The Alchemist is a MS-Windows work of interactive fiction written with QBASIC64 and is © 2022 by Jim MacBrayne (as Older Timer). It was an entry in IF Comp 2022 where it took 19th place.
In this fantasy game, your friend, Ezekiel Throgmeister (or "The Alchemist" as most villagers call him), needs your help to take care of an experiment while he's away from his mansion. He had no time to give you any details, but he's confident you're clever enough to figure everything out.
This solution is by David Welbourn, and is based on Release number 180922/12.21/Win of the work.
SPOILERS AHEAD. Reading a walkthrough prematurely can sometimes diminish one's enjoyment of a work of interactive fiction. Please make an honest effort to play the work before reading this walkthrough.
Mirror destinations are set by going to the top of the stairs, setting the display to the appropriate seven-digit code, then pushing ENTER.
Entrance Lobby
> i. x letter. (The alchemist was unavoidably called away while he had an uninterruptable experiment running. He needs you to tend to it. He had no time to explain anything, but the clues can be found in his mansion.)
Explore the grounds first:
> s.
North of Garden
> x sundial. x gnomon. w.
West of Garden
> x barrel. look in barrel. (empty)
> s.
Inside Garden Shed
Note the glinting above:
> climb ladder.
Top of Stepladder (Inside Garden Shed)
> x key. take it. d.
Inside Garden Shed
> x ladder. x pickaxe. take all. e. e.
Beside Compost Heap
> x heap. x odour. search heap. (Not with that smell!)
> n. w. n. w.
Library
> x table. x shelves. (too high)
> drop ladder. climb it.
Top of Stepladder (Library)
> x shelf. take box from shelf.
> open box. (It was hermetically sealed; you may have damaged the contents.)
> look in box. take all from it.
> x peg. x book. (too damaged to open or read)
> d.
Library
> take ladder. n.
Small Cupboard
Hmph. Nothing here. Try going east from the lobby:
> s. e. e. e. e.
East Corridor
> d. (fail: like walking through treacle)
> w. w. w. n.
Workshop
> x device. (A closed container with switch and indicator.)
> x label. ("RESREVER EMIT", which is "TIME REVERSER" reversed.)
> x switch. x indicator.
Use this device to repair the book:
> open lid. put book in it. close lid. push switch.
> open lid. look in it. take book from it. (+20)
> x book. ("Mansion Plan -- ET")
> open book. x it. (Attic = blue red cyan green red magenta blue)
> turn page. x it. ("In goblet, the ring / But no other thing / When bottle is full / You follow the rule / Place both on the altar / From then do not falter")
> turn page. x it. (Experiment needs vial, beaker, retort, flask, tubing, lead; self-assembles. Press button.)
> turn page. x it. ("Play Safe -- Remember the Battle of Hastings")
> turn page. x it. ("Red and Blue / Will furnish a clue")
> turn page. x it. ("Do you have staff problems?" etc)
> turn page. x it. (rest is blank)
> close book.
Time to go upstairs.
> s. u.
Top of Stairs
> x keys. (1 is cyan, 2 is blue, 3 is red, 4 is green, 5 is magenta)
Convert any color-codes you find into seven-digit codes. The attic code that you read on page 1 is 2314352.
By the way, if you type in an invalid code and push enter, the display merely clears. There aren't ever hideous deaths or dungeon cells on the other side of the mirror if you enter a bad code.
> set display to 2314352. push enter. (hear something in next room)
> e.
Mirror Room
> x mirror. enter mirror. (+20)
The Attic
> x skylight. x trunk. x mirror. x trapdoor.
> unlock trunk with key. open it. take all from it.
> x lamp. x sack. take vial from sack. (+10)
> x vial. open skylight. (no: rusted shut)
> open trapdoor. d.
Cramped Chamber
> turn on lamp.
> x writing. ("Laboratory = red red magenta green cyan blue blue")
> take cloak. x it. ("Acme HidAll")
> wear cloak.
> u. douse lamp. enter mirror.
Mirror Room
The cloak is a cloak of invisibility. Note that the mirror doesn't reflect you while wearing the cloak.
> x mirror. w.
Top of Stairs
> set display to 3354122. push enter. e. enter mirror. (+20)
Laboratory
> x bench. x apparatus.
> x slot. x inscription. ("Key Exchange")
> open drawer. look in it. take gloves from it. x gloves.
> take all from bench. x note. ("put things here")
> x staff. ("Acme WallCleer")
> put vial on bench. (panel: "1 of 6")
> x door. (locked, and a key won't unlock it)
Note: The key won't change unless the drawer is closed.
> close drawer. put key in slot.
> open drawer. look in drawer.
> take key from it. x it. (brass)
Return to the compost heap:
> enter mirror. w. d. s. s. e.
Beside Compost Heap
> wear gloves. wear peg. search heap. (You acquire a container.)
> remove peg. open container. take all from it.
> x parchment. ("Chapel = blue blue red red magenta cyan green")
> x ring. x patterns. (alchemical)
> w. n. n. u.
Top of Stairs
> set display to 2233514. push enter. e. enter mirror. (+20)
Chapel Nave
> x font. x water. w.
West Transept
> x wall. drop ladder. climb it.
Top of Stepladder (West Transept)
> x crawlway. w.
In Small Crawlway
> x cavity. take goblet from it. x goblet.
> nw.
End of Crawlway
Odd. Nothing here.
> se. e. d.
West Transept
> take ladder. e. e.
East Transept
The brass key unlocks the trapdoor.
> unlock trapdoor with key. open it. d.
Under Chapel
> light lamp. take bottle. x it.
> douse lamp. u. w.
Chapel Nave
> fill bottle with water. n.
Beside Altar
> x altar. x recess. look in it. (empty)
Page 2 of the book tells you what to do here.
> put ring in goblet. put goblet on altar.
> put bottle on altar.
> take all from recess. (+20)
> x paper. ("Storage Rooms = red red red green magenta cyan blue")
Quickly explore south of the nave:
> s. s. w. s. w.
Pentagram Room
> x pentagram. touch it. w.
Top of Pit
> x pit.
Return to the top of the stairs:
> e. e. n. e. n. enter mirror. w.
Top of Stairs
> set display to 3334512. push enter. e. enter mirror. (+20)
Storage Room
> x cartons. nw.
Small Office
> x desk. x safe. (buttons 1 to 4, screen)
> x screen. ("0-0-0-0")
Page 4 of the book told you "Play Safe - Remember the Battle of Hastings". Well, here's a safe, and Google tells me that the Battle of Hastings took place in 1066.
CAUTION: The AGAIN (G) command is wonky if it's on the same command string with a normal command; you can accidentally push two buttons at once that way. It's best if it's on its own line.
> push button 1. ("1-0-0-0")
> push button 3. ("1-0-1-0")
> g. g. g. g. g. ("1-0-6-0")
> push button 4. ("1-0-6-1")
> g. g. g. g. g. ("1-0-6-6"; the safe unlocks)
> open safe. (+20)
> take all from safe. x pouch.
> take all from pouch. x potion. ("Acme MaxLite")
> x memo. (first row: "X 4 1 X X"; second row: "X X X 2 X", third row: "3 X 5 X X")
> se. n.
Mine Entrance
> x plaque. e.
Lower Seam
> x seam. n.
Upper Seam
> x seam. hit seam with pickaxe.
> g. g. x lead. take lead. (+10)
> s. w. s. ne.
Side Room
Featureless. Bah.
> sw. e.
Middle Passage
> x lintel. ("Secure Room")
> x camera. ("Acme SecureCam")
> x speaker. ("Acme EverCleer")
> e. (Cloak of invisibilty lets you pass the camera.)
End Passage
> take all from alcove. x elixir. ("Acme PowrMax")
> w. w. enter mirror. w.
Top of Stairs
Return to the lab:
> set display to 3354122. push enter. e. enter mirror.
Laboratory
> close drawer. put key in slot.
> open drawer. take all from it. (bronze key)
> put lead on bench. ("2 of 6")
> enter mirror. w.
Top of Stairs
Return to the pit via the chapel:
> set display to 2233514. push enter. e. enter mirror.
Chapel Nave
> s. w. s. w. w.
Top of Pit
You should save here. You need to work quickly, getting into and out of the pit before the potion wears off.
> save
> light lamp. drink potion. jump. (You float down to...)
Bottom of Pit
> take all. (+10)
> jump.
Top of Pit
> douse lamp.
> x beaker. x pamphlet. ("Many-Walled Room = blue green magenta magenta red green cyan")
Return to workshop:
> e. e. n. e. n. enter mirror. w. d. n.
Workshop
The time-reverser can refill your potion.
> put potion in device. close lid.
> push switch. open lid. take all from it.
> x potion. (It doesn't say it's full; but doesn't say it's empty either.)
> s. u.
Top of Stairs
> set display to 2455341. push enter. e. enter mirror.
Room of Many Walls
Read page 6 of the book carefully and note this sequence: Left, Right, Left, Front, Back, Lower, Upper, Right.
> touch left wall with staff.
> touch right wall with staff.
> touch left wall with staff.
> touch front wall with staff.
> touch back wall with staff.
> touch lower wall with staff.
> touch upper wall with staff.
> touch right wall with staff. (A north opening is revealed.)
> n. n.
Corridor South of Fissure
> x fissure. jump over fissure. (no, too wide)
> drink potion. jump over fissure.
Corridor North of Fissure
> n. n.
Domed Chamber
> x slab. push slab. (no: too heavy)
> drink elixir. push slab.
> take all from hollow. x flask.
> x scroll. ("Dining Room: green green blue cyan magenta red green")
> s. w.
Side Chamber (western)
Another empty location.
> e. e.
Side Chamber (eastern)
> x mirror. enter mirror. w. d. n.
Workshop
Restore the elixir.
> put elixir in device. close lid.
> push switch. open lid. take all from it.
> s. u.
Top of Stairs
> set display to 4421534. push enter. e. enter mirror.
Dining Room
> x rectangle. (Has a 5×3 pushable grid, from A1 to C5.)
> x sideboard. x door. open door. (not strong enough)
Use the info from the memo to know what to push on the rectangle.
> x memo.
> push a3. push b4. push c1.
> push a2. push c3. take all from pigeonhole. (+10)
> x tubing.
> drink elixir. open door. n.
Kitchen
> x stove. take all from stove.
> x saucepan. x utensils.
> x cabinet. open it. (locked)
> unlock it with key. (bronze key works)
> open it. take all from it. (+10)
> x retort.
> s. enter mirror. w.
Top of Stairs
> set display to 3354122. push enter. e. enter mirror.
Laboratory
I'm assuming the vial and lead are already on the bench.
> put beaker on bench. put tubing on bench.
> put retort on bench. put flask non bench. (+20)
A new, ominous machine has replaced everything from the bench.
> x machine. x instructions. ("Close door before operation")
> x button. ("Acme Black Button")
> open machine. look in it. (The lead is in there.)
> close machine. push button.
> open machine. take all from it. (+20)
> x nugget. x document. ("Experiment Room: magenta green magenta blue red cyan blue")
> enter mirror. w.
Top of Stairs
> set display to 5452312. push enter. e. enter mirror. (+20)
Experiment Room
> x plinth. ("Aurum Receptaculum"; aurum means gold)
> x receptacle. x sign. ("Alchemist at work")
> n.
Bottom of Stairs
This is the bottom of the stairs seen from East Corridor.
> e. e.
Outside Laboratory
This is the other side of the lab door seen from the Laboratory.
> x door. w. w. s.
Experiment Room
> put gold in receptacle. (+20)
You feel a weight on your neck, barriers being removed, and a pull to the lobby. In particular, the "treacle" is gone from the stairs, and the lab door is unlocked. However, the mirrors are now just normal mirrors.
> i. x talisman.
> n. u. w. w. w.
Entrance Lobby
You meet up with Ezekiel, now home. He sees you with the talisman. He asks you to follow him to the library so he can tell you the full story. (+20)
> ANY-KEY
*** You have completed Ezekiel's experiment ***
> ANY-KEY
And that's where the game ends. In true mcguffin form, you (the player) never learn anything specific about the talisman.
Mentioned:
This is the response to ABOUT:
(C) Jim MacBrayne - Submission for IFComp 2022
This game was written over about five weeks in June/July of 2022. There followed a period of debugging and tweaking which continues to this day to a gradually-decreasing degree. Grateful thanks for help in beta testing go to Christopher Merriner and Roger Durrant.
There is only the one winning ending where you complete Ezekiel's experiment, but you can make the game unwinnable if the potion wears off while you're at the bottom of the pit. The game explicitly warns you in advance that the pit is dangerous and to save your game once you're in the pit, so it's being quite Polite about it.
After using the elixir or potion, go to the workshop and use the time-reverser device on the empty vessel to refill it.
Put all six of these items onto the workbench in the laboratory. They auto-assemble into a machine that turns lead into gold.
You can turn a key into another key using the "Key Exchange" feature of the laboratory's workbench. Make sure the drawer is closed, then put your key into the slot. Open the drawer: a different key is inside.
Note: None of these keys unlock the lab door in the laboratory.
The response to SCORE is:
You've scored your-score out of 300 in several moves, giving an achievement rating of
YOUR ACHIEVEMENT RATING
Points are awarded as follows:
The known achievement ratings are:
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