diff --git a/doc/game/About.html b/doc/game/About.html index fc7118ca..1f84fe11 100644 --- a/doc/game/About.html +++ b/doc/game/About.html @@ -19,6 +19,6 @@

Any comments and bug reports should be submitted using the form at the Issues page. Please do so. We love to hear from you, and any comments can serve to make this game better. You may also submit suggestions for improvements there.

System Requirements:

Blades of Exile for Macintosh requires 3 MB of free memory, Mac OS X (10.4 and newer is supported; it may or may not work on older systems), 7 MB of hard drive space, a 13" screen, and 256 colors. {TODO: This section is probably out of date; update it.}

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For Windows users, Blades of Exile will work with systems as old as Windows 98 and 2000, and certain installations of Vista. The specifications are the same as with Macintosh. {TODO: Confirm this. That's just my personal experience --w-dueck}

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For Windows users, Blades of Exile will work with systems as old as Windows 98 and 2000, and certain installations of Vista. The specifications are the same as with Macintosh.

diff --git a/doc/game/Combat.html b/doc/game/Combat.html index 1aad008f..a93f69b5 100644 --- a/doc/game/Combat.html +++ b/doc/game/Combat.html @@ -30,12 +30,13 @@

End Combat ('End', 'e'): In town, when you are through fighting, click this button to go back into town mode (whether or not any foes remain). When in an encounter outdoors, you can resume traveling by clicking this button (although it will only work if all the enemies are dead).

Active ('Act', 'x'):Clicking on this button makes the current PC the only active PC. None of the other PCs will do anything until the active PC dies, or you click the 'Act' button again.

Other actions have an action point cost:

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Using An Item (3 AP)

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Equipping/Removing An Item (1 AP)

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Giving An Item (1 AP)

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Dropping An Item (1 AP)

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Moving a Space (1 AP)

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This sums up the things you can do in combat. But what of the rewards, and the risks?

Getting Damaged, Armor: Every time you get hit, your health goes down. When you receive a blow that would take you to 0 or less health, you end up at 0 health (this is signified by a coughing noise). When you get damaged and have 0 health, you die. When you take a lot of damage and have 0 health, you will be obliterated (making this PC much harder to raise from the dead).

Fortunately, there is a wide variety of armor in the game. Armor will not reduce the number of blows you take, but will reduce the amount of damage you take when those blows land. However, the heavier the armor, the more it interferes with your ability to attack and cast spells (although defense skill reduces this effect).

diff --git a/doc/game/Contents.html b/doc/game/Contents.html index 294a8149..17b9257b 100644 --- a/doc/game/Contents.html +++ b/doc/game/Contents.html @@ -18,7 +18,7 @@
  • Comments and Bugs
  • System Requirements
    • -
  • Playing Tips for Beginners
    • +
  • Playing Tips for Beginners
  • Getting Started
    •  +

    Level 1

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    Level 2

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    Level 3

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    Level 4

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    Level 5

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    Level 6

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    Level 7

    + diff --git a/doc/game/Screen.html b/doc/game/Screen.html index 81212564..6626e3a2 100644 --- a/doc/game/Screen.html +++ b/doc/game/Screen.html @@ -10,9 +10,9 @@

    The Blades of Exile Screen

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    > -

    Figure 1:  The main Blades of Exile screen, with the six sections marked.

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    Figure 1: The main Blades of Exile screen, with the six sections marked.

    You will now be looking at the main Blades of Exile screen. This screen has six distinctive parts.

    Terrain Screen

    @@ -23,7 +23,7 @@

    This bar contains information about what's going on. When in combat, it tells you who is active and how many action points they have remaining. Outdoors or in town, it tells you where you are.

    Buttons

    These change depending on your setting. What the Outdoor/Town/Combat buttons do is described in the relevant sections.

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    Figure 2: PC Status Screen Buttons

    @@ -46,7 +46,7 @@

    By each PC's name will occasionally appear a symbols representing that character's status. To find out what these mean, click the '?' in the PC status area.

    PC Inventory Screen

    This area lists the inventory for the current active character. There are several things you can do here:

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    Figure 3: Inventory Screen Buttons

    diff --git a/doc/game/Tips.html b/doc/game/Tips.html index 44476fbc..b9f67632 100644 --- a/doc/game/Tips.html +++ b/doc/game/Tips.html @@ -10,7 +10,7 @@

    Section 2: Playing Tips for Beginners

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    Blades of Exile (Blades for short) is a computer fantasy role-playing game. If you've never played a game of this sort before, much of what's going on will be very unfamiliar to you. This section provides an overview of how to do the most important things, so you don't get too swamped with the details. Don't worry - even though Blades of Exile is a complicated program, once you can get around, you will be able to pick up other things very easily. Also, don't worry if you've never played Exile I-III. Experience with those games is not necessary to enjoy Blades of Exile.

    +<>Blades of Exile (Blades for short) is a computer fantasy role-playing game. If you've never played a game of this sort before, much of what's going on will be very unfamiliar to you. This section provides an overview of how to do the most important things, so you don't get too swamped with the details. Don't worry - even though Blades of Exile is a complicated program, once you can get around, you will be able to pick up other things very easily. Also, don't worry if you've never played Exile I-III. Experience with those games is not necessary to enjoy Blades of Exile.

    Starting the game

    In Blades of Exile, you will control a group (or "party") of up to six adventurers (often referred to as PCs, for "player characters"). You will take these six people on adventures, kill monsters, collect loot, and try to save the world. Each person has his or her own skills, abilities, and items.

    To start the game, you need to get a group of adventurers. From the starting screen, press Create New Party, and watch the introduction. When you hit the button, you will be at the party creation screen.

    diff --git a/doc/game/Town.html b/doc/game/Town.html index bae80214..d6f9ad9b 100644 --- a/doc/game/Town.html +++ b/doc/game/Town.html @@ -11,7 +11,7 @@

    Getting Around Town

    When you begin the game, you will be in one of Exile's many towns and forts. There are a variety of things you can and should do.

    Moving around: To move, place the cursor on the terrain screen in the direction you want to move (it should turn into a little arrow) and click. You will take a step in the direction the arrow points. To move up, for example, move the cursor above the little person in the middle (you). The cursor should turn into an arrow pointing up. Click. You will move up a space.

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    You can also move using the keypad. Hitting '5' pauses your party, '8' makes you move up, '2' down, and so on.

    +

    You can also move using the keypad. Hitting 5 pauses your party, 8 makes you move up, 2 down, and so on.

    If you cannot move there, because of something in the way, the text screen will tell you so. If you've stepped on something unpleasant, like swamp, lava, or some sort of trapped square, you will be informed. There are several interesting things to know about moving around...

    Leaving Town: When you want to leave a town or dungeon, pick a direction and keep walking. Eventually, when you walk off the edge of the map, you will be outdoors. A handy way of telling how far you are from the edge of the map is to use the Map button, described below.

    Special Encounters:You will occasionally see, both in town and outdoors, a white circle on the the nearby floor/ground/whatever. The white circle signifies a special encounter or occurrence of some sort. Step on it to find out what it is.

    @@ -20,23 +20,23 @@

    Locks can be picked by a character who has a decent Pick Locks skill and haslockpicks equipped. When you fail, there is a chance that one of your picks will break. It is rumored that you can find higher quality lockpicks.

    Finally, some doors are magically locked. Bashing and lockpicking will not work - you will need to use the mage spell Unlock Doors. And, every great once in a while, you will find a door on which none of these methods will work! You'll need to find a key or lever or something else to open it.

    Boats and Horses: Both outdoors and in town, you can find boats. To enter one, move onto it. To leave it, steer it onto ground. Boats are essential to get to certain interesting places, and may be able to travel over more things than water...

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    Horses, on the other hand, enable you to move over land much faster. Monsters are easier to outrun, and the time it takes to travel outdoors will be halved. To mount horses you own, move onto them. To dismount, pause (click on your party or press '5' on the keypad).

    +

    Horses, on the other hand, enable you to move over land much faster. Monsters are easier to outrun, and the time it takes to travel outdoors will be halved. To mount horses you own, move onto them. To dismount, pause (click on your party or press 5 on the keypad).

    When you find boats and horses you don't own, often you will be able to find someone nearby to sell them to you.

    Light: Some areas are dark. To see beyond your nose, you will need a light source, be it a torch or spell. In certain unpleasant areas, even a torch or spell won't get rid of the darkness.

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    Pausing: Sometimes, you'll just want to sit and watch the world go by. Click on your party or hit '5' on the keypad to let a turn pass without action.

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    Pausing: Sometimes, you'll just want to sit and watch the world go by. Click on your party or hit 5 on the keypad to let a turn pass without action.

    Alchemy: One of the things you can do in town is use ingredients you've found in your adventures to try to make potions. Should you have the right ingredients, the right recipe, and a PC with sufficient alchemy skill, select Do Alchemy from the Actions menu. You will be asked who is going to make it, and then given a list of potions you can make. Certain potions cannot be made by a character with low alchemy skill. The higher the alchemy skill, the better the odds of success.

    For more information on the things you can make with alchemy, inside the game select Alchemy Info, under the Library menu.

    The Town Guard:Be careful! Damaging a friendly townsperson or stealing items can get the town guard after you! If this happens, you best flee town, before they destroy you.

    An angry town will generally forget that it's mad at you, if you stay away for long enough.

    Selecting Spaces Shortcut: When you hit the 'look' button (or the 'talk' button), click on the space you want to look at to look at (talk to) it. A quicker way to look at something is to hit 'l' on the keyboard, and then the keypad key in the direction you want to look. This has you look at (or talk to) whatever is in the next space in that direction.

    The Buttons:Each of the many buttons at the bottom left corner of the screen has you do something. Several of them have keyboard equivalents. When they do, the key is given in the parentheses below:

    -

    Cast Mage (Fireball. 'm'): You will be asked to select one of your party members, who will then be given a chance to cast any mage spells he or she knows. Mage spells are described later.

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    Cast Priest (Black ankh. 'p'): Same as cast mage, but for priest spells.

    -

    Look (Eye. 'l'): Clicking on this button and then on a space in the Terrain Screen gives you a list of everything in the space you click. Terrain, monsters, and items will be listed. Also...

    +

    Cast Mage (Fireball. m): You will be asked to select one of your party members, who will then be given a chance to cast any mage spells he or she knows. Mage spells are described later.

    +

    Cast Priest (Black ankh. p): Same as cast mage, but for priest spells.

    +

    Look (Eye. l): Clicking on this button and then on a space in the Terrain Screen gives you a list of everything in the space you click. Terrain, monsters, and items will be listed. Also...

    Looking Off screen:When you look, if you click on the terrain border, the terrain you're looking at will scroll in the direction you click on, so you can see the monsters before they're right on top of you.

    Signs:When your party is adjacent to a sign, you can read it by looking at it.

    Searching Stuff:When your party looks at something it is standing adjacent to, you will search the crate/desk/bookshelf/body/whatever for interesting things. If there is something there, you will have a special encounter. Some dungeons have very interesting things hidden in very mundane objects.

    -

    Talk (Lips, 't'): You can talk to any living creature which is not actually trying to kill you. To do so, click on this button, and then the thing you want to talk to. You will then be presented with a window with a description of the person.

    +

    Talk (Lips, t): You can talk to any living creature which is not actually trying to kill you. To do so, click on this button, and then the thing you want to talk to. You will then be presented with a window with a description of the person.

    To ask someone about something, click on the word after they say it. If someone says "I really hate goblins," click on 'goblins' to ask about that. If the person has something to say, the word will flash, and something else will come up. In addition, there are buttons at the button of the talk area:

    Look/Name/Job:Clicking on these buttons always gets a response, and clicking on 'Name' and 'Job' is the best way to begin a conversation.

    Ask About:This extremely important button lets you ask characters about things beside what they mention. For example, if you're told to ask Honkblatt about swords, when you find Honkblatt, click on Ask About, and enter 'swords,' and you may be pleasantly surprised.

    @@ -49,16 +49,16 @@

    Stores: Most of the towns have a store of some sort in them. To buy something or sell something, you can generally press the appropriate buttons. How to buy, sell, and identify items is described later on.

    Training: You can spend your experience to gain valuable skills at the occasional training center. This works exactly the same as when you created your character, but you also have to pay gold. Each level in a skill costs the amount after the slash in the cost column. Should you buy some skills and then decide you don't want them, press the Cancel button to restore your character. Press the Keep button to keep the training.

    Boats and horses:Some people will sell you boats and horses, both useful ways to get around. When you buy one, a nearby boat or horse will become yours, and you will be able to enter/mount it.

    -

    Get (Hand picking up scroll. 'g'): When you see items nearby, click on this button to get them. If hostile monsters are in sight, you will only be able to get adjacent items. If not, you will be able to get all items nearby.

    +

    Get (Hand picking up scroll. g): When you see items nearby, click on this button to get them. If hostile monsters are in sight, you will only be able to get adjacent items. If not, you will be able to get all items nearby.

    When the item-getting window comes up, click on an item to get it. To have a new PC get items, click the button by their picture.

    Finally, some items in towns are not your property. Getting these items puts you in danger of being attacked by the town guard!

    -

    Use ('Use', 'u'):This all-purpose command has you do something to an adjacent space. Using an open door closes it, and vice versa. Using a space with webs has you clear the webs away. Perhaps this action has other uses...

    -

    Map (A Scroll, 'a'): As you wander around the town or dungeon, you will automatically keep track of the terrain you see. When you click this button, you will see a map of the area you're in.

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    Use ('Use', u):This all-purpose command has you do something to an adjacent space. Using an open door closes it, and vice versa. Using a space with webs has you clear the webs away. Perhaps this action has other uses...

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    Map (A Scroll, a): As you wander around the town or dungeon, you will automatically keep track of the terrain you see. When you click this button, you will see a map of the area you're in.

    Also, you can leave the map window up while you play. It will keep updating itself as you travel. Note that this will slow the game down.

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    Enter Combat Mode (Sword. 'f'): As you wander around, someone or something might decide to attack you. When in town mode, you travel in a tight-knit, awkward group. Thus, you can't fight back, and the monsters move and act faster than you.

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    Enter Combat Mode (Sword. f): As you wander around, someone or something might decide to attack you. When in town mode, you travel in a tight-knit, awkward group. Thus, you can't fight back, and the monsters move and act faster than you.

    To deal with this unpleasant situation, click on this button to enter combat mode. Your group will split up into its individual members, and you will be able to fight back.

    Buying Items:Often, someone you meet in town will have something to sell you. Clicking on the Buy button will bring up the shopping window.

    -

    The items available will be listed, along with their prices, and, if weapons or armor, their important statistics. To get detailed information on an item, click on the 'I' button to the item's right. To buy it, click on the item's name. To have a different character shop, make that character active (click on his/her name, or type '1'-'6').

    +

    The items available will be listed, along with their prices, and, if weapons or armor, their important statistics. To get detailed information on an item, click on the 'I' button to the item's right. To buy it, click on the item's name. To have a different character shop, make that character active (click on his/her name, or type 1-6).

    There are some unusual sorts of shops:

    Healers:Visiting a healer brings up a list of bad conditions the active character has, with the cost to heal that ailment. You can, for example, pay to heal a character's dumbfounding, but leave the character's damage unhealed.

    Alchemists:A few characters sell alchemical recipes. You only need to buy each recipe once for the entire party. The seller will usually explain what ingredients that recipe calls for.

    diff --git a/doc/game/Valleydy.html b/doc/game/Valleydy.html index 4a253c0a..3dbe3745 100644 --- a/doc/game/Valleydy.html +++ b/doc/game/Valleydy.html @@ -7,56 +7,52 @@ -


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    Section 13: How to Solve Valley of Dying Things

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    This chapter contains all the information you need to get to the end of the scenario Valley of Dying Things.It does not contain the solution to every puzzle. For the minor puzzles and quests, you’ll just have to work them out on your own. What this guide does provide are directions for navigating your way through the main storyline, from the first steps all the way to the grand conclusion.

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    When you get stuck, go to the section on the appropriate scenario. Each section is divided into subsections, each of which describes a specific part of the scenario. The subsections begin with several questions you might be asking about how to get through. Read these sample questions first. If none of them make any sense, back up to an earlier subsection.

    -

    When you find the subsection that describes the area you’re stuck in, start reading. Slowly. Eventually, you get to the area you’re having problems with. If the place you’re stuck at isn’t described, the puzzle you’re working on isn’t important to the overall adventure and can be skipped.

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    When you’ve found out what you need to know, go back to playing. Try not to read too far ahead ... too many hints can spoil your adventure!

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    -

    What do the coordinates mean?  All of the walkthroughs have coordinates. For example, one hint might be “Now step on the rune at (18,5).” In Blades of Exile, the upper left corner is considered to be (0,0). The spot 5 to the right of that is (5,0). The spot 8 below (0,0) is (0,8). To find out where you currently are, cast the first level priest spell Location. This should help you find your way to the correct space.

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    Section 1: The Valley of Dying Things

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    Getting Into the School

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    Sample Questions: How do I start investigating the problem? Where should I look? What’s this school people are talking about? Where do I find Avizo? How do I get into the school?

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    -

    You begin the scenario in Fort Talrus. Leave to the north, and travel up to Sweetgrove. Once inside, talk to Mayor Crouch to find out about the valley’s troubles, and then talk to Axel to find out about the old library (talk to other people for useful background). He mentions you should talk to someone named Avizo. Travel back south to Fort Talrus. Avizo is in the room next to where you started. Ask him about ‘stone’ to get him to talk to you, and then ask about “object” to find out where the Runed Stone is. Go back north to Sweetgrove. Avizo’s store is on the center of town. Break in (use the mage spell Unlock) and search the potted plant at (35,21). Take the stone.

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    Now it’s time to start investigating the School of Magery. It’s north of Sweetgrove. There’s a large mountain up there with four entrances, north, south, east, and west (to get to the west entrance, walk over the river by the Ford Here sign). Enter at each point, and insert the stone in the hole by the gate. The gates will open, and the school will be open to you.

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    The School of Magery - Upper Half

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    Sample Questions: What do I do in the upper levels of the school? What do I do in the Holding Cells/Storage areas? How do I help the dragon? How do I pass the blocked wall at the south end of the Administration level? How do I pass the glowing gates?

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    The stairway down from the School Entry level is in the center. Go down to the Visitor’s Quarters. There are two stairways down on that level, one to the Holding Cells and one to the Storage Areas. One stairway is in the east half of the level. To get there, there is a secret door at (31,2). Go down to the Storage Level first.

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    There are several places on these levels with closed, glowing gates. Ignore them for now. You’ll get the item to open these much later.

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    Once on the Storage level, walk south down the central corridor until you reach the sign that reads “HIGH SECURITY CREATURE HOLDING CELL”. Enter this area, and find the dragon Pythras. Talk to her about her imprisonment, and be sure to ask about “magic” or “word.” Go back up to the Visitor’s Quarters and down to the Holding Cells.

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    The controls to Pythras’ cell are at the east side of the Holding Cells level. Go through the secret door at (46,26), and go to (39,18) to use the control panel. Say “quark” to it, and Pythras will be freed. If you want to explore the northwest corner, you can use the control panel at (41,23).

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    Pythras escapes the school by going down to the Administrative level. Follow her. Climb down the stairway at (14,42) (in the Holding Cell level - there’s also a stairway down in the Storage Level).

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    Administration has been wrecked, but you can still make your way through it. There’s a colony of Giant, Intelligent, Friendly Talking Spiders in the southeast corner, but you don’t need to talk to them yet. Instead, you can leave the upper half of the school at the southwest corner of the level. 

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    The School of Magery - Lower Half

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    Sample Questions: What can I do about the pollution in the cave below the upper half of the school? What do I do at the Major Waste Depository? How do I get into the lower half of the school? How do I reach the stairway down from the Student Quarters? How do I get into the school library? What can I learn from the Vahnatai? How do I exit the Experiment Halls to the south? The people of Marralis want a scepter - where is it?

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    When you leave the Administration level, you will find yourself in a huge cavern filled with diseased pollution and filth. This is the source of the Valley’s problem. This huge cavern has several interesting things in it. There is a tunnel up to the surface to the west, which will provide a useful shortcut. To the southeast is the Major Waste Repository. You can explore it a little if you want, but you can’t do anything there yet.

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    Instead, enter the lower half of the school. The entrance is at the southwest corner of the large cave. You will meet many hostile gremlins. Kill them. These were the student quarters. You will need to find a key to get through. Walk into the west half of the level, go south to (1,46), and search the bookshelf there to get the key. 

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    There is a scepter hidden at (12,6), which some people on the surface want. It can also cure your disease. You might want to keep it - this is very useful later on.

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    When you have the key, find your way to the door at (32,37), and go through. You will be in the main dining hall. Go down the stairway on the right, and you will be in the School Library. The library is closed off by another glowing portcullis. You can’t enter it yet. Instead, leave the library at (43,35). You will be in a cavern with several Vahnatai. Talk to them. In particular, talk to Baia-Tel and ask about the “peculiar insect” it said it met. Ask Zereen about “power” or “stone.” Finally, they will tell you that someone on the surface has the instructions to the School controls. This will be important later.

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    Now that you know that the spiders have something you need, go back up to the Administration level. Talk to different spiders until you meet their chief, and ask it about the “pretty rock.” It will tell you about the giant gnats, and, if you ask, tell you that the password to get to the gnats is “Gnats.” Tell this to the spider at (57,35) and you will be able to reach the gnats.

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    The eggs you need are at (59,4). Get them and go back to the chief spider. Ask it about “eggs” and it will tell you where the Opening Stone is. Search the trash at (25,3) to get it. You can use this item from the Special Items page. When you do, all glowing portcullises on your current level will open. This will be very useful. Go back down to the Library level.

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    Open the glowing gate and search the library. The most interesting room is the one in the northeast corner. The room only contains a pedestal, and, when you enter, a ghost tells you that you should place a green book on it.

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    The green book the spirit refers to is a school textbook. There are three of them in this dungeon. To find one, from the Library level, climb down the stairway at (45,47). You will be on the Experiment Halls level. Go through the door at (36,9) and then the door at (40,11). There will be a green book in this cell. Take it back to the library and place it onto the pedestal in the northeast corner. You will be rewarded with a key. You now are ready to start ending the Valley’s Curse. First, you need to return to the surface. There is a shortcut up in the Experiment Halls level at (44,13).

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    Ending the Curse

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    Sample Questions:  What do I do at Pangle’s Hut? How do I talk to Pangle? How do I get to (and through) the School’s control chambers? What do I do at the Major Waste Depository?

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    Once on the surface, you need to get the instructions scroll from Pangle. However, he won’t want to talk to you. Fortunately, Kevin, in Marralis, is a friend of his. Kevin tells you to say his name to Pangle. Go to Pangle, say “Kevin” to him, and question him for a while. Ask about “adventurers” or “interest”, and you will be told about his scroll. Ask about “paper,” and then search the chest at (10,24) to get the instructions to operate the school control. You’re now ready to solve the valley’s problem.  Go back down to the Experiment Halls level.

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    Leave the level to the south (you’ll use the silver key), and you will be in the caves under the school. Fight your way through them to the southeast corner, where you find a cave. Enter it.

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    You will be inside the Control Rooms.  Use the Opening Stone to get inside. Find your way through to the control chambers on the east side. You will find a shade to talk to, who will tell you a lot of things about the situation with the school. Sit in the throne at (34,20), and the controls to clean up the waste will be activated.

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    Finally, travel back up to the giant cavern between the Upper and Lower halves of the school and enter the Major Waste Depository. Go through the secret passage at (38,39). Walk up to the gate at (29,2), through the gap at (14,15), and through the gate at (18,24) into the center of the repository. Use the Opening Stone to open the glowing gate, and sit in the chair at (23,23). Sit in the chair, flip the switch, and insert the stone. The cleaning process will begin. Walk out to (26,23), and you will be carried out to safety. You’ve won.

    +

    Section 13: How to Solve Valley of Dying Things

    +

    This chapter contains all the information you need to get to the end of the scenario Valley of Dying Things.It does not contain the solution to every puzzle. For the minor puzzles and quests, you’ll just have to work them out on your own. What this guide does provide are directions for navigating your way through the main storyline, from the first steps all the way to the grand conclusion.

    +

    When you get stuck, go to the section on the appropriate scenario. Each section is divided into subsections, each of which describes a specific part of the scenario. The subsections begin with several questions you might be asking about how to get through. Read these sample questions first. If none of them make any sense, back up to an earlier subsection.

    +

    When you find the subsection that describes the area you’re stuck in, start reading. Slowly. Eventually, you get to the area you’re having problems with. If the place you’re stuck at isn’t described, the puzzle you’re working on isn’t important to the overall adventure and can be skipped.

    +

    When you’ve found out what you need to know, go back to playing. Try not to read too far ahead ... too many hints can spoil your adventure!

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    What do the coordinates mean? All of the walkthroughs have coordinates. For example, one hint might be “Now step on the rune at (18,5).” In Blades of Exile, the upper left corner is considered to be (0,0). The spot 5 to the right of that is (5,0). The spot 8 below (0,0) is (0,8). To find out where you currently are, cast the first level priest spell Location. This should help you find your way to the correct space.

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    Getting Into the School

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    Sample Questions: How do I start investigating the problem? Where should I look? What’s this school people are talking about? Where do I find Avizo? How do I get into the school?

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    You begin the scenario in Fort Talrus. Leave to the north, and travel up to Sweetgrove. Once inside, talk to Mayor Crouch to find out about the valley’s troubles, and then talk to Axel to find out about the old library (talk to other people for useful background). He mentions you should talk to someone named Avizo. Travel back south to Fort Talrus. Avizo is in the room next to where you started. Ask him about ‘stone’ to get him to talk to you, and then ask about “object” to find out where the Runed Stone is. Go back north to Sweetgrove. Avizo’s store is on the center of town. Break in (use the mage spell Unlock) and search the potted plant at (35,21). Take the stone.

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    Now it’s time to start investigating the School of Magery. It’s north of Sweetgrove. There’s a large mountain up there with four entrances, north, south, east, and west (to get to the west entrance, walk over the river by the Ford Here sign). Enter at each point, and insert the stone in the hole by the gate. The gates will open, and the school will be open to you.

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    The School of Magery - Upper Half

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    Sample Questions: What do I do in the upper levels of the school? What do I do in the Holding Cells/Storage areas? How do I help the dragon? How do I pass the blocked wall at the south end of the Administration level? How do I pass the glowing gates?

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    The stairway down from the School Entry level is in the center. Go down to the Visitor’s Quarters. There are two stairways down on that level, one to the Holding Cells and one to the Storage Areas. One stairway is in the east half of the level. To get there, there is a secret door at (31,2). Go down to the Storage Level first.

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    There are several places on these levels with closed, glowing gates. Ignore them for now. You’ll get the item to open these much later.

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    Once on the Storage level, walk south down the central corridor until you reach the sign that reads “HIGH SECURITY CREATURE HOLDING CELL”. Enter this area, and find the dragon Pythras. Talk to her about her imprisonment, and be sure to ask about “magic” or “word.” Go back up to the Visitor’s Quarters and down to the Holding Cells.

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    The controls to Pythras’ cell are at the east side of the Holding Cells level. Go through the secret door at (46,26), and go to (39,18) to use the control panel. Say “quark” to it, and Pythras will be freed. If you want to explore the northwest corner, you can use the control panel at (41,23).

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    Pythras escapes the school by going down to the Administrative level. Follow her. Climb down the stairway at (14,42) (in the Holding Cell level - there’s also a stairway down in the Storage Level).

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    Administration has been wrecked, but you can still make your way through it. There’s a colony of Giant, Intelligent, Friendly Talking Spiders in the southeast corner, but you don’t need to talk to them yet. Instead, you can leave the upper half of the school at the southwest corner of the level.

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    The School of Magery - Lower Half

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    Sample Questions: What can I do about the pollution in the cave below the upper half of the school? What do I do at the Major Waste Depository? How do I get into the lower half of the school? How do I reach the stairway down from the Student Quarters? How do I get into the school library? What can I learn from the Vahnatai? How do I exit the Experiment Halls to the south? The people of Marralis want a scepter - where is it?

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    When you leave the Administration level, you will find yourself in a huge cavern filled with diseased pollution and filth. This is the source of the Valley’s problem. This huge cavern has several interesting things in it. There is a tunnel up to the surface to the west, which will provide a useful shortcut. To the southeast is the Major Waste Repository. You can explore it a little if you want, but you can’t do anything there yet.

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    Instead, enter the lower half of the school. The entrance is at the southwest corner of the large cave. You will meet many hostile gremlins. Kill them. These were the student quarters. You will need to find a key to get through. Walk into the west half of the level, go south to (1,46), and search the bookshelf there to get the key.<

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    There is a scepter hidden at (12,6), which some people on the surface want. It can also cure your disease. You might want to keep it - this is very useful later on.

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    When you have the key, find your way to the door at (32,37), and go through. You will be in the main dining hall. Go down the stairway on the right, and you will be in the School Library. The library is closed off by another glowing portcullis. You can’t enter it yet. Instead, leave the library at (43,35). You will be in a cavern with several Vahnatai. Talk to them. In particular, talk to Baia-Tel and ask about the “peculiar insect” it said it met. Ask Zereen about “power” or “stone.” Finally, they will tell you that someone on the surface has the instructions to the School controls. This will be important later.

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    Now that you know that the spiders have something you need, go back up to the Administration level. Talk to different spiders until you meet their chief, and ask it about the “pretty rock.” It will tell you about the giant gnats, and, if you ask, tell you that the password to get to the gnats is “Gnats.” Tell this to the spider at (57,35) and you will be able to reach the gnats.

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    The eggs you need are at (59,4). Get them and go back to the chief spider. Ask it about “eggs” and it will tell you where the Opening Stone is. Search the trash at (25,3) to get it. You can use this item from the Special Items page. When you do, all glowing portcullises on your current level will open. This will be very useful. Go back down to the Library level.

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    Open the glowing gate and search the library. The most interesting room is the one in the northeast corner. The room only contains a pedestal, and, when you enter, a ghost tells you that you should place a green book on it.

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    The green book the spirit refers to is a school textbook. There are three of them in this dungeon. To find one, from the Library level, climb down the stairway at (45,47). You will be on the Experiment Halls level. Go through the door at (36,9) and then the door at (40,11). There will be a green book in this cell. Take it back to the library and place it onto the pedestal in the northeast corner. You will be rewarded with a key. You now are ready to start ending the Valley’s Curse. First, you need to return to the surface. There is a shortcut up in the Experiment Halls level at (44,13).

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    Ending the Curse

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    Sample Questions: What do I do at Pangle’s Hut? How do I talk to Pangle? How do I get to (and through) the School’s control chambers? What do I do at the Major Waste Depository?

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    Once on the surface, you need to get the instructions scroll from Pangle. However, he won’t want to talk to you. Fortunately, Kevin, in Marralis, is a friend of his. Kevin tells you to say his name to Pangle. Go to Pangle, say “Kevin” to him, and question him for a while. Ask about “adventurers” or “interest”, and you will be told about his scroll. Ask about “paper,” and then search the chest at (10,24) to get the instructions to operate the school control. You’re now ready to solve the valley’s problem. Go back down to the Experiment Halls level.

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    Leave the level to the south (you’ll use the silver key), and you will be in the caves under the school. Fight your way through them to the southeast corner, where you find a cave. Enter it.

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    You will be inside the Control Rooms. Use the Opening Stone to get inside. Find your way through to the control chambers on the east side. You will find a shade to talk to, who will tell you a lot of things about the situation with the school. Sit in the throne at (34,20), and the controls to clean up the waste will be activated.

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    Finally, travel back up to the giant cavern between the Upper and Lower halves of the school and enter the Major Waste Depository. Go through the secret passage at (38,39). Walk up to the gate at (29,2), through the gap at (14,15), and through the gate at (18,24) into the center of the repository. Use the Opening Stone to open the glowing gate, and sit in the chair at (23,23). Sit in the chair, flip the switch, and insert the stone. The cleaning process will begin. Walk out to (26,23), and you will be carried out to safety. You’ve won.

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