Hero (Dragon Quest VIII)

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Hero
Dragon Quest VIII
DQVIII Hero artwork.png
Japanese name 主人公
Romaji Shujinkō
Title Captain of the Guard
Class Hero
Race
Warning: Spoilers!
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Half-human, half-Dragovian
Age 20

The Hero of Dragon Quest VIII is a 20 year-old low-ranking royal guardsmen in Trodain Castle, before becoming a refuge of the kingdom in the prologue of Dragon Quest VIII. He was one of the small band who survived Dhoulmagus' deadly attack, along with Trode, Medea and Munchie. As is the series' tradition, the Hero is a silent protagonist whom the player is meant to project themselves upon, using him as an avatar to explore and interact with the game's world.

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

Due to his aforementioned status as a silent protagonist, very little can be said of the man's character that isn't decided by the player. That being said, the youth has demonstrated a remarkably humane nature in certain cutscenes. This is most apparent in the flashback to his meeting with Yangus, who accidentally broke the robe bridge that he was blocking while attempting to extort money from king Trode. Instead of letting the bellicose bandit fall to his death, the former guard pulled him to safety despite Trode's considerable umbrage.

In contrast to heroes of previous games, this Hero dresses very casually and historically coherent, wearing a saffron overcoat with a blue tunic, simple red bandana, and plain grey trousers with brown boots.

Background

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He is the son of Eltrio and Xia, making him half-human and half-Dragovian. This union came about when the later became curious of the human world, and decided to explore it. After encountering Eltrio, Xia fell in love with the young man and spent much time with him. Unfortunately, her father Chen Mui did not approve of the joining of human and dragovian, feeling that the two races could never develop true love between them, and forced his daughter back to the dragovian sanctuary. Some time after this, the body of Eltrio was found near the sanctuary's outskirts, having braved the immense dangers alone to reach his beloved. The death of her loved devastated Xia, and day by day her very life force began to fade. Before joining Eltrio in the afterlife, however, Xia delivered their child in the sanctuary. The boy would live among the dragovians for several years as the council of elders debated what to do with the anomaly, until one day it was decided that his memories would be sealed, and that he would be banished from his people. His grandfather, realizing the youth was his last connection to his daughter, begged for permission to accompany his grandson. It was decided that he could do so, but only if he took the form of a innocuous mouse, and never spoke a word to him.

As the son of Eltrio, the Hero is also the nephew of King Clavius of Argonia. This blood connection is what enables him to superseded Prince Charmles in the right to marry the heir to Trodain. By the end of the game, he has become captain of the guard and the son-in-law of King Trode after marrying Princess Medea.

An amnesiac since his early youth, the Hero grew up in Trodain castle, eventually serving as a guard for some time before the events of the prologue took place. 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, enlisting their aid in pursuing and confronting the wicked Dhoulmagus.

Munchie

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 130% damage (reduced if enemy is resistant to fire). yes
Attack +10 NaN 22 NaN no Increase attack by ten when a sword is equipped. no
Metal Slash 0 30 one yes Inflicts 1~2 damage to metal slimes. no
Attack +15 NaN 40 NaN no Increase attack by fifteen when a sword is equipped. no
Critical Hit rate up NaN 40 NaN no Increase the critical hit rate from 1/64 to 1/32. no
Falcon Slash 0 52 one yes Slashes one enemy twice, each cut dealing 75% damage for 150% total. First hit
Attack +25 NaN 66 NaN no Increases attack by twenty five when a sword is equipped. no
Miracle Slash 4 82 one yes Inflicts 125% damage and restores HP by 50% of damage inflicted. yes
Gigaslash 20 100 group yes Inflicts up to 207~239 damage to each member of a group. yes
Gigagash 20 100* group yes Inflicts up to 271~331 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 -- no Increase attack by five when a spear is equipped. no
Mercurial Thrust 0 7 one yes Strike first at 80% power. yes
Thunder Thrust 3 12 one yes 25% for a critical hit, 25% for a normal stab, 50% to miss altogether. no
Attack +10 no 18 -- no Increase attack by ten when equipped with a spear. no
Multithrust 4 25 random yes Skewers 3~4 targets at half strength per jab. first hit
Critical Hit rate up no 40 auto no Increase the critical hit rate from 1/64 to 1/32. no
Clean Sweep 0 45 group yes Strike/rock element with decreasing damage range: 80% -> 64% -> 56% -> 40% -> 25% -> 16%. first hit
Lightning Thrust 0 59 one no More powerful version of Thunder Thrust, 50% to land a critical hit. no
Attack +25 -- 77 -- no Increases attack by twenty five when equipped with a spear. no
Lightning Storm 25 100 all yes Inflicts 190-220 damage to all enemies. no

Boomerang

Name MP Points Target Tension Info Oomph
Crosscutter Throw 2 6 all yes The first enemy is hit twice. Strike/rock element. first hit
Attack +5 -- 12 -- -- Increases attack by five when a boomerang is equipped. --
Power Throw 4 18 all yes 80% strength, but damage does not decrease per bonked monster. Strike/rock element. first hit
Attack +10 -- 25 -- -- Increases attack by ten when a boomerang is equipped.
Firebird Throw 6 32 all yes 36-44 fire damage to all enemies. no
Attack +15 -- 40 -- -- Increases attack by fifteen when a boomerang is equipped. --
Super Throw 4 52 all yes 120% damage, does not decrease per monster. Strike/rock element. first hit
Attack +20 -- 66 -- -- Increase the boomerang attack +20. --
Starburst Throw 8 82 all yes 76-84 bang damage to all enemies. no
Gigathrow 15 100 one yes Inflicts up to 233~284 zap damage to a single enemy. no

Fisticuffs

Name MP Points Target Tension Info Oomph
Attack +5 -- 4 -- -- Increases attack by five when unarmed. --
Defending Champion 0 11 self yes More powerful defending action (damage reduced by 90%). no
Stone's Throw 0 17 group yes 8-20 strike/rock damage to a group of enemies. no
Knuckle Sandwich 2 24 one no Inflicts 150% points of strike/rock damage. yes
Attack +20 no 33 auto no Increases attack by twenty when unarmed. no
Thin Air 2 42 all yes Inflicts up to 108~132 points of damage on all enemies. no
Critical Hit rate up no 52 auto no Increase the critical hit rate from 1/64 to 1/32. no
Multifists 0 70 random yes Four random swings at 33% power each. first hit
Boulder Toss 4 82 all yes Inflicts 72-104 strike/rock damage on all enemies. no
Attack +50 -- 100 -- -- Increases attack by fifty when unarmed. --

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 are avoided. no
Zap 6 48 all yes Inflicts up to 72~88 damage on all enemies. no
MP discount -- 56 -- -- Reduces the MP cost to 3/4. --
Kamikazee 1 70 all no The Hero sacrifices himself to deal high damage to all enemies. no
Omniheal 36 82 party no Restores full HP to all party members. no
MP discount no 90 auto no Reduces the MP cost to 1/2. no
Kazap 15 100 group yes Inflicts up to 180~220 damage to a group of monsters. no
Gigagash 20 100* group yes Inflicts up to 271~331 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 envenomation.
Evac 2 6 party no Teleports player back to dungeon entrance.
Sizz 4 11 group yes Inflicts up to 29~35 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 53~62 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 150~170 fire damage on each member of a group.
Dragon Soul 64 65 one yes Inflicts 420~520 non-elemental 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 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.
  • Munchie is an obtainable monster in Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker 2 Professional.

Gallery

Videos

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