Dissidia Sephiroth

So after playing Final Fantasy Dissidia during the past week, I finally levelled up Sephiroth to the maximum level 100 and got his Masamune :) I just want to share some of my thoughts on his playing style. Sephiroth definitely has powerful sword techniques like a great master samurai. But to make the most of his moves, you have to master his timing. Unlike some of the other characters in the game, Sephiroth's playing style emphasizes control and precise timing (that's probably why the game describes his style as the 'focused blade'). So you won't get most of Sephiroth if your just a button-masher because strategy and precision are very important to master his style. You have to anticipate when your opponent has an opening and then strike. If you guess wrong and you miss your target, then the opponent can launch a vicious counter-attack.

Sephiroth's Octaslash & Scintilla moves are only deadly if you can time them just right. These moves are definitely not intended for button-mashing as they are precise and controlled sword strokes. In the bravery department, Sephiroth has the Reaper technique. This move is really powerful as you can zap the Bravery points of your opponent three times in a row and then launch further strikes during the chase mode. This move definitely opens a lot of strategic and tactical options for Sephiroth. It's also one of the few moves in the game that always has a high chance of connecting with the enemy. But to get the most of the Reaper move, you have to time each stroke just right. If you swing too fast, the Bravery damage to your opponent will be minimized. So once again, timing is important in Sephiroth's playing style. Also in the beginning his Reaper attacks are quite weak. They don't zap that many Bravery points off your opponents. But once you get better swords for Sephiroth (such as the Masamune and the One Winged Angel), then the Reaper is more effective. When you're up close to your enemy and in the air, Sephiroth's Heaven's Light move is very effective. It's a move where Sephiroth thrusts his sword upwards into the air. It reminds me of Ryu or Ken's dragon uppercut punches in Street Fighter 2. As for projectiles, Sephiroth has the HP-damaging Black Materia and Bravery-damaging Fervant Blow. I find the Black Materia useful when the opponent is about to launch a magic attack from a distance. If you can time it just right, your Black Materia "projectile" will catch your opponent off guard before he has a chance to execute his projectile attack. The move is useful because its very unexpected. Sephiroth's Fervant Blow (a Bravery projectile) is great when your opponent is low on Bravery and you want to break him from a distance. It's the only true projectile move in Sephiroth's arsenal.

In the hands of a master tactician, I think Sephiroth is one of the best characters in the game. I'm far from mastering Sephiroth's character myself since I only started playing the game for about a week. But from what i learned and played so far, Sephiroth definitely favors the more tactical players. For fans of samurai's, I think Sephiroth in Final Fantasy Dissidia offers some of the best samurai-like action of any game. The sword fighting is as intense (and exciting) as those found in those Samurai Shodown games.