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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 GAMES
9: .UC 4
10: .SH NAME
11: phantasia \- an interterminal fantasy game
12: .SH SYNOPSIS
13: .B phantasia
14: [
15: .B \-s
16: ] [
17: .B \-m
18: ] [
19: .B \-a
20: ] [
21: .B \-x
22: ] [
23: .B \-h
24: ] [
25: .B \-H
26: ] [
27: .B \-p
28: ] [
29: .B \-b
30: ] [
31: .B \-S
32: ]
33: .SH DESCRIPTION
34: .I Phantasia
35: is a role playing game
36: which allows players to roll up characters of various types to fight
37: monsters and other players.
38: Progression of characters is based upon gaining experience from fighting
39: monsters (and other players).
40: .PP
41: Most of the game is menu driven and self-explanatory (more or less).
42: The screen is cursor updated, so be sure to set up the
43: .B TERM
44: variable in your environment.
45: .PP
46: The options provide for a variety of functions to support the game.
47: They are:
48: .PP
49: .TP .5i
50: .B \-s
51: Invokes
52: .I phantasia
53: without header information.
54: .TP .5i
55: .B \-m
56: Get a monster listing.
57: .TP .5i
58: .B \-a
59: Get a listing of all character names on file.
60: .TP .5i
61: .B \-x
62: Examine/change a particular character on file.
63: .TP .5i
64: .B \-h
65: Print a help listing (this message).
66: .TP .5i
67: .B \-H
68: Print header only.
69: .TP .5i
70: .B \-p
71: Purge old characters.
72: .TP .5i
73: .B \-b
74: Show scoreboard of top characters per login.
75: .TP .5i
76: .B \-S
77: Turn on wizard options, if allowed.
78: .PP
79: The characters are saved on a common file, in order to make the game
80: interactive between players. The characters are given a password
81: in order to retrieve them later. Only characters above
82: .B level
83: zero are saved. Characters unused for awhile will be purged.
84: Characters are only placed on the scoreboard when they die.
85: .SH AUTHOR
86: Edward Estes, AT&T Information Systems, Skokie, IL
87: .SH PARTICULARS
88: .sh "Normal Play"
89: A number of the player's more important statistics are almost always
90: displyed on the screen, with maximums (where applicable) in
91: parentheses.
92: .PP
93: The character is placed randomly near the center of a cartesian
94: system.
95: Most commands are selected with a single letter or digit.
96: For example, one may move by hitting 'W', 'S', 'N', or 'E',
97: (lower case may also be used, at no time is the game case dependent).
98: One may also use 'H', 'J', 'K', 'L',
99: for movement, similar to
100: .IR vi (1).
101: To move to a specific (x, y) coordinate, use the
102: .B move
103: ('1') command. The distance a character can move is calculated by
104: 1 plus 1.5 per
105: .B level.
106: Moving in a compass direction will move the player the maximum
107: allowed distance in that direction.
108: .PP
109: A player may see who else is playing by using the
110: .B players
111: ('2') option. One may see the coordinates of those who are the same
112: distance or closer to the origin as he/she.
113: .B Kings,
114: and
115: .B council of the wise
116: can see and can be seen by everyone. A
117: .B palantir
118: removes these retrictions.
119: .PP
120: One can talk to other players with the
121: .B talk
122: ('3') option. In general, this is a line or so of text. To remove a current
123: message, just type <return> when prompted for a message.
124: .PP
125: The
126: .B stats
127: ('4') option shows additional characteristics of a player.
128: .PP
129: One may leave the game either with the
130: .B quit
131: ('5') option.
132: .PP
133: One may rest by default. Resting lets one regain maximum
134: .B energy level,
135: and also lets one find
136: .B mana
137: (more is found for larger levels and further distances from the origin).
138: .PP
139: One may call a monster by hitting '9' or 'C'.
140: .PP
141: Use 'X' to examine other players.
142: .PP
143: One may quit or execute a sub-shell by hitting interrupt.
144: Quitting during battle results in death for obvious reasons.
145: .PP
146: Several other options become available as the player progresses in
147: .B level
148: and
149: .B magic,
150: or to other stations in the game (
151: .B valar, council of the wise, king
152: ).
153: These are described elsewhere.
154: In general, a control-L will force the redrawing of the screen.
155: .PP
156: Other things which may happen are more or less self-explanatory.
157: .sh "Fighting Monsters"
158: A player has several options while fighting monsters. They are as follows:
159: .TP 1.5i
160: .B melee
161: Inflicts damage on the monster, based upon
162: .B strength.
163: Also decreases the monster's
164: .B strength
165: some.
166: .TP 1.5i
167: .B skirmish
168: Inflicts a little less damage than
169: .B melee,
170: but decreases the monster's
171: .B quickness
172: instead.
173: .TP 1.5i
174: .B evade
175: Attempt to run away. Success is based upon both the player's and
176: the monster's
177: .B brains
178: and
179: .B quickness.
180: .TP 1.5i
181: .B spell
182: Several options for throwing spells (described elsewhere).
183: .TP 1.5i
184: .B nick
185: Hits the monster one plus the player's
186: .B sword,
187: and gives the player 10% of the monster's
188: .B experience.
189: Decreases the monster's
190: .B experience
191: an amount proportional to the amount granted.
192: This also increases the monster's quickness.
193: Paralyzed monsters wake up very fast when nicked.
194: .TP 1.5i
195: .B luckout
196: This is essentially a battle of wits with the monster. Success is based
197: upon the player's and the monster's
198: .B brains.
199: The player gets credit for slaying the monster if he/she succeeds.
200: Otherwise, nothing happens, and the chance to
201: .B luckout
202: is lost.
203: .sh "Character Statistics"
204: .TP 1.5i
205: .B strength
206: determines how much damage a character can inflict.
207: .TP 1.5i
208: .B quickness
209: determines how many chances a character gets to make decisions while
210: fighting.
211: .TP 1.5i
212: .B energy level
213: specifies how much damage a character may endure before dying.
214: .TP 1.5i
215: .B magic level
216: determines which spells a character may throw, and how effective those
217: spells will be.
218: .TP 1.5i
219: .B brains
220: basically, the character's intelligence; used for various fighting options
221: and spells.
222: .TP 1.5i
223: .B mana
224: used as a power source for throwing spells.
225: .TP 1.5i
226: .B experience
227: gained by fighting monsters and other characters.
228: .TP 1.5i
229: .B level
230: indicative of how much experience a character has accumulated; progresses
231: geometrically as
232: .B experience
233: increases.
234: .TP 1.5i
235: .B poison
236: sickness which degrades a character's performance (affects
237: .B energy level
238: and
239: .B strength
240: ).
241: .TP 1.5i
242: .B sin
243: accumulated as a character does certain nasty things; used only rarely
244: in normal play of the game.
245: .TP 1.5i
246: .B age
247: of player; roughly equivalent to number of turns.
248: As
249: .B age
250: increases, many personal statistics degenerate.
251: .sh "Character Types"
252: Character statistics are rolled randomly from the above list, according
253: to character type. The types are as follows:
254: .TP 1.5i
255: .B magic user
256: strong in
257: .B magic level
258: and
259: .B brains
260: , weak in other areas. Must rely on wits and magic to survive.
261: .TP 1.5i
262: .B fighter
263: good in
264: .B strength
265: and
266: .B energy level
267: , fairly good in other areas. This adds up to a well-equipped fighter.
268: .TP 1.5i
269: .B elf
270: very high
271: .B quickness
272: and above average
273: .B magic level
274: are
275: .B elves
276: selling points.
277: .TP 1.5i
278: .B dwarf
279: very high
280: .B strength
281: and
282: .B energy level
283: , but with a tendency to be rather slow and not too bright.
284: .TP 1.5i
285: .B halfling
286: rather quick and smart, with high
287: .B energy level
288: , but poor in
289: .B magic
290: and
291: .B strength.
292: Born with some
293: .B experience.
294: .TP 1.5i
295: .B experimento
296: very mediocre in all areas. However, the
297: .B experimento
298: may be placed almost anywhere within the playing grid.
299: .PP
300: The possible ranges for starting statistics are summarized in
301: the following table.
302: .PP
303: .TS
304: l c c c c c c
305: l c c c c c c.
306: Type Strength Quick Mana Energy Brains Magic
307: _
308: Mag. User 10-15 30-35 50-100 30-45 60-85 5-9
309: Fighter 40-55 30-35 30-50 45-70 25-45 3-6
310: Elf 35-45 32-38 45-90 30-50 40-65 4-7
311: Dwarf 50-70 25-30 25-45 60-100 20-40 2-5
312: Halfling 20-25 34 25-45 55-90 40-75 1-4
313: Experimento 25 27 100 35 25 2
314: .TE
315: .PP
316: Not only are the starting characteristics different for the different
317: character types, the characteristics progress at different rates for the
318: different types as the character goes up in
319: .B level. Experimentoes'
320: characteristics progress randomly as one of the other types.
321: The progression as characters increase in
322: .B level
323: is summarized in the following table.
324: .PP
325: .TS
326: l c c c c c
327: l n n n n n.
328: Type Strength Mana Energy Brains Magic
329: _
330: Mag. User 2.0 75 20 6 2.75
331: Fighter 3.0 40 30 3.0 1.5
332: Elf 2.5 65 25 4.0 2.0
333: Dwarf 5 30 35 2.5 1
334: Halfling 2.0 30 30 4.5 1
335: .TE
336: .PP
337: The character type also determines how much gold a player may
338: carry, how long until
339: .B rings
340: can overcome the player, and how much
341: .B poison
342: the player can withstand.
343: .sh "Spells"
344: During the course of the game, the player may exercise his/her
345: magic powers. These cases are described below.
346: .TP 1.5i
347: .B cloak
348: .I magic level necessary:
349: 20 (plus level 7)
350: .br
351: .I mana used:
352: 35 plus 3 per rest period
353: .br
354: Used during normal play. Prevents monsters from finding the character,
355: as well as hiding the player from other players. His/her coordinates
356: show up as '?' in the
357: .B players
358: option. Players cannot collect
359: .B mana,
360: find trading posts, or discover the
361: .B grail
362: while cloaked. Calling a monster uncloaks, as well as choosing
363: this option while cloaked.
364: .br
365: .TP 1.5i
366: .B teleport
367: .I magic level necessary:
368: 40 (plus level 12)
369: .br
370: .I mana used:
371: 30 per 75 moved
372: .br
373: Used during normal play. Allows the player too move with much more freedom
374: than with the
375: .B move
376: option, at the price of expending mana. The maximum distance possible
377: to move is based upon
378: .B level
379: and
380: .B magic level.
381: .TP 1.5i
382: .B power blast
383: .I magic level necessary:
384: none
385: .br
386: .I mana used:
387: 5 times
388: .B level
389: .br
390: Used during inter-terminal battle. Damage is based upon
391: .B magic level
392: and
393: .B strength.
394: Hits much harder than a normal hit.
395: .TP 1.5i
396: .B all or nothing
397: .I magic level necessary:
398: none
399: .br
400: .I mana used:
401: 1
402: .br
403: Used while combatting monsters.
404: Has a 25% chance of working. If it works it hits the monster just enough
405: to kill it. If it fails, it doesn't hit the monster, and doubles the
406: monster's
407: .B quickness
408: and
409: .B strength.
410: Paralyzed monsters wake up much quicker as a result of this spell.
411: .TP 1.5i
412: .B magic bolt
413: .I magic level necessary:
414: 5
415: .br
416: .I mana used:
417: variable
418: .br
419: Used while combatting monsters. Hits the monster based upon the amount
420: of
421: .B mana
422: expended and
423: .B magic level.
424: Guaranteed to hit at least 10 per
425: .B mana.
426: .TP 1.5i
427: .B force field
428: .I magic level necessary:
429: 15
430: .br
431: .I mana used:
432: 30
433: .br
434: Used during monster combat. Throws up a shield to protect from damage.
435: The shield is added to actual energy level, and is a fixed number, based
436: upon maximum energy. Normally, damage occurs first to the shield, and
437: then to the players actual
438: .B energy level.
439: .TP 1.5i
440: .B transform
441: .I magic level necessary:
442: 25
443: .br
444: .I mana used:
445: 50
446: .br
447: Used during monster combat. Transforms the monster randomly into one
448: of the 100 monsters from the monster file.
449: .TP 1.5i
450: .B increase might
451: .I magic level necessary:
452: 35
453: .br
454: .I mana used:
455: 75
456: .br
457: Used during combat with monsters. Increases strength up to a maximum.
458: .TP 1.5i
459: .B invisibility
460: .I magic level necessary:
461: 45
462: .br
463: .I mana used:
464: 90
465: .br
466: Used while fighting monsters. Makes it harder for the monster to hit,
467: by temporarily increasing the player's
468: .B quickness.
469: This spell may be thrown several times, but a maximum level will be reached.
470: .TP 1.5i
471: .B transport
472: .I magic level necessary:
473: 60
474: .br
475: .I mana used:
476: 125
477: .br
478: Used during monster combat. Transports the monster away from the
479: player. Success is base upon player's
480: .B magic
481: and
482: .B brains,
483: and the monster's
484: .B experience.
485: If it fails the player is transported instead. 60% of the time, the monster
486: will drop any treasure it was carrying.
487: .TP 1.5i
488: .B paralyze
489: .I magic level necessary:
490: 75
491: .br
492: .I mana used:
493: 150
494: .br
495: Used during monster combat. "Freezes" the monster by putting its
496: .B quickness
497: slightly negative. The monster will slowly wake up. Success is based
498: upon player's
499: .B magic
500: and the monster's
501: .B experience.
502: If it fails, nothing happens.
503: .TP 1.5i
504: .B specify
505: .I magic level necessary:
506: none
507: .br
508: .I mana used:
509: 1000
510: .br
511: Used during monster combat only by
512: .B valar
513: or
514: .B council of the wise.
515: Allows the player to pick which monster to fight.
516: .sh "Monsters"
517: Monsters get bigger as one moves farther from the origin (0,0). Rings of
518: distance 125 from the origin determine the size. A monster's
519: .B experience, energy level,
520: and
521: .B brains
522: are multiplied by the size.
523: .B Strength
524: is increase 50% per size over one, and
525: .B quickness
526: remains the same, regardless of size.
527: .PP
528: Also, nastier monsters are found as one progress farther out
529: from the origin. Monsters also may flock. The percent chance of that
530: happening is designated as
531: .B flock%
532: in the monster listing. Monsters outside the first ring
533: may carry treasure, as determined by their treasure type.
534: Flocking monsters, and bigger monsters increase the chances of treasure.
535: .PP
536: Certain monsters have special abilities; they are as follows:
537: .TP 1.5i
538: .B Unicorn
539: can only be subdued if the player is in possession of a
540: .B virgin.
541: .TP 1.5i
542: .B Modnar
543: has random characteristics, including treasure type.
544: .TP 1.5i
545: .B Mimic
546: will pick another name from the list of monsters in order to
547: confuse.
548: .TP 1.5i
549: .B Dark Lord
550: very nasty person. Does not like to be hit (especially nicked),
551: and many spells do not work well (or at all) against him.
552: One can always
553: .B evade
554: from the
555: .B Dark Lord.
556: .TP 1.5i
557: .B Leanan-Sidhe
558: also a very nasty person. She will permanently sap
559: .B strength
560: from someone.
561: .TP 1.5i
562: .B Saruman
563: wanders around with
564: .B Wormtongue
565: , who can steal a
566: .B palantir.
567: Also,
568: .B Saruman
569: may turn a player's gems into gold pieces,
570: or scramble her/his stats.
571: .TP 1.5i
572: .B Thaumaturgist
573: can transport a player.
574: .TP 1.5i
575: .B Balrog
576: inflicts damage by taking away
577: .B experience
578: , not
579: .B energy.
580: .TP 1.5i
581: .B Vortex
582: may take some
583: .B mana.
584: .TP 1.5i
585: .B Nazgul
586: may try to steal a
587: .B ring
588: or neutralize part of one's
589: .B brains.
590: .TP 1.5i
591: .B Tiamat
592: may take half a players
593: .B gold
594: and
595: .B gems
596: and escape.
597: .TP 1.5i
598: .B Kobold
599: may get nasty and steal one gold piece and run away.
600: .TP 1.5i
601: .B Shelob
602: may bite, inflicting the equivalent of one
603: .B poison.
604: .TP 1.5i
605: .B Assorted Faeries
606: These are killed if attacking someone carrying
607: .B holy water.
608: These are
609: .B Cluricaun, Fir Darrig, Fachan,
610: .B Ghille Dhu, Bogle, Killmoulis,
611: and
612: .B Bwca.
613: .TP 1.5i
614: .B Lamprey
615: may bite, inflicting 1/2 of a
616: .B poison.
617: .TP 1.5i
618: .B Shrieker
619: will call one of its (much bigger) buddies if picked upon.
620: .TP 1.5i
621: .B Bonnacon
622: will become bored with battle, fart, and run off.
623: .TP 1.5i
624: .B Smeagol
625: will try to steal a
626: .B ring
627: from a player, if given the chance.
628: .TP 1.5i
629: .B Succubus
630: may inflict damage through a
631: .B force field.
632: This subtracts from
633: .B energy level
634: instead of any shield the player may have thrown up.
635: This is a very easy way to die.
636: .TP 1.5i
637: .B Cerberus
638: loves metal and will steal all the metal treasures from
639: a player if able.
640: .TP 1.5i
641: .B Ungoliant
642: can bite and poison. This inflicts five
643: .B poisons
644: , and also takes one from the player's
645: .B quickness.
646: .TP 1.5i
647: .B Jabberwock
648: may tire of battle, and leave after calling one of his friends
649: (
650: .B Jubjub Bird
651: or
652: .B Bandersnatch
653: ).
654: .TP 1.5i
655: .B Morgoth
656: actually
657: .B Modnar
658: , but reserved for
659: .B council of the wise, valar,
660: and
661: .B ex-valar.
662: Fights with
663: .B Morgoth
664: end when either he or the player dies. His characteristics
665: are calculated based upon the player's. The player is given
666: the chance to ally with him. No magic, except
667: .B force field
668: works when battling
669: .B Morgoth.
670: .TP 1.5i
671: .B Troll
672: may regenerate its
673: .B energy
674: and
675: .B strength
676: while in battle.
677: .TP 1.5i
678: .B Wraith
679: may make a player blind.
680: .sh "Treasures"
681: The various treasure types are as follows:
682: .TP 1.5i
683: .B Type zero
684: .I none
685: .TP 1.5i
686: .B Type one
687: .I power booster
688: \- adds mana.
689: .br
690: .I druid
691: \- adds experience.
692: .br
693: .I holy orb
694: \- subtracts 0.25 sin.
695: .TP 1.5i
696: .B Type two
697: .I amulet
698: \- protects from cursed treasure.
699: .br
700: .I holy water
701: \- kills
702: .B assorted faeries.
703: .br
704: .I hermit
705: \- reduces sin by 25% and adds some mana.
706: .TP 1.5i
707: .B Type three
708: .I shield
709: \- adds to maximum
710: .B energy level
711: .br
712: .I virgin
713: \- used to subdue a
714: .B unicorn
715: , or to give much
716: .B experience
717: (and some
718: .B sin
719: ).
720: .br
721: .I athelas
722: \- subtracts one
723: .B poison.
724: .TP 1.5i
725: .B Type four (scrolls)
726: .I shield
727: \- throws a bigger than normal
728: .B force field.
729: .br
730: .I invisible
731: \- temporarily puts the finder's
732: .B quickness
733: to one million.
734: .br
735: .I ten fold strength
736: \- multiplies finder's strength by ten.
737: .br
738: .I pick monster
739: \- allows finder to pick next monster to battle.
740: .br
741: .I general knowledge
742: \- adds to finder's
743: .B brains
744: and
745: .B magic level.
746: .PP
747: All the scrolls except
748: .B general knowledge
749: automatically call a monster. These preserve any
750: spells that were already in effect, but are only in
751: effect while in battle.
752: .TP 1.5i
753: .B Type five
754: .I dagger
755: \- adds to
756: .B strength.
757: .br
758: .I armour
759: \- same as a
760: .B shield,
761: but bigger.
762: .br
763: .I tablet
764: \- adds brains.
765: .TP 1.5i
766: .B Type six
767: .I priest
768: \- rests to maximum; adds
769: .B mana, brains;
770: and halves
771: .B sin.
772: .br
773: .I Robin Hood
774: \- increases
775: .B shield
776: and adds permanently to
777: .B strength.
778: .br
779: .I axe
780: \- like
781: .B dagger,
782: but bigger.
783: .TP 1.5i
784: .B Type seven
785: .I charm
786: \- protects from cursed treasure (used before
787: .B amulet
788: ); used in conjunction with
789: .B blessing
790: to battle
791: .B Dark Lord.
792: .br
793: .I Merlyn
794: \- adds
795: .B brains, magic,
796: and
797: .B mana.
798: .br
799: .I war hammer
800: \- like an
801: .B axe,
802: but bigger.
803: .TP 1.5i
804: .B Type eight
805: .I healing potion
806: \- sets
807: .B poison
808: to -2, or subtracts two from
809: .B poison,
810: whichever is better.
811: .br
812: .I transporter
813: \- allows finder to move anywhere.
814: .br
815: .I sword
816: \- like a
817: .B war hammer
818: , but bigger.
819: .TP 1.5i
820: .B Type nine
821: .I golden crown
822: \- allows the player to become
823: .B king,
824: by going to (0,0).
825: .br
826: .I blessing
827: \- cuts
828: .B sin
829: to 1/3, adds
830: .B mana,
831: rests to max., kills
832: .B Dark Lord
833: with a
834: .B charm,
835: and gives bearer first hit on all monsters.
836: .br
837: .I quicksilver
838: \- adds to
839: .B quickness.
840: .TP 1.5i
841: .B Type ten
842: .I elven boots
843: \- adds permanently to
844: .B quickness.
845: .TP 1.5i
846: .B Type eleven
847: .I palantir
848: \- allows one to see all the other players; used by
849: .B council of the wise
850: to seek the
851: .B grail.
852: .TP 1.5i
853: .B Type twelve/thirteen
854: .I ring
855: \- allows one to hit much harder in battle, etc.
856: .PP
857: Any treasure type 10-13 monsters may instead carry a type nine treasure.
858: .PP
859: A monster may also be carrying
860: .B gold
861: or
862: .B gems.
863: These are used at
864: .B trading posts
865: to buy things. A
866: .B gem
867: is worth 1000 gold pieces. Too much
868: .B gold
869: will slow a player down. One may carry 1000 plus 200 per
870: .B level
871: of
872: .B gold.
873: A
874: .B gem
875: weighs one half a gold piece.
876: Monsters of treasure type 7 or higher may carry
877: .B gems.
878: .PP
879: The chance of a cursed treasure is based upon treasure type.
880: The more valuable treasures have a greater chance of being cursed.
881: A cursed treasure knocks
882: .B energy level
883: very low, and adds 0.25
884: .B poison.
885: .sh "Rings"
886: .B Rings
887: are only carried by
888: .B nazguls
889: and
890: .B Dark Lord.
891: They come in four different flavors.
892: All
893: .B rings
894: rest the player to maximum and cause him/her to hit much harder
895: in battle with monsters (assuming one has chosen to use the
896: .B ring
897: for battle.)
898: .PP
899: Two types of
900: .B rings
901: are cursed and come either from
902: .B nazguls
903: or
904: .B Dark Lord.
905: After a few times of using these types, the player falls
906: under the control of the
907: .B ring,
908: and strange, random things will occur.
909: Eventually, the player dies, and gives his/her name to a monster
910: on the file.
911: Dying before the
912: .B ring
913: is used up also renames the monster.
914: .PP
915: The two remaining types of
916: .B rings
917: are much more benign.
918: The one from a
919: .B nazgul
920: is good for a limited number of battle rounds, and will save
921: the player from death if it was being used when he/she died.
922: The one from
923: .B Dark Lord
924: is the same, except that it never is used up.
925: .B rings
926: disappear after saving someone from death.
927: In general, cursed
928: .B rings
929: occur much more often than normal ones.
930: It is usually not a good idea to pick one up.
931: The only way to get rid of a
932: .B ring
933: is to have a monster steal it.
934: .sh "King"
935: A player may become
936: .B king by finding a
937: .I crown
938: and going to (0,0). Players must have a
939: .B level
940: in the range of 10 to 1000 to be able to find a
941: .I crown.
942: When a player with one or more
943: .I crowns
944: reaches
945: .B level
946: 1000, the
947: .I crowns
948: are converted to
949: .I gold.
950: .PP
951: Once a player is king, he/she may do certain things while in
952: the Lord's Chamber (0,0). These are exercised with the
953: .B decree
954: ('0') option.
955: .TP 1.5i
956: .I transport
957: This is done to another player. It randomly moves the affected
958: player about. A
959: .B charm
960: protects from transports.
961: .TP 1.5i
962: .I curse
963: This is done to another player. It is analogous to cursed treasure,
964: but worse. It inflicts two
965: .B poison,
966: knocks
967: .B energy level
968: very low, and degrades the maximum energy. It also
969: removes a
970: .B cloak.
971: A
972: .B blessing
973: protects from king's curses.
974: .TP 1.5i
975: .I energy void
976: The king may put a number these scattered about
977: his/her kingdom as he/she pleases.
978: If a player hits one, he/she loses
979: .B mana, energy,
980: and
981: .B gold.
982: The energy void disappears after being hit.
983: .TP 1.5i
984: .I bestow
985: This is also done to another player. The king may
986: wish to reward one or more loyal subjects by sharing his/her
987: riches (
988: .B gold
989: ). Or it is a convenient way to dispose of some unwanted
990: deadweight.
991: .TP 1.5i
992: .I collect taxes
993: Everyone pays 7% tax on all
994: .B gold
995: and
996: .B gems
997: acquired, regardless of the existence of a
998: .B king.
999: The king collects the accrued taxes with this option.
1000: .PP
1001: The
1002: .B king
1003: may also
1004: .B teleport
1005: anywhere for free by using the origin as a starting place.
1006: .sh "Council of the Wise, Valar"
1007: A player automatically becomes a member of the
1008: .B council of the wise
1009: upon reaching level 3000. Members of the council cannot have
1010: .B rings.
1011: Members of the council have a few extra options which they can exercise.
1012: These are exercised
1013: .B intervene
1014: ('8') option.
1015: All
1016: .B intervene
1017: options cost 1000 mana.
1018: One
1019: .B intervene
1020: option is to
1021: .I heal
1022: another player. This is just a quick way for that player to be rested
1023: to maximum and lose a little
1024: .B poison.
1025: The main purpose in life for members of the council is to seek the
1026: .B Holy Grail.
1027: This is done with a
1028: .B palantir
1029: under the
1030: .I seek grail
1031: option. The distance cited by the seek is accurate within 10%, in order
1032: not to make it too easy to find the grail.
1033: A player must have infintesimally small
1034: .B sin,
1035: or else it's all over upon finding the grail.
1036: In order to help members of the council on their quest, they
1037: may
1038: .I teleport
1039: with greater ease.
1040: .PP
1041: Upon finding the grail, the player advance to position of
1042: .B valar.
1043: He/she may then exercise more and niftier options under
1044: .I intervention.
1045: These include all of the council members' option plus the
1046: ability to move other players about, bless them, and throw monsters at
1047: them.
1048: A
1049: .BR valar 's
1050: blessing has the same effect as the treasure
1051: .I blessing,
1052: except that the affected player does not get his/her
1053: .I blessing
1054: flag set.
1055: All
1056: .I intervention
1057: options which affect other players age the player
1058: who uses them.
1059: .B Valar
1060: are essentially immortal, but are actually given five lives.
1061: If these are used up, the player is left to die, and becomes an
1062: .B ex-valar.
1063: .B Valar
1064: cannot
1065: .I move, teleport,
1066: or call monsters.
1067: (An exception to this is if the
1068: .I valar
1069: finds a
1070: .I transporter.
1071: This is to allow him/her to dispose of excess
1072: .I gold.
1073: Any monsters which a
1074: .B valar
1075: encounters are based upon his/her size.
1076: Only one valar may exists at a time.
1077: The current valar is replaced when another player finds the grail.
1078: The valar is then bumped back to the council of the wise.
1079: .sh "Wizard"
1080: The
1081: .I wizard
1082: is usually the owner of the game, and the one who maintains
1083: the associated files.
1084: The
1085: .I wizard
1086: is granted special powers within the game, if it is invoked
1087: with the '\-S' option.
1088: Otherwise, the
1089: .I wizard
1090: plays no different from other players.
1091: The
1092: .I wizard
1093: abilities are outlined below.
1094: .TP
1095: .I change players
1096: When examining a player, (game invoked with '-x', or use 'X' from within game),
1097: the
1098: .I wizard
1099: may also change the player.
1100: .TP
1101: .I intervention
1102: The
1103: .I wizard
1104: may do all the
1105: .I intervention
1106: options. One extra option,
1107: .I vaporize,
1108: is added to kill any offensive players.
1109: .TP
1110: .I super character type
1111: An extra character type is added. This character starts with the
1112: maximum possible in all statistics, selected from the other character types.
1113: A
1114: .B super
1115: character's statistics also progress at the maximum possible rate, selected
1116: from the other character types.
1117: .sh "Special Places"
1118: Certain regions of the playing grid have different names.
1119: In general, this is only to give the player some idea of
1120: his/her present location. Some special places do exist.
1121: .TP 1.5i
1122: .I Trading Posts
1123: These are located at |x| == |y| == n*n*100 for n = 1, 2...1000.
1124: Trading posts farther out have more things for sale.
1125: Be careful about cheating the merchants there, as they have short
1126: tempers.
1127: Merchants are dishonest about 5% of the time.
1128: .TP 1.5i
1129: .I Lord's Chamber
1130: This is located at (0,0). Only players with
1131: .B crowns
1132: may enter.
1133: .TP 1.5i
1134: .I Point of No Return
1135: This is located beyond 1.2e+6 in any direction.
1136: The only way to return from here is a
1137: .B transporter
1138: or to have a
1139: .B valar
1140: relocate the player.
1141: .TP 1.5i
1142: .I Dead Marshes
1143: This is a band located fairly distant from the origin. The first
1144: fourteen monsters (water monsters) can normally only be found here.
1145: .TP 1.5i
1146: .I Valhala
1147: This place is where the
1148: .B valar
1149: resides. It is associated with no particular coordinate on the
1150: playing grid.
1151: .TP 1.5i
1152: .sh "Miscellaneous"
1153: Once a player reaches
1154: .B level
1155: 5, the game will start to time out waiting for input.
1156: This is to try to keep the game a bit faster paced.
1157: .PP
1158: A
1159: .I guru
1160: will never be disgusted with your
1161: .B sins
1162: if they are less than one.
1163: .PP
1164: A
1165: .I medic
1166: wants half of a player's
1167: .B gold
1168: to be happy. Offering more than one has, or a negative amount
1169: will anger the
1170: .I medic,
1171: who will make the player worse (add one
1172: .B poison
1173: ).
1174: .PP
1175: The
1176: .B Holy Grail
1177: does little for those who are not ready to behold it.
1178: Whenever anyone finds it, it moves.
1179: It is always located within 1e+6 in any compass direction of the origin.
1180: .PP
1181: There is a maximum amount of
1182: .B mana
1183: and
1184: .B charms
1185: a player may posses, based upon
1186: .B level.
1187: .I Quicksilver
1188: is always limited to to a maximum of 99.
1189: .PP
1190: .I Books
1191: bought at a
1192: .B trading post
1193: increase
1194: .B brains,
1195: based upon the number bought.
1196: It is unwise, however to buy more than 1/10 of one's
1197: .B level
1198: in books at a time.
1199: .PP
1200: Players over level 10000 are automatically retired.
1201: .PP
1202: A
1203: .I blindness
1204: goes away in random time.
1205: .PP
1206: Players with
1207: .I crowns
1208: are identified with a '*' before their character type.
1209: .sh "Inter-terminal Battle"
1210: When two player's coordinates correspond, they may engage in battle.
1211: In general, the player with the highest
1212: .B quickness
1213: gets the first hit.
1214: If the two players are severely mis-matched, the stronger player
1215: is drastically handicapped for the battle.
1216: In order to protect from being stuck in an infinite loop,
1217: the player waiting for response may time out. Options for battle are:
1218: .TP 1.5i
1219: .I fight
1220: Inflicts damage upon other person.
1221: .TP 1.5i
1222: .I run away
1223: Escape from battle. Has a 75% chance of working.
1224: .TP 1.5i
1225: .I power blast
1226: Battle spell.
1227: .TP 1.5i
1228: .I luckout
1229: One-time chance to try to win against the foe. Has a 10% chance of working.
1230: .PP
1231: Sometimes waits for the other player may be excessive, because
1232: he/she may be battling a monster. Upon slaying a player in battle
1233: the winner gets the other's
1234: .B experience
1235: and treasures.
1236: .B Rings
1237: do not work for inter-terminal battle.
1238: .SH BUGS
1239: All screen formats assumme at least 24 lines by at least 80 columns.
1240: No provisions are made for when any of the data items get too big
1241: for the allotted space on the screen.
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