Editing Zack

{{Game|BBS|FMB}}

{{suite|Zack}}

{{Character

|name=Zack

|image=[[File:Zack KHBBS.png|350x400px]]

|katakana=ザックス

|romaji=Zakkusu

|fr=Zack

|type=Entelechy

|charworld1=Olympus Coliseum

|origin=Final Fantasy VII

|company=Final Fantasy

|enva=Rick Gomez

|java=Kenichi Suzumura

|game1=Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep

'''Zack''' is a character in ''[[Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep]]'' that appears in [[Olympus Coliseum]] and is the only ''Final Fantasy'' character introduced in the game. Inspired by [[Terra]], Zack strives to be a hero, teaming up with [[Ventus]] to fight off the Unversed. Zack meets [[Hercules]] through this Unversed attack, becoming friends with Ventus and [[Aqua]], the latter whom he flirts with. He also sought training under [[Philoctetes]] to become a hero, but Phil chose to continue training Hercules in the end.

Zack appears in Olympus Coliseum looking for Phil, who is known for training people into heroes and hopes to become his trainee. He meets Hercules and [[Ventus]] during an [[Unversed]] attack and shows his skill in front of Phil. Since Phil only trains one trainee and already has Hercules, he "decides" to form a competition between the two boys to help make his decision: Hercules or Zack. Phil enters them both in only one of the two main blocks in the tournament, since there was another strong contender in the other block (presumably Terra). To be fair to Zack, Phil refuses to train Hercules until he "wins" his match with Zack, prompting Hercules to train with Ventus.

During Hercules and Zack's showdown in the semi-final round, an army of Unversed appear in the city of Athens (the Town Near Thebes) and Ventus volunteers to deal with them so as not to ruin Hercules and Zack's match. Not wanting their friend to get hurt, Hercules withdraws from the competition just one second before Zack does. By default, Zack wins the match. However, by the time Zack arrives, the monsters are already defeated. Phil then arrives and tells them that part of a hero's important quality involves the will to do what is right and quick acting, and, since Zack withdrew after Hercules, Hercules once again "becomes" Phil's trainee. Ventus secretly asks Phil whether he ever intended to stop training Hercules at all. Phil admits that Hercules was in a rut and needed their competition, but Phil acknowledges Zack's potential. Though disappointed, Zack faces his defeat cheerfully.

In the meantime, Terra arrives in the Coliseum, and [[Hades]] tries to find a way to make Terra succumb to darkness. Frustrated by Terra's advancement in the tournament, Hades spots Zack entering the Coliseum and uses the darkness in his heart to control him. When Terra reaches the final round, Zack becomes his opponent but is defeated. As Terra turns to leave, Zack gets up and attacks again, this time using the power of darkness and more powerful attacks. Terra wins again, freeing Zack from Hades's control. After their second battle, Terra helps Zack up and he introduces himself. Zack tells Terra he reminds him of a [[Sephiroth|certain hero]] he admires by his attitude, though Terra denies the compliment.<ref name="Sephiroth">'''''[[Kingdom Hearts Ultimania|Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Ultimania]]''''', '''Interviewer''': "Who is the hero "similar to Terra" that Zack aspires to be like?" / '''Tetsuya Nomura''': "As in the original game, it's Sephiroth. In ''Kingdom Hearts Final Mix'' and ''Kingdom Hearts II'', Sephiroth was portrayed as a being of darkness, but at the time of ''Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep'', we don't know whether or not he was a being of darkness." [https://www.khinsider.com/forums/index.php?threads/bbs-ultimania-plot-mysteries-nomura-interview.147009/ Translation via Krexia].</ref> Zack doesn't listen and says being a hero or not isn't something you choose yourself, and after watching their battle, both the crowd and him consider Terra a hero. Before Terra leaves, the two promise each other a rematch, one where Zack would use his own strength.  

 

 

 

 

==Design==

Zack sports his original hairstyle of short, thick black spikes with bangs framing his face. His eyes are bright blue. Due to his appearance in Olympus Coliseum, he wears armor similar to that of Hercules, though his is grey colored, as opposed to Hercules's orange. Other than this additional armor, Zack wears his SOLDIER uniform of two silver pauldrons, black gloves, a brown guard over his abdomen that is worn over the armor, two belts over the aforementioned guard, and his blue pants and turtleneck, significantly brighter than Zack's original navy-colored clothing.

 

 

Zack's personality can somewhat be compared to Ventus's. He is happy, cheerful, and good at making new friends, and he quickly befriends Terra, Aqua, Ventus, Hercules, and Phil. He is also shown to be a good sport, seen once Phil chooses to train Hercules, and again when he is defeated by Aqua. Zack does have his fair share of patience and seems to take disappointment rather well, dismissing it as "lousy luck". An example of this would be when Phil picked Herc over him. Zack's biggest ambition is to become a hero, much like his ''Final Fantasy'' self, and it proves to be his primary motivator. He can be very persistent and earnest, chasing Phil around town, and he relentlessly pursues his dream of becoming a hero, so much so that Phil nicknames him "Captain Eager".

 

Zack looking up to Terra as a hero mirrors how he looks up to Sephiroth in ''Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-''. Zack's line when asking Aqua on a date is the same he says to Aerith in ''Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-''.

 

 

Zack easily uses his sword in combat, specializing in quick one-handed and double-handed strikes. Zack is agile and quite capable of backflips, ten-foot leaps and fast strikes, which he excels at. He tends to use hit-and-run tactics, back-flipping to a safe distance when done. He is also able to use "Blade Beam", which involves swinging his sword to channel energy on the ground.

When controlled by Hades in the second battle, Zack becomes a killing machine. He is able to use "Reverse Omnislash", which consists of lethal high-speed slashes while teleporting. He can also call down a slew of meteors. He is much stronger and can prove to be a tough opponent for Terra.

Some of Zack's attacks are variations of Cloud's {{ff|Limit (Final Fantasy VII)|Limit Breaks}} from ''{{ff|Final Fantasy VII}}'', including '''{{ff|Blade Beam}}''', '''True {{ff|Climhazzard}}''', and '''Reverse {{ff|Omnislash}}'''. '''Meteor''' resembles both Cloud's {{ff|Meteorain}} and Zack's {{ff|Meteor Shots}} Limit Breaks.

 

|coop1={{nihongo|'''Avenger Tornado'''|トルネドカウンター|<br>Torunedo Kauntā|lit. "Tornado Counter"}}|coopel1=Neutral|cooppow1=2.5|coopstat1=Stun (50%/3.3s)|coopgauge1=+20|coopdesc1=Used after covering an ally by guarding. Swings weapon sideways while jumping to unleash a tornado attack.

 

====D-Link====

Zack becomes a D-Link for Terra, Ventus, and Aqua after clearing Olympus Coliseum. While in link with Zack, they can perform fiery spin attacks.

 

Zack's Slot Edge command refers to the {{ff|Digital Mind Wave}} system in {{ff|Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-}}, which resembles a slot machine. Zack's Fire Strike and Quick Blitz commands may refer to the {{ff|Fire Blade (Crisis Core)|Fire Blade}} and {{ff|Jump (Crisis Core)|Jump}} commands from ''Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-''. Zack's ability icons are colored orbs, similar to {{ff|Materia (Final Fantasy VII)|Materia}} from the ''{{ff|Final Fantasy VII series}}''.

 

[[File:Zack CCFFVII.png|200px|left]]

{{ff|Zack Fair}} first appeared as a minor character in ''{{ff|Final Fantasy VII}}'' before appearing as the protagonist in the prequel, ''{{ff|Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-}}''. Having wielded the legendary Buster Sword before [[Cloud]], Zack was an aspiring 1st class member of the elite troop known as SOLDIER owned by the Shinra Electric Power Company and aimed to become a hero.

 

 

==Notes and references==

{{Party}}

{{FFCharacters}}

[[Category:Allies]]