- For a description of any Items named here, see DS Game Items
- For more details about the enemies battled, see DS Game Battles
| Previous chapter | Next chapter |
|---|---|
| Chapter 2: Deep Sleep in Asia | Chapter 4: An Antarctic Showdown! |
Chapter 3: Friend or Foe in North America[]
Dustberg[]
Arriving in Dustberg, Reese has modified the DinoShots: you can now tag a fourth Move Card onto each Dinosaur level 15 or over, giving you an extra Move option for any Sign of your choice (though her dialogue is written oddly). The investigation begins around town, seeing that there are three exits (one being saved for the postgame), hearing of a Great Bird guardian angry at its Egg being stolen by the fossil bandit Holiday, who the missing workers are being forced to work for, and finding an old lady's Glasses from behind the Item Shop for a Mystery Fossil Muttaburrasaurus, an Australian species. Sheriff Watt doubts the Alpha Gang's involvement in the missing Egg or workers, but the way to West Dust Hills opens after talking to him (after first talking to the D-Site Branch Head), where: a woman recruits you to retrieve a fossil from a bandit…who sounds suspiciously like a dog; a scientist tells you his daughter went after Holiday, who may have stolen the Blueprint for his invention and is hiding in the Alpha Gang Depot farther west; and a dog brings a note that its master is trapped between trees. It's like the world is helpless without you.
West Dust Hills[]
Meet the first Super Alpha Droids you can actually fight, Purple for level 25-27 random encounters with one of the previous two main strategies based on their Dinosaur, though they don't give it away quite so often. Also of note, static Alpha Droids in North America use quite a lot of Earth Dinosaurs. Heading across Scattered Hill with its many small Scattered Lakes, there's a Workbook down a left detour, but the map is straight north next to a Purple Super Alpha Droid harassing someone at level 28-30 with the first enemy 4th slot Move, whose Sign is kept hidden from you until it's used (they're often Super Moves, Critical or not); your reward is a Manual. Passing a woman who insists Holiday is a good person, you can veer off towards the heart-shaped Lake Rabbe to find the guy who is "stuck" between trees (the area north of Lake Rabbe, through the same path he was "stuck" in, is oddly empty of any items or NPCs, and the Droids all swap to the same strategy) and get a Gemstone for helping him out, which can boost your Deluxe Radar into a Super Deluxe Radar, but the drill to dig up the new even deeper orange pings it shows comes later.
You'll have to return to Torr in Gobi Village for the new radar, though (he was actually waiting for the dog guy's Gemstone, if you asked him before getting it); with the sleeping sickness lifted, Gobi Village is a new place to explore, and Blazing Chef Bao has a job for you: that sparkling water spot you found earlier in East Gobi, your reward for a sample of Spring Water will be another Ancient Bowl; Chef Bao will then repeat his Hen and Spring Water requests indefinitely. Also, since looking at the well too many times apparently dries it up, the side quest of fetching the same two men to dig a new one can be repeated…despite the sleeping sickness plot point it mentions having already been resolved…and the reward is another Rajasaurus Mystery Fossil. Finally, return to the East Gobi woman the hopeless romantic was after and she'll ask for a Vicarya Fossil (decently common white pings in South Gobi and Darkwood Forest), rewarding you with a Mystery Fossil Patagosaurus, a South American species that learns North American Moves (these two quests can then be repeated indefinitely, though neither can be started if the other is already in progress).
Back on track to the Alpha Gang Depot going south from the sign, a kid reiterates that Holiday is nice. A boulder blocks a curve back north to Wind-Up Hill, but taking the west dead end leads you to the thieving dog and his Big Bone; returning it to the lady lands you a Manual, and this quest can later be repeated endlessly by talking to the woman twice. Directly south, however, is Dory, a private detective investigating Holiday who reports the opposite stories as the woman and child, reporting the scientist's daughter is indeed in the Alpha Gang Depot. Find an Alpha Call Drop on the separated slab of rock, then head west to the entrance of the Alpha Gang Depot, where you'll hear the loud shriek of the reptile-sounding Great Bird as a suspicious man evades your questions about it (of course it's Holiday).
Entering the Depot, you'll hear the scientist's daughter's screams. The random Purple Super Alpha Droids are levels 25-27 and now have hidden 4th Moves that are simply extra copies of their Criticals, but are otherwise much the same as outside, though some Dinosaurs have swapped strategies. The map is a bit into the maze full of dead ends, right fork then left; follow all right turns to reach a Medium Dino Drink in a small room, and fight past a static Purple Super (who starts the battle as soon as you walk up to it) with levels 32-33 and hidden Earth and Lightning Moves. After that, Holiday arrives and says he'll help you look for the girl, blocking the south hallway; when you come back after clearing the area, you'll find a dead end and a view of an Alpha Droid you can't reach from this side. Farther in is a south branch that leads through a tunnel bringing you (after an empty room) to that Alpha Droid, the first Red Super you're strong enough to battle, with a mere two Dinosaurs levels 32-31 (huh, thought it'd be more impressive; though it's Purple outside of battle, so…). Take the south branch of the farthest hallway to find the scientist's daughter being attacked by a Green Super Alpha Droid, and upon entering the room you're thrust into battle with its 3 Dinosaurs: levels 32-34, including Dinosaurs with multiple Lightning and Grass Moves. Afterwards, Holiday arrives and gives you the Blueprint he took from an Alpha Droid he beat; he says he's only here because he heard the daughter screaming, and that Sheriff Watt merely wants him to look like the bad guy for reasons he doesn't explain.
South Dust Hills[]
Back in town, the scientist gives you a Superalloy for returning his Blueprint (an unfinished device which will turn the desert green), which Doc can upgrade your Drill again with, into the Special-Order Drill to reach the local fossils. However, Sheriff Watt has arrested Holiday, and is interrogating him in his Office until you actually have the new drill, after which he heads out searching for proof Holiday stole the Great Bird's Egg in South Dust Hills, the path to which magically opens after trying to enter the empty Sheriff's Office. Purple Super Alpha Droids down here are levels 31-35 and randomly break their usual patterns far more often, so be careful; luckily, however, Dinosaur Fossils are suddenly very common again compared to Asia, and their Moves start at level 13. Also, floating Supply Droids are now Red and feature both Fukuisaurus and Fukuiraptor, levels 24-23, the first multi-Dinosaur random encounters. A kid outside the gate wants a Bag Lunch from Chef Bao (which you can fetch even if you have another item he wants), who's reward is a Gold Nugget; the map is a few steps farther. An NPC blocks the east path while it's being surveyed, so it's south we go, hearing the Great Bird and realizing it to be a dinosaur. Steps later you can rescue a kid from a Purple Super Alpha Droid with two Earth Dinosaurs levels 35-38 for a Workbook. Continuing south brings you to Great Bird Hill with the stone pedestal where the Great Bird's Egg is supposed to be (a shouting explorer loudly explains this to you then shoos you off) and giving you a view onto Sheriff Watt talking with Dory the detective, Dory claiming evidence of Holiday stealing the Egg is in the Alpha Gang Base and leaving to get it himself. A direct discussion with Watt reveals that Holiday was once a sheriff and Watt's partner before becoming a fossil bandit, but Watt now trusts Dory's evidence more than Holiday's word.
The boys decide to follow Dory to the Alpha Gang Base located beyond the surveyor who has now left, a straight (winding) shot down the path. Inside, they find Dory planting Holiday's old Sheriff's Badge, but confronting him prompts a battle with a Green Super Alpha Droid with level 33-35 Earth Dinosaurs; after the battle, Dory has fled, but you find the Badge. Random Green Super Alpha Droids in here, levels 31-35, are even less consistent and with fewer hints than ever, and their hidden Moves are now Super Moves. The Base is huge and maze-like with the map over halfway in; it has many short and empty dead ends, but trending northeast there's a maze of tunnel-connected rooms that leads to an Alpha Call Drop, running into Dory again down from there. You overhear he's the real Egg thief, selling it to the Alpha Gang and framing Holiday, but are then thrown into a battle with another Green Super's level 34-36 Earth team, this one giving almost as much EXP as a boss fight for some reason; Dory races off.
The west path from here is empty, while the east path has a south branch leading to the map and a north dead end. Heading farther east, the south path finds another Red Super Alpha Droid you're not ready for, while going north leads you to a Manual; steps farther lets you spy Dory giving the Great Bird's Egg to Ursula before going farther in. Try to follow, and you'll be blocked by the missing men from the dig site, under some hypnotic control and devoted to Ursula, who will now fight you with the Stone Fragment they found for her. That is, right after you're given the option to join the Alpha Gang (the other boy won't let you, though, too bad). Ursula uses Grass Dinosaurs, levels 38, 39, and 40, each with multiple Grass Moves, but no hidden Moves until her Alpha Ouranosaurus, whose is an Alpha Move; she loves giving vague hints that can result in a lot of ties. Your victory takes her Stone Fragment, and she directs you towards Seth in their Warehouse to get beaten by him as punishment. She then books it as her 'entourage' come to their senses and chase her off, leaving the Great Bird's Egg behind; Dory has already fled, however. Also, a row of three drill spots are guaranteed on the platform where Ursula had been, a Mammoth Tusk and two Lg Amber Specimens.
South Dust Hills (east)[]
In Dustberg, the no-longer-bewitched men are back around town (with a few still hiding in the Base from their angry wives), some even admitting to enjoying being under Ursula's control; there's little new of interest, but one man mentions Explosives. Go talk to Sheriff Watt past the Egg's stone pedestal, and Holiday's old Sheriff's Badge and the retrieved Egg convince him of Holiday's innocence. Follow Watt back to Dustberg as he apologizes to Holiday for not believing him and Holiday explains he pretended to be the egg thief to draw the Great Bird's wrath away from the town (because it would definitely be keeping tabs on the town gossip…), then the pair vow to go off and catch Dory. After being reminded a dozen times in a row, go put the Egg back on its stonework…but the shouting explorer next to it turns out to be a disguised Red Super Alpha Droid with the level 40 Secret Element Deinonychus armed with a full complement of Secret Moves! At least they only work fully some of the time, as most of its hints make no sense.
Once the Egg has been returned, you'll automatically walk to the ridge above it as a large gust of wind signals the Great Bird's arrival: a Pteranodon! Excited by its egg's return, it offers you a ride across Great Bird Lake to the east half of South Dust Hills; you're also given a Shell Mirror, letting you call the Pteranodon whenever you need to cross the lake in the future. Purple Super Alpha Droids over here appear to be identical to the west half. Exploring south, an east branch leads to Jura Lake/Lake Jura (depending on which sign you're reading), shaped like a theropod head, but there's nothing interesting there, not even in the postgame. The straight shot south loops back up to a man, named Mr. Dandy in a later side quest, who lends you a Fossil Photo to identify, which Minmi tells you is a Tyrannosaurus when you next enter the local D-Site (and only that one), and he gives you an Old Note to direct you to a scripted N. American Fossil in West Dust Hills when you report back, the 6-star T. rex itself (behind a boulder that only moves once you get the Note), specifically the Attack Type variant not findable through regular fossils later. Finally, a Large Dino Drink is at the top end of the branch. The Warehouse is east from your arrival point, though the surveyor is now blocking a north branch of the route that leads to the minor postgame area of Halfway Plain.
The east path winds north without incident, but inside the Warehouse are random Red Super Alpha Droids levels 39-43 with all battlefield-calling Super Moves, and their recently growing trend of choosing either other move after taking a Critical has become universal; Red Supply Droids are now at levels 28-27. Hook right to avoid the dead end branches and run into a Super Alpha Droid (Green in battle, Purple out) at levels 44-45 with Earth and Lightning Moves. Continuing south, the required path east is blocked by a fence that can only be taken out with Explosives; continuing past that is a small maze of tunnels, leading to a room with a west dead end and an east wraparound path to an Ultimate Manual. Frustrated at this dead end, leave the Warehouse to find a fossil hunter outside the entrance who wants you to find him Dinosaur Feces, a rather rare dig item in North America (orange pings only) and also the most valuable sell item thus far, in exchange for the Explosives needed to progress (because it's perfectly safe giving Explosives to kids), reminding you of the Radar upgrade highly suggested to find them. There's nothing scripted, you just have to search until you find some (your best bet might be the Alpha Gang Base); turns out using explosives to dig is probably why he never found any before, he kept destroying them. With the more-responsible Rex blowing up the gate (because kids know how to use Explosives), beyond it is a maze of small block rooms that connect to make some large dead end loops, deep in the heart of which is finally the map (just start east and take the first north). At the south end is another too-strong-for-you Red Super Droid, while looping around the right edge from below brings you out the top and to a Red Super with a level 40 Secret Pachycephalosaurus with all Secret Moves; its Moves won't work fully until a few turns in, so strike fast and hard.
Take the second south turn, where a west branch contains a Large Dino Drink and the south path leads you to Seth, who will give you his Stone Fragment if you win, but doubts you will. Seth uses Water Dinosaurs, but this time it's only a single Spinosaurus, level 48 with full Water Moves, but no Alpha Dinosaurs. That was…too easy. Because he immediately battles you again with another level 48 Spinosaurus, and this one has only the default Moves, but giving you no hints, he beats you every turn! The defeat is scripted and your Dinosaur Cards vanish, but before you can lose hope, Zoe calls in that they're safely back in the D-Site's Dino Room, and Reese remotely sends them back to you from the D-Lab. But you still want to let the dinosaurs know how you feel… Suddenly, your Stones start glowing, the ethereal voice from your dream powering up your starting dinosaur (even if you didn't have it with you at the time), but as you go to fight Seth again, he simply gives you his Stone Fragment and leaves. Um…okay? Apparently, that DinoShot event caused quite a commotion at the D-Lab, and Reese calls you back.
In the Alpha Gang's headquarters, Dr. Z continues to be disappointed in his lackeys, Ursula mentioning the player has six of the seven Stone Fragments, but Dr. Z has a plan to lure you into bringing them to him, and will need all of the Alpha Gang's dinosaurs. At the D-Lab, Reese relays that the energy surge from the DinoShot event let them get a read on the aura of the first Stone Fragment the Alpha Gang stole. Now you can finally open your DinoShot menu to see your new Awakened Triceratops/Carnotaurus, a level 28 6-star powerhouse currently with default Moves who won't show up in the Encyclopedia, and the only Dinosaur you're holding right now (it hasn't overwritten your starter, don't worry, but it is sorely underleveled). While talking to the scientists again, however, you learn of the Reaper's Wrath, a giant 30-km meteor heading for Earth, which seems to have been directed here by the Stones' aura waves! Also, the Alpha Gang's base is in Antarctica. The ethereal voice asks you to help it stop the Reaper's Wrath, but Reese discovers that Zoe has been captured by Dr. Z, and the ransom is the Stone Fragments!
You try teleporting to Antarctica, but end up in Euro Town instead (you can now retrieve whatever team you wish from the D-Site), Reese telling you about a Teleporter east of town you'll need to use to get where you're going. For those who don't care about rescuing Zoe just yet (or wish to make final preparations), you can pop back to find some things are different in Dustberg. A new NPC courier at the west gate wants you to deliver a Small Package to Mr. Dandy (the Fossil Photo man) in South Dust Hills across Great Bird Lake; turns out it's a scarf from the loner's granddaughter Sandy, and your reward is a Large Dino Drink (this quest's dialogue triggers first if you still have the Fossil Photo), plus another 1500 chell for reporting back to the courier. The old woman by the south gate who lost her Glasses now needs a Stone Weight to help her make pickles, also giving you a Large Dino Drink in return. And you'll find a new young woman by the sheriff's office who feels like she's being watched. If you happen to explore South Gobi Plain again, the lonely guy now wants you to ask a new woman to marry him for him, next to the Dustberg sheriff's office (my guy, word of advice?); she says no, of course, but breaking the news to the guy still gets you an Ancient Underwear…I guess if you still need to get the Giant Body? At least it rotates with his previous side quest (which gives you the item needed for the Giant Head, interesting) if you just talk to him again. Finally, if you head back out to the Warehouse, a trio of set high-value drilling spots is under where Seth was standing.
But now back to the matter at hand. Finally being able to take Euro Town's east gate, you'll find a new area with nothing but the Teleporter. Anticlimactic. On to Antarctica to face the Alpha Gang and rescue Zoe!
| Previous chapter | Next chapter |
|---|---|
| Chapter 2: Deep Sleep in Asia | Chapter 4: An Antarctic Showdown! |