King's Field: Lonely, Lost, and Afraid. And Poisoned.

[Yimothy]

King's Field is a series of first person dungeon crawls for PS1, PS2, and PSP made by From Software. The first was a very early PS1 release and didn't leave Japan, but the second, King's Field II, was released internationally as King's Field. That's the only game in the series that I've played (and I've played less than an hour of it) so that's the one I'll be talking about in this thread. Not sure how accurate my thread title will prove to be. The games are known as spiritual predecessors to the more popular Souls series, with a similar nonchalance about player death.

I picked up my copy of King's Field a year or two ago, and played it very briefly at the time. Long enough to be killed a few times in a few ways. I've just started playing it again today. The plot, as given in the manual and the intro, is that there's an island ruled by either a god or a demon. Pretty much everyone who goes there doesn't come back. The king (who I believe was the player character in the first game) needs a magical sword that is apparently on the island. You play as a friend of the king who set out for the island to recover it. On the way you're shipwrecked and are the sole survivor, but all your stuff is lost to the sea.

You start out on a little patch of dry land surrounded by water, your only possession a dagger. Looking closely at the water, some of it is shallow and can be walked in. The rest is effectively a bottomless pit. For my game today, I set out for the larger island through the shallows. Heading left on reaching shore I came to a giant squid in a cave. This thing killed me very quickly in one of my earlier sessions, so I turned the other way and came to a guy sitting on a rock with a fishing line. He told me that he can't leave the island because he's become dependent on the water there, that there's a lighthouse offshore that can be reached through the water, and that there's a village behind a wooden door. And that I should hurry.

I set off through the water to the lighthouse, at the peak of which I found my first magic spell - fireball. Getting down again was slightly interesting: so far as I can tell there's no way to look up and down, so I couldn't see the stairway. I had to trust that it was where I thought it would be to avoid falling. At the base there was a bridge back to the main island, which I took. Halfway along it was broken, but I was able to cross the gap by running over the edge. Once on land again I entered a cave where I found a helmet in a barrel and a smaller squid, which landed a hit on me for a third of my HP, but I was able to get behind it and take it out without further injury. Exploring further into the cave I found several more squid and a weird green thing, so I turned back and carried on along the shoreline to another cave. This one had a giant snail with multiple heads (or maybe eyestalks?). I didn't fancy taking it on so I turned back, but it must have had a projectile or something because I got poisoned on my way out. I had no way to cure this, but I figured this village the guy mentioned must be around somewhere and might be able to help so I started running along the shoreline. I fell in some water that was deeper than I thought and died.

Early days, obviously, but I'm looking forward to playing more.

 

[Fyonn]

King's Field is rad!
Fun fact: this game has no loading screens after you load in unless you die or teleport. The 3D looks really simple, but on the otherhand, the game is streaming the environment at all times, so it's weirdly advanced for the era.
The prior game, actual King's Field 1, is split into floors that have loading screens between them, which is not as impressive, but is easier to navigate.

 

[Klatrymadon]

Glad you're enjoying it, Yimothy! I had a period a couple of years ago where, having been vaguely interested in checking the series out for some time, I went right off the deep end and became utterly obsessed with it, playing through the entire series in release order (and stupidly collecting a lot of plastic I didn't need).

KF2 was everything I'd hoped it'd be, but on a far grander scale than I was expecting. It's a vast interconnected world that places such an emphasis on hidden areas that even your normal forward progress feels obscure and treacherous, and there's a feeling of slowly untangling a knot as the game refuses to discern the "critical path" from bonus "secrets" (you can do that yourself, of course, but your first playthrough is delightfully disorienting). It's suprisingly good at telling stories without exposition, too (as is KF4, which I'm hoping to post about at some point) - I won't spoil any of them but there are several genuinely eerie, sad, poignant and achingly brief encounters with other human beings in this game that are completely unlike anything you get anywhere else, even in later From games.

Ed: they're also astonishing games visually. As Lance points out there's the technical marvel of seeing a fully 3D subterranean world rendered in real-time and without interruption (on a Playstation in 1994), but they're also incredible achievements of art direction, particularly in terms of how the limited models are textured - cave walls are often somehow palpably damp and slimy, enemy creatures have both intense, weird colouring and uncomfortably natural, lifelike, tactile skins, and the gouraud-shaded facelessness of the human characters lends them a spectral quality, as if they belong to these labyrinths and will haunt them forever. KF1 in particular is this very early attempt at rendering a believable, oppressively atmospheric fantasy world in 3D and it absolutely knocks it out of the park to a degree I don't think can be overstated.

 

[Peklo]

These are among my favourite games ever and I've only played through one and a half of them (the original and II). What's always incredible to me is that this was a series that had a full-fledged trilogy to call its own before 1996 was over, in the console space, in still-gestating 3D, before a lot of people had even come around to this idea of a "PlayStation." It's just stunning how much was pioneered here, and how much it was ignored, dismissed or devalued. Even the last decade of us living in FromSoft's world has not resulted in any significant or large-scale repatriating of their past works, which is an oeuvre that's at least as good as what they're now known for, and a damn sight more diverse in everything they did then. Please play these games, and don't just take them as a mandatory "history lesson" or some other condescending term that takes away from their unique strengths and successes, because while they share a lot with what came after, they offer an experience that is wholly their own regardless, and as valid.

As stated above, the first two games have a particularly compelling contrasting world structure that you can also map to the more well-known From RPG sequence, where King's Field offers a more compartmentalized, stratified labyrinth neatly arranged into floors (which still double back on themselves on occasion), keeping that sort of pleasing stage-oriented arcade game arrangement that a game like Demon's Souls also wields to its benefit. King's Field II meanwhile is probably one of the highlights in the entire medium of interconnected, interweaving micro and macro design, to such a degree that it's unmissable for anyone that's compelled by this stuff in the construction of virtual spaces.

More than anything, I love the PS1 games for how they look; I really think they're some of the most visually beautiful games ever made. Nothing eclipses the disquiet and evocative anxiety of the textureless, faceless character modeling they toil in, while the sense of scale facilitated by the lower-poly visual stylings work in excellent unison with the technological realities of the time, and honestly the games still feel like they're pushing the hardware further than it should be able to go. The abstractions inherent to the presentation are so compelling and so attuned with the atmosphere these games want to invoke that it's hard to read any of it as a compromise on the player end, and I don't think it should be beholden to that interpretation. I wish games still dared to look like this, and thanks to some independent productions that are inspired by this very aesthetic, sometimes they still do.

The accessibility with this series isn't great: the first game is reliant on fan translation, and none of them have ever been rereleased anywhere. They're absolutely worth the labour of acquiring them through whatever means available, and through years of more mainstream conditioning to this general style of game and all that's fed back into influencing in game design holistically, I think people would be far more accepting of what these games did before anyone else was doing it, or as well.

 

[Yimothy]

I’ve played some more, not making much progress. In the opening area, I’ve found a helmet, breastplate, sword, two crystals and a heap of herbs. What I haven’t found is the entry to the village mentioned by the fisherman (who can be seen in one of Peklo’s screenshots above). Where is this wooden door? I don’t know yet.

I think I’ve explored the external area fairly thoroughly, so I must need to make progress through one of the caves. Probably the one full of small squids, I guess, since the one with the giant snail quickly killed me and the skeleton behind the waterfall did the same. I’d really like to find a save point so I can gather up all the stuff at the start, save, and not have to do it again.

I’m pretty bad at the combat so far. I can’t seem to hit the flying insects or avoid hits from most of the other enemies. Possibly I am hitting the enemies but not recognising whatever feedback the game gives (if any). The fireball magic is hard to land hits with too.

It’s a fascinating game so far.

 

[Peklo]

By the way, unless you've figured it out already: there is a way to look up and down, with the functions being mapped to the shoulder buttons, these games predating dual analog control schemes and all. It takes some getting used to if modern conventions are what your muscle memory's working with but in my experience the games are designed around the sluggish pace and maneuvers possible with their style of play, so it's not a hindrance before long.

 

[Klatrymadon]

The feedback isn't particularly visceral, but most enemies will let out a groan or screech when you hit them. The general strategy is to play footsies with them - get in range of their attacks, back away as they swing at you, then retaliate. If they're particularly aggressive, circle around them using R1 and L1 and keep trying to hit them from behind. If you don't get on with the melee combat at all, use your magic spells a lot and they will level up nicely enough to become your main weapons. Someone actually did a great magic-only run recently! (You might not have any spells yet - don't worry about it if so.)

I can't really remember if it's where you need to go right now, but there is a false wall somewhere in the starting caves, near the squid enemies and the fountain, which eventually leads to the village. There's a save point in the first cave area too, as well as a guidestone that you won't use until later. Keep trying to interact with bare walls - you'll find a huge amount of them are doors. You'll get a sense for where and when you should bother doing this before long, but checking absolutely every surface wouldn't prove to be a waste of time, if you can be bothered! There are cubbies with items in them all over the place.

 

[YangusKhan]

I own both of the U.S. Playstation releases and King's Field: The Ancient City, but I've only really spent time with The Ancient City. Whenever I get around to playing these again, it's going to be with a notebook on-hand.

 

[Poster]

I played King's Field and King's Field: The Ancient City some years ago, so there are many details I have forgotten, but I remember enjoying the atmosphere of King's Field, which was helped along by the PS1's limitations and the low-key music.

However, I enjoyed the The Ancient City more because it felt like the delay between it and the release of the previous game gave the developers time and experience to create a good KF experience.

Also, even though this is about King's Field, it is worth noting the Shadow Tower series, particularly Shadow Tower Abyss, which basically felt like The Ancient City with guns. I enjoyed it a lot aside from a somewhat abrupt ending, but I suppose that is par for the course with these games.

 

[Sarge]

I've got a friend of mine that is a huge King's Field fan. It's very much an acquired taste, but when it clicks, it's really good stuff. I've only played through KF4, and it took around ten hours to really get my footing, but I was hooked from there. I'm looking forward to playing through the rest. I've got the US KF2 (aka KF3), and at some point I need to get the US KF (KF2).

 

[Yimothy]

there is a way to look up and down, with the functions being mapped to the shoulder buttons

Many thanks for this tip, which has made a surprising difference to how I’m playing the game. I probably should have just tried it, but this is not listed in the manual.

I’ve made some progress. I found a fountain that restores my HP and a save point. Having those allowed me to venture in various directions without too much fear of death, and to survive long enough to gain a couple of levels. I found a hidden room with a skeleton that killed me (on returning I killed it and got a shield), and eventually made it to the village. Once I got there I went down a passageway that led to some giant beetle looking enemies, one of which killed me in one hit, costing me a fair bit of progress.

My combat technique is improving. Some enemies I can just run up to, take a swing at, and back away. Others I’m circling around and attacking from behind. The super-slow turning of the player character in this game can be pretty frustrating, but at least the enemies seem to have the same issue.

Most enemies don’t seem to be respawning, though a few I think have. I’m pretty much only comfortable with squids and the coloured blobs that don’t seem to do anything. I’ve take out a few other types, but haven’t got them totally figured out yet.

I’ve only met a couple of human characters (and a couple of enemies who appear to be human), but I really like the way they’re modelled. The lack of face (though the faces do seem at least somewhat contoured) really works.

I have no idea how to get MP back, so my magic use has been minimal.

 

[Yimothy]

I found a second save point, just past a couple of chests which contained skeletons that popped up and killed me. So now when I open a chest I back away immediately. I also found a map that shows my current location on it, though it only seems to cover a small area. I’ve put that behind a spoiler because it was a total surprise to me. I thought I was just going to have to develop a really close knowledge of the layout of the island.

Skeletons are really tough enemies at the moment. I found a morning star which I thought would increase my damage to them over what the sword does, but I still got killed by the next one I came across.

 

[Yimothy]

After spending ages struggling with the opening areas, I feel like I’m making some progress. I entered what seems to be some sort of fortification full of soldiers and eventually reached a second village, where I’ve found a guy who won’t talk to me and a fortune teller who tells me what my items do. Which is pretty good, even if some of the time it’s just “this is an ordinary item, nothing special”. Then I fell through a floor into the termite nest, whose name I know because I found an item there that apparently tells you the name of the area you’re in. Didn’t make it out alive, though, so that’s lost for now.

I can’t seem to use the guideposts yet. I’ve got a key and a gate, but they don’t match so I can’t use them together. I also can’t use magic because I don’t have any mp. I have a single mp restoring item, and no other apparent way to get mp back.

Combat is still hard for me. The soldiers mostly have long spears and seem to be able to hit me at a greater range than I can hit them. The ones that don’t have spears have bows. Wouldn’t mind finding one of those for myself. Most of the time if I’m facing a single enemy I’m ok, but if there’s two at once it’s very hard to not get hit by the second while dealing with the first.

 

[Klatrymadon]

The morning star definitely does more damage to skellies than the early swords, but yeah, they hit like trucks for quite a while. You'll find a bow in one of the enemy bases you're currently exploring, but don't worry about taking on every archer - those big open rooms with several archers positioned above you can be sprinted through very effectively. Their aim can be absurdly accurate at times, but if you're strafing and running and generally presenting a moving target, you should be able to escape most encounters.

Without spoiling anything, the termite nest is an important area to explore fully, so don't shy away from it if it seems tough at the moment. How are you doing for maps, by the way? The game has a number of excellent hand-drawn maps that vary in detail according to who created them, and IIRC the one for the termites' nest is quite thoroughgoing.

You can restore MP with moon stones (those egg-looking consumables) and via certain pools if you have a flask, but MP isn't all that readily available to you until you've activated the main fountain (much like in KF1), and there a few steps to that which you'll encounter during the normal course of the game. If it doesn't happen at all, though, I'll try to be more specific!

 

[Paul le Fou]

Interest piqued, I did some googling and found:

Sword of Moonlight: King's Field Making Tool is a King's Field designing tool for the Microsoft Windows platform which was released in Japan. It lets the user construct free-standing King's Field games which may be played independently, without having Sword of Moonlight installed. It also contains a full remake of the first King’s Field game originally released on the PlayStation. A fan made full English translation is available as an unofficial patch.

Which is...very interesting!

 

[Klatrymadon]

It's ace, aye! I've never been able to make head or tail of the program itself, but I've played some of the games people have made for it and they're generally of a really high quality, and often break from the KF formula in interesting ways (such as focusing more on puzzle design, etc). The KF1 remake it comes with is great, too, if much less visually arresting than the original. One I've been meaning to play for ages is Moratheia, which seems to be incredibly ambitious, featuring a unique setting and story, entirely new graphical and audio resources, changes to the combat, and so on.

 

[Fyonn]

I played Sword of Moonlight's King's Field 1, and it's pretty good. The engine has a few quirks, though: make sure you hit the pick up button after a kill, even if you can't see any loot, because areas can accrue game-ending amounts of hidden coin loot underneath some of the bumpier ground types.

 

[Nich]

I'm enjoying all the posts in this thread, but I especially want to call out how much I love the thread title. The "And poisoned." always tickles me.

 

[Yimothy]

Thanks Nich!

I feel like the game is really starting to open up, even though I’m still dying frequently. I found a bow, which should make encounters with multiple enemies easier so long as I’m able to keep my distance. I seem to be limited to 30 arrows at a time, which will probably increase my use of the bow because it means there’s no point hoarding them. A lot of enemies in this game will stop at the doorway of whatever room they’re in, so I expect I’ll be cheesing that a lot.

I’ve now reached three villages. They’re all pretty close together, actually. I missed one that’s right next to the first one I went to because I went into the fort instead. This one I’ve reached now has a guy selling affordable armour upgrades and a locksmith. Unfortunately I spent all my money on armour before finding the key guy, so I haven’t been able to unlock anything yet. I’m hoping it’s a situation where once I get a key I can open everything that needs that key rather than them being consumable.

From the village I also found the small mine, which I explored briefly and where I found the star key, which pairs with my star gate to allow me to warp to whichever guide post I leave the key at. For now I’ve put it in the first village, which is fairly central but more importantly is right next to a healing fountain. This should allow me to explore wherever I feel like without worrying about getting back. I will have to be careful with some items though, I guess. There’s a type of key which needs to be left in a door for it to open, and needs to be placed separately for each side. I wonder if it’s possible to warp out leaving all the keys on the wrong side of the door and be unable to progress?

I’ve been getting a lot of use out of the pirate map, though some places I’ve been are not on it. There’s a miner’s map for sale in one of the villages, but the price is absurd at present. Shame, because it would presumably cover the small mine which I’m planning to explore next.

 

[Klatrymadon]

The key guy is mainly useful for

Spoiler: certain keys

copying the silver and gold keys, which aren't found out in the world. Pretty much everything else in the game is and doesn't need to be purchased. (The games happily let you throw your funds away on anything, sell things you can't easily get back, etc. In KF4 you can literally render the game unfinishable by selling the idol that drives the whole story.)

Unfortunately, it is possible to run out of those rhombus keys if you use them too liberally, and on your first game it can be hard to tell which doors you need to leave open for later. In the enemy garrisons, though, you should be fine as long as you retrieve the ones used on small barracks-type rooms, and leave open the door you entered the whole area through, etc.

 

[Yimothy]

I haven’t read your spoilers, Klatrymadon, but I’ll remember they’re there if I get stuck. Speaking of which, earlier in this thread I was putting stuff in spoilers but now I’m not bothering. Anyone want me to start using them again? I know some people get annoyed at the idea of worrying about spoilers for a two and a half decade old game, but if someone else were to start posting unmarked spoilers in here while I’m trying to figure things out for myself I’d be annoyed.

I’ve returned to the termite nest and recovered the item that tells you the names of locations, and killed the boss termite. I used the bow from just outside the movement range of the minion termites, which was pretty cheesy but honestly I’m not sure I could have done it any other way. Afterwards I found some writing on a wall that suggested using the bow so I guess it’s the intended method. That got me a level up, always welcome, and the pirate key. So I guess it’s back to the opening area with me! Sadly the gate/key combination which I’d thought would allow me to warp doesn’t seem to be working so it’ll be quite a hike. Possibly I need MP for the warp? I still don’t have any. I do have a couple of MP restore items, but my hoarding instincts are kicking in hard for them.

The plot is pretty subtle, but seems to be coalescing. There’s some dude named necron who I guess is top dog on the island, controlling all the enemy soldiers (who I’m told have lost their minds and souls) and I think pushing the miners to get crystals. Not sure if necron is the god/demon mentioned in the intro or just like a wizard or something. Actually, looking in the manual again the god is Seith and the demon is Guyra (who, if I remember npc dialogue correctly, made the equipment for sale on the island). Necron is just some dude who wants the sword I’m supposed to be looking for.

Gameplay wise I’ve been feeling a bit of a DOOM vibe. I think it’s all the strafing along walls mashing the action button looking for secrets that I’ve been doing.

 

[Klatrymadon]

I can't remember if the game communicates this very well, but the way the warp keys work is that you have to set one into a guidepost (usually next to a save point), and then you can use the corresponding 'gate' to warp back to that particular post from anywhere in the world. By the end you'll have a few different keys and gates, and an idea of where to put them all for good command of the whole map. (I quite like that it isn't just a free warp to any previously-visited post, since there isn't that feeling of the world suddenly becoming small, brisk and insubstantial that you get when a lot of other games "open up".)

 

[Yimothy]

I figured out my problem with the warp: I was out of MP. I used a moon stone for a top up and was able to use the star gate to get back to the guide post where I left the key.

That got me pretty close to the starting area, and I went back and had a look around with my pirate key, allowing me to find the skull key and a bunch of other items that seem less important - crystals and stuff. I’ve been hoarding most items, which paid off when I found a guy who could convert crystals to flasks. I now have five flasks, meaning I can draw water five times and thus get five blue potions, greatly increasing my ability to wander around without running out of HP.

Anyways, after clearing out the pirate caves (aside from not reaching one chest on the far side of a collapsing floor that I can’t seem to get around) I was headed back towards the villages when I remembered the cave behind the waterfall. I thought maybe the pirate key would open something in there, which was incorrect. But the skull key I’d found opened a path in there (I’d forgotten the strange skull logo on the wall that I’d seen in there some game hours back). Once I got past that I found a water crystal, bastard sword, and my second dragon stone. I think I need to find a third one of those and put all three in this room with a statue in it (I think it’s the one in one of Peklo’s screenshots above) that I don’t quite remember how to get to but I’m sure I’ll be able to find again eventually.

The other thing I tried out in the pirate caves was standing in the doorway and firing arrows at enemies so I didn’t have to approach more than one at a time. Unfortunately these enemies were skeletons and not very susceptible to arrows, so it took heaps to take one down. I switched back to my morning star for the rest. I’ve gained a few levels, I guess, because I seem to be taking less damage than before and dishing out more. Still almost got killed when one backed me into a corner. Good thing I have all those potions now.

I think I’m getting better at moving around. The game is known for being slow, but your running pace is actually pretty fast. It’s turning that’s the problem. I’ve started using the shoulder buttons to sidestep a lot, so when I’m running down a corridor I’ll start turning well before the corner and strafe into it. Aiming up and down remains a problem, but I think it’s because I’m playing on a PocketGo 2, a handheld emulator box whose L2 and R2 buttons are kind of like the ones on a new 3DS. They work just fine but are kind of inconvenient to push. I’d probably look up and down more if I were using a PS1 controller.

 

[Torzelbaum]

I’ve started using the shoulder buttons to sidestep a lot, so when I’m running down a corridor I’ll start turning well before the corner and strafe into it.

So you've been drifting your character?

 

[jpfriction]

Just want to say, thanks for the thread, Yimothy. I've always been intrigued by these games but never really tried them past the everpresent playstation demo kiosk at Target back in the day, which were a good "get killed by a skeleton" simulator.

This finally motivated me and I've been playing along and am about as far as you, really enjoying it.

Kind of abusing save states but, whatever, life is short.

 

[Fyonn]

King's Field IV: The Ancient City has the shocking upgrade from skeleton: 15 skeletons in one room simultaneously

 

[Yimothy]

Thanks jp, maybe I should be using spoilers if you’re playing along and reading?

Big progress today, I think. I took my dragon stones to the room with the statue and placed them in the sockets there. I’d actually tried this before, but one of the sockets wouldn’t accept the stone and that was the one I tried first. Not sure if they have to be done in a particular order or if one is broken or what. I don’t seem to be able to remove the dragon stones, which might be a problem: I noticed on the way there that the key guy can duplicate the stones for a just ridiculous amount of money. I think I need one more stone, I hope I’m not supposed to get it by purchasing it from that guy. If I am supposed to, I hope I don’t need to be holding one for it to turn up in his duplication menu. For now I’ve made a separate save. I don’t want to be told where to find more stones, but if I have put myself in an unwinnable state then someone let me know please.

Anyways, placing the stones did two things: unlocked more streams of water, allowing me to get different coloured potions from each stream (and another colour from the fountain in the middle - not sure if I missed a colour by not going there when two streams were active, I only noticed it once I had three running). One of the potions refilled my MP, so it looks like it’s time to start using a lot of magic. Not sure about the others. I’ll see what the fortune teller has to say.

The other thing placing the stones did was allow me to open some hidden doors in the room, which led to different parts of the dungeon. This might be a convenient central pathway? Anyways, I went through one which dropped me off outside the entrance to king Harvine’s castle. I can’t get in yet, the doors are locked and I don’t have the right key, but it looks pretty cool. There is one open door, but on the other side there were a heck of a lot of fireballs so I didn’t pursue it. On my way back to the village of the winds I found a hidden passage with what looked like a mummy throwing fireballs at me in it. At this point I hadn’t saved in a while so I turned back and started looking for a save point. Once I found one, I quit for the day.

 

[jpfriction]

Nah don’t worry about spoilers, thanks though.

 

[Yimothy]

Well, I think I had the dragon stones thing wrong. Turns out the one I thought was broken already had a dragon stone in it, which was why the blue water was flowing already, so having placed stones in the other two receptacles I’ve got everything flowing and all doors open. I can now fill my flasks with the gold potion, which restores HP, MP, and status. Maybe I should sell all these hp/mp/status restoring items I’ve been carrying around?

Access to MP restoration has changed my approach to combat. If I’m facing a single enemy I can just walk up to them, hitting them with magic on the way to stun them out of attacking, then stun lock them with repeated weak physical attacks and do the real damage with magic. I am also, perhaps not coincidentally, facing some tougher enemies now. The thing I thought was a mummy was a dude in full armour throwing a heap of magic at me. But I was able to stun lock him and take him out. He was guarding a chest that’s locked with a key I don’t have, unfortunately.

I’ve come across the “pillar of wind”, which I assume I need to activate somehow to make a bridge to access some more of the island. I tried using wind magic on it without success. I thought I’d run out of places to explore at that point, but I went and had a look at the areas full of soldiers that I’d been running through previously and found the entrance to the big mine, which appears to be a suitably big area I haven’t looked through at all. Come to think of it, there’s also whatever’s behind the big squid at the start of the game. Haven’t taken that thing out yet.

In case it isn’t obvious from the posts, I am really getting into this game.

 

[Yimothy]

The big mine is a deathtrap. Well, it’s full of death traps, which is much the same thing I think. It’s also got a mine cart ride which is pretty neat but seems to be pointless. When I ride it, about four times out of five an enemy on another cart comes along and shoots an arrow at me killing me in one hit. The other time, no enemy appeared and I made it to the end, but there’s nothing there, just a passageway to another door requiring a rhombus key to get out. There is a second cart track, but not a cart on which to ride it. Possibly I’m supposed to shoot the enemy in the other cart before it shoots me and then the cart it was in will reach the second track for me to ride? It’s a moving target that kills me almost as soon as it appears though, so I don’t know that I can pull it off. I’ve got a magic called missile shield that puts up a green barrier around me, but it didn’t stop me from dying.

Going a different way in the mine leads to a room with big swinging spiked balls hanging from the ceiling. There’s a doorway I can go through without needing to get past the balls, but something in there seems to inflict instant death. There are a bunch of wall mounted faces shooting homing fireballs that might be responsible. Not sure how to manage it. There’s another pillar of wind in there (I had another look at the manual, apparently I need to find a flute to use the pillars to make bridges) and a chest at the end of the room flanked by fireball throwing enemies. Maybe I could dash in, grab it, and dash out while avoiding fireballs? It’s a bit of a hike from the save point though, so playing with the instant death in there is time consuming.

In the previous room I was able to dodge past the spiked balls (after several failed attempts ending in death) allowing me to reach base no. 4, which contained a switch to deactivate the trap, and an identical switch which I turned but have not yet identified the effect of. Beyond that is a long series of doors requiring rhombus keys. I went through them until I ran out of keys, finding the blood crown in a well-guarded chest along the way (gonna show that to the fortune teller before I put it on because it sounds dangerous). Once I was out of keys I had to warp out, so it wasn’t a very satisfying expedition. I’ve since reclaimed the keys I had left in the prison area, a pretty tedious process of repeatedly trapping myself by removing keys from locks and warping back out. I could get the key guy to make more keys for me, but money is still pretty tight.