Enemy Skill Materia

Enemy Skill is a Command Materia from Final Fantasy VII that works in the same manner as Blue Magic. It enables the use of E.Skill command in battle.

There are four Enemy Skill Materia in the game:
 * 1) In the sample tank in Professor Hojo's lab in the Shinra Headquarters after Red XIII joins the party.
 * 2) In the Respectable Inn in Junon.
 * 3) In one of the houses in the Forgotten Capital.
 * 4) Received from the Chocobo Sage's mountain chocobo.

Mechanics
The Enemy Skill Materia can be used to learn specific enemy spells when a character equipped with the Materia is successfully targeted by that spell. The character permanently learns the spell regardless of whether he or she survives the attack. If the party escapes from the battle the learned skill will be nulled, and if the battle ends due to the characters being ejected out of the battle, such as in the battle against Midgar Zolom, it counts as if having escaped and the skill won't be learned. Enemy Skills cannot be permanently learned from the Gold Saucer Battle Square. If a character has equipped two Enemy Skill Materia, they can only learn a new Enemy Skill if both Materia do not have that skill.

An Enemy Skill can only be learned from an enemy casting the Enemy Skill in question, and not from another party member casting the Enemy Skill using another Enemy Skill Materia that already has the Enemy Skill learned.

Unilke other types of Materia, an Enemy Skill Materia does not reproduce a brand new one once all Enemy Skills has been learned. This means, in the entire game, a player can have up to a maximum of 4 mastered Enemy Skill Materia.

Some enemies have to be manipulated to learn the Enemy Skill because they will never use it under normal conditions. Some enemies may also be inflicted with Confuse in order to have them use the ability on the player party.

Many of the enemy abilities are not specific skills and use unique formulas. Despite this they must still have a classification of Physical or Magical even if the ability does not take into account the target's Defense or Magic Defense stats. Its role does affect the attack however, with Magical abilities being reflectable unless stated otherwise, and Physical abilities being able to remove Confusion and Sleep statuses.

An Enemy Skill materia will not work with Support Materia of any sort, not even with the Master Command/Support Materia Glitch.

Obtaining rare Enemy Skills
Most of the rarer Enemy Skills can be obtained in the Northern Cave at the end of the game: Parasite uses L5 Death and Magic Breath, Dark Dragon uses Dragon Force and Laser, Malboro uses Bad Breath. Dragon Zombie uses Shadow Flare and Pandora's Box, Pollensalta uses Angel Whisper and Death Dealer uses Roulette.

All four Enemy Skill Materia can simultaneously learn a skill when all four are equipped on a character, easing the task of learning many of the Enemy Skills, including Roulette and Shadow Flare. To learn Pandora's Box on all Enemy Skill Materia, all four must be equipped on the party as it is used only once per game. If an Enemy Skill is used on a character who has an Enemy Skill Materia equipped that already has that skill, the other Enemy Skill Materia on that character will not learn the skill.

To learn Roulette and L5 Death, casting the Death Force enemy skill on any potential target of Roulette or L5 Death prevents the enemies or allies (in Roulette's case) from being instantly killed.

Trine can be learned only from three enemies: Materia Keeper, Godo and Stilva. Since the first two are bosses and the latter is found only at Gaea's Cliff (which is a one-visit area), Trine can be missed permanently. The Stilva later appears in the Battle Square, but the player cannot learn Enemy Skills there. If the player wishes to learn Trine on all four Enemy Skill Materia, they must refrain from fighting Godo until after all four Materia are in their possession.

Due to the game's programming, the Dragon Zombie only uses the Pandora's Box skill once per save file, and will never use it again. Even if the Dragon Zombie failed to cast it due to not having enough MP, none of the others will cast it. If the player misses Pandora's Box the first time it is used, they can never obtain it.

Final Fantasy Airborne Brigade
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Trivia

 * Magic Breath is one of three spells in Final Fantasy VII with a multi-elemental attack, the others being the Kujata and Typhon summons.
 * Mastering Enemy Skill materia with every Enemy Skill will not give birth to a new Materia of its type.