Dragon Warrior Playthrough, Part 5: Enter Sandman

I considered my trip to the promontory a failure. Not only had I come back empty-handed, but I hadn't learned anything that seemed useful, at least not right now. Also, the old guy was a bit too self-righteous for my taste.

So where to next? There is a cave south of Kol, but it's surrounded by a swamp and I'm barely holding up against the monsters on this side of it. I'm not optimistic about my chances on the other.

I think I will head west. In my earlier scouting trips I saw bridge west of Tantegel. Maybe there's something of value beyond it.

Perchance to dream

The trip is long but my skill and strength are greater now - the intervening enemies no longer cause me much trouble. I stop by Tantegel to chat with the King (i.e., save my game) and then Garinham to upgrade my armor. The Chain Mail is a considerable upgrade from the Leather Armor, which is now weathered and has more than a little slime residue splattered on the arms. That the merchant buys it back at even half price is a small miracle.

Continuing south from Garinham, I finally cross the bridge I saw on my earlier adventures. On the other side, I am faced with many of the same enemies I encountered near Kol, including Magicians, Magidrakees, Scorpions, and Skeletons. The Skeletons are still out of my league, but I only see them rarely. It's not long before I reach level 7.

With the Hurt spell now all but useless, my offensive arsenal is wanting, so I'm happy to see that level 7 brings a new magical weapon: Sleep.

Following the rule of thumb I used when studying Hurt, an offensive spell needs to spare me as much pain as I would restore with Heal with the same amount of magical power. Sleep costs half that of Heal, so I would need it to save me 7 - 8 HP, on average.

Right now, the only monster I'm fighting that does that much damage in an entire battle is the Skeleton, so this is another case where I'm only likely to use the spell on monsters that would normally be out of my league. Still...

I have to use Sleep twice, but I think it's worth it. I only take 8 damage the entire fight, which is much less than in our last go-round (when I used four Heal spells).

Unlike Hurt, there's a chance that Sleep will remain useful well into the future. It's always nice to have the enemy sleeping for multiple turns, the only question is whether it will continue to work on stronger monsters. If Sleep fails outright, I lose more than just two points in magic power, I also lose a turn. That's a particularly nasty double-whammy when facing powerful enemies.

The Mystery Cave (AKA the Cave of Mystery, AKA WTF Mate)

When I've finished mapping out the area south of the bridge, one feature sticks out like a sore thumb.

What the heck is in the cave in the south? The villagers told me about a cave where the Princess is being held, but that's supposed to be back east...

Fine, I'm no pansy, but before I dive into the depths of an unknown dungeon, I want to get something first.

I just want to fly

Imagine this scenario: I delve into the lower levels of a dangerous dungeon only to encounter an unforeseen powerful enemy. I defeat the enemy, but not before it drains most of my life and magic. What do I do now?

Right now, the answer is that I have to walk all the way back to the exit of the cave (hopefully I was mapping!) and then travel all the way back to the nearest town or castle. That's a tall order for someone with almost no health or magic!

With the Wings, I can cut out at least the latter part of this trip, because they will take me instantly back to Tantegel Castle. They only cost 70 G, which is 1/8 of the next equipment upgrade I'm targeting (the Hand Axe).

So, I walk back to Kol, buy the Wings, place them in my sack with the Herb, and trudge back to the dungeon. It's a bit tedious, but at least gives a purpose to time that might otherwise be spent just building experience.

Now, with my sack, sword, and shield in hand, I prepare myself to plumb the depths of the Mystery Cave.

Because it's there

As I tiptoe cautiously through the cave entrance, I can't help remembering that I have no reason to even be here. No treasures have been promised and no princesses are held here. I am driven by nothing more than an adventurous spirit and a faint streak of pathological narcissism.

Onward I go. I'm barely done exploring a few passages in the first level when I encounter my first Druin. These malformed monstrosities look like the unhappy result of a union between a crab and a grasshopper; I mean, if each were the size of a rhinoceros.

Fortunately, the Druin has no magical abilities and its strength is comparable to a Scorpion, so it is no major obstacle. On my initial dungeon crawl, I make a complete map of the first level.

Here "SD" is short for "Stairs Down" and "C" marks treasure chests.

Aside from the Druin, all of the other monsters on this level are ones I've seen before. I do find one treasure chest along the way; an Herb. Healing is always welcome. Fortunately, I'm able to finish my mapping with enough health and magic to safely make the trip back to Tantegel.

My second foray into the depths of this mysterious dungeon is much more eventful. There are three staircases to the second level, but the ones in the northwest and southeast both lead to dead ends. It's not until I reach the third staircase (SD2) that the second level really opens up.

There's a virtual zoo of new enemies on this level. The Droll is a massive beast with eye stalks and jowls. It lumbers awkwardly down the dungeon corridors, but can take a beating comparable to the Skeleton.

The Drakeema is the Magidrakee's stronger cousin. It actually has the ability to cast a Heal spell, but doesn't use it with enough intelligence to cause me trouble. The Poltergeist looks like a Ghost, but can cast Hurt and take more of a beating.

The biggest threat of all, however, is definitely the Warlock. With him, I find myself on the receiving end of a Sleep spell for the first time.

Being put to sleep is unnerving because I never know how long I'll be out for. Maybe I'll never wake up at all...

Empty hands

It takes me two trips to completely map out the second level of the dungeon. There are four treasures in all, two with stashes of gold, one with a Torch, and the last with a Fighter's Ring. The latter seems like it ought to provide me with some kind of magical boost, but wearing it has no apparent effect. Maybe it will bring luck, or maybes it will give me a leg up at my next beauty pageant. Regardless, it's definitely not worth the risk of battling Warlocks.

My dungeon crawl was not a complete waste, however. I manage to advance my level to eight, as well as fatten my coin purse substantially. Whatever awaits in the next stage of my adventure, I will be more prepared now.