Druid

Druid
Game No.	320
Voting	7.54 points, 24 votes
Developer	Andrew Bailey Graphics: Dene T. Carter, Bob Stevenson Cover: Alan Craddock
Publisher	Firebird, Pubblirome
Musician	David M. Hanlon
HVSC-File	/MUSICIANS/H/Hanlon_David Druid.sid
Release	1986
Platform	C64, Amstrad CPC, Atari 8bit, MSX, NES, Tatung Einstein, ZX Spectrum
Genre	Shoot'em Up, Gauntlet
Gamemode	Single player 2 players (simultaneous)
Operation
Media
Language
Information	Also: Druido Follower: Enlightenment - Druid II Warlock - The Avenger

Description

Druid is a computer game that was released by the software company Firebird in 1986. Strictly speaking is the game a clone of the well-known game Gauntlet, which again is an action adventure with a slight pinch of a role play game. The role play game elements are, however, more in the foreground in Druid than in the known original. With the joystick you steer a Druid sprite (named: Hasrinaxx) and with the keyboad you control a Golem. The later can even be played by another person with joystick in port 2. The graphics scroll and show a view from above.

Background

As common at that time, the great hits from the arcade halls influenced the home computer software market to that effect that many clones were brought onto the market in the shadow of the officially licensed arcade machine conversions. They offered the software companies the possibility to earn a disproportionate amount of money in the slipstream of big names and with relatively few costs on marketing and programming. The quality of most of the clones was correspondingly bad.

But not so with Druid, which was in fact oriented on the arcade hall hit "Gauntlet", but could stand for itself by ideas put well into practice. The great strengths of the game were in the appropriate difficulty grade, the use of several role play game elements as spells and healing points and good to very good graphics and sound. The possibility to be able to create a Golem for support and to be able to even control it with a 2nd joystick, was probably the most noticeable and successful element. And finally you could give the hero your personal fighter profile by choosing certain spells, depending on what type of fight (invisibility, chaos, Golem, different forms of energy as fire, water and electricity) one preferred. Equally was it possible to do without some parts of the dungeons - and by this also without some helpful spells, keys and energy - which emphasizes the strategic touch.

Design

... an image from the game

... an animation from the game

Druid was a very popular game, though it did not reach the immense success of e.g. Gauntlet, but its sophisticated and coherent mix of ideas helped it to a solid fan base, so that two sequels followed. Highlighted must also be the title tune of the first part, which due to its catchy composition even today often finds a use in remixes. In contrast to Gauntlet it only had 8 dungeons, but those were thoroughly thought-out and by the compressed content correspondingly challenging but never unfair.

Hints

Controls

• Change shot type: P 
• Open doors: +  (key and pixel exact positioning required)
• Invisible: -  ("´" in CCS64)
• Chaos: CLR  ("Pos1" in CCS64)
• Create Golem: £  ("insert" in CCS64)
• Control Golem: C=  (CTRL left in CCS64)

General tips

If you open a yellow chest, you have to decide between the offered spells/items.

Which spells are needed?

• The calculation is simple, less the execution: 4 skulls have to be removed, and for each you need two chaos spells. So that makes 8 chaos spells altogether, so you should not be too wasteful with them.
• You should also always carry at least 2 keys. Nothing is worse than having to give up the game with a character fully loaded and packed with chaos spells in level 7 due to the lack of keys.

Notice: If you enter a dungeon for a second time, all doors are closed again. There are places in the game where this does not matter, but at other places this is fatal, so. e.g betweeen level 4 and 5. Therefore you should only "jump between" dungeons, if you are sure to have enough keys.

The spells differ in effectiveness depending on the enemy:

Enemy	Water	Fire	Electricity
Ghost	1	1	2
Beetle	3	1	2
Skeleton	1	3	2
Snake	3	1	2
Ralack	1	2	2
Wraith	3	2	2
Slime	3	1	2
Devil	3	3	1

Detailed tips for each level

Level 1

• You absolutely have to possess a key when leaving the dungeon or else you won't be able to proceed in level 2.
• At the lower right is a treasure chest that is rather easy to reach.

Level 2

• Slime and devil means here: shoot with fire and electricity. Water is not a good solution.
• At the lower right it is worth to invest a key for opening the small area: there are four full treasure chests, and one of them even compensates you with another key. However, it is advised to sacrifice an invisibility spell to avoid a fuss.

Level 3

Here you also make the trip to the west. To get one level lower you have to go east.

Level 4

Here you should consider well where you go to as there are hardly any rooms that are completely encircled and where you can hide. So you are permanently exposed to attacks. In the south there is a locked room. If you open it, there is a treasure chest, two pentacles and an alternative path into the dungeon below. However, this leads "only" to the treasures in an area of level 5 where there is no exit to level 6! So after that you need to go back to level 4 and open the doors in the west and northwest again - if you have the keys for this.

Level 5

The "main quest" here is done fast: if you have charged up above the (regular! - see hint level 4) entrance at the pentacle, you go south and go up again quasi "around the corner" (of course with the help of "Chaos" - so "Pos1" on the PC keyboard) and you are standing in front of the end boss. Tip: If you hurry and plunge into level 6 fast, the effect of the spells still stay for a while which keeps bothersome monsters away.

Level 6

You'd rather leave as soon as possible but you should try to pick up all Chaos spells that you can get. This means: clench your teeth and explore the dungeon, unless you have already enough Chaos spells.

Level 7

Chaos spells shoud be preferred to keys here. When leaving this level you only need 2 keys to be able to cope in level 8.

Level 8

First you should open the door in the east, then the one in the north. There you find further keys. If you cross the bridge you will even find a pentacle. You can happily use up the last invisibility spell, as in the west lingers - as is known - the last of the four end bosses. You can eliminate it exactly as all the others as it is not stronger than the others.

Solution

Level 1

Our Druid would like to be at the lower exit to level 2. At the upper right we see two huge bugs prone to fire (switch between water, fire and electricity with "P") that would mind. The yellow treasure chest at the top left of the gentleman in blue might be the solution to the problem.

Level 2

"If only I had not taken these stairs...!". If you have not remembered to bring a key, you are snookered here. Slime monsters and small devils do their bad deeds to prevent Hasrinaxx from reaching the next Healing Point. Important: Use also the "+"-key with joystick movements for opening doors, or else it won't work!

Level 3

Where do I come form, where do I go to? In level three you can see the exit right from the beginning; of course the way there leads through hordes of monsters, energy sucking puddles and - what else - locked doors. But nevertheless: here you can already decide between the shortest and most energy-saving version (about 50% of the dungeon) and the full package with useful spells in untouched treasure chests - if you dare ...

Level 4

For the first time there is more than one exit here. The choice decides about the further course of the game. Well-known faces from the world of adventures and role play games: skeletons do not like water, the devils are as anachronists against everything with electricity.

Level 5

Our first encounter with one of the many end bosses: to be able to get past its spitting of fire at all (and by this get close to it), you have to use a Chaos spell. While the effect of the spell lasts, you should quickly try to touch the skull and then (while being in contact with it!) release another Chaos spell. Nice side-effect of the spell: our energy reloads while all enemies disappear. This is of course rather superfluous as, the pentacle as a Healing Point is only waiting to do us good ...

Level 6

Now it starts to get difficult: on the one hand you run out of keys, on the other the treasure chests that contain them are devilistly well guarded. More and more often different monster types appear at the same time, that is why you are forced to switch the shot type very often (with "P"). Every now and then it is helpful to sneak invisibly past the terrifying pack. By the way: only the black part of the grinning face can be walked safely, walking on the white part subtracts energy.

Level 7

It is only the ground which is rose-coloured; the prospects however, are rather gloomy. It is no use to moan, because also this skin-scarce guy needs to be expelled from this dimension, this is why again two of the rather rare Chaos spells must be used.

Level 8

Showdown! The evil guy makes the same mistake that all the evil guys make: it underestimates the good guy. If you managed to get here and you have two Chaos spells left, you can celebrate: the evil is banned from this world and druid blue is the summer's fashion colour.

Voting

Voting of the C64-Wiki users (10=the best vote):
7.54 points at 24 votes (rank 239). You need to be logged in to cast a vote.
C64Games	8	20th February 2006 - "super" 2705 downs
Lemon64	7,63	6th October 2006 - 56 votes
Kultboy.com	8,22	15th October 2010 - 9 votes
ASM	8/12	Issue 1/87
Happy Computer	80%	Games Special 12/86
ZZap64	88%	Issue 10/86

Reviews

Klaws: "The only point that I did not like is the missing possibility to save. Instead you can enjoy a diversified game with challenging but well-dosed difficulty grade."

Robotron2084: "A rather easygoing Gauntlet clone with slight role play game elements and a successful two-player mode. As a single player this game is of course a bit more difficult and to find the right key in the heat of the battle is not always easy. For my taste you are also stuck at obstacle a bit too often, the moving space of the character is mostly rather limited, the game area is a bit claustrophobic. However, Druid is a well playable and technically convincing fantasy shooting and above all in pairs a hit. 7 out of 10 points."

Miscellaneous

Cover

Highscore

1. Robotron2084 - spiritmaster (05.08.2010)
2. Ivanpaduano - Acolyte (31.07.2019)
3. Werner - apprentice (28.03.2010)

	#2 Ivanpaduano		#3 Werner

Links

• C64Games.de - Game No. 49
• Lemon64 - Game No. 787
• Gamebase64.com - Game No. 2364
• Test Report No. 1337 on Kultboy.com
• ZZap64 test report

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• Druid test at Kultpower.de
• Druid remixes at RKO

Videos