Ursus Quest: Tree of Life is a game that can be played a large number of ways, but there are some basic, universal truths in it. I'll go over those first, and then cover the specifics later. As usual, it's probably best to give the game a shot without looking at the spoilers within this guide, but whether or not you do that is up to you. However, the first part of this guide is much less spoiler-ish. I'll let you know when it's about to get moreso!
PART 1 - A Knock at the Door:
You begin the game as an orphaned baby, left on the doorstep of an orphanage. You aren't actually playing as that at first though, you are in the role of Horus Rhindon, the owner of the orphanage. While you are him, all you have to do is walk to the door when you hear a knock at it.
Once there, Horus finds you (the baby), and then you (the player) get to pick whether you play as the male or female main character! No matter which you choose, you will then advance the story a few years. The early lives of the 2 main characters are eerily similar, but I'll leave the details of the differences for you to enjoy discovering on your own.
At the end of these story sections and the game intro, you begin actually playing as the child phase of your character finally! While in this phase, all you can do is run around town and talk to some people (12, to be exact). 9 of these people will ask you a question that has 2 possible responses. The first one is always the more positive, optimistic choice, and the second is always the more negative, pessimistic one.
The people in town that you need to speak with are listed below, along with their locations:
1 - Joseph
2 - Brogan
3 - Maximillian
4 - Althea
5 - Loren
6 - Lars
7 - Tyrus
8 - Hugo
9 - Aratos (Find something nearby to attract his attention so he'll talk to you!)
10 - Fristy
11 - Zinnia
*** SPOILERS ***
12 - Tempest is in the alley behind Althea's house
*** END SPOILERS ***
The three people that you can talk to, but do NOT influence your next life phase are Brogan, Lars, and Tyrus. Tempest can alter your next life phase, but she isn't mandatory to find. ALL of the other 8 characters are required to proceed in the game, and each one will tilt the scales a little toward one side or the other when you talk to them.
Once all 8 of these people are spoken to, Horus finds you and takes you back to the orphanage...where your new adopted parent/parents await you! If you answer a majority of questions positively, then you will be adopted by Rolff Hegel, a single father who is of modest means, but wise and just. If you answer the majority of questions with negative or pessimistic responses, you'll get Charles and Anastasia Valcourt as your adopted parents.
The differences between the two possible adopters are all based on story elements, rather than gameplay differences. In other words, it only really changes the story to have different parents, not how the game is played. The only exceptions to that are the differences between the different possible hero forms...your adult character will have different spells and skills, depending on who raises them. If you aren't going to worry with battling then these differences won't excite you...but I thought they were worth mentioning. The same is true of whether you pick Zoey or Victor...there are only story differences and character attribute differences, nothing affecting difficulty.
Playing through the different plotlines is a tad repetitive at times, but the differences all come together to weave a tapestry that cannot be fully appreciated in one playthrough. That does not mean that one playthrough will leave players with many unanswered questions, it's just that things that seemed like insignificant, minor details will suddenly gain importance...you get the answer at the same time as you realize there was even a question.
I could have summed up that entire previous paragraph by saying that the game's scenarios foreshadowed each other. Oh well. It goes a bit deeper than that, in that you gain insights into the thoughts and motives of other characters from more than just one perspective...particularly characters from the very beginning of the game like Marla, Tempest, and Lance, but basically it's just hearing the same story from different sides.
Once Horus finds you, this begins a log cutscene where you meet your new parental guardian...who adopts you!
PART II - Adolescence
When the long storyteller scene is over, and you gain control of your character, you will see that you have changed into 1 of 2 different adolescent forms for your gender. If you were optimistic, you will find yourself living with Rolff Hegel in a large house, but not a mansion. If you were pessimistic, you'll be in a mansion being raised by 2 parents...but all is not well with this seemingly superior outcome! First off, if you are playing as Viktor, your adopted mother will hate you, and your father will spoil you just to make her mad. The opposite is true if you play as Zoey. Being raised by Rolff Hegel may seem less ideal, but he will give you the freedom to pursue whatever path you may choose without serving you any attitude.
In either case, when you resume control, you will see your first comrade very near to you...your dog! You may rename him/her if you wish, or add them to your party. Later on we'll cover party mechanics, but for now let's just say that they won't join your party until you leave town.
Once you go downstairs, you can't leave the house until after you get a talk from your adopted parent(s). Since you are now 16, you will get a key to the house, and will be allowed to pursue employment! Woot! You have already met the 7 main questmsters, who are the people with whom you can find the most longterm positions. They are all downtown in Moyos proper, but you are about to walk outside onto the West Moyos map, which is the main residential district. There are LOTS of people here to interact with, almost all of which are necessary to progress the story, but for right now, let's proceed back to downtown Moyos. If you face right in front of the mansions and take a right, you will eventually be asked if you'd like to go back. Just select "Yes".
Now we get to the meat of the game!
Here in downtown Moyos, you can find employment as a cook, a trader, an archaeologist, a romantic, an artist, a saint, or a musician!
1 - Joseph (Artist Quest)
2 - Maximillian (Trader Quest)
3 - Althea (Romantic Quest)
4 - Hugo (Saint Quest)
5 - Aratos (Archaeologist Quest)
6 - Fristy (Musician Quest)
7 - Zinnia (Cook Quest)
*** SPOILERS ***
There is also a 'Thief' quest, but only if you found Tempest during the childhood stage! If you did, and you got the key from her (don't be judgmental), she will appear in the granary from the adolescent stage onward.
*** END SPOILERS ***
This guide will go into each quest path individually in detail, but for this general overview I'm only going to list them, and give their locations. To complete the game, you must complete all 7 of these main quests, but you can do them in any order, or tandem in just about any way. Depending on which path you complete first, you will achieve one of two possible adult forms for each of the possible adolescent forms...for a total of 8 possible adult forms. If you complete cook, archaeologist, saint, or trader first, you will get one adult, but if you complete artist, romantic, or musician first, you will get the other one.
*** SPOILERS ***
'Thief' is the 4th quest path that you can complete to get the second adult form.
*** END SPOILERS ***
Well now that we've become re-acquainted with the questmasters, you can either accept some/all of the quests, or save it for later. Other people you can now meet downtown are Florence, in front of the produce stand, and Tonque the amazon (who you can eventually buy the other mansion in the game from), in Isis Realty. Everyone will have special messages for you since your big coming of age as it were, so be sure to talk to everybody!
NOTE: You will occasionally see an option on people to "Steal" from people. Use that with extreme caution...if at all! I'll explain that in a lot more detail later, but for now...you have been warned. There is a jail in the game, and if you get caught stealing, that's where you will go.
We should head back to West Moyos soon to meet as many other people as we can, but before that we should probably cover the main ways of interacting with people...their options. You have been talking to people and seeing the messages for coming of age, but after those have been seen, characters revert back to their options. There are 10 possible options, and most characters have a selection of 4 of them.
- Chat
- Help
- Flirt
- Feed
- Play Music
- Draw Portrait
- Info
- Join
- Trade
- Steal
Once you select one of those, you have to talk to the character again to activate that mode. There is no such thing as auto activation of NPC's in RM3, sadly.
In any case, when you're done talking to everyone in Moyos, make your way back to West Moyos.
I'm working on getting a good map, but in the meantime here's a rundown of who is who in West Moyos:
- Christian
- Iris
- Irene
- Chester
- Marley
- Seymore
- Rose
- Mattie
- Logan
- Marla
- Duggan
- Jadess
- Hai
- Hope
- Collen
- India
PART 1 - A Knock at the Door:
You begin the game as an orphaned baby, left on the doorstep of an orphanage. You aren't actually playing as that at first though, you are in the role of Horus Rhindon, the owner of the orphanage. While you are him, all you have to do is walk to the door when you hear a knock at it.
Once there, Horus finds you (the baby), and then you (the player) get to pick whether you play as the male or female main character! No matter which you choose, you will then advance the story a few years. The early lives of the 2 main characters are eerily similar, but I'll leave the details of the differences for you to enjoy discovering on your own.
At the end of these story sections and the game intro, you begin actually playing as the child phase of your character finally! While in this phase, all you can do is run around town and talk to some people (12, to be exact). 9 of these people will ask you a question that has 2 possible responses. The first one is always the more positive, optimistic choice, and the second is always the more negative, pessimistic one.
The people in town that you need to speak with are listed below, along with their locations:
1 - Joseph
2 - Brogan
3 - Maximillian
4 - Althea
5 - Loren
6 - Lars
7 - Tyrus
8 - Hugo
9 - Aratos (Find something nearby to attract his attention so he'll talk to you!)
10 - Fristy
11 - Zinnia
*** SPOILERS ***
12 - Tempest is in the alley behind Althea's house
*** END SPOILERS ***
The three people that you can talk to, but do NOT influence your next life phase are Brogan, Lars, and Tyrus. Tempest can alter your next life phase, but she isn't mandatory to find. ALL of the other 8 characters are required to proceed in the game, and each one will tilt the scales a little toward one side or the other when you talk to them.
Once all 8 of these people are spoken to, Horus finds you and takes you back to the orphanage...where your new adopted parent/parents await you! If you answer a majority of questions positively, then you will be adopted by Rolff Hegel, a single father who is of modest means, but wise and just. If you answer the majority of questions with negative or pessimistic responses, you'll get Charles and Anastasia Valcourt as your adopted parents.
The differences between the two possible adopters are all based on story elements, rather than gameplay differences. In other words, it only really changes the story to have different parents, not how the game is played. The only exceptions to that are the differences between the different possible hero forms...your adult character will have different spells and skills, depending on who raises them. If you aren't going to worry with battling then these differences won't excite you...but I thought they were worth mentioning. The same is true of whether you pick Zoey or Victor...there are only story differences and character attribute differences, nothing affecting difficulty.
Playing through the different plotlines is a tad repetitive at times, but the differences all come together to weave a tapestry that cannot be fully appreciated in one playthrough. That does not mean that one playthrough will leave players with many unanswered questions, it's just that things that seemed like insignificant, minor details will suddenly gain importance...you get the answer at the same time as you realize there was even a question.
I could have summed up that entire previous paragraph by saying that the game's scenarios foreshadowed each other. Oh well. It goes a bit deeper than that, in that you gain insights into the thoughts and motives of other characters from more than just one perspective...particularly characters from the very beginning of the game like Marla, Tempest, and Lance, but basically it's just hearing the same story from different sides.
Once Horus finds you, this begins a log cutscene where you meet your new parental guardian...who adopts you!
PART II - Adolescence
When the long storyteller scene is over, and you gain control of your character, you will see that you have changed into 1 of 2 different adolescent forms for your gender. If you were optimistic, you will find yourself living with Rolff Hegel in a large house, but not a mansion. If you were pessimistic, you'll be in a mansion being raised by 2 parents...but all is not well with this seemingly superior outcome! First off, if you are playing as Viktor, your adopted mother will hate you, and your father will spoil you just to make her mad. The opposite is true if you play as Zoey. Being raised by Rolff Hegel may seem less ideal, but he will give you the freedom to pursue whatever path you may choose without serving you any attitude.
In either case, when you resume control, you will see your first comrade very near to you...your dog! You may rename him/her if you wish, or add them to your party. Later on we'll cover party mechanics, but for now let's just say that they won't join your party until you leave town.
Once you go downstairs, you can't leave the house until after you get a talk from your adopted parent(s). Since you are now 16, you will get a key to the house, and will be allowed to pursue employment! Woot! You have already met the 7 main questmsters, who are the people with whom you can find the most longterm positions. They are all downtown in Moyos proper, but you are about to walk outside onto the West Moyos map, which is the main residential district. There are LOTS of people here to interact with, almost all of which are necessary to progress the story, but for right now, let's proceed back to downtown Moyos. If you face right in front of the mansions and take a right, you will eventually be asked if you'd like to go back. Just select "Yes".
Now we get to the meat of the game!
Here in downtown Moyos, you can find employment as a cook, a trader, an archaeologist, a romantic, an artist, a saint, or a musician!
1 - Joseph (Artist Quest)
2 - Maximillian (Trader Quest)
3 - Althea (Romantic Quest)
4 - Hugo (Saint Quest)
5 - Aratos (Archaeologist Quest)
6 - Fristy (Musician Quest)
7 - Zinnia (Cook Quest)
*** SPOILERS ***
There is also a 'Thief' quest, but only if you found Tempest during the childhood stage! If you did, and you got the key from her (don't be judgmental), she will appear in the granary from the adolescent stage onward.
*** END SPOILERS ***
This guide will go into each quest path individually in detail, but for this general overview I'm only going to list them, and give their locations. To complete the game, you must complete all 7 of these main quests, but you can do them in any order, or tandem in just about any way. Depending on which path you complete first, you will achieve one of two possible adult forms for each of the possible adolescent forms...for a total of 8 possible adult forms. If you complete cook, archaeologist, saint, or trader first, you will get one adult, but if you complete artist, romantic, or musician first, you will get the other one.
*** SPOILERS ***
'Thief' is the 4th quest path that you can complete to get the second adult form.
*** END SPOILERS ***
Well now that we've become re-acquainted with the questmasters, you can either accept some/all of the quests, or save it for later. Other people you can now meet downtown are Florence, in front of the produce stand, and Tonque the amazon (who you can eventually buy the other mansion in the game from), in Isis Realty. Everyone will have special messages for you since your big coming of age as it were, so be sure to talk to everybody!
NOTE: You will occasionally see an option on people to "Steal" from people. Use that with extreme caution...if at all! I'll explain that in a lot more detail later, but for now...you have been warned. There is a jail in the game, and if you get caught stealing, that's where you will go.
We should head back to West Moyos soon to meet as many other people as we can, but before that we should probably cover the main ways of interacting with people...their options. You have been talking to people and seeing the messages for coming of age, but after those have been seen, characters revert back to their options. There are 10 possible options, and most characters have a selection of 4 of them.
- Chat
- Help
- Flirt
- Feed
- Play Music
- Draw Portrait
- Info
- Join
- Trade
- Steal
Once you select one of those, you have to talk to the character again to activate that mode. There is no such thing as auto activation of NPC's in RM3, sadly.
In any case, when you're done talking to everyone in Moyos, make your way back to West Moyos.
I'm working on getting a good map, but in the meantime here's a rundown of who is who in West Moyos:
- Christian
- Iris
- Irene
- Chester
- Marley
- Seymore
- Rose
- Mattie
- Logan
- Marla
- Duggan
- Jadess
- Hai
- Hope
- Collen
- India