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Secret of the Silver Blades is the third title in the four-game Pool of Radiance series of computer role-playing games developed by Strategic Simulations, Inc.. It was published by Strategic Simulations, Inc. and WizardWorks. It is the sequel to Curse of the Azure Bonds.[note 1]

Plot[]

Main Story[]

The party is magically summoned to the mining town of New Verdigris, located in a valley deep in the Dragonspine Mountains, in hopes that they will save the town from the overwhelming evil that threatens it.

New Verdigris is located on the ruins of a much older city that was suddenly covered by a glacier three hundred years ago. However, the glacier is now receding, which led to the town being reestablished and the resumption of mining operations. While New Verdigris initially prospered, three months ago, a new mineshaft was opened and monsters began pouring through from an unknown source.

Previous efforts to stop the monsters have failed and they have made it to the ruins and are threatening to invade the town. The party is the town's last hope of finding the source of the evil and clearing the scourge.

Gameplay[]

To play Secret of the Silver Blades, one simply needs to create characters and form a party. The gameplay basics are identical to all games in the series. Characters can also be imported from Pool of Radiance and Curse of the Azure Bonds. Secret of the Silver Blades is similar to its two predecessors in gameplay and graphics. There is no overworld in this game, however. It takes place entirely in the first person maps. Graphics did improve slightly, though everything was still drawn in 16 colors.

The game includes some new features introduced with Champions of Krynn, and adds a difficulty selector that the player can used to change the power of the enemy creatures. The game world was the largest yet for a Gold Box game, and it included cut scene illustrations of the story. It is the first Gold Box game in which random encounters do not stop after a certain point.

Mages have the ability to use spells up to level 7, while clerics can reach level 6 spells.

The arrow keys are conveniently usable to select menu options as opposed to using hotkeys, which was the only way in earlier titles, though the hotkey option is still available.

Index[]

Characters[]

Protagonists
Champions of Verdigris
Companions
DericVala
Other
Derf StrongmanEldamarMarcusOswulfPriamSargatha
Referenced only
AzounDhazhealElminster AumarFlaming OneGragnak UlfrimGrimdraJhaeleNacaciaSasha (Council of Ten)Valgur

Creatures[]

basiliskbugbearcanarycloud giantcockatricedisplacer beastdriderdwarfelfettinfire giantfrost giantgargoylegiant crocodilegiant sluggiant snakegiant spidergnomegriffongynosphinxhalf-elfhalflinghell houndhill gianthippogriffhumanhydrairon golemlichlizardmanmargoylemastodonmedusamegalo-centipedeminotaurmobatneo otyughogreotyughphase spiderpurple wormpyrohydrared dragonremorhazsphinxstorm giantumber hulkwhite dragonworgwyvern
Referenced only
demon

Items[]

Armor
banded mailchain mailleather armorplate mailring armorscale armorshield
Weapons
bastard swordbattleaxebroad swordclubcomposite longbowdaggerdartflailhalberdhammerhandaxejavelinlight crossbowlongbowlongswordmacemorningstarscimitarshortbowshort swordslingspearstaff slingtridenttwo-handed sword
Misc
bat guanoOswulf's Confessionsulphur

Locations[]

Buildings & Sites
Castle of the TwinsWell of Knowledge
Inns & Taverns
Minotaur and Mermaid Pub
Shops
New Verdigris Magic Shop
Settlements
New Verdigris
Wilderness
Dragonspine Mountains
Regions
Moonsea
Referenced only
AbyssAshabenfordCormyrDalelandsHillsfarMulmasterMyth DrannorPhlanPool of RadianceWaterdeepYûlashZhentil Keep

Magic[]

Armor & Clothing
boots of speedbracers of defensecloak of displacementcloak of protectioneyes of charminggauntlets of ogre powergirdle of giant strength
Referenced only
gauntlet of Moander
Potions
elixir of youthnecklace of missilesperiapt of healthpotion of extra healingpotion of invisibilitypotion of speed
Scrolls
scroll of protection from dragon breath
Spells
barkskinbestow curseblessblinkburning handscause blindnesscause diseasecause critical woundscause light woundscause serious woundscharm monstercharm personcharm person or mammalcloudkillcone of coldconfusioncure diseasecure critical woundscure light woundscure serious woundscursedeath spelldelayed blast fireballdetect magicdetect invisibilitydimension doordisintegratedispel evildispel magicenlargeentanglefaerie firefearfeeblemindfind trapsfire shieldflame strikefireballfriendsfumbleglobe of invulnerabilityharmhastehealhold monsterhold personice storminvisibilityinvisibility, 10' radiusinvisibility to animalsknocklightning boltmagic missilemass invisibilityminor globe of invulnerabilitymirror imageneutralize poisonpoisonpower word, stunprayerprotection from evilprotection from evil, 10' radiusprotection from goodprotection from good, 10' radiusprotection from normal missilesraise deadray of enfeeblementread magicremove curseresist coldresist fireshieldshocking graspsilencesilence, 15' radius slay livingsleepslow slow poisonsnake charmspiritual hammersticks to snakesstinking cloudstone to fleshstrength
Trinkets
amulet of Eldamarring of fire resistancering of protectionring of Tyrring of wizardrystone of good luck
Wands
wand of fireballswand of ice stormwand of lightningwand of paralyzation
Weapons
dart of the hornet's neststaff of Oswulf
Weapon Qualities
vorpal

Organizations[]

Beholder CorpsBlack CircleCult of MoanderFire KnivesSilver Blades
Referenced only
Red PlumesRed Wizards of ThayZhentarim

Religions[]

BaneGondMoanderTyr

Gallery[]

Appendix[]

Notes[]

  1. The timelines of the original Pool of Radiance series of video games, and the FRC series of adventure modules cannot co-exist with the canon novels. The video games and modules start in 1357-1358 DR. However, due to the release of content related to the Time of Troubles, the Pool of Radiance novel was shifted backwards to 1340 DR. This spoils the continuity for the video games that originally took place from 1358 DR to 1368 DR (which now starts in 1340 DR), and the adventure modules (Curse of the Azure Bonds took place directly after Ruins of Adventure). For this reason, the events and timelines of the Pool of Radiance video games and the FRC adventure modules are considered non-canon. However, the background information about characters, creatures, locations, and items etc, may still be documented.

Game Credits[]

Amiga
  • Story and development: David Shelley
  • Amiga Producer: Daniel Cermak
  • Amiga Development: David A. Lucca, Nicholas Beliaeff
  • Musical Score: John Halbleib
  • Encounter Design: David Shelley, Michael Mancuso, Ken Humphries, Graeme Bayless, Rick E. White
  • Playtest: Jeffrey Shotwell, Cyrus G. Harris, Dennis Zahina
  • Graphic Arts: Mark Johnson, Laura R. Bowen, Fred Butts, Cyrus Lum, Susan Manley, Michael Provenza, Tom Wahl
  • Programming: Ken Nicholson, Russell Brown
  • Box artwork: Larry Elmore
  • Project Director: Jason T. Linhart
  • Design: Kiri Naiman, Stephen Linhart
  • Playtesting: Herb Perez, Kiri Naiman, Richard K. Ware
  • Programming: David Blake, Jason T. Linhart
  • Art: Carol Tanguay, Herb Perez, Kiri Naiman
  • Music: Doug Hewitt
Commodore 64
  • Programming: Paul Murray
  • Encounter Design: David Shelley, Michael Mancuso, Ken Humphries, Graeme Bayless, Rick E. White
  • Story and Development: David Shelley
  • Graphic Arts: Mark Johnson, Laura R. Bowen, Fred Butts, Cyrus Lum, Susan Manley, Michael Provenza, Tom Wahl
  • Musical Score: John Halbleib
  • Playtest: Cyrus G. Harris, Don McClure, David A. Lucca, Clifford Mann, Rick Wilson, Erik Flom, James Young, Larry Stephen Webber
DOS
  • Project Development: David Shelley
  • Programming: Russell Brown, Ken Nicholson
  • Encounter Authors: Graeme Bayless (Middle Level of Castle), Ken Humphries (Mines / Temple of Tyr / Ice Giant Village), Michael Mancuso (Ruins / Well of Knowledge / Dungeon / Ice Crevasses), David Shelley (New Verdigris / Castle Entrance / Finale), Rick E. White (Drider Base)
  • Art Director: Mark Johnson
  • Graphics / Artwork: Laura R. Bowen, Fred Butts, Mark Johnson, Cyrus Lum, Susan Manley, Michael Provenza, Tom Wahl
  • Music: John Halbleib
  • Sound Effects: John Halbleib
  • Writing / Dialogue / Story: David Shelley
  • Playtesting: Erik Flom, David A. Lucca, Clifford Mann, Don McClure, Larry Stephen Webber, Rick E. White, Richard Wilson, James Young, John Kirk
  • Documentation: Rick Wilson
  • Project Manager: Victor Penman
  • Art, Graphic Design & DTP: Louis Saekow Design, Peter Gascoyne, David Boudreau
  • Pre‑press Production: Louis Saekow Design, Kirk Nichols, Ray Garcia
  • Printing: Muller Printing Co.
  • Clue Book Writter: David Shelley, Michael Mancuso, Ken Humphries
  • Clue Book Art, Graphic Design and Desktop Publishing: Louis Saekow Design, Peter Gascoyne, David Boudreau
  • Clue Book Printing: A&a Printers and Lithographers
Macintosh
  • Mac Producer: Daniel Cermak
  • Mac Playtest: John Kirk, John C. Boockholdt, Mike Balajadia, Glen A. Cureton
  • Encounter Design: David Shelley, Michael Mancuso, Ken Humphries, Graeme Bayless, Rick E. White
  • Story and development: David Shelley
  • Mac Development: David A. Lucca, Nicholas Beliaeff
  • Graphic Arts: Mark Johnson, Laura R. Bowen, Fred Butts, Cyrus Lum, Susan Manley, Michael Provenza, Tom Wahl
  • Programming: Ken Nicholson, Russell Brown
  • Project Director: Jason T. Linhart
  • Design: Kiri Naiman, Stephen Linhart
  • Playtesting: Herb Perez, Kiri Naiman, Richard K. Ware
  • Programming: David Blake, Jason T. Linhart
  • Art: Carol Tanguay, Herb Perez, Kiri Naiman
  • Music: Doug Hewitt
PC-98
  • Story and Development: David Shelley
  • Programming: Ken Nicholson, Russ Brown
  • Encounter Design: David Shelley, Michael Mancuso, Ken Humphries, Graeme Bayless, Rick White
  • Musical Score: John Halbleib
  • Graphic Arts: Mark Johnson, Laura R. Bowen, Fred Butts, Cyrus Lum, Susan Manley, Michael Provenza, Tom Wahl
  • * Playtest: Rick White, Don McClure, David A. Lucca, Clifford Mann, Rick Wilson, Erik Flom, James Young, Larry Stephen Webber

Further Reading[]

See Also[]

Connections[]









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