Hero (Dragon Quest VIII)

Hero
Dragon Quest VIII
File:Dq8-hero.jpg
Japanese name	ヒーロ
Romaji	Hiiro
Title	Captain of the Guard
Class	Hero
Race	Half-human, half-Dragovian
Age	20

The Hero of Dragon Quest VIII was a low-ranking royal guardsmen in Trodain Castle. He was one of the small band who survived Dhoulmagus' deadly attack, along with his current traveling companions Trode, Medea and Munchie, the faithful mouse who lives in the Hero's bag.

The Hero is a versatile character, as equally proficient in armed combat as he is in using healing spells and support magic. His preferred weapons are swords, spears and boomerangs.

Appearance and Personality

Like all Dragon Quest heroes, the Hero is perpetually silent throughout the game. He is half-human and half-Dragovian. His father is Eltrio, an Argonian prince who is the elder brother of the Argonian king of the kingdom of Argonia, Clavius. His mother is Xia, a Dragovian girl.

In contrast to heroes of other games, this Hero dresses very casually, a consequence of his lowborn upbringing as opposed to being royalty or some kind of chosen one. He also does not appear to wear any kind of armour (irrespective of whatever he may actually have equipped). His red bandana has become one of his iconic features. Dragon Quest VIII has a character's in-game appearance change based on their weapon and shield, a first for the series.

Munchie

The Hero carries around his pet, Munchie, wherever he goes. A highly intelligent Pig-Rat. Munchie is capable of entering small spaces and exploring areas the party would otherwise have no access to, if you give Munchie cheese items he gains special abilities. Munchie rides in a pocket of the Hero's coat most of the time. Munchie will show true significance after the game.

Abilities

Sword

Points Name MP Target Tension Oomph Info

4      Attack + 5     -  Auto   -      -      -
9      Dragon Slash   0  1      Yes    Yes    Inflicts 150% damage on dragons (otherwise normal damage)                                         
15     Flame Slash    0  1      Yes    Yes    Inflicts 150% damage (reduced if enemy is resistant to fire)
22     Attack + 10    -  Auto   -      -      -
30     Metal Slash    0  1      Yes    No     Inflicts 1-2 damage on metal monsters
40     Critical Hit % -  Auto   -      -      -
52     Falcon Slash   0  1      Yes    Yes    2 slashes per attach each ~75%
66     Attack + 26    -  Auto   -      -      -
82     Miracle Slash  4  1      Yes    Yes    Inflicts 125% damage and restores your HP by 50% of damage
100    Gigaslash      20 Group  Yes    No     Inflicts up to 239 damage to each member of a group
100*   Gigagash       20 Group  Yes    No     Inflicts up to 331 damage to each member of a group
*Requires 100 points in both swords and courage

Boomerang

Points Name MP Target Tension Oomph Info

6      Crosscutter Throw 2  All    Yes     Yes   The first enemy is hit twice.

12     Attack + 5        -  Auto   -       -     -

18     Power Throw       4  All    Yes     Yes   Slightly less damage but damage is shared out equally

25     Attack + 10       -  Auto   -       -     -

32     Firebird Throw    6  All    Yes     No    36-44 damage to all enemies

40     Attack + 15       -  Auto   -       -     -

52     Super Throw       4  All    Yes     Yes   More powerful version on 'Power Throw' Damage approx: 150%

66     Attack + 20       -  Auto   -       -     -

82     Starburst Throw   8  All    Yes     No    76-84 damage to all enemies
100    Gigathrow         15 1      Yes     No    Inflicts up to 284 damage to a single enemy

Spear

Points Name MP Target Tension Oomph Info

3      Attack + 5       -  Auto   -       -     -

7      Mercurial Thrust 0  1      Yes     Yes   The Hero is first to attack Damage approx: 80%

12     Thunder Thrust   3  1      Yes     No    A hit highly likley to be a critacal hit

18     Attack + 10      -  Auto   -       -     -

25     Multithrust      4  1-4    Yes     Yes   3-4 thrusts per attack at approx: 50% damage each

34     Critical hit %   -  Auto   -       -     -

45     Clean Sweep      0  Group  Yes     Yes   Initial damage approx: 80% decreases from left to right

59     Lightning Thrust 0  1      No      No    More powerful version of Thunder Thrust (all hits critical)

77     Attack + 25      -  Auto   -       -     -
100    Lightning Storm  25 All    Yes     No    Inflicts 190-220 damage on all enemies

Fisticuffs

Points Name MP Target Tension Oomph Info

4      Attack + 5         -  Auto   -       -     -

11     Defending Champion 0  Self   Yes     No    More powerful defending action (damage reduced by 90%)

17     Stones' Throw      0  Group  Yes     No    8-20 damage on a group of enemies

24     Knuckle Sandwich   2  1      No      Yes   Inflicts 150% points of damage

33     Attack + 20        -  Auto   -       -     -

42     Thin Air           2  All    Yes     No    Inflicts up to 132 points of damage on all enemies

52     Critical Hit %     -  Auto   -       -     -

70     Multifists         0  1-4    Yes     Yes   4 blows per attack each at approx: 33%

82     Boulder Toss       4  All    Yes     No    Inflicts 72-104 damage on all enemies
100    Attack + 50        -  Auto   -       -     -

Courage

Points Name MP Target Tension Oomph Info

8      Zoom            1  -      -       -     Teleports player to entrance of known location (outdoors only)

16     Tingle          2  Party  No      No    Cures party of sleep and paralyed status changes

28     Holy Protection 4  -      -       -     Random battles against weak monsters are avoided

40     Fizzle          3  Group  No      No    Prevents enemy group from using magic

48     Zap             6  All    Yes     No    Inflicts up to 88 damage on all enemies

56     MP Used 3/4     -  Auto   -       -     -

70     Kamikazee       1  All    -       -     The Hero sacrifises himself to deal high damage to all enemies

82     Omniheal        36 Party  -       -     Restores full HP to all party members

90     MP Used 1/2     -  Auto   -       -     -

100    Kazap           15 Group  -       -     Inflicts up to 220 damage on a group of monsters
100    See Gigaslash/Gigagash on Sword skills

Magic

Level - Name MP Target Tension Info

3       Heal              2        1        Yes       Restores 30-40 HP to one character

4       Squelch         2        1        No        Cures one character of poison and envenomated status changes

6       Evac              2        -        No        Teleports player back to dungeon enterance (Dungeons only)

11      Sizz              4    Group    Yes       Inflicts up to 35 fire damage on each member of a group 

18      Midheal         3       1        Yes       Restores 75-90 HP to one character

20      Sizzle           6    Group    Yes       Inflicts up to 62 fire damage on each member of a group

27      Fullheal         6       1        No        Restores all HP to one character

29      Zing              8       1        No        Revives a dead character with 50% of HP (50% success rate)

32      Kasizzle      10   Group    Yes       Inflicts up to 170 fire damage on each member of a group
65      Dragon Soul   64   1        Yes       Inflicts more than 400 damage to one enemy

Skill Tips

Swords pay off if you are in pursuit of metal monsters, with Metal Slash (30 points) being particularly useful. If you accumulate 100 points in swords and courage you learn the almighty gigagash, although this takes quite some time to acheive.

Spears are ideal for hunters of metal monsters in particular, with Thunder Thrust (12 points) and Lightning Thrust (59 points). The Multithrust (25 points) is also worth a try against single enemies.

Boomerangs are a real boon in the beggining of the game because they attack all enemies. Later, however, this skill becomes less useful (over 40 points: Attack + 15), so it is advisable to switch to developing to differents skills.

Fisticuffs is largely ineffectual to the other skills, although some actions are worth a try like Thin Air (42 points). The Hero can only make a real impression when he learns Attack + 50 (100 points).

Courage is extreamly useful as a means of learning traits that reduse MP consumption (at 56 and 90 points). Don't ignore the advanced attacks either (Zap, 48 points and Kazap at 100 points), or the Omniheal spell at 82 points.

Suggested Strategies: Learn Courage up to 8 points (Zoom) initially, then learn Boomerangs up to 40 points (Attack + 15) followed by courage up to 100. Next, increase your Swords skill to 66 (Attack + 25) or Spears up to 59 (Critical Hit %).

Another option would be to forgo Boomerangs alltogether and start by dividing points equally between Swords and Courage (up to Swords 66), then switching to Spears and Courage.

However, since you come across some extreamly effective spears in the oppening stages of the game, you may prefer to concentrate on mastering spears from the outset.