Deltora Quest: The Seven Gems


 * This article is about the video game. For the card game, see Deltora Quest Card Game.

Deltora Quest: The Seven Gems, alternatively translated as Deltora Quest: The Seven Jewels, (デルトラクエスト 7つの宝石 Derutora Kuesuto Nanatsu no Houseki) is a Japanese exclusive Nintendo DS game which was released in 2007. For the most part the game follows the storyline in the first series of Deltora Quest and is faithful to the source material, more so than the anime and manga. However, several changes have been made to the story to better fit the video game format, and some characters have been cut out entirely.

The game features nine main levels, eight of which are able to be replayed from the main map. The first level, which can only be replayed by restarting the save file, acts as the tutorial, and focuses on the first half of The Forests of Silence. Apart from the main levels, the game also has six extra areas. These areas include Tom's Shop, Phantom Tower, Mokito's House, Mix Mix Room, Grand Farm, and the Secret Audio Room.

Gameplay
The game features a stylus-based combat system. Tapping enemies with the stylus will make your character attack an enemy in the game. There are also a few special moves. By swiping the stylus instead of tapping, the character on screen will perform a dash attack move, allowing more damage to more enemies. On the upper screen is a biorhythm gauge, represented by a wave. By tapping or using the microphone when the wave reaches its peak, the character will perform a special attack. Dealing damage will cause the biorhythm gauge to move up, allowing access to more powerful special attacks, while receiving damage will cause it to move down.

The player can choose between Lief, Barda, and Jasmine, all of whom have slight differences in their gameplay and a unique special attack. Barda has high attack power and low attack speed, while Jasmine has low attack power and high attack speed. Lief has a medium attack power and medium attack speed. By equipping different kinds of gear, the characters can gain health and special effects, such as increased attack strength.

Tents can be found on the chapter selection screen and within the maps. They allow the player to switch between the characters, save the file, and return to the chapter select from within the map.

Also within the maps are blacksmith anvils. These allow the player to level the characters to a max level of ten, and can apply a temporary effect to the character's attack. Levelling up characters allows for more types of special attacks to be used. The anvils are limited and do not return once used, so it is possible for a player to use up all of them and not hit max level.

The game also features a collectible card system, which displays an enemy, character, group of people, or event, and provides a brief description from Lief. Players can use the wireless communication feature to share cards with each other and share notes.

Each of the main eight levels on the map correspond to a novel. When replaying a level, the cutscenes and dialogue are not shown again.

Prologue
The game begins with Jarred reading The Belt of Deltora. The book reads that long ago, the seven tribes of Deltora were attacked by the Shadow Lord. They united under Adin, who created the Belt and gathered the tribe's seven gems, and drove out the Shadow Lord. Adin wore the Belt always, for it was Deltora's protection against the Shadow Lord. However, eventually the kings of Deltora stopped wearing the Belt. Jarred, realizing that it would soon be Endon's coronation, set out to tell him to keep the Belt on. He watched as Prandine put the Belt on Endon, and despite Jarred's requests, allowed the Belt to be put away again. After the coronation ceremony ended, Jarred stood alone in the throne room. Remembering an event in their past, where they forged a sword together, he resolved to try and persuade Endon.

Catching up to Endon, Jarred tried to tell him that he should always wear the Belt. However, Endon had heard of no such rule, and refused to break the rules that he knew. Prandine then arrived, and, accusing Jarred of trying to harm Endon, called for the guards and took Endon away. Jarred, now pursued by the guards, fled. He left a note for Endon on a tree that could be seen from his window, and jumped into a rubbish carriage to escape into Del. Upon his arrival in Del he was shocked, for it had always appeared as a beautiful city from the palace. After wandering the streets, he found his way to the forge, where Crian the blacksmith allowed him to stay if he could work. There he met Crian's granddaughter, Anna, whose parents had been killed by Grey Guards.

Seven years later, Crian the blacksmith had died. Jarred and Anna married, and were expecting a child. Meanwhile, in the palace, Endon told his wife Sharn some of his worries. He told her that Min, his nursemaid, had warned him that there was a traitor in the palace. Thinking it to be nothing, he paid her no attention, only to find that she had been killed shortly after. He also felt concerned about the chief advisor, Prandine, and realized that Jarred had actually been trying to help him. At this point, a strong wind blew, and the note Jarred had left in the tree fluttered to the ground. After reading it, Endon collapsed to the ground, regretting that he hadn't listened to Jarred.

That night, the palace was attacked, invaded by Grey Guards and Ak-Baba. Jarred, sneaking into the palace, made his way past the Grey Guards and palace guards fighting. He reunited with Endon, who apologised for not listening to him, and after catching up, they headed to the tower where the Belt was stored. When they got there, however, the room had already been broken into and the gems taken. Prandine entered the room at this point, gloating that the gems were already gone, and that he would soon rule the land. He told them that the chief advisors had been serving the Shadow Lord for a long time, and after noticing the belt still intact, realises that an heir to Adin still lived. Sharn, pretending to see a gem outside the window, tricked Prandine into looking out, where she then pushed him out. Disheartened, Endon asked Jarred what he should do, now that the gems were gone. Jarred responds that although the gems were gone, they still had the Belt, and they could gather the gems once more.

Sixteen years later, Lief, on his way back to the forge, runs into the Grey Guards patrolling the streets. Finding himself cornered, he is saved by the beggar, Barda. After a brief exchange with him outside of the forge, Barda tells him that if he wished to leave the town, his journey would soon be beginning. Inside the forge, Lief's father tells him that he used to live in the palace as King Endon's friend. Giving him the empty Belt, he asks Lief to gather the seven gems and save Deltora. After receiving a sword from his father and a cloak from his mother, he sets off. Before he leaves Del, he is joined by Barda, who takes off his beggar disguise and reveals that he used to be a palace guard. He tells Lief that their first destination would be the Forests of Silence.

Chapter 1: The Forests of Silence
The events of the first chapter are largely similar to the books. This stage begins with a battle tutorial and the player navigates the Forest as either Barda or Lief. There are two blacksmith anvil locations in the map, one in First Wood, the second in Mid Wood. There are two boss battles against the Wennbar and Gorl.

At the end of the First Wood, Barda and Lief are not captured by the Wenn, like what happens in the books or anime, but they pass out and become paralyzed nonetheless. Jasmine appears, and rescues them. However, instead of climbing the trees to evade the Wennbar, there is a boss battle where the player must fight it. It utilizes either a bite attack or it breathes a cloud of smoke that damages and slows the player. Once defeated, Jasmine takes Lief and Barda back to her nest. The player then continues into Mid Wood, where you travel along the branches of the trees. if you do not follow the path of the branches, you will fall to the ground, then be placed back onto the bough you fell from with one less heart. Upon reaching End Wood, the boss battle with Gorl commences. Barda is gravely wounded by him, and the player must fight against Gorl, who uses his sword and magical fireballs to attack. Jasmine cuts a branch from the trees, and Gorl is crushed, as what happens in the books. She then uses the Lilies of Life to revive Barda.

Tom's Shop
Various items can be purchased here. Some items will restock upon re-entry, but items necessary for story progression will not. Drawing the Resistance symbol will cause Tom to give you a discount on his wares. Upon unlocking his store after completing Chapter 2, Tom will provide the player with Water Eaters (even if nothing is bought), and the player will be able to ride muddlets.

Phantom Tower
In this area, players must fight through hoards of enemies in order to find stairs which lead higher into the tower. Every floor on the tower is randomized, as well as the enemies that spawn in each room. As the player progresses in height, the enemies become harder to kill, and different enemies will appear. Every ten levels, a boss is presented to the player. Upon reaching the hundredth floor, the player is sent back to the main map. Completing the Phantom Tower rewards the player with the key item "Deltora Complete Songbook," which unlocks the Secret Audio Room.

Mokito's House
Here, players must chase Mokito down by answering questions about the video game and facing obstacles. In each question, Mokito will present the player with three different images, and the player must choose the correct one. There are two rooms that contain a spot-the-difference minigame, and completing them correctly will allow the player entry into a room with a reward within. Re-entering Mokito's House will not provide anything different, and the dialogue and cutscenes will be replayed.

Mix Mix Room
This area allows players to craft various items by mixing together ingredients. The items that can be created include consumables, gear, and ingredients. Although there are recipes that the player can obtain that tell how to make certain items, there are more recipes that are not listed and must be found through experimentation.

Grand Farm
Players meet a farmer called Jack, who gives the mission of eliminating monsters that are destroying his farm. Every day, monsters will arrive, and the player must defeat them. After three days, Jack will reward the player with 10 of the crops that he grew, and if the player misses a day, his crops will die and the mission must be restarted. The enemies that spawn are random, and Jack will give the player either wheat, pumpkins, or hibiscus. The DS time can be adjusted to speed up the process without repercussions.

Secret Audio Room
Players can listen to the various soundtracks in the game.

Soundtrack


A collection of three Japanese exclusive CDs were released in 2007. In its entirety, the bundle of CDs contain ninety tracks composed by various artists. They include Hitoshi Sakimoto, Kimihiro Abe, Mitsuhiro Kaneda, Noriyuki Kamikura and a piece performed by the Eminence Symphony Orchestra.

Trivia

 * Unlike the book, Thaegan is not defeated at the Lake of Tears. She is later used as a boss after escaping the Maze of the Beast.
 * When in Tom's shop, if you draw the Resistance symbol, Tom will give you a discount on his current stock.