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Tableaux Vivants: Walkthrough
This walkthrough contains MAJOR SPOILERS for both the puzzle solutions and the story. Proceed with caution!
There are hints included in the game, which are accessed via the THINK ABOUT (topic) command. If you find that the hints aren't providing the guidance you need — or if you'd like to thoroughly explore all the story has to offer — then this page is for you!
Beyond the introductory and ending scenes, the game consists of four multi-stage puzzles that may be solved in any order and are independent of one another. For that reason, this walkthrough is organized non-linearly by scene or puzzle rather than guiding you through the most efficient route from start to finish.
(This walkthrough also doesn't document all actions that are possible in the game, but focuses on the ones that might be most interesting to most players.)
A guide to all achievements is also provided below, along with a list of book topics you could try (most of which are not mentioned in the puzzle solutions).
Jump to:
- Introduction
- The Red-Haired Woman
- Napoleon
- The Young Man and Woman
- The Chimera
- Ending
- Bonus: Achievements Guide
- Bonus: Book Topics
Introduction
1. Examine the protagonist and the study.
x me i x gown x desk x drawer x bookmark x letter x pen x window x wall x shelves x book
2. Acquire the drawer's contents.
put mark in book unlock drawer open drawer x photo x locket take photo
3. Find a way to carry things.
find book about purse (or bag, backpack, container, etc) put mark in book x purse put key in purse take photo take locket w wear locket
4. Go to the drawing room. Examine things.
w x windows x garden x meadows x book x plant
5. Transform the book and the plant, then move on.
put mark in book x case put plant in case x clock wBack to top
The Red-Haired Woman
1. From the entrance hall, navigate to the Pink and Rose room. Examine things.
u s x wall x bed x woman x vanity x roses
2. Interact with the woman.
talk to woman listen
3. Return to the study and find what she needs.
n d e e research sonnet (or poetry, poem, etc) research mirror (or looking glass, etc) put mark in looking-glass x mirror
4. Bring the mirror to her.
w w u s give mirror to woman take painting x meBack to top
Napoleon
1. From the entrance hall, navigate north to the garden entrance.
Bonus: Take in the scenery.n x hedges x lawn x path x vines x road x house listen smellExamine the horse. (After this, the horse will randomly wander around the outdoor spaces of the garden.)
x horse
Bonus things to try (with the horse): Pet, ride, give him carrots (if you have them).
2. Continue north, examine things, and interact with the man. (After this, he will randomly wander around the three outdoor rooms of the garden.)
n x trees x man listen to man talk to man
Bonus things to try (with Napoleon): Talk to him a second time, give him something (not the saddle).
3. Investigate the greenhouse.
e x floor
(Skipping a couple things here that are related to other puzzles — see steps for "chimera" and "young man and woman.")
4. Return to the study and find the relevant book.
s w s e e research plants research potted plants (or greenhouse, exotic plants, house plants, etc) take book
5. Return to the Wardian case and use it. It could be in any location, but if you followed this walkthrough it will be in the drawing room west of the study.
w put mark in choice stove x plants put side-saddle in case take saddle
If you'd like to get the "Green Thumb" achievement, take a moment to put each of the remaining plants in the Wardian case.
6. Track down Napoleon in the garden and bring the saddle to him.
If you want to get all achievements, pet the horse before this last step.
give saddle to man take painting
Bonus things to try (in the garden areas): Put the saddle on the horse first.
Back to topThe Young Man and Woman
1. From the entrance hall, go to the dining room and examine things.
s x walls x table x man x glass x woman x cat x dog
Bonus things to try: Talk to the man and woman. Interact with the cat and dog (pet, take).
2. Investigate the kitchen.
w x range d
(The book relates to another puzzle.)
Bonus things to try: In the study, try researching wine.
3. From the kitchen, go to the garden and find some important plants.
e n n e x fountain x flowers take lily
(The woolflower relates to another puzzle.)
n x plant take plant
4. Return to the Wardian case and use it. It could be in any location, but if you followed this walkthrough it will be in the drawing room west of the study.
w s e put pothos in case take key put lily in case take torch
5. Try the cellar.
w s w unlock door d u
There are two light sources (torch or candle) that can be found in the game, and two sources of flame. If the chimera is still present, using it (as described below) will unlock an achievement; otherwise, use the fire in the Violet and Columbine room.
6. Get light, then return to the cellar.
e n u n light torch s d s w d
7. Get wine and bring it to the man.
If you want to get all achievements, pet the dog before this last step.
x book put mark in wine x wine u e give wine to man take painting
8. Reawaken memories and visit the Violet and Columbine room.
x photo n u e x table x bed x hearthBack to top
The Chimera
1. From the entrance hall, navigate to the Lily and Pomegranate room. Examine things.
u n x wallpaper x rugs x chimera x serpent x goat x lion
2. Learn what the chimera needs.
talk to chimera listen listen to serpent listen to goat listen to lion
3. Navigate to the kitchen to find some food.
s d s w x book put mark in book take all
Bonus things to try: Eating some food.
4. Feed two of the heads.
e n u n give roast to lion give salad to goat give trifle to serpent
Either the lion or serpent will eat the roast (and whichever remains will refuse the other foods). The goat will eat any of three vegetable or fruit options (although you could save the carrots for someone else, if you haven't finished the Napoleon puzzle yet...).
Bonus things to try: In the study, try researching chimera or chimera heads.
5. Search for food for the third head.
s d s x cat take mouse
Bonus things to try: In the study, research cats.
6. Find something to distract the cat.
This may be solved two different ways: this is the most self-contained method, while the other method involves an object that you'll find during the Napoleon puzzle.
The following will only be needed if you haven't already picked up the woolflower.
n n e x fountain x flowers take woolflower
(The lily is related to another puzzle.)
7. Return to the Wardian case and use it. It could be in any location, but if you followed this walkthrough it will be in the drawing room west of the study.
w s e put woolflower in case take yarn
8. Return to the dining room, distract the cat, and feed the last chimera head (either serpent or lion).
If you want to get all achievements, make sure you have "Fire Breather" before this last step.
w s give yarn to cat take mouse n u n give mouse to serpent take drawing x locket
Bonus things to try: After the chimera disappears, try eating some food again.
Back to topEnding
To reach the end of the story, you will need to return each of the four characters (or groups of characters) to their paintings and then return to the study. If you've done this and your score is less than 100, there may be a few memories left to unlock. For instructions, see "I Remember Everything" in the achievements guide below.
1. Once you've gathered all paintings and unlocked all memories, go to the study and hang each of the paintings on the wall. Hang paintings in any order, and at any time after you retrieve them.
Hanging the fourth painting is the point of no return. Before doing so, you may want to check that you've gotten any achievements you were aiming for (see the achievements guide).
put napoleon on wall put young man on wall put chimera on wall put lilith on wall(The command "
hang painting" and other variations are also accepted here.)
2. Reveal the hidden room, then finish the letter.
take grimms e x shelves x specimens x tomes x journal w write letter
3. Choose your ending by burning two of the letters (the ones you've decided against). If you would like to play all three endings, save your game before taking the following actions. You may also use the undo command.
x first x second x thirdThen keep the first letter:
burn second burn thirdOr the second letter:
burn first burn thirdOr the third letter:
burn first burn second
The end!
Back to topAchievements Guide
Book Topics
There are more than 30 unique responses to the command FIND BOOK ABOUT or RESEARCH (topic) in the study. These include many failures or refusals, most of which include small hints or world-building details; along with 20 topics that are more informative and will count towards the "Avid Reader" achievement.
The following is a list of the latter. Note that many synonyms are included, so you might see the same response for related terms (e.g., "young man" and "Hals painting" will return the same result). Also, many research responses will yield different information depending on which clues you have found so far.
(Note that only a few of these entries are required for solving puzzles. The others offer narrative details or historical background.)
alcott cat chimera chimera drawing chimera heads dante flowers greenhouse herefordshire lady lilith magic mirror napoleon ouroboros punjab purse sonnet wallpaper wine young manBack to top
