Hephaestus Word Mazes
Copyright © 1998 Balmoral Software (http://www.balmoralsoftware.com). Portions copyright © 1996 Philips Media. All rights reserved. Republication, redistribution or conversion is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Balmoral Software. Contents subject to change! For the latest information, see http://www.balmoralsoftware.com.
Labyrinth of Crete is an interesting puzzle game heavily flavored with themes of astrology and Greek mythology. As in other puzzle titles such as Jewels of the Oracle, the main emphasis of Labyrinth of Crete is on the puzzles themselves, with only a thin plot thread tying the game together. Five distinct puzzle types are included in the game, and three difficulty levels may be chosen for each one: Beginner, Advanced and Expert. At each difficulty level, there are four instances of each puzzle, randomly chosen for each game. A single game requires the solution of 47 puzzle challenges. There are a variety of puzzles in the game - everything from word-oriented "tracer"-style challenges to traditional memory puzzles and rearrangements of polyminoes.
A well-written game booklet that comes in the CD-ROM case contains general information on the game structure, details on playing each puzzle, and strategy hints. Additional spoken instructions are provided by the "How to Play" topic on the menu bar, accessible by clicking the right mouse button. The game contains many references to the zodiac, so it may help you to study some of the basics of astrology. Knowing a little Greek mythology and symbolism wouldn't hurt, either.
We didn't particularly enjoy the action/arcade challenges, but these were primarily limited to the various "patchwork" puzzles, and weren't too hard when played at the Beginner difficulty level.
After the game has been completed, the game piece menu shows one for which all 47 challenges have been solved. Selecting this Solved game piece brings up a random-access (All Play) puzzle menu from which any puzzle previously encountered may be played. Four instances of each puzzle are available, and may be played sequentially. Eventually, you should see the particular instance of each puzzle you played to complete the game. Note, however, that incidental animations and narrative are not offered when puzzles are played from the All Play menu - you'll have to continue a "real" game to see these.
The low-color, hand-drawn graphics are unimpressive for a 1995 release, and compare very poorly with the rendered graphics of Jewels of the Oracle, but really aren't much of a drawback to enjoying the puzzles. A few keyboard shortcuts are offered for the solution of certain puzzles, and often come in handy. Exiting the game is an overly-long process involving the mandatory playback of credits and a copyright warning. The final credits following the endgame include visuals of Cliff Johnson's original Labyrinth of Crete game.
One word of caution: Labyrinth of Crete doesn't offer file-based saved games, so to keep intermediate results you'll have to manually copy the LABYRNTH.DAT file in your Windows directory.
With its extensive replayability, Labyrinth of Crete can be enjoyed when a limited amount of time is available or when you don't want to have to keep track of the complete plot of a traditional adventure game. If found in the bargain bin, it's a good value for those who enjoy solving computer-based puzzles.
These notes include information needed to complete the entire game if all challenges are played at the Beginner level (the section on word tracer puzzles also includes solutions for the Advanced level). There is much more to explore in this game than what is described here - these notes are just designed to help get you through the game the first time.
If you're running Windows 95 and want additional practice with the puzzles by accessing the All Play menu, copy the 328-byte LABYRNTH.DAT file to your Windows directory (C:\WINDOWS by default). If you are using Netscape, shift-click here to download the file. Be sure to rename your existing LABYRNTH.DAT file first if you want to save your game in progress!
To run subsidiary programs under Windows 95, return the focus to the operating system by pressing Alt-Esc, then bring up an MS-DOS prompt.
A new game introduction can be skipped by pumping the space bar.
For more information on Cliff Johnson games, visit his web site at www.fools-errand.com.
After the game introduction, you'll find yourself in the God Directory, which consists of five gods (Poseidon, Ares, Hephaestus, Hermes and Hades) flanked by the Minotaur door (blocked Labyrinth exit) at left and the Eagle door (Maze of Madness) at right. When solving the four challenges offered by each of the gods, be sure to note the monster and especially the zodiac symbol associated with each god:
Temple First Second Third Fourth Monster Zodiac
Challenge Challenge Challenge Challenge
Poseidon Patchwork Scramble Tracer Arcade Scylla Pisces
Ares Patchwork Block Word Maze Tracer Chimera Cancer
Hephaestus Patchwork Word Maze Scramble Block Cyclops Taurus
Hermes Patchwork Arcade Block Tracer Giant Capricorn
Hades Patchwork Scramble Arcade Word Maze Cerberus Scorpio
After each set of four puzzles is solved, the corresponding door in the God Directory is closed and the god's zodiac symbol is highlighted in the doorway to the Palace of the Sun, shown by clicking on the moon symbol on the ceiling of the God Directory. After all 20 god puzzles have been completed, click on the ceiling moon symbol to play Tile Game 1. When you've won the game, a zodiac wheel is shown. Clicking on the center of the wheel causes zodiac symbols to be highlighted in a particular order. Make a note of the order of symbols and use it to solve the Maze of Madness.
After you've traversed the Maze of Madness, you'll obtain the Ares zodiac sign and will find yourself in the Goddess Directory. This room contains doorways for five goddesses (Athena, Aphrodite, Artemis, Demeter and Eos) flanked by the Peacock door (Minotaur's Armory) at left and the Minotaur door (blocked Labyrinth exit) at right. When solving the four challenges offered by each of the goddesses, be sure to note the monster and especially the zodiac symbol associated with each goddess:
Temple First Second Third Fourth Monster Zodiac
Challenge Challenge Challenge Challenge
Athena Patchwork Scramble Tracer Block Medusa Libra
Aphrodite Patchwork Block Word Maze Arcade Harpy Gemini
Artemis Patchwork Tracer Arcade Scramble Sphinx Sagittarius
Demeter Patchwork Word Maze Block Scramble Gryphon Aquarius
Eos Patchwork Arcade Tracer Word Maze Furies Virgo
After each set of four puzzles is solved, the corresponding door in the Goddess Directory is closed and the goddess's zodiac symbol is highlighted in the doorway to the Palace of the Sun, shown by clicking on the sun symbol on the ceiling of the Goddess Directory. After all 20 goddess puzzles have been completed, click on the ceiling sun symbol to play Tile Game 2. When you've won the game, a zodiac wheel is shown. Clicking on the center of the wheel causes zodiac symbols to be highlighted in a particular order. Make a note of the order of symbols and use it to solve the Minotaur's Armory.
After you've solved the puzzle of the Minotaur's Armory and the subsequent Tile Game 3, your final challenge will be the Minotaur's Lair.
Here the difficulty level affects the blurriness of the monochrome background used as a guide in positioning the pieces, as well as the number of pieces that have to be placed to complete the image. Also, the higher levels of difficulty require pieces in more than one column (row) to be placed before a preceding column (row) has been completed.
The difficulty level controls how many pieces into which the hidden zodiac symbol is scrambled, as well as the number of hotspots that can be pressed to swap two pieces.
The solution can be determined by the SCRAMBLE program (22 KB) once preliminary puzzle information is obtained. This information includes pairs of zodiac symbol piece positions that are swapped by each hotspot and the index of the properly-arranged zodiac piece occupying each position. Swapping can be checked for each hotspot, then undone with the Undo menu feature. Click on the scrambled zodiac symbol to show it properly arranged.
Sample output from the SCRAMBLE program:
Enter the number of pieces in the scrambled zodiac symbol (6-20): 6 Enter the number of hotspots controlling swapping (5-9): 5 Number the positions of the zodiac pieces from 1 to 6. Enter indices for the two positions swapped by hotspot #1: 3,6 Enter indices for the two positions swapped by hotspot #2: 2,4 Enter indices for the two positions swapped by hotspot #3: 1,5 Enter indices for the two positions swapped by hotspot #4: 3,5 Enter indices for the two positions swapped by hotspot #5: 2,6 Number the properly-arranged zodiac pieces from 1 to 6. Enter the index of the piece occupying position 1: 5 Enter the index of the piece occupying position 2: 4 Enter the index of the piece occupying position 3: 6 Enter the index of the piece occupying position 4: 1 Enter the index of the piece occupying position 5: 3 Enter the index of the piece occupying position 6: 2 The zodiac symbol can be rearranged by pressing the 5 hotspots in this order: 2 5 1 4 3
To solve the tracer type of puzzle, you must select a path of letters that will spell out a sentence containing the specified word lengths. At the Beginner level, the sentence uses up all the displayed letters, but the Advanced level includes unused letters and the Expert level also leaves the choice of the initial letter up to you. Especially at the Beginner and Advanced levels, it's sometimes helpful to visualize the location of words in the later portions of the sentence. This can often be easier after some letters have been identified or if short words are present. Also, it may help to keep in mind the name of the god or goddess associated with the puzzle, as well as the corresponding zodiac sign, often found at the end of a sentence. The statements made in the sentences are like Greek versions of Chinese fortune cookies, and occasionally don't ring quite true or may be grammatically incorrect. There may be some repetition between the meaning of sentences at different difficulty levels.
The final tracer puzzle varies from the preceding ones in that vowels are not explicitly shown in the display of letters (but will show up below as each is tested).
Below are given all solutions to the tracer puzzles at the Beginner and Advanced levels. To minimize the risk of spoiling other tracer puzzles you haven't yet played, each individual solution is found by following a link from the encoded pattern. These links connect to widely-separated anchors, so be sure to use the Back feature of your browser once you've found the answer for the pattern you're trying to solve.
| Temple | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Poseidon | Beginner | Advanced |
| Ares | Beginner | Advanced |
| Hermes | Beginner | Advanced |
| Athena | Beginner | Advanced |
| Artemis | Beginner | Advanced |
| Eos | Beginner | Advanced |
| No Vowels | Beginner | Advanced |
Poseidon (Beginner Level)
+++ +++ +++++ ++++ +++ +++ +++++++ ++++ +++ +++++++ +++++ Solution ++++++++ ++++ ++++ +++++ + +++++ +++++ ++++ ++ +++++++++ Solution +++++ +++ +++++++ +++++++++ ++ +++ ++++++ ++ +++ +++ Solution ++ +++ ++++ +++ ++++++ +++ +++++++ ++++ +++++++ ++++ +++++ SolutionAres (Beginner Level)
+++ ++++++ ++++ ++++ +++ ++++++ ++ +++ +++++ +++++ Solution ++++ +++ ++++++++ +++++ +++ +++++++++ ++++++ +++ ++ ++++++ Solution +++ +++++++++ +++ ++++++++ +++++ ++++ ++ ++ +++ ++++ ++++++ Solution +++ +++ +++ +++++++ ++ ++ ++++++ ++ +++ ++++++ ++ ++++ SolutionHermes (Beginner Level)
+++ ++++++ ++++++ ++++++ +++++ +++ ++++ ++ +++++++++ Solution ++++++ ++ +++ ++++++ ++ ++++++++ +++ ++++++++ ++ +++++++++ Solution +++ +++ ++++++ ++++++++ ++++ +++++++++ +++ +++ ++++++++ Solution ++++ ++++++ +++++ +++++++ ++++ +++ +++++++ ++++++ ++++ SolutionAthena (Beginner Level)
+++ ++++ ++++ ++++++ ++++++ ++ +++++ +++++ +++ ++++ ++ +++++ Solution +++ +++++++ ++++++ +++++ ++ ++++ +++ ++++ +++ +++ ++ +++ Solution +++ ++++++++ +++ +++++++++++ ++++++ ++ +++ ++ +++ +++++++ Solution ++++++ +++ ++++ + +++++++++ +++++ ++++ +++ ++++++++ ++++++ SolutionArtemis (Beginner Level)
+++++++ ++++ +++ ++++++ ++ +++ ++++ +++ +++++ ++ +++++++++++ Solution + ++++++ +++++++ +++++ ++ +++ ++++ ++ ++++++ ++ +++++++ Solution +++ +++++++ +++++++ +++++ +++ +++++ +++ +++ ++++ +++++ Solution +++ ++++++ ++ + ++++++++ ++++ ++ ++++ ++++ +++ ++++ +++++ SolutionEos (Beginner Level)
+++++ +++ ++++ +++++ +++ ++++ ++ +++ ++++++ +++ ++++++++ Solution +++ ++++++ ++++ ++ +++++ +++ ++++++++ +++++++ ++ ++ +++++ Solution ++++ +++ +++++ +++++++ +++++ ++ +++ ++++++++ +++++ +++ Solution ++++ ++++++ ++ +++ ++ +++ ++++ +++ ++++++ ++ +++ ++++++++ SolutionNo Vowels (Beginner Level)
++ +++ ++++ +++ +++ ++++ ++ ++++ ++++ +++ +++++ +++ ++ ++++ Solution +++ ++++++ +++++++ + +++++++ +++ +++++ ++ ++++ +++ +++ Solution +++++ ++++++ +++++ ++ +++ ++++++ ++++ ++++++ +++ ++++ ++ +++ Solution +++ ++++ ++++++++ +++ ++ ++++ ++ ++++ ++++++ ++ +++ +++ SolutionPoseidon (Advanced Level)
+++ +++++ ++++ +++ +++ ++++++ +++ +++++++ ++ ++++++ Solution +++++ ++ ++ +++++ ++ ++++ ++ ++++ ++ +++ +++++++++ Solution +++ +++ ++++ + +++++++++ ++++++ +++ ++ +++ + +++++++ Solution +++ ++++ +++ ++ +++ +++++++ +++++ ++ +++ +++ ++++++++ SolutionAres (Advanced Level)
+++ ++++ ++ +++ ++++++ ++++++ ++ +++ ++++ ++ ++++++ Solution ++++ +++++++ +++ ++++++ ++++ +++++ ++++++++ ++++++ Solution ++++ ++++ ++++ ++++++++++ ++ +++++ ++ +++ ++++ ++++ Solution +++ ++++++++ +++ +++++ +++++ ++++ ++++ +++++ ++++++ SolutionHermes (Advanced Level)
++++ ++++++++ +++++ +++ +++++ +++ +++++++ ++++++++ ++++ Solution +++++ +++ ++++ +++++ ++ +++ +++++++ ++ +++ +++ ++++++ Solution ++++++ +++++++ + ++++ ++++++++ ++++ + ++++ ++ ++++++++ Solution ++ +++ ++++ ++ +++ ++++++ ++++++ +++ +++ ++++ ++++++++ SolutionAthena (Advanced Level)
+++ +++++++ ++++++ +++++++ ++++++ ++++ + ++++++++ +++++ Solution +++++ +++ ++++ ++++++ +++ +++++ ++ ++ +++ ++++ ++ +++++ Solution +++ ++++++ ++ ++++++ ++ +++ +++++++++++ +++++++++ Solution ++++++ +++++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ ++++ ++ +++ +++++++++ SolutionArtemis (Advanced Level)
++ +++ ++++ +++ ++++ +++++++ ++++ +++++++ +++++ ++ ++++ Solution ++++ ++ +++++ +++ ++++++ +++ +++ ++++ ++ +++++++ ++++++ Solution +++ ++++++ ++++++++ +++++ ++ + ++++++++ ++ +++++++++++ Solution +++ +++++++ +++++++ ++ ++++++ +++ ++++ ++ ++++ ++++++ SolutionEos (Advanced Level)
+++++ ++ + ++++ ++ ++++++++ ++++++ +++ ++++++++ ++++++ Solution ++++ + +++++++++ +++ +++++ +++ ++++ +++++++ ++ ++++ Solution +++ ++++++ +++ ++++ +++++ ++++ +++ ++++ ++++++++++ Solution ++ +++ ++ +++++ +++ ++++++ ++++ ++++ +++++ +++++ +++++ SolutionNo Vowels (Advanced Level)
+++++ +++ ++++ ++++ ++++ +++ ++++ +++ ++++ ++ ++++ +++++ Solution ++ +++ ++++++ +++++ +++++++ +++ ++++++ ++ +++++ ++++ Solution ++ ++ ++ ++++ ++++ +++ ++++ +++ +++++ ++++ +++ +++++++ Solution ++++ ++ +++ ++++++ ++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++++++ ++++++++++ Solution
The object of this arcade-style challenge is to cause all the background items to light up by pressing the correct subset of the flying zodiac symbols, each of which causes one or two items to change their lighted state.
In many cases, the solution to an arcade puzzle can be found by simply recording the background objects lit by each flying zodiac symbol and analyzing the results. In more complex situations, a solution can be determined by the ARCADE program (24 KB) after it has been given the indices of the one or two background objects lit by each flying zodiac symbol. If you click only one symbol per sequence, these indices can be easily obtained.
Sample output from the ARCADE program:
Enter the number of background objects (maximum 12): 8 Enter the number of flying zodiac symbols (maximum 12): 8 Enter the indices of one or two background objects lit by flying zodiac symbol #1 (e.g., 5 or 2,12): 1,2 Enter the indices of one or two background objects lit by flying zodiac symbol #2 (e.g., 5 or 2,12): 6,7 Enter the indices of one or two background objects lit by flying zodiac symbol #3 (e.g., 5 or 2,12): 2,3 Enter the indices of one or two background objects lit by flying zodiac symbol #4 (e.g., 5 or 2,12): 5,6 Enter the indices of one or two background objects lit by flying zodiac symbol #5 (e.g., 5 or 2,12): 1,8 Enter the indices of one or two background objects lit by flying zodiac symbol #6 (e.g., 5 or 2,12): 4,5 Enter the indices of one or two background objects lit by flying zodiac symbol #7 (e.g., 5 or 2,12): 3 Enter the indices of one or two background objects lit by flying zodiac symbol #8 (e.g., 5 or 2,12): 7,8 Click on these zodiac symbols: 2 3 5 6
The essence of solving the block puzzles (at least at the Beginner level) usually involves swapping two or more pieces or getting one piece past another. We found best results were obtained by trying to complete the desired pattern from left to right, noting which pieces "lock" others down and so must be placed after them. However, if you're not making progress with a plan, it's sometimes easier to reset the puzzle and start over.
Movement Abbreviations:
R: Move letter to the right (Rn for n repetitions)
L: Move letter to the left
U: Move letter up
D: Move letter down
Ares Word Mazes
Ares #1 Ares #2 E: D3, morphed to K E: D3 L D R2 to final position V: R D2 R D2 L to final position V: R D2 R L D L D R to final position K: U R D2 to final position O: R D L D L U, morphed to A D: D2 R U D L, morphed to H D: R2 D L D R L D2 to final position O: R2 D3 L U2 L D3 R to final A: D R2 D2 to final position position H: R D2 to final position Ares #3 Ares #4 V: D R D, morphed to A O: D R D2, morphed to W O: D L D, morphed to V V: L D R D L D2 R to final position A: U L U L D, parked E: L2 D R D L2 R D2 to final position E: L D R D R D L D L2 to final D: R3 D2 R D2 L U D R to final position position W: R D to final position D: R2 D R D L2 D U R3 D L D R to final position V: R D R D R to final position A: L D R D R D to final position
Hephaestus #1 Hephaestus #2
I: D2 R L, morphed to G O: D R D, morphed to R
R: L, parked Upper R: R D, parked
O: L D3 R L U2, morphed to U I: R D L D3 R3 U D L, morphed to B
G: R D R U2 R D U L D3 R2 to final N: L2 D L D R L U R U R3 D4 L U L U D R
position D R to final position
N: R D3 U2 L2 D2 L U L D2 R3 to final B: R to final position
position Lower R: L D L U L D2 R2 to final
U: D2 R D to final position position
R: D4 R to final position R: U L D L D3 R to final position
Hephaestus #3 Hephaestus #4
N: R D L, parked N: R D4 L4 U, morphed to U
O: R2 D4 L4 U3 R2 L2 D3 R4 to final O: D2 R D, morphed to D
position R: D, parked
I: D3 R L D R3 to final position I: R4 D4 L2 U L R D L, morphed to B
N: R D2 L U L D2 to final position D: L2 U D R D R2 to final position
R: L D4 R to final position B: R2 to final position
U: D R2 to final position
R: L D3 R to final position
Hades #1 Hades #2 E: R D L D L, morphed to W B: L D R4 L D2, morphed to U N: R2 D L D R D, morphed to I O: L2 D R4 D R L U L D, morphed to S O: R D L2 R2 U R, morphed to S N: L3 D R2 D L2 D R D to final position B: R2 D L2 D2, morphed to U E: R D3 L R U L U L2 D2, morphed to T W: R U, parked S: U R D R U, parked I: U L3 D R D L2 to final position U: U2 R D R D L D L2 to final position U: U R D R D L to final position S: D2 L D L to final position S: L D L2 D R D R D to final position T: U2 R2 D R D L D to final position W: R U L5 D3 R U R4 D L D to final position Hades #3 Hades #4 B: L D R4, morphed to U B: L D3 R2, morphed to S O: L2 D R3, parked E: R D2 U L2, morphed to Z N: L3 D R2, parked N: R2 D3 L2 D L2, morphed to H E: L4 D R D L D, morphed to Z O: R3 D3 L U L R D L D R to final N: L D, parked position O: L3 U R5 D3, morphed to K S: D R to final position U: L4, parked H: R U L2 U2 R L D2 R2 D L to final N: U R3 D L D, morphed to S position Z: U R U R3 D L2 D2 R2 to final Z: D L2 D R D to final position position S: U L D2 R to final position U: R4 D L2 D2 to final position K: U3 L5 D R D L D R D to final position
Aphrodite #1 Aphrodite #2 N: R, parked S: R3 D R D L D U R U3 L4 to final O: D, parked position T: D R, parked T: U, parked O: U2 R L D, morphed to R O: U R2 D L D2, morphed to A S: D R U R L D R3 D, morphed to Z N: U2 R2 D3 U2, morphed to R R: U R U R U, parked E: U3 R4 U2 L3 to final position T: L U R4 U L U R to final position A: R2 U2 R U3 L2 to final position R: R to final position R: U R2 U2 L to final position N: L U R2 L2 U R U R U L2 to final T: D R4 U2 to final position position E: U3 R U R U L to final position Z: L2 D R D L2 U L U2 R U R U to final position Aphrodite #3 Aphrodite #4 T: R, parked N: R2 D R U2 R, morphed to L O: U, parked O: D R2 D L, parked N: U R D R L U L D, morphed to K L: L D2 L U L2 U R U2, morphed to R O: D R D R U2, morphed to R T: D R, parked S: D2 R D2 R2 U2 R U3 L D U R, S: D3 R2 U D2 R U3, morphed to A morphed to A O: R U4 R U L3 to final position T: L U, parked E: R2 U4 R U L2 to final position K: U2 R U R2 U L3 to final position A: D R U3 L2 to final position E: U3 R U R2 U L2 to final position R: R2 U to final position A: L2 to final position T: L D2 R3 U2 R U3 to final position R: R2 U2 L to final position T: D R4 U2 to final position
Demeter #1 Demeter #2
H: U, parked H: U L, parked
E: L, parked E: L U, parked
A: L U2 D2 R, morphed to F W: R2 U2 R2, morphed to R
E: R U2 L2 R U L U D R D R2 D, A: L U2 L U, morphed to U
morphed to S H: U R2 U R, morphed to F
H: L U R U L U L U R6 D L, morphed to T: L2 U4 R3 U L3 to final position
L U: D R U2 R3 U L2 to final position
F: L2, parked R: U2 R U L to final position
T: L2 U2 L U L U L U R2 D R2, morphed E: D R2 U R U3 L3 U L2 D U R2 to final
to O position
F: R U2 L U L U L U R to final F: L D L U L U L U R to final position
position
L: R U L4 to final position
O: U L to final position
S: U L2, parked
W: R2 U2 R D R U3 R U L2 to final
position
S: R2 D R U2 L R U R U L to final
position
Demeter #3 Demeter #4
T: U2 L D, morphed to P T: U L, parked
E: U, parked E: U L, parked
A: R U2 L, parked A: L U, parked
H: R3 U3 D3 L3, morphed to O H: R3, parked
E: D R2 U3 L2 R2 D2, morphed to F W: R3, parked
A: R U L U D L D U R U L U R to final A: D L2 U3, morphed to X
position W: L3 U, parked
F: U2 L U L U L2 to final position H: L4, parked
P: U R U L U R2 L3 U L to final T: R D L3, parked
position E: R D R2 U L U, morphed to G
O: R U3 R U L U to final position T: R2, parked
W: R2 U2 L D L U2 R U L2 R6 U L to H: R2 U L U, morphed to F
final position T: L U L, parked
G: D R D L2 U, parked
W: D R4 U L U R U2 L U R to final
position
G: D R2 U L U R U2 L5 U R2 to final
position
T: R D R2 U L U R U2 R L2 U L to final
position
X: R U R2 D L R U2 to final position
F: R U R U L4 U R to final position
Eos #1 Eos #2
S: L U R2 U R, parked S: L U R2, parked
L: L2 U R2 U2 R, morphed to R L: L2 U R, parked
S: L U, parked E: L3 U3 L U R2 D2, morphed to I
E: L3 U R2 U R D R2 U, morphed to A L: L U2 L U R2 D R U R D, morphed to R
S: D R D R2, parked E: L4 U3, parked
R: L D R D, parked S: L2 U, parked
E: L4 U R2, parked P: L5 U R2 U R D R2 U L U3 L5 to final
P: L5 U3 L U R4 D L D L R3 U2 D2 L2, position
morphed to I R: R U2 L4 to final position
A: L U3 L5 to final position I: U R U R D R U2 L3 to final position
R: U R U3 L4 to final position S: D R2 U R U R U2 L2 to final position
I: R2 U3 L3 to final position E: D2 R2 U R U R U2 L to final position
S: U L U3 L2 to final position
E: U R2 U3 L to final position
Eos #3 Eos #4
S: L U R U L U L, parked S: L U R U L U L, parked
L: L2 U R U L U R, morphed to N L: L2 U R U L U, parked
E: L3 U R2, morphed to C E: L3 U R U L, parked
S: R D R D L, parked Lower E: L4 U R U, parked
N: L2 U D R2, morphed to R P: L5 U R2 U, morphed to R
C: L U L U L U R5 U L5 to final E: D L D R, parked
position Upper E: R D L D, parked
R: L2 U R5 U L4 to final position L: D R D R, parked
S: R U L, parked S: R D R D L, parked
E: L4 U R U, parked L: L U L U L U, morphed to I
P: L5 U R2 U2 D2 R3 U L2 U R U2 L3 to S: R U L, parked
final position R: D L U, parked
S: U L U R5 U L2 to final position Left E: U R2 U R D R2 U L U L U L D L R
E: L U L U R5 U L to final position U R2 U L5 to final position
R: D R U R D R2 U L U L U R U L4 to
final position
I: R2 D R U R2 U L3 to final position
S: U L U R2 D R U R2 U L2 to final
position
E: L U R2 U R D R2 U L U L U R U L to
final position
The "hidden rule" of the tile games is that you must beat your opponent using Rummy-like strategies of trying to collect a greater number of tiles in a particular group, while your opponent tries to do the same. Once you've identified to which groups the tiles in a particular game belong (see table below), the process becomes straightforward.
In your first turn, try to pick a member of a group with fewer tiles showing - this will increase your chances of getting matching tiles during later turns. For example, if you're playing Game 1 at Beginner level (five tiles to choose from) and the initial tiles shown are
Gemini Ares Sagittarius Capricorn Aquariusit would probably be best to pick Capricorn since it's the only Feminine sign showing and you'd have a better chance of picking up a Feminine sign during each of your other two turns.
Always aim to finish the hand with at least two members of the same group, and preferably all three members in the same group. Generally, this will give you the best scores.
Group identifications:
Sign Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Ares Masculine Cardinal Fire Taurus Feminine Fixed Earth Gemini Masculine Mutable Air Cancer Feminine Cardinal Water Leo Masculine Fixed Fire Virgo Feminine Mutable Earth Libra Masculine Cardinal Air Scorpio Feminine Fixed Water Sagittarius Masculine Mutable Fire Capricorn Feminine Cardinal Earth Aquarius Masculine Fixed Air Pisces Feminine Mutable Water
The Minotaur's Lair is the final puzzle of the game. A "parity law" applies to sliding-piece puzzles of this kind. It's not possible simply to exchange the positions of only one pair of non-adjacent pieces; any solution must always result in an even number of exchanges. Therefore, there can be no solution that only exchanges the positions of the blank tile and the one with the Minotaur's head. We must also exchange another pair of tiles; for example, the identical upper-left and lower-right octagon tiles. Using the positional notation
Minotaur's Lair Positional
Notation
the goals for a solution are to:
Exchange pieces at positions D & F (Minotaur's head)There is only one difficulty level for this puzzle.
Exchange pieces at positions A & I (to avoid parity limitation)
A solution in 42 moves:
F E D
B A C D B
A C G H
D E I H D E
I H
G C D B A C D
H I J F E I H D E F J I E F J
Copyright © 1998 Balmoral Software (http://www.balmoralsoftware.com). Portions copyright © 1996 Philips Media. All rights reserved. Republication, redistribution or conversion is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Balmoral Software. Contents subject to change! For the latest information, see http://www.balmoralsoftware.com.