Forums - Megatraveller 2 - Quest For The Ancients

Originally posted by Venger
MEGATRAVELLER 2

INTRODUCTION

MEGATRAVELLER 2 has quite a few side-quests and sub-plots besides the main
task of stopping the slime on Rhylanor, and I may not have yet discovered all
of them. My version of the game had some bugs that caused me to have some
degree of difficulty in traveling among the more heavily populated areas of
the Spinward Marches, especially when using the Ancient Jump-4 ship. If I
attempted to access any jump point beyond the first displayed page, the game
would either crash or send me to a unexpected system (usually Jesidipere).
Although I originally intended to attempt recording all the notable things on
each planet in the game, finding ways around this bug became tedious and I
eventually gave up after finishing the main story. I did amass a large amount
of information on a majority of the systems and will try to summarize what I
found in a addendum to be written later.

There are so many options to choose when creating characters, and the player
may find slightly different paths through the game depending upon what skills
and attributes the members have. I can't chronicle all the possibilities, and
so will describe the path I took through the game using the default characters
supplied with the game. They were a well-rounded group with several things
going for them, most notably the fact that one of the Vargr, Aristocrat
Archduke Kats already has a Far Trader as part of his retirement benefits.
This is a big advantage to the player who wants to bypass the economic aspect
of the game and get right into the main story.

While most of the NPCs that must be found are located inside buildings, it is
a good idea to talk to any green coded dot that is seen, AFTER identifying it.
Criminals will attack immediately after a conversation, although some will say
they have changed their ways and will ask the group's leader to let them go.
Some of these criminals are very heavily armed and armored, and it may take
several tries and some luck to kill them. Most merchants and other NPCs
will change to grey-white after they have finished their role in the game; if
they remain green they are either waiting for an object or have additional
information that can be gotten by interrogation or by using a truth drug.

Always make sure the characters have one or more empty inventory slots, as an
NPC may ask them to take an item to another person. If a character accepts an
item from an NPC and has no space in his inventory, the current version of the
game gives no warning and the item will be gone forever. This annoying little
bug can make it impossible to finish the main quest, so always be sure to have
room. Hopefully, this problem is already being fixed by Paragon as I write.

TRAVELING NOTES

Looking back on the path I took, I see now that there were systems I could
have visited sooner to solve the Megacorp conspiracy and stop the Rhylanor
slime problem much faster. I could have gathered information much more quickly
had I thoroughly explored the Rhylanor subsector first, but as I traveled I
moved away from two nearby systems that would have yielded much information
and an Ancient artifact to slow the slime. As I played the game I explored the
nearby planets thoroughly one at a time, and my path led me away from these
systems where I could have made some much bigger discoveries.

In general, if a system is interdicted and requires a pass to explore, there
is probably something important to find there. This was certainly not a linear
game, and the player that strays will find clues leading him back to the main
track eventually. This walkthru details the route I took to finish the main
quest, not mentioning the many stops along the way and the side plots I
discovered. After leaving Rhylanor my main focus was tracking down the Ancient
experts and investigating the systems along the way, I didn't visit Gerome and
457-973 until near the end of the game! I got as close as Belizo and Kegena,
then turned my attention towards Treece and other systems.

RHYLANOR

The party started their quest by seeking out Trow Backett in Rhylanor
Startown. He was easy to find, a stationary character positioned just outside
the University. He is the grandson of Vlen Backett and the current president
of the Ancient Collector's Society, willing to pay for any artifacts found and
photographs of any Ancient sites. He gives the party his grandfather's diary,
a locating device that Vlen found in an Ancient site on Inthe, and 6 of the 36
coyns that are needed to eventually find Grandfather.

The diary mentions 10 possible Ancient sites by a single letter, but after I
found all 11 sites only about 6 of the initials seemed to match the names of
the systems. Either the other 4 letters referred to systems known by other
names, planets that no longer have Ancient sites, or they were meant to mis-
lead the player. Vlen mentions sites on Inthe and Lablon, the locator and the
six coyns. These clues as well as a reference to Clieve Senchur and another
coyn give the party a number of leads to pursue, but they can also get infor-
mation from the other members of the Collector's Society. The library computer
lists seven names under "Ancient Collector's Society," not all of whom will be
of great help. However, they may supply another useful lead if the player be-
comes stumped.

It is necessary to solve the Megacorporation conspiracy and confront the
persons responsible for activating the Rhylanor site before the 11th Ancient
site can be entered. The party should try to gather clues everywhere they
visit, beginning on Rhylanor. Most of what is to be heard here is misleading,
but in Liduka lives Tukera's Rhylanor subsector chief, Roald Bululo. He
believes someone in Tukera is responsible for the activation of the site on
Rhylanor, and gives you a pass to the Megacorporations's headquarters in Ragid
Town on Junidy.

Lord Hollis in Rhylanor Startown will allow the party to meet with Duke
Leonard and receive a reward if they will first bring him proof of whom is
guilty for the sabotage of the Ancient site. This won't happen until much
later and will require much legwork. The only other thing of importance to the
main story here is finding Dev Lendrel in Startown who will sell a pass to
Fulacin for Cr8,000. He also mentions that passes to interdicted worlds can
be bought illegally on Jae Tellona.

A patron in the Kikhimaa City tavern gives you another lead, that a Professor
Cooper on Victoria teaches about the Ancients and Imperial History. This
should be followed up on, but Victoria is a long way from Rhylanor. I proceed-
ed to jump to Jae Tellona then Zivije in order to meet the next Ancient
expert.

JAE TELLONA

Not much in this system, but I had my first encounter with Vemene thugs as
soon as the party entered Startown. After talking to and interrogating the
thugs that didn't attack, the characters learn that they were hired by Tukera.
The fact that they remained green afterwards indicated that they had more to
say, but that the party couldn't get it out of them with their interrogation
skill. In many towns the characters will see more thugs and will occasionally
be attacked, it seems someone doesn't want them investigating. The skirmishes
are pretty easy but serve to remind the players that something's going on.

If money permits, the players should buy all the passes they can find. I
found passes to Gerome, Algine, Sonthert and Pscias for prices ranging from
Cr7,000 to Cr12,000. Swat Szoul tells the party where to obtain passes to
457-973, Victoria, Zycoka, and Shionthy. I had already bought the Fulacin pass
from a salesman on Rhylanor, so I jumped to that system after visiting Zivije
first.

ZIVIJE

According to the library computer, one of the Ancient experts lives in Kafka
Town on Zivije. Karim Flored will sell an Ancient shield for Cr75,000 and says
that the writing may be translated by Rahjel Dramahern on Moughas. The writing
will yield some useful information, but isn't essential to the quest. There is
not much else of interest in this system, but the people will pay good prices
for Crates of Food that the party can purchase on Porozlo.

FULACIN

This system is interdicted, and the party will be turned back at customs if
they don't have a pass. I was able to buy one for Cr8,000 from Dev Lendrel in
Rhylanor Startown, although it can probably be found elsewhere. The party was
attacked by Vemene thugs in Fulacin Startown, then rented a Grav vehicle to
travel to the Ancient site. Inside the site they entered a yellow cube through
a hidden entrance on the north side, where they found 2 more coyns and ten
Ancient batteries. These power cells are used to power several of the Ancient
devices, including the Locator which will afterwards show a green light when
on a planet with an Ancient site. After exploring several nearby systems, they
traveled to Heroni.

HERONI

Heroni is a logical system to visit, as Mourtin Frevil lives in Lunapi Ina.
He is also listed in the library as an member of the Collector's Society, and
if the party pays him Cr10,000 he will sell an Ancient battery he found. If
the characters have not already visited the Fulacin site, they would get a
power source for the Locator. If they pay Frevil Cr20,000 more, he tells them
about the secret holographic entrance to the Fulacin site.

Swat Szoul on Jae Tellona mentioned that a pass to 457-973 can be purchased
from Blen Strul on Heroni. Strul lives in Heroni Startown and will sell the
pass for Cr8,000 but the party should be certain to identify him first as
there is also a dangerous criminal in this town. Master Blaster is equipped
with a FGMP and TL-13 Battle Dress, a very tough opponent.

TREECE

No doubt I should have investigated 457-973 and Gerome before moving on, but
instead I plotted a course to Treece, exploring the systems along the way. On
Treece the party found a few sub plots and talked to Desdrillough in the
Dishak City University. The only thing this Ancient expert told the characters
was that G-Wave emissions increase when near an Ancient site. From this the
player might conjure that the Locator is a detector sensitive to these waves,
but not much else is learned here about the Ancients or the Megacorporation
scandal.

INTHE

The next logical stop was Inthe, where Vlen Backett found an Ancient site and
the Locator. Besides some more side quests, all the party finds here is one
coyn in the Ancient site. However, each site must be visited to collect a full
set of coyns, and at each site the characters take a photograph that is worth
Cr150,000 when sold to Trow Backett on Rhylanor. Actually, any store will buy
the photos, although not always for the same price.

EXTOLAY

Following the information found on the Collector's Society in the library
computer, the party traveled to Extolay to talk to Sawert Weston in Sha City.
This was a change of pace, it seems Weston is part of the Megacorp plot. He
attacks immediately after the conversation, and a note is found from an un-
named executive of an unnamed Megacorporation telling him to kill anyone who
asks about the Ancients, especially someone named "Cocoa." The party also
finds the headquarters of Oberlindes here and can talk to Marc Oberlindes, who
merely denies having anything to do with the Rhylanor disaster. No more leads
here, so I journeyed on.

HEFRY

Following up on the lead from Swat Szoul on Jae Tellona, the characters then
jumped to Hefry. Still not much to find here, but Glar Venni sells the pass to
Victoria for Cr10,000. Just by luck, my next jump took me to Knorbes.

KNORBES

By now, I had gotten into the habit of using the locator on every planet the
party landed on. The locator shone green, so there should be an Ancient site
here. There wasn't much else happening on the planet, so the party rented a
Grav vehicle and discovered a site north from Vangogh where they found 2 more
coyns and their first Ancient device. This was a hand disintegrator, and it
needed one of the batteries to be used on it. This sounded like something that
could really put a dent in the slime problem, but we weren't quite ready to go
all the way back to Rhylanor to try it yet.

EFATE

There's quite a bit happening here, but the main reason for stopping here was
to visit another Ancient expert, Deghrra Szan, who lives in Arden. This expert
really didn't have anything useful to say, but in Irir the party found Chabon
Art who is the Sharushid Regina subsector chief. Although he also states that
Sharushid is innocent, he suggests that the party should look at Tukera's
internal structure.

In the tavern in Anlisha there are two merchants that sell passes to 457-973
and Djinni for Cr11,000 and Cr9,000. If the party didn't buy the 457-973 pass
from Blen Strul on Heroni or if they somehow lost it, they can get it here.

MOUGHAS

Still having nothing solid on the Megacorporation mystery, the characters
eventually traveled to Moughas to find Rahjel Dramahern. After showing the
Ancient shield that the party bought from Karim Flored on Zivije to Rahjel, he
translated the writing. He determines that the shield came from the Regina
subsector, and it refers to something that Grandfather used to test his
children, negotiating difficult tasks across a string of beads. Rahjel will
pay Cr75,000 for an Ancient statue which the party later finds in an Ancient
site.

ZILA

The party headed for Zila to complete a errand for Joe Lucci in Arden, Efate
and noticed that the locator was green! Near Suugadus they discovered another
Ancient site that contained 2 more coyns and a Pocket Disk. This Ancient de-
vice proved to be another weapon to slow the slime, but the characters didn't
return to Rhylanor yet as they were doing pretty well financially.

PATINIR

A couple more jumps brought the party to Patinir, and the locator indicated
a yellow light. This had never happened before, and a brief survey of the
planet's surface revealed no obvious Ancient site. Wandering inside Patinir
Startown, they met Gorje Husan who gave them a note to take to Iris Nova and
said to see Cocoa about the Ancients. Iris Nova was in the University, and she
gave the party leader a sapphire ring when she received the note. When we gave
this to Gyro Cadiz in the bar, he revealed himself to be Cocoa, saying that he
was a hunted man for his knowledge about the Ancients. He gives the party a
map with an "X" located in the southwestern corner of the University audi-
torium.

Walking around the area indicated, the characters suddenly discovered a hid-
den tunnel leading to an Ancient underground site. Here they found 2 more
coyns and some anti-matter fuel cores whose purpose was unknown at this point.

HUDERU

After investigating several more systems, the party decided to visit the
prison planet of Huderu. Since the planet was interdicted and required a pass
to visit, I should have suspected its importance before now. The pass was
purchased on Jae Tellona for Cr10,000 and allowed the party to pass customs
where the majority of their weapons were confiscated. The party can trade some
weapons to prisoners who will talk about criminal operations happening on
other planets. Two inmates, Big Rolf and Selijuk the Knife, vie for control of
the populace, and they both offer information if you eliminate the other as
well as his chief henchman. Either one will tell the characters a partial
story, but both point to Warden Cruxlic.

When Cruxlic is interrogated he tells that a man named Grazer who lives on
Pscias has been recruiting criminals for a death squad and paying him to stay
quiet. These are probably the same thugs that have been occasionally attacking
the party, so of course the thing to do is go find Grazer.

IMPORTANT NOTE

Looking at the map of Rhylanor subsector, the player will notice that there
is no Gas Giant in the Huderu system and that Huderu is two hexes away from
any other system. The system code also indicates that Huderu has no starport,
and thus no refueling facility. In short, it is a one-way trip for even a Far
Trader and there is no way to get either a Commercial or Charter flight to go
there. Unless they have the Ancient Jump-4 ship, the characters will have to
pay at LEAST Cr500,000 to have their ship towed to the nearest starport after
jumping to this planet! If the party doesn't have the money to spare, they
should wait until they have the funds or until they find the Ancient ship. I'm
not certain that it is necessary to talk to the Warden before Grazer will
appear on Pscias, I didn't check first.

SLOWING THE SLIME

After being towed to Rhylanor Startown after visiting Huderu, the party was
easily able to recoup its loss by selling the photographs of the Ancient
sites they discovered to Trow Backett. The big payoff came when they traveled
to the edge of the slime and used the Ancient artifacts. Using the hand disin-
tegrator only saved 0.2% of the planet's surface and using the pocket disk
resulted in an additional 1.2%, totaling 1.4% for which the government paid
Cr7,000,000. Now the bug that may exist in the current version of the game may
be exploited. Every time the characters return to the government office they
will receive another multi-million credit reward, ending their financial
problems.

ENOPE

At this point, the leads discovered by the party could send them in several
directions. It was almost certain that Tukera corporation was involved in the
sabotage of the Rhylanor site, and a visit to their headquarters on Junidy
might reveal more information about the conspiracy. They also discovered that
someone named Grazer on Pscias was probably responsible for our encounters
with the Vemene thugs, and that someone doesn't want them looking around for
the Ancient sites. Ancient sites had been explored on Inthe, Fulacin, Patinir,
Knorbes and Zila, but nothing yet indicated where the others might be. All of
the Ancient experts had been interviewed except Beckett Senchur on Enope, and
this person would prove to have the most important information yet.

It is said that hindsight is 20/20, and after visiting Enope I saw that it
would have saved much time had I gone here first. Vlen Backett's diary stated
that Clieve Senchur might have a coyn, and the library computer revealed that
the current vice-president of the Ancient Collector's Society, Beckett
Senchur, lived in Shaniira on Enope.

Yes, Shaniira had several persons including Clieve's granddaughter Beckett
who pointed towards an Ancient site. In the bar, Grammar Lect says that there
is a treasure buried on Gerome and that Vlar Manish knows where it is. Beckett
was found walking around town, and says that her grandfather lost his coyn
while exploring on either Gerome or Djinni. Vlar Manish is found in Rembrandt
City and explains that he and Clieve explored Gerome, and that Clieve was
searching for something he lost. These clues certainly were enough to warrant
a trip to Gerome, and afterwards it explained much more about the Ancients.

GEROME

When the party visited Gerome, the more information about the Ancients was
discovered. With the pass that they had bought on Jae Tellona they were free
to explore the planet, and there was an Ancient site southeast from the
Startown. The caverns here yielded another coyn and the deserted wreck of an
Ancient ship. Approaching a computer bank inside activated a telepathic link,
and the log of Captain Droi Vul Xar was revealed. It told of stops made at
bases on Inthe, Lablon, and Rhylanor, of anti-matter fuel cores on Patinir and
power cells on Fulacin. In addition to mentioning 6 other camps, it refers to
a project on Rhylanor, the pearl challenges, a base destroyed on Macene by
Grandfather and an exploration ship whose crew he vaporized on the way to
Ylaven. This log told the characters several things that it hadn't already
accidentally discovered, and would have made part of their quest much easier.

457-973

The party decided to visit 457-973 next, for several reasons. Its strange
name aroused curiosity, it was interdicted, and the TAS computer stated that
there may be good quantities of Lanthanum to be found. In addition, it was
very close to Gerome, which they had just left. They had purchased the pass
from Blen Stul in Heroni Startown on Heroni, but another merchant sells the
pass in Anlisha on Efate. Checking the locator, they were pleasantly surprised
to note the green light! One of the miners mentioned seeing something strange
in the nearby mountains, and the party located an Ancient site southwest from
Startown. Here they discovered 4 coyns and a statue of an Ancient warrior
carrying a shield, for which Rahjel Dramahern on Moughas will pay Cr75,000.
Also hidden here was a Stasis Ray which would make another small dent in the
Rhylanor slime.

The party had now explored 7 Ancient sites, collected 20 of the 36 coyns
required to make a complete set, and found several Ancient devices to slow the
spread of the Rhylanor slime. They had heard in Kikhimaa City on Rhylanor that
a Professor Cooper on Victoria teaches about the Ancients, and this combined
with the captain's log entry on Gerome that mentioned a ship attacked near
Ylaven provided adequate incentive to visit that far corner in the Lanth
subsector.

VICTORIA

The characters can jump most of the way to this system in a Far Trader, but
they will have to be towed to Victoria, charter a flight or take a commercial
liner. If they can afford it, I definitely recommend having the ship towed
there, as they will need it for one more jump after visiting Victoria.

If the party has purchased the Victoria pass from Glar Venni on Hefry they
can explore the planet. A citizen tells them that the planet was decimated by
a Ancient battle 300,000 years ago, and Professor Cooper in Sarak Gi says that
he is sure there was an Ancient base here. On the planet surface the party
finds a site and 5 more coyns.

YLAVEN

From Victoria, the party makes one more jump to Ylaven. If they land on the
planet they notice the locator has a yellow light, as it did when they found
the hidden Ancient site on Patinir. There's nothing to be found on the
planet's surface, but when the ship stopped to refuel at the gas giant, the
deserted Ancient ship was discovered. If the party has the anti-matter fuel
cores from the Patinir site, they can board the ship. It has Jump-4 capability
and no need to refuel, and its gun turrets are self-repairing. The Far
Trader, its cargo and locker contents are all stowed inside the ship's own
huge cargo bay, and the characters can travel in style.

I usually was presented with 2-3 pages of jump points to select from now, but
due to a bug in my version of the game, if a point was selected from any but
the first page the program would either crash or send the ship to a random
system. I soon gave up using it, and was forced to buy another Far Trader on
Regina, leaving the Ancient ship parked in the starport.

Upon entering the ship, the party finds an S.O.S. message, stating that the
crew had been found by Grandfather, and that he had sealed himself off in a
pocket universe. Further, the message explains that a portal to this universe
may only be activated by using a full set of 36 coyns, and at this point the
party had recovered 25.

REGINA

With the extended jump capability of the Ancient ship and no more worries
about fuel, the party next traveled to Regina. They were sure that Tukera was
involved in the sabotage of the Rhylanor Ancient site, and they obtained the
names and locations of the four subsector chiefs from the library computer.
Having already spoken to Roald Bululo on Rhylanor, they decided to stop on
Regina to talk to Lorn Denvelt in Marburg. He denied any part in the Rhylanor
Ancient site sabotage, and when interrogated he just pointed at Sharushid and
Oberlindes.

The locator indicated the presence of an Ancient site here, and on the island
south from Regina Startown there was indeed a structure. The party could not
enter it, however, and I began to fear another program bug, possibly making
the main quest unsolvable. Being a seasoned adventurer, I did not panic yet,
and decided to investigate the other numerous leads I had discovered. The
party had not yet visited Tukera's headquarters on Junidy as the Rhylanor sub-
sector chief had suggested. They had the pass that Roald Bululo had given
them, and they hoped discover more about the Megacorporation plot there.

ALGINE, YEBAB

The party traveled in the general direction of Junidy, exploring the nearby
systems along the way. Having heard on Jae Tellona about passes being sold on
Algine and Yebab, they decided to go to these systems and buy them. The pass
to Algine had been purchased on Jae Tellona for Cr6,000, and on Algine they
found Aldo Ronco who sold the Shionthy pass for Cr9,000. It seemed that a trip
to Shionthy might be important, as it the pass to visit it was purchased on a
planet that was itself interdicted.

The Zycoka pass was purchased from Filip Sema in Yebab Startown for Cr10,000,
and after this trip characters continued their exploration of the systems in
the Regina subsector. It seemed a good idea to visit the Lablon Ancient site
while in the area, and also to see what was on the interdicted planets Zycoka
and Shionthy.

ZYCOKA, SHIONTHY, LABLON

Visiting Zycoka using the pass purchased on Yebab was a good decision. The
locator showed green, and the party found an Ancient site hidden in a forest.
They discovered a Force Dome and 3 more coyns here, bringing the total to 28.

Next they visited Shionthy with the pass purchased on Algine but they found
absolutely nothing. There was no way to leave Startown to explore the planet,
and there wasn't much to be learned from the people. The planet was newly
settled and a researcher named Hub Chink had theorized that there had been
some culture had lived there long ago. Somehow there seemed there was more to
be found here, a return visit might be called for.

Following the reference to the ice palace in Vlen Backett's diary, the next
trip was to Lablon. Here was another Ancient site NE from the Startown where
a single coyn was found. The party had now explored 10 Ancient sites and had
found one more that they couldn't enter on Regina. Before I decided to call
Paragon about this problem I decided to see what Tukera was up to.

RUGBIRD

Another interesting lead delayed the party from going straight on to Junidy,
and this side trip proved to be very valuable when they finally paid a trip to
Tukera's headquarters in Ragid Town. All through the game, the characters had
made it a habit to consult the databases found in starports about systems they
planned to be passing through. The computers in the Naval and Scout bases,
when available, were not always as helpful as the TAS database. One of the de-
fault characters had a TAS membership, so the party used that computer when-
ever there was one nearby.

Reading about the systems in the Rhylanor subsector, they found a reference
to a truth serum developed by Dr. Jose Vargas on Rugbird. Our interrogation
skills hadn't always yielded good results, so this seemed an easy, if somewhat
unethical way to get information. Traveling to Rugbird, the rumor proved to
be true. Inside one of the rooms of the abandoned University the party found
a large quantity of the truth drug, and took as much as they could carry. This
certainly would have been very useful had they found it earlier, but there was
still several people it could be used on.

JUNIDY

At last the characters journeyed to Tukera's headquarters on Junidy, certain
to get answers one way or another. In Ragid Town they were able to speak to
Jelika Chan using the pass that Roald Bululo gave them. When first questioned,
she denies everything. Not wanting to use extreme measures right away, they
next interrogated her and she reveals that the president, Lie Ioccocco is at
a conference. She wouldn't reveal where the conference was, so the truth drug
was given. Much more cooperative now, she not only tells that the conference
is on Loneseda, but goes on to admit that she and Lie have been having an
affair for 3 months... not important, but amusing. Finally, she gives the
party Lie's paperweight, saying that if he sees it he'll talk.

DHIAN

It now seemed as though the pieces were coming together, and that a trip to
Loneseda was the next step. However, the party had the good fortune to find
another Vemene thug to interrogate, and this time they used the truth drug. He
then told the whole truth, as he knew it, that Tukera's Aramis subsector chief
Aran Ashkakur gave the orders to the Vemene to attack.

According to the library computer, Aran Ashkakur lived on Dhian, and the
party found his office in Kushkim Town. He has a guard named Lani Starley, who
says a pass was needed to see Aran, but he didn't interfere: was this
another bug? Ashkashkur denies giving the orders to the thugs, and insists
that someone else must have used his computer and password to do it. He stuck
to his story even after using the truth drug, so looking elsewhere was called
for.

LONESEDA

Well, since there had been nothing gained by talking to the subsector chiefs
thus far, it seemed a good idea to go to Loneseda and see the head man. Lie
was there, but it seemed he is a mere figurehead of authority. After giving
him the paperweight from his secretary then interrogating him, he says that he
mostly lets his four subsector chiefs call the shots. Three of them the party
already had met: Lorn Denvelt on Regina, Roald Bululo on Rhylanor and Aran
Ashkakur on Dhian. It was fairly certain that Bululo and Ashkakur had nothing
more to say, as the Rhylanor chief provided the pass to Tukera headquarters
and Aran had been interrogated with the Vargas truth serum.

When Lie was subjected to the truth drug, he has nothing much more to say,
but he does offer a reward of Cr250,000 if the party brings him proof of who
is behind the Rhylanor sabotage. Now the thing to do was to either use the
drug on Lorn Denvelt to see what else he would say, or go and talk to Jayef
Nonnel, Lanth subsector chief on Treece. Before deciding which man to see,
there was one more lead to pursue. Warden Cruxlic had said that Grazer on
Pscias was the one who was recruiting the thugs for the hit squad, so perhaps
he would tell who his boss was under interrogation.

PSCIAS

Now that the party had talked to most of Tukera's executives without finding
the real culprit, they headed for Pscias to talk to Grazer. Grazer had been
implicated by Warden Cruxlic on Huderu of recruiting thugs for a hit squad, so
it seemed he might tell who hired him, especially if the truth drug was used.
They were able to pass customs on this interdicted planet with the pass they
bought on Jae Tellona, and when they interrogated Grazer he admitted to the
sabotage of the Rhylanor site. He says he was hired by Jayef Nonnel, Tukera's
Lanth subsector chief to eliminate the Ancient experts. Since the party's
leader had caught his shadowy image on the camera at the beginning of the
game, he had the thugs try to kill him as well.

Finally it seemed that the plot was unraveling and the solution was at hand.
I still was a little worried about getting into the Regina site, and also was
wondering about the pearl challenges that had been hinted at.

TREECE - THE CONSPIRACY SOLVED

The party traveled straight to Treece to confront Jayef Nonnel, whom they
found in a building that was not highlighted on their previous visit. It seems
the intent of the authors was to make the player confront all of the people
involved in the story so they would not miss out on all the hard work that
went into the game. Nonnel tells his tale of how he activated the Rhylanor
Ancient site to destroy Tukera's operations in that sector, which would cause
all of the business to be routed through Treece. He discovered the secret of
the site on Rhylanor, hired Grazer to help him activate it, then told him to
eliminate the Ancient experts as well as anyone else who might be able to fix
the mess. He also broke into Aran Ashkakur's office to use his computer, send-
ing the orders to Tukera's Vemene security force.

After his confession, he attacks the party with a Laser Rifle, and after a
brief battle they find several items. There is a journal that explains how
Nonnel used the String of Pearls to enter the Regina site. He completed some
of the challenges and thus learned the secret of the Rhylanor site. The party
finds the String of Pearls, as well as a pass to the planet Lewis and a brooch
with Gvoudzon engraved on the back.

Now the final Ancient site may be explored, and the party can discover the
secret of the Rhylanor slime. With the brooch and Lewis pass, they can also
get proof of Nonnel's plot to show to both Lie Ioccocco and the Duke of
Rhylanor.

REGINA - THE PEARL CHALLENGE

Traveling back to Regina, the party approached the Ancient site again, this
time with the String of Pearls in hand. A rip in the fabric of time and space
opens, allowing them to enter a giant string of pearls. Immediately heading
north from the first room they are teleported to another, and directly south
they encounter a puzzle in the form of a sequence of numbers. If they choose
the correct solution they continue on, if they fail they are teleported out-
side and must try again. The sequences and the solutions I found by playing it
several times were:

1-9-2-8 answer 3-7-4-6
1-1-2-4-4-16 answer 32-32-64-128
1-3-10-7-12-9-16 answer 18-13-15-22

In the next room the party finds 7 more coyns complete their set of 36. From
there they went north and were teleported again to a room where they found a
Locator Plug, then south to exit the site. The Locator Plug was then used on
the locator, giving it an added function. I found that on one planet, the
light would shine red if the plug was attached. This would be one way to find
the planet that the party must next visit, but since they now should have the
full set of 36 coyns, the coyns will tell them where to go.

SHIONTHY - THE TRAVELERS MEET GRANDFATHER

With the full set of 36 Droyne coyns, the characters can open a portal to the
pocket universe which Grandfather entered after the devastating war with his
offspring. They must use the coyns on the proper planet, however, if they
don't they'll receive a message: "Shionthy holds the key to your quest. Use
the coyns there."

On Shionthy, the pass for which the party purchased from Aldo Ronco on
Algine, the coyns are used and the portal opens. A lengthy text follows, and
the party is led through the Ancient Droyne's private city to meet Grand-
father. He tells them that the Rhylanor site was not for destruction, but that
the toxic slime is actually a terraforming compound which will change the sur-
face of the planet into a lush paradise. However, the slime must be transform-
ed with a mix of chemicals contained in a device that Grandfather gives the
party, telling them to fire it at the mass. After a few parting words, he
sends them back to their universe and seals the entrance forever, wise enough
to know that he must never meddle with the natural order of things again.

LEWIS

Before the party returns to "save" Rhylanor, they may wish to visit the Lewis
system using the pass they found on Jayef Nonnel. They will have to fight some
thugs that are holding Gvoudzon captive, then when they give him the brooch he
will explain that he made it for Nonnel. It contains encoded data files that
will prove Jayef Nonnel was guilty of the Rhylanor site sabotage. Gvoudzon was
double crossed, and in gratitude for saving his life he transfers the data to
two disks. You can take one to Lord Hollis on Rhylanor, and the other to Lie
Ioccocco on Loneseda.

RHYLANOR, ENDGAME

Returning to Rhylanor, the characters take a grav vehicle or ATV to the edge
of the slime mass and simply use the Terraformer at it. After a loooong speech
by Duke Leonard and a replay of another videotape showing the revitalized
Rhylanor, all the characters are inducted into the Knighthood and given a
partial reward of Cr5,000,000. It seems that the remain Cr495,000,000 will be
awarded "next year" when Rhylanor is back on its feet financially.

The party can collect another Cr500,000 from the Duke by giving Lord Hollis
one of the incriminating disks, who will then give them a pass to get into
Duke Leonard's palace. Due to another little bug, the characters must be cer-
tain not to GIVE the pass to the palace guard, but USE it instead. After
collecting from the Duke, giving the other disk to Lie Ioccocco on Loneseda
will allow the party to collect the Cr250,000 he promised.

WHERE NOW?

After the main quest, the party of Knights and/or Ladies are free to continue
to travel and discover all the extra side-quests. They may join either side of
some regional conflicts, civil wars, revolutions, assassination plots, etc.
depending on their conscience. I will get around to finishing an addendum
detailing all the side stories I found, but it will have to wait until my
updated version of the game -- hopefully bugless -- comes in the mail. By
then, MEGATRAVELLER 3 might be ready....

MEGATRAVELLER 2: QUEST FOR THE ANCIENTS is published by Paragon Software and
distributed by MicroProse Software, Inc.

This walkthru is copyright © 1991 by Venger. All rights reserved.