FF4 uses an MP system rather than spell charges. Every character learns spells automatically by leveling up; there are no magic shops. This means your spell list is entirely determined by party composition and character levels. Rydia handles Black Magic and Summons, Rosa handles White Magic, Tellah knows both (but joins with low MP), and Edge gets Ninjutsu. FuSoYa arrives with every Black and White spell already learned.
Most spells can target one enemy or all enemies using the L2 toggle. Single-target deals full damage; multi-target splits it across all targets. The exception is healing spells, which use R2 to toggle between one ally and the full party. Curaja on one ally restores far more HP than Curaja on the whole party, so pick your targets wisely during boss fights.
Black Magic
Rydia, Tellah, Palom, and FuSoYa all use Black Magic. Rydia is the strongest offensive caster thanks to her high Intellect and access to Summons alongside her spell list. The elemental tiers (Fire/Fira/Firaga, etc.) scale well through the game, but Bio outperforms them in most situations since it's non-elemental with a Sap effect. Flare at 50 MP is the strongest single-target nuke, but Bahamut summon (60 MP) deals comparable damage to all enemies, making Flare situational.
Tellah learns every spell after Mt. Ordeals, including Meteor at 99 MP, but his maximum MP is capped at 90. He can never actually cast it. This is intentional and plays into the story. Use his other high-level spells (Firaga, Thundaga, Quake) while he's in the party; they're powerful enough. Osmose costs 0 MP and drains MP from enemies, which keeps Tellah and Rydia topped off during long dungeon runs.
| Spell | MP | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Osmose | 0 | Absorbs MP from one enemy |
| Pig | 1 | Inflicts/cures Pig on one target |
| Warp | 4 | Return to previous floor in a dungeon |
| Fire | 5 | Light fire damage to one/all enemies |
| Blizzard | 5 | Light ice damage to one/all enemies |
| Thunder | 5 | Light lightning damage to one/all enemies |
| Toad | 7 | Inflicts/cures Toad on one target |
| Poison | 10 | Inflicts Poison on one enemy |
| Sleep | 12 | Inflicts Sleep on one/all enemies |
| Fira | 15 | Moderate fire damage to one/all enemies |
| Blizzara | 15 | Moderate ice damage to one/all enemies |
| Thundara | 15 | Moderate lightning damage to one/all enemies |
| Break | 15 | Attempts to petrify one enemy |
| Stop | 15 | Stops one enemy from acting |
| Drain | 18 | Absorbs HP from one enemy |
| Bio | 20 | Heavy non-elemental + Sap damage to one/all enemies |
| Tornado | 25 | Reduces one enemy to single-digit HP |
| Firaga | 30 | Heavy fire damage to one/all enemies |
| Blizzaga | 30 | Heavy ice damage to one/all enemies |
| Thundaga | 30 | Heavy lightning damage to one/all enemies |
| Quake | 30 | Heavy earth damage to all enemies (misses floating) |
| Death | 35 | Attempts to instant-kill one enemy |
| Flare | 50 | Massive non-elemental damage to one enemy |
| Meteor | 99 | Massive random damage to all enemies |
White Magic
Rosa is the primary White Mage and the most important party member to keep alive. Her healing scales with Spirit, and the armor page covers the gear that boosts it. Cecil learns a limited set of White Magic as a Paladin (Cure, Cura, Raise, Esuna, Protect, Shell, Teleport), which makes him a useful backup healer.
Curaja is the endgame heal at 40 MP. Rosa should be casting this almost every turn against Zeromus. Haste speeds up your party's ATB gauges and is worth casting on Cecil and Kain early in boss fights. Float prevents earth-based damage and is mandatory for the White Dragon sealed weapon fight and the Sylvan Cave/Cave of Summons lava floors. Reflect bounces spells back at the caster; use it on Asura to redirect her healing to your party, or on your own team against Bahamut to bounce Mega Flare back. Holy at 46 MP is Rosa's offensive option and hits hard against undead.
| Spell | MP | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Sight | 2 | Reveals world map |
| Cure | 3 | Restores light HP to one/all allies |
| Hold | 5 | Inflicts Paralysis on one enemy |
| Silence | 6 | Inflicts Silence on one enemy |
| Mini | 6 | Shrinks one target (reduces stats) |
| Blink | 8 | Grants one ally the ability to dodge two physical attacks |
| Float | 8 | Levitates one/all allies (avoids ground attacks) |
| Cura | 9 | Restores moderate HP to one/all allies |
| Shell | 10 | Reduces magic damage to one ally |
| Protect | 10 | Reduces physical damage to one ally |
| Confuse | 10 | Inflicts Confuse on one enemy |
| Teleport | 10 | Escape dungeon or flee from battle |
| Berserk | 10 | Target auto-attacks with increased damage |
| Dispel | 12 | Removes buffs from one target |
| Slow | 14 | Decreases ATB speed of one enemy |
| Esuna | 15 | Cures most status ailments from one ally |
| Reflect | 15 | Reflects magic spells back at caster |
| Haste | 15 | Increases ATB speed of one ally |
| Curaga | 18 | Restores heavy HP to one/all allies |
| Raise | 25 | Revives one KO'd ally with partial HP |
| Curaja | 40 | Fully restores HP to one/all allies |
| Holy | 46 | Massive holy damage to one enemy |
| Full-Life | 52 | Revives one KO'd ally with full HP |
Ninjutsu
Edge-exclusive. Ninjutsu spells hit all enemies and can't be toggled to single-target. Blitz at 25 MP is the strongest and deals lightning damage to everything on screen. Flame and Flood cover fire and water. These are Edge's main contribution to boss fights when he's not throwing Fuma Shurikens. Smoke guarantees escape from any non-boss battle, which is more reliable than holding L1+R1. Mirage creates a decoy image that absorbs one physical hit, useful for keeping Edge alive during tough encounters.
| Spell | MP | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Mirage | 6 | Creates an image to dodge one physical attack |
| Smoke | 10 | Escape from battle (guaranteed) |
| Flame | 15 | Fire damage to all enemies |
| Flood | 20 | Water damage to all enemies |
| Blitz | 25 | Lightning damage to all enemies |