Hero (Dragon Quest VIII)
Hero | |
Dragon Quest VIII | |
Japanese name | 主人公 |
Romaji | Shujinkō |
Title | Captain of the Guard |
Class | Hero |
Race | Half-human, half-Dragovian |
Age | 20 |
The Hero of Dragon Quest VIII was a 20 year-old low-ranking royal guardsmen in Trodain Castle, before becoming captain of the guard near the end of Dragon Quest VIII. He was one of the small band who survived Dhoulmagus' deadly attack, along with Trode, Medea and Munchie.
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.
The Hero is chivalrous, stoic, abstentious, demuring, humble, courageous, indefatigable, and strong. 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. Hero's greatness is gained through moral uprightness, rather than through divine birthright. Yet it is revealed throughout the course of the story that the Hero is indeed the Chosen One. The Hero is not performing magnanimous and valiant acts to attain greatness, but it is natural for one as great as he to perform all of these things.
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, a feature that would later be expanded in Dragon Quest IX.
Background
He is the son of Eltrio and Xia, making him half-human and half-Dragovian; he is also the nephew of King Clavius of Argonia. By the end of the Dragon Quest VIII he has become captain of the guard, and the son-in-law of King Trode after marrying Princess Medea.
For much of Dragon Quest VIII, the hero journeys with his faithful mouse friend, Munchie, King Trode, Medea, and Yangus. The hero is eventually joined by Jessica and Angelo.
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 the pocket of the Hero's coat most of the time. Munchie will show his true significance only after the game.
Base Stats
Attribute | Starting Stats | Maximum Stats |
Level | 1 | 99 |
HP | 22 | 806 |
MP | 0 | 478 |
Strength | 8 | 400 |
Agility | 6 | 200 |
Resilience | 6 | 215 |
Wisdom | 5 | 366 |
Initial gear |
Abilities
Sword
Name | MP | Points | Target | Tension | Info | Oomph |
Attack +5 | NaN | 4 | NaN | no | Increase the sword attack +5. | no |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Dragon Slash | 0 | 9 | one | no | Inflicts 150% damage on dragons (otherwise normal damage). | no |
Flame Slash | 0 | 15 | one | yes | Inflicts 150% damage (reduced if enemy is resistant to fire). | yes |
Attack +10 | NaN | 22 | NaN | no | Increase the sword attack +10. | no |
Metal Slash | 0 | 30 | one | yes | Inflicts 1-2 damage on metal monsters. | no |
Attack +15 | NaN | 40 | NaN | no | Increase the sword attack +15. | no |
Critical Hit % | NaN | 40 | NaN | no | Increase the critical hit % with the sword. | no |
Falcon Slash | 0 | 52 | one | yes | 2 slashes per attach each ~75%. | yes |
Attack +25 | NaN | 66 | NaN | no | Increase the sword attack +25. | no |
Miracle Slash | 4 | 82 | one | yes | Inflicts 125% damage and restores your HP by 50% of damage. | yes |
Gigaslash | 20 | 100 | group | yes | Inflicts up to 239 damage to each member of a group. | yes |
Gigagash | 20 | 100* | group | yes | Inflicts up to 331 damage to each member of a group. |
no |
- Requires 100 points in both swords and courage
Spear
Name | MP | Points | Target | Tension | Info | Oomph |
Attack +5 | 0 | 3 | auto | no | Increase the spear attack +5. | no |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mercurial Thrust | 0 | 7 | one | yes | The Hero is first to attack Damage approx: 80%. | yes |
Thunder Thrust | 3 | 12 | one | yes | A hit highly likely to be a critical hit. | no |
Attack +10 | no | 18 | auto | no | Increase the spear attack +10. | no |
Multithrust | 4 | 25 | 1-4 | yes | 3-4 thrusts per attack at approx: 50% damage each. | yes |
Critical Hit % | no | 40 | auto | no | Increase the critical hit % with the spear. | no |
Clean Sweep | 0 | 45 | group | yes | Initial damage approx: 80% decreases from left to right. | yes |
Lightning Thrust | 0 | 59 | one | no | More powerful version of Thunder Thrust (all hits critical). | no |
Attack +25 | no | 77 | auto | no | Increase the spear attack +25. | no |
Lightning Storm | 25 | 100 | all | yes | Inflicts 190-220 damage on all enemies. | no |
Boomerang
Name | MP | Points | Target | Tension | Info | Oomph |
Crosscutter Throw | 2 | 6 | all | yes | The first enemy is hit twice. | yes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Attack +5 | no | 12 | auto | no | Increase the boomerang attack +5. | no |
Power Throw | 4 | 18 | all | yes | Slightly less damage but damage is shared out equally. | yes |
Attack +10 | no | 25 | auto | no | Increase the boomerang attack +10. | no |
Firebird Throw | 6 | 32 | all | yes | 36-44 damage to all enemies. | no |
Attack +15 | no | 40 | auto | no | Increase the boomerang attack +15. | no |
Super Throw | 4 | 52 | all | yes | More powerful version on 'Power Throw' Damage approx: 150%. | yes |
Attack +20 | no | 66 | auto | no | Increase the boomerang attack +20. | no |
Starburst Throw | 8 | 82 | all | yes | 76-84 damage to all enemies. | no |
Gigathrow | 15 | 100 | one | yes | Inflicts up to 284 damage to a single enemy. | no |
Fisticuffs
Name | MP | Points | Target | Tension | Info | Oomph |
Attack +5 | no | 4 | auto | no | Increase the fisticuffs attack +5 | no |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Defending Champion | 0 | 11 | self | yes | More powerful defending action (damage reduced by 90%). | no |
Stone's Throw | 0 | 17 | group | yes | 8-20 damage on a group of enemies. | no |
Knuckle Sandwich | 2 | 24 | one | no | Inflicts 150% points of damage. | yes |
Attack +20 | no | 33 | auto | no | Increase the fisticuffs attack +20 | no |
Thin Air | 2 | 42 | all | yes | Inflicts up to 132 points of damage on all enemies. | no |
Critical Hit % | no | 52 | auto | no | Increase the critical hit % with the fisticuffs. | no |
Multifists | 0 | 70 | 1-4 | yes | 4 blows per attack each at approx: 33%. | yes |
Boulder Toss | 4 | 82 | all | yes | Inflicts 72-104 damage on all enemies. | no |
Attack +50 | no | 100 | auto | no | Increase the fisticuffs attack +50. | no |
Courage
Name | MP | Points | Target | Tension | Info | Oomph |
Zoom | 1 | 8 | party | no | Teleports player to entrance of known location (outdoors only). | no |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tingle | 2 | 16 | party | no | Cures party of sleep and parlyzed status changes. | no |
Fizzle | 4 | 28 | no | no | Prevents enemy group from using magic. | no |
Holy Protection | 3 | 40 | group | no | Random encounters with enemies whose level is lower than the hero is avoided. | no |
Zap | 6 | 48 | all | yes | Inflicts up to 88 damage on all enemies. | no |
MP Used 3/4 | no | 56 | auto | no | Reduces the MP cost to 3/4. | no |
Kamikazee | 1 | 70 | all | no | The Hero sacrifises himself to deal high damage to all enemies. | no |
Omniheal | 36 | 82 | party | no | Restores full HP to all party members. | no |
MP Used 1/2 | no | 90 | auto | no | Reduces the MP cost to 1/2. | no |
Kazap | 15 | 100 | group | yes | Inflicts up to 220 damage on a group of monsters. | no |
Gigagash | 20 | 100* | group | yes | Inflicts up to 331 damage to each member of a group. | no |
- Requires 100 points in both swords and courage
Magic
Name | MP | Level | Target | Tension | Info |
Heal | 2 | 3 | one | yes | Restores 30-40 HP to one character. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Squelch | 2 | 4 | one | no | Cures one character of poison and envenomated status changes. |
Evac | 2 | 6 | party | no | Teleports player back to dungeon enterance (Dungeons only). |
Sizz | 4 | 11 | group | yes | Inflicts up to 35 fire damage on each member of a group. |
Midheal | 3 | 18 | one | yes | Restores 75-90 HP to one character. |
Sizzle | 6 | 20 | group | yes | Inflicts up to 62 fire damage on each member of a group. |
Fullheal | 6 | 27 | one | no | Restores all HP to one character. |
Zing | 8 | 29 | one | no | Revives a dead character with 50% of HP (50% success rate). |
Kasizzle | 10 | 32 | group | yes | Inflicts up to 170 fire damage on each member of a group. |
Dragon Soul | 64 | 65 | one | yes | Inflicts more than 400 damage to one enemy.(ignores enemy defense, magic attack) |
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 achieve.
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 beginning 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 different 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 extremely useful as a means of learning traits that reduce 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 altogether 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 extremely effective spears in the opening stages of the game, you may prefer to concentrate on mastering spears from the outset.
Trivia
When the hero's tension is maxed, his appearance changes drastically. His bandana flies off and his hair spikes up, making him resemble Super Saiyan Son Goku of Dragon Ball Z fame. This little feature was added to the American release of the game, as a shoutout to fans of Toriyama's work.
Since he is only half Dragovian it is possible that the hero has no dragon form (he dosen't become a dragon in dragon soul).
Gallery
- Dq8-Hero Concept art.jpg
Hero's concept art - Dq8hero-2.jpg
More concept art
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