Annotation of early-roguelike/arogue5/arogue58.doc, Revision 1.1
1.1 ! rubenllo 1:
! 2:
! 3:
! 4:
! 5:
! 6: The Dungeons of Doom
! 7:
! 8: AT&T Bell Laboratories
! 9: The Dungeons of Doom
! 10:
! 11:
! 12: 1. INTRODUCTION
! 13:
! 14: Rogue is a screen-oriented fantasy game set in the
! 15: ever-changing Dungeons of Doom. The game comes complete
! 16: with monsters, spells, weapons, armor, potions, and other
! 17: magical items. The dungeon's geography changes with every
! 18: game, and although many magical items have certain
! 19: identifiable properties, such as turning the player
! 20: invisible, the physical manifestation of the magic changes
! 21: each game. A red potion, for example, will cause the same
! 22: reaction throughout a given game, but it may be a completely
! 23: different potion in a new game.
! 24:
! 25: Entering the dungeon with only a little food, armor,
! 26: and a weapon, the player must develop a good strategy of
! 27: when to fight, when to run, and how to best use any magical
! 28: items found in the dungeon. To make things interesting, the
! 29: player has a quest to return one of several unique
! 30: artifacts, rumored to lie deep in the dungeon's bowels.
! 31: Returning with this artifact brings great glory and the
! 32: title of Complete Winner. But even after finding the
! 33: artifact, the player may wish to continue further to match
! 34: wits with an arch-devil, demon prince, or even a deity found
! 35: far down in the dungeon. Defeating such a creature will
! 36: gain the player many experience points, the basis for
! 37: scoring in Rogue.
! 38:
! 39: It is very difficult to return from the Dungeons of
! 40: Doom. Few people ever make it out alive. Should this
! 41: unlikely event occur, the player would be proclaimed a
! 42: complete winner and handsomely rewarded for any booty
! 43: removed from the dungeon.
! 44:
! 45:
! 46: 2. CHARACTER CLASSES AND ATTRIBUTES
! 47:
! 48: Before placing the player in the dungeon, the game
! 49: requests the player to select a character class: a fighter,
! 50: a magic user, a cleric, or a thief.
! 51:
! 52: 2.1 The_Fighter
! 53:
! 54: A fighter is very strong and will have a high strength
! 55: rating. This great strength gives a fighter the best odds
! 56: of winning a battle with a monster. At high experience
! 57: levels the fighter also gets to attack multiple times in a
! 58: single turn. This obviously further increases his chances
! 59: at winning battles. Intrinsic to the fighter class is a
! 60: robustness which results in 1 to 10 extra hit points for
! 61:
! 62:
! 63:
! 64:
! 65:
! 66:
! 67:
! 68:
! 69:
! 70:
! 71:
! 72: - 2 -
! 73:
! 74:
! 75:
! 76: every new experience level.
! 77:
! 78: 2.2 The_Magician
! 79:
! 80: A magician's major attribute is intelligence, which
! 81: enables the magician to cast spells. The number and variety
! 82: of spells increases as the magician gains experience and
! 83: intelligence. Other types of characters can cast spells,
! 84: but only if they manage to gain extraordinarily high
! 85: intelligence. Magic users are not as hearty as fighters;
! 86: they receive 1 to 8 extra hit points for every new
! 87: experience level.
! 88:
! 89: 2.3 The_Cleric
! 90:
! 91: A cleric has a high wisdom rating and can thus pray.
! 92: The number and variety of prayers which the gods are willing
! 93: to grant to a cleric increase as the cleric gains experience
! 94: and wisdom. Other character types can pray only if they
! 95: manage to gain extraordinary wisdom.
! 96:
! 97: Because of their religious nature, clerics can also
! 98: affect the "undead" beings, like zombies and ghouls, which
! 99: became monsters after they died. If an "undead" creature is
! 100: next to a cleric, the cleric may try to turn it and cause it
! 101: to flee. If the cleric is sufficiently powerful relative to
! 102: the monster, the cleric will destroy it. This ability
! 103: increases as the character gains experience levels.
! 104:
! 105: Clerics can gain from 1 to 8 extra hit points on
! 106: reaching a new experience level.
! 107:
! 108: 2.4 The_Thief
! 109:
! 110: A thief is exceptionally dextrous and has a good chance
! 111: to set a trap or rob a monster. Any type of character can
! 112: try to set a trap or steal from a monster standing next to
! 113: the character, but the chances of success are low compared
! 114: to a thief's chances.
! 115:
! 116: By their nature, thieves can automatically detect all
! 117: the gold on the current level of the dungeon. They are also
! 118: good at detecting hidden traps. Because thieves slink
! 119: along, they are not as likely as other characters to wake
! 120: sleeping monsters. If a thief manages to sneak up on a
! 121: creature without waking it, he will get a chance to backstab
! 122: the monster. When this is done, the damage done by the thief
! 123: greatly increases based on his experience level.
! 124:
! 125: Thieves gain from 1 to 6 extra hit points from a new
! 126: experience level.
! 127:
! 128:
! 129:
! 130:
! 131:
! 132:
! 133:
! 134:
! 135:
! 136:
! 137:
! 138: - 3 -
! 139:
! 140:
! 141:
! 142: 2.5 Constitution
! 143:
! 144: Every character has a constitution rating. A character
! 145: with an exceptionally good constitution will gain more than
! 146: the normal amount of hit points associated with the
! 147: character's class when the character reaches a new
! 148: experience level. Exceptional constitution also provides
! 149: better protection versus poison-based attacks and diseases.
! 150:
! 151: 2.6 Experience_Levels
! 152:
! 153: Characters gain experience for killing monsters,
! 154: stealing from monsters, and turning monsters. Each
! 155: character class has a set of thresholds associated with it.
! 156: When a character reaches a threshold, the character attains
! 157: the next experience level. This new level brings extra hit
! 158: points and a greater chance of success in performing the
! 159: abilities associated with the character's class. Magicians
! 160: receive new spells, and clerics receive new prayers.
! 161:
! 162: Thieves have the lowest threshold for gaining
! 163: experience levels, followed by clerics. Fighters are next,
! 164: and magicians have the highest threshold.
! 165:
! 166:
! 167: 3. THE SCREEN
! 168:
! 169: During the normal course of play, the screen consists
! 170: of three separate sections: the top line of the terminal,
! 171: the bottom two lines of the terminal, and the remaining
! 172: middle lines. The top line reports actions which occur
! 173: during the game, the middle section depicts the dungeon, and
! 174: the bottom lines describe the player's current condition.
! 175:
! 176: 3.1 The_Top_Line
! 177:
! 178: Whenever anything happens to the player, such as
! 179: finding a scroll or hitting or being hit by a monster, a
! 180: short report of the occurrence appears on the top line of
! 181: the screen. When such reports occur quickly, one right
! 182: after another, the game displays the notice followed by the
! 183: prompt '--More--.' After reading this notice, the player
! 184: can press a space to display the next message. At such a
! 185: point, the game ignores all commands until the player
! 186: presses a space.
! 187:
! 188:
! 189:
! 190:
! 191:
! 192:
! 193:
! 194:
! 195:
! 196:
! 197:
! 198:
! 199:
! 200:
! 201:
! 202:
! 203:
! 204: - 4 -
! 205:
! 206:
! 207:
! 208: 3.2 The_Dungeon_Section
! 209:
! 210: The large middle section of the screen displays the
! 211: player's surroundings using the following symbols:
! 212:
! 213: | A wall of a room.
! 214:
! 215: - A wall of a room.
! 216:
! 217: * A pile of gold.
! 218:
! 219: % A way to the next level.
! 220:
! 221: + A doorway.
! 222:
! 223: . The floor in a room.
! 224:
! 225: @ The player.
! 226:
! 227: _ The player, when invisible.
! 228:
! 229: # The floor in a passageway.
! 230:
! 231: ! A flask containing a potion.
! 232:
! 233: ? A sealed scroll.
! 234:
! 235: : Some food.
! 236:
! 237: ) A weapon.
! 238:
! 239: Solid rock (denoted by a space).
! 240:
! 241: ] Some armor.
! 242:
! 243: ; A miscellaneous magic item
! 244:
! 245: , An artifact
! 246:
! 247: = A ring.
! 248:
! 249: / A wand or a staff.
! 250:
! 251: ^ The entrance to a trading post
! 252:
! 253: > A trapdoor leading to the next level
! 254:
! 255: { An arrow trap
! 256:
! 257: $ A sleeping gas trap
! 258:
! 259:
! 260:
! 261:
! 262:
! 263:
! 264:
! 265:
! 266:
! 267:
! 268:
! 269:
! 270: - 5 -
! 271:
! 272:
! 273:
! 274: } A beartrap
! 275:
! 276: ~ A trap that teleports you somewhere else
! 277:
! 278: ` A poison dart trap
! 279:
! 280: " A shimmering magic pool
! 281:
! 282: ' An entrance to a maze
! 283:
! 284: $ Any magical item. (During magic detection)
! 285:
! 286: > A blessed magical item. (During magic detection)
! 287:
! 288: < A cursed magical item. (During magic detection)
! 289:
! 290: A letter A monster. Note that a given letter may signify
! 291: multiple monsters, depending on the level of the
! 292: dungeon. The player can always identify a current
! 293: monster by using the identify command ('/').
! 294:
! 295: 3.3 The_Status_Section
! 296:
! 297: The bottom two lines of the screen describe the
! 298: player's current status. The first line gives the player's
! 299: characteristics:
! 300:
! 301: o Intelligence (Int)
! 302:
! 303: o Strength (Str)
! 304:
! 305: o Wisdom (Wis)
! 306:
! 307: o Dexterity (Dxt)
! 308:
! 309: o Constitution (Const)
! 310:
! 311: o Encumbrance (Carry)
! 312:
! 313: Intelligence, strength, wisdom, dexterity, and
! 314: constitution have a normal maximum of 25, but can be higher
! 315: when augmented by a ring. Encumbrance is a measurement of
! 316: how much the player can carry versus how much he is
! 317: currently carrying. The more you carry relative to your
! 318: maximum causes you to use more food.
! 319:
! 320: The second status line provides the following
! 321: information:
! 322:
! 323: o The current level (Lvl) in the dungeon. This number
! 324: increases as the player goes further down.
! 325:
! 326:
! 327:
! 328:
! 329:
! 330:
! 331:
! 332:
! 333:
! 334:
! 335:
! 336: - 6 -
! 337:
! 338:
! 339:
! 340: o How much gold (Au) the player is carrying.
! 341:
! 342: o The player's current number of hit points (Hp),
! 343: followed in parentheses by the player's current maximum
! 344: number of hit points. Hit points express the player's
! 345: health. As a player heals by resting, the player's
! 346: current hit points gradually increase until reaching
! 347: the current maximum. This maximum increases each time
! 348: a player attains a new experience level. If the
! 349: player's current hit points reach 0, the player dies.
! 350:
! 351: o The player's armor class (Ac). This number describes
! 352: the amount of protection provided by the armor and
! 353: rings currently worn by the player. Wearing no armor
! 354: is equivalent to an armor class of 10. The protection
! 355: level increases as the armor class decreases.
! 356:
! 357: o The player's current experience level (Exp) followed by
! 358: the player's experience points. The player can gain
! 359: experience points by killing monsters, successfully
! 360: stealing from monsters, and turning monsters. When a
! 361: player gains enough experience points to surpass a
! 362: threshold that depends on the player's character type,
! 363: the player reaches a new experience level. A new
! 364: experience level brings extra hit points and possibly
! 365: added abilities, such as a new spell for a magician or
! 366: a new prayer for a cleric.
! 367:
! 368: o A description of the player's character. This
! 369: description depends on the player's character type and
! 370: experience level.
! 371:
! 372:
! 373: 4. COMMANDS
! 374:
! 375: A player can invoke most Rogue commands by typing a
! 376: single character. Some commands, however, require a
! 377: direction, in which case the player types the command
! 378: character followed by a directional command. Many commands
! 379: can be prefaced by a number, indicating how many times the
! 380: command should be executed.
! 381:
! 382: When the player invokes a command referring to an item
! 383: in the player's pack (such as reading a scroll), the game
! 384: prompts for the item. The player should then type the
! 385: letter associated with the item, as displayed by the
! 386: inventory command. Typing a '*' at this point produces a
! 387: list of the eligible items.
! 388:
! 389: Rogue understands the following commands:
! 390:
! 391:
! 392:
! 393:
! 394:
! 395:
! 396:
! 397:
! 398:
! 399:
! 400:
! 401:
! 402: - 7 -
! 403:
! 404:
! 405:
! 406: ? Preceding a command by a '?' produces a brief
! 407: explanation of the command. The command '?*' gives an
! 408: explanation of all the commands.
! 409:
! 410: / Preceding a symbol by a '/' identifies the symbol.
! 411:
! 412: h Move one position to the left.
! 413:
! 414: j Move one position down.
! 415:
! 416: k Move one position up.
! 417:
! 418: l Move one position to the right.
! 419:
! 420: y Move one position to the top left.
! 421:
! 422: u Move one position to the top right.
! 423:
! 424: b Move one position to the bottom left.
! 425:
! 426: n Move one position to the bottom right.
! 427:
! 428: H Run to the left until reaching something interesting.
! 429:
! 430: J Run down until reaching something interesting.
! 431:
! 432: K Run up until reaching something interesting.
! 433:
! 434: L Run to the right until reaching something interesting.
! 435:
! 436: Y Run to the top left until reaching something
! 437: interesting.
! 438:
! 439: U Run to the top right until reaching something
! 440: interesting.
! 441:
! 442: B Run to the bottom left until reaching something
! 443: interesting.
! 444:
! 445: N Run to the bottom right until reaching something
! 446: interesting.
! 447:
! 448: t This command, followed by a directional command, prompts
! 449: for an object from the players pack. The player then
! 450: throws the object in the specified direction.
! 451:
! 452: f When this command precedes a directional command, the
! 453: player moves in the specified direction until passing
! 454: something interesting.
! 455:
! 456:
! 457:
! 458:
! 459:
! 460:
! 461:
! 462:
! 463:
! 464:
! 465:
! 466:
! 467:
! 468: - 8 -
! 469:
! 470:
! 471:
! 472: z This command must be followed by a directional command.
! 473: Rogue then prompts for a wand or staff from the player's
! 474: pack and zaps it in the specified direction.
! 475:
! 476: > Go down to the next level.
! 477:
! 478: < Go up to the next level.
! 479:
! 480: s Search for a secret door or a trap in the circle
! 481: surrounding the player.
! 482:
! 483: . This command (a dot) causes the player to rest a turn.
! 484:
! 485: i Display an inventory of the player's pack.
! 486:
! 487: I This command prompts for an item from the player's pack
! 488: and displays the inventory information for that item.
! 489:
! 490: q Quaff a potion from the player's pack.
! 491:
! 492: r Read a scroll from the player's pack.
! 493:
! 494: e Eat some food from the player's pack.
! 495:
! 496: w Wield a weapon from the player's pack.
! 497:
! 498: W Wear some armor or miscellaneous magic item from the
! 499: player's pack.
! 500:
! 501: T Take off whatever the player is wearing.
! 502:
! 503: P Put on a ring from the player's pack. The player can
! 504: wear a maximum of eight rings.
! 505:
! 506: R Remove a ring from the player's hand.
! 507:
! 508: ^U Uuse a miscellaneous magic item in the player's pack.
! 509:
! 510: d Drop an item from the player's pack.
! 511:
! 512: c When the player types this command, Rogue prompts for an
! 513: item from the player's pack and a one-line name. Rogue
! 514: then calls all similar items (such as all the blue
! 515: potions) by the specified name.
! 516:
! 517: m When the player types this command, Rogue prompts for an
! 518: item from the player's pack and a one-line name. Rogue
! 519: then marks the specified item with the given name.
! 520:
! 521: o Typing this command causes Rogue to display all the
! 522: settable options. The player can then merely examine
! 523:
! 524:
! 525:
! 526:
! 527:
! 528:
! 529:
! 530:
! 531:
! 532:
! 533:
! 534: - 9 -
! 535:
! 536:
! 537:
! 538: the options or change any or all of them.
! 539:
! 540: C This command, restricted to magicians and characters
! 541: with exceptionally high intelligence, produces a listing
! 542: of the magician's current supply of spells. The player
! 543: can select one of the displayed spells and, if the
! 544: player's energy level is sufficiently high, cast it.
! 545: The more complicated the spell, the more energy it
! 546: takes.
! 547:
! 548: p This command, restricted to clerics and characters with
! 549: exceptionally high wisdom, produces a listing of the
! 550: cleric's known prayers. The player can then offer one
! 551: of these prayers to the character's deity. Deities are
! 552: not known for favoring characters which continually pray
! 553: to them, and they are most likely to answer the least
! 554: "ambitious" prayers.
! 555:
! 556: a This command is restricted to clerics and characters
! 557: with exceptionally high wisdom and must be followed by a
! 558: directional command. If there is an "undead" monster
! 559: standing next to the player in the specified direction,
! 560: there is a chance the player will affect the monster by
! 561: causing it to flee or possibly even destroying it.
! 562:
! 563: ^ This command sets a trap and is most likely to succeed
! 564: for a character with a high dexterity, such as a thief.
! 565: If the character is successful, Rogue prompts the player
! 566: for a type of trap and sets it where the player is
! 567: standing.
! 568:
! 569: G This command is restricted to thieves. It causes Rogue
! 570: to display all the gold on the current level.
! 571:
! 572: D Dip something into a magic pool.
! 573:
! 574: ^T This command is most likely to succeed for a character
! 575: with a high dexterity, such as a thief, and it must be
! 576: followed by a directional command. If there is a
! 577: monster standing next to the player in the specified
! 578: direction, the player tries to steal an item from the
! 579: monster's pack. If the player is successful, the
! 580: monster does not notice anything, but if the player is
! 581: unsuccessful, there is a chance the monster will wake
! 582: up.
! 583:
! 584: ^L Redraw the screen.
! 585:
! 586: ^R Repeat the last message that was displayed on the top
! 587: line of the screen.
! 588:
! 589:
! 590:
! 591:
! 592:
! 593:
! 594:
! 595:
! 596:
! 597:
! 598:
! 599:
! 600: - 10 -
! 601:
! 602:
! 603:
! 604: ^[ Typing an escape will usually cause Rogue to cancel the
! 605: current command.
! 606:
! 607: v Print the current Rogue version number.
! 608:
! 609: ! Escape to the shell.
! 610:
! 611: S Quit and save the game for resumption at a later time.
! 612:
! 613: Q Quit without saving the game.
! 614:
! 615:
! 616: 5. IMPLICIT COMMANDS
! 617:
! 618: There is no "attack" command. If a player wishes to
! 619: attack a monster, the player simply tries to move onto the
! 620: spot where the monster is standing. The game then assumes
! 621: that the player wishes to attack the monster with whatever
! 622: weapon the player is wielding.
! 623:
! 624: When the player moves onto an item, the game
! 625: automatically places the object into the player's pack. If
! 626: there is no room left in the pack, the game announces that
! 627: fact and leaves the item on the floor.
! 628:
! 629:
! 630: 6. LIGHT
! 631:
! 632: Some rooms in the dungeon possess a natural light
! 633: source. In other rooms and in corridors the player can see
! 634: only those things within a one space radius from the player.
! 635: These dark rooms can be lit with magical light or by a fire
! 636: beetle.
! 637:
! 638:
! 639: 7. WEAPONS AND ARMOR
! 640:
! 641: The player can wield exactly one weapon at a time.
! 642: When the player attacks a monster, the amount of damage
! 643: depends on the particular weapon the player is wielding. To
! 644: fire a projectile weapon, such as a crossbow or a short bow,
! 645: the player should wield the bow and "throw" the bolt or
! 646: arrow at the monster.
! 647:
! 648: A weapon may be cursed or blessed, affecting the
! 649: likelihood of hitting a monster with the weapon and the
! 650: damage the weapon will inflict on the monster. If the
! 651: player has identified a weapon, the "to hit" and "to damage"
! 652: bonuses appear in that order before the weapon's name in an
! 653: inventory listing. A positive bonus indicates a blessed
! 654: weapon, and a negative bonus usually indicates a cursed
! 655:
! 656:
! 657:
! 658:
! 659:
! 660:
! 661:
! 662:
! 663:
! 664:
! 665:
! 666: - 11 -
! 667:
! 668:
! 669:
! 670: weapon. The player cannot release a cursed weapon.
! 671:
! 672: Without any armor the player has an armor class of 10.
! 673: The lower the player's armor class, the harder it is for a
! 674: monster to hit the player, so wearing armor can improve the
! 675: player's armor class. A cursed suit of armor, however,
! 676: offers poor protection and may sometimes be worse than no
! 677: armor at all.
! 678:
! 679: After the player has identified a suit of armor, the
! 680: protection bonus appears before the armor's name in an
! 681: inventory listing. If the bonus is positive the armor is
! 682: blessed, and if it is negative, the armor is usually cursed.
! 683: The player cannot remove a cursed suit of armor.
! 684:
! 685: Some monsters can corrode armor when they hit it. If
! 686: such a monster hits the player when the player is wearing
! 687: metal armor, the armor loses some of its protection value,
! 688: but the corrosion does not curse the armor.
! 689:
! 690:
! 691: 8. POTIONS AND SCROLLS
! 692:
! 693: The player can frequently find potions and scrolls in
! 694: the dungeon. In any given dungeon, the player can
! 695: distinguish among the different types of potions by a
! 696: potion's color and among the different types of scrolls by a
! 697: scroll's name. Quaffing a potion or reading a scroll
! 698: usually causes some magical occurrence. Most potions and
! 699: scrolls may be cursed or blessed.
! 700:
! 701:
! 702: 9. RINGS
! 703:
! 704: The player can wear a maximum of eight rings, and they
! 705: have a magical effect on the player as long as they are
! 706: worn. Some rings also speed up the player's metabolism,
! 707: making the player require food more often. Many rings can
! 708: be cursed or blessed, and the player cannot remove a cursed
! 709: ring. The player can distinguish among different types of
! 710: rings by a ring's jewel.
! 711:
! 712:
! 713: 10. WANDS AND STAVES
! 714:
! 715: Wands and staves affect the player's environment. The
! 716: player can zap a wand or staff at something and perhaps
! 717: shoot a bolt of lightning at it or teleport it away. All
! 718: wands or staves of the same type are constructed with the
! 719: same type of wood. Some wands and staves may be cursed or
! 720: blessed.
! 721:
! 722:
! 723:
! 724:
! 725:
! 726:
! 727:
! 728:
! 729:
! 730:
! 731:
! 732: - 12 -
! 733:
! 734:
! 735:
! 736: 11. FOOD
! 737:
! 738: The player must be careful not to run out of food since
! 739: moving through the dungeon fighting monsters consumes a lot
! 740: of energy. Starving results in the player's fainting for
! 741: increasingly longer periods of time, during which any nearby
! 742: monster can attack the player freely.
! 743:
! 744:
! 745: 12. GOLD
! 746:
! 747: Gold has one use in a dungeon: buying things. One can
! 748: buy things in two ways, either in a trading post or from a
! 749: quartermaster. A trading post is a place "between levels"
! 750: of the dungeon and can be entered by stepping on the
! 751: entrance. A quartermaster is a person who will sometimes
! 752: appear and will try to sell the player some of his wares.
! 753: These wares are never cursed and frequently blessed, though
! 754: blessed goods cost more than normal goods. If the player
! 755: chooses to buy one of the quartermaster's items, the
! 756: quartermaster trades the item for the specified amount of
! 757: gold and disappears. Attacking a quartermaster causes him
! 758: to vanish without offering a trade.
! 759:
! 760:
! 761: 13. MISCELLANEOUS MAGIC ITEMS
! 762:
! 763: Miscellaneous items such as a pair of boots or a book
! 764: may be found within the dungeon. These items can usually be
! 765: used to the player's advantage (assuming they are not
! 766: cursed). Some of these items can be worn, such as a cloak,
! 767: while others are to be used, such as a book.
! 768:
! 769:
! 770: 14. ARTIFACTS
! 771:
! 772: Some monsters down in the depths of the dungeon carry
! 773: unique artifacts. The game begins as a quest to retrieve
! 774: one of these items. Each artifact appears only on its
! 775: owner's person.
! 776:
! 777:
! 778: 15. TRAPS
! 779:
! 780: A variety of traps, including trap doors, bear traps,
! 781: and sleeping traps, are hidden in the dungeon. They remain
! 782: hidden until sprung by a monster or the player. A sprung
! 783: trap continues to function, but since it is visible, an
! 784: intelligent monster is not likely to tread on it.
! 785:
! 786:
! 787:
! 788:
! 789:
! 790:
! 791:
! 792:
! 793:
! 794:
! 795:
! 796:
! 797:
! 798: - 13 -
! 799:
! 800:
! 801:
! 802: 16. THE MONSTERS
! 803:
! 804: Each monster except for the merchant quartermaster
! 805: appears in a limited range of dungeon levels. All monsters
! 806: of the same type share the same abilities; all giant rats,
! 807: for example, can give the player a disease, and all
! 808: jackalweres can put the player to sleep. Monsters of the
! 809: same type can vary, however, such that one kobold may be
! 810: much more difficult to kill than another one. In general,
! 811: the more difficult it is to kill a monster, the more
! 812: experience points the monster is worth.
! 813:
! 814: Most monsters attack by biting and clawing, but some
! 815: monsters carry weapons, including such projectile weapons as
! 816: short bows and crossbows, and some monsters have breath
! 817: weapons. These latter monsters can attack the player from
! 818: across a room or down a corridor.
! 819:
! 820: Some monsters are more intelligent than others, and the
! 821: more intelligent a monster, the more likely that the monster
! 822: will run away if it is about to die. A fleeing monster will
! 823: not attack the player unless cornered.
! 824:
! 825: As the player moves down in the dungeon, the monsters
! 826: get more powerful. Deep down in the dungeon there exist
! 827: some one-of-a-kind monsters. These monsters are greatly
! 828: feared. However, once a "unique monster" is killed, the
! 829: player will not find another in the current dungeon.
! 830:
! 831:
! 832: 17. OPTIONS
! 833:
! 834: Rogue has several options which may be set by the
! 835: player:
! 836:
! 837: terse Setting this Boolean option results in shorter
! 838: messages appearing on the top line of the screen.
! 839:
! 840: jump Setting this Boolean option results in waiting until
! 841: the player has finished running to draw the player's
! 842: path. Otherwise the game always displays the path
! 843: one step at a time.
! 844:
! 845: step Setting this Boolean option results in most listings,
! 846: such as an inventory, appearing one item at a time on
! 847: the top line of the screen. When this option is not
! 848: set, the game clears the screen, displays the list,
! 849: and then redraws the dungeon.
! 850:
! 851: flush Setting this Boolean option results in flushing all
! 852: typeahead (pending) commands when the player
! 853:
! 854:
! 855:
! 856:
! 857:
! 858:
! 859:
! 860:
! 861:
! 862:
! 863:
! 864: - 14 -
! 865:
! 866:
! 867:
! 868: encounters a monster.
! 869:
! 870: askme Setting this Boolean option results in the game
! 871: prompting the player for a name upon encountering a
! 872: new type of scroll, potion, ring, staff, or wand.
! 873:
! 874: name This string is the player's name and defaults to the
! 875: player's account name.
! 876:
! 877: fruit This string identifies the player's favorite fruit,
! 878: sometimes encountered in the dungeon. It defaults to
! 879: slime-mold.
! 880:
! 881: file This string, which defaults to rogue.save, specifies
! 882: the file to use for saving the game.
! 883:
! 884: score This string identifies the top-ten score file to use
! 885: for the game.
! 886:
! 887: class This option specifies the character class of the
! 888: rogue. It can be set only in the ROGUEOPTS
! 889: environment variable.
! 890:
! 891: The player can set options at the beginning of a game
! 892: via the ROGUEOPTS environment variable. Naming a Boolean
! 893: option sets it, and preceding the Boolean option name by
! 894: "no" clears it. The syntax "stringoption=name" sets a
! 895: string option to "name." So setting ROGUEOPTS to "terse,
! 896: jump, nostep, flush, askme, name=Ivan the Terrible,
! 897: fruit=pomegranate" would set the terse, jump, flush, and
! 898: askme Boolean options, clear the step Boolean option, set
! 899: the player's name to "Ivan the Terrible," set the player's
! 900: favorite fruit to a pomegranate, and use the defaults for
! 901: the save file and the score file.
! 902:
! 903: The player may change an option at any time during the
! 904: game via the option command, which results in a listing of
! 905: the current options. Typing a new value changes the option,
! 906: a RETURN moves to the next option, a '-' moves to the
! 907: previous option, and an ESCAPE returns the player to the
! 908: dungeon.
! 909:
! 910:
! 911: 18. SCORING
! 912:
! 913: The player receives experience points for stealing
! 914: items from monsters, turning monsters (a clerical ability),
! 915: and killing monsters. When the player gets killed, the
! 916: player's score equals the player's experience points. A
! 917: player who quits gets a score equal to the player's
! 918: experience points and gold. If the player makes it back up
! 919:
! 920:
! 921:
! 922:
! 923:
! 924:
! 925:
! 926:
! 927:
! 928:
! 929:
! 930: - 15 -
! 931:
! 932:
! 933:
! 934: out of the dungeon, the player's score equals the player's
! 935: experience points plus the gold the player carried and the
! 936: gold received from selling the player's possessions. Rogue
! 937: maintains a list of the top ten scores to date, together
! 938: with the name of the player obtaining the score, the level
! 939: where the player finished, and the manner in which the
! 940: player ended the game.
! 941:
! 942:
! 943: 19. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
! 944: This version of Rogue is based on a version developed
! 945: at the University of California at Berkeley by Michael Toy
! 946: and Ken Arnold.
! 947:
! 948:
! 949:
! 950:
! 951:
! 952:
! 953:
! 954:
! 955:
! 956:
! 957:
! 958:
! 959:
! 960:
! 961:
! 962:
! 963:
! 964:
! 965:
! 966:
! 967:
! 968:
! 969:
! 970:
! 971:
! 972:
! 973:
! 974:
! 975:
! 976:
! 977:
! 978:
! 979:
! 980:
! 981:
! 982:
! 983:
! 984:
! 985:
! 986:
! 987:
! 988:
! 989:
! 990:
! 991:
! 992:
! 993:
! 994:
! 995:
! 996:
! 997: The Dungeons of Doom
! 998:
! 999: AT&T Bell Laboratories
! 1000: The Dungeons of Doom
! 1001:
! 1002:
! 1003: ABSTRACT
! 1004:
! 1005:
! 1006:
! 1007: Rogue was first introduced by Michael Toy at the
! 1008: University of California at Berkeley as a screen-oriented
! 1009: fantasy game. The game had 26 types of monsters that the
! 1010: player could meet while exploring a dungeon generated by the
! 1011: computer. Scrolls, potions, rings, wands, staves, armor,
! 1012: and weapons helped the player to battle these monsters and
! 1013: to gain gold, the basis for scoring.
! 1014:
! 1015: The version of Rogue described in this guide has been
! 1016: expanded to include over 110 monsters with many new capabil-
! 1017: ities. Many of the monsters are intelligent, and they, like
! 1018: the player, must avoid traps and decide when it is better to
! 1019: fight or to run. The player chooses a character class at
! 1020: the beginning of the game which defines the player's abili-
! 1021: ties. Experience, rather than gold, decides the player's
! 1022: score.
! 1023:
! 1024:
! 1025:
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