Myst: walkthrough

[Taika of Narfell]

Welcome to Myst.

The intro is largely just to tell you who you are, though it never becomes any clearer than that in the course of the game. You don't *really* need to know.

As with my other Myst series walkthroughs I won't tell you what's where. I expect *you* to explore the worlds.

Marker Switches
Read the note found on the ground. Count the marker switches and enter them into the panel in the forechamber right next to where you started. If you don't know what marker switches are you can find out in that same forechamber.

Yay, family drama, brothers... father... the works.

Remember to check the readable books in the library for hints as to what to do in the different ages.

The Tower Rotation
Flipping on the marker switches will make the different areas show up on the Tower Rotation map in the library. Using the line marker on the map, you can turn the tower to one of those locations and get the 'key' for each of them.

Myst Island puzzles
Stoneship Age Linking Book
Tower Rotation for the docks gives you three dates in the tower. Go to the building next door, turn off the light and use the dates on the device. You'll be shown a constellation for each of them. Check the Stoneship Age book for the symbols of those constellations. Go to the centre of the island and mark the relevant symbols green, leave the others red. Avast ye! The ship has been raised in the small pool - check the docks.

Mechanical Age Linking Book
Tower rotation for the giant gears, gives you a time and three numbers. Where should one use a time if not at the clock tower? Use the wheels to set the time and then push the red button. Behold a passage way - of gears, how eclectic. Enter the tower and you'll see where you need those three other numbers. Set the device and see if the moving half cog seems somehow familiar. Check the giant gears overlooking the docks.

Selenitic Age Linking Book
Tower rotation for spaceship gives you a number of volts. Where do you get volts but from a generator station? If you don't know where it is, follow the power lines from the spaceship. Behold! Generators! Each button adds a specific voltage, try them one by one to get the right number. If the spaceship still hasn't been activated, go to the power line pillars and switch the breakers on. If you exceeded the allowed voltage they'll have switched off - like proper safety measures in such installations. In the book with drawings of the spaceship you'll find a set of piano keys and a numbered order. Play the notes on the spaceship's keyboard and set the ame notes on the slider panel at its front. Lookie - a book.

Note: If you have your mouse speed set too high you might be skipping some notes and won't be able to set the right notes. Have your mouse speed fairly low for this grand old boy of a game.

Channelwood Age Linking Book
Tower rotation for the small hut gets you a three digit code. Might it be for the locker in the hut? Well, I'll be damned, it was. Matches... what might you need matches for if not for the boiler in the hut? Crank up the gas with the wheel and light the thing. When pressure is high enough you'll start hearing some mechinery out back. Go 'round the hut and see what's happening to the giant tree. Look up to see an opening. How do you get it back down to your height? How about turning off the gas and then hurrying out to catch a bumpy ride underground?

[Taika of Narfell]

The Stoneship Age

The umbrella covered stand with three buttons is the 'pumphouse'. Use it to clear the way to different parts of the Age.

Can't see what's inside the rock? Turn on the lights from the lighthouse. First drain it, go down to the bottom, empty the chest of water and let it fill with water again. The key can now reach the hole, and you'll get the key to above. A battery and a hand-operated generator: there's a power gauge on the battery, fill it and then you'll have light on the island.

Explore the brothers' room - looks like they were some real cozy chaps, eh?

You got the page you needed. How to get home? Probably the ship, but it's awfully dark down there. Note the telescope at the top of the island. what the only thing you can get properly in your sights? That's right, the lighthouse, note the compass position of it.

Go to the compass room on the island, through a passage in the side of the hallway to one of the brothers' room. Push the button closest to the compass location you concluded from the telescope, and watch a light go on - underwater. If this doesn't happen you chose the wrong one and decharged the battery in the lighthouse which you'll just have to recharge.

[Taika of Narfell]

The Mechanical Age

Can't find the red or blue page? Check the walls right next to the brothers' thrones. Secret rooms and pages.

Now for the solution to the control panel with the many symbols where you started. You'll need the simulator in Achenar's room to perfect your timing. Learn how to rotate the fortress. Then use the passage between the brothers' rooms to find the central passage. There's a button on the wall. Push and go to the basement that opens for you. Use the handle to align the symbols with the opening towards you. Go back and close the basement. Now there's an elevator open to you.

Go up with the elevator, hit the middle button and leave the elevator. It will then go down on its own. On top of it is a control panel similar to the simulation device in Achenar's room. I hope you learned your lesson there. Rotate the tower to go get the each half of the symbol code on the two other islands. This, too, can be difficult if your mouse speed setting is screwy witht he game.

Eventually return to the entry island and punch the code into the panel, then you'll get to the Myst Linking Book by way of the lowered plate.

This is my least favourite age because it took such timing with that fortress rotation. Took me ages to get it right, and at the end it really wasn't funny. And you really won't feel like doing it again for the other brother's page.

Those who have already finished the Selenitic Age will note that the underground 'railway's' direction sounds are the same as the direction sounds for the fortress rotation - perhaps it might help a little.

[Taika of Narfell]

The Selenitic Age

Welcome to a mostly barren island of rocks. You'll quickly find a door the code to which is.... sound? Yes.

Note the microphones. Turn them on. There are five all in all. You can hear where they are by going to the places where there is a particular sound that differs from the background wind and sea.

Go through the tunnel where the wind is picked up by the mic. You'll get to a tower with a bunch of antennae. with the control panel you need to align each of the receivers with their corresponding sound. Then click the big button at the bottom of the panel, this will give you the order of the sounds for the door you saw earlier.

Through the door you go down and down and down.

Another traveling contraption. This time on rails as you'll find out. As you've already found out this Age is sound based. To the left on the control panel is a speaker where you can hear the current direction sound again. With the first stop you can only go North and you get a sound. Note it. At the next stop you can go West and you can go back South the way you came. west must be the right way to go - note the sound you heard. The rest is sheer logic. Follow the sounds. If there's a sound you haven't heard before it's probably for the direction you haven't traveled before that it is now possible to travel. It's a long journey. Quite long. But once you have the knack of the sounds it's all about following your ears.

Those who have already finished the Mechanical Age will notice that the direction sounds are the same as the direction sounds on the fortress rotation. This might help you a bit.

[Taika of Narfell]

The Channelwood Age

A really lovely place. I'd like to try and live in such a place

Pipes leading everywhere. Go check their origins at the windmill. Make sure the water's running.

From here on it's simple. Every intersection has a little flip switch to control the flow of the water. The water powers the generators everywhere on the Age. One raises a bridge - don't worry, the bridge won't disappear when you stop the flow of the water.

Another powers an elevator to the level above. There you'll find another elevator going up but powered from the ground. And a winding stair. To open the door you might want a look at the map in the book in the library back on Myst. There's a ropes leading from the door to a weight in one of the huts. Find that hut and release the door. Now you can open it, go down, get water to the generator and take the elevator up to the third level.

Check out the recordings of Sirrus and Achenar. Real nice guys aren't they?

Go back down - all the way. To go up with the third elevator you must first connect the pipes leading to it. Backtrack from the elevator and use the levered contraption to extend the pipe. Set the water flow and you can go up to the Myst linking book.

Really simple solution expect for finding the release mechanism for the door if you haven't the map

[Taika of Narfell]

Back on Myst Island

You'll now have gathered 4 pages for either brother - maybe both if you're hardcore. Whoever gets the forth page will tell you to take one of the patterns from a book in the library and use it in the fireplace door. It'll lead you to a green book and the two remaining pages, a red and a blue.

You should've figured out by now that the brothers' words are not trustworthy and that you will not be imprisoned if you open the book. Nope, instead you'll find yourself talking to Atrus. He'll explain a little bit and ask you to find the page for his own Myst linking book.

Finding that page takes a little thinking. Where could it be? Remember in Channelwood and in Stoneship, you found half a note in each place. If you didn't go search now, it's not too late. Find out what it says on that note and it should tell you how to open the 'vault' on Myst. No, there are no riches but a white page.

And then comes the final choice that reall should be rather obvious if you've listened and explored anything at all in this game.

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Finale Spoiler

Save before doing anything.

Giving the red page to Sirrus or the blue to Achenar will release either brother and entrap you in their place.

Going to D'ni without the white page will net you a scolding from Atrus.

Going to D'ni with the white page will win the game for you. But it'll be the most anti-climactic finale you've ever seen, 'cause Atrus is very busy. You won't find out with what till you play Riven.

For sheer fun you might want to try the three losing endings. The monologues of the brothers and the scolding by Atrus are really quite amusing.

I hope you had fun and found this walkthrough useful.