Post by Vio on Apr 18, 2022 15:16:35 GMT -5
Many Devil Fruits offer abilities that far exceed what can be considered normal and, to help balance them out, Bon Voyage requires that these abilities have at least one suitable weakness. While all Devil Fruits inherit the weaknesses to submersion in water and the rare material known as Kairōseki (“Seastone”), this isn’t always enough for versatile and powerful abilities like those of Paramecia, Logia, and some types of Zoan.
Devil Fruits vary so drastically in their powers that no two powers will typically have the same kind of weakness, but knowing what that weakness is can help an opponent turn the tables against an ability user, whether they stumble upon it by accident or figure it out through other means. But what makes for a good weakness for each specific ability? This is a question that often gets asked, so here’s some handy tips and examples for figuring them out.
Do All Devil Fruits Need A Weakness…?
The short and sweet answer is ‘no’. Zoans and Ancient Zoans, as well as SMILEs (Artificial Zoans) do not require an additional weakness outside of the standard Devil Fruit weaknesses. Paramecia, Special Paramecia, Logia, and Mythical Zoans all require at least one additional weakness.
Can An Opponent Use It…?
If the answer to this question is ‘yes’, then you’re already on the right track for a good weakness. While Devil Fruits can have various limitations, these are typically just boundaries that an ability cannot naturally cross, which some opponents may figure out but in general aren’t tangible things that can be turned around. An actual weakness needs to be something that an opponent can use in some form or another to counter the Devil Fruit ability.
What Does It Do…?
Weaknesses come in many forms, each depending on the type of ability. Ask yourself what your ability does and think about what can be done to stop it from working in some way. For example, Crocodile’s Suna Suna no Mi allows him to transform into sand to avoid incoming attacks, but sand clumps together when it gets wet. This is how Luffy was able to strike a veteran Logia user well before he learned how to use Haki, effectively ignoring the supreme defense that Crocodile’s Fruit offered him.
Another example involving liquids is Charlotte Katakuri’s Mochi Mochi no Mi, where Jinbe used tea to cause the Sweet Commander’s produced mochi to lose its thickness and viscosity and allow for an escape. Gecko Moria’s Kage Kage no Mi was vulnerable to salt, which had the ability to purify any zombie he created and allow the entrapped shadow to escape, thus nullifying the power. Overall, a good weakness should allow an opponent to ignore, cancel, or counter a significant feature of a Devil Fruit’s ability.
Weaknesses & Limitations: What’s The Difference…?
A weakness is something that an opponent can exploit directly in order to fight back against a Devil Fruit user’s supernatural powers, but not all things are a weakness. A limitation is something else entirely — something it can’t do within the scope of its power. Opponents can still use limitations to their advantages in combat, but it’s not something that directly inhibits the ability in any sense. For example, Buggy’s Bara Bara no Mi has a limited range at which he can make his separated body parts float. Once body parts go beyond that range, he loses his telekinetic control over them, but this isn’t a specific weakness. It’s a limitation of the Devil Fruit.
Do I Need More Than One Extra Weakness…?
In most cases, the answer is ‘no’, but not all Fruits are equal in that regard. Additional weaknesses beyond the first are more of an option than a necessity but, very rarely, staff may deem it appropriate for you to include more. However, just because you’ve listed a weakness in the Devil Fruit’s application doesn’t mean it’s the only weakness it has: As you develop your character and Devil Fruit and participate in more and more threads, you may find situations where another weakness could apply to your power that you hadn’t already thought of. It’s impossible to account for every possibility right away, so when it comes to this, treat it as you feel appropriate and logical within the setting!
