This FAQ is designed to answer the most common questions people have about Quest for Glory 5: Dragon Fire. For a
more comprehensive set of game hints, visit the Hints page. This FAQ
has been compiled from various sources, including hints and walkthroughs, questions most
frequently asked on the FACS message board, readme files, responses from the team members etc.
If there are additional questions that you think should be on this FAQ, feel free to
email me.
Tell me about the patches.
- Two patches were released by the Dragon Fire team.
- The 1.2 patch subsumes the older one, so that if you haven't installed any patches
yet, simply install the 1.2 upgrade.
- For a list of issues that the patches addresses, look on the Downloads page.
- The patches also fixed not being able to marry Katrina in the game. This is still very hard, but
no longer impossible.
After I installed the patch, I'm seeing dead bodies / past contestants
in the Arena whenever I participate in the fight. What happened?
- This is a glitch caused by the version 1.1 patch.
- You can download the
newer version 1.2 patch to "patch the patch"!
How can I play the multiplayer version of the game?
- You can't!
- The multiplayer version was planned as a free add-on to the game after its release.
- However, the subsequent closure of Yosemite Entertainment makes it rather unlikely
that there will be further updates, like multiplayer, for QFG.
- The Coles estimated needing at least 4 months of development effort, provided the
source code, to enable multiplayer in the game as planned.
- Feel free to contact Sierra Customer Support and express your views on this product.
- Meanwhile, if you want, you CAN play multiplayer with the old Sneak Peek Demo. Be warned though
that there isn't a whole lot to do.
Any additional information on expansion packs, multiplayer, QFG6, etc.?
- Since the Yosemite Entertainment branch of Sierra was recently disbanded, further
QfG products by Sierra seem highly unlikely. Sad, but true!
- QFG6 doesn't make sense as Lori always intended the series to end with Dragon Fire.
- However, it would be nice to see other games set in Gloriana in the tradition of QFG
- maybe the adventures of the Hero's offspring or a massively-multiplayer online game based
on Gloriana.
- You can influence Sierra by writing their Customer Support department
and expressing your opinions about QFG.
- Also, be sure keep a look out on qg5.com occassionally for any news.
Give me the Contact Information for Sierra.
Does the game use 3D acceleration (Direct3D, OpenGL etc.)?
- Nope. So don't bother adding a pure 3D graphics card to improve Dragon Fire performance.
- The 3D models in it are rendered using your 2D graphics card by the game engine.
- However, the game does use DirectDraw APIs. So if you get a faster 2D card (or a
2D/3D combo card) or even an improved DirectX driver for your card, you should see
some improvement.
Can I play the game even if my computer does not meet the
recommended minimum configuration?
- You may be able to vary certain hardware below the minimums (such as CDROM drive
speed or CPU speed) and still have the game run, but expect it to
run choppily and have unexpected problems.
- Hence the recommendation .Therefore it is best you upgrade.
- If you don't have a choice, at least turn down the Game Detail and turn off
the Full Screen mode from the Game Controls menu for a little better performance.
[From the game README]
The game runs choppy. What can I do to make it run faster?
- You can do a few things to improve the game's performance. Here's a list:
- Press the ESC key, then click on the CONTROLS button. Set the
Detail level to Minimum. This will turn off some of the processor
intensive special effects, like rippling water.
- Press the Backslash key (\) to run the game in a bordered window,
instead of full screen. This will help speed up the game.
- Make sure your computer is not running background tasks while you
are playing the game. If you are running a program in the
background, such as a virus checker, this will take processing time
and memory away from the game, and may slow down the game.
The game hangs or crashes upon startup. What could be wrong?
- Make sure you have the minimum configuration required to run the game.
- Note that Dragon Fire will only run on Win95, Win98 or Mac OS 7.5 or higher. It
will NOT run on WinNT.
- Ensure that you have the latest drivers for your system devices, especially graphics card, sound card and the CD-ROM drive.
- Make sure the game installation succeeded.
- In particular, QuickTime 3.1 must also be successfully installed. To check
the QuickTime install, try playing opening Sierra movie clip from your game CD ().
If it doesn't play, reinstall QuickTime from your game installation CD.
- Also ensure that DirectX 6.1 or higher is installed on your system. To check the
version of DirectX, run dxinfo.exe
- Read the rest of this section for device-specific problems and workarounds to see if
any apply to you.
- If none of these solutions work for you, contact Sierra Technical Support.
I can't run the game on an ATI graphics card system (such as ATI Rage Fury). It
crashes upon start up!
- This is known driver bug.
- To work around it, disable DirectDraw acceleration.
[From the game README]
My mouse doesn't work properly! It's difficult to click on things. Help me!
- Try turning off the video card's acceleration.
- In Windows, click on Start, Settings, Control Panel, System, Performance, then Graphics. Turn off the Hardware Acceleration."
Can I import saved characters from the previous Quest for Glory episodes?
- Yes, of course, you can!
- You need to copy the saved character file(s), which have a .SAV extension to the
imports directory (eg. C:\SIERRA\QG5\IMPORTS) before running the game and you'll have
access to these characters.
- From the "Choose Character Type" screen (when you hit Play), you can import your
saved character by hitting the IMPORT button and choosing the character (by file name)
that you want to import.
- If you're having trouble importing (such as the "Character file size should be less than 300
bytes" error message), make sure you have the patch installed. A lot
of the import problems were fixed by the patch.
- If you're still having problems, it's most likely due to a corrupted character save
at the end of QFG4. Try replaying the ending and saving your character again, or try
a different saved character.
Why can't I import QFG4 saved character files?
- This happened due to a bug in QFG4 that caused saved character files to be corrupted when written.
- The Dragon Fire patch "reverse-engineers" these bad files and
corrects them during the QFG5 import process.
- However, it is not 100% accurate for some saved characters.
My non-wizard character with magic is missing some spells upon import. Help!
- Again this is due to bug in the QFG4 character export at the end of the game that
caused some garbage in the saved characters.
- Although with the Dragon Fire patch, you'll be able to recover
most of your saved charcter, some spells may be missing.
- Most typically, you'll lose the Trigger or Open spells.
- Try re-saving at the end of QFG4 and try with the new saved character. Sometimes
this will work.
- If not, then consider continuing without these spells. For a non-Mage character,
these spells are not required anyway.
- If you still want your lost spells, the only other alternative is to hex-edit
your saved game after the import and add back the spell. Note that hex-editing is
unsupported and may cause your save game to be corrupted later on.
How do I play as a Paladin?
- You can only play a Paladin if you import a Paladin character from a previous QFG episode.
- QFG2 and QFG3 both gave you opportunities to gain palandinhood if you played honorably.
- If you lost your saved paladin character, one is provided in the gamer for you. Simply
hit the "Import" button on the Character Creation screen and choose "Paladin".
Tell me about the Character Stat changes in Dragon Fire from the previous games.
- First off, the Weapon Use skill was renamed to Offense while Parry and Dodge were
combined into a single Defense skill in order to simplify the stats.
- Communication was removed as a skill in the game as it felt unneccessary (your
Hero should already be very competent in communicating with others).
- New skills added to the game include Swimming and Pickpocketing. These can both
be learned during the course of the game, so no points need be allocated for
these at the start.
- Equipped weapons, armor, and jewelry can now increase and decrease the various
stats during the time they are equipped. For instance, a suit of chainmail may increase
your Defense skill, but at the same time reduce your Magic skill.
- The stats screen now shows not your character's base stats, but the stats as
modified by any equipment you are wearing. If you want to see your true base statistics,
simply unequip your character completely first.
- Stats go down in a lot more situations that ever before. A green color on
a stat indicates that it went up since you last looked at your character sheet, while
a red color indicates that it went down.
What are the major changes to the magic system?
- The most visible change are the spell visuals themselves. Most of these are
quite impressive and can be even used to create you own magical fireworks display
at night!
- Spells cost more in mana points now (for instance a Flame Dart costs 10 mana
instead of 5 as before)
- Unlike before, most spells can be targetted now, including ones like Detect Magic
and Levitate.
- Certain spells such as Hide and Juggling Lights have been enhanced to be more
useful.
- The Wizard's Staff works very differently than before.
- Glide spell was removed from the game.
What happened to the Glide spell?
- As far I know, the Glide spell was removed from Dragon Fire
due to its use obviating some of the island travel puzzles in the game
and due to the fact that it was proving too difficult to design and implement
into the game.
How does the Magic Staff work in Dragon Fire?
- Only true Wizards are able to make and use a magic staff, as in past QFG games.
If you have the magic skill, but are not the Wizard character type, you don't qualify.
- The staff is now a limited mana item and it disappears once all its contained mana
is expended.
- However, it can be summoned again using the Summon Staff spell.
- The Summon Staff spell, at a fixed cost of 50 mana points, summons your staff with
an available mana energy equal to half your current mana level. So if you cast this spell
when you mana is at 350, for instance, your mana will go down to 300 and you'll have a
staff with available mana of 150.
- Once summoned, your staff stays in your inventory and can be equipped like any other
weapon.
- Spells cast when wielding the staff expend its mana points rather than your own, and
sometimes even have slightly varied effects.
- Unlike previous games, casting a spell using the staff DOES improve your spell skill
with practice.
How do I combine two inventory items together?
- This information is really in your game manual (see page 15).
- Go to your Inventory by pressing I key or clicking
on the Latch icon on screen.
- Select the first item and you should see an animated image of it in the left side
inventory display.
- Now drag the other item onto the animated image of the first and release the
mouse button.
- A new or changed item should now be available in your inventory resulting from
the combination. Use this as you would any other item.
- For instance, to light a torch, select your torch in the inventory and then drag
the Tinderbox to it's image.
Can I get a bow in this game? And what about all the arrows I collected?
- No, you can't get a bow in Dragon Fire through conventional means.
- The multiplayer game was supposed to let you use a bow if you played as Elsa von Spielburg.
- Even if you defeat the Hydra alone, Elsa will come and retrieve the bow from
inside the cave before you can get your hands on it.
- As far as the arrows go, simply sell them to Pholus for money.
- There is also a game hack that does let you hex-edit your saved game and add a bow
for your Hero. Although this works (with the exception of there being no bow animation
for the Hero shooting it), hacking a saved game can cause unpredictable problems.
Why do I lose honor points when killing monsters in combat?
- Did you happen to cast the Paladin Peace spell upon them before attacking them?
- If so, then you'll lose honor. After all, it is dishonorable to attack
creatures when they are non-violent.
- Either wait until the Peace effect wears off before fighting, or don't use that
ability in combat.
Does Punny Bones appear in this game?
- No, he thought Silmaria was deader than even Mordavia, and left for Zurich.
- Gnome Ann mentions him if you offer Hera's Ring to her.
- He has also scratched his name at one of the upstairs tables in the Dead Parrot.
- Lori Cole, the designer, said that if they ever make an expansion disk to
this game, Punny Bones will return in it.
Can I marrry Katrina is the game?
- If you have installed the patch, then yes. Otherwise, no (due
to a programming error)
- She is not easily wooed though.
What character types can marry which women?
- Elsa and Nawar will marry any character type.
- Erana is an option for Paladins and Wizards only; Fighters and Thieves go against
her basic nature.
- Katrina will only marry a Fighter or a Wizard, as she detests Thieves and do-gooders
make her skin crawl.
- Optimal pairings in my opinion: Fighter - Elsa, Wizard - Katrina, Thief - Nawar, Paladin - Erana.
Can I marry multiple women in one game?
- Only a polygamist would do such a thing!
- Strictly speaking, you can get engaged to up to three women in one game,
although only one of them (the first one you get engaged to) announces your
engagement at the coronation ceremony.
- This is not easily accomplished though, and wooing gestures must be
timed just right.
- Sarra will not sell you another Hera's ring while you already have one
in your inventory; so you must keep yours in your bedroom chest before you buy
another one.
- You must first woo the woman you rescued from Hades and get her to commit.
It's ok to give gifts to both Elsa and Nawar before this, but if you try to kiss them
or praise Nawar / tell her you love her, Katrina / Erana will refuse to wed you.
- Next you must get Elsa to accept the ring when she visits you in
your bedroom at night during Rites #6 and #7.
- Finally you must woo Nawar.
- You cannot marry Erana and Katrina in the same game though, as
you can only rescue one of them from Hades.
- Also the usual class restrictions apply with Katrina and Erana.
Does Dragon Fire have a narrator?
- Nope. There is far too much text in Dragon Fire for it to be all narrated.
- The narrator was appropriate for Shadows of Darkness to create
the dark, foreboding atmosphere of Mordavia.
- There is a narrator for the opening movie sequence though.
Greg Tomko-Pavia is the voice of King Justinian in the sequence
and his name is credited in the list of voice actors for the game.
What can I do with the Katta Pin?
- Not much except showing it to the katta merchants.
- It has sentimental value though.
- It was presented to you by the kattas in Shapeir
as a token of their gratitude for your bravery and heroism
against the elementals.
My competitors in the Rites are dying one by one! Can I save them?
- No, you cannot help either of them.
- But you CAN inform Silmaria's guards about the first death.
- Visit the Dragon Pillar after you have completed the first rite but BEFORE you
actually turn in the sigil. Then go talk to the guards in the
guardhouse at West Gate.
- However, there are some attacks that will happen while you're around.
- You can save those being attacked if you administer the antidote quickly.
I can't get Gort to move away from the control panel in the Science Lab.
How do I operate the crane?
- The button behind Gort DOES NOT operate the crane.
- The crane controls are located outside, beside the crane.
- You should see a sliver of a green monitor screen beside the door to the oustide platform. Click on it to get the control screen.
- When the time is right, Gort will be gone allowing you access to
the SECRET button.
- Just check back during each of the Rites.
The game randomly keeps crashing on the map screen and sometimes
when I dive underwater from a generic island panorama. What can I do to fix this.
- Install the latest patch to correct this problem.
- This doesn't have anything to do with your graphics card or system configuration.
Every time I go to the Dragon Blood Pool in the game, it crashes.
- Again same thing - get the latest patch.
- Alternatively, avoid the Dragon Blood Pool altogether. Most character types don't have any need
to go there anyway.
-
As a paladin, who needs the "Blood of the Earth" from here, you should visit the
Pool once, get what you need and quickly leave. And if crashes even then, don't
worry - what you need is not essential to complete the game.
The game crashes randomly as I'm walking around on Marete on another island
or if I try to dive underwater from a coastal panaroma? It's getting to a point that I
can only fight monsters at the Dragon Pillars. What can I do to fix this?
- There was no satisfactory answer to this random crash until
waverunning's thorough and diligent research
to find the root of the problem.
- Now we know what's causing it and how to avoid it in the future.
- Unfortunately, if you're already experiencing this with a character, then it's too
late to fix it for that character unless you start over. But at least you'll be
able to avoid it the next character you play through the game.
- The problem is NOT related to DirectX or your graphics drivers, and is NOT
addressed by the 1.1 or 1.2 patches.
- It's a programming bug caused by using the Mystic Magnets to return home
after fighting some random monsters in a generic interior island panorama.
- You can use the Mystic Magnets to return from underwater panoramas, coastal
panoramas, the Dragon Pillars, Pegasus Nest, villages and just about anywhere else
[Note: map is unconfirmed] EXCEPT a generic interior panorama and you will be fine.
- However, if you find yourself in a generic interior panorama, DO NOT use the
Mystic Magnets there. Exit the panorama and then either use the magnets from the
overhead map or walk back home.
I'm trying to get into Hades but I can't seem to jump off the cliff! What am I doing wrong?
- Make sure you are at the correct cliff.
- If you took the left path from the Hades entrance and reached the lower ledge
by the dragon skeleton, you will not be able to cross over to the other side. You must
retrace your steps back.
- The ledge you are looking for is the right most one to the right from where you entered Hades.
- Click your HAND cursor directly below the cliff
bridge and the jump option should be available to you.
- Be prepared to take some damage from the fall.
-
Of course, you have other options for getting down.
How do I get out of Hades?
- You will not be able to get out of Hades until you have collected the Styx water
AND confronted the Guardian.
- After that the portals will reverse so that if you just walk back up the
dragon skeleton and use the upper portal, you will end up on the left side of the
Hades entrance.
- Then simply walk out and the gates will close.
Can I prevent the Prophecy Stone from being broken?
- Nope. This is part of the game's plot line.
- Otherwise, there'd be no dragon to fight at the end.
The game locks up after I've defeated the Minotaur and Minos
jumps from the balcony. What can I do to avoid this?
- This is most likely caused by an improper install of QuickTime on your machine.
- Exit the game and re-install QuickTime version 3.1 from your QFG5 Installation
disk.
- Now try again.
Help me get out of the Minos' Treasure room before the prophecy stone
goes boom!
- You don't have much time - quickly search around the room for what you may need.
- Don't bother leaving through the door. Someone will come and get you when
you and Elsa are ready.
- Be sure to search the dead minotaur's body and Minos' body.
- Open the alcove on the top left to which Elsa points, and take the potions inside.
- This can be done in a couple of ways - forcing the alcove open after sufficient
protection upon yourself (Protection spell, Fire Proofing Potion, Magic Ward paladin
skill), triggering the trap from a distance, or disarming it using thief skills.
- Once you're done, the lady you rescued from Hades will take you to the dragon
cave. If you didn't save anyone, Fenris will come.
Can I sacrifice myself and still win the game?
- You can sacrifice yourself in some circumstances, and your allies
will defeat the dragon through your willing death but you will not win the game!
- Instead you'll be presented with a death message with an option to Load or Restore.
- Katrina will let you sacrifice yourself if you're not engaged to her. To
do this, immediately after fixing the pillar, tell Toro, Gort and finally Katrina about it.
Once you hear Katrina's gratitude speech, the game will ask if you really want to do it.
Say "Yes".
- If however you're bethroed to Katrina, she will not allow you to kill yourself.
- If you're engaged to marry Erana, volunteering to sacrifice will cause Gort to step
forward and take your place.
- If Elsa has accepted your ring, Toro will sacrifice himself instead.
- If you're not engaged to either Erana or Elsa, simply tell each ally about the
sacrifice (as with Katrina above) and the game will ask if you really want to do it. Say "Yes".
At the end of the game, I see conflicting deeds on my To Do List.
How can I accomplish both?
- You can't.
- For instance, it may show you "Get Married to Erana" if you married Katrina
and vice-versa. This is impossible to do in a single game.
- The To Do list is just all things you could've done as that character type,
but not necessarily all in that same game.
- This is useful for replaying the game as the same character type but
following a different path.
