20 Encounters from Dragon Quest III

Akira Toriyama, one of Japan's most prolific and influential manga artists, passed away last week. Even if you don't follow anime or manga, chances are you recognize his name. Toriyama is most famous as the creator of Dragon Ball, and it's hard to overstate the impact he and his work had on the landscape of popular culture. Not only was Dragon Ball a smash hit in Japan, revolutionizing action and martial arts manga, setting many of the tropes that characterize it today, and inspiring many of today's artists to get into the industry, it was also immensely popular around the world, and kicked off the surge in interest in Japanese popular culture among Westerners that continues to this day.

I've been a huge fan of Dragon Ball ever since I was watching it on Toonami as a kid, and I wasn't alone. All my classmates were pretending to throw Kamehamehas at each other on the playground, and everyone I know who watched the series in their childhood is still a fan of it to this day, myself included. Many people credit the series with inspiring a love of storytelling, and others cite it as what influenced them to take up martial arts. In one series alone, Toriyama left a legacy that will never be forgotten.

At least over here in the States, it's easy to forget that Dragon Ball wasn't the only thing Toriyama did. But his contributions to pop culture go even deeper than that. He was one of the co-creators of the Dragon Quest video game series, doing all the concept art for the franchise ever since its inception. And around the same time as I was tuning into Cartoon Network after school every day to keep up with the Cell Saga, I was also experiencing Toriyama's work through my Game Boy Advance port of Dragon Quest III, a game I've already spoken about here.

I have many fond memories of the game's expansive open world, and the amount of content it managed to pack into what was originally an NES cartridge still blows my mind. It's filled with interesting and unique locations and sidequests, with no two areas being quite alike, and every major corner of the map offering something to explore. I don't think it's any coincidence that I began to explore running tabletop RPGs as a DM around the same time, and in my early days I lifted a lot of locations, quests, and encounters from DQ3. Sometimes I still do. With fans around the globe gathering to remember Toriyama, it's worth turning to this part of his legacy.

Here are twenty things from Dragon Quest III that have stuck with me through the years, and that have found their way into my games. You could use it as a random encounter table if you wanted to, though it'd probably lead to some strange results. You could roll on it ahead of time for an idea you could try to work into your next session. Or you could look over the list and think about the possibilities it could offer for your games - just as I did with the strategy guide many years ago.

1. A talking horse who knows the location of a powerful artifact.

2. A halfling hermit who guards a pass through the mountains and will only grant entrance on order of his liege.

3. A king willing to trade a ship for a bag of black pepper from a far-off land (as the kind of weird kid who read history books for fun, this was a bit of Vikings in Clown Trousers I appreciated even then). 

4. A tower on an island accessible only through a series of underwater caves.

5. A town under a sleeping spell cast by an elven queen after her daughter stole a priceless treasure to run off with her human lover.

6. A cursed suit of armor made from the hide of a demon.

7. A vase that can suck in enough water to drain a passage hidden beneath the sea.

8. A magic spring inhabited by a spirit who will exchange items dropped into it for better ones - so long as one doesn't get greedy with it.

9. A pit where treasure is set on ledges only accessible by climbing to tightropes strung high above and taking a leap of faith.

10. A dragon disguised as the queen of a town, deceiving the villagers into sacrificing their women in exchange for "protection." She talks in her sleep, revealing her true nature.

11. Carved stone heads that guard a treasure by speaking to those who pass, trying to tempt them into giving into cowardice and turning away.

12. The ghost of a woman who drowned herself after her husband was lost at sea, now haunting a narrow cape and refusing to let any ships pass through until her spirit is placated.

13. A gaping pit leading to a continent on the inside of the hollow earth.

14. A market selling magical herbs that can bestow the power of invisbility.

15. A dungeon warded by a curse that prevents those inside from using magic.

16. A king who, upon being helped with his problems, will abdicate the throne at the first opportunity and pass his title off to those who helped him so he can go off gambling.

17. A flute that causes treasure to vibrate in response to its music.

18. A volcano that must have an artifact dropped into it so that its lava can form a bridge.

19. A town renowned for its blacksmith, who has brought the secret of working orichalum from a far-off land.

20. A dragon in a castle high above the clouds, who can grant a wish to any who defeat him in combat (nice try, Toriyama).