Drain

A ubiquitous and woefully underused spell, present in all of the Final Fantasy games released in America. Drain is available to black mages in FFII, through the esper Ifrit in FFIII, and through the materia "HP Absorb" in FFVII. It can probably be found lying around in FFVIII, but I haven't played it that far yet.

The effect of drain, is, of course, to take hit points away from the enemy and transfer them to you. Note that the conduit reverses if you attempt to use this spell on the undead. You wind up taking some of their negative hit points, which has the result of doing you damage. The drain spell is actually rather weak, and ceases to be useful shortly after you learn it in any case.

A related spell, known as "osmose" in FFIII and available through the "MP Absorb" materia in FFVII, takes magic points from the enemy instead, and could be considered a "brain drain".

Dragon Book = D = dread high-bit disease

drain v.

[IBM] Syn. for flush (sense 2). Has a connotation of finality about it; one speaks of draining a device before taking it offline.

--The Jargon File version 4.3.1, ed. ESR, autonoded by rescdsk.

The drain, in pinball terms, is a hole in the playfield that usually ends the turn when the pinball falls into it. It is located at the bottom of the playfield in such a way that the pinball must pass the flippers or go through the outlanes to reach it. The drain is sometimes (rarely these days) called the outhole.

Drain is also the term used for the event of losing a ball into the hole.

Quite possibly, the fundamental goal of the game of pinball is keeping the pinball out of the drain for as long as possible.

Drain (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Drained (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Draining.] [AS. drehnigean to drain, strain; perh. akin to E. draw.]

1.

To draw off by degrees; to cause to flow gradually out or off; hence, to cause the exhaustion of.

Fountains drain the water from the ground adjacent. Bacon.

But it was not alone that the he drained their treasure and hampered their industry. Motley.

2.

To exhaust of liquid contents by drawing them off; to make gradually dry or empty; to remove surface water, as from streets, by gutters, etc.; to deprive of moisture; hence, to exhaust; to empty of wealth, resources, or the like; as, to drain a country of its specie.

Sinking waters, the firm land to drain, Filled the capacious deep and formed the main. Roscommon.

3.

To filter.

Salt water, drained through twenty vessels of earth, hath become fresh. Bacon.

 

© Webster 1913.

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Drain, v. i.

1.

To flow gradually; as, the water of low ground drains off.

2.

To become emptied of liquor by flowing or dropping; as, let the vessel stand and drain.

 

© Webster 1913.

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Drain, n.

1.

The act of draining, or of drawing off; gradual and continuous outflow or withdrawal; as, the drain of specie from a country.

2.

That means of which anything is drained; a channel; a trench; a water course; a sewer; a sink.

3. pl.

The grain from the mashing tub; as, brewers' drains.

[Eng.]

Halliwell.

Box drain, Counter drain. See under Box, Counter. -- Right of drain Law, an easement or servitude by which one man has a right to convey water in pipes through or over the estate of another.

Kent.

 

© Webster 1913.