Why kill main characters?

[DarkMyau]

Why did Alys die?

What was the point? Were you really sympathising with Zio? We all knew hes a douche. He didnt need another "jerk moment"

With Alys gone, they just replace her with Kyra down the line. So why not just keep Alys?

I get why they killed Nei. PS2 was a tragedy. But why kill Alys too?

[BenoitRen]

Phantasy Star IV is about Chaz growing into an adult. Killing off Alys, his mentor and mother figure, ties into that. He's then forced to become more independent.

[etony33]

^I couldn't have said it any better myself.

[etony33]

Also, Alys only gets replaced by Kyra in the sense that they both use the same type of weapon. Nobody replaces Alys.

[Doctor Hooves]

In a lot of stories, usually it’s not uncommon for an important character to die.

Also, on a sidenote, when Alys says “Chaz... thank you” before she dies, I used to think she said “Chaz, Rune... thank you”. I have no clue how anyone could misread something like that.