In this espionage game, you play as an experienced agent of the Department. Your mission is to retrieve an iceweb device from Pol, a spy in enemy territory. The sub drops you off in a Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB) with an assortment of gadgets and a can of shaving foam.
This solution is by David Welbourn, and is based on Version 0.4 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.
Note that you can travel in any compass direction from any location your boat is in, but unless you follow the stable connections on the map, where you end up is semi-randomized. You usually arrive at either Mid Estuary or at Open Sea, but you might find yourself at Bird Sanctuary, Sea Fort, or Military Landing instead.
As far as I know, you can only reach Rendezvous Location via the NavAssist.
Map 2: Oil Rig
As far as I know, you can only reach the rig via the NavAssist.
Walkthrough
Opening notes:
After the prologue text, the game unfortunately changes your text color to black instead of the default white. If your Z-machine interpreter normally uses a dark blue background, the text is now unreadable. Take a moment to change its background color to a pale color or white to restore a decent contrast. You can always change it back later.
This walkthrough avoids the Military Landing location entirely, but during normal play, when navigating the sea blindly, you're likely to find yourself there whether you want to be or not. There's nowhere to land there, and nothing useful to do there, and worse, a ghost drone starts following you. If this happens, go to the Bird Sanctuary as soon as you can. The seagulls destroy any drones unlucky enough to follow you there.
Mid Estuary
> help.(Learn about the HINT, EXPLAIN, and MANUAL commands.)
> i.
> x suit.(has pocket, but it's empty and you never use it)
> x compass.
> x can. read can. open can.
> look in can. take document.
> look in can. take all from can.
> read document.(can't: coded)
> explain sophic.(wearable firmware. You can wear three at a time in your neck's sockets.)
> x sockets.
> x rib-sophic.(allows you to navigate this boat)
> x code-sophic.(allows you to read coded documents)
> wear code-sophic.
> read document.
Your mission is to get the ICEweb device from Pol, then return to base with it. When you have the device, make a satellite-visible signal, then go to Rendezvous Location and wait for the submarine.
Also, the codes for the NavAssist are:
Sea Fort = SF102
Bridge Island = BB107
Pol's Base = PP119
Bird Rock = PF210
Military Landing = MA202
Rendezvous Location = EM116
(These codes are not randomized.)
You're done with the document and code-sophic. Hide them inside the can.
> put code-sophic and document in can. close can.
> x silat-sophic.(Wearer can use silat combat.)
> wear it.
> x tran-sophic.(Wearer can talk in 18 languages.)
> wear it.
> x RIB.
> x GPS. take it.(yes, it seems useless, but take it)
> x box. read note.
> x NavAssist. explain NavAssist.
> open box. take all from box.
> x beacon.(attach to iron/steel to activate)
> x bridge. x sea.
> w.
Bridge Base
> x pillars. out.
Rocky Island
> put beacon on pillars.
> u.
Bridge Superstructure
> x bridge.(pylon far to southeast)
> x pylon.
> d. d.
Bridge Base
As clued by seeing the pylon:
> se.
Sea Fort
> x pylon. x turret.
> x wall.(might get closer to east)
> e.
Fort Wall
Note: You can only stay in this location for a few turns at a time. If you stay here too long, a random event happens that forces you to leave.
> put beacon on wall.(can't reach)
> throw beacon at wall.(success!)
> w. n.
Bird Sanctuary
Nowhere to land here, but maybe to the north.
> x birds.
> n.
The north face of the Bird Sanctuary
> x buoy. put beacon on buoy.
> s.
Bird Sanctuary
> turn on NavAssist.
> type PF210.(The NavAssist is now calibrated.)
> type PP119
Abandoned Oil Rig
> x rig. ne.
Rig Leg
> u.
Top of the Ladder
> enter.
Inside the Leg of the Rig
> u.
Darkness / Top of the Circular Staircase
> turn on GPS.(for its light)
> x door. take bar. turn wheel.(unlocked!)
> e.
Control Room
> talk to him.
You drop the bar. He frisks you, but takes nothing. He no longer bothers you, even if you take the bar again.
> x body.(It's Polly.)
> search body.(You take a v-sophic. Her artifical hand flexes.)
> open hand.(You take a deck-sophic.)
> x hand.
> talk to him.(He tells you who he is and what happened.)
> x v-sophic.(It's half of a viewer-server pair. Wear it and REPLAY to experience the server's end.)
> x deck-sophic.(for interfacing with a cyberdeck.)
> x guard.(wounded)
> x desk.(useless)
> remove silat-sophic.
> wear v-sophic.(where is that?)
> replay.
You watch Polly test a black box -- the iceweb.
>> SPACE
You hear a helicopter. A black-clad man takes the cyberdeck, iceweb, and server to the helipad.
>> SPACE
You hear the copter attacked by the uni-filament grenade. The copter goes west and up.
>> SPACE
You see the copter crash against the bridge. The image stops there.
> remove v-sophic. wear silat-sophic.
> w. d. out. d.
Rig Leg
> type BB107.
Bridge Base
> u. u.
Bridge Superstructure
> x helicopter. enter.
Interior of the Helicopter
> x pilot —or— x passengers.
> take key. x it.("Helipad Deck Door")
> take box. x it.(broken server)
> take PC. x it.(Polly's)
> take equipment. x it. read it.("ICEWEB MK 2")
> x controls.
> out. d. d.
Bridge Base
> type PP119
Abandoned Oil Rig
> ne. u. enter. u. e.
Control Room
> e.(deck door locked)
> unlock deck door with key. e.
Helipad
> x guard.(You toss him overboard.)
> x discs.(You can move a letter to a position from 1 to 8.)
> x launcher.(useless)
> x aerial.
So, um, spell HELP_AID? A satellite will see that, yes?
> move D to position 8.
> move I to position 7.
> move P to position 4.
Almost done. Get to the rendezvous.
> w.
Control Room
You automatically order the guard to carry Polly and follow you.
> w. d. out. d.
Rig Leg
Although the game never says it, assume the guard enters the boat with you.
> type EM116
Rendezvous Location
Don't look to see if Eurydice, er, Polly is here. She's unconscious and she and the guard need an extra turn to follow you here.
> z. z.
*** You have won. ***
Extras
Characters
You are an experienced agent of the Department; no other details are given.
Seagulls inhabit the bird sanctuary.
A guard confronts you in the control room. He's actually one of Polly's hired bodyguards, but they were overpowered.
Polly (aka "Pol") is a spy and your contact. She's unconscious in the control room.
Soldiers can be seen at the military landing.
A ghost drone follows you everywhere whenever you visit the military landing. Its natural enemy is a seagull.
Found dead:
A pilot and his two passengers are all dead in the stealth helicopter.
A dead guard is on the helipad.
A dead body is partly blocking the hole below the foot of the circular staircase the second time you go through it.
Mentioned:
The Department gave you your mission.
Marine scavengers are feeding on the body underwater.
Endings
You are dead
if Polly's bodyguard shoots you. This happens if you neither talk to him nor attack him.
You are Dead.
if Polly's bodyguard shoots you. This happens if you try to attack him without the silat-sophic jacked in.
Unsuccessful mission. Try again.
if you return to the sub without the iceweb.
You have won.
if you return to the sub with the iceweb.
Inventory
Electronics
a GPS. It's in your boat.
While it's useless for navigation, when turned on, the GPS can be used as a weak light-source in dark locations, such as the interior of the rig leg.
CAUTION: The GPS doesn't stay on indefinitely. It automatically turns itself off after a few turns.
five NavBeacons. They're in the plastic box in your boat.
You need to place three of them on iron or steel things to activate them.
On the rocky island, put a beacon on a pillar.
On the north face of the Bird Sanctuary, put a beacon on the buoy.
At the fort wall (east of "Sea Fort"), throw a beacon at the wall. It magnetically adheres.
You don't need the other two beacons unless you somehow lose or damage some of them.
After three beacons are placed, go to one of the locations that you know a code for, then type that location's code on the NavAssist to calibrate it.
a v-server. It's in the helicopter.
This is the server that the v-sophic was linked to. Unfortunately, you break it when you take it. So it's junk now.
the PC. It's in the helicopter.
This is Polly's. You can't use it, but take it with you. Someone back on the base can retrieve the data from it.
the iceweb device. It's in the helicopter.
This is the mcguffin of the game. Take it and keep it.
Sophics
Sophics are wearable firmwear. You can wear up to three sophics at a time (using sockets in your neck). The commands JACK and UNJACK are the same as WEAR and REMOVE respectively.
a rib-sophic. You're wearing it.
This sophic lets you control your boat directly with your mind.
This sophic gives you the ability to speak in eighteen different languages. You don't need it to surrender to the guard in the control room, but you do need it if you plan on talking to him afterwards.
This sophic gives you the ability to read encoded documents from Department; see briefing document.
a v-sophic. In the control room, acquire it by searching Polly's body.
This sophic is linked to a v-server elsewhere; you see what it sees and hear what it hears. There's also a REPLAY feature so you can see and hear in its recent past.
a deck-sophic. In the control room, acquire it by opening Polly's hand.
This sophic lets you link to some cyberdecks. You won't need to use this one.
Other items
a wet suit. You're wearing it.
You won't remove it. Ignore it.
a Magnetic Compass. You're carrying it.
While you have it, you know which way is north, etc. Just hold onto it.
The document is encoded. To read it, wear the code-sophic then try reading the document. It tells you your mission and lists all the codes you'll need for the NavAssist.
Put the document back inside the can and close the can to hide the document from enemy eyes.
an iron bar. It's in the wheel of the watertight door at the top of the circular staircase.
Take the bar then turn the wheel to unlock the door.
While wearing the tran-sophic, talk to the guard in the control room. You automatically drop the bar; he frisks you. He no longer gives you any grief.
the deck door key. It's in the helicopter.
This key unlocks the deck door in the control room that leads to the helipad.
