Benevodons

The Benevodons (God-Beasts in the fan translation of Seiken Densetsu 3) are a group of very powerful and destructive elemental Demons spawned from The Echoes of Mavolia who are the major antagonists and bosses in Trials of Mana, and serve as a main plot device in the game's story. Each of them represent one of the eight world elements similar to the Mana Spirits, with whom they are frequently linked in some capacity. They are also recurring bosses in the series.

List of Benevodons

• Zable Fahr, the Benevodon of Darkness.
• Lightgazer, the Benevodon of Light.
• Xan Bie, the Benevodon of Fire.
• Fiegmund, the Benevodon of Water.
• Land Umber, the Benevodon of Earth.
• Dangaard, the Benevodon of Wind.
• Dolan, the Benevodon of the Moon
• Mispolm, the Benevodon of Wood

Appearances

Trials of Mana

The Benevodons existed before the world was fully formed, and rampaged across the lands until the Goddess of Mana defeated them with the Sword of Mana. After this, they were each imprisoned in the eight Mana Stones to keep them from threatening the world. However, their actions were apparently known to the people of the world, and there exist those who would try to release them and take their power.

After the player character gains the Sword of Mana, their respective antagonist kidnaps the Faerie, successfully demanding the sword for her safety. After gaining the blade, they use it to release the eight Benevodons from the stones. The newly-freed creatures then remain in whatever dungeon their respective Mana Stone was in until the heroes defeat them. The player has the option of fighting the first seven Benevodons in whatever order they wish. However, whenever one is killed, the monsters in all of the dungeons in which they lurk (even those that have already been killed) gain 2 levels, making reaching subsequent Benevodons more difficult.

After the first seven are killed, the heroes must locate the Mana Stone of Darkness, which had been lost in the distant past. Once they find it, they can face and kill Zable Fahr. However, killing the Benevodons plays right into the hands of the main villain, because killing them sends their power to the Sword of Mana.

Sword of Mana

The Benevodons do not physically appear in Sword of Mana, although some of them are referenced: their names are used in the game world's calendar system; more specifically, the months. The player can discover this by reading Isabella's diary in her room at Vinquette Hall. Some of the names have been translated differently, though this can be attributed to the lack of a standardized set of translations until the World of Mana compilation.

Children of Mana

The Benevodons make a return appearance in Children of Mana. Instead of appearing as eight separate bosses as they did in Trials of Mana, however, they have fused together in pairs, forming the four Malevodons. Once each Malevodon is defeated, it splits into its component Benevodons. After that the player can visit each Benevodon once and ask them a question related to the plot of the game. Once all 8 have been visited a secret dungeon will be unlocked after beating the game. If the player beats this dungeon they will receive a special Gem from the 8 Benevodons.

The Benevodons act as forces of good in this game and Moti claims they are here to protect and watch over the world. At the end of the game the Benevodons seal away Illusia Island because its power is too dangerous to be accessible to humans, explaining how the Mana Sanctuary came to be.

Heroes of Mana

All Benevodons, except for the missing Zable Fahr, lend the player their strength as soon as Roget and his crew discover the respective Mana Stone. They, however, do so only because the Mirror of Esina may end the very world they are looking forward to ravaging one day. During the battle the player can summon each Benevodon by building a respective elemental shrine. As soon as the shrine is activated the Benevedon in question will release a powerful attack that hits all enemies on the screen and has an additional effect such as HP stealing or several status ailments (depending on the Benevodon).

According to the backstory at the beginning of the game they came as part of the Darkness unleashed by Anise the Witch during Dawn of Mana and thus are either servants (like the Thanatos) or (considering Anise stated that the Echoes were partially freed before their destruction) outright manifestations of The Echoes of Mavolia.

Visions of Mana

The Benevodons going berserk in the flashbacks.

The Benevodons make their return as bosses in the fifth game of the core franchise, however, only Zable Fahr returns, the other seven being replaced. Instead of incarnations of pure evil linked to Anise that can be destroyed, they are described as aspects of nature that can never be destroyed for good, and rise when the Power of Mana is abused or depleted, in the same way as the Mana Beast. Still, they remain highly destructive primordial incarnation of natural disasters, keeping their primary characterisation.

In this continuity, the Benevodons hail from the Mystical Realm. They used to be benevolent spirits tasked to sustain the ecosystem, and revered as idols at least for some. Alas, mortals misusing the power of Mana to wage wars, disturbing all Physical and Spiritual Realms, driving them berserk and sending them to a rampage. This is a possible nod to their benevolent role in Children of Mana.

• Lightgazer is replaced by Selaphia as the Benevodon of Light.
• Xan Bie is replaced by Vaulchibel as the Benevodon of Fire.
• Fiegmund is replaced by Gandoom as the Benevodon of Water.
• Land Umber is replaced by Garethe as the Benevodon of Earth.
• Dangaard is replaced as Besseroth as the Benevodon of Wind.
• Dolan is replaced by Tor Marne as the Benevodon of the Moon.
• Mispolm is replaced by Floaret as the Benevodon of Wood.

Trivia

• In Secret of Mana, the Mana Beast has the same name in Japanese as the Benevodons, but it is not clear at this time whether this makes it a ninth Benevodon or not.
  • It is said the Mana Beast is a merger of monsters, which may make its nature more in line with that of the Malevodons in Children of Mana.