The Mystery of Maud Manor
Game & solution by Drew Turpin
(Solution taken from an archive of the author's website, that was originally at
http://www.drewturpin.freeserve.co.uk/Tips%20Maud%20Manor.htm)
***
The Mystery of Maud Manor was an adventure written mainly with the 'Graphic Adventure
Creator' from Incentive Software, and as such response times are instantaneous. You are put
into the shoes of private detective Nick White, who has been asked to help solve the theft of a
necklace, taken from the manor house of Lord and Lady Maud. Actions can be typed in as VERB NOUN,
but the program also allows for more complicated instructions by using the word AND (eg TAKE LETTER
AND OPEN DOOR). It was also possible to interrogate other characters using the commands TALK TO
[PERSON] and TELL ME ABOUT [SUBJECT]. For example TALK TO MARK followed by TELL ME ABOUT YOUR ALIBI
or TELL ME ABOUT GEOFF. This program took me several months to complete due its' size and
complexity, and got so big it had to be separated into three parts so that it could run on a 48K
machine. This was my most ambitious project, and took nearly a year to complete.
***
PART ONE
You (Nick White) start of in your lounge and the first thing he should do is to TURN ON THE RADIO,
when you will hear a news broadcast of robbery. Go SOUTH into the kitchen and OPEN CUPBOARD to
reveal a knife, now TAKE KNIFE and go NORTH, NORTH and WEST to end up in your bedroom. If you
EXAMINE BED you will discover a cuddly panda, but ignore this as it is a red herring. Instead
EXAMINE BEDSIDE TABLE to discover a notebook, now TAKE NOTEBOOK AND READ IT which reveals both the
phone number of Graham Stephens (826437) and the PIN number for you cash card (7249). Now go EAST,
SOUTH and EAST again to get to your study. EXAMINE DESK will reveal both a drawer and a phone, now
DIAL 826437 to phone your friend Inspector Graham Stephens who will ask you what you are calling
about. SAY MAUD MANOR and the Inspector will ask you to meet him at the tea room in the village near
Maud Manor. Now OPEN DRAW (note due a bug in the program it will note accept OPEN DRAWER) to reveal
a wallet. TAKE WALLET AND EXAMINE IT will cause a cash card and travel pass to fall out, TAKE CASH
CARD and TAKE TRAVEL PASS. Now go WEST and NORTH to the hall (from here you can go EAST to the
bathroom, where if you EXAMINE CABINET will cause a bottle of aftershave and some aspirin to fall
out, but these are not required in the game and can be ignored). OPEN FRONT DOOR and go NORTH and
you will find yourself in the country lane outside your house (EAST and WEST from here are just
endless country lanes), CLOSE FRONT DOOR and WAIT and a bus will arrive. CLIMB ONTO BUS and SHOW
TRAVEL PASS, and you will be on your way ending up on quiet road, if you READ SIGN you will find out
that you are in Meadton. Now go NORTH and EAST into the newsagents, then EXAMINE COUNTER to reveal a
copy of the Meadton Chronicle (a free local paper). TAKE PAPER AND READ IT and you will find out
that a diamond necklace was stolen, and Maud Manor is situated near the village of Thornbury. Go
WEST, NORTH and WEST again to reach a bank where there is a cash machine. INSERT CARD and you will
be asked for your personal identification number, TYPE 7249 and the machine will provide you with
five pound coins. TAKE COINS but leave the cash card as you will no longer be needing it. Go EAST
and NORTH to the crossroads (from here you could go EAST and NORTH to the café, where if you
EXAMINE FIRE you discover a poker, but again this is not required in the game and is best left
alone). Now go NORTH and NORTH into the butchers, and EXAMINE COUNTER to reveal a leg of lamb. BUY
LEG BONE and then go SOUTH and SOUTH back to the crossroads. Now go WEST, NORTH and NORTH to the off
licence, where you 'EXAMINE SHELVES' to find a bottle of whiskey. By now it would be a
good idea to dispose of a few items from your inventory that you no longer need so DROP WALLET, DROP
TRAVEL PASS, DROP NOTEBOOK and DROP NEWSPAPER. Now BUY WHISKEY, then go SOUTH, SOUTH and WEST where
you will be outside a phone box. ENTER PHONE BOX and EXAMINE ADVERT to find out the phone number of
Big Tip Taxis (08002222). DIAL 08002222 and you will be asked for your pick up point, SAY MEADTON
and LEAVE PHONE BOX where you will now find a taxi waiting. CLIMB INTO TAX and the driver will ask
you where you are going, SAY THORNBURY and the driver will ask you for a pound to cover the fare.
Finally PAY DRIVER and you are on the way to Thornbury, and have completed part one.
***
PART TWO
You start the second part of this adventure on a narrow village road, READ SIGN will confirm that
you are in Thornbury. Go EAST, EAST, NORTH, EAST and NORTH to the tea room, where Inspector Graham
Stephens will be waiting. TALK TO INSPECTOR who will fill you in with more details about the theft
and also give you permission to enter Maud Manor. Now you must go around Thornbury and Maud Manor
collecting evidence and interrogating the characters in the game. There is no right or wrong order
to this part of the game, and below is a list of key locations to visit and character you will need
to speak to.
Each character can be interviewed by the command 'TALK TO (character)', followed by the
command 'TELL ME ABOUT (subject)'. The characters are :-
Sharon Black (Maid) - Located in the hallway of Maud Manor. Ask her about her alibi and you'll
find she will not reveal much about her whereabouts.
Mark Wright (Chauffeur) - Located in the lounge of Maud Manor. Ask him about his alibi and he will
state he was with Lady Clare Maud, taking her to the hairdressers.
Lord George Maud - Located in the library of Maud Manor. Ask him about his alibi and he will tell
you that he was watching a film at the local cinema, and follow this up by asking him about the
film. Ask him about the necklace and he will tell you it was insured. You can also ask him about
Sharon, Mark, Ethel, Geoff and Gary to discover more about the employees.
Ethel Willows (Cook) - Located in the kitchen of Maud Manor. Ask her about her alibi and she will
tell you she was preparing a meal for Lady Maud.
Lady Clare Maud - Located in the dining room of Maud Manor. Ask her about her alibi and she will
tell you Mark drove her to the local village, for a hair appointment. Ask her about the necklace and
she will tell you it was not insured. You can also ask him about Sharon, Mark, Ethel, Geoff and Gary
to discover more about the employees.
Gary Williams (Butler) - Located in one of the bedrooms on the first floor of Maud Manor. His dog
will rob you of the leg of lamb you are carrying, but worry about this. Ask him about his alibi and
he will tell you that he was in the Manor lounge with his dog at the time of the robbery. You can
also ask him about his dog.
Geoff Willows (Gardener) - Locate in the garden of Maud Manor. Ask him about his alibi and you will
discover he was an eyewitness, chasing the robber across the Manor ground and losing them in the
woods.
Once you have questioned all the suspects, then its time to start looking for clues.
Starting from the Manor garden outside the shed :-
DROP PAPER, DROP POKER and DROP ASPIRIN as you no longer require these items. UNLOCK SHED with the
knife, then go NORTH and EXAMINE TOOLS to find a spade. TAKE SPADE and go SOUTH then EAST and
EXAMINE BORDER. Go SOUTH, WEST, KNOCK ON DOOR, NORTH, UP, WEST, NORTH and you will now be in one of
the bedrooms. UNLOCK CHEST to find a driving licence, TAKE LICENCE and EXAMINE LICENCE to reveal it
belongs to Geoff Willows. DROP KNIFE as you know longer need this and go SOUTH, EAST and NORTH into
another bedroom. EXAMINE BED and MOVE PILLOW to find a cheque book, then TAKE CHEQUE BOOK and
EXAMINE CHEQUE BOOK to discover that a £5000 cheque was recently written out, this item is no
longer needed so DROP CHEQUE BOOK. Now go SOUTH, DOWN, NORTH and EAST into the study, where you
EXAMINE SAFE, EXAMINE WINDOW, EXAMINE DESK. Unfortunately due to a police officer being present you
are unable to take anything but EXAMINE ASHTRAY, EXAMINE LIGHTER and EXAMINE TICKET to get some
further information on the crime scene. Now go WEST, SOUTH, SOUTH, SOUTH and WEST and you will
arrive in the woods. Now DIG to discover some clothes, TAKE CLOTHES and EXAMINE CLOTHES to reveal a
pair of trouser, a jumper and a balaclava, then DROP CLOTHES to save space in your inventory. Go
EAST, SOUTH, WEST, WEST and SOUTH to the pub. GIVE MAN WHISKEY, which will then allow you to TALK TO
MAN and TELL ME ABOUT GARY to find out that Gary lied about his alibi. Go NORTH, NORTH and WEST to
the Bank, then SHOW CASHIER LICENCE to receive a statement. TAKE STATEMENT and EXAMINE STATEMENT to
find out that Geoff has recently had £5000 paid into his account. Go WEST, SOUTH, WEST, WEST, NORTH
to the antique shop and TALK TO MAN, then TELL ME ABOUT NECKLACE to find out about how much it is
worth for insurance purposes. DROP LICENCE and DROP STATEMENT, which are no longer required. Now go
SOUTH, SOUTH and EAST to the newsagents and EXAMINE SHELVES then BUY MAGAZINE and READ MAGAZINE to
read a review of the film at the local cinema. Now go WEST, WEST, WEST then SOUTH to the cinema.
Here EXAMINE POSTER, TALK TO MAN then TELL ME ABOUT GEORGE. Go NORTH, EAST, EAST, SOUTH, SOUTH into
the restaurant. Now TALK TO WAITER and TELL ME ABOUT GEORGE to find out that his alibi is false. Go
NORTH and EAST to the park and DIG with the spade, find the necklace and TAKE NECKLACE. Finally go
WEST, NORTH, WEST and NORTH into the police station and TALK TO GRAHAM, USE COMPUTER. Now that you
have collected enough evidence you can go to part three.
***
PART THREE
Type in the password (REVERIE) which you got from Graham at the end of part two, and answer the
questions as followed:-
1) Where was Lord George Maud at the time of the theft ?
Restaurant
2) Where was Lady Clare Maud at the time of the theft ?
Hairdressers
3) Where was Ethel Willows at the time of the theft ?
Kitchen
4) Where was Geoff Willows at the time of the theft ?
Study
5) Where was Sharon Black at the time of the theft ?
Restaurant
6) Where was Gary Williams at the time of the theft ?
Pub
7) Where was Mark Wright at the time of the theft ?
Hairdressers
8) Who committed the theft ?
Geoff Willows
9) How much was he/she paid ?
5000
10) Who paid him/her ?
Lady Maud
11) Where was the necklace hidden ?
Park
12) Was the necklace insured ?
Yes
With the crime solved you can now view Nick White's case report.
