Awesome / Xenoblade Chronicles 1

WARNING: Per wiki policy, spoilers are unmarked on Awesome Moments pages!

Main Story

• Dunban, despite the crippling injuries the Monado inflicted on his right arm, wields it again with his left to defend Colony 9 during the Mechon attack, and saves Shulk and Reyn just in time. The Monado eventually overpowers him again, on the verge of killing him, and he still attempts to pick it up again to save the colony.
  • Fortunately, Shulk is there to take up the sword in his stead, and quickly proves even more capable with it than Dunban. Not only does he not suffer the Power Degeneration Dunban did, he immediately discovers a new power of the Monado: the ability to see visions of future danger to himself and others, allowing him to Screw Destiny.
• Fiora shows how awesome she can really be during the Mechon attack to Colony 9. Just when Shulk, Dunban and Reyn are about to get killed by Metal Face, Fiora appears out of nowhere driving a freaking tank. Then she starts to fight Metal Face alone. Then she shoots him. With the main cannon. In his face. At point-blank range. And she seemed like such a sweet and nice girl... Too bad it doesn't end very well for her. It's also worth noting that even though the Monado was specifically designed to kill Mechon, this is the FIRST big hit that Metal Face takes.
  • Shulk capitalizes on this in the scene following the second stage of the Metal Face battle, performing a Colossus Climb and diving from the giant Mechon's shoulder to stab it right through the spot of armor Fiora had blasted open just minutes earlier.
  • Adam Howden's howl of anguish and rage when Fiora is killed will never fail to give the player chills. He deserves a huge amount of credit for his performance as Shulk, but this is probably its defining moment.
    "I'LL KILL YOOUUUU!!!"
  • In the resulting boss fight, the only way to damage Metal Face is to use Topple Locks since the Monado won't work on him, which requires the use of a Chain Attack (which in turn, requires a maxed out Party Gauge, which depends on landing Critical Hits). What makes this easier than usual is the fact that Shulk, Reyn and Dunban have maxed out Tension immediately after what happens to Fiora, allowing them to score Critical Hits and build up the Party Gauge more quickly. The three of them are absolutely pissed and are determined to make Metal Face pay.
• Credit has be given to Colonel "Squaretache" Vangarre. When the Mechon attack Colony 9, he quite literally comes face to face with... well, Metal Face, and what does he do? Run? Scream for help? No. He insults him and proceeds to shoot him point blank in the face with a BFG. And after this fails, he manages to survive a transporter being thrown on top of him, whereas everyone assumed it killed him until after the battle concluded.
• Otharon blasting Xord into the ether river with a point-blank shot to the head. And immediately after that, Reyn pulling off an epic save and changing Shulk's vision when he prevents Otharon from falling in, too.
• Just about the entire Colony 6 segment is a CMOA for Sharla, who takes initiative and leads the charge for most of the dungeon raid, jumps into action, and blasts her gun at several Mechons at a time on multiple occasions. It all culminates when the remnants of Xord try to attack the party one last time: Sharla is having none of that, so after one more fight, she jumps directly in front of the monster’s face, and blasts him at close range. Multiple times. Let’s just say the fucker doesn’t exactly last very long after that.
• The party's encounter with Metal Face outside Colony 6 has a big one for Shulk. Metal Face is going on and on about how easily he killed Fiora, rubbing it in the party's faces. Cue the only instance of Unfinished Business in the game as Shulk runs in to shut him up. He even lands a few scratches on Metal Face without the Monado upgrade, just because he's that pissed off.
  Shulk: Talk all you want, because those words WILL BE YOUR LAAAAAST!
• The Wham Episode at Prison Island. With the Monado unshackled, Shulk prepares to deliver the Finishing Move to Metal Face, when the Silver Faced Mechon tries to stop him. It receives the blow instead, which opens its chest area wide open. Then everyone sees something that was inside of it... what seems to be a female Homs, but with a mechanical body. But it doesn't stop there. The Homs takes off the mask that was covering her face. We see Shulk's reaction. He's in shock: The Homs piloting the Silver Faced Mechon is none other than Fiora! The party (and the player) just can't believe it. And Awesomeness ensues.
  • Just before that at Prison Island Zanza unlocks the Monado so it can finally work against Faced Mechon. The music changes to the Unique Monster theme as Shulk (and the player) get ready to give Metal Face his long-deserved asskicking.
• Melia proves her badassery in the fight against Metal Face on the ice shelf. Mumkhar has the Monado and is waving it round like a new toy, he's remotely controlling Metal Face (which is ready to tear out Fiora's throat if anyone moves), and the party is more or less frozen by indecision. Cue Melia, who steps forward and unleashes her ultimate attack with no hesitation whatsoever. It hits Mumkhar in the face, knocks the Monado out of his hand, sends him and Metal Face sprawling, leaving Fiora alone and everyone else free to kick Mumkhar's ass (which is itself pretty awesome).
  "We will not bow to you!"
• Dunban squaring off against Mumkhar in the snowfield after a boss battle, demanding that he tell him why he betrayed them and did all those horrible things.
  Mumkhar: I wanted to get the Monado so I could be the new hero!
  Dunban: Is that it?! That's the puerile reason you killed all those innocent people?! [PUNCH] Ravaged our home?!
  Mumkhar: I love this body! Hahaha! The power!
  • The two then have a brief Single-Stroke Battle which Dunban, of course, wins, wounding Mumkhar's arm.
    Mumkhar: Dunban, you'll never win! Get on your knees and WORSHIP ME!
    Dunban: Never. I will strike you down and all that you've become, you wretched fool. The Monado will stop you! And then you will know the shame of all that you have done, traitor!
• The first display of Lady Meyneth's power has her forcibly taking back control of her body (After Egil hijacked it due to her going out on her own) and immediately turning the tide of the battle for a few brief moments, saving the life of Shulk's team and leaving Egil completely stunned.
• Shulk's use of the Monado on the Fallen Arm against the Mechon patrol. It marks the first time after getting the weapon shut down by the Apocrypha Generator that he can use his Monado Arts, and he pulls it off through sheer force of will. Sure, using his own power to make it work leaves him much worse for wear, but it does little to dull the awesome, whether he cares or not.
  Shulk: [on first firing up Monado Arts on the Fallen Arm] Alright, the Monado's back in action!
• After the final fight with Metal Face, you have a very nice moment between Shulk and Dunban. Dunban's on a Roaring Rampage of Revenge, as he should be, since Mumkhar not only betrayed Dunban, Mumkhar also killed Dunban's sister and wrecked their colony. Dunban was ready to cut the bastard down, but Shulk steps in and prevents him from doing so by getting into a Blade Lock between the Monado and Dunban's sword. Shulk, who has just about every reason to hate Mumkhar, perhaps even more so, spares his life because above all, Mumkhar was still a Homs, and Shulk realized that he would rather seek the truth (why there were Homs in Mechon) than seek revenge, even when a prime opportunity showed up.
• One for the villain's side: Egil is stabbed through the chest by Shulk, who tries once more to get through to him and get him to end his campaign against the Bionis. His response? He picks Shulk up by the head, pulls the Monado out of his chest, and throws Shulk to the ground with one hand, all the while making it very clear that the fight is not over by any means as the fight moves to the second phase.
  Egil: Your blade... It did not cut deep enough.
• At one point, Shulk comes dangerously close to Jumping Off the Slippery Slope when he is about to give into Zanza's goading and finish off Egil. But then he snaps out of it and chooses to spare him instead, giving a "Not So Different" Remark about how he and Egil share the same pain of losing loved ones, and states that even if he doesn't want to kill Egil anymore, he can and will keep blocking his attacks against the Bionis until they understand one another. The war would have ended right then and there... if only Dickson and Zanza weren't there to screw everything up five minutes later.
  • Unfortunately for the traitors, Shulk's actions did indeed have a monumental impact, bringing Egil to their side and allowing Shulk's team to escape by blocking Zanza's attack. He proceeds to jam the Mechonis' fist right into the Bionis' old chest wound, opening it up further and ensuring the heroes have a path inside to take the fight to Zanza. While he dies for it (along with anyone on the Mechonis not on the Fallen Arm), Egil's last moments are the biggest reasons the heroes have a chance to rally and fight back. And, of course, he doesn't go down without one last brutal line.
    Zanza: Don't you ever give up?!
    Egil: Never. But hear this, Zanza. They will judge me not in life, but death!
• Lady Meyneth standing up to Zanza and taking him on herself. She died for it, but not easily by a longshot.
• Near the end of the game, Shulk suddenly waking up and racing to the rescue of his friends, leaping onto a Telethia and cutting it in half. All of this with a replica Monado to boot, with all powers intact.
• At the end of the very late-game boss fight with Disciple Lorithia, Kallian rebels, and begins to destroy her completely. Melia has some choice words for her.
  Lorithia: My Telethia! No! What have you done?!
  Melia: I have done nothing. This is your destiny. Accept it with dignity!
• The game's penultimate fight against Disciple Dickson. When you defeat his first phase, the cutscene implies he's been smacking the party around effortlessly, Shulk and the others barely holding him back, and he prepares to finish them off...until the whole party give Shulk and Fiora a Rousing Speech about how You Are Better Than You Think You Are. The two of them literally begin glowing with The Power of Friendship, to the point where even Dickson is caught off guard and doesn't know how to react. And that's when "You Will Know Our Names" kicks in, letting you know that it is ON.
• Right before the final boss you get a cutscene where a Face Mechon comes out of nowhere to save Juju from a Telethia. Bonus points because the Faced Mechon turns out to be none other than Xord. In essence, the same Mechon that brought ruin to Colony 6 is now protecting it and its inhabitants.
• The final boss fight counts as this, but specifically: Shulk being able to have visions despite Zanza's interference. "The future doesn't belong to you!" finally makes full sense as a quote.
• Just before Shulk gets the True Monado, this awesome conversation:
  Zanza: How? How can you have visions?! You no longer possess the Monado!
  Shulk: I don't know. It comes from the bottom of my heart. It shows me my enemy. It reveals the future I must change!
  Fiora: The future we see is not set in stone. There are infinite possibilities based on the paths we choose. You should be well aware of this notion. For that is how you have always existed!
  Zanza: That is a right for gods and gods only!
  Shulk: Why should we care?! What's important isn't whether you can see the future or not. It's the will to make a choice, and the strength to seize your destiny! Our time has come. OUR DESTINY IS OUR OWN!

Future Connected

• When Gael'gar attempts to blow up Teelan's lab and all of his research, Melia doesn't hesitate to summon as many water elementals as she can and rush in to retrieve any and everything she can. Shulk immediately goes in after her. Melia's able to save an invaluable tome while Shulk is able to save Melia.
• When Gran Dell's wall is being attacked by Fogbeasts, the party tries to convince the companions to help Gran Dell while Tyrea fights off all the bigger Fogbeasts by herself (the wall's soldiers meanwhile, are providing shielding and support fire to suppress the small, weaker hordes). After Tyrea is exhausted and about to be killed by a Deinos Saurus, the beast is struck by a familiar attack, revealing the party and all of the Companions charging into battle. Just to top it all off, Unfinished Business, which was only played once in the main game, gets used one more time in this scene and the ensuing battle to amazing effect.
  • Melia's entrance as she orders the troops to battle with, "Let's clear a path!" and charges into the fray with them and the party is done with such royal dignity that it becomes the moment where she is no longer "Princess" but "Empress" Melia.
• With the Fog King cut off from the source of its regeneration, our heroes at last have the chance to finish it off. While the rest of the party protects her from the Fog King's attacks (Nene in particular blocking a huge blast in a way that would make Reyn proud), Melia charges up to a power level we've never seen from her before. Her eyes blazing with golden light, she practically looks like a wrathful deity as she releases a Mind Blast that utterly obliterates the Eldritch Abomination.
• Now that Zanza is gone, the Telethia have all made a Heel–Face Turn, making it incredibly satisfying whenever they help the heroes.
  • Before the party even arrived on the Bionis' Shoulder, the Telethia used their ability to manipulate ether to keep the Fog King trapped in Alcamoth.
  • When Teelan is captured by Gael'gar, he's freed by a Telethia who is heavily implied to be Teelan's mother.
  • During the final showdown with the Fog King, the Telethia disrupt the rift the Fog King came from, weakening the Fog King to the point where the party can take it down for good.
• Each of the Union Strikes with the Ponspectors chooses one of the four main party members at random to lead the strike, giving each of them a wonderful moment to shine. Even Melia will twirl her staff and strike a pose with them at the end.