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1.1 root 1: .de sh
2: .br
3: .ne 5
4: .PP
5: \fB\\$1\fR
6: .PP
7: ..
8: .TH PHANTASIA 6 "May 2, 1990"
9: .UC 4
10: .SH NAME
11: phantasia \- an interterminal fantasy game
12: .SH SYNOPSIS
13: phantasia [ \-HSabmpsx ]
14: .SH DESCRIPTION
15: .I Phantasia
16: is a role playing game
17: which allows players to roll up characters of various types to fight
18: monsters and other players.
19: Progression of characters is based upon gaining experience from fighting
20: monsters (and other players).
21: .PP
22: Most of the game is menu driven and self-explanatory (more or less).
23: The screen is cursor updated, so be sure to set up the
24: .B TERM
25: variable in your environment.
26: .PP
27: The options provide for a variety of functions to support the game.
28: They are:
29: .PP
30: .TP .5i
31: .B \-s
32: Invokes
33: .I phantasia
34: without header information.
35: .TP .5i
36: .B \-m
37: Get a monster listing.
38: .TP .5i
39: .B \-a
40: Get a listing of all character names on file.
41: .TP .5i
42: .B \-x
43: Examine/change a particular character on file.
44: .TP .5i
45: .B \-H
46: Print header only.
47: .TP .5i
48: .B \-p
49: Purge old characters.
50: .TP .5i
51: .B \-b
52: Show scoreboard of top characters per login.
53: .TP .5i
54: .B \-S
55: Turn on wizard options, if allowed, if running as ``root''.
56: .PP
57: The characters are saved on a common file, in order to make the game
58: interactive between players. The characters are given a password
59: in order to retrieve them later. Only characters above
60: .B level
61: zero are saved. Characters unused for awhile will be purged.
62: Characters are only placed on the scoreboard when they die.
63: .SH AUTHOR
64: Edward Estes, AT&T Information Systems, Skokie, IL
65: .SH PARTICULARS
66: .sh "Normal Play"
67: A number of the player's more important statistics are almost always
68: displyed on the screen, with maximums (where applicable) in
69: parentheses.
70: .PP
71: The character is placed randomly near the center of a cartesian
72: system.
73: Most commands are selected with a single letter or digit.
74: For example, one may move by hitting 'W', 'S', 'N', or 'E',
75: (lower case may also be used, at no time is the game case dependent).
76: One may also use 'H', 'J', 'K', 'L',
77: for movement, similar to
78: .IR vi (1).
79: To move to a specific (x, y) coordinate, use the
80: .B move
81: ('1') command. The distance a character can move is calculated by
82: 1 plus 1.5 per
83: .B level.
84: Moving in a compass direction will move the player the maximum
85: allowed distance in that direction.
86: .PP
87: A player may see who else is playing by using the
88: .B players
89: ('2') option. One may see the coordinates of those who are the same
90: distance or closer to the origin as he/she.
91: .B Kings,
92: and
93: .B council of the wise
94: can see and can be seen by everyone. A
95: .B palantir
96: removes these retrictions.
97: .PP
98: One can talk to other players with the
99: .B talk
100: ('3') option. In general, this is a line or so of text. To remove a current
101: message, just type <return> when prompted for a message.
102: .PP
103: The
104: .B stats
105: ('4') option shows additional characteristics of a player.
106: .PP
107: One may leave the game either with the
108: .B quit
109: ('5') option.
110: .PP
111: One may rest by default. Resting lets one regain maximum
112: .B energy level,
113: and also lets one find
114: .B mana
115: (more is found for larger levels and further distances from the origin).
116: .PP
117: One may call a monster by hitting '9' or 'C'.
118: .PP
119: Use 'X' to examine other players.
120: .PP
121: One may quit or execute a sub-shell by hitting interrupt.
122: Quitting during battle results in death for obvious reasons.
123: .PP
124: Several other options become available as the player progresses in
125: .B level
126: and
127: .B magic,
128: or to other stations in the game (
129: .B valar, council of the wise, king
130: ).
131: These are described elsewhere.
132: In general, a control-L will force the redrawing of the screen.
133: .PP
134: Other things which may happen are more or less self-explanatory.
135: .sh "Fighting Monsters"
136: A player has several options while fighting monsters. They are as follows:
137: .TP 1.5i
138: .B melee
139: Inflicts damage on the monster, based upon
140: .B strength.
141: Also decreases the monster's
142: .B strength
143: some.
144: .TP 1.5i
145: .B skirmish
146: Inflicts a little less damage than
147: .B melee,
148: but decreases the monster's
149: .B quickness
150: instead.
151: .TP 1.5i
152: .B evade
153: Attempt to run away. Success is based upon both the player's and
154: the monster's
155: .B brains
156: and
157: .B quickness.
158: .TP 1.5i
159: .B spell
160: Several options for throwing spells (described elsewhere).
161: .TP 1.5i
162: .B nick
163: Hits the monster one plus the player's
164: .B sword,
165: and gives the player 10% of the monster's
166: .B experience.
167: Decreases the monster's
168: .B experience
169: an amount proportional to the amount granted.
170: This also increases the monster's quickness.
171: Paralyzed monsters wake up very fast when nicked.
172: .TP 1.5i
173: .B luckout
174: This is essentially a battle of wits with the monster. Success is based
175: upon the player's and the monster's
176: .B brains.
177: The player gets credit for slaying the monster if he/she succeeds.
178: Otherwise, nothing happens, and the chance to
179: .B luckout
180: is lost.
181: .sh "Character Statistics"
182: .TP 1.5i
183: .B strength
184: determines how much damage a character can inflict.
185: .TP 1.5i
186: .B quickness
187: determines how many chances a character gets to make decisions while
188: fighting.
189: .TP 1.5i
190: .B energy level
191: specifies how much damage a character may endure before dying.
192: .TP 1.5i
193: .B magic level
194: determines which spells a character may throw, and how effective those
195: spells will be.
196: .TP 1.5i
197: .B brains
198: basically, the character's intelligence; used for various fighting options
199: and spells.
200: .TP 1.5i
201: .B mana
202: used as a power source for throwing spells.
203: .TP 1.5i
204: .B experience
205: gained by fighting monsters and other characters.
206: .TP 1.5i
207: .B level
208: indicative of how much experience a character has accumulated; progresses
209: geometrically as
210: .B experience
211: increases.
212: .TP 1.5i
213: .B poison
214: sickness which degrades a character's performance (affects
215: .B energy level
216: and
217: .B strength
218: ).
219: .TP 1.5i
220: .B sin
221: accumulated as a character does certain nasty things; used only rarely
222: in normal play of the game.
223: .TP 1.5i
224: .B age
225: of player; roughly equivalent to number of turns.
226: As
227: .B age
228: increases, many personal statistics degenerate.
229: .sh "Character Types"
230: Character statistics are rolled randomly from the above list, according
231: to character type. The types are as follows:
232: .TP 1.5i
233: .B magic user
234: strong in
235: .B magic level
236: and
237: .B brains
238: , weak in other areas. Must rely on wits and magic to survive.
239: .TP 1.5i
240: .B fighter
241: good in
242: .B strength
243: and
244: .B energy level
245: , fairly good in other areas. This adds up to a well-equipped fighter.
246: .TP 1.5i
247: .B elf
248: very high
249: .B quickness
250: and above average
251: .B magic level
252: are
253: .B elves
254: selling points.
255: .TP 1.5i
256: .B dwarf
257: very high
258: .B strength
259: and
260: .B energy level
261: , but with a tendency to be rather slow and not too bright.
262: .TP 1.5i
263: .B halfling
264: rather quick and smart, with high
265: .B energy level
266: , but poor in
267: .B magic
268: and
269: .B strength.
270: Born with some
271: .B experience.
272: .TP 1.5i
273: .B experimento
274: very mediocre in all areas. However, the
275: .B experimento
276: may be placed almost anywhere within the playing grid.
277: .PP
278: The possible ranges for starting statistics are summarized in
279: the following table.
280: .PP
281: .TS
282: l c c c c c c
283: l c c c c c c.
284: Type Strength Quick Mana Energy Brains Magic
285: _
286: Mag. User 10-15 30-35 50-100 30-45 60-85 5-9
287: Fighter 40-55 30-35 30-50 45-70 25-45 3-6
288: Elf 35-45 32-38 45-90 30-50 40-65 4-7
289: Dwarf 50-70 25-30 25-45 60-100 20-40 2-5
290: Halfling 20-25 34 25-45 55-90 40-75 1-4
291: Experimento 25 27 100 35 25 2
292: .TE
293: .PP
294: Not only are the starting characteristics different for the different
295: character types, the characteristics progress at different rates for the
296: different types as the character goes up in
297: .B level. Experimentoes'
298: characteristics progress randomly as one of the other types.
299: The progression as characters increase in
300: .B level
301: is summarized in the following table.
302: .PP
303: .TS
304: l c c c c c
305: l n n n n n.
306: Type Strength Mana Energy Brains Magic
307: _
308: Mag. User 2.0 75 20 6 2.75
309: Fighter 3.0 40 30 3.0 1.5
310: Elf 2.5 65 25 4.0 2.0
311: Dwarf 5 30 35 2.5 1
312: Halfling 2.0 30 30 4.5 1
313: .TE
314: .PP
315: The character type also determines how much gold a player may
316: carry, how long until
317: .B rings
318: can overcome the player, and how much
319: .B poison
320: the player can withstand.
321: .sh "Spells"
322: During the course of the game, the player may exercise his/her
323: magic powers. These cases are described below.
324: .TP 1.5i
325: .B cloak
326: .I magic level necessary:
327: 20 (plus level 7)
328: .br
329: .I mana used:
330: 35 plus 3 per rest period
331: .br
332: Used during normal play. Prevents monsters from finding the character,
333: as well as hiding the player from other players. His/her coordinates
334: show up as '?' in the
335: .B players
336: option. Players cannot collect
337: .B mana,
338: find trading posts, or discover the
339: .B grail
340: while cloaked. Calling a monster uncloaks, as well as choosing
341: this option while cloaked.
342: .br
343: .TP 1.5i
344: .B teleport
345: .I magic level necessary:
346: 40 (plus level 12)
347: .br
348: .I mana used:
349: 30 per 75 moved
350: .br
351: Used during normal play. Allows the player too move with much more freedom
352: than with the
353: .B move
354: option, at the price of expending mana. The maximum distance possible
355: to move is based upon
356: .B level
357: and
358: .B magic level.
359: .TP 1.5i
360: .B power blast
361: .I magic level necessary:
362: none
363: .br
364: .I mana used:
365: 5 times
366: .B level
367: .br
368: Used during inter-terminal battle. Damage is based upon
369: .B magic level
370: and
371: .B strength.
372: Hits much harder than a normal hit.
373: .TP 1.5i
374: .B all or nothing
375: .I magic level necessary:
376: none
377: .br
378: .I mana used:
379: 1
380: .br
381: Used while combatting monsters.
382: Has a 25% chance of working. If it works it hits the monster just enough
383: to kill it. If it fails, it doesn't hit the monster, and doubles the
384: monster's
385: .B quickness
386: and
387: .B strength.
388: Paralyzed monsters wake up much quicker as a result of this spell.
389: .TP 1.5i
390: .B magic bolt
391: .I magic level necessary:
392: 5
393: .br
394: .I mana used:
395: variable
396: .br
397: Used while combatting monsters. Hits the monster based upon the amount
398: of
399: .B mana
400: expended and
401: .B magic level.
402: Guaranteed to hit at least 10 per
403: .B mana.
404: .TP 1.5i
405: .B force field
406: .I magic level necessary:
407: 15
408: .br
409: .I mana used:
410: 30
411: .br
412: Used during monster combat. Throws up a shield to protect from damage.
413: The shield is added to actual energy level, and is a fixed number, based
414: upon maximum energy. Normally, damage occurs first to the shield, and
415: then to the players actual
416: .B energy level.
417: .TP 1.5i
418: .B transform
419: .I magic level necessary:
420: 25
421: .br
422: .I mana used:
423: 50
424: .br
425: Used during monster combat. Transforms the monster randomly into one
426: of the 100 monsters from the monster file.
427: .TP 1.5i
428: .B increase might
429: .I magic level necessary:
430: 35
431: .br
432: .I mana used:
433: 75
434: .br
435: Used during combat with monsters. Increases strength up to a maximum.
436: .TP 1.5i
437: .B invisibility
438: .I magic level necessary:
439: 45
440: .br
441: .I mana used:
442: 90
443: .br
444: Used while fighting monsters. Makes it harder for the monster to hit,
445: by temporarily increasing the player's
446: .B quickness.
447: This spell may be thrown several times, but a maximum level will be reached.
448: .TP 1.5i
449: .B transport
450: .I magic level necessary:
451: 60
452: .br
453: .I mana used:
454: 125
455: .br
456: Used during monster combat. Transports the monster away from the
457: player. Success is base upon player's
458: .B magic
459: and
460: .B brains,
461: and the monster's
462: .B experience.
463: If it fails the player is transported instead. 60% of the time, the monster
464: will drop any treasure it was carrying.
465: .TP 1.5i
466: .B paralyze
467: .I magic level necessary:
468: 75
469: .br
470: .I mana used:
471: 150
472: .br
473: Used during monster combat. "Freezes" the monster by putting its
474: .B quickness
475: slightly negative. The monster will slowly wake up. Success is based
476: upon player's
477: .B magic
478: and the monster's
479: .B experience.
480: If it fails, nothing happens.
481: .TP 1.5i
482: .B specify
483: .I magic level necessary:
484: none
485: .br
486: .I mana used:
487: 1000
488: .br
489: Used during monster combat only by
490: .B valar
491: or
492: .B council of the wise.
493: Allows the player to pick which monster to fight.
494: .sh "Monsters"
495: Monsters get bigger as one moves farther from the origin (0,0). Rings of
496: distance 125 from the origin determine the size. A monster's
497: .B experience, energy level,
498: and
499: .B brains
500: are multiplied by the size.
501: .B Strength
502: is increase 50% per size over one, and
503: .B quickness
504: remains the same, regardless of size.
505: .PP
506: Also, nastier monsters are found as one progress farther out
507: from the origin. Monsters also may flock. The percent chance of that
508: happening is designated as
509: .B flock%
510: in the monster listing. Monsters outside the first ring
511: may carry treasure, as determined by their treasure type.
512: Flocking monsters, and bigger monsters increase the chances of treasure.
513: .PP
514: Certain monsters have special abilities; they are as follows:
515: .TP 1.5i
516: .B Unicorn
517: can only be subdued if the player is in possession of a
518: .B virgin.
519: .TP 1.5i
520: .B Modnar
521: has random characteristics, including treasure type.
522: .TP 1.5i
523: .B Mimic
524: will pick another name from the list of monsters in order to
525: confuse.
526: .TP 1.5i
527: .B Dark Lord
528: very nasty person. Does not like to be hit (especially nicked),
529: and many spells do not work well (or at all) against him.
530: One can always
531: .B evade
532: from the
533: .B Dark Lord.
534: .TP 1.5i
535: .B Leanan-Sidhe
536: also a very nasty person. She will permanently sap
537: .B strength
538: from someone.
539: .TP 1.5i
540: .B Saruman
541: wanders around with
542: .B Wormtongue
543: , who can steal a
544: .B palantir.
545: Also,
546: .B Saruman
547: may turn a player's gems into gold pieces,
548: or scramble her/his stats.
549: .TP 1.5i
550: .B Thaumaturgist
551: can transport a player.
552: .TP 1.5i
553: .B Balrog
554: inflicts damage by taking away
555: .B experience
556: , not
557: .B energy.
558: .TP 1.5i
559: .B Vortex
560: may take some
561: .B mana.
562: .TP 1.5i
563: .B Nazgul
564: may try to steal a
565: .B ring
566: or neutralize part of one's
567: .B brains.
568: .TP 1.5i
569: .B Tiamat
570: may take half a players
571: .B gold
572: and
573: .B gems
574: and escape.
575: .TP 1.5i
576: .B Kobold
577: may get nasty and steal one gold piece and run away.
578: .TP 1.5i
579: .B Shelob
580: may bite, inflicting the equivalent of one
581: .B poison.
582: .TP 1.5i
583: .B Assorted Faeries
584: These are killed if attacking someone carrying
585: .B holy water.
586: These are
587: .B Cluricaun, Fir Darrig, Fachan,
588: .B Ghille Dhu, Bogle, Killmoulis,
589: and
590: .B Bwca.
591: .TP 1.5i
592: .B Lamprey
593: may bite, inflicting 1/2 of a
594: .B poison.
595: .TP 1.5i
596: .B Shrieker
597: will call one of its (much bigger) buddies if picked upon.
598: .TP 1.5i
599: .B Bonnacon
600: will become bored with battle, fart, and run off.
601: .TP 1.5i
602: .B Smeagol
603: will try to steal a
604: .B ring
605: from a player, if given the chance.
606: .TP 1.5i
607: .B Succubus
608: may inflict damage through a
609: .B force field.
610: This subtracts from
611: .B energy level
612: instead of any shield the player may have thrown up.
613: This is a very easy way to die.
614: .TP 1.5i
615: .B Cerberus
616: loves metal and will steal all the metal treasures from
617: a player if able.
618: .TP 1.5i
619: .B Ungoliant
620: can bite and poison. This inflicts five
621: .B poisons
622: , and also takes one from the player's
623: .B quickness.
624: .TP 1.5i
625: .B Jabberwock
626: may tire of battle, and leave after calling one of his friends
627: (
628: .B Jubjub Bird
629: or
630: .B Bandersnatch
631: ).
632: .TP 1.5i
633: .B Morgoth
634: actually
635: .B Modnar
636: , but reserved for
637: .B council of the wise, valar,
638: and
639: .B ex-valar.
640: Fights with
641: .B Morgoth
642: end when either he or the player dies. His characteristics
643: are calculated based upon the player's. The player is given
644: the chance to ally with him. No magic, except
645: .B force field
646: works when battling
647: .B Morgoth.
648: .TP 1.5i
649: .B Troll
650: may regenerate its
651: .B energy
652: and
653: .B strength
654: while in battle.
655: .TP 1.5i
656: .B Wraith
657: may make a player blind.
658: .sh "Treasures"
659: The various treasure types are as follows:
660: .TP 1.5i
661: .B Type zero
662: .I none
663: .TP 1.5i
664: .B Type one
665: .I power booster
666: \- adds mana.
667: .br
668: .I druid
669: \- adds experience.
670: .br
671: .I holy orb
672: \- subtracts 0.25 sin.
673: .TP 1.5i
674: .B Type two
675: .I amulet
676: \- protects from cursed treasure.
677: .br
678: .I holy water
679: \- kills
680: .B assorted faeries.
681: .br
682: .I hermit
683: \- reduces sin by 25% and adds some mana.
684: .TP 1.5i
685: .B Type three
686: .I shield
687: \- adds to maximum
688: .B energy level
689: .br
690: .I virgin
691: \- used to subdue a
692: .B unicorn
693: , or to give much
694: .B experience
695: (and some
696: .B sin
697: ).
698: .br
699: .I athelas
700: \- subtracts one
701: .B poison.
702: .TP 1.5i
703: .B Type four (scrolls)
704: .I shield
705: \- throws a bigger than normal
706: .B force field.
707: .br
708: .I invisible
709: \- temporarily puts the finder's
710: .B quickness
711: to one million.
712: .br
713: .I ten fold strength
714: \- multiplies finder's strength by ten.
715: .br
716: .I pick monster
717: \- allows finder to pick next monster to battle.
718: .br
719: .I general knowledge
720: \- adds to finder's
721: .B brains
722: and
723: .B magic level.
724: .PP
725: All the scrolls except
726: .B general knowledge
727: automatically call a monster. These preserve any
728: spells that were already in effect, but are only in
729: effect while in battle.
730: .TP 1.5i
731: .B Type five
732: .I dagger
733: \- adds to
734: .B strength.
735: .br
736: .I armour
737: \- same as a
738: .B shield,
739: but bigger.
740: .br
741: .I tablet
742: \- adds brains.
743: .TP 1.5i
744: .B Type six
745: .I priest
746: \- rests to maximum; adds
747: .B mana, brains;
748: and halves
749: .B sin.
750: .br
751: .I Robin Hood
752: \- increases
753: .B shield
754: and adds permanently to
755: .B strength.
756: .br
757: .I axe
758: \- like
759: .B dagger,
760: but bigger.
761: .TP 1.5i
762: .B Type seven
763: .I charm
764: \- protects from cursed treasure (used before
765: .B amulet
766: ); used in conjunction with
767: .B blessing
768: to battle
769: .B Dark Lord.
770: .br
771: .I Merlyn
772: \- adds
773: .B brains, magic,
774: and
775: .B mana.
776: .br
777: .I war hammer
778: \- like an
779: .B axe,
780: but bigger.
781: .TP 1.5i
782: .B Type eight
783: .I healing potion
784: \- sets
785: .B poison
786: to -2, or subtracts two from
787: .B poison,
788: whichever is better.
789: .br
790: .I transporter
791: \- allows finder to move anywhere.
792: .br
793: .I sword
794: \- like a
795: .B war hammer
796: , but bigger.
797: .TP 1.5i
798: .B Type nine
799: .I golden crown
800: \- allows the player to become
801: .B king,
802: by going to (0,0).
803: .br
804: .I blessing
805: \- cuts
806: .B sin
807: to 1/3, adds
808: .B mana,
809: rests to max., kills
810: .B Dark Lord
811: with a
812: .B charm,
813: and gives bearer first hit on all monsters.
814: .br
815: .I quicksilver
816: \- adds to
817: .B quickness.
818: .TP 1.5i
819: .B Type ten
820: .I elven boots
821: \- adds permanently to
822: .B quickness.
823: .TP 1.5i
824: .B Type eleven
825: .I palantir
826: \- allows one to see all the other players; used by
827: .B council of the wise
828: to seek the
829: .B grail.
830: .TP 1.5i
831: .B Type twelve/thirteen
832: .I ring
833: \- allows one to hit much harder in battle, etc.
834: .PP
835: Any treasure type 10-13 monsters may instead carry a type nine treasure.
836: .PP
837: A monster may also be carrying
838: .B gold
839: or
840: .B gems.
841: These are used at
842: .B trading posts
843: to buy things. A
844: .B gem
845: is worth 1000 gold pieces. Too much
846: .B gold
847: will slow a player down. One may carry 1000 plus 200 per
848: .B level
849: of
850: .B gold.
851: A
852: .B gem
853: weighs one half a gold piece.
854: Monsters of treasure type 7 or higher may carry
855: .B gems.
856: .PP
857: The chance of a cursed treasure is based upon treasure type.
858: The more valuable treasures have a greater chance of being cursed.
859: A cursed treasure knocks
860: .B energy level
861: very low, and adds 0.25
862: .B poison.
863: .sh "Rings"
864: .B Rings
865: are only carried by
866: .B nazguls
867: and
868: .B Dark Lord.
869: They come in four different flavors.
870: All
871: .B rings
872: rest the player to maximum and cause him/her to hit much harder
873: in battle with monsters (assuming one has chosen to use the
874: .B ring
875: for battle.)
876: .PP
877: Two types of
878: .B rings
879: are cursed and come either from
880: .B nazguls
881: or
882: .B Dark Lord.
883: After a few times of using these types, the player falls
884: under the control of the
885: .B ring,
886: and strange, random things will occur.
887: Eventually, the player dies, and gives his/her name to a monster
888: on the file.
889: Dying before the
890: .B ring
891: is used up also renames the monster.
892: .PP
893: The two remaining types of
894: .B rings
895: are much more benign.
896: The one from a
897: .B nazgul
898: is good for a limited number of battle rounds, and will save
899: the player from death if it was being used when he/she died.
900: The one from
901: .B Dark Lord
902: is the same, except that it never is used up.
903: .B rings
904: disappear after saving someone from death.
905: In general, cursed
906: .B rings
907: occur much more often than normal ones.
908: It is usually not a good idea to pick one up.
909: The only way to get rid of a
910: .B ring
911: is to have a monster steal it.
912: .sh "King"
913: A player may become
914: .B king by finding a
915: .I crown
916: and going to (0,0). Players must have a
917: .B level
918: in the range of 10 to 1000 to be able to find a
919: .I crown.
920: When a player with one or more
921: .I crowns
922: reaches
923: .B level
924: 1000, the
925: .I crowns
926: are converted to
927: .I gold.
928: .PP
929: Once a player is king, he/she may do certain things while in
930: the Lord's Chamber (0,0). These are exercised with the
931: .B decree
932: ('0') option.
933: .TP 1.5i
934: .I transport
935: This is done to another player. It randomly moves the affected
936: player about. A
937: .B charm
938: protects from transports.
939: .TP 1.5i
940: .I curse
941: This is done to another player. It is analogous to cursed treasure,
942: but worse. It inflicts two
943: .B poison,
944: knocks
945: .B energy level
946: very low, and degrades the maximum energy. It also
947: removes a
948: .B cloak.
949: A
950: .B blessing
951: protects from king's curses.
952: .TP 1.5i
953: .I energy void
954: The king may put a number these scattered about
955: his/her kingdom as he/she pleases.
956: If a player hits one, he/she loses
957: .B mana, energy,
958: and
959: .B gold.
960: The energy void disappears after being hit.
961: .TP 1.5i
962: .I bestow
963: This is also done to another player. The king may
964: wish to reward one or more loyal subjects by sharing his/her
965: riches (
966: .B gold
967: ). Or it is a convenient way to dispose of some unwanted
968: deadweight.
969: .TP 1.5i
970: .I collect taxes
971: Everyone pays 7% tax on all
972: .B gold
973: and
974: .B gems
975: acquired, regardless of the existence of a
976: .B king.
977: The king collects the accrued taxes with this option.
978: .PP
979: The
980: .B king
981: may also
982: .B teleport
983: anywhere for free by using the origin as a starting place.
984: .sh "Council of the Wise, Valar"
985: A player automatically becomes a member of the
986: .B council of the wise
987: upon reaching level 3000. Members of the council cannot have
988: .B rings.
989: Members of the council have a few extra options which they can exercise.
990: These are exercised
991: .B intervene
992: ('8') option.
993: All
994: .B intervene
995: options cost 1000 mana.
996: One
997: .B intervene
998: option is to
999: .I heal
1000: another player. This is just a quick way for that player to be rested
1001: to maximum and lose a little
1002: .B poison.
1003: The main purpose in life for members of the council is to seek the
1004: .B Holy Grail.
1005: This is done with a
1006: .B palantir
1007: under the
1008: .I seek grail
1009: option. The distance cited by the seek is accurate within 10%, in order
1010: not to make it too easy to find the grail.
1011: A player must have infintesimally small
1012: .B sin,
1013: or else it's all over upon finding the grail.
1014: In order to help members of the council on their quest, they
1015: may
1016: .I teleport
1017: with greater ease.
1018: .PP
1019: Upon finding the grail, the player advance to position of
1020: .B valar.
1021: He/she may then exercise more and niftier options under
1022: .I intervention.
1023: These include all of the council members' option plus the
1024: ability to move other players about, bless them, and throw monsters at
1025: them.
1026: A
1027: .BR valar 's
1028: blessing has the same effect as the treasure
1029: .I blessing,
1030: except that the affected player does not get his/her
1031: .I blessing
1032: flag set.
1033: All
1034: .I intervention
1035: options which affect other players age the player
1036: who uses them.
1037: .B Valar
1038: are essentially immortal, but are actually given five lives.
1039: If these are used up, the player is left to die, and becomes an
1040: .B ex-valar.
1041: .B Valar
1042: cannot
1043: .I move, teleport,
1044: or call monsters.
1045: (An exception to this is if the
1046: .I valar
1047: finds a
1048: .I transporter.
1049: This is to allow him/her to dispose of excess
1050: .I gold.
1051: Any monsters which a
1052: .B valar
1053: encounters are based upon his/her size.
1054: Only one valar may exists at a time.
1055: The current valar is replaced when another player finds the grail.
1056: The valar is then bumped back to the council of the wise.
1057: .sh "Wizard"
1058: The
1059: .I wizard
1060: is usually the owner of the game, and the one who maintains
1061: the associated files.
1062: The
1063: .I wizard
1064: is granted special powers within the game, if it is invoked
1065: with the '\-S' option.
1066: Otherwise, the
1067: .I wizard
1068: plays no different from other players.
1069: The
1070: .I wizard
1071: abilities are outlined below.
1072: .TP
1073: .I change players
1074: When examining a player, (game invoked with '-x', or use 'X' from within game),
1075: the
1076: .I wizard
1077: may also change the player.
1078: .TP
1079: .I intervention
1080: The
1081: .I wizard
1082: may do all the
1083: .I intervention
1084: options. One extra option,
1085: .I vaporize,
1086: is added to kill any offensive players.
1087: .TP
1088: .I super character type
1089: An extra character type is added. This character starts with the
1090: maximum possible in all statistics, selected from the other character types.
1091: A
1092: .B super
1093: character's statistics also progress at the maximum possible rate, selected
1094: from the other character types.
1095: .sh "Special Places"
1096: Certain regions of the playing grid have different names.
1097: In general, this is only to give the player some idea of
1098: his/her present location. Some special places do exist.
1099: .TP 1.5i
1100: .I Trading Posts
1101: These are located at |x| == |y| == n*n*100 for n = 1, 2...1000.
1102: Trading posts farther out have more things for sale.
1103: Be careful about cheating the merchants there, as they have short
1104: tempers.
1105: Merchants are dishonest about 5% of the time.
1106: .TP 1.5i
1107: .I Lord's Chamber
1108: This is located at (0,0). Only players with
1109: .B crowns
1110: may enter.
1111: .TP 1.5i
1112: .I Point of No Return
1113: This is located beyond 1.2e+6 in any direction.
1114: The only way to return from here is a
1115: .B transporter
1116: or to have a
1117: .B valar
1118: relocate the player.
1119: .TP 1.5i
1120: .I Dead Marshes
1121: This is a band located fairly distant from the origin. The first
1122: fourteen monsters (water monsters) can normally only be found here.
1123: .TP 1.5i
1124: .I Valhala
1125: This place is where the
1126: .B valar
1127: resides. It is associated with no particular coordinate on the
1128: playing grid.
1129: .TP 1.5i
1130: .sh "Miscellaneous"
1131: Once a player reaches
1132: .B level
1133: 5, the game will start to time out waiting for input.
1134: This is to try to keep the game a bit faster paced.
1135: .PP
1136: A
1137: .I guru
1138: will never be disgusted with your
1139: .B sins
1140: if they are less than one.
1141: .PP
1142: A
1143: .I medic
1144: wants half of a player's
1145: .B gold
1146: to be happy. Offering more than one has, or a negative amount
1147: will anger the
1148: .I medic,
1149: who will make the player worse (add one
1150: .B poison
1151: ).
1152: .PP
1153: The
1154: .B Holy Grail
1155: does little for those who are not ready to behold it.
1156: Whenever anyone finds it, it moves.
1157: It is always located within 1e+6 in any compass direction of the origin.
1158: .PP
1159: There is a maximum amount of
1160: .B mana
1161: and
1162: .B charms
1163: a player may posses, based upon
1164: .B level.
1165: .I Quicksilver
1166: is always limited to to a maximum of 99.
1167: .PP
1168: .I Books
1169: bought at a
1170: .B trading post
1171: increase
1172: .B brains,
1173: based upon the number bought.
1174: It is unwise, however to buy more than 1/10 of one's
1175: .B level
1176: in books at a time.
1177: .PP
1178: Players over level 10000 are automatically retired.
1179: .PP
1180: A
1181: .I blindness
1182: goes away in random time.
1183: .PP
1184: Players with
1185: .I crowns
1186: are identified with a '*' before their character type.
1187: .sh "Inter-terminal Battle"
1188: When two player's coordinates correspond, they may engage in battle.
1189: In general, the player with the highest
1190: .B quickness
1191: gets the first hit.
1192: If the two players are severely mis-matched, the stronger player
1193: is drastically handicapped for the battle.
1194: In order to protect from being stuck in an infinite loop,
1195: the player waiting for response may time out. Options for battle are:
1196: .TP 1.5i
1197: .I fight
1198: Inflicts damage upon other person.
1199: .TP 1.5i
1200: .I run away
1201: Escape from battle. Has a 75% chance of working.
1202: .TP 1.5i
1203: .I power blast
1204: Battle spell.
1205: .TP 1.5i
1206: .I luckout
1207: One-time chance to try to win against the foe. Has a 10% chance of working.
1208: .PP
1209: Sometimes waits for the other player may be excessive, because
1210: he/she may be battling a monster. Upon slaying a player in battle
1211: the winner gets the other's
1212: .B experience
1213: and treasures.
1214: .B Rings
1215: do not work for inter-terminal battle.
1216: .SH BUGS
1217: All screen formats assumme at least 24 lines by at least 80 columns.
1218: No provisions are made for when any of the data items get too big
1219: for the allotted space on the screen.
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