Catastrophe


 * [[Image:Catastrophe_Icon_GSDD.jpg]] "The embodiment of destruction."

Catastrophe is a Jupiter Summon found in Golden Sun: The Lost Age and Golden Sun: Dark Dawn. It is one of fourteen summons that are not instantly accessible when the required Djinn are assembled, but instead must be specifically acquired by encountering a stone tablet that contains the summon. Like Daedalus, Azul, and Iris, Catastrophe's tablet can only be approached after defeating a unique boss. Catastrophe is considered to be the ultimate Jupiter-based summon, being the strongest of all the Jupiter summons.

Basic Characteristics
As previously mentioned, Catastrophe can only be acquired after defeating the required boss in battle, Sentinel in The Lost Age or the Ancient Devil in Dark Dawn, which allows the player to access the Catastrophe's tablet. In The Lost Age, Sentinel is found in Islet Cave, and can only be accessed after the player requires the Teleport psynergy. In Dark Dawn, the Ancient Devil is encountered in Otka Island, which can only be accessed after the player has acquired the Sol Blade.

After the player acquires the Catastrophe summon, a successful summoning of Catastrophe requires that the player have five Jupiter Djinn and three Mars Djinn on standby. Catastrophe has a base Jupiter power of 400 and also does additional damage equivalent to 24% of the enemy’s maximum HP. In addition, each enemy affected loses PP equal to 10% of their PP meters. After a successful summoning, the Mars Power and Jupiter Power of the summoner will rise by, respectively.

Visually Catastrophe resembles a titanic, demonic knight somewhat reminiscent of (and seemingly the polar opposite to) the Judgment summon sequence’s angel knight. What makes the duality between Judgment and Catastrophe is that most of Catastrophe's body is comprised of weapons, whereas Judgment's body is mostly composed of armor. In The Lost Age, Catastrophe, in the apocalyptic red sky, wields its gigantic sword to summon a four-sided pyramid of lightning that lands and unfolds on the world below, loosing the explosion of electricity within. The lightning wall assumes the form of a dragon’s head, and the entire conglomeration of electricity charges through the enemy party. Fans of the game praise this summon as one of the most impressive visual effects ever seen on the Game Boy Advance.

In Dark Dawn, the Judgment/Catastrophe duality is reinforced, as Judgment will be shown to transform into Catastrophe. Catastrophe will shoot a purple ball of lightning into the ground that will expand into a purple/black lightning dome that expands outward. A dragon head will emerge from leading edge of the dome, and the entire entire conglomeration of electricity charges through the enemy party.

Analysis
Catastrophe is among Daedalus, Azul, Charon, and Iris as “ultimate” Summons in The Lost Age. It is the game’s strongest Jupiter-based attack and the third strongest summon overall, being much stronger than Thor and Eclipse. The hefty Djinn requirement, however, causes players to use Catastrophe mostly in boss fights, rather than in random monster battles; though it proves to be one of the best weapons against the mighty Dullahan. It can also be put to great use in the final boss fights of both The Lost Age and Dark Dawn.

Cultural Allusions
Origin: Greece

The word catastrophe originates from Greek. Catastrophe, like Judgment Day, represents a final event. In this case Catastrophe represents the Catastrophe Theory, which hypothesizes the end of the world. Just as Judgment embodies the four living creatures from Revelation in the New Testament, so Catastrophe embodies darker versions of those creatures (in particular, the angel aspect becomes that of a demon, the lion aspect that of a dragon, and the eagle aspect that of a bat).

Trivia

 * In both The Lost Age and Dark Dawn, Catastrophe's summon tablet is found within an island surrounded by rocks. In the Lost Age, it is found within Islet Cave. In Dark Dawn, it is found within Otka Island.
 * Also, both islands cannot be directly sailed to. Islet Cave can only be reached by riding Lonely George the turtle after trading with animals across the Great Eastern Sea. Otka Island can only be reached by riding the small tornado.

Extended Gallery