Grandia III
=== Characters ===
The characters of Grandia III were designed by You Yoshinari and feature an assortment of playable and non-playable individuals. The game centers on Yuki, a 16-year-old boy who dreams of becoming an ace pilot like his idol, the legendary Sky Captain Schmidt. Together with his friend Rotts, he builds his own magic-powered aircraft in an attempt to fly over the ocean, but becomes sidetracked due to the intervention of his mother, Miranda. When Yuki and Miranda meet Alfina, a beautiful young girl with the ability to communicate with Sacred Beasts, the god-like guardians of the planet, they become involved in an adventure that takes them around the world. During their journey, the party meets four other characters who become playable at certain points in the story, which include Alonso, a gambler who dreams of completing his map of the world; Ulf, a simple man who owns a pet dragon named Shiba; Dahna, a cynical cartomancer with a hidden soft side; and Hect, a sullen musician from a troubled village.
The principle antagonist is Alfina's brother Emellious, who, like his sister, can communicate with the guardians. Rather than seek worldly balance and harmony, he abandoned his duties as a Communicator to seek the power of Xorn, a rogue guardian with the power of darkness, and become a god. Emellious is assisted in his endeavor by a number of subordinates, including Kornell, a large, imposing man with an iron gauntlet; Violetta, who serves Emellious out of love; La-Ilim, an inhuman, demon-like man who uses an artifact known as the Crystal Skull to summon undead beasts; and Grau, Emellious' right-hand man and conniving strategist. In order to combat their adversaries, the heroes must travel across the world to meet the Sacred Beasts and gain their power, who consist of Gryph the eagle, Drak the dragon, Yoat the ram, Seiba the unicorn, and Unama the dolphin.
=== Story ===
Grandia III takes place in an unnamed world, consisting of a main continent surrounded by the Belion Sea, which is vast, to the point where only one person has flown its breadth, Sky Captain Schmidt. Yuki hails from the village Anfog, on Titalos Island. Much of the world relies on methods of flying, from dragons to planes, which use a magical power source. The Guardians are mystical beasts which reside in the world of Grandia III, hailing from the Verse Realm. They came to Yuki's world after a war broke out on their own, quieting wars in both worlds.
Approximately 5,000 years in the past the world was nearly destroyed in that war. The 12 Guardians stopped the destruction and guided the remaining people of the world to safety. They then watched over the world, imparting wisdom to the people through a chosen line of "Communicators", who could understand the words of the Guardians.
Yuki, an aspiring pilot, has been building an airplane with his friend Rotts in the hopes of being the second pilot to fly across the ocean, following in the footsteps of his idol, Schmidt (though he keeps these plans a secret from his mother, Miranda). So far, he has been rewarded with little success, with nearly twenty projects which, for varying reasons, have failed to get him where he wants to be. On this final flight, he finds that his mother stowed away on his plane, and is unable to fly high enough with the extra weight.
His reprimanding of his mother is interrupted, however, by the sight of a girl in a carriage being chased by several men. Yuki decides to get involved, and swoops down, inevitably crashing into the forest. He and Miranda fight to defend the girl, who they learn to be Alfina, a Communicator, one of those who speaks with the Guardian beasts. They, in light of what had just happened, offer to escort her to the temple at Arcriff, and become more and more involved in the events surrounding the disappearance of Alfina's brother, Emelious. As the story progresses, Alfina's fate becomes more twisted, as Alfina and her companions challenge Emelious and finally face Xorn.
The epilogue shows everyone going on living their lives. In the end, Yuki and Alfina are married with a young child, with their son having the same ambition of flying as his father.
tragedy