BUFFER DIAMOND
© D.K. Williams
1984 Buffer Micro
NOTES
The adventure seems somehow unfinished although it's solvable; for example,
there are two messages (obviously regarding to the final section) that aren't
linked with any action:
Great! You have finished the Adventure and King Alred thanks you!
The best Software can always be bought from BUFFER MICRO SHOP you know the
address............
The strangest thing is the scoring that doesn't work at all: according to the
game code, there are 9 actions for which you get points:
5% - DROP SKELETON to get the Metal Rod
5% - PLANT SEEDS
5% - WATER SEEDS to get the Bus Ticket
5% - UNLOCK DOOR to get into the Metal Box
5% - DIAL 6606 in the Telephone Box
10% - SAY SHAZAM in the small brick room to get back to the Metal Box
10% - INSERT SCREW to open the trapdoor in the Hunting Lodge
10% - READ NEWS in the maze of tunnels to reach the Forest
50% - for taking the Buffer Diamond to the Crystal Room (loc. 34)
Therefore you should end up with 105% (!), but the score is NOT added, so you
only achieve 50% (what the highest single score is).
In the solution I have placed the 'true' scores in square brackets.
Which is also weird: the scores are given BEFORE you do the appropriate action
(it's enough to enter a room where you have to do something or pick up an item
with which you need to do something in that room).
Some puzzles are quite illogical and incomprehensible:
- WATER SEEDS to get the Bus Ticket
- the command PULL TUMMY (???) at loc. 61 to get back to the Metal Box
- THROW STAR after the phone call to get to a tunnel (loc. 93)
- READ NEWS in the maze of tunnels (loc. 91) to reach the Forest (loc. 92)
There are two objects you can find at two different places depending on where
you go first:
- the Wooden club (initially in room 21) can also be found at loc. 31 when you
examine the prints on the wall (crazy isn't it?)
- the Rusty Dirk (initially in room 59) also appears at loc. 25 when you pull
the chain of the old well
Wherever you eat the clam you can find on the sandy beach (loc. 102), you are
teleported to the Metal Box (loc. 37).
The message 'You are very hungry!' appears after 110 turns; then you have to
eat the apple (it's the only food that brings back your energy so you can
leave the Mars Bar and the Roast Meat behind).
Finally, there's one bug that needs to be fixed: it is intended that the word
SHAZAM (which brings you to the Metal Box) should be able to be deployed at
two locations, namely the Crystal room (loc. 65, not the one you have to bring
the Buffer Diamond to) and the small brick room (loc. 99), with the result that
it doesn't work in either place. Since you only get points for 'SAY SHAZAM' at
loc. 99, the room number at address 28782 has to be changed to 99.
SOLUTION (for the fixed version)
(you start in a leafy glade) S, GET BRUSH, EXAM BASKET, U IN, GET KEY, GET
APPLE, U OUT, N, E, N, N, W, PULL CHAIN, GET BUCKET, PULL CHAIN, GET DIRK, E,
E, U, E, E, NW, GET PARCHMENT, READ PARCHMENT (there are 2 symbols on it: 0666
and zhasma), DROP PARCHMENT, SE, NE, GET SKELETON, DROP SKELETON [5%], GET ROD,
SW, W, W, D, W, S, S, W, N, GET SEEDS, PLANT SEEDS [10%], WATER SEEDS [15%],
GET TICKET, DROP BUCKET, S, E, S, S, S, UNLOCK DOOR [20%] (the Brass key has
changed into a Golden key).
PRESS BLUE (you are in London), ENTER BUS, GIVE TICKET (you go to Piccadilly
Circus), SW, ENTER TELEPHONE, DIAL 6606 [25%], GET STAR, THROW STAR, W, S, S,
S, OPEN CUPBOARD (leave the things you find inside - you won't need them), SAY
SHAZAM [35%] (you are back in the Metal Box).
PRESS GREEN, U, D, KILL SAILOR, EXAM COAT, EXAM POCKETS, GET SCREW, N, EXAM
COMPASS (you are again back in the Metal Box).
PRESS YELLOW, E, E, E, N, SE, SE, SW, W, SWEEP LEAVES, R (you see a trapdoor),
INSERT SCREW [45%], REMOVE STONES, R (you see the Buffer Diamond), GET DIAMOND
(the trapdoor closes), W, W, MOVE BOULDER (it's too heavy), USE ROD (the
boulder moves), SW, S, S, S, W, N (maze of tunnels), HELP ('Read all about
it!'), READ NEWS [55%] (you are now in a forest), N, SE, NE, E, NE, EAT BERRY,
E, D, D, D, EAT APPLE, NW, NE, S, SE, S, S, U, E (back in a leafy glade).
E, N, N, E, U, E, E, NW [105%] (Well done! You have delivered the **Buffer
Diamond** back to the room...but it doesn't look like the Micro Shop!! You
have scored 50%)
Solution by boldir, May 2022
