Winhill Town Square
- "A small town outside of Galbadia. It is actually a small village. Sorceress Adel of Esthar ordered attacks on this village several times."
- —FFVIII Info Corner
Winhill (ウィンヒル, Winhiru) is a location in Final Fantasy VIII. It is a quaint, pastoral village on the southwest end of the Galbadian continent, west of the town of Timber in the Centra region. Somewhat isolated in comparison to other towns, Winhill is only directly accessible on foot via dirt roads. The village is surrounded by open plains and rolling fields.
History[]
Winhill was founded by a group of peaceful people who embraced small-town life and scorned the presence of outsiders entering their village. However, many of Winhill's young people found the quiet village life boring and left to seek excitement in the neighboring Deling City.
During the Sorceress War, all of the working men in town were sent off to join the war. The only ones left in the village, according to Laguna, were women with children, old people, chocobos, dogs, and cats. As a result, monsters made their way into town and overran its streets, making it dangerous for children to play outside. At some point during this time, Estharian troops raided Winhill capturing young girls to bring to their leader, Sorceress Adel, as candidates for succession. Although the townspeople fought back, the troops succeeded in capturing several children. One child in particular, however, avoided their grasp: Ellone, a girl of two or three with the unique ability to send another person's consciousness back in time. When her parents refused to turn her over to Esthar, they were killed, but the girl escaped and was taken in by her next-door-neighbor, Raine. Following the Esthar raid, a team of Galbadian soldiers were appointed to stand guard at the town's entrance and keep a lookout for Esthar soldiers, but the team did little to address the town's growing monster problem.
Soon after, a Galbadian soldier named Laguna Loire appeared in town, critically injured from a battle with Estharian troops in Centra. Like Ellone, Laguna was also taken in by Raine and nursed back to health. To repay Raine and Winhill for its hospitality, Laguna served the town as a protector, running daily patrols to rid the area of monsters, mostly made up of Bite Bugs and Caterchipillars. Some time later, Estharian troops raided Winhill once again, specifically in search of Ellone. This time, they succeeded in capturing her and whisking her away to Esthar. Laguna, now married to Raine, left for Esthar to rescue Ellone, leaving behind his pregnant wife. While he was gone, Raine gave birth to Laguna's son, Squall, but died in the process and was buried on a hill just outside of town. The people of Winhill blamed Laguna for her death and he did not return for seventeen years.
Following the war's end, Winhill began to fall into disrepair. Most of its young people had been lost in the war, while its children, now orphaned, were sent to orphanages.
Layout[]
Ellone's House.
- Ellone's House
This house used to be Ellone's family home, until her parents were gunned-down by Esthar troops; bullet holes still remain riddled in the walls. Eventually Laguna Loire would reside in the house between monster patrols and looking after Ellone.
Flower Shop.
- Flower Shop
The Flower Shop is a solitary store on the road through Winhill. It charters many types of flowers; Raine had even given some of her well-admired white flowers for the shop to sell.
Raine's Pub.
- Raine's Pub
Located next to the Winhill Mansion the pub was owned and run by Raine Loire before she died. She resided with Ellone, whom she had adopted after her parents' death; she also nursed a wounded Laguna Loire, who was then a stranger, back to health. Years after her death the premises is run by a different woman, but some say Raine's spirit can still be felt within the pub, kept alive by her white flowers.
Winhill Mansion.
- Winhill Mansion
The mansion dominates Winhill's main district. Home to many different occupants over the years a mysterious force is rearranging items within its walls. Could it be a ghost or something else?
Flower Restaurant.
- Flower Restaurant
The Flower Restaurant is also Winhill's hotel. Located in Downtown Winhill the hotel features a quiet restaurant with a flower theme. The town's modern day monster hunters (two ex-Garden students) have board and keep here.
Downtown Winhill.
- Downtown Winhill
Downtown Winhill harbors the Flower Restaurant and Winhill Store as well as a collection of houses and what seems to be a chapel. Most consider this to be the town's 'front'. A portrait of Downtown Winhill can be found within the Presidential Palace in Esthar.
Shops[]
Winhill Store[]
| Recovery Items | Price (gil) | GF Items | Price (gil) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Potion | 100 | G-Potion | 200 |
| Hi-Potion | 500 | G-Hi-Potion | 600 |
| Phoenix Down | 500 | G-Returner | 500 |
| Antidote | 100 | Ammo | Price (gil) |
| Eye Drops | 100 | Normal Ammo | 20 |
| Soft | 100 | Shotgun Ammo | 40 |
| Echo Screen | 100 | Miscellaneous | Price (gil) |
| Holy Water | 100 | Fuel | 3,000 |
| Remedy | 1,000 |
People associated with Winhill[]
- Laguna Loire, Galbadian soldier, monster hunter, married to Raine.
- Raine Loire, Pub owner, married to Laguna.
- Ellone Loire, adopted daughter of Laguna and Raine.
- Squall Leonhart, son of Laguna and Raine.
- Sorceress Adel, tyrant of Esthar, kidnaps Ellone from Winhill.
- Kiros, friend of Laguna, stays with Laguna in Winhill and hunts monsters for a short time.
Location[]
|
Winhill is located to the west of Lallapalazo Canyon in the hard-to-reach south of Galbadia. |
Location denoted by crosshair. |
Musical Themes[]
| "Fragments of Memories" | |
|
Tập tin:FFVIII Fragments of Memories.ogg |
| Đợi lâu quá mà không nghe được ? | |
"Fragments of Memories" plays during Laguna Loire's stay in Winhill. The section with the Chocobo Crossing features an 8-bit version of the "Mods de Chocobo" theme. "Fisherman's Horizon" is used in all visits with the main party.
Subquests[]
Vase Quest[]
Winhill is home to a minor sidequest which rewards the player little in material rewards, but allows the player to learn more about Raine and the town itself. The Vase Quest becomes available once Balamb Garden becomes mobile. The player may initiate the quest by visiting the Winhill Mansion and speaking with the owner. He confides to the party that his precious vase has gone missing and he fears ghosts may be responsible. Unfortunately, the vase has been broken into four pieces, and it is up to Squall and company to locate them.
- Piece 1: Inside the suit of armor in the large mansion. Irvine or Quistis must be in the party to get the piece.
- Piece 2: In the flower shop among the white flowers in the bottom corner.
- Piece 3: Chicobo crossing the road has it. The player must run into the chicobo to get the piece.
- Piece 4: The lady upstairs of the pub mentions the flowers' aroma. The player must examine the flowers downstairs in the bottom right corner of the screen, and Raine's ghost will appear, but is replaced by a cat. The cat has the last piece.
The mansion owner rewards the party with a Holy Stone.
Close Encounters[]
Winhill is also home to a rather strange event; if the player lingers in the area directly outside the town known as Winhill Bluffs, the party may encounter a UFO abducting an unsuspecting cow.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- In the third Laguna Dream, which takes place in Winhill, a map is visible on the back wall of the Flower Restaurant. Interestingly, the map is not of the world of Final Fantasy VIII but of the real world. The map is no longer present if the player returns to Winhill with Squall later in the game.
- Various unused backgrounds suggest that Esthar's second abduction of Ellone was originally meant to be featured in the game.