Unleash


 * For a sortable list of unleashes and their effects, please see Unleash/List of Unleashes.

An Unleash is a special attack randomly used in battle when selecting the Attack command. Unleashes are weapon-specific, meaning that equipping a different weapon will change the Unleash(es) available to the character. When an Unleash is triggered, a message such as "Ivan's Masamune lets out a howl! Rising Dragon!" will appear.

A full list of weapons in the Golden Sun series that have unleashes can be found here.

Original system
In Golden Sun and Golden Sun: The Lost Age, only Artifact-class weapons have unleashes, although "normal" weapons are able to score a "critical hit", which follows the same basic rules as unleashes. Also, weapons that can be used lack unleashes.

When an unleash occurs, a new attack animation sequence is triggered, instead of the usual jump/slash enemy. Each unleash has a different animation sequence and no two weapons have the same unleash.

An unleash has a certain percentage attached for the unleash to occur. Most weapons Unleash at a base rate of 35%, but some have a higher base rate. The rate of unleashing can be altered by equipping certain equipment.

Some unleashes have a special effect, such as instantly downing the target, afflicting enemies with status conditions, replenishing HP or PP, or multiplying base damage two or three times.

Every unleash is both a physical attack and connected to an element; the damage done is calculated by comparing the Adept's Attack rating to the target's Defense rating, just like a normal physical attack, then the Adept's Power with the element in question is compared against the target's Resistance to that element to determine how much the resultant damage is modified for better or worse.

Dark Dawn Revisions
In Golden Sun: Dark Dawn, several changes are made to the unleash system.

The first change is that all weapons, including common and usable weapons, have an unleash. However, the strongest unleashes are still reserved for artifact weapons. In past games, normal weapons were still capable of scoring critical hits, so granting them unleashes effectively incorporates critical hits into the Unleash system.

The second change is that weapons can have anywhere from one to four unleashes, some of which are shared with other weapons, in addition to whatever other effects the weapon may have. The strongest unleash for any given weapon will generally be that weapon's signature unleash in the previous games. However, the same Unleash may also be a secondary unleash for a stronger weapon. A good example is the Unleash Stone Justice; it is the signature unleash of the Themis' Axe, but a secondary Unleash for the stronger Giant Axe and Herculean Axe.

Another major change is that the ability to use an unleash is determined by the mastery a character has over a specific weapon. When a character first equips a new weapon, that character may be unable to use any unleashes. However, as the character attacks with the weapon, their mastery will increase, and the character will be able to progressively learn more advanced Unleashes. The mastery a character has over a weapon is shown by a gauge that appears when the weapon is selected in the Item menu. Weapon mastery carries over to all weapons of the same class: Mastering a stronger weapon, such as the Herculean Axe, will give the character mastery over all weaker Axe-class weapons. Mastering a weaker weapon will grant some level of mastery to a stronger weapon, though the amount varies depending on how much the two weapons differ in strength. Also, the length of time it takes to completely master a weapon appears to increase with the strength of the weapon. A weaker weapon, like a Long Sword, takes less time to master that much stronger weapons, such as the Sol Blade.

Explanation for Unleashes
Although no real explanation for unleashes occurs in-game, a small bit of easily forgotten text on the subject appears when Isaac's party first arrives in Kolima, prior to having defeated (and healed) Tret. The enraged tree curses the residents of Kolima for taking their axes to him, turning them into trees, so that they would die alongside him. Isaac's party happens to get involved, needing to pass through the Kolima region as part of their quest. Immediately they are set upon by Tret, who immobilises the Adepts, pinning them to the ground. However, as the wave of Psynergy that would turn them into trees approaches, the Adepts are enveloped in a shimmering barrier that wards off Tret's curse. This barrier was a purely reactive and subconscious display of Psynergy, as none of the Adepts intentionally used their powers to create the field. They assume this type of subconscious defence is similar to a weapon's unleash, which holds vast, though uncontrollable, power. Apart from a concluding remark about how it would be nice to control this ability, it is never mentioned again. As such, this only serves to confirm that the Adepts do know that unleashes exist and that they are uncontrollable and nothing more.