Zenithia

By this point, our investigation into the setting of The Saga of the Ortegids has covered every region present in the original NES Dragon Quest trilogy (and then some), across both the two worlds of Erdland and Torland, discussing the opportunities each one of them could offer a tabletop RPG campaign. However, we aren't done yet. There's still one more location I want to shine a spotlight on - the floating island of Zenithia.

Zenithia wasn't present in the NES release of Dragon Quest III. In terms of release order, it first appeared in Dragon Quest IV; that game, and its two sequels, all feature the island in some way or another, leading to those games being dubbed the "Zenithian Trilogy" by fans. Unlike the Erdrick Trilogy of I through III, it's somewhat debatable whether or not those games take place in the same universe, and they definitely don't seem to take place in the same universe as the Erdrick Trilogy.

However, starting with the SNES release of DQ3, Zenithia was added as a post-game bonus dungeon, and it's stayed that way in all subsequent releases, even the ones that did away with most other changes added in the SNES version. Being optional post-game content, one could argue as to whether or not this material is supposed to be canon, and this project is specifically based on the NES releases and their Western marketing materials, but as a DM, I'm personally inclined to throw Zenithia into the mix anyway, purely because it's interesting, and would provide some neat implications on worldbuilding. Plus, it creates some nice symmetry if Erdland is connected to both a world below and a world above.

In all its appearances, Zenithia is a pretty small island. The one major feature is Castle Zenith, which is inhabited by a race of beings called the Zenithians. In DQ3 there's no real indication that the Zenithians are anything other than humans, but in the Zenithian Trilogy they have wings and increased magical aptitude, and I'd probably backport this for The Saga of the Ortegids. There, they are an aloof people, prefering (with some exceptions) to observe the lower realm from a distance but without any desire to interfere.

Art by Nottsuo

The nominal ruler of the Zenithians is King Zenith, but the most powerful resident of the island is surely the Divingon, a dragon god that dwells at the highest point of the castle. If the Divingon is bested in combat, he will grant a wish to whoever defeats him.

This is...a pretty obvious reference to Dragon Ball, sure. But I think there's a lot it could offer a campaign. The existence of the Divingon would offer a reliable high-risk, high-reward solution to any problem the PCs might face. If they need a powerful enemy defeated, or a curse lifted, or an ally brought back from the dead, they have a way to wish for it - they just need to be able to beat a god in order to do so, and getting to said god isn't exactly an easy task either. I'm always of the opinion that PCs should only have access to such powerful world-altering magic if they complete a suitably epic quest for it, and ascending to the heavens and convincing a divine dragon to fulfill their request certainly qualifies.

I also like the Divingon as a character - you can't actually kill him (he's a god, after all), but if you manage to impress him enough by dropping his HP to 0 within a time limit, he decides you're worthy of his favor. If you take too long, he gets bored and calls the fight off. He's a being operating on so high a level that the concerns of mortals are only worth his time if they amuse him, which is very much in keeping with popular conceptions of both dragons and gods (at least the kinds of gods I like.)

Art by Gustavo Cabral

And I do think the Divingon's divine status is literal. Lest we forget, Zenithia is accessed through a portal in Empress Castle, which is said to be the closest point to the heavens, and is home to the Dragon Queen, who calls herself a "messenger of the gods." For my take on the setting, I'd posit that the Divingon is none other than Gaius, the dragon-god of fire and the forge. The Dragon Queen must keep a portal to his realm in order to commune with him and guide the rightful interests of all dragonkind, as he is their patron and progenitor. A fun side effect of this: if we only see Gaius's personal domain, do the rest of the Nine Gods each have their own personal corner of the heavens? A DM could have fun with that concept.

There's two more bits I'd like to discuss when it comes to Zenithia. Many of the enemies encountered there are palette swapped versions of bosses from the main game - one of which is Baramos, the only time his sprite is used for a common random encounter. Given that I've chosen to interpret him as part of a magically created race of superbeings, this would suggest that Zenithia has access to an army of Drokkarim. I had previously described the Drokkarim as being a creation of the ancient Aliahanians, but I might instead have them as being bred by the Zenithians. Or perhaps the Old Aliahanians were in fact descended from Zenithians, or even that they were Zenithians. Given the comparisons to Tolkien's Numenoreans, having them be superhuman makes sense.

Lastly, I'd be remiss not to mention the adventure seeds implied by my cosmology for the setting. In the present day of the setting, I feel it would be useful to have a world tree allowing travel between Erdland and Torland to allow for both worlds to be accessible in a single campaign. But if the Worldtree has grown enough that those in Erdland can follow its roots down to Torland, surely they'd also be able to follow the branches up to Zenithia. And if mortals are suddenly able to travel to the lands of the gods, that would shake things up considerably...

The Kingdom of Dragons

Once you get a ship in Portoga, most locations in the overworld of Dragon Quest III are open to exploration, either by sea or via portals. There are only two late-game locations that are inaccessible. Due to being locked behind impassible mountains, they can only be accessed by riding the god-bird Ramia. One of those locations is the castle of Baramos, located in Gondo - and the other is Empress Castle, the residence of the Queen of Dragons.

Empress Castle is located on a small continent north of the Inland Sea, which, in my interpretation of the map for The Saga of the Ortegids, would place it between the Romalian Empire and the Worldforest. Of all the areas on the world map, this may be the most mysterious. There aren't any other features detailed on the continent beyond a single optional dungeon, and the place isn't mentioned by other NPCs either. Even those present at the castle don't impart a lot of lore on why the castle is there or how it operates. All in all, it really only exists to give you the Sphere of Light, which can be used to significantly weaken the final boss. The Queen of Dragons herself doesn't get a whole lot of screen time, and dies shortly after giving the Sphere to you.

This is a bit disappointing, personally, because it's an area that feels like it could be so much more. The Sphere of Light is an important item in Dragon Quest I; its theft by the Dragonlord is what kicks off that game's plot. And, speaking of the Dragonlord, the Queen is implied to be his mother. By all accounts, this should be an important chapter in the overarching story of the Erdrick Saga, but until I started replaying the game last year, I completely forgot the Empress Castle sequence existed.

But that means there's ample opportunity for us to pick up the slack. And what little information there is paints us an intriguing picture.

First off, a few NPCs mention that Empress Castle is the closest point to "the Sky World" - which seems to be in reference to Zenithia. Indeed, after beating the game, Zenithia can be accessed from a portal there. It is said that only a great hero may access the portal - this is really a handwave for why it's post-game content, but in a tabletop setting, the portal could be heavily guarded so that only one deemed worthy may pass. Performing great enough feats to convince the guards you're worthy could be a quest in and of itself.

Art by Tommy McDaniel

Given that Zenithia has its own legendary dragon, perhaps it is the ancestral homeland of dragonkind - or at least that of a particular royal lineage of dragons - and they migrated to Erdland through here. The portal may be to maintain contact with the Zenithians or the Divinegon, suggesting that Empress Castle is the primary point of communication between Zenithia and Erdland. With the growing of the Worldtree, however, the Sky World may have become easier to access, which could be a source of tension - particularly if ambitious Erdlanders are trying to get into a realm that was previously the perview of dragons and their champions.

Furthermore, the Dragon Queen calls herself "a messenger of the gods." This is an intriguing line, and it's rather frustrating that it never gets elaborated upon. For the purposes of The Saga of the Ortegids, I've interpreted the Sphere of Light as being a creation of Gaius, the god of fire, the forge, and dragons. In the framework of the lore I've created, it makes the most sense to me that this line is in reference to Gaius. Perhaps the royal family of dragonkind are the chosen earthly representatives of Gaius; they may even be his direct descendants. If we assume that the Dragonlord is in fact the Dragon Queen's son (which I do - it would further the themes of familial legacies in the Erdrick Trilogy, and the cyclical nature of the setting is what lends comparisons to a Norse saga), it makes perfect sense for why he would steal the Sphere of Light from Alefgard. It's his birthright, after all.

While we don't see any other points of interest on the continent, I would like to designate this land mass as the Kingdom of Dragons. The majority of the dragons of Erdland call this place their home, and form its ruling class, answering to the Queen of Dragons, who in turn rules through divine right mandated by Gaius. There would likely be a number of lairs here belonging to noble dragons of great power, wealth, and influence - the sort that could be fearsome enemies, valuable benefactors, or both. There's probably a lot of feuding and dragon politics going on behind the scenes, which PCs could be drawn into. Or perhaps they're tracking a dragon that has been terrorizing the land, only to find that they run a respected fief in the Kingdom of Dragons, and have retainers and brothers-in-arms among their fellow dragons. Suddenly, slaying the beast just got a lot harder.

I don't think that the Kingdom would be inhabited exclusively by dragons. Empress Castle seems to be designed for humanoids, and the NPCs there use the sprites used for elves and hobbits. They could be Dragovians, or dragons taking humanoid form, but it seems odd they would do that in the very center of dragondom where they'd have nothing to hide. Indeed, while the Dragonlord operates primarily in a human guise, the Queen of Dragons is always shown as a dragon.

Art by Monica Coleman

Personally, I'm inclined to believe that although dragons form the ruling caste of the Kingdom, there are humanoids living there too. There could be cities of humans (or elves, dwarves, or beastmen), but these would be feudal subjects of the dragon overlords. This, too, could lead to some fun opportunities. Perhaps the people would be unhappy under the yoke of draconic oppression, at least in some parts of the kingdom - but what are they going to do about it? Overthrowing a feudal overlord with access to great wealth and force of arms is already hard enough. Now imagine that overlord is a literal dragon! The PCs might become embroiled in a rebellion by the lower classes - do they try to navigate draconic society to negotiate things on their terms, or stand and fight, risking retaliation from the ruling dragon's allies?

While in game Empress Castle is depicted as being surrounded by a ring of mountains, the lines about it being close to the Sky World make me interpret this as an artifact of representing things on a 2D map. Instead, I would have Empress Castle sit on the summit of the highest mountain in Erdland. If the entire continent is a domain of dragons, it makes sense for its capital to be accessible from the air - and if dragons are the ruling class, it would be a symbol of status and a means of gatekeeping court secrets from the public if they can fly there with ease, while the lowly humans would need to risk a dangerous ascent to even reach the foot of Empress Castle.