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ZORK III
(Infocom)
Well, you've come a long way since you first stood by the mailbox outside
the house in the forest. You've defeated the thief, outwitted the Wizard of
Frobozz, and now, you stand at the foot of the endless stairs, ready to
embark on the final part of your journey. So, pick up the lamp, turn it on,
and head along due South until you come to the shore of the lake. Drop the
lamp <say goodbye to it; you won't be seeing it again>, and jump into the
lake. Brrrr!!! Pretty cold! So, don't stay in there long; swim west and
then go South into the Scenic Vista.
Kind of a strange place, with changing numbers on the wall and a bare
table...not quite all that scenic, eh? Well, get the torch, and wait for
the number to change to "II." Then, touch the table. My oh my! You're in a
room from Zork II....Room 8, as a matter of fact. However, you don't have
much time to sight-see, so get the can of Grue repellant, then try moving
East, and you will find yourself back in Scenic Vista again. Now wait for
the number to change to "III," then touch the table again. This time,
you're in a Damp Passage. Drop the torch, and just wait there until you're
pulled back to Scenic Vista.
Okay, you're finished here, so move along North to the shore, and again
jump in the lake. Splash! It hasn't gotten any warmer; in fact, you just
dropped the can of repellant. So, go Down, and you will be on the lake
bottom. Ah, there it is! But, could there be something else there, too?
"Get all," and you will have not only the repellant but also an amulet.
This is one of those "wonderful" variable things; it may take more than one
try on your part to get both items. In the meantime, you can't stay in the
icy waters too long, and sooner or later a hungry fish will come looking
for you. Therefore, it's best to save the game before you jump in from the
Western Shore. So if you die in the water, or get eaten by the fish, or
picked up by the Roc <while you're swimming on the surface>, you don't have
to start all the way back at the beginning.
By the way, this is the only one of the Zorks where you don't lose points
if you die. But, all the items you've collected so far get scattered all
around, and it's time-consuming to go look for them. Okay, now you have the
can and the amulet, so head Up to the surface, then South to the Southern
shore. You can see a cave to the South, and it looks kind of dark. In fact,
it *is* dark in there, which is why you have the repellant. So, spray the
smelly stuff on yourself, and go South, and you will find yourself in a
Dark Place. Go South again, then East, and you will be in the key room.
Whew! At least there's some light in here! And by the light you can see a
strange key. Get the key, then move the manhole cover and go down. And here
you are on an aqueduct. Since you can't go back <the Grue repellant
wouldn't have lasted that long>, you might as well go forward. So, just
head along North and you will come to the Water Slide. Go North down the
slide, and guess where you are? In the Damp Passage! And there's the torch,
so pick it up, because you're certainly going to need a light
source...especially when you think of where you're going next.
So, from the Damp Passage hike along West to the Junction <you can't get
the sword out of the rock, so don't even try>, then South into Creepy
Crawl, and Southwest into the Shadow Land. Here we come to another variable
portion of the game. You will have to wander around in the Shadow Land
until a cloaked and hooded figure appears. When that happens, the sword
will suddenly materialize in your hand, and you will be able to fight.
However, since there's no way of telling when that will happen, you just
have to keep moving around until it does. At least you will get a chance to
practice some elementary map-making! Also, this is the most dangerous part
of the game, as the figure is quite capable of killing you, too! So, best
to save before you enter Shadow Land.
When the mysterious figure finally appears, attack him with your sword
until he is badly wounded and cannot defend himself. At that point, get his
hood. The figure will then disappear, leaving the cloak behind. Get that
also. Now, you have to get out of here, and I can't tell you exactly how,
since there's no way of knowing exactly where you were when the fight
started. However, if you go Eastwards, you will exit the Shadow Land at
either the Creepy Crawl or the Foggy Room. From either place, go North to
the Junction.
From the Junction, it's West through the Barren Area, and West again to the
Cliff. Bet you just can't wait to climb down the rope, huh? Well, pick up
the bread first, then go down to the ledge. Well, well, a chest! Too bad
you don't have a key to open it. In fact, there's no way for you to open it
at all. But don't despair, there's a way of doing it. Just wait around and
someone will come along the top of the cliff. You may not really trust him,
but tie the rope to the chest when he asks, and wait around some more.
Eventually, he will return and help you back up the cliff. He will also
give you a staff, which is what you're really after here. Take the staff,
then go back down to the ledge, and from there, to the Cliff Base. Now trek
South to the Flathead Ocean, and do a little more waiting. Sooner or later
a ship will come floating by. As soon as you see it, say: "Hello, Sailor."
The man in the ship will throw something onto the beach for you. Take a
look, and you will see it's a vial. It'll come in handy later, so pick it
up. Now comes the fun part: You have to wait for the earthquake <notice how
you've been doing a lot of waiting around? I hope you're a patient
person!>.
While you're waiting, you might want to wander around a little, although
you've been to most of the accessible places by now. In any case, wherever
you are, once the earthquake hits, make your way to the Creepy Crawl, and
from there East into the Tight Squeeze, then East again into the Crystal
Grotto. Then all the way South to the Great Door, and East into the Museum
Entrance. Now, open the East door, then go North into the Museum. Look at
the gold machine <it's a time machine, in case you were wondering>, then
set the dial to 776.
Here comes the fun part: Push the machine South into the Entrance, then
East into the Jewel Room. Get into the machine, and push the button. Aha!
Now you're back in 776 GUE, but the time machine seems to have vanished! No
matter, wait for the guards to leave, then get the ring <and *only* the
ring!>, then open the door, go out into the Entrance, open the North door
and go North. By golly, the machine is right there! Put the ring under the
seat, turn the dial to 948, get in, and push the button. Whew, you're back
in the right time period again. Get out of the machine, look under the seat
<you will get the ring automatically when you do this>, then back South,
and South again, to the Royal Puzzle.
Okay folks, you are about to enter the absolute nastiest part of the game.
You must follow the instructions *EXACTLY* as given, or you will never get
out. And, since it would be easy to make a mistake here, I strongly
recommend you save the game.
1. Go Down the hole, then push the South wall. Then go East, South, East,
East. Push the South wall, get the book, and push the South wall again.
2. Push the West wall twice. Then go East, South, and push the East wall.
3. Now, go straight North until you come to the marble wall, and push the
East wall.
4. Now, go West, South, South, South, South, East, East, North, North,
North, and push the West wall.
5. From there, go East, South, South, South, West, West, West, West, North,
North, North, West, North. Push the East wall three times.
6. Now, West, West, South, South, East, East, South, and push the East
wall.
7. Okay, now West, West, West, North, North, North, East, East, and push
the South wall two times.
8. From there, West, South, South, East, East, North, and push the West
wall two times.
9. Now, South, West, and push the North wall until it won't move any more.
10. Then West and North.
Finally! You have maneuvered the ladder under the hole <which was the
purpose of all this pushing and running around>, and now you can just go up
and out! WHEW!!!!
Okay, you've solved the Royal Puzzle and you have the book, so go North to
the Museum Entrance, then open the East door and get your other stuff from
the Jewel Room. Then it's back West to the Great Door, and from there back
to the Junction. Now, East into the Damp Passage, and NE to the Engravings
Room. Well, we have here yet another <!> of those variable events: Sooner
or later, an old man will be sleeping here. If he isn't there the first
time you arrive, walk around a little and return.
When you finally do see him, wake him up and give him the bread. He will
eat it and then make visible to you a secret door. He will then vanish.
Okay, you're getting closer to the end! Open the door, and go into the
Button Room, then North to the Beam Room. Put the sword in the beam, then
go back to the Button Room and push the button. Now, back North to the Beam
Room and North again into the Mirror Room. There will be an opening in the
Mirror, so go North one more time, and you will be inside. Now, don't let
the long and complicated descriptions scare you! It's not really as bad as
you think <it's worse! heheheheh..just kidding!>.
First, raise the short pole. Then, push the white panel twice. Now, push
the pine panel, and go North. Okay, so here you are, standing a little too
close for comfort to the Guardians of Zork. If I were you, I wouldn't try
going past them quite yet! Open the vial, then drink the liquid. While
nothing seems to have happened, you have in fact become invisible. Now you
can walk North until you come to the locked door. Knock on the door, and
the Dungeon Master will open it and let you in.
All right, hang in there, you have reached the end game! Go North, then
West, then North again. The DM will be following you. Go North to the
Parapet, set the dial to 4, and push the button. Now, go South, open the
cell door, and step inside. The DM will not follow you in. Once inside, you
will notice a bronze door in one of the walls. However, you can't open it
yet! Something else has to be done. And it will have to be done by someone
else. So, first tell the DM to go to the Parapet. Then tell him to turn the
dial to 1, and then tell him to push the button. All right!! The magic
moment has arrived! Unlock the bronze door with the key, open the door, and
go South!
Finally, Zork is finished! You have survived all the perils, pitfalls, and
puzzles, and now, YOU are the new Dungeon Master. Have fun!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *