Hero (Dragon Quest)

This article is about the Hero in the first Dragon Quest game. For other uses of the term Hero in Dragon Quest, see Hero.

"Hero"
Dragon Quest I
Sprite(s)
Japanese name	勇者
Romaji	Yuusha
Title	Erdrick
Class	Hero
Race	Human
Age	16
Family	Erdrick (ancestor)
Voice actor	Toshihiko Seki (CD Theater)

The Hero of the first Dragon Quest game is a descendant of Erdrick who set out to rid Alefgard of the evil tyranny of the dreaded Dragonlord and bring light back to the kingdom.

His name in the Japanese CD drama and novelization is Alef (アレフ).

Appearances

Dragon Quest

Appearance and Personality

The seminal Hero is often depicted as a young man of athletic build, wearing the traditional armor of Erdrick (including his helm and shield) and a bright red cape billowing behind him.

The sprite used for the original 8-bit adventure is dressed appropriately for combat, donning blue Full plate armor, a helm that superficially resembles the helmet of Ortega with an added orange pony-tail, a large circular shield embedded with a red jewel in its center (possibly a ruby), and an impressively sized claymore sheathed at his side.

Setting the narrative standard for all other Dragon Quest protagonists to follow, the Hero is utterly silent, only communicating in answers of 'Yes' and 'No'. This was a conscious decision made by series creator Yuji Horii to help draw the player into the world of Alefgard on a more personal level, rather than viewing the events of the game as an observer.

Stats

Attribute	Starting Stats	Maximum Stat A	Maximum Stat B
Level	1	30	30
HP	?	195	177
MP	?	193	178
Strength	?	136	122
Agility	?	126	114
Resilience	?	63	57
Initial gear	Bamboo spear in the remakes

Note: the hero's initial stats are randomly decided by a complex formula that uses the letters selected by players. This is why there is a high maximum and low maximum for level 30 stats, and why certain names make the beginning of the game easier than others.

Spells

Setting the standard magic knight archetype of the series' protagonists, the descendant of Erdrick is equally adept at magic as he is with weapons.

Level Learned	Original Japanese	Dragon Warrior	Dragon Quest	MP	Description
3	ホイミ Hoimi	Heal	Heal	4/3	A simple healing spell; recover 10 - 30 HP.
4	ギラ Gira	Hurt	Sizz	2	A small fireball attacks the enemy.
7	ラリホー Rarihoo	Sleep	Snooze	2	Try to put the enemy to sleep.
9	レミーラ Remiira	Radiant	Glow	3/2	Provides greater illumination than a torch.
10	マホトーン Mahotoon	Stopspell	Fizzle	2	Try to block the enemy's spell.
12	リレミト Riremito	Outside	Evac	6	Exit a cave with this spell.
13	ルーラ Ruura	Return	Zoom	8	Cast to return to Tantegel Castle.
15	トヘロス Toherosu	Repel	Holy Protection	2	Walk safely over dangerous terrain.
17	ベホイミ Behoimi	Healmore	Midheal	10/8	A stronger form of Heal; recover over 75 HP.
19	ベギラマ Begirama	Hurtmore	Sizzle	5	A powerful fire spell.

Experience table

Dragon Warrior (NES)
Level	Experience
1	0
2	7
3	23
4	47
5	110
6	220
7	450
8	800
9	1300
10	2000
11	2900
12	4000
13	5500
14	7500
15	10000
16	13000
17	16000
18	19000
19	22000
20	26000
21	30000
22	34000
23	38000
24	42000
25	46000
26	50000
27	54000
28	58000
29	62000
30	65000

Dragon Quest (Remakes)
Level	Experience
1	0
2	7
3	23
4	47
5	110
6	220
7	450
8	800
9	1300
10	2000
11	2900
12	4000
13	5500
14	7500
15	10000
16	13000
17	16000
18	19000
19	22000
20	26000
21	30000
22	34000
23	38000
24	42000
25	46000
26	50000
27	54000
28	58000
29	62000
30	65000

|}

Dragon Quest Builders

The setting of Builders is a hypothetical world where the Hero chose to accept the Dragonlord's offer of ruling half the world. Several characters ponder aloud as to why such a man would descend into darkness, but the game leaves it to players to speculate for themselves. The fallen Hero is encountered in person in the fourth chapter as a boss, with the epitaph Fallen Hero--The King of Darkness. Perhaps most tragically is that the Builder will see crude tents scattered in front of the grounds before his keep--Goddess only knows how many people prayed for their hero to return in vain.

Far from being the equal to the Dragonlord, the Hero has been reduced to a cackling lunatic cloistered away in a small fortress near Alefgard. He believes himself to be the true king of the world, and declares that the penalty for the Builder invading his "real" shall be death. During battle he is armed with his original copies of the Sword of Kings and Hero's shield, and can perform a spin attack. He has just enough sense left to taunt the Builder during their skirmish, and will summon monsters to aid him when his health drops to half and 1/4th. When beaten, he flees and is never seen again.

Notes

Though every picture and even the game sprite show the Hero wearing a helmet, the equip menu in the game doesn't have a slot for a helmet.The helmet worn by the sprite resembles the horned helmet given to Ortega, the father of the hero of Dragon Quest III, at the beginning of the game, which later becomes the The Helmet of Erdrick.

It's possible to speculate that the hero of Dragon Quest is simply wearing the Helmet of Erdrick the entire game, as that is the only equipment the Hero of Dragon Quest III kept for himself, and would have presumably passed down to his/her descendants. The Hero would have no need to upgrade to another helmet, since no others would offer better protection. Erdrick's Shield is also unavailable in Dragon Quest; however, the shield that the Hero wields in official illustrations clearly has the crest of Erdrick on it.

See also

• Alefgard armour

Gallery

• 

  Iconic pose

• 

  Hero artwork

• 

  Talking to a villager

• 

  Chibi art

• 

  Casting Evac

• 

  The Hero and Princess Gwaelin, also known as Lady Lora.

• 

  Art from the back of the SFC box

• 

  Beset by slimes

• 

  Mutsumi Inomata art

• 

  Princess Gwaelin and the Hero, circa 1993

• 

  Dragon Quest I + II

• 

  The hero wearing Erdrick's armour. Artwork for the Super Famicom remake.

• 

  4koma comics

• 

  Artwork for the 25th Anniversary

• 

  Dragon Quest Sofubi Character merchandise series by Square Enix.

• 

  Dragon Quest Heroes II alternate costume for Razel

• 

  Dragon Quest Heroes II alternate costume for Teresia

• 

  I's Hero in the Hero's Final Smash.