Variant

**Variants** are alternative versions of a Cell, with slightly different contents or a different arrangement of contents. About a third of all Cells in the game have more than one Variant available, with an equal chance for each Variant to be chosen when the Cell is created. Conversely, Cells with only one Variant (the default version of the cell) will always be the same each time they are encountered.

A cell's Variants are usually very similar to each other, enough to consider them all as being versions of the same Cell despite the differences. Nevertheless, these differences sometimes have a major impact on how the cell is solved. A Variant can feature different locations of Items, NPCs or other interactive objects found in the Cell, the presence or absence of Enemies, or even changes to the structure of the terrain itself.

For the most part, the game only chooses which Variant to use only when  Luke enters a cell for the first time in a new World; after that it will not change until the World is completed, aborted, or restarted. An Objective Variant -- a major change to most or *all* parts of the Objective Cell -- is instead determined at random during World Generation, before Luke ever visits it. The last type of variant occurs at Random Exchange cells -- an encounter with a randomly-generated NPC -- also determined during World Generation.

On this Wiki, not all randomized parts of a Cell are considered Variants. Simple changes that do not have a major impact on the Cell's behavior may instead be listed as "Minor Randomness", and described as an intrinsic feature of the Cell itself. This mostly includes randomized locations or varieties of hidden Equipment in the cell.

On this Wiki, cell Variants are marked with a letter following the cell template number. For example, Ice Puzzle Cell 08 has two Variants called Ice Puzzle Cell 08A and Ice Puzzle Cell 08B. Variants for Subcells are marked with a letter following the Subcell's number, so the variants of Forest Puzzle Cell 08 Subcell 01 are called Forest Puzzle Cell 08 Subcell 01A and Forest Puzzle Cell 08 Subcell 01B.

## Description

In order to keep the game challenging after multiple playthroughs, some Cells have multiple versions available that are slightly different from one another.  Luke might visit a cell that looks very familiar at first, only to discover that the solution to that cell is different to what it was in previous games. This allows the developers to easily create new challenges without having to create completely new cells; instead making only small changes that are nevertheless impactful.

These changes are typically quite small. An Item might be hidden behind a different Movable, or a doorway might be located at a different position in the cell. Sometimes, the change is much more significant, altogether altering the way the puzzle is solved. There is no real limit to the scale of difference; but the Variants found in the game typically include only minor changes, resulting in Variants that look identical or near-identical until Luke starts exploring them more thoroughly.

A Cell's Variant is chosen at random at a specific point in the game. In most cases, a Cell's Variant is determined only when Luke enters that cell for the first time in a new World. As a result, saving the game before entering a new Cell and repeatedly entering it "for the first time" may yield a different variant. Once the Cell is entered, its contents are permanent to that World. Other types of Variants are determined before the game even starts, and will not change at all during that World no matter how many times the game is reloaded.

## Minor Cell Randomness

A very common occurrence is the random placement of hidden Equipment underneath Movable objects in the Cell. For example, an item that was once found under one box might be found under another box on another playthrough, or not found at all in the scene.

Since the scene looks visually identical before checking each box, and because Equipment is not directly relevant to the completion of each puzzle or the Mission as a whole, this Wiki treats this sort of randomness as trivial; It is not considered a proper **Variant**, but a fundamental feature of the cell itself. If the cell does have proper Variants, they will likely feature the same random placement of Equipment.

The same applies to Cells where, upon each visit, a different door might lead into the same Subcell - so long as all doors appear in the Cell on every visit. A good example is Desert Puzzle Cell 11 (see image on the right), where all 5 doors appear each time you visit, but only one can be opened and leads into the Desert Puzzle Cell 11.1 Subcell.

These minor changes are shown on the cell's schematic using multiple markers, with a description indicating that any of the markers could be the correct one on any given visit, as shown in the image on the right.

## Major Cell Variants

In order to be considered a proper Variant on this Wiki, the change to a cell must conform to **at least one** of the following requirements:

1. The change is visible upon entering the cell.
2. The change affects the solution of the puzzle.
3. The change cannot be explained simply by adding markers to an existing screenshot of the cell.

Examples of significant Variants are very wide, since each cell handles changes differently. Nevertheless, some Variant types are common enough to allow generalization.

### Randomized Doorway Positions

A rare occurrence in Objective Cells, this type of Variant moves a doorway from one position to another. The doorway may or may not also lead into a different Subcell each time.

Since the door visually changes location, the change can be spotted on cursory examination of the cell. This requires two different screenshots of the cell on this Wiki, and therefore two different Variants.

The example on the right shows Tatooine Palace Objective Cell 01A and Tatooine Palace Objective Cell 01B. The door leading from inside the basement to the second floor may appear either on the left side or the right side. Each is a different Variant of the cell.

### Randomized Quest Items Positions

In this type of Variant used mostly for Puzzle Cells, a Quest Item will appear in a different position in the scene, or under a different Movable object.

The move may at first seem trivial, but most Puzzle Cells with this sort of variance require slightly (or substantially) different solutions to get to the Quest Item depending on where it is located.

In the example on the right, from Forest Puzzle Cell 11, a Quest Item may appear in two possible locations. This requires finding two different paths through the forest to get to the item. Since the difference can be clearly seen on cursory examination, and the solution significantly different, each of these is considered a distinct Variant of the cell: Forest Puzzle Cell 11A and Forest Puzzle Cell 11B.

Note that if the Quest Item is hidden under various Movables, and finding it doesn't require a substantially different solution, it is considered a Minor Randomness, not a Variant.

### Randomized Visible Pathways

A very common Variance found in many different kinds of Cells is a noticeable change to the structure of a maze. A path is opened in one place and closed in another, requiring  Luke to use a different path each time to get to to other side.

The change is usually very minor - simply removing a wall from one position and placing it in another. All parts of the maze will always remain accessible, just by different paths.

This change is very common in Objective Cells, since they often feature a maze. In some cases, this will also alter the way Luke navigates from one Subcell to another - effectively creating a variant of the entire Objective Cell. If so, this may be a part of the Objective Variant rather than a local change to a single Subcell; Multiple Subcells will be affected simultaneously.

The example on the right shows both versions of Desert Puzzle Cell 48 Subcell 01, with two different versions of the maze. In the first Variant, the top part of the maze is reached by going west from the entrance, while in the second Variant it is reached by going east.

### Randomized Hidden Pathways

In some cells, particularly on Forest planets, hidden paths through a Cell may change from one Variant to another. This change is *not* seen upon visiting the cell, since the pathways are hidden. Instead,  Luke will simply be unable to follow the old path through the trees, and must find a different one.

Since the change is invisible, a single screenshot can be used to show both solutions to the puzzle. As a result, these are not considered different Variants, in most cases. Instead, the solution will show all possible paths simultaneously, requiring the player to test each path until the correct one is found.

The example on the right shows all the solutions to Forest Puzzle Cell 14 Subcell 01, displayed on the same screenshot. The two solutions, while being variants in the technical sense, are not treated as Variants on this Wiki.

### Different Solution Method

In some rare cases, a cell's solution is substantially changed with each Variant. This may come in various forms, and cannot easily be generalized.

For example, Ice Puzzle Cell 14 shown on the right has two variants: In one variant the cave is blocked by an ice flow (and requires a Quest Item to open); while in the other variant the cave is open by default, and the same item is instead used within the Subcell.

## Objective Variants

*Main article: Objective Variant*

Objective Cells sometimes experience similar variance to any other type of Cell. However, there is another type of variance that is unique to Objective Cells - a change that is determined before the game even begins, and affects more than one Subcell simultaneously. These are called Objective Variants.

Objective Variants have much more of an impact on the solution to the Objective Cell, sometimes going as far as requiring different items -- or a different number of items -- to solve the puzzle. As a result, the Objective Variant must be chosen before the game begins, because the World Generator must take the change into account when creating the Exchange; It must make sure that the Puzzle Cells placed on the map will provide  Luke with exactly the number and types of items needed. As a result, once the game begins, the Objective Variant will not change until the Mission is finished or aborted.

Most Objective Variants alter the puzzle's solution as well as the structure of the Subcells themselves - particularly the maze portion of the objective, if there is one. Since Objective mazes often span many Subcells, changes often impact multiple Subcells simultaneously, changing them all together in order to maintain a solvable path through all of them. These changes may be visible or hidden, as with any other type of cell. In some cases, exits from each Subcell will lead to different Subcells (or different locations in the target Subcell) based on the selected variant. Nevertheless, each Objective Cell has its own unique way of handling Variants, so it is difficult to generalize.

The choice of Objective Variant can also have an effect on which Variants can be chosen for individual Subcells. A good example is the Tatooine Mos Eisley Objective Cell, where the final Subcell has many different Variants to choose from, but can only pick certain ones depending on the Objective Variant.

## Random Exchanges

*Main article: Random Exchange*

A Random Exchange cell is a type of  Puzzle Cell where  Luke must hand a Quest Item to an NPC in order to get a different Quest Item in return. In "regular" puzzle cells, such an exchange is scripted: You'll always meet the same NPC with the same dialog (excluding the name of the item). In a Random Exchange cell, however, the NPC sprite is chosen at random, and the dialog procedurally-generated, before the game even starts.

The choice of NPC sprite and dialog are completely cosmetic. Two different-looking NPCs function identically to one another anyway, and the dialog is mostly meaningless to the adventure. The dialog is constructed mostly based on the items being required and provided, so there's one piece of dialog if the NPC requires an  Alluvial Damper, and another if he/she requires a  Hydrospanner. A few items have multiple possible dialog pieces to choose from, depending on whether the item is required for the Objective Cell.

Random Exchange Cells are used as "filler" in the Exchange, converting one Quest Item into another on the chain. The advantage of Random Exchange Cells is that almost any item can be required, and any item provided.

The World Generator determines the properties of the Random Exchange cell before the game begins, and these will not change during gameplay.