Hadean Lands: new hint thread

The first hint thread has gotten large and unwieldy. After some discussion, it seems reasonable to start a new one.

Note that I will not be offering hints myself. This thread is for players to give hints to each other.

We want to be careful about spoilers. However, if everybody spoiler-tags their questions, it’s impossible for newcomers to look through and find relevant information. So I’m proposing a rule: assume that the names of rooms are not secret. (They’re on the map that comes with the game, after all.) Similarly, the names of ingredients and rituals that you find lying around should not be treated as secret. You can leave those visible in your questions.

Obviously, answers should be spoiler-tagged, as well as any rituals and ingredients that you had to invent or cleverly discover.

These are guidelines; use your judgement. Hopefully this will go smoothly and we can follow this plan for big-game hint threads in the future.

Not to be too nitpicky, but what do you recommend we do with places that are not named on the map?

Ok this is my first post on this forum so please bear with me:

I am in what I assume is somewhere mid-game, and I’m stumped. Here is a transcript of my complete “recall” options:

[spoiler]Start of a transcript of

Hadean Lands
Overdue Interactive Fiction by Andrew Plotkin
Copyright (c) 2014 by Andrew Plotkin
Release 4 / Serial number 141017 / Inform 7 build 6G60 (I6/v6.33)
Identification number: //47EFEF42-E2F2-4675-ADA2-5A5942A0870A//
Interpreter version 0.5.2 / iOS / VM 3.1.2 / Library serial number 080126
Standard Rules version 2/090402 by Graham Nelson

rituals
You have learned twenty-five rituals: (* marks rituals you have not yet completed)
lead weight increase inscription ()
viridigris synthesis (
)
sublime spirit synthesis ()
clock tincture synthesis (
)
metal attractor inscription ()
prophylactic scalpel inscription
aura invisibility inscription (
)
perfect mud synthesis ()
bamuriatic acid synthesis (
)
glass permeability inscription ()
gold ignition
aura imitation inscription (
)
electrum phlogistication ()
aura impermeability inscription
breath-holding synthesis
planetary lens creation
lodestone of purity creation (
)
fire-resistance synthesis
resonant oculus creation
fungicide synthesis
universal tarnish cleansing inscription (with the brass pin)
doubled rust cleansing inscription (with the steel bolt)
doubled tarnish cleansing inscription (with the brass pin) (*)
basic rust cleansing inscription (with the steel bolt)
basic tarnish cleansing inscription (with the brass pin)

formulas
You know an impressive list of alchemical formulae:
a Mediate Anima
a Relative Anima
the Phlogistical Catalysis
the Sealing of Shamash
a Major Animus
the Ka Sealing
the Crystalline Tempering
a symmetric sequence
an antisymmetric sequence
a word of emulgence
the Chi Binding
an isomorphic group
an idempotent group
a word of anaphylaxis
the Binding of the Celestial Sphere
a phlegmatic sealing word
a Minor Animus
a resonant tone
a syllable of counterbalance
the Anodyne Evocation
a word of entension
a word of culmination
the Hermetic Sealing
the Binding of Antipathy
the categorical imperative
the Lesser Phlogistical Saturation
an elementary word of binding
a word of essential nature
a simple sealing word
an unsealing mantra

facts
You have picked up assorted facts:
the Cold Crucible gossip
musical theory
the white-fuse challenge
the store safe combination
the electrum substitution
the spiritual environment
the exhilarant environment
the recursive metaphor technique
the periodic table of stone
the Birdhouse defensive stricture
the nature of aura clouds
a lecture on potions
the percalcination procedure
the elemental earth loan
a lecture on gestalt shelves
the copper calcination demonstration
the crawlway access combination
the catalytic environment
the work assignment
the resinous note
a lecture on aromas

places
Since the accident, you have visited these notable locations:
the Secondary Alchemy Lab
the Mech Lab Crawlspace
the Void
the Herbarium Nook
the Chymic Lab
the Mechanica Lab
the Materials Store
the Opticks Lab
the Opticks Annex
the Pyrics Lab
the Pyrics Store
the Main Store
the Library
the Lab Wing Hallway
the Nave
the Airlock
the Medical Wing
the Medical Workroom
the Portico
Junior Quarters
the Deck Suite
the High Tower
the Master Rector’s Quarters
the Study Room
the Under Ward
the Scaphe Arcade
the Exoscaphe
the Paper Garden
the Observatory
the Grand Stair, Top
the Grand Stair, Bottom
the Burning Hall West
the Edge of Chasm
the Deep Stacks
the Confusing Cracks
The following rooms still need to be checked with the oculus for sparks:
the Bottom of Shaft

things
Since the accident, you have found (or created) these (portable) items:
three potion bottles (breath holding, fire resistance, and fungicide)
nine chymic flasks (saline, rubbing alcohol, mineral oil, muriatic acid, vitriolic acid, vinegar, lubanja, alum, and sand)
five impets of essential oil (ginger, peppermint, citronelle, kelp, and eucalyptus)
six metal rods (lead, platinum, nickel, moon-metal, orichalcum, and phlogisticated gold)
two lengths of wire (platinum and nickel)
six stone chips (granite, sandstone, flint, basalt, marble, and obsidian)
seven wooden splints (elemental wood, cedar, maple, winter-oak, blackwood, green linden, and swamp pith)
four chimes (bronze F-sharp, bronze B, glass G-flat, and glass H)
four clay molds (for Medical, Alchemy, Aithery, and Venture Files)
four seals (lead Medical, lead Alchemy, lead Aithery, and lead Venture)
a scratched bubble
a shard of elemental earth
a capsule of elemental water
a brass pin
a steel bolt
a length of silver chain
a length of silk cord
a glass loop
a concave glass lens
a convex glass lens
a lump of rock salt
a fluorspar crystal
a long quartz prism
a broad quartz prism
a rough diamond
an iron bead
a sprig of rosemary
a pinecone
a sprig of honeysuckle
a dried mushroom
a chunk of coral
a pinch of mustard seed
a pinch of zafranum
a white feather
a lump of camphrost
a torch-lighter
a crusty scalpel
a resonant oculus
a planetary lens
a brass coin
a silver coin
a horn coin
a measuring block
an ivory bead
a Chinese amulet
a rotor card
a blank tin slip
a pair of tarnished calipers
a thick key
a porcelain paten
a labyrinth tile

doors
You have yet to deal with the following locked doors and barriers:
the Secondary Alchemy Lab door
the Chymic Lab door
the Opticks closet door
the Deck Suite Venture door
the Tertiary Lab door
the Airlock outer door
the Portico main doors
the North Arcade marble door
the Exoscaphe hatch
the Birdhouse door
the obsidian door
the Barosy gate
the Observatory ladder
the South Chasm bridge
the Medical Wing Hallway cabinet
the High Tower cabinet
twelve fractures

script off

End of transcript.[/spoiler]

I think what I am trying to do next is perform the lead weight increase inscription, to get to the ladder in the observatory, but I don’t know what the Gaian precipitate is.

That said I’m not sure if I’m barking up the wrong tree. If also appreciate any general tips on things I might be able to do at this stage.

Look elsewhere. Gaian precipitate is one of those things that will be obvious when it is available.

Following up on that spark hint wouldn’t be a bad idea. It also looks like you’ve not obtained the elemental earth (since you’ve not done a prerequisite ritual). I don’t think it’s possible to solve the ladder problem without that.

Some rooms are not named on the map because they’re obvious and the labelling would get crowded. (The Materials Store, Lab Hall NW, etc.) Nothing secret about those. However, if a room is Not On The Map, be circumspect. :slight_smile:

The only place I haven’t checked is the “Bottom of Shaft”. I don’t recall the “Bottom of Shaft” and it’s not a room I can “go to” to. I also can’t go to “Shaft” or “Top of Shaft” and there’s no shaft marked on the map. I assume I’ve been there once, but I don’t remember. What’s the shaft?

Ok, next I’ll work on obtaining the environmental earth. I know the Elemental Earth is in the pile of broken glass in the Optiks lab and I assume I need the Lodestone of Purity to find it in the pile, but I wasn’t able to create the lodestone without a silver thread. I’ve found a silver coin and a silver chain, but no thread, and no bar I can turn into a wire. Can you give me a hint on the silver thread?

I also just realized that I may have the requirements to perform the Metal Attractor Inscription so I’m going to try that in the mean time. Thanks!

Not 100% sure, but I think it’s the bottom of the pool in the Paper Garden. If so, there might not be a spark down there (seems thematically odd), but there’s definitely information you need.

The game is, intentionally I assume, not entirely consistent in what objects are called versus how they’re referred to in rituals.

I believe the silver chain is in fact what you use for that.

Near the beginning of the game, I have difficulty completing the universal tarnish ritual in the Mechanica lab.

I need the platinum wire to make a catalytic environment but the wire was consumed by the wire-drawer which I used in the previous room.

I’m puzzled by this question for a couple of reasons:

The wire-drawer is in the Mechanica Lab, not the Secondary Alchemy Lab, which is where you started.
The wire-drawer doesn’t use up wire; it makes metal rods into wire, which is what you need for the ritual.

Is it possible you didn’t take the wire out of the wire-drawer after using it?

Sorry for explaining too vaguely. I lost the platinum wire actually in the wire-splicer, it was ground into small flakes because I did something wrong. Anyway, the problem is I don’t have a platinum wire at present and I need it for the universal tarnish ritual. With the previous room I indeed meant the Mechanica Lab, because the bound which I am trying to use now is actually in the small storage room west of the mechanica lab, and that makes the lab “the previous room” from where I am now.

That’s clearer, though I don’t think you have to spoiler-tag quite so aggressively: names of rooms, things that are in plain sight — these things don’t have to be tagged.

Anyway, of course you’re right, the adjustable bound is in the Mech. Lab storeroom. And if you destroyed the platinum wire in the wire-splicer, you’re out of luck, because there’s no more you can find. You could have used UNDO right after you made the mistake; now your choices are to RESTORE a saved game or RESET (if you’ve learned how to do that). If you haven’t learned RESET and don’t have a save file, then you can find RESET by going DOWN from the crawlway below the Mech. Lab.

Thank you! I do have a save game so there’s no problem going a bit back; I thought there might be some alternative solution so I didn’t use UNDO at the time.

I’ve read through the previous hint thread and there were a few replies about this, but I still can’t figure it out.

how do you make the yang oil? There were some comments about a ritual for it, but I can’t find it. I’ve checked every spark and most rooms and cabinets.

So this is probably the most stupid thing to be hung up on, but –

When it comes to making the yang oil,

how do I obtain a floral note?

I feel like this is something I should have used by now, but apparently I haven’t.

Things I have tried:

Citronelle oil simply seems not to work.
The rest of the other oils are out, for similar reasons.
Of the other natural ingredients I have, the majority aren’t useful. The pinecone is consumed automatically (even now, apparently?), the mustard seed has little scent, and the zafranum is bitter.
The only other alternative I can think of is honeysuckle (which I’ve yet to find a use for), but it doesn’t have much of an aroma when I wave it.
The honeysuckle ignites, but it burns immediately, even when ignited by the pith, and it doesn’t seem to be successful.
I’ve tried aeroclaving the honeysuckle (in hopes of purifying it), but that just sublimes it away.
I’ve tried distilling it in alcohol or java to extract out the essential oils (no luck; I didn’t expect any).

So what am I missing?

A brief summary of my game status –

I’ve woken Pneuma and Oculus. I’ve gotten to and into the alien wreck (though not through the window yet).

Rituals:

[spoiler]You have learned forty-five rituals: (* marks rituals you have not yet completed)
lead weight decrease inscription (with distillate)
perfect diamond creation ()
aither-resistance synthesis
dragon fulcrum inscription
obsidian solvent synthesis
yang oil synthesis (
)
marble solvent synthesis
fire-devourer synthesis
granite solvent synthesis ()
lead weight decrease inscription (with precipitate)
counter-Gaian precipitate synthesis
Gaian precipitate synthesis
coralicide synthesis
vacuum-protection synthesis
Great Marriage
aluminum permeability inscription
lead weight increase inscription
bamuriatic acid synthesis
perfect mud synthesis
dispersal brush creation
aura imitation inscription (with quartz)
lodestone of centrality creation
prophylactic scalpel inscription
lodestone of purity creation
aura invisibility inscription
copper percalcinate synthesis
glass permeability inscription
sublime spirit synthesis
lead weight increase inscription
bamuriatic acid synthesis
perfect mud synthesis
dispersal brush creation
aura imitation inscription (with quartz)
lodestone of centrality creation
prophylactic scalpel inscription
lodestone of purity creation
aura invisibility inscription
copper percalcinate synthesis
glass permeability inscription
sublime spirit synthesis
viridigris synthesis
clock tincture synthesis
metal attractor inscription
aura imitation inscription (with jade) (
)
aura impermeability inscription
electrum phlogistication ()
gold ignition
breath-holding synthesis
planetary lens creation
fire-resistance synthesis
resonant oculus creation
fungicide synthesis
universal tarnish cleansing inscription (with the brass pin)
doubled rust cleansing inscription (with the steel bolt)
doubled tarnish cleansing inscription (with the brass pin) (
)
basic rust cleansing inscription (with the steel bolt)
basic tarnish cleansing inscription (with the brass pin)
[/spoilers]

Items:

Since the accident, you have found (or created) these (portable) items:
eleven potion bottles (vacuum protection, breath holding, fire resistance, aither resistance, clock
tincture, fungicide, coralicide, fire devourer, polar oil, marble solvent, and obsidian solvent)
ten chymic vials (sublime spirit, copper percalcinate, bamuriatic acid, Gaian precipitate,
counter-Gaian precipitate, anti-Tellurian distillate, perfect mud, highlime, shaved nickel, and
viridigris)
nine chymic flasks (saline, rubbing alcohol, mineral oil, muriatic acid, vitriolic acid, vinegar,
lubanja, alum, and sand)
five impets of essential oil (ginger, peppermint, citronelle, kelp, and eucalyptus)
eight metal rods (lead, platinum, nickel, moon-metal, white amalgam, orichalcum, gold, and
phlogisticated gold)
three lengths of wire (platinum, nickel, and white amalgam)
six stone chips (granite, sandstone, flint, basalt, marble, and obsidian)
seven wooden splints (elemental wood, cedar, maple, winter-oak, blackwood, green linden, and
swamp pith)
four chimes (bronze F-sharp, bronze B, glass G-flat, and glass H)
four clay molds (for Medical, Alchemy, Aithery, and Venture Files)
four seals (lead Alchemy, lead Aithery, lead Venture, and rutilum Alchemy)
a scratched bubble
a dusty bubble
a shard of elemental earth
a capsule of elemental water
a brass pin
a steel bolt
a length of silver chain
a length of silk cord
a glass loop
a concave glass lens
a convex glass lens
a lump of rock salt
a fluorspar crystal
a long quartz prism
a broad quartz prism
a rough diamond
a flint key
a droplet of mercury
an iron bead
a sprig of rosemary
a pinecone
a sprig of honeysuckle
a dried mushroom
a chunk of coral
a pinch of mustard seed
a pinch of zafranum
a plain white feather
a lump of camphrost
a torch-lighter
a crusty scalpel
a dispersal brush
a resonant oculus
a planetary lens
a lodestone of purity
a lodestone of centrality
a brass coin
a silver coin
a horn coin
a measuring block
an ivory bead
a Chinese amulet
a rotor card
a blank tin slip
an ephemeris billet
a pair of tarnished calipers
a spare lab key
a thick key
a porcelain paten
a labyrinth tile

Rooms:

the Secondary Alchemy Lab
the Mech Lab Crawlspace
the Void
the Herbarium Nook
the Chymic Lab
the Mechanica Lab
the Materials Store
the Opticks Lab
the Opticks Annex
the Opticks Closet
the Tertiary Alchemy Lab
the Pyrics Lab
the Pyrics Store
the Main Store
the Storage Nook
the Library
the Lab Wing Hallway
the Nave
the Airlock
the Hadean Plain
the Medical Wing
the Medical Workroom
the Chancel
the Nave Crawlway
the Portico
Junior Quarters
the Deck Suite
the High Tower
the Deck Suite
the High Tower
the Master Rector’s Quarters
the Master-at-Arms Quarters
the Study Room
the Under Ward
the Scaphe Arcade
the Dressing Room
the Exoscaphe Bay
the Exoscaphe
the Exoscaphe Dome
the Paper Garden
the Paper Maze, Center
the Observatory
the Aithery
the Grand Stair, Top
the Grand Stair, Bottom
the Birdhouse
the Burning Hall West
the Antechamber
the Barosy
the Edge of Chasm
the Deep Stacks
the Confusing Cracks
the Hadean Land, at Wreck
the Strange Airlock
the Confusing Cracks
the Ruined Hallway

What am I missing?

Edit: Never mind!

In increasing order of spoilerness:

Remember when you needed a resinous note way back at the beginning of the game, so you had to wave the rosemary?

Remember when you needed a stronger resinous note, so you had to crush the pinecone?

You probably need a flower to evoke a floral note.

CRUSH THE HONEYSUCKLE.

@ironwallaby:

Right. I wasn’t overlooking anything, just overthinking it.

Thanks. :slight_smile:

Catsinia, it would be easier to answer if you gave us the results of the RITUALS, ROOMS, and DOORS commands. Lacking that, the most non-spoilery thing I can ask is, have you created any solvents?

I don’t think I have done that yet.

Rituals

You have learned twenty-nine rituals: (* marks rituals you have not yet completed)
Gaian precipitate synthesis ()
coralicide synthesis
bamuriatic acid synthesis (
)
Great Marriage ()
dispersal brush creation
lead weight increase inscription (
)
aura imitation inscription (with quartz) ()
lodestone of centrality creation (
)
prophylactic scalpel inscription
copper percalcinate synthesis
aura invisibility inscription ()
lodestone of purity creation
viridigris synthesis (
)
sublime spirit synthesis ()
aura imitation inscription (with jade) (
)
breath-holding synthesis
planetary lens creation
gold ignition ()
aura impermeability inscription
electrum phlogistication (
)
fire-resistance synthesis
resonant oculus creation
fungicide synthesis
universal tarnish cleansing inscription (with the steel bolt)
universal tarnish cleansing inscription (with the brass pin) ()
doubled rust cleansing inscription (with the steel bolt)
doubled tarnish cleansing inscription (with the brass pin) (
)
basic rust cleansing inscription (with the steel bolt)
basic tarnish cleansing inscription (with the brass pin)

Rooms

Since the accident, you have visited these notable locations:
the Secondary Alchemy Lab
the Mech Lab Crawlspace
the Void
the Herbarium Nook
the Chymic Lab
the Mechanica Lab
the Materials Store
the Opticks Lab
the Opticks Annex
the Pyrics Lab
the Pyrics Store
the Main Store
the Storage Nook
the Library
the Lab Wing Hallway
the Nave
the Airlock
the Medical Wing
the Medical Workroom
the Portico
Junior Quarters
the Deck Suite
the High Tower
the Master Rector’s Quarters
the Study Room
the Under Ward
the Scaphe Arcade
the Exoscaphe
the Paper Garden
the Observatory
the Grand Stair, Top
the Grand Stair, Bottom
the Burning Hall West
the Edge of Chasm
the Deep Stacks
the Confusing Cracks
the Oberservatory Alcove, South
the Burning Hall East

Doors

You have yet to deal with the following locked doors and barriers:
the Secondary Alchemy Lab door
the Chymic Lab door
the Opticks closet door
the Deck Suite Venture door
the Tertiary Lab door
the Airlock outer door
the Portico main doors
the North Arcade marble door
the Exoscaphe hatch
the Birdhouse door
the obsidian door
the Barosy gate
the Observatory ladder
the South Chasm bridge
the Storage Nook cabinet
the Junior Quarters cabinet
the Exoscaphe cabinet
twelve fractures

I’ve tried using reset to try out options with all the rituals that use orichalcum since I’m stuck, but it hasn’t really helped open anything up. I know I must be missing something simple. I’d really just like some direction as to what to do next or what I must be overlooking.