The White House, c. 883~910 GUE, Living Room  The White House, 948 (A) / (B) / (C) / (D)         Boarded Window         Kitchen         Living Room  (A) / (B)         Attic         Cellar                 The White House, c. 966~1000         Ext. : node (2) / (4) / (5) / (HI-RES)         Int. beyond the front door (A)         Int. Grue Breeding Ground                  node (1) / (2) / (6) / (HI-RES)       The White House Condemned, c. 1000                              (A) / (B) / (C)     The White House, 1067 (A)     The White House, 1067~1247 (A)     The White House, 1647 (A) / (B) / (C)

THE WHITE HOUSE

Also known at one time as Ellron's House, the White House in the Aragain Province is one of the major landmarks above the vast underground Dungeon of Zork, and even today a flocking grounds for adventurers and treasure-seekers.


THE CURSE OF MEGABOZ (883 GUE)
Before the reign of Dimwit Flathead, Aragain Village (later renamed to Flatheadia) rested on the spot where the White House is today. When the Curse of Megaboz was fulfilled on Curse Day of 883 GUE, the both the entire city and castle of Flatheadia collapsed. Though they were not destroyed, they merely shrank and shriveled, transforming into ever tinier structures, and finally into the White House, complete with boarded front doors and windows, and a small mailbox. In the words of Megaboz himself, "The Great Underground Empire is no more; but Quendor remains. The white house will stand as a warning and reminder of the excesses of the Flatheads."


THE WHITE HOUSE (883~c.966)
Thus for nearly a century, deep within the Dark Forest, stood a beautiful colonial house which was painted white. Its stately architecture once reflected the taste and wealth of its builders, clearly dictating that the owners must have been extremely wealthy. There was a usual brochure that one always found in this particular mailbox outside this particular house, although occassionally adventurers found other importantparcels within. Nearby, to the southwest, was the hidden Stone Barrow, a secret entrance into a portion of the Dungeon of Zork which is now seperated from the region beneath the White House. The estate was equipped with a kitchen, living room, and attic. But more importantly, its cellar was a hidden entrance to the Great Underground Empire, specifically the Dungeon of Zork.

Sometime between 883-910, the Quendoran knight Ellron took up ownership of the White House, which he retained until at least the mid-tenth century. The trapdoor to the cellar was locked with a bronze key, which Ellron kept around the neck of his songbird, which he kept protected with an invisibility spell along with its cage. In those years the estate was the site of Syovar the Strong's legendary battle against the evil warlock Krill and his hordes of lizard warriors. It was to the trophy case in this house where Syovar's nephew and niece returned the three Palantirs of Three from the dungeon beneath. When Syovar quickly placed the spheres into the trophy case, read its inscription, and recited a spell, the legendary Warriors of Zork were summoned. Allied with these god-like men, Syovar and Lord Ellron were easy able to cripple the forces of Krill. The battle ended when Syovar defeated Krill in combat.


FROBOZZCO CLAIMS THE WHITE HOUSE
At one time, the White House was an incredibly marketable parcel of real estate. There had been serious talk of constructing an entire community to go with it, with a school, a shopping mall, a massive cosmoplex for car shows and auctions of sofa-sized art, and all that sort of modern convenience. But none of it had even be implemented. All that remained was the house, but FrobozzCo took an interest in the property sometime before 948, and bought both the estate and the dungeon beneath it. (Although there may have been some legal battles fought in regards to this, as Ellron stilll lived in the house after 948, and the dungeon was ruled by the Dungeon Masters.)


LUCIEN KAINE (947~8)
Since the fall of the Empire, rumors of riches beneath the White House spread all over the lands of Zork. One of these reached the ears of Lucien Kaine, who was on a quest to revive his deceased love, Alexandria Wolfe. Having spent the last of his fortune, he explored the dungeon beneath the White House. Other treasure hunters had discovered the ruins already, and more were to follow. Lucien was required to kill them to protect his belongings, and soon become known as simply The Thief. He trapped many luckless adventurers in the dungeon, by closing and locked the living room trapdoor after they had descended into the cellar.

The unknown adventurer, who would become the Second Dungeon Master came upon the White House in 948. Perhaps thinking the estate abandoned, he stole many objects from the house in 948, including Ellron's recently prepared lunch -- but in exchange, placed at least twenty treasures into the trophy case. When Ellron later returned, he ran an add in the New Zork Times selling these treasures.


RENOVATION OF THE WHITE HOUSE (c. 957-966 GUE)
The decade before the end of the First Age of Magic brought drastic changes for the White House, as FrobozzCoInternational was not only taken over directly by the Implementors, but the Frobozz Magic Realty Company finally began their renovation project of the estate and dungeon beneath, under the guidance of Morgrom the Essence of Evil. In those days, a bypassing adventurer could see zombie workmen busily tearing down the boards that covered the windows, and a large billboard on the property adveritizing, "3 Rm Barrow View, Spacious Downstairs Excellent for Playroom, etc," followed by a sign, "Coming Soon! Casa Blanca Condos! Only 6 Left!"

The workmen covered the old white weathered clapboards with new vinyl siding, replaced worn soffits, fasciae, gutters, and downspots, touched up the landscaping, covering rocks with white paints and setting them alongside the paths that led around the house.

The work on the kitchen had been finished. There was a huge linoleum-topped work table in the center, with copper-bottom pots and pans hanging from a rack overhead. There were two walk-in refrigerators against one long wall, the kind of coolers you usually find only in a sizable restaurant; a modern eight-burner stove stood against the northern wall, giving further proof to the theory that someone planned to do a lot of cooking in this kitchen; a capacious double stainless-steel sink stood against a third wall; and there was a small table and a comfortable chair by the fourth wall. On the table was a stack of buttered toast, a pitcher of milk, and a recent issue of The New Zorker magazine propped up on a rack.

The living room was now large, with a high ceiling. Against one wall stood a tall, glass-fronted trophy case. It appeared that some of the items that had once been housed in the case were now missing. Shelves of books lined the other walls, and on the floor was a beautiful and costly oriental rug, mostly yellow. The room was filled with many other curious and fascinating objects. Glass skylights were placed in the attic, along with a great selection of plants.

Unfortunately, Morgrom would be deleted before the renovations could be completed. Thus the White House was left in a rather unique condition. Although later workers quickly finished the disrupted renovations, the White House became nothing but a small cottage as opposed to the great estate that it had once been.


GRUE BREEDING GROUND
While the proper date of the development of the Grue Breeding Ground cannot be properly dated, this horrific dwelling place beneath the White House could only be reached by passage through the boarded front door (for some reason the entryway did not link with the remainder of the house). It was here that the Skull of Yoruk, stolen from the living room's trophy case by a pack of grues, was enshrined in 950 GUE. 

Sometime between circa 966~1000[1] , a brogmoid named Brog from the year 1067 having passed through a time tunnel, arrived at the White House. He pulled the boards off the front door, entered the Grue Breeding Ground, and recovered the Skull of Yoruk, bringing it back with him to the eleventh century.


THE INQUISITION AND BEYOND
By about the turn of the century (1000 GUE), the Grand Inquisitor (who most likely was not Mir Yannick at the time, although was surely pressured by him) condemned the White House. It was surrounded with fencing and the mailbox was later knocked over by a wrecking ball. This was the state in which the historic estate would remain until Zork was freed from the Second Inquisition in 1067. The White House was quickly reopened, the mailbox replaced with a new golden one, and adventurers once again began to flock to the Dark Forest in search of treasure. In time, this became the primary encampment for adventurers all over the world, forcing installation of portable bathrooms, FrobozzCo shops, and even a bar upon the grounds. One of the many portals leading to the Bozbarland arena was installed during this period.



By 1157, eons of trespassing by thoughtless adventurers left the once noble edifice in ruins. The curse of Witchville somehow formed a magical dimension portal between the Festeron in Antharia and the White House. The current mailbox was transformed, becoming a sort of animated pet, which followed an adventurer back through the portal.

By 1647, the mailbox would be replaced with a Frobozz Magic Mailbox, and was one of the many addresses to which Rooper sent his famous Valley of the Sparrows Sweepstakes Winner packages.