The Karniferous Forest
David Rushall
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Hints & Tips by Eq
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OBJECTS AND THEIR USES
You can carry up to 15 objects at once. Initial room numbers are in brackets.
#1: Transmitter (43): the droid always stays in the room that contains this object.
#2: Pickaxe (13): to kill the giant, and to dig in room 27 to find the mine entrance; it can also be
used for other digging instead of the spade, but wastes much more time.
#3: Match (41): to light the lantern.
#4: Spanner (44): useless.
#5: Key (dug up in 31): to start the boat engine.
#6: Book (79): useless, but if studied, is seen to be called Simple Astrology (is this a hint?).
#7: Torch (96): useless as it cannot be lit.
#8: Pen (98): useless.
#9: Rope (45): to tie up the boat at the island, which prevents it from drifting away when you
disembark.
#10: Detenator [sic] (117): for use with the explosive.
#11: Lantern (106): light it with the match as a permanent light source; otherwise you cannot move
around in the mines.
#12: Coal (132): to kill the soapbath.
#13: Spade (42): to dig up the key, the explosive, and the bucket. (See also #2 Pickaxe.)
#14: Explosive (dug up in 60): take this and the "detenator" to room 105 and drop them
both to arm the bomb.
#15: Stone (54): to kill the skeleton.
#16: Red herring (137): useless.
#17: Bucket (dug up in 122): to kill the dragon.
#18: Sword (22): to kill the bear, orc, wolf (not werewolf!), dwarf, giant rat, minor, and norice.
(See also #32 Crossbow.)
#19: Camera (92): used in room 99 (DEVELOPE FILM) to obtain the photograph.
#20: Mirror (99): to kill the gorgon.
#21: Coin (94): to bribe the ghost.
#22: Flint (135): useless.
#23: Leaf (18): useless.
#24: Gold idol (82): useless.
#25: Crucifix (85): to kill the werewolf.
#26: Scales (130): useless.
#27: Sheepskin (102): useless.
#28: Photograph (obtained from the camera): useless, but if studied, is seen to show a strange red
symbol (is this a hint?).
#29: Pear (63): useless.
#30: Apple (38): useless.
#31: Seal (87): useless.
#32: Crossbow (36): to kill any of the same monsters that can be killed with the sword.
#33: Cheese (70): useless.
#34: Box of cigars (found in 97 by opening the globe): useless.
#35: Drill (110): drill through the nearby rockfall to escape the mines.
#36: Steel rod (126): useless.
#37: Ticket (9): useless, but if studied, is seen to be for Twelfth Night (is this a hint?).
#38: Telescope (52): useless.
TREASURES
These 12 objects are special, as they count towards your score at the end of the game. Many of them
have no other purpose.
Pisces: Red herring.
Aquarius: Bucket.
Scorpio: Sword.
Libra: Scales.
Aries: Sheepskin.
Taurus: Photograph.
Gemini: Pear.
Cancer: Apple.
Leo: Seal.
Sagittarius: Crossbow.
Capricorn: Cheese.
Virgo: Box of cigars.
MONSTERS
Monsters patrol certain regions of the map and will attack you on sight -- even while you are typing
-- though they only move between locations when you take your turn. (You die after 30 hits.) Consult
the object list to see which weapons will work; you only need to attack once with the correct weapon
for a guaranteed kill. You must dispatch the ghost and the dragon when you meet them, as they will
kill you instantly if you try to leave.
The numbers listed below are the rooms that a monster patrols.
#1: Bear: 22, 21, 20, 19, 18, 14, 11, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 34, 33, 32, 27, 36, 35, 23
#2: Orc: 7, 1, 25, 24, 26, 1, 7, 1, 25, 24, 26, 1, 7, 1, 25, 24, 26, 1, 7, 1
#3: Giant crab: 51, 50, 52, 53, 54, 53, 52, 50, 51, 50, 52, 53, 54, 53, 52, 50, 51, 50, 51, 50
#4: Wolf: 60, 59, 58, 55, 56, 55, 58, 62, 61, 63, 64, 66, 47, 48, 49, 63, 61, 59, 62, 59
#5: Dwarf: 68, 67, 68, 67, 68, 67, 68, 67, 68, 67, 68, 67, 68, 67, 68, 67, 68, 67, 68, 67
#6: Skeleton: 85, 84, 92, 91, 83, 82, 81, 80, 79, 78, 77, 76, 75, 74, 73, 85, 84, 92, 84, 85
#7: Giant rat: 69, 70, 86, 87, 88, 72, 71, 70, 69, 70, 86, 87, 88, 72, 71, 70, 69, 70, 86, 70
#8: Ghost: 103
#9: Dragon: 104
#10: Werewolf: 97, 96, 95, 94, 93, 101, 100, 97, 96, 95, 94, 93, 101, 100, 97, 96, 95, 96, 97, 100
#11: Soapbath: 98, 99
#12: Gorgon: 117, 116, 115, 118, 115, 113, 114, 113, 111, 112, 111, 113, 115, 116, 115, 113, 115,
118, 115, 116
#13: Minor [sic]: 107, 119, 121, 122, 121, 119, 120, 119, 121, 122, 121, 119, 120, 112, 107, 119,
120, 119, 121, 119
#14: Norice: 125, 124, 126, 124, 123, 127, 128, 130, 129, 129, 129, 128, 127, 136, 134, 136, 127,
123, 124, 125
There is one special monster not listed here: the droid, which cannot be killed and always appears
in the room that contains the transmitter (so you will probably want to drop it in an unimportant
location to get rid of him!).
OTHER THINGS TO KNOW
The game has a clock that starts at 18:00. If it reaches 24:00, Doctor Karnige's enzyme is
released and you have failed. Furthermore, after you arm the bomb, you have only 10 minutes to flee
to the boat. The clock works in "real time" (even while you are typing), and certain
actions, such as digging, immediately advance the clock by several minutes. The game is written in
very slow BASIC, so I doubt there is enough time to finish with a perfect score.
At the helm of the boat (room 43), START ENGINE (with the key) to travel to the island or back
again. Remember to TIE BOAT with the rope at the island, or it will drift away! (It's not
necessary to tie the boat at the jetty.)
In the start location (room 1), you can CLIMB to get into the tree. From the beach on the island
(rooms 50 through 54), SWIM will take you to room 137. Swimming back again takes you to 51.
Room 90 has a keypad, where you must TYPE the correct four-digit code to unlock the north exit. The
code is the current game clock time, as displayed at top right.
You can type HELP to receive rhyming hints in certain locations.
If you want to cheat, you can break into the BASIC program and change various variables, e.g. LET
DEAD=30 to refill your stamina, or LET CELL=... to transport yourself to a numbered room. Then
CONTINUE and enter the LOOK command.
SCORING
Your percentage score at the end of the game is as follows:
* 24% = 2% for each of the 12 treasures you are carrying.
* 28% = 2% for each of the 14 monsters you killed.
* 30% = 1% for each remaining stamina point (reduced by 1 each time a monster hit you).
* 18% = if you were safely on the boat when the bomb detonated.
