping this appropriately-titled accessory allows Zack to break the normal damage barrier of 9,999. The upper limit is now 99,999. As you can imagine, this makes a great many enemies a piece of cake. Furthermore, it makes the most challenging enemies doable.
You'll need Brutal in order to make good on the Costly Punch AP-based attack's promise to dish out major pain, since without an accessory that breaks the 9,999 barrier, it will be significantly restricted in its capabilities. The earliest you can obtain one is as a (very) rare steal from a Crazy Sword in Mission 3-5-4, though you're far likelier to get it just by clearing Mission 7-4-6, 'Breakthrough'.
4 Adamant Bangle
We rank the Adamant Bangle even higher than the Brutal because as peachy as it is to break the damage limit, breaking the standard 9,999 HP limit is thrice as important. If you're tackling the toughest fights in Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion, having five-digit hit points isn't just advisable. It's mandatory.
Creatures in the uppermost echelons of the hierarchy can and will strike for tens of thousands even with incredible Vitality and/or Spirit stats. Grabbing the Adamant Bangle from Mission 7-3-6 is the way to go.
3 Genji Shield
The last of our easier placements before we succumb to a tie, the Genji Shield casts a permanent Barrier and MBarrier on Zack, which is nice. It also makes him immune to elemental attacks and status effects, which is... beyond nice.
Mind you, there are still plenty of things that can and will hurt Zack, including the aforementioned monsters that can dole out tens of thousands of damage (though with the physical and magical barriers up, you will of course be mitigating some of that pressure). Finding the Genji Shield is a tad odd; it's a rare drop from the Magic Pot monster (and mascot summon!), which spawns somewhat uncommonly in several missions, the earliest being 'Master Tonberry'.
2 TIE: Genji Glove And Genji Armor
We know it's kind of a copout to grant ties, but hey, Crisis Core plays dirty by featuring a quartet of absolute bangers. The Genji Glove takes Brutal's break damage limit effect and adds in a constant critical hit rate. The result is a ton more damage even on normal strikes. It's Brutal Two: Electric Brutaloo. It's found in 'Biomechanical Threats' in the Great Cave of Wonders' 'Doors to the Unknown'.
The Genji Armor is the Adamant Bangle's successor. Your HP limit is elevated to 99,999, but you've also got both the Regen and Endure buffs on constantly. It's the Glove's inverse, in a sense, and also its equal. Alas, you must complete the entire DMW Gallery to get it.
1 Heike Soul
At last, our peculiar decision to include pictures of locations to represent accessories pays off. The rocket model above signifies launching into the best, but the Highwind in motion means we're now soaring into the best of the best. Heike Soul isn't yours until you have achieved 100 percent in every mission.
For this reason, it is, more or less, a trophy piece until you're ready to replay the game, at which point it's darn near invincibility mode. Your HP, MP, AP, and damage limits are all shattered. You'll receive twice the money and twice the items from battling. All magic spells hit twice (AKA 'Dualcast'). And you gain the benefits of Libra, the Materia that enables you to view enemy HP and MP, without having to sacrifice a slot for it.
There is a downside. But also, not really? 'Cursed' status is forever in effect. But it's not as bad as it sounds. The DMW wheel never spins when Cursed is active, but after you have completed everything Crisis Core can toss at you, you'll frankly never need to rely upon it again.