Amberstar - Part 1

8/18/2019 Amberstar - Part 1

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` AMBERSTAR - Thalion` Playguide by Brian Burke

Part 1 - Introduction, General Information and Hints

~Introduction.

Amberstar is a large, colourful and enjoyable RPG. Theprogrammers' objective was to out-Ultima the guys at Origin.Having never played an Ultima game whether they've succeeded ornot I don't know. What I can say is that the control system isexcellent once you've sussed out that the manual, though seeminglycomprehensive, does not provide all the answers to which icon doeswhat. You can't beat a bit of hands-on experience.

I understand that folks trying to play off floppies on the Amigahave had a problem but the guy I spoke to at Thalion in Germanyseemed to think all was OK now. Playing off a hard drive with only1 meg you'll need to use Control-D to cut out Workbench loading.

The task is to find 13 parts of the Amberstar and join them in aspecial place to allow the party access to the Fortress ofGodsbane and thus smite down the nasties. Piece of cake!

The Graphic presentations come in four types of display.

The opening scene finds your character in Twinlake Graveyard in anUltima style scene. Some interior scenes replicate this such as ina house, a Guild or an Inn. Scrolling is a joy throughout.

Entering a town or a cellar etc brings up a scene that's a crossbetween SSI and Dungeon Master. Until a Compass or the Staff ofDirection is obtained the only way to tell which is North or Southis to use the auto-mapping facility. In Cellars and undergroundlocations the auto-mapping will not work unless a Torch isactivated.

Leaving a Town, Cave or Tower brings an overhead view reminiscentof Faery Tale. The game map is very large and whether your Partyis walking, riding, sailing or flying you will encounter dawn,day, evening and night changes. This is reflected by the amount ofmap that you can see on screen. Time can be accelerated by use ofthe "Zzz" icon.

The final scenario is the Battle mode. The less active amongst uswill be delighted to know that this is not realtime. Actions, suchas fight or cast magic spells and movement can be planned on acharacter by character basis and a single icon press will carryout those instructions. You just sit back and drink your coffeewhilst the hapless protagonists slug it out crying such

encouragement out as "Hit him, you twit" and so on.

~Character Set-Up.

Although the game starts with a single character who becomes youralter-ego you do need, in time, to fill all six character slots upwith a selected group. The character stats need to be createdprior to starting the game proper. Be patient and keep the dicerolling until you are satisfied with the figures. Subsequentpromotions will enable such attributes like Strength, Attack and



Parry prowess, Read and Use Magic scrolls, Swimming, Pick Locks,Find and Disarm Traps to be increased.

~Movement over the Map.

At an early stage it is advisable to buy a horse from the Stablesin Twinlake. This means that you only lay out 150 gold for yoursingle character. Subsequent additions to the Party all clamberupon the back of this poor creature without detriment to itsperformance! If you've two characters when you buy a horse thenit's 300 Gold and so on. Having a horse means that Rivers can becrossed without losing Life Points by not having sufficientswimming skills. You'll also not be allowed to enter Lakes or theSea. To enter Woods and Forests though you must be on foot sowill have to park Dobbin in a place where you can find him (her)again. Think I'm joking? - this is a BIG game.

Twinlake offers Rafts for sale but two of these are to be foundfor free. One at the end of a jetty on the western shore line andanother in the north west of the map. A Boat, on the other hand,you have to buy at some point. As these cost 5000 Gold it'll be alittle time before you acquire one. Whilst this sum of money canbe found in Crystal I recommend that you use that to fund otherpurposes first. Boats can be bought in Crystal or from an

extremely remote island in the north west.

Later in the game a "Blue Disc" can replace the horse and best ofall the ultimate way to travel is via your own tame Eagle - shadesof Questron (no gambling in this game though).

Finally there's a method known as "The Windgates". These arecroquet type hoops that transport the Party, from a central islandto the south of Twinlake, to locations that are close to points ofinterest. Before the Windgates can be used the artefact thatenables them must be obtained. There are two of these to be found.

~Fighting & Character Promotion.

As usual sending the baddies to their version of Valhalla is theonly way to gain Experience. Entering each relevant Guild givesyour character information as to how many points are required toreach the next level. Each promotion costs so have your purseavailable. Some classes cost more than others.

At each promotion you are invited to allocate points to thedisciplines I described above. Briefly these should initially be -Warriors - Attack/Parry skillsThief - Pick LocksPaladin - Read and Use Scrolls OR Attack/ParryWizards - Read and Use Scrolls

There are also Monk and Ranger classes which I did not employ butwho are available in the game.

Misreading the manual I mistakenly thought my Human charactercould enter a multitude of classes so when I'd acquired 30experience points I beetled into the Warrior Guild for my extraskill points and to receive my extra Life Points. When I thentried to enter another class and was turned away I wasinconsolable. In the event I was well pleased as I set up myBattle formation with a Warrior at either side of the first row



with all four weaker characters on the back row.

The Warriors cannot advance beyond the second row of the grid.The enemy come down the screen towards your team and can only behit by the front men if they are adjacent or directly in front ofyour characters. Black Wizards are the guys with offensivespells. They can cast spells on any retreating baddies inindividual or group mode dependent on the type of spell. WhiteWizards are the Clerics and Grey Wizards cast defensive spells.

~Healing and Defence.

It's as well to cast Anti-Magic spells as soon as you enter battleand follow that up with Armour Protection and Weapon Power insubsequent turns. Healing your folks when they are poisoned, gomad, blinded, stunned or made ill is a pain and expensive. Some ofthose ailments take your character out of a battle scenario so bewarned.

Herbs can be bought that offer an "on-line" cure mode. There's ashop in the north west of Illien, the Elf Village that sells -Dolden - use to heal Poisoning.Blueplant - use to cure Madness.Redplant - reverses Ageing.

Drelben - cures Paralysis (stun).Packets of Herbs - cure Sickness (disease).Using these is much cheaper than the Temple healers.

Potions are also available that do the same job. Again there's ashop in Illien to the south of the Herb shop and the Monks Guildalso stock a good many. I can't replicate all the Potion symbolsdue to the limitations of my keyboard but hopefully you'llrecognise which is representative of what from those below -

M = Healing 5 potion. This is the preferred one.N = healingD = cure Poisoning

1X1 = replace spell points _ X = Replace Spell Points This is the preferred one{ = cure BlindnessThe same with an additional half a chevron = cure Disease(sickness).P = cure Paralysis (stun)There's also one for "Treat Weapon with Balsam". Go on - get the edge.

~Weapons and Special Objects.

As your Party root and loot their way through dusty crevices andrusty Chests they come across all manner of goodies. Practicallyeverything is worth taking as this is the way to fill your purse

with Gold. The bad news is that you are limited by the strengthof each character as to just how much weight each can carry. Thereis an on-screen statistic that will tell you this. The Shops inIllien, Twinlake, Gemstone, Crystal and Snakesign all doreasonable second hand deals so these are the places to bring yourTreasures and turn 'em into cash. The Shop in Crystal is run by anenterprising fellow who's open all day, every day. The others havehomes to go to and their opening hours can be read outside eachshop.



Frankly, apart from Torches and empty Flasks you can find most ofthe armour and weapons as you go. Torches are essential toprogress in the Sewers and Cellars. Unless they're lit the Automapfacility will not register and you simply can't see. Once an areahas been mapped then by all means save your stock and alternatebetween map and direction arrow mode as you retreat or re-enter apreviously mapped level.

The weight problem and the sheer number of objects, potions andscrolls you find will have you scuttling through areas more thanonce. For this reason it's as well to have a manual version ofthe on-screen map to hand.

The fact that an object is "special" will become apparent byvirtue of its resale price. In Twinlake and Snakesign are WiseMen who will identify those items. Beware as once identified theywon't look at that item again so to quote Terry Wogan "Write itdown". Each object costs 250 Gold so best to save outside the shopand restore when you've submitted those objects you wantIdentifying.

I won't claim this list as exhaustive by any means but here aresome notes I made -

~Armour -

Òbject _____________ Attribute ____________ Class

`Metal Helmet .. Shield 6 Warriors & Paladines`Horn Helmet .. 3 + Damage 2 War / Pal / Ranger/ ThiefÌron Ring .. 1 All`Brooch of Gala.. 1 All`Hat .. 1 AllÀrmour of Geb.. 10 + Strength 15 Warrior / Paladine`Chainmail .. 8 Warrior / Paladine`Banded Mail .. 10 Warrior / Paladine`Mithral Mail .. 12 All

`Girdle of Thieves .. 9 Thief`Robe .. 2 All`Robe of Nut .. 5 Wizards`Robe of Nickademeus .. Wizards`Necklace of Bala .. 2 + Damage 2 Thief / Ranger`Silver Ring Picklock Skills`Dagger Damage 4 AllÀssassins Blade.. 18 + 10 Speed + 15 Attack - Thief`Shortsword .. 8 War / Pal / Ranger / Thief`Morning Star .. 14 War / Pal / Ranger`Firebasher .. 15 WarriorÌcebiter.. 20 War / Pal / Ranger`Two Handed Sword.. 20 Warrior / Paladine

`Simitar .. 25 All except Wizards`Sickle of Returning 20 Thief/ Monk / Wiz / Ranger`BucklerShield .. 2 + Damage 2 War / Paladine / Ranger`Tower Shield .. 12 + Life Points 5 + White Magic` + Reincarnation 5 Paladine / W.Wizard

Wand of Winds - creates STORM damage - AllGlobe of Harachte - creates LIGHT 3 spell- AllPipe of Levitation - levitates Party - AllOrb of Magic - creates a Magic Sphere x 5 - All



Wand of Light - guess!

One to avoid even picking up is the "Coat of Moira" - there aretwo of these and they are cursed. Not only that but they weigh aton too. A "Remove Curse" spell is the only way to lose them oncein your inventory.

There are other special objects that you will find on your travelsand others that you will be rewarded with in return for completingsub-quests for characters in the game. Once these items are inyour Inventory clicking the Action Icon on them will make themfulfil a purpose. Some, like the flute you receive for destroyingan evil Dragon and is subsequently used to summon an Eagle, remainas part of your luggage. Whilst others, such as the Compass andClock, are transported to a grey display window on the right ofthe screen.

~Character Interaction.

You can only learn about your quest(s) from "Talking" to the othercharacters in the game (They all look like they're exercising on apogo stick). Some of these will be able to join your party if youhave room. It's possible to be ruthless and drop a character,pick up another one, filch all their goodies, then go back and

have the other guy join up again. Once a character has beendropped they can be found again in the place that you first metthem.

Only those characters who speak the same language as theindividual you're trying to converse with will get any sense outof them. Otherwise you receive a negative message so be sure yourleading character is the appropriate one.

}From memory I believe the only words present in your on-screenvocabulary at the start are "Hello" and "Key". Either keep apencil and paper record of these words or develop a good memory askey words are added to this list each time you talk. For example

talking to the little girl outside your parents home in Twinlakebrings out keywords such as "Felix" (her cat) and so on. For thisreason and the fact that some dialogue responses contain keywordsrequired later in the game it is important to take a note of allconversations. Not verbatim but certainly noting keywords andnames. The same is true for pictures on the wall of some rooms.

~Saved Game, Life & Death.

The bad news about Amberstar is that there is only ONE saved game.Yes, just the one. Mistakes you don't make in this game. It's trueto say that you can die once and then be resurrected. Should thisfate befall the Party your dead bodies are transported to a

helpful Wizard, name of Shandra, who lives in Twinlake. He thentells you that's your lot or that he can only help once more. Thetrick is to retreat when the odds are against you and to keep atleast one character's Life Points up all the time. This shouldpreferably be a Paladin or a White Wizard. Keep the Rod ofResurrection handy once you've found it.

Emerging from a Battle licking your wounds you ponder how toregain your health. Resting is the answer, but you must haveRations to consume in order to restore Spell and Life Points.



Rations are obtainable from Twinlake - cost 15 gold, Crystal -cost 12, Gemstone - cost 10, Snakesign - cost 10 or Manyeye CaveVillage - cost 30 gold. An alternative to spending money onRations, but effective for Life Points only, is to bathe in theHealing Pools found in the Crypt which is located in TwinlakeCemetery.

~Building a Party.

There are a number of characters in the game who are willing tohelp you solve your quest. Frankly you'll get absolutely nowherewithout them. Here is a list for your recruitment campaign -

Character ____ Class ____ Where FoundDrobonir - Warrior - Gemstone InnTrasric - Black Wizard - Crystal - Jewel InnGrylan - Paladine - Crystal - unclassified & weak at firstSilk - Thief - Twinlake - Dragon InnSatine - Grey Wizard - Tower of White Wizard GuildBoldina - Thief - Dragon Keep - Castle of Gelinda

Melchlor - Monk - Snakesign VillageCrag - White Wizard - Tower of White Wizard GuildSheba - Ranger - Cave of Manyeye village - in her house

Spike the Dog - Animal - Twinlake - in the kitchen of your homeShir'kar the cat - Mera's House - garden

You certainly need Black Wizard skills. A Thief is essential.Characters with Grey & White Wizard ability are also vital. I'dsuggest that the Warrior is your number one recruit.

Build your initial Experience points by walking over or sailingunder bridges. Make sure the Warrior and Black Wizard are withyou. This way you fight single Bridge Trolls on a random basis.

Fighting the first Rats in Twinlake Sewers is also goodpreparation for your characters' first promotions. It's important

to get Life Points under your belt to eliminate the frustration ofearly deaths.

~General Hints.

It took me ages to realise that, although I could click the mousebutton on Clothes and Weapons to take them from the Inventory andplace them on the Figure, in order to action say, a torch, I hadfirst to click on the Hand icon in the lower right of the Monitorscreen and then on the Inventory item I wanted to action.

The game isn't exactly linear BUT it is true to say that someplaces are easier than others. My explanatory is in the order in

which I tackled the game which isn't necessarily the easiest pathbut I do know and will advise which areas were hard.

There were two scenarios where doors closed behind the Partyirrevocably. This is no fun when there's only one saved game andit's midnight and you know that it'll take ages and three days toget out in one piece. Not only that but you don't know if you'veenough Life Points and equipment to stay the course! The twoplaces are - Pharaoh's Tomb and The Cave under the Whirlpool. Thislatter area should be left till last as it's quite (British



understatement) tough.

You will need to leave areas from time to time in order to unloadyour Inventory. Keeping a note of your characters' ExperiencePoints will enable you to see just when they can gain those vitaladditional Life Points and Spell Casting & Learning Points. Allthis takes time. Until you acquire the Map Locator in theSwampstation to facilitate this activity it's a task that you haveto live with.

When learning scrolls it's best to save the game first as a degreeof "SSI type" dice rolling takes place. One time you fail and thenext it's OK. Watch the words as the scroll turns to dust whethersuccessful or not. For this reason SAVE between scrolls as well.

Read signs and Signposts as these will give you trigger words inyour speech Inventory.

~TWINLAKE.

Map Reference x axis first then y - 210/215

Town area can be mapped on a 32 (horizontal) x 28 (vertical) grid.

Your start point is in Twinlake graveyard standing close to thegrave of your parents. Use the "Eye" icon to look around and headnortheast to find the Crypt. Use the "Zzz" icon to advance timeand stop when Gwendoline appears.

Read the notice outside the Crypt first and make a point ofreading these and the signs outside Shops and guilds as you comeacross them. They give you keywords also and thus facilitateconversation. Hang around till midday to meet Gwendoline. She'spretty distraught. Say "Hello" and watch the keywords for furtherconversation.

She requests that you obtain the Flower (Rose) of Sadness which is

to be found in the Halls of Peace. She doesn't know where this isbut if you talk to Olfin, who's to be found in the Jewel Inn inCrystal, he'll be only too pleased to tell you that this is a caveentrance located northeast of Crystal in a rocky but desert area.

Staying in the Crypt note the two Healing Pools and advance timeto midnight in order to meet Sir Marrilion, Gwendoline's betterhalf. Speak to him of Gwendoline to obtain the Key to the Tomb.In here find a Sword, Armour and 589 Gold. Both Sword and Armourcan only be used by a Paladin so it's best just to take the cashfor now and return later for the other stuff. There's a little guyin Crystal who's dying to get his hands on these things. More ofhim later.

Leave the Crypt and head for the Cemetery exit in the southwest.The only other thing of interest here is a statue in the southeastof the graveyard. Entering the town brings up a differentperspective and enables the Auto Mapping facility. Click on theicon to see where you've been. A super assistance to manualmapping.

The first place to head for is your parents' home. This is locateddown a passageway which is off the lane opposite the Shop and past



the Food Shop. You will meet Sunni, a small girl, in this area.Say "Hello" etc to learn that she has lost her pet cat Felix.Whilst she makes reference to the Cemetery the poor feline isactually held prisoner in the Sewers. The reward when you returnFelix is that the lead character in your Party at the time learnsthe gift of talking to animals. She also offers to sell you Hatsat a price of 3 Gold.

But before you enter the Sewers you have lots to do first. Use theKey on the Lock of your parents' home. Enter. In the Dining Roomfind a Magic Picture in an alcove to the right behind the table,use the "Eye" icon. Actioning this transfers the picture to thelarge grey area in the mid-right of the screen and enables you tosee if it's night or day.

In the Kitchen you meet Spike the Dog. When you have the gift oftalking to animals he can join your Party. He's great at Rateating but I never found anywhere that enabled Animals to bepromoted so his Life Points always stayed at 40. Better really todevelop another class of character but useful in a battle untilyou fill up all six slots.

At the end of the long corridor in the northeast find a Chestwith a small Key and an old Robe. Use the key in the Bedroom to

the east and find a Wardrobe stuffed with 487 Gold, Armour,weapons, a potion and Boots.

Leave the house and head south to find the Dancing Dragon Inn.Talk to everyone in here. One guy is an old friend and refers youto Jonathan's House (note the spelling) which is located to thenor' nor' east of Twinlake - tucked just in the trees. The key tothe house is in a bush at the side of the path to the house beforeyou enter the trees. Jonathan's house is an entire separate areaand should not be entered until you have found the crowbar whichis to be found in a barrel. The barrel is located near the top ofthe steps which lead down into the cellar. Again the cellar is acompletely separate area which, in time and the right key, links

up with Jonathan's house. More of that later.

In the Kitchen meet the Cook and say "Quest". He wants you to findhis ring. Recovering it from the Sewers means that he gives you aCrystal Ball in exchange. This should be actioned when your Partyis trekking through the woods and you're hopelessly lost. Itprovides an aerial view of the surrounding countryside, justenough to get your bearings. It does have a limited usage so I'dsuggest saving the game prior to use then restoring and headingoff in the right direction.

In the area to the north of the Dining room meet Breth, who's minehost. In the cellar you'll find an old Wine Bottle for which he'll

pay you 100 gold. Accompanying him will be Silk. He's a Thief andwell worth recruiting. He's carrying three lockpicks for a start.Only use these if he fails to open chests or locks by hand. Ensurethat you develop his Lockpick skills up to 95% before any otherskill then concentrate on Search. Also in the Inn is Cyrlis theCat. When you've acquired the gift of speaking to Animals she'lltell you where to find the hidden door to the Thieves' Guild.

It's really not worthwhile staying in an Inn as it only costsmoney and you can rest just as effectively outside the city or in



your parents' home.

Time now to visit Shandra. His house is located in the east of thetown, just past the entrance to the Lord Chancellor's quarters.Shandra's appearance is time related so hang around in his bedroomtill he shows if he's not elsewhere in his house. Say "Hello" toobtain the key to his Laboratory. In the chest in here are lotsof goodies. Just note them for now as you won't have room to storethem all and it would be tragic to have to sell the Potions andScrolls just to make room in your Inventory. Come back when yourParty is larger and you have the appropriate Wizards.

Shandra tells you of a female Wizard waiting in the Grey WizardTower. This Tower is located on an island off the northeastshoreline and can be reached by either raft or boat. If swimmingskills are good I guess you could goose grease yourself and strikeout that way. The Map picture on the wall in Shandra's houseserves no purpose so ditch it if you've picked it up.

If you say "Potion" to Shandra and give him an empty flask he'llmix you a Healing 5 potion, very useful in the early stages whenyou're trying to build experience stats.

In order to start acquiring those vital points head south from

Shandra to visit Karwain, the Lord Chancellor. Say "Hello: Quest:Sewers: Key" to obtain the key to the Sewers. You'll have passedthis door en-route from the cemetery.

The Shops in Twinlake sell Rations and Arms. In the Armoury shopis also an item called a "Bernstein". This is a translation errorfrom the original German as in English it means "Amber" which youneed when you enter the Swampstation area.

In summery we've now identified the following sub-plots/quests:

1. The Sewers2. Dragon Inn Cellar

3. Jonathan's House4. Halls of Peace5. Tower of Grey Wizards.I've listed the above in terms of difficulty.

Presuming that you're still alone, now is the time to recruit someassistance. A Warrior and a Black Wizard are necessary for sure soI recommend that Gemstone and Crystal are visited, in that order,before coming back to Twinlake. As stated earlier this is a bigmap so it'll take a couple of game days to find Gemstone.

~GEMSTONE.

Map reference 129/369

Map on a 19 x 19 grid. Entrance door is in the south.

Located in the southwest, tucked between two mountain ranges.

Not a great deal to find here. There are a couple of specialistShops. One, in the east, sells Tools and for sure you need aPickaxe. The crowbar you should already have from the Dragon Innin Twinlake. In northwest of the town is a Jewel shop. It can be



useful to convert your excess Gold into gems. Obviously theShopkeeper takes his cut, and how, when these transactions occur.

Drobonir, the Warrior, is waiting in the Inn. The counter clerk,Andamael, is useless for now but does come into play later in thegame. Take Drobonir and together head northeast to Crystal.

~CRYSTAL.

Map reference 235/120.

Map on a 28 x 28 grid. The entrance gate is in the south.

Located in a bay on the mid east of the island.

A much more interesting place than Gemstone, there's a fair bit todo in Crystal. Take the right fork as you enter and find theentrance to the Jewel Tavern. Standing in the entrance hall isCaptain Brix. He's looking for Orlando, the Landlord who'shovering outside the Wine Cellar which is to be found south of thekitchen area.

Inside you meet two potential recruits. Grylan is hanging aroundone of the corridors. He is a wannabe Paladin. Make his day by

taking him on but beware that initially he's as weak as you are.Like your character he needs experience points.

Of far more use is Trasric, the Black Wizard, he's to be foundthrough a couple of bedrooms near where Grylan is. He tells youwhere his Guild is which is only accessible by boat. More of theTower of Black Wizards later.

In one of the rooms you meet Thonion. As you admire the pictureson his wall he tells you of the White Gates and how one is able toTeleport around the island provided one has the appropriateartefact. The necklace, for that is the artefact, is to be foundin the Temple of Sansri. However the Temple is on the small island

off the south coast and is only accessible in two ways.

Firstly by air, you need to have access to the Eagle. Secondly byfulfilling the quest set by Gwendoline whereby the Rose of Peaceis returned to her in Twinlake Crypt. In return she gives you aTeleport spell that takes you right into the heart of Sansri'sTemple. Be warned that it's tough getting out again though.Another option is to sell the Rose to Olfin who tells you about"the Flower". He'll pay you around 5500 Gold for it which is justabout the right amount to buy a Boat.

There's an old man looking for Kevin, the Bard. Kevin's drowninghis sorrows in a bar in Illien, the Elven Village, and he can wait

for now.

In the garden find a pond. Making sure that you don't lose LifePoints by staying in the water too long, hop over to the tree tofind 5000 Gold and a Parchment. This, I think, refers to TheSphere of Opening which is hidden in a Plant Pot in the room withmany Plants. Go south and east in this room to find the Sphere. Itis this that will open the circle of rocks guarding the BlackWizard Tower.



In the kitchen meet Erek the cook and the Landlady who directs yououtside to meet Orlando. He's a bit busy right now but willhelp you once you present him with a Golden Wine Goblet. TheGoblet is hidden in his Cellar. In return he presents you with anOld Key which will open up the keyhole in the wall which isen-route to the Paladin Guild in Crystal. Before you go chargingoff into the cellar your Party needs to obtain a few promotionsfirst so keep exploring the rest of Crystal for now.

Leaving the Tavern head north and east to find a Shop. In the shopis an old woman and the shopkeeper behind the counter. The womanwarns of the dire consequences of visiting Dreblin, the LordChancellor. Don't be tempted, as I was, to waste your preciouslockpicks on either the door to his room or the Chest in the room.In the Chest is a sarky message that says the equivalent of "Yah,Boo, Sucks". This shop is open all day every day and you and thesarky shopkeeper will do good business together.

Head east to find the Market area. To the lower east here find theRation Shop. A place you will visit frequently as it's easier tofind Crystal then Gemstone and the price difference is only 2gold.

To the northeast of the Market down a passage meet Firlas. Poor

fellow has lost his Bone of Wisdom in Twinlake. Your reward forsafely returning it is a Runic message and more importantly aPiece of Amberstar. But first you must complete Twinlake Sewers,return Felix the Cat to Sunni who gives you the gift of talking toanimals and then recruit Spike the Dog from your parents' kitchen.

A healing Temple is around here and right in the north is theBoatyard where you can spend the 5000 gold you've just acquired.My recommendation is that you save this money for Rations andsuitable armour and weaponry. The Black Wizard Tower is by far tootough a place for the Party right now.

Moving west you'll see the Lord Chancellor's House in the

southwest. By all means walk in and have a look round. Talk tohis wife, crying in the kitchen, and his son, cowering in theBedroom. You won't be able to enter the cellar area yet as theSeal on Dreblin's Signet Ring is required as a pass key. The ringis deep within Jonathan's House. Make a note of the four portraitson the wall in the entrance hall. You need this information lateron inside Dreblin's Cellar area.

Upstairs is dangerous as monsters are lurking in a room there.Use the Retreat option to escape or at least SAVE before takingthem on. When you "eye" the Globe up here the message is"Mortals, Look deep into my eyes and see the pain my Prince ispreparing for you. No-one can stop the plans of Prince Bralkur. He

will suck your soul from your body the way you suck an egg."Fighting talk indeed. The Teleport in the Bedroom takes youdownstairs to just outside the Cellar.

To the north on the western side you'll eventually find thePaladins' Guild. In here you can buy White Magic scrolls. Athorough exploration of the Paladin area will have revealed aKeyhole in the wall. The key for this is obtainable from Orlandoonce you've given him the Golden Wine Goblet from his cellar. Inthe chest that is then revealed find 657 Gold and another Piece of



Amberstar.

So after exploring Crystal so far there are a few more sub-quests:

1. Twinlake Sewers2. Jewel Tavern Wine Cellar3. Halls of Peace (to find Rose)4. Jonathan's House5. Black Wizard Tower6. Dreblin's Cellar *7. Temple of Sansri

~*DREBLIN'S CELLAR

This is a tough area and should only be tackled after a few classpromotions.

The cellar is an area that does not auto-map. It contains lots ofmonsters which need clearing before you find Dreblin. Mummies andSkeletons are occupying the Crypt where you will find a key withwhich to release the imprisoned Dreblin. The strategy for thecellar should be to take one monster on at a time and then nipupstairs to recover, Save, and clear the next one and so on.

In one section you'll come across three graves, one of theseconceals two Blue Mushrooms. These aren't for eating, they enhanceyour attributes when administered to you by Mera the Witch. Keepthe mushrooms in your Inventory until you find her house which isto the west. Find the jetty on the western shore and go southeastto discover her house and hand her the Mushrooms. Red ones enhanceyour Speed and Blue your Strength.

Having noted the portraits in Dreblin's entrance hall is necessaryto complete the Cellar. In the final section Puzzlemouths will askyou who is -

The Rooster = Calwell

The Pirate = MaltorMourner= FenoraBlue Pearl = Leonore

You will go through several doors till the Party comes across alarge Water tank. Defeating the Demon here gives you a cage keywith which to release Dreblin from his prison. Wait for the woodenBridge to fall into place before entering.

Talk to him to receive a reward for rescuing him. In his chest areloads of useful things. A clock that you can "action" which willthen show the time in the large grey window on your Monitorscreen. A Girdle of Thieves which considerably aids the picklock

ability of your thief. 1584 Gold. An Iron ring that gives Shieldassistance. Two Swords that'll help attack skills. And of course aPiece of Amberstar.

-----------------------

My suggestion now is that you either head west and explore Illienor return to Twinlake and, with your new recruits, explore theSewers. To build up some points before going down the Sewers trycrossing Bridges to fight the Trolls that then appear. Should you



head north of Crystal on the paths you will find the Orcs tootough for an embryo Party.

~TWINLAKE SEWERS

Located in the northwest area of the town.

Map on a 14 x 14 grid.

Prior to climbing down the ladder search to find 3 torches undersome rubbish by the barrels. Ensure that you have a few torches inyour Inventory. The auto-map will show where you've been if yourlight goes out but won't record any fresh territory.

The first brush with Rats is just along the initial passage.Choose the attack icon to ensure that your Party get the firsthits in, otherwise the baddies bash you instead. Explore everynook and cranny. Select a Lead Character who has good Search Statsotherwise you may miss something.

In the south east find a dead body, goodies here include 3precious lockpicks. In the centre west find the Cook's Old Ring.Returning it in exchange for the Crystal Ball. In the very centreis a major battle. Defeat the Rat King to rescue Felix the Cat and

pick up the Rat King's Head. Hand the head to Lord Karwain toreceive 600 Gold reward and hear about Firlas. Searching the eastside of the Lair after the fight you discover the Soldiers whofailed in their mission.

Return Felix back to Sunni to receive the gift of talking toanimals. You can now nip home and recruit Spike the Dog. Guesswho's got Firlas's bone buried in the Garden! Yup. Next timeyou're through Crystal drop in on Firlas to return the bone andreceive a Piece of Amberstar as a reward. The Runes on the scrollread "Oh Talmit, Goddess of the future! Let me look deep into youreyes - Find 13 parts - go to the clearing where many rivers wind.Altar in Forest of Unity - Thank you, Talmit, for letting me see"

After, or indeed during, completion of the Sewers sell your excessInventory. Keep the good stuff, buy some more rations, tour theappropriate Guilds for promotion and head to the next location.Practically wherever you go now (in an area) you'll need eitherLight Spells or Torches so stay well equipped.

The next 3 areas are all much of a muchness in terms ofdifficulty. It may be better to go to the Cellar areas beforetaking on the Orcs in Jonathan's House so you can build up LifePoints etc.

~JONATHAN BURGAND'S HOUSE.

Map reference 232/196Map first level on a 13 x 13 grid.Map second level on a 23 x 23 grid.Map third level A on a 8 x 13 grid.

Map third level B on a ........... this level is long, long, verylong. It actually connects up with the Dragon Inn Cellar leveltwo. Up to the point that these meet it can be mapped on an 8 x80 grid.



Located to the northeast of Twinlake. The key referred to in theDragon Inn is hidden in a bush. The bush is just off a corner ofthe path before entering the trees to enter the house proper.Don't go near the house if you haven't already found or bought acrowbar. You can buy one in Gemstone or find one near the entranceto the cellar (in a barrel) in the Dragon Inn. As you approachthe house the Party falls into the southeast area of the cellar(within level 2).

Use the crowbar on the door to explore the cellar. In thenortheast find 26 Gold and some torches. In the southwest areclothes to be found. The exit stairs up to Level 1 are in thewest.

Entry to Level 1 is in the southeast corner. Four Orc battles togo through in this level. The good news is that the door to theoutside world is in the centre south and you can come and go atwill. You'll need to do this to offload your excess baggage and tobuy rations so you can recover Spell and Life Points. Don't forgetto use the Crypt pools in Twinlake Cemetery as you're so close.These only replace Life and not Spell points though.

You need Orc communication skills to pass the time of day with theguy in the northern room. As I didn't have that we'll carry on! A

door in the northwest has a trap that could blind your leader soif the screen goes black the game's not crashed, it's just thatyou can't see.

I had to wait a long time to develop sufficient picklock skills toenter here but try your luck with the Thief anyway. The chestbeyond has loads of Scrolls, 325 Gold, a good sword, good helmetand other useful treasure. The stairs down to the rest of Level 2are located in the northeast.

Entry point is north just right of centre. Search to flush outmore Orcs. Round a winding passage to find a door to your left.Break this down with a crowbar but don't enter the Teleport in the

south just yet.

~THE LOST ISLAND.

The reason why is that you Teleport to a "Lost Island". The onlyway back from here is via another Teleport that is concealedbehind a locked door. This door is resistant to lockpicks and canonly be opened by means of a key obtainable from the Castle ofGelinda on the Dragon Island. The bad news is that the Dragon issitting on the wretched thing.

On the Lost Island is the body of Olgur, the missing Orc, there'sa few bits to pick up before entering the House. In the house the

southeastern room contains a Chest with 1248 Gold, 5 Potions and2 Scrolls and a vital Piece of Amberstar. Then use the key on thewestern room to access the Teleport back. I guess that having aTeleport Scroll could be an alternative option?

Go right and north instead to find a door south halfway along thiscorridor. There are then three doors off each side of this longpassage south. The first door west, the second door east and both

third doors, west and east, conceal Orcs so expect trouble. Just



keep popping out as before to recharge your attributes.

Through the door south there is another Orc battle. Going left orright in the corridor beyond takes the Party to two differentareas. The eastern stairs lead to the long, long, long passagethat eventually links up to the Dragon Inn (Area B) whist thewestern stairs lead to Jonathan's Laboratory (Area A).

Let's go to the smaller section first. Down the stairs to see aPuzzlemouth. Naturally the answer is "Jonathan". Watch thespelling. The passage then opens up the rest of the area. Bewareof three spinners in the room beyond. Use the auto-map feature tosee which in direction you are headed.

There is a door in the southeast of this room that leads to aroom with Teleports. Your objective is to reach the door in thesouthwest of this area. Behind the door is the Laboratory.

~Teleport System~---------------` Door` 7 Teleports to 2` 1 2 3 4 3 .. 9

` 1.. 2` 5 6 Pillar 7 6..13` 12.. 4` 8 9 10 11 12 13 16..11` 10.. 5` 14 15 16 14..15` 18..17` Lab Door 17 18 8.. 4

Look in the Barrels to find a Parchment. There are more Diaryentries on the Tables. The Signet Ring that'll allow entry toDreblin's Cellar in Crystal is here.

In the Chest are a few Treasures including a Tunnel Key that isthe means of opening up the passage from Area B to the Dragon Inn.If your Thief isn't up to opening the Chest then you'll have toreturn when his skills are improved.

The Diary entries are significant as they lead you to other areas.The Blue Disc device is a travelling bubble that enables the Partyto move over land or shallow seas. It is located in Pharaoh'sTomb. The entrance to the tomb is in the southeast of the islandnear rocks in a Desert area.

The Locator Device gives you grid map references and is veryuseful for finding your way around. The device is deep within the

Swampstation. The reference to "Water" in the Diary entry is themeans by which you flush out the blockage in the sewerage system.More of that later. The Swampstation is located in the southwest.

Now return and head down the other set of stairs to enter thelong, long.. you know the rest.. passage. This heads north. FightRats about a third of the way up. Beyond the point where thepassage takes a left is a door that leads south. Take this routebefore heading north.



The passage winds its way right down to a square room with aChest. On the way meet two sets of Rats before encounteringanother set in the room itself. The chest is booby trapped so havesomeone qualified disarm the thing. Inside are goodies and BlackWizard scrolls. Somewhere in this area is more Treasure in anotherChest. My records have a note of what you find but not where. Inthis chest is a Compass which you should "Action". Directionnotes then appear in the Grey Window on the right of your screen.

Haul the Party back to head north. Firstly on the east side tofind and fight Rats through the second door east. Then north upthe western side. Keep west through a door to fight more Rats anddiscover a Chest with Scrolls and other Treasures. The Silver Ringwill give the Thief additional Lockpick skills.

Advancing up the other passage brings you to a Keyhole in thewall. Use the Tunnel key here to enter the Dragon Inn - LevelTwo. Keep north and east to find an empty Flask, Healing Scrollsand other treasure.

You can continue if you wish through the Cellars to exiteventually in the Dragon Inn but I'll do that section as if you'veentered from the Inn.

New Quests discovered -

1. Swampstation

2. Pharoah's Tomb

~DRAGON INN CELLARS

Dragon Inn located in Twinlake.

Map Level One on an 18 x 23 Grid.

Map Level Two on an 8 x 8 Grid (before it connects with Jonathan's

Cellar)

The entry point is in the mid-north. Turning right follow thepassage north to find a Flask. Then south to a room where thereare doors to the west and east. Explore the eastern door first.Initially heading south then north to find another Flask and thensouth to use a crowbar on a door south.

The door west here leads to a battle with Rats then west again togo north to fight a Wine Slime. After disposing of this greenmucus you find a few goodies. Head to the small room beyond topick up an Old Flask of Wine that Breth, the Innkeeper, will pay100 Gold for.

Return to the room where the door led west and use crowbar again.Then north before heading south through a south door to fight moreRats. East of this point find another Flask down a passage. Thensouth again through a door to fight Rats. Go east down a longpassage to enter a false wall and descend stairs to Level Two.At the end of level 2, which is pretty small find the Keyhole inthe Wall that needs the Tunnel Key from Jonathan's Laboratory toopen up the route into his cellars.



~JEWEL INN CELLARS

The Jewel Inn is to be found in Crystal.

Map Level One on a 23 x 23 Grid.

Map Level Two on another long long etc grid - 88 x 5.

Entry Point is is the northwest corner heading east. Afterpassing through the first door find a door to the south headingeast. This is the way to go. There is another door south roundthe corner but there's nothing and no-one in the rooms beyond.

Through the door east head either north or south. The doors southalong the northern passage lead to another barren area. Go to thesouthern passage and use your crowbar on the wall south (about 5squares in from the eastern corner). You'll pass two drunkenGoblins before fighting Goblins through a door south. Find a doorwest and then travel south and west to fight more Goblins at theend of a passage.

Back to go north and west through a door, round a couple ofcorners and another Goblin battle. South and head west to bashanother set of Goblins. Go north from here round yet more bends,

keep west and south to finally discover a Chest containing Flasksand a Golden Wine Goblet.

Give this goblet to Orlando who'll reward you with the Old Key.This key then fits the Keyhole in the Wall in the area south ofthe Paladins' Guild in Crystal. The wall opens up and leads to aChest containing 657 Gold and a vital Piece of Amberstar.

The stairs down to level two are nearby, go west and south. Down apassage with three doors off. Behind each door are Goblins to befought. Again the door east conceals Goblins. Explore and keepheading east. One of the small rooms has a Chest. In the chest isa message and 1296 Gold.

The parchment reads "I would remind you again that you must bemore careful! We don't want that old fool Orlando to notice thatwe are selling him his own Wine!" signed Captain B. Much to mydisappointment showing this to Orlando or Captain Brix produced noresponse.

You will fight another five sets of Goblins before emerging on anIsland. Beware for there are more Goblins on the Jetty and in thesurrounding landscape.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Time now to tackle the Wizard Towers. Each of the Towers has afast track route to the Guild contained within. It's tempting toenter the password straight off BUT in doing so you won't gain theexperience that builds your Party's statistics. The Puzzlemouthsask for the name of the Guild's founder and of course this is thelast Puzzle you solve. I'll provide the solution but only at thepoint that the puzzle appears.

In terms of easiest first -



~WHITE WIZARD TOWER.


Located southeast of Crystal.

Map on a 23 x 23 Grid.

Entry point is in the mid east heading west. The Puzzlemouth isbefore you. Head north and then south to enter a room with loadsof Teleports.

` 1 2 3` 4 5 6 All but 5, 7 & 10 take you back` 7 8 into the passage north` 9 10 11 5 takes you back to the entrance` 12 13 14 Access 7 and enter 10.

The correct Teleport takes you north. Head round a bend or threeto find stairs leading to a small passage. There are three ofthese. Beware the spinner in the third one.

Going south you enter a large room. Walking only on the bones makeyour way to the door in the southeast corner. Through the door

and go west ignoring the Teleport to the east. Half way along thepassage is a false wall to the south. You may have to triggerthis by visiting the Statue at the end of the passage who has themessage "There is no way past me". Twice through the false wall.Going west at the end of the passage south leads to a barrelcontaining eight torches. Head east through a couple of doors tofind and fight Skeletons. The lower ones in the three rooms are anillusion.

Round and round the passages to find the Statue of the Founderwhose name is "Kasimir". Back and north to find the Guild entranceand meet Crag, a level six White Wizard inside. Crag has a usefulstaff should you choose to recruit. Head east from the guild to

use the password on the Puzzlemouth.

~TOWER OF GREY WIZARDS.

Map reference 090/138

Located on an island off the northeast coast.

Map on a 28 x 28 Grid.

Entry point is in the mid south. At the intersection to the norththe Puzzlemouth is to the north. Go west through two doors and

north through the second door to find two Flasks at the end of thepassage. Head south to find two Mushrooms in one alcove and threeFlasks in another. Shandra, the Wizard in Twinlake, will placeHealing 5 Potions in your Flasks if you say "Potions" to him andMera will convert the Mushrooms to Strength or Speed enhancements.

Go north but beware the spinner in the narrow section. There arethree more Mushrooms to be found in a corner to the northwest.Travelling east then north you discover a passage with fiveTeleports. Each one takes you to an independent area in the



northern area of your map.

Taking the most western Teleport first will take you to the midnorth. From your arrival point go north and through a door eastto fight Orcs. Return to the Teleport which takes you back to theintersection below the Puzzlemouth. Unfortunately this happenseach time so you have to traipse all the way back through thedreaded spinner to the Teleport passage.

Next Teleport in from the west takes you east of the area you'vejust been to. Follow the passage round to meet Orcs and Goblinsthrough the door and enter the Teleport in the north.

The centre Teleport lands you in an area to the extreme northwestof the map. Go north to obtain some valuable treasures. In theChest are Wands of Light and Fireballs; also here is a Staff ofDirection and most vital of all a Staff of Resurrection. Returnthen to the Teleport. The Teleport second in from the east goesto the extreme northeast of the map. Fight Orcs in the east andTeleport back from the opposite corner. The final easternTeleport takes you into the remaining northern slot where youdispose of more Orcs before Teleporting back to the intersection.

}From the intersection now go east. Travel round the walls to avoid

a spinner in the next two room east. The doors north and south inthe first room lead to empty areas but head north in the secondroom. Go west and north to encounter Mummies. North again thenwest to find a door west. Search the passage south before goingthrough the door to discover 359 Gold and a Torch. Through thedoor search the barrels in the centre of the room to find usefulHerbs and four Torches. The Herbs will cure sickness etc that theMummies cast on you. See the Introductory notes in an earlier partof this playguide to see which Herb cures what.

Along the passage west to have a tough battle with more Mummies.The Staff of Resurrection will probably come into its own now.Follow the passage round and round till you arrive at a locked

door. Use the Thief to pick the lock and find the Guild entrancein the southern passage. Inside the Guild the Party meets Satine,a level six Grey Wizard, who will be a great asset to your Party.

To the north of the Guild find the Statue of the Founder"Landonis" at the end of a short passage. Back to the southernpassage and enter the password in the Puzzlemouth.

~BLACK WIZARD TOWER.


Located at the end of a rocky section that can only be accessed by

sea or air. To gain entrance to the Tower you must first haveobtained the Sphere of Opening from the Plant Room in the Jewel

Inn in Crystal. Use this on the altar and the circle of rocks will open.

Map Entrance Level on a 33 x 33 Grid

Map Level One on a 23 x 23 Grid

Map Level Two on a 13 x 13 Grid



Entry point is in the mid south. The Passage turns east at thePuzzlemouth and stairs lead to the next Level.

}From the stairs head southeast to find a Pit halfway down acorridor. If you have a Rope now is the time to use it otherwisejust drop down and take the Hit Points. The next few battles aretough. I suggest that you SAVE before dropping down just in casethe Party is still too weak to take on the three sets of Skeletonsthat guard this room. Head east when the Skeletons are done withand find a door north. There are more Skeletons through the doorand beyond them find 238 Gold and three Torches. Exit the room andhead south to a room with loads of false walls. Cross the room toexit into a corridor in the northwest corner of this room.

` E W E

` E W E W E X E X E X E Door` KEY - E = Empty Space` X E X E W E W E W E W` W = Wall` E W E X E W E X E X E` X = False Wall` E W W E X E X E W E W

` T = Teleport` T W E X E W E W E X E

The Teleport sends the Party west into a corridor where Skeletonsare waiting for you. There's another set round the corner to thenorth. Follow the passage east and explore north before enteringthe door east. Find a bit of Gold and three Scrolls in thealcove.

Through the door and into an area with 14, yes fourteen Teleports.Thirteen you can see and one you can't. Naturally it's the one youcan't see that is the correct one. All the others send you back torooms earlier in the level so you have the pain of finding your

way back again. The real Teleport is accessed from the north ofthe central pillar. Enter the false wall to be sent into analcove.

}From the alcove find Skeletons waiting to the north. Zap them andenter the door north and fight another set of Skeletons. The roomsbeyond have doors galore. Not only that but there are threespinners along the central corridor. More Skeletons lurk in theroom to the extreme west. Make your way east to exit this area tothe north. You now follow passages in an anti-clockwise route. Atthe extreme northwest is a door behind which is 198 Gold and agood Helmet. Go south to find more Skeletons with another lotmuch further on. Finally enter a door to find a Teleport which

takes you to the bottom of a long corridor north.

Up the corridor to enter a door to the south and Teleport againinto a small room in the east of the map. Through the door andround to fight Skeletons in the south. Enter another room toTeleport again to the east. South through the door and head northfighting Skeletons as you enter another room in the northeast andTeleport again.

Head south from the next room and head west to dispose of yet more



Skeletons. Just look at your experience statistics now! Retracesteps and go north then east at the crossroads and yes, Teleportagain. From the room in the northern area go south to Teleport forthe last time on this level. South through the door and fightSkeletons en-route to the Stairs which lead to Level One.

Your entry point is just mid east in the centre of the map. Gonorth meeting Skeletons just before a door north. Up and round andfight two more sets of Skeletons in the northern passage. As youhead south peek into the room east to find three robes. Continuesouth through the door and wend a torturous route to the southwest corner of the map to enter a door north. Bash the Skeletonswithin and find Two Lockpicks, a Dagger and 99 Gold east of here.North and east to discover Stairs up to Level Two.

Entry point is in the mid south. Go north and fight Skeletons inthe western passage. Again in the north corridor before entering adoor south. Just west through the door are two Flasks and asmidgen of Gold. South round the houses to find the Statue of theFounder in a southern alcove, "Nicademus".

The Guild entrance is to the left and stairs down on the rightthrough level one and down again to the Puzzlemouth on theentrance level. Enter the password and out into the light of day.

In the Guild look in the Barrels to find Dried Herbs and ThreeBlue Mushrooms.

~Continues in second part...

Amberstar - Part 1

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