Ultizurk II: The Shadow Master
Hints file
Last updated 4-7-96
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Disclaimer: The author of this hint file is in no way
affiliated with Robert Deutsch, the author of this game.
While I've checked it for accuracy (by playing the game),
I make no guarantees whatsoever as to said accuracy or for
the suitability of this file to any use for any purpose.
Nor will I be held responsible if reading it spoils your
game. Caveat Emptor, Cavis Canem, and Illegitimi Non
Carburrundum.
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1. Getting Started
Q. What do I do first?
A. View the introduction and the quicky instructions, then
play the game.
Head north and follow the road. Soon you'll see a figure
wearing a black hooded robe. Talk to him- move right up
next to him and hit T then the arrow on your numeric
keypad that poinys to him. Say NAME then JOB, and from
then on type the words that are in all capital letters.
Q. What next?
A. Go back S along the road until you are outside the city
walls, then head E. There are some small buildings
containing chests and sacks. USE them to open them up (hit
the U key), then GET the contents (the G key). You'll find
your weapons- a club, a sling and some slingstones.
No go back inside the city and head to the NW. Inside some
buildings there are more sacks and chests. These contain a
tent, some rations, a map, a sextant and a watch. Get
these items.
Now go back and talk to the Shadow Master again. He has
some useful things to tell you about herbs.
Q. What nexter?
A. Pick some herbs and wander around the city killing
monsters. You'll need to get your experience points up so
you can increase your level and number of hit points. This
will help you to survive longer.
Use those herbs and make camp sparingly, to conserve your
rations until you've had a chance to enter the dungeons and
find more.
From time to time you'll see an Arcturian standing around.
Talk to them. Note: Their dialogue often won't contain any
words in capitals. I think this is a bug in the program.
You'll just have to make your best guess as to what the
key words are to keep the conversation going and get more
info.
Q. What if I get killed? (Whimper)
A. You won't. In the Ultizurk games you faint instead. You'll
wake up standing in front of the Shadow Master- he teleported
you away from the monsters. In this game you don't lose your
weapons (like you did in Ultizurk I) or pack inventory.
Q. How do I increase my level?
A. When you get enough hit points to make a level, you'll
automatically advance to the next one at night when you're
sleeping in camp.
Q. How do I camp?
A. Open your pack inventory and USE the tent.
Q. How do I know when I have enough points for a level
increase?
A. The number varies- the higher the level you are, the more
experience you need to make the next level.
It takes about 50 EPs to move to level 2, which gives you
150 HPs. It probably takes another 50 or so for level 3,
and from then on it takes more and more. I was level 9
with less than 5,000 EPs, and went to over 13,000 and
still was stuck at level 9!
More info: I restarted the game from scratch and went from
level 1 to 2 with about 50 experience points (EP), to 4 with
200, to 7 with 1000, to 8 with 2152, and to 9 with 3585. Yes,
you can advance more than one level per encampment if you have
enough EP.
By the way, you start with 85 hit points (HP) at level 1, and I
think I had 150 at level 2. I forget how many I had at level 4.
I got 650 at level 7, 999 at 8, and 1600 at 9.
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2. How do I, where is, why doesn't this work, etc.
Q. I try to pick herbs but I can't.
A. There are some other yellow, green and blue plants that
aren't herbs. Try the *other* yellow, green or blue plants.
Also make sure your pack isn't already full.
Q. How do I view the overhead map? There's no M command like
there was in Ultizurk I.
A. When you're in a city, USE the map in your pack. When
you're in a dungeon, MIX a yellow herb.
Q. I think I'm ready for the dungeons. What do I need to
know?
A. First, keep lots of green herbs handy until you get up to
level 7 or so. You can keep using green herbs to keep from
being attacked, then move right up to the monsters and club
them to death while they're defenceless. They're easier to
corner in the dungeons. This is a fairly quick way to gain
experience points (EPs). I know it sounds cruel, but you'll
soon lose any sympathy for them after you've been gang-attacked
a few times. Besides, they'll often block your way so you'll
have to get rid of them to be able to keep going.
Second, use your club and conserve your slingstones at first.
There are plenty more in caches in the dungeons as well as in
cities, but you don't have 'em yet. Once you do, and have
plenty of hit points, you can kill the monsters from a distance
the same way they try to do to you, instead of bothering with
using green herbs. If you do end up right next to a monster,
switch from your slingstone back to your club. There is a
finite number of slingstones available in this game, so
conserve them as much as possible. Even when you're higher in
level the green herbs still come in handy for that reason.
Also see Combat and More Monster Info below.
Third, have some yellow herbs with you. Remember what the
Shadow Master said? Hit I to access the inventory of stuff
in your pack, move the cursor to a yellow herb and hit M
to mix it. A map of the dungeon will appear.
TIP: When it does, hit your Print Screen button if you
have a printer that can print graphics. That way you'll
have a hard copy of the map to refer to and won't have to
keep mixing yellow herbs. I run Microsoft Windows 95 and
hitting Print Screen captures a shot of the screen to the
clipboard. Then I open my graphics viewing/editing
software (I use LView Pro) and paste the map. Then I
convert it to a negative (so the background color is white
instead of black- it saves toner), change it to greyscale
(optional, but since I only have a black-and-white
printer, it makes the image look like what will be
printed) and blow it up to full screen size so I can see
it better, then I print it. You can do the same thing for
maps of cities- USE the map that's in your pack then hit
Print Screen, etc.
Q. Where is the dungeon entrance from the first city?
A. Go to the NE corner of the city and you'll see a gate
through the walls. Go through it and head west.
Q. Where are the other cities?
A. The dungeon maps will show several apparent dead ends.
Some of them are just that, but some end in an exit/entrance
to...? Another dungeon? A city? It depends.
Remember what the Shadow Master said- the cities are
interconnected by a series of dungeons (actually, old
mines).
Q. How do I leave a city? I can't get past the surrounding
cliffs.
A. See the answers above. Some cities have gateways through
their walls so you can get to areas outside the city
walls, but you still can't get past the cliffs. It can't
be done.
Q. Where are the crystals for the mind machine in (insert
city name here)?
A. Crystals for particular mind machines are usually found in
the dungeons right outside that city. Be sure to thoroughly
explore each dungeon as much as you can without getting killed.
An exception is the capitol city, Olympus Mons. The mayor
("schwazzer" in Arcturian) will tell you where the crystals
are for his mind machine. Also there are no monsters in this
city for some reason. Enjoy it while you can!
TIP: As soon as you've found three crystals in fairly close
proximity to each other, go to the nearest mind machine and
try to use them there. They'll probably be the right crystals
for that machine, and that way you won't end up with so many
crystals in your pack that you get the ones for different
machines mixed together, like I mention below. For example, the
crystals (also called "gems" by some of the Arcturians such as
the Schwazzer) for the machine in the first city (where the
Shadow Master is) are located in the first three dungeons
you'll come to.
Q. Where are the orbs?
A. Remember what the Shadow Master said? Each mind machine
will send you to a different dream world. There you'll be
given quests to complete or puzzles to solve, and you'll get an
orb when you do.
Q. What's the point of the game?
A. The Shadow Master says it's to be the first one back to
Earth. First one back gets prompted to Guildmaster. But
the Arcturians have that water problem, and if it doesn't
get solved those whoever-they-ares that are playing God on
this planet will terminate the "experiment" and kill
everyone on the planet. Remember the introduction? So
you'll need to let the Shadow Master go ahead back to
Earth while you stay behind and help the Arcturians.
(Don't worry. I suspect the Guild will show its
appreciation for what you're doing.)
Q. I can't use the %$*&# crystals on the mind machines!
A. The slots for the crystals are in the generators. Unlike
manipulating every other object in this game (and any
object, period, in Ultizurk I) you have to DROP a crystal
onto the generator, as opposed to USEing it on the
generator!
Q. Now you tell me! I've gotten the crystals for Olympus Mons
mixed together with a bunch of others in my pack!
A. I did the same thing. By the time I knew how to put the
crystals in the generators I had 11 crystals! You can
either try all of the possible purmutations of crystals
and generators, which could take weeks, or do what I did
and just start the game over from scratch. At least you
now know about dropping the crystals, and have printed
maps of several dungeons and cities, and know where extra
supplies are located.
Q. How do I pick up the blue glass that I've dropped in the
building in the middle of Albor Tholus?
A. As far as I know, you can't! Guess what? You get to start this
game over again from scratch! Next time, don't drop stuff
there. This is the second time I'm having to start clear over
because of piddly-ass crap like this. I'm about ready to bag
this game as unwinnable. Screw it.
Q. How do I solve the water shortage problem?
A. I haven't gotten this far yet myself, but I suspect that
when you get most or all of the orbs and are ready to go
back to Earth, the Shadow Master will give you some more
info on who to talk to about the water problem. That way
he'll get a chance to get back to Earth while you're
mucking about trying to help the Arcturians!
Q. I don't get what he means. More info, please.
A. Talk to all the Arcturians you meet. One of them will be
quietly studying flowers and discussing philosophy. Say
the word that the S.M. told you to this guy.
Q. I have it, now what do I do with it to fix the water
problem?
A. There's a flat piece of "floor" at the base of one of the
glaciers that looks like it could hold an object. Note: I
think you have to complete the dream world quests and find all
the orbs before completing the water quest in order for it to
do you any good. I solved the water problem back before I knew
how to put the crystals in the generators in the mind machines,
so I didn't have any orbs yet, and not much happened except
that there was a new water source.
Q. How do I get the orb that's on a column out in the stars? I
can't get to it.
A. Search this area thoroughly. You'll find a magic carpet that
will help you.
Q. How do I use the carpet?
A. Drop it on the stars, then you can walk onto it. It doesn't
"fly" or move around.
Q. I still can't get to the orb!
A. Wouldn't it be nice if there was more than one carpet? Keep
searching.
Q. I have them. How do I use them?
A. Like walking- you pick 'em up and put 'em down.
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3. Combat and more monster info.
Q. I keep missing with my club.
A. The more experience you get and the higher level you are,
the more often you'll "connect" with the club. Remember,
even Ken Griffey, Jr. doesn't get a hit every time. :)
I've noticed that slingstones never miss, except when I bump
the enter key to fire before I'm ready to. They usually don't
do as much damage as a good whack from the club, though, so it
takes more hits from slingstones to kill a particular monster
than it does good club hits.
I recommend avoiding groups of monsters and sticking to
slaughtering lone strays until you get your hit points up
there. Monsters can hit from a distance and often get in 2
or 3 hits per turn! They cheat!
TIP: Monsters often gather in groups, so watch out. I've
noticed that some of them, like sand serpents f'rinstance,
like to run away and when you chase after them you find that
they've run towards a bunch of other monsters! The nastiest
surface monsters for attaching you are the airfish, and in
the dungeons it's the acid slimes. These guys are the easiest
to kill, though- one good whack with a club will do it.
The higher in level you are, the fewer club-whacks or
slingstone hits it takes to kill them, and you miss with the
club less often.
As stated above, airfish and acid slimes are the worst ones for
attacking you without provocation, and rock gryphons and sand
devils are probably second, although spider wisps will too
sometimes. Rock trolls and sand stabbers will often leave you
alone or run away a few moves. If you're quick enough on your
movement key you can often skate right past them, especially
once you're higher in level. The monsters seem to have enough
intelligence to know that you're deadlier then.
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That's all I have for Ultizurk II at this time. I haven't finished
this game yet myself. More info may be added to this file when I
do.
Files : 2, NeW:NONE, oLD:NONE
uL Node : 1, NFo:NONE, D?Z:NONE
