This is an attempt to give you a logical and ordered approach to completing the game, but it is not a complete solution for the reasons you will understand later on; namely, this game is full of bugs. In fact, half the time you don't know if you are doing something wrong or if it is a bug. So don't expect this to cover every aspect of the game - as to that, you are on your own.
Also, there are large chunks of play missing here, mainly because the NPCs don't respond as they should. How do I know? I played a certain sequence, had to reload and replay it again and things happened differently for no reason. For instance, coming back to the Cleric's Guild with 5 new herbs got me an interview with Joe. Next time, with exactly the same inventory, the Finch ignored me. Having saved Sioned, Dawn totally ignored me, when she should have handed over a reward. And like that. This is just about the worst bug-ladden game I've ever bought - it will be the last.
There is an incomplete feeling about it, perhaps because it was rushed to the shops in an untimely manner.
Apart from all that, it would seem that the core of a good idea wasn't enough to carry off the game, so it was padded to the hilt with unnecessary toing and froing. What, with one thing and another, the whole thing is so disjointed none of it makes any sense. But let's try.
Here we go.
Playing in Easy mode and joining all the guilds, as the first time you play.
The Start
Find the knapsack, the journal and the rusty knife. Hit the cocoons to get some money. Near the rusty knife there is a cave (crouch to get in) and a chest. When you come to the webbed exit, cut it and fight the spider - pick up its healing silk. Outside, look into the holes in the trees to get a compass. Carry on and watch the video clip.
Upper Gladstone
OK, from the start - look about you and go through the arch. After talking to Dash, search the area thoroughly, looking behind bushes, inside water, on the walls, breaking barrels and trying doors. Use barrels (before you break them) and chests to climb up inaccessible places. Be very thorough. For instance, there is a pipe in the corner by the Iron Fist Guild. Climbing this allows you to open a coloured window and get a whole lot of goodies.
Don't speak to any of the Guild heads yet - in fact, keep your distance from the Wizards's Guild. Once you've done all you can, go to the Iron Fist, walk to the top of the screen and turn left. At the bottom of the stairs, open the grille on the wall, duck and drop into the hole.
The Sewers
You will meet Dash again. As soon as you can, follow him, keeping to your right and entering the tunnels with the circle and key symbol to the right of them. Collect all the black lichen on the walls, it's a wonderful healing item. Fight the insects if you must, backing off to keep them in sight.
Eventually, you will make it to the Thiefs' Guild. Talk to the woman, place two coins in the box. You automatically pick up her dagger and hand it back. You now belong to this guild. Open the doors behind her, go in, buy the best bow/crossbow you can afford and also a leather armor if you can. Leave and start opening doors here. I found the door to the Thieves' Gauntlet would not open. Great. In the pawn shop (Mojo), sell your surplus. You will find that this guy will buy just about everything, though you'll get less money for it - so, first, sell what you can in the other guilds and leave the pawnshop for last.
You might as well search the sewers now. Look out for walls which can be broken to get at the chests. Go up the ladders, open the grilles by picking the locks, climb up and see where you are in town. Make any notes on your map which you think appropriate. It is as well to remember that later on you will only be able to travel from the N to the S of Lower Gladstone via the sewers. So mark the entrances.
Once you've done the sewers, you might like to use the ladder nearest the Guild to enter...
Lower Gladstone
Search thoroughly. Find the Inn, talk to the keeper, pay your debt and go up the stairs to your room, where you will find quite a few useful items. You can keep surplus stuff here, but I found the Clerics Guild more useful for this purpose. When you come down, you can walk behind the counter, open a trapdoor and the box inside and steal a lot of money.
Leave and you should soon meet Dawn, who reproves you for joining the Thieves' Guild. Continue investigating the North part of Lower Gladstone before you move to the South, over a bridge. Sweep your cursor over everything to see what can be manipulated. Open grilles, climb ladders, jump from roof to roof and even from lamp post to any projecting bits, crawl into windows, smash them to get in, look for hidden switches and generally do your own thing. Fight whoever you like, or just steal from them. Visit the shops. Above all, visit the Tavern and talk to everyone, specially the gent next to the Orc. Buy him a drink - you could be coming back to him.
The other chap by the door (Mauri) carries a key which (presumably) will let you pick locks five levels above your own as a thief. You might have to kill him for it, it's up to you.
[Actually, you could get frightfully involved with this guy if you pretend you don't know where the Bachanal is (i.e., don't go there at first) - he then gives you his key to sell, for a start. You also get involved with the other characters here. Again, it's up to you what you choose to do.]
Anyway, when you've been everywhere you can, go to the South of the map and into...
Upper Gladstone
Now go and visit all the other guilds - you will be given a task and a useful item in each. It's also time you got a familiar. You decide which you want, but I found Lig at Iron Fist the most useful because he joins in the fight and that can be crucial. He is no good for anything else, really. Incidentally, I found the others pretty useless.
You don't need to actually join all of the guilds by carrying out their tasks, but it's helpful the first time you play.
If you are ready to complete the tasks given to you, go through the gate opposite the door through which you came in at the start and into...
Gladstone Woods
Keep to your right to go to the Docks. Watch out for boars, which are easy to kill and give good pork chops. Look inside the holes in the trees. At the Docks, just go in and kill everything in sight. Smash the barrels and the extra large packing boxes. It should be easy to kill all the rats, particularly the king-size ones. Outside, you might like to enter the water where there is a shallow bit getting deeper and retrieve some good things around a sunken boat.
As you come out of the Docks, keep to your right and you will come to a place with twin hills, one of which has a green blob (portal) at the top. Approach with caution and take a sample. Try not to get sucked in. Leave this place.
You have now completed your alloted tasks, so get back to the guilds and join in earnest.
You will be able to visit their shops. The most important things to get, now or as soon as you can afford them, are a Mind Cluster and a Greater Light spell. In every location, after you've been everywhere you can, save your game, use the Mind Cluster to see unvisited places and restore. This way, you only need one Mind Cluster. The Light spell is useful when a spot you wish to explore closely is very dark.
(One thing to remember is that, every time you visit the Clerics' Guild, you should go to the chapels, pay your money and kneel (actually, crouch) at the altars. This boosts your mana and hit points (though not permanently). Don't forget.)
But, to continue. New doors might now be open to you in Upper Gladstone, so have a look.
Gladstone Woods
OK, take to the woods again and search them thoroughly. To the N you can buy some useful fruit. To the SE of that, a cave in the cliffs where you can get lamplight eggs - pretty essential, since they will allow you to see in dark places. They regenerate, so there is no need for you to run out. Come back here and get some more.
To the SE of this, a place of water which will later lead to the Ice World.
In the center, a circular structure which will lead later to the Ruloi Home World.
But to the extreme SE, the place you are looking for:
The Draracle's Lair
Keep left and proceed along searching everywhere. The whole thing leads to the bridge remembered from LOL2. To the right of it, note the multicoloured Draracle window which requires a lot of money to open. Which you don't have right now.
At the bridge, you can come down either side and collect a lot of money underwater. If you can be bothered. Go through the doors and you will eventually come to the Draracle. Watch and learn. At the end of your conversation with Jakel, leave and use the teleport to get back to the woods. Travel to...
Upper Gladstone
You should be weighed down with loot, so head for the guilds and start selling anything you don't actually need. A storm crystal, for instance, will fetch a nice price - and you don't really need it, either. Use lorestones immediately on the stuff you are carrying to find out what it does. Most items are really best sold, unless they are essential, so that you can buy what you want.
Essential items to keep are food, something healing, Vel's fruit and anything which increases your mana points. Stockpile the regeneration spells (scrolls entwined with green leaves) and lifestones. Buying stone bracers will prevent you from getting poisoned, though it reduces your protection - you could, instead, buy the Poison Shield spell.
It's best to travel light, there is so much to pick up. If you already have 20 of something useful, dump the extra, say, inside the Clerics Guild, and from here you will be able to replenish your supplies. Anything else, sell it. For instance, the cubes can be sold for a lot of money and you don't really need them.
What I am trying to say is that you should get as much cash together as you can, then go to...
The Iron Fist
Purchase the Prism Sword and the Great Bow Shift. Whereas you will be getting much better swords later on, I reckon this bow cannot be bettered. Though not very potent as an ordinary bow, it has the ability to shoot either lightning, ice or fire according to how vulnerable the creature is to one or the other. I did not find a better long-range weapon, but I admit I wasn't looking all that hard.
If you can afford it, buy decent armour. The reason being that, once you are properly equipped, you are going to find the stairs down in this guild and do a bit of sparring.
Find the box where you put your money and a panel will open. First try pressing the first knob to the left at the bottom, pull the lever and go in through the newly opened gap. Fight the simulator and come out. Put more money in, try the next knob, and so on. Then try combining the top knob on the left with one or more of the knobs to the right of them before you pull the lever and go in. Keep experimenting and fighting, your levels should go up like fun. The more experience you get here, the easier it will be for you outside. So, it's up to you - depending on how much cash you have and how long you can bear this, get as much experience as you like.
There is another door here which has to do with your ability to jump about and so on. Since mine is zero, I didn't get very far, though I dare say you also get valuable experience points this way.
OK, if you feel you are as ready as you are ever going to be, leave Upper Gladstone and go to the woods, heading S to the twin peaks place. Enter the green blob and...
The Volcanic Caves
In this order, remove yourself from the portal (otherwise you'll get sucked back to the woods), use a lamplight egg, press Z to look down and step forward along a path until you come across the Draracle. Listen to him. When he sends you to his Lair through the teleporter, first go through the door to the right to talk to Jakel then go through the door to the left. Follow along here. The only difficult bit is when you come to get the sigil. Just climb up the corridor, get right up close and square with the sigil, save you game and, when the crystal slab is right in front of you, move quickly and jump onto the square and grab the sigil. Follow through from here and leave the Draracle's Lair through the teleporter.
If you have a lot of stuff, go sell it to the guilds. If you've plenty of room in your inventory, go back to the Volcanic Caves, through the portal, and along the same way to where you met the Draracle, only push on. You are now in...
The Fire World
Whenever you feel you have run out of road and there is no place to go, press Z to look down and use a lamplight egg, if you've got one. There is ALWAYS a way out. Look about you. Follow edges looking down. Leap and look about you. Use the map.
The important thing here is, first, when you come to two tunnels with lots of crab-like creatures (don't tangle with them if you can help it), first follow the one to the left and smash the cone which produces steam by hitting it twice. Then go to the other tunnel smashing the other cone on the way. From here on, leap around and push forward. Consult your map to see which is the best way to go and which is the path to follow. If necessary, use the Mind Cluster as I explain above.
Smash any cones which produce lava till the stalagtite falls from the ceiling and blocks them off. This dries the lava and allows you to proceed in some places. You'll come to a location where you have to fight four drakes and you won't know which way to go. Look at the map and follow the narrow strip which points to the South. At the end of it, look down and follow the path around the chamber towards the East. Pretty well centre of the E of the map look to your left for the start of another path. Leap to that and follow it, leaping at the right places.
When you come to a large chamber with water and two rising columns, you will notice that you can either go to the N or to the NE. Go to the NE. At the entrance to the city, and before you leap onto the large platform, turn around and press the symbol on the wall. I don't know quite what this does, but it's better to be on the safe side. Fight all the beasties: you can hang around here and collect a lot of experience points, or you can go to the door and open it by standing on the dragon footprints. Carry on along here until you come to the altar room. As you come in, you will notice that there are no dragon prints on the other side of this door. To open it, you advance to the altar and press one of the symbols. This you might need to know later on.
There are three passages here. Go first to the E and meet with Morphera. Next go to the N and explore this area. Not terribly important, but there you are. Finally, go to the S and you will come upon Morphera. Before you do, a rising column can only be activated by standing on the hardly visible footprints.
After you've talked to the dragon, fight her and you will find that she regenerates. Go around this chamber smashing the lava cones and then you can go to the center and fight again. You don't actually kill her, but she drops the vital shard. Collect the money and use the sigil on the shard.
After the conversation with Jakel, he sends you to...
The Laberynth
This is a reminder of LOL1. Lean your left shoulder to the wall and follow through, picking up whatever you want and watching your hit points. Look out for switches. If you are in dark places, use the lamplights or the Greater Light spell, otherwise you might miss an important switch. Save every time you come up the stairs to the next level. Altogether, this is a massive waste of time.
When you get out, go to Upper Gladstone. Visit the guilds to get rid of the loot - you don't need to bother with the Thieves' Guild just now if you don't want to. Then, go to the door at which the game started and enter...
The Keep
Explore the whole place and talk to everyone. Upstairs you will meet Luther, who gives you a wonderful sword. The most revealing person you speak to is Jaron.
OK, this is something which had to be done. Go out to the woods and this time go to the SE of the place where you get the lamplight eggs and enter the green blob to travel to...
The Ice World
Nothing very difficult here, just advance along the best way you can, consulting your map and so on. Fight the tigers and iceworms at close quarters. At the large platform where you first fight an iceworm and then go on to talk to Morrison, come back to the worm, look to your left and you will see the peak of a path. Leap onto that and follow it. Eventually you will enter...
The White Tower
As you come in, Jacinda will give you a job. First, go to your right, open the first door and use Spark to light up the candles. This will give you the order of the colours - blue, green, red and purple. Leave this room and ignore the other door to your right for now, moving on. At the room with all the candelabra, light them with Spark and move them to the other end of the room, placing them in the niches in the correct order of colours. Some stairs appear here, so go up them. The first door to your left contains the Great Axe Blizzard, useful to kill the chickens at close quarters. The middle room contains a nest and more chickens - kill them, and examine the nest. You get the blue gem. Open the last door and the chests inside.
Go down and continue to explore the ground floor, killing chickens as you go. Smash ice-making machines. At the place with the colour stained window, use Spark on the bright point in front to turn it into a flame. Go behind the window and press the colours in the usual order to reveal a door which you don't yet have the means to open right now.
Go up and deal with the nests and the chickens. One of the nests drops the green gem. Continue searching and looking for the places in the walls to place the gems, but don't use them yet. One place is halfway up a dividing wall, the other is the strange platform like the altar in the Volcanic Caves city.
Once you've been all around here, go back to the room with the four candles and open the other door. Negotiate the blades by jumping over them or crawling underneath. There is an oval shaped place with a short tunnel inside. Enter it by crouching and get the red gem near the fire, backing off still crouching. Continue along here and you'll come to some bedrooms. The purple gem is under one of the bunkbeds.
Now go and place the gems in the wall and platform in the correct colour order. The placing of these gems will open up new places. Go all around and make sure you've been everywhere.
You will find two imprisoned men who ask you to free them. Observe the jail and look at the two wooden boards - they seem to indicate that a wheel controls the chains, and pressumably the doors since they have no keyholes. Look up and see how the chains come through the ceiling.
If you now look at the map using a Mind Cluster, you will see the places you have not visited yet, and I have to suppose they contain the means of freeing the prisoners. However I have been unable to find my way to these places, so I've given up on this one. Perhaps it's a red herring and you are not meant to free them. I simply don't know. Nor do I care.
You can now go to Jacinda to the South of the map. If you have gone around the Tower talking to all the ladies and not killing them, she will stand by a door and invite you to enter. Save before you open it and you will float in to your death - but if you want to have a peek, wait till you enter the last door and then restore immediately. Next time, don't open the door and fight Jacinda and kill her. Retrieve what she is carrying but don't use the sigil if you have not yet finished. The key will open the treasury and you will get a lot of money. If you've finished here, use the sigil to get out.
When you replace the shard, you meet Jakel again. As you head towards Gladstone Woods, and after the lava chamber, look for the switch low on the wall to your left and enter the Orcs Lair. Nothing terribly interesting here, but you might like to have a look. [Actually, if you got involved with the folks at the Tavern, the orc would ask you to come and destroy the deserters in this lair.]
Upper Gladstone
OK, head for Upper Gladstone, visit the guilds here and unload what you are carrying. At the Wizards' Guild, buy an invisibility spell and a poison shield spell, if you haven't got one or the stone bracers. Outside the Clerics Guild, through a passage, another door will be open. Investigate around and meet your stepmother. By the way, you can enter this house through the windows, not that this does you a bit of good.
All the guilds in Upper Gladstone will set you another task. Visit the Keep and meet your uncle. If you visit the armoury, you can buy dragonscale armor, bracers and gauntlets. Buy them, if you like, but don't wear them until you are in a hostile environment - they has some surprising effects. Namely, you burst into flames any time just about anyone comes near you, prompting them into battle - and this can be rather awkward, since you need to be in some people's good books. I found them totally useless.
By the way, you might like to visit the jail near the exit to the woods in Upper Gladstone - there should be a Ruloi in there with a message for you.
Next, get to the Thief's Guild to get the next task. You might find useful for the next world to buy a soft leather armour (against acid) and the Coward's Shield (invisibility). Leave and go to Lower Gladstone and visit the Tavern. I fear there is yet another bug here. As I know from a previous game, the gentleman next to the orc offers to take into slavery anybody you choose. Instead, I got the very first conversation yet again. I give up.
If you are all set, get to the woods, head for the circular structure in the middle of the map, go into the green blob and enter ...
The Ruloi Home World
Don't forget to pick up herbs you haven't seen before. Actually, two of the new ones you will find in Gladstone Woods, one outside the Frozen World, the other outside the Underworld.
Use the Invisibility spell or the Coward's Shield (but not in the acid, unless you are wearing the soft leather armour). Find your way (SE) to the caves - make sure you destroy the columns which spew pink plasma and all the eggs. Look at your map so that you miss nothing. You will have to go from one cave to another along the green channels, so use the poison shield spell as well to avoid getting poisoned in the process. If you notice large stonny blobs on the wall, click on them to get a Dreamshard (dark).
Once you've done this bit, enter the city and find all the regenerators and destroy them. Try not to fight the Ruloi unless you have to. Smash the columns which spew pink plasma. Use the Mind Cluster to see where everything is.
To the N you will find an Amazon in jail. Let her out by using the Dreamshard on the indentation on the wall. However, by way of thanks she will attack you and you will have to kill her. Actually, you must do this.
You'll come to two large chambers surrounded by acid. Jump to the middle and click on the oval orbs on the pedestals and herbs and minerals will appear. Take what you want. Parallel to these two chambers there are another two, so use the Mind Cluster to see how to get at them. You will find you have to wade through the acid. Around the center of the channels there is a little cave which contains a very good sword, probably the best in the game, and a Ruloi hand.
There are two oval rooms which also contain a regenerator each - you have to use the Ruloi hand as a key. Don't step on the round black teleporter in these rooms until you've been all around and destroyed everything, including the Ruloi themselves - though you must leave a few alive for later.
When you are ready, use one of these teleporters (you might need to use the Ruloi hand on the pad twice to open them again), advance and jump in with the global Ruloi - kill it, take a sample from the shard and use the sigil.
Back home
Right, do the rounds once more. If you then visit the stepmother's home you'll be told she is at the Keep. Now, it there hadn't been any bugs, the guy at the Tavern would have told you to get a scarf (was that a scarf I saw on the servant's shoulder?). Equally, if the servant told you she was at the Keep, then it would be a good idea to visit there. Plus Dawn warns you not to go to the Keep. How many more hints do we need?
And yet, if you do go, you will find that the royal chamber is locked, a room near the barrels empty and Dash is in Jaron's office. If you enter and move the wooden chair twice, the bookcase opens and you can go through a secret passage. Turn around and push the skulls on the left. You go down a lift. Along the corridor and going right, you'll find some money and items. Following the corridor you will see a portrait with hollowed out eyes. You can see into the dinning room. Since no-one is here, though, you might as well return to the lift, press the button, go up, and click on the candle to get out. What a waste of time.
So why bother to go to the Keep. Visit instead all the guilds - you should have by now at least five new herbs, you've conquered a world, taken a sample, stolen the letter from the guard in front of the Keep, and you will be given new tasks. You will notice that Dawn doesn't set you one.
The Quests
Orcs: In the Woods, go N from Lower Gladstone towards the guy who sells fruit and, when you come to a pink skull, turn to your left, enter the clearing and slaughter the orcs. Pick up the King's Pardon off the ground, you'll be giving it to Lena later on.
Ice World: Continue from the orc's clearing to the place where you get the lamplights (you probably need some more) and go on to the place where you enter the Ice World. Nothing very complicated, you just have to get to the place with the stained windows, use the amulet on the indentation by the door, go through, click on the funny heap on the floor, fight the ghost and then go on in and get a toy wooden sword in a corner. The freeing of the prisoners is still unresolved, but since it makes no difference to the outcome of the game you can ignore it.
Fire World: When you get back, head for the Fire World. Save before you even enter that corner of the woods. If your computer has a certain configuration there is a bug which leaves you stranded if you attempt to get the Heart. For those of you who don't have that bug, go along to the chamber in which there is some kind of a golden urn floating over a round altar. Use the Dragonclaw on it and you will go down. Go to the teleporter along a short corridor and you will turn up somewhere else. Advance here, pick up the Heart, go back to the teleporter and then to the urn. Pick up the Dragonclaw and you will go up. To get back, consult your map and head for the door which doesn't have the dragon footprints on the floor. Turn around and press one of the symbols on the wall of the altar - this opens the door. Go through and find your way home.
For those of you who go to all the trouble of getting the Heart and then lift goes up without you, you could save another game here, then restore the one you saved before you entered the Fire World and carry on from there. I have reported this bug to Westwood, who knows when and if there will be a patch.
Go back to the guilds to get your reward, if any. If you visit Dawn now, she will tell you to go to the Ruloi Home World and save Sioned. More padding.
Head for the Ruloi World, pick up another Dreamshard along the way to the jail to the S of the map and talk to Sioned. Free her as above and she will thank you. Be sure to kill all the Ruloi. When I got back to the Guild, though, Dawn did not acknowledge this. She should, though, and she should give you a useful staff.
Make sure you have everything you need, there is no coming back.
You might as well go on to the next portal, near the guy who sells fruit; Dash will meet you and give you a key (but don't worry if he isn't there), then enter...
The Underworld
This is probably the only fun bit in this game. Turn to your left and go through the door. Start exploring. There are nasties to fight and useful items and spells to find. Stop in front of each picture and statue, wait a few seconds and it will change. How's that? Make your way to the gardens, explore around (there is gold in the fountains) and find a little corner to the north where there is a bag of money and a head. Find the headless guy and click on him to return his head to him. He opens the blocked path.
When you've finished searching the ground floor, go to the hall and through the door opposite the one you entered. Look at the dancers, go to the lifts and go up. Turn to your left and go to the furthest door and start exploring. You will find an empty oil jar. A couple of doors on, use the jar on the filled lamp hanging from the ceiling - pick up the other empty jar. Carry on exploring.
After two locked doors you will enter another one which contains a wardrobe. Save your game. Inside, a ghost will ask you to empty the oil lamps. You've already emptied one, so it's just a matter of finding the other one. Go from this room to another corridor and start opening doors and looking through. Don't worry about the flames or the fact that you are dying. Just find the other lamp. When you die and resurrect outside the room with the ghost, go quickly to the other lamp and empty it. You could, instead, reload your saved game - after you talk to the ghost, run to the room with the other lamp and empty it. If you are fast enough and the fire doesn't break out, you return to the ghost and get a wonderful shield from her. At any rate, this destroys the fire cycle. Explore around here and you'll get a key. When you've finished, take a lift down, turn and use the key on the clock.
Behind it, look at the wall to discover another door. Enter it and walk around till you find an open trapdoor on the floor. Go down here and collect some bottles of wine. Leave through the door and you will come to a ladder. Look up and click on it till you climb out (a bit difficult, don't give up). Then you go down another hole into the cellar. Fight the skeletal rats and find the way up the stairs into the kitchen, and from there back to the ballroom.
Use the key on the clock twice, till the pendulum falls, and walk around to the back of the lifts. You will find a ghost at the piano. Give him a bottle of wine, talk to him and use the sheet music you found. He plays - go and look at the couples and watch them dance till they go through the wall near the piano, revealing the way up. This takes quite a while.
Up the stairs, in the room with the curtains, go right to the back and use the key on the clock three times, so that it breaks. Fight the entity and use the sigil on the shard.
One more conversation with Jakel, then back to Gladstone. You will find everything in a bad way, and all the guilds destroyed. If you go to the stepmother's house, Peter the servant will give you a letter. Use it to read it. Hmm.
No other place to go now but to get the last shard. On the way, you could go near the place where a fellow sells fruit and enter a new bit where Richard lies wounded. After a long, boring speech, he will give you a writ to enter the Keep - but don't bother going all the way there because Jaron won't let you in, anyway. You might have had hopes of a grille in the wall between the Keep and the exit to town near the Clerics Guild. If you try and pick it, it won't open and you will see a legend "Level 20". However, I was Level 21 and it still didn't open. Not even with Mauri's key in my active inventory.
So, go to instead to the place where you get the lamplight eggs (get some) and then find your way to the other side of this area and enter the portal, which takes you to...
The Shattered Desert
Mark your path very carefully on your map all along this world, otherwise you'll go around in circles forever. Plus you have to come back the way you came in, and quickly. Remember every step you take.
With your shield against poison at the ready, keep going straight, without jumping to other possible locations, until you see a metal door ahead. Take a running leap to it and follow on till your path ends in a pointy bit. Jump down, fight the beasties, head N, climb up a vine trailing on the floor (you have to face it the right way, otherwise it doesn't work), find and follow the path to the E. Go up a ladder and follow the path. Eventually you will get to a man inside a strange building. Talk to him and, afterwards, turn to the door. Open the trapdoor on the wall and push the button. Go out, stand on the large grille on the floor, open the trap door on the floor and press the button twice to go down.
When you leave the lift, first note the corresponding trapdoor on the floor and another on the wall opposite, which covers the buttons that work the lift.
At all times, and every time you enter a new room, disable the defences. Push on - some doors you open by clicking on them, some have a button nearby. The first room you will come to is an office. Push a filing cabinet under the trapdoor which leads to the ventilator shaft and then push the chair against it. Climb up, open the trapdoor and crawl/jump in. Get out at the next trapdoor. In the next room, find the corner with sparks, open the trapdoor and push the button to open the next door. You'll come to a large circular room. Disable the defences and shoot the monitors down. You have to build a ladder with them to reach the trapdoor on the wall. You will notice that the monitors have a bit sticking out, and you need to use it as part of the ladder, so turn them the right way around. Placing one of the monitors on the gridded floor will aid you to climb up. Once you are in the ventilator shaft find stairs going down and the next exit.
You should come into a room with lots of barred doors all around. Open them all and inside one of them you will see a guy sitting down, click on him to get a mechanical eye. Carry on until you come to a door beside which there is a broken button. Use the mechanical eye on it. Once you are through this door, there is no coming back the same way, so look at your map and remember where this door is.
In the next room you will find a pink screen. After disabling the defences, go around breaking all the panels on the wall. The screen will disappear and you will be able to go down a ladder (by the way, has anyone found out how to go down ladders? I had to jump and lose hit points). Before you go down, though, spot a ladder going up around this room and remember where it is - you'll need to use it later on.
Now you can go down and keep going. In a room with holes in the ground and swirly things, avoid both. You will come to a very large room. Walk around till you see a blue screen. If you attempt to break it, the defences will appear. You could tangle with each set of defenders, but it's quicker to go around smashing the four sparkly columns (watching your health, of course) - the screen will disappear and you must then shoot all the round spots until you hit the red and you are left with black. Once you've done that, turn to your left and use the sigil on the floor. Watch what happens.
Don't hang around, go to the door, push the button on the floor to open it and head for the stairs up I told you to look for. Enter the ventilator shaft and try to make it back to the office. Consult your map and on no account land on any room this side of the door for which you had to use the mechanical eye. You might come to a room with some really vicious defenders and no means of reaching the other side. Destroy the defenders, press the button on the wall and a path will appear.
You should find your way back all right to the lift. Go up and follow the path to get out. When you come to the square hole through which you came up, and unless you know how to go down ladders, look down and jump onto the grey blocks go make it to the ground more or less in one piece. OK, now you have to make it to the metal door and jump down. More beasties to fight (I hope you are using that poison protection shield, or something). Now it's just a matter of finding long trailing vines and climb to find your way back.
Where there is a very large yellow pool, face slightly NW and you should be able to climb onto a platform where there is a pink piggybank. Break it and take the cash.
OK, make it to the green blob and get back.
There is only one sensible thing to do. Go to...
The Draracle's Lair: The final confrontation
Before you cross the bridge, you can use all that cash to open the multicoloured window. There are some useful items and some even more useful spells. Make sure you use them to defend/cure yourself when fighting, it's the only way you'll survive.
When you get to the Draracle's chamber, Jakel will appear and you will have a difference of opinion. Before you know it, you will be under water and blowing bubbles. Turn right around and climb up the rope.
You'll have a brisk fight with Jakel, who will conveniently disappear just as you were winning. Now your task is to ride the lifts up till you find a bridge. On the way, you will be offensively accosted by those infernal hounds. While fighting them, take care not to get under a descending lift. You might like to check their bodies and use what you find - you could get something useful. At any rate, on one of the floors you should spy another multicoloured door. Go towards it and jump onto the sunken bridge. Turn right around, then slightly to your left, save your game and jump. You should be on a platform with a wheel. Turn it to raise the bridge. Jump down and follow the path, being ready to fight Jakel who is just around the corner. Again, the coward flees.
Now you are back at the beginning and must climb up to the level of the bridge, which you will be able to cross and open the multicoloured door. Inside, go round destroying all the skeletons. When you've done that, Jakel will appear and you will have your final fight. Pick up the seal and you will be transported to the mirror - use the seal on it and enjoy what comes next.
Sit through the credits and at the end, watch. When you are in control, leave the Lair and bear left. You should meet Jaron; fight him and get the crown jewels. Watch the rest.
The game is thankfully over.
Actually, I found it more useful to understand LOL2 better (you find out all about the odd items) than fulfilling. It just goes to show you.
