The Horror of Rylvania is a TADS 2 formerly-commercial text adventure game and is © 1993, 1996 Adventions. It was written by D.A. Leary.
You play as an American college student touring Europe with your friend, Carolyn. In the country of Rylvania, Carolyn is viciously attacked by wolves and is bleeding to death; you must find help for her immediately. But your troubles only get worse when later, you are attacked and become a vampire!
This solution is by David Welbourn, and is based on Version 2.5G for Great Underground Adventures CD of the game.
Winding Path
Footnotes are numbered in the order you find them, so if you do things in a different order than in this walkthrough, the numbers will be different.
> note 1. verbose.
Your college friend, Carolyn, is severely injured from a wolf attack. You have no way to apply first aid or call for help, nor can you carry her. You must find a doctor.
> x Carolyn. help her. take her.
> x me. i. x check. x matchbook. note 2.
> n. n. n.
Common Room
> x barman. ask barman about doctor. (The barman is a deaf-mute.)
> give check to barman. (He refuses it.)
> x townsfolk. ask group about barman. ask group about doctor.
> ask group about wolves. tell group about Carolyn.
> x tarot. ask group about tarot. take tarot.
> x hearth. x bar. x table.
> s. e. n.
Doctor's Office
We're in a hurry, so don't bother looking around too much right now. Just make sure you unlatch the window before you leave so you can get back in here later.
> x doctor. x window. unlatch window.
> tell doctor about Carolyn —or— doctor, help —or— doctor, follow me.
The doctor is now following you.
> s. sw. s. (+4)
Winding Path
Carolyn isn't here! The doctor leaves, disgusted with your prank. I suggest exploring the village thoroughly at this point, starting with the inn.
CAUTION: Don't enter the Black Forest at this time. Carolyn isn't there, and the wolves will kill you if you wander in the forest.
CAUTION: Don't enter the moor until we've done as much as we can in the village.
> n. n. n. w.
Inn, Back Room
Please don't eat the bread. You'll need it later.
> x bread. x cleaver. take all. n.
Back Yard
> x horse. ride horse. (+2) x hair. (Yes, you have a long strand of horse hair. Just try to guess what it's for.)
> pet horse. (Fine. Be that way.)
> s. e. s. e. e. n.
Alleyway
> x debris. (+2) x leaflet. x window. open window. w.
Doctor's Office
I suggest leaving the office by the door and leaving the door open. The darn door automatically locks if you close it.
The satchel has a mere 3 item carrying limit. Make the most of it.
> x desk. x chair. x diploma. x satchel. take it. open it. (+14)
> x coin. x key. x flask. open door. s. s.
Open Field
> x man. ask man about money.
> give check to man. (The bum refuses it.)
> give silver coin to man. (+5; he leaves after giving two items in exchange.)
> x bronze coin. x hanky.
> x grass. n. w. n.
Common Room
> give bronze coin to barman. x wine. note 3.
> s. e. e. s.
Inside Church
> x basin. read words. x pillar. x water.
> put water in flask. (The flask water won't be holy, but just clean.)
> x pews. look under pews. x window. x altar.
> s.
Church Vestry
> x cloak. take it. x hooks. u.
Belfry
> x flyswatter. take it. x bell.
> x chain. climb chain. pull chain. x bats. note 4.
> x window. x ladder. d. e.
Graveyard South
> x trees. x graves. n.
Graveyard North
Although we can unlock the mausoleum gate and enter at this time, it's best to do it a bit later.
> x graves. x fence. x mausoleum. read words.
> climb fence. (We can't do it.)
> s. w. n. n.
Village Road East
Be very sure you've collected everything, and save your position here.
You should have check, matchbook, tarot, bread, cleaver, hair, leaflet, satchel, wine, cloak, flyswatter, flask (with water!), and hanky.
If you know what's about to happen, you might want to just drop everything here first too.
> save. ne.
Moor Path
Carolyn is a vampire! And she attacks us! Everything goes black and we dream...
Inside a Closed Coffin
...and we wake up in a coffin! And we're hungry!
> open coffin. x me. note 5. i. (All our stuff is gone!)
Sounds like someone is digging us up though.
> z. (Repeat waiting until "There's a loud thump on the coffin lid".)
> open coffin.
Lying in an Open Coffin
> out.
†
As a vampire you have several new abilities and disabilities. Your abilities include slightly greater strength and slightly better agility. Your canine teeth are longer and sharper. Wolves are friendly to you. You are difficult to see in shadow. You can sometimes read or sense others' thoughts.
Your disabilities include a thrist for blood that must be sated every so often. The smell of garlic (if strong) can kill you; eating garlic definitely kills you. Your body falls into deep coma during the daytime. You cannot cross running water. You can't handle religious items, nor enter religious places like churches. And most everyone wants you dead.
Some vampiric powers you don't get at all. You do not get better vision. You can't fly. You can't shapechange into a bat or into mist. You cannot summon any creatures. In theory, you should be able to create more vampires, but that option isn't offered or explored.
You are also not immune to mortal injuries and poisons, although you can shrug off minor injuries like a mouse bite.
Graveyard North
> x priest. eat priest. (+10; Your first kill.)
> take stake and shovel. x priest. bury priest.
> x stake. x shovel. x hole. x headstone. s.
Graveyard South
> w. (Ah. You can't re-enter the church.)
> n.
Graveyard North
> climb fence —or— n.
Moor Path
Before we explore the moor, we need our stuff back.
> x fog. sw.
Village Road East
We sense an evil man in the alleyway; he's a potential victim if we get hungry again.
> w. n.
Doctor's Office
Hm. All our stuff—except for the matchbook—is here. Curious.
> take all. s. w.
Outside Inn
CAUTION: Don't enter the inn as a vampire; they'll kill you.
But do you remember the townsfolk mentioning reading the trees?
> x window. x trees.
Time to enter the Black Forest.
> w. sw. (Oh. A wolf.)
> sw. sw. (+3)
Forest Clearing
A staff and our matchbook are here.
> x staff. note 6. take all.
> x trees. ne. e. e.
Path Fork
> ne. e. e. ne. s.
Graveyard North
> unlock gate with key. drop key. open gate. e.
Too Dark for Comfort
The only portable lightsources in this game are the matches.
> light match. (+5)
Mausoleum Interior
The lit match's light won't last long. Grab the stuff and go.
Note: If we raided the mausoleum while we were still fully human, the ink would just end up back in here when we lose our inventory and we'd have to waste a match to retake it.
> take all. x shelf. w.
Graveyard North
> x ink. x brass book. read it. (Note that stuff is buried in the moors.)
> drop brass book.
I'm dropping things we no longer need; we have a carrying capacity limit.
> put ink in satchel. put hanky in satchel.
> n. nw.
Moor Crossroads
> x signpost. x raven. e.
River Bank
Vampire Cure
Shopping List
> x river. x reeds. x mud. e. (Can't cross the river.)
> dig mud with shovel. (+2) x parchment. read it. (A vampirism cure!)
> dig mud with shovel. g. g. (+10) x glasses.
> clean glasses. clean glasses with hanky. (Too dry.)
> x water. (Which: river water or pint of water?)
> put river water on hanky. (Too foul.)
> put pint on hanky. clean glasses with hanky. (+5)
> wear glasses.
I note that the hanky dries out quickly after you moisten it. Also, attempting to clean the glasses with carbolic acid (which you find later) destroys the glasses.
> put check in river. note 7. undo. undo.
> w.
Moor Crossroads
The parchment said we need a raven's feather.
> take raven. (Nope.) hit raven with staff. (Nuh-uh.)
> nevermore. note 7.
> give bread to raven. (+5) take feather. x it.
> w.
Moor Clearing
> x tent. x sign. read it. w.
Inside Tent
> x woman. ask woman about doctor. ask woman about reading.
> give leaflet to her. give tarot to her. give wine to her.
> give cloak to her. (+10; She gives a reading, drops boots, and flees.)
> take boots. x boots. wear boots.
> e. e. nw. n.
Edge of Gorge
You'll need to be wearing the boots and carrying the staff to cross the rope bridge safely.
> x gorge. x rope. x ring. n. (+7)
Mountain Fork
> ne.
Hillside
The goat is another potential source of blood if you need a snack.
> x goat. ride goat. w.
Too Dark for Comfort
> light match.
Damp Cave
CAUTION: Don't shake the can like it suggests. Just don't.
> dig floor with shovel. (+5) x can. note 8. x lichen.
> e. sw. nw. ne.
Castle Entrance
> x castle. x windows. x gargoyles. x doors. e.
Castle Foyer
The umbrella shows that the doctor is here; it bears his initials. The foyer is a good place to drop things.
> x umbrella. open it. x stairway.
> x carpet. move it.
> xyzzy. plugh. plover. note 9.
> s.
Trophy Room
> x case. open case. break case. (+3; wow, that worked.)
> x ostrich feather. x skull. (+5) x vial. (Carbolic acid.)
> x point. x flute. play flute. (You prefer the violin.)
> x moose. x antlers. turn antlers. x teeth.
> x my teeth. x moose's teeth. open moose's teeth. (+4)
> x clear vial. (Ethyl alcohol.)
> x window. open window. s.
Overgrown Garden
CAUTION: Don't enter the well just yet; you'll fall to your death. And no, an open umbrella doesn't slow your fall here.
> x herb garden. (+2) note 10.
> take garlic. x flower garden. x well. x vines. climb vines. (Can't.)
> x gazebo. e.
In the Gazebo
> x floorboards. pull board. (+4) take sheet music. x it. read it.
> play music. note 11.
> w. n. e.
Games Room
The first time you enter here, you sense a fiend is torturing Carolyn somewhere below you.
> x dartboard. x pool table. x cue. note 12.
You don't need any of this stuff, though. Explore north of the foyer next.
> w. n. n.
Dining Room
You have no idea how much panelling I looked at in this castle, looking for secret panels and mouse holes. Such a waste of time. Eventually I noticed the dust. Aargh.
> x table. x panelling. x dust. x tracks. follow tracks. (+5)
> x hole. note 13. look in hole.
> reach in hole. (Worth a try, eh?)
> n.
Kitchen
> x pot. x handle. take handle. (+4) x handle. (Um, okay?)
> move pot. x fireplace. x soot. x door.
> break door. cut door with cleaver. (+10; Seriously?)
> e.
Pantry
Needless to say, don't eat the cheese or the sugar cube.
> x cheese. smell it. x sugar. take all.
I'd prefer to explore the upstairs area before the unlit areas downstairs, if that's okay with you.
> w. s. s. e.
Grand Stair Landing
> x painting. n. n.
Study
> x desk. ("Ahh! Bach!") x grime. x fly. listen to fly.
> x clock. open clock. break clock. kick clock. (diary!)
> x diary. read it. ("the ink in mine own cursed blood")
> x blood. (Yup. The bottle of ink is Vladmir's vampire blood.)
> listen to clock. kick clock.
Originally, I was hoping to get the clock to stop ticking so we could hear the fly more easily, but that's not the answer. This is more of a "lure with honey" solution:
> put sugar in flask. (+5) look in flask.
> pour sugar water on desk. z. z. z. z. (+3; fly lands on the desk.)
> swat fly with swatter. (+7) drop swatter. take fly. (Don't eat it.)
We'll have to return here later to deal with the Bach clue.
> s. e.
Hallway North
> x door. (Locked.) x candlestick. turn it. (Worth a try.)
> s.
Hall Center
Note: The ghost moves every time you look at him, so if you want a conversation with him, just don't look.
> x ghost. (It's Vladmir; he glides north.)
> e.
Master Bedroom
> x bed. x remains. x leaves. take leaves. take skull. (Buh-bye.)
> look under bed. x wardrobe. open it. x gold key. x adder.
CAUTION: Don't touch the adder! It's poisonous!
CAUTION: Don't shake the spray can! It explodes!
> spray adder with can. (+10) drop can. take gold key.
> w. n.
Hallway North
> ask ghost about ghost. ask ghost about ink.
He confirms it's his blood, and says that his will is in the study. He goes south. I point out that the game doesn't know the word "will", though, so don't bother looking for it.
> unlock door with gold key. drop gold key. open door. e.
Guest Bedroom
> x bunk. x mattress. look under bunk. (+5)
> x chest. x window. open window. chop window with cleaver.
> break window. (Three turns after examining the window, you hear a woman's voice on the other side.)
> note 14. (You can't open this window.)
> w. s. s.
Hallway South
> show ink to ghost. note 15.
> ask ghost about vampires. ask ghost about doctor. (He glides north.)
> x candlestick. x stub. take stub. (You can't.)
> e.
Sitting Room
As far as I know, there's no useful thing to do with either chair or cage.
> x chair. x cage. x canary. open cage. (It doesn't open?)
> take canary. eat canary. (Sorry, you can't get at it.)
> listen to canary. (How droll.)
> w.
Hallway South
Make sure you're wearing the eyeglasses and have the matches, handkerchief, and staff before this part. Also, if you haven't chopped open the pantry door, you need the cleaver as well.
> light match. light stub.
> z. z. z. z. z. (+10; secret door opens!)
> se.
Tower Base
After one turn, the door will close, and a voice gloats that you're trapped!
> x tube. put hanky in tube. note 16.
> u.
Tower Top
> x brass key. take it. x anvil. x slits. x cobwebs.
> push anvil. (+15)
The anvil crashes through the floor below. If you didn't put the hanky in the tube, your captor floods the tower with garlic gas, killing you. (The traveller's check also fits in the tube but has no useful effect.)
You can grab the hanky on your way out if you like, or abandon it forever; you can't return to the tower.
> d. d.
Too Dark for Comfort
> light match.
In the Catacombs (room 1 on my map)
This is a maze that you'd normally have to map out by dropping items and using up a lot of matches, then restoring back to before you started mapping. But since you're reading a walkthrough, assume you already have the catacombs map and head straight for the lost crypt.
The east passage to the crypt is only visible if you're wearing the eyeglasses.
> nw. e.
Lost Crypt
The doctor helpfully mentions that the key for this door is in the library before he sees you and displays a cross.
> hit doctor with staff. (+8; he drops the cross and is at your mercy.)
> save.
Here is a chance to question the doctor before you kill him and get more backstory, but unfortunately, you'll pay for any answers with your death; he stabs you.
So either skip this bit or undo after every interaction.
> ask doctor about me. undo.
> ask doctor about Carolyn. undo.
> ask doctor about formula. undo.
> give parchment to doctor. undo.
Time for Doc Trolovitch to die.
> bite doctor. (+10) x doctor. x cross. take it. (Can't.)
> x door. (Key's in the library, he said? What library?)
> light match. w. nw. nw. (+3)
Wine Cellar
Don't try to drink the casks; they're deadly.
> x casks. (Amontillado; the match burns out.)
> n.
Pantry
If you didn't chop the door with the cleaver earlier, do it now. Then head up to the guest bedroom with the key we found in the tower, dropping off some inventory in the foyer en route.
> w. s. s.
Castle Foyer
> drop shovel. drop check. drop cleaver.
> e. n. e. e.
Guest Bedroom
> unlock chest with brass key. drop brass key. open chest.
> take all from chest.
> x mousetrap. note 17.
> x needle. note 18.
> x pipe. x ball. smell it. drop pipe.
> w. w. s. w. n.
Dining Room
You still have the cheese, right? And you found the hole earlier, yes?
> set mousetrap. put mousetrap near hole. z. z. z. z. (+8)
> x mouse. take it. (Don't eat it.)
> s. e. n. e. e.
Guest Bedroom
Er, why are we back here?
> take mattress. (What? The mattress is portable?)
> w. w. s. w. s. s.
Overgrown Garden
> put mattress in well. d. (+12)
Well Bottom
Good thing neither we or the mattress landed on the violin, eh?
> x violin. take it. play it. ne.
Too Dark for Comfort
> light match.
In the Catacombs (room 6 on my map)
> nw. nw.
Wine Cellar
> n. w. s. s. e. n. n.
Study
> tie hair to handle. (+5; you made a violin bow!)
No way did I figure that out. I just tried "tie hair to all" to see what would happen.
> play music. (+13; chamber opens to east)
> drop violin, bow, music. (The hair detaches itself from the bow.)
> e.
Library
> x green book. ("Birds of the World")
> read it. (Raven feathers cure; ostrich feathers poison.)
> x red book. ("Elementary Chemistry")
> read it. (Laudanum is opium dissolved in alcohol.)
> x brown book. ("Holy Bible")
> read it. (Can't even touch it.)
> x black book. ("Rhistoven Family History")
> read it. (All about Jacques Rhistoven, a seaman who smoked opium.)
> x opium. (Yup, it's the sticky ball you found in the pipe.)
> put opium in alcohol. (+14) x laudanum. (It's brown.)
Hm. Where's that key? In the Bible?
> light match. burn Bible. (−5) note 19.
> undo. undo. undo.
Eep, not there. What else is here?
> x armchair. x fireplace. x chimney. (+3; found it.)
> x wooden key.
By the way, if you start to feel tired around now, you need to get back to your coffin, close it, and sleep. Dawn is near.
However, if you've only just been warned, you have just enough time to enact the finale before dawn hits.
> w. s. s. w. n. n. e. s.
Too Dark for Comfort
> light match.
Wine Cellar
> se. se. e.
Lost Crypt
> unlock door with wooden key. open door. e.
Madman's Laboratory
If you're not in a rush, feel free to examine the tables, debris, and glow as well.
> save.
> x Carolyn. wake Carolyn. (You can't rouse her.)
> x manacles. open manacles. break manacles. (You can't remove them.)
> x machine. x funnel. x clamp. x lever.
> put acid in funnel. (+10; The machine is now sterlized.)
> put needle in clamp. (After machine sterlized, not before.)
Time to make the vampire cure.
Fun Fact: Putting all six items into the funnel at once takes only one turn instead of six!
> put laudanum, garlic, mouse, ink, feather, fly in funnel.
> pull lever. (+8)
You have some choices to make and not much time to make them. Delay too long and an angry mob of townsfolk will kill you whether you're cured or not.
Choice 1: Save yourself, then kill Carolyn.
> inject me with needle. (+20) stab Carolyn with stake. (+7)
Choice 2: Save Carolyn, then kill yourself.
> inject Carolyn with needle. (+15) stab me with stake. (+12)
Either way:
This means you're the winner of Horror of Rylvania. Congratulations!
You are an unnamed American college student touring Europe.
The non-player characters are:
Notable other characters mentioned include:
>score
In a total of turn-total turns, you have achieved a score of score-total points out of a possible 301.This means you're...
As a human:
As a vampire:
As either vampire or human:
Probably not a complete list, but it's interesting, I think.
As a vampire, the list of things you can eat (or try to eat) is a bit unusual.
You can, of course, bite people (and the goat), draining them for their blood:
Other items you can try eating or drinking (but shouldn't for various reasons):
So you can eat a mouse and a housefly, but not wine and cheese? Being a vampire sucks.
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