Bahamut is one of, if not the most, popular and recognizable figures in all the Final Fantasy franchises and related properties. The Dragon King is identified by his dark and scaly hide, large wings and his signature move: Megaflare.

Bahamut typically operates as a summon in the mainline entries but has served multiple roles in both the story and gameplay. With a presence as big as Bahamut, he is bound to cross into all types of Square Enix media, and even some non-Square titles. Here are some facts you didn’t know about the draconic summon Bahamut.

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10 He Was Absent in One Final Fantasy Game

Bahamut appeared in every single mainline Final Fantasy game… except one: Final Fantasy II. There is no documented evidence nor reason from Square Enix over his absence, but it is quite a smear on the Dragon King’s near-perfect attendance record. It’s possible that they were not sure of the summon’s popularity at the time; this was when Final Fantasy started becoming more of a franchise for a struggling Squaresoft.

9 Origin in Mythology

Final Fantasy takes a lot of inspiration for their worlds, creatures, and characters from various real-world cultures, mythologies and legends. Bahamut is definitely no exception.

Bahamut, which means Behemoth in Hebrew, originated from Arabic cosmography. He is depicted as “an unimaginably large fish,” sometimes drawn in a monstrous way. Zakaraiya al-Qazwini, a Persian scientist, stated Bahamut is the foundation of two other figures supporting heavenly bodies (i.e. planets of the Solar System).

Besides his impressive strength, Bahamut is able to completely conceal his presence from humans. They say that if a human ever saw Bahamut’s true form, they would go mad. Interesting that Square Enix derived a mighty, Megaflare-spewing Dragon out of a humble but strong fish.

8 Bahamut Is Also A God?

Most players are aware of Bahamut’s dominance when it comes to the realm of Summons, Eidolons, Espers, etc. In some Final Fantasy entries, the Dragon King is an actual god.

It was in Final Fantasy IV that Bahamut is called the “God of Eidolons.” The Eidolon Library describes him as the father and watcher of Eidolons who has never been defeated. He awaits the party on the Red Moon in the Lair of the Father to come challenge him. Rydia, the summoner in the game, can obtain Bahamut after the player possesses Leviathan and Asura.

Bahamut regains his title as the god over Astrals (another term for Summon) in Final Fantasy XV. The Astral god also serves as an important plotline regarding the Lucis Caelum lineage and the wider lore of the game. He is “[d]epicted as a male humanoid in dark draconian armor whose wings are made of swords,” according to the Final Fantasy Wiki.

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7 Multiple Versions Of Bahamut

Because Bahamut is such a recognizable and popular summon, Square Enix was going to milk it big time. Look at Final Fantasy Dimensions II as an example; there is Urd, Verth, Skuld and Chaos Bahamut. According to the Final Fantasy Wiki, these variants “exist as neutral-elemental summons for various characters.”

Speaking of which, Chaos Bahamut is the most popular incarnation, appearing as an antagonistic force in the Final Fantasy XIII series and the Japan-exclusive Blood of Bahamut. The first variation of Bahamut appeared in Final Fantasy IV as Dark Bahamut, an optional boss.

6 The Rarest Summon in Theatrhythm

In the first Theatrhythm Final Fantasy, Bahamut is the rarest summon in the game. The only way a player can summon him is with his Magacite. In later entries, they change the mechanics of summoning some. Now only certain characters can exclusively summon certain creatures.

Curiously, in Theatrythm Final Fantasy Curtain Call, Hope, Vanille and Serah from the Final Fantasy XIII series can only summon Bahamut and not Fang. In FF13, Fang was the last L’Cie to get an Eidolon, and it is Bahamut; she is the only person who could summon Bahamut.

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5 The Only Summon in All the Bravest

In this free mobile game, there is only one summon available for the Summoner: Bahamut. Its only attack is the iconic Megaflare, naturally. Players probably thought they would have more access to other classic Summons. Not even series favorites like Shiva, Odin, and Ifrit appear in this spin-off mobile title.

Hopefully in future updates they can provide more variety. While Bahamut is one of the best to have on hand, a little variety and fan service isn’t bad.

4 Bahamut Was Supposed To Be In Kingdom Hearts

Originally, summons were going to be in Kingdom Hearts. Bahamut was going to be an option but they removed the feature before release. The data code is accessible via cheat devices. Summoning Bahamut will crash the game, however.

Instead of being in the game, he is present in the form of multiple references. Organization XIII member Xigbar’s arrowguns are called Bahamut. Mushu, the guardian dragon from Mulan, can use Bahamut’s Megaflare.

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3 Presence in Other Final-Fantasy Adjacent Games

Parasite Eve is a beloved but lesser known franchise from Square Enix, where protagonist Aya Brea defends New York and the world from horrific creatures. In the threequel 3rd Birthday, Aya claims a helicopter to escape a tower and fight an enemy; that helicopter’s name is called Bahamut 524. Fitting considering Bahamut is always flying high.

Bravely Default, a Nintendo 3DS-exclusive series, has a boss named Ominas Crowe who fights with an orange-colored D'gon named Bahamut. He knows basic moves, but it's entertaining that a normal D'gon has the name of the Dragon King.

A Nintendo DS-exclusive game called The World Ends With You features Bahamut as a Tin Pin. In that universe, Bahamut is referred to as the “Wyrmking” and feared by Reapers for his psych Mega Flare.

2 Bahamut Appeared In A Mario Game

What’s an RPG without a big dragon to slay? The Dragon King is technically referenced in Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars.

Bahamutt, as the game refers to him, is summoned by the Magikoopa in Bowser’s Keep. Before Mario and his friends can confront Magikoopa again, they must slay the fearsome dragon. Nice to know that Bahamutt is an embedded part of RPG history.

Fun fact: Bahamut was supposed to make an appearance in Mario Sports Mix. He wasn’t used, but fans were able to find an unused model for him plus the stage he was going to appear in.

1 Crossovers into Monster Hunter & Assassin's Creed

With a franchise as big as Final Fantasy, crossovers into other popular gaming franchises are bound to happen. In 2014, Capcom and Square Enix collabored for Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate to bring exclusive Final Fantasy-inspired content to the game. Tetsuya Nomura designed the armor, and the female Anat Armor was based on Bahamut. Such beauty and badassery!

Square Enix did another collaboration with Ubisoft, but Bahamut was more of a cameo than game content. Ardyn Izunia, a character from FF15, found his way to ancient Egypt thanks to Bayek, the main protagonist of Assassin’s Creed: Origins.

“Before he has time to do much of anything, Bahamut, the Astral of Eos, appears in the sky above the tomb, attacks Ardyn and whisks him away,” according to the Final Fantasy Wiki. A strange crossover but at least the player got some good loot out of the mission.

NEXT: Final Fantasy 7: Every Summon Ranked From Weakest To Most Powerful