Use Haste, Berserk, Protect on all
Description
Mad Rush is a command ability in Final Fantasy VIII used to maximize the party's physical damage prowess via the application of statuses: the player will lose control of the party, who will attack enemies faster and stronger with their normal attacks while halving physical damage from enemies.
Obtained[]
Mad Rush is learned by the GF Ifrit for 60 AP after he reaches Level 10. Ifrit is obtained from the tutorial dungeon, Fire Cavern, at the beginning of the game.
Another GF that learns Mad Rush is Eden, an endgame GF drawn from the superboss at the bottom of Deep Sea Research Center.
If the player removes Mad Rush with Amnesia Greens, there is no way to get it back.
Mechanics[]
Mad Rush places Berserk (the afflicted turns red with steam rising out of their head), Haste (ATB gauge turns red), and Protect (a blue shield appears when the afflicted is attacked physically) to all of the party, even if the player has status resistance or immunity against Berserk. Berserk makes the afflicted act uncontrollably, but makes their attacks 50% stronger. Haste quickens ATB fill rate by 50%, allowing the party take their turns faster, but also making Protect expire sooner: Protect halves physical damage taken. Berserk is a permanent status, but Haste and Protect statuses will eventually lapse: Haste lasts 32 seconds, and Protect lasts 16 seconds under Mad Rush.
If the character who has the Mad Rush command gets confused, they will never use Mad Rush in this state. If the party has Rinoa in Angel Wing state, Berserk will not take effect on her.
Reaction abilities activate during Mad Rush, notable ones being Counter, which lets the player get more attacks in, and Auto-Potion, a handy way to heal during the onslaught. The player can junction Drains to the attackers' ST-Atk-J to heal passively during the onslaught, but though the HP-drain effect is based on damage dealt, the +50% damage bonus from Berserk is not included in the HP-gain.
Use[]
Mad Rush is not particularly useful, as using it means losing all control over the party. It should be used to take out an enemy fast, as if the battle draws on Haste and Protect will expire, leaving the party simply uncontrollable. It should not be used in boss battles. Having high Evasion and Luck would help: Evasion to avoid enemies' attacks while in uncontrollable state, and Luck to score more critical hits to everyone but Squall, whose criticals are manually triggered. Mad Rush is best used with strong physical attackers who have Str-J junctions against enemies who have Vit 0 or at least do not resist physical damage much. With ST-Atk-J junctions, the party can also cripple the enemy party with ailments while attacking.
The player can still heal during Mad Rush if they have Auto-Potion active, Drains junctioned to ST-Atk-J, or Regen applied before initiating Mad Rush (though the Haste effect from Mad Rush will make it expire faster).
If the party is killed during Mad Rush, the player may still be saved via Phoenix or Angelo Reverse; the party will revive without the Berserk state.
Behind the scenes[]
Mad Rush is reminiscent of, and may have been inspired by, Red XIII's Howling Moon Limit Break from Final Fantasy VII.