HP Critical

Critical, also known as Near Fatal, is a status effect that appears in several games in the series. The status does not actually mean anything, but it is a trigger for a number of items, character abilities, Desperation Attacks, or Limit Breaks. Critical simply refers to a status of being low on Hit Points.

Normally when in Critical condition, the player assumes a bent over or crippled position, and their HP is yellow. In other cases, the characters look exhausted.

Final Fantasy IV

 * Several spells and attacks cause this status effect.
 * The Black Magic spell Weak reduces enemy HP to the single digits.
 * The Behemoth ability Maelstrom reduces the entire party's HP to single numbers.
 * Cecil's ability Cover automatically makes him take damage whenever a critical party member is physically attacked.

Final Fantasy V

 * The Knight's Cover ability protects critical party members from physical attacks.

Final Fantasy VI

 * Gives your characters a chance to perform their Desperation Attack.
 * The True Knight relic makes the user guard critical party members from physical attacks.
 * The Valiant Knife is strongest when Locke is in this state.
 * The Ultima Weapon is weakest when the user is in this state, turning the blade into a light object when attacking.
 * The spell Whirlwind indiscriminately puts friends and foes alike in this status.
 * The enemy spell Fallen One/Heartless Angel reduces all party members HP to 1.
 * The status can be acquired by Strago Magus and Gogo when not low on HP by using Rippler (see Rippler Bug for more information).

Final Fantasy VII
HP digits turn yellow when critical. The sword Ultima Weapon is weaker and turns blue when Cloud is in this state.

Final Fantasy VIII
Gives your characters a better chance of performing Limit Break. HP digits turn yellow when critical.

Final Fantasy IX
Quina's Limit Glove is stronger when the user is at critical.

Final Fantasy X
Characters gradually look more exhausted as HP is lowered until they are nearly doubled over. The post-battle comments highlight their tired state. HP digits become yellow below 25% full health, and the amount of HP affects the strength of several Celestial Weapons.

Final Fantasy X-2
When equipped with the Cat Nip accessory, characters in Near-Fatal status will inflict 9,999 Hit Points for every attack, regardless of attack power or enemy defense. This can be well utilized with the Trigger Happy and Black Sky commands.

Final Fantasy XI
A number of weapons and armors have "latent effects" that are triggered by HP. Some will be triggered at higher HP totals, but many are active only when the player is below 75%, 50%, or 25% of total HP. A near-fatal status may also be commonly referred to as in the red by English speaking players as the player's HP will display in red text when below 25%.

Final Fantasy XII
When a character or enemy is in critical state, known as HP Critical, the battle sprite will flash in red. However, by accessing several lores in the License Board, the character in critical state may receive several enhancements, such as an instant raise of defense. The Masamune's combo rate also increases drastically when the user is in critical state and equips the Genji Gauntlets. When an enemy reaches critical state, their overall stats increases, some may even ready Growing Threat.

Final Fantasy Tactics
When a unit reaches Critical status, he/she will kneel down. Some bosses flee the battle when brought to this state.

Attacks like the Templar's Vengeance are stronger in this state (since damage depends on Max HP to current HP difference). Being attacked by a critical attack can also lead to the trigger of some abilities, such as the Samurai's Bonecrusher, which deals the characters maximum HP as damage.

Final Fantasy Tactics Advance
Characters in Critical will kneel down. When equipped with the appropriate reaction abilities, the units may receive enhancements when they reach critical state, such as Last Berserk.

Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift
HP Critical status is unchanged from Final Fantasy Tactics Advance. However, this status does help raise the power of Tenacity (when on the user) and Tramautize (when on the target).