Dafydd on 4/4/2004 at 23:37

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I found the Hand (with Nightwalker's hint) and finished out with a (probable) ghost: the only thing I'm concerned about is whether shutting off the forcefield with the sunburst device counts as property damage.

[spoiler]I'm strongly tempted to say no, that doesn't count as property damage -- there is no more evidence of damage than there is when you shut off an alarm or camera. There is nothing visible to indicate damage; clearly the field can be shut off, because they have to do maintenance on the Hand of Glory every now and then... clean it, fingerprint it, trim the nails, whatever; and we have no evidence indicating that the field generator has actually been destroyed. (Even the skulls are just moved around. Even the papyrus is intact!)[/spoiler]

But I can see an argument the other way: somebody could claim that the field itself is "property," and shutting it down by blowing it up necessarily "destroys" it. But on the whole, it's a tough enough mission, and there is no other way that I found to shut off the deadly field, so I will give myself the benefit of the doubt here.

I'll see what they say on the Eidos Forum.

By the way, near the garden exit, there is a room with a cage that contains a floating cube'o'symbols. Frobbing one face of the cube causes part of the cage to slide open. (I could only enter the cage at that spot by crouching.) Frobbing the face again causes it to close.

Is there any purpose to this device? I couldn't find any loot or any other reason for its existence. Did I miss something?

Thanks,

Dafydd

The Phantom on 23/1/2006 at 14:08

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Another classic to recommend :D
Lord Alan, I replayed your mission last night on Sneak. Even though it's been years since I last played it, I still find it one of the best maze missions ever :thumb:. Not only a simple basement like I expected the first time, but plenty of tunnels, waterways, corridors and passages as well.
Other maze missions I played were quite frustrating to explore, but this one just kept me involved. There was always something I overlooked. Lots of well hidden loot [SPOILER]in the walls :laff:, [/SPOILER] keys lying around, scrolls I forgot to read (with important clues)..slowly I made more and more progress.
I got lost the first time though but eventually I recognized more and more area's I passed through earlier. In this mission I was glad that the map shows only the important locations instead of the entire lay out.
You never know what you can expect that way.

The beautiful music you hear when entering certain area's adds a lot to the atmosphere and finding both artifacts was a good challenge. I hope Garrett manages to keep them this time ;)
Although I find the detail no longer as impressive as it was years ago, there are still area's that excel. Like the Mausoleum, one of my favorite locations. And I really liked the puzzle. It took me some time before I finally noticed the[SPOILER]transparant statue[/SPOILER]:p Thanks to a hint I found earlier I was focusing too much on buttons.
Other locations I like are the wooden elevator construction (I'd love to find my own route to climb up :D) and Lord Alan's quarters with the[SPOILER]paintings to jump through. [/SPOILER]
Pity they don't make you invisisble for passing guards, what i expected :sly:
Sneak mode was a lot of fun because of the knockout restriction. It requires carefull planning and studying of their patrol routes. Especially in the basement itself. I didn't managed to stay undetected all the time. Luckily there were a lot of corners to hide in. And I found out that wooden beams on the ceiling have another purpose, except collapse prevention. When I was being chased by several guards I ran into a dark corner, quickly shot a rope arrow into the wooden beams, climbed up and waited untill they left (Pretty weak, I know :cheeky:, but it works fine).
Loot found: 4866
Thank you for this enjoyable mission Lord Alan!

Now onto the Fortress....

smithpd on 2/12/2006 at 21:40

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It has been a long time. Rather than going back to check, I will be lazy and take a guess, to see if my memory holds.[SPOILER]Look up into a ceiling light fixture near a locked door. There is a switch up there. I believe this is in a maze passage where the texture is gray stone blocks.[/SPOILER]Let me know if I guessed right.:)

Nightwalker on 3/12/2006 at 15:49

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You have to look for a section of the maze that is lower than the rest. At the north end, there's a block of wood in the ceiling above a hole in the floor. Go down through the hole and that's where you'll find the locked door and the switch that smithpd mentioned.

Nightwalker on 4/12/2006 at 00:49

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Very well! If you want details, you'll have to ask Lord Alan but I don't think it will be TOO long before you will get to see for yourself. ;)