ADVENTURE TIME

It's Autumn 1989, and you're about to take another trip through the Knightmare Dungeon, undefeated in this season. Keep your wits about you and remain true to the Code of Chivalry and you may go far.

Treguard welcomes you to another quest through the Dungeon. As you have no advisors to aid you on this quest, he does not blindfold you to the way ahead.

"Use wit and guile to succeed in this quest, young adventurer" Treguard says to you. "Now, face the Dungeon door and step boldly forwards."

You are in a green room with no visible doors. There is a six-sided die waiting for you on a table, and you promptly roll it. A large die rolls into the room and opens up to reveal three exits.

If you go straight ahead, go to 6.

If you go left, go to 27.

If you go right, go to 32.

You enter the Vale of Vanburn safely. Velda, the feisty wood elf, is here to meet you, and levels her crossbow at you.

"Hold your place, stranger" Velda warns. "This path leads to the realm of the elf kin, and I will not allow our enemies to pass. What token do you carry to prove that you are an elf friend?"

If you show her a bone, go to 21.

If you show her a gold bar, go to 36.

If you show her a rose, go to 13.

"Ooh, very nice, deary" Mrs. Grimwold says greedily as she takes the gold from you. "This will do me just fine, but Festus here doesn't really care to chew on rocks, I'm afraid. And it is his dinner-time, you know. It's nothing personal, deary, but I can't let my Festus go hungry, can I?"

She unleashes Festus and... well, needless to say your adventure ends here.

The correct answer is fire.

If you answered correctly, go to 29.

If you answered incorrectly, go to 16.

"Falsehood" says Merlin gravely. "Now I'm afraid you must continue on the path without my help."

The wizard disappears without another word. If you wish to continue, you must now go to 8.

You walk along a blue dwarf tunnel that seems to go on forever. You have to duck a few times to avoid the poisonous bats that swoop from the ceiling occasionally, but you eventually reach the exit unscathed. Go to 32.

You are in the stained-glass window room. You pick a path at random and begin to walk down it, but Morghanna crashes into the picture just in front of you to halt your progress.

"Enough of this!" Morghanna sneers. "You will not pass here, adventurer - that stupid maid is mine now and you will not save her!"

Morghanna begins to weave an evil spell with her hands - you will have to act quickly.

If you cast the spell FIRE, go to 41.

If you cast the spell FREE, go to 18.

Failing either of those, Morghanna roasts you alive and your adventure ends here.

You leave Merlin's study and arrive in a dark cavern with two stalactites hanging from the ceiling. You walk towards a glowing light that is coming from another cavern, where there is a large chest standing on a table that is made out of rock. You try to open the chest, but it is locked.

If you have a key, go to 31.

If not, you must abandon the chest and continue on your way. Go to 19.

You are in Merlin's chamber. Fortunately, the large pit that spans the room is already bridged, so it just remains for you to cross over to the magic symbol in front of Merlin's throne. When you have done this, the green-robed wizard appears on the oaken throne.

"Welcome, bold adventurer" Merlin greets you. "You have done well to reach the second level, but you will not progress much further without my help. Two truths I seek from you - two out of two or it just won't do! Here is the first. Who was the son of Uther Pendragon?"

Think carefully about your answer, for Merlin will not help you unless you answer both his questions correctly. What answer will you give to this one?

King Canute. Go to 42. King Arthur. Go to 20. King Solomon. Go to 5.

"Ye-es" Owen agrees grudgingly. "I was looking for something a bit more specific, though. I tell you what, answer me this and I'll let you have some magic. Which type of cheese is made backwards?" When you have an answer, go to 17.

You step into the quicksand and immediately sink to your death. Your adventure ends here.

You cast the spell and the forcefield is dispelled. Mellisandre recovers consciousness, and you help her to stand up as she overcomes her wooziness. Then a booming voice fills the room.

"Spellcasting:" declares the voice of Merlin. "U-N-I-T-E."

You are transported back to the Great Hall of Knightmare Castle. Treguard and Merlin are waiting here to congratulate you. As Merlin helps Mellisandre to sit down, Treguard speaks to you.

"You have proven equal to the Knightmare challenge, adventurer, and have earned the silver spurs of squiredom" Treguard booms at you. "The Dungeon salutes your efforts, for you are now a champion of chivalry!"

Now that you have won series 3, dare I suggest that you might have any trouble with series 4? Find out next issue.

"It is a fair token indeed" Velda nods, taking the rose from you. "No one would carry this instead of a weapon if their feet were on the dark path. You may have passage, adventurer."

Velda steps aside and allows you to exit. You find yourself in the wellway room, but the well is nowhere to be found. The chamber is, however, occupied by Mrs. Grimwold, the witch, and her snarling two-headed dog, Festus.

"Ooh, hello deary" the old crone grins toothily. "This way for level two. Of course, if you want to get there then you'll have to earn your passage. Well, what have you got?"

If you give her gold, go to 3.

If you give her a bone, go to 23.

That was not a very clever idea, I'm afraid. What hope do you have of surviving this fall? Your adventure ends here.

You emerge into Merlin's level three chamber. As you touch the glowing M on the table, a large transparent image of the wizard crashes into the room.

"Congratulations!" Merlin booms heartily. "You have travelled far and survived much peril, and have nearly reached your goal. I hope you have the magic you need to free Mellisandre. If you do, press on and may good luck attend you. Deeper into level three lurks Morghanna, the evil sorceress. You will need dragon magic to defeat her, so keep your wits about you. As a reward for your progress, I gift you the spell GRIP. Now, be brave, for you have only a short way to go."

Pass on now to 37.

"Falsehood!" roars the wall monster. "And now I feed on you!"

You are powerless against Golgarach and your adventure ends here.

If you answered Edam, go to 25.

If you answered anything else, go to 33.

Incorrect use of the FREE spell, dumb-head! You could blunder on, but without this spell there is absolutely no chance of you succeeding in your quest. If you had no alternative than to cast this spell, you can at least take consolation from the fact that you didn't give up, even when your wits deserted you. Still, whichever way you cut it your adventure ends here.

You negotiate your way out of the cavern range and emerge onto a bridge between two cliffs. As you stride overconfidently across, there is a flash of lightning and Hordriss the Confuser is standing on the bridge in front of you, blocking your path.

"Stop!" Hordriss commands you forcefully. "You really cannot pass, you know. Not before someone of such esteemed breeding as myself. Infidel, you will just have to go back, or perhaps go down!"

There is no reasoning with Hordriss when he is in this frame of mind. It will take magic to defeat him, and if you don't have any there is no way for you to pass Hordriss and you can decide for yourself whether to turn back or step off the bridge. Either way, your adventure ends here. If, however, you do have magic, which spell do you wish to cast?

SWORD. Go to 40. FREE. Go to 18.

"Truth accepted" Merlin smiles. "Here is the second. Some say he was christened Robert, and he might one day have inherited an English lordship. Who was he?"

What answer will you give to this?

Herne the Hunter. Go to 38.

William Tell. Go to 35.

Robin Hood. Go to 30.

Velda gasps in horror.

"I suppose I don't need to ask how you came by that, savage!" she trills. "You may certainly not enter our realm!"

A crossbow bolt is soon embedded in your skull and your adventure ends here.

The spell freezes Medusa's stare. You quickly dash from the chamber and emerge into the vast cave of Owen, the dragon. The enormous reptile blinks at you in surprise as you enter, and then a smile flickers on his colossal jaws that could easily enclose a small village.

"Oh, hello" Owen greets you. "How nice to have another visitor. If you're on a quest, I'll wager you could use some dragon magic."

"Yes please" you say.

"Very well, then" Owen rumbles. "Listen carefully. The basking, the nurse, the hammerhead, the whale, the tiger and the dogfish are all forms of what?"

When you have an answer, go to 28.

"Here you go, Festus" the witch leers, tossing the bone to the dog. "That should keep you busy while our young friend here escapes. Spellcasting: W-E-L-L"

The wellway appears beside you.

"I'd get down that quickly if I were you, deary - that bone won't last him long," Mrs. Grimwold advises you with a certain relish. "Good luck with your adventuring."

You hastily go down the well to 24.

You land in the level two clue room. On the table you find a key, a candle and a yellow-and-red folderol. Decide which two of these you wish to take and then go to 9.

"Ah, well done" Owen commends you. "As a reward, I gift you the spell FIRE. I hope you've worked out who or what you should use it to defeat. Now, be on you way."

Continue to 7.

You are in the Dungeon Valley that leads to the Vale of Vanburn. A winding path offers you a roundabout route, or you could cut across an area of greenery directly in front of you.

If you do this, go to 11.

If you follow the path, go to 2.

Never take the sinister path when there is an alternative! You are ported straight into a chamber that contains nothing but a very large and very hungry catacombite. There is no need to say any more about your likely fate in this situation. Your adventure ends here.

If you answered fish, go to 10.

If you answered shark, go to 25.

If you answered anything else, go to 33.

"Truth accepted," says Golgarach, not ill-temperedly. "Well done, adventurer. All that glitters is not always good company. The quest is to free the maid from her dire predicament. Pass on now, for I must return to the sleep of time."

Now you must decide which objects to take - out of a bone, a rose and a gold bar - and then go to 26.

"Truth accepted," says Merlin again. "Congratulations - you have answered well. In return, I gift you a spell called SWORD. And as it's offensive magic, I hope you'll have the sense to use it defensively. Good luck to you."

The wizard disappears without another word. Go to 8.

Inside the chest is a scroll. When you read it, it gives you the knowledge to cast the spell FREE. Do not underestimate the value of this spell as it is very important, and should only be used at the climax of your adventure. It may, of course, only be used once. Go to 19.

You are in a room with four doors and a trapdoor in it. On top of the trapdoor stands Mellisandre, the Dungeon maid. She hails you when you enter the chamber.

"Ah, there you are" Mellisandre says excitedly. "I've got a very special warning for you. When you reach the moving wall, you mustn't take the sin..."

Predictably, the trapdoor opens beneath her and swallows her up - why on Earth does she keep standing there? You can hear Mellie's plaintive cries for help wafting up from the depths below.

If you follow her down the trapdoor, go to 14.

If you decide to carry on by leaving the room through one of the four doors, go to 39.

"Oh dear me" Owen says sadly. "If you're ignorant then you've got to remain so, that's what I always say. Bye now."

You will get no more out of Owen, and must continue on your way to 7.

"Ah, I've been looking for that" Motley smiles as he takes the folderol. "I really must stop leaving it lying around. Right, fair's fair - level three it is."

Motley helps you to sit in the minecart and then gives it a hefty shove. You travel bumpily down the mine tunnel and land with a crash in level three. You stand up and dust yourself off, before appraising the room you are in. There are two doorways with a skeleton hanging between them. You will have to choose which way to go.

If you go left, go to 27.

If you go right, go to 15.

"Falsehood" says Merlin gravely. "Now I'm afraid you must continue on the path without my help."

The wizard disappears without another word. If you wish to continue, you must now go to 8.

"Metal trinkets are of no value to us elves" Velda smirks. "Surely you have something better?"

If you show her a bone, go to 21.

If you show her a rose, go to 13.

You are in the chamber of the Medusa. The Gorgon's stare bears down on you and threatens to turn you to stone at any moment. You must act quickly.

If you cast the FREE spell, go to 18.

If you cast the GRIP spell, go to 22.

"Falsehood" says Merlin gravely. "Now I'm afraid you must continue on the path without my help."

The wizard disappears without another word. If you wish to continue, you must now go to 8.

Very sensible. If you want to help Mellisandre then you'd better assure your own safety first. You choose a door and it takes you into the level one clue room. Here you find a bar of gold, a bone and a rose on the table. You also find the large and imposing features of Golgarach, the wall monster.

"Leave the table of Golgarach until you have faced my challenge!" Golgarach commands. "It is always hungry, but when it drinks it dies. What is it?"

When you have an answer, go to 4.

A shimmering sword appears in front of you and makes straight for the startled warlock.

"Well, there's really no need for that sort of attitude" Hordriss snarls, crestfallen. "If you really feel that strongly about it then I am quite happy to withdraw - the path is all yours."

Hordriss disappears, and so does the magic sword. You cross the bridge and find yourself in the minecart chamber, which means the end of level two. But there is no way to enter the tunnel on foot, so you'll need a push. Fortunately, Motley the jester is waiting for you in the chamber. Let's just hope you can persuade him to help you.

"Hello, Helmet Face" Motley says jovially. "I'd say you've just about reached the end of your level. One push from me and you'll go trundling down happily to level three, but you don't get anything for free in this Dungeon. Well, what do you have for me?"

If you have Motley's folderol, go to 34.

If not, you might wish to cast the FREE spell if you have it, in which case go to 18.

Failing either of those, Motley abandons you and you are doomed to rot in this chamber until the rats have consumed your dead flesh. Your adventure ends here.

Morghanna screams piercingly and disappears as the dragon magic overcomes her. You continue on your way and finally reach the quest chamber. Mellisandre stands motionless in the middle of the room, a powerful magic forcefield encasing her.

If you have the spell FREE, go to 12.

If you did not obtain this spell, you must sadly abandon your quest at the very brink of victory!

"Falsehood" says Merlin gravely. "Now I'm afraid you must continue on the path without my help."

The wizard disappears without another word. If you wish to continue, you must now go to 8.