A Guide to Mercury Lighthouses in Starcraft 2

After defeating the boss here, the lengthy cutscene ends and you’re prompted to hop onto one of the ponds surrounding Mercury Lighthouse. Doing so will cause the goddess statue to “turn on” and cast the Ply Psynergy, granting you the ability to use Psynergy with all NPCs in this area as if they were your own. This utility effect allows you to solve several puzzles in this section that require the Psynergy of your choice.

Mercury Lighthouse

In the early days of lighthouses, there was a problem with the steady illumination of Argand lamps. This led to the development of Fresnel lenses, which greatly increased the intensity and focused the beam of light. But these lenses needed a lot of mercury to function. Mercury is a liquid of high density that can buoy up a heavy object like a lens and keep it level. It also has very low friction, allowing the lens to rotate easily.

But mercury is also dangerous, and its fumes could be inhaled, poisoning the lighthouse keepers who handled it. This is believed to be the source of reports in old logbooks of lighthouse keepers acting erratically and losing their sanity. One example is the Nakkehoved lighthouse in Gilleleje, Denmark, which wobbled so much that the 30 liters of mercury it held leaked out.

In Golden Sun, the Mercury Lighthouse in Imil is guarded by a woman named Mia, who refuses to be persuaded to break her bloodline’s oath to ensure the Mercury Lighthouse remains unlit. When a group of Adepts led by the Mars Adept Saturos arrive to light all of the Elemental Lighthouse Beacons, Mia’s son Alex persuades her to change her mind.