Gladiolus Amicitia

a character from a game

Gladiolus Amicitia is a companion of Noctis and a party member in Final Fantasy XV. Although not directly controllable, he is in Noctis's party and the player will be able to co-opt moves with him and issue him commands.

He is a childhood friend of Noctis and Ignis. As the eldest child of his family, Gladiolus acts as the shield of Noctis's family. He has known Noctis since early childhood and considers him a brother.

Appearance
Gladiolus is a tall man with a large build. He wears black leather trousers with a small side chain, an open black shirt with nothing but a pendant underneath, a small arm sleeve over his left wrist, and black shoes with red soles. He has amber eyes, a long scar over his left eye, tattoos covering his arms, his brown hair is straightened to the back and partially shaved along the sides, and he sports a jaw beard. Like all party members, he has skull motifs to his outfit. The buttons on his jacket have skulls on them, his necklace has two golden skulls, and there is a small skull on his belt buckle and on the tag of his trousers' zipper.

Personality
Gladiolus is a cheerful person, contrasting with his imposing physique. Gladiolus has been a fan of the great outdoors since he was young, and has collected various Coleman camping equipment items. He enjoys fighting, and thus researches techniques and skills.

Gladiolus comes from a family that has always been protectors of the Lucis royal family and is the only party member with a militaristic background. Not only is he trained to protect Noctis, but he's also his friend. Gladiolus freely expresses his opinions on what's necessary and acts as a pillar in ensuring that the team doesn't sway from their goal. This directness gets him into arguments with Noctis.

Brotherhood: Final Fantasy XV
As depicted in the third episode of Brotherhood: Final Fantasy XV, Gladiolus is shown to have initially disliked Noctis for his cool, uncooperative attitude: he blows off steam about it back home when playing with his sister Iris, wishing that he would become guardian to Regis like his father rather than Noctis. One day, the curious Iris arrives insisting upon seeing Noctis, but while waiting, she chases a cat and gets lost in a wooded area outside the palace. Noctis happens to sneak out of the palace at the same time and sees her going.

While Gladiolus searches the palace of Lucis in vein, Noctis finds the distressed Iris and brings her back. To cover for her, he claims responsibility for her getting lost, submitting to being grounded by his father Regis. Gladiolus learns the truth from his sister that evening when Iris tearfully confesses. Favorably impressed by Noctis' actions, which contrast markedly with his outer coolness, the two begin to form a bond of mutual respect, which would develop into a brotherly love and friendship over the years.

Final Fantasy XV
Gladiolus accompanies Noctis and his friends on a road trip across the lands toward Altissia where they are to meet a woman named Luna. When passing through the Duscae region they pass by a giant Adamantoise.

Gameplay
In battle, Gladiolus uses bare-fisted fighting techniques with a pile bunker, wrestling moves, such as a powerbomb, and can summon a heavy greatsword. He also appears to have a power similar to Noctis, being able to manifest swords and have them vanish at will. His physical power seems to be far superior to Noctis, being able to wield greatswords without being affected by the weight, whereas weight is a factor for Noctis. He has the highest HP in the party. Some of his Physical Abilities includ Brave Slash and Tempest.

Creation and development
Gladiolus's design was redone from his original appearance in Final Fantasy Versus XIII by Yusuke Naora, the art director of Final Fantasy XV. In his old design he wore a black undershirt with his unbuttoned leather shirt, but has since been made bare-chested, and his trousers and jacket have been made more detailed with pockets and seams. Gladiolus was altered to look more intellectual. His eyes were narrowed to achieve a "sultry gaze into the distance". He needed a powerful physique to act as Noctis's shield, and thus Naora looked at reference material of martial artists to rework his chest and abs.

Director Hajime Tabata has explained that black has historically been treated as a special color in Lucis. Thus the attire of the royal family, and those in occupations closely tied to it, wear black.

Voice
Gladiolus is voiced by Kenta Miyake in Japanese and by Chris Parsons in English.

Merchandise
Gladiolus will be available as a Play Arts -Kai- figure.

Gallery

 * Final Fantasy Versus XIII

Etymology
Together, his full name literally reads: "Short sword, friendship".