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Key & Compass presents:
The Enigma of the Old Manor House
by Daniel M. Stelzer

The Enigma of the Old Manor House is a Z-machine interactive fiction game written with Inform 7 and is © 2022 by Daniel M. Stelzer. It was an entry in La Petite Mort (English) division of Ectocomp 2022.

Dared by your friends, you've broken into the house where old Doctor Black mysteriously died decades ago. Based on the ghost stories you've heard, you think there's now a poltergeist in there, and if you're right, that's a ghost you can find... and trap.

This solution is by David Welbourn, and is based on Release 1 of the game.

SPOILERS AHEAD. Reading a walkthrough prematurely can sometimes diminish one's enjoyment of an interactive fiction game. Please make an honest effort to play the game before reading this walkthrough.


Map

Kitchen HugeRoom Sunroom DiningRoom Roof Library SittingRoom Entrance Study u u (The End) u u

Walkthrough

Entrance

You snuck into the house where Dr Black died.

> take lantern. x it. turn it on.

> take notebook. x it. x map. x plan.

> x tarp. take tarp. (too high)

> x chandelier. (shape obscure with tarp on it)

> x staircase. (too dangerous to go near)

> w.

Sitting Room

> x wardrobe. open it. (locked)

> x rod. x north door. (blocked on other side)

> e. e.

Study

> x carpet. x desk. x skylight.

> open drawers. take key.

> x clock. open it. (can't; has keyhole)

> unlock clock with key.

> open clock. (+1)

The open clock is your ghost detector for the study.

> n.

Library

Note: If you try to take any books from the library, you'll instead drop them back into the pile before you go.

> x ladder. (has solid base and wheels)

> x books. take books. read books. put books on shelves.

The shelved books are your ghost detector for the library.

> x shelved books.

> n.

Sunroom

> x dirt. search dirt. (A shard cuts you.)

> x west door. (blocked)

> w. (You can't get through with the lantern or any other bulky items.)

> drop lantern.

> w.

Huge Room

Either in this room or one of the next two rooms, you gain +1 point when you feel the ghost rush past you.

> x east door. (You can't see what it's caught on.)

> w.

Kitchen

> x sink. x counters.

> s. (+1: You've explored the mansion now.)

Dining Room

> s.

Sitting Room

Get back to the sunroom to get your lantern, but also push the ladder there on the way.

> e. e. n.

Library

> push ladder north.

Sunroom

> take lantern. u.

Roof

> x northwest.

> put lantern in northwest. (It's now in the kitchen.)

> ne. w. w.

Kitchen

Sometimes there's a bug that won't let you take the intact china. I'm not sure why not.

> take lantern. x box.

> push lever. (There's now light here and in some of the other rooms.)

> open cabinets. (awful squeal from hinges)

> x shattered china. x intact china. x hinges.

The open cabinet's squeaky hinges are your ghost detector for the kitchen. Don't re-close the cabinet.

> e.

Huge Room

> move furniture. (East door is now unjammed.)

> x piano. open piano. (can't, but you see a keyhole)

> unlock piano with key. open piano.

> x keys. x strings. play piano.

The open piano is your ghost detector for the huge room.

> w. s.

Dining Room

By now, you've gained +1 for the ghost activating one of your detectors, the hinges in the kitchen.

> move boxes. (+1; doors unjammed)

> x table.

> s.

Sitting Room

> unlock wardrobe with key.

> open wardrobe. take gloves.

> e. e. n. n.

Sunroom

> wear gloves.

> search dirt. (You find wind chimes.)

> x chimes. clean chimes. (high B sound)

> put chimes on hook.

The chimes is your ghost detector for the sunroom.

> push ladder south.

Library

> push ladder south.

Study

> push ladder west.

Entrance

With the ladder here:

> take tarp. (It falls to the floor.)

> x chandelier. take tarp.

The uncovered chandelier is your ghost detector for the entrance.

> w.

Sitting Room

The tarp on the rod is your ghost detector for the sitting room; you'll hear the cloth tear and rip.

> put tarp on rod.

> n. n.

Kitchen

> take intact china. (while wearing the gloves)

> s.

Dining Room

The china on the table is your ghost detector for the dining room.

> put china on table. (That's all the ghost detectors set up.)

Okay, this next part is tricky to explain. By now you've noticed that the ghost can't go through closed doors, and that the ghost doesn't like to stay in a room with you. You want to herd the ghost into a room with both a container and a skylight. This walkthrough will choose the kitchen as our target room, and the cabinet as our target container.

Start by going to the kitchen and closing its east door, then walk counterclockwise to the sunroom:

> n.

Kitchen

> close east door.

> s. s. e. e. n. n.

Sunroom

If you are hearing the piano, you need to chase the ghost out of the huge room:

> close west door.

> s.

Library

If you are hearing the chimes, you need to chase the ghost out of the sunroom:

> close north door.

> s.

Study

If you are hearing books falling, you need to chase the ghost out of the library:

> close north door.

> w.

Entrance

If you are hearing the clock, you need to chase the ghost out of the study:

> close east door.

> w.

Sitting Room

If you are hearing the chandelier, you need to chase the ghost out of the entrance:

> close east door.

> n.

Dining Room

If you're hearing rippping cloth, you need to chase the ghost out of the sitting room:

> close north door.

Now that the ghost is trapped in the kitchen, you need to use the ladder and the skylights to get yourself in the kitchen without opening a door. Note that dropping into a room without the ladder there isn't permitted unless the manor's lights are on so you can see where you're dropping to.

> s. e.

Entrance

> push ladder west.

Sitting Room

> u. nw.

Kitchen

The ghost stops moving when you're in there with it.

> put key in cabinet. (The ghost enters the cupboard.)

> close cabinet. (+1; you hear a "mrow?")

> open cabinet. x cat.

You did notice that the lantern has a laser, yes?

> turn on laser. (+1; you've made a friend.)

The ghost cat now follows you.

> pet cat.

> s. s. e. s.

*** The End ***


Extras

Characters

Mentioned in the prologue:


Credits

The credits are found by reading the armload of books, obtainable in the library:

>take books
You scoop up some books from the pile.

>read books
(the armload of books)
You open one of them:
This game was tested by
    Andrew Schultz
    Mike Russo
    Amanda B
    Sarah Stelzer
    Ada Stelzer
    Grace Foster
    Matt
    Wallace
    Elisabeth
    Jeff (Fos1)
    Nils Fagerburg
    Zed Lopez

Thank you for playing!


Endings


Inventory

Also:


Score

The response to SCORE is:

You have so far scored your-score out of a possible 7, in several turns.

(If you read the plan in the notebook, it'll list which tasks are complete and which remain to be done.)

Points are awarded as follows:


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