Cloud Strife

## Voices

**Cloud Strife** (クラウド・ストライフ, *Kuraudo Sutoraifu*) is the main protagonist of *Final Fantasy VII*.

An arrogant and proud swordsman at first, Cloud introduces himself to Avalanche as a former member of an elite warrior unit called SOLDIER who has turned mercenary, and uninterested in anything beyond his hired task at hand. Beneath his hardened outer persona is a softer, more caring individual who simply struggles to open up, but is striving to be a hero. Cloud later discovers more about his past and, with the help of his friends, learns there is more to being a hero than possessing physical strength and fame. He develops compassion for the planet and the people he fights to protect from the Shinra Electric Power Company and his nemesis, Sephiroth.

Cloud Strife wields large broadswords in battle, including the iconic Buster Sword, and is a versatile melee combatant. In Final Fantasy VII, he has access to the most powerful weapons in the game, as well as the strongest Limit abilities (all of which involve his sword), though they take the longest to learn. In Final Fantasy VII Remake, Cloud's strength is in his raw damage output and his versatility, able to switch back-and-forth between the agile Operator Mode and the more offensive Punisher Mode that allows him to counterattack. In both titles, Cloud has the best all-around stats.

## Appearance

Cloud is a handsome young man that stands at 5'8" with a lean and toned build. He has spiky blond hair which, in Final Fantasy VII, features one particularly long spike. Cloud's hair has become one of the trademarks of his appearance, although in later appearances the spikes have been toned down. Cloud has blue eyes, which glow due to him having being exposed to Mako. Because "Mako eyes" are an icon of SOLDIER, Cloud is often mistaken as one. His weapon is the Buster Sword, a massive sword several feet long which he wields in most of his appearances. Cloud's other trademark weapon is a set of Fusion Swords, which he uses in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. The set consists of six individual interconnecting swords that form a larger sword similar in shape and size to the Buster Sword.

Cloud's outfit in Final Fantasy VII is the standard uniform for 1st Class SOLDIER: indigo pants with a sleeveless shirt, and a belt. Cloud wears brown boots, gauntlets with a pauldron over his left shoulder and a SOLDIER band in his left wrist. This is the uniform he wears for most of his other appearances, with slight variations. He has a silver earring in his left ear.

In Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-, Cloud wears the blue uniform of a Shinra Electric Power Company infantryman with several belts and straps and a green-gray piece of cloth around the collar. He wears his helmet to conceal his identity at times. After he gains the SOLDIER 1st class uniform his appearance is the same as in Final Fantasy VII, albeit with both shoulder pauldrons in-tact and the SOLDIER logo as it is in Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-.

In Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, Cloud's clothing design was made with fighting in mind, and the concept began with a black robe and was restructured into the final version seen in the film. Cloud's hair was changed both to show the passage of time since Final Fantasy VII, and to be more realistic. He wears a high collar sleeveless black shirt, black pants and boots, and black cloth covering his left leg and arm; the cloth on his arm hides his Geostigma symptoms. Cloud gains a new pauldron, and his chest is covered by two straps, held in place by a badge representing Fenrir, a wolf that has come to be associated with him. Like the rest of the party, he wears a pink ribbon around his left arm in remembrance of Aerith Gainsborough, though it stays hidden for most of the movie.

In Kingdom Hearts, Cloud's costume was designed to resemble that of Vincent Valentine. He wears a tattered red cloak with dark blue pants and a shirt and brown boots. The costume features many crossing belts and gloves, the left of which has golden trimmings, almost like a claw. Cloud's most distinctive trait in this appearance is a demonic black wing protruding from his left shoulder, symbolizing both his connection to Sephiroth, and the dark powers he is using. The costume can be obtained as DLC in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy. In Kingdom Hearts II, Cloud is identical to his appearance in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, save that his new sword is loosely bound as the Buster Sword was in Kingdom Hearts.

## Personality

On the surface, Cloud Strife presents himself as a hardened warrior, cocky and headstrong, coldhearted and disinterested in anything beyond completing the hired job at hand. He tells others, often dismissively and with snark, that he has no interest in larger causes, such as the plight of the planet, and appears unshaken by the devastation the bombings he helped carry out cause. He is cool-headed, and mostly carries himself as an expert and professional. Beneath the surface, Cloud is socially awkward, being well-intentioned but unsure how to carry himself in conversations, having difficulties to express himself. Many who are close to him begin to see through the cracks in his hardened persona, recognizing he is softer deep down. Through it all, Cloud is steadfastly loyal to his friends, harboring guilt if he feels he has let them down, and strives to be a hero. He is willing to go through any lengths, from fighting off powerful enemies alone, to crossdressing despite the discomfort to don a disguise, to keep them safe. This, too, does not fool some of his friends, who in turn look out for him when they believe he is out of his depth.

Though most traits core to Cloud — battle-hardened attitude, awkwardness, loyalty to his friends, and striving for heroism — do not change, Cloud's surface-level presentation and warmth shifts drastically throughout his life, based on his own yearning for a true identity. Many of these traits began to form as a child (depicted in Final Fantasy VII flashbacks), as seclusion from the others children and guilt at being unable to help Tifa at Mt. Nibel motivated him to better himself and become a hero, inspired by Sephiroth. While serving in Shinra's military (as depicted in Crisis Core), Cloud had a shy but happy-go-lucky attitude, eager to prove himself, and often got excited when Zack, who became a mentor to him, noticed him.

Following Hojo's Sephiroth Clone experiments which led to his sense of self being completely shattered, Cloud as a mercenary (depicted in Final Fantasy VII and Remake) developed an arrogant personality, where he presented disinterest in a broader cause beyond collecting a paycheck (though interest in a common good occasionally slipped through and he harbored vengeance toward Shinra). Around this time, he also suffered many mental breakdowns upon being reminded about his past, up to the point of doubting he was even a real person, submitting to being a puppet for Sephiroth. After Tifa repaired his mind, Cloud was finally a fully-formed person, accepting who he was, resolving to being a hero not out of being special, but having a cause to believe in. He became warmer and more open-minded towards others, as well as a more confident leader, though the awkwardness would still shine through at times.

Due both to Cloud's awkwardness and his tough presentation, Cloud struggles in forming interpersonal relationships. This is particularly evident with Barret; though Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie take more kindly to Cloud, Barret initially dislikes his attitude and questions his loyalties, leading the two to be rude to one another. After Barret sees through Cloud and gains respect for him, he begins to be able to open up with him and connect with him emotionally. Cloud was also not close with Tifa when the two grew up, although he felt an obligation to protect her. The two became closer and more reliant on one another after losing their home and reconnecting following the Nibelheim Incident. Cloud tried to atone for his perceived failure to protect her at Nibelheim, and Tifa in turn protected him as the last reminder she has of her home, looking out for him when she felt he is out of his depth. Cloud opened up more easily around Aerith, who was more flirtatious and playful with him from the start, though he would often respond stiffly and awkwardly to her advances. He still showed his softer side around her, more willing than others would to entertain her antics when she communicated with her flowers. Cloud is very protective of her and wishes to keep her out of trouble, though this grates on her. By contrast, Cloud trusts Tifa more to handle herself, confident in her combat ability, though he is still concerned for her well-being. It is implied that Cloud may have romantic affection for both Tifa and Aerith, but the extent of his feelings for either is left up to player interpretation.

Cloud is greatly haunted by Sephiroth, a man he once idolized who became his bitter enemy. After the Nibelheim Incident, Cloud envisioned Sephiroth mocking him and urging him to make the wrong decision. This led up to Cloud giving in and believing he was little more than a puppet for Sephiroth, though after Tifa repaired his mind, Cloud resolved to rid himself and the world of Sephiroth. Following Sephiroth's defeat, Cloud, as depicted in Advent Children, became a surrogate father to Denzel and Marlene, but had become detached. His guilt at his own perceived failures to save Aerith and Zack, and trauma following his plight against Sephiroth, led him to feel helpless, becoming somber and brooding as he isolated himself from his new family, in contrast to his younger self before where it had fueled him to strive to do better. However, with encouragement from the friends and family he had tried to let go, he came to forgive himself and moved on.

## Etymology

The names "Cloud" and "Strife" are English words referring to weather and difficulty respectively. Tetsuya Nomura has stated Cloud's name contrasts with Zack Fair's and the idea of "fair weather", in that Zack led a peaceful and happy life while Cloud's has been full of turmoil.

The kana in his name can be also read as "Claude Strauss", which is a real-world German name, but were intentionally read as Cloud to fit the theme of his character arc.

In the French translation of *Final Fantasy VII*, Cloud's name is rendered as "Clad" to be more faithful to French pronunciation ("Cloud" in French would be pronounced as "clood", rhyming with "mood"). His name is rendered as "Cloud Strife" in all other *Compilation of Final Fantasy VII* entries.