271 lines
14 KiB
Plaintext
271 lines
14 KiB
Plaintext
from: the Asimov collection
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T H E B A R D ' S T A L E I
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(Tales Of The Unknown)
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(Full Solution - compiled by John R. Barnsley)
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(Order of exploring the Dungeons.........SEWERS.........SCARLET BARD INN -
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Ask for wine - CATACOMBS - below Mad God's Temple - Tarjan........HARKYN'S
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CASTLE - Top RH - need eye from Catacombs.........KYLEARON'S TOWER - Kill
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Mad God's when it comes to life - only if you have the eye - then you can
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enter MANGAR'S TOWER through the long staircase in the Sewer).
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THE SOLUTION
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Obviously, the first thing you must do is assemble your party. There is a
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BEGINNING party (supplied with the game) already equipped with a basic
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level of Armour, Instruments, etc. A much better and unique option is to
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transfer characters over from either WIZARDRY or ULTIMA III!! These
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characters come over as fairly senior level characters and make the
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beginning of this game much easier. This is a highly desirable
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alternative.
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If you create your own characters - which you MUST do for your Bard - pay
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special attention to the DEXTERITY attribute. This attribute determines who
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strikes first in combat, and can be the difference between an easy
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encounter and one which is a struggle.
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Magic users should have a HIGH IQ, while Fighter classes should have a HIGH
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STRENGTH. It is recommended that you choose a Monk as one of your Fighters.
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Their Armour class drops as their level rises. Eventually the Monk will
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have an Armour class of 'LO' wearing only a robe. They can also do the most
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damage unarmed in actual combat!
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The starting party in this solution consisted of a Monk, 2 Paladins, a
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Bard, a Magician and a Conjuror. At higher levels of the game, you will
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want to trade in one of your Paladins and develop another MAGIC user.
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When you first leave the Adventurer's Guild, explore the City. Visit
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Garth's Armoury, and find the Review Board (located next to the Inn on
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Trumpet Street). Don't wander too far until you get a feel for how you can
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survive. To restore HIT POINTS after fighting, visit a Temple. There, all
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ills - including death - can be cured for a price. After a fight, you will
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quite frequently find objects of some type. Keep them all. If you don't
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need them, go to Garth's and sell them for gold - you will need it!
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Visit Roscoe's Energy Emporium located off the Gran Plaz on the corner of
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Grey Knife Street. There you will get an idea of what it costs to RESTORE
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SPELL POINTS.
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Early on, when you are still short of gold, the best way to restore Spell
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Points is to go into the Adventurer's Guild and just wait. This game is in
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real-time and Spell Points are restored as you just sit there. If you wait
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on the street or in a house, you will almost certainly be attacked.
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When you find an object after a fight or in a Chest in the Dungeons,
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experiment with it to find out what it is. There are no cursed items. Quite
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a few objects have magical properties that are not readily apparent. Here
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are a few of the objects that you will find most useful, even though you
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won't run into these until later in the game:
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(1) KAEL'S AXE: Seems to be the best weapon, causing the most damage
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for your Paladins.
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(2) FROST HORN: For your Bard, when used in combat it causes 40 - 70
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Hit Points of damage to a group of Monsters.
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(3) MAGE STAFF: For your Magic Users, allows them to regain Spell
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Points even in a Dungeon (this is incredibly useful).
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It is left to the individual player to discover the usefulness of the other
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items found during the game. After learning the game-play by wandering
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around the City and being able to survive, it is time to visit the
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Dungeons. This is where the battle with Mangar will be won or lost!
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There are FIVE Dungeons in the game that must be explored in the following
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order:
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(A) WINE CELLAR & SEWERS
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(B) THE CATACOMBS
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(C) HARKYN'S CASTLE
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(D) KYLEARAN'S TOWER
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(E) MANGAR'S TOWER
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Each contains something that will help in the subsequent stages of the
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game.
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WINE CELLAR & SEWERS.
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The easiest dungeon of them all is reached from the Inn on Rakhir Street.
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Enter the Inn, ask to order a drink, then select WINE. You will then be
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ushered into the Wine Cellar. I cannot overstress the importance of MAPPING
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in this game. Whenever possible, have the MALE SPELL in operation. This
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will help you avoid some of the traps that are lying around. When you have
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an encounter and find a Chest, always cast a TRZP SPELL to disarm any traps
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that may be guarding the Chest.
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Located in the Wine Cellar are the stairs down to the SEWERS. The First
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Level of the Sewers contains almost nothing of interest. So locate the
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stairs to the Second Level of the Sewers as quickly as possible and get
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down there. The Second Level contains one very important bit of information
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that you will need to enter The Catacombs: the name of the Mad God. There
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are also two hints to questions that will be asked in other Dungeons.
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Explore this level fully to find all the hints and the Mad God's name. The
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Lowest Level of the Sewers is next and contains one item of importance for
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later in the game. Locate and take the stairs exiting from this level. Make
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sure you know where the stairs lead EXACTLY. After this (I hope you have
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been visiting the Review Board regularly to advance levels and learn new
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spells), you are ready for the Catacombs.
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THE CATACOMBS.
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The Catacombs are reached from one of the Mad God's Temples, located on the
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East side of the Temple. Ask to speak to the Priest, then give him the Mad
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God's name: TARJAN.
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The First Level of the catacombs is just a survival test at this stage.
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Once you can survive there fairly easily, head for the Second Level. This
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level has a clue in it about the Mad God. It also contains a very nasty
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creature called a Soul Sucker that lurks in the Southwest corner of the
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Second Level. If you decide to go in there and try him out, make sure that
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you have your character disk backed up. You will not be able to defeat him
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at this stage of your development but, fortunately, you don't have to!
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The lowest Level contains something you will need later. Once you have
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reached the Third Level you must use a TELEPORT SQUARE to enter the
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Wizard's Realm. The Teleport is located in the SOUTHEAST CORNER of the
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Dungeon. Once you are in the Wizard's Realm, you must defeat him to gain
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the EYE. After you have this item, you are ready to tackle Harkyn's
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Castle.
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HARKYN'S CASTLE.
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Harkyn's Castle is located in the NORTHEAST CORNER of SKARA BRAE. At this
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point in the game, it becomes very important for you to have filled your
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special slot with the most powerful character your magic users can summon.
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If you are in the process of developing a Wizard, a lesser demon is best.
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The First Level of this castle contains one item of importance: THE CRYSTAL
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SWORD from the SOUTHEAST corner of this level. You will now begin to find
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some of the more powerful objects to experiment with during your
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encounters. After obtaining the CRYSTAL SWORD, head for the Second Level of
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the Castle. The stairs are located in the NORTHEAST corner of the First
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Level.
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The Second Level of the Castle has a couple of interesting things. If you
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answer the riddle correctly ("SHIELDS") you get a MAGIC MOUTH which can be
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used to cast the SOSI SPELL. You must also obtain the SILVER SQUARE from
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the SOUTHWEST corner of the Dungeon. The access to this is from a TELEPORT
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located towards the middle of the Northern section of the Dungeon. The
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PORTAL to the Third Level is located in the NORTHEAST section of this
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level.
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The Third Level of the Castle contains the ENTRANCE to KYLEARAN'S TOWER and
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some interesting opportunities. The answer to the Old Man's question is
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"SKULL TAVERN". When you encounter the Berserkers, located at 12E 5N of
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this level, take advantage. They can be fairly easily defeated with the
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right magic spells. You should have at least 2 Sorcerers capable of casting
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the MIBL SPELL. It also helps if your Bard has a FROST or FIRE HORN to aid
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the others along.
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When you can defeat these guys easily, it is time to make another Magic
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User. You can TELEPORT from the CASTLE ENTRANCE, fight the Berserkers,
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TELEPORT back back to the Entrance, exit the Castle, then do it again and
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again until your spells run low. At 60,000 Experience Points a crack, it
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doesn't take long to develop a decent Magic User.
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After this, it is time to attempt Kylearan's Castle. When you approach, and
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fight the STATUE OF THE MAD GOD located in the SOUTHEAST corner of this
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level, you will be teleported inside the gates of Kylearan's Tower.
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KYLEARAN'S TOWER.
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After the battle with the Mad God and your subsequent teleport (you DID
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have the EYE in your possession?!), go ONE STEP forward, TURN RIGHT, then
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kick the door down. You will then be entering one of the two most difficult
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mazes in the game. Most of it is in the dark and there are riddles that
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must be answered. Back up your character disk BEFORE entering this maze!
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Once you are in, watch carefully for teleports - they are everywhere. It is
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extremely important that you map this maze VERY CAREFULLY. After you have
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reached the ANTIMAGIC SQUARE from wandering in a very small section of the
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dark, the next step forward is a TELEPORT to 11E 12N.
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Explore until you find a MAGIC MOUTH that asks you to "Name the one of
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cold, foretold twofold". The answer to this one is "STONE GOLEM". You will
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then be teleported again. After this, you will enter a very large, dark
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area. In order to get out of this, you must answer the question posed at
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12E 2N which says: "Name the Endless Byway and your path will be
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guaranteed". The answer to this is the only street in Skara Brae with no
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end - "SINISTER".
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You can then map your way through a lighted section to another dark area.
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From this dark area you must obtain the SILVER TRIANGLE, located at the
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very NORTH of the dark area. You can then exit the dark area, going SOUTH
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from 1E 6N. After this, you will face the CRYSTAL GOLEM (did you bring the
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CRYSTAL SWORD?). You can defeat him with conventional weapons and spells,
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but somebody has to have the Crystal Sword or he will reappear to block
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your exit!
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At this point, you can exit the Tower to refresh your players or continue
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on. If you exit, when you re-enter you must again answer the endless byway
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question to continue. Upon reaching the end of the Snakey Road on the East
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side of the maze, DON'T go through the South door. Take the door that goes
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WEST. You will then enter several rooms with Spinners and Teleports that
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make finding your way almost impossible!
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The way past these is SOUTHWEST. When you make it, you will be teleported
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to 14E 1N. It is then an easy stroll to meet Kylearan himself. He turns out
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to be the friendly Wizard and gives you a KEY that allows you to get into
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MANGAR'S TOWER. He then teleports you to the stairs exiting his tower. You
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no longer need the Crystal Sword or the Eye, and you are now ready for
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Mangar himself!!
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MANGAR'S TOWER.
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If you paid heed and followed the stairs from the Bottom Level of the
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Sewers, you will know how to get inside Mangar's walls. If not, go to the
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Wine Cellar, TELEPORT your party 17E 16N 3D, and take the stairs UP. Then
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TURN RIGHT and kick the door in. You should be at the Entrance to Mangar's
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Tower.
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Level One is fairly easy to find your way around in. Follow the teleports
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and walk around until you reach the MAGIC MOUTH on the EAST side of the
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maze. What is tricky is that after leaving the MAGIC MOUTH, you are now on
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Level Two of the Tower.......so BE CAREFUL with your mapping!
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Level Two is again fairly easy (not even a warm-up for Level Three!). From
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this level you must answer the question located at 4E 15N to obtain the
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SILVER CIRCLE. The answer to the question is "CIRCLE". You must then make
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your way to the stairs located in the MIDDLE of the SOUTHERN side of the
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maze.
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Level Three is the hardest maze of all, but by this time you must be
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getting really proficient at mapping. You must wander around this level and
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obtain quite a number of items. First of all, you should get the MASTER
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KEY, for 50,000 Gold Pieces, from 19E 12N. This Key allows you to enter
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Mangar's through the Front Gate, instead of from the Sewers.
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You must then find the CLUES to the SEVEN WORDS needed to access the Fourth
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Level of Mangar's. Gratefully, you can teleport into and out of this level.
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After finding the CLUES, you can then SPEAK the SEVEN WORDS to the MAGIC
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MOUTH located at 10E 4N. They MUST be entered ONE AT A TIME. The words are:
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"LIE WITH PASSION AND BE FOREVER DAMNED". Stairs will then appear at 3E 9N.
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This is the ONLY way to obtain access to the UPPER REACHES of MANGAR'S!!
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The Fourth Level of Mangar's has only ONE tricky part. When you first
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arrive, you have a LIMITED NUMBER of ways you can go. After reaching a
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certain point, located in the NORTHEAST CORNER of the level, doors appear
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everywhere. Don't be confused! Everything maps the same, it's just that
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doors are everywhere!! Eventually, you will find the PORTAL to Level Five
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in the SOUTHWEST corner of this level.
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Level Five is the home stretch. This easy maze leads you to the LAVA PIT in
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the middle of the EASTERN side of the maze. There you DIVE IN and are
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TELEPORTED to 10E 6N. You will then find the march up the Hall of Harm to
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be fruitless if you didn't bring the THREE SILVER ITEMS along. If you have
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the SILVER TRIANGLE, SILVER SQUARE and SILVER CIRCLE, a door will appear
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directly NORTH of you.
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After passing through this door, cast your REST SPELL to restore everybody
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to HEALTH and proceed directly NORTH to the final battle with Mangar!
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The final battle itself is a large disappointment as it is fairly easy to
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defeat Mangar and his Vampires, and meet Kylearan again, who gives you
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300,000 bonus Experience Points. After defeating Mangar, you can then
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proceed ONE MORE SQUARE NORTH for the LAST QUESTION of the game!
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The answer is: "SPECTRE SNARE", which you then receive (it is good for
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binding to your party any of your opponents in battle).
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* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
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