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- Wiznotes
-
- A brief playing guide to the Wizard MegaDisk demo
-
- Note: This file contains details of all items and spell available in the full
- commercial version, and you won't necessarily come across them all in the demo.
-
- The game has three main modes of console which we shall hereafter refer to
- as "Normal Mode", "Inventory Mode" and "Big-View Mode". The game commences in
- Normal Mode.
-
- Movement is via keyboard or by holding down the left mouse button while the cursor
- is in the view window.
-
- Normal Mode Icons
- =================
- Icon Left button Right button Keyboard
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------
- Face icons Give carried Select char's F1-F4
- item to char inventory
- and enter/leave
- Inventory Mode
-
- Hand Icons Take/Give/Swap Shoot bow, drink
- (above or below item carried potion, cast scroll
- a character's with item in cast wand/staff/ring,
- face icon) hand. eat food,take gold
-
- Name Boxes Select char's book and spell
- (below faces) ready for casting or selection F5-F8
- of another spell via the book
-
- Spell Name Box Cast currently named spell of
- (above book) current spell character
-
- Spell Book Select/Deselect Turn page
- a spell
-
- Crossed Swords Enter combat Enter combat
- and cast all Space Bar
- selected spells
-
- Compass Enter Mapdisplay Enter Big-View Mode F9/F10
-
- Continuous Area Interrogate a Cancel a
- (darkened box continuous continuous
- just beneath the effect spell effect spell
- view window)
-
-
- Inventory Mode
- ==============
- Selecting a character's face with the right mouse button or pressing F1-F4 will
- enter or leave Inventory Mode. Inventory Mode is very similar to Normal Mode.
- The main difference is that you have access to more of your party's inventories
- than just the hands.
-
- There are sixteen inventory slots assigned to each of the four characters. The
- first six of these are reserved for armour types; helmets, armour, gloves,
- shields, boots, amulets. An item in one of these special slots is deemed to be
- equipped/worn etc. Amulets tend to enhance a character in some way.
-
- The other two slots on the top line of the inventory are duplicates of the
- character's hands. An item in the hand will also be accessible here and vice
- versa.
-
- Clicking on item slots in the inventory will take/give/swap the item if the
- left mouse button is used. The right mouse button is for shooting a bow,
- drinking a potion, casting a scroll, casting a ring/wand/staff, eating food,
- stashing a bag of gold. Bows, rings, wands, staves may only be used (right
- mouse) when in a character's hands (or hand slots)
-
- Common keys and arrows behave a little differently. They can be pooled
- into clumps of upto ninety-nine. Typically, the left mouse button will take a
- whole pile while the right mouse button will take only one or will take one
- more. To shoot a bow, the bow and the arrows to be used must be in the
- character's hands. The bow is used automatically in combat along with all
- other normal weapons.
-
- There are further icons available in Inventory Mode. The compass behaves
- as in Normal Mode to access either the map or Big-View Mode. The crossed
- swords is as before to launch either normal combat or normal plus magical
- combat. The continuous effect area has been obscured and a new one now exists
- just beneath the character's faces.
-
- Further available icons are Options, Stats Display, Exit Inventory,
- Pool/Share Gold, Change Current Inventory.
-
- The icon beneath the crossed swords will display the current character's
- stats. This comes in two pages. Use the left mouse button to toggle between
- the pages and the right mouse to regain the bank of icons. Here you are able
- to see a character's experience and how hungry/fed a character is. The levels
- of food satiation are Starving, Ravenous, Famished, Hungry, Peckish, Fed, Full,
- Replete, Glutted, Stuffed. There is no point feeding a stuffed character. A
- character who is starving will not heal normally. The better fed a character
- is the faster the character will recover any vitality lost during play. The
- characters begin the game full.
-
- Experience is gained during play. All characters receive equal experience
- unless dead. A dead character will not receive experience. Experience enables
- a character to "make a level break". This will make a character more powerful
- and grant extra spells. Mages gain extra spells at every level break; Rangers
- gain spells at every even level; Assassins gain spells on every level divisible
- by three, Warriors gain spells at every level divisible by four.
-
- Level breaks are gained when a character has attained the following totals
- and will only be granted during sleep.
- Level 2 2000
- Level 3 6000
- Level 4 2000
- Level 5 25000
- Level 6 40000
- Level 7 60000
- Level 8 80000
- Level 9 110000
- Level 10 140000
- Level 11 170000
- Level 12 200000
- Level 13 230000
- Level 14 270000
- Level 15 310000
-
- Big-View Mode
- =============
- You can enter Big-View Mode either by clicking with the right mouse on the
- compass icon (either from Normal Mode or from Inventory Mode) or by pressing
- F10 on the Keyboard. Fewer icons are available in Big-View Mode but those
- remaining are adequate for most of the time. Big-View Mode is really only
- recommended for faster machines although speed may be adequate on mid-range
- machines if the detail is turned down (by pressing the Tab key to select one of
- three settings or see Options below).
-
- The icons available in Big-View Mode are (as above) the face icons, the
- hand icons, crossed-swords icon, spell name icon, name boxes. It is
- recommended that any required spells are selected prior to entering Big-View
- Mode as the book is not available. You may leave Big-View Mode by pressing F10
- or by clicking on a face icon with the right mouse which will enter Inventory
- Mode with the selected character's inventory.
-
- As with Normal Mode and Inventory Mode, dropping items on to a character's
- face with the left button will deposit the item into the character's inventory.
- The character will automatically equip armour/amulets if it/they are of a
- higher value than already worn, eg. if a character is currently wearing
- leathers and you drop chain mail into his inventory he will remove the leathers,
- which will be available on the pointer for redistribution..
-
- The continuous effect area is now on the bottom line just beneath the
- right-most face and hand icons.
-
- Miscellany
- ==========
- Next to the face icons are two bars, the yellow one indicates current hit-
- points as a measure of current maximum and the purple bar is spell points.
-
- The horizontal blue bar is the current vitality of the character whose book and
- spell are currently selected. The more blue the better. A character has more
- difficulty casting a spell when low on vitality. The character's food level
- determines the rate of vitality recovery. Holding an item called Angrath's
- Heart will also boost vitality recovery.
-
- Game detail is selectable from the Tab key or from Options (see below).
- Gameplay is in no way compromised by reducing detail but the speed gain may be
- significant. Slower machines may require the lowest detail setting and not
- find Big-View Mode at all comfortable.
-
- A gamesave to RAM may be effected from the R key.
-
- Beds
- =====
- During dungeon exploration, you will find beds. Click on a bed with the right
- mouse to send your party to sleep. The party will always wake up hungrier than
- they were before sleeping unless they are already starving. Sleep allows much
- increased recovery rates of spell points and hit-points and only during sleep
- may a character gain levels or learn new spells. Note that a starving
- character will not heal hit-points.
-
- If a character is due to learn a spell then the gods of magick will visit
- the character during sleep. Click on a god to select its class of spells.
- Follow any prompts. Any gold required will be taken first from the character
- gaining the spell and then from the rest of the party if that character is too
- poor.
-
- Shops
- =====
- There are several shops selling items and consumables. They are invariably
- tucked away in alcoves behind wooden doors with signs scribbled on the wall
- outside. Opening the door will enter the shop.
-
- The shop has two pages of shelves which may each be accessed by clicking on
- the arrows above the shelves. Clicking on exit shop will leave the shop.
- Clicking on an item on a shelf with the left mouse will ask the shopkeeper for
- a price. Clicking with the right mouse will purchase the item if the character
- whose inventory is active has sufficient funds. The Pool/Share gold icon will
- be of help during shopping. Clicking on the shopkeeper while carrying an item
- with the left mouse will ask the shopkeeper for a price; using the right mouse
- will sell the item. The shopkeeper almost always makes a profit and is not
- prepared to haggle. Any rings/wands/magical-staves bought from the shopkeeper
- will be fully charged so you may wish to sell an item and then buy it back in
- order to recharge it. The shopkeeper will add any non-consumable item to the
- shop's inventory if there is free shelf-space so that you may buy the item back
- at a later time. If the shelves are full, the item will be discarded. Note
- that the item may go to the other page of the shop's shelf-space.
-
- Regen-Chambers
- ===============
- You will find regeneration chambers from time to time. Their location may well
- be worth noting. Entering a regen chamber will bring any dead party members
- back to life.
-
- Action Cursor
- ============
- While the mouse cursor is not within the view window, the cursor will be a
- pointing hand. Use the very tip of the graphic to access any icons. In the
- view window, the cursor can take two forms; the pointing hand or the
- grabbing/action hand.
-
- While the cursor is a pointing hand a click in the view window with the
- right mouse will aim and cast any spell currently selected. While it is the
- grabbing/action cursor you may: pick up items from the floor; open doors; use
- levers or buttons; remove some special items from walls.
-
- You may also carry items in the hand. While you are carrying an item, the
- cursor will change to show what is carried. Clicking with the right mouse in
- the view window while carrying an item will: drop the item; throw the item;
- attempt to use the item (key) to unlock a door.
-
- Spell Casting
- =============
- Spells may be cast in one of four ways: right mouse on the crossed swords icon,
- which will also initiate combat (space bar is a duplicate of this function);
- clicking on the spell name icon; clicking with the right mouse on an item in a
- character's hand or inventory (scrolls only); by clicking with the right mouse
- in the view window (this will also aim the spell where applicable). If a spell
- is not aimed, the character will do the aiming. Characters are often more
- accurate than you are.
-
- Spells
- ======
- Green Spells - Earth Magic
- Armour Continous spell, boosts armour class (AC).
- Healing Heals some damage from whole party. Tires caster greatly.
- Paralyze Freezes a monster temporarily.
- Levitate Prevents falling down pits and protects from firepaths.
- Warpower Continuous spell, boosts combat ability.
- Arc Bolt Damage spell. An arc bolt will bounce from walls
- Renew Restore all lost hit points. Exhausts the caster.
- Formwall Creates a wall. Cancelled by casting another in same place.
-
- Yellow Spells - Chaos Magic
- Deflect Continuous spell, protects from missile fire. Short lived.
- Terror Causes monsters to flee in panic.
- Antimage Continuous spell, protects from magical attack.
- Regen Continuous spell, heals and returns from the dead
- Ethblade Creates a weapon in a free hand. Allows double attacks.
- Spelltap Will reduce a monsters magic ability. If the party is hit
- with spelltap then all continuous effect icons will be
- cancelled and the party will lose spell points.
- Vivify Returns dead characters to life.
- Disrupt Damage spell.
-
- Red Spells - Dragon Magic
- Missile Damage spell. The party can defend with Deflect
- Torch Creates light
- Fireward Creates a ward.
- Dispell Removes firepath and illusory walls
- Fireball Damage spell.
- Firepath Creates firepath locations.
- Recharge Will recharge items. Exhausts the caster.
- Inferno Damage spell with knock-on fireballs.
-
- Purple Spells - Night Magic
- Confuse Will cause a monster to fumble around.
- Phaze Limited teleport. Will leap over monsters often spinning you
- to turn and face the monsters' backs.
- Suspend Will float the party away from danger. Cancelled by any
- right mouse click in the view window or by any attempt to
- cast an aggressive spell.
- Trueview Continuous spell, sees through illusory walls and gives the
- effect of great light.
- Wizeye Exploration spell.
- Mindrock Creates illusory walls
- Wychwind Damage spell to fore, aft and sides.
- Mindrage Damage any monster in clear view. Exhausts the caster.
-
- The cost in spell points to cast a spell depends on a character's ability as a
- magic user and how tired the character is (vitality bar). A spell will always
- cost at least one point and will have greatest effect if cast when the
- character is fully rested (vitality bar on full). If the cost of a spell is
- greater than one then waiting for the character to recover will not increase
- the effectiveness of the spell but will reduce the cost of the spell. Being
- fed speeds a character's recovery rate. Casting a spell tires the character as
- reflected by the vitality bar. The Amber Amulet greatly reduces the tiredness
- due to casting many of the spells. At later levels character's can effectively
- machine-gun their damage spells at the hapless foe.
-
- Potions/Items
- ==============
- Hedjog Venom Restores full hit points
- Moon Elixir Restore full spell points
- Phoenix Broth Restore full hit points and spell points
- Chymera Blood Boosts hit points even to above maximum
- Power Potion Boosts spell points even to above maximum
- Dragon Ale Permanent intelligence plus one
- Orc's Vomit Permanent strength plus one
-
- Snake Staff Arc Bolt spell
- Firestaff Inferno spell
- Grim Reaper Disrupt spell
- Power Staff Wychwind spell
- Sun Staff Casts all continuous effect spells
- Cloud Staff Mindrock spell
- Serpent Wand Renew spell
- Dragon Wand Fireball spell
- Night Wand Confuse spell
- Chaos Wand Antimage spell
- Amber Wand Missile spell
- Cloud Wand Suspend spell
- Serpent Ring Warpower spell
- Chaos Ring Deflect spell
- Dragon Ring Fireward spell
- Night Ring Phaze spell
- Cloud Ring Trueview spell
- Moon Ring Regen spell
- Amber Ring Armour spell
-
- Scrolls and rings/wands/staves will have greater effect if cast by the highest
- level character with the highest intelligence.
-
- Options
- =======
- You may enter the Options menu by hitting the Esc key during play or by
- clicking on the options icon in Inventory Mode.
-
- You may have upto five active gamesaves, each represented by a small image
- of the view window at the time of making the gamesave. Save and Load are
- pretty obvious. A save description must be terminated with Enter/Return. Esc
- will clear the name or abort the save without modifying the disk. RamRestore
- will restore the last position from RAM. This is done automatically after
- party death. Save to RAM is done during play by pressing the "R" key and is
- done automatically on loading a previous gamesave. Note that making a gamesave
- does not affect your RAMsave position. Note that your RAMsave is lost when you
- quit the game; switch off your machine; have a power cut etc.
-
- Quit to Dos will return you to Dos. Please ensure that you have made a
- gamesave should you wish later to resume from your current position.
-
- Mouse speed is selectable at three settings. The default setting is the
- middle one.
-
- Game detail is selectable at three settings. Note that a reductions in
- detail does not compromise gameplay. The default setting is maximum. The
- middle setting will disable the display of the ceiling during play. The lowest
- setting will disable both floor and ceiling. The TAB key allows detail
- selection during play.
-
- The larger view in the bottom left corner is your current position. This
- is updated after a LOAD from disk or after a RamRestore. Return to game will
- return you to play.
-
- Map
- ====
- The game map can be accessed by pressing F9 on the keyboard or by clicking with
- left mouse on the compass (not available in Big-View Mode). Your current
- position and direction are indicated by a small blue arrow. Note that while
- viewing the map, the game is effectively paused.
-
- Clicking on the map icon in the top right corner of the screen will allow
- you to view maps from other towers throughout the game. Up/Down icons will
- allow you to view other level of the currently selected tower/dungeon and the
- purple exit icon will return you to play.
-
- Combat
- =======
- Combat in Wizard! is partially automated to leave you free to manipulate your
- party, its inventory and select and cast spells. Archers will get on with
- aiming and firing arrows and the characters will keep hitting at anything in
- range. Combat will be cancelled if the characters find that the monsters are
- out of range. Monsters will hit at the closest character so you can often
- provide yourself with a short respite by turning your party to present the
- best-healed or best-armoured character to the attacking monster. Note that it
- is not possible to rearrange your party order once into the game. This can
- only be done during character select.
-
- Movement Keys
- ==============
- Movement is via mouse holding the left button with the cursor in the view
- window or via keyboard.
-
- Left Keys Right Keys Cursor Keys
- ---------------------------------------------------------------
- Normal Forward S Keypad 5 None
- Turn Left A Keypad 4 Cursor Left
- Turn Right D Keypad 6 Cursor Right
- Fast Forward W Keypad 8 Cursor Up
- Fast Turn Left Q Keypad 7 None
- Fast Turn Right E Keypad 9 None
- Move Left Z Keypad 1 None
- Move Right C Keypad 3 None
- Move Backwards X Keypad 2 Cursor Down
-