Enemy abilities

Enemy Abilities are abilities that are usable by enemies and are a recurring feature in the Final Fantasy series. Some of these abilities can be learned as Blue Magic, and some of the abilities can only be learned in-game by such methods as Controlling or confusing the monster, or even giving MP to the monster.

Final Fantasy


Enemy abilities cannot be used by the player in the original installment. The majority of spells and skills used by enemies are the renamed or reanimated version of spells and skills used by the characters. Several attacks were renamed in the original versions, such as Holy originally being named FADE due to censorship issues, and Temper being named TMPR due to space issues. Very few attacks were of elemental nature in this installment as well, mainly focusing on non-elemental damage and the Poison status.

Final Fantasy II
As with the original Final Fantasy, most of the enemy abilities exhibited in the second game in the series are renamed, remodeled, or reanimated versions of spells the player may obtain. The skill/spell "Enemy Ability" does not appear in this game. Many of these attacks are also non-elemental in nature, with few exceptions, and vary greatly from one version to another, such as Fire V and Fire VIII.

Final Fantasy III
Several enemy abilities in the game, if not half of them, are elemental in nature, and all have unique animations to separate them from player spells in both versions. However, not all enemy abilities have animations in the NES version, such as Mind Blast and Barrier Shift.

Final Fantasy IV
Many of the attacks used by enemies in this installment are of non-elemental nature, with their names changing greatly from one version to another, despite being the same in the Japanese version of the game. It is interesting to note that many attacks here are the first attacks to actually focus on dealing percentile damage, such as Blitz dealing damage equal to 1/10 of a character's Max HP each time it hits. The game puts a heavy emphasis on physical attacks over special attacks as well.

Final Fantasy IV -Interlude-
Many of the same abilities return for the sequel to Final Fantasy IV. All abilities appearing in this game have the same function as the previous game.

Final Fantasy V


Final Fantasy V marks the first time enemy abilities can be used by the player with the introduction of the Blue Mage. Blue Magic has appeared as a feature in many of the later installments. There are several attacks that are not named when used, such as ???? and Strong Attack, and are sometimes not even named when controlling the monster. Poison is still the most used status in attacks.

Final Fantasy VI
Some enemy abilities can be learned as Rages by Gau and some can also be learned as Lores by Strago. This is one of the first games to actually put emphasis on enemies' special attacks rather than physical attacks as opposed to earlier installments, in which physical attacks were dominant. Imp is a popular status alongside Poison in being used with attacks, and several enemies prefer using elemental and status attacks over non-elemental attacks as opposed to earlier installments.

The Lore Rippler has the effect of exchanging statuses between the caster and the target. However, there were some mistakes in the coding that caused Trance, Dance, Rage, Near Fatal, Interceptor, and Magitek to be able to be switched around. A second bug is that Rippler would always hit, even when it claimed to miss, but this was fixed in the Advance port.

Final Fantasy VII
Enemy Abilities can only be made usable through the use of the Enemy Skill Materia. In Final Fantasy VII, a total of 24 Enemy Skills are available. Some skills are only used by certain bosses, and thus there is limited opportunity to obtain some skills. Several attacks are also not named when used, and thus are only named when Manipulating the enemy. The Enemy Skill Pandora's Box is only used as a Final Attack by the first Dragon Zombie the player encounters and thus there is only one opportunity to obtain it.

Again, elemental attacks start making more of an appearance over non-elemental attacks, though physical attacks seem to be more dominant still. Poison, Blind, and Confuse seem to be the more used statuses when used with attacks this time around.

The game contains some bugs what it comes to enemy abilities. Adamantaimai tries to use Cure when buffed with both Barrier and MBarrier, despite not having the spell, resulting in a glitch. Tonberry also has such a rare attack, Time Damage, that the player is very unlikely to see. Time Damage deals damage equivalent to playing time, so if one has played for 12 hours and 12 minutes, it would deal 1212 damage and is only used as a counter attack to the third attack after Tonberry's last turn, meaning the conditions can't usually be met when fighting Tonberry on the Battle Square with just one party member.

Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-
Most of the enemy abilities' names can be seen when the enemy uses them. However, most normal physical attacks' names are not revealed to the player. Many attacks are taken from the original Final Fantasy VII, although they are always slightly different due to a completely different battle system in Crisis Core. In Crisis Core the player may dodge and block all enemy abilities with careful timing.

Final Fantasy VIII
In Final Fantasy VIII, enemy abilities are every attack made by enemies, except for the basic physical attack. These abilities include both physical and magical attacks. When an enemy ability is used, its name will appear on-screen. Some can be used by the player through Quistis's Limit Break Blue Magic, though certain items must be used on Quistis first.

This also marks the first time attacks can hit the player more than once, as seen by Omega Weapon's Terra Break attack. Physical attacks are used more often than the enemy's special attacks, though several special attacks are deadlier than in previous installments, as Death appears to be one of the more used statuses with attacks, which hasn't been the case since the original Final Fantasy.

Due to Final Fantasy VIII's battle system, where enemies' levels depend on the player party's, the enemies possess different skills and abilities depending on what level they are fought. Tonberry's LV Down/Up skill can further affect the enemy's AI. The enemies also have certain hidden conditions to certain attacks, such as that Ruby Dragon never uses its breath attack if the player party has only two active members (third party member is not present or is knocked out). Ruby Dragon also can cast Reflect on itself and casts magic on itself to reflect back to the player, but only if the player casts Reflect on themselves first.

Final Fantasy IX


Every ability used by enemies in Final Fantasy IX is given a name and is the first game in the series to label all attacks including the basic physical ones. This game's Enemy Ability user is the Blue Mage Quina, who may cast Blue Magic, after Eating or Cooking the enemies that cast them.

Final Fantasy X
Many abilities in this game are stronger versions of the game's weaker abilities, such as 10,000 Needles being a stronger version of 1000 Needles, and 99,999 Needles being the strongest version of 1000 Needles. Usually, the stronger the version, the more deadly it becomes, as it gains more statuses and power. All enemy abilities are named in this version, and some can be learned by Kimahri by using the Lancet skill on specific enemies.

Final Fantasy X-2
As the same fiend-genera reappeared in this game, a lot of the enemy abilities are shared with those in the preceding game. Also, as with Final Fantasy X, many abilities are just stronger versions of weaker abilities used by weaker versions of enemies. Many attacks in this game are also percentile-based, dealing damage based on usually either 25%, 50%, or 75% of a character's max HP. Multiple hits return as a feature for some attacks in this game as well, such as Angra Mainyu's Perdition's Flame attack.

Final Fantasy X-2 introduced the Gun Mage Dressphere, which allows the character to learn enemy abilities when hit by them. They can then use said abilities from the Blue Bullet list in battle. Some abilities can only be learned under certain conditions; for example Mega Tonberry will only use Cry in the Night when in Oversoul, and Baralai must be attacked ten times before he will unleash Drill Shot.

Final Fantasy XII


This game has the most number of Enemy Magicks and Technicks. The player can't learn Blue Magic, but enemies often use the same spells the party can obtain. The enemies are also capable of comboing their melee physical attacks, the chance of this depending on the enemy in question. Yiazmat can manage combos up to 12 hits.

The computer scripted actions are called Gambits, and although the enemies' gambits are invisible to the player, one can detect a pattern to their actions, such as that an enemy may have a gambit to always attack the party member closest to it. The ability to erect a paling is exclusive to certain enemies, making them invulnerable to either magickal or physical attacks, or both. Certain enemy attacks can also knock the player back, stopping them from counterattacking.

Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings
While all enemy Yarhi have the same abilities as the ones the player summons, monsters and enemy sky pirates have their own special abilities, though leader sky pirates may have abilities available or similar to player characters'. Enemy monsters' abilities are generally exclusive to them. Many commonly recurring abilities from the series can only be used by enemy sky pirates in Revenant Wings.

Final Fantasy XIII
Enemy abilities in Final Fantasy XIII can't be learned by the party. The enemies execute commands in chains like the party does, although the only opponent who can paradigm shift is Cid Raines. Some enemy abilities are capable of launching party members into the air. If the enemy itself is launched, it is unable to take any action. Regular physical attacks aren't named, but whenever an enemy is using a special attack its name is displayed on the screen. Ultima, a recurring spell in the series, is an enemy attack in Final Fantasy XIII only used by the toughest of foes.

Final Fantasy Tactics
Unlike most other games, enemy abilities are divided by race, generic monsters, and the Lucavi. Human opponents use skills available to their respective job classes, although there are special enemy opponents who have unique job classes unattainable to the player, and thus can use abilities the player can't learn. There is no Blue Magic, although certain spells and summons can be learned by being hit with the spell.

Bio magic is enemy exclusive in Tactics, although a character with the Magic Counter can still counterattack with a Bio spell. The player can gain access to the enemies attacks by taming monsters and breeding them and then using them in battle.

Final Fantasy Tactics Advance
Tactics Advance monsters races have their own exclusive skillsets, though the abilities inside those skillsets according to monster type. They can be used by Beastmasters controlling the enemies, and some of the abilities from those skillsets can be learned by any Hume equipped with the Blue Mage passive ability Learning. A Blue Mage can learn nearly a move per common monster in-game.

On the other hand, bosses like the Totema have skillsets that are exclusive to themselves and unusable by the player in any way. Those skillsets may, however, hold abilities learnable by some of the five races.

Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift
Like in Tactics Advance, monsters have their own abilities and Beastmasters can control monsters into using them and Humes can learn some of them via the Blue Mage Learn ability. Again, bosses have exclusive abilities that are not accessible to the player.

Final Fantasy Mystic Quest
Unlike the other games in the series, Final Fantasy Mystic Quest has a special battle mechanic where every enemy attack is associated with an element. Physical attacks are also considered a type of elemental attack, and those that do not fit within these 8 are considered non-elemental.

The Final Fantasy Legend
Enemy abilities can also be used by allied monsters who have learn the specific ability by eating monster meat and transformed into them. Of course, a few enemy abilities are enemy specific.

Final Fantasy Legend II
Enemy abilities can also be used by allied monsters who have learn the specific ability by eating monster meat and transformed. A few enemy abilities are enemy specific.

Final Fantasy Legend III
Enemy abilities can also be used by allies who have transformed into specific monsters, these monster skills can be located in the Talents menu. A few enemy abilities are enemy specific.

Final Fantasy All the Bravest
Unlike the other games in the series or even in traditional role-playing games, all abilities are one-hit knockout abilities, but some of them target multiple targets.