SUPER SAIYAN

TRANSFORMATION

     Even after pushing his power to the limits with multiple recoveries from near-death, and training in 100g, Goku still found himself outclassed by the evil Frieza.  When Frieza shot Piccolo, seeming to kill him, and then actually killed Krillin, Goku exploded with rage.  This caused him to spontaneously transform into a Super Saiyan!  Goku then states he was able to do so because he had a pure heart.  Later, when Vegeta becomes one, he states that his heart was pure, too.  Pure evil!  So, one can say that the Super Saiyan transformation is unlocked when a pure-hearted Saiyan experiences extreme rage.  Although it's never explicitly stated, another requirement may also be that the Saiyan must be at least a certain minimum power level before they can unlock the transformation.  That is up for you to decide.

     Once the transformation is unlocked, the Saiyan is not quite able to access this transformation at will, at least not right away.  Although Goku reverts to his regular base form while fighting Frieza, and then transforms back into Super Saiyan seemingly at will, Goku was indeed on the battle field and experiencing rage at Frieza's stubborn attacks.  Later, Goku admits to Future Trunks that at first he couldn't control it at will, but with practice he was able to transform whenever he wanted.  This is how we know you don't automatically gain the ability to transform at will without practice.  Also, when Gohan first became Super Saiyan, he was only able to hold it for a matter of moments, until he lost the form.  Goku reassured Gohan, telling him that it took him a while to control it as well.

APPEARANCE

     When a Saiyan becomes Super Saiyan, their hair turns blonde (or slightly yellowish white, depending on the episode).  The hair also stands on end.  The hair is the biggest change to the Saiyan's appearance, but it is not the only one.  The eyes also change color.  In the Saiyan's natural state, their pupils are drawn as solid black dots, but as a Super Saiyan, the pupil is green.  (aqua in earlier episodes)   Trunks, the only Saiyan to have an iris drawn around his pupils, still has solid green dots for pupils, when he's Super Saiyan.  Goku, and his family, have eyes drawn with "closed lines" as Super Saiyans.  A Super Saiyan also has a brilliant golden/yellow aura of power.

     In the manga, this aura is drawn like a flickering emanation of fire.  In the anime, the aura is drawn more like a jet's afterburner, in that the outline of the aura is smoother and less jagged, compared to the manga.  In the anime, it also "flows" upwards, in waves.  The aura is not always present, in both anime and manga, it is sometimes missing. However, when the Saiyan is powered up, and fighting, it is usually always there.

EFFECTS

     When a Saiyan transforms into a Super Saiyan, their power level increases.  This is the major effect that Super Saiyan has.  With this higher power level, the Saiyan is able to deal out far more powerful attacks, and also move significantly faster then they could before.  Also, it allows them to sustain more damage.  Before becoming a Super Saiyan, Goku was at least twenty times weaker then a half-trying Frieza.  After transforming, he was able to completely defeat Frieza that was using 100% of his power.  As you can see, that is quite the increase.  

     It should be noted, that there is no substantial evidence indicating that the transformation always gives a boost that big.  As a Saiyan trains and grows stronger, it is unknown how their strength as a natural base level Saiyan effects the level of growth when they transform.  For example, as the Saiyan's power level in base increases, will it increase by the same multiple when they go Super Saiyan as it did when Goku first unlocked the transformation?  Or will the increased strength of the base form mean that the leap in power after transforming becomes smaller?  There's no real evidence, so it's up to you to decide.  Whatever you choose to believe, most fans estimate that Goku's initial transformation into Super Saiyan, while fighting Frieza, boosted his power level some fifty times!  Of course that number is not stated, and is only a fan-calculation based on speculation.

     Aside from the boost to power level, becoming Super Saiyan is also stated to effect the Saiyan mentally and physically as well.  Mentally, the Saiyan is put in an ecstatic state (as described by Vegeta).  Goku described it as a "restless feeling".  Physically, the Super Saiyan form is stated to put some level of strain on the Saiyan's body.  It also requires energy to maintain the form.  All of these secondary "side effects" were regarded as weakness by Goku, which is why he sought to eliminate them in preparation for fighting Cell.  We can only speculate how being a Super Saiyan feels, in real life terms, but one may guess that it would be similar to experiencing a constant adrenaline rush!

     Also, it should be noted, that while a Super Saiyan first transforms, and while they are powering up, a wind-like force emanates from them.  This varies in power and duration, but usually is only strong enough to kick up dust in the area.

ULTRA SUPER SAIYAN (fan-name)

TRANSFORMATION

     Ultra Super Saiyan (or Stage Two Super Saiyan as the Daizenshuu calls it),  is technically not a new or separate form of Super Saiyan.  This is simply a variation of the original Super Saiyan form.  In this variation, the Saiyan pumps as much energy into Super Saiyan as they can, in an attempt to raise their power level as high as it will go.  Eventually the muscles will expand and the Saiyan will gain more power.

     This "new" form was Vegeta's response to the humiliating defeat that the androids dealt out to him.  Vegeta swore that he would go beyond the power of Super Saiyan.  While training in the Room of Spirit and Time (Hyperbolic Time Chamber), he was able to unlock this form.  Although we don't see Vegeta discover this form for the very first time, we do see Goku discover it for his first time.  And from that example, it does not appear to be unlocked by any special circumstances, the way Super Saiyan is.  Goku did not show any rage, he simply stood up and started focusing his power until his muscles grew, and his aura and hair expanded as well.  When we see Vegeta do it, he transforms in a similar way.  As a Super Saiyan, he simply began powering up, higher and higher, beyond his body's limits, until he became this "form".

     Since this "form" is simply a "super charged" version of regular Super Saiyan, the fans have decided to call it "Ultra Super Saiyan", or "USSJ", for a very long time now.  The name stuck, and since it has no true official name given to it, it's probably the best name to use.  Although the Daizenshuu Book's name of "stage two" Super Saiyan does make sense as well, it may cause confusion between it and "Super Saiyan 2".  For that reason, USSJ will be the name of choice for most fans.  Few people choose to acknowledge the English Dub's name of "Ascended Saiyan", mainly because they slap that name on several different forms, making it the most confusing of all!

APPEARANCE

     The appearance of Ultra Super Saiyan is similar to the regular Super Saiyan, but there are noticeable differences.  These differences are much easier to pick out in the manga, as they are a bit inconsistent in the anime.  Either way, the biggest difference is muscle size.  An Ultra Super Saiyan looks more "buff" then a regular Super Saiyan.  The arms, legs, and upper chest all get a decent boost in size.  Probably the next easiest to spot difference, is hair size.  As an Ultra Super Saiyan, the Saiyan's hair both gets longer, and sticks up more.  The combination of these two changes makes the hair appear to be "bigger" overall, just like their muscles.  So bigger muscle and hair size is a good indication.  As I mentioned, the anime is much more inconsistent in these physical characteristics.  As you watch the episodes in which Vegeta fights Semi-Perfect Cell, it's almost as if the animators sometimes "forgot" to give Vegeta the bigger muscles, sometimes he looks just like a regular SSJ.  Rest assured, in the manga the difference is always very clear and easy to spot.

     Aside from muscle and hair size, one more way to identify this form apart from Super Saiyan remains.  The aura of an Ultra Super Saiyan looks different from that of a regular Super Saiyan.  In Super Saiyan, the aura looks more like a flickering fire in the manga, but with Ultra Super Saiyan, the aura looks more like a blow torch.  rather then being drawn with one jagged line, the aura is instead drawn with multiple "sketchy" lines, and the shape of the aura is more consistent with the shape of a rocket thruster firing off.  In the anime, the aura difference is much harder to see, and often nonexistent.  In the anime, the aura between SSJ and USSJ is mostly identical except for that USSJ may have a "larger" aura at times.  Much easier to tell apart in the manga.

EFFECTS

     The main effect of becoming Ultra Super Saiyan, is that the Saiyan's power level increases beyond that of regular Super Saiyan.  As a Super Saiyan, Vegeta was no match for even a single of the deadly androids.  But as an Ultra Super Saiyan, vegeta was able to completely overpower the semi-complete Cell who had absorbed one of the androids into his own power.  How much of that power difference can be attributed to the form alone, and how much can be attributed to Vegeta's overall training is unknown, but it is quite apparent that USSJ surpasses SSJ in raw power.

     Although USSJ2, the next step up from Ultra Super Saiyan, certainly does decrease a Saiyan's speed; it is not really clear to us if this level, Ultra Super Saiyan, also decreases speed.  Vegeta was far faster then Semi Perfect Cell in the USSJ state.  Trunks, who appeared to already be faster then Cell as a regular Super Saiyan at that point, transformed into USSJ to chase him after Cell raced off towards Android 18.  This would lead us to believe that unlike USSJ2, regular USSJ increases not just power, but speed.  But ultimately, it's up to you to decide.

     It should also be noted that just like regular Super Saiyan, this form seems to emanate a wind-like force.  This is seen mostly to the process of transforming, and of powering up.  Something like a gentle breeze was being given off by Vegeta even after he finished transforming into this state, but it only lasted until he started fighting.

     Ultra Super Saiyan is not without disadvantages.  All of the mental and physical side effects of Super Saiyan (discussed in the Super Saiyan section) seem to be amplified by Ultra Super Saiyan.  Goku states that it drains too much energy.  So although the form does seem advantageous compared to Super Saiyan, the boost it gets to power is apparently not enough to out-balance the strain and rapid energy drain going on.  This makes the form flawed, which both Vegeta and Trunks failed to realize.

ULTRA SUPER SAIYAN TWO (fan-name)

TRANSFORMATION

     Ultra Super Saiyan 2 (or Stage Three Super Saiyan, as the Daizenshuu calls it) is simply Ultra Super Saiyan taken one step further.  In this transformation, a Saiyan draws even more power into their form then they do in Ultra Super Saiyan.  The result is a massive growth in both size and power level.

     The transformation into Ultra Super Saiyan 2 (or USSJ2 from here on, because it's easier to type) seems to only be possible while a Saiyan is already transformed into a USSJ.  The Saiyan begins screaming and powering up.  Their aura billows out, crackling with power, and their body size begins to increase rapidly.  In the anime it is shown that each part of their body seems to boost size in turn.  First their chest, then their arms, then the legs.  Both in Anime and manga, the transformation itself causes considerable environmental disturbance.  In the manga, when Trunks transformed into USSJ2, massive dark clouds began to roll in, and a tremendous rumbling sound was produced.  The transformation itself also gives off considerable winds.  In the anime, these atmospheric disturbances were exaggerated.  The transformation caused a freak lightning storm to ravage the area, and caused mild earthquakes and violent winds.

     Trunks was the first one to discover this form, and the first one to be seen using it.  After Perfect Cell defeated Vegeta, Trunks stepped up to the plate and transformed into a USSJ2.  He believed he had discovered something far beyond what Vegeta had found in USSJ, and thought it would allow him to defeat Cell.  Little did Trunks know, he would soon be finding out exactly why Vegeta never chose to transform in this way.  While training with Gohan in the room of Spirit and Time, Goku too discovered this form, shortly after discovering the first USSJ form.  Goku immediate identified the forms disadvantages.

     Some confusion surrounds this form, causing people to think there is actually a "USSJ3".  This confusion is mostly due to the difference between the manga and anime versions of the Trunks vs Cell fight.  In the Manga, Trunks went USSJ to chase after Cell, when Cell first spotted Android #18.  This happens in the anime too.  However, in the manga, Trunks became USSJ2 right away to fight against Perfect Cell after Vegeta had been knocked out.  In the anime, during this scene, Trunks begins to "power up" into USSJ2, but judging by the artwork of the episode, he does not actually become it yet.  Back to the manga, after Krillin drags Vegeta from the scene of the battle, Trunks engages the full power of his USSJ2 form.  In the anime version of this scene, Trunks actually powers up for the first time into what we call USSJ2.  For this reason, some people think there was actually two separate transformations here, when there was only one.  Rest assured, USSJ3 does not exist, USSJ2 is the highest level of USSJ.

APPEARANCE

     USSJ2 is extremely easy to spot in the manga.  The Saiyans muscles "super-size" becoming far larger then USSJ.  The hair also becomes much larger then even USSJ, growing in length and sticking out more.  When Trunks went USSJ2, the hair band that tied his ponytail snapped, and his hair spread out in all directions.  Not only has the muscle and hair size increased greatly, but (in the manga) there is always a prominently displayed vein popping out of the Saiyan's forehead.  This vein is drawn at all times for the USSJ2 form in the manga, however the anime only shows it at random times.

     You may have guessed by now that that the next big difference in appearance, that sets this form apart from the others, is the aura.  In the manga, USSJ2's aura is similar to the regular Super Saiyan aura, only instead of fire, it's drawn more like crackling electricity!  The aura usually contains lightning-like protrusions that extend out of the aura, adding to the "crackling power" effect.  However, unlike Super Saiyan 2, these are only protrusions from the main aura, and not separate lightning bolts.  The anime does a good job conveying this aura, as you can see from the first anime-pic of Goku to the right, the aura is similar to the manga's version. The anime's USSJ2 aura only matches its manga counterpart, however, while the Saiyan is powering up and transforming.  Once the fighting begins, the Aura sometimes looks more similar to the generic "anime aura".

     One more inconsistency that the anime has is with the muscle size.  When Trunks is fighting Perfect Cell, his muscles sometimes seemed just as small as USSJ or even regular SSJ in some cases.  I can only guess why, but I would say it was due to difficulty in animating the massive bulky muscle size.

     There is one more interesting thing about USSJ2's appearance.  One of the manga chapters in which USSJ2 Trunks fights Perfect Cell, happens to be one of the rare "colored" manga chapters.  Although Viz printed the manga in black and white (meaning that these colored chapters appear in grayscale), in the Kanzenban re-release of the manga (available only in Japanese currently), the color is intact.  And in this colored chapter we see a curious thing.  USSJ2 Trunks has red hair instead of blonde/yellow!  However, it should be noted that Akira Toriyama's style of coloring the inner chapters of the manga was a very 'cost friendly' color method, usually using no more then two or three colors.  Therefore, we probably shouldn't take the whole "red hair" thing too seriously.

EFFECTS

     USSJ2, like Ultra Super Saiyan before it, boosts the Saiyan's power level far beyond that of regular Super Saiyan.  However, in USSJ2's case, the power level boost is much higher.  Perfect Cell, after freshly transforming, easily wrecked USSJ Vegeta, but stated that USSJ2 Trunks had a power surpassing even his.  (At Cell's currently displayed level, that is.)  One would think that this would allow Trunks to defeat Cell.  One would be wrong.  While all the Super Saiyan forms have at least a few minor disadvantages, this form is unique in that it has big disadvantages.  So big, in fact, that it essentially cripples the form, making it practically useless in combat! 

     The biggest side effect of USSJ2 is the increased muscle size.  The outrageous size of these muscles adds a lot of extra mass to the Saiyan's body.  Unfortunately for Trunks,  all of this extra mass means that the Saiyans speed actually takes a big hit.  When describing this disadvantage, Goku said "all the power in the world does you no good, if you can't even hit your opponent."  And indeed, Trunks was far too slow to even lay a hand on Cell.  So as strength levels way up, speed goes way down.  This is unique only to USSJ2, for every other transformation and character in DBZ shows us that higher power level means higher speed.  Blame it on the huge physical mass added to the Saiyan's body.

     Goku also noted that it drains far too much energy.  After reverting to base form, from being USSJ2, he was slightly out of breath and sweating heavily.  While in USSJ2, a strong wind emanates from the Saiyan's body.  This is more noticeable and more intense from the other Super Saiyan forms.  It seems to constantly kick up dust around the Saiyan, in a very similar fashion to a landing helicopter.

FULL POWER SUPER SAIYAN (fan-name)

APPEARANCE

     The FPSSJ "form" looks identical to the regular Super Saiyan form.  Considering the fact that it simply is the regular SSJ form, only mastered, that's not really too surprising.  There are, however, subtle differences that the keen fan can pick out.  

     In the manga, the aura of FPSSJ is slightly different from the aura of regular SSJ.  For regular SSJ, as you know, the aura is drawn with a single jagged line that looks very similar to a crackling fire.  For the FPSSJ variation, the aura also looks like a fire, however the "spikes" of the fire are drawn with multiple sweeping lines.  This can be seen in the manga pic to the right.  Even this difference is very minor, and not consistent, even in the manga.  As Goku continues fighting Cell, his aura gradually changes to look identical to a regular SSJ one.  This may possibly be due to Goku slowly running out of power when he fights.  It should be noted, that even regular SSJ has an aura similar to FPSSJ while the Saiyan is in the process of powering up, or in the process of mid-transformation.  Basically the aura difference is Akira Toriyama's way of letting us know, "this form has more power."

     The Anime provides us with a few more differences then the manga does.  In the anime, when Goku unleashed his full power to battle Cell, he was surrounded by red lightning, followed by a bright red flare of light.  When the red light faded, Goku had the typical golden SSJ aura surrounding him.  This, however, didn't happen for Gohan, when he powered up his form, so don't take this unique quality to heart as being a distinctive FPSSJ trait.

EFFECTS

     Full Power Super Saiyan's main effect is that it allows a Saiyan to comfortably use the SSJ power as if it was their natural form.  In this way, Goku and Gohan could go about their daily lives as Super Saiyans, and not even give off a tremendous energy signal.  They no longer experienced the restless feeling associated with being Super Saiyan, and the strain to their bodies was all but completed nullified.  The energy depletion of the form was also minimized, possibly to the point of non-existence. 

     Apparently, mastering the SSJ form in this way, allows it to contain far more power.  This is why it is called "Full Power" Super Saiyan.  As in, it is the maximum power that a Super Saiyan can possess.  Given the fact that Goku was stated to have become stronger in the Buu saga, it is not really that clear that this assertion is 100% true (that it is the max power of the SSJ form).  The one thing that is 100% clear, however, is that after going through the FPSSJ training, Goku was far beyond the power of a USSJ, and able to give Cell the best fight of any character yet.

     When both Goku, and later, Gohan, unleashed their true power to fight Cell; it caused a massive surge of energy that was very similar to an explosion.  Most of the spectators were "jet-blasted" by this surge, and the (regular) human spectators were literally knocked off their feet. 

SUPER SAIYAN TWO

APPEARANCE

     Super Saiyan 2 has several distinguishing traits that set it apart from regular SSJ.  Although the difference between the two is much harder to tell in the anime, it's not always a 100% distinction in the manga, either.  For example, many fans debate whether Gohan was SSJ or SSJ2 while fighting Dabura.  Some also debate about whether Vegito was SSJ or SSJ2.  All I can do is provide you the following description, and let you judge for yourself.

     As a Super Saiyan 2, the Saiyan's hair becomes "spikier" then it is as SSJ.  What I mean, is that there are more spikes drawn in the hair, rather then simply having four or five "main" spikes, the entire body of the hair is composed of separate spikes.  This can be a bit hard to understand when put into words, so do yourself a favor by comparing the manga SSJ2 Goku's hair to the right, with his SSJ hair seen in the Super Saiyan section above.  Or simply compare the picture of Gohan, directly to the right, with the picture of Gohan in the Full Power Super Saiyan section.  As you can see: "more spikes".  

     Aside from becoming spikier, the hair also seems to increase (slightly) in length.  It also tends to stick straight up, more so then a regular SSJ.  As regular Super Saiyans, both Gohan and Goku had certain hair spikes that tended to hang down a bit, similar to their base-form's hair.  As SSJ2s, however, nearly all of their hair spikes stuck straight up, except for a single spike of hair that hangs down over the forehead.  This spike that hangs down over the forehead can also be looked at as a unique SSJ2 trait, only that Vegeta lacks it.  This is possibly due to the fact that none of Vegeta's hair hangs over his face, even when he's not Super Saiyan.

     Aside from the hair, the next biggest way to distinguish between SSJ and SSJ2 is the aura.  The big change is that the SSJ2 aura crackles with electricity, like miniature bolts of lightning.  Unlike USSJ2, in which the "lightning" was simply extrusions from the main aura, with SSJ2, the lightning is drawn separately.  In the anime, the lightning is usually colored a neon electrical blue.  This lightning is one of the biggest ways to instantly pick out SSJ2 on the manga page, but in the anime the lightning only seems to appear at random, and not last for very long.  Mostly when an SSJ2 in the anime is standing there and generally holding still, is when the lightning will flicker through their aura.  Otherwise, when they start moving around, there is none to be seen.  Even in the manga, the lightning is not there 100% of the time.  For example, Gohan lacks any lightning while fighting Dabura, which is what leads many fans to debate if he even was SSJ2 or not.  However, Goku and Vegeta lack lightning in one or two random scattered panels while they were stated to be fighting at the SSJ2 level.

     Other then lightning, the aura is different from regular SSJ in one other way.  It is drawn with multiple short-lines, and it's shape seems to be more consistent with a sphere of power surrounding the Saiyan, a bright glow, rather then fire.  The aura is also notably larger then a regular SSJ aura.  It extends a fair distance from the Saiyan's body in most cases.  However, these subtle changes to the aura apply only to the manga, so don't bother looking for them in the anime.

EFFECTS

     The effect of becoming Super Saiyan 2 is quite simple.  The Saiyan's power level increases far beyond that of a regular Super Saiyan.  This causes the Saiyan to be much faster, stronger, and more durable then a regular Super Saiyan.  More powerful, even, then Full Power Super Saiyan.  This causes SSJ2 to "replace" SSJ as the primary form of combat in the Buu saga.  Although, Super Saiyan 2 is not without slight disadvantages.

     It would seem that becoming SSJ2 can slightly change a Saiyan's personality.  Gohan, who was gentle and peaceful for most of his life, seemed to love fighting while he was SSJ2. He ignored his father's pleas to kill Cell, and end the conflict, preferring instead to let Cell regenerate, so that he could "make him suffer more."  Goku and Vegeta's personalities seemed largely unchanged by SSJ2 during the Buu saga, however it can be noted that their fighting styles seemed far more aggressive.  Seven years after the battle with Cell, Gohan showed his SSJ2 form to Kibito during the tournament.  While he was Super Saiyan 2, he began acting more arrogant then usual, smirking and asking if he was to fight in that state.

     Super Saiyan 2 gives off a strong wind-like force, not just when they power up, but also when they are just standing around.  This force is more powerful then that of the other SSJ forms up until now.  It seems to make standing near a SSJ2 somewhat uncomfortable, due to being hit with a moderately powerful wind, and a lot of dust being kicked up into the air in the general area.

SUPER SAIYAN THREE

APPEARANCE

     Compared to the other forms of Super Saiyan, SSJ3 has the most unique look about it.  Obviously, the biggest difference between this form and the other SSJ forms is the hair.  In Super Saiyan 3, the Saiyan's hair grows out long behind the Saiyan's back.  It reaches nearly to the waist, or in Gotenk's case: nearly to his feet!  For Goku, a single spike of this hair hangs down over his forehead, similar to SSJ2.  For Gotenks, there isn't.  But this could be because Gotenk's base-form hair does not have any spikes hanging down to begin with.

     The next major trait is the face.  As a Super Saiyan 3, the Saiyan's hair on their eyebrows completely vanishes.  This gives the Saiyan's face a more "brute-like" appearance.  Also, for Goku only, his eyes are no longer drawn to just be a solid dot of color.  As a Super Saiyan 3, Goku's eyes are drawn more realistic-looking, having a black pupil surrounded by a colored iris.  (In the anime, the color of Goku's iris as a SSJ3 is the same green color that is typical of SSJ eye color.)  For Gotenks, however, his pupils remain as single, solid dots of green in his eyes.  Perhaps this was Akira Toriyama's way of showing Gotenks's immature, child-like nature.  For, the changes to Goku's face and eyes serve to make him look more intense.

     The final thing that can be noted about the appearance of SSJ3 is, of course, the aura.  In the manga, SSJ3's aura is drawn very similar to the SSJ2 aura, in that it is composed of multiple short-stroke lines.  In both anime, and manga, it is generally in the shape of a "sphere of power" around the Saiyan; but sometimes looks like a jagged, fire-like form.  Flickering throughout the SSJ3 Aura, is bolts of lightning.  These "sparks" are also very reminiscent of the SSJ2 form.  They are, however, somewhat inconsistent.  Both Gotenks and Goku sometimes showed a total lack of sparks in their SSJ3 aura.  It may depend on how much power the Saiyan had left, as these inconsistencies take place in both manga and anime.

EFFECTS

     Super Saiyan 3's main effect is a tremendous boost to the Saiyan's power level, more so then any other form.  This, of course, allows the Saiyan to move much faster, hit much harder, and take more damage.  So extreme is the powr of SSJ3, that Gotenks was able to shatter the dimensional barrier with a scream, and escape the Room of Spirit and Time, after the doorway had been destroyed.  However, the form does not lack disadvantage.  In fact, it has a huge one.

     The foremost of this negative side effect, is how quickly the form depletes a Saiyan's energy.  When Goku was allowed to visit Earth for a day, from the afterlife, becoming Super Saiyan 3 drastically reduced the time he had left.  When he used Super Saiyan 3 while he was alive, Goku found that he could no longer gather up his full power, after fighting Buu at length.  In just a short time, he began to lose power instead of gain it, and eventually reverted back to his base form.  Even Gotenks's fusion time (which is usually 30 mintues) was stated to be reduced to five minutes if he went Super Saiyan 3.

     Not only does it drain energy extremely fast, but it also seems to put a lot of strain on the body.  After being SSJ3 for only a short time to stall Fat Buu, Goku was later seen to be completely exhausted, sweating, and out of breath, even a relatively long time after he had been out of the form.

     Aside from all that, it can be noted that Super Saiyan 3 seems to give off the same wind-like force as a Super Saiyan 2.  Goku's first SSJ3 transformation also caused world-wide earthquakes, although the other SSJ3 transformations after that point caused no such effect.