Invisiclues Hints for "Arthur: The Quest for Excalibur"

Hints for "Arthur: The Quest for Excalibur", adapted (with permission) from Infocom's original Invisiclues hint books.

More Infocom Invisiclues Hints

"Arthur: The Quest for Excalibur" on IFDB

The Churchyard

How do I keep the soldiers from arresting me?

1. Hide where they can't see you.
2. You can't hide in the church.
3. Hmmm. Doesn't that gravestone look pretty big?
4. Hide behind the gravestone.

How do I keep Lot from stealing the stone?

1. You can't.

What can I do in the church?

1. What should any chivalrous knight do when starting a quest?
2. Pray.

King Lot

Who is King Lot?

1. He is one of the many lesser kings who live in Britain. He wants to be High King.

Why does Lot ignore me in the Great Hall?

1. You are but a boy - insignificant in his eyes.

How can I get Lot's attention?

1. You need to challenge him in the traditional way.
2. Unless the next hint topic begins, "More on getting Lot's attention," then someplace in the game there is some object or information that you have not yet discovered. Until you do, it is unlikely that you will solve this puzzle.

More on getting Lot's attention

1. Take the gauntlet to the Great Hall and hit Lot with it.

How can I defeat Lot in battle?

1. Lot is a better swordsman than you.
2. You'll have to resort to something other than swordplay.
3. You'll have to distract him.
4. Have you noticed his dominant personality characteristic?
5. Have you noticed how greedy he is?
6. Throw the bracelet on the ground.

More on defeating Lot

1. Once you have him at your mercy, you must spare his life.

The Village Idiot

Why is the idiot in the Town Square?

1. The idiot is a metaphor for the angst of the human condition. He has positioned himself in the Town Square as a silent protest against man's inhumanity to man, and as a constant reminder of society's responsibility to care for its intellectually inferior elements.
2. Actually, he just likes it there.

How can I get things from the idiot?

1. The idiot isn't too bright.
2. He has no concept of value.
3. He'll trade you anything he's got for anything you've got.

The Tavern

Are the farmers important?

1. Without farmers there would be no crops, and eventually everyone would die.
2. Oh! You mean in the GAME?
3. Yes.
4. Their conversation provides an important clue.

Do I have to get into the locked cupboard?

1. Is the Queen English?
2. Are wild bears Catholic?
3. Does the Pope....(well, never mind).

How do I get into the locked cupboard?

1. Have you asked the cook to open it for you?
2. Of course, he's such a jerk that he probably wouldn't help you.
3. The wooden key opens the locked cupboard.
4. Have you asked the cook where the key is?
5. Oh yeah. We forgot. He's a jerk.
6. Do not read the next clue until you have paid a visit to Merlin.
7. Have you asked the bird about the key?
8. Turn yourself into an owl and see what the bird has to say.
9. (But wait until that jerk leaves the room.)

Invisible Knight

How can I get back what the invisible knight steals?

1. He trades away some of the things he steals to another character in the game.
2. The other character is the idiot.
3. You can trade with the idiot for whatever he has.
4. The Invisible Knight will keep the rest of your possessions until you track him to his lair.
5. Unless the next hint topic begins, "More on the invisible knight," then someplace in the game, there is some object or information that you have not yet discovered. Until you do, it is unlikely that you will solve this puzzle.

More on the invisible knight

1. Think of the Invisible Knight as an unseen force.
2. Go to the meadow and rub the magic ring.

The Brass Egg

What is the solution to the invisible knight's riddle?

1. This is the first clue
2. This is the second clue
3. This is the third clue
4. This is the fourth clue
5. Examine the first four clues carefully
6. The first four clues form a sequence
7. The clue after the first four clues would be the fifth clue
8. Look at the last two letters of the words in the first four clues
9. The letters the knight is looking for are TH (as in fifTH)

Merlin's Bag

What is the magic of Merlin's bag?

1. No matter what you put into it, it never fills up.

The Castle

How can I get into the castle?

1. Give the guard at the gate the password.

More on getting into the castle

1. You must go down the badger hole to get into the castle.
2. Push the stone.

How can I get the password?

1. Strangely enough, you will have to get into the castle before you can learn the password.
2. Don't read the next hint until you have visited Merlin.
3. You need to turn yourself into an animal in order to get into the castle.
4. You must enter the castle as a badger.
5. Unless the next hint topic begins, "More on getting the password," then you should come back after you've explored more thoroughly as a badger.

More on getting the password

1. Have you listened to the farmers in the tavern?
2. The "He" they are referring to is Lot.
3. The poem they are referring to is in your documentation.
4. Lot announces the password every canonical hour.
5. You have to be where you can hear Lot set the password.
6. You have to be somewhere other than in the Great Hall.
7. Unless the next hint topic begins, "Still more on getting the password," then you should come back after you have escaped from the cell.

Still more on getting the password

1. Have you found a dark passage yet?
2. Perhaps the small chamber at the end of the hall bears closer examination.
3. Perhaps there is a secret exit from the small chamber.
4. Look behind the tapestry.
5. The next hint will be the very last hint on how to get the password.
6. Wait behind the throne until the canonical hour changes. You will hear Lot announce a verse and a line. That line is the password.

How do I use the password?

1. In your documentation, you will find a poem about King Lot. Look up the verse and line that you overheard from Lot. Then go to the guard and repeat that line using the following format:
   >Say "Correct line from poem"

Do I need to free the prisoner?

1. It would be the chivalrous thing to do.
2. Yes. You need to free the prisoner.

How do I free the prisoner?

1. The chains and the padlock can't be broken.
2. You have to unlock the padlock.
3. Guards generally have keys to padlocks.
4. Have you asked the prisoner about the guards?
5. Call the guard.

More on freeing the prisoner

1. Did we mention that you should hide behind the door before you call the guard?
2. Did we mention that you will have to hit the guard in order to get the key?
3. Did we mention that you need to use the stone in order to knock out the guard?
4. Are you sick of us forgetting to mention things?

How do I get out of the underground corridor?

1. Forget the guard at the top of the stairs. He'll kill you every time.
2. Look around the small chamber.
3. How about that tapestry.

How do I get out of the dark passage?

1. If you emerge from behind the throne, you'll always get killed.
2. You'll have to get through that fire somehow.
3. Gee....what animal was it that walks through fire?
4. Turn yourself into a salamander.

How do I get the prisoner through the fire?

1. The prisoner can't turn himself into a salamander.
2. You can't turn him into a salamander.
3. It looks like you'll have to put out that fire.
4. Push over the barrel of water.

How do I get the prisoner to leave the kitchen?

1. He needs a disguise so the guards won't recognize him.
2. Perhaps something that will cover part of his face.
3. Remember that guard you knocked out?
4. Give him the guard's helmet.

How do I get the prisoner past the guard?

1. Give the guard the password.
2. See the hints on getting and using the password.

The Smith's Sword

How can I get the sword from under the tree?

1. The smith said he buried it.
2. Perhaps you should try digging.
3. Perhaps you should try digging as another animal.
4. Turn yourself into a badger, then dig.

The Red Knight

How do I get past the red knight?

1. Give him what he wants.

The Badger Maze

Do I have to go through the badger maze?

1. Yes.

How do I get through the badger maze?

1. The maze can be mapped.
2. Although you cannot carry anything as a badger, you can still map the maze.
3. You need some way to distinguish one room from another.
4. You need to find a unique way to mark each room.
5. What natural tools does a badger have?
6. Use your claws to mark each room.
7. When you enter the first room, put one claw mark on the wall. When you enter the next room, put two claw marks on the wall. Keep doing that and you will soon be able to map the entire maze.
8. The next two hints will give you the exact directions through the maze.
9. From the smithy, go down, south, up, down, and up.
10. From Thorney Island, go down, north, north, and up.

How can I remove the hawthorn sprig from my fur?

1. You can't reach it with your claws.
2. When you change back to human form, the sprig will fall to the ground.

What else can I do on the island?

1. Lie on the beach?
2. Sing 'Goodbye My Thorney Island Baby'?
3. Nothing.

The Joust

How do I start the joust?

1. First you'll have to find some armour....
2. Then of course you'll need a shield....
3. And you'll need to polish the shield....
4. With the pumice stone....
5. And then get on the horse.

How do I win the joust?

1. The blue knight seems to place a great deal of importance on honorable behavior.
2. Don't think of the joust as a fight. Think of it as a gentleman's sport, with gentleman's rules and conventions.
3. A gentleman wouldn't truly try to hurt another gentleman.
4. Have you noticed where the blue knight always ends up aiming?
5. The blue knight will always end up aiming at your body.
6. You must always end up shielding your body....
7. And you must always end up aiming at his body.

The Conkers

Why do the enchanted trees throw conkers at me?

1. They don't need a reason. They're enchanted.

How do I survive the attack of the enchanted trees?

1. You can't destroy the trees.
2. Find a way to protect yourself.
3. Your armour and shield can't quite protect all of your body.
4. Turn into a turtle.
5. Retract your head and legs into your shell.
6. Wait until the trees stop throwing the conkers.

The Kraken

Do I need the bracelet?

1. Yes.

How do I get the bracelet?

1. The Kraken won't give it to you.
2. You'll have to take it from him.
3. You'll have to use violence.
4. You'll have to cut it off with your sword.
5. You can't carry a sword while you're swimming.
6. If you can't get the sword to the kraken, you'll have to get the kraken to the sword.
7. If you zap the kraken as an eel, he'll start to chase you.
8. Leave the sword in the ford or the shallows.
9. Zap the kraken and go back to where you left the sword. Change back to human form, take the sword, and cut off the bracelet.

More on getting the bracelet

1. Think of the bracelet as a hoop.
2. Swim through the bracelet.
3. Swim through the bracelet as a turtle.
4. Take the bracelet to the shallows or the ford and then pull your head inside your shell.

The Glade

What is rustling in the undergrowth?

1. Perhaps it is something that is afraid of you.
2. Maybe you should hide somewhere.
3. Hide behind the rock.

What is the murmuring below the rock?

1. Listen to it.
2. It's a leprechaun complaining about something.

How do I catch the leprechaun?

1. Listen to the murmuring from below the rock.
2. Don't read the next clue until you have opened the cupboard in the tavern.
3. The leprechaun is complaining about the lack of spice in his Irish stew.
4. Leave the spice in the glade, then hide behind the rock.
5. Catch the leprechaun while he is looking at the bottle of spice.

The Raven

Where is the raven's egg?

1. Where do ravens usually keep eggs?
2. It's in the raven's nest.
3. The nest is at the top of the tall tree in the grove.

How can I get the gold egg out of the nest?

1. You need to get into the nest....
2. Then you need to distract the raven long enough to get the egg.
3. Unless the next hint topic begins, "More on getting the gold egg," then someplace in the game, there is some object or information that you have not yet discovered. Until you do, it is unlikely that you will solve this puzzle.

More on getting the gold egg

1. The raven likes bright objects.
2. The bird may even think the brass egg is real.
3. Drop the brass egg in the grove.
4. Fly up to the nest.
5. Push the egg out of the nest.
6. Get out of there before the raven kills you.

The Ivory Tower

How do I get into the ivory tower?

1. You need a key.
2. Unless the next hint topic begins, "More on getting into the tower," then someplace in the game, there is some object or information that you have not yet discovered. Until you do, it is unlikely that you will solve this puzzle.

More on getting into the tower

1. The Blue Knight gave you an ivory key. Use it.

How can I find out the man's name?

1. It isn't Rumplestiltskin.
2. Magical creatures who have secret names usually have an irresistible urge to write it down somewhere.
3. There's more than one room on this floor of the tower.
4. Crawl through the crack in the wall on the landing.

More on the secret name

1. The letters on the wall of the abandoned room are a cryptogram.
2. The key to cryptogram is somewhere else.

Still more on the secret name

1. Think of the writing on the cellar wall as two strings of letters, rather than words.
2. The writing on the cellar wall is the key to the cryptogram in the abandoned room.
3. It is a substitution cypher.
4. Every letter that appears in the phrase AMHTIR AMU SMOTUS also appears in the name RIOTHAMUS.
5. Substitute the letters in the phrase AMHTIR AMU SMOTUS with the letters in SAYMOTHER that appear above the corresponding letters in RIOTHAMUS.
6. For example, the 'S' of SAYMOTHER appears directly above the 'R' of RIOTHAMUS, so wherever you see an 'R' in AMHTIR AMU SMOTUS, substitute the letter 'S.'
7. The man's name is Thomas The Rhymer.

What is in the cellar?

1. It's too dark to see.
2. Actually, it's only too dark for a human to see.
3. Turn yourself into an owl.

The Boar

How do I get across the chasm?

1. You can't jump over it.
2. Don't read the next clue until you have visited Merlin.
3. Fly over the chasm as an owl.

How do I get the tusk from the boar?

1. You'll have to kill the boar.
2. You can't kill it with your bare hands.
3. And it looks too big to kill with a conventional weapon.
4. So maybe you could poison it.
5. Gee. If only there were a poison apple in the game.
6. But wait! What luck! There IS a poison apple - conveniently located just east of the ford.
7. That's really all you need to know, unless you're having difficulty getting the apple to where the boar is - in which case, read on.
8. Well, first you'll have to get the apple safely out of the land east of the river, which is covered in a separate hint topic.
9. But once you've done that, you've still got to get the apple to the other side of the chasm.
10. Of course, the chasm really isn't all that wide.
11. Throw the apple over the chasm.

More on getting the tusk

1. Have you tried pulling the tusk out?
2. Cut off the tusk with the sword.
3. Then throw everything back over the chasm.

How do I get the apple where I need it?

1. There are actually two ways to do it.
2. One way is to carry it past the Black Knight and back through the bog.
3. Of course to do that, you would have to know how to get through the bog.
4. Or you could take it by another route.
5. Been bobbing for apples recently?
6. Drop the apple in the ford, go to the shallows, and you'll find that the current has carried it there.

The Cottage

What's wrong with the peasant?

1. He has passed out from the cold.

How do I awaken the peasant?

1. You need to warm him up.
2. The fire has gone out.
3. You need to restart the fire.
4. You need some new fuel for the fire.
5. Peat is a good fuel.
6. Go to the bog and cut some peat.
7. Use the slean.

The Bog

How do I get through the bog?

1. You need expert guidance.
2. Ask the peasant in the cottage.

How do I get to the island in the middle of the bog?

1. You can't get to it from the bog.
2. You can't get to it from the air.
3. Do not read the next clue until you are really stumped.
4. You have to solve the badger maze to get to the island.

The Black Knight

How can I get past the black knight?

1. You'll have to defeat him in battle.
2. You'll need a good weapon.
3. Unless the next hint topic begins, "More on getting past the black knight," then someplace in the game there is some object or information that you have not yet discovered. Until you do, it is unlikely that you will solve this puzzle.

More on getting past the black knight

1. You have to attack the knight with your sword.
2. Unless the next hint topic begins, "Still more on getting past the black knight," then you don't have enough experience to defeat him yet.

Still more on getting past the black knight

1. You now have all the experience you need to defeat the black knight.
2. However, you have to do more than simply attack him.
3. The black knight is enchanted.
4. Have you looked at him?
5. The medallion is the source of his enchanted power.
6. Wait until you have knocked the sword from his hand, then cut off the medallion.

The Dragon

How can I kill the dragon?

1. Bloodthirsty sort, aren't you?
2. You can't kill the dragon.

How can I get past the dragon?

1. Unless the next hint topic begins, "More on getting past the dragon," then someplace in the game there is some object or information that you have not yet discovered. Until you do, it is unlikely that you will solve this puzzle.

More on getting past the dragon

1. Does the dragon remind you of anyone?
2. Like someone who would rather be in Philadelphia?
3. Like someone known for his alcoholic intake?
4. Give him the jug of whisky.

The Apparitions

How can I kill the apparitions?

1. You can't. They're already dead.

How can I stop the apparitions from killing me?

1. The apparitions aren't real.
2. They are being created in your mind by an evil force.
3. If you leave them alone, they'll leave you alone.

The Basilisk

How can I stop the basilisk from killing me?

1. The basilisk turns everything it sees into stone.
2. Perhaps if it caught a glimpse of itself....
3. Like in a mirror, perhaps...
4. Or something that was sort of like a mirror.
5. Point your shield at the basilisk.

The Ice Room

What can I do in the ice room?

1. Make ice cream?
2. Freeze things.
3. See the hints for the Hot Room.

The Hot Room

How can I get past the talking door?

1. Just say the word and the door will open.
2. Oh yeah. We forgot. You can't talk.
3. Unless the next hint topic begins, "More on getting past the talking door," then someplace in the game there is some object or information that you have not yet discovered. Until you do, it is unlikely that you will solve this puzzle.

More on getting past the talking door

1. It sure is hot in here.
2. Real hot.
3. Hot enough to melt almost anything.
4. Especially ice.
5. Especially ice that contained a frozen word.
6. Like Nudd.
7. Go to the ice room, say "Nudd," catch the block of ice before it falls, and bring it back to the hot room.

The Demon's Lair

Should I free the girl?

1. Have you tried kissing her?
2. Take our word for it. You don't want to free her.
3. She's not what she pretends to be.
4. If you show her that you know who she is, her disguise will disappear.
5. She's really the demon himself.
6. Either attack her, or address her as Nudd.

How do I get out of the demon's lair alive?

1. Well, you could turn down the demon's deal and simply leave.
2. Of course, in that case you wouldn't get the fleece.
3. It looks as if you'll have to accept his offer.
4. But perhaps you could outsmart him.
5. Like if you fulfilled the letter - but not the spirit - of the contract.
6. All you have to do is open the manacles.
7. He didn't say anything about not being able to close them again.
8. Of course, you'd have to open them one at a time.

The Underground Chamber

Who is the sleeping woman?

1. She is Nimue. The Lady of the Lake.

How can I break the enchantment?

1. You must heed Merlin's message in the documentation.

The Endgame

I've defeated King Lot. Now what?

1. Remember the instructions of the lady of the lake?
2. Call Nimue.

Points

Can I get more than 100 points in some categories?

How do the points affect the play of the game?

Notes

Reality vs. romance

There is inherent conflict built into writing a game about King Arthur. It is the conflict between history and legend - the way things were, versus the way we wish they were.

The historical Arthur probably lived in Post-Roman Britain, and reigned between about 454 and 470 AD, although even this is widely debated.

The bulk of Arthurian legend, however, is based on a series of romances written beginning in the 12th century. The writers of these tales shamelessly projected then-current styles, fashions and culture backwards across the centuries and fastened them to Arthur, where they have stuck firmly ever since.

Thus, the historical Arthur never jousted. Camelot, if it existed, was not a stone castle with crenellated towers, but a reinforced hill fort with a wooden palisades surrounding a few half-timbered, thatched buildings. Chivalry hadn't been invented yet, nor had the idea of courtly love. Armor consisted primarily of chain mail. The cumbersome suits of plate armor one sees in the Tower of London did not come into vogue for at least 500 years after Arthur's death at the battle of Camlann.

Post-Roman Britain

The last Roman legions left England in the year 410. With their departure, the Emperor Honorius authorized the Britons to take up arms to repel the invading Angles and Saxons and Jutes.

A series of leaders including the historic Arthur (who ruled from about 454 to 470) fought with varying degrees of success to keep the invaders at bay. After Arthur's death, however, the barbarians overran the island, and Britain began the long slide into the Dark Ages.

The game is set in this period between the departure of the Romans and the descent into darkness. During this time, central authority became fragmented and regional kings came into power. Coinage passed out of use in favor of a barter economy.

One interesting feature of those years was the curious blend of Christian and pagan beliefs that held sway in Britain. When the Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity in 312, the new faith spread rapidly through the empire. But resident Romans were notorious for incorporating local religious beliefs into their own, and many Britons worshipped both the new god and the old Celtic gods simultaneously (see the appendix item on the Holy Thorn).

Book of hours

Before the invention of the mechanical clock (the first public clock that struck the hours wasn't built until 1335), people were far less concerned with the precise measure of time than they are today.

The members of a monastic community, however, had strictly regimented lives consisting of community service, scriptural study, and manual labor that included domestic, garden, and craft work. Moreover, at regular intervals throughout the day they were required to praise the Lord in prayer or song. The periods of time into which they divided the day came to be known as the canonical hours, and the sequence of prayers became known as the divine office.

Through the centuries, as the requirements of monastic life changed, the number, duration, and nomenclature of the canonical hours changed as well. Thus, at one time, Matins was approximately five hours long, beginning around midnight. Later, it became associated with dawn, and was reduced in length to around three hours.

Because of these changes, it is impossible to determine with accuracy the actual system that was in effect during Arthurian times. Instead, I created a composite version of the divine office for the game, using wherever possible the earliest known spelling and sequence of the canonical hours:

Compline: 9:00 p.m. - Midnight

Elaborately illuminated Celtic gospels - such as the Book of Kells - survive from as long ago as the late 600's. These works of art were too rare - and too heavy - for a monk to carry with him as he performed his daily chores. Instead he would carry a smaller devotional book that contained the prayers to be said at the canonical hours. This breviary was called a Book of Hours.

The game has adapted the idea of the Book of Hours to help explain the canonical hours to the modern player. Although the book would have contained prayers written in Latin, we have substituted poems that deal with the various activities appropriate to each canonical hour.

In Arthur's day, centuries before the Norman Invasion, poets neither wrote in rhyme nor counted syllables. The predominant style of poetry was called alliterative verse, and it relied on the frequent repetition of consonant sounds within any given line. The foremost example of this is the masterful 'Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.' The style died out completely when the Conquest brought rhyming, metered poetry to England's shores in 1066.

We have chosen this style over the more familiar rhyming style for the book of hours and for Lot's poem.

Thomas the Rhymer

Thomas the Rhymer was a real man, a seer and poet who lived in the 13th Century. Records of him survive in the form of documents and deeds which he signed as Thomas Rymour de Erceldoune. It is believed that he was the author of the metrical 'Sir Tristrem,' the source from which the great Arthurian romance 'Tristan and Isolde' was later taken.

After his death, his name passed into popular lore, and by the 15th century it was often linked closely with Merlin's.

In legend, Thomas the Rhymer acquired his prophetic powers when he met the Queen of Elfland and followed her into the land of the fairies. There he stayed for seven years, before returning to the outside world with the gift of prophecy. After his return, he lived a long and happy life in Erceldoune until one day, while he was feasting in his castle, word came that a hart and a hind were wandering through his village. He left the castle to look at them, and when they turned and went into the forest, he followed them - never to return. Yet for years thereafter, mortals who ventured into fairyland reported that he lived there still, as a councillor to the queen of the fairies.

Holy thorn

Legend has it that after Joseph of Arimathea placed Jesus in the tomb, he came to Britain with the Holy Grail, the cup used at the Last Supper. When he arrived in Glastonbury, he thrust his staff into the ground on Weary-All Hill, where it miraculously took root and grew into the Holy Thorn tree that blossoms on Christmas day.

Descendents of this tree (the original was cut down in Cromwell's time) still grow around Glastonbury. But ever since the calendar reform of 1752 that involved a shift of eleven days, the trees no longer bloom exactly on Christmas Day itself, but rather sometime around Christmas Week.

In Arthur's day, Glastonbury was surrounded by marshes that flooded each winter, turning the higher ground on which the Holy Thorn grew into an island that the Celts held sacred and called Ynys-wittin - the Island of Glass. Later traditions hold that this is the legendary Island of Avalon.

At the same time, some 100 miles to the east, lay another island with sacred connotations. On it was a small church dedicated to St. Peter. A few centuries later, Westminster Abbey was built on the foundations of that church, and the land on which it stood was called Thorney Island.

Nudd

Nudd is really Gwyn ap Nudd, the Celtic king of the underworld, also known variously as Nodons and Lludd. His name pops up from time to time throughout the body of Arthurian legend. In the tale of St. Collen, for example, the saint goes up to the top of Glastonbury Tor and enters the hill through a magic opening. There he finds Nudd sitting on a golden throne, surrounded by courtiers dressed in red and blue that the saint describes as "the red of burning fire and the blue of cold."

In the Black Book of Carmarthen, Arthur himself ventures into Nudd's realm of Annwn to bring back a miraculous cauldron of inspiration and plenty. In the Old French verse 'Merlin,' written about 1200 by Robert de Boron, we learn that Nudd was also responsible for placing the two dragons underneath the foundations of Vortigern's tower. (It was Merlin's subsequent discovery of these dragons that launched his career as a prophet and magician.)

The game takes bits and pieces of these legends, pastes them together, and then invents a few more for good measure. The first of these inventions is the idea that Nudd's evil influence spreads over all the land east of the river. Merlin's magic has no power there, which explains why the 'cyr' word will not work, and why the bag will no longer hold an impossible number of objects.

Riothamus

I cannot recommend highly enough a book called The Discovery of King Arthur, by Geoffrey Ashe (copyright 1985, Henry Holt & Co). In it, Ashe puts forward a persuasive argument that identifies King Arthur with a known historical figure named Riothamus.

Riothamus appears in French historical chronicles as the King of the Britons who led a force of 12,000 men onto the continent during the reign of Pope Leo. His existence is well documented, in fact a letter still survives that was written to him in the year 469 or 470 by a man named Sidonius.

Nimue

Through the centuries, the Lady of the Lake has had many different names, including Viviane, Eviene, Niviene, and Nina. But in Le Morte D'Arthur, Sir Thomas Malory calls her Nimue. The game follows Malory on this point, despite the fact that other authors cast Nimue as an evil sorceress who sometimes becomes Merlin's nemesis.

In many versions of the legend, it is the Lady of the Lake who gives the mighty Excalibur to Arthur. In some texts, however, Excalibur appears in a churchyard as the sword in the stone, and Arthur must prove his right to the throne by pulling it free on Christmas Day.

The blank gravestone

So many people have asked the meaning of the blank gravestone in the churchyard that I have decided to explain it here, rather than waiting for a possible sequel.

When Sir Lancelot was born, he was taken away from his parents and raised by the Lady of the Lake (which is why he is sometimes called Lancelot du Lac). Like Arthur, he grew up in ignorance of his name and royal parentage.

Lancelot does not learn his true name until he captures Dolorous Gard and breaks the enchantment that lays over the castle. There, in a magic cemetery, he finds a tomb in which he is told he will one day lie. While he stands there, his name magically appears upon the previously blank tombstone, and that is how he learns his true identity.

Geography

I have taken great liberties with geography, specifically by implying that all the game's action takes place in Lot's kingdom.

Lot was the king of Lothian, which is in the north of Britain. The location of the sword in the stone is most frequently given as London or Winchester. Merlin's cave was in Carmarthen (Caer Myrddin) in Wales. The Lady of the Lake lived near Glastonbury.

Bibliography

The following is a partial list of books I found useful and/or interesting in the creation of this game.

The Acts of King Arthur & His Noble Knights, by John Steinbeck

Credits

At the last minute and at great expense: Dave Lebling