Let's discuss KH3? SPOILERS for Kingdom Hearts 3 SPOILERS (Obviously.)

[Imaginym]

There may be also be at least 2 more Pocket Dimensions; In Symphony of Sorcery, Sora & Riku each go into different musical realms contained within sheets of music, then Sora goes into a third music sheet to get rid of the Spellican.

Speaking of which, the Spellican seems like it should have a profile. Its a pest in 2nd visit Traverse Town and Symphony of Sorcery.

It summons bosses, its barriers during its boss rush make it invincible against Sora's attacks, it can portal between the different Traverse Towns & other Sleeping Worlds, short range teleport, & is only slightly slower than Sora, going by the flowmotion rail chase sequence against it.

(Also, it's strangely patient; In a cutscene, it tries to wait for the others to stop chatting right in from of it, the Spellican gradually speaking up louder until it just gets mad to get their attention. So it may be decently intelligent, too. Or just weird.)

 

[ArkhamDC06]

Tier 2 is about time yes but Kingdom Hearts doesn't seem to be able to change it (or at least Xehanort wasn't planning on changing the timeline, only purging the actual Universe without affecting time itself).

I think it's just a part of the same universe since it's likely a pocket dimension in a book.

For the moment Traverse Town thing, i think it was just Young Xehanort influcing Sora's dream to show him the different times he went to that world. Pretty much memories more than different flows of time. We can assume that there are 4 "dimensions" (Realm of Light, Realm of Darkness, Realm In-Between, Dream World) but i don't think KH can influence them all. It's pretty clear that it has nearly no effect over the Realm of Darkness. I don't know if Xehanort intended to affect the Realm In-Between or the Dream World but i don't think so. For what i understand, Kingdom Hearts is about affecting the Realm of Light.

 

[Bobsican]

"Xehanort seeks the true Kingdom Hearts so he can remake the entire universe in his image and cover all the worlds in darkness"

This can possibly lead to a possibly 2-C rating.

 

[ArkhamDC06]

Imaginym Since DDD is all about the Dream World, Symphony and Traverse Town could be considered as pocket dimensions with various "minor" timelines.

Bobsican Possibly but again, the word "Universe" is questionable. Was he planning to remake the Realm of Light (like it seems to be the case) or was he willing to affect other realms too ?

 

[ArkhamDC06]

"At least 3-A, possibly 2-C" could fit if KH is able to affect other Realms that the Realm of Light to me. The question is : is KH able to remake these other realms ? And are worlds real universes or jst smaller dimensions called universes ?

 

[Bobsican]

Imaginym Since DDD is all about the Dream World, Symphony and Traverse Town could be considered as pocket dimensions with various "minor" timelines.
Bobsican Possibly but again, the word "Universe" is questionable. Was he planning to remake the Realm of Light (like it seems to be the case) or was he willing to affect other realms too ?

Right at the end of the game he basically says that he was going to affect all realms too (KH3).

As for the realms part, well, as he explicitly has the range to do so, changing the realms at once is very potential.

 

[ArkhamDC06]

My only doubt is about the Realm of Darkness. From what Xehanort says at the end, darkness are what hearts are made of and darkness come from the Realm of Darkness. KH doesn't seem to have any effect over this realm at the end of KH 1 apart from destroying Ansem's body).

To me, the KH is 2-C in his globality (since the verse is composed of at least four realms that are explecitly separated dimensions whith their own flow of time apart from the RoD where time doesn't exist) but i don't know if KH can affect them all. But it could be quite possible.

In any case, if "At least 3-A, possibly 2-C" can count, it's only for KH and perhaps the True X-Blade, don't think characters would scale.

 

[Imaginym]

For the moment Traverse Town thing, i think it was just Young Xehanort influcing Sora's dream to show him the different times he went to that world.

Lol no.

1. Sora & Riku meet Neku & Joshua before Sora's first drop, so the involvement of TWEWY characters & their timers predates Sora getting put to sleep.

2. YX already interfered with TWEWY stuff by impersonating a reaper & telling Neku to bring Sora to him. Why would he want Neku to capture Sora if he just wanted to lie to Sora about the 2 Traverse Towns having different flows of times?

3. If he did explain that to Sora, it might help him figure the Organization's plan out, & avoid falling into darkness or going further into sleep. Riku finding out doesn't matter because, as is explained by YX to Riku around the Chernabog fight, Riku's heart is too resistant to darkness, so he can't be a vessel. And although it's not stated, presumably, because Riku is in Sora's dreams, he can't really tell Sora about this.

4. Joshua tells Riku about the time discrepancies, not Sora.

5. Joshua & the TWEWY characters were in Sleeping Traverse Town because he needed a safe place to keep the last remnants of their dreams to preserve their existences. He found Traverse Town & that dreams can take physical form there.

6. Quoting KHWiki's summary of DDD TWTNW's plot: "The still-dreaming Sora sees illusions of Kairi, Riku, Aqua, and Terra, while Sora takes on Ventus's appearance. Upon the dream's end, Sora asks Xigbar whether everything he had seen was implanted by the Organization. Xigbar clarifies that the visions were a dream, as it was impossible for the Organization to insert false memories and visions into his head."

If the Organization can't put false memories or visions into Sora's head, how do you believe the different passage of time in the 2 Traverse Towns was Young Xehanort's trickery?!

Heck, when told about the time discrepancy, Riku is undescribed, mentioning the time difference as if it's common knowledge for worlds to have different flows of time.

 

[Bobsican]

I think the "At least 3-A, Possibly 2-C" is an accepted rating now.

 

[ArkhamDC06]

My bad, i thought you were talking about the end of Sora's story when Xehanort was trying to put him further in his sleep.

For that, i don't know. It could be a clue to confirm tier 2 but it could also be pocket dimensions within the Dream World itself. Realm of Light has different flows of time since there are medieval worlds like Enchanted Dominion along with modernary worlds like Toy Box.

Then again, is KH able to affect the four realms that exist in KH Universe or is it only bale to purge the Realm of Light which can be considered as its own universe ?

 

[Imaginym]

From what Xehanort says at the end, darkness are what hearts are made of and darkness come from the Realm of Darkness. To me, the KH is 2-C in his globality (since the verse is composed of at least four realms that are explecitly separated dimensions whith their own flow of time apart from the RoD where time doesn't exist)

Hearts are mostly Darkness & Light. We can see this with Ventus's Heart. (Which might actually be useful for scaling later, because we can see how much of it was lost from using its Darkness to make Vanitas. If Pre-BBS Ventus gets a feat involving a Keyblade, we calc that, then quantify that with geometry. Since a Keyblade is related to strength of heart, & Sora restored Ventus's heart, quantifying how much his heart contributed to Ven's could give Sora a rating for his KH1 & so forms.)

Also, clarify when it was stated the Realms are separate?

Realm In-Between & Realm of Light are blatantly connected. Realm of Sleep & Realm of Darkness are difficult to access, but RoD seems to be connected to RIB by the Dark Margin.

 

[CrimsonStarFallen]

Ok, so i just finished KH 3, cried like a baby.

Also, Donald should be "Higher with Zettaflare"

 

[Imaginym]

Then again, is KH able to affect the four realms that exist in KH Universe or is it only bale to purge the Realm of Light which can be considered as its own universe ?

At the end of KH1, when Sora defeats Ansem, all the worlds get restored. Ansem opens the Door to Darkness, & the Light of Kingdom Hearts destroys him.

However, Kingdom Hearts is surrounded by Darkness, so the Door to Darkness must be closed. This closing destroys the artifical Kingdom Hearts in KH1, that was created as a result of Ansem & the Heartless gathering the Hearts of so many Worlds.

This artificial Kingdom Hearts technically affects the Realm of Darkness, as it's in the RoD, or very close to it, & its destruction/separation causes it to release the Hearts of Worlds that comprise it; Its end affects the Realm of Darkness by causing the worlds trapped in the Realm of Darkness to be restored, & no longer trapped in the RoD.

We see this in 0.2, with the Destiny Islands Aqua was on in the RoD being restored to the Realm of Light. (Sadly, she didn't get to go with it.)

But, it's artificial, & that was a product of it ending & releasing the Hearts that comprise it, so who knows if the real thing would function the same.

 

[ArkhamDC06]

I agree, that will be useful. Does Pre-BBS Ventus shows any particular thing that can be used ? And for the darkness, Xehanort said that the original state of the Universe was darkness and then KH appears (or was already there i am not sure) and created light but hearts still existed in some ways apparently. In fact, if what the Master of the Masters says to Ira in Back can count, KH is likely the source of all light. Hearts only made from darkness can exist naturally (Maleficent, Jafar, Oogie Boogie and Hades for example).

Realms are connected but they don't exist on the same plane. You can access to RoD but they are mostly separated. Same thing for the Dream World. Not everbody can access to another realm by conventional means. The Dark Margin is likely a bound between nearly all the realms but it's not an open door that shows they are the same thing.

"At least 3-A, possibly 2-C" is relevant for KH to me, since it can at least purge the Realm of Light and could have some influence over the other realms.

And there is also the Shibuya case from the secret ending.

 

[Bobsican]

But, it's artificial, & that was a product of it ending & releasing the Hearts that comprise it, so who knows if the real thing would function the same.

The real thing is far higher, so it easily can by upscaling.

 

[ArkhamDC06]

Yeah but that's the point. RoD wasn't affected itself when the worlds where restored. Also, the artificial Kingdom Hearts was Xemnas's no ? The world destroying thing was a result of Maleficent's quest for the Princesses of Hearts and the End of the World wasn't an artificial KH but an amalgam of worlds. The Door in the Realm of Darkness apparently leads to the real KH.

 

[CrimsonStarFallen]

We really need a Yen Sid profile.

Also, that secret ending is hype. Maybe we can get some more TWEWY love.

 

[The_2nd_Existential_Seed]

Wait... Are people arguing a change for Pre-KH3 as well as KH3 to 3-A/2-C?

 

[ArkhamDC06]

CrimsonStarFallen Yep, YS from KH should have a profile.

The ending mostly confirms that the next villain is going to be the Master. And it seems he has some sort of link with Yozora.

 

[ArkhamDC06]

Bobscan Likely it is.

 

[Bobsican]

We really need a Yen Sid profile.
Also, that secret ending is hype. Maybe we can get some more TWEWY love.

You mean that part where he somehow gets into that Toy Story videogame?

 

[Bobsican]

Wait... Are people arguing a change for Pre-KH3 as well as KH3 to 3-A/2-C?

Not yet, so far, the 3-A/2-C stuff is likely left to post KH3 anyways.

 

[ArkhamDC06]

The 2nd Existential Seed Mostly for KH as a world to scale to 3-A/2-C. Pre-KH 3 is about "feats".

 

[ArkhamDC06]

Bobsican It seems to be a different world in addition, maybe the video game is based on it. Since the Master of the Masters appear in it, it's likely another world (or perhaps a new dimension).

 

[Imaginym]

I agree, that will be useful. Does Pre-BBS Ventus shows any particular thing that can be used ? And for the darkness, Xehanort said that the original state of the Universe was darkness and then KH appears (or was already there i am not sure) and created light but hearts still existed in some ways apparently.
Realms are connected but they don't exist on the same plane. You can access to RoD but they are mostly separated. Same thing for the Dream World. Not everbody can access to another realm by conventional means. The Dark Margin is likely a bound between nearly all the realms but it's not an open door that shows they are the same thing.

Xehanort is kinda biased towards darkness. I wouldn't be confident in his words.

@Bobsician: The point was that the Artificial KH in KH1 affected the Realm of Darkness by splitting apart & restoring worlds from the Realm of Darkness, BECAUSE the parts that made the KH1 KH were the Hearts of those worlds trapped in the RoD it restored.

I suppose it sets a precedent for KH to be able to restore worlds from the Realm of Darkness, but they'd still have to be there to restore first.

Pre-BBS Ventus's history isn't too well-known. Let's do a quick recap.

* Early BBS: Ventus appears in the wastelands of the Keyblade Graveyard with no memories. Xehanort tries to "train him", wanting Ventus to awaken the darkness in himself ["himself" being Ventus] in an attempt to forge the X-Blade. Ventus isn't strong enough & gets bodied by the 14 Neoshadows Xehanort sicced on him. (Seriously, Xehanort, what the heck?)

• So, Xehanort extracts the Darkness from Ventus's Heart, creating Vanitas. Now he has a Heart of Pure Light & Pure Darkness to clash & create an X-Blade. But, Ven goes kinda comatose, & Xehanort, figuring this means his Pure Light & Pure Darkness Hearts can't clash, takes Ventus to his home world of Destiny Islands to... well, kinda bury him.

• This is when Sora's Heart bonds with Ventus's & we can actually see how Ventus's heart is affected. Sora('s Heart) tells Ven he's a brand-new heart (Why Sora's Heart is still brand new at the age of 4, I don't know.) & Ven learns Sora is in his Heart because he saw the light of Ven's Heart shining in the distance & followed it there.

Conveniently, Ven is visible in his fractured Heart. To calc how much is restored, we may not even need him, though. It seems it would just be a pillar shape with a circular top.
You can also see a vertical shot that pans downwards, that can help give an idea of the height of the structure that is Ven's fractured Heart, at around between 12:10 & 12:17

However, the important part isn't the dimensions; The point of calcing this would be to determine what percentage -What PORTION- of Ven's Heart Sora's Heart restored, so we can figure out just how much of Ven's power Sora was able to make up for.

Anyway, pre-BBS Ventus is much simpler.

• Hundreds of years ago -or some amount of time like that- in the age of Fairy Tales, when all the worlds were one, MoM tells Ava to forge the Dandelions. Ventus gets to be one, & is also selected to be a Union Leader to inevitably replace the Foretellers.

• Keyblade War happens. The worlds get separated, the Foretellers & each of their copies of the Book of Prophecies are gone, & the Master of Master's Data Worlds plan comes into play.

• New Union Leaders have been chosen, & in going to the new world that's a data copy of the old one, all the non-Leader Dandelions get their memories wiped of the Keyblade War, to get rid of the grief of it. Ventus is one of these Union Leaders.

Apparently, he envies Ephemer & Skuld's friendship, having spent much of his time alone.

• Ventus, Ephemer & Skuld get ingredients for new Spirits (Pets for Keyblade Wielders who can fight alongside them.) & Lauriam & Brain prepare. Like Chirithy, they are Dream Eaters. A Chirithy approaches Player, & uses some of Player's Chirithy's fur to create a Pet for them.

So yeah. Apparently, Dream Eaters can exist in Data Worlds. Or at least, these "Pet" types can.

• Other than discuss their rulebooks (Ex: Since competitions between Keyblade Wielders have to happn, they make it be between Data Keyblade Wielders.), Ventus hasn't done much in KHUX, IIRC.

Also, again, the Realms of Light & In-Between seem very connected, given the travel between them in KH1 Ending to CoM, KH2, & BBS.

 

[Imaginym]

I'll have a good laugh & smile if this thing & its kin come to solo some 'verses.

 

[ArkhamDC06]

I see. Complicated and still pretty vague. In any case, Ventus's case could be useful.

Conneected yeah but still separated in some ways. So for now, "At least 3-A, possibly 2-C" seems good in many ways. It needed too be discussed.

Also, do you agree with the abilities i proposed above (for Xehanort and KH) ? .

 

[Imaginym]

Bobsican Ok. I can propose :
- Light Manipulation (Xehanort and KH)

- Spatial Manipulation (Xehanort already has this power so it's only about adding Scala Ed Caelum thing as a justification)

- Absorption (KH and Xehanort via using its power since was able to absorb Sora's light)

- Darkness Manipulation (KH)

- Portal Creation (KH, since it can lead to all worlds)

- Creation (KH)

- Energy Manipulation (KH)

- Maybe Soul Manipulation (KH, if it applies to hearts in the verse)

Absorption, & Darkness Manipulation I feel might need to be looked into.

Portal Creation seems like a strange interpretation. Kingdom Hearts is all hearts of beings & worlds, is it not? If so, then wouldn't that just mean all worlds are present around/within it, rathern than via portals?

I still don't think Twilight Town, TWTNW, Mysterious Tower, Castle Oblivion & Land of Departure are separate enough from the Realm of Light that they can be readily called different dimensions, & the Dark Margin/End of Sea makes me question Realm of Darkness being a different dimension, too.

And what do you mean separated? Like the invisible barriers between worlds, the broken pieces of which were used to make Gummi Ships?

Still, maybe the Realm of Sleep counts as a different dimension. It's supposedly hard to access, Heartless supposedly can't get in, Ansem's presence aside. If it's not something you can Portal of Darkness to from outside, but can do so within, that'd make sense if it were its own universe & PoDs worked on a "Teleport anywhere within this dimension" basis, maybe with the RoD being an exception to that rule, since it's where Darkness originates?

Then again, maybe that's all too speculative.

 

[ArkhamDC06]

KH is capable of bringing Darkness to all worlds. And Absorption was used by Xehanort in his final battle against Sora. For the portal thing, Vanitas explicitly said before his final battle against Aqua and Mickey that once he would have used the X-Blade on KH, it would open a door who will lead to all worlds. Also, KH is made of the hearts of all worlds, not from all worlds themselves.

When i said separated, i mean they're not in the same plane of existence itself. Worlds of the Realm of Light can be absorbed by the Realm of Darkness or can be trapped in the Realm of Sleep. While you can access to these realms, it's extremely difficult. You cannot have access to the RoD with a Gummi Ship alone. Also, Portal of Darkness do not automatically give access to the RoD, only the strongest beings like Ansem, Xemans, Xehanort or Roxas can use them to enter in it and only the most dark and stronger beings can leave the realm.

 

[Imaginym]

For the portal thing, Vanitas explicitly said before his final battle against Aqua and Mickey that once he would have used the X-Blade on KH, it would open a door who will lead to all worlds. Also, KH is made of the hearts of all worlds, not from all worlds themselves.

I know of this scene. But I'm assuming that if the Hearts of the Worlds are present, so are the worlds themselves. I'm unsure if it'd be a portal. When was KH stated to be capable of bringing Darkness to all worlds?

While it's not that I don't believe you, where was it clarified only the strongest users of Darkness can use Portals of Darkness?

I don't deny the Realm of Darkness is difficult to access & rather separate (Mickey went there via going to when The Destiny Islands were destroyed, IIRC.) but, I don't think it's entirely separate.

https://www.khwiki.com/Director's_Secret_Report_XIII To quote Tetsuya Nomura's own words:


"That place that appears at the beginning and end of KHII, called the Dark Margi, is the tip of the cape of that world, and it is not strictly part of the Realm of Darkness but a boundary-like place between Darkness and Between. This means that in the ending Sora and Riku are looking at an ocean in the Realm of Darkness from a beach in the Realm Between. This also means that the scene of the door appearing in the ocean of darkness at the end was symbolic of Sora's "deep down, there's a light that never goes out" line from the first game."

Given that there's a place connecting the Realm of Darkness & Realm In-Between, & the Realm In-Between has multiple worlds accessible via Gummi Ship or the Lanes Between, I'd assume they're not entirely disconnected.

 

[ArkhamDC06]

Darkness are stated to be the original state of the Universe. Xehanort says that after his defeat and yes, he was somehow affected by the darkness but it's pretty clear he used it to reach is goal to create a better world. Xehanort's main goal was to purge them with darkness with KH then use its light to rebuild a new world. Also, he discovered that darkness come from human hearts wich means from KH to some extent since KH is the source of the hearts. If KHwas made of all the worlds themsleves, i think Scala ed Caelum would have disappeared during the fight at the exact moment when Xehanort summoned it. Likely, it is the "mebodiement" of the hearts of all worlds but it's made of the worlds themselves.

I also said that only the darker and stronger beings are able to leave the RoD. Take the example of Ansem the Wise. Xehanort sent him into the RoD but he was finally able to leave it because his hatred against his apprentice gave him dark powers along with turning him into a nearly sociopath with an absolute lust for revenge. Once he abandonned his desire for revenge in KH II, he was incapable of leaving the Realm because without his rage, he has lost his powers. Same for Aqua. She is extremely powerful, more than Sora, but she isn't a dark being. It's not that she hasn't any darkness in herself, it's that her darkness are too "weak" to allow her to leave the realm. On the other hand, Xemnas, Xehanort and Ansem (SoD) are very dark beings who hold absolute control over their darkness.

They're not entirely separated but again, i don't think they exist in the same plan of existence. If they were not seperated in some ways, why would the Heartless be stronger in the RoD to the point a mere shadow is capablle of causing much difficulties to Mickey and Riku while in the RoL, they're absolute weakness. The realms are connected (Dark Margin as you says) but still separated. Of course, i can be wrong on many point.

 

[Bobsican]

Can KH characters get durability negation via Electrcity manip? After those revisions, I think KH3´s description on some Heartless in the Gummiphone says the electrical output, which can be used to render that valid.

 

[Imaginym]

Exact quotes, screenshots or video link?

 

[RKGenki]

Just wanted to point out that the deal with the various realms is explained in-game in the glossary which I wonder if anyone read here

Relevant stuff (disclaimer: I have the Italian version of the game, so some stuff might differ from the English one):

>Riku and Mickey have the power of waking, and it's what they use to reach the Realm of Darkness

>The worlds in the Realm of Light and the Realm Between are called "planets in a sea of stars" (which is consistent with characters saying that every star in the night sky is a world, considering that from that distance they'd only be able to see the star those worlds orbitate around)

>The worlds of the Realm of Darkness exist in a place separated from time

>There's no need to be an actual master to be able to pass down the Keyblade

>Nobodies are called "incarnation of the void"

Everything else is mostly stuff already known here or at least I hope so

 

[HST_Master]

>When all it took was to read the Glossary

 

[GiverOfThePeace]

The keyblade should get EE/Void Manip. It literally kills beings to the point that they need to re-create their entire bodies to revive.

 

[Axl233]

Soo should Sora have mid godly regen since he was able to pull his body and heart back together after getting destroyed?or is just immortality type 8 dependent of Kairi?

 

[GiverOfThePeace]

I'd say that or just potent-ressurection. Should also be noted that he killed some of the organization members to a state where they didn't come back as nobodies.

 

[HST_Master]

I mean he already has several forms of ress, 3 just added the Kupo Coin and maybe Kairi.

 

[Imaginym]

@GiverOfThePeace, @Axl233: The stars we see in The Final World all seem to have in common that they have something connecting them to the world.

Video about all The Final World Stars dialogues: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atd0dgRkl2k

All The Final World cutscenes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atd0dgRkl2k (Which may be missing some Stars dialogue.)

Lemme amass some dialogue about his situation:

• Chirithy tells Sora "There's nothing else beyond this. You've wandered here more than once on your visits to the Station of Awakening, buuut... I let that slide. The edges of sleep and death touch, and one can't help the occasional crossover."

• Chirithy later states these others times were by Sora's own choice & this time is very different, stating Sora will need to piece himself together in this world, clarifying he's "conceptually scattered" but "on the outside, you're just fine".

• Chirity answers about death as: "The natural end for those whose hearts and bodies perish together. But some persist, and arrive here." and later says "Usually, only a heart can reach the final world. But since you've clearly managed to retain some kind of form, that can only mean your body was cast into this world as well."

• When it's time for Sora to leave, Chirithy answers Sora's sarcastic thanks with "What? I'm doing you a big favor, you know. Don't push it."

• When Sora asks Chirithy "What about my friends?", Chirithy says "I'm afraid that no one else arrived with you." So we have good reason to believe Sora's friends didn't put themselves back together. Chirithy adds "And if they're not here, they're either gone forever, or they're clinging to the world you came from."

So Sora's state of his body being in The Final World to reassemble definitely seems like the exception, not the norm.

• Curiously, when Sora tells Chirithy "You still look like you" & offers to help find Chirithy's pieces, Chirithy says "Oh, I don't work like that.". So apparently, Chirithy will not get conceptually scattered? Or not go to The Final World as just a heart?

Anyway, Sora leaves, & asking Chirithy, Sora decides to try the Power of Waking to restore his friends' hearts, saying it'll take all his heart.

I think that, given that we see Sora rescue his friends' Hearts from a Heartless, & see the Hearts leave, we can assume his friends were clinging to the world, & their Hearts came back, after being seized by darkness.

• Namine: "I'm so glad that you managed to hold onto who you are." Namine also says about Kairi, to Sora: "She's fighting with all her strength to keep you from fading away."

• Sora: "So the reason I retained my form in this place..." Namine: "It's because she's holding you together. Go to her."

Chirithy also hints at this earlier, telling Sora he's "hanging on by a thread".

So yeah, him coming back this way is VERY dependent on Kairi.

The good news is Namine tells Sora she was in Kairi's heart, and struck down by a powerful darkness, then found herself there. Presumably, this is the Demon Tide, since that's what took Kairi.

What this means is Kairi, when "fighting with all her strength", can facilitate this kind of resurrection for Sora.

But presumably, Kairi wasn't struck down by a keyblade, nor were most of the other stars. Nor Sora. He was being exposed to the darkness slipping past Riku from the Demon Tide when he went down. Doesn't seem like a Keyblade induced death.

In fact, rewatching the cutscene, the Demon Tide gets Aqua, Ventus, Kairi, Axel, Mickey, Donald, Goofy, & then Riku & Sora, then we're told that Darkness prevailed and Light expired.

Many of the stars talk about their feelings, memories, thoughts, etc. So they aren't entirely gone. And the 2nd voiced star is capable of moving & speaking. I'd argue they have some physicality. Doesn't seem like a product of a Keyblade either, given Sora didn't even seem to die to a Keyblade but to the Demon Tide.

(Sorry about all the words.)