Revenge Action
A Revenge Action (リベンジ行動 Ribenji Kōdō) is a special technique used by enemies to break out of a combo. The mechanic was introduced in Kingdom Hearts II, but it was not officially acknowledged or named until Kingdom Hearts III. Revenge Actions are typically limited to strong enemies and bosses.
In games with a Revenge mechanic, each attack has a Revenge Value (リベンジ値 Ribenji-chi). When an enemy is hit multiple times in close succession without performing an action of their own, the Revenge Value of the attacks begins to accumulate. Once the total surpasses the enemy's Revenge Activation Value (リベンジ発動値 Ribenji Hatsudō-chi), they will perform a Revenge Action and break out of the combo. This prevents the player from infinitely stunning a boss with a combo.
When an enemy activates a Revenge Action, they will perform a sudden counterattack or warp away from the player. Usually, each enemy only has one Revenge Action; some Revenge Actions however are different depending on if the enemy was grounded or in an airborne state.
Mechanics[edit]
Kingdom Hearts III[edit]
In Kingdom Hearts III, when enemies are attacked, the revenge value of attacks they receive starts to accrue. When the accumulated value exceeds the enemy's Revenge Activation Value, a Revenge Action is immediately performed. Additionally, if even a small amount of Revenge Value is accumulated for 20 seconds, a Revenge Action will be used by the enemy regardless of their current Revenge Value.
Only attacks from playable characters (Sora, Riku, Aqua, Kairi[KH III RM] and Roxas[KH III RM]) can increase an enemy's Revenge Value. Typically, regular combos and spells outside of Formchanges incur values up to 1 per hit; Formchange combos and magic spells cast in styles other than Basic Style incur reduced values up to 0.5 per hit; Shotlocks will incur 0.1 per hit; and Grand Magic, magic combo finishers, reprisals, and finish commands for Formchanges, Team Attacks, Links and Attractions do not increase the Revenge Value of enemies at all.
If the accumulated Revenge Value remains unchanged for about 3 seconds (including while being hit by an attack with a Revenge Value of 0), the value will rapidly decrease to 0. When the enemy performs an attack or Revenge Action, the accumulated Revenge Value resets to 0.
Enemies who use Revenge Actions include Dusks, Reapers, Sorcerers, and about half of all boss enemies. A few enemies have special attributes that affects how they accrue Revenge Value:
- For Dusks, only attacks of Physical element can increase their Revenge Value;
- For Reapers, every time they use the Revenge Action twice, their Revenge Value does not accumulate further for 20 seconds after activation;
- For the Demon Tower, attacks that use the Blizzard element will decrease the Revenge Value rather than increasing it;
- For Anti-Aqua, attacks that use the Fire element will decrease her Revenge Value rather than increasing it.
Additionally, the Lich has several special properties: its Revenge Value does not accrues from Dark and Non-element damage. Every time it uses the Revenge Action twice, the Revenge Value does not accumulate for 12 seconds after the last Revenge Action. The Revenge Value accumulated is reduced to 25 % of the normal amount for Blizzard, Thunder, and Water damage in Olympus and Monstropolis; for Blizzard and Water damage in Toy Box; for Blizzard and Thunder damage in the Kingdom of Corona and The Caribbean; and for Thunder and Water damage in Arendelle.
Certain enemies, such as Dark Baymax and Yozora[KH III RM], use Revenge Actions concurrently with the Reaction Endurance mechanic. In such cases, using a Revenge Action will reset their current Reaction Endurance. Staggering from an attack that had both depleted their Reaction Endurance to 0 and pushed their Reaction Value above its activation threshold will cause the enemy to stagger and then immediately retaliate with a Revenge Action, resetting both values.
