Shiva (Final Fantasy XV)

Shiva, also known as the Glacian, is an Astral in Final Fantasy XV. She is one of the Six and is the Astral that most resembles a human. She is the most friendly and compassionate of the Six, and is a Messenger of the gods to mortals. Prince Noctis forges a pact with Shiva in Chapter 12.

Shiva is the fondest of mortals out of all the Astrals. She was not always this way however, and used to dislike humans for the fleeting nature of their lives, and how they cling to hopes and dreams. Witnessing compassion and benevolence in others is said to have warmed her heart.

Appearance
Like the other Astrals, Shiva is based on a recurring summon in the Final Fantasy series. She is the smallest Astral, not much larger than a normal human. She is a woman with pale blue skin, purple eyes with white eye shadow, pointed elvish ears and hornlike protrusions that resemble icicles. She wears her long silvery hair in elaborate braids, and her body is covered by lace-pattern frost that resembles lingerie. She has sheer white sleeves made of frost and a filigree choker made of ice. Shiva appears as a flock of fairy-like ice goddesses, but she has also appeared as a giantess.

In the Chinese version, Shiva's appearance is altered, giving her a more human skin tone and a more conservative cheongsam-style dress.

Shiva is the true identity of Gentiana, the divine High Messenger who stays by the Oracle Lunafreya Nox Fleuret's side. Whereas the Oracle can commune with the gods to deliver mankind's message to them, Gentiana does the same for the gods. Shiva seems able to co-exist in multiple bodies, as when her ice goddess form was felled by Niflheim Empire, she was also living as Gentiana at Fenestala Manor. It has also been implied that the reason Shiva now appears in a smaller form is because she was previously killed. . Gentiana has black hair and olive green eyes. She wears a black gown with white wraps on her sleeves that flow down into tail-like clothing. She wears black thigh-high open-toed heeled boots.

Personality
Shiva was originally cold towards mankind. When she saw the god of fire Ifrit's kindness in giving them fire, Shiva became more compassionate and fell in love with Ifrit. However, after the Great War of Old, Shiva's faith in humanity was lost.

As Gentiana, she is calm and elegant. She sometimes keeps her eyes closed, even when interacting with the people around her, belying her clairvoyant nature. She stays by Lunafreya's side, supporting her, but usually chooses to stand aside and observe rather than initiate action. After seeing Lunafreya dedicate her life to saving people, Gentiana again became the compassionate goddess she was when she fell in love with Ifrit. She often refers to herself and others in the third person.

When Lunafreya thanks Gentiana for delivering her unsaid feelings to Noctis, she feels undeserving of Gentiana's kindness even though she spent her life saving people. Gentiana sheds a single tear, deeply touched by Lunafreya's modesty and selflessness.

Story
During the Old Calendar Era, the Astrals were active across Eos. Humans were created in the Astrals' image, and though most Astrals were indifferent to man's fragile and ephemeral existence, the god of fire, Ifrit, admired their strength of will. Granting mankind his flame, a civilization flourished: Solheim. Ifrit's benevolence warmed Shiva's heart, who likewise came to love humans and fell in love with Ifrit.

Some people of Solheim began to see themselves as superior to the gods and spurned their blessings. Due to the perceived betrayal of the Astrals by Solheim's people, Ifrit declared war on them, triggering the Great War of Old. The Six are sworn to protect Eos, even from each other, and thus the other Astrals turned against Ifrit. The conflict was magnified by the appearance of the Starscourge, a plague that killed millions, and Solheim collapsed. The leader of the Astrals, Bahamut, killed Ifrit, and Shiva lost her faith in humanity. The world was left in ruin the wake of the war and the Astrals—bar Bahamut—fell into slumber.

In M.E. 732 Shiva, as the High Messenger Gentiana, moves in with the Nox Fleuret family in Tenebrae after the birth of Lunafreya Nox Fleuret. In M.E 735, after the birth of Noctis Lucis Caelum, Gentiana meets with a young Lunafreya and tells her that she must work with Noctis to bring back light to the world, as he will be the True King. Lunafreya assures her she will. Moved by Lunafreya's determination and her benevolence, Shiva's faith in humanity is restored.

When an eight-year-old Noctis visited Tenebrae in M.E. 744, he befriended the twelve-year-old Lunafreya. Gentiana met with Noctis and was glad that the Chosen King and the Oracle were becoming close.

In M.E. 745, the 13-year-old Luna entered a covenant with Shiva. She awoke in the form of an ice giantess in the desert plains surrounding Gralea, the capital of Niflheim. She sensed Ifrit was in danger, being sought by a mortal to "lead him away from the Light." She led an assault on the empire, but was felled by its magitek infantry resulting in an environmental anomaly: the desert transformed into a vast tundra trapped in a perpetual snowstorm. Niflheim spun the event in their favor by claiming they had saved their land from an eternal winter by felling Shiva.

Having lost most of its army, Niflheim began developing magitek soldiers strong enough to fight the Astrals, and the empire's leading magitek researcher Verstael Besithia studies her remains to begin building a weapon he dubs "the Godslayer." The research documents within Zegnautus Keep, the imperial magitek laboratory, suggest that the imperial "Wallbreaker" technology was used against Shiva during the battle, enfeebling her powers. The corpse of Shiva's giantess incarnation remains outside Gralea, where it can be seen from aboard the trains that pass the imperial capital by.

A few years later, after another Messenger, Pryna, returns to the 16-year-old Lunafreya with information about an Insomnian boy named Prompto Argentum, Gentiana asks Lunafreya if she should investigate further.

Gentiana and Lunafreya discuss how Lunafreya had assuaged King Regis and Noctis's fears, but it was not because she was the Oracle, but because of her personality. Lunafreya says that it would mean the world to her if she could meet Noctis again.

When the 24-year-old Lunafreya escapes Insomnia in the wake of the failed peace treaty signing between the empire and Lucis, she is met by Umbra, Pryna and Gentiana. Lunafreya reveals she now holds the Ring of the Lucii, with directions from the late King Regis to bring it to Noctis in the latter's quest to become the True King. Gentiana accompanies Lunafreya to awaken Titan and Ramuh so they can forge covenants with Noctis.

Gentiana appears to Noctis and his retinue to advise the prince in facing Ramuh's trial, and communicates with him telepathically. From then on Gentiana is implied to be keeping supernatural watch over them, as she sometimes appears in the background of photos the party takes. Lunafreya's brother, Ravus Nox Fleuret, sends an escort to pick up Lunafreya and Gentiana, and they return to Tenebrae.

Gentiana finds Lunafreya crying in a sylleblossom field. She affirms Lunafreya does not have to hide her grief, because she is no different from everyone else even with her position of Oracle. Gentiana promises she will deliver Lunafreya's feelings to Noctis should she die before she can tell him in person, as communing with the Astrals is slowly killing her. Lunafreya is grateful, and Gentiana sheds a single tear.

Gentiana reveals her true nature to Noctis when she steps in to temporarily stop Ardyn while aboard the train to Gralea, as they pass by Shiva's giantess corpse in Ghorovas Rift. She grants Noctis her power, forging a pact with him while also bestowing him with the Trident of the Oracle, one of the royal arms. From there on, Noctis can call upon Shiva when he's in danger. Shiva tells Noctis about Ifrit and the Great War of Old, asks him to save Eos as the Crystal's Chosen, and for him to release her love, Ifrit. As Lunafreya passed away during Leviathan's revelation, Shiva lets Noctis know how much she had loved him.

After Noctis disappears inside the Crystal, the world is enveloped in the Long Night. Mankind comes together to defend the remains of civilization in wait for Noctis's return as the True King. Gentiana meets with Cor Leonis, the marshal of the Crownsguard military unit, and confirms that Noctis will return. In turn, Cor calls off the search for him. The Astrals forgive the Kingsglaive for their betrayal of the crown after they prove they want to protect the world. Shiva, alongside the other Astrals, appears to the Glaives chosen to protect Angelgard, the island where the True King is to awaken. In her Gentiana form, she explains to a Glaive that to allow Noctis to awaken they must defend Angelgard from the darkness.

After Noctis returns after his ten-year slumber inside the Crystal, he meets Libertus Ostium and some other Glaives in Angelgard. Libertus almost collapses, but Gentiana helps him up, and explains to Noctis he must head to the ruins of Insomnia to fulfill the prophecy as the True King. She assures him their paths will cross again.

In Insomnia Ardyn ushers a daemonic Ifrit upon Noctis, but Noctis and his friends fight him with the power of Astrals behind him. As a finishing blow, Noctis summons Shiva who flocks around the wounded Ifrit in multiple bodies. Flying into the sky, she casts down Diamond Dust, freezing Ifrit, before slaying him with an icy kiss.

Obtained
Noctis obtains Shiva at the end of Chapter 12.

Summon
The chance to summon will appear randomly while in battle, and the player can summon once per battle. Each Astral has its own requirements to be considered during the "summon roll", which happens every 10 seconds. While possible to summon during the first roll, it is rare. Shiva's summon chance increases for each party member in KO/Danger, and the time the player has spent in battle. Shiva needs some space to be summoned, but can be summoned nearly anywhere.

When summoned, Gentiana enters the battle, with her presence freezing the surrounding landscape she transforms into Shiva, and appears alongside several copies of herself who surround a shivering Noctis. She uses her signature attack, Diamond Dust, which envelops the party's foes in a constant vacuum of super-chilled air. Shiva is the most powerful summon, as her attacks hit foes the most amount of times.

Her summoning against the penultimate boss has a unique animation.

Photos
Gentiana has a random chance to photobomb Prompto's photos from Chapter 5 onwards. Having this happen awards the Immortal Photobomb trophy/achievement. While reviewing photos in camp, Noctis and the others will take puzzled note of her presence. Sometimes she is not apparent in the photo even if the game considers it a photobomb, Gentiana being out of the frame or behind other objects.

Creation and development
Gentiana was designed by Roberto Ferrari, a sub-character designer for Final Fantasy XV. Compared to Ferrari's original concept, the developers changed Gentiana's clothes for script reasons, although the new dress kept much from the two versions Ferrari had drawn (a formal outfit and a party dress). The face remained unchanged. She originally had red-framed glasses and a white armor on the arm and a heavy sword at her side. Gentiana's original role for Final Fantasy Versus XIII was that of Stella's messenger, and a contact point between the countries of Tenebrae and Niflheim.

A nude character model for Gentiana exists, used for her transformation scene. She is viewed from the back so it's not explicit in-game.

Gentiana's motion capture actress is Kaori Kawabuchi.

Voice
Shiva and Gentiana are voiced by Sayaka Kinoshita in the Japanese versions of Brotherhood Final Fantasy XV and Final Fantasy XV.

In English, she is voiced by Renee Faia.

Etymology
In Final Fantasy XV Shiva also assumes different forms, appearing as a giantess, a flock of taller-than-human pixies, and even as a human.

Sylleblossom is a blue flower native to the land of Tenebrae associated with Luna in Final Fantasy XV.

Trivia

 * If the player views the map when the train stops near the giantess Shiva's corpse, the outline of her body is visible.
 * It is not possible to rotate Shiva in the bestiary.
 * Shiva's bestiary entry has differences between different translations. The Japanese version mentions her as the "foil to Ifrit", and simply states that she was defeated by Niflheim. The English version claims that her demise was only "corporeal". The German version says Shiva was Ifrit's lover before he went mad.
 * A winged Gentiana and winged Umbra and Pryna appear on an illustration on a Cosmogony book the young Noctis had in Tenebrae. This illustrates how the Messengers have always been aiding the two royal bloodlines of Nox Fleuret and Lucis Caelum.
 * Gentiana stands on a balcony in Moogle Chocobo Carnival. If the player uses the Armiger glitch to fly to her, and uses a Mega-Potion in her vicinity, she is healed for 3992 HP.