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1 .\" $NetBSD: phantasia.6,v 1.7 2002/09/26 16:29:26 wiz Exp $
2 .\"
3 .Dd April 1, 2001
4 .Dt PHANTASIA 6
5 .Os
6 .Sh NAME
7 .Nm phantasia
8 .Nd an interterminal fantasy game
9 .Sh SYNOPSIS
10 .Nm
11 .Op Fl abHmpSsx
12 .Sh DESCRIPTION
13 .Nm
14 is a role playing game
15 which allows players to roll up characters of various types to fight
16 monsters and other players.
17 Progression of characters is based upon gaining experience from fighting
18 monsters (and other players).
19 .Pp
20 Most of the game is menu driven and self-explanatory (more or less).
21 The screen is cursor updated, so be sure to set up the
22 .Ev TERM
23 variable in your environment.
24 .Pp
25 The options provide for a variety of functions to support the game.
26 They are:
27 .Pp
28 .Bl -tag -width aaa -offset indent
29 .It Fl a
30 Get a listing of all character names on file.
31 .It Fl b
32 Show scoreboard of top characters per login.
33 .It Fl H
34 Print header only.
35 .It Fl m
36 Get a monster listing.
37 .It Fl p
38 Purge old characters.
39 .It Fl S
40 Turn on wizard options, if allowed, if running as
41 .Dq root .
42 .It Fl s
43 Invokes
44 .Nm
45 without header information.
46 .It Fl x
47 Examine/change a particular character on file.
48 .El
49 .Pp
50 The characters are saved on a common file, in order to make the game
51 interactive between players.
52 The characters are given a password in order to retrieve them later.
53 Only characters above
54 .Em level
55 zero are saved.
56 Characters unused for awhile will be purged.
57 Characters are only placed on the scoreboard when they die.
58 .Sh AUTHOR
59 Edward Estes, AT\*[Am]T Information Systems, Skokie, IL
60 .Sh PARTICULARS
61 .Ss "Normal Play"
62 A number of the player's more important statistics are almost always
63 displayed on the screen, with maximums (where applicable) in
64 parentheses.
65 .Pp
66 The character is placed randomly near the center of a Cartesian
67 system.
68 Most commands are selected with a single letter or digit.
69 For example, one may move by hitting 'W', 'S', 'N', or 'E',
70 (lower case may also be used, at no time is the game case dependent).
71 One may also use 'H', 'J', 'K', 'L',
72 for movement, similar to
73 .Xr vi 1 .
74 To move to a specific (x, y) coordinate, use the
75 .Ic move
76 ('1') command.
77 The distance a character can move is calculated by
78 1 plus 1.5 per
79 .Em level .
80 Moving in a compass direction will move the player the maximum
81 allowed distance in that direction.
82 .Pp
83 A player may see who else is playing by using the
84 .Ic players
85 ('2') option.
86 One may see the coordinates of those who are the same
87 distance or closer to the origin as he/she.
88 .Em Kings ,
89 and
90 .Em council of the wise
91 can see and can be seen by everyone.
92 A
93 .Em palantir
94 removes these restrictions.
95 .Pp
96 One can talk to other players with the
97 .Ic talk
98 ('3') option.
99 In general, this is a line or so of text.
100 To remove a current
101 message, just type \*[Lt]return\*[Gt] when prompted for a message.
102 .Pp
103 The
104 .Ic stats
105 ('4') option shows additional characteristics of a player.
106 .Pp
107 One may leave the game either with the
108 .Ic quit
109 ('5') option.
110 .Pp
111 One may rest by default.
112 Resting lets one regain maximum
113 .Em energy level ,
114 and also lets one find
115 .Em mana
116 (more is found for larger levels and further distances from the origin).
117 .Pp
118 One may call a monster by hitting '9' or 'C'.
119 .Pp
120 Use 'X' to examine other players.
121 .Pp
122 One may quit or execute a sub-shell by hitting interrupt.
123 Quitting during battle results in death for obvious reasons.
124 .Pp
125 Several other options become available as the player progresses in
126 .Em level
127 and
128 .Em magic ,
129 or to other stations in the game (
130 .Em valar ,
131 .Em council of the wise ,
132 .Em king ) .
133 These are described elsewhere.
134 In general, a control-L will force the redrawing of the screen.
135 .Pp
136 Other things which may happen are more or less self-explanatory.
137 .Ss "Fighting Monsters"
138 A player has several options while fighting monsters.
139 They are as follows:
140 .Bl -tag -width skirmish -offset indent
141 .It Ic melee
142 Inflicts damage on the monster, based upon
143 .Em strength .
144 Also decreases the monster's
145 .Em strength
146 some.
147 .It Ic skirmish
148 Inflicts a little less damage than
149 .Ic melee ,
150 but decreases the monster's
151 .Em quickness
152 instead.
153 .It Ic evade
154 Attempt to run away.
155 Success is based upon both the player's and the monster's
156 .Em brains
157 and
158 .Em quickness .
159 .It Ic spell
160 Several options for throwing spells (described elsewhere).
161 .It Ic nick
162 Hits the monster one plus the player's
163 .Em sword ,
164 and gives the player 10% of the monster's
165 .Em experience .
166 Decreases the monster's
167 .Em experience
168 an amount proportional to the amount granted.
169 This also increases the monster's quickness.
170 Paralyzed monsters wake up very fast when nicked.
171 .It Ic luckout
172 This is essentially a battle of wits with the monster.
173 Success is based upon the player's and the monster's
174 .Em brains .
175 The player gets credit for slaying the monster if he/she succeeds.
176 Otherwise, nothing happens, and the chance to
177 .Ic luckout
178 is lost.
179 .El
180 .Ss "Character Statistics"
181 .Bl -tag -width quickness -offset indent
182 .It Em strength
183 determines how much damage a character can inflict.
184 .It Em quickness
185 determines how many chances a character gets to make decisions while
186 fighting.
187 .It Em energy level
188 specifies how much damage a character may endure before dying.
189 .It Em magic level
190 determines which spells a character may throw, and how effective those
191 spells will be.
192 .It Em brains
193 basically, the character's intelligence; used for various fighting options
194 and spells.
195 .It Em mana
196 used as a power source for throwing spells.
197 .It Em experience
198 gained by fighting monsters and other characters.
199 .It Em level
200 indicative of how much experience a character has accumulated; progresses
201 geometrically as
202 .Em experience
203 increases.
204 .It Em poison
205 sickness which degrades a character's performance (affects
206 .Em energy level
207 and
208 .Em strength ) .
209 .It Em sin
210 accumulated as a character does certain nasty things; used only rarely
211 in normal play of the game.
212 .It Em age
213 of player; roughly equivalent to number of turns.
214 As
215 .Em age
216 increases, many personal statistics degenerate.
217 .El
218 .Ss "Character Types"
219 Character statistics are rolled randomly from the above list, according
220 to character type.
221 The types are as follows:
222 .Bl -tag -width "experimento" -offset indent
223 .It Em magic user
224 strong in
225 .Em magic level
226 and
227 .Em brains ,
228 weak in other areas.
229 Must rely on wits and magic to survive.
230 .It Em fighter
231 good in
232 .Em strength
233 and
234 .Em energy level ,
235 fairly good in other areas.
236 This adds up to a well-equipped fighter.
237 .It Em elf
238 very high
239 .Em quickness
240 and above average
241 .Em magic level
242 are
243 .Em elves
244 selling points.
245 .It Em dwarf
246 very high
247 .Em strength
248 and
249 .Em energy level ,
250 but with a tendency to be rather slow and not too bright.
251 .It Em halfling
252 rather quick and smart, with high
253 .Em energy level ,
254 but poor in
255 .Em magic
256 and
257 .Em strength .
258 Born with some
259 .Em experience .
260 .It Em experimento
261 very mediocre in all areas.
262 However, the
263 .Em experimento
264 may be placed almost anywhere within the playing grid.
265 .El
266 .Pp
267 The possible ranges for starting statistics are summarized in
268 the following table.
269 .TS
270 l c c c c c c
271 l c c c c c c.
272 Type Strength Quick Mana Energy Brains Magic
273 _
274 Mag. User 10-15 30-35 50-100 30-45 60-85 5-9
275 Fighter 40-55 30-35 30-50 45-70 25-45 3-6
276 Elf 35-45 32-38 45-90 30-50 40-65 4-7
277 Dwarf 50-70 25-30 25-45 60-100 20-40 2-5
278 Halfling 20-25 34 25-45 55-90 40-75 1-4
279 Experimento 25 27 100 35 25 2
280 .TE
281 .\" .Bl -column "Experimento" "Strength" "Quick" "xxxxxx" "Energy" "Brains" "Magic"
282 .\" .It Sy Charactertype Strength Quick Mana Energy Brains Magic
283 .\" .It "Magic User" 10-15 30-35 50-100 30-45 60-85 5-9
284 .\" .It Fighter 40-55 30-35 30-50 45-70 25-45 3-6
285 .\" .It Elf 35-45 32-38 45-90 30-50 40-65 4-7
286 .\" .It Dwarf 50-70 25-30 25-45 60-100 20-40 2-5
287 .\" .It Halfling 20-25 34 25-45 55-90 40-75 1-4
288 .\" .It Experimento 25 27 100 35 25 2
289 .\" .El
290 .Pp
291 Not only are the starting characteristics different for the different
292 character types, the characteristics progress at different rates for the
293 different types as the character goes up in
294 .Em level .
295 .Em Experimentoes Ns '
296 characteristics progress randomly as one of the other types.
297 The progression as characters increase in
298 .Em level
299 is summarized in the following table.
300 .Pp
301 .TS
302 l c c c c c
303 l n n n n n.
304 Type Strength Mana Energy Brains Magic
305 _
306 Mag. User 2.0 75 20 6 2.75
307 Fighter 3.0 40 30 3.0 1.5
308 Elf 2.5 65 25 4.0 2.0
309 Dwarf 5 30 35 2.5 1
310 Halfling 2.0 30 30 4.5 1
311 .TE
312 .Pp
313 The character type also determines how much gold a player may
314 carry, how long until
315 .Em rings
316 can overcome the player, and how much
317 .Em poison
318 the player can withstand.
319 .Ss "Spells"
320 During the course of the game, the player may exercise his/her
321 magic powers.
322 These cases are described below.
323 .Bl -tag -width "all or nothing" -offset indent
324 .It Ic cloak
325 .Em magic level necessary :
326 20 (plus level 7)
327 .br
328 .Em mana used :
329 35 plus 3 per rest period
330 .br
331 Used during normal play.
332 Prevents monsters from finding the character,
333 as well as hiding the player from other players.
334 His/her coordinates show up as '?' in the
335 .Ic players
336 option.
337 Players cannot collect
338 .Em mana ,
339 find trading posts, or discover the
340 .Em grail
341 while cloaked.
342 Calling a monster uncloaks, as well as choosing this option while cloaked.
343 .It Ic teleport
344 .Em magic level necessary :
345 40 (plus level 12)
346 .br
347 .Em mana used :
348 30 per 75 moved
349 .br
350 Used during normal play.
351 Allows the player to move with much more freedom than with the
352 .Ic move
353 option, at the price of expending mana.
354 The maximum distance possible to move is based upon
355 .Em level
356 and
357 .Em magic level .
358 .It Ic power blast
359 .Em magic level necessary :
360 none
361 .br
362 .Em mana used :
363 5 times
364 .Em level
365 .br
366 Used during inter-terminal battle.
367 Damage is based upon
368 .Em magic level
369 and
370 .Em strength .
371 Hits much harder than a normal hit.
372 .It Ic all or nothing
373 .Em magic level necessary :
374 none
375 .br
376 .Em mana used :
377 1
378 .br
379 Used while combating monsters.
380 Has a 25% chance of working.
381 If it works it hits the monster just enough to kill it.
382 If it fails, it doesn't hit the monster, and doubles the monster's
383 .Em quickness
384 and
385 .Em strength .
386 Paralyzed monsters wake up much quicker as a result of this spell.
387 .It Ic magic bolt
388 .Em magic level necessary :
389 5
390 .br
391 .Em mana used :
392 variable
393 .br
394 Used while combating monsters.
395 Hits the monster based upon the amount
396 of
397 .Em mana
398 expended and
399 .Em magic level .
400 Guaranteed to hit at least 10 per
401 .Em mana .
402 .It Ic force field
403 .Em magic level necessary :
404 15
405 .br
406 .Em mana used :
407 30
408 .br
409 Used during monster combat.
410 Throws up a shield to protect from damage.
411 The shield is added to actual energy level, and is a fixed number, based
412 upon maximum energy.
413 Normally, damage occurs first to the shield, and then to the players actual
414 .Em energy level .
415 .It Ic transform
416 .Em magic level necessary :
417 25
418 .br
419 .Em mana used :
420 50
421 .br
422 Used during monster combat.
423 Transforms the monster randomly into one of the 100 monsters from
424 the monster file.
425 .It Ic increase might
426 .Em magic level necessary :
427 35
428 .br
429 .Em mana used :
430 75
431 .br
432 Used during combat with monsters.
433 Increases strength up to a maximum.
434 .It Ic invisibility
435 .Em magic level necessary :
436 45
437 .br
438 .Em mana used :
439 90
440 .br
441 Used while fighting monsters.
442 Makes it harder for the monster to hit, by temporarily increasing the player's
443 .Em quickness .
444 This spell may be thrown several times, but a maximum level will be reached.
445 .It Ic transport
446 .Em magic level necessary :
447 60
448 .br
449 .Em mana used :
450 125
451 .br
452 Used during monster combat.
453 Transports the monster away from the player.
454 Success is based upon player's
455 .Em magic
456 and
457 .Em brains ,
458 and the monster's
459 .Em experience .
460 If it fails the player is transported instead.
461 60% of the time, the monster will drop any treasure it was carrying.
462 .It Ic paralyze
463 .Em magic level necessary :
464 75
465 .br
466 .Em mana used :
467 150
468 .br
469 Used during monster combat.
470 .Dq Freezes
471 the monster by putting its
472 .Em quickness
473 slightly negative.
474 The monster will slowly wake up.
475 Success is based upon player's
476 .Em magic
477 and the monster's
478 .Em experience .
479 If it fails, nothing happens.
480 .It Ic specify
481 .Em magic level necessary :
482 none
483 .br
484 .Em mana used :
485 1000
486 .br
487 Used during monster combat only by
488 .Em valar
489 or
490 .Em council of the wise .
491 Allows the player to pick which monster to fight.
492 .El
493 .Ss "Monsters"
494 Monsters get bigger as one moves farther from the origin (0,0).
495 Rings of distance 125 from the origin determine the size.
496 A monster's
497 .Em experience ,
498 .Em energy level ,
499 and
500 .Em brains
501 are multiplied by the size.
502 .Em Strength
503 is increased 50% per size over one, and
504 .Em quickness
505 remains the same, regardless of size.
506 .Pp
507 Also, nastier monsters are found as one progress farther out from the origin.
508 Monsters also may flock.
509 The percent chance of that happening is designated as
510 .Em flock%
511 in the monster listing.
512 Monsters outside the first ring
513 may carry treasure, as determined by their treasure type.
514 Flocking monsters, and bigger monsters increase the chances of treasure.
515 .Pp
516 Certain monsters have special abilities; they are as follows:
517 .Bl -tag -width "Assorted Faeries"
518 .It Em Unicorn
519 can only be subdued if the player is in possession of a
520 .Em virgin .
521 .It Em Modnar
522 has random characteristics, including treasure type.
523 .It Em Mimic
524 will pick another name from the list of monsters in order to confuse.
525 .It Em Dark Lord
526 very nasty person.
527 Does not like to be hit (especially nicked),
528 and many spells do not work well (or at all) against him.
529 One can always
530 .Em evade
531 from the
532 .Em Dark Lord .
533 .It Em Leanan-Sidhe
534 also a very nasty person.
535 She will permanently sap
536 .Em strength
537 from someone.
538 .It Em Saruman
539 wanders around with
540 .Em Wormtongue ,
541 who can steal a
542 .Em palantir .
543 Also,
544 .Em Saruman
545 may turn a player's gems into gold pieces, or scramble her/his stats.
546 .It Em Thaumaturgist
547 can transport a player.
548 .It Em Balrog
549 inflicts damage by taking away
550 .Em experience ,
551 not
552 .Em energy .
553 .It Em Vortex
554 may take some
555 .Em mana .
556 .It Em Nazgul
557 may try to steal a
558 .Em ring
559 or neutralize part of one's
560 .Em brains .
561 .It Em Tiamat
562 may take half a player's
563 .Em gold
564 and
565 .Em gems
566 and escape.
567 .It Em Kobold
568 may get nasty and steal one gold piece and run away.
569 .It Em Shelob
570 may bite, inflicting the equivalent of one
571 .Em poison .
572 .It Em Assorted Faeries
573 These are killed if attacking someone carrying
574 .Em holy water .
575 These are
576 .Em Cluricaun , Fir Darrig , Fachan ,
577 .Em Ghille Dhu , Bogle , Killmoulis ,
578 and
579 .Em Bwca .
580 .It Em Lamprey
581 may bite, inflicting 1/2 of a
582 .Em poison .
583 .It Em Shrieker
584 will call one of its (much bigger) buddies if picked upon.
585 .It Em Bonnacon
586 will become bored with battle, fart, and run off.
587 .It Em Smeagol
588 will try to steal a
589 .Em ring
590 from a player, if given the chance.
591 .It Em Succubus
592 may inflict damage through a
593 .Ic force field .
594 This subtracts from
595 .Em energy level
596 instead of any shield the player may have thrown up.
597 This is a very easy way to die.
598 .It Em Cerberus
599 loves metal and will steal all the metal treasures from a player if able.
600 .It Em Ungoliant
601 can bite and poison.
602 This inflicts five
603 .Em poisons ,
604 and also takes one from the player's
605 .Em quickness .
606 .It Em Jabberwock
607 may tire of battle, and leave after calling one of his friends
608 .Em ( Jubjub Bird
609 or
610 .Em Bandersnatch ) .
611 .It Em Morgoth
612 actually
613 .Em Modnar ,
614 but reserved for
615 .Em council of the wise , valar ,
616 and
617 .Em ex-valar .
618 Fights with
619 .Em Morgoth
620 end when either he or the player dies.
621 His characteristics are calculated based upon the player's.
622 The player is given the chance to ally with him.
623 No magic, except
624 .Ic force field
625 works when battling
626 .Em Morgoth .
627 .It Em Troll
628 may regenerate its
629 .Em energy
630 and
631 .Em strength
632 while in battle.
633 .It Em Wraith
634 may make a player blind.
635 .El
636 .Ss "Treasures"
637 The various treasure types are as follows:
638 .Bl -tag -width "type twelve/thirteen"
639 .It Type zero
640 none
641 .It Type one
642 .Em power booster
643 \- adds mana.
644 .br
645 .Em druid
646 \- adds experience.
647 .br
648 .Em holy orb
649 \- subtracts 0.25 sin.
650 .TP 1.5i
651 .It Type two
652 .Em amulet
653 \- protects from cursed treasure.
654 .br
655 .Em holy water
656 \- kills
657 .Em assorted faeries .
658 .br
659 .Em hermit
660 \- reduces sin by 25% and adds some mana.
661 .It Type three
662 .Em shield
663 \- adds to maximum
664 .Em energy level .
665 .br
666 .Em virgin
667 \- used to subdue a
668 .Em unicorn ,
669 or to give much
670 .Em experience
671 (and some
672 .Em sin ) .
673 .br
674 .Em athelas
675 \- subtracts one
676 .Em poison .
677 .It Type four (scrolls)
678 .Em shield
679 \- throws a bigger than normal
680 .Ic force field .
681 .br
682 .Em invisible
683 \- temporarily puts the finder's
684 .Em quickness
685 to one million.
686 .br
687 .Em ten fold strength
688 \- multiplies finder's strength by ten.
689 .br
690 .Em pick monster
691 \- allows finder to pick next monster to battle.
692 .br
693 .Em general knowledge
694 \- adds to finder's
695 .Em brains
696 and
697 .Em magic level .
698 .Pp
699 All the scrolls except
700 .Em general knowledge
701 automatically call a monster.
702 These preserve any spells that were already in effect, but are only in
703 effect while in battle.
704 .It Type five
705 .Em dagger
706 \- adds to
707 .Em strength .
708 .br
709 .Em armour
710 \- same as a
711 .Em shield ,
712 but bigger.
713 .br
714 .Em tablet
715 \- adds
716 .Em brains .
717 .It Type six
718 .Em priest
719 \- rests to maximum; adds
720 .Em mana , brains ;
721 and halves
722 .Em sin .
723 .br
724 .Em Robin Hood
725 \- increases
726 .Em shield
727 and adds permanently to
728 .Em strength .
729 .br
730 .Em axe
731 \- like
732 .Em dagger ,
733 but bigger.
734 .It Type seven
735 .Em charm
736 \- protects from cursed treasure (used before
737 .Em amulet ) ;
738 used in conjunction with
739 .Em blessing
740 to battle
741 .Em Dark Lord .
742 .br
743 .Em Merlyn
744 \- adds
745 .Em brains , magic ,
746 and
747 .Em mana .
748 .br
749 .Em war hammer
750 \- like an
751 .Em axe ,
752 but bigger.
753 .It Type eight
754 .Em healing potion
755 \- sets
756 .Em poison
757 to -2, or subtracts two from
758 .Em poison ,
759 whichever is better.
760 .br
761 .Em transporter
762 \- allows finder to move anywhere.
763 .br
764 .Em sword
765 \- like a
766 .Em war hammer ,
767 but bigger.
768 .It Type nine
769 .Em golden crown
770 \- allows the player to become
771 .Em king ,
772 by going to (0,0).
773 .br
774 .Em blessing
775 \- cuts
776 .Em sin
777 to 1/3, adds
778 .Em mana ,
779 rests to maximum, kills
780 .Em Dark Lord
781 with a
782 .Em charm ,
783 and gives bearer first hit on all monsters.
784 .br
785 .Em quicksilver
786 \- adds to
787 .Em quickness .
788 .It Type ten
789 .Em elven boots
790 \- adds permanently to
791 .Em quickness .
792 .It Type eleven
793 .Em palantir
794 \- allows one to see all the other players; used by
795 .Em council of the wise
796 to seek the
797 .Em grail .
798 .It Type twelve/thirteen
799 .Em ring
800 \- allows one to hit much harder in battle, etc.
801 .El
802 .Pp
803 Any treasure type 10-13 monsters may instead carry a type nine treasure.
804 .Pp
805 A monster may also be carrying
806 .Em gold
807 or
808 .Em gems .
809 These are used at
810 .Em trading posts
811 to buy things.
812 A
813 .Em gem
814 is worth 1000 gold pieces.
815 Too much
816 .Em gold
817 will slow a player down.
818 One may carry 1000 plus 200 per
819 .Em level
820 of
821 .Em gold .
822 A
823 .Em gem
824 weighs one half a gold piece.
825 Monsters of treasure type 7 or higher may carry
826 .Em gems .
827 .Pp
828 The chance of a cursed treasure is based upon treasure type.
829 The more valuable treasures have a greater chance of being cursed.
830 A cursed treasure knocks
831 .Em energy level
832 very low, and adds 0.25
833 .Em poison .
834 .Ss "Rings"
835 .Em Rings
836 are only carried by
837 .Em nazguls
838 and
839 .Em Dark Lords .
840 They come in four different flavors.
841 All
842 .Em rings
843 rest the player to maximum and cause him/her to hit much harder
844 in battle with monsters (assuming one has chosen to use the
845 .Em ring
846 for battle.)
847 .Pp
848 Two types of
849 .Em rings
850 are cursed and come either from
851 .Em nazguls
852 or
853 .Em Dark Lord .
854 After a few times of using these types, the player falls
855 under the control of the
856 .Em ring ,
857 and strange, random things will occur.
858 Eventually, the player dies, and gives his/her name to a monster
859 on the file.
860 Dying before the
861 .Em ring
862 is used up also renames the monster.
863 .Pp
864 The two remaining types of
865 .Em rings
866 are much more benign.
867 The one from a
868 .Em nazgul
869 is good for a limited number of battle rounds, and will save
870 the player from death if it was being used when he/she died.
871 The one from
872 .Em Dark Lord
873 is the same, except that it never is used up.
874 .Em rings
875 disappear after saving someone from death.
876 In general, cursed
877 .Em rings
878 occur much more often than normal ones.
879 It is usually not a good idea to pick one up.
880 The only way to get rid of a
881 .Em ring
882 is to have a monster steal it.
883 .Ss "King"
884 A player may become
885 .Em king
886 by finding a
887 .Em crown
888 and going to (0,0).
889 Players must have a
890 .Em level
891 in the range of 10 to 1000 to be able to find a
892 .Em crown .
893 When a player with one or more
894 .Em crowns
895 reaches
896 .Em level
897 1000, the
898 .Em crowns
899 are converted to
900 .Em gold .
901 .Pp
902 Once a player is king, he/she may do certain things while in
903 the Lord's Chamber (0,0).
904 These are exercised with the
905 .Ic decree
906 ('0') option.
907 .Bl -tag -width "collect taxes"
908 .It Ic transport
909 This is done to another player.
910 It randomly moves the affected player about.
911 A
912 .Em charm
913 protects from transports.
914 .It Ic curse
915 This is done to another player.
916 It is analogous to cursed treasure, but worse.
917 It inflicts two
918 .Em poison ,
919 knocks
920 .Em energy level
921 very low, and degrades the maximum energy.
922 It also removes a
923 .Em cloak .
924 A
925 .Em blessing
926 protects from king's curses.
927 .It Ic energy void
928 The king may put a number of these scattered about
929 his/her kingdom as he/she pleases.
930 If a player hits one, he/she loses
931 .Em mana , energy ,
932 and
933 .Em gold .
934 The energy void disappears after being hit.
935 .It Ic bestow
936 This is also done to another player.
937 The king may wish to reward one or more loyal subjects by sharing his/her
938 riches
939 .Em ( gold ) .
940 Or it is a convenient way to dispose of some unwanted deadweight.
941 .It Ic collect taxes
942 Everyone pays 7% tax on all
943 .Em gold
944 and
945 .Em gems
946 acquired, regardless of the existence of a
947 .Em king .
948 The king collects the accrued taxes with this option.
949 .El
950 .Pp
951 The
952 .Em king
953 may also
954 .Ic teleport
955 anywhere for free by using the origin as a starting place.
956 .Ss "Council of the Wise, Valar"
957 A player automatically becomes a member of the
958 .Em council of the wise
959 upon reaching level 3000.
960 Members of the council cannot have
961 .Em rings .
962 Members of the council have a few extra options which they can exercise.
963 These are exercised with the
964 .Ic intervene
965 ('8') option.
966 All
967 .Ic intervene
968 options cost 1000 mana.
969 One
970 .Ic intervene
971 option is to
972 .Ic heal
973 another player.
974 This is just a quick way for that player to be rested
975 to maximum and lose a little
976 .Em poison .
977 The main purpose in life for members of the council is to seek the
978 .Em Holy Grail .
979 This is done with a
980 .Em palantir
981 under the
982 .Ic seek grail
983 option.
984 The distance cited by the seek is accurate within 10%, in order
985 not to make it too easy to find the grail.
986 A player must have infinitesimally small
987 .Em sin ,
988 or else it's all over upon finding the grail.
989 In order to help members of the council on their quest, they
990 may
991 .Ic teleport
992 with greater ease.
993 .Pp
994 Upon finding the grail, the player advances to position of
995 .Em valar .
996 He/she may then exercise more and niftier options under
997 .Ic intervention .
998 These include all of the council members' options plus the
999 ability to move other players about, bless them, and throw monsters at
1000 them.
1001 A
1002 .Em valar Ns 's
1003 blessing has the same effect as the treasure
1004 .Em blessing ,
1005 except that the affected player does not get his/her
1006 .Em blessing
1007 flag set.
1008 All
1009 .Ic intervention
1010 options which affect other players age the player who uses them.
1011 .Em Valars
1012 are essentially immortal, but are actually given five lives.
1013 If these are used up, the player is left to die, and becomes an
1014 .Em ex-valar .
1015 A
1016 .Em valar
1017 cannot
1018 .Ic move , teleport ,
1019 or call monsters.
1020 (An exception to this is if the
1021 .Em valar
1022 finds a
1023 .Em transporter . )
1024 This is to allow him/her to dispose of excess
1025 .Em gold .
1026 Any monsters which a
1027 .Em valar
1028 encounters are based upon his/her size.
1029 Only one valar may exist at a time.
1030 The current valar is replaced when another player finds the grail.
1031 The valar is then bumped back to the council of the wise.
1032 .Ss "Wizard"
1033 The
1034 .Em wizard
1035 is usually the owner of the game, and the one who maintains
1036 the associated files.
1037 The
1038 .Em wizard
1039 is granted special powers within the game, if it is invoked
1040 with the
1041 .Fl S
1042 option.
1043 Otherwise, the
1044 .Em wizard
1045 plays no different from other players.
1046 The
1047 .Em wizard
1048 abilities are outlined below.
1049 .Bl -tag -width "super character type"
1050 .It Ic change players
1051 When examining a player, (game invoked with
1052 .Fl x ,
1053 or use 'X' from within game), the
1054 .Em wizard
1055 may also change the player.
1056 .It Ic intervention
1057 The
1058 .Em wizard
1059 may do all the
1060 .Ic intervention
1061 options.
1062 One extra option,
1063 .Ic vaporize ,
1064 is added to kill any offensive players.
1065 .It Ic super character type
1066 An extra character type is added.
1067 This character starts with the
1068 maximum possible in all statistics, selected from the other character types.
1069 A
1070 .Em super
1071 character's statistics also progress at the maximum possible rate, selected
1072 from the other character types.
1073 .El
1074 .Ss "Special Places"
1075 Certain regions of the playing grid have different names.
1076 In general, this is only to give the player some idea of
1077 his/her present location.
1078 Some special places do exist.
1079 .Bl -tag -width "Trading Posts"
1080 .It Em Trading Posts
1081 These are located at |x| == |y| == n*n*100 for n = 1, 2, ..., 1000.
1082 Trading posts farther out have more things for sale.
1083 Be careful about cheating the merchants there, as they have short tempers.
1084 Merchants are dishonest about 5% of the time.
1085 .It Em Lord's Chamber
1086 This is located at (0,0).
1087 Only players with
1088 .Em crowns
1089 may enter.
1090 .It Em Point of \&No Return
1091 This is located beyond 1.2e+6 in any direction.
1092 The only way to return from here is a
1093 .Em transporter
1094 or to have a
1095 .Em valar
1096 relocate the player.
1097 .It Em Dead Marshes
1098 This is a band located fairly distant from the origin.
1099 The first fourteen monsters (water monsters) can normally only be found here.
1100 .It Em Valhala
1101 This place is where the
1102 .Em valar
1103 resides.
1104 It is associated with no particular coordinate on the playing grid.
1105 .El
1106 .Ss "Miscellaneous"
1107 Once a player reaches
1108 .Em level
1109 5, the game will start to time out waiting for input.
1110 This is to try to keep the game a bit faster paced.
1111 .Pp
1112 A
1113 .Em guru
1114 will never be disgusted with your
1115 .Em sins
1116 if they are less than one.
1117 .Pp
1118 A
1119 .Em medic
1120 wants half of a player's
1121 .Em gold
1122 to be happy.
1123 Offering more than one has, or a negative amount will anger the
1124 .Em medic ,
1125 who will make the player worse (add one
1126 .Em poison ) .
1127 .Pp
1128 The
1129 .Em Holy Grail
1130 does little for those who are not ready to behold it.
1131 Whenever anyone finds it, it moves.
1132 It is always located within 1e+6 in any compass direction of the origin.
1133 .Pp
1134 There is a maximum amount of
1135 .Em mana
1136 and
1137 .Em charms
1138 a player may posses, based upon
1139 .Em level .
1140 .Em Quicksilver
1141 is always limited to to a maximum of 99.
1142 .Pp
1143 .Em Books
1144 bought at a
1145 .Em trading post
1146 increase
1147 .Em brains ,
1148 based upon the number bought.
1149 It is unwise, however to buy more than 1/10 of one's
1150 .Em level
1151 in books at a time.
1152 .Pp
1153 Players over level 10000 are automatically retired.
1154 .Pp
1155 A
1156 .Em blindness
1157 goes away in random time.
1158 .Pp
1159 Players with
1160 .Em crowns
1161 are identified with a '*' before their character type.
1162 .Ss "Inter-terminal Battle"
1163 When two player's coordinates correspond, they may engage in battle.
1164 In general, the player with the highest
1165 .Em quickness
1166 gets the first hit.
1167 If the two players are severely mismatched, the stronger player
1168 is drastically handicapped for the battle.
1169 In order to protect from being stuck in an infinite loop,
1170 the player waiting for response may time out.
1171 Options for battle are:
1172 .Bl -tag -width "power blast"
1173 .It Ic fight
1174 Inflicts damage upon other person.
1175 .It Ic run away
1176 Escape from battle.
1177 Has a 75% chance of working.
1178 .It Ic power blast
1179 Battle spell.
1180 .It Ic luckout
1181 One-time chance to try to win against the foe.
1182 Has a 10% chance of working.
1183 .El
1184 .Pp
1185 Sometimes waits for the other player may be excessive, because
1186 he/she may be battling a monster.
1187 Upon slaying a player in battle the winner gets the other's
1188 .Em experience
1189 and treasures.
1190 .Em Rings
1191 do not work for inter-terminal battle.
1192 .Sh BUGS
1193 All screen formats assume at least 24 lines by at least 80 columns.
1194 No provisions are made for when any of the data items get too big
1195 for the allotted space on the screen.