Gau appears to Sabin and Cyan on the Veldt, an area in Final Fantasy VI.

Main Walkthrough

Inarguably the most versatile member of your party, Gau is capable of using almost every move in Final Fantasy VI. This is thanks to his special action, the Rage command, which channels the power of the monsters you meet throughout the game. Used properly Rage can prepare you for any situation - though it requires a lot out of your time to maximize Rage's potential.

There are a few prerequisites for acquiring a Rage:
  • First, your party must fight the enemy in its native environment, somewhere in Final Fantasy VI. It doesn't matter where you do this, just so long as you fight the enemy at least once. (As far as I know beating the enemy is not a prerequisite for the Veldt, just encountering the enemy.)
  • Second, you must put Gau in your party and take him to the Veldt. Whether you're in the World of Balance or the World of Ruin the Veldt is located on the east side of the world map, though it drifts a ways north in the World of Ruin. All of the enemies you encounter - except for the majority of bosses - appear on the Veldt.
  • Third, you must use Gau's Leap command when you get into a battle on the Veldt. Leap only appears on Gau's menu when you're on the Veldt. Once Gau Leaps he'll leave the party, immediately ending the battle.
  • Fourth, you need to keep fighting on the Veldt until Gau reappears. As long as you don't hit Gau before he starts talking he'll rejoin the party. You must have three people or less in the party for Gau to rejoin you.
Assuming you fought enemies whose Rages Gau didn't already know, he'll acquire the Rages of the enemies present when Gau Leapt, as well as when he returned. If you run into clusters of unfamiliar monsters Gau will quickly build up his stock of Rages. Note that Gau will only return if you get into a 'standard' battle, ie your party is all lined up on the right side of the screen. He won't return during Back Attacks, Pincer Attacks, or Side Attacks.

For the most part, monsters appear at random on the Veldt. You'll just have to keep fighting until you find them all. There are ways to predict which enemies will will appear, however, at least on the older versions of Final Fantasy VI. Consult this FAQ for more details on how to tell when specific enemy formations will appear. (It's geared towards the original Final Fantasy VI, so the names of many of the enemies are different.)

Gau uses a Rage in Final Fantasy VI.

There are a few things to keep in mind whenever Gau uses a Rage in combat:
  • You'll immediately lose control of Gau as he gains the Berserk status. You can only regain control of Gau a) When the battle ends, or b) If he gets KOed and revived.
  • Gau uses a small number of preset moves specific to the Rage he chose. If you chose the Guard Rage for Gau, for example, he would only use two attacks: A normal melee hit or Critical, which hits a bit harder. The moves vary from Rage to Rage.
  • Gau adopts the elemental attributes of the monster he's Raging as. If the enemy absorbs Fire but is weak to Lightning, for example, Gau will also absorbs Fire but be weak to Lightning. This even extends to Undead status, making Gau especially vulnerable to Fire, Holy, and Healing abilities.
  • Gau may gain extra status effects depending on the Rage applied. If you choose an enemy that flies, for example, Gau may gain Float status. Depending on the status effect it may or may not last beyond the scope of the battle.
  • Gau can improve his Rages by equipping relics that affect his stats / loadout. If Gau has a Genji Glove or Master's Scroll equipped, for example, he can use physical skills multiple times in a round, including named skills (Cat Scratch, for example). In the SNES version of Final Fantasy VI you can equip the Merit Award to Gau, which allows him to equip weapons, though Gau can no longer use the Merit Award in later versions. 
The party battles some Magitek Armor on the Veldt in Final Fantasy VI.

Enemy Locations and Rages

This section of the guide covers all the Rages Gau can learn in Final Fantasy VI. Specifically, it covers which enemies you can encounter in each of the game's areas, allowing you to check which enemies you've seen - and which ones you haven't - when you explore a new place. There are a few situations where you cannot return to an area, so make absolutely sure that you've fought every enemy before moving on with the story.

There are 255 Rages in Final Fantasy VI, but you can only learn 253 Rages total. (Two that are on the list, Siegfried and Typhon, never appear on the Veldt.) There are a number of enemies that don't have any Rage, most of them bosses, and they are not included on this list.

If you're not a completionist then you may not care about acquiring every Rage. The Rages most worth picking up (in my opinion, anyway) are bolded.


Sabin stands near Mobliz, a village in Final Fantasy VI.

World of Balance

Narshe / Narshe Mines
  • Bandit
  • Megalodoth
  • Silver Lobo
  • Spritzer
  • Marshal (scripted battle)
  • Wererat
World Map - Narshe / Figaro Region
  • Alacran (desert)
  • Darkwind (plains / forests)
  • Leaf Bunny (plains / forests)
  • Magitek Armor (scripted battle, Figaro Castle)
  • Sand Ray (desert)
South Figaro Cave (first visit)
  • Foper
  • Hornet
  • Urok
World Map - South Figaro / Returner's Hideout Regions
  • Belmodar
  • Mu
  • Unseelie
Mt. Kolts
  • Cirpius (outdoors)
  • Gorgias
  • Trillium (outdoors)
  • Zaghrem (indoors)
Lethe River
  • Exocite
  • Lesser Lopros
  • Nautiloid
World Map - Northeastern Continent, Imperial Camp Region (Sabin's Scenario)
  • Aepyornis
  • Chippirabbit
  • Nettlehopper
  • Stray Cat
Imperial Camp (Sabin's Scenario)
  • Doberman (northeastern tent, check chest, choose to kick)
  • Imperial Soldier
  • Magitek Armor
  • Officer
  • Satellite
  • Soldier
  • Templar
Phantom Forest / Phantom Train (Sabin's Scenario)
  • Angel Whisper (train)
  • Bomb (train)
  • Cloud (train)
  • Ghost
  • Living Death (train)
  • Poplium (forest)
Baren Falls (Sabin's Scenario)
  • Opinicus Fish
Serpent Trench (Sabin's Scenario)
  • Actinian
  • Anguiform
  • Aspiran
Narshe Mines - Back Door (Terra's Scenario)
  • Darkside
  • Eukaryote
  • Specter
  • Valeor
  • Wild Rat
South Figaro (Locke's Scenario)
  • Commander (secret passage)
  • Heavy Armor (town)
  • Vector Hound (secret passage)
South Figaro Cave (second visit, Locke's Scenario)
  • Cartagra
  • Gold Bear
  • Acrophies
Battle of Narshe (Narshe Snowfields)
  • Corporal
  • Fidor
  • Heavy Armor
  • Hell's Rider
  • Hunting Hound
  • Soldier
World Map - Kohlingen / Jidoor Region
  • Alacran (desert)
  • Fossil Dragon (desert)
  • Iron Fist
  • Paraladia (forests)
  • Rock Wasp
  • Sand Ray (desert)
  • Vulture (plains)
Zozo
  • Gobbledygook (outdoors)
  • Harvester (indoors)
  • Hill Gigas (outdoors)
  • Veil Dancer (indoors)
Opera House - Rafters
  • Goetia
  • Stunner
World Map - Southern Continent
  • Bug (desert)
  • Don
  • Fossil Dragon (desert)
  • Grasswyrm
  • Joker
  • Litwor Chicken
  • Wyvern
Magitek Factory / Magitek Research Facility
  • Belzecue
  • Chaser
  • Destroyer
  • Flan
  • General
  • Lenergia
  • Magna Roader (red, minecart escape - limited chances to encounter; save and retry if you don't see any)
  • Magna Roader (purple, minecart escape - limited chances to encounter; save and retry if you don't see any)
  • Onion Knight
  • Sergeant
  • Trapper
Bomb Forest (west of the Veldt, requires airship)
  • Bomb
  • Grenade
Triangle Island (northeast)
  • Darkwind
  • Intangir
  • Leaf Bunny
Cave to the Sealed Gate
  • Antares
  • Lich
  • Ninja (switch halfway through the cave)
  • Outcast
  • Provoker
  • Zombie Dragon
World Map - Thamasa
  • Briarieus (plains)
  • Chimera (forests)
  • Devourer
Thamasa - Burning House
  • Balloon
Esper Caves
  • Adamankary (indoors)
  • Bonnacon (indoors)
  • Land Grillon (outdoors)
  • Mandrake (outdoors)
  • Vennobenu (outdoors)
Floating Continent
  • Apocrypha
  • Behemoth
  • Brainpan
  • Dragon
  • Gigantos (blue orb chest)
  • Misfit
  • Ninja
  • Platinum Dragon
  • Sky Armor (airship battle)
  • Spitfire (airship battle)

Shadow explores the Veldt in the World of Ruin, the setting of Final Fantasy VI.

World of Ruin

Solitary Island
  • Black Dragon
  • Land Ray
  • Peeper
World Map - Albrook  / Tzen Region
  • Fafnir
  • Gigantoad
  • Killer Mantis
  • Luna Wolf
  • Murussu
  • Rukh
World Map - Serpent Trench
  • Delta Beetle
  • Devoajan
  • Lizard
  • Vampire Thorn
World Map - South Figaro Region
  • Cancer
  • Desert Hare
  • Oceanus (forests)
  • Sandhorse (desert)
South Figaro Cave / Figaro Castle Basement
  • Cruller
  • Dante
  • Dropper
  • Humpty
  • Neck Hunter
World Map - Kohlingen Region
  • Bogy
  • Cancer
  • Deepeye
  • Marchosias
  • Mousse
  • Sandhorse (desert)
Darill's Tomb
  • Borghese
  • Cloudwraith
  • Exoray
  • Malboro
  • Skeletal Horror
Tzen - Collapsing House
  • Scorpion
  • Nightwalker
  • Zokka
World Map - Maranda / Jidoor / Zozo Region
  • Basilisk (plains)
  • Cactuar (desert)
  • Crawler (plains)
  • Greater Mantis
  • Leap Frog
  • Lycaon (plains)
  • Slagworm (desert)
  • Sprinter (plains)
Mt. Zozo
  • Devil Fist
  • Glasya Labolas
  • Luridan
  • Mugbear
  • Punisher
Cave on the Veldt
  • Behemoth King
  • Death Warden (not in SNES version)
  • Gorgimera
  • Twinscythe
Owzer's Mansion
  • Blade Dancer
  • Coeurl Cat
  • Crusher
  • Misty
  • Rafflesia
  • Still Life
World Map - Narshe Region
  • Basilisk (plains)
  • Crawler (plains)
  • Greater Mantis
  • Leap Frog
  • Lycaon (plains)
Narshe
  • Garm
  • Lukhavi
  • Test Rider
Narshe Mines
  • Magna Roader (brown)
  • Magna Roader (yellow)
  • Psychos
  • Wizard
Yeti's Cave
  • Anemone
  • Illuyankas
  • Knotty
  • Onion Dasher
  • Tzakmaqiel
Triangle Island / Zone Eater's Belly
  • Amduscias
  • Baalzephon
  • Covert
  • Kamui
  • Shambling Corpse
  • Wartpuck
Phoenix Cave
  • Chaos Dragon
  • Clymenus
  • Face
  • Galypdes
  • Necromancer
  • Ouroboros
  • Seaflower
  • Zeveak
World Map - Northeastern Continent / Doma Castle Region
  • Brachiosaur
  • Crawler
  • Greater Mantis
  • Lycaon
  • Sprinter
  • Tumbleweed
  • Tyrannosaur
Doma Castle - Cyan's Dream
  • Al Jabr
  • Alluring Rider (dreamscape)
  • Coco
  • Io (mines)
  • Pandora
  • Parasite
  • Pluto Armor (mines)
  • Samurai
  • Schmidt (mines)
  • Suriander
  • Weredragon (dreamscape)
Cave to the Ancient Castle / Ancient Castle
  • Armored Weapon (castle)
  • Coco (cave)
  • Devil (cave)
  • Enuo (cave)
  • Figaro Lizard
  • Lunatys (castle)
  • Samurai (cave)
  • Suriander (cave)
Ebot's Rock
  • Aspidochelon
  • Creature
  • Mahadeva
  • Medusa Chicken
  • Moonform
  • Sorath
  • Warlock
Cultists' Tower
  • Holy Dragon (only one)
  • Magic Urn
Kefka's Tower
  • Ahriman (palace)
  • Cherry (palace)
  • Daedalus (palace)
  • Dark Force (palace)
  • Death Machine (factory)
  • Demon Knight (palace)
  • Duel Armor (factory)
  • Fiend Dragon (outdoors / trash tunnel)
  • Fortis (factory)
  • Gamma (factory)
  • Great Behemoth (outdoors / trash tunnel)
  • Great Malboro (outdoors / trash tunnel)
  • InnoSent (factory)
  • Junk (factory)
  • Landworm (outdoors / trash tunnel)
  • Metal Hitman (factory)
  • Mover (factory)
  • Muud Suud (factory)
  • Outsider (palace)
  • Primeval Dragon (outdoors / trash tunnel)
  • Vector Chimera (outdoors / trash tunnel)
  • Vector Lythos (outdoors / trash tunnel)
  • Yojimbo (palace)