cloud: an ex-member of SOLDIER, but what was SOLDIER really?

August 2, 2007, 12:45 AM

more than once it has been said that cloud was an ex-member of a group called SOLDIER. But really, what was SOLDIER? what did they mean? who where they? or really what where they about?

please post ideas about what you think for any of the questions written in red.

August 2, 2007, 1:01 AM

SOLDIER was the army used by the ShinRa. It consisted of several ranks (not sure how many, all we were given in FFVII was 1st Class) that the members worked their way through as they proved themselves worthy and a good fighter.
As far as I'm aware, SOLDIER didn't actually stand for anything, and just like AVALANCHE, there is no real reason why the entire name is capitalised, but perhaps that was just commonplace in Gaia.
They were used by the ShinRa to take care of problems that arose that needed military attention (the problem with the Nibelheim Reactor being on of them) and dealt with the situation accordingly.
Though technically, Cloud never was a member of SOLDIER.

August 2, 2007, 1:03 AM

They were Shinras elite special forces. like a Small private army, the 1st class Soldiers - like Sephiroth and Zack - would be in charge of the lower ranked ones.

Of course, we'll learn far more about SOLDIER in Crises core, but thats my understanding of what SOLDIER is at the moment.

August 2, 2007, 2:35 AM

More or so the personal army of ShinRa. Cloud never was a soldier, just a low guard of ShinRa. Just like he says it in the game, and in AC it was all in his head.

August 3, 2007, 9:35 PM

Very true. SOLDIER was really only used for emergency purposes and highly dangerous missions that the normal army couldn't do.

August 7, 2007, 1:23 AM

SOLDIER are Shinra's elite warriors. They're infused with Mako so that they're extra tough.

August 18, 2007, 6:14 AM

SOLDIER had three ranks 1st 2nd and 3rd.... if you use the little select button menu in a fight with someone from SOLDIER it will tell you what class (3rd was in the ShinRa HQ, 2nd in Junon after the first crater incident....1st?????don't remember but you do fight them somewhere) The 1st class are extremely strong somewhere around level 60 I think.....All of Hojo's expirements (jenova clones) were from soldier, except for cloud he was a soldier but not IN SOLDIER understandd??? He just happened to be around in niblehem conveinently.

August 26, 2007, 5:48 PM

No, I think you guys are mistaken. SOLDIER was defined by the ShinRa army, not an elite class of them. I am positive that Cloud was in SOLDIER. He just wasn't SOLDIER 1st Class, as he boasted early on.

The SOLDIERs who you fight throughout the game are generally 3rd class. Judging by Cloud's actual role in the events with Zack and Sephiroth, acting as guard and company for them, I'm guessing Cloud was a SOLDIER 3rd Class.

Oh, and he wasn't just "convinently around Nibelheim". He accompanied Zack and Sephiroth on their trip, because he was a member of SOLDIER.

August 27, 2007, 3:23 AM

I read something like this on FF Wiki-

Born from the experiments that produced Sephiroth members of SOLDIER were created by taking promising candidates, showering them in Mako energy and injecting them with Jenova cells. This gave them powers beyond those of a normal combatant, though they were still eclipsed by Sephiroth's strength.
The Sephiroth 'clones' were not so in the genetic sense of the word. Professor Hojo dosed them with Mako and Jenova cells, hoping the former would destroy their wills allowing the Jenova cells to control them, in attempt to prove the Reunion Theory. Those of weak wills, such as Cloud and the Nibelheim survivors proved successful experiments, but Zack (already going through the SOLDIER process) found himself untouched by these experiments.

August 27, 2007, 8:16 PM

SOLDIER was just basically ShinRa's Lapdog mercenaries thats the way i see it anyway