Auron

Auron is a playable character in Final Fantasy X. He is a former warrior monk of Yevon, guardian of High Summoner Braska, and is Tidus's caretaker. He is, in many ways, the unofficial leader of the main party of the game, as party members will often come to him for advice or ask for his permission. Auron's complex and mysterious past, revealed in pieces during the game, directly ties into the stories of Braska and Tidus's father Jecht, and helps set the stage for the game's events. In the English localization of Final Fantasy X, Auron is  (or-run).

Appearance and Personality
Auron wears a deep red haori with blue lining, kept closed with a thick, black and blue strap with two brown belts wrapped around it. Auron tucks his left arm into the front of his haori, making it look as though his arm is in a sling. He removes his left arm from his haori when fighting, but his right arm remains in its sleeve. This aspect (along with the jug on his side) is a tradition of sorts among rōnin, and is likely meant to be an homage to this traditional figure: a rōnin is a samurai who refused to commit seppuku (ritual suicide) after his lord's death; this may be a reference to Braska's death.

Auron wears a brown shoulder pad on his left shoulder that is intricately decorated with tan, green and blue patterns, with a beaded ornament dangling from it. He wears black pants and shoes, the latter of which have brown straps and triangular metal plating. Auron wears a black shirt with a gray collar with intersecting brown straps that is high enough to cover his mouth. His long hair is dark black with gray streaks and is held back by a gold ribbon, and he seems to have some stubble on his chin.

There is a large scar over the right half of Auron's face and over his eye, which is constantly shut as a result. His left eye is amber colored. On his right hip, Auron carries a jug with the word "Nog" written on it (in Spiran script), a term used to describe a number of beverages, including rum. The drink is featured in two of his Overdrives: when executing Banishing Blade, Auron takes a drink and spits it on the blade, and when using Tornado, Auron hurls the jug into the cyclone to ignite it. The former is likely meant as an homage to Japanese samurai, who would sometimes spit sake on their swords in order to "feed the spirit of the blade."

Auron is the strong silent type. He speaks only if necessary, but when he does, he often says something important. He appears as a strict, no-nonsense warrior with a dry wit. As a guardian, Auron devotes his life to protecting those in need, putting the matters of others before his own, and is unconcerned with his own well-being. Auron is idolized across Spira by aspiring guardians.

However, beneath the silence, Auron is still outraged and disgusted over the events of ten years ago during his pilgrimage with Braska, and appears to still mourn the loss of his friends. Auron regards himself as a failure for letting the cycle continue. Auron has little to no respect for Yevon, showing no regard for them, likely due to his knowledge of their inner workings and corruption. Kazushige Nojima has compared Auron to Vincent Valentine of Final Fantasy VII, stating that though the two are meant to be silent characters, they tend to speak a lot and often have something important to say.

Final Fantasy X


As a young man of twenty-five years, Auron was a devoted warrior monk of Bevelle, well-regarded by Yevon's upper echelons, and being groomed for a high-ranking position within the clergy. His personal convictions ultimately put a stop to any career ambitions he might have had when he refused to marry the daughter of a high-ranking priest. Auron fell quickly out of favor with the Yevon elite, and the promotion went instead to his friend Wen Kinoc, who would eventually become a Maester of Yevon. Shortly afterward, Auron was enlisted by Braska to serve as a guardian on Braska's upcoming pilgrimage to fight Sin. Auron found himself drawn to Braska due to his noble character and honest intentions to vanquish Sin for the sake of Spira's people, developing a fierce devotion to Braska and his cause, consistently addressing him with honor, and defending him to any detractors.

Prior to departing for the pilgrimage, Auron and Braska paid a visit to a holding cell in Bevelle, where Jecht was being held, having heard a man claiming to be from Zanarkand was interred within. The other monks dismissed Jecht's proclamations of hailing from Zanarkand as the ramblings of a drunkard, but Braska took him seriously, telling Jecht that if he joined the pilgrimage, Braska should be able to find him a way home. Though Auron protested and thought Jecht would make an unfit guardian, Braska thought it "delightful irony": a disgraced monk, a summoner with a "heathen" Al Bhed wife and "half-breed" daughter, and a drunk from Zanarkand, saving Spira together. Auron relented, and the three outcasts began their pilgrimage.

Contrasting sharply with the patient Braska and the laid-back Jecht, Auron was focused solely on the pilgrimage, insisting the trip "is no pleasure cruise" when Jecht attempts to record a travelogue to one day show to his family, and he constantly reprimands Jecht for his reckless behavior. Over the course of the pilgrimage, however, Auron grows to trust Jecht in spite of his perceived flaws, and the three become close friends.

After finally arriving at the ruins of Zanarkand, the three men are debriefed by Lady Yunalesca, who can bestow upon them the Final Aeon to defeat Sin. However, as with all previous summoners and previously unknown to the three, one of Braska's guardians must volunteer to become the fayth for the Final Aeon. Auron protests, claiming that Sin will only return and their sacrifices will be in vain, but Braska holds onto the hope that this time Sin will be gone for good. Jecht volunteers to become the aeon as he has accepted that he will never be able to go home, but asks Auron to promise he will find a way to his Zanarkand so he might look after his son Tidus in his stead. Jecht and Braska lose their lives fighting Sin, and as Auron thought, Sin is revived and the cycle continues with Jecht, as the Final Aeon, becoming the new Sin.

Auron returned to Yunalesca, outraged at the vain sacrifices Braska and Jecht made, and attacks her. Yunalesca strikes him down, scarring Auron on the face and blinding him in one eye. Heavily wounded, Auron crawls down Mt. Gagazet to the Calm Lands, resting in a travel agency owned by Rin, then continuing on to Bevelle. Auron fell down Mt. Gagazet from a great height and landed just outside the outskirts of the city, and was found by the recently-disgraced Kimahri Ronso. Dying, Auron asks Kimahri to protect Braska's daughter Yuna and take her to Besaid. Auron dies, but due to his strong emotional ties to the world, remains as an unsent. Now composed of pyreflies, Auron rides Sin out to sea where he finds the Dream Zanarkand Jecht hailed from, and enters it to find Tidus and take care of him as Jecht asked.

Ten years later, Jecht, in the form of Sin, returns to Dream Zanarkand, speaking to Auron and telling him to bring Tidus to Spira. Auron helps Tidus fight off Sinspawn as Sin destroys the Dream Zanarkand, and eventually the two are drawn into the beast. Tidus surfaces in the ruins of Baaj, but Auron is nowhere to be found.

Auron resurfaces in Luca during a fiend attack (which was secretly arranged by Seymour Guado), joining Yuna on her pilgrimage. At this time, Tidus, who has become one of Yuna's companions, blames Auron for all that has happened and demands answers. Auron tells Tidus that "Sin is Jecht", but Tidus does not believe him. Auron keeps the truth of Yevon and the pilgrimage from the group as they travel, and while Tidus comes to accept Jecht's fate, Auron explicitly instructs him not to tell the others, especially not Yuna. No one suspects Auron is an unsent, though hints exist - when Yuna performs the Sending for Jyscal Guado in Guadosalam, Auron doubles over in pain, and shortly before, Seymour remarks he smells of the Farplane, foreshadowing the revealing of his true nature. Auron provides other the party members with advice and encouragement in a calm, focused manner. Along the way through the Thunder Plains the party regroups in a traveling agency. Rin, who treated Auron ten years ago, had doubts someone could walk with such a large wound the next day.

When the party reaches Zanarkand, the pyreflies in the air replay moments of Braska's journey through the ruined city. During a particularly painful memory, Auron physically attacks the specter of his past self speaking to Braska. Confronting Yunalesca, now much more informed on the true nature of Sin and Yevon, Yuna refuses to use the Final Aeon, not accepting false hope for Spira. Yunalesca prepares to engage the party as Auron spurs them on, telling them to "shape your stories!" With Yunalesca dead, Auron tells Tidus he is an unsent, and how he was killed by Yunalesca and arrived in Tidus's Dream Zanarkand.

During the final battle, Auron and Tidus meet Jecht one final time before he transforms into Braska's Final Aeon. After Yu Yevon is defeated, Yuna performs the sending for the fayth. Auron once again is affected, but tells her to continue, now able to rest peacefully with Braska and Jecht avenged and the cycle of Sin's rebirth broken. Auron dissolves into pyreflies, sent to the Farplane. As Tidus fades from existence with the fayth no longer dreaming him, he leaps off the deck of the airship and is met by the spirits of Jecht, Braska and Auron in the Farplane.

Final Fantasy X-2
Auron makes a minor appearance in the final part of Final Fantasy X-2, together with Braska and Jecht, as voices giving Yuna encouraging words of advice in the final battle against Shuyin and Vegnagun. The only visual appearances Auron makes are during a brief flashback in Chapter 5 when Maechen's memories flare outside Zanarkand, and a short scene with Gippal in the key item "Gippal's Sphere" set during the events of Final Fantasy X when the party is separated in the Bikanel Desert. Auron is also viewable in Shinra's Dossiers.

In Battle


As a quintessential samurai, Auron wields katanas in battle and defends himself with bracers. Most of his weapons have the Piercing ability by default, allowing him to easily cut down armored fiends. His early stat growth is based around high Strength, Defense and HP, and abilities to lower enemy stats, making him ideal for defeating high HP enemies. Auron has low Speed and Accuracy at first, leaving him weaker against swift and flying foes until he can move into another section of the Sphere Grid. His Overdrive is Bushido, which has the player input a sequence of button commands within a time limit to power up the attack. When counter-attacking Auron performs a regular attack regardless of whether the target is a flying or ground based fiend.

Auron can be recruited as a party member Final Fantasy X-2: International + Last Mission through the Creature Capture system. In order to recruit Auron, the player must defeat him in the Farplane Cup in the Coliseum and must win the cup after. Auron retains some of his Bushido skills from Final Fantasy X and can use any of the common dresspheres. Like all monster allies, Auron is controlled by the game's AI.

Equipment
Auron can equip katanas and bracers. He and Kimahri are the only characters to have the Piercing ability on the majority of their weapons from the start.

Sphere Grid
Auron's Sphere Grid area runs near Wakka's and Tidus's, and his Sphere Grid color is red. The unique abilities in Auron's default position on the Sphere Grid include the following:

Boss
Auron can be fought during the Farplane Cup in the Coliseum in Final Fantasy X-2: International + Last Mission as a boss.

Development
In the original plot draft for Final Fantasy X, Auron was the acclaimed commander of the Crimson Blades in the present day. A plot twist involved Tidus being an undead, but due to the release of the film The Sixth Sense, this plot point was moved from the main character to Auron. Daisuke Watanabe considered having Auron actually be Jecht in disguise, watching Tidus all along, but the team did not want to make Jecht have a leading part in the story, so they gave up on this idea.

Musical Themes
Auron's theme is simply called "Auron's Theme", a song featured on the original soundtrack. It is first heard when Tidus catches up with him in Luca and demands to know just who he is, and can also be heard during the ending as Yuna Sends him.

Final Fantasy Trading Card Game
Auron is represented in the Final Fantasy Trading Card Game by two cards: a character card and an ability card. The first features his artwork by Tetsuya Nomura and the latter features his FMV render from his promotional poster.

Kingdom Hearts II


Auron appears in Kingdom Hearts II as a party member. Auron is voiced by Matt McKenzie in the English release and by Hideo Ishikawa in the Japanese release, both reprising their roles from Final Fantasy X. Interestingly, aside from his younger appearance, allusions are made that he is the same Auron, rather than a character adapted into the Kingdom Hearts storyline.

When Pete jokingly suggests Hades save Hercules the trouble of beating his next opponent and "send someone already dead" after him, Hades agrees and revives Auron, "the mother of all bad guys," offering him freedom from the Underworld if he kills Hercules. Auron refuses to help Hades and joins Sora as a party member. Later, Hades steals Auron's willpower using a statue of his likeness, and forces him to fight Hercules. Sora retrieves and destroys the statue, and Auron regains his free will before killing Hercules. The three team up to defeat Hades together, and after defeating him, Auron decides to go out and shape his own story, referencing his comrades of Final Fantasy X, mainly Tidus and Yuna, who both have the famous lines "This is my story...", a theme of the Final Fantasy X. Sora receives the Guardian Soul Keyblade, modeled after Auron's Masamune. During the ending, Auron is seen departing back to the afterlife, dissolving into pyreflies as he did in Final Fantasy X.

Dragon Quest & Final Fantasy in Itadaki Street Special
A chibified version of Auron appears in this game, alongside chibi Tidus and Yuna in their Final Fantasy X attire.

Etymology
Auron is derived from the name of the Roman goddess of the dawn,. According to Roman mythology, the goddess Aurora would soar across the sky, announcing the arrival of the sun. As Tidus's name derives from the Okinawan word for "Sun," Auron's name could symbolize his bringing of Tidus into Spira.

Trivia

 * Auron's battle stance is similar to that of Blank from Final Fantasy IX.
 * In the games' Japanese dubs, Auron shares the same voice actor as Cait Sith and Squall Leonhart, Hideo Ishikawa.
 * Auron is the name of a Ghost Card in Dissidia Final Fantasy. The Auron ghost is a Level 100 Jecht, and has the Blue Gem and Al Bhed Primer to be won through battlegen. The quote on the card, "This is it. This is your story. It all begins here" is what Auron said to Tidus in Final Fantasy X before Tidus was consumed by Sin. Jecht's alternate costume also references Auron's costume, coloring his clothing and spikes red and his sword black, red, and gold like Auron's Masamune.
 * Of the characters featured in Kingdom Hearts, Auron is one of two Final Fantasy characters along with Cloud Strife who are active party members.
 * The last skill in section of Auron's Sphere Grid is Zombie Attack, which is seemingly out of place for his character's skill set. However, if the party does not flee too much, or over-level in excess, Auron should learn this ability at some point in Zanarkand, foreshadowing his reveal of being an unsent.