From TES issue 42 (November 2006)

Series 2/3. Level 3.
THE STAINED GLASS WINDOW CHAMBER

This room has become infamous amongst Knightmare fans because of the pivotal point in the third level which it clearly represented. The chamber was dominated by a huge stained glass window (hence its name) in front of which were four paths leading off into the deepest depths of the third level. It was not difficult for the watchers at home to realise that the team's choice of path would either make or break their quest, which would, by now, be very much in its closing stages. Choose the right path and victory would be just around the corner. An incorrect choice, however, and the quest would be brought to a tragic end on the very brink of victory.
Two teams were faced with this chamber in each of its two series. In series 2, both dungeoneers survived and went on to win. In series 3, neither dungeoneer made it past this room. Mark [Season 2 Team 4] was the first dungeoneer to encounter the Stained Glass Window Chamber. The team cast a spell called SUN, which had been given to them by the Gargoyle, to find the right path. Later in the series, Julian's team used a similar spell from Merlin called DARK, which plunged the room into darkness and revealed the symbol of the Talisman on the one of the paths. In both cases, the correct path was the second from the right. Although both Mark and Julian passed through this chamber with no problems whatsoever, these were still tense and exciting moments, deep in level three and obviously very close to victory.
It is due to series 3, however, that the Stained Glass Window Chamber gained such notoriety, as it marked the end of two very long and very impressive quests, and the only two in series 3 which got anywhere near the finish line. Leo first encountered the chamber quite early in the series, and his advisors were forced to choose one of the four paths, just like Mark's and Julian's before them. However, because of their failure to answer a riddle set by the Gargoyle, Leo's team had no way of knowing which path to choose, despite their attempts at sprinkling stardust around the room. They chose the same path as Mark and Julian had used, but this time it did not prove to be the correct choice, as Leo walked straight off a cliff.

Very much later in the series, Martin [Team 11 of Series 3] found himself in the Stained Glass Window Chamber. This time, however, the choice of paths was not very difficult at all, for there was a piece of the Chalice waiting for him on the second path from the left. However, Martin still died in this chamber as (in one of Knightmare's most famous death scenes) the stained glass window disappeared to reveal a huge image of Morghanna, who promptly put an end to Martin's quest. Dragon magic had been required in order to defeat her, but the team had failed to gain any.


Both Leo's and Martin's fates were cruel and full of tension, and this tension came to a head (in both cases) in the Stained Glass Window Chamber. Even though earlier mistakes were ultimately responsible for both deaths (Leo's failure to answer the Gargoyle's riddle, and Martin's to answer Owen's) the dramatic final scenes took place in the imposing and impressive surroundings of the Stained Glass Window Chamber, and it is for this that the room will always be remembered.

Difficulty: 4 As long as the correct information was known, no problem!
Killer Instinct: 8 The final frontier of series 3.
Gore Factor: 9 Both deaths were fairly spectacular.
Fairness: 7 Well, level three should be tough!

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