ZORK I: The Great Underground Empire Copyright (c) 1981, 1982, 1983 Infocom, Inc. All rights reserved. ZORK is a registered trademark of Infocom, Inc. Revision 88 / Serial number 840726 West of House You are standing in an open field west of a white house, with a boarded front door. There is a small mailbox here. >n North of House You are facing the north side of a white house. There is no door here, and all the windows are boarded up. To the north a narrow path winds through the trees. >n Forest Path This is a path winding through a dimly lit forest. The path heads north- south here. One particularly large tree with some low branches stands at the edge of the path. You hear in the distance the chirping of a song bird. >climb tree Up a Tree You are about 10 feet above the ground nestled among some large branches. The nearest branch above you is above your reach. Beside you on the branch is a small bird's nest. In the bird's nest is a large egg encrusted with precious jewels, apparently scavenged by a childless songbird. The egg is covered with fine gold inlay, and ornamented in lapis lazuli and mother-of-pearl. Unlike most eggs, this one is hinged and closed with a delicate looking clasp. The egg appears extremely fragile. >take egg Taken. >climb down (down the tree) Forest Path >s North of House >e Behind House You are behind the white house. A path leads into the forest to the east. In one corner of the house there is a small window which is slightly ajar. >open window With great effort, you open the window far enough to allow entry. >enter window Kitchen You are in the kitchen of the white house. A table seems to have been used recently for the preparation of food. A passage leads to the west and a dark staircase can be seen leading upward. A dark chimney leads down and to the east is a small window which is open. On the table is an elongated brown sack, smelling of hot peppers. A bottle is sitting on the table. The glass bottle contains: A quantity of water >w Living Room You are in the living room. There is a doorway to the east, a wooden door with strange gothic lettering to the west, which appears to be nailed shut, a trophy case, and a large oriental rug in the center of the room. Above the trophy case hangs an elvish sword of great antiquity. A battery-powered brass lantern is on the trophy case. >take brass lantern Taken. >move large oriental rug With a great effort, the rug is moved to one side of the room, revealing the dusty cover of a closed trap door. >open trap door The door reluctantly opens to reveal a rickety staircase descending into darkness. >drop egg Dropped. >down You have moved into a dark place. The trap door crashes shut, and you hear someone barring it. It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue. >light lantern The brass lantern is now on. Cellar You are in a dark and damp cellar with a narrow passageway leading north, and a crawlway to the south. On the west is the bottom of a steep metal ramp which is unclimbable. >s East of Chasm You are on the east edge of a chasm, the bottom of which cannot be seen. A narrow passage goes north, and the path you are on continues to the east. >e Gallery This is an art gallery. Most of the paintings have been stolen by vandals with exceptional taste. The vandals left through either the north or west exits. Fortunately, there is still one chance for you to be a vandal, for on the far wall is a painting of unparalleled beauty. >take painting Taken. >n Studio This appears to have been an artist's studio. The walls and floors are splattered with paints of 69 different colors. Strangely enough, nothing of value is hanging here. At the south end of the room is an open door (also covered with paint). A dark and narrow chimney leads up from a fireplace; although you might be able to get up it, it seems unlikely you could get back down. Loosely attached to a wall is a small piece of paper. >up Kitchen On the table is an elongated brown sack, smelling of hot peppers. A bottle is sitting on the table. The glass bottle contains: A quantity of water >turn off lantern The brass lantern is now off. >w Living Room Above the trophy case hangs an elvish sword of great antiquity. There is a jewel-encrusted egg here. >take all jewel-encrusted egg: Taken. trophy case: The trophy case is securely fastened to the wall. sword: Taken. carpet: The rug is extremely heavy and cannot be carried. >open trophy case Opened. >put painting into case Done. >e Kitchen On the table is an elongated brown sack, smelling of hot peppers. A bottle is sitting on the table. The glass bottle contains: A quantity of water >up You have moved into a dark place. It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue. >turn on lantern The brass lantern is now on. Attic This is the attic. The only exit is a stairway leading down. A large coil of rope is lying in the corner. On a table is a nasty-looking knife. >get all nasty knife: Taken. rope: Taken. >turn off lantern The brass lantern is now off. It is now pitch black. >down Kitchen On the table is an elongated brown sack, smelling of hot peppers. A bottle is sitting on the table. The glass bottle contains: A quantity of water >w Living Room Your collection of treasures consists of: A painting >open trap door The door reluctantly opens to reveal a rickety staircase descending into darkness. >down You have moved into a dark place. The trap door crashes shut, and you hear someone barring it. It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue. Your sword is glowing with a faint blue glow. >turn on lantern The brass lantern is now on. Cellar You are in a dark and damp cellar with a narrow passageway leading north, and a crawlway to the south. On the west is the bottom of a steep metal ramp which is unclimbable. >save Ok. >n The Troll Room This is a small room with passages to the east and south and a forbidding hole leading west. Bloodstains and deep scratches (perhaps made by an axe) mar the walls. A nasty-looking troll, brandishing a bloody axe, blocks all passages out of the room. Your sword has begun to glow very brightly. >attack troll with sword It's curtains for the troll as your sword removes his head. Almost as soon as the troll breathes his last breath, a cloud of sinister black fog envelops him, and when the fog lifts, the carcass has disappeared. Your sword is no longer glowing. >save Ok. >drop sword Dropped. >e East-West Passage This is a narrow east-west passageway. There is a narrow stairway leading down at the north end of the room. >e Round Room This is a circular stone room with passages in all directions. Several of them have unfortunately been blocked by cave-ins. >se Engravings Cave You have entered a low cave with passages leading northwest and east. There are old engravings on the walls here. >e Dome Room You are at the periphery of a large dome, which forms the ceiling of another room below. Protecting you from a precipitous drop is a wooden railing which circles the dome. >tie rope to railing The rope drops over the side and comes within ten feet of the floor. >climb down rope Torch Room This is a large room with a prominent doorway leading to a down staircase. Above you is a large dome. Up around the edge of the dome (20 feet up) is a wooden railing. In the center of the room sits a white marble pedestal. A piece of rope descends from the railing above, ending some five feet above your head. Sitting on the pedestal is a flaming torch, made of ivory. >turn off lantern The brass lantern is now off. >take ivory torch Taken. >s Temple This is the north end of a large temple. On the east wall is an ancient inscription, probably a prayer in a long-forgotten language. Below the prayer is a staircase leading down. The west wall is solid granite. The exit to the north end of the room is through huge marble pillars. There is a brass bell here. >drop lantern Dropped. >e Egyptian Room This is a room which looks like an Egyptian tomb. There is an ascending staircase to the west. The solid-gold coffin used for the burial of Ramses II is here. >take coffin Taken. >open coffin The gold coffin opens. A sceptre, possibly that of ancient Egypt itself, is in the coffin. The sceptre is ornamented with colored enamel, and tapers to a sharp point. >take sceptre Taken. >w Temple There is a brass lantern (battery-powered) here. There is a brass bell here. >save Ok. >temple You hear a scream of anguish as you violate the robber's hideaway. Using passages unknown to you, he rushes to its defense. The thief gestures mysteriously, and the treasures in the room suddenly vanish. Treasure Room This is a large room, whose east wall is solid granite. A number of discarded bags, which crumble at your touch, are scattered about on the floor. There is an exit down a staircase. There is a suspicious-looking individual, holding a large bag, leaning against one wall. He is armed with a deadly stiletto. There is a silver chalice, intricately engraved, here. The thief tries to sneak past your guard, but you twist away. >give egg to thief The thief is taken aback by your unexpected generosity, but accepts the jewel-encrusted egg and stops to admire its beauty. >give ivory torch to thief The thief is taken aback by your unexpected generosity, but accepts the torch and stops to admire its beauty. >give coffin to thief The thief is taken aback by your unexpected generosity, but accepts the gold coffin and stops to admire its beauty. >give sceptre to thief The thief is taken aback by your unexpected generosity, but accepts the sceptre and stops to admire its beauty. >temple Temple There is a brass lantern (battery-powered) here. There is a brass bell here. >take lantern Taken. >turn on lantern The brass lantern is now on. >save Ok. >temple You hear a scream of anguish as you violate the robber's hideaway. Using passages unknown to you, he rushes to its defense. The thief gestures mysteriously, and the treasures in the room suddenly vanish. Treasure Room There is a suspicious-looking individual, holding a large bag, leaning against one wall. He is armed with a deadly stiletto. There is a silver chalice, intricately engraved, here. The thief tries to sneak past your guard, but you twist away. >attack thief with knife The thief is staggered, and drops to his knees. The thief slowly regains his feet. >attack thief with knife A good stroke, but it's too slow; the thief dodges. The thief tries to sneak past your guard, but you twist away. >attack thief with knife A quick stroke, but the thief is on guard. The thief tries to sneak past your guard, but you twist away. >attack thief with knife The haft of your nasty knife knocks out the thief. >attack thief with knife The unarmed thief cannot defend himself: He dies. Almost as soon as the thief breathes his last breath, a cloud of sinister black fog envelops him, and when the fog lifts, the carcass has disappeared. As the thief dies, the power of his magic decreases, and his treasures reappear: A stiletto A jewel-encrusted egg, with a golden clockwork canary A torch A gold coffin A sceptre The chalice is now safe to take. >save Ok. >turn off lantern The brass lantern is now off. >drop knife Dropped. >take torch Taken. >take chalice Taken. >take egg Taken. >take sceptre Taken. >d Cyclops Room This room has an exit on the northwest, and a staircase leading up. A cyclops, who looks prepared to eat horses (much less mere adventurers), blocks the staircase. From his state of health, and the bloodstains on the walls, you gather that he is not very friendly, though he likes people. >odysseus The cyclops, hearing the name of his father's deadly nemesis, flees the room by knocking down the wall on the east of the room. >e Strange Passage This is a long passage. To the west is one entrance. On the east there is an old wooden door, with a large opening in it (about cyclops sized). >e Living Room Your collection of treasures consists of: A painting >get golden clockwork canary from egg Taken. >put egg in trophy case Done. >put canary in case Done. >put sceptre in case Done. >put chalice in case Done. >drop lantern Dropped. >open trap door The door reluctantly opens to reveal a rickety staircase descending into darkness. >w Strange Passage >w Cyclops Room >nw Maze This is part of a maze of twisty little passages, all alike. >s Maze This is part of a maze of twisty little passages, all alike. >w Maze This is part of a maze of twisty little passages, all alike. >d Maze This is part of a maze of twisty little passages, all alike. A skeleton, probably the remains of a luckless adventurer, lies here. Beside the skeleton is a rusty knife. The deceased adventurer's useless lantern is here. There is a skeleton key here. An old leather bag, bulging with coins, is here. >take bag of coins Taken. >n Maze This is part of a maze of twisty little passages, all alike. >w Maze This is part of a maze of twisty little passages, all alike. >s Maze This is part of a maze of twisty little passages, all alike. >e The Troll Room There is a bloody axe here. >s Cellar >u Living Room There is a brass lantern (battery-powered) here. Your collection of treasures consists of: A chalice A sceptre A golden clockwork canary A jewel-encrusted egg A painting >put bag of coins in case Done. >w Strange Passage >w Cyclops Room >u Treasure Room There is a nasty knife here. There is a stiletto here. The solid-gold coffin used for the burial of Ramses II is here. >take coffin Taken. >d Cyclops Room >e Strange Passage >e Living Room There is a brass lantern (battery-powered) here. Your collection of treasures consists of: A leather bag of coins A chalice A sceptre A golden clockwork canary A jewel-encrusted egg A painting >put coffin in case Done. >e Kitchen On the table is an elongated brown sack, smelling of hot peppers. A bottle is sitting on the table. The glass bottle contains: A quantity of water >open bag Opening the brown sack reveals a lunch, and a clove of garlic. >take garlic Taken. >w Living Room There is a brass lantern (battery-powered) here. Your collection of treasures consists of: A gold coffin A leather bag of coins A chalice A sceptre A golden clockwork canary A jewel-encrusted egg A painting >d Cellar >n The Troll Room There is a bloody axe here. >e East-West Passage >e Round Room >e Loud Room This is a large room with a ceiling which cannot be detected from the ground. There is a narrow passage from east to west and a stone stairway leading upward. The room is deafeningly loud with an undetermined rushing sound. The sound seems to reverberate from all of the walls, making it difficult even to think. On the ground is a large platinum bar. >echo The acoustics of the room change subtly. Loud Room On the ground is a large platinum bar. >take bar Taken. >u Deep Canyon You are on the south edge of a deep canyon. Passages lead off to the east, northwest and southwest. A stairway leads down. You can hear the sound of flowing water from below. >e Dam You are standing on the top of the Flood Control Dam #3, which was quite a tourist attraction in times far distant. There are paths to the north, south, and west, and a scramble down. The sluice gates on the dam are closed. Behind the dam, there can be seen a wide reservoir. Water is pouring over the top of the now abandoned dam. There is a control panel here, on which a large metal bolt is mounted. Directly above the bolt is a small green plastic bubble. >n Dam Lobby This room appears to have been the waiting room for groups touring the dam. There are open doorways here to the north and east marked "Private", and there is a path leading south over the top of the dam. Some guidebooks entitled "Flood Control Dam #3" are on the reception desk. There is a matchbook whose cover says "Visit Beautiful FCD#3" here. >take matchbook Taken. >n Maintenance Room This is what appears to have been the maintenance room for Flood Control Dam #3. Apparently, this room has been ransacked recently, for most of the valuable equipment is gone. On the wall in front of you is a group of buttons colored blue, yellow, brown, and red. There are doorways to the west and south. There is a group of tool chests here. There is a wrench here. There is an object which looks like a tube of toothpaste here. There is a screwdriver here. >take wrench Taken. >take screwdriver Taken. >press yellow button Click. >s Dam Lobby Some guidebooks entitled "Flood Control Dam #3" are on the reception desk. >s Dam You are standing on the top of the Flood Control Dam #3, which was quite a tourist attraction in times far distant. There are paths to the north, south, and west, and a scramble down. The sluice gates on the dam are closed. Behind the dam, there can be seen a wide reservoir. Water is pouring over the top of the now abandoned dam. There is a control panel here, on which a large metal bolt is mounted. Directly above the bolt is a small green plastic bubble which is glowing serenely. >turn bolt with wrench The sluice gates open and water pours through the dam. >drop wrench Dropped. >s Deep Canyon >sw North-South Passage This is a high north-south passage, which forks to the northeast. >s Round Room >drop screwdriver Dropped. >drop platinum bar Dropped. >drop garlic Dropped. >se Engravings Cave There are old engravings on the walls here. >e Dome Room >d Torch Room >s Temple There is a brass bell here. >take bell Taken. >s Altar This is the south end of a large temple. In front of you is what appears to be an altar. In one corner is a small hole in the floor which leads into darkness. You probably could not get back up it. On the two ends of the altar are burning candles. On the altar is a large black book, open to page 569. >take candles Taken. >take book Taken. >d Cave This is a tiny cave with entrances west and north, and a dark, forbidding staircase leading down. A gust of wind blows out your candles! >d Entrance to Hades You are outside a large gateway, on which is inscribed Abandon every hope all ye who enter here! The gate is open; through it you can see a desolation, with a pile of mangled bodies in one corner. Thousands of voices, lamenting some hideous fate, can be heard. The way through the gate is barred by evil spirits, who jeer at your attempts to pass. >light candles You should say what to light them with. >light match One of the matches starts to burn. >light candles with match The candles are lit. The match has gone out. >ring bell The bell suddenly becomes red hot and falls to the ground. The wraiths, as if paralyzed, stop their jeering and slowly turn to face you. On their ashen faces, the expression of a long-forgotten terror takes shape. In your confusion, the candles drop to the ground (and they are out). >take candles Taken. >light match One of the matches starts to burn. >light candles with match The candles are lit. The flames flicker wildly and appear to dance. The earth beneath your feet trembles, and your legs nearly buckle beneath you. The spirits cower at your unearthly power. The match has gone out. >read from black book Each word of the prayer reverberates through the hall in a deafening confusion. As the last word fades, a voice, loud and commanding, speaks: "Begone, fiends!" A heart-stopping scream fills the cavern, and the spirits, sensing a greater power, flee through the walls. >drop black book Dropped. >drop candles Dropped. >drop matchbook Dropped. >s Land of the Dead You have entered the Land of the Living Dead. Thousands of lost souls can be heard weeping and moaning. In the corner are stacked the remains of dozens of previous adventurers less fortunate than yourself. A passage exits to the north. Lying in one corner of the room is a beautifully carved crystal skull. It appears to be grinning at you rather nastily. >take crystal skull Taken. >n Entrance to Hades There is a matchbook whose cover says "Visit Beautiful FCD#3" here. There is a pair of candles here (providing light). There is a black book here. On the ground is a red hot bell. >u Cave >n Mirror Room You are in a large square room with tall ceilings. On the south wall is an enormous mirror which fills the entire wall. There are exits on the other three sides of the room. >touch mirror There is a rumble from deep within the earth and the room shakes. >e Cave This is a tiny cave with entrances west and north, and a staircase leading down. >s Atlantis Room This is an ancient room, long under water. There is an exit to the south and a staircase leading up. On the shore lies Poseidon's own crystal trident. >take trident Taken. >s Reservoir North You are in a large cavernous room, the south of which was formerly a lake. However, with the water level lowered, there is merely a wide stream running through there. There is a slimy stairway leaving the room to the north. There is a hand-held air pump here. >take air pump That sentence isn't one I recognize. >take pump Taken. >s Reservoir You are on what used to be a large lake, but which is now a large mud pile. There are "shores" to the north and south. Lying half buried in the mud is an old trunk, bulging with jewels. >take trunk Taken. >s Reservoir South You are in a long room, to the north of which was formerly a lake. However, with the water level lowered, there is merely a wide stream running through the center of the room. There is a path along the stream to the east or west, a steep pathway climbing southwest along the edge of a chasm, and a path leading into a canyon to the southeast. >sw Chasm A chasm runs southwest to northeast and the path follows it. You are on the south side of the chasm, where a crack opens into a passage. >s North-South Passage >s Round Room There is a clove of garlic here. On the ground is a large platinum bar. There is a screwdriver here. >drop pump Dropped. >w East-West Passage >w The Troll Room There is a bloody axe here. >s Cellar >u Living Room There is a brass lantern (battery-powered) here. Your collection of treasures consists of: A gold coffin A leather bag of coins A chalice A sceptre A golden clockwork canary A jewel-encrusted egg A painting >put trident in case Done. >put trunk in case Done. >put skull in case Done. >take lantern Taken. >d Cellar >n The Troll Room There is a bloody axe here. >e East-West Passage >e Round Room There is a hand-held air pump here. There is a clove of garlic here. On the ground is a large platinum bar. There is a screwdriver here. >take garlic Taken. >take screwdriver Taken. >s Narrow Passage This is a long and narrow corridor where a long north-south passageway briefly narrows even further. >s Mirror Room >touch mirror There is a rumble from deep within the earth and the room shakes. >n Cold Passage This is a cold and damp corridor where a long east-west passageway turns into a southward path. >w Slide Room This is a small chamber, which appears to have been part of a coal mine. On the south wall of the chamber the letters "Granite Wall" are etched in the rock. To the east is a long passage, and there is a steep metal slide twisting downward. To the north is a small opening. >