Blitzball is the great Spiran passtime. It has endured from since Zanarkand was destroyed 1000 years ago, to present-day Spira. Not everyone in the world plays Blitzball, in fact, there are only 6 teams and 60 recruitable players, however, everyone in the world is a rabid Blitzball fan. Why? Play it yourself and see…

Blitzball Playing Field
Blitzball incorporates elements of soccer, football, and water polo, and is played underwater in a giant Sphere Pool. In the lower right side of the screen, you’ll see a map of the Sphere Pool, the game time, and the score, from top to bottom. On the map, your players are represented by green triangles, the opposition’s players are represented by red triangles, and the player who currently has possession of the ball has a yellow circle around him or her. In the lower left corner is commentary about what’s happening in the game.

Blitzball Action Menu
When one of your team’s players has possession of the ball, pressing the Square button will bring up the action menu. If your player is close to one or more members of the opposite team, bringing up the action menu will initiate an encounter. In an encounter, you’ll square off against enemy players – see the section below for more details. However, if no players of the opposite team are near you, bringing up the action menu will yield three choices: Pass, Shoot, and Dribble. Pass means that you may pass the ball to another team member, Shoot means you’ll attempt to kick the ball to score a goal, and Dribble pretty much closes the action menu, allowing you to continue swimming through the Sphere Pool until you open up the action menu again, or are intercepted by enemy players and forced into an encounter.

Blitzball Encounters
An encounter occurs when the player who has possession of the ball swims too close to enemy team members. When that happens, the ball handler will square off against one or more players of the opposite team, and you’ll have two options: "No Break", and "Break to…".

Before you make a choice, examine the statistics in the top right corner. The topmost set of stats is the ball carrier, and the statistics below that are the enemy players who surround the ball carrier. Ignore the HP for a moment and look at EN, AT, PA, and BL. EN (Endurance) is compared to AT (Attack) in an encounter, and PA (Pass) is similarly compared to BL (Block). A good rule of thumb is that if your Pass is higher than the enemy’s Block, choose "No Break", and if your Endurance is higher than the enemy’s Attack, choose "Break to…". If you’re in an encounter with more than one enemy player, you can choose a combination of these.

Selecting "No Break" brings up the Action Commands menu, and gives you the choice to either pass the ball, or make a shot. Because you’re currently surrounded by enemy players, however, any passes or shots that you make will be intercepted by them. If your Pass (PA) or Shoot (SH) statistic (as applicable) is higher than their Block (BL) statistic, they’ll merely deflect the ball, unable to gain possession of it. If your Pass or Shoot is lower than their Block, on the other hand, they’ll catch the ball.

Selecting "Break to…" will bring up the Actions Commands menu, giving you the choice to not only pass or shoot the ball, but also to dribble. After you’ve made your choice, one or more enemy players – however many you chose to Break to - will tackle you in an attempt to wrest the ball from your hands. If your Endurance (EN) statistic is greater than the sum of their Attack (AT) statistic, you’ll retain possession of the ball, then perform the pass, shot, or dribbling action you selected at first.

Blitzball Statistics

Because what would an RPG mini-game be without statistic micromanagement?

Health Points (HP)
Every action that a Blitzball player makes costs HP. Passing the ball, shooting the ball, tackling, even simply dribbling the ball down the court will cause your HP to drop. It’s fairly rare that a player’s HP will drop to 0, but when it does happen, their statistics are halved for all practical purposes, and they’re essentially useless. However, when a player doesn’t have possession of the ball, their HP will automatically regenerate.

Speed (SP)
The Speed statistic determines how quickly a player will move down the court. Having a high Speed statistic means that you can outswim your opponents, and you’ll rarely get into encounters.

Attack (AT)
The Attack statistic determines how much a player will deplete another player’s Endurance when tackling.

Endurance (EN)
The Endurance statistic determines the amount of damage that a player can take from enemy Attacks when he has possession of the ball.

Pass (PA)
The Pass statistic determines how far a player can throw the ball, and also whether or not a pass will be Blocked. As the ball floats through the water on a pass, the PA number will drop. If it reaches zero before the ball is caught by the targeted member of your team, the ball will be fumbled, and the nearest player will catch it, so don’t pass from too far away.

Block (BL)
The Block statistic determines how likely it is that a player will block a pass or a shot by the opposing team. If a player’s BL statistic is higher than the opposition’s PA statistic, a pass will be blocked, and you’ll gain possession of the ball.

Shoot (SH)
"Shoot" is actually a bit of a misnomer, this statistic refers to the player’s kicking ability. The higher the number, the further away from the goal that a player may score from, and the more difficult it is for a goalie to catch. As the ball floats through the water on a shoot, the SH number will drop. If it reaches zero before the ball reaches the goal, the goalie will most certainly catch it, so don’t shoot from too far away.

Catch (CA)
The Catch statistic determines how adept a goalie is at catching or deflecting shots.

Blitzball Positions

Left Forward (LF)
Both the left and right forwards on your team will be doing most of the scoring. High Speed, Endurance, and Shoot statistics, as well as a wide variety of shooting Techniques, are necessary for effective forwards. Tackle Slip and Anti status ailment techniques are icing on the cake.

Right Forward (RF)
Both the right and left forwards on your team will be doing most of the scoring. High Speed, Endurance, and Shoot statistics, as well as a wide variety of shooting Techniques, are necessary for effective forwards. Tackle Slip and Anti status ailment techniques are icing on the cake.

Midfielder (MF)
The midfielder catches the ball after a Blitzoff!, and will be performing most of your team’s passing duties, although midfielders can double as defensemen. High Speed, Pass, Attack, and Block statistics, as well as a wide variety of passing Techniques, are necessary for effective forwards.

Left Defense (LD)
Both the left and right defensemen prevent the opposition from swimming too close to your goal. High Speed, Attack, and Block statistics, as well as a wide variety of tackling Techniques, are necessary for effective defense.

Right Defense (RD)
Both the right and left defensemen prevent the opposition from swimming too close to your goal. High Speed, Attack, and Block statistics, as well as a wide variety of tackling Techniques, are necessary for effective defense.

Goalie (GL)
The goalie guards your team’s goal, and prevents the opposing team from kicking the ball into it. High Block and Catch statistics, as well as Techniques like Grip Gloves and Super Goalie, are necessary for an effective goalie.

Blitzball Status Ailments

Poison (green)
Poison status makes a player’s HP drop rapidly, and regenerate much more slowly when the player doesn’t have possession of the ball. Poison will wear off after a few minutes of play, or at the end of a half.

Wither (yellow)
Wither status halves one or more of a player’s statistics, effectively crippling them. Wither will wear off after a few minutes of play, or at the end of a half.

Nap (blue)
Nap status puts a player to sleep, as improbable as that might sound underwater. While sleeping, the player can’t move, participate in encounters, or catch the ball if they’re a goalie. You can wake a player up by throwing a pass to them, or scoring a goal.

Techcopying

Why to Techcopy
With rare exceptions, every Blitzball player knows between one to eight Techniques inherently, that will become available as that player levels up. However, there are many more Techniques to learn, and it's common sense that the more techniques your team knows, the more effective a team you will be. More importantly, your players are not able to learn all of the Techniques that they rightfully should, until they've Techcopied at least one of their Key Techniques. High stats will only take you so far in the game - a wide body of techniques is essential for a winning team. So how to learn these extra Techniques? Through Techcopying from other players, of course!

Marking
In the pre-game setup screen, you’re given the option to "Mark" players from the opposing team. When an enemy player with a certain Technique is marked, it means that when they use that particular Technique, the word "Techcopy" will flash in the upper left corner of the screen, and one of your team’s players may learn it.

When Techcopy flashes blue and white, you must press the X button when it’s flashing white, otherwise your Techcopy will not be successful. However, different Techniques have different timing, so even if you press X when Techcopy is white, you still may not learn the technique. Being at an equal or higher level than the player you're trying to Techcopy from is also very important. A level 13 player will have a lot more trouble Techcopying from a level 50 player, than a level 52 player would have, for example.

Techcopying "Anti" Techniques
Passing and tackling Techniques are simple enough to learn, but if you're trying to learn a certain "Anti" ability, such as Anti Wither or Anti Drain, equip several of your players with the appropriate Tackle or Pass techniques, and repeatedly get into encounters with the enemy player you're trying to Techcopy from. For example, if you were trying to learn Anti Venom 2 from Linna, you would equip several of your players with Venom Pass and/or Venom Tackle, and repeatedly encounter Linna, passing and tackling until you're able to Techcopy it.

Techcopying Sphere Shot and Invisible Shot
Sphere Shot and Invisible Shot have utterly brutal Techcopy timing. Sphere Shot may only be successfully copied right before the player's foot connects with the ball, and likewise, Invisible Shot may only be copied right as the player is releasing the ball after their dervish whirl.

Techcopying Volley Shot
Volley Shot is only used when someone equipped with it is near the opposition's goal, and the ball is fumbled. It is an automatic reflex, and cannot be selected for use like techniques like Sphere Shot or Nap Shot. For example, if you fumble a pass and the ball bounces off the bottom of the Sphere Pool near someone with Volley Shot, the player equipped with it will automatically use Volley Shot in an attempt to make a goal. Likewise, if you make a failed shot and it bounces off the goalie's hand, if a player nearby is equipped with Volley Shot, they will use it. If you want your goalie to fumble catches more often, do not equip them with Grip Gloves.

Techcopying for the Jecht Shot 2
The Jecht Shot 2 is quite possibly the cheapest move in all of Blitzball – it knocks away three enemy players defending a goal, and then the ball becomes invisible after Tidus kicks it! If you aim the ball at the right spot, this means it’s pretty much a guaranteed goal, even from half court. As cheap as it is, though, it’s a pain to learn. Tidus must know at least one of his Key Techniques before Jecht Shot 2 shows up as a grand prize for the Blitzball Tournament, and he must know all three of them to actually obtain and equip the Jecht Shot 2 – in other words, if Tidus only knows two out of three of his Key Techniques, you forfeit the prize.

Anyway, Tidus’ Key Techniques are Venom Tackle, Drain Tackle 2, and Anti Venom 2, and these must be learned that that order specifically. Venom Tackle is simple enough to learn, because most of the enemy defenders are equipped with it on low levels. Drain Tackle 2 may be Techcopied most easily from Graav, who begins with it, but Balgerda, Ropp, Shuu, Tatts, Kyou, and a few other players know and use it at low levels. Anti Venom 2 is a bit rarer, only Linna, Brother, and Auda Guado know it at low levels. Refer to the players section for a complete list of every Technique that every player can learn, as well as how many of their Key Techniques they need to know to equip them.

Blitzball Techniques

Tackles

Technique: Tackle (basic)
Action: Tackles a player during an encounter.
HP Cost: Variable, costs whatever the player’s Attack (AT) statistic is.
Obtained by: Every player starts with this.

Technique: Venom Tackle
Action: Has a 40% chance of inflicting poison status on a player during an encounter, and adds +3 to Attack (AT).
HP Cost: 30 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Venom Tackle 2
Action: Has a 70% chance of inflicting poison status on a player during an encounter, and adds +5 to Attack (AT).
HP Cost: 70 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Venom Tackle 3
Action: Has an 100% chance of inflicting poison status on a player during an encounter, and adds +7 to Attack (AT).
HP Cost: 160 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Wither Tackle
Action: Has a 40% chance of halving one of a player’s statistics during an encounter, and adds +3 to Attack (AT).
HP Cost: 8 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Wither Tackle 2
Action: Has a 70% chance of halving one of a player’s statistics during an encounter, and adds +5 to Attack (AT).
HP Cost: 80 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Wither Tackle 3
Action: Has an 100% chance of halving one of a player’s statistics during an encounter, and adds +7 to Attack (AT).
HP Cost: 250 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Nap Tackle
Action: Has a 40% chance of inflicting nap status on a player during an encounter, if that player’s Endurance (EN) is reduced to 0, and adds +3 to Attack (AT).
HP Cost: 40 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Nap Tackle 2
Action: Has a 70% chance of inflicting nap status on a player during an encounter, if that player’s Endurance (EN) is reduced to 0, and adds +5 to Attack (AT).
HP Cost: 90 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Nap Tackle 3
Action: Has an 100% chance of inflicting nap status on a player during an encounter, if that player’s Endurance (EN) is reduced to 0, and adds +7 to Attack (AT).
HP Cost: 180 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Drain Tackle
Action: Has a 40% chance of absorbing 30 of a player’s HP during an encounter, provided you have at least 30 HP remaining.
HP Cost: 30 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Drain Tackle 2
Action: Has a 70% chance of absorbing 150 of a player’s HP during an encounter, provided you have at least 150 HP remaining.
HP Cost: 150 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Drain Tackle 3
Action: Has an 100% chance of absorbing 500 of a player’s HP during an encounter, provided you have at least 500 HP remaining.
HP Cost: 500 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Passes

Technique: Pass (basic)
Action: Passes the ball to another team member.
HP Cost: Variable, costs whatever the player’s Pass (PA) statistic is.
Obtained by: Every player starts with this.

Technique: Venom Pass
Action: Passes the ball to another team member, has a 30% chance of inflicting poison status on an enemy player during an encounter, and adds +3 to Pass (PA).
HP Cost: 40 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Venom Pass 2
Action: Passes the ball to another team member, has a 60% chance of inflicting poison status on an enemy player during an encounter, and adds +5 to Pass (PA).
HP Cost: 120 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Venom Pass 3
Action: Passes the ball to another team member, has an 100% chance of inflicting poison status on an enemy player during an encounter, and adds +7 to Pass (PA).
HP Cost: 250 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Wither Pass
Action: Passes the ball to another team member, has a 30% chance of inflicting wither status on an enemy player during an encounter, and adds +3 to Pass (PA).
HP Cost: 40 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Wither Pass 2
Action: Passes the ball to another team member, has a 60% chance of inflicting wither status on an enemy player during an encounter, and adds +5 to Pass (PA).
HP Cost: 180 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Wither Pass 3
Action: Passes the ball to another team member, has a 100% chance of inflicting wither status on an enemy player during an encounter, and adds +7 to Pass (PA).
HP Cost: 440 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Nap Pass
Action: Passes the ball to another team member, has a 30% chance of inflicting nap status on an enemy player during an encounter, and adds +3 to Pass (PA).
HP Cost: 40 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Nap Pass 2
Action: Passes the ball to another team member, has a 60% chance of inflicting nap status on an enemy player during an encounter, and adds +5 to Pass (PA).
HP Cost: 200 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Nap Pass 3
Action: Passes the ball to another team member, has an 100% chance of inflicting nap status on an enemy player during an encounter, and adds +7 to Pass (PA).
HP Cost: 510 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Shots

Technique: Shot (basic)
Action: Kicks the ball towards the opposition’s goal.
HP Cost: Variable, costs whatever the player’s Shoot (SH) statistic is.
Obtained by: Every player starts with this.

Technique: Aurochs Spirit
Action: Adds +10 to Wakka’s Shoot (SH) statistic, plus the sum of the remaining original members of the Besaid Aurochs (Datto, Letty, Jassu, Botta, and Keepa).
HP Cost: 600 HP
Obtained by: A randomly-generated grand prize in the Blitzball Tournament game. Wakka is the only player who may equip this technique, and he can only do so after he knows his three Key Techniques.

Technique: Jecht Shot
Action: Knocks out two enemy players, and adds +5 to Tidus’ Shoot (SH) statistic.
HP Cost: 120 HP
Obtained by: Play the Jecht Shot minigame on the S.S. Winno en route to Luca, if you’re successful, Tidus will learn this automatically. (NOTE: If you don’t succeed in getting the Jecht Shot on your first try, you can return to the S.S. Winno at any time after the first Blitzball tournament in Luca, and try for it again by examining the Blitzball on deck.) Tidus is the only character who may equip this technique.

Technique: Jecht Shot 2
Action: Knocks out three enemy players, adds +10 to Tidus’ Shoot (SH) statistic, and makes the ball invisible on its way to the goal. (HINT: Aim at the lower left side of the goal, outside the goal boundary, to always score.)
HP Cost: 999 HP
Obtained by: A randomly-generated grand prize in the Blitzball Tournament game. Tidus is the only player who may equip this technique, and he can only do so after he knows his three Key Techniques.

Technique: Sphere Shot
Action: Adds +3, plus a random number to the player’s Shoot (SH) statistic. Push the X button any time during the animation to choose the random number.
HP Cost: 90 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Invisible Shot
Action: Adds +3 to a player’s Shoot (SH) statistic, plus it makes the ball invisible on its way to the goal. (HINT: Aim at the lower left side of the goal, outside the goal boundary, to always score.)
HP Cost: 220 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Volley Shot
Action: When the ball is fumbled, if a player equipped with this is close to the opposition’s goal, there’s a 50% chance a player will automatically attempt a shot.
HP Cost: 10 HP

Technique: Volley Shot 2
Action: When the ball is fumbled, if a player equipped with this is close to the opposition’s goal, there’s a 75% chance a player will automatically attempt a shot.
HP Cost: 40 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Volley Shot 3
Action: When the ball is fumbled, if a player equipped with this is close to the opposition’s goal, there’s an 100% chance a player will automatically attempt a shot.
HP Cost: 250 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Venom Shot
Action: Has a 40% chance of inflicting poison status on the goalie, and adds +3 to Shoot (SH).
HP Cost: 20 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Venom Shot 2
Action: Has a 70% chance of inflicting poison status on the goalie, and adds +5 to Shoot (SH).
HP Cost: 35 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Venom Shot 3
Action: Has an 100% chance of inflicting poison status on the goalie, and adds +7 to Shoot (SH).
HP Cost: 100 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Wither Shot
Action: Has a 40% chance of halving the goalie’s Block (BL) and Catch (CA), and adds +3 to Shoot (SH).
HP Cost: 30 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Wither Shot 2
Action: Has a 70% chance of halving the goalie’s Block (BL) and Catch (CA), and adds +5 to Shoot (SH).
HP Cost: 180 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Wither Shot 3
Action: Has an 100% chance of halving the goalie’s Block (BL) and Catch (CA), and adds +7 to Shoot (SH).
HP Cost: 390 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Nap Shot
Action: Has a 40% chance of inflicting nap status on the goalie, and adds +3 to Shoot (SH).
HP Cost: 45 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Nap Shot 2
Action: Has a 70% chance of inflicting nap status on the goalie, and adds +5 to Shoot (SH).
HP Cost: 80 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Technique: Nap Shot 3
Action: Has an 100% chance of inflicting nap status on the goalie, and adds +7 to Shoot (SH).
HP Cost: 350 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players.

Support Techniques

Technique: Anti Venom
Action: Has a 50% chance of avoiding poison status.
HP Cost: 5 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Anti Venom 2
Action: Has an 100% chance of avoiding poison status.
HP Cost: 50 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Anti Wither
Action: Has a 50% chance of avoiding wither status.
HP Cost: 30 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Anti Wither 2
Action: Has an 100% chance of avoiding poison status.
HP Cost: 200 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Anti Nap
Action: Has a 50% chance of avoiding nap status.
HP Cost: 40 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Anti Nap 2
Action: Has an 100% chance of avoiding nap status.
HP Cost: 210 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Anti Drain
Action: Has a 50% chance of avoiding HP drainage.
HP Cost: 10 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Anti Drain 2
Action: Has an 100% chance of avoiding HP drainage.
HP Cost: 50 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Brawler
Action: Has a 60% chance of allowing a player who has possession of the ball to get into encounters from further away.
HP Cost: 10 HP per encounter
Obtained by: Win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Elite Defense
Action: Allows your defensemen to get into encounters with the player who has possession of the ball from further away.
HP Cost: 5 HP to equip
Obtained by: Win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Gamble
Action: If a player wakes up from nap status, a random number is added to all of their statistics. Press the X button any time during the animation to select the random number.
HP Cost: 300 HP
Obtained by: Win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Golden Arm
Action: Slows pass and shot decrease from far away.
HP Cost: 30 HP to equip
Obtained by: Win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Good Morning!
Action: If a player wakes up from nap status, this has a 50% chance of adding enormous statistic bonuses.
HP Cost: 80 HP
Obtained by: Win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Grip Gloves
Action: Increases the chances that a goalie will catch the ball, rather than deflect it.
HP Cost: 30 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from goalies, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Hi Risk
Action: Halves all statistics during a Blitzball game, but doubles experience points.
HP Cost: 300 HP to equip
Obtained by: Win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Pile Venom
Action: Accumulates the effects of poison status on an enemy player during an encounter.
HP Cost: 30 HP to equip
Obtained by: Win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Pile Wither
Action: Accumulates the effects of wither status on an enemy player during an encounter.
HP Cost: 70 HP to equip
Obtained by: Win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Regen
Action: Makes HP regenerate much, much more quickly when a player does not have possession of the ball.
HP Cost: 50 HP to equip
Obtained by: Win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Spin Ball
Action: Spins the ball during a shot, making it more difficult for a goalie to catch.
HP Cost: 30 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Super Goalie
Action: A random number is added to the goalie’s Catch (CA). Press the X button any time during the animation to select the random number.
HP Cost: 30 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Tackle Slip
Action: Gives player a 40% chance of evading enemy tackles, although they may be disoriented and lose one of their equipped Techniques after evading.
HP Cost: 40 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Tackle Slip 2
Action: Gives player an 80% chance of evading enemy tackles, although they may be disoriented and lose one of their equipped Techniques after evading.
HP Cost: 170 HP
Obtained by: Techcopy from other players, or win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Technique: Tech Find
Action: Unlocks any "------" slot in a player’s Technique list. It will not unlock Techniques that the player doesn’t know enough Key Techniques to equip yet, however.
HP Cost: None
Obtained by: Win in Blitzball Leagues and Tournaments.

Scouting and Recruiting Players

Why and How to Recruit
The original members of the Besaid Aurochs have the lowest starting statistics of all of the Blitzball players in Spira, made doubly bad by the fact that they’re all on the same team. (The announcer in Luca wasn’t exaggerating when he called them "a living, breathing statistical anomaly".) Although it is definitely possible to level up the original Besaid Aurochs to respectable players, it will take a great deal of time and patience to do it, so you’re probably better off recruiting other Blitzball players.

To scout any player, simply walk up to them and press the Square button. Doing this will show you their present level, their salary, their statistics, their Key Techniques, and all of the Techniques they currently know. Not every player can learn every Technique, but the more Key Techniques they know, the more Techniques they may learn. As you play and win more games, your Scout level will increase, and you’ll be able to see more information about a player.

"Best" Players
First of all, the term "best" is highly subjective, and refers to the ideal balance of a player’s high statistics, and the body of Techniques that they may learn. It does not mean that having them on your team will let you sit back and watch the CPU win the game for you, it simply gives you a huge advantage over the opposition. That said, here are the best players for every position:

Forwards – Tidus, Brother, Eigaar, Argai Ronso, Shaami, Vilucha, Linna, Wakka, Keepa (above level 90 when his Shoot skyrockets), Wedge (below level 25), and Nedus (above level 60 when his Speed becomes decent).

Best Midfielders – Berrik, Brother, Linna, Rin, Svanda, Tatts, Naida, and Ropp.

Best Defensemen – Jassu, Kulukan, Judda, Kyou, Zalitz, Naida, Mep, and Ropp.

Best Goalies – Nimrook, Kyou, Jumal, Yuma Guado, and Wedge (above level 90 when his CA gets high).

As you can see, there’s some overlap between positions, and the statistics of some players increase or decrease sharply depending on their experience level. Forwards in general should have high Speed, Endurance, and Shoot. Midfielders should have high Pass, Attack, and Block. Defensemen should have high Speed, Attack, and Block. And finally, Goalies should have high Catch and Block. Experiment with various combinations of players, and see who works for you – there are 60 recruitable players, after all, and not one of them is completely worthless.