Magic (command)

Magic (まほう, Mahō) is a recurring command in the series that usually appears in every battle event. When selected, a menu will appear, listing all usable magic spells. Magic is commonly cast by expending MP.

When a player character is afflicted with the Silence status, the Magic command is inaccessible. Certain titles in the series also disable the Magic command when a player enters certain boss battles.

An upgrade to the Magic command is the Dualcast, which allows a character to cast two spells at once.

Final Fantasy
Magic has two categories; White and Black. Low level White Magic is usable by Knight, and Red Mage/Wizard, the higher levels being restricted to White Mage/Wizard. Low level Black Magic is usable by Ninja and Red Mage, the higher levels being restricted to Black Mage/Wizard. Magic must be bought in shops before it can be used.

In the NES version Magic could be cast only certain times per day, but in since the Dawn of Souls version, spells have used MP.

Final Fantasy II
In Final Fantasy II there are 40 spells for each category; 20 White and 20 Black. The difference between the original Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II is that anyone can learn any spell and is not based on class. When the player teaches a character a new spell it starts at level 1 and raises in level the more it is used in battle. The max level a spell can be raised to is level 16. A trick to raise spells quickly is to get in battle with a weak enemy and cast the spells one wants to raise 100 times, as doing this will ensure the spell will raise a level. There is also a glitch in some versions of the game that lets the player level up their spells by repeatedly selecting and cancelling the Magic command.

Final Fantasy III
Magic is split into three categories; Summon Magic, Black Magic, and White Magic. Summon magic is usable by Evoker, Summoner, and Sage jobs. Black Magic is usable by Freelancer, Black Mage, Red Mage, Magus, Sage, and Onion Knight. White Magic is usable by Freelancer, White Mage, Red Mage, Knight, Devout, Sage, and Onion Knight jobs.

Final Fantasy IV
Magic is divided into four categories, which include White Magic, Black Magic, Summon Magic ("Call" in the SNES version), and a special type of offensive and support magic used exclusively by Edge known as Ninjutsu ("Ninja" in the SNES version). Eight of the twelve playable characters that can use magic (Kain, Edward, Yang, and Cid cannot use magic) gain magic spells at pre-programmed experience levels or fixed story events. Recall is another type of Magic that casts forgotten spells of Tellah.

In the Nintendo DS version, Dualcast is an Augment ability that is compatible with all forms of magic. There is also a special kind of ability called Twincast (Twin in other versions) that can be used by Palom and Porom. Twincast uses spell that are not present in all other types of Magic.

Final Fantasy V
Magic is divided in categories: White Magic, Black Magic, Summon Magic, Red Magic, Time Magic and Blue Magic. A character learns the ability to use a type of magic after learning it by using its corresponding job: White Mage learns White Magic, etc. Individual spells have levels, and to use the best level spells outside the job the character must advance their job first. Once learned, the player can assign the magic commands to other jobs as well, such as giving a Knight the Time Magic command. However, if the player hasn't advanced far in the Time Mage job first, the Knight will only be able to cast low level Time Magic. When in the corresponding job, however, even a level 1 Time Mage can cast all of the Time Magic spells, even the high level ones.

Most spells are purchased at shops, but Final Fantasy V introduces Blue Magic to the series, which is learned from enemies. The Red Mage learns Dualcast, which lets the character cast two spells at once. Dualcast works with most types of magic, even Summon Magic, the only exception being Blue Magic. However, the magic types must still be equipped to be used with Dualcast. Because it is a form of Red Magic, Dualcast on its own gives access to the first three levels of White and Black magic spells without the character having any other magic types equipped.

Some spells have been programmed to always hit their target, while others are programmed to always hit allies, such as curative spells.


 * $$Spell Hit\% = Spell Hit\% + Attacker Level - Target Level$$
 * $$Evade\% = Target Magic Evade\%$$

If the spell is multitargeted the Spell Hit% is halved. Spells that are naturally multitarget do not suffer the penalty. If the target has Shell, the Spell Hit% is also halved, and if the target is a Toad its Evade % is reduced to 0.

The game generates two random numbers between 0 and 99.
 * If N1 >= Hit%, the spell misses
 * If N2 < Evade%, the spell misses

Magic attacks' parameters are calculated as follows
 * $$Attack = Spell Attack + (0..(Spell Attack/8))$$
 * $$M = (Level*Magic Power)/256 + 4$$
 * $$Defense = Magic Defense$$

If the target absorbs the attacking element it is healed instead of damaged and if it has elemental immunity, the attack misses. If the target is resistant against the attacking element the Attack modifier in the above formula is halved, and if it is weak against the element, the Attack modifier is doubled and the attack ignores the target's Magic Defense.


 * $$Damage = (Attack - Defense) * M$$

Damage is capped at 9999.

Curative spells also use the above parameters, but ignore Magic Defense. In case of curative magic, the "Damage" from the formula is converted into HP onto the target, unless the target is undead, when it is damaged by that amount instead.

The Gravity spells and Flare, Comet and Meteor are exceptions to the normal magic damage calculation and have their own damage calculation formulas.

Final Fantasy VI
The Magic command is initially only available to Terra and Celes; Terra who was born with the ability due to her Esper heritage, and Celes who has undergone Magitek experiments. After the party acquires their first Espers, every playable character, except for Umaro and Gogo, may learn magic by equipping Espers. Gogo can still use Magic command by mimicking other party members. Dualcast can be used if a character is equipped with the Soul of Thamasa relic. The only drawback is that the character cannot summon the Esper he or she currently has equipped.

Magic is divided in three categories: Healing (identified with the white sphere next to the spell's name), which consists of spells like Cure, Raise and Esuna, attack or offensive magic (identified with the black sphere next to the spell's name), which consists in spells that focus in causing damage to the target like Fire, Blizzard and Flare, and effect spells (identified with the gray sphere next to the spell's name), which consist of spells that focus in buffing and debuffing the target like Shell, Protect and Haste.

The formula for calculating how much damage a character's offensive magic attacks can do is as follows.


 * $$Damage = Spell Power * 4 + (Level * Spell Power * Magic Power / 32) $$

If the caster is equipped with an Earring or a Hero Ring, the damage is multiplied by 5/4. If the caster is equipped with 2 Earrings, 2 Hero Rings, or one of each, then the damage is multiplied by 3/2.

If the spell has multiple targets, then:


 * $$Damage = Damage / 2$$

(Certain spells ignore this step)

If the caster is in the Trance (Morph) status (this will almost always apply only to Terra, but in the SNES version anyone can have the Morph status due to the Rippler Bug), then:


 * $$Damage = Damage * 2$$

Next, the game factors in random variance.


 * $$Damage = (Damage * (224...255) / 256) + 1$$

(Spells cast by using Rods or Shields as Items ignore this step).

Next, the game factors in the target's Magic Defense.


 * $$Damage = (Damage * (255 - target's Magic Defense) / 256) + 1$$

(Many spells ignore this step).

Next, if the target has the Shell status, then:


 * $$Damage = (Damage * 170 / 256) + 1$$

(Many spells ignore this step).

Next, if the target has the Trance (Morph) status, then:


 * $$Damage = Damage / 2$$

If the target is petrified, the damage is reduced to 0 at this point. Otherwise, the game now checks elemental properties, which finalizes the damage. Elemental properties are checked in this order:


 * If Force Field is in effect for the element in question, the damage reduces to 0.
 * If the target absorbs the element in question, the damage remains the same, but the attack heals the target.
 * If the target is immune to the element in question, the damage reduces to 0.
 * If the target is resistant to the element in question, the damage is cut in half.
 * If the target is weak to the element in question, the damage doubles.
 * Otherwise, the damage remains the same.

If one of the elemental checks is true, the game does not check subsequent steps.

Celes's Runic command can nullify cast magic, either the enemies' or the player party's. If the character is afflicted with Imp, the only spell they can use is the Imp spell.

Final Fantasy VII
The Magic command is available to anyone equipped with Magic Materia, and enough MP to cast at least one of the spells they know - for example, if a character knows a spell using 30 MP, and only has 20 MP, the Magic command is disabled. The Magic command can be changed to W-Magic with the Command Materia of same name. By linking Magic Materia with Support Materia the player can get different results when using the command, such as using a spell that is linked to an All Materia will result in the spell hitting all targets.

The formula for magic damage is as follows:


 * $$Base Magic Damage = 6 * [Level + Magic]$$

Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-
The command works similarly as in Final Fantasy VII; Zack can use magic in battle by equipping Magic Materia by expending MP.

Final Fantasy VIII
Magic is a junction ability that every Guardian Force has already mastered. It may be removed using the item Amnesia Greens, and later re-added using the Magic Scroll item bought from Pet Shops in Timber or Esthar. To use the command, the player must acquire some spells by drawing them from enemies and draw points, or by refining from items. The game uses no MP and instead spells are stocked and uses up individually.

Base damage calculation for magic spells is:


 * $$Damage = AttackerMag + Power$$
 * $$Damage = Damage * (265 - TargetSpr) / 4$$
 * $$Damage = Damage * Power / 256$$

Each spell has its own spell power, apart from Demi that works by draining a quarter of the target's current health.

The healing spells use the following formula:


 * $$HealingAmount = (Power + HealerMag) * Power / 2$$

Shell reduces both offensive and curative spells' effectiveness.

Status spells have no spell power, but their effectiveness if calculated by the following formula,

If (StatusDefense >= 200) Target doesn't get the status


 * else: Infliction% = AttackerMag / 4 - TargetSpr / 4
 * Infliction% = Infliction% - StatusDefense + 200

StatusDefense and StatusAttack start at 100 (0%) and the cap is 200 (100%).

Final Fantasy IX
Magic command is divided in three, Black Magic, White Magic and Blue Magic. Vivi is the only one to have Black Magic, and Garnet and Eiko, as well as the temporary character Beatrix, have White Magic, whereas Quina learns Blue Magic. When Steiner and Vivi are in the active party they can combine their powers in Magic Sword techniques. Magic is usually learned from equipment, but Quina learns Blue Magic by eating enemies. During Trance, Vivi's Black Magic becomes Dbl Black Magic, and Eiko's White Magic becomes Dbl White Magic.

Formula for Magic:
 * $$MagBase + [Level * 3 / 10] + [MagBonus / 32]$$

Final Fantasy X
In Final Fantasy X anyone who has learned magic has the command to use it in battle. Magic is divided in Black and White Magic and is learned as a character advances the Sphere Grid. Black Magic is located on Lulu's path on the Sphere Grid, and White Magic is located on Yuna's path.

The formula for determining how much damage a Magic spell will do is as follows:


 * $$[DmCon * ([Stat ^ 2 ÷ 6] + DmCon) ÷ 4]$$

The formula for determining how much a spell will heal for is as follows:


 * $$HlCon * [(Stat + HlCon) ÷ 2]$$

Final Fantasy X-2
What commands a character has depends on which dressphere she is wearing and which Garment Grid she is equipping. Black Mage and White Mage learn the Black and White Magic commands, respectively, and learn more spells by levelling up their individual dressphere. Certain spells, such as Holy, can only be acquired through Garment Grids. It is also possible to use magic outside of their originating dressphere. For example: Equipping the accessory "Black Lore" allows you to use any abilities learned as a Black Mage in any dressphere.

Final Fantasy XI
There are six main categories of spells that are executed using commands from the magic menu: Black Magic, White Magic, Blue Magic, Summoning Magic, Ninjutsu, and Bard songs.

All magic falls under a certain skill category: White Magic and Black Magic both include Enhancing Magic and Enfeebling Magic. Black Magic also includes Elemental Magic and Dark Magic, and White Magic also includes Divine Magic and Healing Magic. All Blue Magic is attributed to the Blue Magic skill, all Ninjutsu is under the Ninjutsu skill category, and all summoning spells are under the Summoning Magic skill category. Bard songs are broken down into three magic skill types: Singing, String Instrument, and Wind Instrument.

Final Fantasy XII
Magicks and Technicks command opens a submenu listing the types of magick spells or technicks the player has already obtained on the License Board. Individual spells must be purchased in shops before they can be used. Anyone can use any spell after acquiring its license, but in the Zodiac Job System version, only certain jobs learn magick, such as Black Mage and White Mage.

Every spell has the same Charge Time, however, with the battle mode set to "Wait" no other action can take place whilst a spell animation is happening, thus using spells with longer animations slows the party down. Even if the battle mode is set to "Active", how many spells can happen at the same time is determined by the effect capacity; when the capacity is full, other spells must "wait for their turn" to be executed. The most powerful spells hog the whole capacity, so only one such spell can be cast at any one time.

The formula for damage is:


 * $$DMG = [POW x RANDOM(1~1.125) - MDEF] x [2 + MAG x (Lv+MAG)/256)] $$

The formula for healing is:


 * $$HEAL = POW x RANDOM(1~1.125) x [2 + MAG x (Lv+MAG)/256)]$$

Healing does not consider the target's magick defense and the same formula applies when healing magicks are targeted to enemy creatures, such as the undead. The Syphon spell also applies the heal formula, which ignores enemy magick defense.

For list of individual spell powers see the specific spell list, e.g. Black Magick.

The damage inflicted with magick is further affected by the character's status (Faith boosts magick power), what augments they have purchased on the License Board, the Elemental Affinity and the enemies' possible elemental weaknesses, as well as the weather and terrain.

Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings
Magic isn't a separate command, but more like every individual spell is its own command. New magick is unlocked by reaching pre-programmed level caps. Kytes learns offensive magick such as Thundaga and Flare, and Penelo learns healing magick such as Curaga and Esuna, and the one special spell, Holy.

Final Fantasy XIII
The characters in Final Fantasy XIII don't have a separate Magic command, but all abilities are listed under the same command, called Abilities. What magic a character can cast in battle depends on their current role and how far they have developed in their Crystarium. Everybody's Crystarium development is unique, and one character never learns every skill. Commando learns only the non-elemental magic spells Ruin and Ruinga, Ravager learns elemental magic such as Fire and Blizzard, Medic learns healing magic such as Cure and Esuna, Synergist learns enhancing magic such as Protect and Haste, and Saboteur learns debilitating magic such as Slow and Poison. The only role that has no magic is Sentinel.

The game utilizes no MP. Magic can't be used outside of battle, and all characters are completely healed after every battle for this reason. Spell "cost" is measured in ATB segments; low level spells take one ATB segment to execute, whereas powerful spells takes three segments.

Final Fantasy Tactics
Each of the magick jobs have a corresponding Action Ability command: White Magicks, Black Magicks, Time Magicks, etc. All spells are considered Action Abilities and must be purchased with JP to use in battle.

Final Fantasy Tactics Advance
The base damage formula for Magical abilities are as follows:


 * $$Caster's Magic Power - (Target's Magic Resistance/2)$$

Afterwards, damage will be multiplied by Power/100, where Power is usually equal to the strength of the ability being used. For weapon-based abilities, this will be the EqAtt bonus the unit's equipment (minus secondary weapons) gives, For other abilities, this will be the Power stat of the ability itself.

Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift
Various Magic classes have their own set of commands for magic. The White Mage has access to White Magick, Black Mage to Black Magick, Seer to High Magick, Red Mage to Red Magick, Green Mage to Green Magick, Blue Mage to Blue Magick, Time Mage to Time Magick, Bishop to Intercession, Alchemist for Alchemy, Sage for Sagacity, and Illusionist for Illusion.

Final Fantasy Mystic Quest
Three schools of magic exists in this game, being Black, White, and Wizard magic. Each school has their own set amount of uses before the character cannot use anymore spells of that school, but all schools are automatically restored when the character restores MP. Black Magic spells include Aero, Blizzard, Fire, and Quake, White Magic includes Cure, Exit, Heal, and Life, and Wizard Magic includes the powerful Flare, Meteor, and Holy spells, as well as oddly enough the Thunder spell.