[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/SaGa_Frontier.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:No, that's not 'Salsa Frontier']]

->''"A wizard's dark destiny, a woman's revenge, even a robot's search for his soul. Seven amazing adventures that weave into one -- yours."''

So reads the back of the case for ''[=SaGa=] Frontier'', the first ''VideoGame/{{SaGa|RPG}}'' game released in North America since ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyLegendIII'', and the first one on the Platform/PlayStation. It came out March 25 1998, (July 11 '97 in Japan) and was produced by Creator/{{Square|Enix}}soft's Production Team 2 (referred to as "2nd Division" in-game.) The 75 song soundtrack was composed and arranged by Creator/KenjiIto, who also did the soundtracks for previous ''[=SaGa=]'' titles.

''[=SaGa=] Frontier'' is unique in that there are seven playable protagonists, each with their own individual quest. It also uses a 'system data' feature, which, if you complete one character's story, will [[NewGamePlus give bonuses to the characters in subsequent quests.]]

[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYnCp7_fh7M A Remaster has been released in North America on April 15th, 2021 for PS4, Switch, Steam, and iOS]] that not only updates the visuals, but reinserts large amounts of cut content, including an entire scenario that was originally scrapped.

!!A quick summary of the seven stories:

* Blue: A magician from the [[MagicalSociety Magic Kingdom]], his magical prowess has been divided between himself and his twin brother, Rouge. According to the customs of his land, he must master as many types of magic as possible, and [[CainAndAbel kill his brother]] in a DuelToTheDeath, to attain his true strength.
* Red: A teenage boy whose family is destroyed by the evil organization called Black X (Black Cross). [[SuperEmpowering Granted the identity]] of the SuperHero Alkaiser, he struggles to [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge destroy Black X.]]
* Emilia: A beautiful woman [[ClearMyName accused]] of murdering her fiancé, and wrongly imprisoned for it, she becomes a member of Gradius, a secret organization, in order to track down the real killer.
* Asellus: Run over by a carriage and [[EmergencyTransformation saved from death by a blood transfusion]] by a Mystic Lord, she's turned into the world's first and only Half-Mystic. Chosen as Charm Lord's heir, she is [[HalfBreedDiscrimination despised by human and Mystic alike]]. Can she escape her dark destiny or will she embrace it?
* T260: A Mec constructed from readily available parts and an ancient core found at a crash site. Its important mission long [[LaserGuidedAmnesia forgotten]] due to damage, T260 must remember and fulfill its original directive.
* Riki: A young Monster whose home world, Margmel, is dying. In order to save the entire Region, he must [[GottaCatchEmAll find and bring together]] the nine legendary [[RingOfPower Rings Of Power]].
* Lute: A wandering minstrel from Yorkland, Lute lives a carefree life... until he finds himself facing off against his father's [[YouKilledMyFather apparent murderer]].

There was also a cut 8th story due to time constraints, but the Remastered version brings this story to light:

* Fuse: Agent of IRPO with a short temper, hence his code name being the shortened version of 'Crazy Fuse'. He has appeared in other stories, and his own story involves an adventure where he got involved with the original seven quests, with one extra goal that depends on his decisions taken.
----
!!''[=SaGa=] Frontier'' provides examples of:
* AbortedArc: Where do we ''start''? For the most part, the Remastered edition promised to restore these.
* ActuallyIAmHim: Leonard pulls this on T260.
* AfterBossRecovery: In Red's game after a battle with Metal Black 3, the red mist scattered after the explosion rejuvenates the party.
* AlienBlood: Mystics have blue blood, and the Half-Mystic Asellus has purple.
* TheAlcatraz: Despair. While no one's ever escaped, the warden gives the inmates the chance for freedom, if they can touch the Freedom rune located within the prison. Only ''one'' person's ever done it before Emilia, Annie and Liza, and it's implied that the person who did was [[spoiler:Roufas]].
* AllThereInTheManual: It's no exaggeration to say there is more story in the companion books than in the game. There's some weird stuff there, too; for example, the "useless" character Slime actually plays a large role in [[spoiler:the battles against Boss X and Mondo. With Boss X he blocks his eye blinding him, and with Mondo, Slime literally corrodes him while he's piloting Spriggan]].
* AmazingTechnicolorBattlefield: Boss X, Orlouge, and Genocide Heart. Also, any battle fought in 4th Dimension Magisphere.
* AndNowForSomeoneCompletelyDifferent: Congratulations, AWinnerIsYou. But you've still got six more stories to finish.
* AntiFrustrationFeatures: The remaster adds a "Story" section to the party menu, which provides an ongoing journal for the character's quest along with [[NowWhereWasIGoingAgain a summary of the goal to be accomplished]] in any given section. It also has arrows that point out entrances to places as some are not as obvious as others.
* ApologizesALot: Mesarthim frequently apologizes for perceived insults to higher ranked Mystics- It's actually the reason she won't join while [[TheVoiceless Silence]] is in the party, unless Asellus is also with you, in which case her loyalty to Asellus overrules this.
* ArbitraryHeadcountLimit: Fifteen, in three parties of five. Only one party can take part in any given battle. If you would go over fifteen, someone has to leave - which can be a problem when people automatically join in some quests. The Remaster fixes this as extra characters who are recruited after filling in the fifteen slots are simply set aside in a standby category, free to be swapped out with in-party characters at any given time.
* ArmsDealer: Pzkw V, a Mec can be found in the backstreets of Koorong, selling smuggled guns.
* AscendedGlitch: Two of the original's best-known glitches (Takonomics, which allows you to manipulate the gold market to make way more money than you should, and the Junk Shop glitch, which lets you acquire multiple items for free over and over again) are left unaltered in the Remastered version.
* AwLookTheyReallyDoLoveEachOther: For as much as she seems to hate Fei-On when he first joins, Mei-Ling is willing to wait a surprisingly long time inside a dying inter-dimensional creature for him to come back.
* ArtifactOfDoom: The Nine Rings of Power.
* TheAssimilator: Mystics can absorb monsters into their gear to increase their stats as well as gain new powers. Monsters can take on abilities of other monsters they absorb along with sometimes changing form. Mecs can download tech programs from enemy mecs.
* AwesomeButImpractical: The Tower spell deals way a lot of damage if you have high enough JP point remaining. Problem is, ''it drains your whole JP'', so if you did not finish off your enemy with that Tower, then your mage is a sitting duck that can only cast weak spells if they at least equipped majorly Magic spells throughout the whole battle. And most final bosses ALWAYS have tons of HP to withstand Tower. You can make it effective by having it on either a Mystic or a built-up MagicKnight, but Mystics tends to have lower JP while the journey to make an effective MagicKnight with high JP and WP are often 'not worth it'.
* BackAlleyDoctor: Dr. Nusakan, literally - as in he operates out of Koorong's "Back Alley" district. He's only useful in one character's quest: [[spoiler:in Riki's quest, he knows how to save the mayor of Yorkland's daughter.]]
* BadassBystander: Blue in Red's quest. When the [[CoolShip Cygnus]] gets attacked by pirates, Blue easily takes out the one who charges into his room. But because he's [[{{Jerkass}} kind of a dick]], he refuses to help Red because he doesn't like his name. In fairness, it differs only in language from his Evil Twin.
* BareFistedMonk: Bare-hands are a perfectly viable fighting style--several characters such as Fei-On and Liza start with a few techniques.
* BatOutOfHell: In addition to regular bats, there's an OptionalBoss-- The Abyss Bat.
* BeefGate: Early on in Asellus's game, in Chateau Aguille, it's possible to find an endgame {{Superboss}} with ending-altering potential. Even if you're properly trained, it's a difficult fight. Trying to fight it at the point in the game where it's possible to first encounter it? Suicide.
* {{BFS}}: The Asura (Phantasm in the Remaster) is a red-bladed sword that starts off a multi-slashing combo ending with the sword growing huge for the final hit.
* BigBallOfViolence: The "Scuffle" skill has the character throw the enemy offscreen, and have one of these occur.
* BigBadEnsemble: Each story has its own BigBad, and they mostly aren't related. ''[[AllThereInTheManual Essence]]'' indicates that [[spoiler:Mondo]] is TheManBehindTheMan to most of the others, but in the game proper there's no indication of any links between them, [[spoiler:except that Emilia's quest is tied in with fighting another Trinity commander]], and the majority of the {{Big Bad}}s logically ''couldn't'' be [[spoiler:Mondo]]'s subordinates.
* BittersweetEnding: A lot of the endings aren't exactly very happy.
** Asellus's [[spoiler:Half-Mystic]] ending is just a touch above a downer. [[spoiler:She saves Gina, White Rose and probably Lion Princess, takes down Orlouge and is free of his pursuers, but is left without a place in the world and becomes a wandering adventurer, and her only tie to normality is her annual reunion with Gina, who is [[MayflyDecemberRomance growing old while she remains forever young]].]] Meanwhile, in the [[spoiler:Full Human]] ending, [[spoiler:she gets to return to a normal life after saving everyone, and dies peacefully in her sleep of old age...but it's bittersweet for ''Gina'', because Asellus marries a man and never gets together with her.]]
** In Riki's ending, [[spoiler:his people lose their home, he has to fight his treacherous best friend, and his entire quest turns out to be a ShaggyDogStory because the artifact he was hoping to find was cursed to begin with. Still, his people did survive and finally learn to let go of their DoomedHometown, allowing them to move on and continue surviving even without their home.]]
** In Emilia's [[spoiler:bad]] ending, [[spoiler:she kills Joker, her quest's goal, and prevented the Cube from being misused by either him or anyone else, but what is there left after? Ren is still dead, and unbeknownst to her, it was her who did it. Emilia leaves Gradius to figure out what to do with her life. Even Roufas thinks that this is too much for her, so he ordered her to forget about Gradius, her friendship with him, Annie and Liza, and tell her to live on without any more fighting. And she did, but wherever she goes afterwards, it's unknown. In the Remastered version, however, this ending becomes a DownerEnding, since Ren could have been talked out of his Joker mentality with some beating by Fuse (who also sorted out his unfair treatment with Emilia earlier) and causing Emilia to still love him and forgive his actions. Without Fuse resolving the issues, Emilia is set to unknowingly kill Ren and lead a life of solitude, completely traumatized with the events.]]
** Blue/Rouge's ending. [[spoiler:After merging, they agreed to fulfill their destiny of sealing themselves in Hell, fighting Hell's Lord for eternity. They're sealed there forever, but they know that the world outside will be spared from TheLegionsOfHell invading the realms [[HeroicSacrifice thanks to their sacrifice.]]]]
* BlackMarket: Koorong's got a thriving one. From smuggled guns, to secret criminal organizations, to [[BackAlleyDoctor questionable medical care]], you can find it there.
* BlandNameProduct: "Bucci[[note]]Gucci[[/note]]" brand handbags. The Remastered version changed it into 'Apollon'.
* BlondeBrunetteRedhead: Emilia (blonde), Liza (brunette), and Annie (redhead).
* BodyHorror: The scientists of Shrike's Bio-Research Lab, though some aren't particularly horrified by it.
* BonusDungeon: In the original version of the game, the Bio Research Lab had no plot linked to it; there was ''going'' to be, but it got axed with the rest of Asellus's plot. It's just a place where you can do battle against increasingly-powerful monsters and the [[OptionalBoss Earth Dragon]]. However, the Remaster added the Asellus plot elements back in.
* BossRemix: A few. Blue's final battle theme is a remix of the song in his opening scene. Red's is a remix of song in his story.
* BossRush:
** Near the end of Red's game, you fight the major bosses all over again. Each has double their initial HP.
** In the Remaster, as long as Fuse has recruited the connected protagonist and finished their "Case File", he can choose to fight their FinalBoss at the end of a run. By fighting all seven, the last one gains a huge power boost, and victory unlocks an OptionalBoss in the DevelopersRoom.
* ButThouMust: Gen tells T260 to tell him when he's ready to leave the Pub. If you try to tell him you're ready to go, he tells you to get him another drink. Emilia can’t progress her story until she agrees to work with Roufas.
* BuxomBeautyStandard: Emilia [[DefiedTrope doesn't think so]]. When she reads the porno mag, she's disgusted by the star's disproportionate assets. Red, on the other hand, is quite thrilled, and [[StraightGay Asellus]] is more attracted than she wants to be. [=T260G=] simply calculates the model's measurements, then nearly crashes when trying to calculate her IQ level. Riki innocently mentions to Meiling that the model is not wearing clothes and asks if she's hot or something. Blue/Rouge [[NotDistractedByTheSexy just finds the book useless to him]]. Lute looks really thrilled at first, but then remarks that he'd rather see the real thing than just looking at the mag. Fuse is just baffled at the mindset, "Young girls these days..."
* BrainUploading: [[spoiler:Leonard]].
* TheCasino: [[MeaningfulName Baccarat]]. At least three characters come here for their stories, but none of the games can be played.
* CastFromHP: The spells 'Sacrifice', 'Life Rain', and Alkaiser's 'Final Crusade' which heal the party with a life's worth of HP from the caster.
* CharacterMagneticTeam: The heroes can always easily find new members for their teams, for little reason other than boredom.
* CharlesAtlasSuperpower: Humans advance their stats by using them, and learn new combat moves by fighting. This means that, with enough training, an ordinary human teenager with no magic powers whatsoever can become strong enough to suplex HumongousMecha.
* ChestMonster: A few. One in particular has a chance to spawn a couple of very rare enemies.
* ChickMagnet: Asellus - having the Charm Lord's blood gave her the power of seduction and attraction to females.
* TheChosenOne: Blue is told he is the superior of the two Chosen Ones, and that it is his destiny to kill the other--his brother. Presumably Rouge was told the same thing at ''his'' graduation ceremony.
* ClearMyName: Emilia is jailed for the murder of her boyfriend, because she was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
* CodeName: The IRPO operatives- they're all {{Appropriated Appellation}}s, too. "[[BerserkButton Crazy]][[note]]'Short' would probably be a better translation[[/note]]" Fuse, [[TheVoiceless Silence]], Rabbit and [[IceQueen "Icy" Doll]]. Probably Cotton as well.
* CombinationAttack: One of the basics of the combat system is Combinations. Certain moves can combo into each other, granting a damage bonus. Done properly, you can get all five characters in on it. There is one downside - the ''enemies'' can do it, too.
* CompleteImmortality: Mystics seem to have a combination of TheAgeless and a HealingFactor. They can be destroyed by superior power, however (either a stronger Mystic, which is why they're absolutely terrified of Orlouge and Asellus, or a powerful enough human).
* TheComputerIsACheatingBastard: During the Blue vs Rouge battle, if Rouge gets the Time Magic and casts Time Eclipse on Blue, petrifying him, the battle's instantly over with Rouge as the winner since it's a petrification for the player. If Blue gets the Time Magic and 'petrifies' Rouge? Nope. Rouge just loses 1 LP and gets Reviva'd, and the battle continues.
* CoolShip: The Region ships in general-- the Cygnus in particular is treated as one of these in-story.
* CounterAttack: Kasumi, Godless, KO Throw, Dragon Turn, Reaction Shot, and Asura Revenge.
* TheCorpseStopsHere: Emilia walks in just after her boyfriend's murder, shortly after her come the police.
* CutscenePowerToTheMax: In Riki's scenario, [[PuzzleBoss you have to perform combos]] in a battle with Virgil to impress the Ring Lord get the Divine Ring. In Fuse's Riki case file, he simply impresses Virgil in a scripted sequence.
* CuttingOffTheBranches:
** ''[[AllThereInTheManual "The Essence of Saga Frontier"]]'' states that the canonical end of Blue and Rouge's fated duel is Rouge winning, and then later [[spoiler:escaping Hell with just his willpower after remembering his friends]].
** In the Remaster, although Fuse can influence some decisions during his Case Files, other events are predetermined, such as Asellus dealing with the Bio Research Lab and the types of magic that Blue/Rouge obtain. However, the game also muddles things by having Asellus escape from Facinaturu via the Cygnus in Red's story but with Trinity's "help" in Emilia's, as well as depicting the assassination attempt on Dr. Leonard in two different Fuse Case Files.
* {{Cyberspace}}: Near the end of [=T260's=] game. It looks like a town, as the interface was designed to be friendly and recognizable to humans and monsters.
* DamageIncreasingDebuff: The monsters encountered in Hell are all apparently MadeOfIron, taking very little damage from physical attacks. Only by using a magic attack on them first will the party be able to physically damage them normally.
* DarkIsNotEvil:
** Monsters are quite commonplace in the world, quite sentient, and can be friendly. Even the skeletal and undead ones. And let's not forget the monster you save from the Shrike Bio Labs, Cotton, who's actually an IRPO agent.
** Mystics feed and grow stronger by devouring the blood and lives of their enemies, but they're no more evil than humans on the whole. Orlouge, Ciato and [[spoiler:Rastaban]] really are wicked, though.
* DeadlyUpgrade: You can buy powerful items from the shop in Facinaturu, at the cost a few of your max life points. That is to say, you can sell your soul for goodies.
* {{Depower}}ing: [[spoiler:Red]]'s powers are eventually revoked, as [[spoiler:the purpose for which he had been given his powers was accomplished. Easy come, easy go]].
* DevelopersForesight: Red cannot transform into Alkaiser if there are humans or monsters in the party to witness him. If you recruited Cotton from the Bio Research Lab before participating in the tournament in Shingrow, Red will ask it to wait to the side before running off to transform and compete; talking to it shows it fretting over Red being late coming back.
* DevelopersRoom:
** Reached after you've completed all seven stories. You can speak with the developers, listen to the soundtrack, and fight the bosses of the other character's games with the group you most recently cleared with, among other things.
** ''Remastered'' has its own developer room, which is unlocked after you beat any version of Fuse's story, which contains members of the ''Remastered'' dev team.
* DiscOneNuke:
** The Asura in Asellus's game-- sure, you need to give up 3 LP to get it, but it's of the strongest three swords in the game, has an instant death effect, ''and'' a counter attack on it that works even if the user is killed by the attack. And can be obtained in about the first ten to fifteen minutes of her story. Notably, Asellus actually starts with significantly higher LP than most of the main characters, enough that paying 3 for her is like paying 1 for anyone else. One suspects they had this in mind.
** The DSC[[note]]Dream Super Combo, Deadly Super Combo, Deadly Suplex Combo, or Dangerous Suplex Combo, depending on who you ask[[/note]], if you have a character proficient at physical attacks, can be unlocked very early in some quests.
** The recruitable monster, Thunder, is himself one. He's obscenely easy to get (just speak to him with Lute in your party). His default Ogre form is powerful, with some good stats and attacks. However, his skillset means any extra skills he acquires will always, without fail, turn him into a Trisaur, which is even stronger, capable of causing 1000 damage with some attacks. Thunder can carry the team into the midgame alone.
** Any Mec can easily become one of these, if you know where to find certain pieces of free, powerful equipment. Or simply abuse the Junk Shop Glitch and/or Takonomics to buy high-end equipment, netting you endgame-level character(s) within the first hour or two of the scenario.
* DistantFinale: Two of Asellus's endings take place in these, though the circumstances are different depending on which you get.
* DoomedHometown:
** Riki's quest is to ''save'' his.
** There's also [[spoiler:Blue]]'s, by the time he gets back to it.
* DoppelgangerAttack:
** A few of the sword moves, such as Godless, Haze-To-Wheel, and ESPECIALLY the visually appealing Life Sprinkler. In addition, the Shadow Servant spell, which creates a clone of you that copies every move you use.
** The "Magician" Arcane spell is a variant- It creates a single DoppelgangerSpin-type copy of the caster, but when it's attacked, it has a chance of causing instant death.
* DoppelgangerSpin: A few spells, such as Mirror Shade, which creates 1-4 clones of the caster to block an attack.
* DressingAsTheEnemy: Red infiltrates Black X in this manner.
* DrunkOnTheDarkSide: Developing Asellus's Mystic abilities via three specific pieces of equipment makes her form during her [[SuperpoweredEvilSide Mystic Change]] more powerful, but it also makes her more power-hungry and tyrannical. [[spoiler:Her Mystic ending is the end result of it - she becomes a tyrant, harsher than Orlouge.]]
* DualWielding:
** It's possible to wield two swords at once, and it's required by some moves, like Cross Slash and Twin Gale Slash.
** Even better with guns, as the '[=TwoGun=]' ability[[note]]Renamed to GunsAkimbo in ''Remastered''.[[/note]] makes any other gun attack use two guns, some of which even have different animation!
* DubNameChange: "Coon" to "Riki", "Kuuron" to "Koorong".
* DuelBoss: The battle between Blue and Rouge.
* EvolvingTitleScreen: In ''Remastered'', Fuse is added to the title screen after you beat a character's scenario, showing that you've unlocked him.
* TheDulcineaEffect: In ''Essence'', Fuse... at least until he realizes Blue is a guy.
-->"Well, caring for the hearts of cute girls ''is'' a vital part of a Region Patrol Officer's mission... [he realizes Blue is only a [[DudeLooksLikeALady very pretty man]]][...] Caring for this jackass is outside my jurisdiction."
* EarnYourBadEnding: Emilia's bad ending is achieved by [[spoiler:going further within Baccarat's underground cave and fighting Gargantu, instead of [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere just getting the hell out, ending the scenario.]]]]
* EasterEgg: The porno book in the Shrike library. You don't see anything, but the characters' reactions range from complete disinterest, to questioning their own sexuality.
* EleventhHourSuperpower: Blue learns and masters all magic after you fight Rouge. Also, during Red's game, you get to walk around as Alkaiser towards the very end[[note]]This is actually bad if you haven't leveled properly, as Alkaiser's stats are based on Red's, and Alkaiser doesn't get ''any'' stat increases, so you can be stuck with a ''very'' underpowered Alkaiser if you're not careful[[/note]].
* EmergencyTransformation: Asellus to a half-mystic thanks to Orlouge, Red to a super hero thanks to Alkarl. Their reactions to their respective changes are opposite each other- While Red [[JumpedAtTheCall is excited]] about his new-found power to defeat evil, Asellus is afraid and confused about exactly what being a half-mystic entails.
* {{Engrish}}: Not nearly as bad as many examples, especially back in '98, but there are a few minor ones-- "Facinatur'''u'''" was likely meant to be "Facinatur'''e'''," while "Omb'''l'''e" was probably supposed to be "Omb'''r'''e." The Region of Margmel likewise seems to be a mistranslation of [[Myth/CelticMythology "Mag Mell"]]. In addition, "katana" is always translated as "sword", rather than left "katana", which leads to some swords having "sword skill usable" as their description and katana moves being labeled as "sword move" in the sword technique folder.
* EvenTheGirlsWantHer: Asellus, due to having Orlouge's blood.
* EveryEpisodeEnding: Though there's variations, each 'section' of each characters game (such as rescuing Mesarthim in Asellus's, or receiving the Gift for a school of magic in Blue's) is ended with a picture of a character involved in it.
* EvilCannotComprehendGood: This is the main plot driver for Asellus's quest. The Mystics of Fascinaturu can't believe that a Mystic as powerful as Asellus has no interest in playing their games.
* EvilTwin: Oddly enough, Blue could considered the evil twin to Rouge. The former is perfectly willing to manipulate whoever he needs to to kill his brother, while the latter is generally friendly, and in-game, will join anyone's quest, unlike Blue who outright refuses to join Red simply because he doesn't like his name. [[AllThereInTheManual According to Essence]], Blue was indeed the bad twin, and also canonically lost his fight to Rouge (who also got space magic from Kylin without killing the beast or destroying Paradise, went into Hell alone knowing it would be a one-way trip, and managed to escape from Hell after hearing the voices of his friends).
* ExactlyWhatIAimedAt: The Trickshot skill, when used only with one gun: the user shoots above the enemy, causing rocks to cascade down.
* {{Expy}}:
** Zozma bears an uncanny resemblance to ''Franchise/{{Street Fighter}}'s'' Akuma- He's even able to use Evil magic and shares Akuma's DarkIsNotEvil traits (in fact, Zozma is a lot nicer than Akuma).
** In addition, Red's appearance seems to be based on that of a character of the same name from a little known Squaresoft game called ''VideoGame/TreasureHunterG.'' There's also a Blue in that game, though he only looks somewhat similar.
** Dr. Nusakan bears a rather creepy resemblance to [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII Dr. Hojo]], as well.
** Mystic Lord Orlouge is one to the [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyII Emperor Mateus]], at least in looks. He has even more in common with [[Film/{{LABYRINTH}} Jareth]], on whom the Emperor was based in design.
** Asellus herself is similar to [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI Terra]], both being [[HalfHumanHybrid Half Human Hybrids]], and have a similar color scheme, and look, but Asellus is a bit more masculine. Both also have identity crises, albeit for different reasons. Both also have the ability to transform into a form that accentuates their nonhuman blood.
* TheFairFolk: The Mystics of ''Saga Frontier'' used to be this way, and the nobles who dwell in their hidden Region still are. Though they have gotten a bit better, and for example [[TheWildHunt hunting humans for sport]] has fallen out of fashion. Lower caste Mystics show the trope best, ranging in appearance from mermaids to large troll-like creatures. The higher level nobles tend to appear as beautiful humans, with the highest level, according to AllThereInTheManual being the [[OurVampiresAreDifferent True Vampires]].
* FaceHeelTurn:
** At the end of [[spoiler:Riki's quest, Mei-Ling is corrupted by the Master Ring and becomes the final boss. Hopefully she wasn't part of your "final five".]]
** If Asellus decided to [[spoiler:become a full-on Mystic, she decided to be the EvilOverlord type, surpassing Orlouge in ruthlessness and made plans to subjugate all realms under her heel, discarding any notions of decency she used to have as a human.]]
* FanDisillusionment: [[spoiler:Blue]] has a subtle example near the end of his game. Upon returning to [[spoiler:the Magic Kingdom]], which is in ruins, he sees a statue of [[spoiler:the goddess of Magic]], calling it a fake, as [[spoiler:magic wasn't able to save the kingdom]].
* FantasticRacism: Mystics seem to be old-fashioned as they dislike technology of all kinds. The Mystic who sells items for life points will turn his back on [=T260G=], not interested in doing business with a Mec. To further emphasize Mecs and Mystics don’t mix, Asellus is unable to recruit any Mecs, and [=T260G=] is unable to recruit any Mystics.
* FightWoosh: Every fight starts with one.
%%* FinalBoss:
* FixedDamageAttack: The monster ability Centipede Crush does a flat 100 damage.
* FlowerFromTheMountaintop: The quest for the Shield card involves getting one of these. Though Fuse ''says'' it's because he can't just give the card away, [[AllThereInTheManual apparently,]] it's because he fancies the girl at the front desk at IRPO.
* FluffyCloudHeaven: Fluffy Cloud Hell, actually.
* FlunkyBoss: Master Ring, Death Lord, Quakeworm.
* ForegoneVictory: In Blue's game, if you actually ''do'' lose to Rouge, [[spoiler:he absorbs you instead, and you play the remainder of the game as Rouge]].
* FortuneTeller: The Region of Devin is ''filled'' with these.
* ForWantOfANail: In the Remastered version, Fuse's story is unlocked by first clearing the game with other protagonists, and shows what would have happened if Fuse had meddled in their adventures.
** Asellus: Aside from helping Asellus deal with some assassins and the Bio Research Lab, Fuse's raid on Orlogue's castle leads to [[spoiler:accidentally passing through the Dark Labyrinth, trapping one of Orlogue's minions in the process. This allows White Rose to leave the Labyrinth and be present for the ending]].
** Blue: Regardless of which brother he ends up assisting, Fuse ends up expediting the search for Runes by negotiating with their current holders instead of killing them. Also, during the climax, [[spoiler:the IRPO rescues the surviving mage from being trapped in Hell]].
** Emilia: Although he already heavily influenced Emilia's original adventure by sending her to Despair, Fuse's continued investigation (including potentially earning Emilia's forgiveness) determines the state Joker is in at the climax, and leads to a positive outcome either way, as well as sheds some light on how Fuse's mistakes helped cause the Joker incident.
** Lute: Due to informing Lute about Mondo's history while at Scrap, Gen joins them and ends up as a tritagonist. Fuse's involvement also gets Dr. Leonard involved, as the attempt on his life was also meant to silence IRPO agent Rabbit, who was assisting Fuse by trying to download files from Trinity's servers.
** Red: The IRPO is constantly one step behind Alkaiser in taking down [=BlackX=], but are able to gather the evidence needed to properly incarcerate its members. Along the way, Fuse figures out [[spoiler:the superhero's true identity]]. After helping take down the organization's head, Fuse then [[spoiler:arrests Dr. Klein and offers Red a position in the IRPO]].
** Riki: By arresting the Caballero Family and obtaining their ring before Riki even shows up, Fuse is the one managing the set. When the journey takes him inside Tanzer, Fuse deals with and arrests Nomad immediately, preventing the beast from going mad. And in the climax, Fuse refusing to just hand over the rings to [[spoiler:Mei-Ling]] prevents them from [[spoiler:being used to (briefly) reboot Margmel]].
** [=T260G=]: Fuse assisting the Mec in rescuing Thyme from the Caballero family, and his subsequent assistance in taking down the Ultimate Weapon, helps [=T260G=] reevaluate the meaning of "Top Priority" and what to do with its life afterwards without needing Gen to reboot him.
* FreezeFrameBonus: At the very beginning of Asellus's game, an image flashes of ''something'' flashes by for a split second while she's trying to remember what happened to her. It's actually an [[http://tcrf.net/File:Sgf-nightmare.png image of the carriage]] she was run over by.
* FunWithAcronyms: Learn enough martial arts moves and you unlock the "DSC", which is never explained in-game. Fans have come up with a number of humorous and creative "explanations" as to what "DSC" stands for. Prominent one is “Dream Super Combo”
* FusionDance: [[spoiler:The duel with Blue and Rouge is used to establish the dominant personality in]] One of the 'Power Booster' variety. In addition, Mystics have the power to absorb slain enemies into their weapons to increase their stats and learn more moves.
* GainaxEnding: Blue's scenario has [[https://lparchive.org/SaGa-Frontier/Update%2016/ an absolutely legendary ending]] that continues to confuse players to this day. However, contrary to the common belief that the development was rushed (which is true) and the proper ending was not implemented, the director Akitoshi Kawazu [[https://kotaku.com/saga-frontier-director-says-ending-in-the-middle-of-the-1821426733 claimed]] what's in the game is exactly how he intended. He also added that the entire gameplay section after the battle against Rouge was the epilogue itself.
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration:
** Red is unable to transform into Alkaiser when the humans in his group are healthy, because it would give away his secret identity.
** Blue is unable to learn Mind magic until after the duel with Rouge, because [[spoiler:his soul is split between the two of them]].
** Non-boss mystic enemies are only able to do a fraction of their potential damage to PC mystics, illustrating the power gap between common mystic and the party's noble mystics.
** Magic Kingdom believed only a perfect magician could turn the tide against Hell. All enemies in Hell take massively reduced damage from attacks until they're hit with a spell, incentivizing players to use Blue/Rouge as intended.
* GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere:
** Diva, the FinalBoss of [[spoiler:Emilia's]] arc. She has absolutely nothing to do with the BigBad or the rest of the plot, and exists to give that storyline a final fight.
** [=BossX=] also qualifies, being a strange alien creature of unexplained origin who introduces itself as the true leader of Black X at the very end of Red's arc.
* GirlsBehindBars: Emilia’s story starts out in Despair prison where she meets Annie and Liza.
* GlobalCurrency: "Credits." There are also gold ingots which are subject to supply and demand.
* GottaCatchEmAll:
** The nine rings of power in Riki's game.
** The four Arcana Tarot cards and four Rune Stones, which are optional for most characters but gathering at least one of the two sets is required in Blue's.
* GrandTheftMe: If one manages it, it is revealed [[spoiler:in Emilia's good ending that Ren]] wasn't dead; his body was actually taken over by [[spoiler:Joker via a cursed mask. He begs Emilia to free him by shooting the mask off]].
* GratuitousEnglish: How the final boss of Red's scenario introduces himself in the Japanese version [[note]]I am the real Master of [=BlackCross=].I control everything I rule everyreagion. You shall die![[/note]].
* GravityMaster: Mastering Space Magic gives you the "Reverse Gravity" spell.
* GreatEscape: At the start of Emilia's game.
* GuideDangIt:
** Several of the secret characters. Sei can only be found after beating a BonusDungeon in Shrike, Suzaku can be recruited only if you beat a random OptionalBoss, while you're on a certain quest, and Rei can only be obtained during Asellus's game, after you lose [[spoiler:White Rose]], if you went into her room with ''just'' White Rose early on in the game.
** How combos work--every ability has at least two types/elements associated with it that determines how well it links to other attack(s)[[note]]namely, if an ability's outgoing type matches another ability's incoming type, they have a chance to combo[[/note]].
** How monsters work, especially if you haven't played a Saga series game: they run on a very gimped version of PowerCopying where a monster consumes a defeated monster and gains some abilities, transforming (and changing stats) if enough abilities are learned.
** How skill sparking works: there is a "tech tree" of sorts, but some basic skills can trigger advanced techs if you're really lucky.
** As soon as Lute leaves his hometown, he has the option to tackle TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon of his quest. Obviously, that's an ''extremely'' bad idea, but a first-time player might do it by accident.
** The Abyss Bat is one of the most elusive OptionalBoss with no explanation whatsoever in how to encounter it. You have to get into the part in the Ancient Ship at Shingrow where there are Bat-sprite enemies that roamed the land. You need to beat down around 13 of them, all while exiting and re-entering the area. Once you do, the Abyss Bat will pop up. And need we remind you, ''nothing'' in game or even manuals talks about anything like 'dangerous bat monster spotted in the ruins.'
** Obtaining the Glirandly (Living Sword), Living Rifle, and Living Armor equipment requires you to get into a fight with the respective enemy and lower its health just enough that it uses the Possession skill on a random non-Monster party member with an empty equipment slot, which causes the enemy to defeat itself and the equipment to appear in that member's empty slot after the battle (if used on a monster, it instead replaces one of its skills with the Blade ability). None of this is hinted at, and despite what logic may tell you, [[MissingSecret you can't do the same to get a LivingAxe or LivingSpear from the respective enemies.]]
* GunsAkimbo: The Two Gun ability, which lets the user... hold two guns. This ability was renamed to "Guns Akimbo" in the remaster.
* HardWorkHardlyWorks: ''[[AllThereInTheManual Essence]]'' mentions that this is a belief among Mystics (not an entirely accurate one, however). Specifically, Mystics don't respect abilities gained through hard work, and a true Mystic Lord is a Mystic ''born'' with vast power.
* HeadTiltinglyKinky: The porno mag EasterEgg in the Shrike library.
* HeroismMotiveSpeech: Asellus gives one to [[spoiler:Lord Orlouge upon her return to Fascinaturu, explaining the moral path that she's chosen and why she's returned to Fascinaturu. Depending on her choices, Orlouge can respond with bored contempt, confusion, or [[WorthyOpponent pride]]]].
* HeroOfAnotherStory: Most of the protagonists (and their supporting casts) can be found and/or recruited in every campaign in some fashion. Liza in Red's scenario even [[LampshadeHanging points out]] that he's the hero while she and the rest of Gradius (who play a central role in Emilia's story) are "just extras."
* HopelessBossFight: Shuzer at the beginning of Red's game.
* HubCity: Koorong. It's the only Region which allows you to take a ship to nearly all others, has the greatest concentration of shops in the game, and doubles as a HubLevel in Riki and Emilia's quests.
* IdentityAbsorption: The end result of [[spoiler:Blue and Rouge's final battle]].
* IdeaBulb: Used to show when a character sparks a new move
* ImplausibleFencingPowers: Many, MANY of the stronger sword moves. Notable is Gen's ability to cut rope with a lead pipe. [=T260G=] [[{{Lampshade}} momentarily comments on the impossibility]].
* ImprovisedWeapon: Early in [=T260's=] game, Gen uses wields a pipe as though it were a sword. He even manages to cut a rope with it...or not...
* InevitableTournament: Shingrow holds a masked martial arts tournament every year. This fact is mentioned just before Emilia gets entered. Red can enter as Alkaiser, though it's not necessary.
* InformedEquipment: Whether you've got on the strongest equipment in the game or charge into battle naked, the sprite remains the same. The exception is the case of exactly four swords--Asura, {{Kusanagi}}, Light Sword, and Ray Sword are colored differently in battle than any other. Shields are also colored differently depending on which you have, but only appear when being used.
* InspirationNod: A couple of examples.
* InstantRunes: Rune magic is represented by giant glowing runes appearing over the targets.
* InterfaceScrew: During the Tarot Quest, getting the Grail Card requires asking a series of brewers where it is. At each one, your character takes a swig. When you actually head for the Grail Shrine, your character is plastered, and takes random steps in various directions (even if you aren't moving) - usually directly into enemies. In battle itself, your party (aside from Mecs) gets hit with random status effects due to being drunk.
* IOweYouMyLife: Mesarthim to Asellus. If Asellus is in the party, she'll always join, even if you recruited Silence.
* {{Irony}}: The Freedom rune is located in Despair, [[TheAlcatraz a prison]].
* JackassGenie:
** [[spoiler:The 9 Rings of Power. When Riki wishes for Margmel to be reborn, all those that were not there when it was first created vanish.]]
** According to ''Essence'', this is also the reason Hell looks [[FluffyCloudHeaven like it does]]- Long ago, a mage from the Magic Kingdom wished for paradise, but as [[spoiler:the rings]] are evil, got something that appears to be paradise on the outside, but is, in fact, Hell on the inside.
* JumpedAtTheCall: Red was more than willing to become a hero. Probably helps that he would have died otherwise, and that the people he wants to fight killed his family.
* JumpScare: The beginning of Asellus story, once Gina finished up her POV, we are treated with a nice view of Facinaturu castle. And suddenly, close up to Orlouge's demonic horse[[note]]that rammed Asellus dead in real world[[/note]], scream and Asellus woke up from her CatapultNightmare.
* JustEatHim: Tanzer swallows airships whole, and the people inside the airships can cope for a while.
* JustifiedTutorial: Arguably, Blue's entire game, as his quest to master as much magic as possible is one the player is likely to repeat in every character's game.
* LaserBlade: Alkaiser’s Ray Sword is a light saber. Also the Light Magic, Light Sword (Solar Blade in the Remaster) grants the caster a sword of light, which is the strongest sword in the game.
* LaserGuidedTykeBomb: The reason why [[spoiler:[=Blue/Rouge=] was SplitAtBirth, so both halves could learn opposite schools of magic, have one kill the other and absorb his magical talent, and fight back TheLegionsOfHell]].
* LateCharacterSyndrome: Recruited characters are not affected by the RubberBandAI, so they start out weak while the enemy has become so powerful that [[CantCatchUp they'll have troubles catching up when you recruit them so late]] (or you will require A LOT more babysitting for them). Many mandatory recruits (and some) can become like this if you have been gathering allies and doing quests that empowered you to get through the quests that barred you. Mystics, however, are designed to break this rule since they just needed to absorb the correct monsters in their Mystic Weapons to manipulate their stats aside of Charisma, HP, WP and JP. Once that's done, they can catch up with the rest of the trained humans even at late game, though they still need to train for the magics they missed.
* LazyBackup: You can send in any of your three teams of five to fight, but if all of one team dies, it's game over.
* LensFlare: Alkaiser and Alkarl's "Bright Fist" and "Shining Kick" attacks. The regular martial arts move "Gold Hand" takes this up to eleven, with rotating LensFlare around the target.
* LesbianVampire: Asellus, if you get her Full-Mystic ending.
* LetsFightLikeGentlemen: At the end of Red's game, Metal Black refuses to fight Alkaiser while he's tired, and allows him to recover.
* LevelAte: Kylin's Paradise combines this and ToyTime
* LevelScaling: Enemy encounters increase as you improve your characters' stats.
* LightAndMirrorsPuzzle: The Luminous Labyrinth which must be solved to obtain the gift of Light Magic. It also adds color filters into the mix. You have to hit the exit portal with white light to escape; hitting it with a colored light will either give you an item or start a random battle.
* LimitedMoveArsenal: Done differently depending on the race of the character.
** Humans can go into battle with up to ten moves, and can learn as many as they want that aren't specific to other races.
** Mystics can learn as much magic as they want, but can only use 4 spells at a time. They can also learn up to three moves at a time by absorbing monsters into their Mystic Sword, Mystic Gloves, or Mystic Boots- absorbing a new monster replaces the move with a new one.
*** The Half-Mystic Asellus is the best of both worlds- She can learn techniques as a human ''or'' a mystic, depending on if she uses her Mystic Gloves, Mystic Sword, and/or Mystic Boots, allowing her to go into battle with 7-10 human abilities as well as 0-3 Mystic ones. [[spoiler:However, learning all three Mystic abilities locks her into either the Half-Mystic or Full-Mystic endings, depending on one other variable.]]
** Mecs can download as many moves as they want from other Mecs, but how many they can use at a time depends on their Intelligence stat.
** Monsters can absorb up to ten moves from other monsters-- any more than that and an old one must be forgotten.
* LiteralSplitPersonality: [[spoiler:Rouge and Blue, after their climactic duel, turn out to have originally been one person that was split in two in order to gain more magic gifts.]]
* LivingShadow: If going for the Gift of Shadow Magic, the party must fight their own shadows. The Shadow Servant spell also creates a shadow clone of the caster that mimics their every action.
* LockedOutOfTheFight:
** In order to get the gift for Mind Magic, each character fights a group of monsters, alone.
** The WizardDuel in Blue's game also fits, as it's a one on one fight between Blue and his brother. The other characters in your group can be seen watching.
** There's a more minor example in the Shadow Magic quest. Due to properties of the dungeon, monster allies must wait outside. This makes acquiring the gift for your teammates quite easy when playing as Riki however, as you simply spend the "quest" in the waiting room.
* LogicBomb: There's actually a Mec only attack ''called'' Logic Bomb, that damages and puts status effects on other Mecs. It's represented onscreen by a long string of numbers, ending in the word 'DEATH'.
* LossOfIdentity: No matter the result of the duel, Blue and Rouge have a brief moment of trying to figure out who he is. Oddly enough, the winner believes he lost.
* TheLostLenore: Ren for Emilia. Even after killing Joker, Emilia is still haunted by the death of her fiancé. [[spoiler:At least in the bad ending.]]
* LuckBasedMission: Riki's fight against the Ring Lord Virgil, as he and his crew are required to score combos of 3 or more. Which can easily be avoided by using DSC as it is a combo in itself, it doesn't link with other allies during a combination attack.
* MagicAIsMagicA: A few basic rules to it- A) No one person can learn magic from opposing schools (Light & Shadow, Mind & Evil, Rune & Tarot, Time & Space, and Realm & Mystic) B) Without the Gift, you cannot learn more powerful spells. [[spoiler:Blue and Rouge]] were specifically created to break Rule A. Mind Magic has a rule of its own- Only humans can obtain the Gift for it. In addition, according to books in the Magic Kingdom, by mastering both Light and Shadow magic, one can learn Life Magic, and Mirage magic was lost to the ages, eventually becoming Mystic and Shadow.
* MagicalSociety: The Magic Kingdom, where Blue and Rouge are from. It's stated that all men born there are born with the Gift for Realm magic.
* MagicMisfire: The Realm Magic spell 'Psychic Prison' forces one of these on the target-- The next time they attempt to use magic, the effect 'Backfire' occurs, and the enemy takes some damage.
* MagikarpPower:
** [=T260's=] original body. While it starts with only 5 in each stat and one piece of equipment, and the other models have fancy gadgets like laser cannons and repairkits, it has the potential to be the strongest in the game, since Mecs level up by the equipment they have on, and the original body has the most available slots.
** Early game monsters, such as Riki and Slime. They have weak starting forms and low stats, but being available early in the game lets them absorb a wider variety of monsters before the party becomes too strong to encounter them. More encounters means a better chance of absorbing a skill that's valuable or necessary for stronger forms, with the added bonus of increasing the monster's prime HP with every new skill absorbed.
* MayflyDecemberRomance: Asellus and Gina have an ambiguous mayfly-December relationship in her Half-Mystic ending.
* MeaningfulName:
** In Japanese, Orlouge's mistresses are named via the GoroawaseNumber system--Shirobara Hime's (White Rose) number is 46, which is pronounced "Shi-roku," or "shi-ro" (white) in Japanese. Kinjishi Hime's (Golden Lion) number is 44, which is pronouced "shi-shi" (lion) in Japanese. Due to the adjective "kin" or "gold" attached to the noun, "shi-shi" becomes "ji-shi."
** Some of the Regions, such as Luminous (the Region where ''Light'' and Shadow magic are learned), Baccarat (a casino), and Scrap (which appears to be made solely of rusted metal). Omble, the place you go to find shadow magic, was likely supposed to be "Ombre", French for "shade."
* MirrorBoss:
** When you battle Rouge in Blue's game, you find that he's learned the exact opposite types of magic you have. In addition, his (magic-related) stats are the same as yours.
** Red's quest has a RecurringBoss named Metal Black, a robot warrior who remodels himself after every defeat. His final form is modeled after Red's superhero identity, Alkaiser; he even has a copy of Red's finishing move, Dark Phoenix.
* MirrorMatch: If the player visits Omble to learn Shadow magic, the trip ends with a fight between your (main) party and their shadows.
* MoreDakka: If using the 2-Gun ability, and having guns with a large bullet clip, the Cross Shot tech can be this as you rapidly empty out the clips from both guns. Mecs can also do this if equipped with a lot of guns and can use the Shoot-All tech where they unload every gun they've got equipped.
* MugglesDoItBetter: Monsters, Mystics and magic? Sure, they've got their own power, but humans can grow far stronger than any monster or mystic, swords, fists and guns can do more damage than throwing magic at the enemy, and if you throw enough weapons and armor on a mec, it makes the ultimate battle tank.
* MultipleEndings:
** Originally, Asellus has three, Emilia has two. Asellus's depend on [[spoiler:whether you had her learn all three Mystic abilities, and whether you saved Gina from the Griffin]], while Emilia's depends on [[spoiler:whether you fought Gargantu in Baccarat]]. There are also two endings for [[spoiler:Blue's route, defined if you're playing as Blue or Rouge after their duel.]]
** In the Remastered, Fuse has multiple routes depending on which protagonist case he takes, not to mention his own personal quest's ending. In each part, they chime with the original endings above. In [[spoiler:Blue's case, Fuse also gets to choose who does he want to win the duel and eventually going to Hell between Blue and Rouge... and then he saves them]]. In Emilia's case, [[spoiler:it depends on the Trinity base mission, Fuse can focus on his IRPO duties to arrest Yaruto, or track down Emilia and put her into his protection. The latter plays the scenario as the bad ending of Emilia, but offers a happier resolution. The former plays out like Emilia's good ending, with an extra dose of Fuse being a ButtMonkey for his rash actions of imprisoning Emilia.]]
* MutuallyExclusiveMagic: As detailed in MagicAIsMagicA, no one can have the gift for both a school of magic and its opposite, though you can still buy spells from opposing schools. [[spoiler:Except Blue and Rouge, who are specifically designed to break this rule.]] However, with the help of a couple items in the game that allow you to cast a spell from certain schools, it is possible for someone with the gift of Rune Magic or Mystic Magic to have some Arcane or Realm spells and then use the item to regain all the spells of the gifted school.
* MutuallyExclusivePartyMembers:
** In addition to certain races and other characters not being found in certain quests, Red and Blue cannot be recruited in any other quest except for their own. Blue's brother Rouge, on the other hand, can be sought out on almost all of them, alluding in a way to the fact that he's considered the ''good'' guy for Blue's own quest. And also that [[spoiler:they are ''two halves of the same person'']].
** Some characters can only be recruited in only one route and not appearing elsewhere. These include Doll, Rabbit and BJ&K (for Red), Leonard (for [=T260G=]), Ildon and Rei (for Asellus) and Capt. Hamilton (for Lute). Fuse's scenario is designed to defy this trope, as in his scenario, you can practically recruit ''everybody'', including Red and Blue. However, Blue-Rouge remain the sole exception that not even Fuse can put in his party together.
* NewGamePlus: At the start of the game, the player creates 'system data.' Using the same data every time you start with a new character makes their games a bit easier. For example, Red can start with as much as 180 HP and already know the move Chop, or secondary characters may start with better equipment. The remaster adds a more traditional New Game+, allowing you to choose which parameters to keep.
* NewPowersAsThePlotDemands: In the third battle against Metal Black, he takes Alkaiser's signature move, Al-Phoenix, and turns it back on him with Dark-Al-Phoenix, a very damaging move that Metal Black had no indication of using before. After it's used on Alkaiser, ''[[GuideDangIt and for this battle only]]'', if Alkaiser has a free technique slot and uses Al-Phoenix, he'll always learn Re-Al-Phoenix, which takes the original power and turns it up to eleven, becoming his strongest attack.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: As it turns out, [[spoiler:since the Nine Rings of Power are evil, wishes made with them are intentionally misinterpreted - Riki wishing for Margmel to be reborn means that anyone ''not'' there when it was born ceases to exist.]] It's AllThereInTheManual that this is also the reason Hell looks like Paradise-- a mage from the Magic Kingdom [[spoiler:wished for a paradise, but since the rings are inherently evil, got something that only looked like it]].
* NoblewomansLaugh: Asellus in her Full Mystic ending, notable as it's one of the only voice clips in the game. Mei-Ling also strikes the pose and did the laugh during her victory pose, but hers is not voiced.
* NonLethalKO: When your HP runs out, your character is knocked out and loses a life point. If they continue to get hit and lose all their life points, the character is KilledOffForReal. If happens to the main character, it's Game Over, with a short message saying [Character Name] is dead.
* NoodleIncident: Mei-Ling and Fei-On had ''some'' sort of past relationship, but exactly ''what'' that was and what happened during it is left to imagination.
* NoOntologicalInertia: [[AllThereInTheManual According to supplementary materials,]] killing Kylin also destroys the paradise he created, and everyone else in it. Including the children it was created for.
* NoStatAtrophy: Stats only go up.
* NumberOfTheBeast: The Evil spell "Pain Doubler" doubles the total damage done to all enemies, up to a maximum of 666. When used on a PlayerCharacter, it can be especially damaging, as HP maxes out at 999. When used by Zozma, the only playable character who can learn it, it's not all that great, as the average damage tends to be in the thousands.
* OffscreenInertia: It is implied that Blue never actually ''kills'' [[spoiler:Hell's Lord]], but fights him eternally.
* OlderThanSheLooks: Not that you can tell by the sprites, but Asellus is a 29 year old who looks 17. [[spoiler:Red]] comments on this if you [[spoiler:talk to her on the Cygnus, since she used to babysit him when he was a kid and she still looks the same as he remembers despite twelve years passing]].
* OminousMultipleScreens: The battle with Genocide Heart in [=T260's=] game is fought in a room full of screens, that act as a sort of health meter. The more damaged Genocide Heart is, the more screens fizzle out. [[spoiler:They're also used for mirrors for its signature attack: Carnage.]]
* OneNationUnderCopyright: Trinity is a corporation that became a corrupt version of TheFederation. They're involved in some pretty shady stuff, too, though they're only significantly involved in two characters' plots (Emilia and Lute). [[spoiler:One of their most powerful leaders, Mondo, is the BigBad, according to [[AllThereInTheManual the supplementary material]].]]
* OpiumDen: In Kyo. [[spoiler:[=BlackX=] runs their drug operations from it.]]
* OptionalPartyMember: There's a grand total of 31 recruitable characters, though depending on who you're playing, the number is closer to 20. That said, all but two of the protagonists can be recruited in another's game.
* OrcusOnHisThrone: Orlouge and Virgil; literally, in the latter example. Orlouge makes the odd reference to the power of darkness and ruling the entire universe, but never so much as sets a foot outside of his castle.
* OurMermaidsAreDifferent: Apparently, mermaids are water mystics.
* OurVampiresAreDifferent: Mystics are basically vampires. They're immortal, can be created from humans, some of them sleep in coffins (the princesses are shown to do so), and many of them are nobles. But they don't drink blood.[[note]]Though at one point Asellus suggests that she might suck Riki's blood.[[/note]] Instead, they have mystic weapons that absorb souls.
* PartyInMyPocket: Characters joining the group just walk right into your body. If they have anything plot-relevant to say, they'll step out, say it, and go back in. Slime even forces his way into the party by [[strike:sliding slithering]] walking into you.
* PeninsulaOfPowerLeveling: Bio Research Lab. The enemy's power level will usually be significantly higher than yours, making it the best place to quickly learn new skills and gain stat boosts a lot. Yorkland Swamp serves the same role once you're done with the Grail quest, but it only features reptilian enemies, which cannot be found in Bio Research Labs. Some quirks of these, however, include:
** Asellus is railroaded to Bio Research Lab, because the Yorkland Swamp can end up being a place where events in her story occur. However, if she triggers a story event in the Swamp once, she's free to use the place as the trope intended.
** The areas do not work on mechs, since all of the enemies above are organic, so you're out of luck if you're playing as [=T260G=] and has an all-mech party.
* PermanentlyMissableContent:
** You can only enter Despair once. If you miss anything, you don't get another chance. This means that in Emilia's quest, only Emilia, Annie, and Liza gain the gift of Rune Magic (because they're the only ones present to get the Freedom Rune).
** Tanzer is a one-time-only dungeon. For most characters, that's not an issue, because you're locked in until you complete it. But Blue can teleport out before getting the Vitality Rune by using his Region Map... at which point he's boned because he can't go back for it. Likewise, although Riki ''can'' get the Freedom Rune when he visits Despair in his quest, he's forced to complete Tanzer the first time he leaves Koorong, before he can even ''start'' the Rune quest at Devin, blocking him from ever getting the gift for Rune magic.
* PlanetHeck: A subversion- Hell looks like a [[BonusLevelOfHeaven really nice place]]- Crystal staircases, clouds, cherubs floating by... then you try and talk to one and get hurled into a battle with a demon.
* PlanetOfHats: Some of the Regions. Most noticeably Devin, which is ''riddled'' with {{Fortune Teller}}s of all kinds.
* PlayboyBunny: Emilia in her bunnygirl costume. She'll also appear in this when you recruit her in other characters' quests.
* PlotCouponThatDoesSomething: The nine rings of power in Riki's game can be used in game to buff the party or debuff enemies.
* PointOfNoReturn:
** Hell in Blue's game, Mondo's base in Lute's, the Black Ray in Red's, the Yorkland mountains in Emilia's, and [[spoiler:the [=RB3 ship=]]] in [=T260G's=]. Saving in any of these places before you're trained well enough can make the game {{Unwinnable}}.
** Asellus and Riki can leave their final dungeons at any point, but both have opportunities to save immediately before fighting their final bosses, also leaving you in an Unwinnable situation if you can't actually handle said bosses.
* {{Polyamory}}: The state of [[spoiler:Asellus and Gina's relationship in the Half-Mystic ending]] is implied to be incompletely exclusive. [[spoiler:Asellus can't get Gina pregnant, after all. Asellus herself is almost certainly still together with White Rose, while her relationships with Mesarthim and Lion Princess are open to interpretation.]]
* PowerCopying: Mystics, Monsters, and Mecs learn new skills from defeated opponents.
* ThePowerOfFriendship: Two notable examples, as detailed in [[AllThereInTheManual "The Essence of Saga Frontier"]]. The first is that chronologically, Lute's quest is last, because he was too busy helping everyone else, but as a bonus, his new friends help him in his final battle. The second offers a more optimistic ending for Blue/Rouge. [[spoiler:Because he remembered that there were people outside who cared about him, he musters the power to break out of Hell. Technically, it's the more friendlier Rouge, but since Blue is inside him, [[{{Jerkass}} he]] probably starts appreciating friendship.]]
* PowerOfTheVoid: The Space Magic spell "Vanish" which removes enemies from existence.
* PreexistingEncounters: All of the enemy encounters in dungeon areas can be seen roaming around, though some (like the scientists in the Bio Research Lab) appear to be harmless until ran into.
* PrisonEpisode: The first part of Emilia's game, and a part of the quest for the gift for Rune magic.
* PublicDomainArtifact: The Treasures of Amaterasu can be found in Sei's Tomb. The Kusanagi is one of the most powerful swords in the game, and one of a few that are colored differently than normal[[note]]It's blue. The others are Asura, Lightsword, and Alkaiser's Raysword[[/note]], ''and'' comes with a special attack. The Mirror is a shield that grants immunity to fire and water attacks, and equipping the Necklace allows access to the Sacred Song attack, a powerful move that's especially effective on undead creatures. Interestingly, Murakumo, the other name for the sword, can be found there, but it's half as strong as the Kusanagi.
* PunnyName: The AGUNI [[DontExplainTheJoke (agony)]] line of guns. It's also possible they were supposed to be AGNI (and indeed that's what they're called in the Remastered version), which is still funny.
* PuzzleBoss: In Riki's game, [[ShoutOut Ring Lord]]. In order to beat him, you must rack up a score of 10 by doing combos, which becomes more and more difficult after awhile, as he gets tired of waiting and begins to [[CurbStompBattle stomp your party into the ground]].
* RazorWind: Gale Slash, Two Gale Slash, and the monster version, Gale Attack.
* ReligionIsMagic: Magic Kingdom, home to magicians and realm magic, is the most overtly religious region in the game. Blue's mission is presented as being delivered from on high.
* ReportsOfMyDeathWereGreatlyExaggerated: As it turns out, Asellus's accident was twelve years ago, and she'd been presumed dead for the whole time. The exaggeration was big enough that it inspired a teenage Fuse to become a patrolman and join IRPO in hopes to investigate that report.
* TheReveal: All seven characters' quests have at least one major reveal near their end.
* RubberBandAI: The enemies that appear in a given fight are based on a "class" of enemy (mech, water monster, etc) compounded by a rank system, which is determined on your stat totals and the location the fight occurs (the Bio Research Lab uses enemies a rank up from where you would normally be, for example).
%%* ScaryShinyGlasses: Dr. Nusakan
* SceneryDissonance: The Bio Research Lab. The color palette is very bright (even by the standards of this game), it's a beautiful, well-lit laboratory with soothing white walls, blue floors and green trees, and [[SoundtrackDissonance the music]] is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlGXCGjMeNk very beautiful and otherworldly]] - haunting, but not in itself horrifying. And then you walk into the scientists, read their lines, and [[BodyHorror hear screams as they change into monsters]] - and as you piece together just what the hell is going on with this place, all of the above just seems creepier and creepier.
* ScienceFantasy: You've got characters on the Sci-Fi end like [=T260G=], characters on the Fantasy end like Blue and Rouge, and everything in between.
* ScrewThisImOutOfHere: Some of the protagonists will immediately hightail it out of Dr. Nusakan’s clinic after he instructs them to lie down on the hospital bed for a rather questionable operation.
* SealedEvilInADuel: Blue's final battle.
* SecretCharacter: A couple are guide danged hard to find, like Suzaku, Sei, and Rei, mentioned above. Some, like Thunder and Mesarthim, only require you to have certain other characters in your group.
* SecretFinalCampaign: In ''Remastered'', Fuse's scenario (exclusive to the Remaster) is unlocked after you complete any character's storyline, and expands as you complete additional storylines, eventually allowing you to fight all of the final bosses and recruit nearly every party member in the game.
* SecretIdentity: Played completely straight without a hint of GameplayAndStorySegregation. Red can switch to his superhero mode in combat, but until late in the game the command is only available if every member of the party is blind, otherwise incapacitated, or a Mec.
* SecretIdentityChangeTrick: Occasional in Red's game, though usually by happy accidents- power outages, briefly being separated from the group, or, in combat everyone else being somehow incapacitated.
* TheShadowKnows: In ''Essence'', there's a picture of Red casting a shadow of Alkaiser, with the words "[[{{Engrish}} Chang]] for justice!" beneath.
* ShaggyDogStory: In Riki's scenario, [[spoiler:the whole story is rendered as this. Turns out the rings are evil, and he has to stop them. He does so, his DoomedHometown is, well, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin doomed]], the inhabitants, who aren't the least bit bothered by it, decide to just move elsewhere, and all the rings are scattered across the world (with the majority returned to where they were found originally)]]. In other words, going through the whole thing accomplished absolutely nothing about [[spoiler:Margmel's demise. The lummox's existence, however, is another story, so Riki and the rest decided to move on from Margmel.]]
* SheIsTheKing: Asellus is called the "Prince" of Facinaturu. This is likely due to the facts that: A)In Fascinaturu, "Princess" is a term reserved for Orlouge's mistresses, B) The Mystics don't tend to care much about gender, and C) she's the fairy-tale prince of the story.
* ShipTease: Gina and Ildon get a bit in [[spoiler:Asellus's Half-Mystic ending. Taken out of context, Ildon would appear to be "the love of Gina's life," but only if you hadn't been paying attention to the story up till then]].
* ShoutOut
** Red is one to the Kamen Rider franchise as a whole, being a HenshinHero.
** Red's not the only person to become a super hero after Black Cross destroyed his home- ''Series/{{Himitsu Sentai|Goranger}}'' did it first. Late in his game, one of the fights in the [=BlackX=] base consists of a Red Fighter, a Yellow Fighter, a Green Fighter, a Pink Fighter, and a Blue Fighter, the same colors the protagonists from the show wear. They also cover ''Series/MetalHeroes'' stuffs with their Magisphere, a dimension where every [=BlackX=] fighters' powers are tripled, used very often against the heroes. Sounds like [[Series/SpaceSheriffGavan Makuu Space]].
** Emilia’s can be seen as one to Charlie’s Angels as she forms a female PowerTrio with Annie and Liza, who get sent on missions around the Regions under Roufas.
** T260 gets a "G" slapped on the end of its name after being found in a crater filled with junk, and gets used for combat almost immediately. "[[Manga/BattleAngelAlita Gally]]" was also found in a crater filled with junk and was used for combat.
** There are two [[VideoGame/WorldOfMana Rabite statues]] just outside the shrine in Devin. They also exist as enemies in-game, though it's unlikely you'll see them.
** One fairly rare weapon is called Glirandly, a mistranslation of [[Literature/TheMagicGoesAway Glirendree]].
* ShowsDamage: Genocide Heart's OminousMultipleScreens fizzle out as he takes damage.
* SiblingYinYang: Blue and Rouge. In terms of personality, Blue is a JerkAss in-game, while Rouge [[AllThereInTheManual supposedly]] has an easier time making friends. In terms of abilities, as mandated by the plot, they master opposing schools of magic. The differences even spread to appearance- Blue wears a blue robe and keeps his hair in a ponytail, while Rouge wears a red one and keeps his hair down.
* {{Sidequest}}: Notably, almost all of the sidequests are actually main quests for one protagonist or another; for a case in point, the magic quests are essentially the entirety of Blue's quest, but for everyone else they're a major sidequest. The only pure side areas are the Bio Research Lab in Shrike and [[spoiler:Furdo's workspace]] in the Magic Kingdom; both of those were ''intended'' to be in Asellus's quest before her quest was bulldozed due to time constraints, and while their plot relevance is added to the Remaster, Asellus does not need to explore both areas to complete her story..
* SidetrackBonus: In the quest for the Shield card, should you enter a cave rather than just stay on the main path, you can fight a red and black dragon who're hoarding all kinds of goodies.
* SoLongAndThanksForAllTheGear: Played straight at separate points in Asellus's story. Mesarthim will put anything she's carrying back into your inventory when she leaves, but [[spoiler:White Rose isn't as generous once she chooses to stay in the Labyrinth]]. Also played straight in Red's story: after you defeat the pirate attack on the Cygnus, Fuse, Roufas, Asellus, and White Rose all leave your party, taking everything on them with them. Fuse and Roufas can be recruited again later, but Asellus and White Rose can't.
* SpacePirate: Nomad and her crew.
* SpeechBubbles: Your words are a different color than normal [=NPC=]s. Even if you come across them in the other characters' stories, protagonists' words will usually be whatever color they are in their own game. In Asellus's game, Mystics' text is in blue.
* SpellMyNameWithAnS:
** [=Vadjoueal/Virgil/Vergil=], [=Schoether/Shuzer=], [=Meiren/Mei-Ling=], [=Kylin/Kirin/Kyrin=], [=Time/Thyme=], [=Ciato/Scheat=], [=Furdo/Furud=] and [=Ildon/Yildun=]. Lots of translation artifacts, here. "Koorong" instead of "Kowloon" is another.
** The Remaster version at least fixes one case where Emilia was originally spelled as 'Emelia'. The rest (like Koorong) ''stays'', on the other hand.
* SpinningClockHands: Used as an ''attack''- Time Magic's Chaos Stream spell spins the enemies around on a clock face, possibly petrifying it or lowering its speed.
* SplitAtBirth: [[spoiler:Blue]] and [[spoiler:Rouge]].
* StandardRPGItems: Your various health potions, status effect removers, buff/debuff items, damage dealing ones, and whatnot. There's no "Revive" item, though--due to the game's mechanics, any healing item will revive a character.
* StatusBuff: All of Rune Magic, as well as spells in a few other schools.
* StatusEffects: And they actually tend to hit the enemies, too. Petrify especially proves useful. Unfortunately it works the other way, too. Being Charmed or Confused can be a massive pain in the neck.
* StockMonsters: It IS an RPG after all.
* StuckItems: Most Mystics come with Mystic Mail, different Mecs have different bits of equipment they can't remove, and Living Swords can possess characters, becoming "Glirandly," a sword that provides a stat boost, but cannot be unequpped (unless you use it's special move, Final Strike).
* SueDonym: During Red's quest he attempts to investigate a fighting tournament dressed in his superhero outfit. When asked his name at the sign-up counter he stammers part of his real name a few times, and winds up entered in as "Rerere".
* SuperEmpowering: In their {{Emergency Transformation}}s, Red and Asellus get Superpowers and Mystic powers respectively, Red is Type 4, while Asellus is a mix of types 1 and 4.
* SuperheroOrigin: Red becomes a superhero, as it was the only way to save his life after the HopelessBossFight fight with Shuzer.
* SuplexFinisher: The Suplex martial arts technique manifests in three or four different ways depending on the enemy being fought. In addition, there's also Locomotion G, a series of four or five, and the DSC which combines all the different suplexes with a couple of other martial arts moves.
* SwissArmyWeapon: The IRPO's Hand Blaster, which can be used as a laser gun, a beam sword, or a paralyzer.
* TailorMadePrison: The prison Region Despair was initially created to house one single prisoner: [[spoiler:the Warden]].
* TakeYourTime: Blue is told to hurry because he cannot learn any magic his brother already has, but you're never forced to get a different school because Rouge got there first.
* TakenForGranite: A few moves (usable by both you or the random monsters that have it), can petrify. If used on an enemy, the result is instant death, while when used on the player, the character is 'Stoned' and unable to attack, but immune to damage and loss of LP. If the whole team (or just the ones left alive) are Stoned, it's GameOver. The Stasis Rune spell pulls this on both the enemy ''and'' the caster.
* TarotMotifs: An entire school of magic is based on the Tarot, using Swords, Grail, Gold, Shield, Fool, Magician, Death, and Tower.
* TechTree: An absolutely immense one, with over 100 abilities that can be learned from each other with varying degrees of success, depending on which move is being used, who's using them, and what weapon they have equipped while using it.
* TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt: [[spoiler:[=T260's=] original mission is to stop Region Buster III,]] a machine capable of destroying [[EarthshatteringKaboom entire Regions]].
* TheManBehindTheMan: Black X is led by a cyborg or mech with the same name. Immediately after he's defeated, Doctor Klein reveals he's truly the one in charge. Then after Klein is defeated, Boss X appears and claims *he's* the one in charge.
* ThemeNaming:
** FloralThemeNaming: Rosemary and her brother, Thyme.
** StellarName: Although the translation gets in the way of this a bit, most of the mystics ([[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamma_Cancri Asel]][[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delta_Cancri lus]], [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rastaban Rastaban]], Ciato ([[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scheat Scheat]]), Zozma ([[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zosma Zosma]]), Furdo ([[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Furud Furud]]), Ildon ([[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yildun Yildun]]), [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamma_Arietis Mesarthim]], and [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beta_Coronae_Borealis Nusakan]] are named for stars.
* ThemeTwinNaming: Blue and Rouge (French for "red").
* ThereCanBeOnlyOne: On an extremely small scale-- The Magic Kingdom "does not need two incomplete magicians-- [they] need a superior one", so Blue or Rouge needs to be killed by the other.
* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: The [=DSC=] can be classified as such as it is the strongest single tech ever, breaking the damage limit to five digits. It is a chain combo of repeated slams.
* TickTockTune: Fittingly, Time Lord's Region has this as its [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bR52Wi5H5uw BGM]], once the clocks start working again.
* TimeMaster: Time Lord, and anyone who learns Time Magic, though only one person in the universe can learn the more powerful spells.
* TimeStandsStill: The Overdrive spell, which lets one character act while time stands still for eight turns. Time Lord’s Region as a whole before reactivating the hourglass has the whole place deathly silent and frozen still.
* ToBeContinued: Red's game ends on this note... but not with Red or Alkaiser's as the story being continued...
* TooAwesomeToUse: The Sanctuary Stone item. Incredibly rare, but works as a portable inn. Can be useful in the final dungeons, if there's no way to backtrack and heal at a real one.
* ToyTime: Kylin's Paradise combines this and LevelAte.
* TheTragicRose: Is it really a surprise that [[spoiler:White Rose]] was going to have a bad end?
* TransformationSequence: Alkaiser has his HenshinHero-style Alkaiser Change one, Asellus her SuperMode-style Mystical Change.
* TurnsRed: Orlouge. At the start of the fight, he uses one Portrait at a time-- when he's at the last 20,000 to 30,000 HP, he summons all three, giving him access to new, stronger moves.
* [[UndercoverCopReveal Undercover IRPO Agent Reveal]]: Doll, while investigating Berva's Base in Red's game.
* UniqueProtagonistAsset: Excepting Lute who's instead [[StandardizedLeader being the most basic character for a leader]], each protagonist has something ''special'' that makes them stand out or being very powerful than other characters. Riki has the Rings, Emilia has her ability to switch costumes to manipulate her learning tree, [=T260G=] can change bodies and get the ultimate body form that no other Mecs can access, Blue can obtain ALL magic gifts in the game at once except Mystic, Evil or Mirage Magic [[spoiler:but only after he beats or is beaten by Rouge]], Asellus is a Half-Mystic thus can combine Human growth and skills with Mystic's buffs and Red can turn into Alkaiser and gain Alkaiser-only techs. Fuse also has nothing special either, but he has the ability to put all those unique protagonists in one party.
* UnskilledButStrong: All non-humans, but mystics and monsters especially. They can attain incredible stats that would require excessive grinding for humans to reach, but struggle to make the most of them with their limited pool of abilities. Magic and monster skills generally underperform when compared to fist, sword, and gun skills, even when backed up by maxed-out stats.
* UnwittingPawn: It's revealed at the end of [[spoiler:Riki's]] quest that [[spoiler:the Rings]] are evil, and that [[spoiler:Mei-ling]] was the BigBad all along and was manipulating [[spoiler:Riki into collecting them]].
* UselessUsefulSpell: Tower. It IS incredibly powerful. Sometimes. When it's not, it does as little as 500 damage. And it uses all your JP, so you only get one shot.
* {{Unwinnable}}: It's entirely possible to get to the final dungeon of Lute's game in about half an hour, with no training. Of course, if you save there, you're outta luck.
* VersionExclusiveContent: An unusual example in that there's only one version of the game containing it, but in the Remastered version, you're given the choice before starting a character's story of whether or not to include the extra content added in the remaster, in case you'd prefer to play the game as it was originally presented.
* TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon: Hell, in Blue's game. Not only is it, y'know, '''''{{Hell}}''''', but even though Blue is the only character with any form of WarpWhistle, you are told before you enter that if you try to use it, "You'll be cast away into [[TheNothingAfterDeath the eternal oblivion]]."
* VictoryPose: ''Every'' character has one. From Gen drinking heavily, to Alkaiser dancing, to Liza swiping her hair.
* VillainProtagonist: [[DownplayedTrope Of a sort]]. Canonically, Blue is actually the ''bad'' side of the WizardDuel between himself and Rouge. (Though, to be fair, less "evil" and more [[VideoGame/MassEffect renegade]]... unless the player chooses to go for Space magic, of course, in which case he's downright monstrous.) This can be guessed at through gameplay, with Rouge actively joining the other characters during their own questlines, while Blue's only appearance in a story other than his own involves him refusing to join Red [[FelonyMisdemeanor because he doesn't like Red's name]], and the fact that in his own story Blue is clearly only using all of the allies he recruits with no intention of helping them on their own quests despite promising them that he will. ''The Essence of Saga Frontier'' makes it explicit: Rouge was the good brother, and canonically the winner of their duel. He's also the one who got the gift for Space magic, and somehow convinced Kylin to teach it to him without having to kill the creature and destroy its Paradise. (Which also means that Blue ''could have'' done the same with whichever of the Time or Space mages the player chose to face, and simply chose not to.) Rouge also canonically entered Hell without his friends because he knew it would be a one way trip and didn't want them to be trapped with him, and then he managed to escape from Hell anyway thanks to ThePowerOfFriendship.
* WarpWhistle: Blue's Region Map. You have to visit a region the normal way first (except for Devin and Luminous, where you learn Rune/Tarot and Light/Shadow magic respectively).
* WasItReallyWorthIt: Mei-Ling asks "Do we have to put up with this just to acquire the gift?" after Blue gets the gift for Space Magic. Seeing as how Kylin maintained a paradise for children, that you just [[NoOntologicalInertia destroyed by killing him]], it's a valid point. Of course, [[spoiler:[[{{Hypocrite}} this is the same Mei-Ling]] who puts up with seeing the Margmel suffer the same fate after manipulating Riki to make a wish from the Ring just to obtain more power to rule the world. [[HypocriteHasAPoint But the point still stands.]]]]
* WeaponsThatSuck: Mystic Sword, Mystic Gloves and Mystic Boots, which are used by Mystics to absorb enemies to use their power.
* WeakToMagic: An unstated feature of Hell's demons, who take greatly reduced damage from all attacks until they're hit with a spell.
* WeCannotGoOnWithoutYou: If the main character of any story loses all their LP (and therefore dies), it's an instant game-over, even if the other 4 characters in your party are at perfect health.
* WeirdMoon: On the night of the duel between Blue and Rouge, the moon is half full... the ''bottom'' half. It looks like it may actually have been [[DefaceOfTheMoon partially destroyed]]
* WeNeedADistraction: One of the Shadow spells, Hide Behind, creates an illusion of the caster behind an enemy to provide a distraction.
* WhatKindOfLamePowerIsHeartAnyway: Space Magic in general. Of its six spells, two can only affect monsters with either Deathsynthesis or Photosynthesis, one also stops ''your'' status effects, and two are weaker than other spells of similar cost. The instant death spell, Vanish, is decent, but there are still other spells that can do the same thing. Even in Blue's scenario, it will have negative connotations as well: Not only this would cement Blue's VillainProtagonist status where he destroyed a paradise of lost children for his own gain, during the fated Duel, Rouge will have access to [=TimeEclipse=], [[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard which will cause petrification and it's counted as instant defeat even if Blue should have more LP and eligible for Reviva.]]
* WhatTheHellHero: Annie and Liza get angry at Roufas when he drugged Emilia and sold her off as a sex slave to a Trinity official in order to have her infiltrate the place.
* WhereItAllBegan: Both Blue and Asellus's games end where they begin, The Magic Kingdom and Orlouge's castle, respectively.
* WideOpenSandbox: Any protagonist can go to most (though not all) locations and do some of the quests there (or at least loot the place and grind against monsters), with the expectation that in most quests you'll go out and do some LevelGrinding, skill grinding and otherwise buffing yourself up before you go on the final quest. Asellus and Lute deserve special mention, though: their storylines are almost completely sandbox and directionless for the majority of the game. Asellus's quest is unique because it doesn't happen on her schedule; instead, she plays in the sandbox while being chased by assassins who show up in any of a number of locations, until [[spoiler:White Rose is trapped in the labyrinth and she can go and settle the score with Lord Orlouge]]. Lute, meanwhile, only has one storyline quest, but he has to roam around at random just to find it, and he'd ''better'' build up a bit before embarking on it.
* WindIsGreen: [[RazorWind Gale Slash and Gale Attack]] are green gales of wind directed at all opponents.
* AWinnerIsYou: Blue's ending consists of the screen fading to gray, then the words 'The End' appearing on the screen. That said, everything past the DuelBoss fight with Rouge could be considered a 'playable ending,' as the credits roll after it.
* WizardDuel: The penultimate boss fight in Blue's game is a duel with his twin brother, Rouge. The winner absorbs the loser's magic and personality. During the battle, one school of magic becomes more powerful every other turn or so, including those that cannot be obtained by either.
* WombLevel: Tanzer, a monster large enough to swallow Region ships whole.
* WrestlerInAllOfUs: Human characters can learn grappling attacks when their barehand abilities are high enough. Exaggerated if any learn the DSC tech, which is a (random) combo of throws and slams, having the potential to do damage over the 10,000s.
* WrongContextMagic: Some characters have very unique abilities that may even break the standard rules. Among others, [[spoiler:Blue and Rouge were created to break MutuallyExclusiveMagic]], and the HalfHumanHybrid Asellus is capable of increasing her stats both as a human and as a mystic (though she has to go into SuperMode to take advantage of Mystic bonuses), and she can use combat abilities (which are human-only), magic (which both humans and mystics share) ''and'' mystics' natural abilities.
* {{Wutai}}: Wakatu and Kyo.
* YouCantGoHomeAgain: Neither Blue nor Rouge can return to the Magic Kingdom until one has killed the other.
* YouAllMeetInACell: Emilia begins her quest imprisoned in Despair, and meets Liza and Annie there.
* YouCouldHaveUsedYourPowersForGood: Red says this word for word to his WorthyOpponent, Metal Black after the final defeat.
* YouKillItYouBoughtIt: Only one being in the entire ''universe'' can possess the Gifts for Time or Space magic. In order to master it, you must kill the one that has it. Most characters can just ask the current user to join them, but Blue ''has'' to kill them.
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