Final Fantasy XI

Featured Welsh Content

Final Fantasy XI features many references to mythical Welsh creatures, usually in the form of enemies and items, while other Welsh references also exist.

Gwyllgi, Cwn Annwn, Cwn Cyrff
Gwyllgi, Cwn Annwn and Cwn Cyrff are three hound enemies in Final Fantasy XI that reference the hell hounds of Welsh legend. The gwyllgi is a huge, black mastiff with glowing red eyes, its name roughly translating to “twilight dog” or “wild dog”. Also referred to as “Cŵn Annwn” (“Hounds of Annwn”, “Hounds of the Otherworld”) and “Cŵn Cyrff” (“corpse dogs”, or “hounds of bodies”) in the myths, their howling foretold death to anyone that heard them. The names of the enemies Cŵn Annwn and Cŵn Cyrff are spelled in the game without the circumflex (ˆ) and in their plural forms (e.g. the singular form of Cŵn Annwn is Ci Annwn).

Cyhiraeth
The enemies Cyhiraeth and Dolorous Cyhiraeth take their names from the Welsh mythical creature of the same name (also spelled “Cyhyraeth”). In the legend, this ghostly spirit would moan three times as a warning before a person’s death, and was said to appear around Dyfed’s River Tywi. It could also be heard before a shipwreck along the coast of Glamorganshire.

Black Bartholomew
Black Bartholomew is a foe whose name comes from one of the most successful pirates of the Golden Age of Piracy, Welshman Bartholomew Roberts. Born in 1682 in Casnewydd-bach, Pembrokeshire, Wales, and dying in 1722, he was also known as Black Bart, or Barti Ddu in Welsh.

Bendigeit Vran
The enemy Bendigeit Vran derives their name from the mythical Welsh giant king Brân the Blessed, known in Welsh as Bendigeidfran or Brân Fendigaidd (meaning “Blessed Crow”). In the Second Branch of the Mabinogi, one of the ancient Welsh stories of the Mabinogion, titled Branwen ferch Llŷr, Brân rescues his sister Branwen from her abusive spouse, King Matholwch of Ireland.

Gwynn ap Nudd, Gwyn ap Knudd
The two enemies Gwynn ap Nudd and Gwyn ap Knudd reference the mythical Welsh figure Gwyn ap Nudd. Various texts put Gwyn as the leader of the Welsh Otherworld, Annwn, while he was also said to lead his Cŵn Annwn (Hounds of Hell) as the head of the Wild Hunt during the months of winter, searching for souls to bring to rest. In other myths, Gwyn is known as the king of the Welsh fairy folk, the Tylwyth Teg.

Llamhigyn Y Dwr, Water Leaper
In Welsh mythology, Llamhigyn y Dŵr, which is Welsh for “Water Leaper”, is an evil pond and swamp creature that would attack fishing lines, livestock and fishermen. It appears as a giant frog with a bat’s wings, a long lizard-like tail, and no legs. Using its wings, it would leap across the water.

In Final Fantasy XI, the enemy Llamhigyn Y Dwr resembles this Welsh folk creature. However, another enemy adopts the English translation of the name, Water Leaper, and appears similar to the Abhac foe.

Abhac
The foe Abhac appears in Welsh folklore as a lake monster that has been said to resemble a crocodile, beaver, or platypus. It is most commonly known as Afanc today.

Cath Palug, Grwnan
The enemies Cath Palug and Grwnan are a part of the cat-like coeurl family. There are also multiple Cath Palug related items to obtain, including: Cath Palug Crown, Cath Palug Earring, Cath Palug Hammer, Cath Palug Ring, and Cath Palug Stone.

Translating to “Palug’s Cat”, the Cath Palug was a monstrous cat that roamed the isle of Ynys Môn (Anglesey), Wales, while an Arthurian tale tells of the knight Cai defeating Cath Palug after it had slain 180 warriors.

Grwnan is a Welsh word meaning “purr”.

Ellylldan
A fiend called Ellylldan takes its name from a Welsh version of the will-o’-the-wisp. Combining ellyll, referring to the elf fairy folk, and dân, a Welsh word for “fire” that also means “lure”, this folk creature’s name can quite literally mean a luring elf-fire. The light of the ellylldan would lead lone travellers astray and into dangerous bogs.

Ellyllon
There is an enemy of the funguar family called Ellyllon, which comes from the mythical Welsh elves of the same name. In Welsh folklore, the ellyllon make up one of the five types of the Tylwyth Teg, which are the equivalent of fairies. Individual ellyll are known to have magical abilities and eat different kinds of fungi, including poisonous mushrooms and a fungus known as “fairy butter”. This detail of their appetite may reflect why their name was used for this particular funguar enemy in Final Fantasy XI.

Lleu’s Charm
The neck gear Lleu’s Charm references the mythical Welsh hero, warrior and magician Lleu Llaw Gyffes. Lleu, whose name means “light”, appears in the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi, Math fab Mathonwy, a story from the ancient Welsh tales of the Mabinogion. He is the Welsh counterpart to the Irish mythology figure Lugh, of which Lugh is the name of another foe in FFXI.

Gwas-y-neidr
Gwas-y-neidr, another fiend in FFXI, is the Welsh name for the flying insect known as the dragonfly. The Welsh name more literally translates to “adder’s servant”, or “servant of the snake”. In Wales, it was said that dragonflies would charm snakes into a trance to tame them, or follow them around and stitch them up if they became injured. With this tale in mind, it was some Welsh people’s belief that wherever a dragonfly was seen above grass, a snake would be found below.

Panzer Percival, Panzer Galahad
This beetle fiend takes its name from the Arthurian knight Sir Percival, of which their original Welsh name is Peredur. Despite debate about whether Percival and Peredur are linked, the French depictions of the King Arthur tales by Chrétien de Troyes always refer to Percival as “the Welshman”, maintaining a Welsh connection.

Like Panzer Percival, Panzer Galahad is also part of the beetle family and can be called as a familiar by Beastmasters. It is named after the knight Sir Galahad from the King Arthur tales, and appeared in the Lancelot-Grail cycle, taking the place of Percival in the quest for the Holy Grail. Galahad’s naming origins may lie in the Welsh name Gwalchaved, meaning “Falcon of Summer”.

Excalibur, Caliburn, Knights of Round

The weapons Excalibur and Caliburn can be acquired in Final Fantasy XI.

In the original Welsh tales of King Arthur, his legendary sword was known as Caledfwlch, meaning “hard cleft”, and is where the variant names of Caliburn and Excalibur derive from.

The sword weapon skill “Knights of Round” can be used when either the Excalibur or Caliburn are equipped. This ability references the knights of Arthurian legend.

Rhongomiant

One weapon that can be obtained is the Rhongomiant. In Welsh Arthurian legends, Rhongomiant (or Rhongomyniad) was King Arthur’s spear.

Carnwenhan

The Carnwenhan is a dagger that can be equipped. This references King Arthur’s dagger from Welsh legends, known as Carnwennan.

Pendragon Axe

The Pendragon Axe references the title given to Uther Pendragon, King Arthur’s father, in Arthurian tales. In more recent literature, “Pendragon” has been used as Arthur’s surname.

“Pendragon” or “Pen Draig” comes from the Welsh pen (“head, chief”) and draig (“dragon”), meaning “head dragon” or “chief dragon”. However, it can essentially be understood as “chief leader” or similar.

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