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CHARACTER INFO
CHARACTER NAME: Sephiroth
SERIES: Final Fantasy VII
RESERVED: Yes
WISHLIST: No
PERSONALITY: As a SOLDIER, Sephiroth was competent and capable, confident in his abilities, and a well-respected leader. Both his disposition and rank kept him distant from many of his comrades, making him somewhat dark and mysterious to those other than his few friends who had the opportunity to experience his flawed, human nature. Learning about his origins led him to insanity. Overcome with hatred and wrath, he became ambitious enough to formulate a meticulous plot to absorb the Planet's energy and become a god. Despite his defeats, he remains ambitious, enigmatic, and insane. He is intensely driven to his objective to become a god and often chooses elaborate and grandiose executions of his plots. Sephiroth seems particularly vengeful toward Cloud Strife, who had experienced an important self-realization, came to reject Sephiroth from obtaining his body, and eventually defeated him. Cloud seems to be the only real barrier that prevents Sephiroth from succeeding in his plans.
TIMELINE: After his defeat in the Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children movie, when he releases Kadaj's body.
BACKGROUND: [Note: Continuity issues between the original FFVII video game and its expansion compilation are noted throughout the background. Much of the prequel Crisis Core (CC) overlaps with flashback events in the original game while the Advent Children movie (AC) takes place two years after the original game, it is coupled with the Last Order OVA, which has yet another interpretation of the Nibelheim incident covered in both the original and CC. Release order is as follows: original FFVII, AC+Last Order OVA, CC.]
Sephiroth was born approximately 30yrs before the beginning of the original FFVII video game to ShinRa Co.* employees Professor Hojo and Lucrecia Crescent. [* ShinRa Co. is the prevalent energy company in the FFVII game and acts as a governing power over Midgar, a place built almost entirely on its technology.] The two scientists were involved in the Jenova Project, a study of the discovered remains of an inhuman being called Jenova. The two agreed to use their unborn son, Sephiroth, in an experiment to study the effects of Jenova's cells on a human subject.
After his birth, Sephiroth was raised by ShinRa Co. He displayed inhuman speed and strength at an early age before becoming an elite SOLDIER with his friends Angeal Hawley and Genesis Rhapsodos*. [* These two characters and all events relating them to Sephiroth are only in CC.] The highlights of his career were his victories during the Midgar-Wutai war (prequel CC reveals that Sephiroth was also credited with other people's successes). A year after this war, he and two other SOLDIERs (Angeal and Zack Fair) were assigned on a mission to deal with rogue SOLDIER Genesis. After Angeal disappeared, Sephiroth wanted to avoid involvement since the two who defected were his friends. However, Zack convinced Sephiroth to search for and hopefully reason with them. Inevitably the mission seemingly ended when Angeal and Genesis were defeated in Modeoheim.
Afterward, Sephiroth and Zack were assigned to investigate a Mako* reactor in Nibelheim. [* Mako is a natural resource that is compressed into energy; it's eventually revealed to be the Lifestream, the planet's stream of consciousness where all of its life comes from and returns to.] In CC, Genesis made an appearance during their first visit to the reactor and prompted Sephiroth to read the files on the Jenova Project. In the original game, Sephiroth discovered his origins as an experiment and his role in the Jenova Project during the company's stay in the ShinRa Manor; he misinterpreted Hojo and Professor Gast's mixed reports, concluding that he was the last of the Cetra* and that humans were the cause of the Cetra's extinction. [* Cetra, also called Ancients, were a race chosen as protectors of their planet. Legends speak of their rest in the Promised Land, a place of peace and abundance. The original game treats Cetra as both a human race and separate 'endangered species'. It's important to note is that Sephiroth isn't actually a Cetra but had believed mistaken reports that Jenova was.]
Continuity discrepancies make it difficult to determine whether it is his identifying as an inhuman monster -as Genesis suggested (in CC)- or the idea that he was one of the last survivors of his race who was mistreated and experimented on (implied in original game and Last Order OVA) that drove him crazy. Regardless, Sephiroth was consumed with hatred and wrath--he first destroyed the town of Nibelheim before going to the reactor to release his Mother, Jenova. Zack pursued in an attempt to stop him but was unsuccessful. Just as Sephiroth was able to free Jenova, he was taken off-guard by a regular, Cloud Strife. Although injured, Sephiroth attempted to leave with Jenova's head when Cloud tried to finish him off, resulting in Sephiroth physically entering the Lifestream (the original game and CC show Cloud throwing Sephiroth from a gangway into the Lifestream; however, the Last Order OVA shows Sephiroth jumping in of his own volition).
While traveling in the Lifestream, Sephiroth learned the truth about Jenova's nature, that she was a being that landed on their planet when it was hit by a Meteor that formed the Northern Crater. (Thus, Jenova and the Cetra are entirely different and unrelated beings.) He absorbed Jenova and the wisdom of the Cetra before eventually reaching the Northern Crater, where he was physically sealed in Mako. Sephiroth had learned how their planet heals itself of wounds--when it receives injury, it gathers energy from the Lifestream where it's been wounded in order to heal itself. With that in mind, he formulated a meticulous plot to inflict their planet with such a grave injury that all of its energy would gather in that one spot--then Sephiroth himself would absorb all the energy and become a god.
Throughout the original video game, Cloud and his party encountered 'Sephiroth' a number of times; however, each one they encountered was not actually Sephiroth himself (who was still sealed in the Northern Crater) but Jenova's body -in whole or part- under Sephiroth's control, or an astral projection. Sephiroth's will had become so great that he was able to control Jenova's body, using its parts as projections of his image and controlling his manifestations as puppets to find and retrieve the Sephiroth Clones, or individuals who've also received Jenova cell infusion procedures to prove Hojo's Jenova Reunion Theory that those strong enough to withstand infusion would reunite when their cells were called.
Cloud and his friends eventually reached the Temple of the Ancients and discovered Sephiroth's goal. At this time, Cloud obtained the Black Materia* that Sephiroth awaited at the Northern Crater. [* Materia is a crystallized form of compressed Mako energy; it enables various abilities depending on its color. For example, red materia are used to summon powerful monsters used in battle attacks while green materia can cast magic spells. The Black Materia is a special materia that can summon the Meteor that once nearly destroyed their planet.] In the Forgotten City, Aerith Gainsborough, the real last Cetra, attempted to stop Sephiroth with her White Materia, which would cast Holy to defend their planet from Meteor. However, part of Jenova's body came as an image of Sephiroth and killed Aerith--although she had cast Holy, it was unusable because Sephiroth himself was blocking it. Following this, Cloud and company eventually reached the Northern Crater, where Sephiroth assumed control of the Jenova cells in Cloud's body and obtained the Black Materia. A barrier was formed around the crater as Sephiroth began the summon.
After the barrier was taken down by ShinRa's Sister Ray cannon, Cloud and buddies descended into the Northern Crater to confront Sephiroth. When he appeared to the group, he was already undergoing transformation, first as Bizzaro Sephiroth before shedding his cocoon to become Safer Sephiroth. However, when his physical body was defeated and destroyed, Sephiroth began a mental assault on Cloud in attempt to claim the body for himself. But Cloud had already undergone self-realization, and Sephiroth's attacks were ineffective. He was then banished back into the depths of the Lifestream. Meanwhile, it was too late to stop Meteor from crashing into their planet, but Cloud's victory ensured the casting of Holy, and that power, combined with the Lifestream itself, saved their planet from complete destruction.
Two years after that defeat, the disease called geostigma spread to many of their planet's inhabitants. A trio of silver-haired brothers appeared and confronted Cloud to ask him for "Mother's" whereabouts. Eventually the youngest brother, Kadaj, obtained a case of Jenova's remains and absorbed its contents--through this absorption, Sephiroth obtained Kadaj's body to use as a vessel. This time, Sephiroth revealed his new plans to take the planet and 'sail it into darkness'--he could crash their planet into another one to re-enact his original goal and become a god. Cloud and Sephiroth battled once again, and Sephiroth was once more defeated. Before he disappeared, he declared he would 'never be a memory', a forewarning of continued revivals and resurrections in the future, regardless of shape or form.
ABILITIES:
Physical Capabilities: Enhanced strength and speed from the Jenova cell infusion. Excellent swordsmanship. Has demonstrated the ability to summon the Masamune Blade (an overly long katana) at will (in AC) and perform air slices that can cleanly cut buildings and similar structures to pieces (in AC and CC).
Magical Abilities: Can cast magic via materia. [There are five materia colors in the original game -green, red, blue, purple, and yellow- aside from the special Black and White Materia; the types, functions, and effects would require an extensive list. This is complicated even further by CC's 'materia fusion' system, which allows players to fuse mako stones, materia, and/or items to create even more powerful materia.]
Jenova Abilities: Can control Jenova's physical body and its individual parts, using them as projections of himself or physical manifestations as puppets. Can mentally attack, influence, and manipulate those who are psychologically unstable--limited to targets/victims who have been infused with and react to Jenova.
CHARACTER NAME: Sephiroth
SERIES: Final Fantasy VII
RESERVED: Yes
WISHLIST: No
PERSONALITY: As a SOLDIER, Sephiroth was competent and capable, confident in his abilities, and a well-respected leader. Both his disposition and rank kept him distant from many of his comrades, making him somewhat dark and mysterious to those other than his few friends who had the opportunity to experience his flawed, human nature. Learning about his origins led him to insanity. Overcome with hatred and wrath, he became ambitious enough to formulate a meticulous plot to absorb the Planet's energy and become a god. Despite his defeats, he remains ambitious, enigmatic, and insane. He is intensely driven to his objective to become a god and often chooses elaborate and grandiose executions of his plots. Sephiroth seems particularly vengeful toward Cloud Strife, who had experienced an important self-realization, came to reject Sephiroth from obtaining his body, and eventually defeated him. Cloud seems to be the only real barrier that prevents Sephiroth from succeeding in his plans.
TIMELINE: After his defeat in the Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children movie, when he releases Kadaj's body.
BACKGROUND: [Note: Continuity issues between the original FFVII video game and its expansion compilation are noted throughout the background. Much of the prequel Crisis Core (CC) overlaps with flashback events in the original game while the Advent Children movie (AC) takes place two years after the original game, it is coupled with the Last Order OVA, which has yet another interpretation of the Nibelheim incident covered in both the original and CC. Release order is as follows: original FFVII, AC+Last Order OVA, CC.]
Sephiroth was born approximately 30yrs before the beginning of the original FFVII video game to ShinRa Co.* employees Professor Hojo and Lucrecia Crescent. [* ShinRa Co. is the prevalent energy company in the FFVII game and acts as a governing power over Midgar, a place built almost entirely on its technology.] The two scientists were involved in the Jenova Project, a study of the discovered remains of an inhuman being called Jenova. The two agreed to use their unborn son, Sephiroth, in an experiment to study the effects of Jenova's cells on a human subject.
After his birth, Sephiroth was raised by ShinRa Co. He displayed inhuman speed and strength at an early age before becoming an elite SOLDIER with his friends Angeal Hawley and Genesis Rhapsodos*. [* These two characters and all events relating them to Sephiroth are only in CC.] The highlights of his career were his victories during the Midgar-Wutai war (prequel CC reveals that Sephiroth was also credited with other people's successes). A year after this war, he and two other SOLDIERs (Angeal and Zack Fair) were assigned on a mission to deal with rogue SOLDIER Genesis. After Angeal disappeared, Sephiroth wanted to avoid involvement since the two who defected were his friends. However, Zack convinced Sephiroth to search for and hopefully reason with them. Inevitably the mission seemingly ended when Angeal and Genesis were defeated in Modeoheim.
Afterward, Sephiroth and Zack were assigned to investigate a Mako* reactor in Nibelheim. [* Mako is a natural resource that is compressed into energy; it's eventually revealed to be the Lifestream, the planet's stream of consciousness where all of its life comes from and returns to.] In CC, Genesis made an appearance during their first visit to the reactor and prompted Sephiroth to read the files on the Jenova Project. In the original game, Sephiroth discovered his origins as an experiment and his role in the Jenova Project during the company's stay in the ShinRa Manor; he misinterpreted Hojo and Professor Gast's mixed reports, concluding that he was the last of the Cetra* and that humans were the cause of the Cetra's extinction. [* Cetra, also called Ancients, were a race chosen as protectors of their planet. Legends speak of their rest in the Promised Land, a place of peace and abundance. The original game treats Cetra as both a human race and separate 'endangered species'. It's important to note is that Sephiroth isn't actually a Cetra but had believed mistaken reports that Jenova was.]
Continuity discrepancies make it difficult to determine whether it is his identifying as an inhuman monster -as Genesis suggested (in CC)- or the idea that he was one of the last survivors of his race who was mistreated and experimented on (implied in original game and Last Order OVA) that drove him crazy. Regardless, Sephiroth was consumed with hatred and wrath--he first destroyed the town of Nibelheim before going to the reactor to release his Mother, Jenova. Zack pursued in an attempt to stop him but was unsuccessful. Just as Sephiroth was able to free Jenova, he was taken off-guard by a regular, Cloud Strife. Although injured, Sephiroth attempted to leave with Jenova's head when Cloud tried to finish him off, resulting in Sephiroth physically entering the Lifestream (the original game and CC show Cloud throwing Sephiroth from a gangway into the Lifestream; however, the Last Order OVA shows Sephiroth jumping in of his own volition).
While traveling in the Lifestream, Sephiroth learned the truth about Jenova's nature, that she was a being that landed on their planet when it was hit by a Meteor that formed the Northern Crater. (Thus, Jenova and the Cetra are entirely different and unrelated beings.) He absorbed Jenova and the wisdom of the Cetra before eventually reaching the Northern Crater, where he was physically sealed in Mako. Sephiroth had learned how their planet heals itself of wounds--when it receives injury, it gathers energy from the Lifestream where it's been wounded in order to heal itself. With that in mind, he formulated a meticulous plot to inflict their planet with such a grave injury that all of its energy would gather in that one spot--then Sephiroth himself would absorb all the energy and become a god.
Throughout the original video game, Cloud and his party encountered 'Sephiroth' a number of times; however, each one they encountered was not actually Sephiroth himself (who was still sealed in the Northern Crater) but Jenova's body -in whole or part- under Sephiroth's control, or an astral projection. Sephiroth's will had become so great that he was able to control Jenova's body, using its parts as projections of his image and controlling his manifestations as puppets to find and retrieve the Sephiroth Clones, or individuals who've also received Jenova cell infusion procedures to prove Hojo's Jenova Reunion Theory that those strong enough to withstand infusion would reunite when their cells were called.
Cloud and his friends eventually reached the Temple of the Ancients and discovered Sephiroth's goal. At this time, Cloud obtained the Black Materia* that Sephiroth awaited at the Northern Crater. [* Materia is a crystallized form of compressed Mako energy; it enables various abilities depending on its color. For example, red materia are used to summon powerful monsters used in battle attacks while green materia can cast magic spells. The Black Materia is a special materia that can summon the Meteor that once nearly destroyed their planet.] In the Forgotten City, Aerith Gainsborough, the real last Cetra, attempted to stop Sephiroth with her White Materia, which would cast Holy to defend their planet from Meteor. However, part of Jenova's body came as an image of Sephiroth and killed Aerith--although she had cast Holy, it was unusable because Sephiroth himself was blocking it. Following this, Cloud and company eventually reached the Northern Crater, where Sephiroth assumed control of the Jenova cells in Cloud's body and obtained the Black Materia. A barrier was formed around the crater as Sephiroth began the summon.
After the barrier was taken down by ShinRa's Sister Ray cannon, Cloud and buddies descended into the Northern Crater to confront Sephiroth. When he appeared to the group, he was already undergoing transformation, first as Bizzaro Sephiroth before shedding his cocoon to become Safer Sephiroth. However, when his physical body was defeated and destroyed, Sephiroth began a mental assault on Cloud in attempt to claim the body for himself. But Cloud had already undergone self-realization, and Sephiroth's attacks were ineffective. He was then banished back into the depths of the Lifestream. Meanwhile, it was too late to stop Meteor from crashing into their planet, but Cloud's victory ensured the casting of Holy, and that power, combined with the Lifestream itself, saved their planet from complete destruction.
Two years after that defeat, the disease called geostigma spread to many of their planet's inhabitants. A trio of silver-haired brothers appeared and confronted Cloud to ask him for "Mother's" whereabouts. Eventually the youngest brother, Kadaj, obtained a case of Jenova's remains and absorbed its contents--through this absorption, Sephiroth obtained Kadaj's body to use as a vessel. This time, Sephiroth revealed his new plans to take the planet and 'sail it into darkness'--he could crash their planet into another one to re-enact his original goal and become a god. Cloud and Sephiroth battled once again, and Sephiroth was once more defeated. Before he disappeared, he declared he would 'never be a memory', a forewarning of continued revivals and resurrections in the future, regardless of shape or form.
ABILITIES:
Physical Capabilities: Enhanced strength and speed from the Jenova cell infusion. Excellent swordsmanship. Has demonstrated the ability to summon the Masamune Blade (an overly long katana) at will (in AC) and perform air slices that can cleanly cut buildings and similar structures to pieces (in AC and CC).
Magical Abilities: Can cast magic via materia. [There are five materia colors in the original game -green, red, blue, purple, and yellow- aside from the special Black and White Materia; the types, functions, and effects would require an extensive list. This is complicated even further by CC's 'materia fusion' system, which allows players to fuse mako stones, materia, and/or items to create even more powerful materia.]
Jenova Abilities: Can control Jenova's physical body and its individual parts, using them as projections of himself or physical manifestations as puppets. Can mentally attack, influence, and manipulate those who are psychologically unstable--limited to targets/victims who have been infused with and react to Jenova.