Yes and no. Lightning is definitely a mother figure.

One of the real reasons I can't hate XIII despite its glaring faults is the Hope/ Lightning thread. Lightning just lost Serah, and Hope's mother just died. They immediately get some great chemistry because they want to adopt each other to replace the people they've lost. At the same instant they're complete strangers and Lightning doesn't want to completely give up on Serah.

It's actually some of Final Fantasy's best character writing, if a fair bit undercommunicated. Unfortunately it's spoiled because this is intercut with Snow beating all manner of subtlety out of our brains with his nimrod ways.

Terra is the weakest Protaganist for me. I like confident women and Terra, for more than half the game is a total "damsel in distress" and I cannot stand it. She needs constant saving and reassuring, no sense of self reliance or worth. Repulsive. She is embarrassing when I think about how well crafted other female characters are in the series such as Tifa, Rinoa, Aeris, Garnet, and Yuna who is also technically the leading character of her respective game.
Yuna has a strong focus and never falls into the trope that she needs to be saved. Even when she actually gets kidnapped early in the game.....she actually breaks herself out before you even get to her :P.

I also really appreciated Lightning's character. I personally liked her in FFXIII, it was the rest of it I disliked. Lightning was stern, and strong willed. She took no nonsense. The type of woman that if a man hit her she would put him 6ft under, not cower in the corner for several days ala Terra.

And yes I know that Terra is probably the most powerful being out of all the FF characters but she still sucks if you ask me as a rolemodel.

And many are ready to jump down Vaan's throat as the worst. Hes really not that bad of a character if you can get past his metrosexualized look and goofy clothes. He never gets truly annoying per-se, just a tad angsty as you would expect from a teenager. On the down side, I don't think he ever really evolved as a character tho which makes him a tad bland. Yet...He really isn't the main character of that game.....even in the slightest. SE has us controlling him only because they felt he related to the playership more. He is basically the Robin to the other character's Batman. He is a spectator to what the REAL heroes are doing. If anything, Ashe and Basch are the two main characters. SE said that there were technically no main characters of VI or XIII as well....but if you look at the casts of those games 1 or 2 of them will assuredly stand out in the foreground as such. Locke,Terra, Lightning are assuredly the leading roles.

And as the Reverse of this question and reference to what qualities I appreciate the most.

Yuna: appears to be meek from her outward appearance but is probably the best protaganist in the entire series due to the way she evolves as a character thru the plot.

Vivi: is one of the most endearing figures in the series. Something about his design and personality shines bright. He is the best part about FFIX.

Cloud: You saw this coming, I'm sure. His narcissistic personality in the outset of the game was just a cover to hide his deep sense of self loathing as well as insecurity (also Mako poisoning). I think Cloud is a very good rendition of the avg person. He is proof that our only true hindrance life is our belief that we "Can't" or that we just are not good enough. How the biggest failure of the Shinra Militia took down their most exalted warrior.....its poetry really.

Vaan.

vaan is bad.... but squall... damn he is like the whiny emo sitting on the back of my class... ick i cant stand emo.... sasuke, rukawa, squall, kyoya.... man can anyone give them a happy meal or something...

Funny this is the first post I see, when I was going to say the same thing. Zidane the best browskie, enjoy this.

Vaan, Lightning, Cloud

Damn it definitely seems like most of you didn't play the earlier Final Fantasy titles, come on now I'll admit Tidus is annoying with how he's always boasting, "This is my story" which is madness it's everyone's!

And its 10 bucks he will feel robbed of. :P

This is of course subjective, and I respect your opinion, but as far as I know, is not like Tifa, Rinoa, Aeris, Garnet or Yuna were manipulated and abused by one of the most evil characters in the FF universe. Yuna got kidnapped but she didn't go through what Terra did.