In this fantasy game, you play as a man named George waking up in someone else's bedroom and wearing unfamiliar clothes. Memories return slowly of drinking at a party, meeting a stunningly beautiful woman named Julia, leaving with her in her car, somehow arriving at an island beach in a far-away empire, making love, learning magic is real, and learning that she wants you to kill an evil sorcerer on her lands.
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.
"Plateau" is a virtual room that you never actually stay in. When you first go to the Plateau, Julia takes you to Ledge. After your second visit, you return to Forest Path. You will not make a third visit.
CAUTION: The boardwalk collapses soon after you've taken both the bottle and the rusty key from there.
CAUTION: Once you enter the sorcerer's cabin, you won't willingly leave until one of you is dead.
Walkthrough
(pre-game)
...restore a game?
>> N
...activate verbose mode?
>> Y —or— N
Bedroom
> x me. x vest. x trousers.
> stand. x note.(+2)
You remember meeting a beautiful woman at a party, and her bringing you here in her car and giving you your current clothes from the closet, necessary because of the heat outside.
To save a bit of time later, we'll gather several items before leaving the house.
> x bed. look under it.
> x box. x iron key.("47")take it.
> x wallet. take it.(+4)open it.
> x license. read it.("Julia"; has red eyes)
> x visa. x signature.(old script; no surname)
> x unknown card.(a strange creature's ID card)
> x painting. x carpet. x nightstand.
> x window. x forest. x mirror. x dragons.
> x strip. x beads. x door.
> unlock door with key.(no: wrong key)
> s.
Living Room
> x furniture.(which?)
> x chair. x love seat. x table.
> x photo.(of same lizard as in the ID card)
> x painting.
> w.
Bathroom
> x comb. x hair. take hair.
> x boxes. x stall. x junk. x toilet.
> e. e.
Sun room
> x book. take book.
> x cactus.(You acquire a silver key.)
> x table. x glass. x plants.
> n.
Garden
> x plants. x tree.
> x hollow. take ring. clean it. x it.
> x cabinet. open it. take gloves. wear gloves.
> climb tree.(nothing up there)
> s. w. n.
Bedroom
> unlock door with silver key. drop silver key.
> open door. w.
Closet
> take magnet. x it. tie hair to magnet.
> x shelf. x painting.("Frederick Williams / died 1425")
> move painting. x safe.(needs key)
> unlock safe with iron key. drop iron key.
> open safe.(+5)
> x Necronomicon.
> x Azure. read it.
> e. s. s.
Kitchen
> x knife. x counter. x table. x chairs.
> x fridge. open it. x steak. close fridge.
> e.
Porch
> x vine. x berries. take berry.(+2)
> s.
You now remember Julia telling you that you're on a far away island, showing you some magic, and that she needs your help in killing an evil sorcerer.
Beach (near porch)
> ne.
Beach (near shack)
Don't enter the shack yet!
> x shack.
> nw.
Forest Path
> x flower.(CAUTION: deadly to touch)
> x rock. x moss. x trees. x cliff. x water.
> n.
(plateau)
You meet Julia and an old man who looks like a half-burnt mage. He shows you trees dripping with blood, part of the evil sorcerer's work. He consulted with the gods to find you.
He tells you that you need three things: a potion to free the sorcerer's guardian, a god-blessed ranged weapon, and an Amulet of the Dead. He can make the potion for you from an Aedlar berry, a piece of the guardian, and water.
Julia leads you to another ledge elsewhere. Don't confuse the two locations!
Ledge
Julia gives you a list of what you need.
> x list. x Julia. x case. x rifle.
> ask her about rifle.(blessed by Vaere)
> ask her about Vaere.
> ask her about dragons.
> ask her about sorcerer.
> ask her about hermit.
> ask her about shack.
> ask her about old man.
> ask her about me.
> ask her about berry.(vine on porch has them)
> ask her about guardian.
> ask her about bullet.
> ask her about amulet.(see Charon)
> ask her about Charon.
> ask her about island.(off coast of Hyminal)
> ask her about uncle.(died)
> ask her about boardwalk.(will collapse soon)
> ask her about key.
> ask her about Necronomicon.(dangerous)
> ask her about Azure.(ancient mad wizard)
The novel and wallet are for Julia. I think normally she asks for them later, but it's fine to anticipate her.
> give novel to Julia.(+4)
> give wallet to Julia.(+4)
> n. n.
Cave
> x passage. x stalactite.
> x hole. x critter. x coin.
> x scale.(dark red, from large reptile)
> x bone. x quartz.
Drop the ring and gloves here for later.
> drop ring. drop gloves.
> e. s.
Boardwalk
> take bottle. x bottle.(five inches left)
> x boards.
> put magnet between boards.(You get a rusty key.)
When you leave with the bottle and rusty key, the boardwalk collapses behind you.
> n. w. s. s.
Ledge
> ask Julia about coin.(one marc)
> ask Julia about marc.
> ask Julia about bone.
> unlock case with rusty key. drop rusty key.
> open case.(+10)take rifle.(+4)
> n. n. e. e. ne. nw. nw.
Twisted Forest
> x guardian. x talon. take it.
> se.
Forest Path
> fill bottle with water.(+2)
> n.(+10)
(plateau)
The old man takes your ingredients, makes and gives you the potion. You return to...
Forest Path
> i. x elixir. nw.
Twisted Forest
> give elixir to Guardian.(+10; there's a scream from the cabin and the Guardian walks off.)
> nw.
Dead End Path
> x cabin. x tree. x needles. search needles.
> climb tree.
Top of the Tree
> e.
Cabin Roof
> move tile. look in hollow. take bullet.(+2)
> load rifle with bullet.
Head back to the kitchen and grab a stake.
> w. d. se. se. se. sw. n. w.
Kitchen
> open fridge. get steak.(+2)
> close fridge.
> e. s. ne. nw. w.
Road of the Dead
> x dog. give steak to dog.(+3; it's sated for now)
> w.
The Dead River
> x man. ask man about dog.
> ask man about dead.(He wants something of the one the slaying is for. This means you need to talk to Julia.)
> e. e. se. sw. w. w. s. s.
Ledge
Julia tells you she's not human, but the creature in the photograph. You tell her it's okay, but she still seems sad.
You should do something nice for her, but what?
First, though, grab the scale from the cave and another steak from the fridge and return to the ferryman.
> n. n.
Cave
> take scale.
> e. e. n. w.
Kitchen
> open fridge. get steak. close fridge.
> e. s. ne. nw. w.
Road of the Dead
> give steak to dog. w.
The Dead River
> give scale to man.(+8; you get the amulet.)
> x amulet. wear it.(+4)
Return to the cave:
> e. e. se. sw. w. w.
Cave
> wear gloves. take coin. remove gloves.
> take ring. take quartz. put quartz in ring.(+4)
> e. e. ne. n.
Inside the Shack
> ask man about himself.(He's Henry, an alchemist.)
> ask man about shack.
> ask man about bullet.(He wants a copy of the Necronomicon for it.)
> ask man about Necronomicon.
> ask man about Julia.
> ask man about Azure.
> show ring to man.(He'll enchant it using a flower and a marc.)
> ask man about sorcerer.
> s. nw.
Forest Path
> wear gloves. take flower.(+2)
> se. n.
Inside the Shack
> give marc to man.
> give flower to man.
> give ring to man.(+8)
The ring is now enchanted, but must be worn to have any effect.
> remove gloves.
> ask hermit about enchantment.(brings good luck)
> s. sw. w. w. s. s.
Ledge
> give ring to Julia.(+7)
> n. n. e. e. n. w. n. n. w.
Closet
> take Necro.(+4)
> e. s. s. e. s. ne. n.
Inside the Shack
> give Necro to man.(+5; he runs out)
In a few turns, you'll hear a horrible scream in the distance, which is probably the hermit dying.
> take bullet.(+2)
> s. nw. nw.
Twisted Forest
Double-check that you you're wearing the amulet and the rifle is loaded. This is be a good place to save the game.
> n.(+10)
Inside the Sorcerer's Cabin
CAUTION: If you dawdle too long, the sorcerer summons a demon to tear you apart.
> take necro.(+5)
> shoot sorcerer with rifle.(+50)
*** You have won ***
Extras
Characters
You are someone named George, waking up in an unfamiliar place wearing someone else's clothes after a night of heavy drinking. Julia found you by consulting the old man who consulted the gods.
Julia is the owner of this not-quite private island and the most beautiful woman you've ever seen. But that last part is an illusion. She's actually one of the sakian, a lizard-like species.
An old man lives on a plateau ringed with standing stones. His entire left side is burnt and severely damaged. Julia has never seen him eat or drink or leave his plateau, but knows he can get favors from the gods.
A hermit named Henry claims to be the area's only practicing alchemist. Find him in his shack. Julia doesn't like him and the feeling is mutual.
An evil sorcerer lives in a cabin to the north. You are shown a twisted, blood-dripping forest as proof of his evil.
The Guardian is a large gaunt canine-like creature with long sharp teeth and claws. It guards the door to the sorcerer's cabin.
A critter that might be a scorpion inhabits a hole in the cave.
Cerberus is a large three-headed dog that guards the road of the dead. It looks hungry.
Charon is a gaunt man standing on the ferry of the dead river. He can craft a protection amulet for you.
A large demon named Eavoun will tear you apart if you enter the sorcerer's cabin and fail to kill the sorcerer first.
Mentioned:
The gods sometimes grant favors to the old man on the plateau.
Vaere is the powerful, chaotic and unpredictable goddess of the dragons. Supposedly, Vaere gave the rifle to Julia's uncle.
Dragons are presumably real if Vaere is the goddess of them. Dragons are depicted on Julia's mirror and the old man's staff.
Julia's uncle used to own this island. He was an unpleasant man who died when he fell through the boardwalk. Julia inherited the island and everything on it.
Your ex-wife is briefly remembered as being quite inferior when compared to Julia's beauty and bold allure.
Azure is a powerful but mad wizard who's lived for millions of years. He wrote the Book of Azure when confined in a tower.
The dead presumably exist on the far shore of the dead river.
Credits
To read the in-game credits, type HELP then select and open the "Betatesters" item from the menu:
Thanks go out to the following people for helping betatest the Evil Sorcerer (in alphabetical order):
Aaron Pierce, Alexander Deubelbeiss, Andrew MacKinnon, Carl Muckenhoupt, Jason Corley, Jeff Mortan, Jennifer Vaughan, KayCee, Kris, Mike, Patrick Blank, Tracy S Poff as well as anyone I may have missed.
And especially to Lucian Smith for running the IF Beta Site (http://textfire.com/beta.html)
When you're finished with the Help menus, type Q to return to the main game.
Endings
You have died
if you attack the Guardian.
if you attack the dog.
if a large demon tears you apart because you took too long to kill the sorcerer after ending his cabin.
You have won
if you kill the evil sorcerer.
Inventory
You can carry at most eight items at a time, not counting worn items or things inside other things.
Apparel and Personal Items
Honorable mention: a loose open vest and a pair of light trousers. You're wearing them.
Examine them then ignore them. You're discouraged from doing anything else with them.
a grimy ring. It's in the hollow of the tree in the garden.
Clean the ring. It's now a shiny ring.
While not wearing the gloves, put the quartz into the ring. It's now a fine ring. Wear it.
In the shack, show the fine ring to the hermit to learn he can enchant it. Give the coin, white flower, and the fine ring to the hermit. It's now an enchanted ring. The enchantment grants good luck to whoever wears the ring.
You now have a choice. You can keep it and wear the ring yourself. Or you can give the ring to Julia if you want to stay here with her after the sorcerer is dead.
some thick gloves. They're in the cabinet in the garden.
In the cave, wear the gloves. Now you can safely take the coin; the scorpion's attack fails.
On the forest path, wear the gloves. Now you can safely take the white flower. Keep the gloves on while carrying the flower.
While wearing the gloves, you cannot put the quartz into the ring, nor wear the ring.
Documents
a handwritten note. It's on the nightstand in the bedroom.
Read it, but don't bother to take it. It tells you to meet the woman on a plateau and how to get there.
a list. Julia gives it to you after your first meeting with the old man on the plateau.
Read it to remind yourself what you're looking for.
the Necronomicon. It's in the bedroom closet's safe behind the painting; unlock the safe with the iron key.
You can refer to this book as "Necro".
Ask the hermit about his platinum bullet to learn that he'll let you have it if you can give him a copy of the Necronomicon.
After you no longer need the hermit (you may want him to enchant the ring first), give the Necronomicon to him. He promptly takes it into the sorcerer's cabin and dies, dropping the book.
In the cabin, pick up the Necronomicon before shooting the sorcerer with the rifle.
the Book of Azure. It's in the bedroom closet's safe behind the painting; unlock the safe with the iron key.
You don't need this book, nor does anyone else. But you may want to ask everyone about Azure to learn a bit more about him.
a paperback book. It's on the endtable in the sun room.
The iron key unlocks the safe hidden behind the painting in the bedroom closet.
a silver key. Acquire it by examining the cactus in the sun room.
The silver key unlocks the closet door in the bedroom.
a rusty key. It's between the boards of the boardwalk. Put the magnet on a hair between the boards to retrieve the key.
This key unlocks the display case on the ledge. Open the case and take the rifle.
Magical and Quest Items
a scale. This lizard scale is in the cave.
After Julia has told you that she's not human, but of the sakian, you now know the scale is something of hers. At the dead river, give the scale to Charon. He gives you the amulet in exchange.
a coin. It's in the hole in the cave. Wear the gloves so the scorpion can't hurt you.
In the shack, show the fine ring to the hermit to learn that he can enchant it, but he needs payment and a flower. Give the coin, white flower, and fine ring to the hermit. The hermit enchants the ring; it's now an enchanted ring.
a broken wine bottle. It's on the boardwalk.
Wherever there's a source of water, such as on the forest path, fill the bottle with water. The bottle now contains some collected water.
When you have the water, berry, and talon, return to the old man on the plateau. He takes the three ingredients and gives you an elixir in exchange.
eight berries. They're on the thorny vine on the porch railing. Take one.
Take the talon, a berry, and some water to the old man on the plateau; he gives you an elixir in exchange.
a white flower. It's growing on the forest path. Wear the gloves if you want to take it safely.
In the shack, give the coin, flower, and fine ring to the hermit. He enchants the ring for you.
a piece of talon. It's in the twisted forest.
Take the talon, a berry, and some water to the old man on the plateau; he gives you an elixir in exchange.
an antimagic elixir. The old man on the plateau makes it for you when you bring a berry, a talon, and water to him.
In the twisted forest, give the elixir to the Guardian. This frees him from the evil sorcerer's service. The Guardian walks away.
the Amulet of the Dead. At the dead river, Charon gives this amulet to you when you successfully give the scale to him. Note that you are unable to give him the scale until you know it is Julia's scale, shed from her lizard-like body.
Wear the amulet. It protects you from the sorcerer's first spell when you enter his cabin. However, it won't protect you from any demon that the sorcerer summons. Shoot the sorcerer with the rifle before the summoning ritual is complete.
a magnet. It's in the bedroom closet; unlock the closet door with the silver key.
Tie the hair to the magnet to create a magnet on a hair.
On the boardwalk, put the magnet (on a hair) between the boards to retrieve the rusty key.
eight steaks. They're in the kitchen fridge.
Every time you want to go west past the dog on the road of the dead, you must first give a steak to the dog. Since you need to visit Charon twice, you'll need two steaks, one per visit.
a rifle. It's in the locked display case on the ledge. Unlock the case with the rusty key.
With two bullets in play, you could try shooting the hermit or guardian or something else with the first bullet, but it's a waste of a perfectly good bullet.
In the sorcerer's cabin, shoot the sorcerer with the rifle to win the game.
two platinum bullets. You only need one.
One bullet is inside the hermit's shack. Give the Necronomicon to the hermit, and he leaves his shack with it, leaving you to take his bullet at your leisure.
Another bullet is in the hollow of the sorcerer's cabin's roof; move the loose tile and look into the hollow to find it.
Load the rifle with a bullet. The rifle only holds one bullet at a time.
Miscellaneous Junk
a femur bone. It's in the cave.
You have no use for this bone. Ignore it.
a dull knife. It's on the kitchen counter.
You don't need this knife.
Score
This is the response to SCORE:
You have so far scored N out of a possible 188, in T turns end-phrase
Points are awarded as follows:
2 points for reading the note.
4 points for getting the wallet.
5 points for opening the wall safe.
4 points for getting the Necronomicon.
5 points for giving the hermit what he wanted.
10 points for opening the display case.
10 points for freeing the Guardian.
4 points for making the ring.
2 points for getting a flower.
7 points for giving Julia the ring.
10 points for taking the potion ingredients to the old man.
8 points for getting the Amulet of the Dead.
3 points for feeding Cerberus.
2 points for getting the hermit's bullet.
2 points for getting the sorcerer's bullet.
4 points for giving Julia her wallet.
4 points for giving Julia her novel.
10 points for reflecting the sorcerer's spell.
50 points for killing the sorcerer.
2 points for getting a berry.
5 points for retrieving the Necronomicon from the sorcerer's hut.
2 points for getting some water.
2 points for getting a steak.
4 points for wearing the amulet.
4 points for getting the rifle.
8 points for getting the ring enchanted.
The highest score I got was 173 out of 188. I'm missing 15 points somewhere. Can you do better?
The known end-phrases are:
so get going!(0 points)
so keep going!(for most of the game)
and that's your final score(when the game has ended)
