Masamune (Final Fantasy VII)


 * For a generic list see Masamune.

The Masamune (正宗 Masamune, マサムネ Masamune, True Principle) is the weapon of choice for the villain Sephiroth in his various appearances in the Final Fantasy series and the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII.

An iconic weapon in the series, the Masamune is easily recognizable due to its massive length as a Japanese Nodachi blade. The design and colour of the Tsuba (guard) and Tsuka (hilt) have varied from appearance to appearance, alternating between being blue and gold and entirely black. The exact length of the blade also varies; usually measuring at least as long as Sephiroth is tall or slightly longer, which would make it approximately six-to-eight feet long. It is possibly one of the best known swords in the Final Fantasy series, along with the Buster Sword, the Revolver, the Excalibur, the Ultima Weapon, the Brotherhood, and others.

Final Fantasy VII
Said to be the only one capable of effectively using it, Sephiroth wields the Masamune sword as his personal weapon in Final Fantasy VII, however its exact origins are never stated. During the Nibelheim Incident Tifa Lockhart momentarily, and unsuccessfully, wields Sephiroth's Masamune against him.

While initially a physical blade, after his transferance into the Lifestream with Jenova, Sephiroth is shown to be able to manifest multiple copies of the blade at will as he leaves the sword impaled in several victims throughout the game and yet still has it whenever he is encountered.

During the brief time Sephiroth is in the player's party, the Masamune is shown to possess six Materia slots in three linked pairs, zero Materia growth, a 255 Hit rate and 99 Attack power. It also has a 100% critical hit rate.

A replica of the Masamune can be acquired as an item in the Speed Square of the Gold Saucer, however, it simply serves as a bonus item and is unequipable by any member in the party.

Before Crisis -Final Fantasy VII-
Sephiroth, with the Masamune, has brief cameo appearances in Before Crisis -Final Fantasy VII-, in which he supports the forces of the Shinra Electric Power Company in their battle against the terrorist group AVALANCHE. The game also features the first revision of the Nibelheim Incident.

Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-
Appearing in Sephiroth's hands in all battle encounters, the Masamune, however, is not seen on Sephiroth's person during instances where he is not battling, which begs to question where or how he stores the weapon when not in use. Sephiroth is shown to easily be able to match the speed and deftness of fellow 1st-Class SOLDIERs Angeal and Genesis with the Masamune in spite of the pair wielding shorter weapons and attacking him at the same time. He also demonstrates the power of the blade by cleaving the barrel of the Sister Ray into various segments as he assails Genesis.

A Sephiroth clone is also available to combat in Hojo's Laboratory, Experiment No. 124, which also wields a copy of the Masamune.

Last Order -Final Fantasy VII-
An anime OVA covering the Nibelheim Incident, Zack's Final Stand and the events in-between. Sephiroth, with the Masamune, is shown during the Nibelheim massacre slaughtering townspeople before making his way to the reactor. Tifa's brief wielding of the blade after having watched her father die is also shown.

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
In Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, Sephiroth manifests the Masamune into his hand upon his transformation from Kadaj. Wielding the blade once again against Cloud Strife and the hero's new Fusion Swords, he demonstrates the blade's power by easily slicing through several metal structures, pillars and concrete wreckage before impaling Cloud and holding him in the air, mimicking how he did the same during the Nibelheim Incident. Sephiroth is eventually bested by the new Omnislash Version 5 Limit Break, which utilized the multiple Fusion Swords in one successive attack.

Dissidia Final Fantasy
The Masamune appears again as Sephiroth's weapon of choice. The Masamune also appears as an equippable weapon exclusive to him. The Masamune gives 64 ATK, increases all damage by 10%, and can be equipped at Level 95.

Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy
The Masamune is still used by Sephiroth as his primary weapon and is also one of the eight weapons used by Gilgamesh, although Gilgamesh's Masamune is 1\3 shorter in length.

Non-specific appearances
Since the Masamune is Sephiroth's icon weapon, the non-specific appearance of this blade is directly related with the appearance of Sephiroth in other games, like Dragon Quest & Final Fantasy in Itadaki Street Special and Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring.

Kingdom Hearts Series
Sephiroth summons the Masamune to battle throughout the series as he acts as Cloud Strife's personified darkness. While frequently engaging Cloud in battle, Sephiroth also battles Sora first as a trial in the Colosseum and then simply on his own interest. In both encounters Sephiroth wields the Masamune in his off hand, following the trend of the principle Final Fantasy cast seeming to give Sora various alleviances in their battles. In Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II, the One-Winged Angel Keyblade is also modeled after Sephiroth's Masamune.

Soul Calibur IV
The masamune appears as a katana that can be wielded by Mitsurugi, or a custom character with his fighting style.

Creation and Development
Possibly designed to match the size of the Buster Sword; the weapon of the game's protagonist, Cloud Strife, the Masamune is named after the legendary Japanese blacksmith,. According to legend, Masamune's weapons possess marks of an internally peaceful and calm warrior, while those of his rival, Muramasa, possess the traits of a restless and destructive warrior. Although they were close, Masamune's weapons were always superior to Muramasa's.

The Japanese (野太刀:のだち), on which the appearance of the Masamune is based, is a large two-handed Japanese long-sword which was carried by foot soldiers as a weapon against cavalry soldiers. They were generally used on open battlefields as the weapon's length made their use in indoors or close quarters difficult.

During times of peace, the sword was worn slung across the back as a symbol of status as it required considerably more strength and skill to wield properly than a conventional Katana. A variation of the Nodachi was also used by, a skilled warrior who is frequently depicted as a villain in Japanese literature.

Merchandise/Replicas

 * Sephiroth's Play Arts Action Figures each come with a Masamune.