Characters / Phantasy Star Online 2 - ARKS: Guardians

Main Page | ARKS (Guardians | Council of Six | Classes) | Earth | Omega | Other Planets | The Profound Darkness | 2es

This page details information and tropes pertaining to both the Protagonist and Matoi specifically. To return to the main character index, click here.

WARNING: Late-Arrival Spoiler for events up to Episode 1-3

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The Protagonist

The Protagonist / The Guardian

The player character and main protagonist of Phantasy Star Online 2. In Episode 1, they start out as a promising new recruit of ARKS. After coming back from their graduation exam, they meet Xion, a mysterious woman who bids the Protagonist to head back to Naverius for unclear reasons. Upon doing so they encounter Matoi, an amnesiac girl who somehow knows the Protagonist despite having never met her, and Persona, a masked warrior who attacks the Protagonist and becomes fixated with them and Matoi.

From there on the Protagonist ends up getting wrapped up in a conspiracy regarding the ARKS, the Dark Falz, and the Photoners. By Episode 4, they've become so renowned that ARKS created a title specifically for them known as "Guardian", title which grants the Protagonist and Matoi freedom to do as they please operatives of ARKS.

In the anime Episode Oracle, the role of the Protagonist is filled by Ash.

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• The Ace:
  • From the get-go, the Protagonist is established as being a very promising recruit for ARKS. This is best seen by Episode 2 where they've become so skilled that they have little to no issue taking on legions of brainwashed ARKS operatives with just Matoi for support and defeats them all without taking a single life.
  • To put this into perspective, the game's story starts in the 2nd month of the A.P. 238 just when the Protagonist graduates from being a cadet. By the time the Protagonist and Matoi fight off the ARKS operatives during "Code ABYSS", it's only the 7th month of the year, meaning it's only been five months since they became an official operative themselves and they're already kicking everyone's ass.
  • The protagonist's raw power is lampshaded by Xiao, who calls the protagonist, Matoi, and Alma "freaks" for their prodigious skills and power.
• Ace Pilot: In addition to their incredible combat ability on the ground, the Guardian is also considered an AIS expert, to the point that Xiao asks you to help the R&D department gather combat data for optimizing the AIS units for space combat.
• Action Fashionista: With the sheer number of customization options available to the player, it's entirely possible to change your outfit after every mission and kick just as much ass no matter what you're wearing.
• Action Girl: Female players, of course.
• Aerith and Bob: Can be invoked by players, this being an MMO.
• Always Save the Girl: Doesn't matter who they end up facing, the Protagonist will always protect Matoi. This also extends to Hitsugi and Hariette.
• An Interior Designer Is You: Your character has their own Personal Quarters (MyRoom in Japanese) for the user to decorate to their liking.
• Anime Hair: With Hairstyle Tickets, you can pick up some truly ridiculous hairstyles, like the Upstyle Pony.
• Artificial Human: In Episode 6, it's revealed that the Guardian was created by the Akashic Records itself to act as an opposing force towards Shiva and the Primordial Darkness.
• Arrested for Heroism:
  • In Episode 2, thanks to Luther making it seem like the Protagonist was some sort of spy through falsified evidence, Regius puts out a hit order on them through "Code ABYSS" which makes the near entirety of ARKS go after them and Matoi. It takes Quna bringing forth proof of the Protagonist's innocence that "Code ABYSS" is rescinded.
  • This nearly happens a second time in Episode 3 where Xiao tries to use his authority against the Protagonist and Matoi in order to prevent them from going to Harukotan to aid Sukunahime despite the fact that F-Factors in their bodies were nearing critical mass and put them at risk of becoming Dark Falz themselves. Xiao only relents because he knows he can't really stop either from going regardless.
• Asskicking Leads to Leadership: By Episode 3 they've taken down Falspawn by the legions, Dark Falz, and even helped seal the Profound Darkness away. Once they reawaken from cryo-stasis at the beginning of Episode 4, they're informed by Xiera about their new rank which is "Guardian", a title specifically created for both the Protagonist and Matoi in light of their feats which allows them free reign as operatives of ARKS, with only Xiao, the Council of Six, and Ulku having equal or greater authority.
• Badass in Distress: Becomes this right before the True Final Boss of Episode 6 as they're being dragged into darkness. They are saved by Matoi, Hitsugi, and Harriet.
• Badass Teacher: Several of the ARKS Trainees hanging around the Shopping Plaza look to you for advice. This is reflected in the Client Orders they give you, as they're all looking for advice on how to deal with specific enemies, such as Io's desire to learn how to perform Perfect Attacks, and Rubert wanting to learn about enemy weak points. This is also how a younger Zeno sees you when you meet him as a trainee after time travelling 10 years prior in Episode 2.
• Berserk Button: Rarely anything angers the Protagonist. They take exception when Elmir mocks Xion and Persona's sacrifices and proceed to lay waste to him.
• Beyond the Impossible: The standard operating procedure for the Guardian in general. It doesn't matter what kind of obstacle stands in their way, they will push through and come out victorious. This hits its maximum threshold by the end of the story: where they defeat the Primordial Darkness once and for all - creating a future beyond what the Akashic Records had established which leaves even Xion astonished.
• Big Damn Heroes: As the hero of the story, you naturally pull off many a daring rescue in the nick of time.
• Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Depending on the outfit you equip your character with, you can certainly give this impression. You can save the universe while literally wearing bunny ears, or even a full Goofy Suit.
• Chick Magnet: Whether the Guardian is male or female, they're this as most of their closest associates are all women, some of whom have or might have feelings for them. Examples include Matoi, Hitsugi, Hariette, Quna, Io, and Stratos.
• The Chosen One: An ancient legend in Omega foretells of a savior from a distant world, guided by a spirit, who will eradicate the darkness. You happen to fit the bill. Even before that, you're also the one chosen alongside Matoi by Xion, for reasons that don't become much more clear until well after Luther takes the center stage in Episode 2. As it so turns out, you're also ultimately a creation of Xion specifically, crafted to uphold a Stable Time Loop as the original Akashic Records, thus being the origin of history in the PSO2 universe and the entity that manifests the Omega dimension as a dream made reality.
• Chronic Hero Syndrome: They have a tendency to lend a hand to everyone they meet, regardless of circumstances, if they need it. It works against them when the F-Factors inside them become so concentrated that they're put at risk at becoming Dark Falz themselves, making them a candidate for becoming the new Profound Darkness. Yet, they continue to go on anyways because people need them. Lampshaded repeatedly throughout the story.
  Harriette: To fly to someone's aid in a realm where you tread blindly... is no small feat.
• The Confidant: To almost everyone in the story.
• Deadpan Snarker:
  • For every kind conversation option that Sega gives out, 90% of the time, there would definitely be a snarky response. In-universe, the Protagonist tended to be rather indifferent and somewhat cynical towards the interactions with the more... exuberant NPCs (Katori and Pietro, among others), which can be seen via their body language as well as their reactions even when they were not given a conversation option. Said body language includes nodding, outright ignoring, and simply staying quiet, looking to the heavens or rolling their eyes.
  • In Episode 4, they shrug when Enga asks if ARKS is run by weirdos. In Episode 5, they're scratching their heads and sighing while dealing with the Dark Falzes in their head. They're especially snarky with Apprentice, casually referring to her as "Mar" and rolling their eyes at her Tsundere mannerisms with a "Whatever you have to tell yourself."
• Defeating the Undefeatable: The Three Heroes in their prime couldn't stop Dark Falz Elder, but the Guardian does it singlehandedly. Part of it is being a Third Generation ARKS that simply has more refined and latent capability versus Elder not having enough time to reach his full power, but part of it is also being The Ace, and eventually they could make a checklist of all the godly entities no one expects them to beat. By Episode 6, they not only beat Shiva with a great deal of help, but once they're bailed out by Matoi, Hitsugi and Harriet in the aftermath, they even manage to kill the Profound Darkness once and for all in single combat.
• Despair Event Horizon: They reach this in the timeline where they agree to Persona's request to kill Matoi. Once the deed is done, and Matoi bids them farewell, the Protagonist is so overcome with grief that they end up transforming into another Dark Falz Persona themselves and proceed to travel back into the past to try prevent said future from ever happening.
• Dialogue Tree: This is how you interact with the characters in cutscenes. Sometimes it can change the route you're headed to, depending on the response.
• Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?: Time and time again, they punch out the strongest beings in multiple universes. The Dark Falz, Deus ESCA, Mother, among other Physical Gods with Reality Warper powers.
• Distaff Counterpart: Sometimes the AC Scratches re-release older clothing, but tailored to fit the opposite gender instead. With the right character build, it's possible to have your character pass as the opposite gender as a result.
• Dispel Magic: All ARKS operatives share the same basic ability to resist and purify corrupted photons known as F-Factors. In the Protagonist's case however, their ability to do so is so strong that they're capable of purifying even the Dark Falz themselves. Even a simple touch from their weapon is enough to purify that brainwashed and corrupted Euclyta and Aurora during Episode 5.
• Drone Deployer: Dark Blast Apprentice's abilities revolve around summoning insect Falspawn drones.
• Dueling Player Characters: Occurs anytime someone faces a Clone of another player.
• Dynamic Entry: When Hagito is siccing his Phantasms on Hitsugi, the Protagonist drops from the sky with a sword in hand and effortlessly wipes out Hagito's forces, including several T10 tanks, attack helicopters, and zombies, with a single swipe.
• Enemy Mine:
  • Midway through Episode 2, Dark Falz Elder puts on a Big Damn Heroes moment when Gemini siccs some Luther and Apprentice clones on your party. He then allies with you as a partner in the ensuing fight.
  • Episode 3 follows suit when you and Matoi are consumed by Gemini. As it turns out, Luther is also stuck in the same dilemma that you and Matoi are facing, and with nowhere else to turn, you and Matoi team up with Luther to find a way out.
• Famed In-Story: With each Episode, the Protagonist gains more and more of a reputation as a One-Man Army and a hero who saved the universe time and again. By Episode 4, pretty much everyone knows who they are and stop to at least say hi if they aren't busy squeeing over meeting the Guardian. Even Mother Corps knows that they're ARKS strongest fighter and champion, taking special measures to trap them on the Moon to prevent the Protagonist from stopping their assault on the ARKS ship.
• Fighter, Mage, Thief: The original three classes, the Hunter, Force and Ranger, fill these roles respectively, as do their "advanced" versions, Fighter, Techer and Gunner. The later classes muddy the waters a bit by being able to do two or even all three at a time, but at any rate, you can be any one you like and switch between them freely. It's noted that this flexibility is an attribute of the newer ARKS, and older members were more firmly stuck in one of the three positions.
  • The Scion Classes follow this to a lesser extent. Étoile falls under Fighter for being the most focused Close-Range Combatant, Phantom is the Mage for its viability as a Technique-wielding class compared to the others. Luster attacks blindingly quickly in close range and further away, making it best suited for Thief.
    • Hero, meanwhile, falls somewhere in between all three of them. It leans the most towards Thief for being a swift Glass Cannon with a Talis that functions more like a shuriken sleeve than a Technique focus. However, its knightly aesthetic and giant Sword draw from Fighter. As for Mage, its Talis has unique tricks that Forces cannot use and it can fire energy blasts while wielding a Sword.
• Foil:
  • The Protagonist to Regius. Both are the two most powerful members of ARKS that their respective generations had ever produced. They also became close with someone holding the title of Klariskrays (Matoi for the Protagonist, Alma for Regius), a relationship which more or less shaped their lives afterwards. In a sense, Regius could be seen as the person that the Protagonist could have turned into had they decided to move on from Matoi's death in the alternate timeline of Episode 3.
• Friendly Fire: It's possible for this to happen between players if one or both are affected by Panic. The damage is low enough to prevent it from actually killing people, though.
• The Gadfly: In more casual story events, there's a surprisingly high number of opportunities to say weird things or just outright be a lighthearted Troll just to see how others react. From Episode 4 onward, characters like Io imply they've always had a habit of it.
• Gameplay and Story Integration:
  • During the time travel mission to investigate Matoi's past in Episode 2, it's shown that the Protagonist has the ability to punch out sylvants with ease barehanded when saving a young Zeno. In actual gameplay, it's entirely possible for players to do this provided that enemies are at a low enough level and that players have a high level as well.
  • Throughout the latter half of game, it's shown the Protagonist is incredibly versatile as they can use different types of weapons with ease. In Episode 5, Huey even mentions that the Protagonist has a knack for mastering any class they pick up. This falls in line with the fact that players can choose any class in-game, and thus their weapons as well, and even max level all of them should they choose.
• The Gift:
  • Throughout the first three episodes, it becomes clear that the Protagonist has absurdly high photon affinity, being able to keep up to an extent with most of the Council of Six by Episode 2 which is almost half a year of them being a full ARKS operative. By the events of Episode 4, they're acknowledged as being pretty much the strongest operative that ARKS has, with Matoi as their only peer in sheer power. In Episode 5, they single-handedly power multiple Buster Towers when Hariette can't even get one to activate and power through hordes of Supernatural enemies by themselves. Episode 6 makes it clear that this is not merely part of being The Chosen One. They were tailor-made as a Tyke-Bomb by Xion to thwart the Profound Darkness and gifted with immense potential as a result.
  • As mentioned above in Dispel Magic, there's also their ability to dispel F-Factors from others that they share with Matoi. Though an ability shared by all ARKS operatives, the Protagonist and Matoi are the only ones shown strong enough to purify and even restrain beings such as the Dark Falz.
• Good Costume Switch: The Falzes' manifestations after absorbing them have the red highlights on their outfits replaced with blue. This also extends to your Dark Blast forms (by default, anyway; you can change the colors to whatever you like). The appearance of the Dark Blasts differ from the originals in various other ways as well:
  • [Elder] has sprouted a tail and now focuses entirely on close combat instead of the Elder Pain.
  • [Luther] has a single, larger pair of wings instead of six.
  • [Apprentice]'s leg is exposed and the dual blades are now mounted on her arms.
  • [Gemnini] has a much more comical look overall compared to their former nightmarish appearance.
• Guys Smash, Girls Shoot: Male characters have slightly higher melee attack, while females have higher ranged and tech attack. The difference is tiny enough to be irrelevant to all but the most dedicated of minmaxers, though.
• Hartman Hips: Female characters can have these, and even be a bit chubby if so desired.
• Hello, [Insert Name Here]: Text dialogue uses your player name when needed, but any speech refers you as "you", "mate/partner" (by Afin), "boss/senpai" (by Io), "leader" (by the Falspawn Busters, Gene, More, Annette and Bruno), "Guardian" (by most of the people in Omega) and some of its variations like, "Guardian-kun" (by Omega Luther) and "Guardian-dono" (by Varuna).
• Heroes Prefer Swords: Although capable of wielding a variety of weapons based on the player's class, the Protagonist is almost always depicted wielding the Coated Edge sword or the Coated Doubliss double saber in cutscenes. In Episode 6, their main weapon as a Phantom is the Coated Sabre katana.
• Heroic BSoD: Implied by Matoi to be going through this after the Falspawn invasion on Ship Themis in Episode 1, but eventually pulled themselves together.
• Heroic Mime: You don't talk in cutscenes. When you do, it's silent and only in-universe characters hear you. Outside of cutscenes, though, your Voice Ticket determines your lines, if you want to pretend to be Saber or something.
• Heroic Sacrifice: In four different instances!
  • In Episode 3 Chapter 5, you push Sukunahime out of the way right before Gemini can consume her. However, this causes you and Matoi to get consumed instead and sucked into a Pocket Dimension where the two of you are forced to forge an uneasy partnership with Luther. After escaping and beating Gemini, you push Matoi out of the way when the former sends a wave of F-Factor in her direction, taking the brunt of their photons and nearly transforming into the Profound Darkness. This gets undone when Matoi uses the Clarisa to pull the corruption from you and taking it for herself.
  • At the beginning of Episode 5, the plot kicks off when the Protagonist saves Matoi which results in them being whisked away to the world of Omega by accident. In the finale of Episode 6, the death of Shiva means you're the closest candidate for the Profound Darkness again, except it's so much more powerful now that there is effectively nothing that can save you. Thus, in the Normal Ending the player character whisks themselves into a new Stable Time Loop - where they become the original Akashic Record by effectively resetting themselves at the start of creation, from which darkness will exist but the present didn't end. It takes S-Ranking the final mission up to Shiva's boss fight to still have the strength to resist, which gives Matoi, Harriet and Hitsugi enough time to save you so you can fight the Primordial Darkness once and for all.
• Human Popsicle: You're put into cryo-stasis during the two-year internim between Episode 3 and Episode 4. This is because the F-Factors within the Protagonist needed cleansing before it became too dangerous.
• Iaijutsu Practitioner: Anyone who uses a Katana-type weapon fights with a style akin to Iaijutsu.
• I Am Who?: According to Shiva, the Guardian, whom she refers to the "Vessel of the Universe", was created by the Akashic Records itself to stop the Primordial Darkness from destroying all of reality. It's then later revealed that the Guardian is the Akashic Records themselves via a Stable Time Loop where they went back to the beginning of time after having been possessed by the Primordial Darkness.
• Implausible Boarding Skills: The Photon Art Ride Slasher allows you to surf on your Sword. Let us remind you that the Sword weapon class also consists of the Space Tuna, the Ruins Charm or Ruins Gloam 10★ swords, which is a Laser Blade, christmas trees, and umbrellas, to name a few. In fact, the Wave Board Sword was designed specifically to invoke this trope. The weapon itself comes with the aforementioned Photon Art, allowing any player to use Ride Slasher, even characters that don't have Hunter as a main or sub class!
• Informed Equipment: The Units that function as your armor can be hidden at will. Additionally, weapons can have their appearance altered through "Weapon Camos" that you can equip, or the very costly "Weapon Form Change" that swaps out the base weapon's appearance for another, same-type weapon, if you don't like how your weapon of choice looks.
• Instant Expert: Huey notes that even among Third Generation ARKS, who have the ability to swap between classes without penalty, the protagonist has a special knack for mastering any class they pick up. This is why he asks you to help Stratos develop the Hero class, and your combat experience and tips proves essential for it to be authorized as a new class. As shown in Episode 5's cutscenes, they soon excel at the Hero class too, getting into complicated cutscene fight sequences using all of the weapons and tools at a Hero's disposal.
• It's Up to You: In story missions, the player does everything, because frankly, your allies suck. If you die, have fun starting from the beginning (unless there's checkpoints)! In Episode 5, it was stated that every Buster Quest ever done, every Red Dragon revival fight ever did, was done by the protagonist only, with no outside help due to the classified nature of the Omega dimension.
• Kick Chick: Any female character that fights with Jet Boots qualifies. The Bouncer promotional art has the female showing off the Jet Boots, too.
• Last Chance Hit Point: Hunters and Heroes can learn skills that can allow them to survive a lethal blow^note the Hunter's version caps out at a 75% chance while the Hero's only works once per mission. Some equipment pieces have abilities with similar effects.
• Little Bit Beastly: Deumans have horns. This can also be evoked by certain outfits or accessories.
• Living Emotional Crutch: To Matoi. She can't bring herself to imagine a world where the Protagonist isn't around by her side and is more than willing to sacrifice herself if it meant they could live. Also goes both ways as the Protagonist themselves immediately gives in to despair and become the next Persona the moment she's killed in the alternate timeline, deciding to turn back time and save her rather than move on from her death.
• Living Legend: By Episode 4, they're this. A few characters are seen geeking out when they meet the Protagonist for the first time. Huey even calls them this during a public exhibition match between the Protagonist and Stratos in Episode 5.
• Luckily, My Shield Will Protect Me: Several katana-type weapons have large shields for scabbards.
• Magic Knight: Can be done through using a melee class like the Hunter and subclassing a Force or Techer, allowing you to cast Techniques while wielding, say, a BFS. The mileage you get, however, isn't very much as they generally have very low T-ATK stat to work with, making this Awesome, but Impractical. More practically, the Bouncer, Hero and Phantom are dedicated hybrid classes.
• Magnetic Hero: The Protagonist has the uncanny ability to get along with just about everyone and everyone in turn adores them. Hitsugi even notes this and says it's proof of how great a person the Protagonist is.
• Master of All: In-game it's very possible for players to maximize levels for every single one of the available classes that they can choose from, though they're still limited to one main and sub class at a time (unless they use a Scion Class in which case they're limited to just the main). In-universe, it was stated that unlike most ARKS who prefers to stick to their comfort zones, the protagonist dabbles in and mastered all kinds of weapons and classes.
• Meat Puppet: In Episode 5, after being absorbed, Gettemhult briefly manages to seize control of their body in one side event regarding Melrandia before they manage to shake it off.
• Mind Hive: In Episode 5, every Dark Falz host liberated from Omega becomes a passenger in the player's mind, giving them access to their respective battle forms as a Super Mode. Unfortunately for the Protagonist however the Dark Falz don't really get along which leads to frequent arguments within their mind that they sometimes have to break up personally. They can even briefly take over the Guardian's body, leading to some awkward and hilarious moments of them scuttling about while Gettemhult walks them over to Melrandia.
• Mirror Match: In certain missions the player will sometimes end up fighting a clone of themselves or other players. Persona is also this in-story as they use corrupted versions of the weapons that the Protagonist frequents in-story such as the Coated Edge and the Coated Doubliss.
• Morality Chain: To a number of characters in-universe. The most obvious of these would have to be Quna, where the normally stoic assassin ends up befriending Protagonist and they proceed to become her closest friend after they help Quna finally end the issue with Haddred. Even the trigger happy Risa ends up being affectionate with them. Even Casra can't help but act nicer when they're around.
• My Own Grandpa: Episode 6 reveals an interesting twist on this because not only is the Guardian responsible for their own creation, but it turns out that they're responsible for all life in the universe itself.
• Mysterious Past: The story never really brings it up, given the player character is your own perspective into the story and all, but no one knows where this ARKS agent came from. Even Luther with his extensive knowledge has no clue who they are. Turns out this is for a good reason; they were created by the Akashic Records itself to serve as its will and oppose the Primordial Darkness.
• Next Tier Power-Up:
  • At the beginning of the game, Xion gives the Protagonist the ability to time travel through the Divergence Matrix. Xiao later enhances this ability to allow them to travel back months and even years.
  • Story wise, the Protagonist's classes of choice are Hunter and Fighter as they tend to use the Coated Edge or the Coated Doubliss. By Episode 5 however, they've gained access to the more powerful Hero Class and it becomes their main class throughout the episode all the way to the end. In Episode 6, they also gain access the Phantom and Étoile classes as well and switches between them throughout the episode.
  • Also in Episode 5, the Protagonist gains the Dark Blast ability. This allows them to transform into the Dark Falz forms of Elder, Luther, Apprentice, and Gemini and even use some of their abilities to an extent.
• Not So Above It All: They're usually The Stoic due to the whole limitations with a custom character, but they're totally ready to hop into a Rare Drop Koi! Koi! dance, participate in Quna's Episode 4 concert as a back dancer, have their occasional amusing remarks and even take Phaleg up on a duel challenge for absolutely no reason but because they can, even as Xiera tries her hardest to turn them away from it.
• Oh, Crap!: There's generally two things the protagonist does not want to deal with in their day: a potentially angry Matoi that's Played for Laughs, and the infamous Phaleg, who utterly terrifies them.
• One-Man Army:
  • The Protagonist quickly gains renown as a standout ARKS operative because of the sheer amount of ass they're able to kick. Even when all of ARKS is turned against them by Regius' "Code ABYSS" order, they manage to plow through every operative they encounter without killing them with only the inexperienced Matoi to back them up. Xiao even refers to the number of Falspawn they've killed as "astronomical", with the Protagonist being responsible for taking down most of the Dark Falz on-foot as well when the Three Heroes (Regius, Casra I, and Alma) had struggled dealing with just one. By the end of Episode 3, they've even defeated the Profound Darkness in combat.
  • Further driving this point home are the events of Episode 5. Because of how only the Protagonist (and Xiera who acts as their intel support) is able to travel through the black hole, it basically results in them being the only one fighting off the hordes of supernatural and Falspawn threats that plague Omega throughout the story. Even the Castrum Demonica battles are canonically only fought just by the Protagonist.
• Physical God: By the end of Episode 3 very little can actually stand in the Protagonist's way as they've taken down legions of Falspawn, the Dark Falz, and even the Profound Darkness. As if to emphasize this point, Episode 5 begins with the Profound Darkness' latest reappearance. Together with Matoi, the two proceed to utterly curbstomp it with little issue. By the end of Episode 6, Xion refers to the Protagonist as the "Great Light", the true and ultimate antithesis to the Profound Darkness.
• Player Headquarters:
  • Each player receives their own room to personalize.
  • And then there's the Team Rooms, which are actually personal spaceships. At certain levels, the leader can spend Team Points to change the ship's music or temporarily park the ship in a hot spring, a forest base, or a even private beach.
• The Protagonist: The playable character, and the one who does everything.
• Rummage Sale Reject: Due to how many costumes and accessories there are, you can make your character fashion train wreck if you wish. The clothing layering system only adds more potential to have horribly mismatching ensembles.
• Secret-Keeper: One of the few people to actually know about the Idol Quna's true identity as Zelsius Quna, the secret 0th member of the Council of Six and leader of the Death Squad. They also helped to keep Echo and Theodor in the dark about Zeno and Ulku's survival in Episode 2 to prevent Luther from finding out and thus adjust his plans accordingly.
• Screw Destiny: The Protagonist's modus operandi. It doesn't matter how difficult something is, they will overcome it and prove fate wrong. Thanks to Xion and Xiao giving them the ability to time travel, they're able to make good on this throughout the first three episodes. By the end of Episode 3, they've even managed to save Matoi from her fate as the Profound Darkness' host, something that even Xion admits she has never seen happen before despite her omniscience.
• Seen It All: Besides a couple choice moments in Episode 4, they aren't really all that phased by what goes down and almost seem to expect certain plot twists. It's actually somewhat Played for Laughs, with the story implying they've become something of a Deadpan Snarker because of their raw experience in warfare and saving the galaxy. Even being sent to Omega in Episode 5 barely phases them as they're quick to adapt and help Hariette out with her troubles.
• Shipper on Deck: For Ulku and Theodore to a degree, Zeno and Echo when it comes up, Oza and Marlu with some help from Azanami, and even Sarah and Xiao. Basically if there's anyone with chemistry around the protagonist that even they can notice in a cutscene, there's almost always an opportunity to point it out or end up helping it along.
• Small Girl, Big Gun: Possible if a very short female character wields one of the larger Assault Rifles or — especially — Launchers.
• Spanner in the Works: For basically every antagonist besides those who actually plan around them. The protagonist is that one person that inexplicably has no notable or known past yet comes out of left field to ruin their machinations. Luther in particular is baffled by the fact that Xion chose them over him, never mind his defeat at their hands.
• Spotting the Thread: In Episode 4 when the Guardian and Enga storm Mother Corps' moon base in order to rescue the kidnapped Hitsugi. Thanks to their own experience with time travel, the Guardian is quick to realize that they've have been caught in a time loop after repeatedly fighting against the same enemies over and over. True enough, Phul and Och soon reveal themselves and express their amazement at the Guardian figuring it out so soon despite their preparations before hand.
• Stable Time Loop: In Episode 2, the issue of who Matoi is comes to ahead as her identity is revealed to be Klariskrays II. Determined to find out exactly what happened to her ten years ago, Xiao sends the Protagonist back in time to find out everything they can. In doing so, this results in the past Matoi meeting the Protagonist and befriending them which explains why Matoi is so fond of them in the present despite having never met before, and also why Matoi was sent to the future in the first place. During said same mission, the Protagonist also meets a young Zeno where it turns out that the "Master" that adult Zeno kept referring to is the Protagonist themselves, who proceeds to pass on the lessons that Zeno taught them to the young Zeno.
  • If you can't S-Rank the final long assault in Episode 6, the Protagonist ends up so filled with the raw power of the Profound-turned-Primordial Darkness after Shiva's death, and doesn't have the strength left to really fight it, that they Time Travel all the way back to the beginning of creation and become the original Akashic Records that ultimately end up sustaining Xion's future knowledge, effectively causing the crux of the entire story line. Getting the S-Rank allows this fate to be broken, and get a shot at taking down the Primordial Darkness at long last instead.
• Stance System: Melee-oriented classes can use Stances to alter and enhance their abilities.
• Start My Own: The Luster class lacks a Class Trainer, and the context heavily implies that it's the Guardian actually forming their own fighting style off of their vast experiences to match all types of combat.
• The Stoic: Usually pretty strait-laced and potentially the Only Sane Man in a fair amount of the ridiculous and sometimes extremely dangerous circumstances that surround them. It doesn't help that despite having facial expressions, the story never actually uses them. However...
  • Not So Stoic: They occasionally use more sheepish or even shocked lobby actions in response to certain things, are definitely unnerved around Phaleg once they have a fuller picture of her power, and are notably more emotional when their friends are involved with something, especially Matoi. And they're pissed with Elmir enough to unconditionally team up with the other Dark Falz for a Curbstomp Battle when he makes light of the sacrifices of Persona and Xion while giving himself the title of the former.
• Supporting Protagonist: The Protagonist takes more of a backseat throughout the events of Episode 4. While they are still mostly present for the majority of the story and lend their help when it's needed, the driving force behind the story lies squarely with the Earth characters.
• Sword of Plot Advancement: During the operation to save Persona the prologue of Episode 5, the Protagonist's weapon is modified to replicate the ability of the Ame-no-Murakumo, Hitsugi's Katana from Episode 4 that has the power to separate photons/ether from living beings. Unfortunately things go awry when it causes the Profound Darkness to run berserk and teleport away to the Omega dimension along with the Protagonist, kicking off the main events of Episode 5.
• Technicolor Eyes: Eye color can be any color of the spectrum. Can possibly overlap with Color-Coded Eyes if desired.
• Time Travel: An ability gained from Xion in Episode 1. It was first utilized to save Matoi, and was utilized throughout Episode 1 particularly when it came to locating the remnants of Clarissa, as all three pieces were found on the same day but with different people. In Episode 2, Xiao enhanced the ability by granting the Protagonist the power to travel back months, allowing them to go back in time to save Zeno from Elder and Ulku from Luther's Avian Falspawn, and later travel back 10 years to discover who Matoi is. It later gets used again at the end of Episode 6, wherein the Protagonist uses the power one last time to travel back to the beginning of time itself in order to seal away the Profound Darkness.
• Throwing Your Sword Always Works: Against Deus Hyunal, the protagonist throws their sword like a buzzsaw at the self-proclaimed god. Then then finish it off by throwing their sword like a javelin through it, leaving it open to getting bisected by Hitsugi.
• Took a Level in Badass: At the start of the game during your ARKS initiation, story-wise you have a hell of a lot of trouble with base level Falspawn and a Dark Ragne in particular. By Episode 3's conclusion, you fight the Profound Darkness, the origin of Falspawn altogether, and defeat it by yourself. And that's only the halfway point of the overall story.
  • This is more pronounced in Episode 6. At the beginning they can barely fend off the Photoner forces, same as everyone else, and hold no candle to Shiva who could deliver them a Curbstomp Battle without even trying. Slowly but surely they match up to Shiva's generals Mitra and Varuna, even defeating the latter with only Risa on the assist and no ashen barrier from Sukunahime like what they had to use on Mitra, which culminates in rising up to be the best ARKS operative for the final battle with Shiva. Plus the whole "killed the Profound Darkness in its primordial, natural state" in single combat after being saved by Matoi, Hitsugi and Hariette.
• Vague Age: Your character's age can be ANY age you wish it to be. Young adult? Yep. Little girl or boy? That's possible (or not, if you're playing Global). An old man/woman? Go ahead!
• Unlimited Wardrobe: With the plethora of costumes and layer-based ensembles available to players, they can invoke this.
• Unwitting Instigator of Doom: From being a sucker for Luther's machinations, to the series of events that kick off Episode 5, to their Stable Time Loop downfall at the end of Episode 6, the protagonist has a really bad habit of causing all hell to break loose just because they tried to Screw Destiny.
• Virtual Paper Doll: The customization is incredibly detailed, with tons of options to try out. Want to be Homura Akemi with the voice of Yukihime wielding Ultra-Hard Blades? If you so desire!
• Vocal Dissonance: Since you dictate what your character sounds like, you can easily invoke this. Whether it's a man with a premature boy's voice, a woman talking like a Lillipan, or a girl with a grown man's voice, you decide.
• Wholesome Crossdresser: If the player wears one of the few costumes available to both genders despite being originally designed to be gender-exclusive. While some of the outfits are fairly unisex in appearance (such as Haze Sorcerer/Sorceress), others are gendered enough to count toward this trope (such as Wonder Seeker and IF and Uzume Uranus's outfits.)
• Workaholic: Many members of ARKS note that the Protagonist is this as they're constantly fighting on the frontlines and taking on the most dangerous of tasks. They often have to remind them that they're not alone and that they should take a break once in a while for the sake of their health.
• You Remind Me of X:
  • In Episode 3, Zeno says they remind him of his dear mentor who tutored him in his trainee days ten years ago. This is because you are that mentor, but his memories of those days were purposefully clouded by Xion as part of her gambit to have you end the Stable Time Loop in which Matoi becomes the Profound Darkness.
  • In Episode 5, this happens to the protagonist again after they become a Mind Hive to the memories and personalities of the hosts of the Dark Falz. Those around the protagonist note that they remind them of those hosts, however briefly, for some reason. In some cutscenes, the image of one of the hosts would be overlaid on top of the protagonist's as the former speaks through the latter.

Ash

Ash

Voiced by: Daisuke Ono

The counterpart of the Protagonist, serving as main character of Phantasy Star Online 2: Episode Oracle. An orphan hailing from Ship 74, Ash is a young ARKS recruit fresh out of the ARKS Cadet program who joins Oracle's elite military force to find his place in the universe. What appears at first to be a normal graduation exercise takes a turn for the worse, leading to a cavalcade of events that ultimately puts him at the center of a conflict whose history spans beyond the reaches of time and will alter the future forever.

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• Adaptational Attractiveness: He's a bit younger-looking and prettier than the default human design from the game. Promotional material for Ash's cosmetics in the game use a redesigned model to reflect this.
• Artificial Human: Luther reveals near the end of the story that Ash is a synthetic entity created by him to mimic Klariskrays II, who herself was created by Xion. When Klariskrays II seemingly vanished after the Falspawn Invasion of Themis in A.P. 228, Luther abandoned the project and left Ash for dead. Xion ultimately came to Ash's aid and raised him herself before eventually leaving him at the orphanage, giving him one of Luther's authentication markers in the process.
• Audience Surrogate: As the replacement for the Protagonist, Ash is basically this.
• The Chosen One: In Episode 12, Ash is informed that he is the only one capable of Time Travel.
• Conveniently an Orphan: When Afin and Ash share backstories, Ash casually mentions that he grew up an orphan. Whatever happened to his birth parents is glossed over.
• Dreaming of Things to Come: The first episode opens with Ash having a dream that shows snippets of future events in the story.
• Heroic Willpower: Subverted. When he sees Gettemhult lifting Matoi, he gets up from an otherwise heavy punch and challenges Gettemhult to Round 2. Unfortunately, Ash is too winded to fight, and Gettemhult just delivers a hard one to the gut and knocks him out for real.
• Laser-Guided Amnesia: The crux of his backstory revolves around his lack of any memories ten years prior to the story, only recalling being taken to an orphanage by a mysterious woman as a child.
• Mana Drain: Ash is revealed to be able to absorb F-Factor from the Dark Falz and drain their powers. While normal ARKS can absorb and gradually purify F-Factor naturally, the degree with which Ash is capable of doing so far exceeds that of the average ARKS, which is noticed by both Elder and Luther.
• Not So Stoic: Compared to the Protagonist who can be mildly silly to outright trollish, Ash is a fairly serious individual though friendly and compassionate. However, he can be quite emotionaly, such as becoming visibly agitated when Xiao pitches the idea of killing Matoi to prevent her from potentially becoming the Profound Darkness' host again.
• Orphan's Plot Trinket: He has a strange pendant that he's had with him since he was a child at the orphanage in Ship 74. It's later revealed to be an authentication insignia that Luther uses to mark his creations, given to Ash by Xion when she released him. He later ditches it after affirming his own identity to Luther thanks to Matoi.
• The Protagonist: He takes the role of the custom-created Protagonist from the game.
• Ripple-Effect-Proof Memory: The introduction of Deumans in Episode 11 alarms Ash, as he is the only one who never recalls seeing Deumans before meeting Io.
• The Stoic: Ash doesn't emote much, maintaining a serious expression most of the time except during moments of genuine shock and/or surprise.
• Tall, Dark, and Handsome: Quite tall and attractive enough that Sarah was both pleased and embarrassed to see him shirtless.
• Younger Than They Look: Despite looking like a young adult, Luther reveals that Ash is chronologically only around 10 years old in Episode 23. This actually makes him only a few months to maybe a few years older than Klariskrays III.

Matoi

Matoi as she appears as of Episode 4

Voiced by: Satomi Sato (JP), Xanthe Huynh (EN)

A young human girl who is found weakened and unconscious on the planet Naverius by the Protagonist and Afin. She has no memories nor does ARKS have any data of who she was either. However, she becomes quickly attached to the Protagonist and somehow even knows their name. For most of Episode 1 she remains at the ARKS Medical Bay under the watchful eye of Filia, occasional speaking to the Protagonist as well.

In Episode 2, more of Matoi's past is revealed. It turns out that she is none other than Klariskrays II, a member of the Council of Six who disappeared during a Falspawn invasion of ARKS in AP 228. She was created by Xion to be the savior of the universe against the Falspawn, but inevitably became the host of the Profound Darkness after absorbing too much corrupted photons into her body until she was sent to the future which halted the process temporarily. In Episode 3, she joins ARKS as an operative and works with the Protagonist in various missions. The past repeats itself however as an encounter with Gemini results in Matoi absorbing too much F-Factors once more and becoming the host to the Profound Darkness. Together with the rest of ARKS and Persona, she is saved.

By Episode 4, both she and the Protagonist have been promoted to the rank of "Guardian", allowing the two free reign as ARKS operatives.

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• Adaptation Expansion: Matoi's role in Episode 1 is greatly expanded in Episode Oracle, accompanying Ash and Afin on their first official expedition as ARKS to Naverius and also being present when Gettemhult awakens Elder.
• Afraid of Doctors: Played for laughs. In Matoi's case, it's less that she's afraid of doctors and more like she just hates having to get a checkup in general, likely because she knows that Filia would scold her for being a workaholic and tell her to get more rest.
• Amnesiac Hero: Suffers from amnesia throughout most of Episodes 1-3. Doesn't stop her from doing what she thinks is right however, even more so once it's revealed that she's the legendary Klariskrays II.
• And I Must Scream: Conscious the entire time she spent as the Profound Darkness' host but was unable to do anything about it.
• Anime Hair: Her hair as Klariskrays II is looped like a bow. Try to figure out how to do and undo that style without ruining your hair.
• Arch-Enemy: To an extent with the original Dark Falz Apprentice prior to Euclyta. The former became obsessed with trying to take down Matoi after repeated defeats at her hands.
• The Archmage:
  • As the second Klariskrays, she's a former member of the Council of Six and one of the most powerful photon users to ever exist. Her photon affinity is so powerful that she can use Techniques will full combat effectiveness even while the ARKS Ship's limiter is placed on her, which is supposed to be impossible. In fact, she's so powerful that normal weapons can't handle her power, frying after a single use.
  • She's even this when compared to her predecessor Alma, who was the 1st generation Klariskrays. While Alma had access to powerful skills such as the ability to control the flow of time, she admits that between the two of them Matoi is actually the stronger individual overall.
• Art Evolution: Her outfit changes aside, it can be noted that Matoi's eye designs change by her Episode 4 design. Prior to Episode 4, her eyes were darker in color, but come Episode 4 they're now much brighter similar to how they looked when she was still Klariskrays II. This can be taken as a sign of her growth from being a timid amnesiac to a confident operative of ARKS.
• Artificial Human: Was created specifically by Xion to be the Savior of Oracle against the Falspawn.
• Apocalypse Maiden: She eventually becomes the host of the Profound Darkness after absorbing too many corrupted photons. Persona argues that due to Matoi's incredible photon capacity and innate desire to help others, by fighting Falspawn, she is always destined to become the Profound Darkness no matter what.
• Battle Couple: With the Protagonist. In addition to being the two most powerful members of ARKS, they're described as being often together and work very well with one another.
• Beware the Nice Ones: Matoi's normally a nice girl who does her best to help others, but that doesn't mean she's helpless. In fact, she's likely the second strongest member of ARKS right after the Protagonist themselves. On a more comical note, the Protagonist also tries to avoid getting on her bad side as Io threatens to tell Matoi about their teasing attempts on her to which they immediately stop.
  • This is especially seen when she was still Klariskrays II. Although she's as nice and warmhearted outside of it, in battle Matoi was utterly ruthless and showed no fear at all when it came to fighting Dark Falz Apprentice by herself. Casually telling Apprentice to bring the best Falspawn that she's got so that she could keep killing them and eventually Apprentice herself.
• Big Damn Heroes: During the raid of Mother Corps on ARKS ship in Episode 4, Matoi appears to hold off the attacking members by herself until the Protagonist comes along and together both proceed to lay waste to their enemies. She later does it again during the fight against Esca Falz Mother where both she and the Protagonist work together to suppress it which gives Hitsugi the opening she needed to save Al and convince Mother to stand down.
• Big "NO!": At the end of Episode 6, the protagonist travels back to the dawn of the universe to become the Akashic Records to kill the Profound Darkness along with themselves. When Matoi realizes what they're doing, she's too late to stop them, collapsing to her knees while screaming "NO!"
• Brought Down to Badass: When Dark Falz Apprentice launches an assault on an ARKS ship in A.P. 228, Matoi, then Klariskrays II, is forced to give her Clarissa rod to a young girl she saves in order to keep her safe. Despite losing her weapon, she still manages to hold her own against Apprentice by picking up left over weapons on the battlefield and using them against her. It's revealed that because of how powerful Matoi is, any weapon she picks up inevitably breaks when she fights at full strength. It takes a Cosmogenic Arm like Clarissa for her to fight uninhibited.
• Character Development: At the start of the game, Matoi is a timid amnesiac whose only real friendship is with the Protagonist. By the end of Episode 3 and events of Episode 4, she's become a confident young woman who is now one of the top operatives that ARKS has and has developed close relationships with a number people such as Sarah, Klariskrays III, Xiao, and Xiera among others.
• Chekhov's Gunman: You find her at the very beginning of the story, but her true importance isn't revealed until the end of Episode 2.
• Chronic Hero Syndrome:
  • Like the Protagonist, Matoi can't help but step-in whenever she sees trouble. And like them, she's also a chronic workaholic to the point that Filia often has to remind both that they need to rest every now and then and has Sarah and others to help keep them in-line.
  • This actually gets deconstructed when she was still Klariskrays II, where her reason for fighting was for the sake of protecting everyone. Despite being a noble cause, Matoi did not have any real personal investment in either ARKS or the Oracle Fleet. She only fought for them because she was told to as she was specifically created for that purpose by Xion. It's only after she meets the Protagonist and becomes close with them that she starts to develop a personal reason to fight which is to protect them.
• Cleavage Window: Her first outfit has a prominent window that shows off some underboob. Her third outfit also does the same although more standard.
• Cool Big Sis: Towards Sarah and Klariskrays III as both respect her greatly and are very fond of her. Matoi in turns loves spending time with both and treats them like her little sisters. She also tries to play this role with Hitsugi when they finally meet, trying to give her advice on how to move forward with her life after Enga's lecture had left Hitsugi doubting herself.
• Curb-Stomp Battle: Back when she was still Klariskrays II, she utterly dominated Dark Falz Apprentice in every single one of their encounters to the point that Apprentice had to rely on using ARKS operatives as puppets to even hurt her as Matoi couldn't bring herself to attack her ARKS comrades.
• Dark Is Not Evil: Matoi is unusually proficient with Megid Technics. This is her most-used Technique element, aside from support Techniques. This is a bit of foreshadowing at the sheer amount of F-Factors in her body, as well as her potential to become the Profound Darkness.
• Darker and Edgier: Her depiction in EPISODE 0 is more openly hardcore compared to her personality in the game, at one point dismembering Apprentice's arm, among other things.
• Demoted to Extra: In Episode 4 where Matoi doesn't really appear until late in the story, and even after she does she doesn't do much as the primary focus is on the Protagonist and the Earth characters. She's also this in Episode 5, as she stays behind on the ARKS ship in order help Alma keep the path to Omega stable so that the Protagonist and Xiera are able to travel through safely.
• Does Not Know His Own Strength: Thanks to her great affinity with photons, the Clarissa and others like it are the only weapons capable of withstanding Matoi's raw power. This best seen during her battle against Apprentice in A.P. 228, where after giving the Clarissa to a young Sarah in order to protect her, Matoi made due with regular ARKS weapons to continue the fight but kept frying every single one she picked up in her attempts to kill Apprentice.
• Deuteragonist: The main heroine of the game in general. She's demoted from this in Episode 4 and 5 as both Hitsugi and Hariette become the heroines of each chapter respectively with Matoi playing a supporting role instead. She returns to prominence by Episode 6.
• Disease Bleach: Prior to being sent 10 years into the future, Matoi's hair color was originally a dull light blue shade but permanently changed to pure white after her transformation into the Profound Darkness' host. Even after being freed from it, her hair remains as such for the rest of the game.
• Dispel Magic:
  • The primary function of "Clarissa the White". While all ARKS operatives have the same basic ability to resist and purify F-Factors, there are limits to said ability. The Clarissa however has no such limits and is able to remove all traces of F-Factors within an individual and it can even work against those who are possessed by the Profound Darkness itself. However, it comes at the cost of transferring said F-Factors into the user instead.
  • Matoi herself also has the capability to do this on her own as an ARKS operative. Like the Protagonist however, her ability to do so is so strong that she's able to actively utilize it against the Dark Falz.
• Driven to Suicide: Twice. The first happens during the Protagonist's mission to the past where Matoi tries to kill herself before she lost all control after becoming the host of the Profound Darkness, but was ultimately saved when she was sent to the future which halted the process for the time being. She does it again during the climax of Episode 3 after regaining some semblance of control as the Profound Darkness, but is again saved by the Protagonist.
• Dull Eyes of Unhappiness: During her Heroic BSoD in EPISODE 0.
• Early-Bird Cameo: Prior to Episode 4, had you completed Episode 3 Chapter 7, it was entirely possible, albeit very rare, to team up with Matoi on the field in her Episode 4 outfit, complete with her new Clarissa III rod.
• Explaining Your Power to the Enemy: Defied. When she fights Dark Falz Apprentice as Klariskrays II, she seals away Apprentice's powers with Clarissa. Apprentice angrily asks what she did, but Matoi scoffs at the idea of giving away her abilities to the enemy.
• Fanservice Pack: Her outfits become increasingly fanservicey with each iteration, with her current one (pictured above) being basically just an open jacket and a shirt that shows off cleavage. Matoi's also often depicted in other official media as having an even larger bust than what her in-game model actually has.
• Fighting Your Friend: Battles you in Episode 3 Chapter 7. Which form you fight, and the final outcome, depends on whether or not you sided with Persona.
• Get A Hold Of Yourself Man: She manages to dispel the "Code ABYSS" order from Risa, Marlur, Oza, and Fourie (the latter three replaced by Afin and Ion in the anime) without any real explanation. In the EX Chapter of Episode 3, Matoi believes that Xion actually placed her on the Council of Six in order to serve as a countermeasure to "Code ABYSS" which likely explains why she was able to outright cancel it on the spot.
• Girlish Pigtails: Prominently sports them in her Mikoto Ensemble and her Innocent Ensemble outfits.
• Heroic BSoD: Suffers from one during Apprentice's fight with her in the climax of Chapter 2, as Matoi realizes that she doesn't have much of a reason to be fighting other than because she was told to do it and begins questioning her own existence as a result. She suffers a brief one at the beginning of Episode 5 when the Protagonist disappears with the Profound Darkness after protecting her from it again. Shortly before they return, Matoi can be seen sulking on the bridge.
• Heroic Sacrifice: In Episode 3, Matoi saves the Protagonist by absorbing the corrupted photons and becoming the Profound Darkness in their place. She later attempts to take it a step further by killing herself, but the Protagonist refuses to let this happen and eventually, together with Persona, they're able to save Matoi.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: This can be the implied case if the Protagonist is female. Also with Melfonseana in the EPISODE 0 manga.
• Hypocritical Humor:
  • When Klariskrays says she'll strip down in order to increase her Photon abilities, Matoi says that a young girl shouldn't show too much skin. Sarah is quick to point out that Matoi isn't really one to talk.
  • In Episode 5, in an optional conversation she tells the Protagonist that they shouldn't be so quick to sacrifice themselves after the botched battle with the Profound Darkness in the prologue resulted in them protecting Matoi again and disappearing as a result. They point out that Matoi isn't really one to talk considering her actions in Episode 3 to which she sheepishly agrees.
• Identity Amnesia: Because the Clarissa cleansed her memories, she cannot remember that she used to be the 2nd Generation Klariskrays. She eventually does remember by the end of Episode 3.
• Idiot Hair: Sports a small one atop her head.
• I Just Want to Be Normal: Matoi would really prefer not being wrapped up in the battle against the Dark Falz, but eventually joins ARKS because she's damn good at it and doesn't want to see more senseless death and carnage in what has essentially become a Forever War. This goes so far back as having the desire even as the far colder Klariskrays II, who resented not even being allowed near other ARKS operatives or people in general, until the time-traveling Protagonist unwittingly instilled the urge to be normal in her.
• Image Song: Omoi Matoi and Promise to Shine.
• Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: By Persona whom at the time Matoi mistook for the Protagonist. The Protagonist themselves can do this should they choose to kill her rather than save her.
• Implied Love Interest: Towards the Protagonist. Both are incredibly fond of each other to the point that they're very willing to go incredible lengths for each other's sake, such as Matoi allowing herself to become the host of the Profound Darkness if it meant a chance of saving the Protagonist from the same fate, or the Protagonist themselves becoming Persona the Masked and time travelling to the past again and again to find a way to save Matoi from said fate herself. This comes to ahead when Matoi finally confesses her feelings in Episode 6 finale and epilogue.
• Irony: Xion created Matoi with the intention of having her be the Savior of Oracle against the Falspawn, giving her great power in order to do so. However, because of said great power and the numerous amount of Falspawn that Matoi eventually ended up killing during her tenure as Klariskrays II, this makes her a prime candidates to become the host of the Profound Darkness, the source of all Dark Falz and Falspawn.
• Laser-Guided Amnesia: Thanks to Clarissa wiping her memories clean, she remembers nothing of who she was prior to meeting the Protagonist in Episode 1. The only things she does remember is the Protagonist's name and feels slightly nostalgic when talking to Xion.
• Light 'em Up: As Klariskrays II, she primarily used Light technics. After her brief stint as the Profound Darkness, she returns to this as her primary method of attack.
• Love Confession: Indirectly gives one in Episode 3 when trying to save the Protagonist from becoming the Profound Darkness, asking Clarissa to help her save the person that she loves the most. She gives a more direct one in Episode 6, when again she has to save the Protagonist from the Profound Darkness together with Hitsugi and Harriet, describing her wish to be always with them even if she has to risk all of existence to do it. She gives another one in the epilogue.
• Luke, I Am Your Father: Matoi was actually made by Xion, though between her amnesia and a lack of any real info even beforehand, she's oblivious to this fact.
• Meaningful Name: In Japanese, Matoi means "to wrap" or "bind around". This can be taken as a sign of how her fate and the Protagonist's fate end up very closely intertwined.
• Messianic Archetype: Invoked by Xion. She wanted someone who could help drive back the Falspawn threat and created Matoi for that purpose. Averted however as Matoi became less a savior and more like Falspawn killing weapon over time who fought less because she wanted to and more because was told to. Even worse, she ended up becoming a prime candidate to become the Profound Darkness because of her overexposure to F-Factors from all the Falspawn she killed.
• Morality Chain: To the Protagonist, and by extension, Persona. They're driven by the desire to always protect Matoi and will do anything so that she's happy. In the bad ending of Episode 3, her death becomes the catalyst for the Protagonist transform into a Dark Falz just like their future self. However, even after transforming, Persona only acts in Matoi's best interests and never truly does anything evil like the rest of the Dark Falz in the game.
• Ms. Fanservice: Comes with being the main heroine and poster girl of the game as Matoi has some of the most revealing and form fitting outfits within the game.
• Mysterious Waif: She knows absolutely nothing except your name, and behaves as such.
• Navel-Deep Neckline: Her Episode 3 outfit which has an opening that shows off her chest and goes all the way down to her stomach.
• Nice Girl: Very sweet and kindhearted, going back to when she was still Klariskrays II where she was more ruthless than she is in the present.
• Noodle Incident: According to a substory with Pati and Tia in Episode 6, something happened between Matoi and the Protagonist that she's embarrassed to have others find out about and it's never elaborated upon afterwards.
• One-Man Army: Was this during her time as Klariskrays II, facing off against entire armies of Falspawn and slaughtering them with such ease that other ARKS operatives are terrified to watch her work. Not so much during her amnesia phase, but she returns to being one after regaining most of power and memories. Best showcased in The Animation where Matoi easily takes down a horde of corrupted Falspawn that Itsuki and Aika were struggling against by herself.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: When the local Daybreakers insist on calling her "divine maiden" and requesting that she help them, she snaps and chews out the Daybreakers in a rather pissed manner. She apologizes to you later, stating that she felt like being called "divine maiden" was demeaning to her.
• Physical God: She's one of the few ARKS operatives to be on the Protagonist's level by the events of Episode 4, and she's so powerful that she single-handedly curbstomped Dark Falz Apprentice with ease back when she was still Klariskrays II. At the beginning of Episode 5, she and the protagonist easily defeat the Profound Darkness' latest reappearance while trying to separate Persona from it, and later during the finale it's shown she's completely capable of holding off the black hole by herself as well.
• Put on a Bus: Throughout most of Episode 4, Matoi is nowhere to be seen as she's still in cryo-stasis much like the Protagonist was. Once you do reunite with her, it turns out she actually woke up earlier than the Protagonist did but thanks to the events of Phantasy Star Online 2: The Animation, where she helped saved Aika from being possessed by Apprentice, she once again absorbed too much F-Factors into her body which forced her back into cryo-stasis and didn't wake up until much later.
• Readings Are Off the Scale:
  • Her ability to use photons is described as being the highest that anyone in ARKS has ever seen. Probably the only person who could actually rival Matoi in power would have to be the Protagonist themselves, as they're capable enough that they can use any class with ease. It also comes at a price as Matoi at full power can't use regular ARKS weapons without breaking them almost instantly.
  • She's also so powerful that she can use Techniques rather easily aboard the ARKS ship, this in spite of the fact that each ship in the fleet has a special dampening field that weakens operatives aboard to prevent conflict. This surprises Filia when Matoi one day picks up a rod and proceeds to use it just fine. This also lets her fight off the Mother Corps assault in Episode 4 until the Protagonist arrives to back her up.
• Red Eyes, Take Warning: Subverted. When fighting against Falspawn or Dark Falz, she’s an incredibly ruthless fighter. But outside of combat, she’s very nice and caring towards others, especially the Protagonist.
• Reluctant Fanservice Girl: Matoi by herself has no issues wearing rather revealing clothing, but the moment both Sarah and Klariskrays question her about whether or not she prefers to dress so provocatively she's quick to deny it out of embarrassment. She reveals that her outfit choices are the result of Xiao designing them for her in order to maximize her photon affinity (which requires showing more skin in order to better absorb photons) as much as possible in order to increase her overall battle strength.
• The Reveal: She is Klariskrays II, created by Xion to be a replacement for the first generation Klariskrays and in general to be the savior of Oracle against the Falspawn.
• Sad Battle Music: In her Episode 3 Chapter 7 boss battle.
• She Is Not My Girlfriend: Or boyfriend if playing as a male. Matoi has this reaction whenever characters bring up the obvious close bond between herself and the Protagonist. She tries to deny it to no avail.
• Single-Target Sexuality: She falls in love with the Protagonist regardless of their gender or race.
• Stripperific: Most of her outfits tend to be this. Averted with her outfit as Klariskrays II which is reasonably clothed. It's also Justified, as her outfits are designed by Xiao to maximize her photon affinity, which unfortunately requires showing a lot of skin.
• Sword of Plot Advancement: Clarissa the White. Originally Matoi's weapon as Klariskrays II, the Protagonist spends most Episode 1 reassembling it and afterwards it becomes an important plot point in several instances such as being used to unseal Dark Falz Elder or when Persona uses it to save the Protagonist's and Matoi's life at the end of Episode 3. After doing the latter, Clarissa vanishes and is later replaced by Clarissa III.
• There's No Kill like Overkill: After Persona (posing as the Protagonist) jumps in to save her in Episode 2 Chapter 6, she blindsides Apprentice and pins her against a building, then proceeds to launch so many Ilgrants shots at her that Apprentice explodes.
• Un-person: Xion wiped all records of Matoi's existence — even from people's memories. This is actually a benevolent case since doing so protected Matoi from Luther.
• Vapor Wear: Her Mikoto Ensemble and Idea Ensemble outfits both make it clear that Matoi isn't really wearing a bra underneath her clothes. Averted with her Innocent Ensemble outfit.
• What the Hell, Hero?: She freaks out when the protagonist pulls a Heroic Sacrifice at the endgame of Episode 6 in an attempt to keep themselves from being possessed by the Profound Darkness, specifically calling them out for breaking the promise they made in saving Persona to avoid this sort of thing from happening again. Of course, it takes a very short amount of time for this to turn into raw determination to Time Travel and risk the very history of the universe to save them.
• Willfully Weak: Matoi when it comes to helping train Klariskrays III. Matoi denies it, but the Protagonist points out that if she were actually serious then she would wipe the floor with Klariskrays rather easily. Even the latter knows this which is why she makes a point to spar with Matoi at full strength in order to keep up.
• Workaholic: Like the Protagonist, characters in the story tend to note that Matoi is as much of a hard worker as the former is and people, Sarah especially, keep reminding her that she should take breaks once in a while so that she doesn't ruin her health.