Quick Links
- The Strange Journal
- Investigating The Journal
- Convincing Mr. Briden
- The Market Day
- How To Get Milk For Miss Tompkins
- How To Fix The Fiddle Bow
- How To Get The Bakewell Puddings
- Ending The Day
The second chapter of The Excavation of Hob's Barrow starts with a new mystery to unravel – the sudden appearance of a mysterious journal under the door to Thomasina's room. It makes for quite cryptic reading, and it's not immediately apparent what significance it has.
This chapter has Thomasina making significant progress in her quest to conduct an excavation of the titular barrow, though there are plenty of hoops to jump through to get where she needs to be. After all, what sort of adventure game would it be if the characters weren't plainly unhelpful?
The Strange Journal
When you wake up, examine the book that has been thrust under Thomasina's door. You'll get the Journal and the Journal Stone. Read the Journal – much of it won't make sense at the moment. Head downstairs and talk to Stanley about the journal, the stone, and your dream.
You'll have four objectives during this chapter: to convince Mr. Briden to let you excavate Hob's Barrow, to learn about local folklore, to investigate the mysterious journal, and to gather a team of workmen to help you in your excavation once it's approved.
Before leaving the inn, examine the knife stuck in the table. You can't remove it.
Investigating The Journal
Leave the inn and, in the village square, talk to Father Roache (to the left). Exhaust his dialogue, and then go to the Herne wood crossroads to find Arthur. Talk to him about everything to learn about Mother Mildred, an alleged witch who lives in the woods. Continue on to the left – you'll witness a flashback.
Continue on, heading south on the screen with the hole that you entered last chapter. You'll be able to walk all the way south until you reach Mother Mildred's cottage.
Talk to Mother Mildred. You'll learn a lot of information about the previous excavation and about your father. Try to leave, and Mildred will give you another warning, which triggers a flashback. During the flashback, walk to the right. After the conversation with your mother, go back to the left to pick up the doll, and then return to the right to end the flashback.
On the screen between Mildred's cottage and the screen with the badger hole, use your Chisel with the yellow Resin on the right. You'll need this later.
Keep heading towards the entrance to the woods (fast-travel is disabled at the moment) and talk to Arthur when you encounter him staring into the distance.
Convincing Mr. Briden
Fast-travel to Mr. Briden's farm – on the way, you'll get yet another flashback. In this one, walk to the left and then pick up the page that falls in front of you.
At the farm, talk to Mr. Briden. Show him the Journal Stone. You'll be granted permission to excavate Hob's Barrow, but you'll need workmen to help you do this.
The Market Day
Now, head to the church to meet a dog. It'll run away – follow it to the screen with the creek to meet up with the man from the previous day who didn't give you his name. Exhaust his dialogue here and then leave – the market day will have started in the village square by now, so head there.
Talk to the various people at the market:
- Talk to Miss Tompkins to obtain a new objective: to acquire milk for her in exchange for an introduction with Lord Panswyck.
- Talk to the Apple Seller to get a free Apple.
- Talk to Mr. Crozier, the blacksmith, about the Knife to get the Knife.
- In the inn, examine the sugar bowl on the table to get a Sugar Cube.
- In the inn, talk to Stanley about the things you've learned and about Lord Panswyck.
With that done, head to the graveyard to see the little girl that you first saw in the previous chapter. Follow her to the right to meet Mr. Shoulder, finally. Exhaust his dialogue to learn more about the previous excavation and local folklore.
Before anything else, head to the next screen to the right to obtain a final objective – to find a string for the little girl's fiddle. Now, return to the inn and talk with Mr. Shoulder there about everything.
How To Get Milk For Miss Tompkins
Fast-travel to Mr. Briden's farm. Examine the empty bucket to the right of the house and then knock on the door to talk to Mr. Briden. With this permission, pick up the Bucket and attempt to use it with the Goat.
After the disturbing scene, talk to Mr. Briden again. He offers to milk the goat for you if you find him something to heal his bad joint.
Go to Mildred's cottage in the woods. On the way, you'll have another flashback. During the flashback, interact with the crate to pick up the Pot, and place it on the spot next to the lamp.
Talk to Mildred about Mr. Briden's aches. She's able to make a poultice but needs two ingredients from you: Elderflower and Flirtwort.
First, return to the creek and pick the flowers on the left. Return to Mildred and offer them to her to find out that these are not, in fact, Elderflowers, and that you probably need to look elsewhere.
To find Flirtwort:
- Go to the church and enter. Talk to Mrs. de Plancy, specifically about Father Roache, his tower garden, and the spare key.
- Leave the church and examine the memorial plaques on the wall – one of them on the bottom row mentions a Romeo and a Juliet. Use your Chisel with this plaque to get the Church Key.
- Use the Church Key to unlock the side door to the left of the main doors.
- Examine the Potted Plant at the top of the tower to get some Flirtwort.
To find Elderflower:
- First, go back to the fairy ring to the north of the graveyard.
- Examine the hole again, and pick up one of the earthworms.
- Combine the Worm with the Apple in your inventory.
- Go to the market in the village square and examine the Herbs in the woman's stall.
- Talk to the woman to find out that she is not up for a trade.
- Give the Apple with Worm to Jane next to the stall. She will throw it, knocking over some of the woman's produce.
- While the woman is busy picking up cans, use your Cowbane with the Herbs to swap them, getting yourself some Elderflower.
With both plants, return to Mildred and have her make the Poultice for you. Go to Mr. Briden's farm after this, and give him the Poultice. He'll give you a pail of Milk.
Bring the Milk to Miss Tompkins in the village square, and she'll take you to Panswyck Manor. Try talking to Ms. Fenchurch three times here, until you meet Panswyck himself – a familiar face!
He agrees to let you use his workmen for the excavation, on the condition that you acquire him some Bakewell Puddings. Before that, though, we have a fiddle to fix.
How To Fix The Fiddle Bow
Go to the alley behind the inn to find a horse. Examine the horse – horsehair would make a fine string for the fiddle!
Feed the horse the Sugar Cube you picked up inside the inn, and then use the Knife with the horse to get some Horsehair.
Combine the Horsehair with the Resin you chiseled off the tree stump earlier. Combine the new Bow String with the Fiddle Bow.
Head to the Devil's Toe and give the Fiddle Bow to the girl. Watch the scene that unfolds. Pick up the Fiddle afterwards.
How To Get The Bakewell Puddings
Return to the church and talk to Mrs. de Plancy inside. You'll learn that she only has a few Bakewell Puddings left, and she's saving them for Father Roache, who isn't in town at the moment.
Walk to the right of the church and examine the fresh grave that doesn't have a large headstone. You'll learn that it's the grave of Albert de Plancy. Talk to the man there about the grave.
Return to Mrs. de Plancy and talk to her about the grave. You'll learn that, more than anything, she wants some Hippeastrum to lay on the grave, as they were her husband's favorites. Fast-travel to Panswyck Manor and examine the tall red flowers in the flowerbeds – you'll learn that these are, indeed, Hippeastrum. Talk to Miss Tompkins here and ask her to distract Ms. Fenchurch – she agrees to do so if you find Mr. Ambrose for her, as they were supposed to run away together today and he hasn't turned up.
Head to the village square and start moving to the right – you'll have a flashback in which you need to examine all of the pots on the shelves by the bed.
On the screen with the house on it, keep moving to the right. You'll find Mr. Ambrose tied to a sign. Use the Knife to cut him free.
In the following scenes, you'll get some Hippeastrum. Return to the church and hand them to Mrs. de Plancy. After the scene, she will allow you to take the Bakewell Puddings from her basket, which is still in the church.
Take the Bakewell Puddings to James Panswyck, who can be found standing outside his manor.
Ending The Day
Return to the inn and watch the scenes inside. After, talk to Mr. Shoulder, Stanley, and then Arthur, who asks you to meet him in the alleyway behind the inn.
Head to the alley to witness a scene, and then head back to the inn. During the dream, walk to the left to end the chapter.
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