Final Fantasy XIII is best known for the division it created amongst the fanbase. Sometimes lauded as the worst mainline entry in the franchise, while others praise it in various areas, such as music, worldbuilding, and battle systems. Despite its controversy, it is one of the more recent Final Fantasy titles to experiment with its game design, something to be different from the classic turn-based style.
But we’re not here to discuss the game's merits, as this article is about the main characters. Here is everything players need to know about the Final Fantasy XIII characters. Unfortunately, FF13 largely avoids using dates, so none of the characters have any official birthdays.
11 Claire "Lightning" Farron
Claire “Lightning” Farron is 21 years old in FF13 and stands at 5’7” (171 cm). Not only is she the main protagonist of the Final Fantasy XIII series, but she serves as the focused leader of the party in the first game. In gameplay, Lightning’s paradigms are Commando, Ravager, and Medic. She specializes in gunblade attacks and...well, Thunder magic. Her Eidolon (Summon) is Odin.
Lightning is an l’Cie who is searching for her younger sister, Serah Farron. A former Guardian Corps soldier, Lightning is a distant and cold woman who learns to trust her companions over the course of the story. She is particularly hostile to Hope and Snow in the beginning, but they become her closest allies and friends. Lightning's birthday was never revealed, although it did happen just before FF13's opening sequence.
10 Snow Villiers
Snow Villiers is 21 years old in FF13 and stands at 6’7” (200 cm); he is the tallest character in the main cast. Snow serves as a monk-based character in gameplay, using his large physique and powerful punches to deal damage. He also has abilities and moves that allow him to tank attacks. His Paradigms are Commando, Ravager, and Sentinel. Snow specializes in Water/Ice magic, and his Eidolon is Shiva.
Snow is a headstrong and optimistic individual. Like Lightning, he goes on the journey to find his fiancée Serah again. Lightning does not approve of their relationship initially; Snow spends some of the story trying to get along with the stoic soldier. Prior to becoming an l’Cie, he was the leader of a neighborhood watch group called NORA.
9 Hope Estheim
Hope Estheim is 14 years old in FF13 and stands at 5’0” (153 cm). Serving as the group's most potent mage, Hope’s Paradigms are Ravager, Synergist, and Medic. Later on in the game, Hope also gains access to the Holy spells. The young boy uses a boomerang as his weapon of choice. Hope’s Eidolon is Alexander.
Hope is a quiet and naïve boy. Coming from an upper-class lifestyle, he knows nothing about combat before the main story. His mother, Nora, got involved with Snow and NORA to stop the Purge. When the Skybridge collapsed, Nora dies saving Snow. Hope joins the group to eventually confront Snow over the death of his mother. Over the course of the story, Hope learns to be more confident in himself and stand up for others.
8 Sazh Katzroy
Sazh Katzroy is 40 years old, making him, biologically, the oldest member of the group. He is 6’2” including his afro, or 189 cm. The middle-aged man wields dual pistols and acts as a Ranger in the main cast. He also performs Fire-based attacks and best known for having Haste abilities in his set. Sazh’s Paradigms are Commando, Ravager, and Synergist, and his Eidolon is Brynhildr.
Sazh is a mature but lighthearted man, despite his constant worries over the group and troubling situations. He is introduced into the game alongside Lightning with his Chocobo chick companion on the Purge Train. He was traveling with Lightning to breach Cocoon and find his l’Cie son Dajh. After Dajh fails to complete his focus and becomes crystallized like Serah, Sazh continues with the group to save his son from a fate he did not ask for.
7 Oerba Dia Vanille
Oerba Dia Vanille, or just Vanille, stands at 5’3” (161 cm). Physically, Vanille is 19 years old, but she is chronologically one of the oldest in the group. A magic-focused character, Vanille’s best attributes come as a white mage and healer. She can also access magic and techniques like Death and Doom late on in the game. Vanille’s Paradigms are Ravager, Saboteur, and Medic, and her Eidolon is Hecatoncheir.
Vanille’s full name means “Vanille of the Dia clan, from the village of Oerba.” Serving as the narrator of the story, Vanille has a “dark resolve” concealed by her bright and enthusiastic personality. She first appears in the story as a Purgee with Hope and his mother, Nora. After Nora dies, Vanille goes with Hope to help the boy confront Snow over his mother’s death.
6 Oerba Yun Fang
Oerba Yun Fang, or just Fang, is 21 years old physically. Chronologically, she is centuries older. Fang also stands at 5’9”, making her the tallest female on the team. Fang’s playstyle emulates the Dragoon class of earlier Final Fantasy characters like Kain Highwind. She uses lances and spears, launches targets in the air and utilizes Wind Magic. Fang’s Paradigms are Commando, Sentinel, and Saboteur, and her Eidolon is Bahamut.
Fang was introduced after Snow battles Shiva. Despite being a Pulse l’Cie, she is working with the Sanctum so that she can be reunited with Vanille and complete their Focus. Fang comes off as mysterious and cavalier, but not as distant as Lightning nor quiet as Hope. She is very focused on her own goals.
5 Serah Farron
Serah Farron is 18 years old and stands at 5’4” (164 cm). Serah is the sister of Lightning and the first Pulse l’Cie of Cocoon. While she does not have much of a presence in the story, she serves as the main motivation for Snow and Lightning.
Serah is depicted as a sweet and gentle girl who always wants the best for the people she cares about. She has no combat abilities nor main role until Final Fantasy XIII-2, where she is the main protagonist.
4 Cid Raines
Cid Raines stands at 6’6” (199 cm). His age is not listed since he is an NPC and boss character. Raines is also part of a long lineage of characters named “Cid” in the Final Fantasy franchise, such as Cid Highwind and Cid Kramer.
Raines is the Commander of the Guardian Corps’ Cavalry and leads the Lindblum airship. The commander's goal is to free the people of Cocoon from the "tyranny" of the fal'Cie, and he is willing to use l'Cie to see his dream become reality.
3 Jihl Nabaat
Jihl Nabaat stands at 5’4” (166 cm), but her heels give her an extra 10 cm. Players never confront Jihl in a boss battle in Final Fantasy XIII, but she can be fought in the threequel Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII. Nabaat is the evil commander of PSICOM, Cocoon’s anti-l’Cie military force. Like Raines, she constantly intervenes in the l’Cies’ journey.
Nabaat also serves an important role in Sazh’s character development and story, deceiving the man so that she can test on Dajh. “She sees all l'Cie, regardless of whether they are from Pulse or Cocoon, as subhuman. She is a cold and calculating sadist who sees herself superior to ordinary humans,” according to the Final Fantasy Wiki.
2 Yaag Rosch
Lieutenant Colonel Yaag Rosch is 6’2” (190 cm) and has no listed birthday or age due to being a recurring NPC. He has no boss fight. Rosch is the Director of PSICOM and serves as Nabaat’s right-hand man.
Nabaat and Rosch have differing opinions on the l’Cie and fal’Cie, but he cares deeply for the people of Cocoon. So much so, he believes that “submission to fal’Cie guidance… [is] in humanity’s best interest.”
1 Primarch Galenth Dysley
The Primarch does not have a birthday, but he does stand at 185 cm, which is a little over six feet. Dysley is considered the main antagonist of Final Fantasy XIII, but not the final boss.
Despite his old appearance, it is very deceiving. While Dysley was elected into his position as Primarch, who rules over all of Cocoon, his ulterior motives extend beyond the l’Cie and the “protection” of Cocoon, and he has no qualms about expending anyone to get what he wants.