Maybe these are already pretty common knowledge, but they're still interesting...I hope. Check them out, if you want.
Vanish-Doom
As you may know, Vanish makes your party members immune to physical attacks, but extremely weak to magic. Now, like most spells, Vanish
can be cast on enemies. And, on invisible targets, the fact that they're invisible overrides status immunities, like, say, immunity to instant death.
So, if you cast Vanish, then Doom, on an enemy, it's pretty much a guaranteed instant kill. However, this tactic is considered to be cheating by most
hardcore fans, so I wouldn't recommend using it too much. I personally only ever use it on Atma Weapon, who's simply too tough to beat the "honest" way.
Searching for Friends
As you may know, in the World of Ruin your party is separated. Finding them can be a lot of work, so here's a little guide to make that work a bit less painful.
Celes
You start with her.
Sabin
Save the little girl from the collapsing house in Tzen, and Sabin will join you.
Edgar
Follow "Gerad" and his gang from Nikeah to Figaro Castle, then defeat the Tentacles, and Gerad will reveal himself as Edgar and join you.
Setzer
Talk to him in the bar in Kohlingen and he'll join you and tell you where you can find a new airship.
Cyan
All right, this one is pretty complex. So, here's a step-by-step list of what to do.
When you first take off in the Falcon, Celes will notice a carrier pigeon going to Maranda. Follow it.
In Maranda, talk to Lola and she'll mention her boyfriend, then send a letter to him by carrier pigeon.
When you return to the world map, you'll see a cutscene where the pigeon flies to Zozo.
Go to Zozo and talk to the only man who tells the truth, who looks like a merchant. He'll sell you some Rust-Rid for 1000 GP.
Climb the tower in Zozo with the rusty door on top and use the Rust-Rid on the door.
Work your way through Mt. Zozo, fighting the Storm Dragon on the way if you want.
Talk to Cyan.
After he rejoins you, go to Maranda and talk to Lola. Cyan will reveal the truth, and you've completed perhaps the most complex subquest in the game.
Gau
Go to the Veldt with a party of three or less, and Gau will eventually show up and join your party.
Shadow
First of all, you can ONLY get Shadow in the World of Ruin if you waited for him on the Floating Continent. If you didn't, Relm will appear in the Cave on the Veldt
where he normally would. Now, back to business. Enter the Cave on the Veldt, and you'll see Interceptor. He will lead you to his master. Be sure to open all the chests
along the way- one of them contains a ninja sword called the Striker, which is essential for recruiting Shadow. Eventually, you'll find Shadow lying on the ground, wounded.
Suddenly, you're attacked by a Senior Behemoth. After you defeat it, the party decides to take Shadow to Thamasa. After a while, he'll go to the Colosseum. Go there and bet
the Striker, and Shadow will fight you. After the battle, he'll join you permanently, regardless of the outcome.
Relm
Again, if you didn't save Shadow on the Floating Continent, you'll have to find Relm in the Cave on the Veldt first. Just repeat the steps up to going to Thamasa in the quest for Shadow.
Anyway, if you did save Shadow, go to Owzer's mansion in Jidoor. Try to climb the stairs, and a mysterious force will reject you. Read the diary that suddenly appears to find out what's going
on, then turn on the lamp and climb the stairs. Examine the flower painting to fight Nightshade, so that you can get its extremely useful Rage later, then examine Gestahl's painting twice, and you'll get a clue as to where to find the Phoenix Magicite. Finally, examine
the painting of a "lovely lady", and you'll be attacked by a group of Dahlings. They aren't too difficult, though. When you win, the painting will disappear and be replaced by a door leading into the
basement. In the basement, most of the paintings are possessed by monsters, and so are the floating treasure chests. Navigate the complex maze of doors and eventually you'll reach a strange room, where
Owzer and Relm are. Watch the scene, then fight Chadarnook. When you defeat it, Relm will rejoin you, and you'll be able to claim the Magicite Starlet.
Strago
Go to the Fanatics' Tower with Relm in your party, and Strago will snap out of his trance and rejoin you.
Locke
Fly the Falcon to a star-shaped mountain range and attempt to land at the center. You will then split up into two parties and enter the Phoenix Cave. Be sure to get everything here so you don't have to go back (although someone has cleaned out most of the chests...), and also be sure to defeat the Red Dragon. At the end of the cave, you'll find
Locke. Watch the cutscene, after which you'll receive the Phoenix Magicite and the items that Locke stole from the Phoenix Cave. Plus, Locke will rejoin you permanently!
Mog
Go to the room in the Narshe mines that used to be full of Moogles and talk to him. As an added bonus, examine the place where he was standing to receive a Moogle Charm, an accessory only Mog can equip. When equipped, it prevents ANY random monsters from appearing!
Terra
After acquiring the Falcon, return to Mobliz and defeat Phunbaba, and Terra will permanently rejoin you.
The Hidden Characters
Although it's pretty common knowledge by now, there are two hidden characters in FFVI- the bad-ass Gogo, and the worthless Umaro. Here's how to get them.
Umaro
Yes, I'm saving the best for last. Anyway, to get Umaro, you need Mog in your party. Check the previous section if you don't have Mog. Then, defeat Tritoch and approach the gap in the cliffs where he used to be. You'll fall down into Umaro's lair. At the end, there's a
bone carving. Examine it, and you'll receive the Magicite Terrato. Unfortunately, this triggers an attack by Umaro! When you defeat him, Mog will order him to join you.
Gogo
Go to Triangle Island and wander around until you encounter a Zone Eater, then let it use its Engulf attack on your entire party. When it does, you'll be in a strange cave filled with bizarre and
extremely annoying puzzles, including a collapsing ceiling that causes an immediate game over if it hits you. At the end, you'll find Gogo, master of the simulacrum. Talk to it, and it will join you.
Now, cast Warp, so you don't have to endure that annoying dungeon again. At least it's not as bad as the Phoenix Cave! :)
Monster-in-a-box!
As you may know, some treasure chests contain monsters. But, what monsters do they contain, and what can you win? Let's see...
Narshe, training room- fight 1x Lobo, 1/8 chance of winning Tonic (restores 50 HP)
Imperial Camp, left chest in the tent on the left- fight 1x Telstar, win Green Beret (helmet, increases maximum HP)
Phantom Train, second compartment car, fourth chest from the right- fight 1x Specter, win Hyper Wrist (accessory, increases vigor by 50%)
Floating Continent, second blue orb- fight 1x Gigantos, win Hardened (weapon for Shadow
Collapsing house in Tzen- fight 4x Pm Stalker, win nothing
Darill's Tomb, near the boss area- fight 1x Presenter, win Dragon Claw (weapon for Sabin)
Cave on the Veldt- fight 1x Allo Ver, win Tiger Fangs (Sabin's best weapon)
Ancient Castle- fight 1x Katana Soul, win Offering (accessory, causes physical attacks to hit four times)
The Eight Dragons
To release the Esper Crusader, you must defeat eight dragons. They are located in the following places:
Storm Dragon- Mt. Zozo, inside a treasure chest. You must open the chest by stepping on a pressure plate.
Red Dragon- Somewhere in the Phoenix Cave.
White Dragon- One of the treasure rooms on the Fanatics' Tower.
Ice Dragon- The snowfield in Narshe where you fought Kefka.
Blue Dragon- The Ancient Castle, near the Queen's statue.
Dirt Dragon- On stage in the Opera House.
Gold Dragon- Kefka's Domain.
Skull Dragon- Kefka's Domain.
Magical Shields
Shields aren't just good for defensive value. Some of them also teach spells. They are:
Flame Shield- Teaches Fire 2 with 20 Magic Points.
Ice Shield- Teaches Ice 2 with 20 Magic Points.
Thunder Shield- Teaches Bolt 2 with 20 Magic Points.
Tortoise Shield- Teaches Imp with 100 Magic Points.
Paladin Shield- Teaches Ultima with 100 Magic Points.
CUrsed Items
There are two cursed items in the game- the Cursed Shield and the Cursed Ring. Both give you many status ailments when equipped, but have hidden benefits. If you
fight 255 battles with the Cursed Shield equipped, it turns into the Paladin Shield, offering an extremely high defense rating and near-total elemental protection. Not only
that, but it teaches Ultima at the same rate as the Ragnarok Esper. The Cursed Ring can't be uncursed, but if you earn 20 Magic Points with it equipped, you'll learn X-Zone.
