Gremlins!

Written on the notice is: "Be it known that gremlins have been observed exploring the land. They have been seen escaping from a crevice west of the Cave of stars. Rumours abound of an evil hag bearing a powerful magical artifact. Adventurer's willing to risk their lives against the gremlins may take all that they find. Reports also have reached us of a ghastly baron, a great gremlin, and a terrible troll! Rewards are great but death awaits the incautious. Beware!".

Beware indeed! This quest is buried deep in the north mountain, and the first puzzle is how to get into it. Once you've found the crevice, you have to squeeze throught it - and it isn't half a tight squeeze! Not only do you have to drop all your kit (although luckily it will fall into the hollow below, so not all is lost.)

Unfortunately, for the magically-endowed amongst us, magic also stops you from getting through the crevice, apparently due to your head being swollen from all that magic. Anyone can get in if you try hard enough, though.

Once you're inside read everything. If you normally play in brief mode, turn verbose or unbrief on. (Yes, they're different.) Make sure you read all the descriptions and look out for clues. Some of them are pretty smelly, and I'm not just talking about the puns!

When you're first exploring the quest, it's quite easy to die (dead, not dead-dead) so it's a good thing you didn't bring a valuable magic-user in. I can't emphasise enough how important it is to read everything.

If you make it past the first trap, you'll be a lot safer ... unless you get on the bad side of a gremlin or seven. You probably don't have much kit, so be careful. If you've got a friend to explore with you, bring them with!

Apart from the maze you can get to from the hollow, the bulk of the quest is in and about the living quarters of the gremlins. The place is littered with hidden rooms and puzzles to test your exploring skills, but don't forget the gremlins can be tough, too!

Go deeper (and in the end you will) and things will get tougher still, but the rewards greater, too. Luckily there are objects hidden around the quest to help you on your way, including an unusual sword and an unexhaustable supply of wafers!

The quest certainly isn't the largest I've seen, but it's one of the most detailed. It's not a quest you'll master in a reset, or even two - just when you think you've finished it, you'll find yet more to discover.

The last puzzle you'll be faced with is how to get out - but do you need to?

Watch out for the gremlins, they're tough and smelly - but also watch out for the puns, they're even smellier! If you can resist the stench, it's worth it - work out the puzzles and bash the tough mobiles and you'll find yourself with thousands and thousands of points worth of treasure, and I'm sure the mobiles are worth almost as much, too.

Good luck in your quest!