FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE has eight playable heroes, and only four of them can be in your party at a time. Each one has a fixed role, a weapon, a damage type, one or two Limit Bursts, and a chapter step where they join the story.
FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE characters list, hero by hero
| Hero | Role | Weapon | Damage | Element | Limit Bursts | Joins | Level 99 peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rain, Knight of Grandshelt | Sentinel | Greatsword | Physical | Fire | Infinity Drive (L1), Crimson Onslaught (L25) | Opening scene | Stamina |
| Lasswell, Second-in-Command | Breaker | Katana | Physical | Ice | Null Moon (L1), Transient Rite (L25) | Opening scene | Speed |
| Fina, The Mysterious Maiden | Medic | Bow | Magic | Light | Holy Ray (L1), Radiant Restoration (L25) | Chapter 1, step 9 | Spirit |
| Lid, Aspiring Master Engineer | Commando | Hammer | Physical | Earth | March of the Machines (L1) | Chapter 2, step 3 | Stamina |
| Nichol, The Strategist | Synergist | Grimoire | Magic | Water | Formation: Steeled Advance (L1), Mirroring Prism (L30) | Chapter 3, step 4 | Speed |
| Dark Fina, Rider of the Black Dragon | Saboteur | Whip | Magic | Dark | Chaotic Convergence (L1), Abyss Graviton (L35) | Chapter 3, step 13 | Magic |
| Jake, The Raven Mercenary | Commando | Gun | Physical | Wind | T.R.N.D. (L1), Glücksschmied (L30) | Chapter 4, step 10 | Strength |
| Sakura, Sage of Mysidia | Commando | Rod | Magic | Lightning | Eternal Veil (L1), Sakura's Ultima (L35) | Chapter 5, step 4 | Magic |
Rain and Lasswell are the only two you start with. Fina joins in chapter 1, Lid in chapter 2, Nichol and Dark Fina in chapter 3, Jake in chapter 4 and Sakura in chapter 5, so a full party is possible from chapter 5 onward.
Each hero's own quest ends on a permanent attribute bonus of HP +100, MP +30 and two attributes that suit them, which is the largest permanent raise in the game outside level ups.
The antagonists
Four names run the opposition: Veritas of the Dark, who shatters the eight Crystals; Veritas of the Heavens, who is Aether; Veritas of the Waters, who is Alluvion; and Dr. Lazarov. Four more famous heroes appear as Visions rather than as party members — Cloud Strife, Tidus, Warrior of Light and Sephiroth.
Eight heroes, four seats
Because your party holds four of the eight heroes and each of them equips a Vision that brings a second role, four seats carry eight roles. The role scarcity table and the rule that decides which four to bring are on the party builds page.
Rank the heroes by role
The game does not rank its heroes, so "who is the best character" has no official answer. What it does publish — role, stat peak, damage type — is enough to build your own ranking, and that is on the character tier list page.