Ca꧒re to help an exhausted woman in ? Well, you should. She's had it rough. Now, all she needs is seven Dragonthistle Berries, and you'll complete the "Soldier's Solace" side quest for her out in Brilehaven. Seems simple enough. Of course, it involves a branཧd-new optional dungeon: Gracia Forest.

This guide will get you t🥃hrough Gracia Forest from start to finish. It's certainly not the longest place you'll visit in Metaphor: ReFantazio, but we've covered th🧸e main enemies and every treasure. We've included the boss, Kokasados, too. You'll have "Soldier's Solace" done in no time at all.

How To Begin "Soldier's Solace"

No sooner do you leave the Spider's Den in Brilehaven on the morning following the tournament-related events and their fallout, than you'll see a woman with a quest icon over her head not far away.

Explaining her lot in life, she inevitably compels you to seek something out for her. Namely, seven Dragonthistle Berries out in Gracia Forest, which will n🔜ow be added to 𒉰your map. Onward we go; simple as that!

We advise you to pick up other dungeon-related side quests before you depart, so that 🐻you don't 🔯waste too much time traveling. Knocking them all out in one several-day swoop is best.

Gracia Forest: Before Plateau

Chat with the Tired Adventurer on your way into the forest. He offers a nice reminder that we ought to equip weapons and skills that can strike from afar.

Start off by taking the west path at the fork - just to get some EXP in via Raptor Corvos, because there's nothing else here.

Now, head east. Here, we'll face our first Canibaflo. It's no slouch if you go about things inaccurately; so long as you have some decently powerful Fire magic, and a way to remove debuffs for your team if needed, you'll be fine.

Grab the first Dragonthistle Berry from nearby, then proceed onward, where you'll bump into Loveless. Kill the weak birds via overworld combat and the second Dragonthistle Berry's all yours. Deal with another Canibaflo, and... hey, Plateau's here already?

Beware the Manjula, a chimera-type enemy, that rushes in here. It's not something you want to get ambushed by. South from Plateau are three paths further east, though the middle path just leads to Talkative Tooth. Take the bottom-most path.

See if you can steal a Chimera Armor from the Manju🥀la. It's got DEF 220, and offers Endurance +♊5. Not bad!

Follow the path down for a Ruby, then head north from here.

Gracia Forest: After Plateau

Your third Dragonberry Thistle is up the path and toward the right-side dead end. Beware some birds that'll try to get the jump on you before you slash them to oblivion. Continue north.

Follow the path even further north to a dead end with a Gold Beetle!

Veer west at the junction, past the glob of hornets, and find the fourth Dragonthistle Berry by taking the south path at this latest fork. Keep at it by continuing north. Dragonthistle Berry number five is found at the south dead end following this wider area.

Once again, head north; A pair of Canibaflos will come rushing up, so rush 'em down instead. Nab the sixth Dragonthistle Berry by taking this path all the way to its west end. Turning around, go south into another wider area.

Some Canibaflos hang around pretty closely-knit here, flanked by weak enemies If you stun them near the weak enemies, you can get into a battle with them, which you actually want - they might drop useful Magla Pills.

Carry forward, watching out for another Manjula. Heal up, and use MP-restoring items if you're especially low, because the fabled Kꦯokasados attacks!

Boss: Kokasados

To be perfectly candid, this isn't the fight it's cracked up to be if you arrive prepared. What you need most is Rakukaja, or something comparable; this raises an ally's Defense by one stage.

Under normal circumstances, that's little more than "nice." In Kokasados' case, Defense-raising buffs are a must. When the game notifies you that it's targeting someone without Rakukaja, and then it stands petrified, it's about to kill them in a single blow.

Have Hulkenberg as a Commander (or General) cast Marakukaja, and you're totally fine. It's a party-wide Defense-elevating spell.

All of Kokasados' other attacks are either physical slash-based, or Wind-based, with Gacyclo dealing party-wide medium Wind damage, and Powerful Pulverizer dealing single-target physical damage.

Pierce attacks are your best friend in this fight. Your Gunner (or Sniper) should fire off skill shots like Hex Shot every turn, or otherwise, combine with a Thief/Assassin - in our case, Heismay - for Mania Bullet, which deals heavy Pierce damage.

The protagonist, our Magic Seeker, just kept hammering away with his most powerful spells, or using Fireblade Rider with Hulkenberg when available. He only needed to heal for us once, via an inherited Medica, a party-wide medium HP recovery.

Finishing The Quest

Delivering the Dragonthistle Berries won't bring our poor woman's son back, but they will help others. Chat her up where you found her in Brilehaven, and she'll gift you 30,000 reeve and a Dragonblood Sap, which fully heals one ally's HP and MP.

And that's the full scoop on "Soldier's Solace" in Metaphor: ReFanta💜zio! Keep up the good 🐓work, candidate.