What happened to Lantern of D'Gamma

Games for Spectrum, C64, Amstrad, Amiga, Apple ][ and the rest of the 8-bit and 16-bit platforms. Pleas for help, puzzles, bug reports etc.

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Angus
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri May 22, 2009 4:47 am
Location: Montreal, Canada

#31 Post by Angus »

Alastair wrote:
Angus wrote:HAVING ONLY ONE HAND MADE IT HARD TO COUNT
WHEN I WAS PACING OFF THE MAP BUT THE
SYSTEM I FIGURED OUT WORKED WELL. IT
SEEMS MORE NATURAL THAN THE NUMBERS I
LEARNED IN SCHOOL
Seems that it's using base 5 rather than base 10 (decimal) for counting, is that of any help?
No. How is it using any type of counting?
Juan
Posts: 313
Joined: Mon Apr 02, 2007 2:54 pm

#32 Post by Juan »

Angus wrote:That's not it either. When I took my 3rd step to the south before taking 1 step to the west I fell into a pit
The directions I gave you are based on keystrokes rather than on what the counter says. When you Go East from the stable your counter will read "1 Step East" (or something like that), then press the "E" key 11 times (it will land you on "12 Steps East".) Follow the rest of the directions (which now match the number of keystrokes with what the counter says) and you should end up where the chest is buried (unless the map changes for each game, which I doubt.)
Alastair
Posts: 1151
Joined: Fri Nov 11, 2005 12:21 am

#33 Post by Alastair »

Angus wrote:
Alastair wrote:
Angus wrote:HAVING ONLY ONE HAND MADE IT HARD TO COUNT
WHEN I WAS PACING OFF THE MAP BUT THE
SYSTEM I FIGURED OUT WORKED WELL. IT
SEEMS MORE NATURAL THAN THE NUMBERS I
LEARNED IN SCHOOL
Seems that it's using base 5 rather than base 10 (decimal) for counting, is that of any help?
No. How is it using any type of counting?
I would have to look at the game to see if it has any relevance, but if you are unfamiliar with the concept have a look at the example below showing the numbers one to ten represented in the familiar decimal and in base 5 (if you are conversant with binary or hexadecimal it should not be a problem).

10....5
01..01
02..02
03..03
04..04
05..10
06..11
07..12
08..13
09..14
10..20
Angus
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri May 22, 2009 4:47 am
Location: Montreal, Canada

#34 Post by Angus »

Thanks, Alistair, that makes sense. I don't know how you figured that out though.

Hey, Juan, I just finished it and got 100%. Did you knock on the door outside the castle? Are you sure you found all scraps of paper? What about the one in the tunnels? If you also read the cookbook, I'm not sure how you could have completed the game w/out getting all the other points.

Well we finished the game, cheated our asses off to get the answers, but we are still short on solutions. How were we supposed to crack that code in the diary in 1985, before Pentium CPUs and the wide availability of dictionary files? How were we supposed to know that the code to get to the map was BFGIL? How were we supposed to get the combination for the lock in the jousting field? How were we supposed to know what page to read in the cookbook?

I think I'll work on a walkthrough now, which, of course, will not be able to answer any of these questions.
Juan
Posts: 313
Joined: Mon Apr 02, 2007 2:54 pm

#35 Post by Juan »

Angus wrote:Hey, Juan, I just finished it and got 100%. Did you knock on the door outside the castle?


The one in the mostly abandoned town, where an old man answers the door? Yes.
Are you sure you found all scraps of paper?


I think I found ten. How many did you find?
What about the one in the tunnels?
I don't think I found a note in the tunnels (maybe because when I mapped it I still did not have the lamp with me.) If there is one I'll go back and check.
If you also read the cookbook, I'm not sure how you could have completed the game w/out getting all the other points.
Maybe I missed one of those notes.
How were we supposed to get the combination for the lock in the jousting field?
I was able to guess one of the numbers. One of the notes hints at the number 25.
How were we supposed to know what page to read in the cookbook?
You weren't, it's a matter of trial and error. The page changes for each game.
I think I'll work on a walkthrough now, which, of course, will not be able to answer any of these questions.
Don't bother, I already wrote it. All that is needed is to locate where the missing 4% of my game is to be complete.
Juan
Posts: 313
Joined: Mon Apr 02, 2007 2:54 pm

#36 Post by Juan »

OK, now I have finished the game with 100%. There was a note in the tunnel maze, which was worth the missing 4%. Walkthrough completed and sent to Jacob.
Angus
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri May 22, 2009 4:47 am
Location: Montreal, Canada

#37 Post by Angus »

Juan wrote:OK, now I have finished the game with 100%. There was a note in the tunnel maze, which was worth the missing 4%. Walkthrough completed and sent to Jacob.
Did you also point out that the diary probably appears behind a different painting w/each game you play? And that the clues to which painting to pry open is probably in the scraps of paper you find? And the page in the cookbook you need to read also changes? And the clues to which that page is are probably in the ingredients to that adventurer's party thing? Also, don't forget Alistair's point about the base-5 numbers.
Juan
Posts: 313
Joined: Mon Apr 02, 2007 2:54 pm

#38 Post by Juan »

Angus wrote:
Did you also point out that the diary probably appears behind a different painting w/each game you play?


No, I did not notice that. I'll make a note of it and re-send the solution to Jacob.

And that the clues to which painting to pry open is probably in the scraps of paper you find?


The notes seem to be the same for each game, so if the diary's location changes for each game it's a bit difficult to see what the connection is.
And the page in the cookbook you need to read also changes? And the clues to which that page is are probably in the ingredients to that adventurer's party thing?
I did notice that the measurements of the ingredients in the "Knight's Helper" recipe change, but as usual such "clues" do not appear to be very helpful.
Angus
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri May 22, 2009 4:47 am
Location: Montreal, Canada

#39 Post by Angus »

Juan wrote:
Angus wrote:And that the clues to which painting to pry open is probably in the scraps of paper you find?


The notes seem to be the same for each game, so if the diary's location changes for each game it's a bit difficult to see what the connection is.
But are they exactly the same? They seem pretty useless, except to describe the staff, which would serve to tell you who has the diary and which room they might hide it in. In any case, you need clues to the location of the diary, because as soon as you open a painting, and you get it wrong, the game is essentially over, and in 1985 you have to start over with the diary in a new location.
Juan
Posts: 313
Joined: Mon Apr 02, 2007 2:54 pm

#40 Post by Juan »

Angus wrote:But are they exactly the same? They seem pretty useless, except to describe the staff, which would serve to tell you who has the diary and which room they might hide it in. In any case, you need clues to the location of the diary, because as soon as you open a painting, and you get it wrong, the game is essentially over, and in 1985 you have to start over with the diary in a new location.
From what I can remember right now, the notes appear to be exactly the same, and are always found in the same places. Perhaps this should be checked again.

The game does not appear to have a save feature, so there very likely is a way to guess which painting to pry, but nothing in the game seems very helpful in this regard. The location of the diary keeps changing from game to game, yet the notes seem all the same in each game (except for the "Knight Helper's" recipe.)
Alastair
Posts: 1151
Joined: Fri Nov 11, 2005 12:21 am

#41 Post by Alastair »

Rather belatedly I've decided to have a crack at this game.

Anyway I have some answers to some of the questions that have been posed.

How were we supposed to know what page to read in the cookbook?
Thanks to the internet I've discovered that there are 2 US cups to 1 US pint. So you take the recipe, convert everything to cups and add those numbers together, the result gives the page number.

How were we supposed to crack the second part of the code in the diary?
Write out MATHEMATICS followed by the remaining letters of the alphabet, then write the alphabet underneath (skip the second MAT in mathematics) to give you the substitution, thus:

Code: Select all

M A T H E(M A T)I C S B D F G J K L N O P Q R U V W X Y Z
a b c d e(a b c)f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
How do you know which painting to open?
I found eight slips of paper giving the following:

1. Arthur has reached a quarter of a century in his lifetime.

2. I have just discovered that the kitchener is a grandparent of the blacksmith.

3. The chambermaid's step-sister, Gretchen, is a foreigner from Germany.

4. Elizabeth, with the aid of the chambermaid and the groundskeeper, devised the castle's system for storing valuables.

5. Morton, a widower at half a century, is not the groundskeeper.

6. The groundskeeper, Helen is not.

7. The guard, who owns his own mount, is the groundskeeper's son-in-law.

8. Never has Chester beseeched the kitchener or her kin for a ride to the castle, although they dwell in the same hamlet.

Please check to see if you obtained the same clues. From these clues I worked out the following, again would someone else check my conclusions.

Morton - carpenter [edited]
Chester - guard
Gretchen - groundskeeper
Elizabeth - kitchener
Arthur - blacksmith
Helen - chambermaid

Once you discover the name of the culprit it is then a matter of going to the appropriate room.
Last edited by Alastair on Thu Jun 04, 2009 9:27 pm, edited 1 time in total.
terri
Posts: 1250
Joined: Wed Dec 15, 2004 5:08 am
Location: Canada

#42 Post by terri »

Amazing - awesome work Alastair.

I used to do those kind of "relationship grid" puzzles when I was an adolescent. It occupied me for days, though I finally stopped doing them when I was more unsuccessful than not.

Doesn't 2 cups = 1 pint hold for the UK? It holds in Canada.
Juan
Posts: 313
Joined: Mon Apr 02, 2007 2:54 pm

#43 Post by Juan »

Alastair wrote:Rather belatedly I've decided to have a crack at this game.

Anyway I have some answers to some of the questions that have been posed.

How were we supposed to know what page to read in the cookbook?
Thanks to the internet I've discovered that there are 2 US cups to 1 US pint. So you take the recipe, convert everything to cups and add those numbers together, the result gives the page number.

How were we supposed to crack the second part of the code in the diary?
Write out MATHEMATICS followed by the remaining letters of the alphabet, then write the alphabet underneath (skip the second MAT in mathematics) to give you the substitution, thus:

Code: Select all

M A T H E(M A T)I C S B D F G J K L N O P Q R U V W X Y Z
a b c d e(a b c)f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
How do you know which painting to open?
I found eight slips of paper giving the following:

1. Arthur has reached a quarter of a century in his lifetime.

2. I have just discovered that the kitchener is a grandparent of the blacksmith.

3. The chambermaid's step-sister, Gretchen, is a foreigner from Germany.

4. Elizabeth, with the aid of the chambermaid and the groundskeeper, devised the castle's system for storing valuables.

5. Morton, a widower at half a century, is not the groundskeeper.

6. The groundskeeper, Helen is not.

7. The guard, who owns his own mount, is the groundskeeper's son-in-law.

8. Never has Chester beseeched the kitchener or her kin for a ride to the castle, although they dwell in the same hamlet.

Please check to see if you obtained the same clues. From these clues I worked out the following, again would someone else check my conclusions.

Morton - page (or some other unspecified occupation)
Chester - guard
Gretchen - groundskeeper
Elizabeth - kitchener
Arthur - blacksmith
Helen - chambermaid

Once you discover the name of the culprit it is then a matter of going to the appropriate room.
Yes, this makes more sense now. However, associating a room with a couple of these characters is not entirely clear yet. The blacksmith, the kitchener, the guard and the groundskeeper rooms are readily identifiable. The chambermaid's secret place might be the fifth room upstairs. The page's then has to be the carpenter's shop.

Another problem that's still unclear is how are you supposed to guess the combination for the lock? The only thing that looks like a clue so far is one of the notes that implies that one of the characters is 25 years old (one of the numbers for the combination lock is 25.)
Angus
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri May 22, 2009 4:47 am
Location: Montreal, Canada

#44 Post by Angus »

Juan wrote:Another problem that's still unclear is how are you supposed to guess the combination for the lock? The only thing that looks like a clue so far is one of the notes that implies that one of the characters is 25 years old (one of the numbers for the combination lock is 25.)
Don't forget how you know which buttons to push to get the map.
Alastair
Posts: 1151
Joined: Fri Nov 11, 2005 12:21 am

#45 Post by Alastair »

I've worked out a couple more, and with respect to Morton, after a little thought I suspect that he is the carpenter as the carpenter's room has a painting (duly edited above).

I still haven't worked out how to solve the shaped buttons puzzle, I've stared at the dungeon picture, I've tried to get a closer look at the strangely shaped stone tiles, but so far without success. I wonder if the solution is found within any material that may have come with the game.

How do you work out the number for the drawbridge?
The old man says, "I can tell you, however, that the root to begin your quest lies with the mailbox." The square-root of 256 is 16.

How were we supposed to get the combination for the lock in the jousting field?
The map shows "(5-6-7)" the game tells you that the lock is a "square combination lock." So squaring the numbers gives you 25-36-49.

Terri wrote:Doesn't 2 cups = 1 pint hold for the UK? It holds in Canada.
Over here, in metric a cup is 250 ml, but in Imperial a cup isn't really a defined measure. Do you use Imperial or US pints, gallons, etc. in Canada?
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