| “ | Release a small burst of energy. If an opponent is hit, the energy will move around them for a short time and then detonate. | ” |
| —Description from Ultimate's Move List. | ||
Shadow Flare is Sephiroth's side special move.
Overview[]
The move is initiated when Sephiroth snaps his fingers, which then a very thin beam of light will shoot out very quickly. If it hits an opponent, a dark energy orb will begin circling around the character. After four seconds, the orb will strike at the opponent. They can also strike if the character has been grabbed, which will effectively act as another Forward Throw.
Up to five orbs can circulate the opponent; each time another Shadow Flare is added, the move's timer resets as to allow all the orbs to hit at the same time. The move can also be charged; if a charged Shadow Flare connects, three orbs will be attached at once. In free-for-all matches with 3-8 players, the surrounding orbs can also hit other nearby opponents, which can also make an orb disappear after it connects. As the amount of orbs can be stacked one by one, each orb acts as its own projectile. As such, they can be individually reflected, absorbed, or pocketed.
When Sephiroth fires the beam, he has a chance of saying either "目障りだ" ("Annoying"/"What an eyesore."), "焼き付ける" ("Burn"), "跪け" ("Kneel"), "滅びる" ("Perish"), "くらえ" ("Take this."), or just a chuckle.
Origin[]
Sephiroth casting Shadow Flare in Kingdom Hearts II
Shadow Flare is a Blue Magic spell that is often considered to be the dark counterpart of Flare. It first appeared in Final Fantasy III, where it is a spell that typically only Geomancers can cast primarily in caves and dungeons.
In Final Fantasy VII, it is an enemy skill that deals non-elemental damage to an opponent. It can be learned through the Enemy Skill Materia from select bosses such as Dragon Zombie, Ruby Weapon, Ultimate Weapon, and Safer∙Sephiroth and costs 100 MP to cast. Shadow Flare has since become an attack closely associated with Sephiroth, mainly due to it being a part of his repretoire in his secret boss fights in the Kingdom Hearts series; in fact, its depiction in Smash is inspired by the spell's appearances in said series, as Sephiroth casts it as a series of orbs that home in on the player. He is later able to cast Shadow Flare in subsequent appearances in the Dissidia Final Fantasy series and in Final Fantasy VII Remake.
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| Sephiroth's Special Moves | |
|---|---|
| Ultimate | |
| Standard Special | Flare / Megaflare / Gigaflare |
| Side Special | Shadow Flare |
| Up Special | Blade Dash / Octaslash |
| Down Special | Scintilla |
| Final Smash | Supernova |