If you're stuck in "Following a Star", you should, in the first instance, use the
built-in hints system: type HINT followed by the name of an object that you can see. If you are
really, truly stuck, then this walkthrough will guide you through the quickest way to finish the
game. Use it only as a last resort.
Part 1: Babylon
----------------
There is nothing important to do in Gaspar's chamber, so go west. Wait until Melchior finishes
speaking, then go down twice. Go east into the stables and get on Numbers (your camel). Go west
until you get to the city gates. (The Traveller's Store is completely optional.) Get off
Numbers, open the gate, get back on Numbers and go west.
Part 2: The Town
-----------------
You need to get gifts for the baby boy, one for each of you. The three gifts are gold, frankincense
and myrrh.
Your first job is to get some Roman money. If you went to the Traveller's Store, you can pawn
some of the stuff you brought with you. To do this, leave the inn and go northeast. You'll find
all of your supplies in the bags where you put them. Get what you want, then go to the pawn shop,
which is west of the market location. Then PAWN the object you want to sell. Otherwise, you'll
need to convert your Babylonian shekels. If you try to do this, the Roman assistant will offer a
very poor deal.
Explore the whole town thoroughly. You *can* enter the vestry if you just repeatedly go west from
the back of the synagogue.
If you're still stuck getting the Roman money, type HINT SHEKEL and all will be revealed.
There are two ways to get frankincense: first, from the Boswellia tree in the east quarter.
You'll need to buy the blade from the tools stall (southwest of the market location), then go
to the east quarter (go east twice from the town square) and cut the bark. Wait for the resin to
harden and get it. The other way to get frankincense is to buy it from the novelty stall (east from
the market location).
To get the gold, give some frankincense to the wandering merchant in the market, or alternatively,
if you got the flask of milk from the Traveller's Store in Babylon, you can give him that,
since he won't be able to tell the difference. You're not penalised for doing this. If you
give him actual frankincense, use the other method of obtaining it to get some for yourself.
You'll find some myrrh on the altar in the centre of the synagogue (in the north end of town).
To get it, you'll need to pretend to be the High Priest (Kohen Gadol). His clothes are in the
wardrobe in the vestry. To get to the vestry, go west from the back of the synagogue (that is, the
first room you come to after entering the synagogue). If the High Priest is still in there, keep
trying until you get in. However, even when you are dressed as the High Priest, you need to be able
to replace the myrrh with a fresh batch in order to take it away. Type HINT MYRRH to see all the
details.
Once you have all the gifts, go back to the inn, go up to the hallway and go northwest to summon
Gaspar. Give him the gifts, then go north to your bedroom and sleep.
Everything else that you find in the town is optional. The food man has a delivery that you can help
him with; the tool man will give you a mathematical puzzle to do with the town well; Gaspar will ask
you to make sandwiches for him and Melchior; and there are also six Latin grammar cards to be found
in the town, as well as a number of points vouchers. This is all optional, but you need to explore
all of it if you want to get the maximum score of 42 points.
Part 3: The Desert
------------------
There is an astronomical puzzle here. Type HINT STAR (for example) to find out exactly how to do
it.
Part 4: Jerusalem and Bethlehem
--------------------------------
Go southwest. Tell Shem about the journey. Wait.
Your next puzzle involves a watered-down version of Latin grammar. Use the cue cards to help you but
if you get really stuck, try HINT GUARD. Once you get into the throne room, tell Herod about the
journey and wait until you get into the corridor.
Use any exit to run through the palace corridors. The exits are randomly generated but you will
eventually get to a corridor that contains a bust of Herod on a pillar. Push the pillar over and
then use any of the exits. Your pursuers will be stalled. Now you need to do another quick Latin
puzzle to get out. Again, HINT GUARD will spoil it. Get on Numbers and go south to get to the
streets of Jerusalem. At this point, you need to take an interest in which way you're going,
though the exits are still randomly selected. You need to get to Bethlehem after all. How can you do
that? Follow the star! Or, look at a map.
The star is due south. Accordingly, Bethlehem is south of Jerusalem. If you can't go south, the
next best thing is to go southwest or southeast.
Eventually you'll get to the desert. The same logic applies in that you need to go in a
generally southerly direction, but this time the exits are not stated explicitly; rather, you can go
in any direction *other* than the ones mentioned, since those that are mentioned involve some sort
of obstacle that will cause you to crash (and reset your position). Use HINT STAR if you're
still unsure.
Finally you will reach the stables in Bethlehem. Wait until you're handed the little bag of
gifts, then choose one. There is no right answer here. Give the gift to the baby and you win.
I'm going to leave it as an exercise to determined players to work out how to get the full
score. I don't expect it to be easy though!
