{
  "slug": "spark",
  "url": "https://gachawiki.com/wiki/spark",
  "type": "term",
  "title": "Spark",
  "description": "An exchange ceiling in gacha games, where every pull earns a token and a fixed number of tokens (300 in Granblue Fantasy, 200 in many later games) buys the featured item outright. Named after Granblue's cerulean sparks.",
  "aliases": [
    "sparking",
    "ceiling",
    "tenjou",
    "exchange ceiling"
  ],
  "tags": [
    "terminology",
    "mechanics"
  ],
  "verification": "verified",
  "lastUpdated": "2026-07-09",
  "lastVerified": "2026-07-09",
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Draw rates and cerulean spark rules",
      "url": "https://gbf.wiki/Draw",
      "publisher": "Granblue Fantasy community wiki",
      "accessed": "2026-07-09",
      "note": "Documents the 300-spark exchange introduced March 10, 2016."
    },
    {
      "title": "$6,065 hunt for a blonde avatar exposes dark side of Japan gaming",
      "url": "https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-03-09/-6-065-hunt-for-blonde-avatar-exposes-dark-side-of-japan-gaming",
      "publisher": "Bloomberg",
      "accessed": "2026-07-09",
      "note": null
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "pity-system",
    "granblue-fantasy",
    "blue-archive",
    "nikke",
    "umamusume-pretty-derby",
    "kompu-gacha"
  ],
  "markdown": "A spark is an exchange ceiling: every pull on a banner grants one token, and a fixed number of tokens can be exchanged for an item of the player's choice from the banner's list, usually including the featured character. Unlike probabilistic [pity](/wiki/pity-system), a spark is deterministic. It converts \"you will probably get it eventually\" into \"you will get it at N pulls, at the latest\".\n\nThe name comes from [Granblue Fantasy](/wiki/granblue-fantasy)'s cerulean sparks, introduced on March 10, 2016 after the Anchira incident, in which a player documented spending about 700,000 yen in a day chasing a rate-up character with no safety net. [[2]](#ref-2) Cygames set the exchange at 300 draws, about 90,000 yen if fully paid, and the number stuck: \"to spark\" a character means to bank 300 pulls for them. [[1]](#ref-1) Japanese players call the same mechanic tenjou, \"ceiling\".\n\nLater games tuned the number down and varied persistence:\n\n| Game | Spark cost | Carries between banners? |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| [Granblue Fantasy](/wiki/granblue-fantasy) | 300 draws | no |\n| [Arknights](/wiki/arknights) (limited banners) | 300 pulls | no |\n| [Blue Archive](/wiki/blue-archive) | 200 recruits | no |\n| [Umamusume: Pretty Derby](/wiki/umamusume-pretty-derby) | 200 pulls | no |\n| [NIKKE](/wiki/nikke) | 200 pulls | yes, mileage never expires |\n| [Fate/Grand Order](/wiki/fate-grand-order) | 330 rolls (auto-granted) | no |\n\nWhether tokens expire is the sharp edge of the mechanic: a non-persistent spark only protects players who can commit the full amount inside one banner window, which shapes saving behavior across the whole player base. See the [pity comparison](/compare/pity-systems) for current values with sources.",
  "license": {
    "name": "CC BY-SA 4.0",
    "url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/"
  }
}