Cecil Harvey

Lord Captain Cecil Harvey is the main protagonist of Final Fantasy IV. Cecil is unique in that he is one of the few characters in the series that changes his job during the course of the game, starting out as a Dark Knight, but after a difficult trial and the battle with the first of the Four Elemental Archfiends, transforms into a Paladin.

In the Nintendo DS version's English localization, as well as in Dissidia Final Fantasy, Cecil is (seh-sil), as opposed to  (see-sil), the pronunciation more commonly found in North American English. The Japanese form セシル (Seshiru) seems to back this up. Oddly, the bonus disc included with Final Fantasy XII pronounces it the other way.

Appearance and Personality
Cecil appears as a young man wearing dark armor which covers his whole body and face while he is a Dark Knight (his in-game DS render shows his eyes, however). When he turns into a Paladin, he wears a new blue and white armor that reveals his appearance underneath. Cecil has shoulder-length white hair, blue eyes, pale skin, and a tinge of purple on his lips. Even though Fusoya claims that Cecil resembles his father, Kluya, in his youth, it is stated that Cecil greatly resembles his mother, Cecilia, even being named after her.

In The After Years, Cecil still wears a suit of white armor, but with dark spikes on the knees and pauldrons, and also a brown cloak with blue stripes around the neck.

During Final Fantasy IV, Cecil appears as a strong and gifted knight, gaining the respect and admiration of his men during his time as Captain of the Red Wings. Although being raised by the King of Baron, Cecil is modest and quite shy to those around him, having difficulty showing his emotions to others. His most remarkable traits are his bravery and firm beliefs. Towards his friends, Cecil is loyal and exceptionally forgiving, showing that he is able to even forgive those who betray him and end up working as his enemies.

During Dissidia Final Fantasy, Cecil appears to be insecure regarding the way to obtain the crystals. Like in Final Fantasy IV, he cherishes his bonds with his companions, especially Tidus, Firion, and Cloud, with whom he travels for most of the game, and believes that fighting together is the way to succeed.

Cecil's relationship with his opposing villain Golbez deepens during the game; Cecil is respectful of Golbez, listening to his advices and believing in his inner goodness while often asking him to join the Warriors of Cosmos. Cecil is also protective of Golbez as shown when he defends him against Exdeath.

Early Life
Cecil was born to a Lunarian named Kluya and Cecilia from Earth. Cecil's father was killed before he was born, and his mother died in labor. His brother Theodor then ran away with him, but abandoned him outside Baron. The King eventually found him and named him Cecil, since he resembled his late mother.

Cecil was raised by the king, which initially caused some friction between him and the young Kain Highwind. Kain thought Cecil received too much special treatment from the king, and wanted to fight him. However, Rosa intervened and broke the two of them up. As the three grew up, they eventually became close friends. Kain and Rosa followed in the footsteps of their parents and became a Dragoon and a White Mage respectively, while the king had Cecil train to be a Dark Knight. Cecil was able to harness the class's dark powers and he became one of the kingdom's top warriors. He later became the captain of Baron's airship fleet, the Red Wings.

Final Fantasy IV
The story opens with Cecil commanding a raid on the city of Mysidia in order to steal the Water Crystal for the king. He succeeds, but he and his crew become suspicious of the king. They wonder whether or not robbing national treasures from innocent people is right. However, Cecil reminds his crew that they are the Red Wings, and must represent Baron at all times.

When Cecil returns to the castle, Baigan, the captain of the guards of Baron, notices something strange about Cecil, and takes Cecil to meet the king. Cecil hands over the crystal, and is appalled when the king does not even thank him. As a result, Cecil complains to the king that he and his crew do not understand the reasons for robbing crystals from innocent people.

As a result, the king discharges him from the captainship and orders him to hunt Summoned Monsters in the Mist Valley, and to deliver a ring known as the Carnelian Signet to the village of Mist. Kain comes to Cecil's defense, but to no avail, as the king simply orders him to accompany Cecil. That night, Rosa comes to Cecil's room to show him her sympathy. However, Cecil is upset because he is torn between doing what he believes in and doing what the king orders. He swears that he will never perform another act of evil on behalf of Baron. He also states that despite the fact he loves Rosa, he knows they can never be together because of his profession as a Dark Knight.

The next morning, Cecil and Kain leave for Mist. They pass through the Mist Cave where a voice orders them to return to Baron; however, when Cecil and Kain refuse, the mist gathers and the pair has to fight the Mist Dragon. When they win, they head towards Mist. When they arrive, the package they were supposed to deliver opens automatically, and bombs fly out and burn the village. Cecil and Kain see a little girl and her dead mother. The girl explains that due to the death of the Mist Dragon her mother controlled, her mother died.

This is because whenever a summoned monster dies, the summoner who summoned it dies as well. When Cecil and Kain are discussing the fact that they must have defeated the Mist Dragon and thus accidentally killed her mother, the girl blames them for her mother's death. Cecil and Kain offer to take her to safety after pledging not to follow any more orders from the king, but she does not listen and backs away from the pair. She summons Titan and causes an earthquake making an avalanche separate Mist from the rest of the valley.

Cecil wakes up alone with Kain gone and the girl lying wounded. Cecil takes her to Kaipo and allows her to recover at the inn. However, she would not speak to Cecil. That night, soldiers from Baron arrive at Kaipo and demand that Cecil hand over the girl, saying that the king decreed the Summoners of Mist were too dangerous to be left alive. Cecil does not allow the soldiers to kidnap her, and fights them off. The next morning, the girl thanks Cecil for protecting her, and reveals herself to be Rydia of Mist. She then joins Cecil's party formally.

The next morning, Cecil and Rydia hear about a sick girl from Baron who had contracted Desert Fever. They find it is Rosa, resting in a nearby home. The doctors say they had to search for the Sand Pearl in order to cure her. Cecil and Rydia go north through the Underground Waterway to Damcyan, and meet an old man, Tellah, on the way. Tellah helps them get through the cave and defeat Octomammoth at the end.

However, the three arrive at Damcyan just in time to see the Red Wings attack and steal the Fire Crystal. At the top of the castle, they find Anna, Tellah's daughter, wounded. Tellah blames it on Edward Chris von Muir, the kingdom's prince, and the two get into a fight which Anna breaks up. Anna tells Tellah the story of her and Edward. Proclaiming her love for Edward one last time, Anna dies in her father's arms. Tellah decides to get a vengeance on Golbez for killing Anna and leaves the party despite Cecil's protests.

After Anna dies, Edward begins to cry, but Cecil and Rydia eventually snap him out of it. Cecil tells him he is now the king of Damcyan and he must act as such. Edward agrees to take them to the Antlion's Den, where the Sand Pearl can be found. Antlion's Den is located inside a cave. They use the Hovercraft to gain access to the cave. Inside the cave, they find out that the usually tame Antlion has become aggressive, and the three have to fight the Antlion for the Sand Pearl. They go back to Kaipo and use the Sand Pearl to cure Rosa. There, they decide they need to defend the remaining crystals, and that the Air Crystal in Fabul was the next target.

To reach Fabul, they must cross Mt. Hobs, a mountain blocked by a thick sheet of ice. Rydia is the only one who could melt the ice by casting the Fire spell, however, she could not do so as she was afraid of fire due to the memory of Mist being burned. However, with persuasion from Rosa, Rydia eventually musters up the courage to cast the Fire spell and open the way. On top of the mountain, the party meets a Monk named Yang Fang Leiden who is fighting off Golbez's troops. With help from Cecil and his friends, Yang is able to defeat them. Cecil warns Yang of the danger ahead, and joins Yang in the journey back to Fabul.

In Fabul, Yang warns the king of Baron's incoming attack, and Cecil and Edward help back him up. The king is initially skeptical because he could not trust the Dark Knight Cecil. However, Yang convinces him of Cecil's loyalty, and Cecil, Yang, and Edward help defend the castle. Rosa and Rydia are put on relief. However, after the fight against the Baronian army, Kain corners Cecil in the Crystal Room. The two duel, but Cecil fails to beat Kain. Golbez defeats Edward and Yang, and takes Rosa as hostage. Kain then takes the crystal and leaves.

Cecil decides to sneak into Baron by ship and get an airship from Cid Pollendina, who was also skeptical of what Baron was up to these days. The party boards a ship provided by the king of Fabul and set sail towards Baron. However, on the way, the ship is attacked by Leviathan, the Terror of the Sea. Cecil, Rydia, Edward, and Yang are all blown off the ship.

Cecil lands on a beach near Mysidia, the town he raided in the game's intro. When he enters, he learns he was unwanted. The wizards would cast spells on him and encourage him to leave. Cecil goes to meet the Elder of Mysidia and tells him his plight. The Elder tells Cecil that if he was to defeat Golbez, he would have to relinquish his Dark Sword and acquire the acceptance of the Holy Light.

As a result, he would be required to become a Paladin. Cecil accepts the challenge, and the Elder sends him to Mount Ordeals. The Elder also sends Palom, a Black Mage, and Porom, a White Mage, with him. On Mount Ordeals, they meet Tellah again, who has been searching for the legendary magic Meteor, which would help him defeat Golbez.

Tellah agrees to help them as well. When they reach the top of the mountain, however, they meet Scarmiglione of Earth, one of Golbez's Archfiends. Scarmiglione attacks them, but they were able to defeat him twice. After this, they arrive at a room full of mirrors. A mysterious light, who refers to Cecil as "my son", commands him to take a sword, which transforms him into a Paladin. However, Cecil has to overcome his former feelings of hatred by facing himself as a dark knight. Succeeding by not raising his sword against his darkness, Cecil becomes a full fledged Paladin. Tellah also learns Meteor at this time.

Cecil, Tellah, Palom, and Porom return to Mysidia, where the Elder congratulates them. He also speaks of the Mysidian Legend of the sword Cecil now holds, and how only a Chosen One can wield it. Cecil then agrees to defeat Golbez. He then asks the Elder to open the Devil's Road that leads to Baron, and the Elder obliges. In Baron, Cecil and his friends learn that Cid had created a new airship, but was arrested when he refused to let the king see it. Cecil tries to enter the castle, however, the guards would not let him enter.

He overhears that a Martial-Artist was invited to be an officer in Baron, and that he was hanging out at the inn. Cecil goes there, and finds out that it was, in fact, Yang. Yang orders the guards to attack Cecil, and then attacks him himself. However, Cecil was able to snap Yang back to reality, and Yang realizes he was under the control of the king of Baron the whole time. Yang then rejoins the party, and finds the Key of Baron in his pocket, which the party use to enter Baron Castle via the Ancient Waterway.

Cecil's party reach the castle, and meet up with Baigan. Baigan tells Cecil he is not under Golbez's control, and that he is loyal only to the King of Baron. He offers to help Cecil, and Cecil accepts the help. However, Palom and Porom smell a monster in the area, and point Baigan out as the monster. Cecil's party fights Baigan, and Palom and Porom warn Cecil to tread lightly around Baron. Cecil proceeds to meet the king, who is upset that Cecil became a Paladin. However, when Cecil mentions the king of Baron's true name, the king lets out that he killed the real king, and Cecil demands that the king reveal himself.

It is turned out that the king was in fact Cagnazzo, the Archfiend of Water. Cecil's party fight Cagnazzo and win. Cid escapes prison after this, and greets Cecil enthusiastically. Cid joins Cecil's party. However, Cagnazzo had one last trick up his sleeve; when Cecil tries to escape, the walls begin to cave in. Palom and Porom have to save Cecil's party by casting the Break spell on themselves. Tellah tries to heal them, but to no avail. Cid then takes them to his newest airship: the Enterprise.

Cecil could not escape on the Enterprise without an encounter with the Red Wings. Kain issues an ultimatum to Cecil. Cecil would have to get Kain the Earth Crystal in Troia or Rosa would die. Cecil has no choice but to go to Troia. There, he learns from the Epopts that the Dark Elf, a monster who lives in Lodestone Cavern (Magnetic Cavern) to the north, has stolen the crystal. He also finds Edward who is recovering from the Leviathan attack. Edward gives Cecil a Whisperweed (Twin Harp) because he is too weak to help Cecil out.

Cecil's party heads to Magnetic Cave to meet with the Dark Elf. However, the cave is covered in a magnetic field, and Cecil and his friends could not equip metallic weapons or armor. The Dark Elf is thus able to defeat Cecil. Edward was able to sense this, and began to play a melody on his harp. The Whisperweed (Twin Harp) reacts to this, and the Dark Elf loses control of himself. As a result, he becomes weak, and Cecil can attack him with his sword. He is then able to reclaim the Earth Crystal. He and his party head back to Troia, where Kain contacts him and makes him get on the Enterprise.

Kain guides Cecil's party to the Tower of Zot, where Golbez is holding Rosa prisoner. Golbez tells Cecil's party he wanted them to "receive" the reward, and makes them come to him. Cecil's party climb the tower, and have to fight the Magus Sisters at the top. After the fight, they meet Golbez, who takes the crystal and would not free Rosa. Tellah attacks Golbez out of vengeance for Anna, and begins casting spells on Golbez.

However, they have little effect. He then casts Meteor on Golbez, severely wounding him. Cecil rushes forward to strike, but Golbez knocks him down. As Golbez is about to strike the finishing blow, he immediately stops and backs away from Cecil, realizing that Cecil is actually his younger brother. Cecil is surprised that Golbez has stopped from killing him and Golbez then tells Cecil that it was not over, and escapes. However, his control of Kain is broken. Cecil's party surrounds Tellah, who is dying due to the effects of him casting Meteor. He asks Cecil, Yang, and Cid to avenge Anna for him, and then dies.

Cecil's party talk to Kain, who is free of Golbez's control, and takes the party to Rosa. Cecil saves Rosa, and shares a kiss with her. Rosa and Kain both join after. However, they could not escape the tower without fighting Barbariccia, the Archfiend of Air. Before she dies, Barbariccia tries to kill the party by causing the tower to collapse, but Rosa casts the Exit (Teleport) spell and the party is warped to Cecil's room in Baron.

Cecil's party is worried, as Golbez possesses all four crystals. However, Kain speaks of the Dark Crystals, which were in the hidden in the Underworld. These Crystals had only been rumored to exist, but Golbez knows they exist. Kain explains that Golbez needed the crystals to open "the way to the Moon". Cecil decides that his party had to head underground to protect the remaining crystals. Kain shows Cecil the Key of Magma (Magma Rock), which could be used to enter the Underworld.

Cid tells the party the Enterprise is back in Baron due to a remote control feature. The party head for the town of Agart and throw the Key of Magma in the well, which opens the way to the Underworld. The party enter the Underworld via the Enterprise, however, they are too late; the Red Wings have already begun battling with the tanks the Dwarves use for war.

The Enterprise is damaged and Cecil's party have to seek help from the Dwarves in their castle. There, they meet King Giott, the ruler of the Dwarves. He asks the party for help, and they agree. However, Cid has to take a leave of absence in order to repair the Enterprise and wrap its body in Mystic Silver (Mythril Armor), which could be used to help the Enterprise withstand the intense heat. Yang senses something in the Crystal Room behind the throne, and Giott opens it up for Cecil's party. There, they find Luca's dolls, together known as the Calcabrina (Calcobrena), under Golbez's control. Cecil's party defeats them.

Afterwards, Golbez himself shows up. He puts the party in a magical hold in which they can not move and summons a monster, the Shadow Dragon, which proceeds to eliminate each party member one by one except Cecil. However, the Mist Dragon appears and defeats the Shadow Dragon. Cecil is able to move, and Rydia suddenly appears and defeats Golbez. The party, Cecil and Rosa in particular, are happy to see Rydia, and she offers her help, which Cecil accepts. Golbez, now weakened to the form of a hand, is able to steal the crystal and escape.

It is decided the party head for the Tower of Babil in order to get the other crystals back. The party sneaks in, and finds Dr. Lugae, a scientist under Golbez working with Rubicante, the Archfiend of Fire. Rubicante was teleported somewhere unknown, and Cecil's party disrupts and defeats Lugae. Afterwards, the party finds the key to stopping the Super Cannon. When they reach the Super Cannon, however, its operators would not go down without a fight or making the cannon unstoppable. Yang is determined to stop the cannon himself, and is left for dead.

Golbez catches the party escaping from the tower, and makes them fall off a bridge. Luckily, Cid catches them on the Enterprise before falling into the lava. However, all is not well. The Red Wings are chasing the Enterprise, and Cid has to sacrifice himself to save the party and the airship, which escapes the Underground back into the Overworld. Before he jumps off the Enterprise, however, he asks Cecil to return to Baron and talk to his workers. Cecil does so, and the workers attach a hook to the airship which can be used to pick up and carry the Hovercraft which is used to enter Cave of Eblan.

In the cave, the party finds Rubicante again fighting Edge, the prince of Eblan and a Ninja. Rubicante defeats Edge. The party tries to convince him to join them. However, Edge does not want help. Still, this does not stop Rydia from crying when she reminisces upon Tellah's death, and the assumed deaths of Yang and Cid. Edge, being a womanizer, agrees to join because he does not like seeing Rydia, a "pretty girl", cry. Rydia is not impressed with Edge's flirting. Rosa cures Edge, and Edge flirts with her as well.

Nevertheless, the party enters the upper half of the Tower of Babil and finds Edge's parents at the top. They were murdered by Rubicante and transformed into monsters by Dr. Lugae. They attack the party, but Edge brings them to their sense. Then, Rubicante appears and attacks the party. The party defeats him and enters the Crystal Room, where they fall back to the Underground and find a new airship: the Falcon.

The Falcon cannot fly over the lava, so the party heads back to the Dwarves' Castle and visits King Giott, who says that it is time to defend the last crystal in the Sealed Cave. He gives Cecil's party the key to opening the cave, which is the necklace of his daughter Luca. In order to get the Falcon to fly over the lava, Cecil heads for the hospital to find Cid recovering. He remodels the airship for the party, so it can fly over the lava.

The party can head for the Sealed Cave and open it. They work their way to the bottom where they find the crystal. However, they can not escape without defeating a wall which tries to crush the party. Even still, Golbez calls out to Kain, who becomes possessed by Golbez again, and steals the Crystal and runs off. The party heads back to the Upper World (after Cid attaches a drill to the head of the Falcon) and heads for Mysidia, where the Elder prays for something to help the party. That something is the Lunar Whale, the "Ship of Light from The Moon", which allows the party to fly to the Moon.

On the Moon, the party finds a palace where a man named Fusoya sleeps. Fusoya wakes up and explains Golbez was being controlled by a Lunarian named Zemus the entire time. He tells the real reason why Golbez is gathering the crystals: the crystals are the key to activating the Giant of Babil which can grant wishes. Zemus wishes for the Earth to be destroyed, and he used Golbez to do it. The party returns to Earth with Fusoya. However, they are too late. The Giant of Babil has awakened, and begins to go on its destructive spree.

However, Cid, fully recovered, leads an army of leaders from all over the world, as well as Cecil's friends, to do battle with the Giant. They help Cecil and his friends enter the Giant, and the party goes towards the main computer, which, if destroyed, would stop the Giant. On the way, however, they have to do battle with the Archfiends again. After winning that battle, the party heads for the CPU and defeat it. Afterwards, an angry Golbez appears, mad that his plans were thwarted. Fusoya knocks Golbez back to reality, and Cecil learns he is his older brother, Theodor. Fusoya and Golbez head to the Moon to fight Zemus, and Kain rejoins the party.

On the Lunar Whale, Cecil asks Rydia and Rosa to leave the ship, as he feels it was too dangerous for them to go to the Moon. They sadly oblige. However, they stow away and head to the Moon anyway, and convince Cecil they should join. Rosa asked Cecil who would heal the wounds, and Rydia believes they were all fighting for the common cause and is the only summoner left. Cecil agrees to have them on the team again, and they eventually head to the Lunar Core and watch Fusoya and Golbez defeat Zemus.

However, the hatred that was possessing Zemus, Zeromus, jumps out and attacks the party. With help from old friends, they defeat Zeromus using the crystal. In the ending, Cecil and Rosa marry and take the throne of Baron with all but Kain attending.

Final Fantasy IV -Interlude-
While attending the ceremony of Damcyan's reconstruction, Cecil joins Yang in investigating an incident at Mt. Hobbs by the Dad Bomb. Saving the two monks, Cecil accompanies Yang to Fabul and learns of news of Ursula being born, giving the baby girl her name as her godfather. But then, the Falcon arrives and Cecil joins Cid, Palom, Porom and Luca in dealing with the monsters emerging from the Sealed Cave while Rosa remains in Fabul.

Finding Rydia, Cecil takes her to the Tower of Babil were he and the twins lose her with Edge coming to their aid against the Deus Ex Machina android that blocks their way. Upon finding her, Edge reveals it not to be Rydia and the group nearly lose to her when the real Rydia arrives and they defeat her. Though he never finds out the fake Rydia's true identity, Cecil learns that Rosa is to bear him a child and reveals the news to his friends.

Final Fantasy IV: The After Years
Seventeen years later, Cecil rules over Baron with Rosa as his queen and their son Ceodore as prince. While Ceodore is at Mythril training to be a knight, Baron Castle is suddenly attacked by monsters. Cecil, Rosa and Cid fight them off as best they can, but Cecil eventually has Cid take Rosa away to Damcyan via airship when their numbers don't relent. Shortly after a Mysterious Girl arrives, riding Bahamut, and unleashes him on Cecil, who slumps down as the scene shifts.

Soon after, Ceodore returns to Baron with a Hooded Man who rescued him from monsters after his airship crashed, and the two find Baron peaceful again, the townsfolk claiming Cecil fended off the monsters that had attacked. When the two sneak into the castle the Hooded Man finds Cecil in the throne room, not recognizing him and acting strangely. Suspicious and unwilling to let Ceodore see his father this way, the Hooded Man takes him out of the castle and they flee Baron. However, Cecil is also suspicious of him and sends soldiers to pursue them.

In the individual tales, word spreads among the inhabitants of the world that Baron's Red Wings are again attacking kingdoms and stealing Crystals, and several of them seek to travel to Baron to investigate. Edward sails to Baron and meets with Cecil when Cecil orders Damcyan to leave the investigation of the meteor impact to Baron. Though Cecil acts strangely, he is reassuring and friendly and gives Edward a gift to take home to Damcyan. Edward in turn gives Cecil a bouquet of flowers from Damcyan, and Cecil not recognizing them alerts to him that something is wrong - the flowers are actually Whisperweed, and if Cecil was himself, he would recognize them. Edward eavesdrops on Cecil through the Whisperweed, the conversation revealing he is working with the Mysterious Girl to seize the Crystals, and the item he has given Edward is a Carnelian Signet. In the final tale, Ceodore, Rosa, Kain, Cid and Edward confront Cecil at Baron Castle. Cecil engages them, using the Mysterious Girl's power to summon Odin to his aid. However Odin, being the spirit of the former King of Baron, recognizes his enemies as "[his] children of Baron" and returns to his senses, refusing to harm them. He strikes down Cecil, breaking the Mysterious Girl's hold on him but causing Cecil to fall into a pseudo-comatose state. Unable to speak but for grunts and moans, his abilities in battle are hampered, crippling his stats and preventing him from using Band skills. The party travels to the True Moon to follow the Mysterious Girl, hoping that the answer to restoring Cecil's mind is there.

In the Subterrane, the group comes upon a Dark Knight who attacks them, claiming to be the true Cecil. As it attempts to kill the party, Cecil protects them from its blows, and is then protected himself by Golbez. If the player has them in the party at the time, Rosa and Ceodore help Golbez stand against the Dark Knight. Ultimately, Cecil comes to his son's aid to save his life. Cecil absorbs the Dark Knight as the embodiment of his repressed darkness, and is restored to his senses and power.

After the destruction of the Creator and the departure of the True Moon, Cecil returns to his throne as the King of Baron and is seen sparring with Ceodore during the ending.

Final Fantasy IV
As a Dark Knight, Cecil's stats are heavily weighted physically, and he has barely any Magic Defense. As a Dark Knight he has low MP and Spirit. In the DS version he can boost is attack power with the Darkness ability.

Once Cecil becomes a Paladin, his stats increase, especially in Magic Defense and Spirit. Though Cecil loses all his levels when he becomes a Paladin, a Level 1 Paladin Cecil has 600 HP, more than even a Level 20 Dark Knight Cecil. Cecil can use White Magic as a Paladin, but is magic stats are not high, making him an alright support healer.

Final Fantasy IV: The After Years
Cecil's HP and Strength growth are among the highest in the game, making him an excellent attacker, but his Spirit is low, so he cannot make good use of his White Magic.

Final Fantasy IV
As a Dark Knight, Cecil uses the Darkness ability, which damages all opponents with waves of dark-elemental energy fired from his blade. Cecil takes a small amount of damage whenever he uses this attack. In the DS version, Darkness is a buffing ability that envelopes its user in a dark aura that increases the amount of damage caused by regular attacks, at the cost of a small amount of HP being lost every round. Once Cecil becomes a Paladin, he can use Cover, which allows him to intercept physical attacks against the ally Cover is targeting. Cecil automatically uses this ability to protect any ally whose HP is low. Cecil will automatically stop covering, active or passive, when his own HP is critical. He can use some basic White Magic, and in the DS release, he learns several more spells as well as fighting techniques using augments. His intellect stats decrease his effectiveness with some of those skills. The spells he can learn are listed below.

Final Fantasy IV -Interlude-
Cecil retains his White Magic and Cover skills. He joins the party at Level 32, and he already knows all his spells already. He comes equipped with a Mythril Sword, Mythril Helm, Fire Armor, and Mythril Gloves.

Final Fantasy IV: The After Years
Cecil retains his White Magic and Cover abilities. Cover works identically like in Final Fantasy IV, but Cecil's pool of White Magic is small. He has a wide variety of Band abilities and can fit well into several party line-ups.

Final Fantasy IV
As a Dark Knight Cecil can only equip special swords, shields, and armor designed specifically for Dark Knights. His weapons are ineffective against Zombies, Ghouls, Revenants, and Skulnants. His most powerful Dark Sword, the Deathbringer, can inflict instant death on his opponents. As a Paladin he can equip about any weapon that is not a class-specific weapon, including swords, knives, and axes. Cecil can also equip most shields, hats, helmets, armor, tunics, rings, and gloves, not to mention his original ultimate weapon, the Ragnarok, and, if he proves himself worthy in his Lunar Trial, he can obtain the almighty Lightbringer.

In the DS version, Cecil may also equip the Adamant Armor and all the Onion equipment, including the Onion Sword which has an attack power equal to twice the level of the character using it.

Final Fantasy IV: The After Years
Cecil's default weapon is the Kingsword. Later in the game, he can equip better weapons such as the Excalibur, Lustrous Sword, Ragnarok and even the Ultima Weapon.

Musical Themes
Cecil's theme is called "The Red Wings", and it is mixed into the fanfare that plays when Cecil transforms into a Paladin. It plays during the opening scene on the airship and on the upper levels of the Lunar Subterrane.

Dissidia Final Fantasy
Chaos has summoned a combined force of Final Fantasy's ultimate masters of evil, while Cosmos has summoned warriors to thwart their plans. Cecil is one of these warriors and stands as the hero representing Final Fantasy IV, opposing Golbez.

As one of two Warriors of Cosmos related to a villain by blood, Cecil is torn between his feelings for Golbez as a brother and as an enemy. Golbez appears to Cecil to offer him cryptic advice, which causes Cecil to doubt his chosen path. The trials Golbez gives to Cecil ultimately reveal his true motivations and desires, which strengthen his resolve to confront his dark brother and reclaim his Crystal.

His alternate outfit is a palette swap based on his artwork by Yoshitaka Amano, recoloring his armor with red details and giving him an orange cape as a Paladin.

Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy
Cecil returns in this prequel to Dissidia along with the other characters from the game. He plays a small role in the plot, but is an influence on the decisions of Golbez and Kain. Golbez tells Kain about the cycles of war and that they recover their memories as they fight, which is why Cecil, being summoned to fight more recently than Golbez or Kain, cannot remember him. When Cecil confirms he cannot remember much about his home or his connection to Golbez, Kain realizes that Golbez has told the truth, and this epiphany motivates Kain's actions for the rest of the storyline.

Cecil's second alternate outfit is based on his appearance in the FMVs of the DS release of Final Fantasy IV, giving him lighter black Dark Knight armor and more silver Paladin armor, both with symmetrical designs. As a bonus fourth outfit available with the purchase of Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection, Cecil takes on his sprite appearances with aspects of his super-deformed designs, giving him dark blue Dark Knight armor and gold and blue Paladin armor with spiked purple hair and a red cape.

Theatrhythm Final Fantasy


Cecil is a playable character in Theatrhythm Final Fantasy.

Final Fantasy Brigade
Cecil appears as a Legend in Final Fantasy Brigade and can use his Luminous Shard ability.

Final Fantasy Trading Card Game
There are a few trading cards depicting Cecil in the Final Fantasy Trading Card Game. One displays his paladin FMV render, another in his SD form, and the other is a Dissidia artwork of his Paladin form.

Virtual World
Users in Square Enix Members Virtual World community can make their character appear as either of Cecil's two known versions: Dark Knight Cecil or Paladin Cecil, both designed similar to Cecil's DS appearance.

Secret of Evermore
Cecil makes a cameo in Secret of Evermore in Ebon Keep. Cecil runs both the armor shop and the inn, and sells powerful medieval-themed equipment he claims to have acquired on his adventures, although none of them are actually items that appear in Final Fantasy IV.

When first met, Cecil asks the protagonist if he's heard of him, and makes reference to the events of Final Fantasy IV in his attempts to remind him - the player can choose to remember Cecil or not, and will receive a discount at his shop if they do. Cecil mentions he is still married to Rosa, although she does not appear in person, and gives the player their Bazooka weapon he found on a cliff. The music that plays in Ebon Keep is titled "Cecil's Town".

Etymology
"Cecil" is a unisex name, derived from the elements caecus, meaning blind, and sextus, meaning sixth. Caecilius (Latin), Seissylt (Welsh), and Sextilius (Latin) are original forms of Cecil. In the medieval period, Cecil was sometimes used as an English form of the Latin Caecilius. The 3rd-century Saint Caecilius converted Saint Cyprian, who subsequently adopted Caecilius as an additional name. The name Cecilia is the female form of Cecil.

"Harvey" is from the Breton given name Haerviu, which meant "battle worthy" from Breton haer "battle" and viu "worthy". The name was introduced to England by Breton settlers after the Norman Conquest.

Trivia

 * A character named Cecil appears in Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles, as an NPC in Marr's Pass.
 * Cecil is the only central protagonist in the series known to have married and have children, though several side characters have done so in other games, such as Lulu and Wakka. Vivi also has many children.
 * Cecil is referenced by Natsuki Takaya in one of her side columns in Fruits Basket Volume 5, showing her love of Final Fantasy.
 * In Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time and Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates, the Paladin Armor is based upon Cecil's DS model, while the Paladin Helmet and Royal armor are modeled after his original SNES sprite.
 * It is interesting to note that the Knight class from Final Fantasy III wears a similar head ornament to Cecil from the SNES version. Cecil on the Japanese box cover also greatly resembles the Knight, as his hair and cape are colored red.
 * Cecil is the first half-human main protagonist, as he is son of a Lunarian and a woman from Earth. This also makes him the first playable character in the series who is not fully human.
 * Cecil is the first main protagonist to start off with a relatively martial rank (captain) early in the game, a trend that would continue with Terra Branford, Cloud Strife (going by what is initially believed), Squall Leonhart, and Lightning. Additionally, he is the only one to achieve a high rank through his own means (i.e., Terra was mind-controlled, Cloud was not actually SOLDIER, and Squall and Lightning were not actually high-ranked storyline-wise).
 * In Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance their is a link portal with Cecil's name.

Cecil Harvey Cecil Harvey Cecil Harvey セシル・ハーヴィ Сесил Харви