Limit (Final Fantasy VII)

The Limit command, also known as the Special command in the Demo release is a means to using Limit Breaks, also known as Limits, or Special Abilities in the Demo release.

Limit Breaks are a set of abilities unique to each character in Final Fantasy VII. They function similarly to the Desperation Attacks of Final Fantasy VI except there is slightly more player control over the system. Each character has a LIMIT gauge (a SPECIAL gauge in the Demo release) which fills when the player is attacked by opponents. When the gauge is filled, it will flash, the pink battle message "LIMIT BREAK" appears, the term preceded by the character's name, and their Attack command is replaced with the "Limit" command which flashes in different colors. Also, if the gauge is filled after selecting a command, not on the command menu, the TIME gauge will fill up far quicker than usual. It will fill up at normal speed on future turns if you do not use a Limit Break however.

When using a Limit Break, the camera angle focuses in on the character, a flame-colored light emits outwards from the ground beneath them while a sound is played before the technique is used.

System
The Limit Break system is far more in-depth than the Desperation Attacks of Final Fantasy VI. Character's have four Limit levels, each containing one or two Limit Breaks. Only one level can be set to a player at a time, and therefore only one or two Limit Breaks are available when the gauge is filled, not all previously learned. The first Limit Break of a character is available automatically, while the others require the player to use Limit Breaks a certain number of times, or to kill a certain amount of enemies. The final Limit Break for most characters is taught through the use of a unique item.

There are only two methods of using a Limit Break. The first is to fill up the gauge, selecting the "Limit" command, while the second is to have previously used the Limit command, not used another attack since then including Counters, and then using the Mime command. Character's can only mime their own Limit Breaks, not other characters. This can be exploited many times in the game, particularly in the Battle Square where only one player can battle at the same time, and after the series of battles end the stats are reset to before the series of battles were initiated.

It should also be noted, when trying to Mime another character's Limit Break, the sound plays and the flame-colored light is emitted, but the command will fail.

Limit Levels
In the menu, each character is shown to have four LIMIT LEVELs. Each LEVEL contains two Limit Breaks with exception to everyone's LEVEL 4 where there is only one, Vincent who has one for each LEVEL, and Cait Sith who has only two Limit Breaks in total, one for LEVEL 1 and one for LEVEL 2.

It should be noted that LEVEL 4 Limit Breaks act like Summon scenes where the camera changes regardless of settings, and the player cannot choose the targets for commands by other characters.

To obtain the second Limit Break of a Level, the character must have used the first Limit Break of the level a specific of times. To obtain the first limit of a Level, the character must have killed a specific number of enemies after having set the preceding LEVEL. It is entirely possible to obtain the first Limit Break of a Limit Level before having obtained the second Limit Break of the preceding Limit Level. The character's next Limit Level can still be set. However, the LEVEL 4 Limit Break of each character can only be obtained by giving an item to someone once all of their other Limit Breaks have been learned. If one is missed, the player must go back and re-set their Limit Level and continue in getting the specified amount of kills before being able to add the manual.

Vincent only has one LIMIT ability per level, so it is technically possible to learn all his Limit Breaks without having to use any since the first LIMIT abilities of a Limit Level are obtained by kills on the preceding Limit Level.

Tifa is the only character that has access to all her LIMIT abilities at once, since she doesn't have any sub-commands beneath her LIMIT command, but slot reels that decide whether each ability misses, hits, or criticals.

Players who grind at early stages of the game often obtain most of their Limit Breaks on the first Disc. The earliest stage of the game for a player to grind for Limit Breaks is in Midgar's Sector 4 Train Tunnel where if the player heads backwards far enough, they will get into a series of battles that only stop when the player chooses to, and after healing, or switching Materia with characters who still have MP remaining, can re-enter another series of battles. This is the best place for quick kills, and with LEVEL 1 Limit Breaks, the player's gauges should fill quickly.

The Matra Magic Enemy Skill attacks all enemies for a cheap MP cost, so player's usually use this to get quick kills against the enemies outside the Chocobo Farm. And since the Hyper items are available here, player's can exploit the Fury status to build their LIMIT gauge quicker.

After obtaining the Tiny Bronco, at which point in the game it is perfectly possible to have all nine characters in the party, players use the Mideel Area, the Fury status and the large groups to get kills and use fill LIMIT gauges. Additionally, a sufficiently leveled Restore materia containing the Regen, or at high enough levels, the Fury Ring to keep the party in Berserk.

Aeris has the Limit Break Fury Brand which fills the other two player's LIMIT gauges and reduces hers. If Aeris has learned her other Limit Breaks of the first three levels, this is a quicker way to get other character's to use there Limit Breaks to learn new ones. This is also helpful when player's are trying to use their first LEVEL 3 Limit Break, since her LEVEL 2 gauge fills quicker than all LEVEL 3 gauges. If Aeris's full LIMIT gauge is withheld, the player can wait for the other two characters to use their LIMIT commands before Aeris uses hers, so there's no wasted build-up.

Half of the characters can get all their Limit Breaks on the first disc, while the rest only starting from the second. The earliest is Aeris's Great Gospel, then Red XIII's Cosmo Memory, then Cloud's Omnislash, and then Yuffie's All Creation. The character with the latest opportunity to obtain their final Limit Break is Cid due to his ability being inside the Sunken Gelnika, requiring the use of the Submarine. While Vincent's can be obtained through use of the Submarine, it can be obtained earlier through either the Green Chocobo or Blue Chocobo.

Limit Gauge
There are four variables that effect how quickly the Limit Gauge fills up. The first is the damage taken by the attack, the second is the character's maximum HP, the third is the Limit level, and the fourth is the status a character is in.

The basics of the system is the more damage taken off in the attack, the higher the gauge will fill. The Limit gauge fills when an enemy unit attacks a player unit, and the amount of damage is taken into consideration. The Max HP acts against this stat where the higher the player's max HP the less the gauge fills. An enemy unit under the manipulate status still increases the player's gauge, while a player unit attacking another player unit or itself will not increase the gauge. A character in the Confusion status attacking another player unit will not increase the gauge either. Restorative items will not reduce the gauge.

Each character technically has four Limit levels, while Cait Sith only has access to two. As the Limit levels progress, the damage that needs the character needs to take increases. This is because enemies becomes stronger as the player progresses through the story and therefore it will take roughly the same time to achieve the Limit breaks, which also improve as the story progresses. While the difference in time it takes Cait Sith to fill a gauge between levels 1 and 2 is very small, it takes over double the time for Cloud.

The final variable is the statuses. There are two different statuses that have an effect on the Limit Break. The Fury status will double the rate at which the Limit gauge increases when compared to a unit not in the status, and a unit in Sadness status will half the rate at which the Limit gauge increases compared to a unit not in the status. Fury and Sadness cannot be inflicted at the same time. Attempting to inflict Fury on a target with Sadness will balance and leave no status inflicted, and vice-versa. Players use the Hyper item, originally intended to cure Sadness, to exploit the Fury status to gain Limit breaks quicker.

Though the Limit gauge is a gauge and has no number attributes, the game treats a full bar as 255 and an empty one as 0. To discover the integer the gauge increases, the system must first take the amount of damage inflicted, and multiply it by 300, then divide the new total by the player's max HP, and then to truncate the total to find a full number. This result is then multipled by 256, then multiplied by 0.5 if the player is in Sadness, multiplied by 2 if the player is in Fury, or multiplied by one if the player is in neither. The end result is then divided by a number based on the individual character and their LIMIT LEVEL.

$$[[300 * Damage / Max HP] * 256 * Status Multiplier / LEVEL number ]$$

Each character has their own individual LEVEL number for each of their Limit levels. These numbers are as follows:

It should be noted that Cait Sith doesn't have any Limit Breaks at LEVEL 3 or LEVEL 4, and therefore they cannot be selected for Cait Sith. Despite it not being possible to use them, integers still exist for Cait Sith's LEVEL 3 and LEVEL 4 limits. Tifa has the lowest integer on LEVEL 1 at 120, where at LEVEL 4, she has the highest of 566.

If we create a formula with her Max HP set to 1,000, and the Damage set to 500, with no status involved, we result in 38,400.

$$[300 * 500 / 1000] * 256 * 1 = 38,400$$

Dividing by 120 gives 320, which would result an the gauge being filled instantly. Dividing by 566, and then truncating it, would result in 67, almost five times as little. Also, it should be noted that Tifa's LEVEL 3 integer is the second highest over all, obviously behind her LEVEL 4 Limit. However, Vincent has the highest integer of all the other character's LEVEL 1 limits, who then becomes the third-lowest at LEVEL 2, and the lowest at LEVEL 3 and LEVEL 4.

Every character has to lose more than all their Max HP to fill the gauge on their third and fourth LEVELs, which means the player will have to gain HP between using their LIMIT gauge being reset and refilling it. This also applies for Cloud and Tifa on their second Limit, while Red XIII and Yuffie lie just beneath having to lose 99.6% of their health. At this level Cait Sith only has to lose 59.8. If the player has the Fury status, under no LEVEL would they have to lose more than their Max HP except for Cait Sith's unusable LIMIT LEVELs.

Limit Break Manuals
Limit Break manuals are menu items given to character's to learn Limit Breaks. Each character bar Cait Sith has one Limit Break manual which teaches them their LEVEL 4 Limit Break. These items give no indication in-game who's they are, nor what there use is for. There can be a strong indication whose they are for in the name or where they are obtained however. If the item is not for a certain character, then the invalid option sound will play and a message will appear as if spoken from the player you're trying to give it to.

Player's can only be taught their LEVEL 4 Limit Break when all their other Limit Breaks have been learned. This means if the second Limit Break of a Limit Level is not learned, the player will have to go back and learn it. If the character does not have all the other Limit Breaks, the invalid option sound will play here also, and a message will appear as if spoken by them.

Great Gospel (Aeris)
The earliest manual the player can obtain is Aeris's, which requires the Buggy and the boat at Costa del Sol to traverse back to Junon to get to the man in the cave north past the shallows. Here the player can obtain the Mythril from the sleeping man if the number of battles the player has fought ends in 11, 33, 55, 77, or 99. The Mythril can then be taken to the man in the cabin between the Gold Saucer and Gongaga Village and opening the compartment on the upper floor of the house to get the Great Gospel item.

Cosmo Memory (Red XIII)
The Cosmo Memory manual is obtained from defeating Lost Number in Shinra Mansion. Lost Number is the hardest enemy thus far, similar in power to the Midgar Zolom in power if the player is aptly leveled at both parts of the game.

Omnislash (Cloud)
The Omnislash manual can be obtained after getting the Tiny Bronco and going to the Battle Square. The player must obtain 51,200 BP in one sitting to buy the Omnislash materia. Due to the high amount of BP required (more than on the later Discs) and the inability to exploit the Mime command, as well as being at a lower levels with less equipment despite easier enemies, many players get Omnislash later on Disc 2 where it costs 32,000 BP.

All Creation (Yuffie)
Yuffie's All Creation Limit Break can be obtained after defeating Godo, the final boss of the Pagoda sidequest.

Chaos (Vincent)
The player must enter ??? with Vincent in the party and witness the scene, then leave the cave and fight ten random battles and return to find the Chaos manual. To get to ???, the player can either use the Submarine, or get there faster through use of either the Green Chocobo or Blue Chocobo obtained through Chocobo breeding.

Catastrophe (Barret)
The Catastrophe manual can only after an accomplished North Corel Huge Materia sidequest, the player can talk to a woman in a hut in North Corel who gives it if the player. If the sidequest is failed, then it cannot be obtained. This is the only manual that can be missed.

Final Heaven (Tifa)
Tifa's Final Heaven manual is discovered only when Cloud is the party leader and when Tifa is in the party on Disc 2. The player must enter Tifa's House in Nibelheim, and play the piano. The player must insert the following buttons:

,, , L1 and , L1 and , , , , L1 and , , , ,

After doing this, a letter from Zangan will be read by the player, containing the Final Heaven manual.

Highwind (Cid)
The final manual of the game, Cid's Highwind manual exists inside the optional dungeon Sunken Gelnika, only discoverable with the Submarine. The chest containing it is on the left of the hall after entering, passed the room where the optional bosses Turks:Reno and Turks:Rude are fought.

Limit Breaks
Each Limit Break does a different thing. Most of them inflict damage to one or all enemies based on the same stats as an ordinary attack, albeit multiplied. Others use different variables to calculate the damage, and a number of them also inflict statuses to either enemy or party.

Every character has seven Limit Break commands except Vincent and Cait Sith. Despite this, every character has seven Limit Break abilities except both Vincent and Cait Sith who have more. Vincent's four Limit Breaks each can use two abilities, giving him eight different abilities. Cait Sith's first Limit Break is one ability, and his second one has eight results. Due to the nature of two of them, he can summon one of sixteen summons, and use one of seven abilities in Toy Box technically giving him a total of 27 abilities. So while Cait Sith and Vincent both have the least amount of LIMIT commands, they have the most Limit Breaks. Also, since Tifa doesn't select a LIMIT to use, it could be said that she doesn't have any sub-commands, just the main LIMIT command.

Young Cloud and Sephiroth do not have any Limit Breaks. Through use of the GameShark, Sephiroth's and Young Cloud's Limit Break will display Vincent's and Cait Sith's respectively however it is not possible to use them. Every time the player enters a battle with one of these characters in their party, their LIMIT gauge will be empty. Neither of them can use a Limit Break.

Cloud
Of the Final Fantasy VII party members, Cloud's Limit Breaks are the strongest of all. However, they are learned much slower, and Cloud typically needs to kill twice as many enemies as his comrades to learn his stronger techniques. His ultimate Limit Break, Omnislash, can be the most powerful move in the game providing that Ultima Weapon is equipped and Cloud has full HP. Against single enemies, this is even stronger than Knights of Round, which hits thirteen times, while Omnislash hits fifteen times.

Barret
Barret's Limit Breaks mostly consist of physical blows, and one, the Ungarmax, is part of a strategy to defeat Emerald Weapon. It is of particular note that Mindblow is one of a limited number of attacks available to the player that drains enemy MP. If the player is keen in their leveling, Barret can learn his level 2 technique Hammer Blow early, making it useful for dispatching enemies instantly.

Tifa
Tifa's Limit Breaks are unlike most Final Fantasy VII characters'. Instead of selecting a move from a list, Tifa's Limit Breaks consist of consecutively hitting the opponent with each move adding on to the previous. Each move deals physical damage to a random opponent. The Limits are selected through a selection process similar to the Slot skill from Final Fantasy VI. Each time the reel hits "Yeah!" damage is doubled, but each time it hits "Miss", the attack does not connect. Stopping the reel on "Hit" allows the attack to connect, but does not increase its power. The player stops the reel, and later skills have "Yeah!" harder to hit and surrounded by "Miss".

Aeris
As a White Mage-like character, most of Aeris's Limit Breaks revolve around healing the party, and a few buff the party up. Of particular note is Fury Brand, which instantly fills the other two party members' Limit Break bars; the strategies that could be formulated with this should be obvious. Aeris's ultimate Limit Break requires a bit of work to find and teach, but fully heals the party and makes them invincible.

Red XIII
Red XIII's lower-level Limit Breaks involve him increasing his stats, particularly through the use of Haste, which boosts his speed. His later Limit Breaks hit multiple enemies, and his ultimate Limit Break, Cosmo Memory, hits all enemies for almost eight times damage, allowing it to easily do 9,999 damage at a relatively low level.

Yuffie
Yuffie's Limit Breaks have fair power, and most of them hit multiple enemies. She also learns her Limit Breaks slightly quicker than other party members. Of particular note, her Clear Tranquil ability one of the two healing Limit Breaks not learned by Aeris; the other one is Cait Sith's Moogle Dance. All of Yuffie's Limit Breaks, besides Clear Tranquil, rely on Yuffie's physical strength.

Cait Sith
Unlike most characters, Cait Sith only has two Limit Breaks, Dice and Slot. Both are similar to moves used by Setzer Gabbiani in Final Fantasy VI. The damage they inflict is random on both counts, so Cait Sith's Limit Breaks could be overly-strong or incredibly weak, depending on the results.



Vincent
Vincent's Limit Breaks are quite different from the others. There is only one Limit Break for each of the four levels. When he initiates one, he turns into a monster, who is constantly berserk, and stays that way until the battle is over, win or lose. When he shifts his form, Vincent's stats increase and his HP refills, but he cannot shift back at will. Thus, while his Limit Breaks can be very powerful, they are risky. If Vincent should be knocked out though, he will transform back to his normal form. Vincent is also notable in that he learns his new Limit Breaks the fastest of all party members, most others of which need to kill upwards of 70 enemies to learn their new techniques.

In the following table, the first attack listed in the description does damage based on Vincent's physical attack, while the second does damage based on Vincent's magic attack.

Cid
Cid's Limit Breaks often hit multiple enemies or hit multiple times, letting him do massive damage. His strongest Limit Break, Highwind, could potentially do 9999 x 18 damage, a feat only Barret Wallace's Ungarmax can match - even Cloud's infamous Omnislash cannot do this much damage. Cid also learns his Limit Breaks fairly quickly. All of Cid's Limit Breaks use his physical strength to determine their power.

Trivia

 * In the Demo release, there are a number of differences with the Limit Breaks. Firstly, they're called "Special Abilities", or "Specials", despite being called "Limit Breaks" in the Japanese version of the demo. Cloud has his first two Limit Breaks available Braver will inflict Paralysis, while Cross-slash, known as "Cross Slash" does not, the opposite from the final game. Barret can use "Heavy Shot", the demo name for Big Shot, and Aeris has Healing Wind, which remained the same in the final release.