Walkthrough for
King Arthur's Quest
by Five Ways/Hill McGibbon
Written by Richard Bos
This is an odd one. I'm not sure it should count as IF at all. It's not
really a text adventure. It's not really an "arcade adventure" either (a term
I've always disliked anyway). It could be described as point-and-click
adventure meets Lords of Midnight (or more to the point, Sorderon's Shadow),
except that you don't point and click, but use single keypresses. It's an
interesting idea and it could have made for a pretty good game, if it weren't
for the at times disappointing execution.
But let's start with the good points first. The font is large (one and a half
normal Spectrum characters high), attractive and legible. Unfortunately its
size means that not enough text fits on the screen, but what there is, is
decently written, if often cliched - but then, that, too, is not inappropriate
for the genre. The puzzles are not hard, but given that this game was marketed
towards younger children, that's not a bad thing. They are, in any case, still
enjoyable. There are hints throughout, and a few puzzles even have more than
one solution.
The spell system is nice. It functions (though not very effectively) as copy
protection, but also makes a puzzle of its own. The game came with a grid of
letters. When you're told a spell, you're not given the spell word itself, but
a set of coordinates and a direction. You then have to find that spot in the
grid and read a spell word in that direction. It makes a difference from a
simple "You have to cast the spell called HOCUS POCUS". If you wish, you can
find the manual containing the grid on-line; and I recommend you do so.
However, in the full walkthrough below I have given the resulting spell words,
for those of you who can't be bothered to.
As for the bad, well... the main problem is that moving around is far too
slow. Compare King Arthur with the two Beyond games mentioned above, and you'll
find that it's twice as slow to move. Actions such as taking and using objects
are equally sluggish. The second big problem is that you don't see what Arthur
would see; rather, you are standing one square back and looking through his
invisible ghost. When it looks as if there is one square ahead of you, you are
in fact in that square. It takes a while before you stop moving into walls and
objects that, in any other game, would still be one step away from you. This is
awkward - and, of course, as slow as any other move.
The action is, of necessity given the game system, simplistic. You can move
about (and why this doesn't use the normal cursor keys is beyond me), take or
drop objects, use them, cast a spell, or consume something. This last option
isn't even ever necessary. Even "use this object with that other object" is not
catered for. That the authors managed to create a reasonable game with such a
small set of actions is an achievement in itself, but still, there was scope
for more.
The graphics are, I suppose, a matter of taste. The main screen is attractive
enough - for a Spectrum game, anyway - and the icons are large and mostly
clear. The view window is another matter. Its graphics are often crude, and
colour clash is common, though not as intrusive as it could be. The resident
monsters are all the same size - a tower is as large as a set of shelves - and,
unfortunately, are not masked, so they blot out whatever is around them.
Whether this is an effect of the one-step-ahead view or the reason for it I'm
not sure, but either way it doesn't look professional.
All in all, then, I think it can be concluded that this game could have been
a definite winner, but isn't - but that doesn't quite make it a dud, either.
Right. Walkthrough. But first a few remarks. The manual recommends that you
make a map, and so do I. It makes it easier to find your way back when you get
lost, without wandering into some kind of trap. If you don't want to make your
own, you should be able to find a PDF of one where you got this document. It's
crude, but sufficient.
For those of you who do not want a full-blown spoiler walkthrough, here is a
list of all significant features and portable objects, sorted by area. I've
omitted everything (trees, pillars, shelves) which is merely an obstacle;
generally speaking, if it isn't in the list, it's just there to get in the way.
I've also not listed anything in the Wilderness, which is more or less a bonus
area - if you want to solve that, you shouldn't need my help.
You also won't find the spell words in this list. It tells you where to find
them, and you can then look them up in the grid. The walkthrough itself, which
is more of a full spoiler, does tell all, but in this list I'm assuming you
just want a hint towards solving the game yourself. But just in case, I have
provided a list of spells as well. You'll find that at the very end of this
document.
Object | | Use
----------------+--+-----------------------------------------------------------
dead mouse |MT| Feed to owl for hint
compass |MT| Find your way
sword |MT| Open Secret Room
mirror |MT| Stone the gorgon
herb |EF| Unstone maiden
bow, arrow |EF| Shoot griffin
maiden |EF| Deliver to old man; gives spell to open door to part 2
silver dagger |EF| Scare away werebear
silver key |K | Unlock tunnel to Merlin's Tower
dragon's eye |K | Free Lancelot; give to dragon
goblet of wine |Ch| Give to monk
bottle |Ch| Glows: see inscription on font; holy water: defeat bat
shield |Ch| Kill skeletons; give to troll
golden shears |Cr| Cut through webs
bone |Cr| Unstone maiden
forked stick |Ca| Keep down serpent
pearl |Ca| Shows half the spell for Merlin; give to gargoyle
torch |Ca| Burn slime
bottles |SR| Unstone maiden
Feature | | Use/solution
----------------+--+-----------------------------------------------------------
Book on birds |MT| Spell to move to Forest
Owl |MT| Feed mouse for hint
Earth |MT| Exit of tunnel from keep
Flashes |MT| None, AFAICT.
Pavilion |EF| Change day to night/v.v.
Griffin |EF| Shoot with bow & arrow
Fog |EF| Freezes compass - just avoid it
Woodsman |EF| Changes to werebear at night
Werebear |EF| Show silver dagger (or visit during day)
Old Man |EF| Deliver maiden, Lancelot
Monk |EF| Hint about Lancelot/dragon's eye
Jester's Gear |K | Nothing; just scenery?
Dog/Wheel |K | Visit wheel to pull in dog's chain
Lancelot |K | Use dragon's eye; return to Old Man
Apparition |Ch| Steals dragon's eye
Skeleton |Ch| Use shield
Font |Ch| Half of spell for Merlin
Monk |Ch| Hint about shield
Web |Cr| Cut with golden shears
Spider |Cr| Avoid; go through web to the south instead
Page |Cr| Hint for Secret Room?
Bat |Cr| Use holy water
Dragon |Cr| Give eye
Maiden |Ca| Unstone with bone, herb, bottles; password to Secret Room
Troll |Ca| Give shield, get torch
Slime |Ca| Burn with torch
Gorgon |Ca| Show mirror
Star |SR| Show position of Secret Room
Tingle |SR| Entrance to Secret Room (spell given by unstoned maiden)
Serpent |SR| Keep down with forked stick
Gargoyle |SR| Give pearl, get recipe for unstoning
Jester |SR| Gives password but steals sword: trap
Merlin/Dragon |SR| Spell on pearl and font
And now, the walkthrough itself. We start in...
PART 1
MERLIN'S TOWER
- To start off, go ahead three times and pick up the compass. Now we can use
compass directions instead of "left", "right" and "ahead", which are
easier to
miscount.
- Go back east four times until you reach the shelves, then south seven times
to the sword. Take this.
(I am not sure what the flash of colour means. There are more of these, both
here and in Morgana's Spell Room. The same effect occurs when you cast a spell,
but here it doesn't seem to actually do anything; it's probably just scene
building, to add to the idea of a magical environment.)
- Go east three times and north once. Take the mirror.
(Ignore the door to the Wilderness - for which, see below - and the owl, who
can give a rather superfluous hint.)
- Now go west once, then north six times to a book about birds. It gives the
code for a spell. If you read the manual and follow the "code breaker", you'll
find that its full name is PELLINOR; cast it.
WILDERNESS
We skip the entire Wilderness. There are some creatures there who provide some
foreshadowing (and a vague hint or two) for the rest of the game. There is also
another way into the Enchanted Forest which doesn't use magic but requires you
to solve a puzzle. You can take this alternative route if you like; it makes no
difference to the rest of the solution. I won't give any hints for it - after
all, a walkthrough must leave some secrets intact!
Instead, we let our raptor friend deposit us past the other side of the
Wilderness, in the:
ENCHANTED FOREST
- Go north, west and north five times. Be careful not to move north once more,
because that would take you into a patch of freezing fog which breaks the
compass temporarily.
(This route skirts around the pavilion. Entering this changes day to night and
vice versa, which can be useful (see below) but for now is just annoying. If
you've spent more time than necessary up to now, e.g. by going through the
Wilderness, it may now be night; if so, do visit the pavilion to get some
daylight.)
- Go west three times, then north. There is a woodsman here, who you can
ignore, but if it's now night you will find a werebear instead. You can get rid
of it by using the silver dagger you find in the southwestern corner of the
Forest - or by visiting the pavilion to turn night back to day.
- Go north again. Take the magic arrow, go south three times and take the bow.
- Go back north once, then east four times. Use the bow and drop it. Go east
twice into Morgana's Keep.
KEEP
- Go around all the pillars: east three times, north twice, east four times,
south three times, and east twice to the wheel, which you activate
automatically.
- Go west twice, and north four times to the dog, whom you could not have
passed without visiting the wheel.
- Go east twice and south; take the dragon's eye. Take care not to fall into
the holes.
- Go north, west twice, south five times, west twice and south three times.
- Use the dragon's eye on the knight, who turns out to be Lancelot, and bring
him along. Don't drop the eye, because we'll need it again.
- Go all the way back north three times, east two, north four times,
west four, south two, and west four into the Forest.
ENCHANTED FOREST and KEEP again
- Go west six times and south three. Bring along the maiden, Lancelot's sister.
- Go west, north five times and west to the old man, who is Lancelot and the
maiden's father. After speeches from all (ignoring the one about the silver
dagger, which we don't need), pick up the maiden again.
- Go east, south twice, east seven times to just in front of the door.
- Go north and pick up the herb, then south and east into the keep.
- Inside, return to the other door, where Lancelot was: east thrice, north
twice, east four times, south four times, west twice, south four times.
- The maiden tells you about the spell for the door. This works out as GAWAIN.
Cast this spell. You will lose the maiden (but don't worry, you'll find her
again later), after which you need to insert the other side of the tape (or
second TZX file, if you're playing under emulation) to proceed to part 2, which
starts in the Chapel.
PART 2
CHAPEL
- Having arrived in the Chapel in part 2, go south once and east three times.
Take the bottle, go north, and make a mental note of what you see.
- Go west four times, south thrice and east. Take the shield.
- Go east once more and use the shield to get rid of the skeleton.
(There's someone on this level who can provide a hint for this. There's also an
eye-stealing ghostly apparition, so beware.)
- Go east once more, south twice and use the shield again. Don't drop it yet.
- East, south three times, and east twice through a secret passage into the
Crypt. Note that it is apparently a somewhat twisty passage, and you enter at
the opposite end of the Crypt to the expected one, with your face to the wall.
CRYPT
- Go north eight times to the bats; then use the small bottle, which contains
holy water - remember the inscription on the shield.
- Go north once more and take the shears, then south seven
times and west five times, north and west.
- Use the shears, go west twice more and south. Use the shears again and drop
them here. Go south and pick up the bone.
- Go north three times and drop the eye for the dragon. Then go north once more
and west twice, into the Cavern.
CAVERN
- Go north, west and north. Ah, there's the maiden! We'll snap her out of her
predicament later. Drop the bone and the herb here - the explanation for this
also comes later, but for now it just makes room in our inventory.
- Go south, then west two, south six times and east once. Drop the shield for
the troll and take the torch in return.
- Go west thrice and north thrice - note the effect of the torch - and take the
pearl. Note also how the engraving on the pearl fits with that we saw on the
font. Together they indicate another spell, which we'll use later.
- Go west three times and take the stick. Go north twice. Use the mirror on the
gorgon. Go north, then west twice into the Morgana's Spell Room.
SPELL ROOM
- Go west four times to a silver star. These do nothing; their function is to
indicate the location of the Secret Room, later on. For now it's just a
convenient marker.
- From here, go north three times to an "ugly creature". Give it what it asks
for: drop the pearl. It tells you how to "destone" the maiden. The bone is the
dragon's meal (or what's left of it); the herb is the flower (thyme changes
with time, har har). As for the two solutions, we'll find them on this level.
- Go south four times, then west five times. There is the first solution; pick
it up.
- Now go east eight times and south four times. Use the forked stick on the
serpent.
- Go south and east, take the second solution, west and north, and use the
stick again.
- Go north five times and east twice back to the Cavern.
CAVERN and SPELL ROOM again
- Go south twice, east six times, north three times and east twice to where we
found the maiden.
- Drop both bottles. The maiden revives and tells you how to reach Morgana. The
spell she mentions works out as YWAIN.
- Return to the Spell Room: west twice, south three times, west six, north
three times, and west.
- Now go west four more times to the star, and south thrice. You should sense a
tingling. If you map this section (or refer to the PDF map), you'll see that
this is the centre of the pentagon. Cast the YWAIN spell here.
SECRET ROOM
- You are now in the Secret Room. You have one object you haven't used - your
sword - but if you use it now, you lose the game. (In fact, even if it wasn't
mentioned, it was necessary for the YWAIN spell to work.) You also know one
spell which you haven't used yet. Both the font and the pearl showed a picture
of a chained dragon, and we have a dragon right here, so let's try it. Cast
that spell: SANGRAIL.
And that does it. After a not very convincing bit of animation, the game is
solved, and the land is free. There are still a few things I can't quite figure
out - for example, why did the jester leave his stuff lying about the Keep, and
what can you do with that thing the spider is guarding - but I don't think
there are answers to those questions. In any case, you've defeated Morgana, and
that is the main thing.
(And finally the spells:
Spell | | Use
----------------+--+-----------------------------------------------------------
PELLINOR |MT| Fly from Merlin's Tower to Enchanted Forest
GAWAIN |K | Open door from Keep to Chapel (part 1 to 2)
YWAIN |Ca| Open Secret Room
SANGRAIL | | Restore Merlin to normal)
