Golden Hydra

The Golden Hydra (黄金竜, Ougonryū) is an enemy which appears in Suikoden. It is the final boss of the game, and the transformed form of Barbarosa Rugner.

Golden Hydra 黄金竜, Ougonryū

Details Area Floating Garden Type Boss enemy

It is advisable to take out the leftmost head first as it has the ability to revive the other heads once they are destroyed. Following that, take out the right head, which uses powerful magic against your party and then turn your attention to the center head. Be careful when attempting unite spells as together the three heads cover four elements, leaving many wide-ranged unite spells ineffective. Wind and Holy magic are the only elements that none of the heads are resilient to.

The right head boasts the highest STR in the game, with 520, and the left head holds the highest MAG in the game, with 420. All three heads boast high MAG stats, however so a player having trouble should consider leaving characters with low MAG stats behind. The right head also drops the most potch in the game, 200,000, not that the player can spend it after the battle.

Winning the battle is simply a matter of keeping the party's health topped up while focusing attacks on one head at a time, rather than trying to evenly wear down all three together. As soon as the first head falls, the pressure will alleviate, and the other two heads will prove easier to defeat in turn.

Information

In the final battle of the Gate Rune War, the Scarlet Moon Emperor Barbarosa, with the help of the Dragon King Sword, which had the Sovereign Rune embedded in its hilt, turned into a three headed Golden Hydra. Each of the heads held a fire, lightning and wind weakness, respectively, but also held resistances to many forms of magic.

It could best be described as a very powerful and formidable enemy, and very difficult to beat, even with the best selection of warriors in the Toran Liberation Army.

Data

Stats
LV 75	HP 10000	STR 520	DEX 105
CON 55	SPD 75	MAG 370	LCK 80

Elemental Resistances
Fire Weak	Water Resists	Earth Normal
Lightning Resists	Wind Normal	Holy Normal

Location and Loot
Area	Floating Garden
Potch (Bribe)	200000 potch (Can't bribe)
Items	This enemy does not drop any items.

Stats
LV 75	HP 10000	STR 510	DEX 105
CON 55	SPD 75	MAG 380	LCK 80

Elemental Resistances
Fire Resists	Water Normal	Earth Resists
Lightning Weak	Wind Normal	Holy Normal

Location and Loot
Area	Floating Garden
Potch (Bribe)	0 potch (Can't bribe)
Items	This enemy does not drop any items.

Stats
LV 75	HP 10000	STR 490	DEX 105
CON 55	SPD 75	MAG 420	LCK 80

Elemental Resistances
Fire Normal	Water Resists	Earth Normal
Lightning Resists	Wind Weak	Holy Normal

Location and Loot
Area	Floating Garden
Potch (Bribe)	0 potch (Can't bribe)
Items	This enemy does not drop any items.

Etymology

Gold refers to Barbarosa's title of the Golden Emperor. In Greek mythology, the Lernaean Hydra was a chthonic water beast that possessed many heads and for each head cut off it grew two more. It was killed by Heracles as part of his Twelve Labors.

Meanwhile, the use of りゅう as the word for dragon in the Golden Hydra's Japanese name seemingly reflects that the dragon is styled after Chinese rather than European dragons.

Trivia

• Even though it is the final boss, the heads of the Golden Hydra do not have the highest HP of all of Suikoden's enemies. The Shell Venus has even more HP (15,000).
• The Golden Hydra has the highest level and potch reward of any enemy in the game. However, after the battle the characters won't actually gain any level or potch.
• The right head is, with the exception of Neclord in his invincible form, the only enemy in the game that is invulnerable to the lightning element.

Other languages and releases

Japanese kanji	黄金竜
Japanese hiragana	おうごんりゅう
Japanese rōmaji	Ougonryū
Chinese simplified (HDR)	黄金龙
Chinese traditional (HDR)	黃金龍
Chinese pinyin	Huáng jīn lóng

English	Golden Hydra
French (HDR)	Hydre dorée
German (HDR)	Goldene Hydra
Italian (HDR)	Idra dorata
Spanish (HDR)	Hidra Dorada

References

1. Genso Suikoden Encyclopaedia (ISBN 4-575-16297-3), page 43
2. Genso Suikoden Kiwami Encyclopedia, page 29

Characters - Enemies - Equipment - Items - Locations - Runes Characters 108 Stars (Battle) Hero I • Alen • Anji • Antonio • Blackman • Camille • Cleo • Clive • Crowley • Eikei • Eileen • Flik • Fu Su Lu • Fukien • Fuma • Futch • Gen • Gon • Gremio • Grenseal • Griffith • Hellion • Hix • Humphrey Mintz • Juppo • Kage • Kai • Kamandol • Kanak • Kasim Hazil • Kasumi • Kessler • Kimberly • Kirke • Kirkis • Kreutz • Krin • Kuromimi • Kwanda Rosman • Leonardo • Lepant • Lester • Liukan • Lorelai • Lotte • Luc • Maas • Mace • Meese • Meg • Milia • Milich Oppenheimer • Mina • Moose • Morgan • Mose • Pahn • Pesmerga • Quincy • Ronnie Bell • Rubi • Sansuke • Sarah • Sergei • Sheena • Sonya Shulen • Stallion • Sydonia • Sylvina • Tai Ho • Tengaar • Valeria • Varkas • Viktor • Warren • Yam Koo 108 Stars (Support) Apple • Chandler • Chapman • Esmeralda • Gaspar • Georges • Giovanni • Hugo • Ivanov • Jabba • Jeane • Joshua Levenheit • Kasios • Kun To • Ledon • Leon Silverberg • Marco • Marie • Mathiu Silverberg • Maximillian • Melodye • Onil • Qlon • Rock • Sancho • Taggart • Templeton • Tesla • Viki • Vincent de Boule • Window • Zen Other playable characters Odessa Silverberg • Ted Non-player characters Ain Gide • Barbarosa Rugner • Black • Chief of the Dwarves • Chief of the Elves • Claudia • Geil Rugner • Grady • Hanzo • Kanaan • Kraze Miles • Leknaat • Mina (cat) • Minister • Neclord • Rosh • Sanchez • Star Dragon Sword • Teo McDohl • Thrash • Village Chief • Windy • Yuber • Zorak Locations Scarlet Moon Empire Arus Banner Mountains • Fortress of Kwaba • Floating Fortress of Shasarazade • Gregminster (Floating Garden • Gregminster Palace • Scarlet Moon Inn) • Lenankamp (Keyaki Inn) • Magician's Island • Mt. Seifu • Mt. Tigerwolf • Rockland • Sarady • Tolna Canal Dana Banner Mines • Banner Mountains • Kalekka • Kirov • Rokkaku Hamlet • Secret Factory Dragon Knight's Domain Dragon Knights' Fortress • Dragon's Den • Seek Valley Gouran Fortress of Garan • Great Forest Village • Kaku • Kouan • Seika Great Forest Dwarf Trail • Dwarves' Vault (Dwarf Mines) • Forest of Illusion • Kobold Village • Lukie Ende Towayo • Pannu Yakuta Castle • Village of the Dwarves • Village of the Elves Kunan Antei • Rikon • Scarleticia Castle • Soniere Prison • Teien Lorimar Fortress of Lorimar • Liukan's Hermitage • Neclord's Castle • Qlon Temple (Cave of the Past) • Warriors' Village Senan Fortress of Duha • Fortress of Rakan • Moravia • Northern Checkpoint • Pirate's Fortress Lore Events Gate Rune War (Battle at Pannu Yakuta Castle • Battle at Fortress of Garan • First Battle at Scarleticia Castle • Second Battle at Scarleticia Castle • First Battle with Teo • Second Battle with Teo • Battle at the Northern Checkpoint • Battle at Floating Fortress Shasarazade • The Last Battle) • Kalekka Incident • New Liberation Army's Founding Day • War of Succession Races Dwarf • Elf • Gulhorse • Human • Kobold True Runes Dragon Rune • Gate Rune • Night Rune • Rune of Life and Death • Sovereign Rune • True Wind Rune Terms Astral Predications • Binoculars • Blueprints • Bronze Axe • Clift • Dragon King Sword • Earring • Engine • Fake Orders • Final Battle • Fire Spear • Flowing Water Cane • Great Contract • Hikusaak • Karak • Kilauea Shulen • Kirinji • Lake Toran • Mathiu's Letter • Moonlight Herb • Prakk • Qlon (priest) • Rokkaku Hamlet • Sadhna Stream • Tolna Canal • Toran (region) • Village of the Hidden Rune