Sadly, his notepad doesn’t get its own interactions. Otherwise, I’d absolutely try to take it from him.
I’d also like to take a moment at the start of this update to mention, since I realized I haven’t yet, that despite how close this game feels to the books, Spider Robinson surprisingly had nothing to do with its creation. According to a foreword he wrote in the manual, he originally thought his books would be impossible to adapt into a game, and planned to just collect his check and forget it existed. Then one day the creator brought the full game over before it was released, they sat down and powered through the entire thing and he loved every second of it. So, I guess, despite it not technically written by Spider Robinson, he gave his blessing to the whole thing after seeing it.
Now, let’s return to Transylvania. We have a bit to explore! We can head into Starbucharest’s or Wereworth’s, and we will, but knowing Pyotr like we do, that’s not where he’d be. No, he’d be a bit more to our left…
The local tavern! It seems… pretty familiar.
A curiously familiar sign hangs on this curiously familiar building. It appears to be the local tavern. You know, the place where everyone knows you’re numb.
The sign says, in curiously familiar handwriting, “Casimir’s.”
How curious… Well, let’s go in!
You walk up to the entrance, but the bouncer puts out a hand to stop you.
Me not know you. Show curse mark!
Pardon me?
Tonight Curse Night! Must have curse mark! Otherwise no admittance!
Foiled by a bouncer! Let’s find out more about what’s happening.
Stonebender. Jake Stonebender.
You bend stone? Me BREAK stone!
What’s the cover charge?
Tonight Curse night! Must have curse! Get in free!
So it’s like Lady’s Night.
Rrraarrgh!
I agree, Tor. That was a bad joke. But… what’s this about curses?
What’s this about needing a curse to get in?
Must have mark of curse!
Where do I get a Curse Mark?
Aaaaand here’s where I pause for a moment. This is the first, though I think also the only, time I’m gonna be editing this game a bit. From here through most of the chapter, they’re pretty heavy on the word “Gypsy.” I imagine that random DOS game makers in 1997 didn’t even know that the Roma existed, so I can’t really fault them too much for it, but I’d rather not be typing it out as often as it shows up here. She also ends up being a stereotype of an entirely different group, anways. Because of that, I’ll be referring to her as the “Old Magic Woman” most of the time, or something similar.
Old Woman.
Magic.
Old Magic Woman.
And that’s all we can do here until we have a curse mark, so that’s our first objective! If we shift to the left…
There’s the trap and driver, waiting to take us anywhere we’d like. We can have him take us to the old woman’s place, but we don’t have the necessary items to get a curse mark from her yet. There’s nothing else of import or interest here, so let’s turn once more.
A bounty hunter? What’s his deal?
This dull-witted, heavily-armed tough is wandering the streets, keeping his eyes cast low to the ground.
You ask the muscular moke what he’s looking for, and he tells you that he survives on a diet of nocturnal orcs, grues, and gnomes.
In other words, he’s merely out for a moonlight’s troll.
I think that hurt more than anything he could have done to us… Now, let’s check this barrel out.
This barrel contains sand for the streets when they get icy in winter. It’s one of two donated to the town by the local representative of the Visiting Shogun Association, and they’re both conveniently located between the two slickest streets in town.
(Surely you’ve hears of a double-barreled shogun? They got both barrels, right between the ice.)
They never stop. Ever. Let’s just open the damn thing.
You peek inside, but all you see is sand. What were you expecting, a barrel of monkeys?
Or maybe a cask of characters?
After all, you certainly get no keg from champagne.
STOP!
Agreed, Jake. We can also sit next to it?
The other beggars say, “That’s usually Cameron’s spot, but he has the night off. Go ahead and try your luck.” You take them at their word and squat next to the barrel.
So, if we need to, we can sit here and beg for money. Nothing comes of it for now, so let’s just take a look at who said that.
You ask the beggars if you can beg here. The woman sputters. The man tells you that begging is permitted only from the barrel to the corner. And, he adds gruffly, since Cameron is home tonight battling a mild case of good health, you can have his spot if you don’t mind sitting by the barrel.
A bit more detail. That’s it for the outside, so now we can head into the two shops. We’ll start with Starbucharest’s, where there’s quite a bit to see.
The canopy informs you that this is Starbucharest’s which you presume is supposed to be a parody of some sort.
Probably a knock-off of the name of that famous Jet-Eye Knight, Luke Starbucker (R)(C)™.
It’s hard to imagine, but this game actually came out barely two years before Phantom Menace. I wonder if they would have changed that reference if it came out after…
A bit fancier than the American version of this store, that’s for sure. Let’s look at the fellow right here.
The man at the counter looks utterly normal. He must be lost.
You begin to start a conversation with the man. He looks at you and starts to speak in a friendly and conversational tone about the lights he saw in the sky last night.
Suddenly, his neck begins to bulge, and a purplish-green tentacle snakes out of his mouth and slaps him across the face a few times. Then it slips back into his mouth and down his throat.
Chastened, he immediately grows sullen and turns away from you.
Yikes. Looks like we really are the most normal person around here. Starbucharest’s and Wereworth’s both have… a lot of things to examine and interact with. Almost none of them are essential, so I’ll be showing the vast majority off in an extra update once we finish this mission, along with some more stuff from the mansion. Let’s turn a bit to the right, where that magazine is floating.
Okay, not floating, being help up by a man. He’s not important, though. The one who matters is the lovely lady at the next table over.
The woman’s eyes reflect a bleak, careworn spirit.
Aww… We can also kiss her, for some reason, but let’s… not? Let’s just talk to her.
Excuse me for interrupting. My name is Jake.
It’s nice to meet you, Jake.
She offers her hand, and you shake it gently. Her skin is cool and dry.
Cool? Weird for someone drinking coffee…
What are you drinking?
This? It’s a private blend they make for me here.
Would you care to try some?
Yes, I think I’d like to.
She slides her drink over to you, and you take a sip from the side opposite hers. It’s coffee, all right, but has an unpleasant metallic taste…as if there were pennies in the bottom of the cup.
She looks at you expectantly as you slide the cup back towards her
I was going to say, “It’s not my cup of tea”…
That’s all right. I didn’t expect it would be.
Weird metallic taste, cold skin… Wait, could she be a…? Well, maybe she knows Pyotr!
I’m looking for a gentleman named Pyotr.
She hesitates, then shakes her head.
I’m sorry, I don’t know anybody named Pyotr.
I’m given to understand it’s a common name here.
It is a common name. I know several Pyotrs in Brasov. I just don’t happen to know of any in town.
Suspicious hesitation and going back on what she said? I get the feeling she does know something.
Are you positive you don’t know a Pyotr?
Moved to the United States? Used to live in Castle Florescu?
She hesitates again, and this time, the silence speaks the answer before she can.
Yes. I believe I knew a Pyotr who lived in Castle Florescu. But this was a long time ago, and he hasn’t lived in Romania in over half a cent…
Well, in a long time.
She’s also covering up that she knows pretty accurately when he left. She must be connected to him somehow, but we can’t figure it out yet. Let’s move on for now.
Before we talk to the clerk, there’s eight bins of coffee behind the glass to the left. I’ll show the rest of them off later, but one gets a bit more description.
According to the sign, these beans are for "Molten Lava Mocha Java.
What’s the Moleten Lava Mocha Java?
Habanero-flavored espresso brewed at 500 degrees. And of course I am now obligated by my insurance company to warn you that the coffee is served very hot.
And she does mean very hot. So hot just discussing it led to a dropped quotation mark and a typo within two lines! We can talk to her about a lot of stuff, but the only one that matters is our friend!
You know a guy named Pyotr?
Tall, thin, blonde guy?
No.
Oh, the short, heavyset guy with the frizzy red hair?
No.
This guy’s medium-build, medium height, dark hair. Fangs.
Sorry. I know a lot of Pyotrs, but none of them are medium anything.
Damn. Well, just one more part of Starbucharest’s to look at.
Here’s well, everything we came here for right now. The rest we’ll be back for later. (You can also see the jar and chalkboard over on the right all the way to the left when we first came in, so we know we’ve made a full circle) Let’s take a look at this weird plant in the middle.
That’s odd, you so rarely see wolfbane in bloom this time of year.
You reach over and pluck a blossom off the wolfbane plant.
This isn’t a real plant, it’s silk!
The plant looks offended.
Not that there’s anything wrong with that.
We have a fake wolfbane blossom! Now, this is an adventure game, so let’s swipe the only other thing we can really see.
A giant stick o’ chalk was used to create the menu of specials.
You take the chalk
No fanfare or anything, just… we take the chalk. Let’s head over to Wereworth’s now, and see what it has to offer.
Wow. Like I said, there’s a hell of a lot to see in here, and I’m gonna be leaving most of it to show off later. Let’s start right away by shifting left.
Oh, sweet, one of those little rides for kids they have outside supermarkets! Can we…
A battered old Spaceship amusement ride sits to one side. On the side is painted, “Junior Time Traveler Astro-Ship!” The guts are hanging out here and there, and there are cobwebs over the seats.
Unfortunately, it appears as if you have to put money into it. Real money.
Damn, our palming coins won’t fit the slot. Well, let’s instead shift to the right of the start.
Ah! That’s the clerk, I guess! Let’s, uh… well, let’s just try to buy… anything.
Let’s see some bani.
Some what?
Bani. The official currency of Romania?
That’s… Actually shockingly almost right. More accurate than expected, at least. Romania actually uses a currency called the Ramanian Leu. However, each Leu is 100 bani, and “bani” is also used to just mean money. So while not quite perfect, it’s like using pence instead of pounds, as opposed to using something completely made up.
I didn’t know that.
And we don’t accept palming coins. You’d be amazed at how many people around here try to pass those things off as money. It’s horrible. Makes you want to bite their toes off, doesn’t it?
NO.
Well then. Let’s just look a bit instead of trying to buy. Down at the bottom left…
Available here is a delightful selection of herbal teas with medicinal effects. Among them are Sumac (great as a sore throat soother), So Long Blackheads Comfrey Blend, Farewell Elephantitis with Fenugreek, and Tanna Leaf (a common old-time remedy for Black Hairy Tongue).
Fancy! How about just to the left of the clerk?
A rackful of temporary tattoos hangs on the wall. They depict body parts, reptiles, insects, vehicles, and various geometric shapes.
Neat! We’ll have to come back for one of these, I guess! Now, one thing is pretty clearly on display here.
The wax lips are exaggeratedly full and bee-stung, and they give off a faint, sickly wintergreen scent.
We’ll need a pair of these, too. Let’s get on with the clerk, then…
**Before you is a ghoulish bone-and-gristle creature who runs the store. He looks at you hungrily as he introduces himself as Frank Detweiller
But you can call me “Skinless Frank.” Everybody does.
Where have I sinew before?
I don’t know, but people have a tendon, see, to say that.
**Your mind reels as you try to fit the words “ligament” and “cartilage” cleverly into a sentence, but what you come up with is too wretched even for THIS game.
Well, that was a marrow escape.
_Now that that’s done with, let’s actually talk to him.
Pardon me?
I said, “What can I get you?”
I’m looking for somebody named Pyotr. Do you know him?
Do you have a last name?
I’m not sure. Florescu, maybe? He lives in Castle Florescu.
Jake says this, but he made the “To the Florescu” joke before really knowing where he was being shipped, so I have to assume he had reason to believe this is Pyotr’s name.
Wow, I thought it was a theme restaurant now.
I don’t think I know him. You want me to keep an eye out for him?
Please.
No problem. Which one should I take?
I thought we were speaking figuratively.
Oh. Well, can’t blame a guy for trying.
Do people ever comment on your…complexion…issues?
Nope. But everyone always asks me if anybody ELSE comments on it.
Alright, we’re done here until we have some money. So let’s get some money! We can sit by the barrel like the beggars said, but unless we have a sign, nobody will know what we’re doing. We can take our chalk and write on the spirit slate!
_There’s a lot of options here, but only one will do anything. The other beggars all have "Help! I have no ___", so let’s follow suit with “Help! I Have no Head!”
You scrawl the message on the slate.
Well, now we have a sign. But, uh, we also have a head. Luckily, the book we took from the mansion has a section on this!
In performance, the assistant’s head is clearly seen through the front of the box (Figure A). Her hands support the box where it rests upon her shoulders. Magi closes the box. The moment this is done, the Assistant draws the mirrors closed about her face (Figure B), a small movement easily covered. If desired, daggers may be thrust through holes in the box thus further disguising the seam that runs vertically where the mirrors meet.
Magi then opens the cabinet, revealing the vanished head (Figure C). The process is reversed if the Magi wishes to reconjure the missing head.
So, let’s do it! We put the box on our head, and the screen above our inventory goes completely black. Nothing happens, until we click on it and choose “open”
You reach around front and open the flaps.
You still can’t see anything, but in the dim light it appears to bystanders – even those very close – that there is no head on your shoulders, only an empty box.
Passerby begin to comment, a few of them actually gasp.
Oh, my, this one is the most pitiful of all.
If you give him money, he’ll just spend it on…
On what? Hats?
He’s a fake! He had a head a minute ago!
Yeah, but you’ve got to give him an A for execution.
You hear the footsteps receding. After a few moments, you close the box and remove it. Then you collect the coins and stand up again.
Success! Let’s check our earnings!
It’s not lying, we can buy absolutely anything we need with this money. So let’s do that! We need to go buy all three things we looked at in Wereworth’s. We start with the lips…
I’ll sell you those, but I have to see your ID.
You show the clerk your Driver’s License. Fortunately, the Reciprocity Laws work so that this Romanian reads English just as easily as you speak Romanian, so he accepts the license and gives you a pair of nice wax lips.
I… don’t know why we needed ID for these, but sure.
You grab a sack of Tanna Leaf Tea, “The Tea That Made Sri Lanka Recognized for Its Tea Exports.”
I… there’s so many things wrong with this one, I don’t even know where to begin. To my knowledge, Tanna isn’t a real plant. Because of that, I feel like this could might be a pun I’m missing? But I really have no idea, so I’ll just leave it at that.
That’ll be all the fingers on your left hand.
Pardon me?
Oh, did I say all the fingers on your left hand? I meant 22 bani.
You carefully push 22 bani across the counter and pull your hand back quickly, before the cleark can have at it.
And now we buy a tattoo, but we have a lot of options!
Like the sign, only one of these will work for us. We don’t know which yet, but choosing the wrong one just ends in us needing to come buy the right one, so we’re taking the Pentacle.
You ask the clerk for one of the tattoos. You buy a pentacle tattoo.
You know how to get these off?
Soap and water?
You have to chew off the part of your body that’s got the tattoo. Here, put one on your foot, and I’ll show you how to do it.
NO.
You wisely decide not to put the tattoo on in front of the clerk. He’s certainly champing at the bit.
And that’s it for Wereworth’s! Next time, we hop in the trap and head to the Old Magic Woman’s place to find out about getting a curse mark, and see what Casamir’s has to offer us. See you then, everyone!