Romancing SaGa 3: Destinies United details traveling companions, systems, and battle mechanics
Meet The Minstrel, Tatyana, Nora, Muse, and Charl.
Square Enix has released new information and screenshots for Romancing SaGa 3: Destinies United introducing traveling companions The Minstrel, Tatyana, Nora, Muse, and Charl, systems including the world map, renown, forging, equipment, retinue, and Mr. S, and battle mechanics such as formations, character growth, mastering requirements, abilities, and ley lines.
Get the details below.
■ Characters: Traveling Companions
The Minstrel (voiced by Yung-I Chang in English, Riku Terahata in Japanese)
A wandering minstrel traveling across the world, most often found in the pubs of every town. An avid follower of the Matriarch’s legends with a surprisingly playful and friendly side.
—Aequastrum The Merchant’s Star
Tatyana (voiced by Christina Assa-Costello in English, Saho Shirasu in Japanese)
A wandering girl flitting from town to town, never seen in one place for too long. Curiously, she introduces herself by a different name for every encounter.
—Rexastrum The Monarch’s Star
Nora (voiced by Fryda Wolff in English, You Taichi in Japanese)
The chief of a long-standing smithing workshop in Pidona. She possesses a strong physique just like her late father, as well as a spirited and bright personality.
—Venastrum The Hunter’s Star
Muse (voiced by Ryan Bartley in English, Kurumi Orihara in Japanese)
A woman with a refined air residing quietly in Pidona’s old quarter. Her true identity is that of the surviving daughter of the formerly esteemed House Claudius of Pidona.
—Scholastrum The Scholar’s Star
Charl (voiced by Mauricio Ortiz-Segura in English, Ryuichi Kijima in Japanese)
The former captain of the Imperial Guard of Pidona who now resides in Pidona’s old quarter and serves as the personal guard to Lady Muse, daughter of House Claudius.
—Rexastrum The Monarch’s Star
■ Systems
The World Map
Speaking with people in places you visit or setting out by ship can unlock new areas to explore on the map.
—Speak with the townsfolk to learn new information and unlock objectives.
—Use the World Map to travel…
—…or set out via ship from the harbor.
—You can check for recruitable allies on the World Map. Potential allies you have not yet met will display as unknown figures.
Renown
Your renown will increase by completing quests and objectives. Complete enough of them and your renown rank will increase, granting you perks such as increased ability slots and expanded United Attacks.
Forging and Reforging Equipment
You can spend aurums and materials to forge and reforge equipment at the Pidona Workshop. You will be able to claim the pieces after emerging victorious in a set number of battles. Once equipment has been forged, it will become available for regular purchase from the workshop’s store.
—The list of equipment available to forge will grow as the workshop regains its smiths. Multiple pieces of gear can be forged simultaneously.
—You can compare the forged / reforged equipment with your retinue’s current gear from the menu.
—The required materials can be obtained in towns, found in the field/dungeons, from treasure chests, or by defeating enemies.
The workshop can be expanded by locating its smiths scattered all over the world.
Raising your renown will also unlock the ability to reforge the Matriarch’s sacred relics, strengthening them.
—The workshop has struggled with the loss of their smiths following the theft of the Royal Partisan, the symbol of their forge.
—The workshop can be restored to its former glory by convincing the smiths to return to Pidona. More smiths means more equipment to forge and reforge.
—Destinite can be used to reforge the Matriarch’s sacred relics.
Equipment
Characters can equip up to two weapons simultaneously. More defensive gear equipped means higher Defense, but also means higher encumberment, which can affect a character’s Speed during battles.
If you’re unsure what to equip, the Auto-Equip function will automatically set your characters up with the best available gear.
—Some characters have signature weapons or gear that could only be equipped by their signature wielder in the original version. Now, they can be equipped by others as well! Signature gear can offer additional boosts when equipped by their signature wielder. In Candy / Tatyana’s case, she gains multiple resistances by equipping Mr. Bear.
Forming Your Retinue
You can adjust your retinue (party) composition at any time from a pub or save point, choosing from any combination of characters you’ve recruited thus far on your journey. Save points will be available in the overworld and within dungeons so you can make changes to your retinue between battles.
Removed retinue members can be re-added at any time. Characters not currently in the retinue will still receive a share of Technique Points, allowing them to gain experience even when off-field!
Finding Mr. S
A familiar face returns! Mr. S, a lovable staple of the SaGa franchise, has been on his own adventure in the world of RS3. He can be found in all sorts of places such as in towns or even in dungeons.
Every time Mr. S is found, he will reward you with one sticker. Every five stickers collected grants boons such as hastening workshop forges or revealing the number of undiscovered chests on the map!
■ Battles
New Formations
Not only will this title feature many formations not present in the original version, it will also introduce completely new formations to the SaGa franchise! Here’s a sneak peek at some of the new formations.
—Triple Incisors: A well-balanced formation which promotes both ranged and melee attacks. The front three allies enjoy increased melee capabilities, while the two in the back have boosted ranged prowess.
—Rampaging Mammoth: A formation resembling the unbridled power of troops seizing the advantage and routing enemy forces. All units boast increased Speed and the front unit enjoys increased defenses after acting.
Character Growth
Characters have weapon type and spell school levels, which can be raised by using them in battle to earn Technique Points (TP).
Weapon type and spell school levels will affect Physical Attack and Magic Attack respectively.
—By using Lunar spells in battle…
—…Muse can gain TP and level up in Lunar Arts.
—By obtaining the Mr. S reward Better, Faster, characters can earn full TP for each weapon or spell school used in a battle (rather than divided amongst them.)
Mastering Requirements
Techs, evasions, and spells can be mastered, allowing them to be instantly taught to other characters. Using the tech or spell frequently will allow the character to master them.
—Progress can be checked via the Techs/Evasions or Spells screen in the menu.
—Mastered techs and spells will be marked in the skills list during battle.
—Mastering can be used to swiftly teach other retinue members powerful techs / spells.
Abilities
Each character has their own unique ability which can be unlocked by participating in battles.
There are many different abilities, such as basic attribute boosts and HP recovery per turn. Some are unlocked through story progression instead of battle victories.
—Characters can equip up to four abilities each. Abilities can also be auto-equipped based on parameters such as “attack-focused.”
—Ability learning progression can be checked via the menu or on the battle results screen.
—A character who has already learned an ability can then master it by continuing to participate in battles.
—Abilities can also be equipped onto other characters as long as the original wielder is not currently in the party, or their primary ability is deactivated (set to OFF).
Ley Lines
The battlefield will occasionally be attuned to a magic element, creating a ley line affinity. Casting spells of the same school as the active ley lines will result in stronger effects. Some characters may also recover HP every turn.
Using techs and spells of an opposing school can temporarily alter the ley lines. The opposing schools are as follows:
