Sazh Katzroy

Sazh Katzroy [sæz 'kæt͡s.ɹɔɪ] is a playable character in Final Fantasy XIII and in a downloadable episode of Final Fantasy XIII-2. He is a middle-aged man with an afro who works as an airship pilot. After his wife died three years prior to the events of Final Fantasy XIII, Sazh has been looking after their son, Dajh. Fighting to protect his son is Sazh's main motivation. A pet chocobo is often seen living in Sazh's afro, known simply as Chocobo Chick in Final Fantasy XIII.

In Final Fantasy XIII-2, Sazh, Dajh, and the Chocobo Chick are consumed by a paradox and Sazh ends up in Serendipity gambling to reclaim his son. Later, he is seen supporting the Academy in their final battle with Caius Ballad.

In Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, Sazh is living in the Wildlands.

Appearance and Personality


Sazh is a middle-aged man with an afro in which he keeps an unnamed chocobo chick. He wears a long, olive coat over khaki trousers, a white button-down shirt, and black buckled engineer boots. His l'Cie mark is on his chest, half-hidden under his shirt. He keeps his two pistols in holsters strapped to his thighs. In Final Fantasy XIII-2, Sazh is the only playable character from the previous game not to get a redesign.

Despite being physically the eldest of the Final Fantasy XIII playable party, Sazh has a youthful, carefree, and lively personality. Sazh is a goodhearted man whose relationship with his son, Dajh, serves as his drive, and his selflessness is shown when he considers sacrificing himself to keep Dajh from becoming a Cie'th. He is silly at times, mostly when he is in near-death situations, but Sazh has a strong will of justice and is always willing to help his teammates. Through his friendship with Vanille, Sazh is revealed to be forgiving, and through his quest to rescue Dajh, generally (but not always) hopeful.

In contrast to the rest of the party, Sazh is more level-headed and mature, often serving as the voice of reason and interjects his opinion when someone is on the verge of letting their emotions get the best of them. He thinks of the rest of the party as 'the kids', though seems to respect Lightning and Fang.

Final Fantasy XIII Episode Zero -Promise-


Sazh brings Dajh to Euride Gorge to see a Sanctum fal'Cie. He stops at a souvenir shop to buy a chocobo chick as a present for his son, and Dajh wanders into the energy plant unsupervised. An unknown force rocks the facility and when Sazh finds Dajh in front of the fal'Cie Kujata he notices a strange mark on Dajh's hand. Soldiers from the security force take Dajh away for medical attention and soldiers from PSICOM and their leader, Colonel Jihl Nabaat, take Sazh and Dajh to an Eden facility by airship.

Dajh is put into PSICOM custody for testing and it is learned he has been branded a Sanctum l'Cie by Kujata. Three days later, Colonel Nabaat tells Sazh the incident at Euride Gorge was caused by Pulse l'Cie, and Kujata branded Dajh in response to the threat. The following day, under the supervision of Nabaat, it is discovered Dajh has gained the ability to sense the presence of Pulse beings, but his Focus is unknown. Nabaat speculates Dajh's task might be to discover lowerworld invaders and destroy them. Sazh begins to lose hope for his son, and feels he cannot trust Nabaat.

When allowed to see his son again, Dajh is insistent on going to the fireworks festival in Bodhum and Nabaat permits a PSICOM-supervised excursion to the coastal town. Two days later, on the way to Bodhum, Dajh shows interest in the local Bodhum Vestige. This catches Colonel Nabaat's attention, and she sends a team to investigate the ruins. Sazh wishes upon the fireworks for Dajh's salvation while Dajh wishes for his father to be happy again. The PSICOM team discovers a Pulse fal'Cie within the Vestige, implying Dajh had subconsciously reacted to its presence. After the fireworks, Dajh says he wants to go to Nautilus Park, but he is put back into PSICOM custody.

The day after Bodhum is quarantined and ordered to be Purged. Understanding they do not have long to discover and complete his son's Focus, Sazh knows Dajh will become a Cie'th under PSICOM custody, who plan to use his powers to benefit themselves. Returning to Eden, he agrees to cooperate and requests to buy a toy or book for Dajh from a shop in Palumpolum; Nabaat allows this, and offers him use of the military airships for faster travel.

Sazh made it up as an excuse for a chance to escape the PSICOM supervision. He makes his way back to Bodhum, with the intention of destroying the Pulse fal'Cie to save Dajh. Waiting in line for the Purge train the following day, he approaches Lightning, another "volunteer", and the two ally in their quest to reach the fal'Cie.

Final Fantasy XIII


Sazh and Lightning derail the Purge train and set the Purgees free. The two fight their way through the Hanging Edge to the Pulse Vestige, where the Pulse fal'Cie Anima sleeps. When they reach Anima's Throne, Snow, Vanille, and Hope Estheim unexpectedly join them. Lightning's sister Serah, a Pulse l'Cie, enters crystal stasis after asking Lightning to save Cocoon. After confronting Anima, the group is turned into l'Cie, before being cast down into the crystallized Lake Bresha. When they awaken, Sazh prompts the others to determine their Focus, but their only clue is a shared vision of Ragnarok destroying Cocoon. After leaving Snow behind with Serah's crystal, the group of four continue through the lake and find an old airship, but once Sazh attempts to pilot them to safety they crash-land in the Vile Peaks.

After Lightning and Hope continue on to throw off pursuit, Sazh vows not to allow Vanille continue on her own. They find Hope by himself further ahead who was left behind by Lightning. Promising to get Hope back home to his father in Palumpolum, Sazh and Vanille have him travel with them until Lightning rejoins the party. When Lightning reveals her plan to go to Eden and destroy its namesake fal'Cie, Sazh is outraged for her wanting to "snuff out Cocoon" now that everyone hunts her down though Lightning assures she only wishes to take down the Sanctum. She leaves with Hope chasing after her, leaving Sazh and Vanille behind. They decide to run in the opposite direction to stay out of Lightning's way and escape their fate.

Sazh and Vanille continue their flight to the Sunleth Waterscape and while crossing it, Vanille asks Sazh about his family. Sazh tells Vanille about what happened to Dajh, revealing his motives for boarding the Purge train. Sazh wonders if Dajh's Focus would be to destroy all Pulse l'Cie, which would mean Sazh and his companions must die to spare Dajh. Waiting for a ship to Nautilus, Sazh tells Vanille he didn't always hate Pulse and found the Sanctum's claims about incoming attacks from the lowerworld suspicious, that is, until he got sucked into the paranoia. He believes the trouble started because Dajh detected Anima in Bodhum, but Vanille implores him to place the blame elsewhere: onto the Pulse l'Cie responsible for the Euride incident.

In Nautilus, the pair attends the Eidolon parade, the Pompa Sancta. Visiting the Chocobo Corral, Sazh reveals he wishes to surrender to PSICOM to see Dajh one last time even if it means his own execution. Vanille tries to dissuade him by telling him who is responsible for the Euride Gorge incident, but before she can reveal the culprit, the army attacks from above. Despite his earlier wishes to be captured, Sazh protects Vanille and aids her escape.

They are chased through the Mall to the Clock Tower, where Dajh appears and crystallizes in Sazh's arms. Nabaat arrives with her troops, and the boy's Focus is revealed: to capture servants of the lowerworld fal'Cie. Nabaat shows him a security recording from Euride Gorge, which reveals Vanille and Fang were the Pulse l'Cie who disturbed the fal'Cie Kujata, and caused it to turn Dajh into a l'Cie to protect itself. Vanille flees deeper into Nautilus and Sazh pursues her as Nabaat is curious as to how much data they could collect watching two l'Cie fight, under the assumption that Sazh will kill Vanille.

When Sazh finds Vanille at the Fiendlord's Keep, he aims his pistol at her while Vanille begs him to shoot her for all the suffering she had caused him. Sazh is furious she thinks all will be forgiven once she is dead and his anguish summons his Eidolon, Brynhildr. Seeing Vanille is willing to protect him, Sazh tames the Eidolon with her. After Brynhildr vanishes, Sazh points his pistol back at Vanille but realizes killing her will not change anything. He places the pistol to his head but is unable to take his own life. They are captured by PSICOM and Nabaat taunts Sazh with the prospect of putting Dajh's crystal up for display as a monument in Eden before rendering Sazh unconscious. Vanille and the unconscious Sazh are taken into an airship by Nabaat's regiment, and imprisoned on the Palamecia to be transported to Eden for a public execution.

Upon the Palamecia, Sazh learns about Vanille's past and her recent awakening from crystal stasis. Vanille's story sparks a flicker of hope in Sazh for his son, hoping that Dajh, too, could awaken one day. With a new reason to fight, Sazh helps Vanille overpower the guards. They break out of the cell, retrieve their weapons, and reunite with Lightning, Snow, Hope, and Fang, who have come to rescue them. The reunited l'Cie go on to confront Primarch Galenth Dysley, who is also on the ship. After he kills Nabaat and reveals himself as the fal'Cie Barthandelus, Dysley claims the party's collective Focus is to become Ragnarok and destroy Cocoon by killing Orphan, the fal'Cie that keeps Cocoon afloat. Sazh attempts to guide an airship off the Palamecia as it descends, but an unknown force drives it towards the Fifth Ark hidden beneath Eden instead.

The party travels through the Fifth Ark and their l'Cie powers are fully awoken. Deeper inside the Ark, the party encounters the Cavalry leader Cid Raines. Raines reveals himself as a Sanctum l'Cie branded by Barthandelus with the Focus of helping them destroy Cocoon. The party defeats Raines but turns to crystal despite defying his Focus, inspiring them to do the same. After Fang tames her Eidolon Bahamut, a path to the Ark's lower levels is revealed. They party finds a Pulsian airship and a gate leading to Gran Pulse, where they hope to find answers on how to remove their brands.

Sazh pilots the airship to the world below and it is attacked by a wild wyvern. After an emergency landing, the party sets up a base camp in the Vallis Media. They search Gran Pulse for days but find no signs of human life, and decide to head for Oerba. In the Font of Namva in the Archylte Steppe, Fang apologizes to Sazh for her involvement in Dajh's branding. He accepts her apology and admits his fault in letting Dajh out of his sight. The group travels through the Mah'habara Subterra and uses the fal'Cie Atomos to get to the Sulyya Springs. They reach the top of Taejin's Tower and ride a capsule down to Oerba. In Oerba, the party finds Dysley has caused utter chaos in Cocoon, and decide to return there.

During the Eden Grand Prix, Sazh rides Brynhildr in her Gestalt Mode. Dysley uses the Fifth Ark to release Pulse monsters and weapons into Eden and cause mass panic. At Orphan's Cradle, they confront Barthandelus, who conjures and shatters Dajh's and Serah's crystals hoping to kill their morale, but Sazh presses on in the knowledge it is another of the fal'Cie's illusions. After Barthandelus is defeated, it merges with the fal'Cie Orphan. Fang succumbs to Orphan's demands and decides to become Ragnarok and everyone but Fang and Vanille turn to Cie'th. They relive the memories of their journey together and turn back into human just in time to save Fang from the exploding Orphan's clutches. Sazh says their transformation was "more fal'Cie smoke and mirrors" and that they have witnessed something that resembled a new Focus.

The party bands together to defeat Orphan's final form with the hope that with the power to destroy Cocoon, they also have the power to save it. After Orphan is defeated, Orphan's Cradle disappears and the party is left floating above Eden as Cocoon falls. As Sazh, Lightning, Hope, and Snow float away and start to crystallize, Fang and Vanille stay behind. They join together and become Ragnarok to crystallize Cocoon and form a crystal pillar to support it over Pulse. After Cocoon has been saved, Sazh is crystallized on Gran Pulse along with the rest of the party. They shortly awaken and find their l'Cie brands have been wiped clean. Dajh and Serah appear from Cocoon, and father and son are reunited.

Final Fantasy XIII -Episode i-
Sazh offers to help evacuate the rest of Cocoon's citizens with Dajh by his side. He says his goodbyes to the others, saying they'll be going on a long trip.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 Fragments Before
Two years later, Sazh is working on Pulse piloting airships on a Gran Pulse-Cocoon commuter flight route, and he brings Dajh to work with him. One day, they are paid a visit by Snow after he leaves New Bodhum on his journey to find Lightning, who has gone missing. Sazh tells Snow his doubts about what happened to her and that he can't help him out since he is too busy.

Final Fantasy XIII-2


While piloting an airship on a clear day, Sazh and his son were sucked into a vortex caused by paradox. While floating through Historia Crux, Sazh was spotted by Snow. Finding himself in Serendipity, Sazh meets the realm's owner, who reveals Sazh and Dajh are between life and death while explaining Sazh can improve his fortunes in the casino by amassing enough Fortune Medals to be reunited with his son. During his misadventure, momentarily appearing before Serah and Noel as a paradox-based phantom in the Vile Peaks, Sazh encounters Chocolina before learning of her true identity.

Once reunited with Dajh, Sazh learns from Serendipity's owner the timeline is being distorted. Wanting to make a difference, Sazh convinces the owner to send him and Dajh somewhere in time they can help. He ends up in Academia 500 AF, where he helps in the city's evacuation while aiding Serah and Noel with his airship to pursue Caius Ballad in his Chaos Bahamut form, and helps save Fang and Vanille's crystal from the core of the crystal pillar before it collapses. After Serah and Noel return from Valhalla back to 500 AF, he is the first to greet them. Their victory against Caius is short-lived as Serah dies from her Eyes of Etro and Caius's death also signified the death of the goddess Etro. Valhalla's chaos enters the living world and infects Gran Pulse, merging the two worlds into Nova Chrysalia.

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII
Lightning finds Sazh living with Dajh in a house converted from the remains of a crashed airship in the Wildlands. A shadow has fallen over the heart of her once cheerful and easy-going comrade, for his beloved son Dajh remains trapped in a state of sleep, never to wake, his soul taken from him. Sazh demands that Lightning leave him and his son alone, much to the dismay of the Chocobo Chick, who pecks him.

Final Fantasy XIII


Sazh uses a pair of pistols that can transform into an assault rifle. He can shoot from a range. As a Ravager, he has access to fire and lightning-elemental attacks (magical and physical). As a Synergist, Sazh is more proficient in offensive augments, such as Bravery, Haste and En- Spells, learning them the earliest.

He works well as a Commando, due to his Blitz ability, which is the strongest attack in the game the player can control. It differs from the Blitzes of other characters, which are one spread hit, whereas Sazh unleashes a barrage of eight bullets in a narrow fan, vastly increasing overall damage against multiple enemies or racking up hits to large or nearby targets. It is best utilized if enemies are standing close together and/or are large in size. Sazh cannot launch enemies as a Commando like the other Commandos can.

Sazh can be helpful as a Saboteur, as he learns all single-target spells, making him potentially one of the best characters to be used in active party, even though his Magic stat is low.

Out of all six playable characters, Sazh has the shortest Crystarium expansion, and he is the only character to start with only one role: Ravager.

Despite having low stats during the main storyline, Sazh's battle efficiency increases in the post-game sidequests, as his pistols offer a range of useful passive abilities, such as Augment Maintenance and Stagger Maintenance. Sazh's Full ATB Skill, Cold Blood (Desperado in the Japanese version), is a series of explosive shots that increase the enemy's chain gauge.

Stats
Sazh generally has lower stats than other party members, although he has the second highest max HP by the end of the game.
 * Base Statistics

Eidolon


Sazh's Eidolon is Brynhildr, a female, fire-elemental valkyrie, who can turn into a race car in her Gestalt Mode. Brynhildr has multiple abilities that can be used effectively with Sazh's Synergist role that easily allow for a change of elemental damage.

Sazh, along with Snow, is one of two characters who doesn't help others claim their respective Eidolons.

Weapons
See Sazh's Pistols. Because he has two weapons, Sazh gets double the attacks in number for a single Attack command used. If Sazh performs a series of attacks, he combines the pistols into a single rifle for the last shot, which hits only once. Sazh's attack power is divided between his weapons, however, so he won't get an advantage over the other characters even if his attack always hits twice.

Sazh's guns or their holsters are not rendered while he is on the field; only the straps that hold the holsters are present. The guns are only rendered if they are required for a cutscene. At the Sunleth Waterscape, Sazh doesn't have his pistols at the beginning of the cutscene where he tells Vanille about Dajh, but after the flashback, his guns have suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

Most of Sazh's guns are named after stars and star clusters, similar to those of Final Fantasy XII.

Final Fantasy XIII-2
Sazh appears as downloadable content in the form of a "Recruitable Monster", who joins Serah and Noel after completing the downloadable episode "Heads or Tails?".

Sazh joins the party as Synergist and can learn most of the spells available from the Crystarium. If given Potent or Vitality materials, his HP can rise over 9,000, making him a useful addition to the Paradigm Pack. His Feral Link is Cold Blood; his Full ATB Skill in Final Fantasy XIII, and functions the same.

Creation and Development
Early concept art of Sazh greatly differs from his final look. The concept depicts him as a white-skinned man with shoulder-length brown hair and a military uniform with various mechanical mounts on his coat for his equipment; e.g. the artwork has a mount on his shoulder for a small cannon and a mount on his arm for a shield. His name was originally "Baz".

In an interview with the Shonen Jump magazine, Yoshinori Kitase stated Sazh is modeled after the American singer, while Motomu Toriyama claimed Sazh's inspiration was "a character that would appear in an American comedy – like Eddie Murphy" in OPM UK magazine. In OPM UK, Toriyama went on to say "as for Sazh, we wanted a character that was mature".

Musical Themes
"Sazh's Theme" is a funky number in an unusual, alternating 5/4 to 6/4 time signature, heavily featuring piano, percussion, brass, and acoustic guitar. "Can't Catch a Break" is also often played in scenes involving Sazh.

Both pieces have an improvisational jazz style unusual for the music of the Final Fantasy series. "Daddy's Got the Blues" is another piece on the soundtrack associated with Sazh, referring to his relationship with Dajh. The piece features an acoustic guitar and a harmonica.

In Final Fantasy XIII-2, "Win or Lose" combines elements from the two themes.

Final Fantasy XIII: Original Soundtrack PLUS
A prototype version of "Can't Catch a Break" is included on the album, called "Sazh B+ Prototype".

Final Fantasy All the Bravest


Sazh is an exclusive character only available from the Premium Character Shop as a random downloadable content, he uses the Pyroburst ability during battle.

Final Fantasy Trading Card Game
Sazh is present in the Final Fantasy Trading Card Game with Fire-elemental cards. One depicts a shot of his face from a FMV of Final Fantasy XIII, and the other displays his render. The Brynhildr card also features Sazh.

Kingdom Hearts Mobile
Sazh appears as an avatar in Kingdom Hearts Mobile. He, Vanille, Serah, Snow and Lightning are the characters from Final Fantasy XIII to appear in the game.

Kingdom Hearts Re:coded
Sazh appears as an avatar, featuring his chocobo in his hair.

Trivia

 * Sazh's eidolith is the shape of a chocobo feather.
 * Sazh's eidolith is used as the icon for two trophies/achievements: Loremaster in Final Fantasy XIII, and Scarlet Medal in Final Fantasy XIII-2.
 * Sazh has the most lines in Final Fantasy XIII.
 * The Japanese name of Sazh's ATB full skill, Desperado, is named after Laguna Loire's Limit Break in Final Fantasy VIII.
 * Tetsuya Nomura has stated in an interview he would choose Sazh over Lightning to appear in a sequel to Dissidia Final Fantasy to represent Final Fantasy XIII. However, Lightning was selected as Final Fantasy XIII's representative for the prequel, Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy.
 * Though the subject of naming it is frequently mentioned, Sazh's chocobo chick remains unnamed during Final Fantasy XIII. In Final Fantasy XIII-2, it is revealed, through collecting fragments and "Heads or Tails?" episode, that the chick is female and Dajh has named her "Chocolina".
 * In Chocobo's Crystal Tower, the player can purchase a head accessory called the Afro for 350 Chocopoints. It features an animation where a baby chocobo would occasionally pop out, referencing Sazh.
 * There is an item in Final Fantasy XIII-2 that can be obtained as a rare drop from the chocobo: the Yellow Chick In Afro, referencing Sazh's chocobo chick and his hair. Similar items drop off other colored chocobos, each with the same color chick.
 * In Final Fantasy XIII-2 it is revealed in a Brain Blast quiz a vidshow called 'The Katzroy Files' was made after Sazh that had an unlucky detective who kept a chocobo chick in his hair as the lead character. The name 'The Katzroy Files' may be an allusion to the real world show The Rockford Files.
 * In one of the trailers for Final Fantasy XIII-2, Sazh is present in Academia 4XX AF, but this doesn't happen in the game as the trailer just served as a confirmation of Sazh's appearance in Final Fantasy XIII-2.
 * As revealed by Brain Blast, Sazh used to be a train conductor before becoming an airship pilot.