Almaria|
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Almaria |
Great Cave |
| friendly |
Navigation: General Hints, Shops, People and Quests, Notes, Pylon, Job Board
List of all towns and shops in Avernum
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| Almaria | Sewers |
If you come on foot from the Tower of Magi you have to cross the bridge and pass through Almaria on your way to the Great Cave. You can get a lot of good quests here.
| Person | Function | Items, Quests and Notes | Rating |
| Starcap | Trainer | will train you in weapon skills. | expensive |
| Jasmine |
Shopkeeper (Rations) |
Talks a bit about lizards. |
slightly expensive |
| Julio | Sage | Sells a reasonable range of potions and will talk a bit about his explorations. He is of the opinion that there is an exit to the surface somewhere to the west. |
slightly expensive |
| Dexter |
Shopkeeper (Fletcher) |
Not only is he a fletcher who sells low end archery requirments at very high prices but he also deals with shady characters and will offer you a curious mixture of "tools" many of which have probably been recently liberated from their rightful owners. | exorbitant, Quest, expensive |
| Rhiannon | Innkeeper | She does not have a single bed free and her prices for rations are exorbitant but she sells some good quality wine. |
exorbitant, slightly expensive |
| Ramone | Guest | Tells you a bit about the Sliths on an island to the north and says that you should talk to someone called Chuck who has probably returned to Silvar, if you want to learn more about the island. |
It is always a good idea to talk to everybody. The following notes give hints on hidden rooms, traps and puzzles.
The soldiers guarding the bridge to the east demand a toll of 5 coins which they waive if you have a high reputation. In the other games (Exile and Avernum 2) you can avoid crossing the bridge by using a boat. In this game (Avernum: Escape from the Pit) as in A1 the river is blocked with rocks to the north of Almaria so that it is only possible to land on the western bank. You cannot get to the eastern river bank by boat. It does not actually matter very much because by the time you reach Almaria your reputation is probably high enough: with 12 you can cross without paying.
He is a complex and rather shady character. If you have talked to the farmers in the Farmhouse SE of Almaria and do as the wiry woman advised – ask him about tools – he will tell you to mention that you are adventurers. If you do this he lets you see his range of miscellaneous items, which is not very spectacular. He also gives you quests.
In one of the homes in the northwest corner of the city of Blosk, a certain fellow owns a ring shaped like a snake biting its own tail.
This one is straight forward: the ring is in a small building in the NW corner of the town (Reward: 400 coins and 80–90 xp).
Dexter gave you a box to deliver to Meena. Meena is the mayor of the village of Spire in the Abyss, far to the northwest. Also, don't let any Avernite soldiers inspect the box.
On delivering the box to Meena you get 25 coins and on reporting back to Dexter he gives you a Bluring Band and around 75xp. You could alteratively hand the package in to the Avernite authorities thereby gaining 1 reputation.
Dexter has a grudge against a man named Mentta, who can be found in the city of Dharmon. He asked you to challenge Mentta to a duel, and, if Mentta accepts, kill him.
I do not usually even take this job because if you complete it he rewards you with 1000 coins, a pair of Suede Gloves (worth 1500 coins) and about 27 xp but you loose 3 reputation.
There is a Pylon in an underground chamber. It can be reached via a staircase in a small building north of the guardhouse by the west gate.
In this version of the game there is nothing lying about outside the walls – a fact that I found disappointing.
The Job Board is in the open space south of Julio's shop.
| Job | Description | Originator |
| Bounty – Sewer Slimes | As often happens, the sewers under fair Almaria have been infested with slimes. The mercenary who can kill ten of these gelatinous terrors will be rewarded. | Julio |
| Bounty – Sewer Presence | Though the slimes below Almaria has been expunged, another dark presence has taken up residence below. Whatever this creature is and wherever it lurks, the mercenary who finds and destroys it will be paid well. | Julio |
| Message – Cormac |
There is a scroll pinned to the board, addressed to someone named Cormac. Someone has written on the outside of the envelope: "Searched the city. Couldn't find him. Didn't go into sewers, though. Too dangerous. If you can get this to him, you can have the payment." |
anon (but see Cormac) |
| Kelner's Note |
Someone has pinned a hastily scrawled note to the board: "Something is wrong in the Tower of Magi. I am going. I will not return. Kelner is the only sane one. If only someone would listen to him. I give this warning as I flee west." |
anonymous |
| Thantria's Note |
A note on the board reads, "Adventurer? Brave? Ready to earn rewards for the safety and comfort of Avernum? Able to take orders and not question? If so, then seek Thantria. She awaits under Formello." |
Thantria, Formello |
| Slith Assassin | A feared slithzerikai assassin named Nyryssa has been stalking the farms north of Almaria. We have driven her away, but, if she is not hunted down, she is sure to return. She is thought to have fled to the enemy temple upriver to the north. | Mayor Bevan |
The slimes would be relatively simple if it were not for the Unstable Masses which are sometimes created. As soon as you attack one of these things it explodes severely injuring everything – including you – in its neighbourhood. The trick here is to move as many of your party away from the unstable masses and shoot a bolt of fire or an arrow at one of them. It is not always possible to remove every member of the party to a safe distance. In which case you have to accept that one person will be knocked unconscious. It is usually dead easy to get out of the sewers and then out of the town and back in again which revives the unconscious party member. Julio rewards you with 280 coins, a Healing and a Curing Elixir and about 90 xp.
This time you have to find the secret door in the east of the sewers. Opening the way north leads to a Slime Arenea and four Frenzied Spiders. The spiders are a bit difficult, but the arenea is a pain: not only does it have a lot of health points and is therefore rather hard to kill, but it keeps creating unstable masses. When you finally kill it you find it dropped some scrolls and was guarding a nest with some coins, a Static Band and some potions. The corpse lying in front of the nest is carrying some good armour and a few coins. Julio rewards you with 512 coins, a Speed and an Energy Elixir and around 125 xp for your daring deed.
This one is simple: just go down to Cormac who is in a room south of the portal and talk to him. He rewards you with 50 coins and about 35 xp.
This is just a hint that you should visit her. Although the "Job" appears in your journal you get no reward than about ? xp for completing it.
The same applies to Kelner. He is pleased to get the note and you will gain around 30 xp the next time you talk to him.
This one is relatively straightforward. She is skulking around in a corner in the Slith Temple. When you clear out this dungeon you can also dispose of her. Bevan rewards you with 250 coins, a Snipers Vest (1 Dexterity, 4 Sniper value 800) and around 30xp.