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One of your primary objectives inRivenis neutralizing the megalomaniacal Gehn by trapping him in a fake Linking Book. Naturally, this plan goes sideways right from the start since you lose the book immediately, and it turns out Gehn has hidden himself in a pocket dimension, Age 233, which can only be accessed via the arcane machinery of the Golden Dome.
Most of your adventures in Riven will steer you toward gathering the necessary resources and information to pursue him. When you’re ready to return to Temple Island, here’s everything you need to do to power the Golden Dome.
How To Recover The Trap Book
The rebel faction on Riven, the Black Moiety, have taken the Trap Book to their hideout. To get it back, you need totravel to Tayusing thesecret passage on Jungle Island.When you arrive in Tay,turn aroundand approach the idol in the room behind you. The rebels will capture you and bring you to their town.
Once you’ve had a few minutes to explore your cell, a Moiety rebel will explain to your (in Rivenese, but you’ll get the gist of it if you listen closely) that Catherine told them to expect you and to give you the book. She’ll leaveCatherine’s Journal and the Trap Bookon the desk. Pick them up; a few moments later, the guard will knock on your door, indicating that you’re free to go.
Read through Catherine’s journalfor some critical information that you’ll need in order to finish the game, as well as the location of a shortcut back to Tay in case you want to return. Follow the walkways up and over the main area of the town, then back down the other side andenter the guarded room, where you can link back to Riven.
Using the Trap Book will get you an Achievement / Trophy, but triggers the game’s worst ending, since you trap yourself forever in the book. Save your game first!
How To Start The Golden Dome Puzzle
With the Trap Book in hand, it’s time to go after Gehn. Before you return to Temple Island,be sure you’ve done the following:
When you return to the Golden Dome, look for a button on the right handrail as you approach the Linking Book to Age 233. Ensure that all five lights around the rim are lit; if any aren’t, you need tocharge the Fire Marblein the Starry Expanse sphere for the symbol associated with its pont on the star.
If you’ve missed a sphere entirely, the symbols are as follows:
Circle with a dot in the center
Eye with a vertical line pupil
Circle with a vertical line
Sideways eye with a dot pupil
Circle with a horizontal line
Orange
When you press the button, the Fire Marbles will each change to thecolor associated with their symbol, as shown by the undersea lights visible from the observation chamber. When the machine is ready,pull the lever on the left to begin.
How To Solve The Golden Dome Puzzle
Start byplacing the Fire Marblesin the correct positions in the grid.The layout is the same as the grid that you used to enter the observation chamber on Survey Island, but each socket must have the correct color. The blocks on the original puzzle each represented one of the islands of Riven, with the socket representing its Expanse Sphere. Therefore, the correct positions are as follows:
Top row, leftmost column
Top row, second from right
Top row, rightmost column
Second row from bottom, second column from left
Bottom row, second column from left
Next, you need to adjust the sliders. For this, note the base value from Gehn’s notes (which is usually around 8 or 9, but again is randomized on each playthrough) and add or subtract the values for each symbol, as associated with the correct colors. Sincethe solution will be different on each run, you’ll have to do some quick arithmetic to find the correct values.
The slider starts at zero and has a larger mark every five positions, which helps makes counting easier.
When the marbles and sliders are all positioned,pull the lever on the left again.If everything is correct, thebutton on the panel will light up.Press it to power the Linking Book, which you may use to travel to Age 233.
