Start here: how this Dragon Quest I HD-2D guide works

How the chapters work

1. The game has no chapters of its own, so the split here follows its natural stops: a town, a dungeon, a boss, a new key. Read a chapter before you enter its area and tick things off as you go; your progress is saved in this browser.
2. Every checklist uses the same groups:
   1. Treasure: chests, the blue sparkles on the world map, and equipment hidden in pots, barrels or on the ground.
   2. Mini Medals, Seeds and Scrolls have their own lists, so they aren’t repeated under treasure.
   3. Secret Spots, Key items and Bosses close the list.
3. Gold and common herbs found in pots are mentioned in the text, but they don’t get a box.
4. Several doors and chests stay shut until you hold the right key. They’re listed in the chapter where you finally open them, and the earlier chapter tells you to come back.

Before you set off

1. A few things the game takes for granted:
   1. You fight alone. There’s no party, so healing, buffs and damage all come from one character. Bosses are tuned for that, but a bad turn hurts more than usual.
   2. Search everything. Pots, barrels, dressers, bookshelves and even patches of ground can hide items. The ground spots are the easy ones to miss, so the chapters point them out.
   3. Blue sparkles on the world map are free item piles. Most of them are a few steps off the road.
   4. Secret Spots are small hidden areas on the world map. They don’t appear on your map until you walk into one, and most hold treasure or someone to talk to.
   5. Scrolls teach a new spell or ability. Use each one as soon as you find it.
2. The three keys open colour-coded locks:
   1. Thief’s Key (Chapter 5): red doors.
   2. Magic Key (Chapter 9): blue doors and chests.
   3. Ultimate Key (Chapter 14): everything else.
3. Each new key gets its own tour of the towns you’ve already visited, so nothing is left behind.

Mini Medals and the Monarch

1. There are 40 Mini Medals, and every chapter lists the ones in its area. You trade them at the Citadel of the Monarch of Medals, which you reach in Chapter 11. Rewards unlock as your total grows; you don’t lose the medals you hand in.
2. The early rewards are strong when you get them (the Wild Side Scroll and the Dragon Shield stand out), so it pays to pick medals up as you go rather than at the end. The full list and the reward table are on the Mini Medals page.

The decision to plan ahead: Princess Gwaelin

1. Halfway through the game you rescue Princess Gwaelin in Chapter 10. You can take her home to the castle, which is the normal route, or keep carrying her until the final battle. Carrying her changes the ending, and along the way she lends a hand in some of the late boss fights.

2. The three endings, and what each one asks of you, are on the endings page.