Dragon Quest IX Basics

Doing Battle

Ah yes, so finally, we've reached the crux of the game -- fighting. You're going to run into enemies all over the place. As we mentioned earlier, the primary place you're going to find enemies are on the various world maps you traverse, but virtually all dungeons, caves, and other nefarious locations will also have their own unique set of enemies to deal with as well. What this means for you is simple; you're going to have to figure out how to fight, and you're going to have to figure out how to do it quickly and effectively. As veterans of hardcore JRPGs like Dragon Quest know full well, fighting improperly and/or over-extending yourself in battle will result in quick trips to the Game Over screen. So let's rundown a little primer on how to properly seek out fights, and once in them, how to go about your business in the most effective way possible.

Unlike all of the other core Dragon Quest games, enemy encounters aren't random encounters in the traditional sense of the term. In other words, when you're roaming around on a map where enemies are, you won't trip an enemy encounter randomly every few steps without seeing the enemies on the world map first (the major exception to the rule is when you're sailing the high seas on the boat you get about halfway through the game). So in other words, those of you who've played classic JRPGs like Chrono Trigger will know exactly what to expect here. You'll see an enemy roaming around the map you're on, and you'll need to directly run into them to get things going (sometimes, enemies will intentionally seek you out or run away, so be ready for that as well). Once you collide with an enemy, the battle sequence begins.

From here, things should be familiar to Dragon Quest veterans. Fighting in Dragon Quest IX, like the other eight core Dragon Quest games, is turn-based. That means that your party and the enemy party take turns attacking one another. Generally, each member of both parties will get to attack once per sequence, which means that while turn-based fighting doesn't seem to be incredibly strategic, it can get quite deep in certain circumstances (think about Pokemon, for instance, which is very much like this). You must carefully select your target and what attack or spell you will use, and then execute all of your party's attacks simultaneously. This means that you can attack an enemy, cast a spell on an enemy, defend, and cast a curative spell all at the same time, with your enemies selecting their own series of attacks behind the scenes. Repeat this process over and over again until the battle is over. It's truly that simple. Just remember to use strategy when the going gets tough (such as during boss battles). Fighting can certainly get monotonous in the game, but don't let that lull you into a false sense of security. Most enemies, even those who aren't bosses, can do a lot of damage and threaten your party if you're too lackadaisical during battle sequences.

Questing and Adventuring

Dragon Quest IX doesn't occur in a vacuum. In other words, there's a method to the madness of a 100+ hour game like this. You're not just fighting and moving around from location to location wantonly. There's a narrative that strings through the entire game. This narrative will give you a reason to keep playing, so try to keep it in mind as you go. After all, the main point of an RPG like this is to tell a big story. Without the story, you're just playing a game that become monotonous and tiring after a while. Your primary adventure will revolve around the main character you create, and his or her quest to regain his or her Celetrian status by helping those back in the Protectorate. Mystical fruits called Fyggs are what you're chasing after to achieve this end, and the more Fyggs you collect, the further in the game you'll find yourself, and the closer you will become to the game's end.

But your main adventure isn't the only thing that you have to worry about. Ancillary quests in RPGs are usually referred to as side quests. But in Dragon Quest IX, side quests are known by the proper nouns Side Quest (covered, of course, in the Side Quests section of this guide). In fact, they're covered in the game as Side Quests, so that you're never guessing what's actually an ancillary quest, and what's something that's part of the game's larger, over-arching narrative. You can even follow the progress of various Side Quests in-game, as each one you accept is numbered and stored in sequence in your Battle Records. And thus, that's the primary difference between questing and adventuring. Questing is seeking out Side Quests, while adventuring involves doing what's necessary to progress further into the game's main storyline. At least that's true during the course of our epic guide.

So yes, adventuring is extremely important. It's the only way to truly progress through the game. But don't ignore the spoils and satisfaction garnered from endless amounts of questing as well. Side Quests can be earned from people (and sometimes animals) with blue talk bubbles over their heads (as opposed to the white bubbles that appear above anyone else's head that's willing to speak with you). Remember that you can accept any Side Quest offered to you as long as you meet its prerequisites (such as being a certain class of a certain level), but you don't have to necessarily complete that quest right away (or ever, should the conclusion of a side quest truly frustrate you). In fact, you'll run into more Side Quests that you need time to complete, as opposed to the ones that can be completed right away. You'll start running into these Side Quests almost immediately, so keep checking back with your Battle Records to keep track of everything. Sometimes, the item (or whatever else) needed to complete a rogue Side Quest can be found at the most unexpected times, and float completely under your radar.

Alchemy and Recipes

It's easy to ignore Alchemy in Dragon Quest IX. After all, it's one of those options that most RPGs have, in that it's a little bit complicated, and not entirely necessary to beat the game as a whole. But in terms of Dragon Quest IX, we highly recommend that you take full advantage of Alchemy as soon as you possibly can. If you're confused as to what Alchemy is, it's simple. In Dragon Quest IX, Alchemy is the process of making new items, equipment and weapons with items, weapons and equipment you already have in your inventory. Your in-game Battle Records will allow you to follow along with recipes that you find, but you could also randomly put things together to see what comes of it. Therefore, as you can clearly see, Alchemy in Dragon Quest IX has insane potential. In fact, much of the best in terms of items, equipment and items can only be found via Alchemy. Otherwise, you'll be left in the dark without having access to them.

So to reiterate, no -- Alchemy isn't the pseudo-science of creating gold out of random elements. In Dragon Quest IX, Alchemy is real, and it's important. But just how do you find the recipes needed to alchemize? Well, that's simple too, although things can get a little complex as you begin to round out your recipe list (which can be viewed at any time via Battle Records). Recipes are found on bookshelves the world over. Bookshelves can be found in pretty much all towns and villages, castles, and even some dungeons and caves as well. Examine any bookshelf you come across during your journey, and there's a good chance recipes will be surrendered from it. The Alchemy section of our guide covers all of the game's recipes, as well as where they're found, so get to it!

The thing about many of the recipes you'll collect is that they will likely require items you won't immediately have. Some of your recipes may even require items that in turn can only be created by alchemy, so there's a bit of a chain to follow in order to start creating some of the better items. Many of the items you can purchase at stores can also be created in alchemy, though if you don't have the recipe needed, you may be at a complete loss as to how to create something. Of course, our recipes list can allow you to cheat if you want. But should you choose to follow our ridiculously in-depth Walkthrough, you'll find all of the recipes you possibly would want to during the normal course of the game. So go get 'em!