Morning Star

The Morning Star is an Emblem Heartless that is found in Kingdom Hearts II and Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days.

Design
The Morning Star has a black, spherical head with two beady, yellow eyes on it. It wears a conical, green helmet with an angular antenna attached to its tip. The majority of its body is encased in a spherical suit of armor with eight conical, black spikes spaced evenly over its surface. This armor is primarily colored in shades of green, with some yellow decorations on it. Its thin arms jut out of circular openings in the armor on either of its sides. Its spindly legs share a large, circular opening at the bottom of the armor, and the tips of its feet point upward. It can retract its arms and replace them with two large spheres covered in spikes, which it uses to beat enemies. The Morning Star has two Heartless emblems, on its front and another on its back, both of which are placed in the middle of a blue ring with a black background.

In Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix, the Morning Star's armor becomes blue with cyan, violet, and some yellow highlights on it. Its spikes are now silver, as opposed to the normal black.

The Morning Star's name refers to the, which the Heartless resembles. Its second set of arms in particular are very similar to a morning star mace.

Kingdom Hearts II
Morning Stars are large, tanky Heartless. Though their attacks can hit hard, they are also slow and easy to react to. At a close range they will use their Spinning Mow-Down and Iron Ball Punch attacks, and at a long range they will use Spinning Spike Attack and Body Press.

During their Body Press attack is their biggest opening for attack, as when they jump above Sora the Meteor Spike Reaction Command becomes available, which allows Sora to neutralize the Morning Star while dealing continuous damage until it is defeated. When reduced to 50% HP, it will exclusively use its Body Press attack.

Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days
Morning Stars can be annoying, but as long as caution is taken to block while it is spinning as well as to Air Slide away when it jumps up, it shouldn't pose too much of a threat. Once it stops spinning, hit it with some physical combos, as well as some casts of Aero magic, which it is weak to.