From TES issue 39 (May 2006)
Series 4
Quest: The Crown.
Dungeoneer: Dickon Hares.Advisors: Dominic, Tim and [Praveen].

Home town: Torquay, Devon.
Team score: 10 out of 10.

Dickon and his team were the first Knightmare winners for two years and, although their quest was perhaps not quite as hard as other quests in series 4, I think most Knightmare fans agree that they deserved their exciting victory.
Level One: After choosing the Crown at the Place of Choice, the team score three out of three in Dooris's true or false challenge.

A meeting with Hordriss follows and a bargain is made, the upshot of which is that Dickon will deliver a strange green potion to Brother Mace in order to punish him for showing Hordriss "a remarkable dearth of respect." Dickon is to tell Mace that the potion is something called Fifty-Year-Old Etruscan Brandy.

In the Forest of Dunn, the paths lead Dickon to the Crazed Heifer, where Mellisandre engages him in conversation. In return for a bit of false information about what the Romans called Colchester - ("If she doesn't know the answer, how can she know whether you do or not?" - Treguard) - Mellisandre informs Dickon that Oakley's son is called Little Acorn. This information is required in Oakley's glade, in order to prove that Dickon is what Oakely [sic] calls a Tree Friend. Once the tree troll is satisfied, Dickon is able to pick up a horn from the tree stump, leaving behind a bar of silver.

The horn is required at Dungarth, where four goblins are on guard. Dickon is able to deafen them by blowing the horn as he runs past them, and then he gives the horn to Fatilla as a bribe to use the wellway. Although Fatilla is dubious, Dickon manages to bluff his way through: "Men have died trying to get this." - Dickon. Fatilla accepts the horn as a bribe, and Dickon uses the well to descend into level two.
Level Two: Dickon lands on a table, which also contains a bowl of pills. Dickon picks up one of these, and it comes in very handy when he has to get through a tiny door. The downer pill shrinks him down to the right size to fit through the door. Fortunately enough, there are some uppers on the other side, so Dickon is able to return to his original size.

Next, Dickon releases Motley from the [pillory] in what is usually Merlin's room, earning himself a travelling companion. An ogre chases Motley and Dickon out of the chamber, into Doorkis's room. Again, the team score full marks, meaning that the door monster is more than satisfied.

Gundrada is in the next room. Once Motley has tried out his own brand of flattery on her, the sword mistress becomes rather angry: "Look at the muscles on that! They don't make girls like that where I come from." - Motley. Once Gundrada has threatened him enough, Motley beats a hasty retreat, leaving Dickon to apologise for him: "I'm sorry about my friend, he's a bit... a bit of a head-case." - Dickon. Gundrada accepts the apology, and accompanies Dickon into Dunkley Wood. However, she abandons him here, leaving him to make his own way to Ariadne's glade. Dickon has to dart into a hollow tree in order to escape the giant spider, and then he meets up with Gundrada again. Ariadne arrives and chases Gundrada away, leaving Dickon free to steal a bar of silver from her lair.

Next, Dickon meets Brother Mace having some bread and cheese in a clearing in the woods. The monk is pleased to accept Dickon's offer of Fifty-Year-Old Etruscan brandy to accompany his meal, but it turns him into a giant lizard! Treguard advises the team to make a quick getaway: "In that form, Brother Mace could well get quite annoyed." - Treguard.

Dickon then arrives at the Tower of Time, where the ferryman is waiting in his boat. Dickon pays for the ride with the silver. Inside the castle, the usual purple set of stairs leads down into level three.
Level Three: After a quick whirl on the Transporter Pad, Dickon picks up a phial of poison from a clue table. Hordriss then appears to congratulate him on his performance with Brother Mace, and rewards him with the spells FIRE and OPPOSITE.

The next room leads onto a conveyer belt, but Malice appears before Dickon can escape and demands that he pledges himself to her. The advisors decide to agree for the moment, so Malice lets him pass. Dickon steps onto the conveyer belt, which - surprise, surprise! - turns out to be the Corridor of Blades. Dickon receives good directions, and passes this most tricky obstacle with no problems.

On the unstable bridge, a second meeting with Malice takes place. This time, the team decide not to pledge their quest permanently to her alone, so the evil sorceress causes the bridge to crumble and fall. A speedy dash is required for Dickon to reach the exit safely.

However, Malice is waiting for him on the other side. She promises Dickon immediate death, so the advisors decide to cast FIRE. It works, and Malice is defeated. Treguard then announces that Dickon's life force has become critical, and the advisors work out that OPPOSITE has to be cast on the poison, turning it into a form of liquid sustenance.

Once Dickon has restored his life force, he is able to progress to the chamber of Dooreen, the final door monster. Her questions are far from difficult, however, and a third trio of correctly answered true or false questions is easily attainable for the team: "I thought they were going to be more difficult, Master!" - Pickle.

Across the drawbridge, the Crown sits atop the head of a goblin statue. Once Dickon has picked up the magic artefact, Treguard summons Merlin to the Great Hall of Knightmare to congratulate the first winning quest for two years! Merlin rescues Dickon from the Dungeon, and rewards the team for their victory: "These are for you. They are not valuables, you understand, merely mementoes, but what you have achieved is worth far more than any treasure." - Merlin.
Summary: Despite the absence of questions with Oakley, the Block and Tackle, and a riddle to earn magic to deal with Ariadne, this team was an excellent team, and Dickon was a competent and charismatic dungeoneer. An exciting and well-deserved win.

[Previous team: Team 5 of Series 4
Next team: Team 7 of Series 4]

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