Alexander Highwind Tycoon

Alexander Highwind Tycoon is a character from Final Fantasy V. He is the king of Tycoon and the father of Lenna Charlotte Tycoon and Sarisa Scherwill Tycoon.

His speech is credited to King in the Anthology release, and King Tycoon in the Advance and later releases.

History[]

King Tycoon was twice bereaved. His elder daughter, Sarisa, was lost at sea when she was five years old while they traveled to find a treatment for the queen's long illness.^{[1][note 1]} The king was forced to admit the only cure for his wife was to kill their wind drake, Hiryu, to extract medicine from its tongue, something she refused to consider.^[3] She passed away sometime before the crystals began to shatter, leaving him a widower.^[1]

King Tycoon is the guardian of the wind crystal; like other nations, he accepted the use of a machine built by Cid Previa to extract power from it^[4] to enrich his realm. When he sensed a change in the wind, he traveled to the Wind Shrine on Hiryu to examine the situation, but disappeared afterward. Lenna went searching for him, and unexpectedly found the king in the crystal room with the crystal already shattered; the king told Lenna and her new friends—Bartz Klauser, Galuf Halm Baldesion, and Faris Scherwiz (who unbeknownst to her was Sarisa)—that they were the chosen Light Warriors destined to protect the world from a grave evil.^[5] The king then disappeared and was not heard from again until Cid and Mid Previa relayed rumors that learned King Tycoon was spotted in Karnak and then seen floating through the air over the Desert of Shifting Sands.^[6]

The Light Warriors spotted him in Gohn, where he behaved strangely, playing a game of cat-and-mouse with them. The king lured them into a trap and made them fall into what would become the Catapult, and Faris finally identified him as her father.^[7]

The party found King Tycoon in the Ronka Ruins, still behaving strangely, and snapping at his daughters. The party obeyed his instructions and killed Archeoaevis, not realizing it is the guardian of the earth crystal. King Tycoon attempted to kill the party afterward, as he was being possessed. Krile appeared and snapped him out of the enthrallment, revealing the king had been under Exdeath's control, and probably had been since his disappearance at the Wind Shrine.^[8]

With his wits restored, King Tycoon was overjoyed to see that his long-lost daughter, Sarisa (now going by the name of Faris), was alive and well. Their reunion was cut short when Exdeath, now freed from his seal, appeared in the ruins and sent the crystal shards to attack the party. Tycoon drew the shards' attack and was mortally wounded. With his last words, he implored the party to protect the world and apologized to Faris for not being a better father. He implored her and Lenna to keep each other strong and asked Bartz to protect them before succumbing to his injuries.^[8]

When Bartz, Lenna, Faris, and Krile Mayer Baldesion followed Exdeath to the Interdimensional Rift to stop him from taking control of the Void, King Tycoon's spirit, along with the spirits of the Warriors of Dawn, appeared in the the Rift to suppress Exdeath's control of the Void when he used it on the party. He spoke to them one last time after they defeated Neo Exdeath, saying the world still needed them.

Characteristics[]

Appearance[]

King Tycoon wears long, flowing blue robes along with blue chest armor and pauldrons edged with gold. He wears a winged helmet reminiscent of a Dragoon's, with a visor that covers his eyes. His hair is covered, but his short beard and mustache are dark. One piece of Yoshitaka Amano art depicts him holding a spear or scepter, although he does not participate in battle during the game. King Tycoon is the only known "Highwind" in the series who isn't clearly a spear-wielding Dragoon.

Personality[]

King Tycoon is a dutiful man who puts the best interests of his kingdom and the world above his own needs and unhesitatingly risks his life to protect others. He passed on the values of devotion and self-sacrifice to his daughter, Lenna.^{[note 2]} King Tycoon is a loving father although he can be stern. While he is an important character in the game, how he thinks and acts generally are unclear, as he is most often seen during crises and acting out of his control.

Other appearances[]

Final Fantasy Artniks[]

Final Fantasy Trading Card Game[]

King Tycoon appears in Final Fantasy Trading Card Game as Wind-elemental Backup cards.

Behind the scenes[]

Early character descriptions mention an intended backstory for King Tycoon and his kingdom. King Tycoon was a commoner who was a famous mercenary swordsman in his youth. He inherited the throne after impressing the previous king of Tycoon with his leadership skills and fighting prowess. This backstory is never mentioned within the narrative of the final product.^[9]

In Final Fantasy XVI, when the final boss performs Phoenix's Eikon ability in Japanese, he will exclaim Tycoon (タイクン, Taikun?), a shortened katakana version of the Tycoon (タイクーン, Taikūn?) name from Final Fantasy V. This alludes to the Phoenix originally being Hiryu, a wind drake belonging to King Tycoon that first transformed into the Phoenix summon.

Etymology[]

[view · edit · purge]"Alexander" is a common western name of Greek origin, the original name being Ἀλέξανδρος (Alexandros), "Protector of Mankind". Alexander III, better known as Alexander the Great, was a famous Macedonian king and military conqueror.

[view · edit · purge]"High wind" is typical of wind speeds that place a seven on the Beaufort scale. When wind travels this fast (approximately 32 to 38 miles per hour), the sea heaps up. Streaks of foam from breaking waves are blown in the direction the wind is traveling, and there are moderate amounts of airborne spray. On land, high wind moves entire trees, and effort is required to walk against it.

[view · edit · purge]"Tycoon" comes from Japanese Taikun (大君?) which translates into "great prince/baron" and is a title given to a shogun. "Tycoon" has come to mean a "wealthy and powerful business person".

Notes[]

Annotations[]

Citations[]