| Quests of the Spheres | |
| By Brett Bixler (bxb11@psu.edu) | |
| Caligula’ Review | |
Warning: some possible spoilers below.
Quests of the Spheres is the second scenario of the Spheres trilogy. This scenario was second in the first Scenario design contest at Spiderweb, and it deserves it, in my opinion. Especially if you play it right after playing Riddle of the Spheres, the first part of the Spheres trilogy.
In itself, this scenario has a lot of good aspects. It has riddles and puzzles, some tactical fights, and good balance between main plot and side dungeons.
The main idea is that you come back to the Realm of the Spheres, where you went in Riddle of the Spheres, first scenario of the trilogy. The Spheres are musical beings you saved from the evil D’kar in Riddle. The D’kar invasion has now begun, and Empire sent you there to help its troops and the Realm. You must gain access to the Spheres, then do quests for them. This implies that you’ll wander throughout most of the Realm.
During your wanderings, you will travel in many islands you would know, if you’ve played Riddle before. As for Exile I and II (but to a somewhat smaller extent, though), you will notice all the changes that occurred during your absence, meet old friends, find new D’kar robots, visit places you’ve been before, understand more exactly some of the things that puzzled you during and after you played Riddle of the Spheres (including places you couldn’t go in Riddle, like this room where the sign reads I finally managed to get here by cracking the scenario with ResEdit. Yeah.). This aspect of Quests creates a substantial depth in the scenario that is really good.
As you can see with the previous example of the locked room, there’s some funny moments. Examples are the guest appearances of the Simpsons (with an essential role for achieving your quests) and your shooting for the next X-Files season — a reference that I awaited from a long time in a Blades scenario.
Those who played Riddle would know that the Realm is infused with music (in the shape of islands, in their names, in the names of the NPCs, ...), and this is another pleasant feature of Quests.
But cool things aren’t all in a scenario. To fully enjoy it, try the side dungeons (slith and trog lairs). You can win without going there, but you would miss a lot. They add an important touch to the scenario’s atmosphere, with the fugitive sights on parallel universes.
Now, some critics. After all, can so a large scenario be perfect? In fact, the critics will be light. But there were some dungeons I didn’t really like. Mainly because I got toasted and heavily beaten up. Hammer’s Forge is a real pain, the beginning dungeon, the old tower, filled with hordes of Slime Eyes and Greeblers, Slime Eyes being perhaps the most obnoxious monsters, at least for me. Another one, the first Glove of the Spheres, is inhabited by a nasty lich without any obvious reason (for me at least).
Let me end this review with a special mention of one of the greatest feature of the scenario: the quest that sends you directly into the mind of the Master. Apart from some psychedelic encounters, and the fact that the design of the outdoor levels that depict the mind aren’t so great (in my humble opinion), you’re faced with the Master’s most intimate memories. The progressively unveiled story of the Master is really a great moment.
That’s all I will say. This is an excellent scenario, and perhaps the best I’ve played so far (but I haven’t played half of the released scenarios, and neither Tatterdemalion nor Of Good And Evil). There are only a few flaws you could find in it, and it offers you a great time of playing. Though, I think the player should have played Riddle of the Spheres before, as there are constant references to this one, and you would miss a lot otherwise.
Quests of the Spheres is rated PG and High. This is due to the fact that monsters would double their HP otherwise, which doesn’t occur with this rating. In fact, the best thing to do is to begin with the party that just finished Riddle of the Spheres. If you haven’t, it is good for parties with an average level of 13-15.
My score will be 9.5. Personally, I leave 10 for absolute perfection (and the Gods). Players that haven’t played Riddle of the Spheres will have a slightly lesser interest to play and should probably consider it 9.0 rather than 9.5.
Caligula