Dolce

Dolce approaches Salsa and Beat after they ignore her.

"Scurvy dogs! No one ignores Captain Dolce! .... You like hooks, do you? Well, then I'll give you a taste of this one!"

—Captain Dolce confronts the party.

Dolce is the female captain of the pirate ship by the same name. She and her lieutenants Guitar and Bass, part of a group dubbed by Guitar as the "Invincible Dolce Gang," first confront the party in the ship's treasure room and later appear to again engage them at latter points in their journey.

Story

Dolce: "Oh, it's you lot. So, you've been having your way with my ship, have you?"

Salsa: "Look, Beat! It's a real pirate captain with an eye patch and a hook and everything!"

Beat: "Well, just because she has an eye patch and a hook doesn't mean she's the captain. I thought pirate captains were, you know, supposed to be grizzly old men with scraggly beards."

— The party encounters Captain Dolce for the first time.

Polka, Frederic, Beat and Salsa first encounter Dolce and her lieutenants in the treasure room of the Pirate Ship Dolce. Salsa immediately declares Dolce to be a true pirate captain, noting her eyepatch and hook. Beat engages her an argument over these being stereotypes, believing pirate captains to be men with scraggly beards, but Salsa complains that this is a stereotype as well. Enraged at being ignored, Dolce engages the party in battle, but she and her lieutenants are defeated after a tough fight.

Following the battle, the party discovers a treasure chest filled with shining jewels. Polka worries about the ethics of taking such a large amount of treasure, though Frederic notes that it was all stolen to begin with. Salsa, meanwhile, finds something else to interest her: a pirate cap with a skull-and-crossbones to replace the hat she lost when the party was knocked off the Cabasa Bridge into the Fusion River.

The pirate continues their journey and eventually reaches the Wah Lava Cave. After traveling through, they encounter an area with bright orange flowers and an "X" on the floor. Upon examining the X, Dolce and her lieutenants appear and Guitar asks what the group is doing there, suggesting that they're "looking for our treasure." Dolce raps him on the head with her musket, but then decides that his slip of the tongue doesn't matter if they can defeat the party. They fail, however, and are sent running, but not before dropping a paper revealing a clue.

In the Mandolin Church Catacombs, Beat can examine some pillars which make a reference to banishing a blue light. If he then returns to the church, he can read a note in one of the pews that reads "Tell my wine buddies: 'Dolce's skin is so smooth, it makes me jealous.'" Later, when the party returns to Baroque City, Allegretto can speak with a slacking employee in the church's basement and is given a choice of either complimenting Dolce or stating "Lately, her skin's starting to sag." When he chooses this third option, the employee agrees and Dolce & her lieutenants thunder into the room. Allegretto states "So this is that pirate," and Dolce says that he must have heard about her because of her beauty. Salsa comments that only old women care about such things and Dolce, furious, tells her that she wants her hat back. The party again defeats Dolce and her lieutenants and claims the pirates' treasure, a Peace Earring. They can then examine the barrels in the room to claim a Score Piece.

In an Encore Mode playthrough, Dolce and her lieutenants again run off, Dolce stating that "Next time... that hat is mine!" They drop another paper with a clue. The party follows the clue to the Woodblock Groves and enter a code, which reveals a treasure chest. When Allegretto examines it, however, he is punched by a skeleton jack-in-the-box and the party is once again forced to battle Dolce and her two lieutenants. This time, they defeat the group for good and Dolce produces a treasure chest containing Seven Stars, a valuable accessory that increases earned EXP by 20%.

Battle

Dolce uses Burning Spindle

Main article: Captain Dolce

"Ooh, you've been naughty, haven't you?"

—Dolce at the start of the battle in the Wah Lava Cave

The initial battle with Dolce and her lieutenants is often considered to be one of the most challenging in the game, as the player must complete the battle with relatively low levels, a limited set of party members, and a battlefield that is mostly dark with swinging lanterns. In an Encore Mode playthrough, the party has the advantage of being able to utilize Harmony Chains and counterattacks, but must contend with the group's increased stats. It is strongly recommended to take out the lieutenants first, as they have relatively low HP compared to Dolce, but can harass the party with some powerful attacks until removed. Additionally, they can revive each other, so the second should be swiftly dispatched upon defeat of the first in order to prevent resurrection.

Dolce herself utilizes a strong physical attack. She is fast, and will often attack members from behind to prevent guarding against attacks. It is recommended to use a Very Odd Chocolate item against her to reduce her attack power. Her special attacks include Burning Spindle, which is a two hit strike and Tempest Swirl, which she uses when she has her back to a character to hit them with a special attack from behind. Her most powerful attack is Dead Man's Tale, a distance attack that deals massive damage and can often KO a character in one hit if not guarded against. If the player finds themselves repeatedly losing to Dolce and her team, then it is generally recommended to gain a couple of levels, as leveling can help greatly with this battle. If either of her lieutenants uses Rising Power, it is recommended to take them out quickly if possible, as this move places them in temporary Burst status, making them extremely powerful.

The second battle with Dolce and her team is similar to the first and the player again has only four characters to choose from, unless playing in Encore Mode and returning to the cave later on. They should, however, now be used to the groups' attack pattern. If playing the PlayStation 3 version of Eternal Sonata, they will have also completed Lament and likely be at higher levels, thus making for a much easier fight.

In the third battle, Dolce, Guitar and Bass once again utilize the same basic attack pattern. With a much larger selection of characters and the option to save the battle until after completing the events at Aria Temple, if desired, this battle should present relatively little challenge compared to the earlier fights.

In the final battle, Dolce and her team have grown stronger. Dolce's Tempest Swirl has been replaced with Hurricane Blast, while her Burning Spindle is now Shark Bite, and her Dead Man's Tale becomes Galiote Staver. It is generally recommended to be at least Level 40 for this battle, if not higher. As always, it is recommended to defeat Dolce's lieutenants first. Dolce is vulnerable to Stop status, so the player might give consideration to using March for her special attack Full-Moon Bind. Alternatively, if Allegretto has acquired his Silver Star ultimate weapon, this can be used to overwhelm the entire group even at lower levels, especially if he is also equipped with the Crimson Brooch for Burst status.

Behind the scenes

Allegretto: "So, this is that pirate, huh."

Dolce: "My, my. Famous, am I? It's my beauty, I know."

Salsa: "Nobody said anything like that. And only old ladies worry about that, anyway."

— Salsa antagonizes Dolce.

• In an original playthrough, if the party misses the battle with Dolce and her crew in the Wah Lava Cave, then they will not be able to engage in it later and will have also missed the opportunity to do the next battle in the basement of the pub in Baroque City. Additionally, if they complete the Wah Lava battle, but then do not examine the pillars in the Mandolin Church Grotto, then they will miss the battle in Baroque City. In Encore Mode, the player may travel freely to any location after Crescendo and Serenade make for Forte, and thus may wait until later to complete any of these fights or examine the pillars, if desired.
• In a first playthrough, the party earns a Peace Earring accessory for defeating Dolce and her team in the pub in Baroque, but they do not receive this accessory in Encore Mode. If the player wishes to complete their inventory by earning this accessory, the must start a third playthrough from their Encore Mode file and complete the quest to rescue the man in the Sharp Mountains. If they also completed this quest in their original Encore Mode playthrough, then the reward for completing it this second time will be a Peace Earring.
• Dolce is one of only two human bosses in Eternal Sonata who isn't an agent of Forte. In the manga version of Eternal Sonata, however, she works for Forte.
• Dolce has earned a dark horse following as "Captain Sexy" on YouTube and certain forums both for her attractive appearance and seductive voice.
• Dolce's English and Japanese voice actresses are both uncredited, and she only speaks out loud in battle - all dialogue from her in cutscenes is presented in text only.

Etymology

• In music, "dolce" is a term meaning "sweet" or "gentle." Presumably the name is used ironically, as neither term is descriptive of Captain Dolce, though she does claim in one of her battle-start quotes "Oh, I'll be gentle."

Notes and references