Gilgamesh (Final Fantasy XV)

Gilgamesh, also known as the Blademaster, is a character in the Final Fantasy XV downloadable content Episode Gladiolus, and appears as the main boss in its story. He is a formidable warrior who tests the might of the warriors of Lucis in combat, and claims the lives of those he deems unworthy. While his personality and appearance are drastically different from the typical Gilgamesh throughout the series, he is still a feared duelist with a love of combat who wields numerous swords, and is accompanied by a monster named Enkidu.

Appearance
As past Gilgameshes in the Final Fantasy series, Gilgamesh in Final Fantasy XV is associated with the color red and numerous swords, has a cape, and wears a mask, although the mask is not painted like in his usual appearances, instead being plain silver. Gilgamesh is covered from head to foot in armor and has long silver hair in two braids and glowing red eyes. His appearance is somewhat akin to a magitek trooper, as his mask and glowing eyes give him a mechanical look. He is missing an arm and is much taller than a regular human; Gladiolus, himself very tall, only comes up to his chest.

Gilgamesh wields four swords that have intricately detailed blades: a large brass and gold-colored greatsword, a fencing sword, a broadsword, and a katana with a handle wrapped in red cloth and blue beads with the symbol of the Crownsguard—the Genji Blade. The Genji Blade being a weapon Gilgamesh took from one of his greatest challengers, suggests all of Gilgamesh's weapons may be spoils from his duels.

Personality
Gilgamesh believes that the weak are not worthy to live and cuts down those who seek to challenge him. Despite his harsh personality, he is not entirely merciless, as he spared the soldier who cut off his arm. Seeing this as a testament of the soldier's potential, Gilgamesh believed he would be of more use to the Lucian kings alive than dead. This shows he is first and foremost loyal to the Lucian bloodline even though his extreme methods may not always show it.

Abilities
Gilgamesh is able to reanimate the dead and is implied to be over 2,000 years old. Despite having glowing red eyes, being seemingly immortal, and able to reanimate the dead, Gilgamesh doesn't appear to be a daemon. Rather, his soul is so powerful that the souls of the fallen will respond to his call. Dummied dialogue from Episode Gladiolus posits that Gilgamesh sealed his soul within the Tempering Grounds so that a future Shield of the King could seek his council, fearing that the Immortal Accursed's appearance heralded horrors to come.

Gilgamesh can phase, similar to the power of the kings of Lucis. When he phases, he leaves behind muted red holograms. As phasing is the power of kings, Gilgamesh's ability to do so may be linked to his role as the Shield of the Founder King, as kings are known to have lent their powers to those who serve them. However, as shown in Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV, the monarch's death cuts those using his power from it, and thus Gilgamesh's ability to do so is mysterious. Gilgamesh is an expert swordsman with superhuman strength, and though he has lost his physical arm, he can recreate a glowing "ghost" version of it and use it to wield weapons.

Story
Gilgamesh is the Shield of the Founder King from 2,000 years ago. He may have partaken in the War of the Astrals, a war said to have been waged two thousand years ago that led to the collapse of the ancient civilization of Solheim. Taelpar Crag in the Cleigne region was created as a result of the war, and it is at its depths where Gilgamesh resides. Shield of the King has become a title given to the Lucian monarch's main bodyguard.

Thirty years ago Lucians discovered the ruins at Taelpar Crag and many ventured inside only to be killed by Gilgamesh. A 15-year-old Cor Leonis was the only one to have emerged alive, earning him the nickname "the Immortal". Cor had cut off Gilgamesh's arm, a feat no one else had done. Despite this, Gilgamesh emerged victorious and kept Cor's Genji Blade as a trophy of his victory. He apparently spared Cor for having accomplished the feat of landing such an injury on him. Losing to Gilgamesh had humbled the overconfident Cor, who continued to serve the Lucian royal family in the Crownsguard.

A 45-year-old Cor returns to Gilgamesh's trials not to try it himself, but to support Gladiolus Amicitia, Prince Noctis's sworn shield who wants to prove his worth. Gladiolus is guided to Gilgamesh's lair by the voices of the souls that lurk in the Tempering Grounds. Gladiolus challenges Gilgamesh to a battle while declaring he fears nothing, and the two clash blades until Gladiolus strikes Gilgamesh down. Gladiolus admits that the only thing he fears is not being strong enough for his position as the King's Shield, and Gilgamesh recognizes Gladiolus as being worthy of protecting the True King.

As Gladiolus returns to his friends, he speculates that Gilgamesh had been waiting for the Chosen King for two millennia to test the might of the Chosen King's Shield. As told by Cor, the reason Gladiolus's father, Clarus Amicitia, never took on the trial was because he didn't deem it worth abandoning King Regis.

Gilgamesh refers to Noctis as the last king of Lucis, hinting that he knows of the fate of the True King.

Gameplay
Gilgamesh is fought twice as a boss, first before the trial begins, and secondly at the end of the trial. The first boss fight with Gilgamesh is unwinnable as Gladiolus is too weak to block his attacks, and therefore Gilgamesh will drop the player's HP to 0. The second fight, the player can beat Gilgamesh, though he will fully replenish his HP after being defeated the first time. The final time, once Gilgamesh is defeated, the episode is complete.

Defeating all trials, including Gilgamesh, in Normal difficulty earns the Shield of the Chosen King achievement/trophy.

Musical themes
A rendition of Gilgamesh's iconic theme, "Battle at the Big Bridge", plays during his battle. "Battle on the Big Bridge (EPISODE GLADIOLUS version)" was arranged by Keiichi Okabe for the Episode Gladiolus DLC. The game's team encouraged Okabe to incorporate his own style into the composition, resulting in the addition of vocals and elements from his previous work with the NieR series.

Creation and development
Gilgamesh's depiction is different from his usual appearances as a recurring character in the series. He is not a comedic character, and doesn't speak in a boastful manner. Gilgamesh often appearing with multiple arms in his true form is subverted with the Gilgamesh in Final Fantasy XV having but one arm, though he still regains his other arm for the second phase of his boss battle. Gilgamesh is not looking for a legendary weapon, but has collected swords from the warriors he has defeated that he appears to have set up as trophies on his chosen battleground: a bridge, as per Gilgamesh boss battle tradition.

Dummied dialogue from Episode Gladiolus reveal some discarded ideas for Gilgamesh. It was said Gilgamesh had witnessed the Founder King's brother become a monster due to an unknown cause and turn against him, and the Shield of the King was a position to protect the King from this new threat. Gladiolus had asked if the soul he was talking to was one of the former Shields of the King, and the soul had answered that he was one of the first, who had worked for Gilgamesh to defend the Founder King. The "General" (Gilgamesh) had feared the brother's transformation was a harbinger of horrors to come and had sealed his own soul within the Tempering Grounds so that another Shield could one day seek his council and to entrust his power to the one who proves himself worthy of defending the King and succeed him. The soul had not been aware the Crystal had chosen a Chosen King, and asked about it from Gladiolus, who had admitted he doesn't know what being the Chosen King means.

In the final game, Gilgamesh doesn't entrust his powers to Gladiolus, but rather, gives him advise and a sword he had taken as a spoil from a won duel. The souls Gilgamesh calls forth are not said to be previous Shields of the King and the Founder King's brother being turned into a monster is not mentioned, either; perhaps revelations related to Ardyn were decided to leave until later.

Voice
Gilgamesh is voiced by Kazuhiko Inoue in the Japanese release and Tom Taylorson in the English release. His voice, like his personality, drastically differ from the typical Gilgamesh appearances in the series.

Trivia

 * Gilgamesh in the Final Fantasy series is associated with Genji equipment. In Final Fantasy XV, he yields the Genji Blade after being defeated.
 * Gilgamesh's concept art was shown at a community fan event at Osaka on 1st July 2017.