Annotation of early-roguelike/arogue7/aguide.mm, Revision 1.1.1.1
1.1 rubenllo 1: .\"
2: .\" aguide.mm
3: .\"
4: .\" Advanced Rogue
5: .\" Copyright (C) 1984, 1985, 1986 Michael Morgan, Ken Dalka and AT&T
6: .\" All rights reserved.
7: .\"
8: .\" Based on "Rogue: Exploring the Dungeons of Doom"
9: .\" Copyright (C) 1980, 1981 Michael Toy, Ken Arnold and Glenn Wichman
10: .\" All rights reserved.
11: .\"
12: .\" See the file LICENSE.TXT for full copyright and licensing information.
13: .\"
14: .tr ~
15: .nr Pt 1
16: .ds HF 3 2 2 2 2 2 2
17: .TL
18: The Dungeons of Doom
19: .AF Toolchest
20: .AU " "
21: .AS 1
22: .P
23: Rogue was introduced at the University of California at Berkeley as a
24: screen-oriented fantasy game.
25: The game had 26 types of monsters that the player could meet while
26: exploring a dungeon generated by the computer.
27: Scrolls, potions, rings, wands, staves, armor, and weapons helped the
28: player to battle these monsters and to gain gold, the basis for scoring.
29: .P
30: The version of Rogue described in this guide has been expanded to include
31: over 110 monsters with many new capabilities.
32: Many of the monsters are intelligent, and they, like the player, must avoid
33: traps and decide when it is better to fight or to run.
34: The player chooses a character class at the beginning of the game which
35: defines the player's abilities.
36: Experience, rather than gold, decides the player's score.
37: .AE
38: .MT 4
39: .H 1 INTRODUCTION
40: Rogue is a screen-oriented fantasy game set in the ever-changing
41: \fIDungeons of Doom\fR.
42: The game comes complete with monsters, spells, weapons, armor, potions,
43: and other magical items.
44: The dungeon's geography changes with every game, and although many magical
45: items have certain identifiable properties, such as turning the player
46: invisible, the physical manifestation of the magic changes each game.
47: A red potion, for example, will cause the same reaction throughout
48: a given game, but it may be a completely different potion in a new game.
49: .P
50: Entering the dungeon with only a little food, armor, and a weapon, the player
51: must develop a good strategy of when
52: to fight, when to run, and how to best use any magical items found
53: in the dungeon.
54: To make things interesting, the player has a quest to return one of
55: several unique artifacts, rumored to lie deep in the dungeon's bowels.
56: Returning with this artifact brings great glory and the title of
57: \fIComplete Winner\fR.
58: But even after finding the artifact, the player may wish to continue
59: further to match wits with an \fIarch-devil\fR, \fIdemon prince\fR, or even a
60: \fIdeity\fR found far down in the dungeon.
61: Defeating such a creature will gain the player many experience points,
62: the basis for scoring in Rogue.
63: .P
64: It is very difficult to return from the \fIDungeons of Doom\fR.
65: Few people ever make it out alive.
66: Should this unlikely event occur, the player would be proclaimed a
67: complete winner and handsomely rewarded for any booty removed from the
68: dungeon.
69: .H 1 "CHARACTER CLASSES"
70: Before placing the player in the dungeon, the game requests the player
71: to select what type of character they would like to be:~ a fighter, a magic user, a cleric,
72: a druid, a thief, a paladin, a ranger, a monk, or an assassin.
73: .H 2 "The Fighter"
74: A fighter is very strong and will have a high strength rating.
75: This great strength gives a fighter the best odds of
76: winning a battle with a monster.
77: At high experience levels the \fIfighter\fR also gets to attack
78: multiple times in a single turn.
79: This obviously further increases his chances at winning battles.
80: Intrinsic to the fighter class is a robustness which results in
81: 1 to 12 extra hit points for every new experience
82: level.
83: .H 2 "The Magician"
84: A Magician is able to "cast" spells.
85: The number and variety of spells increases as
86: the magician gains experience and intelligence.
87: Magic users are not as hearty as fighters;
88: they receive 1 to 6 extra hit
89: points for every new experience level.
90: .H 2 "The Cleric"
91: A cleric is able to "pray" to his god for help.
92: The number and variety of prayers which the gods are willing to grant to
93: a cleric increase as the cleric gains experience and wisdom.
94: .P
95: Because of their religious nature, clerics can also affect the "undead"
96: beings, like \fIzombies\fR and \fIghouls\fR, which became monsters after they
97: died.
98: If an "undead" creature is next to a cleric, the cleric may try
99: to turn it and cause it to flee.
100: If the cleric is sufficiently powerful relative to the monster,
101: the cleric will destroy it.
102: This ability increases as the character gains experience levels.
103: .P
104: Clerics can gain from 1 to 8 extra hit points on
105: reaching a new experience level.
106: .H 2 "The Druid"
107: The druid is a cleric of sorts but worships nature rather than a god.
108: The druid is able to "chant" and thereby recieve certain types
109: of spells. Most of the chants are targeted more towards the
110: elements and nature.
111: .P
112: Druids gain from 1 to 8 hit points when they gain an experience level.
113: .H 2 "The Thief"
114: A thief is exceptionally dextrous and has a good chance to
115: set a trap or rob a monster.
116: .P
117: By their nature, thieves can automatically detect all the gold on the
118: current level of the dungeon.
119: They are also good at detecting hidden traps.
120: Because thieves slink along, they are not as likely as other characters
121: to wake sleeping monsters.
122: If a \fIthief\fR manages to sneak up on a creature without waking it, he
123: will get a chance to \fIbackstab\fR the monster. When this is done,
124: the damage done by the \fIthief\fR greatly increases based on his experience
125: level.
126: .P
127: Thieves gain from 1 to 6 extra hit points from a new experience level.
128: .H 2 "The Paladin"
129: The paladin is a type of holy warrior. Somewhat of a cross between a
130: fighter and a cleric. He is able to pray and turn undead as a cleric,
131: (but to a lesser degree) but fights as a fighter. He is on the side of
132: all that is good and righteous. Therefore he would never attack a
133: creature that would not attack him first. If he does kill a non-violent
134: creature inadvertantly he will feel "uneasy" and his god may retaliate
135: by making him a mere fighter.
136: .P
137: Paladins gain 1 to 10 hit points per experience level.
138: .H 2 "The Ranger"
139: The ranger is somewhat of a cross between a druid and a fighter. He
140: too is on the side of righteousness and good. Therefore, the same
141: same restrictions apply to his as they do to a paladin. The ranger
142: can "chant" and "cast" but to a lesser degree than the druid and
143: magician.
144: .P
145: Rangers gain 1 to 8 hit points per experience level.
146: .H 2 "The Monk"
147: The Monk is a martial arts expert. He wears no armor but has
148: an effective armor class based on his ability to dodge attacks.
149: He does not need a weapon in combat for his hands and feet are
150: a formidable weapon. His ability to dodge and use his hands
151: as weapons increases as he gains in level.
152: .P
153: Monks gain 1 to 6 hit points per experience level.
154: .H 2 "The Assassin"
155: The assassin is a person trained in the art of killing people
156: by surprise. He has most of the abilities of the thief except
157: the "backstab". Instead, the assassin has the chance to kill
158: an opponent outright with one strike. He is also a ruthless
159: character and trained in the use of poison. He can recognize
160: poison on sight and can coat his weapon with it thereby making
161: his next attack an exceptionally lethal one.
162: .P
163: Assassins gain 1 to 6 hit points per experience level.
164: .H 1 "ATTRIBUTES"
165: .H 2 "Intelligence"
166: Intelligence is the primary attribute associated with casting
167: spells. With higher intelligence comes the knowledge of more
168: spells, the ability to cast more spells, and faster recovery
169: of spells that have been cast.
170: .H 2 "Strength"
171: This is, of course, the measure of a character's physical strength.
172: With higher strength a character can carry more, cause more damage
173: when striking, have a better chance to strike an opponent, and
174: move about more quickly when carrying a load.
175: .H 2 "Wisdom"
176: Wisdom is the primary attribute associated with Praying
177: to a god. With higher wisdom comes the knowledge of more
178: prayers, the ability to pray more often, and faster recovery
179: of prayer ability.
180: .H 2 "Dexterity"
181: Dexterity is a measure of a character's agility. With higher dexterity
182: a character is harder to hit, can hit a opponent more easily, and
183: can move about more quickly when carrying a load.
184: .H 2 Constitution
185: Every character has a constitution rating.
186: A character with an exceptionally good constitution will gain more than
187: the normal amount of hit points associated with the character's class
188: when the character reaches a new experience level. Exceptional constitution
189: also provides better protection versus poison-based attacks and diseases.
190: .H 2 "Charisma"
191: Charisma is a measure of a characters looks and general likeableness.
192: It effects transactions when trying to purchase things.
193: .H 2 "Experience Levels"
194: Characters gain experience for killing monsters, stealing from monsters,
195: and turning monsters.
196: Each character class has a set of thresholds associated with it.
197: When a character reaches a threshold, the character attains the next
198: experience level.
199: This new level brings extra hit points and a greater chance of success
200: in performing the abilities associated with the character's class.
201: For example, magicians receive new spells, and clerics receive new prayers.
202: .P
203: .H 2 "Allocating Attributes"
204: The player starts with 72 "attribute points" to create a character and
205: can distribute them in any manner among the six attributes described
206: above.
207: When prompting the player for each attribute, the game displays the
208: minimum and maximum allowable values for that attribute.
209: The player can type a backspace (control-H) to go back and change
210: a value; typing an escape (ESC) sets the remaining attributes to
211: the maximum value possible given the remaining attribute points.
212: .H 1 "THE SCREEN"
213: During the normal course of play, the screen consists of three separate
214: sections:~ the top line of the terminal, the bottom two lines of the
215: terminal, and the remaining middle lines.
216: The top line reports actions which occur during the game, the middle
217: section depicts the dungeon, and the bottom lines describe the player's
218: current condition.
219: .H 2 "The Top Line"
220: Whenever anything happens to the player, such as finding a scroll or
221: hitting or being hit by a monster, a short report of the occurrence
222: appears on the top line of the screen.
223: When such reports occur quickly, one right after another,
224: the game displays the notice followed by the prompt '\(emMore\(em.'~
225: After reading this notice, the player can press a space to display
226: the next message.
227: At such a point, the game ignores all commands until the player presses
228: a space.
229: .H 2 "The Dungeon Section"
230: The large middle section of the screen displays the player's surroundings using
231: the following symbols:
232: .tr ~~
233: .VL 10
234: .LI |
235: A wall of a room.
236: .LI -
237: A wall of a room.
238: .LI *
239: A pile of gold.
240: .LI %
241: A way to the next level.
242: .LI +
243: A doorway.
244: .LI .
245: The floor in a room.
246: .LI @
247: The player.
248: .LI _
249: The player, when invisible.
250: .LI #
251: The floor in a passageway.
252: .LI !
253: A flask containing a potion.
254: .LI ?
255: A sealed scroll.
256: .LI :
257: Some food.
258: .LI )
259: A weapon.
260: .LI \
261: Solid rock (denoted by a space).
262: .LI ]
263: Some armor.
264: .LI ;
265: A miscellaneous magic item
266: .LI ,
267: An artifact
268: .LI =
269: A ring.
270: .LI /
271: A wand or a staff.
272: .LI ^
273: The entrance to a trading post
274: .LI >
275: A trapdoor leading to the next level
276: .LI {
277: An arrow trap
278: .LI $
279: A sleeping gas trap
280: .LI }
281: A beartrap
282: .LI ~
283: A trap that teleports you somewhere else
284: .LI \`
285: A poison dart trap
286: .LI \fR"\fR
287: A shimmering magic pool
288: .LI \'
289: An entrance to a maze
290: .LI $
291: Any magical item. (During magic detection)
292: .LI >
293: A blessed magical item. (During magic detection)
294: .LI <
295: A cursed magical item. (During magic detection)
296: .LI A\ letter
297: A monster.
298: Note that a given letter may signify multiple monsters,
299: depending on the level of the dungeon.
300: The player can always identify a current monster by using
301: the identify command ('\fB/\fR').
302: .LE
303: .tr ~
304: .H 2 "The Status Section"
305: The bottom two lines of the screen describe the player's current status.
306: The first line gives the player's characteristics:
307: .BL
308: .LI
309: Intelligence (\fBInt\fR)
310: .LI
311: Strength (\fBStr\fR)
312: .LI
313: Wisdom (\fBWis\fR)
314: .LI
315: Dexterity (\fBDxt\fR)
316: .LI
317: Constitution (\fBConst\fR)
318: .LI
319: Charisma (\fBChar\fR)
320: .LI
321: Encumberance (\fBCarry\fR)
322: .LE
323: .P
324: Intelligence, strength, wisdom, dexterity, charisma, and constitution have a
325: normal maximum of 25, but can be higher when augmented by a ring.
326: Encumberance is a measurement of how much the player can carry versus
327: how much he is currently carrying. The more you carry relative to your
328: maximum causes you to use more food.
329: .P
330: The second status line provides the following information:
331: .BL
332: .LI
333: The current level (\fBLvl\fR) in the dungeon. This number increases as the
334: player goes further down.
335: .LI
336: The player's current number of hit points (\fBHp\fR), followed in parentheses
337: by the player's current maximum number of hit points.
338: Hit points express the player's health.
339: As a player heals by resting, the player's current hit points gradually
340: increase until reaching the current maximum.
341: This maximum increases each time a player attains a new experience level.
342: If the player's current hit points reach 0, the player dies.
343: .LI
344: The player's armor class (\fBAc\fR).
345: This number describes the amount of protection provided by the armor, cloaks,
346: and/or rings currently worn by the player.
347: It is also affected by high or low dexterity.
348: Wearing no armor is equivalent to an armor class of 10.
349: The protection level increases as the armor class decreases.
350: .LI
351: The player's current experience level (\fBExp\fR) followed by the player's
352: experience points.
353: The player can gain experience points by killing monsters, successfully
354: stealing from monsters, and turning monsters.
355: When a player gains enough experience points to surpass a threshold that
356: depends on the player's character type, the player reaches a new
357: experience level.
358: A new experience level brings extra hit points and possibly added
359: abilities, such as a new spell for a magician or a new prayer for
360: a cleric.
361: .LI
362: A description of the player's character.
363: This description depends on the player's character type and experience
364: level.
365: .LE
366: .H 1 COMMANDS
367: A player can invoke most Rogue commands by typing a single character.
368: Some commands, however, require a direction, in which case the player
369: types the command character followed by a directional command.
370: Many commands can be prefaced by a number, indicating how many times
371: the command should be executed.
372: .P
373: When the player invokes a command referring to an item in the player's
374: pack (such as reading a scroll), the game prompts for the item.
375: The player should then type the letter associated with the item, as
376: displayed by the \fBinventory\fR command.
377: Typing a '*' at this point produces a list of the eligible items.
378: .P
379: Rogue understands the following commands:~
380: .VL 4
381: .LI ?
382: Preceding a command by a '\fB?\fR' produces a brief explanation of the command.
383: The command '\fB?*\fR' gives an explanation of all the commands.
384: .LI /
385: Preceding a symbol by a '\fB/\fR' identifies the symbol.
386: .LI =
387: Clarify.
388: After typing an '\fB=\fR' sign, the player can use the movement keys to
389: position the cursor anywhere on the current level.
390: As long as the player can normally see the selected position, Rogue will
391: identify whatever is at that space.
392: Examples include a \fIsleeping giant rat\fR, a \fIblue potion\fR, and a \fIfood
393: ration\fR.
394: .LI h
395: Move one position to the left.
396: .LI j
397: Move one position down.
398: .LI k
399: Move one position up.
400: .LI l
401: Move one position to the right.
402: .LI y
403: Move one position to the top left.
404: .LI u
405: Move one position to the top right.
406: .LI b
407: Move one position to the bottom left.
408: .LI n
409: Move one position to the bottom right.
410: .LI H
411: Run to the left until reaching something interesting.
412: .LI J
413: Run down until reaching something interesting.
414: .LI K
415: Run up until reaching something interesting.
416: .LI L
417: Run to the right until reaching something interesting.
418: .LI Y
419: Run to the top left until reaching something interesting.
420: .LI U
421: Run to the top right until reaching something interesting.
422: .LI B
423: Run to the bottom left until reaching something interesting.
424: .LI N
425: Run to the bottom right until reaching something interesting.
426: .LI t
427: This command prompts for an object from the players pack.
428: The player then \fBt\fRhrows the object in the specified direction.
429: .LI f
430: When this command precedes a directional command, the player moves
431: in the specified direction until passing something interesting.
432: .LI z
433: This command prompts for a wand or staff from the player's pack and
434: \fBz\fRaps it in the specified direction.
435: .LI >
436: Go down to the next level.
437: .LI <
438: Go up to the next level.
439: .LI s
440: \fBS\fRearch for a secret door or a trap in the circle surrounding the player.
441: .LI .
442: This command (a dot) causes the player to rest a turn.
443: .LI i
444: Display an \fBi\fRnventory of the player's pack.
445: .LI I
446: This command prompts for an item from the player's pack and displays
447: the \fBi\fRnventory information for that item.
448: .LI q
449: \fBQ\fRuaff a potion from the player's pack.
450: .LI r
451: \fBR\fRead a scroll from the player's pack.
452: .LI e
453: \fBE\fRat some food from the player's pack.
454: .LI w
455: \fBW\fRield a weapon from the player's pack.
456: .LI W
457: \fBW\fRear some armor, ring, or miscellaneous magic item from the player's pack.
458: The player can wear a maximum of eight rings.
459: .LI T
460: \fBT\fRake off whatever the player is wearing.
461: .LI ^U
462: \fBU\fRse a magic item in the player's pack.
463: .LI d
464: \fBD\fRrop an item from the player's pack.
465: .LI P
466: \fBP\fRick up the items currently under the player.
467: .LI ^N
468: When the player types this command, Rogue prompts for a monster or an item
469: from the player's pack and a one-line \fBn\fRame.
470: For monsters, the player can use the movement keys to position the cursor
471: over the desired monster, and Rogue will use the given \fBn\fRame to refer
472: to that monster.
473: For items, Rogue gives all similar items (such as all the blue potions)
474: the specified \fBn\fRame.
475: .LI m
476: When the player types this command, Rogue prompts for an item from the
477: player's pack and a one-line name.
478: Rogue then \fBm\fRarks the specified item with the given name.
479: .LI o
480: Typing this command causes Rogue to display all the settable \fBo\fRptions.
481: The player can then merely examine the options or change any or all of them.
482: .LI C
483: This command, restricted to magicians and rangers
484: produces a listing of the current supply of spells.
485: The player can select one of the displayed spells and, if the player's
486: energy level is sufficiently high, \fBC\fRast it.
487: The more complicated the spell, the more energy it takes.
488: .LI c
489: This command, restricted to druids and rangers
490: produces a listing of the current supply of chants.
491: The player can select one of the displayed chants and, if the player's
492: energy level is sufficiently high, \fBc\fRhant it.
493: The more complicated the spell, the more energy it takes.
494: .LI p
495: This command, restricted to clerics and paladins,
496: produces a listing of the character's known \fBp\fRrayers.
497: The player can then offer one of these prayers to the character's deity.
498: Deities are not known for favoring characters which continually pray
499: to them, and they are most likely to answer the least "ambitious" prayers.
500: .LI a
501: This command is restricted to clerics and paladins
502: must be followed by a directional command.
503: If there is an "undead" monster standing next to the player in the
504: specified direction, there is a chance the player will \fBa\fRffect the
505: monster by causing it to flee or possibly even destroying it.
506: .LI *
507: Count the gold in the player's pack.
508: .LI ^
509: This command sets a trap and is limited to thieves and assassins.
510: If the character is successful, Rogue prompts the player for a type of trap
511: and sets it where the player is standing.
512: .LI G
513: This command is restricted to thieves and assassins.
514: It causes Rogue to display all the gold on the current level.
515: .LI D
516: \fBD\fRip something into a magic pool.
517: .LI ^T
518: This command is restricted to thieves and assassins.
519: It must be followed by a directional command.
520: If there is a monster standing next to the player in the specified direction,
521: the player tries to \fBs\fRteal an item from the monster's pack.
522: If the player is successful, the monster does not notice anything, but if
523: the player is unsuccessful, there is a chance the monster will wake up.
524: .LI ^L
525: Redraw the screen.
526: .LI ^R
527: \fBR\fRepeat the last message that was displayed on the top line of the screen.
528: .LI ^[
529: Typing an escape will usually cause Rogue to cancel the current command.
530: .LI v
531: Print the current Rogue \fBv\fRersion number.
532: .LI !
533: Escape to the shell.
534: .LI S
535: Quit and \fBs\fRave the game for resumption at a later time.
536: .LI Q
537: \fBQ\fRuit without saving the game.
538: .LE
539: .H 1 "IMPLICIT COMMANDS"
540: There is no "attack" command.
541: If a player wishes to attack a monster, the player simply tries to
542: move onto the spot where the monster is standing.
543: The game then assumes that the player wishes to attack the monster
544: with whatever weapon the player is wielding.
545: .P
546: When the player moves onto an item, the game automatically places the
547: object into the player's pack.
548: If there is no room left in the pack, the game announces that fact and
549: leaves the item on the floor.
550: .H 1 TIME
551: All actions except for purely bookkeeping commands, such as taking an
552: inventory, take time.
553: The amount of time varies with the command.
554: Swinging a weapon, for example, takes more time than simply moving;
555: so a monster could move several spaces in the time it takes the player
556: to make one attack.
557: The time it takes to swing a weapon also varies based on the bulk of the
558: weapon, and the time it takes to simply move a space varies with the type
559: of armor worn.
560: Movement is always faster when flying.
561: .P
562: Since actions take time, some of them can be disrupted.
563: If the player is casting a spell, for example, and gets hit before finishing
564: it, the spell is lost.
565: Similarly, the player might choke if hit while trying to eat.
566: Of course, the same rule applies when the player hits a monster.
567: .P
568: Magical hasting (or slowing) will decrease (or increase) the time it takes
569: to perform an action.
570: .H 1 LIGHT
571: Some rooms in the dungeon possess a natural light source.
572: In other rooms and in corridors the player can see only those things
573: within a one space radius from the player.
574: These dark rooms can be lit with magical light or by a \fIfire beetle\fR.
575: .H 1 "WEAPONS AND ARMOR"
576: The player can wield exactly one weapon at a time.
577: When the player attacks a monster, the amount of damage depends on the
578: particular weapon the player is wielding.
579: To fire a projectile weapon, such as a crossbow or a short bow, the player
580: should wield the bow and "throw" the bolt or arrow at the monster.
581: .P
582: A weapon may be cursed or blessed, affecting the likelihood of hitting a
583: monster with the weapon and the damage the weapon will inflict on the monster.
584: If the player has identified a weapon, the "to hit" and "to damage" bonuses
585: appear in that order before the weapon's name in an inventory listing.
586: A positive bonus indicates a blessed weapon, and a negative bonus usually
587: indicates a cursed weapon.
588: The player cannot release a cursed weapon.
589: .P
590: Without any armor the player has an armor class of 10.
591: The lower the player's armor class, the harder it is for a monster to hit
592: the player, so
593: wearing armor can improve the player's armor class.
594: A cursed suit of armor, however, offers poor protection and may sometimes be
595: worse than no armor at all.
596: .P
597: After the player has identified a suit of armor, the protection bonus appears
598: before the armor's name in an inventory listing.
599: If the bonus is positive the armor is blessed, and if it is negative, the
600: armor is usually cursed.
601: The player cannot remove a cursed suit of armor.
602: .P
603: Some monsters can corrode armor when they hit it.
604: If such a monster hits the player when the player is wearing metal armor,
605: the armor loses some of its protection value, but the corrosion does not
606: curse the armor.
607: This corrosive property can also apply to weapons when the player hits
608: such a monster.
609: .H 1 "POTIONS AND SCROLLS"
610: The player can frequently find potions and scrolls in the dungeon.
611: In any given dungeon, the player can distinguish among the different types
612: of potions by a potion's color and among the different types of scrolls
613: by a scroll's name.
614: Quaffing a potion or reading a scroll usually causes some magical occurrence.
615: Most potions and scrolls may be cursed or blessed.
616: .H 1 RINGS
617: The player can wear a maximum of eight rings, and
618: they have a magical effect on the player as long as they are worn.
619: Some rings also speed up the player's metabolism, making the player require
620: food more often.
621: Many rings can be cursed or blessed, and the player cannot remove a
622: cursed ring.
623: The player can distinguish among different types of rings by a ring's jewel.
624: .H 1 "WANDS AND STAVES"
625: Wands and staves affect the player's environment.
626: The player can zap a wand or staff at something and perhaps shoot a bolt
627: of lightning at it or teleport it away.
628: All wands or staves of the same type are constructed with the same type of wood.
629: Some wands and staves may be cursed or blessed.
630: .H 1 FOOD
631: The player must be careful not to run out of food since moving through the
632: dungeon fighting monsters consumes a lot of energy.
633: Starving results in the player's fainting for increasingly longer periods
634: of time, during which any nearby monster can attack the player freely.
635: .P
636: Food comes in the form of standard rations and as a variety of berries.
637: Some berries have side effects in addition to satisfying one's hunger.
638: .H 1 GOLD
639: Gold has one use in a dungeon:~ buying things.
640: One can buy things in two ways, either in a \fItrading post\fR or from a
641: \fIquartermaster\fR.
642: A trading post is a place that sometimes occurs "between levels" of the
643: dungeon and can be entered by stepping on the entrance.
644: A quartermaster is a person who will sometimes appear and
645: will try to sell the player some of his wares.
646: These wares are never cursed and frequently blessed, though blessed goods
647: cost more than normal goods.
648: If the player chooses to buy one of the quartermaster's items, the
649: quartermaster trades the item for the specified amount of gold and
650: disappears.
651: Attacking a quartermaster causes him to vanish without offering
652: a trade.
653: .P
654: The player starts the game in a trading post with a class-dependent allotment
655: of gold.
656: Although there are restrictions on the use of some items (eg. only fighters,
657: paladins, and rangers can wield two-handed swords), the market will happily
658: sell the player anything that he can afford.
659:
660: .H 1 "MISCELLANEOUS MAGIC ITEMS"
661: Miscellaneous items such as a pair of boots or a book may be found within the
662: dungeon.
663: These items can usually be used to the player's advantage (assuming they are
664: not cursed).
665: Some of these items can be worn, such as a cloak, while others are to be used,
666: such as a book.
667: .H 1 "ARTIFACTS"
668: Some monsters down in the depths of the dungeon carry unique artifacts.
669: The game begins as a quest to retrieve one of these items.
670: Each artifact appears only on its owner's person.
671: These items also can usually be used to the player's advantage. However,
672: care must be taken when handling them for they are intelligent and will
673: reject mishandling or abuse. These items consume food and merely carrying
674: them will result in increased food use.
675: .H 1 TRAPS
676: A variety of traps, including trap doors, bear traps, and sleeping traps, are
677: hidden in the dungeon.
678: They remain hidden until sprung by a monster or the player.
679: A sprung trap continues to function, but since it is visible, an intelligent
680: monster is not likely to tread on it.
681: .H 1 "THE MONSTERS"
682: Each monster except for the merchant \fIquartermaster\fR appears in
683: a limited range of dungeon levels.
684: All monsters of the same type share the same abilities;
685: all \fIgiant rats\fR, for example, can give the player a disease, and
686: all \fIjackalweres\fR can put the player to sleep.
687: Monsters of the same type can vary, however, such that one \fIkobold\fR
688: may be much more difficult to kill than another one.
689: In general, the more difficult it is to kill a monster, the more
690: experience points the monster is worth.
691: .P
692: Most monsters attack by biting and clawing, but some monsters carry
693: weapons, including such projectile weapons as short bows and crossbows,
694: and some monsters have breath weapons.
695: Some monsters even use magical items, such as wands.
696: Monsters with distance weapons or magic can attack the player from across a room
697: or down a corridor.
698: .P
699: Some monsters are more intelligent than others, and the more intelligent
700: a monster, the more likely that the monster will run away if it is about
701: to die.
702: A fleeing monster will not attack the player unless cornered.
703: .P
704: It is sometimes possible to enlist a monster's aid.
705: Reading a \fIcharm monster\fR scroll, for example, or singing a \fIcharm
706: monster\fR chant can make a monster believe the player is its friend.
707: A charmed monster will fight hostile monsters for the player as long as they are
708: not of its race.
709: .P
710: As the player moves down in the dungeon, the monsters get more powerful.
711: Deep down in the dungeon there exist some one-of-a-kind monsters.
712: These monsters are greatly feared.
713: However, once a "unique monster" is killed, the player will not find
714: another in the current dungeon.
715: .H 1 OPTIONS
716: Rogue has several options which may be set by the player:~
717: .VL 7
718: .LI \fBterse\fR
719: Setting this Boolean option results in shorter messages appearing on
720: the top line of the screen.
721: .LI \fBjump\fR
722: Setting this Boolean option results in waiting until the player has
723: finished running to draw the player's path.
724: Otherwise the game always displays the path one step at a time.
725: .LI \fBstep\fR
726: Setting this Boolean option results in most listings, such as an inventory,
727: appearing one item at a time on the top line of the screen.
728: When this option is not set, the game clears the screen, displays the
729: list, and then redraws the dungeon.
730: .LI \fBflush\fR
731: Setting this Boolean option results in flushing all typeahead (pending) commands
732: when the player encounters a monster.
733: .LI \fBaskme\fR
734: Setting this Boolean option results in the game prompting the player for a
735: name upon encountering a new type of scroll, potion, ring, staff, or wand.
736: .LI \fBpickup\fR
737: This option specifys whether items should be picked up automatically as the
738: rogue steps over them.
739: In the non-automatic mode, the player may still pick up items via the
740: pickup (P) command.
741: The option defaults to true.
742: .LI \fBname\fR
743: This string is the player's name and defaults to the player's account name.
744: .LI \fBfile\fR
745: This string, which defaults to rogue.save, specifies the file to use for
746: saving the game.
747: .LI \fBscore\fR
748: This string identifies the top-twenty score file to use for the game.
749: .LI \fBclass\fR
750: This option specifies the character class of the rogue.
751: It can be set only in the ROGUEOPTS environment variable.
752: .LI \fBquested~item\fR
753: .br
754: This option is set by the game at the start and cannot be reset by the player.
755: It is merely listed to remind the player of his quest.
756: .LE
757: .P
758: The player can set options at the beginning of a game via the ROGUEOPTS
759: environment variable.
760: Naming a Boolean option sets it, and preceding the Boolean option name by
761: "no" clears it.
762: The syntax "stringoption=name" sets a string option to "name."~
763: So setting ROGUEOPTS to
764: "terse, jump, nostep, flush, askme, name=Ivan~the~Terrible"
765: would set the \fIterse, jump, flush\fR, and \fIaskme\fR Boolean options,
766: clear the \fIstep\fR Boolean option, set the player's
767: \fIname\fR to "Ivan the Terrible," and use the defaults for
768: the \fIsave file\fR and the \fIscore file\fR.
769: .P
770: The player may change an option at any time during the game
771: via the \fBoption\fR command, which results in a listing of
772: the current options.
773: Typing a new value changes the option, a RETURN moves to the
774: next option, a '-' moves to the previous option, and an ESCAPE
775: returns the player to the dungeon.
776: .H 1 SCORING
777: The player receives experience points for stealing items from
778: monsters, turning monsters (a clerical ability), and killing
779: monsters.
780: When the player gets killed, the player's score equals the player's
781: experience points.
782: A player who quits gets a score equal to the player's experience
783: points and gold.
784: If the player makes it back up out of the dungeon, the player's
785: score equals the player's experience points plus the gold the
786: player carried and the gold received from selling the player's
787: possessions.
788: .P
789: Rogue maintains a list of the top twenty scores to date, together
790: with the name of the player obtaining the score, the level where
791: the player finished, and the manner in which the player ended the
792: game.
793: As an installation option, the game may record only one entry per
794: character type and login;
795: this restriction encourages a greater number of different players
796: in the scorechart.
797: .H 1 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
798: This version of Rogue is based on a version developed at the
799: University of California.
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