Here’s the full solution. A few things can be done in slightly different orders, but this is the gist of it. I believe one solution is actually unintended and wrong, because it has one letter that shouldn’t be allowed. But it works in the latest version, release 11.
As for a second thing that’s borderline (using words like all when the word all itself doesn’t follow the rules), I feel it’s allowed since the game substitutes “all” with the name of each item and runs each command sequentially, so you can say it’s fine as the substitutions do follow the rules (EDIT: as long as the room accepts the word all - so not the alliterative rooms - but there is “everything” as a synonym that has one use I found.). The game allows it and maybe it’s an oversight, maybe not, but it works and can be rationalised as a series of substitutions as I said.
With the cantankerous Wizard of Wordplay evicted from his mansion, the worthless plot can now be redeveloped. The city regulations declare, however, that the rip-down job can't proceed until all the items within have been removed.
[ ... ]
That's what the demolition contractor explains to you, anyway, as you stand eagerly on the adventurer's day labor corner. Once he learns of your penchant for puzzle-solving and your kleptomaniacal tendencies, he hires you for the job. You hop into the bed of his truck, type a few Zs, and arrive at the site, eager ...
[ ... ]
AD VERBUM
By & (C) 2000 Nick Montfort <nickm@nickm.com>
Please type the words and read the PREFACE, WARNING, and LICENSE.
Release 11 / Serial number 060905 / Inform v6.30 Library 6/10
Foyer
This is the mansion's spacious ground-floor antechamber. The wallpaper is peeling and bits of plaster have fallen from the ceiling here and there. There is a stairway, stable enough to ascend. The big area to the west must have once been a separate room, but the demolition crew seems to have already taken out a wall. A living room is east. On the south side is the front door. A Dumpster has been dumped here.
The contractor clears his throat and points at the big Dumpster. "Forget the fixtures, but pick up everything that's not bolted down, including the stuff out back. Then, drop off all the debris - er, I mean, um, treasures - right here ..." He scrawls something on the Dumpster with a marker. "Good luck!" The contractor hurries out the front door, which slams closed, leaving you alone.
You spot a door to the north, leading out back. It is shut quite tight.
>open difficult difficult difficult door
Your difficult labor pays off. You open the difficult difficult difficult door.
[+2.]
>e
Living Room
This huge, bare living room occupies about half the mansion's ground floor.
Your object-sensitive eyes notice: ... verbosifier.
>get all
verbosifier: Taken.
>w
Foyer
This is the mansion's spacious ground-floor antechamber. The wallpaper is peeling and bits of plaster have fallen from the ceiling here and there. There is a stairway, stable enough to ascend. The big area to the w must have once been a separate room, but the demolition crew seems to have already taken out a wall. A living room is e. On the s side is the front door. A Dumpster has been dumped here.
A door to the n, leading out back, is open.
>n
Wordplayground
Here's a sort of small, enclosed backyard, closed in with a high wooden fence and completely covered with asphalt.
A door to the s, leading inside, is open.
A little boy stands here smugly. 'Georgie' is embroidered on his knit shirt.
There's one of those robotic puppies - the latest fad - here.
Your object-sensitive eyes also notice: ... toy dinosaur.
The puppy quips: "Your momma's so butch, she shops at Amazon."
[ ... ]
>[ Los Angeles's playground rules were different ...
"Your momma so old she farts dust." It was no
longer my bodysurfer pals and I having contests
to see who knew the most dinosaur names.
-- Paul Beatty
"What Set You From, Fool?"]
say abcdesaur to boy
Georgie looks puzzled, as if he hasn't heard that dinosaur name before. He sputters for a moment, perhaps confused by the novel name, apparently finding it difficult to think.
"Oh yeah? Allosaurus!" Georgie says, with pride.
The puppy quips: "Your momma's so stupid, she tried to give hypertext Ritalin."
>say babcdesaur to boy
Georgie looks puzzled, as if he hasn't heard that dinosaur name before. He sputters for a moment, perhaps confused by the novel name, apparently finding it difficult to think.
"Oh yeah? Parasaurus!" Georgie says, with pride.
The puppy quips: "Your momma's so stupid, when she got hungry she asked people to forward spam to her."
>say cbabcdesaur to boy
Georgie looks puzzled, as if he hasn't heard that dinosaur name before. He sputters for a moment, perhaps confused by the novel name, apparently finding it difficult to think.
"Oh yeah? Stegosaur!" Georgie says, with pride.
The puppy quips: "Your momma was playing Zork on my computer, and she's so ugly, she broke the Mirror Room!"
>say dcbabcdesaur to boy
Georgie looks puzzled, as if he hasn't heard that dinosaur name before. He sputters for a moment, perhaps confused by the novel name, apparently finding it difficult to think.
"Oh yeah? Ichtyosaur!" Georgie says, with pride.
The puppy quips: "Your momma goes down more often than Windows 98."
>say edcbabcdesaur to boy
Georgie looks puzzled, as if he hasn't heard that dinosaur name before. He sputters for a moment, perhaps confused by the novel name, apparently finding it difficult to think.
"Oh yeah? Cotylosaur!" Georgie says, with pride.
The puppy lets out a derisive little puppy laugh.
>say dedcbabcdesaur to boy
Georgie looks puzzled, as if he hasn't heard that dinosaur name before. He sputters for a moment, perhaps confused by the novel name, apparently finding it difficult to think.
"Oh yeah? Brontosaur!" Georgie says, with pride.
The puppy lets out a derisive little puppy laugh.
>say cdedcbabcdesaur to boy
Georgie looks puzzled, as if he hasn't heard that dinosaur name before. He sputters for a moment, perhaps confused by the novel name, apparently finding it difficult to think.
"Oh yeah? Sauropod!" Georgie says, with pride.
The puppy lets out a derisive little puppy laugh.
>say bcdedcbabcdesaur to boy
Georgie looks puzzled, as if he hasn't heard that dinosaur name before. He sputters for a moment, perhaps confused by the novel name, apparently finding it difficult to think.
"Oh yeah? Tyrannosaur!" Georgie says, with pride.
The puppy quips: "Your momma's so clumsy, she managed to start a fire in the Macintosh trash can."
>say abcdedcbabcdesaur to boy
Georgie looks puzzled, as if he hasn't heard that dinosaur name before. He sputters for a moment, perhaps confused by the novel name, apparently finding it difficult to think.
Georgie sniffs. His eyes become large, resembling the eyes of an affrighted waif-child in a Margaret Keene painting. A big shiny tear gleams beneath his glasses, dripping from his right eye. Then the boy's face reddens as a bead of snot begins to droop from his left nostril. "That's ... I don't ... that's all the dinosaur names I know. Uh, well ... Waaaaaaaaah!"
He gives the toy dinosaur a little kick, tipping it over. "Well, it's just a stupid toy. You can have it, anyway. So what!" Georgie runs through the difficult difficult difficult door, then runs across the foyer and out the front door of the house, disappearing.
The puppy lets out a derisive little puppy laugh.
>get all
difficult difficult difficult door: That's fixed in place.
signifying puppy: The robotic puppy is endowed with locomotive abilities that are as quick and random as its prepackaged wit. It scuttles away from you quickly.
toy dinosaur: Taken.
fence: That's hardly portable.
The puppy quips: "Your momma's so poor, she's got a C-64."
[+10.]
>s
Foyer
This is the mansion's spacious ground-floor antechamber. The wallpaper is peeling and bits of plaster have fallen from the ceiling here and there. There is a stairway, stable enough to ascend. The big area to the w must have once been a separate room, but the demolition crew seems to have already taken out a wall. A living room is e. On the s side is the front door. A Dumpster has been dumped here.
A door to the n, leading out back, is open.
>u
Initial Lobby
The lobby of the mansion's initial floor - the one above the ground floor - is an ordinary and fairly well-maintained room. There are some things scrawled on the ground here, in the contractor's handwriting: '1 object' is written to the n, while toward the other three exits on this floor '2' is scrawled. The stairway that runs d to the foyer turns and continues u, to the next floor. The constrained passages to the n, e, w, and s look as if they might spell trouble. Or perhaps they simply spell 'NEWS.'
>drop all
toy dinosaur: Dropped.
verbosifier: Dropped.
>warning
While interacting with Ad Verbum, it is possible to enter areas that seem impossible to leave by normal means. These areas are not actually impossible to leave, but departure can be very difficult. The challenge of Ad Verbum lies, in part, in figuring out how to exit from these areas. Because of the nature of interaction in these areas they do not, in general, allow one to employ the HINT, SAVE, RESTART, RESTORE or QUIT commands. A somewhat hollow voice will reveal a magic word when you enter each of these rooms, allowing you to escape them. If you ignore this text, you might get stuck in these rooms and have to quit your interpreter. Read carefully.
>n
"LISTEN WELL!" a sonorous voice booms out, in attempted hollowness. "Know ye that passage back through here is difficult for some, impossible for others! Should you wish to transport yourself - without your cherished possessions - out of these constrained confines, have your controlling consciouness type the magic command: NEW!"
Neat Nursery
Nice, nondescript nursery, noticeably neat. Normally, nurslings nestle noisily. Now, none. No needful, naive newborns.
Nearby: ... nifty nappy.
[ ... ]
>[ No, no, no, no ...
-- Sir Philip Sidney
Non nonny, nonny ... nonny ...
-- Ophelia's Song
Hamlet, Act 4, Scene 5]
nab nappy
Nabbed.
[+3.]
>not north
Initial Lobby
The lobby of the mansion's initial floor - the one above the ground floor - is an ordinary and fairly well-maintained room. There are some things scrawled on the ground here, in the contractor's handwriting: '1 object' is written to the n, while toward the other three exits on this floor '2' is scrawled. The stairway that runs d to the foyer turns and continues u, to the next floor. The constrained passages to the s, e, w, and n look as if they might spell trouble. Or perhaps they simply spell 'SEWN.'
Your object-sensitive eyes notice: ... verbosifier... toy dinosaur.
[+5.]
>drop all
(nifty nappy)
Dropped.
>e
"LISTEN WELL!" a sonorous voice booms out, in attempted hollowness. "Know ye that passage back through here is difficult for some, impossible for others! Should you wish to transport yourself - without your cherished possessions - out of these constrained confines, have your controlling consciouness type the magic command: EMBARK!"
Ebony Eatery
Eating enclave. Entire environment ebon. Each edge embossed elegantly, every entity essentially effaced. Effect: eerie.
Empty, except: ... evil effigy... earthen ewer.
[ ... ]
>[ Excellent Eli! Educated editor, experienced executive.
Eli eschews esoteric eloquence. Enthusiastic, egoless,
erudite. Every evening Eli examines eccentric epigrams,
excising excess, easily extruding elegant entertainment.
-- Anonymous
(Early Fax Lore) Written c. 1980]
extract everything
evil effigy: Expropriated.
earthen ewer: Expropriated.
[+4.]
>exit
Initial Lobby
The lobby of the mansion's initial floor - the one above the ground floor - is an ordinary and fairly well-maintained room. There are some things scrawled on the ground here, in the contractor's handwriting: '1 object' is written to the n, while toward the other three exits on this floor '2' is scrawled. The stairway that runs d to the foyer turns and continues u, to the next floor. The constrained passages to the n, e, w, and s look as if they might spell trouble. Or perhaps they simply spell 'NEWS.'
Your object-sensitive eyes notice: ... nifty nappy... verbosifier... toy dinosaur.
[+1.]
>drop all
earthen ewer: Dropped.
evil effigy: Dropped.
>w
"LISTEN WELL!" a sonorous voice booms out, in attempted hollowness. "Know ye that passage back through here is difficult for some, impossible for others! Should you wish to transport yourself - without your cherished possessions - out of these constrained confines, have your controlling consciouness type the magic command: WIND!"
White Wardrobe
Wee warehouse warily warded wearable wares - when wares were within. Wan, whitewashed walls wait without woolens. Wooden, weathered wainscoting wobbles weakly.
Within: ... wooden weapon.
[ ... ]
>[ Western wind, when will wind wail
Whistling, with water welling?
Wo, were we with worthy woman
Within welcome, warm walls!
-- Anonymous
Written c. 1400]
whack wall with weapon
(wainscot with wooden weapon)
(wisely winning wooden weapon)
[+5.]
Whack! Wall wavers. Wall wobbles wildly. Wall warps. Wall was withholding ... weird widget!
>win widget
Won.
[+9.]
>withdraw
Initial Lobby
The lobby of the mansion's initial floor - the one above the ground floor - is an ordinary and fairly well-maintained room. There are some things scrawled on the ground here, in the contractor's handwriting: '1 object' is written to the n, while toward the other three exits on this floor '2' is scrawled. The stairway that runs d to the foyer turns and continues u, to the next floor. The constrained passages to the s, e, w, and n look as if they might spell trouble. Or perhaps they simply spell 'SEWN.'
Your object-sensitive eyes notice: ... evil effigy... earthen ewer... nifty nappy... verbosifier... toy dinosaur.
[+3.]
>drop all
weird widget: Dropped.
wooden weapon: Dropped.
>s
"LISTEN WELL!" a sonorous voice booms out, in attempted hollowness. "Know ye that passage back through here is difficult for some, impossible for others! Should you wish to transport yourself - without your cherished possessions - out of these constrained confines, have your controlling consciouness type the magic command: START!"
Sloppy Salon
Simple social space, sadly spoiled. Some skewed situation's sequel, surely. Seemingly, slovenly students sojourned -- scraping, scratching, scuffing surfaces.
Stuff: ... stainless steel stapler... sizable sofa.
[ ... ]
>[ Same shit same scenery ...
same scrawls same sculptures ...
same sentences same sensations ...
same signifiers same sites same situations ...
same searching same space ...
same surroundings ... same swordsplay [sic] ...
same surprises.
-- Walter Abish
Alphabetical Africa]
steal stapler
Seized.
[+2.]
>shove sofa
Shoving ... shoving ... sofa slides ... sofa shifts ... sofa successfully shoved! Salon seems sans sofa.
[+3.]
>split
Initial Lobby
The lobby of the mansion's initial floor - the one above the ground floor - is an ordinary and fairly well-maintained room. There are some things scrawled on the ground here, in the contractor's handwriting: '1 object' is written to the n, while toward the other three exits on this floor '2' is scrawled. The stairway that runs d to the foyer turns and continues u, to the next floor. The constrained passages to the s, e, w, and n look as if they might spell trouble. Or perhaps they simply spell 'SEWN.'
Your object-sensitive eyes notice: ... sizable sofa... wooden weapon... weird widget... evil effigy... earthen ewer... nifty nappy... verbosifier... toy dinosaur.
[+3.]
>press button
As you press the button, the sofa is transformed into a couch.
Well, it might have been a divan, but the transformation is still pretty impressive.
>g
As you press the button, the couch grows slightly in size - to your consternation - and is transformed into a daybed.
>g
As you press the button, the daybed shifts slightly, becoming a sofabed.
Damn. You were hoping for an ottoman.
>g
As you press the button, the sofabed shrinks into a loveseat, which you welcome with a smile.
>pull button
The button slides out with some effort on your part - a spring seems to be holding it in. The cylinder revealed by this operation is the verbosifier's battery compartment. The single AA cell inside falls out onto the floor. You release the button, letting the compartment close again.
>get all except loveseat
AA cell: Taken.
wooden weapon: Taken.
weird widget: Taken.
evil effigy: Taken.
earthen ewer: Taken.
nifty nappy: Taken.
verbosifier: Taken.
toy dinosaur: Taken.
stairway: That's hardly portable.
>u
Antepenultimate Lobby
This lobby, allowing access to the rooms of the next-to-next-to-top floor, is in good shape. It is very similar to the lobby below, although the ceiling may be a bit lower. Here there are only three passages. Two of them (to the n and e) are normal passages, but one, to the s, is oddly constrained. It has an ominous sign above it. The main stairway leads d, while another staircase, straight and narrow, allows passage u to the next floor.
>n
Bedroom
Even the light fixture has been removed from this squarish bedroom, which is in much better repair than most of the rest of the house. It seems to have been freshly painted, in puce. The exit is south.
A pig sits here calmly. He is quiet and oddly attired.
A bearded figure wanders in, oblivious to you and, it seems, somewhat uncertain of where he is going. His loose clothing billows as he steps about.
"Walk east..." he mutters. He stops short after a few steps. "Walk not east!" he exclaims, and starts going in the opposite direction. He stops again, wanders around a bit, and finally leaves. By the time you've recovered from the shock, you realize that he has completely disappeared.
>igpay, ogay outhsay
The pig looks up at you with a smile, understanding the language you're speaking.
The pig glances in the direction indicated.
The pig proceeds at a moderate gait, moving along as you asked.
[+8.]
>s
Antepenultimate Lobby
This lobby, allowing access to the rooms of the next-to-next-to-top floor, is in good shape. It is very similar to the lobby below, although the ceiling may be a bit lower. Here there are only three passages. Two of them (to the n and e) are normal passages, but one, to the s, is oddly constrained. It has an ominous sign above it. The main stairway leads d, while another staircase, straight and narrow, allows passage u to the next floor.
A pig sits here calmly. He is quiet and oddly attired.
>igpay, ogay upay
The pig looks up at you with a smile, understanding the language you're speaking.
The pig glances in the direction indicated.
The pig proceeds at a moderate gait, moving along as you asked.
>e
Library
Built-in shelves, now bare, line this room. All are of pitted wood, fixed in place, with subtle grain running horizontally. The bare shelves still sag a bit, a reminder that they long bore a heavy load of books. There seem to be a few things left on the shelves.
Your object-sensitive eyes notice: ... copybook... abecedarian book... dust casing... wee writ.
>acquire book
Success! Taken.
>uproot all
copybook: Success! Taken.
dust casing: Success! Taken.
wee writ: Success! Taken.
shelves:
[+10.]
>w
Antepenultimate Lobby
This lobby, allowing access to the rooms of the next-to-next-to-top floor, is in good shape. It is very similar to the lobby below, although the ceiling may be a bit lower. Here there are only three passages. Two of them (to the n and e) are normal passages, but one, to the s, is oddly constrained. It has an ominous sign above it. The main stairway leads d, while another staircase, straight and narrow, allows passage u to the next floor.
>drop all
wee writ: Dropped.
dust casing: Dropped.
copybook: Dropped.
abecedarian book: Dropped.
toy dinosaur: Dropped.
verbosifier: Dropped.
nifty nappy: Dropped.
earthen ewer: Dropped.
evil effigy: Dropped.
weird widget: Dropped.
wooden weapon: Dropped.
AA cell: Dropped.
stainless steel stapler: Dropped.
>s
"LISTEN WELL!" a sonorous voice booms out, in attempted hollowness. "Know ye that passage back through here is difficult for some, impossible for others! Should you wish to transport yourself - without your cherished possessions - out of these constrained confines, have your controlling consciouness type the magic command: START!"
Study
Small, shadowy, stifling study. Softwood slats (stain: sandy) surround.
Stuff: ... stylus.
[ ... ]
>[ Short story:
Sally swims Sunday, sans swimsuit. Sam slyly
snags Sally's shirt, slacks, socks, sandals. Sam
splits. Sally, springing strandward, scanning
shirt spot, sniffs scandal. Shy Sally? Sassy,
stark Sally! So, Sally stalks Sam. Sam, smiling,
staring stupidly, says "Stripping salaciously,
Sally?" Sam shows spoils: shirt, slacks. Sally
spanks Sam sans sympathy. Sam says "Sorry!"]
snag stylus
Snagging satisfaction!
[+3.]
>scram
Antepenultimate Lobby
This lobby, allowing access to the rooms of the next-to-next-to-top floor, is in good shape. It is very similar to the lobby below, although the ceiling may be a bit lower. Here there are only three passages. Two of them (to the n and e) are normal passages, but one, to the s, is oddly constrained. It has an ominous sign above it. The main stairway leads d, while another staircase, straight and narrow, allows passage u to the next floor.
Your object-sensitive eyes notice: ... stainless steel stapler... AA cell... wooden weapon... weird widget... evil effigy... earthen ewer... nifty nappy... verbosifier... toy dinosaur... abecedarian book... copybook... dust casing... wee writ.
[+2.]
>get all
stainless steel stapler: Taken.
AA cell: Taken.
wooden weapon: Taken.
weird widget: Taken.
evil effigy: Taken.
earthen ewer: Taken.
nifty nappy: Taken.
verbosifier: Taken.
toy dinosaur: Taken.
abecedarian book: Taken.
copybook: Taken.
dust casing: Taken.
wee writ: Taken.
stairway: That's hardly portable.
sign: That's hardly portable.
A distracted, bearded figure, garbed in loose clothing, blunders in. He is looking at a newspaper article about President Clinton, muttering, "Man of Hope, sole hope of man."
He blunders out, using motions that seem to be exactly the reverse of the ones he made when entering. By the time you've recovered from the shock, you realize that he has completely disappeared.
>u
Penultimate Lobby
At this level the house is neither as broad or as long as it is on the ground floor. There seems to only be one other room on this floor, through a constrained double doorway to the w. One thin, unpainted stairway leads u into darkness from here. Another one, almost as narrow, leads d.
A pig sits here calmly. He is quiet and oddly attired.
>u
Ultimate Level
This is the mansion's top floor. The whole level, barely illuminated in the pale, milky glow of the toy dinosaur, is one large room. It seems partially finished, like an attic. Fiberglass insulation bulges between bare boards. There are no windows. A stairway leads d.
Your object-sensitive eyes notice: ... manual.
[+5.]
>get all
manual: Taken.
stairway: That's hardly portable.
insulation: You lose your grip on the insulation as you attempt to pull out a bit. It doesn't look like it can be taken, in this case.
studs: You tug each bare board to see if one might be loose, but you are luckless.
>d
Penultimate Lobby
At this level the house is neither as broad or as long as it is on the ground floor. There seems to only be one other room on this floor, through a constrained double doorway to the w. One thin, unpainted stairway leads u into darkness from here. Another one, almost as narrow, leads d.
A pig sits here calmly. He is quiet and oddly attired.
>drop all
manual: Dropped.
wee writ: Dropped.
dust casing: Dropped.
copybook: Dropped.
abecedarian book: Dropped.
toy dinosaur: Dropped.
verbosifier: Dropped.
nifty nappy: Dropped.
earthen ewer: Dropped.
evil effigy: Dropped.
weird widget: Dropped.
wooden weapon: Dropped.
AA cell: Dropped.
stainless steel stapler: Dropped.
stylus: Dropped.
A distracted figure with wide, glistening eyes blunders in. The bearded man wears loose clothing and is looking at a tiny, hand-held television set. He tunes it, then shakes his head in disgust. "Again? 'Never Say Never Again'?"
He blunders out, using motions that seem to be exactly the reverse of the ones he made when entering. By the time you've recovered from the shock, you realize he has completely disappeared.
>igpay, ogay estway
The pig looks up at you with a smile, understanding the language you're speaking.
The pig glances in the direction indicated.
The pig does not seem troubled by the constrained double doors west. The pig proceeds at a moderate gait, moving along as you asked.
>w
"LISTEN WELL!" a sonorous voice booms out, in attempted hollowness. "Know ye that passage back through here is difficult for some, impossible for others! Should you wish to transport yourself - without your cherished possessions - out of these constrained confines, have your controlling consciouness type the magic command: APPROACH THE APPROACH!"
Twin Bedroom
This is a reasonably-sized bedroom, laid out symmetrically. On the room's centerline is a scan of two photographs, framed and affixed to the wall. A double doorway, now bereft of doors but clearly marked "EXIT," leads out, to the e.
Fortunately, someone's already cleared out the twin beds.
(The mansion, incidentally, like many adventure game houses, seems rather inadequately supplied with bathrooms. Perhaps there are certain adventurer functions that are better elided, though.)
A pig sits here calmly. He is quiet and oddly attired.
Your object-sensitive eyes also notice: ... pile of feed.
[ ... ]
>[ Look the look,
talk the talk,
walk the walk.
-- Traditional saying
among superficial people]
feed feed
(to pig)
The pig smiles at your polite offer of the feed and delicately (but quickly) nibbles away at the pile, consuming all of it. Sated, the pig departs. You hear the stately animal clopping down flight after flight of stairs. Then the front door swings open and shut, and the sounds are no more.
[+6.]
>exit exit
Penultimate Lobby
At this level the house is neither as broad or as long as it is on the ground floor. There seems to only be one other room on this floor, through a constrained double doorway to the w. One thin, unpainted stairway leads u into darkness from here. Another one, almost as narrow, leads d.
Your object-sensitive eyes notice: ... stylus... stainless steel stapler... AA cell... wooden weapon... weird widget... evil effigy... earthen ewer... nifty nappy... verbosifier... toy dinosaur... abecedarian book... copybook... dust casing... wee writ... manual.
A distracted figure with frizzy hair blunders in. The man is clad in loose clothing and peers at a fashion magazine he is holding open before him. On one page are some nicely-dressed women; the facing page has an image of some textile machine. The man mutters, partly to himself and partly as if he were addressing the magazine, "Girls, attractive dresses that loom here this second certainly second this here loom that dresses attractive girls."
He blunders out, using motions that seem to be exactly the reverse of the ones he made when entering. By the time you've recovered from the shock, you realize he has completely disappeared.
>get all
stylus: Taken.
stainless steel stapler: Taken.
AA cell: Taken.
wooden weapon: Taken.
weird widget: Taken.
evil effigy: Taken.
earthen ewer: Taken.
nifty nappy: Taken.
verbosifier: Taken.
toy dinosaur: Taken.
abecedarian book: Taken.
copybook: Taken.
dust casing: Taken.
wee writ: Taken.
manual: Taken.
stairway: That's hardly portable.
double doorway: That's hardly portable.
>d
Antepenultimate Lobby
This lobby, allowing access to the rooms of the next-to-next-to-top floor, is in good shape. It is very similar to the lobby below, although the ceiling may be a bit lower. Here there are only three passages. Two of them (to the n and e) are normal passages, but one, to the s, is oddly constrained. It has an ominous sign above it. The main stairway leads d, while another staircase, straight and narrow, allows passage u to the next floor.
>d
Initial Lobby
The lobby of the mansion's initial floor - the one above the ground floor - is an ordinary and fairly well-maintained room. There are some things scrawled on the ground here, in the contractor's handwriting: '1 object' is written to the n, while toward the other three exits on this floor '2' is scrawled. The stairway that runs d to the foyer turns and continues u, to the next floor. The constrained passages to the s, e, w, and n look as if they might spell trouble. Or perhaps they simply spell 'SEWN.'
Your object-sensitive eyes notice: ... lovely loveseat.
>get loveseat
It's not going to be easy to lift this, even though it's much smaller now. Here's what we can try: lifting the loveseat, quickly proceeding down the stairs with it, and setting it down directly into the Dumpster. Sound good? y
All right, here we go...
Taken.
Foyer
This is the mansion's spacious ground-floor antechamber. The wallpaper is peeling and bits of plaster have fallen from the ceiling here and there. There is a stairway, stable enough to ascend. The big area to the w must have once been a separate room, but the demolition crew seems to have already taken out a wall. A living room is e. On the s side is the front door. A Dumpster has been dumped here.
A door to the n, leading out back, is open.
You put the lovely loveseat into the Dumpster.
Whew!
[+5.]
>n
Wordplayground
Here's a sort of small, enclosed backyard, closed in with a high wooden fence and completely covered with asphalt.
A door to the s, leading inside, is open.
There's one of those robotic puppies - the latest fad - here.
The puppy quips: "You got an elvish momma of great antiquity."
>xyzzy
A distracted figure with a huge bushy beard blunders in just as you speak the word of ancient magic. The man wears loose clothing, and an expression of intense concentration. He is clutching his frizzy hair with one hand; his other hand grips an intricate grid - the object of his attention.
His eyes brighten as the word you've spoken reaches his ears. "Yes! Yes! That's it!" he exclaims as he draws out a pen and fills in a row of squares. "Now my hyperconstrained, double-acrostic, cryptic crossword is complete, and ready to puzzle others. That was all I needed - just a simple five-letter word, composed only of the letters 'X' 'Y' and 'Z,' that would fit here!"
He grips your hand and shakes it fervently. "Thank you! Now that I've finished with that, I can get on to those other things I've been meaning to do, such as monkey-wrenching the demolition and saving recreational linguistics for future generations." He turns away and mutters, just before he departs, "I hope none of that will involve lying in front of a bulldozer..."
The puppy quips: "I hear everybody's got random access to your momma."
[+1.]
>wave cell
The robot puppy yips gleefully and bounds in your direction at the sight of the shiny AA cell you are waving.
The robot puppy yips and bounds about near you without taunting you.
>s
Foyer
This is the mansion's spacious ground-floor antechamber. The wallpaper is peeling and bits of plaster have fallen from the ceiling here and there. There is a stairway, stable enough to ascend. The big area to the w must have once been a separate room, but the demolition crew seems to have already taken out a wall. A living room is e. On the s side is the front door. A Dumpster has been dumped here.
A door to the n, leading out back, is open.
There's one of those robotic puppies - the latest fad - here.
The robot puppy yips and bounds about near you without taunting you.
>put all in bin
manual: Done.
wee writ: Done.
dust casing: Done.
copybook: Done.
abecedarian book: Done.
toy dinosaur: Done.
verbosifier: Done.
nifty nappy: Done.
earthen ewer: Done.
evil effigy: Done.
weird widget: Done.
wooden weapon: Done.
AA cell: The puppy hops into the Dumpster, chasing the AA cell. Robot jaws clamp upon the shiny treat happily. The puppy settles down in the Dumpster to play with the AA cell.
stainless steel stapler: Done.
stylus:
You place the last loose object into the Dumpster and feel a rush of triumph. In a while, no doubt, the contractor will show up and pay you for your labor. Meanwhile, since you've helped to demolish the Wizard's domicile, you think that at the very least you can craft some constrained compositions and help propagate the playfulness of language. You scratch your chin and start putting some words together in your mind ...
*** You have won ***
In that game you scored 100 out of a possible 100, in 74 turns.
Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, give the FULL score for that game or QUIT?
> full
In that game you scored 100 out of a possible 100, in 74 turns.
The score was made up as follows:
2 Opening up up up a door.
10 Winning a toy dinosaur.
10 Getting the robot puppy into the Dumpster.
1 Eatery exit.
4 Ewer & effigy expropriation.
3 Salon skedaddling.
2 Stapler seizing.
3 Sofa shoving.
5 Disposing of the verbosified sofa.
3 Wardrobe withdrawing.
5 Weapon winning.
9 Wainscoting whacking & widget winning.
5 Nursery navigation.
3 Nappy nabbing.
10 Taking the books, according to the rules.
3 Studiously snagging stylus.
2 Study splitting.
8 Correctly addressing a pig.
6 Managing to feed feed to the pig.
5 Illuminating the attic with a glowing dinosaur.
1 Helping the Wizard with a well-chosen magic word.
100 total (out of 100)
Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, give the FULL score for that game or QUIT?
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