[skaata]

Nevermind, after some research I managed to solve my problem. The intro .Avi file was the problem, after replacing it with another .Avi file, the game launched. Found the solution here on Adventuregamers:-)
Let me know when it is time to start playing and hopefully I will be able to join you!

[AndreaDraco83]

Turns out I was very much mistaken!

Glad to hear that you'll be able to join us!

[skaata]

Thanks for your help anyway!
I'm just glad I got my all time favourite game to run. (at least my all time favourite after "The beast within:-)
Happy gaming!

[AndreaDraco83]

Before we definitely start our playthrough, here's a brief introduction to the game and setting.

The background of Gabriel Knight 3: Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned is outstandingly recounted in the graphic novel that comes within the box (or as a .pdf files in your game directory), and I strongly recommend to read it to set the mood and the proper atmosphere, maybe during the installation process. Anyway, here’s a quick recap of the story so far:

After solving the Voodoo Murders - a string of ritualistic killings in New Orleans - Gabriel Knight, the formerly hapless author of such misbegotten novels as Fire in the Hills and The Stalker*, hit the New York Times best-sellers list with the first Blake Backlash novel, appropriately titled The Voodoo Muders. More importantly, having uncovered his heritage and the history of his German ancestors, Gabriel moved to Schloss Ritter, Rittersberg, Bavaria to become the new Schattenjager after the death of his uncle, Wolfgang Ritter, who committed suicide to help Gabriel retrieve the lost family talisman. The following year, Gabriel solved the mystery of the Black Wolf and the Munich killings – upon which he based Blake Backlash’s second adventure, The Brutal Beast – and Grace Nakimura, his former employee in St. George’s Rare Books, moved in with him and his housekeeper, Gerde.

Five years have passed since then, and Gabriel and Grace are now invited in Paris by Prince James Stewart of Albany. The Prince has a newly born son and he is in need of a Schattenjager. The Stewart heirs, in fact, suffer from a strange form of anaemia: at some point during their life, especially during the infancy, but sometimes even more frequently, they awake in the morning drained and pale, and marks on their neck seem to suggest that vampires, or «night visitors» as Prince James calls them, are behind these odd occurrences.

One night, while Gabriel and Grace are guarding the baby, the mansion becomes suddenly silent and Grace falls deeply asleep on Gabriel’s shoulder. Gabriel is awake, but unable to move and – struggling to regain his strength – he sees a shadowy figure entering the room and kidnapping the child under his very eyes. When his legs start moving again, Gabriel flings himself out of the window, grabs a motocycle and chases the kidnappers through the sultry streets of Paris. Eventually, he arrives at the Gare d’Austerlitz** and manages to land on the same train the kidnappers took. He starts searching the compartments for the baby, but he’s quickly knocked out by two henchmen. Before passing out, he caught a glimpse of the men – dark, long hair and pale skin – and overheard a tidbit of their conversation, recognizing the word «Saint Greal», Holy Grail. Several hours and a worst-than-hangover headache later, Gabriel awakens in Couiza, a small village near Rennes-le-Chateau…

… and this is where Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned begins!

* JANE JENSEN, Sins of the Father, ROC, p. 12
** The name of station isn’t given in the game, but I reckon this is the most plausible solution. It’s in fact from the Gare d’Austerlitz that the trains headed to southwestern France, Toulouse and the Pyrenees depart and, thus, it is the likely destination of the kidnappers.

[AndreaDraco83]

For the first segment of our playthrough, I suggest that we play through the first three time blocks of the game. The first two time blocks are dedicated to the exploration of the village, and shouldn’t pose much of a challenge, while the third one becomes suddenly spicy thanks to one of the most (in)famous puzzles ever. I’d say that two or three days should be enough to reach this first pit-stop. So, without any hesitation, here are our first tasks:

Day 1, 10 AM - 12 PM
Rennes-le-Chateau? We have a small town, but a rich history


Day 1, 12 PM - 14 PM
I haven't seen many churches this... colorful


Day 1, 14 PM - 16 PM
A bike! Man I need one of those!

Before moving on with the next segment, I’ll publish, adequately covered by spoiler tags, a list of all the relevant actions of each time block (that’s saying all the actions that give you points) and, later today or tomorrow, a list of funny/interesting things to do/examine during the current segment.

If you have any questions, let’s hear them!

[danigar]

Hi there! I'm new to the forum, although I've been a lurker for quite a while, but I found this to be the perfect opportunity to start posting. GK3 is one of my favorite games. I've only played it once though, and with not a very good score, but I've been wanting to replay it ever since, see if I can get the perfect score and get to do what I missed the first time. So anyway I'll definitely join you That's a very interesting and deep start AndreaDraco, it really sets the mood and atmosphere. So do you know exactly by what day do we need to reach that point?

Happy Gaming!

[AndreaDraco83]

Originally Posted by danigar

So do you know exactly by what day do we need to reach that point?

There is no firm point. The ideal would be to start the second segment just before the week-end, like Friday or Thursday. But if you have trouble completing this first tranche within that day, don't worry: I'll start posting the time-blocks of the second segment and - when you have finished the first one - you can post your opinion.

[skaata]

Great summary Andrea!
Now, since this is my first playthrough ever (even though I of course played the game several times before) I just wanted to make sure that I'm doing it correctly: We play (starting now) the first 3 timeblocks, and then discussing it in this thread? Sorry if I'm making stupid questions but I want to do this right. Anyone care to elaborate I would be happy!
Have fun!
Skaata

[colpet]

I won't be able to get into the game in earnest until Monday, so hopefully I'll catch up then.

[SamandMax]

Originally Posted by AndreaDraco83

one of the most (in)famous puzzles ever.

Has anyone ever been able to figure out this puzzle without a walkthrough? I honestly don't know if it'd be possible.

[AndreaDraco83]

Originally Posted by skaata

We play (starting now) the first 3 timeblocks, and then discussing it in this thread?

Exactly. And after the discussion, it's time for another segment of time blocks!

Originally Posted by colpet

I won't be able to get into the game in earnest until Monday, so hopefully I'll catch up then.

I'm sure that you will catch up perfectly. The first three time blocks are quite easy (except for said puzzle, but now everyone knows the solution) and then it's discussion time, so you'll catch up with us with no problem!

[skaata]

Looking forward to this! Starting....now!
Happy Gabeing

[AndreaDraco83]

I forgot one thing. Since the third block and the fourth can be completely non-linear, please - for the sake of simplicity - DO NOT visit Larry Chester in the third block. Leave it for the fourth block: this gives the game a much linear course, and it's the only way to achieve a full score, if you are interested in it.

Also, now that I think about it, maybe it's better if I post (covered with spoiler tags for those of you who don't want to be spoiled) the list of actions/points right away, so that who wants can keep track of his/her progression and not loose precious points. Let me know what do you think about it.

[skaata]

Good idea Andrea, since I already finished the first timeblock! Thx for the advice about part 3/4. Was wondering about the easter eggs; I did like you wrote in the beginning of the game. After I pressed "enter" the command prompt dissapeared. Do you have to do it again next time you start the game and should you recieve a message like "eastern eggs enabled" or something? Just wanted to make sure I did it right.
Skaata

[AndreaDraco83]

@Skaata, if you have done everything right, from this moment on - in certain situations - a small Egg icon should appear in you list of performable actions. You can safely try it on the chicken in the town square.

----------
Here are listed all the actions Gabriel (or Grace) must and can perform that increase your points. I chose not to include the actual points awarded for each action mainly because these can be performed in many orders, and some of them could even be postpones or anticipated. But, no matter how the order, if you want to achieve complete points, you have to perform them all. You will notice that I divided the actions between “necessary” and “extra”. After you completed all the necessary actions, the extra will be no longer available, so – if you’re out for a perfect score of 965 out of 965 – be careful and plan you game strategy accordingly.

10 AM – 12 PM

Spoiler:

Necessary Actions
Call Prince James
Meet Mosely
Read the registration book
Ask Madeline about the arrivals (x2)
Meet Madame Girard
Ask Madame Girard about Holy Grail.
Return in front of hotel to change time block

Extra Actions
Meet Emilio Baza
Ask Emilio about his arrival
Ask Madeline about the group.
Ask Jean about the group (Note: It’s important that you speak with Jean after talking to both Mosely and Madeleine, otherwise you won’t get these points).
Ask Jean about the kidnappers (x2)
Examine the cover of the book in the bookstore
Ask Madame Girard about the treasure (x2)
Eavesdrop Lady Howard and Estelle in the Museum.
Meet Lady Howard and Estelle
Ask Lady Howard and Estelle about the treasure.

12 PM – 14 PM

Spoiler:

Necessary Actions
Hear the conversation between Buchelli and Arnaud in the church.
Meet Vittorio Buchelli.
Ask Buchelli about arrival (Note: At this point, you should hear a clock. After this moments the actions mentioned below and preceded by an asterisk are no longer feasible, even if the time block isn’t still over and you have still necessary actions to perform)
Meet Abbe Arnaud
Ask Arnaud about the Knights Templar
Talk to Mosely
Exit the hotel to change time block

Extra Actions
*Hear the conversation between Madeline and Wilkes in the dining room (Note: To get these points, you must enter the hotel before exploring the church).
*Meet John Wilkes
*See Lady Howard, Estelle and Emilio on the first floor (Note: To get these points, you must wal up to the first floorbefore exploring the church and this must be your first or second action within the hotel).
Ask Buchelli about the treasure.
Ask Arnaud about the church (x2)
Ask Arnaud about the Holy Grail
Ask Arnaud about Mary Magdalen (x2)
Talk to Mosely (Note: Talk to Mosely about everything except «The Case», «Grace» and «Schattenjager». Once you talked about everything else, talk to him about «The Case» then exit the dialogue and spy on the door to see Emilio eavesdropping. Restart the conversation with Mosely and talk about «Grace» and «Schattenjager»)
Pick up the glass

14 PM – 16 PM

Spoiler:

Necessary Actions
Talk to the man in rental shop about bike.
Pick up the hanger and the tape from the wardrobe
Pick up maple syrup
Get the candy
Get the black marker
Put the candy on the table in corridor in front of Gabe’s room
Stole the passport (Note: I’m not sure about it, but I think that to achieve full score, you must successfully stole the passport at the first try)
Get the blazer from Mosely's room (Note: You must be quick and enter the room while Mosely is still downstairs).
Get the cap from the lost and found box.
Get the sprinkler.
Pat the cat and leave the location of the cat. Return.
Use the tape with hole
Use sprinkler on cat.
Retrieve the fur from the hole.
Use the black marker on Mosely's passport.
Use the maple syrup on fur
Use mustache with cap
Use mustache & cap with golden blazer
Use disguise on Gabe
Think while examining the board at the Couiza Rail Station
Ask employee about Naples
Ask employee about arrivals
Talk with the taxi driver outside the station
Use wallet on taxi driver
Enter the Map Screen to change time block

Extra Actions
Talk to Lady Howard about the room switching.
Follow Wilkes to L'Ermitage.
Use notebook on Wilkes’ license plate
Ask Wilkes about earth-pounding machine (x3)
Ask Wilkes about the treasure.
Ask Wilkes about Holy Grail.
Follow Madeleine to Coume Sourde
Spy on Madeleine from Blanchefort
Chit-chat with Madeleine at Coume Sourde

[danigar]

Hi, that's a very good idea Andrea and very helpful for us that want the perfect score. I was wondering though, is it possible to have the total possible score for each segment? That way I can try to find them all on my own and check the list of actions if I didn't reach the total before I continue to the next segment... So I'll be starting today, but I won't be able to continue until Thursday or Friday so I hope there's no problem.

[AndreaDraco83]

There is no problem at all, Danigar.

There is a problem, though, for the partial points of each segment, because many actions can be postponed for later blocks and some can, on the contrary, be anticipated. Anyway, here is the the most accurate count I can give, assuming that you pick up certain items only just before you need them:

Spoiler:

10 AM - 12 PM: 36 points
12 PM - 14 PM: 73
14 PM - 16 PM: 153, but only if you don't visit Larry Chester during this block.
So, a perfect score for this first segment of our playthrough should be: 153

[skaata]

Not to blow my own horn here, but I got more points than that in chapter 1
Anyway, just wanted to add that to use the "easter eggs" I have to type in the same line in console mode everytime I start the game, but It does work. I never tried it on the chicken but I tried it on Jean at the hotel
Time to finish chapter 2!
Skaata

[KasiaD]

I reached second time block. The game is as pleasant and fascinating as ever...

So far I managed to discover only two Eggs - Jean and also Emilio in the lobby. That was weird...It is not what I expected certainly. Good thing I didnt see it first time I played, it might have ruined the mood a bit.

[Tiocfaidh]

I just reached the third time block !
It took some time till I got a hold of the controls again, but I know it works really well

Thanks for the detailed listing of actions.

Here´s my approach:

* I take notice of all the extra-actions you mention and make sure that I do them before the time block ends
* Then I play for myself till the block ends
*I check the score
*If I missed something I´ll have to try the block again

I HAVE TO get all points this time