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Kefka's backstory, and how he came to be the psychotic clown he is today, is hardly touched on in FFVI — mentioned nowhere in the main story, and only revealed by talking to a missable NPC. And then, all we learn is the following:
NPC: Here's one for you... That guy Kefka? He was Cid's first experimental Magitek knight. But the process wasn't perfected yet. Something in Kefka's mind snapped that day...
And that, quite simply, is all we get. No explanation whatsoever as to why he would turn into a megalomaniac past the Magitek infusion. There are theories one could make, such as that Kefka's work as a general paled next to Leo's, but it's not addressed in the story.
And that is the point.
Kefka does not get some tragic backstory for the simple reason that the player is not meant to sympathize with him. In fact, that would defeat the very purpose of his character, which is to play the role of the terrible villain the heroes must vanquish at all costs. Never do the heroes take the time to question if what they're doing is right, because there's no need. Kefka is nothing more than another monster they have to defeat, albeit on a much greater scale.
And since Kefka is such a monster, there's no reason to give him any humanity. Certainly, he is a human and acts like one (he even has a personality!), but it would take much more than that to humanize him. Something like a reason for his megalomania, or a tragic background. But he doesn't, and that is why he is a true villain.
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I do not own anything associated with Kefka Palazzo or Final Fantasy VI — that all belongs to Squaresoft/Square-Enix, 1994-2010. Light of Judgment and all of its original content is © (copyright) Larissa, 2007-2010.
Layout by Todd for the Amassment Shrine Layout Swap Marathon.