An archaeologist was once on the lookout for the famous Tonatiuh, The Temple of the Fifth Sun. To get there, he had to overcome gateways by realigning relics according to an ancient description. He kept track of his progress in his Jewel Quest journal.
He came upon his old journal today while organizing manuscripts for the university and wants to attempt it again. The player assumes the role of an unknown archaeologist, taking notes in his diary as he travels.
Each level depicts a dot on the treasure map, from the airplane take-off point to the temple’s location. There are five advancement categories, starting with Explorer and ending with Researcher. To reach the treasure, all levels of all types must be accomplished. If a story is too tricky, skipping it is available at the cost of one life (out of five). During the game, you can have up to ten real lives.
On a level, the goal is to do precisely what the ancient script says: “Align the relics you see, across or down in groups of three.” Turn all squares to solid gold, and the route to wealth will be revealed.”
So, at the start of levels 1-1 (the first level in the first group), a 7×7 grid appears, with each block containing one of four things (relics). Exchange neighboring objects to form a line of three or up to five items (more than five are conceivable but cannot be done manually). Those things will vanish, the ground will turn gold, the spaces will fill with goods from above, and more items will fall in from the top of the playfield. The level is finished when all of the blocks are gold. One life is lost when time runs out.
As the level proceeds, the playfields become more extensive or more intricate. Complex indicates that they are not always square or rectangular but can also have zigzag sides where horizontal or vertical alignments are impossible. More relics are added to the playfield, and the time is reduced.
