An enemy affected by the Sleep status.
The following is a list of status effects in Final Fantasy X. Statuses grant some kind of temporary effect to the target that affects their performance in battle, either positive or negative. Negative statuses can be protected against with armor abilities.
Mechanics[]
The player can gain access to various abilities to inflict enemies with ailments and to buff their own party with status enhancements. Weapon abilities that inflict ailments on targets the character strikes with their normal attack are called Touch and Strike abilities. Touch abilities inflict statuses onto opponents with a base chance of 50%, whereas Strike abilities have a 100% base chance. It is possible to have both a Touch and a Strike ability of the same status on a weapon if the Touch ability is added first for a cumulative effect: the weapon has a 150% chance of inflicting the status. This can be useful against enemies that have partial, but not full, resistance to the status in question.
The armor equivalents of Touch and Strike are "Ward" and "Proof", with Ward abilities offering a 50% base protection to ailment-infliction. Status-proof abilities are upgraded forms of the abilities with the "Ward" suffix, with the exception of Curseproof, and reduce the chance of a status being inflicted to 0. However, there are some abilities that inflict statuses by ignoring immunities. The ultimate status-protection ability is Ribbon, which offers complete protection from status ailments except Instant Death, Power Break, Armor Break, Magic Break, Mental Break, Curse, Delay, and Eject. Ribbon was added to the International Version and carries to HD Remaster.
Status resistance values are subtracted from infliction chances, rather than multiplied by. Thus, a 50% infliction chance is canceled out by a 50% resistance, rather than being reduced to 25%.
Dismissed aeons will retain any status effects if summoned again during the same battle. Aeons also have an immunity ability called "—", which includes the protections that the Ribbon ability would grant, plus it protects the wearer from all four Breaks, Instant Death, Eject, Scan, Defend, Guard, and Sentinel. However, this protection can still be bypassed by attacks that ignore immunities.
Most status effects last indefinitely until the end of battle or removal, the exceptions being Darkness, Silence, Sleep, Slow, Haste, and Regen, though even these can last indefinitely in some cases.
The player can remove ailments with items, the Esuna spell, and mixes, and enhancements with Dispel. A way for the player to remove ailments without using up a turn is with the Auto-Med auto-ability.
List of statuses[]
Positive status enhancements[]
Auto-Life[]
Permanent Auto-Life.
Auto-Life automatically revives a character from KO when their HP reaches 0. It can only be bestowed upon party members who do not currently have KO status. It restores 25% of max HP, and the status will be lifted once a character is revived. A wiped out party will not trigger a game over as long as at least one member has Auto-Life, unless they are wiped out by petrification, ejection, or Giga-Graviton.
Haste[]
Some party members with Haste.
Haste allows the affected to act more often and is mutually exclusive with Slow. The spell is learned on Tidus's section of the Sphere Grid, along with the upgraded Hastega. It is also granted through the use of the Auto Haste armor ability, as well as the SOS Haste ability when HP is low.
The status can also be gained via Rikku's mixes Mighty G, Super Mighty G and Hyper Mighty G, and via items Chocobo Feather and Chocobo Wing.
If a character is Hasted at the end of battle, their victory pose animation is sped up.
NulBlaze[]
NulBlaze in effect.
NulBlaze negates one fire-elemental attack on the target and is represented by a circling red orb. It is granted by the NulBlaze spell, and armor can be customized with SOS NulBlaze, which will bestow a permanent NulBlaze effect while at critical HP. It can also be bestowed via Rikku's mixes NulAll, Mega NulAll, Hyper NulAll, and Ultra NulAll, as well as Kimahri's Mighty Guard. The status can also be removed with Dispel.
NulFrost[]
NulFrost negates one ice-elemental attack on the target and is represented by a circling white orb. It can be granted by the NulFrost spell, and armor can be customized with SOS NulFrost, which will bestow a permanent NulFrost effect while at critical HP. It can also be bestowed via Rikku's mixes NulAll, Mega NulAll, Hyper NulAll, and Ultra NulAll, as well as Kimahri's Mighty Guard. The status can also be removed with Dispel.
NulShock[]
NulShock negates one lightning-elemental attack on the target and is represented by a circling yellow orb. It can be granted by the NulShock spell, and armor can be customized with SOS NulShock, which will bestow a permanent NulShock effect while at critical HP. It can also be bestowed via Rikku's mixes NulAll, Mega NulAll, Hyper NulAll, and Ultra NulAll, as well as Kimahri's Mighty Guard. The status can also be removed with Dispel.
NulTide[]
NulTide negates one water-elemental attack on the target and is represented by a circling blue orb. It can be granted by the NulTide spell, and armor can be customized with SOS NulTide, which will bestow a permanent NulTide effect while at critical HP. It can also be bestowed via Rikku's mixes NulAll, Mega NulAll, Hyper NulAll, and Ultra NulAll, as well as Kimahri's Mighty Guard. The status can also be removed with Dispel.
Protect[]
Protect status in effect.
Protect halves received physical damage. This status effect is gained from either casting the White Magic spell Protect, Kimahri's Mighty Guard, wearing an armor that has Auto-Protect or SOS Protect, or using the item Light Curtain. Some of Rikku's mixes can inflict Shell to the entire party as well, including Mighty G, Super Mighty G, Hyper Mighty G, and Mighty Wall. Protect is removed with Dispel.
Reflect[]
Reflect in effect.
The party achieves Reflect through the spell Reflect, the ability Auto-Reflect, and the item Star Curtain.
Reflect only works against Black Magic, White Magic, and certain spells learned by enemies, including Confuse, Break, Blind, Silence, Sleep, but not Berserk or Curse. It does not affect spells that target the whole party simultaneously like Demi and Ultima, though it does work against spells that target each member of the party one by one like the Nul-spells, Hastega, and Slowga.
It does not work against Dispel and Auto-Life, nor items, even if their effects are similar to some spells.
Regen[]
Regen status restores a small amount of HP at the start of a turn from any unit in battle, and lasts until the unit takes its tenth turn after receiving the status. The amount of HP restored depends on the unit's maximum HP and tick speed, and it can potentially break the upper damage limit of 99,999 when bestowed on enemies who have over a million HP.
The spell Regen, the item Healing Spring, the Mix abilities Super Mighty G and Hyper Mighty G, and the auto-abilities SOS Regen and Auto-Regen, grant Regen status to party members.
Shell[]
Shell in effect.
Shell halves both magic damage as well as magic healing. The White Magic spell Shell, Kimahri's Mighty Guard, and the auto-ability Auto Shell bestow Shell upon a character. SOS Shell can bestow Shell as long as the character is in Critical status. Some of Rikku's mixes bestow Shell to the entire party, including Mighty G, Super Mighty G, Hyper Mighty G, and Mighty Wall. The item Lunar Curtain also gives Shell. Shell is removed with Dispel.
Neutral status effects[]
Berserk[]
Berserk status in effect.
Berserk is considered a status ailment, as it can only be inflicted by enemies and is listed under "Immunities" when scanning. The status is cured with Esuna or a Remedy, and Provoke and Threaten will also remove the Berserk status from an enemy. Berserked targets attack uncontrollably for increased damage, but allies are generally targeted in scenarios where physical attacks become less effective in battle (examples being against Malboro's Bad Breath or the physically resistant Black Element).
Despite this, some enemies use the Berserk ability to augment their own physical attacks. The status increases all damage by 50%, not just physical, but there is only one case where this can be seen: when a Guado Guardian casts Berserk on an Evil Eye, it increases the damage of their magical Gaze attack.
Negative status ailments[]
Critical[]
Critical affects a character when they are under 50% of their maximum HP. Their HP digits turn yellow and the character slouches in fatigue, taking an even more exhausted stance when they are under 25% of their HP. When below 50% max HP, SOS abilities on armor will activate and the Daredevil Overdrive Mode will charge the Overdrive gauge every time the character takes a turn.
In the original Japanese version, the critical HP threshold was instead 25%.
Confusion[]
Confused units have two spinning stars over their head and attack allies at random. The player cannot directly inflict the status on enemies, although the Master Coeurl's Confuse spell can be reflected back towards it. As with Berserk, it is still listed under "Immunities" when scanning. Bad Breath may cause Confusion when used by enemies, but the Ronso Rage version used by Kimahri cannot do so.
The player can protect against it with Confuse Ward, Confuseproof, and Ribbon.
Curse[]
Rikku affected by Curse.
Curse prevents characters from using their Overdrives, and stops their Overdrive gauge from filling. It is one of the few status ailments that aeons are not protected against. It can be cured by using Dispel or a Holy Water. For the Magus Sisters, Curse only stops their gauges from filling when they are targeted by an attack.
Curseproof protects a unit against Curse.
Darkness[]
Rikku with Darkness.
The Darkness status overrides the Accuracy and Evasion stats and lowers the chance of attacks and skills landing to 10%, before Luck is taken into account. Darkness lasts for a certain number of turns depending on the attack that inflicted the status effect (usually three), but can be removed earlier by using Eye Drops, Remedy, or Esuna.
Wakka's Dark Attack and Dark Buster can inflict this status and deal damage. If the Luck stat of an attacker afflicted with Darkness exceeds their target's by at least 90 points, the effect of Darkness will be fully canceled out, since their base accuracy is high enough to withstand the ailment's handicap.
Weapons with Darktouch or Darkstrike will cause Darkness, while armor with Dark Ward, Darkproof, or Ribbon will prevent it. A party member can also use a Smoke Bomb on an enemy to inflict Darkness.
Delay[]
Any action that causes Delay on a target will push back their next turn by a certain amount. The player can inflict this through Delay Attack and Delay Buster, but there are also other ways to delay turns, such as Slow spells and status. Aeons are susceptible to Delay.
Doom[]
Doom in effect on an enemy.
Doom instantly defeats the afflicted when the timer expires. Doom can be applied to either party members or enemies through the ability of the same name, which Kimahri can learn as a Ronso Rage. With Use, Doom can be inflicted via the item Candle of Life. The counter will decrement by one whenever it is the victim's turn. For party members, the counter will start at 5, however, the starting figure differs for enemies.
The player cannot heal Doom, but can protect against it with Ribbon.
Eject[]
An ejected target is removed from battle and flagged as defeated in most cases. When a party member is ejected, a backline character cannot move into their place.
Thrust Kick is an enemy ability used by the YKT-11 and YKT-63, which ejects characters from battle. Kimahri can learn Thrust Kick as an Overdrive, which the in-game description claims is capable of ejecting enemies; however, it only deals physical damage.
Swallow enemy ability.
The enemy ability Swallow can be used by the Worm type enemies and Geosgaeno. They then use Regurgitate to reinstate units, while Geosgaeno uses Spit Out. Geosgaeno's version of Swallow does not eject a character, however.
Auron's Shooting Star Overdrive may eject an enemy if the button input sequence is successful.
A similar effect can occur to a petrified unit. If a petrified character is hit with a physical attack (or is petrified underwater), they will shatter and be removed from the party.
Although aeons are immune to Eject, the only such attack used against them is Banish via Seymour Natus and Seymour Flux, which overrides this immunity.
KO[]
The victim is knocked unconscious and cannot act. This status occurs when a character's HP is reduced to 0. If everyone in the party is KO'd (or petrified/ejected), it will trigger a Game Over. The player can inflict instant KO with some abilities, such as Deathstrike, and protect against instant KO with Deathproof.
Petrification[]
Petrify status.
A petrified unit will be unable to act until the status is cured. If all characters in the party are petrified, ejected, or KO'd, the player will get a Game Over. Some attacks against a petrified unit will shatter them, removing them from battle and allowing one fewer slot for a party member to switch into the active party. A character that is hit with an attack that reduces their HP to 0 at the same time they are petrified will instantly shatter. When fighting underwater, any petrified unit will immediately sink to the bottom and shatter. Enemies that are petrified will instantly shatter as well.
Unlike KO, a character's hidden CT gauge is not reset by petrification, though any status effects that were on the victim before being petrified will be removed. Enhancements such as Cheer and Eccentrick will be retained, however.
Poison[]
Tidus is poisoned.
After taking a turn, Poison status inflicts 25% of a character's maximum HP. The percentage can vary for enemies and some take no damage from Poison. It can Overkill an enemy if it accumulates with preceding damage. Poison can be cured with items such as Antidote, and spells such as Esuna. Poison Ward can reduce the chance of Poison being inflicted, and Poisonproof and Ribbon prevent it.
Provoke[]
The Provoke status is granted by the Provoke ability. It forces the enemy to attack only the character who used it, although they may use other attacks or do nothing entirely. Successfully provoking an enemy will remove the Berserk status. Threaten status will cancel Provoke.
Silence[]
Silence status disables Wht Mag, Blk Mag and Summon commands, but Lulu can still use her Overdrive, Fury, and Yuna can still use her Overdrive, Grand Summon. The player can inflict it with Silence Attack/Buster and Silencetouch/-strike, among other methods. It is healed with Echo Screen and Esuna, among other ways. The player can protect against it with Silence Ward, Silenceproof, and Ribbon.
Sleep[]
The party asleep in battle.
Sleep will prevent the victim from acting while under the duration of the ailment. Magic attacks will not awaken the target, but physical attacks will. Sleep will last for a specified period of time dependent on the ability that was used to cause sleep. Sleeping enemies cannot evade attacks or be bribed. Wakka learns Sleep Attack, and the player can also use Sleeptouch and Sleepstrike. The player can protect against it with Sleep Ward, Sleepproof, and Ribbon.
Slow[]
A character afflicted with Slow will have their turns come up less often than normal. Slow and Haste cannot coexist on the same target, meaning Auto-Haste makes one immune to Slow. Slow status should not be confused with Delay. Both Haste and Slow spells are Wht Magic found on Tidus's path on the Sphere Grid, and there are also items and other means of bestowing or inflicting the status. The player can protect against Slow with Slow Ward and Slowproof.
Threaten[]
The Threaten status prevents a target from acting or counterattacking, similar to the recurring paralysis status from the series, although the target can still evade attacks. It lasts until the user's next turn. Threatening an enemy will remove Berserk, Provoke, Haste, Slow, and Confusion. An enemy under Threaten also cannot be inflicted with Haste or Slow, or have their turn delayed.
Party members are innately immune to Threaten, and it is notably always listed under "Immunities" when scanning them. Aeons are immune as well. The only enemy with access to Threaten is Belgemine's Shiva when fought on the Calm Lands (via Heavenly Strike), which will thus always fail to inflict the status.
Zombie[]
Tidus afflicted with Zombie.
Zombie can be inflicted on enemies by use of the Zombie Attack skill, located in Auron's section of the Sphere Grid, and by the Zombietouch and Zombiestrike weapon abilities. Characters and enemies afflicted with the Zombie status have a glowing green body and black smoke clouds around their heads. Zombie can be cured via Holy Water or Remedy, but it notably cannot be cured with the spell Esuna. Evrae Altana and Fallen Monk start the battle under permanent Zombie status.
Zombie causes items and abilities that normally heal HP to deal damage instead. Revivification abilities, such as Life and the item Phoenix Down, will instantly kill targets under the Zombie status, or deal damage equal to the HP it would normally heal if the enemy is immune to revivification. Enemies that are only immune to Instant Death will still die from those abilities. Abilities that normally drain HP or MP reverse the effect if used by or against Zombies, dealing damage to the spellcaster and healing its target. If both the target and the caster are Zombified, the spells work like normal. A Zombified character can still be healed if hit by an elemental attack while equipped with the appropriate Eater ability. Characters under Zombie also cannot be KO'd using standard Instant Death attacks, as their resistance to them is increased significantly, but Zombie does not protect against attacks that always inflict Instant Death, such as Fenrir's Fangs of Hell, nor will it prevent Doom from taking effect.
Power Break[]
Power Break halves Strength, weakening the afflicted's physical damage. It is inflicted with the ability of the same name among other methods. Certain enemies can inflict it onto the player and there is no protection against it, but it can be healed with Remedy and Dispel.
Magic Break[]
Magic Break halves the affected's Magic stat, weakening the power of their spells. The player can inflict it with the ability of the same name.
Armor Break[]
Armor Break drops the afflicted's Defense stat to 0 and removes Armored status from enemies that have it, meaning they can be damaged without Piercing. It if inflicted with the ability of the same name, among other methods.
Mental Break[]
Mental Break reduces the target's Magic Defense to 0, making them more vulnerable to spells. The player can induce it with the ability of the same name, among other methods.
Other status effects[]
Defend[]
A character will gain the Defend status from the Defend ability, halving damage from physical attacks until their next turn. The effect stacks with other defensive measures, like Protect.
Guard[]
Guard status is granted by the Guard ability. The user in Guard status will intercept any physical attacks on the other two party members, regardless of their current health. This status will remain in effect until the user's next turn.
Scan[]
The Scan status is applied to an enemy after scanning them, revealing the same information as the Sensor auto-ability.
Sentinel[]
The Sentinel status is an improved version of the Guard status, gained from the Sentinel special. The user will take a defensive stance and halve physical damage, basically using both Guard and Defend at the same time.
Distill Power[]
Enemies that have the Distill Power status on them will drop Power Sphere(s) once they are defeated. Inflicting a different Distill status will override the current status. The status can be inflicted by the Extract Power ability.
Distill Mana[]
Enemies that have the Distill Mana status on them will drop Mana Sphere(s) once they are defeated. Inflicting a different Distill status will override the current status. The status can be inflicted by the Extract Mana ability.
Distill Speed[]
Enemies that have the Distill Speed status on them will drop Speed Sphere(s) once they are defeated. Inflicting a different Distill status will override the current status. The status can be inflicted by the Extract Speed ability.
Distill Ability[]
Enemies that have the Distill Ability status on them will drop Ability Sphere(s) once they are defeated. Inflicting a different Distill status will override the current status. The status can be inflicted by the Extract Ability ability.
Armored[]
Enemies with the Armored property will reduce the damage of incoming physical attacks to ⅓. Weapons with the Piercing auto-ability will bypass this property and Armor Break nullifies it.
Attacking an Armored enemy without a Piercing weapon will produce a weakened sound effect, while a critical attack on them produces a normal attacking sound. Enemies with high Defense, such as flan, will also cause this, regardless of the weapon used.
Heavy[]
Enemies with the Heavy property are not lifted into the air by Energy Rain and Tornado. Hellfire and Thor's Hammer also have alternate animations against Heavy enemies.
Tough[]
Enemies with the Tough property will not be pushed back by Delay Attack or Delay Buster.
