Hydras are a group of foes introduced in Epic Battle Fantasy 2. They are very powerful foes, typically being either mini-bosses or full-fledged bosses in their own right.
Appearance
With the exception of the Pyrohydra, none of the Hydras are living, instead resembling the skeletal heads and necks of Dragons. It can be reasoned that Hydras and Dragons have fundamentally similar bodies based on this.
Overview
Hydras are rarely if ever found lying around in a dungeon, instead being perched in positions where they block the party's path or act as an endgame challenge for players.
In combat, Hydras are powerful foes notable for their ability to regenerate heads. With the exception of the Pyrohydra, a slain Hydra head can be revived by its allies. Naturally, a slain head cannot be revived if there are no heads left to do so. In later EBF games, they also gain the ability to separate their heads from their necks when they suffer a powerful blow; this boosts their Evade, changes their resistances, and enables some of their more powerful moves.
Hydras primarily use the elements relevant to their type, though most of them do use Fire attacks.
Members
- Zombie Hydra (EBF2, EBF4, EBF5)
- Pyrohydra (EBF3)
- Blaze Hydra (EBF5)
- Crystal Hydra (EBF5)
Trivia
- The way in which the severed Hydra heads float around and get a higher Evade stat in later games is inspired by Gleeok's[1] appearance in the original Legend of Zelda.
- Hydras have a close relationship to the Dragon family, with similar appearances and a reputation for being some of the toughest foes in the Epic Battle Fantasy series. EBF3 muddies things further by introducing a Hydra that has little in common with other members of the family (and would be used as the basis for the Dragon family in subsequent games) as well as a Dragon that was effectively a degraded version of the original Hydra while lacking several traits of later Dragons.
- Most of the above can be attributed to the fact that Matt Roszak had yet to develop Hydras and Dragons into full-fledged enemy groups in EBF3. As of the fifth game, the main difference between the families is that Dragons are visibly alive and use buffing roars and Megaflare attacks, while Hydras tend to look more skeletal, buff themselves by having their heads severed, and revive each other unless killed in rapid succession.
- The Origami Dragon introduced in EBF5's v2 update may be a nod to the similarities between Dragons and Hydras; while it's called a Dragon and lacks the Hydra family's signature abilities, it's also a floating head that looks a lot like the Zombie Hydra's skull. Additionally, its Bestiary entry puts it between the end of the Dragon family and the beginning of the Hydra family.