Character-wise, there's a ton of similarities, far more than just the main party. Spoilers abound:








Vaan & Penelo = C3PO & R2D2. Two insignificant ancillary characters through whom the audience is introduced to the world, players & plot. Star Wars stole this narrative device from The Hidden Fortress.

Basch = Obi-Wan/Luke hybrid. Obi-Wan in that he's an old school knight who fought many battles during the previous wars, now looked upon as unwanted/unseemly (for Obi-Wan, he was the crazy old desert guy, for Basch, he's a jailed traitor). The Luke portion of the character comes into play via family connection to the Darth Vader of the story - Gabranth, and in being the primary male "good guy." Unlike Balthier, Basch's motives are genuinely "good" all the way through the story.

Ashe = Leia. "Princess" & leader of the rebellion, yet not your typical damsel in distress. Very in charge, tough & bossy.

Balthier = Han Solo, smuggler/pirate who only looks out for himself, goes through the overall "redemptive" arc by the end and attempts to sacrifice himself so his friends can live.

Fran = Chewbacca, furry co-pilot from a species that lives in the trees.

Gabranth = Darth Vader, traitor to his original kingdom, badass armor, family connection to one of our heroes, etc. Not the only "Vader" styled character though.

Vayne Solidor = Emperor Palpatine, became Emperor through trickery by destroying the Imperial Senate, was aided by Vader (er I mean Gabranth) in doing so.

Larsa Solidor = Closest thing in the story to Lando. At first you meet him as some kind of friend to the rebellion, then discover he is loyal to the Empire and you wonder if he's a good guy, only to discover as the story goes on that yes - he is in fact a good guy.

Ba'Gamnan = Boba Fett, bounty hunter who is after Baltheir (Solo), right down to the color scheme of green red & orange.

Stahl = Millennium Falcon.

Leviathon = 1st Death Star (imprisoned Princess, then goes kaboom).

Judge Ghis = Moff Tarkin, another in charge player of the Empire, overly confident about the destructive power of a new weapon of the empire, ends up exploding on the Death Star (Leviathan) during an attempt to use said destructive power.

Bahamut = 2nd Death Star (surrounded by giant space fighter battle, goes kaboom).

Gran Kiltias = Pseudo Yoda, wise spiritual elder to whom a character must go to in order to become a true Jedi Knight. In this case, Ashe must go to him in order to truly become Queen.

All other Judges = Jedi Knights of the Republic, now an evil empire, who continue to serve, rather than be killed off by the new Emperor. Granted, that doesn't happen in Star Wars, but it's still the basic idea. Judges = Jedi. it's just inverted. In Star Wars, one Jedi (Vader) stays with the new order and the rest are killed. In FFXII, only one Judge doesn't go with the new order, and is thusly killed.

Dr. Cid = Another Darth Vader, slightly crossed with the Emperor. The Vader portion comes in the idea of him being revealed 2/3 of the way through as father of one of our heroes, and that he was not always the evil man he is now. However, unlike Vader, he wasn't trying to "save" his family in his fall so much as he was completely selfish and looking for power. He has a touch of Palpatine in him in his motivations here, plus he is the source of the power for the bad guys - he's the one that figures out how to use nethicite.

Occuria = Jedi ghosts. Only jerks. And more of them.



Now if only I could figure out who is Jabba the Hutt.......