Return Damage

Return Damage is a support ability that passively damages enemies whenever they deal damage to the party member with the ability equipped. It is another way to deal passive damage in addition to Counter and Angelo Rush, but no Guardian Force learns it natively: the player will need to teach it from an item.
==Obtained==
Return Damage is learned from the Hundred Needles item, which is refined from 100 Cactus Thorns by using Eden's GFAbl Med-RF ability. Eden is the final GF, available once the player gains access to a flying transport and fights the boss fought at the bottom of the hidden island at the corner of the world map. The only way to obtain a Hundred Needles item earlier is via Chocobo World.
The fastest way to farm Cactus Thorns is by mugging Cactuars on Cactuar Island; it does not matter if the mugger misses, they can still steal.
==Mechanics==
Return Damage deals ¼ of the damage sustained as fixed damage to the attacker. It activates when the character wearing the support ability receives damage from an enemy's attack, whether physical, magical, or typeless. Multiple reaction abilities can trigger at once, allowing Return Damage to work with Counter, Auto-Potion, and Cover.
Return Damage will not function if the enemy attack misses, deals 0 damage, or is a non-damaging move, such as an Instant Death attack. Return Damage also does not do anything if the damage comes from Poison or Darkside.
In a situation where Return Damage defeated the last remaining enemy after the last party member was KO'd, the game would end in a Game Over.
==Use==
Return Damage lets the player deal passive damage when attacked by enemies. Though avoiding damage is typically preferable, numerous enemy attacks cannot be avoided. However, Return Damage is only available very late in a normal playthrough, at which point the player has many support abilities they may want to use. Counter will likely deal more damage, and though it will only activate against physical damage, Counter activates even if the character evades, whereas for Return Damage to be worthwhile, the character will need to take damage from the enemy's attack. Using both Return Damage and Counter together is an option. In practice, the player likely has better support abilities to use at the late stage of the game, when they can usually defeat enemies without taking much damage from them.
If the player is fighting Cactuars to AP grind, they might as well use the opportunity to collect Cactus Thorns.
Category:Support abilities in Final Fantasy VIII