Pool of Radiance Cheats & Cheat Codes

In the world of the role-playing game, one name undoubtedly reigns supreme, and that’s Dungeons & Dragons. Pool of Radiance was one of the first attempts to capture the widespread popularity of D&D in video game form, and it certainly wasn’t the last. This computer RPG was launched in 1988 and adapted the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons rules system. It may not be as famous nowadays as its modern counterpart Baldur’s Gate III, but when it came out, it was a major success. The game earned enough critical and commercial acclaim to spawn a healthy series of sequels and establish a long, proud legacy of D&D video games. Here’s a closer look at Pool of Radiance and how it did the world’s greatest RPG justice.

Pool of Radiance Premise

Like most D&D content, especially nowadays, Pool of Radiance takes place in the Forgotten Realms. This setting is rife with time-honored sword and sorcery tropes that make it ideal for Dungeons & Dragons, and its rich history with the game is honored in things like the recent blockbuster film Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. Pool of Radiance, meanwhile, focuses on the city of Phlan, which has fallen into ruin. The city council is recruiting seasoned adventurers to aid the town and restore it to its former glory. During your quests in the region, you will eventually uncover the grim source of Phlan’s woes and put an end to it.

In Pool of Radiance, you have full creative control over your entire party. Just like in D&D, you can set your characters’ races and classes, and choose their alignments. This latter choice will impact how NPCs respond to your actions and motivations. Like many other RPGs, there’s also space in your party for NPC followers, who can aid you in combat and fill any gaps in your team’s gameplay composition. Exploration of dungeons, cities, and similar areas is done from a first-person view, while combat shifts to a top-down perspective to give you an adequate cinematic experience.

Pool of Radiance Main Characters

As with many other RPGs, success in Pool of Radiance depends on thoughtful interaction with the characters you meet in your travels. Many important figures call it home, and if you hope to succeed in your quest you’ll need to figure out who to aid and who to oppose. Here are some of the most important characters in Pool of Radiance.

• Braccio: The religious community in Phlan is led by Bishop Braccio, a religious leader and member of the Council of Ten, the rulers of the city. He is committed to holding back the tide of evil and corruption that threatens to overrun all of Phlan, and to that end, he enlists the party’s aid in freeing the Temple of Bane from monsters.
• Porphyrys Cadorna: The ruler of the Council of Ten is Porphyrys Cadona, an ambitious politician who acts as the party’s main contact during their efforts in Phlan. While he seems to have the city’s best interests at heart, he harbors many secrets.
• Ferran Martinez: Ferran Martinez was a former member of the Council of Ten who perished during an ill-fated attempt to keep a group of civilians safe in Sokol Keep. The party encounters his cursed specter, whom they must liberate in order to cleanse the keep and aid the city.
• Tyranthraxus: The true cause of the suffering inflicted on Phlan is Tyranthraxus, a malign spirit of unknown origin. This evil, extraplanar monster can possess creatures and control their minds and bodies in order to serve his own cruel ends. During the events of Pool of Radiance, Tyranthraxus has possessed an ancient dragon, which he uses to spread fear and terror throughout Phlan.

Pool of Radiance Titles in the Series

The D&D franchise has been an unavoidable fixture in the RPG genre since the very beginning. Its titanic list of licensed video games bears that out. Here is every video game related to the iconic tabletop RPG, including Pool of Radiance itself.

• Dungeons & Dragons Computer Fantasy Game (1981)
• Advanced Dungeons & Dragons: Cloudy Mountain (1982)
• Advanced Dungeons & Dragons: Treasure of Tarmin (1982)
• Pool of Radiance (1988)
• Heroes of the Lance (1988)
• Hillsfar (1989)
• Curse of the Azure Bonds (1989)
• Dragons of Flame (1989)
• War of the Lance (1989)
• Secret of the Silver Blades (1990)
• Eye of the Beholder (1990)
• DragonStrike (1990)
• Champions of Krynn (1990)
• Eye of the Beholder II: The Legend of Darkmoon (1991)
• Pools of Darkness (1991)
• Gateway to the Savage Frontier (1991)
• Neverwinter Nights (1991)
• Shadow Sorcerer (1991)
• Death Knights of Krynn (1991)
• Treasures of the Savage Frontier (1992)
• Spelljammer: Pirates of Realmspace (1992)
• DragonStrike (NES) (1992)
• The Dark Queen of Krynn (1992)
• Dungeons & Dragons: Order of the Griffon (1992)
• Dungeons & Dragons: Warriors of the Eternal Sun (1992)
• Eye of the Beholder III: Assault on Myth Drannor (1993)
• Forgotten Realms: Unlimited Adventures (1993)
• Dungeon Hack (1993)
• Fantasy Empires (1993)
• Dark Sun: Shattered Lands (1993)
• Stronghold (1993)
• Menzoberranzan (1994)
• Dungeons & Dragons: Tower of Doom (1994)
• Dark Sun: Wake of the Ravager (1994)
• Ravenloft: Strahd’s Possession (1994)
• Al-Qadim: The Genie’s Curse (1994)
• Slayer (1994)
• Ravenloft: Stone Prophet (1995)
• Blood & Magic (1996)
• Descent to Undermountain (1996)
• Dungeons & Dragons: Shadow Over Mystara (1996)
• Dark Sun Online: Crimson Sands (1996)
• Iron Blood: Warriors of Ravenloft (1996)
• DeathKeep (1996)
• Birthright: The Gorgon’s Alliance (1996)
• Baldur’s Gate (1998)
• Baldur’s Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast (1999)
• Planescape: Torment (1999)
• Icewind Dale (2000)
• Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows of Amn (2000)
• Icewind Dale: Heart of Winter (2001)
• Baldur’s Gate II: Throne of Bhaal (2001)
• Icewind Dale: Trials of the Luremaster (2001)
• Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor (2001)
• Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance (2001)
• Neverwinter Nights (2002)
• Icewind Dale II (2002)
• Dungeons & Dragons: Eye of the Beholder (2002)
• Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide (2003)
• Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark (2003)
• Dungeons & Dragons: Heroes (2003)
• The Temple of Elemental Evil (2003)
• Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone (2004)
• Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance II (2004)
• Neverwinter Nights: Shadowguard (2004)
• Neverwinter Nights: Witches’ Wake (2004)
• Neverwinter Nights: Kingmaker (2004)
• Neverwinter Nights: Mobile (2004)
• Neverwinter Nights: Pirates of the Sword Coast (2005)
• Dungeons & Dragons: Dragonshard (2005)
• Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach (2006)
• Neverwinter Nights: Infinite Dungeons (2006)
• Neverwinter Nights: Wyvern Crown of Cormyr (2006)
• Neverwinter Nights 2 (2006)
• Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer (2007)
• Dungeons & Dragons Tactics (2007)
• Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir (2008)
• Dungeons & Dragons: Tiny Adventures (2008)
• Neverwinter Nights 2: Mysteries of Westgate (2009)
• Dungeons & Dragons: Daggerdale (2011)
• Heroes of Neverwinter (2011)
• Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition (2012)
• Neverwinter (2013)
• Baldur’s Gate II: Enhanced Edition (2013)
• Dungeons & Dragons: Arena of War (2014)
• Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition (2014)
• Lords of Waterdeep (2014)
• Sword Coast Legends (2015)
• Baldur’s Gate: Siege of Dragonspear (2016)
• Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms (2017)
• Tales from Candlekeep: Tomb of Annihilation (2017)
• Planescape Torment: Enhanced Edition (2017)
• Neverwinter Nights: Enhanced Edition (2018)
• Warriors of Waterdeep (2019)
• Dungeons & Dragons: Dark Alliance (2021)
• Baldur’s Gate III (2023)

Pool of Radiance Cheat Codes

Unfortunately, there aren’t many cheat codes available in Pool of Radiance. However, there is a set of codes that will make it much easier to progress in certain parts of the game. Sokal Keep and the Pyramid both have special passwords that bring about significant changes when entered in the right sections. These passwords are mandatory to progress, and if you want to avoid hunting them down in-game yourself, here’s a list, courtesy of GameFAQs.

• NOKNOK: Get through the locked door in the pyramid.
• SAMOSOD: Get Ferran Martinez’s ghost to respond to you.
• LUX: Talk to specters.
• SHESTNI: Make the undead leave Sokal Keep.

Pool of Radiance Cheat Codes FAQ

Where can I play Pool of Radiance? Luckily for nostalgic D&D fans everywhere, Pool of Radiance is currently available on Steam. It’s part of Forgotten Realms: The Archives – Volume Two, which collects several vintage D&D adventures just like it. This makes it a very valuable acquisition for any RPG fan who wants to dive into the genre’s deepest roots.

The image featured at the top of this post is ©Screenshot from Pool of Radiance.