Dragon Warrior (NES)
| Set Difficulty | 2/10 |
| Approximate time to master | 6-8 hours |
| Minimum numbers of playthroughs needed | 1 (with save copying) |
| Number of missable achievements | 3, related to the above |
| Does difficulty affect achievements? | Not applicable |
| Hardest achievement of the set | Thou Hast Acquired Master Grinder |
Dragon Quest, titled Dragon Warrior when initially localized to North America, is a role-playing video game developed by Chunsoft and published by Enix for the Nintendo Entertainment System. It was originally released in Japan in 1986 and by Nintendo in North America in 1989. It is the first game in the Dragon Quest video game series. The player controls the hero character who is charged with saving the Kingdom of Alefgard and rescuing its princess from the evil Dragonlord.
Dragon Warrior's set was developer by SirVG, who made sure that all parts of the game are covered, from progression to leveling and monster slaying, and even an optional rate items you would normally not ever need. While it is by no means a difficult set, it is one that will require a lot of grinding, so expect most of your playthrough to be on fast forward.
Step 1: Story Achievements (3 missable)
There are all the achievements necessary to defeat the final boss of the game and claim the game as beaten. This guide is setup in a way that you should at no point need another guide, with the map being shown in part 4 of the guide, and directions given with each achievement.
It is very important that you are aware of the in-game "copy save" function, as you will need to use this unless you plan to play through the full game twice. You also need to NOT rescue the Princess before you have made a copy of your save, as not rescuing the Princess is one of the missable achievements, as well as bringing her with you to the final dungeon.
- Thou Art a Jerk to Women - Beat the game without having rescued the Princess.
- Thine Princess By Thine Side - Go through the final dungeon with the Princess.
- Thou Hast Triumphed Together - Follow-up achievement on the one above.
Step 2: Miscellaneous Achievements
This step is for all the other achievements, generally sorted in a chronological way of how and when to get them. Doing these while alternating between the story achievements is highly recommended to ease up on the grind.
Thou Hast Escapth the King's Chamber (5) Use the Magic Key and open the door to the King's Chamber
This is the first achievement you will unlock in the game. In the king's chamber, search every chest and find the Magic Key. Approach the door south of the king, press A and select the Door option to unlock the door.
Thou Hast Learned of Thy Quest (10) Find Erdrick's Tablet
Erdrick's Tablet can be found in a cave north-west on Tantegel. This cave is devoid of monsters, but as with every cave, it is dark so a torch is recommended to make progress. Head down to the second floor and you will find Erdrick's Tablet in the only chest.
Thou Hast Discovered Thine Inner Bard (10) Find the Silver Harp
Head to Garinham once you have at least two Magic Keys (you can purchase them in Rimuldar), and one or two torches unless you have the Illuminate spell. Strong gear (the best you can get in Rimuldar should suffice) and a level higher than 10 is strongly recommended. Open the house north and go inside, then hug the north black wall until you find the spot that lets you through a passage into Garin's Grave. This is a cave consisting of four floors, and the Silver Harp is, unsurprisingly, at the very end. This cave also has the Cursed Belt for another achievement. It's a dungeon with multiple dead ends, so if you want the quickest route to just the Silver Harp, what you need to do is:
- On B1F, open the door on the right, then make your way to the middle of the screen where the only staircase is.
- On B2F, make your way to the bottom-left of the screen.
- On B3F, go north from where you currently are, which will eventually make you end up at the singular staircase.
- On B4F, take the other singular staircase in the middle, then you will arrive at the Silver Harp.
Thou Hast Harnessed the Sun (10) Find the Stones of Sunlight
One Magic Key (you can purchase them in Rimuldar) is required to get the Stones of Sunlight. Once you have the key, head back to Tantegel Castle and go to the top-right, where you will be blocked by a door. Open this door, then go outside when you are given the option to. Walk downwards alongside the castle wall, then go one space to the right and go downwards along the water to reach a staircase. Here you will find the Stones of Sunlight.
Thou Hast Acquired the Song of Storms (10) Find the Staff of Rain
The Silver Harp is required to get the Staff of Rain. Once you have this, head to Kol and then go west and up until you reach a shrine with an old man inside. Give him the Silver Harp, and the Staff of Rain is yours.
Thou Hast Unearthed a Peaty Sigil (10) Find Erdrick's Token
If you have the Princess' Pledge, you can call to her to find the location, which is "70 steps south, and 40 steps east" on Tantegel. You will most likely not have this if you are going for all the endings, so instead, go to the swamp south of Cantlin (you need to walk around from west). On the right side of this swamp, search for Erdrick's Token pretty much straight in the middle. Walk around here a bit and you will eventually find it. If you are not in a rush, you can wait until after you have Erdrick's Armour to prevent damage taken in the swamp.
Thou Canst Not Have Rainbows Without Reyn (10) Find the Rainbow Drop
Once you have the Stones of Sunlight, the Staff of Rain, and Erdrick's Token, head south of Rimuldar towards Erdrick's Shrine. Give him the items in exchange for the Rainbow Drop.
Thou Hast Conjured the Magic Bridge (5) Build the Rainbow Bridge to reach Charlock Fortress!
With the Rainbow Drop in hand, head to the desert north-west of Rimuldar. Get to the point where the other side is separated by only one tile of water, then use the Rainbow Drop to build the Rainbow Bridge.
Thou Hast Discerned the Truth (5) Discover the secret stairs in Charlock Castle
Go to the throne room in Charlock Castle, then stand behind the throne and search to discover the secret stairs, necessary to proceed to the Dragonlord.
This is the point where you want to copy your save file, using the in-game copy feature on the save select screen.
Thou Art A Fool (5) Accept the Dragonlord's offer
When you finally find the Dragonlord at the bottom of Charlock Castle, he will offer you to rule with him. Accept his offer and you will receive the bad ending.
Thou Hast Vanquished the Darkness! (25) Defeat the Dragonlord!
The Dragonlord is the final- and toughest boss of the game, so being at the very least level 20 is recommended. If you're going for mastery you need to be level 30 so you can also wait until then. With the best armour and sword, just hack in on him and heal when necessary. The Dragonlord has two phases, with the first one being a mage with low defense and HP so just get rid of him as quickly as possible. The second phase is stronger but still not really that bad depending on your level.
Thou Art a Jerk to Women (25) Beat the Dragonlord and return to the castle without saving Gwaelin
As the description mentions, return to the castle without saving the princess.
Thine Princess Art Not in Another Castle (10) Rescue Princess Gwaelin
To rescue the Princess, you will need a Magic Key, a torch or Illuminate magic, and a level of around 15 is also recommended as you need to defeat a Green Dragon (but given that you will likely do this with the endings, you will be fine). Once you have all the requirements, go south of Kol into the cave connecting to the continent with Rimuldar. On the right side in this cave you will run into the dragon that appears as a random encounter, so defeat it and then open the door to find the Princess.
Thine Princess By Thine Side (10) Bring Princess Gwaelin to the Dragonlord!
Once you have rescued the Princess in the achievement above, bring her with you to Charlock Castle and head towards the Dragonlord. The achievement will trigger once you talk to him, and there will be no additional benefits- or penalties so no need to worry about that.
Thine Princess Returned to Her Sire (10) Return Princess Gwaelin to the King
Thou Hast Triumphed Together (25) Beat the Dragonlord and return to the castle with Gwaelin in tow
Once you have defeated the Dragonlord, head back to Tantegel Castle, talk with the king and watch the credits!
Thou Hast Gained A Level (5) Reach Level 2
Thou Hast Learnt a Spell (5) Reach Level 3
Thou Hast No Need for Torches (5) Reach Level 9
Thou Hast Seen Sunlight (5) Reach Level 12
Thou Hast Acquired Body Odor (5) Reach Level 15
Thou Hast Acquired All Spells (10) Reach Level 19
Thou Hast Acquired Master Grinder (10) Reach Level 30
Over the course of the game, you will very likely end up at Level 19 at the very least before you attempt to beat the final boss, unless you are a speedrunner or someone who enjoys suffering through the final dungeon underpowered. Level 30 on the other hand is a serious grind, so it is highly recommended to get familiar with with emulator functions like fast forward and the turbo buttons. Turbo A will keep you going during battles, and Turbo B will ensure the menu won't be opened while fastforwarding on the overworld.
Here are the general recommendations for each milestone:
- Level 2 and 3: just run outside Tantegel and defeat Slimes and Drakees. Recommended is to keep this up to around level 5 while stocking up on gear/armor Tantegel Town.
- Level 9: Make your way north-west of Tantegel to Garinham. Buy the best armour you can, then grind around here for a bit or to the south where a cave is, where you can get an item for another achievement. May as well kill two birds with one stone to make the grind not painful. This cave is recommended to do until level 9. If you have money to burn (3,000 gold to be exact), you can also go to the far east of Garinham to Kol, which has better armour.
- Level 12: For this one, you want to farm south of Rimuldar, which is to the south of Kol through a cave under water. To the south of Rimuldar are not only good enemies like the Wyvern, but also the Goldman who drops more gold than any other enemy. Unsurprisingly, it is recommended to farm this enemy for a while because the better you armour, the easier you can grind. Buy the best armour in Rimuldar during this grind and stock up on some additional money; the next upgrades in armour are fairly expensive.
- Level 15: You can either decide to stay at the Goldmans for a bit longer, or instead do some more mandatory quests, like getting the Silver Harp and Cursed Belt. The Grave of Garin also is a pretty good grinding spot for around your level, so I would personally recommend it. If you are tired of grinding at the same spot, you can go to the south-west of the map, though do beware that enemies are significantly stronger here. If you want, you can try to push through to Cantlin, the fortress city, and see if you have enough money to upgrade you armour; 9,800 gold is needed for the sword, and 14,800 for the shield.
- Level 19: If you haven't done any previous mandatory quests yet, do them now. If not, grind outside Cantlin or inside Hauksness if you are strong enough. Hauksness is also where you can get Erdrick's Armour, so getting this as soon as possible is recommended.
- Level 30: The big grind. First of all, it is highly recommended to have done everything you can at this point, including getting all of Erdrick's gear (the sword is in Charlock Castle) and possibly also the Death Necklace as you will be going down the dungeon several times for it anyway. Once you got everything, your best grinding spot until the very end of the game will be Hauksness. Just run inside with the before-mentioned emulator functions, keep defeating enemies, and heal when necessary.
- Alternative 1: Once you are Level 24, you can one-shot Metal Slimes to the south-west of Hauksness. I generally don't recommend this as they are rare encounters and don't offer that much more exp, but if you are tired of the same environment you can at least mix it up.
- Alternative 2: The lower floors of Charlock Castle will provide you with more exp/h, but also features significantly stronger enemies so you are likely to need healing more often. If that is worth the trade-off for you, it's a good option.
Thou Art a Fighter, Not a Lover (10) Find the Fighter's Ring
The Fighter's Ring is located on the lowest floor in the Mountain Cave south of Garinham. A level of 7 is recommended at the very least. To get as quick as possible to this chest, you need to:
- B1F: Go up and to the north-west to find a staircase. Don't go down here, and instead go to the right, then the first path down and follow the path to the staircase.
- B2F: Go up as soon as you can, then continue the path to the left and you will find two chests at the end, with one containing the Fighter's Ring.
Thou Hast a Death Wish (10) Find the Death Necklace
The Death Necklace is also located on the lowest floor in the Mountain Cave south of Garinham, but there is a catch: this one appears randomly in a chest. You will have to go down to the chest and then out of the dungeon again multiple times to get this item. Recommended is to wait with getting this item until you are a very high level, as well as having enough magic to teleport yourself out of the dungeon whenever you reach the bottom. Doing this during the grind to level 30 is ideal, as this item will not benefit you in any way.
To get as quick as possible to this chest, you need to:
- B1F: Go up and to the north-west to find a staircase. Don't go down here, and instead go to the right, then the first path down and follow the path to the staircase.
- B2F: Go down as soon as you can and make your way to the very south-west of the map, then up until you see a singular chest. This is the one that will either have ~100 gold, or the necklace.
Thou Art the Pied Piper (10) Find the Fairy Flute
An NPC in Rimuldar will tell you about the location, but you don't need to talk to him to find this item. What you need to do is go to Kol and walk up to the open air bath. Stand to the south of it, walk four squares south, and search. You will there find the Fairy Flute.
Thou Hast Gained Weight (10) Find the Cursed Belt
The Cursed Belt is in Garin's Grave, on the bottom floor, which is the same dungeon as where you get the Silver Harp so tackling these both at once is recommended. A level of 13 is recommended at the very least. You will also need two Magic Keys and a torch or two or the Illuminate spell.
To get as quick as possible to this chest, you need to:
- B1F: Open the door on the right, then make your way to the middle of the screen where the only staircase is.
- B2F: Take either the staircase located in the north-west, or in the south-east.
- B3F: Make your way to the north-west of this map, where you will find a chest with the Cursed Belt.
Thou Hast Hefted a Heavy Burden! (10) Find the Silver Shield
Although this achievement says to find the Silver Shield, what you need to do is buy it for 14,800 gold in Cantlin. You will very likely get this just by upgrading your armour over the course of the game, unless you are a sadist.
Thou Hast the Armor of Legend! (10) Find Erdrick's Armor
This armour is located is Hauksness. In this destroyed city, you want to get to the square with trees that is to the right of two swamp tiles, on the right side of the city. You know you will be at the correct square when you are attacked by an Axe Knight defending it. This is a fairly strong enemy, so be prepared and have a level of around 17 when you attempt this. Once the Axe Knight is dead, search the square and you will find Erdrick's Armour.
Thou Hast the Sword of Legend! (10) Find Erdrick's Sword
Erdrick's Sword is located in Charlock Castle, the final dungeon. Before you go here, you need to have finished building the Rainbow Bridge, and be at a level of around 18 or higher. This dungeon is a little complicated, so what you need to do is:
- 0F: Find the staircase behind the throne and go down.
- B1F/B2F: Follow these paths until the end, there is only one staircase to take for both.
- B3F: Take the first path to the left, then up and keep following the path until the next shortcut.
- B4F: Make your way to the top right of the map, then stand left of the staircase and go down.
Once you have taken this staircase, just keep following the paths until you inevitably arrive at Erdrick's Sword.
Thou Hast Defeated the Slime (5) Defeat the trademark Blue Slime!
This enemy roams around Tantegel and is pretty much required to level up. Just defeat one and the achievement is yours.
Thou Hast Defeated the Goldman (5) Defeat the Goldman (and get rich)!
This enemy is located only south of Rimuldar, near the shrine and slightly above of it. Keep running around here until you find one... and stay here for a while because it's good money.
Thou Hast Defeated the Y BURN (5) Defeat the wyvern!
You will encounter the Wyvern at the same location as the Goldman, south of Rimuldar. If by some miracle you don't come across it, it also roams outside of Hauksness.
Thou Hast Defeated the Metal Slime (5) Defeat the evasive Metal Slime!
The Metal Slime is located south-west of Hauksness, and is a tough enemy to kill thanks to its high defense and tendency to run away. You can either just keep running around there and hope you end up lucky, or wait until level 24 where it will be a guaranteed one-shot.