Cecil Harvey is the male protagonist of Final Fantasy IV. A Dark Knight from the kingdom of Baron, on his journey to save the world from the evil Golbez. Struggling to prevent Golbez from acquiring powerful Crystals, Cecil learns of his heritage and travels through three realms to battle Golbez’s minions.
Is Cecil Harvey in Final Fantasy a prince?
Cecil Harvey is the main protagonist of Final Fantasy IV, who also appears in the sequel Final Fantasy IV: The After Years, and the interquel Final Fantasy IV -Interlude- that bridges the gap between the two games. Cecil is one of the few characters in the series to permanently change his job during the game, starting out as a Dark Knight, but after a trial and the battle with the first of the Four Elemental Archfiends, transforms into a Paladin.
In the English version of the 3D remake originally released for Nintendo DS, as well as in Dissidia Final Fantasy, Cecil is pronounced [/ˈsɛsɪ̈l/] (seh-sil). However, the bonus disc included with the Final Fantasy XII collector’s edition pronounces it as [/ˈsiːsɪ̈l/] (see-sil).
Cecil is a strong and gifted knight, gaining the respect and admiration of his men during his captaincy of the Red Wings. Although being raised by the King of Baron, Cecil is modest, shy, and insecure. He struggles with showing his emotions, and his meekness catches others off guard, ill-fitting his initial role as a Dark Knight. Cecil struggles with his sense of identity and morality; he comes to hate himself for blindly following his King’s orders to the detriment of others, and promptly loses his sense of self as a result. By becoming a Paladin and bonding with others, he gains a semblance of who he is.
His most remarkable traits are his bravery and firm beliefs. Towards his friends, Cecil is loyal, self sacrificing and exceptionally forgiving, being able to forgive even those who betray him.
In Final Fantasy IV: The After Years, Cecil maintains the noble character of a Paladin, but as a Mysterious Girl appears, his mind and character change radically.
Cecil Harvey’s Origins Explained ► Final Fantasy IV Lore + The After Years
As Final Fantasy ventured onto the SNES with Final Fantasy IV, Cecil Harvey was chosen as the protagonist who would be used to tell a much richer tale than we’d ever seen before.
It would see him develop meaningful relationships with many of game’s expansive cast of characters, like Kain, Rosa and Golbez and of course, he would undergo one of the most famous transformations in the history of the franchise. Cecil would leave his dark past behind and embrace the light by becoming a Paladin.
EX Mode of Cecil Harvey in Final Fantasy
Cecil’s EX Mode is Job Augment, where he exchanges his two spear-like weapons for traditional swords. Cecil gains the ability “Inner Strength” and “Proteus”. Inner Strength boosts Bravery damage Cecil does by 1.5 times, while Proteus allows him to change forms without attacking by pressing Right shoulder button and Square. This allows Cecil to combo his attacks in new ways by quickly changing form.
Cecil’s EX Burst is Soul Shift, an original attack where he attacks his opponent with the power of both his forms in succession. The player must enter the commands that appear on the sides of the screen simultaneously. A perfect EX Burst needs three such commands and starts with Cecil striking his opponent before turning into a Dark Knight and throwing his sword down. He then performs Darkness, where he shoots orbs of darkness at his opponent and ends the EX Burst by reverting into a Paladin, slashing twice and forming a cross of light, dealing HP damage. Failing to enter the commands will have Cecil prematurely end the EX Burst with Darkness.
Gameplay of Cecil Harvey in Final Fantasy
Cecil’s fighting style is Split Soul. He shifts between his Dark Knight and Paladin forms; the Dark Knight focuses on slow, powerful attacks on the ground, while the Paladin uses swift aerial combos. The two have separate Bravery attacks but share HP attacks, and Cecil automatically changes between modes when using a ground or aerial HP attack. He also has one Bravery attack in each form to allow him to change to the other form. Cecil is primarily a melee fighter but has some ranged magical attacks that can set the opponent up for his melee attacks. A drawback of this is that Cecil’s fighting style is entirely different between his two modes, so the player must be adept at knowing how to use both effectively.
Kain’s Hatred Of Him Was Triggered Because Of Cecil’s Relationship With Rosa
The rivalry between Kain and Cecil is easily one of the most intriguing parts of Final Fantasy IV, with this dynamic leading to some of the more memorable events in the game.
This rivalry mainly stems from jealously — namely, it is Kain’s inability to accept that Rosa chose Cecil over him that causes him to veer off into a dark path… before his rival and other friends end up saving him.
Cecil Ends Up Being Ursula’s Godfather After Yang Asks Him
Yang is easily one of the more memorable characters in the series, and the connection he forms with Cecil after the latter ends up helping him out in a tight spot is something he very much appreciated.
This can be seen in the fact that Yang ends up asking Cecil to be Ursula’s godfather — something that the hero readily accepts without any second thoughts whatsoever.
Accompanied by Porom, Palom, and Tellah, Cecil must climb the mountain to atone for his slaughter of the residents of Mysidia (depicted in the game’s intro). By doing so, he can become a Paladin – a holy warrior that possesses the power required to defeat the villain Golbez.
Cecil Harvey is the protagonist of Final Fantasy IV, who initially is a Dark Knight but later becomes a Paladin. Cecil is listed as 178 cm (5′ 83″) tall, but his birthday is not officially recorded anywhere.
Garland is the main antagonist in Final Fantasy. A former knight of Cornelia who has fallen from grace, the Warriors of Light pursue him after learning he has kidnapped Princess Sarah. Garland is the first named character introduced in the original Final Fantasy, and the first antagonist of the franchise.
To become a Paladin, Cecil must defeat his past self. A representation of his dark side, or what he could become, or whatever it is, Cecil must defeat it. Now, this fight is a bit of a gimmick. Dark Knight only has one attack, the Darkness attack that Dark Knight Cecil is supposed to have.
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