In addition to its vast, explorable worlds and real-time combat, Monolith Soft’s Xenoblade series has an excellent cast of characters. This time around in Xenoblade Chronicles 3, the game’s six main characters are fully playable. Each one also has their own starting class, although they can learn others later on.
What sets the characters apart this time around is that they come from two opposing nations, Keves and Agnus. While Noah, Lanz and Eunie hail from Keves, Mio, Sena and Taion are from Agnus. Despite the fact that all of the main characters in Xenoblade 3 are soldiers who grew up fighting each other on the battlefield, a special mission early on in the game brings them all together.
Whether you’ve already picked up a copy of Xenoblade Chronicles 3, arguably one of the best Nintendo Switch games, or are just looking for a good reason to dust off your Switch, this is everything you need to know about the game’s main characters and their starting classes. To avoid spoilers though, we won’t be going into the non-playable heroes who serve as a seventh member of your party.
Noah
The main protagonist of Xenoblade Chronicles 3, Noah hopes to end the fighting between Keves and Agnus once and for all. Besides being a soldier who carries a large red blade (which resembles the Monado from the first game in the series), he is also an Off-Seer. That means he must help soldiers who have died in battle pass on to the next plane, using his flute.
Noah begins the game as a Swordfighter equipped with both offensive and defensive techniques. After changing out of his Keves uniform, he sports a red jacket that matches his sword, along with a ponytail. Noah is the group’s de facto leader and keeps a cool head, even in the most arduous situations.
Mio
Mio is Noah’s counterpart from Agnus. Like him, she is also an Off-Seer who plays the flute. Her cat ears and Welsh accent help set her apart, though, and fans of the series will notice her resemblance to Nia from Xenoblade Chronicles 2. As the soldiers from both Keves and Agnus have short 10-year life spans, Mio makes it her mission to find “a path that lets us all live,” since she’s running out of pages in the diary she uses to keep track of her remaining time.
Mio starts off as a Zephyr wielding Dual Moonblades, similar to Nia’s Twin Rings. As a defender, she helps draw enemy attacks away from her teammates while evading their strikes. Mio and Noah have a special connection that they discover quite early on in Xenoblade Chronicles 3, when the two characters interlink.
Eunie
Eunie is a childhood friend of both Noah and Lanz. The three grew up together, training as soldiers in Keves. She resembles Melia from the original Xenoblade Chronicles, as she has wings on her head, as do other members of the High Entia race. Eunie isn’t afraid to speak her mind, and always chimes in with something witty.
On the battlefield, Eunie starts off as a Medic Gunner who uses a cane-shaped Gunrod to both heal her allies and attack her enemies. Early on, it’s clear that Eunie has a connection to Agnus’ Taion, and the two gain the ability to interlink.
Lanz
Lanz is a soldier from Keves who wields a giant shield, which he can also use as a sword, as well as a mountable gatling gun. Although he seems to be a typical brute, there’s actually much more to his character. His loyalty to his friends is unmatched. Lanz also has ties to past games in the series as he appears to be a member of the Machina race, who were born from the Mechonis in the first Xenoblade Chronicles. He resembles Reyn from the first game.
Lanz begins the game as a Heavy Guard, which serves as a tank in battle, capable of drawing the attention of enemies away from his allies. However, he is also able to provide defensive buffs to the comrades fighting alongside him.
Taion
Alongside Mio and Sena, Taion is a soldier from Agnus who, if you couldn’t tell by his glasses and serious nature, is the brains of the operation. He uses his intellect to keep his allies safe, and all of them trust his judgment when it comes to battle tactics. After changing out of his Agnus uniform, Taion wears a long orange scarf that matches the accents on his jacket.
In combat, Taion begins the game as a Tactician who creates origami-like paper constructs, which he calls katashiro. He can use these crafted items to attack his enemies. However, once the fighting has finished, he treats them like pets, and they’re even able to communicate with him. Taion and Eunie grow close once the two groups become one, and together they can interlink.
Sena
Alongside Mio and Taion, Sena is also an Agnus soldier. Despite her small appearance, she's a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield. The blue lines on her body and the crystal at the center of her chest will immediately stand out to Xenoblade Chronicles 2 players, as she resembles one of the Blades from the game. Sena is quite energetic and has a cheerful personality, even though she’s shy around others.
Sena begins the game as an Ogre, who uses a large hammer to deal massive damage to her foes. Just like Lanz, she enjoys working out, and the two form a close bond that allows them to interlink.
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 has plenty more characters to meet
These are just the game’s main characters but there are loads of other interesting people you’ll meet along the way. Unlike past entries in the series, Xenoblade Chronicles 3 adds heroes who are special allies that can be recruited to fight alongside Noah and the main party. However, they aren’t controllable, nor can you change their classes.
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