Causes Non-elemental damage.
Description
Comet is a Blk Mag spell in Final Fantasy IX for Vivi that that deals randomized non-elemental damage to one target for a cost of 16 MP; the higher Vivi's Magic and Level, the more damage the spell is capable of. However, it may miss. In Trance, Vivi can use the spell twice in one turn.
Yan and Gimme Cat can use the ability Comet against the party, Yan commonly using it as a counterattack. Comet cannot be reflected but can be countered with the support ability Return Magic.
Obtain[]
Comet is learned from the Cypress Pile for 55 AP. Cypress Pile is bought in Lindblum (disc 3), Oeilvert Mogshop, Desert Palace Mogshop, and Esto Gaza (after Desert Palace). The earliest the player can buy it is after the party is taken to Lindblum in the aftermath of the events with Bahamut and Alexander in Alexandria, and the player can head to the shops as Zidane. The earliest the player can use the spell is after access to the Blue Narciss and the player is free to customize their party.
Mechanics[]
Comet's damage is calculated as follows:
- 56 * A random number between 1 and (Vivi's Level + Vivi's Magic stat)
The cap is thus higher the better Vivi's stats are, but one might still get unlucky and get a poor result. Vivi can use the Focus ability to increase his Magic during that battle by 25% per use. The effect stacks up to 99. The effect lasts for the entire battle, even if KO'd. Comet's damage is unaffected by the target's Magic Defense. The randomized part of the formula is halved if the target has Shell, or if Vivi is under Mini.
Comet has a chance of missing the target altogether.
- If 171 > a random number 1–256, Comet hits
This works to ~67% accuracy.
In Vivi's Trance, Blk Mag turns into Dbl Blk where Vivi can cast two spells on his turn. The spells cost MP and expend the Trance gauge independently.
Use[]
Vivi can use Comet to potentially do great damage for a fairly low MP cost with the gamble of the damage being random and the chance the spell might miss. Once Vivi gets Meteor, it is a straight upgrade even against a single target, being more powerful (though still randomized) and also ignoring enemy's Reflect and with generally better accuracy unless the player is doing a low level challenge run. However, in a low level challenge run, Comet also does poor damage. For non-elemental damage, Vivi may be better off using Bio, which has normal spell accuracy, can be group-cast, and has a chance of ailment-infliction while only costing 2 MP more than Comet, or simply use Mag Elem Null; with the latter, boosts with Elem-Atk equips still take effect even if the result is non-elemental.
If level-grinding against Yans, the player is likely to see Comet often; the Yans' Comet can deal terrifying damage, enough to kill their target outright, but the outcome remains random and the spell accuracy is unchanged from Vivi's spell. If Vivi is in the party against Yans, he will retaliate with Return Magic if equipped should he survive the spell. The party can still protect themselves somewhat with Shell, most easily bestowed with Eiko's Carbuncle with a Moonstone equipped.
As Comet pierces Reflect, it cannot be boosted with Reflectx2.
Etymology[]
A comet is an icy small Solar System body (SSSB) that, when close enough to the Sun, displays a visible coma (a thin, fuzzy, temporary atmosphere) and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena are both due to the effects of solar radiation and the solar wind upon the nucleus of the comet.