You can’t have a great JRPG without awesome rides, or modes of transportation. Magical birds, flying cars, gigantic airships or spaceships, this genre has it all.
Whether you ride on the back of a summoned monster, or cruise around in an airship, there’s never really a wrong way to fly. However, it is incredibly hard to narrow it down to just seven. We tried to keep it to the most interesting or coolest designs across the JRPG genre.
In fact, it would be incredibly easy to just list a bunch of Final Fantasy airships, and call it even, but where’s the fun in that?
When it comes to the most iconic rides across the vast history of JRPGs, here are our picks for the best of the best.
Which rides or vehicles are the most iconic in JRPGs?
1) Ramia (Dragon Quest 3)
You can’t talk about iconic rides in JRPGs without mentioning Dragon Quest 3’s Ramia! Dragon Quest 3’s magical bird is summoned by first collecting all six of the colored orbs, and bringing it to a specific shrine in the world. This will summon a bird that will carry you across the land without exception.
It’s a little on the slow side, but it was so much cooler than the standard Final Fantasy airship of the time! With this legendary game getting a remake in the near future, this list had to include the series’ greatest mount – Ramia.
2) The Lunar Whale (Final Fantasy 4)
We changed this entry about six times, trying to settle on one iconic ride from the Final Fantasy franchise – it’s incredibly difficult for that JRPG series, as it turns out. While The Highwind, The Blackjack, and the Regalia were all very close, the Lunar Whale was the first one to do something different.
It was a function airship for the overworld of Final Fantasy 4, and also could take players to the Moon for the final dungeons! It also had an inn where you could heal for free, and a Fat Chocobo, so you could store excess items – a game where you definitely needed that function.
A gorgeous, futuristic vehicle that rises out of the sea like a behemoth, it’s beautiful, useful, and unique.
3) Courageous (Trails of Cold Steel)
The Trails of Cold Steel franchise is one of the more underrated JRPG franchises, and it has a truly iconic ride – the Courageous!
The iconic vehicle for Class VII, it has five floors, with a whole town’s worth of products, and useful features in it. You can train your arts/close combat/ranged combat, go shopping, it has a game room, and so much more.
It’s used repeatedly throughout the Trails series, and it’s not hard to see why. It has a striking visual design, and is incredibly useful.
Whether you just want to get somewhere, or want to do some item shopping on the go, the Courageous was a special vehicle, that’s for sure.
4) Flammie (Mana franchise)
Easily one of the coolest, and most iconic rides in JRPG history, it’s Flammie! In some games, Flammie also winds up being a part of one of the coolest story twists in JRPGs as well – it’s the final boss!
That’s right, the Mana Beast is Flammie, and you have to defeat it. This magical beast is summoned with the Flammie Drum, and will take you anywhere – unlike the restrictive Cannon Travel service.
You spend all that time flying around with the super adorable Flammie, and once you get to the end of the Mana Fortress, that’s your final boss.
Not Buffy, not Dread Slime, not Master Lich, but The Mana Beast/Flammie. Can you bring your power to bear against your friend? You don’t have a choice.
5) Township (Breath of Fire 2)
Originally, this entry of the most iconic rides in JRPGs was going to be Mina – Nina’s sibling, who gives up her sentience to become a flying bird. However, Breath of Fire 2 has another vessel that’s far more interesting: Township!
You know that town you spend most of the game developing and working on? It can fly! It will uproot out of the ground and slowly, ponderously move to whatever location you want.
It’s a whole town that can just go anywhere you like. Breath of Fire 2 may have suffered from a dreadful localization, but the gameplay was top notch.
6) Delphinus (Skies of Arcadia)
Skies of Arcadia’s best vehicle is without a doubt the Delphinus. Easily one of the most iconic rides in JRPG history, it doesn’t look like a typical airship such as you’d find in Final Fantasy – no, this is a floating battleship.
Huge guns, a huge communication tower, it had a sharp, sleek look. It was truly a design befitting the best vehicle in Skies of Arcadia.
It’s also an incredibly powerful vehicle in combat – this helps because what would a game with sky pirates be without an amazing vehicle to do combat with?
It’s easily one of the coolest vehicles of all time – also one of the rare ones that you can use in battles.
7) Epoch (Chrono Trigger)
Sure, airships are cool. Chocobos and flying birds are rad, and a whole town that can get up and go are pretty significant rides in JRPGs – but this one can also travel through time!
The Epoch is the only real vehicle you get in Chrono Trigger, but it’s a doozy, that’s for sure. We don’t count Time Gates as vehicles, since they only take you to one place. The first time you get access to the Epoch, it can only take you around to various points in time – with some restrictions.
Then, it gets stolen by Dalton, who adds wings to it – Ayla’s reaction to the Epoch being able to fly was incredibly delightful.
While you have to defeat him in battle after stealthing your way through his vast airship, it’s worth it. Now you have a mode of transport that can hit any point in time, and also fly to specific spots to land at. It’s truly one of the best.
