Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age: Difference between revisions

The world of the game is [[Erdrea]], a peaceful planet watched over by the floating island that carries [[Yggdrasil]], the source of all life. Though present in previous games, the significance of Yggdrasil is more pronounced than before, with the almighty arbor having widespread recognition and reverence even in the most remote villages. Cities and kingdoms based upon real world European nations return for the first time since {{Dragon Quest III}}, and the game's plot is divided into acts reminiscent of the chapters and generations of the fourth and fifth games; dramatic changes mark the ending of each segment of the game, greatly changing the environment and tone of the title.

==Plot==

The game is set in the world of Erdrea and begins as the kingdom of Dundrasil is invaded and destroyed by an army of monsters. The protagonist, an infant during the attack, survives and is found floating down a river by an older man named Chalky in the village of Cobblestone. The protagonist is adopted by Chalky's daughter Amber and raised in the village. After the protagonist's coming-of-age ceremony, Amber reveals the truth to him about his birth and adoption and sends him to meet King Carnelian of Heliodor. However, the king accuses him of being an evil entity and throws him into the dungeons. Imprisoned, the protagonist meets a thief called Erik, who reveals that he was sent to meet him, as the mark on his hand is proof that he is the Luminary, a legendary hero chosen by the world tree Yggdrasil to save Erdrea from evil. The pair escape and evade capture, later joined by two mages: Veronica, trapped in a child's body due to a curse, and her twin sister, Serena. On their quest to help the Luminary reach the sacred tree Yggdrasil, they gain three other companions: Sylvando, a traveling entertainer, Rab, former king of Dundrasil and the protagonist's grandfather, and Jade, exiled princess of Heliodor who helped the infant protagonist escape during the attack of Dundrasil.

Afterward, the party discovers the means to bring Veronica back within the Tower of Lost Time. There they meet the Timekeeper, who gives the Luminary the power to go back in time and defeats Mordegon before he can steal the Sword of Light and Yggdrasil's heart, thus saving Veronica from sacrificing herself. However, due to Mordegon's absence, a dark spirit is able to summon forth a mysterious orb called Erdwin's Lantern and merge with it, thus awakening the game's true antagonist, The Dark One, Calasmos, who was previously destroyed in the timeline of Mordegon's rule. The party learns that a prior Luminary named Erdwin was betrayed and killed by his mage companion Morcant, who absorbed Calasmos's powers and transformed into Mordegon. Since he could not be destroyed forever without the power of the Luminary, Serenica, Erdwin's former sage companion and lover, then sealed the weakened Calasmos within Erdwin's Lantern and attempted to return to the past at the Tower of Lost Time, but was turned into the Timekeeper instead. The party then confronts and destroys Calasmos before the Luminary entrusts his mark to Serenica, who reverts to her original form and uses it to return to the past and reunite with Erdwin. Accompanied by Veronica and Serena, he also returns the Sword of Light to Yggdrasil, who reveals itself to be Yggdragon, an ancient dragon of light defeated by Calasmos ages ago, whose body transformed into the tree Yggdrasil and gave life to Erdrea. Yggdragon bestows upon the Luminary the title of "Erdrick," the mightiest of all heroes, and keeps the Sword for the day when a new hero will need it to defend Erdrea from evil. In the mid-credits, Serenica reunites with Erdwin in the past, while after the credits, a young mother, after reading the Luminary's story in a book, wakes up her child from the bed, setting up the beginning of ''Dragon Quest III''.

==Characters==