Snow Villiers

Snow Villiers is a playable character in Final Fantasy XIII who appears as a guest character in Final Fantasy XIII-2, and as a non-playable character in Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII.

In Final Fantasy XIII, Snow is determined to save his fiancée, Serah Farron, from her fate as a Pulse l'Cie despite Serah's sister Lightning's disapproval of their relationship. He is turned into a l'Cie himself, and sets on a journey to save Cocoon and reunite with Serah.

In Final Fantasy XIII-2, Snow goes off in search of Lightning who has disappeared, being the only one to believe Serah's claims that her sister is still alive, once again becoming a l'Cie in the process.

In Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, Snow is the patron of the city of Yusnaan, and the last l'Cie in the world. Close to becoming a Cie'th, he awaits the time he can die and reunite with Serah.

Appearance
Snow has light blond hair, blue eyes, and a stubble beard. He wears a black bandanna, black gloves, large gray boots, a light blue vest over a black shirt, and a striped blue scarf hanging from a belt. He wears a beige trench coat with frayed hems that functions as his weapon as it is fused with Antimatter Manipulation Principle (AMP) technology. Snow wears a cat pendant, the logo of NORA. Snow's foot size is 33 centimeters (about a foot long). His l'Cie brand is on his left forearm.

In Final Fantasy XIII-2, Snow's attire has a darker color scheme. He no longer wears his bandanna, vest or scarf, and has a shorter beard and slightly longer hair. He wears a dark red shirt under a dark gray trench coat with frayed hems. His hair is swept back and exposes his ears. He bears a new Pulse l'Cie brand from the fal'Cie Cactuar on his left arm, closer to his elbow than his original brand. It is in its fourth stage.

During Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, Snow has straight, layered, shoulder-length hair and a short beard. He wears a formal all-black suit, conveying his change into a harsh and serious character. The l'Cie brand he had in Final Fantasy XIII-2 is hidden by his sleeve and advanced to its thirteenth stage, though it sometimes glows through the fabric. The only elements that have remained from his look in the previous games are his gloves, engagement pendant, and boots (albeit in a darker color). During his first battle with Lightning he freezes the axe of an Anubys for himself to wield, but it is destroyed by Lightning during their fight.

As a Cie'th his eyes turn red, his lower left arm is encased in crystal, and the skin leading up from that arm turns black. As the battle with him progresses, the crystalline growth covers his entire arm and begins to consume his face. If fought later, he is shirtless after transforming and the growth on his arm is much larger even before his transformation progresses.

Personality
Snow is a relentless optimist and a self-proclaimed "hero" who wishes to protect and help anyone in need. Although his heart may be in the right place, his naivety and optimism rub people the wrong way. He talks and acts before thinking, unintentionally causing trouble and putting others in danger. Lightning describes Snow as "arrogant and chummy from the get-go, thinks he's everyone's pal", and that his best quality is being "too stubborn to die". In Final Fantasy XIII Episode Zero -Promise-, Lightning compares Snow to her father as being easy-going and passionate, but unreliable. Snow is hot-headed and fearless, not afraid to push his limits and has little regard for authorities. Snow hides whatever guilt he feels behind his mannerisms, though doing so causes people to misunderstand him. Snow is defined by his love for Serah and even after learning about her becoming a Pulse l'Cie, he chooses to stand beside her and help her complete her Focus. His relationship with Serah puts him in conflict with Lightning, who at first believes him to be an irresponsible idiot unworthy of her sister.

In Final Fantasy XIII-2, director Motomu Toriyama has said Snow does not have a "jealous personality", and therefore doesn't mind Serah joining with Noel Kreiss to find Lightning. Being hot-headed and reckless as ever, Snow's overall personality has not changed since Final Fantasy XIII.

During Lightning Returns, though his desire to protect people remains, Snow has become the opposite of his former self: dark, jaded, brooding, and depressed. He speaks like a "broken man", and harbors the regret of failing to save Serah, locking himself away in his palace and reveling more in the city's nightlife as opposed to his duties as patron, gaining the title of "lord of the feasthall". Despite his despondent attitude, Snow is still a good person, caring for the people of Yusnaan, and sealing a massive Chaos infusion away in his palace. After being saved, he regains much of his former self, and in Final Fantasy XIII: Reminiscence -tracer of memories-, he has evolved a more mature personality.

Early Life
Snow was an orphan raised in a Sanctum facility. He grew up with his childhood friends, Gadot and Lebreau, in the seaside town of Bodhum at the edge of Cocoon. He is the leader and founder of NORA, a group consisting of himself, Gadot, Lebreau, Maqui, and Yuj, that acts as a neighborhood watch group, protecting the populace from Bodhum's surrounding wildlife.

Final Fantasy XIII Episode Zero -Promise-
After NORA saves her from an aquatic ambush, Snow is overjoyed to meet his girlfriend's older sister, but Lightning is far from impressed. She had never approved of him or his group's unsanctioned activities and wants Snow to forget about dating her sister. Snow laughs away her demands and his flippant attitude does nothing but reinforce Lightning's original impression of him. Five days later, Serah tries to break up with Snow and shows him her l'Cie brand but Snow begs Serah to let him help her complete her Focus. Serah is scared of what the Sanctum will do if they find out, but Snow vows to help her regardless.

Three days later, while out shopping for Lightning's birthday present with Serah, Snow slips away to buy engagement necklaces; two metal sculptures of Cocoon, under the premise of giving Serah 'the whole world'. During the annual Bodhum fireworks display the night after, Snow proposes to Serah and she accepts. The next day, Lightning's 21st birthday, Serah reveals to her sister she has become a Pulse l'Cie and has accepted Snow's marriage proposal. Thinking she is joking, Lightning does not listen and shuts her out, but Snow is determined to help Serah alone.

Snow plans to take Serah to the Bodhum Vestige to see Anima, the fal'Cie who branded her, in the hopes of revealing her Focus and getting Lightning to believe her. PSICOM had discovered the fal'Cie the previous night and has placed the town under lockdown. Chased by PSICOM, Snow and Serah fly to the Vestige while under attack. Their airbike is damaged and Serah jumps onto a ledge on the Vestige and a silver liquid substance drags her inside as the fal'Cie's prisoner, while Snow escapes the situation unharmed. He goes to explain what happened to Lightning before rushing off.

Final Fantasy XIII


Two days later, as PSICOM Purges the people in Bodhum to Pulse, the Vestige is taken to the Hanging Edge with the fal'Cie and Serah still inside. Snow makes his way to the Hanging Edge and engages PSICOM, leading NORA as a resistance force. Elsewhere, Lightning and her ally, Sazh Katzroy, derail their Purge train and Snow and NORA rescue the remaining Purgees, some of whom volunteer to help NORA fight the Sanctum, including a woman named Nora Estheim. Snow leads NORA and the volunteers into battle and she saves Snow from a Havoc Skytank. As it goes down, it destroys the bridge they are standing on and mortally wounds Nora.

As they hang from the bridge's edge, Nora begs Snow to "get him home" and dies and falls from Snow's grasp. Unknown to Snow, her son, Hope Estheim, is watching the scene from afar and blames Snow for his mother's death. Snow makes his way back to the rest of NORA and the surviving Purgees and uses an airbike to travel to the Vestige. Hope and his companion, Vanille, hijack an airbike and follow him and after saving them from a Cie'th ambush, Snow has Hope and Vanille stick with him. Snow makes his way to Anima's Throne to find Lightning and Sazh already there, along with Serah.

Serah asks Lightning to save Cocoon and crystallizes, and a tear-shaped crystal falls from her grasp into Snow's hand. This bewilders the group, as turning into crystal means a l'Cie has completed their Focus. Snow remains optimistic, believing the legends that state l'Cie who complete their Focus gain eternal life, but Lightning believes Serah to be dead. Snow begs with Anima to return Serah, offering to become a l'Cie in her stead, but Lightning and Sazh — who has his own motives for hunting down the fal'Cie—attack it. Snow joins their plight only to be branded a l'Cie along with everyone else. As the PSICOM destroys the Vestige it releases an energy wave that destroys the Hanging Edge and falls down to Lake Bresha, crystallizing it on impact.

Snow awakens with the rest of the group in Lake Bresha, unscathed. They try to work out their Focus from a hazy vision they saw, but can only figure the legendary beast Ragnarok is somehow involved. While the others believe their Focus is to destroy Cocoon, Snow believes it is to save Cocoon as Serah asked. Now enemies of the state, they evade pursuing PSICOM troops by crossing the crystallized lake when they come across Serah's crystallized form lodged in a formation. While the others keep moving to evade the army, Snow stays to dig Serah's crystal out. When PSICOM attacks him Snow's Eidolon, the Shiva Sisters, are summoned.

After taming them, he is apprehended by Cavalry troops being led by another Pulse l'Cie named Fang. Along with Serah's crystal, Snow is taken aboard the Cavalry airship, the Lindblum, where he meets the Cavalry leader, Cid Raines, who reveals his premise to free Cocoon from the fal'Cie rule. Raines claims the new l'Cie have been sentenced to public execution should they be caught, and with Serah's crystallized form aboard the Lindblum, Snow has no choice but to comply and help them.

When Lightning and Hope are tracked down in Hope's hometown of Palumpolum, Snow and Fang intercept PSICOM's assault on them. They split up: Snow with Hope, and Fang with Lightning, and decide on Hope's home in Felix Heights as a rendezvous point. As Snow and Hope travel through the town, Snow remains optimistic and oblivious to Hope's hatred for him and unknowingly continues to fuel the boy's rage with every word he says.

When they spot PSICOM rounding up more people to Purge, Snow tries to save them by announcing his l'Cie status and firing a gun into the air to make them scatter but the crowd returns as an angry mob. After escaping to the Rivera Towers and fighting an Ushumgal Subjugator, Hope confronts Snow about his mother's death and blasts him off a building's roof. Ready to kill him, Hope approaches Snow with Lightning's knife revealing himself as Nora's son. A PSICOM missile attack hits the building and knocks Hope out, sending him plummeting over the edge. Snow catches him in midair and shields him with his body as the two fall to the streets below.

Despite being injured, Snow carries an unconscious Hope on his back to fulfill his promise to Nora to get her son home. When Hope awakes Snow apologizes for putting Nora in danger and being unable to save her. He returns Lightning's knife to Hope, giving him a second chance for revenge, but Hope realizes he wanted revenge for the wrong reasons. The Ushumgal Subjugator from before returns and knocks Snow unconscious as he tries to protect Hope who fights the beast alone until being joined by Lightning and Fang, and the three destroy the monster together. Afterward, the group heads to Hope's home.

At Hope's apartment Lightning tends to Snow's wounds and the two make amends after Lightning apologizes for how she treated him. Snow apologizes to Hope's father, Bartholomew Estheim, for his hand in Nora's death, which Bartholomew accepts upon learning of Snow fulfilling her dying wish. After Bartholomew exposes several flaws in the l'Cie's plan to take down the Sanctum, PSICOM attacks the apartment. Snow faces the troops, imploring them to realize he is a human like them and they all wish to protect Cocoon. He is rebutted by Yaag Rosch, who claims the l'Cie's lives are not worth the risk of sparing. The party are saved by Rygdea from the Cavalry and taken aboard the Lindblum.

With the Cavalry's help, the group heads to the PSICOM airship, the Palamecia, upon learning Sazh and Vanille are being held captive onboard. They fight their way through and reunite with the prisoners before facing Galenth Dysley in his true form, the fal'Cie Barthandelus, who claims their Focus is to become Ragnarok and destroy Orphan, the fal'Cie that keeps Cocoon afloat. Snow is shocked to hear Dysley's claim that Serah's Focus was to assemble them to be made l'Cie and bring about Cocoon's destruction.

Under Barthandelus's manipulation they escape the Palamecia to the Fifth Ark where Snow remains in a state of shock. While in the Ark the group runs into Cid Raines, who is revealed to be a Sanctum l'Cie branded by Barthandelus with a Focus to help them destroy Cocoon. Determined to defy Barthandelus and save Cocoon, Cid attacks the party. He is defeated, but turns into a crystal anyway. Snow is inspired by Cid's sacrifice, realizing they can defy their fate and still fight to save Cocoon. After Fang tames her Eidolon, Bahamut, the group finds an airship and descends down to Gran Pulse in hopes of finding answers.

Making a base camp in the Vallis Media, they search Pulse for days but find it devoid of human life. After Hope brings Alexander under his control, everyone decides to head to Fang and Vanille's old village of Oerba. They cross the Archylte Steppe, the Mah'habara Subterra and the Sulyya Springs, where Snow learns from Vanille she had met Serah. Vanille tells him Serah had the same vision of Ragnarok and must have overcome her Focus, meaning Dysley lied about it, but Snow tells Vanille he already knows. In the Skyreach, Lightning and Snow discuss Serah and promise to see her again together.

The party ascends the floors of Taejin's Tower and rides a capsule down to Oerba. The dilapidated ruins hold little answers for them and on a run-down bridge Serah appears reciting the legend of Ragnarok, telling the party to destroy Orphan and save the world. She is revealed to be another of Dysley's illusions and after the second battle with Barthandelus, they resolve to protect Orphan and return to Cocoon, where Dysley has resurrected Cid Raines as the new Primarch and created utter chaos in the capital of Eden.

Sazh pilots an airship into the Eden Grand Prix. After saving a racer with the Shiva Sisters, Snow accidentally shows his l'Cie brand to the crowd and chaos breaks out. He and the others infiltrate the city, which is soon overrun by Pulsian machines and monsters from the Fifth Ark. Snow is briefly reunited with the other members of NORA, who scold him for leaving them behind. NORA says they will support Snow regardless if he has become a l'Cie, and leaves to help the populace. Snow and the others reach Edenhall and its heart, Orphan's Cradle.

In the Narthex Throne Barthandelus shatters a crystallized Serah. Snow is enraged but through Lightning's help, remembers he has Serah's crystal tear, seeing through the illusion. Barthandelus is defeated and merges with Orphan who demands they turn into Ragnarok and Fang succumbs to its demands. Snow and Sazh try hold Fang back, but Fang's assault on the party causes everyone but Vanille to transform into Cie'th. Fang fails to destroy Orphan, and after Vanille refuses to follow Fang's example, Orphan explodes and sinks into a pool of silver liquid. Snow and the others return to normal claiming they have seen a new Focus. Lightning calls out their Focus is to save Cocoon and the party's l'Cie brands turn white. They defeat Orphan in its true form and Cocoon begins to fall from the sky.

Fang and Vanille become Ragnarok and save Cocoon by encasing it in crystal and forming a crystal pillar to support it above Gran Pulse. With their Focus completed, Snow is crystallized down on Pulse alongside the rest of the party. They awaken from their crystal stasis briefly after with their l'Cie brands gone. Serah and Sazh's son Dajh are released from crystal stasis as well, and Snow is reunited with his fiancée. As Lightning begins to apologize to Serah, Snow cuts in saying they have a wedding to plan. He promises to make Serah happy and Lightning congratulates the couple.

Final Fantasy XIII -Episode i-
Snow recalls his vision of everyone laughing together, including Vanille and Fang, and knows it is not over yet. Snow proposes they build a city on Gran Pulse since they can find their own food and hunt monsters like back in Bodhum. Serah tells Snow she wants to become a teacher and tell people why Cocoon fell. He supports her choice and decides to build her the largest school she can imagine.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 Fragments Before


The timeline is altered, Lightning disappears, and Snow, along with the others, loses his memory of their reunion and believes she remains within the crystal pillar with Vanille and Fang. No one believes Serah when she claims Lightning was there with them but simply vanished. Over the next two years, with the Cavalry's help, Snow and the members of NORA build the coastal village of New Bodhum. They help Bodhum's former residents adapt to life on Pulse and resume their original role of protecting them from the occasional monster attack. Snow and Serah live together, learn how to use magic, and in a matter of months, Snow delivers on his promise on building a schoolhouse for Serah.

One day, Snow tells Serah that despite his initial doubts he now believes her about Lightning. Though Serah wants to go with him, Snow does not want to expose her to danger, telling her to stay for the sake of her students. He departs to look for Lightning, leaving his engagement necklace with Serah as a promise to return.

After leaving New Bodhum Snow meets up with Sazh and Hope who confess their unease about Lightning's true fate, though are too busy to help him. Snow visits Rygdea, who asks Snow to help him search for the remnants of PSICOM to see whether they are planning an armed reprisal. Traveling to the Archylte Steppe, he encounters a herd of Cactuars. Snow tries to encourage a lone Cactuar it to join the rest and it attacks him, but stops when Snow tells it to. The herd takes off, but the lone Cactuar stays with him instead of following the herd. Feeling guilty for distracting the Cactuar, Snow vows to help it get back to its friends. During the next few days Snow has multiple adventures with Cactaur: being attacked by an Amphisbaena, getting caught in an old monster trap, and encountering former PSICOM soldiers in their makeshift village.

When Snow and Cactuar help them fight off Behemoth Kings, Cactaur, apparently without realizing it, defeats the monsters using powerful magic. It reveals a crystal on its forehead, and Snow realizes it is a Gran Pulse fal'Cie. Snow is drawn into the realm of the gods, recognizing it as the place where the fal'Cie Anima sent him to become a l'Cie. Snow escapes and returns to Gran Pulse and the next morning, Snow resolves to find a way to not only help Lightning but Fang and Vanille as well, and continues on his journey with Cactuar.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 Fragments After
After returning to Cocoon and meeting up with Rygdea in Palumpolum, Snow boards an airship, smuggling Cactuar on board. The ship is attacked by monsters that escaped from the Fifth Ark when the Cocoon fal'Cie went dormant and Eden fell on Bodhum on the Day of Ragnarok; the ship is surrounded by a strange black mist. Snow takes a hoverbike from the hold and, with Cactuar's help, lures the monsters away. The two end up above the remains of Bodhum and Eden and are surrounded by the black mist that came with the monsters and become trapped in an incomplete Time Gate.

They fall into the Historia Crux and emerge in the Coliseum, briefly encountering the Arbiter of Time. Cactuar remembers it is a fal'Cie, regaining its powers and knowledge of its task. It tries to make Snow a l'Cie but Snow refuses on the grounds it would not make Serah happy. The Arbiter of Time says that though Snow is not meant to be there yet, he would return. Snow and Cactuar end up in a looped time distortion and witness events from different times and locations. While most of it is a blur, Snow hears the final battle in Academia between Serah and Caius Ballad, sees Serah's death, and a vision of New Bodhum as a desolate wasteland.

Desperate to save Serah, Snow asks Cactuar to brand him a l'Cie and is given the Focus of finding Serah and fighting by her side during her battle with Chaos Bahamut. Now out of the distortion, Snow and Cactuar are back by the Ark. The now-complete Time Gate appears and they enter the Historia Crux and pass by Sazh along the way. Snow emerges in the Sunleth Waterscape of 300 AF. Stopping to rest, Lightning appears in Snow's dream telling him about the Miniflan converging into Royal Ripeness, and how it threatens to wear down Cocoon's crystal pillar. She urges him to help Serah by protecting the pillar, and in turn Vanille and Fang. During their battle with Royal Ripeness Cactuar is knocked away and Snow never sees it again.

Final Fantasy XIII-2
Having had a vision of Snow in danger, Serah, who is now a time traveler, arrives to his aid with Noel. The three defeat the Royal Ripeness, but the Miniflan reform the monster, forcing them to retreat. After Noel confronts Snow about his recklessness, Snow tells them of his mission to protect Cocoon's crystal pillar and how Royal Ripeness will wear it down and cause Cocoon to fall.

Guessing the giant flan to be a paradox, the trio decides to work together to stop it. After finding two artefacts and coming at a Time Gate, Snow tries to enter it, but since the gate is not his a forcefield denies him access. Noel and Serah tell Snow to wait for their return, but despite promising otherwise Snow continues to fight.

Noel and Serah resolve the anomalies in the Coliseum and the Archylte Steppe at ??? AF, stopping the mass number of Miniflan from appearing in the Sunleth Waterscape to compose the Royal Ripeness. They return to find Snow on the ropes in front of the monster at its reduced size. Together they defeat it for good, and after asking Noel to keep looking after Serah, Snow vanishes. Noel believes Snow disappeared because they resolved the paradox and he does not belong in this time.

Sometime after Snow finds his own gate and enters the Void Beyond. Hearing about the Coliseum, he resolves to find it by using Shiva. Snow worries what Caius is planning and once in the Coliseum, encounters many of the residents of the world before Serah and Noel arrive. Snow battles Noel and Serah as the latter wishes to show him how she has matured during her journey. After the Arbiter of Time allows the two to leave, Snow reveals he is bound to the Coliseum by chaos and promises to reunite with Serah once the matter is dealt with. Until the Day of Reckoning Snow decides to hang out with Gilgamesh, Ultros, Typhon, and the Pupu. When Chaos is released into the world, Snow is freed.

In the paradox ending, "The Future is Hope," Snow appears with the Guardian Corps in Academia 4XX AF to stop Alyssa Zaidelle from tricking Noel and Serah into falling into Caius's trap. He reveals Caius is the one who caused the paradoxes before flying off with Mog and Serah on Shiva in Gestalt Mode to find thirteen crystals scattered throughout time, while Noel remains behind to safeguard Hope, whom Snow said would be assassinated in three days.

Era of Chaos
The intervening events between Final Fantasy XIII-2 and Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII are revealed in a companion novella titled Final Fantasy XIII: Reminiscence -tracer of memories-.

Snow, Hope and Noel made a pact to find a way to save the decaying world. Sazh was originally part of the pact as well, but distanced himself from the others after Dajh fell into an unexplained coma. Snow led the effort to battle the monsters rising from the Chaos until Hope disappeared. Hope's last message to Snow was to tell him that Lightning would return as the savior, warning him to watch out for a fake Lightning.

Without Hope's influence the Order of Salvation gained popularity and became a de facto government in Luxerion. In 837 AF Snow became the Patron of Yusnaan to prevent the Order from gaining a monopoly on the food the city produced. In Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII Hope tells Lightning Snow helped its people and was found by the last remaining fal'Cie, which supports the city, and was charged with protecting it, but it appears that Hope—due to his status—did not mention the animosity toward the Order. Snow became the Patron by popular acclaim as he was deemed someone who would fairly distribute the world's increasingly scarce supplies to those in need. Many see Snow's efforts as the one thing that has kept the populace from succumbing into war over food and other supplies.

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII
Snow has been the ruler of Yusnaan for five centuries, although nowadays spends his time locked up in his palace and his only active role is overseeing the festivities. Snow harbors growing regret over having been unable to save Serah and being unable to halt the world's decline, getting to the point he is willing to die to be freed from the guilt.

When Lightning arrives in Yusnaan during the feast at the end of time, Snow recognizes her as the savior as an outburst of Chaos occurs. After taking out several Anubyses, Snow engages Lightning but is overpowered. Snow asks if she is going to kill him and "save his soul", getting frustrated after she answers she will if he wants "help". Lumina appears, breaks Lightning's blade, and drops the chandelier above. Snow halts its descend by freezing it, creating a structure reminiscent of the crystallized Cocoon. Hearing a noise elsewhere in the palace, Snow warns Lightning not to interfere and runs off into a locked room that houses a Chaos infusion. Forced to flee Yusnaan, Lightning worries over Snow's mental well-being.

When Lightning later returns she uses Serah's pendant he kept throughout the years to reach Snow in his palace. He reveals the previous fight was a ruse to confirm Lightning's identity and shows her the Chaos infusion he had locked away, his intention to absorb it and save the city. Lightning protests that he is only running from his despair, but Snow says he can no longer face Serah, whether alive or dead. Snow steps into the infusion and absorbs its Chaos, transforming into a mindless Cie'th that Lightning must fight. After losing to Lightning Snow slumps over, unresponsive. Lumina appears and speculates Snow is driven by his want to die by Lightning's hand. Lightning's words of Serah still needing him snaps Snow out of his stupor, and despite feeling unworthy and doubting she would still love him, Snow is freed of his emotional burden as he continues protecting Yusnaan with a more hopeful outlook. If Lightning visits Yusnaan again she can encounter Snow supervising efforts to repair the damage she caused.

On the eve of the Apocalypse Snow aids Lightning alongside their allies in the Luxerion Cathedral by destroying the holy clavis and taking out the Order's high priestess to save Vanille. Bhunivelze captures Snow and Lightning's other friends, but when Lightning calls for aid in launching a final assault on the deity, Snow—among Lightning's other allies—answers her call. With the aid of her friends and the Eidolons, Lightning severs Bhunivelze's hold on the souls of humanity and defeats him. Lightning and her reunited allies witness Nova Chrysalia's destruction and the creation of a new world free of gods. Snow accompanies a revived Serah, Lightning and their old friends to the new world, where they can begin their lives anew.

Final Fantasy XIII: Reminiscence -tracer of memories-
After Snow begins his life anew in the new world, he retains his memories and enjoys riding his motorcycle in the countryside. One day he is met and interviewed by Aoede, a reporter seeking the truth behind latent memories of her former life in the old world. Snow tells his side of the story but struggles to find words for Serah's death. Aoede changes the subject and Snow reveals details of his life in Nova Chrysalia, and tells of the fal'Cie Pandaemonium's appearance and how he became the Patron of Yusnaan while squabbling with the power-hungry Order of Salvation. When asked of Lightning's whereabouts, Snow thinks Aoede is not yet ready to meet her, but arranges for her to meet Noel and Yeul.

Final Fantasy XIII


Snow resembles the Monk class of past games by fighting bare-handed, dealing high damage and having the best HP growth. Snow's primary strength is in his defensive abilities and he has the third highest Strength. He is not incompetent in the magical department, however, with many useful spells available to him. Snow's attacking and casting speeds are slightly better than the others'. The player may want to focus on either STR or MAG to bias his attack sequences for AI. The only thing he does worse with a magic build compared to a physical build is generally less damage as a Commando.

Snow's weakness is that he is almost completely outclassed by Fang, who learns all but two (Curasa and Blizzaga) of his non-Synergist abilities, and has better Strength and Magic. Snow's main niche is having the fastest animation speeds, but the lack of Commando's siphon abilities implies a speed-focused Snow was not an intended build. Sentinel is not among the most useful roles for most of the game, and Fang can do it when needed while being more useful overall. However, Snow comes to his own late-game with upgraded weapons when the player no longer needs to worry about class restrictions, and having the best animations across the board becomes useful.

Snow is the only character in the party who has two exclusive skills: the Hand Grenade usable in the first two chapters, and his Full ATB Skill, Sovereign Fist. Snow is the only character whose Crystarium automatically updates at the end of Chapter 3. Snow is the only character to completely outclass another in terms of base stats, with his HP, Strength and Magic all being higher than Sazh's at maximum Crystarium growth.

Roles
He excels in the Sentinel role, and has the highest HP growth out of the six characters, and weapons which provide bonuses to defense and Sentinel abilities. He learns all Sentinel abilities except for Elude.

As a Ravager, he learns all Ice and Water abilities, but can also learn Wind magic up to the -"ra" level. He learns Vigor, making him potentially the best endgame Ravager considering his fast casting animation.

As a Commando he lacks the Siphon abilities, but his high STR makes him deal a lot of damage and his high HP will usually keep Adrenaline active. Snow's Full ATB Skill is Sovereign Fist, which clears the enemy's stagger gauge when executed. It tends to be slightly stronger than Fang's equivalent, Highwind, but once both are hitting the damage cap they function the same.

As a Medic Snow learns the same four spells Sazh does. Curasa allows Snow to be a serviceable Medic since it's not affected by MAG much. Snow is one of only three party members to learn the useful Daze spell as a Saboteur, and Curse, Pain, Fog and Slow are all good debuff spells to have as well.

Snow's weakest role is likely Synergist, as his skillset is ordinary and he learns them late. He is denied the Bar- and En- spells.

Stats

 * Base Statistics

Eidolon


Snow's Eidolon is the Shiva Sisters, Stiria and Nix. Stiria is the dark-skinned elder sister, and the white-skinned younger sister is called Nix. Nix attacks the enemies with mostly physical attacks, while Stiria wields powerful ice and healing spells. They can combine into a motorcycle for Snow to ride on for their Gestalt Mode.

Snow is the only playable character who fights his Eidolon alone and he doesn't help other party members to fight their Eidolon.

Weapons
Snow's weapon uses AMP technology to enhance his powers. Although it changes the appearance of his coat when in battle, the coat itself is not the weapon. The coat enhances the wearer's strength depending on which emblem set is sewn onto the back (the emblems only appear during combat). Snow's weapon is the only weapon that cannot subtract or change forms.

There is a glitch in the game that renders Snow's weapon outside of battle, letting him have a "different" coat on the field. If the player kills a beast on a mission with another character's Eidolon and the summoning is executed while the beast is attacking Snow, Snow's weapon stays on him, even on the field.

Wild Bear is Snow's starting weapon with balanced stats, although Snow doesn't really need the "Physical Wall" it offers. Power Circle boosts his STR, and is obtained early in the game.

Paladin augments Snow's Sentinel role; Mediguard and Steelguard already add 20% damage reduction, but Paladin's "Improved Guard" adds further 8%, while Lv II adds 16%. It can also synthesize the ability "High HP: Power Surge" which increases damage dealt by 20% at HP above 90%. The trade-off is the low max stats.

Umbra has "Improved Ward" that augments the skills Deathward and Fringeward, but these are rarely triggered. It also has "Magic Wall" but its benefit is negligible. It also has low stats.

Feymark makes Snow a magic-oriented character with high MAG at the cost of "Enfeeblement" and ability to synthesize "Magic Damper", making Snow immune to all magical attacks. However, physical attacks still hurt, healing magic will have no effect on him, and it would require equipping four Magistral Crests to synthesize Magic Damper.

Rebel Heart offers "Critical: Power Surge" and "Low HP: Power Surge" by keeping Snow's HP low. Its low stats may be only a minor problem since one is supposed to multiply the damage via the "Power Surges", but it's not easy to get Snow's HP into the specific range as the party starts each battle at full health, and the player can't switch to a paradigm with any AI-controlled Medics.

Unsetting Sun is Snow's "Stagger Lock" weapon, but it has low stats, lower than what the Power Circle can give. Sacrificial Circle has "Paper Tiger" that cuts his HP in exchange for the highest total stats.

Guest
Snow is a guest character in the Sunleth Waterscape 300 AF. He has no HP bar, and thus cannot be knocked out. He is immune to status ailments and certain buffs are ineffective; he can, however, gain any of the En- spells if cast by a Synergist monster.

Snow functions as a full-time Commando using Attack, Ruin, Blitz, and Launch. He is feeble when it comes to magic, which puts him at a disadvantage when pitted against flan enemies, the main enemies in the Sunleth Waterscape. His main use is to keep the enemies' stagger gauges from depleting.

Paradigm Pack
Snow can join the player's Paradigm Pack as a Sentinel. He has by far the highest HP of any monster in the game, which can rise well beyond 20,000 if Vitality Crystals are used in his development and the HP: +30% passive ability is infused into Snow. One drawback is while he has high HP, he does not have any innate resistances, meaning he would be no better than other Sentinels with 10,000+ HP that can halve all attacks, abilities aside.

Boss


Snow is part of a post-release downloadable content, where he can be found in the Coliseum and fought against as a boss.

He can perform the Sovereign Fist as his instant kill move which he will use only if he attacks the same target for too long. If the player tames his crystal, Snow will join as a Sentinel with the highest HP any monster can achieve.

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII


Snow is fought as a boss in Patron's Palace. Depending on which day he is fought, his stats and appearance change.

Creation and Development
According to the April 2009 edition of Famitsu, Tetsuya Nomura based Snow's bandana on an unused design that was originally planned for Kingdom Hearts coded. Snow was given a passionate and impulsive attitude to contrast Lightning's cold and harsh mannerisms. However, earlier in his development, he was given a more negative appearance: being an athletic fanatic with a loud mouth and the mannerisms of a gang leader. This more immature aspect of him was eventually removed.

Before his official name was revealed, Snow was referred to as "Mr. 33cm", referencing his foot size. According to the Japanese voice actor interviews from Final Fantasy XIII Ultimania Omega, Snow's name was originally planned to be "Storm". In an unearthed from an E3 Preview Disc, Snow didn't yet have the scarf hanging from his belt. It turns out this model was actually for the PlayStation 2, before the development of Final Fantasy XIII moved to PlayStation 3. In an early E3 trailer,, which presumably stands for "augmenter", bestowing positive statuses on the party. The role's color was the same as is Synergist's, implying that at some point during development Snow might have been intended to have Synergist as one of his main roles.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 Ultimania Omega reveals scrapped plans for an extension to Snow's DLC scenario episode titled "Perpetual Battlefield". Alongside the existing part of the episode in the Coliseum, there would have been a minigame in which players would play as Snow riding through the Archylte Steppe. The player's objective would have been to try and kill 30 monsters using Snow's skillset–which included being able to spin, drift, jump and use a water-based spell. Once this part of the DLC was scrapped, this minigame was used as a base for the Chocobo Racing minigame.

His appearance in Lightning Returns was meant to be symbolic of the state of the world: from the previously optimistic hero he had become "shattered". His Cie'th form was designed to become more and more extreme, meant to be "the very symbol of Chaos".

Voice
Snow's Japanese voice actor is Daisuke Ono while his English voice actor is Troy Baker.

Troy Baker talked about taking up the role of Snow at Sakura Con 2010, where he commented on how Snow appears as such a tough and strong character, and how many thought Baker's image wouldn't match that of the character he was voicing.

Musical Themes
In Final Fantasy XIII, "Snow's Theme" is a rock tune played with electric guitars portraying his heroic personality. "The Warpath Home" has elements of his theme and Final Fantasy XIII's prelude.

Orchestral variants of his theme are "Forever Fugitives", "To Hunt l'Cie", and "Atonement", while "No Way to Live" is a rock variant, much like his original theme.

In Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, "Snow's Theme ~Final Words~" is a melancholy tune played with acoustic guitar and piano. It plays after Lightning saves Snow in the Yusnaan Palace. A reprise with guitar and orchestra is heard in the end credits theme, "Credits ~Light Eternal~".

Final Fantasy XIV
Snow's costume and weapon, the l'Cie Bardiche, where included in the game as a bonus item in one of the in-game events. Lightning appeared in the same event.

Theatrhythm Final Fantasy


Snow is an unlockable character obtained by collecting White Shards.

He is a Defense oriented character.

Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call
Snow returns as an unlockable character, and is now unlocked by collecting Peach Crystal Shards.

He is a Defense oriented character. His Limit, Sovereign Fist, deals damage in proportion to his Strength.

Final Fantasy Airborne Brigade
Snow is an ally, a summonable Legend and a boss in Final Fantasy Airborne Brigade. He is depicted in his Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy XIII-2, and Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII outfits.

Portraits=


 * -|Legend Cards=

Final Fantasy All the Bravest


Snow is an exclusive character only available from the Premium Character Shop as a random downloadable content. He uses the Ice Ramp ability during battle.

Final Fantasy Trading Card Game
Snow appears on multiple Ice-elemental cards. One depicts him in his CG render from Final Fantasy XIII, one from an in-game scene, one from Final Fantasy XIII-2, one in Theatrhythm Final Fantasy, and one his official render from Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII.

Kingdom Hearts
Snow appears as an avatar in the Nintendo DS  game, along with Serah, Lightning, Sazh and Vanille.

Merchandise
Snow has a Play Arts action figure, as all permanently playable Final Fantasy XIII characters do. Snow has also appeared in Elixir cans. Snow's NORA pendant, and Snow and Serah's engagement pendants of Cocoon have also been released as official merchandise, although the Cocoon pendant has a zircon stone in the middle, unlike in the game.

Glico, the snack company has been working with Square Enix to promote Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII in Japan. Lumina appears on Pocky box along with Lightning and Snow.

Etymology
This may allude to his summon's Gestalt mode.

"Snow" refers to his affiliation with the Ice and Water elements, and may have been a counterpoint to Lightning whose name is also weather-related.

Trivia

 * Snow is one of the tallest playable characters in the Final Fantasy series at 6'7", under the hulking Umaro of Final Fantasy VI, Kimahri Ronso of Final Fantasy X or Ward Zabac of Final Fantasy VIII.
 * Snow's eidolith crystal is in the shape of a heart.
 * Snow's crystal is used for the "L'Cie Paragon" trophy/achievement in Final Fantasy XIII and the "No Retreat" trophy/achievement in Final Fantasy XIII-2.
 * A calico cat that NORA gave Serah after his departure in Final Fantasy XIII-2 is named after him.
 * In Snow's official CG render he is not wearing his NORA necklace or his engagement pendant, though they were present in his render on the now-defunct Final Fantasy XIII summary website. Perhaps modeled after his official CG render, his Play Arts action figure also lacks jewelry. The missing necklaces may be explained by the earliest footage shown having had incomplete models, with Snow not yet wearing his jewelry.
 * Snow wears his engagement pendant in Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, despite it not being given back by Serah in Final Fantasy XIII-2 despite having several chances to do so.
 * Snow's official CG render for Final Fantasy XIII was the only one not used for character bios in the instruction booklet included with the game. Instead, his Gestalt Mode render is used for the guide, as well as for the save screen.
 * Despite having a CG render for his appearance in Final Fantasy XIII-2, Snow never appears in a FMV cutscene.
 * As a running gag in Final Fantasy XIII, before each battle with Galenth Dysley, Snow attempts to attack him but is knocked back by a protective magical barrier. This gag is continued in Final Fantasy XIII-2 when Snow is unable to use a Time Gate to accompany Serah and Noel. In Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, the gag is put in reverse as Snow employs a barrier in the room in which he looks over the Chaos infusion leaving Lightning to find a solution to by-pass the barrier.
 * Snow, Lightning, Sazh, Hope and Noel appeared as models for the Showcase Prada 2012 Men's Spring/Summer Collection.
 * Snow is the only main character to be a l'Cie in all three games of the Final Fantasy XIII trilogy.