50 to 41.

Halfway there folks. Last week we saw the characters who just missed out on making the top half of the list, this week we check out the characters that just made it to the top half. Here we go.

                                        

50. Yuffie Kisaragi (Final Fantasy VII)

“Alright, who's been touching my materia?”

Where the hell is my Materia? Yuffie was born around the end of the Wutai War, and grew up while Wutai turned into a tourist attraction. Yuffie has an obsession with Materia, which stems from learning what it is in Before Crisis. In Crisis Core, she steals Zack’s Bahamut Fury Materia, but sends it back because she doesn’t know how to use it. In Final Fantasy VII, she steals the party’s Materia and she must be chased and saved before you get it back. She is one of the characters Cloud can date, and the only one to kiss him.

49. Galuf Halm Baldesion (Final Fantasy V)

“Whose idea was it to steal that pirate ship, anyway?”

Okay old man, remember, you’re a king. Galuf is Final Fantasy V’s oldest playable character (out aging any three of the others). Thirty years prior to the game, he and three other warriors sealed Exdeath in crystals on the First World. When he heard that the crystals were weakening, he returned in a meteor. Upon landing, his weapons and armour were destroyed and he had amnesia. His only memory is that he had to get to the Wind Shrine. Together with his new friends Bartz, Lenna and Faris, they become Warriors of Light and work together to stop Exdeath’s revival.

Please note: Of the four characters from Final Fantasy V to make the list, Galuf is the highest of them.

48. Snow Villiers (Final Fantasy XIII)

“"The heroes never die. Come on. We've got a world to save."”

He may not be the main character, but that doesn’t make him any less of a hero. Snow is the leader and founder of NORA, and SerahFarron’s fiancée. Lightning has a great dislike of Snow, which grows even more when Serah is crystallised. Despite how bleak any given gets, Snow always remains optimistic, sometimes to the point of obnoxiousness. He also has a tendency to “act first, think later” (Lightning even says his best quality is that he’s “too stubborn to die”). Hope blames him for the death of his mum, but forgives him when he saves his life.

47. Paine (Final Fantasy X-2)

"The hardest person to know is yourself."

This is what Lulu would look like if she used a sword. During the events of Final Fantasy X (though unknown to the player), Paine was a recorder for the Crimson Squad in the Den of Woe. No-one was meant to survive this; however she escaped alongside Baralai, Gippal and Nooj. When the group decided to split up, Nooj shot each of them (while being possessed by Shuyin), leaving the group for dead. Two years later Paine joined the Gullwings in hopes of finding out what happened two years ago, claiming that she “always wanted to fly on [the Celsius]”.

46. Noel Kreiss (Final Fantasy XIII-2)

"You want her? Then you're gonna have to go through me!"

Did nobody tell Noel screwing with time is a BAD idea? Noel was living in a world where there were three people left: himself, Yeul, and Caius. Noel was Caius’s student, and once Noel proved himself to be strong enough he was to become Yeul’s new guardian. However, this meant killing Caius, which Noel refused to do. Caius fights Noel and wins, before heading to Valhalla. Noel follows a while later, and teams up with Lightning to fight Caius. Lightning tells Noel to find her sister and bring her to Valhalla. As he escapes he loses most of his memory.

45. Freya Crescent (Final Fantasy IX)

"What irony. To find the man about whom I have dreamt endlessly... only to discover that he cannot even remember who I am!"

Stalking someone you like? Not creepy at all. Freya is a friend of Zidane’s who’s on a quest to find an old flame of hers, Sir Fratley. The party meets her in Lindblum where she joins the Festival of the Hunt, and encourages Zidane to do the same. When a Burmecian soldier tells them of a black mage attack, she travels with Zidane and Vivi (and later Quina) to help them. She does eventually find Sir Fratley, however he’s suffering from amnesia and doesn’t remember her. Regardless, the two grow close to each other at the end of the game.

44. Zell Dincht (Final Fantasy VIII)

"Why don't you try to show a little more passion...? You know, like me!"

“Hey Squall, want a hotdog?” “Whatever.” Before he was adopted, Zell was at the same orphanage as Squall and Selphie. Because his adoptive grandfather was a legendary soldier, Zell wanted to be like him. At the age of thirteen, he joined Balamb Garden to train. After passing the SeeD field exam, Zell, Squall and Selphie are made to assist the Forest Owls to liberate Timber, an order they reluctantly follow. Unlike the other members of the party, Zell doesn’t use a weapon, preferring to punch and kick his opponents. His personality is basically the exact opposite of that of Squall.

43. Basch Fon Ronsenburg (Final Fantasy XII)

"If I could protect but one person from war's horror... then I would bear any shame. I would bear it proudly."

Ondore, you said he was dead. Basch was born and grew up in Landis with his twin brother Noah. Seventeen years later, Archadia attacked and Basch fled to Dalmasca where he became a soldier. Basch loyally served Dalmasca (even foiled an Archadian assassination on King Raminas). Archadia soon launched a devastating attack on Dalmasca. Basch went to defend Raminas, but was attacked by Noah (thought to be dead). Noah told him he only answered to Gabranth, before defeating Basch and killing Raminas. Framed for the murder, Basch remained imprisoned for two years, before being broken out by the player’s party.

42. Serah Farron (Final Fantasy XIII)

"Running away and leaving behind the people you care about? That isn't love. Though you might just want to keep them safe, shutting them out of your life only hurts them more. The point is, I have people I can count on. I'll make it through."

Little sisters.Always trying to outdo their older siblings.SerahFarron is Lightning’s little sister and Snow’s fiancée. In Final Fantasy XIII she is a non-playable character, but still plays a major role in the plot. Serah is turned into al’Cie by Pulse fal’Cie Anima, and after she crystallises Lightning and Snow make it their mission to save her. In Final Fantasy XIII-2 she becomes the main character, travelling through time with Noel and Mog to correct many paradoxes and save Lightning. Despite having very little (if any) battle experience prior to the game, Serah is a competent fighter.

41. Kimahri Ronso (Final Fantasy X)

"Yuna needs Kimahri. Kimahri protect Yuna."

Wasn’t this guy in Avatar? The six and a half foot tall blue mage (get it, BLUE mage) is Yuna’s longest serving guardian, taking up the job after a dying Auron pleaded with him to take Yuna to Besaid and fulfil his promise to Braska. When his job was done, he tried to leave, but Yuna begged him to stay until he agreed. He initially takes a dislike to Tidus, after he burst into the temple without being a guardian. Kimahri is thought of as an inferior Ronso, due to being short (by Ronso standards) and having a broken horn.

Well, that’s it for this week. Stay tuned for next week, when I’ll reveal numbers 40 to 31 (couldn’t think of a better cliff-hanger than that). Until then, seeya.