::  Final Fantasy X - Blitzball  ::

Blitzball is the sport of heroes that can be accessed at every save point in Final Fantasy X. Enthusiastically followed in both worlds, Zanarkand (Tidus' home) and Spira, it serves not only as entertainment but as a spiritual gathering as well. Make no mistake; Blitzball is not a "mini-game" by any accounts since it plays a major role in the story. It's fast, furious, and strategic underwater game for the "tough-guys". Tough games require tough skills but fear not, our guide provides you with every aspect of the sport to keep you in shape. Read our tips to become a pro Blitzball player in no time.

As mentioned before, Blitzball takes place entirely underwater. The athletes are required to hold their breath up to 40 minutes swimming in the field. The main objective is to score more points by shooting the ball into the opponent's triangular shaped goal. Even though you control the movement of your character in real time, actions like passing, blocking, and shooting are turn based. Here's a closer look at the two styles of play, the offence and the defense.

Offense:
Each team consists of five players with preset amount of HP. As you move in the field and take turn-based actions, your character's HP is reduced. For instance, "passing" takes away 3 HP while "shooting" costs 10 HP. Players who're not in control of the ball regain their hit points sequentially. Moving to different locations will also affect your party's movements. However, an option can be switched on so you'll only have to worry about the commands.

Each character has an individual amount of "Passing Strength" to use. Looking out for the PS meter your player has and the PS is lower than it's required to reach your teammate, the pass will fail and can even be intercepted.

The "Shooting Strength" (ST) has a meter of its own. As the player gets closer to the opponents' goal, it gets lower. You need at least 1 ST to shoot the ball and as you do, the goalie's defensive statistics appear. Your ST needs to be higher than the goalie's "Catching Power" (CA) in order to score a goal.

You can still choose to shoot the ball if you don't have enough HP but your chances will decrease. Let's say you need 10 HP to shoot the ball and you only have 5 HP, your chance of scoring the goal will only be 50%.

The matters of Blitzball: Wakka and others have special abilities, which cost more HP but also increase the odds of you scoring the goal!

Defense:
The players of the defending team have "Cut Power" (CU) which negates the offensive team's "Pass Strength". If your CU is equal to or greater than the opponent's PS, you'll intercept the ball.

When defending, it's important to look out for the "Breakthrough" move used by the players on offense. It's enabled when two or more of your teammates surrounds them. The move will allow the opponent with the ball to dodge one of the defenders (usually the one with the highest CU). "Breakthrough" insures the chances of passing the ball successfully yet it costs more HP, so keep that in mind.

The last defensive technique you need to be aware of is the "Capture". It's in a way similar to a stealing spell as it enables you to "capture" your opponent's special move. Use it wisely at most unpredictable times you'll do well.

Blitzball involves more strategy and calculations than your regular "ball" game so take time to look where you are in the field and what you need to do with the ball given a preset amount of HP. Each move will cost you so don't waste your HP unnecessarily. Locate your nearest teammate and pass the ball to him/her rather than take chances and go for the further one. When near the goal, use whatever HP you have to reserve to try to score or even do a "Special Move". Also keep in mind that when you lose the ball to your opponents, your HP replenishes. Use that to your advantage! Buy your team some time while still holding a strong defense to replenish their HP and when you feel like you're beefed up enough, take charge!

Once you practice enough and get a feel of your team's strengths and weaknesses and what actions each player is best suited for, you'll come out victorious in this fascinating new sport Blitzball!
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