Lion Heart (Final Fantasy VIII Limit)

Lion Heart is Squall's ultimate Renzokuken finisher in Final Fantasy VIII. It deals physical damage to one enemy 17 times, and each strike can be a critical hit. Its power depends on Squall's Strength stat. It is his final Limit Break finisher, usable when Squall equips his ultimate weapon, the Lion Heart. Whether a finishing move is going to trigger is calculated using the hidden stat Crisis Level, but which finisher is used is indiscriminate. Renzokuken is randomly available when Squall is on low health or under Aura.
When using Lion Heart, Squall charges power to his weapon and rushes his target, knocks them into the air with a slash of his gunblade and continues the assault with a flurry of rapidfire strikes from all sides, finishing with a detonating strike-through that slams the enemy back to the ground, the impact of hitting the floor also dealing damage.
==Obtained==
Squall can use Lion Heart with his ultimate weapon. The player could make it early by grinding the card game and modifying certain cards, but in a casual playthrough, Lion Heart is an endgame weapon. As weapon upgrades grant Squall new Renzokuken finishers, it is worth prioritizing his weapon for upgrades, and it may be worth it for even a casual player to try and make Lion Heart early, if they enjoy the card game.
The items required to remodel a gunblade to Lion Heart are an Adamantine, four Dragon Fangs, and twelve Pulse Ammo rounds. Adamantines are procured from Level 20+ Adamantoises (though the chance is much greater from Level 30 onward) and the Minotaur card. Dragon Fangs are available from various dragon-type enemies, though mostly at certain levels: Blue Dragons (all levels), Grendels (<Lv.30) and T-Rexaurs (mid level). Pulse Ammo is made with Ifrit's Ammo-RF ability from various rare items, Energy Crystals being among the most plentiful of them near the endgame, obtained from Elnoyles fought in Esthar City.
Though time-consuming, the necessary ingredients and Guardian Force abilities can be amassed before the end of disc 1. The player can card-mod Minotaur for an Adamantine, and grind the card game for Elnoyle cards to card-mod into Energy Crystal (10=1) or try to get a Laser Cannon from Elastoid or Belhelmel. Grendels are fought in a specific forest spot near Galbadia Garden, and T-Rexaurs sometimes appear in Balamb Garden training center and the forest nearest to the Fire Cavern. The Weapons Monthly magazine is not needed to make the weapon.
==Mechanics==
Squall has a (Crisis Level * ~23.6%) chance to perform a random finishing blow after a Renzokuken sequence. Hitting the critical prompts during the Renzokuken sequence does not affect the chance of Squall using a finisher. Crisis Level is a hidden stat calculated based on how low Squall's current HP is compared to his maximum, the number of dead allies in the active party, and the number of ailments he is afflicted with. The worse off he is, the better chance he has using a random finishing move. Crisis Level is also raised with the Aura status.
With his ultimate weapon equipped, Squall he has a 25% flat chance of performing Lion Heart when he ends his Limit Break with a finishing move.
Lion Heart deals non-elemental physical damage to all enemies as per the following formula:
:Critical Determination
:Critical\% = (Luck + 1) / 256 \times 100
Where "Luck" is Squall's Luck stat. If the attack criticals, it will deal double damage. Squall's normal Attack and the Renzokuken sequence both use the trigger button () to determine critical hits rather than his Luck stat; criticals for his Renzokuken finishers is the only time in the game where he will use his Luck stat.
:Base Damage Calculation
:Damage = Strength^2 / 16 + Strength
:Damage = Damage \times (265 - Target's~Vitality) / 256
:Damage = Damage \times 100 / 16
Where "Strength" is Squall's Strength stat and "Vitality" is the target's Vitality stat.
All damage is randomized slightly:
:Damage = Damage \times ([0..32] + 240) / 256
If the target has Protect, damage is halved.
Limit Breaks never miss and are unaffected by Elem-Atk junctions.
==Use==
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Lion Heart deals severe damage to one enemy, striking them 17 times consecutively where each hit can be a critical hit. Lion Heart is the luckiest outcome of Renzokuken, though against groups of normal enemies, the hit-all Fated Circle and Blasting Zone may have been preferable. There is no way to bias the outcome, as the gunblades simply have a flat percentage chance for each finisher.
As a physical ability, each strike can critical and do double damage. Squall is best geared toward physical damage with Str-J and Str+% junctions; of the starter Guardian Forces, both Shiva and Ifrit have Str-J. As Squall is almost always a mandatory party member, it is worthwhile to prioritize his junctions over the others. Though Renzokuken does not reach the damage potential of Zell's Duel and perhaps even Irvine's Shot, it is reliable and all his finishers are strong.
Lion Heart is perhaps the one ability for which Squall should aim for a high Luck stat, as it affects the chance of Lion Heart's hits being critical hits. For most of his abilities, Luck does not matter as Squall uses the trigger button to time criticals instead.
After Zell's Duel, Lion Heart is the strongest Limit Break accounting for the additional damage of the preceding Renzokuken's four to eight hits. During optimal conditions, a total of 249,975 points of damage is possible in one attack round. Lion Heart can easily deal 9999 damage per hit even with average strength and no Vit 0, making it ideal for low level runs where its damage will not be hindered by the damage cap.
Lion Heart is excellent against bosses, typically defeating them outright. It can be used against Adel, but generally the player is better off not using Squall's Limit Break in this battle lest Fated Circle or Blasting Zone initiate and harm Rinoa. Lion Heart would be great against Ultima Weapon, Omega Weapon, and the final bosses.
==Etymology==
The name comes from Squall, who has a lion theme to his character, represented also in his ultimate weapon and attack, both called Lion Heart, and his surname, Leonhart. In Japanese however, his ultimate attack is called "End of Heart".
In the German version, Squall's ultimate attack is named "Herzensbrecher" (meaning "Heartbreaker"), which is closer to the original Japanese, and alludes to the game's themes of romance.
==Citations==
Category:Renzokuken finishers in Final Fantasy VIII