BBS Toolkit/BBS Toolkit.iso/doors_1/infern2.zip/PLAYER.DOC

Text File | 1993-01-29 | 12KB | 253 lines

                        Inferno Player Documentation

Starting for the first time:
----------------------------
 When you play Inferno for the first time, you will first see the title
 screen and then have a chance to read the story.  It would be a good idea
 to read it so you get an idea of how the game works.  After reading, you
 must choose a name for your character.  This name can be whatever you want,
 but can be no longer than 8 characters in length.

Main Menu:
----------
 At the main menu, you will have four options:

 I)nstructions
 O)ptions
 P)lay the Game
 Q)uit back to BBS

 By selecting I for Instructions, you will be able to view this document.
 Selecting O brings you to the Options menu (the options menu is discussed
 in a later section of this documentation).  Selecting P lets you start
 playing where you left off, and Q quits Inferno and returns you to the BBS.

Options Menu:
-------------
 The options menu is where you can configure certain aspects of the game.
 The options menu has the following choices:

 T)oggle monster pictures - currently monsters are: shown/not shown
 Q)uit to main menu

 By selecting T, you can toggle on and off whether or not the monster
 pictures will be shown when a monster attacks you.  By default, they are
 shown, and they should only be toggled to not shown if you can't stand
 to wait for the screen re-writes.  Whenever a monster picture is shown,
 the map is overwritten by the picture, and then the map is redrawn after
 the battle.  At slow baud rates (modem speeds), this can take a long time
 and get very annoying.
 Selecting Q quits you back to the main menu.

Playing the Game:
-----------------
 After you have selected P (for Play the Game) from the main menu, you will
 begin the game.  If it is your first time playing, you'll start off in
 the castle's throne room.  Otherwise you'll start off right where you left
 off.  No matter where you are, the screen is set up in the same way.  In
 the upper left is the map screen, with the currently available commands
 and the message box below it.  On the right hand side are your player's
 stats and items.  Depending on where you are (i.e. town, castle, cave,
 overworld, etc.), you will have a different set of commands.  To use a
 command, press the key that corresponds to the first letter in the
 command.  After you have pressed the key, the command will be carried out
 (in some cases, such as when entering a number with more than one digit,
 you may have to press return for the command to be carried out).  To move
 your character about, make sure your <NUM LOCK> key is on, and press
 the key that corresponds to the direction you would like to go on the number
 pad.  If your character is not allowed to move in the direction you wanted
 to go, you will be told.

 NOTE: Whenever you quit the game, or run out of time, your character's
   information, stats, and position are saved.  In this way, you always
   start off exactly as you were when you last played.

Areas:
------
 Overworld:
  The overworld is where you will spend most of your time traveling from
  place to place.  On the overworld you will encounter monsters and be
  able to enter the other areas (i.e. caves, towns, etc.).
 Boat:
  If you leave the shore from a dock when you have the boat, you will be
  able to go sailing on the open seas.  You can only get on and off your
  boat at a dock.
 Town:
  Towns are where you can hear the latest gossip and stock up on items,
  weapons, shields, or armors.  Each town also usually has an inn where
  you can get healed.  Make sure you talk to everyone in a town often
  to see what new information you can get.  See the section on shops for
  more information about them.
 Castle:
  Castles (also huts and other similar locations) are places you can go
  to get information and sometimes find an occasional treasure chest.
 Cave:
  Caves (also temples, pyramids, etc.) are where you go to find certain
  items, gain experience from harder monsters, complete quests, or just
  pass through to get to the other side.  You can also meet and talk to
  people in caves.

Shops:
------
 There are five basic types of shops (please see the commands section for
 how to buy and sell items at a shop):

 Inn:
  Here is where you can rest and get yourself healed for a price.
 Equipment Shop:
  Various items such as herbs and warp seeds can be purchased here.
 Weapon Shop:
  Various weapons can be bought here.
 Armor Shop:
  Both shields and armors can be bought here.
 Magic Shop:
  This shop sells magical items which have strange uses.

Commands:
---------
 In this section, the different commands for different areas are explained.
 Each description also indicates where each command can be used.

 The following are all the available commands in the game.

 R)edraw              S)hop            A)ttack
 E)quip               T)alk            R)etreat
 U)se Item            Q)uit            S)witch Weapon

 Redraw: (Overworld, Boat, Town, Castle, Cave)
   Selecting R redraws the screen.  This is useful when line noise has
   garbled the screen, and you would like to redraw it.
 Equip: (Overworld, Boat, Town, Castle, Cave)
   Selecting E allows you to equip an item.  Only weapons, shields, and
   armors can be equipped.  When you select equip, you will be asked which
   item you would like to equip.  If you choose an item you already had
   equipped then it will be un-equipped.  If you already have a weapon
   equipped and you choose to equip another weapon, the first one will be
   un-equipped, and then the second equipped.  This works the same way for
   shields and armors.
 Use Item: (Overworld, Boat, Town, Castle, Cave, Fight)
   Selecting U in the overworld gives you two options: use or drop an item.
   During a fight you will only be able to use items, not drop them.  Using
   an item allows you to utilize its powers.  Using various items produces
   various effects.  Some items have no uses, but many do.  For example, if
   you try to use a short sword, nothing will happen, but if you use a herb,
   you will be healed.  See the section on items to see the uses of some
   basic items.  Dropping items just means you leave them behind and can
   never get them back.  Some items can't be dropped because they are
   important to the story.
 Shop: (Town)
   When you are on a shop, and press S, you will be able to buy and sell
   items.  When you first press S, you will have the choice of buying,
   selling, or leaving.  By selecting B for buy, you will be able to purchase
   items from the shop.  When you are done buying, press L to leave.  If you
   select S for sell, you will be able to sell your items to the shop owner.
   Again, once you are done press L to leave.
 Talk: (Town, Castle, Cave)
   When you are standing next to someone and press T, you will be able
   to talk to them.  Different people say and do different things.  Some
   will give you information or items, or they might even attack you.  It
   is best to talk to everyone you meet and remember what they say.  Also,
   talking to some people again later in the game may get you a different
   response.
 Quit: (Overworld, Boat, Town, Castle, Cave)
   Selecting Q quits the game, and returns you to the BBS.
 Attack: (Fight)
   Selecting A during a battle causes you to attack the enemy.  You will
   either miss or hit if you attack, and if you hit you will do damage,
   possibly killing the monster.
 Retreat: (Fight)
   Selecting R during a battle makes you try to retreat.  There is a chane
   (based on your dexterity and the monster's dexterity) that you won't get
   away.  If you fail to get away, the monster will have a chance to attack
   you before you get to do anything else.
 Switch Weapon: (Fight)
   By selecting S during a battle, you can switch your weapons.  This is
   similar to the equip command, but it only allows you to switch from one
   weapon to another.  If you have no weapon equipped, then you can choose
   one to start using.  If you choose to switch to the weapon you are
   already using, you will only end up wasting a turn in battle.  After
   you have switched weapons, the monster has a chance to attack.

Player Stats:
-------------
 The basic player stats are Name, Level, Money, XP, Needed XP, HP, Max HP,
 STR, RES, DEX, and Time Left.

 Name:
  Name is the name you gave to your character when you first started playing.
 Level:
  Level is your current level of accomplishment.  Each time you raise a
  level, you gain more HP (hit points) and STR (strength), RES (resistance),
  and DEX (dexterity).  You need to get a certain amount of XP (experience)
  before you advance a level.  See the section on fighting about how to earn
  XP.
 Money:
  This is the current amount of gold you are carrying.  You get gold from
  fighting monsters, from treasure chests, from people, from selling items,
  etc.  You can use your gold to buy items, weapons, etc.
 XP:
  XP is experience.  You earn experience from fighting monsters, and once
  you earn enough XP, you advance a level.  See the section on fighting for
  more information.
 Needed XP:
  This is how much XP you need to advance to the next level.  Once you have
  this amount, you'll go up a level.
 HP:
  This is hit points, or how much life you have.  Various things in the game
  can cause you damage.  If you ever reach zero hit points, you'll die.  See
  the section on dying for more information.
 Max HP:
  Max HP is how many total hit points you can have.  Each time you advance
  a level, this number will increase.
 STR:
  This is strength.  You gain strength by going up levels and by equipping
  different weapons.  Strength affects how much damage you can do to a
  monster.
 RES:
  This is resistance.  As above, you gain it by going up levels.  You can
  also increase your RES by equipping shields and/or armors.  RES affects
  how much damage a monster can do to you.
 DEX:
  DEX is your dexterity.  It is only affected by gaining levels.  DEX affects
  your ability to hit monsters and to retreat from battles.
 Time Left:
  This is how much time you have left in the door before you are returned to
  the BBS.

Items:
------
 Here are some basic items available in the game:

 Item           Use
 ----           ---
 Herb (x1-x10)  A herb will heal your character a small amount.
 Warp Seed      This warps you back to the last town you visited.  It can
                only be used in the overworld (but not in battle).
 Keys           Different keys open different doors and gates.

Fighting:
---------
 Battles occur randomly in the overworld, while you are out sailing on a
 boat, or in caves.  They can also occur when you talk to someone.  During
 a battle, you must defeat the monster or be defeated.  Each monster has
 stats that are set up in basically the same way as for you.  If you manage
 to deplete the monster's hit points to zero before yours are, you will
 defeat the monster and be victorious.  For more information on being killed,
 see the section on dying.  If you are victorious, you will get a certain
 amount of XP (experience) and gold.  There is also a chance you will find an
 item on the monster.

 NOTE: Some monsters can't be affected by some weapons.  This works the same
   way for shields and armors; some shields and armors will provide minimized,
   or no defense.  The opposite is also true; some weapons, shields, and
   armors may have increased effectiveness against certain monsters.  You will
   have to experiment with differnt things with different monsters to
   see what works best (townspeople may offer some helpful advice).

Dying:
------
 If you die, the door will close and you will be returned to the BBS.  When
 you play again, you will start out at the last town you visited but with only
 half the money you had before you died.  In addition, your experience will
 be dropped down to the minimum for your current level.