A character who appeared in Series 2 and 3 of Knightmare and in RPG Season 6.
The Oracle in Knightmare took the form of a translucent face (ghostly, but not by definition a ghost) that inhabited a chamber in Level 2. The first picture in this entry shows its Series 2 appearance, the second its Series 3 look.

When the dungeoneer entered the room, the Oracle would be speaking continuously but inaudibly. Treguard advised that the Oracle could be heard if the dungeoneer shut his eyes tightly, and raised the Helmet of Justice slightly above his head. (I say 'his' because no female dungeoneer ever met the Oracle.) This strikingly unusual gesture complemented the ethereal strangeness of the Oracle.

Through its speech, the Oracle lived up (so to speak) to its full name of the Oracle of Confusion, as what it said consisted of information helpful to the team's quest, interspersed with seemingly irrelevant commentary with the potential to mislead teams who were more eager than discerning in their note-taking. This "drivel", as Treguard put it, included recipes, general admonitions ("All emotion is condemned, all folly is without purpose...") Jabberwocky misquotations and lyrics from The Wizard of Oz.

Sometimes it spoke in rhyme, to emphasise the riddling aspect of its wisdom. At times the Oracle's ramblings weren't direct clues, yet were not total nonsense either, e.g. references to "Dread Mog". When the Oracle descended into repetitive gibberish (such as saying, "You have been warned" over and over again), Treguard would advise the team to move on.
The following teams encountered the Oracle of Confusion:
Team 5 of Series 2
Team 4 of Series 3: learned that "when faced with death, you must go left, or you from life will be bereft", and that the "third step" was the bow. This information enabled the team respectively to evade goblins in the Great Corridor of the Catacomb, and to restore the third missing tile to the path in Merlin's chamber.
Team 9 of Series 3: learned that the "second step" was the cradle.
Team 11 of Series 3: learned that the "third step" was the crystal.

In Greek mythology, an oracle was not so much a supernatural being as the means by which godly wisdom was conveyed to mortals seeking counsel. Traditionally, a priestess, claiming to be possessed by a particular deity, would dispense a frenzied or cryptic response when an inquiry was made, rather than unambiguous clues within confusing ramblings, as Knightmare's Oracle did.

The Oracle of Confusion was played by Audrey Jenkinson in Series 2 and by Zoe Loftin in Series 3. They also played the maids Gretel and Mellisandre respectively.

The Oracle of Confusion in RPG Season 6 (also known as the Oracle of R'hu) was played by Emii, who also played Kully, and an archived version of the character profile can be found here.

A backstory for the Oracle was suggested on the Knightmare Roleplay Forum in 2004, connecting her to Hordriss the Confuser.

[Earlier versions: 2011-12-10 16:42:54, 2006-05-10 18:23:24]

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From TES issue 53 (September 2008)

Series 2/3. Level 2.
ORACLES

If you settle down to read a spot of Greek Mythology, you may just come across an oracle or two. It is a mysterious creature, often taking the form of a veiled woman, which spends most of its time making portents and imparting great knowledge to the world in general. Knightmare’s oracles performed much the same function, but they appeared as incandescent, ethereal faces on the wall of the level two clue room, rather than as robed women. Having said that, the oracles in both series were undoubtedly female, and the one in series 2 did appear to be wearing a hood or veil of some kind, in keeping with the Greek style.

To hear the words of an oracle, the dungeoneer would have to close their eyes tightly and raise the Helmet of Justice slightly above their head. This caused the mysterious creature’s serene singing to change into discernable words, but the advisors would have to listen very carefully to what the oracle was saying, as there was no order to its limitless knowledge, for it did not rate any one fact (such as the third step) as being more important than any other (such as a recipe for some kind of stew).

Series 2 can boast but one oracle appearance, with Audrey Jenkinson (more often seen playing Gretel in this series) taking on the role of the Oracle of Confusion. Upon entering the level two clue room, Tony was presented with the choice of a scroll, a bar of soap and a gauntlet, and the words of the Oracle of Confusion (amongst its other ramblings) told him which items to take. Unfortunately, the advisors did not listen carefully enough, as they were supposed to “accept the challenge”. They did not take the gauntlet, choosing the soap instead, which would apparently “cleanse, but not the spirit”, which led to the team’s downfall soon after.

In series 3, there were more oracle appearances, with Zoe “Mellisandre” Loftin taking on the role of the Oracle. Actually, the Oracle appeared on three separate occasions during series 3, but there is nothing concrete to suggest that the three oracles were actually the same entity; indeed, each one looked slightly different from the other two. On each of the three occasions, the vital information in amongst the Oracle’s ramblings was one of the steps for Merlin’s throne room – the third step for Martin and Leo, and the second for Scott. Leo also had to pick up on a clue about turning left when faced with death, which turned out to be when he met some goblins in the Corridor of the Catacombs.

So, that’s oracles for you. Undoubtedly their appearances were infrequent and somewhat forgettable, but I think they’re rather a nice touch, and they certainly fit in well with the eerie, slightly sinister atmosphere of the early series.

Fear Factor: 3 Obviously not a threat, but maybe a little unnerving.
Killer Instinct: 2 Not on purpose, but missing a clue proved costly for Tony.
Gore Factor: 1 Calm, serene and very soothing, actually.
Humanity: 7 They had human faces, at the very least.

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