What are the exact specs/strategies for Enemy Skill materia?

[Gregoriev]

I really need to know, how can i best utilize the enemy skill materia in this game? i already used it to copy the Zolems beta attack, but in the process i was a bit confused/worried about how the materia actually works.

Does it copy EVERY attack you receive from an enemy that is a good attack? Ex: Beta (used by zolem). HOWEVER does this also mean it will copy crap attacks? Ex: Bolt2 (used by birds sometimes).

AM i able to pick and choose what i want to keep? like...maybe i have to use the enemy skill against the enemy in order to keep it? or does it just keep them all? it would be a damn shame for such an awsome materia to be flawed in such a way....

Can anyone clarify this for me?

[BG-57]

In the course of the game, you will pick up four E-skill materia orbs. Unlike regular materia that matures as you use it in battle, E-skill materia will only have spells on it if the character equipped with it is hit by (and survives) one of the 22 learnable enemy attacks. Some are common and others are rare. Most enemy attacks would not be picked up. And if you got Beta on one E-skill, it wouldn't necessarily be on any of the others.

Once you learn an enemy skill, it stays permenantly on that materia and the character equipped with it can cast those E-skills as long as they have the MP.

There's an in-depth faq for the E-skills if you type in www.gamefaqs.com and navigate to the FFVII faqs.

[DJZen]

If you just want the quick answer to your question, no. There are specific enemy skills that can be learned. You don't have to worry about running out of space because only the skills specifically meant to be learned can be learned by that materia. You can't learn just any skill. I guess most skills just aren't interesting enough or mimic another spell/ability you already have in some way. For example, Shadow Flare is the only dark element spell in the game, so you can learn it. Bolt2 can be learned by levelling up the Bolt materia, so there's no need to learn it from an enemy.

[Sepho]

Most everything has already been covered by DJ and BG, but I would like to point one last thing out:

There's a very important materia to have for use in learning enemy skills, and that's the Manipulate materia. Some Enemy Skills (such as White Wind or Mighty Guard, for some examples) will never be willfully cast on your party by the enemy, as they're supportive/healing, rather than damaging. The Manipulate materia allows you to manipulate an enemy (who'da thunk) and enables you to have access to some or all of that enemy's "attacks" (which you can in turn cast on your party, or the character with the Enemy Skill materia equipped).

Manipulating enemies is literally the only way to learn some valuable Enemy Skills. I believe Cait Sith may come with one equipped (actually, I think that's Transform). Whatever the case, get one.

[DJZen]

And use the hypno-crown with it.


......Then cast toad on that character to make them the hypno-toad

[Maya]

You can get enemy skills from some bosses and monsters.
(SPOILER)Here is link for site where is named all enemy skills and where to get them: http://www.ffspirit.net/ff/7/enemyskills
Just equip enemy skill materia on some charachter, I personally use red XII, and find those monsters. I highly advise you to use manipulate materia as well. I use it with Yuffie because she is the best in that.
Just cast manipulate spell on that monster and let it use that skill on that charachter which has that enemy skill materia. Otherwise you don´t get it. Bosses use enemy skills to your whole party so you can´t miss them. Just remember equip that materia.

[TheSpoonyBard]

Here's a list of all the Enemy Skills if you don't have time to link to the other sites.

Frog Song: Learned from Touch Me (Gongada Area).
Effect: Causes a single target to suffer sleep and frog statuses.

L4. Suicide: Learned from Mu (Chocobo Ranch Area).
Effect: Causes critical damage and inflicts the mini status on all enemies if their levels are a multiple of 4.

Magic Hammer: Learned from Razor Weed (Wutai Area).
Effect: Reduces a single target’s MP by 100.

White Wind: Learned from Zemzelett (Junon Area). You need to manipulate it.
Effect: Cures all status effects and heals all allies HP an equal amount to that of the user.

Big Guard: Learned from Beach Plug (Gongada Beach). You need to manipulate it.
Effect: Uses Barrier, MBarrier, and Haste on all allies.

Angel Whisper: Learned from Pollensalta (Northern Crater). You need to manipulate her.
Effect: Revives, restores up to 7,000 HP and removes all status effects from a single ally.

Dragon Force: Learned from Blue Dragon (Inside Gaea's Cliff). You need to manipulate it.
Effect: Doubles a single target's Defence and Magic Defence.

Death Force: Learned from Adamantaimai (Wutai Beach). You need to manipulate it.
Effect: Makes a single target immune to Sudden Death.

Flame Thrower: Learned from Ark Dragon (Mythril Mines).
Effect: Causes medium Fire damage to a single opponent.

Laser: Learned from a Death Claw (Corel Desert Prison).
Effect: Halves a single target's HP.

Matra Magic: Learned from Custom Sweeper (Midgar Area).
Effect: Causes minor non-elemental damage to all enemies.

Bad Breath: Learned from Marlboro (Gaea's Cliff Area).
Effect: Inflicts confusion, frog, mini, poison, silence, and sleep on all opponents.

Beta: Learned from Midgar Zolom (Chocobo Ranch Area).
Effect: Causes medium Fire damage to all enemies.

Aqualung: Learned from Harpy (Gold Saucer Area).
Effect: Causes medium Water damage to all enemies.

Trine: Learned from Materia Keeper (Mt. Nibel).
Effect: Causes medium Lightning damage to all enemies.

Magic Breath: Learned from Stilva (Inside Gaea's Cliff).
Effect: Causes major Fire/Ice/Lightning damage to all opponents.

????: Learned from Jersey (Shinra Mansion, Nibelheim).
Effect: Causes non-elemental damage to a single enemy equal to the user's maximum HP divided by their current HP.

Goblin Punch: Learned from Goblin (Goblin Island).
Effect: Causes non-elemental damage to a single enemy.

Chocobuckle: Learned from a Chocobo (Any Chocobo track). You need to cast L4 Suicide on it after feeding it a Mimett Green.
Effect: Causes non-elemental damage to a single enemy. The amount of damage depends on the number of times your party has fled from battle.

L5 Death: Learned from Parasite (Northern Crater).
Effect: Causes Sudden Death to all enemies if their levels are a multiple of 5.

Death Sentence: Learned from Gi Spectator (Cave of the Gi, Cosmo Canyon).
Effect: Causes a single target to have a 60 second countdown before Death is cast on them.

Roulette: Learned from Death Dealer (Northern Crater).
Effect: Casts Death on a random opponent or ally.

Shadow Flare: Learned from Ultimate WEAPON (Cosmo Canyon) or Dragon Zombie (Northern Crater).
Effect: Causes severe non-elemental damage to a single target. The attack completely ignores the targets defences.

Pandora's Box: Learned from Dragon Zombie (Northern Crater).
Effect: Causes severe non-elemental damage to all enemies.

[Gregoriev]

WOW! Thank you all very much. i will be very sure to make use of all the valulable rescources you gave me!

[Captain Maxx Power]

And use the hypno-crown with it.


......Then cast toad on that character to make them the hypno-toad

All glory to the hypnotoad...

[Shoden]

yes all glory to the hypno toad
*slowley claps his hand and worships the toad. (Futurama ownz)

[honnaja]

Just a couple of things:

You don't need to survive the particular enemy skill attack to learn it. You can still learn it if it kills you; just like you can learn it if it misses.

Also, I don't think Yuffie is the best with Manipulate; I think you mean Morph: she's way ahead of the others with Morph (I reckon it's because she throws her weapon at them, but that's just my personal theory).

[Sepho]

Yuffie is indeed the best Morpher in your party. Equipped with the Conformer, Morph nearly always does 9,999 damage.

[Mirage]

????: Learned from Jersey (Shinra Mansion, Nibelheim).
Effect: Causes non-elemental damage to a single enemy equal to the user's maximum HP divided by their current HP.

That's a bit wrong. It's maximum HP minus current HP. :P If it was divided by, you'd deal 2 damage if you had 5000/9999 HP.

[BG-57]

A few additional notes.

To learn Chocobuckle the chocobo has to be at a level divisible by 4. Try the chocobo scratches near Mideel. Also, the chocobo will counter whoever cast the Level 4 Suicide with Chocobuckle.

Only the first Dragon Zombie you encounter casts Pandora's Box as a final attack before it expires. So don't morph it the first time. I had to start a game from scratch becuase I lost my only chance to get it the first time.

You have only three oppurtunities to learn Trine in the game. If you want Trine on all four materia, you should put off the fight with Goda (the top of the pagoda) until after you get all four materia.

You can equip two E-skill materia on the same character, and you can learn new E-skills on both as long as they have the same E-skills on them. Also don't equip them on weapons or armor with zero growth.

[Sepho]

Only the first Dragon Zombie you encounter casts Pandora's Box as a final attack before it expires. So don't morph it the first time. I had to start a game from scratch becuase I lost my only chance to get it the first time.

Dragon Zombie's randomly cast Pandora's Box upon the depletion of their HP. That means the first Dragon Zombie you fight may not use it, but the second may, and vice versa. If you kill a Dragon Zombie and it doesn't use the attack, fight another one.