Secret Service 43/SSERVCD_43.bin/cd/ramaso.txt

Text File | 1997-01-16 | 53KB | 1,601 lines

A significant   characteristic   of
Rama  is its  randomization of play
components,   affecting   inventory
item   locations,  the   timing  of
animation sequences, a few puzzles,
and  certain  destination locations
in the central plains. For example,
many inventory items  have no fixed
location  where they  may be  found
- if   you   need   something   you
haven't  found   yet,  you're  just
going  to have  to search carefully
for  it (fortunately,  items do not
seem to migrate within a particular
game).   As  a   result,  it's  not
possible   t   o   give   an  exact
step-by-step      procedure     for
progressing through the game - your
mileage may vary. If you can't find
an item that you need for a puzzle,
continue  on with  the game  and it
may  become  available  later.  The
game designers' purpose in creating
these  randomizations is  not clear
- they  change only  the details of
the game, not the basic concepts or
gameplay  strategy, and  add little
to game replayability.
As a basic strategy, pay particular
attention   to   the   ground,   as
artifacts may often be found there.
A painstaking,     but    effective
approach  to   moving  through  the
environment  is to  turn completely
around  at each  node position  and
check each view carefully.
Much of the  inventory turns out to
be  "red  herrings"  -  unneeded in
your actual  gameplay sequence, but
perhaps  confusing your  choices at
various points  and making gameplay
a bit more complex.
To  prepare  for  several  tasks in
Bangkok and  other locations, brush
up  on  your   base-8  and  base-16
arithmetic skills.

Project Newton Crew:

ID  Character          Game Role

002 Yourself           Adventurer
004 Shigeru Takagishi  Scientist
005 David Brown        Mission
                       Commander
006 Francesca Sabatini Video
                       Journalist
007 Otto Heilmann      Chief
                       Security
                       Officer
008 Michael O'Toole    Codemaster
009 Richard Wakefield  Chief
                       Engineer
010 Reggie Wilson      Print
                       Journalist
011 Irina Turgenyev    Career
                       Cosmonaut
012 Nicole des Jardins Medical
                       Officer
    Hiro Yamanaka      IBI Agent
    Janos Tabori       IBI Agent
    Valeriy Borzov     Your
                       predecessor,
                       now deceased

All   characters   are   from   the
Clarke/Lee book Rama II

After  the  game  introduction  and
animation    of     Nicole,    move
F (forward), L  (left), F2 (forward
2x) to the  computer console. Click
on it, then on  the MAIL command to
bring up your vidmail. Each message
adds a bit to  the backstory of the
game  and  introduces  you  to  the
basic  personalities  of  the other
astronauts.  In   particular,  note
Wakefield's    Falstaff    creation
(you'll see  more of it  later) and
O'Toole's favorite primes sequence

41,43,47,53,...,1601

or

x^2 - x + 41, for 1 <= x <= 40

The cable car  code is derived from
the  first  two  elements  of  this
sequence: 4143.

Move L  and watch the  animation of
an avian flying by. Move F4 L F and
descend  the ladder.  Move R  F and
click  on the  nuclear device. Pick
up  the locker  #6 key  next to the
INACTIVE  light.  Go  back  up  the
ladder  and move  F  R  F R  to the
lockers.  Open Locker  #2 with  the
key in  your inventory and  pick up
the   ISA   multi-tool   and   your
wristcomp. The wristcomp  has a map
feature  that  will  often  come in
handy  during  gameplay.  Open  the
unlocked Locker #9 and pick up your
trusty  sidekick, Puck.  If you get
a vidmail  message   from  Sabatini
requesting  her  cigarette lighter,
you can  ignore it. Open  Locker #6
with the key  in your inventory and
pick  up   two  pattern  artifacts,
a blank  key, three  symbol plaques
and   a   datacube.   Combine   the
datacube  with  your  wristcomp  to
read  a  message  from  Sabatini to
Brown.  Use the  blank key  to open
Locker  #7 and  pick up  an optical
lens  and a  datacube containing an
encoded  message  from  Heilmann to
his underlings. If  you spend a lot
of  time  at  the  hub camp, you'll
eventually get a fri endly reminder
from Nicole to come on down.
From   the  lockers,   move  L   F2
R F  L and  get in  the cable  car.
Enter   the  code   from  O'Toole's
vidmail  message and  press the red
button. Enjoy the  ride down to the
base    camp,     with    a    rare
third-person POV.

Central Plains

Move R  F to the table  and pick up
a note  from Nicole  and a datacube
(both shameless  plugs for Clarke's
upcoming   book   3001).   Move  L2
F R and open the storage box on the
other  table. Inside,  pick up  any
pattern   artifact(s)   and  symbol
plaque(s)   you  may   find.  Other
astronauts   add   items   to  this
storage box  from time to  time, so
check   back   on   it   (and   the
refrigerator) later if  you seem to
be missing an item. Move B L2 F and
watch  the animation  of Turgenyev.
Move   F3  out   onto  the  central
plains.    To     identify    fixed
destinations on  the central plains
radar   map,  we'll   use  a  clock
analogy.
It's  often possible  to enter  and
exit a central plains location from
more than one  direction. There are
a few  randomized locations  on the
central    plains    that   contain
a moving biot symbol. You can check
these  out for  information on  how
the  biots  move  and  act,  but be
careful  not  to  get  in  front of
a triangular sextet  of crab biots,
or    you'll   get    trashed!   In
particular,  be sure  to visit  the
centipede  biot  location  (4 green
squares  in  a  row)  and  pick  up
a symbol plaque if it drops one.
Find  Nicole's  position  (012) and
watch  the animation  of her.  Back
out to  the radar map  and head for
the biot garage  area at 3 o'clock.
Move  F L  F to  the cube  of alien
plastic containing a symbol plaque;
you'll  return for  this one  later
after  the plastic  is melted. Move
R2  F2  and  get  a  datacube  from
Reggie   Wilson   describing   crab
biots. Move L2 F R F R F R and pick
up a  red crystal from  the remains
of   the    broken   sphere.   Move
L F  R F  into the  biot garage and
let Puck describe the various types
of biot inside:


Biot Type      Purpose

Centipede      Repairs other biots
Mantis         Uses colored light
Crane          Lifts heavy loads
Crab           Trash collector
Shark          Water-borne
Spider         Assassin

Exit  the  biot  garage,  move L F2
R F and be sure  to check for items
on  the  ground   under  the  large
slanting   building.   At   various
points, you may be interrupted with
an animation sequence  in which you
are given an inventory item (symbol
plaque,  optical  lens,  etc.) from
one of the astronauts. Move back to
the radar  map and head  for London
at 1 o'clock.
Move  F  and  listen  to Takagishi.
It's  a  little  hard  to  pick  up
through  his  accent,  but  he does
make a reference  to a "pattern" in
the   pulsing  of   the  forcefield
blocking  entry to  the red  London
building  ahead. If  you count  the
individual     pulses     of    the
forcefield, you'll  note that after
every ninth pulse  there is a short
pause  during  which  the  field is
off.  If  you  time  it  right, the
pause will give  you enough time to
move through the forcefield without
getting fried.  After you've passed
through,   move  L   and  pull  the
tan-colored drawer to  turn off the
forcefield.   Note   the  encircled
triangle   at   the   top   of  the
forcefield switch -  you'll need to
use that  later. Pick up  any items
lying on  the ground. Move  R2 F to
the London entrance.
Click on the  small flanking column
to the  right, having a  red design
on it. This  is the London entrance
puzzle.  Pick a  symbol plaque from
your   inventory    that   has   an
appearance   appropriate   for  the
pattern  displayed   by  the  other
eight    plaques;    for   example,
a horizontally-split
yellow-and-green pentagon  with two
white and two  black dots. You have
undoubtedly  picked  up  some  "red
herrings" along the way, so examine
your  choice  carefully.  When  the
correct  plaque  has  been  placed,
you'll  hear  the  sound  of  t  he
London entrance door opening.
Move  F2 and  and turn  all the way
around   checking   for   inventory
items,   looking    in   particular
between   the    decorated   column
supports.  Also  check  the doorway
through  which you  entered and the
doorway on the opposite side of the
room. To the  left, you can operate
a device showing various aspects of
the   Rama   spacecraft,  including
a red sphere that seems to show the
locations of various species inside
Rama.  Another  sequence  shows the
fabrication of  the Rama spacecraft
shell,    but    a    more   likely
construction  method (at  least for
humans)        would        involve
hollowing-out an existing asteroid.
On the  opposite side of  the room,
zoom in on the left panel and place
your pattern artifacts to create an
oval  representation  of  New  York
island  in Rama's  cylindrical sea.
When complete, the oval shows a map
through  a  maze  of  corridors  to
three plazas. Zoom  in on the right
panel and place  your six remaining
pattern   artifacts.   Getting  the
order right is tricky, descriptions
may help:

Left to right:

1.Yellow  island in  purple sea  at
center     2.Italy-shaped    yellow
protuberance   at    lower   center
3.Small  rectangular  yellow region
at  lower  center  edge 4.Irregular
yellow  region  extending  down  to
lower  center edge  5.Single yellow
island  in purple  region at  lower
edge  6.Several  yellow  islands in
purple region at lower edge

When  complete,  the  display shows
a map  of the  central plains, with
red   dots   representing  artifact
locations    and    white   smudges
providing close-ups. Left to right,
the locations are:

Dock  Biot Garage  London Big Wheel
Bangkok

The  second door  puzzle in  London
requires two  symbol plaques. After
you've  opened  the  door,  move F2
R F L F and  watch the animation of
the mantis  biot using a  red laser
(twice) to descend  on an elevator.
Move F2  and pick up  the biot box.
On  examining this  box, you'll see
that  it  looks   like  it  can  be
opened,    perhaps     using    the
triangular button on its back. Have
you  seen   this  triangular  shape
before?

Move  B L  and create  a red  laser
equivalent  from your  inventory by
combining the red crystal shard and
the ISA multi-tool  (use its button
to put it into flashlight mode). To
summon  the elevator,  use the  red
flashlight  on the  laser target in
front of  you. Move B  F and repeat
the laser procedure to descend into
the  sewage  pit.  Explore  the pit
areas  at  the  ends  of  all three
walkways to pick up symbol plaques,
which will be  dirty from the fluid
in the pit. There may also be clean
symbol  plaque(s)  on  the walkways
themselves. Exit the  pit using the
elevator as before.

Facing the door the mantis came out
of, move R F2 R  F2 R F and observe
the  trash  transport  carts.  Move
L to  yet another  door puzzle. The
plaques on this type of door puzzle
are  most easily  identified by the
symbolic  base-3  notation  at  the
bottom;  for  example,  the symbols
represent the  digits 0 0 1  2 0 in
base  3  (which  translates  to  15
decimal).   By   translating  their
base-3 digits, you'll  see that the
symbol  plaques in  the door puzzle
are  arranged in  sequence, left to
right  and top  to bottom.  It then
becomes straightforward to identify
which symbol plaque(s)  you need in
order to fill in  the gap(s) in the
sequence - make a  note of them. Of
course,  the trick  is getting  the
plaques  themselves   and  cleaning
them  if necessary,  for they won't
insert  into the  door puzzle  when
dirty.  Also,  be  aware  that "red
herrings"   may  creep   into  your
inventory;  for   example,  plaques
with  the  correct  base-3 symbols,
but with the other symbols wrong.
With  this goal  in mind,  exit the
London structure and  return to the
forcefield control  switch outside.
Put the biot box on the triangle at
the top  of the switch.  Remove the
symbol  plaque  from  the  now-open
biot box. Move L  F3 to the central
plains  radar  map.  Return  to the
base  camp  and  pick  up  a box of
powder  from  the  refrigerator. Go
back to the radar  map and head for
the Big Wheel area at 10:30.
If you run into Francesca (Princess
Leia  with a  jawbone), she'll give
you  a decryption  card. First  her
cigarette    lighter     and    now
a computer   card   --   she   does
consider  you  to   be  her  gofer,
doesn't she? Go  ahead and load the
card   into  your   wristcomp,  and
you'll be able  to read the encoded
message  from   Heilmann  (subject:
Trinity)   that   you   intercepted
earlier.  You'll  also  be  able to
read any other encoded messages you
happen to come across in the course
of gameplay.
Move F and pick  up a symbol plaque
from the trash  dump transfer tray.
Move B  R F2 R and  pick up a metal
seed  from one  of the  cone-shaped
"plants"  on  the  ground.  Move L2
F R F and pick up a bent rod at the
site  of  the  damaged  biot.  Move
L F2 to the distillation mechanism.
Zoom in on the  central part of the
mechanism and insert the metal seed
into the star-shaped hole at right.
Put  the  box  of  powder  into the
adjacent   receptacle.   Turn   the
thumbwheel  at upper  right to  get
fluid flowing into  the mechanis m.
Move B  and click on  the device at
right  shaped  like  a  pot-bellied
stove.  Press  the  triangular  red
button  to clean  the blue material
off   the    tray.   The   vertical
graduated  tube  at  left indicates
you have  four remaining cleanings.
Find the needed symbol plaque(s) in
your  inventory and  clean each one
by putting it in the tray and using
the red button.
Return  to the  radar map  and find
Wakefield's  position  (009). Watch
the   animation  of   him  and  get
a third optical lens. Return to the
big wheel area and  move to the gun
in the center of the area. Click on
it  to open  its barrel  and insert
the three optical  lenses from your
inventory.  After  the  gun  fires,
return  via  the  radar  map to the
biot  garage area.  Move F  L F and
pick up the  symbol plaque from the
now-melted plastic  cube. This will
probably  give  you  everything you
need to  open the third  door in Lo
ndon. While in this area, check the
trash  dump transfer  tray for  any
artifacts.
Return to London  via the radar map
and go  back to the  closed door at
the  top  of  the  sewage  pit. Use
symbol    plaque(s)    from    your
inventory  to open  the door.  Move
F2 L F L F2  R F R through the biot
demonstration  room.  Click  on the
device to fire a green laser at the
crane  biot and  get it  to disable
the   spider   biot   guard.   Move
R F L  F2 L and  pick up the  alien
palette.  Zoom  in  on  the display
console behind the  spider biot and
pull  the  lever  down  to activate
a video  link  with  the  big wheel
control room yo u'll visit later.
Exit London and return to the radar
map.  Along  the  way,  Nicole will
give  you   a  datacube  describing
Wilson's death, and  Rama will make
a course correction, apparently now
heading  for impact  with Earth. Go
to   Bangkok  at   the  9   o'clock
position on the radar map and solve
another  symbol  plaque  puzzle  to
open  its front  door. This  puzzle
uses  base-2  symbols  rather  than
base-3.
Move F  and use the  three machines
at    left    to    solve    simple
symbol-matching,    counting    and
addition/subtraction  problems.  On
completion  of a  set of  problems,
each machine will open. In the left
machine,      click      on     the
phonograph-like device  to open the
door at the far end of the room. In
the  right machine,  pick up  a red
gem.  Enter into  the first Bangkok
level, a human museum (don't forget
to   keep    hunting   for   symbol
plaques).
After  exploring  the  museum  (and
admiring  the bikini,  if you're so
inclined), move to the elevator car
at the  back of the  room. Click on
the marked post  at center to bring
up  another  symbol  plaque puzzle.
This   puzzle   typically  involves
sequences   of  white,   black  and
circle  sectors, and  requires, for
example, plaques with

 White at 5:30, middle ring
 Black at 3:30, outside ring
 Circle at 5:30, inside ring
 White at 9:30, middle ring
 Black at 6:30, outside ring
 Circle at 12:30, middle ring

Click  on   the  purple  triangular
button  to  take  the  elevator up.
Turn   around  and   enter  a  room
containing     Raman     arithmetic
teaching machines.  The machines on
the right can be used to define the
base-16   Raman    numbers.   After
listening  to  Wakefield's lecture,
solve   the    base-16   arithmetic
problems  using the  three machines
at left. On completion  of a set of
problems,  each machine  will open.
In the  left machine, click  on the
phonograph-like device  to open the
door at the far end of the room. In
the  center  machine  there  are 11
marks  per display  row, and number
buttons range from  0 at upper left
to 15 at lower right. Note that the
base-16  answers  you  must provide
may  contain more  than one  digit;
for example, if  there are 72 marks
shown  in  the  display,  you  must
enter  (4,8)  using  Raman symbols,
since 72  = 4 x 16  + 8. Similarly,
if  there  are  111  symbols in the
display,  you must  use the buttons
for Raman symbols  (6,15); that is,
the button second from the right in
the top row, and  the button at far
right in  the bottom row.  When the
problems in the center machine have
been  completed,  pick  up  a human
icon  from inside  the machine.  In
the  right   machine,  addition  is
symbolized by a  simple hexagon and
subtraction  by   a  circle  inside
a hexagon.  When its  problems have
been  solved, pick  up another  red
gem.
Enter  into  the  main  room of the
second   Bangkok  level,   a  Raman
museum.  Go to  the display  to the
right  of the  Raman furniture  and
pick up a  Raman cutting tool. Note
also the statue of a Raman (looking
like   something   out   of  Yellow
Submarine)  and a  slideshow of the
weird Raman life cycle.
At the far side  of the room, enter
the second  Bangkok elevator. Click
on  the  marked  post  at center to
bring  up  the  last  symbol plaque
puzzle. This puzzle again typically
involves sequences  of white, black
and  circle sectors,  and requires,
for example, plaques with

 White at 10:30, outside ring
 Black at 12:30, middle ring
 Circle at 6:30, inside ring
 White at 12:30, middle ring
 Black at 8:30, middle ring
 Circle at 11:30, middle ring

One or both of these symbol plaques
may   require   cleaning   in   the
distillation  mechanism at  the big
wheel  area;  while  there  you can
free an avian  from the clutches of
the broken biot you saw earlier. To
accomplish  this,  zoom  in  on the
sparking area in  the bottom of the
biot  and  use  your  Raman cutting
tool to sever the electrical cable.
Move B and use the bent rod in your
inventory  to  free  the  avian. Be
sure to  pick up the  red neck ring
the avian gives you.
Return  to the  second elevator  in
Bangkok  and activate  it with your
now-clean  symbol  plaque(s). Again
operate three  arithmetic machines,
this   time   with  rainbow-colored
base-8 octospider numbers:

      0  White
      1  Red
      2  Orange
      3  Yellow
      4  Green
      5  Blue
      6  Dark Purple
      7  Light Purple
      +  Red/white striped
      -  Blue/white striped

As before, complete the problems to
open   the  door   and  obtain   an
octospider  icon  and  a  red  gem.
Enter  into  the  main  room of the
third Bangkok  level, an octospider
museum.   Note    the   interesting
statues    showing    a    pregnant
octospider  and   a  communications
demo. Pick up an indigo-green jewel
on the floor in this room.
Return  to  the  elevator  you just
used and put the three red gems you
have   in    inventory   into   the
receptacle   at  center.   Pick  up
a number  box  showing equivalences
between human, Raman and octospider
number  systems,   coming  in  very
handy later in the game. You're now
finished  with  Bangkok;  return to
the  central plains  radar map  via
the two elevators.
Head for  the big wheel  area. From
the gun at the center of this area,
move F2 D F to the perimeter of the
big wheel, then move L F3 R F2 into
the  control room.  Zoom in  on the
display screen and  press the right
button.   Watch  an   animation  of
a mantis   biot   releasing  spider
biots  from the  biot garage.  Move
B L F2 L F3 R  F6 to the radar map.
Note    that    there    are    new
location(s) on the  radar map where
you can (fatally) encounter a loose
spider  biot.  Return  to  the biot
garage area.  Make your way  to the
back of the biot garage and pick up
the gate lying on the floor.
Return  to  the  big  wheel control
room  and put  the gate  up against
the central pillar.  Using the gate
as  a ladder,  go up  and take  the
blank plaque from  atop the control
pillar.
Return to the  central plains radar
map. For an interesting perspective
with  the Rama  lights on,  you can
revisit the hub  camp by taking the
cable  car  back  up  from the base
camp.  You've now  visited all  the
important  areas   in  the  central
plains, so  you might as  well head
for the docks (iceport) at 4:30 and
meet Brown (005). If you wait a few
minutes,  you'll  get  vidmail from
Nicole  asking  you  to  come there
anyway.  In the  meantime, you  can
track   down  Heilmann   (007)  and
listen to his Rama paranoia. By the
way,  if  you  try  to  go  to  the
iceport   earlier   in   the  game,
you'll be repeatedly warned to stay
away,  and eventually  "fired" from
the expedition.
From  your initial  entry from  the
radar map, move L F R to meet Brown
and  obtain a  datacube. Brown  and
Nicole will block your exit back to
the   central  plains,   so  you're
forced   to  eventually   take  the
icemobile  with Nicole  to New York
island in Rama's frozen cylindrical
sea.   First,  however,   view  the
vidmails from Sabatini, O'Toole and
Takagishi that you  received in the
datacube from Brown.  Also, be sure
to  note the  second nuclear device
on the upper  level of the iceport,
currently inactive as was the first
one  you saw  at the  hub camp. The
bomb's  disarming  code  apparently
consists  of 20  digits, grouped as
a sequence of five 4-digit numbers.
Go on down the ramp and notice that
Nicole    is    sitting    in   the
icemobile's  cockpit (if  you watch
her  from  two  steps  back  on the
lower  platform, she  kind of looks
like one of  those bobbing-head toy
dogs people  used to have  in their
cars).  Join her  in the  icemobile
and change CD's.  Enjoy the ride to
New York island  while listening to
Nicole's chatter.

New York

Don't feel bad when Nicole abandons
you on the New York dock so she can
"look  around"  in  the  icemobile.
Yeah right, she probably just wants
to  hotrod it  on the  ice. Anyway,
you're  on  your   own  again,  and
won't see Nicole (or much of anyone
else) until the end of the game. Go
on up the stairs  and use the alien
palette to open  the doors into New
York. Move through the doors (which
lock   behind  you)   and  pick  up
a datacube lying on  the ground. It
contains a message from Heilmann to
his   underlings,  and   men  tions
a bomb  whose   disarming  code  is
"five   of   (O'Toole's)   favorite
numbers".  Move F3  into the  Avian
Plaza.

Initial Explorations

Looking  up, you'll  get a  view of
the  walls around  the perimeter of
this jewel-shaped plaza, as well as
gaps  at  the  top  and  lower left
indicating passageways  leading out
of  the  plaza.  In  the  distance,
you'll   be   able   to   see   the
cylindrical sea on  the far side of
Rama.  The mapping  feature of your
wristcomp will come in particularly
useful during  your explorations of
New  York;  use  it  frequently  to
maintain   your  bearings   and  to
identify   points    of   interest.
Throughout  New  York,  you'll find
alien  artifacts  in  the  form  of
bi-colored  jewels,  optical tuning
forks and other  devices. Unlike in
the  central plains,  the locations
of these  artifacts do not  seem to
be randomized for  each gameplay of
Rama.

Using  the  following  Avian  Plaza
map:


EXIT TO MAZE    TALL          WHITE
              SCULPTURE       RAMP

AVIAN LAIR

                        MANNA MELON
                            PICTURE


         TETRAHEDRON




RECESS    PURPLE MAT          LATHE




           ENTRANCE
           FROM DOCK

Visit the Raman manna-melon picture
to   the  right   of  the   central
tetrahedron  structure.  Then  make
your  way to  the cul-de-sac behind
the semicircular tank  to the right
of    the    central    tetrahedron
structure.    Zoom   in    on   the
lathe-like   device   having   five
vertical red lights  on it. Put the
blank  plaque  from  your inventory
into      the      similarly-shaped
depression  in  the  center  of the
device.   The    green   triangular
buttons  can  be  used  to move the
yellow-tipped rod  over the plaque;
each  position is  identified by on
e of the red  lights. Each position
(except  the  center  one)  records
a tone onto the  blank plaque. Each
of  the three  tones corresponds to
an initially-locked door in the New
York  maze that  you'll be entering
shortly.  If  the  plaque  has been
recorded  with   the  corresponding
tone, the door  will be opened. The
simplest way to  open all the doors
in the  New York maze  is to record
all  three tones  onto the  plaque,
which  fortunately can  be done  by
moving  the  rod  until  it's fully
extended  and   the  rightmost  red
l ight  is glowing.  If you  remove
the plaque while the rod is in this
position,   it   will   have   been
properly recorded. Use the New York
map  you  first  saw  in  London to
explore  the  maze  passageways. If
you  have trouble  finding the exit
from the  Avian Plaza to  the maze,
find  the  central  tetrahedron and
face  its front  steps (flanked  by
avian and Raman statues), then move
L F  R2 F2.  Inside the  maze, Puck
will point out the location of five
"tuning  fork"  devices;  you  need
only the red and blue ones (see map
above). The color  of a tuning fork
can  be  checked  by  pressing  the
switch on its handle. After picking
the red and blue ones up, make your
way to the Octospider Plaza.

Using the Octospider Plaza map:


             LATHE


GROTTO





                 TETRAHEDRON



     ENTRANCE

and  the mapping  function of  your
wristcomp,  you'll   find  a  lathe
device in a cul-de-sac identical to
the  one  you  found  in  the Avian
Plaza  (in  fact  all  three plazas
have one and the rod position seems
to  be synchronized  between all of
the  lathes).  However,  you  won't
need    it   if    you've   already
programmed  your blank  plaque with
all three door tones.
From   the  plaza   entrance,  move
center-forward      toward      the
aqua-colored  dome, then  move R F2
L and   pick   up   a   green-green
octahedron  lying  on  the  ground.
Move R2 F and pick up a blue filter
from  the ground.  For more  of the
backstory,  move  L2  F  L  F2 R F2
L F  and pick  up Takagishi's video
camera. Remove the datacube from it
and play it  in your wristcomp (the
particular   area   shown   in  the
octospider  lair  is  not  actually
encountered in the game). Using the
New York map,  proceed to the Human
Plaza.
From the plaza  entrance, move R F2
and  note that  access to  the door
opposite  is  prevented  by  a deep
chasm. Looking down, you'll see two
shiny rods  reminiscent of elevator
pistons, so maybe  there's a chance
you  can  bridge   this  gap.  Your
wristcomp map does seem to indicate
some  sort  of  indirect  access to
that area of the  plaza. Move L2 F2
R F R  F and pick  up a blue-yellow
octahedron. Move L2 F  R2 F2 R into
the  lathe cul-de-sac  and pick  up
a green-red octahedron lying in the
corner. Move R F2 R2  F R an d zoom
in  on the  large green tuning-fork
sculpture. Put the blue tuning fork
(the one with a  single red mark on
its      handle)      into      the
similarly-shaped depression  in the
sculpture to  provide matching blue
colors.   Move  L   and  watch  the
animation  of a  mantis biot coming
out of the pyramid and entering the
far door using  a blue laser. Using
the same method you employed inside
London,   prepare   a   blue  laser
simulacrum  by  combining  your ISA
multi-tool flashlight with the blue
filter  in  your  inventory  (first
r emoving   the   red   shard,   if
necessary).  Move  F  and  use  the
light on  the laser target  to open
the  door. Enter  the room  and get
into the blue subway chair.
Click  on the  large red  button to
take the subway counterclockwise to
the  next  station.  Move  F2 R and
note the  nine monitors at  top and
three at bottom. If  you zoom in on
the lower monitors, you'll see that
they each represent a form of Earth
life. Your goal, which will require
visiting  other stations  along the
subway   ring,   is   to   put  the
lifeforms  in  "evolutionary order"
along the top  row of monitors. The
correctness  of any  answer you try
can be checked  simply by returning
to   the  subway   chair  and   the
n immediately re-entering the room.
When  complete,  the  left-to-right
order of images in the upper row of
monitors should be:

      Protozoa
      Ant
      Snail
      Frog
      Cat
      Eagle
      Seal
      Cow
      Elephant

although  it's  not  clear  how the
Ramans  decided  a   cow  was  more
advanced  than a  cat! When  you've
completed  the  puzzle,  go  to the
now-open fourth  subway station and
get  into   another  subway  chair.
Press  the red  button and  exit at
your destination.  Press the yellow
handle to raise the platform in the
distance.  This action  bridges the
chasm.
Return  to   the  Octospider  Plaza
entrance and move L F L and pick up
an  indigo-yellow  octahedron lying
on the  ground. Move R2 F  R F into
the "grotto".
Click on the  bright green pedestal
at  left.  Borrow  the  green-green
jewel   from   your   inventory  to
release    O'Toole's    anniversary
photo. Pick  up the photo  and make
a note  of the  numerical value  on
its back (which varies from game to
game).  Back out  and click  on the
gray-and-white   pedestal   to  the
right.  Use  the  blue-yellow jewel
from     inventory     to    obtain
a yellow-red  octahedron  from  the
pedestal. Back out and click on the
central    pedestal    flanked   by
gold-and-bronze columns. Ignore the
obvious       solicitation      for
a yellow-orange     jewel    (which
you'll never find)  and instead use
your   ISA   multi-tool  flashlight
(without  a filter)  to shine white
light   into  the   prism  on   the
pedestal.  If  the  light  does not
release   the    prism   from   the
pedestal,   try  clicking   on  the
little circular  mirrors about five
times  with  your  hand  cursor  to
re-orient  the prism.  Pick up  the
prism     and     move     B     R3
F L F L F R F to the tetrahedron in
the Octospider  Plaza (although the
grotto  contains a  number of other
interesting  items, you  won't need
any  more of  them). Put  the prism
into  the triangular  hole at left.
Click  on the  inserted prism  with
your   flashlight   to   open   the
tetrahedron door.
Move B  F into the  tetrahedron for
yet  another  color-related puzzle.
Here, the  object is simple  - just
use the three  large slide controls
to mix colors  matching the targets
shown at the top. Press the central
red button  to turn on  the puzzle,
and use the  tan-and-red control at
right  center  to  select  each  of
three colors to match:

Left color:
Left and center  slides all the way
down,
right slide 3/4 of the way up

Center color:
Left slide 3/4 of the way up,
center slide half way up,
right slide all the way up

Right color:
Left slide half way up,
center slide 3/4 of the way up,
right slide 1/4 of the way up

When   the   puzzle   is  complete,
you'll  hear the  sound of  another
door opening, this time in the back
of  the   Octospider  Plaza  (which
you'll visit later).
Return  to  the  Avian  Plaza. From
a position  facing the  front steps
of the central tetrahedron (flanked
by  avian and  Raman statues), move
R F  L2  F2  R  F  R  into a hidden
courtyard.  Zoom  in  on  the  wall
recess and put  the red tuning fork
(the one with four red marks on its
handle)  into  the similarly-shaped
depression  in the  wall recess  to
provide matching  red colors. Click
the tuning fork on the recess again
to move  the white ramp  behind you
into  position at  the open doorway
above. From  the recess, move  B L2
F2  L2 up  the white  ramp and into
the upper room.  Pick up the piston
device lying in the corner.
Move F2  R F R  and zoom in  on the
base of  the tall sculpture  in the
courtyard. Place the piston (in its
retracted  mode)  on  the sculpture
base. Click on  the piston to cause
the  sculpture  to  tip  over. Move
B and   use   the   sculpture  like
a staircase to  reach the reviewing
stand  on  the  upper  level.  Move
R and pick up  an avian perch. Move
R and  go back  down the staircase.
Move F L F R2 F2 L to a close-up of
the avian statue at the entrance to
the  tetrahedron in  the plaza. Put
the  avian  neck   ring  from  your
inventory   onto   the   statue  to
disclose a handle that operates the
tetrahedron  entrance   door.  Move
R and  put the  avian perch  on the
top step so you  can reach the door
handle. Zoom  in on the  handle and
click    on   it    to   open   the
tetrahedron.  Move  B  F2  into its
interior.  Click on  the red handle
to  activate  the  device.  Use the
left rotary dial to select an image
of  the Raman  manna melon  you saw
earlier  in this  plaza, then click
on the right  slide control. You'll
hear  the  sound  of  another  door
opening,  this  t   ime  an  access
portal  to  the  Avian  lair.  Move
B L   F2   R2   and   observe   the
flightpath  of  an  avian.  Move F2
L and  watch  the  avian  jump down
into  its now-disclosed  lair. Move
F2 to the edge  of a deep shaft and
listen as the avian you saw earlier
moves  through   some  tunnels  and
activates a ladder for your descent
into  the shaft.  If you  move F at
this point,  you'll not be  able to
back up into  the Avian Plaza until
you've  completed  the  full  avian
lair solution.

Avian Lair

Move  F into  the avian  shaft; the
portion of  the ladder you  used is
retracted. Your initial orientation
is looking down into the shaft from
the remaining rungs  of the ladder;
move F U L to the north corridor on
level 2:

         Avian Lair Map


Level      North Side    South Side


1 (top)    Control Room  (locked)

2          Roost         Hatchery

3          Theatre       (locked)

4 (bottom) (locked)      Schoolroom

Move F2 into a large roost area (if
you try to exit  back to the shaft,
your  way  is  blocked  by a purple
avian). Watch the  red avian obtain
a manna  melon  from  the dispenser
and  hold it  out to  you. Take  it
from  him and  cut it  in half with
your ISA multi-tool knife. Eat half
of   the  melon   using  your   ISA
multi-tool    spoon.    As    "your
brainwaves are being altered within
your  optic lobe",  note the hidden
purple figures on  the wall murals.
These  are  visible  because you're
able to see ultraviolet light (like
the avians) for  a short time after
eating  some  of  the  manna melon.
This  ability,  although temporary,
will  come  in  handy  later in the
game. For  now, return one  half of
the  melon  to  the  red avian, and
he'll direct you  to an elevator at
the  rear  of  the  room.  Take the
elevator    up    to    the   avian
triumvirate  and accept  their gift
of  a  Raman  numerical translator.
Move  L for  a view  of the  entire
avian roost. Move  L, then wait for
the avian kingpin  to send you back
down the elevator.
Move L F R2  and operate the handle
of the dispenser to obtain two more
manna  melons.  Cut  them  open  so
they're  ready to  eat later.  Move
R2 F2 D F U L F into the theatre in
the north corridor  on level 3, and
watch  the avian  actors leave  the
stage. Move  F L F and  pick up the
oil-filled  gourd to  the right  of
the lit one. Move R F3 R2 and watch
the upset green  avian fly up. Move
L and  take the  octospider pyramid
from   the    stand   holding   the
octospider costume (the other stand
holds a costume of  a Raman). M ove
R F3 L and  then move right-forward
to  leave the  stage area.  Move R2
back to the shaft.
Move  R  and  click  on  the bridge
control mechanism at lower left. If
you try to move the green wheel, it
jams. Put some of  the oil from the
gourd on  it and you'll  be able to
fully turn it  to extend the bridge
across     the      shaft.     Move
B L  F  L  D  F  U  L  F L into the
schoolroom in the south corridor on
level 4. Note the  room code at the
top  of the  entrance; you  can use
the  number wheel  from Bangkok  to
translate  it   to  (11,8,3).  Move
L F2 L F  L F to zoom in  on a wall
mural depicting  extended ledges in
the avia  n shaft. Eat  one of your
manna  melon   halves  to  disclose
a hidden  three-digit  Raman number
code, which  translates to (6,9,8).
Move R F R F R F to a circular wall
mural. Eat another manna melon half
to  show   a  special  relationship
between  the rings  of Raman, human
and octospider numbers:

Raman sequence:  27 4 49 57  9 32
Human sequence:  60 4  8 14  9 17
Octospider seq.: 27 4 18 22 23  3



The   only  sector   in  which  the
numbers in all  three systems agree
is the one at  right, for which all
values  are  4.  This  structure of
rings of numbers will be seen again
later in the game.
Move  R F  L3 F3  U F  D F  R U  F2
D L F to a closed door in the north
corridor on level 1. Note the Raman
number  code   above  the  doorway,
which translates  to (7,2,15). Move
F and play this  number sequence on
your   avian    translator,   whose
buttons  are  numbered  from  0  at
upper  left to  15 at  lower right.
The  door  opens;  move  F2  to the
control panel at  left. Click twice
on the  large circular red  knob to
activate the third monitor from the
left.   Use  the   16-button  Raman
keypad to enter the schoolroom code
(11,8,3)  - keys  are numbered from
1 at upper left to 13 at lower left
to  0 at  lower right.  The monitor
now  displays a  real-time view  of
the schoolroom on level 4. Move the
blue sliding  knob at the  right of
the  control  panel   down  to  its
lowest   position   in   order   to
activate   both  upper   and  lower
staircases   to    the   schoolroom
podium; you can  see the results of
your  changes on  the monitor. Move
R F and again use the (7,2,15) code
on the translator to open the door.
Move F2 D  F2 U F L U F  D L F R F2
L F U  into t he  avian hatchery in
the south corridor on level 2. Grab
the overhead bars to enter a recess
near the  ceiling. Move L  and pick
up a grappling hook and cable. Move
L2 and  use the bars  to descend to
the floor of the room.
Move F4 D  F2 U L F3 R  F3 R to the
podium  in  the  schoolroom  in the
south  corridor on  level 4. Attach
the grappling hook to the handle in
the  elevator shaft  and use  it to
descend  to the  lower level.  Move
F R F2  L and pick  up a bowl  from
the  storeroom. Move  F4 L  F2 L to
a pool   filled   with   a  caustic
liquid.  Use  the   bowl  from  the
storeroom  in  the  pool  to obtain
some of the liquid.  Move F L F and
use  the  liquid  from  the bowl to
loosen a corroded lever on the pool
control   panel.   Click   on   the
now-freed leve r  to bring it down.
Click   twice    on   the   central
triangular  pointer  so  that  it's
pointing  left, then  click on  the
red post  at right to  move it into
a vertical  position. Click  on the
small red  button at the  center of
the triangular pointer to drain the
left pool.  Move B L2  F R F  R and
take  the small  white pyramid from
the center of the now-drained pool.
Move B  R F4 R and  use the rope to
climb  back  up  to  the schoolroom
podium. Move  R F2 R  F L2 F3  U F2
D L F R  F L F L2 to  the back side
of the large purple cylinder in the
hatchery  in the  south corridor on
level 2.  Zoom in on  the hatch and
place   the   costume  (octospider)
pendant  in  the  receptacle. After
it's  been  scanned,  return  it to
inventory   and   place   the  pool
(human)   pendant  into   the  same
receptacle.  Pick  up  the magnetic
card after the hatch opens.
Exit  the  hatchery   back  to  the
central shaft. Move D F  U F L U F2
D L F2  back to the  closed door in
the  north  corridor  on  level  1.
Again  use the  avian translator to
gain  access to  the control  room.
When  you  have  gone  through  the
door,  note the  Raman number  code
above the entrance  to the elevator
shaft,    which    translates    to
(9,14,7).  Enter  the  shaft,  look
down  and  use  this  code  on your
translator  to ascend  to the upper
level.  Move U  L F  and insert the
magnetic  card  into  the  slot  to
activate  the control  panel. Using
the   Raman   keypad,   enter   the
(6,9,8)  shaft  platform  extension
code. Return to  the central shaft;
you'll now  be able to  move up and
exit the avian lair.
On  exit,   listen  to  Wakefield's
warning  about the  bomb detonation
countdown  and  get  Falstaff  from
him.  From  this  point  on  in the
game,    you're   under    a   time
constraint  to  find  the  bomb and
disarm   it  before   the  six-hour
countdown elapses. You can check on
the countdown status  by using your
wristcomp,  but be  aware that  the
rate   at  which   it  counts  down
accelerates  when you  move through
the  New York  environment, just as
if  you  were  actually  taking the
time to walk about rather than just
clicking  with a  mou se interface.
However,  when   you  are  standing
still, the  countdown progresses in
real     time.      During     your
explorations, save and restore your
game  frequently  to  avoid running
out of countdown time.

Octospider Lair

Head for the Octospider Plaza. From
the  entrance, move  forward toward
the tetrahedron at right, then move
L F3  R  F  L  to  the  row of gray
squares at  the back of  the plaza.
This  door  was  disclosed  by  the
prism-tetrahedron puzzle you solved
earlier.
Zoom  in  on  the  hexagonal access
panel   and  put   the  star-shaped
octospider   icon   in   the  lower
triangular  hole  and  the  costume
pendant  in  the  upper  triangular
hole.  Move B  F3 R  F2 L  F3 R3 F5
down to the  fountain room. Zoom in
on  the  closed  door  ahead,  then
click on the  left-center region of
the door. Use  Falstaff to retrieve
the  blue-orange  octahedron.  Move
B R  F R  and take  three datacubes
from Sabatini's uniform for more of
the  backstory   about  the  guilty
parties.  Move B  L2 and  press the
second white ke y from the right on
the left-hand keyboard. Move L2 and
zoom in on the  wall panel. Put the
indigo-yellow   jewel   from   your
inventory   into    the   indicated
receptacle to open  the panel. Pick
up  all  the  octahedra  inside the
panel,     in     particular    the
orange-red one at bottom.
Move   B   L   F2   and   use   the
blue-orange jewel to  open the door
back  to the  octospider hub.  Move
F2 onto the  central purple sinking
platform in this  room. Look up and
note  the  displacement  of colored
squares  on  the  ceiling.  This is
part of  a puzzle that  needs to be
solved in order  to reach the lower
level  of the  octospider lair.  It
works  like a  base-8 clock  - note
the  number of  positions (0-7) the
white  square  has  been  displaced
clockwise from the home position at
right.    For     each    clockwise
displacement  o  f  the  inner ring
white square, count 8, and for each
clockwise displacement in the outer
ring, count  1. The total  is a key
number  that  will  be  used  in an
alien device you'll find later. For
example, if the  inner white square
is at 6  o'clock (a displacement of
2) and the outer white square is at
9 o'clock  (a  displacement  of 4),
the key number is 2 x 8 + 4 = 20.
This  puzzle   re-randomizes  every
time   you  step   on  the  sinking
platform.
From the sinking  platform, move L2
to   face   the   doorway   to  the
immediate  right  of  the  entrance
ramp.   Move   F    and   use   the
yellow-red    jewel    from    your
inventory  to open  the door.  Move
F6  R  and  zoom  in  on  the alien
device.  Click on  the spongy  blue
button  at bottom  to bring  up the
alternate    display.    Find   the
position  of your  key number  from
the ceiling puzzle  and click on it
to  light  up  that  many red bars.
Click again on the blue button; the
black  circle  at  left  will  show
spikes extending  outside its perim
eter  and  the  right  diagram will
match what  you saw on  the ceiling
in the  hub. Move B L  and use your
green-red  jewel to  open the door.
Move F2  L F D F3  R into the lower
level of the octospider lair.
Zoom in on  the octospider lair map
and  click  on  the  blue button to
activate one of the doorways on the
upper level;  the colored triangles
start   blinking.  You   are  again
standing      on      a     sinking
ceiling-puzzle    platform;    move
B U and figure  out its key number.
Move  D  R  F3  and  use  the alien
device with  the new key  number to
activate  the spikes  in the access
tube.  Move  B  L  F  R  and notice
O'Toole's  crucifix  lying  on  the
ground  -  not  a  good  omen! Move
U F  R and  head for  the left-hand
door.  Use  the  violet-blue  jewel
from  your  inventory  to  open it.
Move  F  R  F  into  the octospider
trophy  room. Here  you'll see such
gruesome   sights    as   Takagishi
stuffed, and a photo of him getting
that  way (with  clamps). How about
those  octospiders, anyway?  If you
read  the Rama  book series, you'll
find  a similar  episode occurring,
in  which Takagishi  is later found
to  have died  by "natural  causes"
(perhaps  heart  failure  on  first
encountering    an    octospider!).
There's also a  good color photo of
a couple of Ramans here, and anothe
r tri-lingual number wheel in which
the sector directly to the right is
again emphasized.
Move to the closed  door at the far
side  of  the  room  and  use  your
orange-red jewel to  open it. Enter
the  back  room   and  observe  the
octoteacher. When it displays 7 and
waits  for your  response, click on
the upper-left corner  of the color
tower to rotate  it a quarter turn,
then  click   on  the  light-purple
square second from  the bottom. The
octoteacher seems  thrilled by your
response,   gives   you   O'Toole's
catechism card, and exits the room.
Oh, well, I  guess O'Toole won't be
needing it any more!
Before  leaving the  room, pick  up
O'Toole's   favorite-number   chart
from  the top  of the  color tower,
and   an  organic   lump  from  the
octospider  food dish  (it could be
part  of  Takagishi   for  all  you
know!).
Move L2 F3  L F2 R F D  F4 L F into
the subway room  in the lower level
(you  needn't re-solve  the ceiling
puzzle  if  you  avoided  the  main
octospider  hub).  Put  the organic
lump into the miniature subway car,
followed    by    Falstaff.    From
Falstaff's  perspective,  take  the
organic lump and click on the white
button  in  the  subway  car.  Move
F and  watch the  animation of  the
big  octospider stealing  food from
a miniature  one. Move  L and  take
the hand laser  from the wall. Move
B R and  put the organic  lump into
the empty  light-green feeding dish
at  right.   After  the  octospider
returns to his meal, move R and get
O'Toole's   ID  card.   Move  B  R,
re-enter the subway  car and use it
to return to  the subway room. Move
F out of the subway car and restore
your    normal    perspective.   If
desired,   move  R   F2  and   note
Sabatini's  scarf in  the full-size
inoperative  subway  car.  Exit the
subway   room   onto   the  sinking
platform.  Since  you've  now reset
the ceiling puzzle  at least twice,
look  up  and  derive  the  new key
number.
Use    the   previously-established
procedure to exit  the lower level,
then return  through the right-hand
tunnel to the  main octospider hub.
Exit  up  the  ramp  back  into the
Octospider  Plaza and  head for the
Human Plaza.

Endgame

From  the  entrance  to  the  Human
Plaza, move  R F3 to  the door that
was previously  inaccessible on the
other  side of  a chasm  (for which
you raised a  bridge by solving the
subway puzzle  in the back  of this
plaza).  Zoom in  on the  hexagonal
access panel and put the human icon
in  the  right  holes  and the pool
pendant  in  the  left  hole.  Move
B F2 inside.  Solve the tri-lingual
number  wheel puzzle  by making all
rings display 9  at right; that is,
by  clicking on  the inner,  middle
and outer  rings 3, 1  and 4 times,
respectively       (pi?).      Move
F L F R and  use the green laser on
the crane  biot to have  it disable
the spider biot  guarding the bomb.
Move  R F  L F  and zoom  on on the
bomb's code panel.
The  bomb's  disarming  sequence is
a set of five 4-digit numbers, with
leading zeroes used when necessary.
Each time Rama  is played (at least
from  the point  when you've exited
the  avian   lair),  the  disarming
sequence is re-randomized.
From Heilmann's message to Yamanaka
and Tabori, there's every reason to
believe   the  disarming   code  is
generated from five  of the numbers
on O'Toole's  prime sequence chart.
Each  of the  forty numbers  on the
chart   contains   four   or  fewer
digits.
The  clues in  O'Toole's belongings
all refer to the sequence number in
his list of forty favorite numbers;
for example, if the reverse side of
his    anniversary    photo   makes
a reference  to  "21st",  it  means
that  one of  the 4-digit disarming
code numbers is the 21st element of
his sequence, which  from his chart
is 0461  (you may have  a different
number on  the back of  the photo).
On O'Toole's ID card, the month and
date  of  his  birth  are  circled,
providing    two    more   sequence
numbers.
Looking  at  the  reverse  side  of
O'Toole's  catechism  card,  you'll
see  that  the  first  4-digit code
number is the  15th in the sequence
(0251), and the last is the 33rd in
the sequence (1097).
You  now  know  what  all five code
numbers are, with the only question
being the positioning of the middle
three.  Of the  four digits already
displayed on the  bomb's panel, the
first  two are  the trailing digits
of the second  code number, and the
last two are  the leading digits of
the   third   code   number.  Using
O'Toole's    sequence    chart   in
conjunction    with    the    above
information,  you  can  define  the
positioning  of  the  middle  three
code numbers.
Here's   an    example   from   one
particular Rama game:

Bomb digits displayed: 61|00

Source     Sequence  Code  Position
            Number  Number

Catechism card  15   0251    First
Catechism card  33   1097    Fifth
Photo           21   0461    Second
ID Card          3   0047    Third
ID card         29   0853    Fourth

The  positioning   of  the  second,
third  and fourth  code numbers  is
the only  arrangement matching what
is already displayed on the bomb.
Once  the  disarming  code  numbers
have  been  entered,  click  on the
INPUT  button  to  disarm  the bomb
(you  get  three  tries  before the
bomb  automatically  detonates). If
you  hear the  sound of  compressed
air  being released  and a majestic
fanfare  begins,  you've  done  it!
Back  out  and  listen  to Nicole's
vidmail describing  what's going on
upstairs. Move R2  F4 and watch the
endgame  sequence,  at  the  end of
which   Arthur   C.   Clarke  makes
a vague reference to a game sequel.

Copyright    (c)    1996   Balmoral
Software.  Portions  copyright  (c)
1996 Sierra Online, Inc.