Rose

At approximately 11,600 years old, Rose is likely the most seasoned of female heroines in this feature. Chosen to rule over the dragon of darkness, Rose spends much of The Legend of Dragoon acting coldly towards those around her without any explanation. Her traveling companions could not have known of the trauma she had to endure over the course of her lengthy existence. As the only surviving dragoon of the Dragon Campaign, the conflict between human slaves and their masters for liberation, it became her duty to prevent the end of the world — an occurrence that reinitiates every 108 years with the birth of a child imbued with the spirit of the god of destruction. Rose has prevented the destruction of the world 107 times before the events of The Legend of Dragoon, but has gained some serious scars from doing so.

Some have labeled her "The Black Monster" as she implements a scorched earth policy by annihilating the Moon Child and all that the child comes into contact with. This, sadly, is the only way to maintain the continuity of the world and prevent the child's spirit from creating mindless thralls. As such, poor Rose has seen and done some heinous things. Furthermore, because of the choker she wears to attain eternal life for the purpose of the world's continued protection, she loses memories over time – including those of the people she once held dear. In saving humanity, she must forfeit her own. It is because Rose's life is characterized by self-sacrifice for the greater good that she absolutely is one of RPGaming's strongest female icons. It also doesn't hurt that she's a total badass who is about as quick to save life as she is to end it. — Trent Seely

SIE

Here at RPGamer, we may or may not have a tiny fan club devoted to ex-Stasi agent, SIE. Love her or hate her, she couldn't care less either way. This Russian mercenary has both the brawn and the beauty to rip her enemies a part and make them feel ever so small. We love her for it! As an agent turned merc-for-hire, SIE is always on the open road, looking for danger, and being danger itself. Opposing SIE is a bad idea. A very bad idea.

Michael Thornton, our "hero" in Alpha Protocol admittedly doesn't know what to do with SIE. Although she's a romance option, it's abundantly clear that she wears the pants in the relationship, and will remind you that she runs the show. If Thornton can successfully recruit SIE into his operation, he ends up with someone with a competitive spirit and can assess a situation's moral merit, even though she's unpredictable at best. Regardless, SIE doesn't hold a grudge, she just demands you keep up with her prowess. And when given the option to recruit her, don't just say "Might As Well" because she won't take that kind of sass, solider. — Sam Wachter

Sully

Ode-Type Thing to Sully of Fire Emblem

You were the jewel of Chrom's mighty forces-
Foul mouthed, effortlessly magnificent,
Atop your mighty steed you rode to war
Heedless of your throngs of admirers, both
Male and female, for the charms of Sully
Defy trite categories such as gender.

Such a paragon of womanhood I
Had seen quite rarely in my gaming years,
For you were tough and kind and humor-filled.
You were always gracious to the true, but
The unworthy were to find your metal
Boot in places most unmentionable.

I would have wooed you, but alas, a lass
I was as well, so good Sir Stahl you wed.
You led, the unconquerable bulwark,
As he nocked lethal arrows from behind.
Alone, you were a great force of nature.
Together, you were nigh unstoppable. — Becky Cunningham

Syrenne

Dagran's mercenary group, with their camaraderie, history, and banter, is my most favorite aspect of The Last Story. As much as I like them as a group, I can easily pick one of them as my most favorite character in the game: the boisterous and fiery Syrenne. Syrenne is a heavy drinker, somewhat foul-mouthed, quick to anger, and likes to fight. Tell her she's masculine, and she'll hit you with a bar stool. Syrenne is also all kinds of awesome, both in and out of battle. In combat, she is probably the best physical fighter of the group. While she can sometimes be overly harsh towards Lowell, she knows when to call out her friends out when they do something stupid or dangerous.

Syrenne is not called the heart and soul of the mercenaries for nothing. While she has trusts issues, especially with men, she genuinely cares for and depends on her friends as much as they depend on her. Syrenne is often the first to say what everyone is thinking. She is something of a cool big sister to everyone but Dagran and Lowell, though she does teasingly flirt with Zael on occasion. Her love-hate relationship with Lowell is especially worthy of note. Their banter makes for some of the most entertaining scenes in the game. In spite of their sometimes harsh exchange of insults, they spend a lot of time with each other and it becomes obvious that they two are in love. However, Syrenne is frustrated by Lowell's playboy antics, which remind her of the spineless men that abandoned her homeland during a war. Even so, their evolving relationship, coupled with their amusing back-and-forth, make them a better-like couple by many player than The Last Story's actual main romance of Zael and Callista. — Cassandra Ramos