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Never count your cards until they've all been dealt.
Luxord, the Gambler of Fate (運命を賭す者 Unmei o Tosumono?) is Rank X within Organization XIII. He possesses the power of time manipulation, and uses his ability to force his opponents to play timed games, with unfortunate consequences if they cannot learn the rules and lose. He commands the Gambler Nobodies.
During Roxas’s time with Organization XIII, Luxord would accompany him during missions in Wonderland, as well as lounge in the Grey Area of the Castle That Never Was with several other Organization members. Along with the rest of Organization XIII, Luxord also appears as a playable character in Mission Mode in Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days.
As Sora continued his search for Organization XIII’s stronghold, Luxord harassed him and his friends in Port Royal, playing a game with them involving the cursed Aztec treasure. He later battled Sora alone in The World That Never Was, and was the third-to-last member of Organization XIII to fall.
Sometime after his destruction, Luxord was brought back to serve as a member of the Thirteen Seekers of Darkness, and was tasked to recover a mysterious Black Box for the Organization, though he was unsuccessful. He would later participate in the Second Keyblade War, and would vanish yet again after his defeat.
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Luxord is a man of games and luck; his challenge to Sora and Jack to find the medallions has a game quality to it, and the Heartless he summons cannot be attacked unless all the coins are in the chest, giving a side-objective to the battle. He also uses games of chance in his own battle with Sora. However, his enjoyment for games can backfire on him, both in and out of battle. His enjoyment of games is further portrayed in his additional scenes in Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix, which show him in an almost uncaring light - he seems to not be bothered as long as he can continue to gamble and see interesting things. In Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, much of Luxord's dialogue makes references to cards, games, and luck.
Luxord is also portrayed as a master of rhetoric, with an advanced vocabulary (for example, describing the Grim Reaper Heartless as "a veritable maelstrom of avarice", meaning endlessly greedy, using it to taunt his opponents). He also possesses a notably British accent in the English translation, furthering his air of sophistication. Another interesting note is that, unlike most other members of Organization XIII, who banter with Sora in some fashion before fighting, when Luxord appears to him he calmly smiles and says "I'd rather we just skip the formalities", and begins the battle right away. This somewhat contrasts his appearance in Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, where he talks a good deal to Roxas on their missions, supposedly because he gets on well with him. This brings further meaning to his last words after being fatally struck by Sora "How could you, Roxas?"
In Kingdom Hearts III, Luxord's loyalty to the Organization appears to be out of duty rather than out of any actual loyalty to Xemnas. He contrasts this with Vexen's apparent loyalty to Xemnas. He does not appear to enjoy being used as a pawn, sarcastically remarking to Xemnas about being put at the bottom of the Organization rankings. After being defeated, Luxord calmly accepts his demise and praises Sora for his magnificent talents in playing card games. He even gives Sora a wild card that he said could "turn the tables", seeming to indicate he knows of the price Sora will have to pay for using the power of waking and he gave him the card to show his gratitude for Sora helping his restoration, and smiles when Sora playfully asks to play him again after he is revived, saying that he would like that very much.
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Luxord wears the usual all-black attire of Organization members, but his cloak is somewhat different than normal, sporting slightly pointed shoulders and very loose sleeves. Luxord's platinum-blond hair is very short and worn in a Caesar cut, and he has electric-blue eyes, although they become golden-yellow when he gains a fragment of Master Xehanort’s heart. He is also the only member of Organization XIII to have a beard or mustache, his being a goatee and the same blond color as his hair.
Luxord wears five silver piercings on his ears; four helix piercings in the form of two hoops on each ear and one piercing shaped like the Nobody symbol dangling from one earlobe. The latter piercing hangs from his left ear in-game and his right in some artwork, indicating that both earlobes are pierced.
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Luxord uses his attribute, time, in unorthodox methods when compared to other Organization XIII members. One might not even see his element as time at first glance. He shortens the odds originally by dispatching of Sora's companions before attacking Sora himself. In Kingdom Hearts II, Luxord does not have a health bar; during the battle, Luxord and Sora each have a "time" bar that depletes over time and when they are damaged. The first to have theirs depleted loses the battle. This means that the player must watch Sora's HP and time gauges to make sure neither are emptied. He can blast his enemies with magic presumably of his element when they are far away, but he mainly uses his cards to fight them.
In Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, Luxord has a Limit Break called Jackpot. During Jackpot, Luxord summons a card in front of him. While it is summoned, the card alternates between a cross and a flashing symbol similar to Roxas's pendant. Selecting the cross results in the card merely exploding and Luxord will visibly flinch, while selecting the flashing symbol will create a few powerful energy blasts that follow a trail between Luxord and the target.
During Luxord's Final Limit, Luxord summons two cards in front of him instead of one. The player now has three alternating symbols to choose from: double crosses, the flashing symbol, and an additional red symbol or two large red symbols. The crosses cause the cards to explode as before, the flashing symbol and the red symbol create the exact same energy blasts as summoned by one card. When the two large red symbols are selected, Luxord will create more energy blasts than with one card, with the final blast being much bigger and more powerful. Both versions of the attack are reminiscent of the "Begin Game" Reaction Command that Luxord and the Gambler Nobodies shared in Kingdom Hearts II.
Weapon
Luxord's weapons are very flexible, both literally and figuratively. He uses Cards of varying sizes, some reaching likely more than ten feet in the air when stood on end. The back of each Card has five Nobody symbols on it, while the opposite side resembles a clock (referencing Luxord's element of time) that has Nobody symbols as the minute and hour hands, and the Roman numerals for 1-12 for the clock numbers (the numeral for 13 is in the center, just under the clock hands). Luxord uses these Cards the way that most members of Organization XIII use their element. His signature weapon is the Fair Game Cards.
He can turn himself into a giant Card and hide among similar Cards, turn his enemies into Cards, throw flurries of razor-sharp cards at an enemy, create defensive barriers, and at times by will can warp reality. The Reaction Command "Flip" causes the Cards to vanish, but some of them have a booby trap (represented by a symbol on the one side of the Card) that "Flip" triggers. He can also use them as sleight of hand cover, or to disorient his enemies.
Oddly, most of the Cards (that lack booby traps) Luxord uses in battle are blank on one side, while the ones he uses to "trap" Sora's companions bear the aforementioned clock design.
Gambler Nobodies also use Cards as their weapons, and have the ability to turn an enemy into a Card after winning a "game". They also use Dice, and have a similar ability to turn an enemy into a Die.
It is also noted that in Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, almost all of his weapons have the name of a card in a Tarot card deck.
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- In Latin, "lux" means "light". This, combined with his genteel air and pleasantries towards Roxas in Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, may suggest Luxord was less inclined towards the darkness, unlike other members of the Organization. This may be a coincidental reference to his friendly relations with Roxas, whose attribute is 'Light'.
- "Luxor" is the name of a famous Egyptian-themed casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. Given Luxord's penchant for gambling, it is possible that he was named after the casino.
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