Post by pip on May 6, 2020 17:33:20 GMT
Book 5 takes you back to Avalon where you will explore the Fairy Kingdom, and probably get lost doing so, in order to recover Excalibur. Merlin’s house has its funniest and most memorable appearance here: shaped like a six-sided die and dangerous to visit, for you have to roll 1d6 on each visit and rolling a 1 will kill you instantly. An immensely fun and solid book all around, Kingdom of Horror is also relatively fair by Grail Quest standards, with the notable exception of said Merlin’s house. I have fond memories of getting hopelessly lost in the Fairy Kingdom, which can get pretty confusing if you don't know where to go, but if you do, this sequence can actually be completed fairly quickly. This volume is another of my personal favourites.
SOLUTION
- Read a recap of the rules if you want to.
- Knock up the hasp with E.J.
- Note that you have no equipment except for E.J., and no spells either. Search the room.
- Lose 3 LP as you notice you have a bolt in your neck. Take the sleep globe and save it for later.
- Fight the three Peasants (20 LP each, hit with 6+, +3 damage).
- Roll 2d6 until you get a result of 10+.
- Merlin shows you a map of the Fairy Kingdom, explains about his new house, then teleports you.
There are several mandatory visits to be made to Merlin’s house. You can make them anytime you want, but since they might get you killed and there’s no way around them, let’s get that out of the way right now.
- Roll 1d6 to visit the house and continue doing so until you have the items you need:
o 1 : you die
o 2 : take two items from the equipment store
o 3 : take one item from Merlin’s stock of magical items
o 4 : restore 2d6 LP
o 5 : nothing
o 6 : lose half your LP
From the equipment list, you absolutely need the axe, hammer, nails and saw. Let’s also get the fake beard and moustache, which is not a hard requirement, but going without it will cause major trouble, so this solution will assume you have it. Since you can take two pieces of equipment per visit to the equipment store, that’s at least three visits and we only have five items, so you can pick at least one extra item. I recommend the breastplate (-2 damage). Note that the map of the Fairy Kingdom in the list is the same one Merlin already showed you, and it’s not exactly useful anyway.
From the magical items list, you need the portable decoder to be able to read several coded messages throughout your adventure. There are a few occasions where decoding a message is necessary to make progress. Once you’ve obtained the decoder, I would consider it legal if you copied it so you don’t have to bother obtaining it again in possible subsequent runs. If you have the opportunity to grab extra magical items while hunting for the rest of the equipment, consider items that will help you during fights such as the aborigine pointing bone, lightning wand, boots of speed, eye of Horus, Xerox copy, or extra sleep globes.
Once you’re done with Merlin’s house, you can resume your quest.
- Picking some of the yarrow is free and helps you with an encounter in the Fairy Kingdom, but this solution does not make you go through it. Examine the smelly corpse.
- Take the golden disc and a scrap of parchment. Go south.
- Follow the track.
- Give the cow-herd a hand.
- Take the right of passage token. Go south west.
- You have a right of passage token.
- Follow the signpost.
Refer to the Giant’s Dance map at the end of the book to choose your next destinations.
- Go to section 5.
- You still have the bolt in your neck.
- Decline to have the bolt removed (it gives you no penalty and has an occasionally useful special power, should you get the instructions from Merlin’s house).
- You have the golden disc.
- Take the cherry blossom.
- Go to section 56.
- You have the cherry blossom.
- Take the instructions scroll. It reads (or should read) : “When (and if!) you best the monster, place golden disc on altar and stand back and go to forty three”.
- For now, go to section 72.
- Face the creature.
- You have the golden disc and the instructions. Therefore, follow the instructions and go to section 43.
- Pick mound 15 on the map and reverse the numbers. Go to section 51.
- Go down.
- Read the message on the wall.
- Fight the Ghastly Guardian Ghoul (same LP as you, hits with 4+, +5 damage and poison effect). This could be tough, but you normally picked up the breastplate to give you a small edge. If you picked up the aborigine pointing bone, you can safely use your sleep globe here (hold on to the bone). If the only offensive magical item you have is the sleep globe, then hold on to it and fight normally.
- Take the sphere of warning.
You are now in the Fairy Kingdom. The map you’ve seen before is no real help, and the directions often don’t make sense. It’s very easy to get lost here.
- Go south west.
- Explore the large mound.
- Explore the anthill.
- Take 36 doses of healing potion.
- Go south.
- You have the required items to build a raft, but let’s not do it yet. Go east.
- Go south.
- Go west.
- Join the figure for a cruise.
- Explore the tower.
- Fight the Demonspawn (80 LP, hits with 3+, +2 damage). Use the aborigine pointing bone if you have it here, otherwise use your sleep globe.
- Take the ebony rod and lead ball. The message reads “To leave this place take lead ball in left hand and go to eighty eight”. Go to section 88.
- Go north.
- Go south west.
- Approach the ancient.
- Touch number 1052.
- Take the ruby. Go south east.
- Go south.
- Go south.
- We are back to that section offering you to build a raft using your axe, saw, hammer and nails. Do so now.
- Continue eastwards on the river.
- Try reaching the fishing nets. Roll 2d6:
o 4- : you die
o 5+ : proceed
- Put on your fake beard and moustache to avoid getting in trouble in Scroghollow.
Refer to Scroghollow’s map at the end of the book to choose your destinations. The following sequence can be done in nearly any order.
- Go to section 138.
- Try and stop the runaway dwarf.
- Fight the Dwarf (25 LP, hits with 5+, +2 damage).
- Take a pewter token.
- Go to section 130.
- Roll 1d6 for the barman, then 1d6 for yourself:
o Your roll > barman’s roll: Take a pewter token.
o Your roll <= barman’s roll: You get nothing.*
- Go to section 127.
- Make inquiries.
- Say you’re interested in the Revolution.
- Fight Alf (special).
- Take a pewter token.
- Go to section 127 again.
- Make inquiries again.
- Say you’re after a job.
- Fight Alf (special) once again.
- Take a copper token.
- Go to section 121.
- Say you’re a blag.
- Take a copper token.
- Go to section 102.
- Enter.
- Say it is sour.
- Make a grab for the token.
- Roll 2d6:
o 6+: Take a copper token.
o 5-: You get kicked out and dumped over the city bridge. Roll 2d6:
o 6+: you manage to return to the city
o 5-: you die
- Go to section 145.
- Say it’s Blogwort.
- Take the museum pass.
- Go to section 115.
- Explore the museum.
- You have a museum pass.
- Take a copper token.
- Go to section 142.
- You have tokens.
- You have copper tokens.
- You have four copper tokens.
- Solve the diagram at the end of the book and decode the message. It reads: “one hundred sixty seven”. Go to section 167.
- Take a pewter token.
- Go to section 153.
- You have tokens.
- You have pewter tokens.
- You have four pewter tokens.
- Harry did it.
- Fight the Berkwaddle (100 LP, hits with 4+, +5 damage), with no penalty since you’ve solved the riddle. Use the ebony rod and the ruby here to knock down his LP to 50. That’s still a lot, and the Berkwaddle makes it harder for you to use magic items, so hope for the best.
- You recover Excalibur and save the realm.
*I’ve wondered whether you are allowed to try again or not here. The text does not explicitly say you’re not allowed to come back and try again, and there is another place in town where you have to come back a second time and tell a different story, so I’m going to assume it is allowed. Otherwise, you will get softlocked if you fail this roll, and to avoid this you should make a trip to Merlin’s house to get the lucky coin before playing.
SOLUTION
- Read a recap of the rules if you want to.
- Knock up the hasp with E.J.
- Note that you have no equipment except for E.J., and no spells either. Search the room.
- Lose 3 LP as you notice you have a bolt in your neck. Take the sleep globe and save it for later.
- Fight the three Peasants (20 LP each, hit with 6+, +3 damage).
- Roll 2d6 until you get a result of 10+.
- Merlin shows you a map of the Fairy Kingdom, explains about his new house, then teleports you.
There are several mandatory visits to be made to Merlin’s house. You can make them anytime you want, but since they might get you killed and there’s no way around them, let’s get that out of the way right now.
- Roll 1d6 to visit the house and continue doing so until you have the items you need:
o 1 : you die
o 2 : take two items from the equipment store
o 3 : take one item from Merlin’s stock of magical items
o 4 : restore 2d6 LP
o 5 : nothing
o 6 : lose half your LP
From the equipment list, you absolutely need the axe, hammer, nails and saw. Let’s also get the fake beard and moustache, which is not a hard requirement, but going without it will cause major trouble, so this solution will assume you have it. Since you can take two pieces of equipment per visit to the equipment store, that’s at least three visits and we only have five items, so you can pick at least one extra item. I recommend the breastplate (-2 damage). Note that the map of the Fairy Kingdom in the list is the same one Merlin already showed you, and it’s not exactly useful anyway.
From the magical items list, you need the portable decoder to be able to read several coded messages throughout your adventure. There are a few occasions where decoding a message is necessary to make progress. Once you’ve obtained the decoder, I would consider it legal if you copied it so you don’t have to bother obtaining it again in possible subsequent runs. If you have the opportunity to grab extra magical items while hunting for the rest of the equipment, consider items that will help you during fights such as the aborigine pointing bone, lightning wand, boots of speed, eye of Horus, Xerox copy, or extra sleep globes.
Once you’re done with Merlin’s house, you can resume your quest.
- Picking some of the yarrow is free and helps you with an encounter in the Fairy Kingdom, but this solution does not make you go through it. Examine the smelly corpse.
- Take the golden disc and a scrap of parchment. Go south.
- Follow the track.
- Give the cow-herd a hand.
- Take the right of passage token. Go south west.
- You have a right of passage token.
- Follow the signpost.
Refer to the Giant’s Dance map at the end of the book to choose your next destinations.
- Go to section 5.
- You still have the bolt in your neck.
- Decline to have the bolt removed (it gives you no penalty and has an occasionally useful special power, should you get the instructions from Merlin’s house).
- You have the golden disc.
- Take the cherry blossom.
- Go to section 56.
- You have the cherry blossom.
- Take the instructions scroll. It reads (or should read) : “When (and if!) you best the monster, place golden disc on altar and stand back and go to forty three”.
- For now, go to section 72.
- Face the creature.
- You have the golden disc and the instructions. Therefore, follow the instructions and go to section 43.
- Pick mound 15 on the map and reverse the numbers. Go to section 51.
- Go down.
- Read the message on the wall.
- Fight the Ghastly Guardian Ghoul (same LP as you, hits with 4+, +5 damage and poison effect). This could be tough, but you normally picked up the breastplate to give you a small edge. If you picked up the aborigine pointing bone, you can safely use your sleep globe here (hold on to the bone). If the only offensive magical item you have is the sleep globe, then hold on to it and fight normally.
- Take the sphere of warning.
You are now in the Fairy Kingdom. The map you’ve seen before is no real help, and the directions often don’t make sense. It’s very easy to get lost here.
- Go south west.
- Explore the large mound.
- Explore the anthill.
- Take 36 doses of healing potion.
- Go south.
- You have the required items to build a raft, but let’s not do it yet. Go east.
- Go south.
- Go west.
- Join the figure for a cruise.
- Explore the tower.
- Fight the Demonspawn (80 LP, hits with 3+, +2 damage). Use the aborigine pointing bone if you have it here, otherwise use your sleep globe.
- Take the ebony rod and lead ball. The message reads “To leave this place take lead ball in left hand and go to eighty eight”. Go to section 88.
- Go north.
- Go south west.
- Approach the ancient.
- Touch number 1052.
- Take the ruby. Go south east.
- Go south.
- Go south.
- We are back to that section offering you to build a raft using your axe, saw, hammer and nails. Do so now.
- Continue eastwards on the river.
- Try reaching the fishing nets. Roll 2d6:
o 4- : you die
o 5+ : proceed
- Put on your fake beard and moustache to avoid getting in trouble in Scroghollow.
Refer to Scroghollow’s map at the end of the book to choose your destinations. The following sequence can be done in nearly any order.
- Go to section 138.
- Try and stop the runaway dwarf.
- Fight the Dwarf (25 LP, hits with 5+, +2 damage).
- Take a pewter token.
- Go to section 130.
- Roll 1d6 for the barman, then 1d6 for yourself:
o Your roll > barman’s roll: Take a pewter token.
o Your roll <= barman’s roll: You get nothing.*
- Go to section 127.
- Make inquiries.
- Say you’re interested in the Revolution.
- Fight Alf (special).
- Take a pewter token.
- Go to section 127 again.
- Make inquiries again.
- Say you’re after a job.
- Fight Alf (special) once again.
- Take a copper token.
- Go to section 121.
- Say you’re a blag.
- Take a copper token.
- Go to section 102.
- Enter.
- Say it is sour.
- Make a grab for the token.
- Roll 2d6:
o 6+: Take a copper token.
o 5-: You get kicked out and dumped over the city bridge. Roll 2d6:
o 6+: you manage to return to the city
o 5-: you die
- Go to section 145.
- Say it’s Blogwort.
- Take the museum pass.
- Go to section 115.
- Explore the museum.
- You have a museum pass.
- Take a copper token.
- Go to section 142.
- You have tokens.
- You have copper tokens.
- You have four copper tokens.
- Solve the diagram at the end of the book and decode the message. It reads: “one hundred sixty seven”. Go to section 167.
- Take a pewter token.
- Go to section 153.
- You have tokens.
- You have pewter tokens.
- You have four pewter tokens.
- Harry did it.
- Fight the Berkwaddle (100 LP, hits with 4+, +5 damage), with no penalty since you’ve solved the riddle. Use the ebony rod and the ruby here to knock down his LP to 50. That’s still a lot, and the Berkwaddle makes it harder for you to use magic items, so hope for the best.
- You recover Excalibur and save the realm.
*I’ve wondered whether you are allowed to try again or not here. The text does not explicitly say you’re not allowed to come back and try again, and there is another place in town where you have to come back a second time and tell a different story, so I’m going to assume it is allowed. Otherwise, you will get softlocked if you fail this roll, and to avoid this you should make a trip to Merlin’s house to get the lucky coin before playing.