Game Killer/Game_Killer.bin/472.L-MANUAL.TXT

Text File | 1993-08-05 | 18KB | 446 lines

Choosing a champion
    After the cinematic introduction, four characters will appear.
Click on the portrait of the character you wish to play through-
out this adventure.

    Ak' Shel  "Do my looks frighten you?  Magic runs strong
    amongst my people.  I may not seem as sturdy as the oth-
    ers, but I'm far more adept with the various magics of the
    Lands."

    Michael  "Let's not have any fooling around her.  Strong is
    strong!  Trust your instincts on this one.  I'm the best fighter
    of the bunch--a natural!"

    Kieran  "Strength, magic...what good is it all if you can't
    dodge blows?  I'm fast!  Quick!  If you want to win this quest
    quickly, you had better pick me."

    Conrad  "I'm the most well-rounded champion for your
    cause.  With all the dangers in the Lands, you will need
    someone with my adaptability."

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Adventure screen
3D view
The 3D view is the "window" to your adventures in the Lands.

Taking items                            Using items
To take an item in-hand from            To consume or use an item in-
the 3D view or inventory bar,           hand, position it over the por-
move the mouse pointer over             trait of the person you want to
the item and left-click (press          use it on, and right-click (move
the left mouse button).                 the mouse pointer over the
                    item and press the right
Throwing items                          mouse button).  To drink a
An object in-hand can be                potion, place it in-hand and
thrown by left-clicking in the          right click it on a character's
upper two-thirds of the 3D              portrait.  The only exception is
view.                                   using weapons; see Combat
                    (page 11) for more details.
Dropping items
An item in-hand can be
dropped or placed in the 3D
view by clicking in the lower
third of the view.

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Adventure screen

Examining the Lands
    Left-clicking on items, decorations, and scenery in the Lands
may reveal valuable hints or hidden items.  Tapestries, paintings,
and doors are just a few of the things in Gladstone Keep which
you can examine by left-clicking.  Be sure to fully explore the
Lands for clues and lost treasure!

Maps of the Lands
    Once you have acquired the Magic Atlas, you can use it to look
up your position.  When you find the Atlas, left-click on it.  A map
will appear.  Your current location will be indicated on the map by
a flashing arrowhead.  Any areas you have explored since finding
the Magic Atlas will be shown.  The Atlas has two arrow buttons on
it.  Left-click on the left arrow button to turn to the previous map.
Left-click on the right arrow button to turn to the next map.  Left-
click on the Exit button to return to the Lands.

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Adventure screen
Finding your way in the dark
Dungeons and underground caverns are often dark.  This can
make exploring tricky.  You will want to find a lantern as soon
as possible.  Lanterns automatically provide light when you
enter dark areas.  As the oil in the lantern is used up, the
lantern will begin to dim.  You will need to find oil for you
lantern if it runs low.  Left-click on your lantern to see how
much oil remains.

Money purse
    Silver crowns are the standard unit of currency in Gladstone.

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Adventure screen
Portraits
    Portraits of the characters in
your party appear below the 3D
view.
    Left clicking on a character's
portrait will bring up his character
screen.  This screen shows his
equipment, skill levels, and ability
scores.

            The two action buttons are for combat and
        spell-casting.  When you click the combat but-
        ton, the character will attack with whatever
        weapons are in his hands, or with his bare
        hands if he is unarmed.  When the button is
        deactivated (grayed), he is recovering from his
        swing, and will not be able to strike again until
        the button is active.  See Combat (page 11) for
        more details.
            When you click the spell button, the charac-
        ter will cast whatever spell is selected from the
        spell book.  After the spell button is clicked,
        you must choose which level of spell you wish
        to cast; if the power level is grayed, the charac-
        ter is not yet powerful enough to cast that level.

            The two color bands to the right of the
        portrait represent the character's magic and
        health.  Clicking here will give the numeric
        equivalent of his Magic bar and Health bar.

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Character screen
    Left-clicking on a portrait will bring up that character's screen.
This screen shows his equipment, skill levels, and ability scores.

Equipping the character
    To equip a character, place an item in the corresponding equip-
ment box.  The character's equipment will affect his ability scores
(see page 7).  Shields, armor, robes, boots, helmets and other
such equipment will affect the character's Protection.  The charac-
ter is armed with whatever weapon is placed in his hand; this
affects his Might.

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Character screen

Ability scores
    Ability scores reflect the character's latent strength enhanced by
armament or other equipment.  Latent abilites vary from charac-
ter to character; when a character is wearing no armor or no
weapons, the base ability score is shown.  Whenever he changes
weapons or armament, the affected ability score will aso change.

        Might determines the amount of damage a character
    inflicts when you click on his combat button.  When you
    place a weapon in his hand, this number will change to
    reflect the offensive ability of that weapon.  Soome weapons
    will do more damage than others, some are magaic, and
    some have hidden advantages.  Experiment with various
    weapons and see which gives you the best advantage in
    combat.

        Protection reflects the character's defenses against
    injury and attack.  This is a combination of the character's
    natural agility, the thickness of his hide, and the protective
    gear he's wearing.  Magical armor, jewelry, and even some
    weapons may also change this score.

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Character screen
Skill levels
    A character's abilities as a Fighter, Rogue, and Mage are reflect-
ed here as skill levels.  The meter bar shows how close the char-
acter is to advancing to the next skill level.  Your character starts
his quest as a beginner in all skill categories.

    Fighter skill determines how well a character fights in
    hand-to-hand combat.  In the danger-fraught Lands,
    there are plenty of opportunities to improve this skill
    through combat.

    Rogue skill determines how well a character can pick
    locks and use bows and thrown weapons.  Practice
    makes perfect: the more you pick locks and use bows,
    the quicker your Rogue skill will advance.  Characters
    with a high Rogue skill will also be more likely to locate
    traps and items hidden in the Lands.

    A character's Mage level determines his ability to cast
    spells.  Cast spells frequently to improve this skill.  As
    this skill advances, the character can cast more complex
    spells more quickly.  Acquiring spell scrolls and using
    magical items may boost magic levels.

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Character screen
Advancing skills
        The meter bar next to each skill name reflects how far
    the character is towards advancing that skill to the next
    level.  Advancement requires experience.
        When your character is the only one in the party, then
    all you do counts toward your character's experience and
    skill advancement.  When there is more than one character
    in the party, click on the portrait, combat button, or spell
    button to make one of the characters the active character.
    The active character is indicated by the box around the
    character's portrait.  This indicates that this character's
    skills and abilities are currently used.
        For example, when you pick a lock, you are employing
    the active character's Rogue skill.  For the best chance of
    success, click on the portrait of the character with the
    highest Rogue skill level.  This will make that character the
    active character, and in picking the lock you are employing
    his high Rogue skill.

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Character screen
Status symbols
    The status symbols indicate if the character is poisoned, sleep-
ing or stunned.

    Poison
    A poisoned character will grow sicker and sicker,
    his Health bar reducing gradually, until he falls
    unconscious.  Use ginseng or a high-level Heal
    spell to stop the poisoning.

    Sleep
    A character in an unnatural sleep is affected by
    sleeping gases or magic.  He'll eventually awak-
    en, over time.

    Stun
    A stunned character is unable to fight--i.e., the
    spell button and combat button are inactive--
    because he is recovering from a particularly hard
    blow.  The effect is temporary, unless he keeps getting
    stunning blows.  In that case, better move out, fast!

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Combat
    Combat in the Lands is real-time.  Monsters won't wait for you
to decide what to do.  Fight or flee!

    Attacking
        To attack a monster, left-click on a character's combat
    button.  That character will strike with the weapon in his
    hand (see Equipping, page 6).  While recovering, the
    combat button is deactivated, and the character cannot
    strike again until the button is reactivated.
        You can also fight with magic.  The magic of the Lands
    is a wondrous thing and certainly isn't limited to just
    fighting your way out of (or into) trouble.  But it helps.

    Damage
        When your attack is successful,
    a number will appear on the com-
    bat button indicating how much
    damage was done to your oppo-
    nent.  The amount of damage is
    determined by your character's
    weapon and Might.
        The same rules apply when you
    opponent attacks you.  If your
    opponent's attack is successful, a
    number appears over the charac-
    ter's portrait, indicating how much
    damage was done.  The amount of
    damage will also be reflected by a
    decreasing Health bar.

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Combat
Injury & recovery
        The Health bar will decrease as a character takes dam-
    age.  If the Health bar is red, that character is in grave dan-
    ger; a single blow could render him unconscious.  If all
    characters in the party are unconscious, the game ends.
        When your character is unconscious, he cannot be
    healed by rest alone.  You must use aloe, ginseng, salve or
    magic to restore consciousness.

    Resting
        To rest, left-click the rest button.  This
    is the easiest way to heal injuries and
    restore magic.  As long as a character is
    conscious, he can fully recover his health
    by resting.  If your party is resting in an
    unsafe place, there's a good chance mon-
    sters will interrupt your repose.

Medicinals
    Medicinals can be used at any time, even in the middle
of combat.  Different medicinals have different potencies
and their effect will vary, but even weak medicines are
useful for restoring consciousness.  Aloe is used for minor
healing.  A salve is a more potent healing agent.  Ginseng
is special because it will cure poison as well.

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Combat
Weapons
    Each weapon affects Might and Protection scores differently.
For purposes of combat, there are three types of weapons: cut-
ting, crushing, and puncture.  When fighting a particularly tough
opponent, consider the difference between bladed and bluntel
weapons.  Opponents with unusally tough hides, such as the
giant lizards of the Southlands, are resistant to blades.  In this
instance, a blunt mace is much more effective.

Armor
    You can greatly improve a
character's Protection score by
equipping him with armor.  The
more Protection he has, the
more difficult it will be for ene-
mies to injure him in combat.

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Magic
Casting spells
    Before you acquire a spell book, you can cast a combat spell
called Spark by left-clicking on the spell button and choosing a
level to cast.
    To cast a spell from your spell book, select the spell by left-
clicking on the spell's name.  Then, click on a character's spell
button and choose which level of that spell you wish to cast.  The
higher the level of the spell, the more magic (as indicated by the
magic bar) it will require of the character, and the more damage
that spell will do.

Spell book
    Eventually you will acquire a spell book.  All the spells your
characters can cast are listed here.  The selected spell is always
printed in red.  To select a different spell, left-click on it.

Magic
    The amount of magic a character has is based on his Mage skill.
As the Mage skill increases, the character's magic increases as
well.  The Magic bar by the character's portrait indicates how
much magic he has.

Magic scrolls
    Throughout your adventures, you will find scrolls that have
spells written on them.  To add these spells to your spell book,
take the scroll in hand and right-click on the character's portrait.

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Shopping
Buying
    In a shop, left-click on the item that you wish to purchase.  If
that item is for sale the proprietor will name the price.  When an
item is purchased, the silver crowns will be automatically deduct-
ed from your purse, and the item will be placed in your inventory
bar.

Selling
    Most shops will also buy items.  To sell an item to a proprietor,
take the item in-hand and left-click in the 3D view.

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Options
    Click on the disk icon to bring up the Options menu.  The
    Options menu allows you to load a game, save a game,
    delete a game, bring up the Game controls menu, or quit
    playing.

Load a game
Left-click on this button to see a
list of previously saved games.
Left click on the description of
the game you wish to load and
resume playing.  If you have
saved more than five games,
directional arrow buttons will appear, allowing you to scroll
through all the games you have saved.  If you have not yet saved
any games, your only choice will be Main Menu.  Left-clicking on
this will return you to the main Options menu.

Save this game
Left-click on this button to bring up a list of previously saved
games.  If you have not yet saved any games your only choice will
be [Empty Slot].  Left-clicking on a previously saved game will per-
manently replace that game.  Left clicking on [Empty Slot] will cre-
ate a new save-game entry.  Once you have typed in the descrip-
tion, left-click on the save game button or Return.

NOTE: If the empty slot button is not present, there is not enough
space on your hard drive to create a new save game.  Delete pre-
viously saved games to make room.  You may save a new game
over a previously saved game; however, this will permanently
replace the previous game!

Delete a game
Left-click on this button to bring up your list of previously saved
games.  Left-click on the description of the game you wish to
delete.  You will be asked to confirm your selection.  Be careful!
Answering "Yes" will permanently remove the game from your hard
drive.  If you have not yet saved any games, your only choice will
be Main Menu.  Left-clicking on this will return you to the main
Options menu.

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Options
Game controls
Left-click on this button to bring up the Game controls menu.  The
Game controls menu allows you to adjust the music, sounds,
monster difficulty, 3D smooth scrolling and floating cursor.

    Music
    Left-click on this button to toggle the music on or off.

    Sound
    Left-click on this button to toggle sound effects on or off.

    Monsters
    Left-click on this button to cycle through three difficulty levels for
    monsters: Wimpy, Normal or Ferocious.  "Wimpy" reduces the mon-
    sters' Health and attack effectiveness.  "Ferocious" increases the
    monsters' Health and attack effectiveness.

    Smooth scrolling
    Left-click on this button to change the way you move around in the
    Lands.  "Yes" activates the smooth 3D scrolling system.  Selecting
    "No" will speed up movement on slower systems.

    Floating cursor
    Left-click on this button to change the way your mouse cursor
    works in the Lands.  Turning the floating cursor on transforms your
    mouse cursor to a movement arrow when it's near
    the edges of the 3D view.  Left-clicking while the
    cursor is a movement arrow will move you in the
    indicated direction.  When the floating cursor
    becomes a circle with a slash through it you cannot
    move in that direction.

    Resume game
    Left-click on this button to return to the Lands and continue play-
    ing.

Exit game
Left-click on this button in the Options menu when you are done
playing.  You may wish to save your game before exiting.

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