Seymour Guado

Seymour Guado is a major antagonist in Final Fantasy X and a guest in a battle. As a maester in the church of Yevon, Seymour has influence over Spira but uses his power towards a sinister end. He is a skilled mage and summoner.

Appearance and Personality


Seymour is a tall Guado-human hybrid who has purple eyes, light blue hair with two long horn-like locks running down his back, and a large bang of hair falling over his face. His ornate robes are unlike the other Maesters' of Yevon, being predominantly dark blue with red trimmings and a green sash. The robe above Seymour's waist is open, exposing his chest, and his sleeves fall to partially cover his hands.

As he is half-Guado, Seymour's fingers are more pointed than a human's, but not as long as a Guado's. His ears are rounded and human-like unlike the elfish ears of the Guado. The veins on Seymour's face are pronounced, another trait passed from the Guado. Seymour wields a staff in battle, though he is more proficient with magic.

Due to his cruel and lonely upbringing, Seymour has nihilistic views on life. Seymour believes, as many do, that Sin is eternal and sees death as a release from the sorrow of life. Though Seymour appears courteous and affable this is merely a front and when called upon he drops the pretenses and reveals his true nature as an arrogant and cruel man. Seymour does not hesitate killing anyone who stands in the way of his objectives, rationalizing that by murdering them, he has saved them from the pain of life.

On the other side of the coin, according to the Final Fantasy X Ultimania Omega, Seymour genuinely cares for Yuna, and Final Fantasy X-2 shows Seymour gave Baralai refuge without asking anything in return.

Final Fantasy X
Seymour is the son of Jyscal Guado, who became leader of the Guado, and a human woman. Though his existence was meant to foster friendship between the Guado and human races, it only made him the target of both races' hatred. Fearing strife from his people over what they saw as an impure abomination, Jyscal had the wife of his retainer, Tromell, take the infant Seymour and his mother out of Guadosalam in the dead of night and bring them to the island of Baaj to live in exile.

As a child, Seymour was brought to Zanarkand where his mother intended to become a fayth so her son could use her aeon incarnation, Anima, to win the peoples' love by destroying Sin and bringing the Calm. Not caring for acceptance if it meant losing her, Seymour mourned for his mother and spent his remaining childhood in Baaj Temple where his isolation inspired his views on life and death.

At eighteen years of age, during High Summoner Braska's Calm, Seymour's exile was revoked and he was summoned back to Guadosalam to be ordained as a priest of Macalania Temple. Seven years later, Seymour returned to Zanarkand to have Anima's fayth transported to Baaj Temple, which he revisited several times. Seymour planned to put all he believed into practice: he would become Sin and destroy the world "releasing" Spirans from the suffering of existence. Seymour made his first move only two weeks prior to Tidus's arrival in Spira by murdering his father to succeed him as the leader of the Guado and as a Maester of Yevon.

Yuna and her guardians first encounter Seymour in Luca, when Grand Maester Yo Mika announces Seymour's position as a Maester. Seymour secretly has fiends released within the blitzball stadium to win the spectators' trust by using Anima to dispatch them. Seymour meets Yuna and her companions soon after when their pilgrimage is hindered due to a combined effort of the Crusaders and Al Bhed to battle Sin using machina called Operation Mi'ihen. Though machina use violates Yevon's teachings, Seymour respects the groups' hope of saving Spira, though both he and Maester Wen Kinoc believe it will fail. As Sin appears at the call of Sinspawn Gui, Seymour protects Yuna from the creature before aiding her and Auron in destroying it. Afterwards, while discussing with Yuna how her role as a summoner is to be a beacon of strength to the people, Seymour offers her to let him be her beacon.

When Yuna's party arrives in Guadosalam, having entertained Baralai before them, Seymour summoned the party to his manor where he shows a sphere depicting the ancient city of Zanarkand and Yunalesca and Lord Zaon. Seymour asks Yuna to marry him, if not for love, then to give the people of Spira reason to celebrate. Seymour gives her leave to think his offer over and departs to Macalania Temple. Before leaving, Seymour recognizes Auron as an unsent, stating that the Guado are keen to the scent of the Farplane.

When Yuna's visit to the Farplane ends with her sending the spirit of Jyscal, Yuna learns of Seymour's act of patricide from the sphere the spirit left. Not wanting to get her guardians involved, Yuna decides to accept Seymour's proposal to personally deal with him. Arriving after Yuna and Seymour entered the Macalania Temple's Cloister of Trials, her guardians find Jyscal's sphere in Yuna's belongings and view its contents. Confronted by Yuna's guardians before Yuna emerges from the Chamber of the Fayth, Seymour admits his crime while deducing Yuna's true intentions. The confrontation escalates and after his bodyguards and Anima are defeated, Seymour falls in battle and dies. Tromell and the Guado carry away his lifeless body, refusing to let Yuna perform the sending. Due to his strong emotional ties to the world, Seymour's spirit becomes an unsent.

When Yuna is taken by the Al Bhed to their Home on Bikanel island, the Guado abduct her during their attack on Home. Once Yuna is brought to Bevelle, Seymour marries her despite her guardians crashing the wedding. Seymour uses them as hostages to force Yuna to comply under the lie that he would spare them once the ceremony is complete. Yuna summons Valefor to escape, while her guardians use Rikku's flash bomb as a distraction to meet up with her in Bevelle Temple, after which they are arrested by Yevon officials.

Yuna and her guardians are placed on trial for treason, with Yuna pleading her case to the Maesters of Seymour's actions and nature. Kelk Ronso is disturbed to learn that Seymour murdered his father, and Mika reveals himself as an unsent. Yuna and her guardians are thrown into the Via Purifico, and Seymour volunteers to guard the exit in case they emerge alive. Maester Kinoc, not trusting Seymour, accompanies him. After Yuna and her guardians escape, they find Seymour waiting for them on the Highbridge. Seymour reveals he murdered Kinoc and explains his views on life and death along with his goal to use Yuna to become the next Sin to fulfill his goal to save Spira by killing everyone. Seymour absorbs surrounding pyreflies, including those around Kinoc, and becomes Seymour Natus whom the party battles. He is defeated, and the group escapes Bevelle.

Yuna and her group continue the pilgrimage to Mt. Gagazet where the Ronso live. Kelk Ronso, having abandoned Yevon, allows Yuna to pass while he and his kin hold off her pursuers. The Guado invade Gagazet with Seymour personally killing off Kelk and any Ronso standing his way. At the mountain's summit, Seymour overhears Tidus speaking about his father, Jecht, who is the current incarnation of Sin. Offering Tidus his father's freedom, Seymour tells Kimahri the fate of his people before transforming into Seymour Flux. He is again defeated and vanishes.

Sometime later, the party attacks Sin directly and invades it with the airship. They discover Seymour has been absorbed by Sin as he attempts to learn how to control it from the inside. Stating that Sin is unstoppable without Yunalesca and the Final Aeon, Seymour becomes Seymour Omnis. Once he is defeated, Seymour prophesies that Spira's sorrow will prevail even after he is gone, and Yuna finally sends him.

Final Fantasy X-2
In the next two years, due to their allegiance with Seymour, the Guado have been ostracized from most of Spira. If the party obtains Baralai's Sphere, it shows Seymour before greeting Yuna's party when he gives Baralai sanctuary in Guadosalam after the ordeal he went through in the Den of Woe.

In the International and HD Remaster versions of the game, the Fiend Tale of a Flan Azul reveals that the fiend was once a Guado who was loyal to Seymour. The Guado died two years ago trying to find him and upon learning that Seymour was sent, Flan Azul asked to be taken to the Macalania Woods where he first met his master with the intent to pass on to the Farplane. However, after having a dream of Seymour striking him on the head, Flan Azul believes his master is not truly gone and decides to travel Spira a bit longer.

Final Fantasy X
Seymour temporarily joins Yuna during the battle against Sinspawn Gui in Operation Mi'ihen. After this battle, he is never controllable again. If the player hacks Seymour into the party permanently, he doesn't have a Sphere Grid and the player can't equip him with anything new. He can still gain sphere levels but he doesn't show up in the menu screen so the player can't upgrade his stats or customize him. Since Seymour doesn't appear in the main menu, he doesn't have an in-game portrait. Also, using a Save Sphere will ignore Seymour and not heal him.

When Seymour is low on HP he will slouch over. When he is at below quarter HP he will kneel on one knee with his staff supporting him. Though Seymour has a victory pose the battle he participates in doesn't use victory poses, and thus the player can only see it if they hack Seymour into their party for other battles.

The staff Seymour wields has a unique model. It is simply named Seymour Staff, and has the Piercing ability. He also wears a unique piece of armor around his right ankle, simply named Seymour Armor, which has the Sensor ability.

Stats
Seymour is a guest, and as such he doesn't have a Sphere Grid, so his base stats (barring Strength and Magic, which can be seen by using Scan on Seymour) can't be seen or upgraded.

Abilities
Seymour is a proficient sorcerer, able to cast a variety of low level Black Magic and White Magic. Although Seymour has an aeon, Anima, that is among the most powerful aeons, it cannot be summoned during the time Seymour is playable. His Overdrive is called Requiem, and deals non-elemental damage to all enemies.

Boss
Seymour is faced as a boss in Macalania Temple accompanied by two Guado Guardians. He summons Anima during the battle. Later, Seymour can absorb pyreflies to transform into increasingly powerful forms: Seymour Natus, Seymour Flux, and Seymour Omnis. During these battles Seymour is accompanied by the Mortibody, the Mortiorchis, and the Mortiphasms.

Seymour relies on casting elemental magic and using combo attacks with whichever form of the Mortibody he has with him. He will Banish any aeon summoned after one turn.

Final Fantasy X-2
Seymour can be recruited as a party member through the Creature Creator system. To recruit Seymour, the player must defeat him in the Farplane Cup in the Fiend Arena and must win the cup after.

The abilities Seymour can naturally learn are Demi, Black Sky, and Meteor, though he can also use Flare, Hero Drinks, and Requiem. Like all monster allies, Seymour can use any of the common dresspheres and he is controlled by the game's AI.

Voice
Seymour is voiced by in Japanese and by  in English.

Seymour shares his Japanese voice actor with Tseng from the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Jassu, Zanar, and the Hypello race from Final Fantasy X and Final Fantasy X-2, and Nimbus from Final Fantasy Type-0.

It is unknown who voiced young Seymour, as no voice actor is credited for the role.

Musical Themes
"Seymour's Theme" is a haunting piece with a slow tempo played with many different instruments, with string instruments playing the main melody for most of the piece and was composed by Nobuo Uematsu. It also has three variations: "Seymour's Ambition", "Patricide", and "The Unsent Laugh". "Seymour's Ambition" plays during the first fight against him in Macalania Temple and when he reveals how he will execute his ultimate goal at Mt. Gagazet. "Patricide" plays when he reveals his plans to Yo Mika. His final character theme, "The Unsent Laugh", plays when the party confronts Seymour the final time inside Sin in the Garden of Pain. During the battle with Seymour Omnis, "Fight With Seymour" plays.

For Final Fantasy X HD Remaster, Junya Nakano arranged "Seymour's Theme" and "Seymour's Ambition", while Masashi Hamauzu arranged "The Unsent Laugh" with real instruments. "Seymour's Ambition" got more church choir along with more prominent metal beat, and "The Unsent Laugh" received slightly more modern and mysterious tone.

Theatrhythm Final Fantasy
Seymour Natus appears as a boss, alongside Mortibody.

Pictlogica Final Fantasy
Seymour appears in Pictlogica Final Fantasy as a playable character.

Final Fantasy Trading Card Game
Seymour appears in the Final Fantasy Trading Card Game and is represented by Thunder-elemental cards. He is depicted in his Final Fantasy X artwork and in his Theatrhythm forms.

Merchandise
Seymour has a Play Arts action figure. Seymour Natus appears as an action figure in the Final Fantasy X Monster Collection of figurines, although it is called "Seymour Evolution" on the box. This figurine has also been packaged together with a figure of Final Fantasy VII's Diamond Weapon for a Final Fantasy' Creatures set. Four Coca-Cola bottle cap figurines for Seymour also exist; a chibi version and a figure with normal proportions, and colored and "red crystal" versions of both.

Etymology
"Seymour" is an English name derived from a location from Northern France (meaning Saint Maur). The Latin ancestor of the word is maur, meaning "dark skinned", and originated from the use as a title by Norman Noblemen who conquered parts of Great Britain in 1066.

His name in romaji is Shīmoa. As shī can be translated to "death", this is likely the reason Seymour's name was chosen. This is further reflected in the fact he is fought four times, with four — or shī — being symbolic of death in Japan.

The names of Seymour's forms in the Japanese games translate to "Reincarnation" for Seymour Natus, "Final Reincarnation" for Seymour Flux, and "Ultimate Reincarnation" for Seymour Omnis. Their English names are taken from Latin: natus means "born", flux is derived from fluxus, meaning "flow", and omnis means "to all".

Trivia

 * Seymour is one of the few Final Fantasy interracial characters, along with Cecil Harvey, Golbez, Terra Branford, Aerith Gainsborough and Yuna.
 * The Guado Mansion's foyer has portraits of a young Seymour, Jyscal, and two other Guado. The latter two are likely Jyscal's father and paternal grandfather.
 * Seymour was considered to be in Dissidia Final Fantasy as the Chaos representative of Final Fantasy X, but was rejected in favor of Jecht. Various traits of his, however, were included with Emperor Mateus in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, and the rivalry between Yuna and the Emperor in that game is similar to her rivalry with Seymour Guado.
 * If the player obtains the aeon Anima and uses her against Seymour, he responds, "You would oppose me as well? So be it".
 * According to a female Ronso in Luca, Seymour was the first summoner ever appointed a Maester of Yevon in the church's long history.
 * According to Japanese voice actor Jun'ichi Suwabe, Seymour was known by many nicknames, including "naked necktie" due to the beads that form a similar shape to a necktie on Seymour's chest.