Clever Catacombs
By Christopher Chance
Published by CBS Software
For Apple II, Atari 400/800/XL/XE, Commodore 64 & PC/PCJr
Solution by Garry Francis
----------------------------------------
This is a minimal solution to a very hard game. Your objective is to find the password to get access
to the game's source code. Once you know the password, you can solve the game in a few moves,
so nearly everything is optional. The solution assumes you know nothing and are starting from
scratch.
If you've already played the game and you're unclear on how to find the password, read
NOTE 1, but don't read this unless you want to risk spoiling the game.
To get started, assuming you are using the game as supplied with Adventure Master, boot Adventure
Master disk 1, select T (for Test) and type JUDY.
L (you're on an old country road with a sign to 'EL BIB') [NOTE 2]
SW (nightingale sings a tune) [NOTE 3]
CABBAGE (you could eat some)
EAT CABBAGE (you find letter "C" and 5 gold coins) [Password = ----C-]
TAKE COINS
E
S (you see a picture of a troll sitting on a gate)
L (troll is talking in gibberish, he sats you need secret password) [NOTE 4]
BRIBE TROLL (with coins, he gives you a cryptic crossword clue) [NOTE 5]
PSALM (you can now go south)
S (oh, man, the answer was here all the time)
(D) (rusty gate is stuck shut, remember that for later)
(U)
N
N
E (you find a lepidopterist's tool leaning against the tree) [NOTE 6]
TAKE NET (it tells you what you've already deduced)
TAKE NET (now it lets you take it)
(U) (it won't let you)
CLIMB TREE
U (now it lets you, there's something scratched in the bark) [NOTE 7]
E (you find a bird nest & small mailbox)
OPEN MAILBOX (you find a perfumed letter)
TAKE LETTER
READ LETTER (it's a love letter from Excalibur) [NOTE 8]
W
D
W
N
N
CATCH FISH (with net) [NOTE 9]
W
S (you see a picture of an ogre at a bridge)
L
W (ogre asks you a question about Batman and Robin) [NOTE 10]
ALFRED (ogre asks you a question about animal's blood pressure) [NOTE 11]
GIRAFFE (ogre asks you a question about Murray Slaughter) [NOTE 12]
MARY RICHARDS (ogre asks you a question about Alfred Nobel) [NOTE 13]
DYNAMITE (ogre asks you a question about xenophobia) [NOTE 14]
STRANGERS (you can now go west, ogre says don't say "PUFF") [NOTE 15]
PUFF (ogre jumps into abyss, but leaves a key behind)
TAKE KEY
W
N
N (you hear music with an unusual beat) [NOTE 16]
GET DOWN (a small thermonuclear device creates an opening in east wall)
L (you're in a new room, the morse code has changed) [NOTE 17]
GET UP (someone has left a vase of flowers)
TAKE VASE
S
S
W
D (there's a well filled with bubbling orange liquid)
(TAKE LIQUID) (you have nothing to take it with)
FILL VASE (that's a good idea, now you can take it)
TAKE LIQUID
(DRINK LIQUID) (everything around you gets larger, as you shrink temporarily)
U
E
E
N
N
NE
DRAW
E (you see lots of dots) [NOTE 18]
PUSH LAST DOT (a trapdoor opens and you fall down a long shaft)
L (you're lost in a maze of sand dunes)
N
TAKE NOTE
READ NOTE ("Act V, Scene I, Line XXXI...") [NOTE 19]
N
U (you see a rope hanging down from a precipice above)
CLIMB (you can now go up)
U
(W) (the hole is too small to enter)
DRINK LIQUID (you shrink, you can now enter the hole)
W (a message says "THE B MAC") [NOTE 20]
W (there's a boulder here)
(TAKE DICTIONARY) (it's stuck under the boulder)
MOVE BOULDER (you can now get the dictionary)
TAKE DICTIONARY
READ DICTIONARY (the page after "anagoge" is torn out) [NOTE 21]
E
N (a vicious canine blocks the way) [NOTE 22]
OUT DAMNED SPOT (the canine whimpers and scurries off, you can now go north)
N (there's a periodic table of the elements and a blackboard)
READ BLACKBOARD [NOTE 23]
(MIX CHEMICALS) (tell me what you want to make)
(MAKE DYNAMITE) (we don't have all the ingredients, but could make gunpowder)
MAKE GUNPOWDER
TAKE GUNPOWDER
S
E
U
S
E
N
N
NW
N (further progress is blocked by an invisible barrier)
BREAK MIRROR (you break it with your head and it leaves a shard of mirror)
TAKE MIRROR
READ MIRROR (do not use explosives near mirror, that's got to be a hint)
USE GUNPOWDER (boom, you can now go north)
N (there's a reddish glow under the dirt)
DIG (you find a six-sided ruby inscribed with letter 'E') [Password = ----CE]
(TAKE RUBY)
S
S
SE
S
E
D (it's cold, you didn't even say please)
PLEASE (will you give me a raise?)
YES (you enter the pool)
L (you're at the bottom of the pool with a locked chest)
(MOVE CHEST) (it weighs too much)
OPEN CHEST (with key, you see initial "C" and treasure) [Password = C---CE]
TAKE TREASURE (you can now move the chest)
MOVE CHEST (you reveal a passageway in the floor)
D
U (wet footprints lead into the north wall)
(N) (there's no opening)
W (you see a picture of hieroglyphics inscribed on the wall) [NOTE 24]
L (they look like hieroglyphics)
E
CLEOPATRA (there is a whooshing sound nearby)
N (when you put your hand on the wall, a strange force sucks you through)
U (laser beams are shooting across the room)
(USE MIRROR) (you need to REFLECT LASER)
REFLECT LASER (you blow up bottom beam and can do a limbo under remaining beams)
N (there's a boulder with a spear sticking out of it)
(TAKE SPEAR) (it's stuck in the rock, remember the love letter?)
I LOVE YOU (the spear is now glowing slightly)
TAKE SPEAR
S
D
D
D
D
U
W
S
W
W
N (there are six books here)
READ BOOKS (all blank, except one page that says "AUTHOR AUTHOR") [NOTE 25]
W (you can't go that way, but it's lying to you)
W (this time it works)
WOLF (a small tradoor opens below the statue)
D (there's a lead vessel with letter "N" and number "4") [Password =
C--NCE]
(TAKE VESSEL) (it's too heavy to move)
SHAKE SPEAR (the lead vessel opens and you find a ring)
TAKE RING
READ RING (inscription reads 'semper ubi sub ubi') [NOTE 26]
RUB RING (the inscription now reads 'semper ubi sub ubi canis lupis') [NOTE 27]
U
E
S
E
E
N
N
NE
E
PUSH LAST DOT
S
E
S (a "where" wolf ogles at you, remember the inscription on the ring?)
WEAR RING (wolf is gone, you find two barrels with "H") [Password = CH-NCE]
TAKE OIL
OIL GRATE (it swings free, you can now go down)
U (you're back at the troll's gate)
N
CHICKEN SOUP (troll gives hint & 3-jewelled crown with "A") [Password = CHANCE]
(TAKE CROWN)
S
S (a sign says '47:1, King James') [NOTE 28]
CLAP (look and see...)
L (epilogue & author's contact details)
***THE END***
NOTE 1:
You won't know this when you start, but the password is a six-lettered word, where each of the
letters are scattered throughout the game. Each letter also has a number associated with it. The
number gives you the position of the letter as follows:
C on the chest found at bottom of pond, initial "C" means it's number ONE
H on the TWO barrels of oil found in the "where" wolf's lair
A on the THREE-jewelled crown found at the troll's gate
N on the lead vessel found at the crypt which is also inscribed with "4"
C on the cabbage leaf found at the rolling meadow with FIVE gold coins
E on the SIX-sided ruby found in the cubbyhole behind the mirror
So, the password is CHANCE. This is also the author's surname. Makes sense.
NOTE 2:
"EL BIB" is "BIBLE" backwards. This is a hint that you will need a biblical
reference at some point. The backwards part is also a hint of what to expect when you get to the
troll's gate.
NOTE 3:
The nightingale is singing in the solfège system, where each syllable represents a note as
follows:
do = C
re = D
mi = E
fa = F
so = G
la = A
ti = B
Therefore, do la ti ti la so me [sic] = CABBAGE.
NOTE 4:
Just like the sign post, the troll is talking backwards. Reverse everything he says and it makes
perfect sense.
NOTE 5:
Remember that the troll has the London Times crossword puzzle. "A short shilling in the hand is
worth a prayer (5)" is a clue to a cryptic crossword. As with all cryptic crosswords, there are
actually two clues. For the first clue, a "short shilling" is "s" and "in
the hand" is "palm", so "s" in "palm" is "psalm". For
the second clue, a "prayer" can be a "psalm" from The Bible. "Psalm"
is 5 letters. Also remember The Bible clue in NOTE 2.
NOTE 6:
A lepidopterist is someone who collects butterflies and moths. From this we can deduce that the
lepidopterist's tool is a butterfly net, but a butterfly net doesn't look very different
from a fishing net. (Hint, hint.)
NOTE 7:
"Go to what is found at the beginning of eternity and the end of time." The letter
"E" is at the beginning of "eternity" and at the end of "time". This
is a hint to go east.
NOTE 8:
The love letter is written by Excalibur. "Excalibur" was also the name of King
Arthur's sword in Arthurian legend. When he was a boy, only Arthur was able to draw the sword
out of a stone where all others had failed. This is a hint that if you find something stuck in a
stone, you will need to "tell me you love me too".
NOTE 9:
You catch a blue fish with the number "1" on it and a red fish with the number
"7" on it. The blue fish explains that he is a himming fish and the red fish is his wife.
If the blue fish is a male "himming" fish, then the red fish must be a female
"herring" fish. Red herring! Get it? Therefore, ignore the numbers, as they are
irrelevant.
NOTE 10:
"Who is the only person besides Batman and Robin that knows the location of the Batcave?"
At the time this game was written, the only person that would known that would be Bruce Wayne's
butler, Alfred Pennyworth.
NOTE 11:
"What animal has the highest blood pressure?" A bit of Googling revealed that this is the
giraffe, but the author may have intended this as a joke, as the giraffe is also the tallest or
"highest" animal, hence it has the "highest blood pressure".
NOTE 12:
"Who sits next to Murray Slaughter?" A bit of Googling revealed that Murray Slaughter was
a news writer played by Gavin MacLeod on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" way back in the
1970s. The show takes place at a fictional television station and Mary Richards is the associate
producer played by Mary Tyler Moore.
NOTE 13:
"Alfred Nobel, the founder of the Nobel Prize, made a fortune after inventing what?" More
Googling revealed that Alfred Nobel invented dynamite.
NOTE 14:
"Xenophobia is a fear of what?" This one had me baffled. I thought it would have been
foreigners or aliens or something like that. Google didn't help with this one. It turned out to
be "strangers". Come on, give me a break! How's anyone supposed to guess that.
NOTE 15:
"STRANGERS" was the answer to the last question. Once you know the answer to this one, you
can bypass all the other questions by just using this one like a password.
NOTE 16:
The morse code looks like nonsense. It decodes as follows:
DASH,DASH,DOT,DOT = Z
DASH,DASH,DOT,DOT = Z
DASH,DASH,DASH,DOT = no character
DASH,DASH,DASH,DOT = no character
Therefore, it should be treated as a continuous string. In this case, it becomes:
DASH,DASH,DOT = G
DOT = E
DASH = T
DASH,DOT,DOT = D
DASH,DASH,DASH = O
DOT,DASH,DASH = W
DASH,DOT = N
This is a hint to GET DOWN, which fits in with all the other cool, dig it, boogie, bop expressions.
NOTE 17:
Once again, the morse code should be treated as a continuous string. It then becomes:
DASH,DASH,DOT = G
DOT = E
DASH = T
DOT,DOT,DASH = U
DOT,DASH,DASH,DOT = P
So, you need to GET UP.
NOTE 18:
The dots are Braille, as is appropriate in a "bind alleyway". It decodes to "THE LAST
DOT IS A BUTTON A". The last A is the single dot that is the button. Therefore, you'll
need to PUSH LAST DOT.
NOTE 19:
The note reads "Act V, Scene I, Line XXXI Lady's speech beginning with
'Out'". This is obviously a reference to a play, but which play? A quick Google will
find it, but there is another clue to be found shortly.
NOTE 20:
This is an anagram of MACBETH. The hint that this is an anagram is in the dictionary in the next
room. So, we now know that the note is a reference to Macbeth, Act V, Scene I, Line 31, where Lady
Macbeth says, "Out, damned spot".
NOTE 21:
"Anagoge" is a Greek word suggesting a climb or ascent upwards, usually in a spiritual
sense. This is probably irrelevant. It's the next word on the missing page that's
important. The word that would follow "anagoge" in a dictionary would be
"anagram". This is a hint that the phrase in the previous room is an anagram.
NOTE 22:
Here's where all the Shakespeare hints come together. We have the anagram of
"Macbeth", the reference to the specific line in the play from the note in the maze and
the common name for a canine is "Spot". Putting it all together, we now know that this is
where to use the phrase "OUT DAMNED SPOT".
NOTE 23:
The graffiti on the blackboard is divided into three columns. Column 1 reads "Free the
protein" vertically. This is probably a joke - the scientific equivalent of "Free the
whale".
The second column is a reference to the periodic table of the elements, hence the Sherlock Holmes
misquote "Elementary Mr. Watson". The numbers correspond to the chemical symbols as
follows:
31 = GA (gallium)
52 = TE (tellurium)
6 = C (carbon)
1 = H (hydrogen)
53 = I (iodine)
6 = C (carbon)
19 = K (potassium)
7 = N (nitrogen)
16 = S (sulphur)
8 = O (oxygen)
92 = U (uranium)
15 = P (phosphorus)
The double letters read "GATE". This tells you where to use the following phrase. The
single letters read "CHICKN SOUP". As there is no single-letter element for "E",
you'll have to add that yourself, so the phrase to use at the gate is "CHICKEN
SOUP".
The third column is a riddle, again referring to chemicals, where CU = Copper and NO3 = Nitrate.
Hence the answer to the riddle "What do you pay a policeman who works the night shift?" is
"Copper night rate". Get it? Very clever.
NOTE 24:
A bit of Googling again and we find that there is a hieroglyphic alphabet. It's hard to work
out which hieroglyph is represented by the image, so here it is for you. Reading from left to right
and top to bottom:
Hillside = Q
Lion = L
Reed = I
Lasso = O
Square = P
Vulture = A
Hand = D
Mouth = R
Vulture = A
A little more Googling confirms that QLIOPADRA is the phonetic spelling of CLEOPATRA and the whole
of the inscription corresponds to her cartouche, except that it would have been written from right
to left in ancient Egypt.
NOTE 25:
You need to look up the authors for each book. The authors are:
Les Miserables, Victor Hugo
Day of the Locust, Nathaniel West
Miss Lonelyhart, Nathaniel West
Humboldt's Gift, Saul Bellow
Mrs. Dalloway, Virginia Wolf
Taming of the Shrew, William Shakespeare
Taking the surnames, this is a hint that you should go WEST twice, then BELOW the WOLF, SHAKE
SPEAR.
NOTE 26:
The literal translation of the Latin "Semper ubi sub ubi" is "always where under
where". This is a popular phrase among first year Latin students, as it sounds like
"always wear underwear".
NOTE 27:
The freshly revealed Latin "canis lupis" is an incorrect spelling of "canis
lupus", which means "wolf". The complete phrase is now "always wear under where
wolf". This is a hint that you will need to wear the ring to get past the "where"
wolf.
NOTE 28:
All the Biblical references now make sense. This is a reference to line 1 of Psalm 47 in the King
James version of The Bible. This line starts with 'O clap your hands'.
