Just started with RoA 1 and looking at the Clue Book (a godsend imho) for the town of Thorwal's map I see an "M" for several squares. What is this "M" for?

I'm not seeing it described elsewhere although I may have missed it.

It's probably for marketplace, the market is there at certain hours during the day. Some stuff might be cheaper than in shops there.

AH! Market. Yeah, that makes sense. I'll just have to hang around there during the day and see. Maybe have to hang around all week. Time to find a nearby pub. :)

Thanks.

You can finish the game without ever visiting the market so don't waste too much time waiting, there's a time limit in the game.

I think I read that you can still finish the game even if the 'time limit' has passed, it's just that the final battle meeting place will be in Thorwal instead?

That said, the time limit is still VERY long. You could do literally everything there is to do in the game and still have over a year left remaining, even if you took your sweet time. I finished the game in about 8-10 months or so and there was still around 2 years left before the predicted orc invasion. I skipped about 3 dungeons, but I usually don't spend more than 24 hours in a dungeon anyway. The VAST majority of the game's time is spent walking from place to place anyway,

As long as you don't spend your time in an inn holed up for like 30 days each time you stop in at one, you should clear the game with plenty of time to spare.

PS: One thing about the GOG ROA1 cluebook I should mention: the list for the magical items in the game is WRONG. Many of the items in that list are either listed in the wrong dungeon or have the wrong properties/enhancements.

More accurate list found here:

http://likedreams.net/roa/roa1/roa1-magic_things.html

In the original German version there was a time limit and I doubt that it has been removed.
You can rest for a few years and check what will happen if you want.