Realms of Myst

Tips

Instructions for the Newbie...

So you just created and successfully saved your character. You made it through the Newbie area and now you are in the Academy, staring at Mistress Tsythia. What now? I will just tell you what to do and you can figure out why later.

The first things you should do are boring, but you should do them.
Walk north through the Academy halls and READ everything. This area is created to teach you. Visit Lord Toric: if you type the right social command, he will give you a spell. Go north again to Silvina. If you wait, she will teleport you to one of a set of portals, depending on your Class. These are called the "cage mob" areas, because the mobs are in rooms that they cannot leave. Kill them and take their stuff. When you have killed them all, proceed down. You will find an academy store where you can buy food and water and one final trial: find and kill the "dragonsnake" and get the "visor of completion". Now you have the newbie set of free equipment. You have read the basic instructions. You are almost ready for the combat arena. (Should you find yourself there, go up to Lord Toric and then south.)

Return to Mistress Tsythia in the main room of the Academy.  Go down. Learn about potions by visiting Xasper and about banks.  Then return to Mistress Tsythia.

If you have not done so already, go to north and east to The Laboratory of Skills and Spells. Type "prac" and Domick will help you learn your skills and spells. Practice and then return to Mistress Tsythia.

Now, go west. See Merak. Say "Tell me about leveling spells." and "Tell me more." to learn about leveling spells, which are very important. Please use proper English sentences, with capital letters and periods. Merak is picky that way. Say "Tell me about protection spells." to learn about those. Then, to get these important spells, say "Grant me leveling spells." and "Grant me protection spells".   (By the way, if you say "Make me invisible.", Merak will do that also.) 

Next, go east, open the door, and enter the small Chapel. There is a statue of an angel. If you type the right social commands in this room, you will get a very special bonus that can only be gained one time. Clue: what actions do people do in a church? If you can't guess, don't worry: do not spent too much time there, because your spells are slowly wearing off.

Now you have the knowledge and armor you need for combat; you should have a weapon and might have potions as well. You know about leveling spells and have them on you.  (Type "aff" to see what spells are affecting you.)  You are finally ready for combat.

Return to Mistress Tsythia. Open the door south and enter the Battlegrounds. Here you can fight slimy crawlers and various other mobs to gain experience, gold, and levels. Avoid some of them, like the zombie and pteron, until you gain a level or two. Remember, these mobs can kill you; and probably will at least once; that is part of the game.

If you die, you will find yourself naked at the feet of Sonoria, in the main temple. To get your things back you must return to the place where you died and get all of your things out of your corpse. You must do this within a time limit, or your corpse will rot and you loose your stuff. But don't worry, at this point in the game, all you need do if that happens is go to the cage mobs again and get another free newbie set. You can buy weapons downstairs in the academy.

For more adventure, you can lave the Academy and visit Darkhaven and explore it. Do not try to kill anything in Darkhaven yet. The "consider" command is your friend. When you are ready, you can obtain useful equipment by visiting areas outside of Darkhaven, such as the Dwarven Daycare, the Pixies, or Tullfuhrzky Manor. You can get directions from this website, or in the Hall of Lands, located along the underground hallway between the Academy and Darkhaven.

As you gain levels, return to the Academy to practice. Eventually you will find that the mobs in the Academy no longer give you experience. Then it will be time for you to venture out and find new areas. With recall scrolls, you can return instantly to Darkhaven*. After you reach level 10, Merak will no longer help you. Nelkum will cast spells on you, for a price. Now it is time for you to find other resources and become more independent. Your adventure is only just beginning.

* Recalls:
If you are deadly, you recall to the Black Mysts. If your race has a special recall, you recall there. Some rooms are "no recall"; and attempts to use a recall scroll there will fail. Use these expensive scrolls wisely. Eventually, most Classes get the "Word of Recall" spell.