Rain Arlen

Rain Arlen is a playable character in Final Fantasy XVI. Having no memory of his past just like Mirage, the secrets that are buried within him are awakened through the time he spends with his new allies and begin to emerge more and more after every battle they face together. Rain possesses the mysterious ability to see into both the past and the future, but he intially experiences these visions involuntarily until they become a vital part of saving the world.

Appearance and Personality
Rain is a 16 year-old boy from an alternate dimension with layered snow-white hair and deep blue eyes. Armor protects his shoulders, legs, and forearms.

Because of his visions and the several traumatic experiences he has been forced to endure since his awakening, Rain is emotionally unstable and doubts himself constantly. He is prone to bursts of anger and even depression, but he is mainly quiet and self-kept. He is not, however, afraid to speak his mind when he must. Rain believes his newfound allies will help to make him stronger and awaken his sleeping memories, so he trails after them having no idea how difficult the battles they face will be.

The party members each deal with Rain's personality issues differently, and Rain himself gains his respect for Mirage when the young woman slaps him across the face in a rage spawned by one of his outbursts and later tells him how much in common he has with her (the reason why she will always look out for him). Ever since this incident, Rain has viewed Mirage as the mother he never had and has gained a high level of respect for the heroine, even though she does not feel the same way about him at first. In the aftermath of his journey with his allies, Rain finds he is able laugh and smile, as well as truly feel happy, for the first time since his awakening. He thanks Mirage, who had sacrificed herself in the party's final battle, for helping him to finally see the light again.

Early Life
While much of his past had been forgotten over his centuries-long sleep, Rain recalled he was born in an alternate dimension that was in close proximity to the gods. He was of a race of individuals that had been blessed with special powers by the dieties, such as the ability to see into the past and future or remedy any ailment. Rain lived in peace and happiness, but his home dimension suddenly began an apocalyptic collapse that caused it to merge with another. He was carried by an inter-dimensional vortex into the second dimension, where he remained in a peaceful slumber, unable to return to those he loved.

Rain was awakened from his slumber only to be captured for experimentation due to his special abilities, and he found himself with no memory of his past aside from his name. He also found himself the victim of visions of a past and future he didn't recognize, these visions being the sole fragment of his original power that remained after the calamity that had sent him to this realm. Rain had lost control of his power, and escaped his captors only to run into Mirage.

Weapons
Rain is able to materialize any weapon he chooses out of thin air. He is able to do this via the various Emblems he obtains over the course of the game. Depending on which Emblem Rain is equipped with, his weapons will take on a different appearance and will have various effects on a battle or his statistics.

Voice
Rain is voiced by Jason Marsden, who is best known for playing Max Goof in Disney's A Goofy Movie. While he was asked to make his voice sound a bit more youthful than normal, Marsden was happy to join the cast of the English version of Final Fantasy XVI.

Etymology
"Rain" is liquid precipitation, as opposed to non-liquid kinds of precipitation such as snow, hail and sleet. The surname "Arlen" is a spelling variant of the Cornish name composed of the elements ar, "war," and lyn (also lin and lo), "pool" or "water," hence meaning "water battle."

Trivia

 * Rain's overall appearance and personality is based heavily on Hope Estheim from Final Fantasy XIII. He steals elements from Snow Villiers through the Emblems he equips, emblems being what give Snow's Coats their power.