Zoma's Citadel

Castle
Zoma's Citadel
Japanese	ゾーマの城
Romaji	Zōma no Shiro
Game	Dragon Quest III; Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake
Old localization	The Castle of Zoma

Zoma's Citadel is the name of the final dungeon in Dragon Quest III: The Seeds of Salvation.

It is located in the central area of Alefgard, across the water to the southeast of Tantegel. Upon the death of the demonlord, the citadel's foundation still stands and would go on to be the nest of evil for future generations.

Appearances[edit]

Dragon Quest III: The Seeds of Salvation[edit]

Ruled by Zoma, it is also the place where Ortega meets his death at the hands of the King Hydra. The citadel itself is only the on the surface of the island, with the rest of the structure being a massive catacomb. The Hero and party must search behind the false throne on the first floor to enter the underground chambers, but before that they must defeat a gauntlet of six Stone guardians in the central hall.

The second floor is split between two maps, the first of which is a dead end and can be entered from several stairwells on the first floor. The path to Zoma through the second map is through the stairwell behind the throne, and leads to a directional panel puzzle similar to the ones seen in the Tower of Rubiss.

The third floor is where the player will witness the death of Ortega, and also houses a large vault of treasure. It is a linear path aside from this, with all other rooms being empty. The lowest floor of the citadel is a sacrificial dias set before a narrow walk way surrounded by inky black water, menacing statues, and sconces. Zoma sits on his throne at the end of the walk way, and taunts the player before the King Hydra attacks. Once the reptile is killed, the devil summons the corpse and doppleganger of Baramos to kill the Hero.

After Zoma's death, the citadel begins to collapse and the party is pulled into the abyss. After a short cutscene the group is flung out of the basement floor of the Cave Northwest of Tantegel.

Treasures[edit]

Monsters (exterior)[edit]

Monsters (interior)[edit]

Dragon zombie
Elysium bird (called by green dragon)
Franticore
Gold digger
Great troll
Green dragon
Hocus-poker
Hydra
Infernal serpent
Liquid metal slime
Mimic
- (2 in the NES version)
- (1 in the GBC version)
Muddy hand
One-man army
Troobloovoodo
Soaring scourger
Stone guardian

Mini-bosses[edit]

Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake[edit]

The ceiling for each floor within the citadel has been raised to account for Zoma now being depicted as a giant, and each floor accumulates a denser and denser layer of ice as the player nears the Altar of Sacrifice. A teleportal connecting the final floor to the entrance has been added for player convenience, and there are two friendly monsters waiting to be recruited. Once Zoma is killed the entrance to the citadel will collapse but the structure itself will remain, alluding to the future darkness set to plague Alefgard.

Ortega's last stand will have different dialogue if the Hero has equipped the Auroral Helm, where feeling the touch of his old helmet allows him to recognize his child before succumbing to his wounds.