JOURNEY 1 Starting Out, Nymph's Cave, Rapids, Sunrise Moutain 2 Dwarves' Tunnels, Snakebite, Elfhome 3 Mines, Mill, Castle 4 Plains, Zan, Endgame JOURNEY Part 1 JOURNEY is not that complicated an adventure and requires very little in the way of strategy. Remember the usual suggestions for Infocom games: Take lots of notes (although mapping is not required), and save often. And you can never go wrong by choosing Examine, Get Advice, or Tell Legend/Tell Story as an option. You and your merry band begin your journey in the village of Lavos on your way to find the great Wizard Astrix. Enter the shop, have Praxix examine the map, and reply. Tag should buy the map; the food is not necessary. Exit and proceed. You next come to a tavern. Enter and have Esher look around while Praxix examines the customers. As you exit, Esher will show up with the rather disreputable appearing Minar, who will offer to join your party. Don't judge a book by its cover: Accept the offer. The next scene is a fork in the road. Before you decide which way to go, however, have Praxix tell legends of Wizards and Magic. When he talks about magic, Praxix will cast a small levitation spell, using his earth and air essences. Afterwards, you will notice a residue of powder on your fingers. Note the essences used, as well as the nature (fine, medium-textured, or coarse), and color of the residue. Throughout the game, whenever Praxix casts a spell in Tag's presence, keep track of any of those things: essences, texture, and color of residue. Also note that sometimes a pinch of a third essence enhances the spell's effect. The reason for all this will not become apparent until the endgame; unless you've been keeping track earlier, or have conveniently-spaced save positions, you may be sunk. Note: The colors and textures are not constant from game to game, so you cannot merely start from the beginning to check something out, and restore to your endgame position. You have been warned. Back to the fork. Have Minar scout. He will tell you that bandits await you to the left, but who wants to live forever? Choose the left anyway. You will (surprise!) be ambushed by bandits, but at least you'll be ready for them. Have Minar flank (Bergon is too big and obvious), and select combat. Victory is yours! The next morning, have Minar scout again. He'll discover a cairn and three bodies. Esher should examine the bodies, and Praxix should examine both the bodies and the cairn. This will net you some more essences (essence management is a major aspect of the game), and a mysterious reagent. Proceed. Have Minar scout, and he'll notice some smoke. Follow the smoke, and you'll arrive at a hut. Knock, and after you enter, have Minar look around. You'll find the hut's occupant is the leader of the band that included the three dead men you discovered. As you exit, he'll throw you a bag. Have Praxix examine the bag, and he'll find more essence. Proceed. You next find yourself at a stream. If you have Praxix examine the sky, he'll tell you it looks like rain. Esher should examine the stream; he'll notice what appears to be gold. Choose FIND GOLD twice, and just before it looks like Tag will be washed away by a wave, have Praxix cast Elevation at Tag. (Otherwise, you'll lose your map and the game.) The upshot is that Praxix will find some water essence (not gold) which will be indispensable later. Your next stop is a lake, where Minar will become separated from the group. Don't panic. You will catch up to him soon enough. Tag can enter the lake and dive, but he won't find anything. You will proceed to the mouth of a cave. Praxix should cast Glow on his staff (note the essences used), and the party can enter the cave. Proceed to a subterranean pool. Choose ENTER POOL, Tag will dive in, and find a tube to another pool. Leave the tube. You'll surface near a room where Minar is kept prisoner. Hide. After his captor leaves, you can explore either the narrow path or the wide path. The narrow path leads to a small chamber with a stone cover set into the floor. Pick up the cover and dive in. Nothing here? Well, surface and go back to visit Minar. This time choose the wide path. Go to the smelly room on the left. If you've been trying to pick up the torches in other rooms, you'll be happy to know that this torch is removable. Take the cover and dive in. Nothing there, eh? Well, be patient. You'll return to the junction. This time go right, and you'll find the nymphs' treasury. Following the cardinal rule of adventure games: Take anything not nailed down! Pick up the blue amulet. If you try to return to the junction, you'll find something holding you back. Proceed to yet another room with a pool. Pick up the cover, drop the amulet in the pool, and now try to go back to the junction. This time you succeed. Return to the smelly pool, dive, and as if by magic, you'll find the amulet. Pick up the amulet, surface, go back to Minar to free him, and back to the cave. Praxix can tell the Legend of the Nymphs, and then you can proceed. You are next standing on the bank of a raging river, which you need to cross. Examine the river, and have Minar scout. Your only way across is by raft, but you want to give yourself as much room as possible. Head upstream as far as you can then, build your raft. (It's a good idea to save here!) Launch the raft, and choose CROSS four times. If you do it right, you'll be safe on the opposite shore. Your goal -- the Sunrise Mountain -- is in sight at last. But which road to take? Now is a good time to have Praxix examine the map. Have him cast Glow on the map, and examine it again. Before you know it, you'll be before Astrix the Great (and if he's so great, why doesn't he go on this journey, huh?), who will give you your assignment. You must seek out seven stones. The first four will give you clues to the whereabouts of the fifth and sixth, and those two will tell you where to find the last. Fortunately, you lucked upon one on your way there, thanks to Tag's "five finger discount." You're a quarter of the w to finishing the first stage of your assignment. JOURNEY Part 2 After leaving Astrix, you will find yourself with no option to have Minar scout. He will disappear (again!). The party will split up to look for him, and Tag should look around. He'll find a strange rune which he can't understand, so he should get help. What he's found is an entrance to the underground realm of the dwarves. The door will open as if by magic. Before you enter, have Praxix tell the Legends of Dwarves, Gates, and Reth a-Zar, then enter. Proceed, and stand twice. You'll be accosted by dwarves. Parley and tell the truth (always tell the truth -- you're the good guys). The dwarves' leader, Agrith, will offer his son, Hurth, as an escort. Accept. Hurth has lots of interesting stories, which he should tell. Pay close attention to his story of the elves, and take notes on the few words of Elvish he speaks (I believe these are constant for each trip). You will be at the base of some stairs. Go up, and take the left stairway to the Sunset Tower. When you come to a break in the stairs, have Praxix first cast Elevation at Bergon, and then, cast Wind. Leave Esher behind holding the rope and continue up to the Tower. Have Hurth look around, and he'll find a seemingly useless spyglass, which Tag should pick up. Go down twice to the foot of the stairs and proceed. Have Hurth examine the runes, then enter. You can scout, or go right or left without making any progress; obviously, linear thinking is not the answer. Have Praxix cast Flare (noting the color and texture of the residue on his fingers), which will illuminate you in more ways than one. Cast Elevation on Hurth. Have Hurth scout, then take the passage to the right. Uh-oh! Orcs! Here you must choose FIGHT to rescue Minar. But the well-planned battle is half-won before it starts. Have Praxix cast Mud, then send Hurth to flank. (You're still watching Praxix's fingers after casting, aren't you?) Choose the COMBAT option three times. You will defeat the orcs and rescue Minar, but at a terrible cost. Agrith will give you the brown amulet, and you are halfway through your first assignment. Return. Proceed three times. Not very encouraging down this hallway, is it? Better g back. But Praxix will stay to deal with the unseen menace. Have him cast Tremor, and besides blocking the way, he will discover some earth essence. You'll then be back at the bottom of the stairs. Go up, then right, and exit through the gate. The next morning begins inauspiciously with Minar being bitten by a poisonous snake. Your party must split up to look for the antidote. Bergon will proceed toward some rather ominous trees, so have him return. You'll next follow Praxix's progress. He'll proceed until he barks his shin on a stump, which he should examine. Have Praxix cast Blaze on the stump, then go down. The time to explore will be later; send him back to the campsite, and he'll find some antidote on the way. Finally, you will follow Tag. Choose the stream path, and he'll find a mysterious woman sitting by the stream. Don't be shy, Tag! Approach her (twice). She's obviously an elf, so talk to her. No habla Ingles? Well, try out your Elvish impersonation. You know only four words in Elvish from Hurth's story, but that's enough. Identify yourself as a friend of Agrith ("b'ran-Agrith" every time I played, although that might vary). This will satisfy her doubts, and she'll return with you to cure Minar. She will offer to take you to her people's home, but decline the offer for the time being. Instead, retrace Praxix's route. Go down, then proceed. Have Esher examine the walls, and he'll find hawkbane -- a useful herb. Proceed, and it will look like you're in a maze. Don't explore. Just go back three times, and you'll find a way up. Take it, then go to the elf home. You have come at a bad time because a fire immediately breaks out! Be good guests. Follow the elves, and have Praxix cast (what else?) Rain. If you've played the game properly up to this point, you should have enough water essence to do the job properly. You'll be the heroes of the day and be presented with your reward: the green amulet. Before you know it, you'll be whisked away back to Astrix's Tower where he will give you the last amulet: the red Wizard's Stone. The old fox had it all along. Astrix will work some mumbo-jumbo and send you off to look for the two stones. One lies deep within the ground, the other in an Elvish place long forgotten. You have a long way to go, friends, but, unfortunately, Minar will not be accompanying you. I don't understand why not. After all, the man has been nearly drowned, trussed up by nymphs, captured by orcs, and bitten by a poisonous snake. Some folks don't know how to enjoy themselves! JOURNEY Part 3 The four of you should take the northernmost route, and you'll be back at one of the dwarvish gates. Enter and confront the apparition. This is no ghost; it's Hurth, restored to life! But how? Have Hurth tell his stories of Agrith and Cedrith. Then, head down into the bowels of the earth. Hm, let's explore this level, shall we? There are others down here, some quite unfriendly, so have Hurth scout. Orcs? Again? Let's avoid them for now, and go around them. Take the passage to the right which leads to a strange gate with runes. Have Praxix read them. The word he should speak is the first word ("Lorem" in all the games I played; it may be a constant). He'll find some handy essences, but no way out. It's time to go back and face the orcs. Choose PAST ORCS. Praxix will go ahead to create a diversion. A few spells will accomplish that goal; most involve fire, and, believe me, you'll need all of the fire essence you have later...trust me! Have him cast Tremor instead, then have him cast Elevation at himself to lift himself out of harm's way. Proceed, scout, and proceed again with the orcs nipping at your heels. You'll be in an apparent cul-de-sac with the sound of water nearby. Have Praxix cast Tremor again. It will take a while, so you might indulge in a little combat while you wait. Soon enough, you'll be dumped unceremoniously into an underground river. When you surface, Bergon will be severely wounded and in dire straits. Mere doctoring will be of little use. Serious magic is needed. Have Praxix mix the reagent with water essence, and then use the mixture on Bergon. A Heal spell is the apparent result. Breathe a sigh of relief and proceed. Enter the tunnel. You'll hear noise from the left, but go right for the time being. Take the crude path, examine the cleft, and choose to go down. When asked whom you want to send, choose Hurth. This is, after all, his turf, so to speak. Have him look around. He'll find a key, which you should examine. Hurth can then climb back up, and you can go back and try the ornate path. Examine the door, then (key in hand) open it. Have Praxix examine the vault. It's too perfect to be the work of human (or even Elvish) hands, so it must be magic. Praxix should mix the reagent with fire essence, then use the mixture on the vault. Poof! Examine the coffin, then examine the white stone you find inside. One down, and one to go. Return to the base of the stairs. This time go left toward the tapping noise. Ignore the old mine; it's a death trap and unnecessary. Enter the new mine, then enter the cleft, and examine the walls. Nobody's home, it appears, so go back. The tapping resumes, so enter the cleft, examine the walls again, and a grizzled old miner will appear. Ask the miner about orcs and the mine. He'll drop some red rocks, which Tag should pick up. You're done here. Go back three times to return to the surface of the world. You've seen these trees before, and you don't like them. This time you have to find a way through. Proceed twice, then have Praxix cast a Flare spell (once again paying close attention to the essences used, and the texture and color of the residue on his fingers afterwards). The trees will part, allowing you to proceed. Now it's time for "Praxix's Excellent Adventure," as he becomes separated from the party, and finds himself talking to a tree. Examine the talking tree, then ask it about paths and your location. Choose the Milky Way path, and you'll wind up at an old mill with a rusted and decrepit mechanism outside. Cast Glow (probably using up your last bit of fire essence) on Praxix's staff, and head down. The way behind you will collapse, and you will eventually have to find your way out of the mill. This is the single most complicated puzzle in the game. You will definitely want to save here, and perhaps at a couple more places along the way. To your right is a control room with a strange device. Examination of the device indicates that it consists of two identical dials, each surrounded by six unfamiliar runes, and a single black button. To the left are three pits. The first, which you can enter and exit easily, contains valuable essences (earth and fire), but you have no way to mine them. The second contains a pickax, but the only way to enter is a one-way trip using the Elevation spell. The third is also too deep to climb into or out of and has an exit on the bottom. The manipulation of the pickax and exit are controlled by the device. In any of the pit rooms, have Praxix cast Wind. This will blow away the dust and reveal runes on the walls. Make a note of what the runes are for the essences pit and the pickax pit. The rune for the exit pit is illegible; ignore it for the moment. Now restore to your earlier saved position so you won't have wasted the air essence you'll desperately need later. Return to the control room. Turn the arrow on the left dial to the rune in the pickax pit room. Turn the arrow on the right dial to the rune in the essences pit room. Press the black button. Return to the first pit room, then go down. You have transported the pickax into that pit, and you may now mine essences. Go up and back to the control room, then save your game again. Now, turn the arrow on the left dial to the rune in the essences pit room (to which the right dial is currently turned). You know that the rune for the third room (the exit pit) is one of the four you haven't yet seen, so the following is a matter of trial and error. Turn the right dial to one of the four runes, press the black button, immediately go back to the pits, and go down. You will either find yourself in a bottomless pit with no exit, or in a bottomless pit with an exit. Obviously, you've got to keep trying until you find the latter. Follow the light and you'll be outside. Next, you will find Praxix by a strange castle on an artificial island, accessible only by a very dubious bridge. Gird your loins and cross, then proceed. Once again, the way in collapses, and you'll have to find a way out. Examine the moat and the water in it. That's not the way. Examine the ruins, then go to the tower, and go up. You will meet a strange character named Umber, who will offer to join you. Ignore your better instincts and accept. Ask him to tell you the story of the castle, which is ancient and perhaps of Elvish origin. Very interesting! Go down, and Umber will reveal to you a chest filled with stones. Mix some reagent with fire essence, then use the mixture on the stones. It will reveal the Earth Stone, which Praxix can take. Go back, then return to the courtyard, where you'll be told Praxix is trapped with no way off the island. Don't you believe it for a second! A few spells might work here, but the best one to use (others use up essences you'll need) is Lightning. Cast Lightning on the ruins. This will alert the rest of the party as to your whereabouts, and the story's point of view switches to them. They will not reach you immediately, however. Proceed, and Hurth will come down with a bad case of the "whim-whams." Have Esher examine him; he will prescribe hawkbane which, fortunately, you found earlier in the game (I hope). Proceed again, and Bergon will be ensnared in a foot rope trap. Attempts to free him will prove fruitless; you might as well hide until the orcs come to take him captive. Follow the orcs, then get advice. You'll need Bergon, so you have to rescue him. Fighting won't work this time. You must be very sneaky. Have Tag check the inventory. He will discover that the red rock from the new mine makes a dandy invisibility powder. Use the red rock, then you can get into the camp to locate and free Bergon. Run for it rather than use more of your limited supply of red powder. The game will quickly take you to Praxix and return you to Astrix. He will take the two stones, hold them together, and announce that to retrieve the last stone -- the dreaded Anvil -- you must Journey to the mysterious Misty Isle. There, you will complete your quest. JOURNEY Part 4 After leaving Astrix, you will find yourself in a great open plain with a shadowy creature circling overhead. Have Hurth examine it (why he can see so well in sunlight after spending his entire life underground is one of the great mysteries of life), and you'll find it is a demon rider on a great black bird. You can't run, but you _can_ hide. Choose HIDE, but there's no shelter. Still, this will give Praxix the idea for a fog spell. Mix air essence with water essence, and the result will shield you from the demon's gaze. Proceed. You are now in a cave, waiting out the rain, so you can proceed south to the seaport city of Zan. You are not alone in the cave, however, as you soon discover. The mysterious and annoyingly cheerful Umber is there. Stay for a minute, and ask Umber about the mudwargs -- nasty beasts who don't like darkness. Umber will tire himself out talking, and fall asleep. Have Praxix examine Umber's sack, and he will discover a strange black rock which can be crushed into powder. Mix some of the black reagent with fire essence, and use the mixture on Praxix's staff. The resultant darkness will allow you to leave, and you will soon be in Zan. Enter the curio shop, and have everyone but Praxix look around. When the proprietor asks if you're looking for something in particular, have Praxix reply. You'll be shown some stones, including a strange grey rock. Try to buy the grey rock and you'll be quoted a price out of your budget. Fortunately, old light-fingered Tag picked up the spyglass in the Sunset Tower, and can trade it for the grey rock which -- you guessed it -- can be used as yet another reagent. (For a slightly different approach, save, then have Praxix try stealing the rock. You will eventually have to restore.) You will leave the curio shop and proceed. You have three choices: the inn, the wharf, or the tavern. Go to the tavern first. Examine the other table. They're talking about you (even if they don't notice you sitting next to them). Get advice. Have Praxix cast Invisibility on Tag, then eavesdrop three times. In the course of their conversation, they will mention that all the ship captains have been bribed to dispose of you except for one drunken sot whom they weren't able to reach. (His name changes from game to game, so write it down.) Order a meal, then exit. Go to the wharf. When the harbormaster asks if you have a particular captain in mind, reply YES, then type in the name you overheard in the Tavern. This man is the skipper of the Zephyr, so go there. When he asks your destination, tell the truth, and accept his offer to take you somewhere nearby the Misty Isle. Now, it's time to go to the inn. (Save the game here and try some experiments with the grey reagent. Combine it with various essences, and use the resultant mixtures on the desk clerk. One in particular will suggest itself not too much further down the road in the game. Restore to your earlier position and continue.) Check into the inn, and accept the clerk's offer. But you know he's in cahoots with the bad guys, so instead of going up to your room, exit and camp out. The inn will catch fire in the middle of the night, and you'll be accused of arson and tossed in the clink. Believe me, the alternative is far worse! The jail appears escape proof, but, luckily, Praxix has his pouch of powders with him. Mix the grey reagent with the fire essence, then cast Tremor. This will bring the sheriff. Use the mixture on the sheriff. He will become your mind slave, open the cell door, and set you free. You'll hotfoot down to the Zephyr, and climb aboard just before she sails. On board the Zephyr you can check out the sky, sea, and crew, but eventually you can only choose RELAX...a bad move because a storm immediately hits, the captain is washed overboard, and the crew abandons ship! Don't panic. Have Praxix cast Elevation on Tag to get a bird's-eye view of your location, then cast Wind. You will head out of the fog toward your destination. Before you get there, you will immediately be confronted by the demon, who will strike Praxix a stunning blow before your wizard can do anything to defend you. Tag must pick up Praxix's pouch, and figure out how to cast a Lightning spell at the demon. As soon as he picks up the pouch, save the game, and get out your notes. Tag figures that the Lightning spell uses the fire and water essences, which is essentially (but not 100%) correct. He must figure out which of the eight powders in the pouch are which. A process of deductive reasoning is called for. There are four colors of powders: red, white, blue, and yellow. Each comes in two consistencies: fine and coarse. Each game assigns the colors and textures differently, but by comparing your knowledge of the spells cast by Praxix earlier in the game with your observations regarding the texture and color of the residue left on his fingers after the spell was cast, you should be able to deduce which two powders to use. Elevation, as you know, uses air and earth essences; Flare uses air and fire; and Mud (it is safe to assume) requires earth and water essences. Using the chart below (for those of you who don't remember your third grade art class) and a little common sense, you should be able to figure out which two colors are fire and water: Red and White create Pink Red and Blue create Violet Red and Yellow create Orange White and Blue create Pale Blue White and Yellow create Pale Yellow Blue and Yellow create Green If the residue is ever medium-textured, you know that a combination of fine and coarse was used. With a minimum of trial and error, you should be able to combine the two powders that will produce Lightning when cast. Unfortunately, the result isn't all that impressive. About this time, you should remember Praxix telling you that adding a pinch of a third essence makes the spell stronger. Restore and try one more time. When you get an opportunity, add a pinch of what you've deduced to be EARTH essence (again, it may take a couple tries to be sure). Cast your mixture again. If all goes well, the demon rider's corporeal form will evaporate, and you can retrieve his amulet. At this point, the remainder of the game plays itself, and you will be given (under Musings) a short list of things to go back and try. But has good really triumphed forever? Who is the mysterious Umber? And can Bergon really catch any fish? Tune in (we hope) for JOURNEY II! JOURNEY is published by Infocom and distributed by Mediagenic. This walkthru is copyright (c) 1989 by Paul J. Grant. All rights reserved.