Duel
From Final Fantasy Wiki
Duel (デュエル, Dyueru) is Zell Dincht's Limit Break move in Final Fantasy VIII. To use the limit successfully, groups of button sequences appear on the screen and as many as possible must be input in the allotted time. The time given is random and can be anything from 2 to 12 seconds.
Zell has 4 finishing moves which can be input after a set combination of normal moves are used. The finishers are: Burning Rave, Meteor Barret, Different Beat, and My Final Heaven. Extra moves and finishers are learned by reading the Combat King magazines found in various places. Several of the moves are reminiscent of Tifa's Limit moves in Final Fantasy VII, such as Dolphin Blow, Punch Rush, and her Ultimate Limit, Final Heaven. Executing a finishing move, however, will end the Duel prematurely, and are thus best saved as the final inputted command before time expires.
Each attack, particularly the finishing moves, can deal heavy damage and are not stunted by any elemental resistance as they are normal physical attacks. All moves register as one hit, and none can exceed the damage limit of 9,999 including finishers.
[edit] Duels
| Name | Obtaining | Configuration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Punch Rush | Already known |  → 
| 
|
| Booya | Already known | Left → Right | 
|
| Heel Drop | Already known | Up → Down | 
|
| Mach Kick | Already known | Left → Left →
| 
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| Dolphin Blow | Combat King 001 | L1 → R1 → L1 → R1 | 
|
| Meteor Strike | Combat King 002 | Down → → Down →
| 
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| Burning Rave | Already known | PunchRush → MachKick → PunchRush → HeelDrop → Down → Down → Down → Down →
| 
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| Meteor Barret | Combat King 003 | PunchRush → Booya → HeelDrop → MachKick → HeelDrop → Booya → PunchRush → MachKick → Up → → Down →  →
| 
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| Different Beat | Combat King 004 | PunchRush → HeelDrop → MachKick → HealDrop → Booya → →  → → → Up
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| My Final Heaven | Combat King 005 | PunchRush → Booya → HeelDrop → MachKick → PunchRush → Up → Right → Down → Left →
| 
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[edit] Strategy
Armageddon Fist – Dubbed by fans as "Armageddon Fist", the technique is Zell’s most powerful and one of the most powerful in the game. If used properly it can defeat all but the strongest bosses with one use. To perform the Armageddon Fist, simply use Zell’s two weakest moves (Punch Rush <--> Booya or Booya <--> Heel Drop) in rapid succession. It only takes fractions of seconds to input each command, and with the proper stats each move does around 5000 HP damage, critical hits reaching the 9,999 damage cap. With great concentration, a user should be able to input these commands at or around 0.10 seconds (on the game timer). With minimum Duel rounds lasting 2 seconds and at maximum 12 seconds, the damage potential here is astronomical. If during a 12-second round a player were to input every command at or around 0.10 seconds and Zell were to average a critical hit once every 5 attacks, under ideal conditions (Zell's Strength at 255 and the enemy's Defense at 0 from Meltdown) this strategy could yield roughly 719,976 points of damage (close to half of Omega Weapon's full HP at Level 100) in one attack round.
Note:
- For best results, cap Zell's strength at 255 and use his Ehrgeiz gloves.
- Notice that no monster in Final Fantasy VIII, including any Boss, is immune to the Def 0 status brought on by Meltdown. This susceptibility aids the Armageddon Fist strategy immensely.
