The fourth chapter of Dragon Quest IV begins in the entertainment town of Laissez Fayre. Here you meet Meena and Maya, twin sisters who seek to avenge the death of their father. They will chat with their manager for a bit, who gives them 100 gold for the day's work. The next day they decide to leave and seek out their target, a man named Balzack.
You can leave Laissez Fayre immediately, if you wish, and begin traveling the world. There's plenty to collect in the town, however, and we're going to poke around a bit first.
- The sisters start off in a small bedroom. Check the pots in the next room over for a Medicinal Herb.
- Head to the central theater in town. If you go as far north as you can you'll find the small room where the sisters spoke to the manager. The pots in this room contain a Seed of Strength, and the cupboards contain a Silk Robe. You can get up on the stage by heading south from the manager's room, and if you do so at night... well, there's some catcalling involved.
- You'll find the Weapon and Armor Shops in the northwest of Laissez Fayre. You'll want to spend some time fighting outside town so you can afford better equipment for the sisters. Of primary importance is getting Maya a weapon, and a Divine Dagger will do nicely. You can sell her Dancer's Outfit for 300 gold to get an early boost, as it is not a great piece of armor.
- The Inn is in the southeast of Laissez Fayre. Check the cupboards for 20 gold. Also inside the Inn is a protective priest, and if you come back here at night you can speak to the person he's guarding. She has info regarding the rest of the chapter, though you don't have to hear it.
- Attached to the Inn is a house. Check the upper floor of the house for Wayfarer's Clothes.
- Next to the church, in the southwest of Laissez Fayre, is a building. If you rotate the camera you'll see it has two doors. One door leads to a single-room dwelling, and you can smash the pots for 5 gold. The other door leads to a second-floor apartment, and you'll find a Leather Hat in the dressers.
- If you revisit Laissez Fayre at night the pub on the west side of town will be open. There's an Antidotal Herb in a cupboard on the second floor.
World Map - Laissez Fayre Region - Enemies
- Foo Dog - 23 HP
- Horny Devil - 14 HP
- Lickspittle - 13 HP
- Platypunk - 10 HP
- She-Slime - 10 HP
- Walking Stick - 8 HP
Standard procedure applies as you enter the world map: Stick close to Laissez Fayre and build up some experience. Both Meena and Maya need levels before they can risk traveling too far. Their specialities will be familiar after playing the second chapter:
- Meena is similar to Kiryl in that she wields restorative and defensive magic. Meena's a bit better physically, but Kiryl has better spells in the long run. Still, for the purposes of this chapter Meena will be your healer.
- Maya is similar to Borya, wielding offensive magic. Like her sister, she's better than Borya in the physical realm, but he's ultimately a stronger caster.
Both sisters are decent at fighting, and will get you through the chapter just fine. Feel free to hop back and forth between their weapons and their magic as needed.
Unlike previous chapters, where you often hop between different landmasses, you'll spend the entirety of the fourth chapter on the same stretch of geography. Your destinations are to the north of Laissez Fayre, and if you walk too far you'll start running into much stronger monsters. Try to get Meena and Maya to level 3 or 4 before leaving Laissez Fayre.
Head north once you're satisfied with your progress. As you enter hilly territory you'll see a sign. North of this sign you'll find a new location.
Aubout du Monde
Meena and Maya's former home, Aubout du Monde hasn't forgotten the sisters - and there are clues here that may lead them to their father's killer. Let's have a quick look around.
- The Inn is right by the entrance of Aubout du Monde. It is nothing special - though you can stay here for free, making it a nice spot to level.
- The Item Shop in the southeast of Aubout du Monde also sells weapons and armor. The Chain Sickle is a good weapon for Meena once you have enough money.
- There's an unassuming house in the middle of the village, just north of a horse pen. Check the cupboards inside this house for a Leather Shield.
A dog will greet the sisters when you head northeast in Aubout du Monde, and near the dog is their old house. Check the cupboards and pots inside for 35 gold and a Seed of Magic, then check the rear of the house (left door) to find a grave out back. There's a Seed of Life sitting in front of the grave.
(If you visit the grave at night you'll see something sad. Poor dog.)
Near the front of the house is an old man who will tell you about a man named Oojam. A Slime in the basement of the house - only there at night - will add another tidbit about Oojam, namely that he can open locked doors. You need to find Oojam. Leave Aubout du Monde, cross the bridge to the north, and head west. It won't be long before you find a cave.
Cave West of Aubout du Monde
- Dirty Dogu - 15 HP
- Firespirit - 12 HP
- Funghoul - 19 HP
- Lickspittle - 13 HP
- Wimp - 20 HP
- Winkster - 15 HP
Your first dungeon in the fourth chapter, this dungeon is reasonably challenging given how many monsters it can throw at you in a single fight. The enemies down here are fairly tough, and you may want to get the sisters up to level 5 or 6 before going too deep. This will ensure Meena has the Squelch spell, in case the Funghouls lurking hereabouts inflict Poison status.
The path through here is as follows:
- Head generally west from the entrance until you're forced north. Keep going north, past the next right, to find a chest containing a Chimaera Wing. Back south and to the right is a path to an elevator.
- Follow the path on the next floor until you come to a room with a pool in the middle. Head west of here to find another elevator. Climb aboard.
- Head east in the next area, around the water, and make your way to the middle of the chamber. There's an island here, and this is where you'll find Oojam. He's a melee fighter, and will make this dungeon much easier. (Mind that you can't control him.) Check the chest near Oojam for the Night Light, which allows you to change day to night whenever you like.
- Go back upstairs via the elevator and check to the south. There's a chest here containing 240 gold. Head east along the bottom of the pond that you passed earlier to find another passage, leading south. There's a chest along the way containing a Seed of Life, and at the end of the passage is an elevator.
- The elevator leads to another elevator, which will then bring you down to the lowest floor again. Here you'll find a chest containing the Sphere of Silence. You'll need this to beat the final boss in this chapter. (It's possible to make do without, but... your chances are poor.)
That's all for the cave, at least for the moment. You'll come back here later in the game. Use Oojam to grind levels, if you wish - he can kill everything in the cave in a single hit - then return to the world map.
Head back to Aubout de Monde, rest up, then head northeast of the town. The enemies will change once you're clear of the mountains.
World Map - Havre Léon Region - Enemies
- Bullfinch - 20 HP
- Crack-Billed Platypunk - 25 HP
- Dirty Dogu - 15 HP
- Fire Beatle - 20 HP
- Frolicker - 43 HP
- King Slime - 150 HP
- Paralyslicer - 30 HP
- Slime (King Slime) - 30 HP
- Slime (normal) - 8 HP
- Wimp - 20 HP
Once the land opens up again the monsters you're facing will get quite a bit tougher. Fortunately for you, Oojam is still more than capable of fighting them off. This general area is great for leveling. As you walk you'll find Palais de Léon - don't bother going here yet - and further north of that is a town, your next destination.
Occasionally while wandering around in this section of the world map you'll encounter run-of-the-mill Slimes. All they do, however, is summon other Slimes. Once there are eight Slimes they will merge into a King Slime. These are the toughest enemies in the region - but they're not that tough, and a weapon from the next town will allow you to Paralyze them if you get lucky. You'll receive 100 experience for killing a King Slime, which is pretty good for this point in the game.
Havre Léon
A port town, Havre Léon is the last 'complete' town you'll be visiting before the game starts to push all of your party members together. You don't really have to come here yet, but there are enough new items to pick up that you should visit the town before moving on with the story.
- In the north of town you'll find the Armor and Item Shops. The Item Shop is nothing special, but the Armor Shop has the best equipment you can get for this chapter. The final boss is a bit rough, so you may want to outfit Meena and Maya with the best armor you can afford. (There are more fights ahead before you tackle the boss, so you can come back later, as well.)
- South of the Armor Shop is a small, unmarked building with a hidden door. It leads to a prison, and one of the prisoners has vital information for completing the chapter. You don't have to speak to him, but you'll get the gist of where you need to head next. If you come here at night another prisoner will be more active, and share info about the Sphere of Silence you picked up earlier.
- In the west of town is the Weapon Shop, out on the end of a narrow path through the water. There's a good array of weapons here worth getting, and the one that will trigger the most debate is the Poison Needle. Most of the time this weapon will hit for a single point of damage. Occasionally, however, it will just straight-up kill the target. The Poison Needle doesn't work against bosses, but if you fancy yourself lucky it may do quite well against normal enemies. Equip it on a party member with poor melee skills and see how they do.
- If you check the building in the northwest of Havre Léon you'll discover that it leads to a docked ship. You can't climb aboard just yet. You can, however, bust open some barrels, which contains 15 gold and a Medicinal Herb.
That's all for Havre Léon, at least for now. You'll be back again before the chapter ends. Leave town and head west. There's a shrine along the way with a nun who shares some non-critical (but ominous) information, and further west there's another town. It is... not as nice as Havre Léon.
- Featherweight - 52 HP
- Frolicker - 43 HP
- Jinkster - 35 HP
- Lost Soul - 40 HP
- Salamander Fry - 40 HP
- Vampire Battler - 38 HP
- Venus Guytrap - 37 HP
- Weartiger - 50 HP
Ew. Likely a nice little working town at some point, the Mamon Mine is now flooded with a deadly, purple gas that's seeping out of the mines. The people are understandably pessimistic about their circumstances.
The surface section of Mamon Mine is what remains of the town. There's very little to see up here beside a church and an Inn, but you should still look around a bit anyway.
- If you check the cupboard in the Inn you'll find a Leather Hat.
- Check the cupboard in the northeastern building (an administrative center, maybe?) you'll find some Holy Water.
- On the west side of Mamon Mine is a small house. Check the cupboards for a Medicinal Herb. There's an old man in here who will tell you where to get Gunpowder, which you'll need to reach the end of the chapter.
- In the northwest of the town, beyond the gate to the mine, you'll see a dilapidated house. You can enter the house via a hidden door on its north side. Within you'll find a chest containing a Scale Shield, as well as 10 gold inside a cupboard.
- If you enter the town at night you'll see some roaming spirits beyond the gate to the mines. They hint at this area being more than it seems.
The way to the mine is blocked, but you can get around the gate by entering the northeastern building and going through the door on your left.
The mine itself is a dungeon, though a fairly short one. The monsters in here are tough, and you'll want to be level 8 or higher, with good equipment, before entering. The only enemies that can really annoy you are the Vampire Battlers, as they can put the whole party to Sleep - and will do it over and over again. Wipe these things out as quickly as you can, or they may stunlock your party into submission.
These directions will get you through the mines:
- Near the entrance is a small room with a man, and if you bust the pot near the man you'll find a Seed of Life.
- To the northwest of the entrance is a room with a chest, inside which you'll find Silver Tarot Cards. These can be used as an item (by Meena only) to conjure a random spell in battle, and they allow Meena to tell the party's future outside of battle. Pretty neat.
- Head northeast of the entrance and you'll find the stairs to a lower level. Take a left upon entering this area and you'll find a room with several graves, and a wandering miner. Check the sparkle in front of the graves for a Seed of Life.
- Head back to the entrance hallway, then go north and left at the next intersection. There's a room with three barrels, one of which contains 50 gold.
Head east after busting up the barrels and you'll find stairs. They lead to the final level of the mines, where two miners are still working away. Check the chest near them for a Powder Keg, which is what you came down for in the first place. With the Powder Keg in hand you can head back the way you came. You will be returning to this mine in the future, and next time it is going to be much bigger.
The battles in the mines likely earned you a nice amont of gold, and now's a good time to return to Havre Léon and spend it on better equipment. The end is near, and it's waiting in the castle to the south of town.
Palais de Léon
An oddly featureless castle, the Palais de Léon is your second-to-last stop in this chapter. Normally it is locked, but Oojam can pick the locks and open either of the red doors at the front of the castle. Aside from the people inside - who are a little odd - you can find 200 gold in a cupboard in the castle's southeastern room on the first floor, and a Dancer's Costume in a cupboard on the second floor, in the central-eastern room.
Speak to the NPCs milling about inside and you'll get the idea that the Chancellor, who lives in the southeastern room on the first floor, is a scaredy cat. You can exploit this by standing to the left of his room, in the hallway, and using the Powder Keg. The explosion will frighten the Chancellor and send him running north. Follow him - but not too closely, or he'll stop - and he'll open a secret door along the northern wall. Inspect this spot and you'll find a button to open the wall. On the other side...
Balzack
HP: 300
The time for revenge is at hand! Balzack is a nasty demon, and aside from his melee attacks - which hurt enough on their own - he can use magic to harm the whole party, or to heal himself. The healing part is the problem, as Balzack will use Fullheal when his health is low to fully restore himself. You'll soon run out of resources and fall to attrition.
The trick here is to use the Sphere of Silence that you picked up earlier. This will prevent Balzack from casting spells, limiting him to his melee attack and a weak fire breath. Once silenced Balzack becomes much easier. Have Maya use Sap on Balzack to lower his defenses, then let Maya and Oojam batter him to death while Meena heals. Use the Sphere of Silence again whenever the effect wears off. Pretty simple, so long as you watch everyone's HP. Balzack can still do over 20 HP of damage with his claw swipes, which is not a piddly amount.
Alas, defeating Balzack is not enough...
You're not meant to win this fight. The Marquis will wipe the floor with your party. Enjoy!
After the fight the sisters will awaken in a jail cell, and an old man will tell them to flee through a hole in the wall. Bust up the barrels and pots in the room to find a Seed of Strength, as well as your way out. There's a Boarding Pass in a chest in the next corridor, as well as the way out... though Oojam will leave the party as the sisters make their escape. You can reenter the castle's courtyard after leaving for an extra bit of sadness.
Head north to Havre Léon, and use up any money you have left. Once that's done, head to the indoor dock in the northwest of the town. There's a boat waiting, and now that you have the Boarding Pass you can climb aboard. Check the lower deck to find barrels containing a Seed of Magic (they're at the south end of the deck, and easy to miss), then climb to the upper deck and speak to the sailor at the wheel of the ship. Agreeing to leave will end the chapter.