Avernum 3-8: Wandering and Demons (and Drakes!)

Well I kind of hit a wall with the game, but I think I'm through it now. I could not could not could not find a map of the last unmapped province. Finally I realized that it had to be in the major city of that province, and at last I found it. Whew! I spent way too much time wandering around looking for it. Still have to turn it in to complete a quest, but I know where that destination is.

I looked at the Spiderweb Forum and learned that although most people finish the game before Day 160, that's when a major event happens at the Tower of Magi, and I don't want to miss that. Hence the wandering. However, I'm finding that the "Job Board" time-limited quests you get don't even show up in your quest list if you get them past the time that they're supposed to be done. So there's a limited number of those minor quests that I can do to pass the time. This element in the game bothers me because I always like to do every quest I can find no matter how small, and now I can't. Shoot.

So now I'm going after the major artifacts in the game. I have two, a shield and Pachtar's Platemail, both of which I put on Aldous. The shield you get from the mad monks down on the island in the south (in the previous incarnation of this game you found the recipe for Knowledge Brew there, but now we use Wisdom Crystals instead, and there are a limited number of them, sadly). I remember that those monks were really tough in the last game. (Some nice humor about kung fu movies, there, however, if you find it!) I'm a lot stronger now but even so I found them to be fairly challenging. Well that's good. I don't want to just blow through these fights. 

I also got the platemail from the Lair of Drakos, which involves having to slaughter not only Drakos, but plenty of Ur-Basilisks and fire lizards and Efreets and Demons. That was challenging too. Should have given my priestess an invulnerability elixir, because I had to use up far too many return life scrolls to get her reanimated when she got killed. She can return life to the others, but shoot, that was a fairly good fight.

However, as seen below, there is a nice chest that's blocked by stones. I was certain that I already had Move Mountains at level 3, but apparently not. Had to go back to the Forum to see how to find it. Found it, and went back for the loot!

Kill the demons, get the loot

I'm finding that money is much tighter in this game than I'd like. There are lots of major fees that you have to pay to get information about where things are, and keys, and of course, there's buying the house.

So after I get the Fury Crossbow, and the Ring of Endless Magery, and, I think, the Black Halbred, I will go after the golem factory, and slay the alien beasts, and get into Blackcrag Fortress. That ought to get me closer to the endgame. I do want to go beyond 160 days, though.

Oh, and, um (blush), I finally realized that I can deposit loot into my junk bag just by control clicking on it. Sheesh. This far into the game. Idiot me.

I'm on Day 129 now, so there's lots still to do!

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Avernum 3-7: Dragons and Golems, Oh My!

I have been having so much fun with the game for the last two days that I haven't taken the time to do this blog! 

First, I found the dragons! This time they're all in pretty much the same area, so the quest you get is pretty easy to fulfill.

Talking with a Dragon!

However, that was all the way into last night! I've been many more places since then! I must say that opening up new areas in the game is almost like starting a new game. Really fun.

But, I got the weapon to attack the alien beasts. Found a few of those but I don't think that's the next mission. I decided to do the golems, but actually I think some of those are still a bit too strong for me. I've managed to get through some of it. There are four stone circles that, we are told, affect the strength of the golem "factory," as it were. I easily conquered three of them (and anyone with Avernum experience will now know who is behind the plagues that are tormenting the surface world). These are easy. The central target falls with only an arrow. Here's a pic of a circle without that telltale central target:

Conqured this one!

Once you get the central target, just have one character run to the boundary and you can go back in and defeat the golems and pick up lots of nice loot.

However, I have found some golems that I just can't defeat at present:

At the end of the peninsula

There are too many fire golems in that group. I'm not strong enough to get 'em yet.

So, I decided to head south. I had bypassed the ghosts because when I came across them at first they were too strong for me. Now, however, I have gained lots of levels. I ought to be strong enough for them now.

So I'm going south. I've just defeated a demon in a tower in that area. Haven't yet found the source of the ghosts yet, but I'm sure I'll be able to get 'em this time. Anyway, I have a few quests I'd like to do in that area.

I did one quest apparently too late. The recipient was dead when I found him. Sad. However, I did find some special metal, and just had an extremely nifty sword made out of it! 

So I'm progressing seriously! Having loads of fun! Onward!

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