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Key & Compass presents:
The extraordinary events of the last day of Professor Mangleworth
by "Taleslinger"

The extraordinary events of the last day of Professor Mangleworth is a Z-machine interactive fiction story written with Inform 7 and is © 2011 by "Taleslinger". It was a participant in the Thanksgiving Speed-IF event in 2011.

In this Holmesian short story, you play as Professor Mangleworth, despondent about the death of your daughter, your little dragonfly. You plan to kill yourself, but your death must not appear as a suicide, or you will bring great shame to your family.

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

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


Map

The Study At thewindow At yourdesk

Walkthrough

The Study

> i. x bowtie. x hat.

> x case. (contains labradorite)

> open case. (One of the valets has the key.)

> e.

At the window

> x window. (A heap of kindling wood is just outside.)

> x cage. x bar. (fitted loosely)

> x thylacine. (a wolf)

> push bar. (Nothing happens. This is misleading. It's actually too far to reach.)

> x case. (contains bismuth crystal)

> e.

At your desk

> x desk. open drawer. x hand guard.

> x jar. x bow. x table. x pot.

> x gun. (You've filled it with a poisonous venom.)

Time to enact your plan.

> take guard. take bow. take gun.

> w.

At the window

> wear guard. shoot bar.

The arrow shatters, the wolf is loose, and you break and hide the bow in the kindling.

> e.

At your desk

Make your suicide look more like a heart attack by putting the squirt gun back onto the table immediately after using it.

> put guard in drawer. close drawer.

> spray me. put gun on table.

*** You have won ***


Extras

Characters

Mentioned:


Credits

The response to CREDITS is:

"The extraordinary events on the last day of Professor Mangleworth" was written for the 2011 Thanksgiving speed-IF. The premise was as follows:

A speed-IF! A veritable feast! Using the following inventory items, based on a list of photographed items from Grocible's book-in-progress:
a top hat. a dragonfly*. a small crystal ball. two optical prisms. a water pistol. a magnifying glass. a bowtie. a jar of silica. a polished piece of labradorite. a bow and arrow. an archer's arm guard. a bismuth crystal.

Scientific detail was provided by a quick google. Hence, there will be great inaccuracies that will make some people cry. No apologies are intended or offered.


Endings


Inventory


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