Snow Villiers

Snow Villiers is a playable character in the upcoming Final Fantasy XIII and the main male protagonist of the game. He is a very strong character and is capable of running at full speed while carrying two people. On his left arm, he bears the mark of the l'Cie, through which he can summon the embodiment of his heart, the Shiva Sisters.

Appearance and Personality
Snow is one of the tallest male playable character in the Final Fantasy series; at 6'5", he towers above previous lead male characters like Cloud Strife and Squall Leonhart who both stand at 5'8". According to the Ultimania Guide figures, Snow is the tallest known human in the game. He has blond hair and a stubble beard, and he wears a black bandana and a long white coat, which also functions as his weapon. Snow's foot size is a gargantuan 33 centimeters (about a foot long). His l'Cie mark is on his left forearm.

Snow has a very "heroic" personality, hence his title, "The Hero". Snow is a hot-headed person, he shows no fear when standing before hundreds, even thousands of PSICOM Soldiers, and he even does not respect high officers like Cid, who tries to befriend him. Snow at times can show compassion to his friends, like Serah, the girl Snow loves the most, and even Lightning, who hated him, and blamed him for what happened to Serah.

Story
Snow is the leader of Team Nora, a group of rebels fighting against the Sanctum. He grew up with his childhood friends Gadot and Lebreau in the town of Bowdam at the edge of Cocoon, where they hunted stray monsters under the moniker of Team Nora. Falling in love with Serah Farron, Lightning's sister, Snow refused to leave her side after she became a l'Cie, offering her his hand in marriage. However, after Lightning sees him to be a delusional fool, Snow's peaceful life was interrupted by PSICOM occupying their town and taking away the people they believed to be contaminated by Pulse. This, and Serah's disappearance, flared the resistance in Snow as he leads Team Nora in fighting back to rescue those being exiled.

But Snow's strength fails him during the mission: when he and a mother were hanging from the edge of a destroyed highway, her hand slipped from his and she fell off the cliff to her death after she made him promise to protect her child. He falls, too, but wakes up unharmed near the Lowerworld Vertigo, where Serah was. After regrouping to his team, unable to remember which child he is meant to look after, Snow departs to Lowerworld Vertigo where he encounters Lightning and Sazh Katzroy after learning that he was followed by Oerba Dia Vanille and Hope Estheim, the son of the mother Snow was unable to save. Finding Serah as she crystallized before his eyes, Snow reveals to Lightning that he and Serah were to be married, causing her to be unable to forgive him easily for her sister's status.

Snow attempts to seek consul from the fal'Cie Anima to get his love back, offering to take her place before he joins Lighting in fighting the fal'Cie only to become l'Cie himself. Finding himself on Lake Bilge, Snow accepts his Focus of saving the world, spurring Lightning to punch him as he vows to set things right between them and restore Serah as he remains behind to unearth her as PSICOM goes after him in full fury until the Shiva Sisters appear. After taking control of the two Eidolons, Snow is captured by a PSICOM platoon led by Fang.

The final trailer depicts him being brought into custody by Fang after taming the Shiva Sisters, where he meets Cid Raines. Snow helps Lightning give Hope emotional support, and talks with her about the chance of ever seeing Serah (or each other) again in Pulse. He says that once he and Lightning end everything, they will go and see her.

After the party defeats Orphan, Snow is reunited with Serah.

Abilities and Equipment
Unlike the fast and agile Lightning, Snow focuses more on strength. He also excels in Ice and Water magic, but can also learn Wind magic up to the -"ra" level. He fights with his fists and his weapon is a special coat developed by the government which can alter the strength of the wearer. Snow's Full ATB skill, Ruler Fist, is a powerful strike to the ground from above. His Eidolon is Shiva, which splits into two sisters. Their names are Styria and Nix. Styria is the dark-skinned one who is the elder sister, while the white-skinned Nix is the younger. They are not limited to just the Ice element but can apparently wield many of them. They are also capable of combining to make a motorcycle for Snow to ride on for their Gestalt Mode.

Note: Official English name per Japanese guide / Transliteration from the Official Japanese name.
 * Wild Bear
 * Feral Pride / Wild Proud
 * Paladin / Knight's Heart
 * Winged Saint / Justice Emblem
 * Rebel Heart / Patriot's Heart
 * Warrior's Greatcoat / Fighter Emblem
 * Power Circle / Energy Circle
 * Battle Coat / Charge Spirits
 * Feymark / Cursed Seal of the Spirits
 * Soul Blazer / Heretic Spirits
 * Sacrificial Circle / Dharmacakra of Near-Death
 * Indomitus / Indomitable Backwater
 * Unsettling Sun / Never-Setting Sun
 * Midnight Sun / Glorious Midnight Sun
 * Umbra / Yin Yang of Defense
 * Solaris / Unsinking Illustrious
 * Save the Queen

Etymology
"Villiers" is a common French toponym and a surname ultimately derived from the Latin word "villa", "country-house, estate". It is also the name of a fairly well-known motorcycle company, which is referenced in his summon's Gestalt mode.

Musical Themes
In Final Fantasy XIII, Snow's Theme is a rock tune played with electric guitars.

Trivia

 * Before his official name was revealed, Snow was referred to as "Mr. 33cm", referencing his large foot size.
 * According to the April 2009 edition of Famitsu (page 50), Nomura based Snow's bandanna on an unused design that was originally planned for Kingdom Hearts coded.
 * Snow's crystal has taken the shape of a heart.
 * The names of the Shiva sisters are derived from a region of Austria (Styria) and a Germanic water spirit (Nix).
 * There is a symbol of a cat on one of the pendants Snow wears.