This was one of four servers used for beta testing of the original release of FFXI for the Playstation 2 console in Japan. In February 2002, the population of Golbez Server was merged with the population of Zande Server before being deactivated. Reason for deactivation is unknown; possibly to reduce server usage once the actual number of beta testers was known, and to make room for future testing on Glasyalabolas later on.
[please edit in the reason for the deactivation of Golbez & Xdeath servers when it becomes known]
ID Number: N/A
Activation Date: December 17, 2001
Deactivation Date: February 4, 2002 (uncertain, evidence indicates around Feb 4th- 8th)
History in the FF Series[]
Golbeze (FFIV [JP]), Golbez (FFIV [EN])
Golbez was the primary villain for most of the story in Final Fantasy IV. He appeared as a tall figure clad in midnight blue armor, a horned helmet with a visor concealing his face and a midnight blue cape. He commanded the Four Emperors (Fiends) of the Elements (Scarmiglione/Milon, Cagnazzo/Kainazzo, Barbariccia/Valvalis, Rubicante/Rubicant) as well as a legion of monsters, soldiers & knights not affiliated with any nation, and a few other oddballs (the cyborg Dr. Lugeie/Dr. Lugae and the set of dolls which can form a towering giant cupie doll, Calcobrena/Calbrena). His base of operations were remote, advanced-technological towers, the Towers of Zot and Bab-il (structures built by the Lunarians* for reasons unknown). In combat, Golbez was shown using Black Magic, summoning monsters, and able to control a disembodied gauntlet to grab a crystal and teleport away. He could cast the ultimate Black Magic, Meteo and could cast W-Meteo (Double Meteo) in conjunction with another accomplished wizard. He was the older brother of the lead character, Cecil. Like Cecil, he was half-Lunarian, half-human.
He was on a quest to gather the 8 Crystals of the world (the 4 Light Crystals of Water, Fire, Wind, and Earth, and the 4 Dark Crystals, also presumably of the 4 elements), 4 of which lay in the overworld controlled by kingdoms (Crystal of Water held by Mysidia, Fire by Damcyan, Wind by Fabul, Earth by Troia/Toroia), 4 of which lay in the Underground (one held by the Dwarves, a second one sealed away in a cave, and 2 in locations unspecified). He initially concealed his actions behind the Kingdom of Baron, which was his puppet state (due to Cagnazzo masquerading as the King of Baron and the Chief of Security, Beigan/Baigan, either being a minion of his or a human corrupted to his side). Much of his operation was established through mind control. Golbez had direct mind control over the Dragoon Cain/Kain and Cagnazzo had controlled the minds of the army of Baron. When Cagnazzo was exposed and defeated, Golbez took direct control of the Red Wings (Baron's fleet of war-airships). His goal was to activate the Tower of Bab-il and open the way to the Moon, though he did not know why.
Golbez, it would be revealed, was under mind control himself from Zemus, a sleeping Lunarian who despite being in physical stasis was able to keep his mind active and use it to control Golbez into bringing the Crystals to activate the Tower of Bab-il and the sleeping giant within it, the Giant of Bab-il. Zemus wanted to use this towering robot to demolish all civilization (He was an individual filled with hate, which when disembodied took on the hideous form of Zeromus. His apparent motivation was contempt for the "inferior" race of the Blue Planet, not wanting to wait millennia for them to develop to ask if they could be allowed to settle on their world when they could easily use their might to force them into submission or wipe the planet clean). When broken free of his mind control, Cain/Kain would likewise be freed, and Golbez would team up with the Lunarian Sage FuSoYa to defeat Zemus. They would succeed, but unleash Zeromus (Zemus' hate incarnated), who Golbez was unable to defeat due to the darkness which corrupted his soul, leaving the task up to Cecil, who had cleansed his soul and transformed from a Dark Knight into a Paladin earlier.
(*- the Lunarians were a humanoid race from the 5th Planet in the solar system (the Blue Planet, the setting of FFIV, was the 3rd planet). Their planet had been destroyed for an unknown reason (most likely war due to the vast number of sealed weapons in the Lunar Subterrane). The survivors either moved the moon of the 5th Planet into orbit around the Blue Planet 1000 years ago or constructed an artificial moon to use as their sleeper ship for the time being. Their technology was far beyond the medieval level of the people of the Blue Planet. They all went into a stasis-like sleep in crystal towers on the red moon awaiting for the people of the Blue Planet to develop to a level where they can visit the Moon and make first contact. Only then would the Lunarians be able to re-settle on the Blue Planet. The game never states why they built the Tower of Bab-il, the Tower of Zot, nor why they would place the Giant of Bab-il inside that tower on the Blue Planet. It should be noted the crystal chambers for the 8 Crystals on the Blue Planet are decorated identical to the Lunarians' crystal palace on the Moon, which implies the Crystals may have been given to humans by Lunarians)
Historical Background[]
Golbez (Golbeze) has no history as a mythological figure. It is unknown what the etymology of the name is.