From TES issue 28 (July 2004)

Series 7/8. Level 1/2.
THE SLIDING FLOOR CHAMBER

This was exactly like the [Firebomb Room], except there were no fireballs. The room was a yellow sandstone colour, and the challenge was to walk across the three sections of sliding blocks to reach the exit. You would have thought this task would be easier without fireballs being shot at you as well, but this was not necessarily the case.

This challenge first appeared in its castrated form to menace series 7's Alex II at the end of level one. For those of us who had already seen Simon IV complete this challenge with fireballs, the task looked fairly simple for Alex. However, Alex's advisors clearly did not feel the same way. The advisor nearest to Treguard - James - guided Alex slowly and calmly through the puzzle, earning him a big hug from Neil, the advisor next to him. There was obviously a lot of tension as Alex went through the puzzle, but James handled it very well.

The Sliding Floor Chamber then took a break until Barry's quest [Team 7 of Series 7]. Barry was guided through very well, but he had to backtrack to collect a piece of Grimaldine's staff that was on the wall above the third section of floor. With goblins following to boot, it was quite a thrilling scene.

Unlike the [Firebomb Room], the Sliding Floor returned for series 8. Daniel was the first to attempt it [Team 2 of Series 8], which led to the infamous Gideon's usual erratic guidance. Again there were some creatures following to add to the tension; miremen this time. The room's final appearance was with Michael, who was followed across by Snapper-Jack. Michael's advisors were very distressed to see the Sliding Floor in their quest as they had obviously been hoping to avoid it. It was a tense and tricky challenge indeed, but not so much as its cousin the [Firebomb Room].

Difficulty: 6 Surprisingly tricky and very intimidating.
Killer Instinct: 2 It could so easily have claimed a victim.
Gore Factor: 3 A very quick disappearing act would have followed.
Fairness: 4 Possibly a bit too tricky for level one.

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This puzzle, which doesn't have an official name, first appeared in Series 7, and it could be claimed that its introduction was to make up for the loss of the Causeways... or maybe not.

Its premise was fairly simple... moving blocks would shift their way around the room, with three safe platforms for the dungeoneer to stand on, and the portal at the far end. The task was to guide the dungeoneer from one end to the other, stepping on the moving blocks as they were stationary. It was fairly simple.

In Level 1, this was a bog-standard puzzle, but it re-appeared on occasions in Level 2. In this souped-up, darker version, small cannon would appear either side of the room, and shoot fireballs horizontally across to the other wall. Evidently this was mostly for scare value, but it did make teams move somewhat faster.
Series 7 Team 1 were prompted to use anything they could in order to see what they were doing - in fact, many teams were, usually by Majida (ees' too deeficult, 'ee can't even see what 'ee's doing...). The use of spells such as SIGHT and potions was often encouraged with this puzzle; however, as the degree of sight gifted by such methods was limited, one has to wonder how much it helped the dungeoneer.


This room is often referred to as the sliding floor chamber, but also occasionally the moving block room or the firebomb room. Another option is Mendacity Engine, mentioned in The Quest, where Lord Fear writes in his diary mentioning floor puzzles - see the Mendacity Engine entry for details on this.
Barry was given the task of collecting a piece of Grimaldine's staff from Level 1's version of the puzzle (in which he was chased by Grippa and Rhark the goblins), and in Level 2 he once again faced the puzzle, drinking a fireproof potion to protect himself from the fireballs, and claiming some witch amber from its heart.

The chamber's last appearance was for Series 8 Team 4, who traversed the puzzle quite easily while Snapper-Jack was chasing them. Jack never actually got near them, but he caught up with them in the next room anyway.
This puzzle never actually claimed any victims, which is a bit poor for such a fearsome puzzle, but it certainly made plenty of appearances, and was a welcome addition to Knightmare's array of deadly traps in the final two series.

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