And we're back. This time I'll be taking the ladder by the Life symbol in the Guidance Gate, but first I had another look around the Mausoleum to see if beating the guardian there changed anything, aside from the one giant statue that started crying last time. Not that I can find! I even unaligned the moons to see if anything would change in the boss room, but Zi stood back up and nothing else was different.
So I head back to town, save my game (locking in the unaligned moons and also the 20 coins I've picked up since the start of the update), then warped into the Spring in the Sky. I told myself I was going to try and scan the skeleton by the altar, but let's be honest: drowning Lemeza and reloading is the quickest way I've found to get his VIT back. There's gotta be something I'm missing, here.
I reload and head for the Life symbol. Beyond, I find a new area. They seem to be going for an Egypt theme here, with the heiroglyphics, the bird, boat, and pyramid (the giants' tower?) symbols in the background, and the cat riding a ball.
An inauspicious start to my time in this Field.
The statue at the lower right removes any lingering doubt about what they were going for: this is Egypt. Also on view: the area's altar, a stele, a skeleton, a floor switch (lower left), a treasure chest, and some kind of grey block in the ceiling above Lemeza.
Jumping and whipping don't seem to do anything to it. Oh well. Let's activate that altar!
Ah. One feature of the room I forgot to mention: a ruddy great hole. Down I go.
The broken stele is blank. I don't know if the face on the wall has a function that could benefit me, but I do know whipping it was a mistake: it starts shooting arrows from its mouth.
I attempt to take out the cat and succeed on my second try. The ball rolls to a halt nearby and for some reason I go down to whip it and get hit by an arrow, falling down again into a nest of Sonic the Hedgehogs.
These guys take a couple of hits to kill and move pretty quickly. The room has a bunch of stele in the lower left corner that I can't reach (with a conspicuous abscence in the top row), another blue star, and a path through the middle that I can't reach from where I am.
The upper skeleton doesn't scan, and I head one screen right to find another big hole.
The birds dropping stuff all over the place make the prospect of trying to reach the opposite side unattractive.
I make it up to the stele, though. Despite its advice, I flee back to the left, finding early fighting game Yie Ar Kung Fu on a skeleton.
I head back up the ladder and take another shot at the rolling cat. I deafeat it with some difficulty, clearing the way for me to head right.
The skeleton at the top strongly suggests that I'll be gaining some speed at some point, then I head right where a stele tells me how I can stop Lemeza drowning whenever I take him underwater. Unfortunately, I don't know where the sacred fish dwells, or who's going to polish it.
If this block were on a lower level I'd be able to jump over it, but the top of the screen prevents it. So I try the whip, which doesn't go well. Looking at this GIF now, I think I should have tried throwing Shuriken over the block at the face on the wall at the upper right. I'll add it to my list.
I didn't think of that when I was playing though, so I gave up on the top level and went down low. Can Lemeza make it across this jump?
He cannot.
I wind up lower down than I've been so far, and pretty quickly take a hit from a shield enemy. I flee to the left, where I encounter some jumping elephants. I 'm not keen on them, either, so I head back to the right.
This blue platform looks like it does something. I try pressing up and down in case it's an elevator, but it doesn't move.
Low on VIT and wanting to activate the altar before leaving the ruins, I head up the ladder on the left to try to make my way back to it. It takes me to the middle passage in room 1/-2.
The beoken stele is blank, and I continue to the next screen. I find myself on the wrong side of a one-way door, so I go back and up a ladder to the next floor. There's what looks like some kind of a machine here, but whipping it doesn't activate it.
I continue upwards, and reach the room with the altar, though not in a spot that gives me access to it. There's a footswitch on the floor, and when I step on it the treasure chest on the right opens revealing the map.
I head left a screen and scan a skeleton. I don't know what it's talking about though: the way out is right above me and I already hit the switch.
Oh. I have the Grail, of course, so I can't really be trapped, but the skeleton's clue suggests that there is a switch, so I'll look for it. What's that red thing to my left?
Whipping it causes it to sink into the wall, so I've achieved something, but when I climb back up the wall blocking my exit is still there. There must be another switch.
On the floor below, I notice that the spots on the machine have changed colour. They were blue before.
A little whipping later, and the machine activates, turning on a light in the shaft to the left. It appears to be showing some platforms. I'll have to try jumping on them to see if I can exit the room to the left.
After about a minute of going around in circles in this little area whipping stuff, I stumble across a block that disappears after a few hits. I've just now noticed that it's a bit paler than the other blocks.
Sure enough, when I get back to the top the path outwards has reopened. I'm almost back to the altar!
Unwilling to take any chances this time, I equip the Shuriken, wait for my moment, and take out the cat before it gets close.
I make it to the altar, unlocking the ability to teleport here as well as revealing the name of the area: The Temple of the Sun. Apparently, the "valiant, male" temple. Between this and the "pure maiden" bit, I'm wondering if it's also the misogynistic temple.
I really should warp out and save before I do something dumb and lose my progress, but instead I head down the ladder to get the map. As I near the bottom, the ladder disappears. I'm trapped! Well, I would be if I didn't have the Grail. But if I use it, will the ladder reappear when I return? If I don't do whatever can be done down here now, I might not get another chance.
I read the stele for a clue that I have no idea what to do with, then head up and get the map. Of note: two screens below where I am, there's a path to the left which according to this map leads nowhere. Hmm. Then I head back down and break the pot. In the process, I hit the statue with my whip and it starts shooting at me. Speaking of the statue, isn't it odd how it's blocking a little area of the room?
Pushing it to the right causes the ladder to reappear, and clears the way for Lemeza to scan the head in the background and get Super Cobra, a 1983 horizontal helicopter shooter.
I climb back up the ladder for no real reason, then warp back to the village and save. We're just about done for today, but before I go:
I purchase the MSX 2! I thought this might change the BASIC screen, but it doesn't seem to (possibly it depends which ROM you have in the slot?), but it does give me a second slot to put ROMs in, and it allows me to use software on floppy disk, like Game Collection 3. Probably what I'll use it most for is having both Glyph Reader and Game Master active to reduce my time spent switching software.
User's Manual:I think the internal disk drive is what's letting me use the floppies, not a hard drive.
MSX2: An MSX2 laptop with an internal disk drive and two cartridge slots.
The other big use of the MSX2 is combining software. This is something you could do with some Konami games on the MSX: if you had the right Konami game in the second slot while playing another in the first slot, there would be something changed in the game. Sort of like reading your memory card in Metal Gear Solid. The above image is a page from the manual that lists some software combinations and their effects. I don't think I have any of the listed combos yet, but I might have some of the mystery ones. I think there's a sound that plays when you make a valid combination, but I'm not sure if you have to find something to make it happen. I'll play around with it later.
Anyways, new laptop purchased, I save and quit for the day.
Map:
Clues:
Village:
"The Algol with the blue body and the many eyes. Legend has it he is weak to the Serpent Staff."
Guidance Gate:
"Eight souls rest in this land. The souls are those of the Guardians that protect these lands. When the Ankhs holding the souls shatter from a shining red light, the souls will awaken. The Ankh in this land is beyond the path of Angels, and
""There is a path where the angels face each other" I found an invisible floor!"
"Offer three sacrifices to the heavens."
"The sad tale of the giants. Their history is recorded therein."
"If thou dost cross the ocean of the inferno, thou shouldst take the top path."
"In the temple of the Sun, a new trap fills a hole and conceals a trigger."
""Twin Guards" "Silent and alone" "Deliver a stone on high""
Spring of the Sky:
"If I tried to go under the waterfalls I'd just get swept away. If I had some sort of helmet I might be able to get by them..."
"The water that operates the tower. It flows here and is converted to energy."
Mausoleum of Giants:
"So these ruins are those from a race of giants... I was just about to decipher their legend too..."
"We are the second race born of the Great Mother. We were born to return her to the skies. This is the sad story of our race. Nine brothers led our race: Zeb, Bud, Migera, Led, Fut, Abt, Zi, Riv, and Sakit."
"In order to hold up the Earth, Zeb stopped moving, and the remaining brothers split into two factions and fought amongst themselves."
"Abt, Zi, Riv, and Sakit wanted the Mother to remain here on Earth."
"The eldest, Zeb, could not move, as he had to hold up the Earth."
"We could not grant the Great Mother's wish. I am the only one to remain, and here I go to my long, final rest. Abt"
"Zi started praying to the Earth on a moonlight night."
"On a day when the sun was bright, Led fell in battle. A large hole torn in his chest, he went into his long, final rest."
"Bud went into a long, final rest on a night when the sky was full of stars."
"To launch the tower, water was indispensible. Migera carried a lake to this land and expired in the effort."
"Grieving for his elder brothers, Riv dug a tunnel from the lake to the tower to bring water to it. He collapsed in the effort and went into a long rest."
"The youngest, Sakit, followed his own path. He locked Led's body, left power in his hand, and went into a long rest."
"1 Sword, 2 Bodies, 3 Wishes, 4 Disasters. 5 Stars, 6 Moons, 7 Lights, 8 Paths. 9 Cups, and 0 which is Life."
Endless Corridor:
Temple of the Sun:
"There is a secret inside the pyramid. Fear not, and continue onward."
"The rock where the sacred fish dwells. Polished by a pure maiden, it becomes the Scalesphere. It shall protect thee from drowning."
"Leap into the sun."
To-Do:
Anywhere:
-Complete the software use and software combinations lists in the manual
Village:
-Kill the blue Algol at -5/1, probably with the Serpent Staff.
-Explore beyond the waterfall at 3/4
-Purchase:
--
Guidance Gate:
-Open treasure chests at -2/-2, 2/-1
-Get past barrier at 0/-2
-Climb upper ladder at 0/-2
-Get past holy rock at 1/-2
-Climb narrow shaft at 4/-1
-Take ladder to other Field at 1/-4
-Put weights on daises at -1/-2, 0/-2 (upper)
-Reach and press floor switch at -2/-2
-Do something at 2/-4
-Use Hand Scanner with Glyph Reader on:
--Steles: -1/-2, 4/-1
--Skeletons: 4/-1
-Get the Jewel in the mouth of the face on 0/-3
-Get the Jewel in the star at 0/-4
-Find the Ankh
--"Beyond the path of Angels"
-Awaken the Guardian
Spring of the Sky:
-Activate the waterworks
-Get the key from the blue flying one to open the floodgate
-Scan skeletons: 0/0, 1/-1, 2/1 (x2)
-Get the statue in the room at 0/1 to say or do something
-Reach the Life Jewel in the treasure chest at 0/2
-Reach the two circular objects in 2/0
-Learn to swim and/or breathe underwater
--Find the rock where the sacred fish dwells
--Get it polished by "a pure maiden" to become the Scalesphere
-Cross the waterfalls in 1/0, 3/1
--Get a helmet of some sort
-Climb against the flow of the water in 2/1 as depicted on the stele in Guidance Gate 0/-3
-Open the chests in 1/0, 2/1
-Find the fairies that will "kindly divine thy life", possibly near a star
Mausoleum of Giants:
-Decipher the legend of the giants
-Do something at the upper left of 2/-2
-Do something with holy wall at 1/-1
-Buy Seal of El Giza at 4/-2 (100 coins)
-Take path to other Field at 6/-3
Endless Corridor:
-Explore the Endless Corridor
-Scan upper skeleton at -1/0
Temple of the Sun
-Do something with the grey block at 1/0
-Scan skeletons: 1/-4 (x3), 2/-4
-Scan steles: 0/-1, 1/-2 (several), 1/-4, 2/-3, 2/-4
--Do something at gap in top row of steles at 1/-2
-Get faster to climb slopes
-Throw Shuriken at face in top area of 3/-1
-Clear holy block at 2/-1
-Activate footswitch at 2/-1
-Open treasure chest at 2/-3
-Do something with blue platform at 2/-4
-Check out the apparent platforms in the shaft at 0/-1
Conception Locks:
-Guidance Gate -2/-5
Birth Locks:
-Guidance Gate 2/-1
-Waterworks 0/2
Life Locks:
-Village -4/1
-Endless Corridor -1/0
Next Time:
Part 11: Udjat
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