Oh, shut up and help me remodel the Critical ability page!
SOS Protect in Final Fantasy VI.
Critical abilities, also known as SOS abilities, are a set of recurring abilities in the series. First appearing as SOS Shell in Final Fantasy V, critical abilities have grown to include just about all of the positive status effectes, and are either only active so long as the user is in Critical, or trigger when the character falls into critical health. The critical ability usually cannot be dispelled while active, and will automatically reapply should the character be KO'ed and revived back into Critical. The moment the user is restored to above their Critical HP limit, the ability will wear off.
The following is a list of critical abilities that have appeared throughout the series:
- Critical: Shell (aka Magic Shell) - Automatically puts the user in Shell status.
- Critical: Protect - Automatically puts the user in Protect status.
- Critical: Haste/Last Haste - Automatically puts the user in Haste status.
- Critical: Wall - Automatically puts the user in Protect and Shell status.
- Critical: Reflect - Automatically puts the user in Reflect status.
- Critical: Regen - Automatically puts the user in Regen status.
- Critical: NulBlaze - Automatically puts the user in NulBlaze status.
- Critical: NulFrost - Automatically puts the user in NulFrost status.
- Critical: NulShock - Automatically puts the user in NulShock status.
- Critical: NulTide - Automatically puts the user in NulTide status.
- Critical: Overdrive - Increases Overdrive gauge gain.
- Critical: Spellspring - Reduces cost of spells and techniques to 0.
- SOS Critical - Always deal critical hits.
- SOS ???? - As long as the user is in Critical, all healing items and spells heal for 9999 and all damage attacks, spells, and items will deal 9999 per hit.
While the following aren't named "Critical", they still follow the same format:
- Adrenaline - Doubles attack.
- Last Stand - Doubles defense.
- Spellbreaker - Doubles magic.
- Chivalry - Increases Attack and Magic.
- Gallantry - Increases Defense and Magic Defense.
- Restore HP/Critical: Recover HP - Regains half of Max HP/HP if character survives an attack while in Critical.
- Last Berserk - Automatically puts the user in Berserk status.
- Critical: Recover MP - Regains MP.
- Critical: Quicken - Can attack quicker.
- Critical: Vanish - Automatically puts the user in Vanish status.
- Critical: Evasion - Increases Evasion.
Appearances[]
Final Fantasy IV[]
Adrenaline and Last Stand appear in the 3D version as Augments. Adrenaline is received through Cid after modifying the Falcon and by giving him two Augments. Last Stand is received at the Tower of Zot, and if Tellah had been given one or more Augments.
Final Fantasy V[]
Magic Shell (also called Magiwall or Barrier) is the Level 1 ability of the Mystic Knight class. It requires 10 ABP to learn. When equipped, or if the user is a Mystic Knight (or a Freelancer with Mystic Knight mastered), they will automatically receive the effects of Shell when they reach critical HP.
Final Fantasy VI[]
The Barrier Ring cast Shell while the Mythril Glove casts Protect on the user once they enter Critical status. The Princess Ring, a female-exclusive relic, casts both Protect and Shell when the user is Critical. There is a dummied ability that cast Reflect when the user came under the Critical status. These abilities will only activate once per battle.
Final Fantasy IX[]
Restore HP support ability can be learned by Zidane, Steiner, Freya, and Amarant, with the Brave Suit, Promist Ring, Platinum Helm, Grand Armor, or Minerva's Plate. When they are at critical HP and take damage that they survive, they will recover 50% of their max HP. It costs 8 Magic Stones to equip.
Final Fantasy X[]
There are numerous SOS abilities. The SOS Overdrive ability is an auto-ability for weapons. It charges the Overdrive gauge at double the rate when the character is HP Critical. It can be customized to a weapon with Gambler's Spirit x20.
The SOS abilities for armor grant a buff to the user. Each of the four elements has an SOS ability which nullifies it with the respective Nul- status. The SOS NulBlaze auto-ability grants the user the NulBlaze status, granting immunity to the Fire-element when HP Critical, and can be customized to an armor with Bomb Core x1. The SOS NulShock auto-ability grants the user the NulShock status, granting immunity to the Lightning-element when HP Critical, and can be customized to an armor with Lightning Marble x1. The SOS NulTide auto-ability grants the user the NulTide status, granting immunity to the Water element when HP Critical, and can be customized to an armor with Dragon Scale x1. The SOS NulFrost auto-ability grants the user the NulFrost status, granting immunity to the Ice element when HP Critical, and can be customized to an armor with Arctic Wind x1.
The remainder of the SOS abilities for armor are predecessors of a number of the abilities with an "Auto-" prefix. SOS Shell grants Shell when HP Critical, and can be customized to an armor with Lunar Curtain x8. SOS Protect grants Protect when HP Critical, and can be customized to an armor with Light Curtain x8. SOS Reflect grants Reflect when HP Critical, and can be customized to an armor with Star Curtain x8. SOS Haste grants the Haste status when HP Critical, and can be customized to an armor with Chocobo Feather x20. SOS Regen grants Regen when HP Critical. It remains with the player after they have left the Critical status, but becomes susceptible to Dispel. It can be customized to an an armor with Healing Spring x12. Customizing SOS Regen to armor is part of a gil trick involving Kottos at the Monster Arena.
Final Fantasy X-2[]
SOS Shell, Protect, Regen, Wall, Haste, Spellspring, and ??? are the SOS abilities. All but SOS ??? can be found on various dresspheres, while SOS ??? is unique to the accessory Cat Nip. SOS Critical is unique to the Samurai, and costs 80 AP to master as well as having already learned Fireworks. SOS Shell is an ability of the Selene Guard Garment Grid.
Final Fantasy XII[]
Adrenaline, Last Stand, and Spellbreaker are passive abilities that activate when the character is on low health. They increase attack power, defense, and spell power, respectively. In the Zodiac version, only certain jobs have access to them, but the same effects can be gained via certain accessories in every version.
Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings[]
Gallantry and Chivalry are critical abilities exclusive to Basch.
Final Fantasy XIII[]
Critical: Protect, Shell, Veil, Bravery, Faith, Vigilance, Barfire, Barwater, Barfrost, Barthunder, Haste and Tetradefense are gained by equipping certain accessories. Buffs granted by critical abilities last 120 seconds (except Tetradefense, which lasts 60 seconds), but only activate once per battle.
- Critical: Protect is granted by the Guardian Amulet.
- Critical: Shell is granted by the Auric Amulet.
- Critical: Veil is granted by the Watchman's Amulet.
- Critical: Bravery is granted by the Hero's Amulet.
- Critical: Faith is granted by the Saint's Amulet.
- Critical: Vigilance is granted by the Zealot's Amulet.
- Critical: Barfire is granted by the Flamebane Brooch.
- Critical: Barfrost is granted by the Frostbane Brooch.
- Critical: Barthunder is granted by the Sparkbane Brooch.
- Critical: Barwater is granted by the Aquabane Brooch.
- Critical: Haste is granted by the Hermes Sandals.
- Critical: Tetradefense is granted by the Tetradic Crown, and grants Protect, Shell, Veil, and Vigilance when HP reaches critical.
All accessories with critical abilities can be upgraded into accessories with auto- abilities.
Final Fantasy XIII-2[]
Buffs granted by critical abilities last 120 seconds, while Weak versions and Critical: Tetradefense last 60 seconds. With an exception to Tetradefense, all critical abilities will reapply whenever the user falls into Critical HP.
Final Fantasy Tactics[]
Critical: Recover HP (also called HP Restore) is a reaction ability the Monk class learns for 500 JP. When a unit equipped with this ability suffers from critical loss of HP, the unit's health will be replenished automatically.
Critical: Quick is a reaction ability the Time Mage class learns for 700 JP. When a character receives damage that reduces his/her HP to critical level, their AT will be elevated into the next position for immediate turn. This ability is the basis of the Quickening glitch, which allows player characters to act infinitely.
MP Restore is a reaction ability the Summoner class learns for 400 JP. If this unit is attacked and put into a critical state, MP Restore will restore their MP.
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance[]
Last Berserk is learned from the Defender job for 300 AP, while Last Haste is learned for 300 AP from the Beastmaster, Ninja, and Mog Knight classes. Last Quicken is also learned for 300 AP, from the Time Mage.
Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift[]
SOS abilities include Critical: Haste, Critical: Quicken, Critical: Vanish, Critical: Berserk, and Critical: Evasion↑.
Dissidia Final Fantasy and Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy[]
The abilities Magic Shield and Physical Shield activate when the character is at critical HP, and reduce magical and physical damage by 20%, respectively. The Back to the Wall ability increases the chance of landing critical hits by 50% when the character is at critical HP, while Cat Nip increases the chance by 50% when the opponent has enough Bravery to kill the character in one hit.
The Rebellious Soul carries the Bonecrusher ability, which increases the character's Bravery by 20% of their max HP when they enter critical health. In Dissidia 012, the Fury of Qu'bia accessory found only in the Labyrinth carries the same ability.
Final Fantasy Type-0[]
This section about an ability in Final Fantasy Type-0 is empty or needs to be expanded. You can help the Final Fantasy Wiki by expanding it.Etymology[]
SOS is the commonly used description for the international Morse code distress signal (· · · — — — · · ·). In popular usage, SOS became associated with such phrases as "save our ship", "save our souls" and "send out succor".