Tales of Arise is an epic RPG following a story of liberation in a visually stunning world. As with most games in the genre, players can opt to spend more time exploring the gorgeous landscapes by way of numerous sub-quests offered by NPCs across the land. Available sub-quests in Tales of Arise are indicated by a letter icon seen above a character's head. These tasks can range from item collection to monster slaying. This guide will specifically help players learn how to find Earth Seeds for the Hard Liquor sub-quest in Tales of Arise.
Players can pick up the Hard Liquor sub-quest in the village of Messia 224 in the Cyslodia region. The party will come across this small snowy town shortly after the dramatic Glanymede Castle dungeon and boss fight. After some story events within Messia 224, a couple of sub-quests will become available from village NPCs. The Hard Liquor quest is one of these and requires the player to find four Earth Seeds. It isn't immediately obvious where this material comes from, however.
Updated November 4, 2021 by Tom Bowen: Despite the many tutorial sections in Tales of Arise, there are still plenty of things that players are left to figure out for themselves. This includes where to find specific crafting items and ingredients, as many players will learn upon their first visit to Cyslodia. There, they'll be tasked with finding four Earth Seeds for a villager as part of the Hard Liquor sub-quest. He does mention that they're sometimes dropped by Zeugles, but, when it comes to which enemies drop Earth Seeds and where the party can find them, players will either need to figure things out for themselves or read the following guide.
Where to Find Earth Seeds in Tales of Arise
Earth Seeds are obtained as an item drop from Roper enemies and are slightly rarer than the Strange Core items that the Zeugles also occasionally drop. There are numerous areas where the party can encounter Ropers, though only two of these are accessible to players when they first reach the Cyslodia section of the game.
The first such area is Ulvhan Grotto, which the party passed through to first reach the Cyslodia region. It's therefore entirely possible that some players will have already accumulated four Earth Seeds before even picking up the Hard Liquor sub-quest in Messia 224. If that's the case, they'll be able to turn the quest in as soon as it's been initiated.
The next area where Ropers can be found is Rudhir Forest, which players will venture through on their way toward Cysloden and the Riville Prison Tower dungeon. Given that players will need to travel through this area to progress the main story anyway, it's arguably best to look for Earth Seeds here and then fast travel back to Messia 224 after reaching Cysloden rather than backtracking to Ulvhan Grotto.
How to Increase the Chances of Finding Earth Seeds
Players who pre-ordered the game can use the Eastern Rice cooking recipe to increase the chances of items dropping in battle. The Hootle Pancakes recipe does have the same effect, though players won't be able to unlock this until they reach the Rena section of the main story near the very end of the game. Doing so will unlock the Dahna's Tastiest Pancake sub-quest in Menancia and players will get the recipe as a reward for completing this late-game quest.
For questers who are working on Hard Liquor later on in the game, specifically after unlocking battle chain bonuses, it's possible to take advantage of Combat Points earned from consecutive battles to pick up Earth Seeds faster. Players can equip the Lucky Bangle accessory to increase the item drop rate too and can also use the "Rare Drop Rate Up L" bonus skill to increase the chances of finding Earth Seeds rather than Strange Cores.
The Rewards For Completing the Hard Liquor Sub-Quest
Finding four Earth Seeds and turning in the Hard Liquor quest will reward players with 700 Gald, 135 SP, and the Lohikeitto cooking recipe, which itself can be used to increase the rate at which enemies drop items. For those who pre-ordered the game, this isn't all that useful, though, for everyone else, it can serve as a nice stand-in until they are able to unlock the Hootle Pancakes recipe later on in the game.
Finding the materials needed for gathering quests such as this can require some serious legwork and so players who know how to utilize fast travel in Tales of Arise will have a much easier time getting around and completing them. With many, many more quests available throughout the game, it's therefore in a player's best interest to master these quality-of-life mechanics as early as possible.
Tales of Arise is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.