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The Bushi is a powerful class in FFXII. They’re a physical attacker, similar to the Samurai class in other Final Fantasy series games.
Bushi use Katanas for their attacks.
And right here we have the master list of the top Katanas in the entire game.
Whether you’re wanting to upgrade what you’ve got, or max out your damage with the ultimate Katana, you’ll find everything you need in this ranking.
10. Kotetsu
The weakest of the Katanas is the Kotetsu.
This is the easiest Katana to acquire because it’s available at the beginning of the game, and not expensive. Either.
But it has a very low attack power at 16 and a low evade of 15. It also has the standard 20% combo rate that almost all Katanas have.
License needed: Katana 1 How to get:
– Purchased in Rabanastre, Giza Plains, and Barheim Passage, for 500 gil
– Found in the No. 11 Channel area of Garamsythe Waterway
9. Osafune
The Osafune is already a powerful upgrade over the Kotetsu.
It has an attack power of 26 and evade 17 – so not too shabby.
You can still acquire this Katana fairly early on too, making it an obvious choice for an upgrade.
Aside from its higher attack power though, there isn’t anything exciting about these early entries.
License needed: Katana 1 How to get:
– Purchased in Rabanastre (after Lhusu Mines), Bhujerba, and Dreadnought Leviathan for 1,300 gil
– Found in the Shaft Entry area of Lhusu Mines
8. Kogarasumaru
The Kogarasumaru Katana is a pretty straightforward upgrade over the Osafune, though it will cost you another license board slot to use.
If you have a bushi main job then you should be able to unlock the license fairly quickly.
But this weapon boasts pretty good stats, with an attack power of 40 and evade 19. It’s also simple enough to purchase which means it makes sense to buy as soon as it’s available.
License needed: Katana 2 How to get:
– Purchased in Rabanastre, Bhujerba, and Dalmasca Westersand, all after Ondore’s Estate. Also in Nam-Yensa Sandsea, Tomb of Raithwall, and Balfonheim Port. Costs 2,500 gil
– Found in the East Junction area and Platform 1 – South Tanks area of Ogir-Yensa Sandsea
7. Magoroku
This next entry is a bit more powerful than the Kogarasumaru, just based on attack power alone.
It will cost you a bit more to acquire though – whether in gil or time.
The Magoroku has an attack power of 50 and evade 21. It’s no ultimate weapon, but it still packs a punch compared to the previous entries.
License needed: Katana 2 How to get:
– Purchased in Jahara and Mt Bur-Omisace for 4,000 gil
– Found in the Tracks of the Beast area of Giza Plains and in the Halls of Ardent Darkness area of Zertinan Caverns
6. Murasame
Some of you might immediately recognize this name.
The Murasame is a very powerful katana, and an upgrade over the Magoroku. That should come as no surprise though, since we’re jumping to the next license board slot.
It has an attack of 62 and evade 23 so it’s a very noticeable jump in raw stats.
Plus it also has a Water elemental effect.
License needed: Katana 3 How to get:
– Purchased in Mt Bur-Omisace for 5,800 gil
– Found in the West Annex area of Barheim Passage and the Karydine Glacier area of Paramina Rift
5. Kiku-ichimonji
The Kiku-ichimonji is not only a difficult name to say, but it’s also an amazing Katana.
Luckily it’s in the same license group as the Murasame as well.
For default stats, this thing rocks an attack of 71 and evade 25. But aside from the higher stats, there isn’t anything overly exciting about this weapon upgrade.
The attack itself, however, is enough to take you into late-game.
License needed: Katana 3 How to get:
– Purchased in Mosphoran Highwaste (after Judge Bergan) and Phon Coast, for 7,700 gil
– Found in the Walk of Reason area of Stilshrine of Miriam, Summit Path area of Mosphoran Highwaste, and Garden of Life’s Circle area of Tchita Uplands
4. Yakei
The Yakei is a great entry for this weapon category. This is also where things start to get very interesting for the Bushi, since we’re now able to access Balfonheim Port armor and weapons.
This Katana has a huge attack power of 83, and an evade of 27.
What makes this one stand out in the crowd is the 10% chance on-hit to inflict Poison on your enemies.
If you’re looking for damage-over-time effects as a combat style, then look no further than the Yakei.
License needed: Katana 4 How to get:
– Purchased in Archades and Balfonheim Port for 9,300 gil
– Found in The Lost Way area of Tchita Uplands and the Cloister of Distant Song area of Necrohol of Nabudis
– Also drops at a 1% chance from several enemies in the Nabreus Deadlands
3. Ame-no-Murakumo
This is the next upgrade worth chasing down: the Ame-no-Murakumo.
Yes it’s another difficult name. Which in FF12 apparently means a powerful weapon.
But the numbers don’t lie: because this has an attack power of 96 and an evade 29.
If the massive attack upgrade isn’t enough, this weapon also has a Wind elemental effect.
License needed: Katana 4 How to get:
– Purchased in Balfonheim Port (after Treaty-Blade) for 11,600 gil
– Found in the Colosseum area of Ridorana Cataract
– Acquired through the Bazaar as Samurai’s Katana
– Rewarded through the Hunt Club
2. Muramasa
These final top two Katanas are indeed the most powerful in the entire game.
You won’t be able to purchase these outright, but it will be worth searching for them if you want the most powerful Bushi you can build.
The Muramasa has an immense attack power of 104 and an evade of 31. It’s a huge improvement over the previous entries, but it’s also difficult to acquire successfully.
Also worth mentioning that the Muramasa shares the license board slot with the Ame-no-Murakumo, so it’ll save you some LP if you go this route.
License needed: Katana 4 How to get:
– Found in the Bounds of Truth area of Pharos – Second Ascent and The Terraced Bank area of Cerobi Steppe
– Drops at a 5% chance from Crypt Bunny
– Stolen from Avenger
1. Masamune
The fabled Masamune is the obvious pick for the ultimate Katana in the game.
There is no equal to this blade in FFXII, and it all but guarantees victory for your Bushi.
This Katana has an attack power of 111 and evade 33 (which is tough to top!)
It is also the only Katana to have an increased combo rate of 30%, compared to the 20% for all other Katanas.
For maximum output, you can combine this weapon with Genji Gloves, which increases your hit combo chance.
And this ultimate weapon has its own license board slot too, as you may have expected.
License needed: Masamune How to get:
– Found in the Site 7 area of Lhusu Mines
– Rewarded through the Hunt Club
