THE WHITE BARROWS
...an adventure for the Acorn Atom...

Translated for the Plus 4 by Richard G Hunt.

Your task is to recover the magic chalice stolen by an evil sorcerer who is hiding in the White Barrows. The labyrinth is arranged in a stable pattern, and the connections between chambers are listed below. Each of the chambers has a unique number. The sorcerer is powerless to escape from the labyrinth while carrying the chalice but if you trap him he will drop it immediately ad promptly disappear. To aid you in your task you are equipped with a magic staff and a limited supply of magic.

Lurking in the labyrinth are dragons, serpents, dwarfs, goblins and magic spots. These remain in their own chamber and cannot move around like the sorcerer. You will receive warnings as you approach chambers, but the warnings are not in any particular sequence. Youa can VIEW a chamber to check it but this will use some of your magic. If you run into a dragon, serpent or dwarf you have three choices:

You can stun it, but you must leave the chamber immediately or it will recover and attack you.

You can transport it but it may reappear in the same chamber if you are really unlucky.

You can destroy it in which case the creature is removed from the game.

All those options use some of you magic, the amount depending on the creature type and the option chosen. If you do not use sufficient magic the creature may be stunned ( and you get a second chance) or it may just get angry and attack.

The goblins are on your side - at a price. they will tell you where the sorcerer is hiding in exchange for gold. The system gives the same warning for a goblin as for a friendly gnome who doesn't need bribing.

There is one further obstacle - the magic spot. If trodden on, it will transport you to another chamber at random.

The sorcerer has a degree of intelligence. If you walk into his chamber he will run off. teh distance he can run will be up to three chambers, and if he can find it he will always tread on a magic spot to confuse the issue. To retrieve the chalice you must trap him. This is not easy, but there are three aids:

The sorcerer will not move to a chamber that you have just left.

He will not enter a chamber containing a goblin.

He will not enter a chamber in which you have created a magic wall.

A magic wall can be created in any chamber but only one at a time. Also you cannot build a wall in a chamber already occupied.

The final option when all else has failed is the ability of re-incarnation.

Now take up your staff and walk without fear in The White Barrows...