Monster recruitment

Introduced in Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride, the recruitment of bested beasts has appeared in some capacity in nearly every title in the series since 1992.

The cast of Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation along with several monstrous mates.

Specifically, the system is present in every even-numbered title beginning with Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation.

Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride

Monster recruitment was simplistic in its original inception, being a fixed percentage that could not be changed by the player. If multiple recruitable monsters appear in the same encounter, only the final felled foe will have a chance to join the Hero. In the Nintendo DS and cell phone versions, monster allies will only alternate between two lines of dialogue during Party Chat, as opposed to the fuller conversations of human characters.

As of 2019, the Cell phone ports saw the addition of the Monster magnet accessory for the the Hero, which when equipped can increase the odds of a monster joining up by one rank. This is likely due to the release of Your Story, which would have attracted a new audience to the title and such players would have desired an easier time collecting monsters.

Sprite	Monster Name	SFC	PS2	DS & Phone	Tame Rate	Level required
	Archdemon	No	No	Yes	1⁄64	30
	Bad apple	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄4	7
	Barbatos	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄256	41
	Battle pip	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄16	7
	Beastmaster	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄4	30
	Blizzybody	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄64	26
	Bomboulder	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄256	30
	Brownie	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄4	7
	Chimaera	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄16	15
	Conkerer	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	27
	Conkjurer	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	27
	Conkuisitor	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	27
	Conkuistador	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	27
	Cross eye	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	9
	Cureslime	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄64	16
	Dracky	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄4	7
	Drag-goof	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄16	18
	Dwight	No	Yes	Yes	N/A	N/A
	Epipany	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄16	7
	Fandangow	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	9
	Fat rat	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄2	7
	Flamethrower	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄64	16
	Funghoul	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄16	7
	Ghost	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄2	7
	Gigantes	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	34
	Golem	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄4	25
	Goodybag	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄16	16
	Great dragon	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄64	35
	Grudgerigar	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	9
	Hades' helm	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄64	29
	Hawk man	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	23
	Healslime	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	7
	Hellion	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	23
	Hoodlum	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄16	25
	Hulagan	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄16	9
	Hyperanemon	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄64	41
	Jailcat	No	No	Yes	1⁄16	7
	Killing machine	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄256	34
	King cureslime	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄64	28
	King slime	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄64	10
	Liquid metal slime	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄256	20
	Magic marionette	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	12
	Man o' war	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄2	18
	Mandrake marshal	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	32
	Metal slime	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄256	7
	Minidemon	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	20
	Moosifer	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄4	30
	Mudraker	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄4	11
	Old man of the sea	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	25
	Orc king	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄4	21
	Pip fighter	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄16	7
	Pocus poppet	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄16	10
	Powie yowie	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	7
	Prestidigitator	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄4	10
	Rebjørn	No	Yes	Yes	N/A	N/A
	Restless armour	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄64	10
	Revaulting horse	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄16	27
	Rockbomb	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄64	15
	Rotten apple	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄2	7
	Saber	Yes	Yes	Yes	N/A	N/A
	Samigina	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	20
	Slime	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄2	7
	Slime knight	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄4	7
	Small fry	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄16	7
	Snowbird	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	34
	Starkers	No	Yes	Yes	N/A	N/A
	Ticking timeburrm	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	7
	Walking corpse	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	7
	Warhog	Yes	Yes	Yes	1⁄32	28
	Wax murderer	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄16	7
	Wiz pip	No	Yes	Yes	1⁄16	7

Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation

In the original SFC version of VI monster recruitment worked identically to V, though someone in the party must be a Monster Master for the chance to activate. When the DS version (and subsequent Cell phone porta) were produced, this mechanic was retired in favor of "Slime Buddies": Slimes players could interact with in towns and dungeons like NPCs who would join the party once certain conditions were met as was the case with Lizzie. These Slimes are not treated as full characters, however, and thus lack the detailed Party Chat of humans and Lizzie.

In both versions of the game, any recruited Slime may enter into the gladiatorial contests at Slimopolis.

Available in the SFC version

Sprite	Monster Name	Tame Rate	Rank required
	Damned ram	1⁄16	4
	Boss troll	1⁄16	5
	Dreamaera	1⁄32	4
	Feralball	1⁄4	1
	Gustbluster	1⁄64	3
	Healslime	1⁄16	2
	High djinks	1⁄256	8
	King slime	1⁄64	5
	Lesser demon	1⁄4	3
	Liquid metal slime	1⁄256	6
	Lips	1⁄64	1
	Mud mannequin	1⁄64	2
	Overkilling machine	1⁄64	7
	Rockbomb	1⁄32	4
	Slime	1⁄2	1
	Slime knight	1⁄4	2
	Sluggernaut	1⁄4	3
	Walking corpse	1⁄32	2

Available in the DS & phone versions

Sprite	Monster Name	Location
	Goowain	Howcastle
	Healie	Clearvale
	Spot	Castle Graceskull
	Kingsley	Château de Sass
	Goober	Slimopolis
	Lizzie	Arkbolt
	Curie	Suite dreams
	Shelley	Underwater Inn
	Mercury	Suite dreams

Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past

Monster recruitment is not present in the seventh game; instead, monsters will sojourn off to a sort of wild life reserve called the Monster Meadows that is unlocked during the normal course of the game. Once there, they can be spoken to in their natural habitat as if they were NPCs, though only three lines of dialogue will be spoken. The Animal Magnetism skill makes taming these beasts much easier than in previous games, being the first time a player has direct influence on the probability in a numbered title.

Additionally, defeated monsters will occasionally drop Monster Hearts. These function similarly to the Dragonic Diligence and Liquid Metal Mind scrolls from VI, and allow the character holding them to take on monster-based vocations at Alltrades Abbey. The main difference is that a character's sprite will change into the corresponding monster once the vocation is mastered.

• In the 3DS remake, the character will immediately become a monster after using a heart.

Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King

In the PS2 version of the game, players will notice several monsters wandering the overworld. These infamous beasties prove much more capable than their randomly encountered counterparts, but once the player pays a visit to Morrie's place they can join the party. This allows the monsters to enter the competition in Morrie's Monstrous Pit, and through the use of the Call Team skill they may be summoned into battle for 3 or more turns. All recruited monsters grow more powerful as the Hero's Level rises, and do not need to gain battle Experience themselves.

• In the Nintendo 3DS port, all monsters are visible in the overworld, with the infamous monsters being given distinctive icons.

Available in all versions

Archer Archfiend Arges Big Al Bishop Bladewolf Blizag Jr Bones Brickman Brontes Bush-W Capers Clio Cowboy Curer Cybot Deadnoble Dolldrums Doug Dumbking Fat cat Faunus Flameman Fletch Foul fowl Frillsaur Goldman Gryphus Hackzilla Hazel Healer Hev Hoodwink Hori Hork Jack Frost Jewelbag Jockey

Klub kong Lonely Joe McHammer Mechabubo Metabble Metaly Moppet Mornstar Nightwing Nohi Octurion Orcus Orrid Pa Troll Potbelly Roborg Robster Sagittari Salsa Scorpius Seasaw Sippy Skeledoid Slurpy Smiles Snap Case Spike Spot Squiggles Steropes Stoneman Sugi Talos Torchman Tori Trick Bag Twiggy

Dragon Quest X

Certain monsters can be recruited by players beginning in version 2.0, which saw the return of the Monster Master vocation to the series after nearly 14 years of absence. Version 2.1 added the Item Master vocation and it's selection of monsters. The former tames organic monsters, while the latter handles living objects and robots, with each having 15 species to choose from.

Taming itself is fairly simple, but players must perform research on the species they want prior to the encounter. This is done in the form of obtaining zoological books on monsters or user manuals for machines, and using one as an item in battle to unlock the scouting attack for that particular breed. This attack creates a base 10% chance to capture the monster once it falls. The skill does not need to be the final blow of the battle; as long as it has been used over the course of the encounter the chance to recruit the beast is established. Once tamed, the monster can join the player immediately or be sent off to the monster bar where most scouting books are obtained, and one character can store up to 24 monsters at the pub.

Monsters that have joined players are controlled through A.I. dependent on their personality and essentially serve as party members for times when the player's friends and comrades are offline. Monsters have a Level cap of 50, but can undergo a process similar to a Revocation to further raise their stats. The equipment pool of a given monster is fixed and cannot be changed, but gear can be shared between the monster and master: for example a Monster Master and Hacksaurus can simultaneously wield the same Kaiser axe in a battle for the sake of player convenience. New to the series is the concept of bonding, a stat that denotes the level of attachment a monster has to its master and is raised by fighting together. Raising this stat will confer benefits such as additional skill points, and once this stat reaches a certain threshold, a monster will follow a character regardless of their Vocation.

Monster Name	Version available	Weapon	Armor	Book
Brownie	2.4	Hammers	Metal armor	Monster battle road prize
Chimaera	2.0	Wands	Robes	Casino prize
Dracky	2.3	Heavy wands	Robes	Monster battle road prize
Great sabrecat	4.1	Claws	Clothes	Monster drop
Hacksaurus	2.0	Axes	Metal armor	Casino prize
Healslime	2.0	Wands	Robes	Sold at tavern
Imp	2.2	Spears	Robes	Sold at tavern
Jailcat	2.0	Claws	Robes	Monster drop
Mandrake major	2.0	Swords	Metal armor	Sold at tavern
Meowgician	2.0	Heavy wands	Robes	Sold at tavern
Mischievous mole	2.0	Staves	Clothing	Monster drop
Slime	2.0	Boomerangs	Clothes	Sold at tavern
Slime knight	2.0	Swords	Metal armor	Sold at tavern
Small fry	2.2	Claws	Clothes	Sold at tavern
Teeny sanguini	2.0	Wands	Robes	Sold at tavern

Monster Name	Version available	Weapon	Armor	Book
Bambooligan	2.1	Spear	Metal armor	Sold at tavern
Fromage Fray	2.1	Heavy wands	Robes	Sold at tavern
Golem	2.1	Greatswords	Metal armor	Sold at tavern
Goodybag	2.1	Fans	Robes	Casino prize
Harmour	2.1	Swords	Metal armor	Casino prize
Ham hatwitch	2.1	Heavy wands	Robes	Monster drop
Hellbound horror	2.3	Axes	Clothes	Sold at tavern
Killing machine	2.2	Greatswords	Metal armor	Sold at tavern
Magic marionette	2.2	Knives	Clothes	Sold at tavern
Mecha-mynah	2.1	Claws	Clothes	Sold at tavern
Needle man	2.1	Knives	Clothes	Sold at tavern
Pocus poppet	4.2	Boomerangs	Clothes	Monster drop
Prancing pillar	2.1	Fans	Clothes	Sold at tavern
Restless armour	2.1	Swords	Metal armor	Sold at tavern
Wardrobe mimic	2.4	Bows	Robes	Sold at tavern

Dragon Quest Builders 2

On explorer's shores after Skelkatrez, one can recruit monsters with Monster munchies. When a monster that can be tamed is defeated, there is a chance that it will stand up instead of fading away and a thirty second timer will begin to count down--the munchies must be used in this period or the monster will become annoyed and go away.

Tamed monsters join the residents of the Island of Awakening as NPCs, who go about their daily routines as the other islanders do, and some have special effects: the Chimaeras can be ridden to fly, the Powie yowie can be given an ice lolly to spread snow, the Liquid metal slime will play tag once a day for 100 hearts, etc.

Monster Name	Location	Gimmick
Bloody Hand	Unholy Holm	Plays with islanders crafts items at workstations
Brownie	Iridescent Island	Demolishes blocks marked with a smashing sign
Chimaera	Blossom Bay	Flying mount
Corpse Corporal	Laguna Perfuma	Bartender
Cosmic Chimaera	Rimey Reef	Flying mount
Ghoul	Rimey Reef	Bartender
Gold Golem	Coral Cay	Can use terraforma tiles Melee mount
Golem	Sunny Sands (one per visit)	Can use terraforma tiles Mount
Great Sabrecub	Blossom Bay	Double-jump mount
Great Sabrecat	Soggy Skerry	Double-jump mount
Hammerhood	Sunny Sands	Demolishes blocks marked with a smashing sign
Healslime	nearly all Explorer's Shores	Casts Heal in battle Bartender
Hocus Chimaera	Iridescent Island	Flying mount
Hunter Mech	Rimey Reef	Farmer
Killing Machine	Laguna Perfuma	Farmer
Living Statue	Rimey Reef (one per visit)	Produces dyes at stain extractors
Liquid Metal Slime	Laguna Perfuma	Plays tag
Muddy Hand	Soggy Skerry	Plays with islanders crafts items at workstations
Powie Yowie	Rimey Reef	Feed ice lollies to freeze ground
She-Slime	Sunny Sands	Double-jump mount
Slime	Blossom Bay	Double-jump mount
Stone Golem	Iridescent Island (one per visit)	Can use terraforma tiles Melee mount
Stone Guardian	Unholy Holm	Produces dyes at stain extractors
Walking Corpse	Soggy Skerry	Bartender

Dragon Quest Monsters 1 & 2

While monsters retain a base chance to join the player upon defeat as in previous games, the chance can be greatly enhanced by using Monster munchies in battle.

Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker series

Recruitment is implemented via the Scout option in the battle menu. When selected, the player's team of monsters will perform a group assault on the target to impress the monster into joining. The percentile chance is displayed onscreen, and can easily reach 100% if the group's sum attack power is high enough. However, if the enemy is too durable then the assault can easily leave the player with a big fat 0%--it is imperative to apply Oomph and Sap to raise the chances even higher.

• In Joker 2, tossing a bundle of Beastie bites at the foe will raise the chance by a flat 10%.

Gallery

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  Level requirements and percentages in V.