The World of Computer Software/World_Of_Computer_Software-02-386-Vol-2of3.iso/e/excal37.zip/TEXTMSG1.XCL

Text File | 1991-11-10 | 20KB | 389 lines

DESERT
It is dry here, there is little food
and no water.  About you are scattered
bones and bits of sandblasted armor.
You had better find your way out soon.
~
SWAMP
There are leeches and alligators here
and snakes and other nasty things that
make travel difficult.  It takes you an
extra move to get free from the mire.
~
FOREST
You are in a dense but not impenetrable
forest.  Light filtering through the
canopy lends an air of enchantment to the
serenity of the gnarled old trees.
~
ROBINHOOD
Suddenly an arrow pierces your pommel
and a gay band of merry men (or is it
the other way around?) swing down from
the trees and invite you to dine with
them.  They refuse to take "No!" for
an answer, so you enjoy a night of
revelry and feasting with mead, boar
and venison, until you are gorged and
fall into a blissful sleep.  When you
awaken, you examine your purse and find
~
PLAINS
Here in the plains there is abundant
food and your enemies cannot surprise
you.  It is sometimes possible to get
ahead of schedule on the paved roads.
~
MOUNTAINS
The view from up here is magnificent
but you must be wary of bandits who may
be hiding amongst the rocks.  You find
shattered vials and other strewn debris.
~
LEADERFATE
Your first official act shall be to decide the fate
of the leaders amongst the peasants.  If they are
slain then there will be little insurrection, but
productivity shall be reduced.  If they are spared,
you shall reap the full tax, but some of your guards
may occasionally disappear.  What wilt thou do?
~
WIZARD
Your world suddenly vanishes from about you, and you find yourself spinning
wildly as you fall into a deep abyss.  Abruptly all motion stops, leaving
you suffering from mental whiplash.  Recovering rapidly, you find that you
are in a dark cavern with water dripping from the shimmering stalactites.
A warlock approaches dressed in robes of deep blue covered with images of
stars, moons, and comets.  On his head is a peaked hat of matching design.
He studies you closely, and since you show no fear, he speaks.
~
THUGS
Thou art in a darkened alleyway in the lesser known part of the marketplace.
There are those around who would do thee dishonour, but the glint
of torchlight upon the polished steel of thy half-drawn sword cause
them to reconsider.  To thy left are assembled a small band of highwaymen
noted for their lack of scruples, and willing to sell their services
to those who bear a grudge.  On thy right stands a cutpurse, who seeks
always to improve his lot in life.
~
DUEL1
Swinging your mace menacingly, you advance upon your enemy, and nearly strike
a severe blow to the head.  Thanks to a fortunate slip, only your opponent's
ear is torn.  Before recovering your balance, you find your mace tangled in
the net.  Soon the trident is forced to your throat and you must yield.
~
DUEL1A
You move the mace in a wicked underhand arc intended to neuter your opponent,
who throws the net at your feet and backs off, seemingly looking for a place
to hide.  You advance to teach the scoundrel a lesson, and realize too late
that the cur hast retained hold upon a corner of the net and, with a mighty
heave, entangles your legs, throwing you to the earth.  Slashing with your
dagger you nearly cut free, but as you begin to rise you feel the points of
the trident upon your own groin, and quickly beg for mercy.
~
DUEL2
Obviously skilled with the sword, your opponent moves toward you deftly, and
your mace seems suddenly to be a clumsy choice for a weapon.  Skillfully
using your dagger and your agility, you dance away from the keen edge until,
moving so quickly you nearly dislocate your shoulder, you anticipate a
quick thrust, and the head of your mace shatters your opponent's sword.
Beating upon your enemy's shield unmercifully, the battle is soon ended.
~
DUEL2A
Whirling your mace, you keep your opponent at bay, attempting to assess how
best to approach.  As your enemy begins to comprehend the timing of your
swings and advances toward you, you suddenly release the mace, and it hurtles
straight at your adversary's helm!  Taking advantage of the moment, you sieze
the varlet's sword arm as your dagger goes for the throat.  Victory is yours!
~
DUEL3
You circle one another cautiously.  The whirling mace hums menacingly as its
shock wave troubles the still air.  Your net is tangled, and you shake it
clear.  Interpreting this as a moment of advantage, your opponent charges in,
only to find that the momentum of a mace is not inconsiderable.  With your
enemy off-balance, you toss away your net and thrust your trident into the
pit of the arm which holds the mace.  With a scream of anguish, your
opponent quickly yields.
~
DUEL3A
With the trident, you prod your enemy hoping that, in anger, a foolish move
will be made, yet you are wary lest the mace loosen your brain from your own
skull.  Whirling the net over your head to spread it wide, you hurl it in a
high arc, causing it to descend widespread over your enemy.  The mace becomes
trapped in the net, and your adversary moves to cut it free with the dagger,
but with your trident poised an inch from your enemy's face, you soon put an
end to the contest.
~
DUEL5
Keeping a close watch on the tip of your adversary's sword, you bunch up the
net, preparing to toss it over sword and swordarm and, with a quick yank,
suddenly disarm your enemy.  The moment arrives and you fling the net, but
you had not counted on the keenness of the blade, which severs the net as if
it were a cob's web.  You attempt to protect yourself with your trident, but
your opponent's shield easily brushes it aside, and you must surrender.
~
DUEL5A
Surprising your enemy by attacking suddenly, you rush in with the trident so
there is no room for the sword to swing.  Unfortunately, this renders both
net and trident useless as well.  While struggling with your adversary's
sword arm, you feel a sudden sharp pain, and fall to the earth clutching
your groin and praying that your nether regions are still in working order.
~
DUEL6
Advancing upon the enemy, you feel confident that the maneuverability of your
sword will overcome the clumsiness of the mace, but thy opponent tricks thee!
After detaching the ball from the chain, it is suddenly hurled at your face!
Fending it to one side with your shield, you are then assailed with tortuous
blows to your helm from the raw chain.  Confused and startled, you trip over
your spurs and, falling backward, find yourself at the mercy of your opponent.
~
DUEL6A
Knowing that in experienced hands the mace can be a deadly weapon, you find
yourself suddenly sobered at the thought of what could happen if you should
make a mistake.  Your life flashes before your eyes as you consider the fact
that you might lose this contest, and you wonder if you have left enough gold
for your aged mother and father to live upon in event of your death.  Then
you remember the lovers you have had, and wonder if you will ever see them
again.  Finally, you are attacked by guilt as you consider your past sins,
wishing you could erase them and wondering if God in heaven can forgive you
your trespasses.  As your head clears and reality seeps in, you find yourself
in the grasp of your laughing adversary.  You have lost without ever raising
your sword!
~
DUEL7
Your opponent hurls the net upon your sword arm, but thinking quickly you
flip your sword into the air as you toss your shield into your adversary's
face.  Deftly catching your sword with your other hand, you assail your enemy
mercilessly until you hear the whimpering rascal beg for mercy.
~
DUEL7A
Twirling your sword as if it were a balsa plaything, you advance, pushing the
enemy backwards with every step.  Toying with your adversary, you wait until
the varlet is thoroughly demoralized before mercifully walking in and
taking the trident and net away as easily as taking candy from a baby.
~
DUEL7B
As you psych up for battle, you are astounded to see the trident broken upon
your adversary's knee.  Wondering at this madness, your enemy smiles at you
and begins dancing like a fool, kicking up one foot after the other upon the
net, holding the broken handle of the trident in one hand and the points in
the other.  As you watch in awe, your canny opponent suddenly stabs you in
the foot with the broken handle and presses the points beneath your breast
plate.  It takes a moment for you to realize that YOU are the one who has
been played the fool, and you must yield or die.
~
DUELTIE
Matched with equal weaponry, you strive valiantly for an advantage, but after
wasting several hours upon the plain, you both agree to rest, and choose
again from the armament.
~
FARMERS_DAUGHTER
Feeling a bit giddy and somewhat overinflated with confidence, due no doubt
to the excellence of the local wines and the envigorating hours spent with a
comely farmer's daughter who accidentally wandered into the camp, you don
your battle array and boldly gallop across the plains to the camp of
~
STRAPPING_FARM_LAD
Feeling a bit giddy and somewhat overinflated with confidence, due no
doubt to the excellence of the local wines and the envigorating hours
spent with a strapping farm lad who accidentally wandered into the camp,
you don your battle array and ride boldly across the plains to the camp of
~
SCORNED
Your opponent scoffs at the meager offering, waving dismissal.  You start to
give chase, but your enemy's knights bar the way.  Thine own guards will not
interfere in an affair of honor, and your charming playmate secrets away.
~
TITTERING
You hear a tittering from within thy opponent's tent, and from behind thee
as well, where thy nubile plaything hast followed to watch thee in action.
Flushing scarlet with anger, you lose control of your emotions, and blurt out
~
JOUST0
Alone in the plains, you carefully check your charger's trappings, and climb
with difficulty into the saddle, there being no page to attend thee.  After
what seems an interminable wait, your adversary rides from the encampment.
Your opponent's steed seems uneasy, and fretfully sidesteps in small jumps
as he is guided into position.  Finally all is ready, and you each raise your
lances high in salute, then lower them menacingly at one another as you spur
your chargers to the gallop.  With a third of the distance traversed, you see
your opponent's steed again misbehaving.  Knowing that your enemy's unpre-
dictable mount will never permit you a true target of your enemy's breast
plate, you lodge the handle of your lance into your saddle, so that your
lance juts out to the left as your ride.  Your opponent, noticing only that
the point of your lance is no longer directed forward, devotes full attention
to the unruly charger.  As you pass one another, your unwary opponent is
quite surprised to be caught about the middle by your lance, which bends
noticeably but does not break.   Your opponent is whipped from the saddle
into an undignified position astride a stack of accumulated fertilizer.
~
JOUST1
The heat inside your battle regalia seems unbearable, yet is offset by the
unexpected chill of your armour's metal parts which briefly contact your skin
as you fidget, transmitting the chill of the high-plains air to your body.
At last your opponent leaves camp, seeming larger than life riding a charger
of truly enormous size onto the plain.  Lowering your visor, you aim your
lance upward to compensate for the higher saddle of your foe.  Your steed
is anxious, so a slight touch of spur suffices to urge it to a thundering
pace.  Deftly catching the point of your enemy's lance on the guard of your
own, with a twist of your forearm you cause it to glance aside while holding
your own tip steady.  Your adversary's face looks upon you with wide eyes
which dim quickly as they are deposited in the hard earth behind the huge
charger's hooves.
~
JOUST2
It seems that you have been here before.  There is such a feeling of deja-vu
that you could swear you know the terrain by heart.  Suddenly, you recall
a childhood outing with the offspring of a nearby baron, during which you and
your friends sneaked away from camp in an attempt to capture a snipe.  Re-
calling the deep pit of dry, loose sand which nearly cost you your life at an
early age, you move your charger so that the innocuous patch of sand will be
directly in thy opponent's path as you make your first pass.  Deftly guiding
your charger to place yourself in the position of best advantage, you drive
your lance into your opponent's gut as thy enemy's charger pitches forward in
the loose sand.
~
JOUST3
Fitting the handle of your lance in its leather holder beneath your shoulder,
you spur your charger onward, prepared with confidence to toss your enemy
onto the plain, leaving the varlet with bruised buttocks that will be long
remembered.  But something goes wrong!  Your enemy leans close to the saddle,
thrusting the lance far ahead and leaving you little target.  You find your-
self lifted from your saddle and deposited ignominiously upon the hard earth
of a local cow pasture.
~
JOUST4
Knowing your opponent is renowned far and wide for skill with the lance, you
nevertheless choose this method of trial, knowing that if you lose you will
be but one in many, yet if you win, your name will be instantly famous in the
courts of Camelot.  When you cross lances, however, you find that your oppon-
ent wields the lance as though it were a sword, disarms you easily, then
knocks you to the ground, wheels, and places the lance tip to your throat
before you even know what has transpired!
~
JOUST5
You have been schooled by the best jousters in the kingdom, and so you feel
smug as you watch your enemy prepare for battle.  You note the odd lance,
which seems too thick, making it clumsy, and too short, which should allow
you to make contact before any harm can come to you.  As you draw near, you
make the final adjustments to your position, when suddenly you see your
opponent activate a secret trigger on the handle of the thick lance, causing
an extra three feet of deadly steel to surge forward and lock into place.
You dodge to the right, but your adversary catches you on your left shoulder
with the modified spear, driving you hard from your charger to land sharply
upon the earth, driving the wind from your body and leaving you helpless.
~
HALL
An officer of the guard nods to the men standing with crossed spears at
the entrance to the great hall.  They snap to attention and allow you to
pass.  Though you enter the great hall boldly, you are soon overwhelmed
by the richness and majesty of the trimmings, and somewhat intimidated
by the imposing figure seated on a magnificent throne at the other end of
the chamber.  You approach hesitantly.  As you draw near, the regal figure
points the royal scepter at you, and in a booming voice, says
~
GRIPE
We hath neither time nor patience for complainers.  If thou must annoy Us
then be brief!  Thou hast 4 lines of 75 characters to state thy grievance!
And if We choose, We may dismiss thy claim without action, and perhaps even
fine thee for thy insolence.  First, what is the name of the accused?
~
HIRETHUGS
You may hire up to fifteen of them at 75 gold coins apiece to
attack the noble of your choice on a move of your choice (from
3 to 20) upon their next logon.  If their target is in a city
during the selected turn, the highwaymen will try once again
during a second selected tern, but if thy opponent is once again
within a city, or exits the kingdom before the second attempt, they
will be relieved of any further obligation to you.  Otherwise,
they will attack without mercy, and if they prevail, they will keep
the purse they capture, but will return to you any potions they obtain.
~
MAPMAKER
Thou art before the apartments of the
Mapmaker, who doth labor for many Lords
and Ladies of the realm.  Thine aide
inquires, "Of what city dost thou wish
to gain information, your Grace?  If thou
wouldst tell me the name or the location
I will make the inquiry in thy name."
~
TILTING
Here is thy chance to gain recognition and wealth
The champions are gathered together to challenge all
who dare to meet them on the field of honor.  The
greater the champion, the larger the purse, but the
greater champions are loath to yield their gold.
Thou art allowed a maximum of 12 jousts per day, but
if thou art defeated five times in succession, thou
wilt be finished jousting for the rest of the day.
~
MORGANA
A shopkeeper sayeth 'My Mistress Morgan La Fey
is not at home now, but I am empowered to act
in her behalf.  She hast concocted a rather large
quantity of a traveling potion, but it wast
contaminated by a virgin bat, so thou mayest
purchase it quite reasonably.  I must warn thee
that its effects are ofttimes undependable.  It
seems to react most strangely in the presence of
large quantities of gold.'
~
SCRIBENER
An aged scribener greets thee at the gates of the city, followed
by a small but battle hardened escort.  "Your Grace," he says, in a
voice which, although quavering slightly with age and infirmity, is
evidently accustomed to giving commands, "prithee excuse my failing
sight.  I know that thou art a stranger in Excalibur, and I must have
words with thee before thou mayest enter the city.  Dost thou wish to
apply for citizenship in our realm?"  (Y/N)
~
GUILTY
Your Majesty, the nobles of the realm hath adjudged the defendant to be
guilty as charged.  It is thy duty to administer punishment.  Tradition
dictates that thou must select from among the following sentences :

(1) A fine of up to 5000 gold pieces divided between thee and the accuser.
(2) Banishment from Camelot for up to ten days.
(3) Confinement within Camelot for up to ten days.
(4) Banishment from Excalibur! for up to five days.
(5) Confiscation of possessions and cities, leaving the accused with only
    their map, to start the game anew. (Requires 80% guilty vote.)
~
BANNER
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PROTEST
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~
CITYKEY
The mayor offers you the key to the city, but reports that the coffers are
empty.  Angered by the lack of fiscal support, you conscript a fourth part
of the city's guard into your own service.
~
MONIES
Here is a listing of the monies owed to thee :
      Name                      Balance          Owed Since
      ~~~~                      ~~~~~~~          ~~~~~~~~~~
~
ROTINHELL
sayeth the ragged and dirty wives, clutching their
squealing brats to their bosoms.
"Let the scum rot in hell!", suggests your advisor.
~
ATMARKET
Thou art in the black market, where goods smuggled from Camelot are
sold at a handsome profit!  Thou mayest shop without trepidation, for
the market is protected by the most incorrigible trading folk alive,
~