Part 53: Fascinating Flora and Fauna
Chapter 6: Fascinating Flora and Fauna
QfG3 Manual posted:
Field Guide to Native Fricana Flora and Fauna
East Fricana is widely renowned for its dynamically diverse wildlife. The
elegant impalas leap past the grazing gnus and enormous elephants, the
cunning cheetah pursues at incredible speed the zippy zebra, the giant
giraffes spread their legs wide apart and bend their elongated necks down
to drink at the wondrous waterhole while the happy hippopotamus wallows in
the malodorous mud. These are the incredible images of the savanna safari
journeying deep into the hidden heart of this lovely land. Unfortunately,
most of these amazing animals are now found only in a small game preserve
east of colorful Kensington, so you are unlikely to come across them even
on your most extensive excursions.
So these must be the mighty gates I’ve heard so much about, guarded by these mighty…guards.
Howdy. How’s the guarding going?
About as well as you could hope for. There are few in this world who would dare to attack the liontaurs directly.
Personally, I can’t wait for the war to begin. It will be glorious. You don’t know what you’re asking for, kid. Honor in personal combat is one thing, but war…war is something else altogether. You sound like you’ve seen it firsthand. Aye, I have. Young ones like him were just cubs when the demons came, but I have lived to see these gates shut twice for war. I do not look forward to shutting them again. You must know all about Rakeesh’s story, then. Oh yes. He was the king, before Rajah took over twelve years ago. Did you know that he was the only king we ever had who stepped down from the throne without a challenge? That was because he was too cowardly to face a challenge. I’ll let that slide, kid, because you weren’t there when Rakeesh gave his throne to Rajah. I served under Rakeesh and I would proudly serve under him again. Then why did he run off from Tarna after the demons were defeated? It is said that he was bound by honor to seek the demons and destroy them. It is said that Rakeesh seeks the demons still. Well, he will find no demons here. I wouldn’t be so sure about that. So what was fighting the demons like? The demons were fierce, magical monsters that sought to destroy our Tarna. Only with the magic of Kreesha Mar Asha and the power of Rakeesh’s sword were the demons defeated. I can still remember when Rakeesh stood before us in battle with his sword held high. The sword was bathed in blue flame. Most demons fled from him. Those that didn’t were destroyed by Rakeesh. The demons must have been weak creatures to flee so. You shut your ass, kid. A lot of good, honorable liontaurs died in that war, and I won’t have you disrespecting them by calling their enemies weak. Um, mind if I change the subject? I wanted to know what you were talking about with the “challenge” stuff earlier. Oh, right. To become a king of Tarna, a male liontaur must challenge the current king. He must prove himself worthy by undergoing tests chosen by the Council of Judgment. Then he must fight the current king to the death. That sounds particularly…vicious. Male liontaurs live and die by the fang and spear, stranger. That’s partly why the Council makes their trials so hard; otherwise there’d be only a couple of us left. It’s also why we have the females making all the decisions; that way we can concentrate more on fighting. That’s the first thing you’ve said today that made sense, kid. Right, well, I’d best get going. The savanna sure isn’t going to explore itself. Try not to die out there, stranger.
Eastern Fricana Savanna
Hello again, and welcome to the overhead map of Quest for Glory 3. As you can see, we are now a far cry from the endless rooms of the Shapeirian desert, although the scale might not be too far off. Tarna is easily visible on the left center of the map, and the red dotted line shows where the hero has been. You need to watch where you click, because if the hero reaches the position you point to whether it’s a special location or not, he will stop and go to a close-up view. You will also shift to this view when confronted by a monster of any sort. For now, though, we are headed to that pile of two rocks towards the lower right.
The Venomous Vines
Wow, those vines wriggled when the flying monkey-thing grabbed at the fruit. What the hell are those things, anyway? Maybe it says in the field guide.QfG3 Manual posted:
Amusing and Mostly Harmless Creatures
Meerbats: Small, furry creatures with wings, meerbats seem to be a mutant
form of meerkat. They live in large colonies underground and eat fruit and
insects.
Not Quite So Amusing and Slightly Less Harmless Creatures
Venomous Vines: There are poisonous plants elsewhere on the planet, but
none are as vicious as the Venomous Vines of the East Fricana savanna. The
fruit of the vines is similar to grapes, very sweet and highly appetizing.
They form on a central stalk near the center of the vine patch. When living
creatures approach to poach upon the fruit, the vines whip around, snagging
and trapping the animal and injecting the virulent venom with their thorns.
Use caution and common sense when coming across these crummy creepers and
skedaddle.
That must be the fruit on that vine in the center there. That should be easy enough to get.
I only wish I knew where his right arm went.
That was easy. Wait, what if I might need something from the meerbats?
Hey, the little guy got trapped! I’ll save you! Force Bolt!
Ha ha, I—wait, where are you guys going?Having all the meerbats disappear into their holes is apparently a little buggy, else I’d have some better pictures to show for it.
Maybe if I simply leave for a second?
What the? Meerbats are apparently far more intelligent than one would think, if they are capable of acting grateful to a savior of another species.
Apparently my reward is another bunch of fruit and a glowing opal. This must be the second brightest gem I’ve ever held.
Damn it, I need some of that fruit, but only an idiot would try dive past these vines. Maybe if I just slashed it off with a dagger or something…
Rats, no good. Wait, what if there’s something else I could try? Like grappelling the fruit off? I think that might have worked. Oh, dude, the little meerbat got caught! Take that, you damn vine! Good, he looks safe now. Of course, I still have to wait outside for the vines to reset. Huh. So for the second time in my life, I did something for free, but they paid me anyways. I love being a hero.
“Venomous vines,” huh? You guys don’t scare me. I’ll chop you all into pieces!
OH GOD THEY’VE GOT MY LEGS
The vines slowly, slowly drain your health, in addition to the poison they cause which must be countered by the pills. However, much like drowning in The Secret of Monkey Island, you get more than enough time to figure out how to get out of the problem, and if you die from this, you deserve it.
HA HA! I KNOW WHAT YOU DON’T LIKE TO EAT: STEEL!
THAT’S RIGHT! RUN AND HIDE AND DIE, PLANT LOSERS! Of course, I still don’t have a damn fruit yet.
Oh crap, that meerbat is in trouble! How do I…aw, crap.
Ow! Why does this have to hurt the second time, too?
And this time, don’t come back!
That’s right, dudes, go tell your friends about how awesome I am!
Hey there little buddy, looks like you could use a little pick-me-up. But of course, I still don’t have a damn fruit yet. Finally, and with a glowing gem to boot.Try not to eat the venomous vine fruit, by the way. It’s as poisonous as the rest of the plant, plus you really only get the one.
It’s getting late, and I should probably be up early to help out Rakeesh. Guess I should head back now.