D C - P L A Y
GAME PLAYER'S USER'S GUIDE
Version 2.00 - Oct 1991
copyright (c) 1989 - 1991
DC Software
6705 Laramie Dr.
Plano, Texas 75023
T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S
1.0 Getting started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.1 Hardware Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 Software Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
2.0 Creating a new character . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.1 Character Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.2 Character Attributes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3.0 Playing the Adventure Game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3.1 Gaining Experience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3.2 Interacting with other characters . . . . . . . . . 8
3.3 Moving Around . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.4 The party's spokesbeing . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.5 Talking to other characters . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3.6 Saving, Restoring and Restarting a game . . . . . 11
4.0 Quick Reference Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.1 Single Letter Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.2 Function_Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.0 Getting started
1.1 Hardware Requirements
This software will run in under 384K, leaving plenty of space
for your TSR's, device drivers, etc. The higher the resolution,
the more memory the program will require, but the difference
between running in CGA low resolution and VGA high resolution is
usually about 64K of RAM!
Depending on the size and complexity of the worlds, this program
may need more memory, but I've yet to run out of memory.
1.2 Software Requirements
Before you can start playing a game, you should have the
following files in your current directory:
o The ADVENTURE GAME files
These files should have been distributed in an archived
format, so they can be kept together. If the adventure is
distributed as an EXE file, then you can probably expand
it by typing the name of the adventure file. If the
file is a ZIP, ARC or similar file, you will need the
un-archiving program that can reverse the process. The best
archiving process available right now is from PKWARE (PKZIP
and PKUNZIP). It's distributed as shareware and is not very
expensive.
An adventure should include the following files:
- WORLD.IDX Index to world files
- WORLD.nnn World # nnn
- WORLDO.nnn Objects and Characters in World # nnn
- WORLD.TXT Pre 2.00 release introduction text
- INTRO.TXT New introduction text file.
- PLAYERS.DTA Character Statistics File
- PARAMS.DTA Adventure-wide parameter's file.
- TEXT.DTA Text blocks for entire adventure.
- HINT.DTA Hints file for entire adventure
o The run-time program files
The run-time module DCPLAY.EXE is needed to run this
adventure. This file does not have to be located in the
same place as the adventure game, but if it isn't, then
it must be executed by indicating a complete <path> to
the file, or the location of the file must be included in
the DOS 'path' environment variable. This documentation is
usually distributed along with the program as DCPLAY.DOC.
Both files are usually ZIPed as PLAYER.ZIP or DCGPLY.ZIP (on
CompuServe).
o The graphics environment files
The files DCBLOCKS.xxx, DCOBJECT.xxx, DCPLAYER.xxx and
DCSYSTEM.xxx contain the graphics building blocks for the
adventure. The 'xxx' is the code from the following table of
graphics modes:
----------------- GRAPHICS HARDWARE SUPPORT ----------------
Resolution Description Colors Code Disk Space
---------- ---------------------- ------ ---- -----------
320 x 200 CGA low resolution 4 CLO + 40KB |
640 x 200 CGA high resolution 2 CHI + 70KB |
320 x 200 MCGA low resolution 16 MGA + 55KB |
320 x 200 TANDY's low resolution 16 TDY + 63KB |
640 x 200 EGA low resolution 16 ELO + 94KB |
320 x 200 VGA low resolution 256 VLO + 63KB |
640 x 480 VGA high resolution 16 VHI + 221KB |
The file DCFONTS.7X5 contains the graphics fonts.
Note that these files are usually archived as GRAPHICS.ZIP or
DCGxxx.ZIP in the CompuServe system, where xxx is again the
graphics mode desired.
Only the graphics files for the desired resolution are
needed.
To start playing type:
DCPLAY [-xxx]
Where the xxx is one of the graphics modes above. If you omit a
mode, the program will choose the highest resolution and maximum
number of colors for which it can find graphics files, and which
your hardware will support.
Page 2 DCPLAY - Adventure Game Player
2.0 Creating a new character
When you start an adventure, you will have a chance to create
a character. You can select a graphics block, a name and a
TYPE of character. You can distribute 25 points between the
different attributes in the best possible way for your chosen
character type.
2.1 Character Types
When choosing a character type, you should consider the special
attributes and restrictions (if any) that the character type
has. For example, a Fighter cannot use any magical items, but
can use any weapon, armor or shield. A Wizard on the other
hand, cannot use weapons very effectively, but instead must use
it's Power and intelligence to overcome obstacles.
For each of the following character types, the basic attributes
are listed. You will get 25 additional points to spread across
all of the attributes. The next section deals with character
attributes and their specifics.
o Human
Human beings have no special abilities, but neither are they
restricted in the kind of weapons, armor or shields that they
can use. While they can't cast magic spells (no power),
they can use any magical item. They can carry up to 60 lbs
total. (Including items being worn, like weapons, armor and
shields).
Str: 09 Spd: 09 Aim: 09 Dex: 09 IQ: 09 Pwr: 00 HP: 09
o Elf
These strange beings can move very quickly, and can cast
spells, but are not very strong.
Elves can use any kind of weapon, armor or shield, as long as
it weights less than 5 lbs. This usually implies a magical
weapon, or at least one made of very special materials.
Elves are long lived, and gain power very slowly, so it's
important that they have a high Power rating to start with.
On the other hand, the power they consume is regained very
quickly.
They can normally carry up to 60 lbs.
DCPLAY - Adventure Game Player Page 3
Str: 07 Spd: 10 Aim: 09 Dex: 09 IQ: 09 Pwr: 12 HP: 09
o Dwarf
Dwarfs are cave dwellers. While small in stature, they are
very strong and sturdy (+1 Strength, +1 Dexterity, +2 Hit
Points, -2 Speed).
They can use any contact weapon (blunt or edged), and any
kind of armor but cannot use missile weapons or shields.
They have no Power, and thus cannot cast spells.
Dwarfs can normally carry up to 120 lbs.
Str: 10 Spd: 07 Aim: 09 Dex: 10 IQ: 09 Pwr: 00 HP: 11
o Wizard
A wizard is a human being born with magical abilities.
They spend a lot of time studying and usually have poor
constitution (low Hit Points).
Their high I.Q. let's them gain Power points very fast
as they gain experience and advance to higher levels.
Unfortunately, they are not very good with weapons, and
can only use one-handed, blunt or edged weapons (no missile
weapons). This means that in hand to hand combat they are
likely to be killed. They can't use any kind of shields, as
it would hinder their ability to cast spells, and can only
use very light armor (up to 5 lbs).
They can normally carry only about 30 lbs.
Str: 09 Spd: 09 Aim: 09 Dex: 09 IQ: 11 Pwr: 12 HP: 07
o Archer
An archer is a highly trained fighter, whose training has
focused on missile weapons at a cost to their hand-to-hand
skills. Armed with a good missile weapon, they can be very
effective in a fight.
They can only use light armor and weapons (up to 10 lbs) and
no shields.
They can normally carry about 40 lbs.
Str: 07 Spd: 11 Aim: 11 Dex: 09 IQ: 09 Pwr: 00 HP: 09
o Fighter
Page 4 DCPLAY - Adventure Game Player
A fighter is a human being that has trained extensively in
the use of heavy weaponry. They are very strong and agile,
and have learned to rely on their skills. A good fighter
knows he/she can count on their weapons and their own skills
at all times. They have a deep contempt of magical items
(other than magical weapons), and will never use any magical
item (like rings, amulets, gems or scrolls). (+4 Strength,
+2 Hit Points) at a cost (-2 I.Q. and the inability to use
magic staffs, rings, amulets, or invoke magic scrolls or
gems).
A fighter can use any kind of weapon, armor and shield and
can carry about 100 lbs.
Str: 13 Spd:09 Aim: 09 Dex: 09 IQ: 07 Pwr: 00 HP: 11
2.2 Character Attributes
All characters have attributes such as strength, speed, I.Q.,
etc. Some attributes are more important than others, and
different character types have different attribute requirements.
For example, a Fighter has no need for a high I.Q., strength is
their primary need. On the other side, a Wizard has no need for
strength and needs all the I.Q. it can get.
The following is a re-cap of the character's initial attributes.
You may distribute an additional 25 points between the different
attributes to 'customize' your character:
Type Strength Speed Aim Dexterity I.Q. Power Hit Points
------ -------- ----- --- -------- ----- ----- ----------
Human 09 09 09 09 09 00 09
Elf 07 10 09 09 09 12 09
Dwarf 10 07 09 10 09 00 11
Wizard 09 09 09 09 11 12 07
Archer 07 11 11 09 09 00 09
Fighter 13 09 09 09 07 00 11
When a character's attributes exceed a certain value, the
character will get additional effect when using the attribute.
For example, a very strong person will do extra damage points in
hand-to-hand combat. In general, the following table describes
the "additional effect" of a high attribute:
ATTRIBUTE VALUE EFFECT
---------------------- ------------------------
Less than 09 May have negative effect
09 through 15 No special effect
16 through 18 +1 effect
19 through 20 +2 effect
DCPLAY - Adventure Game Player Page 5
21 through 30 +3 effect
31 through 40 +4 effect
etc..
There are 8 character attributes:
o Strength
In hand-to-hand combat, you will do more damage when using
contact weapons. You will also be able to carry 10
additional pounds for each "additional effect" point.
o Speed
Speed is important in a battle, as it may allow you to strike
more than once per round. If your speed exceeds that of
your current foe by more than 10 points, you will be able to
strike twice. If it exceeds it by more than 20 points you
will be able to strike 3 times.
o Aim
Aim betters your chance of hitting a target with a missile
weapon. It doesn't affect hand-to-hand combat. In general,
you can expect to hit a target about 1 out of 2 times. An
additional point from aim will better the chances to 2 out of
3 another point will make it 5 out of 6, and any more points
will always hit.
o Dexterity
This attribute is important in combat, as it helps in
avoiding getting hit! It also helps to avoid traps when you
try to break the lock in a chest or door.
A character with dexterity under 9 might have trouble using
weapons, and might harm him/her-self during combat.
o I.Q.
A wizard's I.Q. will help him/her gain extra power when
promoted to a new level. A wizard with a low I.Q. might
actually loose Power when promoted to a new level!
o Power
A magic user (Wizard or Elf) consumes POWER points when
casting a spell. Power is replenished with time and rest.
o Hit Points
Page 6 DCPLAY - Adventure Game Player
This is the amount of damage that a player can take before
dying. Note that a player with only 1 h.p. is unconscious.
Extra hit points are earned when you are promoted to a new
level.
o Armor Class
This attribute depends on the armor you are wearing, as well
as the magical items and/or spells that may protect you at
any given time. The higher your a.c. the less damage you
suffer after being hit.
DCPLAY - Adventure Game Player Page 7
3.0 Playing the Adventure Game
3.1 Gaining Experience
When you play the game, you will get experience points for every
point of damage done to a monster during battle. You will also
get experience (and a reward) for performing "quests".
When your experience reaches a certain level, you will be
automatically advanced to the next level, and you will get
additional hit points.
Depending on your character type, you will also get additional
points in:
Type Attributes
--------- ----------------------
Human Strength
Elf Power (very slowly)
Dwarf Strength and Dexterity
Archer Aim and Speed
Wizard Power
Fighter Strength
3.2 Interacting with other characters
You will encounter many different characters during the course
of your adventures. When you interact with these characters,
they will react in different ways depending on their character
CLASS.
o Adventurer
This is someone that might be interested in joining your
party. Talk to them before you ask them to join your group.
If you want someone to leave your party, they will take their
share of the group's gold, as well as all items in their back
pack. Use the Vacate command to ask a character to leave
your group.
o Merchant
Merchants buy and sell items. Their merchandise varies a
lot, but they usually concentrate on certain 'types' of items
like weapons, armor, food, magic potions, magical items, etc.
Page 8 DCPLAY - Adventure Game Player
Merchants will usually buy only items of a type similar to
the merchandize they carry. For example, an armorer (sells
armor, shields, etc) would not be interested in buying a
Magic Book.
o Civilian
Regular Folks. Might be a good source of information.
o Bartender
The bartender at the local pub is a good source of
information, but drinking in excess will get you nowhere.
o Healer
Can heal your wounds, cure your poisoning, resurrect your
dead and remove cursed items (for a price, of course).
o Teller
These person can usually give you a good lead, but their
words may be cryptic and usually expensive.
o Trainer
Your character's can train to gain Strength, Dexterity, Aim
or I.Q. This is an expensive but quick way of building your
character's attributes.
o Beggar
While most beggars are worthless scum, and will try to steal
your money, beggars have been known to give good tips when
treated right.
o Questor
This person will give you a quest. If you accept, you
will have to go and get a specific object, for which the
questor will pay well. Finishing a quest will also give you
additional experience.
A questor may also ask you to find and bring a person. This
normally implies a rescue mission.
o Guard
A guard will not let you approach the door or passage it is
guarding. Talking to them can lead to a fight, unless you
are prepared to give it the password required. Some guards
have been known to take bribes.
DCPLAY - Adventure Game Player Page 9
3.3 Moving Around
You move around by using the arrow keys (up, down, left, right).
When you see a town or an entrance or exit, press the 'E' key to
Enter or Exit through the door.
Time passes every time you move. Characters will automatically
eat every 512 steps. If you run out of food, they will slowly
starve to dead (one hit point every 8 steps).
If a character get's poisoned, it will also loose 1 hit point
every 8 steps.
Hit points are regained every two steps (if you're healthy and
well fed).
Character's must rest (Camp Out) every 1000 steps. An exhausted
character will loose it's hit points at a rate of 1 point
every 8 steps. When you camp out, your attributes will
return to normal. This includes hit points as well as other
attributes modified by magical items or potions (if the effect
was temporary). You will be warned when your characters are
getting tired.
Remember to remove magical items before camping out, or their
effect will be re-invoked when you wake up. Most magical
effects have a limited number of uses!
If monsters appear while camping out, you may not have regained
all of your hit points, and the monsters will have the
initiative (first strike) because they caught you unprepared for
battle.
3.4 The party's spokesbeing
To set or change the party's "primary" character, type the
number of the character (1 through 6) or press "P" and select
the name from the menu.
If you want to see the statistics on the entire group, press 0.
The primary character remains selected and is highlighted on the
screen.
Commands like Get, Drop, Wield, Remove, Talk, etc., are always
performed by the primary character. Thus, if you talk to a
merchant, and buy something, it will be placed in the primary
character's back pack!
Page 10 DCPLAY - Adventure Game Player
Food and Gold are the general exception. They are always shared
by the entire party. If a food item is put in the backpack, it
probably means that it's not regular food! Some food has been
known to have strange effects (one of which is poisoning!).
3.5 Talking to other characters
When talking to other characters, you can use "keywords" to
conduct a conversation. Most characters know the following
keywords:
Keyword Description
------- ------------------------------------------
Name The character will respond with it's name.
Join Asks the character to join your party.
Bye Terminates the conversation.
A character's response to a keyword may usually lead you to
other keywords that the character may want to talk about.
Special characters (like merchants, healers, trainers, etc) will
show a menu of options that you can select from. If there is
a price associated with an option (such as buying an item), it
will be shown to the right of the menu entry in either gold
pieces (GP) or silver pieces (SP). Remember that there are 10
silver pieces in every gold piece.
Some special characters will also engage in conversation. In
such cases, the character will have a 'Talk' option in it's
menu.
3.6 Saving, Restoring and Restarting a game
Saving the game often is highly recommended. You can save up to
9 copies of the game (in slots 1-9).
If you need to stop playing, press F10 to suspend the game. The
current game is always saved in slot 0. When you come back, the
game will continue where you left off.
To go back to a saved game (restore) press F4 and indicate the
slot that you want to load.
Should you want to restart the game from the very beginning,
press F6.
If you choose any of the above option by mistake, press <ESC>.
DCPLAY - Adventure Game Player Page 11
4.0 Quick Reference Card
4.1 Single Letter Commands
0 - Show party summary stats.
1-6 - Select's primary character.
2 - Character 2 is primary.
A - Attack a group of monsters.
B - Board a vehicle (or mount it).
C - Camp Out. Rest for a little while.
D - Drop an object from your back pack.
E - Enter or Exit another world.
F -
G - Get object you are standing on or next to you.
H -
I - Inventory. Look's in your backpack.
J -
K -
L - Look. To examine something closely.
M -
N - iNvoke a magic scroll or a gem.
O -
P - Select primary character from menu.
Q - Quaff (eat or drink something in your backpack).
R - Remove weapon, armor, shield, ring, amulet or staff.
S - Spell. Cast a magic spell (Wizards and Elves only).
T - Talk to other characters.
U - Unlock a door or a chest.
V - Vacate. Let someone out of your party.
W - Wield or Wear weapon, shield, armor, ring, etc.
X - eXit a vehicle or dismount.
Y -
Z - Zap a monster with a magical staff.
4.2 Function_Keys
Key Description
--- ---------------------------------------------
F1 - Limited Help.
F2 - To SAVE the current game.
F4 - To RESTORE a saved game.
F6 - To RESTART a game from scratch.
F10 - Suspend the game and return to DOS. When
you start playing again the program will
resume where you left off.
Page 12 DCPLAY - Adventure Game Player
