Monster Masher (vocation)

Vocation
Monster Masher (vocation)
The Hero as a Monster Masher in DQVII 3DS.
Japanese name:	魔物ハンター (Mamono Hantā)
Introduced in:	Dragon Quest VII
Appears in:	Dragon Quest VII

This article is about the similarly named skill. For other uses, see Monster Masher (skill).

A master of monsters, able to commune with them, wield their abilities, and win their affection. --Description in Dragon Quest VII

The Monster Masher (魔物ハンター Mamono Hantā) is a vocation exclusive to Dragon Quest VII, and is the game's interpretation of the Monster Wrangler vocation.

This vocation is often confused with the Monster Wrangler and Monster Master vocations.

Description

The Monster Masher is an intermediate vocation that requires a character to master the Shepherd and Thief before it will become available at Alltrades Abbey. The vocation utilizes several breath attacks in all versions of the game, but in the Nintendo 3DS remake it also provides players with support spells for more utility in battle even when the fixed damage ranges of the breath attacks become obsolete as the game progresses. In terms of stat-modification the Monster Masher provides very little beyond a 20% boost to wisdom, reflecting the profession's knowledge of animal husbandry.

The vocation's real purpose is to give players a greater chance to send defeated monsters off to the Monster Meadows, a wildlife preserve of sorts where monsters can interact with the party as NPCs. This is done through the Animal Magnetism skill exclusive to the vocation, which greatly raises the tame rate of a monster when it is used.

Monster master, wrangler and masher

There is some confusion regarding the monster-focused vocations: Dragon Quest VI for the Super Famicom had the まもの使い (Mamono Tsukai) vocation, then the seventh game has 魔物ハンター (Mamono Hantā), it was changed to 魔物マスター (Mamono Masutā) in the Nintendo DS remake of DQVI and it's subsequent ports, the まもの使い (Mamono Tsukai) vocation returned in the tenth game, then まものマスター (Mamono Masutā) was used in both Stars and Walk, then まもの使い (Mamono Tsukai) was used again in DQIII HD-2D and DQX Offline.

In the English side there has been consistency in the translations for the main series since Square Enix started using the Dragon Quest naming conventions: まもの使い is Monster Wrangler, 魔物ハンター is Monster Masher, and 魔物マスター is Monster Master. (Monster Masher used to be known as "Tamer" on the PS1 translation of Dragon Warrior VII).

Due to all these vocations being monster-focused, most people tend to mix them up, despite them being different: Monster Wranglers can scout monsters, while Monster Masters cannot, despite both of them using similar fighting styles and skills. Monster Masher, while similar, tames monsters and sends them to the Monster Meadows.

In Dragon Quest Tact, young Terry introduces himself as being a "Monster Scout", and the Hero of the fifth game has the title of "Legendary Monster Wrangler". Later on, the game introduced a unit based on the female Monster Wrangler from Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake.

Appearances

Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past

Appearance-wise, the costume of the Master looks the same for both genders, with a green cape, a purple sash tied about the waist like a belt and magenta pants, but the Hero is shirtless and has yellow gloves and boots.

Stat Changes

Statistics	Change
Battles to Master	165 (PS1) / 143 (3DS)
Strength	Null
Agility	+10%
Resilience	Null
Wisdom	+20%
Style	+5%
Max HP	-5%
Max MP	-5%
Mastery Bonus	+15 Bonus to Resilience

PSX Abilities

Level	Title	Learns	Battles Needed	Target	Info	MP
1	Pet Owner	Poison Breath (PoisonGas)	1	One Group	Has a chance to poison one group of enemies	0
		Animal Magnetism (Tamer)		One Group	Increases the chance of taming one group of enemies	0
2	Groomer		18
3	Ranch Hand	Sweet Breath (SleepAir)	33	One Group	Has a chance of putting one group of enemies to sleep	0
4	Tracker	Cool Breath (FrigidAir)	58	All Enemies	Causes ~15HP in ice damage	0
5	Hunter	Burning Breath (PalsyAir)	77	One Group	Has a chance of cause paralysis to one group of enemies	0
6	Handler	Flame Breath (BlazeAir)	93	All Enemies	Causes ~40HP in fire damage	0
7	Trainer	Venom Mist (PoisonFog)	125	One Group	Severely poisons one group of enemies, causing them to lose 1/6 of their HP every round	0
8	Beast Lord	Puff! (BeDragon)	165	Self	Turns the caster into an uncontrollable dragon	18

3DS Abilities

Level	Title	Learns	Battles Needed	Target	Info	MP
1	Slime Stalker	Poison Breath	1	One Group	Poisons a group of enemies.	0
		Animal Magnetism		One Group	Makes it more likely that monsters will come make friends with you.	0
2	Animal Assailer	Kabuff	14	All Allies	Raises the defence of all party members.	3
		Sweet Breath		One Group	A fragrant sigh that lulls a group of enemies to sleep.	0
3	Zombie Zapper	Insulatle	12	All Allies	Protects the party from fire and ice attacks.	3
		Fire Breath		One Group	A fiery breath attack.	0
		Cool Breath		One Group	A chilly breath attack.	0
4	Metal Mauler	Magic Barrier	20	All Allies	Forms a fortification that impedes the efficacy of enemy spells.	3
		Burning Breath		One Group	Paralyzes the enemy with a torrid sigh.	0
5	Demon Defeater	Kasap	20	One Group	Reduces the defence of a group of enemies.	4
		Flame Breath		One Group	A fiercely fiery breath attack.	0
6	Troll Trouncer	Puff!	12	Self	Transforms the caster into a fire-breathing dragon.	18
		Venom Mist		One Group	Envenomates a group of enemies.	0
7	Dragon Destroyer	Inferno	25	All Enemies	A ferociously fiery breath attack.	0
		Chilly Breath		All Enemies	A frigidly chilly breath attack.	0
8	Master Masher	Scorch	40	All Enemies	A scorching inferno of burning breath.	0

Trivia

• The vocation's design is a combination of the baggy pants and prominent red and black colors worn by the Monster Wranglers, and a plain set of the green tattered rags that could be equipped by several monster recruits in V and VI.

See also

• Monster Wrangler
• Monster Master

Gallery

• 
  The Hero of Estard as a Monster Masher
• 
  Maribel as a Monster Masher