Water

The breath bar for Zoya the Thief

Zoya swimming underwater

Zoya swimming through dangerous Spikeballs

Not to be confused with Toxic Water

Water is an environmental hazard that is encountered often in the game.

There are many streams, pools and lakes of clear fresh Water that the three heroes will have to safely negotiate on their journey through the kingdom. The heroes will frequently have to swim underwater to reach the next area that they can explore. Sometimes this will entail swimming long distances through an underwater maze.

The three heroes can remain underwater for a limited amount of time before their breath runs out. Each of the three heroes has a breath bar that appears on the screen when he or she is underwater. The breath bar will show the amount of breath that he or she has remaining. They can swim to the surface to take a new breath of air and then swim back down, unless they are in an underwater tunnel or maze. If the breath bar reaches zero then he or she will die by drowning.

Any of the three heroes can be given the magical Scales of Fish enchantment which will give that hero unlimited breath underwater. The Scales of Fish can be swapped between the heroes at any time using the Inventory Menu.

Vision is very clear at the surface but as the hero swims down it can become quite dark and murky in deep Water.

Underwater areas should be thoroughly searched as there can often be found Experience Vials, Pickup Items and other useful Items on ledges or at the bottom. There are also secret underwater caves and tunnels that should be looked for and explored for special or useful Items.

The non-magical Crate can often be found floating on Water and can be useful in a number of ways.

Skeletons quickly die if they fall or are pushed into the Water.

Apart from drowning the only other dangers faced underwater are Stakes, Spikes and Spikeballs. These can be passed by using careful manoeuvring and timing. The floating and hanging chained Spikeballs are the most serious underwater traps to be negotiated.

• All three heroes can jump out of the Water onto floating objects or onto the land.

• Knight: he can only walk and jump underwater because of his heavy armour therefore he cannot actually swim underwater. He can use his Sword or his Storm Hammer to smash obstacles underwater. He can also use his Shield to protect against Spikeballs and other underwater traps.

• Thief: she is a good swimmer underwater. She can also sometimes swing over Water using her Grapple Hook.

• Wizard: he is a good swimmer underwater. He can conjure Boxes, Planks and Floating Platforms when he is underwater and conjure them into the Water when he is on the land, he can also smash them underwater if they get in the way. His Boxes and Planks do not float on Water but sink to the bottom.

For a list of other environmental hazards in the game see: Hazards