Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age Complete Guide (60 Sections) | Ludo.guide

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Welcome to Erdrea, adventurer! Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age is a sprawling, classic Japanese RPG where you play as the Luminary, a prophesied hero destined to save the world from encroaching darkness. You'll journey across a vibrant, hand-drawn world, assemble a party of colorful companions, and battle a variety of monsters in turn-based combat. It’s a grand adventure filled with charm, humor, and a surprisingly deep story that’s perfect for anyone looking for a lengthy, satisfying RPG experience.

This guide is here to help you conquer every challenge Erdrea throws your way. We’ll cover everything from navigating tricky dungeons with detailed maps of places like the Caverns Under Octagonia, to mastering character mechanics and ensuring you don’t miss any crucial items or quests. Whether you're aiming to defeat tough bosses, uncover every secret, or simply want to ensure a smooth playthrough, we've got your back.

Characters

Hey there! So you're diving into Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age and want to get a handle on the awesome crew you'll be adventuring with? This guide is all about the main player characters you'll get to control. As you play, your characters will naturally level up, and with each level, they'll learn new abilities. Plus, you'll earn Skill Points that you can invest in their unique Skill Trees to really customize how they grow and fight.

These Skill Trees are pretty neat, letting you unlock both Active skills (things you choose to use in battle) and Passive skills (like stat boosts or weapon proficiencies). We'll break down what each skill does, how many Skill Points it costs, and even point out some special ones. Keep an eye out for abilities that need a few surrounding skills to be unlocked first (marked with an asterisk), skills that give you Skill Points back (indicated by '(Surprise)'), and special abilities that only show up later in the game, marked in orange for Act 2 events and purple for Act 3 events.

Just a heads-up, this guide will touch on some story developments as your characters progress, so there are minor spoilers ahead. If you're like me and like to plan out your character builds for a long RPG, this is the place to start. But if you'd rather experience everything fresh, feel free to skip ahead to the main walkthrough!

Hero

Walkthrough

1
Start by investing in the Helichopter ability (7 cost, 4 MP) for group damage, a skill useful for most of the game.
2
Spend an early 3 MP on Flame Slash (3 cost, 2 MP), which is required for the Itemised Kill pep ability.
3
Acquire Cutting Edge (10 cost, 8 MP) followed by Unbridled Blade (16 cost, 16 MP). While Unbridled Blade uses more MP, its increased damage is make-or-break for tougher enemies.
4
Prioritize early Swordmastery abilities like Pep-Up (25 cost, 25 MP) over Gigasmash (25 cost, 16 MP), as Quadraslash (Event, 24 MP) becomes available around the same time.
5
During the first part of Act 2, when Luminary skills are inaccessible, invest in one-handed sword abilities to unlock Sword Dance (16 cost, 8 MP). This ability offers damage comparable to Unbridled Blade for less MP and is effective against enemies that block attacks.
6
Once your full skill tree is available, focus on obtaining Omniheal (16 cost, 64 MP) from the Luminary tree. Hero can learn this much earlier than Serena, and it is more beneficial than Zap spells against most enemies.

Tips

While Hero can use swords and greatswords, greatswords are generally the superior choice until the very end of the game.
Hero's magical might stat is not high enough to make most spells consistently effective.
Sword and shield is only a viable option late in the game.
Flame Slash is primarily useful for unlocking the Itemised Kill pep ability.
Hold off on Gigasmash as Quadraslash is a comparable ability learned around the same time.
Sword Dance provides a useful alternative to Unbridled Blade, especially against blocking enemies.
Omniheal is a superior healing spell for Hero compared to Zap spells, which are only effective against a limited enemy subset.

Spells (Hero):

Frizz (Level 2, 2 MP): Minor fire damage to one enemy.
Heal (Level 5, 3 MP): Restores minor health to one ally.
Sizz (Level 8, 3 MP): Minor fire damage to a group of enemies.
Evac (Level 9, 0 MP): Teleports the caster to the start of a dungeon.
Bang (Level 15, 6 MP): Explosive damage to all enemies.
Zoom (Event, 0 MP): Teleport to previously visited locations.
Snooze (Level 16, 3 MP): Puts one enemy to sleep.
Midheal (Level 19, 6 MP): Restores moderate health to one ally.
Sizzle (Level 23, 7 MP): Medium fire damage to a group of enemies.
Frizzle (Level 25, 8 MP): Heavy fire damage to one enemy.
Zing (Level 28, 12 MP): 50% chance to resurrect a fallen ally.
Moreheal (Level 30, 12 MP): Restores large amounts of health to one ally.
Boom (Level 31, 12 MP): Medium explosive damage to all enemies.
Kasnooze (Level 35, 8 MP): Puts all enemies to sleep.
Kasizz (Level 40, 16 MP): Major fire damage to a group of enemies.
Quadraslash (Event, 24 MP): High damage to all enemies.
Kafrizz (Level 56, 21 MP): Very high fire damage to one enemy.
Kazing (Level 62, 24 MP): 100% chance to resurrect a fallen ally.

Abilities (Hero):

Sword Abilities: Flame Slash (3 cost, 2 MP), Sword Stance (7 cost, 2 MP), Dragon Slash (10 cost, 2 MP), Metal Slash (12 cost, 2 MP), Miracle Slash (16 cost, 4 MP).
Sword Passive Abilities: Attack +3 (4 cost), Critical chance +2% (6 cost), Attack +6 (10 cost), Attack +10 (12 cost), Dual Wielding (12 cost).
Greatsword Abilities: Greatsword Guard (3 cost, 2 MP), Helichopter (7 cost, 4 MP), Cutting Edge (10 cost, 8 MP), Frost Fangs (12 cost, 10 MP), Unbridled Blade (16 cost, 16 MP).
Greatsword Passive Abilities: Attack +5 (4 cost), Critical chance +2% (6 cost), Attack +10 (10 cost), Attack +15 (12 cost), Critical chance +3% (12 cost).
Swordmastery Abilities: Falcon Slash (16 cost, 4 MP), Gigaslash (25 cost, 16 MP), Gigasmash (25 cost, 16 MP), Sword Dance (16 cost, 8 MP), Gigagash (36 cost, 32 MP), Gigacrash (36 cost, 32 MP), Blade of Ultimate Power (36 cost, 48 MP).
Swordmastery Passive Abilities: Counter when blocking / parrying (12 cost), Strength +25 (16 cost), Critical chance +3% (16 cost).
Luminary Abilities: Zap (8 cost, 8 MP), Poof (8 cost, 2 MP), Holy Protection (8 cost, 2 MP), Kaclang (12 cost, 8 MP), Zapple (12 cost, 22 MP), Fullheal (12 cost, 24 MP), Big Banga (16 cost, 24 MP), Kazap (16 cost, 48 MP), Omniheal (16 cost, 64 MP), Pep Up (25 cost, 25 MP).

Erik

Walkthrough

1
Unlock Half Inch (Guile Tree, 8 Skill Points) first. This allows you to steal common items from enemies, which is essential for crafting materials, though its success rate can be inconsistent.
2
Invest in the knife tree, prioritizing Cobra Strike (Knife Abilities, 7 Skill Points, 3 MP) and Victimiser (Knife Abilities, 13 Skill Points, 5 MP) for their poison and paralysis status effects, respectively.
3
Transition to the sword tree and unlock Falcon Slash (Guile Abilities, 18 Skill Points, 4 MP). This ability provides two attacks against a single enemy and makes Erik a strong single-target attacker for a significant portion of the game.
4
Unlock Dually Deadly (Sword Passive Abilities, 25 Skill Points) in the sword tree, which makes attacks with both weapons equally effective.
5
Focus on the Guile Tree to acquire Critical Claim (Guile Abilities, 20 Skill Points, 64 MP) for a guaranteed critical hit.
6
Invest in the boomerang tree to unlock Double Down (Boomerang Abilities, 20 Skill Points, 24 MP). This ability deals very high damage to all enemies and may leave them more susceptible to ailments, making dual-wielding boomerangs very effective for clearing groups.
7
Consider unlocking Fatal Flash (Sword Abilities, 20 Skill Points, 8 MP) in the swords tree for high single-target damage with a chance of an instant kill.

Tips

Erik can use swords, knives, and boomerangs.
Erik's spells are useful against bosses as they inflict damage when the enemy acts.
The Divide (Guile Abilities, 14 Skill Points, 6 MP) ability, which gives triple effect at the cost of two actions, has a risk-reward mechanic and is rarely beneficial against groups of enemies or bosses that inflict ailments.
Boomerangs allow Erik to attack multiple enemies, an ability he otherwise lacks.
Twomerang (Boomerang Abilities, 16 Skill Points, 8 MP) is an early boomerang ability that deals double damage to all enemies.
The knife ability Assassin's Stab (Knife Abilities, 18 Skill Points, 5 MP) has a small chance of an instant kill.
The knife ability HP Hoover (Knife Abilities, 16 Skill Points, 4 MP) damages an enemy and restores HP.
The boomerang passive ability Pep-Up Power-Up (Boomerang Passive Abilities, 25 Skill Points) may enhance Erik's abilities.
The Guile passive ability Sticky Fingers (Guile Passive Abilities, 14 Skill Points) improves the chance of stealing.

Spells (Erik):

Rubblerouser (Level 10, 6 Skill Points): Summons an earth sigil that damages the enemy when they try to act.
Evac (Level 12, 0 Skill Points): Teleports you to the start of a dungeon.
Cock-a-Doodle-Doo (Level 15, 2 Skill Points): Cures all party members of sleep.
Peep (Level 22, 1 Skill Point): Reveals the contents of a chest (gold, an item, or a monster).
Boulderbringer (Level 23, 12 Skill Points): Summons an earth sigil that heavily damages the enemy when they try to act.
Mountainmover (Level 42, 20 Skill Points): Summons an earth sigil that severely damages the enemy when they try to act.
Ridgeraiser (Level 61, 36 Skill Points): Summons an earth sigil that does extreme damage to the enemy when they try to act.

Abilities (Erik):

Sword Abilities:

Flame Slash (3 Skill Points, 2 MP): Increased fire damage to a single enemy.
Sword Stance (7 Skill Points, 2 MP): Greatly increases parry chance.
Dragon Slash (10 Skill Points, 2 MP): Heavy damage to dragon enemies.
Metal Slash (12 Skill Points, 2 MP): Damages metal-bodied foes.

Sword Passive Abilities:

Attack +10 (4 Skill Points)
Critical chance +2% (6 Skill Points)
Attack +20 (10 Skill Points)
Attack +25 (14 Skill Points)
Attack +30 (16 Skill Points)

Knife Abilities:

Sleeper Hit (6 Skill Points, 3 MP): Hit sometimes inflicts sleep.
Persecutter (9 Skill Points, 5 MP): Hit sleeping or confused enemies for 6x damage.
Victimiser (13 Skill Points, 5 MP): Hit poisoned or paralysed enemies for 6x damage.

Knife Passive Abilities:

Attack +5 (3 Skill Points)
Critical chance +2% (4 Skill Points)
Dodge chance +3% (14 Skill Points)
Critical chance +4% (14 Skill Points)
Dual-Wielding (16 Skill Points)
Attack +30 (16 Skill Points)
Nastier Knives (increased status chance) (20 Skill Points)

Boomerang Abilities:

Ooze Bruiser (3 Skill Points, 2 MP): Hits all enemies and does additional damage to slimes.
Metalicker (7 Skill Points, 3 MP): Hits all enemies; effective against metal-bodied foes.
Power Throw (13 Skill Points, 4 MP): Damages all targets.
Starburst Throw (18 Skill Points, 10 MP): Medium light damage to all enemies.

Boomerang Passive Abilities:

Accuracy +5% (4 Skill Points)
Attack +5 (6 Skill Points)
Accuracy +5% (9 Skill Points)
Attack +10 (14 Skill Points)
Accuracy +10% (16 Skill Points)

Guile Abilities:

Dodgy Character (12 Skill Points, 4 MP): Increases evasion chance.

Guile Passive Abilities:

Deftness +10 (8 Skill Points)
Dodge chance +2% (8 Skill Points)
Agility +10 (8 Skill Points)
Deftness +30 (10 Skill Points)
Agility +30 (Surprise) (10 Skill Points)
Pep chance +5% (16 Skill Points)

Veronica

Walkthrough

1
Focus on leveling Veronica, as much of her power comes from gaining levels.
2
Equip Veronica with a heavy wand for the majority of the game due to the magical might increase.
3
Invest initial skill points into the Vim tree to unlock abilities like Channel Anger, which is useful for protracted fights, and passive resistances.
4
Consider unlocking Twin Dragon Lash in the whip tree for versatility, especially against enemies resistant to magic.
5
Once Veronica regains access to her full skill tree in Act 3, prioritize unlocking Kaboomle in the Vim tree. This hidden ability costs a lot of MP but deals huge damage to all enemies.
6
Secure the right-hand Vim abilities and necessary heavy wand nodes to acquire Enchanting Echo. This ability can sometimes allow Veronica to cast a spell twice for no additional MP cost, offering genuine utility though not a strategy to rely on.
7
While Kafrizzle is Veronica's most damaging single-enemy spell, Twin Dragon Lash can provide more reliable damage.
8
Use Whipcrackle against mechanical enemies that are typically resistant to spells.

Tips

Veronica specialises in offensive magic and can use whips and two-handed staves.
She is the joint-best buffer/debuffer in the game.
The heavy wand abilities themselves are not very strong, and the initial passive abilities are mediocre.
Giving Veronica a whip to inflict status effects for Erik and Sylvando to combo off is an option, but a more direct approach of dealing high damage is often preferred.
When Veronica gains access to her full skill tree, make a beeline for Kaboomle on the left of the Vim tree.
After unlocking Kaboomle, focus on the right-hand Vim abilities and heavy wand nodes for Enchanting Echo.
Kafrizzle is Veronica's most damaging single-enemy spell, but Twin Dragon Lash can be more reliable.
Whipcrackle is excellent against mechanical enemies that take little damage from spells.

Spells:

Frizz (Level 12, Cost 2 MP): Deals minor fire damage to a single enemy.
Sizz (Level 12, Cost 3 MP): Deals minor fire damage to a group of enemies.
Crack (Level 12, Cost 3 MP): Deals ice damage to a single enemy.
Magic Barrier (Level 12, Cost 4 MP): Raises party magical defence.
Sap (Level 12, Cost 2 MP): Reduces the defence of a single enemy.
Decelerate (Level 12, Cost 2 MP): Reduces the agility of a single enemy.
Fizzle (Level 13, Cost 3 MP): Prevents a group of enemies from using magic.
Bang (Level 13, Cost 6 MP): Deals minor light damage to all enemies.
Dedazzle (Level 14, Cost 2 MP): Cures a single ally of blindness.
Deceleratle (Level 17, Cost 4 MP): Slightly reduces the agility of all enemies.
Kasap (Level 18, Cost 4 MP): Slightly reduces the defence of all enemies.
Fuddle (Level 19, Cost 3 MP): Inflict confusion on a single enemy.
Sizzle (Level 21, Cost 7 MP): Deals medium fire damage to a group of enemies.
Frizzle (Level 23, Cost 8 MP): Deals heavy fire damage to a single enemy.
Drain Magic (Level 24, Cost 0 MP): Drain MP from a single enemy.
Crackle (Level 26, Cost 8 MP): Deals ice damage to a group of enemies.
Bounce (Level 27, Cost 6 MP): Create a barrier that reflects all spells around a single ally.
Boom (Level 29, Cost 12 MP): Deals medium light damage to all enemies.
Oomphle (Level 31, Cost 8 MP): Significantly raises the attack of a single ally.
Blunt (Level 36, Cost 6 MP): Lowers a single enemy's attack.
Kasizz (Level 38, Cost 16 MP): Deals major fire damage to a group of enemies.
Kafuddle (Level 42, Cost 8 MP): Inflicts confusion on a group of enemies.
Kacrack (Level 44, Cost 20 MP): Deals heavy ice damage to all enemies.
Kafrizz (Level 5?, Cost 21 MP): Deals severe fire damage to a single enemy.
Kaboom (Level 5?, Cost 24 MP): Deals severe light damage to all enemies.
Kasizzle (Level 64, Cost 48 MP): Deals very high fire damage to a group of enemies.
Magic Burst (Level 70, Cost 64 MP): Deals 3 * MP damage to all enemies.

Abilities (Veronica):

Heavy Wand Abilities:

Beelzefreeze (Cost 4, MP 2): Deal heavy damage to demons and paralyse them.
Antimagic (Cost 8, MP 2): Prevent a single enemy from casting spells.
Staff of Salvation (Cost 13, MP 4): Restores medium health to a single ally.
Ring of Ruin (Cost 13, MP 6): Increases all party members' chance of critical spell attacks.
Zing Stick (Cost 20, MP 12): Resurrects a fallen ally.

Heavy Wand Passive Abilities:

MP Absorption +2% (Cost 3)
Restore 1-2 MP after battle (Cost 6)
Magical Might +10 (Cost 10)
Maximum MP +10 (Cost 13)
Magical Might +20 (Cost 14)
Restore 3-5 MP after battle (Cost 14)
MP Absorption +4% (Cost 16)
Maximum MP +20 (Cost 16)
Magical Might +30 (Cost 20)
Pep chance +10% (Cost 25)

Whip Abilities:

Hypnowhip (Cost 3, MP 5): Attack a group of enemies with a chance of inflicting confusion.
Lashings of Love (Cost 6, MP 2): Deal heavy damage to humanoid foes.
Hit the Hay (Cost 7, MP 5): Attack a group of enemies with a chance of inflicting sleep.
Starstrike (Cost 14, MP 5): Attack a group of enemies with a chance of inflicting blindness.
Trammel Lash (Cost 16, MP 5): Attack a group of enemies with a chance of inflicting paralysis.
Twin Dragon Lash (Cost 18, MP 5): Two double strength attacks against a single target.
Whipcrackle (Cost 20, MP 16): High lightning damage to a group of enemies.
Wyrm Whip (Cost 20, MP 12): Damage a single enemy and remove all buffs.

Whip Passive Abilities:

Attack +10 (Cost 4)
Attack +15 (Cost 9)
Attack +20 (Cost 13)
Attack +20 (Cost 14)
Maximum MP +20 (Cost 16)
MP Absorption +2% (Cost 16)
Pep-Up Power Up (Cost 25)

Vim Abilities:

Wizard Ward (Cost 8, MP 3): Increase caster's spell resistance.
Spooky Aura (Cost 8, MP 3): Lower a single enemy's spell resistance.
Sage's Breath (Cost 12, MP -): Gradually restores the caster's MP.
Channel Anger (Cost 14, MP 16): Greatly increases the caster's spell damage.
Kafrizzle (Cost 20, MP 52): Deals extremely high fire damage to a single enemy.
Kaboomle (Cost 20, MP 60): Deals extremely high light damage to all enemies.

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Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age

Characters

Hero

Erik

Veronica

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