Baran is a major antagonist of Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai. He is a Dragon Knight who is indeed a long-lost father of Dai. He wanted to exterminate humanity out of disillusioned beliefs that they're cruel and selfish individuals after the loss of his wife Soala at the hands of Alkeed people, thus abandoning his duty as a Dragon Knight. He later joins the Dark Army out of hatred for humanity and becomes the Dragon Legion Commander. After failing to bring his son into his side, he later redeemed himself out of his love for him and later dies from protecting Dai and his friends by sacrificed himself to contain the explosion of the Black Core inside of Hadlar.
In the 1991 anime, he is voiced by late Unsho Ishizuka. In the 2020 anime, he is voiced by Shou Hayami in the original Japanese and Dean Redman in the English version.
Biography[]
During Hadlar's reign of terror around the world, Baran has fought Velzar, the King of Abyss, and later killed him which led to his soul being imprisoned inside a temple in the Underworld, but at the cost of his wounds. The next morning, he attempt to reach the Fountain of Miracles to heal his wounds until he met a human woman named Soala who helped him with it. However, their relationships has grown into a love as they fell for each other. Even though he was initially accepted into the Alkeed Kingdom after Soala introduced him to them, he was eventually banished and vilified from the kingdom after the vassals ratted him out to the king. Despite them being separated from each other, Soala refused to give up on Baran and decide to stay with him because they're having a child.
Both married couple then lived in a wooden cottage where their son Dino is born, but they were ambushed by the king and his forces before Baran is taken into an Alkeed Kingdom for an execution while Dino was banished into the Dermline Island (which began the entire story as result). However, the execution was stopped by Soala who shield herself to protect him from getting killed, thus died from succumbing to her injuries. His hearts filled with anger and despair, culminated Baran into single-handedly destroyed the entire Alkeed Kingdom out of rage in one fell swoop. Declared that humans were nothing but cruel and selfish individual, he angrily vowed to annihilate them all. He searched everywhere for his son, but to no avail. At some point, he recruited Galdandy, Borahorn and Larhalt into becoming his subordinates, especially the latter whom he took pity over his heartbreaking childhood, which led to the creation of the Dragon Riders.
However, he was eventually recruited by the Dark King Vearn into joining the Dark Army as the Dragon Legion Commander. Following the Sovereign Rock Castle has finished to be built, Hadlar and the six Legion Commanders were gathered and celebrated as Dark King Vearn offered them Infernal Emblem to prove their loyalty to him, but only for Flazzard to grabbed it without hesitation, earning himself the rank of the Blizzblaze Legion Commander.
After he quickly crushed down the Ringaia Kingdom single-handedly, Baran was called in by Hadlar for another meeting in a Left Shoulder Chamber with his fellow Legion Commanders where they're being informed that Hyunckel was sent to Papnica Kingdom to defeat Dai. When Flazzard furiously ranted about how Hyunckel has chosen into carried out that kind of a mission, Baran tried to calm him down but to no avail.
Despite being called in to go out on a full-assault against Dai and his friends in the Valge Island to stop them from destroying both Dark Spires created by Flazzard, Baran was sent out to conquered the Carl Kingdom instead which he reluctantly accepts. He went out to attack and terrorized Carl, where he killed one of the mightiest knight with his Crest Beam. However, he was visited by Zaboera where they discussed about Dai's Dragon Crest, causing him to realize his long-lost son he was searching for was none other than the Hero and went back to the Sovereign Rock Castle to confront Hadlar for hiding that kind of information in secret. Pleased of hearing this, Vearn decide to allow Baran to carry out his mission to defeat Dai and he'll be promoted into a Supreme Commander if he succeeds.
He then allowed Killvearn to use his dragons and sent them to attack Bengarna Kingdom to find out whether Dai is the Dragon Knight or not, which resulted in him being feared and vifilied by the rest of its people despite he has saved them from the attack. After Dai went into the underwater and enters the Dragon Temple to find out more about himself, Baran eventually followed him here and they first met each other face-to-face where he convinced Dai into joining him with their quest of annihilating the entire humanity. But when Dai refused, Baran eventually sending him back to the ground where he fought all his friends and reveals them that Dai was his son and his birth name is Dino. During the fight, Baran wasn't hesitant to use resonance to remove all of Dai's memories before he retreats, causing him into becoming a timid and fearful young boy and to shattering the group's hope as result.
He later does the ritual to call upon the Dragon Riders for their help to retrieve his son back from his friends. The next morning, Baran and the Dragon Riders are on their way to Teran Kingdom until they're confronted by Popp who blocked their path from reaching there. After leaving his subordinates into fighting Popp (and later Hyunckel), he went to Teran Kingdom alone where he fought against Crocodine (and Leona was beside him as well). While fighting, he was provoked by Crocodine into empowering his Aura to drained his stamina and Magic Power. Before he was about to kill both Crocodine and Leona, Hyunckel arrived, along with Popp, to stop him from doing so and attempt to reasoned with him. Enraged, Baran transformed himself into Dragonoid and attempt to annihilate the heroes until Dai steps in after he leaves the castle. He attempt to persuade an amnesiac Dai into his corrupted ways, but only to be stopped by Popp who casted Megante on both themselves, which eventually succeeds in getting Dai regained his memories back.
However, casting Megante on themselves only costed Popp's life and Baran callously threw him on the ground. Enraged at Dai for getting his memories back and denounced him as his father for all of the atrocities he had committed, Baran attempt to use his resonance to wipe out the rest of his memories again, but Dai prevents this from happening by redirecting his Dragon Crest into his right fist thanks to his human heart inherited from his mother Soala. While fighting against Dai, he almost destroyed the entire Teran Kingdom during the fight. Baran attempt to finish off Dai with Gigabreak, but only to be stopped by dead Popp as his corpse moved to cast a spell on him which allowed Dai to deliver an Avan Strash at him as a finishing move. Despite the heroes' victory, everyone are still devastated over Popp's death until Baran revived the latter with some of his blood before exiling himself into a cave and he'll be waiting for Dai to settle their score to determine the fate of humanity. Sometime following his defeat at the hands of his own son, he went to visit the Dragon Riders' coffin to revive Larhalt because he is the only one who has a pure heart and strong will, before leaving him a letter to Larhalt to carry out his last request by help and protect Dai for him, making him later joining the final battle against the Dark King Vearn.
He later returns to a cave where he was seen resting, but he was encountered by his former comrade on the Dark Army, Killvearn, who is sent by Vearn to assassinate him. Learning from Killvearn that Vearn is planning to destroy the Surface World, he decide to stop him from doing so out of disgust and standards. After he arrived at the Field of Death, Baran saved Chiu and his troops from getting killed by Fenbren before Popp went to escort them away. While being confronted by both Hyunckel and Crocodine, he brutally knocks them down and refused to join with them in stopping Vearn together out of hatred for humanity. Hyunckel realized that he is planning to sacrifice himself for Dai's sake and attempt to stop him, but only for them to be encountered by Albinass who attempt to kill them all. However, Baran and Crocodine survived, but Hyunckel is gravely injured. Realizing the error of his ways, Baran decide to join with Dai and his friends to stop Vearn in the Field of Death. Initially wants nothing to do with him, Dai eventually asked him of what his mother looks like, which Baran described Soala as a beautiful and kind woman who filles everyone around her with warmth and overflowed with such light.
The father and son duo later fly down to the underwater where they spotted the Dark Citadel Gate, which was guarded by Fenbren, who wants to get revenge on Baran for blinding him. After killing Fenbren, they opens the gate before they were confronted by their old enemies Hadlar. While they're fighting, Baran noticed the Black Core inside of Hadlar and warned Dai that the Black Core will be set off that will destroy the entire Field of Death. To protect his son from a dangerous harm, Baran knocks him down with Kasnooze to put him to sleep before he transformed into his Dragonoid form to continue to fight Hadlar. After defeating Hadlar, Baran pummeled his first right towards his stomach and revealed the Black Core inside of him, causing Hadlar to crying in despair. Under Vearn's orders, Mystvearn arrived in front of both Hadlar and Baran and revealed his true appearance in front of them before using Vearn's full powers to activate the Black Core, blowing up the entire Field of Death and revealed the Vearn Palace. After the explosion, Baran is seen standing there frozen while floating before he fell down to the ground and reverted back to normal. While surrounded by Dai and his friends, Maam cannot heal Baran with Midheal since he was about to die. Baran then bids farewell to his son by admitted that he's the true Dragon Knight due to having a heart of humanity and encouraged him to be strong before he later dies. When the heroes are confronted by Vearn and his right-hand men, Baran's corpse was incinerated in front of the heroes by Vearn out of disrespect to spite them.
Even after his death, Baran's spirits will always remained inside of Dai, as he convinced the Holy Mother Dragon to let Dai back into the Surface World so he could join the final battle against the Dark Army, helps Dai defeat Goroa and save Leona which he gained a second Dragon Crest, and sending a Demon Dragon Blade to Dai to help him defeat the Dark King Vearn.
External Links[]
- Baran on the Villains Wiki
- Baran on the Dragon Quest Wiki
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 Heroes
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Disciples of Avan Main Allies Avan's Party Beast King Commandos Romos Kingdom Papnica Kingdom Teran Kingdom Bengarna Kingdom Carl Kingdom Others | ||