Amount of damage depends on the number of frogs you have caught.
Description
Frog Drop is a Blu Mag spell for Quina in Final Fantasy IX that deals fixed damage to a target at a cost of 10 MP depending on Quina's level and the number of frogs caught at Qu's Marshes. It can become one of the best abilities in the game.
Frog Drop cannot be reflected and would not work with Return Magic were an enemy to use it (but no enemy does).
Obtain[]
Quina learns Frog Drop by eating a Gigan Toad at the Mist Continent Qu's Marsh right after Quina is recruited to the player party. It is therefore one of the earliest Blu Mag spells Quina can learn.
Mechanics[]
Frog Drop deals fixed damage to an opponent determined by Quina's level and the number of frogs caught during the frog catching minigame, as per the following formula:
- Quina's Level * Number of frogs caught
If no frogs have been caught, Frog Drop deals 1 HP damage. Damage caps at 9999.
Use[]
Frog Drop is Quina's best ability in the endgame if the player has been participating in the frog catching minigame and using Quina sometimes as a party member so they can catch up in levels. For a low MP cost, the spell can do up to 9999 unblockable and irresistible damage to one target. Though it cannot wipe out groups, it is great against bosses, superbosses, and the world map enemies in the endgame and the final dungeons. Great potential targets are Yan and the Friendly Yan, Ozma, the Guardians of Terra, Hades, and the final bosses.
The ability does good damage without too much grinding, though to max it out to 9999 damage, the player may need to go out of their way to grind the frog catching game. However, simply stopping by the marshes to catch frogs whenever there is a chance gains enough frogs to progress in the minigame and do good damage with Frog Drop in the endgame. E.g. Quina can play the game right after being recruited, then again before going to Cleyra, then again before going to Fossil Roo, then as soon as arriving to the Outer Continent, and again before heading to Conde Petie Mountain Path after visiting the Black Mage Village; when the party has the Blue Narciss, the party can stop by the Mist Continent and Outer Continent marshes before continuing with the story, and with a flying transport, visit the Forgotten Continent marshes before story progressions as well. If the player is also doing the Chocobo Hot and Cold sidequest, this also takes some time for the marshes' frogs to replenish. The player can leave couple frogs behind rather than nabbing them all every time for the frogs to respawn faster.
For its fairly low MP cost, Quina could use Frog Drop instead their normal Attack, and be placed in the back row for protection.
Other fixed damage abilities for Quina are the 1,000 Needles and Limit Glove. By the time Quina gets the former at the earliest, it likely surpasses Frog Drop, and Limit Glove always does the full 9999 damage, but the condition for it to work is severe: Quina must be on 1 HP.
Frog Drop is only useful if the player is partaking in the frog catching minigame. It is still recommended to partake as the rewards are good, and the minigame is not particularly difficult or even that time-consuming by itself, especially as it can be played well enough by ignoring all "frog mechanics" involving the different maturity level frogs and genders and golden frogs. If the player opts to ignore the frog catching game, such as for a speedrun, then Frog Drop is a useless spell to even learn. Because Frog Drop factors in Quina's level, the spell is also not useful for low level runs; even if the player were to complete the minigame until they get Quina's ultimate weapon, the spell would do measly 99 damage with a LV1 Quina. (It is possible to continue catching more frogs but there are no new events with Quale.)
When sufficiently powered up, Frog Drop is Quina's best damaging Blu Mag spell, matching Zidane's powered up Thievery and Freya's Dragon's Crest. Despite the effort taken to power it up, Frog Drop is still faster to max out than Zidane's Thievery.
Behind the scenes[]
Frog Drop takes its name and design from the Chrono Trigger tech Frog Squash; both are written identically in Japanese. The ability in Chrono Trigger also involves summoning a giant frog to land on all enemies.