The 5 Best Final Fantasy VII Enemy Skills

Now I love using enemy skills during my playthroughs of Final Fantasy VII - some of them are invaluable during early stages of the game and many provide an effect that cannot be replicated by a single spell or item - or can’t be replicated at all. One thing that always intrigued me about enemy skills was the level of secrecy involved in collecting them… Playing the game in the late 90s/early 2000s when the internet was in its infancy, all I had to guide me was the Brady Guides strategy guide - which for all it did help with - is very incomplete and lacks a lot of information, especially about enemy skills. So I would go around manipulating everything in sight, always on the lookout for new attacks I’d never seen used before in the hope of finding a new skill. I’ve already made a list of my top 5 WORST enemy skills - today we’re doing the opposite - my top 5 BEST enemy skills!

5 - Magic Hammer
Firstly we have Magic Hammer - an enemy skill that drains 100 MP from an enemy and then gives it to the caster to refill their own MP. Not only is this enemy skill a useful alternative to wasting precious ethers or turbo ethers when you’re not within hiking distance of an inn but it can also be used on powerful enemies and bosses in order to “use up their skill power” and stop them casting the high-damaging spells that could cause instant deaths. At 3 MP per cast, it’s also very economical, restoring up to 97 MP per cast and can be used multiple times on the same target until they have been sapped of all their magic power. Also, unlike many enemy skills that quickly become obsolete once you’ve learned higher level spells to replace them, Magic Hammer is useful from disc one right the way up to fighting high level creatures in the Northern Cave.

4 - Trine
In fourth place we have Trine, a lightning-element spell that damages all opponents. It costs 20 MP per cast and unlike spells from the Bolt family, is unaffected by reflect. Trine’s base power is equal to 2.125x base magic damage and can easily wipe out whole groups of weaker enemies and does well at holding its own against early bosses. It even comes in useful against later bosses who are weak to lightning damage such as the Carry Armour. The only problem with Trine is that it can only be learned from 3 enemies in the whole game, two of which are bosses and one that is native to Gaea’s Cliff, an area that becomes inaccessible upon completion.

3 - Aqualung
Next we have Aqualung, a water-element spell that damages all opponents in battle. It costs 34 MP per cast and is one of only two spells you can cast that are water-elemental. Aqualung’s base power is equal to 3.25x base magic and is useful against both groups of weaker enemies and bosses. As many creatures, especially fire-based ones like dragons have a weakness to water - Aqualung remains useful throughout large sections of the game and has multiple opportunities to be learned. It can also be used as a healing spell against a party who are set up to absorb water damage (i.e. with elemental-Leviathan or wearing the water ring.)

2 - White Wind
In 2nd place we have White Wind, an enemy skill that restores the caster’s current HP to all party members, in addition to curing over 12 different status effects, including slow-numb, petrify, frog and small. If the caster has a large amount of HP, i.e. is high-leveled, wearing HP plus materia etc, White Wind can actually be more effective at healing than the restore materia. In addition to being useful for healing party members, it can also be used offensively against enemies that are weak to holy magic. As well as causing damage, it will also inflict the status effects it can cure. Most enemies in the Cave of the Gi in Cosmo Canyon can be instantly killed with White Wind as it will petrify them. White Wind wins out against Angel Whisper for numerous reasons - namely that White Wind can be learned early in disc 1 and remains useful for the rest of the game, whereas Angel Whisper is learned far too late in the game to be of any real use. A final-attack revive combination can easily negate the usefulness of Angel Whisper - while White Wind is useful whether you’re level 19 or level 99.

1 - Big Guard
And the best enemy skill in Final Fantasy VII, in my opinion of course is Big Guard - a spell that costs 56 MP and casts barrier and magic barrier (also known as Wall) and haste on all party members. The MP cost alone proves how useful this spell is, as Wall alone costs 58 MP to cast. Also useful to note is that this skill can be learned as soon as you leave Corel Prison, as soon as Cait Sith has joined the party and blessed you with his manipulate materia. Big Guard can be learned before you are able to even BUY the barrier materia, let alone level it up high enough to be able to cast Wall in the first place. The convenience of casting both Wall and Haste is an invaluable skill to have in later fights and boss battles and can help you to defeat bosses even when you’re under-leveled. The only downside of Big Guard is as you also cast haste, the barrier and magic barrier will drain faster than usual - but I think that’s a small price to pay.

"I Am The Highwind" - Song Lyrics, Background & Soundcloud

As part of my Anarchy Advent countdown, I decided to record a song. As you know, in Final Fantasy VII, you spend a lot of time flying around in the airship known as the Highwind - especially if you're breeding gold Chocobo. Listening to the music over and over, I ended up making up my own words to it.

The first verse I wrote was actually the 2nd one, about where the Highwind can't land - because I was getting annoyed with having to find grass to land on and walk across other terrain.

Here's the song: 



Lyrics:

I am the Highwind
I am an aeroplane you fly
Through the sky
Get me part-way through disc 2
Yes you do
Part-way through disc 2

Can't land on deserts
Can't land on snow or in the sea
Or on mountains
On forests or on the beach

Look at my features
I have a stable for your Chocobos over here
I have a place to save your game over here
Heal your party members and PHS

You can all fit inside me
Cait Sith and Red XII
You can all fit inside me
Cloud, Cid and Yuffie
You can all fit inside me
Vincent, Barret and Tifa
You can all fit inside me
Bring all your friends along
You can all fit inside me
All of the crew on board
You can all fit inside me
Even space for Cloud’s sword

You can all fit inside me
You can all fit inside me

(Repeat)

Want to download this song? Go ahead - here's a link to download it through SoundCloud. Bear in mind, I didn't compose the music and I don't own Final Fantasy VII or anything - it's just a silly novelty song I made to make you lot laugh.

The 5 Worst Final Fantasy VII Enemy Skills

Now I love using enemy skills - some of them are invaluable earlier on in the game before you learn higher level spells or summons - and I thoroughly enjoy the scavenger-hunt of collecting all 24 of them. HOWEVER; not all enemy skills are created equally. Some are awesome yes, but the following 5 in this list are the worst ones - they’re either useless, learnt too late in the game to be of any use, or require some roundabout route to even get them to work. Let’s begin the countdown!

5 - ????

This enemy skill, which you can learn in the Shinra Mansion at first may seem useful - but bear in mind, the amount of damage you can do is based solely on the amount of damage you’ve taken. It essentially only has the potential to do 9998 damage, providing you can maintain having only 1HP, or even get hit with the correct amount of attacks to absorb 9998 HP of damage in the first place. If you have full health, regardless of your total number of HP, whether you have 900 or 9000, you will do 0 damage. In order for this enemy skill to even work, you have to let yourself sit with damage, potentially increasing the risk you’ll be killed.

4 - L4 Suicide

Although you learn this enemy skill very early in the game - it can be potentially your first, or one of the first ones you learn - its usefulness is incredibly limited. L4 Suicide inflicts critical damage and small status on all enemies whose levels are multiples of 4 - such as 12, 16, 20, 24 etc. So already there’s only a handful of enemies this will even effect. Now out of the enemies whose levels ARE a multiple of 4, many of them are immune to the small status effect - which again reduces the usefulness of this attack. Yes, it will do critical damage - but it will never kill anything - it will always leave enemies with at least some health.

3 - L5 Death

L5 Death is likely going to be one of the last enemy skills you learn - it’s in the collection of rare enemy skills that you can only find in the Northern Cave - right at the end of the game when there’s little to no opportunity left to use it. As the name suggests, only enemies whose levels are multiples of 5 will be affected by the enemy skill - level 50, 55, 60, 65 etc - which is even less of a range of enemies that are potentially affected by L4 Suicide - and far more creatures are immune to instant death than the small status. I don’t think I’ve ever used L5 Death in any of my playthroughs - to me, it just seemed like a massive waste of time that had the potential to rarely ever succeed, either by enemies not being the right level, or being immune to instant death in the first place.

2 - Chocobuckle

Considering how much of a puzzle it is to even learn the Chocobuckle enemy skill, you’d think it would be more useful than it is. In order to learn Chocobuckle, you have to find a Chocobo whose level is a multiple of 4, feed it some Memitt Greens and then cast L4 Suicide on it - this in itself can be a pain in the arse if you’re not sure what you’re looking for - and if it wasn’t for the strategy guide, I’d have never thought of doing this in the late 90s when I didn’t have the means to just Google these things. Anyway, Chocobuckle’s damage is based on how many times you’ve escaped from battle. That’s right - escaped once? 1 damage. Escaped 9999 times? 9999 damage. If you wanted to build Chocobuckle up, you’d have to run from battle 9999 times. It would be quicker to fight the 9999 battles and level up your characters so they did 9999 damage with their normal weapon!

1 - Roulette

And finally we have Roulette, the worst and most useless enemy skill in the whole game. First off, let’s talk about WHEN you acquire this skill. You can only learn it from one enemy in one place, the Death Dealer in the Northern Cave - A.K.A. THE END OF THE GAME - so even if you wanted to use this enemy skill in battle, you have very little opportunity to do so. Now let’s talk about what it does. Roulette, as the name suggests is a luck-based attack which makes your cursor flick rapidly between all three of your party members and all enemies you’re facing. The person or enemy the cursor stops on will be hit with instant death. Firstly, you’re potentially risking the lives of your party members, unless they’re wearing an accessory that protects against death, such as the Safety Bit - or you’ve already gone ahead and cast a protective spell like the Death Force enemy skill. And what if it does land on an enemy and that enemy is immune to death spells? Lots of enemies are, and certainly the majority of bosses and sub-boss creatures are. Learn the skill to complete your collection, then never touch it again. It’s ultimately useless and risks the lives of your party members to MAYBE cast instant death on an enemy - just use x4 cut or a powerful spell and get it over with!

Final Fantasy VII Enemy Skills Guide

In Final Fantasy VII, there are a total of 24 "enemy skills" that can be learned from various creatures and bosses throughout the game. Some of these skills are invaluable, especially in the earlier stages in the game and before you acquire or level up certain magic materia. I'm personally a huge fan of enemy skills and make sure all three of 
my main party members are equipped with it at all times.

There are four empty enemy skill materia in the game, and they are as follows:

• After fighting the boss in Hojo's lab, an enemy skill materia will be dropped in the sample tank (Disc 1)
• In the Respectable Inn in Junon; go down a ladder where a soldier is standing and the materia is right beside the entrance (Disc 1)
• In the corner of the house in the Forgotten Capital where your party rests before fighting Jenova Life (Disc 1)
• Speak to the Chocobo Sage's green Chocobo, and he will give you a materia (Disc 2)

Here's a little video guide I've put together of the quickest, easiest and most straightforward method of getting all of the enemy skills on at least one of your materias. For a more in depth guide, scroll down - I have compiled a list of all of the enemies in the game that can teach skills, as well as methods of finding rare and miss-able skills.

Matra Magic

Non-elemental damage to all opponents - 8MP

The first enemy that can teach you Matra Magic is the Custom Sweeper, which are found just outside of Midgar. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Custom Sweeper

The second enemy that can teach you Matra Magic is the Death Machine, which are found in a corridor in Junon where a group of soldiers are practicing - simply hit the alarm button on the wall to make enemies spawn. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Death Machine

The third enemy that can teach you Matra Magic is the Bullmotor, which are found on your trip to Corel Prison - so you have a limited time to fight these enemies. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Bullmotor

L4 Suicide
Causes [Critical/Small] with levels in multiples of 4 - 10MP

BEWARE: Characters' whose levels are a multiple of 4 (16, 20, 24 etc.) will be hit with critical damage and small status when hit by L4 Suicide.

The first enemy that can teach you L4 Suicide is the Mu, which are found outside of the Chocobo Ranch. They cannot be manipulated, so you will have to wait until they use the enemy skill.

Mu

The second enemy that can teach you L4 Suicide is the Trickplay, which are found in the Forgotten Capital and the grassy areas around Icicle Inn. They cannot be manipulated, so you will have to wait until they use the enemy skill.

Trickplay

Flame Thrower
Causes Fire damage to any single opponent - 10MP

The first enemy that can teach you Flame Thrower is the Ark Dragon, which are found in the Mythril Mines. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Ark Dragon

The second enemy that can teach you Flame Thrower is the Dragon, which are found in Mt. Nibel, the same area in which you fight the Materia Keeper boss. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Dragon

Chocobuckle
Non-elemental damage on any one opponent - 3MP

NOTE: In order to learn Chocobuckle, you must have some Mimett Greens in your inventory and have already learned the L4 Suicide enemy skill.

The only enemies that can teach you the Chocobuckle enemy skill are Chocobos whose levels are divisible by four (i.e. 12, 16, 20 etc) - the easiest method to find one of these Chocobos is to walk on the tracks outside of the Chocobo Ranch until a battle spawns with a Chocobo and two Levrikon (see below) - feed the Mimett Greens to the Chocobo and have the person you wish to learn Chocobuckle cast L4 Suicide on it.

Beta
Fire damage on all opponents - 35MP

NOTE: It can be difficult to learn Beta during the first potential encounter with the Midgar Zolom, as it is a very powerful attack that has the potential of instantly killing your whole party.

The only enemy in the game that can teach you the Beta enemy skill is the Midgar Zolom; the huge serpent creature that is found in the marshes on the east continent. The Midgar Zolom will use Beta when it is low on health, after it enters its standing upright pose. The method I used to learn it at an early stage of the game was let Aeris kill lots of enemies to allow her to learn the Planet Protector Limit Break - which granted the party invulnerability. The Midgar Zolom cannot be manipulated, so you must wait for it to use the skill on you.

Midgar Zolom

Aqualung
Water damage on all opponents - 34MP

The first enemy that can teach you Aqualung is the Harpy, which can be found in a Chocobo battle in the Gold Saucer area, or can be found as a random encounter in the desert area when using the buggy. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Harpy

The second enemy that can teach you Aqualung is the boss Jenova Life; which is fought in the Forgotten Capital at the end of disc 1. It cannot be manipulated, so you must wait for it to use the skill on you.

Jenova Life

The third enemy that can teach you Aqualung is the Serpent, which are found in the storage area of the crashed aeroplane the Gelinka, accessible on disc 2 after you acquire the submarine. It cannot be manipulated, so you must wait for it to use the skill on you.

Serpent

Laser
Lessens one opponent's HP by 1/2 - 16MP

The first enemy that can teach you Laser is the Death Claw, which are found on your trip to Corel Prison. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Death Claw

The second enemy that can teach you Laser is the Dark Dragon, which are found in the Northern Cave. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Dark Dragon

Big Guard
Adds [Barrier/MBarrier/Haste] to every ally - 56MP

While there are two enemies in the game that know this skill, only one of them can teach you the skill, and that is the Beachplug, which are found on the beach area near Costa Del Sol. In order to learn the skill, you MUST manipulate them.

Beachplug

White Wind
Restores HP and status to every ally - 34MP

There are two enemies in the game that know White Wind, however only one of them can be manipulated, while the other must be confused - which is less reliable. The enemy that can teach you the skill is the Zemelett, which are found on the grasslands area outside of Junon. In order to learn the skill, you MUST manipulate them.

Zemelett

Frog Song
Causes [Sleepel/Frog] on one opponent - 5MP

NOTE: I recommend equipping your party members with items that protect against being turned into a frog, such as the White Cape or the Ribbon.

The first enemy that can teach you this skill is the Touch Me, which can be found in the forest areas around Gongaga Village. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Touch Me

The second enemy that can teach you this skill is the Toxic Frog, which can be found in the Temple Of The Ancients. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Toxic Frog

The third enemy that can teach you this skill is the Christopher, which can be found in the Northern Cave. It cannot be manipulated, so you must wait for it to use the skill on you.

Christopher

Death Sentence
Pronounces death sentence on any one opponent - 10MP

The first enemy that can teach you this skill is the Sneaky Step, which are found in the Cave Of The Gi. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Sneaky Step

The second enemy that can teach you this skill is the Gi Spector, which are found in the Cave Of The Gi. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Gi Spector

The third enemy that can teach you this skill is the Boundfat, which are found at Coral Valley Cave. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Boundfat

????
Does damage equal to user's MaxHP/HP - 3MP

The first enemy that can teach you this skill is the Jersey, which are found in the Shinra Mansion. They will not use ???? if they are attacked, however - so be patient and don't attack (including counter attacks) until you've learned the skill. It cannot be manipulated, so you must wait for it to use the skill on you.

Jersey

The second enemy that can teach you this skill is the Behemoth, which are found in Sector 8 during your return to Midgar. It cannot be manipulated, so you must wait for it to use the skill on you.

Behemoth

Trine
Lightning damage on all opponents - 20MP

NOTE: Trine is a MISSABLE enemy skill; it is relatively simple to get it on one, two or three of your enemy skill materia - but getting it on all four requires some planning ahead.

The first enemy that can teach you this skill is the Materia Keeper boss that you fight in Mt. Nibel. It cannot be manipulated, so you must wait for it to use the skill on you.

Materia Keeper

The second enemy that can teach you this skill is the boss of the Wutai Pagoda, Godo. If you want to learn the enemy skill on all four materia - wait until disc 2 to complete the optional Wutai quest - or do not fight Godo on disc 1, instead return after getting the Highwind and the 4th enemy skill materia. It cannot be manipulated, so you must wait for it to use the skill on you.

Godo (Beast Form)

The third enemy that can teach you this skill is the Stilva, which are found in the Gaea Cliffs. In order to learn the skill, you MUST manipulate them.

Stilva

Death Force
Makes any one ally immune to death - 3MP

There is only one enemy in the game that can teach you this skill, and that is the Adamantaimai, which are found on the beaches outside of Wutai. In order to learn the skill, you MUST manipulate them.

Adamantaimai

Magic Hammer
Drains 100 MP out of every opponent - 3MP

There is only one enemy in the game that can teach you this skill, and that is the Razor Weed, which are found on the grasslands area outside of Wutai. In order to learn the skill, you MUST manipulate them.

Razor Weed

Bad Breath
[Poison/Confu/Sleepel/Silence/Small/Frog] on all - 58MP

There is only one enemy in the game that can teach you this skill, and that is the Malboro, which can be found in the Gaea Cliffs on disc 2 and in the Northern Cave on disc 3. It cannot be manipulated, so you must wait for it to use the skill on you.

Malboro

Magic Breath
[Fire/Ice/Lightning] damage on all opponents - 75MP

The first enemy that can teach you this skill is the Stilva, which are found in the Gaea Cliffs. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Stilva

The second enemy that can teach you this skill is the Parasite, which are found in the Northern Cave. In order to learn the skill, you MUST manipulate them.

Parasite

Goblin Punch
Non-elemental damage on any one opponent - 0MP

There is only one enemy in the game that can teach you this skill, which is the Goblin, which are found only on Goblin Island, a small island in the north-east corner of the map which is covered with forests. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Goblin

Dragon Force
Raises the Defense and Magic Def. level of one ally - 19MP

There is only one enemy in the game that can teach you this skill, and that is the Dark Dragon, which are found in the Nothern Cave. In order to learn the skill, you MUST manipulate them.

Dark Dragon

L5 Death
Causes [Death] on levels in multiples of 5 - 22MP

BEWARE: Characters' whose levels are a multiple of 5 (50, 55, 60 etc.) will be hit with instant death when hit with L5 Death - so cast Death Force or equip a Safety Bit as protection.

There is only one enemy in the game that can teach you this skill, and that is the Parasite, which are found in the Northern Cave. In order to learn the skill, you MUST manipulate them.

Parasite

Angel Whisper
Revives, restores HP and status to any one ally - 50MP

There is only one enemy in the game that can teach you this skill, and that is the Pollensalta, which are found in the Northern Cave. In order to learn the skill, you MUST manipulate them.

Pollensalta

Pandora's Box Big damage on all opponents, ignores defense - 110MP

NOTE: You have ONE chance and only ONE chance to learn this enemy skill in the game; so I suggest equipping all four enemy skill materia on one character and having that character deliver the final blow.

There is only one enemy in the game that can teach you this skill, and that is the Dragon Zombie, which are found in the Northern Cave. It will use Pandora's Box as a final attack - but due to variables in the game, this attack will only ever be used ONCE per save file, so it is a MISSABLE enemy skill. It cannot be manipulated, so you must wait for it to use the skill on you.

Dragon Zombie

Roulette
Pronounces death on any one opponent or ally - 6MP

BEWARE: Characters will be hit with instant death when hit with Roulette - so cast Death Force or equip a Safety Bit as protection.

There is only one enemy in the game that can teach you this skill, and that is the Death Dealer, which are found in the Northern Cave. They can be manipulated, but it is not necessary to learn the enemy skill.

Death Dealer

Shadow Flare
Big non-elemental damage on any one opponent - 100MP

NOTE: Several enemies use the Shadow Flare enemy skill, but I would only recommend trying to learn it from two. Safer Sephiroth uses it, but he is past the point of no return - Ruby Weapon also uses it, but the less time fighting Ruby Weapon, the better.

The first enemy that can teach you this skill is the Ultimate Weapon itself; which you can fight on disc 2 or disc 3. Ultimate Weapon uses Shadow Flare as a final attack, so I recommend equipping a character with all 4 enemy skill materia and having them cast the final blow. It cannot be manipulated, so you must wait for it to use the skill on you.

Ultimate Weapon

The second enemy that can teach you this skill is the Dragon Zombie, which is found in the Northern Cave. It cannot be manipulated, so you must wait for it to use the skill on you.

Dragon Zombie