Stonekeep (Part 1)

            Walkthrough supplied by Bill Commons
                  Original author unknown

Special Note: Since that neat scroll you have can hold just about
anything in the known universe, don't pass up items...you never
know when another skull or stone or something will come in handy.

WARNING: I started off writing down EVERYTHING, but figured that'd
get boring, so after a while, I started skipping a LOT of secret
stuff.  This walkthrough only contains the absolute essentials to
beating the game (plus a few little bonuses you might not have
caught before...)

1.> (Intro) Pick up just about everything you can find in the
room.  Always punch rubble piles and piles of bones to see if
there's anything there. You should find a skull, a healing root,
and a throwing stone.  Exit through the door with rock in hand.
Wait for the ant to pass by.  You can throw the rock at the ant
(and probably kill it), or punch it a few times to kill it.
That's about as far as the walkthrough the game comes with takes
you...

2.> Take your first left, and read the plaque at the end of the
hall.  Go into the guard room.  You'll find a leather breastplate
in there, plus, in the chest, you'll find a scroll, heal potion,
five heal roots, and a dagger. Arm & armor yourself.  Wander
around until you find Thera again (the glowing ball).  Note the
lever on the wall.  Pull it; it'll unlock the door, but DON'T go
through yet!  Push the handle back up again, then pull it down
again.  Now, walk south to the wall, turn east, and walk to the
end of the hall.  Turn north and walk two squares north.  Turn
left, and search the wall for a hidden stone that wasn't there
before.  There's a lever; pull it.  A secret door opens up just to
your south and behind you.  Go through it, and grab the three oil
bombs.  Look at the north wall to find another hidden brick;
there's a Dagger of Penetration there.  Equip it.  It's actually
one of the more powerful weapons in the game, believe it or not...
There's also a throwing rock in the rubble (yaaay)

3.> NOW go through the exit door (where Thera is).  You'll run
into the Shadowking.  No, he won't kill you now.  After he does
his monologue, go into the corridor and turn right, then follow
the corridor around and take your first left.  Go to the door on
the right.  Kick the Sharga's butt and take his sword, heal root,
gold coin, and brass key.  Exit and go north. Use the brass key on
the lock.  Go inside, smash the barrels.  Grab and equip the
wooden shield.  Exit and go north to the next room.  Unlock the
door.  Smash the left barrel.  Kill the two warrior ants that come
out. Smash the right barrel and take the heal roots.  Continue
north.  There'll be an alcove on your right.  Smash the barrel in
it to get three heal roots. Go to the intersection.  Follow the
corridor around to the left.  Ignore the door you'll see to the
south; you can't open it.  Go around the square and take the
passage that heads east.  Go east until you see a passage south.
Go through that door.  You're in a four-door room (you can't get
through the south door from either direction, by the way).


Go through the west door. Kick the Sharga's butt.  I suggest you
run past the Sharga to the north wall, or else he'll try to get a
super heal root that's in a hidden brick there. If you block him
from that, he'll go down faster, and you'll have a super heal
root.  On the table is your journal ... grab it.  Then unlock the
south door with the brass key and go south.  Waste the five
Shargas that come after you.  Take their heal roots (I also
collect swords from these guys, for no particular reason.  I think
at one point I had about sixty of them). Now, move to a square on
the map that is 4 south and 1 east of the door you came through
from the room with the journal.  Face south and check the wall.
You'll find a heal root.  Now go north, then east, and turn south
again.  Check the hidden brick and pull the lever.  Go 2 west, one
north, and face west.  Go in the secret room and find a blue heal
potion, a green agility gain potion, and a cure potion, plus
another oil bomb.  Now go south until you hear a fire crackling.
Turn west and proceed to the fire.  Search the fire twice (you'll
take a few points of fire damage, but find two Firedaggers).  Now
dump one of your potions you don't mind losing on the fire to put
it out.  Kill the Sharga that's beyond it, and search the chest to
find another agility gain potion and a strength gain potion.  Exit
and turn right at the corridor.  Go three south, six east, and
then turn north.

4.> Kill the Shargas.  Keep going north to the end of the hall.
Go east one square, then turn north and go into the room.  There
are four barrels. Smash 'em all.  In one, you'll find a drunk
Sharga.  This guy is hilarious; he's harmless, and keeps
hiccuping.  Kill him if you want; it's hardly necessary.  Behind
another barrel is a hammer you can use as a weapon. Exit the room,
go back to the corridor, and go east.  At the square just east of
the next passage north, check the north wall to find the hidden
Health potion bottle.  Then keep going east to the kitchen.  Whack
one of the sacks; ants will start attacking.  You've got to waste
six of 'em.  When the last one dies, check its body to find a
bronze key.  Head back west; ignore the passage to the north.  Go
to the end of the hall, turn north, walk to the wall, and turn
west again.  Go west, and turn south at the first intersection.
Unlock that door with the bronze key.  Kill the two Sharga leaders
(easier said than done; they're a lot tougher than the others).
One has a steel key, and the other has the Orb of Afri.  This orb
is pretty useful; when you put it on the ground and wait a second,
it projects a map of your surroundings, including moving dots for
all live monsters, and also shows all secret rooms.  Just don't
lose it!

Take the scroll from the bookcase.  There's a hidden brick in the
west wall with a super heal root, and a hidden brick with a lever
on the south wall.  When you pull the lever, a room opens up to
your immediate west.  In there is a chest with a heal potion, an
agility gain potion, and a strength gain potion.  Exit through the
north door and follow the corridor to the left.  Open the first
door on the right with the bronze key, and slay the Sharga.  Then
go north up the corridor.  Note the dead Sharga.  The west wall in
the square where he is has a trap; throw skulls into the square to
trigger it and fire two arrows. Do this three times, then it's out
of ammo.  Grab the arrows, and go north.  Throw something at the
Sharga.  Two more will jump out to help him in a moment.


Check the east wall for a hidden heal potion.  Take the three
scrolls from the bookcase. Exit the room and go south, then west
to the locked door.  Unlock it, then go east, through the other
door into the corridor.  Go five south, three east, then two south
and unlock the door with the brass key.  Ignore the barrel, but
check the brick on the south wall for a heal potion.  Exit and go
south one, then west and open the door.  Punch the rubble for a
coin and a heal root.  Exit and go three north, three east, five
north, three east, then turn south and open the door.  There's
eight ants wandering around in here; kill 'em all.  You'll find a
few arrows and a quarterstaff.  Head south, and grab the helm near
the forge.  Also punch the rubble to find a throwing axe.  Then go
east.

Check the bricks on the west wall for a heal root.  Use the steel
key to open the chest and take the small metal shield.  Now exit
back to the corridor and continue east, unlocking the south door
with the bronze key. Smash the barrels to find three oil bombs.
Now weave your way all the way back to the northernmost passage.
Go east along it, then turn north, and then east again.  Turn
south at the intersection and unlock the door with the brass key.
Go through the door, and you'll wind up in another room.

5.> Smash the barrel.  About 50 ants will come out to attack you,
so if you need weapons training and are in good shape, stick
around and kill 'em all!  Exit the room, head north, west, north,
and west.  Go through the door at the end of the hallway.  Follow
the corridor around to the south and open the southern door.  Kill
the ants, and check the east wall for a hidden switch.  A secret
room with a chest (locked, can open with bronze key) is to the
south - it has three oil bombs.

Now head back to the stairs that lead down.  Proceed to the
easternmost north-south corridor. Head all the way south, killing
whatever gets in your way.  Go around the square to your left,
then head south and go west.  Take your first northern passage.
You'll find a throwing stones bag.  Go back to the corridor, and
continue west a couple squares, then turn north, unlock the door
with the brass key and equip the leather leggings you find.  Go
back to the corridor, and head west, south 1, west, north 1, west,
south 1, west, north 1.  Check the north wall and pull the lever.
Turn west and find the secret room in the north wall just a little
ways up.  Grab the heal potion and the broadsword.  Now head west,
north, west, north at the intersection.  Take your fourth right,
through the door, and unlock the door to the north with the steel
key.  It's the stairs down to level 2.

(From here on in, I ignore secret stuff and just go for the
essentials.)

6.> Welcome to level 2.  Go north, then east.  Meet Wahooka.  DO
NOT ATTACK HIM!  Talk to him.  He wants something valuable.  Go
through the door, continue east.  Go south.  You'll probably meet
your first slime now.  JOY! (Slimes, by the way, are more
vulnerable to cuts than crushes, so use a sword or axe.  Or fire.
Slimes are afraid of fire).  At the corridor, turn east and go
through the first door on your right.  Waste the slime and pick up
the gem it leaves behind.  Go back to Wahooka's spot and give him
the gem. Now go back to the corridor.  Go east to the wall.  Turn
south.  Walk through the south wall - it's an illusion.  Kill the
Sharga, then go south to the wall (which is really another
illusion, but ignore it for now).  Turn left and walk to the wall.
Turn south.  Take your first passage left.  Go to the end of the
corridor.  Turn left and go north to the wall.  Turn left and go
through the door.  Kill the slime, then check its corpse for the
ivory key (useful stuff!).

Go back east to the wall.  Turn south and take your next door on
your right.  Open it with the ivory key; Farli Mallestone will
join you.  Now head south to the wall.  Turn west and go two
squares west.  Mark this spot on your map as, say, "SECRET PLACE."
Now go west to the wall, then turn north.  Go to the wall, turn
west.  Walk to the wall, turn north.  Go up to the (illusory)
wall, and turn east.  Walk to the wall.  Turn south, and walk to
the wall.  Turn east, and unlock the door with the ivory key, but
don't go through.  This may seem like a fool's errand, but it
comes in handy later.  Head all the way back to the spot you just
marked as "SECRET PLACE" on your map.  Then turn south (facing the
wall) and walk through (illusion again). Kill the two Shargas and
get the iron key.  Turn east and walk to the wall.  Turn south and
proceed to the fountain; drinking from it heals you. A handy place
to remember and return to when you're injured and need a quick
heal.

7.> Now head back to the illusory wall.  Turn south, and go
through the door. Keep going south, turn west.  Go west, and take
the corridor to the south to the wall.  Turn right, and go through
the door.  Whack the Sharga guard, then keep going west.  At the
square between door #2 and door #3 to your right, check the north
wall for a scroll with a Meta Rune, which will enhance your
runecaster's runes ... when you find the runecaster, that is.
Keep going west. Turn north, then west again.  Go north, east,
north, west.  Push the button on the wall (seals the pit to your
north).  Go north to the wall, then east to the wall.  Turn south
and head to the wall (there should be a lock in front of you, but
no door in sight).  Whack the Sharga that guards it. Unlock the
lock with the ivory key; a wall opens up to your right.  Go
through it.  Head south, but stop short of the circular stone in
the floor.  Drop a skull on it.  Three arrows shoot out.  Now pick
up the skull, then drop it on there again.  Three more shoot out.
Pick up the skull, and pick up the six arrows.  Continue along the
corridor, and do the same process with the other three circular
floor stones ... by the end, you'll have 24 arrows.  Not a bad
deal!

Keep following the passage to a door.  Unlock it with the ivory
key, and go through.  Waste the two slimes; one will drop your
first runecaster.  Pick it up.  Read the three scrolls on the
shelf.  Now inscribe your runecaster with the two runes.  I
suggest you also use the "2x power" Meta Rune on both of them as
well.  Now, head north.  You will see a "Mana Circle."  This is a
great place to build up magic ability.  Just blast a wall with
firebolts till the 'caster goes dead, then step into the
circle-instant recharge!  Repeat as necessary.

When you're done, head back through the circular stones, out the
secret door, and continue east.  Head north; waste the two
Shargas.  Head north, and turn east, then north.  Walk through the
illusionary wall. Go east to the wall, then south, then take the
east passage.  Follow it to one past the south turn and face
south.  Yep, you've been here before.  Go through the wall, then
turn east.  Walk to the wall and turn north. Wahooka will talk to
you.  Keep going north.  Walk up to the door, and unlock it with
the ivory key.  Keep going north, and go through to door ... to
the wonderful world of the Sewers beneath Stonekeep.  Joy.  Oh
yeah, make sure you've got a bunch o'skulls with you.  Why?
You'll find out...

@~... but not until NEXT issue!










                              - o -