| “ | One of these days I’ll fly an airship of my own. I’ll be a sky pirate, free to go where I will. | „ |
| ~ Vaan |
| “ | Dalmasca? What do you care about Dalmasca? Everything that happened is because of you! Everyone that's died, every single one! Even my brother; YOU KILLED MY BROTHER! | „ |
| ~ Vaan to Basch fon Ronsenburg. |
| “ | Hating the Empire, getting revenge. It's all I ever thought about. But I never did anything about it. I mean, I realized there was nothing I could do. It made me feel hollow, alone. And then I'd miss my brother. I'd say stuff like 'I'm gonna be a sky pirate', or some other stupid thing. Just anything to keep my mind off it. I was just—I was running away. | „ |
| ~ Vaan opens up to Ashe. |
Vaan is the main protagonist of Final Fantasy XII and its spin off sequel, Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings.
An orphan street thief hailing from Rabanastre in the Kingdom of Dalmasca, Vaan hates the Archadian Empire for the death of his brother, Reks, and the subjugation of his home, and dreams of one day owning an airship and being a sky pirate to be free to travel the world adventuring. However, when his attempt to steal from the Rabanastre palace goes awry, he becomes entangled in a world-scale conflict between the Archadian and Rozarrian Empires that could decide the fate of Dalmasca.
Vaan does not play a large role in the game's story, instead being a view-point and foil, observing and contrasting the actions of the other characters, playable and non, that influence the events unfolding around them more directly.
He was voiced by Kouhei Takeda in Final Fantasy XII and Kenshō Ono in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy in the Japanese version, and by Bobby Edner in the English version.
Appearance
Like many other Dalmascans, Vaan has tanned skin, blond hair (shown in-game as grayish-white), and gray eyes. Due to his homeland's hot climate, he wears a loose cropped open metal vest held together by a pendant over his chest. According to the manga, it once belonged to his brother. His dark pants are held up by a red ribboned sash belt, and are tucked into a pair of steel boots that come up to his knees. Vaan's style is in the fashion of other Dalmascans.
His appearance Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings remains identical, while his Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift appearance adds a large-collared white shirt beneath his cropped vest and several metal accessories on his side. The ornament on Vaan's waist at his Tactics A2 artwork resembles the Galbana airship from Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings.
Personality
Vaan is part of a lost generation, trying to find purpose in a life reduced to poverty. Vaan adopts a leadership role, being the eldest among the group of orphans he spends his time in, and is seen as a fraternal figure to the younger children, particularly Kytes and Filo. He is protective of his childhood friend Penelo, and though he hails from the Lowtown slums, Vaan dreams of becoming a sky pirate to escape the Empire's hold and roam the skies freely.
Vaan trains in the Garamsythe Waterway slaying Dire Rats, gaining the nickname "Vaan Ratsbane" from Old Dalan. Despite having been forced to look after himself from an early age due to the loss of his family, Vaan remains naive. He holds an idealistic view of one day getting back at the Empire and owning an airship. His inexperience with the world comes across as being tactless during his interactions with his more worldly companions, e.g. fumbling over the viera race's longevity by asking Fran her age, and wondering aloud whether the Gran Kiltias is sleeping. Vaan admits to Ashe that his desire to be a sky pirate stems from wanting to flee the memory of his brother who was killed during the war.
In Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings Vaan has lost some of his naivete and leads his band of sky pirates onto a new adventure. He is courageous and loyal, but can be reckless and jump into dangerous situations without much forethought.
