The Hero (主人公,Shujinko?, lit. lit. Protagonist) of Dragon Quest VIII is an 18-year old low-ranking royal guardsman at Castle Trodain, before becoming a refugee of the kingdom in the prologue. He was one of the small band who survived Dhoulmagus' deadly attack, along with King Trode, Princess Medea and his pet mouse, Munchie. As is the series' tradition, The Hero is a silent protagonist whom the player is meant to project themselves upon, using him as an avatar to explore and interact with the game's world.
In promotional screenshots and the instruction manual for the PlayStation 2 Version and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, the Hero is given the default name Eight (エイト,Eito?).
The Hero is a versatile character, as equally proficient in armed combat as he is in using healing spells and support magic. He is able to wield Swords, Spears and Boomerangs, as well as his Fisticuffs. Once Rank E of the Monster Arena is cleared, he will gain the ability to call upon a monster team at the cost of 10 MP. Each monster team can only be summoned once per battle. With the help of his trusty companion Munchie and a variety of Cheeses, he is also able to unleash breath attacks with various effects.
Due to his aforementioned status as a silent protagonist, very little can be said of the man's character that isn't decided by the player. That being said, the youth has demonstrated a remarkably humane nature in certain cutscenes. This is most apparent in the flashback to his meeting with Yangus, who accidentally broke the rope bridge that he was blocking while attempting to extort money from King Trode. Instead of letting the bellicose bandit fall to his death, the former guard pulled him to safety despite Trode's considerable umbrage.
The Hero dresses very casually, wearing a saffron overcoat with a blue tunic, and plain grey trousers with brown boots, along with a canvas satchel worn over his shoulder. He wears his shaggy dark brown hair underneath a red bandana. During flashback scenes that take place at Trodain, the Hero is dressed in the uniform of a castle guard. It consists of an oversized, long-sleeved dark green tunic with a metal breastplate and shoulder pads worn over it, a leather belt, a simple metal helmet, and the same trousers and boots as his normal outfit. He is also the second Hero in the series whose outfit can be changed in the game if he wears certain pieces of equipment.
He is the son of Eltrio, the former crown prince of Argonia, and Xia a Dragovian, making him Half-Human and Half-Dragovian. This union came about when the latter became curious of the human world, and decided to explore it. After encountering Eltrio, Xia fell in love with the young man and spent much time with him. Unfortunately, her father Chen Mui did not approve of the union between a human and a Dragovian, feeling that the two races could never develop true love between them, and forced his daughter back to the Dragovian Sanctuary to ensure she could never see him again. Some time after this, the body of Eltrio was found near the sanctuary's outskirts, having braved the immense dangers alone to reach his beloved, only to die just before reaching the sanctuary. The death of her beloved devastated Xia, and day by day her very life force began to fade. Before joining Eltrio in the afterlife, however, Xia delivered their child in the sanctuary. The boy would live among the Dragovians for several years as the council of elders debated what to do with the anomaly, until one day it was decided that his memories would be sealed to ensure he would never remember his birthplace, and that he would be banished from the sanctuary. His grandfather, realizing the youth was his last connection to his daughter, begged for permission to accompany his grandson. It was decided that he could do so, but only if he took the form of an innocuous mouse, and never spoke a word to him.
One day while exploring the forest outskirts of the castle, Princess Medea of Trodain finds the young boy collapsed with a fever with the help of Munchie. The young princess pleads with King Trode to help the boy since otherwise, he would die out in the woods. Eventually, the castle guards bring The Hero back in order to nurse him back to health. Medea stays at his bedside until he awakes, and the two would become close friends afterwards.
As the son of Eltrio, The Hero is also the nephew of King Clavius of Argonia and the cousin of Prince Charmles. This blood connection is what enables him to supersede Prince Charmles in the right to marry the heir to Trodain. By the end of the game, he has become captain of the guard and, depending on the player's actions in the Nintendo 3DS Version, is either the son-in-law of King Trode after marrying Princess Medea or the son-in-law of Rosalind Albert after marrying Jessica.
An amnesiac since his early youth, the Hero grew up in Castle Trodain, eventually serving as a guard for some time before the events of the prologue took place. For much of Dragon Quest VIII, The Hero journeys with his faithful mouse friend, Munchie, King Trode, Princess Medea, and Yangus. The Hero is eventually joined by Jessica Albert and Angelo, enlisting their aid in pursuing and confronting the wicked Dhoulmagus.
The Hero carries around his pet, Munchie, wherever he goes. A highly intelligent mouse, Munchie is capable of entering small spaces and exploring areas the party would otherwise have no access to, allowing the player to temporarily control him. If you give Munchie Cheese in battle, he gains special abilities. However, this can only be done twice per battle. Munchie rides in the pocket of the Hero's coat most of the time. Munchie will show his true significance only after the game.
Swords pay off if the player is focusing on dealing extra damage, such as with Dragon Slash (9 points) and Falcon Slash (52 points) being particularly useful. If the player accumulates 100 points in Swords and Courage, the almighty Gigagash is learned--although this does take quite some time to achieve.
Spears are ideal for hunters of metal slimes in particular, with Thunder Thrust (12 points) and Lightning Thrust (59 points). The Multithrust (25 points) is also worth a try against single enemies.
Boomerangs are a real boon in the beginning of the game because they attack all enemies. Later, however, this skill becomes less useful (over 40 points: Attack +15), so it is advisable to switch to developing different skills.
Fisticuffs is largely ineffectual to the other skills, although Defending Champion (11 points) is a very useful ability and some actions are worth a try like Thin Air (42 points) for cheap moves that target all foes. The Hero can only make a real impression when he learns Attack + 50 (100 points).
Courage is extremely useful as a means of learning traits that reduce MP consumption (at 56 and 90 points) and utility spells that free Angelo's turns up. Zap and Kazap deal incredible damage for the periods they are learned in, and Omniheal can turn a battle around like no other spell.
Suggested Strategies: Learn Courage up to 8 points (Zoom) initially, then learn Boomerangs up to 40 points (Attack + 15) followed by Courage up to 100. Next, increase your Swords skill to 66 (Attack + 25) or Spears up to 59 (critical hit).
Another option would be to forgo Boomerangs altogether and start by dividing points equally between Swords and Courage (up to Swords 66), then switching to Spears and Courage. However, since one can come across some very powerful spears early in the game, it may be advised to concentrate on mastering spears from the outset.
The Hero of Dragon Quest VIII, under the name Eight, appears as one of four Heroes, alongside the Heroes of XI, III, and IV. He wields the Dragovian king sword and Dragovian shield. Unlike in his home game, Eight does not retain his curse immunity in Ultimate, presumably because of his status as an alternate character and/or for gameplay balance.
While playing as the Hero in Classic Mode, Eight appears as Round 5's opponent and is fought on the Battlefield form of Gaur Plains. He is allied with a tiny Pikachu (Pokémon), in reference to Munchie.
In the PS2 version of the game, when the Hero reaches a state of Super High Tension, his appearance changes drastically. His bandana flies off and his hair spikes up, making him resemble Super Saiyan Son Goku of Dragon Ball Z fame. This little feature was added to the international release of the game, as a shoutout to fans of Toriyama's work.
The Hero's guard uniform only appears in the game's flashback scenes and its colour cannot be seen normally, since flashbacks are seen in greyscale. However, it exists in the game's data as an unused costume.[1]
In the original international release and Definitive Edition of Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age, the Luminary can wear an outfit that allows him to dress like the Hero of Dragon Quest VIII.
While designing the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate version of The Hero, series creator Masahiro Sakurai specifically requested permission from Square-Enix to include Dragon Quest VIII's Hero as an alternate costume, due to the game being the most popular entry in the West and its role in reintroducing the series to American and European audiences.
In Ultimate, Eight is given a voice (albeit largely for various wordless expressions of exertion or pain). His voice actor is Yūki Kaji, a popular Japanese VA and singer. According to Masahiro Sakurai, Kaji was very excited to play Eight, and considered roles in both Dragon Quest and Super Smash Bros. to be two of his dream jobs.
