The Game Master (2nd Edition)

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T-Zero Manual T-ZERO V1.02 Copyright 1991 Dennis M. Cunningham TABLE OF CONTENTS PROLOGUE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 CREDITS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 COMMAND LINE SWITCHES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 INPUT BUFFER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 PLAYER DEFINABLE FUNCTION KEYS . . . . . . . . . . . 4 COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 COMMAND SUMMARY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 KEYBOARD LAYOUT--CURSOR. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 KEYBOARD LAYOUT--DIRECTIONAL . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 SHAREWARE INFORMATION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 ASP OMBUDSMAN STATEMENT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 WARRANTY INFORMATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 REGISTRATION INFORMATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 REGISTRATION FORM. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 1 T-Zero Manual PROLOGUE A dream came to you as you tossed uneasily upon an unfamiliar bed. In your dream, a time-worn figure waved a scythe in slow arcs across your sky-blue field of vision and picked, out of thin air, letters from a runic alphabet. The sky-writing from the scythe crystallized in icy trails as a new letter materialized with each sleeping breath your dream encompassed. When the message was complete, the entire sky was slivered with shining icicles that spelled in full: "Somewhere scattered across ages and landscapes are six enticingly round objects that you must locate and some- how transport to progressively future time zones where they can be manipulated in a fashion that will right the troubled times." As you deciphered the message, the icicles shattered in a brittle and sparkling avalanche. You tossed some more and awaited your awakening . . . 2 T-Zero Manual CREDITS The author considers himself a programmer with literary leanings. The text adventure genre allows him to explore both avenues simultaneously. He has been admitted into the Association of Shareware Professionals and this is his first entry into the shareware market. _______ ____|__ | (R) --| | |------------------- | ____|__ | Association of | | |_| Shareware |__| o | Professionals -----| | |--------------------- |___|___| MEMBER Credits due to a fine testing team: Lead Tester: Robert Norton Additional Testing: Scott Blight Jay Shaffstall This game, as originally intended, quoted extensively from the works of T. S. Eliot. Faber and Faber, Ltd. of London, England denied permission to quote Mr. Eliot. I hope, at some time in the future, they will reconsider their position. 3 T-Zero Manual COMMAND LINE SWITCHES Normally, the game runs in 384k. If you have memory constraints, you may run it in 256k by starting it up as: T-ZERO DISK This alternative accesses the text file from disk rather than memory and is slower. To start directly from a save file, type: T-ZERO <save-file name> To run in 256k, starting directly from a save file, type: T-ZERO DISK <save-file name> INPUT BUFFER Adventure gamers often find themselves in the situation where they are repeatedly retyping the same commands. To facilitate command processing, an input buffer of the last ten commands processed is maintained. To utilize this facility, you may retrieve commands in the reverse order processed by using the gray '-' and gray '+' keys, or if you are in cursor control keyboard mode (see commands KEYS, KEYBOARD, and the section entitled "Keyboard Layout"), the up and down arrow keys. You may always retrieve the last command processed using program function key 3 (PF3). PLAYER DEFINABLE FUNCTION KEYS If you discover you're using a command frequently, you may equate it to program function keys 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9. To do so, type F<n> (where <n> ranges from 5 to 9) on the command line, followed by the command desired. From thenceforth, that command may be retrieved and acted upon by depressing the equivalent program function key. Typing USERKEYS will produce a summary of player defined keys currently in effect. 4 T-Zero Manual COMMANDS In the following command descriptions, a toggle command is defined as a command that changes the on/off status of a feature. If the feature is on, the toggle command turns it off. If the feature is off, the toggle command turns it on. BRIEF This is the default mode for room and location descriptions. A full description of the area will be presented to the player the first time the room is entered. Thereafter, only the room or location's name will appear on the screen. Full descriptions can be activated by switching to the VERBOSE mode. This same description can be displayed for a single turn by simply typing LOOK. COLORS If an EGA or above hardware is present, cycles through four pre-defined palette selections. COMPRESS Changes the number of lines displayed on the screen. (Toggle) If 25 lines are currently being displayed, the toggle switches to 43 lines if the presence of an EGA is detected or 50 lines if the presence of a VGA is detected. If either 43 or 50 lines are being displayed, the toggle switches back to the default mode of 25 rows. CREDITS Displays information on the games origins. Gives credit and thanks to the originator's of copyrighted information for their permission to quote that material. Gives credit and thanks to the beta-testing team. Provides a brief background of the author. DOS Shells to the DOS command level. For those who are unfamiliar with shells, this simply means that the game is temporarily suspended and all DOS commands are available to you until you type EXIT to return to the game. Why would a game have a DOS shell? For any number of reasons--game related or otherwise. For example, if you wish to restore a game state from a save file and have forgotten the name of the save file, you can shell to DOS and issue a DIR command to list all save files. Or if your game play is threatened by some unattended piece of PC-business impinging upon your consciousness, you can shell to DOS, take care of that business, and then return to the game without reloading it by simply typing EXIT at the DOS prompt. EXITS Displays a list of all directions leading from the current 5 T-Zero Manual (PF4) location. HELP Displays a list of all the commands available in the (PF1) game with an abbreviated description of their function. The list of commands is the same as the command summary in this document. HINT Provides the stumped adventurer with a gentle nudge useful in solving some puzzles. Hints are cued to player location and what has been scored thus far. Several hints may be available to the user at each location, each less subtle than the previous. The player is given the option of seeing only those they wish to see. The HINT command is only available to registered players. HINTS Actually, there's no such command. Once hints are disabled through the NOHINTS command, they cannot be enabled again without restarting the game. INFO Since T-Zero is a shareware product, information is provided on registration. This information is presented in this document as well. KEYS There are two keyboard layouts available to the player. (Toggle) For reference, these are referred to as the "directional" (PF2) mode and the "cursor control" mode. (Summaries of the effect of depressing a particular key under each layout is summarized in the section entitled "Keyboard Layout"). In general, directional mode interprets the arrow keys and the numeric key pad as designating compass directions for the player to travel (for example, the right arrow is equivalent to East). Cursor control mode utilizes the keys for command line editing. The KEYS command switches between keyboard modes. If you are in cursor control mode, it switches to directional mode. If you are in directional mode, it switches to cursor control mode which is the default mode. If you are unsure what keyboard mode you're in or wish to see what editing commands are available to you, typing KEYBOARD will let you know. KEYBOARD Reveals what keyboard layout you're using (either directional or cursor control) and presents a summary of the keystroke functions in that mode. This summary is the same as presented in this document in the section entitled "Keyboard Layout." LOG Sometimes it might be convenient to review the game's (Toggle) prose without actually playing the game (or you might be so taken with the prose you want a permanent copy!). 6 T-Zero Manual To log all text displayed on the screen to the file "T-ZERO.SCR," type LOG. To turn off this feature, type LOG again. If the file T-ZERO.SCR does not exist, it is created. If it exists, new text is appended to the old file. MORE Normally, if an action by the player triggers the (Toggle) display of more than a full screen of text, the display will pause at each screen and the word MORE> will appear in the lower right hand corner of the screen. The player can then pause, read the text leisurely, and then "hit any key to continue." However, if you are replaying a portion of the game or are using the FIND command to navigate between far-flung locations, you can suppress this courteous pause by typing MORE. You can return to the screen pause default by typing MORE once again (this is a toggle). It is recommended that you stick to the default mode unless you are replaying a portion of the game. Otherwise, an important clue might scroll by you without allowing itself to be read. Of course, unread herrings would zip by as well. NOHINTS If a hint file is available, the temptation to use it may be too strong for some to resist. The intrepid adventurer may therefore wish to kill the hint file for the duration of the game. To do so, type NOHINTS. Once this command is issued, it is no longer possible to use the HINT command and you can't retreat to hint mode without restarting the game. (NOHINTS is the default mode for unregistered players). QUIT This command quits the game (after first displaying your score and rank) and returns you to the DOS command level. RESTART Recreates the initial state of the game. This is a convenient way to start over without quitting and reloading T-ZERO. RESTORE Returns the game (from the supplied save file name) to the state it was in when the save file was created. If no save file name is supplied, the default T-ZERO.SAV is used. REVISIONS Presents a brief version history of the game and indicates what changes have been incorporated into each version. SAVE You've had a hard day on the play field and want to quit or you want to experiment with certain potentially disastrous actions. You can save the state of the game 7 T-Zero Manual by typing SAVE. You will be prompted for a file name. If you supply none, the default is T-ZERO.SAV. To return to this saved state, type RESTORE and supply the corresponding save file name when prompted. SCORE No, this command doesn't increment your score but it does display your score and a brief verbal tag indicating your "rank." SCRIPT Produces a hard copy of the game's prose on the (Toggle) printer. This hard copy echoes the screen display. Typing SCRIPT once more will suppress further printing. SOUND Normally, when you score, you're made aware of the (Toggle) fact by an audio beep (or charge or whatever you want to call it). As a courtesy to others in your "play vicinity," you may wish to suppress this audio signal. Typing SOUND will suppress the beep. Typing SOUND again will bring it back on. SPACE To improve readability, logical chunks of prose are (Toggle) double-spaced. If you wish to cram more on a screen, you can single-space screen output by typing SPACE. Typing SPACE once more will return you to double- spaced screen output. SPACE also effects text being echoed to the printer through the SCRIPT command. UNDO Oops! I didn't mean to do that! You can undo the (OOPS) effect of a bad or disastrous action by typing UNDO. This, in effect, returns the game to the state it was in before the turn was taken. Certain commands, such as those summarized in this list, can't be undone. And, of course, if you want to UNDO an UNDO command, simply redo what you undid (Clear?). USERKEYS Produces a summary of player defined function keys currently in effect. See the section entitled "Player Definable Function Keys" for an explanation of how to equate a key with a command. VERBOSE Normally, a room's description is only presented upon first encountering (or first illuminating) that location. To display the full room description every time you reenter a room, type VERBOSE. To return to the default mode, type BRIEF. VERSION Indicates the level number of the current version of the game. 8 T-Zero Manual COMMAND SUMMARY BRIEF --Displays only the name of a location upon entry. COMPRESS --Switches between 25-row and 43/50-row mode for screen output. COLORS --Switches to a new color palette (four available). CREDITS --Displays information on the game's origins. DOS --Shells to the DOS command level (useful for checking save files). HELP(F1) --Displays this file. HINT --Provides a gentle nudge or clue to the stumped adventurer. HINTS --No such command --you can turn hints off with NOHINTS but you can't turn them back on. INFO --Displays information on shareware registration. KEYS(F2) --Toggles between standard and directional keyboard layouts. KEYBOARD --Displays keyboard commands currently in effect. LOG --Toggles logging of screen output to file "T-ZERO.SCR" MORE --Toggles pausing after display of a full screen of text. NOHINTS --Disables hints for the rest of the game. QUIT --Exits the game. RESTART --Recreates the initial state of the game (starts over). RESTORE --Restores the game from optional <filename>. REVISIONS --Explains any revisions to the current version of the game. SAVE --Saves the game to optional <filename>. SCORE --Displays your current points and your "rank." SCRIPT --Toggles printing of screen output. SOUND --Toggles beep upon scoring. SPACE --Toggles double spacing of output. UNDO(OOPS)--Undoes the effect of the previous action. USERKEYS --Summarizes player defined function keys currently in effect. VERBOSE --Displays the full description of a location upon entry. VERSION --Displays the Version number and Copyright information. If you have sufficient savvy, the following VERBS might prove useful: EXITS(F4) --indicates direction of paths leading from current location. COPY --<item> to <item>: A good way to transcribe various bits of arcana that might slip the memory. FIND --<item>: Locates the object and steps the player to that location. IMAGINE --<item>: Allows player to "visualize" unencountered objects or locations. WHERE --optional <item>: Gives you the current location of the object under inquiry. 9 T-Zero Manual KEYBOARD LAYOUT In the following summary, an entry ^L means hitting the control key and L simultaneously and an entry ALT-L means hitting the alt key and L simultaneously. CURSOR control keyboard mode: Cursor movement commands: Left Arrow -- left one column. Right Arrow -- right one column. ^Left Arrow -- left one word. ^Right Arrow-- right one word. HOME -- beginning of line. END -- to end of line. Command retrieval: Up Arrow -- Previous command. Down Arrow -- Next command. Gray '-' -- Previous command. Gray '+' -- Next command. F1 -- Displays help file. F2 -- Changes keyboard mode. F3 -- Displays last command processed. F4 -- Displays room exits. F5-F9 -- Executes player defined command. Alt-T -- Pops open time window. Alt-X -- Quits game. Deletion commands: BackSpace -- Deletes character left of cursor. DEL -- Deletes character right of cursor. ^W -- Deletes word left of cursor. Alt-W -- Deletes word right of cursor. ^L -- Deletes all characters left of cursor. Alt-L -- Deletes all characters right of cursor. Alt-K or ESC-- Deletes all characters on the line or closes time window. Alt-U or ^U -- Pastes back deleted text at cursor (undeletes). Insertion command: INS -- Toggles Insert/Overwrite mode. 10 T-Zero Manual DIRECTIONAL control keyboard mode: Directional movement commands: HOME -- NW. END -- SW. Up Arrow -- N. Down Arrow -- S. Page Up -- NE. Page Down -- SE. Right Arrow -- E. Left Arrow -- W. ^Right Arrow-- U. ^Left Arrow -- D. Cursor movement commands: BackSpace -- Moves cursor left one column. Command retrieval: Gray '-' -- Previous command. Gray '+' -- Next command. F1 -- Displays help file. F2 -- Changes keyboard mode. F3 -- Displays last command processed. F4 -- Displays room exits. F5-F9 -- Executes player defined command. Alt-T -- Pops open time window. Alt-X -- Quits game. Deletion commands: DEL -- Deletes character right of cursor. ^W -- Deletes word left of cursor. Alt-W -- Deletes word right of cursor. ^L -- Deletes all characters left of cursor. Alt-L -- Deletes all characters right of cursor. Alt-K or ESC-- Deletes all characters on the line or close time window. Alt-U or ^U -- Pastes back deleted text at cursor (undeletes). Insertion command: INS -- Toggles Insert/Overwrite mode. 11 T-Zero Manual SHAREWARE INFORMATION Shareware distribution gives users a chance to try software before buying it. If you try a Shareware program and continue using it, you are expected to register. Individual programs differ on details-- some request registration while others require it, some specify a maximum trial period. With registration, you get anything from the simple right to continue using the software to an updated program with printed manual. Copyright laws apply to both Shareware and commercial software, and the copyright holder retains all rights, with a few specific exceptions as stated below (see "Warranty Information"). Shareware authors are accomplished programmers, just like commercial authors, and the programs are of comparable quality (in both cases, there are good programs and bad ones!). The main difference is in the method of distribution. The author specifically grants the right to copy and distribute the software, either to all and sundry or to a specific group. For example, some authors require written permission before a commercial disk vendor may copy their Shareware. Shareware is a distribution method, not a type of software. You should find software that suits your needs and pocketbook, whether it's commercial or Shareware. The Shareware system makes fitting your needs easier, because you can try before you buy. And because the overhead is low, prices are low also. Shareware has the ultimate money-back guarantee--if you don't use the product, you don't pay for it. ASP OMBUDSMAN STATEMENT "This program is produced by a member of the Association of Shareware Professionals (ASP). ASP wants to make sure that the shareware principle works for you. If you are unable to resolve a shareware-related problem with an ASP member by contacting the member directly, ASP may be able to help. The ASP Ombudsman can help you resolve a dispute or problem with an ASP member, but does not provide technical support for members' products. Please write to the ASP Ombudsman at 545 Grover Road, Muskegon, MI 49442- 9427 or send a Compuserve message via CompuServe Mail to ASP Ombudsman 70007,3536." 12 T-Zero Manual WARRANTY INFORMATION Users of T-Zero must accept this disclaimer of warranty: "T-Zero is supplied as is. The author disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, including, without limitation, the warranties of merchantability and of fitness for any purpose. The author assumes no liability for damages, direct or conse- quential, which may result from the use of T-Zero." T-Zero is a "shareware program" and is provided at no charge to the user for evaluation. Feel free to share it with your friends, but please do not give it away altered or as part of another system. The following files must be included in any distributed copy: T-ZERO.EXE T-ZERO.DAT T-0.DAT T-ZERO.MAN The file, HINT.DAT, received upon registration, may not be distri- buted. The essence of "user-supported" software is to provide personal computer users with quality software without high prices, and yet to provide incentive for programmers to continue to develop new products. If you find this game enjoyable and find that you are playing T-Zero and continue to play T-Zero after a reasonable trial period, you must make a registration payment of $15.00 to the author. The $15.00 registration fee will license one copy for use on any one computer at any one time. You must treat this software just like a book. An example is that this software may be used by any number of people and may be freely moved from one computer location to another, so long as there is no possibility of it being used at one location while it's being used at another. Just as a book cannot be read by two different persons at the same time. Anyone distributing T-Zero for any kind of remuneration must first contact the author at the address below for authorization. This authorization will be automatically granted to distributors recognized by the (ASP) as adhering to its guidelines for shareware distributors, and such distributors may begin offering T-Zero immediately (However the author must still be advised so that the distributor can be kept up-to-date with the latest version of T-Zero.). You are encouraged to pass a copy of T-Zero along to your friends for evaluation. Please encourage them to register their copy if they find that they can use it. All registered players will receive a copy of the latest version of T-Zero complete with a hint facility (see "Registration Information"). 13 T-Zero Manual REGISTRATION INFORMATION Registered users will receive a disk containing the most recent version of T-Zero complete with a hint file not available to unregistered users. The hint facility is keyed to user location and what the player has solved or accomplished so far. The hint file may not be distributed to unregistered users. If your new version of T-Zero is the same as you already have, only the hint file need be reloaded. If your version number has changed, save files will not be compatible between the two versions. To register, send $15.00 (check or money order) and the attached registration form to: Dennis Cunningham No. 405 25-6 NW 23rd Pl. Portland, OR 97210-3534 The author also welcomes comments and suggestions and can be reached at the above mailing address or the following E-Mail addresses: CompuServe: 71107,3037 GENIE: D.CUNNINGHA9 Support policy: The author will willingly track down and correct any reported bugs and create a new version to correct them. He prefers not to be inundated with requests for hints but has been known to give a gentle nudge or two. Thanks for your interest in the game. A new one is already in the works! 14 T-Zero Manual Registration Form (T-ZERO V1.02) Name: ______________________________________________________________ Address: ___________________________________________________________ City, State: _______________________________________________________ Zip Code: __________________________________________________________ Telephone Number (optional): _______________________________________ Disk Format: [5.25"] ________ [3.5"] ________ You may answer or leave these questions blank at your discretion: 1) Where did you obtain your copy of T-Zero? 2) What types of themes would you like to see explored in text adventures? 3) What features would you like to see added to a text adventure like T-Zero? 4) What type of hardware do you play games on? 5) Additional comments: Send form and payment to: Dennis Cunningham No. 405 25-6 NW 23rd Pl. Portland, OR 97210-3534 15