SIDEQUEST ADVENTURE 001
The Lost
Star
A tiny star broke into four pieces. Build the Field Kit. Follow the clues. Bring its light home.
READ ALOUD
The sky went quiet.
Last night, a young star tumbled down and broke into four pieces. Each piece hid inside an ordinary object. The Field Kit can hear their secret signal, but it needs two players to follow it.
HOW IT WORKS
One kit.
One trail.
Four pieces.
A new correct card adds one star piece. A wrong or repeated card adds nothing. Turn the kit off and the hunt should wait for you.
A Cardputer, reader, cable, and five blank cards.
Five card links, safe hiding places, and two player jobs.
A repeatable story hunt that works without the internet.
GROWN-UP SETUP
Make the kit ready
Build the firmware to match steps 5-15. Test every result and fix. Then load it and turn the Cardputer off.
All target screens, sounds, saves, and resets below work on the real kit.
Stop here. The remaining pages are the firmware acceptance contract.
READY STATE
UNBOX
Lay out five things
Put each part on the table. Match the picture.
Five groups. Nothing is plugged in.
Find the missing part before moving on.
LAYOUT
CONNECT
Join the reader
With power off, plug the reader cable into the reader and the Cardputer expansion connection.
One straight cable between both parts.
Pull it out. Turn the plug. Try again without force.
ONE CABLE
TEST 1 OF 2
Wake the Field Kit
Turn on the Cardputer. Leave the cards on the table.
READER FOUND on the screen.
Turn it off. Push in both cable ends. Turn it on.
FIRMWARE TARGET SCREEN
TEST 2 OF 2
Let it hear one card
Hold one card flat over the reader. Move it slowly.
One beep, or you see CARD HEARD.
Move closer. Flip the card. Ask a grown-up to check the cable.
HOLD FLAT
MAKE
Turn cards into artifacts
Give each card one big paper symbol.
Five cards that look different across the table.
Draw a bigger symbol. Use one bold color per card.
FIVE ARTIFACTS
GROWN-UP CHECKPOINT
Open enrollment
At the title screen, hold G + 0 for three seconds.
ENROLL 5 CARDS.
Return to the title. Hold both keys and count to three.
Firmware acceptance control: the builder must implement this shortcut in the Sidequest program. It is not a built-in device feature.
FIRMWARE TARGET · GROWN-UP SCREEN
ENROLL 1 OF 5
Save Builder
Hold the Builder card over the reader until the count changes.
SAVED: BUILDER and 1 OF 5.
Lift it. Put it flat over the reader. Wait for one beep.
FIRST CARD
ENROLL 2 TO 5
Save four star cards
Scan North, Rain, Echo, then Glow. Wait for the count each time.
5 CARDS READY.
Scan only the card named on screen. If mixed up, choose START OVER.
SCAN IN ORDER
SET THE TRAIL
Place four clues
A grown-up hides the four star cards in safe, easy-to-reach places.
Every card can be reached with two feet on the floor.
Move the card to a lower, open place.
SAFE EXAMPLE TRAIL
PLAY
Launch the hunt
Give the kit to the Reader. Press Enter once.
The first clue and its symbol.
Press once more. If still stuck, ask a grown-up to restart.
FIRST CLUE
STORIES SLEEP.FIND NORTH ▲
TWO PLAYERS, TWO JOBS
Swap after every star piece.
Hold the kit. Read the clue. Point to the symbol.
Search safely. Bring back one artifact. Wait to scan.
READER JOB
Read and point
Read the clue aloud and point to its symbol.
The Explorer can repeat the clue.
Read it together once more.
READER VIEW
EXPLORER JOB
Look and return
Bring one matching artifact back to the Reader.
One card beside the kit. Feet stayed on the floor.
Leave any hard-to-reach card. Ask a grown-up to move it.
EXPLORER ROUTE
SCAN
Let the kit decide
Hold the returned card flat over the reader.
Only a new correct card adds one piece.
If nothing reacts, move closer and flip the card.
TRY EACH RESULT
FINISH
Restore the star
After piece four, place all four artifact cards around the kit.
One victory tune. The screen shows a whole star.
Check the count. Scan the one missing card.
MISSION COMPLETE
▲●≋✦PLAY AGAIN
Reset safely
Choose PLAY AGAIN on the finish screen.
The piece count returns to zero. Card links stay saved.
Turn power off and on. The last saved screen returns.
CHOOSE THE RESET
0 / 4 pieces
5 links stay
0 / 4 pieces
5 links erased
Use START OVER only when replacing the five artifact cards. Open it with the grown-up shortcut from step 8.
YOUR TURN
Make the next story
Choose one answer in each row.
A new mission you can read aloud.
Change one answer until the story makes you grin.
ADVENTURE MAKER
The moon map is missing. A tiny robot left four clues. Follow them to the pillow fort.