According to Cain Hint Request (SPOILERS)

Playing Game Hints
1

Or, rather, I request a reminder.

I’ve applied ostendo to the following revelation surfaces:
• the obsidian block
• the strand of yellow silk
• the tree stump

I wasn’t able to access them at the time, but now I don’t recall what the needed substances (as whispered by the voice) were, and I don’t know how to recall them, since MEMORIES and RECALL and APPLY OSTENDO won’t do it.

Does anyone know? Thanks!

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2

If you EXAMINE those surfaces, does the description not list the needed components? (It should.)

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3

Never thought of that! Thanks!

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4

Not a hint request, but is anyone else having trouble running this in Gargoyle? I checked and it loaded some other t3 games just fine, but this one gives me a ‘VM error’. (I’ll no doubt be able to get it running in another interpreter or use the online version, but I’m curious.)

(Update: seems to work in QTads.)

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5

No problem running in Gargoyle v2022.1

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6

I’m someone who uses Gargoyle almost exclusively, but I found both According to Cain and the other TADS game in the Comp, Only Possible Prom Dress, look and play substantially better in QTADS so would really recommend sticking with that even if you are able to get Gargoyle up and running.

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7

Thanks! I seem to have a rather old version of gargoyle installed, so I’ll update that, but I’ll also listen to Mike’s advice and not actually use it for this game. :slight_smile:

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8

I don’t want to use the built in hints, but I think I know what I’m supposed to do at the obsidian block yet cannot figure out how to make it work.

ostendo block
You spread some of the salt and the sulfur on the obsidian block.

The ostendo compound blends and dissolves, preparing to reveal the next steps
for unlocking the revelations burned into the obsidian block…

In your ear comes a disembodied whisper: “A melancholic remedy, a phlegmatic
poison, a binding excipient, and the Body of the Three Primes.”

So, I’ve got my shopping list, and the third item on it is the most ambiguous.

My understanding:

  • a melancholic remedy = black bile
  • a phlegmatic poison = sage
  • a binding excipient = ???
  • Body of the Three Primes = salt

Salt is already also a binding excipient as well as one of the three primes. So, it appears that this particular compound is going to have two excipients. But whenver I try to add any of the other excipients which I’ve yet found, the compound fails.

I’ve tried:

  • wax
  • royal jelly
  • ash

I don’t know whether I need to find a different excipient which I have never seen yet – such as grease or mercury – or whether I’m actually wrong about one of the other ingredients, which I feel pretty confident about.

Any help welcome!

Thanks.

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9

Here are two gentler hints that build on each other:

Have you looked up every relevant word in that recipe in your Pharmakon?

Specifically, “binding”?

Here’s a more direct one if you still need it, which answers the question you implicitly ask in your penultimate paragraph:

Yeah, you need to find a different excipient. If you need help doing that, post again and I’ll see if I can help!

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