Solid Bazooka (Final Fantasy VII)

Solid Bazooka
(ソリッドバズーカ, Soriddo Bazūka?)
Availability
Obtained	Costa del Sol purchase
Character users	Barret
Value	16,000 gil
Classification
Type	Gun-arm
Range	Long range
Element	Shoot
Specifications
Attack	61
Magic atk	15
Attack%	100
Materia slots	x4
Related pages
Recurring appearance	Solid Bazooka

The Solid Bazooka is a weapon for Barret in Final Fantasy VII. It is available after the player has the Highwind. The Solid Bazooka is a ranged weapon with eight linked Materia slots, meaning it Barret's only weapon along with his ultimate weapon, Missing Score, to have eight slots. The player can equip it to Barret or throw it.

Obtained

Solid Bazooka can be purchased at Costa del Sol after the player has the Highwind for 16,000 gil.

Mechanics

As the Solid Bazooka has a base Attack stat bonus of 61, the base damage for physical attacks when the Solid Bazooka is equipped is in the following formula:

$\text{Base Damage} = \text{(61 + Strength)} + \frac{\text{(61 + Strength)} + \text{Level}}{32} \times \frac{\text{(61 + Strength)} \times \text{Level}}{32}$

where "Level" is Barret's current level and "Strength" is his Strength stat. The Solid Bazooka also has an Attack% (Accuracy) of 100%, and a +15 boost to Barret's Magic stat.

Use

Promotional render.

The Solid Bazooka provides eight linked Materia slots. This is more than any of Barret's weapons, aside from Missing Score, a weapon that provides no AP growth to its Materia. Before Missing Score is obtained, Solid Bazooka is thus the best weapon for Barret for the purpose of casting spells. Its Attack stat is lower compared to other weapons available around this time, such as the A∙M Cannon, meaning that equipping it means committing to Barret as a spellcaster.

Solid Bazooka's eight Materia slots are all linked, and thus, all can benefit from Support Materia to grant various effects to Magic Materia, Summon Materia, or even some Command Materia. Using this weapon means committing to Barret for casting spells, taking advantage of many Materia slots to boost his Magic stat, to the detriment of his HP and Strength. Because Barret's Magic stat is decent, and his HP and Strength stats are higher, this means Barret can afford to equip many without his HP or Limit damage suffering too much, making him an excellent choice for this. Though they will not benefit from Support Materia, Barret can also equip Independent Materia to help further, due to an abundance of Materia slots provided by the weapon.

Solid Bazooka in terms of spellcasting for Barret is only outclassed by the Missing Score. Though its Attack stat is only moderately lower than comparable weapons for Barret around this time, the Pile Banger and Max Ray have significantly higher stats with only two fewer Materia slots; in the case of Max Ray, it also provides a significant Magic stat boost. This makes them better overall for Barret's Limits and utility outside of spellcasting, so the player should consider switching.