We're out on the open ocean, and what do we find?
These flappy little fellows are so convinced they're dragons that their friends don't have the heart to tell them the truth.
Random encounters. The drake slime squeezed in there is an obvious DQ Monsters enemy to anyone who knows one of the more famous mechanics in that series- for those who don't, you can combine monsters through what it calls "breeding" to make new monsters. Drake Slime is the product of combining a dragon-type monster and a slime-type monster that doesn't turn into something more special. They came back to the main series in DQ7 and 10, and they're mostly famous for spewing fire breath like a dragon. They are Slime Family in this game.
Anyway, about the "random encounters" thing, that's specifically a thing on the sea. Different parts of the sea have different encounters, with the "later" areas of the sea having the more dangerous stuff. Annoyingly, this also means it can be difficult to track down the monsters that only live in the sea if you're going for a full beastiary. Holy Water does its traditional job of getting monsters to not attack if they pose no threat to you (based on your Level).
To explain the title in a bit more detail, we're... basically going to be doing everything except going to the next Town Story. Exploring the nearby ports that aren't Zwaardsrust, and all that. We will finish up by going to the Zwaardsrust port and doing non-plot stuff there.
Hey, does "the Emerald Coast" sound familiar to anyone else?
We can now explore this part of the Emerald Coast, from way back before we got Veronica!
The only enemies around here are the not-particularly-dangerous Garudas. These are stronger than you're supposed to find, but hey, perhaps if you can score a Poison Moth Knife from them by sequence-breaking your way here, you can make the grim gryphons an easier fight.
Oh hey, you can get Gold Ore before Hotto.
Also these relatively rare treasures that are still valuable now.
We can't use this door anymore at all. It wouldn't be useful if we could anyway.
I check my Forge, and it turns out we got a new Flourish! Double Whammy is a good one- hitting the same square twice in one stroke is always helpful no matter what shape the thing you're forging is. It gets outclassed later, but sometimes, it is the right call to Double Whammy instead.
It is a really good idea to be able to Zoom to Emerald Coast. For some reason, though, this ultimately didn't do it for me. I'm not sure why it wouldn't.
You can come back here, and you'll get some Party Chat for your troubles.
Erik: Remember when you and me first set out from here, Erdward? It was a fair while ago and nothing seems to have changed in the meantime... Listen, man, I know it's hard, but we've got to keep pushing on. We just don't have time to think about what might have been.
Veronica: Oh, Erdward... Take as long as you need here. We'll wait for you, don't worry.
Serena: This is where you grew up, isn't it, Erdward? It's okay. You don't have to talk about it...
Sylvando: Oh, Erdward, darling... I can't believe they'd do this to your village, and all because of their ridiculous ideas about the Luminary! Someone's going to pay for this! I'll make sure of that!
We can also go to Heliodor!
Erik: Uh... What exactly are we doing here again? Don't you remember what happened last time!? Plus we've got Sylv with us now- he's not going to help us keep a low profile, that's for sure...
Veronica: Listen, I know you want to storm into the castle and sort out this ridiculous misunderstanding, but this really isn't the time. Right now we need to stay calm and get to Yggdrasil. This nonsense with the King will sort itself out, I'm sure of it.
Serena: Did you really have to run away from this place because everyone thought you were the Darkspawn? I mean, everyone looks so kind. Why in the world would they think mean things like that!?
Sylvando: Dearie me, it's a weird old feeling to be back in Heliodor! This place and me, we go back a long way... Now's not the time for that little trip down memory lane, though. Remind me to tell you all about it some other time!
Amazingly, only half of our party seems to think this is a bad idea.
Much like the guards posted in Gondolia, these guys don't seem to find the odds of seeing the Darkspawn again very high, so they don't see him.
...As if I'm not human? The slander on Erik is also awful.
Yeesh, the propoganda's coming in hard...
Erik decides that he has his limits and drags Erdward away from walking up to the King. His loss.
Anyway, we're going to be spending the lion's share of the update here, in the Costa Valor port. We're not supposed to come this way until later, but nothing's stopping us from doing it now.
Erik: You know, the troops from Heliodor always seem to know where we're headed next... I guess this means we've got to stay on our toes, right? We never know when we're going to have to make a break for it...
Veronica: Serena and I grew up deep in the mountains, you know. Whenever I'd try and practise my magic, someone would shout at me about starting forest fires... Could you imagine growing up out here!? You could just stand on the beach and Frizz to your heart's content! In fact, that's what I feel like doing right now...
Serena: ...... ...Hmm? Did you say something? I, I'm sorry... I was listening to the sound of the waves, and I must have dozed off...
Sylvando: Now, about this merchant who bought the Rainbough... I hate to say it, but he didn't come this way... Listen, I know how much fun it is to visit somewhere new, but right now I think we'd be better off heading straight for Zwaardsrust.
They fall in love about once every five minutes, showering the object of their affections with countless kisses.
Smackers come from DQs 6 and 8, and they're mostly around to try and get you to lose turns through blowing kisses. They also have Snooze and Magic Barrier, in case that doesn't seem to be going their way.
Ah, there we go, Kasap. Kasap lowers the defence of an entire group by one stage... and honestly, most situations you want the Sap status for are ones where groups aren't a factor. Stick with Sap- it's cheaper and more effective.
Hellish fish men with cruel claws and slimy scales who hang around in gangs waiting for ships to sail by so they can drag them to the bottom of the sea.
Mermen are vicious little monsters in this world. They have two main abilities- savage you severely, and Sap your defence so they can do that better. They've been in DQs 3, 5 and 8.
So yeah, remember the whole "coralossuses used as bosses" thing we ran into earlier? They, uh, got demoted quickly. We aren't supposed to be here, yes, but depending on your encounter luck in the ocean, this can literally be the first thing you fight after Jasper.
This is armour. It's just for Defence- in games where all armour contributed to your Style, this had no Style. Here, though, "armours that don't give you Charm" isn't unusual.
The blood bonds between these steadfast swordsmen and their slimy steeds is so strong that if one is slain, the other instantly drops dead too.
Ah, hello, here's a new mount we can ride, and certainly a very wonderful monster. The slime knight first appeared in DQ5, and if there's one monster that can say to have won out in recognition because of that game other than the sabrecat, it's Slime Knight. Slime Knight was available relatively easily not long after you get the ability to tame monsters (not immediately, but still pretty quick), and because of its ability to do most things exceptionally well, it easily becomes a mainstay of the party the whole way through. Slime Knights enjoy a perfect attendance record in DQ following 5, and if there's one thing cooler than playing as a Slime in Rocket Slime, it's picking up a suit of armour and turning into a Slime Knight yourself.
...Why am I talking about this, we haven't gotten into the battle yet-
Knights so narcissistic that they comb the crests on their helmets every single day. The only things they love more themselves are their slimy steeds.
Snooty slime knight on the first goo!? Well, this just got a little more exciting. Snooty slime knights were in DQ10, and while the normal brethren can just block, Helm Splitter, call for help, and heal, these guys have a whole host of terrifying magic spells.
I went for the steal, but honestly, I don't see myself using this. Prayer Rings recover your MP, but can randomly break after being used.
With that done, though, perhaps this is Serena's business.
One other thing we can do while we're in this situation is buff ourselves with the Fight Fantastic Pep Power.
Free Oomphle on every single party member. Although, of course, Veronica and Serena don't really enjoy the benefits.
First thing's first, you have Heal, I don't want to deal with you.
Ah, Buff. That's somehow even worse.
Let's just undo that...
Thank you, Veronica!
Now we can really do some damage. These things have surprisingly high HP compared to that attack we just landed.
And of course he can do that. Snub makes him completely immune to magic attacks.
And he has Oomphle, too.
Time to start treating him like a boss, then.
Hm, Snub doesn't block the Wizard's Staff. I think Veronica should've just whacked him, though. Drained some of his MP, and besides, she's Oomphled.
OW OW CRIT
At least Sylvando gives as good as he gets.
Heal, heal, heal
That's that dealt with.
This is the perfect reward. The ability to bounce around and act like a Slime Knight. Beastiary entries tend to conclude it is the slime that has the brains in this arrangement, incidentally- although the knight does tend to move around somewhat on his own in this game.
Slime Knight can pre-emptive attack, and if it's an enemy you can trample, it will trample instead of start a fight, but it's not the most practical of mounts. You will take it from me at your peril, however.
You've gotta be kidding me, this again?
All of a sudden, I know why I couldn't find Rarefied monsters later...
One benefit to keeping the Slime Knight alive is that it doesn't need these buffs.
Snub, though, can only be cast on himself.
Hi, Healslime. You need to go now.
Bang will do.
Oh, this is one of those encounters.
Let's give Slime Knights a wide berth for now. The odds of this happening again are against us, but the odds of the second time were so low I'm not willing to take that chance.
Heading into town is the smart first option.
Welcome to the lovely beach paradise of Puerto Valor.
Erik: Gondolia and Puerto Valor are both on the coast, but the vibe couldn't be more different. This is a full-on tourist resort... Actually, I think I remember someone saying there was a casino here somewhere. How about we pay it a visit? It might do us good to take a break.
Veronica: Hmph! You can tell that this is a resort for the upper crust, can't you!? I mean, just look at these houses! It's so unfair- no one else can enjoy the views. Why do rich people always try and hog everything for themselves?
Serena: Oh, are you looking for Sylvando? He's gone off to see someone, I believe. I'm not sure who but he seemed to suddenly remember them the moment we arrived...
You might notice that Sylvando's not in our Party Chat. He is actively attempting to avoid Puerto Valor, and there is a cutscene for it. I seem to remember it happening on the first visit, but this run, it only appeared when we were supposed to show up here. Do keep it in mind, though.
He hasn't left our party outright, which is probably because doing so would be a bit of a pain. In more interesting news, however, something about entering Puerto Valor for the first time has gotten the game confused and now Veronica has been revived with 1HP. I was hoping for that so I could save myself a little cash, but I'm not entirely sure why it worked.
This NPC has a mask, and he's surprisingly important despite not having any sort of narrative role.
He tutorialises cosmetic armour (a little bit in the PS4 version, since he doesn't know about the fashion armour slot), which is important, because...
He actually gives us a recipe book. An NPC just gave us an item. This is not usual, especially when the NPC is otherwise unremarkable.
The costumes contained in this book, obviously, are cosmetic armours for Veronica and Serena. They're also surprisingly good as mechanical choices.
...No thank you. But I will dig up those fashion gems.
Sounds about right.
Hendrik being from Zwaardsrust doesn't come up as often as it sounds, but it does have some vital plot roles to play later. Interesting they establish it in NPC dialogue.
Good for Hendrik.
...Wait, he's not on our side, bad for Hendrik.
Charming.
This backyard is home to a fine knight, and yet there's a sprig of pretty betsy in the back.
I'll be the judge of that.
...You are way too young for this, kiddo. You're growing up in the perfect place, have a childhood!
Of course the wife is dead. The runaway son, though, I'm sure we'll bump into him.
...See, we didn't need to go to Zwaardsrust at all!
...OK, I get it, game.
(Although this is Don Rodrigo's place, Rodrigo is currently unavailable, though, we'll see him later.)
This is way over by the church, and it's certainly a more fitting prize.
...That's what we're playing?
...
...Can I play?
Deep valley... west? Can't say that I have.
He's talking about an area we legitimately can't yet access. Although it sounds like a place I'd like to go.
Oh, are those your kids? I agree, they should probably play some less propoganda game- I mean something that demonstrates proper respect.
The power of tourism! This game seems pretty fond of tourism.
Oh yeah, we were told to visit Puerto Valor to find this guy. Found him! That was convenient.
Dear Doctor,
It has been a while, has it not? My apologies for not writing since I last visited. But I have good news! I finally have the money! I can finally pay you to treat my father's leg! We must hurry, Doctor! Please, come to Gondolia right away!
Yours expectantly,
Akia
...Well, that was a violent mood swing.
Insert joke about healthcare system, cut, print, cutting room floor.
So, to pay for her father's surgery, she quit her job? And switched into... janitorial work?
Valentino says it's time she got an important letter.
...As much as I'd like to say otherwise, we're going to talk to this man again later.
I'd comment on how cool it is we're talking to enemy soldiers on their break, but, well, this is about the same attitude that we get from actively patrolling Heliodorians
This guy has a realistic take on the situation: Why should he be expected to do something Jasper failed to do? He has better things to do with his time. Like taking care of his mental health.
There's a whole set of elegant ladies' mittens that block blindness and confusion. And, er, nothing else. Not entirely sure why, but they're cute. I wish they showed up on the models.
The time to exchange mini medals for fabulous prizes is almost upon us! Good thing, too.
There are around two in this town, but I hereby call dibs.
This is stuff ahead of the curve, but I don't really think there's much you'd buy here.
Huh, the armour doesn't look all that impressive. The Cloak of Evasion gives you a few extra points in Evasion chance, which can be helpful in a pinch, but evasion will only save you against some attacks.
...Not yet I haven't.
Hey, Jasper! I don't think your threat to send me to the bottom of the sea was a very scary one!
Chapter Three: A Dream Dies
My name is Tetsu.
I am forty-eight years old.
I am a blacksmith.
Black disappointment.
The medal school forbids men-
It is a girls’ school.
The guard at the gate
Bars the path to instruction,
And so dies my dream…
Wait for me, mother.
Though I am not a great smith,
I bring sweet flowers!
A bit of a disappointing end, but at least he took it well.
...I'd say this is an argument, but yeah, I'm definitely on the wife's side here. How urgent can your job be?
And... you... didn't cut off your work as you promised? Maybe if your job was critical, I'd understand, but... still, do you get vacation time?
Granted, that does seem a little extreme, but you found a way in the end.
Well, I guess we can help this guy with his bad decisions in life.
Despite how cute this girl looks, she's not the Mage design for DQ3. She kinda has the Merchant's hair, but that's definitely not the merchant's costume. Maybe it's supposed to remind you of Ashlynn.
At any rate, this is the Casino. We'll have a peek in here eventually, but depending on the time of day, there is sometimes a line you have to wait for. The game will let you skip the waiting if you try to cut.
We're just going to keep picking up treasures first.
Including a mini medal in this hotel room! Guess that's why the kid couldn't steal this one.
...This is kind of confusing to me. So... you're hospitable, but you don't usually allow guests? I'm also not sure if you're supposed to be able to find the slacking maid in question.
Over here, though, we have someone in need of pepper.
Remember back in the days when spices were a commodity worth stealing?
This quest is actually a reference to Dragon Quest III, where a King tasks you with obtaining some pepper from a far-away town so you could acquire your Ship. The seeking of pepper is not the only such reference, but that's a matter for another moment.
Shiver me timbers! That's a very good reward you should get as quickly as possible!
I haven't visited this island yet, precisely because this guy only spawns if the quest is open.
Yeah, the guys who have stolen the pepper are relatively dangerous.
...Hey, good question, have we heard the name of the lost Princess of Heliodor yet? I feel like this is a weird time to find out.
This guy also leaves open the possibility that the baby girl somehow escaped the monsters that attacked Dundrasil. While unlikely, certainly not a possibility to dismiss.
...Oh dear, he's probably going to find a buyer, isn't he?
And yeah, we can't enter this building.
Anyway, we've cleaned up around here, let's head into the casino.
Erik: So we're really in a casino, huh? That's pretty cool! I thought you'd be a bit too square for this kind of thing. But I guess you must be tired of being on the run too, right? It's nice to kick back and relax sometimes!
Veronica: So this is a casino, is it? One of my textbooks said that casinos are convivial meeting places for ladies and gentlemen of leisure... What a load of nonsense! It's so noisy in here! And what are all these flashing lights for!? I'd rather be lost in the forest any day!
Serena: ...... HMM? WHAT? Oh, I'm ever so sorry, Erdward... All these tokens are making so much noise, I can't hear a word you're saying!
There's a few main services at the front of the casino, one of which is the Token Vendor, and one of which is the Token Exchange. I never can keep them straight. This is the Token Exchange, which is where you purchase gameplay prizes with your tokens.
Down the Rabbithole is necessary for a quest (sadly), and apart from that... well, I'd say some of these rewards are worth using, but that would require justifying grinding up the Casino tokens right now, and that's just not worth it.
- Mercury's Bandana is good for Agility on top of Defence. It's good defence for now.
- The White Shield is good Defence and shrugs off some Fire damage, which is the best Serena and Sylvando can do for a good while.
- This is how you get Yggdrasil Leaves in bulk.
- Infernails are decent Claws that can beguile humanoids. We can't use Claws yet? By the time we can, it'll be close to getting some better damaging claws.
- The Staff of Sentencing is a Heavy Wand that's a little good for Veronica, but we're close to outclassing it. You can Use it for Wind damage.
- The Spangled Dress is a surprisingly strong defensive armour for women, with no other benefits (other than Charm). Go for one at most.
- The Platinum Sword is the best sword you can get for a good majority of this part of the game, but which of your sword users are you planning on using it on? Erik, probably.
- The Lightning Lance is good against one boss. If you don't use it against that one boss, you'll get the ability to forge it nearly right afterwards.
- The Platinum Powersword is the best Greatsword in the same way the Platinum Sword is the best Sword, but honestly, unless you really need the help right now, you're better off waiting for a more accessible upgrade.
There's a Rainbow's End in here, too. I feel like this is horrifying for a casino.
The Casino Vendor (where you go to acquire Casino Tokens in exchange for Gold) is down here. One Casino Token costs 20 Gold. Multiply the prices above by 20 for a rough estimate of how much Gold you want to spend there.
So then, let's play some Poker.
There are three tables you can sit at, 1 Token, 10 Tokens, and 100 Tokens (I don't think the 100 Token table is available yet). You can bet up to ten times that much on a single hand. I go to the 10 Token table and bet one stage. You are then presented with five random cards from about four fantasy suits- and also the Joker card, which can be anything you need it to be. I don't know Poker myself, but I assume all of the things above are self explanatory (Royal Jelly Flush, of course, being the Royal Flush with the Slime suit). Have that kind of win, and you get that number back as your winnings. This, of course, scales to your bet, but they account for that.
When you get five cards, you have to choose which cards to keep and which to reshuffle. You get one reshuffle. I'm sure this is normal poker rules.
Note: you choose which cards to keep.
Woo hoo! First go! That's 10 Token winnings.
And this is how things are going to turn into actual upness in token rewards.
For Double or Nothing, you are given a set of four face-down cards, and tasked with choosing one that is bigger than the card on the left.
...Can you believe people want Pokemon to have a casino?
Oh, that's just mean.
Joker always wins in Double Or Nothing.
Well, that is very exciting. No way I'm allowed to keep this.
Especially with this! Treasure chests can sometimes appear instead of numbers, and you have to win Double or Nothing that many times to get a reward. They're really good at getting you to overextend yourselves- those locks persist between rounds of Double or Nothing.
See? I lost it.
Let's try and get this one working...
Ties are neither wins nor losses. You just move on to the next attempt.
Can I just... not? Remember when you emulated the older DQs and could save-state this?
The prize was an alchemy ingredient. We can't get this yet, but it's not rare when we need it.
Yeah, we're running away with our winnings here.
...Past me? I guess we are well beyond what we need...
Ooh, Dragon Hide! That's not exactly rare either, but I'm still happy to grab some more of it.
...Crap, I've accidentally found myself in hell.
...Interesting. The Tombola Ticket is available in DQs 2, 5 and the 3DS remake of 7, and it's always good for very cheap rewards- although some have some pretty good rewards.
In other games, you had to take the ticket somewhere to redeem it for prizes. In this game, though? You just play it straight off the ticket.
The biggest prize in this iteration of Tombola is 1000 Gold. No one will mind too much if I forget this exists, right?
...
No, I'm not evil enough to knock it over tonight!
...Isn't this against the- oh yeah, I don't know the scriptures of fictional religions.
At least the nun seems to be doing just fine.
Hey, if I could, I would. It's a lot easier to savescum Poker than the Slots.
(Also, you can... kinda savescum on console through the save system, but... not well. It's mostly for safeguarding losses.)
...Better choice than some of the alternatives. Besides, you know they're easily manipulated by shiny things, which could make an excellent exit strategy.
...I think you might want to leave before you no longer qualify for the social class your dress suggests.
And now there's one more little feature of the casino to mention.
Jackpots. If you get really, really lucky, you get a Jackpot.
This is not what Jackpots really are. For some reason, this is where my screenshots of the exposition end. I... don't understand this, but I'm sure I'd skim it anyway.
Basically, a Jackpot gives you a million tokens. This whole "Jackpot Stack" thing is neat, but it's mostly about repeat Jackpots, and you never really need more than one. Besides, it's a good idea to wait on going for a Jackpot anyway.
So we get Down the Rabbithole. What's it get us?
This set gives you the full set of Bunny Ears, Bunny Suit and Fishnet Stockings, which gives you an entire costume set. As you might spot, though, the Bunny Suit is confined to one party member, the one who'll be wearing the Bunny Suit cosmetically.
Oh yeah, and here are the things you need to make the costumes for Veronica and Serena.
...I didn't get the greatest forges on them, but I did wind up finding the materials for the girls.
I started with Serena. These outfits are themed around dots and spots, although it's also worth noting that Serena also gets a much shorter skirt. She's actually pretty cute like this, I have to admit. Especially because I want to use this equipment as equipment, she'll be sticking around like this. Veronica will wait a bit while I build up the resources to make those armours.
For now, we also have an inn to visit. It's an outcropping of... L'Académie de Notre Maitre des Médailles. You'll, uh, forgive me if I shorten this to L'Academie, without the accent.
Despite being an all-girls organisation, they let us stay there. They do overcharge us, at least. There's two inns in this town, which sorta hints you might want to stay here.
You see, staying here once gets you a mini medal!
...We were saying about getting rewards for these?
That would be over here, at another element of L'Academie!
Whatever it is they're doing here, they feel great handing out albums de medailles to random passersby. To be fair, while the L'Academie setting makes much ado about the Luminary's maleness, we can always write this down in Veronica or Serena's name.
Mini Medals first appeared in DQ4, although made a retroactive appearance in 3's remakes. In its first appearance, Mini Medals were a legitimate currency with which you exchanged Small Medals (which were inventory items) for fabulous prizes. Starting in DQ6 and in all remakes (except 5, for some reason), they switched to them being an Attribute item like money and tokens, and showing you have a certain number to the medal exchange gives you new items as you progress.
They don't usually have a visual analogue like this, and don't always make it immediately accessible how many mini medals you have total, but if you basically imagine it working like this, you perfectly understand mini medals.
For having acquired 10 Mini Medals total, we acquire the prize at 5 (Shield Bearer, the talisman of blocking/parrying) and the Hermes Hat (a charming helmet that gives Agility and Wind Resistance).
In DQ history, the Hermes Hat has actually been an item that could cast Zoom (or at least throw a chimaera wing) as an inventory item. I imagine that was removed from 11 deliberately- especially for the Definitive edition.
Our next prize is the Rune Staff, at 20, and we can acquire it whenever we find six new Mini Medals.
Collecting Mini Medals becomes one of Dragon Quest's simple joys, and you know you're a Dragon Quest fan when you get a rush of joy just for finding one with that iconic little jingle. Earthbound had a reference to them that got translated out by translators unfamiliar with DQ, and the Smash trailer for the DQ Hero included a scene as a reference- and because it uses the Franklin Badge as a substitute for Mini Medals, people take it as an Earthbound reference.
...I'm just saying.
Free and easy flowers that spend their days sunning themselves in oder to mantain the magnifecent marigold hue of their prodigious petals.
Gnawchids may have first appeared in DQ11, but don't let that fool you into thinking these guys are new- they're the weaker recolours of a pre-existing design from DQ2. I say this because one appears in Tickington and that confused me about the nature of its enemy choices.
Gnawchids can crit and make you boogie, and that's about it. They also have Faerie Fluff in the common drop, and that's going to be important for sourcing Veronica's new dotty dress.
Erik has finally unlocked his Agility +30 Panel! Since I've been knocking Agility so often, you're probably wondering why.
Every character has one Panel somewhere on their tree that gives +10 SP for opening it. These 10SP remain on recitification, meaning it's in your best interest to open it as soon as possible, recert if you don't like where that took you, and have more SP for the things you do like.
Some floral coral from a coralossus I totally can beat just fine.
Gaseous gatherings-together of grudge-riddled, rage-fuelled fog. The vast majority of accidents at sea and other mist-based misadventures are caused by these malicious monsters.
Miasmas, like Smogs, come from DQ2. They can use cold breath, Moreheal and Dazzle, and that's about how annoying they are- well, if they stood up to solid punishment to begin with.
And at last, we have a revival spell! ...Ish.
Zing is Dragon Quest's most famous spell. It has a 50-75% chance (I presume scaling on MaMend in this game) of reviving a dead party member (25-50% HP, also scaling on MaMend). RNG revival sounds pretty frustrating, but honestly, if you're getting killed, RNG revival is the least of your problems.
Puckish parasols whose party trick is pretending to be ordinary umbrellas, then pranging the hands of those who grab the claws they have for handles.
Brollyminators are new to DQ11. They can Fuddle you and throw a bunch of wind around to make your day annoying. They're also a good source of waveweed for those dresses.
And at last, we stop at the campsite. There's... not a lot of use for this as a Zoom Point, but still, free healing relatively far from civilisation. There's also some night enemies.
Also a well.
Cruel crustaceans built solely for battle whose scythe-like claws are so sharp they can slice straight through their enemies' swords.
Kriller killers are the obligatory recolours of the Slayer of the Sands. Honestly, though, DQXI is actually relatively bad about introducing new monster designs for its bosses and then seeding them in the enemy ranks- it does it a lot, but not as much as most games. The kriller killer has much less HP than the Slayer, but more Atk and Def. It moves twice, can attack everyone, breathe a cool breath, and Buff defensive stats. Otherwise, it's a lot less scary than the Slayer, but still something to be treated with respect.
If you can manage a rare drop, the Scorpion Tail whip is a huge damage buff for Whips and comes with an innate paralysis chance.
Fuddle Dance unlocked! Now I really need to stop and look at my recerts. I didn't do Erik's when I was at camp.
Spritely young sea creatures who spend all day playing, and love to try and lure people in with their enchanting dancing.
Squid kids appeared in DQs 8, 10, and Splatoon, and their main advantage over Khalamari Kids is that dancing ability. Not much of one, but one nonetheless. Squid kids have the Dancer's Costume as a rare drop, so if you're in the market for all the costumes and don't want to buy one for Serena, this is where you need to look.
...I was saying about the Sultry Dance not being worth much?
This is going to get worse before it gets better.
I maintain that, if Erdward is casting magic, something has gone wrong.
Dug this up on this island. The Coral Hairpin is a superior defensive equip to Veronica's Cute Cap, but a surprisingly solid alternative to Serena's Bonny Band- it gives both MaMight and MaMend, but Serena's not losing any MaMend while Veronica's losing MaMight. Weird number things.
Funnily enough, the grim gryphons also got demoted to regular enemies in Costa Valor. Unlike the Coralossus, though, these guys have different stats to the boss versions we fought in the Kingsbarrow- half the health, but much more Attack, Defence and Agility. Not nearly as scary, though.
This Narspicious spot is night only, and we do kinda need it for that bunny suit...
Master archers who make their own poison by hand, harvesting bubble slime secretions and boiling them down to form potent toxins.
Bodkin fletchers, thankfully, don't have Buff, but they do have poisonous arrows as well as the ability to call for help. They appeared in DQs 4, 8, 9, and 10.
Erdward is just casually the most badass person here. ...Oh, right, legendary hero nonsense, it's not very casual at all.
If you try to go north, to a place called Mount Pang Lai, you will be stopped. It is, in fact, true that the people who live on that mountain have a close attachment to the royal family of Dundrasil, despite the geographical distance, and you'd think something there would be a warning sign for these guys to think twice about the rhetoric.
I also hate the sideswipe about the "decent, law-abiding people" thing.
...Philosophy? The belief that you're all blithering idiots? That allegiance that's probably worth something to them?
...Poor this guy. I wonder who his little sister is.
...Really? Fine.
This pathway leads to the Manglegrove- we are on the opposite side of a broken bridge next to where we fought the Tricky Devil. We cannot repair or otherwise cross this bridge yet, though, so this is just a curiosity. And also a place for a Crackshot target in the original version.
Veronica's Cute Cap went just fine.
As for the bunny suit, though...
No pearls as a result, but I really don't care about this in any capacity whatsoever, so just let it rot in the bottom of my inventory.
Time to recert. Erik just needs something more effective. Sylando is going to have some fun.
You see, Sylvando's bonus panel is also right around here. Hustle Dance is an awesome skill you want to get as soon as possible, but it's a trap- you want to get this one first.
Now, with some more careful recerts, I not only have Hustle Dance, but Sobering Slap! It'd take 2-4 more levels if I didn't bother visiting the +10 SP space first.
This is what Erik went with. I prefer Cobra Strike to Sleeper Hit, but considering how often I bother with Knives at all, I really should've just gone south- my ultimate goal is Dual Wielding, because all weapons can benefit from that. I guess I just didn't really think Erik's other SP was worth much at this stage of the game. At any rate, Erik wants his Deftness bonuses for Half-Inch and Dual-Wielding for extra damage, but apart from that... eh.
I decide to stop and drop off the floral coral- I guess I forgot I also needed to bring the pepper back. Ah well, better inefficient than forgotten.
At least this fellow learned a valuable lesson. Hopefully. I'm holding you to it.
...I am so tempted to give you a condescending headpat.
The Beastly Bullwhip recipe is the strongest non-Scorpion Tail whip around, but its bonus effect (extra damage on Beasts) is unimpressive compared to Dazzle. And if you have a Scorpion's Tail...
I'm sure. The time you spent while he was wringing his hands trying to figure out how to get the coral must not have been pleasant for anyone concerned, even if the relationship is stronger now.
So anyway, about that island...
Welcome to the Insulas! These tiny islands hold few enemies and fewer prizes, but you can never fully know what you'll wind up finding. Each island has its own name, and if you're good, you can remember which is which, but I always wind up forgetting one.
Grisly little green grumps who won't stop swinging their swords once they get upset with someone.
Grublins are new to 11, like their brethren, and come with most of the same tools. They also have Pep and a Pep Power, the power to call in backup, and...
The ability to apply Oomphle and Acceleratle to themselves. These things can get terrifying. They also kinda don't last long enough once they get there- mostly because you're suddenly going "kill all of them!"
Yay, now we can confuse a single target!
Also some more MP.
This is good for Strength Rings, Agility Rings, and Prayer Rings. All of which are... well, if you want them.
As for the matter of the stolen Pepper... well, perhaps you should ask this guy.
The lairy leader of a barbarous band of bandits. Though feared by most, he is beloved by his underlings for his firm but fair leadership style.
Humanoid family
255 HP
50 MP
Robbin 'Ood is a recurring boss in the DQ series. Known originally as "Kandar", he appeared in DQ3, where one of his appearances stopping the party involved preventing you from acquiring the Pepper in that game (which is why he's here), and had further appearances in 5, the remake of 7, and 10- as well as the Monster games, of course.
One of Robbin' 'Ood's band of faithful followers. They love their leader to bits, and would march with him to hell and back if asked.
Material family
129 HP
15 MP
'Ood's Merry Men are a little more complicated. They first appeared in DQ3 as minions of 'Ood, and have two appearances- in modern translations of that game, the first encounter with them is against "Robbin hoodlums" and the second encounter is against "Robbin huddles". DQ10 goes with the "Robbin huddle" term. So where does the name "Merry Man" come from (other than the legend of Robin Hood)? DQ5. The Merry Men in that game are not Restless Armour recolours, but recolours of 'Ood himself, but they are stated to be subordinate to 'Ood and have the same Japanese name.
This is another one of those fights that's just begging for a Scorched Earth.
'Ood and his men can land crits and block, but only 'Ood can try to Fizzle. Serena... of course, this is the worst outcome.
Shoring up.
And preparing to go on a power trip.
...You know, if Serena had nothing better to do, perhaps I should've had Erik out? I'm not sure waiting out her Fizzle timer is all that much more helpful.
Erdward's going to swing at 'Ood.
And Veronica will take the Merry Men.
Thank you, Scorched Earth.
This is so easy when you pre-charge Scorched Earth. Fitting, I guess, since the reward is for Erik.
The tough guy tattoo is good for some more Atk. There's a bunch of accessories like this, and honestly, they're only so useful, but for now, they are.
Pepper acquired.
They were also guarding some sparklies.
Just as long as you don't task me with talking about that peck of proper pepper I pipped from those pilferers.
...Oh dear.
Well, that could've gone... a lot better.
How optimistic, Quest Log.
Fortunately, if you talk to him again, he reveals he can prepare his dish.
For now.
This woman is also talking about Princess Jade of Heliodor. Cute. I was just on my way to the save point.
The Swindler set for Erik is good for Deftness and Evasion, which he appreciates. But the main reason you want this set is because of the Scarf.
Make this +3.
The scarf increases your steal chance by 3%- this is roughly the equivalent of 60 Deftness, on top of the base amount. +3 won't buff this chance, but this is so good you're going to want it in regular fights for a long time to come, and might as well make sure you have as much Def and Deft as possible.
The Stole does not have stealing chance attached.
I'm not entirely sure what the Swindler outfit is based on, but it kinda looks like the Merchant from DQIII (the DQIII Thief looks so much more suave). One thing that Erik does get is that his costumes like to let him show off his spiky hair. Not sure what's got him so vain, but...
Good, now Erdward's capacity for backup heals has increased! His MaMend lags behind Serena's and he's still very much better off attacking than healing, but when you need it, you need it.
Over there is that pillar of light the guy in Puerto Valor mentioned. We can't do anything about it yet, nor when we're supposed to visit Puerto Valor, but something to think about.
The halves of their bodies concealed by swirling whirlwinds are the subject of much speculation, but they keep them closely under wraps, and are careful to let anyone get a glimpse.
Cyclowns appeared in DQs 4 and 9, although memorably, there is a moment early in DQ7 for PS1 where recognising the Cyclown is key to solving a puzzle (the 3DS version removed the puzzle). Obviously, their thing is wind attacks. On the other hand, the game's claim that their cyclone-covered half is not actually as mysterious as their beastiary entry implies- you can see it when they die. It's kinda... wispy, you know, like the Genie from Aladdin.
And we have landed in Zwaardsrust at last!
Erik: Man, when Jasper and his goons had us surrounded back in Gondolia, I really thought we were done for... It's kind of a miracle we managed to get away. Problem is, it's only going to make them more determined to catch us...
Veronica: King Carnelian practically sent an entire army to capture you, Erdward! I doubt he's going to give up now... There's no need to worry, though! You've got me on your side, and I don't give up easily either! The only thing you need to do is stay focused. Don't think I haven't noticed that faraway look you get in your eyes...
Serena: Mr Dave said that the merchant who'd bought the Rainbough had headed for Zwaardsrust. That's all we know at the moment, so I suppose we'll just have to ask around and see what other information we can uncover!
Sylvando: I've been travelling the world bringing smiles to people's faces for a long time, and if there's one thing I've learned, it's this... Whenever you arrive somewhere new, the best thing to do is to speak to as many local people as you can! Now, there should be a big city north of Dundrasil- and big cities mean lots of people! Let's head there and start chatting!
Sylvando has the best advice here: We need to go to the city in the area and see who might've bought up that Rainbough.
Considering Zwaardsrust is mostly famous for being the home of mighty warriors, this flower theme comes as a bit of a surprise. Considering the circumstances of its founding, I understand how it might be famous for both, but they're more famous for the warriors than the flowers in the worldbuilding.
Zwaardsrust, Heliodor, Gallopolis and Dundrasil were as equals. That is clearly no longer the case.
Zwaardsrust can have weather effects, although as far as I can tell, it is not currently editing the encounter tables in different weather effects.
Here in the centre of Zwaardsrust, not as its own map, is the Warrior's Rest Inn, the last remaining civilisation here in Zwaardsrust. No, the Rainbough isn't here, we want the actual town further north.
We can get some upgrades in the shop here, though. Ish. The Poison Needle has 1 Atk, but a 4% chance of landing instant death on the enemy. This is a traditional DQ item and is mostly around for Metal Slimes, although when they were put on mages, they weren't horrible against normal enemies. Erik and Sylvando do actual damage with their knife attacks, though, the Poison Needle doesn't suit them.
Yes I did, sir. A tragedy, all right. Did you hear about the second one down the road?
There are some Zwaardsrustian soldiers who haven't let go of their regrets, sadly.
So, in other words, they're basically monsters. For player convenience, there's no difference between these Zwaardsrustians and "normal" Deadnauts.
I'm happy to do good in the name of justice for these fallen soldiers.
So then... how do we do that?
Pep Power.
This is a Pep Power that can be performed with Erdward and Serena working in concert. Both need to be Pepped, and with 5 party members, it's easy to charge that up.
This Bard is talking about the Purple Orb. Curious. Wonder how we'll grab that and from where.
Presumably, with this door.
Well, that's something to want to find this magic key for. That brings us no closer to finding it, though.
This recipe book teaches a lot of nice recipes, some of which you definitely want to learn.
Well, that sounds just splendid. I really wish I knew who your husband was.
And he'd deserve it.
There's a Mini Medal up here, and there's actually a bit of a puzzle you have to solve- when you open the door, it's still a physical object in the way. You have to walk away from the door on the outside balcony to make it close and let you come this way.
This is a sparkly spot over here. Diamends prevent you from taking a single lethal hit. These are probably more useful than I give them credit for.
And on the inside, a Tockle!
This is probably one of the more interesting locales in Tickington- this is the opening house from DQIII, but over 16 years in the past, before the main Hero was born.
There's a nun running the Church business in the back corner.
The lost kingdom of Zwaardsrust was ruled by the young king Arnout- a man so brave and noble that his subjects called him the Golden Lion.
King Arnout was beloved by his people, and he loved them fiercely in return. He formed an order of knights- paragons of strength and skill to a man- to protect his citizens and his borders.
But his glorious reign was cut tragically short. The monsters descended violently and without warning. The knights charged out to meet them with Arnout at their head…
Alas, their heroic efforts were in vain, and Zwaardsrust fell. Some say the monsters had come to fear the nation’s growing army, prompting them to attack with ferocious force, but the truth remains a mystery.
Now little remains of that once-great kingdom save crumbling ruins. At night, the wind blowing through them sounds eerily like the mournful weeping of the slain king. A grim reminder of his tragic fate…
Arnout seems like exactly the sort of King it'd be nice to still have around. Shame we're stuck with Carnelian.
And the Inn, of course, can let us heal and change time.
Monolithic monsters made when their beastly brethren pile up rocks they've poured their most poisonous thoughts into. Beware their brick-like fists.
Stone golems are the weakest, but not the most iconic, member of the golem family. This particular incarnation appears in DQs 1, 5, 7, 8, 9, and 10. In this game, golems are strong, muster their strength to become stronger, and use Forbearance to take a lot of damage on their high defence stats.
Sorrowful soldiers who've had their souls stolen, and are forced to stay enslaved to their masters even after their bodies have gone.
Well, it doesn't sound like deadnauts got a better deal for being non-Zwaardsrust than the alternative. Deadnauts appeared in DQ2 before this game, and it doesn't look like Monsters favoured them much either. Not that DQ is at a premium when it comes to skeletal soldiers. Their main ability is having a dance so disarmingly dull they lower your attack power.
We have the Care Prayer to fire.
...It's not a particularly exciting Pep animation. Defence and MaMend is... well, the Defence is nice, that's a free Kabuff. I think I'd rather use... other Pep Powers.
Erik got something helpful. Ish.
One down... countless more to go.
Well, some of them.
This is good for +5 HP recovery a turn and some MaMight/MaMend.
There are way too many of them to help them all, but I'll do my best.
No, there's no reward for it, it's just some emotions to have.
Oh hey, this is good for everyone. I thought it was just for the magic users. Hm.
And while I'm thinking about it, I finally got the chance to pick up this. Pretty much the same thing as Serena's outfit, but in green... and also the skirt is about the same length as Veronica normally wears. I comment on this because this is actually kind of a neat detail about Veronica's default costume that kind of escapes notice- when Veronica got de-aged, at no point did she get a costume change to go along with it. Her everyday outfit is the same design as Serena's, but with a short skirt- and when she shrunk, her skirt stayed the same length, leaving her with a modest hem length. These summer-y dresses we got for the girls reflect that element of Veronica's design, and thus while Serena gets a Veronica-length dress, Veronica gets... a Veronica-length dress.
I'm sure the character designer for Veronica was really proud of that one, even if she's one of the few people who noticed.
Back on forging new gear, here's what we got for Smithing With Steel. The items of note are the Soaring Steel, for upgrading Erik's Boomerang set-
And the two armour pieces, because Erdward needs to get his Defence up and he needs to do it now. Forge all three of these things.
And if you can, forge them good.
These dapper demons live to dance, and often shimmy up to humans looking show off their fantastic footwork.
Tap devils appeared in DQs 8 and 10, and oh boy does the Tap Devil in DQ8 live to annoy. That's not related to their combat ability, though. They are... kinda scary, considering how many dances they appear to know (Fuddle, Curse, Sultry and apparently Kerplunk), but they don't tend to live long enough to perform them.
Incidentally, Sabrecats now prowl freely around here. In case you were wondering how strong we are relatively.
It's a wonder they don't get arrested for walking around in nothing but their pants, but that doesn't stop them strutting about as bold as brass.
Hoods first appeared in DQ8, but their relatives tend to follow Robbin 'Ood around. They can crit, muster strength, flee, and have about as much defence as you'd expect a half-naked guy to have.
Now then, this is a collectible and a half. I believe there is a hint to this somewhere in the world, particularly L'Academie, but I never spotted it.
There's just a mini medal in the middle of this wheat field. DQIII is littered with Mini Medals about this cryptic, and later games normally have the mini medals sparkle somewhat, but this is the only Mini Medal just... lying on the ground. Perhaps all the alumni of L'Academie are collecting the rest.
Clever chimaeras capable of casting spells. Their increased intelligence is acquired while serving as familiars to wicked witches.
Hocus chimaeras are indeed magical chimaeras, knowing Midheal and Fuddle. Although, funnily enough, a normal Chimaera you recruit tends to find itself learning magic on its own. Whatever the case may be, these are also in DQs 1, 3, 5, 7-10.
Anathematise attempts to lower a single enemy's magical resistance by one stage. It's sorta like Sap for magic users, but honestly, I feel like Veronica's too busy using her non-combat spells to capitalise here. Perhaps if you build more for magic.
And Serena has, just in time, learned Snap, Crackle, Poof! This is a buff that makes the benefactee immune to all status effects, and the next boss has a lot of status effects to want to avoid. Note that this also makes you immune to stat debuffs like Kasap.
Dual Wielding is actually pretty good for Serena in the end of the game, but part of the reason you're using Wands, other than the MaMend, is for the defensive benefits of a shield.
There's some Royal Soil in the middle of these poisonous puddles. Floors that damage you are a DQ tradition, and the usual cure is a spell called Holy Passage. Damaging floors are much rarer in DQ11 than in the rest of the games, and as a result, Holy Passage isn't around. It is worth noting, though, that riding any mount, even the default horse, can protect you from damage.
There's some money in a chest all the way in the west end of this map. You can't actually leave in this direction, though- there's a gigantic rock in the way. Fairly sure it's not this one, though, it's a little further down.
There's also a purple eye in these ruins.
And a belle cap in a barrel behind this house.
They're as red as ripe tomatoes, but no one's ever got close enough to take a bite and see if they taste like them. They spray out clouds of soporific spores so carelessly that they sometimes put themselves to sleep.
Bite bulbs are new to XI, and they quite possibly have the greatest attack in the game.
They spread sleeping sleeping spores all over the place. Keyword: all over the place. They will sleep themselves too.
Oh hey, the Soaring Steel is the first boomerang recipe.
This is how Erdward and Erik look now. They're pretty impressive, all things considered.
Anyway, while we're done up in Zwaardsrust, might as well stop in and turn in this letter.
Although it's not actually a letter delivered to Akia. It's a letter that Akia needs to read.
Doctor Valentino,
I have heard that my daughter visited you, and asked you to treat my leg. You must do something for me, Doctor: if Akia offers to pay for my treatment, I would ask that you refuse. I would also ask that you give her the few coins which I enclose in this envelope. Tell her that they are to help her follow her dream of becoming a baker. I have saved up this small sum through my work in the stables, in the hope that they might help my dear daughter. I have been a terrible father to my children. Nothing I do now will ever change that. But I would like to try and help in this at least. Thank you, Doctor.
Your humble servant, Abu
Well, that's a family situation and a half.
What a disaster of a lack of communication. Hopefully she can get back to the bakery after this.
Because I'm sure Hakim would have strong words for him.
A mini medal is an interesting reward. I presume Akia isn't an alum of L'Academie, though.
...It is? I thought the lesson was the opposite.
Hakim is less impressed by Abu's claims.
Although, if that's where Akia wants to go, Hakim will happily support her.
Well, hopefully this goes well. And if it goes poorly, you have an exit strategy.
If you head north, you enter this location, the "Dundrasil region". Dundrasil and Zwaardsrust were surprisingly geographically close considering the whole "five great powers" thing. I feel like one of them should be in the place Puerto Valor is. Particularly Dundrasil- since they're so associated with Mount Pang Lai. There's a reason Dundrasil and Puerto Valor are where they are, but still, it feels like you could switch them and most plot points would feel more comprehensive.
At any rate, there's a "north side" and a "south side". The north side is more associated with Octagonia, that town to the north, and we're going to stay here- we'll save the south for after Octagonia.
Erik: I've always been kind of a lone wolf, so I'm not used to hanging out with a big crowd. It makes a nice change though. Things are definitely livelier now... We just need to make sure Sylv doesn't make things too lively, though. We're still wanted men, remember?
Veronica: Erdward, please! Would you mind walking a bit slower!? I've only got these little kiddy legs, remember? I get exhausted trying to keep up with you lot!
Serena: Veronica and I come from the mountains, so you don't need to worry about us. We're more than used to walking for hours on end!
Sylvando: So is this Rainbough going to glow with all the colours of the rainbow? That sounds like something to look forward to... Oh, by the way, darling, I can't remember if I told you, but there's a big city to the north of Dundrasil. There should be plenty of folks to talk to there!
Spell-casting drackies driven by a fierce desire to outdo their drackyma cousins, who are also adepts in the art of enchantment. They stay up all night studying in order to try and get ahead.
Drackolytes appeared in DQ1 and 10, in case you thought Dracky recolours were easy to track. In this game, they know Bang and Fizzle.
These music-mad monsters go wild-whenever they hear a rousing refrain, and won't stop dancing until every single spine has been shaken loose.
Fandangows appeared in DQs 5 and 7, although apparently they're a little confused in 7 and don't have their correct colour. They're not that interesting over cactiballs- most of their talents are shared.
Elite grublin warriors who ride astride great big wasps. Beware their two-pronged spear and stinger strikes.
Horknights can put you to sleep and are really stabby. They also have the angriness of Grublins, and their threat is similar- not very, mostly because you know when you should be killing them this instant.
And now I'm riding the bee! There's some stuff over on those islands.
This blocks poison. Yay?
The jars they carry under their arms are their most prized possessions. If they ever lose them, they mope around miserably for days.
Jargons come from DQ8, and while they technically represent Jarvis's demotion to regular enemy, they are pre-existing, so... jury's still out. They have fire breath and a sandstorm attack, but they can also just get lost in the contents of their favourite jars. There's a boss in Rocket Slime called Pot Belly that's a Jargon, and that boss is quite possibly the coolest boss in the series, so jargon is pretty lovable in general.
Though they may have the look of brutish brawlers, these brawny bunnies have a softer side, and like to stockpile presents for poor children.
Wow, Rottontails are pretty cool. They're from DQ10 too, and these ones come with the ability to raise their attack at the expense of their defence. So, kinda scary, but not too much so.
And with the pathway to Octagonia laying ahead, between these two stone warriors, I believe it's time to save the wonders of Octagonia for next time.
While DQXI has the least exploratory "you just got the boat!" moment, it's certainly got plenty of meat to it. There's usually a kinda path you can follow in older games to keep focused on all the things the game expects you to do, or the game might block off parts of the ocean to make sure you can't dock somewhere without completing some pre-requisite stories. The port-based system of DQXI makes it a lot easier to let you know where you should be docking, but it can feel kind of weird.
The main reason DQ can get away with their relatively-loose grip on the reins is because of the random encounter system- if you enter the sort of place you shouldn't be, you're going to get attacked by monsters you have no business fighting and getting sent back to safety with your tail between your legs. And, if you're willing to risk it, you can sneak between these tough fights to those towns and loot them for valuables, whether they're the free chests or saving up to buy some of the stuff in the shops. This game... doesn't have that yet, but to be fair, we haven't explored the entire ocean. DQXI isn't without that experience, and when the time comes to show that off, it'll be cool to show off... breaking DQ.
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