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The heroes of the Final Fantasy franchise often employ powerful magic spells throughout their adventures. Unfortunately, some of these arcane arts do not do what they are advertised. Or perhaps they do, but the way the spell works makes it useless in far too many situations.
On the other half of that coin, some spells are must-use, game-changing (or even game-breaking) affairs that make fights a complete breeze. Regarding this particular list, a few spells stood out as honorable mentions on both sides of the field.
Osmose almost made both lists and stands as an honorable mention. When it works, this spell makes magic-heavy boss fights far too easy, but otherwise, it saps just 1mp, such as it does through most of Final Fantasy 4.
The various death/status ailment spells of Final Fantasy 5 also deserve mention for being helpful in general.
It’s a rare moment in this franchise where essentially every status ailment has several uses and can completely shut down boss fights.
Five most potent spells in Final Fantasy franchise
5) ReRaise/Life 3
Life 3, also known as ReRaise, is easily one of the best spells in any Final Fantasy game it appears in. One of its most pivotal uses was in Final Fantasy 6, where the MagiMaster boss has a death counter: it casts Ultima.
Kefka can easily throw Fallen One (reduce the party to 1hp) and immediately follow up with a spell.
There are so many instances where this spell is used. How it’s used is also incredibly simple. Whoever has Life 3 cast on them will come back to life after they have died in battle.
However, it only happens once per cast, so players have to use it again after the effect has been triggered. It is the peak of resurrection spells.
4) Hastega/Haste 2
Sometimes called Hastega, other times called Haste 2, having the power to grant all party members haste at one time is nothing to sneeze at. It’s been given to several interesting party members over the years, and perhaps the most fascinating was Tidus in Final Fantasy 10.
Though it is White Magic, it was not in the domain of Yuna.
Anyone could pick it up through a White Magic Sphere after Tidus had learned it, but the default user was still Tidus. Depending on the game, the function is slightly different, but it ultimately makes party members faster, so their turn comes up quicker.
The first appearance was in FF5 as a Level 5 Time Magic spell, but it has come up in many future games, always a welcome addition.
3) Full-Life/Arise/Life 2
Never underestimate the power of White Magic in the Final Fantasy franchise. The second Life spell on the list, Life 2, is a very easy-to-understand spell.
When cast, it brings a party member back to life and gives them back 100% of their HP. This spell has also been in nearly every mainline Final Fantasy franchise title.
There are very few moments in time where a fan will think that it’s more beneficial to bring someone back at low HP instead of coming back at full HP. It’s advantageous with Blue Mages, so they can keep spamming spells like White Wind (FF5 and 6), or for characters who are the primary damage dealers for their group.
2) Nuke/Flare/Nuclear
Nuke, Flare, Nuclear, whatever it gets called, it has to be called effective. A single-target, high-damage spell, Nuke has no element attached to it, so enemies cannot absorb it unless they heal from every single spell in a game.
It’s often one of the final spells in a Final Fantasy game and is perhaps the most effective in Final Fantasy 4. One of the benefits of this particular version of the spell is that it had nearly no casting time.
It shared that trait with Virus and Quake in the title. Now more commonly known as Flare, Nuke is one of the biggest, most satisfying single-target damage spells in Final Fantasy history.
But it’s no match for #1.
1) Ultima
In Final Fantasy, there’s one king in damage spells: Ultima. It’s non-elemental, AOE damage, and more often than not, completely ignores enemy defenses. If Ultima is cast, it’s going to demolish everyone it hits.
In its first appearance, FF2, it was actually White Magic, but in every other instance, it’s Black Magic. A sphere of blue/green magical energy erupts into the field, dealing massive damage. It’s also used by bosses across the franchise, even in games where the player party can’t use it.
Trance Kuja in Final Fantasy 9 can use it, as an example. Few spells are more satisfying to cast than Ultima. It’s a problem solver, and there is virtually no boss in the franchise that doesn’t quake with fear from the magical power of Ultima.
Five spells in Final Fantasy that are seldom worth casting
5) Lamp/Blindna/Wash
Lamp first appeared in FF1, but it’s frankly not worth using in that particular game. Eyedrops are a cheaper alternative in later titles, but in Final Fantasy 1, many spells don’t do what they should (or don’t do anything).
Why isn’t Lamp worth using? Because, in the original Final Fantasy, the Dark status ailment doesn’t do anything. So there’s no point in ever casting Lamp in that game, and in future releases, it’s easier and faster to use an Eyedrop item instead.
Blindna is helpful in later titles but not in the first. This list could have been populated solely by FF1 spells, but that would not have been interesting.
4) Meteo
Meteor in FF6 is a decent spell, but FF4’s Meteo is one of the most useless spells in Final Fantasy history. It’s an AOE, non-elemental spell that takes several minutes to cast.
Tellah casts it and then immediately dies, and the other casters who get access to it — Rydia, FuSoYa, and Palom — it is not worth casting for them either. It’s expensive, and every character spends too long to cast it.
The variable cast times in FF6 were interesting, but for an ultimate, most powerful spell, it was a serious letdown. It’s much easier to cast Quake or Nuke without wasting time.
3) Pure/Antidote
Pure, later called Antidote, or several other names, is another Final Fantasy 1 reject. It’s another case of the item being far more helpful than the actual magic spell.
Pure is, defying all forms of reason, a Level 4 White Magic spell. It’s nice for it to appear before heading into the poison-filled Marsh Cave, but it cannot be used outside of battle.
In the first game, players could buy 53 Pure Potions instead of the spell, which will do so much more. It’s a useless, disappointing spell.
2) Holy/Pearl
Holy is a single-target spell, occasionally called Pearl in some translations of the games. It’s a decently powerful White Magic spell and one of the rare damage-oriented White Magic spells.
It deals great damage but casts incredibly slow, making it less ideal than targeted spells like Nuke. Perhaps making it even worse is that the strangest bosses and random encounters can absorb it.
Some enemies appear undead but aren’t, meaning the spell cast was wasted since there will be no damage bonus versus that undead opponent.
1) Demi/Gravity
Gravity spells are pretty disappointing across the franchise. Gravity spells do a fraction of the target’s health and ignore defense. Demi, in particular, reduces a target’s hp by a quarter. For bosses with tons of HP, it’s an incredible spell, but therein lies the problem.
So many bosses and even regular enemies are immune to gravity damage, so the spell itself becomes pointless. There are times when Demi and Gravity spells, in general, are great, but more often than not, they’re just a major letdown, wasting a turn.
Final Fantasy as a franchise has spells that can do such a wide array of things to opponents. From turning bosses old, sucking them into the X-Zone, or blasting friend and foe alike with fire and much more, even the weakest spell has a use, even if it’s scarce.
Note: This article is entirely based on the author’s personal opinions.
