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"The tale of the nameless soldiers who, on the verge of despair, changed the course of history."

Valkyria of the Battlefield 3: Unrecorded Chronicles or just Valkyria Chronicles 3 is the third game of the Valkyria Chronicles series, released in Japan on the Playstation Portable on January 27, 2011. Despite the previous two games getting localized, SEGA announced no localization would be made for this title outside of Japan. Unlike previous titles, this game was developed by Media Vision and published by Sega.

Taking place during the events of Valkyria Chronicles, the game tells the story of Gallian Army Squad 422, otherwise known as "The Nameless". Made up of criminals, deserters and military offenders, the members of the Nameless are stricken from official records and thereon referred to by number only. They are then sent out on the most dangerous missions and dirty work for the Gallian Army, their existence and actions officially denied by the government.

The three main characters are No.7 (Kurt Irving), an army officer seeking redemption after being falsely accused of treason; No.1 (Imca), a Darcsen heavy-weapons specialist who seeks revenge against the Valkyria who destroyed her home; and No.13 (Riela Marcellis), a kind-hearted soldier who was dumped into the Nameless after her tendency to be the Sole Survivor gave her a reputation for being a jinx on anyone she served with.

Together with the other misfits of the Nameless, they clash against a dangerous squadron known as "Calamity Raven", an Imperial black-ops unit comprised of Darcsens who have been promised independence upon victory.

A fan-translation project has resulted in the creation of an English translation here. Otherwise, the voices are still in Japanese.

Two manga adaptations are available in Japan, both of them centering on Kurt's involvement in the squad with either Riela or Imca. There is also a two-episode OVA.

The three main characters also make appearances in the Project × Zone roster.

Chronologically followed by Valkyria Chronicles II.


This game provides examples of:

  • Ace Custom: The Nameless Tank. In a rather poignant justification, this is because The Nameless generally can't request parts of standard Gallian tanks, and Gusurg and later, Carisa make do with what parts are available. When Gusurg commands Echidna later, he makes some pretty hardcore modifications that sets it apart from the Bathomys. Also: Narcisus, Edelweiss, and Schakal.
  • Action Girl: Imca, Riela, Leila, Annika, Gisele, Margit, Amy, Frederica, Ada, Valerie, Gloria.
  • Alike and Antithetical Adversaries: This is the first game in the series not to use Heterogenous Heroes vs. Homogenous Villains, instead using Heterogenous Heroes vs. Heterogenous Villains.
  • The Anime of the Game: A two-part OVA was released in 2011 via PlayStation Network, with BD release in 2012.
  • And Your Reward Is Clothes: Finishing the post-Clear Fragments of supporting charactersnote  gives you alternate uniforms: Gallian Militia (Squad 7), Gallian Army (Leon / Baldren), and Lanseal Students (Avan).
  • Arbitrary Headcount Limit: Up to 9 units can be deployed at a time, with a maximum of 5 per zone. This is up from the VC2 limit of 6 units, and nearly equals the original game's limit of 9 or 10 (depending on whether a tank is available).
  • Arc Number: 7 is once again a prominent number. In this particular case, Kurt is saddled with this number.
  • Army of Thieves and Whores: The Nameless includes a repeat arsonist, a convicted murderer, a brothel madame, a con artist, a draft-dodger, a sadistic dominatrix, a trigger-happy alcoholic, and a money-grubbing mechanic. The leader is charged with treason. What a merry band of undesirables!
  • Awesome, but Impractical: The Gunner class. Don't let their weapon's high firing rate (40 shots) fool you; unless they're doing interception fire or support fire in team attack, they shoot across a wide area instead of a single target, reducing their supposed damage output in the process. You can try firing from close range to increase the damage output, but even then, it is difficult.
  • Beach Episode: Episode 7. The Nameless win a vacation after aiding Leon Hardins's squad. Too bad it gets interrupted by Dahau himself.
  • BFG: Lances and some of the later weapons in the game for scouts and shocktroopers.
  • BFS: The fencer's swords.
  • Bittersweet Ending: Considering the nature of the story, this is to be expected. Dahau's plan to destroy Randgriz is finally thwarted, but at the cost of his and the rest of Calamity Ravens' lives, Gusurg included. The Nameless members also had to give up their citizenship beforehand due to the forbidden nature of their final operation. Despite this, their loss of citizenship doesn't seem to affect the Nameless members that much, and in fact they seem to do well with their lives.
  • Broad Strokes: For the most part Squad 422 (and their Empire counterpart, Calamity Raven) stays away from the spotlight of war, but the bits about Selvaria can be downright ludicrous, especially if you have played her VC1 DLC.
  • Boom, Headshot!: Headshots make a reappearance as an important game mechanic: snipers can frequently perform a One-Hit Kill with them, and all gun-toting units can dramatically increase their damage with them. Headshots are especially critical for scouts, since their rifles do crap damage (at least, at the start).
  • Brutal Bonus Level: The aptly-named Hard Mission Fragments. Expect to be gangbanged with tanks and armored infantries in the first turn.
  • Cannon Fodder: The Nameless are the Cannon Fodder to the other Cannon Fodder, the Militia.
  • Continuity Nod: At some point in the game, Welkin, Alicia, Avan, Cosette, Leon, Juliana, Brixham, and even Baldren and Audrey are required party members. On the other hand, you get to fight Jaeger (winnable) and Selvaria (unwinnable, at least story-wise). (This list is not exhaustive.)
    • You are there in the incident that left Cosette hemophobic. That's some heavy-duty Player Punch.
    • There is a mission where Leon and Juliana meets and begin to be involved in the V0 project.
    • Another difficult mission explains how Brixham nearly lost his eyesight and why Baldren sees the Darcsen as threats.
  • Cool Tank: Like Valkyria Chronicles II, you can customize your tank in a wide variety of ways, from the nearly invincible but slow Heavy Tank to the lightweight APC that can move your troops around fast and far but falls to a well-placed blow. You can even get Edelweiss' chassis and turret!
  • Custom Uniform: Most of The Nameless uniforms are very Mildly Military. About the only person who's wearing a proper uniform is Kurt.
    • Certain characters from another game even have "Custom" for their possible uniforms, such as Aliasse and Nagisa.
  • Cutscene Power to the Max: Apparently, Imca can duel a Valkyria to a Blade Lock with her bazooka-blade thing in cutscenes. She can't do that in the game, though she does have a Super Mode.
  • Dangerous Deserter: The Nameless becomes this when they get declared traitor and are attacked by Gallian forces. Riela supplies the "dangerous" when she's awakened to her Valkyria power.
  • Darker and Edgier: This game is darker than the first two Valkyria Chronicles games since it focus on an unwanted unit doing the Gallian army's Dirty Business.
    • It also reveals a bit of Gray-and-Gray Morality with the Darscens where some will go to desperate states to gain independence. Previous games showed them as being victims, but in this game some are willing to cross the line if it helps invigorate the Darscens to stand up for themselves.
  • Dark Secret: In a bonus Downloadable Content mission and in the anime, when Riela is about to use her Valkyria beam to stop an artillery shell from fragging the advancing Gallian Army, Kurt tells Isara not to tell anyone about it, not even Welkin. Considering Isara's fate, she really carries the secret to her grave. It's even harsher because, were she alive when Alicia turns Valkyria, she could have told Alicia to not panic about it.
  • Death Faked for You: In the final chapter, Ramsey Crowe assisted the Nameless before their standoff against Dahau in this way.
  • Death Notification: Not only Kurt must bring the newsnote  of Gusurg's death to the dead guy's big sister, but he must also explain that Gusurg died as a traitor to Gallia, having chosen to defect to the invading Empire's Calamity Raven so that his ostracized people could make their own country. And that Kurt killed Gusurg by his own hands. The big sister faces the news solemnly, stating that Gusurg died for what he believed. This is the last straw for Kurt's psyche, and Riela and Imca must talk him to his senses.
  • Does This Remind You of Anything?: If you studied your American military history, you would know where the official name of the Nameless came from.note 
  • Doomed by Canon: Some of the characters in the series will die or survive anything that comes their way. Examples include: Imca being unable to exact revenge on Selvaria due to Valkyria Chronicles being Selvaria's actual fight with Alicia, another Valkyria; and Isara and Cosette's parents not surviving the war.
  • Downloadable Content: Like the previous two games, this game has DLC. In addition to DLC missions, there are downloadable "episodes", which contain both episodes and cutscenes.
  • Dude, Where's My Respect?: The Nameless don't have any of this as they're meant to do the dirty work of the Gallian Army.
  • Expy: The Nameless can be one for the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the various military foreign legions that were created over the years, including the French Foreign Legion.
  • Face–Heel Turn: The use of chemical weapons was the final straw for Gusurg, causing him to defect to the Calamity Ravens
  • Fantastic Racism: On both sides of the war against Darcsen, as always.
  • First-Name Basis: The Nameless introduce themselves and address Kurt with their numbers, not names, at first. Gusurg explains that being addressed with your first name is a sign of respect, only given when you are acknowledged by the Nameless.
  • Foregone Conclusion: It's a guarantee that Gallia will win the Second Europan War, since this game takes place at the same timeframe as Valkyria Chronicles. Likewise, all of the main characters who appear in Valkyria Chronicles II will also survive these events.
  • Foreshadowing: Despite his supposed Big Brother Mentor and leader-like nature, Gusurg only has Kurt listed as his friend and one of his Personal Potentials actually devolves about midway in the story. While other characters from the series may undergo the same treatment, this is a hint that said character is bound to leave you somewhere in the story.
  • Framing Device: The developers have stated that the game was designed as a documentary show where all the facts came from secret archives and eyewitness accounts, with the narration being provided by Ramsey Crowe.
  • Gaiden Game: The events of this game take place concurrently with Valkyria Chronicles rather than being a sequel or prequel.
  • Geo Effects: The poisonous atmosphere of Naggiar is the primary offender, but the lightning strikes are absolutely nasty when they hit.
  • Guest-Star Party Member: Several times throughout the story.
  • Gunship Rescue: (Anime only) The Gallian Army is outnumbered and outgunned in Dillsburg, and Welkin sends Isara to ask The Nameless for help. The Nameless complied by storming the Imperial fortress from the opposite side and destroying the twin artillery that had been pounding the Gallians to hell and back. All that's left is for the Gallian Army to charge in and claim easy victory.
  • Irony: Gallia's trash (The Nameless which is comprised of criminals) fighting against the Empire's trash (the Calamity Ravens, who have Darcsens in their ranks).
  • Idiot Ball: Carl Isler and his obsession about killing Kurt. The very moment Kurt became a Nameless for treason his word stopped having any worth, but Isler's constant attempts to kill the Nameless to the point of using both Calamity Raven and the Gallian army ended with Kurt being certain that someone wanted them dead. If he just had tried to gain Kurt's trust or executed him on the spot instead of letting him enter the Nameless, Isler could have avoided a lot of trouble.
  • God Mode: Not a cheat so much as Riela's special ability. She essentially gets to spend one action immune to bullets, as well as getting a laser blast.
  • The Greatest Story Never Told: All that The Nameless ever do will remain in the darkness of history. Even the narrator points this out. That said, the artbook implies that an incomplete and fragmented version of their story eventually becomes public knowledge.
  • Hero of Another Story: Squad 422 gets to meet and fight along Welkin Gunther and his Squad 7, Avan Hardins and the civil defense, and Baldren and Audrey Gassenarl. The last two are probably an inversion, as they are the Big Bad in their story.
    • Supporting Leader: Welkin Gunther. You see another Gallian force on the map fighting the main forces of The Empire while you're on your way doing things that will not be recorded in history.
  • Hold the Line: Several missions, including one in Ghirlandaio which can easily turn into That One Level if you don't know what you're doing. Thankfully, you can turn the tide; even though enemy reinforcements appear at the beginning of each turn, the mission is considered completed if there are no more enemies on the field.
  • Job System: All units can be changed to any class, like Avan from Valkyria Chronicles II. However, most have one or two preferred classes that they are better at.
  • Kirk Summation: Kurt delivers one to Gusurg at the end of Chapter 19, the Battle of Randgriz.
  • Letting the Air out of the Band: The intro movie tells of the Gallian War and the military's valiant effort to repel the Imperial invasion, led by none other than the highly decorated Welkin Gunther... and then the VC1 theme music promptly stops and VC3's own theme starts playing, as the narrator begins speaking of The Nameless's unrecorded chronicles.
  • Limit Break: Kurt, Imca and Riela each have a special attack when an SP point is used:
    • Kurt is able to get two nearby allies to follow him and attack together while using a higher AP pool.
    • Imca can use her weapon to target multiple enemies and launch a Macross Missile Massacre.
    • Riela and Aliasse goes into Valkyria mode where she becomes invincible and can perform a one shot kill with her lance.
    • Also, all of them regain health and AP for their special action.
  • Love Triangle: Imca and Riela both fall in love with Kurt. The player gets to choose who Kurt hooks up with.
  • Meaningful Name: Would you expect a high-ranking religious figure named "Borgia" to be a wholesome person?
  • Mirror Character: When Dahau and Jaeger meet, both men realize that they aren't different, as both are working with the Imperial military to get a homeland.
  • More Dakka: OPEN FIRE!!! Also, combination attacks in general.
  • More Friends, More Benefits: Finishing your team members' Fragment missions unlocks their Potentials, some of which are tremendously useful. And you get to see that they aren't as bad as other people think.
  • Motive Rant: Lots of them. Except Lydia, she just hates everyone.
  • Mythology Gag: Several members of Squad 7 note  from the anime adaption of Valkyria Chronicles appears as the canon squad in the opening.
  • Nerf: While the Fencer class in the previous game has great defense, in this entry the Fencer no longer wears full armor and has a smaller shield, making them more susceptible to damage and pushing them toward Glass Cannon territory.
  • No Name Given: The default name for The Nameless' tank is... The Nameless Tank. It really stands out because you get to control Edelweiss and Narcissus in a few missions. And the Nameless Tank's default paint is black.
  • Old Save Bonus: Having Valkyria Chronicles II Save Data earns you Anisette as a playable character.
  • People of Hair Color: Darcsens. See the Fantastic Racism entry.
  • Playable Epilogue: Unlocked once the player completes all missions in the story mode, post-game ones included.
  • Power-Strain Blackout: Poor Riela... the first time she goes Valkyria, it knocked her out of action for a chapter (about a month). Her body gets used to it eventually.
  • Pretentious Latin Motto: Squad 422 has "Altaha Abilia", which is officially translated as "Always Ready."note 
  • Previous Player-Character Cameo: Characters from Valkyria Chronicles and Valkyria Chronicles II make cameo appearances and will join Squad 422 in some of their missions.
  • Protection Mission: Usually cargo.
  • Private Military Contractors: The fate of some of the Nameless after Crowe falsified death certificates for them. A majority of them fought against Imperial forces as hired mercenaries.
  • Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: The Nameless are composed of criminals, deserters and military offenders. This trope is practically a Valkyria Chronicles tradition now.
  • The Remnant: After the peace accord is signed between The Empire and the Principality of Gallia, the Imperium's all-Darcsen Calamity Ravens legion become this.
  • Required Party Member: Only half the time in Story missions. You can even choose not to deploy Kurt. Of those who are required, Riela and Imca get the slot most often. In the final battle, whoever you romance become the Required Party Member.
  • Rocket Jump: With grenades! And the class that can do this safely, Armored Tech, is sorely in need of extra movement. Doesn't work with actual rockets.
  • Saved by Canon: All of the characters who appear in Valkyria Chronicles II will survive the game's events.
  • Suicide Mission: See We Do the Impossible; it's a plot point that Kurt and the Nameless get repeatedly sent on increasingly less subtle suicide missions. When they work, the regular militia can get the credit, and when they don't, well, nobody cares about a squad that technically doesn't exist.
  • The Siege: ...of Randgriz! You have to fend-off a completely unexpected Calamity Raven strike force, personally led by Dahau. Hint: he's not immune to sniper bullets. Hint 2: You can actually repair the gate, and the strike force isn't smart enough to Shoot the Medic First.
  • Take Cover!: Exceedingly important, due to the ridiculous firing rate of even the most basic machine guns, not to mention the ones carried by Darcsen Knights. Fortunately, the experimental shield of the Armored Techs can go wider, and thus you can take cover up to the enemies' face. Heck, even your tank needs to Take Cover! against Echidna's artillery blast, lest it become a smoldering pile of junk.
  • Theme Music Power-Up: Several battles, but the most awesome is when you begin to gain a foothold in Randgriz as you force your way into the military tribunal to present the evidence of your (relative) innocence. Considering that that mission is That One Level, uplifting music is needed.
    • Your superpowers are accompanied by fitting theme music, but the Valkyria one is especially hair-raising and adrenaline-pumping.
  • Trailers Always Spoil: Hope that Reila being a Valkyria wasn't meant to be a surprise...
    • The hair was a dead giveaway.
  • The Unfought: Selvaria Bles. You would think that Imca would have an epic rematch with her now that your squad has your own Valkyria(s), but apparently she must fight in another battlefield and die there.
  • Updated Re-release: The Extra Edition, which contains four pre-packed downloadable contents and new side chapters, namely: Carisa's Fragment, the aftermath of Gusurg's death, and Imca's epilogue.
  • Wake-Up Call Boss: Echidna, especially the first fight in Mellvere. If you're playing on normal, there is no easy way to capture the points guarded by Darcsen Knights while being under fire from that humongous tank. PSP, meet floor.
  • We Are "Team Cannon Fodder": Your unit. Which is rather ironic, because...
  • We Do the Impossible: Kurt Irving might as well write that in his business card. Throughout his career as the commander of The Nameless, he has repeatedly rescued the civilians forsaken by military, forced the Echidna-backed Imperial force to retreat (3 times!), thwarted Calamity Raven's elite force countless times, nearly succeeded in assassinating Maximilian, prevented Randgriz from disappearing from the map, and saved the world from a Valkyrian superweapon. Keep in mind that he does this without any significant help from the mainstream military or militia.
  • We Help the Helpless: Might as well be Squad 422's tag, considering how many times they have saved civilians throughout the game. Played straighter in the OVA with Kurt outright stating that the ones who suffer the most from the war are civilians, and it is their duty to protect them.
  • What the Hell Are You?: The Gallian unit reaction upon seeing Riela going Valkyria.
    Soldier: "Fire! Fire!" *hail of bullets that Riela's force field immaculately blocks*
    Soldier: "How about THIS!" *anti-tank rocket that Riela slash easily mid-air*
    Soldier: "Monster! She's a monster!"
    Soldier: "No, it's The Devil herself!"
  • The Worf Effect: In the OVA, Welkin and the gang. Apparently, when the enemy leader outsmarts Welkin, it's time for Kurt to save the day.
  • You Are Number 6: The nameless are referred to by numbers.
  • You Killed My Father: Imca, except it didn't stop at her father. Her entire village was destroyed by a Valkyria and it led to her joining Squad 422 to seek revenge


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