Aerith Gainsborough/Dissidia

Aerith Gainsborough is a bonus character in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy. She makes a cameo appearance as a Downloadable Assist-only character and a tutor for those who purchase Dissidia Duodecim Prologus Final Fantasy. In Prologus, she gives advice on how to play and signs off by announcing her inclusion in the main game as an Assist-only character.

Aerith was added to the game when it was decided there would be an Assist-only bonus character, and discussion began on who it should be. Aerith was chosen from her high ranking in a Square Enix member character survey and because her status as an Assist-only character meant her relative lack of combat abilities could be overlooked.

Appearance
Aerith's default costume is identical to her original Final Fantasy VII appearance; a shin-length pink summers dress that buttons up front with a red lining and a red bolero jacket. In addition to brown boots she wears metal bracers on her wrists as well as leaving the lower portion of the dress unbuttoned to allow for easier movement.

Despite being an Assist-only character, Aerith has her own set of alternate outfits, both of which are unlocked immediately after transferring data from Prologus into the main game.

Aerith's first alternate outfit is based on Yoshitaka Amano's artwork of her. She wears a pink bandeau dress with silver linings and a frontal split, a cropped, shoulder-less jacket with puffed sleeves, and pink and silver pointed high-heeled boots. Her hair ribbon is pink with blue-green polka dots, and is a different shape than her other outfits and tied differently.

Aerith’s second alternate outfit is based on her summer dress as seen in Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-, a blue and white thigh-length dress over a red camisole and white wedge sandals with pink straps. The dress is adorned by blue lace bows at the breast and waist as well as possessing a small corsage of flowers lining the left shoulder string. Her hair ribbon is the same shape as her original ribbon, but is a deeper shade of pink closer to red.

Battle
As an Assist-only character, Aerith is able to perform two of her Limit Breaks from Final Fantasy VII when called; Seal Evil and Planet Protector, along with Cure and the ultimate white magic spell, Holy.

Quotes
I'm here! -when called as Assist.

Be strong! -when using Cure.

Behave! -when using Seal Evil.

Planet's embrace! -when using Planet Protector.

Please...lend us your strength! -when using Holy

Allusions

 * In Final Fantasy VII, Aerith possessed the White Materia, which is the only way to summon Holy.
 * Seal Evil and Planet Protector are both Limit Breaks used by Aerith in Final Fantasy VII.
 * Aerith's animation while charging Holy mirrors her prayer stance before her death. When fought as an AI opponent, Sephiroth is programmed to use his Hell's Gate attack on Aerith, should she be called to perform Holy, mirroring her death in Final Fantasy VII. This setup does not go into effect when any of her other Assistance actions are used, and it only works if Sephiroth is located above Aerith and the player character; if Sephiroth is located below Aerith and the player character, he will instead dash up towards the player and attempt a different attack on Aerith.
 * In the first in-game manual screen in Prologus, Aerith introduces herself with the lines "Hey, do you want a flower? They're only a gil," echoing the line she said to Cloud upon meeting him for the first time in Final Fantasy VII.
 * The staff Aerith uses is the Guard Stick, her initial weapon in Final Fantasy VII.
 * When casting Cure, Aerith takes on her spellcasting pose from Final Fantasy VII with her arms straight out and her staff floating parallel to the ground.
 * Holy's appearance as ball of light with a halo of light surrounding it is similar to to its appearance as it was being held back in Final Fantasy VII

Trivia

 * On the assist selection screen, Aerith's last name in this title is spelled "Gainborough," dropping the S. It is spelled correctly in the credits.
 * Aerith's Holy ties with The Emperor's Starfall attack as requiring the longest time to charge of any attack in the game. Both need approximately eight seconds to complete.
 * Since Prologus is a paid demo, the developers gave Aerith's attacks unique properties that other characters' attacks do not have, such as paralyzing the opponent or granting the player invincibility, to make buying Prologus a worthwhile purchase.
 * Aerith and Lightning share the same Japanese voice actress.
 * Aerith has a chance to be used by AI opponents in Quick Battle and Labyrinth, but only if the player downloaded her Assist data and purchased Prologus, and will almost always use her default appearance (unless the player's assist is also Aerith, and in her default attire, in which case the computer will switch to her 1st alternate outfit). Under no circumstances however, can Aerith be set as an Assist in a storyline, due to the story predetermining Assists. Even in Confessions of the Creator, where the player's Assist is chosen at random from the playable cast, Aerith will not appear, probably because she is not a playable character, as when players talk to his/her Assist character he/she will initiate a fight with that character. In the Arcade Mode, she is only selectable if the player chooses to fight with custom characters; since all settings (except outfit choices) in the preset option are locked, Aerith cannot appear in the preset option.

Aerith (Dissidia) Aerith Gainsborough/Dissidia Aeris Gainsborough/Dissidia