DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake: DQ 1 HD Remake - Walkthrough Guide

Steam Community guide by Mr. Moyer.

Introduction

Hi, I'm Dave. I'm not a programmer or game developer, just a middle-aged man who likes to play video games and occasionally likes to share some knowledge with other gamers to help you all have an easier time with your game than I did.
For easier typing and reading, here are some terms you should know:

• DQ = Dragon Quest (a popular RPG series by the makers of Final Fantasy)
• HD = high definition (meaning these remakes were given all new graphics and audio, including some new cut-scenes and voiced dialogue in some places)
• DQ 1 = Dragon Quest (the first game of the series, released in 1986, OR its HD remake)
• DQ 2 = Dragon Quest 2: Luminaries of the Legendary Line (the second game of the series released in 1987, or its HD remake)
• **DQ 3 **= Dragon Quest 3: Seeds of Salvation (the third game of the series released in 1988, or its HD remake, DQ 3 HD is sold separately from this 2-game bundle)
• Erdrick = a legendary hero who defeated the Undead King thousands of years before the start of DQ 1; the ancestor of the hero from DQ 1
• SOL = Sphere of Light, a power source that currently supplies light and goodness to the world, which the Dragonlord steals and tries to corrupt it to darkness and evil in DQ 1
• DL = Dragonlord, the main villain of DQ 1
• **Spell **= a magical ability that uses MP to affect the world (such as throwing fire or ice or lightning at a group of enemies) Some of them can be used outside of combat
• Ability = a magical ability that uses MP to affect your attacks (such as letting your sword do extra damage to dragon or undead enemy types, or letting you do two attacks per turn for the next 3 turns) Some of them can be used outside of combat
• **Stat **= Statistic, a parameter that alters your ability to fight enemies
• **Item **= random stuff you find as loot or buy from shops, which you can spend a turn using in combat to heal yourself or affect enemies (put them to sleep or confuse them etc) or use them outside of combat for various things
• Wing = chimera wing or zoom; any item or spell or ability that lets you fast-travel (there are several options in this game that do the same thing - escape a dungeon or jump to a town of your choice)
  This guide is for Dragon Quest HD Remake - part 1 (DQ 1). This game comes packaged with DQ 1 and DQ 2, the first two parts of the "Erdrick saga" from the early days of the Dragon Quest series (1986 - 1988 the original games were released). If you are playing Dragon Quest 2 HD, then you are looking at the wrong guide. I might make a guide for DQ 2 later, maybe next time I play through it. DQ 3 is available to buy separately if you want to complete the trilogy, I might make a guide for that one later, too. But THIS guide ONLY covers DQ 1 HD.
• DQ 3 is a PREQUEL to DQ 1. Then DQ 2 is a SEQUEL to DQ 1. So they made the games out of chronological order, but it's fine, whatever. They released the HD remakes in chronological order, meaning they remade DQ 3 FIRST.
• BEFORE you start this game, go play DQ 3. Doing so will allow you to use the "import save" feature for THIS game and adds a DOG SUIT (armor) to the Tantegel Inn chest.[/i]
• Then beating this game before you play DQ 2 will allow you to use the "import save" feature for DQ 2 to gain a CAT SUIT (armor) in the chest at the first inn of the game.

Achievements

I won't list them all because most of them pop up by simply playing the game and following the storyline. But there are a few of them that you might MISS if you don't know what you're supposed to do in order to unlock them, so I'll tell you about those ones.
During the final fight with the DL, defeating both of his forms scores you the "good ending" and an achievement for it. But just before the fight starts, he asks you to join him and rule beside him; if you say yes he then asks you to lay your sword down; if you say yes again then you get the "bad ending" and wake up in a nearby inn so you can try again.
There is an achievement you might miss, for collecting 150 items through the course of a single game.
There is an achievement you might miss, for defeating 800 monsters (individual monsters total, not 800 battles) in a single game.
There is an achievement you might miss, you need to die in battle once and opt to continue playing.
There is an achievement you might miss, you need to EQUIP (not just find) all of Erdrick's old gear: helm, sword, armor, shield, and mark... Erdrick's Mark is a signet ring accessory.
There is an achievement you might miss, you need to find and read ALL of the scrolls to learn all the spells and abilities in the game. There is also an achievement for reading your first scroll.
There is an achievement you might miss, you need to go to the fairy village and have the craft master there make one of each TYPE OF ITEM for you, using ingredients that you find scattered around the world. This is very late-game, by the time this service is available (after you make all five sigils) all the items she can make are basically useless to you. But it is an achievement if you make them all anyway.
This one is SUPER SECRET... As you are the descendant of the great hero Erdrick, some of Erdrick's companions also have descendants. One of them is a man named Zalen, who is descended from Galen the world's most legendary bard. Zalen is traveling the world looking for inspiration to write new songs. You never know where he'll pop up next (unless you follow along with my guide) but if you follow his weird side quest to the end, you'll get an achievement and a legendary helmet.
There is an achievement that most people miss, in the town of Tantegel, if you go down by the item shop you'll see a girl standing on a bridge. Talk to her and she'll go on a date with you. She will follow you ANYWHERE IN THE TOWN, but she leaves if you go out of town or into the castle. Take her to the inn (which is right next to the bridge) and spend a night there.
This one is annoying because it takes a very keen eye to finish... find all the mini-medals[game8.co] in the game and bring them to the Monarch of Medals and he'll exchange them for prizes. The only prize on the list that's worth the effort is the Wild Side scroll for 10 medals... possibly also the Metal Wing Boomerang for 37 mini-medals is nice but only if you're hunting metal slimes for XP... and maybe also the Banishing Bell for 20 is nice to have for about a third of the game until you find Erdrick's gear that does the same thing but better. The mini-medals are hiding in treasure chests, but I believe some are also hiding in cabinets or barrels or just buried in the scenery, too. There are 40 in total, but you don't have to turn them all in at the same time.

3 Keys, Erdrick's Gear & 5 Sigils

In order to enter the DL's castle you first need to find three keys, all the ingredients for the fairies to make the five legendary sigils for you, plus you need to find all five pieces of Erdrick's legendary gear. Most of these are locked behind quest progression, so you can't just show up in that area right after leaving Tantegel Castle and happen to find them... they won't even be there until you reach a certain point in the main quest even though you technically can reach most areas on the map just as soon as you leave the castle at the start of the game. In the walkthrough I'll mention when/where to find each of these things. But I felt like it may be easier for you to keep track if I also put them in a separate chapter so you can see the full list all at once. I'll list them here in the order in which you're supposed to find them.

• **Thief's Key: ** (opens any red doors or red chests): Robbin 'Ood gives it to you after you rescue a member of his merry gang from the depths of the Craggy Cave.
• **Erdrick's Armor: ** In the ruined city of Damdara, you'll find it buried at the northeast corner of town... after a tough boss fight. Look for the shiny sparkles by a tree after you beat the errant knight.
• **Soul Sigil ** (allows you to supercharge spells and ability if you are below half health or using the Focus Pocus ability): After meeting the dwarves in their village at the bottom of Dwarven Cave, they tell you how to find the fairies. Head to the Fairy Village and they'll ask you to find them some ingredients. You'll find two flowers (and two seeds in a rotten fruit) at the Flower Field. Bring the ingredients back and they'll make both the Soul Sigil and some medicine for the sick dwarf and guard captain.
• **Water Sigil ** (items have greater effects if used in battle): Go to the dwarven village in their cave, and down the well. You'll find the Wellspring Crystal on a frozen pond there, bring it back to the fairies for crafting.
  
• **Magical Key ** (opens any blue doors or blue chests): After using fairy medicine to help the sick dwarf at the back of the Dwarven Cave as well as the sick guard captain in Rimuldar, the Warlock of Doorlocks and the dwarf will make this key for you. His house is at the northwest corner of Rimuldar, accessible by a path running around the outside of the town's moat.
• **Moon Sigil ** (allows spells to occasionally do critical hits for extra damage): You need to find the Moonbeam Dew, which is in a dead end of the Quagmire Cave (B2, after opening the blue door), and bring it back to the fairies to craft it.
  
• **Sun SIgil ** (allows abilities to occasionally do critical hits for extra damage): After rescuing the princess and clearing the fog from Weirdwood, go back to Weirdwood. Find the undying flame flower in the back of the forest and bring it to the elves for crafting.
  
• **Star Sigil ** (recover a few MP each turn in combat): Get the Stardew from a dead-end path in the Weeping Isle, bring it back to the fairies for crafting.
  
• **Ultimate Key ** (opens any green or metallic doors or green chests): After the quest to rescue the priest in the city of Cantlin from the Weeping Isle's demon, you must go to the town of Kor and defeat the demon Spiketail near the well there. He drops the ultimate key when defeated.
• **Erdrick's Shield: ** Head back to the Weeping Isle, down a dead-end side path you'll find it inside a green chest. It's right beside the Stardew that you found here earlier.
• **Erdrick's Mark: ** During the main quest, after summoning the goddess you'll be instructed to go with the fairy queen to the Shrine of the Spirit. Defeat the boss at the top of the tower and you'll find it on the throne there.
• **Erdrick's Helm: ** After completing all of Zalen's side quest and summoning the goddess at the Tower of Rain, the fairy queen will take you to the Western Isle, where Erdrick once lived. Behind the house is his father's tombstone, and the helmet rests upon it.
• **Erdrick's Sword: ** In the DL's castle, you have to go all the way down to B5 then take a side path up a set of spiral stairs to reach a room just below the main floor's throne room in the center of B2. The sword is stuck in the ground there.

Zalen, descendant of Galen

I'll detail Zalen's sidequest in the walkthrough, too. But thought you might want a quick reference for where/when to find him each time. So here you go.

• After visiting the cave where Erdrick's monument is, head to the Forgotten Ruin east of the Wanderer's Church. You'll find him near the back of town there.
• Nameless Ruins, he'll be in the center of the old village there as you're on your way to Craggy Cave to "capture" the bandits who "stole" the Thief's Key from a shady merchant.
• After obtaining the Magic Key, you'l find him near a demolished house on the west side of Damdara. (If you weren't strong enough to get Erdrick's Armor last time you were here, now is a good time to try again.)
• After obtaining the Ultimate Key, you'll find him again in Cantlin, on a small bridge by the pond.
• After obtaining the Lyre of Ire from Galen's Tomb, find him on the beach in Galenhome.
• Once you have the Rainbow Drop, go talk to a fairy at the Field of Flowers.
• Then head to the Tower of Rain and talk to the Fairy Queen... follow her into the portal leading to the Western Isle where you will find Erdrick's Helm on a gravestone.
• After equipping Erdrick's Helm, find Zalen again. This time he's in Rimuldar, on the little island in the middle of town. He'll sing a new song for you, then go a-skipping away.
• After equipping all of Erdrick's gear and making the rainbow bridge appear (possibly not until defeating the Dragonlord even) head back to Damdara and you'll find Galen's ghost.
• (Optional, if you want EXTRA closure) After defeating the Dragonlord, head back to the Nameless Ruins and speak with the old woman there.

Mini-Medals

No. I'm not doing a Mini-Medal location guide. They're totally optional and only two prizes are worth the effort, and neither of them is better than Erdick's gear that you'll get as part of the main quest (or close to the main quest) anyway. And there are 40 of them hidden all over the dang world. So I'm not doing it.
You still want a mini-medal guide cuz you're too lazy to check every corner of the map yourself? Fine... I recommend this one[game8.co]. I had no part in creating it. It has an interactive map showing the overworld as well as local screenshots of each location. And that wiki also has info on a bunch of other aspects of the game, too.
Okay, now can we please stop talking about Mini-medals and get on with the walkthrough already?

World Map

Above: complete world map, showing all points of interests without labels.
Below: complete world map, showing all points of interest, with important locations labeled.

Walkthrough - FINALLY we get to the MEAT of this guide

You're a "nameless wanderer" descended from a legendary hero who defeated the Undead King many generations ago. So give yourself a name. ... Nice choice; at least you didn't name yourself "Penisbreath" or "Turdface" or something equally stupid.
Now you come across some people getting molested by monsters. It turns out they're with the Tantegel Royal Guard and now, having witnessed your combat prowess, they want you to meet the King so you can work for him. With great power comes... whatever.
After chatting with the king, you're free to explore the castle, though you'll find some doors are locked. You'll need special keys to open them. Same for the red, blue, and green treasure chests you will find scattered around the world that are locked. Also, talk to the people you meet on your journey. Some say useful things about where you might find SECRETS, or where your next quest location is, etc. Others tell you a bit of history of the world. Others will simply comment on current events. As you progress in the story, sometimes people will say new things as events unfold, too.
If you go south from the throne room, and go BEHIND the stairs instead of down them, you can head onto the roof, where there is a little patio garden. Around the back you'll find two barrels. Remember what these look like, anytime you see these in the world you can search them for items or gold. One of these two here has a Seed of Magic, which permanently increases your maximum MP, so you can use more spells and abilities. I'm not going to show you where every barrel is, but I wanted to let you see which ones you can search. They look like this:

BARRELS PIC HERE
On the southeast side of the first floor of the castle, you'll find two things of interest. One is the old man who will heal your HP and MP for free every time you talk to him. The other is a pair of jars you can search, one of them should have a Chimera Wing inside it. On the southwest side of the castle is another pot, and a barrel, too, one of them has a Seed of Agility. The old man and the pots are shown in the picture below, so you'll know which pots you can search.

POT/HEALER PIC HERE
ANY boxes, crates, sealed pots, jars, or barrels with rope or junk on top - basically anything that does NOT look like the ones in the two pictures above - cannot be searched. These are the only types of containers that you can search for loot, other than treasure chests. Speaking of treasure chests... you'll see a few of them in the treasury on the castle's west side, but the room is locked and you need a special key to open it. Go north past the treasury room, and up the stairs you'll see to the left. There are four rooms here, two of them are open to you now and the other two require special keys. The maid will mention a "hero's party" which is a joke reference making fun of games like Final Fantasy where you have a group of four people who each play a specific role in battle: the heroic fighter, the warrior tank/DPS, the mage with black magic attacks, and the cleric to heal them and cure any poison or curses. But later you'll get to meet that party of so-called "heroes." Anyway, there's another barrel and pot to search up here, one of them has a Seed of Defense in it.
Since we've now found a bunch of locked doors I will tell you which ones require which keys. In the picture below you see four doors. The brown one is unlocked. The red one requires the "Thief's Key" which is the first one you'll obtain after rescuing some bandits. Yes, I said "rescuing some bandits" not "defeating some bandits." The blue door needs the Magic Key which a certain wizard and dwarf will create for you after you heal the dwarf's illness. And the greenish-grey door requires the Ultimate Key, which is sealed away in the tomb of a legendary singing adventurer.

DOOR PIC HERE
In the northeast corner of the castle you'll find another red locked door. We'll have to come back for that later. At the northern end is the castle's back gate. Once outside, you can talk to the couple who is being all romantic and sad for a moment, then head west to speak with some guards, one of them mentions the north being harried by a group of bandits led by someone named "Reuben Odd" hehe. Then head east. There is a locked door, but it just leads back into the castle so you actually don't even need to unlock it. In a nearby shed you'll find another barrel of loot. Just south of that, two more pots - one has a Seed of Luck! Now keep heading south to find a staircase leading underground. There's another barrel down there. And an old man behind a locked door. REMEMBER HE IS HERE, we'll be back later with the key for this door and he's important.
Back into the castle... head south and out the main gate. This leads into the town of Tantegel. I'm not going to hold your hand with every location of loot and NPCs anymore, so you'll have to do your own exploring to find it all. But I will tell you about the important stuff. So... first, head south from the bridge. At the end of the road you'll find a man who will show you the home of your enemy... the Dragonlord's castle is on an island and you can see it from here! In the house nearby, you'll find a sack hanging on the wall. This is the only other container you can search for loot. Th