Pick whichever character you like. There are very minor differences, but it doesn’t much matter. You can beat the game fairly easily with any of them and the basic gameplay is the same.
Familiarize yourself with the interact menu as early as possible. It takes some figuring out how to talk to people, how to ask questions, and how to take or give items.
The candle on the right side of the screen is your health. It restores when sleeping at an inn or slowly over time when you stand perfectly still. Potions also restore health and should be used whenever there is a point to doing so. As you won’t get any new potions so long as you already have 1 in your inventory.
Times of Lore has a day-night cycle. At night, many NPCs will be asleep and can’t be interacted with. If you get stuck because a character isn’t where I claimed they’d be, chances are it’s because of this cycle. You can wait for dawn or sleep at an inn yourself. You can recognize inns by their size, which is much larger than the regular houses.
Whenever an NPC mentions something new, be sure to check the Questions menu for new keywords. Sometimes you’ll have to use a new keyword right away to get a different one, which you may need later on in your quest.
You start the adventure with some rations, but should buy some additional ones before long. Rations are consumed over time (marked by an eating icon) without your input. They cost 10 gold at any inn, which is trivial once you get some ways into the game.
You start at an inn. Head down the stairs and a friar will explain that some orcs robbed a caravan containing “The Foretelling Stones”. Use the interact menu to talk with him and select “yes” when prompted whether you want to undertake this quest.
Go to the innkeeper and speak with him a bunch of times, asking for rumors. When he mentions orcs, this nets you a keyword for later. Also speak to the man at the bar and question him a few times. He’ll tell you about the High King Valwyn, giving you a few more keywords. When the man has nothing new to say anymore, leave the inn.
You’re in the town of Eralan. For now, leave the town following the road north into the forest. Keep following the path until you come upon a house. Inside there is a woodsman. Ask him about the Orcs using the keyword gained from the inn. He’ll reveal that the Orcs have a camp north of the lake further down the road. Before you leave, grab the knife on the floor. It’s a permanent upgrade to your attack that adds some range.
Follow the path north until you reach a large body of water. Go around it from the left side and move up until you spot a small path but traversable path between the trees. This should be a winding road with many turns, but with ample room to keep moving. Eventually, after many twists, you arrive at a clearing with a few tents and lots of orcs. Kill the one with the special color and it drops an urn. Inside are the Foretelling Stones. You can now head straight back to the friar in Eralan or…
Now that you’re some ways into the forest, you could also grab a quick item. Go back to the lake and follow the main road from there heading East. You’ll eventually leave the forest and arrive at a town called Rhyder. Rest here if you must before heading further east. You’ll arrive at some mountains. Somewhere along the ridge you’ll find an angry giant, whose attacks make the screen shake. Keep attacking him, using your ranged attack to keep a safe distance if necessary. Once killed, the giant drops a magic ring that makes you invisible when worn. It’s not mandatory to get this item, but it’s useful in a later stealth section.
Once back at Eralan, hand the urn to the friar. He will thank you and inform you that the steward of Eralan wishes to meet you. Head south from the inn, following the road until you get to the intersection. Head up into the castle and speak with the steward. He will inform you that the evil lord of Ganestor has stolen the Tablet of Truth. What villainy!
Leave Eralan from the south, across the bridge, and head East at the intersection. Follow this road until you reach a town called Hampton. Here we’re going to make a quick detour. Technically this is optional, but it’s required if you want to keep your sanity. Leave Hampton and head north. There is no road here, but keep going and you’ll reach Treela. Go to the tavern and speak with the man there, he’ll offer to sell you some boots for 77 gold. Question him about the boots, then select Buy Boots from the talk menu to seal the deal. Equip the boots through the interact menu and BAM. You are now permanently much faster.
Head back south to Hampton and continue following the road south. Ganestor is in the very south-east corner of the world map. Go to its castle, however, and you will find the doors closed. With the guards in no mood to talk about it. This won’t do. Go into the local houses and speak with the random serfs. Eventually one will mention that a man named Barton knows a way in. Barton lives in the house adjacent to the castle. Question him about the hidden entrance and he’ll refer to you Smitty the Innkeep. Go to the inn, question Smitty, and he’ll mention a lever in his basement.
Go down into the basement and touch the lever. Go through the opening this reveals to arrive in the castle. Here you must be careful not to touch the guards or they’ll throw you in prison, ruining your quest. If you’re on an emulator, be sure to save state here. Head up the first set of stairs to arrive on the ground floor. The Tablet of Truth is on the floor in a room west of where you emerge. Dodge the guards, grab the tablet, and it will tell you about who assassinated the High King. Quickly leave the castle through the front entrance (south-east) and book it back to Eralan.
Note that you could use the ring or a blue scroll to make it past the guards more easily, but this is not required.
Return to the steward and hand him the tablet. Your next destination is the town of Lankwell, where the kingslayer resides. Leave Eralan southwards again and, this time, continue heading south from the intersection. You’ll eventually get to Lankwell.
First up, grab another major upgrade. Head to the house on the north-west end of town and talk with the serf in there. He’ll mention an axe. Ask about the axe again and he’ll offer to sell it for 99 gold. This is another upgrade over the knife, with further reach and a boomerang effect. Like with the boots, agree to buy the axe.
Now go to the inn and talk with the man at the bar. Ask about the assassin and you’ll receive the keyword Black Asp. Now go into the houses until you find the serf that will tell you more when asked about Black Asp. For me, this was the house next to the guy selling the axe. The serf will mention that Black Asp lives across the bridge south of town. Head south and follow the river until you find the bridge. Black Asp’s house isn’t far from here.
Once inside, talk to Black Asp and he’ll reveal the truth of the High King’s death. Including a written confession. Take this note back to Ganestor. You can get there easily by leaving Black Asp’s house and heading east continuously. The castle gate is still closed, so head back into the inn, through the secret entrance, and up the stairs. This time, take the second set of stairs in the north-west corner of the ground floor. Approach the lord on his throne and hand him the note. This completes the quest, opens the castle gate, and makes the guards no longer hostile.
The lord of Ganestor suspects a spy is hiding within the castle. No, not you. Someone else. He also suspects the involvement of a different lord, but you don’t need to heed that clue. Head outside the castle and return to the inn. You should have a keyword “spying” now. Use it on Smitty the Innkeeper to learn that our old friend Barton knows more. Unless you are at very low health or it’s already night, do not sleep at the inn right now.
Go to Barton’s house and use the new keyword “sneaking” on him. Barton will reveal that a guard has been sneaking out of the castle every night. Go to the now opened front gate and wait there until nightfall. If it’s still day, then the screen will first gain an orange tint before it will darken. Signaling that it’s night. A guard will come walking out of the front gate, past his 2 colleagues. Speak with him and mention the keyword “Spying” again. The guard will attack you, so kill him. He’ll drop a document that you can bring back to the lord of Ganestor to complete this quest.
Note that the spy is not distinguished from the other guards, even when interacting with him. So if you intercept him while he is still close to the other guards, you may have to guess which one is the real spy. The other guards will just sound confused when you bring up the keyword. If this happens, just pick the other guard from the interact menu instead until you get the right one. Or wait for the spy to move further away.
The prince of Ganestor has been kidnapped while on a diplomatic mission. Follow the road north to Hampton and talk with the man in the house furthest north in town. This is actually the duke of Hampton. He’ll mention having witnessed a crime, so talk with him and question him about “Crime”. This will reveal that the prince has been stolen away by bandits headed for a place called Shadowpeak. Which is literally right next door. Exit the duke’s house and head straight east. Then enter the big building.
There are 3 guys inside a large room who look like the castle guards, but are actually bandits. Kill them all, grab the scroll on the table, then head up the stairs. There are 2 more bandits for you to kill here, 1 of which drops a green key. Pick up the key and touch the cell to free the prince. Speak with him to complete the quest.
Note that the bandits are quite tough compared to the other enemies seen thus far. Consider using a blue scroll to freeze them in place so they are easier to kill.
Go back to Hampton and leave it heading West. The same path you’d follow back to Eralan, but stick to the river specifically until you find a bridge heading north. This leads to a shack with a hunter who, when chitchatting, will mention seeing lights in a shack up north. You can go through the forest or around it, but make sure not to stray too far eastward. At the north end you’ll find another river and another bridge to cross it. Leading straight to a tiny building containing a set of stairs. Head up these stairs to meet the archmage, who will challenge you to kill a Lyche.
The next part is going to be a bit of a run-around. Go all the way south again across the bridge by the Hunter’s Cabin. Now follow the road back to Hampton until you get to an inn on a stretch of road headed east. Go inside and talk to the man at the table. Chitchat with him and he’ll mention a ruined temple. Ask about that and he’ll reveal the location and how to defeat the Lyche. Now also ask about Lyches and then ask about Holy Water, whereupon the old man will tell you about a friar who sells the stuff. Now go aaaaaaaaaaaall the way back to Rhyder. Either by going through Eralan and the Dark Forest or by following the river north of the Archmage’s place until you can curve around a lake. Go to a little house in the north part of town to meet the local friar. Ask him about Holy Water and he’ll sell you some for 25 gold.
(Note, if you picked up the green scroll, you can use it from your inventory to travel between main locations. Saving you some time here.)
Now it’s back to the inn you were just at again. Then head straight south into the desert to find the ruins. It’s a little hard to spot, but you’re looking for a strange door jutting out from the scenery. Once inside, step on the little switch straight down from where you entered to open up a bit of wall. Go through and find the next switch by following the hallway down. Then go back to the entrance room and head east, following the path there until you get to a room with another switch to step on. This opens up another door just west of the entrance chamber. Go there, step on another switch and a bridge is created south. Step on the switch there to be teleported to the next segment.
Here, head east and then south once you reach the far wall to find another switch. This opens up a path north. Head there and step on the switch to be teleported again. Head north and step on a switch, but do not enter the small room ahead of you. Instead, follow the path east to a room with 3 switches. Step on all of them to create 3 bridges directly south. Go across these bridges to another room with another set of 3 switches. Only 1 of these is real, which for me was the rightmost switch. Now go back to the room I told you to ignore earlier. The door across is now open, so ignore the 2 switches and head on through.
Run up to the big skeleton — the Lyche — on the throne in the next room. Say or do nothing to it, just use the holy water from your inventory to instantly win. Now head back to the previous room and step on the switch on the right to get teleported back to the entrance. Leave and report back to the archmage.
Note that the ghosts in this area are quite tough. Requiring multiple hits even if you picked up the axe. It’s wise to try and run around them as much as possible using the boots from Treela instead.
Your last quest sees you oppose a dark ritual conducted by evil clerics. Your first stop, however, is a place called The Blasted Spot. This is a locale some distance south-east of the intersection south of Eralan. Or a fair bit north-west of the desert if you want to view it like that. The archmage already gave you the key, so just walk into it and you’ll be transported to another dungeon.
This is another switch puzzle, but this time there is only a single large floor to explore. A few of the switches are fakes or traps, but there is no way to do anything truly wrong here. Just keep going around stepping on switches and accessing the paths that they open. Again while (preferably) dodging the many ghosts haunting the dungeon. Eventually you’ll open up another throne room, which just has a chime for you to pick up. Grab it, leave, and maybe rest up at an inn of your choosing.
Use the green scroll from your inventory and teleport to Treela. Head north and follow the mountains on the right to the abbey. There are powerful enemies roaming around outside, but you can ignore them and head for the door. With the chime in your inventory, it opens automatically. Once inside, dash for the stairs in the upper-left corner. Here you find another enemy in grey robes roaming around; kill him and take the key that he leaves behind. Now head back down the stairs and to the little room below, where you can see a lever on the wall. Touch the lever and another staircase will appear.
Head down these stairs to the basement. You can again ignore the enemy in this room and head for the lone cell with a prisoner. The key you picked up just earlier will open the cell, Talk with the prisoner and confirm that you’re here to kill the abbot. The prisoner will then reveal the abbot’s secret. A sphere hidden beneath his bed. With this information, head back up the stairs and back up the second floor, where you killed the enemy for the key before. Go to the little room with a bed and open the interact menu. Grab the sphere.
Now comes the final “battle”. Head down to the main floor again and make a dash for the abbot seated on his throne. Once close to him, open the interact menu and use the sphere from your inventory. Just like with the Lyche, this kills him instantly. Now grab the medallion left behind and CONGRATULATIONS. You beat Times of Lore.
Read more on legacyofgames.com
